Saturday, August 31, 2019

Knowledge Management Tools: Component Technologies Essay

The internet provides a multitude of vendors promising to transform our business. But , we have to know which approaches should be adopt to examine the component technologies that make up a knowledge management system or suite. The analogy of hi-fi is used where each item has a certain function or purpose. The multitude of KM system on offer in the marketplace is seen as a composite variation of a number of these component technologies. Firms may decide to buy different component-of-the-shelf or develop their own tools to meet their needs. Organising knowledge tools Ontology and Taxonomy Grubber (1993) defines ontology as â€Å"a formal explicit of shared conceptualism†. It helps us on preventing wide variations on understanding or perspective to the same subject. Therefore, we have to developed ‘ontology’ to improve our level of information organization, management, and understanding. In the context of KM tools, the term ontology is often used interchangeability with taxonomy. To clarify the distinction, it’s important to recognize that an ontology is overall conceptualism whereas taxonomy is a scientifically based scheme of classification. An ontology may have non taxonomic conceptual relationship such as ‘has part’ relationship between concepts. In contrast, knowledge taxonomy generate hierarchical classification of terms that are structured to show relationship between them. When it comes time to implement ontologies and taxonomies there are three options:  · develop the ontology then develop the supporting taxonomy.  · develop taxonomy and then develop the over-arching ontology  · develop the two in parallel. Define your scope The first step in developing the combined ontology and taxonomy is to clearly scope the effort. A clearly defined scope is critical to the success of the effort. The question that can best help shape the scope of the effort is simply, what purpose will the combined ontology and taxonomy serve? The answer to this question serves several purposes:  · It sets bounds on the effort. These bounds are necessary to answering the basic managerial questions of how long will it take, and how much will it cost.  · It helps identify the primary domains and perspectives to be included.  · It should identify the specific business activities that will make direct use of the ontologies and taxonomies and how the resulting knowledge will be used to accomplish their mission. Normally the answer to this question will fall into one of three categories:  · To serve as a common framework for knowledge sharing.  · To enable reuse of existing domain knowledge.  · To a better understand what the organization knows by separating domain knowledge from the operational knowledge and making assumptions explicit. The first two of these, knowledge sharing and reuse are at the heart of most KM initiatives. Answers falling into the third category are indicative of advanced KM or academic initiatives. The following steps are applicable to all three scenarios and are specifically targeted toward those efforts focusing on knowledge sharing and reuse. Check for Existing Ontologies and Taxonomies Business operations today are also often dependent on, or required to adhere to one or more industry standards and may interface with applications that make use of existing ontologies or controlled vocabularies. For that reason, it is often best to use preexisting taxonomies and ontologies before launching into an extensive and possibly expensive development effort. Identify Important Terms If it is determined that existing ontologies and taxonomies are insufficient to meet the scope of the effort, then it is time to start collecting the raw materials for the new structures. This starts with identifying the key terms that are used to express the knowledge needed to enable specific business activities. At this point, it is important to list of all terms used to make statements or to explain to someone else what is needed to accomplish the business activities included within the scope of the effort. These can normally be found in corporate policy or operational instructions and from people with expertise in the activities. While gathering these terms it is important to stay within the scope of the effort. Incorporating the full lexicon for a large multi-national conglomerate may look like a major accomplishment, but it will not help build an effective knowledge environment if the scope of the effort is smaller. Rather, the broader scope will make it more difficult to marr y the concepts of the field to those used by the people you are trying to support. Define the Class Hierarchy Armed with the terms and concepts that are critical to expressing the knowledge needed to enable those business activities to be supported, the next step is to define a class hierarchy. Again, there are three ways to do this:  · Work from the top down. Start by identifying the general concepts (super-class identification) and then determine which of the others fall within those categories (subclass identification).  · Work from the bottom up . Start by developing cluster of related concepts (subclass grouping) and then look for the higher-order concepts that under which a given cluster of concepts might fall (super-class identification)  · Work from the top down and bottom up. This starts with the identification of the more important concepts first and then generalize and specialize them appropriately. The authors have found that this approach is the easiest to follow and has a lower risk of getting mired in the â€Å"semantic swamp.† When organizing terms and concepts t he basic formula is: If a class A is a super class of class B, then every instance of B is also an instance of A. In other words, the class B represents a concept that is a â€Å"kind of† A. As the class structure for your domain begins to take shape, check how well it expresses the way the people that are actually involved in the associated activates actually talk about what they are doing. Make sure that it reflects the actual context in which it will be used. The language of practical ontology or taxonomy should not to require the user to stop and translate between the way they normally think about things and the â€Å"official† term. This is also the time to make sure that the vocabulary used to express the hierarchical class structure agrees with the real-world (and agreed upon) vocabulary and accurately serves to classify the information that will need to be exchanged between the people and applications involved in meeting the targeted activities. When these conditions occur, the clas s hierarchical effectively becomes the upper-layers of the taxonomy. This is a critical factor in insuring on-going semantic alignment between the resulting ontology and taxonomy.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Ill-Fated Love at Centrex Electronics Essay

Case Study Review: Ill-Fated Love at Centrex Electronics 1.In the case it is stated the policy of CEC is â€Å"Employees performing jobs where they have access to sensitive or confidential information which could benefit competitors are prohibited from being married to or from having a romantic relationship with individuals employed by competing organizations† while the CEO stated â€Å"CEC employees are responsible for their own off-the-job behavior. We are concerned with an employee’s off-the-job conduct only when it reduces the employee’s ability to perform normal job assignments.† These two statements contradict each other with the CEO’s acting as an implied policy. The attorney could have used the implied contract exception to the employment-at-will policy. 2.The policy CEC had in place is understandable in highly competitive industries, but in this case the execution of the policy was not handled correct which lead to the wrongful termination suite. It seems that if CEC had given Miller-Canton a time table to make her decision or be terminated it would have given enough conversion regardless of the results for a correct decision to me made. If Miller-Canton had decided to end the relationship with Mike she would have continued working, if she decided on the relationship she could have resigned, and if she couldn’t make a decision it would have been clear why she was terminated. 3.There is no single definition to â€Å"romantic relationship† and depending on one experiences it could equate to dating. Likewise, there is no definitive definition of dating that would be equally be shared by everyone.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Black Boy Essay Example for Free

Black Boy Essay Essay Topic: African American Choose cite format: APA MLA Harvard Chicago ASA IEEE AMA company About StudyMoose Contact Careers Help Center Donate a Paper Legal Terms & Conditions Privacy Policy Complaints Most African American families in the South were lower class and committed dangerous acts to survive, â€Å"Richard suffered poverty and hunger experiences that later became themes of his work†. He would have to wait a long period of time before food was available for him, â€Å"You’ll have to wait till I get a job to buy food†. The lower class did desperate things to get money â€Å"Richard sneak into saloons and begs for pennies and drinks†. Many African Americans suffered horribly from poverty, â€Å"My mothers’ suffering grew into a symbol, gathering to itself all the poverty, the ignorance, the helplessness, the pain, hunger ridden days and hours†. The Jim Crow South brought many adversities for Blacks and poverty was a major part of that. Poverty not only took away the physical things in their lives, but also it took away from their internal selves as human beings. The things they had in their lives that they were deprived of, did not mean as much to them as losing who they are as a person, â€Å"I would send other words to tell, to march, to fight, to create a sense of the hunger of life that gnaws in us all, to keep alive in our hearts a sense of the inexpressibly human†. Racism in the Jim Crow South was brutal, unnecessary, and in some cases fatal. Racism in the United States South was a major theme, and impacted the life of Richard both in a positive and negative way. The only positive aspect of it was that he and many other African Americans overcame it and helped them become better people. In most cases racism affected lives in a negative way. Most African Americans were both physically and mentally pushed to their limit and caused permanent scars in their lives, â€Å"Having been thrust out of the world because of my race, I had accepted my destiny by not being curious about what shaped it†, The quote by Richard shows the racism was present and unfair, you can still move on and not let it be damaging to your daily lives and emotions. Richard experienced many abusive events resulting from racism, â€Å"He experienced some of the most severe abuses of racial oppression in Mississippi†. African Americans have the theory that White people are dangerous and not to be trusted, â€Å"the Jim Crow South was a system of racial segregation practiced in some states of the US, and it gave whites a reason to treat Blacks as second class citizens†. Richard falls into a category of Black youth who fears the White community and has a hard time interacting with them, â€Å"Richard feels psychological tension around Whites†. The major reason why Richard is a part of the Great Migration and fled North is because of racism. The segregation Blacks had to deal with also took away many educational opportunities, â€Å"No education could alter what the meaning of living, came only when one was struggling†. Racism took away many privileges and rights away from Blacks. Many African Americans in the South moved north for better opportunities, and this vast moment was known as the Great Migration. It was hard for many African Americans to leave the South because that was the only life they knew, â€Å"Nine out of ten African Americans lived in the American South in 1900, by 1930, 3 in 10 lived outside the house†. Richard Wrights’ Black Boy shows how racism destroyed the lives of many African Americans, but for some it did just the opposite, as for Richard it drove him to be the successful writer he is today. Violence affected African American youth in a negative way, and it varied how they let it affect the rest of their lives. Poverty took a major toll on the lives of African Americans during the Jim Crow South system, and affected the majority in an unconstructive way. Racism made a huge impact on the lives of the Blacks because it affected their emotions, physicality, home life, and way of being. For some, racism lead to death or completely ruined their lives, but others took the hardship of racism and went with it in the opposite direction. Richard Wright, once a trouble African American boy, now a flourishing writer. Black Boy. (2016, Dec 23).

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Maturity models and quality managment Assignment

Maturity models and quality managment - Assignment Example Deming and Juran picked up the trail after World War II, and blessed the Japanese industry with statistical quality control and quality improvement processes. In America, the quality revolution began only in 1980, and Deming finally became known in his home country, though his techniques were used mostly for manufacturing. By the end of the 1980’s, quality efforts were embedded in services, and by the 1990’s in health care, government, and education (Evans, 2008, p. 10-14). Thus, quality became an indispensible aspect of management practices, and quality became customer-driven, pursued to meet or exceed customers’ needs (Evans, 2008, p. 6-7). Total Quality Management was born. It is said that quality remained in the limelight from the 1980’s-1990’s due to interest in Six Sigma (Evans, 2008, p. 8). In the mid-1980’s Bill Smith, a reliability engineer at Motorola, sold the concept to Motorola’s CEO, Robert Galvin. GE is the recognized be nchmark for Six Sigma implementation (Evans, 2008, p. 94).

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Country Analysis Outline Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Country Analysis - Outline Example is a landlocked country in north-eastern Africa with most of the people belonging to the different tribes but many of them are not Muslims unlike that of Sudan itself. South Sudan had one of the longest civil wars in Africa starting from 1972 and ending in 2005 with a Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). Much of the country is dependent on subsistence farming due to the ancient nomadic agriculture. Frankly speaking, the country has very few resources except oil but has plenty of challenges to tackle before it can make any significant progress. (186) Political situation – it is quite ironic how a young country like South Sudan which had just emerged from a long and protracted civil war is now again embroiled in another civil war that is being fought between two former political allies. Its current president Salva Kiir Mayardit has accused his former vice president and other accomplices of trying to stage a coup detat. President Kiir belongs to the Dinka ethnic tribe while his ex-deputy Mr. Riek Machar belongs to the Nuer tribe. The conflict has drawn outside forces from nearby Uganda who are helping government troops fight the rebels lead by Machar and other allied tribes. This new ensuing political instability due to a power struggle along ethnic lines has disrupted the development plans of the young country and has killed at least 10,000 from both sides with 400,000 who fled to neighboring countries while another 1 million people are displaced internally. The current conflict poses a serious risk to South Sudan and if allowed to linger, it can be the source of further political instability that weakens government institutions and possibly make it a failed state like Somalia where there is no central government. Although the people of the country had identified themselves as members of a group distinct from pre-partition Sudan as they are not Muslims but Christians and animists, the new government has so far failed in its mission and vision to implement a new

Monday, August 26, 2019

Group Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Group - Essay Example (Group Dynamics, n.d.) Informal groups on the other hand are formed on their own. They do not have a time frame and are generally not formed by the organizations. Anybody can become a part of the informal group. Friendship groups, reference groups and interest groups are all informal groups. Even though the informal groups are not formed to achieve organizational goals they can have a strong positive or negative influence on the working of an organization. For example, they can either talk about how to develop a production method or how to create shortcuts that would eventually endanger quality. (Group Dynamics, n.d.) It has been observed that groups are most productive when an assignment entails the requirement of multiple skills, experiences and decision making abilities. They are able to assemble quickly, take decisions and if the need arises then they can disperse and move on to another task. Compared to individuals, groups have a lot of enthusiasm to complete the job. Groups are responsible for completing most of the work in an organization. Thus it would not be incorrect to say that the success of an organization depends largely on the effectiveness of its groups. (Group Dynamics, n.d.) Answer (02): Various factors are responsible for a team to be effective. A team can be effective only if the socialization of all the members of the team are at par with each other. Socialization is nothing but a process of learning. It is regardless of the surroundings or age of the individual. In every group the members of the group have to learn the rules, regulations and expectations of that group for the group to be effective. (Socialization, 2006) In order to understand all the factors responsible for the team to be effective one has to understand the group dynamics. Group dynamics not only tries to understand why the group is formed but also how it is formed. Bruce Tuckman in the 1960's provided a framework to study the reasons of group formation. According to Tuckman, when a group is initially formed it is not very effective. The group has to undergo various stages of development before it becomes productive and efficient. Most of the groups go through similar developmental stages with comparable conflicts and resolutions. (Group Dynamics, n.d.) According to Tuckman's theory there are five stages of group development. The five stages are forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning. It is during these stages that the members of the group have to deal with several issues or problems and depending upon how these are dealt with determines whether or not the group will be successful in attaining its goals. Question (03): Review the main findings on the nature of behavior in groups. Answer (03): Group work helps to explore and express varied ideas and suggestions of the group members in a cooperative way. Working in groups involves mutual support. A group can be successful only if all the members believe in the culture of shared commitment. Group work is not about competing with the peers. It involves using the range of resources available in the group to deepen their understanding and extending their knowledge to their collective advantage. (Working in groups,n.d.) Good team behavior requires development and supervising. It is imperative

Podcast Summary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Podcast Summary - Essay Example ies like China which recycled plastics and sell it back eventually to Americans and European countries which recycled shredded papers and turn it into recycled papers, toilet papers, tissue papers, etc. However, they pointed out that not all trash are recyclables. When a person is able to gain profit from trash, it is called recyclables; whereas if it’s not, it is called trash/garbage. Curious as to where her used yogurt containers and Wall Street journal went through and to understand the flow or process of recycling business, the woman in the podcast followed Tom to a garage and found out that these items are recycled and produced approximately a 100-billion dollar earnings. This is where the people in the podcast linked recycling industry to microeconomics – in terms of economic prices. Microeconomics deals with the study of the economic behavior of an individual units of an economy (such as the recycling industry) and how does it affects the choices of an individual, makers, markets, and the law of demand and supply. For instance, the podcast revealed that recycling plastics is affected the price of petroleum in the market as plastics are considered as petroleum products. If the price of the petroleum gets lower, then the price of the fresh plastics are lower than the recycled plastics. In return, those who are engaged in recycling plastics industries h ave to lower their production of recyclable plastics as the demand for it would be low. The same goes through for recycled papers when European currency is higher than US’ currency. In microeconomics, we tackled about the effect of a single industry to the economic behavior of demand, supply, price, and

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Breach of Confidentiality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Breach of Confidentiality - Essay Example This means that a physician cannot reveal any information of the patient during the course of treatment unless under the patients approval. The essence of physician’s responsibility is to preserve patients’ confidentiality, and help them to be open and able to give all the information regarding their health status. This is done with the assurance that the physician will safeguard such personal information. The honest revelation by the patient provides for a proper and effective treatment of the condition. There are, however, exemptions, for instance, if a patient may hurt others or himself or herself. A breach of confidentiality refers to the revelation of the patients’ medical information to another person without the patients’ permission by a physician or medical health expert. The revelation can be electronically, through word of mouth, or through writing. Thus, the physician’s responsibility of safeguarding the patients’ medical records sometimes has to relent to the interests of the whole. Â  In Estate of Behringer v Princeton Medical Centre (1990), the late Behringer, working as a surgeon at the medical centre, suffered from AIDS. Behringer received treatment from the same hospital. His chart containing information about his diagnosis was not safeguarded at the nurses’ location on the floor where it was kept. The exposure of the information on his diagnosis revealed his medical condition, making the hospital necessitate his patients to sign a form recognizing the dangers to their health. Eventually, this resulted to the deferral of the doctor’s surgical rights (McHale, 1993). The inability of the hospital to protect his personal medical information led to Behringer’s estate suing the hospital for breach of confidentiality. The breach of confidentiality occurred in the sense that the hospital was supposed to safeguard the chart containing the surgeon’s diagnosis information. However, they instead left the chart

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Critical Review Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Critical Review - Research Paper Example The major objective of the research was to analyze the moderating role of professional self efficacy in coping behaviour while meeting the demands of the job. The paper would critically review the study on the wider context of the research methodology adopted to demonstrate the effectiveness of hypotheses used. Critique The scholars have used quantitative research methodology for validating social cognitive theory of self efficacy. The methodology chiefly relies on the fact that the data sought can be quantified and thus can be applied on large number of people. The generalization of a theory therefore, becomes the most significant aspect of the current research. Heterogeneous sample, comprising of 625 employees from different companies cutting across wide range of socio-economic demography and occupation was used. 51% male and 49% female representation in the sample helped reduce gender biases. The broad spectrum of demographic representation greatly facilitated the validity of the study. The measurement technique adopted was in the form of self report questionnaire that was distributed to the employees and collected after completion by a member of the research team. The study was conducted under the pre-defined hypotheses that primarily focused on the fact that self efficacy is directly related to the coping strategies. It was also assumed that it acts as a moderating element between the demands of the job and coping strategies that are used under defined situations. The variables used were the imperatives of job demands that included work overload and role conflict, professional self efficacy and two types of coping behaviour; active and passive. The coping behaviour was dependent variable that was evaluated against the independent variables like professional self efficacy, gender, age, quantitative work overload and role conflict. Work overload and role conflict were important stressors that significantly helped to analyze the moderating role of professiona l self efficacy. Hierarchal multiple regression analysis is very useful in measuring interaction effect (Cohen and Cohen, 1983). Thus, it was used separately with two dependent variables and hypotheses were successfully tested when independent variables were introduced within the statistical analysis. Large sample size across wide demographic segment has helped to provide important evidence that professional self efficacy is indeed vital ingredient of positive coping behaviour. The cognitive social theory of professional self efficacy was critical element of research hypotheses that significantly helped to identify the extent of its impact on the coping behaviour of the participants. The study has greatly facilitated in addressing the challenges of the time. The various elements that adversely impact the work performance of the employees are important issues within the wide ranging paradigms of human resource management. The study has found strong linkages that can considerably infl uence the performance of the workforce. The professional self efficacy is broadly described as the professional skills and capabilities of the workers that encourage them to take on the challenges of the job with more confidence. Hence, if the employee is professionally better equipped than his counterpart, he would be better able to manage the demands of the job. Higher level of job proficiency promotes proactive behaviour that thrives on solving the

Friday, August 23, 2019

Globalization Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Globalization - Assignment Example In this paper, I will provide the ten most expensive items I own, their place of manufacture and also write a brief review of my findings and the impact globalization has had on my life and purchasing habits. Of the 10 items on the list, only 1 (Seiko watch) is produced in its manufacturer’s country of origin. 4 items are produced in China, while 2 are manufactured in Germany. This shows that a majority of multinational corporations favor producing goods in other countries where it is cheaper to do so. By doing this, they avoid paying high or extra taxes levied upon them and hence make the final products cheaper. They are also able to incur minimal expenses in terms of production labor, since human resources are very expensive in their countries of origin. Globalization has had a massive impact on consumers all over the world. Actually, it does not matter how much one earns; it is now possible to purchase items that were previously deemed too expensive by some consumers. Personally, globalization has affected me in a number of ways, both positively and negatively. The positive effects include the fact that I am now able to afford certain products that I could not fathom buying because they were costly for me. I can say that my purchasing power has increased significantly over the last two years, hence allowing me to enjoy the benefits of owning some products. Despite this, my financial capability has not improved much, so I am convinced that products have become cheaper. There has also been an increase in the availability of foreign products. I now have a wider variety of brands to choose from when buying items, and this is because the goods are produced cheaply and therefore can be made available to just about everybody. Negative impacts include an increase in the number of counterfeits being produced. I have been a victim of counterfeiting before, so I know the pain and disappointment of buying something only to discover (later)

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Literature ans society Essay Example for Free

Literature ans society Essay The literature of an age, and its social set up keeping and reacting one over the other. Literature influences the society; society is reflected in Literature and in this way, in all languages and at all times there has been a close interaction between the two. Literature of any age cannot escape the influence of the social scene and therefore is found reflecting the society of the age when it is created. The poet, the dramatist, the novelist, the essayist are all the product of their age and their-age openly and clearly gets imaged in their compositions. That cannot be helped, it so seems. Take  the example of two literatures — English and Hindi. Chaucer is called the father of English poetry and actually English literature in its form and language which kept on developing and improving, begins from him. His most representative work is the Prologue to the Canterbury Tales and then the Canterbury Tales. All the characters painted in these tales are the true representation of the types of such people as they were in his times. While Chaucer is a reflector of those characters and their types of his age — he is virtually and truly described as the chronicler of his age — his characters whether a  Knight; the Prioress; the monk, the fat fryer, the sailor, the squire, the priest — all are truly the representatives of their types in the contemporary society as they actually were. Chaucer is a painter as well as a critic of his society. Shakespeare — the greatest dramatist of English language — one of the greatest of all languages brings in ‘ghosts’, ‘witches’, and ‘courtier’ and ‘fools’ in his plays which were as per the liking of his audience and a part of the English Society of his times. That is what is rightly said about Shakespeare that in addition to the normal three ‘unities’—  Time, Place and Action in drama, he brought about the fourth unity — ‘unity with the people’. That encomium clearly Shakespeare being influenced by the society of his age and in his plays he, though never gave any message or pronounced any philosophy, but that is always there — the triumph of the good over the evil. This was the message that was most needed to his age after all that had happened earlier — Henry VIII —the king having been killed, Mary Tudor — a despotic, arrogant, a cruel ruler and then a benevolent, all embracing middle-path follower queen — Queen Elizabeth. As is the king so are the people — is an old but true saying and Shakespeare reflects that hilarious sometimes, but somber and philosophic at the other in his plays. Hulton was very much the product of his age. A truly puritanical person; a deeply religious man, he gave to his age which was battling with belief and disbelief — the message of God’s triumph over Satan. The Eighteenth century of English literature is a true product of the age. The social scene had degenerated into debauchery and license after the Restoration of Charles II who brought along with him all that he had enjoyed during his exile and adjourns in France and the literature of that period reflects all that was happening in the society. Alexander Pope’s ‘Rape of the Lock’ is a reflection of the so-called lascivious high society of and pungent satire too, on all that was too much too bad for the society. Thus Pope is a reflector as a corrector of his age. So are Addison and Steele as essayists. Balzac, Zola, Maupassant of France had cast their influence on every Wycherley, conserve and later Restoration dramatists who had gone to the lowest depth in describing social disparity and this is how literature reflected the age. The French Revolution — a very significant political and social event of Europe had as its basic tenets — Equality, Fraternity and Liberty — and these tenets and the revolution did cast its spell all over Europe and England and the English poets could not escape that influence. Wordsworth was moved by the humanitarian aspect of the revolution in the earlier phase but later its bloodiness and violence disillusioned him and all this is reflected in Wordsworth’s poetry — ‘poet of man’ and in his later poetry. Shelley was moved by the revolution’s ‘spirit’ of revolution and Byron by its fighting spirit. Tennyson was a true representative of the Victorian age and sang of the glories of the Empire while his nature poetry gets influenced by the advancement of Science in the later nineteenth century. He did not remain a ‘priest of nature’ as Wordsworth was because where science advances religion declines. Charles Dickens saw the backside of industrialization — the poor getting Poorer and the rich richer — the sufferings of the poor are ignored and his novels reflect all this. The First World War (1914-19) created a group of who sang of the glories of war, of chivalry and  Sacrifice for the nation and then there is the post w poetry and post-war drama — Bernard Shaw dramatist known for his pungent satire, pricking the balloon of romanticism associated with war heroism and love in his ‘Arms and the Man’. Eliot comes on the literary stage to deal with the utter disillusionment of the age in his ‘Wasteland’ all this about English Literature. Similarly in Hindi Literature, when Prithvi Raj Chauhan was fighting valiantly with Mohammad Gori Chandrabardai — the warrior poet was singing of the glories of war and his hero in his ‘Prithvi Raj Raso’. Then came the Bhakti Kal — the period of Bhakti — the country and the nation had fallen under the Muslim yoke and there were class conflicts on the basis of faith and religion. There came on the literary scene, Kabir, who preached anti-fanaticism; pricked the bloated balloon of superstitions and blind faiths and admonished both ‘mullahs’ and ‘Pandits’ and showed the way of God. Tulsidas found the Hindu society divided into factions ‘Shaivas’ and ‘Vaishnavas’ and showed the path of love, brotherhood and mutual respect for all Gods and presented the ideals of a son, a brother, a wife, and a devotee. The triumph of Ram — the incarnation of the Good over Ravan, the symbol of Evil is an eternal lesson given by him to the society — whose lessons remain revered even till today. The period of comparative social peace created a set of poets who indulged in pleasing their patrons — the Kings — as their courtiers and songsters. Their poetry is full of amorous sports in which they make Krishna a Radha and the Gopis their actors — a very wrong a vitiated depiction — unbecoming of those great. This was done just to gratify their patrons — the sensuous and sensual kings. This is how the social scene was reflecting itself in literature. Then, comes the modern age. The British were ruling India and there were classes close to the ruler and classes suffering at the hands of the officials and at the hands of the so-called elite of the society. There were classes created — the superior, the downtrodden — the imperialists and the nationalists. Prem Chand — the great novelist unravels this class fight in his novels and thereby, not only reflects the society of his times but gives a lesson too. His novels, his short stories — all have a lesson to give. There was Bhartendu Harishchandra — the poet the harbinger of the modern age and thought, who successfully caricatured the classes — social and religious — thus reflecting the social scene with a point to reform it. Thus goes on the scene. Maithili Saran Gupta — the Gandhian poet sings of the glory of Ram, of the glory of Lord Buddha, of the glory of other mythological heroes his thrust throughout being to awaken the masses and enlighten them into cordial social contacts. The national fervor reverberated through the veins of the Psyche under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi and poets  after poets, writers after writers sang of the of our ancient land and its culture. Jai Sanker rasad, Ramdhari Singh Dinkar, the poets; Dharmvir Shrilal Shukla — the novelists brought into focus the inequalities and imbalances that plagued the social scene and through their thoughtful and sometimes highly satirical way brought to the fore the social and political malaise through which our present generation passing. This true presentation has been with a purpose — to awaken the social conscience to the problems that dog the people. Literature thus has been holding the mirror up to Nature on one hand; reflecting all traditions,  trends and tendencies while rising up the finger of caution too to guard against all that goes against the basic values of life. Literature and Society have remained and shall remain ever intertwined and the more they so remain, the more solid would the foundations be laid for a sustained growth; a well-coordinated growth and a corrected social order Literature has to play its part as a reflector and a corrector of society and society has to inspire men of letters to keep themselves on their guard towards their mission of social good.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Antidepressant Case Study Essay Example for Free

Antidepressant Case Study Essay The debate over antidepressants has waged on for over more than half a century. Two heads of the Department of Psychiatry in Washington University discovered that depression was just as much biological as it was physiological meaning that people with depression had an abnormal chemical make-up in the brain. This discovery increased the demand for research on methods to alter this abnormality effectively and efficiently. Thus antidepressants were created, sparking a psychiatric revolution. Antidepressants work by blocking the reuptake of serotonin. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that is responsible for controlling human emotions. Our bodies make serotonin naturally but some particles are lost on the neuron, which is called reuptake. Antidepressants block the reuptake by placing a protein wall on the neuron, enabling a greater consumption of serotonin in the brain (Greenburg Manufacturing). From their creation, antidepressants have given people a chance to recapture the enjoyment they once, or never, had. They help people find their goals, rediscover their futures, and enjoy special moments in life that should be cherished. Antidepressants should be prescribed to individuals suffering from depression because they are simple, safe, and effective. In years prior to the development of antidepressants, depression was treated through drastic hospitalization. Hospitalization involved patients enduring painful treatments such as electrotherapy and/or a lobotomy (Richard 54). In electrotherapy, an individual is pinned down to a bed and shocked whenever a negative or suicidal thought comes to mind. A lobotomy is an unpleasant form of brain surgery that involves a surgeon using a long rod to rewire brain functions. While these forms of treatment are grueling and pose a great risk to the health of the patient, they are successful in reconstructing the chemical make-up in oneâ€⠄¢s brain, which is a necessary component in curing most forms of depression. These forms of treatment are expensive, complicated, and time consuming. Medications, on the other hand, do not demand a lot of time and are easily swallowed. Taking these medications is simple, easy and only requires a doctor’s prescription, which can be easily received upon an appointment. This form of treatment is quite simple, and is much less burdensome than treatment solely based on therapy. Therapy can be quite costly and, without the addition of antidepressants, ineffective. In order for it to be effective the child must meet with a professional twice a week (Martin 574). According to the American Academy of Psychology an average therapy session costs $150. In order to properly treat depression effectively via therapy and non-drug related means the patient requires up to one to three years of treatment. At $300 a week the individual will be spending $15,600 a year and $46,800 over three years. With medication, comes a cheaper and less complicated means of treatment. Under medications, the average patient requires meeting one to two times per every two weeks at the same average cost of $150. This comes out to $3900 per year versus the $15,600 through just treatment. Although there is the cost of medications, the total cost for using medication and therapy is significantly cheaper than using just therapy. With antidepressants, treatment for depression becomes simply and easy to accomplish, making the road to recovery that much more achievable. Many individuals feel skeptical about taking antidepressants because they are a human-made substance, and they are full of chemicals. While this is true, the effects medications have on the body is different from person to person. From its creation antidepressants have had some serious side affects, scaring people away. Today, 118 million people use antidepressants and between 1995 and 2002, the use of these drugs rose 48 percent (Cohen Antidepressants). Also this shows that people have been adjusting to these drugs, and that people see less risk in taking them. Many of the 118 million people on antidepressants have depression, but there are also many people take them for the other reasons. Antidepressants have known to help people quit smoking. (New York Psychiatric) writes, â€Å"Nicotine may have antidepressant effects that maintain smoking for some smokers. Antidepressants may substitute for this effect† (New York Psychiatric). These individuals take the drug as a safe means to quit smoking. Scientifically antidepressants contain bupropion hydrochloride, a chemical known for dissolving the nicotine addiction (New York Psychiatric). A smoker develops an addiction because nicotine is a powerful drug that speeds up the brain and central nervous system. It triggers the release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter in your brain, boosting one’s mood. Over time the brain adjusts to the increase of dopamine and the smoker becomes addicted. Antidepressants help by stabilizing the elevated levels of dopamine in the brain by having increased levels of the opposite neurotransmitter, serotonin absorbed. Also these drugs are safe to take because the FDA continuously runs tests to validate the drug’s safety. The FDA’s article on improving pediatric and child health states, â€Å"FDA has been committed to addressing the special considerations needed for assessing medical products for children and young adults. These include science to address how development, age and growth may affect how treatments work and effect health outcomes in children† (FDA Improving). Individuals everywhere take these drugs for a variety of reasons, and rarely do they harm an individual. There are many unexplained reasons an individual suffers from depression, but two theories the Monoamine Hypothesis and the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Cortisol Theory, are prevalent in most cases of depression, and they explain the biological problems that cause depression (Koplewicz More). The first theory, the Monoamine Hypothesis, was formulated in the 1960’s as a way to show how other chemicals in the brain inhibit serotonin. (Koplewicz More) explains, â€Å" The monoamine (MAO) metabolites act as inhibitors, preventing serotonin and norepinephrin from crossing the synapse. In succession to this theory these MAO metabolites appear to be more prevalent in depressed patients† (Belmaker Future). The second theory, Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Cortisol Theory, was developed shortly after the Monoamine Hypothesis. This theory explains that the amount of cortisol produced is reduced in individuals suffering from depression. These two theories are seen in over 66% of cases of depression (Belmaker Future). This number encompasses the largest population of individuals suffering from depression, thus proving depression is largely a chemical imbalance ailment in the brain. Because depression is a chemical imbalance, it can only be cured through certain means of treatment specializing in chemical reconstruction. Such treatments require the proper equipment and chemicals that therapy or other forms of treatment cannot supply. The combination of both antidepressants and therapy is proven to be the most effective means of curing depression. Author George Burns, in his book, Happiness, Healing, Enhancement: Your Casebook Collection for Applying Positive Psychology in Therapy writes, â€Å"43% more patients suffering from depression were cured with the combination of therapy and medication than patients only undergoing only one form of treatment† (Burns 47). The individuals undergoing both verbal therapy and drug therapy recover more often and faster than patients only undergoing one form of treatment. Antidepressants are an effective means of curing depression because they are easy to use, safe, and effective. Antidepressants come mainly in a pill form and work most effectively alongside therapy or other forms of treatment. For an individual with depression who does not consume antidepressant medication, treatment can be difficult, time consuming, and expensive. These pills are easy to ingest and require the patient to do less work by the patient. On top of that, they have been frequently tested by professionals, and are safe in most individuals. Symptoms vary from user to user, however, they typically they do not cause bodily harm. Depression comes in many forms, but in most cases depression is a chemical imbalance in the brain. With this information and are known effects antidepressants have on the brain, it is evident that these drugs are extremely effective and much more effective than solely therapeutic treatment.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Health Visitor Reflective Essay

Health Visitor Reflective Essay I attended a core group meeting for a family with complex needs. Parents Poppy and Richard had struggled to overcome a class A drug addiction and that there were grave concerns about the wellbeing of the 4 children in the family home. I sat opposite Poppy across a small table as this was the last available seat in the room. Richard was unable to attend but it had a very positive start for Poppy who discussed some of the improvements since the last official meeting. She appeared content and motivated to ensure things continued to improve. I was aware that an important discussion was going to take place about a serious incident which had occurred within the family and had been observed by a health visitor visiting the family next door. The purpose of the discussion was to support Poppy to understand the risks of leaving children unattended in the car and readdress the on-going issue of smoking around the children in confined spaces. The issue was broached by the social worker and Poppy immediately expressed unease. She denied having been involved until Poppy was informed it had been witnessed by another health visitor. Poppy became very angry, very quickly and made reference to the name the health visitor (her name had not been disclosed in the meeting). Her anger was then directed at my community practice teacher and me as the health visitor/student in the room. Poppy maintained intense eye contact with me and when I glanced away she noticed and it escalated her anger. Amongst the shouting and swearing Poppy was asking why Health visitors always interfere with her family and she was expressing that there was nothing wrong with what she was alleged to have done. As the main receiver of Poppys upset I tried to put active listening skills in to practice. Chosen Reflective Model and Rationale: Reflection is described by Boud et al (1985 p43) as a generic term for those intellectual and affective activities in which individuals engage to explore their experiences in order to lead to a new understanding and appreciation . It is deemed a particularly valuable tool within the health profession for many reasons. Reflection is a tool which can be used at all levels within the health care setting and is arguably imperative within practice (Ralphe et al 2011). It facilitates critical thinking (Cotton 2011) and by scrutinizing experiences professionals are then able to decipher the evidence within their own practice. Moreover it supports practitioners to make more sense of difficult and complex situations (Driscoll and Teh 2001). The collection of knowledge of individuals and groups through the form of refelction helps people to look not only at the situation but at how to understand it enough to be able to commit to improve similar situations which may arise again. Thus leading to improved practice (Ghaye and Lillyman 2010) Examples of reflective models include Gibbs (1988), Johns (2004) and Driscol (2000). Johns model is recommended for more complex reflection and decision making (REF). On one hand this would work well as a basis for this assignment however the model looks at the situation which has been resolved and it could be argued that it does not consider how the situation can be taken forward (Rolfe 2001). Although this could be adapted the Gibbs model of reflection (Gibbs 1988) has been chosen as a guide for this assignment. Despite being a fairly straight forward model, it is favourable because it aids a clear description of the scenario, analysis of feelings, evaluation of the experience, analysis to make sense of the experience and conclusion for each point that will be reflected upon. This enables careful consideration on what I would do if the situation occurs again. Communicating in Difficult Circumstances and Relevance to Health Visiting: According to the Department of Health (2007) one of the key elements to health visiting practice is to deliver the healthy child programme (Department of health 2009). This outlines the role of the health visitor and this includes the need for the health visitor to reduce health inequalities and protect children at risk (Department of Health 2009). The distressing conversation for Poppy was aimed to protect the children from potential harm caused by cigarette smoke and also to protect the children from the harm of being left unattended in a smoky car. It was acknowledged that smoking cessation had been suggested to Poppy but denied with such ferocity that the idea was to put things in place to protect the children from being harmed as a result of her smoking. After all as professionals we have to remind ourselves that Poppy has a right to smoke if she chooses to. The safeguarding of the children is paramount and therefore despite it being a tricky issue to address, it was an issue wh ich was vital to work with in order to safeguard the children. It is important to recognise that delivering these messages set out in the healthy child programme (2009) are not always straight forward. The people at highest risk of poor health are often those who have a lesser understanding of the consequences of their actions on the health of themselves and their families. They are perhaps less likely to comprehend the information which is delivered to them and the fact that this information is often changing (Knai 2009). Good communication is therefore crucial. Communication is defined by Porche (2004 pp266) as The transfer of Information and the understanding of the information from one individual another. It is the process through which individuals share thoughts, ideas, facts, beliefs, values and traditions. The department of health (2012) recently published Developing the Culture of Compassionate Care, which highlights Communication as one of the 6 Cs (Care, Compassion, Competence, Communication, Courage, Commitment) required to maximise compassionate care. It acknowledges that good communication skills contributes to better listening which results in people receiving care feeling valued and therefore happier with the service they receive (Department of Health 2012). Focusing on communication in difficult situations is very relevant to Health visiting practice as there are frequent barriers which can effect delivering the public health messages. In this case the barrier was Poppys resistance as a loving Mother to acknowledge the risks which her actions may have on her children and the emotions this consequently provoked creating a difficult situation in which to communicate not just the public health messages but to support Poppy in de-escalation. Resistance to accept information and support from health visitors is an on-going issue (REF) so having the opportunity to critically reflect on the situation will support me to ensure better practice in futur Eye Contact Initially Poppy seemed calm and positive about the progress she had made with her children avoided eye contact. However when angry, Poppy maintained strong eye contact with me in particular. I was surprised at how intimidated I felt, not by the shouting and verbal abuse but by the intense way in which Poppy was looking at me. I glanced away and looked towards my community practice teacher. This move that for me seemed quick and subtle had a profound effect on Poppy and she demanded I look at her when she is talking to me and this was followed with a threat. As specialist community public health nurses it is important to recognise that communication goes way beyond the verbal conversations that we have with people. Nonverbal communication plays a very strong role in the impressions that we give to people therefore having an understanding of what happened with Poppy is key to furthering my communication skills and awareness in future. Non-verbal communication is profound. Eyes and eye contact are a major part of non-verbal communication and many messages are consequently sent and received by the eyes (Sieh and Brentin 1997). The person who is listening holds eye contact with the speaker in order to express that they are listening and taking on board what the speaker is saying. The speaker holds eye contact with the listener so that they will know that the conversation is being directed at them (Lerner 2002). It is a real challenge to define normal eye contact as it differs from person to person depending on personal preference and aspects such as culture. (REF something on culture). It is not possible to create a text book advising when to look and how long for (Rungapadiachy 1999). Therefore responses to eye contact are open to interpretation and could lead to confusion within communicative situations (Sieh and Brentin 1997). Eye contact can have a positive impact on people. A good level of eye contact from the listener can make the person speaking feel as if they are being listened to and listener is interested and focused (Rungapadiachy, 1999). Alternatively, any form of eye contact can cause some people to feel uncomfortable, self-conscious and threatened (Rungapadiachy, 1999). Minimal eye contact may indicate lack of interest (Sieh and Brentin 1997) but it is important to acknowledge that eye contact may be less prominent when engaging in difficult or intimate topics (Rungapadiachy, 1999). Knapp (1978, cited in Rungapadiachy, 1999, pp206) recognises that when a person is disapproving of something it can be displayed in aggressive and intimidating eye contact. Furthermore early signs of anger can be shown via intense and threatening eye contact (Neild-Anderson et al 1999). Poppy initially avoided eye contact. She may have felt self-conscious being surrounded by professionals and despite the discussion being originally very positive, the subject matter was also intimate and personal. Similarly possible that she was able to anticipate what was about to be said. As Health visitors the heart of what we do is safeguard children physically and emotionally. The information discussed was vital within our role but it was not easy for her to deliberate and acknowledge. The intimidating eye contact displayed could have been because she was feeling intimidated or she was not accepting of the information being given to her. Moreover, I broke the eye contact momentarily and this may have upset the foundation of the conversation. For Poppy this could very easily be construed as non-compliance to listen on my part (Kidwell 2006). If we feel that something is unacceptable then it is likely that our eye contact will decrease (Rungapadiachy 1999). I acknowledge that I looked away from Poppy whilst she was communicating with me. Consciously I feel this is because I felt intimidated. However perhaps subconsciously I was not accepting of what she was saying. I attempted to communicate to Poppy through non-verbal communication that I do care and I appreciate that the situation was not an easy one for her. This is much like the view of Chambers and Ryder (2012 p106) who acknowledge that many nurses have become very skilled at communicating messages and meaning without words. However in this case, either I was not portraying myself in the manner that I intended, or it went un noticed as a result of Poppys heightened state of anxiety and upset. At the time I did not consider that Poppy could have misinterpreted my eye contact for staring. Poppys behaviour was intimidating but this did not exempt her from feeling intimidated herself. It is possible she felt under attack as a result of the raised concerns and prolonged eye contact on my part could have been threatening (Duxbury, 2000).Moreover, averting my gaze suddenly, may also have signalled fear in me which could also have distracted Poppy from getting her point across (Manos and Braun 2006). Alternatively I acknowledge that eye contact is also natural process and the anger which Poppy displayed did frighten me thus triggering a fight or flight reaction (Manos and Braun 2006). I did not escape physically but there was a shift in my gaze in order to avoid a threatening glare and it could be argued that this does not assist good listening. Although it was not possible in this situation because of the room space, I understand the importance of positioning within a meeting. I was positioned directly opposite Poppy which meant that I was the centre of her vision and she of mine. This meant that where less intrusive peripheral eye contact may have worked better, I was holding what could have been construed intimidating contact (Duxbury, 2000). My Community Practice teacher fed back that my expressions and levels of eye contact were acceptable and skilled. She viewed the reaction as unavoidable because of Poppys nature and the topic of the conversation. I acknowledge that there were a number of factors which triggered Poppys anger and it is because I deem eye contact so important that I have prioritised it. It is very difficult to know whether it directly correlated with the escalation of her emotions and if it did which of the above discussions applied to her. However as a result I am more aware of different personalities and how communication methods can be interpreted and it is this which is so vital for future practice. Seih and Brentin (1997 p5) reinforce this by stating Being sensitive to your own eye contact patterns and the patterns of those with whom you communicate will help you be more perceptive of what is occurring in the communication process, Active Listening I was aware that Poppy needed support to deescalate. I was not confident addressing this myself despite having had years of experience deescalating distressed people who displayed challenging behaviour. This was different. There was pressure on me as Poppy had targeted me and I was feeling increasingly intimidated by what was happening. Whilst Poppy was shouting I nodded a few times so she would feel listened to. She made some unpleasant threats to my community practice teacher and me and was suggesting that there was no problem with leaving children unattended in a smoky car or in smoking with them on her lap. I was equally careful as I did not want to give the impression that I was condoning what was being said. When active listening was used Poppy did respond calmly on occasion. Verbal contributions which I made in response to Poppy included: Am I right in thinking that you feel that your privacy has not been respected? Are you saying you feel health visitors dont think you are a good mother? Active listening is central to good interpersonal skills (Wondrak 1998). Where listening may be deemed passive when a person is talking and another listening it is in fact very active. Active listening is defined by Arnold and Boggs (2007 pp201) as a dynamic, interactive process in which a nurse hears a clients message, decodes its meaning, and provides feedback to the client based on their understanding of what has been said. It is deemed an empathetic means of communication where the listener understands and shares the feelings of the person talking whilst recognising they are not their own feelings and opinions (Balzer-Riley 2008.) A significant advantage of active listening is that it prevents misunderstanding. By relaying back to the person what they say they are feeling it ensures that there is no guess work and thus confusion over what is being said (Balzer-Riley 2008). Active listening is therefore a useful tool in attempting to defuse situations involving conflict (Reznic et al 2012). It allows the individual to communicate and get a response when conversation is not appropriate. In these instances the use of active listening enables the person talking to feel like they are being engaged with but without bombarding them with information they are not in a position to receive (McBride and Maitland 2002). Actively listening gave me the opportunity to be proactive. I was embarrassed and threatened and felt that it was my fault that Poppy was upset (as a result of me diverting eye contact). I had a personal battle because on one hand I felt sad for Poppy as she was clearly distressed and I understand that she has a lot of difficulties in her life. On the other hand I was shocked that she said that she did not care about the issues in hand. It could be argued that she was being defensive because she felt uncomfortable in the situation; however the issued in hand were very real and reflected what she was saying. As theory suggests, active listening in this instance was useful. It enabled Poppy to feel that she was being listened to and perhaps even understood. Although Poppy appeared fraught, the fact that I was relaying to her what she had just told us seemed to gradually calm the situation. It was my hope that by actively listening we would eventually get to a point where Poppy was ready to talk and receive advice and information. I acknowledge this was perhaps naÃÆ' ¯ve but Poppy was empowered enough to make the decision to walk away to calm down. Despite the challenging situation there was no obvious misunderstanding to be resolved, more a serious issue which needed to be addressed. I would like to have been able to offer Poppy some space to calm down but this would not have fitted in with the core group. I was very conscious that there were a room full of people watching and that this would not have supported Poppy to deescalate. It was a relief that by actively listening to Poppy, my CPT was able to encourage her to make the decision. In contrast to the recommendation I made for future practice regarding eye contact, it is recommended that the listener sits squarely in front of the person talking and maintains good eye contact when engaging in active listening (Duxbury 2000). I would agree that this is the case when the conversation is calmer however I learnt that in this scenario this was not appropriate as I was sitting directly in front of Poppy. The verbal communication I contributed through the active listening process had a more positive impact than the way in which I was sitting. Linking in with the above reflection about eye contact, it is recommended to maintain good eye contact with the person talking if it is within their cultural boundaries (McBride and Mailtland 2002). Active listening will be a dynamic part of my communication methods in future and I aim to learn more about the effects of active listening on people who receive care. I would like to attend further training in this area as I now see it as a vital aspect of communication and I acknowledge that active listening skills can be improved. As an active listener, sensitivity is a key concept and I believe it is a method which could be particularly beneficial when communicating with women who are suffering with post natal depression. The concept of active listening is consistent however the ease in which we do it will vary from case to case as will the outcome. The situation described above was tense and it took self-discipline for all those involved not to engage in a conversation which could have caused the incident to worsen further and the non-verbal communication methods varied from what is recommended. In future I will be aware of adaptations which may be required rather than solely facing them at the time. Ultimately active listening will be valued as much as any other forms of communication. Leadership As previously established, communicating in difficult circumstances and communicating information which may be difficult for families to acknowledge is not unique in health visiting. As health visitors embrace new leadership challenges it is important to acknowledge the above reflection and consider how what has been learnt can be disseminated through teams. Throughout the SCPHN course communication skills such as active listening are taught and these skills are useful not only in communicating with families but also with teams. Building relationships and having the ability to communicate and negotiate successfully are key skills in leadership and being able to gage appropriate eye contact and active listening both come under the umbrella of communication (Adams 2010). Effective communication is a core competence in good leaders (Sobieraj 2012) and this is demonstrated in the NHS Leadership Framework (REF) which prioritizes communication as a key component. Recommendations for future Practice as a leader: Further training in non-verbal communication skills needs to be available to teams as this will benefit communication used with families and further professional relationships. Non-verbal communication skills should be discussed with all of the team regularly for example in team meeting s or supervision and used as a measure for understanding and success. Critical reflection on various scenarios should be carried out in order to further understanding in these areas and support the application of evidence based practice. Empower team members to communicate effectively and understand the importance of non-verbal communication strategies As a leader I will take what I have learnt with regards to this reflection and use the skills in communicating with both families and team members. When making recommendations be sure it doesnt start to sound like a shopping list balance this with the demands and pressures of the real world. Maybe find examples of where these suggestions have been put into practiceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦this helps to justify your recommendations etc. The above recommendations support the notion of leading with compassion. Offering team members with the compassion we want them to provide enables each individual to feel empowered to give effective and compassionate care of which non-verbal communication is so important (Sobieraj, 2012).

Monday, August 19, 2019

A Comparison of the Chemical Structures and Production Methods of Silk

A Comparison of the Chemical Structures and Production Methods of Silk and Artificial Silk Abstract Despite their seemingly similar exteriors, the chemical structures and production methods of natural silk and the artificial silks rayon and nylon are quite different. Silk yarn, extracted from the cocoon of the Bombyx mori moth, is made up of fibroin molecules with beta-pleated sheet secondary structures. The fibroin molecules consist of crystalline fibers constructed of regularly paralleled, unfolded polypeptide chains of polyglycylalanine mixed with an amorphous part. Although viscose rayon was originally called â€Å"artificial silk,† it is not a truly synthetic fiber, as it is made from wood pulp, a naturally-occurring, cellulose-based material. Nylon, however, is a synthetic fiber. It is a polyamide whose molecular chains are formed by regularly spaced –CONH– amide groups. Nylon 6-6, or poly(hexamethylneadipamide), is composed of two structural monomers (hexamethylendiamine (H2N(CH2)6NH2) and adipic acid (HOOC(CH2)4COOH), whereas Nylon 6, or poly(6-caprolactam), is composed of a single structural unit (either 6-aminocaproic acid (H2N(CH2)4COOH) or caprolactam). Ultimately, the different chemistries and production methods of these fibers give them certain advantages (such as viscose’s ability to combine with other fibers to create new fabrics easily) and disadvantages (such as nylon’s quickly weakening fibers or natural silk’s difficulty of production) over one another that make them more or less suitable for certain purposes. For this reason, when considering silk and artificial silk, it is illogical to pick one fiber that is superior to the others and to focus on the production of that specific fiber. A Compa... ...io State University Extension Fact Sheet: Textiles and Clothing. Retrieved July 25, 2008, from http://ohioline.osu.edu/hygfact/ 5000/5538.html Swicofil AG Textile Services. (n.d.). Viscose Rayon. Swicofil. Retrieved July 25, 2008, from http://www.swicofil.com/viscose.htmlc Trossarelli, L. (2003). The History of Nylon. Commissione Centrale Materiali e Tecniche. Retrieved July 25, 2008, from http://www.caimateriali.org/Eventi/Torino/historynylon.html The Viscose Company. (1937). The Story of Rayon (3rd ed.). New York Sales Office: 200 Madison Avenue: The Viscose Company. Wikipedia. (July 24, 2008). Silk. Retrieved July 28, 2008, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silk Wikipedia. (July 28, 2008) Viscose. Retrieved July 26, 2008, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viscose Woodhouse, T. F. (1929). Artificial Silk or Rayon (2nd ed.). Sir Isaac Pitman & Sons, Ltd.

What is outsourcing Essay -- Globalization essays, research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What is Outsourcing? It is a method in which companies subcontract labor and support to outside agencies (Klepper, 1997). How, why, and who companies outsource to are quickly becoming social topics of discussion in our society. Everyone seems to have an opinion on outsourcing. I bet that I can walk into a social gathering right now and hear discussions like â€Å"outsourcing is good for the American consumer† or outsourcing takes jobs away from all of the hard working Americans.† In either case, outsourcing has raised great concerns over its effects on the American economy. In this paper, I will discuss the types of outsourcing, pros and cons associated with outsourcing, management views of outsourcing, employee views of outsourcing, and give my opinion of outsourcing. What does outsourcing do? It enables companies to focus on the mission at hand, to save money and be competitive. Depending on a Company’s needs determines the type of outsourcing that company may use (Embleton, 1998). Outsourcing is a very diverse market, and there are many different outsourcing options from. Two common types of outsourcing I will focus on are Information Technology (IT) outsourcing and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) (Bowen, 1998). Through research, I found that Information Technology (IT) Outsourcing is a rapidly growing market. I.T. outsourcing enables companies to continue to manage their core business, while outside agencies manage their technology needs (Bowen, 1998). It’s a way of getting rid of those high paid, college graduated employees. I.T. outsourcing allows companies to use cost-cutting methods to cover computing needs, large mainframe and midrange data center, manage numerous networks and run desktops across the globe (Bowen, 1998). Advantages of outsourcing information technology include, but are not limited to, less capital expenditure, less management headache, and keeping focus on core competencies. Less capital expenditure means a company does not have to buy expensive hardware and software. Less management headache relieves companies of having to hire and manage accounting personnel. Keeping focus on core competencies affords companies’ time to strengthen and gain a competitive edge over the competition (DiRomualdo, 1998). Disadvantages of outsourcing information include less managerial control, may be more expensive, and Sec... ...Workers in developing nations will get new and higher-paying jobs, and consumers in the U.S. will be able to buy products that are cheaper than if they were made at home. But is this really good for our society. We will soon find out. References Bowen. T and LaMonica, M. (1998). IT gets picky with outsourcing. Infoworld 20(33), 1-3 De Rose, L. (2004). The Downside to Outsourcing. Electronic Buyers’ News. July 14, Issue 1066. DiRomualdo, A & Gurbaxani. (1998). Strategic intent for IT outsourcing. Sloan Management Review. 39(4), 115. Earl, M.J. (1996). The risks of outsourcing IT. Sloan Management Review. 37(3), 26-33. Embleton, P.R & Wright, P.C. (1998). A practical guide to successful outsourcing. Empowerment in Organizations. 6(3), 1-11 Hayes, R and Pisano, G. (1994). Beyond World-Class: The New Manufacturing Strategy. Harvard Business Review. 72(1). Klepper, R & Jones, W. (1997). Outsourcing information Technology, Systems and Services. Prentice Hall. Nicholas, J. (1998). Competitive Manufacturing Management (Singapore:McGraw-Hill). Chapter 19, Managing the Supply Chain, pg 672 Strassmann, P.A. (1995). Outsourcing: A Game for Losers. Computerworld. August 21.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Ivan Fyodorovich Karamazov A Diabolical Hero Essay -- essays papers

Ivan Fyodorovich Karamazov A Diabolical Hero Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky is considered by many to be the pinnacle in a great line of Russian authors who wrote in the 19th century. Gogol, Tolstoy, Lermontov, Pushkin, Chekhov: these writers, like many greats the world round, concerned themselves not only with their art, but with its affect on their society; Gogol, for example, is said to have gone insane while working on his masterpiece, Dead Souls, obsessing himself with the idea that he could bring about the resurrection of his country through his tale. Eventually becoming disillusioned with the task he had set himself, Gogol burnt much of the manuscript and renounced all his worldly possessions, going on to lead an ascetic life until his death from starvation. While Dostoyevsky did not go to such extremes, he also intended to provide a salvation for his country, which he saw was headed down a dangerous path. This salvation was to take the form of The Brothers Karamazov and 'the Church as a positive social ideal was to constitute the central idea of the new novel...' (xiii)1. Some critics, however, have claimed that while he may have set out to write in support of the Church, Dostoyevsky ended up writing a novel which in many ways shows 'evil' in an attractive, or at least ambiguous, light. For them, Ivan Fyodorovich Karamazov is one of the most compelling characters in all literature the world round and that it is with him and not Alyosha (the 'Saviour' in the novel), that we as readers identify most strongly. Thus, they claim, by having us identify with the rational, amoral atheism of Ivan, the novel becomes something of a 'diabolodicy' rather than the great defense of God and Church it was intended to be.... ...n of accepting God, or, at the very least, His necessity. Of course, it could be argued that this 'acceptance' only stands in the context of the novel-that is, the events in the novel are structured so as to make all non-believers come to bad ends and thus make it seem as though any path other than that of Zosima and Alyosha is the wrong path; however, I must stress that the existence of such a profound conscience in Ivan and our deep sympathy for him leads us, almost inevitably, to reject the idea that'all things are lawful' because our sympathy proves that we ourselves have consciences as well. Thus, whether we believe in God or not, we are forced to admit that we must at least act as though there is. To do otherwise is to risk the fate of Ivan Fyodorovich Karamazov. Bibliography: Fyodor M. Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov, Trans. David McDuff (Penguin)

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Caring for the Elderly and Their Views on Aging

Caring for the Elderly and their Views on Aging Kesha Edwards ECPI University Nursing 111 Mrs. Shaffer June 8th, 2012 The purpose of this report is to investigate the ageing and life of Ms. Rose Brown, who happens to be one of my residents at the nursing home I am currently employed at; how she feels about ageing in today’s society, and also what she has learned and what she would have done differently. She is 67 years-old, and lives by herself. With this report, I intend to learn about her life condition and, as well suggest and inform her ways to improve her life.After spending two afternoons interviewing Ms. Brown, I gained some knowledge on how she perceives the aging process and the impact on the quality of her life. Firstly, she assured me that she views aging in a very positive and healthy way. Ms. Brown first stated that aging itself has a bad reputation, but all isn’t bad. â€Å"The best thing about aging is the experiences one can acquire and share with young er people. She believes that, a positive attitude and assists in accepting oneself and the physical and psychological changes.She enjoys the fact that, she is physically fit and cognitively alert. She is positively sure that with the advances made in a health care, the quality of her life will be granted. Also, she enjoys the benefits of being a senior citizen, including discounted travel and fares, lower cost Medicare. Over all, the spare time to do what she loves. However, when I mention about a long term care, such as Nursing home, if for any instance she ever considered going to a nursing home for a better assistance; she paused for a moment, as if was something that made her really sad.She replied that, she has no regards on going to a nursing home, in her opinion; nursing home is a place where she would feel isolated of the world and her close friends. Most important, she would feel useless, being in a place that people would do everything for her. Secondly, she is afraid to b e neglected and mistreated. Many times she asked herself, will I be happy? Will I be alone or surrounded with happy people? Will I be cared? I also shared with Ms. Brown about different topics concerning elderly, in particular, ageism, social network, and caregiving. On my second interview with Ms. Brown, I decided to bring my Gerontology notebook â€Å" Aging, the Individual, and Society†, so I could share with her some facts about aging, elderly, how society views it, and most important. From the book, we look up about Ageism, I asked her, what she had to say about it and if she ever felt discriminated for being old. She had a positive response to that, she told from the 25 years she had been leaving here, younger generation have always respected her, and generous to her.We also read chapter 4† Physical Health and Wellbeing†, leaving by herself it important to know about being self-sufficient, we cover chapter 5 â€Å"Mental Health†, â€Å"Finances and l ifestyles†, chapter 9, statistically speaking, women’s financial needs are different from men’s. Women live longer than men, most often; they see themselves leaving in an income below average. Lastly, we read chapter 10 â€Å"Living Environment†, and â€Å"The Oldest-old and Caregiving†, on chapter 11.One of my concerns with Ms. Brown was the fact that she was leaving by herself. What are some problems that the elderly may face living alone? I think the greater concern would be loneliness, anyone who has been married for a long time, and now faces widowhood, certainly will miss their mate. Other concerns are, not eating properly; vulnerability to strangers, unable to maintain a household, forgetting to take their medicine, unable to walk outside without help, and the list goes on.As a caretaker at the South Richmond Adult facility, a couple of major challenges facing our facility include; the increased rules and regulations, the increasing burden of Documentation and Paperwork, understaffing and having enough sub-acute trained nurses and quality therapists; seeing that I often have ten to twenty residents because of the understaffing issue, and treating increasingly difficult patients with reduced reimbursements and insufficient funding.Besides my children, two of my most significant accomplishments to date would have to include obtaining my CAN and working in this field for the past six years, and finally making the decision to attend college and obtain my Nursing Degree. A couple of my strengths as being a caretaker would include my communication skills, which I believe are great and benefit me in my everyday career. I enjoy speaking with patients nd families whenever possible. I even spend the day with some of my residents on my days off. I have come to believe that a close friendly relationship is very important with the families as well as the patients as they are coping with ageing of someone close and all the health iss ues that follow. Also, my organizational skills are very important to me as well as my fellow co-workers. Remaining organized and scheduled allows for a smoother day.I have come to believe that my greatest weakness is finding it challenging on occasions to separate my feelings from my career. My views on ageing are that it can be a beautiful thing. If you take care of your body at a young age and eat healthy, when you become older it won’t affect you as much. With age comes wisdom, so once you become a certain age, you have done a lot in life and you have the knowledge and wisdom to pass on to younger people.

Friday, August 16, 2019

Realisation of the Witches in ‘Animated Tales’ version of Shakespeare’s Macbeth Essay

In class we watched an ‘Animated Tales’ version of Shakespeare’s Macbeth. We were given the task of introducing, developing and concluding how we felt the witches were realised in ‘Animated Tales’. We compared the ‘Animated Tales’ with the text and discussed how we felt the text was realised. In Act 1 Scene 1, the stage directions of the play tell us that the witches meet on the moor in thunder and lightning. In the Animated Tales, black and grey wavy lines represent this. Although we do not hear the booming of the thunder or the flashing of the lighting, we understand that this is represented by the moody and dark weather. This is called pathetic fallacy, the method of associating weather with something. In this case we are associating the evil witches with dark and unruly weather. We see this also in Act 1 Scene 3 when the witches appear in similar downcast weather. It helps us to associate their evil with evil and disruptive weather. We are told in the stage direction of the first scene that the witches appear on a moor. This is obviously an isolated place and we are able to see this in the Animated Tales. There is nobody on screen but the witches and the only other thing we see is the dark, wavy lines in the sky. An isolated and lonely place helps us better understand the social standing of the witches and how they were seen and treated by people. When we first see the witches on screen in the Animated Tales, they rise from the bottom of the screen in tandem. As they rise we hear a trumpet fanfare. The exclamation of the fanfare represents the sudden and climatic nature of the thunder and lightning that the witches meet in. The music we hear after this fanfare is quite eerie but not at all sinister. It is rather childish and is not the sort of music we would expect to hear when we see the witches. It has a varying tempo and despite the sinister nature of the witches, is not at all scary. It is childish and juvenile, and is paradoxical. It is paradoxical because we do not expect this sort of childish music to be played in conjunction with the appearance of the witches. We can, however, associate this with the confusion of the witches and their deceiving of Macbeth and Banquo. We hear music being played while the witches tell Macbeth and Banquo their prophecies in Act 1 Scene 3 but in this scene the music is somewhat more sinister and moody. It is understood that this is because the witches are about to embark upon evil by prophesising to Macbeth and Banquo and the music reflects this mood. There are a number of points to note about the characters and personalities of the witches. In the first scene when they begin to talk, they do so in rhyme. This gives the impression that they are casting a spell, which is one of the supernatural abilities they possess. They express a number of other supernatural abilities throughout the two scenes, such as the ability to change and control the weather. This is demonstrated early on in the scene when the witches say; â€Å"When shall we three meet again In thunder, lighting, or in rain?† This tells us that they have the supernatural ability to control the weather and make it how they like and this is also seen when one witch changes into a flash of lighting. Another point to note about their early speech is that it contains some paradoxes; â€Å"When the hurlyburly’s done, When the battle’s lost and won.† ————————————– â€Å"Fair is foul, and foul is fair; Hover through fog and filthy air.† These paradoxes are all to do with the witches deceptive nature, and that they withhold the truth a lot of the time. Their speech is often confused and this is the case in Act 1 Scene 3 when they are giving the prophecies to Macbeth and Banquo; â€Å"Lesser than Macbeth, and greater.† —————————————— â€Å"Not so happy, yet much happier.† In this scene they are not telling Macbeth and Banquo everything that they know and are deceiving them with the prophecies. This is due to the disruptive and deceptive nature, and they are intent on causing trouble. Their deceptiveness is also demonstrated in the two scenes in the changing of shape and appearance. Each of the three witches each has two different masks or faces, which they alternate between. They do this when they are talking to Macbeth and Banquo and again it seems that they are deceiving them by doing so. Their body form also changes, and at one stage one witch changes into form of a raven, with outstretched wings. The raven was said to be a symbol, or messenger, of death and Lady Macbeth speaks of it in Act 1 Scene 5; â€Å"The raven himself is hoarse That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan Under my battlements.† The witches, in their prophecies to Macbeth, are deceiving him and weaving a web of trouble. After hearing of the prophecies the ambitious Macbeth is already beginning to think of murdering to achieve his ultimate aim of being king and this is why the changing of form into a raven, the messenger of death, is important. In Act 1 Scene 3, the witches demonstrate several of their supernatural abilities. At the beginning when the First witch talks of the sailor’s wife and says she will hinder her husband’s journey, her fellow witches say; â€Å"I’ll give thee a wind,† ————————– â€Å"And I another.† This is a demonstration of the witch’s ability to control the weather, which was also demonstrated in Act 1 Scene 1. The other two witches offer to help out by making the sailor’s journey difficult. The first witch also demonstrates the same ability in the passage that follows in which she says she will make the sailor’s journey a tough one. The fact that they are offering to help each other reinforces the belief that they are very much alone and have only each other, and that they are indeed â€Å"weird sisters†. When Macbeth and Banquo are on the moor and the witches appear, they appear to drift in and out of visibility, and at times are even translucent. This is an example of the supernatural ability to disappear or vanish. This ability is also seen at the end of both scenes, when the witches link arms, hover above the ground, which is another of their supernatural abilities, and then vanish. The linking of arms shows the togetherness and closeness of the witches but also makes it seem as if they are casting a spell, another of their supernatural abilities. When the witches are giving their prophecies to Macbeth and Banquo, they are demonstrating the supernatural ability to predict the future. When they tell Macbeth that he will be Thane of Cawdor, the bones of their hands disassemble to become the medal that the Thane of Cawdor wears. The bones are to symbolise death – both the death of King Duncan and also Macdownwald former Thane of Cawdor. It is meaning to say that Macbeth will become Thane of Cawdor but at the expense of someone else, which is also later the case when he murders Duncan and becomes King. The witch’s bones also change into the form of a crown, which then hovers above Macbeth’s head. It is glowing, and casts a shadow on Macbeth’s face. The shadows that are cast make it seem as if the crown is reflecting on his darker side, and his dark desires. That the crown is just over his head shows that it is out of his reach naturally and he must commit evil to make it his. The witches are tempting Macbeth with the offer of riches and keep it just out of his reach to tease and tempt him, which arouses desires. They are causing trouble by doing this. The witches are quite horrid in appearance. They do not appear to be gender specific and when they appear in the first scene they have a somewhat death-like appearance – they are skeletal and zombie-like and not at all natural. When they appear to Banquo and Macbeth in Scene 3 Banquo is confused as to what they are; â€Å"What are these, So wither’d and so wild in their attire, That look not like th’ inhabitants o’ the earth, And yet are on ‘t? Live you? Or are you aught That man may question?† When they are talking to him and Macbeth they hover around them and their heads become disjointed from the rest of their bodies. The floating heads seem death-like and this shows us again that the witches are very unnatural. In conclusion, I feel that the text is realised well in â€Å"Animated Tales†. The witches are mostly believable and the speech is accurate in accordance with the text. I think however that some parts are a little less realistic than others, simply because of the nature of the cartoon. The witches are well animated and are not at all stereotypical or clichà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½d. I feel that the film is well made and entertaining, and helps to make the text more interesting.

Thursday, August 15, 2019

Mycenae and Agamemnon Essay

Mycenae lies about 90 kilometres south-west of Athens. From around 1600BC-1100BC Mycenae was a highly wealthy and influential city, dominating much of southern Greece. The Mycenaean Era was named in reference to the city. THE DISCOVERY OF MYCENAE It was Heinrich Schliemann who first completely excavated the city of Mycenae. The controversial archaeologist was searching for evidence that Agamemnon, the king who led the Greeks to fight Troy in the Trojan War. Schliemann was determined to prove that the Trojan War was a real event; in fact his career was based around his desire for this. After failing to find any definitive evidence in his search for Troy, he turned to Mycenae. In 1841 another archaeologist had found and restored the Lion Gate that marks the entrance to the city of Mycenae, but Schliemann was the first to systematically excavate the entire site. He believed that the Homeric tales described actual historical events and used his discoveries at Mycenae to back this up. DISOVERIES MADE AT THE SITE Discovered in Grave Circle A by Schliemann’s team, a dagger shows the militaristic values of the Mycenaean’s. From the weapons buried with most of the bodies found, we can deduct that the Mycenaean’s were not a peaceful people. They revelled in fighting, as shown by the violent motifs on their stelae and decorative weapons. Most graves featured full sets of weapons, both real and decorative. We can assume that life for the men of Mycenae would have had a heavy focus on fighting , with men of higher status being shown as brave fighters. This is also shown through the architecture of the city, particularly the Cyclopean walls. These huge walls show a need for a defensive attitude, which demonstrates the Mycenaean’s military attitude. On this dagger there is a depiction of a lion hunt, which shows that the Mycenaean’s hunted for sport. This further reflects the aggressive principles of the city. Double axe and bull motifs show a Minoan influence in Mycenaean culture. Within the graves in Grave Circle A there were many objects that had been made in Mycenae but in Minoan style. This reflects an appreciation for Minoan design and an obvious link through trade and travel between Minoan Crete and Mycenae. Later the former would be conquered by the latter. In Mycenae there would have been trading of goods from Minoan Crete and an admiration of the techniques, since they were implemented in wares produced within Mycenae. The graves themselves also shed light upon burial practises and status in Mycenae. The graves themselves are shaft graves, 4 metres deep with the dead placed in a cist at the bottom along with many decadent grave goods. The Grave would sometimes be marked with a stone Stele at ground level. These stelae would be used to depict things like chariot scenes, showing the heroic nature of the deceased buried below. The grave goods showed the status of the deceased, with gold and weapons showing a higher status. This shows that burial was not only a valued practise, but also reflected status and worth, depending on what you were buried with. The so-called â€Å"Nestor’s Cup† was a particularly important discovery for Schliemann. His team recovered the vessel from Shaft Grave IV and Schliemann identified it as the â€Å"Cup of Nestor† as written about in the Illiad. However the cup differs from Homer’s description in number of handles, the design of the birds, and size. It also is from the wrong time to have been used in the Trojan War according to some critics. However, this didn’t discourage Schliemann from his firm belief in the Homeric tales. This is one of the many discoveries Schliemann made that he believed contributed to proving that the tales detail historical events. CONTROVERSIES Within a shaft grave V Schliemann discovered a skeleton with a gold mask covering his face- a face which he believed was that of the legendary Agamemnon. However, in recent years critics have developed more and more arguments to the effect that the mask may be a hoax. William Calder gives the following reasons for his sceptical nature towards Schliemann’s find: The features of the mask are inconsistent with the other masks found; Schliemann had considered making fakes of the gold he found at Troy to give forgeries to give to the government; contemporaries of Schliemann allege that he planted artefacts to later â€Å"discover† them; the excavations at both Mycenae and Troy had been closed just a few days after the discovery of the gold, suggesting that he was expecting to find these treasures and nothing else; excavations were closed for 2 days shortly before Schliemann found the mask, what could Schliemann have been doing; Sophia allegedly has a relative in Athens that was a goldsmith; No other Mycenaean grave has anywhere near what was discovered in shaft grave V; Schliemann had claimed he had excavated other finds elsewhere, when it was later revealed that he had bought them. David Traill suggests that perhaps the Agamemnon mask wasn’t manufactured, but found from a later tomb. Both of his appeals for a scientific examination of the mask have been denied by the Greek authorities. In response to Calder and Traill many argue that their claims are unfounded and lack any scholarly backing, and have their own arguments in response. They insist that Schliemann was carefully monitored by Greek authorities throughout his excavation, which both Calder and Triall admit to in their own publishing. Kenneth Lapatin explains that the days where Calder alleged Schliemann had time to get a mask made, were before any masks had been found yet. Although he does admit it is possible the mask may have been â€Å"enhanced† after it was discovered. Both sides of the debate present both personal opinions and insinuations mixed in with actual fact. Considering the dishonest nature of Schliemann it is easy to believe he planted the mask. But when considering the work at Mycenae alone, there is no undoubtable evidence to suggest that he was dishonest about that particular find, only rumour and hearsay. From the collections of circumstantial suggestions put forward by Triall and Calder, their theories become increasingly believable. However, some parts of their arguments seem reminiscent of conspiracy theories, so perhaps it’s best to take the mask as an important –if disputed- archaeological find, but not proving the existence of Agamemnon. BIBILOGRAPHY http://library.thinkquest.org/25245/archaeology/mycenae.html http://www.ancient-wisdom.co.uk/greecemycenae.htmhttp://mycenae-excavations.org/about.html http://www.historywiz.com/agamemnon.htm http://odysseus.culture.gr/h/3/ eh351.jsp?obj_id=2573 http://www.uark.edu/campus-resources/achilles/age/myceneans.html http://www.archaeology.org/9907/etc/calder.html http://www.archaeology.org/9907/etc/lapatin.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grave_Circle_A,_Mycenae http://www.archaeology.org/9907/etc/traill.html http://www.ancientgreece.com/essay/v/greek-life-as-depicted-in-homers-epic-the-odyssey/ http://www.archaeology.org/9907/etc/dema.html http://www.greek-thesaurus.gr/Mycenaean-weapons.html