Monday, September 30, 2019

Wealth of Teaching

Vive been working as a teacher for a year and four months now. Yet my understanding of being a teacher is still evolving day by day. I realized that how I understood this profession was not yet substantial until I was Immersed In the actual teaching scenario. I realize that the books, lectures, and inputs given by my college professors, when I was just an education student, are just spectacles of what is in store for me. When I ask my students what course they are planning to take up, they tend to mention almost all the other courses other than education primarily because they live that they won't gain much from this course In the future.Right now, the standards of the world are geared towards determining the gains. People nowadays choose a career that will give them greater return of Investments with minimal sacrifice due, perhaps to the fast paced and technological world that we have, when everything we need and want can be acquired in an instant. There is some truth to that. If I am only after the monetary gains of this profession, I might have surrendered last year and should have furnished my resignation papers. To be honest, my salary seems to be Just sufficient for my dally needs. Just say, this profession Is not a dream Job for someone who wishes to have a great bank account. What fuels me then is the realization that I'm gaining a lot beyond the standards of the world. When I was a high school student, I really dreamt to be a teacher because of the great inspiration that my teachers gave me. I promised that one time I will be like them. Now that I am already teaching, I am amazed that my Inspirations for this vocation are still out there doing the thing that they fell in love with- teaching.Some of them are even ageing already in this profession yet still pursue the same passion since the first time I saw them. I believe that teaching, using some economic terms, utilizes love as the main capital. A teacher who still wants to teach is a person filled wi th love and ready to give and share love to others. I think that right now people seek and clamor for opportunities to express their love more In the things that they do, But teachers, Like me, do not need to make an effort to love more since loving Is embedded In our Job description.This sounds easy yet very challenging at the same time There are even times that even as young as I am, I am forced to grow old and be a parent to my student, to find solutions to problems I have not even encountered in my life, and to find hope from students who don't even see the light within them. Why do we do these things? We do these things definitely not because of the salary given to our employers but because finding the most loving thing to do Is Integral to the desire off real teacher.One of the commercials that I really enjoy watching because I feel I can perfectly elate with it is the Unsafe commercial about a teacher narrating her story of her teaching profession and answering the question, â€Å"Para casino aka baa bandwagon? † In the same way, I believe that this commercial perfectly illustrates how teachers are passionate about life because of what they do. I myself consider teaching as one of teaching excites me since it provides me with several new opportunities to express my deepest humanity in the act of loving others, particularly my students.But aside from being given the opportunity to love, I believe that another gain of caching is the experience of being loved. One of the concrete manifestations of this is my experience of having a family. Because of teaching, I experienced having more than an extended family in the person of my students and parent. I consider my students and parents as family members and not as clients. This is the reason why my students and teachers love me not as a business partner as well but as a relative ready to love them the same way.In the same way, Just recently, I saw some of my students who graduated last year. Seeing the m in their college uniforms is such a great feeling. But I guess the best part is to be able to update each other about what is new about them and being able to look back at the memories of high school. A heartwarming message was given to me by one of my students saying that I have contributed to his growth as a person, and that he is very thankful for all of the efforts that I have made Just for him to value his education.This made me realize that teaching entails sacrifice and emptying. We teachers empty ourselves as we meet our students in the classroom in the hope that they would be filled. Emptying in itself is a risk that we teachers face every day. In our daily grind, we give our whole selves to our students without a strong assurance of a concrete change. But as we give ourselves to our students, we rely on their goodness and infinite giftedness that someday whatever we are doing would help them find their real purpose and mission in their life.As they find themselves, we no t only help others towards greater self-discovery, rather we impart more hope to them as they further appreciate life in its fullest sense Likewise, the wealth that we received in the form of students' appreciation, parents' raises and the recognition of others seeing our capacity to be able to make a difference to the lives of others are more than the abundance of the love we have given and a part of ourselves that we have shared for this risk. Thus, great risk, greater returns.Contrary to the belief of other people, I am a living witness that there is, indeed, wealth in teaching. As a matter fact, this profession has been truly a gift for me since it is through this that Vive been experiencing a lot of growth beyond the monetary and worldly standards. To be given an opportunity to love and to experience the abundance of love is in itself satisfying because it continues to lead me to greater happiness and appreciation of the true meaning of life lived to the fullest and shared with other people.Sam is currently teaching at Xavier University High School – Atone De Canaan as the Social Studies teacher for various 3rd and 4th year classes. All in all, Sam handles 7 classes. He Handles the Social Order Club and the Youth Christian Life Community Clubs, which are two of the clubs under the socio-spiritual cluster of the said school.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Inclusive Practice Essay

Inclusive Practice is a term which means the practical things that we do, when we are working with people who use our services, which demonstrate our professional values, standards, and principles in action. In particular Inclusive Practice is about participation, collaboration, and including people: where individuals are fully involved in choices and decisions that affect their lives and in the matters that are important to them. People who use mental health services say that being listened to, having their individual needs taken account of, and staff attitudes and values is a very important part of keeping well (Dunglas Research Project, 2005). The experience of participation is often as important as the end result. Participation itself may be an outcome. Inclusive Practice can benefit staff through sharing knowledge and learning new and effective ways of working with people. People who use services bring new ideas, and we are able to respond from a more informed position. Inclusive Practice is good practice, and is also about a human rights and anti-discriminatory approach to mental health. Inclusive practice underpins anti-discriminatory practice and is the practical way in which we put our equality policies/agenda into action. * The learners. All learners are citizens and have rights and entitlements. They should be treated fairly regardless of race, religion or abilities. This applies no matter: – what they think or say – what type of family they come from – what language(s) they speak – what their parents do – whether they are girls or boys whether they have a disability or whether they are rich or poor. All learners have an equal right to be listened to and valued in the setting. * Equality and diversity My understanding of diversity is broad – it encompasses gender, race, age, disability, linguistic differences, learning abilities, sexual orientation, socio-economic status and cultural background and so much more. Inclusive practice is understood to be attitudes, approaches and strategies taken to ensure that students are not excluded or isolated from the learning environment because of any of these characteristics. As a tutor, my role is to ensure that all students feel welcome, accepted, safe, listened to, valued and confident that they can participate in all activities. I need to be sensitive to the needs of all students. I am the protagonist in setting the culture of my tutorial and thus able to set parameters for creating a learning culture which recognises and honours student diversity. I have very diverse groups of students in my lessons. My approach to this as a tutor is influenced by my own experiences and assumptions and, in some instances, those of other students. It is useful to reflect on this, as perhaps I may carry some negative or fixed ideas into the classroom. I need to be aware (beware) of my own generalisations and stereotypes and those perpetuated by others. I consider these suggestions for inclusive teaching: – When I ask a question, I make eye contact with all students – When listening to a response, I listen attentively – I treat each student as an individual – I call on all students by name where possible – I make an effort to learn names – I intervene when students show disrespect for another student – I use small groups to foster collaborative learning I encourage students to share their varied perspectives and experiences & create a supportive environment in which this can occur – I encourage students to know and listen to each other. – I avoid stories, jokes and comments that denigrate others * Lesson planning The group of learners I teach is a group of individual s who have own needs and abilities as far as learning is concerned. While planning a lesson I take into consideration learners’ needs and their ability to perform during the lesson. To maximize learning opportunity for individuals I differentiate the lesson so that each of learners is not left behind and has a chance to learn something from a lesson. Considering learners’ previous educational experience and various teaching and learning strategies I create a lesson plan to facilitate a learning opportunity. * Teacher as a motivator As mentioned above, being prepared for a lesson through carefully designing lesson plan, a teacher motivates learners to participate in the lesson. Teacher’s attitude is also crucial. Being enthusiastic and positive to what he/she is teaching places learners in a position to class a teacher as an expert of the subject he/she is teaching. Constructive feedback and being a good listener ensures learners that they were listened to. To become a successful teacher, a candidate needs to take interests in learners, needs to find a connection with them by being approachable and accessible at any time they need him. Getting learners involved in the lesson and encouraging them to help each other reinforces their learning and helps to check if they know what they are doing. A teacher is responsible for providing a challenging but supportive learning environment so learners can see how much they know and what skills they need to develop. Using a range of teaching strategies and audio visual aids provides variation to a lesson and helps to deliver it to learners in a meaningful way. References: Dunglas Research Project, 2005 Reece I & Walker S (2003) Teaching, Training and Learning Roffey-Barentsen J & Malthouse R (2009) Reflective Practice in the Lifelong Learning Sector. Learning Matters.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Academia and Text Matching Software Essay

Critically evaluate the use of text matching software as an aid to developing good scholarship practice Introduction Academic dishonesty such as plagiarism has been a major factor in education that has affected students’ success and academic achievements in recent years. Plagiarism according to Park (2003) is the act of appropriating or copying another person’s work and passing them on as one’s idea without acknowledging the original source. Park (2003) noted that plagiarism is a growing problem and has been a misuse of the writings of another author, their ideas, hypothesis, theories, research findings and interpretations. Furthermore studies by Chao, Wilhelm and Neureuther (2009) emphasised that the rising trend of plagiarism among students can be attributed to several factors such as academic literacy, language competence and the technological advancements in the world today in terms of high speed internet facility available in hostels and computer labs. These factors according to Chao, Wilhelm and Neureuther (2009) has enhanced the ability of students to plagiarise a whole assignment by obtaining papers on the internet relating to their assignments which is as easy as copying and pasting. Park (2003) stated that students have different perceptions towards plagiarism. He noted that students view plagiarism as a minor offence which is different from cheating in exams. He further discovered that plagiarism could be unintentional (ibid). This is because some students possess a mental illusion in which they believe they have produced something from their own perspective while infact they are reproducing something which they have read from another author. The purpose of this paper is to critically evaluate the effect of text matching software as an aid to developing good scholarship practice. This paper will begin by briefly describing what good scholarship practise is. In addition the use of text matching software for detecting good scholarship practice will be critically discussed and a conclusion will be made based on the evaluation. Good scholarship practice can be referred to as a formal study which involves academic learning and achievement. It involves acknowledging where information used to support ideas in a particular context is gotten and citing the sources (Locke and Latham, 2009). Britag and Mahmud (2009) pointed out that different strategies whichinclude the use of electronic software tools such as turnitin have been derived for detecting plagiarism with the intent of allowing students’ take responsibility of their learning and also work hand in hand with their tutors in the drafting stages of their assignments. According to Britag and Mahmud (2009) manual detection of plagiarism is difficult because it is time consuming and this is the reason why some tutors are reluctant in pursuing potential cases of plagiarism. However both the manual method of plagiarism detection and the electronic text matching method should be employed (Britag and Mahmud, 2009). Scaife (2007) argued that the electronic text matching software is not the solution to eliminating plagiarism because the software only focuses on text matching of paper under review with documents (journals, articles, e-books and conference papers) found on the internet or which has been previously submitted and this is a limitation because the only detection are focused on electronic materials without considering some non-electronic paper based documents which could still be plagiarised. Walker (2010) stated that with the development of text matching software such as the turnitin plagiarism detection was made easier, however he emphasised that the turnitin detection software is not 100 per cent efficient, it merely identifies and matches materials present in a document uploaded to turnitin website to materials available on the internet. Walker (2010) describes the electronic text matching software as a tool only suitable for detecting word for word or direct plagiarism in electronic form and the refined ones from the paper based sources are not easily detected. Moreover Carroll and Appleton (2001) argued that the turnitin is just an option for measuring plagiarism and that alone cannot be used as a basis for judging good scholarship practice. In addition Carroll and Appleton (2001) insist that the use of electronic software for detecting plagiarism requires human application and interpretation and that using turnitin alone as a medium for plagiarism detection is not proficient. According to Barrett and Malcolm (2006) the electronic text matching software (turnitin) only indicates possible plagiarism without any certainty, it is left to the tutor to determine the extent to which the writer has plagiarised or included some sources in the paper without acknowledging where they were acquired. In conclusion the concept of plagiarism cannot be overemphasised. It has become a factor that has affected good academic scholarship practice and has  created an avenue for educators to develop methods for detecting and dealing with plagiarism. The development of the electronic detection software such as the turnitin has enhanced the detection of plagiarism however it cannot be relied upon completely because it is not effective. In addition it is important to understand that the best way to detect plagiarism is to use both the manual method which involves educators and the use of electronic text matching software such as turnitin. Students could also be assisted in understanding the criteria for academic writing such as the code of conducts which requires them to acknowledge any source from where data is derived when writing academically. References Barrett, R. & Malcolm, J. (2006) ‘Embedding plagiarism education in the assessment process’, International Journal for Educational Integrity, Vol. 2, No. 1, pp. 38-45. Bretag, T. and Mahmud, S. (2009) ‘A model for determining student plagiarism: Electronic detection and academic judgement. ‘, Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, Vol. 6, No. 1, pp. 50-60. Chao, C. , Wilhelm, W. J. , Neureuther, B. D. (2009. ) ‘A Study of Electronic Detection and Pedagogical Approaches for Reducing Plagiarism’, The Delta Pi Epsilon Journal, Vol. 51, No. 1, pp. 31-42. Carroll, J. and Appleton, J. (2001), Plagiarism: A good practice guide, Oxford: Oxford Brookes University. Locke, E. A, Latham, G. P (2009) ‘Has Goal Setting Gone Wild, or Have Its Attackers Abandoned Good Scholarship? ‘, The Academy of Management Perspectives, Vol. 23, No. 1, pp.  17-23. Park, C. (2003). ‘In Other (People’s) Words: plagiarism by university students—literature and lessons’, Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, Vol. 28, No. 5, pp. 472-488. Scaife, B (2007) IT Consultancy Plagiarism Detection Software Report for JISC Advisory Service. [Online]. Retrieved from:www. plagiarismadvice. org/documents/resources/PDReview-Reportv1_5. pdf [Accessed 24th October 2012]. Walker, J. (2010) ‘Measuring plagiarism: researching what students do, not what they say they do’, Studies in Higher Education, Vol. 35, No. 1, pp. 41-59.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Erosion, weathering, mass wasting. Earth's Interior Geologic Time Assignment

Erosion, weathering, mass wasting. Earth's Interior Geologic Time Scale - Assignment Example Soil erosion can be prevented by planting windbreaks. Windbreaks are lines of planted bushes and plants that hold soil firmly with their roots and prevent it from being washed away. Other methods include terracing, in which level plains are cut on hillsides and crops are grown on these plains. (wikipedia.org).Weathering is the process of decomposition or breakdown of soils and rocks when they come in direct contact with natural forces such as wind, rain and heat. Weathering is of two types, mechanical and chemical. Mechanical weathering involves the breakdown of rocks due to wind, heat, rain and ice. Sand that is carried by wind grinds down the surfaces of rocks, causing wind erosion/weathering. Higher temperatures cause cracks in rocks. This mostly occurs when sun rays heat up the surface of the rocks while the inside of the rock remains cool. When the surface of such rocks cools down at night, it contracts. Repeated contraction and expansion causes cracks in the rock, leading to it s breakdown and weathering. Raindrops too cause weathering, either by wearing down the rocks or by causing chemical changes by mixing with minerals in the rocks. Ice glaciers running over rocks also lead to their breakdown. Chemical weathering occurs when environmental agents, such as CO2, react with rock minerals. (wikipedia.org) Mass wasting is the process by which soil and rocks move down a slope due the action of gravity. This occurs when the gravitational forces acting on a soil layer on a slope exceeds the frictional force that is keeping the soil layer in place. The maximum angle of the slope at which the soil continues to stay in place without being pulled by gravity is called angle of repose. Mass wasting occurs when the slope’s angle exceeds the angle of repose. Landslides, mudflows and creeps are examples of mass wasting. It usually occurs due to change in slope angle, weathering of rocks, intensive increase or decrease in water content of the soil, and lack of veg etation to hold the soil together. (wikipedia.org) 2. Earth's lithosphere and plate tectonics The earth’s lithosphere is the solid outermost region of the earth, comprising of the crust and the upper mantle. Lithosphere is of two types, oceanic and continental. The oceanic lithosphere is the crust that exists beneath the oceans, and whose thickness is about 50-100 Km. Continental lithosphere is about 40-200 Km thick and is associated with the continental crust. The thickness of the oceanic lithosphere increases as it ages. Moreover, it always sinks beneath the continental lithosphere. The lithosphere is divided into plates called tectonic plates that are constantly in gradual motion. The theory of plate tectonics explains the large-scale motion of the earth’s tectonic plates. This theory builds up on other theories such as those of continental drift. The energy for motion of tectonic plates is derived from the dissipated heat from the earth’s mantle. While the m echanism underlying the motion of tectonic plate is still under debate, several reasonable explanations do exist. Apart from several minor plates, there are eight major tectonic plates – namely, Antarctic Plate, African Plate, Indian Plate, Australian Plate, Eurasian Plate, Pacific Plate, South American Plate, and the North American Plate. Below these plates, which comprise the lithosphere, the asthenosphere (hot, viscous fluid that is a part of the upper mantle) flows gradually. Convection currents generated in the asthenosphere transfer heat to the tectonic plates in the lithosphere, which are then separated by the action of magma. Movement of these tectonic plates gives rise to

Thursday, September 26, 2019

The Law of Personal Property Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The Law of Personal Property - Essay Example The reluctance of the courts to interfere with the terms of the contract has led to the development of rules which relate to the 'incorporation' (whether the clause is a part of the contract) and 'construction' (whether the clause covers the breach). The potential of the approach has been limited by the House of Lords. Incorporation requires any clause to have been incorporated as a term of the contract for it to be effective. Incorporation of clauses, most commonly limited liability clauses may take place through one of the three ways which will be briefly discussed. Firstly it can be through inclusion in the contractual document duly signed by the other party. (L'Estrange v Graucob1) Secondly the clause can be incorporate through provision of reasonable notice at or before the time of contract, so if notice is provided late it will stand void (Chapelton v. Barry UDC2). Finally the clause may be incorporate through a 'course of dealing', which is presumed when exclusion clause had been part of the previous contracts that had been made between the parties. (Kendall (Henry) & Sons v. Lillico (William) & Sons Ltd)3 After establishing the incorporation the next issue is that on proper construction the particular breach which has occurred is covered by the clause. (Andrews v. Singer4) The courts have stated that due to the statutory provisions there is a lesser need for adoption of strained constructions of clauses so as to limit their scope.( Lord Wilberforce in Photo Production Ltd v. Securicor Transport Ltd.) Further at one point in time the Court of Appeal had stated that an exclusion clause would not apply where a fundamental breach had taken place. A fundamental breach has been said to occur when either there has been a breach of a particularly important term or through a breach depriving then entirety of the benefits of the contract to the other party. The exclusion clauses are now regulated by the statutory framework that is Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977(UCTA). It is important to point out that the Act operates alongside the common law and so it remains open to strike down a clause through the rules of common law without the need to take into account the effect of the UCTA. This can be best explained by saying that an argument of incorporation of the clause into the contract can be raised. Thus it can be said that the validity of a clause is entirely dependent on both common law and the statutory controls that is UCTA and Unfair Terms in Consumer Contract Regulations 1999. The main or primary concern of Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 is to deal with the limitation and exclusion clauses and so it is not concerned with the unfair terms which are prevalent in a contract. The provisions are therefore essential concerned with business liability that the liabilities which arise in the course of a business. So if a private individual has laid down an exclusion clause then this would be subject to the common law rules which have been discussed. The course of business had been construed in R & B Customs Brokers v. UDT5 where it was found that certain contracts which are entered into by a business do not fall within the ambit of 'in the course of business' The different ways of limitation or exclusion of liability are found in s.13. Most of the provisions which have

OPERATIONS STRATEGY AND MANAGEMENT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

OPERATIONS STRATEGY AND MANAGEMENT - Essay Example McDonalds has a huge supply chain network spread globally and the company puts lots of concentration over its supply chain as it is in the food division so maintenance of the quality of the food items and protecting them from getting damaged. The diagram showing the complete supply chain network of the company is been given below (Bass, 2010, pp. 89-96). The flow of information and also the flow of the materials give a clear indication in as to how important the supply chain is for the company. The company uses various transport medium like for transporting the materials which are perishable are been transported using cold vans which has freezer facilities which helps the company to maintain the quality of the item (Manos and Vincent, 2012, pp. 65-68). Company has looked to get local suppliers for supply of vegetables which can be availed in the fresh way. It has distributors in the supply chain in every city where all the raw materials come from the various suppliers of vegetables, breads, meats, milk items etc. From these distributors the materials are been supplied to the various outlets and restaurants using cold vans and trucks. The time limit for every supply of raw materials is 3 days, that is after every 3 days new stock of raw materials are been supplied to the stores and the maximum stock been maintained in the stores are only for 3 days which helps the company to keep the freshness of the product as a result of which the quality of the food item is been maintained in a good way (Wireman, 2004, pp. 113-115). McDonalds looks to maintain a good relation with the suppliers by providing them good facilities and good knowledge regarding good maintenance of the animals and also gives information to the vegetable suppliers regarding the various methods used for maintaining the quality and freshness of the vegetables. The company ma intains a simple policy of one material-one supplier to give the suppliers under control and

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

HUNTING THE NIGHTMARE BACTERIA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

HUNTING THE NIGHTMARE BACTERIA - Essay Example Bacterial infections long before the discovery of penicillin used to result in deaths from simple infected wounds. As times progressed, scientific intervention relieved people from the fatality of sepsis. However resistant genes and bacteria seem to have brought back such infections. In the case of Addie Rerecich, a MRSA infection from a single scrape wound resulted, which aggravated upon further treatment and multiplied due to medical intervention, exacerbating her debility to the point where doctors deemed it untreatable, yet bought her some time with surgical intervention. Similarly David Ricci introduced NMD-1 into the United States, leaving doctors who had never treated a patient for such a bacteria; no choice but to quarantine him. Likewise, the alarming outbreak of KPC in New York threatened patient admission in the NIH, leaving the doctors baffled with the inability to control the spread of such a bacteria. The resistance of bacteria to antibiotics has thus posed problems for the doctors, pharmacists, microbiologists and researchers time after time due to the fact that medical resources are finite and the invading organisms are gaining strength in their pathogenicity. As a result, medicines no longer prevent their spread as efficiently as they used to. There are many possible reasons that may have fueled the growth of resistant bacteria beyond the control of health specialists. Firstly, the antibiotics are often prescribed for ailments that do not require them, which results in bacteria becoming resistant to a specific class of anti-microbial drugs. Secondly, it is due to the silent spread of these bacteria across individuals who often do not exhibit symptoms unless it is too late and the bacteria have spread. Unlike humans, the bacteria can transmit mutated genes across contaminated water and grow resistant to antibiotic medication even before they have entered their hosts. Moreover, it may also result

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Economics - Essay Example This way corn serves a two-way purpose and that will definitely increase its demand. Corn and soybean are considered as substitutes and according to economic theory if demand for a product raises then the demand for its substitute will obviously decline. Following this principle the price of the soybean will decline. Again corn and soybean shares the same habitat for production, especially the prime raw material for any agricultural production the land. Now an increased demand for corn will also lead to a higher price for the same, since price and demand are directly correlated. A product that is offering higher price will definitely translate into higher profit for the producer and an immediate shift from production of soybean to that of corn. Higher percentage of land and effort will now be directed towards corn production than that of soybean (Pearce, 2006). The above discussion seems economically sound, however a careful investigation might reveal that this holds for short run. O nce the producer starts to devote more land and other raw materials to the production of corn, corn production will rise and production of soybean will fall. Hence in long run owing to higher supply of corn its price will come down and that of soybean will go up as it is scarce now. These points to the fact that in long run an eventual equilibrium will be reached where both will be produced at an optimum level for the economy. Last but not the least since, energy has an ever increasing demand, hence if corn can project itself as a viable source of alternative energy in long run that have enough potential to replace fossil fuels then the trend for substituting soybean production land and raw material in favor of the corn might show a sustained trend, with soybean production looking for an alternative way as itself is a nutritious and valuable food source along with a rich source for food oil. It is obvious that since there is high need of alternative form of energy and that especiall y of bio fuel; corn oil as an important source of bio fuel will enjoy this boom in demand and price for this product will go up. The magnitude of this rise in price is subject to much debate. First of all if demand for a product is matched by its supply then the rise in price is minimal or zero. However if this is not the scenario that is there is excess demand then the price will go up. Interestingly it is worth noting that in case of excess supply the price might also go down even courting a rise in demand for the concerned product. The excess supply often follows a rise in demand owing to the behavioural pattern of the producer who might over estimate the rise in demand and increase his supply of corn in tune of his expectations. Apart from this demand-supply interaction, many other factors do operate while determining the fate of the corn oil. If people are well aware of the potential that corn oil holds as a fuel and alternative source of energy that will definitely translate i nto higher demand. Again this has to be also undertaken into the realm of analysis that whether any other form of substitutes to corn oil does exist, that might be cheaper, easily available in plenty and better source of energy. As a viable source of alternative energy in the long run corn oil will face quite a competition with Jatropha and Pongamia pinnata (Bridgewater, Halford and Karp, 2010, p. 236) and that outcome will

Monday, September 23, 2019

How the breakup of big labor is impacting future labor relations Term Paper

How the breakup of big labor is impacting future labor relations - Term Paper Example However, due to the economic changes and globalization, that influenced the modern labor market, the big labor has almost disappeared from the modern business environment. The following paper will discuss the impact the breakup made on the labor relations and will also illustrate to what extent this breakup influenced the future labor relations. The recent cease of the coalition of U. S. labor, which was created in 1955, has brought a renewed interest in the future of labor relations. Some experts consider such split as the other step in the slow decline of union membership, while others see its influence on the development of a new coalition that is an important step in the revitalization of unions in the United States (Meyerson, 2015). There is an essential consequence of the union split, however, it is not the single factor that can put an impact on the future of unions and labor relations as they are. On the global scale, union developments are perceived as the dynamics of a global economy with its competition in jobs and the new types of workers who decide to join unions. Despite the declining nature of unions across the decades, there were about one out of three Americans in 1950s who was involved in the big labor. On the contrary, today, this sum is eleven per cent of American workers are union members and six per ce nt constitute union member in the private sector. There are no unions among employees of such sectors of the economy as in high-tech, fashion and finance. Such tendency is understandable due to the new generation of people, young activists, who find unions as something left from their great-grandparents’ generation. Those under and over 30 do not notice big labor. However, everyone see the consequences of labor unions. Under the absent a U.S. union movement, the American middle class is shortened, the concentration of wealth increases, however, the corporate domination of government grows. Under the

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Higher education Essay Example for Free

Higher education Essay Modern day education is aided with a variety of technology, computers, projectors, internet, and many more. Diverse knowledge is being spread among the people. Everything that can be simplified has been made simpler. Science has explored every aspect of life. There is much to learn and more to assimilate. Internet provides abysmal knowledge. There is no end to it. One can learn everything he wishes to. Every topic has developed into a subject. New inventions and discoveries have revealed the unknown world to us more variedly. Once a new aspect is discovered, hundreds of heads start babbling over it, and you get a dogma from hearsay. Not only our planet but the whole universe has become accessible. Now we have good and learned teachers to impart us with knowledge of what they know. Every one is a master in his field. We and our children are getting taught by professionals of their field. Presently our education is based on making us the best in our area of interest, to help us reach our goals more easily. More of the fact based knowledge is being grasped by us. What we learn helps us in our career and in our profession. Professionalism is deep-rooted in our society now and this education makes us so. Skill-development and vocational education has added a new feather to the modern system of education. There is something to learn for everyone. Even an infant these days goes to a kindergarten. And a little grown, mentally and physically is promoted to a Montessori. Everything is being categorized, be it a primary, middle, a higher secondary or graduate school. We have temples of education known by a familiar word the â€Å"university†. Whatsoever we are getting educated day by day and what’s good about is that it’s a never-ending process. Rightly said by Aristotle, â€Å"Education is an ornament in prosperity and a refugee in adversity. † is what everybody feels now. THE CON’S Well, that was the positive side, but every story has two telling. Of all the virtue, our education system has developed into mere schooling now. New trends are being developed which are far more a baloney that boon. Albert Einstein once said â€Å"Education is that which remains, if one has forgotten everything one learned in school. † Firstly our education is confined to schools and colleges. It has become a process of spoon feeding. â€Å"Spoon feeding in the long run teaches us nothing but the shape of the spoon† were the words of E. M. Forster. We are being fed with facts and knowledge. Not art, not books, but life itself is the true basis of teaching and learning. Cramming of facts and dates, hi-fi mathematical formulas, theories and doctrines should be at college levels when one has chosen his area of interest. What will the history pay a doctor or a mathematician, or medical terms to a historian? Secondly, an art can only be learned from a workshop of those who are earning their bread from it. Modern education has spread more ignorance than knowledge. Most of the women even don’t know, where, the fabric they are wearing, came from. The word â€Å"How† is missing in our world which causes ignorance. â€Å"Education†¦has produced a vast population able to read but unable to distinguish what is worth reading. † says G. M. Trevelyan. Thirdly all education is bad which is not self-education. Presently, children after school are sent to tuitions. This is a clear question mark on the ability of school teacher. Homework tutorials are mushrooming up in our society. Students are thought of like they can’t do anything on their own and so are sent even to do the homework. Our schoolings got a lot of loop-holes. They guide us through a well catered pathway which finally leads to professionalism. Homework is a waste of time, if it is to repeat class work done today or to be repeated as class work to be done tomorrow. Our schooling does not leave us with time to get educated. Mark Twain once said that† I have never let my schooling interfere with my education†. Our child’s normal routine has become to wake up early, brush up their minds with light reading, go to school, then go to tuition and finally come home and do the homework. Finally our education is producing machines out of pupil. They read books, they speak books and they do books. Discussing in class lead to complications, which remains as confusions for a life time if left untreated. Vladimir Nabokov, a U. S critic, poet and novelist says â€Å"Discussion in class, which means letting twenty young blockheads and two cocky neurotics discuss something that neither their teacher nor they know. † So, it’s a matter of debate that our education system is fallacious or fair.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Role of Carotenoids on the Immune Response

Role of Carotenoids on the Immune Response There is growing evidence from in vitro and in vivo laboratory animal studies that ÃŽ ²-carotene can protect phagocytic cells from autoxidative damage, enhance T and B lymphocyte proliferative responses, stimulate effector T cell functions and enhance macrophage, cytotoxic T cell and natural killer cell tumoricidal capacities, as well as increase the production of certain interleukins. Because of their molecular composition, specifically their highly conjugated double-bond structure carotenoids such as beta-carotene and lutein serve as effective scavenger of the harmful unpaired electrons (eg. singlet oxygen, free radicals) produced by normal metabolic processes that damage body tissues (eg. via lipid peroxidation, Krinsky 1992).The cells of the immune system are particularly sensitive to oxidative stress and may benefit substantially from the free radical trapping ability of carotenoids, as the immune response itself produces reactive oxygen species that disrupt the intercellular si gnals sent via lipid-rich, membrane- bound receptors (Chew 1993). An enormous body of literature has accumulated over the past 20 year demonstrating the potency of carotenoids as immuno stimulants in humans and other mammals(reviewed in Hughes 2001, Krisnsky 2001). However, within the last decade, it has also been suggested that these carotenoid derived sexual colours may signal the health and condition of males of birds and fish of the specific antioxidant and immune stimulatory activity of carotenoids obtained from the diet and transported through the body before they are incorporated into the integument (Lozano 1994, von Schantz et.al; 1999; Moller et.al 2000). This issue continues to be debated on theoretical grounds (Hill 1999a ; Lozano2001), fueld by the idea that colorful birds and fishes obtain far more carotenoids in the diet than carotenoid deprived mammals, thus individuals may not be limited in the extent to which they can use carotenoids to boost their immune response. Early studies demonstrating the ability of dietary carotenoids to prevent infections have left open the possibility that the action of these carotenoids may be through their prior conversion to vitamin A. Subsequent studies to demonstrare the specific action of dietary carotenoids have used carotenoids without provitamin A activity such as lutein, canthaxanthin, lycopene and astaxanthin. In fact, these non provitamin A carotenoids were as active, and at times more mediated and humoral immune response in animals and humans. Results have similarly shown immuno enhancement by non provitamin A carotenoids, based either on the relative activity or on the type of immune response affected compared to ÃŽ ²-carotene Studies on the role of carotenoids on immune response have generally used several key immune function assays. These include Ig production,lymphoblastogenesis, lymphocyte cytotoxic activity, cytokine production, delayed type hypersensitivity. In the 1930s, Green and Mellanby found that infections of the ear, bladder, kidney and gut of vitamin A-deficient rats were prevented when the rats were fed with ÃŽ ²-carotene. The level of carotene needed to prevent these infections was higher than the amount required to stimulate growth. Clauson observed that in young children with severe ear infections, improvement was seen following an increased intake of dietary carotene. These two early reports suggest that the anti-infective effect of ÃŽ ²-carotene may be due to its pro-vitamin A activity. ÃŽ ²-carotene may also have an independent effects on immune responses, separate from its provitamin A activity. ÃŽ ²-carotene and other carotenoids with nine or more conjugated double bonds may enhance immune function by quenching singlet oxygen and other reactive oxygen species, including free radicals. ÃŽ ²-carotene and canthaxanthin together inhibited the loss of macrophage receptors following exposure to reactive oxygen intermediate (Gruner et. al., 1986). T helper cells are involved in helping B cells secrete specific antibodies in response to an antigenic challenge. Experiments were performed , in which laboratory animals were either fed ÃŽ ²-carotene or canthaxanthin to determine a carotenoid effect, separate from a provitamin A effect on T and B lymphocyte functions. Canthaxanthin has the same ability to quench singlet oxygen and free radicals as ÃŽ ²-carotene but cannot be converted to vitamin A in mammals. Specific immune responses of laboratory animals were similarly enhanced with diets containing canthaxanthin as with diets containing ÃŽ ²-carotene (Benedict and Shapiro 1986). Some new investigations indicate that carotenoid can play a very important role in enhancing immune responses, which can lead to the reduction of tumor growth. The immune system has three cell types capable of killing tumor cells. In a preliminary report, it was shown that human natural killer cells killed significantly more tumor cells when incubated with ÃŽ ²-carotene than human cells not exposed to ÃŽ ²-carotene. ÃŽ ±-carotene also enhanced tumor killing (Leslie and Dubey, 1982). Carotenoids, besides acting through the various mechanisms described earlier, can also influence immune function through their ability to regulate membrane fluidity, and gap junctional communication. All these actions are most likely interrelated in their modulation of an immune response. Carotenoids help to maintain the membrane receptors that are essential for immune function, and they may also be found to be important in the release of immune modulatory lipid molecules such as leukotrienes. Carotenoids may increase the tumoricidal activity of the cytotoxic T cells, macrophages and or natural killer cells by any of these mechanism of action. Carotenoid enhances many aspects of immune function which include T and B lymphocyte proliferation, induction of specific effector cells capable of killing tumor cells, and the secretion of factors required for the communication between immunologically competent cells. The action of carotenoids on immune response hangs in a delicate balance with the intra-and extra cellular milieu, the outcome of which depends not only on the type and concentration of the carotenoid but also on the cell type and animal species involved. Even though studies to date have provided evidence for a specific action of carotenoids much has yet to be done to truly understand their molecular action. CAROTENOID AS PRO-VITAMIN A SOURCE Biosynthesis or conversion of carotendoids into vitamin A: Conversion of carotenoids into vitamin A becomes complicated in fishes and aquatic animals, due to the presence of vitamin A2, which frequently predominated over vitamin A in animals living or spawning in freshwater.The presence of an unsubstituted ÃŽ ²-ionone ring in the caroteniod molecule supports for vitamin A activity. Both vitamin A1, and A2 can be formed in some fishes from common precurors, such as ÃŽ ²-carotene (Morton and Creed, 1939). Carotenoids containing at least one unsubstituted 3, 4 dehydro ÃŽ ²-ionone ring have been shown to act as specific provitamins A2 in chicks (Budowski, et.al 1963) and mice (Budowski and Gross, 1965).According to (Budoswki, et. al 1963) the dehydration of lutein to anhydrolutein (3,4- dehydro-3-hydroxy ÃŽ ²-carotene), a provitamin A2 might be of possible biological significance in this respect. There are two pathways for the conversion of carotenoids to vitamin A in mammals, central cleavage and eccentric cleavage. In 1960, Glover thoughtfully discussed various pathways by which carotenoids might be converted into vitamin A. He indicated that two primary oxidative reaction might occur, one at the central 15, 15’ double bond and the other at one or more of the other double bonds. The product of the central cleavage of ÃŽ ²-carotene would be two molecules of retinal, where as that of eccentric cleavage would be one long and one short ÃŽ ²-apo-carotenal e.g. cyclocitral and ÃŽ ²-apo-8’-carotenal, by the rupture of the 7’:8’ double bond. The enzyme, ÃŽ ²-carotenoid-15, 15’-dioxygenase which converts ÃŽ ²-carotene into two molecules of retinal requires molecular oxygen and is inhibited by sulfhydryl-binding and iron –binding reagents. Most pro vitamin A carotenoids,including the ÃŽ ² apo-carotenals,are cleaved to retinal by this enzyme. Thus, carotenoid dioxygenase with eccentric bond specificity has been indentified in mammals, the yield of ÃŽ ²Ã¢â‚¬â€œapo-carotenals from ÃŽ ²-carotene in vivo and in vitro is very low, and ÃŽ ²-apo-carotenals are formed nonbiologically from ÃŽ ²-carotene. Cyclic carotenes may be oxidized to hydroxylated and epoxide derivatives, converted to allenic and less saturated derivatives, or cleaved oxidatively to shorter products. Central Cleavage: In 1965, the cytosolic enzyme preparations of the intestine and liver converted ÃŽ ²-carotene to retinal were shown by two independent groups (Goodwin, et.al and Olson et. al 1965 ). The enzyme required molecular oxygen, yielded retinal as the sole identified product, was inhibited by ferrous-ion chelating agents and by sulfhydryl binding reagents (Olson, 1983). The main yield of retinal formed from the ÃŽ ²-carotene was 40-60%( Goodman and Huang, 1965) and (Olson, 1969). Since ÃŽ ²-carotene is unstable during isolation by TLC some losses occurred as a result of both biological as well as non biological oxidation during incubation, retinal was the major, if not the sole, biological product of the reaction. The retinal formed was satisfactorily characterized by several chemical and physio-chemical procedures. The enzyme, termed ÃŽ ²-carotenoid 15, 15’- dioxygenase was subsequently purified 20 to 70 fold from the intestines of several species and upon purification it became unstable. ÃŽ ²-carotenoid- 15,15’-dioxygenase cleaves many carotenoids, including several ÃŽ ²-apo-carotenals.There may be some quantative differences but the relative rates of cleavage are similar(Singh and Cama 1974). In general, relative to the aldehyde form, the ÃŽ ²-apo-carotenals are better substrates and the ÃŽ ²-apo-carotenic acids are poorer substrates for the enzyme. Retinal has clearly been identified as one product of the reaction. Eccentric Cleavage. ÃŽ ²-apo-carotenals are intermediate between carotenoids and vitamin A. In conversion of ÃŽ ²-carotene to vitamin A, an important observation was made in a recent study that individual ÃŽ ²-apo-carotenals are formed in small but significant amounts by incubating ÃŽ ²-carotene aerobically in the dark with shaking for an hour in the absence of an enzyme preparation. When compared, the reported rate of enzyme-catalyzed retinal formation is much higher.Despite these low yields, ÃŽ ²-apo-carotenals might still be formed biologically from B-carotene in mammals. But in future studies, the non-biological formation of oxidation products of carotenoids must be carefully assessed and the rate of the eccentric cleavage reaction, both in vivo and in vitro, must be related to the rate of formation of retinal by central cleavage. The metabolism of the ÃŽ ²-apo-carotenals has been addressed primarily in terms of their conversion to vitamin A and their oxidation to ÃŽ ²-apo-carotenoic acids. As analogous of retinal, however, they are expected to be metabolized in a similar way. Thus a significant part of them may well be reduced to ÃŽ ²-apo-carotenols (Glover, 1960) and (Sharma et .al 1977) and subsequently esterified to ÃŽ ²-apo carotenyl esters. Such compounds like retinyl ester and esterified lipids, should be transported primarily in the Chylomicra. Fish are much more versatile than mammals in meeting their needs for vitamin A (Olson, 1983). Fish are able to convert astaxanthin (3,3’-dihydroxy, 4,4’-diketo-ÃŽ ²-carotene), canthaxanthin (4,4 diketo-ÃŽ ²-Carotene) and isozeaxanthin (4,4’-dihydroxy ÃŽ ²-carotene) to ÃŽ ² carotene. They can also convert anhydrolutein derived from lutein, to dehydroretinol (Goswami ;1987). The oxidative metabolites of carotenoids work as essential molecules in a wide variety of living organisms. Carotenoids are converted to biologically active products such as abscisic acid, trisporic acid and retinoic acid in plants, fungi and animals respectively. Their formation is mediated by enzymes that catalyze cleavage reactions against specific double bonds of cartenoids. Moreover, carotenoids vulnerable to oxidation have the potential to be converted to biologically active compounds by chemical transformation. In mammals, ÃŽ ²-carotene 15,15’-dioxygenase catalyzes conversion of ÃŽ ²-carotene to retinal (Olson and Hayaishi, 1965) and (Goodman and Huang 1965). Although the cleavage enzyme plays a crucial role in vitamin A formation, its properties have not yet been fully revealed. The regulatory mechanism of the dioxygenase in particular remains to be clarified in terms of the nutrition of pro-vitamin A carotenoids. Dietary ÃŽ ²-carotene solubilized in mixed micelles wit h bile components and hydrolyzates of dietary lipids is absorbed in intestinal cells. Retinal formed from ÃŽ ²-carotene is further converted to retinyl ester by retinal reductase and lecithin retinol acyltransferase with the aid of cellular retinol binding protien type-II (CRBP-II), and then incorporated into chylomicron (Ong,1993). Thus, the cleavage of ÃŽ ²-carotene in intestinal cells is closely linked to lipid and retinoid metabolism, and the regulation of the cleavage enzyme activity should be considered in this context. Moreover, the cleavage enzyme is located in the intestinal cells, which are directly exposed to various food components. Action of dietary phytochemicals on the dioxygenase activity might affect the bioavailability of provitamin A carotenoid derived from fruits and vegetables. Carotenoids can be oxidized to a number of compounds by chemical transformation, in contrast to the specific cleavage of certain carotenoids by the enzyme, because of the high reactivity of conjugated double bonds to active oxygen species. The enzymatic conversion of ÃŽ ²-carotene to vitamin A, the non-enzymatic cleavage of lycopene, and the biological actions of the oxidation products of lycopene are described in Akihiko Nagao†s paper.