Effect Of Client Choice Therapist Health And Social Care Essay

It is estimated that 11 % of consumers of outpatient mental wellness services and 19 % of inpatient mental wellness consumers meet standards for Borderline Personality Disorder ( BPD ) , and of persons run intoing clinical standards for a personality upset, 33 % of outpatient and 66 % of inpatient persons appear to run into standards for the Borderline status ( Linehan, 1993a ) . The Borderline status is characterized by â€Å" a permeant form of instability of interpersonal relationships, self-image, and affects, and marked impulsivity beginning by early maturity and nowadays in a assortment of contexts † ( American Psychological Association, 1994. P. 280 ) . To to the full run into standards for BPD, an single must expose this form in at least five of nine countries. One of the standards for diagnosing of the Borderline status is perennial self-destructive behaviour, gestures or menaces or self-mutilating behaviours and there is a reasonably big subgroup of persons with BPD who engage in these parasuicidal behaviours. Marsha Linehan developed Dialectical Behavior Therapy ( DBT ) in an attempt to assist these persons learn to modulate their emotions and cut down suicidal and parasuicidal behaviours. Dialectic Behavior Therapy is an evidence-based pattern that has been used efficaciously to handle persons with BPD and is deriving popularity in the psychiatric community. DBT intervention is comprised of both single therapy and hebdomadal accomplishments groups ( Scheel, 2000 ; Linehan, 1993a ) . DBT is focused on the thought that many of the troubles faced by persons with BPD root from an person ‘s inability to efficaciously modulate their emotions. Linehan ‘s biosocial theory provinces that persons with the Borderline status had early experiences with societal environments that were annuling which hampered their ability to efficaciously pull off and cover with feelings of intense emotions ( Linehan, 1993a ; Scheel, 2001 ; Crowell, Beauchaine, & A ; Linehan, 2009 ) . DBT pulls from many different schools of thought including client-centered, psychodynamic, and gestalt and besides mixes in constructs from Eastern and Zen doctrines. At its nucleus is the dialectic of cre dence and alteration and happening a balance between the two is the ultimate end to reconstructing map. In traditional DBT intervention the relationship between the healer and the client is a larger focal point than what would be traditionally found in other cognitive behavioural therapies ( Scheel, 2001 ) . DBT intervention consists of hebdomadal groups accomplishments developing in faculties such as heedfulness, interpersonal effectivity, emotion ordinance and hurt tolerance, hebdomadal person therapy with a DBT trained healer, and telephone conversations between the client and healer as needed ( McKay, Wood, & A ; Brantley, 2007 ; Sheel, 2001 ) . Individual DBT therapy Sessionss address three prioritized intervention marks: self-destructive behaviours, therapy interfering behaviours and increasing accomplishment development ( Shell, 2001 ) . In add-on to the supports available to clients, there is a hebdomadal audience meeting for healers supplying DBT intervention. The intent of this group is to supply healers supplying DBT intervention a topographic point to portion experiences, solicit feedback from their equal group and serve as a manner to assist the healer maintain the non-judgmental attack that is required of DBT intervention ( Scheel, 2001 ) . While research has shown DBT to be effectual in cut downing the parasuicidal behaviours of clients with BPD, the thought that a client will hold to go forth their pre-established relationship with a current intervention squad in order to come in into intervention with a DBT trained healer may ensue in people non come ining into this intervention. St. Luke ‘s House, Inc. a public mental wellness bureau in Montgomery County Maryland, operates a residential group place for adult females with BPD. This place utilizes DBT therapy in both the residential and the outpatient mental wellness scene. A ground frequently cited by consumers for non come ining into this plan is the involuntariness to go forth their current intervention squad. This research proposal will analyze the effects on intervention efficaciousness of DBT intervention when clients are allowed to keep a curative relationship with a non-DBT trained intervention squad while take parting in hebdomadal DBT accomplishments g roup. Literature Review A reappraisal of the bing literature of client pick in intervention and Dialectical Behavior Therapy revealed some important findings every bit good as some spreads in bing research. Client Choice In finishing a hunt utilizing several databases including PSYCHINFO, EBSCO, Psychology and Behavior and ERIC there were really few published surveies that examined the function client pick played in intervention effectivity and results. Of the consequences returned, the most recent published survey was in 1988 analyzing the principle and deductions of client pick of healers. Interestingly the research demonstrates clearly that leting clients to take their preferable method of therapy and preferable healer neither addition or diminish intervention efficaciousness, showing that at its worst, client pick would ensue in every bit effectual intervention results ( Ersner-Hershfield, Abramowitz, & A ; Baren, 1979 ; Manthei, 1983: Manthei, 1988 ; Manthei, Vitalo, & A ; Ivey, 1982 ) . Additionally, Ersner-Hershfield et Al. demonstrated that a higher per centum ( 71 % ) of persons who were allowed to take their healer really showed up for their first assignment compared to persons who were ass igned ( 45 % ) . Studies into the function of fiting clients with their preferable therapy mode in therapy have besides pointed to a defect in the system in that frequently the matching is done by the clinic and non the client ( Manthi et al. ) . Manthei et Al. investigated the effects of client pick of healer on therapy results by comparing results between a group of clients who chose their healer and two other groups of clients who were assigned healers by a clinical manager. The survey did non give consequences that demonstrated better results for persons who chose their healer, but the informations did non demo statistically important poorer results for this group, bespeaking that leting a client to take their healer would non in itself pose a hazard to intervention effectivity. While there is small informations to demo that intervention results are increased with client pick of healer or therapy, the information does show that clients who play at least a little function in taki ng their healer or therapy, have more positive feelings about their healers, stay in therapy thirster and were by and large more satisfied with therapy ( Manthei, 1988 ) . There have been suggestions to supply clients with information about available options and allow them take which they would wish to take part in ( Manthei, 1988 ) . The function of consumer pick in intervention is consistent with grounds based best patterns and current Social Work values focused on liberty and farther research in this country is indispensable. DBT Therapy Since its origin Dialectical Behavior Therapy intervention has been deriving widespread attending as an grounds based best pattern in the intervention of self-destruction efforts and self-injurious behaviours among persons diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. DBT was developed in response to the trouble handling chronic sociality and self-injurious behaviours in adult females with BPD in traditional intervention scenes. It was designed to be an outpatient intervention comprised of four major constituents: 1 ) single psychotherapeutics hebdomadally 2 ) group skills developing hebdomadally 3 ) telephone audience with the healer as needed and 4 ) hebdomadal audience squad meetings for the healers and accomplishments group leaders ( Linehan, et al. , 2006 ; Soler, et al. , 2009 ; Chen, Matthews, Allen, Kuo, J. R. ; Linehan, M. M. , 2007 ) . Of the four surveies reviewed, three demonstrated important decrease in self-injurious behaviours and self-destruction efforts ( Bohus, et al. , 2004 ; & A ; Linehan, et al. , 2006 ) among other cardinal standards of BPD. Carter, Willcox, Lewin, Conrad, and Bendit ( 2010 ) note several grounds they were likely unable to retroflex old findings including deficiency of equal preparation in DBT methods, low attachment to DBT techniques and methodological differences in measuring. Additionally, Carter et Al. identified a shorter continuance ( 6 months vs. 12 months ) of intervention as a possible factor though Bohus et Al. demonstrated effectivity in three months of inpatient intervention. Overwhelmingly the research points to the effectivity of the DBT theoretical account in cut downing suicide efforts and self-injurious behaviours among persons diagnosed with BPD. There have been limited randomised surveies to analyze the effectivity of inmate DBT compared to the traditional outpatient DBT theoretical account and farther research is needed in this country, including follow-up with patients who received inpatient DBT and non-DBT outpatient intervention following discharge. Adaptations With the documented success of DBT intervention with persons diagnosed with BPD, human service suppliers of course sought to spread out the application to other diagnostic groups and populations and experienced varied consequence. DBT intervention has been expanded and modified for the intervention of binge-eating upsets and binge-eating syndrome nervosa ( Chen, et al. , 2008 ; Safer, Robinson, & A ; Jo, 2010 ) , victims of domestic maltreatment ( Iverson, Shenk, & A ; Fruzzetti, 2009 ) , aggression in correctional scenes ( Shelton, Sampl, Kesten, Zhang, Trestman, 2009 ) , adolescent populations ( Wasser, Tyler, McIlhaney, Taplin, Henderson, 2008 ) , post traumatic emphasis upset ( Wagner, Rizvi, & A ; Harned, 2007 ) , and opprobrious behaviour ( Waltz, 2003 ) to call a few. Adaptations of DBT to these populations have non examined the function of client pick of healer in intervention and all modified intervention while keeping the doctrine of DBT single therapy. The surveies replica ted old findings in that mark behaviours were significantly reduced utilizing the DBT theoretical account which included accomplishments group weekly in add-on to single therapy. Across the board the literature pointed to significantly lower drop-out rates among the groups having some signifier of DBT intervention. While traditional DBT intervention stopping points for 12 months, Chen et Al. ( 2008 ) limited the intervention continuance to 6 months but were able to show effectivity during that clip period. Other versions to the traditional theoretical account of DBT intervention include the usage of group merely over the class of 12 hebdomads ( Iverson et al. , 2009 ) with no single therapy, and the comparing of DBT accomplishments preparation and standard group therapy ( Soler, et al. , 2009 ) which is important to this research proposal because it demonstrates the effectivity of implementing DBT in a group scene. Shelton et Al. ( 2009 ) found that 16-weeks of DBT intervention significantly reduced aggression in correctional scenes instantly following intervention and at 6 and 12 month follow-ups. Although traditional DBT intervention has been focused on grownups chiefly due to the standards of BPD necessitating an person to be of big age, some versions have been made to implement this intervention with striplings with some success ( Wasser, et al. , 2008 ) . Wasser et Al. compared the usage of DBT intervention to standard curative surroundings in a residential scene. While the consequences were non every bit important as in other surveies, DBT was found to be more effectual at handling depressive symptoms in the young person. These surveies all point to successful versions of the traditional DBT theoretical account. Critique and Future Research The literature reviewed demonstrated that DBT, even in an altered signifier is an effectual intervention attack for cut downing parasuicidal behaviours in persons with BPD, every bit good as turn toing mark behaviours in other populations. There is farther research needed in the country of client pick in therapy effectivity and results. While some versions have been made to the mark population of DBT intervention, small attending has been paid to the function of client pick of healer in DBT intervention. This research proposal hypothesizes that utilizing a non-DBT trained healer will be every bit as effectual in cut downing suicide efforts and self-injurious behaviours as utilizing a DBT trained healer when combined with hebdomadal DBT accomplishments group. Further surveies into the effectivity of client pick in healer are needed and merely more controlled experiments will increase the organic structure of cognition in an attempt to do DBT intervention more widely accepted and available to persons enduring with dysregulated emotions and sing parasuicidal behaviours. Methods Research Design This research proposal will utilize a authoritative experiment design and will use the Suicide Attempt and Self-Injury Interview ( SASII ) to the control and experimental groups as a pre- and post-test step of self-destruction efforts and self-injurious behaviours. The hypothesis of this research proposal will be tested by comparing the post-tests between the experimental and control groups at the terminal of the survey. The survey will be conducted at both the Bethesda and Silver Spring outpatient mental wellness clinics of St. Luke ‘s House, Inc. in Montgomery County, Maryland. In this survey the control group will have traditional DBT intervention including single therapy by a DBT trained healer, and the experimental group will go on therapy with the intervention squad they have a preexistent relationship with. Both groups will have hebdomadal DBT accomplishments group and no group will hold single therapy Sessionss terminated as portion of this survey. Assignment to the control and experimental group will be done utilizing random assignment and barricading to guarantee that the groups are every bit indistinguishable as possible. Participant blocks will be determined by tonss on the SASII and separated by high and low tonss so that there is an every bit equal as possible representation of scope in parasuicidal behaviours in both groups. Participants in each block will be indiscriminately assigned to the control and experimental groups. Following the assignment into control and experimental groups, the survey participants will so be indiscriminately assigned to one of four accomplishments groups sing that the control and experimental groups are every bit consistent as possible. Because this research proposal uses a authoritative experimental design, menaces to internal cogency will be minimized and should non show a job with generalising the findings ( Montte, Sullivan, & A ; DeJong, 2008 ) . The survey will dwell of field experiments, as the intervention will be conducted in traditional curative scenes and group skill developing groups will take topographic point at the clinics so hazards to external cogency that might originate from the experimental scene will be addressed. There is some hazard of reactive effects of proving due to the pre-test at the beginning of the survey and in an attempt to turn to the hazard of an unrepresentative sample, barricading and tracking abrasion Numberss for both groups will be completed. Ultimately external cogency could be solidified through reproduction of the survey over clip and with different populations ( Monette et al. , 2008 ) . Sampling The proposed research survey will utilize 50 survey participants each of whom will be consumers of mental wellness services in Montgomery County, Maryland. One half of the participants ( n=25 ) will be assigned to the control group and one half will be assigned to the experimental group. Persons who meet study standards described below will be recruited from community mental wellness centres in Montgomery County Maryland and referred to the survey by a accredited mental wellness professional. As portion of the enlisting scheme, persons will be informed of the constituents of DBT intervention and accomplishments groups and will be informed of the nature of the research survey. Persons will be given information sing referral to the survey to supply their single healer if they are interested in take parting in the survey. Persons will be assured of namelessness, be provided with transcripts of the HIPPA processs and informed that engagement is voluntary. Persons will be informed that wh ile assignment to the control and experimental groups will be done by random assignment, all participants will have DBT accomplishments developing groups hebdomadally. Study participants will have no compensation for take parting in the survey other than the services provided and will be informed that they can drop out of the survey at any clip for any ground. Persons between the ages of 18-35 who meet DSMIV-TR standards for Borderline Personality Disorder and have a history of at least 2 suicide efforts within the last 5 old ages and a history of at least 3 or more inpatient psychiatric hospitalizations per twelvemonth will be considered for the survey. Exclusion standards for this survey include mandated intervention, co-existing idea upset, substance maltreatment upset, mental deceleration or any ictus upset necessitating medicine or ongoing monitoring. The exclusion standards are of import in this survey to guarantee the voluntary engagement of persons in the survey and to protect against the immaterial variables that might be related to medicine for ictus upset such as Depakote, which has besides been used as a temper stabilizer and has the possible to skew the consequences of the experiment. The research squad will utilize instance histories, written referrals from accredited clinicians, medical records and history, and a condemnable background cheque to verify eligibility for the survey. The Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence will be used to govern out mental deceleration. Study Procedure The intent of this survey is to prove the effectivity of DBT accomplishments group as a auxiliary intervention mode to non-DBT single therapy. Traditional DBT intervention requires persons to suspend bing relationships with healers and head-shrinkers who are non trained in DBT intervention. This research survey proposes to analyze the consequence on intervention effectivity of leting consumers to keep relationships with a intervention squad that is non trained in DBT. Prior to the survey, two clinicians from St. Luke ‘s House will be selected and become certified to present DBT therapy. Prerequisites for enfranchisement as a DBT healer include a professional grade, province licence or tantamount and preparation in DBT as outlined in Appendix A. Additionally the enfranchisement procedure consists of a written and unwritten test to measure the appliers apprehension of the DBT doctrine and constituents and to verify the person ‘s ability to efficaciously supply the intervent ion ( DBT Certification and Accreditation, 2009 ) . In add-on to the two DBT certified healers, four staff members will be trained in facilitation the DBT accomplishments groups. Due to the strength of the accomplishments groups, the size of each group will be limited to a upper limit of 13 participants in each group and participants will be indiscriminately assigned to a accomplishments group from the control and experimental groups. These four facilitators will supply the hebdomadal accomplishments developing groups for all survey participants. Groups will be held at a set clip each hebdomad for 12 months and engagement will be compulsory. Participants who fail to go to at least 75 % of the accomplishments groups will be excluded from the research information as the effectivity of accomplishments group will non be able to be measured due to miss of engagement. Prior to entry into the survey, participants will be administered the SASII by their single healer. Instruction manuals for administrating and hiting the SASII will be provided to each healer prior to the execution of the survey. As participants either leave the accomplishments groups due to attrition or finish the rhythm of modes, the SASII will be administered once more and consequences will be compared to the tonss at admittance. The figure of accomplishments groups attended will be reported on the post-tests as good particularly in instances of abrasion so that the research workers can measure whether abrasion rates for either of the groups could hold an consequence on the consequences ( Monette, et al. , 2008 ) . Study Variables and Measurements The independent variable in this research proposal is the type of therapy the single receives. This variable will be measured nominally as either DBT trained healer ( command group ) or non-DBT trained healer ( experimental group ) . Each group will have one hr of single therapy and 2 hours of group accomplishments developing hebdomadally. Each of the accomplishments groups will follow the theoretical account outlined by Linehan ( 1993b ) and use the same accomplishments manual, prep and schoolroom assignments. The dependant variable in this survey is the effectivity of non-DBT trained healers combined with hebdomadal accomplishments group on cut downing parasuicidal behaviours and will be measured utilizing the Suicide Attempt Self-Injury Interview ( SASII ) . The SASII ( once the Parasuicidal History Interview ) looks at a assortment of factors related to both suicide effort and self-injurious behaviour. This step was rated as first-class in inter-rater dependability, and test-retest dependability, good in footings of concept cogency, and received a evaluation of adequate in the classs of content cogency and cogency generalisation ( Hunsley & A ; Mash, 2008 ) . The SASII is a 42-item step administered by a non-medical professional and is often used in surveies of persons with boundary line personality upset who display frequent self-destruction efforts or self-injurious behaviours ( Hunsley & A ; Mash, 2008 ; Linehan, Comtois, Brown, Heard, & A ; Wagner, 2006 ) . The major variables in th is step include frequence of self-injurious behaviours, particulars and deadliness of the method used, badness of any physical effects ensuing from the self-injurious behaviours and medical intervention received ( Linehan, Comtois, et al. , 2006 ) . In footings of dependability, the four graduated tables have been shown to be internally efficient with alpha coefficients runing from.64 to.86 and this step has an overall inter-rater dependability of.80 ( Brown, n.d. ; Hunsley & A ; Mash, 2008 ; Linehan, Comtois, et al. , 2006 ) . Cogency of this step was tested in a assortment of ways, most notably in the evaluations of method, deadliness and subsequent physical status. The SASII was designed to be administered by non-medical professionals and dependability between these interviewers and medical professionals was paramount. The measuring achieved.85 dependability coefficiency for deadliness of the method used and.93 for physical status following the event ( Linehan, Comtois, et al. ) . Additionally, the cogency of frequence counts ranged from 72 % to 86 % % when compared to clinical records ( Brown, n.d. ) . The standard version of the SASII will necessitate a drawn-out interview and there is a short version available every bit go od and is included in Appendix A. Datas Analysis Pre and Post trial tonss for each participant will be calculated and reviewed by the research squad. Statistical analysis will be completed utilizing SPSS for Windows and the hypothesis will be tested by utilizing a t-test to compare the average SASII tonss of the experimental and control groups. Because merely two variables are being compared, bivariate statistics will be used to depict the relationship between the dependant variable and the independent variable. IRB Approval In order to obtain blessing from the UMB Institutional Review Board the research squad will finish the IRB initial application which includes a 200 word abstract sketching the intent of the research undertaking, designation, features and figure of the topics in the survey, the research procedures including transcripts of the SASII, an overview of possible hazards and benefits to the research subjects, guidelines for keeping confidentiality and obtaining informed consent and a reappraisal of the usage of protected wellness information ( Institutional Review Board, n.d. ) . A modified version of the research proposal worksheet completed for this assignment could run into these demands. Review This proposal has a figure of strengths and as a consequence has the possible to convey forth important consequences. The survey has an ample and manageable sample size and the usage of barricading, random assignment provides the best chance to hold homogenous control and experimental groups. There is a high potency to deduce a causal relationship between the independent and dependent variables because the survey was designed as a authoritative experiment. Because of the experimental design, menaces to internal cogency are besides virtually eliminated with the exclusion of abrasion which will be discussed as a possible restriction to this survey ( Monette, et al. , 2008 ) . While there are a figure of strengths with this survey, there are besides several restrictions that need to be considered. This will be a reasonably drawn-out and dearly-won survey to transport out. The costs of developing two healers in DBT and four group skills leaders will be important. Additionally, traditional DBT intervention typically requires attending of accomplishments groups hebdomadally for the first 12-months, and while abrasion rates in DBT therapy tend to be lower ( Linehan, Comtois, et al. , 2006 ; Carter, et al. , 2010 ; Soler, et al. , 2009 ) , there is still a important hazard that abrasion will be a job long-run which will necessitate to be tracked, monitored and reported on continuously. There are other immaterial variables that have non been addressed in this research proposal. The background, preparation and experience of the single healers for the experimental group is unknown and since the hypothesis rests on an single being able to keep intervention with the supplier of pick, there is no manner to turn to this or to mensurate it beyond study of the healer. The possibility of reactiveness to pre and post testing does be and a Solomon experimental group was considered for this proposal, nevertheless it was of import to estimate the alteration in frequence and strength of parasuicidal behaviours so a baseline step was needed on all groups which precluded the usage of the Solomon 4-group design. The step chosen to measure outcomes has low prognostic cogency ( Hunsley & A ; Mash, 2008 ) so the ability to foretell future episodes of self-destruction efforts and self-injury is low. Future surveies in this country should utilize steps with some prognostic cogency as good which could dramatically better the significance and utility of the findings. Significance and Deductions The importance of this survey for progressing the field of Social Work and impacting the lives of persons who experience self-injurious behaviours is apparent. The proposed survey has the possible to add to the cognition base of the impact of client pick of therapy on intervention effectivity and if it is able to be replicated and applied to different populations a major barrier to the execution of DBT intervention could be reduced. This survey has the possible to open DBT intervention up to many persons who would otherwise non see it because they would hold to go forth their current supplier. This survey besides has the possible to offer single healers a auxiliary intervention in accomplishment development to help their clients with deriving the accomplishments needed to get down to larn to modulate their emotions without fall backing to self-injurious behaviours. On a more macro degree, community plans could get down to offer DBT accomplishments groups as a addendum to traditional outpatient patterns and because the intervention is done in a group format, the disbursals would be lower in footings of staff clip and resource allotment compared to hourly single Sessionss each hebdomad. As demonstrated in the research, supplying clients picks in intervention will finally take to greater satisfaction on the portion of the client, lower no-show rates and higher overall keeping of clients than mandating that a client leave their current supplier in order to have the group skills preparation offered through outpatient DBT accomplishments groups. From a policy point of view, mental wellness policy could be affected in footings of stressing client pick more in intervention options. Current policy tendencies are focused on autonomous attention and recovery based rules and by showing that consumer pick in healer has an at least equal consequence on intervention results could back up policy alteration to reflect a greater accent on pick.

Preparing a Virtual Workstation Essay

Abstract To be able to launch Windows 7 virtual machine on any computer in our labs without triggering the WGA antipiracy warning. Lab 1 Worksheet: 1 Preparing a Virtual Workstation Question 1: What is the current screen resolution? My current screen resolution is 800Ãâ€"600. I would have prefer this resolution, because I can slide between the virtual machine and my main computer. Question 2: What security advantage does displaying the login screen on resume offer? Some security advantages that displaying the login screen on resume offer is that it offers security from anyone coming along and taking a look at what you were working on. As well as gaining access to your computer and all your data. Question 3: How did changing the theme affect your display? Changing the theme will affect the cursors color, selections and icons. Question 4: What other file type option are available? The other file type options that are available is CD .ISO or DVD .ISO. Conclusion Based on Lab 1, I was able to launch Windows 7 in the virtual machine without triggering the WGA antipiracy. To know how to adjust the current screen resolution and the benefits of having a login screen on resume for security purpose. Finding that changing the theme for personalizing the computer and how to create an .iso image with Roxio Creator DX. References Zacker, Craig. (2012). Windows 7 Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist Exam 70-680. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Analyzing The Oregon Study In Regard To Medicaid For American Citizens

Analyzing The Oregon Study In Regard To Medicaid For American Citizens This article challenges the originally widely praised concept of the famous Oregon experiment; a study conducted in 2011 claiming that having Medicaid was significantly better than being uninsured, which directly refuted various studies claiming that individuals are no better or worse off with Medicaid than without it. The public response to its’ preliminary, flimsy, and uncertain results in 2011 was driven by media hype and premature over eagerness—headlines such as â€Å"A new, rigorous study from Oregon confirms that Medicaid does, indeed, save lives,† (Roy) and â€Å"What we found in a nutshell is that having Medicaid makes a big difference in peoples’ lives† (Roy) flooded front pages; the Oregon experiment had ignited national, growing faith in Obamacare that was previously unseen. The day prior to publishing of this article, May 1st 2013, the authors of the original Oregon study released their updated two year results— â€Å"Medicaid g enerated no significant improvement in measured physical health outcomes.† This article analyzes the staggering results, critiques the experimental methods used, and questions the $450 billion/year spent on a seemingly futile program. The structure of the Oregon study was centered around the comparison between the health outcomes of individuals enrolled in Medicaid, versus the health outcomes of the uninsured. The outcomes examined for comparison were levels of elevated blood pressure, high cholesterol, elevated HbA1c levels, and long-term cardiovascular risk (measured by Framingham scores). The main question the authors wanted to answer: Did Medicaid improve the health of its enrollees? Before analyzing the statistical data of the experiment, it is crucial to understand the flawed structural setup that introduced massive bias and even possibly skewed the results. The Medicaid population was partially self selected, making it an inaccurate representative sample of the common population. The Medicaid users were consciously and knowingly aware that they were receiving the benefits of Medicaid, and the uninsured were well aware that they were uninsured—this concept could potentially favor the Medicaid population due to prevalent bias. In much more accurate clinical trials, both the doctor and patient should be unaware whether the patient has received the placebo or the test drug in order to achieve an unbiased, accurate answer. The Oregon authors also only measured the baseline health status of the uninsured group, not the baselines of the Medicaid group. This massive flaw doesn’t allow for accurate results within the Medicaid group by offering no definiti ve method of comparison when analyzing the data. The process of creating the Medicaid group was also driven by massive bias. Of the 35,169 residents who â€Å"won† the lottery to gain Medicaid enrollment, only about 30% actually enrolled, and 60% of those selected out of the 30% physically filled out the forms to receive benefits. The 60% who signed up are clearly more likely to need the treatment and benefits compared to the other 40%, who didn’t bother to fill out paperwork. (Roy) Those who chose to enroll were therefore sicker and more in need of treatment; making them more likely to benefit from treatment than the control group, or the uninsured. The final element of bias introduced, and perhaps most significant, is how the state of Oregon individually manages their Medicaid program compared to the national average. In Oregon, Medicaid pays primary care physicians approximately 62% of what private insurers pay. Our national average pays 52%, and many blue states pa y well under 40%. (Roy) Because the state of Oregon pays their health care professionals more, their beneficiaries have better access to doctors; better access to doctors should lead to better health outcomes for beneficiaries than we’d likely see in other states, making the state of Oregon an unsuitable host for this experiment. As for the data, the authors found no statistically significant differences in elevated blood pressure, HbA1c levels, high cholesterol, or long-term cardiovascular risks between the insured and the uninsured. The sole, significant difference between the two groups in this study was the amount spent and the utilization of services. Medicaid patients spent an average of $1,172 more than the uninsured, with zero statistically supported data leading to better health outcomes. (Roy) These findings are extremely significant; the flaws within the setup of the experiment introduce extreme bias and inevitably lead to inaccurate data. I am convinced of the validity of this article due to the meticulous research, critique, and analyzation on the flaws of the Oregon experiment as a whole as conducted by the author. He raises a notable point that should be seriously considered by American citizens, government officials, and policy makers alike. With the heavy reliance on Medicaid expansion under Obamacare, this experiment questions the major flaws within the system in its entirety, making us ask ourselves: Is it worth it?

Ancient and Medieval Political Theory Assignment

Ancient and Medieval Political Theory - Assignment Example Aquinas in the theory hypothesized the concept of nature to help society members understand that there is a supernatural being beyond this earth. Aquinas further argues that the world is merely a resting bay after which humans move to another life. This concept outstands in the Thebes society when various characters keep invoking the punishment sinners will receive from gods after death. Creon’s wife, Eurydice commits suicide cursing the husband and expressing her wish for god’s punishment upon the death of the husband. The blind prophet Tiresias brings the supernatural concept by claiming prophesies of god’s desires and anger to the king. The concepts solve the conflict between the church and the human freedom to think. It shows that the actions of the worldly authority must reconcile with the wishes of the church for harmonious coexistence. The concept of sovereignty is the source of law. Based on political ideologies and tenets, sovereignty rests with the people’s power. Based on theological points of view, however, sovereignty originates from God. It, therefore, gives individuals the freedom to make decisions without autocracy from rulers and the church. The concept of supremacy of the church also creates harmony between the church and the government. Creon, the dictator who does not obey the will of his people, chorus later comes to lament when his son Haemon and wife commits suicide for his actions. Disobedience of sovereignty attracts heavy punishment from God irrespective of who you are in the

Culinary Tourism Food and Drink Product Inventory Assignment

Culinary Tourism Food and Drink Product Inventory - Assignment Example If the tourist people obtain their home country food in outside nations, they become highly attractive and visit the same in a frequent way (Knight, 2012). In relation to the above context, the assignment intends to create a food and drink inventory and likewise prepare a report based on culinary tourism food and drink products of a destination i.e. Sussex located in New Brunswick in the nation of Canada. Secondary method of data collection is appropriate for this research study to collect information for preparing the food and drink inventory report. It will be vital to mention in this regard that journals, articles and online sources relevant to specific topic of a study are deemed to be the decisive sources of secondary data collection method through which valuable and relevant information can be acquired. Through secondary sources, it is possible to gather accurate and recent information about any stated topic. Secondary data collection is also important for this research study to identify any sort of persisted research problem and derive effective solutions to resolve the same. It will be vital to mention in relation to the above context that the adoption as well as the review of varied secondary sources would certainly provide a better comprehension about how to promote the progression of culinary tourism specifically in Sussex, which is positioned in Canada. Apart from this, s uch sources would aid in examining the varied food products that persist in this specific region (Ut, 2013). It has been earlier mentioned that culinary tourism can also be related to food and drink tourism, which signifies that it is not only limited to food and drink sector, but also correlated to cultural aspects tourism. It can be ascertained that the food as well as drink menu is deemed to be different from one nation to another.

IT Doesn't Matter Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

IT Doesn't Matter - Essay Example An example of the technology is that involved in sharing tasks in building a railway so that the rail is completed in time. Proprietary is the technology that is able to give a company a competitive advantage as long as there is protection in the production rights that the company operates on. This leads to generation of higher profits than the rivals. IT was compared to transport system as it transmits digital information the same way as it is in transport system. The comparison is with the other modes of transport including power grids that carry electricity and railroads that carry goods. IT is more replicable and this makes it be compared to a more valuable commodity than just a byte of data. The comparison of IT to a commodity is not false, the comparison is right as the transformation that is made on the commodities can be made in IT (Harvard Business Review, 2003). Commodities are accelerated in terms of developments. Introduction of internet accelerated commoditization of IT through provision of a perfect generic application for the delivery channel. The first argument that is given comparing IT to a commodity is that IT is a transport process that transmits digital information just like the other forms of transport such as roads and rails. IT just like the transport system is effective when shared than when it is used in separation by an individual. The second argument that makes IT compared to a commodity is that it is highly replicable. It is hard to imagine a more perfect commodity than just a byte of data. When it is combined with technical standardization, there is production of more economical value. The concept can also be argued by through consideration of the arrival of internet that has accelerated the commoditization of IT. The last argument that is given by Carr is that IT is subjected to rapid deflection in prize. He links this to when Gordon Moore made a prescient assertion that the density of

The Piano Lession Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Piano Lession - Essay Example Berniece is very stalwart in upholding family traditions. She has been very close to her father. She and her father had developed an obsession for the piano. Berniece’s perspective on piano shows her being very keen to preserve the past of her family. She resents racism too but protests against it within the limits of reasonability. The piano has the carving of her family’s history in the shape of pictures, blood and tears. These are invaluable for Berniece and she does not want to let go any part of that. In her point of view, her father stole the piano because he wanted to get close to the engravings that were on it. It shows that she has great love and respect for her family’s past and history. She also respects the feelings of her ancestors. She acts as a guard for her family’s past. She does not want the piano to be sold and thinks that her father would have approved her intentions. Berniece is a cleaning lady and she accepts the world the way it is. She has lost her husband and she blames Boy Willie for that. She has lost very much and all she is left with is the pleasant memories of the past. She chose to live close to the piano just like her mother, Mama Ola. She goes through almost the same type of tragedy that her mother had faced. She loves her mother very much which is shown by her cleaning of Mama Ola’s picture with love (Act 1, Scene 1, Part 1). Her decision of not agreeing to sell the piano shows that she is very attached to the memories of the past and the legacy of her family. She is so much attached to her past that she does not heed to the offer of Avery to court her (Act 2, Scene 2). She does not want her daughter, Maretha, to suffer from a similar nostalgia which is why she has not told her anything about what the carvings on the piano mean (Act 2, Scene 5). Boy Willie wants to sell the antique piano to buy the land in which his ancestors worked as slaves. His perspective on the piano describes his nature. He shows utter disregard for the family traditions. He thinks that if he sells the piano and is able to purchase the Sutter’s land, he would avenge his father and live at the â€Å"top† of life. His father was also as reckless as he is. He thinks that if he is able to sell the piano, his father’s wishes would be immortalized. It also suggests that his father is somewhat responsible for instilling a rash behavior in him. He looks at the piano as an object that can fulfill his desire to become rich. He thinks that his father would have done the same (Act 1, Scene 2, Part II). He does not care about what his family wants and upholds. He completely rejects the wishes of sister, Berniece. His decision to sell the piano shows his negative approach towards life which has made him a person who looks at easy ways to get rich rather than by working hard. Boy Willie thinks that the only way to stand neck to neck with the white people is to become wealthy. This is a common belief among the suppressed races of the world that they can get respect if they become wealthy. Boy Willie thinks that the white people have no right to look down on him and must treat him with respect. He can get his due respect by becoming rich and selling the piano is his only chance at that. He is a person who has received a lot of mental suffering due to the racism between blacks and whites. He has a lot of hatred for white people. His father worked for the white people all his life. He holds the

Relating the social exchange theory to increasing divorce rates Essay

Relating the social exchange theory to increasing divorce rates - Essay Example These figures show that this phenomenon is almost universal. While trying to understand the increasing divorce rates based on social exchange theory, the analysis has to consider as its variables, cost, benefit, outcome, comparison level, satisfaction, and dependence inside the institution of marriage (Clarke-Stewart and Brentano, 20-21). This has to be so because these are the yardsticks to measure change or stability in a system, as prescribed by the social exchange theory. The theory suggests that after marriage, â€Å"people evaluate their relationship in terms of costs and benefits† (Clarke-Stewart and Brentano, 20). And the survival of the marriage is ensured only when the costs like additional work, additional responsibilities, sharing of personal things etc. are balanced by the benefits that include â€Å"love, support, companionship, emotional security, social status and connections, and sexual relations, as well as property, financial resources and assistance with d aily tasks† (Clarke-Stewart and Brentano, 20). ... So, according to social exchange theory, if alternative attractions and resources are stronger as compared to the rewards, divorce happens. In general, social exchange theory presupposes that â€Å"all interpersonal behavior including dating, marriage and family relationships, is assumed to involve a process of negotiation and bargaining (Baker, 78). Usually from a social scientist’s common perspective, the reasons for divorce can be â€Å"delays in age at first marriage, rising non-marital cohabitation, and increases in non-marital births† and also â€Å"women’s growing education and economic independence, a decline in religious influence, an increase in individualism, and a corresponding decline in communalism (Lamb, 196). The risk factors that bring about a divorce as identified by researchers also constitute a very long list (qtd. In Lamb, 197). This list includes, factors like: Marrying a teenager, being poor, having a low level of education, having no chi ldren from the marriage, bringing children from a previous union into the marriage, being in a second or higher order marriage, cohabiting prior to marriage, having no religious affiliation, not sharing the same religion with one’s spouse, living in an urban area, and growing up in a household without two continuously married parents (Lamb, 197-198). Other findings of social science research in this regard have suggested that education has a positive association with the risk of divorce (qtd. by Lamb, 198). Many more immediate causative factors of divorce have been identified as well. These comprise of â€Å"frequent arguments, repeated expressions of negative affect, domestic

What is Public Administration Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

What is Public Administration - Research Paper Example e of functions such as developing policy and legislation; implementing policies; managing programs, people, and budgets; and providing vital daily services for the well-being of citizens Public administration refers to two meanings: first, it is concerned with the implementation of government policy; second, it is an academic discipline that studies this implementation and prepares civil servants for working in the public service. Instructions: This research paper should be a one page summary on a letter size 8.5 x 11 paper with the information on the front and back of the page. It should be typed single spaced, 12pt font, include in the summary a chart, diagram, or an at-a-glance view on a main idea in the reading. Students will be expected to include in the summary a current event (within one year) issue relative to the topic. You may consult any number of sources, newspapers,on-line news, news magazines, journals, news and or political television shows.The student is expected to cite any such source in the response. First paragraph (Topic of Focus: brief overview of "What is Public Administration?", Chapter two of The Politics of the Administrative Process by Donald F. Kettl. The header should be at the start of the paragraph, typed in bold font, 12pt, Times New Roman Third Paragraph header in bold, 12pt fontin Times New Roman writing style "What I Know Now" (Describe how your diagram, chart, or table expresses an at-a-glance view of what you learned in the

Social capital Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Social capital - Essay Example Putnam, Leonardi and Nanetti in 1993 in their Making Democracy Work: Civic Traditions in Modern Italy, defined the term â€Å"social capital† as â€Å"features of social organisation, such as trust, norms [or reciprocity], and networks [of civil engagement], that can improve the efficiency of society by facilitating coordinated actions† (Hobbs 2000). The World Bank defined it as â€Å"the institutions, relationships, and norms that shape the quality and quantity of a society’s social interactions† (Hobbs 2000). However despite the differences in perspectives, all believe that social networks are the most valuable assets for the society â€Å"just as a screwdriver (physical capital) or a college education (human capital) can increase productivity (both individual and collective)† (Putnam 2000, p. 19), in the same way forming social contacts are excellent for increasing the productivity of the individuals and even groups (Putnam 2000, p. 19). ... 2). In many of the western democracies of today, we can see the concept of community and social networks at all the civil, political as well as economical levels growing, giving an ample proof of the increase in social relations as the most important cause for maintaining sustainable communities in all the social, economic and democratic spheres of the society. These kinds of social relationships are said to be loaded with the social capital including all the norms or means of production that allow the people to join in the mutual agreement or work in a collective way. There are different traits of social capital like social norms, social network and trust (Productivity Commission 2003, p. x). Social norms are informal rules that formulate the behavior of the people in varying circumstances like showing tolerance and respect towards others etc as well as â€Å"reciprocity† like behavior with others in the way you expect others should behave with you. Similarly social network i s an interconnection between the different groups of people having common characteristics and traits for e.g. family or a religious group. The third one is trust which is simply the way to develop confidence with the people whom you are in contact. Trust is a main thrust of all the relationships and is the most important component for the well being and overall development of the human beings (Productivity Commission 2003, p. xi). Studies conducted on the sociology of economic development in the developing nations as well as around the â€Å"network capitalism† in East Asia have also diverted attention towards the importance of the social networks. In fact even in the Western economies, researchers have found out highly flexible form of â€Å"network

Othello Essay Example for Free

Othello Essay The narrative of Shakespeare’s Othello is driven by the skillfully interwoven elements of doubt, speculation and posturing that are present and intensified throughout. Though the play is filled with sympathetic characters, Iago and Roderigo being the only two whose intentions are known to the audience as malicious, each character is uniquely flawed and the playwright makes this apparent in even the most pedestrian exchanges.   As the focal point of the plot’s manipulation of its well-intended characters and the unseen catalyst of the ire rising between friends and lovers with no true trespasses toward one another, Iago is brilliant at exploiting such imperfection.    Iago uses the highly charged convergence of race and sexuality to act upon his own jealousies. Acting upon the marriage of Desdemona and Othello, a military hero promoted above Iago, the villain would deceive all parties to induce Othello toward the jealous murder of his faithful wife.   The dramatic resolution is underscored by the progressive discussion engaged by Shakespeare on race and sexuality in Jacobean England. In the opening scene, when Iago demands Brabantio’s attention to his daughter’s deflowering, he immediately inducts the audience into a key principle of the world which the characters inhabit.   Depicting to his advantage a circumstance in which some form of violation has occurred, Iago tells Brabantio that â€Å"Your heart is burst, you have lost half your soul / Even now, now, very now, an old black ram / is tupping your white ewe.† (1.1, 85-87)   This is the first recognition of the theme of race, with Othello’s Moorish ethnicity inciting hostility from Iago.   His jealous and deceptive ancient, Iago uses this characterization to draw a distinction between Othello’s sexual congress with Desdemona as opposed to that of a white man. A theme that would be explored throughout the work, this is a demonstration of the lascivious sexual character which society attributed to blacks.   More a means of differentiation than reality, Iago uses it in this context to inspire indignation from Brabantio over the transgression of his daughter’s purity.   The base terms in which he chooses here to describe Othello’s relationship with Desdemona are indicative of the attitude which pervades the order of men through the play’s five Acts regarding race, sexuality and the dynamic of power amongst all three.   And it is also telling to the perspective of the play itself that Iago’s racism provides the first set of eyes through which we are allowed to observe events and individuals.   As one critic notes of the conflict in the play, â€Å"we find out what it is for the first time only through Iago’s violently eroticizing and racilalizing report to Brabantio.† (Adelman, 25)   This hel ps to manipulate events right before the audience’s eyes.   Such a dynamic is further reinforced by Brabantio’s response: â€Å"Fathers, from hence trust not your daughters’ minds   By what you see them act.   Is there not charms By which the property of youth and maidhood   May be abused?† (1.1, 168-170). Here, Brabantio seems to address the audience, admonishing them of the guile which even young women are capable of.   It is unclear at this early juncture of the play whether it is Shakespeare’s intention to voice his estimation of the female mystique or whether he is beginning to establish what would flourish into a full-fledged lampoon of the vulnerabilities which men suffer to their women.   In the case of Brabantio, it is at least perceptible that he recognizes his susceptibility to manipulation, and that the soft and disarming charms of his beautiful daughter had clouded him of his judgment. This is a recurrent theme throughout the play.   Shakespeare straddles an obfuscating line through the narrative that divides the audience in its perception of his views on gender and race relations.   Without assigning blame to one gender more than the other, he sharply assails both men and women for their vagaries in lust and envy.   The manifestation in Othello is an unending cycle of suspicion and resentment.   In the author’s universe, the yielding and delicate exterior of woman plays easily on the resolution to justice which embodies his men.   For both sexes, this sets off a destructive pattern of deception and misperception. The insertion of race into this dynamic creates something of the explosive situation which Iago exploits. Brabantio in particular is a character who is peculiarly incapable of protecting himself from the manipulative ends of those around him.   It is perhaps of some central importance to the play that much of his consternation and confusion centers around his skewed perspective on sexuality, which he typically characterizes as an act of natural transgression.   Proving himself most permeable to Iago’s suggestions, which wisely prey on the Senator’s sexual complex, Brabantio is equally inclined to view men as capable of deception.   Hurling an accusation at Othello over the violation of his daughter, Brabantio quickly shifts from a misogynistic mode to one of egalitarian mistrust: â€Å"Damned as thou art, thou hast enchanted her! For I’ll refer me to all things of sense, If she in chains of magic were not bound, Whether a maid so tender, fair, and happy, So opposite to marriage that she shunned The wealth, curled darlings of our nation, Would ever have, t’incur a general mock, Run from her guardage to the sooty bosom Of such a thing as thou.† (1.3, 63-70) Beyond another explicitly racist sentiment which Brabantio expresses here, there is a complicated set of views on gender, gender roles and the value system which he uses to contextualize the relationship between men and women.   His emphasis here on Desdemona’s rejection of men with great affluence, rank and reputation, especially in favor of the Moorish Othello, as justification for his scurrilous accusations is based not on a sense of who his daughter is, who Othello is or necessarily even the role that race plays in the matter.   More, Brabantio is inclined to an understanding of gender relations which centers on the material rule of society.   In this way, his perspective represents a conservative conception of how the sexes and races are intended to interact.   As another critical perspective denotes, â€Å"Othello is one play, moreover, that intermixes the differences of race and sexuality as the specters of performance.† (Murray, 93) This is to say that the provocative questions there associated are pitched about with a remarkable candor in a play composed in 1622.   Ultimately, even as Othello becomes an aggressor and his own worst enemy, Shakespeare evades the easy connotations of race and sexuality that seem to be at the basis of Iago’s deceit, weaving instead a deeply nuanced outlook on a very complex subject.

How people recall memories

How people recall memories In 1932 British psychologist Frederick Bartlet put forward a theory of how people organise and recall memory. His idea was that memory is not like a video recorder that can be played back, but that in fact there are a number of factors that lead to distortion and reconstruction of information. His theory is known as reconstructive memory and his ideas are still in use in current psychological research, such as eyewitness testimony, false memory syndrome, and even in the field of artificial intelligence This essay will explain Bartletts theory, its strengths and weaknesses, its implications in the understanding of how the mind organises, stores and recalls information, and how Bartletts ideas have been incorporated and expanded. Bartlett asserted that peoples recall of events is often inaccurate as reconstruction and distortion of information takes place, internally within the mind. The initial stimulus is taken in but as one can only give a certain amount of attention to a stimulus; previous experience, and knowledge, which he referred to as schemas, are used to construct a fuller picture internally. For example, if one was walking down a dark alley one might feel on edge, one suddenly notices a person approaching. An existing schema for this situation would exist and will probably result in the construction of a sinister character approaching, despite having no previous knowledge of the person. A schema is organised previous knowledge, an internal representation of how one perceives the world. Bartlett considered schemas to be maps or structures of knowledge stored in long-term memory. (May 07th 2008) www.wik.ed.uiuc.edu/index.php/Schemas In 1932 Bartlett composed a short fable which he named war of the ghosts. The fable was an old Native American folk story which would have been unfamiliar to the western participants. Generally it presented as a logical representation of events but within it was held more subtly illogical or irrational content. The story was recited to the participants who were asked to recall it after twenty hours, and again at varying intervals afterwards. He discovered that most people found it extremely difficult to recall the story exactly, even when the fable was read repeatedly. Bartlet hypothesised that, elements of the story which failed to fit into the schemata of the participant were omitted from their recollection, or reconstructed into more familiar forms. He remarked that people make an effort after meaning to make sense of information; any information which did not correspond with their cultural experiences, norms, or values, or that were unfamiliar, tended to be excluded from the reco llection of the participants. This resulted in a reduced, direct version of the story. Bartlett remarked that in the end, no trace of an odd or supernatural element [was] left: we [had] a perfectly straight forward story of a fight and a death. (2010) www.docstoc.com Bartletts ideas were revolutionary and drew many responses, positive, and negative. Bartletts research into practical aspects of memory, with an approach that set out to study how the human memory system is applied in every day, real life situations, is seen as a fundamental strength of the reconstructive memory model. However, his experiment was criticised for the methods employed. Bartlett was stopping students on their journeys around the Cambridge campus and reciting the war of the ghosts. He would often have to wait until he met them again before he could ask them to recall their version of the story. His methods were considered as being unscientific and his work was rejected by some as a result. Bartletts idea of schemas was rejected as being too vague, and hard to back up with empirical evidence. Also it was argued that Bartletts idea of reading participants an unfamiliar story could have actually been a factor in why participants reconstructed parts of the story when they rec alled it. Despite the criticism, Bartletts ideas regarding schemas, and reconstructive memories, are still in use, and are still prevalent in various fields of current psychological research. The reconstructive memory model was an important breakthrough which is still very much relevant in todays modern world. For example, a fundamental tactic employed by the police to catch and convict criminals is eye witness testimony. But how reliable is this method if memory really works as Bartlett suggested. With the emergence of new technologies such as CCTV, in some cases, it has now been possible to explore the reliability of eye witness testimonies. One example of false eye witness testimony was the case concerning Charles Mendes, a Brazilian man who was shot by police in a case of mistaken identity after the terrorist bombings in London. Witnesses recalled Mr Mendes jumping over the ticket barrier and running away from the police before he was shot dead by the police. Later CCTV footage of the event that emerged clearly showed that this was false information and in fact Charles Mendes actually bought a ticket and only ran to avoid missing the train. Recent tests concerning reconstructive memory have also raised doubt over the reliability of eye witness testimony. In 1974 Elizabeth Loftus conducted a series of experiments to explore the reliability of eye witness testimony. In 1974, Loftus and Palmer conducted experiments in which participants were used in an independent measures design. They were shown footage of a car crash and then separated into three groups of fifty. The first group was asked, how fast were the cars going when they hit each other? The second group was asked the question but the word hit was changed to smashed. The independent variable being the changed word. The third group was not asked the question; this group was used as a control group. The findings showed that the wording of the question directly affected the estimation of the cars speed. When the question was asked using the word hit, the lowest estimation was given. When the question was asked using the word smashed, participants responded with the highest estimation of the cars speed. After seven days, the participants were asked if they had seen broken glass after the accident; Loftus and Palmer found that participants who had been asked the question with the word smashed had been consistently more likely to answer yes (wrongly). The findings of Loftus and Palmers 1974 car crash experiments reinforced and continued the reconstructive memory theory. It has raised questions concerning the reliability of eye witness testimony; as a result of this work, juries are no longer allowed to convict a defendant on the basis of eye witness testimony alone. Their work has also led to the police revising the way they interview witnesses; to avoid misleading questions which could contaminate the original recollection of events, and in order to aid a witness to recall as much of a situation or event as possible, the police now conduct cognitive interviews. The understanding of how the mind stores and retrieves information has aided the police, whose modified interview techniques are now thought to be more successful in drawing often vital details held in the memory of witnesses. These can be used to solve crimes, help to bring dangerous criminals to justice, and are more accurate, hopefully leading to less cases of wrongful convictions due to false information or mistaken identity. There are criticisms that can be directed towards Loftus and Palmer for their experimental methods in 1974; it has been argued that due to a lack of participant variety, the findings of the experiment cannot be viewed as universally applicable as the participants were all students. Another point that has been made is that the results could have been affected by demand characteristics; the participants could have given answers according to what they thought the researchers wanted to hear. It has also been argued that the experiments were artificial; real life situations could have different results. In a real situation there are potentially severe legal and moral consequences involved with distorted recollections of events in a court of law; this is not the case in a laboratory experiment. These concerns have now been addressed by more recent research that has based experiments in a more realistic, every day context. This new research, such as the Open University and BBC project, appears to confirm much of what Loftus and Palmer asserted. Participants witnessed a stabbing and were taken to the station by the police for cognitive interviews. They were unaware that the situation had been staged. Dr Pike, a psychologist involved with the project echoed comments remarked by Elizabeth Loftus when he commented on the findings; speaking of how the mind is malleable, not fixed, he remarked that its not like imputing data into a computer, the mind does not store facts absolutely the way they are and it does not recall them absolutely accurately either. Winterman, D (2010) www.news.bbc.co.uk Further research by Loftus has led to greater understanding of how the mind reacts differently in stressful situations such as at the scene of a crime taking place. It is now understood that when a weapon is involved, ones attention tends to focus on the threatening object. As a consequence, ones recall of peripheral details diminishes. Loftus asserted that weapon anxiety can be responsible for ones inability to recall the perpetrator, and or crucial details or events of a crime. It is now understood that age, and ones emotional state, are factors to be considered concerning accurate recall. It is also widely accepted that people are more likely to misinterpret a situation, make errors, or make crucial mistakes when they are scared or in shock. Although in some instances, an extreme situation can lead to a state of heightened awareness, which can in turn lead to flashbulb memories; potentially extremely accurate detailed memories of an event or situation. Having explored Bartletts theory of reconstructive memory, and later research by Loftus and Palmer that continued it, one can see that these theories have facilitated a much greater understanding of the complexities of human memory. Bartlett put forward an explanation of aspects of human memory that other models of memory do not account for. Most, if not all people would have experience with memories that are vague, or unclear. How many times have you recalled an event, only for the person next to you, who shared the experience with you, to contradict you, with a completely different account of the events? Reconstructive memory puts forward an explanation for why this can happen; of how memory does not always reflect an accurate account of an event or situation. Loftus and Palmers continued research into reconstructive memory has further supported the theory. Their work has had important repercussions in areas such as law and police procedure. The reconstructive memory theory continu es to exert a significant influence in todays modern world. Cardwell M, Clark L, Meldrum C. (2003) Psychology for A Level, Harper Collins. Gross R. (2009) Psychology. The Science of Mind and Behaviour 5th Edition, Hodder Arnold. Gross R, Rolls G. (2003) Essential AS Psychology, Hodder Stoughton. www.google.com/http://www.bookrags.com/wiki/Frederic_Bartlett (accessed 26th April 2010) (May 7th 2008) www.google.com/http://wik.ed.uiuc.edu/index.php/Schemas (accessed 26 April 2010) (2010) www.google.com/http://www.docstoc.com/docs/33510508/The-War-of-the-Ghosts/ (accessed 26th April 2010) www.google.com/http://www.s-cool.co.uk/alevel/psychology/human-memory/criti (accessed 26th April 2010) Winterman, D. (2010) BBC Magazine available at www.google.com/news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8617945.stm (accessed 28th April)

The Economic Crisis Through Digital Economy Information Technology Essay

The Economic Crisis Through Digital Economy Information Technology Essay Already a circulated topic which puts thoughts investors and businessmen, the economic crisis seems to be invincible. The solving and minimizing the effects exerted at the microeconomic and macroeconomic level are still a challenge for economists, both globally and nationally. In fact, today we are at the confluence of two crises: the first (short term) but there is a second economic crisis in the long term, which is about the changing business climate. Following studies carried out internationally, it was concluded that these two crises have in common that one possible solution is to develop the digital economy. Digital economy seen as a new economy is the effect of coexistence of computer systems, Internet, telecommunications, electronics and their sustainable development. The trend toward digital systems integrated values pose a new life cycle of e-business. This new model of economy is characterized by several features quite different from traditional economy. First, new economy presents new market and business models (e-business, E-commerce, e-banking, etc.) achieved through the intranet and the Internet, bringing a radical change in their efficiency, to reduce the cost. In recent years, electronic commerce (e-commerce) has emerged as the concrete form of realization of business, also involving the definition of sui generis markets scientific knowledge, driven by an increasingly developing research and development sector. Second highlight the application needs of consumers and their ever more active involvement in design, implementation and use of goods and services from early stage research and development. In the light of these realities, the new economy is non-interactive, participatory, thus achieving a more rigorous interaction between supply and demand, in time and space. Thus the consumer is without the knowledge, the main innovation pawn. It is he who offers ideas for innovational producer, who must maintain and expand markets, increase comfort and provide sustainable economic development. Third, we talk about competition and cooperation, two inseparable sides of the digital economy (taking account of the interaction between supply and demand, above). Forms of manifestation of competition between producers suffer due to temper consumer transformation, how it perceives and chooses a product or service name of the manufacturer at the expense, making vital cooperation between producers. All these lead to the creation of virtual organizations as being achieved exploitation of business opportunities by sharing resources (skills, cost and market access). Lastly, the most delicate of the economy, that is on a power greater than design work. But as in anything less pleasant there a good side, we see that the advantage of creating new jobs that require highly skilled. Digital economy is regarded as superior to the wider economy. This is given its economic effects, namely reducing resource consumption, increased innovation and entrepreneurial spirit, increase productivity, speed change production and economic phenomena and processes, increasing value added, etc. The term digital economy refers to the transformation produced in the economic activities resulting from the use of information and communication technology (ICT), which provides access, information processing and storage in a low-cost time low. Antithetical on the old economy growth was driven by mechanization of production, particularly manufacturing and agriculture, and the new economy, a promoter of development is generally digitization (using information technology to produce and distribute goods and services) and in particular , using the Internet and other information technologies (smart cards, voice-based computing, wireless, databases, telecommunications and expert systems) in the service sector, which encompasses 80% of jobs. Information technology revolution has transformed virtually all industries and is the main developer of economic efficiency and productivity growth, living standards, the customization of products and services to meet individual needs and desires. So on this evolving digital economy is developing an increasingly see knowledge as raw material of economic activity currently living in a knowledge revolution. This revolution means a fundamental change and transformation processes based economy alm ost exclusively on natural resources in the economy based mainly on knowledge. On the basis of this revolution is the decisive role that the knowledge they have acquired in recent decades, increased economic importance of information technology, business processes, human capital, capabilities and organization skills knowledge related to organic factors. The exponential growth of mobile communications and the number of Internet users, the contribution of the ICT sector (ICT) to economic growth and job creation, restructuring of companies and business in general to better benefit from new technologies, accelerated development of electronic commerce and the essence of the digital economy supporting the transition to a knowledge-based society. It offers the most promising prospects for overcoming the crisis and stop efecto social exclusion, but require social protection systems to become more active, provide incentives for work, ensuring sustainable retirement system for elderly people and a stable environment the transition to knowledge-based economy can be run. SMEs the mainly pawn In order to achieve the digital economy should focus on using technology within firms, both in terms of Exeter and the environment when it comes to the firms external environment. It is understandable that the field could have the biggest Benefits after investing in technology the SME sector. Importance of SMEs can be seen in their effect on the most important aspects of life inhabitants of a region and the level of economic development. Thus, the importance of SMEs lies in reality following: offers the largest supply of goods and services for a nation in a modern society; is the main supplier of value added in economic sectors that have purpose, offers most jobs; firm level performance influence the state and the performance of national economy and standard of living of the population. In the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, seeking to become states with mature economies, the SME sector is considered the pillar supporting the economy. On average, 99.7% of companies present in the 27 EU countries, generating more than two thirds of total employment and 60% of added value, said Helge Boschenbroker, director of the Zeb/rolfes.schierenbek.associates and author of Serving SMEs by banks in CEE. Information and communications technology, with electronic trading systems offer benefits in increased turnover after business processes. Transfer documents via existing network and computer network within the enterprise increases the efficiency of the economic process in terms of documentation, data processing and other administrative functions. Also in the SMEs, ICT and communications applications in this area may be the company much faster and can bring value and management company offering its effectiveness. Using advanced ICT systems, such as being ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and KMS (Knowledge Management System) enables enterprises to store, distribute and use their knowledge and know-how. For example, databases with a history of clients increase the flexibility and support given by managers and employees to customers. Regarding the internal environment of enterprises, the Internet and electronic commerce, offers significant potential in reducing transaction costs and time. If the type of B2B commerce, digital technology reduces the information asymmetry between buyers and suppliers provided. In fact, adoption of electronic commerce will reduce costs of transfer; increase transaction speed and superior build business relationships. Prerequisites for participation in a digital economy are the availability of accessible ICT with reasonable price and ability to use them. Currently, there are still many people who can not benefit fully from the opportunities offered by ICT because these prerequisites are not met. Using ICT in SMEs is important economically. E-business idea is crucial when talking about ICT, but refers to accessing, providing and sharing information in the networks business, ie making business into advanced digital economy. Although companies today continue to use cost savings by using ICT, ICT is increasingly recognized as an important tool for innovation and revenue growth. New services and new ways of working in networks of value occurred. Competition between enterprises is conducted in new ways and cooperation lies in their work. Knowledge-intensive activities have become more important. Companies are increasingly focused on their core competencies and outsource processes such non-core business. Currently, the vast majority of world countries have adopted proactive policies priority to create an environment conducive to sustainable development information and communication technologies (ICT) especially that between developed and developing or poor countries has created a digital gap (Digital Divide). Romania, like other emerging countries, is faced with the phenomenon known as the digital gap, that gap that exists in use of ICT in organizations, between different layers of society in the country to other countries. Digital divide concept is closely related to information society theory. Using these indicator researchers measured the extent to which certain segments of the population can participate in the information society. The gap is caused by social and economic inequalities between groups that influence access to digital information. These differences or inequalities arising from operating knowledge of computers and technology use by those present on the labor market and the marginalized, rich and poor, young and old. No wonder that the current economic crisis digital divide, in terms of Romania, to provide a surge. As the economy continues to be in crisis compared with other EU countries, differences in adoption and development of ICT will continue to increase. Finally it is possible for Romania to face a new crisis, a crisis of e-accessibility, but only if no measures are taken to support the adoption of sustainable ICT

Macbeth and Lady Macbeth - Who Has the Greater Guilt? :: GCSE English Literature Coursework

Greater Guilt - Macbeth or Lady Macbeth ? Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, is an exciting story containing all kinds of plots and murders. The characters that are killing and are planning murders are all very deceiving and treacherous. Two of the most dangerous criminals in this play are Lady Macbeth and her husband. Together they commit the most dreadful murder by killing the King; Duncan. This is why it is difficult to determine which one of these two carries the greatest guilt, because they each do their own part in committing the crime.   Lady Macbeth would prepare the plan and then encourage Macbeth to go through with it.   Macbeth did the actual murdering, he was also the first person who thought about killing Duncan. Furthermore he did some killing on his own. Lady Macbeth did not have any involvement in these cases.   Based on these facts, Macbeth would be found more guilty than Lady Macbeth. The very first murder in this story   was committed on Duncan. This crime was planned by both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. The actual murder was done by Macbeth, making him more guilty of the crime.   Lady Macbeth just talked about committing the crime, but she never actually went through with it nor would she ever, and that is all that counts.   Talking about committing the incident is very different from actually doing it.   Lady Macbeth did a little more than just talk about it though. She also urged Macbeth into doing it and that is what makes her part of this crime, but she is not as guilty as Macbeth.   He really didn't have to listen to what his wife said. Macbeth had a mind of his own and he could make his own decision.   The other murders that Macbeth was involved in were not committed by him, but were ordered by him. The people who did the killing had no choice, they had to do it, because they worked for Macbeth.   Macbeth knew this and was a bit more guilty in t hese murders then lady Macbeth was when she urged him.

Philosophical Pluralism in the Service of Humane Governance :: Philosophy Philosophical Essays

Philosophical Pluralism in the Service of Humane Governance ABSTRACT: In recent times, the American Philosophical Association has been exposed in a serious way to the issue of pluralism in philosophy curriculums in the departments of philosophy of American universities and colleges. This conversation brings to the fore the fact that what is at issue in the prospect of pluralizing American philosophy departments is not merely the matter of deciding the discipline's boundaries of intellectual formation relative to the current generation of students, but the unforeseeen consequences of pluralism which challenge both 'the American canon' and the profession's self-understanding vis-Ã  -vis a 'Western' intellectual heritage that distinguishes the 'essential' from the 'marginal' by privileging essential figures, problems, and time-honored methodological commitments. Yet, to the degree that there is a quest for relation of differences, this need not presuppose the universality of philosophical discourse, comparative philosophy moving inevitably with in a logic of opposition rather than a logic of mutuality. Our thinking is surely problematic if at this World Congress we find an occasion for a confrontation between 'the West' and 'the margin,' the latter construed negatively as a 'mute, growing and menacing pressure.' In recent time the American Philosophical Association has been exposed in a serious way to the issue of pluralizing the philosophy curriculum in the departments of philosophy of American universities and colleges. John Lachs, Philip Quinn, John Stuhr, and Kathleen Wright each contributed thoughtful discussions to the "issues in the profession" section of the November 1996 Proceedings and Addresses. (1) As Lachs observed, there are those who conceive pluralism to mean "due representation of the analytic, Continental, and American philosophical traditions". Others who have explicit concern with the developing "sub-discipline" of comparative philosophy conceive pluralism to include "work in the complex traditions of Chinese, Indian, African, Latin American, Islamic, Jewish, feminist, and Native American thought, as well". Quinn perhaps speaks for a majority of philosophers when he suggests that hardly anyone would deny that "it is a good thing to expose students to the many ways in which philosophy has been done in various places and at different times", that "it is a good thing to carry forward philosophical inquiry in the many traditions that have proved to be of enduring value". Thus Quinn favors a more inclusive pluralism, one which "would consist of a conversation that contains many more non-Western philosophical voices". Notwithstanding Quinn's hopeful remarks, Stuhr noted that today pluralism is not widely endorsed.

St. Valentines Day Massacre :: American History

In the roaring twenties, the life of organized crimes was at its peak. What was the greatest mob hit ever pulled off in history? Well I'll tell you. It all happened on Valentines Day, the morning of February 14th, 1929. This incident was call, "The St. Valentines Day Massacre". The man behind this infamous crime was none other than, the infamous Al "Scarface" Capone. Al Capone was the all time greatest mobster of all time. The idea of organized crime fascinates me in so many ways. Capone was the only person to have pulled off such a crime. Al Capone was top gangster in Chicago and was one of the greatest members of the Italian Mafia and George "Bugs" Moran was the leader of the Irish/German mafia and he was the main target behind this hit. He targeted Capone because Al Capone‘s had a bounty on his head, $60,000,000, and found George Moran as a threat. George was Capone's biggest threat of all. He needed to take him out quickly. (Al Capone, True Crime Story). Writing this paper wi ll let me learn a lot more about this massacre. There is one question I would like answered, "Why hadn't Moran's crew made an attempt to fight back?" (Al Capone, True Crime Story). Moran's men had a long history of being violent with others. This is one question that we will never know. My most used source on this essay will be internet information and a book. I feel these sources will give me the most amount of information. Using a magazine will too but it was very hard to find a 20's magazine article. A mob hit such as this one seems tough but only someone with the man power and skill could have pulled it off. It took Capone awhile to think about because he needed an alibi. His alibi was finally established and it was time to go to part one of the Valentines Day Massacre. Something you probably didn't know was Al Capone did not participate in the killings or plans of this crime. All though Capone was the main man behind the massacre, he had "Machine Gun" McGurn take care of the set up. Jack McGurn was responsible for many of Chicago's gangland murders, often without Capone's consent. McGurn upset Capone on a number of occasions for going over the top in violence, because everything McGurn did reflected on Capone in the media.

Only the Good Die Young

Portia Francis Comp & Literature Feb 11, 2013 â€Å"Only the Good Die Young† vs. â€Å"Make Much of Time† The tone in â€Å"Only the Good Die Young† and â€Å"Make Much of Time â€Å"are very different. Both the song and the poem speak of men tempting women to lose their virginity and â€Å"carpe diem† live life to the fullest, â€Å"Make Much of time† has a much softer tone, versus , â€Å"Only the Good Die Young† has a much more aggressive one. In â€Å"Make Much of Time† the writer, although a â€Å"carpe diem† poem takes a much gentler approach to the women he is encouraging.Herrick refers to us, â€Å"Gather ye roses while she may† to show that in the 1500’-1600s women married much earlier and time was of the essence. He uses phrases ,like â€Å" this same flower that blooms today will soon be dying, †and â€Å"when youth and blood are warmer† to support his idea that women should not wait unti l they are older and choose to marry and ultimately give up their virginity. He speaks â€Å"having once lost your prime† to support his tone to women.. Herrick, in my opinion, is encouraging young women to marry before they are too old, which is relatively young but not missing out on the most important thing in their life..He uses words like â€Å" Rosebuds† and â€Å"smiles today† and having â€Å"lost but once your prime† to create a more gentle tone. On the other hand Billy Joel writes a â€Å"more in your face â€Å" carpe diem poem. He sites â€Å"Don’t let me wait, Catholic girls start much too late†. He seems to be putting on the pressure with the young women and pointing the finger to the reasons why. He seems to be more concerned with his personal satisfaction† after speaking of her, â€Å"Brand new soul† and â€Å"Cross of gold† after her confirmation, â€Å"But did she ever say pray for me? To me, this ind icates that he knew his thoughts were lustful and in a round–bout way, he acknowledged his feelings and wanted resolution. The songs title lends to his aggressiveness â€Å" Only the Good Die Young†, because no woman is going to die if she doesn’t give up her virginity. Lastly, the in in the song â€Å" And they say there’s a heaven for those who wait. Some say its better but I say it ain’t. † Seals the deal that he main concern is his own satisfaction and again attempts to inflict the guilt on the young woman who would not immediately please him.

Ball and Brown Essay

In 1968 Raymond Ball and Phillip Brown published ‘An empirical evaluation of accounting income numbers’ in the Journal of Accounting research. After an initial lukewarm response from the academic community it rapidly became what the American Accounting Association now calls ‘the seed that made a difference’. The purpose of this essay is to introduce the study of Ball and Brown(motivations, research questions and findings) and identify its significant contributions in capital markets research. Introduction According to the resources provided, Ball and Brown described the motivation for their study as a test of existing scholarly research that painted a dim picture of reported earnings. The early articles concluded that earnings could not be informative, and therefore major changes to accounting practice where necessary to correct the problem. In their research, Ball and Brown sought to answer the simple fundamental research question: are accounting income numbers useful? Their position was summarised: â€Å"An empirical evaluation of accounting income numbers requires agreement as to what real-world outcome constitutes an appropriate test of usefulness. Because net income is a number of particular interest to investors, the outcome we use as a predictive criterion is the investment decision as it is reflected in security prices†(Ball and Brown 1968). Ball and Brown found that when stocks had a positive income surprise, the abnormal stock price returns for the event window were also likely to be positive, and vice versa. They also found that a majority of the increase in the abnormal returns was before the announcement date, which implied that analysts have fairly accurate forecasts of whether firms will outperform or underperform. Significance of their contributions Although there does have some limitations in Ball and Brown’s study, it had a significant impact on later research. Ball and Brown (1968) provide compelling evidence that there is information content in accounting earnings announcements. In the meantime, they correlate the sign of the abnormal  stock return in the month of an earnings announcement with the sign of the earnings change of a certain firm’s earnings in a previous year earnings. Starting with Ball and Brown (1968), many studies used such association with stock returns to compare alternative accounting performance measures, such as historical cost earnings, current cost earnings, residual earnings, operating cash flows, and so on. As Watts and Zimmerman point out, most accounting research since Ball and Brown (1968) has been positive, and the role of accounting theory is no longer normative. Ball and Brown (1968) heralded the positive-economics-based empirical capital markets research in the late 1960s.Concurrent developments in economics and finance constituted the theoretical and methodological impetus to the early capital markets research in accounting. In addition, their study initially provides reliable evidence that stock markets can influence annual reports. Then researchers began to do a lot in reflect of stock market. Furthermore, the method used is also applicable to a large number of accounting and financial issues, including dividend announcements, earnings announcements, mergers and acquisitions, and investment spending. 3. Conclusion Ball and Brown (1969) expressed a view of information in markets that was revolutionary and contributed to a significant change in attitudes towards investing and financial markets. By testing the connection between earnings expectations and share price changes they were the genesis of a body of research that now underpins modern day investment processes. References Jackson, S. (1999), â€Å"Australia: Towns get by without their banks†, The Australian. pp. 3. Phillips, N. and Malhotra, N. (2008). ‘Taking social construction seriously: extending the discursiveapproach in institutional theory’. In Greenwood, R., Oliver, C., Sahlin, K. and Suddaby, R. (Eds),Handbook of Organizational Institutionalism. London: Sage, 602–720. How can responsible international mining and oil companies use their social investment funds? Nikolai, Bazley, and Jefferson Jones. Intermediate Accounting. South-Western College Pub, 209 Massoud, M. and C. Raiborn(2003), â€Å"Accounting for Goodwill: Are We Better Off?,† Review of Business, Vol. 24, No. 2, pp. 26-32. Ball and Brown (1968): The seed that made a difference, Ball, R., and Brown, P. (1968), â€Å"An empirical evaluation of accounting income numbers†, Journal of Accounting Research 6 (2), pp.159-178 Watts and Zimmerman (1979), â€Å"The Demand for and Supply of Accounting Theories: The Market for Excuses†, The Accounting Review, Vol. 54, No. 2, American Accounting Association. ———————–

Horses: Poetry and Edwin Muir Essay

It is said that one should forget the past and live in the present. However, Edwin Muir’s ‘Horses’ is a poem of past memories only. The interesting part is that it deals with many conflicts and issues which are prevalent even today. It is thus a bridge between the past and present and is expressed in the form of a piece of literature. Muir himself said that in writing about horses in this poem, he was reflecting his childhood view of his father’s plough horses, which must have seemed huge, powerful and mysterious to a boy of four or five. Some of his poems, including ‘Horses’, have a close equivalent in passages from his autobiography, suggesting that seeing these horses reminded him of certain events. The poem begins with the poet transcending reality and reminiscing of one of his childhood memories. In this case it is one of when he as a child, watched a team of horses ploughing the stubble back into the field, during a rainy day which got progressively stormier. In the first two verses, the poet gives the reader a meaningful hint into what the circumstances of his times were. This was most probably, the hardships of a period of war. The few references Muir makes to an army such as in cases where the horses â€Å"marched† and the word â€Å"conquering† further strengthen this issue of war. â€Å"Their hooves like pistons in an ancient mill† This line brings up another issue which is plaguing the third world as we know it. In the same verse he refers to a â€Å"childish hour† in which he also compares the horses’ hooves to pistons in an ancient mill. This refers to how child labour in factories was existent even then and how these dark memories were etched in his mind. We can suggest these memories to be dark not only by his imagination but by the â€Å"fearful† way he sees these images of the past. Under the â€Å"great hulks† of these creatures he sees is however another truth. The way these symbols of â€Å"power† trod, allows the reader to infer another thought.

Myths and Misconceptions about Viruses and Security Essay

Computer viruses, as they are commonly known today, are malicious malware design to destroy and distort the normal working of a computer. The first known origin of computer viruses is estimated to be in the 1960’s CITATION Nat14 l 1033 (Devotta, 2014). The virus was in form of a game called Core Wars, and would self-replicate every time it was run. The group of programmers who developed it also made the first known anti-virus called Reeper. It was not until 1983, that one of these programmers announced the existence of Core Wars CITATION Ant l 1033 (AntivirusWorld, n.d.). In the same era, an influx of personal computers flooded the market and games became very popular. As a result, malicious viruses like Trojan horse were developed and innocent consumers downloaded them thinking that they were nice games only to feel the repercussions later. Since then, many viruses have been developed and continue to cause havoc to our computer experience. A computer virus is a malicious code that is written with instructions to replicate itself in a host computer and attaches itself to files and programs in the machine CITATION All l 1033 (AllAboutCookies, n.d.). Often, this happens without the consent of the user, and once the machine is booted or the infected program is launched, the virus attacks and damages data. In the case where an infected file is saved on a storage device, transfer of that file to another computer repeats the cycle and the virus re-infects the new host computer CITATION Sym10 l 1033 (Symantec, 2010). Viruses are designed to be spread via several media, where they piggyback on emails, programs, or network systems. The same way myths and misconceptions arise after a deadly disease pandemic, the computer world is full of myths about viruses. Some of the most common unfounded myths include; Mac users are virus proof, firewalls block off viruses, formatting and re-installing the operating system of an infected computer and then backing up one’s data gets rid of viruses, using antivirus programs protects one fully from viruses, signs of error messages popping up on one’s computer indicate that the computer is infected, corrupted files and blue screen displays on computers indicate a virus attack CITATION Rak11 l 1033 (Tembhurne, 2011). While some of these misconception hold water, they are not absolutely true all the time. A common scenario for internet users is the appearance of irritating pop-up messages, especially when browsing. While some of these messages are strategies for internet marketing by companies, and are indeed inevitable, it is possible for one to block pop-up messages- without purchasing software. First and foremost, there are free downloadable pop-up blockers that are effective on general browser pop-up ads. Examples include, Google Toolbar, Yahoo Companion Toolbar, Pop-up Stopper, PopUp Blocker, WorldIQ Toolbar and CleanMyPC, just to name but a few CITATION Kio15 l 1033 (Kioskea, 2015). Peer-to-peer file sharing programs are another source of disturbing pop-ups, especially once you install a program downloaded from these sites. To get rid of search, uninstall any unfamiliar programs from the Control Panel. Most browsers today also come with in-built software that block pop-ups, and can be adjusted to block the ads under the Settings tab. A good example is Internet Explorer CITATION Uni04 l 1033 (Iowa, 2004). Using Windows XP Service Pack 2 is also another viable option since the latest version includes a built-in Pop-up blocker CITATION Ram07 l 1033 (Srinivasan, 2007). References AllAboutCookies. (n.d.). Retrieved from All About Cookies.org: http://www.allaboutcookies.org/security/computer-viruses.html AntivirusWorld. (n.d.). History of Computer Viruses. Retrieved from http://www.antivirusworld.com/articles/history.php Devotta, N. (2014, Septemner 4). A short History of Computer Viruses. Retrieved from COMODO Antivirus: https://antivirus.comodo.com/blog/computer-safety/short-history-computer-viruses/ Iowa, U. o. (2004, June). Pop-up blocking. Retrieved from Information Technology Services @ The University of Iowa: https://helpdesk.its.uiowa.edu/articles/june2004/popupblocking.htm Kioskea. (2015, March). How to get rid of Pop-Up ads. Retrieved from http://en.kioskea.net/faq/104-how-to-get-rid-of-pop-up-ads Srinivasan, R. (2007, October 27). How to block Pop-ups? Retrieved from Ramesh’s Site: http://windowsxp.mvps.org/Popups.htm Symantec. (2010). pc tools. Retrieved from http://www.pctools.com/security-news/what-do-computer-viruses-do/ Tembhurne, R. (2011, May 10). 15 Myths and Misconceptions about Viruses and Security Applications. Retrieved from http://rakesh.tembhurne.com/15-myths-and-misconceptions-about-viruses-and-security-applications/ Source document