American Right

The movement of the American people that effected change during the American civil rights years is the African American civil rights movement of 1955 to 1968. This normally refers to reform movement in United States that had the aim of abolishing the ongoing racial discrimination of the African Americans. This is the period particularly in between 1954-1968 that covers the phases of movements in the south.By the year 1966 the black power movement had emerged that lasted approximately in between 1966 to 1975, this movements had grown in large sizes and had realized the need for civil right movement to include political and economic self sufficiency, racial dignity and freedom from the on going white authority. There are many scholars who term the movements as the second reconstruction, meaning that the period of reconstruction after civil war. In 19th century, the democratically controlled states that were mainly located at the south passed laws that were racially discriminating.It wa s not particularly I the south, but also in other regions of the United States, the racial discrimination and violence that aimed at the African Americans. The period is also called the nadir of American race relations sometimes; this is because the hired, appointed and the elected government officials began to permit or allow discrimination the united states of Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, florid, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Arkansas, Alabama, Tennessee, Kansas and Oklahoma. The permitted or required acts and levels of discriminations against the African Americans mostly fell in the following four categories:1. Racial segregation that was upheld by United States supreme courts decisions in Plessey versus Fergusson in the year 1896. That was legally allowed by the southern states and many other local governments that were outside the south. 2. Voter suppression in most of the southern states. 3. Discrimination against the economic and social opportunities or the resou rces in the whole of the United States. 4. Mass racial acts of violence and private work of violence that was aimed to the African Americans, all these acts were seldom hindered and often encouraged the government official of the United States.Jim Crow was the name given to the combination of the southern states that were actively committed to the racial discrimination. The regime of Jim Crow in the southern states remained nearly intact up to the near the beginning of 1950s and greatly contributed to the great migration. The great migration was a solid northward flow of the African Americans forwards. The situation, in terms of racial discrimination, for the African Americans was some how better for those who did not live in the south. The civil rights movements that came before 1955 normally confronted African Americans discrimination using various strategies.Some of the strategies were lobbying and litigation efforts by organization that were traditional such as the National Asso ciation for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). The greatest achievement of this traditional association was the lawful victory in brown versus board of education (1954) that overruled the separate and installed equal legal doctrine and was derived from Plessey, this made separation and segregation lawfully unallowable but there was rare or no practical example from the equal legal doctrine.The browns victory made the private citizen very invigorated but there was a lot of frustration because there were no immediate practical effects. This further led to rejection of the legal approaches as a mean of ending the racial discrimination, but still there was great resistance by the proponents of voter suppression and those of racial segregation. In defiance, there was adoption of a combination of strategies of direct actions that was called civil disobedience that was a non violent, these actions brought about a lot of crisis between the practitioners and the government authoritie s.The state, federal authorities and the local authorities had often to respond instantly to the crisis and the results were favoring of the practitioners in many situations. Civil disobedience forms included: 1. Boycotts, the most successful boycott were the 1955-1956 Montgomery bus boycott in Alabama. 2. sit –ins, the most influential sit-in was the North Carolina Greensboro sit – in of 1965 3. Marches, the 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches of Alabama are one of the notable marches.The noted achievements of the civil right movements includes the 1957 civil right act, though it was minor, it was the earliest anti discriminatory law established since reconstruction, the 1964 civil rights act that banned the discrimination in public accommodation and employment practices, the 1965 voting right act that changes the united states immigration policy and the 1968 civil rights act that made it illegal in discrimination in rental or sale of housing REFERENCES Juan Williams, (1 988) Eyes on the Prize: America's civil rights years 1954-1965, Penguin books publishers, US

Into Communication in Health and Social Care

Q 6 : Give four examples of how you can you check a person has understood what you have communicated ? To check by repeating whethet the person has understood. can Be checked the person is following the instruction what has given By responding if the person has understood what has said to him By showing reaction. Q 3 A: You will have to know how to recognise what is being communicated to you and be able to commmunicate with others without always having to use words. Consider reading: How and When to Seek Advice About CommunicationWhen carried out the previous activity you will have found out that there are many factors that told you what your patiant was trying to communicate it is not only the expression on people s faces that tells you about how they fell Q 2: Identify five ways communication can help you in your work and why ? 1: Writing reports -I will write report about individuals so next shift staff can read and affect accordingly. By completing charts and records. I will mention in the care plan if any Changes have made in my shift which will help for all staff.I will communicate with my colleagues and pass all information regarding individuals. By recording and sharing appropriate information. 3 Explain why it is important to observe an individual s reactions (facial expressions,body language etc) when communicating with them ? All communication has an effect on the person you are communicating with it is a two way process called an int eraction, and it is important that you watch the effects so that any problems can be identified and dealt with.Any relationship comes about through communication in order to be effective in providing care and support, you must learn to be a good communicator. Buy communication is much more than talking to people. People communicate through A speaking,facial expression,body language, position,dress,gestures. 4: Indentify twelve barriers to effective communication ? 1: Not listening 2 : Using jargon 3 : Using slang 4 : Physical barrier 5 : Attitudinal barrier 6 : Interpersonal communication 7 : Poor lighting 8 : Inappropriate temperture : Lack of basic communication skills 10 : Lack of knowledge Emotional interference Semantic communication Q 9 : How do you seek advice regarding confidentiality ? You should seek advice on confidentiality when ever you are asked to disclose information (whether in writing or verbally) about an identifiable individual that. Includes information about bo th clients and colleagues. The only time it permissible to breach confidentiality is if you receive information. That an individual is considering actions that may bring harm to themselves or others. 0 : When would you ask for advice about confidentiality ? The only time you seek advice when a child or adult has spoke to you in confidentiality is when that person is in danger for example. If being sexually abused. Physically abused. Threatening to kill them selves etc. If the person in care is not in any danger then what is spoken between carer and caregiver has to remain between them two. Q 8 : Give three examples of when confidential information may need to be passed on ? 1 : To protect the best interests of the individual where they are risk at harm. : To protect an indiviuals health. 3 : To protect the health and safety. Q 7 : What does the term confidentiality mean ? A : It means that whatever information you tell to a service will not be passed on and the person you see won't tell anyone that you've been to see him or her without your permission . It gets more complicated if you want to talk to the service about something that he or she thinks may be harming you or someone else,like you're being hurt by someone or someone is making you do something you don't want to do .If that happens the service will talk to you and try to persuade you to get help. but if you don't agree the service can get help without your permission if he or she thinks it's best for you. This will only happen if the service is concerned about your safety. Q 6 : Give four examples of how you can you check a person has understood what you have communicated ? To check by repeating whethet the person has understood. 2: can Be checked the person is following the instruction what has given. 3: By responding if the person has understood what has said to him. 4: By showing reaction.Q 3 : A: You will have to know how to recognise what is being communicated to you and be able to commmunicate with others without always having to use words. When carried out the previous activity you will have found out that there are many factors that told you what your patiant was trying to communicate it is not only the expression on people s faces that tells you about how they fell. Q 2: Identify five ways communication can help you in your work and why ? 1: Writing reports -I will write report about individuals so next shift staff can read and affect accordingly. 2: By completing charts and records. : I will mention in the care plan if any Changes have made in my shift which will help for all staff. 4: I will communicate with my colleagues and pass all information regarding individuals. 5: By recording and sharing appropriate information. Q 3 : Explain why it is important to observe an individual s reactions (facial expressions,body language etc) when communicating with them ? All communication has an effect on the person you are communicating with it is a two way process called an in teraction, and it is important that you watch the effects so that any problems can be identified and dealt with.Any relationship comes about through communication in order to be effective in providing care and support,you must learn to be a good communicator. Buy communication is much=0D=0Amore than talking to people. People communicate through speaking,facial expression,body language, position,dress,gestures. Q 4: Indentify twelve barriers to effective communication ? 1: Not listening 2 : Using jargon 3 : Using slang 4 : Physical barrier 5 : Attitudinal barrier 6 : Interpersonal communication 7 : Poor lighting 8 : Inappropriate temperture : Lack of basic communication skills 10 : Lack of knowledge 11 : Emotional interference 12 : Semantic communication=0D=0A Q 2: Identify five ways communication can help you in your work and why ? 1: Writing reports -I will write report about individuals so next shift staff can read and affect accordingly. 2: By completing charts and records. 3: I will mention in the care plan if any Changes have made in my shift which will help for all staff. 4: I will communicate with my colleagues and pass all information regarding individuals. : By recording and sharing appropriate information. =0D=0AQ 3 : Explain why it is important to observe an individual s reactions (facial expressions,body language etc) when communicating with them ? All communication has an effect on the person you are communicating with it is a two way process called an interaction, and it is important that you watch the effects so that any problems can be identified and dealt with. Any relationship comes about through communication in order to be effective in providing care and support,you must learn to be a good communicator.Buy communication is much more than talking to people. People communicate through speaking,facial expression,body language, position,dress,gestures. Q 4: Indentify twelve barriers to effective communication ? 1: Not listening 2 : Using jargon 3 : Using slang 4 : Physical barrier 5 : Attitudinal barrier 6 : Interpersonal communication 7 : Poor lighting 8 : Inappropriate temperture 9 : Lack of basic communication skills 10 : Lack of knowledge 11 : Emotional interference 12 : Semantic communication Q 9 : How do you seek advice regarding confidentiality ? #You should seek advice on confidentiality when ever you are asked to disclose information (whether in writing or verbally) about an identifiable individual that. Includes information about both clients and colleagues. The only time it permissible to breach confidentiality is if you receive information. That an individual is considering actions that may bring harm to themselves or others. Q 10 : When would you ask for advice about confidentiality ? The only time you seek advice when a child or adult has spoke to you in confidentiality is when that person is in danger for example. If being sexually abused. Physically abused.Threatening to kill them selves etc. If the person in care is not in any danger then what is spoken between carer and caregiver has to remain between them two. Q 8 : Give three examples of when confidential information may need to be passed on ? 1 : To protect the best interests of the individual where they are risk at harm. 2 : To protect an indiviuals health 3 : To protect the health and safety. Q 7 : What does the term confidentiality mean ? It means that whatever information you tell to a service will not be passed on and the person you see won't tell anyone that you've been to see him or her without your permission .It gets more complicated if you want to talk to the service about something that he or she thinks may be harming you or someone else,like you're being hurt by someone or someone is making you do something you don't want to do . If that happens the service will talk to you and try to persuade you to get help. but if you don't agree the service can get help without your permission if he or she thinks it's best for yo u. This will only happen if the service is concerned about your safety.

A Fading India Journalistic Essays

I am waiting for the Regal Taj when another bus, advertising itself as the â€Å"premier deluxe air-conditioned Taj Express,† arrives, its seats apparently filled completely with people. I climb up the creaking steps as the driver stretches his hand for a 10 rupee note for the pleasure of this upgraded ride. There is a reason why the bus is â€Å"air-conditioned†; two of the windows are broken. A makeshift cellophane sheet stuck with duct tape over the open space keeps coming undone and rattles angrily against the ledge. This is not a bus for the country club crowd. Men show deep creases of labor and worry on their foreheads and women balance four or five children, on their laps and pressed against their bosoms. But they are Indian, and they have a birthright and an obligation to respect their history. This is the country where spontaneous monuments sprout up in honor of Shivaji, the Hindu warrior who lost his friends, family, and then his life in resisting the conquering Moguls. This is the country where people invoke the name of Gandhi at political rallies, â€Å"Long Live Mahatma,† as if his placid face lingers as a ghost on the stage. The Mahabharat, mostly mythical but historically based, was adapted for television a few years ago and remains the highest rated series of all time. So, as overworked and overburdened as the masses may be, the Taj Mahal beckons to reveal the glory of India’s past to them. The back of the bus has an empty seat, next to a foreign tourist, which I claim as my own.

Business Environment Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Business Environment - Assignment Example On the manufacturers side of equation the pricing and output decisions are determined by the quantity demanded. Hence, we can assume with much use of common sense that an increase in the price of Coca Cola would eventually lead to a decrease in its quantity demanded. The same fact can be illustrated by the use of the demand curve that has a downward slope (Figure 1) which signifies that greater the increase in the price of the entity, lower will be the quantity demanded. In other words price and quantity demanded are inversely proportional (Management Study Guide, 2008). The supply side of business also plays a major role in determining the output decisions. Supply decisions are primarily dependent on the profit potential. Building upon this factor we can verify that an increase in the market price of a product would lead to an increase in the supply of it in pursuit of a greater profit potential (Riley, 2006). This goes on to show that the supply of the products of a business is directly proportional to the price of the product (Case Karl E., 2009). The supply curve is hence upward sloping (Figure 1). There is however always a constraint in terms of the extent to which the business can expand its supply side as it either may be restricted by its scale of operations or the capacity or resources in the short run. Nevertheless, the business can expand its operations’ scale after having accumulated enough wealth in the long run (Harper, 2010). At anyone instant, the market can be subject to one of the following three conditions: Demand Excess (qu antity demanded > quantity supplied at current price) Supply Excess (quantity supplied > quantity demanded at current price) Equilibrium (quantity demanded = quantity supplied at current market price) These three market conditions also play a major role in determining the output and pricing decisions of the business because if there an excess demand then there is a tendency for the price of the product to increase as the demanders would be in competition to gain the limited supplies. If however, the market conditions are on the excess supply side of equations then the prices are likely to decline. If there equilibrium in the market place then no price change would occur (Investopedia, 2011). Figure 1 SECTION B The basic forces of demand, supply and price fluctuations are the ones that govern the organizational responses in all sorts of businesses be it related to medicine, or farming, or production of shoes or computers. All the businesses play to their cards to these forces. The ma rket is governed by the behaviour of both the producer and consumer sides of picture (Basic Economics, 2011). Having elaborated in section 1, we can now reasonably presume that a decrease in price is likely to increase the demand of the product. That is, if at the rate of making a call was 6$, a hypothetical person named Paul would call his mother in another town only once. But if the price if dropped to 3$ per call then Paul would be able to make double the amount of calls on the same price increasing the utility of it. On the other hand, one can take the example of a telecom company named Warid in Pakistan. Having noticed that the call rate at the night time was low and their profit margins were relatively less at that period of time, the company introduced a new ‘Glow’ package offering its customer base to make a call for 3 PKR per hour from 12AM to 7AM which would otherwise cost four times more without this offer (Warid, 2011). As a result of this,

Costs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Costs - Essay Example As mentioned in the definition, the organization can increase its factors of production to achieve higher production levels and the state of technology is the only constraint. So it means that all inputs are variable. Hence, in the long run when the inputs are increased, the output may: To inputs the average total cost of producing that output will fall. The firm's costs will rise less than the output of goods. This is called as the economies of scale as represented in the following diagram: The long run curve represented above includes short run periods as the firm expands. The LRATC curve is a track of all the SRATC curves as the firm grows. Initially, the short run average costs are at the lowest in SRAC1. As the firm expands, its average costs fall to the bottom of the U shaped curve and then begins to climb because of the diminishing returns. The firm then moves its production to the next level and the cost move to the next short run situation shown as SRAC2. In the long run the average cost is represented by the black line tangenting all the short run average cost curves. The whole LRATC is composed of infinite number of single points from SRAC curves. The LRATC curve is the boundary between unit cost levels that are attainable by the firm and unit cost levels that are unattainable. ... When the long run until costs are falling as the outputs increases, the firm is experiencing increasing returns to scale and thus less long run average costs. If the firm is experiencing average returns to scale then the average long run costs are same and if the firm is experiencing diminishing returns to scale then the long run average costs are increasing. Long run marginal cost Marginal cost is defined as the cost associated with producing one extra unit assuming that the extra unit produced will cause increase in production capacity. The long run marginal cost curve resembles the short run marginal cost curve as it is also U shaped. The U shape of the LRMC can be attributed to increasing and decreasing marginal returns. The calculation of cost and revenue of one extra unit is very crucial in the long run as it is essential to make the capacity increase decision. If the last unit produced gives more revenue than the cost to produce that unit, the firm should expand it s capacity. Marginal cost will increase as the firm expands due to the Law of diminishing returns. The firm should keep expanding as long as the MR > MC. "The term LRMC is used to signify the cost effect of a change which involves some alteration in the amount or timing of future investment. SRMC, on the other hand takes capacity as given, so relates only to changes in operating costs." (Turve y,11). The SRMC rises due to the capacity constraints and then fall after there is a significant increase ion the capacity expansion. Hence, in the long run the marginal cost curve is U shaped. The following diagram shows the increase and decreases of the marginal costs before and after expansion. Kinked demand curve In a non collusive

The Anti Fedralist Papers vs The Federalist Papers Essay

The Anti Fedralist Papers vs The Federalist Papers - Essay Example The term, Anti-federalists, catches both a connection to certain political standards and additionally remaining in favor and against patterns that were showing up in late eighteenth-century America. It will help in our understanding of who the Anti-federalists were to realize that in 1787, the saying "elected" had two implications. One was all inclusive or situated on a fundamental level and alternate was specific and particular to the American circumstance. The vital contentions energetic about it were expressed in the arrangement composed by Madison, as well as Jay as per the Federalist Papers, in spite of the fact that they were not as broadly perused as various autonomous nearby discourses and articles. The contentions against sanction showed up in different structures, by different creators, the vast majority of who utilized a pen name. Aggregately, these works for several years have been known as the Anti-Federalist Papers. The most paramount approach to peruse the professional and hostile to federalist papers is as a verbal confrontation on how the procurements of the Constitution might be translated, or "built". Those contradicting endorsement, or at any rate raising questions about it, were less contending against the sanction or something to that effect of elected constitution, as against sweeping development of procurements assigning forces to the national government, and the reactions from ace generally comprised of affirmations that the assignments of force might be developed strictly and barely. Subsequently, to win the backing of their adversaries, the star ratificationists basically needed to agree to a convention of elucidation that must be viewed as a piece of the Constitution, and that along these lines must be the support for translation today.  

The Experience of Coca-cola in China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Experience of Coca-cola in China - Essay Example As with other multinational corporations, Coca-cola was only able to establish its presence the Chinese market through joint ventures. It should be noted that the government of the Republic of China favors the formation of joint ventures between a foreign firm and a local business entity. All over the country, Coca-cola has 24 bottling and two concentrate plants, the former being joint ventures with other organizations. Each of the bottling facilities is co-owned with one of the three state-owned agencies: State Light Industry Bureau, China International Trust and Investment Corp., and China National Cereals, Oils, and Foodstuffs Import and Export Corp. (Weisert, 2001). Coca-cola is also allied by two primary multinational key partners-Swire Pacific and Kerry Beverages Group. These Hong Kong based business institutions serve as the foreign majority partners of Coca-cola of 19 out of 24 bottling facilities. While Swire Pacific is involved in the bottling and distribution of Coca-cola' s product in the Southern and Interior China, Kerry Beverages Group focus on Northern and Interior China (Economic Impact of the Coca-cola System in China, 2000). The success of Coca-cola's operation in the Chinese market is recognized by other international business organizations. Currently, the beverage company accounts for 35% of the total carbonated beverage market. From 1990, Coca-cola reports huge gross profit from its estimated $1.2 billion annual sales. Looking at the economic impact of the multinational's operation in China, Coca-cola is seen to generate employment for 15,000 local workers, provides a $1.1 billion total investment, and augmenting the national income by purchasing $600 million worth of materials from domestic producers and suppliers (Coca-cola Will Plant 1 million Trees in Beijing, 2006). However, the success of Coca-cola is not without a price. For one, the Chinese beverage industry is relatively underdeveloped evidenced by the decrepit bottling facilities. This is even worsened by the tight control of the government on the beverage industry (Weisert, 2001). Initially, Coca-cola is only allowed to import its product and sell them only to foreigners at designated retail outlets. This is a strict policy implemented by the state as it wants only Chinese owned, wholly or partially, business to provide products and services to domestic customers. In 1980, Coca-cola decides to establish its own five bottling plants. However, the Chinese government holds the ownership of these facilities giving the sales and distribution rights to Coca-cola (Weisert, 2001). Technologically speaking, Coca-cola was faced with the dilemma of finding the right suppliers with the high level of technology to suit the company's supply needs. This led to a problem in the domestic network development. Coca-cola was burdened with the problem of finding suppliers for packaging materials, drink ingredients, bottling-line equipment, and construction services. Initially, the multinational opted to import basic materials such as glass and aluminum. Later, the company provided financial and technical assistance to local businesses in order for them to develop their technology. These supports help local suppliers to develop their equipment and enhance quality standards (Weisert, 2001).

Foreign Hospitality Industry in Switzerland Research Paper

Foreign Hospitality Industry in Switzerland - Research Paper Example   It is strategically located in the center of Europe, which ensures easy accessibility of all European markets. It is referred to as the center of competitiveness in Europe, as it plays an important function in financial markets internationally. It is also the center for many international organizations like World Trade Organization, WHO, and UN, among others. Therefore, the hotel industry can do well here as there are many potential customers who have to eat and spend in hotels.   Presence of international trading companies, law firms, and insurance companies, freight forwarding companies, security firms and surveillance firms certify Switzerland as a truly global business center. Switzerland has greatly improved over the past years as an investment center. It continually enhances foreign and domestic investments through improvement of circumstances and conditions. The improvement over the past years as an investment center is rated as follows;   Expansion of Mirvac group of hotels to Switzerland will improve the company’s reputation and image. Switzerland is an international country and presence of these hotels will ensure its loyal customers get their services, away from home. It will also make it be recognized internationally, as many foreigners come here. Therefore, it will market it internationally, and hence, investing in other countries will also be easy. Investing in Switzerland is, therefore, an important strategy for the company’s future prospects.   Globalization has had various effects on the industry of hospitality. The positive impacts are exposure to diverse cultures, large market, economic development, technology advancement, promotion of creativity, increased job opportunities, development of travel industry, and availability of international services. Exposure to different cultures will help managers in the hospitality industry to learn different cultures as they interact with people from different walks of life.

Computer networks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words - 1

Computer networks - Essay Example IP version 4. The protocol operates the network layer that is a third layer of the Open System Interconnection (OSI) model. Likewise, network layer incorporates addressing information and control information that enables data packets to be routed within the computer network ("Internet Protocol Version 6." 255-255). Moreover, IP version 6 is also considered or called as the next generation IP, as specified by the IEFT: RFC 2460 ("Internet Protocol Version 6." 255-255). However, the primary reason for upgrading the IP version 4 to IP version 6 is address space limitations. Moreover, other issues such as performance, security and auto configuration are considered secondary (Loshin 305). Likewise, address space limitations are linked with the IP address space crisis that is debatable since a very long time and it is considered as the primary motivational factor for the new version (Loshin 305). There were no doubts for the design, as it was remarkably well designed, however, the design w as created twenty years back and needs a review. Moreover, an increasing number of network threats are also addressed in IP version 6 and have more features as compare to IP version 4. Furthermore, in large and complex computer network environments, automated IP configuration reduces administration and configuration. IP version 6 addresses this issue by providing auto configurations of IP addresses. There are numerous research studies that have been carried out for IP version 6. They will be discussed in detail in the body of the report. Figure 1 source: (Che, Lewis 2010) 2 Why IPv6 ? The need for more and more addresses arise because an estimate through the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) reveals that about 85 percent of the IPv4 addresses are currently in use. The European Commission (EC) and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) before 2008 states that there is a need to migrate towards IPv6 urgently as they say â€Å"In the short-term, bus inesses and public authorities might be tempted to try to squeeze their needs into the strait jacket of the old system, but this would mean Europe is badly placed to take advantage of the latest Internet technology, and could face a crisis when the old system runs out of addresses. If Europeans are to use the latest Internet devices such as smart RFID tags in shops, factories, and airports, intelligent heating and lighting systems that save energy, and in-car networks and navigation systems, then we already face a thousand-fold increase in demand for IP addresses.† (Courtney 52-54). The same statement also includes that by 2010 every public and industry authorities must migrate towards IPV6. 3 Technical Evaluation 3.1 Technical Specifications of IPv6 The IPv6 is made up of numerous bits of network addresses. The number of bits varies from 32 bits to 128 bits or 3.4 x 1038 nodes that are addressable. They offer exceptional IP addresses that are different for every single networ k device on the globe. The packet related to the IPv6 consists of two major parts i.e. THE HEADER is the top most part and the primary 40 octets of the packet consist of 320 bits. Furthermore, the packet contains (Courtney 52-54): 1. Version The version of this IP is 6 (4-bit IP version) 2. Traffic class-packet priority (8-bits) The value of the priority is sub classified into several ranges. The traffic is delineated as the base that provides

Corporate Financial Risk Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Corporate Financial Risk Management - Essay Example Therefore, it is recommendable for the firm to hedge against price volatility by buying futures contract. Table of contents Introduction†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 4 Designing of the hedging strategy†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦4 An assessment of the impact of the above hedging strategy†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦5 Advantages and disadvantages of futures contract †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.6 Misuse of financial derivates†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦7 Conclusion and recommendations†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦...8 References†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦9 Introduction Financial engineers have developed a number securities and derivates such as futures and contracts, these financial derivatives can be used in hedging and as risk mitigation strategies. In order to offer delineation of how financial derivates helps firm in militating against losses that may occur due to changes in market factors below is report on cooper works, outlining and delineating the process of is management through derivatives. Designing of the hedging strategy Hedging can simply be defined as mechanism of shielding the firm against losses that may occur due to changes in the market parameters. In the case of copper works the firm annual demand of cooper is vulnerable to the prices change, in the process of the interaction of the demand and supply of cooper. For the firm to mitigate price volatility which is beyond the control of the firm there is needed for the firm to buyer futures contract that would enable the firm hedge against the changes in prices of cooper. As policy of the firm to hedge 80% of its exposure therefore with each contract having a capacity of 25000 pounds then we can only hedge against 800000 pounds, equivalent to 32 contracts. In reference to the nature of the cooper market it was advisable to take long position on all futures contract, in addition to this the organization should have two future trade open at same as asset management technique to mitigate against sever losses that would otherwise occur if prices of future contract declined significantly. An assessment of the impact of the above hedging strategy Go Long for 32 contracts @ 372.30 cents Initial margin = $64000 Maintenance margin = $48000 Date Price futures contract in cents Profit/ loss Margin Account Notes October 2010 372.30 - $64000 February 2011 369.0 -$26400 $37600 Take $10400 to reinstate the margin level February 2011 370.2 - $48000 August 2011 365.00 -$41600 $6400 Take $41600 from cash to reinstate the margin level August 2011 364.80 - $4800 February 2012 377.00 $97600 $145600 February 2012 376.50 - August 2012 388.00 $92000 $237600 Total Gross profit/loss = $121,600 From the above the initial margin level can be estimated as follows, Initial margin level = 2000x 40x0.8= $ 64000 From the analysis above there are two margin calls to reinstate the maintenance level the total. Margin calls can be ascertained to be 10400+41600= 52000 should obtain from the cash deposited by the cash broker. Advantages and disadvantages of futures contract Many financial derivatives are primarily to mit igates the from risk but on top of this derivates also have the following benefits to the firm, 1. In future contract parties have

Shah News Essay Example for Free

Shah News Essay Identification of Problem A small newsagent named Shah News has decided to diversify, and begun to rent digital media to the public. It began as a small experiment, to see if it would work out in his current local area. To his advantage, it has become very popular because of two main reasons; because his newsagent is situated on a main road with most property being residential, and the fact that he has a highly respected reputation with the local area (mainly because of his competitive pricing of groceries, confectionary and cosmetics). He has already built a sizeable customer database, and currently he is just using a larger alternative to a notebook to store information on members and his media. He is already expending his media collection, as his member base gets larger too. He has discovered that it is possible to store information in database format on a computer, from seeing such set-ups in similar rental stores e.g. Video Box and Red Rose (incidentally, there is a Video Box branch 15 minutes walk down his main road, and a Red Rose branch another 10 minutes walk further on). He has a computer system at home, however seeing the low prices of such computers adequate for the job, he is confident to buy a new computer system purely for his computerised database. A computerised database system would be a perfect fit for his situation. It would certainly be better than the method he is currently using. Problems with his current system are too many to list, mainly because it is such an old fashioned way. Such main problems are: * Although he hasnt realised, he is not conforming to the Data Protection Act because his data is not secure i.e. it is all in a large tabulated notebook. This could be serious for him if his member database grows, and in future time, he is checked up by authorities. * It is long winded to create a member, because he has to write out details by hand, and also write a membership card by hand. Currently, he is just assigning consecutive numbers to members, as their Member IDs. This shouldnt have a big problem with implementation of the new system, as he can still keep his current member database intact without reissuing of new cards (eliminating cost of more cards and most importantly, eliminating unneeded hassle). * His media database is also in a separate tabulated notebook, where he is simply assigning numbers to all media to create media IDs (and media multiples). Again, this can be eliminated by means of creating a digital database. Also, the chances are that there will be more media than members. Therefore, if he did keep the notebook, he would have large problems finding media (as it isnt in alphabetical order because he is randomly and constantly adding new media in a top-down fashion). Again, this is unneeded hassle. Time is more valuable than money, because if he has a queue, he can process customers more quickly (meaning less aggravation for customers, as they want to be in and out of the shop in as smallest time possible, thus meaning longer lasting customers, leading to more rentals in future). It would be a worthwhile investment for him to have a digital system created. Identification of Prospective Users The primary user for the system will most probably be Mr. Shah himself, as he works in the shop full-time. Other possible users are family members who occasionally help out (as it is a family-run newsagent) be. Secondary Users of the system could possibly be of the following type of people: Administrators can administrate and debug the system, to keep it in operational order. Also, they can perform tasks such as installing software upgrades for the system, or recovery if the system fails. However, since this is no large store or national name, itd be appropriate to train a member of the family (possibly Mr. Shah himself) to be an administrator. Staff working in the newsagent (if Mr. Shah has to hire anyone for temp/permanent work because reliability of family help drops). The system isnt permitted for usage by members of the public because it must comply with the Data Protection Act; meaning that the data must be secure. Only permitted peoples of the newsagent will have access to the system. Now, although nobody else will have access to the system because it is a smallish shop, a password-entry system must still be implemented because the software has to comply with the Data Protection Act. Identification of User Needs and Acceptable Limitations The primary users will be the Staff working at that particular branch. As they will be working full days (maybe part time staff too), they will want a system that: Is extremely efficient and smooth-running. Tasks that need to be performed can be completed without hassle and in as less time and operation as possible. Has a very simple user interface, and is not heavy on the eye. The user will not have to operate different devices simultaneously i.e. keyboard and mouse. The system will be functional from keyboard usage solely. (similar to a till or an EPOS outlet). The media database will have to change to a digital database. This will simplify the whole rental process to, as each media will have a unique ID. Even multiple films will have different IDs, for example; there are 4 copies of the DVD-Video The Matrix, each one having IDs of MATRIX01, MATRIX02, MATRIX03 and so on. When a rental process takes place, the ID of the media that is to be rented, is assigned to the members account. As an integral task, that particular media ID is deleted from the database of media available for rent. When the rental period is over and the media is returned, the ID is unassigned from the members account, and also is put back onto the list of available media for rent. The system has to be able to accomplish tasks such as: The ability to add new members to the user database. The ability to view/edit/delete member details with ease. All members will have a unique ID, although itll be impractical to have members remember their ID. Therefore, maybe a membership card system should be implemented. This can truly authenticate a member from a non-member as an added advantage to the company. The ability to add new media to the database, and assign to it a unique ID. The ability to create rentals by assigning media IDs to member accounts. Also, the attached ability to mark that media ID as rented out. The ability to delete rentals from a member account. Also, the attached ability to mark the media ID as available for rent. The ability to view available/rented media in summarised form, and also to delete media that is not available for rental anymore. If media is rented, then the ability to view the details of the member whom it is rented to. The ability to notify automatically when a members rental period is expired i.e. overdue. The ability to create weekly reports for aid in analysis of the business. However, only managers will be able to view this information. (password required). In considering this system, there are limitations: The system will have to be made within a certain budget, and a certain time period. It must meet the required objectives, and at the very least, the essential objectives. It must also comply with the Data Protection Act, and to ensure members that their data is secure. Realistic Appraisal of the Feasibility of Potential Solutions The Original System: Advantages * Currently, everyone who works in the media-lending department are familiar with this system. This eliminates extra costs and time for training, which would be needed for a new system. * Can be expanded to cater for a larger member/media database easily with no hassle. Disadvantages * The system is slow and sluggish because media/member information needs to be found using a manual approach. * With the paper database for the media and members, there is a bigger chance of files and records getting mixed up, or even lost. * If there is a disaster e.g. a fire, then the paper database will be destroyed. This will be disastrous to the business because there is no back-up of the member/media databases. Also, insurance claims for the media (if destroyed also) could be unsuccessful because Mr. Shah will possibly have no other evidence of what media he possessed. * Theoretically, the member data isnt fully secure (to comply with the Data Protection Act) because it isnt being stored in a safe; the data-book is left under the counter. A new, revised, fully digital system through a programming language approach, using Delphi: Advantages * The program can be very precise to the required specification and objectives. * Can do the required tasks with great efficiency and speed. * Some small tasks are automatically completed by aid of the system. For example, when media is rented, it automatically gets put under a rented media group to avoid it being rented twice by the software. * All files are digitally stored, therefore consuming less paper resources. * Multiple copies of the databases can be kept easily for backup purposes. The backup must be securely stored in order to comply with the Data Protection Act. Disadvantages * It can prove costly to have the system made, as it will be a bespoke system, and not an off-the-shelf software program. * It can prove even more costly if it needs to be modified or upgraded, as only the programmers can modify it (they have the source code), and they can charge a large fee for this. * It could take a long time to develop, and one of the limitations is the that it takes to develop the system. * It will be non-compatible with other software, and could require some training for the prospective users, therefore inflicting more cost on the business. * It can be prone to bugs, because it wont have been fully 100% checked (not like software that is on the market i.e. off-the-shelf software). A New System In A Database Approach Advantages * It will be much easier and user friendly to operate the database (and the application), as users will hopefully be more familiar with database applications. * It can be made to a much smaller budget, as less time and programmers are needed on the job. * Complicated searches can be carried out (queries), and reports can be made with ease and speed, as these functions are specialities of a database application. * Can still do the required task very efficiently, with speed and accuracy. Possibly more speed, as the database application will be specially optimised for this. * Files are again, digitally stored, therefore consuming less paper resources. * Easier to modify the database application, for creating add-ons and making more features, as there is no source code, and advanced programmers arent needed. This is a job that Administrators could do. * The system will have no bugs (if any), compared to possible bugs of a programming approach. This will be because of the fact that the database program will be an off-the-shelf piece of software. * Multiple copies of the patient/equipment database can be kept for backup purposes. Also, these backups will most likely be compatible in other database applications (making consideration for upgrading the database application in the future). Disadvantages * The system can take more memory (hard disk space, as well as RAM), as the database application has high demands for these memories. * The application might not be as precise to the specification as it could have been with the programming approach. * Although the branches will have a PC and peripherals, database applications are demanding on RAM and hard drive space, therefore it is possible that the PCs will require upgrading if the specification isnt up to the job. Thus meaning, more cost for the company. * The company will have to buy a version of a database program for every PC. This could be expensive, because as well as paying for the bespoke database, they have to pay for the program that runs it. Justification of Chosen Solution It seems clear that the manual system is out of the question. Too many disadvantages eliminate this possibility. A fully digital system has many more advantages and possibilities. The second issue, is of how the system will be made; either through a database approach or a programming language approach. It appears that the Delphi approach and the database approach seem to be on the same level as each other, in terms of advantages and disadvantages.

Human evolution Essay Example for Free

Human evolution Essay Australopithecus apheresis separated humans directly from other primates because they walked upright. There is a huge evolutionary connection between brain size and bipedalism, Australopithecus and our other ancestors brain size was increased because of a change in their diets. Before, our relatives were strict herbivores until they became bipedal and ate meat because it was more available. Which meant that our early ancestors had to run to catch there food, thus increased their brain size because their brains were used eating vegetables. Natural selection has played an important role human evolution. Mutations and natural selections such as change in pigmentation and bacteria inside our body have to help us survive. Random mutations occur in our DNA that can befit, harm or do nothing. Natural selection happens in evolution to help our ancestors to adapt their surroundings. For instance, humans lost their body hair to free themselves of external parasites that infest fur. Over the time of evolution our ancestors body lost what it didnt need and kept what it need. As our ancestors started to move bipedal their body naturally selected to devolve there opposable toe. This was an advantage because our ancestors could run faster and have better alignment with their skeleton. Other natural selection happened over the time of evolution that devolved bodys and evolved bodies. The discovery of controlling of fire was the rising point of human evolution and culture, fires helped humans cook food and gives them comfort. According to James, Steven a Professional form the university of Chicago, the first clam for the earliest evidence of a controlled fire was by a member of a homo that dates back from 1. 7 million years ago. There is justified evidence that early humans behaviour and diet changed when they learned to control fire. The discovery of fire by early human let them say active in night-time hours. A professor from Harvard university claims as early human used fire for cooking food it also expanded and developed their brains because they were allowing more complex carbohydrates in to their bodies. Eating cooked food let our ancestors have more time for them because they were no longer trying to chew on a hard plant allay trying to gain calories from it. When our ancestors starts to cook their food their teeth, jaws, digestive traps and sexual consistencys started to shrink, all of these changes stated happening about 1. 8 million years ago, additionally this is more evident on the Homo erectus. As food became less of a concern to early human, weapons became more sophisticated. When early humans starts using tool evolution helped advance the development and size of their brains. Evolution gave our ancestors an advantage over chimpanzee, muscles that that chimpanzees lack. Humans have thicker fingers with wider heads, making it easier for humans to hold on to objects and throw them more accurately compared to chimpanzees hands. Although, hominid the australopithecine had small sized brains compared to the chimpanzee, they tried very often to cut through tough animal skin to take the meat of the bones, but this makes sense because the australopithecine was still a tree climbing animal. The great advance in stone tools happened around the time of the Homo erectus. The Homo erectus was the first of our ancestors to carry tools around, instead of dropping them after using them, like the australopithecines. Plus, the Homo erectus brain had grown over the time of evolution to three times the size on contrast to the australopithecines. As tools use evolved, communication and language was generated. As our ancestors more and more tools, their hands were occupied while they were hunting and couldnt use gesture so they evolved communication. In order for the early humans to survive, they need to co-operate. For instance, the group was sleeping and on human was chosen to stay awake and wants to wake the group up because a woolly mammoth was rear the group, that individual would need to explain what he wants the group to comprehend. The theory of Evolution is a justified and straightforward; it has been extensively studied and supported by all modern science. Creationism in my opinion on the other hand is completely a bunch of lies, faith does not give you answers, and it only asks you to stop asking question. There is no possible way to test creationism, there for believers accept it as the truth. DNA proves that all cells on earth are someway genetically related, for instance humans are 99. 8 the same genetic code as chimpanzees. Evolution happened over millions and millions of year. Creationism states that someone was told to searching out our planet for 8. 7 million place them aboard to Noahs ark. In my opinion I believe evolution didnt over night or the human race was created in one day by a supernatural being because it has been proving with our technology and our discoverys of fossil records that evolution happen because of natural selections. Creationism is for people that dont care about anthropology, sociology and phycology. People that believe in evolution usually are people that dont want go to church and believe in god. Religion celebrates death while evolution celebrates life.

Obesity: Effect on Total Joint Replacement Patients

Obesity: Effect on Total Joint Replacement Patients The critical factor driving the growth in worldwide demand for joint replacement is obesity Kumar Anjan Contents (Jump to) Abstract: 1. Introduction 2. Obesity – How can we define it? 3. Surgical Risk: 4. Obesity and Implant Failure 5. Conclusion 6. Bibliography Abstract: During early days, obese individuals were often suggested to lose weight before undergoing total joint replacement (TJR). It was common observation amongst surgeons and doctors that morbidity rate amongst obese individuals were significantly high as compared to that of non-obese subjects. In addition, there was significant increase in the physical and technical labour of operating overweight individuals. This resulted in time saving and managing long queue of patients. Recently, scientific reports with positive results reflected that there is only negligible effect of obesity on TJR. However, recently in the UK several health care authorities proposed that there would not be any financial support provided to the individuals whose BMI exceeds 30 kg/m2. The primary reason behind the decision is the reduction in health care budget. In olden days, TJR was a procedure considered for those who were more than 65 years of age. However, this trend is significantly changing. According to Dr. A yeres (MD, Chair in Orthopaedics, and director of the Musculoskeletal Centre of Excellence at UMass Medical School), with an increased rate of obesity amongst individuals under the age of 65 is acting as a driving force towards TJR. Therefore, in this case report I have discussed about obesity and its effect on TJR.   1. Introduction: Total joint replacement (TJR) is globally acknowledged especially due to the revolution in the quality of life for those individuals suffering from osteoarthritis or similar health problems (Garellick et al, 1998). Moreover, in modern medicine TJR has proved its effectiveness as one of the most successful interventions. There are also several high demo graphs recorded towards the improvement of the quality of life, which surpasses coronary artery bypass as well as renal transplants (Williams A, 1985). In elderly population, TJR’s especially knee anthroplasty has shown to be most effective technology resulting towards better life quality. Study conducted among a population cohort of over 65 subjects who had TJR shows that they are leading a healthier life (UK population Census, 2001). Total joint replacement has definitely bought a revolution in modern health care system. However, there are certain implications that concern the public. One of the most critical limitations is the budgetary control which enforced by the competitive claim from the other intensive medical care system. Furthermore, as these treatments are not actually cost effective; therefore, it raises questions for the individuals undergoing a replacement as well as the government bodies who support the funding (Templeton, S.K. 2005). Recently, East Suffolk health trust in the U.K. decided to prioritize their patients undergoing TJR according to their weight and various other factors resulting in obesity. According to the top management of the trust, individuals who are overweight or obese are at an increased risk towards the efficacy of the surgery. This decision has definitely stirred controversy among the community undergoing TJR (Finer N, 2005). However, according to some valued sources, there i s no evidence that age, obesity or gender affects the functional outcome of the surgery (Templeton, S. K. 2005). Therefore, there is huge controversy surrounding towards the potential implications of obesity on TJR. Orthopaedic studies suggest that obesity leads towards degenerative changes in joints and leads towards complications and functional risk during post-surgery phase (Rockville, 2003). As there is no standard definition for obesity, it rather becomes very difficult to understand its actual meaning. However, several health care professionals recommend that problem in mobilisation and functional outcome is not visualised until an individual’s (BMI) exceeds 40 kg/m2 (Nammi et al, 2004). Various evidences conclude that obesity is the driving force towards development of osteoarthritis particularly in individuals with high BMI in an early age (DoH, 2001). In some rare scenarios, bariatic surgery is performed on the individuals before TJR. This is mainly due to bring their weight down to an acceptable score. 2. Obesity – How can we define it? Over several years, different authors described obesity in a different way. Obesity does not have an actual standard definition. However, the most common scientific way to describe obesity is based on the Body Mass Index (BMI) (Fig: 1) (Lawrence, 1998). BMI is also known as Quetelet Mass Index (QI) and is generally described as the ratio of the square of the height measured in meters (mt) to the weight in kilograms (kg) (Taylor, 1998). QI relates the body fat percentage and is one of the most preferred methods for the assessment of the potential health risk related with the overweight or obesity. Recently, authors started using the term â€Å"New World Syndrome† for obesity as its prevalence is dramatically increasing in the Europe as well as in the United States (USA). A shocking figure was projected when a recent survey was conducted by the Department of Health in the UK. According to the survey, prevalence in obesity has increased from 15% since 1995 to 21% in 2001 (Webb et al, 2004). Fig: 1 BMI Chart the ratio of the square of the height measured in meters (mt) to the weight in kilograms (kg). In the US, obesity has reached in an epidemic proportion. Considering the BMI of an individual, more than half of the adult population in the US are classified as overweight. According to a separate survey conducted in the US amongst 65-74 year age group, 66% were referred to as obese or overweight. Therefore, we can visualise the prevalence of obesity coinciding with the peak age during which most of the individual requires TJR (US Dept. of Health and Human Services, 2003). In the UK, the data shows similar outcomes to that of the US. Obesity amongst males in the UK has increased from 6% in 1980 to 22% in 2002 whereas in females, 8% 23% (DhO, 2001). According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there is an increase in obesity between 10% 40% in last 10 years. WHO also claims that there are approximately 200 million obese adults around the globe and 18 million children under age five are classified as overweight. Moreover, by 2000 this data significantly increased to over 300 m illion. Osteoarthritis (OA) is a group of mechanical abnormalities, which involves in the degradation of joints, articular cartilage. It generally affects approximately 20 million individuals in the US. It causes substantial morbidity leading to disability in the later stages. This disease is more common amongst elderly population. However, recently it was observed that adult age group between 60-65 years of age are getting prone to this disease. According to few scientific sources, the main reason for OA amongst younger generation is obesity. Various scientific reports documents that in the US more than 200,000 knee and hip replacements are performed each year and 35% are young individuals under the age of 65 (Dho, 2001; US Dept. of Health and Human Services, 2003). Obesity is one of the most significant risk factors contributing towards osteoarthritis. Therefore, with an increase in obesity, there is a high probability of developing osteoarthritis. Moreover, this leads towards an increase prevalence of TJR (Felson et al, 2000). As we know that, there is a constant increase among obese patients undergoing TJR. Therefore, several researches links obesity with the TJR as well as the complications associated with the same. According to a joint study performed by a group of scientists and surgeons, it was found that there is an increase in complication rate in obese patients as compared to individuals with normal BMI (Olivera et al, 1999; Sahyoun et al, 1999). In addition, the operative duration significantly increases in obese subjects. However, factors like physical stress and injury to health care professional remains undiscovered. As already mentioned, it has been well established that there is a positive link that connects TJR and obesity. Whil st examining, individuals with high BMI are in an exponential increase for TJR over next few decades. According to several health care professionals, there is often a challenging situation during pre/post surgery in obese individuals. Moreover, there is a high risk of blood loss and blood transfusion. It has also been highlighted that nerve injury is common amongst obese patients as compared to the healthy individuals (non-obese) during TJR (Mantilla et al, 2003). 3. Surgical Risk: In the previous section, it was discussed that East Suffolk Health Trust in the UK prioritised their patients, which resulted in a huge controversy. According to public and human right activists, their decision was biased towards the individuals with higher BMI. The main reason behind the decision was increased risk and the cost involved in performing TJR amongst obese/overweight individuals. Supporting the decision of East Suffolk Health Trust, â€Å"Ipswich Protocol† was followed. According to this protocol, orthopaedic surgeons and health care personals were advised that patients/individuals found with BMI>30 should be barred towards the access of TJR/anthroplasty (Amen et al, 2006). Winiarsky’s group performed a research on a population cohort with BMI>40 undergoing TJR. The result showed that 22% of the subjects suffered from wound complication, 10% individuals developed infection and 8% of the subjects suffered from ligament damage. When these result was compared with the wild type (normal population), it was seen that only 2% non-obese subjects developed wound complication, 0.6% suffered from infection and surprisingly there were non with ligament damage. Later, same group of individuals were studied after five years and significant post surgical differences were noticed in obese subjects as compared to the normal (non-obese) individuals. Therefore, we can conclude from the above study that obese patients have high risk during pre and post surgery (Vasqez et al, 2003). However, in Toronto, a random survey amongst 24231-population cohort showed that after 2-7 years of surgery there was a high level of patient satisfaction with reference to pain and func tion. In addition, there was no negative impact on outcome that co-related with subject’s age or obesity (Heisel et al, 2005). In Los Angeles California, Miric et al studied several factors leading towards TJR complexity. Research was performed amongst 406 subjects undergoing total knee anthroplasty (TKA). According to the researchers, it was observed that there was a significant co-relation between BMI and subject’s cardiac history. Interestingly, patients with diabetes mellitus have had an increase stay in hospital as compared to the healthy (non-diabetic) patients. Therefore, the study concluded that there was not a significant difference amongst heavier patients as compared to those with normal BMI. In addition, the cut offs of BMI dividing overweight and obesity did not accurately divide patients into high/low risk categories (Foran et al, 2004). In Scotland, research was performed amongst group of 283 TKA patients between 1995 and 1999 consisting of obese and non-obese subjects. Researchers concluded that there was no significant difference in complication rates (Peersman et al, 2001). In a similar study in Baltimore Maryland, evaluation outcome of TKA in 68 obese subjects showed that after five years of surgery there was no significant difference amongst obese and non-obese subjects. However, surprisingly after 7 years of surgery obese patients had a higher â€Å"implant failure† rate as compared to non-obese subjects. It was also noted that 12.3% of the obese patients had to go for a re-operation due to implant failure. In addition, deep vein thrombosis was only noticed in obese subjects. Pritchett and Bortel described that obese patients had greater blood loss and needed blood transfusion as well as longer operative time. Peersman supported the view saying that the increase in the infection rate in obese patients w as due to the prolonged operative duration (Prichett and Bortel, 1991). 4. Obesity and Implant Failure As described in the previous section, in Baltimore, there was no evidence of either complication or mortality amongst obese patients after five years of surgery. However, the same group individuals suffered an â€Å"Implant Failure† after seven years of TJR. Various researches were conducted and scientists concluded that younger patients (age 65). Simulation of metal-onpolyethylene arthroplasty model under laboratory conditions showed that the principle cause of the device failure was due to increased wear rates when greater load was applied. Hence, it was proved that younger subjects due to their daily life routine were applying more force on the implant as compared to elder population cohort (Barbour et al, 1995; McKellop et al, 1995). Moreover, subjects who were able to reduce weight in seven years were living a healthier life as compared to other subjects. Therefore, we can conclude that obesity also potentially affects the device failure in long run. 5. Conclusion Recently, obesity and TJR has pulled the interest of several scientists, health care personals and even the government. Various government officials and trust group supporting financial aid are still under the impression that obesity leads to TJR. However, there is neither significant evidence nor sufficient clinical results to support their view. TJR surgery is a reliable procedure to offer sustainable pain relief and provide healthier life style regardless individual’s BMI. However, we cannot ignore the fact that obese individuals require special care in terms of patient handling, surgical exposure etc. In addition, obese subject are also at a high risk in wound healing, infection and longer duration of operative duration. It is also clinically proven that higher activity level leads towards device failure. As mentioned earlier, due to physical work restriction after TJR high probability lies towards increasing BMI. Therefore, it is recommended that individual’s shoul d attend weight loss programme before undergoing TJR. 6. Bibliography Amin AK, Clayton RA, Patton JT, Gaston M, Cook RE, Brenkle IJ. Total knee replacement in Morbidly Obese Patients. J Bone Jt Surg 2006;88(10-B):1321–6. Barbour PSM, Barton DC, Fisher J. The influence of contact stress on the wear of UHMWPE for hip replacements. Wear 1995;181–183:250–7. DoH Health Surveys, 1980, 1995, 2001 — Department of Health Publication, HMSO. Finer N. Rationing joint replacements — Trusts decision seems to be based on prejudice or attributing blame†¦. Br Med J 2005;331:1472. Foran JR, Mont MA, Etienne G, Jones LC, Hungerford DS. The outcome of total knee arthroplasty in obese patients. J Bone Jt Surg 2004;86(8-A):1609. Garellick G, Malchau H, Herberts P, Axelsson H, Hansson T. Life expectancy and cost utility after total hip replacement. Clin OrthopRelat Res 1998;346:141–51. Heisel C, Silva M, dela Rosa MA, Schmalzried TP. The effects of lower-extremity total joint replacement for arthritis on obesity. Orthopedics 2005;28(2):157. Lawrence RC, Helmick CG, Arnett FC, et al. Estimates of the prevalence of arthritis and selected musculoskeletal disorders in the United States. Arthritis Rheum. 1998;41:778–799. Mantilla CB, Horlocker TT, Schroeder DR, Berry DJ, Brown DL. Risk factors for clinically relevant pulmonary embolism and deep venous thrombosis in patients undergoing primary hip or knee arthroplasty. Anesthesiology 2003;99(3):552–60. McKellop HA, Campbell P, Park S-H, Schmalzried TP, Sarmiento A, Grigoris P, Amstutz HC. The origin of submicron wear debris in total hip arthroplasty. Clin Orthop Relat Res 1995;311:3–20. Nammi S, Koka S, Chinnala Krishna M, Boini Krishna M. Obesity: an overview on its current perspectives and treatment options. Nutr J 2004;3:3. Oliveria SA, Felson DT, Cirillo PA, Reed JI,Walker AM. Body weight, body mass index, and incident symptomatic osteoarthritis of the hand, hip, and knee. Epidemiologia March 1999;10(2):161. Pritchett JW, Bortel DT. Knee replacement in morbidly obese women. Surg Gynecol Obstet 1991;173(2):119–22. Rockville MD: Department of Health and Human Services. Total knee replacement. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; Department of Health and Human Services, 2003. (Evidence report/technology assessment No 86.). Sahyoun NR, Hochberg MC, Helmick CG, Harris T, Pamuk ER. Body mass index, weight change, and incidence of self-reported, physiciandiagnose arthritis among women. Am J Pub Health 1999;89(3):391–4. Taylor RW, Kiel D, Gold EJ, Williams SM, Goulding A. Body mass index, waist girth and waist-to-hip ratio as indexes of total and regional adiposity in women: evaluation using receiver operating characteristic curves. Am J Clin Nutr Jan 1998;67:44–9. Templeton S-K. â€Å"Doctors will get right not to treat self-inflicted illnesses†, The Sunday Times; November 27, 2005. UK Population Census 2001 US Department Of Health And Human Services. Clinical guidelines on the identification, evaluation, and treatment of obesity in adults: the evidence report; 2003. Vasquez-Vela Johnson G, Worland RL, Keenan N, Norambuena N. Patient demographics as a predictor of the ten-year survival rate in primary total knee replacement. J Bone Jt Surg 2003;85-B(1):52–6. Webb R, Brammah T, Lunt M, Urwin M, Allison T, Symmons D. Opportunities for prevention of ‘clinically significant’ knee pain:results from a population-based cross sectional study. J Pub Health Sep 2004;26(3):277–84. Williams A. Economics of coronary artery bypass grafting. Br Med J 1985;291:325–6.

Multiple Regression :: Gender

Introduction For this study researchers were interested in assessing whether self-reported health behaviours and health literacy are able to predict self-rated physical health, after controlling for the effects of gender and age. They are further interested in knowing which of the variables provide a statistically significant contribution to the equation. Also of interest to the researches was the interaction between gender and health literacy, that is, the degree to which individuals are able to obtain, process and understand the information needed to make appropriate decisions about their health, and the impact of this interaction on health. Data was collected from 350 people randomly selected from a dataset from a population-based study of health and health determinants. Health was measured on a scale of 1 to 10, where higher scores represent better health. Health behaviours include healthy diet, physical activity and relaxation and are measured on a scale from 1 to 15. Health literacy is measured on a scale from 10 to 45. Gender and age in years were also collected from the respondents. Data Screening & Assumption Testing The initial step in this data analysis involved screening the data for possible missing values, out of range values, univariate and multivariate outliers and multicollinearity. Three variables used for this study contained missing values; both system and identified missing. These variables were health literacy, physical activity and age in years, one case for each of these variables. Each of these missing values were recoded with a missing value code of 999. Descriptive statistics produced for each of the variables used for the analysis revealed out of range values for the variables healthy diet, physical activity and relaxation. These values were also recoded to the missing value code 999. Testing for the presence of outliers was done by generating a scatterplot matrix for all variables (Figure 1), and plots of Cook’s distances (Figure 2) and Mahalanobis distances (Figure 3). There are no cases which indicate a particular cause for concern. On the Mahalanobis distance chart there are no cases that is substantially larger than the rest and on the Cook’s distance there is no case with a distance above 1 which would indicate an influential point. Multicollinearity was tested and there were no variables with a tolerance of less than 0.3. It is also necessary to check the regression assumptions to ensure that any results from analysis are valid. The first assumption is that all variables are measured on a metric scale or that categorical variables are dichotomously coded. This is true for the data in this study. The second assumption is that each observation in the sample is independent of the other observations, the

Comparison of To His Coy Mistress and The Ruined Maid Essay -- Andrew

Comparison of To His Coy Mistress and The Ruined Maid 'To His Coy Mistress' is written by Andrew Marvell in the 17th Century. Marvell was one of the so-called metaphysical poets - a term of mild literary abuse coined by Dr. Johnson. 'The Ruined Maid' was written by Thomas Hardy in 1866. It is important to analyse the theme, language, tone, characters and style of both poems in order to compare and contrast them. 'To His Coy Mistress' is a lyric of seduction. It is about a young man who tries to persuade a young girl to have sex with him. It seems that he has made an attempt but fails, because the girl is unwilling to yield her virginity. The poem is an example of a carpe diem poem - 'carpe diem' is Latin for 'seize the day'. The man expresses his sadness at the thought of swiftly passing time and the shortness of life. He wants to persuade the girl to grab the time that they have. The poem splits up into three sections with different moods. The first section contains lots of flatteries. Marvell has already expressed the main point of this poem at the first two lines, 'Had we but world enough and time, this coyness, Lady, were no crime.' He is saying that if there is time, he can wait. He understands the young girl's modesty and she wants to keep her virginity. The poem is lustful as the man keeps on flattering the girl; he says that he could operate within the confines of conventional courtship and devote appropriate time to worship of her. 'Two hundred to adore each breast'. He assured her that she deserves the most elaborate courtship imaginable - 'For lady, you deserve this state'. He will spend lots of time waiting for her; if there is 'time'. However, the second section begins with a huge ... ...coy mistress. However, the mistress might be a rich woman and she might be happy with her present life while she keeps her virginity. In general, the man is the one who is disappointed if he cannot have sex with her. In the ruined maid, Hardy is quite successful in teasing society's hypocrisy in condemning prostitution. One may have a better life and better position as a prostitute. However, in my opinion, I think reputation is an important thing for women. I would tease the ruined maid as well. I would rather be a poor country girl than a prostitute. Even if she has a better life and is rich, she is totally shameful and condemned by the public. Losing her virginity is an indignity, as is being as 'ruined'. Not only should the prostitutes be blamed, but also the men who pay them for sex should be humiliated. The men's reputation should also be ruined.

The Broken Spears by Miguel Leon-Portilla Essay -- Aztecs Broken Spear

"The Broken Spears" by Miguel Leon-Portilla The author argues that the Spanish were completely at fault for the total destruction of the Aztec Empire. In Broken spears, the author explains how many factors other than Spanish power contributed to the downfall of the Aztecs. Not only did the Spanish have many advantages over the Aztecs, but also they also exploited them and took advantage of the cultural difference. The main key aspects to the Spanish victory, is that the Spanish were viewed as gods at first because of their appearance, the Aztecs welcomed the Spanish with gifts and festivities, which showed the Spanish had total control of people. The Aztecs also held a ritual ceremony for the arrival of the â€Å"god† that included a human sacrifice, which was seen by the Spanish as a disgusting act, this trigged Spanish hatred for the Aztecs. When the Spanish saw the resources that the Aztecs had, they quickly started taking advantage of the Aztecs weaknesses. The Spanish had more power; they were better equipped than the Aztecs and more advanced. The Aztecs’ leader Montecuhzoma was a weak leader, he was more of a coward, more concerned with his well being and safety than the safety of his people and kingdom so he quickly surrendered under pressure. The Spanish used surrounding enemy tribes to take over the Aztec lands, then began to massacre men, women and children. When the Aztec became angry and started to fight back, they were quickly wrecked by the diseases the Spanish ...

Alabama School District Essay

The purpose of this research is to look at rural Alabama school districts and to look at the overall effects that the exit examinations have had on the teachers and how they choose to teach in their classrooms. The problem has been that it has been suggested that the exit examinations have been biased towards students who being taught in specific school districts and these are typically associated with the urban locations. It has also been suggested that there be needs to be a difference in the instructional practices of the teachers in order to be able to do well on their exit examinations. Research Questions There are many research questions that can be answered through the research. One of the main questions is: What is the overall effect that the examination has had on how teachers’ are instructing their classrooms? Some other questions that can be answered include the following. How has your teaching style changed since the exit examination has been in place? What are the disadvantages to the exit examination? What are the advantages to the exit examination? Is there biasness against the rural school districts in the exit examination? Has the overall effect of the exit examination been good or bad for the students? What are the disadvantages for teachers who are teaching with the exit examination in place? To be able to answer these questions fully and completely will best show how the teachers are able to be in a better situation no matter what school district they are teaching in or the location of the school district.

Chapter 7 The Boggart in the Wardrobe

Malfoy didn't reappear in classes until late on Thursday morning, when the Slytherins and Gryffindors were halfway through double Potions. He swaggered into the dungeon, his right arm covered in bandages and bound up in a sling, acting, in Harry's opinion, as though he were the heroic survivor of some dreadful battle. â€Å"How is it, Draco?† simpered Pansy Parkinson. â€Å"Does it hurt much?† â€Å"Yeah,† said Malfoy, putting on a brave sort of grimace. But Harry saw him wink at Crabbe and Goyle when Pansy had looked away. â€Å"Settle down, settle down,† said Professor Snape idly. Harry and Ron scowled at each other; Snape wouldn't have said ‘settle down' if they'd walked in late, he'd have given them detention. But Malfoy had always been able to get away with anything in Snape's classes; Snape was head of Slytherin House, and generally favored his own students above all others. They were making a new potion today, a Shrinking Solution. Malfoy set up his cauldron right next to Harry and Ron, so that they were preparing their ingredients on the same table. â€Å"Sir,† Malfoy called, â€Å"sir, I'll need help cutting up these daisy roots, because of my arm –â€Å" â€Å"Weasley, cut up Malfoy's roots for him,† said Snape without looking up. Ron went brick red. â€Å"There's nothing wrong with your arm,† he hissed at Malfoy. Malfoy smirked across the table. â€Å"Weasley, you heard Professor Snape; cut up these roots.† Ron seized his knife, pulled Malfoy's roots toward him, and began to chop them roughly, so that they were all different sizes. â€Å"Professor,† drawled Malfoy, â€Å"Weasley's mutilating my roots, sir.† Snape approached their table, stared down his hooked nose at the roots, then gave Ron an unpleasant smile from beneath his long, greasy black hair. â€Å"Change roots with Malfoy, Weasley.† â€Å"But, sir –!† Ron had spent the last quarter of an hour carefully shredding his own roots into exactly equal pieces. â€Å"Now,† said Snape in his most dangerous voice. Ron shoved his own beautifully cut roots across the table at Malfoy, then took up the knife again. â€Å"And, sir, I'll need this shrivelfig skinned,† said Malfoy, his voice full of malicious laughter. â€Å"Potter, you can skin Malfoy's shrivelfig,† said Snape, giving Harry the look of loathing he always reserved just for him. Harry took Malfoy's shrivelfig as Ron began trying to repair the damage to the roots he now had to use. Harry skinned the shrivelfig as fast as he could and flung it back across the table at Malfoy without speaking. Malfoy was smirking more broadly than ever. â€Å"Seen your pal Hagrid lately?† he asked them quietly. â€Å"None of your business,† said Ron jerkily, without looking up. â€Å"I'm afraid he won't be a teacher much longer,† said Malfoy in a tone of mock sorrow. â€Å"Father's not very happy about my injury –â€Å" â€Å"Keep talking, Malfoy, and I'll give you a real injury,† snarled Ron. â€Å"?C he's complained to the school governors. And to the Ministry of Magic. Father's got a lot of influence, you know. And a lasting injury like this† — he gave a huge, fake sigh — â€Å"who knows if my arm'll ever be the same again?† â€Å"So that's why you're putting it on,† said Harry, accidentally beheading a dead caterpillar because his hand was shaking in anger, â€Å"To try to get Hagrid fired.† â€Å"Well,† said Malfoy, lowering his voice to a whisper, â€Å"partly, Potter. But there are other benefits too. Weasley, slice my caterpillars for me.† A few cauldrons away, Neville was in trouble. Neville regularly went to pieces in Potions lessons; it was his worst subject, and his great fear of Professor Snape made things ten times worse. His potion, which was supposed to be a bright, acid green, had turned — â€Å"Orange, Longbottom,† said Snape, ladling some up and allowing to splash back into the cauldron, so that everyone could see. â€Å"Orange. Tell me, boy, does anything penetrate that thick skull of yours? Didn't you hear me say, quite clearly, that only one cat spleen was needed? Didn't I state plainly that a dash of leech juice would suffice? What do I have to do to make you understand, Longbottom?† Neville was pink and trembling. He looked as though he was on the verge of tears. â€Å"Please, sir,† said Hermione, â€Å"please, I could help Neville put it right –â€Å" â€Å"I don't remember asking you to show off, Miss Granger,† said Snape coldly, and Hermione went as pink as Neville. â€Å"Longbottom, at the end of this lesson we will feed a few drops of this potion to your toad and see what happens. Perhaps that will encourage you to do it properly.† Snape moved away, leaving Neville breathless with fear. â€Å"Help me!† he moaned to Hermione. â€Å"Hey, Harry,† said Seamus Finnigan, leaning over to borrow Harry's brass scales, â€Å"have you heard? Daily Prophet this morning — they reckon Sirius Black's been sighted.† â€Å"Where?† said Harry and Ron quickly. On the other side of the table, Malfoy looked up, listening closely. â€Å"Not too far from here,† said Seamus, who looked excited. â€Å"It was a Muggle who saw him. ‘Course, she didn't really understand. The Muggles think he's just an ordinary criminal, don't they? So she phoned the telephone hot line. By the time the Ministry of Magic got there, he was gone.† â€Å"Not too far from here †¦Ã¢â‚¬  Ron repeated, looking significantly at Harry. He turned around and saw Malfoy watching closely. â€Å"What, Malfoy? Need something else skinned?† But Malfoy's eyes were shining malevolently, and they were fixed Harry. He leaned across the table. â€Å"Thinking of trying to catch Black single-handed, Potter?† â€Å"Yeah, that's right,† said Harry offhandedly. Malfoy's thin mouth was curving in a mean smile. â€Å"Of course, if it was me,† he said quietly, â€Å"I'd have done something before now. I wouldn't be staying in school like a good boy, I'd be out there looking for him.† â€Å"What are you talking about, Malfoy?† said Ron roughly. â€Å"Don't you know, Potter?† breathed Malfoy, his pale eyes narrowed. â€Å"Know what?† Malfoy let out a low, sneering laugh. â€Å"Maybe you'd rather not risk your neck,† he said. â€Å"Want to leave it to the Dementors, do you? But if it was me, I'd want revenge. I'd hunt him down myself.† â€Å"What are you talking about?† said Harry angrily, but at that moment Snape called, â€Å"You should have finished adding your ingredients by now; this potion needs to stew before it can be drunk, so clear away while it simmers and then we'll test Longbottom's†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Crabbe and Goyle laughed openly, watching Neville sweat as he stirred his potion feverishly. Hermione was muttering instructions to him out of the corner of her mouth, so that Snape wouldn't see. Harry and Ron packed away their unused ingredients and went to wash their hands and ladles in the stone basin in the corner. â€Å"What did Malfoy mean?† Harry muttered to Ron as he stuck his hands under the icy jet that poured from the gargoyle's mouth â€Å"Why would I want revenge on Black? He hasn't done anything to me — yet.† â€Å"He's making it up,† said Ron savagely. â€Å"He's trying to make you do something stupid†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The end of the lesson in sight, Snape strode over to Neville, who was cowering by his cauldron. â€Å"Everyone gather 'round,† said Snape, his black eyes glittering, â€Å"and watch what happens to Longbottom's toad. If he has managed to produce a Shrinking Solution, it will shrink to a tadpole. If, as I don't doubt, he has done it wrong, his toad is likely to be poisoned.† The Gryffindors watched fearfully. The Slytherins looked excited. Snape picked up Trevor the toad in his left hand and dipped a small spoon into Neville's potion, which was now green. He trickled a few drops down Trevor's throat. There was a moment of hushed silence, in which Trevor gulped; then there was a small pop, and Trevor the tadpole was wriggling in Snape's palm. The Gryffindors burst into applause. Snape, looking sour, pulled a small bottle from the pocket of his robe, poured a few drops on top of Trevor, and he reappeared suddenly, fully grown. â€Å"Five points from Gryffindor,† said Snape, which wiped the smiles from every face. â€Å"I told you not to help him, Miss Granger. Class dismissed.† Harry, Ron, and Hermione climbed the steps to the entrance hall. Harry was still thinking about what Malfoy had said, while Ron was seething about Snape. â€Å"Five points from Gryffindor because the potion was all right! Why didn't you lie, Hermione? You should've said Neville did it all by himself!† Hermione didn't answer. Ron looked around. â€Å"Where is she?† Harry turned too. They were at the top of the steps now, watching the rest of the class pass them, heading for the Great Hall and lunch. â€Å"She was right behind us,† said Ron, frowning. Malfoy passed them, walking between Crabbe and Goyle. He smirked at Harry and disappeared. â€Å"There she is,† said Harry. Hermione was panting slightly, hurrying up the stairs; one hand clutched her bag, the other seemed to be tucking something down the front of her robes. â€Å"How did you do that?† said Ron. â€Å"What?† said Hermione, joining them. â€Å"One minute you were right behind us, the next moment, you were back at the bottom of the stairs again.† â€Å"What?† Hermione looked slightly confused. â€Å"Oh — I had to go back for something. Oh no –â€Å" A seam had split on Hermione's bag. Harry wasn't surprised; he could see that it was crammed with at least a dozen large and heavy books. â€Å"Why are you carrying all these around with you?† Ron asked her. â€Å"You know how many subjects I'm taking,† said Hermione breathlessly. â€Å"Couldn't hold these for me, could you?† â€Å"But –† Ron was turning over the books she had handed him, looking at the covers. â€Å"You haven't got any of these subjects today. It's only Defense Against the Dark Arts this afternoon.† â€Å"Oh yes,† said Hermione vaguely, but she packed all the books back into her bag just the same. â€Å"I hope there's something good for lunch, I'm starving,† she added, and she marched off toward the Great Hall. â€Å"D'you get the feeling Hermione's not telling us something?† Ron asked Harry. ****** Professor Lupin wasn't there when they arrived at his first Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson. They all sat down, took out their books, quills, and parchment, and were talking when he finally entered the room. Lupin smiled vaguely and placed his tatty old briefcase on the teacher's desk. He was as shabby as ever but looked healthier than he had on the train, as though he had had a few square meals. â€Å"Good afternoon,† he said. â€Å"Would you please put all your books back in your bags. Today's will be a practical lesson. You will need only your wands.† A few curious looks were exchanged as the class put away their books. They had never had a practical Defense Against the Dark Arts class before, unless you counted the memorable class last year when their old teacher had brought a cageful of pixies to class and set them loose. â€Å"Right then,† said Professor Lupin, when everyone was ready. â€Å"If you'd follow me.† Puzzled but interested, the class got to its feet and followed Professor Lupin out of the classroom. He led them along the deserted corridor and around a corner, where the first thing they saw was Peeves the Poltergeist, who was floating upside down in midair and stuffing the nearest keyhole with chewing gum. Peeves didn't look up until Professor Lupin was two feet away; then he wiggled his curly-toed feet and broke into song. â€Å"Loony, loopy Lupin,† Peeves sang. â€Å"Loony, loopy Lupin, loony, loopy Lupin –â€Å" Rude and unmanageable as he almost always was, Peeves usually showed some respect toward the teachers. Everyone looked quickly at Professor Lupin to see how he would take this; to their surprise, he was still smiling. â€Å"I'd take that gum out of the keyhole if I were you, Peeves,† he said pleasantly. â€Å"Mr. Filch won't be able to get in to his brooms.† Filch was the Hogwarts caretaker, a bad-tempered, failed wizard who waged a constant war against the students and, indeed, Peeves. However, Peeves paid no attention to Professor Lupin's words, except to blow a loud wet raspberry. Professor Lupin gave a small sigh and took out his wand. â€Å"This is a useful little spell,† he told the class over his shoulder. â€Å"Please watch closely.† He raised the wand to shoulder height, said, â€Å"Waddiwasi!† and pointed it at Peeves. With the force of a bullet, the wad of chewing gum shot out of the keyhole and straight down Peeves's left nostril; he whirled upright and zoomed away, cursing. â€Å"Cool, sir!† said Dean Thomas in amazement. â€Å"Thank you, Dean,† said Professor Lupin, putting his wand away again. â€Å"Shall we proceed?† They set off again, the class looking at shabby Professor Lupin with increased respect. He led them down a second corridor and stopped, right outside the staffroom door. â€Å"Inside, please,† said Professor Lupin, opening it and standing back. The staffroom, a long, paneled room full of old, mismatched chairs, was empty except for one teacher. Professor Snape was sitting in a low armchair, and he looked around as the class filed in. His eyes were glittering and there was a nasty sneer playing around his mouth. As Professor Lupin came in and made to close the door behind him, Snape said, â€Å"Leave it open, Lupin. I'd rather not witness this.† He got to his feet and strode past the class, his black robes billowing behind him. At the doorway he turned on his heel and said, â€Å"Possibly no one's warned you, Lupin, but this class contains Neville Longbottom. I would advise you not to entrust him with anything difficult. Not unless Miss Granger is hissing instructions in his ear.† Neville went scarlet. Harry glared at Snape; it was bad enough that he bullied Neville in his own classes, let alone doing it in front of other teachers. Professor Lupin had raised his eyebrows. â€Å"I was hoping that Neville would assist me with the first stage of the operation,† he said, â€Å"and I am sure he will perform it admirably.† Neville's face went, if possible, even redder. Snape's lip curled, but he left, shutting the door with a snap. â€Å"Now, then,† said Professor Lupin, beckoning the class toward the end of the room, where there was nothing but an old wardrobe where the teachers kept their spare robes. As Professor Lupin went to stand next to it, the wardrobe gave a sudden wobble, banging off the wall. â€Å"Nothing to worry about,† said Professor Lupin calmly because a few people had jumped backward in alarm. â€Å"There's a Boggart in there.† Most people seemed to feel that this was something to worry about. Neville gave Professor Lupin a look of pure terror, and Seamus Finnigan eyed the now rattling doorknob apprehensively. â€Å"Boggarts like dark, enclosed spaces,† said Professor Lupin. â€Å"Wardrobes, the gap beneath beds, the cupboards under sinks — I've even met one that had lodged itself in a grandfather clock. This one moved in yesterday afternoon, and I asked the headmaster if the staff would leave it to give my third years some practice.† â€Å"So, the first question we must ask ourselves is, what is a Boggart?† Hermione put up her hand. â€Å"It's a shape-shifter,† she said. â€Å"It can take the shape of whatever it thinks will frighten us most.† â€Å"Couldn't have put it better myself,† said Professor Lupin, and Hermione glowed. â€Å"So the Boggart sitting in the darkness within has not yet assumed a form. He does not yet know what will frighten the person on the other side of the door. Nobody knows what a Boggart looks like when he is alone, but when I let him out, he will immediately become whatever each of us most fears. â€Å"This means,† said Professor Lupin, choosing to ignore Neville's small sputter of terror, â€Å"that we have a huge advantage over the Boggart before we begin. Have you spotted it, Harry?† Trying to answer a question with Hermione next to him, bobbing up and down on the balls of her feet with her hand in the air, was very off-putting, but Harry had a go. â€Å"Er — because there are so many of us, it won't know what shape it should be?† â€Å"Precisely,† said Professor Lupin, and Hermione put her hand down, looking a little disappointed. â€Å"It's always best to have company when you're dealing with a Boggart. He becomes confused. Which should he become, a headless corpse or a flesh-eating slug? I once saw a Boggart make that very mistake — tried to frighten two people at once and turned himself into half a slug. Not remotely frightening. ‘The charm that repels a Boggart is simple, yet it requires force of mind. You see, the thing that really finishes a Boggart is laughter. What you need to do is force it to assume a shape that you find amusing. â€Å"We will practice the charm without wands first. After me, please†¦riddikulus!† â€Å"Riddikulus!† said the class together. â€Å"Good,† said Professor Lupin. â€Å"Very good. But that was the easy part, I'm afraid. You see, the word alone is not enough. And this is where you come in, Neville.† The wardrobe shook again, though not as much as Neville, who walked forward as though he were heading for the gallows. â€Å"Right, Neville,† said Professor Lupin. â€Å"First things first: what would you say is the thing that frightens you most in the world?† Neville's lips moved, but no noise came out. â€Å"I didn't catch that, Neville, sorry,† said Professor Lupin cheerfully. Neville looked around rather wildly, as though begging someone to help him, then said, in barely more than a whisper, â€Å"Professor Snape.† Nearly everyone laughed. Even Neville grinned apologetically. Professor Lupin, however, looked thoughtful. â€Å"Professor Snape†¦hmmm†¦Neville, I believe you live with your grandmother?† â€Å"Er — yes,† said Neville nervously. â€Å"But — I don't want the Boggart to turn into her either.† â€Å"No, no, you misunderstand me,† said Professor Lupin, now smiling. â€Å"I wonder, could you tell us what sort of clothes your grandmother usually wears?† Neville looked startled, but said, â€Å"Well†¦always the same hat. A tall one with a stuffed vulture on top. And a long dress†¦green, normally†¦and sometimes a fox-fur scarf.† â€Å"And a handbag?† prompted Professor Lupin. â€Å"A big red one,† said Neville. â€Å"Right then,† said Professor Lupin. â€Å"Can you picture those clothes very clearly, Neville? Can you see them in your mind's eye?† â€Å"Yes,† said Neville uncertainty, plainly wondering what was coming next. â€Å"When the Boggart bursts out of this wardrobe, Neville, and sees you, it will assume the form of Professor Snape,† said Lupin. â€Å"And you will raise your wand — thus — and cry â€Å"Riddikulus† — and concentrate hard on your grandmother's clothes. If all goes well, Professor Boggart Snape will be forced into that vulture-topped hat, and that green dress, with that big red handbag.† There was a great shout of laughter. The wardrobe wobbled more violently. â€Å"If Neville is successful, the Boggart is likely to shift his attention to each of us in turn,† said Professor Lupin. â€Å"I would like all of you to take a moment now to think of the thing that scares you most, and imagine how you might force it to look comical†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The room went quiet. Harry thought†¦What scared him most in the world? His first thought was Lord Voldemort — a Voldemort returned to full strength. But before he had even started to plan a possible counterattack on a Boggart-Voldemort, a horrible image came floating to the surface of his mind†¦. A rotting, glistening hand, slithering back beneath a black cloak†¦a long, rattling breath from an unseen mouth†¦then a cold so penetrating it felt like drowning†¦ Harry shivered, then looked around, hoping no one had noticed. Many people had their eyes shut tight. Ron was muttering to himself, â€Å"Take its legs off.† Harry was sure he knew what that was about. Ron's greatest fear was spiders. â€Å"Everyone ready?† said Professor Lupin. Harry felt a lurch of fear. He wasn't ready. How could you make a Dementor less frightening? But he didn't want to ask for more time; everyone else was nodding and rolling up their sleeves. â€Å"Neville, we're going to back away,† said Professor Lupin. â€Å"Let you have a clear field, all right? I'll call the next person forward†¦Everyone back, now, so Neville can get a clear shot –â€Å" They all retreated, backed against the walls, leaving Neville alone beside the wardrobe. He looked pale and frightened, but he had pushed up the sleeves of his robes and was holding his wand ready. â€Å"On the count of three, Neville,† said Professor Lupin, who was pointing his own wand at the handle of the wardrobe. â€Å"One — two — three — now!† A jet of sparks shot from the end of Professor Lupin's wand and hit the doorknob. The wardrobe burst open. Hook-nosed and menacing, Professor Snape stepped out, his eyes flashing at Neville. Neville backed away, his wand up, mouthing wordlessly. Snape was bearing down upon him, reaching inside his robes. â€Å"R — r — riddikulus! † squeaked Neville. There was a noise like a whip crack. Snape stumbled; he was wearing a long, lace-trimmed dress and a towering hat topped with a moth-eaten vulture, and he was swinging a huge crimson handbag. There was a roar of laughter; the Boggart paused, confused, and Professor Lupin shouted, â€Å"Parvati! Forward!† Parvati walked forward, her face set. Snape rounded on her. There was another crack, and where he had stood was a bloodstained, bandaged mummy; its sightless face was turned to Parvati and it began to walk toward her very slowly, dragging its feet, its stiff arms rising — â€Å"Riddikulus!† cried Parvati. A bandage unraveled at the mummy's feet; it became entangled, fell face forward, and its head rolled off. â€Å"Seamus!† roared Professor Lupin. Seamus darted past Parvati. Crack! Where the mummy had been was a woman with floorlength black hair and a skeletal, green-tinged face — a banshee. She opened her mouth wide and an unearthly sound filled the room, a long, wailing shriek that made the hair on Harry's head stand on end — â€Å"Riddikulus!† shouted Seamus. The banshee made a rasping noise and clutched her throat; her voice was gone. Crack! The banshee turned into a rat, which chased its tail in a circle, then — crack!- became a rattlesnake, which slithered and writhed before — crack! — becoming a single, bloody eyeball. â€Å"It's confused!† shouted Lupin. â€Å"We're getting there! Dean!† Dean hurried forward. Crack! The eyeball became a severed hand, which flipped over and began to creep along the floor like a crab. â€Å"Riddikulus!† yelled Dean. There was a snap, and the hand was trapped in a mousetrap. â€Å"Excellent! Ron, you next!† Ron leapt forward. Crack! Quite a few people screamed. A giant spider, six feet tall and covered in hair, was advancing on Ron, clicking its pincers menacingly. For a moment, Harry thought Ron had frozen. Then — â€Å"Riddikulus!† bellowed Ron, and the spider's legs vanished; it rolled over and over; Lavender Brown squealed and ran out of its way and it came to a halt at Harry's feet. He raised his wand, ready, but — â€Å"Here!† shouted Professor Lupin suddenly, hurrying forward. Crack! The legless spider had vanished. For a second, everyone looked wildly around to see where it was. Then they saw a silvery-white orb hanging in the air in front of Lupin, who said, â€Å"Riddikulus!† almost lazily. Crack! â€Å"Forward, Neville, and finish him off!† said Lupin as the Boggart landed on the floor as a cockroach. Crack! Snape was back. This time Neville charged forward looking determined. â€Å"Riddikulus!† he shouted, and they had a split second's view of Snape in his lacy dress before Neville let out a great â€Å"Ha!† of laughter, and the Boggart exploded, burst into a thousand tiny wisps of smoke, and was gone. â€Å"Excellent!† cried Professor Lupin as the class broke into applause. â€Å"Excellent, Neville. Well done, everyone†¦Let me see†¦five points to Gryffindor for every person to tackle the Boggart — ten for Neville because he did it twice†¦and five each to Hermione and Harry.† â€Å"But I didn't do anything,† said Harry. â€Å"You and Hermione answered my questions correctly at the start of the class, Harry,† Lupin said lightly. â€Å"Very well, everyone, an excellent lesson. Homework, kindly read the chapter on Boggarts and summarize it for me†¦to be handed in on Monday. That will be all.† Talking excitedly, the class left the staffroom. Harry, however, wasn't feeling cheerful. Professor Lupin had deliberately stopped him from tackling the Boggart. Why? Was it because he'd seen Harry collapse on the train, and thought he wasn't up to much? Had he thought Harry would pass out again? But no one else seemed to have noticed anything. â€Å"Did you see me take that banshee?† shouted Seamus. â€Å"And the hand!† said Dean, waving his own around. â€Å"And Snape in that hat!† â€Å"And my mummy!† â€Å"I wonder why Professor Lupin's frightened of crystal balls?† said Lavender thoughtfully. â€Å"That was the best Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson we've ever had, wasn't it?† said Ron excitedly as they made their way back to the classroom to get their bags. â€Å"He seems like a very good teacher,† said Hermione approvingly. â€Å"But I wish I could have had a turn with the Boggart –â€Å" â€Å"What would it have been for you?† said Ron, sniggering. â€Å"A piece of homework that only got nine out of ten?†