Feasibility study for Creating my own business where I buy and sell Research Paper

Feasibility study for Creating my own business where I buy and sell homes, I will hire employees and need the funding - Research Paper Example Currently the concept of entrepreneurship is widely accepted and is judged as a vital part of the contemporary world and a well established erudite discipline (Thompson 35-50). Moreover, government of a number of countries also judge entrepreneurship as a mantra for success and development of the economy. The present study aims to evaluate feasibility of a new business venture. it will include buying and selling of homes and will come under real estate sector. Also, employees will be recruited for the business and funding will be provided with government institutions such as banks. The study will evaluate the various factors influencing a real estate business. These include operations, economical, marketing, financial etc. Also support services required for overall establishment of the business will be discussed. The target market for the business will be discussed and a systematic analysis of business strategies will be done. Target market One of the foundations of building a good b usiness is finding out clients. As it is commonly said, until we know whom to sell, it is almost impossible to know how to sell. Choosing a target market not only helps to focus on a niche segment, but also helps in fine tuning the support services to suit the target market needs. In order to define a niche target market, two broad categories can be established. Income levels and life stage The first target groups in this category are first time sellers or buyers. The probable home they seek will be of basic design and construction and afterwards working their way up in the property ladder as their income, family and needs grow. The next target group will be customers purchasing a second home who either are looking to downside or upsize. Other target group will be high end expensive and luxury seller or buyer. Doing business with these clients will mean higher commission, high amount of hand-holding and personal involvement, monetary risk and expensive collaterals (Beri 46-69). Apar t from the above, there are recreational buyers who need highly specialized and unique areas of focus. Demographics According to age demographics, clients can be divided into seniors, gen X and gen Y. accordingly, different business tactics can be made in order to attract these demographics into the business. While it is clear that seniors will look for a more traditional and ethnic style, gen X will be contemporary and evolving while gen Y will be technologically oriented (Croft 35-50). Each of the groups discussed above have their collective individuality, cultural icons, memories that can be worked with. Another criterion which can be added is through philosophy and lifestyle which may include country or city, a detached or fully integrated lifestyle, an eco-friendly environment or a home with full amenities (Hoagland and Williamson 57-75). Apart from that, business can also consider factors such as current location of the clients, real estate as well as educational levels of cli ents. In order to facilitate the process of acquiring right target market, the business can also

Reasons to Quit Smoking Cigarettes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Reasons to Quit Smoking Cigarettes - Essay Example Smoking cigarettes is a vice that introduces harmful substances into the body. Thousands of people die day globally on a daily basis because of the hazardous effects of smoking a feature that validates that smoking is a harmful act. Smoking poses a number of health risks to both the smoker and non-smokers around those who smoke. Smoking is, therefore, an unsafe practice and a leading cause of preventable deaths as the discussion below portrays. Â  Smoking is a form of introducing foreign participles into the body. Introducing particles in such sensitive organs of the body as the lungs are a dangerous process given the difficulty in cleaning and reversing the effects of such particles. Smoking cigarettes contribute to the development of more than fifty health complications in the body. Some of such conditions are always fatal while others are irreversible and long-term damages in some of the most vital internal and external organs. Medical researchers have for example proven that Smoking increases the chances of lung cancer by more than 90%. The introduction of the foreign particles is likely to enhance the growth of cancerous cells. Besides causing lung cancer, doctors attribute smoking to the development of cancer in several other body parts including the lips, throat, kidney, bladder, pancreas, and stomach among others (Crawford 71). Â  Numerous people have given various reasons for justifying smoking, especially among young people. Among such reasons is the claim that smoking enhances acceptance among peers. Some people have given a number of medical excuses explaining that smoking helps relieve stress.

Is General Will Compatible With Individual Freedom Politics Essay

Is General Will Compatible With Individual Freedom Politics Essay Jean-Jacque Rousseau wrote at a time before great social and political change in Europe. His texts remain one of the classic concepts of political theory. His writings have been thought of by many as, the bible for the French Revolution for his foresight and perhaps predictions for the violence and terror that followed. His text, The Social Contract (1762) is made up of 4 books. In Books 1 and 2 he aimed to address the problem of political morality and the theory of institutions in Books 3 and 4. Rousseau was a defender of democracy, an advocate for individual liberty and an egalitarian. Rousseau begins with the famous opening lines, Men are born free, yet everywhere are in chains He starts by explaining the way in which men are bound to the chains of civil society which restrain the natural right of man to an objective independent freedom. He believed that civil society does not give man the freedom, liberty and equality that were promised to him when joining society. Rousseau believed that the only way to prevent these shackles from becoming uncomfortable would be by the collective creation of a body in society forming a single will, the general will. When answering the question it is important to understand the idea of the rule of the general will to see if it is compatible with the freedom of the individual. The general will is expressed by the sovereign (either an individual with a unified will or a collective body in society). The definition and purpose of this general will is to act in the needs and desires of the collective and to sustain the common good for all people. Rousseau explains, The English people believed itself to be free. It is greatly mistaken; it is free only during the election of the members of Parliament. Once they are elected, the populace is enslaved; it is nothing . To Rousseau the idea of the general will is one of free debate in an assembly of individuals and equals of what is of common interest. In Chapter 15 of Book 3 he puts forward the idea that sovereignty cannot be represented, because it consists of the general will and the general will cannot be represented . J. Plamenatz (1992) gives this reason for Rousseaus argument for direct as apposed to representative democracy. Every citizen in Rousseaus ideal society should make the laws themselves and not entrust this job in the places of others. This was Rousseaus third principle. In essence general will gives every individual in the collective the freedom to vote how he pleases in the assembly and ultimately everyone has a say in the running of the society as the democracy is direct. However, Rousseau retains that general will should not be the desire of the individual will, but what will be beneficial for everyone. Rousseau also believed that whoever went against obeying the general will ought to be enforced to do so by the whole body. This means nothing other than that he shall be forced to be free . What Rousseau means by this is that by people having the obligation to adhere to the social contract and by having to receive the benefit of the general will, theyre gaining freedom. This is in contrast to Hobbes and Locke who believed laws were created to stop us wandering from the path of civil obedience and referred to as hedges. Rousseau asserts that it is the process of law making that sets us free. His key argument was that if we are the authors of the law then we could manifest our own freedom and independence. According to Rousseau we are all born free and have the capacity to be free but to achieve this Rousseau believed we have to build a social government that does not enslave us. It could be argued that Rousseaus idea of the rule of the general will, is compatible with the freedom of the individual. This is because Rousseau described the notion of there being 2 different types of freedom. There is social freedom and a personal freedom. He also refers to personal freedom as the state of nature. Rousseau said that freedom was only reachable when the populace obeyed the laws it set itself. J. Plamenatz (1992) describes this by explaining ideally we would say, I alone have made the law that I obey but that this is impossible and instead the most we can hope for is that each should say, I obey the law that we have made rather than I obey the law that they have made. This ideal is that every citizen should identify himself with the community that makes the law . Rousseau bellied that the ab ility to follow these rules and laws would only be possible once one recognised themselves as a part and member of the community of lawmakers. Rousseau had previously discussed the first explanatory problem of the origins of how we became unfree, when we are born naturally free in the state of nature. He wrote about this in Discourse on the Origin of Inequality (1755). It is in The Social Contract (1762) that he explained the second problem, the justificatory problem and suggested an answer. Rousseau asserted that power only becomes legitimate once the people consent to it and. He said, Each of us puts his person and all his power in common under the supreme direction of the general will; and in a body we receive each member as an indivisible part of the whole In conclusion, Iain Hampsher-Monk writes in A History of Modern Polticial Thought that, part of the main, objective of the general will, therefore is its constant tendency to equality . He says that the notion of obeying ourselves is a difficult one to understand, however he explains that in this way of setting and obeying our own rules, tyranny can be guarded against . Whilst some scholars have regarded Rousseaus political thought as pointing towards totalitarianism, (as he advocates complete subservience to the state) many others regard him as a firm liberal and a defender of freedom and equality. For this reason it is believed that Rousseaus idea of the rule of the general will is compatible with the freedom of the individual, as in Rousseaus state; the popular sovereignty effectively governs themselves by legitimising the chains of society and reconciling sovereignty , freedom and authority.

The Reliability of Heidegger’s Reading of Plato’s Gigantomachia :: Philosophy Philosophical Papers

The Reliability of Heidegger’s Reading of Plato’s Gigantomachia ABSTRACT: At issue is the reliability of Heidegger’s contention that Greek thinking, especially Plato’s, was constricted by an unthought "pre-ontology." "The meaning of being" supposedly guiding and controlling Greek ontology is "Being = presence." This made "the question of the meaning of ousia itself" inaccessible to the Greeks. Heidegger’s Plato’s Sophist is his most extensive treatment of a single dialogue. To test his own reliability, he proposes "to demonstrate, by the success of an actual interpretation of [the Gigantomachia], that this sense of Being [as presence] in fact guided [Plato’s] ontological questioning . . .". I will show Heidegger’s strategy in connecting what he takes to be Plato’s naive pre-ontology — Being = Presence — to the ontology of the Gigantomachia — Being = Power. I will show that Heidegger blatantly misreads the text to make the connection: he completely misses the distinction between bodies and bodiless things. The text makes sense, I will show, if and only if its explicit ontology — Being = Power — is its implicit pre-ontology. Plato wrote his text not to discuss, but to exemplify, Heidegger’s ontology-preontology distinction. He wrote the Gigantomachia for Heidegger, but Heidegger missed it. Heidegger proposed "to demonstrate, by the success of an actual interpretation of [Plato’s gigantomachia] that this sense of Being [as presence] in fact guided the ontological questioning of the Greeks...." I will show Heidegger failed this self-imposed test. Then with Heidegger’s interpretation as a starting point, I will show the basic structure of the text. The organizers of this conference have arbitrarily established a fifteen minute long border artificially confining my thought: Anything that cannot be thought within that boundary cannot be thought or said at this conference. In Plato’s gigantomachia peri tes ousias (Soph. 246-48), the Stranger establishes a border that constricts, not thought, but beings within a sharply defined boundary: "For I am establishing that there is a border that confines the beings in such a way that they are nothing else but power" (247de). (My translation). Heidegger, however, claims Plato’s Stranger establishes this boundary confining beings because a conceptual boundary, analogous to the fifteen minute long boundary established for this conference, constricts Plato’s own thinking: Plato cannot think outside the boundary, the "unthought" implicit "pre-ontology," that controlled all Greek thought; Plato’s gigantomachia peri tes ousias, his "ontology," his explicit "theoretical inquiry explicitly devoted to the meaning of entities," occurs within the confines of this constricting pre-ontology.

Causes of World War One Essay

On Sunday 28th June, 1914 Franz Ferdinand, and his wife, were assassinated part of a Serbian Terrorist Group, called the Black Hand. This event and the tension between Europe was a trigger that set off declarations of war and resulted in the â€Å"Great War†. Tensions had been building up in Europe for decades through Nationalism, Imperialism, Militarism, and Alliances, and these tensions had reach such a point that an event was needed to break these tensions. This was the assassination of the Archduke. Therefore the assassination and alliances were causes of World War One. Australia was involved in the war because of the fact that it was part of the British Empire therefore having duties towards Britain, and also growing patriotic support for the mother country. This patriotism was a main factor in deciding Australia’s fate in World War One. In 1914, when Britain declared war, it also declared war on behalf of the British Empire. Being a part of the British Empire, it was Australia’s duty to assist Britain in the war, and to assist Britain’s Allies. Due to the large loyalty existing in Australia towards the mother country, the decision, by the current time Prime Minister Joseph Cook, to send Australia against war with Germany and Austria, was met with spontaneous outpouring of patriotism. Thousands of mean came to enlist in the army, men and boys were eager to fight in the war, and tackle the great adventure of war. Few communities were against Australia joining the war. It was an opportunity for Australia to could demonstrate its loyalty, believing Australia would turn into a nation, and prove its strength as a nation. It was also a chance to develop Australia’s rank in the world and to be a part of the high-power nations. The assassination was the trigger, for what were causes of tensions brooding in Europe. Once the trigger occurred; Imperialism, Nationalism, Militarism and Alliances all played there part in shaping one of the world most devastating Wars. The assassination triggered countries to go to war, and then allies to go to war, and then colonies to go to war, such as the British Empire sending Australia to war and then result in jealousies between countries through imperialism and nationalism, Germany feeling that Russia and Britain had colonized to many countries and that it had a upper ight hand, with people from various countries feeling that their country is the best and therefore should there power through such things as their military power, therefore bringing in militarism. As you can see all these notions are intertwined and they together form the cause of why such a war like World War One occurred and why it was so devastating, and also why Australia joined the War.

Compare and Contrast Communism, Socialism, and Capitalism

What is communism? Communism is a term used broadly to designate a ‘theory or system of social organization based on the holding of all property in common, actual ownership being ascribed to the community as a whole or to the state. ’ It refers to the doctrine which underlines the revolutionary movement which aims to abolish capitalism and ultimately to establish a society in which all goods will be socially owned, all economic activates socially planned and controlled, and in which all distributions will be in accordance with the maxim.German author Emil Ludwig described the maxim as â€Å"for each according to his capacity, to each according to his need. †(1) It is to be distinguished from socialism which aims by constitutional and democratic methods to nationalize gradually only the essential means of production and to organize distribution on the basis of a just reward to each person for the amount and quality of his or her work. In its early forms the term â €Å"communism† first came into use in France, after 1840; the general idea being that private property is the source of all social ills which can be cured only by a community of goods and interest.In the Greco- Roman world, Plato expounded the idea in his book The Republic in the 4th century and to stoics implied it in their doctrine of natural right or as they called it â€Å"jus natural† which means according to which natured created all men free and equal and private property was unknown to the original state of nature. (2) According to Karl Marx, this is the final stage towards development of egalitarian society. Here all the resources are state-owned and it determines its distribution based on the needs in an effort to bring about equality. Communism is conservative. Fewer and fewer people have any say in how the economy works.By using state coercion to fulfill unmet demands, it restricts individual freedom. Communism necessarily takes the form of totalitarianism or the tyranny of all over one since it’s up to the state to decide who gets what. Historically, communist societies have been characterized by the absolute rule of a revolutionary party leader, beneath whom everyone is equally subservient. It becomes very difficult for such an economy to survive in a large population when it becomes difficult for equal distribution of resources. (5) Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels are the ones responsible for the theoretical foundations of the modern communism.In their time together Marx and Engels wrote several pieces of documentations and books which started in 1848 with The Communist Manifesto, 1850 Marx’s Class Struggles in France, 1867 The First Volume of Das Kapital, 1871 Civil War in France, 1875 Critique of the Gotha Programme, and in 1877 Engels so called Anti-Duhring. Marx and Engels took over and modified the current concepts of materialism, the Hegelian view of historic evolution as dialectical process moving from thesis th rough antithesis to synthesis, the labor theory of value of David Ricardo, The critique of capitalism of the ‘Utopian â€Å"by French socialist, and tactics of Blanqui.In later writings, Marx and Engels described the ideal communist society only in general terms such as â€Å"a system of social ownership under which production would be carried on by voluntary associations of workers, distribution would be in accordance with the needs, the state would cease to be an instrument of force and â€Å"wither away† and the individual would live in freedom and in harmony with society. Marx and Engels thought that the social revolution they aimed at could be carried out by peaceful means in some countries like England and The United States. 2) Marx and Engels used the term â€Å"communism† to distinguish their program from socialism which in the 1840’s meant economic and social reform. Some countries that are, or have been communist are the former U. S. S. R, Chin a, Germany, Guatemala, Cuba, Greece, Africa, Some parts of the United States, Turkey, Suez, Israel, North Korea, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand and the southern part of Thailand. (2) We now move to socialism, what is socialism? As mentions before socialism is the doctrine that espouses public ownership or control of a major means of production.It aims to achieve an equitable and efficient distribution of social goods and greater economic planning then exist under capitalism. Although the central concerns of socialism appears to be economic its ramifications extend to the moral, social and political realms, in fact together with nationalism, it is the leading ideological and political movement of the 20th century. It is considered to be the transitional phase between the capitalism and communism. Thus, you would find all communists advocating for socialism because it lays the foundations for communism.It advocates an egalitarian society where everyone shares equal wealth and power . There is a considerable disagreement over how the distribution should take place. Hence, socialism can be said to be between extreme capitalism and extreme communism with it being nearer to communism. Socialism is liberal. More people have say in how the economy works. (5) The basic principles of contempary socialism have their origin in the economic, social and cultural transformations of Europe which occurred during the 18th and 19th centuries.Contributing factors were the Industrial Revolution and the rise of the bourgeois’ and proletarian classes, the enlightenment’s secular and rationalistic view of men and society, and the democratic demands of the French Revolution. Social ownership and control is the development of private property and it inordinate pursuit are seen by socialist theorist as the root causes of inequalities among men, of moral corruption, and of disruptions of the social order, this led to the abolition of private property or control over its u ndesirable manifestations, is fundamental tenet of socialism.The means advocated attaining this objective accounts for a broad range of socialist programs, from state ownership and regulation of the entire economy to anarchistic cooperative association; from mixed economy of publicity corporately and privately owned enterprises to national producers’ and consumers’’ cooperatives; from state sponsored social welfare programs to self-sufficient local communes. Socialist argues that the pernicious nature of private property was cleared disclosed with the development of capitalism.The growth of commerce and industry, coupled with the doctrine of Laissez faire, brought about the private ownership of the major means of productions by a small group of individuals, who intern was able to accumulate most of the wealth of the society. People began to move away from the country and the population became centralized. Cities grew rapidly and overcrowding became an enormous p roblem. This new industrial workforce, the proletariat, worked and lived in appalling conditions. Poverty was rampant.The cities were havens for crime and disease. The tumultuous transformation affected not only the lives of the workers but also craftsmen, such as handloom weavers, who were being forced out of business by factories which could produce the same product at a lower price. Much of the working class was confounded by the radical changes that were going on. Without anyone planning it, capitalism had emerged and began to flourish as there was no opposition to it. The factory owners became richer and low-skilled workers and the unemployed became poorer.Workers whose trades were less secured decided to form trade societies. This allowed the proletariat who had nothing to trade but their labor, to sell their labor for the best possible price. By uniting, workers could achieve results that could not be achieved individually. The central ideas of socialist have their roots in m ans perennial discontent with the conditions of his existence. They reflect his desire to overcome scarcity, inequality and social strife, and his longing for justice, happiness, perfection and at time for transcendence.Among the forerunners of modern socialism are the utopias of Plato with is book The Republic along with Sir Thomas More Utopia , 1516 and Tommase Campanella City of The Sun 1602, the experiments of the Anabaptist Sects in Central Europe, the theories of the Diggers and Levelers in England. (3) The theories of Marx and Engels represent the watershed of socialist thought. The collaborators synthesized the basic socialist ideas, gave them a comprehensive theoretical and practice expressions and influence their development.Although communism developed as an atheistic ideology the basic principles of socialism can be readily traced to the Christian idea of brother hood, it protests against the selfish pursuit of wealth, and its traditions of communal life. Indeed, Engels acknowledges the religious heritage of the socialist movement and considered the early Christians among the precursors of socialism. (3) Louis Blane and Constantine Pecqueur, who advocated public ownership, worker-managed industries and parliamentary democracy during the Revolution of 1848 in France, were the precursors of the socialism accepted by the modern social democratic parties.The Fabian society founded in 1884, set out to promote socialism through gradual democratically achieved reforms in England. Relying on propaganda, research, and public debate, the Fabians sought to â€Å"permate† trade unions, political parties and other gaps with their ideas. They succeeded with the middle and educated classes and they became influential in the labor and liberal parties. Among the earliest Fabians were G. B Shaw and Sidney Webb. Areas that were affected by socialism were European countries such as Germany, Austria, Bulgaria and Estonia.In Asia you had North and South Korea, Vi etnam, Burma, Japan, Lon Nol, Singapore, Ceylon. In the Middle East there was Israel, Egypt, and Tunisia. In Africa there was Ghana, Sekov Toure, The Congo, Kenya and Tanganyika, and in Latin America there were Uruguay and Mexico. (3) This term was first coined by Karl Marx to describe a system in which small group of people own large amount of money, land, resources. It puts all the economy is the hands of wealthy business people with the only aim of maximizing profits.Such economies remain free of government intervention with all the policies being determined by private individuals. The result is monopoly, and a huge gap in the earnings among the employer class and the worker class. Though it’s very good for trades and industries to flourish, it can lead to worker exploitation and unethical business practices. â€Å"Laissez-Faire† capitalism which means pure capitalism with no government intervention is said to have never existed in practice. 5) Capitalism is the typ e of economy in which capital is privately owned and maybe freely used by the owners as they wish in attempting to make profits from their economic enterprise. This type of economy is known as Capitalistic system. Implicit in capitalism is the existence of an effective technique for exchanging good and services. In all but extremely primitive forms of capitalism presuppose the existence of a monetary and financial system. In the sense the term capitalism may be distinguished any economic system in which capital is privately owned and used by the owner as he wishes, capitalism is not of recent origin.Elements of this type of economic system may be traced back to early historical periods. Even in the hunting and fishing style of society, physical capital and financial capital were individually owned and used. Further capitalistic developments continued through the pastoral and agricultural stages and into the age of metal. By the time of the Greek and Roman civilizations, capitalism h ad become fairly well developed. The oppressive phase due to the Industrial Revolution in England drew much socialist criticism.Marx and others tended to generalize from the unfortunate aspects of the Industrial Revolution and to conduce that the explanation of labor was an inherent of evil capitalism. Marx predicted that under capitalism cyclical fluctuations in business activity would become increasingly severe. This would cause more and more members of the capitalist class to be reduced to the ranks of the proletariat. Eventually, he predicted the increasing misery of the proletarian class would lead it to overthrow the capitalistic system and replace it with some form of socialism.In 1776 Adam Smith, a Scottish university professor, produced a book which described the workings of a capitalist society. He believed that a country's wealth depends on all people pursuing their own interests. If a person promotes his own interest he or she is unintentionally promoting his country's i nterest. Smith thought that governments should promote free trade and not interfere by protecting certain industries from competition. The only duty of governments, Smith wrote, was to provide services that couldn't be profitable like the building of roads, schools and churches.

The Clinical Leadership Theory Essays

The Clinical Leadership Theory Essays The Clinical Leadership Theory Essay The Clinical Leadership Theory Essay Our organization has used Ashridge Model to express their vision and strategies for their key objectives for transforming our practices as an Agenda for change strategies. (See Fig 1 for Ashridge Model) However, Whiteley et al 1996) warns that the danger with transforming leader is that many are left behind in the dark if the vision is not communicated well. Trait theory: Attempts made to identify common characteristics of effective leaders but most studies singled out intelligence, which means solving complex problems and discovering patterns. Initiation. It includes the use of initiatives related to stamina and energy. Self assurance- Perception of a place in society and self-confidence. John Hunt of the London Business School claims that leaders trait tend to be found in the first born of families, are high achievers, have high energy levels, think and plan over long time spans, are goal directed, they are politically active, loners and psychologically able to differentiate things of important from those that are not. This theory fell out into disrepute after concluding that effective leaders are either above average height or below. (Open University Centre Business School 1998)` Style theory came at the time of reaction to scientific management. It advocates participation culture, linked to the notions of satisfaction. It represented a more democratic humanistic approach of the use of manpower in organisations. Hardy (1999, p117) proposed the best fit approach with effective performance that dependent on the environment. It includes power or positions of the leader shown in the box below. The Clinical Leadership Theory by Jumaa and Allyene (1998) proposes a Leadership Model (CLINLAP), which is a clinical leadership learning and action process. The Leadlap/clinlap model is identified as strategic management and leadership process that positions processes learning as a force that drives the health and social care organizations on a day to day basis in the management of goals, roles process and relationships (Jumaa 2001). Strategic learning requires among other things two major points in the box below. I have chosen to use this Model because it recognises stakeholders needs and gives tools to do the job. It had provided a pragmatic approach for the development of Management and Leadership activities in Group clinical supervisions with District Nurses therefore it has been tested for its effectiveness. It provides power to the leader and her followers. The assumptions are that it believes in strategic workplace learning for continuous quality improvement, which is now, needed so much in the New NHS. Whilst the Leadlap/Clinlap model may gives satisfaction to many stakeholders, Alimo-Metcalfe and Alban-Metcalfe (2003) remind us of the cost of poor leadership. In the NHS it is estimated that 27% of staff have psychiatric problem developed at workplaces suggesting poor leadership. The study by CBI of the cost of absenteeism to UK organisation estimates it at around 3 billion pounds per year, and it is suspected that 60% of absenteeism was due to stress at work. 60-75% of employees in any organizations reported that the worst and most stressful aspect of their job is dealing with their bosses. This shows that Leadership is clearly a moral imperative, but it is also an organisational imperative. The Leadlap/Clinlap Model that I am using in this essay has five phases as shown in (Table: 1)

Teacher Appreciation Week Activities and Ideas

Teacher Appreciation Week Activities and Ideas Teacher Appreciation Week is a week-long celebration in the month of May, which is designated to honoring and celebrating the hard work and dedication of our teachers. During this week, schools across America show their love and appreciation to their teachers by having students and parents participate in activities to give thanks and acknowledge their teachers. In celebration of this week, I have gathered a few fun ideas and activities to show teachers how special you think they are. You will find ideas for administrators, teachers, and students. Ideas for Administrators One of the most effective ways that administration can show how much they appreciate their teaching staff is to plan something special for their teachers. Afternoon Lunch A simple way to show your appreciation is to prepare a luncheon in the faculty lounge for all the teachers in the school. Order a pizza or if your school has extra money splurge on some take-out. Pull-Out the Red Carpet If you really want to make a big deal out of your teaching staff and get your students in an uproar, try creating a red carpet experience. Get a piece of red carpet and velvet ropes and have each teacher walk down the carpet as they arrive at school. End of Day Celebration Plan a surprise end of the day celebration. Designate the last hour of the day as free time for the students. Then organize for parents to come in and help out with the class while the teacher goes to the lounge for a much-needed break. Have the teachers lounge filled with coffee and snacks, your efforts will be much appreciated. Ideas for Teachers A great way to teach your students about the value of showing appreciation for hard work is to have a class discussion about why teachers are so special. Follow up this discussion with a few fun activities. Read a Book Often students dont really grasp the importance of all their teachers do. To help them understand the time and effort it takes to be a teacher try reading a few books about teachers. Some of my favorites are: Thank you Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco, Miss Nelson is Missing by Harry Allard and What If There Were No Teachers? By Caron Chandler Loveless. Compare Teachers Have students compare their favorite teacher with a teacher from one of the books you read. Have them use a graphic organizer like a Venn diagram to help them organize their ideas. Write a Letter Have students write a letter to their favorite teacher telling them what makes them so special. First brainstorm ideas together as a class, then have students write their letters on special paper, and when completed, allow them to give it to the teacher they wrote about. Ideas for Students All teachers love to receive recognition for their hard work, but they appreciate it the most when it comes from their students. Here are some suggestions on how fellow teachers and parents can help students can give thanks to their teacher. Give Thanks Out Loud One of the most important ways students can express their gratitude to their teachers is to say it out loud. A unique way of doing this is to give thanks over the loudspeaker. If this is not possible then students can also ask the teacher if they can have a few minutes in the beginning or the end of class to show their appreciation. Door Decorations Before or after school, decorate the teachers classroom door with all the things they love, or what you love about the teacher. If your teacher loves animals, decorate the door in an animal theme. You can add a personal touch such as a letter to the teacher, a Worlds Best teacher certificate or even a painting or drawing. Make a Gift Theres nothing like a handmade gift that really shows a teacher how much you appreciate them. Create something that the teacher can cherish such as, a hall or bathroom pass, magnet, bookmark or anything they can use in their classroom, the ideas are endless.

Hypothesis, Model, Theory, and Law

Hypothesis, Model, Theory, and Law In common usage, the words hypothesis, model, theory, and law have different interpretations and are at times used without precision, but in science they have very exact meanings. Hypothesis Perhaps the most difficult and intriguing step is the development of a specific, testable hypothesis. A useful hypothesis enables predictions by applying deductive reasoning, often in the form of mathematical analysis. It is a limited statement regarding the cause and effect in a specific situation, which can be tested by experimentation and observation or by statistical analysis of the probabilities from the data obtained. The outcome of the test hypothesis should be currently unknown, so that the results can provide useful data regarding the validity of the hypothesis. Sometimes a hypothesis is developed that must wait for new knowledge or technology to be testable. The concept of atoms was proposed by the ancient Greeks, who had no means of testing it. Centuries later, when more knowledge became available, the hypothesis gained support and was eventually accepted by the scientific community, though it has had to be amended many times over the year. Atoms are not indivisible, as the Greeks supposed. Model A model is used for situations when it is known that the hypothesis has a limitation on its validity. The Bohr model of the atom, for example, depicts electrons circling the atomic nucleus in a fashion similar to planets in the solar system. This model is useful in determining the energies of the quantum states of the electron in the simple hydrogen atom, but it is by no means represents the true nature of the atom. Scientists (and science students) often use such idealized models  to get an initial grasp on analyzing complex situations. Theory and Law A scientific theory or law represents a hypothesis (or group of related hypotheses) which has been confirmed through repeated testing, almost always conducted over a span of many years. Generally, a theory is an explanation for a set of related phenomena, like the theory of evolution or the big bang theory.   The word law is often invoked in reference to a specific mathematical equation that relates the different elements within a theory. Pascals Law  refers an equation that describes differences in pressure based on height. In the overall theory of universal gravitation developed by Sir Isaac Newton, the key equation that describes the gravitational attraction between two objects is called the law of gravity. These days, physicists rarely apply the word law to their ideas. In part, this is because so many of the previous laws of nature were found to be not so much laws as guidelines, that work well within certain parameters but not within others. Scientific Paradigms Once a scientific theory is established, it is very hard to get the scientific community to discard it. In physics, the concept of ether as a medium for light wave transmission ran into serious opposition in the late 1800s, but it was not disregarded until the early 1900s, when Albert Einstein proposed alternate explanations for the wave nature of light that did not rely upon a medium for transmission. The science philosopher Thomas Kuhn developed the term scientific paradigm to explain the working set of theories under which science operates. He did extensive work on the scientific revolutions that take place when one paradigm is overturned in favor of a new set of theories. His work suggests that the very nature of science changes when these paradigms are significantly different. The nature of physics prior to relativity and quantum mechanics is fundamentally different from that after their discovery, just as biology prior to Darwin’s Theory of Evolution is fundamentally different from the biology that followed it. The very nature of the inquiry changes. One consequence of the scientific method is to try to maintain consistency in the inquiry when these revolutions occur and to avoid attempts to overthrow existing paradigms on ideological grounds. Occam’s Razor One principle of note in regards to the scientific method is Occam’s Razor (alternately spelled Ockhams Razor), which is named after the 14th century English logician and Franciscan friar William of Ockham. Occam did not create the concept- the work of Thomas Aquinas and even Aristotle referred to some form of it. The name was first attributed to him (to our knowledge) in the 1800s, indicating that he must have espoused the philosophy enough that his name became associated with it. The Razor is often stated in Latin as: entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem or, translated to English: entities should not be multiplied beyond necessity Occams Razor indicates that the most simple explanation that fits the available data is the one which is preferable. Assuming that two hypotheses presented have equal predictive power, the one which makes the fewest assumptions and hypothetical entities takes precedence. This appeal to simplicity has been adopted by most of science, and is invoked in this popular quote by Albert Einstein: Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler. It is significant to note that Occams Razor does not prove that the simpler hypothesis is, indeed, the true explanation of how nature behaves. Scientific principles should be as simple as possible, but thats no proof that nature itself is simple. However, it is generally the case that when a more complex system is at work there is some element of the evidence which doesnt fit the simpler hypothesis, so Occams Razor is rarely wrong as it deals only with hypotheses of purely equal predictive power. The predictive power is more important than the simplicity. Edited by Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D.

Nursing - Interprofessional Education Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Nursing - Interprofessional Education - Essay Example Further, nurses must broaden their skills and scope of practice while collaborating with a team of different health professionals. The ultimate solution lies in promote academic progression within nursing that recognizes the complex and evolving nature of nursing practice. Efforts aimed at promoting the team-based education for health professionals are not new or unique. The development in this area of education has been driven by concerns that the existing healthcare workforce must meet patient and community health in a cost-effective manner and that educational institutions must take more responsibility to produce a skilled workforce (Interpersonal Education Collaborative Expert Panel, 2011). Interprofessional education (IPE) has been described in a variety of ways. The World Health Organization (2010) defined IPE as occurring when professionals from different professional backgrounds learn about each other and from each other to enable collaborative improvement in health outcomes. Lowe et al (2012) described IPE as the interrelationship occurring between professionals and learners, able to learn from each other via effective collaboration to improve health outcomes. The purpose of IPE is therefore to facilitate the preparation of health workforce with regard to their ability to respond to local health needs (Lowe et al, 2012). The World Health Organization (2010) identifies interprofessional collaboration as an important strategy for mitigating global health challenges, especially regarding improvement of health outcomes and developing strong health system. Arguably, most of the health care in the U.S. is delivered via multidisciplinary approach (Pecukonis et al., 2008; Isaacs and Benjamin, 1991). This approach involves multidisciplinary work that runs parallel to client systems. More importantly, the communication work in this approach is embedded within a leadership hierarchy (Pecukonis et al., 2008). Within this system of health care, team members are res ponsible for activities related to their discipline, and there is little sense of shared responsibilities for team development or even patient outcomes. The notion of interprofessional education and its impact on the provision of services is not novel or unique. Pecukonis et al (2008) notes that interprofessional teams and collaborative groups were used as early as the mid 20th century at the level of community health care especially to underserved populations. From a historical perspective, inter-professional education was originally illustrated in the 1972 Conference Steering Committee recommendations (Interpersonal Education Collaborative Expert Panel, 2011; Davidson, 2005). The Conference made multilevel recommendations including organizational, administrative, instructional, and interpersonal. At the instructional and organizational level, the committee recommended obligations of academic institutions with regard to conducting interdisciplinary education and patient care aimed at developing methods to link education with requirements essential for practice. Other recommendations included use of ambulatory settings as sites for inter-professional education, an effort aimed at integrating classroom instruction to develop faculty skills. At the national level, the recommendations emphasized on the need to developing national framework for sharing practice models and instructional capacities, supporting government agency for innovative instructional and

Nutrition and dietetics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Nutrition and dietetics - Essay Example The options that they have are limited since they have to be a member in women’s only facilities, which are expensive and not well distributed throughout the country. They thus choose to stay away from these facilities, which would help them in their exercise activity. This increases the chances of risk since the women do not exercise and reduce fat as well as keep fit. Girls rarely experience any physical activities in schools. This receives basing on the belief of upholding moral quality. The society believes that girls lose their shyness if they change their clothes anywhere aside from home (Kelishadi 2007). As much as moral upbringing is admirable, this practice leads to no exercise for the female children. They have no outlet to reduce excess fat and to keep fit. Another factor is in diet. Many families have poor feeding habits. The family receives exposure to things like energy-dense foods and sugar-sweetened beverages. This consumption of unhealthy foods and drinks increases the chances of obesity quite high. Some women skip breakfast or take snacks rich in fat and calories throughout the day. These unhealthy eating habits reduce nutrition and increase the chances of obesity and chronic illnesses in the women. Higher levels of income lead to a more comfortable lifestyle (Al-Shayji IA 2004). Transport is mainly modern with reduced walking or running. Time spent on the television or internet increases as time passes. This greatly reduces physical activity. Thus, muscles do not undergo stretching and flexing. This leads to increased rate of obesity among the population. According to research, people can maintain good health even in their old age if the prevention and control of chronic diseases receives establishment early in life. This article elaborates a program that will help the Saudi Arabian women in reducing their chances of obtaining obesity. The goals of the program

Successes and failures of Mussolini Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Successes and failures of Mussolini - Essay Example Mussolini was among the leaders who laid the foundation for fascism in Italy. Fascism for these people included terms like nationalism, expansion, corporativism, anti-communism, social progress, propoganda, etc.. In the years that followed Mussolini tried to incorporate all these fascist ideolgoes into his policies and to a great extent was able to influence his people and gain the admiration of other political figures of that time. Some of the domestic policies he introduced from 1924-1939 were quite successful, the taming of the Pontine Marshes and the Lateran Treaty between the Kingdom of Italy and the Holy See being some of his successful achievements. Some of his policies resulted in improvement of job opportunities, and public transport. He was also able to achieve economic success in Italy's colonies and commercial dependencies. The policies Mussolini introduced can be divided into economic policies, political policies and social policies. As mentioned earlier, some were successful and some were failures. A perusal of these policies will enable us to evaluate Mussolini's successes and failures as a leader of a single party state. The idea of a corporate state was first introduced by Mussolini. ... Each syndicate came under the representatives of the Fascist party thereby ensuring that the state could intervene whenever the need arose. According to Mussolini "Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the merger of state and corporate power." Mussolini (1932) on another occasion said "The Fascist conception of life stresses the importance of the State and accepts the individual only in so far as his interests coincide with the State. It is opposed to classical liberalism [which] denied the State in the name of the individual; Fascism reasserts the rights of the State as expressing the real essence of the individual." The Battle for Grain was a campaign that encouraged workers to produce more grain to make Italy self- sufficient. The State took over direct control of many banks and heavy industry. In production the focus was mainly on military production. Although some of Mussolini's economic policies failed, not all of his economic policies were failures. His overall economic policy worked well for Italy and there was some economic growth in Italy despite the world wide depression. His regime was the most productive in Europe, in terms of raw materials, especially in pig iron. The Battle for grain campaign resulted in a 50% increase in production between 1922 and 1930. However it also resulted in deficiency in the diet of the poor. Mussolini's political policies were all directed towards consolidating his power. Mussolini, being a a prime minister of a coalition government that had only35 fascists, could not exercise full control. So he kept all important posts like home affairs for himself. In his first speech, he asked for cooperation from members of parliament and

Violence Among American Youths Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Violence Among American Youths - Essay Example ates, homicide resulting from violence committed by or suffered by the youth has been identified as being identified as the second leading cause of death among American people aged between 15-24 years old. The increasing violence has also been identified as having a number of negative economic effects on the country’s economy. By exploring the different causes and effects of increasing levels of violence among the youth and children, this paper will seek to show that increasing violence among children and youth across the entire United States is having an adversely negative impact on the country’s economy. Media Exposure and Aggressive and Violent Behavior: There has been an intensely raging debate over the years as to the extent to which media violence has served to contribute as a major cause of children and youth violence and aggression. The exposure youth and children in the United States get to violent media has been noted to be extremely high. Different bodies have presented reports and advisories against media violence but these have largely been ignored. Some of these bodies include the AMA and the APA (Escobar-Chaves & Anderson, 2008). There have been numerous empirical studies conducted that have been able to establish links between aggression and media violence. These studies have all managed to reach the conclusion that media violence definitely increases aggressive behavior among youth and children. Poor Parenting: Various aspects of parenting have been identified as possibly contributing to the increased violent behavior among children and youth in the United States. These include poor supervision, parental disharmony in the home, limited involvement by parents in a child’s activities such as school plays and games, erratic and harsh discipline as well as the rejection of a child (Seifert, Ray & Schmidt, 2012). The effect of these poor parenting traits is that parents who exhibit these behaviors often tend to engage in various parent-child

Global warming - new business challenges Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Global warming - new business challenges - Essay Example These losses are elevated in pollution and other devastating factors depleting the richness of these natural resources. Over exploiting will result in the extinct of these resources and loss of many diversified species. A flood, deludge whether is something which runs any business entitew into huge losses. heat wave like the one that gripped Britain in 1995 led to losses of 1.5 billion pounds1(Swiss Re, Business week) A business entity which ignores the basic external factors will lead to failure. Environment consiousness should be considered along with the development Global warming does reflect its adverse effects at places even far from places of pollution origin. Thus it reveals that the global warming issue is a concern for entire world but not for particular region. Business entities has to look into diversified and complex situations where in it will necessary to look in to issues like1 the demographic, economic conditions and the atmospheric conditions. The main challenges put in front of any organization would be the investment into non-revenue generating entities, high initial investments, the business planning complexities, extra employees benefits, safety and security systems. Non revenue generating entities are the features added in a production or manufacturing unit to make the ambience more secure like the alarm and security systems, the greenery maintaining. High initial investments are required to install these specialized devices in an work environment and complex to maintain as th equipments and devices are specially configured. The employee benefits are necessary to put into to safe the employee interests and to avoid turnover frequently. The employee benefits include high insurance payments, compensation, rehabilitation, pensions and medical allowances etc. Chapter-04: Case example-China coal industry The devices like the solar energy systems are costly as the market for the devices is limited and the technicians are to be maintained separately for operating these devices. China a rapidly developing Asian country has enhanced its energy utility base to nearly three times. The usage of home appliances has pressurized the domestic power consumption. The main raw material for power generation is coal extracted from earth crust. Depending upon the quality of th2e coal extracted the efficiency of energy produced would alter. The coal as a raw material has extremely polluted which spreads far to the neighboring countries. The increase in global-warming gases from China's coal use will probably exceed that for all industrialized countries combined over the next 25 years, surpassing by five times the reduction in such emissions that the Kyoto Protocol seeksNew York times2. The carbon dioxide emanating from Chinese coal plants will last for decades, with a cumulative warming effect that w ill eventually overwhelm the cooling from sulfur and deliver another large kick to global warming. China being a the worlds most populous country needs huge energy resources, however the huge expanse of china has provided with some gifted reources which were squised to the extreems by the business entities. The utilization of coal has risen to an alarming concern effecting china and its neighboring count

Advanced Financial Reporting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Advanced Financial Reporting - Essay Example Another way of achieving growth is through Merger and Acquisition (abbreviated as M&A). The former is also known is organic growth where the firm uses its own resources (retained earnings, reserves and surplus, or equity capital) for financing growth. The later is also known as inorganic growth where the acquirer firm buys the assets and liabilities of the target(s) as on a given date (Sherman, 2010, p.1). Thus, M&A are external growth strategy that gains popularity mainly due to globalization. It has become an important an important way for firms to expand their product portfolios and gaining new markets. M&A also helps the firm’s to acquire knowledge, latest technology and improved management capabilities. In addition, M&A has been found to be extremely successful for specific sectors like pharmaceuticals where extensive Research & Developments are required. R&D does not only require huge capital investment but also requires knowledge in relevant areas so that the target pro duct remains competent on global scale (Kumar and Yadav, 2005, pp.51-63). The main motive for any M&A is to experience a synergy in existing operations as well as profitability of the firms. However, it is also important to note that not all M&A have been successful in the past and thus some failed to maximise values leading to huge capital losses (Frensch, 2007, pp.48-49). In July 2013, TD Travel of Cheshire acquired Hotel scene, the hotel booking agency of Bristol and consequently created a new entity by rebranding called Corporate Travel International. The combined entity is expected to boost revenues for both the companies to over ?100 million and also employ more than 160 staff across different units. With reference to the above recent acquisition, the objective of this study is to discuss with reasons as to why such business combination has taken place and also explain the probable consequences or problems that the companies might face in future. Merger & Acquisition Strategy As on July 12, 2013, TD Travel completed the acquisition of Hotel Scene. The acquirer in this case is TD Travel where as the acquired is Hotel scene. The deal was finance and backed by private equity investment firm LDC. The acquisition is expected to create one of the largest and independent corporate travel and booking agent entity of UK. The companies have decided to re-brand the combined business into Corporate Travel International. It is also expected that such M&A will create a synergy that can boost the revenues of the new combined business entity of over ?100 million. The companies are also expecting to employ over 160 staffs in different branches located across London, Liverpool, Wilmslow, Bristol, and Hull. From the press release of the company it was found that the director of LDC is very optimistic about the M&A and has recommended the deal. He also believes that the management team of TD Travel is very experienced and motivated and thus holds immense potential to take t he new entity to the next level of stimulating growth trajectory. Regarding the financing of the deal, a package of working capital and senior debt facilities was provided by Lloyds Banking Group’s Finance and Acquisition team. The negotiation was primarily led by Relationship Director of TD Travel, Richard Townsend. The responsibilities of lead manager and advisory of the deal was given to BDO LLP which is also one of the most reputed Accountancy and Business

Global warming - new business challenges Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Global warming - new business challenges - Essay Example These losses are elevated in pollution and other devastating factors depleting the richness of these natural resources. Over exploiting will result in the extinct of these resources and loss of many diversified species. A flood, deludge whether is something which runs any business entitew into huge losses. heat wave like the one that gripped Britain in 1995 led to losses of 1.5 billion pounds1(Swiss Re, Business week) A business entity which ignores the basic external factors will lead to failure. Environment consiousness should be considered along with the development Global warming does reflect its adverse effects at places even far from places of pollution origin. Thus it reveals that the global warming issue is a concern for entire world but not for particular region. Business entities has to look into diversified and complex situations where in it will necessary to look in to issues like1 the demographic, economic conditions and the atmospheric conditions. The main challenges put in front of any organization would be the investment into non-revenue generating entities, high initial investments, the business planning complexities, extra employees benefits, safety and security systems. Non revenue generating entities are the features added in a production or manufacturing unit to make the ambience more secure like the alarm and security systems, the greenery maintaining. High initial investments are required to install these specialized devices in an work environment and complex to maintain as th equipments and devices are specially configured. The employee benefits are necessary to put into to safe the employee interests and to avoid turnover frequently. The employee benefits include high insurance payments, compensation, rehabilitation, pensions and medical allowances etc. Chapter-04: Case example-China coal industry The devices like the solar energy systems are costly as the market for the devices is limited and the technicians are to be maintained separately for operating these devices. China a rapidly developing Asian country has enhanced its energy utility base to nearly three times. The usage of home appliances has pressurized the domestic power consumption. The main raw material for power generation is coal extracted from earth crust. Depending upon the quality of th2e coal extracted the efficiency of energy produced would alter. The coal as a raw material has extremely polluted which spreads far to the neighboring countries. The increase in global-warming gases from China's coal use will probably exceed that for all industrialized countries combined over the next 25 years, surpassing by five times the reduction in such emissions that the Kyoto Protocol seeksNew York times2. The carbon dioxide emanating from Chinese coal plants will last for decades, with a cumulative warming effect that w ill eventually overwhelm the cooling from sulfur and deliver another large kick to global warming. China being a the worlds most populous country needs huge energy resources, however the huge expanse of china has provided with some gifted reources which were squised to the extreems by the business entities. The utilization of coal has risen to an alarming concern effecting china and its neighboring count

History of Special Education Essay Example for Free

History of Special Education Essay Special education has changed in many different ways throughout the last century. The views of they way students with differences should be taught and treated have changed as people have become more open minded. The education laws have also seen a turn about. One major area of education was in a desperate need of changed opinions and beliefs. Education for children with learning problems has emerged from no education to special funding and programs especially for those individuals with learning problems. The first phase of special education is the largest span of time. The Foundation Phase was from 1800 to  1930, children who had any sign of learning problems were labeled as dumb, retarded, and even brain injured. The reason students would have been labeled as brain injured is because of studies done on war victims and soldiers of war. Many soldiers had head injuries and the way they acted related very similarly to the way brain injured students acted. At this time period researchers and doctors located the area of the brain related to language, or the language function of the brain. The Transition Phase began in 1930 and lasted until 1960. This phase had some turning points in the way brain injured children were taught. Researchers developed instruments for assessment, analyzed specific Atwell 2 types of learning problems and also presented a plan for teaching brain injured children. At this stage the labeling of the children with learning problems was not as harsh as brain injured. The students were called children with minimal brain dysfunction. The turning phase for the education of students with learning problems was the Integration Phase, 1960 to 1980. There was a man by the name of Samuel Kirk, who came up with the name learning disabled. After this term took the place of brain injured and minimal  brain dysfunction, it seemed like there was hope for children with learning problems. Schools started establishing programs for the learning disabled. Funding was provided for teachers to be trained in learning disabilities. The most important part of the Integration Phase is the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (PL 94-142) in 1975. This act was to ensure that all students no matter what type of problem would receive a free and appropriate public education. The last phase is the Current Phase, from 1980 to the present. One of the major aspects of this phase is inclusion. Inclusion is educating students with disabilities in regular classrooms in their neighborhood schools, with collaborative support services as needed. Another aspect of the Current Phase is when the EMA of 1975 was rewritten as IDEA in 1990. IDEA, Individuals Atwell 3 with Disabilities Education Act, made it hard to suspend or expel students with learning disabilities because of their behavior. IDEA also required that each learning disabled child have an IEP, Individualized Education Program. An IEP is a document that must include current performance of the student, the annual goals the studen  needs to achieve, special education and related services the child needs, participation, if any, with nondisabled children, modifications needed to take state tests, dates and places of when and where special services will be provided and the measuring progress of the child. Before a student can have an IEP, they first must be labeled as a student with a learning disability. There are stages to figure out whether or not a child has a learning disability. The first stage is noticing if a student is having difficulty in one or more subject areas. The next step is to evaluate the childs  suspected disability area, but before this can take place, the school must receive permission from the parents to evaluate their child. Then the eligibility is decided by a group of qualified professionals along with the parents to determine if the child has a disability defined by IDEA. If found eligible, the IEP team must meet and write an IEP for the child within 30 days of the student being identified as disabled. The IEP team meeting is held and the IEP is written. Atwell 4 Services are then provided for the student. At the end of the year, progress is measured and IEP is reviewed. After this process takes place, every three years after that, the student is reevaluated. By law certain individuals must be involved in the writing of a childs Individualized Education Program. Parents must be involved because they know their child and what their child may need. Regular education teachers, if the student will be placed in regular classrooms some time during the day, are a need on the team, because they know the general curriculum. They also have knowledge of how to handle behavior problems. The next member of an IEP team should be a special education teacher. This  person will be able to contribute their knowledge in how to modify general curriculum and testing to help the special needs child learn and show what they have learned. The special education teacher also has the responsibility to teach the student and carry out the IEP. The individuals involved in the IEP team are individuals who can interpret evaluation results, represent the school system, individuals with knowledge or special expertise about the child, representatives from transition service agencies and the student who the IEP is being written for. Atwell 5 Education has gone through many stages of the way a  child should be taught. The law has made a path for those with learning problems and now there is no stopping them. Children with learning disabilities finally have a chance to excel in school and gives them the opportunity to have a normal life. Atwell 6 Works Cited A Guide to the Individualized Education Program. U. S. Department of Education. 20 Feb. 2001. . Lerner, Janet W. Learning Disabilities: Theories, Diagnosis, andTeaching Strategies. 8th ed. Boston: Ally Bacon Publishers, 2000. Levine, Daniel U. , Allan C. Ornstein. Foundations of Education. 6th ed. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1997.

Funding For Space Exploration Philosophy Essay

Funding For Space Exploration Philosophy Essay July 20, 1969, Commander Neil Armstrong takes the first steps on the moon. All it took was 170 billion dollars in todays money to put a man on the moon. Mankind does not need to explore further than the moon. Neil Armstrong once said This is one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. Forget giant leaps for mankind, NASA is a giant machine for spending money. This fact is backed up by the humiliating failure of the Orbiting Carbon Observatory, a $278 million package which blasted off from Vandenberg air force (DeGroot 2). Considering the debt that America struggles with in right now, NASA and space exploration is not the main priority. The United States government uses an excess of funds to explore outer space in an attempt to find other forms of intelligent life, they use too much tax money that can be put to better use, and many of the astronauts are at risk due to human spaceflight. A large portion of tax-payer money goes to NASA so that they can attempt to explore the unknown of space. Much of the money that NASA wastes on space exploration could be put to a much better and productive use. The United States government needs to focus on recovering their own planet before they discover others. Money that goes to NASA causes the national debt to increase. Instead, that money should go towards paying off the debt, or even fixing problems with unemployment. Back in the 1960s, when planning to put the first man on the moon, 58% of Americans opposed spending the estimated $40 billion or an average of about $225 per person required to send a person to the moon. Only a third supported the plan (Nasa Funding n.pag.). Many of the United States citizens opposed the plan because they knew that it should not be our main priority and it is a very large amount of money. The citizens were knowledgeable of how all of that money could benefit the country. In 2004, President Bus h presented Congress with a $2.4 trillion budget blueprint for the 2005 fiscal year (Nasa Funding n.pag.). The budget for the 2005 year is an extreme amount and there is to explore the depth of space when humans barely know their own planet. A vast amount of the Earth remains undiscovered which gives no reason to worry about space. Given the knowledge that humans have, there could exist absolutely nothing in space besides rocks and meteors. Earth is possible the only planet that sustains intelligent life. Scientists have searched the vast emptiness of space since the first moon landing in the 1960s. Although, in 40 years of searching, we have detected no such signal. In 1967, we thought we had one, but that turned out to be the entirely natural signal of a pulsar (Murray 2). Assume that NASAs scientists continue searching and finally reach their goal of discovering intelligent life 200 years into the future. More than $8 trillion will have gone toward that goal judging by the drasti c increases of NASAs annual budget from the years 2003 to 2009 (Returning to the moon n.pag.). However, intelligent life may not even exist on other planets, so all the hard work and money will go to waste if NASA does not find any aliens. In December of 1993, NASA embarrassingly sent astronauts into orbit to repair the Hubble, which cost taxpayers and extra $629 million. Due to this incident, NASA was put to blame for their incompetence and using billions in federal funds without accountability (Nasa Funding n.pag.). NASA has the ability to just soak up federal funds and tax money to fix their mindless mistakes. The plans of the space program to send men into space may endanger their well-being. Earth is a perfect habitat for mankind, which gives humans no reason to leave. Margaret Haerens writes, Animals never leave a comfortable habitat for a harsh one, unless they are forced to (Haerens 2). Haerens compares the astronauts to animals and how the astronauts should not leave Earth when they are perfectly find where they are. Space can kill humans very rapidly without a spacesuit. Astronauts willingly put themselves into space where they know if anything goes wrong they will die instantly. Haerens also writes that, Our vertebrate ancestors did not come ashore hundreds of millions of years ago because they decided to boldly go where no fish had gone before (Haerens 2). The author says that the race to the moon and outer space is foolish and just because an area has never been explored does not mean that someone should explore the area, which relates back to how in nature, animals never leave a favorable environment for a poor one. The fact that the presence in space negatively affects the human body reinforces why humans should not leave Earth. Scientists have discovered that prolonged weightlessness does terrible things to the bones and circulatory system. If God wanted us to live in outer space, we wouldnt have balancing systems in our inner ears (Haerens 2). Humans have evolved and adapted to live on Earth, if humans were meant to live in space, they would have adapted to suit the harsh conditions of space. Iain Murray writes that alien life is completely unknown to the human race and humans have no idea what aliens are capable of. Aliens could have the potential to completely wipe humans off the face of the earth (Murray 1). If aliens actually exist, no one knows what they have the ability to do. They could be very powerful and dominate humans and imperialize the planet, Earth. Although, aliens may be able to assist humans with space travel if we ever encounter them. However, there are many reasons that support space exploration, such as the risk of mass extinction that happens on Earth forcing humans to migrate to other planets. In the case of a mass extinction, humans must find a plan B in order to survive. Haerens talks about the possibility that the human race has to move from Earth to avoid a mass extinction. Possibly, in 500 million years, the sun may slowly boil the oceans and incinerate the Earth. Natural disasters are not the only possibility for a mass extinction, other epidemics such as climate change and overpopulation can also cause mass extinctions. Haerens also writes that the chances of an epidemic of such colossal size that it can cause a mass extinction are pretty low. However, an asteroid of sufficient size could cause the extinction of humans as it did the dinosaurs (Haerens 3). Earth may soon become over populated with humans; therefore, the human race must find other planets to make sure that mankind will live on. Jerry DeGr oot notes that Stephen Hawking has argued about how the human race must colonize other planets to ensure mankinds long-term survival. The Earth is indeed doomed, but where will all the civilians go? When comparing Mars to Antarctica, Antarctica seems like a paradise (DeGroot 2). It seems logical to desire to colonize other planets since if the human race becomes extinct, all of mans achievements and accomplishments over time would be gone. Space travel has a high chance of happening, humans will eventually learn to harness the energy of space as the cavemen learned how to harness the energy of fire. Enthusiastic supporters of the space exploration argue that exploring outer space is the next step in human evolution. Scientists believe that the colonization of other planets, beginning with the moon, should become a long-term human goal. Scientist also argue that colonizing the moon helps humans learn how to live on Mars by learning how to live with conditions of the moon first (Retur ning to the Moon n.pag.). One day a devastating event will happen to the Earth and change the course of life and only space colonization can save it. Although space exploration can greatly benefit the progression of mankind, it depletes a large part Americas resources and funds. Instead of humans trying to find intelligent life, they should leave them to find us. The billions of dollars that are used each year to fund space exploration could greatly improve everyday life on planet Earth. The American government funds NASA with a plethora of money in order for them to discover the unknown of the universe and much of the funds comes from tax-payers. Also, the astronauts are exposed to the outside threats of space which put them in dangerous situations. Perhaps, one day, once Earth has achieved a utopic state, humans can fund a space program that will discover extraterrestrial beings.

Propaganda and Stereotyping Essay -- Media Stereotypes Stereotyping

Propaganda and Stereotyping Propaganda: a word that is commonly underestimated in its power. Confused with advertisement, people tend to take the disasters caused by propaganda lightly. One such disaster is the stereotype – a felicity confused with the truth. In this research paper, a closer attention will be given to the propaganda generation of stereotypes about a specific age group; how easily and believable stereotypes are carried by propaganda tactics on youth will be presented. Throughout this paper, a demonstration of the negative stereotypes on public opinion will be presented along with important methods in which stereotypes work in propaganda. The conclusion of this research paper will be highlighted through presenting credible research results and actual examples demonstrating the different stereotypes of today’s youth. At the end of this paper, it should be transparent that stereotypes are the brainchild of media through propaganda that uses its tactics and techniques to corrupt the pu blic minds. Prior to focusing on my example of youths’ stereotypes, it is a must to explain what propaganda is and how stereotypes have come to be a successful function of propaganda. Many people associate propaganda with advertisement, with television and radio ads. Indeed, these are forms of propaganda, but there other forms of communication that are far more complex, propaganda – simply because they are not perceived by audience as propaganda or better described as false or sometimes incomplete information presented as the truth without the knowledge of the audience. Some examples include false or incomplete news reporting, false habitual facts of certain groups of people, or even incomplete information about certain tendencie... ...ine at: , consulted on December 2001. Propaganda Techniques. â€Å"Internet†, in Disinfopedia Encyclopaedia. March edition, Center for Media & Democracy. Online at: , consulted on March 26 th, 2004 . Males, Mike (1994). â€Å" Bashing Youth: Media Myths about Teenagers†. Online at: , consulted on March/April, 1994. Joseph STRAUBHAAR and Robert LaROSE (2002). Media Now. Communications Media in the Information Age. 3rd Edition. Belmont, Wadsworth/Thompson Learning. KQED (1998). â€Å" YOUTH MEDIA CORPS: Youth Stereotypes, What are the Stereotypes?† Online at: , consulted on November 17 th, 1998 .

Essay --

Ethics in School Psychology School psychologists are presented with making ethical decisions on a daily basis due to the delicate balance between the needs of schools, parents, and children. What may be in the best interest of the child may conflict with the desires of the parents or may require services the school would rather ignore. Ethical dilemmas become increasingly complicated when state or federal laws conflict with ethical principles that could result in legal consequences. Ethical issues are a critical component for both the training and professional guidelines for the American Psychological Association (APA) and the National Association of School Psychology (Nagle, 1987). The current paper will provide an overview of the four overarching NASP ethical principles alongside examples of common ethical dilemmas faced by school psychologists. Respecting the Dignity and Rights of All Persons The first principle outlined by NASP (2010) states that: School psychologists engage only in professional practices that maintain the dignity of all individuals. In their words and actions, school psychologists demonstrate respect for the autonomy of persons and their right to self-determination, respect for privacy, and a commitment to just and fair treatment of all persons. (p. 302). Additional principles subsumed under this overarching principle include: (a) autonomy and self-determination; (b) privacy and confidentiality; (c) fairness and justice. Autonomy and self-determination respects each individual’s right to make decisions that affect him or herself including consent and assent processes. There are ethical exceptions to parental consent, such as consultation services to a teacher regarding interventions with a child tha... ...e of school psychologists’ responsibilities demands an effective strategy to approach ethical dilemmas. Conclusion Ethical considerations are an integral component to every school psychologists’ job. NASP (2010) outlines four overarching ethical principles including: (a) respecting the dignity and rights of all persons; (b) professional competence and responsibility; (c) honesty and integrity in professional relationships; (d) responsibility to schools, families, communities, the profession, and society. These principles elucidate the complex nature of possible ethical dilemmas that can arise across the diverse range of school psychologists’ roles. A thorough knowledge of ethics and law make up the foundation for providing effective services to students, families, and schools. Without an understanding of ethics, school psychologists could do more harm than good.

Forward the Foundation Chapter 24

8 Like any intellectual, Hari Seldon had made use of the Galactic Library freely. For the most part, it had been done long-distance through computer, but occasionally he had visited it, more to get away from the pressures of the Psychohistory Project than for any other purpose. And, for the past couple of years, since he had first formulated his plan to find others like Wanda, he had kept a private office there, so he could have ready access to any of the Library's vast collection of data. He had even rented a small apartment in an adjacent sector under the dome so that he would be able to walk to the Library when his ever-increasing research there prevented him from returning to the Streeling Sector. Now, however, his plan had taken on new dimensions and he wanted to meet Las Zenow. It was the first time he had ever met him face-to-face. It was not easy to arrange a personal interview with the Chief Librarian of the Galactic Library. His own perception of the nature and value of his office was high and it was frequently said that when the Emperor wished to consult the Chief Librarian, even he had to visit the Library himself and wait his turn. Seldon however, had no trouble. Zenow knew him well, though he had never seen Hari Seldon in person. â€Å"An honor, First Minister,† he said in greeting. Seldon smiled. â€Å"I trust you know that I have not held that post in sixteen years.† â€Å"The honor of the title is still yours. Besides, sir, you were also instrumental in ridding us of the brutal rule of the junta. The junta, on a number of occasions, violated the sacred rule of the neutrality of the Library.† (Ah, thought Seldon that accounts for the readiness with which he saw me.) â€Å"Merely rumor,† he said aloud. â€Å"And now, tell me,† said Zenow, who could not resist a quick look at the time band on his wrist, â€Å"what can I do for you?† â€Å"Chief Librarian,† began Seldon â€Å"I have not come to ask anything easy of you. What I want is more space at the Library. I want permission to bring in a number of my associates. I want permission to undertake a long and elaborate program of the greatest importance.† Las Zenow's face drew into an expression of distress. â€Å"You ask a great deal. Can you explain the importance of all this?† â€Å"Yes. The Empire is in the process of disintegration.† There was a long pause. Then Zenow said, â€Å"I have heard of your research into psychohistory. I have been told that your new science bears the promise of predicting the future. Is it psychohistorical predictions of which you are speaking?† â€Å"No. I have not yet reached the point in psychohistory where I can speak of the future with certainty. But you don't need psychohistory to know that the Empire is disintegrating. You can see the evidence yourself.† Zenow sighed. â€Å"My work here consumes me utterly, Professor Seldon. I am a child when it comes to political and social matters.† â€Å"You may, if you wish, consult the information contained in the Library. Why look around this very office-it is chock-full of every conceivable sort of information from throughout the entire Galactic Empire.† â€Å"I'm the last to keep up with it all, I'm afraid,† Zenow said, smiling sadly. â€Å"You know the old proverb: The shoemaker's child has no shoes. It seems to me, though, that the Empire is restored. We have an Emperor again.† â€Å"In name only, Chief Librarian. In most of the outlying provinces, the Emperor's name is mentioned ritualistically now and then, but he plays no role in what they do. The Outer Worlds control their own programs and, more important, they control the local armed forces, which are outside the grip of the Emperor's authority. If the Emperor were to try to exert his authority anywhere outside the Inner Worlds, he would fail. I doubt that it will take more than twenty years, at the outside, before some of the Outer Worlds declare their independence.† Zenow sighed again. â€Å"If you are right, we live in worse times than the Empire has ever seen. But what has this to do with your desire for more office space and additional staff here in the Library?† â€Å"If the Empire falls apart, the Galactic Library may not escape the general carnage.† â€Å"Oh, but it must,† said Zenow earnestly. â€Å"There have been bad times before and it has always been understood that the Galactic Library on Trantor, as the repository of all human knowledge, must remain inviolate. And so it will be in the future.† â€Å"It may not be. You said yourself that the junta violated its neutrality.† â€Å"Not seriously.† â€Å"It might be more serious next time and we can't allow this repository of all human knowledge to be damaged.† â€Å"How will your increased presence here prevent that?† â€Å"It won't. But the project I am interested in will. I want to create a great Encyclopedia, containing within it all the knowledge humanity will need to rebuild itself in case the worst happens-an Encyclopedia Galactica, if you will. We don't need everything the Library has. Much of it is trivial. The provincial libraries scattered over the Galaxy may themselves be destroyed and, if not, all but the most local data is obtained by computerized connection with the Galactic Library in any case. What I intend, then, is something that is entirely independent and that contains, in as concise a form as possible, the essential information humanity needs.† â€Å"And if it, too, is destroyed?† â€Å"I hope it will not be. It is my intention to find a world far away on the outskirts of the Galaxy, one where I can transfer my Encyclopedists and where they can work in peace. Until such a place is found, however, I want the nucleus of the group to work here and to use the Library facilities to decide what will be needed for the project.† Zenow grimaced. â€Å"I see your point, Professor Seldon, but I'm not sure that it can be done.† â€Å"Why not, Chief Librarian?† â€Å"Because being Chief Librarian does not make me an absolute monarch. I have a rather large Board-a kind of legislature-and please don't think that I can just push your Encyclopedia Project through.† â€Å"I'm astonished.† â€Å"Don't be. I am not a popular Chief Librarian. The Board has been fighting, for some years now, for limited access to the Library. I have resisted. It galls them that I have afforded you your small office space.† â€Å"Limited access?† â€Å"Exactly. The idea is that if anyone needs information, he or she must communicate with a Librarian and the Librarian will get the information for the person. The Board does not wish people to enter the Library freely and deal with the computers themselves. They say that the expense required to keep the computers and other Library equipment in shape is becoming prohibitive.† â€Å"But that's impossible. There's a millennial tradition of an open Galactic Library.† â€Å"So there is, but in recent years, appropriations to the Library have been cut several times and we simply don't have the funds we used to have. It is becoming very difficult to keep our equipment up to the mark.† Seldon rubbed his chin. â€Å"But if your appropriations are going down, I imagine you have to cut salaries and fire people-or, at least, not hire new ones.† â€Å"You are exactly right.† â€Å"In which case, how will you manage to place new labors on a shrinking work force by asking your people to obtain all the information that the public will request?† â€Å"The idea is that we won't find all the information that the public will request but only those pieces of information that we consider important.† â€Å"So that not only will you abandon the open Library but also the complete Library?† â€Å"I'm afraid so.† â€Å"I can't believe that any Librarian would want this.† â€Å"You don't know Gennaro Mummery, Professor Seldon.† At Seldon's blank look, Zenow continued. † ‘Who is he?' you wonder. The leader of that portion of the Board that wishes to close off the Library. More and more of the Board are on his side. If I let you and your colleagues into the Library as an independent force, a number of Board members who may not be on Mummery's side but who are dead set against any control of any part of the Library except by Librarians may decide to vote with him. And in that case, I will be forced to resign as Chief Librarian.† â€Å"See here,† said Seldon with sudden energy. â€Å"All this business of possibly closing down the Library, of making it less accessible, of refusing all information-all this business of declining appropriations-all this is itself a sign of Imperial disintegration. Don't you agree?† â€Å"If you put it that way, you may be right.† â€Å"Then let me talk to the Board. Let me explain what the future may hold and what I wish to do. Perhaps I can persuade them, as I hope I've persuaded you.† Zenow thought for a moment. â€Å"I'm willing to let you try, but you must know in advance that your plan may not work.† â€Å"I've got to take that chance. Please do whatever has to be done and let me know when and where I can meet the Board.† Seldon left Zenow in a mood of unease. Everything he had told the Chief Librarian was true-and trivial. The real reason he needed the use of the Library remained hidden. Partly this was because he didn't yet see that use clearly himself. 9 Hari Seldon sat at Yugo Amaryl's bedside-patiently, sadly. Yugo was utterly spent. He was beyond medical help, even if he would have consented to avail himself of such help, which he refused. He was only fifty-five. Seldon was himself sixty-six and yet he was in fine shape, except for the twinge of sciatica-or whatever it was-that occasionally lamed him. Amaryl's eyes opened. â€Å"You're still here, Hari?† Seldon nodded. â€Å"I won't leave you.† â€Å"Till I die?† â€Å"Yes.† Then, in an outburst of grief, he said, â€Å"Why have you done this, Yugo? If you had lived sensibly, you could have had twenty to thirty more years of life.† Amaryl smiled faintly. â€Å"Live sensibly? You mean, take time off? Go to resorts? Amuse myself with trifles?† â€Å"Yes. Yes.† â€Å"And I would either have longed to return to my work or I would have learned to like wasting my time and, in the additional twenty to thirty years you speak of, I would have accomplished no more. Look at you.† â€Å"What about me?† â€Å"For ten years you were First Minister under Cleon. How much science did you do then?† â€Å"I spent about a quarter of my time on psychohistory,† said Seldon gently. â€Å"You exaggerate. If it hadn't been for me, plugging away, psychohistorical advance would have screeched to a halt.† Seldon nodded. â€Å"You are right, Yugo. For that I am grateful.† â€Å"And before and since, when you spend at least half your time on administrative duties, who does-did-the real work? Eh?† â€Å"You, Yugo.† â€Å"Absolutely.† His eyes closed again. Seldon said, â€Å"Yet you always wanted to take over those administrative duties if you survived me.† â€Å"No! I wanted to head the Project to keep it moving in the direction it had to move in, but I would have delegated all administration.† Amaryl's breathing was growing stertorous, but then he stirred and his eyes opened, staring directly at Hari. He said, â€Å"What will happen to psychohistory when I'm gone? Have you thought of that?† â€Å"Yes, I have. And I want to speak to you about it. It may please you. Yugo, I believe that psychohistory is being revolutionized.† Amaryl frowned slightly. â€Å"In what way? I don't like the sound of that.† â€Å"Listen. It was your idea. Years ago, you told me that two Foundations should be established. Separate-isolated and safe-and arranged so that they would serve as nuclei for an eventual Second Galactic Empire. Do you remember? That was your idea.† â€Å"The psychohistoric equation -â€Å" â€Å"I know. They suggested it. I'm busy working on it now, Yugo. I've managed to wangle an office in the Galactic Library-â€Å" â€Å"The Galactic Library.† Amaryl's frown deepened. â€Å"I don't like them. A bunch of self-satisfied idiots.† â€Å"The Chief Librarian, Las Zenow, is not so bad, Yugo.† â€Å"Did you ever meet a Librarian named Mummery, Gennaro Mummery?† â€Å"No, but I've heard of him.† â€Å"A miserable human being. We had an argument once when he claimed I had misplaced something or other. I had done no such thing and I grew very annoyed, Hari. All of a sudden I was back in Dahl. One thing about the Dahlite culture, Hari, it is a cesspool of invective. I used some of it on him and I told him he was interfering with psychohistory and he would go down in history as a villain. I didn't just say ‘villain,' either.† Amaryl chuckled faintly. â€Å"I left him speechless.† Suddenly Seldon could see where Mummery's animosity toward outsiders and, most probably, psychohistory must come from-at least, in part-but he said nothing. â€Å"The point is, Yugo, you wanted two Foundations, so that if one failed, the other would continue. But we've gone beyond that.† â€Å"In what way?† â€Å"Do you remember that Wanda was able to read your mind two years ago and see that something was wrong with a portion of the equations in the Prime Radiant?† â€Å"Yes, of course.† â€Å"Well, we will find others like Wanda. We will have one Foundation that will consist largely of physical scientists, who will preserve the knowledge of humanity and serve as the nucleus for the Second Empire. And there will be a Second Foundation of psychohistorians only-mentalists, mind-touching psychohistorians-who will be able to work on psychohistory in a multiminded way, advancing it far more quickly than individual thinkers ever could. They will serve as a group who will introduce fine adjustments as time goes on, you see. Ever in the background, watching. They will be the Empire's guardians.† â€Å"Wonderful!† said Amaryl weakly. â€Å"Wonderful! You see how I've chosen the right time to die? There's nothing left for me to do.† â€Å"Don't say that, Yugo.† â€Å"Don't make such a fuss over it, Hari. I'm too tired to do anything. Thank you-thank you-for telling me†-his voice was weakening-â€Å"about the revolution. It makes me-happy-happy-hap-â€Å" And those were Yugo Amaryl's last words. Seldon bent over the bed. Tears stung his eyes and rolled down his cheeks. Another old friend gone. Demerzel, Cleon, Dors, now Yugo†¦ leaving him emptier and lonelier as he grew old. And the revolution that had allowed Amaryl to die happy might never come to pass. Could he manage to make use of the Galactic Library? Could he find more people like Wanda? Most of all, how long would it take? Seldon was sixty-six. If only he could have started this revolution at thirty-two when he first came to Trantor†¦ Now it might be too late. 10 Gennaro Mummery was making him wait. It was a studied discourtesy, even insolence, but Hari Seldon remained calm. After all, Seldon needed Mummery badly and for him to become angry with the Librarian would only hurt himself. Mummery would, in fact, be delighted with an angry Seldon. So Seldon kept his temper and waited and eventually Mummery did walk in. Seldon had seen him before-but only at a distance. This was the first time they would be together alone. Mummery was short and plump, with a round face and a dark little beard. He wore a smile on his face, but Seldon suspected that smile of being a meaningless fixture. It revealed yellowish teeth and Mummery's inevitable hat was of a similar shade of yellow with a brown line snaking around it. Seldon felt a touch of nausea. It seemed to him that he would dislike Mummery, even if he had no reason to do so. Mummery said, without any preliminaries, â€Å"Well, Professor, what can I do for you?† He looked at the time-strip on the wall but made no apology for being late. Seldon said, â€Å"I would like to ask you, sir, to put an end to your opposition to my remaining here at the Library.† Mummery spread his hands. â€Å"You've been here for two years. What opposition are you speaking of?† â€Å"So far, that portion of the Board represented by you and those who believe as you do have been unable to outvote the Chief Librarian, but there will be another meeting next month and Las Zenow tells me he is uncertain of the result.† Mummery shrugged. â€Å"So am I uncertain. Your lease-if we can call it that-may well be renewed.† â€Å"But I need more than that, Librarian Mummery. I wish to bring in some colleagues. The project in which I am engaged-the establishment of what is needed in the way of the eventual preparation of a very special Encyclopedia-is not one I can do alone.† â€Å"Surely your colleagues can work wherever they please. Trantor is a large world.† â€Å"We must work in the Library. I am an old man, sir, and I am in a hurry.† â€Å"Who can stay the advance of time? I don't think the Board will allow you to bring in colleagues. The thin edge of the wedge, Professor?† (Yes, indeed, thought Seldon, but he said nothing.) Mummery said, â€Å"I have not been able to keep you out, Professor. Not so far. But I think I can continue to keep out your colleagues.† Seldon realized that he was getting nowhere. He opened the touch of frankness a notch. He said, â€Å"Librarian Mummery, surely your animosity toward me is not personal. Surely you understand the importance of the work I am doing.† â€Å"You mean, your psychohistory. Come, you have been working on it for over thirty years. What has come of it?† â€Å"That's the point. Something may come of it now.† â€Å"Then let something come of it at Streeling University. Why must it be at the Galactic Library?† â€Å"Librarian Mummery. Listen to me. What you want is to close the Library to the public. You wish to smash a long tradition. Have you the heart to do that?† â€Å"It's not heart we need. It's funding. Surely the Chief Librarian has wept on your shoulder in telling you our woes. Appropriations are down, salaries are cut, needed maintenance is absent. What are we to do? We've got to cut services and we certainly can't afford to support you and your colleagues with offices and equipment.† â€Å"Has this situation been put to the Emperor?† â€Å"Come, Professor, you're dreaming. Isn't it true that your psychohistory tells you that the Empire is deteriorating? I've heard you referred to as Raven Seldon, something that, I believe, refers to a fabled bird of ill omen.† â€Å"It's true that we are entering bad times.† â€Å"And do you believe the Library is immune to those bad times? Professor, the Library is my life and I want it to continue, but it won't continue unless we can find ways of making our dwindling appropriations do. And you come here expecting an open Library, with yourself as beneficiary. It won't do, Professor. It just won't do.† Seldon said desperately, â€Å"What if I find the credits for you?† â€Å"Indeed. How?† â€Å"What if I talk to the Emperor? I was once First Minister. He'll see me and he'll listen to me.† â€Å"And you'll get funding from him?† Mummery laughed. â€Å"If I do, if I increase your appropriations, may I bring in my colleagues?† â€Å"Bring in the credits first,† said Mummery, â€Å"and we'll see. But I don't think you will succeed.† He seemed very sure of himself and Seldon wondered how often and how uselessly the Galactic Library had already appealed to the Emperor. And whether his own appeal would get anywhere at all. 11 The Emperor Agis XIV had no real right to the name. He had adopted it upon succeeding to the throne with the deliberate purpose of connecting himself with the Agises who had ruled two thousand years ago, most of them quite ably-particularly Agis VI, who had ruled for forty-two years and who had kept order in a prosperous Empire with a firm but nontyrannical hand. Agis XIV did not look like any of the old Agises-if the holographic records had any value. But, then again, truth be told, Agis XIV did not look much like the official holograph that was distributed to the public. As a matter of fact, Hari Seldon thought, with a twinge of nostalgia, that Emperor Cleon, for all his flaws and weaknesses, had certainly looked Imperial. Agis XIV did not. Seldon had never seen him at close quarters and the few holographs he had seen were outrageously inaccurate. The Imperial holographer knew his job and did it well, thought Seldon wryly. Agis XIV was short, with an unattractive face and slightly bulging eyes that did not seem alight with intelligence. His only qualification for the throne was that he was a collateral relative of Cleon. To do him credit, however, he did not try to play the role of the mighty Emperor. It was understood that he rather liked to be called the â€Å"Citizen Emperor† and that only Imperial protocol and the outraged outcry of the Imperial Guard prevented him from exiting the dome and wandering the walkways of Trantor. Apparently, the story went, he wished to shake hands with the citizens and hear their complaints in person. (Score one for him, thought Seldon, even if it could never come to pass.) With a murmur and a bow, Seldon said, â€Å"I thank you, Sire, for consenting to see me.† Agis XIV had a clear and rather attractive voice, quite out of keeping with his appearance. He said, â€Å"An ex-First Minister must surely have his privileges, although I must give myself credit for amazing courage in agreeing to see you.† There was humor in his words and Seldon found himself suddenly realizing that a man might not look intelligent and yet might be intelligent just the same. â€Å"Courage, Sire?† â€Å"Why, of course. Don't they call you Raven Seldon?† â€Å"I heard the expression, Sire, the other day for the first time.† â€Å"Apparently the reference is to your psychohistory, which seems to predict the Fall of the Empire.† â€Å"It points out the possibility only, Sire-â€Å" â€Å"So that you are coupled with a mythic bird of ill omen. Except that I think you yourself are the bird of ill omen.† â€Å"I hope not, Sire.† â€Å"Come, come. The record is clear. Eto Demerzel, Cleon's old First Minister, was impressed with your work and look what happened-he was forced out of his position and into exile. The Emperor Cleon himself was impressed with your work and look what happened-he was assassinated. The military junta was impressed with your work and look what happened-they were swept away. Even the Joranumites, it is said, were impressed with your work and, behold, they were destroyed. And now, O Raven Seldon, you come to see me. What may I expect?† â€Å"Why, nothing evil, Sire.† â€Å"I imagine not, because unlike all these others I have mentioned, I am not impressed with your work. Now tell me why you are here.† He listened carefully and without interruption while Seldon explained the importance of setting up a Project designed to prepare an encyclopedia that would preserve human learning if the worst happened. â€Å"Yes yes,† said Agis XIV finally, â€Å"so you are, indeed, convinced the Empire will fall.† â€Å"It is a strong possibility, Sire, and it would not be prudent to refuse to take that possibility into account. In a way, I wish to prevent it if I can-or ameliorate the effects if I can't.† â€Å"Raven Seldon if you continue to poke your nose into matters, I am convinced that the Empire will fall and that nothing can help it.† â€Å"Not so, Sire. I ask only permission to work.† â€Å"Oh, you have that, but I fail to see what it is you wish of me. Why have you told me all this about an encyclopedia?† â€Å"Because I wish to work in the Galactic Library, Sire, or, more accurately, I wish others to work there with me.† â€Å"I assure you that I won't stand in your way.† â€Å"That is not enough, Sire. I want you to help.† â€Å"In what way, ex-First Minister?† â€Å"With funding. The Library must have appropriations or it will close its doors to the public and evict me.† â€Å"Credits!'† A note of astonishment came into the Emperor's voice. â€Å"You came to me for credits?† â€Å"Yes, Sire.† Agis XIV stood up in some agitation. Seldon stood up at once also, but Agis waved him down. â€Å"Sit down. Don't treat me as an Emperor. I'm not an Emperor. I didn't want this job, but they made me take it. I was the nearest thing to the Imperial family and they jabbered at me that the Empire needed an Emperor. So they have me and a lot of good I am to them. â€Å"Credits! You expect me to have credits! You talk about the Empire disintegrating. How do you suppose it disintegrates? Are you thinking of rebellion? Of civil war? Of disorders here and there? â€Å"No. Think of credits. Do you realize that I cannot collect any taxes at all from half the provinces in the Empire? They're still part of the Empire-‘Hail the Imperium!'-‘All honor to the Emperor'-but they don't pay anything and I don't have the necessary force to collect it. And if I can't get the credits out of them, they are not really part of the Empire, are they? â€Å"Credits! The Empire runs a chronic deficit of appalling proportions. There's nothing I can pay for. Do you think there is enough funding to maintain the Imperial Palace grounds? Just barely. I must cut corners. I must let the Palace decay. I must let the number of retainers die down by attrition. â€Å"Professor Seldon. If you want credits, I have nothing. Where will I find appropriations for the Library? They should be grateful I manage to squeeze out something for them each year at all.† As he finished, the Emperor held out his hands, palms up, as if to signify the emptiness of the Imperial coffers. Hari Seldon was stunned. He said, â€Å"Nevertheless, Sire, even if you lack the credits, you still have the Imperial prestige. Can you not order the Library to allow me to keep my office and let my colleagues in to help me with our vital work?† And now Agis XIV sat down again as though, once the subject was not credits, he was no longer in a state of agitation. He said, â€Å"You realize that, by long tradition, the Galactic Library is independent of the Imperium, as far as its self-government is concerned. It sets up its rules and has done so since Agis VI, my namesake†-he smiled-â€Å"attempted to control the news functions of the Library. He failed and, if the great Agis VI failed, do you think I can succeed?† â€Å"I'm not asking you to use force, Sire. Merely expressing a polite wish. Surely, when no vital function of the Library is involved, they will be pleased to honor the Emperor and oblige his wishes.† â€Å"Professor Seldon, how little you know of the Library. I have but to express a wish, however gently and tentatively, to make it certain that they will proceed, in dudgeon, to do the opposite. They are very sensitive to the slightest sign of Imperial control.† Seldon said, â€Å"Then what do I do?† â€Å"Why, I'll tell you what. A thought occurs to me. I am a member of the public and I can visit the Galactic Library if I wish. It is located on the Palace grounds, so I won't be violating protocol if I visit it. Well, you come with me and we shall be ostentatiously friendly. I will not ask them for anything, but if they note us walking arm-in-arm, then perhaps some of the precious Board of theirs may feel more kindly toward you than otherwise. But that's all I can do.† And the deeply disappointed Seldon wondered if that could possibly be enough.