Home Rehab Day at Tymco

During the rehab, the staff members from different units at Tymco became better acquainted. First, everyone in this activity shared ideas and took responsibility for what they were expert on. Second, they trusted each group to work on different things. At last, the case also provides evidence that people worked in Tymco who came from different units worked a lot with each other rather than worked with people from their own discipline.For example, Boudreau, the supervisor of technical documentation, worked with Benito from translation services and Jenkins from technical training, but not just worked with his own discipline workmates. Team spirit grows The home rehab day really gave a boost to team spirit. We can see that each member accepted assigned or self-appointed responsibility. They also discovered strengths and weakness. Only two days, they finished rehab the house. They worked well together. The ten participants painting the house together toward the end of the project showed that teamwork was developing.At the end of the day, they exchanged smiles, high fives and hugs [1], and received positive feedback from the family. Problems in the house rehab day At the end of the day, Ian, a staff from the technical manual group, commented that replacing shingles having no particular impact on becoming a better team player. Ian’s comment was valid on both sides: fixing shingles didn’t fix relationships, and also valid because fixing that shingle couldn’t consider you a team player.I agree with Ian’s comment because before we can have a better team player, it takes time to build up some bonds in order to get to work together. Maria and Cortez can’t really expect that a 2-days activity would change members’ perspective of working in a group. In my opinion, these kinds of activities should take place regularly maybe once a month. Also, the case mentioned that employees have actually never have lunch together, so maybe if they do that too, the relationship between them will be better.

Organization of relationships Essay

Functionalism Functionalism is perhaps the oldest, and still dominant theoretical perspective in sociology. This paradigm is based upon two related emphases: application of the scientific method to the objective social world, and use of analogy between the individual organism and society. The perspective was developed by Emile Durkheim, and expanded by Talcott Parsons in the 1950s. The perspective assumes: 1) that the application of the scientific method extends to the social world, 2) values provide general guidelines for behavior in terms of roles and norms, 3) institutions are generally composed of interrelated roles and norms, and 4) the society is a functioning organism composed of functioning institutions. Functionalists perceive the social world as objectively real – observable with methods such as surveys and interviews. Rules and regulations assist in the organization of relationships between members of the social body. These institutions of society such as the family, religion, the political system, even the economy are interwoven. They function congruent to social needs and aspirations. They are directed to the attainment of social objectives. Functionalism has the following assumptions: 1) the interrelatedness of institutions, roles, and norms is congruent with social needs; 2) social need is not necessarily physiological in orientation (it can be in the form of status acquisition); 3) gradual change is the main motor of social change (abrupt change is seen as something unnecessary and leading to social dislocation of actors); 4) objectivity is the primary qualification of social research (functionalism, later structural functionalism is highly correlated with the empiricist approach to social research); 5) the social world is generally governed by social actors. Functionalism addresses the following issues: 1) the evolution of roles and norms in a particular social setting, 2) the development of interrelated institutions, 3) the efficacy of long-term change, 4) the cohesive functioning entity, and 5) the importance of role-making and empiricist research. From the five sociological paradigms discussed, conflict theory seemed to be the least useful because: 1) It fails to answer the evolution of roles and norms in the society (it views morality as something created by power politics); 2) While it explains the efficacy of short term (abrupt) change, it fails to fully substantiate the saliency of long-term (gradual) social change; 3) It saw conflict as the only effective means of altering social arrangements, roles, and norms of the society – here, conflict is seen as a positive force of social change (the word ‘positive’ here is morally neutral).

Andy Goldsworthy – Essay

Andy Goldsworthy Andy Goldsworthy is able to create something aesthetically pleasing or conceptually pleasing out of absolutely nothing. He takes what he can from the land and produces sculptures by melting ice together, collecting wood or piling rocks in unique ways. Andy Goldsworthy creates his art using his bare hands alone, and while the art is still standing, he creates his own significant places. His art would often erode or collapse but for the brief time they are standing, his creations show bure beauty and amazement. Andy attempts to get closer to nature in all of his artworks. He portrays to the audience the importance of nature by recreating the different sculptures to remind us of the beauty nature holds. â€Å" â€Å"As with all my work, whether it's a leaf on a rock or ice on a rock, I'm trying to get beneath the surface appearance of things. Working the surface of a stone is an attempt to understand the internal energy of the stone. †- Andy Goldsworthy Goldsworthy tries to keep things simple in what he does. He uses only the materials and tools he is provided with by nature. If it is snowing, he will use the snow as his material, if it is autumn he works with the colours of falling leaves, a falling tree is a source of twigs and branches. Goldsworthy works with the land and not against it. He believes that the he has to learn about the lands surroundings and portray them through his artworks so that when others see the art they instantly feel the emotions of what is around them. He causes us to get sucked into the nature of the artwork and its serenity. â€Å"At its most successful, my ‘touch' looks into the heart of nature; most days I don't even get close. These things are all part of a transient process that I cannot understand unless my touch is also transient-only in this way can the cycle remain unbroken and the process be complete. † -Andy Goldsworthy Touch is an important element in the process of Andy Goldsworthy’s art making. He likes to touch before he places any material in order to get connected with the piece and feel the energy of his artwork. He learns from nature and f the piece doesn’t fit right, it could all come crumbling down. This fragile art is what makes his art so interesting to viewers and is what holds to emotion of the piece. Andy often takes photos of his artwork just after he creates them. He then sells the photos and not the artworks as the artworks often erode or fall. In his photographs, he still manages to portray the emotion seen in all his works. In making this art Goldsworthy must be extremely patient and rely completely on nature. He has had to try again many times after something has not worked and his art has come crashing to the floor. The materials used are very delicate and need to be handled with care, but again, this is what makes his art so interesting and exciting. Andy believes in the way nature can teach you many things and overwhelm you with such grace and beauty. Each of Andy’s artworks provides a story or portrays information in order to make the audience wonder. Andy takes interest in creating land art because of the serenity he produces through nature and because of what he can learn from his art. He is interested in finding the figure or picture to suit that area. He uses subtle amounts of colours in his artworks to create a contrast in what is real and what is art. His artworks vary in size, they could cover large mounts of land or could just consist of a small rock pile behind a tree. The size will vary on what the atmosphere of the land holds. Goldsworthy just works with what he has. Every choice counts in his artworks and he has to take his time to create them but in the end, what he produces is magnificent. Emily Kame Kngwarreye- Emily Kame Kngwarreye is an aboriginal artist who strives on creating her work on the emotions and nature of the land. Her land and the closeness and connection she shares with it inspire her work. Emily is an Elder in Anmatyerre, her aboriginal community, and uses this cultural experience as a basis for her artworks. Her artworks are also based on her lifelong custodianship of the women’s dreaming sites in her clan country Albalkere. The beliefs in the dreamtime stories that have been passed down by ancestors and portray them in her artworks. It was her Dreaming that was the source of the creative power, of her knowledge. So profound was her identification with Alhalkere that it infused her life and her belief system. Alhalkere was the source of her paintings. Even physically, Emily's pierced nose bore homage to the ancestor Alhalkere, a pierced rock standing on the Country of the same name. Emily believed purely in this ancestor and gained the knowledge for her paintings form her belief. | Emily tried to convey her land through her art by using colours and symbols in her artworks. Because of her strong Aboriginal connection with the land, she presented this as her significant place and acknowledged this throughout all of her artworks. Often she would use materials found in the land such as what she painted on or with and sometimes even painted using her hands, but mostly she used paint and a brush. The colours she used were to portray her land and symbolize her connection with the ‘Sunburnt’ country. She would use colours such as warm yellows, reds, pinks and orange to portray her land and chose to represent the nature of the land through rough strokes and dots. Usually she painted what came to mind when she thought about her dreamtime stories or chose to tell the story in her artwork using a number of colours and figures. Her land is what is most important in her belief system and she cherishes her connection with nature and the dreamtime stories. In her artworks, each action is carefully chosen to portray her belief in the land. They demonstrate the connection between Aboriginals and their nature. Emily’s art also displays the relationship between Indigenous Australians and the dreamtime stories they tell which usually involve their land and ancestors. Emily’s art tells the story of her life. It displays her beliefs and inspirations and also the significance of the land in Aboriginal culture. So by looking at her artworks we feel an overwhelming respect for Emily and her heritage. We feel the landscape of her land and the hidden reasures that are held close to her community. Emily’s art displays a sense of pride for her land and helps us to convey the same proudness in our lives. Although some of her artworks display sadness and loss, most demonstrate beauty and love. This sense of happiness enters the viewers mid as soon as they set eyes on her artworks. This feeling is what Emily was trying to convey I her artworks. She tries to capture the unseen beauty of the land and reproduce it so that it is no longer hidden to the viewers eye. Emily paints out of pure adoration to her land.

Benefits of stem cell research Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Benefits of stem cell research - Essay Example There are three types of stem cells. Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are derived from the embryo and are pluripotent: they have the potential to become all the different cell types of the body. Adult, or somatic, stem cells are found in organs or tissues, and are multipotent: they can differentiate to yield the specialized cell types comprising that particular organ or tissue and are important for maintenance and repair of the organ or tissue. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs)  are adult cells that have been genetically reprogrammed to an embryonic stem cell–like state. The dual capacity of stem cells for self-renewal, and for differentiation into particular types of cells and tissues, offers great potential for regenerating failing body parts and curing diseases that have so far defied drug-based treatment (NIH, 2002). Advocates of stem cell research consider it to be mankind’s greatest hope of survival. At the other end of the spectrum are the detractors, who paint a doomsday scenario of â€Å"a  new world of â€Å"embryo farms† and â€Å"cloning mills† for the cultivation of human spare parts† (Weiss, n.d.). ... Bone marrow contains blood-forming stem cells (hematopoietic stem cells) that have been used for over four decades to treat blood cancers and other inherited blood disorders. Bone marrow transplants are able to permanently replace a patient’s diseased blood system and give the patient a new lease on life. Persons who have diseases of the bone marrow are injected with healthy hematopoietic stem cells that produce healthy blood cells, and replace the function of their own non-functioning bone marrow (NIH, 2002).   Umbilical cord blood, which is harvested from the umbilical cord of the baby after birth, is another source of hematopoietic stem cells that is being used in treatment. Cord blood is rich in a kind of stem cell that gives rise to oxygen-carrying red blood cells, disease-fighting white blood cells, and other parts of the blood and immune systems (Weiss, n.d.). The advantage of cord blood cells is that these stem cells can be frozen (‘cryopreserved’) in ce ll banks and later be used to treat children with cancerous blood disorders such as leukaemia, as well as genetic blood diseases like Fanconi anaemia. Another advantage of cord blood transplants is that they are less likely than conventional bone marrow transplants to be rejected by the immune system, or to result in a negative reaction such as  Graft versus Host Disease. (EuroStemCell, 2013). Unlike conventional blood transfusions, which provide only temporary volumes of cells which die in a few months and have to be replaced yet again, the stem cells found in bone marrow and cord blood can generate fresh blood and immune cells for a lifetime (Weiss, n.d.).More advanced techniques for collecting, or â€Å"harvesting,† hematopoietic stem cells are now used in order to treat leukemia, lymphoma,

Assess the arguments for and against the claim the American news media Essay

Assess the arguments for and against the claim the American news media is inherently biased in favour of liberalism - Essay Example On the other side of the coin, it is possible that the media may have a liberal bias and since liberals get what they want to see that is why liberals are least likely to raise their voice against media bias in United States. This paper is an attempt to explore the same by assessing the arguments presented by critics, which are both for and against a liberal bias in the American news media (Anderson, pp. 62-68, 2005). Media bias refers to â€Å"perceived attribute of a news source whereby the individual news source, or the group the news source represents, has a clear ‘vested interest’ in a cause or action relative to maintaining or changing the status quo? (And) a biased journalistic perspective, then, would mean only one side, not two or more sides, of an issue is presented† (Alterman, pp. 210-212, 2004). Critics favoring the existence of a liberal bias present many studies which reveal that there are far more democrat journalists as compared to republican journalists. For example, a study conducted in 1999 by the American Society of Newspaper editors revealed that 61 percent of the newsroom respondents identified themselves as democrats or their thoughts bear the most resemblance to that of democrats. However, only a mere 10 percent of newsroom respondents identified that they either are republicans or believe that their thoughts are represented by the republican ideals. Furthermore, these percentages change when one considers the small newspapers. The number of democratic supporters’ drops down to 48 percent and the number for republicans rise to 21 percent. This debate received more heat when the figures of the amounts donated to democratic and republican party from the employees of NBC, CBS and ABC came on to the scene. The Democratic Party received the donations of over 1 million US dollars from approximately 1160

Political Science Discussion Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Political Science Discussion - Article Example Moreover, the article highlights on the diplomacy role of Obama administration in addressing the situation. The spat in public by Mr. Kerry is seen as affecting negotiations that have been there between United States and Russia in resolving the crisis in Syria (Gordon, Sanger and Schmitt 1). Moreover, the article addresses the reluctance of Obama administration in engaging directly in the political situation, in the country. The inaction is seen as the administration pulled back the threat of cruise missile strike (Gordon, Sanger and Schmitt 1). The only move the administration has taken is trying to provide support to opposition forces and handling of humanitarian crisis. In addition, the article talks of some meeting of different countries intelligence chiefs. The meeting came with a plan to provide rebels with most sophisticated weapon as a solution to Syria civil war (Gordon, Sanger and Schmitt 1). The idea was out of realization that diplomatic attempts of addressing the crisis has failed. The article helps in highlighting the challenges and failures in addressing the situation, in Syria (Gordon, Sanger and Schmitt 1). Moreover, it helps in showing response by leading players in the world politics on situation. It has also helped in showing why diplomacy has failed. However, in my opinion, the situation in the country can only be addressed in the warring parties are disarmed instead of arming both sides. Gordon, Michael, Sanger, David and Schmitt, Eric. â€Å"Middle East.† Nytimes.com. Web 20 February 2014.

Is it a good idea to use the term 'knowledge management in Essay

Is it a good idea to use the term 'knowledge management in conversations with top managers in our days - Essay Example In order to get acquainted with the major postulates of knowledge management we turned to â€Å"An Illustrated Guide of Knowledge Management† issued by Wissensmanagement Forum in 2003. This guide offers a very detailed description of objectives and benefits, basic concepts and logistics, and gives a precise description of implementation of knowledge management in practice. It becomes clear from the contents already that the â€Å"new† science covers such field of management as information and communication technologies and expert systems. The guide provides psychological and philosophical bases for the importance and necessity of knowledge management, explaining facts that are either well-known and widely-discussed or obviously far-fetched. They start with declaring the significance of knowledge and organizational learning for the success of any enterprise (which has been exhaustively discussed in the vast literature on strategic, business and operations management, as well as in that devoted to management of technologies, intelligent systems and the like), happily informing us (as if nobody guessed before) that well-trained and clever personnel contributes to this success, and claiming that â€Å"effective knowledge management not only forms the basis of successful innovation processes, but also greatly enhances an organization’s ability to innovate† (p.1). There arises the first question of a puzzled audience: have they found some new method of turning usual employees into creative and invaluable workers? Further, they provide a detailed scheme of cognitive processes connected with knowledge and memory (it stays unclear what a top manager needs it for – general education?) and introduce some cleverly-sounding terms (the purpose is still unclear). They speak of tacit and explicit knowledge and write many other abstruse things (p.2-7). T.D.Wilson (2002) fairly wonders how knowledge of an individual can be managed at all (incre ased and

SUPREME COURT CASE Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

SUPREME COURT CASE - Assignment Example The City of New London, Connecticut sought to force the sale of some private property to be used for an urban redevelopment project. Some of the owners objected to the sale. The city government then proceeded to assert eminent domain powers under the Fifth Amendment, via the Fourteenth Amendment, which explicitly applies the Constitution to the States. Traditionally, â€Å"public use† had been interpreted as things or media the public actually used. In the Kelo case, the City of New London sought to justify the eminent domain seizure because the urban redevelopment project would generate tax revenue for a blighted urban area. The Court sided with the city and allowed the forced sale under the Fifth Amendment. This is a significant case because of the awesome power it bestows on municipal governments. They now have the power to seize property not just for sewers or roadways but also for urban development. To see the potential for corruption is not terribly difficult. A rich rea l estate developer could bribe city officials to force a private property owner to sell his property.

Critically discuss the proposition; ''organisational culture cannot be Essay

Critically discuss the proposition; ''organisational culture cannot be managed'' - Essay Example The move raises the question of how easy it is to manage or to change organisational cultures. There is widespread criticism of the common culture management approaches by various scholars; in recent studies, it is evidenced that managers are continually engaging themselves in planned cultural interventions (Griffin & Moorhead 2011). Their main concerns are that organisational cultures determine the image and the performances of organisations and failure to address the issue would signify failure in organisational goals. The studies indicate that managing organisational cultures is the most common and popular form of managerial interventions. Organisational atmospheres usually change and organisational cultures evolve with time and generations in an organisation (Alvesson, 2002). Organisations emerge because of a group of people having a common goal of working together to achieve a common goal. For a single person, the tasks would be challenging or impossible. The process it takes for organisational culture formation starts creation of small groups of individuals with a common idea or notion in organisational operations. These finally generate long-lasting organisational cultures that pass from one generation to another. In the past two decades, the issues of organisational culture have had much attention especially in the health sector. The Health sector is a critical area where cultures determine various aspects in the services and operations (Scott et al., 2003). In the UK, for example, the central governments have been actively promoting structural change in the UK National Health Services (NHS). It is in an effort to secure sufficient gains in the health care performance (Davies et al., 2000). The main goal of the central government policies lies on the development of cultural changes in view of structural change.

Pretty woman is a conflicted tale about prostitution and dreams Essay Example for Free

Pretty woman is a conflicted tale about prostitution and dreams Essay Pretty woman is a conflicted tale about prostitution and dreams: how we prostitute ourselves to achieve our dreams; and how those dreams are defiled and compromised by our prostitution. Discuss. To prostitute oneself means that you sell yourself for a reward either money or something else. In the film there is a lot of prostituting occurring mainly for the characters in the film to achieve their dreams. Pretty woman is a modern day representation of the fairy tale Cinderella. Because the film has a fairy tale narrative then it means that the film has a lot to do with dreams and the make believe. All the characters in the film have a role and are all trying to achieve their own personal dreams. The two main characters in the film are both looking to find their dreams, which are two different things. Vivian is a character of great dignity and self respect this breaks the stereotype of a prostitute and is shown in many ways in the film.Vivian Wants the typical fairy tale that is swept of her feet by a brave dark stranger and to live happily ever after. But she also has a realistic dream where by she is able to live a higher standard of life instead of living in a apartment which she doesnt like and which she cant afford the rent for. Whereas Vivians dream is to make is dad jealous by becoming a successful business man and very wealthy. In both dreams the characters have to sacrifice different things to try and achieve their own dreams. Vivian has to sell her body as a prostitute to be able to afford the money to achieve her dream. Whereas Edward has had to sacrifice his soul and conscience to be able to get his dream, this means that he is able to develop lasting relationships. Through out the film we see what the characters within the film have had to do to achieve their dreams The first scene in the film is a business gathering where the main topics of conversation are either money or girls; these are the main ingredients of prostitution. The first line of the film is its all about money this sets up the fell of the film where he is saying that everything in life revolves around money and the lengths that people will go to get money to achieve their dreams. The first scene shows Edward on the phone sorting out business and is not interested in the party that is going on around him, this shows that he is giving up his social life and not spending time enjoying his wealth/dream as he is trying to arrange business. Then there is a contrast in lifestyles. The opening line of the next scene is Everyone comes to Hollywood for a dream this could be represented as Vivians Philosophy of life because straight after that scene the camera cuts to her. This also shows that everyone in Hollywood has a dream and different people are willing to go different lengths to achieve this dream. Vivian is shown as being in the lower social class and wants to get out of her current lifestyle which is her dream. When Edward pulls up in his very expensive car and asks Vivian for directions her first response is to ask for money again onto the fact that everything is for money. When the two are in the car Vivian is talking about money when and Edward comes out with the line I never joke about money this is very significant as it shows that he takes money very serious in hi life and see it as something that he cant joke about. In the film there is a contrast in lifestyles and also how close the two main characters are in their pursuit of their dreams. Edward is upper class and is living his dream (but he is not enjoying it). Whereas Vivian was nowhere near achieving her dream but is very happy with her personality and who she is, and throughout the film she may change her view on things but her personality remains the same throughout the film. So as she is living and achieving her dream she does not change yet I would think that Edwardss personality would have changed as he got closer to his dream. When Vivian enters the hotel she doesnt try to be posh but tries to play the stereotypical role of a prostitute when people look at her. But when she gets into the room she is amazed by the luxury and sees it as a dream compared to what type of living standards which she is used to. When the waiter brings the champagne and strawberries he waits for a tip which again shows that everything revolves around money in all cases, the waiter is a prostitute in a way because he delivers a surface of the exchange of money. Later in that night when Vivian is watching the tv and eating the strawberries Edward is at his desk doing work, and does not drink any alcohol this again shows how he has given up socialising and having a good time in pursuit of his dream. Every time Vivian walks through the hotel lobby she is looked down upon by the people in the lobby this causes her to put he dreams on hold as she realises that she doesnt fit in, in this lifestyle. When Vivian goes out shopping for expensive clothes the scene is step up as if it was actually a fairy tale, with the way in which it is day time sunny and the colours used are bright happy colours which you would associate with fairy tales, this could represent that Vivian is busy living her dream. But when she tries to buy some clothes and the staff of the shop asks her to leave she realises again that because of her past and background that she doesnt fit in that style of life. When she goes back to the hotel the hotel manger takes her aside and talks to her about her stay in the hotel and how she should dress appropriately etc. but when she explains what happened then instead of the manager just dismissing her he tries to help and sends her to a friend of his. The hotel manager is has also got a dream of his own, which he is living. His dream is to be hotel manager of the hotel. You can tell that he is very proud of his job because when he is talking the Edward he keeps stating that he is the hotel manager. Although he has reached his dream it is unclear what he has had to give up to achieve it because he is a kind man who gets on well with people. So this shows that not everyone has to give up something to achieve their dream and that people have different types of dreams depending on their personalities and ambitions. It may be said that the larger your dreams the more you have to prostitute to achieve them. At the polo match when Vivian is dressed like all the other woman in posh clothes (which she is starting to get used to) Edwards lawyer comes up to her and tells her that he knows she is a prostitute. This brings Vivian back down to reality and shatters the dream at which she is in as she is made to feel cheap and small and is not prepared for it. Later on Vivian is again made to feel like a prostitute but it is Edward how does it, when Vivian asks for her money he puts its on the bed instead of giving it to her (treats her with no respect). Vivian shows dignity and self respect because she does not take the money (although she really needs it) and would rather keep her dignity then have the money, this is different from Edwardss views and believes. When the two make up she says the line If people put you down, you start to believe it with shows that her dream is has been put down and that she has realised she had been living as false dream for a few days which has dramatically ended, by her choice. This shows that Vivian was not willing to compromise her dignity for her dreams. This is shown in the next seen also, when Edward takes Vivian out she is wearing a red dress. The colour red represents dignity respect and power these are the things which are shown in Vivians character. Although when at the opera she never looses sight of whom she is. As the relationship between the two gets more intimate then Edward begins to become more and more laid back and starts to enjoy his wealth and money more. This is shown throughout the film but the main change comes when Edward takes a day off work to spend it with Vivian, this is a complete contrast to the first scene where he was missing a party because of business. Vivian also brings out the best in his personality. You can tell this because in the first meeting with the shipping contractor where Edward is abrupt and Cleary states that he wants get dismantle the contractors business up and sell it off. But after a prolonged period of time with Vivian and at the next meeting of the two Edward changes his mind and offers go into business with the contractor instead. This is because Vivian is bringing out the best in him and also as a child he says he loved to build things and that all he had to show for his career was money instead of products. So before he wanted to get revenge at his farther he loved to build but as he got angrier with his farther he wanted to destroy things, but now that he wants to go into construction again shows that he is getting over his farther and moving on with his life and starting to get back to his original dream which was construction. The necklace that Edward loans out for Vivian is very symbolic. It is representing that he is selling himself to her through the expensive necklace. Also when he asks the hotel manager to take the necklace back for him he says it must be very difficult to let go of something so beautiful so again Vivian is represented through the necklace. Also in the opera scene the line me not work is said this shows that Edward is concentrating more on Vivian and enjoying himself rather then work and money which he did originally. The resolution of the story is the rescue of the princess by her prince charming. This is successfully completed by Edward arriving on a white horse (represented as a white limousine) and climbing up the castle wall that she has been trying to escape (the fire escape of her old flat) and rescue Vivian from a life of poverty. This is what she expressed her childhood dream as being. However, the two personal journeys of Edward and Vivian leave a more significant impact on the viewer. Edwards journey began with his father leaving him for another woman, and giving Edward a sense of rage whose only outlet is his business. This anger fuels his life, and indirectly leaves him a very rich man. Although Edwards business life is very successful, his personal life is a shambles. Edward has a fear of commitment. His journey in this film helps him let his guard down with Vivian, and he begins to overcome his fears. This personal growth leads him to a change of business strategies, resulting in a sense of closure regarding the old man hes trying to buy out of business. This old man represents what Edwards relationship with his father could have been, and when Edward changes tactics and decides to join forces with the old man, the man expresses the pride he feels, and Edward feels the anger begin to fade. Vivians journey takes her from poverty to riches, but she too has closed herself off emotionally. This closure is necessary for many professions, including prostitution, but its apparent from the beginning of this film that Edward isnt an ordinary client. Vivians journey leads her from a dead end job to the probability of furthering her education and looking towards a brighter future. Edward does more for Vivian than buy her things; he shows her that she is somebody special, and he gives her back her sense of the worth. The journeys of Edward and Vivian lead them to the end of the film, where they have resolved their internal conflicts and are free to love one another. Both characters in the film are pursuing their quest for their dreams. Edward had his but had to sacrifice his emotions to get it, and now with guidance from Vivian has is starting to restore them. Whereas Vivian had nothing and because of Edward has been able to live her dream and is still the same emotional person she was at the start of the film although the week has made her look at certain things through a different perspective.

Communication In An Organization Management Essay

Communication In An Organization Management Essay Communication in an organization is significant and its continuous effectiveness is fundamental for the seamless integration of its internal publics into the organization. Ferguson (1999), suggests that communication priorities must be capable of responding to the requirements of both external and internal audiences. Apparent communication channels echo the well being of an institute. Clampitt (1991) suggests that effective internal communication helps to improve an organizations success. Clampitts proposition is consistent with Heaths (2001) observations that effective internal communication leads to increased productivity, satisfied clients and maintenance of the organizational structure. Furthermore, Clampitt and Downs 1993 cited in Hargie and Tourish (2000) suggest that organizations benefit a lot from improved internal communication. This includes improved productivity, reduced absenteeism, higher quality of service and products. Organizations also experience increased levels of innovation, fewer strikes and reduced costs of operation and high staff turnover. Taylor (2005) summarizes the benefits of effective communication in the acronym as, SUCCESS defined as follows: S- stronger decision making and problem solving; U-upturn in productivity; C-convincing and compelling corporate materials; C-clearer, more streamlined work flow; E-enhanced professional image; S-sound business relationships; S-successful response assured (p. 11). . For an organization to assess the effectiveness of its internal communication based on its employees attitudes about the firm, it needs to conduct a communication audit (Argenti, 2009). Therefore, the assurance that effective internal communication systems exists is vital to the success of any organization. This ensures that all the objectives undertaken by an organization are clearly understood by its employees. A communication audit Scott (2007) defines a communication audit as an indicator used in a particular time to help an organization assess its current communication practices and also to show how effective they are. She suggests that a communication audit can also be used to identify areas with problems such as frequent misunderstandings, information blocks, information gaps, information duplication or misrepresentation. McGann (2010) suggests that, a communication audit is a snapshot of the organizations communications programs, practices and activities. A communication audit will inform you on what is working, what is not working and what needs to be changed or improved in terms of communication within the organization (p. 1). According to Hargie and Tourish (2000), communication audits have been used to identify and reward good practice and at the same time help organizations to manage crisis and improve business performance. Snyder and Morris (1994) cited in Hargie and Tourish (2000) observe that there is a positive correlation between the employee perceptions of communication and job satisfaction which in turn correlates to the overall organizations effectiveness. This can be achieved by the results of the communication audit. Seitel (1995) states that, organizations utilize communication audits to analyze the perception of its constituents, evaluate the readership of its communication, annual reports and newsletters which are the vehicles of the organization. Further, the author suggests that, communication audits provide the organization with important information on how to solve problems like employees working at cross-purposes, uneven communication workloads and benchmarks against which public relations programs can be applied and measured in the future. The author concludes that, a communication audit will determine the communications systems which are being used by the organization, which are the most effective and if the information that is being transmitted by the organization is regarded as adequate by its recipients. This study is an internal communication audit of the CDF Board and Secretariat which aims to determine the effectiveness of the communication systems used within the organization. History of CDF in Kenya In the recent past, the government of Kenya has created a number of alternative windows to allow allocation of resources directly to devolved government units in response to the needs to ensure equitable development at the grassroots. For instance, there has been substantial increase in resources committed at the constituency level and the local government units. When President Mwai Kibaki was in opposition he introduced a motion in parliament that sought to have funds devolved at the grassroot level, however the motion was defeated by the then head of state President Daniel arap Mois government. In the year 2003 when H. E Mwai Kibaki took power, the Ol-Kalao Member of Parliament Hon. Eng. Karue having been a member of his party, brought the motion again to Parliament seeking the funds to be devolved at the grassroot level and it was passed. Constituency Development Fund (CDF) became operational in 2004 with an annual budgetary allocation of a minimum 2.5% by the central government to each of the countrys constituencies. The fund aims to address imbalances in regional development. It targets community projects at the constituency level, particularly those aiming to combat poverty. It also provides individuals at the grassroot the opportunity to make development choices that maximize their welfare in line with their needs and preferences. Some of other notable devolved funds in Kenya include the Community Development Trust Fund (CDTF), the Roads Fund, Constituency AIDs Fund, the Local Authority Transfer Fund (LATF), Women Enterprise Fund, Youth Enterprise Development Fund, Rural Electrification Programe Levy Fund (REPF), Free Primary Education Fund (FPEF) and the Constituency Education Bursary Fund (CEBF). The over-arching goal has been to improve the development outcomes by involving local communities in the decision-making process and management of projects (CDF Board Strategic Plan, 2010-2014). During the period of CDF existence, the fund has registered substantial achievements and has greatly contributed in transforming the lives of Kenyans. The researchers observations are that, the impact of the fund is widespread that in all corners of the country one can never miss a project which has been financed from the CDF kitty. They include the improved infrastructure especially in the rural areas in the form of rural access roads, education and health facilities. The fund has enabled many students to access education through bursary. In addition it has enabled locals to build capacity at the grassroot level through empowerment in participation in project management through various committees. CDF has received a lot of media attention both positive and negative despite the fact that it has brought a paradigm shift in most of Kenyas rural areas in terms of development. However, just like any other noble idea, the Fund has had its own share of challenges ranging from mode of financing, accountability to the public, political interference in identification of projects, approval and implementation of the projects, low level of awareness among communities on the operations of the fund among others. However, Gikonyo (2008) observes that CDF has been a great success despite the challenges faced by the fund. This idea has been seconded by New Partnership for Africa Development (NEPAD) as it acknowledges the Fund as one of the best innovations in Africas development and as a result many countries are seeking to adopt the CDF model. By law, the CDF is controlled by the Member of Parliament of a constituency. This amount is then shared among all the constituencies on an established formula that factors in equality and the poverty levels of each constituency. Thereafter, the onus of disbursing and ensuring the constituencies use their share of the money efficiently and accountably falls with the CDF Board and Secretariat. This body was established under CDF (Amendment) Act 2007 section 5 (CDF Board Strategic Plan, 2010-2014). However, this Board and Secretariat is charged with the overall responsibility of managing the Funds and reporting to parliamentary Constituency Fund Committee (CFC) on its usage. The Board activities are also coordinated by a Secretariat based at its headquarters in Nairobi County. The CEO to the Secretariat is also the Secretary to the Board and the chief accounting officer to the fund. The CDF Board and Secretariat just like any other organization is believed to have communication channels in place. These communication channels play an important role of information dissemination from one person to another. However, they need to be evaluated so as to give the guidelines based on what is working, what is not working and what needs to be changed. The communication channels used by organizations include memos, telephone, emails, newsletters, website, notice board, suggestion box, meetings, annual reports and face to face. In this study the researcher will provide a credible baseline of the actual status of communication in the CDF Board and Secretariat with its internal publics. Problem statement Good internal communication is supposed to ensure low staff turnover, high quality of service and goods, improved productivity, reduced absenteeism, and reduced cost of operation. For an organization like CDF Board and Secretariat good internal communication is critical because it will ensure seamless integration of its internal publics. Staff retention is important to ensure such a young organization has officers long enough to understand, establish and concretize its mandate to ensure it serves the purpose for which it was established. A look at the CDF Board and Secretariat website indicates that several senior officers have left the organization in a period of one year. Although no exit interviews were conducted to establish the reason for their departure, poor internal communication, according to Hargie and Tourish (2000) is a major cause of high staff turnover. These authors further suggest that an organization should conduct a communication audit between five and seven years or after any major change in the organization. This enables the organization to realize what is working and what needs to be changed in terms of communication. The high staff turnover at the CDF Board and Secretariat in the long run would increase the operation costs of hiring and training new staffs regularly and also paint a negative image of the organization. This study therefore aims to investigate whether the CDF Board and Secretariat has effective internal communication and whether poor communication could have contributed to challen ges like high staff turnover. Purpose of the study The purpose of this study is to conduct an internal communication audit of the CDF Board and Secretariat and to analyze the effectiveness of its communication channels between the CDF Board and Secretariat and its internal publics. Objectives of the study General objective The general objective of this study is to carry out an internal communication audit of the CDF Board and Secretariat and to establish what communication styles are in place, how they work and the perceived effectiveness of the organizations communication. Specific objectives of the study will be: To establish the communication systems used to communicate amongst the internal publics of the CDF Board and Secretariat. To verify the effectiveness of the communication systems in meeting employees information needs. To establish employees perception on the relationship of internal communication to job satisfaction and employee retention. To document the strengths and weaknesses of the existing communication practices and propose a way forward. Research questions The issues that this study will address include:- What are the communication systems that are used to communicate among the internal publics of the CDF Board and Secretariat? What is the perceived effectiveness of communication amongst the internal publics? What is the employee perception on the relationship of internal communication to job satisfaction and employee retention? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the existing communication practices at the CDF Board and Secretariat? Rationale/ significance of the study This study will help the organization to develop possible solutions to communication problems if they will arise and also help the organization to avoid other forms of crisis including high staff turnover. The study findings could also be adopted by the government of Kenya as a basis of developing a comprehensive policy framework for internal communication among public institutions in Kenya. Such a policy would ensure smooth flow of information on government policy and directives among the public servants, which would translate to better service delivery to the public/citizens. Further, the study finding will contribute immensely to the body of knowledge in the country, and help scholars and practitioners better understand the subject of internal communication. At the completion of this study, the researcher will provide significant recommendations concerning communication issues from the research findings which will be useful to the organization. This will help the CDF Board and Secretariat to improve its internal communication systems for better and more effective internal communication within the organization. Assumptions of the study The following are the basic assumptions of the study. That CDF Board and Secretariat has got communication systems that can be audited. That the CDF Board and Secretariat employees will be truthful in responding to the research questions. That the CDF Board and Secretariat will allow the participation of its internal publics in this study. That the CDF Board and Secretariat will provide relevant information to the researcher. Limitations and delimitations In this study the researcher will focus on the internal publics of the CDF Board and Secretariat who include the CEO, the staff and the Board members. The researcher will not extend the study to the external publics. In addition, some employees may opt to withhold information due to fear of victimization. This is because most of the information that flows within the CDF Board and Secretariat is classified. To delimit this, the researcher will assure the respondents that the information provided will only be used in this study. In addition, most of the Board members do not report to the Secretariat head office on a daily basis; they only meet on several occasions in a month. To delimit this, the researcher will make arrangements to have the interviews with the Board members when they are at the head office. Scope of the study The research will be conducted at the CDF Board and Secretariat head office which is situated at the junction of Uhuru Highway and Haile Selaisse Avenue at Harambee Sacco Plaza 10th floor in Nairobi. The study will restrict itself to the audit of communication of the internal publics of the CDF Board and Secretariat which includes the CEO, Board of Directors, management staff and subordinate staff. Definition of terms Communication audit Is a snapshot of the organizations communication programs, practices and activities which inform the organization on what is working, what is not working and what needs to be changed or improved in terms of communication within the organization (McGann 2010). For the purpose of this study a communication audit will mean a gauge which helps the organization to analyze its perceived communication to its publics. CDF Board and Secretariat Is the body which has been mandated by the Government of Kenya to manage constituency funds and report to the Parliamentary Constituency Fund Committee on the usage of the funds (CDF Board Strategic Plan, 2010-2014). For the purpose of this study it shall remain one and the same thing. Communication systems: These are the communication networks which help in the flow of information from one level of employee to another. For the purpose of this study it shall remain one and the same thing. Effective communication: Fielding (2006) defines effective communication as the management of flow of information, this means from the sender, the message itself, the channel, the receiver and the feedback. Collins (2009) defines effective communication as the practical guidance on using communication vehicles and tools. For the purpose of this study, effective communication will mean transfer of information and understanding between the sender and the receiver. Internal publics: Broom (2009), refers to internal publics as the employees including managers and people being supervised. Lundblad and Stewart (2005) define the internal publics as the individuals / groups in the employ of the organization. Seitel (1995) says that the internal publics are the publics who are inside the organization though they vary from one organization to another, depending on the nature of the organization. For the purpose of this study the internal publics will be the CEO, the Board of Directors and the employees of the CDF Board and Secretariat. High staff turnoverà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Staff retentionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. Summary This chapter covered the introduction and background to the study, defined a communication audit, and gave a brief history of CDF in Kenya, CDF Board Secretariat. Problem statement, objectives of the study, justification of the study and operationalization of terminologies has also been done in this chapter. The next chapter will cover the literature review, the role of corporate communication in conducting a communication audit, theoretical, and conceptual framework. Chapter two: Literature Review Introduction This chapter reviews a literature on communication audits and related concepts. Key topics covered include: the role of corporate communication in conducting audits, empirical studies of internal communication audits, and the process of communication in organizations. Others include internal publics, and barriers to effective communication, communication systems, employee information needs and the theoretical and conceptual frameworks of the study. Communication audits Communication audits have been used as indicators to help organizations assess their current communication practices and show how effective they are. They are used to identify areas with problems such as frequent misunderstandings, information blocks, information gaps, information duplication or misrepresentation Scott (2007). More importantly, the communication audits provide a snapshot of the organizations communication programs, practices and activities. In addition, they act as a tool which helps one to know what is working, what is not working and what needs to be changed or improved in terms of communication within the organization McGann (2010). Contribution of communication audit to organizational success Downs and Adrian (2004) say that there is a tendency of organizations paying attention to communication only after a problem/crisis has occurred. The organizations need to overcome this behavior by conducting a communication audit periodically. Knowing the problem early enough saves image, time and reputation. They add that, organizations have got the responsibility to monitor the effectiveness of the messages they send to the employees because the survival of the organization depends on the employees ability to exchange and coordinate the information they are receiving. However, the authors point out that communication is not the only challenge experienced by organizations. Organizations need to have accurate impression of what their internal publics think of them, how they receive and transmit messages. This amounts to the importance of auditing communication in an organization (Hargie Tourish, 2009). For an organization to know how effective their communication is perceived based on employees attitudes it needs to conduct a communication audit. The results of the communication audit will guide the communication practitioners to formulate the right internal communication programs for the organization (Argenti, 2007). According to Hargie and Tourish (2000) organizations that conduct communication audits enjoy a long running performance in the marketplace. This means that the results of the audit will help the organization to avert chaos like misunderstandings, misrepresentation of staff, strikes, high staff turnover and poor performance. Furthermore, they suggest that the communication audits have been used to identify and reward good practice and at the same time help the organization to manage crisis and improve business performance. This idea concurs with Clampitt (1991) and Heath (2000) who say that as a result of conducting communication audits organizations have experienced increased productivity, employees job satisfaction and a positive maintenance of organizational structure. According to Hargie and Tourish (2009) organizations that have conducted internal communication audits have experienced high performance from their employees because there is a correlation between high performance and existence of effective internal communication programs. This idea concurs with Hicks and Gullet (1988) who say that there is a positive correlation with the openness of communication channels between the subordinate and the supervisor. The openness of communication channels can be realized as a result of communication audit where employees engagement and commitment to work become more significant. For instance, Arnold (1993) conducted a study of internal publics of General Motors in the United States of America. In his findings, a staff turnover rate of 30% in 1989 went down to 12% by 1991. In addition, the companys bad debt percentage went down from 3.2% to an average of 0.4% per month. The role of corporate communication in conducting a communication audit According to Cornelissen (2011) corporate communication practitioners have a role to act as intermediaries between the organization and its stakeholders, and he refers to this process as boundary spanning. Kitchen (1997) defines boundary spanning as the mechanism used by organizations to gather and analyze data about their environment. He insists that the public relations practitioners/boundary spanners play an important role of strategic decision making. This idea is consistent with Tripathi (2009) who says that the boundary spanning function of corporate communication is supposed to help the management to gather information through conducting a communication audit, interpret it from its environment and represent the organization to its publics. Steyn and Puth (2000) however, refer to the boundary spanning role as the mirror/delicate and important function of the corporate communication practitioner. Likely (2003) cited in Barker and Angelopulo (2007) says that the corporate communication has got the role to provide information for the evaluation of the internal environment of the organization. The evaluation of the communication will help the organization to identify strengths and weaknesses of the organizations communication and the management will be able to provide the input to the development of communication strategy. Empirical studies of internal communication audits At Daystar University some scholars have carried out studies on communication audit to assess the impact of communication channels in organizations. Ndegwa (1996) conducted an audit among Daystar University students. In her findings the study found that students received most of the information concerning the university from the weekly newsletter known as infospot and during chapel. In addition, students expressed a desire to get more information in general and at the same time they also felt that there was need to improve the physical environment in the university. This audit was important to the university as the institution has increased the channels of information dissemination to the students. Wamba (1999) conducted a study on public relations audit of selected publics of the Kenya Wildlife Service. In her findings majority of the respondents stated that the organization meant what it said when it made an important announcement. This was in line with employee management relations. On the issue of employees complaints being taken seriously by the management 61% of the respondents agreed that they were rarely looked into. This shows that the management did not care much about the needs of the employees. On the issue of communication from the management, 70.6% of the respondents agreed that the management was interested in telling them what they thought staff ought to know rather than what staff wanted to know. Ngugi (2004) carried out a communication audit of the internal publics of Kenya National Library Services. About 63.8% of the respondents stated that they would like to receive information from management. A small fraction of 1.3% of the respondents stated that they received information from the communication department. About 57.5% of the respondents stated that they had never heard about an internal news letter as much as it had been available. According to the study, the Kenya National Library Services had a policy guideline on forwarding issues to the management, but according to the respondents departmental heads did not forward their issues to the management (Ngugi, 2004). Pokumensah (2011) carried out a communication audit of the internal publics of the Elris Communication Services Limited. In his findings about 88% of the lower level employees received most of the task oriented information from their supervisors. This explained that the network for task oriented was top down. Another 80% of the lower level respondents states that they share task oriented information with their colleagues. This indicated that the horizontal communication happened among the employees of the same level of organizational structure (Mounter, 2003). In conclusionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ The process of communication in organizations Communication is a continuous process of exchanging verbal and nonverbal messages. A message must be conveyed through some medium to the recipient. It is essential that this message must be understood by the recipient in same terms as intended by the sender and a response given within a time frame. Thus, communication is a two way process and is incomplete without a feedback from the recipient to the sender on how well the message is understood by him. According to Hicks and Gullett (1988) most organizations have taken communication for granted. They assume that if an individual can read, write and speak they are communicating. However, communication is not just speaking, reading and writing; rather it is the transfer of information and understanding from the sender to the receiver. According to Watson and Hill (2000) communication includes five key factors that include the initiator, the recipient, the vehicle, the message and the effect. However, they argue that the communication process, sender, message and receiver are all subject to a multitude of cues which are likely to influence the message. Taylor (2005) suggests that as a communicator it is important to ensure that your message is understood, and stimulates the recipient to take appropriate action. Communication can be affected by the context in which it takes place. This context may be physical, social, chronological or cultural. The sender chooses the message to communicate within a context. Second is the sender / encoder a person who sends the message. A sender makes use of symbols (words or graphic or visual aids) to convey the message and produce the required response. For instance, a training manager conducting training for new batch of employees. Sender may be an individual or a group or an organization. The views, background, approach, skills, competencies, and knowledge of the sender have a great impact on the message. The verbal and nonverbal symbols chosen are essential in ascertaining interpretation of the message by the recipient in the same terms as intended by the sender. The third component is the message which is the key idea that the sender wants to communicate. It is a sign that elicits the response of recipient. Communication process begins with deciding about the message to be conveyed. It must be ensured that the main objective of the message is clear. Fourth is the medium which is the means used to exchange / transmit the message. The sender must choose an appropriate medium for transmitting the message else the message might not be conveyed to the desired recipients. The choice of appropriate medium of communication is essential for making the message effective and correctly interpreted by the recipient. This choice of communication medium varies depending upon the features of communication. For instance, written medium is chosen when a message has to be conveyed to a small group of people, while an oral medium is chosen when spontaneous feedback is required from the recipient as misunderstandings are cleared then and there. Fifth is the recipient / decoder who is the person for whom the message is intended / aimed / targeted. The degree to which the decoder understands the message is dependent upon various factors such as knowledge of recipient, their responsiveness to the message, and the reliance of encoder on decoder. Last but not least is feedback which is the main component of communication process as it permits the sender to analyze the efficacy of the message. It helps the sender in confirming the correct interpretation of message by the decoder. Feedback may be verbal (through words) or non-verbal (in form of smiles, sighs, etc.). It may take written form also in form of mem os and reports among others (Management Study guide -Online). Internal publics Grunig (1992) suggests that the employees who are the internal publics of an organization are the most important strategic publics of an organization. He further says that their communication should be part of an integrated and managed communication program. However, Baskin, Aronoff Lattimore (1997) argue that identification of the key publics by the organizations is important for the survival of the organization. Internal publics are the active publics of the organization and seek and process information about the organization or an issue of interest to an organization (Grunig, 1992). Importance of effective internal communication in organizations According to Hamilton and Parker (1993) organizations are made up people and the decisions made on a daily basis are likely to affect the organization, customers, other workers and even the destiny of the organization. This idea makes internal communication to be an important aspect of the organization because it is through communication the organization can gain and offer the information needed to its publics which enables them to make successful decisions. Miller (2006), however, says that internal communication helps the organization to answer the following questions; what information needs to be communicated to the publics? When should it be communicated? Who will be in charge of communicating to the public? How will the information be communicated? Millers proposition is consistent with Katz and Kahns (1966) observations that effective internal communi

Elements in Designing Public Spaces

Elements in Designing Public Spaces Introduction: Now a days more attention is given on to the human dimension in the city planning and the need for quality in the public spaces. Importance of public spaces is universally accepted by one and all. The question is what makes public space more successful? The designer is trying to give best model of good public spaces. However we find that many times well designed public space also doesnt generate good public response. In this essay an attempt is made to study a place evolved organic growth through accumulation and flourishes of public at large design public space to know which place is more successful. Question: What makes a successful public space? Have people who use it had any role to play in making it a successful? What role a designer can play in making a space successful? Public space defined: If one has to define public space in one liner, it means space for public at large.According to public space book, public zrealm includes all the space accessible to and used by people (p.111).So we can say it is a space which is made for people and it is made by people. As Loukaitou sideris and Banerjee (1998, p.175) observe: public life involves relatively open and universal social contexts, in contrast to private life, which is intimate, familiar, shielded, controlled by the individual, and shared only with family and friends. Public space is the place where one likes to spend more time not doing anything special and enjoy surroundings. This can be libraries, community centers, streets, plaza and parks. The dimensions of public space are physical and social. (p.109) Physical means space- which occur social activities. These spaces may be or may not be privately owned. For example hospitals, theaters etc are privately owned public space. The public space can be external or internal and it might be quasi external and internal space. (p.111) William White (1980) in his study in New York gave more emphasis on small scale open spaces in towns, squares, piazzas, plazas, pocket parks and street as the important public space, which are external public spaces. Primitive man moved from place to place in search for food and shelter. Agriculture helped him to settle at place for security and protection. Family life and sense of ownership were the important factor which weighed with him for the establishment of settlement. Communal living gave rise to social interaction. He then stated exchanging goods and services with others in the community for his personal and family need and here started business and commerce. Good and bad events in the community brought inmates closer and this is how, a life outside the private house originated. Initially no particular space was identified as public space. Shady place under the tree on the outskirt of a village or habitat served the purpose. Common well near the village, lake side land, riverbank or the market place was the place where people of all walks of life gathered and discussed their serious and non serious issues. Still in villages people use to gather at the Chauraha of the village. Chauraha is the space where the community meeting takes place in village. It might be under tree or open space at the junction of street. Here they did their routine activity, enjoyed the community life. This was the most primitive public space created by the people without any deliberation or active participation. Market places, squares, plazas and gardens are the extended versions of such places by evolution. All these places have grown organically by evolution. The man is the most inquisitive and innovative creature on earth. He has the ability to think, evaluate, accept the good and forego the bad. These mental faculties have made it possible for a man to improve by evolution. The change may not seem in a short time, in the longer run, the change is substantial. By evolutionary process man has tried to make his habitat more and more suited. Man has improvised his society by accumulation, adaptations and additions. Henry Sheftoe has raised a question can we design such places at the drawing board? Critics of formal architecture and planning such as Bernard Rudofsky (Architecture without Architects) and Christopher Alexander (The Timeless Way of Building, A Pattern Language) suggest that we are better of growing good places and spaces, rather than trying to build them from a blueprint. Henry Sheftoe has said I think we have a lot to learn about how plans and natural environments grow, evolve and adapt to local circumstances and then to mirror this in the development of the built environment. What do we mean by a city or town? Is it just a place of land where houses have been built for human settlement? Or it is a living organism of people staying there. If one knows the basic different between house and home, he will appreciate this important difference. A building may be just a structure of four walls and roof for an outsider but for a person residing there is more than that because he is attached to the same sentimentally. This sense of attachment to a public place works at macro level. Therefore, when we talk of evolved public space, they are the places created be people for themselves to suit their taste, culture and tradition. The city is discussed in barren eviscerated terms and in technical jargon by urban professional as if it were lifeless, detached being. In fact it is a sensory, emotional, lived experience. (Landry 2006,p.2). When a city or town is to be planned from the scratch, the designer can defiantly give his best with the help of his design input. He provides for the well designed public spaces for the common use and the same will be used by people who will stay there. But this is not the easy case every time. How well the people will accept a public space if it is designed without taking in to account their taste and needs? It may fail through it may be the most ideal design situation. Sennet (1973) in his critical statement said they have failed, not for lack of technical expertise, but because they have lot had the power to be adaptive over the course of time p100. Barnad (1994) in his account of How Building Learn suggested that good architecture is nor necessarily produced by design specialists but by the spontaneous and continuous activity of the people. Christopher Alexander asks why our modern cities so often lack a sense of natural growth, and goes on to suggest a set of rules and guidelines by which we can inject that organic character back into our high streets, buildings and squares. People who stay at a place, have by their long association to the place and style of living, developed an affinity towards the same and material change in that space will never be accepted by them. Spaces are for people to suit the designed place. Such attempts will arouse condemnation from the people and will result in failure of the space to serve the purpose. One can treat the body but not the soul. What is successful public space?: Successful public space are the place which is universally accepted by the community, where one can see and enjoy multiple activity and accessible by all kinds of member of society from children to aged. According to Francis Tibbalds, successful public spaces consist of rich, vibrant, mixed use environment that does not die at night or at the weekends and is visually stimulating and attractive to residents and visitors alike. Successful public spaces contain overlapping use of different activity and where person can join and participate without any hesitation. It must be a safe place. This is the place where society like to meet daily and enjoy the pollution free atmosphere. Henry Sheftoe has used word convivial for a successful public space. He says convivial is defined in dictionaries as festive, sociable, jovial and fond of merry- making; usually referring to people, but it can equally apply to a situation. He says without such convivial spaces, cities, towns and villages would be mere accretions of buildings with no deliberate opportunities for casual encounters and positive interactions between friends or strangers. How to evaluate public space? Despite the fact that the public space is important for good urban living, question still remains, what places are good or bad. Evolution of public space is a subjective issue and decisions may vary from person to person. Here we are not concerned with the decision form the designers point of view, but only from the point of vew of an individual common man on the street. Experts in the subjects have given different parameters for evaluating the success of a public space. However project for public space have after many case studies and surveys propounded four important parameters and they are access and linkages, comfort and image, user and activities, sociability. All other parameters given by others are more or less covered within the sweep of the aforesaid four issues. Therefore in this essay, success of the public spaces is examined by applying these four parameters only. Accessibility is most important factor which affects the willingness of the users. People are ready and willi ng if the space is nearby, in the neighborhood or approachable easily. Comfort and images decides the attraction of people. According to book Image of the City (Lynch, p.9), the quality in a physical object which gives it a high probability to evoking a strong image in any given observer. Good comfort of space also create good image on the mind. Comfort is the abstract perception in the minds of the user and good seating, lighting, mobility, traffic free environment are the physical criteria. People coming to certain public space have different reasons to come and therefore multiple activity options on the space make it more convivial. Mixed used activities generate maximum public response. If space is used by only one type of users, other users may not find place interesting. Space must provide welcoming environment to all the residents at all the time. Activities in short are the reasons to visit the place, they will interact and communicate with each other. They will love the company and will have sympathy for others. Tolerance, compassion and love are the natural fallout of a good public space. Why Banaras Ghats and Pershing park? Case study of ghat in Banaras as evolved public space: Banaras is perhaps the oldest living city in the world. It is said that (singh, 1993) city has been lived since 4th century. According to Mark Twain (1898) Banaras is older than history, older than tradition, older than legend and looks twice as old as all of them together. It is situated on the bank of holy river Ganga. According to author P. B. Singh (1993), From the ages this river front of Ganga is used by people of India as a place for performing rituals and holistic activity from birth to death. Visitor from all over the world make a point to visit Banaras either to perform Hindu rituals or be witness to them. River bank of Ganga and especially the Ghats has been acclaimed as public places and their existence since time immemorial does make it evolved public place. It is a classical example of evolved public place. According to the Merriam Websters online dictionary (2009) Ghat means A broad flight of steps that is situated on an Indian riverbank and that provides access to the water especially for bathing. Banaras is bound on the east by river Ganga which flows from north to south and while bending continuously makes a beautiful crescent like riverfront. The left bank is flanked by city while right bank is plain and undeveloped. The right bank lands are reserved for agriculture and no construction is permissible. People of Banaras are strongly related to river. The river nurtures their life. It is respected mother like. All the people living there regularly visit the ghat for bathing and routine. Earlier the ghats were muddy platforms to sit near the river. However by evolution the muddy platforms are regenerated as stepped ghats. Most of these ghats have been improved during the 17th and 18th centuries. (Singh, 1993). High contours and different water levels in the river during different seasons, the stepped embankment -ghat is perhaps the best type of river front. There are almost 84 ghats along the river in span of 5 kms. However study is confined to Dasashvamedh ghat, Darbhanga ghat, Munshi ghat, Ahilyabai Ghat. Accessibility and linkage to the edge of the river (Ghat): Study area Ghats are interconnected with each other and one can walk from one to other easily. Access to the ghat is little bit mysterious and confusing. But in plan, one can observe that all roads in the city directly lead to the ghats. Ghats are connected with two types of street. Dasashvamedh road is the Commercial Street and main approach for visitors. Other streets are Secondary Street and connect internal part of the city to the ghats. Other clear accessibility to the ghats is from the river, which is very clear and inviting. Transit points are the main bazaar street. Ghat is accessible on foot and by the boat from the river. The overall experience from city to the Dasashvamedh Ghat: From city to the Ghat is a human scale. Person cant perceive the Ghat while moving from the street. River is not visible from the inner parts of the town. Arrival to the Ghats is quite surprising. Organic development of the building on the edge of river diverts the users movement towards Ghat at certain angle and cut the vision from the distance. The experience from Dasashvamedh Ghat to the city: This experience is quite opposite to one stated above. At the ghat edge buildings are monument scale, which create image of the city from the river and image of skyline gives clear interpretation of activity on the edge. From the ghat one can observe whole city skyline because of the topography of the city. This scale slowly disappears while moving towheads the city. Dasashvamedh road: Dasashvamedh road is a main connection between Kashi Vishvanath temple and the Dasashvamedh Ghat. The whole street contains commercial life and full of mix use character houses. Surprisingly street has two way roads with divider at the center but does not give access to cars. Only two wheelers can pass on this road. The flow of people on this route is so high and black head crowd leads everyone towards the Ghat. At the junction of the Ghat street goes down in slope. Secondary Streets: These streets connect Munshi Ghat, Darbhanda Ghat and Ahilyabai ghat which are mainly attached with residential area. These streets are quite narrow and flanked by row of 3 to 4 storied residential houses with small shops on the ground floor. Street creates shadow on the road all the time which gives good comfort all the time of the day to user. Cows and dogs also stroll in these narrow streets and pedestrian found comfortable. Dark street have over looking spaces from the houses create secure and safe walk for users. At the junction of Chaustti Bazaar streets widen up and that generate community activity with the help of Chaurah (cross road) and temple or shrine. Here edges are the mediator who play major role to generate public spaces at the certain intervals. Accessibility to the Ghats is crowded and appears mess to a designer. On the linkage of the ghat and street, small temples and stalls which make it porous and active in nature. Crowd on such points make the movement on foot also difficult. Edge of the Ghat: Edge of the Darbhanga Ghat and Munshi Ghat are quite dead because of the fort wall but still we can observe activities there. On Dasashvamedh Ghat, shops and temples make edge quite porous and live. Comfort and Image: Ghats have its own individuality on the bank of rive Ganga. Here we can really appreciate what Kevin Lynch thought about the city image (1981, p.1 ) At every instant, there is more than eye can see, more than ear can hear, sitting or a view waiting to be explored. According to Rishma Parikh (2000, p.39) the nature of the placeis sensorial as well as physical. Both, physical environment and the manners of its consumption are responsible for an image. Ghats are very unique in nature. The steps on the contour make it full of life and activities. One can notice that number of people, mostly tourist are busy with cameras taking photograph. But those busy in their routine activities of bathing, praying, performing rituals are unperturbed. The space is full of people from all walks of life. The stone steps provide sitting for people as well as provide accessibility to river. Here Ghats face east direction so direct sun light will be there in the morning hours but in let afternoon and evening hours, monumental scale edge gives shadow on the steps. People use umbrella to gain shadow in the morning hours on the platform of the ghat. At places, bottom of the trees is converted into platform to sit. Here at the Dasashvamedh Ghat we can see police station but still safety is the issue because of the overcrowding. The buildings on the steps create overlooking spaces, which help to reduce issues of safety. City of Banaras is very congested in nature. But as one enters the Ghat, one can feel openness and freedom of space, which is the main attraction for the people to come at ghat. Uses and activity: The Ghats generate very strong religious bond because of devotees holding central activity power. All ghats are used for ritual activities. In the morning people gather here for bathing and Puja, in the afternoon people are busy doing rituals and evening hours see people attending Arati (offering with lighted lamps) and Puja. They take bath in the river. In the afternoon time we can see the people doing different ritual activity behind the death of the people. Apart from the rituals we can see children playing on the platform of the Ghats. Visitors are roaming around and taking photos. Even these activities are also daily on the Ghats. In the special occasions the Ghats used as Emphi Theater, where different live concerts are arranged. On festival days, special Arati is done. Ghats have multi layer activity throughout the day. On the edge of the Dasashvamedh Ghat we can find small temples which conduct religious discourses. The small stalls around the Ghats sell many items which attract not only the local public but also the tourist alike. Small idols, flower, scented sticks etc. Even visitor can take a ride in the bat during the day and night time full moon boat ride is very famous to enjoy the river. This is perhaps the best place where one can see culture and tradition of India. It is India in small scale. Sociability: Sociability of the place is clearly seen. Activities here bring the people together. Devotees and priest sit together and have rituals, which is the back bone activity on the ghat. We find people of all walks of life from beggars to businessman freely interacting with each other. Rich give aims to poor. Bhandaras are the special events on festival days. This is the best example of community participation on the ghat. Even one can observe animals like, cow, goat and man/woman sitting together very comfortably. Visitors and even foreign tourist are seen involved in local activities. Barber shop, tea stalls, palmist, horoscope reader, singer, musician and serpent are commonly seen here and people enjoy their presence and company. Ghats are the best example of socialization between people of different culture and tradition. Space around the Ghats is quite messy and dirty but it doesnt dissuade public to going there. All big events in the town are held here. The Ghats not only have religious importance but are the life line of the people of neighborhood. Kumar says about people of Banaras in her article, their bowels would simply not move in closed spaces, nor would they consider themselves clean from bathing under tap, which shows social attachment of people to the space. Take away ghat from Banaras and it would be lifeless. Ghats are the best examples of democratic places. Neelakshi Joshi has rightly said, the ghat is thus the common bath, the largest open space, meditation center and the biggest pub in town for culture and social encounter and has been so far centuries untold. The ghats of Banaras stand as inspiration for bringing together all men-painters, ascetics, beggars, washer men and kings to the same platform. Natures bounty is not considered the prerogative of the man who can afford the property by the river. It is rather a thing of joy for all to be enjoyed together. Case study of Pershing Square: Site is situated in Los Angeles. City has storing grid pattern and this park is fitted in block size of the grid. This park was designed 1866 and number of time it was redesigned. The study is based on the last design which is done in 1994 by Ricardo Legoretta and Laurie Olin. Before in 1866 it was a formal Spanish plaza and then it was reinvented in 1911, 1928, 1950 and 1994. The number of redesigning of plaza shows transformation of the city from time to time. It is suggestive of the lack of community connection. If local people are attached to a place, they would have stuck to basic form of the space. In 1951 government rebuilt the area and proposed underground parking with the reason to reduce car congestion of the area. Accessibility and image to the park: The Pershing square is an island having road grid on all four sides. The streets which are adjacent to the square are south Olive Street, West 5th and 6th lane and south hill street. Park is accessible from all roads. Streets act as a divider between edge of adjacent building and park. Buildings around the streets are like west 6th lane, South Olive and Hill Street. Have activates like dominos pizza, restaurants, cafà ©, hotels, offices and international jewelry center. This street faà §ade seems very active and porous in nature. The West 5th street faà §ade is little dead and have parking lot as well. Traffic on this street in day time is quite high. People use this street as a pathway to go from one place to another. People do not linger here on this space for long time. At the edge of the square have entry for the underground parking. It has different color wall on the edge, which distract the vision of people. One can find public transport at the edge of the park. On all stree ts, bus stop to access the park. Pershing square metro station is located nearby at five minutes walk. Comfort and image to the park: At the first glance of the parks modern architecture generate good impression on the mind. Usage of the bright color creates aesthetic excitement. Even good use of architectural elements can be seen inside the park. Park has good comfortable arrangement of seating. Pam tree in the park give better shadow and give proper comfortable area to stand. The steps around the water body give comfortable sitting to the user. Usage and activity at the park: The park has scientific architectural elements like solar system waterfall, several constellation maps on floor, telescopes. But this element does not generate activates. At lunch time, people serving in nearby places come here to take their lunch. Most of the time the park is sterile. The development authority conduct good events on the park to attract people like ice scatting, musical evenings etc. but after the activity park seem dead. Park is used only by homeless people. Sociability: The development authority designed it to make a social and democratic space. But it has not come up as such. It has miserable failed to serve is purpose. Analysis: Case study shows that ghats are conveniently located on bank of River Ganga. The river runs north to south and city has organically grown along the river. All the roads lead us to Ghat and accessibility is good form proximity point of view. However city is congested. Roads are narrow and mess. Ghats remain crowded all the time and movement is not comfortable. Cleanliness is another negative factor. However from the point of varied of activities, it is a successful place in as much as the place is bubbling with varied activities throughout the day. Socialization is utmost on this space. If the success of the ghat is to be evaluated y applying parameters suggested by the Project for Public Space, the rating would be poor. However, clumsy accessibility and poor comfort level do not deter the people from socializing on this space. The reverence, people of Banaras has shown is enormous to river Ganga. River Ganga is the life line of people o Banaras and Ghats are the organs without which life at Banaras cannot be thought of. Social attachment of the people of Banaras to river Ganga is is enormous and that has made the ghats a great success despite all odds in terms of good design elements. Ghats are present day riverfronts. However, care has been taken by those who developed ghats on river to ensure that the river is not canalized by embankments as we see at other places. The crescent shaped curve of the river is also well maintained showing their respect for the river. Ghats are perhaps the best example of evolved places. Second case study of Pershing Square Park gives an opposite proposition. Accessibility to park is good. Comfort level and image of the place is also good. Aesthetic design of the park should normally arouse public response. The development authorities have inserted all good design elements to make the park success. However we find that public participation at the place is very poor. The park has failed to achieve its objective. Either people are not interested in the activities it offers or the people have no attachment with the space. The combined study of the two places leads us to conclude that over and above the four parameters suggested by Project for Public Space, there is one more factor which is vital to make a public space convivial and it is -emotional attachment of people to its place. Presence of this factor alone can make a space successful even if no some other counts it may not be convivial. Emotions emanate from long unbroken social and cultural bond. People make places by their accumulations of adaptations and additions. Designer can certainly give his inputs on first three counts of accessibility, comfort and activities but he is helpless on the last parameter in as much as he can solicit public response. He cant make people use this space. Public sentiments are the most vital issue which makes the place successful. Without public response, the space will be sterile and miserably fail to achieve its true objective. The authorities, therefore, should concentrate more on improving evolved public spa ces by increasing the accessibility and comfort level and by providing diverse mix use activities. Evolved public spaces can be made more convivial with little work in this direction. Findings: People make places. Unless the space stimulates the overwhelmed response from one and all, the public space meat for them cannot become successful. The public spaces evolved by accumulation of adaptations and additions by users themselves are more convivial and people regularly use such places though they are not encouraging from the designers point of view. The success of particular public spaces is not in the hands of the designer. His best design model can fail if people do not respond favorably. Design exercise fails if it does not uphold the sentiments of the people using them. Evolved public space can be easily made more comfortable and lively by the efforts of the designer who keeps in mind the sentiments of the users.

Primary Behavior Changes and Cide Effects of LSD Essay -- Chemistry Ch

Primary Behavior Changes and Cide Effects of LSD LSD (D lysergic acid diethylamide) is a very potent synthetic hallucinogen. It is manufactured from lysergic acid, found in ergot, which is a fungus that grows on grains. In its original form, LSD is a white or clear, odorless, water soluble crystal that can be crushed into a powder and dissolved. LSD goes by the street name â€Å"acid† or â€Å"blotter† and is sold in tablets, capsules and sometimes liquid form. Oftentimes LSD is added to absorbent paper and sold in individual squares or â€Å"doses† which are then dissolved on the tongue. LSD is an extremely potent mood changing chemical. A person’s subjective world changes drastically once LSD is taken (Blacker, Jones, Stone, & Pfefferbaum, 1968). Users refer to their experience with LSD as a â€Å"trip.† These experiences generally begin about 30 to 90 minutes after taking the drug, and last from 6 to 12 hours. LSD is sometimes described as a drug that breaks down barriers, but the results of taking LSD are complex and variable. Every trip is different and users show a wide range of reactions (Terrill, 1964). The first signs of LSD are usually physical, and can include dilated pupils, salivation, sweating and nausea, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, tremors, dry mouth, chills, raised body temperature, rapid heartbeat and elevated blood pressure. As the trip progresses, one’s mood, perceptions and sensations become affected (Palfai & Jankiewicz, 2001). In the first phase of the trip there may be abnormal body sensations, changes in mood, space and time distortions and visual hallucinations (Palfai & Jankiewicz, 2001). Time may seem to stand still, or race forward or backward... ... lasting LSD side effect [Letter to the editor]. American Journal of Psychiatry, pp. 1233-1234. Blacker, K.H., Jones, R.T., Stone, G.C.,& Pfefferbaum, D. (1968). Chronic users of LSD: the â€Å"acidheads.† American Journal of Psychiatry, 125, 341-351. LSD JustFacts. (n.d). Retrieved February 8, 2005, from http://www.cesar.umd.edu/cesar/jf/drugs/lsd.asp Pahnke, W. (1967, March). LSD and religious experience. Paper presented to a public symposium at Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT. Palfai, T., & Jankiewicz, H. (2001). Drugs and human behavior (2nd ed.). New York: McGraw Hill. Terrill, J.(1964). LSD, the consciousness expanding drug. New York: David Solomon. Ungerleider, J.T., Fisher, D.D., Fuller, M., & Caldwell, A. (1968). The â€Å"bad trip.† The etiology of the adverse LSD reaction. American Journal of Psychiatry, 124, 1483-1490.

References to Homosexuality in Walt Whitmans Song of Myself Essay

References to Homosexuality in Walt Whitman's Song of Myself "WHITMAN WAS MORE MAN THAN YOU'LL EVER BE," said a student of Louisiana State University. When asked questions of your sexual preference or thoughts on the issue of sex, I would venture to say it makes most people uncomfortable. This is an age-old topic that people know about, yet do not want to talk about. He was particularly reticent about his issues regarding sex and his particular sexual preference. In fact, of Whitman's struggles the most difficult for him to deal with was his ever so strong homosexual desires (Hubbell 283). Whether homosexuality is right or wrong is not for me to decide. Though I feel it should not be used so explicitly in works of literature. Homosexuality, by definition, is the act of having relations with members of the same sex (Webster's Dictionary). In today's society, we chose to either disregard homosexuality, to accept it, or to engage in it. Someone you least expect is probably a homosexual to some extent. Most heterosexuals tend to pretend that homosexuality does not exist or judge those who chose to engage in it. This issue is not new. In fact, in the early nineteenth century many letters and diaries that have been examined show that middle class men and women of all ages participate in relations that verged on sexual- homosexual love. Today these acts would be judged as homoerotic, yet were viewed with tolerance and were even encouraged by leading middle class moralists. Readers of the time took little notice to poets like Whitman, not even to condemn them for immorality, a charge which they typically reserved for poems with heterosexual themes (Killingsworth 98). Whitman was a unique poet and a... ...e had no idea when writing this work what the future would hold, we are now reading this in our literature class. Is this really appropriate? We are college students, and as mature adults, this material should be something we can handle. What do you think? I believe that homosexuality is very real, and that we need to learn about it and educate ourselves about the issue. Yet, I don't think we should go as far as being explicit about it in our textbooks. Works Cited Hubbell, Jay B. Eight American Authors- A review of Research and Criticism. The Modern American Language Association of America. New York, 1956. Killingsworth, Jimmie. Whitman's Poetry of the Bdy. University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill and London. 1989. Lauter, Paul. The Heath Anthology of American Literature, Third Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, New York. 1998.