Review of the Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Review of the Literature - Essay Example This paper will provide a concise review of recent literature on the topic of health information management as it concerns the nursing profession. According to Stansfield (2005) professionals dealing with health information management take charge of planning information systems, developing health policy and recognizing present and future information needs. These professionals also apply the science of informatics to all processes of collection, storage, utilization and transmission of information. The management of health information aims at meeting the professional, administrative, legal and ethical records-keeping demands of health care delivery (Stearns, 2000). In the management of health records, nursing professionals typically work with demographic, reference, epidemiological, clinical and financial coded health care information. Civan, Skeels, Stolyar, & Pratt (2006) suggest that the proper collection, use and management of information in health care systems determine the overa ll effectiveness of health care systems. ... As the field of health information management continues to grow and information technology plays a key function in the medical world, health information management experiences a transition from conventional managing practices with paper to efficient electronic management, for instance, Electronic Health Records (EHRs). However, the primary goal is still to assess, manage and use information essential to patient care and ensure that health care providers can access the information when needed (Fairweather & Rogerson, 2001). Electronic health records have been constantly articulated as the evolvement of health record-keeping. Since it is electronic in nature, this means of record keeping has not only been debated but also supported in the public realm and the health care professional community. As of the year 2008, at least 5 percent of chief information officers surveyed affirmed that they desired ambulatory electronic health records so as to have valuable health information records a vailable to move through each stage of health care. Managers in charge of health information are responsible for the protection of patients’ privacy. They are also tasked with training their employees in proper usage and handling of confidential information entrusted to all health professionals, including nurses and doctors. Following the rise of the importance of technology in health care, health information managers are required to remain extremely competent with regard to the use of information databases, which generate vital reports for nurses, physicians and administrators (Stansfield, 2005). According to Civan, Skeels, Stolyar & Pratt (2006) the availability of the right information at the proper time is vital for health care quality and safety. This is because

Environmental Issue Essay Example for Free

Environmental Issue Essay Poor waste management is one of the major problems that have vast social-ecological and economic negative effects on a global scale. This has resulted from the fast growth of the urban centers which form the main source of wastes and its poor management by the respective authorities. Indeed, over 90% of the total major cities globally have problems related to waste management (Bureau of National Affairs, 2007). However, cities in the third world economies are affected more by the problem than those in developed countries. Urgent measures are therefore required to address the problems and therefore guarantee ecological sanctity and social integrity of the affected systems. Use of qualitative and quantitative data Addressing the problem of the wastes in the urban regions demands the collection of factual information to establish the correct methods and ways that can be used to address the problem. Taking into consideration that the problem has escalated over a long period of time, use of qualitative data would provide the relevant descriptive information for the waste and therefore aid in determining the best modes of addressing the problem (Toma, 2008). Wastes from the cities can be qualitatively categorized as solid and liquid wastes. The data can further be descriptive of the biodegradable wastes, plastic wastes, pharmaceutical wastes, and sharps. Quantitatively data on the other hand would be very essential in understanding various quantities of the qualitatively categorized wastes. Understanding the statistics provides the respective authorities with the relevant information that can assist them in determining the mode they would use in countering the same problem. Chemical treatment of liquid wastes is sustainable and more effective for smaller quantities of liquid wastes while use of aerobic lagoons is better for larger quantities. Besides, understanding the quantity of recyclable materials in solid wastes makes it easier to calculate the economic returns of the recycled products (Toma, 2008). Hypothesis: Scientific process forms the best system for providing the solution of waste management in the cities. With the problem of the waste being a major source of ecological and social problems globally, it demands a holistic approach that appreciates the complexity of the issue and therefore provide the best possible solution. It is worth noting that scientific method of addressing the problem is based on factual information that is qualitatively and quantitatively derived. Therefore, will be able to assess and address actual problem affecting the people and the ecological systems. All aspects of urban wastes are scientifically derived and science only would interpret them on the same tone to establish means of reducing their effects (Worldwatch Institute, 2009). Socially, addressing the problem using scientific methods aid in ensuring that As a result, it has the ability to link the cause and consequences of the negative effects of the wastes and provide a long term solution to them. Conclusion With the pollution problem threatening to get out of hand in the major cities, it has become important to address it in a sustainable mode. Scientific process will therefore be the best mode due to its thoroughness and intrinsic capacity to alleviate the problem. The demand for cleaner and healthier environment over the years has increased greatly globally. Therefore, taking into consideration that the urban centers are growing faster than any other period in history, scientific process seeks to address the waste problem holistically at all levels. Most of the international considerations like Basel convention of 1989 and the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development of 1992 have called for scientific approaches to address the problem. The scientific process calls for effective consideration of the wastes from the point of production to disposal. Besides, it emphasizes on reduction of wastes at the source and application of the best systems that reduces its effects to the people and the natural systems (Worldwatch Institute, 2009). It demands for recycling of all the recyclable waste materials in the wastes a notion that goes a long way in improving the resources utility. Through use of the life cycle analysis/ end of pipe system, wastes are slowly turning into precious resources to be used in other areas like conditioning farms, irrigation, and making building bricks. Notably, the scientific process demands that cooperation be instituted at all levels of the waste management to harmonize the process and ensure long term sustainability. Finally, the scientific process sets effective standards that should be observed by waste producers and managements, and monitoring systems to ensure compliance. Reference list Bureau of National Affairs, (2007). International environment reporter: current report. Washington, D. C. : Bureau of National Affairs. Toma, V. (2008). Waste Management Research Trends. Basel: Nova Publishers. Worldwatch Institute, (2009). State of the World 2009: Into a Warming World. London: W W Norton Co Inc.

Dale v. Boy Scouts of America Essay -- Homosexual Rights Court Papers

Dale v. Boy Scouts of America This case deals with the Plaintiff's expulsion from his position as Assistant Scoutmaster in a Boy Scouts of America (henceforth called "BSA") troop due to his status as an active homosexual. Dale, the Plaintiff, was serving as an Assistant Scoutmaster in 1990, when, due to a local newspaper article, it was discovered by officials in the local Monmouth BSA Council that he was an active homosexual. A letter was sent to Dale by the Council, notifying him of their decision to revoke his membership in the organization. Dale sent a letter in response, asking why this action was taken. The Council then notified Dale that his homosexual activities made him ineligible for membership in the BSA, as well as making him ineligible to serve as an adult leader. In September 1990, Dale contacted the BSA Regional Director, requesting a review of the expulsion decision. The Regional Director's office responded to Dale via letter, notifying him of the Director's decision to support the Council's actio n, and also notifying him of the National BSA Council's pending review of the case. New Jersey Superior Court Analysis Rather than wait for the National Council's decision, Dale filed a lawsuit in the New Jersey Superior Court against the BSA in July 1992. In the lawsuit, Dale claimed that the BSA is a place of public accommodation, and as such, violated the New Jersey Laws Against Discrimination (LAD). LAD states the following: "All persons shall have the opportunity to obtain employment, and to obtain all the accommodations, advantages, facilities, and privileges of any place of public accommodation, publicly assisted housing accommodation, and other real property without discrimination because of race, creed... ...significant precedent. It is also quite conceivable that Dale will last no longer than the current class of Supreme Court Justices. Assuming a few more years, it is doubtful that Dale would have been decided the same. One never knows. Perhaps this case will be seen as another Plessy v. Ferguson. Works Cited New Jersey Supreme Court. Dale v. Boy Scouts of America et. al. URL: http://lawlibrary.rutgers.edu/courts/supreme/a-195-97.opn.html Superior Court of New Jersey-Appellate Division. Dale v. Boy Scouts of America et. al. URL: http://lawlibrary.rutgers.edu/courts/appellate/a2427-95.opn.html United States Supreme Court. Boy Scouts of America et. al. v. Dale. URL:http://usgovinfo.about.com/newsissues/usgovinfo/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://caselaw.findlaw.com/cgi%2Dbin/getcase.pl%3Fcourt=US%26amp%3Bnavby=case%26amp%3Bvol=000%26amp%3Binvol=99%2D699

Heavy Metal Essay -- Art

Heavy Metal Heavy Metal’s popularity is and has been on the rise due to its many bands and increased guitar technology. Since the mid 1960’s, when heavy metal spread to the U.S. from England, it has grown in popularity. Many of the first bands that came from Europe came with two intentions; to spread heavy metal to other parts of the world, and to make it grow in popularity. (Ragland 1). Heavy metal is a form of rock ‘n’ roll music played on electric guitars and amplified to unnatural volume levels. Such effects as feedback, distortion, reverb, and Wah Wah pedals are commonly added to the music. These effects create completely new sounds, exploiting the possibilities of electric guitars. Most heavy metal music is based on death, Satanism, youth, and teenage rebellion. It is broken into three sub categories; speedcore, thrash metal, and death metal. Heavy metal is the general term for these three categories combined. It is often just called metal. Most heavy metal music is based around the electric guitar. (Ragland 1-2). Guitar technology has changed a lot since the beginning of the rock era. In the early 1950’s electric guitars were very expensive and had few capabilities. Inventions such as wah wah pedals, fuzz boxes, distortion, reverb, and amplifiers have increased the electric guitar's capabilities of making new sounds and music. The new devices have also made rock music more popular. More among the heavy metal population than the many other branches of rock ‘n’ roll. (Hewens). Heavy metal music grabs a hold of rock’s most rudimentary elements; youth, rebellion, sex, fantasy, and a good time at all costs. It is directed towards the alienation and trauma that plagues adolescent life, particularly among the lives if teenage boys. They tend to see their lives as controlled by parents and teachers. For many others, it is a way to release frustration and anger. For instance, a heavy metal concert to those who like heavy metal, is not just a musical performance, full of elaborate costumes and settings. It is a community of teenagers who participate in a shared celebration of youth. (Ragland 1-2). Heavy metal tends to be male-oriented, but metal is not exclusive to the male population. Its basic audiences are dominate by white, male teenagers from criminal backgrounds. Women in heavy metal are usually objects of lust. They are visualized as m... ...icion. "Money is what makes the world turn round." Although that is just a saying, it is somewhat quite true. It brings happiness and misery into peoples lives. In Great Expectations, Pip proves to the reader that money can really make a difference in a person's life. In the beginning of the story Pip was not wealthy, he was living in poverty. His manners were not as great as a rich person's, he did not own much of anything, and he was treated poorly because of that. Joe was not wealthy, and nor was Mrs. Joe. They treated Pip like they would anyone else, as an equal. When he went to Estella’s house, she treated him like he was a laboring boy. Just by looking at him, she concluded that she was better than him because he looked poor, and she looked rich. That was the first time Pip didn’t look at everyone as an equal. He looked at Estella as being rich, and him being poor. As Pip gets older, he becomes wealthy. He took this for granted and treated the poor as he was once treated so many years ago. He believed that money was power. Estella and Ms Havisham were powerful people through his eyes. He wanted to be more like them. As he became a gentleman, he became more like them.

Buad 310 Case Analysis Instruction

BUAD 310 Spring 2013 Case Due by 4PM on Friday, May 3rd (in BRI 400C) In this case you will apply statistical techniques learned in the Regression part of BUAD 310. Please read the following instructions carefully before you start: †¢ This assignment uses data from the file MagAds13S. XLS, which you can download from Blackboard. After you download the file go to Data > Load data > from file in StatCrunch to open it (you don’t need to change any of the options when loading this data. ) †¢ The entire report should be typed and clearly presented without typos and grammatical errors.Copy and paste the relevant (explained further in more detail) regression output into your document. Do not attach any graphs. †¢ You are encouraged to work in groups (maximum size is 5). Any group submits only one report, in which the first page should have all the names and USC ID of the group members. A hard copy of the report needs to be submitted (an electronic copy is NOT acceptabl e). Before May 3rd, you can also hand in the report during class. When I am not in my office (BRI 400C), please drop the report in the office through the gap between the door and floor. Very important: present the problems in exactly the same order as they are listed. †¢ A note to Mac user: you might need to hold â€Å"shift† when selecting variables for the X-variables with multiple linear regression in StatCrunch. Magazine Advertising What factors influence the price of advertisements in magazines? Suppose you are part of a team of consultants hired by a retail clothing company wishing to place advertisements in at least one magazine. They are curious about what types of costs they can expect for magazines with different readership bases so they most effectively utilize their advertising budget.Your team has collected cost data on 44 consumer magazines. In addition, your team has measured some other characteristics of the magazines and their audiences that may be usefu l in understanding the advertisement costs better. The variables are as follows, pagecost: Cost of a four-color, one-page ad (in dollars) circ: Circulation (projected, in thousands) percmale: Percent male among the predicted readership medianincome: Median household income of readership (in dollars) Some natural logarithms of the variables are also provided for your convenience.Your goal is to analyze the data with StatCrunch using Multiple Linear Regression methods and choose the best model to explain the differences in advertising costs between the different titles, and then to predict what the retail clothing company should expect to pay for advertising in the different magazines. Answer the following questions (with reasonable detail, not just â€Å"yes† or â€Å"no†, use one or two sentences per question). 1. Visually examine the scatter plots of the response variable, pagecost, versus each of the explanatory variables (circ, percmale, medianincome).In StatCrunch you can go to [Graphics( Scatter Plot] to do each plot. Describe the form and the direction of each relationship. Do not attach any graphs. 2. Perform a Regression analysis to predict pagecost using all three explanatory variables [Stat ( Regression ( Multiple Linear, then fill in the proper Response and Predictor variables, then click Next twice and under Save options select Residuals, Predicted values and 95% interval for either the mean or an individual (you will have to decide which one you need for part d! ). For he CI (or PI) to be produced you need to enter the values from part d in the row underneath the data table, in appropriate columns. Note that the value for circ has to be entered in the same units as all the values in the circ column. To produce a residual plot do a Scatter plot as in question 1, selecting Residuals as the Y variable and Predicted values as the X variable]. Include the regression output, but not the plot. a. Use the R-squared and the F-test to comment on the usefulness of the regression model you fitted (use the significance level of 5% for the test). b.Evaluate the regression assumptions by assessing the residual plot. c. Examine each of the explanatory variables individually to determine which are contributing significantly to the model. (Use the significance level of 5 %. Do NOT actually eliminate any variables from the regression at this stage. ) d. Using the same model with all the variables, provide an appropriate 95%-level interval to the retail clothing company for the amount that they would pay for a full-page ad in a magazine with a projected audience of 2,000,000 readers, 55 percent of which are male, with a median income of $30,000.Explain in one sentence and in simple terms what this interval means. 3. Rerun the regression in part 2 with circ replaced by LN_circ (the natural logarithm of the variable circ), keeping all the other variables the same. Include the relevant regression output (only the coefficient and ANOV A tables). [Stat ( Regression ( Multiple Linear, then fill in the proper Response and Predictor variables, then click Next twice and under Save options select Residuals and Predicted values. Produce a residual plot the same way as in question 2]. a.How does this model compare to the previous model using R-squared? Explain what this difference in the R-squared values means in simple terms. b. Evaluate the regression assumptions by assessing the residual plot. c. Examine each of the independent variables individually to determine which are contributing significantly to the newest model. (Use the significance level of 5 %. Do NOT actually eliminate any variables from the regression at this stage. ) 4. Rerun the regression in part 3 with LN_pagecost (the natural logarithm of pagecost) as the response (i. . the explanatory variables are LN_circ, percmale and medianincome). Include the regression output. [Stat ( Regression ( Multiple Linear, then fill in the proper Response and Predictor variables, then click Next twice and under Save options select Residuals, Predicted values and 95% interval for either the mean or an individual (you will have to decide which one you need for part d! ). For the CI (or PI) to be produced you need to enter the values from part d in the row underneath the data table, in appropriate columns.Note that the value for LN_circ has to be entered in the same units as all the values in the LN_circ column. Also note that the interval will be produced for the LN_pagecost variable. To produce a residual plot do a Scatter plot as in question 1, selecting Residuals as the Y variable and Predicted values as the X variable]. a. Evaluate the regression assumptions by assessing the residual plot. b. Examine each of the explanatory variables individually to determine which are contributing significantly to the new model. Use a significance level of 5%. . Remove the variables you find insignificant and re-run the model. Include the regression output for the new model. d. Using the new model, provide an appropriate 95% -level interval to the retail clothing company for the amount they would pay for a full-page ad in a magazine with the values given in 2. d (projected audience of 2,000,000 readers, 55 percent of which are male, with a median income of $30,000) using the newest model. Explain in one sentence and in simple terms what this interval means. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: (roughly about ? to 1 page)You are given the task of summarizing your findings for the board of directors of the retail clothing company. Since they are not very well-versed in regression techniques, you will need to explain things in easy-to-understand, simple and practical terms. Make sure to answer the following questions within the summary: 1. Describe each of the models you considered in parts 2-4 and how these models estimate the relationship between the cost of one-page ad and each of the explanatory variables (for each of the models you will need about one se ntence per explanatory variable). . Specify which model you would recommend to best forecast the cost of one-page advertisements. Explain why this model should work well and why you picked this particular model from the ones you tried (go over the positives you see for this model and the negatives for the other models). †¢ Reminder: include only the relevant regression output in your final document. Do not attach or include any graphs.

Never Underestimate Chekhovs Gun

Never Underestimate Chekhovs Gun Known as one of the greatest short story writers in history, Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, Russian physician, playwright and short-story writer once wrote in a letter to a friend, Medicine is my lawful wife and literature is my mistress. Also among his letters is the principle now referred to as Chekhovs gun- a writing concept he brought up multiple times throughout his extensive correspondence.This version of it is noted in Bill Valentines Chekhov: The Silent Voice of Freedom:Remove everything that has no relevance to the story. If you say in the first chapter that there is a rifle hanging on the wall, in the second or third chapter it absolutely must go off. If its not going to be fired, it shouldnt be hanging there.Chekhov: The Silent Voice of FreedomIn a letter to Aleksandr Semenovich Lazarev (pseudonym of A. S. Gruzinsky) written on November 1, 1889, Chekhov wrote, One must never place a loaded rifle on the stage if it isnt going to go off. Its wrong to make promises you dont mean to keep.So, what is Chekovs gun?Chekovs gun is the concept that a writers focus on objects, details or locations should have future significance in the story. This doesnt mean that every single object needs to have significance, however. It just means that if you point it out and encourage your readers mind to dwell on it, there should be a reason for doing so. Now Novel explains it like this:The lesson behind Chekhovs gun is that your story should be cohesive. Each part should contribute to the whole in a way that makes sense. It does not mean that every single plot point of your story must be hugely significant. Some story elements function to create mood or describe the setting. Yet each part of your story should correspond to the whole in at least a tangential way.Nownovel.comFor example, if your character has a limp, there should be a backstory that is significant for character building. Dont simply give him a limp and not explain to your reader why he has it. Another example wou ld be focusing on and describing a characters vivid dreams. Unless something significant will happen in one of those dreams that affects the characters choices further in the plot, or unless youre using it to foreshadow a future event, dont focus your writing on the dreams.Unless your characters vivid dreams play a role in the plot, dont focus on describing them. Photo by Johannes Plenio on Unsplash.Does it mean that every single detail needs to be significant?Chekov wasnt saying that every detail you include needs to be significant to the storyline. There are obviously times when youll describe a location with details that create setting and mood, or write characters who engage in small talk that isnt some great plot twist.Heres an example:Lets say youre writing a scene in which a character smokes a pipe. That pipe could simply be part of your choice in characterization and doesnt necessarily need to hold any special significance beyond that. However, if you focus your writing on t he details of that pipe, or use an entire page or more to describe how your character languidly smokes it, that pipe should be significant to the story. It should hold special significance in your characters past or future.Another example is if two of your characters are leaning in for a passionate kiss and interrupted by a loud alarm that goes off nearby, youve allowed that alarm to affect the plot. In doing so, you need to provide further explanation at some point before the end as to why youve done this. Is the alarm perhaps a metaphor warning the character that the kiss would lead to a toxic relationship? Did something happen down the street that would later affect the characters in some significant way beyond interrupting a romantic moment?Chekovs gun on televisionFans of the hit ABC show Lost, which first aired on September 22, 2004, understand firsthand how important Chekovs gun is, whether on page, stage, or screen. After the final episode, which aired on May 23, 2010, many fans experienced feelings ranging from disappointment to disbelief to outright anger. For six years, they had been taken on a wild, engrossing science fiction journey involving time travel, parallel universes, ancient civilizations, and scientific experiments, only to be left at the end with multiple questions still unanswered. Much of this confusion had to do with the shows writers offering up lots of seemingly significant objects, characters, and events- only to leave those elements unexplained by the end.For example, this reviewer on Den of Geek writes:My main fear was that the writers themselves never knew [what was going on], and had been content to roll along, episode to episode, season to season, chucking out twists hither and thither without any creative masterplan to guide them. I could imagine the scene in the writers room: Hey, this new twistll be cool. It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever, and I dont know how well write ourselves out of it, but people will be surprise d, and thats the main thing, isnt it? If viewers start to question how ridiculous it is, well just come up with something even more messed up and unbelievable to distract them from the first thing, and then repeat that formula until we get cancelled, or we all just decide to violently murder each other using ball-point pens.Den of GeekThis review is a good example of why readers are frustrated when authors point to seemingly significant things that turn out to be not so important after all. When audiences invest their time, energy, and emotions into a work- whether that be a book, TV series, movie, or play- they dont what to feel like their time is wasted. So, if youre going to have a gun in the first act, make sure its shot by the end of the third act. Otherwise, dont point out the gun at all.A screenshot of Mr. Echo and the smoke monster from Lost, a show often faulted for not following the rules of Chekovs Gun.When Chekovs gun is actually a Red HerringMystery, thriller, and crime novelists use a device known as a Red Herring to throw the reader off track for a greater surprise effect when the big reveal occurs. According to LiteraryDevices.net, a good example of a Red Herring in a popular work is the character of Bishop Aringarosa in Dan Browns novel Da Vinci Code:Bishop Aringarosa serves as an example of a red herring throughout the novel. The character is presented in such a way that the readers suspect him to be the mastermind of the whole conspiracy in the church.Later, it is revealed that he is innocent. This example of a red herring in the novel distracts the readers from who the real bad guy is, and thus adds to the mystery of the story. Interestingly, the Italian surname of the bishop Aringarosa translates in English as red herring.LiteraryDevices.netThe differences between foreshadowing and Chekovs gunLets go back to Chekhovs gun and re-examine what he said about it. Basically, if you mention a gun in chapter one, by the end of the novel, that gun needs to be shot. With this explanation in mind, you might recognize another often-used literary device that has a similar idea- foreshadowing.Foreshadowing, on the other hand, is a literary device that involves using words, phrases, objects, or characters to hint to the reader about what will happen later in the story. However, the important thing to note about foreshadowing is it is only a small hint- barely perceptible so as not to give away too much of the storyline. Chekovs gun is drawing attention to something in a more obvious way. So, the difference lies in the degree to which you emphasize the object, person, or ability.Essentially, think of Chekovs gun as a promise between you (the writer) and your readers that this thing youre mentioning will have significance at some point in the story. Its a pledge.Foreshadowing is a hint, and perhaps one that is so subtle that your reader wont notice it until the final reveal happens and all the plot twists have taken place.Tips for wr iters to apply Chekovs gun to your own writingIf youve been adequately convinced that Chekovs gun makes sense, here are a few tips to apply this same principle to your own writing.Create a scene list, containing each scenes plot points, character goals, action to advance the plot, and action to increase the tension. This article on 8 ways to create a scene list is a great resource that details the exact steps to take to make a scene list happen. Having a scene list will help you determine if there are unnecessary elements that were included in one chapter and dont return in future chapters as significant plot points.Read through your draft of each chapter and make sure that any focus youve given to objects, characters, or traits is fleshed out in future chapters.Above all, keep the unspoken promise to your reader that in exchange for their time and emotions, you wont lead them down a dead-end path in any part of your storytelling.

Summery of project management Essay Example

Summery of project management Essay Example Summery of project management Essay Summery of project management Essay Essay Topic: 12 Angry Men What is project management? Key understanding of Project Management In changing world How can a small business succeed in a rapidly changing world, with changing customer desires, new competitors, new technology, and new suppliers halting us from all directions? The answer is project management. Project management helps us realize our dreams, take an advantage of opportunities, and solve our problems in changing times. Well put project management into simple language and learn how we can make projects work. Definition of basic conception; Project Management When it comes to the definition of Project, it can be defined as follows; a dream with a deadline or a problem scheduled for a solution. In general, Projects come in all sizes. In a small business, some might take months such as launching the business or opening a new store. Others might be fulfillment work for a few weeks: creating the fall catalog and mailing It out or building a new web site. Some projects take Just a few hours: finding a new supplier to replace the one that Is unreliable or holing staff for the summer rush. It Is a good idea to think of our opportunities and problems as projects. With regard to the definition of management, it can be said as follows; all process to evaluate, investigate, and plan how to control the business or the opposite meaning of situation where business is on out of control. Classification of Project Management. We can largely divide the project into two; internal project and external project. Firstly, some projects are Internal. They dont make money directly, but they change the way you work. Maybe you install a new bookkeeping system or you launch a new advertising campaign. For these projects, your customer Is Inside the company. Secondly, External projects are projects for customers. When we succeed on an external project, we make money and delight the customer. By making delighted customer, companies run their business stably and earn the constant profit from them. So, managing external projects souls be considered important in their management. 2. General idea to practice project management Eight Ways Projects Benefit Your Business In order to improve business, companies can throw away the conventional step to measure and practice the project, and develop the new conception what it calls 8 ways Into their business. 8 ways are as follows; firstly, companies should bring a new reduce or service to market they have something new to sell. And secondly, they Increase production so they can make more things to sell. This helps only If they have customers who will buy those things. Thirdly, they should Increase market share, for they should reach new markets or customers, for example, by opening a new location or starting to sell through a web site. For fifth step, they can market or deliver to their customers in new ways, increasing sales or lowering the cost of sales. For sixth step, they should speed up cycle time, getting products to market faster, completing Jobs aster, getting supplies faster, and making decisions faster, which makes themselves more flexible and competitive. For seventh step, they should reduce or avoid costs, changing the way we get supplies or the way they work to reduce waste and cost and increase net revenue. As for the last step, they should reduce risk and protects assets, to improve protection of their tangible assets preventing damage, fraud, and theft and their intangible assets things like customer good will, employee loyalty, and recognition of themselves and their company as reliable professionals and good citizens. Participants and their role in Project Management participants Their role Sponsors They kick off the project and provides the money Executive managers They run the company that is doing the project Customers They receive primary benefit from project results Project managers They are responsible for running the project with the team on a daily basis. Project team They work full time or the most time on the project, planning and doing the actual work to create the result Vendor They provide products or services to the project team Peripheral stakeholder They have some occasional contact with part of the product 3. Nine area of Project Management. Over the last 35 years, the Project Management Institute (PM) has worked to define the field of project management as an independent profession and certify professionals in the field. And the PM has finally discovered that there are nine areas companies need to manage to make a project succeed. It calls these the nine areas of project management knowledge. Scope: What and How Project scope definition answers the questions What are we making? and How will we make it? The goal is to define everything companies need to do to complete that, their goal is to keep scope under control. They track their work and correct their course so that they do everything they need to do. Time: Effort and Duration At the end of project scope management, companies know what work they will be doing. In time planning, they prepare activity lists they decide who will do, what and when. From this, they can plan project effort, the number of person and hours of work to be done, and project duration, how long the project will take from start to finish. Project time management also includes time estimation and schedule control to make sure theyre getting work done on time. Cost: Estimates, Budgets, and Tracking Once companies have figured out our schedule, they can estimate what the project will cost. They build a budget and then they track the time and money they spend each week. If they dont track it as they go along, their schedule and budget will go out of control. They will fall behind and not even know it. They keep on top of the project by looking at the work theyve accomplished, the time theyve spent, and the money theyve spent. Quality: Make It Good There are two aspects to quality management. One is in designing the product or service?the project results. They should ask more than What are we making? They would ask, What will make it really good? The second part of quality management is about working smarter. That is, they focus on the quality of their process?on how they do the work, manage the project, and manage business and customer value. Risk: Make Sure We Get It Done What if? is the central question of project risk management. Companies realize that the future is always uncertain they dont know what will happen. So, they should think about what might happen and write it down. Then they prepare for each thing that might change their project plan or get in the way of success. Once theyre ready or any contingency, they keep risk under control by tracking events weekly and handling things if they look like they are about to happen or when they do. Human Resources: The Project Team For small businesses, project human resources means getting the right people on the team for the Job and making sure workers can do the work well. For each person on each Job, companies ask if they understand the work, if they have the right skills, and if they have the time to do the work. Any time one of those questions gets no for an answer, they find a solution: they explain the Job, they get training or bring in an expert, or they give project work the priority it needs to get the Job done right. Communications: Keep Everyone on Board management are. Then companies figure out what they need to hear from them and what they need to hear from head centers. They plan, manage, and execute effective communications to make sure the plan includes everyones perspective, that everyone understands the plan, and that everyone is on the same page and up to date when changes hit the project. Procurement: Getting What We Need For most small business projects, procurement is making a good shopping list and hen making sure companies get the right thing and that it comes in on time. In some cases, they may do some hunting for best prices. Sometimes, they have to deal with vendor selection and contract management as well Integration: Keeping It All Together. In ninth area, project integration management, means that companies should keep track of what is going on in all the other areas and deal with any changes to the project promptly and fully. This is also called integrated change management. That is, the eight knowledge areas in advance companies should consider are all tied together in one system. 4. Process of making problems into project Right way to approach the problem There are a bunch of wrong ways to approach problems and theyre all about blame. Blame asks questions about the past, but only to point fingers. Who did this? Who made this mess? Those kinds of questions dont get companies anywhere. Instead of asking, Who? if something isnt working, ask, What? and then ask, Why? What happened? Whats wrong? Why did this happen? Those are useful questions. Another way to avoid blame is to focus on the present and the future. Once companies understand what happened, they shift from the past to the future and ask, What can we do to fix this? Then Who? can be the right question: Who is the best person to fix this problem? And he or she might Just be the person who made the mistake. From Problem to Project Often times, while companies run their business, they obviously face some problems to block them from reaching their goal. Some companies try to avoid and ignore it. However, a problem is a problem. And when they recognize that, they put it on a schedule to fix it. As soon as they do that, the problem becomes a project. Here is a process for going choosing the best solution to a problem. 1. Picture the solution. A information. Do you need to get a price quote on repair? On a new machine? Do you need to learn about newer models? Do you need to see how much money you have available? 3. Ask if you need expertise. Are you and your team qualified to come up with the best solution? Remember that a lot of expertise is free these days between vendors who will give a price quote at no charge and internet research, we can often get the know-how we need while spending little or no money and little time. . List your options. Write out a clear description of each solution. The repair will cost $2,000 and the machine will probably last two more years. A new machine costs $6,000 and will probably last five years. . Maybe make a decision. If one option is clearly better than the others, then select that one. If not, then put off the decision by including maki ng the decision as part of the project plan. In this case, we might delay the decision until weve learned about financing options on the new machine and the money we can make selling the old machine. 5. Process of defining the scope Companies should pick one and plan out what they are doing in detail to make the project happen. The Project Management Institute calls this defining the scope of the project. Scope planning includes defining all that companies are making and layering what they are not making. When they are done planning scope, they should have a clear picture of what they are making. Once they know what they are making, they can define how they will make it?that is, they move from describing results to describing the steps of the process, the tasks that will get the work done. Here are the steps of defining scope, from the big picture down to the details. 6. Planning time and money Companies should figure out how much it will cost, when they will do it, and how long it will take. The techniques in this step are not difficult, but few take the time to really use them well. If most of them remember a few basic rules, they can avoid the most common problems in planning time and money: here are two basic key concepts; 1 . Keep allocation and estimation separate. Allocate based on the amount of time and money the company can reasonably spend to get project results. Estimate from the project plan. After both the allocation and the estimate are prepared, then see if the project is affordable. If not, change the plan or cancel the project. 2. In estimating, avoid bias. Bias means leaning one way or the other. For example, if you say, l have to do this for under $2,000, then youll try to make the numbers look right. You could end up fooling yourself telling yourself that you can do a $5,000 Job for $2,000. And the allocation. 7. Process of making quality The phases of the best project quality management For the first, companies define quality. When they build their scope statement, they should ask, What makes it good? When they focus on quality from the beginning, they can make fewer mistakes, reducing total project cost and shortening the schedule. They deliver better results with less rework, sooner, while spending less money. For the second, they should plan for quality. Through using quality control, laity assurance, and effective gate reviews, they find smart ways of workin g that deliver the best results at the lowest cost on the shortest schedule. For the third, they control quality to make sure that the product is what it is supposed to be. And then, they should ensure quality from the beginning to the end of the project. And lastly, they should deliver quality to ensure customer delight. 8. Risk management Basic concept of risk management For the first, companies should know the meaning of Risk Identification. It is about to figure out what could go wrong, and write it down. They start with knowing that something could go wrong, that something unexpected could happen. They ask, What could that be? Then they write down the answer. The best time to hold a major risk-planning meeting is shortly after the activity list is done. For the second, they should know the meaning of Risk Analysis. It is about to identify the likelihood and consequences of each risk, and prioritize the risks. It accompanies the process of naming the risk, and describing the consequences, the risk trigger, the likelihood, and estimating the significance of the risk, and finally describing options for managing he risk before or when it happens. And for the third step, and last step, they should know the meaning of Risk response planning and Risk monitoring. When it comes to Risk response planning, it is about to get ready for what might happen, item by item. They have to decide what theyre going to do about it their risk management options. By putting it on the list, theyve accepted the risk under management. And with regard to Risk monitoring, it is about to check up on the risks and update the risk control plan at each daily or weekly status meeting throughout the project,. 9. Management of HRS and communication Management of human resource Once companies have good people with the right skills, they have the resources for the project. However, those resources have to work together well. Therefore, their best bet is to hire people with these qualities as follows; Honesty, Interest, Reliability, Attitude and Skill or Testability. But not only that, they should define Jobs very clearly. If the team members are willing to do the work, then its companies Job to work with them so that they know what to do. At a minimum, each worker should have a clearly defined goal for each day of work. And finally, companies should also ark and gets it done right, the more likely the project is to succeed. Also, people are more motivated and enjoy their work more when they figure out how to do a Job themselves. Management of communication Effective communications is essential to project success. So often, companies leave out one small detail and then they have to redo the work. To prevent this, they have to teach their team members to think through details, request what is needed in detail, and work together to get it done right the first time. Even worse, it is only human to get frustrated, upset, or even angry when things dont go well. When it moms to communications, we have to lead by example. If we communicate clearly and effectively; if they thank people for telling themselves whats going on, even when the news is bad; and if they apologize when they make a mistake and get a little snippy, then their team members will be open to learning to do likewise. When the team is ready to learn, they should consider Figure 10-2 on upper picture. This is because when companies have a project plan and then all team members make a habit of doing good level-I and level-2 feedback, something wonderful happens. By sharing the feedback which is information for better performance, They et a highly effective process called customer service within the team. 10. About Procurement Management Most of what the Project Management Institute teaches about putting out requests for proposals, comparing bids to select vendors, and managing contracts doesnt apply to companies small business folks, anyway. So, they should focus on the following issues: Purchasing for projects, Getting expertise, Getting information, Getting permission, Evaluating vendors, Tracking and saving money in the purchasing process. Although this work is a small part of our project, doing it well is a big prevention of project problems. Everything we need from outside the project every external dependency is a project risk. So some extra attention is called for to prevent problems. Purchasing for Projects When it comes to purchasing for projects, inside the company, the only way to find out all the rules, glitches, and possible delays is to talk with everyone. And even then, someone usually leaves something out. In addition, Projects are unique, so purchases for projects are often unique. Companies may be buying something from an industry theyve never dealt with before. When they dont know the ropes, theyre more likely to make assumptions and mistakes. Getting Expertise When it comes to getting expertise, it could be clearly said; sometimes, companies dont need products or services; they need expertise and knowledge. Usually, this comes in one of two forms: they need either training or guidance. In training, they and their team learn how to do something and then apply the ideas themselves. In guidance, they and their team receive specific direction on how to prepare for or to Getting Information Sometimes, companies simply need information. They may Just need to know certain facts for a project or they may need to get information as a first step toward finding he right book, the right training class, or the right vendor. The internet is an amazing timeserver here. If they dont know how to do research on the internet, they can take a few hours and learn?it will save themselves weeks of time within a year. And most of what they are looking for is available for free. Getting Permission Sometimes, companies need permission, too. An obvious case is building permits for a construction project. The challenge with getting permission is often that the person or organization giving permission cares more about not making a mistake than about helping themselves to succeed. The guard doesnt want to let the wrong person into the building. The town council wants to stop the wrong kind of development. Evaluating Vendors The bigger the project, the more important it is to evaluate vendors carefully. Companies need to look at vendors for products and short-term services in one way and vendors for long-term services differently. If they are buying a product or piece of equipment for their project, they also should consider that the vendor understands the business and technical requirements and can guide themselves in product selection and confirm that the product they are choosing is suited to the ask. Vendors for Long-Term Services Sometimes, companies want to use someone from outside their company for most or all of the length of the project. In this case, they need to do a deeper evaluation and check the vendors against their requirements more rigorously. This applies whether they are hiring a consultant to Join (or even lead) the team or they are outsourcing the project entirely to a consulting firm or vendor. 1 1 . About Procurement Management In working up the project plan, companies have looked at eight areas of project management: scope, time, cost, quality, risk, human resources, communications, and recruitment. With eight perspectives, it can be hard to see that, all together, they make one plan. But companies should see how the eight areas work together and then learn about the ninth area project integration management. Using the ninth area, theyll have one solid plan, good to go. In organizing the nine areas of project management theyll distinguish three that lead to defined, measurable results (r) and six that support these results, but that are measured by tracking their process (p). Theyll start with the three (r) results areas, which are related to one another by what is called the iron triangle. Iron doesnt bend or stretch. And theres a rule about triangles: if companies change keep the shape of the triangle. The iron triangle illustrates a rule in project management: they cant deliver more on a project (increase scope), without spending more and taking longer (increasing time and cost). This is illustrated in Figure 12-1, the iron triangle. The main use of this tool is to educate customers and executives on the fact that, if they ask for more results, youre going to ask for more time and money. 12. Change Management Sometimes, companies cant follow the original plan, because of an error in the plan r a big change or several risk events. When companies change the plan, it is called rebelling. This means that they are working to a new plan, with a new schedule, a new budget, and some new risks as well. Here are the four levels of change management and risk management to deal with these situations: Add to the scope. If, when companies evaluate a change request, they decide to add to project scope, theyre adding time, cost, and risk. If it is essential so that project results actually add value, then they do it. If it is very beneficial and early enough in he project to make the change, then they might do it. But, in either case, it is equivalent to changing the destination on their sailing trip. Drop something from the scope. Sometimes they run into trouble either a big risk event or Just a discovery that work cant go as fast as theyd hoped. Then they cant deliver everything on time and within the budget. If they cannot delay delivery and get more money, then they should intentionally drop some part of our scope. Add more time and/or money. If they run into trouble?either with a big risk event or with the discovery that their Lana left something out or Just estimated over-optimistically, they may be able to meet our original project goals by spending more time and/or increasing their budget. Reevaluate the plan. Sometimes, major changes to the company or project or a realization that something was wrong at the start force them to reevaluate the whole project plan. They might be considering project cancellation or they might Just be saying, Theyve got to figure out whats wrong here and fix it. This is called a project review. 13. Managing Scope Creep In project change management, each change requires good Judgment. Therefore, it is essential to write down the change request and take it through a process of research, decision, communication, and if the change is accepted updating the plan. In addition, companies should manage the entire load of change with good communication, planning, and finally education to prevent scope creep. Preventing Scope Creep and set up a clear project life cycle with stages and gates. Let people know that creative ideas are encouraged during the planning and preparation stage. Be sure to do walk-through and risk assessment meetings so that features, quality, value, and risks are all addressed in planning. Also, investigate the initial situation as thoroughly as companies can. Then make a list of their assumptions and check them. If companies do all of this, there will be very few surprises and very few reasons for change. 14. Time Cost Management Time management in project doing stage This part is quite related to how companies finally manage their workers inside the company so as to make time efficient. So, the key to make success in managing them has to do with the employees who need to be motivated and focused. And here are some consideration that companies should notice in managing them. ) Interruptions or conflicting priorities. When people get interrupted, they work only one-third as fast as if they are not interrupted. Also, they may be given contradictory priorities between the project and other work or may feel that there is a conflict. Work to clear time and clarify priorities. 2) The need for a can-do attitude. A can-do attitude, also called a proactive approach, is essential for project work. Because projects are unique, they bring up new challenges and demand creative thinking. Support this in your team. If any team members are more l Just do my Job, focus on avian them understand that there is no excuse for missing a deadline. If work gets stuck, then there is a reason, and team members should come to you and bring the problems, so you can get the work unstuck and they can meet their goals. 3) Overestimation of speed or ability. The plan may simply have had an over-optimistic estimate. Rather than continuing to accept a small, cumulative delay each week, ask what youve learned about how much work can be done and revise the plan so that it is realistic. Cost management in project doing stage Simply tracking expenses is an important first step. There are four other things companies can do to keep costs under management and also reduce hassle. 1) Do clear procurement in writing. Even for small items and short, inexpensive sub- contractor Jobs, write a letter of agreement saying what will be done/ 2) Keep up to date with vendors. Agree on schedules for billing and work with vendors. 3) Keep organized electronic and paper files. 4) Price shop and negotiate for discounts 15. Quality Management These days, companies have emphasized that focusing on quality from the beginning actually lowers project cost while improving the quality of results and allows them to

WordStarâ€The First Word Processor

WordStar- The First Word Processor Released in 1979 by Micropro International, WordStar was the first commercially successful word processing software program produced for microcomputers. It became the  best-selling software program of the early 1980s. Its inventors were Seymour Rubenstein and Rob Barnaby. Rubenstein had been the director of marketing for  IMS Associates Inc.  (IMSAI), a  California-based  computer company, which he left in 1978 to start his own software company. He convinced Barnaby, the  chief programmer for IMSAI, to join him, and gave him the task of writing a data processing program. What is Word Processing? Prior to the invention of word processing, the only way to get ones thoughts down on paper was via a typewriter or a printing press. Word processing, however, allowed people to write, edit, and produce documents (letters, reports, books, etc.) by using a computer and computer software designed specifically to rapidly and efficiently manipulate text.   Early Word Processing The first computer word processors were line editors, software-writing aids that allowed a programmer to make changes in a line of program code. Altair programmer Michael Shrayer decided to write the manuals for computer programs on the same computers the programs ran on. He wrote the somewhat popular, and the actual first PC word processing program, called the Electric Pencil, in 1976. Other early word processor programs worth noting were: Apple Write I, Samna III, Word, WordPerfect, and Scripsit. The Rise of WordStar Seymour Rubenstein first started developing an early version of a word processor for the IMSAI 8080 computer when he was director of marketing for IMSAI. He left to start MicroPro International Inc. in 1978 with only $8,500 in cash. At Rubensteins urging, software programmer Rob Barnaby left IMSAI to join MicroPro. Barnaby wrote the 1979 version of WordStar for CP/M, the mass-market operating system created for  Intels 8080/85-based microcomputers by Gary Kildall, released in 1977.  Jim Fox, Barnabys assistant, ported (meaning re-wrote for a different operating system) WordStar from the CP/M operating system  to MS/PC DOS,  the by-now-famous operating system introduced by MicroSoft and  Bill Gates  in 1981. The 3.0 version of WordStar for DOS was released in 1982. Within three years, WordStar was the most popular word processing software in the world. However, by the late 1980s, programs like WordPerfect knocked Wordstar out of the word processing market after the poor performance of WordStar 2000. Said Rubenstein about what happened: In the early days, the size of the market was more promise than reality...WordStar was a tremendous learning experience. I didnt know all that much about the world of big business. Influence of WordStar Still, communications as we know it today, in which everyone is for all intents and purposes their own publisher, would not exist had WordStar not pioneered the industry. Even then,  Arthur C. Clarke, the famous science-fiction writer, seemed to know its importance.  Upon meeting Rubenstein and Barnaby, he said: I am happy to greet the geniuses who made me a born-again writer, having announced my retirement in 1978, I now have six books in the works and two [probables], all through WordStar.

Business Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2

Business Environment - Essay Example This paper approves that the PMT brand of organic products is also part of a monopolistically competitive industry, but a recent visit to their business advisor informed them that the Price Elasticity of Demand for their products is inelastic. But being in the monopolistically competitive industry, the stiff competition from rival businesses does not affect the profit margins of PMT. There is a niche market for the PMT products, which are unique in their own way and add to the variety of organic cosmetics, soaps and perfumes. People who buy such products will prefer to have variety, and so a good number of buyers will regularly come back to the PMT brand, though they test out other brands in the mean time. The factors that would affect this demand curve and hence the PED include the variety of substitutes available for buyers to try around, the proportion of income required for the item and degree of necessity or luxury. This essay makes a conclusion that disposable income is the amount of income a person or an organization has, after the taxes have been deducted from the total amount. It is being assumed that disposable incomes are going to fall in the next two years. With the decrease in the people’s income, the Income Elasticity Demand for the organic products would turn positive or high positive and the niche market catered to would reduce. The organic perfumes, soaps and cosmetics would thus, come under the category of luxury goods.But the fall in disposable income is not likely to affect the services offered by the salon, since people would still be catering to their basic needs. The income elasticity demand for the services is likely to fall between one and zero.

Modern-day Slavery in the USA Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Modern-day Slavery in the USA - Research Paper Example Now, one cannot blame the US government on the past deeds because slavery (say, slavery, forced work and slave trading) does not prevail in the USA. From a different angle of view, slavery in the modern age is entirely different because it is closely related to globalization and it’s after effects. Thesis statement: The transformation of slavery from older days to the modern age in USA proves that poverty and related factors manipulated the same but effective measures can reduce its negative effect in a multiracial society (special references to the modern-day Slavery in the USA). Slavery: definition As pointed out, there exist so many differences between slavery in the older days and slavery in the present condition. For instance, slavery in the older days exerted direct influence upon the salves. But now, slavery is indirect and it is difficult to differentiate it from forced labour or denial of human rights. Earlier, salves faced a number of problems related to human dignit y and inhuman behaviour from their owners. Now, the situation is different and the present day salves are facing a number of other problems like poverty and it’s after effects. Still, the older definition of slavery is not applicable to present day salves because slavery is indirect and invisible. ... In 1600s, some Africans from the African continent were enslaved by the British colonial authorities and were forced to do hard labour in North America (say, Virginia). This resulted in the unrestricted slave trade from Africa and slavery in USA. But the beginning of slavery in American continent was initiated by the Spanish invaders in 1500s. When more and more land was used for agricultural purposes, slave trade and forced labour rapidly spread to other parts of USA. The end of colonization resulted in the deterioration of slavery in USA. The American Civil War resulted in the abolition of slavery and forced labour. But Modern-day Slavery in the USA, in other forms, poses threats to human dignity and social development in general. How slavery is performed First of all, slavery in USA in older times was based upon unfree labor or all the main forms of slavery. Slavery under the landlords includes the restriction of basic human rights. The slaves were not allowed to be free from forc ed labor because slavery was not limited to any particular generation. When a human being is enslaved, his or her off springs will automatically become slaves. Besides, less or no money was paid for forced slavery. As the slaves were considered as animals or commodities that can be sold or bought, less importance was given to them. In USA, there were a number of slave traders who used to supply slaves to farm owners. As the slaves were forced to be loyal to their owner, they were forced to ignore the importance of human rights. So, one can easily identify that slavery in USA was brutally performed, without any human consideration towards the slaves. Modern-day Slavery in USA:

Privacy, Security in the 21st Century Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Privacy, Security in the 21st Century - Essay Example Others, however, find even the old surveillance technologies to be disturbing. The ubiquitous security surveillance camera, for example, still has the power to stir controversy; witness the post-9/11 reaction to the National Park Service's plan to put round-the clock security cameras in the national parks within the nation's capitol (DeBose 1). For those people concerned with any new-found surveillance ability, the constitutionally-guaranteed right to privacy is violated by the merest hint of "big brother" monitoring their activity. The advance of technology, however, is not subject to public opinion; it is simply a fact that newer and better means of obtaining information are going to continue to be developed. Appropriately applied, these new methods have the ability to greatly enhance the safety and security of the general public and there is no question that science will continue to advance these capacities. The burden of balancing privacy with technology will have to be placed upon the courts. The provided quotes from Benjamin Franklin and H. L. Mencken demonstrate the perspectives of two different philosophical positions in two different worlds.

Space program contrast Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Space program contrast - Essay Example There is some speculation that spending more money on the space program in the United States is not wise when there are so many problems within this world. However, the Chinese have established an active space program, owed to the efforts of Qian Xuesen (Tsien Hsue-Shen), with the Japanese making efforts towards space, thus suggesting that the United States needs to continue technological advancements in order to continue to compete on many levels of national importance. In comparing the United States to China and Japan, an understanding of the US position in the space race can contribute to examining the future of the US space program. The first manned flight into space happened in in April of 1961 by Yuri Gagarin originating from the Soviet Union, with the first US manned space flight occurring on May 5 of the same year with Alan Shepard achieving that honor. The space race was occurring between the United States and the Soviet Union, a race that was as much about competing and dif fering ideologies as it was about national pride. The Americans spent 25.5 billion dollars to be the first on the moon, a promise that President Kennedy made to the public in saying that the US would put a man on the moon by the end of the decade.1 Despite the loss of President Kennedy in 1963, the American public would not be denied this dream and on July 20, 1969 Neil Armstrong took the first known human steps onto the moon, winning this victory against the race that was being waged against the USSR.2 Japan has yet to put a man into space, but is entering into the race with a spirit of cooperation. Japan can give Dr. Hiteo Itokawa as the originating scientist who advanced their program which is now the third nation in spending on their program.3 As a cooperating member of the European Space Agency, Japan put in 2.6 billion dollars into the program in 2006, with Russia putting in 1.5 billion and India putting in 900 million in that year.4 The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA has entered into a global effort to explore space, this being done as a result of the enormous costs of space exploration without cooperative global efforts. Japanese astronauts have gone into space with international groups, most recently astronaut Koichi Wakata being chosen to be part of a team to go to the international space station for the 38th/39th mission, having been on a previous mission in 2009 for four months.5 Japan provides an example of how global cooperation leads to national advantages in technologically challenging fields of interest. Cooperation does have its disadvantages for the United States. History has shown that collaboration ultimately ends up in a slowed pace on accomplishing goals and creates greater costs. When the International Space Station was being built, Russia was years late in delivering its hardware and NASA’s costs became out of control. In contributing only 5% of the total financial contribution, Russia has benefited from 40% of the facilities on the station and made billions through the sale of the hardware created to other nations.6 Cooperation with China has a larger problem then creating potential undo costs and delays for the United States. China does not provide transparency, which means much of its work in space technologies is kept as a national secret. Creating a sense of trust would be a difficult task, an issue that is vital to creating true collaboration. In September

Proceedings on the Impeachment of Richard Nixon Essay

Proceedings on the Impeachment of Richard Nixon - Essay Example tions to be considered in this study would be, Can the situation presented in the opening statement be considered as rhetoric with reference to the concept presented by Bitzer in his theory of rhetorical situation? Do the assumptions of the Neo-Aristotelian Criticism define the opening statement as rhetoric? On which grounds does it criticize the opening statement when illustrating it as a rhetoric situation? Thesis Statement The essay to the conducted henceforth intends to present a critical overview of a literature, i.e. the opening statement of Barbara Jordan presented to the House Judiciary committee in response to the impeachment related proceedings executed against the then President Mr. Richard Nixon. With this concern, the essay would attempt to utilize the assumptions presented by Bitzer in relation to the concept of rhetoric situation. Another theory that would be taken into account is the Neo-Aristotelian Criticism which shall assist in scientifically analyzing the opening statement. Justification of the Study Based on two of the most prominent theories, i.e. Bitzer’s rhetorical situation and the Neo-Aristotelian Criticism, the essay shall provide a comprehensive account of the literature selected as the opening statement of Barbara Jordan. With this concern, the study shall elaborate on the then political scenario with the intention to learn the background, influenced by which, the opening statement was framed. Preview of the Topic During the impeachment of Richard Nixon, Congresswoman Barbara Jordan gave an opening statement in the House of Judiciary Committee in order to criticize the proceedings taken by the ministry concerning the conspiracy related with the Watergate Scandal. Barbara Jordan, through her speech, intended to criticize the impeachment... The essay to the conducted henceforth intends to present a critical overview of a literature, i.e. the opening statement of Barbara Jordan presented to the House Judiciary committee in response to the impeachment related proceedings executed against the then President Mr. Richard Nixon. With this concern, the essay would attempt to utilize the assumptions presented by Bitzer in relation to the concept of rhetoric situation. Another theory that would be taken into account is the Neo-Aristotelian Criticism which shall assist in scientifically analyzing the opening statement. Based on two of the most prominent theories, i.e. Bitzer’s rhetorical situation and the Neo-Aristotelian Criticism, the essay shall provide a comprehensive account of the literature selected as the opening statement of Barbara Jordan. With this concern, the study shall elaborate on the then political scenario with the intention to learn the background, influenced by which, the opening statement was framed. D uring the impeachment of Richard Nixon, Congresswoman Barbara Jordan gave an opening statement in the House of Judiciary Committee in order to criticize the proceedings taken by the ministry concerning the conspiracy related with the Watergate Scandal. Barbara Jordan, through her speech, intended to criticize the impeachment articles put forward during the investigation of Watergate conspiracy which was further observed to be misinterpreted as a verbal (written) declaration agreeing with the president’s removal.

Space program contrast Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Space program contrast - Essay Example There is some speculation that spending more money on the space program in the United States is not wise when there are so many problems within this world. However, the Chinese have established an active space program, owed to the efforts of Qian Xuesen (Tsien Hsue-Shen), with the Japanese making efforts towards space, thus suggesting that the United States needs to continue technological advancements in order to continue to compete on many levels of national importance. In comparing the United States to China and Japan, an understanding of the US position in the space race can contribute to examining the future of the US space program. The first manned flight into space happened in in April of 1961 by Yuri Gagarin originating from the Soviet Union, with the first US manned space flight occurring on May 5 of the same year with Alan Shepard achieving that honor. The space race was occurring between the United States and the Soviet Union, a race that was as much about competing and dif fering ideologies as it was about national pride. The Americans spent 25.5 billion dollars to be the first on the moon, a promise that President Kennedy made to the public in saying that the US would put a man on the moon by the end of the decade.1 Despite the loss of President Kennedy in 1963, the American public would not be denied this dream and on July 20, 1969 Neil Armstrong took the first known human steps onto the moon, winning this victory against the race that was being waged against the USSR.2 Japan has yet to put a man into space, but is entering into the race with a spirit of cooperation. Japan can give Dr. Hiteo Itokawa as the originating scientist who advanced their program which is now the third nation in spending on their program.3 As a cooperating member of the European Space Agency, Japan put in 2.6 billion dollars into the program in 2006, with Russia putting in 1.5 billion and India putting in 900 million in that year.4 The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA has entered into a global effort to explore space, this being done as a result of the enormous costs of space exploration without cooperative global efforts. Japanese astronauts have gone into space with international groups, most recently astronaut Koichi Wakata being chosen to be part of a team to go to the international space station for the 38th/39th mission, having been on a previous mission in 2009 for four months.5 Japan provides an example of how global cooperation leads to national advantages in technologically challenging fields of interest. Cooperation does have its disadvantages for the United States. History has shown that collaboration ultimately ends up in a slowed pace on accomplishing goals and creates greater costs. When the International Space Station was being built, Russia was years late in delivering its hardware and NASA’s costs became out of control. In contributing only 5% of the total financial contribution, Russia has benefited from 40% of the facilities on the station and made billions through the sale of the hardware created to other nations.6 Cooperation with China has a larger problem then creating potential undo costs and delays for the United States. China does not provide transparency, which means much of its work in space technologies is kept as a national secret. Creating a sense of trust would be a difficult task, an issue that is vital to creating true collaboration. In September

Key Concepts of Leadership Theories Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Key Concepts of Leadership Theories - Term Paper Example The purpose of this paper is to examine the key concepts of leadership theories by assessing the principle in a multidimensional manner. To achieve this objective, the trait and personality theories of leadership have been applied to an organization which operates in the logistics industry and provides aircraft parts supports on a global scale. The primary reason behind the selection of this business is the association that I share with the organization by serving in the capacity of Workplace Superintendent which is a consideration that would play a critical role in developing the analysis that has been conducted in the paper. According to Lussier and Achua (2009), the motivation behind the development of the trait theory paradigm was that researchers wanted to categorize the individuals who assume the role of leaders and those who act as their followers. Moreover, theorists also embarked upon the journey of developing trait and personality theories to differentiate between successfu l leaders and those who fail to effectively guide their organizations towards the achievement of desired corporate objectives or the realization of an organization’s vision. Henceforth, the primary premise on which the trait and personality theories have been established aims to discover a set of characteristics and features that can fundamentally define individuals as effective leaders (Lussier and Achua 2009). Moreover, Robbins (2001) adds that trait theories of leadership are also linked with the physical, psychological and personal qualities and attributes of leaders. Even though, research on personality and trait theories acted as the cornerstone of subsequent research that was conducted on the phenomenon of leadership, a significant proportion of conclusions that were drawn from the assessments failed to provide a clear and unambiguous picture. Robbins (2001) notes that it was not until the development of the Big Five personality

School Prayer & the US Constitution Essay Example for Free

School Prayer the US Constitution Essay Prelude There was a lot of happening in 1960’s, or so it seems. The lawyers, the clerics, the socialists, the politicians, the religious activists and the common public; they all appeared to have something critical, urgent and spat on their agenda; rather exceedingly controversial and notorious matter; the Prayer in Schools. Court prohibits Prayer in Schools Originally, the Warren Court of the 1960s declared prayer in public schools unconstitutional. By examining St. Louis Post-Dispatch, we can cover the story that Court ruled out Prayer in Schools emphasizing state is faithful to an arrangement of a neutral stance. The Supreme Court held June 17, 1963 wrap up that Bible reading and recitation of the Lord’s Prayer as exercises in public schools is unconstitutional. The decision came on the last day of the courts 1962-63 term. It proclaimed adjournment until October. The vote was 8 to 1, with Justice Tom C. Clark writing the majority opinion and Justice Potter Stewart delivering the balk. Justice William Joseph Brennan Jr. wrote a long agreement in the mainstream outlook as did Justices Arthur J. Goldberg and Justice John Marshall Harlan. The court ruled on two appeals openly concerning attacks on such daily prayer and Bible readings at opening exercises in public schools in Maryland and Pennsylvania. Conversely, the decision had a far- reaching effect on such practices in public schools across the land. The officially permitted inquiry concerned with the cases was whether such school recitals abuse the free exercise clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution, which says, â€Å"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.† Justice Clark declared that both the Maryland and Pennsylvania cases could be disposed of in the equivalent belief because they heaved the similar fundamental pronouncement under vaguely dissimilar realistic circumstances. Clark said in the light of the history of the First Amendment and of the cases inferring and affecting its necessities, jury hold that the practices at issue and the laws requiring them are unconstitutional under the establishment clause, under the Fourteenth Amendment of US Constitution. In an earlier case, the court decided June 25, 1962, that the use in New York public schools of a nondenominational prayer which had been composed by state officials violated the First Amendment. The verdict in the New York case was 6 to 1, with Justice Stewart the lone dissenter. Justice Hugo Black was the author of the majority opinion. Justice Felix Frankfurter was ill at the time and did not participate. He later resigned and was succeeded by Justice Arthur Goldberg. Justice Byron R. White, new on the court, did not participate because he did not hear the arguments that preceded the ruling. Justice Clark wrote in 1963 decision that the place of religion in our society is an exalted one, achieved through a long tradition of reliance on the home, the church and the inviolable citadel of the individual heart and mind. In the relationship between man and religion, the state is firmly committed to a position of neutrality. Though the application of that rule requires interpretation of a delicate sort, the rule itself is clearly and concisely stated in the words of the First Amendment. In his dissent, Justice Stewart declared it was a â€Å"fallacious oversimplification† to observe supplies of the First Amendment as launching a single constitutional standard of â€Å"separation of church and state† which can be useful perfunctorily in every case to outline the requisite limitations between government and religion. He err in the first place if they do not recognize, as a matter of history and a matter of the imperatives of the free society, that religion and government must necessarily cooperate in innumerable customs. Although, the previous court decisions have made clear that there is no constitutional bar to use of government property for religious purposes, he said that previous cour t decisions relating to the public schools systems were inadequate to religious instruction or proselytizing actions of religious sects by chucking the weight of secular authority in the wake of the broadcasting the religious doctrine. He saw no danger to the government or religion in the exercises involved in the Maryland and Pennsylvania cases because they involved only a reading of the Bible single handed by remarks which otherwise constitute instruction. He felt the records of the Maryland and Pennsylvania cases were so essentially scarce as to make impossible an informed or accountable resolve of the constitutional issues offered. He didn’t agree that on the records they can say that the establishment clause has necessarily been violated. He favored sending both the Maryland and Pennsylvania cases back to the lower courts for taking of additional evidence. In the Maryland case, Mrs. Madalyn E. Murray and her 16-year-old son, identifying themselves as atheists, attacked constitutionality of a Baltimore city school board regulation. The regulation called for daily opening exercises of Bible reading and recitation of the Lords Prayer. Objecting students are permitted to be excused from the exercises. Maryl ands court of appeals, by a 4-to-3 vote, ruled against objections by the Murrays. The state court said the Constitutions First amendment was not â€Å"intended to stifle all rapport between religion and government.† Counsel for the Murrays argued before the Supreme Court that the Maryland practice breached the figurative wall between church and state. The court was told that the son, William Murray, had been wounded by the practice in that he had lost caste, had been spat on, and was assailed by fellow students of William. In the Pennsylvania case, a three-judge United States district court in Philadelphia unanimously sustained protestations to a state law requiring Bible reading daily at opening exercises of the schools.(Woods) Historical perspective of the US Constitution When the Constitutional Convention initially gathered in Philadelphia in 1787, the spiritual backdrop of the states was diverse. Most states gave authorized gratitude to one recognized spiritual value. For Instance, The state of Virginia, accepted the â€Å"Episcopal Church† as re presentative of the state. Spiritual belief as a central part of colonial life was not in query. Somewhat, sacred matters that occured among states centered on the variations amid states’ conventional values. The political scene also turned off scripts of disunity. The Articles of Confederation had proved insufficient for governing, and the states were aggressive over issues of taxation—namely, which should pay the costs incurred by the Revolutionary War. As the Constitutional Convention assembled, observers supposed the thought of a Constitution, much less a nation, was delicate and quickly fading. Presided by George Washington, this conference of some of the original Founders was observed as a last endeavor for unity. During the Constitutional Convention, states quarreled and self-interest thrived, to the point that no progress was being made. It was then that an aged Ben Franklin stood and said: In the beginning of the contest with Britain, when we were sensible of danger, we had daily prayers in this room for Divine protection. Our prayers, Sir, were heard, and they were graciously answered. All of us who were engaged in the struggle must have observed frequent instances of a superintending providence in our favor  ¼ and have we no w forgotten this powerful Friend? Or do we imagine we no longer need His assistance? I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth: ‘that God governs in the affairs of man.’ And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid? I therefore beg leave to move that, henceforth, prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven and its blessings on our deliberations be held in this assembly every morning before we proceed to business â€Å" The 81-year-old Benjamin Franklin was not one of the more religiously-minded Founding Fathers—he actually believed more in the rational views of the French Enlightenment—yet he was willing to acknowledge the importance of prayer to the political aspirations of a nation. Not a prayer bound to a denomination, like the states already had, but prayer that acknowledged God as the Creator and Sustainer, prayer that outmoded the trivial blocs of authoritatively standard foundations. (MacLeod 1) Landmark Cases of Supreme Court ENGEL V. VITALE (1962) The Regents School Prayer What authority, if any, does the government have when it comes religious rituals lik e prayers? Can a government write specific prayers for public school students to recite every day? That used to be the case in many places in America, but that was challenged and ultimately struck down by the Supreme Court. This is one of the most important cases in the history of the Supreme Court’s church/state decisions. The State Board of Regents, which had supervisory power over New York public schools, had become concerned about an apparent decline in the morality of school students and so began a program of â€Å"moral and spiritual training† in the schools. This program included a prayer every morning which the Regents themselves had composed in a nondenominational form. Labeled the â€Å"To whom it may concern† prayer by one commentator, it stated: Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence upon Thee, and we beg Thy blessings upon us, our parents, our teachers and our Country. A group of 10 parents were joined by the ACLU in a suit against the Board of Education of New Hyde Park, New York because they had adopted that prayer. Amicus curiae briefs were filed by the American Ethical Union, the American Jewish Committee and the Synagogue Council of America. Both the state court and the New York Court of Appeals allowed the prayer to be recited. Arguments were made on April 3rd, 1962. On June 25, 1962, the Supreme Court ruled 7 to 1 that it was unconstitutional for a government agency like a school or government agents like public school employees to require students to recite prayers. In his majority opinion, Justice Black sided substantially with the arguments of the separationists, who quoted heavily from Thomas Jefferson and made extensive use of his â€Å"wall of separation† metaphor. Particular emphasis was placed upon James Madison’s â€Å"Memorial and Remonstrance against Religious Assessments.† According to Black, the governmentally created prayer recitation is much like the English creation of the Book of Common Prayer. It was to avoid exactly this type of relationship between government and organized religion that many early colonists came to America. In his words, the prayer was â€Å"a practice wholly i nconsistent with the Establishment Clause.† Although the Regents argued that there was no compulsion on students to recite the prayer, Black observed that: Neither the fact that the prayer may be denominationally neutral nor the fact that its observances on the part of students are voluntary can serve to free it from the limitations of the Establishment Clause The Establishment clause is violated regardless of whether there is any â€Å"showing of direct government compulsionwhether those laws operate directly to coerce non-observing individuals or not.† As if he anticipated the harsh public reaction, Black attempted to point out that the decision shows great respect for religion, not hostility. It is neither sacrilegious nor anti-religious to say that each separate government in this country should stay out of the business of writing or sanctioning official prayers and leave that purely religious function to the people themselves and to those the people choose to look to for religious guidance. This case was one of the first in a series of cases, many in the 1960s, in which a variety of religious activities sponsored by the government were found to violate the Establishment Clause. This was the first case which effectively prohibited the government from sponsoring or endorsing official prayers in schools, not Abington School District v. Schempp (from the following year) as is commonly thought. People were outraged that official prayers were no longer permitted in schools, although their anger was directed mostly at the cases which were decided in the following years. Representative of most reactions was a statement from evangelist Billy Graham, who still opposes church/state separation even today: â€Å" This is another step toward the secularization of the United States. [] The framers of our Constitution meant we were to have freedom of religion, not freedom from religion†. Engel v. Vitale got the ball rolling on the separation of church and state in the latter half of the 20th century. (Cline, About: Agnosticism / Atheism) ABINGTON SCHOOL DIST. v. SCHEMPP MURRAY v. CURLETT (1963) Since of the embargo of the First Amendment against the acting out by C ongress of any law respecting an establishment of religion, which is made valid to the States by the Fourteenth Amendment, no state law or school board may require that passages from the Bible be read or that the Lords Prayer be recited in the public schools of a State at the beginning of each school day even if individual students may be excused from attending or participating in such exercises upon written request of their parents. Mutually these cases transactc with â€Å"state-approved reading of Bible passages† before classes in public schools. Schempp was conveye to trial by a religious family who had dropped a line to the ACLU. The Schempps defied a Pennsylvania law which declared that: at least ten verses from the Holy Bible shall be read, without comment, at the opening of each public school day. Any child shall be excused from such Bible reading, or attending such Bible reading, upon written request of his parent or guardian. A federal district court banned this. Murray was conveyed to trial by an atheist: Madalyn Murray (later OHair), who was functioning on the part of her sons, William and Garth. Murray defied a Baltimore statute that supplied for the reading, without comment, of a chapter of the Holy Bible and/or of the Lords Prayer before the start of classes. This act was sustained by both a state court and the Maryland Court of Appeals in the Supreme Court. Opinions for both cases were taken notice of on the 27th and 28th of February, 1963. On the 17th of June, 1963, the Court ruled 8-1 against of allowing the re citing of the Bible verses and the Lords Prayer. Justice Clark wrote at length in his majority opinion about the history and significance of religion in America, but his finale was that the Constitution prohibits any concern of religion, that prayer is a form of religion, and that hence state- sponsored or mandated prayer in public schools cannot be permissible. For the foremost moment, an examination was formed to assess Establishment questions ahead of courts: what are the purpose and primary effect of the enactment? If either is the advancement or inhibition of religion then the enactment exceeds the scope of legislative power as circumscribed by the Constitution. That is to say that to withstand the structures of the Establishment Clause there must be a secular legislative purpose and a primary effect that neither advances nor inhibits religion. [emphasis added] Justice Brennan wrote in a concurring opinion that, while legislators argued that they had a secular purpose with their law, their goals could have been achieved with readings from secular document. The law, however, only specified the use of religious literature and prayer. That the Bible readings were to be made without comment demonstrated even further that the legislators knew that they were dealing with specifically religious literature and wanted to avoid sectarian interpre tations. A violation of the Free Exercise Clause was also created by the coercive effect of the readings. That this might demand only minor encroachments on the First Amendment, as argued by others, was unrelated. The proportional study of religious conviction in public schools is not forbidden but those religious adherences were not crafted with such visions in mentality. ABINGTON SCHOOL DIST. v. SCHEMPP was fundamentally a replicate of the Courts earlier Court Decision in Engel v. Vitale, in which the Court acknowledged constitutional violations and struck the legislation. As with Engel, the Court held that the voluntary nature of religious exercises (even allowing parents to exempt their children) did not avert the statutes from violating the Establishment Clause. There was, of course, an intensely negative public reaction. In May 1964, there were more than 145 proposed constitional amendments in the House of Representatives which would permit school prayer and effectively reverse both decisions. Representative L. Mendell Rivers accused the Court of legislating they never adjudicate with one eye on the Kremlin and the other on the NAACP. Cardinal Spellman claimed that the decision struck at the very heart of the Godly tradition in which Americas children have for so long been raised. Although people frequently argue that Murray, who later instituted the American Atheists, was the women who got prayer put the boot of public schools and, it should be apparent that even had she never survived, the Schempp case still would have approached to the Supreme Court in some moment in time . (Cline, About: Agnosticism / Atheism) LEMON v. KURTZMAN (1971) There are a lot of people in America who would like to see the government provide funding to private, religious schools. Critics argue that this would violate the separation of church and state and sometimes the courts agree with this position. This was actually three separate cases: Lemon v. Kurtzman, Earley v. DiCenso, and Robinson v. DiCenso. These cases from Pennsylvania and Rhode Island were joined together because they all involved public assistance to private schools, some of which were religious. The final decision has become known by the first case in the list: Lemon v. Kurtzman. Pennsylvania’s law provided for paying the salaries of teachers in parochial schools and assisting the purchasing of textbooks or other teaching supplies, as required by Pennsylvania’s Non-Public Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1968. In Rhode Island, the 15% of the salaries of private school teachers was paid by the government as mandated by the Rhode Island Salary Supplement Act of 1969. In both cases the teachers were teaching secular, not religious, subjects. Arguments were made on March 3rd, 1971. On June 28th, 1971, the Supreme Court unanimously found that direct government assistance to religious schools was unconstitutional. In the majority opinion written by Chief Justice Burger, the Court created what has become known as the â€Å"Lemon Test† for deciding if a law is in violation of the Establishment Clause. Accepting the secular purpose attached to both statutes by the legislature, the Court did not pass on the secular effect test, inasmuch as excessive entanglement was found. This entanglement arose because the legislature has not, and could not, provide state aid on the basis of a mere assumption that secular teachers under religious discipline can avoid conflicts. The State must be certain, given the Religion Clauses, that subsidized teachers do not inculcate religion. Because the schools concerned were religious schools, because they were under the control of the church hierarchy, and because the primary purpose of the schools was the propagation of the faith, a comprehensive, discriminating, and continuing state surveillance will inevitably be required to ensure that these restrictions [on religious utilization of aid] are obeyed and the First Amendment otherwise respected. This sort of relationship could lead to any number of political problems in areas in which a large numbers of students attend religious schools — just the sort of situation that the First Amendment was designed to prevent. Chief Justice Burger further wrote: Every analysis in this area must begin with consideration of the cumulative criteria developed by the Court over many years. First, the statute must have a secular legislative purpose; second, its principal or primary effect must be one that neither advances or inhibits religion; finally, the statute must not foster and excessive government Entanglement with religion. The â€Å"excessive entanglement† criteria was a new addition to the other two, which had already been created in the Abington Township School District v. Schempp. The two statutes in question were held to be in violation of this third criteria. This decision is especially significant because it created the aforementioned Lemon Test for evaluating laws relating to the relationship between church and state. It is a benchmark for all later decisions regarding religious liberty some people love it, some hate it. (Cline, About: Agnosticism / Atheism) Court Tests Applied to Legislation Affecting Religion The Lemon Test Founded on the 1971 case of Lemon v. Kurtzman, the Court will regulate a practice unconstitutional if: 1) It lacks any secular purpose. That is, if the practice lacks any non-religious purpose. 2) The practice either promotes or inhibits religion. 3) Or the practice excessively (in the Courts opinion) involves government with a religion. The Coercion Test Based on the 1992 case of Lee v. Weisman, the religious practice is examined to see to what extent, if any, pressure is applied to force or coerce individuals to participate. The Court has defined that Unconstitutional coercion occurs when: (1) the government directs (2) a formal religious exercise (3) in such a way as to oblige the participation of objectors. The Endorsement Test Finally, drawing from the 1989 case of Allegheny County v. ACLU, the practice is examined to see if it unconstitutionally endorses religion by conveying a message that religion is favored, preferred, or promoted over other beliefs. The Establishment Clause and the Lemon Tests Based on its 1971 decision in the case of Lemon v. Kurtzman, the Supreme Court came up with the three tests of any religion-related law. The Lemon test is still used by the Court today to determine whether or not the law meets constitutional muster. In order for any law to satisfy the First Amendment, it: 1) Must have some secular, or non-religious legal purpose; 2) must neither promote or inhibit the practice of religion; and 3) must not must not foster an excessive government entanglement with religion. In its Lemon decision, the Supreme Court concludes, [i]f a statute violates any of these three principles, it must be struck down under the Establishment Clause. Lemon Test v. The Ten Commandments When viewed against the Lemon tests, the first four of the Ten Commandments would fail because they have no secular, or non-religious legal purpose. Instead, they concern only specific religious duties expected of believers. 1. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 2. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the wa ter under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them. 3. Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain. 4. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. However, commandments 5-10, taken by themselves, make no mention of religion at all. Instead, they are all rules of proper conduct by people in society and are thus completely secular in nature. 5. Honour thy father and thy mother. 6. Thou shalt not kill. 7. Thou shalt not commit adultery. 8. Thou shalt not steal. 9. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. 10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbours house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbours wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbours. But, the Aderholt Amendment did not rule out the first four commandments from contemplation. The 284 U.S. Representatives vote for it. They drew from the expressions of the people who engraved the Constitution. (US Govt. Info, Court Tests) Separation of Church and State Separation of church and state is not even stated i n the U.S. Constitution, since its drafters did not perceive a dichotomy between their religious beliefs and the manuscript that constructed their Republic. However separation of church and state came primarily from two sources, a letter Thomas Jefferson wrote to a group of ministers and from the U.S. Supreme Court case, Everson v. Board of Education. The Danbury Letter. Thomas Jefferson wrote the famous phrase separation of church and state in a letter to the Committee of the Danbury Baptist Association in Connecticut. He was responding to the letter they had written, part of which said: Our Sentiments are uniformly on the side of Religious Liberty—That Religion is at all times and places a Matter between God and Individuals—That no man ought to suffer in Name, person or effects on account of his religious Opinions—That the legitimate Power of civil Government extends no further than to punish the man who works ill to his neighbor. Jefferson’s response to their letter was amicable. He said, Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legislative powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions [emphasis added], I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should ‘make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,’ thus building a wall of separation between Church and State. Adhering to this expression of the supreme will of the nation in behalf of the rights of conscience, I shall see with sincere satisfaction the progress of those sentiments which tend to restore to man all his natural rights, convinced he has no natural right in opposition to his social duties. Jefferson’s declaration of a wall of separation between Church and State expressed his opinion that the federal government did not have the auth ority to prescribe even occasional performances of [religious] devotion. He did not question the validity of religious belief, but he constructed his wall to protect religious freedom of conscience from the potential of one federally recognized religion. His fears were well founded. In his Inaugural Address of the previous year, Jefferson had noted that America had banished from our land that religious intolerance under which mankind so long bled and suffered. Clearly, Jefferson decried the federal domination of religious freedom through one established church. In addition, when Jefferson founded the University of Virginia, the Pamphlet of University Regulations included two sections that read: No compulsory attendance on prayers or services. Each denomination to send a clergyman to conduct daily prayers and Sunday service for two weeks. Was this a man who would have sanctioned the complete removal of any form of prayer from the public schools of America? Obviously, Thomas Jefferson’s views on church and state have been grossly distorted. Everson v. Board of Education. The second notable mention of the phrase separation of church and state came in the 1947 U.S. Supreme Court case, Everson v. Board of Education. The plaintiff argued the New Jersey law that reimbursed parents for the cost of bus transportation—to public and religious schools—violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. The Supreme Court said that it did not. In the majority opinion, however, Justice Hugo Black used language to set the stage for damaging rulings in the future. He wrote that the Establishment Clause created a complete separation between the state and religion. Jefferson’s letter was written 10 years after the ratification of the First Amendment, yet Black relied upon his own interpretation of Jefferson’s words, rather than on the text of the First Amendment, to set the Everson precedent for future rulings. Twentieth-Century Cases Twentieth-century courts, based predominately on Jefferson’s l etter and on the precedent Justice Black created in Everson, have argued that the Constitution intended to separate all religious expression from public life. Yet that ignores the textual history and the original intent of James Madison, the author of these religion clauses. It also ignores the broad, historical context. The men who hammered out each section of the Constitution also believed in the importance of daily prayer. The Establishment Clause has often been misinterpreted to mean that any link to religion is establishing religion. One of the causes of this is a simple alteration of the wording in the First Amendment. The clause reads, Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion. It does not read, Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion, as it is often misquoted. If the article is read as the, then it refers to establishment of all religion in general. If the article is an, then it clearly refers to a specific religion or denomination—an interpretation backed up by historical records. Realizing that the amendment uses the word an helps clarify the meaning of the Framers. So, rather than attempting to separate themselves from religious belief and expression, the Framers were trying to keep one denomination from being favored over another. The twentieth-century cases pertinent to the issue of school prayer do not recognize those differences. They have clearly been built upon the framework created by Everson, as summaries of key cases demonstrate: McCollum v. Board of Education (1948). It is a violation of the Establishment Clause for Jewish, Catholic or Protestant religious leaders to lead optional/voluntary religious instruction in public school buildings. Engel v. Vitale (1962). The daily recitation of prayer in public schools is unconstitutional. Abington School District v. Schempp (1963). Daily school-directed reading of the Bible (without comment), and daily recitation of the Lord’s Prayer, violates the Establishment Clause when performed in public schools. Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971). This ruling created the three-part Lemon test for determin ing violations of the Establishment Clause. Stone v. Graham (1980). The Court struck down a state law requiring public schools to post the Ten Commandments (with a notice of secular application). Wallace v. Jaffree (1985). A state law requiring a moment of meditation or voluntary prayer was struck down as an establishment of religion because the intent of the legislature was deemed to be religious rather than secular. By Justice Stevens scripting the mass judgment, the Court decided 6-3 that the Alabama law providing for a moment of silence was unconstitutional. The decision underlined that inspection the Supreme Court apply while assessing the constitutionality of government actions. Pretty than allow the argument that the inclusion of or voluntary prayer was a slight accumulation with a bit realistic implication, the goal of the legislature that approved it was adequate to display the unconstitutionality of prayer. Lee v. Weisman (1992). A private, nongovernmental individual (in this case a rabbi) at a public school graduation cannot offer prayer. Student rights were infringed upon, according to the Court, because the important nature of the event in effect compelled them to attend graduation. That, in effect, compelled students to bow their heads and be respectful during the prayer, which the Court ruled was a constitutional violation. Santa Fe Independent School District v. Jane Doe (2000). The Court struck down a school district’s policy that allowed an elected student chaplain to open football games with a public prayer. Even though high school football games are purely voluntary activities, the Court concluded that the policy establishes an improper majoritarian election on religion, and unquestionably has the purpose and creates the perception of encouraging the delivery of prayer at a series of important school events. Each of those cases paid attention on the Establishment Clause to the damage of the Free Exercise Clause. That has been the trend of the twentieth century. The courts have too quickly forgotten that the Constitution explicitly protects the free exercise of religion. (MacLeod 2-3) â€Å"The earlier cases were more black and white, and the later ones were more grey in terms of the issues: Stink of Unfairness in Later School Prayer Cases† The era of 1980s instigated with a diktat not in favor of the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms, and by 1985 even so much as one minute of silence, for meditation or prayer by students, turned out to be inviolable; even though firm decisions delivered by the supreme court (see Engel v. Vitale. Abington School District v. Schempp, Lemon v. Kurtzman). Engel v. Vitale case was one of the first in its origin in which a range of holy conducts backed by the government were found to defy the Establishment Clause. This was the first case which successfully forbidden the government from sponsoring or endorsing official prayers in schools, not Abington School District v. Schempp which is frequently considered. Public were irritated that official prayers were no longer legalized in schools, although their anger was directed mostly at the cases which were decided in the following years. Delegates of most reactions were a declaration from evangelist Billy Graham, who still refuses to accept church/state separation yet at present. Abington School District v. Schempp case was fundamentally a consequence of the Courts earlier Court Decision in Engel v. Vitale, in which the Court recognized constitutional violations and struck the legislation. As with Engel, the Court held that the voluntary nature of religious exercises. There was, of course, an hugely harmful public behaviour. In May 1964, there were more than 145 proposed constitional amendments in the House of Representatives which would permit sch ool prayer and successfully overturn both verdicts. Lemon v. Kurtzman decision was particularly noteworthy because it created the aforementioned Lemon Test for assessing laws relating to the relationship between church and state. It is a yardstick for all later decisions concerning religion freedom. By the turn of the 21st century the extirpation of faithfulness from government schools had been merged, and the mugging on religion in public life fanned out into society at large. Proclamations were subjected exalting vice and suppressing virtue. The year2004 saw the outrage of despair, elevated to a â€Å"full right† under the Constitution, even as God’s Ten Commandments were driven off public property. In the supreme court of Alabama the Chief Justice dared to resist, and was stripped of his office. The judicial oligarchy forced all these changes in the name of the Constitution. The school cases were precise to the establishment clause of the First Amendment. So far the Amendment has a complimentary implement of religion clause, which the politburo of nine has elected to downplay or minimally ignorant. For instance, the Lee v. Weisman decision failed to reverse the standards established by the Court in Lemon. Instead, this ruling extended the prohibition of school prayer to graduation ceremonies and refused to accept the idea that a student would not be harmed by standing during the prayer without sharing the message contained in the prayer. Similarly, Upon reading Santa Fe, Ingebretsen, and Clear Creek II, it seems, with regard to the Establishment Clause, that panels of our court pay little regard to previous jurisprudence. One might think that a specific holding of a prior opinion is no more than a puff of wind. Santa Fe disregards Clear Creek II today. The next panel can disregard Santa Fe tomorrow. When judges can pick and choose without the constraints imposed by precedent, the public is left stranded, vulnerable to liability, helplessly dependent on the panel it draws. We could fulfill our constitutional and professional duty to the public, vote this case en banc, and be of a single voice. But when our court refuses to rehear en banc cases such as Santa Fe, this unrestrained decision-making goes uncorrected. This failure to act, in turn, allows individual members of our court to continue to engage in an activity that has all the appearance of simply advancing personal philosophy. The Alito Nomination: Chief Justice John Roberts and future Justice Samuel Alito probably mean a more conservative Supreme Court. But it probably doesn’t mean a stream of clear-cut conservative breakthroughs on abortion, affirmative action, school prayer or even flag burning. The future of constitutional rulings on those and other hot button issues will be determined by two words: Anthony Kennedy. That’s an oversimplification of course. But it seems likely that on a number of issues, there will be four conservatives, four liberals and there will be Justice Kennedy. Unlike Roberts and Alito who went to lengths to leave the world guessing about how they will rule, we know a lot about what Anthony Kennedyism means because he has already faced these issues as a justice. It means Roe v. Wade isn’ t overturned, but partial birth abortion is banned and other abortion restrictions are accepted. Affirmative action is more constrained but not ruled unconstitutional. State-sponsored displays of religious symbols are more likely to be tolerated, but the ban on school prayer is not overturned. Burning a U.S. flag to protest, and viewing pornography on the internet continue to be constitutionally protected activities but McCain-Feingold- type regulations on political campaigning are vulnerable to First Amendment challenges. On the first day of the Alito hearings, Sen. Joseph Biden, D.-Del., said that the â€Å"elephant in the room†¿ was the question of whether Alito would cast the decisive votes to reject the direction in which the Supreme Court has been going for the past 70 years. Over the next two and a half days, Alito endorsed some of those precedents (Brown v. the school board, one-person, one-vote, and the Constitutional right of privacy, at least as far as the contraception cases.) Alito also danced artfully around senators’ efforts to commit himself on some other precedents, most especially relating to abortion. This is the current state-of-the-art strategy for confirmation, and it appears to be working well. The intensity of the pro-choicer campaign a gainst Alito leads one to forget that there are still five votes to affirm Roe, and that on many of the issues liberals care about, Kennedy has affirmed the basic Warren Court breakthrough rulings. Depending on the the health of Kennedy and the four liberals, and the outcome of future elections, the stakes simply may not be as high as Biden’s elephant’s eye. (That was an elaborate conflation of the previous reference with a corny lyric from â€Å"Oh What a Beautiful Morning.† Ask your parents.†) If Roberts and Alito turn out to be solid allies of Scalia and Thomas, if the liberals stay together and stay well, and if Kennedy sticks with his established positions, that means: †¢Roe v. Wade is not overturned. Kennedy and the four liberals have already rejected that idea. But the congressional ban partial birth abortion is upheld. Kennedy already voted to uphold it once before. And other restrictions on abortion rights will be accepted. †¢Affirmative action is not ruled unconstitutional at its core. Scalia and Thomas have indicated a willingness to strike it down completely. But Kennedy declined to join those opinions. On the other hand, college s and universities will have an even rougher time figuring out how to construct a constitutional affirmative action program. In 2003, Justice O’Connor joined the four liberals in upholding the University of Michigan Law School’s admissions program, which claimed to have found a way to act affirmatively without explicit quotas or race-based point systems. Kennedy and the conservatives formed a four-member bloc that didn’t buy it. Quite likely, if a similar question makes it to the court, Kennedy will cast the decisive vote. †¢State-sponsored displays of religious symbols, like the 10 commandments, are more likely to be tolerated when Kennedy’s becomes the key swing vote. But the breakthrough Warren-era decision, banning school prayer, will not be overturned. Kennedy has already endorsed that precedent. †¢Kennedy’s free speech jurisprudence has a strong libertarian streak. That has helped liberals construe the burning of a U.S. flag by protesters and viewing pornography on the internet as constitutionally protected activities under the First Amendment. But Kennedy ’s libertarian streak made him leery of McCain-Feingold-type regulations that restrict political advertising in the name of campaign finance reform. The next time those issues roll around, Kennedy may provide the fifth vote necessary to strike down those regulations on First Amendment grounds. ( Black and Tice 1-2) Arguments against and in favor of School Prayer: School Prayer was a chief center of attention of Darrell Scott’s (father of Rachel Scott, a victim of the Columbine High School Shootings in Littleton, Colorado) testimony to the House Judiciary Committee in a exceptional session of the U.S. Congress on Thursday, May 27, 1999. What Darrell Scott said to our national leaders regarding school prayer was utterly factual and enlightening for all of us. The following is a portion of the transcript: â€Å"I wrote a poem just four nights ago that expresses my feelings best. This was written before I knew I would be speaking here today. Your laws ignore our deepest needs, Your words are empty air. Youve stripped away our heritage, Youve outlawed simple prayer. Now gunshots fill our classrooms, And precious children die. You seek for answers everywhere, And ask the question, Why? You regulate restrictive laws, Through legislative creed. And yet you fail to understand, That God is what we need! Men and women are three-part beings. We all consist of body, soul, and spirit. When we refuse to acknowledge a third part of our make-up, we create a void that allows evil, prejudice, and hatred to rush in and wreak havoc. Spiritual influences were present within our educational systems for most of our nations history. Many of our major colleges began as theological seminaries. This is a historical fact. What has happened to us as a nation? We have refused to honor God, and in doing so, we open the doors to hatred and violence. And when something as terrible as Columbines tragedy occurs, politicians immediately look for a scapegoat such as the NRA. They immediately seek to pass more restrictive laws that contribute to the erosion of our personal and private liberties. We do not need more restrictive laws. Eric and Dylan would not have been stopped by metal detectors. No amount of gun laws can stop someone who spends months planning this type of massacre. The real villain lies within our own hearts. Political posturing and restrictive legislation are not the answers. The young people of our nation hold the key. There is a spiritual awakening taking place that will not be squelched! We do not need more religion. We do not need more gaudy television evangelists spewing out verbal religious garbage. We do not need more million dollar church buildings built while people with basic needs are being ignored. We do need a change of heart and a humble acknowledgment that this nation was founded on the principle of simple trust in God! As my son, Craig, lay under that table in the school library and saw his two friends murdered before his very eyes, he did not hesitate to pray in school. I defy any law or politician to deny him that right! I challenge every young person in America, and around the world, to realize that on April 20, 1999, at Columbine High S chool, prayer was brought back to our schools. Do not let the many prayers offered by those students be in vain. Dare to move into the new millennium with a sacred regard for legislation that protects your God-given right to communicate with Him.† (Popular Issues, School Prayer) There is always a state of war between secular humanists and groups like the Christian Coalition are concerning prayer in high schools and the victim is the innocent average high school kid. Each moment in time the argument is reawakened it concludes in a deadlock. The supporters of prayers say it will add to the broadmindedness in schools, as children be taught of diverse religions will convey to surface the special inquiries kids have about God and religion and allow them to investigate for their own conviction. The majority of them believe that prayers will lend a hand overturning the moral degradation of the society. Contrarily, Secularists shapes the public schools exist to educate, not to proselytize. Religion is private, and schools are public, both of the things couldn’t be intermixable. Whilst the sunup members of the clergy supports prayer during the Constitutional Convention and in ordinances governing education, the U.S. Supreme Court has vividly transferred their original premises. Some legal scholars and special interest groups have built upon those precedents, creating other rationalizations for limiting religious expression in America’s public schools. The mainly widespread squabble of such individuals is that the government has a responsibility to be neutral, so that no child is offended by the religious speech of another. This is erroneous because the issue cannot be neutral. Elimination of religious expression for the atheist will offend the child who believes in God. So, the schools must choose. Since 1962, they have sided with the small, nonreligious minority of atheists which, as recent Newsweek poll shows, consists of only 4 percent of the population. By contrast, 94 percent of respondents to that same survey professed a religious faith, and 61 percent said that they agreed with the statement that religion is very important in their lives. If free religious expression in the form of prayers is forbidden, school officials are, at the very least, teaching children that public recognition of God is not as significant as the things the schools can argue. It looks irrational that public schools permits open discussion about sexism but do not permit unwrap conversation regarding God. The courts have elapsed that schools can allocate free religious expressions devoid of implementing any meticulous category of spiritual consideration. Another dilemma is School prayer polarizes citizens around a religious axis. so far the First Amendment was printed to evade the bickers that might effect in the midst of values. Not tolerating prayer has done more to polarize citizens than almost any other issue in American history. Allowing prayer would put decision-making back in the hands of parents and local school boards, where it once rested. Those local boards could position guiding principles that would permit students who object to all prayer or some prayers not to chip in, just as many religious students have opted out of sex education classes at school place. That would obviously revere the rights of the minority, without infringing upon the rig hts of the majority. Local school boards would also be sheltered by the constitutional time/place/manner restrictions that apply equally to religious and nonreligious dialogue. In due course, a reinstatement of liberated expression to local public schools would unite, not polarize, citizens. The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment presents that government shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion. Because public schools are government funded, prayer led by school officials or incorporated into the school routine amounts to government-established religion. Prayer is school is already legal. Students are already allowed to pray on a voluntary basis (in a non-disruptive way) so formal school prayer is unnecessary. School prayer may lead to intolerance. Public prayer will emphasize religious diversity of which students may have been oblivious. Those students who withdraw from school prayer or dissent against it may be detested. School prayer is intrinsically coercive and cannot be implemented in a way that is truthfully intentional. The public school system is created for all students and supported by all taxpayers. It should therefore remain neutral on religious issues over which students and taxpayers will differ. Since no formal school prayer could simultaneously honor and uphold the tenets of the many religions practiced in the U.S., as well as various denominational differences, prayer is better left in the home and religious institution of the individual student’s choice. An associated squabble is that school prayer assumes the function of parents and religious institutions who wish to offer religious instruction in keeping with their possessive viewpoints. (All About History, School Prayers) Ishmael Jaffree alleged after Supreme Court decision (1985): For me, the battle is over. But prayer will go on in the schools. It just wont go on in any of my childrens classes. (NY Times B5:1) Works Cited Edward F. Woods. â€Å"Court Outlaws Prayer in Schools†.(1963) St. Louis Post-Dispatch Laurel MacLeod. â€Å"School Prayer And Religious Liberty: A Constitutional Perspective†. (2000) http://www.cwfa.org/images/content/cwaicon.ico Frohnmayer, John. â€Å"Out of Tune: Listening to the First Amendment. Golden, Colorado† North American Press, (1995). Austin Cline. â€Å"Prayers in Public Schools†. About: Agnosticism / Atheism. http;//usgovtifo.about.com â€Å"Church and State: How the Court Decides†. US Govt. Info/ Resources http;//usgovtifo.about.com â€Å"School Prayer Case Law- Absolute Necessity†. Popular Issues http://www.allaboutpopularissues.org Choper, Jesse H. â€Å"Securing Religious Liberty: Principles for Judicial Interpretation of the Religious Clauses†. University of Chicago Press. (1995). Erick Black and DJ Tice. â€Å"The Big Question: Who was the elephant NOT in the room†? Star Tribune (2006) http://www.startribune.com/blogs/bigquestion/?m=200601 â€Å"Arguments Against School Prayer†. All About History http://www.allabouthistory.org Ishmael Jaffree. â€Å"Quotation of the Day†. The New York Times. B5:1, Published: June 5, 1985.