Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Childhood Obesity Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Childhood Obesity - Research Paper Example It is believed that having an overweight parent doubles the risk of childhood obesity while obesity in both parents increases the risk of child obesity further. Socio-economic status of the family increases the child obesity risks further due to the behaviors and lifestyles involved (Perry et.al, 2012). With the rising prevalence of child obesity of the age of 9 years across the globe, it is important for researchers to understand all underlying pathways which may be the cause of the child obesity. The study also aims at determining the correlation that exists between the family socio-economic status, parental weight status and childhood obesity for children at the age of 9. Sampling method is the statistical method used in this research. In this method, the sample size was obtained from the study group randomly. Experimental method was used to obtain the required data. The sampling method was used prior to the research where the researchers used it to obtain the sample size for use while the experimental method was used in carrying out the actual survey. STATA Software is the statistical tool used in the statistical analysis. A study sample of 8,568 nine year children growing up in Ireland was used. Initially 1,105 primary schools out of 3200 were selected at random by the use of the sampling method. A random sample of 8,568 children was then obtained from the selected schools. ... The experimental method was used in the collection of the data from the sampled size in order to obtain all indicators of obesity in children (Perry et.al, 2012). Descriptive or parametric method of statistical analysis was used in the research. This type of statistical analysis helped the researchers to obtain the required data which is through the description of the observed data. This type of statistical analysis helped the researchers come up with numerical data of weights to determine the obesity indicators. The statistical methods used in the research are not that tiresome and are appropriate for this kind of study, and this is another reason as to why the researchers chose them. These statistical methods are also accurate in terms of the data obtained, and the use of them in research will see to a valid research findings and results. STATA is the statistical tool which has been employed in this study. In this tool, the probability weights were applied using the survey data com mand in order to account for complex survey design. The researchers chose this the descriptive or parametric method as it helps in the summarization of a sample data. The method also sets descriptive coefficients of the given data which are then used in summarizing the numerical data obtained. The data in this case is numerical since the researchers obtained numerical figures on the risk factor indicators of obesity in children. The tool used also helped the researchers to obtain the social demographic variables required for the study, helped them to perform unadjusted multinomial logistic regression which would then be used to determine the risk of childhood overweight compared to their family’s

“In What Ways Does a Rising China Impact the World” Essay

â€Å"In What Ways Does a Rising China Impact the World† - Essay Example China’s rise on the world scene as a growing economic strong house has been received ambivalently. Her increased control on not only the Asian economy but abroad as well has brought a power shift with her neighbor Japan who has been the dominating force since the first world war, as well as abroad. But what exactly does china’s rise mean to the rest of the world? China has a history that makes it renowned for opting to use military force to gets its way. China still holds a lot of anger and resentment towards the treatment it has suffered at the hands of the international community over the past two centuries and there are bones of contention between her and Japan ( Mahbubani, 2005). Though china has held out the olive branch saying that its intentions are peaceful and their sole interest is in economic growth and development, most countries approach her with caution. The slightest show of claws leaves the international community in jitters. What has brought china into the spotlight is the global financial crisis. When Chinese leaders mulled over whether it was time a new currency was created because of the state of the dollar, every one was all ears and waiting to see what was the next step that china would take. It means that china’s intentions are still regarded as being highly suspicious (Gee, 2009). The most wary are the smaller Asian nations who china has been making attempts to do more business with over recent years. China has changed her tactic and has approached south east nations with a more open attitude to dialogue and treating them as equals. China even offered to sign a free trade agreement with Southeast Asian countries as well as recognizing the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) (Goh, 2006). It seems that china’s new approach is working with the Southeast Asian nations because these nations have been more welcoming of china’s participation in their economies. It has also helped that china has adopted a

Monday, October 28, 2019

Modelling a Database for a Garment Manufacturing Company Essay Example for Free

Modelling a Database for a Garment Manufacturing Company Essay This project will contain information on the processing involved in modelling a database for a Garment Manufacturing company. It will also document how to create letter and fax templates that make the work more efficient. The database will hold details about the suppliers, customers and stock etc. The garment style, size, how many ordered and deadline dates for the garments to be finished will also be data which is stored in the table. The end-user Mr Jordan will be able to recall information on any of his suppliers or customers. He will be able to link what the customer orders to what he has to order from his suppliers or if the customers provides their own supplies he will see the amount needed. Mr Jordan will be able to send letters automatically to his customers and suppliers about work and orders. The database will be developed using Microsoft Access, the supplier and customer letters will be created in Microsoft Word and merged with data from Microsoft Access. Background to Organisation The Garment Manufacturing Company is called Air Ltd, it is located in Stratford and is owned by Mr Jordan. There are nine workers, which Mr Jordan is in charge of. He takes care of every aspect of the business himself apart from parts of the accounts. All of the other nine workers are arrange in a production line around the work place. Mr Jordan deals with the customer enquiries, orders and suppliers etc. At the moment letters are created from scratch in Microsoft Word. Information Technology is not used much as it could be at the present time. Current procedures Customers get into contact with the company and talk about their order and the type of work required to meet their needs. This would include the design styles, materials and number of garments etc. Either the customer provide their own materials or they set out their order to Mr Jordan so he can go to his supplier. The company then makes a sample garment which is shown to the customer if they are pleased with it then production starts, if not then amendments are made. At the moment if letters need to be sent out to customers or suppliers they are created individually instead of making a template and using mail-merge. From customer orders Mr Jordan notes down how many garments to be made, style of garment and size on paper, all of this documentation is kept in a folder. Image of Mr Jordans customers order detail sheet. [image002.jpg] The customer detail sheet is in tabular form where records are filled in about each of the individual garments. For example data such as size, colour and style etc. would be held on the sheet. Mr Jordan takes care of all of these sheets in a folder. When they are out dated and are no, longer of any use they are disposed of. Strengths of the current system The strengths of the following system are: All of the workers are used to the current system this means that nobody has to be trained to use any new equipment. For example none of the workers have to be trained on how to use computers. Most work is carried out by hand , this is a strength because if machines were used and any one of them broke down the production of the garments would have to be stopped. Weaknesses of the current system The weaknesses of the current system are: All documentation is carried out on paper. All letter to customers are created individually. The business does not use e-mail to communicate with its customers or suppliers. The business does not have a web site advertising its service and goods. If vital business documents are lost, there is no backup. There is no form of a factory outlet. Objectives for the new system Store details about the customers permanently. Store details about the suppliers permanently. Easily be able to input data concerning the ordering of materials. For example, style, material, size, colour etc. Be able to print out order details for the worker to use. Check his status with the suppliers. For example, material ordered etc. Send out letters to customers using mail merge for better efficiency. Print out an update of all deadlines to be met. End-user and functional requirements Store details about the customers permanently The database will need to store details of the name of the company, its address and the telephone number. The user will sometimes want to display details of all the customers. It will be useful if the customer company names are in alphabetical order. The user might want to send the customers letters which means that the postcode will have to be stored in a separate field. Store details about the suppliers permanently The database will store details about the suppliers. For example the user will sometimes want to list the names in alphabetical order this means that the first name will have to be stored in a separate field to the middle and last name. If the user wants to send the customers letters to inform them about orders etc he will need to store the post code part of the address in a different field. Store details about the suppliers permanently The database will store details about the suppliers name and address. The suppliers table will be similar to the customer table. But the user will send letters to the suppliers concerning the orderinf of raw materials etc. Easily be able to input data concerning the ordering of materials. For example, style, material, size, colour etc. The user will easily be able to in put the data u sing Microsoft access instead of inputting the data on paper using a hand made table where he could be creating a more efficient table using access. Be able to print out order details for the worker to use. The user will be able to print out details of the customers orders. For example, the number of garments, style, material etc. Check his status with the suppliers. For example, material ordered etc. The user should be able to access details about what he has ordered and what there is to pay at the touch of button Send out letters to customers using mail merge for better efficiency. The user will be able to send out letters to the customers and suppliers quickly and efficiently using mail merge with Microsoft Access and Microsoft Word Print out an update of all deadlines to be met. The user will be able to print out a list of all deadlines to be met of all of the customers so the workers can work efficiently. Working Constraints End-user skill level The end-user(s) have used modern computers before based upon Windows 95. The user has used a modern computer to create letters and do calculations on Microsoft Excel. The user can only do simple calculations and nothing too complicated. The user can create letters for suppliers and customers by using a word processor. Mr Jordan is new to Microsoft Word but is getting the hang of it. He does not know much about the advanced features of the software. Mr Jordan will need some form of support in using the advanced features. Mr Jordan can use any simple software, but will have to apply himself slightly to be able to get the hang of the advanced features. His experience with IT is very limited. The new system must be easy to understand so that the vital functions can be successfully carried out. No errors should occur, everything should be clear. Availability of hardware and software The previous software that Mr Jordan was using is called Lotus Word Pro96 but has recently purchased a new PC with Microsoft Office 2000 on it. This new computer is manufactured by Compaq and has the following specification: 900Mhz processor 64Mb RAM 13Gigabytes HDD 17 inch VDU Cannon Bubble Jet printer BJC4200 Microsoft Office 2000 Mr Jordan has an ideal specification if not too good for the functional requirements. The software in the school will easily correspond with Mr Jordans PC since in school Microsoft Office 97 is available. Time constraints The deadline for the project is to be completed for the 30^th March. This gives approximately nine weeks for development, testing and documentation. Documentation will take up a great deal of the time this means that time will be a major constraint upon the completed system. Initial time plan Consideration of solutions Data such as company names and addresss will need to be stored along with ordering details etc. this means that a database must be used. A word processor will also be needed because letters have to be created for the customers. Mail merge could be used. There are two choices for the type of database: relational or Flat-file. Flat-file A Flat-file database will not be suitable because it would mean that all of the field would have to be stored in one table. For example, supplier, customer and order fields will all be in the same table. This would then lead to there being data in the table that is not needed. For example, each time a customer made an order their name and address will have to be recorder in that record. If this type were to be used then it would take up a lot of space and hold useless data. It would also make it hard to search in the basic ways that you do. It will be hard to develop it so that the end-user will be able searc h for a certain supplier or customer without all of the other irrelevant details coming up. It would also make it increasingly difficult to use the mail merge facility. Concluding this we now know that a spreadsheet is not suitable for our purpose because it is just like a Flat-file if not nearly enough the same thing. Relational database This form of storage is much more flexible than Flat-file because it allows the data to be split up into separate tables. This is more efficient because each table contains information about a single entity. Now that information is in its individual tables, data redundancy is avoided. By linking all of the tables the whole structure will be able to be searched in a variety of ways. There are a great amount of relational database options in the market but the two main ones are Microsoft Access and Lotus Approach. These are both very suitable choices. Out of the two I will use Microsoft Access because it is more common compared with Lotus Approach and also because I am more familiar with the Microsoft environment. Overall I feel that Microsoft Access is easier to understand the instructions are clearer which makes it easier to follow. The terminology used in Access is better than that used in Lotus Approach. The form will be used to enter record of orders, suppliers and customers etc. This will make the business more organised and thus more efficient. The queries will be used to see who is ordering what and how much is owed to suppliers or owed by customers. To produce the templates for the letter I have chosen Microsoft word because it can easily be linked to Microsoft Access. It will also enable the letter to look professional as you can set any of your own preferences. For example, margin width, header and footer etc. Functions in Microsoft word such as MacroButtons, Date fields can make the end-user develop the letter template for his suitability. Other functions like AutoCorrect and AutoText will give the user an option for creating many types of customised letters for different kinds clients. My other options for word processors were Lotus WordPro, WordPad, Microsoft Publisher, Microsoft Paint and Word Perfe ct. These were not as suitable as Microsoft Word because some of them do not allow me carry out the advanced features that I wish to and also because most of them will not be able to link with Microsoft Access.

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Bravery And Heroism Essay

Bravery And Heroism Essay Introduction: Humans have been attracted by tales of bravery, heroism, courage from time immemorial. It is something in out bent of mind which makes us admire the absurd, makes us stand up take note of something which on the first look looks crazy, but on further analysis throws up a story of grit and determination. It is this human infatuation with the macho persona that made psychologists behavioral scientists delve deeper into the behavioral attribute which mirrors this all: bravery. Bravery can be simply defined as being brave or possessing displaying courage. In heroic parlance, its being able to face deal with danger or fear without flinching or batting an eyelid. Also known as Courage, fortitude, will, and intrepidity its been associated with various characters both in mythology business parlance. But its not just their domain; the common man in his life time comes across various such situations more often than not displays varying degrees of bravery grit. It is this common man that I am interested in. Being brave doesnt mean being fearless it rather means a person does what he should do, despite the literal Damocles sword on your head. It is not much for human fancy but for the very fact that bravery is an attribute very necessary for the smooth functioning of the human world today, has heightened its importance for psychologists. You take the case of a policeman standing up to criminals, naxals, or the common man in an office refusing bribes or the case of a woman braving chauvinistic males to rise up the corporate ladder, in all these cases we find how the world survives because of a few individuals who find inherent courage to brave odds and emerge successful. It suffices to say that bravery as a behavioral trait is highly alluring, and people tend to look in awe at those who visibly possess it, but what we should realize is bravery is something which is inherent comes in differing forms origins; hence its study has to encompass all such factors. Bravery in its various forms after all keeps us going, keeps this world inhabitable. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK Bravery is a quality of spirit that enables you to face danger or pain without showing fear, but one often misconceived notion of people is that being brave means being fearless. Being brave doesnt me you dont fear the adversity; it means you have the strength of will to overcome whatever fear you have. Bravery as a concept can apply to a fairly large number of instances, therefore a quick classification of bravery will help us look at its various aspects in greater detail: Physical bravery: It entails acting or doing something in spite of possible harm that can occur to ones body. The heroic stories of the past or the instances where we act for our beliefs even in the face of physical danger are a typical example of this. Moral bravery: It involves acting in a manner that will enhance or reinforce ones beliefs to be good and true. This basically is in face of social disapproval and other forms of backlash. In todays world, it symbolizes standing up against the over jealous khaps or the moral police. Psychological bravery: It deals with acting against ones own natural urges inclinations, facing our inner demons overcoming them. This generally doesnt have any societal moral implication. Examples of this can be overcoming ones addictions like drugs, tobacco addictions etc.; getting over irrational anxieties forms of parasitic relationships. Basing on the above we reach at a working definition of bravery as: Bravery is a behavioral trait which allows us to overcome our inhibitions, our inner fears gives us the strength to do what we feel is right, irrespective of any form of backlash. It is something which imbibes in us a sense of self-belief which can make us scale mountains do things which we believed we never could. Review of Literature: Instances of bravery have been documented in various books relating to wars corporate moves. Number the stars which won the Newbery Medal in 1990, tells the story of two ten year old girls, whose homeland is occupied by Nazi Germany during the second world war, it documents the hardships they faced the courage shown by their parents in shielding one of them(who was a jew) from the nazis. Broadly it describes the condition of the entire Danish countryside. It is a story of grit determination shown in face of unfathomable risk. [1] In the corporate world we have the example of Citibank CEO Vikram Pandit. He is a true visionary, brave man who took over as the head of citi group during the credit crunch period. With steely resolve, Pandit wrote down billions of dollars, closed scores of branches, jettisoned parts of the business, cut dividends, and slashed jobs. He wasnt done yet. Next, he tapped the sovereign wealth funds in the Gulf and Asia for nearly $30 billion, set up a new risk-management team. He also cut the banks exposure to the risky sub-prime market. All these measures were never easy to take, some unpopular others highly risky, it needed a man of steely character, Mr. Pandit was just that. [2] Matterhorn, is about a company of Marines who build, abandon, and retake an outpost on a remote hilltop in Vietnam. The story is told from the point of view of a young second lieutenant, Mellas, who joined the Marines for confused and vaguely patriotic reasons that are quickly left in tatters by military incompetence.[3] One of the ten most famous battles of the world. A handful of Sikh soldiers- 21 to be exact of the 4th Battalion of the Sikh Regiment (then XXXVI Sikh) formed part of the British Indian Army and fought thousands of Pathans in the North Western Frontier Province (now Pakistan). All 21 Sikh soldiers died in the battle as they fought to the last man and last bullet; but they did not yield even an inch of ground that they were defending. On learning of this glorious, gallant and unparalleled action, members of both houses of the British Parliament rose in unison to pay homage to the great Indian soldiers. Each one of the 21 soldiers was posthumously awarded the Indian Order of Merit, the highest British gallantry award then given to Indian (equivalent to the Victoria Cross awarded to the British). [4] Courage (shauriya) appears as one of the ten characteristics (lakshana) of dharma in the Hindu Manusmruti. Islam also presents courage as an important factor in facing the Devil and in some cases Jihad to a lesser extent. Courage is the self-affirmation of being in spite of the fact of non-being. It is the act of the individual self in taking the anxiety of non-being upon itself by affirming itself in the anxiety of guilt and condemnation. Every courage to be has openly or covertly a religious root. For religion is the state of being grasped by the power of being itself. [5] Empirical Study and Generalization: I have followed the interview approach to study the behavioral traits of a few of my friends. I picked the people to interview on the basis of a few past events, in which they exhibited bravery in one form or another. Each interviewee had a different tale to tell, we will analyze their cases as we progress. The basic questions which I put to them involved a gamut of objective short answer questions. Their responses were dully noted. The following is the list of questions that I put to my interviewees, some of the questions differed in language when put to different interviewees. Due to paucity of space I wont delve into the details of their cases. Did you experience any form of an internal drive to act? Was it because of the closeness with the person or was it a general sense of wrongdoing that drove you? Were you certain of success before you acted upon your belief? Would you describe yourself as fearless? If no then how come you overcame the fear of failing? Did you factor in the possibility of a backlash or any negative impact on your future? If you knew that the party was wrong in picking up the fight would you have still saved them or would you have taken the moral high ground stepped back? Do you believe in taking risks? Do you think your above trait has had an influence on your life, (success or the lack of it etc.)? When going on a leisure trip you find a person seriously wounded people around him/her having a verbal duel, would you rush him/her to the hospital try to solve the verbal duel 1st mind you own business Respondent no. 1 Case Prologue: My friend Mr. X had been to a restaurant in Gurgaon along with his friends. There they saw a couple was being denied entry into the restaurant for no good reason and the manager was even misbehaving with them. All of a sudden the manager summoned the bouncers who manhandled the couple and were going to bash them up. My friend X, along with his pals interfered, they were outnumbered, but eventually they managed to save the couple. In the process though, X got a few blows was injured. Interview Findings: I will jot down the pertinent findings from the interview with Mr. X I found that X intervened to save that guy because he believed that it was a case of injustice that someone should rise up to the occasion, since such an incident can happen to nearly anyone. X didnt know if he would succeed in saving the couple, but he knew if he tried it would make a difference. X realized that in process of rescuing the couple he his friends might get physically injured or face legal hurdles. I found that X didnt think of himself as someone who was born fearless, X believed that his sense of right wrong egged him on. X was basically a risk taking person, he felt that his risk taking nature had helped him overcome his inner demons. Respondent no. 2 Case Prologue: This person, Mr. Y, was a student of engineering, in a NIT. In his final year, a friend of his (Mr. A) was accused of cyber-crime data theft, he was heavily penalized by the institute Disciplinary Committee. Mr. Y along with his other friends decided to protest this. They managed to get their entire batch together sat on a silent protest. The sheer magnitude of the protest made the Director of the institute take note. After speaking with Mr. Y his friends, he convened a meeting of the Disciplinary Committee, and after a long-stretched process of reinvestigation Mr. A was found guilty of a minor offence, the penalties were reduced proportionately. Interview Findings: The following are my findings from my interview with Mr. Y which are pertinent to us: I found that Y acted not just because he could empathize with his friend, but because he believed that the ruling was flawed, having not considered the evidences properly. Y didnt know if he could make any difference to his friends condition, but he wanted to make the college administration aware of the real case. He believed in a just trial. Mr. Y knew pretty well that by making a stand, he and his friends risked being singled out the college administration could victimize them through unfair gradation etc. but they went on with their plan. Mr. Y defended his friend since he knew that the case against him was amplified in nature, the punishments the charges were disproportionate. Had Mr. A actually been guilty of all the charges, Y would never have taken up his case. Mr. Y believed that it they had been pushed to the limit by the administration. He felt that it wasnt their inherent fearlessness but the fact that pushed against the wall he his friends didnt have a choice but to act. I found that Mr. Y wasnt always a risk taking person, in fact he even narrated how not taking a risk had affected his career, but in this situation he made an exemption. Respondent no. 3: Case Prologue: My friend Mr. Z was out with his girlfriend, they came across a case of eve-teasing, wherein a bunch of miscreants were misbehaving with two girls. The general public was aloof to their plight. But Z intervened tried rescuing the girls, in the ensuing tiff Z got injured, but seeing his courage the people around the scene also intervened they chased away the miscreants. Interviewing Z was quite an eye-opener, since he had risked not just his own safety but also the safety of his girlfriend to rescue to unknown girls. The findings are as follows: I found that Z acted since he was both disgusted with the behavior of the bunch of guys, and the public which was turning a blind eye to the plight of the helpless girls. Z knew that public follows a herd mentality, he knew that if he took a stand the people around will follow sooner or later, luckily for him they joined in soon. Z wasnt sure if he could take on the miscreants single handedly but he nevertheless wanted to give it a try. Mr. Z knew that getting engulfed in this issue might risk not just his safety but that of his girlfriend also. Mr. Z believed that he was quite a fearless person, but he didnt believe in taking random risks, rather he was more of a pragmatist. Generalization: My interviews gave me an insight into the thinking process of the common man, who could don the colors of the superhero save the day for another commoner. In reality he wasnt someone of superhuman strength but someone who: Had a realistic sense of wrong right. Acted on his belief didnt shriek away from making a stand Wasnt by definition a risk loving person Was a person who factored in the pros cons of a situation, but invariably decided to back his beliefs Empathized with the person facing the repression. Findings of the study and Generalization: The findings of my study gave me a holistic idea of the situations which invoke behavioral traits mirroring bravery in us. I will analyze the findings of my study in the following lines, and try to relate it to the various aspects of bravery. After going through the responses, I found that the most prevalent forms of bravery are Physical Bravery Moral Bravery Psychological Bravery though important is something which I didnt directly find in any of my test subjects, but I believe that this form of bravery is something which we all exhibit in our daily lives. When we get over the anxiety of the future, we in some forms exhibit this, when we get over our fear of water try to swim we exhibit this. On basis of my interview the following components of bravery came up: Empathy: The test subjects realized the pain stigma that the party being subjected to repression underwent; their empathy drove them to act. It wasnt sympathy or pity; it rather was the tacit realization that such a misfortune can beset them also. Clarity of thought: I found that in all of the cases, the respondents had a clear picture of what is right what is wrong; they took the initiative because they believed that the other person was being wronged. Self-belief/Confidence: All the respondents were to some degree or the other confident of their abilities. They believed in themselves hence backed themselves up. It was never a half-hearted attempt. Risk appetite: I found that the risk taking ability of the person didnt have a direct correlation with his readiness to exhibit acts of bravery. Hence this shatters the age old belief that brave people are those who are most comfortable with taking risks. Fearlessness: Though important, I found that being brave doesnt mean being fearless, its just that certain situations bring about a reaction in the subjects which makes them appear fearless. But its just the strength of their inner conviction, not fearlessness which makes them act. Pragmatism: I found that todays brave were practical about the approach they followed, they measured the pros cons of the situation and acted in a manner which would ensure the success of their mission best. They followed the more realistic path even if it were the less glamorous. Implication of Group work: As we can see, bravery or the lack of it influences the way a person behaves in public to a great extent. I believe when in a group the following implications arise: Groups tend to give the individual a sense of security, as in case of respondent 1, I think being in a group had its effect on his decision to act. A brave person, I feel is an asset to have in your team for he/she would be an ideal team-mate, one who is confident yet composed, one who is there to hold the group together in case of any external threat or danger. Brave individuals dont shriek away from taking the charge, making them ideal leaders. On an individual level I believe, being brave increases a persons appeal enhances scope for future benefits. Brave individuals are generally well known this in turn gets them their group the kind of visibility which can be leveraged for their benefit. One negative of an overtly brave individual maybe that he/she might get the group involved in a potentially unsafe situation, as in case of respondent 3, even though not a case of group behavior, Mr. Z could have unknowingly landed his girlfriend in trouble. Contribution to OB: The above study of bravery is one of its kind, having studied bravery in a qualitative basis I could arrive at working model to define bravery of a person. As can be seen I could find that there is a correlation between bravery a few other traits viz. Empathy Clarity of Thought Self-belief Pragmatism Using these above traits we can arrive at a bravery scale for a person, this could help various organizations like the police force or private security organizations etc. in their selection process. I believe a more detailed study which involves a greater number of people as its sample, can further clear the doubt regarding the fearlessness trait bravery. Also I feel a study can be undertaken to study psychological bravery in a select population like inhabitants of a drug rehabilitation camp etc. Conclusion: After having studied the behavioral trait of bravery in detail, after having considered its various forms manifestations, I realize that a lot of people exhibit it in their lives in varying proportions. Not every form of bravery is noticed, not every form of it documented, but starting from the woman who fends of eve-teasers to a corporate CEO who takes charge of a troubled giant in times of a downturn, we have brave people whose constant vigour zeal keeps the world running. Bravery is a highly preferred behavioral trait; it is something which keeps the world going. It is something that we seek in all the people around us, it is the difference between an entrepreneur a wannabe entrepreneur, and it is the key to achieve success in any form of activity in life. We can correlate the success of an idea to the amount of courage put in by its proponents, ceteris paribus. On the whole I can say the above study has helped me arrive at a definition of bravery which I feel encompasses most if not all aspects of it: Bravery is a behavioral trait which allows us to overcome our inhibitions, our inner fears gives us that strength of conviction to do what we feel is right, irrespective of any form of backlash. It manifests itself in face of physical, moral, psychological danger. Brave people have been instrumental in bringing about the greatest changes in our lives, I believe the likes of Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jack Welch, Winston Churchill were brave enough to face their demons succeed.

Saturday, October 26, 2019

Relationship Roadblocks :: essays research papers

Relationship Roadblocks   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The first major topic the text brings forward in chapter 6 is the concept of relationship roadblocks. As the name implies these seven categories act as the downfalls to relationships. The concepts cover a wide range of types of problems from being tongue tied to giving up too much of your self to have a relationship. These concepts also happen at many different stages in relationship development however they primarily occur during the beginning or pre-relationship period. The first roadblock to a relation ship is high expectations. This concept describes how pop culture; media and even friends relationships can make us want to have the perfect relationship when that perfect relation ship does not exist. I do want the perfect relationship but do realize that in order to achieve this takes much effort on both persons part.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The second is holding the believe that a relationship should be easy. This makes the claim that because people communicate everyday that communicating in a relationship should be very easy. I do fall victim to this roadblock. I like to enjoy relationships and all the fun and happiness that go along with them however I do not like to deal with the inevitable problems that come up with them.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Fear of failure is the third roadblock to relationships. This is when people are scared to get into a relationship. I do not suffer from this roadblock. I believe that if you don’t try and fail sometimes you have zero chance of trying and succeeding.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The forth roadblock states that If I just relax, a good relationship will find me. This states that people expect friendships and relationships will just appear and present themselves in front of you. This philosophy believes that if you put forth effort to find someone you won’t find them. This makes no sense to me finding a good relationship   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The bozo pill is the ultimate mistake when trying to start a relationship. This is when you see an attractive person and your mind goes to mush. You can’t discern words, even your own name to say them. The bozos could also be tripping or running into something. Generally the bozos is embarrassing yourself during the first impression and ruining any chances you had for beginning a friendship. The most important point is that the first impression is unforgiving you need to try to be smooth. The book makes the point that this happens to every one at some time.

Friday, October 25, 2019

The Good Life in Epic Narratives :: Odyssey Iliad Essays

The Good Life in Epic Narratives Classic literature juxtaposes two ways of life that illustrate the poles of true happiness: a life of adventure, exemplified by Odysseus (The Odyssey), and the life at home, which poets and farmers represent. In The Iliad, Achilleus chooses to live a short, glorious life, even though he could have chosen to live a long life in anonymity. Arguments have been put forth that the life of adventure is a living hell, as Achilleus testifies from Hades after his death - in hindsight, he would have settled for the life of a slave and given up his glory, if only he could have lived longer. Alternately, the life of the (metaphorical) farmer has been despised as simple and ordinary, when true immortality is only attained with great accomplishments, such as sacking Troy or surviving heroic adventures which are then recorded. In a modern day autobiography of the 1996 ascent of Mt. Everest (Sagarmatha to the Nepalis, or â€Å"goddess of the sky†), Jon Krakauer reveals the human motivatio n behind adventure and tells the story of the men and women who lived and died on the expeditions to the summit during that spring (Into Thin Air). With epic literature and a recent epic, I will illuminate the values of a reflective life as well as the life of adventure, and delve into the necessary components of the ‘good life.’ The Choice of Achilleus I carry two sorts of destiny toward the day of my death. Either, if I stay here and fight beside the city of the Trojans, my return home is gone, but my glory shall be everlasting; but if I return home to the beloved land of my fathers, the excellence of my glory is gone, but there will be a long life left for me, and my end in death will not come to me quickly. -Achilleus (Iliad, IX.411) The decision of Achilleus is a crucial moment in understanding how fate works in epic (Homerian) literature. Thetis tells Achilleus of his opportunity to win renown as the greatest warrior of all time, earning glory through his fearless acts in battle against a foe who is sure to overcome the Achaians. The fate of ten years of attack on Troy hinge upon the decision of Achilleus, who is given the choice to win glory for the Achaians and, more importantly, himself.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Health Education Model for Smoking Cessation

Smoking continues to be one of the largest preventable causes of death in the United States, and it is increasing among young females and adolescents. One in five will die from lung cancer, chronic obstructive lung disease, or heart disease. It should be the goal of all health care professionals to encourage smoking cessation to assist in reducing the number of smoke-related diseases and/or fatalities (Max, Hai-Yen, & Yangling, 2012). A Model for Health EducationAn excellent model for education with regards to smoking cessation is the Health Belief Model (HBM). The HBM was established in the 1950s, it is the oldest and most popular model used in nursing education and preventative health behaviors. Constructs are theories from behavior and social sciences, and the HBM is made up of six constructs; perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived benefit, perceived barriers, cues to action, and self-efficacy (Sharma & Romas, 2012). Perceived susceptibility is the belief a person has on the chances they will acquire a disease or illness from indulging in a certain behavior.Perceived severity is the belief a person has on the extent of harm resulting from a certain behavior. Perceived benefit is the person belief in the advantages of the interventions suggested to reduce the changes of acquiring the illness/disease. Perceived barriers is the belief concerning the financial cost associated with following the perceived benefits. Cues to action are the forces that drive the person to make a change. Self-efficacy is the confidence a person has to change their behavior (Costello, Logel, Fong, Zanna, & McDonald, 2102). Health Behavior for ChangeSmoking has long been one of the most dangerous ways for people to relieve stress, try to look cool, or smoke because others do it. More than 440,000 deaths occur annually as a result of smoking. Not only are the actual smokers affected, but studies on smoking reveals an increase in lung cancer patients among non-smokers as a result of second-hand smoke. More than 50 percent of children are exposed to cigarette smoke worldwide, which can cause respiratory problems, ear infections, and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) (American Lung Association, 2013).Justification for ModelChoiceThe Health Belief Model (HBM) is a good model to use for smoking cessation. The HBM can be used to focus the message on overcoming the barriers to quit and the overwhelming benefits. Some of the immediate benefits to quit smoking include; blood pressure returns to normal, decreased carbon monoxide levels, improved respiratory function, and circulation improvement. These benefits pertain to the actual smoker and those who inhale second hand smoke (â€Å"American cancer society,† 2006). Smokers are more likely to quit if they believe the following; they could acquire a smoking related disease, know someone who acquired a smoking related disease, believe they can quit, or believe that quitting outweighs the benefit of s moking (Costello, Logel, Fong, Zanna, & McDonald, 2102).ConclusionThere are no benefits to smoking, but those who are addicted to nicotine may beg to differ. Some teens and adults use smoking as a lifestyle coping tool; to relieve stress, relax, calm nerves, look mature, or use it as a conversation centerpiece. Regardless of the reason a person smokes the outcome is still the same, addiction and damage to the body or possible death. Part of a health care professional’s responsibility is to educate people on the dangers of addictions and encourage them to quit in addition to providing the necessary resources. Over the many years, various models have been developed to help nurses target certain health behaviors and help adjust or change them.The outcome may not always be a positive result, but the only thing one can do is use the tools already created to help alter a person’s perception of their behavior/habit. There may be some who do not try to quit, some may attempt t o quit but fail, and some may not see the dangers of a habit that makes them feel good. At the end of the day it is up to the person to accept the help/education and put it to use.

Narayana Hrudayalaya

Q1 &2 Would you describe this heart hospital as successful? Explain why. If successful, what were the elements that made it successful? If not yet successful, what else should NH be doing? â€Å"A dream of making quality healthcare available to the masses worldwide† Narayana Hrudayalaya was established by Dr. Devi Prasad Shetty in 2001 with this mission. Its main focus was to provide affordable cardiac care to the masses. It has followed a hybrid strategy of attracting paying patients by virtue of its reputation for high quality combined with a relentless focus on lowering its costs of operations whenever possible.In 2004, the proportion of patients who paid NH's full price to those that cannot afford to pay was about 60:40. Following this strategy, they priced their general ward patients for OHS at Rs. 110000. This charge is the lowest in the country where the average cost of OHS in a private hospital is Rs. 250000. At the upper end, patients who opted for executive wards pai d Rs 140000 – Rs 195000 for private rooms instead of general wards. To add to it, they offered the Karuna Hrudaya package for financially constrained patients at Rs. 65000 per OHS.For patients who could not even afford this, they helped arrange funds through the Narayana Hrudayalaya Trust's general corpus or by seeking external donations. The treatment across all the packages was the exactly identical. Since their inception, the number of in patients and out patients as well as catheterization and surgeries has constantly increased as shown in the below table: InpatientsOutpatientsCatheterizationSurgeries Total%age Growth (YoY)Total%age Growth (YoY)Total%age Growth (YoY)Total%age Growth (YoY) Apr 01 – Mar 024242-9875-2116-1842- Apr 02 – Mar 03722670%1086310%336759%274249%Apr 03 – Mar 041026242%1538242%477742%357030% Apr 01 – Mar 04-142%-56%-126%-94% This has helped them achieve a breakeven of Rs. 90000 for OHS. By performing tests and operations in large numbers, they are able to achieve economies of scale and thereby reducing their costs. Following this wal-martisation of health care, with which they performed almost 8 times the surgeries and cathetarisation compared to other Indian hospitals. They have managed to perform more CABG surgeries a year, have morenumber of cardiac surgeons and greater average surgeries per surgeon than even few of the top ranked US hospitals.NH boasted of a 1. 27% mortality rate and 1% infection rate in CABG procedures as against 1. 2% and 1% in US respectively which further emphasises the quality of treatment being provided by NH. Further they have also reduced their costs for buying medical supplies and equipments by bulk ordering for their AHF hospital at Kolkota and NH at Bangalore together. This has increased their bargaining power enabling them to get discounts of 30%-35% in their purchases. They have also used new technologies like digital x rays and comprehensive hospital management to im prove their efficiencies and reduce costs.They have also adopted newer medicines like Biocon’s cardio-diabetes products which offer similar health benefits at much cheaper costs as compared to other similar medications further decreasing their overall costs. By keeping the administration team lean, NH also avoided the usual problem of corruption that plagued corporate hospitals. With the help of careful planning and internal financial controls to gauge the ability to fund below cost surgeries, NH has been able to optimise the number of subsidized surgeries to be performed.In order to further achieve their goal to reach the bottom of the pyramid, they have also effectively used telemedicine techniques with the help of a large number of general practitioners providing teleconsultation to the patients who would not have received the treatment otherwise. The fully equipped Mobile Cardiac Diagnostic Lab increased their penetration in the rural areas to ensure that best possible di agnosis was available onsite. It also conducted outreach camps which were organised by local associations like the Lions Club and Rotary Club.On an average each camp screened 400 people a day, none of whom was required to pay either the hospital or the organisers. They also set up the Yeshashwini Health Insurance Scheme which provided benefits to 1. 7m farmers at extremely low costs of Rs 5 per month. Q3. Is the insurance scheme successful? Explain why. What are the challenges going forward? Yeshashwini Health Insurance Scheme was launched in 2002 for the 1. 7 million farmers. Just for Rs. 5 a month, cardholders had access to free treatment at 150 hospitals in 29 districts of Karnataka for any medical procedure costing up to Rs. 00000. Government also contributed Rs. 2. 5 for every Rs. 5 paid by every farmer. Dr. Devi Prasad chose to utilise the existing government infrastructure in the form of state controlled cooperative societies. Prior to the scheme, it was estimated that the av erage occupancy of hospitals was only 35% although the state boasted 30 private medical colleges each with 500 beds; actual occupancy was low reflecting the lack of affordability rather than a lack of infrastructure.Research by the NH team estimated that only 8% of the policyholders would require medical procedures, thus the total funds collected were expected to cover the cost of treatment for those in need. Most common use of the scheme was for non surgical treatment. Non surgery procedures formed 80% of the procedures conducted through the Yeshashwini scheme. It was mostly used for low cost treatments of around Rs. 2000 that people would otherwise have forsaken due to lack of money for treating non life threatening conditions. Thus the scheme was successful in increasing the health of the poor farmers.In ts 1st year, nearly 9000 people underwent various operations and a further 35000 received out patient treatment. By early 2005, the scheme included around 25 lakh members. From J une 2003 to March 2004, around 12% of the surgeries and 16% of the angiograms at NH were performed under the Yeshasvini scheme. Collection of the monthly premiums, tracking monthly payments and issuing Yeshashwini member cards was done through the post offices. This enabled a smooth functioning and also increased its outreach as people are generally more willing to trust government agencies than private organistions.The operation though initiated by the trust, was later on handled by a 3rd party administrator. Q 4. How should you advise Dr. Shetty regarding the three lines of business-the heart hospital, the health city, and the insurane scheme for the poor? Which should he pursue? Which, if any, should he drop? Is there anything else he should be doing? The 3 lines of business of NH are: ?Heart hospital and all the associated activities. ?Yeshashwini Health Insurance Scheme ?Vision of the Health City The first 2 lines are very successful and running with great efficiency and reach. The first phase that is the current heart hospital is running successfully. With the successful implementation of good operations management model, Narayana Hrudalaya has cut on its operating costs manifolds as compared to other hospitals in India. Thus, it has been able to sustain itself while maintaining the philanthropic vision to serve the underprivileged and provide treatment to them at an extremely affordable cost. The implementation of the insurance scheme has also been very successful and has been able to serve its purpose to a large extent.The plan for the Health City is still in a very nascent stage and special focus needs to be given to it. The health city would require a larger pool of competent doctors, nurses and technicians. Thus more focus needs to be given to the training programs. Apart from the existing diploma in cardiology etc, NH should focus on more institutional tie ups to cater to the larger demand for the Health City. Also, NH can concentrate on increasing its existing outreach for the Yashashwini Health Insurance customers. Currently the scheme caters to only farmers who belong to state cooperatives.Seeing the success of the scheme, NH can consider reaching out to artisan self help groups as well like what Jaipur Rugs does. The scheme can also be made available to the unorganized workers like domestic help in cities of Karnataka. Currently, NH is also considering coming up with a similar modified insurance scheme for teachers. This can be further expanded to other rural demographic segments such as traders, government employees, etc since they already have an established brand in these areas and hence can easily capture the market.Angioplasty procedure is currently not covered under Karuna Hrudaya scheme. NH can make adjustment to the price charged for general ward patients in order to include the procedure under the scheme but at a discounted operationally feasible cost. NH enjoys a popular philanthropic image among the people and h as managed to garner strong support from the government for its various social initiatives. Hence, it should try to influence the government to increase the government spending on healthcare in order to further strengthen the frail healthcare system of the nation.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Edi, Wap

CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION 2. WHAT IS EDI? 3. WHY USE EDI? 4. ADVANTAGES OF EDI OVER A PAPER-BASED DOCUMENT TRANSFER SYSTEM 5. HOW EDI WORKS? 6. EDI COMPONENTS 7. FILE TYPES. 8. EDI SERVICES. 9. CONCLUSION. INTRODUCTION Everybody uses business connections of one sort or another to get orders, send bills, make collections, determine and pay what it owes, move goods, and control its money. The business connections used historically to perform these operations have been the postal service and the telephone. A relatively new link is electronic data communications facilities.Your links to business connections are limited to the mail and the telephone. Both are slow. Both terminate with that wall of people who feed the computer and who may make errors. What your company needs is a better link to business connections and that is what electronic data interchange is all about. To appreciate what electronic data interchange (EDI) means, think about all those orders, invoices, freight bills, ship ment instructions, tracing requests, payment instructions, government reports, and the like that your company sends out or receives every day.Think about each as a single transaction. WHAT IS EDI? Traditionally, the transfer of data from one company to another has been by paper documents. This is known as a paper-based system. These documents have to be manually forwarded and entered to the destination computer. EDI is the electronic exchange of structured business information, in standard formats, between computers, EDI eliminates the need for a paper-based system by providing an electronic link between companies. This reduces data entry tasks and improves business cycle times.EDI is the electronic transfer of structured business documents in an organization–internally among groups of departments or externally with its suppliers, customers and subsidiaries. In EDI information is passed electronically from one computer to another over a network without having to be read, rety ped or printed. The information transferred must have a defined structure agreed between your company, and the company or group you send and receive data from. Any company or group which uses EDI is called a TRADING PARTNER.Examples of current uses of EDI includes automatic teller machines (ATMs) in banks where EDI is used for transferring and withdrawing funds between different bank accounts, airline reservation systems, stock exchange transactions and car reservation systems. USE OF EDI: The data from one computer is normally not in a form suitable to be entered directly into another computer. The data may have to be arranged differently before it can be entered into another computer or some items of data may not be needed at all. With EDI, all the data is converted unto an agreed standard format before it is sent over the network.The computer that receives the data can then extract the information it requires. Using EDI implies three things: 1. Information is transferred electron ically rather than on paper. This means that there is no need to enter the data manually in the destination computer. 2. Information is transferred between trading partners who have negotiated trading agreements and have formalized their data transfer system. 3. Information that is transferred complies with agreed standards for the format of the content and the transmission control mechanisms.ADVANTAGES OF EDI OVER A PAPER-BASED DOCUMENT TRANSFER SYSTEM This section highlights the advantages EDI has over a traditional paper-based document transfer system. In a Paper-based System: ? A software application generates a paper document on a form. ? Copies of the document are made. Some are passed to internal departments to be filled, other copies are sent to the trading partner via the postal service. ? The trading partner receives the document and retypes the information on the form into their computer. This retyping often introduces errors. The trading partner generates a paper acknowl edgement and this is sent to the originating company. The transfer of documents in a paper-based system could take a considerable length of time. In an EDI System: ? The application program generates a file, which contains the processed document. ? The document is converted to an agreed standard format. ? The file containing the document is sent electronically over the network. This network links the originating company and its trading partner. ? The file containing the document arrives at the trading partner.It is translated into the correct format and transferred to the recipient's application. ? A receipt is automatically generated and sent over the network t the originating company. EDI transmits documents to the trading partner's application in a very short period of time and with no human intervention. HOW EDI WORKS? Regardless of the format chosen, companies using EDI communicate with their trading partners in one of two ways: Either they exchange data with several trading pa rtners directly or they interact with multiple companies through a central information clearing-house.In the latter case, all transactions are funneled through a third party's computer system, which routes them to the appropriate receiver's computer. This enables the sender to communicate with an unlimited number of trading partners without worrying about proprietary systems, audit trails, variable transmission speeds, and general computer compatibility. Basically, here is how EDI works: 1. Prior to any computer work, representatives of two companies interested in exchanging data electronically meet to specify the applications in the EDI standard, which they will implement. 2.Each company adds EDI programs to its computer to translate company data in standard formats for transmission, and for the reverse translation on the data it receives. 3. Then, as often as operationally requires the two companies exchange data electronically in the standard formats. The data transmitted origina tes from records in the sender's database after the sender confirms that the receiver is an authorized recipient for such data. The sender composes a transmission formatted in the EDI standards, the receiver translates the formatted message to a computer record to be processed and used internally.All transmissions are checked both electronically and functionally and the protocol includes procedures for error detection and correction. INFORMATION FLOW IN EDI: 1. A Company collects data for its own operational or statistical requirements. This data is edited and added to its own database. 2. Pertinent information is extracted by the company from its database, summarized if necessary, constructed into EDI transaction sets, and transmitted to the company or organization requiring it for valid reasons. 3. The frequency for preparing this information is determined by the operational requirements of each recipient. . A communications link for transmission is established according to the st andard communications protocol. 5. The recipient of the information receives the transmission and checks it for its physical characteristics (parity, check character, transmission mode). Retransmission is requested if an error is detected in the physical characteristics of the transmission. 6. The receiver checks the functional characteristics of the data. A message is transmitted to the original sender to acknowledge the transmission and to identify any errors detected. . The receiver processes the information received according to its own internal procedures and timing requirements. EDI COMPONENTS A typical EDI system implements a specific set of EDI by enabling the exchange of business documents. It accepts documents from business software applications, converts the document to a standard format and sends it to another software application or trading partner. EDI system converts generic EDI messages (in EDIFACT or any other EDI standard) format to RDBMS format and from RDBMS form at to EDI format.There are EDI application programs for software developers to configure EDI to work with the various user application software programs. There is normally no end-user interaction with EDI–it is entirely within the background of the EDI system. RDBMS database contains the data to be translated into EDI format and where EDI data is to be converted (and written) to. EDI treats the application database generically–it reads and writes to the tables and fields specified according to the message mapping created by the |EDI Administrator during EDI message configuration.These are done by EDI Configuration programs under the purview of EDI. There are three main components in an EDI system: 1. Application Service- Providers the means of integrating existing or new applications into the EDI system. 2. Translation Service-Converts data from internal format standards to an external format and translates data from an external format to an internal format standard. 3 . Communication Service-Passes documents into a network via the agreed communication protocol.Internal format Transmission Tranmission TRADING files files files PARTNER DocumentsApplicationTranmission Communication BusinessService Service Service Application FILE TYPES EDI creates the following files as a document passes through the system: ? Internal Format File (IFF) ? External Format File (EFF) ? Transmission File Each of these files is described in the following sections.Internal Format File: An internal format file (IFF) contains a single document for a single trading partner. Internal format file is principally for EDI's own use. External Format File: The external format file (EFF) contains the same data as the internal format file translated into the appropriate standard document format. Transmission File: A transmission file contains one or more documents for the same trading partner. Documents of the same type are packaged together in functional groups. The functional group s going to one trading partner are packaged into an interchange set.An interchange set contains one or more functional groups of documents with the same sender and receiver. TRADING PARTNER A Document Type 1 1FunctionalGroupInterchange 1 Set Document Type 2 2Functonal 2 Group TRANSMISSION FILE EDI SERVICES The three EDI services all perform different tasks. The following sections give an overview of what happens in each of three services. Application Service: The Application Service provides the link between a business application and EDI. It allows you to send document to, and receive documents from, an EDI system.A set of callable routines is used to transfer documents from the business application into EDI. Documents destinations can be either intra-company or to external companies, i. e. , trading partners. The EDI Application Service holds each incoming and outgoing document as a single internal format file. EDI converts the document to a standard format and sends it to the tra ding partner using the relevant communication protocol. A number of different standards and communication protocols are available. The following list describe what happens in the Application Service: For outgoing documents: The business application uses the callable routines to send a document from the business application to the Application Service. The document is now in the EDI system and is called internal format file. ? The Application Service sends the document in the internal format file to the Translation Service. For incoming documents: ? The Application Service receives an internal format file from the Translation Service. ? The Application Service makes the data in the internal format file available in database so that the business application can fetch the document from EDI.A callable interface is used to do this. APPLICATION SERVICE File server Internal Formal File Callable RoutinesInternalFormat File Translation Service: ? Converts outgoing documents from an internal f ormat file to an agreed external format. ? Translates incoming documents from an external format to th EDI internal format file. The external document standards that a EDI system supports are EDIFACT, X12, TDCC, and ODETTE The following lists describe what happens in the Translation Service: For outgoing documents: The Translation Service receives a document in the internal format file from the Application Service. It converts the internal format file to the appropriate external standard (either EDIFACT, X12, TDCC, or ODETTE). The file is now an external format file. ? The Translation Service combines one or more external format files into a transmission file. ? The Translation Service now sends the transmission file to the Communication Service. For incoming documents: ? The Translation Service receives a document n the transmission file from the Communication Service. ? Separates the transmission file to produce external format files. It translates each external format file, which may be in an external standard (either EDIFACT, X12, TDCC, or ODETTE) to the internal format file. The file is now an internal format file. ? The translation Service now sends the internal format file to the Application Service. Communication Service: The Communication Services sends and receives transmission files to and from the trading partners either directly or by using a third-party service called a Value Added Network (VAN). The following lists describe what happens in the Communication Service: For outgoing documents: The Communication Service receives a transmission file from the Translation Service. It checks the file to see which trading partner it has to be sent to. When it has identified the type of connection to be used for this trading partner t determines which gateway to use. ? The Communication Service sends the transmission file to the trading partner. For incoming documents: ? The Communication Service receives a transmission file from the trading partner. The f ile arrives through one of the gateways that EDI supports. ? The Communication Service sends the transmission file to the Translation Service.INTERNAL FORMAT FILE DOCUMENTS BUSINESS APPLICATIONS DOCUMENTS INTERNAL FORMAT FILEAPPLICATION SERVICETranslation Service: ? Converts outgoing documents from an internal format file to an agreed external format. ? Translates incoming documents from an external format to the EDI internal format file. INTERNALTRANSMISSION FORMAT FILE FILE INTERNAL TRANSMISSION FORMAT FILE FILEC = CONVERTER. T =TRANSLATOR. TFB =TRANSMISSION FILE BUILDER. TFS =TRANSMISSION FILE SPLITTER. CONCLUSION: By eliminating the paperbased documents the EDI was introduced. It is the new technology that overcomes the traditional paperbased documents. By using EDI we can transmit the data at electron speed. So it is a time sparing process and also low cost as compared with telephone system. Even though there are more advantages with EDI there are some disadvantages also. To f eed the data into computer, work is compulsory. By comparing with computer speed human speed is a bottleneck.And also errors may occur at the time of data feeding. These errors can change the managerial decisions. Another problem if we want send more data urgently, first we feed it into computer and then send it to the destination. To feed more data requires more time. Even though the telephone cost is very high as compared to EDI process, we must use telephone facility in these cases. So in these cased we can't use EDI system. ———————– FILE SERVER CALLABLE ROUTINES MANAGEMENT INTERFACE FILE SERVER C TFB T TFS MANAGEMENT INTERFACE

The Duties of an Agent to Principal

THE DUTIES OF THE AGENTS TO PRINCIPAL The duties of an agent depend primarily on the contract of agency if there is one. Subject to any such express terms, the agent owes a number of implied duties or obligations to his principal. It is the agency relationship as such that gives rise to these obligations so that, as a general rule, they fall as much on the gratuitous agent as on the paid agent. 1. Obey the Principal’s instructions Section 164 states, The agent must obey the instructions given to him by his principal even if he thinks the instructions are wrong.Sometimes of course the principal may expect the agent to advise him and indeed he may be employing an agent to use skill and care. The agent must not delegate his duty to another person unless such delegation has been agreed with the principal, or is the custom of the trade, or the delegation merely takes pace in relation to purely administrative matters. Case Example : In Turpin v. Bilton (1843), an insurance broker ag reed for consideration to obtain a contract of insurance on the plaintiff’s ship. But he failed to do so. The ship was lost and the broker was held liable to the plaintiff.In Fraser v. B. N. Furman (Production) Ltd (1967), insurance brokers agreed for consideration to effect an employer’s liability policy and failed to do so. The employer was held liable for $3000 damages in an action brought against him by an employee for breach of the Factories Act, and the Court of Appeal held that the brokers must indemnify the employer in that sum for breach of contract. Betram Armstrong & Co. V. Godefray (1830) 1 Knapp 381 Facts : The agent was a stockbroker. The principal told the agent to sell stock when the market price reached a certain figure per unit of stock.The agent did not heed these instructions and held on to the stock. When the market dropped the agent was forced to sell at a loss. Decision : The principal successfully sued the agent to recover the difference between the price at which he was instructed to sell the stock and the price at which the stock was eventually sold. 2. A duty to exercise reasonable skill and diligence Section 165 states, The degree of skill and diligence required of an agent depends on whether the person is a gratuitous agent or a non-gratuitous agent. A gratuitous agent is not paid for their services whereas a non-gratuitous agent is paid.A non-gratuitous agent is required to exercise a degree of skill equal to that which a reasonable person would expect an agent of that type to exercise. For example, a real estate agent is expected to display the qualities and expertise of a competent real estate agent. If the agent fails to meet this standard, the agent will be liable to the principle for any loss caused by this breach of duty. A gratuitous agent is not expected to exercise any special degree of skill. The agent must exercise the same degree of care and diligence as they would use in attending to their own affairs.If that person has some special knowledge, they are expected to use that knowledge. Case Example : In Keppel v. Wheeler (1927), agents were employed to sell a block of flats and received an offer from one party which was accepted â€Å"subject to contract†. The agents later received a higher offer but, instead of telling the owners, arranged a resale from the earlier party to the later after the original sale to the earlier party was effected. It was ruled that the agents had acted in breach of their duty to obtain the best price available, and that duty included passing on details of better offers until a binding contract was concluded. . To render proper accounts when required Section 166 states, An agents owes a duty to the principal to keep proper accounts and make them available for inspection. For example, travel agents and real estate agents are required by statute to keep accurate and proper accounts. This duty imposes an obligation on agents to keep their property and money separate from that of their principal. Case Example : In Harry Parker Ltd v Mason [1940] 2 KB 590, where the principal conspired ith agent to make shame bets on the course and bets with street bookmakers contrary to the existing law but agent had failed to apply, as agreed the money that the principal handed to him. The Court of Appeal held that the principal could not recover it from agent on the general principal that money paid under an illegal contract is irrecoverable. 4. To pay his principal alls sums received on his behalf Section 171 states, However, an agent may retain or deduct from such sums received, advances made / expenses incurred by him in carrying out his duty, his commission and other remuneration payable to him for acting as agent. . To communicate with the principal Section 167 states, In cases of difficulty, an agent must use all reasonable diligence in communicating with and in seeking to obtain instructions from the principal. However, in emergencies, th e agent may use his own discretion in adopting a course of action to safeguard the interest of the principal. 6. Not to let his interest conflict with his duty Section 168 states, An agent must not allow the possibility of personal interest to conflict with the interests of his or her principal without disclosing that possibility to the principal.Upon full disclosure, it is up to the principal to decide whether or not to proceed with the particular transaction. If there is a breach of his duty, the principal may set aside the contract so affected and claim any profit which might have been made by the agent. Case Example : In McPherson v Watt (1877), a solicitor used his brother as a nominee to purchase property which he was engaged to sell. It was held that, since the solicitor had allowed the conflict of interest to arise, the sale could be set aside. It was immaterial that a fair price was offered for the property.The corollary to the above case is that the agent must not sell his or her own property to the principal without fully disclosing the fact. This lead into the next duty. 7. Not to make any secret profit out of the performance of his duty In discharging the agents, an agent can’t take any secret profit as corruption in the form of commission payments on a confidential basis, coffee money or â€Å"kickback†, tips and so on. If the agent take the secret profit, the profit must be submitted to the principal. In other words, the agent can’t use the property of the principal to do something against the contract that agent for selfish motives.That means agents can create a profit, only the principal agents are prohibited from using the property for personal gain. Section 168 states, If the principal knows and agrees on a secret, the agent can save profit because the profit is not a secret anymore. It should be noted that the secret profit is the profit earned outside the knowledge of the principal. If the principal give consent, the a gent can take the profit. In situations where the principal does not agree with a secret profit, the principal has the option as follows: I. The agency contract may be terminated, if the contract is not to profit member.For example, A has ordered B to sell the estate belonging to A. B has reviewed the estate before sale, find some of the mines in the estate is not known to A. B tells A that he wanted to buy the estate for himself, but conceals the discovery of the mine. A, when knowing this, can either refuse to sell the estate or otherwise manage the sales out of choice. II. Principal may recover the secret profit from an agent For example, as happened in the case of Tan Kiong Hwa vs S. H Chong. Plaintiff has purchased a flat from a company in which the defendant was the managing director.Plaintiff has ordered the defendant as agent to sell the flat at RM45000 but the defendant has successfully sold at RM54000. The difference in price of RM9000 has been credited to the company acco unt. Soon the company is wound up. The court ruled the plaintiff entitled to recover from defendants for RM9000 has defaulted in carrying out his duties as an agent. III. Principal may refuse to pay a commission or other remuneration to the agent. Section 173: An agent was found guilty of misconduct in successful agency not entitled to receive any advice relating to the business he was one proceeds. In the case of Andrews vs Ramsay & Co. the principal was member instructions to agents to sell the property and agreed to pay a commission of ? 50. The agents have to find the buyers and was given a ? 100 deposit. Agents then have to pay around ? 50 to the principal and keep the rest of the ? 50 commission. In the transaction, the agents have to get ? 20 from buyers. The court ruled the principal right to demand a secret agent commissions earned from buyers. IV. Principal reserves the right to expel the agent for breach of duty. Principal reserves the right to expel the agent if the agen t was using the property for profit secrets principal from agency business.Principal has such rights as the agent had failed to discharge its duties entrusted. If the principal has suffered loss as a result of the actions of the agent, he is entitled to claim damages. Principal reserves the right to expel the agent because duties. V. Principal may sue the agent and the third party to recover damages corruption if it is a loss of the contract. What happens in the case Mahesan vs The Malaysian Government Officers Cooperative Housing Society, the plaintiff was its director defendants. Defendant had purchased a piece of land worth $ 944,000 from a landlord who has obtained the land at $ 456,000 only.Plaintiff to know the fact but did not inform the defendant. As a result, the plaintiff has obtained $ 122,000 in bribes from land owners for the sale and purchase agreement. The court ruled that the defendant is entitled to claim the amount of loss suffered by the crime. 8. A duty not to di vulge confidential information To maintain confidentially about any matters communicated to him as agent, and not to disclose them to prospective third parties or anyone else. The relationship between principal and agent is a fiduciary relationship, depending upon mutual trust. Case Example :In Robb v Green [1895] 2 QB 315, an injunction was obtained against a former manager of a business to prevent him using for his own purpose a list of customers of the business which he had copied out while he was the manager. Faccenda Chicken Ltd v Fowler [1986] 1 AER 617, the duty of good faith is broken if an employee makes or copies a list of his employer's customers for use after his employment ends or deliberately memorises such a list even though, except in special circumstances, there is no general restriction on an ex-employee canvassing or doing business with customers of his former employer. . A duty to act personally An agent is not permitted to delegate to another person the tasks th e agent has been appointed to perform. A principal has chosen an agent because of that person’s expertise. The rule with respect to delegation can be relaxed by express agreement between the parties. If an agent delegates authority without permission, then the agent will not be entitled to be paid commission for any delegated acts. However, the rule has no application in relation to minor clerical or administrative tasks.These tasks can be delegated. Case Example : De Bussche v Alt (1878) 8 Ch D 286 ,agent was appointed by the principal to sell a ship in China at an agreed price but the agent was unable to effect such a sale and obtained the principal's permission for the appointment by agent of a sub-agent to sell the ship in Japan. The Court held there was no breach of duty by agent in appointing a sub-agent as delegation was expressly agreed.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019

Summary of The Soviet Arms Buildup in Cuba †Humanities Essay

Summary of The Soviet Arms Buildup in Cuba – Humanities Essay Free Online Research Papers Summary of â€Å"The Soviet Arms Buildup in Cuba† Humanities Essay The statement originally read by John F Kennedy, delivered from the president’s office begins with Kennedy addressing his fellow citizens in an informative, yet personal tone. Foremost, he explains that the United States has â€Å"maintained the closest surveillance of the Soviet military buildup on the island of Cuba†. Kennedy is absolutely positive, and assures his listeners that they have hard evidence of active missile sites established in Cuba. The missile sites are of two kinds of set ups. The first are medium range ballistic missiles, capable of striking the United States, among other nations. The second type of set up are intermediate range ballistic missiles. They can travel twice as far are a much greater threat. Kennedy then makes the statement that Russia is using Cuba as an important â€Å"strategic base†. â€Å"..and clearly offensive weapons of sudden mass destruction-constitutes an explicit threat to the peace and security of all Americas..†. Kennedy now tries establishing a personal connection with his listeners, feeding them information in such a way so that they are more inclined to agree with his decisions. The missile installations also defy the Rio Pact of 1947, something that Kennedy uses in his address to make the Soviet Union seem all the more menacing. He explains that in order to establish these missile installations Russia had to have been planning them for several months. Just a month before the Soviet government made a statement that defies their proven actions, leading the United States government to feel strong concern as the Soviet threat. â€Å"Neither the United States of American nor the world community of nations can tolerate deliberate deception and offensive threats on part of any nation, large or small†. Kennedy acknowledges the fact that the US and Russia have been developing advanced weapons for years now, but the US has never deceived any nation as to the status and location of the weapons. He later refers to the missiles in Cuba as communist missiles, adding edge to the feeling of threat already established. Kennedy then explains that if any aggressive conduct in part of a nation goes unchallenged in any fashion that it can only lead to war. â€Å"Our unswerving objective, therefore, must be to prevent the use of these missiles against this or any other country, and to secure their withdrawal or elimination from the Western Hemisphere†. This leads into Kennedy’s plans of action. He has created seven initial steps to be taken on part of the United States. The first, to halt offensive buildup by issuing a quarantine of shipment of military equipment to Cuba. The second, continue to issue tight surveillance of military activity in Cuba. Third, declare policy that any missile fired from Cuba is to be assumed a direct attack upon the United States or any other nation in part of the Soviet Union. Fourth, reinforce the United States Guantanamo base. Fifth, call for an immediate meeting of the Organization of American States. Sixth, Call for an immediate meeting of the Security counsil as a response to the threat of world peace. Seventh and final, Kennedy calls upon Chairman Khrushchev to halt and eliminate the threat to world peace by withdrawing the weapons from Cuba. Kennedy reinforces the idea that the United States does not wish for war, that it will do all in its power to maintain world peace. Kennedy then turns and addresses the Cuban captives, acknowledging their desire to live free in a land free from oppression and threat of war. His sympathies lie with them. He ends the address with one final reassuring statement that the goal of the United States in its future actions is to ensure the peace and security of its citizens. Research Papers on Summary of â€Å"The Soviet Arms Buildup in Cuba† - Humanities EssayThe Effects of Illegal ImmigrationAppeasement Policy Towards the Outbreak of World War 2Assess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeQuebec and CanadaHonest Iagos Truth through DeceptionPETSTEL analysis of IndiaNever Been Kicked Out of a Place This Nice19 Century Society: A Deeply Divided EraAnalysis of Ebay Expanding into AsiaCapital Punishment

Ginzburg essays

Ginzburg essays Proceeding from the following quote, briefly explain Ginzburgs historical model of stylistic change, referring back to Volliet-le-Duc and Gottfried Semper wherever appropriate. A Flower grows in the field because it cannot help but to grow: thus it cannot contemplate whether or not it is appropriate to the field that existed before it. On the contrary, by its very appearance, the flower transforms the general image of the field Ginzburg talks about the formal development of styles and how the modern architecture is grown from the past but isnt necessarily based on the past. These ideas are very much shared by Semper. This growth is singular and linear, based on a preceding proposition, each out growing the latter, but not continuing the old. ...a person making use of the achievements in electricity cannot, under any circumstances, be forced to revert to steam power. Gottfried Semper explains this form of thinking very well in that, we learn from the past, we cannot copy it, as this is a waste but rather we cannot turn our backs on this existing knowledge, and previous epochs. The development and changing of styles is a meshed concept. There is no end or beginning of styles. Ginzburg explains the life of a particular style as a growing organism in that it is born, lives out its youth, matures and lives out its old age, but never dies, but rather atrophies. This is why the actual timing of a style is impossible to track, for there is no death of a style, the life of the style atrophies. Styles cannot be erased because they are not physical elements to knocked down and demolished. So when an epoch forms, there is a trace of the old style, a marking, like a child would have of his parents. Each style has a genetic imprint of its parent, history. A flower grows in the field because it cannot help but to grow... A flower germinates in the grown and is thus, ...

Monday, October 21, 2019

Understanding Percontation Punctuation Marks

Understanding Percontation Punctuation Marks The percontation mark (also known as the punctus percontativus or  percontation  point) is a late-medieval mark of punctuation (ØŸ) used to signal the close of a rhetorical question. In rhetoric, percontatio is a type of affective (as opposed to information-seeking) question, similar to epiplexis. In The Arte of Rhetoric (1553), Thomas Wilson makes this distinction: We doo aske often-tymes, because we would knowe: we do aske also, because we woulde chide, and sette furthe our grief with more vehemencie, the one is called Interrogatio, the other is percontatio. The percontation mark was used (for a brief period of time) to identify this second type of question. Examples and Observations When punctuation was first invented by Aristophanes, librarian at Alexandria in the 4th century BC, he suggested that readers could use middle ( ·), low (.), and high points (Ë™) to punctuate writing according to the rules of rhetoric. Despite this, it took another two millennia before the eponymous rhetorical question got its own mark of punctuation. Worried that his readers would not catch such a subtle figure of speech, in the late sixteenth century the English printer Henry Denham created the percontation mark- a reversed question markto address the problem. . . .Faced with a wave of apathy, use of the percontation mark had petered out within fifty years of its birth. (Keith Houston, 8 Punctuation Marks That Are No Longer Used. Huffington Post, September 24, 2013)The percontation-mark (or punctus percontativus), the standard Arabic question mark, indicated percontations, questions open to any answer or (more loosely) rhetorical questions, in various books of c.1575-c.1625. T his usage seems to have been invented by the translator Anthonie Gilbie or his printer Henry Denham (a pioneer of the semi-colon): roman examples appear in their psalms of Dauid (1581), black letter ones in Turbervilles Tragicall Tales (1587). It didnt catch on in print because, being reversed, expensive new type was needed, but was used by scribes including Crane, who worked on Shakespeares First Folio: so how did compositors set percontation-marks present in their copy but not type-cases? One possibility is that italic or black letter question-marks amid roman type record otherwise unsettable percontation-marks. (John Lennard, The Poetry Handbook: A Guide to Reading Poetry for Pleasure and Practical Criticism. Oxford University Press, 2005) [Henry] Denham seems to have been interested in punctuation, since two of the books he published in the 1580s contain another new, but rare symbol, the percontativus . . .. This consists of a reversed, but not inverted, interrogativus and is used to mark a percontatio, i.e. a rhetorical question, one which does not require an answer. . . . For the most part 16th- and 17th-century authors and compositors either omitted to mark a percontatio, or used the interrogativus, but the percontativus does appear from time to time in the 17th century: for example, in the holographs of Robert Herrick and Thomas Middleton. (M.B. Parkes, Pause and Effect: An Introduction to the History of Punctuation. University of California Press, 1993)

Comme Is a Star of French Idiomatic Expressions

Comme Is a Star of French Idiomatic Expressions The French word  comme means like, as or since and is used in a large number of idiomatic expressions. Learn how to say soaking wet, knee-high to a grasshopper, so-so and more with this list of French expressions that use  comme. Other cultures have found French expressions useful and have assimilated them into their languages. Comme ci, comme à §a, for instance,  is used in English and several other languages to mean so-so, fair, or just okay. The word  comme, one of the most common and versatile in French,  can be a conjunction, adverb, or part of an adverbial phrase.  Like the French  conjunctions parce que, car and  puisque, comme  is commonly used to draw conclusions or otherwise relate a cause or explanation with a result or conclusion. For example,  Comme je lis le plus vite, jai dà ©j fini  means  Since I read the fastest, Ive already finished. Common French Expressions Using Comme arriver comme un cheveu sur la soupeto be completely irrelevant chanter comme une casseroleto be a lousy singercomme cela/à §a(just) like that; that way; (informal) great, terrificcomme ci, comme à §aso-so;  faircomme dhabitudeas usualcomme il fautproperly;  respectablycomme il vous plairaas you wishcomme les autresordinary; everydaycomme on ditas they say; how its saidcomme par hasardcoincidentally; as if by chancecomme qui dirait(informal) as you might say; what you might think is/wascomme quoito the effect that; which goes to show thatcomme sias if; as though(adjectif) comme toutso (adjective); as (adjective) as can be comme tout le mondenormally; like everyone elsehaut comme trois pommesknee-high to a grasshopperjuste commejust / right asparler le franà §ais comme une vache espagnoleto speak French very badlytrempà © comme une soupeto be soaking wet

Sunday, October 20, 2019

Proofreading Exercises to Identify Errors in Verb Tense

Proofreading Exercises to Identify Errors in Verb Tense Verb tenses tell you when the action in a sentence is happening The three verb tenses are past, present, and future. Past tense verbs describe when something has happened, present tense verbs describe things that are continuous or that are happening now, and future tense verbs describe things that havent happened yet but are likely to occur in the future. Instructions In each of the following paragraphs, some of the sentences contain errors in verb tense. Write out the correct form of any verb that is used incorrectly, and then compare your findings with the answers provided further below. Hands Up! Recently in Oklahoma City, Pat Rowley, a security guard, deposit 50 cents in a City Hall vending machine and reach in to get a candy bar. When the machine catch his hand, he pull out his pistol and shoot the machine twice. The second shot sever some wires, and he got his hand out. The Christmas Spirit Mr. Theodore Dunnet, of Oxford, England, run amok in his house in December. He ripped the telephone from the wall, thrown a television set and a tape-deck into the street, smash to bits a three-piece suite, kicked a dresser down the stairs, and torn the plumbing right out of the bath. He offer this explanation for his behavior: I was shock by the over-commercialization of Christmas. Late Bloomers Some very remarkable adults are known to have experience quite unremarkable childhoods. English author G.K. Chesterton, for instance, could not read until the age of 8, and he usually finish at the bottom of his class. If we could opened your head, one of his teachers remark, we would not find any brain but only a lump of fat. Chesterton eventually become a successful novelist. Similarly, Thomas Edison was label a dunce by one of his teachers, and young James Watt was called dull and inept. Mona Lisa Leonardo da Vincis Mona Lisa is one of the most famous portraits in the history of painting. Leonardo took four years to complete the painting: he begun work in 1503 and finish in 1507. Mona (or Madonna Lisa Gherardini) was from a noble family in Naples, and Leonardo may have paint her on commission from her husband. Leonardo is said to have entertain Mona Lisa with six musicians. He install a musical fountain where the water play on small glass spheres, and he give Mona a puppy and a white Persian cat to play with. Leonardo did what he could to keep Mona smiling during the long hours she sit for him. But it is not only Monas mysterious smile that has impress anyone who has ever view the portrait: the background landscape is just as mysterious and beautiful. The portrait can be seen today in the Louvre Museum in Paris. Hard Luck A bank teller in Italy was jilted by his girlfriend and decide the only thing left to do was kill himself. He stolen a car with the idea of crashing it, but the car broken down. He steal another one, but it was too slow, and he barely dent a fender when he crashed the car into a tree. The police arrive and charge the man with auto theft. While being questioned, he stab himself in the chest with a dagger. Quick action by the police officers saved the mans life. On the way to his cell, he jumped out through a third-story window. A snowdrift broken his fall. A judge suspends the mans sentence, saying, Im sure fate still has something in store for you. Answers Here are the answers to the above verb-tense exercises. Corrected verb forms are in  bold  print. Hands Up! Recently in Oklahoma City, Pat Rowley, a security guard,  deposited  50 cents in a City Hall vending machine and reached  in to get a candy bar. When the machine caught his hand, he pulled out his pistol and  shot  the machine twice. The second shot  severed  some wires, and he got his hand out. The Christmas Spirit Mr. Theodore Dunnet, of Oxford, England, ran amok in his house in December. He ripped the telephone from the wall;  threw a television set and a tape-deck into the street; smashed  to bits a three-piece suite, kicked a dresser down the stairs, and tore the plumbing right out of the bath. He  offered  this explanation for his behavior: I was​  shocked  by the over-commercialization of Christmas. Late Bloomers Some very remarkable adults are known to have  experienced  quite unremarkable childhoods. English author G.K. Chesterton, for instance, could not read until the age of eight, and he usually  finished  at the bottom of his class. If we could  open  your head, one of his teachers  remarked, we would not find any brain but only a lump of fat. Chesterton eventually  became  a successful novelist. Similarly, Thomas Edison was  labeled  a dunce by one of his teachers, and young James Watt was called dull and inept. Mona Lisa Leonardo da Vincis  Mona Lisa  is the most famous portrait in the history of painting. Leonardo took four years to complete the painting: he  began  work in 1503 and  finished  in 1507. Mona (or Madonna Lisa Gherardini) was from a noble family in Naples, and Leonardo may have  painted  her on commission from her husband. Leonardo is said to have  entertained  Mona Lisa with six musicians. He  installed  a musical fountain where the water  played  on small glass spheres, and he  gave  Mona a puppy and a white Persian cat to play with. Leonardo did what he could to keep Mona smiling during the long hours she  sat  for him. But it is not only Monas mysterious smile that has  impressed  anyone who has ever  viewed  the portrait: the background landscape is just as mysterious and beautiful. The portrait can be seen today in the Louvre Museum in Paris. Hard Luck A bank teller in Italy was jilted by his girlfriend and  decided  the only thing left to do was kill himself. He  stole  a car with the idea of crashing it, but the car  broke  down. He  stole  another one, but it was too slow, and he barely  dented  a fender when he crashed the car into a tree. The police  arrived  and  charged  the man with auto theft. While being questioned, he  stabbed  himself in the chest with a dagger. Quick action by the police officers saved the mans life. On the way to his cell, he jumped out through a third-story window. A snowdrift  broke  his fall. A judge  suspended  the mans sentence, saying, Im sure fate still has something in store for you.