Partnership Working Essay

Partnership work is essential when providing person centred support and it also the only way to address some of the govements most challenging long term social objectives. The national services frame work for older people 2001 (24-25) also outlines expectations around integrated working bet between health services and social care agencies working towards a single assessment process and joint commissioning. The health act reinforces the importance of joint working The white paper July 2012 also state about working together long term paths and goals for a single assessment proses all working together to ensure all needs are met and people are in control know where to go and how to access making it easier to get what you need and when preventing delays lack of support the wrong support etc. Change work in partnership and provide the services people need and want in a streamlined and readily accessible manner. When organisations work closely together it has a positive impact on peoples lives. When they develop shared protocols and co-ordinated interventions, people are able to access and use services more easily and effectively. It requires innovation and leadership and leads to reduced time, cost and duplication as well as simplified and accessible services, which improve wellbeing. Successful partnerships need will address the tensions between structures and cultures particularly in relation to national targets. They need to face the challenges associated with integrating services that are based on fundamentally different principles of governance and different types of central and local government accountability. The outcome is always to improve the quality of life and improved health and emotional wellbeing for all individuals using or needed services. At a time when the whole of the public sector must find significant savings, reports are saying: that integrated working across health and social care offers opportunities for efficiencies and improvements to services. Without it there is a risk of duplication and cost shunting where savings made by one organisation or sector create costs for others. And a lack of integrated working means that people are less likely  to receive the best care. Some of the Befits of good partnership working Being able to offer a whole informed service Being able to tap in to resource which other agency hold which leads to a better outcome for the service user Assistance and help from appropriate people single assessment approach†¦ helping the individual reduce the need to repeat their story to different professionals Clear roles and responsibilities Being able to put in place effective and safe practices around confidentiality and information sharing services user has a legal and moral right to know what information is being shared regarding them The sharing of knowledge and good work practices Services user and staff know when to access further support and how to gain that it in turn providing both with more confidence and better service provision and better outcomes for the services user Benefits for people Services designed to meet people’s needs Improved choice and control Independence and inclusion Targeted help Benefits for partnerships Sharing of knowledge and understanding Pools resources Reduced cost, time and duplication Strong local ownership Benefits for organisation Increased capacity to deliver community services Increased satisfaction with the service Improved performance assessment Improving information sharing between professionals. Improving the efficiency of the care system as a whole. Co-ordinating the provision of care. Improving the planning and commissioning of care so that health and social care services complement rather than disrupt each other. Some of the general Problems with partnership working Despite the introduction of government legislation and initiatives during this time to promote closer multi-agency partnership working there is still: A lack of information sharing across agencies and services Duplicated assessments to identify needs and subsequent provision Poorly co-ordinated integrated activities across agencies Too much ‘buck passing’ and referring on of clients between agencies A lack of continuity and inconsistent levels of service provision Unclear accountability. Despite longstanding support for joint working, it has been beset by problems across all client groups that have been found. Delayed discharges from hospital, mainly of older people. These involve cases when a patient cannot leave hospital because of the unavailability of health or social care services in the community or because of administrative issues within hospitals. NHS cuts to continuing healthcare. This has led to disputes between NHS and social care professionals and shunted costs on to councils, who often have to fund care packages for people no longer fully funded by the NHS. The break-up of community mental health teams. In some areas of England councils have withdrawn social care staff from mental health teams, run by mental health trusts, because of cost pressures or concerns over trusts’ approach to issues including adult safeguarding and the  personalisation of care. A lack of NHS engagement in child protection and a lack of co-ordination of health and social care services for children. Pooled budgets have not translated into improved outcomes. Formal partnership arrangements in some areas have been scrapped following disagreements between partners. More generally, barriers to good partnership working include: Health and social care agencies facing different government performance regimes. Health and social care agencies using different IT systems. Cuts in one budget creating demand pressures in the other. Health and social care staff being on different terms and conditions in integrated teams. Policy and legislation on joint working Some of the agency challenges Financial resources: conflicts within or between agencies, a general lack of funding, concerns about sustainability, staffing. Roles and responsibilities: understanding the roles of others, conflicts over areas of responsibility, the need to move beyond existing roles. Non-financial resources: Time, staff, Communication, Being able to talk to the right person at the right time, All parties getting the information, Build the communication link up, Getting the right people together. Professional and agency cultures: Polices and procedure, training, ways of working, finances knowledge Management: how the management work, how they train and inform the staff the working philosophy, support, structure Government plans and initiatives towards partnership working Under section 75 of the NHS Act 2006, NHS bodies and local authorities in England can pool budgets, join together their staff and management structures or delegate commissioning responsibilities to each other. The Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 require primary care trusts and local authorities to produce joint strategic needs assessments of the health and well-being of  their populations. This should shape joint planning of services. The Health and Social Care Bill would establish health and well-being boards in every local authority area to co-ordinate the The 10-year plan for social services, published in 2011, also includes plans to drive integration, for instance by requiring councils and health boards to jointly commission and arrange enablement services, to support people to regain independence. Good practice in joint working The while paper No secrets Outcomes inspected by CQC†¦. etc. What is working in partnership and why is it important Partnerships are about a way of working together rather than about a way of meeting together they involve the dissolution of organisational service and sometimes geographical boundaries and are about overcoming the constraints that these can place around effective outcomes and behaviour Partnership is therefore about focusing on objectives and outcomes that require considerable mutual understanding and trust in order to achieve them, including an awareness of the way in which they can contribute to the objectives of each organisation Crucially, this is likely to mean that the activities of individual members and member organisations will be carried out in a way that contributes wider benefits and longer term gains than if they were carried out in isolation. Partnership working is perhaps best seen as a spectrum, ranging from informal networking forums, consulting and sharing an information and intelligence, through to formal strategic alliances where partners come together to achieve common goals by changing the way that they work. It is critical for partnerships to understand where they lie on this spectrum as it will shape the way the partners work together, the commitment required and the achievements expected. There can often be confusions among partners about the nature of the partnership and this can seriously undermine progress. Partnerships should focus on doing those things that only they can do by working together – and that no-one  else can do better or more efficiently on their own. They should ensure that all the required members are round the table and that they are represented at the right level, and that they have ways of drawing on a much wider range of insights, experience, perspectives and expertise. Organisations should encourage and support partnership working across all their staff. They should offer opportunities to develop partnership skills and they should recognise and reward effective partnership behaviour. Good training and information on partnership working to staff so they can ensure good partnership working that they have the knowledge to support the services users and their families to ensure on going best support and practises. The more partnership working we as an organisation can do the more effective safe and services user focused sevice we can deliver. Partnerships need to maintain a strong connection to clients in terms of: Being able to draw on the service user experience of support and the extent to which this helps them make progress in their lives Creating ways of involving service user in the design of services Capturing the difference that services user perceive in the accessibility, quality and coherence of services.

Kids Need Sports

Kids these days are stuck inside doors just playing video games, doing homework, watching television, and that’s just wrong. Kids should be outside playing sports, getting some exercise while having fun. There are many reasons nowadays why kids aren’t playing or end up quitting sports, such as their parents don’t want them to play and get hurt, kids feel that they can’t do the sport or won’t be any good at it. A other reason kids end up quitting sports because they don’t like to lose or be on a losing team but as Muhammed Ali once said â€Å"I never thought about losing, but now that it’s happened, the only thing is to do it right† (Ali).This is a good mindset to have. Playing a sport at a young age helps the child become a better leader, team player, and an athlete that will carry on as they get older. Whoever disagrees that kids shouldn’t play sports should consider all the benefits sports bring to a child’s life and the people around them. Kids that play a sport are more likely to be in healthy, and have better socializing behavior. There are reasons why kids don’t playing sports at an early age due to parents not allowing them, and kid end up quitting sports due to injury and the stress of a sport.Sports are a great way for a kid to stay in shape and have fun. Playing a sports at a young age has a lot of health befits. As stated by Family, Youth and Community Sciences â€Å"According to the Women’s Sports Foundation, girls who participate in sports are less likely to become pregnant as teenagers and are less likely to suffer from depression. There is also evidence that athletic activity can decrease the likelihood of developing breast cancer and osteoporosis. †(â€Å"Benefits of Sports for Kids†). Kids that play a sport at a young age are more likely to have better eating habits, and exercise when they grow up to an adult.As told by Academic Search Premier. â⠂¬Å"Athletes are generally less likely than their nonathlete peers to smoke cigarettes or to use marijuana or other illegal drugs (â€Å"Relationships Between Youth Sport Participation†). When a kid plays a sport they are often on a team which builds socializing skills and teamwork skills. Routledge â€Å"Around the world, there is evidence of sport/physical activity programmes being used to re-engage young people in education and society more broadly (â€Å"The role of physical activity/sport†).Kids that play sports learn how to share, be a leader, have great team work, and be a better person in both the sport and everyday life. Kid will also have better obedience, and respect to their elders and parents. Sports are a great way to find close friends to talk to play with and they would have the same interests and hobbies as the child would have this makes finding friends easier on the child. Parents need to be involved in their child’s life making sure they are up to good; a great way in doing that is to enroll them in a sport.Parents are the one that need to make the push in their child’s life to start playing a sport and finding the sports they would like to play. Often enough parents are also the reason why kids aren’t playing any sports. An example would be a mother doesn’t want her kid to play football because they can get injured and she is to overprotective of her child, but parents need to know that they cannot keep their kids in door all the time this could cause socializing problems, and health problems. As said by Steinberg Academic Search Premier â€Å"As a general rule, kids should start playing sports around age 6 (â€Å"Let's play ball! ). There are many reasons why kids quit sports nowadays. Some of the reason are that the kid is under too much stress and got injured and afraid to play again. The kid could be in a great deal of stress with the sports busy work schedule with practices, games, and film . This could be a lot for a kid to handle. Academic OneFile â€Å"If your child is unhappily stuck in a high-stress situation, De Lench advises, allow him or her to quit. â€Å"As adults, we walk away from situations that aren't good for us, and it's a healthy lesson to teach your child (â€Å"Not just fun and games†).Kids also should just play seasonal a sports not a year round sports so he or she is constantly under stress. Youth sports are essential to a kids’ development to grow and learn. A child without a sport could have health problem when growing up and likely to get into more trouble with drugs. The kids also build social behaviors and leadership traits that well stick with them for the rest of their lives and good friends along so. The things that are stopping kids from playing g sports are parents, cause of injury, and a stressful environment of the sport itself.

Destination brand positioning Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Destination brand positioning - Assignment Example Destination personality is helpful in building firm destination brands and creating a unique identity. According to the self-congruity theory, it is fundamental to use the target personality as a practical symbol for building strong brands (Lubbe, 2003). It further elaborates that a high match between brand and consumers personality can yield a more promising attitudes towards the brand. The emergence of the internet has tremendously helped in meeting the information need of both actual and potential customers. This is so due to its unique features such as worldwide accessibility, low cost, and increased marketing opportunities. However, it has also altered the way of destination as a product created marketed, maintained and delivered to its customers. According to Lube (2003), destination positioning is the process of establishing and maintaining a distinctive place in the market for an individual or organization product offering. In order to develop a positioning strategy, there are quite a number of procedure which an organization must follow. These includes internal analysis, market analysis, and competitor analysis. A lot of debates have been there concerning the issue of destination positioning. Therefore, it is important for service managers to identify how what their concepts are, how they should satisfy the wants of the customers in different markets amongst others. The success of global competition in the tourism industry depends on the factor conditions and the drivers of competitiveness. An econometric model is very helpful in the estimation of the destination competitiveness empirical index at a micro rank (Donald & Gammack, 2007). The survey points majorly on the measure of tourist demand for each destination and ide ntification of the factors that drive the transformation on the demand schedule in

Challenges in The Music Industry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Challenges in The Music Industry - Essay Example The music industry is going through a hard time due to a decline in CD sales over the years. This is mainly due to the free digital downloads from file sharing sites. The artists are no longer earning much from royalties since the record companies are not selling as much as they once did. This has created the need for the artists and the record companies to seek other alternatives. The music industry is a massive one and consists of producers, artists, retailers, songwriters, marketing agencies, publishers, record studios, record labels engineers, manufacturers and distributors. Essentially, artists, who could also be songwriters, are signed under contracts by record companies to produce a given number of albums or singles. More often than not, record companies pay for the production, manufacture and marketing of albums worldwide. Any revenue generated from album sale goes towards covering the cost of its production. A number of record companies also have ownership rights to the back catalogue of artists. This in essence means that they can decide how this catalogue will be used. For instance, another artist may wish to re-record the song, or an advertising agency may want to use it in its campaign. The record company has the discretion of deciding whether or not to reissue the material. This could probably be in a reformatted version consisting of bonus tracks or could be completely re-mastered. In numerous cases, certain types of music do not have sufficient demand to warrant spending of a lot of money on them. As a result, the record company may make big losses on that artist. The record companies usually regard the artists they work with as among their product portfolio. This leads to very successful artists effectively subsidizing lesser known ones. Record companies therefore base their business on the ability to provide music capable of satisfying the consumers' wide range of tastes. They therefore have to manage their product portfolio carefully to make sure that the cash that flows into the business is adequate in maintaining all its liabilities. Many record companies are usually owners of other companies that they may either have set up or bought. For instance, Universal Music Group also owns other companies such as Deutsche Grammophon and Verve. The company also owns a number of labels distributing both rock and mainstream pop material. It is therefore common for the industry to be dominated by five or so major companies accounting for about 75 per cent of all recorded music sales worldwide. However, within these five companies may be many other companies and labels, which may be well- known in their field of operation. These smaller companies may actually have been set up or acquired by their parent companies. The challenges A number of record labels have seen their sales fall tremendously over the years. This fall has been attributed to increased piracy that has greatly affected the music industry. Artists get their royalties from their music's sales by the record companies. Piracy means that any sales made are not official, and therefore no payment for the artists. The advancement of technology has not made the situation any better. It has led to an increase

BMW of Leadership and Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

BMW of Leadership and Management - Essay Example This report will help the decision makers to evaluate the current and future positioning of the company under the company’s current market analysis with respect to its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The reports also highlights the structure, conduct and performance of the company’s human resources and finally recommend the strategic steps that can be taken for further improvements relating to management, development and implementation of organizational plan. ... At first, there were three companies named Rapp Motorenwerke, Bayerische Flugzeugwerke, and Fahrzeugfabrik. BMW group is the German’s largest automobile company. It came into being when these three companies amalgamated into a single automobile company established in 1917, almost 90 years back the business of the company started with the production of aircraft engines and now in the 21st century, it has expanded its business form the manufacturing of engines up to the complete vehicles. BMW group has the most famous and highly valued brands of the automobile industry named BMW, MINI, and Rolls-Royce. The head quarter of BMW group is present in Munich, Bavaria Germany. The head quarter controls and manages the overall performance of the company in over 150 countries (Schlegelmilch, Lehbrink, & Osterroth, 2011, pg 45-54). Size and Ownership The ownership of the company is in the hands of three personnel Stefan Quandt with 17.4% shares, Johanna Quandt with 16.7% shares and Susann e Klatten with 12.6% shares (Schlegelmilch, Lehbrink, & Osterroth, 2011, pg 56-67). Since its establishment, BMW group has focused on the excellence in engineering and it is the only reason that it has expanded its growth and profit margin as compare with its other competitors. BMW group has almost 12 research and development centers all over the world in order to realize the market trends and create innovative automobiles as required by the consumers. The credit of all of its success goes to the R&D and consumer informed innovations as on average basis the company invests 2300 pounds on each car for research and development. In 2007, BMW group splendidly increased its sale up to 8%, Rolls-Royce by 26% and Mini by 18% (Schlegelmilch,

Thoughts On Printmaking Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Thoughts On Printmaking - Assignment Example Another feature about this laptop cover is that it can be used on any laptop, not necessarily Apples. A user can cover his/her laptop with this beautiful adornment irrespective of the brand. Also the color of the cover has made it exceptionally appealing. White engravings on a dark background are giving it an outstanding look. This cover has got a good aesthetic appeal to it as well. Also, the design is quite intricate and would be liked by people generally. The colors are also gender neutral making it easy for any gender to use the cover. They aren’t bright or flashy so people won’t get awkward before using it. I like it because it is modern, conventional, trendy and beautiful. It is smooth and shiny and the fact that it is a laser engraving makes it special. The remaining images shown in the slides deserve acclaim as well, but I found this one the best as it is very different and attention

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, by Harriet A. Jacobs, Writing Essay

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, by Harriet A. Jacobs, Writing as Linda Brent - Essay Example When that mistress, Margaret Horniblow died, everything changed for the worse for Harriet, who was willed to Dr. Norcom, the Dr. Flint in 'Incidents'. While he did not actually whip her, he sexually harassed the girl, an issue she seeks to expose in order to enlist the understanding and action of Northern white women; that a slave woman has no freedom either as a person or a woman. Flint makes this clear, often. It is difficult to select only three critical incidents in her life, but one has to be the suffering endured at the hands of both Dr. Flint and his jealous wife. The effect of this caused her to abandon her moral stance regarding purity, and almost lost her the allegiance of her grandmother. By the taking of a white lover, Lawyer Sands, (Samuel Treadwell Sawyer) and bearing him two children, she may be considered to be enslaving herself further. She explains that such action was a means of self protection, for Flint still tormented her, wishing to set her up as his mistress in a cottage somewhere, and she could not succumb to this form of enslavement. Instead, she chose to use her sexuality as a means of escape. The children do however, belong to Flint, but with the hope of them being set free, she removes herself, going into hiding for seven years in her grandmother's attic. This is another important, central issue to the story, for she shows her audience that she cannot be the mother to them she desires to be, but will sacrifice this for their freedom. The happy outcome of these actions means that Sands is able to buy the children from Flint, with the help of some subterfuge. "The darkest cloud that hung over my life had rolled away. Whatever slavery might do to me, it could not shackle my children, If I fell a sacrifice, my little ones were saved." (Chap. 19, p. 166) In Chapter 29, when she is ready to escape, after delays and prevarication, there is a bitter-sweet quality in her discussion with her son, who says, "Mother, I'm glad you're going away. I wish I could go with you...I have been so afraid they would come and catch you" (Chap. 29 p. 234) The escape, and what comes after it, signify a third important incident for Harriet/Linda, bringing about, as it does, a faith in the kindness of others (the Bruce family) but a bitter understanding that the Fugitive Law 1851 (Chap. 40) still robs her and her people of freedom. Regarding the standards of womanhood in 19th century America, Jacobs is aware of these and how she is deprived of the freedom to adhere to them. The ideal image of womanhood was that of motherhood, traditional homemaker, one who creates a place of love and security for her family, and who possesses the virtues of purity, piety and submission. At the same time, while nurturing the family, she must use her moral values, judged higher than the male of the species, to teach and develop her children. Jacobs is driven by this maternal instinct, the desire to secure freedom for her children, and to nurture them in a secure family unit, spiritually and physically. These elements are what she portrays to show evidence of 'respectability' in that society. On the other hand, the contradiction lies

Can the Existence of God be Proven Ontologically Essay

Can the Existence of God be Proven Ontologically - Essay Example One of such theories is the ontological argument; in this paper I will argue that this theory is not enough to prove the existence of God. The ontological argument is priori; it seeks to explain the existence of a greater being using logic as to what the appreciative of the superior being that is God is. The theory was popularized by Anselm who used psalms 14 as his reference point and addressed the fool who says in his heart that God does not exist. He states that the fool hears and understands that there is a greater being although he does not understand its existence. Anselm purports that if it exists in one’s understanding then it can be made to exist in reality, which carries more weight. He clearly states that God is a being without which nothing greater exists and the fool understands this but does not believe that God does truly exist. Anselm’s theory is more or less based on deduction if the fool understands that a greater being does exist then it must exist, o therwise he would be contradicting himself. This theory is unsatisfactory in proving God’s existence since it claims that assuming that God does not exist leads to a contradiction, He must therefore exist. The theory seems to dictate that God does exist by the virtue that He must exist, since nothing greater can be conceived than Him, it illustrates that God’s existence is necessary since the thought of Him not existing is inconceivable. The idea that the existence of God is necessary does not proof that He actually exists; it is more like forcing an issue down someone’s throat and expecting that person to believe it and accept it as the truth. Because He carries the title God, the theory then seems to insinuate that it s wrong to claim that God does not exist. For something to exist, the concept must correspond to reality, but Anselm’s theory is based on abstract facts and this does not proof that a greater being does exist. A monk by the name Gaunilo, a lso attempted to refute the claims by Anselm describing an island that can be said to be ore excellent than any other existing island. He goes ahead to argue that an island that that exists is much better than a non-existent one, so therefore the island must exist by definition. The assumption that one can define anything that he wants and it will exist corresponds to the ontological theory. It would be therefore correct to assume that the devil also exists by the necessity that he must. Since God does exist and he is all good and presumably much greater than conceived then the devil must also exist as that which nothing worse can be conceived. This theory therefore holds no water and does not prove God’s existence since it would then show that one can imagine and assume anything in life and it shall be a reality which is not the case. Alvin Plantiga also decided to remodel the ontological argument by use of logic, claiming that concepts must either be necessary, impossible o r possible. In his concepts, he claims that there is a world that possibly exists with a being that is maximally great, meaning that He exists in all possible worlds and therefore must exist in our world as well. This argument has no much difference from the Anselm’s argument because what it does is state that the greater being is a possibility. This claim is debatable meaning that it does not have any tangible proof to support its basis. The ontological argument clearly shows that God only survives in the mind, which means if God is imagined and a creation of the mind, then something greater than God can be imagined. But one should not forget that this is all in the mind and not actually existing in real

Civil Liberties, Habeas Corpus, and the War on Terror Essay - 7

Civil Liberties, Habeas Corpus, and the War on Terror - Essay Example The Bush administration chose U.S. Naval Station in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as a legal black hole to burr detainees from trials. Detainees serving indefinite time in the detention center have gone untried and others released without clear legal grounds as to why they served time in the first place. Reflecting back on the relevance of the habeas corpus, the US Constitution provides that detainees have the right to hearings in court to prove their guilt or innocence. With reference to humanity, fairness, justice, and freedom to equal human rights, habeas corpus provides grounds for appraising executive authority while upholding the relevance of US constitutional provisions. The right of habeas corpus is an English common law product. Its fundamental relevance is to create means of summoning individuals before the central courts. In the 14th century, habeas corpus was used to enquire into the grounds of an individual’s detention by local courts. In the 16th century, courts applied habeas corpus to enquire into the detentions ordered by the King’s Privy Council (a body blending judicial and executive powers). In the 17th century, parliament made steps to strengthen the relevance of habeas corpus bringing the King’s acts into its scope, hence, creating the Habeas Corpus Act of 1679 (Habeas Corpus Act, 1679). With developments in English Law, habeas corpus was exported to most of Britain’s colonies. As the earliest constitutional guarantee, habeas corpus occurred in the US in 1789. Its relevance to both the English and the American Law is that it aims at providing mechanisms to bring a detained individual before a judge to protect the individual’s physical integrity. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights, following a 1987 advisory opinion, argued that the habeas corpus performed a vital role in the protection of

Functionalism Conflict Theory Essay Example for Free

Functionalism Conflict Theory Essay â€Å"Knowledge is shaped by the social world.† (Karl Mannheim.) Though trying to understand the social world may seem difficult, sociologists managed to create three theories on how different areas of the world fit with one another as well as working hand in hand with each other. The three theories are known as Symbolic Interactionism, Functionalism and Conflict Theory. Each theory serves as a significant perspective on how individuals view social life and how it effects society as a whole. The first perspective would have to be the simplest of all and is categorized as a micro level since it is focused on smaller scale than the remaining perspectives. Symbolic Interactionism was founded by Charles Horton Cooley (1864-1929), William I. Thomas (1863-1947) and George Herbert Mead (18-63-1931). According to the textbook, symbolic interactionism means a theoretical perspective in which society is viewed as composed of symbols that people use to establish meaning, develop their views of the world and communicate with one another. In other words, it means symbols have an attached meaning that effect the way we view the world and communicate with individuals. Examples of symbols are family members, relationships, language, co-workers, etc. If there were no symbols in our life, we wouldn’t know who we are related to or who to give authority to. For example, at your job you are required to respect the person of high authority which may be your manager or your boss, (depending on your symbol at your facility). In your family, the symbols would be your mother, father, brother, sister, aunts, uncles, etc. No matter what area, each symbol has a different behavior and interacts differently unlike the rest. To narrow this down, let’s compare the relationship with a boyfriend to a brother. A brother would be loving and caring but would not be as intimate as the boyfriend would be. If we didn’t have symbols, we wouldn’t be able to differentiate how to act with those two. The only positive side about not having symbols would be the fact that there would be no war since we wouldn’t be able to understand who our enemy is let alone knowing what an enemy is. The next perspective is focused on a macro level since it is aimed at the large scale of society. Functionalism was founded by Robert Merton (1910-2003), â€Å"The accomplishments of functional analysis are sufficient to suggest that its large promise will progressively be fulfilled, just as its current deficiencies testify to the need for periodically overhauling the past to build for the future† (Social Theory and Social Structure Page 74). According to the textbook, functionalism means a theoretical framework in which society is viewed as composed of various parts, each with a function that when fulfilled, contributes to society’s equilibrium. In other words, various parts work together as a whole to maintain society’s balance. Robert Merton defined functions as positive consequences based on human’s actions that benefit the society. Functions that are intended to help a system are known as manifest function. Followed by this would be the unintended consequence to adjust the system which is known as latent functions. The textbook breaks these two down using an example of giving married couples an extra $10,000 for child bearing (this is the manifest function). Unknowingly, this increases the products used to care for a baby which is known at the latent functions. Though manifest and latent functions are used to balance a system, there are also some dysfunctions that can actually break down the system. These consequences are unusually unintended and because of that, it’s referred to as latent dysfunctions. Referring back to the example stated in the textbook; a latent dysfunction about giving $10,000 to each married couple that bears a child would be the rise in taxes which the couples may not be able to afford since they will be living off of the bonus. Another example that many individuals can relate to is our family. Every family member plays a significant role in their household. Examining the financial state of the family, it’s the bread winner that holds the financial issues together. Without the bread winner, the family would struggle and even turn for help towards the government. If the function of the bread winner begins to take a turn for the negative, the family weakens and loses their ability to prosper as a whole. This is an important factor on how functions can either make or break society. The smaller units affect the larger units in both negative and p ositive ways. Last but not least, the next perspective would be conflict theory. References Cooley, Charles H. The Roots of Social Knowledge. American Journal of Sociology 32.1 (1926): 59-79. Print. Merton, Robert K. Social Theory and Social Structure. New York: Division of Macmillian Co , 1968. The Free Press. Web. 14 Nov. 2012. http://A Division of Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc.. Coser, Lewis. Chapter IX. The Functions of Social Conflict. Glenoe, IL: Free, 1956. 151-57. The Functions of Social Conflict. Web. 18 Nov. 2012. http://media.pfeiffer.edu/lridener/courses/COSERR1.HTML.

Rewards Management Incentives For Employees

Rewards Management Incentives For Employees Reward management is whereby organisations distribute different types of incentive to employees both in the form of direct and indirect monetary and non-monetary rewards according to their contribution (Armstrong 1999). It is also an essential part of encouraging employees to work as you want, so that those goals are met. The goal of the reward management is to improve the overall organisations output and performance by developing a system aimed at rewarding employees of the organisation based on their contribution to the organisation (Armstrong Murlis 2007). In doing so, the employees will feel that they belong part of the organisation as their works are being recognised by their superiors. This will at the same time, create a sense of belonging and improve employees loyalty to the organisation. What are the exact roles played by the reward management in the organisations? Firstly, it allows the organisations to attract and retain suitable employees by paying the employees based on their excellent performance and ensuring direct and indirect rewards thus implying the organization recognises and values manpower. Therefore organisations are able to control labour costs so they can remain aggressive in the competitive market. Secondly, rewards improve employees work performance and keep them motivated. As all organisations want to improve productivity and enhance profit, effective reward management systems which lead to a more committed workforce will certainly play an important role. In addition, by having an effective rewards system, it will motivate employees to showcase their skills and abilities to obtain effective performance. Lastly, comply with employment legislation and regulations as employment laws changes occasionally in the UK and European Union hence the need make some modification (Bratton Gold 1999). What kinds of recognition and rewards do employees want most (Nelson 2003)? Nelson (2003) stated that employees value managerial support and involvement in organisation future projects. Being part of decision making, support them when they made mistakes and giving them trust and authority in doing their job. There are different types of praise employees wants, mainly personal praise, written praise, public praise and electronic praise. In this essay, I will mention about how rewards are seen as a powerful tools for driving cultural change in organisation in Singapore using Singapore Airlines, as an example, to show how rewards can drive cultural change. I will also mention whether rewards play a role in managing cultural and change in firm operating internationally with specific example from Pakistan. Also, some negative impacts of the reward system will also be discussed. Rewards system in Singapore During the 1960s-1980s, incentives such as rewards, benefits and recognition are not highly practice in the labour force. As the people then were poorly educated and the lack of family planning resulted in a large family, the heads of the family (mainly the fathers) most of the time do not have much bargaining power as they have only one think in mind, that is to support their family member at all cost. In order to feed their, they have to do whatever the company want them to and they would take on any jobs that were available to them. They did not expect any bonus and incentives from the company and they were easily satisfied as long as they can support their family. However as the government shift from labour intensive industry to knowledge base industry people are getting more highly educated than before, (people no longer stop at A or Diploma) more people will pursue higher education such degree. They no longer have the burden to support the family, like what their parents used to experience thus they no longer have the sense of loyalty and have more tendency to job hop whenever better opportunity comes about. They will tend to be fussy about the job they work in, choose jobs that they fancy or a better organisation who can give them higher benefits. Therefore organisations now have to come up with effective reward and recognition scheme to attract employees. It is proven that highly motivated employees will come up with high quality performance and by rewarding them it will also lead to employee job satisfaction. Singapore Airlines (SIA) is one organisation in Singapore who promotes motivating their staffs through rewards and recognition. Singapore Airlines adopt a series of rewards and recognition which include interesting and varied job content, symbolic forms of recognition and performance-based share options (Heracleous, Wirtz Pangarkar 2006). Recently SIA introduced a new benefit scheme rewarding their crews monetary whereby the company associated many types of variable components to the organisation financial performance such as salary according to the individual employee contribution to the organisation and profit sharing incentive (Wirtz, Heracleous Pangarkar 2008). A non-monetary form of motivation and recognition which the organisation came up with is by awarding the best crew with best cabin crew service award. By obtaining this award, it will boost the morale of the crew thus stimulate them to work harder. Another form of recognising service excellence is by communication. The a nnual Deputy Chairmans Award, Mr Sim stress the importance of recognition, We know that a pat on the back, a good ceremony, photographs and write-ups in the newsletters can be more motivating than mere financial rewards, hence we put in a lot of effort to ensure that heroes and heroines are recognised for their commitment and dedication (Heracleous, Wirtz Pangarkar 2006 p.165.) With such attractive reward scheme, the crew are highly motivated hence producing high quality service. All these factors helped SIA to build and sustain excellence service consistently for over few decades therefore Singapore Airlines was being crowned one of the best airlines in the world. Reward system in Parkistan Pakistan is developing into one of the more developed country in the world therefore in order to be kept up to date, the working environment is becoming more and more competitive. Organisation productivity is dependent on the employees hence employees request for extra training, skills and attractive package such as incentives, working conditions, recognitions and fringe benefits (Warsi, Fatima Sahibzada 2009). In every organisation, the performance of employees plays a crucial role in the organisation accomplishment. The success of an organisation is how an organisation keeps its employees motivated and shows how they value their employees. Nowadays people do not want to stay or work in an organisation for long, they will see there is any better opportunity outside and get better job prospect for that reason the relationship between organisation commitment and rewards and recognitions plays a crucial role in retaining good employees. In the recent year, many organisations hope that, through different types of incentive and performance recognition, to improve employee commitment and their performance in the organisation as rewards are being identified as the most important tool in recognising their contribution and performance (Danish Usman 2010). Rewards are deemed as a motivational tool for employees today as it able to motivate them thus increasing job performance and satisfaction. By motivating employees organisations can also increase their productivity by giving them recognition which will eventually lead to increasing organisation performance. There are many types of incentive, in the form of financial rewards (improved pay and performance bonuses), promotions and incentives (parental leave for sick children and family day) that satisfy employee to a certain extent. It has also been showed that rewards are required to ensure committed employees feel appreciated and to keep them motivated and committed (Dan ish Usman 2010). Rewards and recognitions is a form of communication with employees. It is a way to acknowledge their hard work, appreciate, motivate and to keep them committed. Thus employees feel that what they have done is being recognised and this will ultimately lead to increased employees loyalty and job satisfaction. Despite all the advantages of reward system, there is an also a disadvantage side of reward system. Although the reward system can motivate employees to do better in their work, it can also have a negative impact of the organisation. This is because rewards are usually very limited and precious, and as a result, this reward system has increased the competiveness of the employees in the organisation. As only a few employees out of the whole organization are entitled, this will lead to unhealthy competition between different departments of the organisation and even within the department itself. This will eventually lead to lower productivity because people no longer willing to share their knowledge with one another as they are afraid that others might have the upper hand to obtain the reward. In order not to lose out, they will no longer share their knowledge so in long term, this might not be beneficial as what they initially thought. In the commercial bank of Pakistan, they agree that rewards and recognitions play a significant role in helping the organisation achieving organisation efficiency. Employee motivation is identified as one of the main issues in the commercial banks. In todays competitive world, the organisation has to work closely together with the employees in order to remain competitive among peers. As the banking industry contributes to a large extent to the economy of the nation, it is important to ensure that employees are motivated since employees play an important role in todays highly competitive banking sector. The management of the bank have to come out with different ways to attract and motivate the employees since for most of the commercial banks, employee loyalty and motivation are important issues as it is not an uncommon scene to see a promising employees joined to a rival bank. As the employees play an important role in the banking industry to provide good service to the customers, their enthusiastic, commitment and determination towards job completion play essential role in the success of the bank (Khan, Farooq Ullah, cited in Cheng 2010). By providing excellent service, customers will have a good impression and developed a positive perception in their eyes. This is especially important for the banking sector. According to Khan, Farooq Ullah (cited in Petcharak 2010), maintaining employee satisfaction with their jobs has been included as one of the job scope for the human resource manager. This strongly suggests the importance of employee motivation. To improve the productivity of the organisation, it is important to have a pool of highly motivated employee. In order to achieve that, reward and recognition system plays an important role. This system not only provides financial rewards but also it encourages their morale and consciousness with regard to their job, resulting in improvement of individual performance which eventually benefited the entire team and even the organisation. It has also been reported that poor employee and organisation performance is usually caused by workplace displeasure. Conclusion From the example taken from both domestically and international firms, we can see a strong relationship between reward and organisations productivity. This strongly highlights the importance of reward system in todays labour market. Therefore rewards play an important role in ensuring that an organisation remains competitive and productive. Rewards lead to increasing employees motivation and job satisfaction which in turn lead to organisation profitability. Reward systems come from theories of motivation and experimental research evaluation strategies to motivate employees will affect job performance. Two most common of theories which discussed work motivation includes Maslow and Herzberg. Maslow states that higher-order needs become progressively more important as lower-order needs are satisfied (Bratton Gold 1999). Herzberg demonstrated that motivation of employees play a significant source of satisfaction when it comes to a form of reward (Bratton Gold 1999). Even though rewards might have some negative impacts on the organisation, with proper planning of the reward and recognition system I strong believe that the advantages of this system will surely outweigh the disadvantages. Therefore it can be seen that rewards do play an important role in managing cultural changes in firms operating domestically and internationally. Word Count: 1916 words References List Armstrong, M 1999, A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice, 7th edn, Kogan Page Limited, The Bath Press, Bath. Armstrong, M Murlis, H 2007, Reward Management: A Handbook of Remuneration Strategy and Practice, 5th edn, MPG Books Ltd, Great Britain. Bratton, J Gold, J 1999, Human Resource Management Theory and practice, 2nd edn, Macmillan Press Ltd, Great Britain at The Bath Press, Avon. Danish, RQ Usman, A 2010, Impact of Reward and Recognition on Job Satisfaction and Motivation: An Empirical Study from Parkistan, International Journal of Business and Management, February, vol. 5, no.2, pp. 159-167, viewed 9 August 2010, Proquest Database. Heracleous, L, Wirtz, J Pangarkar, N 2006, Flying High in a Competitive Industry Cost-Effective Service Excellence at Singapore Airlines, Mc Graw-Hill Education (Asia), Singapore. Khan, KU, Farooq, SU Ullah, MI 2010, The Relationship between Rewards and Employee Motivation in Commercial Banks in Parkistan, Research Journal of International Studies, issue 14, pp.1-18, viewed 16 August 2010, Proquest Database. Nelson, B 2003, Five Questions About Employee Recognition and Reward, Harvard Management Update, September, vol. 8, issue 9, p. 3, viewed 9 August 2010, Proquest Database. Wirtz, J, Heracleous, L Pangarkar, N 2008, Managing human resources for service excellence and cost effectiveness at Singapore Airlines, Managing Service Quality, vol. 18, no. 1, pp. 4-19, viewed 9 August 2010, Proquest Database. Warsi, S, Fatima, N Sahibzada SA 2009, Study on Relationship Between Organizational Commitment and its Determinants among Private Sector Employees of Parkistan, International Review of Business Research Papers, April, vol. 5, no. 3, pp. 399-410, viewed 9 August 2010, Proquest Database.

Teaching Meditation to Classes in Philosophy :: Education Teacher Educating Philosophical Essays

Teaching Meditation to Classes in Philosophy ABSTRACT: In alignment with the overall theme of the congress, "Philosophy Teaching Humanity," this paper proposes that teachers of philosophy consider instructing their students in simple techniques of meditation. By meditation I mean the practice of mindfulness which typically begins by paying clear, steady, non-reactive attention to the sensations of one's own breathing, and then extending this attention to embrace all bodily sensations, feelings, moods, thoughts, and intentions. I discuss how to integrate meditation practically in the philosophy classroom and then respond to three objections that have been raised to that practice. I then discuss the potential benefits of the practice, arguing first of all that meditation has academic benefits, especially in courses in Asian philosophy. But of much wider application is the wisdom of non-attachment which the mediation naturally evokes primarily through the experience of impermanence. The potential benefits of the paradigm are then briefly indicated as related to our experience of body, mind, society and nature. I conclude by commending the proposal as a small but important practical step philosophy teachers can take to help our fellow humans navigate the challenging transformation of our time. I. A Proposal: Situating the Need and Proposing a Response The grand theme of our Congress is "Philosophy Educating Humanity". It is heartening to see philosophers from all over the world pondering how we can be of service to our species; refocusing on the root meaning of "philosophy" as "love of wisdom", we seek to be of real help in a world in the throes of many transformations. Those of us who teach philosophy in formal academic environments are already in a position to make a direct difference in the lives of our students; like it or not, we are at some level opinion leaders in our communities--what we teach and how we teach matters. And so we ask ourselves how can we best use the power that we have? Clearly we can help our students and fellow human beings by teaching them skills of discursive rationality; when we can define our meanings precisely, use our terms consistently, argue coherently, and adhere to high standards of evidence, then we are better able to avoid dogmatism and bring an effective intelligence to bear on the problems of living that face us. These skills will always be a precious resource philosophy can offer humanity. And yet there is much more to philosophy than this.

The Integration of Cognitive and Behavior Therapy Essay -- Psychology

My personal theoretical orientation to counseling is Cognitive-Behavioral therapy. Cognitive-Behavioral therapy helps the client to uncover and alter distortions of thought or perceptions which may be causing or prolonging psychological distress. The theoretical foundations of CBT are essentially those of the behavioral and cognitive approaches. CBT leads to a clear, persuasive, and evidence-based description of how normal and abnormal behavior develops and changes (Kramer 293). The term â€Å"cognitive-behavioral therapy† or CBT is a term for therapies with many similarities. CBT is not used as a cure and often times used to help with anxiety or depression the most, and may be single or in group settings. There are several approaches to this form of therapy which include, Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy, Rational Behavior Therapy, Rational Living Therapy, Cognitive Therapy, and Dialectic Behavior Therapy. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is based on the idea that our thoughts cause our feelings and behaviors. External things, like people, situations, and events do not. The greatest benefit of this fact is that we can change the way we think, feel, act, and even more so if the situation does not change. In the development of methods of CBT, findings from basic research on the key concepts have been blended with cognitive theories. The most important of these findings are the following: The first is depressive behavior, including low energy, lack of interest, helplessness, and other reductions in psychomotor activity, can be successfully modified with behavioral techniques. The second one is exposure therapy and related methods are particularly effective interventions for many disorders. The last one is that behavioral interventions c... .... "An Introduction to Cognitive Therapy & Cognitive Behavioral Approaches." Counselling Resource. Counselling Resource, 02 Nov 2010. Web. 1 Dec 2010. http://counsellingresource.com/types/cognitive-therapy/index.html. Pucci, Aldo. "Techniques/Methods." What is Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy? 2010: 1. Web. 27 Nov 2010. . Pucci, Aldo. "Therapeutic Relationship." What is Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy? 2010: 1. Web. 27 Nov 2010. . Rubarth, Scott. "Stoic Philosophy of Mind." IEP, 2005. Web. . Unknown, Author. "CBT Techniques I." CUNY Edu., 2010. Web. 1 Dec 2010. . Wright, Jesse H. "Cognitive Behavior Therapy: Basic Principles and Recent Advances.† American Psychiatric Association. IV.2 (2006): 6. Print.

Benito Mussolini: A Destined Failure Essay -- Italian History, Politic

Absolute power and influence, is and has always been something extremely difficult to obtain, and as we have seen throughout the course of history such authority and control left in the hands of a single person can quickly crumble at their very feet. As with most, this often happens in part by self-destructive means. Case and point, Benito Mussolini, a man who at one point held total power over the entire Italian population; seemingly overnight he lost all control and eventually found himself hanging from the end of a meat hook. Now knowing just who he was as a person, what actions he took, and the decisions he made, some might argue that his reign in the end was preordained for catastrophe. Myself, I would tend to agree with this statement. Nevertheless, let us take a few steps back and revisit the periods of Mussolini’s life leading up to his ultimate demise. The stages of his life in which he was influenced by loved ones and strangers alike. In essence, the moments in time that sculpted the intellect, opinions, beliefs, even ideologies of the man who was. Starting from the beginning and working forward, I want to dissect Mussolini in a way that helps us understand why and how he was shaped into the person he became. How was Mussolini influenced by his father and mother? What drove Mussolini to eventually create and promote Fascism as we know it? Then, with a freshly painted portrait of the man we knew as â€Å"Il Duce†, we can pinpoint the flaws of his being to see what went wrong in, or rather how Mussolini went about, implementing the fascist idea incorrectly. Moreover, with these questions in mind we can evaluate my perceived notion that Mussolini was simply destined for failure. Benito Mussolini was born the son of a blacksmit... ...ists) (Gregor 95). This was the first step of many that would take Mussolini’s small, organized group of followers and himself to their futures as ruling fascists. Once more Mussolini completely reinvented himself and his ideology in the years to come. On March 23, 1919, Mussolini founded the Fasci Italiani di Combattimento, welcoming civilians and veterans alike in the fight for Fascism (Hoyt 113). Fascism in its’ early state spread under the values of nationalism and unity, despite ones class. However, Mussolini’s idea of fascism was not what it turned out to be. He took philosophies and ideologies alike and blended them to his approval. Mussolini’s fascism opposed democratic rule, protected the class system, rejected egalitarianism, encouraged militarization, and demanded civic duties for the states wellbeing; fascism was action and with action came results.

Application of ICT in Classrooms in Rural Area

This survey aims at placing the jobs faced by school in Jada local Government Area ( LGA ) . The quality of instruction in schools in the rural country is less compared to the quality of instruction in the urban centres. A study and an interview were conducted in order to, place what the jobs are. From the consequences, the undermentioned jobs were identified ; deficiency of substructure, low quality of instruction, unqualified instructors and deficiency of financess to keep the school. As consequences of these jobs the pupils in such schools are neglecting there external scrutinies therefore they do n't acquire admittances into universities conveying a halt to their instruction. This paper suggests the execution of information and communicating engineering ( ICT ) to work out the jobs faced by the School in Jada with the aid of the authorities and private organisations. Introduction Education is a really of import facet in the development of a state. An educated person can carry through so much for himself and his state. Education empowers people to follow their dreams, to do alterations in their lives and the lives of others. In an article published in Onlinenigeria the missionaries foremost introduced instruction to Nigeria in the fiftiess. The first instruction section established was in the southern Nigeria in the twelvemonth 1887 ( Education, 2010 ) . Ibadin a professor in University of Benin mentioned that â€Å" between 1960 and 1998, primary and secondary school registration increased from 2,912,619 to 17,942,000 or 516 per centum rate addition † ( 2010, p.87 ) . This shows the fast turning figure of educational institutes in Nigeria. Both rural and urban countries have turning Numberss of educational institute. Despite the addition, the educational position in rural countries is much less compared to that in urban centres, it is just to state tha t instruction in rural countries have non yet run into the needed educational criterion. For illustration, the quality of instruction in urban topographic points like Jimeta in Adamawa province is more than that of rural topographic points like Jada Local Government Area. The public presentation of school in Nigeria is measured by how good they do in external scrutinies. Schools in Jimeta are executing much more than schools in Jada. The schools in the rural countries have unqualified instructors. Furthermore, the authorities merely concentrates on the urban countries while pretermiting the rural countries. Because of this carelessness, the rural schools do non hold the necessary substructure in making a good acquisition and healthy environment. The execution of information engineering would assist in developing the educational criterion in rural countries. Methodology The range of this research was based on Jada Local Government Area and Jimeta in Adamawa province. The methods used in garnering information were, interviews, studies and internet research. Thirty people answered the study, 15 from Jimeta and 15 from Jada Local Government Area. Two people were interviewed ; the local authorities president of Jada and a instructor from Jada secondary school. Consequences of Findingss The study was in two subdivisions. The first subdivision focused on the condition/state of the school, while the other subdivision focused on how many people have entree to computing machine and in what ways has the computing machine affected them. Most of the people in Jimeta agreed with the fact that there are good qualified instructors and the acquisition environment is a healthy 1. The entire antonym was the consequence in Jada, from the study it showed that the schools in Jada local Government do non hold adequate tabular arraies and chairs, text editions are out dated and they lack other learning stuffs. From the consequence above it did non come as a daze that merely 5 per centum of the people who took the study knew what a computing machine was. In add-on, from that 5 per centum none of them own or have used a computing machine before. They have no thought, that the usage of computing machine can help them to be more efficient in their work. The contrary was the instance for the people surveyed in Jimeta ; 85 per centum have used a computing machine before and 60 per centum have entree to a computing machine. From the 60 per centum that have entree to the computing machine all agreed that it has made their work less feverish and it has besides made them more efficient. In an Interview with the Chairman of Jada ; Alhaji Usman Bamanga mentioned that the ratio of instructors to pupils is 1 to 70, which is really bad. In add-on to that, he besides stated that the instructors are largely unqualified. The Chairman besides stated that most of the times you would happen pupils seated on the floor because there are no tabular arraies and chairs in the schoolrooms. Furthermore, some of the text editions available are outdated and the instructors are the lone people who have entree to them. When asked if there are any computing machines available in the school, the president said â€Å" In a topographic point where there are no chairs for the pupils to sit on, do you anticipate them to hold computing machines. The merely available computing machine in this topographic point is in my office. † Harmonizing to the president, the ground why the school is in a really bad status is because the authorities do non supply plenty support to instruction in rural countries. The sum of money provided by the authorities merely helps pay the wages of the instructors and the school can non afford to purchase other larning stuffs needed for learning. In add-on, the sum paid by the pupils for their tuition fees is really undistinguished compared to the financess need to upgrade the criterion of the school. Interview with the instructor ; a instructor from the school was picked because he would cognize more about the jobs traveling on in the school. One of his major concerns among few others was, the pupils do non like coming to school and that the parents are non making anything about the state of affairs. In add-on, even if they are in school the pupil happen it difficult to concentrate in category because of the conditions of the schoolroom. The instructors besides complained that the figure of pupils in the category, he pointed out that he can non separate the chopper pupils and those that need excess attending. Those that needed the excess attending would stop up non larning anything at the terminal of the session. He besides complained that most of the clip the school does non supply them with larning stuff. For illustration, sometimes the instructors use their ain money to purchase chalks and other composing stuffs in order to learn their category while in some state of affairs w hen the instructors do non purchase the stuffs larning does non happen. Problems Faced by Classrooms in Jada Local Government Area From the study and interviews conducted, it is clear that schools in the rural country are confronting so many jobs. These jobs are: Low figure of schools in the country ; as motioned above, there is merely one school in Jada available to the population of 1000 pupils in the country. Because of that, the categories are overcrowded doing it impossible for the instructor to command the pupils. If there are excessively many people in a room with hapless hygiene, this makes it easier for the spread of diseases. In add-on, in a category where there are about 70 people in a room, would do it easier for the spread of diseases. In an article published by the World Resources Institute it stated that â€Å" Overcrowding and insanitary family conditions favor the transmittal of the disease, which is spread by droplets from a cough or a sneezing or common custodies ( Airborne, 1999, P. 4 ) . † Furthermore, excessively many pupils to a instructor, causes larning to be limited to little figure of pupils. The higher the figure of pupils in a category the more hard it would be for the instructor to command the category. With a crowded schoolroom, it would be hard for the pupils to be attentive. The crowd would besides increase noise doing deflecting other pupils ready to larn. Another, job faced by this school is the quality of instruction given to them. Most of the instructors in the school are unqualified ; they can non be accepted by other urban school so they come to the rural countries where they have no pick but to use them. The rural schools such as the one in Jada have no pick because they do non hold the money to pay for qualified instructors. The deficiency of qualified instructors has affected the public presentation of the school in external scrutinies such as Western African Examinations Council ( WAEC ) , and the National Examinations Council ( NECO ) . Supporting this statement is Vincent.O.Ibadin saying that aˆÂ ¦aˆÂ ¦aˆÂ ¦the ultimate quality of instruction is determined by the instructor, as he transmits the value of instruction to the pupil. In line with this, Merton ( 1957 ) in a paper titled â€Å" The Self Fulfilling Prophecy † , pointed out that, â€Å" a instructor ‘s outlook can and does rather literally affect a pupil ‘s academic public presentation. † Similarly, Aghenta ( 1998:44 ) emphasized that, â€Å" what the instructor does and how he does it are of import in the finding of quality of instruction. The instructor is every bit of import in the finding of measure of instruction. † Hence, possibly the National Policy on Education ( FGN, 2004:39 ) . ( 2010, p.89 ) The quotation mark above shows how the making of a instructor has a batch to make with the public presentation of their pupils. As a consequence of unqualified instructors, the pupils do highly hapless in external scrutinies, and because of their public presentation, they do n't acquire admittances into third establishments. The pupils therefore end up remaining at place making what their grandparents have been making, taking them back to where they started. This discourages the parent from seting their kids into schools and it encourages the figure of dropouts in schools. They feel that instruction is a waste of clip ; they instead send their kids to work and lend to the household income. In add-on to all the jobs, the school does non acquire adequate money to run the schools. The environment in which the pupils survey is really bad, the school does non hold adequate money to purchase up-to-date text editions and other substructures such as tabular arraies. How ICT Can Help Solve the Problem. The execution of computing machines and the proviso of cyberspace installation would assist work out some of the jobs faced by Jada secondary school. The job of outdate information and text edition: With computing machines and the cyberspace, the instructors and pupils can hold entree to information they need. The demand to purchase a text edition is non necessary. There are so many e-books, e-libraries and so much more out at that place that are free and unfastened for the populace to utilize. Distraction doing larning to be limited to few Numberss of pupils: The computing machine can assist pull the attending of the pupils. For illustration, in a category where there are three people to a computing machine, their attending would be on what is on the computing machine, ( the computing machine here is like a mini instructor to them ) . The computing machine provides a fun manner of acquisition, through educational games and multimedia, this makes the pupils to be excited and willing to larn more. The article Computers in the Classroom: How Information Technology can Better Conversation Education, it acknowledged that â€Å" It is possible to do a talk more piquant and entertaining by utilizing the presentation tools available to us with computing machines and associated package ( 2003, P. 2 ) . † Unqualified instructors: The instructors can foster their instruction by inscribing in universities that offer on-line grades. They can besides educate themselves with resources out at that place and happen out what is new and learning techniques that would assist them in their instruction. Problem of pupils dropping out: When ICT is implemented in the school it would function as a incentive for larning to the pupils. The pupils would be willing to come to school and larn about what is go oning in the universe. Implementing ICT can assist upgrade their external scrutiny consequences, which would acquire them admittance into the university. This would in bend encourage parent to set their kids in school, because they can now see advancement. Quality of instruction: To sum up how information and communicating engineering can work out the jobs of Jada secondary school, it would in the procedure addition the quality of instruction of the school. Harmonizing to the curate of instruction he stated that vitamin E acquisition could assist work out, the job the state ‘s instruction is confronting ( Sam ) . Government Roles in Solving the Problems For the job of unqualified instructors, authorities policies should be implemented to guarantee that merely qualified staffs are employed to learn. In add-on, those instructors that are already in the school system should travel back to school to foster their instruction to the criterion required. Government can besides put a policy to turn to the issue of overcrowding. A policy can be created that states â€Å" A instructor should hold non more than 40 pupils in a schoolroom. † When the execution of these policies is successful, it would turn to the issues of overcrowding and unqualified instructors learning in rural schools. The last and the most of import job is the issue of money, which generated most of the jobs. As identified by the president of Jada Local Government, the fund given by the authorities does non supply the basic demands needed to run the school. The authorities should concentrate on instruction in the rural countries as they do the urban countries. The authorities can non be the lone beginning of financess for the school ; there are other private persons and organisations that are willing to supply the aid. An illustration of a non-profit organisation aimed at assisting schools in Nigeria is â€Å" SchoolNet Nigeria is a non-profit administration created to turn to the usage of ICT in Nigerian secondary schools with the support of several authorities ministries. ( Agyeman, 2007, p.6 ) † Decision In decision, when ICT is implemented in Jada secondary school it would upgrade the criterion of instruction in that country. The alterations would non merely be limited to the school and its pupils but to the hereafter of Jada Local Government Area. The pupils would come out with consequences that would take them to any university in the state and compete with other schools in the urban countries. The kids Jada Local Area would hold control of what they want to be in the hereafter. As instruction makes you who are and what you ne'er believing you can go. If this is excessively be successful in every rural country in Nigeria so the jobs of Nigeria are solved Application of Ict in Classrooms in Rural Area This project is focused in implementing ICT in rural area, and the case study is on fufore local government in Yola. As we all know rural areas in Nigeria lack quality and basic education, when you talk about education in rural area what comes to our head is low standard of learning, poor education, not well equipped class rooms for student’s education or lack of proper infrastructure suitable for education. An article defined rural education as: There is little dispute that basic education1—often characterized as the reading, math, and other skills and knowledge taught in the first four years of primary school—is critical to economic and social development. Without basic skills, according to one definition, a person cannot comprehend the instructions on a bottle of medicine or a bag of fertilizer or read a government notice. Neither can the person compute a bill or write a letter. Without basic skills, it is impossible to develop one’s potential or to contribute in anything more than a rudimentary manner to society (Greaney, 1999). (Moulton, 2001) Fufore Local Government is settled area in the southern part of Adamawa with five major languages known as Fulani (largest), Bata, Verre, Laka and Pere, it consist of 1500 people that live there, most of them engage in cattle rearing, poultry, farming etc. When i went to observe these schools i noticed there were at least 300 children that went to both nursery and secondary schools, but the problem is they lack facilities that will make these students feel they are learning which makes some students even drop out of schools and start engaging in house work activities. This project focuses on schools in fufore that need ICT services to improve student’s knowledge and ability to learn in order for these schools to have equal education as the students in urban schools, if students in the rural area are not given equal education as students in the urban area there is a result of inequality. Unequal tools in an unequal environment create unequal results† (Ukpe, 2010). Implementation/ Application of ICT in class rooms in rural area is going to benefit the society as a whole, and both the teachers and students. It goes a long way to help the society, because when students start using ICT in classrooms some of their friends at home will also find it interesting this will make them also want to start schooling and know what school is about. This study will also be used as a case study to many parts of rural areas in Nigeria, making them aware of how value ICT is in our generation and also making these local students to fit into any schools they find themselves in in urban schools because this implementation of ICT will not only make these students concentrate on just computer and information studies they will also learn how to apply the knowledge in their various courses. Methodology In order to have reasons for the implementation of ICT in classrooms, i will have to compare this primary/secondary schools in rural area with the once in urban. The methods i used are personal observation, interview and online research (internet). We can see most urban schools have well functioned classrooms with well equipped IT services such as using projectors in class rooms, computers, wireless LANs, File management using databases. In order to convince these organisations we have to state the reasons why we think ICT is important for these locals in rural area. Just looking at an example of an urban schools such as Abti Academy in Yola, Capital science in kuje, El-Amin International school in Minna; we can see they all have what it takes for them to have a well knowledge of what IT is all about, they do class interactions, they submit their works in timely manner especially the senior students, it broadens their minds which they can relate to other courses and apply them when necessary, The students have full access to the lab to do research, take courses in computer education, type documents and gather information on relevant topics for their coursework and from every observation i noticed that schools in the urban area have high rankings in their external and internal exams such as mock exams, WEAC exams . In order to know what is really the problem of these schools towards their lack of ICT knowledge an interview was taken with most principals in these rural schools shown below. 1. Do you know what a computer is? 2. Do you intend to learn how to use it and do you intend to teach these students if you have the chance to? 3. Do you own a computer? And do you know how to surf on the internet with it? 4. What do you think about implementing ICT in classrooms? 5. How do you think it will affect the students? Interview Summary: Results The interview was conducted with three different principals of three different areas in fufore, but all their answers were closely the same. They stated they’ve had an experience using a computer, that it would be great to have such an opportunity to use computers and other IT services in their schools, it will surely help the students and enlighten them about what the world is all about now. They stated that they’ve all being provided by the school with just one computer and an internet connection, and in a rural place like fufore I believe there is a limited amount of power supply which makes it even more difficult to use this computer by anyone. They stated students in their area are in need of ICT in classrooms in order to making teaching easier for both the teachers and students, they also have a problem with their teachers who don’t acquire computer skills, it will be difficult for them to teach and guide these students through. ICT will greatly affect and have a positive influence on these students, they will have an opportunity to be going for national competitions because these services will not only improve them in one area, they will also have the ability to speak proper and fluent English, they can also learn how to type by doing their course works on their computers and doing research on the internet which will even help the senior students in history classes. They also mentioned that students in this area are always willing to learn, so it won’t be a problem for them to get used to it. Development and Implementation of ICT in class rooms in rural area: Fufore LGA Through ICT in rural schools it will expand the access to student’s education, now that technology is one of the things that help us develop in this world. So we have to make the rural schools aware of that which will greatly affect both the students and their lectures, it will also make them aware of what is happening in our world today (News) by browsing on the internet, also help them improve interactions in terms of video conferencing and distance learning; through video conferencing it will enable to share ideas and know about other courses that are not offered in the school. ICT is an extensively strong technology for extending and expanding educational opportunities in formal and informal ways, in this case rural schools. ICT is a technological development that reflects the new society and has its place within education. However, as with many new initiatives, ICT obviously has its problems that over time will be addressed. Meantime, ICT should continue to be promoted to assist with education and learning. I will heartedly agree with anyone who states that ICT is a valuable tool for both teaching and learning – speaking as someone who got the last lessons plan for my teaching from the Internet- but I can’t help feeling that the emphasis on the use of ICT detracts from other current ‘sexy’ education issue – socialisation. I believe that developing teachers’ social and counselling technique is a greater priority than their ICT skill (Sime & Mark, 2005). Access to remote learning resources: when this implementation is done, with the use of internet, teachers and students will no longer have to depend on textbooks for learning or even buy them due to how expensive they can be, they teachers can just find textbooks on the net and direct the students to access them too. With the use of Internet services you will find a means of learning materials or tools in almost every subject and can be accessed every day at anytime and also by unlimited number of people that can use it. This is significant for many schools in developing countries. Students will have control towards self learning: For example, teachers can just give a research paper as an assessment for the students, during that research they also learn a lot through searching and browsing different articles. This also broadens their minds to also think fast, observe the situation of the research, allowing their minds to take over and have control of what they are doing and also making their own opinions and what they think. Motivation to learn: the use of multimedia computer software that include sound effects, pictures can be used in learning process for people in rural areas, also as interactive radios and other performance. This will motivate the locals to learn because it’s new to them and then i believe that some locals tend to understand pictures or graphics rather than reading them that way they understand better. Use of modern teaching tools: in rural areas they still have an old way of teaching their students; some don’t even have notebooks, or other writing materials. Through ICT, students can learn how to manage their files on computers rather than writing notes in their notebooks, also teachers have PowerPoint to present to the class by that they can just write short notes on what the teacher is talking about. In order to improve the school from my own point of view it needs these requirements for students to have a basic idea of ICT is about. 1. Provision of hardware resources for internet connectivity such as WAN, LAN, MAN. 2. Software packages for learning or academic related CDs which they can install in their computers to improve self learning. 3.  Television for the nursery school students because children in nursery school learn faster with images rather than using books, and Projectors for the primary and secondary students. 4. A well functional and equipped computer that contains at least 15 computers. 5. Power supply via solar energy, because electricity isn’t that reliable and effective in rural areas, and besides this implementation is based in fufore which is always sunny every day. So solar would be a good source of electricity. These implementations can be done with the help of private organisations and even the government, we all know nothing is free; these organisations can get profit out of this successful implementation and project. They will keep implementing ICT and improving other schools in this area. Since i noted that not all teachers have enough computer skills to handle the students learning or to control these equipments, the organisations also have to supply the schools with well trained teachers/experts to show them how to take care of things just for some time. This is an expensive and vital project due to many resources that are needed, power supply because without power supply these resources are just going to end up being there without no one using it and also this is the future of our children to enlightened them and making them have a knowledge of IT, making them have the same and equal education the urban schools are having so they won’t feel left out. After these resources have been implemented and are already in use, in observation we are going to experience and expect these changes in the schools: †¢ The students should have the ability to think as fast and be smart like the students in urban schools and also their results will likely match up. †¢ An increase in the students that will enrol in schools because most students in rural areas don’t really care about education, some are drop outs and with a new system it will motivate them to also learn like their friends. †¢ Will be able to compete in national competitions with other schools. †¢ Know how to use these ICT services provided to them and also apply them when necessary Conclusion From all observations we can see how value education is and rural education cannot be compared to the urban because they have more experience in ICT than the locals have. ICT in class rooms has a lot of advantages and benefits to our daily life now, makes students acquire skills, skills that will take them to the next level, skills that will improve their way of thinking and will also change their lives because after school they can go to these urban areas and get a good job instead of staying in their area and doing the basic occupation such as farming. Technology is part of our world now and its used in our daily activities, with the aid ICT in class rooms they will have access to distance learning which will enhance their learning skills and ability, not only within the class room but globally or worldwide. In order for these students to be equal with students from other developed schools, they need to be given a chance; they need to be given the opportunities that are being given to the more fortunate schools/students. Nigerian Government, private organisations and private sources have to come together to make this possible for our generation and also to help the nation.

When Small Means Big: The Impact of Nanotechnology

A revolution in science and technology, which will significantly impact our daily lives, is looming in the horizon. The scientific community is now excited by changes that could be brought about by the multidisciplinary discipline of nanoscience and nanotechnology, which is comprehensively defined asâ€Å"[r]esearch and technology development at the atomic, molecular, or macromolecular levels, in the length of approximately 1–100 nm range, to provide a fundamental understanding of phenomena and materials at the nanoscale, and to create and use structures, devices, and systems that have novel properties and functions because of their small size. The novel and differentiating properties and functions are developed at a critical length scale of matter typically under 100 nm.Nanotechnology research and development includes integration of nanoscale structure into larger material components, systems, and architectures. Within these larger scale assemblies, the control and construct ion of their structures and component devices remain at the nanoscale†. (National Research Council 2002, cited in Dreher 2004).Although technically encompassing any device measuring at least 1,000 nanometers—a nanometer (from Greek ‘nano’, meaning dwarf) is one-billionth of a meter (The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering 2004)—much of the work being done presently focuses on materials smaller than 100 nm (Gupta et al 2003) since it is at this level that materials exhibit unique physical and chemical properties that can be harvested to convey improvements to engineered materials (i.e. enhanced magnetic properties, better electrical and optical activity, and superior structural integrity) (Thomas & Sayre 2005).Ralph Merkle, as cited by Gupta et al (2003), noted that atomic configuration, to an extent, determines physical and chemical characteristics of materials, using as examples carbon in diamond, or silica from sand. From this perspect ive, the manufacturing techniques we are using today appear crude since we are moving molecules by heaps and mounds, and, therefore, are manufacturing devices that could still be improved for accuracy and precision (Gupta et al 2003). Nanotechnology, according to Gupta et al, aims to explore and exploit the possibility of designing at the molecular and atomic levels, and producing a generation of novel products that boast of greater strength, lighter weight and better precision (2003).Technically nanotechnology is not something new. Ball (2003) notes that nanoscale devices have been, and are currently being, utilized by organisms in their daily functioning. He cites, for instance, the proteins that serve as motors to flagella of motile bacteria, as readers and interpreters of the genetic code, or as miniature solar panels in plants that gather sunlight for photosynthesis (Ball 2003). The possibility of harnessing this potential within the environment and put them to practical use ha s been floated in the scientific community as early as the 1940s, when von Neumann forwarded the idea of manufacturing systems or machines that are capable of self-replication, which could potentially lower production costs (Gupta et al 2003).Richard Feynman in 1959, in an address to the American Physical Society entitled ‘There Is Plenty of Room at the Bottom’, advanced the possibility that, similar to what we are doing at the macroscopic scale, we could maneuver atoms to where we want them to be, and produce materials that would solve the problem of manufacture and reproduction (Buxton et al 2003; Gupta P et al 2003). In 1986, K Eric Drexler provided a picture of nanotechnological use in the future in his book Engines of Creation, where humans are utilizing self-replicating nanoscale robots in daily life processes (Ball 2003).The move from the drawing board to actual application, however, has been very recent—as evidenced by the relatively few nanotechnology pr oducts—fuelled by theoretical and laboratory progress which showed that, indeed, systems can be built from molecules and atoms maneuvered at the microscopic scale (Gupta et al 2003). L’Oreal recently introduced in the market sun creams that contain nano-sized grains of titanium dioxide, which absorbs ultraviolet light, but without the ‘smeared chalk’ appearance of regular creams (Ball 2003). This same technology, according to Ball (2003) was taken a step further when it was found that titanium dioxide particles become reactive when exposed to ultraviolet light, leading to the development of self-cleaning tiles and glasses—titanium-coated tiles and glasses that use the sun’s energy to burn up dirt stuck to their surfaces. In the filed of medicine, nanotechnology is currently being utilized with state-of-the-art technology to combat genetic diseases (Dunkley 2004).In addition to these, researches are currently undergoing, exploring the various possible applications of nanotechnology in various fields. For instance, in the medical sciences, the development of nanorobots could aid in precise, and rapid, cellular repair and regeneration, delivery of drugs at the site where it is needed, destruction of cancerous cells, or unblocking of clogged blood vessels (Dunkley 2004). The capacity to detect disease through alterations in body chemistry or physiology is also a possibility through nanotubes or nanowires coated with detector molecules (Buxton et al 2003). Molecular imaging, according to Buxton et al (2003) will also provide us with a view of the human body beyond gross anatomic structures, since this would utilize molecules that would home to tissues affected by specific disease processes. Environmental problems we face today, such as air pollution or oil spills, could be remedied through nanorobots designed to clean these toxic elements from the air we breath or the water we drink (Dunkley 2004).The material sciences will also significantly benefit from nanotechnology, with the promise of development of stronger and lighter plastics, computers with faster processors and increased memory storage, ion storage for batteries (which will improve performance), quick-charging battery cars, and fuel cells for motor-driven devices that are environment-friendly and energy efficient (Gupta et al 2003). Perhaps a bit too far in the future, Dunkley even forwards the idea that it might be possible, with nanorobots moving atoms and molecules, for us to create common and everyday things from our own backyard, moving manufacturing to the domain of the household with a wheelbarrow and a shovel (2004).Because of the great promise held by nanotechnology, governments worldwide are investing in nanoresearch, to further refine our understanding of this small world. Global investment in nanotechnology has been estimated to be â‚ ¬5 billion, according to the Royal Society and the Royal Academy of Engineering (2004). The E uropean Union pledged to spend â‚ ¬1 billion (Ball 2003), whereas Japan allocated $800M in 2003 (The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering 2004). The United States is willing to spend nearly $3.7 billion for nanotechnology from 2005 to 2008, with nearly $500 million allocated for research funding (Dunkley 2004; The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering 2004; Thomas & Sayre 2005).The considerable change nanotechnology can bring, as well as the huge sums of money governments worldwide are currently spending to make this a reality, has sparked some questions from various sectors on the impact of nanotechnologies, not only to the scientific fields to which it will be applied, but to the society in general. In the biological sciences, for instance, the primary concern is the possible toxicity exposure—and chronic exposure, at that—to nanoparticles can bring about, since these materials have the capability of interacting with cells and cellular organ elles, and hence, alter body physiology (Ball 2003; The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering 2004).Dreher (2004), and Thomas and Sayre (2005) have recently reviewed the evidence on the health impact of nanotechnology exposure, and found that there is a paucity of evidence to encourage or preclude use of nanotechnologies in humans pending full investigations and detailed evidence supporting or debunking the same. Ball (2003) notes that, in the same way as new drugs or devices, nanotechnology must be viewed as a potential health hazard unless proven otherwise. Large scale production in the future would necessitate hazard-testing and human exposure assessment, to minimize risks (The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering 2004).The significant economic impact of nanotechnologies, according to experts, may not be felt in the short-term, although this must be viewed with caution, since it is entirely difficult to predict what impact a developing technology that has n ot yet realized its full potential will have (The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering 2004). The differing capacities of developed, developing and underdeveloped countries to participate in the nanotechnology race has also raised concerns that it might intensify the economic gap between these nations, leading to what is referred to as a ‘nanodivide’ (The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering 2004). Finally, patenting of nanotechnology—which is advantageous since it would, though economic incentive, encourage other individuals to contribute to scientific progress—may stifle creativity or innovation when a broad one is granted (The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering 2004).Another area of concern is military and defense capability. The development of new devices—pervasive sensors, improved clothing and armor, and enhanced information and communication exchange—could be viewed both as opportunities and threat s, depending on who uses them, and how they are used (The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering 2004). But more than this, the Royal Society (2004) cautions that the secrecy coupled with development of technologies for defense use might fuel public distrust, and heighten the understanding that nanotechnology is being developed primarily, if not entirely, for military ends.Ethical issues pervading the socio-cultural impact of nanotechnologies are also a concern. For instance, development of new nanodevices may cause a significant change in employment patterns, role perception, education patterns, and eventually family life (Dunkley 2004). The end result, still according to Dunkley (2004) would be a shift in our present definition of inequality, poverty, and class, and finally, the way we construe society in general.If what Dunkley predicted would come true (i.e. manufacturing at our own backyard), then the capacity to produce would be entirely dependent on having the neces sary resources for this production, which brings to fore the concern of concentration of the harvests of nanotechnology in the hands of a few. Although nanomanufacturing could present the solution to hunger and homelessness, the question remains whether it will alter our perception of the material world where we move (Dunkley 2004).The possibility of devices being used to store personal information, although enhancing personal security on the one hand, also raises the possibility of violation of civil liberties, especially when collection and distribution of the same is made without the consent of the person involved, or access to these information could be limited to the hands of the few who could develop and control personal information databases or systems (The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering 2004).Finally, the possibility of radical human enhancement, or the creation of humans in the future, through nanotechnology (in conjunction with biotechnology and informati on technology), though a remote possibility, still carries with it the burden of resolving whether these creations are really human, and whether they also possess souls like we do (Dunkley 2004). In the same vein, this new capability would radically change, if not totally abolish, our perception of religion and morality (The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering 2004). On a lesser plane, the possibility of nanotechnology extending human longevity to hundreds of years will definitely alter our view of aging and death (Dunkley 2004).What, then, lies in store for us in the future with nanotechnology? Actually, no one can tell, since nanotechnology is but a frontier—which, to Melbin is a pattern of sparse settlement in space or time—or what Dunkley (2004) describes as relatively ‘unsettled and a wilderness waiting to be discovered’. Until such time, therefore, that the full potential of nanotechnology has been realized, or at least understood throug h research, we may endlessly speculate about how nanotechnology will affect our daily lives and society in general, who will benefit from its, what and capabilities will it provide us. The concerns, however, raised in this paper are valid considerations of the impact the future application of nanotechnologies will have, and this necessitates caution and vigilance on the part of all stakeholders.ReferencesBall P, 2003 (23 Jun), ‘Nanotechnology Science's Next Frontier or Just a Load of Bull?’, New Statesman, vol. 132, no. 4643, pp. 30-31.Buxton DB, Lee SC, Wickline SA, Ferrari M & for the Working Group Members, 2003 (02 Dec), ‘Recommendations of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Nanotechnology Working Group’, Circulation, vol. 108, pp. 2737-2742.Dreher KL, 2004, ‘Health and environmental impact of nanotechnology: Toxicological assessment of manufactured nanoparticles’, Toxicological Sciences, vol. 77, pp. 3–5.Dunkley RWS, 2004, ‘Nanotechnology: Social Consequences and Future Implications’, Futures, vol. 36, no. 10, pp. 1129-1132.Gupta P, Malhotra R, Segal MA & Verhaeren MYFJ, 2003, ‘Recent trends in nanotechnology’, in R Gulati, A Paoni & M Sawhney (eds), Kellogg on Technology & Innovation, Wiley, Hoboken, NJ, pp. 261-283.The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering, 2004, Nanoscience and nanotechnologies: opportunities and uncertainties, The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering, London.Thomas K & Sayre P, 2005, ‘Research strategies for safety evaluation of nanomaterials, Part I: Evaluating the human health implications of exposure to nanoscale materials’, Toxicological Sciences, vol. 87, no. 2, pp. 316–321.