Good Writers, Bad Books A NaNoWriMo Debrief

Good Writers, Bad Books A NaNoWriMo Debrief Good Writers, Bad Books: A NaNoWriMo Debrief NaNoWriMo is over! Whether you're out celebrating your achievement, or still mulling over your newborn novel, we thought we'd share  a personal, warm and fuzzy  NaNo experience with you, straight from our editor Rebecca Heyman, who did herself complete NaNoWriMo a few years ago. The first and only time I completed NaNoWriMo was back in 2004. I was a sophomore at NYU, and spent most of that November holed up in a coveted single dorm, smoking cigarettes out the room's lone window overlooking Third Avenue. As I recall, the manuscript was built around motifs of twinning, incest, stalking, obsession and - every college English major's favorite - death. We should all take a moment to give thanks to our respective gods that the entire thing was lost along with the hard drive on my first MacBook. It was the baddest of bad books, to put it very mildly.

Eusmilus - Facts and Figures

Eusmilus - Facts and Figures Name: Eusmilus (Greek for early saber); pronounced you-SMILE-us Habitat: Plains of North America and western Europe Historical Epoch: Early Oligocene (30 million years ago) Size and Weight: About six feet long and 200-300 pounds Diet: Meat Distinguishing Characteristics: Six-inch-long canines; weak jaw muscles About Eusmilus Even though its technically classified as a false saber-toothed cat, Eusmilus had truly gigantic canines for its size, which at six inches or so were almost as long as its entire skull (when they werent in use, this cat kept its big teeth cozy and warm in specially adapted pouches on its lower jaw, a trait it shared with the distantly related Thylacosmilus). However, Eusmilus also had comparatively weak jaw muscleswith its huge canines, it didnt need to inflict a powerful biteand it was strangely lacking in supplementary teeth, sporting a relatively paltry two dozen or so. What this indicates is that Eusmilus hunted in traditional saber-tooth style, lying in wait in the low branches of trees, jumping and digging its lethal canines into unsuspecting prey, and then idling its time as its dinner bled to death. Technically, Eusmilus is classified as a nimravid cat, meaning it was closely related to the contemporary Nimravuswith which it competed for prey in early Oligocene Europe and North America, along with yet a third nimravid, Hoplophoneus. In case youre wondering how all of these big-toothed cats could have hunted for megafauna mammals without getting in each others way, the fact is that they didnt: one Nimravus skull bears tooth marks that exactly match the size and shape of Eusmilus canines (however, this particular individual healed from its wounds and lived to hunt another day). We even have evidence for cannibalism, or at least intra-species combat, among saber-toothed cats: another identified Nimravus skull is embedded with the canines of a fellow pack member!

Legal Case of the Caspian Sea Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Legal Case of the Caspian Sea - Research Paper Example Iran and Russia, especially Iran, favor splitting the sea equally among the countries, with each country owning the sea with joint sovereignty. The other countries, however, favor partitioning – they get certain parts of the sea to control for their countries, and the other countries get their own slice of the pie. This describes the conflict in a nutshell. However, the conflict is more complex because other, more powerful countries, like China and the United States, have taken sides. This paper will describe the conflict, along with describing other water based conflicts, in recommending the best course of action for the five countries in dispute over the Caspian Sea. Discussion The dispute over the Caspian Sea has as its genesis the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991-1992. According to Mirfendereski (2001), prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Caspian Sea was the province of only two countries – the Soviet Union and Iran. After the breakup of the Soviet Un ion, however, the Caspian Sea was abutted by Iran, Russia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. Further, Mirfedereski (2001) stated that, soon after the breakup of the Soviet Union, the Caspian Sea became a matter of international business, as, in addition to the countries abutting the Sea, other countries, such as the United States and China, developed a strategic interest in the region, because of the Sea’s rich and oil and gas reserves. As Zeinolabedin et al. (2011) states, the Caspian Sea and how it is divided up between the countries is important to the countries, and to the world, because of the Caspian Sea’s resources, particularly in the area of oil and gas. Roberts (2001) states that the issue of the Caspian Sea energy development is dominated by four factors – uncertain oil prices; the geology and geography of the area; the pipeline issue; and the ability of the Turkish government to develop a coherent energy import policy. Before the breakup of th e Soviet Union, the Caspian Sea was divided according to agreements made between Iran and the Soviet Union in 1921 and 1940 (Laruelle & Peyrouse, 2009). However, after the breakup of the Soviet Union, this agreement became problematic, although Russia initially proposed, after the breakup of the Soviet Union, that the countries share the Caspian Sea, with the exception of ten miles (Laruelle & Peyrouse, 2009). The other countries, however, did not agree with this plan. This means that, for the new countries which abutted the Caspian Sea, there was not specific guidance on how the Sea should be partitioned. However, Mirfendereski (2001) states that at this time there was, when the Soviet Union was intact, delineations that the Soviet Union had made for the Caspian republics. There was also a division between the Soviet Union and Iran, called the Astara-Hassanqoli line. However, as these delineations meant that Russia had to concede a large portion of the Sea, Russian disputed the Sov iet Union delineations, according to Mirfendereski (2001). What Russia was seeking, according to Mirfedereski (2001), was an equal but undivided share of the Sea as a whole, as opposed to partitioning. Iran, whose ostensible partition of the Caspian Sea, per the Astara-Hassanqoli line, deprived it of offshore petroleum deposits, went along with the Russian plan to ignore the Astara-Hassanqoli line and divide the Sea up so that each country had an equal but undi

Should international marriage be banned Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Should international marriage be banned - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that in the recent past, international marriage has received increased attention both from the perspective of theory and due to the practical concern. Several urgent policy issues have come up due to the emerging trends of international marriages. International marriage is for people who have an adventurer’s heart. International marriages require its participants to have a different view of the world. These people need to go contrary to established behavior patterns. In addition, International marriages present an opportunity for diversity and exploration of two or more different cultures and traditions. Despite these benefits, international marriages have problems that are absent if couples are from the same nation. Due to this, international marriages need to be discouraged and even banned to avoid the occurrence of such problems. The present research has identified that cultural differences present several challenges for internati onal marriages. Every society  around  the world has its distinct and unique culture and value system. These differences in culture and value systems present simple routine differences. If people marry from the same country, there are high chances that they will have the same cultures and share in these unique value systems. Thus, there would be reduced uneasiness in the marriage resulting due to culture shock and the need to adopt the value system of either party.

Better Off Alone Essay Example for Free

Better Off Alone Essay In the bible God’s greatest servant is Job; â€Å"This man was innocent, upright, and God-fearing, and kept himself apart from evil† (66). Job did everything God requested, and yet Job was maliciously tested by his creator. Throughout the story of Job there were several accounts of Job expressing his misery that resulted from God’s cruel tests of faith. Reading the story of Job I came up with the question of, would Job be happier without the weight of God’s continuous misperception and unannounced tests? Yaweh strikes Job with a â€Å"test† and murders his sons, daughters, and animals to see if Job will still love him. Perhaps God didn’t have faith in Job instead of visa versa. Yaweh causes Job to be miserable and want to kill himself; in no way is this enjoyable, or worth proceeding to worship a deity. If God were to tell Job he is the one who permitted all of these deeds, Job would no longer follow this deity. God is lying to get what he wants from Job, I don’t believe Job would still appreciate a God that goes against what he orates. It’s as if a wife had gone behind her devoted partners back and had a secret accomplice to pursue her other in a â€Å"test† of fidelity; If she were to tell him â€Å"I tested you, and had another female pursue you to see if you would stay loyal to me†, He would be mad and most likely leave her for lack of trust. Just as Job should leave his â€Å"creator† in the dark as nothing and move on to be happy, instead of constantly trying to please a God that is never satisfied. Job is â€Å"innocent† and â€Å"kept himself apart from evil† (66) and he was also tested with God’s sinful acts of murder and pain. Job was more than true to God, he showed this by even filling his own son’s faithful void; â€Å"Job would send to purify them, rising early in the morning to offer whole burnt offerings, one for each† (66). First off Job was this great of a servant so therefor Job should have been treated better and shouldn’t have been tested. This didn’t happen; but if Job was questioned because he is known as God’s ultimate servant and he had to live up to high standards then feasibly, Job wouldn’t have to deal with an untrusting God if he never submitted. Yaweh speaks with the Accuser and even points out himself that Job is â€Å"like no one on earth†; â€Å"Have you taken note of my servant Job, for there is no one like him on earth: Innocent, upright, and God-fearing and kept himself apart from evil† (66). This is a repetitive sentence through the first section of the story; making a statement that Job has all of these reliable qualities for his God. Job is pious; even Yaweh speaks of this, right before he causes Job an enormous amount of pain. When Yaweh and the Accuser speak of challenging Job’s allegiance, Yaweh tells the Accuser â€Å"Everything he has is in your power, but do not harm his person† (67). Emotions are a part in one’s brain, and one’s brain is a part of the â€Å"person†. By killing his family and animals, this is creating the feeling of agony (harm) to his person. One can then notice God either doesn’t know what harm is or he is just so unpleasant he doesn’t care if he causes Job discomfort, he just wants to see the outcomes of such mischievous acts with Job’s irrevocable loyalty. This isn’t fair to Job, to be harmed for entertainment, what an unhappy life to live. In result of God’s first test of faith, Job unchanged, remains faithful. God figures, well that’s not enough, he then changes his statement to the Accuser and says â€Å"He is in your power, but see that you preserve his life† (67). Yaweh goes back on his words and then physically harms Job’s â€Å"person† and â€Å"smote(s) Job with sickening eruptions from the souls of his feet to the crown of his head† (67-68). Job wouldn’t need to prove devotion to God through anguish if he just had escaped from this unfortunate cruel God. The only reason Job is being chosen to be tested is because he is God’s ultimate servant. If he didn’t believe in God then he wouldn’t have been chosen because God would have already known he was not faithful. Nothing would happen to him if he said good bye to God because all of Job’s friends told him not to keep following God, and nothing cruel happened to them. Job would be happy not constantly being subjected by God’s insecurities. Just how miserable was Job? Job was enormously depressed which shows in this quote; â€Å"blot out the day when I was born† He wishes to not remember the day he was born, or wish it never happened. With his words of self-loathing it creates to the reader feelings of suicide and hate. It makes the reader feel almost apathetic towards Job, for not listening to his friends and also continuing to follow a horrendous god.

Vegetarianism :: Healthy Lifestyle Essay

by Jello Biafra From I Blow Minds for a Living, recorded at Slim's, San Francisco, Nov 21, 1990 Does anybody out there know that for the first time in American history the U.S. Army was used in a war operation against the American people? Right near here, up in Humboldt County about 200 miles north of San Francisco right near a town called Shelter Cove, get this: three- to four-hundred American G.I.s dressed with automatic rifles and fully armed for battle, fanned out on maneuvers through the woods, backed up by a dozen Blackhawk attack helicopters. The mountain people up there were frightened out of their wits! They thought there was a war going on, especially the ones that had soldiers kicking in the doors to their cabins and putting guns to their heads in front of their children. Why!? Who was the enemy in this war? Not the communists! Not Saddam Hussein! Not Earth First! or even the spotted owl. No! The enemy they called out the army to put down, secretly, so few people outside of Humboldt would get alarmed as possible, it wasn't even a person or an army or a terrorist group! It was a plant, the marijuana plant. And they actually did manage to find a few for the G.I.s to pull up, and then they had to fly in more from the government stash so the pile would look big enough when they lit the bonfire for the network TV news cameras, so that they could say "Yes! Another triumph in the Drug War!" Drug War. War. The American army sent to war against the American people. And we're supposed to feel relieved and secure and protected. Protected from what?! A lot of people with more guts than I'll ever have risked their life and limb all last summer at the Earth First! Redwood Summer Action up in Humboldt County. They were chaining themselves to redwoods that were three times wider than they were, 800 years old, they were spread-eagled, as the saws buzzed right over their heads. They stood in the dirt as the bulldozers charged them and stopped right at their toes. Or people waved clubs at them, charged them with logging trucks, shotguns, you name it. All to try to save some of the last unspoiled virgin forest we have left anywhere in this country from being chopped down and turned into toilet paper, TV Guides and the Weekly World News. Vegetarianism :: Healthy Lifestyle Essay by Jello Biafra From I Blow Minds for a Living, recorded at Slim's, San Francisco, Nov 21, 1990 Does anybody out there know that for the first time in American history the U.S. Army was used in a war operation against the American people? Right near here, up in Humboldt County about 200 miles north of San Francisco right near a town called Shelter Cove, get this: three- to four-hundred American G.I.s dressed with automatic rifles and fully armed for battle, fanned out on maneuvers through the woods, backed up by a dozen Blackhawk attack helicopters. The mountain people up there were frightened out of their wits! They thought there was a war going on, especially the ones that had soldiers kicking in the doors to their cabins and putting guns to their heads in front of their children. Why!? Who was the enemy in this war? Not the communists! Not Saddam Hussein! Not Earth First! or even the spotted owl. No! The enemy they called out the army to put down, secretly, so few people outside of Humboldt would get alarmed as possible, it wasn't even a person or an army or a terrorist group! It was a plant, the marijuana plant. And they actually did manage to find a few for the G.I.s to pull up, and then they had to fly in more from the government stash so the pile would look big enough when they lit the bonfire for the network TV news cameras, so that they could say "Yes! Another triumph in the Drug War!" Drug War. War. The American army sent to war against the American people. And we're supposed to feel relieved and secure and protected. Protected from what?! A lot of people with more guts than I'll ever have risked their life and limb all last summer at the Earth First! Redwood Summer Action up in Humboldt County. They were chaining themselves to redwoods that were three times wider than they were, 800 years old, they were spread-eagled, as the saws buzzed right over their heads. They stood in the dirt as the bulldozers charged them and stopped right at their toes. Or people waved clubs at them, charged them with logging trucks, shotguns, you name it. All to try to save some of the last unspoiled virgin forest we have left anywhere in this country from being chopped down and turned into toilet paper, TV Guides and the Weekly World News.

Assess critically the contribution Essay

Taylorism is a form of job design, which stresses short, repetitive work cycles; detailed, set task sequences; a separation of task conception from task execution; and motivation linked to pay. Taylor argued that the principal objective of management should be to secure the maximum prosperity for the employer, coupled with the maximum prosperity for each employee (1911). Fredrick Taylor’s five principles of scientific management: 1. A clear division of tasks and responsibilities between management and workers. 2. Use of scientific methods to determine the best way of doing a job. 3. Scientific selection of the person to do the newly designed job. 4. The training of the selected worker to perform the job in the way specified. 5. Surveillance of workers through the use of hierarchies of authority and close supervision. Taylor proposed this by measuring what workers did against the time taken, to develop ‘one best way of working’ (1911). By using quantitative methods a workers output could be accurately measured. At the time of its inception Taylor found that firms who introduced scientific management as he prescribed became the worlds most meticulously organised factories (Nelson, 1980). Managers are responsible for identifying the best cost efficient work practices and training workers to become highly productive and affective in their specific work task. Taylor argued that it stands to reason that an employee becomes more productive when working at their speciality and concluded with stating that there are more benefits gained for both employees and employers from dividing workers. With linking pay to each task performed, Managers can thus control the workforce and output and consistently achieve desired goals. The piece rate pay system  pays workers in parallel to number of items each worker has produced, hence also providing employees with an incentive to work. Henry Ford’s theory (Fordism) referring to mass production in industry (Marcouse, 1996) united the idea of assembly line and Taylor’s theory of division of labour and payment. Fordism focused on dividing jobs into unskilled and semi-skilled tasks. Whilst managers at Ford vehemently opposed any relation to Taylorism, it can be said that Fordism retained the faults of Taylorism of an autocratic work environment with little room for creativity as well as the benefits of the piece rate system relying on financial motivation. Criticisms of Taylorism: 1.Assumed that the motivation of the employee was to secure the maximum earnings for the effort expended; and neglected the importance of other rewards from work (achievement, job satisfaction, recognition), which later research has found to be important. 2. Neglected the subjective side of work-the personal and interactional aspects of performance, the meaning that employees give to work and the significance to them of their social relationship at work. 3. Failed to appreciate the meaning that workers would put on new procedures ad their reaction to being timed and closely supervised. 4. Had inadequate understanding of the relation of the individual incentive to interaction with, and dependence on, the immediate work group. Taylor did attribute ‘underworking’ to group pressures, but misunderstood the way in which these worked. He failed to see that these might just as easily keep production and morale up. 5. Ignored the psychological needs and capabilities of workers. T he one best way of doing a job was chosen with the mechanistic criteria of speed and output. The imposition of a uniform manner of work can both destroy individuality and cause other psychological disturbances. 6. Had too simple approach to the question of productivity and morale. It sought to keep both of these up exclusively by economic rewards and punishments. Incentive approaches under the scientific approach tended to focus on the worker as an individual and ignored their social context. Pay system may result in a worker valuing quantity over quality. 7. Functional foremanship was deemed to be too  complex and an unwieldy mode of supervision. (Huczynski, 2013) Ways to alleviate the negative effects of Taylorism especially to worker motivation and performance and find new ways to job designs came about following the introduction of the American psychologists Fredrick Hertzberg two factor theory of motivation. Hertzberg had the idea that there were two sets of factors that affected motivation and job characteristics: Motivators: These factors refer to the extent to which a job offers opportunities for achievement, creativity, responsibility, opportunities for personal growth. These are intrinsic to the job itself. Hygiene factors: These comprise issue as the nature of supervision and supervisory style, the level of pay, working conditions, and interpersonal relations. These are extrinsic to the job. For Hertzberg it was only the motivator factors that have the potential to generate satisfaction and motivation. If hygiene factors are improved, they do not result in improved motivation, but if removed, will result in demotivation. To raise levels of motivation and therefore performance, following Hertzberg theory of motivation, companies needed to ensure that the hygiene factors were in place, and to also ensure that the ‘motivator factors’ (i.e intrinsic motivators) were incorporated into the jobs. In particular, jobs needed to be designed in such a way that workers could be given opportunities for achievement, responsibility and personal growth. Criticisms of Hertzberg two-factor theory: Can job characteristics fall neatly into two categories of motivators and hygiene factors? Can a job characteristic be both? (Example can pay be a motivator as well as a hygiene factor-?) Blunt and Jones (1992) They point out that some studies from Nigeria have indicated that hygiene factors, in particular pay, supervision and working conditions, acted as motivators. Machungwa and Schmidt (1983) reported on a study conducted in Zambia and found that material rewards and the physical conditions of work appeared to have both motivating and demotivating effects. This was interpreted by Blunt and Jones in the following way: if material rewards were inadequate they were demotivating, but they acted as motivators if they were perceived as reasonable. This appears to directly contradict Hertzberg’s theory, but Blunt and Jones consider that this is only likely to be the case in less developed countries, as Hertzberg (1987) himself appears also to argue. However, one study does not refute a theory. Hertzberg did his original work on qualified professionals, such as engineers, whereas the people surveyed in the study above were manual workers. This in itself might be enough to account for the difference. In general, we can expect professional or managerial workers everywhere to be more intrinsically motivated than ma nual workers given the different nature of the work that the two groups undertake, but as we shall see the way work is organized may compensate for such differences in the relative interest value of different types of work The theory is regarded as a Universalistic theory; that it will impact all individuals in the same way in all work situations. It does not take into consideration that some people may not have a desire for personal growth, and are therefore unlikely to be motivated by job enrichment initiatives that give them higher levels of autonomy and responsibility. Hertzberg theory was superseded by Richard Hackman and Greg Oldham ‘the Job Characteristics Model’; which argued in a similar respect to Hertzberg theory, that if jobs are enriched this will lead to improvements in attitudinal outcomes (increased satisfaction and motivation) and improvements in behavioural outcomes (higher productivity and lower rates of absenteeism). Three critical psychological states: Hackman and Oldham argued that jobs should be designed in such a way that they are focused on the achievement of three critical psychological states: Workers must experience work as being personally meaningful-something that  they care about. Workers must experience personal responsibility for their work- accountability for their work. Workers must know if their work performance is effective-they must have knowledge of the results of their work activities. If these 3 critical psychological states are achieved, higher levels of satisfaction, motivation and performance will result from the worker. However this theory too has had its criticisms. Current literature now argues the importance and focus on team working, however one should acknowledge that the interest in team working is not something that is new to current times. Autonomous and semi-autonomous work groups were central to earlier theories of the 1960’s and 1970’s. Team working has now re-emerged as part of the lean production & flexible working debates. An American Theorist, Harry Bravemen thesis known as the ‘Bravemen thesis argues to counter the popular view in social science and management literature that Taylorism has been superseded by human relations and other more sophisticated approaches; that there is in fact a tendency for workers and their jobs to become de-skilled through fragmentation, rationalisation and mechanisation. This argument of deskilling workers and jobs was continued in the context where it became known as McDonalization a term that came about after the publication of a book by Georg Ritz. McDonalisation is a form of work design aimed at achieving efficiency, calculability, predictability and control through non-human technology, to enhance organisational objectives by limiting employee discretion and creativity. He used the term to refer to the processes used at the growing number of fast food restaurants dominating the American market. McDonalds is a modern example of the Taylorised way of work. The tasks are de-skilled and simplified for an employee at McDonalds and limited by the  sophisticated technology of fast food preparation. Hamburger grilling instructions are detailed and precise, cooking times and the sequence of events dictated to make a burger. Drinks dispensers, French fry machines, programmed cash registers all limit the amount of time required to carry out a specific task and leave little room for the employee to do as they wish, little room for creativity or innovation to processes. This way of working ensures the aims of the organisation to achieve greatest efficiency, calculability, predictability and control all of the key elements described by the Ritzer’s ‘Mcdonalization’. Regardless of the fact that the de-skilling may lead to de-motivated employees, which may result in high absenteeism and high staff turn over; its ability to integrate new workers into the production processes and dismiss employees without losing knowledge form the organization allows the model to still be successful. Taylorism can also be illustrated in modern day call centres. A case study on a customer service call centre run by two British Companies, Martin Beirne, Kathleen Riach and Fiona Wilson found strong continuities with Taylorism, in relation to work design and operation. They found the work to be pressurized and highly paced with managements focus on productivity and cost minimisation. Most of the jobs were narrowly defined and closely monitored. The time duration of each call taken; the content of the conversation with each customer; and the advise also given to the customer was prescribed (from Beirne et al 2004). But modern day illustrations of Taylorism don’t end there. It is also seen in relation to ‘scientific selection & training’. We’ve now moved away from an industrial economy towards a knowledge –based economy where an organisations competitive success depends on its talent. Much effort is devoted by contemporary organisations to select and recruit the right person for a role. Taylorism also placed importance and the introduction of scientific selection criteria by management to do a particular task. In line with his emphasis on scientific approach to selection, Taylor advocates scientific training as he argues that â€Å"it is only when business systematically cooperate to train the competent man†¦that it shall be on the road to national efficiency†. (Taylor, 1911: p 98). In the context of the knowledge  economy, organisations are generally encouraged to develop employees’ skills and knowledge. ‘Now one of the very first requirements of man who is to handle pig iron as a regular occupation is that he shall be so stupid and so phlegmatic that he more nearly resembles in his mental make-up the ox than any other type. The man who is mentally alert and intelligent is for this very reason entirely unsuited to what would, for him, be the grinding monotony of work to this character. Therefore the work man who is best suited to handling pig iron is unable to understand the real science of doing this class of work’. (Taylor 1911/1997 pg 59) â€Å"The task is always so regulated that the man who is well suited to his job will thrive while working at this rate during a long term of years and grow happier and more prosperous, instead of being overworked†. (Taylor 1911) Thus scientific management matched the worker to the job and in the process separated the conceptualization of work from its execution. It also provided safeguards against personal bias and individual favoritism, which is something that can still be applied to the current context of contemporary organisations. Taylorism is also found in the Saudi Educational system, for example metaphorically describing students as the ‘raw material’ of schools; controlling the movement of teachers & students through class bells; conceiving of the curriculum as a product; dividing students into grades or dividing curriculum into units and individual lessons; describing the school facilities as a ‘plant’ are a result of a ‘factory model’ schooling that has its roots in the adoption of scientific management principles by educational administrators. Contemporary schools in Saudi are still largely influenced with its teaching and learning deeply rooted in ‘scientific management’ as seen with the following: 1. Schools are large and bureaucratized. 2. Students change teachers every year. 3. Teachers plan and teach alone. 4. Curriculum is fragmented. 5. Tracking students by ability levels. 6. Deskilling of teachers through alignment of teaching mandated curriculum and standardized tests. 7. Emphasis on monitoring /surveillance & bureaucratic activity-scripted curriculum and scripted tests. Taylorism does not permit autonomy in work. Input by production workers in the organisation, planning, and direction of the manufacturing process was not allowed, requiring workers to do exactly what they were told to do and no more. This authoritarian approach to work can been illustrated in the schooling: That student’s are excluded from the planning, organisation and direction of the educational process. De-skilling of the teachers as their work is conceptualised by others (Ministry of Education who agrees the standard curriculum to be used in schools) and enforced by the bureaucratic outcome of accountability systems implemented in schools. The other way that Taylorism continues to influence the education system is through the use of individual rewards for individual effort (example the focus on a students individual test results). Taylor developed wage-incentive schemes emphasizing piecework and historically assembly line foremen attempted to stop any sort of worker inter action. Elton Mayo who introduced Human Relations theory based on his research at the Hawthorne electrical factory was to see how productivity will improve if the lighting condition changes and he followed Taylor’s scientific principles by testing the changes against a control, with part of the factory lighting being unchanged, (Kelly 1982). This lead him to conduct further experiments which vast doubts on Taylors assumptions about the importance of money in motivation (Marcouse, 1996). According to Huczynski and Buchan, the conclusions which can be drawn from Hawthorne studies are: 1. People at work are motivated by more than just pay and conditions. 2. Their need for recognition and sense of belonging are very important. 3. A person’s attitude to work is shaped strongly by the group in which that individual  belongs within the company. 4. The ability of the informal group or clique to motivate an individual at work should not be underestimated. (Huczynski and Buchanan 1991) . Another contributor to the Human Relations approach is Abraham Harold Maslow, an American psychologist who was best known for creating Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. They range from physical & social to psychological needs. Maslow (1943, 1954) stated that human motivation is based on people seeking fulfilment and change through personal growth. Self-actualized people as those who were fulfilled and doing all they were capable of. The Human Relations models have changed management and how workers are in fact valuable employees and stakeholders of an organisation. The key difference between scientific management and the human relations model is highlighted when analysing the motivational techniques to increase productivity. Scientific management emphasises the use of financial measures in order to secure employers objectives whereas the human relations model argues that management should acquire the insight into the skills that will manipulate social factors in order to harness their employees social needs to managerial ends (Fincham & Rhodes, 1999). Thus, behavioural science; motivation theories in combination with the humanistic theories of management, have added to Taylors principles and allowed for contemporary organizations to succeed where scientific management alone failed. Taylorism was an influential management theory of the late nineteenth century. Despite its relevance to its time the influence can still be seen in todays twenty first century: educational institutes, service sector and the manufacturing industries. Though there are limitations to his method, this principle has a considerable profound and lasting influence to all contemporary organizations because of  Taylor’s â€Å"preoccupation with the efficient use of resources†. This philosophy can almost apply to every organization, despite its work structure, such as structures of team working or job enrichment; one of the ultimate goals should be improve efficiency. As Braverman says, â€Å"the principle of scientific management is not a failed system, but a set of guiding principles which continue to inform and influence the role and function of modern management†. Some of the methods he advocates, such as division of labour, scientific selection and training, have become the features of modern society. More primarily, as efficiency is one of the enduring needs of all organizations, his preoccupation with the efficient use of resources thus becomes the driving force behind the evolution of subsequent management theories and the root of management practice. References: Huczynski, A. and Buchanan, D: Organisational Behaviour. Eighth Edition. Pearson 2013. Huczynski, A. and Buchanan, D.,1991. Organizational behaviour An Introductory Text. Second edition. London: Prentice Hall International (UK) Ltd. Hertzberg,F., B.Mausner and B.Snyderman: The motivation to work (New york: Wiley 1959). Taylor F.W (1997): The principles of scientific management. Mincola, NY (original work published 1911). Braverman, H (1974): Labour and Monoploy capital: The degradation of work in the twentieth century. New York Monthly review press. Kelly, John. (1982), Scientific Management, Job Redesign, & Work Performance. Academic †¨Press. Marcouse, I. et al. (1996), The Complete A-Z Business Studies Handbook, Hodder & †¨Stoughton. Ritzer, George. (2000) The McDonaldization Of Society. Sage Publications Inc. Taylor, Frederick W (1911) The Principles of Scientific Management, Harper Bros. Fincham, R & Rhodes, P (1999) Priniciples of Organisational Behaviours, Oxford Univeristy Press. Nelson, David (1980) Frederick W Taylor and the Rise of Scientific Management, The University of Wisconsin Press. Maslow, A. H. (1943). A Theory of Human Motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370-96. Maslow, A. H. (1954). Motivation and Personality. New York: Harper and Row.

Dreams in Of Mice and Men Essay

Of Mice and Men by John Steinback is a story about George and Lennie, two companions who share the same dream of owning their own land and being their own boss. They move from place to place looking for work but the â€Å"fetishes† of Lennie gets them into trouble which hinders their dream for being fulfilled. In the end, reality sinks in and George accepts their fate. Almost all of the characters in the story have dreams of their own but somehow fate conspires against them that prevent their dreams for becoming a reality. Of Mice and Men centers on dreams of the common man as much as it focuses on loneliness and human companionship. The focus on dreams however, is leaned towards a more realistic approach than idealistic. Steinback portrays dreams realistically by showing the obstacles that hinder dreams. Dreams is what drive people, or at least most of us, it gives us a sense of purpose, without them, existence seems unnecessary. The most notable dream in the story is the dream of George and Lennie having a farm of their own. Lennie always asks George to retell him their dreams because part of it involves Lennie petting rabbits, which is Lennie’s fetish (touching soft things), and also because Lennie has a short memory. Ironically, it is their dream that enslaves them to work. The dream of owning a farm is the lifelong dream of George and Lennie because they are tired of moving from place to place constantly trying to find work, which barely support them– owning a farm means, at least for George, being self-reliant, a sense of security and just simply being somebody and not just mere drifters. Lennie on the other hand is just in it for the rabbits but he clearly values the companionship that their dreams forge. This is shown throughout the story when Lennie gets upset by the thoughts of George getting angry at him Candy, the old man with the old sheep dog, partly became part of George and Lennie’s dream; as he offers money that he supposedly have, to contribute to the purchase of the farm. The dream of the farm also gives him a sense of security because he has nowhere else to go to if he is fired from the current farm he is in. Crooks also partly shared the dream of George and Lennie when Lennie tells him about the dream farm, Crooks offers his service to the farm for free because for him, equality in the farm might bring is enough. Equality is something he longs for outside of the dream farm because he is discriminated for being black. He lives separately from the other workers and is insulted by the wife of Curley. A place they can call their own where they can have some sense of security and pride is what drives these characters’ dreams. Dreams, by its mere definition, do not mean that everything would be achieved. The characters dream of a different, or rather, a better life but their conditions prevent them from achieving these dreams. George does not have the money to buy the farm and Lennie slows his progress, Lennie is mentally retarded and relies solely on George so he can somehow function in society. Crooks is a black man, and during the setting of the story, that fact alone is enough to stop all hopes for a better life. Even Curley’s wife had dreams of becoming an actress but he married Curley who does not make her happy. Slim provides contrast with these dreams as he appears to not have any dreams and accepts the reality that he is stuck on working in the farm. Having dreams is fine but the truth is the world is an unforgiving place. The story shows the idealistic dreams of the characters and their struggle to break out of their situation. The characters strive for a better life but remain in the cycle of work, more work, and hopelessness—Dreams does not always lead to a happy ending.

Individual Behavior and Processes Essay Example

Individual Behavior and Processes Essay Example Individual Behavior and Processes Essay Individual Behavior and Processes Essay Introduction Mgt provided us with a good basis for understanding organizational behavior by exploring the most essential elements of organizations and how they function. In Week Two our exploration of organizations will become more specific by examining the most basic working elements of the workplace: people. This course will eventually ask us to contemplate the complexities of people working together in groups and teams but, in order to get our studies off to the best start we will begin by considering how individuals function within the workplace. Most students can easily describe themselves however their descriptions are often based upon their internal view of how they see themselves or how they hope others view them. In order for a person to improve their relationships they must gain an accurate understanding of how others see them. Week Two will examine the diversity among individuals and how our differences affect the way we interact with others in the workplace. Most of todays employees want to be involved and expect to have some level of responsibility in helping to meet organizational goals. They want more autonomy to make their own decisions and to accomplish their own goals. Still, employees want to have a personal life and place a very high value on their personal freedoms. More and more employers report that today’s workers often turn down overtime wages in order to spend more time doing what they enjoy! This fact demonstrates how important individual freedoms are. Each worker is different in the way they view the workplace and each has a unique set of expectations for what makes them feel happy and successful in their work. Success in the new workplace requires a set of skills for working successfully with a broad mix of people from different racial and ethnic backgrounds, different ages and genders, and different domestic and national cultures. When people think of diversity they primarily think of differences in age, race, ethnicity, gender, physical ability, and sexual orientation – but diversity is much broader than that. Diversity also includes things like religious beliefs, education, experience, socio-economic class, family values, and more. Consider your own workplace: think about where people grew up, where they went to school, and how many other ways they are different. How many differences can you count among the five people with whom you work most closely? How well do you know these people and how many unknown differences might there be? These differences make people act and think in very different ways. Diversity is everywhere and organizations have two clear choices: to manage and utilize diversity or to suffer from it. Valuing diversity is extremely important for today’s organizations. Truly valuing diversity is characterized by managing and working with others while fully respecting their individual differences. Many organizations are providing training designed to help people understand and respect differences. Heres the key: instead of fearing or dreading the differences in our workforces, lets try to take advantage of them. A diverse workforce offers a rich pool of talents, ideas, and viewpoints for solving complex problems. Diversity, if managed properly, can provide a competitive advantage for an organization. Good managers understand that diversity, like conflict, can be looked upon as a barrier to success or as an opportunity for success. If an employer lets differences interfere with hiring and developing someones ability, it becomes some other companys gain. Leading employers and managers are aware that this can be used to their gain. They make an effort to understand and tap into those differences and prevent erroneous perceptions or stereotyping. In the end, their ability to understand and motivate a diverse workforce results in increased organization success. Respecting diversity is really quite simple. If an individual feels respected and understood then they are most likely to be happy in their work. Similarly, if they feel that they can effectively communicate with others then they feel important. By respecting the differences among people and enabling a positive environment for communication, effectiveness in the workplace may be significantly increased. Effective communication begins with a willingness to listen and think critically about what another person has said. People often misinterpret the messages sent by others and respond in ways that are inappropriate – we’ve all seen examples of misunderstandings in our lives. Effective communication depends on the ability of two people to send and receive messages in a way that allows their intentions to be accurately interpreted. Communication is a very dynamic process that is continually challenged by factors called â€Å"noise. † Noise is defined as anything that can interfere with effective communication (Schermerhorn, Hunt, Osborn, 2005, p. 295). Communicative noise is not necessarily audible; for example, noise can include a person’s mood or attitude. A lack of contextual basis can also act as a barrier to effective communication. This type of noise commonly occurs in the workplace when workers communicate via email. The mode we choose to send a message is called a channel. Email is a relatively new channel to people, so miscommunication frequently occurs because the people receiving our messages are not able to judge our intended meaning as clearly as they can in person. Practical Application and Questions for Thought How many times have you hit the â€Å"send† button on your email only to have someone call you to ask why your response was so negative? Consider what your boss would think if you sent the following email message on a payday: â€Å"Gee boss, I’m so happy with my paycheck that I feel like I’m cheating the company! † If you gave me a raise, I don’t know what I would do! † Would the response from your boss be positive or negative? What future implications might this message have for you? The answers to those questions depend on several factors like how well the boss knows you, what type of mood the boss is in, and how much money you earn compared to others in the company. That is exactly the point – you cannot know how the message will be perceived because you are not able to convey it in a way that lets the boss know you are joking. If you were to see your boss in the hallway and if you knew that he/she was in a good mood, you might smile and whisper the statement. Under those conditions, the boss is much more likely to understand that you are kidding. Youll recall that in Week One we discussed a workplace scenario in which a new director was faced with the task of fixing a supply department that was riddled with problems. Of course the director’s tasks include researching, identifying, and planning solutions for a number of procedural problems. Because the central problem was defined as a cultural deficiency, it is certain that one of the director’s first actions was to gather the middle managers and institute a culture change. This has a profound effect on the workplace, beginning with the way the employees viewed their place in the organization. Instead of being afraid of taking action for fear of making things worse or being reprimanded, they will soon take an active part in process improvement. They will also realize that they are the keys to success and that they are expected to be proactive in all areas of their jobs. Because management is openly communicating with them they understand what the standards are and how departmental success will be defined. The employees are active participants in discussions about where we need to go and how were going to get there. Most importantly they are told that above all else they are all in this situation together and that they will all succeed or fail together. The increase in motivation caused by this new culture will be instantly noticeable. When dramatic cultural change like this occurs you see the positive changes in the employees’ expressions and you can actually feel it as you walk through the department.

Online Public and Charter Schools, K-12 in Indiana

Online Public and Charter Schools, K-12 in Indiana Indiana offers resident students the opportunity to take online public school courses for free. Below is a list of no-cost online schools currently serving elementary and high school students in Indiana. In order to qualify for the list, schools must meet the following qualifications: classes must be available completely online, they must offer services to state residents, and they must be funded by the government. Virtual schools listed may be charter schools, state-wide public programs, or private programs that receive government funding. List of Indiana Online Charter Schools and Online Public Schools Indiana Virtual Charter School (off-site link) About Online Charter Schools and Online Public Schools Many states now offer tuition-free online schools for resident students under a certain age (often 21). Most virtual schools are charter schools; they receive government funding and are run by a private organization. Online charter schools are subject to fewer restrictions than traditional schools. However, they are reviewed regularly and must continue to meet state standards. Some states also offer their own online public schools. These virtual programs generally operate from a state office or a school district. State-wide public school programs vary. Some online public schools offer a limited number of remedial or advanced courses not available in brick-and-mortar public school campuses. Others offer full online diploma programs. A few states choose to fund â€Å"seats† for students in private online schools. The number of available seats may be limited and students are usually asked to apply through their public school guidance counselor. (See also: 4 Types of Online High Schools). Choosing an Indiana Online Public School When choosing an online public school, look for an established program that is regionally accredited and has a track record of success. Be wary of new schools that are disorganized, are unaccredited, or have been the subject of public scrutiny. For more suggestions on evaluating virtual schools see: How to Choose an Online High School.

The Documentary 'Jamie Oliver's Great Escape' as a useful tool in Research Paper

The Documentary 'Jamie Oliver's Great Escape' as a useful tool in teaching Italian to ab initio third level students of Culinar - Research Paper Example Engaging Language Learners by Making the Learning Real It is well documented in cognitive science that learning does not take place until it is either shared or applied. Therefore, a major problem in language learning is its lack of reality. By engaging foreign language learners in real activities that use the target language the learning can be enhanced and accelerated. This study covers the use of Videos in the major interest field of third year culinary arts students to help them learn Italian. By using Educational Videos created for other educational aims, such as learning cooking techniques, the language learning becomes part of the engaging activity in their major interest and seems incidental. A study using Jamie Oliver’s Great Escapes to teach Ab Intio Italian to third year culinary students shows great potential for combining students’ major interest with Ab Intio language learning. It can both accelerate the language acquisition and enhance the major subject, especially with vocabulary, since the words presented are those the students already use quite frequently. The documentary is not entirely in Italian, but incorporates many useful words for cooking into the dialogue as techniques are demonstrated visually. Since any text that is focused upon one subject will be limited in vocabulary to that subject, the target set of terms becomes naturally smaller and easier to learn. Rather like scaffolding, this makes a connection with something in which the student has an intense interest creating a reality and allowing the students to actually to share and apply the language to their every day activities. It also has the effect of increasing interest in the language, thus motivating the students. Using Jamie Oliver’s Great Escapes Videos to Teach Ab Intio Italian There are 250 articles in the EBSCO database about Jamie Oliver, so he is definitely a popular television star chef. In looking at the series Jamie’s Great Escapes it is easy to understand why. His shows are not just about cooking, but include history and culture and authentic Italian language. By integrating visual images with written text, digital stories can be used to enhance and accelerate student comprehension (Burmark, 2004; Robin, 2008). Making content and connections relevant to students’ lives helps bring meaning and purpose to instruction in all content areas. Dewey (1912) challenged educators to meet students where they are, and these students are in the kitchen. By using a documentary series that focuses upon what most interest these students, the learners are engaged and motivated to learn what is important to the understanding of their craft. If we look carefully at these documentary episodes we see that they make the language very real. It is part of the cooking and the culture. Food is an intimate part of any culture, as is languages. Therefore it is no surprise that they go well together. They are central to who we are and u nderstanding this idea helps us understand why these videos work so well. The lives of these students center around food. That is the center of their culture as culinary arts students. However, in order to become really great chefs, they must understand the food they cook and the culture in which it developed. In the first episode, Jamie Oliver says, himself, that he went to Italy to learn about the food and culture, to get away from his hectic life and absorb the Italian

Management Report Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Management Report - Case Study Example The report will identify and describe about the possible problems that the organisation could face by implementing the new ERP system based on traditional system development life cycle methodology and also provide recommendations to Solaricot for performing its business operations effectively. What an ERP System is ERP system is fundamentally described as a set of applications that is incorporated to administer broad assortment of commercial activities like finance, human resource and inventory among others. ERP software incorporates all features of business operational functions comprising business development, production functions and marketing activities. ERP system usually utilise databases as a source of information. The basic objective of ERP is to share information for simplifying the flow of data across business within an organisation (O’Leary, 2004). Values of ERP That Can Bring To Manufacturing Firm The adoption and the execution of ERP system has been noted to be qu ite common in manufacturing organisations. Successful ERP installations help the manufacturing firms to enhance their strategic as well as economical capabilities. In manufacturing organisations like Solaricot, ERP system can successfully address several management challenges. In this modern day context, organisations must manage all resources including supply chain activities in an effective manner. The integrated characteristics of ERP system makes the sharing of information easier and also deliver timely information. Furthermore, ERP system also assists the manufacturing firms in managing its inventory level effectually. Various ERP tools that comprise demand forecasting, inventory visibility and cohesive scheduling are typically used for ensuring dynamic manufacturing operations. In manufacturing firms, ERP system makes the production functions to remain on track and generate quality products (Muscatello & et. al., 2003). Possible Problems of ERP System in Solaricot Though ERP s ystem can frequently assist different organisations towards enhancing their respective production abilities, it can also bring failure to certain organisations. In this similar context, several aspects could have gone wrong with the new system at Solaricot. The possible problems of ERP system in Solaricot have been described hereunder. Improper Customisation of the ERP system Based on the traditional systems development life cycle methodology, the first possible reason for the failure of ERP system