Sunday, October 13, 2019

The Importance of Education in Preventing Prejudice Essays -- Importan

Ignorance is a huge problem, it is one of the biggest factors responsible for issues such as racism and sexism. Luckily, ignorance, generally speaking, is a relatively easy issue to fix. The obvious answer here would be more education, but this is not necessarily the case. In order to eliminate much of the racism, sexism, and other forms of prejudice that arise due to ignorance, it is necessary to look at education from another perspective: one that encourages togetherness and development alongside people of all races and genders. One quote by Grace Boggs book The Next American Revolution summarizes the issue perfectly. â€Å"Just imagine what our neighborhoods would be like if, instead of keeping our children isolated in classrooms for twelve years and more, we engaged them in community-building activities with the same audacity with which the civil rights movement engaged them in desegregation activities fifty years ago! ...Our children will be absorbing naturally and norm ally the values of social responsibility and cooperation at the same time that they are being inspired to learn the skills and acquire the information necessary to solve real problems† (Boggs 158). So, the main point here is that prejudice, against all sexes, genders, and creeds, can be eliminated via education that encourages cooperation with the largest variety of people. In order to understand this concept, it is necessary to look at it from a few different perspectives to analyze its viability in modern society. First, it is necessary to examine the current paradigm within education in order to determine exactly what it is about the modern system that requires changing. One of the most immediate concerns comes as a result of the school facilities the... ...r through the power of music, will not be forgotten. Racism, sexism, and other forms of prejudice are simply not acceptable in modern society, and the sooner they can be eliminated altogether, the sooner the world can truly advance. Works Cited Boggs, Grace Lee, and Scott Kurashige. The next American revolution: Sustainable activism for the twenty-first century. University of California Pr, 2012. Print. Dyson, Michael Eric. Holler If You Hear Me 2006: Searching for Tupac Shakur. Basic Civitas Books, 2006. Print. Godin, Seth. Stop stealing dreams. 2012. Print. Hooks, Bell. Teaching to transgress: Education as the practice of freedom. Vol. 4. New York: Routledge, 1994. Print. Marx, Karl, and Friedrich Engels. Manifesto of the communist party. CH Kerr & Company, 1906. Print. Tupac: Resurrection Dir. Lauren Lazin. Perf. Tupac Shakur. 2003. Film.

Saturday, October 12, 2019

violence in movies Essay -- essays research papers

If you watch movies these days you know you’re sure to see some sort of violence whether it be a killing, beating, or some kind of cruel act. Now every time you watch TV, you are likely to see a commercial promoting a new movie with a catch title such as â€Å"Scream† or â€Å"Fear.† Whether you think these movies are necessary or not, production companies know they will get the viewers and this is why they keep making them.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I was watching a movie the other day, with my lovely girlfriend of course, by the name of â€Å"The Matrix.† The title caught both our eyes as we browsed the aisles of the movie store searching for something good to watch. Seeing that my girlfriend does like violence in movies and thinks its unreal, it seemed like a good enough choice for me. The back of the box showed nothing of violence and the description gave no hints to shootings and killings. The beginning of the movie went well but about a half hour into it, as soon as we could blink our eyes, one of the characters pulls out about twelve machine guns planning to kill the whole city I guess. After blasting all 10,000 of the bullets into the ten guys he was trying to kill, my girlfriend got right up, marched over to the VCR in disgust, and pushed stop before I could get one word of protest out. As you can see, these days there’s not much you can do to get away from watching a movie with even a l ittle violence in it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Why is it that violence attracts us t...

Friday, October 11, 2019

Psoriasis: Treatment and Management

Psoriasis is an autoimmune disorder of the skin, which means that the body's defense system has turned on itself. This causes â€Å"angry red lesions to appear on the surface of the skin, multiply, and scale over with silvery patches† (1). Not only do they look hideous, but cause terrible itching and discomfort. â€Å"The word (psoriasis) comes from ancient Greece, and means ‘to itch'† (1). This disease can be present from birth or not show up until a person is well into their adult years. They can also be found anywhere on the body, from the scalp to the elbows. Psoriasis affects about two percent of the population. The severity can range from a few spots to massive outbreaks covering the whole body, requiring hospitalization. Although the disease is genetically inherited, â€Å"it has triggers which can cause the body to go from a very mild case to a severe case within days† (1). Strep throat and spicy foods are examples of triggers that increase the severity. â€Å"There are also other factors, such as sunlight, which help decrease the severity† (1). There are many types of psoriasis including, nail, scalp, plaque, pustular, guttate, inverse, erythrodermic, and psoriatic arthritis. Plaque psoriasis is the most common type. Along with these irritating physical side effects are the emotional factors. This disease can cause its' victims to feel alienated from fellow coworkers and friends. People who have no experience with the disease tend to be distant towards those who do, because they think it is contagious. To compensate, sufferers often wear pants and long sleeves to cover their skin, even in summer heat, or avoid a social life altogether. There is no known cure for psoriasis, only the hope to control its' severity. Each case of psoriasis is different, and may require a certain form of treatment or a combination of treatments to obtain relief. Most of those available now work to lessen the redness and itching, but tend to be pricey and time-consuming. Recently, scientists have developed a new method of treatment. The 308-nm excimer laser is a highly concentrated beam of UVB radiation. During the procedure a patient receives a certain, prescribed dosage of radiation on a large plaque of psoriasis. Unlike other methods of phototherapy, the laser only touches the effected area, leaving normal skin unharmed by unneeded radiation. In a study done in a university dermatology service, the following was reported: Thirteen consecutive patients with at least four large, stable psoriasis plaques were used. Excimer laser-generated 308-nm UV-B radiation was given to each of the four plaques, which received 1, 2, 4, and 20 treatments, respectively. Untreated areas within each plaque served as the control. With 308-nm UV-B radiation generated by an excimer laser, it is possible to clear psoriasis with as little as one treatment with moderately long remission (2). Carcinogenic levels, which measure the amount of cancer-causing radiation, were much lower in patients who use the laser technique, than in those who use total body UV-B radiation treatment. Unwanted side effects with the use of the 308-nm excimer laser include burning sensations and some blistering. The use of topical ointments with hydrocolloid dressings is a more traditional form of treatment. It involves applying a prescribed corticosteriod ointment, like calcipotriol, to a psoriasis plaque and then wrapping the area in a hydrocolloid dressing. In a study done by the Department of Dermatology in the Netherlands, it was reported that: After an average treatment of 3. 6 weeks, each lesion had cleared (apart from some residual erythema). The average remission period was 8 weeks. During this treatment, the number of cycling epidermal cells and the expression of keratin 14 and keratin16 had decreased substantially. It is speculated that a combination therapy of calcipotriol with treatments with a different mode of action, such as photo-therapy, might be worthwhile (3). However, some patients experienced discomfort in the normal skin surrounding the psoriatic patch with this method. Researchers also found that the psoriatic epidermal skin cells proliferated, or reproduced, at a much slower rate than normal, which means that the plaque formation would lessen and be controlled easier. Perhaps the oldest and most popular form of treatment for psoriasis on the market today is coal tar. â€Å"Exorex TM is a new over-the-counter preparation† which contains, â€Å"one percent coal tar† (1). This form doesn't necessarily clear the effected areas, it relieves itching, redness, and scaling to a certain degree. It is probably the cheapest and easiest to use, and does not require a prescription to obtain. Most users have accepted the fact that they have this disease, and that there is no cure for it. Therefore, they use these ointments for personal physical relief, not to try and hide their psoriasis from others. There are few, trivial unwanted side effects of coal tar ointments. Susceptibility to sunburn, messiness, unpleasant odors, and staining of clothing and skin occur frequently. This active ingredient is not only found in ointments but medicated shampoos and bath solutions as well. Agranulocytosis is described as â€Å"a condition caused by a lack of or an insufficient number of white blood cells† (4). Scientists have found that in severe cases of psoriasis, drug-induced agranulocytosis actually helps to clear the affected areas. In a study done on a 45-year-old man by the International Journal of Dermatology, it found that: The patient was treated with intravenous granulocyte monocyte stimulating factor (GMSF). The GMSF was given on five consecutive days. On the sixth day, the psoriatic lesions cleared almost completely. There was 90% clearance of the lesions, with a PASI (Psoriasis Activity and Severity Index) being reduced (from 22) to 2. 2. The patient also had improvement in joint pain. In addition, the generalized lymphadenopathy detected at admission had reduced considerably (5). According to Dr. Kevin Patrick, lymphadenopathy is an inflammation of the lymph nodes, which filter organisms and bacteria out of the bloodstream (4). However astounding these results may be, scientists still claim that â€Å"drug-induced agranulocytosis is a complex phenomenon, it is difficult to comment on its exact role in the pathogenesis of psoriasis† (5). The most promising treatment for psoriasis is hard to prove, since each case is different, and not all treatments work for every victim. However, the 308-nm excimer laser technique seems to be the treatment with the best results. If a patient wants long-lasting clearance and does not mind sacrificing time and a large sum of money, the laser will work for them. However, for those who's main concern is the physical side effects, such as itching, flaking, and redness, then coal tar ointments and similar products may be the choice for them. They are easy to obtain, most drugstores and supermarkets carry them, and fairly inexpensive compared to other treatments. For those who would like clearance of their plaques, but can not access the excimer laser therapy, calcipotriol ointment, and hydrocolloid dressings seem to hold the most promise for them.

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Social Learning: Psychology

In the beginning of Psychology, an individual would be studied taking into consideration and believing that s/he is acting alone. However, in the rising of Psychology, researchers stated the importance of the social context and that it can have a major effect on the behavior of an individual. The Sociocultural level of Analysis studies the behavior of the individual not based on his biological processes but based on the social context s/he belongs to and how the society has affected the actions of the individual.One of the most important theories under the Sociocultural level of Analysis is the social learning theory which was developed by Albert Bandura. The social learning theory explains that behavior is learnt by observing others. The theory states that people learn behavior through observational learning of social factors in environment. When people observe positive and desirable outcomes from a specific behavior, they are most likely to imitate and adopt that behavior.Bandura s tated that individuals observe behavior of others and see whether they are awarded or punished for that specific behavior. When they are awarded or even when the behaviors aren’t punished, the individual is most likely going to imitate the behavior. There are four different types of modeling, where modeling merans observing and imitating a behavior. The first type of modeling is direct modeling and it’s the simple imitation of a single behavior.The second type of modeling is the synthesized modeling which is the combination of more than one observed acts in order to create new complex behavior. The symbolic modeling is when real life human models are replaced by characters and finally the abstract modeling is the process of inferring the system of rules that underlie complex behaviors. Modeling which is observing and imitating behavior is made of four different steps. The first step is attention which is the process of observing a specific behavior.Afterwards thereâ₠¬â„¢s retention which is the process of creating schemata for the observed behavior. Then, there’s the step of motoric reproduction of the observed behavior and the last step is motivation which is having a reason or a motive to adopt and imitate the same behavior that was observed. The social learning theory is connected with various principles under the sociocultural level of analysis. The first principle to which it is connected is the principle that states that humans are social animals and that they need to belong in a social group.For example when there’s a social group that has a specific characteristic in their behavior that distincts this group from the rest, then in order to belong to this group you need to observe their behavior and imitate it. The second principle to which the social learning theory is connected, is the principle that states that culture affects behavior through norms. Therefore, the individual depending on the culture s/he belongs to obser ves the behavior of the majority which represents the norms of the society and by observing this behavior s/he imitates it since these norms are acceptable in the society.A specific study conducted based on the social learning theory is the research study conducted by Bandura et al. Bandura supported that aggression is learnt from environment through observational learning and imitation and he wanted to conduct the â€Å"Bobo Doll experiment† in order to test this. The aim of the experiment was to see whether children will imitate aggressive behavior when they will have observed it and whether in the imitation the same sex models have any importance.The procedure that he followed was that he made groups of students of 36 girls and 36 boys with an age between 3 and 6. Children were matched based on their aggression as it was reported by their parents and other family members. One group was exposed to adult models who showed aggressive behavior on a bobo doll , another group ob served an adult who showed no aggressive behavior on the bobo doll and that person was assembling the toys for around 10 minutes and then there was a third group which was the control group and they did not see any aggressive behavior.It is important to be stated that some children observed same sex adults and some opposite sex adults. After the observance of the behavior the children went in a room full of toys and they were told that they should not play with the toys since they were for other children and then they were put in a room with a bobo doll. Bandura et al observed that the children who had observed an aggressive behavior behaved more aggressively both physically and verbally.Bandura stated that social learning was demonstrated in the study , since the subjects showed observational learning through the imitation of behavior of the adult and depending on what the subjects observed, an aggressive or non aggressive behavior they simply imitate that behavior when they are in a similar situation with the adult which was having the bobo doll in the room. The experiment conducted by Bandura had various strengths and limitations.One of the strengths is the fact that there was a high control of the variables and it can give a cause and effect relationship. Another strength is the fact that the experiment was replicable and actually showed that those children that observed the aggressive behavior, they imitated it. A limitation is that the experiment was conducted under laboratory conditions and the the study lacks of ecological validity. Another limitation is that it’s not obvious whether the children were showing an aggressive behavior or just a harmless play with the bobo doll.Also many ethical issues arise since the children where not allowed to play with the toys in the beginning which caused frustration of the subjects. The social learning theory has had applications in the every day life of the individuals. Through the social learning theory, p eople can understand the importance of their social background on their own behaviour, since behaviour of human beings is not studied separately anymore, but also taking into consideration the social context, since someone can observe and imitate behaviour within the society.It can also provide with possible explanations for the existence of phobias and eating disorders and that by observing an individual with an eating disorder for example you will probably find out that s/he is the center of attention of others and since the result is quite desirable to a really big number of people, it is most probable that they will imitate the behaviour which led to this outcome. Similarly, the social learning theory can help in the education and the interaction between the teacher and the students.When a student does not have an appropriate behaviour and the teacher always makes remarks of that student and that s/he should stop having that behaviour, if the behaviour is not punished by the tea cher along with being the center of attention because of the continuous remarks of the teacher, it will make other students imitate the observed behaviour which has favourable outcomes to a really big number of them.

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Analysis of Consumer Behaviour in Relation to the Product - services

Purchasing an important car like Austin Mini Cooper can be afforded best by the lavish mod-con segment of people. According to the theory of reasoned action, prudent traditionalists can be considered as the least likely consumers for the product. According to the theory of reasoned action, the product can be brought by people from middle to higher income group (Cohen, Prayag & Moital, 2014). A country which has higher GDP and the lifestyle of the people is very privileged can easily afford the product or car like Austin Mini Cooper. Thus, for people belonging to a progressive state can very conveniently afford the product. The most likely buyers for going to a local cafe for the regular breakfast and coffee are the group of progressive cosmopolitan. The least likely buyers who would go to local cafe for breakfast and coffee on a regular basis are the prudent traditionalist. In accordance with the factors such as the concern regarding limiting everyday's expenditure by people affects the buyer behaviour of the customer (East, Wright & Vanhuele, 2013).   A state where the people are more progressive and the lifestyle is very much hectic, people do not have time to prepare their own breakfast and have the habit of rushing for work. In those scenarios, the people of the state would prefer to have regular coffee and breakfast on a daily basis at a local cafe. The most likely buyer or consumer who would join a gym and fitness centre includes the progressive cosmopolitan as these sections of people prefer to accept progressive things in life and love to remain updated with the lifestyle. For this section of consumers, the social factors play an important role it eh buying behaviour (Foxall, 2014). These would include the perception of the society towards their outlook regarding their health and fitness in order to always be presentable in the social gatherings. The least likely group of consumers regarding this subject are the anti-establishment firebrand. This tribe of people does not need a life that is organized or predictable. For them, the psychological behaviour comes into play while buying the service or product as they basically do not care what people think of them or their appearances. Therefore, these sections of people have the least possibility to go to the gym for their fitness (Horner & Swarbrooke, 2016). The most likely consumer for buying beers from the local bottle shop and watching footie at home would include the anti-establishment firebrand. According to the motivation need theory, this section of the Australians find their needs to be fulfilled by enjoying their beers in their home environment and they do not consider faring well with other people. Thus, they would enjoy having their own space with their sort of relaxation and entertainment in their own way without any outside interference (Schiffman, et al., 2013). The least likely tribe to buy beers from a local shop and watching footie at home is the lavish mod-con as these groups of people will look forward to maintaining their social status and image by being in the finer places and situations. Thus, they will not opt for going to shop for beer at a local shop rather would opt to go to high-class clubs. In this case, the social factors play an important role in the buying behaviour of the lavish mod-con tribe (Schà ¼tte & Ciarlante, 2016). The most likely consumer tribe who would order food online through the providers like Panda Food or Menu log, etc are the progressive cosmopolitan as they prefer exploring changes and privileges. They relish the initiatives and facilities that they can get.   while the least likely tribe to farewell regarding online food ordering through various services are the ambitious savers as they watch every spending and expenditure who would prefer to prepare their own food in order to save money (Solomon, Russell-Bennett & Previte, 2013). In this case of ambitious savers, their behaviour towards saving money is affecting their decision regarding not buying food through online ordering. For the services like installing renewable energy like solar panels in the houses, the most likely consumer base would be ambitious savers as they would prefer to save energy and opt for renewable sources of energy in order to save expenditures. The psychological  Ã‚   factors along with the   Maslow hierarchy need theory is having a significant role in the buying behaviour of the ambitious savers as their needs regarding the obtainment of energy along with saving money, both are being satisfied (Wikstrà ¶m, et al., 2014). The least likely consumers group for availing the renewable energy like solar panels are the lavish mod-on as they do not think regarding the minimizing expenditures. The social conditioning factors play an important role for the lavish tribe as they need to have the best of luxuries and therefore, would not consider the ways to minimize energy and money use. The most likely consumer base for buying home ware products at DIY hardware stores like Bunnings are the activist egalitarians as their psychological factors relating to the traditions dominate their decision making of purchase (Schà ¼tte & Ciarlante, 2016). They are not impressed by the luxuries around them and would rather opt for buying products that they require from the DIY hardware stores. The least likely consumer base for buying products from the DIY stores is the lavish mod-con. Shopping at Big W would have the progressive cosmopolitan the most as they embrace multiculturalism and love to be around the multiculturalism spaces.   The least likely consumer base who would opt to shop at Big W is the disillusioned pessimists. The psychological factors play an important role in their buying behaviour as they have pessimist feelings regarding everything (Wikstrà ¶m, et al., 2014). They would not appreciate the offers that would be available at the store. The most likely consumer base for availing food services at fast food restaurants like McDonalds and KFC are the progressive cosmopolitan on which their psychological belief regarding availing all the privileges and services that a city has to offer them. These people believe in embracing every aspect of a progressive state. the least likely consumer base to avail the food services at fast food restaurants like KFC   and McDonalds are the ambitious savers who would have the their sense of saving money to consider which influences theory buying behaviour. Playing a poker machine at our local RSL or League's club on a regular basis will attract a consumer base like the lavish mod-con as their social and psychological factors to have the best and refined things and luxuries of life would attract them to have this privilege (Horner & Swarbrooke, 2016). The least likely consumer base for the service would be ambitious saver who would not prefer spending their money on these luxuries which would not let them gain anything tangible in return. Cohen, S.A., Prayag, G. and Moital, M., 2014. Consumer behaviour in tourism: Concepts, influences and opportunities.  Current Issues in Tourism,  17(10), pp.872-909. East, R., Wright, M. and Vanhuele, M., 2013.  Consumer behaviour: applications in marketing. Sage. Foxall, G.R., 2014.  Consumer Behaviour (RLE Consumer Behaviour): A Practical Guide  (Vol. 3). Routledge. Horner, S. and Swarbrooke, J., 2016.  Consumer behaviour in tourism. Routledge. Schiffman, L., O'Cass, A., Paladino, A. and Carlson, J., 2013.  Consumer behaviour. Pearson Higher Education AU. Schà ¼tte, H. and Ciarlante, D., 2016.  Consumer behaviour in Asia. Springer. Solomon, M.R., Russell-Bennett, R. and Previte, J., 2013.  Consumer behaviour: Buying, having, being. Pearson Australia. Wikstrà ¶m, F., Williams, H., Verghese, K. and Clune, S., 2014. The influence of packaging attributes on consumer behaviour in food-packaging life cycle assessment studies-a neglected topic.  Journal of Cleaner Production,  73, pp.100-108.

Tuesday, October 8, 2019

Role and Effects of Financial Intermediaries Essay

Role and Effects of Financial Intermediaries - Essay Example Typically the first party is a provider of a product or service and the second party is a consumer or customer. In the U.S., a financial intermediary is typically an institution that facilitates the channelling of funds between lenders and borrowers indirectly. That is, savers (lenders) give funds to an intermediary institution (such as banks), and then that institution in turn gives those funds to spenders (borrowers). This may be in the form of loans or mortgages. Alternatively, they may lend the money directly via the financial markets. (Wikipedia, 2006) (Paraphrasing made) Riskinstitute (n.d) said, â€Å"The FSA provides that no person shall carry on, or purport to carry on, investment business in the UK unless he is authorised or exempted from authorisation (FSA, s.3). It explained that pursuant to the FSA, a person carries on investment business in the UK if he carries on investment business from a permanent place of business maintained by him in the UK or if he engages in an activity in the UK which falls within one of several categories identified in Part II of Schedule I to the FSA and are not excluded by Part III and, in respect of that activity, he is not an exempt person. It explained, â€Å"A financial intermediary is, therefore, subject to regulation in the UK where investment business is carried on from a UK base, wherever the customer is situated. A financial intermediary will also be subject to UK regulation where that financial intermediary, not operating from a UK base, nevertheless carries on business from overseas into the UK (e.g., soliciting UK customer business). Certain exceptions apply in the latter case, e.g., where the overseas person is: transacting with a UK authorised person; responding to an initiative taken by a UK investor or continuing an existing business relationship with him; or promoting his investment services in accordance with the advertising and cold-calling rules, provided that overseas person is not otherwise

Monday, October 7, 2019

Final Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Final - Personal Statement Example The employees got a chance to know each other better while they shared food in those short breaks. There are many theories of motivation that can be used to increase employee performance. Three theories of motivation that can help increase employee performance are Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, equity theory, and expectancy theory. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is based on a pyramid that ranks the five most important needs of workers. The five needs in order of important from least to most important are physiological, safety, social, esteem, and self-actualization. By identifying the needs that drive each employee a manager can better find the things that motivate each of his employees. Equity theory was developed by John Stacey Adam in 1963. Equity theory states that, â€Å"when people feel fairly or advantageously treated they are more likely to be motivated; when they feel unfairly treated they are highly prone to feelings of disaffection and demotivation† (Yourcoach, 2010). Eliminating income discrepancies among workers with similar work experience and educat ional credentials is a great way to motivate workers since the staff will feel they are equally valued. Vroom’s expectancy theory is based on the assumption that motivation is associated with the belief of the employee in regards to effort and performance considerations. I was in the middle of an ethical dilemma a few years ago due to misbehavior by my supervisor. There was a promotion in the firm and several in-house candidates applied for the position including myself. A rumor surged that the son in law of one of the executives was going to get the job due to preferential treatment based on family connections. The supervisor denied the rumor, but at the end of the day he gave in to political pressures within the firm and gave the job to the son in law of the manager. I did not like the lack of ethics illustrated by this firm. When my contract expired I stopped working for that firm. In the