My Favorite Book Essay

Although Great Britain and the U.S. have the English language in common, they are two unique nations with different cultures, government systems, and traditions. Holidays and celebrations also vary between the two countries. Even Christmas and other Christian holidays, although celebrated by both countries, have some key differences. New Year * New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day are celebrated by both Great Britain and the U.S. on December 31 and January 1 every year. According to ProjectBritain.com, it wasn’t until 2000 that fireworks were used in Great Britain to celebrate the holiday, although this tradition has been long-established in the U.S. In the U.S., 10 seconds before midnight, a countdown from 10 to one takes place, and it’s traditional to kiss loved ones at midnight. In Great Britain, at the stroke of midnight, it’s traditional to open the back door, letting the old year out, and to ask the first dark-haired man who’s spotted to bring salt, coal, and bread through the front door. These represent, respectively, money, warmth and food, meaning that the new year will bring a sufficient amount of these. In both countries, a New Year parade takes place on New Year’s Day: the Rose Bowl Parade in Pasadena, California in the U.S. and the New Year’s Day Parade in London, England, which starts when the famous Big Ben clock strikes noon. Easter The Christian holiday of Easter is celebrated by both Americans and British by decorating eggs, visits from the Easter Bunny and egg hunts. Great Britain has additional, popular Easter customs, such as egg rolling: rolling hard-boiled eggs down hills in a competition. Autumn Holidays * The differences between American and British holidays is especially evident during the autumn, although both countries celebrate Halloween in the same way, by dressing up in costumes, bobbing for apples, and going trick-or-treating. Thanksgiving isn’t celebrated in Great Britain. Americans observe this holiday with a great feast on the fourth Thursday of November. The British celebrate Guy Fawkes Day on November 5 in remembrance of the Gunpowder Plot in 1605, a plan by Guy Fawkes and others to blow up the Houses of Parliament to protest the fact that King James didn’t change Queen Elizabeth I’s anti-Catholic laws. Today the holiday is commemorated by fireworks and burning Guy Fawkes effigies on bonfires. Christmas and Boxing Day * According to LearnEnglish.de, the British place less importance on Christmas Eve than other countries. Instead, they pay more attention to Christmas Day and Boxing Day. In both the U.S. and Britain, Santa or Father Christmas comes at night; American children leave milk and cookies for him, whereas British children leave mince pies and sherry or milk. Some traditional British Christmas Eve activities include singing Christmas carols, attending midnight church services, and going out to a pub. In the U.S., Christmas Eve is celebrated in many ways, such as by opening one present each, singing Christmas carols, attending midnight mass, or eating a special dinner. In both countries, Christmas Day is celebrated by opening presents in the morning and eating a turkey dinner, although other entrees are also popular in the U.S., such as crown roast. In Britain, it’s traditional for Queen Elizabeth to broadcast a message on Christmas Day. Boxing Day, which is celebrated on December 26 in Britain, is the time to give gifts to friends, servants, and tradespeople. It has become a big shopping holiday in Britain, similar to Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, in the U.S. Boxing Day isn’t observed by Americans. Holy Cross (Khachverats)Observed on:September13 The Armenian Church celebrates this holiday on the Sunday nearest September 14, which is devoted to the Holy Cross (Surb Khach). This holiday also serves as a memorial to those who have passed away.| Holy Translators Day (Targmanchats ton)Observed on: October 13 This holiday is dedicated to the creators of Armenian alphabet Mesrop Mashtots and Sahak Partev, Translators and Interpreters of the Bible. The Armenian alphabet was invented in order to translate the Bible into Armenian and paved the way for the first Golden Age of Armenia. Over the centuries, Armenian writers, philosophers, mathematicians, and scientists, have taken inspiration from the Holy Translators’ legacy to achieve excellence in scholarship, creativity, and world acclaim in spite of long periods of devastation, attack, conquest and subjugation. | Purification (Trndez) Observed on: February 14 According to religious custom this holiday is connected with the idea of coming forward to the Lord with fire, after 40 days of his birth. The Armenian Church celebrates it on February 14th – 40 days after January 6th, from which it derives the religious name: coming forward to the Lord. The main ceremony of it is a bonfire, symbolizing the coming of spring. The Transfiguration (Vardavar (The feast of water)) Observed on: July 19 In the traditional Armenian range of holidays, the Transfiguration is the major summer holiday and is celebrated 14 weeks after Easter. In pre-Christian Armenia this holiday was associated with the pagan goddess Anahit, to whose heathen temple the young and the old went on pilgrimage. The word Vardavar has two meanings: â€Å"the flaming of the rose and â€Å"to sprinkle with water. According to legend, the goddess Astghik spread love through the Armenian land by sprinkling rosy water and presenting roses. The god Vahagn kept and protected that love, constantly fighting against evil. This feast was transformed after the adoption of Christianity. On Vardavar in modern times, everybody pours water on one another, starting in the early morning; no one is allowed to feel offended or displeased by mischief on that day.

Racism, Asian American, and Everything in Between Essay

Have you ever watched the news about racism on television? News on racism on a certain race of people has been a news breaker a couple of times this last few years. This issue is now global and is concerning quite a lot of people. Imagine if you are suffering the same faith as this people. We don’t need people with IQ level of 160 to conclude that it is not the situation most people want to be at. If you then think that racism is only limited to the harassment of African American, then you are definitely wrong. Racism is universal; it could be done to any group or type of people. Yes, this matter is definitely not off-limit to the Asian American group. You might be asking, as you have read the paragraph above, what is racism? Racism is when someone believes that one or more person is less than human (Anti-Defamation League). Cases of racism are big trouble in America nowadays. The averages of 20000 racial discrimination cases were filed every year (Racial Discrimination). And in 2009, number of Asian American bullying incident in Fels High school reached the number of 138. These large numbers have increase 60 percent from the amount of assault that happen last year (Miller). On October 6 2009, massive incident involving Asians students broke out at South Philadelphia High. Around 30 kids simultaneously attack five Asians students at the Synder Avenue subway station. This attack sends a couple of victims to the hospital. Asians students continued living in fear after that incident (Miller). These types of assault didn’t only happen in the 20th century. One of the most famous cases was probably the case of Vincent Chin in 1982. Two white American, Ronald Ebens and Michael Nitz beat Vincent to death. He was mistaken to be a Japanese, although he was actually a Chinese American. The two men who murdered Vincent were put on trial but came out of court with no time in jail at all. They were only told to pay $3.700 fine and two years probation. Even though what they did was equivalent to second-degree murder, the judge reduced the charges of manslaughter, leaving them free out of jail (Asian Nation). The many cases involving racism to the Asian American have brought a birth  of a couple organizations. One of them is the Asian American Justice Center, found in 1991. Their goal is to move forward the human and civil right of Asian American. They are also struggling to create an equalize society for everyone. Their programs include, Anti-Asian Violence & Race Relations, emergency preparedness, health issues, and many more (Asian Justice). Other organizations include Yellow Face, Asian Law Caucus, Asian Nation and others (National Resources). Every problem in this world must have they own resolution. Problems need to be brought to closure and not be left hanging without a solution. We had seen a couple of organization working towards this problem. One of the actions is the campaign that had been done by the Asian American Justice Center. They conduct classes to taught adult English, watch out for lawsuit that is showing injustice to all Asian American (Asian Justice). School in Philadelphia have switch staffs and strictly prohibited racism in the school. Assaults involving Asian students have now been acknowledged and it was a forbidden act that will not be repeated. Parents, teachers and students that had been harassed all gathered and talk about these problems together (Miller). This is a very clever solution, where everyone then could work together to bring an end to these racial issues. Cases involving the racial assault toward Asian American are a definitely tremendous problems. These problems have now gone too far, and a proper settlement is needed to stop this complication. Unresolved matter like this will only drag people deeper to the hole. Numbers of cases involving racism will just keep on piling up. People who are hurt and is living in fear will be forced to do that longer. If we don’t stop this mess then it will keep on entangling people in it. We can help and fix this problem. We can fight it back, and we can then one day shout freedom right at the ears of those Asian American. Works Cited Anti Defamation League. Anti Defamation League, 2011. Web. 22 Sept 2011. Advancing Equality. Asian American Justice Center, 2011. Web. 22 Sept 2011. Civil Rights Law Firms. Civil Rights Law Firms, 2011. Web. 22 Sept 2011. Embracing The Oneness of Humankind. The National Resource Center for the Healing of Racism. Web. 22 Sept 2011. Le, C.N. Anti Asian Racism and Violence. Asian Nation, 2011. Web. 22 Sept 2011. Miller, G.W. Philadelphia Weekly. Philadelphia Weekly, 1 Sept 2009. Web. 15 Sept 2011.

Juan Peron

Peron in the Advancement and History of Argentina During the 19th century in Argentina, the country advanced through many different historical changes. These changes included changes within their political system, government, and changes that would affect both the laws and the Argentine people all together. During the earlier 19th century, Argentina went through a stage of depression. It wasn’t until the 1930’s that military officials took control of Argentina’s government and things began to change. From this point on, the country of Argentina began to go through major changes and would soon receive the knowledge and leadership style of a man by the name of Juan Peron. Not only would he become the President of Argentina, he would transform Argentina and introduce new documents for the Argentine people; that outlined how to regulate the country and its citizens as well. These documents such as the â€Å"Declaration of Worker’s Rights† would alter the Argentine lifestyle and ultimately change it for the better. When looking back at the beginning, at the time when the economy of Argentina was being transformed; the factor of industrialization had a major impact. Once this took place, there was almost a massive promotion of industries, and within these years the industrial class actually tripled. This was due to the vast majority of European immigrants that Argentina received during this time, a time in which Argentina became known as â€Å"then nation of immigrants†. These immigrants and a couple of Argentine rural families began to relocate themselves within Argentina’s capital city of Buenos Aires. After Argentina began to slowly get back on its feet, the power of Juan Peron was discovered. Peron had probably one of the biggest impacts in Argentina when reviewing documents and history he put into order. Peron was a military colonial in Argentina, until he was named the Minister of Labor within the new government. While he carried this title, Peron did what he could to help improve the labor relations as much as possible. He started off doing this by, elaborating a vision of industrializing through social justice. Once throwing this idea out there, he began to create a close relationship between himself and the workers. Peron put it in his best interest to create laws that would help support these workers. By 1943-1944, Peron was officially passing laws in order to protect workers and also in an effort to create a multi-class alliance. These laws included paying workers more in order to live a standard lifestyle. All-in-all a change like this would allow workers to have enough funds in order to consume more. Therefore, putting money back into Argentina; would overall raise the economy to a higher level. These minor changes were just a start to what Peron would do for Argentina. Since Juan Peron was becoming more and more popular with the Argentine people, the military in control of Argentina began to feel threatened due to his success. In October of 1945, the Argentine military put Peron in jail. Although this did happen, it would not be the end of Juan Peron. A mass amount of workers protested the release of Peron and made his unjust confinement a huge issue. The military then released Peron, and in 1946 he then became the President of Argentina. Once elected President, Peron created the â€Å"Partido Unico de la Revolucion, also known as Peronism. He began to pursue policies aimed at empowering the working class, and expanding the amount of unionized workers. Peron also created a nationalistic view that would go against the Oligards (leading families that rules and controlled the economy of Argentina). This was seen as a good thing, since the Oligards were corrupt and responsible for the weakness of the nation in the past. When gathering information it is quite clear that Juan Peron had a major impact on Argentina. He began to nationalize banks and railroads, and continue to improve the rights of the working class. Although he was seen as a positive and influential figure, Peron did in fact lose the interest in some. After 1955, Peron actually insulted the Catholic Church and made divorce legal. He also took the education system out of their hands and put it within government control. This stunt gave the military a reason to push Peron out of power, and exiled him, stripping the president title. A couple of years later Peron returned and got reelected as President. This was seen as a must since the needs of the Argentine people decreased after his banishment, and Argentina was not that well. This was put in place until his death in 1974. As stated before, Juan Peron had a good run as President, and created many influential documents, such as â€Å"The Declaration of Workers Rights†. This document was proclaimed in public on the 24th of February, 1947. It introduced many rights that can be compared to Canada’s Charter Rights we have in place today. Before Peron, Argentina did not have set rules and laws in order to protect and better the life style of the working man. Peron gave the Argentine people the right to work and have such things as social security. This entailed an individual’s rights to be protected in case of disability. He gave them the ability to work at a rate that would support a lifestyle and the right to be in a better economic situation. This included the right to a fair wage, and the right to well-being. Employers now had the duty to train employees and create working conditions that reciprocated respect in the productive relationship of their workers. The Workers Rights was seen as one of Peron’s strongest platforms, and one that the Argentine people would remember him by in the past and present. When looking at the time period before Juan Peron, there were no such documents to help better the working class of the Argentine people. He created such an improvement within their government and legal system that would be remembered forever. At the turn of the 20th century, Argentina became quite wealthy and well established. The work in the past years in order to get to this rank now, took a lot of change and change in leadership style. Peron is seen as one of the main leader in populism, and his style was a success. All-in-all Juan Peron is seen as an important historical figure within Argentina. There are many factors that have helped Peron achieve his many goals and one important one is his leadership style. When you think of Peron’s style of leadership, you think of â€Å"the people’s party† (populism). Populism is seen as a way in leading with the citizen’s best interests in mind. Populism assumes an emotionally charged relation between the leader and the people who follow him. It can obscure class rule and inequality. When having the best interests of the Argentine people in mind, Juan Peron would automatically win the hearts of these citizens. It is the reason he was seen as such a good leader and a man who changed the ways of Argentina, specifically its working force. He has done a lot such as altering the way in leadership, creating laws and rules that would create an overall happy working class and finally improving Argentina’s economy once and for all. Peron is a legitimate hero for the working class of Argentina and is the man who would create the outline for populist leaders to follow. From all the populist leaders such as Brazil’s Getulio Vargas, and Mexico’s Lazaro Cardenas, I believe Juan Peron had the biggest impact therefore named the official figure or image of populism itself. Through struggles and issues with the military, Juan Peron overcame everything achieved his goals and improved not only the history but the country of Argentina itself.

The Debilitating Effect of Hierarchical Structures on Those With and Essay

The Debilitating Effect of Hierarchical Structures on Those With and Without Power Then and Now - Essay Example In various forms, hierarchy gives rise to leaders or a handful of principal individuals in a group, which naturally occurs from interactions. Magee and Galinsky (3) discuss the definition and behavior of a hierarchical structure: Resources are unequally distributed across individuals and groups, and positions and roles are granted different amounts of sources of power, which are conferred upon the individuals who occupy them. Like both human and non-human primate societies more generally, most, if not all, organizations have a stratified structure, a pyramid shape with fewer people at the top than at the bottom. Even when one considers the heterogeneity of organizational forms and organizational practices and cultures that are intended to dodge or suppress hierarchy, what is most noticeable is that hierarchy relentlessly rises up against these pressures. Most importantly, hierarchy is a naturally-forming phenomenon that is always present in various forms across all societies in the w orld. It inescapably develops between and within groups even when some organizations reduce the effect of its structure by adopting alternative models of shaping an organization (Leavitt 42). Social hierarchy in organizations is defined as â€Å"an implicit or explicit rank order of individuals or groups with respect to a valued social dimension† (Magee and Galinsky 5). ... 930). Hierarchies create power and control to individuals of the higher rank that hold greater ability, skills and motivation to complete certain tasks within a group. In formal hierarchy, the differentiated structure is constant but passive since changing the assembly of ranks is difficult and borderline unreasonable. On the other hand, the organizational structure in informal hierarchy is weak and conditional because the hierarchical differentiation is only done on short interaction based on stereotype-based expectations (Magee and Galinsky 7). Over the years, hierarchical structures faded and developed a debilitating effect to those members of groups and organizations that possess power and to those who lack one. This gradual weakening of hierarchy will be discussed by exploring the literary pieces, â€Å"The Use of Force† by William Carlos William, â€Å"Those Winter Sundays† by Robert Hayden, and â€Å"My Papa’s Waltz† by Theodore Roethke. William Car los William’s famous short story, â€Å"The Use of Force† presents the application of physical superiority of a person with power to others who have none. In the story, a doctor is shown to diagnose a sick child whom they suspect of having the deadly disease diphtheria. The doctor needed to get a throat culture in the mouth of the child in order to examine the cause of the illness correctly, however the stubbornness of the child and the passive authority of the parents made the process harder to execute. The doctor appeared to be compassionate at first, addressing an open mind to the expressed fear of the child in being examined, and at the reluctance of the parents to accommodate a stranger like him into their home. But as the child becomes more

MARKETING Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

MARKETING - Assignment Example As a nutritional product, it is quite likely that the product will be influenced by various macro-economic features, such as demographic, cultural, economic, political, natural and technological environment of the economy. With this concern, the recent market trends can be identified as significant for the growth of a nutrition product such as â€Å"GoodHealth† and shall be considered in the process of developing a strategic marketing plan to specify the target market with a set of marketing objectives for the organisation. 2. Target Market The current market trends in Australia are identified to be quite supportive for the growth of nutritional products. Consumer persuasion towards the consumption of healthier food products such as cereals and fat modified milk is observed to be at a growth phase in the current market scenario of Australian food industry (Cleanthous & Thuraisingam, 2010). The product, â€Å"GoodHealth† is also based on these two main ingredients, i.e. milk and cereal containing low fat and nutritional particles with due consideration to the tastes and preferences of the potential customers. With these virtues, the target market of the product will be determined in the following discussion in light of few significant segmentation variables, i.e. demographics, geographic, current purchasing situation of the potential customers in the region, purchase ready factor of the product and the local environmental influencing factors. a. Demographics Researches have revealed that two particular age-groups of customers, i.e. children and adolescents included in the age group of 2-15 years and the adults aged above 65 years are recorded to consume larger amounts of cereal based food products in comparison to the age group of 16-64 years olds (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008). This can be apparently identified from the diagram represented below: Fig. 1: Age Distribution of the Consumption of Cereal Based Products in Australia Source: (Au stralian Bureau of Statistics, 2008). However, in the current market scenario, the trend to consume cereal based products is also at a rise among the age group of 16–40 years. It is worth mentioning that the population of Australia majorly comprises of two age groups, i.e. 16-64 years and 0-15 years (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2010). Therefore, concentrating on the age group of children and adolescents included in the age group of 5-20 years and above 45 years shall provide with better growth opportunities to the product in future. b. Geographic Considering the age distribution in terms of population in Australia, the targeted geographic regions can be recognised as Western Australia, Australian Capital Territory and South Australia. Western Australia and Australian Capital Territory can be identified as the geographic regions of the economy to grow with immense rapidity in terms of population (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2010) while, South Australia provides with a competitive benefit of larger consumption of cereal based products in comparison to other regions. However, the market structure of South Australia is termed to be highly competitive that shall create a constraint to the growth of the â€Å"GoodHealth† (Williamson, 2011). Evaluating these regions in terms of availability of raw materials and distribution facilities, Australian Capital Territory and South Australia can be termed as suitable locations for the launch of

DNA Practical Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

DNA Practical - Lab Report Example One purine pair with one Pyrimidine with hydrogen bond to make the double stranded DNA. Adenine (A) pairs with Thymine (T) with double H-bond and Guanine (G) pairs with Cytosine (C) through triple H-bond. Isolation procedure requires disruption of cells so that the cell content comes out, followed by sedimentation of the cellular debris on application of centrifugal force and to collect the DNA from the supernatant. These DNA fragments are separated using gel electrophoresis. The process encompasses separation, based on their size, the pore size of the gel, the voltage gradient applied and the salt concentration of the buffer. Larger pore size is for the separation of fragments larger than 500- 1000 bp and smaller pore of agarose gels are used to resolve fragments smaller than 1000 bps and can be visualized. The technique of electrophoresis is based on the fact that since DNA contains phosphate group, it is negatively charged at the neutral pH. When electric potential is applied, it moves towards the positive terminal. The solidified agarose gel is inserted into the electrophoresis chamber and is just covered with buffer. The DNA sample is mixed with the loading buffer and then pipette in the sample wells. On application of the current DNA migrates towards positive (red colored) electrode. The distance DNA has migrated in the gel can be judged by visually monitoring migration of the tracking dyes. After adequate migration, DNA fragments are visualized by ethidium bromide. This is a fluorescent dye and it intercalates between the bases of DNA and RNA. It is incorporated in the gel so that staining occurs during electrophoresis. Bands appear on the gel and can be visualized. Results: Part 1 A fluffy white layer was formed at the boundary between the green and the purple liquids when the ethanol was added. It was made up of fine filaments. Part 2 After putting the electrical current, strands of the DNA become visible to the naked eye. It becomes like stains, or bands, on the gel. Discussion NaCl removes protein and carbohydrate in DNA and also act as lysing buffer. NaCl contains Na+ which binds with the negatively charged phosphate molecule of the DNA. It also stabilizes the pH and process the density of DNA. Washing liquid reduces the acidity of solution and remove CO2. Detergents remove the interfering cells and are used as a substitute for the chemical compound that is capable of damaging the cell wall and membrane. They act as emulsifying agents and can digest compound that causes stiffness of polymeric cells. Endiamin tetra ethyl acetate (EDTA) serves to remove the Mg+2 ion and proven enzymes which can damage cellular DNA, it protects the DNA from DNAse. It interrupts the interaction of polar cell membrane and unites as detergent. Gel electrophoresis is a powerful tool for the separation of macromolecules with different sizes and charges. DNA molecules have an essentially constant charge per unit mass thus they separate in agarose, based on the size, smaller the size more distance it can travel and larger the size of the DNA less it can travel. Increasing the concentration of a gel reduces the migration speed and enables separation of smaller DNA molecules. The

Effects of Stakeholders on Communication Assignment

Effects of Stakeholders on Communication - Assignment Example Owners are concerned with maximizing the business profits, investors are interested in earning income from their investment, and employees want to keep their job and earn higher wages. External stakeholders are individuals or groups that are not within the business, and are not working directly with the business, but are affected in a number of ways from the business decisions. They include the government, trade unions, community, creditors, suppliers, and customers. Identifying the stakeholder affects communication in many ways. The best thing is just learning what a particular stakeholder needs to enhance profit or protect and then structure communication according to these factors. First, the information to be communicated and the mode of communication vary for each group. Additionally, the period or frame for delivering the information to a group of stakeholders or a stakeholder varies as there are those that require to be notified immediately, and it will help reduce overloading stakeholders with information. The level of the stakeholder and their interests influences a lot how you should communicate with them. The interested individuals or groups should be managed closely through status meetings; change logs, and notified about the issues, this is most probably the high power individuals and groups. These that are high powered and have less interest should always be satisfied through board meeting updates and steering committees. Those inte rested and are in low power, need to be informed in-person or through email updates, and video.

Managing Information Technology Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Managing Information Technology - Case Study Example Unfortunately IBM started to face a plunging decrease in its profit margins around mid 1980s. Some of the concluded reasons by analysts are, Bureaucratic and slow-moving setup. Reluctance in revamping of old business strategies. Wrong assessment of business risks etc. According to study conducted by Drucker (1993), The fourth of the deadly business sins is slaughtering tomorrow's opportunity on the altar of yesterday. It is what derailed IBM. IBM's downfall was paradoxically caused by unique success: IBM's catching up, almost overnight, when Apple brought out the first PC in the mid-1970s. This feat actually contradicts everything everybody now says about the company's "stodginess" and its bureaucracy." But then when IBM had gained leadership in the new PC market, it subordinated this new and growing business to the old cash cow, the mainframe computer. This stage came after a career IBMer John Akers took over the charge of the company in the year 1985. In his tenure several downsizi ng attempts from the administration of the company came as a result. The statistics related to downsizing can be observed in Table 1. Table 1: The IBM Timeline from 1970 to 1994. YEARS PROGRESS AT IBM. 1970s IBM owns about 70% of the computer market share. ... Louis V. Gerstner an outsider took over the control of the company after him as per the IBM board’s decision. Despite various attempt at downsizing the company was still going in loss. It had become essential that further downsizing of employees be done in order to secure the income of the company. The Gerstner early years witnessed a mild rise in the income but the trend was not consistent. The same is evident in Figure 1. KEY POINTS AND ISSUES: An account of the issues and problems facing by the company can be evaluated by reviewing its establishment in the State of Indiana. During the year 1992 Indiana reduced the number of its employees about 30%. The declining states of the company’s economy made Michael W. Wiley (General Manager Operations for the state of Indiana) foresee another cut in the number of employees at the organization. This however was not affordable, as the threshold of downsizing was already achieved and loosing competent workforce would cause bigge r losses to the company. In 1993 John Frank, then operations manager for IBM’s Indiana offices came up with the idea of substituting the reduction of personnel with the downsizing of real estate holding of the company at the state of Indiana. He proposed the idea of furnishing employees with the technology so that they can work from home. The idea was termed as TELECOMMUTING. TELECOMMUTING The idea of Telecommuting was new to the firm. While every other country office of the IBM was reducing staff Indiana was trying their hands at a new technique. The executive Vice president for Indiana Operations was the first one to empty his office from the Bank One Tower in Indianapolis. General Manager Operations Frank

Adaptation of IS project management in Saudi Arabia toward Essay

Adaptation of IS project management in Saudi Arabia toward understanding the barrier and improve the implementation and development - Essay Example Information Technology projects run high risk of being over budgeted, they may occasionally fall behind schedule, and it’s difficult to gather all the data and tabulate it, further there can be programming errors. With such high risks it becomes difficult to find suitable organizations that are ready to accept the challenges faced in IT projects and that would handle them with perfection. However, one can not ignore development just because the risk rate is high; instead methods need to be found to reduce the risk rate and still better methods to nullify them. In order to handle IT projects properly management of the project is required. Management of projects helps to evaluate the risk and thus help to eliminate them through proper managemental skills. Information system project management helps in managing IT projects. Proper management of IT projects has been helpful in their development; however, there are various constraints to the project management systems. Here in this study, I discuss culture as one of the constraint. An Information System project management, in simple words, is a management system that helps organizations in development of projects by providing information to the organization necessary for development of the project in a manner that is economic and reduces the complications associated with development of a project. Information System project management is a system that assimilates all the data gathered about a project to provide a useful information that can be utilized by project managers for fulfilling the objectives of the project. Information System project management has also been extended to other contexts like decision support systems, ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), SCM (Supply Chain Management), CRM (Customer Relationship Management) project management, resource and people management

Keeping the Family Tradition Alive Essay Example for Free

Keeping the Family Tradition Alive Essay I started keeping my family tradition of canning alive last summer. My family has canned for years and there is nothing better than opening up something I have canned on my own and thinking of the people who shared this tradition with me. Traditions are very important to keep going in families around the world. Traditions are very broad anything from what people do on holidays to cooking. My family tradition is very important to me. I knew last year that if I didn’t learn some of my family’s secret recipes while my grandmother and mom are still with us than there would be a chance that my family would never be able to taste the wonderful flavors my family has put together over the years and my family has looked so forward to the taste that we have grown to love. Before I begin canning, I must gather all the materials that I need to get started. The first step is the selection of the tomatoes. I pick all of my tomatoes from my own garden they are so much better than anything from the grocery store. Last year I used better boy tomatoes and roma tomatoes. The roma tomatoes are great to use because they have fewer seeds, thicker, meatier walls and less water. And that means thicker sauce in less cooking time! Also, I don’t want mushy, bruised or rotten tomatoes. Next I remove the tomato skins this is very important. Nothing worse than eating spaghetti and having to chew on a piece of skin left behind. Here’s a trick my grandma taught me: put the tomatoes, a few at a time in a large pot of boiling water for no more than 1 minute. Then I plunge them into a waiting bowl of ice water. This makes the skins slide right off of the tomatoes. If the skins are left on then they become tough and chewy in the sauce, not very pleasant. Now I must remove the seeds and water. After peeling the skins off the tomatoes, I cut the tomatoes in half. I remove the seeds and excess water. I call it the squeeze of the seeds. It is just like it sounds: wash hands then squeeze each tomato and I use my thumb or a spoon to scoop and shake out most of the seeds. I do leave some of the seeds because that is my preference. I toss the squeezed tomatoes into a colander or drainer while I work on the others. By draining the water off now, I end up with a thicker spaghetti sauce in less cooking time. The next step I must do is to get the lids and jars sanitized. The dishwasher is fine for the jars, especially if it has a â€Å"sanitize† cycle. I get that going while I’m preparing everything else, so it’s done by the time I’m ready to fill the jars. While the jars and lids are being sanitized I begin getting that spaghetti sauce going. I take my onions, garlic, basil, oregano, bay leaves, green peppers, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and my burgundy and place them all in the pot first. After I get the onions and pepper a little tender I add all the tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Cook down the tomatoes until the sauce is my desired thickness. I usually let my sauce cook for about two hours. The last step I call canning time. While my sauce is simmering I get my water bath canner ready. I go ahead and feel the water up and get it boiling. I start a small pot of water boiling to put the lids in so that the lids can sanitize and helps the lids seal. When the sauce is ready I place the jar funnel on the jar and I fill them to within ? inch of the top and set the lid and hand ’tighten the ring on. I place the jars in the water bath and cook for about 20mins. I then use the jar grabber and pull the jars out one at a time and let them cool draft-free place. Once the jars are cool, I check that they are sealed verifying that the lid has been sucked down. I press down in the center gently with my finger. If it pops up and down then it is not sealed. If it don’t seal than I just replace the lid and do the canning time again. Now that all the steps are complete, I listen to all the little pings going on telling me that my hard work has paid off. I am so glad that I have learned the family tradition of canning. My grandmother has gotten older and doesn’t can anymore. Out of all my family it is just my mom, Aunt Susan, and myself left doing the canning. It was a nice reward to my sole a few weeks ago when I had my grandmother over for dinner. I had canned some beets and decided that was the day to open them. When my grandmother tried them she said, â€Å"These taste just like mine. † To hear her say that meant so much to me. I couldn’t image not having the taste of what I grew up with because they don’t sell it in the grocery store. This is why I am keeping my family tradition going and teaching my girls. We never know when our love ones are not going to be here anymore. If I can’t have my family with me I at least want to be able to remember them by creating what they have thought me. If people have something in their family that is done by others and would not want to miss it after that person is gone than learn how that special someone does it. I did that’s why I will always have that special connection with canning and my family.

Is Clausewitz Relevant To Modern Warfare Politics Essay

Is Clausewitz Relevant To Modern Warfare Politics Essay The students of international relations and strategic studies seek from Clausewitz not a theory of politics but an analysis of war. For some 150 years those who have sought to understand war have turned to Clausewitz- to explain the logic behind wars or to condemn its applicability to modern warfare. Carl Von Clausewitzs concern with war was both practical and theoretical. A life-long soldier, he first put on Prussian uniform in 1792 at the age of twelve and saw action against France in the following year. Consequently, he took part in the campaigns against Napoleon, rose to the rank of Major General and was still soldiering when he died in 1831. Though ambitious in his military career and dissatisfied with his achievement, Clausewitzs passionate interest in war also took an intellectual form. From his early twenties he studied and wrote about war, leaving for publication after his death seven volumes of military history and the eight books which constitute On War  [1]  . Clausewitzs masterpiece of warfare, On War, has been much scrutinized  [2]  . Many critics have pointed to Clausewitzs preoccupation with armies and the control of territory- albeit the principal instruments and stakes of warfare in continental Europe in his time- and to his neglect of sea-power and the related questions of colonies, trade and empire  [3]  . Some have criticized Clausewitzs lack of concern for logistics, his focus on combat at the expense of preparations for war  [4]  . Others have pointed out that perhaps unavoidably, he has little to say about the impact of technology on war, thereby raising the question of whether his analysis remains relevant to modern warfare  [5]  . Criticisms has also been directed at the unclear, even inconsistent ideas that run through On War, a defect which Clausewitz acknowledged in a note written in 1827 dealing with his plans for revision of the work. More fundamentally, Clausewitzian scholars have examined the strengths and weakness of his epistemology: his concept of absolute war, his approach to historical relativism, his ideas on the relationship between theory and praxis and his attempt to develop critical analysis for the application of theoretical truths to actual events  [6]  . However, most proponents of Clausewitz are agreed that one of his greatest contributions, if not the greatest, lies in the attention paid to the idea that war must be understood in its political context. This idea was not new, in simplistic form it was something of a commonplace by the end of the eighteenth century, but Clausewitz developed and expanded it. He was, Paret argues, the first theorist of war to make politics an essential part of his analysis  [7]  . For Clausewitz war is only a branch of political activity, an activity which is in no sense autonomous  [8]  . War could be understood only in its political context and it is therefore in politics that the origins of war are to be found. Politics in Clausewitzs words is the womb in which war develops, where its outlines already exist in their hidden rudimentary form, like the characteristics of living creatures in their embryos  [9]  . After Clausewitz it would be always difficult to think of war as something apart from politics. This is not the place to pursue Clausewitzs analysis of war. In fact, this essay intends to critically analyze Clausewitzs relevance for understanding contemporary patterns and dynamics of warfare. By the end of the Cold War, onwards, the literature focusing on strategic studies has highlighted transformational changes within international system, therefore altering the very nature of war. As a result many security studies scholars have repudiated traditional theories of strategic thought. Calusewitzian theory, in particular has taken a lot of criticism, regarding its relevance to modern warfare. As Paul Hirst notes, we are living in a period when the prevailing political and economic structures are widely perceived not merely to be changing but subject to radical transformation  [10]  . In this new era it is broadly accepted that the political and economic forces reshaping international relations are causing equally profound changes in the nature and conduct of war. Moreover, since the end of the Cold War, speculation about a future not set neatly by parameters of the East/West stand-off has resulted in varied interpretations of both present and future. Would it be radically different world to that which passed? What would replace the Cold War rivalry? What would define international relations (IR) as it entered a new millennium? Of course, in the immediate aftermath of the Wests Cold War victory, Francis Fukuyama, with his famous book, The end of History, heralded the triumph of capitalism over communism as confirmation that the world has entered an age free from antagonisms of ideology and that now the Western Liberalism held the trump card as the global cure to war, inequality and domestic insecurity  [11]  . The western freedom and democratic values underpin the notion that globalization of world politics driven by economic and liberal principles, has become one of the main features of contemporary international politics. It is widely accepted that these changes are also affecting the nature of war. The argument that the state, hitherto, the central actor in international system- is in terminal decline, has stimulated claims that war in 21st century is undergoing profound change. It has even been argued that globalization forces, hereby economic interdependence and a rising intolerance to the horrors of conflict- resulting from a Revolution in Attitudes towards the Military (RAM)  [12]  , has produced an era in which war between the major states is obsolete  [13]  . With the split of Soviet Russia and the victory of the West, in the early 1990s, political commentators such as Michael Mandelbaum were claiming that the trend towards obsolescence had accelerated  [14]  . He even recommended that the rising cost of war and the diminishing expectations of victorys benefits, have transformed its status  [15]  . In short, major war was thought to be a thing of the past. Furthermore, when war takes place it has been argued that it will differ fundamentally from the rest of strategic history; it is even claimed that the nature of war itself is changing. For supporters of this view, war has ceased to be a political and rational undertaking. Consequently, the claim is made that new ways of comprehending wars modern dynamics are required to cope with political, cultural and technological transformation  [16]  . Relevant to that, is the idea of new war, which has done most to undermine traditional ideas about the nature of war. Attacking the traditional position propounded by Clausewitz, that war is the continuation of policy, the new war idea focuses on changes in the international system enthused by globalization-mainly the ostensible decline of the state. As new war proponents believe Clausewitzian theory is conterminous with the state, they repudiate his work as a result. However, the debate between these competing ideas has been ongoing since early 1990s without definitive answer as to which offers the greatest success of understanding patterns and dynamics of modern warfare. This research essay will reevaluate the relevance of Clausewitzs war methods and assess its viability in contemporary warfare. While the new war argument is diverse, its primary claim is that modern conflict differs from its historical antecedents in three major ways: a) structure; b) methods; and c) motives, each element interpenetrate the other  [17]  . Moreover, though what is now termed the new war thesis is in fact a collection of different ideas about war in the modern world, the notion of a new, emergent type of warfare has been primarily attributed to scholars and practitioners such as William S. Lind, Martin van Creveld and Mary Kaldor, among others  [18]  . Like fellow advocates, Lind argues that the wars in the future will be different from the past because, according to him, globalization process has declined the role of the state as the main actor. His argument focuses on his concept of fourth-generation warfare (4GW), which Lind claims is part of an historical development that has already produced first, second, and third generation war. Although attention is now focused on 4GW, it is only a step towards the fifth, sixth and seventh generations of warfare at some point in the future. This irregular mode of conflict is believed to be a return to the way war worked before the state monopolized violence  [19]  . Linds 4GW analysis starts from the Peace of Westphalia (1648), when the state monopolized mass violence. The First Generation of War (1648-1860) was one of line and column- battle was perceived to be orderly and there was an increasingly clear distinction between combatant and civilian  [20]  . The Second Generation of War addressed mass firepower first encountered in the Great War (1914-1918) by maintaining order despite the increased indirect destructiveness of artillery fire. Mass firepower inflicted huge damage on the enemy, followed by the advance of infantry  [21]  . Third Generation War was developed from 1916-18. Exemplified by the Blitzkrieg of the German Army in the opening campaigns of World War 2, third generation war is based on speed rather than attrition and firepower. The primary emphasis is to attack the enemys rear areas and collapse him from the rear forward. For advocates of this idea, despite the high tempo, technologically dominated effects based warfare practiced by the richest modern armies, contemporary state/military structures encapsulate and practice third generation war. For many, this is precisely why victory in modern war appears so elusive. Colonel Thomas X. Hammes of the US Marine Corps explains: Fourth generation warfare (4GW) uses all available networks- political, economic, social and military- to convince the enemys political decision makers that their strategic goals are either unachievable or too costly for the perceived benefit. It is an evolved form of insurgency. Still rooted in the fundamental precept that superior political will, when properly employed, can defeat greater economic and military power, 4GW makes use of societys networks to carry on its fightà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Fourth generation wars are lengthy-measured in decades rather than months or years  [22]   A new type of emergent warfare is also envisaged by Martin van Creveld, who claims that the state power is declining and as a result the traditional structures of International Relations are eroding. Van Creveld predicts that a breakdown of political legitimacy will transform war from a rational pursuit of states into irrational, unstructured activity-fought not by armies but by groups with varying motivations. In addition to that, he argues that war will lose its political purpose. Instead it will be driven by a mixture of religious fanaticism, culture, ethnicity, or technology  [23]  . By claiming that the war has lost its political purpose, Van Creveld, offers a challenge to Clausewitzian model of warfare. Clausewitz argues that despite wars violent predicaments, it is bound by political objectives and that war should be fought for rational pursuit of political goals. As he mentions clearly: the political object is the goal, war is the means of reaching it and mans can never b e considered in isolation from their purpose  [24]  . The idea that political objectivity encapsulates all aspects of warfare is thought to have been accumulated and presented in Clausewitzs Remarkable Trinity. The concept of Clausewitzian Trinity continues to incite controversy. Indeed, the idea that the nature of military conflict has changed originated directly from the debate about the contemporary relevance of the Trinity in understanding the patterns and dynamics of modern warfare. Clausewitz wrote that: War is more than a true chameleon that slightly adapts its characteristics to a given case. As a total phenomenon its dominant tendencies always make war a paradoxical trinity- composed of primordial violence, hatred and enmity which are to be regarded as a blind natural force; of the play of chance and probability within which the creative spirit is free to roam; and of its element of subordination, as an instrument of policy, which makes it subject to reason alone  [25]  . He continues: The first of these three aspects mainly concerns the people; the second the commander and his army; the third the government. The passions that are to be kindled in a war must already be inherent in the people; the scope which play of courage and talent will enjoy in the realm of probability and chance depends on the particular character of the army; but the political aims are the business of government alone  [26]  . By associating the Trinity to sections of society, many scholars have assumed that the concept is fundamentally linked to the state. Crevelds argument that a new type of war is emerging rests with the fact that there has been a decline in the number of inter-state conflicts and that there has been a subsequent rise in the number of wars within states. For Creveld, the proliferation of Low Intensity Conflict (LIC) in conflicts within states is evident that Clausewitzian Trinity concept no longer represents a coherent explanation why war is a rational instrument of the state. This is because with the end of the state and therefore the international system of states (in this case the decline of the state by globalization forces), only violent and non-Trinitarian, non-political war will remain  [27]  . Intertwined with changes in the structure of contemporary conflict is the argument that wars distinctive character, of a confrontation between opposing armies, has been replaced. The argument runs, just as the structure of war has changed so too have the methods; modern wars rarely follow conventional norms and are thought to be of distinctive nature by their sheer brutality and lack of strategic rationality. The increasing use of irregular warfare by terrorist organizations and globally incremented civilians claims to loosen the historical bond between state and military, thus giving credibility to the claim that state war between recognizable belligerents is a thing of the past- a post-Clausewitzian approach is therefore an immediate requirement  [28]  . As this trend develops traditional armies will become increasingly like their enemies in order to tackle the threat that this poses. According to Creveld, armies will be replaced by police-like security forces on the one hand a nd bands of ruffians on the other  [29]  . Following the claims of both Linds and Crevelds theses, war in the former Yugoslavia, Caucasus and throughout Africa seemed to substantiate their claims with much needed evidence. Mary Kaldor, the chief proponent of new war, has even claimed that the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina has become the archetypal example, the paradigm of the new type of warfare  [30]  . These conflicts do appear to manifest irrational traits and they often seem to be guided by factors other than governmental policy. As such, it has become common for most commentators and theorists openly to envisage a world where conventional armies cannot function properly against a new type of enemy. It is predicted that this trend will continuously develop and the feared result is an overspill of unorganized violence from the developing world. Kaldor, perhaps the best known of the new war advocates, explains the difference inherent in new wars: In contrast to the vertically organized hierarchical units that were typical of old wars, the units that fight these wars include a disparate range of different types of groups such as paramilitary units, local warlords, criminal gangs, police forces, mercenary groups and also regular armies including breakaway units of regular armies. In organizational terms, they are highly decentralized and they operate through a mixture of confrontation and cooperation even when on opposing sides  [31]  . Throughout the 1990s, wars in Balkans, Caucasus and Africa propelled the idea of Transformative change in International Relations. Advocated by Robert Kaplans provocative thesis The Coming Anarchy, it is argued that the global economic inequality, combined with stabilizing effects of failed states are the primary danger awaiting the modern world- especially when factions resort to communal violence in order to restore group security. For Kaplan, the implications necessitate analysis of, the whole question of war  [32]  . Furthermore, he mirrors Crevelds position; he too rejects the Clausewitzian argument that war is governed by politics. Like other new war writers, Kaplan warns that a preponderance of high-tech weapons is useless in a world where conventional war is outmoded. He cautions, something far more terrible awaits us  [33]  . War will not be characterized by the large-scale industrial confrontations of the twentieth century, or be subject to any notion of legality; there will be no rules of war as understood today. Rather, the primary target in new wars is the civilian population. If the present conflict in Iraq is any measure, attacking civilians has become the tactic of choice for the non-state actors operating there. According to the Brookings Institutes Iraq Index, the figures for civilian deaths during conflict are even more telling. From March 2003 until June 2006, the index estimates the total number of civilian fatalities as a result of conflict at 151,000  [34]  . Certainly, the recent experiences of the United States and its allies in Iraq and Afghanistan appear to suggest a trend towards difficult irregular warfare. These examples seem to compound the argument that future war will be asymmetrical, at least on one side  [35]  . Some commentators, have even suggested that using the term war at all, gives it a credibility that belies its unorganized character  [36]  . After all, these new internal wars do not manifest military objectives; at least, not ones we are used to seeing  [37]  . According to Kalevi Holsti: War has become de-institutionalized in the sense of central control, rules, regulations, etiquette and armaments. Armies are rag-tag groups frequently made up of teenagers paid in drugs, or not paid at all. In the absence of authority and discipline, but quite in keeping with the interests of the warlords, soldiers discover opportunities for private enterprises of their own  [38]  . Rupert Smith, a retired top British general with direct experience of war in Balkans, Northern Ireland and the Middle East, goes even further, claiming that: War no longer exists. Confrontation, conflict and combat undoubtedly exist all around the world- most noticeably, but not only, in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Palestinian Territories- and states still have armed forces which they use as symbols of power. None the less, war as cognitively known to most non-combatants, war as battle in a field between men and machinery, war as a massive deciding event in a dispute in international affairs: such war no longer exists  [39]  . For new war advocates, globalizations pervasive nature stimulates dissonance between those able to play a part in a globalized world, and those who are not. As Mark Duffield argues: The changing competence of the nation-state is reflected in the shift from hierarchical patterns of government to the wider and more polyarchial networks, contracts and partnerships of governance  [40]  . It is an opinion championed by Kaldor, who claims the process of globalization is tearing up the previously stable state system- a system which for many has provided a starting point for understanding war and it role in international relations system  [41]  . Consequently, she too rejects the Clausewitzian Paradigm  [42]  . Like other new war commentators, Kaldor believes the pervasive nature of globalization is the root cause of modern political instability and war. As globalization erodes the state system, there will be a parallel trend highlighting an increase in identity politics. Just as there has been a change in structure and methods so too are there changes in the motivations of modern war. With socially ostracized communities unable to express their political grievances, it is thought they will employ war as the most attractive expression of their local cultural/religious needs  [43]  . To grab power, this process is supported by political elites  [44]  . Several studies into the economies of new wars suggest that greed plays a large role in contemporary civil conflict  [45]  . They also agree that the economic element found in new wars is directly linked to why the distinction between war and peace has become blurred  [46]  . For Mark Duffield, war is no longer a Clausewitzian affair of state; it is a problem of underdevelopment and political breakdown  [47]  .

Review Of Brzezinskis The Grand Chessboard Politics Essay

Review Of Brzezinskis The Grand Chessboard Politics Essay The Grand Chessboard was written by Zbigniew Brzezinski, National Security Adviser to President Jimmy Carter, and was published in 1997. It is a progressive book on American foreign policy of the 1990s and after. It looks candidly at reasons for Americas policy of aggression towards Afghanistan and conciliation towards Pakistan. It also spells out the need for Americas policy of toleration towards Saudi Arabia and its carrot and stick attitude towards China. It throws light on the growing problem of religious fundamentalism and the need for America to stay ahead as the only superpower in order to control Eurasian politics. The book is divided into seven chapters and runs into 220 pages. Zbigniew Kazimierz Brzezinski was born March on 28, 1928 in Warsaw, Poland. He is an eminent American political scientist, foreign policy advisor and statesman who was National Security Advisor to President Jimmy Carter from 1977 to 1981 and continues to be President Barrack Obamas mentor and foreign policy advisor. He is Professor of American foreign policy at Johns Hopkins Universitys School of Advanced International Studies. He is also a scholar of great repute at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and a valuable member of various governmental and non-governmental boards and councils. Brzezinski belonged to the Polish nobility and his family bore the Traby Coat of Arms insignia. They originally came from the town of Brzezany in Galicia which is said to be the source of his family name. Brzezinskis father was a Polish diplomat who was posted in Germany prior to World War II. Brzezinski spent some of his earliest years witnessing the rise of the Nazis and this may have some bearing on his anti-Semitic and anti-Israel leanings. He went to Harvard University to work on a PhD that focused on the Soviet Union. His research led him to trace the connections between the Russian Revolution, Lenins position in Russian politics and the proceedings during Stalins reign. He received his doctorate degree in 1953 and later collaborated with German-American Professor and political scientist, Carl J. Friedrich to develop the concept of totalitarianism and apply its principles to the Soviet Union of 1956. Brzezinski dedicated the book to his students and in Brzezinskis words it is For my students- to help them shape tomorrows world. Hence all students of politics and international relations will benefit from reading this book. It is also a worthy guideline for political scientists and diplomats who would want to get an in-depth knowledge of American foreign policy and rationale behind the changing strategies to stay ahead and on top of global geo-politics. Brzezinski writes in the introduction to this book, The formulation of a comprehensive and integrated Eurasian geo-strategy is therefore the purpose of this book (Brzezinski 1997). In his book The Grand Chessboard, Brzezinski has discussed his most significant contribution to post-Cold War geo-strategy. He emphasizes the need for America to be the global leader and continue to be the arbiter of Eurasian geopolitics. His theory simply put is for American hegemony to continue and for America to dominate the economic and political arenas by minimizing the risk of other potential super powers from Eurasia to gain ascendency in world politics. He has divided Eurasia into four distinct regions and has discussed ways in which the US should charter its foreign policy towards these regions in order to maintain its global dominance. Brzezinski lays claims to the United States being the only comprehensive superpower after the fall of the Soviet Union: America is now Eurasias arbiter, with no major Eurasian issue soluble without Americas participation or contrary to Americas interests (Brzezinski 194). In The Grand Chessboard Brzezinski gives the audience a complete and candid elucidation of American international strategy since 1992. He explains that what this strategy aims at is absolute global dominance by America. Appreciating Brzezinskis argument requires looking at Americas Cold-War strategy through a new lens. (By Zbigniew K. Brzezinski Basic Books) The geo-strategy takes a close look at world affairs during the last decade of the twentieth century. It attempts to decipher the tectonic shift in world affairs and scrutinizes the role America needs to play as the emergent superpower in a uni-polar world. Brzezinski points out that for the first time in history a non- Eurasian power has surfaced as a major negotiator of Eurasian power dealings and also as the worlds paramount power(Brzezinski xiii). The disintegration and collapse of the Soviet Union gave the United States a key foothold in its rapid ascendance as the actual and exclusive global superpower. The source of Americas growing geopolitical ambitions was provided by the rapid growth of the countrys economy through industrialization. The significant economic development was promoted by a culture and environment that encouraged experimentation and modernization. Americas open and democratic political institutions and free market financial system created unique opportunities for wealthy investors to expand the countrys economy and boost its international reputation. The American way of life was congenial to economic growth and the development of national power. The book deals with some major issues of world politics and spells out Brzezinskis take on the design of US foreign policies in dealing with these issues. The rising threat from Islamic fundamentalism to American primacy is described as a possible issue that might prove challenging. Maintaining control over the unstable west Asian region in the absence of a stable and dominant Islamic state could be part of the Middle Eastern problem. Brzezinski argues that even though the Cold War is over and America has emerged as the single most dominant superpower after the collapse of the Soviet Union, it is still necessary to maintain American hegemony to prevent the emergence of a dangerous multi-polar world of independent great powers scrambling for predominance and political advantage. He describes the three grand imperatives, of Americas strategy, its mechanisms and purposes are to help prevent conspiracy against American interests; to ensure the dependence of the less secure nations and pledge their loyalty by providing them security against fundamentalist forces and to keep the underlings pliant and protected in order to prevent other potential powers from taking over these regions. The manuscript provides insights into the thinking behind the 1992 planning document issued by the Pentagon, which maintained that the United States must continue to control the international system by not allowing other advanced and industrialized nations to challenge American leadership or try to assume a larger regional or global role. Americas leadership role, as Brzezinski advocates, meant that not only should the United States dominate its allies, the wealthy and technologically developed states in Europe and East Asia, but also that it must lead the way in fostering peace and stability by dealing with such irritants as Saddam Hussein of Iraq, Slobodan Milosevic of Serbia, and Kim Jong II of North Korea so that there is no scope for potential super powers like Germany or Japan to acquire the means to resolve regional problems by themselves and gain supremacy in the region. The growth of Islamic fundamentalism could exploit the religious sentiments against the Americans and take advantage of the Arab-Israel conflict to undermine and destabilize the authority of several pro-American Middle Eastern states and jeopardize the regional interests of America in the Persian Gulf region. Brzezinski, however, points out that without political unity and in the absence of a single indisputable influential Islamic state, a challenge from Islamic fundamentalism would lack a geopolitical core and would thus be more likely to express itself through diffuse violence (Brzezinski 53). The book also contains other references to the steadily growing problem of Muslim fundamentalism and its impact on global security. The real thrust of Americas foreign policy since the start of the Cold War, according to Brzezinski, was not to thwart or overcome the Soviet menace, but the successful effort to impose an ambitious vision on a confused and disorganized global scenario. The basic idea was to provide for the security of the Eurasian potential super powers and by engage them in such a manner that their military and foreign policies would encourage them to form alliances that America dominated and keep its erstwhile enemies contained. It also sought to prevent its partners from embarking upon independent foreign and military policies that might jeopardize American interests and supremacy at the global level. This policy would help to stabilized relationships among the states of Western Europe and East Asia, and reassure their neighboring states that these powerful partners would remain appeased and loyal. With America leading from the front the West European and East Asian nations would be free from fea rs and mutual competitions and would be able to cooperate politically and economically. This in turn would create stability and harmony in the world and would enhance prosperity and international order that would aid the advanced industrialized countries to forge ahead and maintain economic growth and development. Brzezinski elucidates his point by citing the example of how encouraging Korea to become a unified democratic entity would not be in Americas interests as this development would endanger Americas global control strategy. A rejuvenated and unified Korea would minimize the apparent need for U.S. troops on the peninsula; and would lead to a U.S. pullback from East Asia. This, in turn, would lead to Japan becoming more self-sufficient and secure militarily; that would show the way for military, political and economic rivalry and bickering amongst the nations in the Far East. Japan would gain dominance and could become a potential threat to American supremacy in that region. Hence, the best solution was to maintain the status quo in Korea, which allowed U.S. forces to be stationed there indefinitely and keep vigilance in the area. The ultimate objective of American foreign policy should be benevolent and farsighted in keeping with American ideals and the fundamental interests of human kind. But in so doing the policy must ensure that no Eurasian power be allowed to emerge as a potential challenger to Americas position as the world leader. It must stay ahead in the race and neutralize through effective alliances and policies any scope for a unified Europe or an individual developed nation capable of dominating Eurasian economy and politics and eliminate potential challenge for America. The book gives us an in-depth insight into policies and policy making but it leave some questions unanswered. It discloses the logic that has motivated the American national security strategy ever since the Cold War but it also highlights the fact that this logic predictably involves a massive project that is necessarily open-ended and long lasting. To maintain status quo in an effort to preserve political, economic and strategic dominance America must continue the policy of maintaining troops in the unstable regions of Islamic fundamentalism. The price of such aggressive posturing can be high in the changing climate of world politics and the new vision of a harmonious and peaceful world. So the question remains, according to Brzezinskis logic, how do you pull out troops from the different regions and encourage self governance and at the same time follow the policy of global leadership where the troops must always remain? Brzezinskis theory of global adult-super vision strategy means that American expenditure on its military and security is nearly as much as, perhaps, the rest of the world combined. However, he argues that in order to maintain its control over the Black Sea oil it must deal with Turkey and Iran carefully. To maintain its hegemony over this region might mean sending more troops to stabilize the region. That American interests were firmly planted in the region is apparent: The momentum of Asias economic development is already generating massive pressures for the exploration and exploitation of new sources of energy and the Central Asian region and the Caspian Sea basin are known to contain reserves of natural gas and oil that dwarf those of Kuwait, the Gulf of Mexico, or the North Sea. (Brzezinski 125). Brzezinski freely admits that executing a policy of global dominance is difficult, absorbing, and costly, and offers a solution which is a bit contradictory. Although in keeping with the short and midterm interests continued U.S. preponderance is an absolute necessity, Brzezinski argues that in the long-term the United States can share leadership with regional powers. Multilateral projects, beginning from international adjudicators to U.N. police procedures, all of these require a strong leader. Brzezinskis main argument relies on the claim that American hegemony remains the indispensable foundation for world cooperation and the integration of advanced countries towards world peace and balance of power. To support his argument Brzezinski outlines the possibility of an eventual trilateral division of leadership among the United States, Europe, and Japan. Even then he makes it quite apparent that Europe and Japan would remain junior partners to a predominant America with a larger share of the expenses with no greater authority and independence. The partner nations have never agreed to this formula and have consistently said that if the United States wanted to lead, it would have to pay the expenses and incur the hazards that accompanied leadership. Thus, to say that America can never let go of its supremacy because of the political, economic, and military ramifications is stretching the point a bit far. Cooperation among the great powers ensures stability and peace and that it can only be garnered under American supervision is somewhat self-defeating. According to Brzezinski, stability in Western Europe and East Asia could be guaranteed by American predominance alone, was the prerequisite for cooperation and stability. There is no reason to believe that, without this guarantor, stability will not be achieved. Americas dominant position should foster stability and create a geopolitical core of peaceful global management and shared responsibility.

classroom management Essay -- essays research papers

There are many different ways to run a successful and effective classroom. Numerous people have tried to give me the best advice for making things work, but ultimately it will be my choice to decide what works best for me. By assessing the students' needs, I will be able to provide a curriculum and classroom environment that will hopefully motivate their learning. In assessing my own needs, I can make the proper actions necessary to make sure that those needs are met. Rules and consequences fall under both the needs of the student and the teacher, so those are essential as well. In the following, I will discuss what I find to be the needs of the student, the needs of the teacher, and how my philosophy on rules, consequences, and discipline play into these needs. According to several educational psychologists and theorists, there are many different needs of a student. I agree particularly with Glasser, who states that students have a need for belonging, "fun", freedom, and a warm environment with a meaningful and engaging curriculum. Linda Albert contributes more by theorizing that the student needs to feel accepted (by being who they are, without judgment), and that student needs attention and affection (Devito, 2004). These, in my own opinion, are some of the most important needs that a teacher might face, especially when teaching adolescents. While all students have different needs, these are a few that are shared by most. Often times, as a teacher you are the most influential adult figure in a child's life. By creating a warm environment where the student not only feels comfortable, but is eager to come to, you have created the beginning of a successful learning environment. Once you have the student in class, who is ready to learn, the need for an interesting and stimulating curriculum is a must. One cannot teach a student who is disengaged and bored, so as a teacher it is necessary to understand the need for exploring topics of interest. Not only do students have the needs as listed above, but according to Kohn, they also have the need to be treated as individuals (Devito, Spring 2004). Democratically speaking, Glasser says they also need a sense of power in addition to their need to be treated as individuals (Devito, Spring... ...tor, not an acquaintance. Disciplining a student isn’t the highlight of my career path, but it is essential to maintaining the organized classroom I need and it will be done. In order to learn, students need discipline with dignity. They need to know that misbehavior is not okay, and that there are rules and standards to live by in the classroom, just like there is in the â€Å"real world†. Students, when given a routine and are treated with structure, generally perform better. By instilling discipline in the classroom, I hope to provide a more stable and more effective learning environment for all. Above all, my educational philosophy in discipline focuses on consistency. I have learned through all theorists, Ms. Devito, all my other professors, and by my own experience that this is a must in the classroom. It is important to be impeccable with our word as teachers because often times, it is the only leverage that we have over the students. As humans alone, it is the most powerful tool that we possess. If a teacher makes false promises and empty threats, then inevitably, their word becomes worthless and their credibility is ruined. This is somewhere no teacher wants to go.

The Endocrine System Essay -- Biology, Hormones

In the human body we have a system that deals with chemical communication through the use of hormones, the ductless glands that secrete hormones and the target cells that respond to the hormones, this system is called the Endocrine system. This is used to help maintain the essential purpose of the human body which can range the metabolism to growth. This system also works in line with the nervous system in regulating the interior functions and keep up homeostasis and also long term behaviour. There are many hormones in the human body that can affect attitude and behaviour. A very common behaviour throughout the human life, which is affected greatly by hormones, is the sexual behaviour. There are a range of hormones which are created from the gonads and placenta which affect this behaviour. These can be set into two different categories for both male and female, male hormones is known as androgens, which has testosterone which allows the progression of the male reproductive area and the preservation, also provides secondary characteristics and behaviour. The female hormones is known as Estrogens, such as estradiol, which functions in the improvement plus preservation of the woman’s reproductive area, which allows the growth of the other sex characteristics , also the changes in behaviour and in the reproduction of the mammary glands. However both male and females, produce both types of hormones and both have important effects, but males produce more androgens and females produce more estrogens. There has been lots of attention in the connection among behaviour and hormones and it shows that the normal difference in the quantity of hormones which is presented is related with the difference in behaviour. A case of this can be... ...he affects of the female hormones as a result of it been seen as controversial to do. Therefore we have to assume that hormones affect the behaviour of all humans even though research is done on the male hormones. Although there is still knowledge in the fact that when a woman goes through her menstrual cycle that it affects their behaviour and mood, there is still no clear research into which hormones affects this change. On the other hand, females do still contain a little of the testosterone hormone in their system so this could still affect the females behaviour even though they don’t have a high amount of testosterone, however this is still yet to be researched due to complications. Overall we can see that hormones can affects one’s behaviour and there is still research yet to be done into a greater extent to find which hormones can affect which behaviour. The Endocrine System Essay -- Biology, Hormones In the human body we have a system that deals with chemical communication through the use of hormones, the ductless glands that secrete hormones and the target cells that respond to the hormones, this system is called the Endocrine system. This is used to help maintain the essential purpose of the human body which can range the metabolism to growth. This system also works in line with the nervous system in regulating the interior functions and keep up homeostasis and also long term behaviour. There are many hormones in the human body that can affect attitude and behaviour. A very common behaviour throughout the human life, which is affected greatly by hormones, is the sexual behaviour. There are a range of hormones which are created from the gonads and placenta which affect this behaviour. These can be set into two different categories for both male and female, male hormones is known as androgens, which has testosterone which allows the progression of the male reproductive area and the preservation, also provides secondary characteristics and behaviour. The female hormones is known as Estrogens, such as estradiol, which functions in the improvement plus preservation of the woman’s reproductive area, which allows the growth of the other sex characteristics , also the changes in behaviour and in the reproduction of the mammary glands. However both male and females, produce both types of hormones and both have important effects, but males produce more androgens and females produce more estrogens. There has been lots of attention in the connection among behaviour and hormones and it shows that the normal difference in the quantity of hormones which is presented is related with the difference in behaviour. A case of this can be... ...he affects of the female hormones as a result of it been seen as controversial to do. Therefore we have to assume that hormones affect the behaviour of all humans even though research is done on the male hormones. Although there is still knowledge in the fact that when a woman goes through her menstrual cycle that it affects their behaviour and mood, there is still no clear research into which hormones affects this change. On the other hand, females do still contain a little of the testosterone hormone in their system so this could still affect the females behaviour even though they don’t have a high amount of testosterone, however this is still yet to be researched due to complications. Overall we can see that hormones can affects one’s behaviour and there is still research yet to be done into a greater extent to find which hormones can affect which behaviour.

The effect of motivation on behavior

In everyday conversation, the question â€Å"What motivated you to do that?† is a way of asking, â€Å"What caused your behavior?   Why did you act that way?†Ã‚   To psychologists, a motivation is a need or desire that serves to energize behavior and to direct it toward a goal.   Psychologists consider motivation as a hypothetical concept.   Hence, they infer motivation from behaviors observe.But in a broader sense, motivation pertains to the purpose for responding.   The term comes from the Latin verb movere, which means, â€Å"to move,† and it is what causes movement (behavior) that concerns this paper.   The idea of movement is reflected in such commonsense ideas about motivation as something that gets us going, keep us moving, and helps us get jobs done.   Conversely, a person is not motivated when s/he cannot seem to get out of bed or off the sofa (Pintrich, 2001).Despite these commonly held ideas, definitions of motivation are numerous and varie d, and there is much disagreement over the precise nature of motivation.   Motivation has been conceived of in such varied terms as involving inner forces, enduring traits, behavioral responses tom stimuli, and sets of beliefs and affects (Schunk, D.H. 2003).Although motivation has many facets, psychologists have been especially concerned with those influences that energize and direct responses.   Simply stated, motivation determines how strong a behavior will be and the form it will take.   Moreover, much of what is known about motivational processes comes from research on how people respond to the difficulties, problems, failures, and setbacks encountered as individuals pursue goals over time.  Ã‚   Various theories contend that motivation underlies much human behavior (Weiner, 2005).Psychologists have different theoretical perspectives on motivation.   At present, there are four motivational strategies that are influential on how psychologists have understood  motivat ion, namely, flow theory, stress and coping theory, and intrinsic and extrinsic theory.Flow theoryCsikszentmihalyi (2005) studied individuals who engaged in intrinsically motivating activities and found that their experiences reflected complete involvement with the activities. This involvement, is known as the flow theory, and is defined as â€Å"the holistic sensation that people feel when they act with total involvement† (Csikszentmihalyi, 2005).According to Csikszentmihalyi, the flow is very much related to other human motives and has shown that the dimensions in this two-by-two classification are closed-versus open-system goals and intra- versus interindividual processes.   Closed goals are those that determined by genetics (needs, hunger, thirst, safety, optimal activation) or socialization; open goals develop as a result of experience and cannot be explained by pre-existing factors.   Interindividual processes are social in nature, whereas intraindividual processes refer to the person.   Flow is a personal process and reflects open systemic goals (Csikszentmihalyi & Rathunde, 2003).Moreover, individuals experiencing flow are so intensely involved with a task that they may lose awareness of time and space.   They also seek a flow experience for itself rather than for anticipated rewards.   Although flow can be experienced with any activity, it is more likely to occur with activities that allow for free expression and creativity such as games, play, and art.   De Charm’s origin state shares many elements with flow.   In extreme form, individuals forsake a traditional lifestyle and most contingent material rewards to engage in activities that provide flow (de Charms, 1996).There are a number of researches on the flow theory.   These researches have proven that despite being nebulous, the flow theory makes intuitive sense.   Csikszentmihalyi (2002)  describes a research study in which the Experience Sampling Method was emplo yed.   Adults carried beepers that sounded several times a week, at which time subjects rated themselves on two dependent variables:   Affect (comprising items â€Å"happy,† â€Å"cheerful,† â€Å"sociable†) and activation (comprising â€Å"active,† â€Å"alert,† â€Å"strong†).Subjects also judged their situation for challenges present and skills available.   The amount of time individuals judged themselves to be in flow (defined as challenges and skills present and equal to one another) was related positively to affect and activation (Csikszentmihalyi,2002).Mayers (reported in Csikszentmihalyi, 2002) had high school students’ rate school subjects and activities on challenge and skill.   Favorite activities fell into the flow are (challenge= skill): TV and music listening (low on each); friends (moderate); and arts, such as drama or ballet, and sports (high on each).   Skills were judged to exceed challenges in humanities a nd social sciences, resulting in boredom.   Challenges were rated as exceeding skills in mathematics and the sciences, resulting in anxiety.Other research compared the flow experiences of three groups of adolescents.   One group attended a select public school in Italy, a second group attended a typical suburban high school near Chicago, and a third group comprised talented math students from a top Chicago public school.   Students used the Experience sampling Method.   The Italian teens reported more flow experiences than U.S. teens, especially those talented in math.   Among the U.S. teens, those attending the typical school reported the most amounts of boredom (skills exceed challenges) and anxiety (challenges exceed skills).Interestingly, the talented group scored significantly lower than the other two samples in apathy, defined as skills and challenges in sync but below average (e.g., watching TV, listening to music).   In sum, experiences are comparable for average and above average students across cultures, whereas for talented U.S. teens, flow and apathy are rarer and boredom and anxiety are common (.Csikszentmihalyi, 1995)These researches implied that motivation affects the behavior of people.   The flow theory concluded that there is a state of equilibrium between the amount of challenge in activities and an individual’s capabilities.   People feel bored when their perceived skills exceed their opportunities for using them; they become anxious when they believe that challenges exceed capabilities.   Flow can vary intensity, with the critical variable being the ratio of challenge to skill.   The portrayed relations presumably hold for peak as well as everyday experiences (Csikszentmihalyi, 2003).Intrinsic and Extrinsic theory Deci & Ryan believes that intrinsic and extrinsic motivational forces govern behavior.   Extrinsic forces are preprogrammed biologically (e.g., food, sleep) or derive from the reward structure in whic h the individual is socialized (money, prestige).   Intrinsic forces grow out of the individual’s belief that a given outcome is worth striving for (Deci & Ryan, 2001).Deci and his colleagues (Rigby, Deci, Patrick, & Ryan, 2002) have recently conceptualized motivation along both intrinsic and extrinsic dimensions.   Intrinsic motivation concerns activities that are autotelic – engaged in for their own sake – which by definition are self-determined.   Extrinsic motivation involves a progression from behaviors that originally were extrinsically motivated but became internalized and now are self-determined.   The first level includes what Deci and his colleagues call external regulation.   In their research, they cited the example that students initially may not want to work on math but do to obtain teacher rewards and avoid punishment.There is very little self-determination in this situation.   At the next level of extrinsic motivation, students may en gage in a task (e.g., study for an exam).   Deci and his colleagues call this introjected regulation because the source of motivation is internal (feelings of â€Å"should,† â€Å"ought,† guilt) to the person but not self-determined since these feelings seem to be controlling the person.   The third level is called identified regulation and here individuals engage in the activity because it is personally important to them.The example they cited is that, a student may study hours for a test in order to get good grades to be accepted into college.   This behavior represents the student’s own goal, although the goal has more utility value (Wigfield & Eccles, 2002) than intrinsic value such as learning.   The final level of extrinsic is integrated regulation, whereby individuals can integrate various internal and external sources of information into their own self-schema and engage in behavior because of its importance to their sense of self.This final level is still instrumental, rather than autotelic as in intrinsic motivation, but integrated regulation does represent a form of self- determination and autonomy.   As such, both intrinsic motivation and integrated regulation will result in more cognitive engagement and learning than external or introjected regulation (Rigby et al., 2002).Deci and his colleagues` (Rigby et al., 2002) position is thought –provoking, has generated much research, and has important implications for the field.   Many points in the self-determination model are not clearly specified, but researchers increasingly are conducting studies that are adding to the understanding of how this theory explains how behavior changes through motivation.Stress and Coping Theory Richard Lazarus` stress and coping theory was developed from his several research on stress and its effects to humans, and it emphasizes psychological variables, namely, the cognitive processes of perception and thought.   Lazarus   (197 6, 1982, 1996) argues that it is neither the process (e.g. stressor) nor the response that best defines motivation.   Rather, it is the individual’s perception and appraisal of the situation that is a significant determinant of whether or not motivation will be experienced.   He cited that an individual may enjoy public speaking, whereas another individual finds it terrifying.   According to Lazarus, events in and of themselves do not produce motivation; it is the individual’s appraisal of the event that creates the motivation (Lazarus, 2001).Lazarus` theory of motivation states that when an individual is confronted with challenge, primary appraisal occurs.   During primary appraisal the individual attempts to determine how the event will affect her or his behavior.   Some events are perceived as positive and beneficial and thus are likely to create a motivation.   However, other events are viewed negatively and thus are perceived as harmful or threatening such as stress.   This appraisal of the event also generates different coping emotions such as fear, anger, or excitement (Lazarus, 1995).The next stage, secondary appraisal, involves determining whether one’s coping capacities are sufficient to meet the demands of a potentially harmful event.   An important part of this stage is a review and analysis of the response alternatives available to the individual.   This secondary appraisal can also lead to the acquisition of new coping responses (Lazarus, 2002).Although the two models of stress and coping theory of motivation are quite different, they are not necessarily antagonistic.   It is easy to see how a biological system to cope with stress would have obvious evolutionary advantages in enhancing survival.   Yet the nature of the human cerebral cortex allows for decisional process in dealing with stress, rather than autonomic biological reactions that are characteristic of lower organisms.   A synthesis of this t heory provides for an immediate, probably nonspecific, preparation for dealing with stressors; it is followed by an intelligent appraisal of the situation that may redirect the physiological reactions and institute motivation.  Ã‚   It is because humans have behavioral options, even though they may not always make intelligent decisions in dealing with stressors (Lazarus, 2001).In conclusion, motivation is an important quality that affects all behavior because the different theories presented have proven that it can influence both learning of new behaviors and performance of previously learned behaviors.   Behavior is related in a reciprocal fashion to motivation because how one behaves can be changed through one’s subsequent task motivation.ReferencesCsikszentmihalyi, M. (2002).   Emergent motivation and the evolution of the self.   In D.A.Kleiber & M.L. Maehr (Eds.), Advances in motivation and achievement (Vol. 4, pp. 93-98).   Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.Csikszentmih alyi, M. (2003). Intrinsic rewards and emergent motivation.   In M.R. Lepper &D. Greene (Eds.), The hidden costs of reward:   New perspectives on the psychology of  human motivation (pp. 205-206).   Hillsdale, NY:Erlbaum.Csikszentmihalyi, M., & Rathunde, K. (2003).   The measurement of flow in everyday life:   Toward a theory of emergent motivation.   In J.E. Jacobs 9Ed.), Nebraska symposium on  Ã‚  motivation 1992 (Vol. 40, pp. 57-97).   Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2005).   Toward a psychology of optimal experience.   In L. Wheeler (Ed.), Review of personality and social psychology   (Vol. 3, pp. 13-16).   Beverly Hills,  CA:Sage.Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2005).   Beyond boredom and anxiety.   San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.  de Charms, R. (1996).   Enhancing motivation.   New York: Irvington.   Deci, E.L. (1995). Intrinsic motivation.   New York: Plenum.  Deci, E.L. (2000). The psychology of self-determination.   Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath.  Deci, E.L., & Ryan, R.M. (2001).   Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human  behavior.   New York: Plenum.Deci, E.L., & Ryan, R.M. (2002).   The support of autonomy and the control of behavior.   Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53, 1024-1027.Deci, E.L., & Ryan, R.M. (2003). A motivational approach to self: Integration in personality.   In R.A. Dienstbier (Ed.) Nebraska symposium on motivation 1990(Vol. 38, pp.237-238.  Lincoln:University of Nebraska Press. Lazarus, R.S. (1996).   Psychological stress and the coping process.   New York: McGraw-Hill.  Ã‚  Lazarus, R.S. (1995).   Thoughts on the relation between emotion and cognition.   AmericanPsychologist, 37, 109-111.Lazarus, R.S. (2001).   Emotion and adaptation.   Oxford: Oxford University Press.Lazarus, R.S. (2002).   Little hassles can be hazardous to your health. Psychology Today,  pp.82-85.Pintrich, P.R. (2001).   Current issues and new directions in motivational theory and research.   Ã‚  Educational Psychologist, 26,199-201.Rigby et al., (2002).   Beyond the intrinsic –extrinsic dichotomy: Self-determination and  learning.   Motivation and Emotion, 16, 165-167.  Rigby, Deci, Patrick, & Ryan, (2002).   Beyond the intrinsic –extrinsic dichotomy: Self-determination and learning.   Motivation and Emotion, 16, 165-167.Schunk, D.H. (2003).   Goal difficulty and attainment information:   Effects on children’sAchievement behavior.   Human Learning, 2, 107-117.Weiner, B. (2005).   Human motivation.   New York: Springer-Verlag.Wigfield, A. & Eccles, J. (2002).   Expectancy-value theory of motivation: A developmental perspective.   Educational Psychology Review, 6, 49-52.