Alzheimer`s Disease (903 words) Essay Example For Students

Alzheimer's Disease (903 words) Essay Alzheimer's DiseaseAlzheimers Disease (AD) is one of the most well-known of the twisting ailments. Aprogressive, degenerative infection that assaults the cerebrum, causing impairedmemory, thinking and conduct. An individual with Alzhiemers Disease may experiencepersonality and conduct changes, debilitated judgment, disarray and difficultyfinishing contemplations, following bearings or in any event, finding the correct word to sayin a discussion. When cutting-edge the victim may require a guardian as dailychores become hard to achieve. Proof focuses toward amyloid asone of the primary driver for the happening cytotoxic procedures. Analysts havefound that degeneration gives off an impression of being brought about by obstruction with intracellularcalcium homeostasis by means of enactment of calcium channels, intracellular calciumstores, and further creation of free radicals by calcium-delicate compounds. The glutamatergic framework is by all accounts engaged with intervening the harmful procedures. In the mind, the nerve cells in the part that controls memory and thinking aredamaged, this intrudes on the entry of messages between imparting cells. The phones experience particular changes, these are called neuritic plaques (groupsof deteriorating nerve cell closes) and neurofibrillary tangles (gatherings of twistedfilaments which aggregate in beforehand sound nerve cells). The cortex (usedfor thinking) of the cerebrum shrivels, the spaces in the focal point of the mind becomeenlarged causing decrease of the surface zone in the cerebrum. Side effects of ADusually happen in more established grown-ups and are the ones most in danger, despite the fact that individuals intheir 40s and 5Os may likewise be influenced. The side effects incorporate a misfortune ofintellectual limit, loss of language abilities which may incorporate having troublefinding words, poor or diminished judgment, issues with dynamic thinking,disorientation set up and time, changes in temperament or conduct and changes inpersonality. Advertisement doesn't separate, it influences any race, socio foundation orsex similarly. The great side effect of absent mindednes s is a piece of the typical agingprocess and for the most part starts in early middle age, be that as it may, ordinary forgetfulnessdiffers from Alzheimers Disease from multiple points of view. The reason ofAlzheimers Disease isn't actually known. Suspected causes experiencing researchare neurological harm, substance inadequacies, infections, natural toxinsand glitches in the bodys illness protection frameworks and hereditary qualities. There isalso proof of a marginally expanded danger of heridity of AD among children,brothers and sisters of patients with this ailment. It is additionally critical to notethat AD must be analyzed 100% after death through a post-mortem examination of theaffected subjects cerebrum tissue. About 33% of examinations turn up a differentdiagnosis and along these lines relatives are urged to request a post-mortem as acontribution to the investigation of the illness and about the hereditary qualities of AD. There isno single clinical test for AD. It is gener ally analyzed by precluding all othercurable or hopeless reasons for memory misfortune. A positive conclusion of this diseasecan just be made by minutely examining a little bit of cerebrum tissue afterdeath. The cerebral cortex of an Alzheimer victims cerebrum will havecharacteristic irregularities, for example, cells defaced by plaques and tangles. Aworking analysis can be made however through different testing systems thatinclude a total physical just as neurological and psychologicalexaminations. Right now there is no positive fix or treatment for AD,although there are numerous providers of items which guarantee to support victims, butthe items are progressively similar to over-evaluated fake treatments with no recorded proof ofalleviation of the ailment among victims, however glutamate receptor-selectivedrugs, a few cancer prevention agents, nitric oxide synthase inhibitors, calcium channelantagonists, receptor or compound inhibitors, and development factors guarantee futurehelp in restoring this sickness. Mixes of medications that demonstration at various levelsmay additionally drag out the victims life/wellbeing. Individuals determined to have AlzheimersDisease can live somewhere in the range of 2 to 20 years after memory misfortune side effects start tosurface. It abbreviates the victims expected life expectancy, however through appropriatecare and clinical consideration the patients oftenlive for a long time. Demise cantusually be anticipated until the end stages where side effects are approaching theirworse. A few patients in late or terminal-stage Alzheimers will in general lose weightand experience issues gulping, challenges with bladder control, strolling andtalking. They are likewise known to twist into a fetal position. Victims most oftendie through a progression of rehashed contaminations, for example, bladder diseases orpneumonia. In spite of the fact that the accompanying estimations are from American writing, asexplained prior we realize that AD has a pretty much general impact amongstthe populaces, proportion savvy. Alzheimers harrows around 4,000,000Americans and its evaluated that one of every three of us may have a relative thatwill experience the ill effects of this degenerative infection. In excess of 100,000 bite the dust every year whichmakes AD the fourth biggest reason for grown-up death in the US. It is additionally a verycostly ailment monatary astute in that about portion of the patients in nursing homeshave this sickness with an expected $80 billion spent every year on the consideration of,diagnosis, treatment, and so forth. Individuals who experience the ill effects of AD regularly require 24-hour careand oversight, this is generally given by loved ones of every a home. .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63 , .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63 .postImageUrl , .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63 .focused content region { min-stature: 80px; position: relative; } .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63 , .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63:hover , .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63:visited , .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63:active { border:0!important; } .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63 .clearfix:after { content: ; show: table; clear: both; } .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63 { show: square; progress: foundation shading 250ms; webkit-change: foundation shading 250ms; width: 100%; darkness: 1; change: obscurity 250ms; webkit-change: haziness 250ms; foundation shading: #95A5A6; } .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63:active , .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63:hover { mistiness: 1; progress: murkiness 250ms; webkit-change: darkness 250ms; foundation shading: #2C3E50; } .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63 .focused content zone { width: 100%; position: relative; } .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63 .ctaText { outskirt base: 0 strong #fff; shading: #2980B9; text dimension: 16px; textual style weight: striking; edge: 0; cushioning: 0; text-enrichment: underline; } .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63 .postTitle { shading: #FFFFFF; text dimension: 16px; text style weight: 600; edge: 0; cushioning: 0; width: 100%; } .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63 .ctaButton { foundation shading: #7F8C8D!important; shading: #2980B9; fringe: none; fringe sweep: 3px; box-shadow: none; text dimension: 14px; text style weight: intense; line-tallness: 26px; moz-fringe range: 3px; text-adjust: focus; text-enhancement: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-stature: 80px; foundation: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/modules/intelly-related-posts/resources/pictures/basic arrow.png)no-rehash; position: supreme; right: 0; top: 0; } .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63:hover .ctaButton { foundation shading: #34495E!important; } .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63 .f ocused content { show: table; stature: 80px; cushioning left: 18px; top: 0; } .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63-content { show: table-cell; edge: 0; cushioning: 0; cushioning right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-adjust: center; width: 100%; } .ubf13ae39ed0bb3ac537063ae59ae4b63:after { content: ; show: square; clear: both; } READ: Lessons of Life EssayBibliographyBliss T. V. P Collingridge G. L (1993) A synaptic model of memory: Long-termpotentiation in the hippocampus, Nature 361 31-39 * Clarris H. J. et al (1994)Secretion of nerve development factor from septum animates neurite outgrowth andrelease of the amyloid protein forerunner of Alzheimers infection from hippocampalexplants J. Neurosci. Res. 38 248-258 * Disterhoft J. F et al (1994) The calciumrationale in maturing and Alzheimers infection Calcium Hypothesis of Aging andDementia, Annual Academy of Science. N.Y. New York 382-405 * Holschier,C (1998)Neurobiology of ailment, Academic Press 5 121-159 * http://www.ahaf.org/ alzdis/about/adabout.htm* http://www.alzheimers.com/* http://www.zarcrom.com/clients/yeartorem/index4.html

Teaching Values in the Classroom

Showing Values in the Classroom Supplant an unfilled psyche with an open one Malcolm Forbes basic statement above clarifies one significant part of training which is that of expanding the brain. This could be one reason for training however not alone. A reason could contrast starting with one society then onto the next or even starting with one timeframe then onto the next. I will represent this utilizing the complexity between Singapores instruction arrangement of the over a wide span of time. During the 1800s under the British frontier rule, training was available to make the social structure progressively effective through vernacular schools. Later in the post-war period (1950s), schools were restored to guarantee cultural advancement making a course for self-administration. From 1960s onwards, training was viewed as a fundamental apparatus for picking up the specialized aptitudes and skills expected to confront an increasingly industrialized Singapore. Instruction was in this way important to pick up business and conceivably lighten the family monetary status. In the late 1970s be that as it may, there was a change proposed by late Dr. Goh Keng Swee to grasp a more proficiency driven instruction where the reason for existing was to take into account the distinctive learning capacities of the understudies to cause them to learn at their own pace. The current instruction framework anyway has advanced to be increasingly comprehensive that sets one up to be a more globalize d resident. This at last connects to globalized openings for work. It very well may be obviously observed that the reason for training has transformed from that of improving proficiency rate and finding a steady line of work to that of picking up the 21st century esteems, information and ability to work in a contemporary globalized world. Reason for Education The reason for training doesn't need to be the equivalent for every individual since it eventually relies upon what one increases from the instruction he gets. In my view, the reason for instruction is to obtain information, qualities and aptitudes of the 21st century that would set one up to confront the difficulties of a contemporary globalized universe of today and to spur one to seek after deep rooted learning. John Deweys Philosophy This reason which is to a great extent applicable to the present Singapores setting and time span has been for the most part got from John Deweys theory of instruction. John Dewey, an acclaimed savant and instructive scholar, accepted that training is a procedure that should upgrade the personal satisfaction. He considered a way to deal with instruction that would furnish people with the abilities and viewpoint that he accepted were important for assuming the hardships and potential outcomes of life and along these lines for building a superior world. He presented the possibility of a casual instructive methodology whereby the educators would focus on the educational plan, instructional settings and the physical setting of the learning experience. Henceforth, educators could choose and concoct imaginative learning exercises that would animate the understudies to process and apply their educational program content in progressively inventive and unique manners. John Dewey likewise expresses that training includes reproduction of an understudies earlier understanding and information as he/she poses new inquiries and investigates different view of the like. This makes training a transformative procedure where one doesn't increase new information but instead develops his current one. This change would proceed inasmuch as new information and data is found and learnt. His speculations subsequently recommend that training must be functional, connecting with and transformational on just information securing. Since his way of thinking is more in accordance with Singapores instructive framework and social setting, I have utilized it as an establishment for building up my motivation of training. Positive Implications Students The instructive reason has its suggestions on both the educating and learning network in Singapore, specifically to educators and understudies in Singapore schools. The reason can be part into two segments, right off the bat the procuring of 21st century abilities for a globalized world and also the inspiration forever long learning. The previous would permit understudies to become worldwide players on a global stage. This would open the entryways for better occupation prospects sooner rather than later and in this way render them universally employable since work desires have expanded immensely to incorporate social correspondence, data innovation, basic reasoning and critical thinking aptitudes. The last would make people dynamic students as they are progressively free of their learning procedure and won't rely upon the instructors for coddling data. In this manner when they are urged to discover for themselves, it will end up being a journey for information. How is this suggested? The Ministry of Education (MOE) has moved its concentration to adjust an increasingly all encompassing instructive methodology by presenting the 21st century capabilities and wanted results structure which outlines the aptitudes and qualities that an individual would have in the wake of finishing his training in Singapore. My primary center would be the internal red ring which speaks to the socio-passionate qualities that understudies will grow along with their guiding principle and the external orange ring which speaks to the 21st century abilities that the understudies will pick up. These are like the reason that I have called attention to above which is that of obtaining the information, qualities and aptitudes of the 21st century. Schools have hence patched up their showing styles and approaches to furnish understudies with these skills. With the execution of the Teach Less, Learn More arrangement in 2004, instructors have made one stride once more from the customary showing approach and began playing the job of a facilitator in the study hall. For example, there have been venture works being presented as a feature of the course educational program as it improves understudies information and empowers them to secure abilities like cooperation, correspondence and free learning. They would likewise be making joins across various trains and applying the information without simply retaining the raw numbers for spewing forth during assessments. Information Aspect A basic model would be the Integrated Project Work (IPW) that has been started in Bukit Merah Secondary School. It is a gathering venture task for the lower auxiliary understudies which coordinates three unique subjects together to be specific English, Science and Humanities to such an extent that the understudies utilize the substance from their Science and Humanities and their language intensity of English to concoct an undertaking thought dependent on the errand relegated. The last stamps would then be part similarly for the three subjects. Almost certainly IT aptitudes would likewise become possibly the most important factor during the examination stage where web is the fundamental asset and the introduction stage where PowerPoint, video and other visual guides would be utilized. IPW has additionally been utilized in North View Primary School just as Republic Polytechnic. Aptitudes Aspect Another MOE activity would be Information Communication Technology (ICT) in schools. I would utilize my own auxiliary school, Crescent Girls School (CGS) for instance. It was one of the principal schools to present Mobile Learning (m-learning) using tablet PCs in 2003. These PCs supplanted the typical reading material utilized by understudies as advanced course books became possibly the most important factor and concentrated programming applications were introduced as extra learning instruments for Mathematics, English, Art and Geography. For example, while planning for our Oral Examinations, we recorded ourselves perusing out a content and transferred it as a digital recording in our schools web-based interface. Our English instructor at that point gave us her remarks for development in the wake of hearing it. This technique expanded the productivity as it should be possible outside educational plan time with no individual counsels with the educator while additionally getting ready for tests progressively fun. Gathering conversations were additionally encouraged by the convenient PCs. These Tablet PCs permitted understudies to effectively acquire data, grow their learning condition, discover assets for inventive thoughts and think basically. Qualities Aspect Finally, I will take a gander at the Social Emotional Learning programs that are set up in schools. Mandatory Community Involvement Programs (CIP) and Service-Learning activities permit understudies to pick up familiarity with their locale and potentially the worldwide condition. They can sharpen their fundamental beliefs, for example, thoughtfulness, politeness, respectability, care and concern which characterize a person. Qualities like strength, tirelessness and certainty which are expected to defeat the difficulties ahead are likewise ingrained and created by means of workshops. Simply concentrating on the aptitudes and information alone doesn't ensure achievement so one must not disregard the qualities that shape an individual. These 3 angles help to clarify how my motivation has really been accomplished through certain strategies and instructional methods being viably done in the neighborhood schools. 1) Negative Implication Students Stress Then again, there is the pressure factor. As understudies need to get familiar with the substance just as build up their different zones to confront the globalized world, they would without a doubt experience the weight of complying with time constraints and reading for their assessments. I accept that additional time must be saved for amendment for tests as these evaluations are unmistakably reflected in our scholastic endorsements. At the point when activities are relegated, additional time ought to be designated to plan for the introductions but it must be guaranteed that they don't conflict with different cutoff times and test dates. Legitimate association is of the quintessence here. Despise contemplating disposition Besides, pushing the capability of understudies at a youthful age might make them detest contemplating. A model would be the presentation of Science in Primary 1. Despite the fact that this move was to permit understudies to increase an introduction before being officially shown the subject in Primary 3, it would just confound understudies particularly since they have just ventured out of kindergarten into another territo

Secret Essay Example For Students

Mystery Essay SecretsIt is a nature of individuals to impart their emotions and mysteries to their alleged companions. Privileged insights are for the most part circumstance that includes this one individual who needs to manage the issues of their security when confessing to the mystery and simultaneously doesn't need outsider to know. Be that as it may, it is smarter to the audience than the mystery teller. For example, if an individual has a significant choice to make and on the off chance that he/she doesn't need anyone to else to know the circumstance, however at a similar token needs recommendation or counsel from individuals who he/she can trust, it doesn't make a difference how hard he/she thinks, he/she probably won't have the option to concoct a decent choice. The explanation being is that he/she is excessively associated with the circumstance thus forestall him/her from intuition appropriately. Now, it is smarter to request second assessment particularly from a companion or somebody who can be trusted. I accept that privileged insights ought to be kept among you and your companion since that is the establishment of a relationship and it encourages you discharge the pressure that is working inside. Each individual has one after another or another offers a mystery to their companion. This is the place the establishment of a genuine fellowship starts. Old buddies are elusive; thusly, in the event that you happen to have an old buddy you would need to impart things to that companion and anticipate that that companion should stay discreet for you. By doing so infers that you think about him/her as one of your own kin, for example, your dad/mother or spouse/wife. Additionally, you are implying to your companion that you confide in him/her enough to share your most cozy musings and emotions. In this way consequently that companion should regard you enough to stay discreet for you until you are prepared to declare it to the world. Another model is that when you disclose your companion your mystery, you anticipate that that companion should assist you with taking care of your concern. Or if nothing else give you a few proposals in finding an answer for your concern. A genuine companion would wouldn't fret helping you since he/she realizes that you would do likewise for him/her. This companion not exclusively would like helping you yet in addition feels lucky that you would go to him/her for help. Simply the idea of helping you discharge every one of those pressure is sufficient to cheer your companion. In any case, the explanation you would need to confess to somebody your mystery is on the grounds that it is gobbling you up inside and the best way to discharge it is to tell somebody something. In the wake of confessing to the entire mystery or even only a little piece of it does a ton of good. That is the reason numerous individuals tell their companions things. Numerous individuals confess to insider facts for various explanation. It is a piece of human instinct for one companion to confess to another the mystery and anticipate that that companion should stay quiet for you. A solid kinship ought to have an establishment and trust. On the off chance that a fellowship does not have these two central components, at that point that relationship would not last. Companions ought to have the option to confide in each other and offer whatever on ones psyche. Likewise, companions confess to another companion their privileged insights since it encourages them free the weight and tension that is working inside. Hence, I really accept that a genuine companion will stay discreet for you.

Secret Shortcuts to Doctoral Thesis Only the Experts Know About

Secret Shortcuts to Doctoral Thesis Only the Experts Know About A Secret Weapon for Doctoral Thesis Possessing a range of qualitatively different projects is fantastic for student-centric mentoring like I can concentrate on which research area (or blend of areas) can best develop the exceptional strengths of every student. Let's say you wish to research feminist literature. The main benefit is you might invite your family and friends to the PhD defense, but it might be thought of as a disadvantage also. To my surprise, the standard of the submitted papers wasn't extremely large. Don't forget, your examiners may be experienced researchers, but they simply don't know the specifics of your research. Many students are worried about writing their doctoral thesis because it's such a demanding activity and needs to be carried out by somebody that has the skill and experience to write it successfully. Doctoral Thesis Fundamentals Explained Employing a database during your research can save yourself a lot of time in the writing-up course of action. Your results must be of lasting price. Negative results shouldn't be disregarded since they represent the boundary conditions of positive outcomes. Frequently, such additional results are published in another paper. What the In-Crowd Won't Tell You About Doctoral Thesis Consult a scholarly text to observe the way your thesis or dissertation needs to be structured. When it has to do with writing, one ought to be aware that a thesis is ent irely different from a thesis statement. A thesis creates a particular statement to the reader what you'll be trying to. The revised thesis is then going to be submitted for a 2nd final defense. Use a quick anecdote, a brief you're writing. Thesis statements are not easy to write. The acknowledgements should be included in your preface, instead of in a different section, for the interest of brevity. The truth of the issue is that the human mouth has millions of bacteria. Spend every waking minute poring above your books and thinking about your PhD, and you're going to burn out very fast. It's also worth getting somebody else to read your thesis, if you're able to. In reality, the very first is patently false! The Little-Known Secrets to Doctoral Thesis When the thesis was accepted by the Department Conference the title and the content can no longer be changed. Latin could evidently still be put to use as a lingua franca by speakers who didn't know one another's languages. Thesis writing is essential for students that are at the brink of their qualifications i.e. Don't be afraid to read out instruction and follow them to be able to craft a great thesis statement. PhD thesis proposal is a brief overview of your research program, your proposed methodology and your expected outcomes. So, you're preparing to compose a Ph.D. dissertation in an experimental region of Computer Science. Prime Dissertation will supply you with only the most effective doctoral thesis writing assignment, and we'll accommodate you as best we are able to in order to create the custom doctoral thesis that you want. In exceptional and duly justified circumstances, the Academic Committee may choose to appoint a specialist from away from the UPC. There are a number of different components that constitute a PhD dissertation. More information concerning the requirements for theses and dissertations can be located in the Graduate Bulletin. Academic writing doesn't have to be dry. There isn't any reason to set your academic career in danger by accepting the guidance of inferior companies who don't have your welfare at heart. Scheduling of the last PhD defense can occur no earlier than 6 months after a prosperous Plan-to-Finish meeting. So you are starting your graduate program, reading over all of the material and seeking to prepare yourself as best as possible for the subsequent two to three decades. When the examples aren't sufficient enough and confusions continue to be encountered, seeking a help from a professor will be a good choice. Concise writing is fantastic writing. One of the mo st usual errors in academic writing is to cite papers in the text that don't then show up in the bibliography. You should maintain a journal of your ideas to assist with the writing process. New material will alter the duration of your work. To begin with, almost all of the text is in 1 section, 4.3. The graphic book has the ability to present multiple perspectives through various ways of presenting visuals and text. Getting in a position to feel the page not only gives a feeling of the price tag and caliber of the paper, but it may also reveal whether a page was replaced, which may suggest the original was censored. You've got to read a good deal of papers, and it's simple to get in a mess along with all the citations you will need to format.

Intellectualism In Crime And Punishment By Fyodor Dostoyevsky

â€Å"Intellectualism is the view that regards the intellect as superior to the will, and that the intellect is the basic factor, both in the universe and in human conduct.† Intellectualism, accompanied by pride, can often cause one to isolate themselves from those they view to be of lesser worth. Those who think highly of themselves tend to believe they can do things that are socially unacceptable in the eyes of others because they believe the moral standards set to guide humanity don’t apply to them. The often justify this with the belief they are doing what’s for the greater good. A prime example of this manifests in the novel Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. The main character, Raskolnikov, illustrates how one’s pride and†¦show more content†¦He attempts to justify the murder of Alyona because she is a burden to those living in St. Petersburg, however, this contradicts his reasoning for killing Lizaveta, as he had only killed her s o he wouldn’t get caught. Upon completing the crime and nearly getting away with it, Raskolnikov does not feel the sense of achievement he expected. After murdering Alyona and Lizaveta Ivanovna, Raskolnikov is tormented by the vast sense of guilt he feels. His guilt is most notable when it was pointed out by Zossimov who notes that at the mention of the murders alone seems to visibly affect Raskolnikov. He also almost nearly confesses to the crime multiple times, once in Part II: Chapter VI, to a police inspector. He also seems to faint at the mention of the murders, this occurring a multitude of times, once in Part II: Chapter I and again in Part III: Chapter III. Throughout Part II: Chapters I-VI Raskolnikov suffers delirium, weakness, and anxiety. This entire scenario is proving to take a toll on his mental state and physical well being. It also shows that he is not apart of the â€Å"superman echelon† mentioned in his article On Crime. It does show how he lacks th e mere self control it takes to prevent himself from being caught. He has an ongoing struggle between wanting avoid suspicion and wanting to confess. This internal conflict causes him to act in an unstable manner, sometimes trying to come off as innocent and otherShow MoreRelated Dostoevskys The Brothers Karamazov and Crime and Punishment3948 Words   |  16 PagesGod Answers the Questions Presented by Dostoevskys The Brothers Karamazov and Crime and Punishment  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚   In Dostoevskys novels pain and some heavy burden of the inevitability of human suffering and helplessness form Russia. And he depicts it not with white gloves on, nor through the blisters of the peasant, but through people who are close to him and his realities: city people who either have faith, or secular humanists who are so remote from reality that even when they love humanity

The Importance of Chariot Racing for the Romans Essays

The Importance of Chariot Racing for the Romans Racing has been a pastime for humans ever since we were able to tame animals and since we have had the technology to allowed us. There are so many forms of racing in the world today that have been shaped through hundreds and thousands of years. What is it that attracts us to racing? Is it the speed, potential crashes or even just the atmosphere? To answer this question many things have to be considered. To start with lets look at the start of the Rome, at the first celebration of the Consualia in honour of Consus (an ancient god of agriculture) the rape of the Sabine Women is believed to have happened. Romulus (founder of Rome) held chariot races†¦show more content†¦They had plays, gladiators, sports both aggressive and non-aggressive like wrestling and running other than this there was only really music and art. Now think about how many types we have, it is significantly larger than What the Romans had. However, if you ask someone how important say F1 racing was to them theyd probably say not too important but that is because we all have different acquired tastes. Back then you had too like what was on offer otherwise you would have nothing! However there was still some resistance to the entertainment on offer to the Romans, Pliny the Younger complains that chariot racing is exactly the same all the time, he then expresses his frustration at the people who do like it because they only like it because of the type of team It wouldnt be so bad if they appreciated the horses speed or drivers skill. But all they see is the colour of the tunic. Some direct evidence of the Roman way of life getting progressively involved in entertainment is that gradually the amount of days dedicated to games per year rose quite significantly. By 100 BC, six games had been held. In total this numbered about forty-nine days dedicated to games per year,by the end of the second century the number of days per year had reached one hundred thirty-five. Thats not far from almost tripling in days over the space of 100Show MoreRelatedMain Functions of the Games in Ancient Rome Essay1337 Words   |  6 Pagesmain kinds of games that took place in ancient Rome were those of ludi scaenici (theatre and plays) and those of ludi circenses (sports). This evaluation of Roman games will concentrate on the sports side of Roman entertainment due to their much higher popularity i.e. chariot racing and the gladiators. Chariot racing is one of the oldest spectator sports in Rome dating back to at least 6BC. The races started to celebrate religious festivals, the very first recorded oneRead More Rome Ruled The World Essay696 Words   |  3 Pageswho knew little about the Roman Empire, the opportunity to catch up, and a person, who knew quite a bit, more details. Although this book was just an overview of what happened, it sets up what would later happen over the course of history. While a good learning guide for beginners in Roman history, this book expected people to know some of events before its time period. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;What life was Like When Rome Ruled the World emphasized the importance of social class. It was highlyRead MoreSports And Sports Of The Roman Empire1362 Words   |  6 Pageshotspot for Roman entertainment. The Roman citizens considered the games to be thrilling and anticipated them highly. The book The Colosseum states, â€Å"Sports played an essential part in the Roman Empire. With their ability to assimilate, the Romans transformed the ritual nature of Greek sports into a spectator entertainment†. The Romans, by turning Greek sports into spectator sports, influenced these sports by including their ideal values and virtues. 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The period of competition gradually expanded to five days and the festivals to one month. The foot races included four types of racing. The stadion was the oldest event in which runners sprintedRead MoreHorses in Ancient Greece2985 Words   |  12 PagesHorses in Ancient Greece When thinking back to the ancient times, the thought of the great chariot races will inevitably enter a persons mind. Horses were not only used for this spectacular and dangerous event in early times, but they were used and worshipped as so much more. The Greeks saw horses as a symbol of speed, competition, and human mastery over nature. They were viewed as an animal worthy of much respect and necessary tool for the Greeks competitive personalities. Horses were anRead MoreSimilarities Between Roman And Roman Cinema1506 Words   |  7 PagesNumerous influences established Roman theatrical entertainment. Etruscan and Greek antecedent are what predominantly shaped ancient Roman entertainment. Etruscans were people who lived in modern day Tuscany and parts of Umbria (Beacham, 1991). Rome inherited all attributes of the Etruscan religious festivals, where various theatrical performances were given, ranging from acting to chariot racing. For instance these carnival-like festivals occ urred to please the gods though theatrical offerings. AnotherRead MoreThe Olympic Games Of Ancient Greek Athletics1273 Words   |  6 Pagesof the four great ancient Greek athletic festivals. The height of the Olympic Games occurs between the fifth and fourth centuries B.C. During this period, the games became more and more professionalized until they provoked much censure during the Roman period (Miller). This is somewhat similar to the present day games where the competitors are supposed to be amateurs, but many are professionals at their craft. Take for example the United States basketball squad. For decades this team has consistedRead MoreAncient Roman And The Roman Empire1236 Words   |  5 Pagesengineering. The Roman Colosseum, constructed in 79 AD, is a visual representation of the importance of physical strength and military proficiency in Ancient Roman civilization, this is because it was constructed to revel Rome’s military accomplishments and to provide entertainment for Roman citizens. Many events prompted the construction of the Roman Colosseum. Many historical events led to the construction of the Colosseum. The Colosseum was built to celebrate how the Roman army succeeded inRead MoreThe Ancient Olympic Games1108 Words   |  5 PagesThe Ancient Olympic Games is a series of competitions held between representatives of several city-states from Ancient Greece, which featured mainly athletic but also combat and chariot racing events.[1] The origin of these Olympics is shrouded in mystery and legend.[2] One of the most popular myths identifies Heracles and his father Zeus as the progenitors of the Games.[3][4][5] According to legend, it was Heracles who first called the Games Olympic and established the custom of holding them every

Areas of Knowledge-Free-Samples for Students-Myassignmenthelp.com

Quesition: "Whithout the assumption of the existence of uniformities there can be no knowledge". Discuss this claim with reference to two areas of knowledge. Answer: Knowledge refers to the things which are authentic and genuine in contrast to opinion. Information is considered as appropriate to knowledge which can be always backed up by evidence. A statement cannot be considered as knowledge if it is not supported by evidence. Simply, knowledge can be regarded as the facts, information and skills which are acquired either through prior experience or education and the theoretical or practical accepting of the subject. In this assignment, the two areas of knowledge will be analyzed to throw light on the statement, without the assumption of the existence of uniformities there can be no knowledge. Theory of knowledge plays a major role by providing an opportunity to reflect on the nature of knowledge and how the knowledge is gathered based on information. By delving deep into the purposeful enquiry into the different areas of knowledge, TOK or theory of knowledge consists of questions only. The primary question will be how do we know? and others inc lude what counts as evidence? How do we judge? What does the theory mean? Theory of knowledge or TOK helps in thinking to a real- life situation, while the essay takes the shape of a more conceptual beginning. It can be taken for instance that the essay can ask for claims that the methodologies were used for reproducing knowledge and dependent on the use of knowledge. The theory of knowledge intends to make us aware of the interpretation underlying in knowledge which includes personal ideological biases and those can be retained, revised or rejected. The theory of knowledge The areas of knowledge put stress on the division and categorization of knowledge that is possessed. There are eight areas of knowledge but for the sake of the given claim, religious knowledge and indigenous knowledge are the two significant points of discussion. Ferguson had written in his article that the line connecting religious freedom and discrimination is vague and often debatable. As per the common saying, religious knowledge is the belief and faith in God or an extreme power. R eligion is an integral part of many humans lives as it provides with the opportunity to learn about various thinking processes and the reason behind the global diversity in the society. With respect to religion, the knowledge question might be the arguments between the inseparability of ethics and religion and the extent to which knowledge about religion can be gained apart from faith. It has been mentioned in "WHAT IS RELIGIOUS KNOWLEDGE ? 22 Aug 1941 The Spectator Archive" that there are various expressions of religious ideas with regard to music, architecture, painting, literature and sculpture. In terms of scope, religious knowledge has a number of common features such as holy books, places of worship, followers, sacred sense and so on. While applying the religious ideas, it can affect the behavior for further scrutinizing the role of religion and ethics. In terms of concept, language can be considered for depicting the elements and theories which are common to all religions s uch as prayer and worship. Again in terms of historical development, focus can be given on the origin and development of the religious knowledge system to consider the timely development of religious ideas. It can be contradicted that the religious knowledge system can pose an important effect on the personal knowledge of individuals (Wiebe). The other area of knowledge, i.e. indigenous knowledge refers to the knowledge system that is developed by the community in contradiction to the scientific knowledge. The indigenous knowledge forms the base for local level decision making within many communities. The knowledge that is inherent of the region or tradition is also termed as modern knowledge. The knowledge is applied in the form of indigenous methods such as weather forecasting by the farmers planning activities. This knowledge is passed on from one generation to the other generally by word of mouth or cultural rituals which form the basis for agriculture, health, education and many more. The people who use indigenous knowledge have an idea on sustainable living. The main objective behind using this knowledge is to appreciate the indigenous perspectives on the methods of combined living and using sustainable resources. This particular knowledge is embedded within the local communities which are crucial for subsistence an d survival (Kovach). The statement that is made by Mulkay in his book that knowledge bears a long history. It can be considered appropriate in relation with the given claim. There is no knowledge without the assumption of existence of uniformities and it is also a very important part of cognition. Moreover, existence of language is also impossible without the existence of uniformities. Language which is composed of words picks out classes instead of any particular entity. For instance, with the mention of a specific term such as dog, a variety of the same species is referred who share the same common features. Therefore, all the items in the specific category are uniform in some way or the other. The characteristics can be specified with the addition of qualifiers or adjectives but these specific words are counted as categories. Therefore the common characteristic such as color is only used in language as it is perceivable in various situations and circumstances. In the science of knowledge, such charact eristics are known as concepts, universals or invariant representations. The last term out of the three is preferable as it forms a bridge between idea and knowledge. Such simple idea can be one of the strong ideas in science as it leads the society to seek for invariants in the universe. The human brains also let the individuals find and make invariants in the n the world as well as within them. It was argued by Ostrom that similar situations occur on diverse scales and the issues in commonness are no more settled by many individuals. There are certain types of knowledge that the brain tackles which do not involve language and sometimes not even uniformities. Another point that can be taken into consideration is that the cognitive processes of young people might involve such kinds of knowledge which will not be understood by the others. In the brain of the human beings, the process of viewing and remembering is compared to the system of anything stored beforehand in the memory. The content of the memories can be either true or false and are used as a substitute for the new memories. But it can be mentioned that there are few memories which are basic in form and that is the place where the memories of childhood is present. Fowler mentioned that in the human brain there is no empty space to include new ideas but that is not the same in case of children. Children have empty neurons and circuits where the memory can be stored. The individuals are born with plenty of neurons and most of those are used in the childhood for storing the incidents of lives. It can be mentioned that when the individual reaches in his teens the unused part of his neurons gradually wearies off. In the early life of an individual he is able to learn from knowledge that is not associated to the existing knowledge as there are spare neurons for doing the task of depiction. He individuals do not realize the formation of his childhood memories but it can be assured that the childhood knowledge does not involve words. However, the non- verbal memories or knowledge might have little contribution in the adults life and these same memories are the one that can be verbalized or easily thought about (Greco). There is a possibility that very early memories are not dependent on the existence of uniformities. Moreover, the individuals should not be assumptive with the insistence that the uniformities do not exist as there is not much knowledge about the operation of childhood or adult memories. When the adult moves way from the phase of childhood, the hypothetical memories can be a substitute for the future memories so that the experience of knowledge without uniformities can exist. Neither there is any argumentative statement about the non- existence of the memories nor there is any proof of authentication. It can only be mentioned that wherever knowledge is lacking there is no scope of finding amazement (Palacios and Castorina). The statement on the existence of knowledge without the assumption of uniformities is interesting. It can also be argued that the experiential knowledge does not need assumption. For instance, if an individual puts his hand on a burner, he learns that a disastrous burn will be the expected outcome. In such a case no knowledge of uniformity is required. This can be considered as indigenous knowledge too. But there is no scope of the individual to gain knowledge about the fact that the same incident might not happen again or it might happen with another burner. A minimum knowledge is required if the individual wishes to make an upcoming application of the painful experience that he had. To gain knowledge about the uniform behavior of the universe, experiential knowledge can be gained by the individual or from a trustworthy and acceptable source. Thus, uniformity can be regarded as reality and knowledge is holding reality into useable forms for attaining goals at a higher level. The uni formity in behavior leads to production of knowledge. In support and contradiction to the given claim, a lot of assumptions have taken place along with the belief that uniformity exists as similar to the religious belief of the individuals. Bibliography Ferguson, Taylor. "A Correlational Analysis On The Religious Knowledge And Religion Based Discriminatory Tendencies Of Adults Affiliated With Various Faiths." (2016). "WHAT IS RELIGIOUS KNOWLEDGE ? 22 Aug 1941 The Spectator Archive."The Spectator Archive, 2017, https://archive.spectator.co.uk/article/22nd-august-1941/8/what-is-religious-knowledge-. Wiebe, Donald.Beyond legitimation: essays on the problem of religious knowledge. Springer, 2016. Agrawal, Arun. "Indigenous and scientific knowledge: some critical comments."Antropologi Indonesia(2014). Mulkay, Michael.Science and the Sociology of Knowledge (RLE Social Theory). Routledge, 2014. Ostrom, Elinor.Governing the commons. Cambridge university press, 2015. Fowler, Thomas B. "On the Evolution Controversy."Intelligible Design: A Realistic Approach to the Philosophy and History of Science. 2014. 230-257. Greco, John. "Testimony and the transmission of religious knowledge."Epistemology Philosophy of Science53.3 (2017): 19-47. Palacios, Mariana Garca, and Jos Antonio Castorina. "Studying childrens religious knowledge: Contributions of ethnography and the clinical-critical method."Integrative Psychological and Behavioral Science48.4 (2014): 462-478. Woodward, Andrew Ralls.Scientific Models for Religious Knowledge: Is the Scientific Study of Religious Activity Compatible With a" Religious Epistemology"?. Diss. 2016. Kovach, Margaret. "Emerging from the margins: Indigenous methodologies."Research as resistance: revisiting critical, Indigenous, and anti-oppressive approaches(2015): 43. Christen, Kimberly. "Does information really want to be free? Indigenous knowledge systems and the question of openness." (2015).

,ms f,m ,mf s Essay

,ms f,m ,mf s Essay ,ms f,m ,mf s Essay A huge crowd took the streets of Caracas late Monday in a night-time rally against insecurity in Venezuela. People of different ages attended the event featuring opposition candidate Henrique Capriles Radonski that was held eastern Caracas. At some point during the rally, the opposition leader addressed himself to the audience and said, "This is the country we want to build; where we all can walk without any fear." Capriles said that in view that the Government does not lead to any change, then, it was time to change the administration. "Changing that reality will depend on each of you. This is a struggle for the future and life. I invite you to join me to fight united." violence The room is filled with a sweet aroma wafting from the kitchen, but the scene is bitter. Three women sit on a bench; two of them stare and listen intently at the one sitting in the middle. She points at some parts in her body, pulls up her clothes and thereby exposes some bruises and scrapes. "He hit me here, and here. He did all this to me," she sobs. She exposes one side of her torso and then the other side. She is at a turning point in her life where she can be spared another beating, maybe the last and final one. Venezuelan opposition umbrella group MUD said on Wednesday that demagogy and destruction of the country has been the results of the first 100 days of Nicols Maduro leading Venezuela. The group stated that in terms of security, "fake promises" by President Maduro

The eNotes Blog A Day in the Life of a StudentResearcher

A Day in the Life of a StudentResearcher Are you studying for a career in the sciences? Not sure where to begin to gather that lab experience that is oh so important for obtaining your degree and landing a great job? Our Math and Science intern Wilson shares his experiences of finding his place as a student researcher and shares the four lessons hes learnt both inside and outside of the lab. Lab work doesnt always involve looking down the lens of a microscope, one thing I learnt in my work as a student researcher studying autism spectrum disorders in children. For almost 2 years now, I have been a student researcher at UCLA studying the physiology of anxiety in youth with autism spectrum disorders. This position has opened my eyes up to the professional, research-oriented community and taught me to dismiss some of the common misconceptions I had before I received this opportunity. Here are a few things I learned on my way to becoming a student researcher. The application process is not  that  difficult.  Where do I begin to look? This is common problem that many people have, and I had as well. Do I just search online for labs? How do I know if they are looking for student researchers? The answer is a lot easier and more straight-forward than one would think. The most common method for an undergraduate is to use the university website and find their page of open research positions. In a way, finding a research position is a lot like finding a job position, except your chances of success are much higher. Many professors and graduate students at universities are constantly looking for enthused students to help out at their lab, so the list of open positions is almost limitless and is constantly being updated.Heres another effective method: just look up the department that you want to research for and email all the professors in that department asking if they have any room on their team for a student researcher. From my experience ( I applied using both methods), they will usually respond within a day, and more often than not, one of them will welcome you to their lab. Perhaps the hardest part of this relatively simple process is being able to effectively convey your interest and enthusiasm for their field of study. Needless to say though, the resources are all right there. There’s no need to dig around. Theres no need to feel intimidated. Although they may seem intimidating at first, at the end of the day, scientists are just ordinary people. When an interview was set in date for my position, I felt very nervous. One reason was because I only just finished my first year and felt as if I knew nothing about lab work or any of the more in-depth concepts of the human body. A second was because I didn’t want to be rejected, meaning I had to put on a best first impression for a figure of authority, an actual scientist who is so much more knowledgeable than I am. At the interview, I was expecting them to test me on the basic techniques of lab and the concepts of autism. I got very little sleep the night before because I was so busy studying up for this test that I thought was going to happen; however, there was no test. The scientist, or principal investigator (PI) of my lab, was very friendly and happy that I would be able to help out. They happily explained to me the paradigm of t he study and what would be expected out of me. Most scientists, who are recruiting undergraduate students, understand that we may not have the most experience and exposure to research and laboratory procedures so they are very willing to educate and train us for whatever work we may be doing. Not all scientists wear long, white lab coats and nerdy-looking goggles.  My earliest impression of what a scientist wears comes from the show, â€Å"Dexter’s Laboratory.† Long, white lab coats and nerdy-looking goggles. At the very least, I’d thought we would be wearing professional attire, which is what I showed up in at our first group meeting, but soon learned that it was all very casual. If we weren’t dealing with the subjects (children with autism) and their family that day, almost anything goes. Most of us often wear t-shirts and jeans in the lab (I wear shorts because I can’t stand the feel of pants). Test tubes, chemicals, and microscopes are not necessarily the essentials in every research lab.  What?! No chemicals?! Not test tubes?! No microscopes?! What kind of lab is this? I had always thought that research consisted of mixing chemicals together or staring into a microscope, looking at cells, but not all labs involve working with dangerous chemicals or biohazards, which is why casual clothing is appropriate for our lab instead of personal protective equipment (PPE) like lab coats and goggles. Our research study involves a startle (have the subject experience several different situations that might cause anxiety, such as having a sudden puff of air blown near the face or being read a scary story), collection of salivary cortisol (a hormone that is released during states of anxiety), and surveys. As a student researcher, I get to assist during the startle with the subject (a child ages 7-14), such as attaching electrodes onto their skin to detect muscle contraction, monitorin g their reaction through a camera, and running them through one of the nature reserve paradigms to observe their reaction to negative information. The interactions we have with the children and families at these startles are incredibly enlightening and inspirational, providing a sense of purpose in what we do and in all the hours we put forth to better understand this disorder. Outside of the laboratory, my responsibilities include entering data, analyzing electromyograms to validate each trial of the startle, or leading discussions regarding recent research findings on autism. Although less technical than a laboratory that requires the mixing of chemicals or analysis of biomolecular substances, this position has exposed me to how research in the â€Å"real world† is conducted, the process of applying for funding, and all the precautions and rules that a scientist must follow in dealing with human subjects. My position as  a student researcher at UCLA studying the physiology of anxiety in youth with autism spectrum disorders gave me a different look into the realm of scientific research. Although it may not be an ideal research position for a biochemist, such as myself, I am enjoying the role that I play in helping this team progress and reach our goal of better physiological understanding of this disorder so that a more valid diagnosis may be available. This just goes to show that there are lots of meaningful research opportunities out there for all different types of fields, whether it be in the applied sciences, arts, life sciences, social sciences, or engineering. So if you are currently an undergraduate or about to become one, take full use of your available resources, experience what it’s like to actually work in your field, and have fun doing it.

Latin Christian and Russian Orthodox Traditions Term Paper

Latin Christian and Russian Orthodox Traditions - Term Paper Example Rivalry between the Roman popes and the patriarchs of Constantinople for leadership in the Christian world initiated the split of the Christian Church.  Ã‚  The Latin Christian church was formed finally in 1054. Historically, Orthodoxy presents the eastern branch of Christianity.  It is distributed mainly in Eastern Europe, Middle East and the Balkans.  First, the name "Orthodox" (from Greek) appeared in II century.  Ã‚  The Orthodox Christianity did not have a single church center. Ecclesiastical power was concentrated in the hands of four patriarchs.  With the collapse of the Byzantine Empire, each of the patriarchs headed an independent (autocephalous) Orthodox Church. Prince of Kiev, Vladimir Svyatoslavovych, established Orthodoxy as a state religion in Russia.  On his orders, Byzantine clergy baptized people in the capital of Ancient Russia, Kiev, in 988. Both Christian communities accept the basic Christian doctrine and sacramental. Religious life includes magnifice nt church services, the worship of many saints and holy relics.  The confession of the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and the worship of Christ, the Savior, who suffered, died, resurrected from the dead and ascended into heaven is the gospel truth for any believer of the Christian communities. It is the same regarding the acceptance of the doctrines, such as: Mary is the Mother of God  as Christ is God incarnate; the Bible is the inspired word of God; the Holy Spirit dwells in the Church and guides it through the ages; Mary, being Mother of God, is the greatest of the saints. Both Churches profess seven sacraments: Baptism, Confirmation/ Chrismation, Eucharist, Holy Orders, Matrimony, Anointing of the Sick. Nevertheless, along with similarities, there are some differences in the main creeds, cults, and organization of the Latin and the Orthodox Christian Churches. The most significant differences are that the Latin Christians  accept the Bishop of Rome as the spiritual leader of the Church, while the  Orthodox  look to the Patriarch of Constantinople, but only as "First Among Equals" rather than as a pope. The Latin Church  holds that the Holy Spirit proceeds from both Father and Son whilst  Orthodoxy teaches that the Spirit proceeds only from the Father.  Latin Christians  state that Mary was full of grace (sinless) from conception whilst  Orthodox Church  would tend to say that she entered this state only after accepting God's wish that she become Theotokos (Mother of God). Latin Christianity  tends to be prescriptive whilst  Orthodoxy  is mystical, however, both believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Married men may be ordained as  Orthodox priests (but not bishops) whilst in  Latin Christianity  only single men may be ordained. The style of worship in Orthodoxy is more elaborate. Regardless of the existing theological and non-theological differences, both Christian confessions consider sacramental rituals, the cult of saints, icons and relics a priority. Moreover, the concept of  saints  is common to all branches of Christianity. The Apostle's Creed affirmed by all Christian denominations, states belief in the "communion of saints." In Christian doctrine, the term "saints" refers to all deceased persons who are now in heaven. Saints are special group of holy people, who are

The product development process Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The product development process - Article Example Such demands go in details from quality, affordability, reliability, durability and likeability amongst others. The product development process is such that it is inclusive of all the possible features a potential customer in any part of the world may desire. This paper shall analyze how to develop a product at the Apple Inc. The chosen product is phone line for various models of iPhone. Product development process is a critical area in manufacturing that determines the extent to which a firm may be competitive in its target market. Apple’s products go through the normal development process that many businesses also go through. Before the company launches a product, the product passes through pre-development, development, and post-development. At the predevelopment stages, the company has to go through strategic development, marketing analysis and business plan. To begin with, strategic planning revolves around product project plan. For instance, Apple’s strategic product planning takes into consideration what other competitors are offering. It compares its features against those of other manufacturers in a bid to come up with a new product that meets the market demand. Taking a case study of iPhone 6, it is observable that the pre-development stage maintained some features of the previous version as it improved on some features. All that reflects customers’ desire. For instance, the desire for a slimmer device has not changed. Internal memory is another issue that Apple considers. One of the most important features that Apple considerers is the IOS used in the device. The choice of the IOS enables the product to support features that give it a competitive advantage over its competitors. Whereas it is a common practice for companies to design their new products to conform to the budgetary allocations in the manufacturing and the financial departments, Apple’s

Academic degree Essay Example for Free

Academic degree Essay A person is educated if they constantly strive to attain knowledge while simultaneously recognizing that they know very little about the world around you. As a result, I am currently educating myself now, because it is my desire to pursue knowledge and understanding of life. Determining a person’s education is vital to understanding the nature of education. First of all, education is the pursuit of knowledge, not a goal that can be reached after a set number of years of doctoral study. Consequently, a person, no matter how much they know, can never stop learning because they have already attained education. Instead, people are educated when they wholeheartedly devote their lives to understanding what they do not comprehend. As a result, I, a person with a strong will to understand, am more educated than those who work within the same profession regardless of the number of degrees they may posses. People truly become educated when they truly dedicate themselves to the pursuit of knowledge. Clearly, education is a constant pursuit, and the educated person devotes his entire life to this quest for knowledge. Thus, I know that I am educated as long as I never give up attempting to understand the world around me. However, inseparable from this definition of an educated person, is the realization that no people, at least during my lifetime, can claim that they possess all knowledge and that their knowledge is irrefutable. Thus, the educated person is committed to the pursuit of knowledge, has a mind open to new theory, and never subordinates the truth to an authoritys dictate. Personally, I know I am educated as long as I remain determined to understanding the world and to maintaining an open mind. Of course, this goal of remaining educated will lead me to new heights in the future as I continue my education throughout my doctoral program. I must remain committed to learning my entire life and to making new discoveries. Education cannot be measured by the number of degrees a person has earned. Instead, education is a mind set that must last a person’s entire life.

Cold Mountain: Frasiers Archetypal Journey Essay -- essays research pa

The archetype of the journey is seen in Charles Frazier’s novel Cold Mountain, most clearly through experience Inman has wandering back to Cold Mountain. The journey archetype sends the hero in search of some truth to restore order and harmony to the land. The journey often includes the series of trials and tribulations the hero faces along the way. Usually the hero descends into a real or psychological hell and is forced to discover the blackest truths. Once the hero is at his lowest level, he must accept personal responsibility to return to the world of the living. Inman’s trip fits this description very well in some ways and not in others. It could be said that Inman’s search for truth is his desire to be back home. He has been disillusioned by the war. He saw horrible scenes daily and fought for his life. By coming home to Ada and his mundane life is a welcome constant for him in a world he has recently determined to be wild. He believed that once he had rea ched his destination, order in his personal world and soul could begin to return to normal. In accordance with the definitions of the archetype journey, Inman goes through a great deal angst and tribulations. He has practically starved many times, been mugged, and fired upon. This strife is culminated when he his betrayed and shanghaied, marched nearly to death, then shot and left for dead. He is buried with a thin layer of dirt in a mass grave, and spends half a day under ground with the dead. This is his low point, his personal hell. At this point he even considers not uncovering himself and allowing the easy death to occur. For such a logical and even headed man this is particularly extreme thought. But he eventually finds the will power to hoist himself out of the grave to once again take up road. Finally he gets to the house and restores order to his metaphysical kingdom, coming to terms with many of his thoughts. Ada goes through a more mental archetypal journey. She has to fi nd manageable independence, an aspect development of which she had always been deprived. Her low point was at the beginning of the book when she realized that she no longer had the money that once had enabled a work-free life style. At the beginning, she has no idea what to do or what she even wants. Once Ruby comes, she begins to come to important self-realization about the pettiness of her past life and how she is no lon... ... the greatest foils to each other. When one reads of Ruby’s extreme incredible work ethic and practicality in every matter, even towards bird-watching (she uses migratory patterns to plant seasonally), one understands that she has lived in harsh conditions and foolishness was not an option. Once contrasted with her father and his physically unproductive lifestyle, one may come to view her as a calculating robot. On the other hand, Stobrod may look as though he has a far worse work ethic than he actually does wen contrasted against his daughter. Similarly, this was the dynamic of Ada’s relationship to Ruby when Ruby was first introduced. Inman, the rational, moral, and selfless farmer boy and Veasy, the lecherous, self-centered preacher serve as foil to one another. When the pair is together Inman seems so strait laced and moral, thinking every aspect out well in advance, then taking the most sensible route. Veasy on the other hand is made to look even more of a lech erous buffoon, when he, who has just had relations with Laura Foster, solicits the massive Tildy for sex in the tavern while Inman, the lonely former-soldier who has not been with woman for a long time remains celibate.

Information Systems Case Study

Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies J. G. Thoburn Coventry University, UK S. Arunachalam Coventry University, UK A. Gunasekaran University of Massachusetts, North Dartmouth, Massachusetts, USA Keywords Information systems, Agile production, Small-to-medium-sized enterprises Introduction Today, manufacturing organisations are increasingly required to be highly optimised.Abstract The ability to respond swiftly and effectively The necessity of maintaining optito produce new products and services has mal operations and becoming an agile and responsive enterprise is become not so much a method of gaining competitive advantage, but more a means of becoming increasingly important to survive in the global market. survival. Many companies have seen the need Consequently, all resources in the to adopt a whole range of practices that reduce companies need to be effectively inputs and waste, and allow greater responmarshalled.Tradit ionally SMEs siveness to customer needs and the markethave concentrated on the 4Ms  ± money, materials, machine and place. In reaction to changing requirements manpower but have often neand conditions, manufacturing paradigms glected the effective management continue to be defined. It is possible to identify of information, which many authors suggest is at the heart of two trends: those addressing predominantly any agile organisation.The effect the relationships required in local and global is inadequate or fragmented infor- trading environments such as that described mation systems (IS) that do not by Porter (1996) and those systems focusing on address the demands of operational or the wider strategic needs organisational structures within an enterof the company. The study reprise such as business process re-engineering ported here examines the diversi(Hammer and Champy, 1993).Arguably, the ties of problems that occur in agile manufacturing paradigm combines both. three different companies and, Changes in information technology and compares their systems to the communications in the last two decades have ideals of agile manufacturing. further shifted the balance towards the customer. There has been a huge growth in the number of computers in use, putting huge power on the desktop, at ever-decreasing hardware cost.The arrival of the Internet and the expansion of the free market in telecommunications present the option of simple and low cost communication. Now it has become easy for all players in the supply chain, or even individual consumers, to measure specification, price and supply performance against their needs. They can purchase goods that precisely meet their requirements from anywhere in the world, bypassing any perceived shortcomings of their local marketplace.In response to the need for agility or the requirements to link different parts of the International Journal of Agile organisation or elements of a supply chain Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 effectively, systems are emerging that may # MCB University Press fundamentally change the organisation of [ISSN 1465-4652] manufacturing. In order that they might [ 116 ] achieve this, companies must clearly understand and organise their information resources at the earliest possible stage in their development.It is clear that only those enterprises that are able to respond to market demands with minimum delay will survive. Kidd (1996) argues: The agility that arises can be used for competitive advantage, by being able to respond rapidly to changes occurring in the market environment and through the ability to use and exploit a fundamental resource, knowledge. People need to be brought together, in dynamic teams formed around clearly defined market opportunities, so that it becomes possible to level one another's knowledge. Through this process is sought the transformation of knowledge into new products and services.High reaction flexibility will be no more than a qualif ier in the future, just as high quality is today. This flexibility cannot be realised by high-tech equipment alone. Human creativity and organisational ability, if necessary supported by advanced computer based tools, will be the basis for survival and success strategies. This paper describes studies over a period of 15 months, of three companies, and analyses how far they are away from possessing the ability to become agile, by examining the areas that were dysfunctional.It explores the importance of information management and appraises information systems in place in these companies. It discusses the need for a more structured and holistic approach to transferring information in its various forms to the different areas of an organisation, aiming to give optimal access to information while eliminating wasteful duplication as well as generating and testing new knowledge about the firm's changing requirements. Information defined The term information is widely and often inaccurately used. Many authors agree that J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A.Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 there are three elemental types: data, information and knowledge. However, this paper argues that there is a fourth, intelligence, which is distinct from the others. All but data require an understanding of the socially defined context  ± where the information, knowledge and intelligence came from, the assumptions surrounding them, and their importance and limitations. Each of them may be defined as follows: .Data: a series of observations, measurements or facts. . Information: information is data organised into meaningful patterns by means of the application of knowledge. The act of organising data into information can itself generate knowledge, when a person reads, understands, interprets and applies the information in a specific wor k situation. . Knowledge: the intellectual capital resident within an organisation. The facts, experiences or competencies known by a person or group of people, or held within an organisation, gained by individual or shared experiences, training or education. Intelligence: what a company needs to know about its competitive, economic, technical and industry environment to enable it to anticipate change and formulate strategies to best provide for the needs of the marketplace and its specific customers. Yet many aspects of a company's IS are based, not around formal or technology based solutions, but rather on informal or human oriented systems. Mintzberg (1997) examined a wide range of managerial work, predominantly in large organisations. He reported that managers, while 40 percent of their time was devoted to gaining and sharing information, usually used informal systems centred on people.Nevertheless, he concluded that: the job of managing is fundamentally one of processing inform ation. that managing a company was essentially a matter of control. However, this implies a rigidity of framework and formality that does not fit well with today's organisation, and certainly does not promote agility. Flatter, less hierarchical business systems localise control and make it difficult for management to achieve enterprise-wide regulation. Smith (1984) however, believed that the vitality of living systems was not a matter of control, but rather of dynamic connectedness.Veryard (1994) argues that: systems are a dynamic interplay between adaptation and non-adaptation. This is precisely what is required in agile organisations, where there remains the need for stability and accountability, in an environment of necessary and perhaps rapid change. Dynamic connectedness in an agile organisation is provided by the flows of formal and informal information. Veryard further suggests that: the future belongs to symbiosis  ± external integration in pursuit of common business aims. The authors' research and experience shows that informal systems are equally important in every part of the organisation.This appears to be especially true in smaller organisations, where they have less developed formal systems, or formal systems are not performing optimally. In order to better understand and integrate the IS, the vital role of informal systems must be taken into account. The need for information systems in SMEs to successfully communicate and control For the better part of this century, classical management writers such as Henri Fayol (1949) and Gulick and Urwick (1937) taught This is evidenced in those extended enterprises now reported to be emerging.If this biological view is pursued, it can be seen that biological organisms, especially human ones, achieve precisely the continuous adaptation that is described in the agile paradigm. The most successful individuals are able to blend information from their external environment, with knowledge of their own capabilit ies, using formal and informal systems, whilst retaining information and knowledge in memory. There is constant building and retention of knowledge, with competencies taught by example as well as by the formal methods to be found in education and training.Concurrently, many of the control and co-ordination systems, even those learned, become largely autonomic, permitting more effective processing of environmental and circumstantial changes. Such systems may be clearly observed at work in individuals when they are, for example, driving a vehicle. Failure to function effectively in those circumstances leads to severe consequences. Also, by combining with other individuals, capabilities may be extended to be far more than the sum of the parts.Accordingly, biological systems may provide useful models for what may be expected to occur in manufacturing organisations of the future. With biological organisms, the need for adaptive ISs is most profound in growth and early learning stages, or in times of a significantly changing environment. Failure to adapt and learn from conditions [ 117 ] J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 ay lead to survival difficulties. Similarly, small or growing companies, or those adapting to rapidly changing market conditions will require a dynamically linked IS that binds together all parts of the enterprise, and allows it to adapt to its external environment. This may be very different to the rather rigid systems of the past, operating on pre-defined rules and algorithms. Yet it must be within the reach of the smallest company functioning at low resource levels, which may well preclude expensive and complex IT based systems.Information management differences between large companies and SMEs The EC and the UK Government's Department of Trade and Industry have identified SMEs as critical to future economic growth and job creation within the European Union. They form large and important sectors in most industrialised countries, especially in Europe and the USA. Yet significant differences exist between the management of SMEs and larger companies, where much of the research in this field is concentrated.Just as a small fishing boat and a passenger liner may share the same ocean, so SMEs share the global trading environment with large organisations, and are no less susceptible to environmental effects. Indeed it may be argued that just like the smaller vessel, they are much less able to ride out the storms of uncertainty and rapid change, because of their lower resource base. As a result, they must be more, not less vigilant and adaptive than their larger counterparts, with intelligence systems able to influence their strategy and knowledge base much quicker.The Society of Practitioners of Insolvency in the UK concluded (SPI, 1998) from thei r 1998 survey that many companies, mostly SMEs, fail from lack of information  ± with loss of market being the single most important factor. Case studies Research took place in three companies over a period of three months with Company A, and more than six months each for Companies B and C, when one of the authors was in daily attendance. The companies were self-selected for study. Full access was allowed to every part of the business, its operations, management and financial systems, and to all employees.Research took the form of observation, participatory ethnographic and action research. Questioning of employees used unstructured or semi-structured interviews. [ 118 ] Company A was part of a large international group, operating in a number of countries and in every major geographical area in the world, with a group turnover at the time of the study around ? 1 billion. The group consisted in total of eleven divisions each producing a different product. The division studied was l ocated in France, and had approximately 200 employees. The company has been established a number of years and operates under an ISO 002 based system, as well as a number of other quality assurance regimes. The organisation manufactured a variety of special, large-scale products for the oil field, nuclear and defences industries worldwide. These complex products were produced individually to specific customer requirements. Lead times on nuclear products ranged from one to two years, and for the others, from six to 12 months. The products were manufactured as individual one-off specials, in a job-shop operation. The company was divided into seven departments, three by product sector, and the remainder by function.One of the latter was the information technology department. Unlike other departments, although it had a functioning office in the French division it was not a part of the local company; IT was attached directly to the parent company in Germany. Its responsibilities encompass ed the development and operation of the main computer and software systems used on the site for production management, purchasing, sales, production costing, and time and attendance systems. The department had additional responsibilities for networks and PCs which variously ran under MsDOS, Windows and Macintosh formats.Where information transfer took place between departments, it was almost entirely carried out manually, transferring information to paper, and then manually transferring it to the next system. No section used the same nomenclature or data dictionary for parts and components. The organisational design was partly hierarchical and partly a matrix structure, and used a predominantly formal communications network. There were a substantial number of formal and informal meetings, through which much of the departmental and inter-departmental co-ordination was attempted.All formal systems describing the company's operation and administration were well documented. Each departm ent, though relatively autonomous, seemed to be run with apparent efficiency. The operations and production management elements were especially highly developed, Company A J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 and had been subjected to repeated internal scrutiny as well as by local universities.Despite this, the company experienced considerable difficulties in meeting quoted leadtimes. Those lead-times were already longer than their major competitors, and the company was also losing price-competitiveness. As much as 50 percent over-run on lead times was common, and substantial underachievement of possible turnover, and erosion of market share resulted. Otherwise the company and its products enjoyed a long-standing high reputation, though the managers believed that without this, considerably greater eros ion of market would have occurred.Their major competitors, predominantly Japanese and American, through price, technical improvements, and a significantly better responsiveness and delivery performance, were nevertheless making increasing gains at the company's expense. The company was a self-contained profit centre, a division of a larger group that trades throughout the UK. There were approximately 25 employees on the site, though there were wide fluctuations in the total due to a self-imposed seasonality in turnover. Certain support services such as accounting and human resources management were provided from the central holding company.Otherwise the company was responsible for all aspects of its operations. The company was engaged in metal finishing to the engineering industry and as a first tier supplier to several Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs). It had two production lines and operated under an ISO 9002 system. The formal IS of the company revolved around the sales or der processing (SOP) system operated from group headquarters and accessed remotely over a fixed link. SOP formed part of a non-standard accounting system, originally written for another group company operating in a non-manufacturing sector.The system itself was user unfriendly and slow, and no intuitive use was possible. At the start of the study only one person, the production supervisor, had any training in SOP. However, that training gave even him only limited knowledge of the system. Cryptic codes and generic descriptions entered by him into SOP made it impossible for others to distinguish between one product and another, and the division could not operate in his absence. Product and process knowledge was almost wholly vested in the production supervisor's head.There was no formal planning or production scheduling system, and no collection system for information concerning production times and material usage. Inter- Company B nal and external rejects were not generally noted or analysed. The company had three stand-alone personal computers, two of them extremely outdated. The central management-accountant exercised the most stringent control, and the company was expected to make bottom-line operating profits each month. The whole operational objectives became focused only upon this, and ignored other fundamentals.To reduce costs, â€Å"non-essential† spending such as machine maintenance, health and safety, training, housekeeping and sales were ruthlessly cut. Those â€Å"savings† often represented all of the profits made by the division. The lack of an IS significantly increased the time spent preparing reports, reduced their accuracy and eroded local management time. At the start of the study, new management was installed in the company. Several initiatives aimed at improving operating performance were considered. The absence of any suitable or appropriate IS soon emerged.In some cases, lack of coherent historical information prevented the j ustification of proposed initiatives, while the effectiveness of others could not be judged within the imposed monthly timescale. Machine and process measurement systems were designed and put into place. They quickly showed that processes were incapable. Similarly, measures of rejects and returns showed that external rejects were in excess of 30 percent while internal rejects were almost 60 percent. An analysis indicated the causes of the problems, and allowed them to be addressed.Reject rates fell to less than 1 percent within a few weeks. However the centre continued to rigorously apply the accountant's previous control measures. A monthly operating profit remained a continuous and absolute requirement even though large backlogs of rejects, and uncoated, badly corroded customer parts required processing, and machines needed to be brought to reliable operating condition. Consequently, employee training was vetoed, and workforce stabilisation measures overturned. In a climate previo usly dominated by dismissals and redundancy, the workforce actively delayed the implementation of an IS.After some time, substantial employee involvement began to overcome this barrier, and they became enthusiastic participants in data collection and process improvement. Customer confidence began to return and the customer base marginally improved. However, the new IS also begun to uncover previous managerial shortcomings, especially at group level. In response, draconian short-term financial measures were applied [ 119 ] J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 rom the centre, and initiatives overruled. The workforce was further reduced, and training programmes cancelled. Workforce morale and customer confidence fell sharply. The division has now closed. Company C was a private limited company, whose dire ctors were its owner-managers. There were approximately 60 employees, with recruitment rising because of rapid growth and expansion. The company was in its third year of trading. The company operated under a newly introduced ISO 9002 based system. The company had two product lines. The first produced simple, low volume components for the automotive sector.The second built components for the machine tool industry. The operations involved in both of these activities were largely manual. The second group of products were much more complex  ± many containing more than one thousand sub-components. A number of variants of each were produced, and all work was carried out by hand. Much of the information within the company was held on personal computers. The internal system was networked into three sections; operations management (OM), purchasing and administration. OM includes quality assurance and control (QA), and a computer aided design (CAD) station.Each section was independent of th e others. Employees were inadequately trained in the use of software and frequent problems arose through their lack of understanding of the packages in use. There was considerable duplication of data entry, with employees in each of the sections entering and extracting information in an unstructured manner. Where information transfer took place between sections, it was almost entirely carried out manually, transferring information to paper, and then manually transferring it to the next system. No section used the same nomenclature or data dictionary for parts and components.Manufacturers' references and descriptions were entered in a casual and unstructured way, making cross-referencing impossible. The data structure of each system was entirely different, and there were further large differences even within systems. CAD and QA were not integrated into the OM system. Consequently, internal systems were largely unsynchronised. As they grew in size, so the problems that they created we re progressively magnified. Build and wiring order was an important factor, particularly in the case of control cabinets. It could significantly affect productivity, quality and finished appearance.Company C Consequently, the order and format of cutting and build lists were central to production aims. Despite this, methods of list production failed to recognise this. It was difficult to derive build-order from examination of design information alone. Product variants caused additional difficulties and required translation by unskilled production operatives. As a result, operatives frequently transferred build instructions onto handwritten sheets and maintained unofficial work instruction systems. There was no formal method of transferring or retaining their build-order knowledge.Comparative attributes, and a summary of the most significant problems arising from the collection and use of information, knowledge and data for each of the three companies are shown in Table I. Identified success factors/ dysfunctional areas In order to more accurately compare and analyse the areas of dysfunction in each of the companies it is necessary to use an objective measure. Bailey and Pearson (1983) have produced one of the most definitive and widely used lists of factors that identify the success factors in ISs. Li (1997) added a further seven factors.These 46 elements have been used to form a matrix, shown in Table II, against which the ISs of the case study companies can be compared. However we have made minor modifications to some of the original criteria to widen references from a computer based information system (CBIS) to simply information system (IS). A hash (#) is shown in the description in these cases. A seven-point scale has been used to describe the degree of success or dysfunction of the IS when first observed. The scale used is as follows: 0 Not applicable 1 Significantly unsuccessful or dysfunctional 2Moderately unsuccessful or dysfunctional 3 Broadly neutral  ± neither successful nor unsuccessful 4 Moderately successful 5 Significantly successful X No information available. Discussion and analysis The companies studied were self-selected, with the only common factor being that they were experiencing operational difficulties which extended to their trading environment in one form or another. There was nothing to suggest that they were other than typical of [ 120 ] J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studiesInternational Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 Table I Company attributes Company B UK Manufacturing General engineering Throughout UK Yes Yes 25 Very high Low ? 170k ? 40 million Low Hierarchical High Very low Central Mixed, central file server, local PCs High Low Very low Yes No Very low Manual Management accountant Very high Yes Medium High Very Low Yes Yes Low Directors High Yes Company C UK Manufactu ring Automotive/machine tools English Midlands No N/A 60 Fairly high Low ? 1. 8 million ? 1. million Both high and low Team based Low Medium Local owner/directors Local PCs Characteristic Company A Country of operation Type of company Sales sector Sales area Part of a group High degree of central control Approximate number of employees on site Employee turnover rate General level of employee skills Approximate site sales turnover Approximate group sales turnover Product complexity Organisational structure Organisational formality Degree of manufacturing sophistication Origin of principal control Type of information systemDegree of manual systems Degree of computerisation Degree of IS training Islands of information Local networking Degree of IS integration Transfer between systems Provider of IT support Informal information systems External audit systems (e. g. ISO 9002) France Manufacturing Nuclear engineering/oil and gas production Worldwide Yes No 180 Low Very high ? 12 million ? 900 million High Hierarchical/matrix High Very high Local Mixed, central mainframe (financial), local mainframe and PCs Low High Medium Yes Some Low Manual IT department Medium Yes 121 ] (continued) J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 [ 122 ] Table I Company B . . . . . . . Characteristic Company A Company C Principal symptoms . . . . . . . Poor lead time performance Higher prices than competitors Loss of market share Serious loss of available turnover through lower throughput times . .Poor quality performance Poor lead time performance Extremely small customer base offering low value work Low profitability High degree of seasonality Poor quality performance Poor lead time performance Poor cash flow Frequent stoppages due to material shortages High degree of duplication and wasted effort Principal ca uses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Failures in communication in verbal systems  ± formal and informal Need to manually transfer data between separate IT systems leading to delays and inaccuracy Poor communication with suppliers and failure to keep adequate ata on vendor performance Lack of unified IT and IS strategy . . . . . . . . Lack of any formal operations management and scheduling system Failure to keep manufacturing performance records Control using inappropriate measurements Failure to monitor customers' records and address reasons for erosion of customer base Failure to understand market conditions Failure to understand employment market Self-imposed seasonality High staff turnover and absenteeim Constant loss of skills and competencies Lack of skills sharing Poor training Inappropriate SOP systemInformation systems unable to cope with rates of growth Unstructured data gathering Inappropriate transfer of information to factory floor leading to proliferation of informa l systems Failure to feed back information and knowledge from production Failure to understand employment market Limited knowledge base and deliberate limiting of skills base Lack of understanding of quality failures Lack of appropriate IT training Inappropriate IT systems Ad-hoc IT systems leading to Lack of unified IT and IS strategyJ. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 Table II Success factors and dysfunctional areas Factor no. 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 Description factor Top management involvement Competition between computer based information system (CBIS) and non-CBIS units Allocation priorities for IS resources (#) Chargeback method of payment for services Relationship between users and the CBIS s taff Communications between users and the CBIS staff Technical competence of the CBIS staff Attitude of the CBIS staff Scheduling of CBIS products and services Time required for systems development Processing of requests for system changes Vendor's maintenance support Response/turnaround time Means of input/output with CBIS centre Convenience of access Accuracy of output Timeliness of output Precision of output Reliability of output Currency of output Completeness of output Format of output Features of computer language used Volume of output Realisation of user requirements Correction of errors Security of data and models Documentation of systems and procedures User's expectation of computer-based support User's understanding of the systems Perceived utility (worth vs. ost) User's confidence in the systems User's participation Personal control over the IS (#) Training provided to users Job effects of computer-based support Organisational position of the IS unit (#) Flexibility of th e systems Integration of the systems User's attitude toward the IS (#) Clarity of output Instructiveness of output Support of productivity tools Productivity improved by the IS (#) Efficiency of the systems Effectiveness of the systems A 3 2 3 X 4 4 4 3 3 3 2 X 4 4 4 3 2 3 3 2 4 4 4 2 4 4 4 5 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 2 2 4 4 4 4 4 3 3 Company B 1 1 1 2 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 3 2 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 3 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 1 4 1 1 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 C 2 3 2 0 4 2 2 2 2 2 3 1 2 3 4 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 2 2 2 1 2 4 2 3 3 4 4 1 2 5 4 2 4 3 3 2 2 2 2 companies of their size or sector. The studies aimed to determine the extent of use of ISs, report effectiveness and what contribution, if any, their systems had to the areas of dysfunction. They were intended to be preliminary studies from which initial conclusions could be drawn, with reference to published work. By spending a considerable amount of time in each company, and becoming involved with various aspects of their operations, and interacting with employees at all levels in each company, there is a high level of confidence that the systems observed were unaffected by short term experimental bias.Company A, with the highest turnover and backed by a large multi-national parent company was the most resource rich [ 123 ] J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 company. It possessed a highly sophisticated and well-designed production and operations management system, backed by logistics, quality and design departments each equally efficient in their own right. The IS appears from Table II to perform reasonably well. Yet consistently it was unable to meet promised lead times, often by a substantial margin.It was found that the purchasing department was at the centre of many of the problems, with poor communication with suppliers, and adversarial purchasing based p rincipally on price. The consequence was many late deliveries and variable quality. Yet the true cause of the problems was not discovered to be there. The principal means of information transfer between different sections of the company's IT system was manual. Because of incompatible systems, even at PC level, where both Apple and MsDOS based systems were employed, communication was impossible. Each department's system had grown on an ad hoc basis to fulfil its own needs, without reference to others. Each data transfer took place using printed information, usually in the form of schedules, which was translated, then re-entered manually.There were often delays, some considerable, while this process took place. Subtle yet cumulative changes of data and information took place because of translation errors. This had the effect of de-synchronising the whole system. But the most significant effects on leadtime were not to be found in the IT system, but rather in verbal communication syste ms. A large number of formal and informal meetings were held to exchange information often in response to increasing delays against the planned schedule. In response to pressure, the spokespersons from individual departments often gave incorrect answers, sometimes inadvertently because of the cumulative errors or delays in information transfer.Other times, errors were deliberate, where attempts were apparently made to save face, or under pressure from a senior manager or colleagues, to agree to plans that they knew to be unrealistic. Different participants often repeated this process in turn during a meeting. Accordingly, this information was recorded and became crystallised into the formal system with the result that delays were progressively magnified. Thus it was lack of true dynamic connectedness of the system that created the problems that led to continual poor lead-time performance. In contrast, the IS in Company B was not only seriously deficient and absent in many places, bu t was dysfunctional in every area where it did exist. IT systems were limited, unfriendly and uncoordinated, with training and documentation absent.In the wider system information, and particularly feedback, was deliberately withheld, and knowledge generation stifled in response to the corporate culture. The annual haemorrhage of accumulated skills combined with the lack of training and poor human resources policies substantially added to the problem. Inappropriate measurement and control of the feedback systems that did exist reinforced this culture, and the problems that were occurring. Because of poor management techniques, both internal and external intelligence was ignored for considerable periods of time. At the times attention was placed upon this aspect, the system was incapable of multiple focus, and one set of problems was replaced with another.The response of senior group managers was particularly interesting. As IS was put in place or repaired, long-accumulated problems began to emerge which pointed to previous management failures. Their immediate response was to try to dismantle newly implanted systems, and halt knowledge generation and dissemination, and return to the previous culture. Once they took these steps, failure was inevitable. In Company C, the problems were quite different. There was a clear belief in the ability of computers to solve problems by their mere presence. Yet the growth and structure in their IS was wholly unplanned and uncoordinated, and was incapable of supporting the rapid growth of the organisation.There was substantial redundancy and duplication of software systems, and poor understanding of their capabilities that led to the disablement of important reporting and control facilities. Poor system management and training allowed proliferation of duplicated files, and it was often difficult to determine the correct version of any instruction. As a consequence, a considerably higher level of employee time was expended than necessary, substantially increasing costs. Poor data gathering, knowledge management and information generation techniques exacerbated these problems, and informal systems proliferated. Yet simple trial measures to return acquired manufacturing process and merge formal and informal systems, improved quality, productivity and worker-satisfaction.Information systems in an agile company should contribute to responsiveness as well as to overall corporate and organisational aims (Burgess, 1994; Goldman and Nagel, 1993; Kidd, 1994). There are a number of broadly accepted principles of the agilemanufacturing paradigm that provide the [ 124 ] J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 basis for a rapid and flexible response to changing trading conditions. That is to say there is emphasis on strategies (Goldman et a l. , 1995), technologies, systems (Cho et al. , 1996; Gillenwater et al. , 1995) and people (Goldman et al. , 1995; Kidd, 1994).In many cases, many authors have placed great emphasis on the technological capabilities of the organisation (Adamides, 1996; Medhat and Rook, 1997; Merat et al. , 1997). Such resources may not be available to smaller companies. Does this necessarily mean that small companies may not be agile. This would be directly contradictory to the long held view that the strength of smaller companies is their inherent flexibility and responsiveness. Nevertheless, from the comparisons shown in Table III it is possible to conclude from this study that the more dysfunctional, and less dynamically connected the IS, the less able the company is to achieve agile outcomes, flexibility and responsiveness, in the broadest sense of its definition (Gehani, 1995; Kidd, 1996). Conclusion and implicationsIn this section consideration is given to three broad issues arising from the case studies: potential implications of the results; preliminary conclusions; and plans for further work. The studies found broadly in line with previous work, though we have suggested that the normal three-part definition of information of data, information and knowledge be extended to include a fourth, intelligence. We have further observed the fundamental importance of informal systems particularly in the case of the two smaller companies B and C. Here personnel at every operational level relied heavily on informal information, and constructed their own systems, either to protect their position, or to operate more effectively.We have also propounded the biological view that human behavioural systems in particular provide a useful view of how responsive organisations should behave if flexibility and responsiveness is the desired outcome. This paper then considered the companies against the background of agile manufacturing and compared their actual performance to the ideals of the paradigm. It can be concluded that in every case in this study, the more dysfunctional and less dynamically connected the IS, the less able the company is to be agile in the broadest sense of its definition. However current tools and techniques of evaluation and design of ISs are far less wellTable III Comparative performance against agility principles Company A Strategy Agile principles Technology Systems Lack of direct integration of IT systems and connectedness of IT and people-centred systems Absent, deficient or dysfunctional. Without effective coordination or integration People Flexibility Outcomes Responsiveness Low Good strategic Good to awareness excellent Low People highly trained, valued and rewarded but failure in communications in people-centred systems People poorly valued and rewarded. No training and deliberate withholding of knowledge in response to company culture Poor B Poor strategic Badly provided, maintained and awareness  ± understood with lack of internal and external intelligence Poor C Strategy held in individuals at board levelLimited, uncoordinated and unplanned. Computers seen as an answer by simply being present Uncoordinated and incapable of adapting to rapidly increasing demand Poor HR policies Rapidly decreasing leading to staff shortages and low reputation. Poor knowledge management Rapidly decreasing [ 125 ] J. G. Thoburn, S. Arunachalam and A. Gunasekaran Difficulties arising from dysfunctional information systems in manufacturing SMEs  ± case studies International Journal of Agile Management Systems 1/2 [1999] 116 ±126 suited to the needs of many companies (Sauer and Lau, 1997), SMEs in particular, and the achievement of their strategic, commercial and operational goals.This suggests that a new and simpler technique is required that aims to lay down the foundation for an IS at an early stage in the development of a company. This system must be capable of being applied by non-specialist managers in circumstances where there may be a mix of information technology and manual systems. 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