Managing Diversity

â€Å"Consultant R. Roosevelt Thomas argues that it is time to â€Å"move beyond affirmative action† and learn how to â€Å"manage diversity. † There are a lot of issues that may be raised in this context†¦ Discuss. Compare â€Å"best and worst† organizations managing diversity. (Give examples)† Introduction Diversity is a subject that can be very powerful and emotional for everyone who deals with it, either directly or indirectly. Diversity topics deal with issues of being different and alike, inspiration and perspiration, sadness and gladness, privilege and lack thereof, culture and religion, tolerance and justice, and hatred and animosity. Diversity challenges and opportunities impact all nations around the world to one extent or another (Bahaudin and Jatuporn 2009). Human beings differ in age, social and national background, gender, sexual orientation, physical and mental ability, as well as religious belief and worldview. Diversity is a tough issue to tackle because it includes more than just race, gender, religion, ethnic origin or age. Every employee has a diverse background and a diverse set of beliefs. There is no â€Å"quick-fix† when dealing with an issue as complex as diversity. Valuing, managing, and supporting a diverse workforce can be done successfully only as a longer-term change process and one that must become the way we do business. Diversity People are not alike. Everyone is different. Diversity therefore consists of visible and non-visible factors, which include personal characteristics such as background, culture, personality and work-style, in addition to the characteristics that are protected under discrimination legislation in terms of race, disability, gender, religion and belief, sexual orientation and age. Research on organizational work groups, however, has focused on other forms of diversity including differences in age, education, firm tenure, and functional or technical background (Jackson et al. , 1995). Diversity in groups and teams is often portrayed as a positive force leading to effective functioning of the team. It is a source of creativity and innovation that can provide the potential for future development and competitive advantage. Diversity supposedly leads to greater variance in ideas, creativity, and innovation, thus generating better group performance (Cox, 1993; Jackson, May and Whitney, 1995). Diversity Management The term diversity management originated in North America, but has slowly taken hold in other regions and countries of the world (e. g. , Hays-Thomas, 2004; Kaiser & Prange, 2004; Nyambegera, 2002; Ozbilgin & Tatli, 2008; Palmer, 2003; Palmi, 2001). The following is a brief definition of the term: â€Å"Diversity management refers to the voluntary organizational actions that are designed to create greater inclusion of employees from various backgrounds into the formal and informal organizational structures through deliberate policies and programs. Diversity Management is a strategy to promote the perception, acknowledgement and implementation of diversity in organizations and institutions. Managing diversity is based on the idea that diversity opens up alternative ways of perceiving, thinking and acting and thus enriches the organizations. The globalization of business is a trend that makes diversity competency crucial for many organizations. Cox (2001) notes, â€Å"The challenge of diversity is not simply to have it but to create conditions in which its potential to be a performance barrier is minimized and its potential to enhance performance is maximized† (p. 6). Diversity management refers not only to those groups that have been discriminated against or that are different from the dominant or privileged groups, but to â€Å"the mixture of differences, similarities and tensions that can exist among the elements of a pluralistic mixture† (Thomas, 2005, p. 93). The concept of â€Å"valuing differences† is the cornerstone of the managing diversity movement. It translates questions of competence into questions of culture. Proponents argue that †Å"non-traditional† workers who fail to advance are not under qualified, just â€Å"differently† qualified. Ethnic, racial and sexual groups, the reasoning goes, each possess a unique management style that will enable businesses to succeed in the global marketplace. Diversity management is also crucial for sustainable business growth because the increasingly diverse public evaluates organizations on their diversity management. Diversity should be a priority in any organization, because people are and will be the major source of competitive advantage. Diverse workforce at all levels should be created and sustained, and the full talent, energy, and ommitment of all employees in meeting business objectives should be engaged. This will help in enabling employees to give their maximum contribution in meeting the company goals. Advantages of Diversity Management There are some advantages of diversity management, among which are the following: 1-It can create a competitive advantage in areas such as marketing, problem solving, and resource acquisition. 2-It shows how the organizations are cultura lly aware. 3-It helps to use the full potential of all employees. Disadvantages of Diversity Management. Despite the grand rhetoric of its advocates, there is little evidence that diversity management can solve the problems it purports to address. In fact, it may make them worse. As diversity programs proliferate across corporate America, group infighting has become a problem second only to â€Å"backlash† by white men. â€Å"More and more groups are going at each other,† says Morrison. â€Å"The women's group vies with the black group for promotions. † Best Examples of Diversity Management 1. Xerox pioneered the most powerful accountability tool in 1984, when it linked managers' compensation to their achievement of the firm's highly detailed â€Å"diversity goals. Since then, many companies have followed suit, including Palmolive, Mead and Prudential Life Insurance. 2. Two major departments at Hughes Aircraft lost 10 percent of their bonus pay as a penalty for receiving bad â€Å"diversity report cards† after they failed to hire and promote the requisite number of minorities. The next year they headed the list for â€Å"behavior modification,† having found people to hire whom they previously â€Å"had said didn't exist,† according to Dave Barclay, vice president of work force diversity at Hughes. 3. GE Electrical and Distribution Control are other examples for ‘diversity management. ’ The number of entry-level African Americans recruited and hired has increased by over 10 percent since 1982, and an increasing number have moved into positions of significant responsibility. GE has defined diversity as a twofold concept. First, diversity concerns understanding that the workforce will increasingly include people who are different. Consistent with this change is the recognition that a mix of people who are diverse ca n result in value added and increased productivity. Secondly, GE defines diversity as a comprehension process for developing and maintaining a workplace environment that results in the full utilization of all employees. 4. According to DiversityInc,—the leading publication on diversity and business, annually recognizes companies that exemplify meaningful diversity management through their corporate practice—Accenture has been named to the 2012 DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity list, rising to number 12, up from number 23 last year. This marks Accenture’s sixth consecutive year on the DiversityInc Top 50 list and its fourth consecutive year in the Top 25. DiversityInc also named Accenture as a 2012 Top 10 Company for both Global Diversity and Supplier Diversity. Accenture has demonstrated strength in the four areas measured: CEO Commitment, Human Capital, Corporate and Organizational Communications, and Supplier Diversity. 5. One of the most signification examples of ‘diversity management’ in Egypt, particularly in Alexandria is the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. The BA strongly believes in the importance of diversity, and it is becoming one of the concepts in recruiting new employees. The BA includes, among its 2500 employees, a variety of employees with different ages, gender, religious and ethnic backgrounds. There is a large number of women working at the BA, among which is a big number in managerial positions. It also includes foreigner employees and internships from all over the world. One of the main objectives of the BA is to serve the whole community, including the disabled people (children, young, and adults), who enjoy a variety of services and activities, and there is a large number of tailored activities for them. In this regard, the BA also opens its door and gives fair recruitment opportunities for the disabled. There is a number of employees with different disabilities (blind, on wheelchairs, hands congenital defects) who are working very efficiently to an extent that they compete with the other employees in a remarkable way, and sometimes they perform even better. The BA also provides equal opportunities to all employees on attending conferences and obtaining trainings and scholarships abroad. The BA, among other organizations in Egypt and internationally, is still working on including ‘diversity’ into its organizations; thus, it is working on increasing the number of the disabled personnel to reach the standard international percentage. Worst Examples of Diversity Management †¢Phillip Morris (PM) is one of the largest tobacco companies in the world and has nearly 75,000 employees. Women are often assigned to run human resources and corporate communications departments at companies where men dominate the management. Phillip Morris claims that the company is â€Å"always striving to broaden the diversity of our workforce and are continuously working to identify, hire and retain the best qualified individuals, wherever they are located or whatever their background. † No wonder they call him the Marlboro Man; nine board members, zero women. †¢Cameron International (CAM) provides equipment for the national gas oil industries. The company has 17,000 employees, eight board members, no women in positions of major responsibility. Seven senior executives are listed in the proxy – all male. Also, all board members but one is over 60 – a sort of reverse age discrimination. Conclusion The globalizing economy and the increase in the number of multinational corporations make diversity management a necessity for companies that want not only to survive but thrive during this time of economic, social, and cultural changes. Diversity management refers to the voluntary organizational actions that are designed to create through deliberate policies and programs greater inclusion of employees from various backgrounds into the formal and informal organizational structures. Diversity management, compared with its predecessors (equal opportunity legislation and affirmative action programs), is proactive and aimed at creating an organization in which all members can contribute and achieve to their full potential. The reasons for implementing diversity management include having to adapt to the new reality of a workforce that is increasingly diverse, doing the right and moral thing, and gaining a competitive advantage. The challenge of diversity management is to break the harmful cycle that equates cultural difference with social/economic disadvantages. Therefore, although the emphasis on the business advantage of diversity management is probably a good motivator for companies to enact diversity programs, it does not mean that moral and ethical missions should be neglected or overlooked. To overcome these potential limitations, diversity management has to focus on both enhancing profitability and fostering social justice.

Importance of Grades

Importance of Grades Grading and reporting are relatively recent phenomena in education. In fact, prior to 1850, grading and reporting were virtually unknown in schools in the United States. The teacher reported student’s learning progress orally to parents, usually during visits to students' homes. As the number of students increased in the late 1800s, schools began to group students in grade levels according to their age, and new ideas about curriculum and teaching methods were tried. One of these new ideas was the use of formal progress evaluations of students' work, in which teachers wrote down the skills each student had mastered and those on which additional work was needed. This was done primarily for the students' benefit, since they were not permitted to move on to the next level until they demonstrated their mastery of the current one. It was also the earliest example of a narrative report card. In essence, grading is an exercise in professional judgment on the part of teachers. It involves the collection and evaluation of evidence on students' achievement or performance over a specified period of time, such as nine weeks, an academic semester, or entire school year. Through this process, various types of descriptive information and measures of student’s performance are converted into grades or marks that summarize students' accomplishments. Although some educators distinguish between grades and marks, most consider these terms synonymous. Both imply a set of symbols, words, or numbers that are used to designate different levels of achievement or performance. They might be letter grades such as A, B, C, D, and F; Descriptive words such as Exemplary, Satisfactory, and Needs Improvement; or numerals such as 4, 3, 2, and 1. Reporting is the process by which these judgments are communicated to parents, students, or others. However, grades do not come easy to some students. College is really a student’s last chance to get good grades and the noteworthy chance for a person to prove himself to the world. Having said that, grades are very important because they determine the length of time you spend getting your degree, the kind of job you receive, and the livelihood of your future. Continuing to get good grades is a sure way of getting your degree in a timely the working world. Maintaining a 3. 0 GPA is characteristic in being considered for the top jobs in today’ s world. Many companies are only looking for the top scholars in their academic field. You will be compensated for the amount of knowledge that you have. Good grades act as the prerequisites of your future. Therefore, it is up to you to expand with hard work, discipline, and the ability to excel. Excellence is the key to success in the 21st Century. Despite such difficulties in understanding the exact meanings of grades and the GPA, they remain important social metrics and sometimes yield heated discussions over issues such as grade inflation. Although grade inflation has many different meanings, it usually is defined by an increase in the absolute number of As and Bs over some period of years. The tacit assumption here seems to be that any continuing increase in the overall percentage of â€Å"good grades† or in the overall GPA implies a corresponding decline in academic standards. Although historically there have been periods in which the number of good grades decreased significantly. Social concerns usually only accompany the grade inflation pattern. As discussed in essay â€Å"A’s for Everyone. † By Alicia C. Shepard, James Mooney stated â€Å"Certainly there are students who are victims of grade inflation in secondary school,† said Mooney. â€Å"They come to college, and the grading system is much more rigorous. That's one of the most difficult things to convey to the students. If you're getting a B, you're doing well in a course. † When college instructors are asked about the reasons for their emphasis on grades, they report that student behaviors – such as arguing over the scoring of a single question – make it necessary for them to maintain strict and well-defined grading standards in their classrooms. What seems missing in this context is a clear recognition by both the instructor and the student that grades are best construed as a type of communication. When grades are thought about in this way, they can be used to improve learning. Only when grades are integrated into a coherent teaching and learning strategy do they serve the purpose of providing useful and {text:bookmark-start} meaningful {text:bookmark-end} feedback not only to the larger culture but to the individual student as well. Few issues have created more controversy among educators than those associated with grading and reporting student learning. Despite the many debates and multitudes of studies, however, prescriptions for best practice remain elusive. Although teachers generally try to develop grading policies that are honest and fair, strong evidence shows that their practices vary widely, even among those who teach at the same grade level within the same school. Letter grades, for example, offer parents and others a brief description of student’s achievement and the adequacy of their performance. But using letter grades requires the abstraction of a great deal of information into a single symbol. In addition, the cut-offs between grades are always arbitrary and difficult to justify. Letter grades also lack the richness of other, more detailed reporting methods such as narratives or standards-based reports. Parents often are left wondering if their child's achievement is comparable with that of other children or in line with the teacher's expectations. Nowadays Parents are more concerned with the grades as mentioned by Alicia Shepard in the essay, â€Å"There's a term for the legions of parents like me. The parents who make sure to get the teacher's e-mail and home phone number on Back to School Night. The kind who e-mail teachers when their child fails a quiz. The kind who apply the same determination to making sure their child excels academically that they apply to the professional world. We are called â€Å"helicopter parents† because we hover over everything our kids do like Secret Service agents guarding the president. †Most students view high grades as positive recognition of their success, and some work hard to avoid the consequences of low grades. Although educators would undoubtedly prefer that motivation to learn be entirely intrinsic, the existence of grades and other reporting methods are important factors in determining how much effort students put forth. No single grading method adequately serves all purposes, schools must first identify their primary purpose for grading, and then select or develop the most appropriate approach. This process involves the difficult task of seeking consensus among diverse groups of stakeholders. The issues of grading and reporting on student learning continue to challenge educators. However, more is known at the beginning of the twenty-first century than ever before about the complexities involved and how certain practices can influence teaching and learning. To develop grading and reporting practices that provides quality information about student learning requires clear thinking, careful planning, excellent communication skills, and an overriding concern for the well-being of students. Combining these skills with current knowledge on effective practice will surely result in more efficient and more effective grading and reporting practices. Shepard, Alicia. â€Å"A’s for Everyone. † The Contemporary Reader. 9th ed. Ed. Gary Gosggarian. New York: Pearson, 2008. 417-422.

Contact Sports

Introduction: According to the oxford dictionary a â€Å"Contact sport† is a sport in which participants necessarily come into bodily contact with one another, this includes football, rugby, hockey and la cross. Children and parents must be warned of the mental, physical and social risk factors that are associated with contact sports before being able to participate in them, doing so will lead to less children taking unnecessary risk. One factor that parents should be aware of is the increased risk and occurrence of injuries in children at such a young age.Many injuries such as concussions go unnoticed therefore prolonging and escalating the severity of injuries, in some cases leading to death. For example, second impact syndrome occurs when an athlete returns to a sport too early after suffering from an initial concussion and obtains another concussion shortly after. This often causes fatal effects. Several concussions go undetected because of the difficulty in diagnosing whe ther one is present or has fully healed.Although death from a sports injury is rare, the leading cause of death from a sports-related injury is a brain injury. According to stats Canada about 4. 27 million Canadian aged 12 or older suffered an injury sever enough to limit their usual activities in 2009-2010. (MAYBE CHANGE IT TO A CONTACT SPORT STAT) In more recent years there has been a discovery associated with multiple concussions known as CTE. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) caused by cumulative, long term neurological consequences of repetitive concussions and hits to the brain.This causes cognitive and neuropsychiatric impairment which include depression, suicide attempts, insomnia, paranoia, and impaired memory. Another issue that parents needs to be aware of is the increase in violence and aggression that is common in contact sports. Children are often rewarded for being aggressive which can lead to aggression and violence off the playing field. It makes it difficult f or children to draw the line between what is acceptable aggression and unacceptable and may lead to violent behavior.According to a study found results strongly suggest that participation in powered sports actually leads to an increase of enhancement of anti social involvement in the form of elevated level of violence(Participation in power sports and antisocial involvement in preadolescent and adolescent boys. Research Center for Health Promotion (HEMIL), University of Bergen, Norway) . So not only does this lead to children being violent in day to day life but also being dangerously violent in sports adding to an increase in injuries.The glorification of violence and aggression in sports leads to kids focusing more to use their bodies rather than skill in the game, In a Dutch population-based study on 1818 school children aged 8 to 17 years showed that Over a period of 7 months, 399 sports injuries were reported in 324 youngsters. The most common types of injuries were contusions (43%) and sprains (21 %). Medical attention was needed in 25% of all cases. This is problematic because it puts children at an unfair playing field and reduces enjoyment of the game for smaller and non athletic children.In addition coaches may unknowingly promote stereotypes such as homophobia and gender roles. It seems to be more amplified in contact sports where aggression is considered to be a more masculine trait. This can severely affect the child’s ideas and concepts during the prime learning age. Discourse surrounding contact sports coming from coaches, even parents and fan tends to encourage the common stereotypes and leads violent behavior this view is supported by an article called (THE SPORT BEHAVIOUR OF CHILDREN PARENTS AND COACHES THE GOOD THE BAD THE UGLY by david light shields uni of missouri , st. ouis ). Overall there are several factors that children are exposed to during contact sports that can lead to mental, physical and social risk factors. Many of these issues are unknown and unclear to parents and its our job to warn them. These factors not only harm the children themselves, it can also be detrimental to their growing process and even friends and families associated with them

Diabetic food Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Diabetic food - Essay Example Therefore, imaging presentation will vary due to lack of specificity in complex clinical circumstances. This should only be ordered to confirm a suspected diagnosis and direct patient management. A simple definition of diabetes is a disorder of metabolism. It is a serious disease that can be developed from lack of insulin production in the body. Most of the food we eat is broken into glucose. This glucose is the form of sugar and the main fuel of the body. Glucose passes into the bloodstream where it is used for the growth and energy. Insulin must be present in order for the glucose gets into the cells. It is a hormone produced by pancreas gland that helps the process of food we eat and turn it into energy. The symptoms of diabetes may begin gradually and can be hard to identify first. These may include feeling tired or ill, slow healing of infections and genital itching. When there is extra sugar in blood, one way the body gets rid of it is through frequent urination. This loss of fluid in the body causes extreme thirst. According to Burke A. Cunha diabetes often goes undiagnosed because of it's harmless symptoms like frequent urination, excessive thirst, extreme hunger, irritability and blurry vision. Complications can be associated with diabetes. This disrupts the vascular system that affects many areas of the body such as eyes, kidneys, legs and feet. However, people with this kind of disease should pay special attention to their feet because the smallest of the injuries can lead to a medical emergency. This is because the common problems of people with diabetes are foot infections. These individuals are predisposed to foot infections because of a compromised vascular supply. Moreover, patients with diabetes can have a combined infection involving bone and soft tissue called fetid foot. Pathophysiology Diabetes is a chronic metabolic disorder in which the body cannot metabolize carbohydrates, fats and proteins because of a lack of insulin. A disorder that affects microvascular circulation is diabetes mellitus. The microvascular disease due to sugarcoated capillaries limits the blood supply to deep structures. Pressure due to ill-fitting shoes further compromises the blood supply at the microvascular level that affects a person to infection. The infection may involve the skin, soft tissues, bone or all these tissues. The primary problem in diabetic foot infection is microvascular compromise, these occur in setting of good dorsalis pulse. Impaired microvascular circulation hinders white cell migration in the area of infections and limits the ability of antibiotic reach the infected area. The chronic osteomyelitis represents an island of infected bone. This bone fragment that are isolated have no blood supply. However, administered antibiotics do not penetrate the devascularized infected bone fragments. They can only enter through the remaining blood supply. In conclusion, antibiotic therapy alone cannot cure patients with chronic osteomyelitis without surgical debridement to remove these isolated infected elements. Epidemiology Diagnosed diabetes is most prevalent in middle-aged and elderly populations. The highest rates occurring in people aged 65 years

Papper 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Papper 2 - Essay Example The explosion at Deepwater Horizon can be traced back to several key missteps by all the companies involved. Their actions, purposefully or not, changed the lives of many individuals and ultimately deprived them of their fundamental international rights, hence violating their minimal duty and acting in a completely unethical way. In addition, the Deepwater Horizon spill is the exact opposite of the utilitarianism theory, because it actually minimized utility for everyone who was affected. The spill devastated coastal beaches and businesses that relied on tourism and fishing besides being a health hazard. This was unethical because the oil spill caused more harm than good to the society. However, the profits from the BP spills benefited the new wildlife fund. Still referring to the Deepwater Horizon case, an engineer’s responsibility to safety was violated. United States federal report blamed the worst spill in the US history on poor leadership and poor cement job by BP and its engineers. The explosions were as a result of poor risk management, last minute changes to plans, failure to observe and respond to critical indicators, inadequate well control response, and insufficient emergency bridge response training by companies. In relation to the code of ethics view, BP failed to institute safety and risk management policies that would help protect individuals from deprivation. Furthermore, their disaster preparedness plan was poorly

Ebay Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ebay - Term Paper Example This enables them to maintain the reputation and goodwill of the customers which in turn increases the number of companies that sell their products through them. Although, online shopping and payment transaction is a tedious process, the company takes measures to ensure that the customer is satisfied with their service. The purpose of this project is to learn the online shopping process. There are various steps that have to be carried out before listing an item in the site and they must be followed on a predefined basis. The concept of research enables the customers and companies to buy and advertise their products on this website. Search option is of great advantage to the buyers since they can search the products they require. To accomplish this, Ebay website provides the customers with an option that filters the search keywords so that the customers can narrow down on their requirement easily instead of searching on the entire list of products. Another option is advanced search in which the users can provide the basic details about the product. This option is popular among the users since it eases the process of identifying required products. Pricing of a product is one of the main features that determine how well a product reaches the customers. Ebay provides the users with an auction option using which the goods can be purchased at a better rate. This auction is performed with the products that have more demands so that the buyer and seller can get mutually benefitted. Though it has certain disadvantages, this is popular among the users. Auctioning is one among the effective options of selling a product. The other formats include fixed price options that enable the users to purchase a product easily with the rate that is directly mentioned and it ensures that product is also sold. Before including any item in the website, effective merchandising must be implemented. This will reduce the

The degree of poverty in individual countries Essay

The degree of poverty in individual countries - Essay Example The United Nations World Summit on Social Development passed a declaration, â€Å"Copenhagen Declaration† which defines poverty as â€Å"a state characterized by harsh deficiency of essential human needs, including safe drinking water, food, health, education, sanitation facilities, and information.† When people do not have anything to eat, have access to health facilities- they are considered poor regardless of their level of income. This is the social definition of poverty and does is problematic at times as in this regard, most people living in developing and underdeveloped countries of the world will judged as poor. The Statistical definition yields more relevant results on how poverty should be measured. Using statistical measures, two methods are mostly used to describe poverty. These are Relative Measurement of poverty and Absolute Measurement of Poverty. Both of these measures rely on consumption or income values getting information to accumulate statistics on i mpoverishment much enhanced. The simplest way of measuring the degree of poverty in individual countries is Relative property measure. By using this method, the whole population is classified in order of their per capita income. Then the bottom 10% is believed to be ‘impoverished’ or ‘indigent’. This method is well for country-wide measurements, but it has some great drawbacks in worldwide use. If, for instance a 10% relative poverty extent was applied in a universal setting.

LITERATURE AND MEDICINE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

LITERATURE AND MEDICINE - Essay Example J. Cronin in â€Å"Citadel† remain relevant in terms of the medical service that is available to the citizens of the United Kingdom. The excerpt for the book under evaluation is a discussion between Manson and his wife Christine regarding Manson’s intentions to change from his current mode of general practice and start a fresh initiative in providing medical service by combining the strengths of his experience as a general practitioner with those of a surgeon (Denny) and a bacteriologist (Hope). Manson goes on to justify this decision of his to his wife in the benefit that such an initiative would deliver in the form of â€Å"pooling† the knowledge that each of these specialties in medicine would offer. Such a â€Å"pooling† of knowledge would be of benefit in patient care to provide better outcomes. The existing system of medical care was in the form of the general practitioner carrying out all these responsibilities, even in specialized areas with a limited amount of knowledge, to the detriment of patient care. Manson suggests that this association of specialties into what he calls â€Å"G roup medicine† provides a â€Å"perfect answer† to the near impossible tasks that a general practitioner had to perform in patient care. Such â€Å"Group medicine would be the intermediary fresh breath of air between the monolithic state medical service and the individual effort of practitioners in several parts of the country. Manson clarifies that such Group medicine had failed to materialize only because of the attitude of those in the medical science power centers not wanting any rocking of the boat so that they would remain in control in the provision of medical services to the people. Manson believes that such an effort in Group medicine by the scientifically oriented unit would revolutionize the manner in which medical services are provided and remove the prejudices and ills that plague the medical system. There are three themes

Plz chose one Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Plz chose one - Essay Example Lee found it intriguing and began to find out the history and reality of fortune cookies in America. Fortune Cookies were perceived as originated in China and became a regular part of every Chinese restaurant in United States. Lee demonstrates an interesting resemblance between Chinese foods served in America and the America-born Chinese generation, and stated for both that: Lee found it interesting that her own mother, who spent quite a time in China, did not know much about fortune cookies and believed that it came from Hong Kong. From that point, Lee began to inquire that what the actual origin of fortune cookies is. On her quest, she met Misa Chang, who opened her restaurant in 70s. Misa was the first one to bring the idea of door delivery service in Chinese food line. Door delivery was in practice by some restaurants but Misa was the first one to think about delivering hot, spicy Chinese food on the doors. It was her idea of success but the innovation often outruns the innovator. The idea caught wind and soon other restaurant owners were offering home delivery. At this point of time, Misa thought about some innovative marketing technique that was actually a prototype of spamming. She thought about delivering mail advertisements to the people living in the area. She saw it as a perfectly legal thing as there was no concept of spamming in that era. However, just like the home delivery idea, her competitors also started to send flyers to the prospective buyers which at the end became messy for every one and legal complications were started. Lee described it as: Lee believed that fortune cookie was another â€Å"caught the wind† idea of a Chinese or Japanese to present as a dessert. The supporting fact was that the Chinese deserts are totally different from Americans as they don’t bake. Their desserts are usually constituted of beans, peanuts,

Child and Young Person Development Essay Example for Free

Child and Young Person Development Essay Understand child and young person development Understand the expected pattern of development for children and young people from birth to 19 years It is important to remember that development is holistic, and each child is unique and will develop in their own way. Many skills and areas of development overlap with one another. A child does not learn the skills needed to play football, for example, which may be considered as a physical skill, without having social, communication and cognitive skills as well. Aspects of development include physical, communication and language, intellectual/cognitive, social, emotional and behavioural and moral. Physical development This is an important area of children`s development and one often assumed will take place automatically as they grow and mature. Although children will develop many skills naturally as they get older. * 0-3 years. This is a period of fast physical development. When they are first born, babies have little control over their bodies. There movement are dependent on series of reflexes (for example, sucking and grasping) which they need to survive. In their first year they gradually learn to control over their bodies so that by 12 months, most babies will have a degree of mobility such as crawling or rolling. In the second year babies will continue to develop quickly and it is at this stage most children will start to walk. Their ability to control their movements will mean they will start to use their hands for pointing, holding small objects and will start to dress and feed themselves. They will be able to play with a ball and will enjoy climbing. In their third year, children will start to have more control over pencils and crayons and will enjoy turning pages in books. They should be able to use cups and feed themselves. They will start to walk and run with more confidence, and will be exploring toys such as tricycles. * 3-7 years. At this stage children will be able to carry out more co-ordinated movements and will be growing in confidence as a result. They will be refining the skills developed so far and will he more control over fine motor skills such as cutting, writing and drawing. They will be become more confident in running, hopping, kicking a ball and using larger equipment. * 7-12 years. Children will continue to grow and develop many of their skills. They may start to have hobbies and interests which mean that they are more practised in some areas, for example, sport or dance. Girls in particular will start to show some of the early signs of puberty from the age 10 or 11. In boys, puberty usually starts later, when there will be another period of rapid physical growth. * 12-16 years. At this stage of development, young people will be growing stronger. Boys will be starting to go through puberty and many girls have completed this process and have regular periods. Girls will experience breast enlargement and increase fat layers. Boys will experience enlargement of their testes and penis and muscle strength. Their voice will become deeper. Boys and girls may experience a growth spurt at this time also. * 16-19 years. This is the stage which young people become adults and often at their peak of their physical performance. Although many girls may have reached physical maturity, boys will continue to grow and change until their mid-20s. Communication and language development * 0-3 years. From the earliest stages adults will usually try to communicate with babies even though they are not yet able to understand what is being said. This is because it is important for babies to be stimulated and have an interest shown in them. Babies will be listening to language from those around them and will enjoy songs and games. Most will try to speak around 12 months although pronunciation will not be clear and words will usually be used in isolation. Between 1 and 2 years they will start to put words together and their vocabulary will start to increase fairly rapidly so that by 2 years, most children will know 200 words. Between 2-3 years children will be starting to use negatives and plurals in their speech. * 3-7 years. As children become more social and wider experiences they will start to use familiar phrases and expressions. They will also ask a large number of questions. * 7-12 years. By this stage most children will be fluent speakers of a language, and will be developing and refining their skills at reading and writing. Intellectual and cognitive development Children`s intellectual development will depend to a wide extent on their own experiences and the opportunities they are given from the earliest stages. It is also important that children will learn in a variety of ways. * 0-3 years. Babies will start to look at the world around them and will enjoy repetitive activities in which they can predict the outcome. For example, when something is hidden from they are able to find it. They may start to recognise colours. * 3-7 years. This is the period of development in which the children are becoming more skilled at the aspects of numbers and writing, as well as continuing to learn about their world. They will also start looking for adult approval and will start to learn to read. * 7-11 years. Children will start to develop activities or subjects which they enjoy. They will still be influenced by adults and will become fluent in reading and writing skills. They will develop their own thoughts preferences. * 12-16 years. Young people will usually now have a clear idea about their favourite subjects and ideas. They will be reflecting on their achievements and choosing their learning pathway. They also lack in confidence or avoid situations in which they have to do less popular subjects, to the extent they may truant. * 16-19 years. by the time they come to leave school, they will be thinking about a career and college choices based on the pathway and subjects they have selected. Social, emotional, behavioural and moral development * 0-3 years. Very young children will be starting to find out their own identities. They will need to form a strong attachment, the earliest of which will be the parents and carers. At this stage of development children may start to have tantrums through frustration and will want to start doing things for themselves. * 3-7 years. Children will still be developing their identities and will be starting to play with peers and social using imaginative play. This helps them to develop their concept of different roles in their lives. It is also important they are able to learn boundaries and why they are necessary. They will also be given a responsibility, for example, a class helper. * 7-12 years. Children`s friendships now will become more settled and they will have groups of friends. They will also require more independence to carry out activities such as problem solving. They will continue to need praise and encouragement and will be increasingly aware of what others may think of them. * 12-16 years. At this stage the self-esteem of children and young people can be very vulnerable. They still want to be independent of adults and spend more time with friends their own age, but continue to display childish behaviour. It maybe they are unsure how to behave in different situations. * 16-19 years. As young people enter adulthood they may still need advice and guidance from other adults. They will lack experience and individuals will vary in emotional maturity and the way which they interact with others. Personal factors Pupils` health If pupils suffer from poor health or a physical disability or impairment, this may restrict their development opportunities. For example, a pupil who has a medical condition or impairment may be less able to participate in some activities than other children. This will effect physical development but may also restrict social activities, for example, participating in sports. The child`s emotional development may also be affected depending on their needs and the extent they are affected. It is important that as I as an adult I`m aware of how pupils may be affected by these conditions and circumstances, so I can support them by ensuring them that they are included as far as possible. External factors Poverty and deprivation are likely to have a significant effect on pupil development. Statistics show that children who come from deprived backgrounds are likely to thrive and achieve well in school, as parents will find it more difficult to manage their children`s needs, which will in turn impact on all areas of development. These will all affect the way in which pupils are able to respond in different situations. Pupils will come from a range of different family environments, cultures and circumstances. Many families go through significant changes during the child`s school years. These may include a family break-up or a new partner, bereavement, illness, moving house or changing country. The personal choices of pupils will affect their development as they grow older, as they decide on friendship groups, extra-curricular activities, academic involvement and so on. They may need advice and support from adults to enable them to make the right choices. If a child is looked after or in care, this may affect their development in different ways. However, they will be usually monitored closely and there will be regular meetings with the school to ensure that they are making expected levels of progress. Where there are any issues, these will then be addressed straight away. In some cases children may come to school without any previous education- for example, if they are from another country where formal education may begin later. Alternatively they may come from a home schooling environment or a different method of schooling, so they may need to have some additional support until they become settled. Theories of development include Cognitive Piaget believed that the way children think and learn is governed by their age and stage of development, because learning is based on experiences which they build up as they become older. As children`s experiences change they adapt what they believe. For example, a child who sees only green apples will believe all apples are green. Children need to extend their experiences in order to extend their learning, and will eventually take ownership of this themselves so that they can think about experiences that they have not yet developed. Psychoanalytic Freud stated that our personalities are made up from three parts- the id, the ego and the superego. Each of these will develop with the child and each will develop in a subconscious way driven by psychological needs. The id is the instinctive part of our personality; in other words, it is based on biological needs such as hunger. A baby will cry if it is hungry and will not consider the needs of others around it. * The ego starts to develop as the child realises thats its behaviour may affect how its needs are met. For example, if it is hungry, it may not decide to cry for food but to wait, as food will come anyway. * The s uperego develops later on in childhood and it is based on the development of the conscience, the superego may develop conflicting views to that of the ego, and may punish the individual through guilt. Alternatively if the ego behaves well the superego will promote pride. Humanist Maslow was originally interested in behaviourism and studied the work of Watson. He also acknowledged Freud`s belief in the presence of the unconscious-however he did not think that individuals were driven by it. He felt that knowledge of ourselves were driven by it. Humanistic psychology is based on our free will, although we have a hierarchy of needs without which we will be unable to continue to progress. Social learning Bandura`s approach was also one of behaviourism, in other words, it was accepted the principles of conditioning. However Bandura stated that learning takes place through observing others rather than being taught or reinforced. Children sometimes copy the behaviour or activities of adults or peers without being told to do so, meaning learning is spontaneous. Operant conditioning Operant conditioning theory states that our learning is based on consequence which follows a particular behaviour. In other words we will repeat those experiences which are enjoyable and avoid those that are not. This is relevant for for learning experiences as it is for behaviour. For example, a child who is praised well at a particular task again. B. F. Skinner called this positive reinforcement. This work closely linked to that of John Watson, discussed below, although it differs from Watson`s in that individuals are more active in the process of learning and will make their own decisions based on the consequences of their own behaviour. Behaviourist Watson believed that we was all born with the same abilities and that anyone can be taught anything-it dies not depend on innate ability but on watching others. His idea `classical conditioning` and was born out of Ivan Pavlov`s research using dogs. Pavlov devised an experiment by ringing a bell when dogs were about to be fed, which made them salivate, as associated it with food appearing. The bell was then rung repeatedly with no food and gradually the dogs stopped salivating. Watson discounted emotions and feelings while learning and based on his theories purely on how individuals can be `trained` to behave in a particular way. Social pedagogy Social pedagogy is a humanistic framework to support development. It refers to holistic approach to the needs of the child through health, school, family and spiritual life, leisure activities and the community. Through social pedagogy the child is central through their involvement and interaction with the wider wide. The framework is socially constructed and may vary between cultures, contexts and the time it takes place. Methods of assessing development needs: * Assessment frameworks * Observations * Standard measurements * Information from carers and colleagues It is important to understand the purpose of observations as part of my role. This is because I will need to report back to the teacher, who will in turn report to parents and carers on the pupil progress. Parents and teachers should share information about pupils to enable them to work together in the pupil`s interest. These observations may be carried out formally and informally, these have advantages and disadvantages. Informal observations will be those which I carry out each day as work with pupils. These may be small but over time it will enable me to build a picture of each pupil. I may notice, for example, that individual is able to understand a new concepts very easily. A disadvantage to informal observations is that it may not be recorded and you might forgot. I may also be asked to carry out formal observations on pupils to support the teacher in assessing pupils` Standard measurements are used to measure a child`s physical development and to determine whether they are growing at the expected rate for their age. It is unlikely that I will be required to carry out this kind of check, as it will be done by health visitors. The Assessment Framework of Assessment Triangle is the term given to the way in which a child is assessed, to determine whether they are in need and what the nature of those needs is. In his way the child`s best interests can be planned for with regard to their stage of development. Standard measurements and assessment frameworks will be useful in deciding on whether the child is reaching expected milestones of development in different areas. I should not to be required to use these without the guidance and support form teacher or SENCO. Disability may affect development in a number of ways. Depending on the pupil`s needs, it may cause a delay in a particular aspect of their development – for example, a physical disability may affect their social skills if they become more withdrawn, or their behaviour if they become frustrated. Development may also be affected by the attitudes and expectations of others – if we assume that a disabled person will not be able to achieve and do not allow to take part, we restricting their development in all areas. When I am working with pupils who have special educational needs (SEN), you will find that many professionals and parents speak about the danger of `labelling` pupils. This is because it is important that we look at the needs of the individual first, without focusing on the pupil`s disabilities or impairment. How different types of intervention can promote positive outcomes As a teaching assistant I am involved in intervention groups and other group work on order to support pupils who are not progressing at the same rate as others. This is advised by either the SENCO or another professional who links with the school. * Social worker – a social worker might be involved if a child has been a cause of concern in the home environment or if the parents have asked for support. They will liaise with school regarding Looked After Children (LACs). Occasionally schools may contact social services directly if they have concerns about a child and their home environment. * Speech and language therapist – they will give a diagnosis of a particular ommunication delay or disorder and will also advise school and parents about ways in which they can support the child. Speech and language appointments will usually be delivered in blocks, followed by activities for pupils to work on before their next review. * Educational psychologist – they may become involved if, following intervention and action from speech and language therapists and teaching staff, the child is still not making progress. They will carry o ut an assessment and suggest next steps * Psychiatrist – may be asked to assess a child if there is serious concerns about their emotional development. Children will usually have been referred through a series of assessments before this takes place. * Youth justice – this form of intervention is a public body which aims to stop children and young people offending. The youth justice team may be involved in a partnership with schools and the community where there are cases of offending behaviour. It also acts in a preventative way by running youth inclusion programmes, which are targeted towards those who may be at high risk of offending. Physiotherapist – will advise and give targets to pupilsto work on around the development of their gross motor skills. They give exercises for school staff and parents to work on each depending on the needs of the child. * Nurse/health visitor – these medical professionals may be involved in supporting the development of some children where they have physical and health needs. They will usually come into school to advise and speak to staff generally with parents present. * Assist ive technologies – these are technologies which enable pupils who have specific needs to access the curriculum. They range from computer programmes to specific items such as a speech recognition device or a hearing aid and will give the individual an increased level of independence. How play/activities are used to support speech, language and communication We need to encourage children and young people to develop language and communication skills as much as possible, as this is a key area of their development. Adults will need to give children and young people opportunities to take part in speaking ang listening for different purposes and in different situations. It is important that pupils use language both in whole class and small group activities and I encourage them to talk about their own ideas. In early years play experiences can enhance all areas of development and can be directly specifically to address individual areas such as speaking and listening or can be used more generally to support all. Through play children will learn both about themselves and about others, and will use their speech, language and communication skills in order to interact in a non-pressured environment. As children grow older their play takes on rules which require skills of negotiation. Children and young people still need to receive the chance to enjoy self-directed activities and equipment which support their creative and investigative skills. It is important that they have opportunities to use their own initiative and at times work collaboratively. Project work particularly when problem solving, can support children and young children to develop their personal, learning and thinking skills. A great deal of our communication with others is expressed non-verbally. It is important for children and young people who are autistic for example may well have difficulty in recognising and interpreting non-verbal signs, when working with a pupil who has communication and interaction needs, you will to be using different non-verbal strategies to support them. Through using this foem of communication you will be giving pupils additional aid to understand. The kind of strategies to use include: * Using gestures – this could be something as simple as thumbs up or beckoning the pupil to come over. Pointing to objects – you can help pupils to understand by giving concrete examples of what you are discussing and encouraging pupils tp point to different objects in a similar way * Through facial expressions – a smile or a nod can show approval while you also indicate excitement, disapproval, happiness and other emotions * Through the use of body language – you show that you are giving the pupil attention through the way the way in wh ich you sit or stand A number of visual and auditory approaches can also be used to enhance communication * Pictures can be used to initiate or supplement conversation as they are a good starting point. The pupils can also use pictures to illustrate their ideas. * Games are often used successfully to initiate pupil`s speech and involve them in social interaction * Signs support pupils who are unable to communicate verbally. However, they should not be used exclusively by these pupils; other children will enjoy learning different signs as well as teaching them to one another * Technology such as CDs, computer programs and interactive white boards are useful means of stimulating pupil`s communication skills * Modelling language is important as it gives hildren the chance to hear the correct use of language * Music and singing are excellent ways of reinforcing language for all age groups * Drama and movement activities can provide alternative ways to communicate ideas Understanding the potential effects of transition on the children and young people`s development Whatever age group I am supporting at some stage I will be working with children or young people going through a transition phase. The term `transition` is applied in different situations in which children and young people will pass through a period of change. As well as more obvious school-based transitions, such as starting school, changing classes or key stage, or passing on to secondary school, children will pass other periods of transition with may lead to long or short term. These may include changes in personal circumstances or experiences, passing through puberty or simply a change in activity i the classroom. Different types of transition include: * Emotional – for example, bereavement, entering/leaving care * Physical – for example, moving to a new educational establishment, a new home/locality from one activity to another * Physiological – for example, puberty, long-term medical conditions * Intellectual – for example, moving from pre-school to primary or post-primary It is important that children have positive relationships during periods of transition, as they will need to feel secure in other areas of their lives. They may need to talk to someone about how they are feeling and make sure that there is opportunities for them to do this.

Nuclear Power- Should it be Banned?

Nuclear Power- Should it be Banned? The title question of my case study is: Should Nuclear Power be Banned?. I have chosen this question as I believe it is a key topic at this present moment in life, with a lot of information about it in the media, such as on the news and in the papers each day. Also it is something that will affect the life in which we live in the future. So because of these reasons it is something that people need to be aware of and need to actually understand what nuclear power is and how it is affecting us or is going to affect us in the years to come. One major problem that could occur with nuclear power is that there is always the risk that there could be a leakage of radioactive fluids, which will have a massive impact on the environment and its surroundings. These radioactive fluids that may leak from the power stations can cause cancers and very harmful illnesses in humans. So for this reason people will believe that yes, nuclear power should be banned, especially those people living around or near a nuclear power station, or those that have close relatives that may be affected if something like this were to happen. A reason against banning Nuclear power is that it provides a lot of our energy sources, and can be used to generate electricity and to power ships, so therefore we need nuclear power to continue doing these things, and if we were to get rid of it then we would only have to resort to finding another way of providing this energy, which is only going to cost even more money, on top of what wed already be paying to get rid of the nuclear power plants that exist at this moment in time.. Without the use of the ships that are powered by the nuclear power, we would have a lot of difficulty in transporting goods such as food and material from one place to another. It is in the Nuclear fission where the Uranium is used, this starts off the process for nuclear power to be generated. Nuclear fission is the process of atoms splitting, so when a heavy nucleus such as Uranium splits into two smaller, lighter nuclei. In this reaction, the strong nuclear force which is the attractive force, is acting on the electrostatic force which is the repulsive force, these can be knocked out of balance on each other when they gain the energy from either a photon or a neutron. The two forces are affected by the gain of this other element and will try to act on each other to regain the state in which they were in, but in nuclear fission the electrostatic force will gain more power than the nuclear force, therefore causing it to repel and for the nucleus to split apart, also releasing energy as it does so. To make this slightly easier to understand, imagine a load of marbles in a rough circle shape on a flat tabletop (this is going to be representing the original atoms nucleus, where all the forcing are acting the same on one another and are equal, so all the marbles/atoms are stable). What if I were to then throw or roll another marble into this group of stable marbles? All the marbles would spread apart and move out into the space around them, this marble that is being rolled into them is acting as the photon or neutron that is being gained in the nucleus. This is unbalancing the forces and causing the atoms to all move around as they react to the change that is taking place, but seeing as all the marbles move out, and away from each other shows to us that the repelling force has gained more control, as the attractive force wasnt able to keep them all together, and this is exactly what happens in nuclear fission. Saying that, although there isnt much waste being produced, that that is produced is extremely dangerous and would have to be stored, sealed up and buried for thousands of years to allow the radioactivity to die away. During this time it has to be kept far away from any potential natural disasters such as Earthquakes, Volcanic eruptions, flooding and terrorist attacks. This can be very difficult at times. The worlds worst nuclear accident occurred after an explosion and fire at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. It released radiation over much of Europe. Thirty-one people died in the immediate aftermath of the explosion. Hundreds of thousands of residents were moved from the area and a similar number are believed to have suffered from the effects of radiation exposure. As you can see already from this 31 innocent people died from a nuclear power accident, thats hundreds of people left without a family member, and what if this was to happen again, but this time it could be even worse, and possibly even more people killed. Also from this event, thousands and thousands of people were once again exposed to the radiation which can cause cancerous cells in our bodies, which could lead to a number of deaths years down the line, all from this one accident that happened because of nuclear power. -This website is a university website, which is very factual and all its points appear to be logical and true, also the fact that its scientists writing the points and information only gives us more reason to believe its true and reliable. Many risks are taken when using nuclear power, there is always the risk of a meltdown occurring, or even a leakage of radioactive waste. There is also a risk to the workers safety and well-being as storing waste from nuclear reactors can be a problem in some cases. A nuclear meltdown is when the cooling systems fail, and the nuclear reactors reach such a temperature that they melt straight through the reactor or damage the reactor wall. With this melting, then allows the spread of radioactivity, which as before can cause great damage in the human body. There is also the chance of contamination within the environment if there was to be a leakage of radioactive waste in that area. Radioactive waste, if gotten into the workers at a nuclear power plant, can also poison them, which furthermore, would take their life. Against Nuclear Power Banning On the other hand, there are also many reasons as to why people believe that nuclear power shouldnt be banned, some of which are listed below; Nuclear power generation does emit relatively low amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2). The emissions of green house gases and therefore the contribution of nuclear power plants to global warming is therefore relatively little. This technology is readily available; it does not have to be developed first. It is possible to generate a high amount of electrical energy in one single plant. -I think that this is a reliable website to get information from as it is based on the pros and cons of nuclear power, and what needs to be done to make a change, and what needs to stay the same. It cannot be edited or changed by anyone other than the creators, and the creators are have done a lot of research to make the website to the high standard of what it is now. In 2005, approximately 6.3% of the earths energy supply relied on nuclear power, and gradually over the years, this has increased slightly to 14% in 2009. It also provided 15% of the worlds electricity in 2005 and again in 2009. If we were to ban nuclear power then there would have to be other ways in which this supply of electricity was formed, and therefore more money is going to have to be spent out in order for this supply of electricity. As you can see from the statements above, it clearly states that nuclear power can generate a lot of electrical energy in just one single plant, and with there being 440 plants across the world; this would cost an awful lot of money to get rid of and then replace the energy and electricity in which it supplies us with. Nuclear power also provides for ships and submarines, which we need to transport food and goods from country to country, without these ships we would have to find another way of transporting the items, say if we were to use a plane for example, then this would only be adding to global warming which is another issue known world-wide. -I believe this graph to be a reliable source of evidence as it is from a website specifically focused on the use of nuclear power all over the world, in various different countries. Also it is not biased in any way, and it completely based on facts and figures rather than opinions, so therefore this is a reliable piece of information to be used in this case study. As you can see from the graph above, most of the large MEDC (More Economically Developed) countries reply on nuclear power as a source of energy and electricity. Although there are other ways of them getting their energy supply, with the loss of nuclear power, they would only have to increase one or more of their other supplies in order to make up for what they have lost from the lack of nuclear power. Conclusion SHOULD NUCLEAR POWER BE BANNED? Taking into account both sides of the argument, we can see that there are many reasons for nuclear power being banned, just as well as reasons for nuclear power to not be banned. The main reason that people believe nuclear power should be banned is that there is always the risk of a spillage of nuclear gases, or a leak in the power stations, which would have a great impact on humans health. The main reason as too why nuclear power shouldnt be banned is that it provides a huge amount of the worlds energy and electricity source. As you can see from the for and against arguments on the previous pages, I think that overall the benefit of nuclear power outweighs the risk so therefore nuclear power SHOULDNT be banned, and I think this becauseto get rid of all the nuclear power stations over the world would cost an awful lot of money for the governments and thats money that could be put to a better use elsewhere. Also after paying out to get rid of the nuclear power plants throughout the earth, we would then also have to pay for other methods of providing the electricity and energy resources that these plants provided, it would be easier and more efficient to just spend the money into finding more ways in which we can prevent a leakage at a power plant and how we would handle such a situation, if another one were to occur. Nuclear power plays too big a role in everyday life, we just take it for granted and dont actually realise how much we do rely on it. Furthermore, as for the number of deaths that have occurred from nuclear power accidents; there are so many things nowadays that could kill people, we just try not to look at them in that way, for instance there could be a massive pile-up on a motorway and kill a numerous amount of drivers, passengers and general citizens, but that doesnt mean that people are going to stop driving does it? So why should nuclear power be banned because of the risk of there being a fault that could cause deaths among humans? The workers in nuclear power plants, are fully aware of the risks they take every day and the risks of the radiation, but safety measures are in place to protect these workers from getting harmed, and they are trained of what to do in the case of emergency, so therefore its entirely down to them to do the job or not, at no point are they being forced to work under such conditions that are putting themselves at risk.

Relationship Between Consumption And The Self Essay

Relationship Between Consumption And The Self Essay Consumption has always been an important aspect of human society, in different ways at different times and in different places (Clarke 2003). The consumer revolution, the birth of which is a subject of debates (McKendrick claims to have discovered it in the eighteenth century England, Williams- in nineteenth century France, and Mukerji- in fifteenth and sixteenth century England), represents not just a change in tastes, preferences, and purchasing habits but a fundamental shift in the culture of the early modern and modern world. (McCracken 1988) The consumer revolution is seen to have changed Western concept of time, space, society, the individual, and the state. Western culture gradually became increasingly dependent on and integrated with the new consumer goods and practices, which appeared from the sixteenth century onwards; culture and consumption began to fashion their present relationship of deeply complicated mutuality.(McCracken 1988) In such a consumer culture, consumption has an important significance to the meaningful practices of peoples everyday life. That is, they not only make their consumption choices from the products utilities but also from their symbolic meanings. Basically, consumption is employed not only to create and sustain self but to locate people in society as well. However, from a critical point of view, seeking to create the self through symbolic consumption can also contribute to the enslavement of individuals in the deceptive world of consumption. The following paper seeks to explore the theoretical approaches regarding the relationship between consumption and the self. {In the postmodern world} Our Identity is moulded as consumers. (Sarup 1996, p.120) Living life to the full became increasingly synonymous with consumption. (Gabriel and Lang 1995, p.7) The construction of self in modern society is considered to be invariably linked to consumption. The modern society undoubtedly represents a consumer culture, where peoples life functions in the scope of consumption. (Firat and Venkatesh 1995) It is, peoples social arrangement in which the relation between lived culture and social resources, between meaningful ways of life and the symbolic and material resources on which they depend, is mediated trough markets .(Slater 1997, p.8) Hence consumption is of great importance to the allusive practice of individuals everyday life. Along with the creation and maintenance of the self, consumption is also employed in order to locate different individuals in society (Elliott 1994a). The various material goods that people buy, the ideals and beliefs they held show who they actually are and whom they identify with. Indeed, people consume various things not only for satisfaction of personal needs but also for creation of their self-creation projec ts (i.e. for sense of significance in their pursuit of being ), which may be achieved symbolically through mundane consumption. The validity of this is confirmed by a considerable amount of literature. Lang and Gabriel argue that whether one is looking for happiness, identity, beauty, love , et cetera, there is a commodity somewhere which guarantees to prove it. In McCracken point of view, different products embody qualities that reach beyond their attributes or commercial value, which means, they are capable of carrying and accommodating cultural meanings. Symbolically, people use these meanings in order to create cultural idea of the self, to obtain and maintain lifestyles, to represent social connections and to promote changes in society and the self. (McCracken 1988) In other words, people consume these cultural ideas in order to exist in this culturally composing world. McCracken (1988a, p. Xi) confirms the latter point: without consumer goods, certain acts of self-definition a nd collective definition in this culture would be impossible. Shopping is not merely the acquisition of things: it is the buying of identity. (Clammer 1992, p. 223) Sartre (1998) argues that The bond of possessions is an internal bond of being. (p. 588) He emphasizes on the idea that people come to know who they are trough what they possess. By actually observing their material possessions they structure and sustain a notion of existential self. The idea of seeing is of vital importance, because as Sartre states to see it is already to possess it. In itself it is already apprehended by sight as a symbol of being . Thus, when see a superb landscape, people are capable of obtaining a notion of possessing the given landscape, and then associating it with their sense of being . This idea illustrates how people acquire a feeling of existing trough window shopping alone. To have is to be concept is also asserted by Belk (1988) and Dittmar (1992). Dittmar (1992, p. 204-06) argues: Material possessions have socially constructed meanings this symbolic dimension of material objects plays an important role for the owner s identity. This suggests that material social reality in an integral, pervasive aspect of everyday social life, of constructing ourselves and others. Belk (1988) in his examination of the connection between having and being , states that it is a two-fold process working in both directions respectively. Not only do people place their self-identities into their possession but they also integrate the latter into their identities; that is mirrored in the so called self-extensions process (i.e. the extended self). As extension of the self, peoples possessions not only enable them to find their actual characters but to achieve or adjust their sense of continuity from the past. Thus, material possessions act as a capacity to manage individual s life in its current course. As stated above to have is to be but to have also means to belong . Richins (1994, p. 523) states, Possessions are part of the social communication system and are sometimes actively used to communicate aspects of the self. Undoubtedly, when obtain personal possession that expresses peoples individual sense of identity and their sense of belonging to a group and collective identity. Material things encompass symbolic meanings, trough which a bridging of the self to others in society is possible. Dittmar (1992, p. 11) states: The notion that we express our identity trough our material possessions, and make inferences about the identity of others, on the basis of what they possess, means that there must be socially material objects as symbolic manifestation of identity. Nowadays, people are able to use consumption symbolically in order to gain a considerable sense of belonging to various imagined communities (Anderson 1983) or different neo-tribes (Maffesoli 1988). Thus, people consume different products that add to the symbolic means of identification of the self, trough which they associate themselves emotionally with those sharing their lifestyles. (Gabriel and Lang 1995) Consumption, as it has been stated in the above paragraphs, provides people with symbolic meanings to construct their self and identity, but it also can imprison them to the superficial sense of self and the enduring consumption. Therefore, from a critical perspective, to have means to be enslaved. If I am what I have and if what I have is lost, who then am I? (Fromm 1976, p. 76) According to Fromm, seeking to obtain a sense of being trough having hides a risk of losing it since having may not stay permanently. Contrary, he raises the idea that people realize the self by giving and sharing practices, et cetera. To have contributes to peoples enslavement of their own possessions. (Fromm 1976) People become slaves (i.e. commodities) in the realm of goods (Giddens 1991). Faurschou (1987, p. 82) argues: {Postmodernity is} no longer an age in which bodies produce commodities, but where commodities produce bodies: bodies for aerobic, bodies for sport cars, bodies for vacations, bodies for Pepsi, for Coke, and of course bodies for fashion total bodies-a total look. The colonization of the body as its own production/consumption machine in late capitalism is a fundamental theme of contemporary civilization. The belief that people are capable of exercising their freedom through certain choices seems unrealistic. Actually, we all not only follow lifestyles, but in an important sense are forced to do so-we have no choice but to choose (Gidddens 1991, p. 8). Also, Elliot (1994b) states that the pleasure, more specifically the immediate one derived from numerous consumption practices may imprison people in the scope of addictive consumption. Gergen (1991, p. 74-5) shows some apprehension over freedom of consumption: Yet this same freedom ironically leads to a form of enslavement. Each new desire places its demands and reduces one s liberties. Liberation becomes a swirling vertigo of demands. Daily life has become a sea of drowning demands, and there is no shore in sigh. The will and eagerness to be more, to grow more, to accumulate more and more, and more results in suffering and self-destruction of the individual. The only possible way of letting go this degenerated cycle is to accept the idea that to be is merely an illusion. Consequently, people should let go of their will to be , leave alone the desire to have . Considering all that has been stated above in the current paper about relationship between self and consumption strongly confirms their cooperative coexisting within and in developed societies of the contemporary world. The consumer is seen as caught in a cultural project (McCracken 1988), which main purpose is to achieve a full completion of the self. The consumer machine provides individuals with the necessary cultural materials in order to rationalise their varying ideas about themselves and their social roles in society. All of their cultural notions are embodied in the symbolic nature of goods, and it is through their possession and practices that individual understands the meaning in his own life. As Kavanaugh states, individuals in a society create themselves or define themselves culturally through the objectification of {a culture s} conceptual models in centrally prescribed phenomenal forms (McCracken 1988). It is through the systematic endowing of the meaningful properties of objects/goods that individual satisfied the opportunity and responsibility of self-definition. The logic and directions of this process of self and world construction through the nature of goods has been increasingly understudied and since recently it has been drawn accurate exploration. But which still needs further examination.

Cystic Fibrosis Essay example -- essays research papers

Cystic fibrosis is the most common autosomal recessive genetic disease of white Indo-Europeans (Caucasians). Three main systems are usually affected by cystic fibrosis. These include the lungs and respiratory tract, the digestive tract (especially the pancreas and intestines) and the sweat glands. The lungs will normally have a thick mucus line them in cases of cystic fibrosis which requires physiotherapy to dislodge the mucus and create sputum. The digestive enzymes that would come from the pancreas are blocked by the thick mucus; thus the person afflicted with the disease has trouble digesting foods that are high in fat and protein. In cases that involve cystic fibrosis the salt that is lost during perspiration is much more than in "normal" situations. The upper respiratory tract is normally lined with a little bit of mucus that is sent out of the lung by the constant movement of the cilia that line the respiratory tree. "It is clear from detailed research that poor mucus clearance is not due to uneven ciliary beating. However, there is no doubt that mucus is poorly cleared against gravity in the presence of bacterial infection" (Harris 13-14). The pancreas itself secretes fluids that aid in the digestion and absorption of food in all of us. When cystic fibrosis is present these enzymes are not going where they are needed. Most of the time there is need for supplemental nutrients, supplemental minerals, and/or dietary management. In the case of dietary management there is a plan for seven to eight small meals throughout the day. "This meal pattern enables the patient to consume more food without feeling too full and enhances the utilization of nutrients" (Ekvall 391). The sweat gland of a cystic fibrosis patient, when viewed under the microscope appears normal. The secretions that the gland gives off are where the abnormality occurs. "It is known that the basic defect in cystic fibrosis is expressed as an abnormal regulation of the movements of salt across the layer of cells that line certain specialized ducts such as the sweat gland duct" (Harris 26). This causes a great deal of salt loss and therefore requires most cystic fibrosis patients to ingest salt pills to compensate for the loss. When all of the treatments are used together most patients of this fateful disease live long happy lives. The physiotherapy... ...te as easily. Whether it is because the treatment did not get started early enough, or the disease is out of control death is a factor that must be considered in most cases involving cystic fibrosis. Death will come to all of one day, but it may come earlier to some. The problems that some families may have with their communication can cause great pain and suffering when it comes time to dealing with the death of a loved one. "The long standing problems of communication that exist in many family groups may be accentuated when the prospect of death shows itself" (Bowers 58). Cystic fibrosis is a disease that can take the life of some one who is very close to our hearts. Education of the treatments, side effects, and problems involving this disease is key to winning the battle against it. The more people can know about different situations that better. If there is some one in a school that has this disease try to educate the entire school about this person's situation so that the entire student body can help in the fight. If educators and students all join in the fight, this disease can be kept down and help those afflicted lead as "normal" a life as possible.

Account of the Travels, Sufferings and Persecutions of Barbara Blaugdon

Account of the Travels, Sufferings and Persecutions of Barbara Blaugdone The title of Barbara Blaugdone’s memoir is An Account of the Travels, Sufferings and Persecutions of Barbara Blaugdone, with â€Å"travels† highlighted by its enormous size. Indeed, when reading the book the reader is perhaps most struck by Blaugdone’s excessive, nearly constant travel habits. It may even be argued that at its heart the book is a travel narrative and not a memoir or even a religious account. She traipses about the seas around the British Islea, not only in England but also venturing to Ireland to proselytize and preach to those yet untouched by the Quaker message. Travel was an important part of Quaker life. As a fledgling religious movement focused on the importance of introspective faith and a personal relationship with God, many Friends took it upon themselves to spread the word world-wide. Furthermore, as a group looked down upon and disliked by the rest of English society, Quakers were tempered to have a predisposition towards independence and adventure that serve...

How Have Cell Phones Changed Our Society Research Paper

– 1 – Alexia Corbett 3-12-2009 CELLULAR PHONES INFLUENCE(s) AND IMPACT(s) ON SOCIAL INTERACTIONS AND INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS This paper seeks to explore how cellular phones (cell phones/mobiles) have influenced and impacted social interactions and interpersonal relationships. There have been a number of suggested theories and studies that have been contributed to the rising popularity and commonality of cell phones as to how they are affecting the way individuals are interacting in society.Some of these include, a change in the concept of time and space (Fortunati, 2002), lack of face-to-face interaction (Thompson and Cupples, 2008), the maintenance of relationships, social absences, and social dependency (Reid and Reid, 2004). In addition to these ideas, it has also been suggested that the use of cell phones has had a negative affect on social relationships, grammar, and increased social anxiety (Tully, 2003). BACKGROUND Technologies are an ever-changing aspect of this day and age. New gadgets and ideas are always trying to simplify life and bring people closer together.The cellular phone was first developed in Sweden in 1956, but had no conveniences about it, nor did the average person have access to it. It weighed 90 pounds, and was as inconvenient as having a landline with a 10-foot long cord. Following several trials and developments, in 1978 Bell Labs, working with Motorola created the first generation of a cellular network (Fortunati, 2002). Although this first generation network was not approved by the FCC until 1982, it brought into focus the ability to create a – 2 – form of communication that would allow anyone to make a phone call when it was convenient for them.Following improvements within the second and third generations of cell phone networks and accessibility, cell phones went from becoming an item of luxury for those who could afford it, to an everyday necessity. For anyone operating in the modern world, in addi tion to being able to make phone calls on a cellular phone, in 2000 SMS (Short Message Service) was introduced to allow individuals to send a message to someone else’s mobile device without the necessity of making a phone call. Today, the global cellular phone market now stands at approximately 1. billion subscribers, and is forecasted to reach 3 billion by the end of 2010 (Reid and Reid, 2007). In contrast with instances in the past, having a cell phone of your own is more of the social norm vs. not having a cell phone of your own. Cell phones are taking over on a global level not just a local level, which allows individuals to have the sense of security that wherever they go, they will be able to remain in social contact with those whom are in their social networks. Communication and the way that individuals interact with each other is a huge dynamic of sociology.The cell phone is changing the way in which all of this interaction occurs, which makes it sociologically releva nt. With the creation and accessibility of cell phones, more and more individuals own their own cell phone, and using them everyday to communicate within their social network. Cell phones also make individuals available anywhere, and anytime, which changes the way that individuals are choosing to interact in social settings with other individuals. In this paper I will show how the cell phone has had an impact on social relationships and social interactions in today’s society.I will first show how the concept of having a cellular phone has changed the concept of social space and time among social relationships and interactions. Second, I will show how individuals have shown to have some form of a dependency to the use – 3 – and possession of a cellular phone. Following that, I will provide research that demonstrates how SMS (Short Message Service) has taken on its own form of communication in relationships, and has become more predominate in comparison to voice c alls.Lastly I will provide an overall conclusion of the impact that the use of cellular phones has had in regards to social interactions and interpersonal relationships. The Change of Space and Time/Proximal Relationships Since the 18 th century, the idea of using the telephone has always been a fixed mentality in regards to accessibility. The phone was located at a fixed location, usually in a home or office, and you would have to be in that location where the phone was in order to be able to receive and answer incoming phone calls.This bore the concept of â€Å"sitting and waiting by the phone† for someone to call, since at one time it was the only option. With the development of technologies, there have been ways to alter this mentality; there was the creation of the answering machine, which allowed for you to access messages from missed phone calls when you returned home, which did not always allow for a prompt relay of a message nor reply, and more recently the creation and distribution of the cellular phone. Cellular phones have taken this concept and spun it around on itself.With the development of cellular phones, individuals are able to remain in close and instantaneous contact with members of their social network regardless of where they are in the world. In addition to keeping up with social relationships, individuals have also been able to increase productivity with their work because they can be hundreds of miles away from the office, and still have instant access to their e-mail, documents and contacts wherever they are (Tully, 2003). There is no longer a disconnection. – 4 –The concept of being accessible anywhere and anytime has shown to have both positives and negative results in a social setting; older generations for example have typically been scornful of younger generations pulling out their cell phones in restaurants, classrooms, public transportation and other public spaces (Banjor, Hun and Sundar 2007). Cell phone u sage in a public place typically generates a negative response when used in close approximation to other individuals, as it is seen as a disturbance to their personal space, with little or no consideration from the cell phone user.Social interaction signifies that we are aware of the existence of others, as well as implies active engagement between two or more parties (Banjor, Hun & Sundar 2007). Cell phones have allowed individuals to surpass time and space and have any conversation that they choose, wherever they choose. With public conversation comes public invasion, meaning that you are invading into other’s personal spaces by talking out loud about your own personal spaces coming off as inconsiderate and/or rude which links to alienation of oneself.A trend that is becoming more apparent is present absences; this is the concept of how an individual’s presence in a social setting changes regardless of their physical presence, they are only half-present (Fortunati 20 08). After a ring or buzz of their mobile phone, they are drawn away somewhere else, away from their present situation and/or conversation. Through observation, researchers have found that individuals typically will not hesitate to interrupt an ongoing conversation to answer the ringing of their cell phone.This has several repercussions. In answering the ringing cell phone, the individual who is presently being conversed with, has described feeling a sense of being left alone, which can cause social anxiety, as well as resentment/annoyance towards the individual who answered the phone call (Humphreys 2009). The change of space and time through the use and accessibility of cellular phones has changed the way in which people communicate with other individuals.With the ease of being – 5 – accessible anywhere at anytime, individuals are finding that they are becoming dependent on their cell phone on a day-to-day basis. Cell phones are allowing individuals to stay in a cons tant connection with anyone and everyone in their social network. In the next section I will explain how this dependency is being seen, created and acted upon by individuals. Cell Phone Dependency As mentioned above, cell phones are becoming increasingly popular among the general population. Due to their increasing popularity, more and more people are obtaining them for themselves.In having a cell phone, individuals are becoming reliant on them from day-to-day to stay in contact with other individuals in their social networks, as described throughout this section. Cell phones are not a new concept for all generations. There are individuals who have gown up in the cell phone age, and do not think anything of it. Today, 45% of adolescents aged 12-17 possess a cellular phone in the United States (Leung 2008), making it one of, if not the, most popular way to communicate with other individuals. While cell phones have become less of a tatus symbol and more of a fashion statement, they ha ve also created an unspoken social dependency. Leisure boredom, which is a category of dependency to cell phones described as an individual who is found to become bored with their current situation, has proven to lead to cell phone dependency (Leung, 2008). For adolescents and young adults, as leisure boredom arose, they were more likely to be found engaging in SMS messages, making phone calls, accessing the internet from their phone or playing a mobile driven game.Once there is an element of boredom his or her attention is drawn immediately to his or her cell phone device for an instant connection – 6 – to someone, somewhere. Through a series of surveys it was shown that the higher rate of leisurely boredom, the more frequent use of a cell phone occurred (Leung 2008). Sensation seeking behavior has also linked adolescents and young adults to have the desire to take risks with relationships, rules and roles (Leung 2008). Individuals seek out entertainment and avoid bor edom; as with anything there are appropriate times and inappropriate times.This concept translates over to cell phone use as well, people will use their cell phones at appropriate and inappropriate times, simply to satisfy a social urge/want/need. This category was supported significantly by relationships between individuals who were cell phone addicted via sensation seeking, demonstrating that the cell phone was used more for entertainment, information and social connectivity (Leung 2008). For example, an individual using their cell phone on the side of the road when they break down vs. using their cell phone to just say ‘Hi’ to someone, or chitchat with another person.Self esteem, a third dependency category examined the standardized idea that individuals with low self esteem typically do not communicate as much with others, and are more prone to expect a negative response from those whom they do contact. However, it is thought that individuals who have low self estee m will actually use their cell phone more to try and establish social networks, and build relationships without having all of the pressures of a face-to-face encounter with an individual, as well as to try and reach out to other individuals (Reid and Reid 2007). Research shows that individuals ho have low self-esteem seek out more frequent use of the cell phone to seek to establish new relationships and try and gain an element of control in their social relationships. This makes it easier for individuals with lower self-esteem to form and maintain social relationships. Along with the factors listed above, many individuals have stated that they cannot imagine not having their cell phone with them on a daily basis. The integration of cell phones – 7 – into our daily lives is exaggerated in how younger generations talk about not being able to imagine themselves without their phones now (Thompson & Cupples 2008).Their imaginaries include cell phones; their senses of self a re tied up with this technology as is evident in the following quotations: I just can’t imagine myself without a cell phone now. . . when I don’t have my phone I always feel like I’m missing something . . . (Samantha, 14) My phone’s always in my skirt pocket at school so it’s just always there. And if I, like, leave it in my locker by accident, or it’s in my bag, I panic ’cos I don’t know where I’ve put it ’cos I’m used to having it in my pocket . . . it’s just a permanent part of you. Michelle, 15, emphasis added) Individuals are forming an attachment to their cell phones, which enables them to think that they cannot function without their cell phone on a day-to-day basis. There are many factors that lead to cell phone dependency, such as leisure boredom, sensation-seeking behavior and low self esteem as described above. Another aspect of the cellular world that contributes to dependency and changes the way in which we socially interact on a daily basis is SMS Text Messaging. SMS Text Messaging as a Social InteractionShort Message Service (SMS/Text Message) was first developed in 1990 in an effort to allow operators to notify customers when there was some type of a service issue or a network problem. This service has now become one of the most common ways in which individuals use their cell phones to communicate with others. In 2002 80% of all cell phone users in the United States were ‘Talkers’, however by 2006 that number was almost reduced by half, dropping to only 42%, with the other 58% being ‘Texters’ (Fernando 2007).Many researchers have expressed concern that the increased use of SMS messaging will cause face-to-face interaction to become non-existent, as well as poor grammar by frequent – 8 – users. Research has shown however, that text messaging between individuals can actually create stronger ties between individuals as well a s act as a buffer to face-to-face interactions with a new individual. Communicating through a text message allows individuals to not only take their time composing a more thought out reply, but it also alleviates the pressures that accompany a first encounter/face-to-face meeting.With the popularity of SMS messaging, individuals are using it more and more, and in an effort to send more text messages, a new language is being created that is making experts worried that grammar will overlooked. Individuals who are regular texters have created new acronyms for various words to get their point/idea across faster than if they were to type out the entire message. For example; LOL is the same as saying Laughing Out Loud, OMG is equivalent to Oh My God, and finally TTYL, which refers to Talk To You Later.SMS/Text messaging has become more popular among younger generations in comparison with older generations. Sending and receiving text messages is a form of communication with others that can be secretive and discrete; parents/teachers cannot intercept or have access to what is being sent back and forth. In 2001 Nokia conducted a worldwide survey of 3,300 people, under age 45, over 80% of those that were surveyed reported that text messaging was the most used function on their mobile phones (Reid and Reid 2004).With its popularity growing at an exponential rate, text/SMS messaging has also become a new way for individuals to form new relationships, and strengthen existing ones. Teens admitted spending nearly an equal amount of time talking as they do texting each month. The feature is so important to them that if texting was no longer an option, 47 percent of teens say their social life would end or be worsened – especially among females (54 percent compared to 40 percent of males) (CTIA Survey 2008).In addition, individuals claim to see text messaging as a comfortable, easy and effective means of communication for younger people (Thompson and – 9 – Couples 2008). Without the pressures that come along with a voice or face-to-face conversation, text messaging allows individuals the time to spend composing their thoughts and making edits to their responses before sending them to others. Composing thoughtful responses to text messages also allows for an element of privacy at any given time and /or place for individuals to communicate, thus relating back to the change in concept of Space & Time.Messaging back and forth allows for an often unseen and unheard communication between individuals, as well as fewer limitations to where and when they can communicate, and text messaging has served more for ‘filler’ communication, and less for functional/practical communication between individuals. Filler messages relate to messages regarding, friendship maintenance, romantic, social functions, and/or boredom and loneliness.A study on a group of undergraduates showed that only about one third of the text messages that were bein g sent were actually functional/practical information; the rest was a combination of filler messages (Reid & Reid 2004). Social interactions via text message seem to serve as more of an instant personal contact with someone else, without having to worry about your personal appearance and actual interaction. Sending and receiving text messages is a new concept for most generations, and changes the way in which individuals are required to interact.By communicating through text message, individuals are not required to interact with others socially in a face-to-face manner, they can do it all via messaging. While this is a convenient way and discrete way to communicate with another person, it has changed the way that individuals are reacting with others not only in a social setting, but also in how they are maintaining their existing relationships, and building new relationships. – 10 – CONCLUSION Our society today is one that is based on technology, and technological adva nces.Technology as a whole will always have an effect on the way that individuals function in society, and while there has not been a lot of research on the effects of cellular phone use, it has both positive and negative consequences. Cell phones in their small time in existence have changed the way in which individuals are interacting with each other. Cell phones have provided avenues for individuals to stay connected on a new level that does not depend on space or time, but is readily accessible at any time, anywhere.Never being disconnected has allowed social networks and relationships to be strengthened as well as new relationships formed. Cell phones have also allowed individuals all over the world whom, without the cell phone would never have access to all of the networks, assets and information that they do via the mobile phone. While it has provided a new avenue to social networking and interactions, the change in the space and time concept has also had a negative affect as well.Many of us have likely experienced a situation where we have been in the presence of a cell phone user who is engaging in some form of rude behavior that lacks respect for the individuals around them. Cell phones have changed the way that individuals socially interact. Individuals are communicating more via text messages and cell phones than they are face-to-face, changing our social environment. Individuals have become enveloped in their cell phones and less aware of their social surroundings, missing out on possible new social interactions.There is still a lot of future research still needs to be done on the long-term affects of the mobile phone and social relationships. Something that should be looked at is how the mobile phone effects relationships over time, as well as what the long term health effects are, and how the access and use of cell phones varies through different socioeconomic classes. However, you – 11 – can see how in its short history, cell phon es have already had a huge impact on the way individuals interact with one another. – 12 – References â€Å"Teens Who Text. â€Å"2008.Communications of the ACM 51(11):19-19 (http://search. ebscohost. com/login. aspx? direct=true&db=aph&AN=35211892&site=ehostlive). â€Å"New Information Technologies and the Fate of Rationality in Contemporary Culture. â€Å"2006. Russian Social Science Review 47(6):65-85. Agosto, Denise E. and Sandra Hughes-Hassell. 2005. â€Å"People, places, and questions: An investigation of the everyday life information-seeking behaviors of urban young adults. † Library & Information Science Research (07408188) 27(2):141-163. Atkin, Charles K. 1972. â€Å"Anticipated Communication and Mass Media Information-Seeking. The Public Opinion Quarterly 36(2):188-199. Boase, Jeffery. 2008. â€Å"Personal Networks and the Personal Communication System. † Information, Communication & Society 11(4):490-508. Fernando, Angelo. 2007. â€Å"If you text it, they may come. † Communication World 24(4):11-12 (http://search. ebscohost. com/login. aspx? direct=true&db=ufh&AN=25547883&site=ehostlive). Fortunati, Leopoldina. 2002. â€Å"The Mobile Phone: Towards New Categories and Social Relations. † Information, Communication & Society 5(4):513. – 13 – Hu, Yifeng, S. S. Sundar and Omotayo Banjo. 006. â€Å"Cell Phone Usage and Social Interaction with Proximate Others: Ringing in a Theoretical Model. † Conference Papers — International Communication Association:1-30. Humphreys, Lee. 2005. â€Å"Cellphones in public: social interactions in a wireless era. † New Media & Society 7(6):810-833. Igarashi, Tasuku, Tadahiro Motoyoshi, Jiro Takai and Toshikazu Yoshida. 2008. â€Å"No Mobile, No Life: Self-Perception and Text-Message Dependency among Japanese High School Students. † Computers in Human Behavior 24(5):2311-2324. Katz, James E. 2007. Mobile Media and Communication: Some I mportant Questions. † Communication Monographs 74(3):389-394 (http://search. ebscohost. com/login. aspx? direct=true&db=aph&AN=26386708&site=ehostlive). Leung, Louis. 2008. â€Å"Leisure boredom, sensation seeking, self esteem, and addiction: Symptoms and patterns of cell phone use. † Pp 359-381 in Mediated Personal Communication. Edited by S. B. Barnes, E. A. Konijn, M. Tanis, and S. Utz. New York, NY: RoutledgeMcfedries, Paul. 2002. â€Å"All Thumbs. † IEEE Spectrum 39(10):68 (http://search. ebscohost. com/login. aspx? direct=true&db=aph&AN=8930492