Tanker Shipping Market Outlook Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Tanker Shipping Market Outlook - Case Study Example Finally, there would be capacity issues imposed by seaway regulations associated with allowable freight sizes that could further limit profitability and competitive advantage. The business recognizes cost issues in proposing new strategies, evident in recognition of RFID investment and concerns over the pricing model after investing in RFID. Is diversification the most effective strategy to improve the competitive position and profitability of Great Lakes Carriers or should the business continue with its current operational model for iron ore freight? D. Conduct a research study on safety risks associated with railroad transport versus lake shipment to present to customers currently using railroad for grain deliveries and enhancing railroad market share in the process. Solution A would be the most viable to GLC. Purchasing the new fleet would not only serve new markets and improve profitability, but it would also give the business more assets. Leszczynski (2009) identifies that new ships maintain almost the same depreciated value after five years as at the time of purchase. Thus, the life cycle of these ships gives more asset protection and would also improve the capacity of Great Lakes Carriers to gain more market share. The low capacity ships required due to size restrictions by regulatory forces on the lakes cost approximately 43 million USD (UNCTAD, 2006). It is also common practice in the maritime shipping industry to hedge against potential risks, such as demand decreases, through Freight Forward Agreements (Kavussanos, 2003). This could help offset the one-time high investment as well as new market share improvements. GLC should consult with new and used ship sellers to identify the most practical solutions for procurement.  

Product Cost and Budgetary Control Methodologies and Systems Essay

Product Cost and Budgetary Control Methodologies and Systems - Essay Example The budgetary control systems controls costs through the preparation of budgets, comparing actual performance with the budget. This allows the managers to act upon the budget and results in order to attain maximum profitability (FAO, 2010). Over the last two decades the computer world is changing how companies operate and report. The need to incorporate computerized systems in every business aspects is still ongoing research. Budget information systems and product cost systems are analysed in this report, their benefits and challenges they pose. The product cost and budgetary control methodologies and systems There are two budget control methodologies i.e. the budgets and the budgetary control. The budget is the formal statement that represents the projected financial resources that are needed to undertake business activities. Budgetary control on the other hand is a technique and a tool that is used by management to compare the budget with the actual performance. Any discrepancies a re then acted upon either by revising the budget or exercise control action. The budget information system (BIS) BIS has been in use for the last 25 years having been used for budgetary needs in schools, cities and even countries. BIS integrates all the budget functions into one single application. These functions are capital budgets, human resources, operations, performance measures, reports and producing final budget documents. The system provides all the necessary features for maximizing the efficiency of the budget process. BIS is software that interfaces with the finance, personnel and payroll departments. It then condenses the historical data into database structures. This enhances performance in strategic planning, reporting, document processing, capital planning and improvements. Benefits of BIS The system improves overall performance by enhancing planning process. The system reduces errors hence planning is made easier and effective. The use of BIS accelerates the speed wit h which comparison of data is undertaken. It enables accurate tracking of costs in the system. The system quickens the budget preparation process hence few hours are spent in this process. Use of the BIS lowers the number of personnel needed for database management. To implement BIS in an organisation, there is need for training the involved staff. This is enhanced through videos materials, online sites, documents that come with the softwares and use of experts. The system can be customized to meet the individualized needs of a company i.e. application process, reports format and document processing. Different computer softwares are used for the BIS depending on the manufacturing company. However aspects of budgeting can be incorporated in one single software or broken down into budget softwares separately, control aspects, comparison parts etc. It is highly recommended for the company to incorporate the single application software of BIS. It may be expensive and complicated but wit h enough training and customer support from the producing company, the system is easy to use. The product cost is defined as the cost of direct labour, direct materials and direct overheads utilized in the production process. These costs are incorporated in the budget process and actual results compare for any variances. The product cost system sets out the process for accounting for the organisation’s product costs for the purpose of producing information

SWOT Analysis Of The Post Office Ltd

SWOT Analysis Of The Post Office Ltd The Post Office Ltd in United Kingdom, a subsidiary of Royal Mail Group Ltd, attained its separated identity in 1987 Post Office in UK is quite famous for two main services, first and the obvious one from its name is clear, that it provides the Postal services to its customers. Second reason for its popularity is the Post Office Card Account which is basic account allowing customers to collect benefit payments. There are other services also being provided by the Post Office, which are discussed in brief in the assignment. Today, Post Office has around 11,843 (according to an auditor working for the post office) branches spread around UK, and offer various range of services for its customers. The management of Post Office have been very resourceful in adopting technology as a part of its operational functions, with the new horizon system introduced in the year 2000 (ref), revolutionizing the basic system of serving Post Office customer. As, technology is advancing, traditional manner of Post ing letter is fading away, exposing the entire Post al industry with danger of extinction. Thus, it has now become imperative for the organization like Post Offices to conduct a through SWOT analysis in order to sustain and survive in immensely hi-tech global market. Strengths The Post Office of United Kingdom has to be appraised of its diversified operations. The process of division and diversification can be traced back to the year 1986, when the company got separated and became subsidiary of Royal Mail Group Ltd, to attain its separate identity from mere the once providing the Post al services. The process of diversification was persistent and continuous and today Post Office provides more than 8 different kinds of services to its customer veering from saving and investment, to telephone and from government licenses to bill payments. So, it would be justified to evaluate this diversification of Post Office in different services to be one of its major strength. This diversification helps Post Office to attract a large mass of customer, ranging from men, women and children, old and young as well as business and social. Extensive and Diversified Services The different kind of services that the Post Office provides starts from its Post al services, where the branches accept mail for two collection and delivery divisions i.e. Royal Mail and Parcel Force. In banking services, the Post Office has arrangements with various banking corporations and customer of these banks can use basic services of banks like cash withdrawals and cash deposit. In savings and investment services, the Post Office since long has been an agent of national saving and investment, providing customers with the basic services of depositing money and withdrawals from their saving accounts. For telephone services the Post Office provides home landline telephone services, and also provides top-up for various services networks. Insurance services is quite diversified in itself, as Post Office provides insurance in most of the areas, starting with Car and Van Insurance, Home Insurance, Business Insurance, Life (term) Insurance, Over 50à ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s cover (for elderly citizens) pet insurance and its very famous travel insurance. Foreign Exchange services is a very essential service that the Post Office provides, as the customers just walk in to their Post Office and can convert currencies, but not all Post Office branches provide these services. Government Services include providing checking and sending services for passport Offices and the driving license authority (DVLA), and providing fishing and well as road tax. It was important to briefly describe the services the Post Office provides, as it is one of its major strength diversified services for diversified group of people. Post Office has done extremely well in identifying its opportunities in the past and kept on introducing new service lines in its portfolio, this has helped the Post Office to survive in its long journey, and grabbing these opportunities in the past has today become its strength, the Post Office no longer just survives on the Post al services that it provides to its customer, and has successfully made its other services like insurance and license services very profitable. Infrastructure The venture of General Post Office began in the 1660, by Charles II and has eventually evolved as the modern Post Office as we know of today. Today the Post Office has around has 12,000 branches spread widely and all around UK. This major establishment sure has taken time, but today when we evaluate this wide coverage by the Post Office it sure is its true strength. The only word to describe this coverage by the Post Office is National infrastructure. It truly has developed over a period of time a national infrastructure enabling it to reach to each and every customer all around UK. Possessing this national Infrastructure is quite advantageous for the Post Office as it becomes quite effortless to make its new product reachable. This large infrastructure also facilitates more customers spread all around UK. It has also helped the Post Office to reach its customer and for the customers to reach it easily, making them closer and intact with their customers. Weaknesses Improper distribution It is very important for every organization to be able to evaluate its weakness. Weakness is internal interference that becomes hurdle for the organization to achieve its objectives. In case of Post Office the operations have been suffering losses since the year 2006 and the management had to take drastic measures to convert these losses in profit in order to survive. There lies the weakness in its strength of national infrastructure, in the financial year 2008-09 the Post Office had to close down around 2500 Post Offices all around UK in order to reduce the operating expenses of the organization. The organization had around 14,376 branches spread around UK, which got reduced to around 12,000 branches in the year 2009, which shows how the distribution of the Post Offices was unproductive. Unproductive distribution of Post Office resulted in division of customer to a part that it became unprofitable. Questionable customer service quality Out of its extended number of branches which is around 12,000 only 373 are directly owned by the Post Office Ltd. The rest around 98% are either sub-Post Offices or franchise are privately owned. The Post Office has not got any consolidated training system, which would enable its braches to provide consolidate training to its customer advisors. The only training method adopted in Post Office all around UK is the old staff training the new staff, which is certainly not a professional manner of training a staff. Training becomes an important part of working with the Post Office as the system it uses to serve the customer is horizon. It is a very complex hi-tech system, which enable the advisors to reach all its product with ease, but in order to be able to use the system efficiently, a systemized training methodology should be adopted, which is not practised in case of Post Offices. Hence leaving an efficiently trained customer advisor to serve the customer, which certainly reduces its quality of services, and the direct effect of these can be seen with the Post Offices losing its largest footfall customer to highly efficient and quality customer services competitors. Industrial dispute Post Office is a subsidiary of Royal Mail Ltd, which also own Royal Mail, and Parcel Force, which are its collection and delivering division. Royal Mail is been a centre of a number of recent industrial disputes with the Communication Workerà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s Union. The extended dispute between the management and the staff lasted around 7 months and resulted into the staff going on a number of strikes, which disrupted the business severely. Post Office thrives certainly, but not majorly on its Post al foot fall customer for its other services. There was a enormous decrease in the number of Post al customer, because of the strike called on by CWU, in the year 2009, which makes its internal dispute with the staff a major weakness. The strike carried on by the staff resulted into inefficient delivery of the mails, which makes the customer hunt for another more efficient delivery or courier service provider, hence decreasing its own customer line. Opportunities Extensive range of services enabling cross-selling opportunities Extended customer line of the Post Office, from banking, Postal, investment, insurance, pension, licensing customer and others provides a huge potential to the Post Office to enable the cross selling to its customer. Every pension customer is a potential over 50 life cover customer, and bureau de change customer is a probable customer for selling travelling insurance. Every DVLA customer is a probable car insurance customer. With such a huge potential customer foot fall, the Post Office surely gets a competitive advantage over its rivals in the market. Further consolidation in the banking industry The Post Office offers a huge line of financial products, from foreign exchange, to insurance, from credit cards to investment opportunities to its customer. The Post Office offers basic banking services by the means of cash withdrawals, cash deposit, cheque deposit etc, looking at such a huge line of customers. The post office should capitalize on their banking customers by providing basic savings and current account services either through organic growth or with a joint venture with a trustable partner and take advantage of reforming financial services. A national infrastructure would surely provide them with the competitive advantage and make their operations economical and sustainable for longer period of time. Further consolidation of brand image The Post office in the year ending 2008-09 closed down 85 of its crown post offices, out of, which 70 were sold to W H Smith, which is expected to make 2.5 million in additional profit in that financial year. This strategy can be critically evaluated and taken at a next level, by creating a joint venture with Hallmark, Greetings cards or such established organization, to which posting services can be related. The customers will have the convenience of two related services at a single stop. This can work in advantage for both the organization as it adds value to the product and the services. Threats Revolutionary changes within the Industry The postal Industry, is going through a lot of changes, technology is taking over the traditional mailing system. People as well as corporate industry rely heavily on technology for communication. Using the technology has its own set of benefits, as it is safer, cost effective and faster than traditional mailing methods. Advancements in technology are inevitable and the near future can be visualized with reducing dependence on postal system. This is a sure threat for the postal industry as technological advancements is eating away its probable market. A research conducted at the royal mail showed a reduction of 10 million customer using postal services compared with the last year, this give a serious indication as to how the reliance on the postal system is reducing (http://search.bbc.co.uk/search?q=royal%20mail%20striketab=allscope=allstart=2). Increase in competition The mailing industry is becoming intensely competitive, unlike in the past, where the post office enjoyed the monopoly of having the maximum share of the industry. Companies like DHL, TNT, Fed-ex etc are providing intense competition to the UKà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s oldest posting organization. The customer has evolved from merely being cost effective to cost against time evaluation, today the customer are ready to pay a suitable extra amount for ensuring the time and safety of the delivery, the private players have certainly gained their confidence in this sector by providing safe, secure and timely services. Thus, the Post Office faces sever competition from these private players in national and international market. Overall assessment of the organisationà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s position 10% of the marks are allocated for overall conclusions on the balance of SWOT elements. SWOT analysis is a continuous process, and just as important as other management functions. The fact that the post office has been extending its line of product and service offerings to its customers proves that the post office has been conducting a continuous research on the product line. Recently, it has been offering its postal services on-line, which facilitates the customer to utilize their services at the comfort of their home. Industrial dispute, for which the Royal mail has faced much criticism, has proved very damaging for it overall brand image. National joint-venture or organic growth in banking industry is one of the biggest opportunities that lie in-front of the post office. Advancing the product line of the post office, a national level merger with W H Smith or any other stationary or greeting cards organizations will be an opportunity of adding brand value to its organization. Finally, talking about the threat that the post office faces is quite clear with the significant increase in the number of customer reeling on technology to communicate. Modern customer is ready to let go of cost if the services offered are time specific, private player are surely a notch ahead of post office in providing such time efficient services, which gives a set back to post office services. But, I see a promise in post office management, as it has been able to overturn its losses into profits and been able to maintain an extended and well diversified product and service portfolio, which I see being continued in the near future.

How Do You Spell Baby Murder? - A B O R T I O N :: abortion argumentative persuasive argument

  Ã‚  Ã‚   Approximately 1.6 million murders are committed legally each year. With the exception of laws in few states, the mutilated bodies of the victims are thrown into dumpsters like pieces of rotten meat. While these victims lay waiting in the infested dumpsters to be hauled off to a landfill, the murderers are in their offices waiting for their next patient--the accomplice to the murder. This is the murder of an innocent child by a procedure known as abortion. Abortion stops the beating of an innocent child's heart. People must no longer ignore the scientific evidence that life begins at the moment of conception. People can no longer ignore the medical and emotional problems an abortion causes women. People must stop denying the facts about the procedure, and start hearing the silent screams of unborn children.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The argument by the pro-abortion side is that the unborn child is not truly a child. Many people who are pro-abortion justify their beliefs through the concept that a fetus is only a blob of tissue until it is born, or the statement: life begins at birth. Abortion is not as simple as removing a "blob of tissue" (as the pro-abortion activists put it) from a woman's body. Abortion is the destruction, dismembering and killing of a human life--an unborn baby. "But it is scientific and medical fact based on experimental evidence, that a fetus is a living, growing, thriving human being, directing his or her own development" (Fetal Development). A fetus is not just a blob of tissue, rather a fetus is Latin for "offspring or young one." Human life begins at fertilization, therefore it is wrong to murder the innocent child in the womb. At a US Senate Judiciary Subcommittee meeting, most scientists said that life begins at conception or implantation of the embryo. No scientist at the meeting claimed that life begins at birth (Factbot). Professor Hymie Gordon of the Mayo clinic stated "' . . by all criteria of modern biology, life is present from the moment of conception'" (Fetal Development). In a 1963 Planned Parenthood pamphlet entitled 'Plan Your Children' it states "an abortion kills the life of a baby after it has begun. It is dangerous to your life and health" (Factbot).

Sample-Formal-Lab Report

TENS 2146 Electric Devices and Measurements Lab 3 Current and Voltage This report was prepared by: L. Wall Fall 2009 Prof. R. Alba-Flores Team Members: J. White, L. Wall Conducted on: September 17, 2009 Submitted on : September 24, 2009 Abstract: In this lab students experimented with light emitting diodes. The student built a basic circuit with two LED's and resistors in parallel. The results showed that the voltage is the same in parallel. The items that were in series had the same current.The results also showed that the current from each branch could be summed up to equal the total current from the source. The experiment also helped the student to see the voltage drop across the diode was almost the same each time. This lab showed the effects of current and voltage in a parallel circuit. This experiment also showed how the brightness was effected by changing the voltage. Equipment and materials: †¢ Multimeter †¢ Power Supply †¢ Connecting wires †¢ A bread boar d †¢ A 330 ohm resistor †¢ A l k ohm resistor †¢ 2 Red LED's Theory: A light-emitting diode (LED), is an electronic light source.The first LED was built in the 1925 by Oleg Vladimirovich Losev, a radio technician who noticed that diodes used in radio receivers emitted light when current was passed through them. The LED was introduced as a practical electronic component in 1962. All early devices emitted low-intensity red light, but modern LEDs are available across the visible, ultraviolet and infra red wavelengths, with very high brightness. [1] Figure 1. Basics Physics principle of an LED LED's are semiconductors. They will only work if placed in the correct direction.Placing the LED in the improper direction could potentially damage it. The LED could also be damaged if it was not installed with the use of a resistor. They can not be connected directly to a power source. The anode is the positive end and the cathode is the negative end. LEDs are beneficial because th ey do not require much voltage to be illuminated. The LEDs are great for conservation of energy . When we subtract the LED voltage from the supply voltage it gives you the voltage that must be dropped by the dropping resistor. A decrease in voltage will result in a decrease of the brightness of the bulb [1].Figure 2 shows the electrical symbol and the actual shape of an LED. Figure 2. Electrical symbol and the actual shape of an LED Ohms law is used to be able to calculate the current and the resistance across each of the elements in the circuit. To analyze the circuit It must be known that the voltage is the same in a parallel circuit. The current is the same in a series. The current through each branch can be added up in order to determine the current from the source. From Kirchhoff's loop law it can be determined that the sum of all of the voltage drops around a closed loop must sum to equal zero.The objective of this lab was for the student to use their knowledge of items such a s LED's, series and parallel circuit configurations, Kirchhoff's laws, and Ohm's law in order to properly analyze and solve problems with given circuit. [1] Light Emitting Diodes, http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Light-emitting_diode Procedure: First thing we did in the lab was to create the circuit. We created the circuit by using resistors with values of Rl = 330 ohms and R2 = l k ohms and also by placing the LEDs after the Resistors so there would be no damage done to the LEDs.This s shown in figure 3. The voltage supply was set at 8 Volts and then we tested the values for voltage and current. To measure voltage the meter has to be in Parallel with the circuit. Current is measured by placing the Multimeter in series with the circuit. In preparation for the experiment we built the circuit (shown below) using Multisim. We used simulations to get all the required measurements and used Ohm's Law (E=I*R) to solve for the rest. In the lab we set up the same circuit by connecting the resi stors and the LED's in a parallel circuit to the power supply.Most of the connections were done using the breadboard. We measured current by placing the Multimeter in series with the entire circuit. We set the Multimeter to measure amperes and turned the power on. We continued this using the 8, 6, 4, and 2 volts (adjusted on the power supply) while noting the brightness of the LED's and writing down the value given by the Multimeter. We then connected the Multimeter in parallel with each resistor and LED's to measure voltage. We set the multimeter to volts then cycled through 8, 6, 4, and 2 volts on the power supply and noted the reading for each connection.We then used Ohm's Law to calculate the current through as well as the resistance for each LED. We also calculated the entire current to see if it matched what we measured. Figure 3 Circuit built in the lab Sample Calculations: To calculate the current through each resistor-LED branch, Ohm's Law (V = IR) was used. In this Lab the equation used was I Rl = VRl / R 1 Example: IRl = VRl / R1 = 5. 8 V / 3300 ? = 0. 0176 A To calculate the total resistance of each LED, Ohm's Law was used. In this lab the equation RLED = V LED / ILED was used. Example:RLED = V LED / ILED = 2. 18 v /0 . 0175 mA = 124. 57 ? To calculate the total current that the power supply was providing to the two branches, the equation IE = IRl + IR2 was used. In this lab the equation that was given to use was ILEDl = IRl . Example: I LEDl + I LED2 = IE .0175 + . 0058 = . 0233 Simulation Results: Multisim was used to perform the simulations. Figures 4, 5, 6 and 7 shown the results obtained in the simulations. Table 1 summarizes these results. Figure 4. Power supply= 8 volts: Voltages measured across R1 and R2 and currents through each LEDFigure 5 . Power supply= 6 volts: Voltages measured across R1 and R2 and currents through each LED Figure 6. Power supply= 4 volts: Voltages measured across R1 and R2 and currents through each LED Figure 7. Powe r supply= 2 volts: Voltages measured across R1 and R2 and currents through each LED Table 1. Comparison of Pre-Lab simulations and actual Lab data Looking at the comparison chart above we can see that the voltage and the total current was close in value when looking at the Pre-Lab and the Actual Lab.The actual Multisim simulation charts are printed and attached to this lab report. Looking at the comparison chart above we can see that the voltage and the total current was close in value when looking at the Pre-Lab and the Actual Lab. The actual Multisim simulation charts are printed and attached to this lab report. Conclusion: In conclusion when simulating the circuit in actuality or in Multisim; the LED voltage, current, and brightness are affected by the decreasing of the voltage supply. By decreasing the voltage supply the brightness of the LEDs also decrease in intensity.When determining the factors that are involved in the brightness of the LED we must look at the circuit and se e if the resistors and the LEDs are connected properly. We must also look at the value of the current passing through the current. To determine the current through the LEDs Ohm's Law was applied. To find the current we must first measure the voltage and the resistance, and then after finding those two values we divide the voltage by the resistance. Which Ohm's Law is I (current) = V (voltage) / R (resistance).After finding the current in the LED it is seen that the current is almost equal to the resistor that is closes to that LED. I am in agreement with the measurement that was taken for the voltage supply of 8 volts, 6 volts, and 4 volts; but I disagree with the values for the voltage supply of 2 volts. The measurement collected in Multisim fo and the actual measurement value more that the other voltage supply ranges. When the LEDs were reversed the resistor and the LED current and their voltages changed to O or ‘r' due to there was zero or no flow of current and voltage.The voltage is what supply energy to the components in the circuit. So decreasing the amount of voltage will decrease the amount of energy current, and the amount of current is what determines the intensity of the LED. The pre-lab seemed to simulate more accurate values than the results of the values in Table 1. Due to the fact that there is more human value in the actual measurements than the simulated ones; plus the actual values have been round and round again. The simulated and actual values are very close in value; but do to human error the values are not and can not be exactly the same.

The Public Needs to Know †Revised Version Essay

Our program against domestic violence provides a safe shelter for victims and their families within our community. In order to support a broad range of issues and diverse group of victims, our program has many services available to ensure the safety of everyone involved. Staying at our shelter is usually the first step towards a normal life for a family that has a history of domestic violence. It is our goal to apply all areas of our expertise to ensure the safety and rehabilitation of every family that reaches out to us for help. Shelters have been proven to be a way out for victims who are generally in a more violent situation than victims that would use other services while still staying at their home (Itzhaky & Ben Porat, 2005). Our program is comprised of many services to provide the greatest amount of help to the victim. Though not every victim or family will need a physical shelter to stay, ensuring that we always have a safe place for victims to stay at is always our primary concern. For the duration of their stay, the victim will work closely with our professional staff to assist with fixing or finding the safest way out of the victim’s relationship. Residents of the shelter follow a plan established by our councilors that has been tailored specifically for each victim. We provide basic necessities that would be needed for day-to-day life at no charge. We can also provide a means for the victim to apply for food stamps since in most situations, the aggressor has the only form of income for a family. Our shelter has a state-of-the-art alarm system, which will give the victim a peace of mind that their aggressor will not be able to come after them under our care. Although it is not to be used as a replacement for 9-1-1, we offer a crisis line for individuals that feel the need to speak to a counselor right away. The crisis line is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Our counselors are able to give immediate advice on domestic violence situations, and can assist the victim with leaving the home or residence they are currently staying at to safely make it to our shelter. If a counselor feels that the  victim is still in immediate danger, he or she will contact emergency services for the victim to ensure that no one is harmed. Child abuse, whether direct or indirect, is another area in which we offer our services. Many times, the children affected have witnessed domestic abuse happening between their parents, and may have been victims themselves. We have counselors in our shelter that are educated and trained to help children become social, and ensure that their interaction with other children is safe for everyone. Male children that see domestic violence happen in the household are three times more likely to apply domestic violence in their own household when they are grown up (Straus , Gelles, & Steinmetz, 1980). During their stay at the shelter, we will provide transportation for the children to get to their current schools. We have an on-site clinic for all domestic violence victims to use at any time, but for severe injuries, we will refer victims to the hospital. Many cuts and bruises can be tended to within our shelter, so using our clinic does not create a financial burden for the victim since a hospital will charge for a visit. Counseling services are also offered by our program, and do not require residence within the shelter for a victim to speak with a counselor. Areas of counseling include providing advice to victims that do not want to leave their current residence, help with victim’s friends or families, and serving victims that have previously stayed at the shelter. We offer one-on-one counseling with trained professionals, and group counseling for victims that have experience similar levels of abuse. It is important for victims of domestic violence to understand that they do not necessarily need to stay in our facilities in order to receive help. Sometimes friends or family of victims will suspect that something isn’t right in their relationship, and our counselors can assist acquaintances with reaching out to the victims to ensure that the victim receives the help they need. Public education is the final, and sometimes overlooked service that we offer as a domestic violence shelter. Not all victims wish to initiate the call for help, and spreading our word that we are here to help can give them the drive they need for us to provide our services. In order to ensure we reach the most amount of people in our community, we have brochures in almost every public facility in the area. We strive to reach areas that are geographically separated from major cities, since women who are far away from shelters are more likely to  delay requesting services from domestic violence shelters (Saftlas, Wallis, Schochet, Harland, & Peek-Asa, 2011). Domestic violence shelters are very important for the victim to have, benefits of our shelter immediately affect the victim’s quality of life. After just three weeks, most victims will already feel an improvement in their situation and have a greater outlook on life (McNamara & Fields, 2000). Without our shelter, victims of domestic violence would have nowhere else in the community to turn for a long-term shelter and assistance. As long as a victim is staying at our shelter, that person is no longer in a situation where they can be harmed, emotionally or physically. Our shelter benefits the community by strengthening each victim to become an independent person, and enables each person of the community to turn around and give back to different areas by volunteering to help others. In conclusion, our shelter provides many services that would suit the needs of many victims from domestic violence. We provide housing, crisis support, help for children, basic healthcare, counseling, and public education to help as many victims as possible. The benefits of our shelter are specifically tailored to assist the victim get back on track to have a normal healthy life again. Finally, it is our goal to provide the highest level of service to each person that reaches out to us, since it could be our very own friend, family member, or colleague. References Itzhaky, H., & Ben Porat, A. (2005). Battered women in shelters: Internal resources, well-being and integration. Affilia, 20, 39-51. McNamara, J., & Fields, S. (2000). Psychological Reports. Differential functioning of outpatients and patients of a domestic violence shelter on the abuse disability questionnaire, 56, 893-894. Saftlas, A., Wallis, A., Schochet, T., Harland, K., & Peek-Asa, C. (2011). Prevalence of intimate partner violence among an abortion clinic population. American Journal of Public Health, 100(8), 1412-1415. Straus, M. A., Gelles, R. J., & Steinmetz, S. K. (1980). Behind closed doors: Violence in the American family. Garden City, NY: Anchor Press/Doubleday.

buy custom Opportunities Existing in the Market essay

buy custom Opportunities Existing in the Market essay Opportunities existing in the market turn into profitable ventures as a result of a meticulous analysis of the current market as well as assessing and evaluating current trends in the market. An effective market analysis will enable an individual answer fundamental questions like, what the emerging trends in an industry are, what strengths and/or weaknesses do your competitors have, the suitability of your location, whether your concept fills a certain gap in the market and the potential customers one can serve in a year. In order to identify opportunities and potential threats, one needs to study the dominant trends in the industry of his interest. The analysis entails scanning the environment for opportunities like a competitors failure/flaw, population increase leading to higher demand for your product, a market gap, among others. Threats include stiff competition, introduction of similar products and customer dissatisfaction. If one is swift in spotting opportunities and threats before others, he stands a better chance to expand their market share. This, in turn, stimulates your firms production, which could lead to increased profitability. The next step towards finding opportunities is the rigorous assessment of the local market area. Here, one needs to use economic and demographic statistics to help them determine the sales potential that the market oe is preparing to serve holds. These statistics ought to be compared with those from other regions so that the entrepreneur can assess the strength the market area possesses. Analyze your market area by first defining its geographic size. Secondly, obtain data on the demography of your cut out area. These include data on the age of most people in the area, their education level, gender as well as their level of income. In most cases, there will be other firms who entered the market before one does. They are, therefore, sources of competition. However, from the synthesis of the content of what we covered in the first week, I understand that the same competitors could as well be rich sources of valuable information that could help one analyze market opportunities and demand. Finding opportunities also means assessing your competitors weaknesses and strengths as well as learning form their achievements and failures. Acquiring new customers is one of the utmost delights that businesses boast of. Most business enterprises are more focused on the acquisition of new customers than working towards unlocking the value of the existing customers. It is surprising how many businesses fail to consider the existing customers as the most valuable assetsPreviously, I believed that real profits came from new customers because all businesses toiled to register new customers, regardless of their current customer base. However,, after the discussion of the second weeks topic on customers and their value, I now realize that the business existing customers are the source of its real profits. Obtaining a new customer is far much costly than dealing with an existing one. For a business to unlock the value of its customers, it must appreciate that customers are its most precious asset. They, therefore, ought to be treated the same way one treats gold. Issues that existing customers raise should be dealt with before those of prospective customers. Customers need to be provided with products of high quality that satisfy their needs. I have learnt that customers are a rich source of valuable information, if they are listened to and respected. When I start employing my entrepreneurial skills in the near future, Ill listen and have respect for my customers. This will be so because I understand that this will enable me cut down on the cost of testing new products in the market. Customers can be retained by use of exceptional customer service strategy. Personalizing responses regarding customer inquiries is also a powerful tool for cultivating customer loyalty and goodwill. This might be time-consuming, but the rewards of constant use of these tools are much far greater. In summary, customers are a business most valuable asset, and the more a business looks after its chief assets, the profitable it is likely to get. Buy custom Opportunities Existing in the Market essay

Free Essays on The Lamb and Innocence

THE LAMB AND INNOCENCE The works of William Blake are often mentioned as painted visions. The pictures he gives in his poems, especially The Songs, are not merely descriptive visions but dramatic and deeply psychological works. The world of innocence is painted through the perception of children. The whole atmosphere is evoked by nursery rhyme and melodious songs in consequence of which the poems may seem a little bit simple but in fact they carry a heavy meaning and idea of the poet’s concept of religion and innocence. In Blake’s epoch, children were considered to be sinful before God for only the ones who accepted Christ were forgiven and were the heirs of eternal life. Children, incapable of making such decisions as to accept and follow Christ were automatically taken to be condamned. Blake’s idea was accordingly revolutionary. He believed that the innocence was the state of perfection similar to that of God. It was the state of man before the fall of Adam and Eve, the state of incessant joy and a mind which knows the virtues of delight. According to Blake the children were not born condamned but were the owners of innocent souls which were in close touch with God. They were His constant companions. The experienced mind, on the other hand has lost these virtues and accepts the existence of God logically and by reasoning. The idea of God has to be then incomprehensible (because of the lost virtues) and the image of God is that of someone powerful and frightening who is required to kee! p the world in order. In experience, religion is degenerated into the notion of control and prohibition. ( Gillham,1966). The key poem in the Songs of Innocence is The Lamb. The speaker is a child addressing an animal ( specifically a lamb) and asking about its creator Little Lamb, who made thee? Gave thee life, and bid thee feed†¦ Gave thee clothing of delight†¦ Gave thee such a ... Free Essays on The Lamb and Innocence Free Essays on The Lamb and Innocence THE LAMB AND INNOCENCE The works of William Blake are often mentioned as painted visions. The pictures he gives in his poems, especially The Songs, are not merely descriptive visions but dramatic and deeply psychological works. The world of innocence is painted through the perception of children. The whole atmosphere is evoked by nursery rhyme and melodious songs in consequence of which the poems may seem a little bit simple but in fact they carry a heavy meaning and idea of the poet’s concept of religion and innocence. In Blake’s epoch, children were considered to be sinful before God for only the ones who accepted Christ were forgiven and were the heirs of eternal life. Children, incapable of making such decisions as to accept and follow Christ were automatically taken to be condamned. Blake’s idea was accordingly revolutionary. He believed that the innocence was the state of perfection similar to that of God. It was the state of man before the fall of Adam and Eve, the state of incessant joy and a mind which knows the virtues of delight. According to Blake the children were not born condamned but were the owners of innocent souls which were in close touch with God. They were His constant companions. The experienced mind, on the other hand has lost these virtues and accepts the existence of God logically and by reasoning. The idea of God has to be then incomprehensible (because of the lost virtues) and the image of God is that of someone powerful and frightening who is required to kee! p the world in order. In experience, religion is degenerated into the notion of control and prohibition. ( Gillham,1966). The key poem in the Songs of Innocence is The Lamb. The speaker is a child addressing an animal ( specifically a lamb) and asking about its creator Little Lamb, who made thee? Gave thee life, and bid thee feed†¦ Gave thee clothing of delight†¦ Gave thee such a ...

10 Easy Ways of Helping Turtles Survive

10 Easy Ways of Helping Turtles Survive Sea turtles have lived on Earth for about 110 million years. However, due to human activity, 6 of the 7 sea turtle species- green, Kemp’s ridley, olive ridley, flatback, hawksbill, and leatherback- are now classified as endangered. The seventh species, the loggerhead, is classified as threatened (likely to become an endangered species in the near future). Organizations Dedicated to Helping Sea Turtles Contact the following organizations to donate, volunteer, and learn more about ways to help the sea turtles:Sea Turtle ConservancySEE TurtlesTurtle Island Restoration NetworkThe Ocean FoundationOceanic Society How to Help Sea Turtles Survive According to the Sea Turtle Conservancy and the World Wildlife Fund, sea turtles face threats from overharvesting and poaching, global warming, ocean pollution, and the encroachment of human activity on their nesting sites. Although targeting these problems may seem like an overwhelming task, there are specific actions you can take to ensure the survival of sea turtles. Baby hawksbill turtle after being rescued. Jereme Thaxton/Getty Images Source Your Seafood Responsibly Sea turtles often become the bycatch of irresponsible fishing methods. Educate yourself on how your seafood was caught and support organizations that advocate for the sustainable catching of seafood. The Monterey Bay Aquariums Seafood Watch website and app allow you to look up specific types of seafood and determine if they were responsibly sourced. In addition, organizations like Too Rare to Wear also have information on products that have been made from turtle shells, like jewelry and souvenirs, which are often sold to tourists in tropical regions. Get Rid of Pollution Sailors from the USS Thorn use bolt cutters and knives to free the only surviving sea turtle in a group of four found tangled in some long-ago discarded netting, July 10, 2001 in the Mediterranean Sea. U.S. Navy / Getty Images Help make beaches safe for turtles and other marine animals by participating in cleanups to help remove trash from the beach. Doing so will also stop more trash from entering the oceans, reducing the chances that a turtle may become trapped or eat it. Many local groups organize such cleanups year-round, or you can organize a beach clean-up day with some friends. Cleaning up the beach may also help make that locations habitable for turtles again. After a 2-year beach cleanup in Miami that removed over 11 million pounds of trash from the environment, olive ridley turtle hatchlings were spotted making their way from the nest to the ocean, which had not occurred in decades. Previously, the turtles had been able to lay eggs on the beach but could not maneuver in the trash. Replace Disposable Plastic With Reusable Items Plastic bag at sea. These can be dangerous to sea turtles who mistake them for food, such as jellyfish. _548901005677/Moment Open/Getty Images You can help prevent trash from ever entering the ocean in the first place by recycling and reducing the amount of trash that you create. For some items, consider using their reusable counterparts, like shopping bags and water bottles to reduce your chances of polluting the beach. Plastic bags are especially troublesome, as sea turtles can mistake them for their favorite snack: jellyfish. You can also avoid other single-use items, like balloons during a birthday beach bash, which will likely end up in the ocean where they will be eaten by turtles and other wildlife. Keep Beaches Dark at Night WWF volunteers coax released baby green turtles that were found at a nest site the day before, to the waters edge with lights at Acyatan Beach on August 23, 2018 in Adana, Turkey. Chris McGrath / Getty Images Nesting turtles and hatchlings use the moons natural lighting as a guide. Instinctively, they follow the brightest direction to find their way to the water, but if they are disoriented by artificial lighting, they may wander inland and die of dehydration or predation. Avoid all forms of artificial light while at the beach at night, including flashlights, flash photography, video cameras, and fires on nesting beaches. If you do need lighting, try to avoid directly illuminating the beach, using a shade to minimize the amount of light shining in the area. If staying at a beachfront property, be sure to turn off all lights at night. If you do see disoriented baby turtles at night, do not take it upon yourself to move the turtles. Contact a nature conservancy organization or local authorities. Be Careful When Boating and Fishing A moving boat can seriously injure or kill a turtle, so stay alert if you are boating in the ocean. If you spot sea turtles in the water, stay at least 50 yards away. If they are close to your boat, put your engine on neutral or turn it off until the turtles swim away. Change your fishing location if you spot sea turtles nearby or they show interest in your bait. And remember to collect all of your fishing gear and supplies once youre done, especially fishing line, hooks, and nets. Don’t Disturb the Turtles An NPS volunteer helps Kemps ridley sea turtle hatchlings reach the water at South Padre Island National Seashore. Who knew volunteering could be so adorable?.  © qnr via Flickr Never pick up a hatchling. Though it may be tempting, doing so may frighten or disorient them. If you do want to watch one, attend a sea turtle watch hosted by an organization, which would allow you to observe the sea turtles without disturbing them. Do not catch a baby turtle in an aquarium or bucket of water. This will use up the energy they need to swim to the ocean after they emerge from their nest. Reduce Your Carbon Footprint Global warming can skew the gender ratios of sea turtles, as well as the distribution of predators and prey. Although climate change might seem like too big an issue to tackle, there are many steps you can personally take to reduce global warming. Adopt a Sea Turtle Support sea turtle conservation efforts by â€Å"adopting a sea turtle† or making a donation to a wildlife conservation program that monitors and helps satellite-tracked turtles. You can also â€Å"adopt a nest† during nesting season. Avoid Beach Activities at Night Try to avoid walking on the beach at night during the summer, as this may frighten nesting turtles back into the sea. To help make it easier for turtles to navigate the beach, you can also remove beach furniture and other equipment from the beach before the nighttime, as turtles may become caught in them or become disoriented. Help Spread Awareness There are many ways you can help make a positive change for sea turtles. One main way is through education. You can help educate your local neighborhood or school by giving presentations, and tell people about the cause during conversations. Sources â€Å"Adoption Programs.† Seaturtle.org, Seaturtle.org, www.seaturtle.org/adopt/.â€Å"Endangered Ocean: Sea Turtles.† Ocean Today, National Ocean Service, oceantoday.noaa.gov/endoceanseaturtles/.â€Å"Information About Sea Turtles, Their Habitats and Threats to Their Survival.† Conserveturtles.org, Sea Turtle Conservancy, conserveturtles.org/information-about-sea-turtles-their-habitats-and-threats-to-their-survival/.â€Å"Ways to Help.† Ways to Help the Sea Turtles, Nova Southeastern University, cnso.nova.edu/seaturtles/ways-to-help.html.â€Å"What Can You Do to Save Sea Turtles?† NOAA Fisheries, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 6 June 2016, www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/what-can-you-do-save-sea-turtles.â€Å"What Is the Difference Between Endangered and Threatened?† Wolf - Western Great Lakes, U.S. Fish Wildlife Service, Mar. 2003, www.fws.gov/midwest/wolf/esastatus/e-vs-t.htm.

Effects of Smoking on the Human Body Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Effects of Smoking on the Human Body - Essay Example Once inhaled, carbon monoxide reaches the blood stream through the lungs and alveoli, it binds to the hemoglobin portion of the red blood cells, forming a stable compound called carboxyhaemoglobin (COHb). The stability of the compound is due to the fact that hemoglobin has a 200–250 times higher affinity for carbon monoxide than it has for oxygen. Thus, the oxygen-carrying capacity of the hemoglobin is reduced, limiting oxygen supply to cells and tissues. The diseases caused by limited oxygen in the blood include cardiovascular disease, stroke, and circulatory problems. Tar on the other hand, accumulates in the lung, causing the inflammation of the mucous membrane of the bronchi, the trachea, and the bronchioles, damages the lungs, reduces the size of the airway. Smoke thus interferes with the functioning of the respiratory system and causes chronic bronchitis and persistent cough. Tar also damages the cilia on the upper portions of the respiratory system and increases phlegm production. Finally, the chemicals in smoke damage the lungs, reduce lung surface area and affect the alveoli’s’ functionality. Lung cancer, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), mouth and throat cancer, and increased asthma symptoms are the other respiratory effects of smoking (National Cancer Institute, 2008). ... One of the mechanisms by which smoking leads to elevated CO2 levels in the blood is that the harmful chemicals in the smoke damages the alveoli of the lungs. This damage implies that the CO2 formed in other parts of the body and transported to the lungs for elimination is not efficiently eliminated at the alveoli surfaces, leading to increased levels of CO2 in the blood. How Smoking Affects other Organ Systems Besides the respiratory system, smoking affects other organ systems such as the circulatory system. In this system, smoking causes the blood clotting, blockages and narrowing of blood vessels, increased risks of strokes and heart attacks, increased blood pressure, palpitations. These conditions cause various infections that might require procedures such as amputation. The nervous system and the brain are also affected by tobacco smoking, which decreases oxygen supply to the brain as hemoglobin combines with carbon monoxide. The normal functioning of the CNS is affected as delic ate nerve endings are damages and blood supply interfered with (The New York Times, 2002). Additionally, smoking causes attention deficit and memory problems. The immune system is also affected by the tobacco toxins that enter the body via smoking so that the functioning of the white blood cells is impaired. Thus, the body becomes vulnerable to infections. The reproductive system is also not spared by smoking, which may cause erectile dysfunction, impotency, sterility, menopause, and low weight births. Correlating Cellular Respiration with the Respiratory System The correlation between cellular respiration and the respiratory system is rather clear. For instance, minus cellular respiration in the lungs,

Health care marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 11

Health care marketing - Essay Example Prudent and effective designing of the marketing materials for the two requires the marketers to consider the factors that appeal to the audience belonging to the high and the low socio-economic statuses individually. Specifically, to design the marketing materials for elective plastic surgery, more sophisticated marketing materials like television commercials showing celebrities undergoing elective plastic surgeries, youth magazines, and bill-boards would be more suitable as they are frequently considered and reviewed by the people belonging to the high socio-economic status. On the other hand, design of marketing materials for STD prevention should be easier and the means and platforms to promote it should be rampant. Marketing platforms for STD prevention may include but are not limited to television commercials, radio commercials, advertisements in the newspaper, awareness campaigns in the educational institutions, and STD prevention

Global business environment Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Global business environment - Term Paper Example Slate tablet is a newly developed organization going to compete in the global consumer tablet industry. The organization is trying to adopt and implement cost leadership business level strategy in business operation process in order to support the affected purchasing power of the consumers. The organization should try to focus on the large and emerging consumers markets to gain potential competitive advantages. In addition to this, the organization should also try to develop its own distribution and supply chain network in order to justify its adopted and implemented cost leadership business level strategy. Most importantly, the organization needs to use the promotional mediums and platforms such a way, so that the target customers can understand the market position of the products. Lastly, it is highly important for the management of the organization to focus on both social media and traditional media promotional strategy to create significant brand awareness. Target Market and Positioning of Slate Tablet It is clear from the previous assignment that Slate tablet is going to introduce in global tablet industry. But, initially and certainly the brand will compete in the consumer tablet market. It is clear from Part 1 that global tablet industry has become highly competitive and saturated. Therefore, it is highly important for the management of Slate to develop an effective and significant targeting and positioning strategy for the brand considering the nature of the competitive global market place. However, it is clear from the previous assignment that the management of Slate is trying to focus on consumer tablet market.

First Fundamental Theorem of Welfare Economics Essay

First Fundamental Theorem of Welfare Economics - Essay Example The third condition for competitive equilibrium is that the allocation maximizes the profit of each firm at the given price system. A simple proof of the theorem is shown in the following notation. Proof of the first fundamental theorem of welfare economics Let [(x0i), (y0j), (Ð ¤)] be a competitive equilibrium, and under the condition of non-satiation, for each: i, ui(x) = ui (x0i)†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ eqn. 1 implies Ð ¤ (x) ? Ð ¤ (x0i). Instead, if we denote this as: ui(x) = ui (x0i), and Ð ¤ (x) ui(x)= ui (x0i), 1, 2, †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Since Ð ¤ is continuous, this condition implies that, for a big n, Ð ¤ (xn) ui (x0i), implies that Ð ¤ (xn)>Ð ¤ (x0i). Therefore, the contradiction implies that eqn. 1 is true. Using this contradiction, we can suppose that the initial allocation [(x0i), (y0j), (Ð ¤)] is not Pareto optimal, which implies that there is another allocation of resources [(x’i), (y’j)] such that ui(x’i) > ui (x0i). this condition holds for all i with strict inequality for some i. Employing the second condition in the definition of competitive equilibrium, gives that for some instances of i, ui(x’i) > ui (x0i) gives the implication that Ð ¤ (x’i)> Ð ¤ (x0i). From eqn. 1 and the linearity of Ð ¤, it can be seen that k?i, where ui(x’k) > uk (x0k), ?k Ð ¤(x’k) k Ð ¤(x0i). For l?k, where ul(x’l)> ul(x0l), ?l Ð ¤(x)> ?l Ð ¤(x0i). Finding the sum of the equations across all i; , which contradicts the third condition of competitive equilibrium. 2. The theorem proved above is mathematically true; however, some drawbacks are associated with it, for example, when public goods and externalities are introduced. This is because the theorem assumes that in the economy, there are no public goods or externalities (Jehle and Reny, 2001). This means that the theorem will not hold in an exchange economy where an individual’s utility depends on another individual’s consumption as well a s the original individual’s consumption. Also, the theorem does not hold if the production possibility set of one firm in an exchange economy depends on the production set of another firm in the same economy. The presence of externalities and public good sin the market will cause market failure iof they are not corrected, since there are no markets for these goods. 3. The above proposition can be proved by the following example, where externalities and public goods are introduced into an economy. In this case, an externality is used to mean the situation where the actions of an individual or firm affects the actions of another individual or firm other than through the effect on prices (Jehle and Reny, 2001). For example, one production firm could be increasing the costs of production for another firm by the production of smoke, which forces the other firm to increase costs. One factory could be producing electronic gadgets, a process which requires the emission of smoke. The factory could be located upwind, meaning that the smoke emitted harm another

If someone claims that both the division of knowledge into disciplines Essay

If someone claims that both the division of knowledge into disciplines and the division of the world into countries on a map are artificial, what does this mean - Essay Example What are the processes underlying the compelling desire of human to dissect and divide, are these processes comparable, how has the divides occurred - these perplexing questions have puzzled generations of outstanding scholars, but still remain unanswered. The world is multi-dimensional with numerous natural boundaries: mountains and rivers, deserts and forests, fields and lakes, plateaus and slumps compose a unique and highly diverse image of the Earth. These natural boundaries have provided mankind with references points allowing people to move from one point to another, travel, hunt, explore the remote areas always using these natural points to return to the native places and family. Evidently, these natural boundaries have played - and continue to play - an essential role in shaping human civilisation, as we know it, but they have failed to fully satisfy the needs of human society. The artificial boundaries dividing the nations and communities have been created artificially to address these implicit needs. Knowledge does not have a clear defined surface area or natural boundaries; its abstract nature makes it barely possible to calculate or quantify it; senses and measurements do not provide the appropriate tools to divide it. Nonetheless, mankind has also felt the need to divide it into several areas. Perhaps one of the key objectives of such divide was the desire to establish the missing reference points in order to facilitate navigation from one place to another: the artificial boundaries within the body of knowledge were intended to perform the same function the natural boundaries in the physical world played. However, even if that the factors/reasons underlying division of the physical world and the abstract realm of knowledge are similar, the implications and nature of the boundaries are likely to differ signification. Although the geographical boundaries and the divide between different areas of knowledge have been drawn by human, the nature of the boundaries is non-comparable due to several reasons. Firstly, the geographical boundaries, by definition, do not allow for free crossing; knowledge does not imply this sine qua non condition. Secondly, the nature of knowledge is complex, dynamic, and multifaceted: it is not approachable with mere senses or mere thinking; it is rather a process which gets even richer when the separated areas overlap. The ongoing debate about the definition and elements of knowledge1 vividly illustrates why comparing the abstract and physical boundaries lacks credibility and is probably doomed to failure. Furthermore, even the origins of knowledge are not known either: epistemology or theory of knowledge, the branch of philosophy that explores the origins and sources of knowledge, the assumptions upon which knowledge is based, and what we 'can know' and 'do know' fails to provide a clear and exhaustive answer to this question2. The origins of modern epistemological debate can be traced back to the past philosophers. The famous Cartesian mind/body duality introduced by famous philosopher and mathematician Rene Descartes divorced body from mind and thinking from sensing.

Business law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Business law - Essay Example However, the Council may not be held liable for the losses of 50,000 pounds that Burton is trying to claim in the form of lost profits. The original neighbor principle mandating a general duty of care towards others on the basis of owing consideration to one’s neighbor, was set out in the case of Donaghue v Stevenson.1 This was later refined in the case of Caparo v Dickman2 where the scope of the duty of care was refined on the basis of three principles: (a) was there a relationship of sufficient proximity between the plaintiff and the defendant? (b) Was the damage caused to the plaintiff reasonably foreseeable? (c) Is it just and reasonable to impose a duty of care? This may be applied in the case of both Abi and Burton, who have suffered damages in the form of repairs needed for their homes, with Abi also sustaining injuries. Abi is a local resident of the area and Burton’s is a local business, therefore the Council is responsible for ensuring their safety by maintaining the flood barrier. Secondly, the damage caused is likely to be held to be reasonably foreseeable because Hanby Borough Council is responsible for maintaining flood defenses along the river and were told to improve the defenses. Since a flood had occurred before, it is reasonable to assume that such damages occurring in the future would have been a foreseeable event and therefore the Council may be held to be negligent in failing to complete repairs quickly. Lastly, the Court may indeed deem it just and reasonable to impose a duty of care in this case, since the negligence of the Council has resulted in damages caused to the premises of both Abi and Burton, as well as fu rther injuries to Abi while she was being rescued which required hospitalization. The underlying core for the establishment of the principles wherein negligence has been held to be legally liable under the principles spelt out in the cases above, is the sentiment of moral wrong doing for which the offender is to be held

If someone claims that both the division of knowledge into disciplines Essay

If someone claims that both the division of knowledge into disciplines and the division of the world into countries on a map are artificial, what does this mean - Essay Example What are the processes underlying the compelling desire of human to dissect and divide, are these processes comparable, how has the divides occurred - these perplexing questions have puzzled generations of outstanding scholars, but still remain unanswered. The world is multi-dimensional with numerous natural boundaries: mountains and rivers, deserts and forests, fields and lakes, plateaus and slumps compose a unique and highly diverse image of the Earth. These natural boundaries have provided mankind with references points allowing people to move from one point to another, travel, hunt, explore the remote areas always using these natural points to return to the native places and family. Evidently, these natural boundaries have played - and continue to play - an essential role in shaping human civilisation, as we know it, but they have failed to fully satisfy the needs of human society. The artificial boundaries dividing the nations and communities have been created artificially to address these implicit needs. Knowledge does not have a clear defined surface area or natural boundaries; its abstract nature makes it barely possible to calculate or quantify it; senses and measurements do not provide the appropriate tools to divide it. Nonetheless, mankind has also felt the need to divide it into several areas. Perhaps one of the key objectives of such divide was the desire to establish the missing reference points in order to facilitate navigation from one place to another: the artificial boundaries within the body of knowledge were intended to perform the same function the natural boundaries in the physical world played. However, even if that the factors/reasons underlying division of the physical world and the abstract realm of knowledge are similar, the implications and nature of the boundaries are likely to differ signification. Although the geographical boundaries and the divide between different areas of knowledge have been drawn by human, the nature of the boundaries is non-comparable due to several reasons. Firstly, the geographical boundaries, by definition, do not allow for free crossing; knowledge does not imply this sine qua non condition. Secondly, the nature of knowledge is complex, dynamic, and multifaceted: it is not approachable with mere senses or mere thinking; it is rather a process which gets even richer when the separated areas overlap. The ongoing debate about the definition and elements of knowledge1 vividly illustrates why comparing the abstract and physical boundaries lacks credibility and is probably doomed to failure. Furthermore, even the origins of knowledge are not known either: epistemology or theory of knowledge, the branch of philosophy that explores the origins and sources of knowledge, the assumptions upon which knowledge is based, and what we 'can know' and 'do know' fails to provide a clear and exhaustive answer to this question2. The origins of modern epistemological debate can be traced back to the past philosophers. The famous Cartesian mind/body duality introduced by famous philosopher and mathematician Rene Descartes divorced body from mind and thinking from sensing.

Summary of the Civil War Essay Example for Free

Summary of the Civil War Essay Fought 1861-1865, the American Civil War was the result of decades of sectional tensions between the North and South. Focused on slavery and states rights, these issues came to a head following the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860. Over the next several months eleven southern states seceded and formed the Confederate States of America. During the first two years of the war, Southern troops won numerous victories but saw their fortunes turn after losses at Gettysburg and Vicksburg in 1863. From then on, Northern forces worked to conqueror the South, forcing them to surrender in April 1865. Causes Secession: The roots of the Civil War can be traced to increasing differences between North and South and their growing divergence as the 19th century progressed. Chief among the issues were expansion of slavery into the territories, the Souths declining political power, states rights, and the retention of slavery. Though these issues had existed for decades, they exploded in 1860 following the election of Abraham Lincoln who was against the spread of slavery. As the result of his election, South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas seceded from the Union. Fort Sumter First Bull Run: On April 12, 1861, the war began hen the South opened fire on Fort forcing its surrender. In response to the attack, President Lincoln called for 75,000 volunteers to suppress the rebellion. While Northern states responded quickly, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Arkansas refused, opting to join the Confederacy instead. Union forces commanded began marching south to take the rebel capital of Richmond. On the 21st, they met a Confederate army near Manassas and were defeated. War in the East, 1862-1863: Following the defeat at Bull Run, Gen. In early 1862, they shifted the army south to attack Richmond. He was defeated and forced to retreat after the Seven Days Battles. The rise of Robert E. Lee to the command of Confederate forces in the East. Shortly thereafter, a second Union army was defeated by Lee at the Second Battle of Bull Run. Lee began to move north into Maryland. McClellan was sent to intercept and met Lee at Antietam. Despite having a larger force and knowledge of Lees positions, McClellan was overcautious and failed to achieve a decisive victory. The win at Antietam permitted Lincoln to issue the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed slaves in the South and altered the Unions war aims. Union engaged Lee near Chancellorsville. Though outnumbered 2-to-1, Lee outmaneuvered them and forced them to retreat. War in the West, 1861-1863: In February 1862, forces under Gen. Grant captured Forts Henry Donelson. Two months later he defeated a Confederate army at Shiloh. Union naval forces captured New Orleans. To the east, Confederate attempted to invade Kentucky, but was repelled at Perryville. He was beaten again at Stones River. Grant now focused his attention on capturing Vicksburg and opening the Mississippi River. After a false start, his troops swept through Mississippi and laid siege to the town in1863. Turning Points Gettysburg Vicksburg: 1863, Lee began to move north towards Pennsylvania with Union troops in pursuit. Following the defeat at Chancellorsville, Lincoln turned to Gen. George Meade to take over the Army of the Potomac. Elements of the two armies clashed at Gettysburg. After three days of heavy fighting, Lee was defeated and forced to retreat. Grant successfully concluded the siege of Vicksburg, opening the Mississippi to shipping and cutting the South in two. Combined these victories were the beginning of the end for the Confederacy. War in the West, 1863-1865: In summer 1863, Union troops advanced into Georgia and were defeated at Chickamauga. Fleeing north, they were besieged at Chattanooga. Grant was ordered to save the situation and did so winning victories at Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge. War in the East, 1863-1865: 1864, Grant came east to deal with Lee. Despite heavy casualties, Grant pressed south, fighting at Spotsylvania and Cold Harbor. Unable to get through Lees army to Richmond, Grant attempted to cut the city off by taking Petersburg. Lee arrived first and a siege began. Lee was forced to evacuate the city and retreat west, allowing Grant to take Richmond. On April 9, Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House. Aftermath Casualties: On April 14, five days after Lees surrender, President Lincoln was assassinated. The assassin, John Wilkes Booth, was killed by Union troops. Lincolns death cast a pall across the nation and elevated Vice President Andrew Johnson to the presidency. With the end of fighting a period known as Reconstruction began, with Union troops occupying Southern states and overseeing their gradual reintegration into the Union. Following the war, three amendments were added to the Constitution: * 13th: Abolished slavery * 14th: Extension of legal protection regardless of race * 15th: Abolished all racial restrictions on voting

Anti-aging Mechanism Using Bacteriphages | Experiment

Anti-aging Mechanism Using Bacteriphages | Experiment We all have been familiar with many infectious diseases since many centuries ago. Some bacteria have killed millions of our lives, some viruses have great potential to consume many people health and wealth and both are still hugely haunting our humankind. We did discover Penicillin, scientists have developed many antibiotic and antiviral drugs to kill and combat against these bacteria and viruses. This is the war that will have no end. I have been thinking and studying about these microorganisms since my undergraduate degree emphasizing about the diseases and their basic features. In this study, I wanted to explore many facts about the bacteria and viruses for advantages of our medical sciences and I found out that there had been many researches and discoveries about using the bacteria and viruses for our goodness and amazingly there will be more and many potential for our future medical sciences. The most interesting thing I have studied is the prokaryotic viruses called Bacteriophage and they really have the very strong potential to be used as a weapon against many infectious diseases including multi drugs resistant bacteria infection and against cancer such as very deadly brain cancers and even the possible cure of many types of cancer by selectively targeting only the cancer cells without affecting the normal ones and I also have studied about the telomerase enzymes that have the potential against human cellular ageing. OBJECTIVES OF MY INDEPENDENCE STUDY As we are living on the world interacting with the ecosystems containing different sorts of unicellular and multi cellular organisms, most of our evolutions and pros and cons are tightly associated with these organisms and the first objective of my study is to know or link the beneficial effects we may obtain from our organisms by understanding them and also understanding ourselves scientifically. To know and if possible, to propose or to make the steps to develop very effective possible future anti cancer treatment using bacteriophage. To propose the possible anti-aging mechanism using bacteriphages. To develop drug which can be effectively used for the many multi drug resistant bacteria infections such as multidrug resistant Tuberculosis using bacteriophages and to identify the possible methods for the drug development and their respective infectious diseases with the delightful and precious help from my supervisor SCOPE After studying and emphasizing upon the general main advantages that we get from the bacteria and virus for our medical sciences, I want to focus my study upon the Bacteriophage viruses which can possibly be used as a vector for gene therapy and gene regulation for my desire against aging of human being and in another word against our inevitable part of our human life called death. Another scope is to use the phage as very specific cancer cell killing agent for many tumors containing specific surface markers or receptors such as brain cancers. I want to study by reading books and journals and also with my innovative thinking step by step, from general to details and to solve all the questions as much as I can and then to propose the very new techniques using molecular levels and receptors levels. Schedule If we want to know something, we must first understand it basically and so, my very first important thing to do is to know about the general important and some very detail characteristics of the bacteria and viruses. Without the general knowledge of them, it is not possible to find out more about them. Many reference books and internet links and help me with this part and to know the many beneficial effects of them for Medical Sciences. After this, my important plan is to study deeply inside the bacteriophage viruses and their current and future usage for Medicine and then accessing the knowledge with my innovative thinking and advices of my supervisor I hope that I will be able to learn, study and find many things about for Medical Sciences. 2. Bacteria 2.1: Introduction to bacteria All prokaryotic organisms are classified as bacteria and they are divided into eubacteria which includes all the bacteria of medical importance and archae-bacteria which is a collection of evolutionarily distinct organisms. TYPICAL BACTERIA: Most of them have shapes such as rod like, sphere or corkscrew. Their cells are smaller than the eukaryotic cells and all of them except the Mycoplasma have the rigid cell wall surrounding the cell membrane. Apart from the shapes, the cell wall defines whether the bacteria are Gram Negative or Gram Positive. Bacteria cells reproduce by binary fission. Atypical Bacteria are the distinct bacteria groups lacking of significant characteristics structural components or metabolic capabilities. They includes Chlamydia, Rickettsia and Mycoplasma etc. 2.2 ADVANTAGES OF BACTERIA FOR OUR BODY AND MEDICAL SCIENCE Although bacteria can cause many diseases and health problems to human being, they also have many beneficial effects for our human body and medical sciences. NORMAL FLORA: Many different micro-organisms mostly bacteria are continuously inhabiting the human body without giving any harm. Human body is usually sterile when a healthy new born enters the world. But, after birth, the body acquires normal flora from the environment and food. The very important fact is that the species of that flora can not be rigidly defined because they differ from one individual from another as a result of physiological differences, diet, age and geographic habitat. NORMAL FLORA AGAINST THE INVADING HARMFUL INFECTIONS The bacteria need receptors and nutrients for their metabolism. The invading infections will face with the competence of normal flora for these essential receptors and nutrients. Some bacteria of the bowel can even produce the antimicrobial substances so that the invading organisms can be killed. But, the substances producing bacteria themselves are immune to their own substances. These effects can reduce the possibility of the infectious diseases and act amazingly as a defense mechanism against the infections. GERM FREE ANIMALS: The significant of the normal floral are now well explored by studying the germ free animals which have no normal flora as conventional animals. They are produced by special cesarean sections and then they are maintained in special isolators. Experiments showed that in the germ-free animals, the alimentary lamina propria is underdeveloped, the motility of the GI tract is reduced and the intestinal epithelial renewal rate is just half of the normal conventional animals. In studies with antibiotic treated animals also suggest that the normal flora can protect our bodies from the pathogens. The researchers first treated the animals with Streptomycin to reduce the normal flora and then made them infected with the Streptomycin resistant Salmonella bacteria. In normal condition, about 10000000 Salmonella were needed to cause the establish infection but in Streptomycin pre treated ones, only 10 organisms were needed to cause infection. NORMAL FLORA FOR OUR IMMUNE SYSTEMS Bacteria colonization of a new born infant is the very powerful stimulus for the development of immune system. The studies showed that the antibodies concentration after infections is significantly reduced in germ-free animals indicating the defect in acquired immune system. Bacteria are also the important providers of important nutrients such as Vitamin K and they also help with digestion and absorption of nutrients. REFERENCES LIPPINCOTTs ILLUSTRATED REVIEWS of MICROBIOLOGY 2007 EDITION INTRODUCTION TO BACTERIA , page 1 -6 Normal Flora Page , 7 10 KAPLAN USMLE TEXT BOOK (MICROBIOLOGY)2009 EDITION HARRISONS PRINCIPLES OF INTERNAL MEDICINE 2006 3. VIRUSES 3.1 INTRODUCTION TO VIRUSES A virus is an infectious agent containing genome which is either RNA or DNA and a protein capsid designed to protect the genome. Many viruses have additional structure like envelope which is protein containing lipid bi-layer. The sort of nucleic acid in the virus is the most fundamental and important of properties of virus. The nucleic acid may be single stranded (ss RNA ss DNA) or double stranded (ds DNA or ds RNA). The Single stranded RNA genome are subdivided into the positive (+) polarity which is, of messenger RNA sense that can be used as template for protein synthesis. Negative (-) polarity or antisense which is complementary to the mRNA sense and so they can not be used as temperate for protein synthesis directly. 3.2 THE REPLICATION CYCLES OF VIRUSES The cycle begins with the attachment of the virus to the host cell called adsorption phase, 1. ADSORPTION: The initial attachment of a virus to the host cell is with the interaction between specific molecular structure on the surface of the virus and receptor molecules in the host membrane that can recognize the structure. The receptor molecules on the host cell membrane are specific for the family of the viruses and they are the molecular structures that usually carry out normal cell functions. The receptors for the viruses are present only on specific cells or are unique for one animal species. So, the absence or presence of the host cell receptors is so important determination for the susceptibility or resistance of a species to a given virus. If we can genetically manipulate the specific receptor affinity for the viruses, we will be able to attack or kill or change the desired targeted cells. Fig: HIV virus adhering to the cell, attachment is accomplished by the SU fragment of the env gene product on the surface of the HIV which binds to the CD4 molecule. So, the HIV viruses can only infect the helper T cells, monocytes and dendritic cells which contain the CD4 protein in their cell membrane. 2 PENETRATION: The two mechanisms the virons enter the cells crossing the cell membrane are the receptor-mediated endocytosis: the viron binds the cell surface receptor and the cell membrane invaginates enclosing the virion in and endocytotic vesicle (endosome). The virion then enters the cytoplasm by various mechanisms depending upon the viruses. It is facilitated by one or more viral molecules in general. C:Documents and SettingsuDesktopendoem.jpg f Membrane Fusion: Some enveloped viruses enter the cell by fusion with their envelopes with the membranes of host cells. Glycoproteins of the envelope can promote this and viral membrane then still remains associated with the plasma membrane of the cell and just the nucleocapsid is released into the cells. HIV viruses enter the cells by this fashion. 3 UNCOATING: This is the stepwise process of disassembly of the viron that enables the expression of the viral genes that carry out viral replications. Most of the steps occur inside the cells and depend on cellular enzymes and in rare occasions, newly synthesized viral proteins are needed to complete the process. The loss of one or more structural components of the viron will lead into the loss of ability to infect another cells reflecting as the eclipse period of the growth curve. 4 REPLICATION: DNA virus replication: There is a wide macromolecular event variation between families of viruses for the replication processes depending primarily upon the viral genome sizes. The smaller the viral genome, the more the virus must depend on the host cell to replicate. Also the mechanisms of replications for ss DNA viruses and ds DNA viruses are different. RNA virus replications Type 1: RNA viruses with a single stranded genome of (+) polarity that replicates with complementary (-) strand intermediate. In this, the infecting parental RNA serves as both mRNA and later as a template for synthesis of the complementary (-) strand. Type 2: Viruses with ssRNA genome of (-) polarity which replicate with a complementary (+) strand intermediate. (-) polarity genomes have two functions, one is to provide information for protein synthesis and the second is to serve as template for replication. But they can not accomplish without prior construction of complementary (+) strand intermediate. Type 3: Viruses with ds RNA genome: dsRNA genome is segmented, with each segment coding for one polypeptide. But, the eukaryotic cells do not have the enzyme to transcribe dsRNA. So, mRNA transcripts are produced by virus-coded, RNA dependent RNA polymerase (transcriptase) located in the sub viral core particle. This particle contains dsRNA genome and associated viral protein, including the transcriptase. In replications, the (+) RNA transcripts are not only used for translation, but also as templates for complementary (-) strand synthesis, resulting in the formation of dsRNA progeny. Type 4: Viruses with a genome of ssRNA of (+) polarity that is replicated with with a DNA intermediate: the conversion of a (+) strand RNA to a double-stranded DNA is accomplished by an RNA-dependent DNA polymerase, commonly known as reverse transcriptase, which is contained in the virion. The resulting dsDNA becomes integrated into the cell genome by a viral integrases action. Viral mRNA abd progeny (+) strand RNA genomes are transcribed srom this integrated DNA by the host cell RNA polymerase. 4 ASSEMBLY AND RELEASE OF PROGENY VIRUSES: The assembly of the nucleocapsids generally occurs in the cytoplasm for most RNA viruses and in the nucleus for most DNA viruses where the viral nucleic acid replications take place. REFERENCES LIPPINCOTTs ILLUSTRATED REVIEWS of MICROBIOLOGY 2007 EDITION , Unit-Viruses , 233-243 KAPLAN USMLE TEXT BOOK (MICROBIOLOGY) 2009 EDITION HARRISONS PRINCIPLES OF INTERNAL MEDICINE 2006 EITION BACTERIOPHAGE Introduction to Bacteriphages Bacteriophages are the viruses that replicate inside the bacterial cells. It contains nucleic acid encapsulated by the protective protein coat. The nucleic acid may be DNA or RNA depending on the phage and may be single stranded and some are double stranded ranging from the length of 3000 bases to 200,000 bases. The replication starts with the attachment of the virus to the receptors of the cell surface of bacteria. Then the phage injects the nucleic acid into the cell leaving all or most of the protein outside the cell. This is the obvious difference between the virus that infects the vertebrates and the virus that infect the bacteria. In former case, the virus is entirely taken up by the cell and its nucleic acid is released inside the cell. (1) The phage nucleic acid takes over the biosynthetic machinery of the cell to replicate its won genetic materials and to synthesize phage specific proteins. When new phage proteins and new phage DNAs have accumulated, they self-assembly into mature phage particles, the phage specific enzyme ( lysozyme ) that dissolves the bacterial cell wall and the phage is released from the bacteria. A single phage can produce millions of progeny at the expense of bacteria cells in culture. (1) (2) 4.2 Virulent phage Phage are classified as virulent or temperate depending on the nature of their relationship to the host bacterium. Infection of a bacterium by the virulent phage results in the lysis of the bacterium and death releasing newly replicated phage particles. One phage can produce hundreds of progeny within twenty minutes under optimal condition. The interesting thing about that virulent phage is that the phage that attack one bacterial species do not attack other species. (1)(2) That is a huge advantage to use phage as an antibiotic because the phage against E coli bacteria will only kill that species and will not affect the others including the normal floral of our human body. So, they will be the most specific antibacterial agent. (1) (2) 4.3 Temperate Phage The temperate phages are different from the virulent one in that they have two possible fates after infecting the bacterium. Some cause the lysis and death of the bacterium just like the virulent phages do but they do have another alternative outcome. After entering the cell, the phage DNA integrates with the chromosome of the host cell. During this state (prophage) the gene expression of the phage is continuously by a protein (repressor) encoded by the phage genome and therefore no new phage particles are produced, the host cell survives and the phage DNA replicate as part of the host cell. (1)(2) 4.4 LYSOGENIC BACTERIA The bacteria which carry the prophage are called lysogenic bacteria and this phenomenon is called LYSOGENY. The association of the phage and the bacteria is very stable unless the host DNA damage or the exposure to the ultraviolet light occurs. When the DNA damage occurs, the repression of phage gene is lifted and the lysis occurs and the host cells die. (1) (2) 4.5 MOLECULAR DETAIL OF LYSOGENY In Lysogenic mechanism, the genes for the lytic process will have to be turned off and this process is caused by the phage coded repressor gene. This may be proteins or sometimes anti sense RNA. The repressor genes can turn off almost all the transcriptional initiation and so most of the gene transcriptions including the essential ones for the lytic mechanism are inhibited. But the repressor gene acts only onto the few promoter genes and the gene for lysis mechanisms in late part of the processes are only indirectly inhibited by the lack of early gene transcriptions tuned off by the repressor proteins or anti sense RNAs. The early gene products are needed to activate the subsequent gene expressions and their absence make the whole lysis process inhibited. The repressors also promote their own transcriptions to ensure their functions. The lysogenic state is very stable and only one in 100000 cell divisions may undergoes lysis by spontaneous activation. There are also many ways to stop the lysogenic state in experimental such as heating in which the repressor proteins become denature, treating with the UV ultraviolet light in which the specific system called SOS system of the bacteria is activated. The SOS system is the global regulatory system which responds to DNA damage. The breakdown products such as oligonucleotides activate the Rec A proteins co-protease activity and this protein in turn inactivate the main protease protein called LexA and then repressors and the lysogeny state is ended. (1) (2) There is also a type of protein called anti-repressor protein and they inhibit the repressorss activities and this anti-repressor synthesis is turned off in the lysogenic cells by the maintenance protein called Mnt protein. CII gene: In order to achieve the stable lysogenic state, both the establishment of the repression of the lytic gene and the integration into the chromosome of the cell are needed. CII is a transcriptional activator which is coordinated with the lysogeny. Within the CII gene, the gene called CI gene which transcription needs the CII-dependent promoter establish the repression of the lytic genes. This promoter is activated only for a short period during lysogenization and after the repression has been established, the CII gene is repressed itself. The CI gene is then transcribed only from the pM gene which is the maintenance promoter gene. The another protein called Integrase which is essential in integrating of the phage nucleic acid with the chromosome is also transcribed from the CII dependent promoter called PI. The pAQ which is also the CII dependent promoter makes an antisense transcript that opposes the Q gene expression. Q genes products stimulate the late gene expression and late gene products which could kill and lyse the cell and they are not made by the CII expressing cells and so the CII gene is so essential for the lysogenic state and only these cells expressing CII gene effectively become lysogenic cells. (1) (2) REFERENCES LIPPINCOTTs ILLUSTRATED REVIEWS of MICROBIOLOGY 2007 EDITION Bacteriophage in chapter 7 Bacteria genetic , gene transfer , Page 60-61 RICHARD CALENDAR THE OXFORD TEXT BOOK OF THE BACTERIOPHAGE 2nd EDITION 2006 part II, Life of Phages, Page 66-104 BACTERIOPHAGE AS AN ANTIBIOTIC 5.1 WHAT PROPERTIES NEEDED AS AN ANTIBIOTIC? The antibiotic must be effective in the treatment of infection because of their selective toxicity. That means the drug should kill or effect against the invading desired organism without harming the cells of the host. In most of the cases, this toxicity is just relative rather than absolute, requiring that the concentration of the drug be carefully controlled to attack the microorganism while still being tolerated by the host. (1) 5.2 WHY PHAGES AS ANTIBIOTIC? As the PHAGE viruses can infect and kill the bacteria, they can be used as a drug targets against the Bacteria. Phage Therapy: Phage therapy is the use of lytic phages to kill specific bacteria as an alternative to antibiotic. The lytic mechanism of the Bacteriophages ensures the effective antibiotic mechanism of the Phages. The other useful thing is that the specific type of Bacteriophage attacks only the corresponding bacteria and so the other normal bacteria will not be affected by the specific Phage Therapy targeted to the aimed bacteria. So, the Phages have more specificity than all antibiotics in attacking the bacteria. 5.3 Host Vs Phages The phages are immunogenic and could initiate the immune responses. This effect may limit the uses of Phages because the Bacteriophages may be destroyed by our immune system even before attacking the desired target bacteria and also the strong immune responses may trigger the allergic reactions and also the human immune system produces antibodies against the Phages. Despite these matters, the good news is that their clinical uses reveal only very few side effects or allergic reaction. The best way to avoid the sensitization is to use the Phages only when it is necessary as in the case of multidrug resistant infection and using the Intra Venous IV Administration method. 5.4 BACTERIOPHAGE AGAINST TB Tuberculosis, one of the oldest diseases known to affect humans, is caused by bacteria belonging to the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex. The disease usually affects the lungs, although in up to one-third of cases other organs are involved. If properly treated, tuberculosis caused by drug-susceptible strains is curable in virtually all cases. If untreated, the disease may be fatal within 5 years in more than half of cases. Transmission usually takes place through the airborne spread of droplet nuclei produces by patients with infectious pulmonary tuberculosis. MULTIDRUG RESISTANT TUBERCULOSIS: This condition arises when the Bacteria undergo point mutation in their genome which occurs at low but predictable rates. There are two types of drug resistant Primary drug resistant: This occurs when the strain infects the one who has never been treated before and Acquired drug resistant: In which, the resistant develops during treatment with inappropriate regimen. Apart from the resistant, some of the patients are not appropriate to give the usual dose of conventional treatment due to their co existing diseases like renal failure, hepatitis or liver failure. (1)(6) MYCOBACTERIOPHAGE Mycobacteriophages are the bacteriophages that infect against mycobacteria, the bacteria causing Tuberculosis and many other diseases like Leprosy. Mycobacteriophages were first discovered by the in 1946.They are the double stranded DNA viruses with non contractile tail belonging to the Siphoviridae family of the Bacteriophage. They also infect the pathogenic bacilli of the Mycobacterium Tuberculosis complex and now more than 250 mycobacteriophages have been indentified. They are either lytic or temperate. Some mycobacteriophages like DS6A can exclusively infect the Mycobacterium tuberculosis alone. Phages like 13, D 29, TM4, Bxz2 and Chel 2 infect both Mycobacterium tuberculosis and other Mycobacterium bacteria. Their morphological variation is limited but their genomes show extra ordinary genetic variability. The implications of phages in mycobacterial diseases may be greater than previously realized. (1) (2) (3)(7) 5.6 PHAGE THERAPY We can use lytic phages to kill specifically pathogenic bacteria as an alternative to antibiotics treatment especially for the multidrug resistant Tuberculosis. Lack of knowledge of bacteriophage biology and the quality monitoring during the preparation of therapeutic stocks had made the therapy difficult though the first known therapeutic use was in 1919.The M. Tuberculosis infections are hard to treat because the bacteria are naturally resistant to many antibiotic. The bacilli may remain in the latent or dormant state avoiding the action of drugs that require replication of the bacteria. So, the treatment of Tuberculosis requires multiple drugs for extended periods of time to effectively cure and avoid the drug resistant. The minimal duration for the treatment is four months with four drugs and then two months with two drugs. The most important thing is the emergence of multi drugs resistant strains and that makes the Phage Therapy more interested. (1) (2) (3) Dr Margaret Chan, the director-general of the World Health Organization said,The situation is already alarming, and poised to grow much worse very quickly. She and Bill Gates also stated that they only had little help from the modern drugs for the disease that is affecting 9 millions people each year killing nearly 2 millions of them. The conventional drugs are useless against some strains of tuberculosis and they addressed the situation OUT OF CONTROL and A POTENTIALLY EXPLOSIVE (5) TIM JOHNSON, Mc Clatchy Newspapers Animal study: One of the Mycobacteriophage, DS6A, showed reduction in the observed in the lesions in spleen, lungs and livers of guinea pigs infected with (Challenged with) Mycobacterium tuberculosis and the study showed that the anti bacterial effect of the phages is at least as good as Isoniazid monotherapy. The results are promising in the treatment of tuberculosis using phages. 5.7 MYCOBACTERIM INSIDE THE MACROPHAGES: Mycobacterium can reside in the macrophage cells of our immune system. They can even persist inside the phagolysosome where many bacteria and pathogens are killed. It was uncertain whether the mycobacteriophages can survive and replicate inside the hostile intra-cellular environment with reduced PH. (8)(9) 5.8 MYCOBACTERIUM SMEGMATIS, THE VEHICLE INTO THE MACROPHAGES: The above problem can be solved by using the vector bacterium Mycobacterium smegmatis. The technology was introduced in 2002. In this technology, the non-virulent bacteria Mycobacterium smegmatis act like a carrier into the macrophages. Macrophages infected with the Mycobacterium Tuberculosis or Mycobacterium avium were treated with the additional Mycobacterium smegmatis infected with Mycobacteriophage TM4. After they are ingested and destructed by the macrophages, the TM4 phages were released within the macrophages infecting and destroying the pathogenic bacteria even within the macrophages. The experiments showed the significant reduction of both the Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium avium. (9) 5.9 D29bacteriophages: This D29 are capable of entering the Macrophages without the need of any carrier and they can infect the mycobacterium and kill them effectively. So, the mechanisms of action of mycobacteriophages are completely different from the conventional drugs and will be so important in the multi-drug resistant cases. The Phage therapy also dose not need repeat dosing because the viruses do increase within the target bacteria and new virions are released on lysis. The endotoxin may be released into the body after the bacteria has been lysed and this could trigger the immune reactions but till now the clinical use of bacteriophages revealed only very few cases of side effects or allergic reaction indicating that our human body can really tolerate them. The other advantage is that they are cheaper and easier to produce than antibiotics. (10) REFERENCES LIPPINCOTTs ILLUSTRATED REVIEWS of MICROBIOLOGY 2007 EDITION HORACE T. ADAMS CONTEMPORARY TRENDS IN BACTERIOPHAGE RESEARCH 2009 EDITION RICHARD CALENDAR THE OXFORD TEXT BOOK OF THE BACTERIOPHAGE 2nd EDITION 2006 http://www.microphage.com/technology/phageBiology.cfm WHO, world health organization, Global Tuberculosis control Geneva Harrison text book of Practice of Medicine , USA 6th edition Fuller, KJ and Hatfull GF 1997 Mycobacteriophage L5 infection of Mycobacterium bovis BCG implications for phage genetic in the slow-growing mycobacteria Mol Microbiaol 26 755-766 Kaufmann SH 2002 Protection against Tuberculosis cytokines T cells and macrophages Ann Rheum Dis 61 Sulll 2 ii54-58 BroxmeyerL Sonsowaka DMiltner 2002 killing of Mycobacterium by a mycobacteriophage delivered by non virulent mycobacterium , model for phage therapy of intracellular bacterial pathogen, J infect Dis 1155-1160 Trollip A Albert H and Maskell 2001 Bacteriophage based technology for the rapid diagnosis and drug susceptibility testing of tuberculosis Am Clin Lab 20: 39-42 Phage as cancer curing agent 6.1 PHAGE DISPLAY is a process by which a peptide or a protein is expressed as an exterior fusion to a surface protein of a phage particle. The peptide or protein sequence can be deduced from its encoding DNA sequence that resides in the phage particle or in a transductant. Amplification of the DNA of interest can take place by phage/transductant propagation or by polymerase chain reaction PCR. By producing large amount of phage particles, each expressing a unique peptide or protein peptide and protein libraries can be obtained. The peptides or proteins interacting with defined molecular targets (most often proteins) can be isolated from such libraries by enrichments through repeated cycles of panning. So, the phage display can be regarded as a search engine of protein-target interaction. (1) Phages are bacterial viruses that have no native affinity to mammalian cells. But we can amazingly genetically reengineered to display peptides fusions to coat proteins that can recognize and bind to our mammalian cells. Oligonucleotide sequences encoding for foreign peptides are cloned into phage coat protein genes resulting in combinatorial libraries of billions of different phage clones displaying encoded peptides on their surfaces. This phage display libraries can be easily screened against various biological targets including the intact mammalian cells to give binding molecules with desired target-specific characteristics. Even the cell-specific peptides indentified through phage display can be used as delivery moieties for construction of gene therapy vectors, liposomes, or targeted drugs to diseased cells in many sorts of disorder including the cancer. (2)(3) 6.2 PHAGES AGAINST BRAIN TUMORS Malignant brain tumors are very difficult to treat because they are heterogenous, migrate far into adjacent essential brain normal tissues, are resistant to chemotherapy and radiotherapy and also protected by the blood brain barrier. (1) (4) The phage display might be so much effective against this fatal condition by following means. Phages can optimize the targeted delivery platforms to malignant brain cells using the cell specific peptides. The emerging of phage probes for profiling of brain tumors in individual patients and then making the personalized treatment based on the profiles of these tumors. To identify Death Penalty in Britain: Past and Present Death Penalty in Britain: Past and Present This paper analyses the past and future of the death penalty in Britain, examining the rationale for abolition in 1965 together with the potential and merits of re-introduction in the future. The death penalty was abolished in 1965 in Britain following a 1953 Royal Commission[1] and pressure by abolitionist groups. While the 1953 Report went outside its remit, to examine the effectiveness of hanging, it addressed the issues of deterrence and retribution; often heralded as the twin foundations of the death penalty and consequently used as the main arguments for the failure of the punishment. Bailey summarises deterrence theory by stating that â€Å"criminal sanctions must be severe enough to outweigh the pleasures†[2]. A fundamental concern is that deterrence can be broken down into various components. The apex of deterrence is a swift, public, just, and painful execution. A death penalty that combined all of these features could be said to have the maximum likelihood of deterring potential criminals. It is generally believed that the majority of death penalty mechanisms in existence lack at least three if not all four of these qualities. Whether the death penalty in fact deters is the subject of numerous studies; when read objectively they give no definite answer. Retribution is in many respects the antithesis of deterrence. Deterrence focuses on logic; retribution deals with the emotional reaction of society, with the oft quoted foundation being â€Å"an eye for an eye†[3]. In many respects this is concurrently the most and least powerful argument for the death penalty. It is difficult to argue, in particular in the most heinous cases, that society and specifically the victim’s relatives should not have the satisfaction of retribution. Concurrently it is an argument based on emotion; an element that justice strains to minimise. The fundamental difficulty was discussed by the US Supreme Court in Roper v Simmons[4] where Justice Kennedy made it clear that retribution can be justified only in certain cases; not in the case at hand. It is this fragmenting of the death penalty, with exceptions and splintered rationales developing, that has led to gradual reduction in the use of the death penalty. While a number of Royal Commission Reports and campaigns debated the issues mentioned above and below, it is likely that one particular argument dealt a hammer blow to the death penalty; the concept that innocent people may be executed. This realisation was a contributing factor to Justice Blackmun’s famous dissenting statement â€Å"I feel morally and intellectually obligated simply to concede that the death penalty experiment has failed†[5]. Year after year, new, modern evidence uncovers miscarriages of justice that lead to innocent men and women being released. In 1991 the ‘Birmingham Six’ were released following police errors and new evidence. Had they been convicted 30 years earlier, there would have been nothing more practical to do than grant posthumous pardons. Hood argued[6] that one of the main reasons for America still using the death penalty was that it was a populist measure. If this is so then there must be strong support for this argument of potential injustice, above the more specific, clinical reasoning, that persuades individual citizens of the dangers and risks that are inherent in the â€Å"machinery of death†. The modern addition to these time honoured theories is the popular focus on rehabilitation over punishment. The Criminal Justice System clarifies this by placing rehabilitation on an equal plane with punishment[7]. The rationale for this is uncomplicated and is based on the importance of working with the individual in order to help them contribute to society as a whole. The death penalty fairly obviously has no place within this new philosophy. The theoretical objections discussed above are merely the tip of an iceberg capable of sinking at least an ocean liner. Were there to be an inclination to re-introduce the death penalty, and in 1994 a bilateral coalition of 403 MPs favoured abolition, the European Convention on Human Rights would still have to be faced. Through the Human Rights Act, the United Kingdom is a signatory to the Act and is prohibited from imposing â€Å"degrading punishment†[8]. The issue has arisen predominantly with regard to cases of extradition to death penalty countries, and the courts have made it clear that even to extradite to such countries would constitute prohibited punishment. Further, to contemplate such a policy reversal would risk international condemnation. Amnesty have been vocal in condemning America and would turn their and others focus to Britain in an instant. While awareness of the factors above has been instrumental in 122 countries abandoning the death penalty either in its entirety or in practice[9], the evolution has also been the result of constant pressure from Human Rights groups including Amnesty International. Unlike America, Britain has traditionally been more dependent on the friendship of sister nations; a friendship that could conceivably shift dramatically. In short, the practical objections to a re-introduction of the death penalty would require a change in British foreign and domestic policy; the effects of which would be felt for decades. CONCLUSION This paper has addressed the death penalty in succinct terms; the question asks if it is the only way to â€Å"dramatically reduce crime†[10]. The analysis on deterrence and retribution show that far from this lofty status, there is no guarantee that it will reduce any crime. BIBLIOGRAPHY Bailey WC ‘Murder, Capital Punishment and Deterrence: A Review of the Literature’ (part of ‘The Death Penalty in America, Current Controversies’ Edited by Bedau H,  Published by Oxford University Press Hood R ‘Capital Punishment’ (1998) (part of ‘The Handbook of Crime and Punishment’ Edited by Tonry M,  Published by Oxford University Press Hood R ‘The Death Penalty: A World-wide Perspective’ 2nd Edition Turow S ‘Ultimate Punishment’,  Published by Picador GB Royal Commission on Capital Punishment: Report of the Royal Commission on Capital Punishment (1953) http://www.cjsonline.gov.uk/the_cjs/how_it_works/punishments_and_rehab/index.html http://web.amnesty.org/pages/deathpenalty-countries-eng European Convention on Human Rights Callins v Collins (1994)510 US 1141 Roper v Simmons (2004) 543 US 551 1 Footnotes [1] GB Royal Commission on Capital Punishment: Report of the Royal Commission on Capital Punishment (1953) [2] Bailey WC ‘Murder, Capital Punishment and Deterrence: A Review of the Literature’ [3] Exodus 21:23-25 [4] (2004) 543 US 551 [5] Callins v Collins (1994) 510 US 1141 [6] Hood R ‘Capital Punishment’ (1998) [7] http://www.cjsonline.gov.uk/the_cjs/how_it_works/punishments_and_rehab/index.html [8] Article 3 [9] http://web.amnesty.org/pages/deathpenalty-countries-eng [10] see question