British National Identity Among Ethnic Minorities

British National Identity among Ethnic  Minorities Identity is something many of us don’t think about, but it is the main force behind our daily decisions. Britishness is defined as the state or quality of being British. This means that Britishness involves habits, behaviors, language, culture, and symbols that are common, recognizable, and iconic to the United Kingdom. Sometimes however, it is hard to define Britishness because it cannot be defined as one thing, like many identities, it evolves and transforms ever so often.British identity has been a subject of many debates since the 1960s, prompted initially by â€Å"the loss of empire, then by the rise of the welfare state, postwar black and Asian migration and entry into the European Community, and more recently by the devolution of power to Scotland and Wales† (Parekh, 1). â€Å"Some claim that the most challenging minority integration in contemporary society is immigrant-origin non-white communities† (Max well, 2), but this is becoming a false claim. The British national identity has been on a decline with more Britons claiming their identity as English, Scottish, Irish, or Welsh.This however, is not true for ethnic minorities in the UK. Headlines around many newspapers read â€Å"Ethnic minorities are now more likely to feel British than white people† There was a study done by the Institute for Public Policy Research that resulted in 51 percent of blacks and Asians describing themselves as British compared with just 29 per cent of whites. Data shows that in 1996, â€Å"52 percent of respondents to a poll said they saw themselves primarily as British. By 2005, this had fallen to just 44 per cent. The IPPR study said that Scottish and Welsh devolution had damaged British feeling† (Daily Mail).Professor Platt stated that â€Å"Given the current anxiety around immigration and concerns that it is challenging a unified national identity, it is interesting to find that minor ities in fact hold stronger British identities on average than the majority, we also see that they frequently manage dual identities, rather than opposing one to the other. Among the majority, individual country identities such as Scottish or Welsh can be held alongside a British identity, but in many cases seem to substitute for it† (CLS).Many believe that the desire for minorities to integrate into society is not enough to create a sense of belonging and ultimately the feeling of Britishness. â€Å"The desire to be integral to society has to be reciprocated too, in terms of the opportunity to belong to the national community, as well as in terms of socio-economic inclusion. So the long-term intergenerational decline in racism in British society is also an important and necessary condition for integration and patriotism† (Katwla, 1). Minorities in Great Britain are very active in British society.Katwla claims that â€Å"there is a strong pro-integration preference amo ng minorities – for civic and political participation, democracy and the rule of law, and most recognize the importance of the English language for social, economic and civic inclusion. † The acceptance about being British could also be because of the shared history between Britain and the immigrant’s home country. In places such as India and Africa, the empire was deeply rooted into their history. Katwla goes even further to say that â€Å"The issue is not just claiming a voice in helping to shape a common future.It is also about reminding ourselves that complicated and contested though it certainly was, we have shared more history than we think. You can look for and find British Muslim patriotism in reports from the First World War trenches, and not only in the last few years. † There is however, a negative side to this, as the ethnic minorities are claiming a British identity, many white Britons are claiming another. There is a growing fear that the ris e in English national identity is also a rise in hostility towards cultural diversity. So some express the fear that a return to the traditional â€Å"blood nations† will leave the ethnic minorities as the last Brits standing, rallying around a flag that indigenous Brits have deserted† (Katwala). There is a weaker sense of British national identity among white Britons. This presumed decline in Britishness can be seen as â€Å"resulting from one or both of two processes, on the one hand, the English appear to be becoming more â€Å"English† at the expense of being British. Secondly, the Scots are seen as becoming more Scottish.And a consequent decline in Britishness is assumed† (Bechhofer, 252). Devolution has contributed in the decline of a British national identity. â€Å"The largest marginal effect by a large distance is the effect of being born in Northern Ireland – this reduces the probability of reporting a British identity by 24%. It is almos t certain that this is driven primarily by Northern Irish Catholics among whom there remains a strong demand to be part of Ireland and not the UK and who think of themselves as Irish rather than British† (Manning, F79-F80).Many white Britons are not claiming a national identity and it seems that, for white Britons, the local identity is more important than the national identity. For minorities, it is easier to identity with the national identity because there are no negative connotations associated with it. The British identity allows for the foreigners to keep their home identity which they can maintain their ethnic identity. â€Å"British is a label that unites all peoples living in Britain today regardless of color, creed, and nationality† (Bechhofer , 256).Immigrants who become UK citizens are much more likely to report a British identity and the take-up ofcitizenship might be influenced by a number of factors. â€Å"First, there are a number of practical advantage s to citizenship – one has the right to work and vote in the UK and one can travel into the country without the need for a visa†¦ Apart from the practical advantages, there may be more emotional advantages to adopting a British identity. In particular we hypothesize that immigrants may be more likely to express a British identity if Britain compares favorably with the country from which they came† (Manning, F93).Minorities in Britain have also assimilated into the culture of being British. â€Å"There is a large amount of variation across country of birth in the fraction of immigrants reporting a British identity. For those from Slovakia it is less than 5%, for those from Malta more than 80%. But there is, for the most part, a simple explanation for these very large cross-country differences – the average amount of time spent in the UK† (Manning, F84). It seems that the longer the person stays in the country, the more they will think of themselves as British, Britishness just seems to grow on people. Benedict Anderson defines the nation as ‘an imagined community’ that is territorially limited and united by a ‘deep, horizontal, comradeship’ between its members. Adam Luedtke defines social identity ‘an affective (emotional) state of belonging in a social group†¦that stems from extended socialization, and is not easily changed. A ‘national identity’, therefore, is the emotional state of belonging felt by citizens towards, and within, the ‘imagined community’ of their nation† ( Kerr, 1).Over the decades there has been an overall decline in the proportion of people who define themselves as British and nationally characterize themselves as Britons. On average, a higher proportion of non-white ethnic minorities tend to call their selves British and relate to the British national identity. In conclusion, assimilation into the British culture has brought about a strong identity for ethnic minorities. The opposite is true for the white British population.On average there has been a decline in claiming the British national identity and this decline can be pointed to devolution taking place around the United Kingdom. Works Cited BECHHOFER, FRANK, and DAVID McCRONE. â€Å"Being British: A Crisis Of Identity?. † Political Quarterly 78. 2 (2007): 251-260. Academic Search Premier. Web. 26 July 2012. â€Å"Centre for Longitudinal Studies. †Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ CLS. ESRC, n. d. Web. 26 July 2012. . â€Å"Ethnic Minorities More Likely to Feel British than White People, Says Research.   Mail Online. Associated Newspapers Ltd, 2007. Web. 26 July 2012. . Katwala, Sunder. â€Å"Why Do Non-white Brits Feel That Little Bit More British? †Ã‚  British Future. British Future, 30 June 2012. Web. 26 July 2012. . Kerr, Steve. â€Å"The Decline of British Identity. †Ã‚  E-International Relations. E-international Relations, 13 Apr. 2012. Web. 0 Jul y 2012. . Manning, Alan, and Sanchari Roy. â€Å"Culture Clash Or Culture Club? National Identity In Britain. † Economic Journal 120. 542 (2010): F72-F100. Business Source Premier. Web. 30 July 2012. Maxwell, Rahsaan. National and Minority Identification among Non-whites in Britain: Where Is the Tradeoff? Publication. University of Massachusetts, Amherst Department of Political Science, n. d. Web. 26 July 2012.

Impact of Affordable care act in North Carolina Essay

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) 2010 is one of the most radical healthcare moves in legislation of United States after Medicare and Medicaid. The main goals of ACA were to decrease the number of uninsured and provide cost-effective high-quality care to all in US. According to Kaiser Family Foundation, the potential plan of ACA was to expand coverage to 47 million nonelderly uninsured in the nation, which included 1.6 million uninsured North Carolinians (2014). The purpose of this paper is to review the effect of ACA on the North Carolina uninsured population, the influence of the economy of care provided care and the ethical implications. Impact of ACA on North Carolina Population North Carolina has the highest index of the uninsured population approximately 1.6 million. Being uninsured has a profound impact on the health and well-being of the people. The ACA had a significant impact on the different population categories of North Carolina. According to The Affordable Care Act 2014, Medicaid will cover most low-income people if Federal Poverty Level (FPL) is no greater than 138 percent (Milsted, 2013). The people that have more impact are the children six to eighteen, working parents, nonworking parents, and childless adult. Prior to Affordable Care Act, Medicaid was limited to a specific group of low-income individuals, such as children less than six, pregnant women, elderly and disabled. Childless adult who was homeless or unemployed did not qualify for Medicaid. The Medicaid also did not enroll undocumented immigrants and lawful immigrants that resided lesser than five years in United States (Milstead, 2013). Medicaid expansion became optional with Supreme Court rule 2012, and North Carolina chooses not to expand Medicaid and put their most vulnerable in jeopardy (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2014). Consequently, the newly eligible uninsured adults in North Carolina will remain without coverage. The reason for this was, ACA envisaged that Medicaid would expand and provide coverage for people below 138% FPL and thus did not provide Marketplace subside for these low-income people. Therefore, the people that did not qualify for Medicaid nor subsides fell into a â€Å"coverage gap† which was estimated as 318,710 or 28 percentage of all uninsured nonelderly adults (Angster & Colleluori, 2014). This brought up ethical dilemma. The people in the coverage gap are facing barriers to health services and financial consequences. The Safety net of clinics and hospitals that had been traditionally serving these populations are still stretch in the state to provide care for the uninsured. Financial Impact of ACA on North Carolina The biggest challenge that US health care is facing is the rapid escalation of health care costs. The United States spends more when compared to other developed centuries in the world. The United States spends 17.7 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in health, and in terms of per- capita cost, US spend $ 8,247 in 2010 (Silberman, 2013). The ACA has put forward many provisions to reduce the health care cost. Some have immediate results, and some may take time to bend the cost curve. The Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) is a model of care that aims to deliver comprehensive care which includes preventive, acute and chronic care to children, adolescents, and adult (Kovner & Knickman, 2011). North Carolina was the first state to get a demonstration grant for the Medicaid and Medicare innovation, and this was used for test PCMH model in seven rural counties. Bundle payments, Accountable Care Organization (ACO), Medicare diagnosis-related group (DRG), and Value-Based Purchasing (VB P) program are all aimed at reducing healthcare spending in the long term by the ACA. (Silberman, 2013). The Federal government will be paying the state â€Å" most of the costs for covering the new eligible: 100 % of the Medicaid costs for newly eligible clients for the first three fiscal years 2014 to 2016, and declining to 90% in 2020† (North Carolina Institute of Medicine, 2014, p. 2). The Affordable Care act also funded North Carolina for Prevention and Public heath Trust  for promoting prevention, wellness, and public health, â€Å"ACA granted $750 million in FY 2011 increasing to dollar two billion in FY 2015 and each year thereafter† (Silberman, 2013, p 28). According to Middle Class Tax Relief and Job creation Act 2012, â€Å"the cut $6.25 billion over 9 years†, the fund instead of reach dollar two billion in 2015, it will reach it only in 2022 and the funds will remain at one billion until 2018 (Silberman, 2013, p 28). Effect of ACA on Cost, Quality, and Access to Treatment According to the North Carolina Institute of Medicine(NCIOM), the Health Benefit Exchange (HBE) created by States or federal government provides standardized information on quality, cost, and network providers, which helps people and small business to select the health plan of choice (2013). Since North Carolina did not meet the deadlines for HBE for 2014, the state created partnership arrangement with North Carolina Department of Insurance for consumer assistance and plan management (Silberman, 2013). The ACA provides cost effective and high quality health coverage through the Health Insurance Market (exchanges). There are different health plans and eligibility factors; to determine what savings and benefits the people can quality. The ACA provides people with income 100% and 400% of FPL to be eligible for the premium tax credits for purchasing marketplace insurance (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2014). The tax credits are based on income, cost of insurance and are only for people that are not eligible for other coverages. People with income greater than 400% FPL can purchase unsubsidized insurance from marketplace (Kaiser Family Foundation 2014). Agency for Health Research and Quality ranked North Carolina performance score for overall health care quality as â€Å"average† when compared to other states. (Silberman, 2013). To improve the quality of care ACA helped the state to accelerate their effort. ACA recommended the secretary of US Department of Health and Human service to define â€Å"quality†, and healthcare institution should give a report on quality care measures adopted by them. To improve quality ACA also changed the reimbursement policies. The way health care providers were paid was based on quality and outcome of care provided. Increasing incentives and rewards was also emphasized by ACA to  improve the quality of care in North Carolina (Silberman, 2013). PCMH model funded through ACA will improve the quality, effectiveness and efficiency of care delivered, which meets patients unique need and preferences. (Kovner & Knickman, 2011). Ethical Implication of ACA on the Organization and the Patient Health care reforms bring controversial ethical issues to the population as well as to the legislators. There is a critical need for reforms in healthcare to reshape the healthcare delivery system in United States. However, it is always challenging to meet all demands of the people. According to Sorrell (2011), there are be four essential goals that shaped our health care system. First, there is always a want for high-quality care with great benefits. Second, the peoples needed the freedom of choice of â€Å"who, when, and where† for their health (Sorrell, 2011, para.4). Third, the health care should be affordable and fourth the people wanted fellow citizen to share the benefits of the health care (Sorrell, 2011). When people are not treated with equal moral concerns, social injustice occurs. As in North Carolina, it is unfair that the populations that are in the â€Å"coverage gap† who are the poorest of the poor are denied of health care. Here, if North Carolina has opt-in to expand Medicaid, which would have extended coverage to an estimated 1.6 million uninsured people in the state (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2014). According to American College of Physicians (ACP), being uninsured poses a hazard to once health, chronic disease, and morbidity and mortality is high in the uninsured group (2014). Lack of health insurance also effects the people and the community financially, 60 percent of all bankruptcies are related to cost of medical care expenses due lack of insurance (ACP, 2014) Summary Expanding of Medicaid is the North Carolina is one of the solutions to decrease the uninsured population. The Affordable Care Act gives funding to states that opt-in; it would improve not only the health care system but also the economy of the state as a whole in the future. Ethically it is not fair to deny treatment to any patient. With the new health care reform and newer evidence-based researches we can develop better Healthcare Models to  contain this rising cost and provide universal health care to all. Affordable Care Act has to work against the obstacles, and it is still unfolding (ACP, 2014). It will take time, â€Å" to know the real impacts of Affordable Care Act reform experiment is a success, a failure or a little of both† (ACP, 2014, p.305). But once thing for sure, Affordable Care Act have decreased the number of uninsured in United States. References American College of Physicians (2014). How North Carolinians can access affordable, comprehensive health insurance. Retrieved from http://www.acponline.org/advocacy/state_health_policy/aca_enrollment/states/nc.htm Angster,D., & Colleluori, S ( 2014, April1). Study: Top NC newspapers Miss Coverage Gap in reporting on Medicaid expansion. Media Matters for America. Retrieved from http://mediamatters.org/research/2014/04/01/study-top-nc-newspapers-misses-coverage-gap-in/198701 Kaiser Family Foundation. (2014, April 7). How will the uninsured fare under the affordable care act. Retrieved from http://kff.org/health-reform/fact-sheet/how-will-the-uninsured-fare-under-the-affordable Kaiser Family Foundation. (2014, January 6). How will the uninsured in North Carolina fare under the affordable care act. Retrieved from http://kff.org/health-reform/fact-sheet/state-profiles-uninsured-under-aca-north-carolina/-care-act Kovner, A. R., & Knickman, J. R. (Eds.). (2011). Health care delivery in the United States (Laureate Education, Inc., custom ed.). New York, NY: Springer Publishing. Milstead, J. A. (2013). Health policy and politics: A nurse’s guide (Laureate Education, Inc., custom ed.). Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers. North Carolina Institute of Medicine. (2014). Examining the impact of the patient protection and affordable care act in north Carolina. Retrieved from http://www.nciom.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Medicaid-summary-FINAL.pdf Silberman, P ( 2013, January 25). The ACA: an essential first step towards improved population health. Retrieved from http://publichealth.nc.gov/shd/presentations/2013/AffordableCareAct-2013SHDConf-Silberman-012513.pdf Silberman, P. (2013, August 1). Implementing the affordable Care Act in North Carolina: The rubber hits the road. North Carolina Medical Journal. 74(4), 298 -307. Retrieved from http://www.ncmedicaljournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/74403.pdf

Legalizing marijuana Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Legalizing marijuana - Essay Example There is evidence that it can be effective in addressing the symptoms of cancer, Aids, and other multiple conditions. Studies show that, marijuana helps to reduce stress, and it can be used to numb the body during the simple surgeries (Gerber 46). Analysis of the marijuana plant reveals that it contains plant chemicals that have medicinal values. In addition, legalizing Marijuana can serve as a way of decreasing the crime rate and combating it as well. This will also help in the reduction of overcrowding in prisons. This is because statistics indicate that 750,000 arrests yearly are related to marijuana. Colorado is one of the states that legalized marijuana, and the studies showed that the crime rate decreased by 3.3%, after the first month of legalizing it. This serves to prove that the legalization of marijuana presents more benefits (57). On the other hand, the legalization of marijuana can have adverse effects on the society. The fact that marijuana can alter the brain functions may lead to increased mental disorders. This in turn can serve to increase the rate of crime in the society by registering more robberies, accidents, and murder (60). Notably, legalizing marijuana may promote its abuse by adolescents, destroying the future of the society. In conclusion, the legalization of marijuana is an ongoing debate among governments because while the drug is deemed harmful and illegal, it could save the governments billions of money. The pro side of the legalization claims that it is useful in the medical field, and it can contribute to the reduction of overcrowding in prisons. The benefits of legalizing marijuana would help the government to save money, which they can be used to fund other

Ethical products Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Ethical products - Case Study Example Slave trade was a trade too; it took a long struggle to fight slave trade which is still yet to be completely eliminated from the word according to the United Nations report. During the last century blacks from Africa were considered to sub human beings in the American society. In the recent there have been reports of industries releasing their waste into the rivers. Reports about nuclear waste dumping in the wrong areas have been rampant in the media especially in the last decade. From 1950s up 1970s the United States federal government was burying nuclear waste plutonium in Idaho. According to National Geographic News April 12, 2002, Snake River aquifer may be leached into by the buried plutonium waste. Snake river which is about 25000 square kilometers provides dirking and irrigation water for large population (Mayell, 2002). The diamond trade in Liberia that later turned out to be called the bloody diamonds because of fueling the civil war in Liberia and Sierra Leone during the last decade. The late Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo - DRC) was a darling of the west because of the resources that were plenty in the Great Lakes region. One component of fair trade is corporate social responsibility also called corporate citizen ship where the interests of the society take the first place by the organization taking responsibility for the impact of activities by the company or organization. on communities , customers, employees or suppliers. One of the biggest companies that has hit headlines on corporate social responsibility is the Microsoft company with the Melinda and Bill Gates foundation. The foundations' global development program has been trying to assist people get out of poverty and hunger by creating opportunities for them in Agriculture, helping small farmers to improve crop production and market access. They have been working with partners to help the poor societies get access to financial services, which are only available to only a few in African societies. While recognizing internet and computers as drivers of economic and social progress, the foundation has assisted with access to these tools and pro fessional skills, search for work, conduct business on-line, access government services and exchange ideas with others (Melinda & Bill Gates Foundation, 2008). Other areas where the banded ethical products are Not geared toward social exclusion but inclusion are the global health program of the Melinda and Bill Gates foundation whose mission is to encourage the development of life saving medical services and help in access the existing vaccines against the common deceases in developing countries. By assisting in research toward the development of drugs against malaria, tuberculoses and HIV amongst others, it shows a sure sign that it is committed to improving the quality of life for the marginalized societies and the grater society as well. It is through the development of the ethical products such as the fair trade that the organizations for preventing the exploitation of the producers for commodities like coffee emerged. A system that allowed people recognize the products that certain standards (labor or environmental) put by an independent body which issues certifications. In the United States it called Fairtrade certification. It sets

What is strategic HRM To what extent and in what ways might HRM have a Essay

What is strategic HRM To what extent and in what ways might HRM have a strategic role to play in organisations - Essay Example In addition, the traditional employees’ motivators have changed and individuals are given more decision-making power. As the result, the role of HRM is also changing. HRM is already recognized to have influence in overall organization effectiveness. Human Resource strategy is focused on integrating different HR practice into businesses to provide competitive advantage. â€Å"HRM cannot be viewed as the separate function of business unit because the alignment of HR processes with business strategies is of primary importance† (Armstrong 2002). Despite of technological advances, the knowledge and skills of employees are the key source of organizational efficiency. According to the statistics in UK, the HR specialists have the seat on the Board of Directors in almost every company. Thus, the HR department has the significant level of influence within an organization. As many as 54 percent of HR managers in UK are involve in the development of overall company strategy. Having the right people on the right positions determines the organizational success. Companies are become more oriented to global markets and as the result, the personnel becomes culturally diverse. Ensuring â€Å"the productive cooperation of multicultural individuals is vital for strategy accomplishment† (Tyson 1995). If the company wants to succeed, having flexible, effective workforce is the first step to start with. For this reason, there is the tendency to outsource HR activities to professional agencies. Recruitment, training, consultations, team building and even downsizing are the services provided by outside professionals. Despite of the increasing need to implement strategic Human Resource Management, there are several concerns that challenge the transition from traditional to strategic functioning. Globalization has increased to need in â€Å"well-educated, trained and flexible workforce† and â€Å"individuals

Euro Mosaic Segmentation Method Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Euro Mosaic Segmentation Method - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that today’s world market of products is experiencing high competition not only by more competitors but also varieties in consumer’s demands and needs. To ease marketers for fulfilling the demands of customers, different consumers are segmented into different bases. â€Å"Global market segmentation is the process of identifying specific segments, whether they be country groups or individual customer groups, of potential customers with homogeneous attributes who are likely to exhibit similar behavior†. Geodemographic classifications put a step towards consumer segmentation. The more difficult markets to assess are those in which there appears to be a discrepancy between the long- and short-term attractiveness. Euro Mosaic claims to be the first pan-European segmentation system allows the classification of 500 million consumers across the European Union on the basis of the types of the neighborhood in which they live. It focuses on many dimensions for segmentation of a product like Elite suburbs, average areas, luxury flats, low-income inner-city, high-rise social housing, industrial communities, dynamic families, low-income families, rural agricultural and vacation retirement. In European Geodemographics Conference 1st April 2009, Andy Bell of Eurodirect told about the changing political, economic and cultural faces of Europe and the opportunities these are bringing for global businesses.... Companies can now access a variety of public datasets (censuses and social surveys for example) as well as market research and list broking resources, many of which are moving east into the wider Europe. Countries in Europe have widely differing per capita incomes and in creating a European segmentation it is important to capture both absolute and relative differences between areas – to avoid, for example, all areas of the poorest countries being classified into the poorest segment. Also, pictorial representations of segments, whilst popular in national systems, can be confusing or misleading if applied on a pan-European basis. (Peter Furness, 2009) Euro Mosaic Segmentation is frequently used in many countries for different product fields. A well-established system which overcomes most of the difficulties and encompasses both geodemographic and behavioral lifestyle factors is the CCN ACORN/MOSAIC system. The system was originally pioneered in the UK market and extended in resp onse to an increasing number of requests from multinational clients, looking for a common and consistent European-based consumer targeting system (MOSAIC Today, 1993). Use of MOSAIC segmentation method is very popular in industries. This gives many advantages to the businesses, companies, product fields and world market of goods and services. MOSAIC segmentation method develops the customer profiles and databases on different bases. This provides many uses in retailing and trade business. "A major concern to the retail location analyst is that, given the assertive marketing of such companies, it is more difficult to evaluate critically the bases and appropriateness of the packages offered."

MEDIA MARKET Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

MEDIA MARKET - Essay Example Which particular group of viewers? Earlier, you mention doing an analysis by age - but this chart does not offer an analysis by age - it is an analysis by weekly reach. I have named the table and changed †this very particular group of viewers in different groups of viewers Your conclusion that ‘the % of people watching BBC1 is relatively low and is about 12%’ must be a misinterpretation of the data. I went in to Mediatel to check, and I attach a report from Mediatel which shows that in 2014, BBC1 actually had the highest share of all the major terrestrial channels with 21.7%. Indeed, I believe if you were to break down the total non-terrestrial share of 46.9% (which adds together all the satellite and cable channels), you would find BBC1 still to be the leader. It may be that you mean that BBC1 only reaches 12% of the 16-24 target group, which sounds right to me, but you don’t say so. By the way, you should illustrate the performance of these demographic groups as a chart or graph. There must be some misunderstanding because I checked once again the share of BBC1 annually. The data is copied from the spreadshit and I checked once again to find out that 21,7 is the share of the channel for all ages. The two statements "Moreover, it is considered that the average age of the BBC1 viewer is 59 years†Ã‚  and "Considering the fact that the average age of BBC1 viewers is between 56 and 59†Ã‚  cannot logically (or indeed mathematically) both be true. I corrected the first statement –the average age is 57,5 so these statements do not contradict each other. I  think  you slightly misunderstand the data  about  seasonal viewership. The simple fact is that in the UK in the summer, the days are longer and the nights shorter. This means in general people watch TV less in the evening and in primetime in particular. There are also the summer holidays to take into account. You are right to say that young

English criminal law fails to deal with the drug supplier whose client Essay - 1

English criminal law fails to deal with the drug supplier whose client dies after voluntarily self injecting or ingesting in a consistent and principled manner - Essay Example It has been confirmed that some causes of death are worrying and threatening. These are deaths associated with murder, excessive use of illegal drugs, and deaths that cannot be medically proven on their causes. Such deaths not only cause societal attention, but also triggers alarm to the legal sector because they are weird and unexpected. In most countries, dealing and supplying of addictive substances that are controlled is considered illegal. According to the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971,1 the England court dismissed the act of dealing and supplying of controlled substances due to the increased death rates that was observed in the country. It is evident that in situations where an individual dies due to use of illegal drugs and controlled addictive substances, the question of the individual responsible for supplying the drugs comes forth.2 However, it is considered unlawful to sentence the individual supplying the drugs, and according to the constitutions of several countries, such suppliers are not directly connected to the death. According to the Act,3 individuals who supply or deal with illegal drugs that consequently cause death to the users may be held criminally liable for the situation. There are different assumptions that are undertaken by the legal institutions before relying on the evidences offered regarding deaths resulting from misuse of drugs. According to the drug supplier’s act, one may be considered liable for a death in case it is confirmed to be a factual causation. On the other hand, in situations where the drug supplier’s act involves an operating and considerable cause of death of the users, then a legal causation arises. This material aims at investigating situations when the suppliers of controlled drugs may be held reliable for deaths of users who misuse the drugs. This follows the realization that the English criminal law fails to deal with the drug supplier whose client dies after voluntarily self-injecting or ingesting

Oil ; gas Essay Example for Free

Oil ; gas Essay The economy is affected by many factors that determine if it is strong or weak. These factors have to do with buyers consuming goods and services and at what rate they do this. Do the goods and services that are consumed by people created wealth, jobs and a better overall economy for a country. Throughout history some economies have evolved faster and stronger than others. Policies that the government places on industry, technology and the environment can all affect the prosperity of an economy. Of the factors that affect economic growth the industry of Oil and gas is one that holds a stronghold in the worlds and Americas economy today. When evaluating the economic growth factor of economy and specifically oil and gas on must consider the following questions:  ¨ What relationship does the factor have with the whole economy?  ¨ How does this factor affect economic growth  ¨ Is the factor a cause or effect of economic growth?  ¨ what would the economy be like if there were significant problems with this factor?  ¨ What relation does a central bank have to this factor? I will answer each of these questions in respect to how economy is affected by oil and gas. The economy in the United States today is greatly affected by oil and gas. When there are large reserves and an increase of active drills in respect to oil, the economy seems to receive a boost. This is because prices for such things like gas and oil fall and people are able to consume more gas at a lower price. There is more supply and prices fall, therefore people save money on gas and can consume other items in the economy. People working in these industries have more job openings and more jobs filled, therefore creating a lower unemployment rate and a higher national per capita income. The need for substitutes are not there so, consumers will consume oil and gas at a growing rate. Since, people use oil and gas for so many different things like heating there homes, driving their cars, and a variety of other sources, the overall GNP for the consumer will rise. Economic growth is affected through significant fluctuations in inflation of oil and gas. If you look throughout history when there have been fluctuations in gas and oil prices you have vast fluctuations in the economy of our country. The instability of this factor has cause government regulation to come into play in times of crisis. For example during the mid-seventies we had the oil and  gas shortage due to the Middle East cutting off supply to Importers of their oil. By doing this, they caused a shortage in a lot of countries creating rising oil prices and high demand. Consumers could not rely on the oil prices to be stable, therefore they consumed less of other products due to the inflation of gas prices and more of their dollar began to be spent on gas. Americans particularly started to come up with more efficient means of using and consuming gas over the past 25 years. Oil and gas is a resource that can be used up if not conserved properly. That is why OPEC was formed, as well as organizations such as NAFTA to help regulate trade of these commodities and bring organization to a disorganized status. In addition, governments like the United States impose taxes on gas to regulated the prices in order to ward off against supplies of oil affecting the nations economy. This only works to an extent, in the early to mid-eighties one states economy lived and died by the supply of oil. That state was Texas. When Texass oil rigs began to dry up, their economy went into a recession. Their reliance on the oil supply as their main revenue producer caused a lot of people to lose their jobs and demand and consumption for other products fell as well. This caused a spiraling effect which caused people from all industries to lose their jobs. Texass economy suffered and so did parts of the American economy with High inflation and high debt which caused the economy to suffer. Increased regulation and diversification of a countrys resources can stop this from being the case. Countries representing OPEC all live and die by the constant production of oil. While this factor is used to stimulate their countries economic growth, it should be used to stimulate the building of a countrys infrastructure. Oil-rich countries should use the positive affect oil has had on their countries to build strong governments and consumer demand for other goods. This powerful infrastructure that could be built will give the economy stability and allow for a countrys GNP to grow in a slow, steady, and positive way. The building of a strong middle-class will allow for countrys to prosper for many years to come. Instead what has happened is that economies of these countries are in a state of flux. What I mean by this is that their economies are very unpredictable and unstable and their reliance on oil has made the disparity between the rich and the poor a gap that becomes too large to overcome. One prime example of this is Brazil, Brazil has large  reserves of oil in a very large country. Brazil is a developing nation and is very unstable when it comes to central governments. In the 70s and 80s Brazil made large amounts of oil from its reserves. Instead of investing the money made (from exporting oil) into their countries future, the leaders of that country used the money to make themselves rich and left the country in political and economic disarray. The middle class of Brazil became almost non-existent and their seem to be but two classes in that country. Those classes were the extremely rich and the extremely poor. The lack of infrastructure and consumer confidence in the economy due to the mishandling of oil profits lead to many political assassinations and increased crime rates throughout the country. It has taken and will continue to take Brazil years and years to recover from these economic crisiss , which all could have been avoided had Brazils government invested in its future. It is definitely true that an economy of a country can be vastly affected by the demand, consumption, and supply of oil. The affect that good supplies of oil has on a countrys economy is one that can only be measured in the sense that it is inevitable that they will be affected. As long as we drive cars that are fueled by gas and we use heat in the winter time, oil will always be a strong factor in determining the growth of a countries economy. In the United States, we have the strong infrastructure to adapt to problems that the instability of both the supply and demand of oil will cause. Countries need to look within themselves for managed growth in order to steady their economies if oil is what sparks their economy. A strong central bank and government will allow for funds to be invested in supporting the economy, the oil business, and consumerism. Once the infrastructure is set the shear reliance on oil will not be a factor, because the countrys economy will be able to handle the affect. When the day comes that oil wells ran dry and substitutes are needed the countries that will survive will be the ones that have braced themselves for the effect that this will have on their economy. Then these countries will adapt and overcome. Oil and gas should be used as helper of a countrys economy and not the passion by which it is run. The production of great income for a country and a higher GNP that oil production is something that should be able to benefit them for many years to come. If you look at the United States as a model you will see a country that handles oil with precision. When the oil industry is in a downturn, the  government can step in and regulate taxes and stimulate investment by having the central bank pump in funds that would not otherwise be used. When the oil industry is doing fine, the government can sit back and reap the prosperity of increases in employment and a rise in demand for oil. The prices will be lower for gas and oil, which means consumption will be up and the economy will be up too. Countries around the world can learn how to handle oil to the extent that it creates an agenda that the benefits far outweigh the costs. We know that oil and gas affects the economy and that it easily regulated by strong central government and bank. The infrastructure must be built up to manage growth. The leaders of the country should be committed to the development of the oil industry. Finally the consumers should be aware of how their role in the consumption of oil will affect the economy as a whole. When all parties are aware and committed to the prosperity of their country and to the industry then the consumption, supply, demand, profits, losses, and investment towards oil will be a mutually beneficial one for the country and its people.

Primary Health Care - Indigenous Australian Inequalities Essay Example for Free

Primary Health Care Indigenous Australian Inequalities Essay Page 1 The World Health Organisation (World Health Organisation, 2008) states that the indigenous peoples of Australia are one of the most disadvantaged indigenous groups in the developed world. The health of the Indigenous population of Australia is an increasingly pressing issue. Current research and statistics reveals great inequality in many areas of health care and health status between the Aboriginal people and the general population of Australia. Couzos and Murray (2008, p.29) report that the Indigenous population has â€Å"the worst health status of any identifiable group in Australia, and the poorest access to health systems. † This paper will examine the underlying historical contexts and contributing factors that have lead to the current disparity between the health of the Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians. Furthermore, the high prevalence of chronic health issues such as diabetes will be analysed and community health initiatives that are needed or currently being enacted will be identified. Many reasons for the current appalling state of health and wellbeing of the Australian Aboriginal people can be explained by examining their recent history to the devastating impacts of colonisation, genocidal policy, loss of land and years of oppression. These several hundred years of cultural destruction, dispossession and social and political upheaval have resulted in generations of trauma and grief (Burke, 2006, para. 4). As reported by Forsyth (2007, p.35-36), government policies enacted towards the indigenous population in the early 20th Century were concerned primarily with protection and segregation, as the prevailing attitude of the time was that the Indigenous people were largely inferior and were unable to care for themselves. Forsyth continues to explain of the injustice created by the New South Wales parliament with the Aborigines Protection Act of 1909, in which â€Å"every aspect of their lives was governed, regulated and controlled† (Forsyth, 2007, p. 36). Furthermore the Indigenous people of this era were not able to imbibe alcohol, own property, vote or cohabit with non-Indigenous people, and the state of their health was largely ignored due to the belief that they were a dying race. (Couzos et. Page 2 al. 2008, p. 3). Due to this essentially complete lack of health care, Forsyth describes the Aboriginal people of the era living on the outskirts of larger towns as suffering from high rates of blindness, infectious diseases, bone diseases and sexually transmitted infections (Forsyth, 2007, p.36). The severity of these health issues was made worse by fear and distrust of the Aboriginal people towards hospitals and white people (Forsyth, 2007, p. 37). As the 20th Century progressed it became obvious that the Aboriginal population was not a soon to be extinct race as earlier thought, and new political policy calling for assimilation and integration reflected this change, though protectionist and segregationist policies remained influential or continued until the 1970s (Couzos et.al. 2008, p. 4). In the 1960s attitudes of Australian society began to became more concerned for the wellbeing Indigenous people, with increased social conciousness and awareness spreading throughout the Western World. As a result of increasing political activity and demonstration, many Aboriginals were forced off stations in 1966, causing a large movement of Indigenous people to more urban areas such as Redfern (Couzos et. al. 2008, p. 7). This sudden increase in numbers highlighted the need for proper health care and services, with the first Aboriginal health service established in 1971. Throughout the 1970s an increase in research and reporting of Aboriginal health resulted in many state and commonwealth reports all with the same conclusion, that the health status of Aboriginal communities was appalling and that there was great â€Å"need for increased priority, increased resourcing, better coordination, and increased Aboriginal community participation and control† (Couzos et. al. 2008, p. 10). However very little action was taken until the 1990s2000s where relevant political policy was brought in and funding made available for Aboriginal health services, though they mostly remain inadequately funded and Aboriginal health care is still largely unrepresented and avoided by the Australian Government. The ongoing effects of racist and unjust political policy and action can in part explain current aspects of dysfunction and overall disadvantage that occurs in many Indigenous Page 3 communities today. Specifically this disadvantage is evident in many areas of community life, with Indigenous people being generally exposed to more risk factors for poor health than other Australians (Thomson, MacRae, Burns, Catto, Debuyst, Krom, Midford, Potter, Ride, Stumpers and Urquhart, 2010, para. 49). Examples of risk factors include social factors such as dispossession, dislocation and discrimination, educational factors such as poor schooling, resulting in much lower literacy and numeracy skills, economic factors such as lower income and higher unemployment, access to good quality health care and GPs, and physical environmental factors such as poor and overcrowded housing. Together these disadvantages provide for a higher likelihood of poor lifestyle choices such as alcohol, tobacco and illicit drug use, a poor and unbalanced diet, obesity and a lack of regular exercise (Thomson et. al. 2010, para. 49, Couzos et. al. 2008, p. 79). Poor access to good quality health care is one of the key predictors for the prevalence of poor health in a community. There are very few GPs available in remote locations, and as a result of no or little access to professional health care providers, these remote areas are susceptible to poor health awareness and knowledge. As reported by Thomson et. al. (2010, para. 3), almost one-quarter of Indigenous people are classified as living in a remote area with very little access to goods and services or opportunities for social interaction. Couzos et. al. (2008, p. 18) also consider poor access to GPs as shown by a 2000-2001 survey of GPs. As reported, only 0. 8% of GP visits were by Indigenous people, though they make up 2. 6% of the general population. Furthermore, more than 70% of GPs did not see a single Indigenous person during the survey period. This under representation of the Indigenous population visiting GPs indicates a clear need for increased access to professional health care, and is just one factor of many which demonstrates the need for improvement in the health and wellbeing of the Australian Indigenous people. Page 4 Diabetes is a chronic metabolic condition which can result in many major long term health complications such as stroke, kidney disease, blindness and greatly reduced life expectancy (Allman, 2008, p. 80, Zeng, 2006, p. 73). Diabetes can be classified into three main types, with the second type, non-insulin-dependant diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) the main form developed as a result of lifestyle factors. As reported by Thomson et. al. (2010, para. 2), NIDDM is currently â€Å"one of the most important health problems for Indigenous populations across Australia†, with only around half of those with the condition know they have it, and the proportion of affected Indigenous population estimated to be around 4 four times that of the general population. Couzos et. al. (2008, p. 525) expand that Aboriginal people are also significantly more likely to develop NIDDM at a much younger age, more likely to be hospitalised, and to die from associated complications. This over representation of diabetes in the Indigenous population is a result of their poor health status and education. Thomson et. al. (2010) report that many studies have linked high levels of obesity among Indigenous populations and high prevalence of NIDDM. The main factors linked to this high levels of obesity are the relatively recent availability of highly processed and sugary Western foods and drinks including alcohol and tobacco use, impaired glucose tolerence, hypertriglyceridaemia, hypertension, hyperinsulinaemia and a higher level of physical inactivity than non-Indigenous people (Thomson et. al. 2010). Diabetes prevalence is also linked to a lower socioeconomic status, and as previously examined, a high proportion of the Indigenous population suffer from many areas of disadvantage, which results in a lower socioeconomic status. As further explained by Thomson et. al. (2010) these effects are further aggravated by poor health promotion and knowledge, mental illness and stress, early emotional development and social status, and recent trends indicate increasing development and prevalence of NIDDM. Clearly the Aboriginal population is exposed to many risk factors for diabetes and other chronic conditions, and with increasing development trends, explains poor mortality rates and overall poor health status of their communities. Page 5. Community based programs are essential for the improvement of Indigenous health due to the close-knit nature of their culture and often remote location. This was begun in 2003 at national level with the development of The National Strategic Framework for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health, which targeted strengthening of health service infrastructure, accessibility to health services, and health promotion, most importantly the importance of balanced nutrition and regular exercise (Couzos et. al. 2008, p.522, Insel, Ross, McMahon and Bernstein, 2010, p. 653). Cribbes and Glaister (2007, p. 167) describe the importance of health promotion and awareness at the community level, with a focus on re-establishing more traditional food choices and encouraging traditional hunting skills. The traditional Indigenous diet is highly nutritious, being high in protein, low in fat and high in complex carbohydrates, and as considered by Cribbes et. al. (2007, p. 167) is an excellent way to protect against chronic conditions such as diabetes. However the majority of remote Indigenous peoples obtain their food from local stores, thus initiatives such as the Remote Indigenous Stores and Takeaway Project were undertaken to establish minimum healthy eating standards and to educate store managers in nutrition. By empowering local store managers in this way, they are able to further educate the local schools and wider community in healthy eating (Cribbes. et. al. 2007, p. 167). As reported by the Dragon and Anderson (2011, p.28), Close The Gap (CTP) is another national level campaign which has a carry on effect to the community level. CTP aims to resolve the disparity in life expectancy rates and health equality between Aboriginal Australians and the general population, and has been endorsed by federal and state governments. CTP focuses on management of chronic conditions such as diabetes and follow up care. Management and awareness of diabetes is an essential component of improving health standards, and as King (2001, p.147-155) explains, Aboriginal people with diabetes commonly avoid mainstream health services for their health care. This mismanagement can lead to the development of diabetes related complications and greatly reduced quality Page 6 of life and life expectancy. On going strategies and studies identified the need for Aboriginal health workers to deliver community level care and health services for successful diabetes management (King, 2001). In conclusion, Aboriginal health standards have been of an appalling standard for many years due to racist policies, attitudes and in-humane treatment. The damage done and denigration of their lives, families and cultures has only recently began to be repaired by collective efforts nation wide, with a unified goal of self and community-empowerment, improvement of quality of life and living standards. With the expansion and ongoing deliverance of community focused solutions, many risks for ill-health and chronic conditions can be greatly reduced and the health status disparity between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians can in the future be eliminated. Page 7 References: †¢ Allman, T. (2008) Genes disease : diabetes. New York; Infobase Publishing. †¢ Dragon, N. and Anderson, K. (2011). Indigenous health. Australian Nursing Journal, 19(2), 24-8. †¢ Burke, S. (2006). Changing practices, changing paradigms: working effectively with Indigenous clients. Australian Psychological Society. Retrieved October, 5, 2011 from http://www. psychology. org. au/publications/inpsych/changing/ †¢ Couzos, S. Murray, R. (2008). Aboriginal primary health care: An evidence-based approach. South Melbourne; Oxford University Press. †¢ Cribbes. M. and Glaister. K. (2007). Its not easy: caring for Aboriginal clients with diabetes in remote Australia. Contemporary Nurse, 25; 163-172. †¢ Forsyth (2007). Telling stories: nurses, politics and aboriginal australians, circa 19001980s. Contemporary Nurse, 24(1), 33-44. Insel, P. , Ross, D. , McMahon, K. and Bernstein, M. (2010). Nutrition. Massachusetts; Jones and Bartless Publishers. †¢ King, M. (2001). The diabetes health care of Aboriginal people in South Australia. Contemporary Nurse, 10(3,4), 147-155. Page 8 †¢ Thomson N, MacRae A, Burns J, Catto M, Debuyst O, Krom I, Midford. R, Potter C, Ride K, Stumpers S, Urquhart B (2010). Summary of Australian Indigenous health, 2010. Retrieved October. 6, 2011 from http://www. healthinfonet. ecu. edu. au/health-facts/summary †¢ World Health Organization. (2008). Closing the Gap in a generation. Health equity through action on the social determinants of health. Commission on Social Determinants of Health Final Report. Retrieved October, 6, 2011 from http://www. who. int/social_determinants/thecommission/finalreport/en /index. html †¢ Zeng, Y. (2006). Longer life and healthy aging. Philadelphia; Springer.

Identifying the Pharmacological Properties of Unknown Drugs

Identifying the Pharmacological Properties of Unknown Drugs The experiment aimed to establish the pharmacological attributes of drug (B2) which is relatively unknown to many people. A more important thing to consider is the effect of Antagonistic in blocking the effects of B2. Another thing of utmost value is the question which tries to explain whether the effects and usefulness of B2 can actually be replicated in other drugs. It is paramount to understand that B2 is a drug which brings side effect as a result of interaction with the digestive substance from Pseudo-Cholinesterase. Another area of interest is the hindering of b2 effects by the introduction of an inhibitor known as cholinesterase; it is not clear whether it can actually hinder the potential effect of. The receptor factor of B2 is also considered important. Introduction There exist two categories of pharmaceutical drugs; agonist and antagonist. Agonist drugs acts on the principle that it binds itself to the receptor substance of the respective cell. Normally agonists exists in form of hormones or neurons a fact that makes them very popular in the human body. In this scenario the unknown B2 drug belongs to the agonist category. On the other hand antagonists operate on the reverse principle of the agonists in that they tend to block the receptors. In order to evaluate and asses the pharmacological properties of B2 it is vital to examine two unique properties; efficacy and potency. Efficacy refers to the overall capacity of a drug to produce the desired effects. Potency on its part refers to the level of response that is generated by a drug. The higher the potency the lower the response level of a particular drug. For instance in order to generate a 50% response value, the dosage of the drug being administered needs to quite high. The experiment is composed of two distinct phases; phase2 and phase3. Phase2 focused on establishing the effect of administering a selective antagonist dosage on the two substances; chlorphenamine and Atropine. As a result Atropine appeared to be blocked primarily because it is exhibit antagonistic attributes towards muscurinic and nicotinic receptors. On the other hand chorphenamine appeared to inhibit the effects of histamine more because it blocks autocoid histamine receptors remain blocked. In order to determine the blockage effect of B2 it was necessary to thoroughly test the selective dosage. This will allows for easier identification of the actual receptors which not works with B2 but those that blocks it affects. Another aspect examined in phase2 is related with how other agonists mimic the effect of B2. In this case it was vital to evaluate and compare the behavior of log-dose curves with the sole aim of deriving both the efficacy and the potency values. Phase 3 involved the use of pseudocholiesterase from horse blood and an esterase inhibitor known as physostigmine. Cholinesterase action involves hydrolyzing the ester bond found in acetylcholine. Basically there exists two categories of cholinesterase; acetyl-cholinesterase and pseudo-cholinesterase. Another substance used in this phase is carbachol which is rather resistant to the effect of esterase digestion. This means that its presence is used to protect or inhibit the digestion of acetycholine, histamine and B2. In addition an interaction between an antagonist like physostigmine and agonist substance will result in an increase in ED50. In some cases this can be attributed to the ever increasing potential of grugs by many people. Methods An organ bath is initially setup in presence of an ileum tissue from a guinea pig. Prior to using the tissue, a Petri dish is first filled with ringer solution and then subjected to oxygen supply. It is paramount to note that the tissue lacks any spontaneous patterns but rather it is characterized by contractions. The ileum tissue contains substances such as 5Ht, H1, nicotinic and muscurinic receptors. These substances are easily affected by contraction. In addition ileum tissue experience relaxation probably due to the fact that it lacks both beta and alpha receptors. In order to produce good result the tissue required to be attached to a transducer using a threading string. Additionally this tissue was submerged in ringerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s solution at a room temperature of 37 degrees Celsius. In a normal scenario the addition of an agonist may cause the ileum to contract; this tension would be amplified by the transducer, which would then record the trace of response on a computer. Each test was preceded by a complete wash out of the drug. Oxygen supply needs to quite constant in order to sustain the life of the cell. Data from the races is used to plot the graph which shows the behavior of each agonist in response to the effect of log-dose. Results For B2 laced with Chlorphenamine 1 in 10000 dilutions Emax was 98/% while ED50 was 1.0X10-6M. For B2 laced with atropine 1 in 5000 dilutions, Emax and ED50 were 4.4 x 10^-6 and 72% respectively. It is evident that competitive antagonism was dominant. It is as a result of Atropine blocking specific masculine receptors. It means that B2 is a cholinergic agonist, which might be either acetylcholine or Carbachol. Mimicry effect: B2 Gave an Emax value of 90% and an ED50 value of 1.44 x 10^-6M. The values for Acetylcholine were 60% and ED50 value of3.1 x 10 ^-6 M. However. Carbachol gave a high efficacy 100% Emax value and an ED50 value of 3.0 x 10^-6M. Additionally Histamine gave Emax and ED50 50% and4.4 x 10 ^-6M respectively. The lowest point was recorded while using Serotonin which had an ED50 value of 7.5 x 10^-6 and an Emax value of 21%. Acetylcholine in the presence of physostigmine Tthe Emax was 100% and the ED50 1.310^-7 while Carbacho was 98.4% Emax and ED501.710^-6. However in the presence of physostigmine EMAX was 100% and the ED50 was 6.010^-7. Conclusion Both the mimicry graphs of B2 and Carbachol exhibits similar characteristics hence the same ED50 values Despite this there is no enough evidence to establish what exactly what the receptors acts on. When antagonistic atropine was used the ED50 of the respective B2 was considerably reduced. This mainly occurred at both the selective and effective dosage levels. It can be concluded that B2 indeed acted on cholinergic receptors. This is given more strength by the increase in ED50 reduction in potency level. To get even more definite results chlorphenamine was used as the sole histaminergic antagonist. Results indicated that both the effective and selective dose of Chlorphenamine had no antagonistic effect on B2. Additionally the potency did not reduce. It is evident that [emailprotected] does not in any way acts on histaminergic receptors. Thus it is prudent to argue that B2 does indeed acts upon cholinergic receptors Experiment 2 Purpose: To demonstrate the pharmacological properties of unknown drug B16 Experimental phases (phase 1 and phase 2) are essential in determining these properties.Key attributes investigated include selective and effective dose of Atropine, Atropine and B2, effective and selective dose of Chlorphenamine, Chlophenamine and B2, Mimicry of B2 , digestion by pseudo-cholinesterase on B2, protection by Physostigmine of B2, and potentiation of B2. Acetylcholine is regarded as an acetic acid such as ester of choline. It acts on cholinergic synapses to propagate nerve impulses. Acetylcholine has high and equal potency for muscurinic and nicotinic receptors. It is also highly susceptible to breakdown by cholinesterase. Carbachol which is is agonist of the muscurinic and nicotinic receptors is more potent on nicotinic receptors. In addition it is not broken down by Cholinesterase. Health applications of Acetylcholine includes but not limited to the treatment of Glaucoma.Its treatment remedy is based on the contraction principle; causes contraction of circular muscle in the eye leading to an increase in output of aqueous humour. Obtained from Atropa belladonna also known as deadly nightshade, Atropine which is alkaloid in nature serves to block the cholinergic receptors. Medical applications of Atropine involve dilation of the pupil which is most common during examinations of the eyes. Another substance Chlorphenamine is rather antihistamine in nature and thus it blocks histamine receptors. It clinical uses involve the treatment of allergic reactions such as itching. (Youngson, 1999) Physostigmine is regarded as being one of those substances that tends to bring reversible cholinesterase inhibition. Since Physostigmine normally interferes with the breakdown of Acetylcholine , its overall effects is significantly ppextended. Major medical use encompasses the boosting of the muscle tone of people with Myasthenia Gravis (Youngson, 1999). Effective dose of atropine The purpose of the first experiment was to identify the effective dose of Atropine. Three doses of atropine were added to Acetylcholine; Acetylcholine with atropine 1/1000, Acetylcholine with atropine 1/10000 and Acetylcholine with atropine 1/5000. The three concentrations of atropine (1.4 x 10^-10M, 2.88 x 10^-10M and 1.4 x 10^-11M) were first carried out on both carbachol and acetylcholine. The three specimens showed a shift in the dose response curves to the right. This makes the drugs to appear to be below potent as they tend to increase their ED50 values. The results prove that both acetylcholine and carbachol are blocked by atropine. After observing results from graphs used in the experiment, it is evident that there is a distinct shift in all the dose response curves to the right. This helps to lower the potency of the drug at all concentrations. Selective dose Atropine The aim of this section of experiment is to establish whether the effective dose of Atropine is also a selective dose. In this case histamine was titrated with the three concentrations of atropine to identify if histamine is actually blocked antagonist. In a normal scenario histamine ought not to be antagonized by atropine. Instead there should not be a significant shift in the dose response curve or reduction in potency. However at high dose concentration, atropine can indirectly block histamine. To analyze the selective dose of atropine, three different concentrations of atropine were used on histamine. The 1/5000 and 1/1000 dilutions of atropine i.e.1.4 x 10^-10M and 1.4 x 10^-9M became the histamine to shift to the right. This shows that high concentrations of atropine can cause an indirect antagonistic affect to histamine. Despite this, the 1.4 x 10^-11M (1 in 10000 obtained was found to be 2.310-6M. Actually dilution does not reduce the efficacy or the potency of histamine. Additionally the dose of 1.4 x 10^-11M (1/10000 dilution of atropine) does not shift histamine to the right thus retaining its ED50 value. This dose of atropine is both effective and selective for cholinergic agonist such as acetylcholine and Carbachol. It effectively blocks acetylcholine and carbochol especially when the affect on histamine is not great. Consequently the effective and selective dose for Atropine was resolved to be 1.4 x 10^-11M. It means Atropine did not affect Histamine activity. Atropine and B16 Aim of the experiment was to find the impact of both the effective and selective dose of Atropine (110-7M) on the unknown drug B16. The effective and the selective dose were obtained by testing different concentrations of atropine on acetylcholine, carbachol and histamine. A distinct shift in the dose response curve to the right was found when administering the 1.4 x 10^-11M of atropine to unknown drug B16 there was. Therefore this dose of atropine result in drug B2 appearing to be less potent by lowering its ED50 value. It is clear that drug B2 is capable of acting upon cholinergic receptors. This is primarily because the effective and selective dose of atropine that was determined previously blocked the actions of drug B2. In effect it makes it to appear to be less potent and reducing its ED50 value. This means that Atropine was blocking Cholinergic receptors, which B2 acts on. Hence it may be deduced that B2 is a cholinergic agonist, and it may be Acetylcholine, or Carbachol. Effective dose of Chlorphenamine Experiment aim was to find out an effective dose of Chlorphenamine-an antagonist of histamine receptors. An effective dose will decrease the potency of histamine; however the same dose should not affect the Emax of histamine. Histamine when free of antagonist Emax was 100% while ED50 was 3.510-6M. However histamine when added to Chlorphenamine 1/ 10000 dilutions an Emax became 96% and an ED50 became 1.010-5M. This means that with the lesser dose of the antagonist the efficacy will be increased, while the potency will be decreased. The remarkable shift to the right confirms a decrease in potency with only a 4% variance in Emax. This is evidence that the effective and selective dose has shifted histamines Log-dose response curve to the right thus decreasing potency. Selective dose of Chlorphenamine Acetylcholine was in two different concentrations of Atropine. Chlorphenamine on its part does not result in the shift of the graph to the right. Additionaly this shift does not result in the reduction of potency. In addition, there was a small shift of the curves to the left with the addition of Chlorphenamine which may be due to re-sensitization. On the other hand as there is no shift to the right of the dose response curves with the addition of Chlorphenamine. It will be possible to realize that it is not antagonist towards Acetylcholine Effective and selective dose of Chlorphenamine on B2 The aim of experiment was to determine whether the effective and selective dose for Chlorphenamine was able to competitively antagonise the unknown drug B2. Results indicate three combinations; B2 only, B2with Chlorphenamine 1 in 10000 dilution, and B2with Chlorphenamine 1 in 5000 dilution. Consequently the display of Emax`s is 98%,92%, 100% and respectively.The respective ED50 values are 2.2 x10-6M, 1.010-5M, and 7.010-6M respectively. From the results it can be demonstrated that the effective and selective dose of Chlorphenamine did not have any considerable effect on the drug B2.This shows that B2 is not acting on the autocoid receptor H1. Mimicry of B2 with other muscurinic agonists Aims to study the mimicry effects of muscurinic agonists as wellas study parallel efficacy and potency of unknown drub B2. The mimicry data appears to express that B2 mimics Carbachol as it has a similar ED50 value. In essence, B2 gave ED50 90% and Emax 1.44 x 10^-6M while Carbachol was ED50 100% and Emax 1.00 x 10^-6M. That saids it is not enough proof to ascertain that B2 acts on receptors. The cholinergic antagonist Atropine was used because whenever it decreased the ED50 of B2 at the effective and selective dose then this would confirm the B2 acted upon cholinergic receptors. An affirmative result proved that B2 acted upon cholinergic receptors as the ED50 increased and the potency decreased. In order to confirm this, Chlorphenamine was used as a histaminergic antagonist. The effective and selective dose of Chlorphenamine had no antagonistic effect on B; it failed to reduce the potency. It means that B2 does not act upon histaminergic receptors. Thus it can be concluded that drug B2 acts upon cholinergic receptors Digestion by pseudo-cholinesterase/protection by physostigmine The effects of Acetylcholine explain that when presented alone a 100% response is guaranteed.. In another perspective, Acetylcholine by pseudo-esterase gave a 0% response. However with the addition of Acetycholine, esterase, and physostigmine 95% response was acquired. Basically it means that Acetycholine is prone to the digestion by Pseudo-Cholinesterase obtained from the horseà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s blood. Additionally it is protected from being digested by physostigmine. When carbachol was treated with both blood esterase and physostigmine each every response was almost identical yielding only a 10% discrepancy. Evidently is not in any way capable of being digested into blood esterase. As a result, physostigmine is not suitable to be used to block the digestive effects of the esterase. Other results (from graphs 1.5,1.6 and 1.7) indicate that B2 was indeed broken down by blood esterase suggesting that it is potentially digestible by the former. Indeed if blood esterase were to be added to drug B2 alone, esterase would immediately digest drug B2 reducing its reaction to approximately 0%. However when an indirect agonist such as physostigmine is used, drug B2 is capable will be able to produce a significant. One thing to note is that the blood esterase virtually broke down all of drug B2. Relevant indications appear to reveal that the concentration of drug B2 is slightly low. This explains the minimal response of drug B2 to blood esterase. Another substance that was broken down and digested by blood esterase was acetylcholine. Additionally, physostigmine effectively inhibited the effects of the blood esterase on both acetylcholine and drug B2. This result helps to explain the mimicry phenomenon; drug B2 mimics the procedures of acetycholine as well as acting upon the cholinergic receptors. By studying graph 1.8, there is revelation of the effects of histamine when treated with both blood esterase and physostigmine. From the data available it is evident that all four responses appear to be quite identical with only a 5-10% discrepancy. Graph 1.7, reveals that blood esterase does not digest histamine. This means that histamine would need physostigmine in order to block the digestive effects of the esterase. Potentiation From graph 1.9 it appears that physostigmine is acting as an indirect agonist towards Acetylcholine. This is because there is an obvious potentiation;the Emax leaped from 86.2% to 100% while at the same time the ED50 increased slightly with a shift left from 1.310^-7M to 3.010^-7M In graph 2.0 there is no potentiation of Emax or ED50. This helps to explain the fact that physostigmine does not work as an indirect agonist towards Carbachol. In essence the Emax for both trails are almost identical the same as for ED50 which runs very close Physostigmine raises thee Emax but fails to lower the ED50. It is manifested by the fact that physostigmine acts as an indirect agonistThere is increased level of Emax to B2 mainly due to re-sensitisation occuring through-out the experiment as well as biological variance of the tissue Summary The antagonist Atropine appears to act on the unknown B2 drug which is associated with bringing about competition for inhibition factors. The same case applies to B2 cholinergic agonist. In another analysis Chlorphenamine appears to lack proper antagonistic effect on B2. Again B2 fails to directly act on autocoid H1 receptors. From these findings it is evident that B2 is a Cholinergic Agonist. The fact that carabcol and histamine were not digested in blood esterase while acetylcholine got digested means that B2 is indded acetylcholine. The two attributes provides some of the unique agonistic properties of a pharmacological drugs.

Analysis of key Recruitment Documents :: Business and Management Studies

Analysis of key Recruitment Documents The two main recruitment documents at Sainsbury's are the job description and the person specification. A job description lists the main tasks required in a job. Sainsbury's have job descriptions for every job they have from the caretaker to the managing director. The job description describes two types of information: it describes the tasks of the job and it describes the behaviour necessary to actually do these tasks satisfactorily. In drawing up a job description the personnel department at Sainsbury's has a number of alternatives. These are: * The line manager can draw up a description of what the job entails * The existing job holder can do it * The Human Resources Manager can interview the job holder and the line manager to find out what the job involves. I It is better to combine these approaches. The list of tasks and the relative importance of each one, is vitally important for a number of reasons: * In carrying out appraisals of employees as the manager cannot appraise employees if the employees do not know what the job involves * When analysing the job for training needs the manager must be able to see what tasks a job involves so that s/he can determine ehat training may be required When Sainsbury's draft the job description, the main features are: * The job title * The location of the job * A brief outline of what Sainsbury's does * The main purpose of the job * A detailed list of the main tasks required in the job * Pay and other benefits * Promotion aspects Sainsbury's expect employees to more flexible and to do a wider range of work. The presentation of a job description is important and Sainsbury's job description is always neatly presented. A person specification sets out the qualities of an ideal candidate whereas a job description defines the duties and responsibilities of the job. It describes the characteristics and attributes which a person needs to be able to do the job to the required standards. A person specification is normally set out under these headings: * Physical make up- what should the job holder look and sound like * Achievements- what education, qualifications and experience does the applicant need * Specific skills- what special skills and talents are needed by the applicant * Interests- hobbies * Personality- what motivation and temperament and attitude should the applicant have * Personal circumstances- what personal and domestic arrangements might the ideal person have? The selection documents used at Sainsbury's have many advantages and

The Need for Employee Counseling Essays -- Business Management Studies

The Need for Employee Counseling Employees are the most valuable asset the company has. Without employees the company is just bricks and walls and pieces of iron and steel. Employees are the ones that bring the place alive, they cause the activity and they are responsible for output. Though today all of us have been influenced by the age of information technology and automation, there is no company that can claim that it can make it on its own without employees. In fact today more than ever it is necessary for organizations to realize that an employee is very valuable and losing an employee is a resource lost. Having said as much, we see that in actual practice dealing with employees at times is the worst nightmare of any manager. Employee Relations is gaining momentum as time goes by but there is no one scientific formula that takes care of all. This is because each organization is different as is each employee. The problems that arise can generically be attributed to the following reasons:  ¤ Poor employee relations  ¤ Absence of employee counseling  ¤ Poor or no employee coaching The focus of this report is on these three functional areas and each will be discussed separately. Employee Relations The Importance of Employee Relations Working with employees requires an understanding of what actually makes the employee function. Satisfying monetary needs does not have a long lasting impact. Employees need to be kept informed and must be provided with an opportunity to raise suggestions and voice their complains. Otherwise employees are bound to feel dissatisfied and alienated. The Employee Relations (ER) department basically takes care of the company's communication program, its Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and its employee recognition program. Effective employee management is the key to having favorable employee relations, which in turn is necessary for retaining talented and productive employees. Common deficiencies and hindrances in the way of effective employee relations For most part, managers say that they hate managing people and it’s the most difficult part of their job. This is because; a) they have not received formal training on how to manage people b) they get little or no support from employee relations and human resource people. Most managers look at Human Resource (HR) and ER for help. However HR in most organizations is th... ... employees otherwise it will be difficult to grow. Difficult people are necessary as they help us remain on our toes and bring to the work environment the dynamism that is necessary. Bibliography Peterson, Bert "Role of Employee Relations Today." www.cableone.net, pp.1-5. Peterson, Bert "Fear- A Management Style." www.cableone.net, pp.1-4. Peyser, Randy "The Necessity of Difficult People." Exploration Hall, www.balancinglife.com, pp.1-2. Cairnes, Margot "Building self-confidence should be strategic priority." www.hr-info.com, pp.1-2. "Employee Assistance Program; Counselling Service." www.benefits.org, pp.1-3. "Counseling Service." www.balancinglife.com, pp.1-2. "The Layperson's Guide to Counselor Ethics: What You Should Know About the Ethical Practice of Professional Counselors." www.counseling.org, pp.1-2. "7 Ways To Beat The Blues." www.hurstplace.com, pp.1 Atkinson, William "Wellness, Employee Assistance Programs: Investments, Not Costs." www.findarticles.com, pp.1-6 Farr, John "Problem Employees: How do managers decide how and when to deal with poor employee performance?" www.findarticles.com, pp.1-7 "The Future of Electronic Counselling." www.bac.co.uk, pp.1-2

Why I Deserve a Raise

Persuade your employer that you need a raise One of the most important things of my life right now is my job because without a job I can’t take care of my family. I am someone who works with you to achieve your vision and company goals – while at the same time have the confidence to make suggestions on improvements and better ways to do things. I am loyal, a good communicator, great with customers, good phone manner, flexible and committed to get the job done. I understand that you are human and from time to time will lose it, make mistakes and have a bad day – but I know not to take it personally as you will back me to the hilt.I don't abuse your generosity and you know you can trust me. I am honest, flexible and focused. I think I have shown nothing but dedication to this job since I’ve been employed by this company. I think I have shown this by doing every job that you have asked me to do. I’ve never grumbled or complained about anything you aske d me to do even if at times I feel that it was irrelevant. Even though we have a great personal relationship I still respect your authority, because I’m a firm believer that you can’t mix business and pleasure. I think I add value to this company and I bring excellent quality to this job.I go beyond the requirements of my job description. I act on my own initiative and make improvements in the day to day work of the organization. No the changes are not earth-shattering, but simple changes which increase efficiency or save money or time makes a big difference to our company. I am someone with passion, who takes ownership,   and always acts in the best interests of this company and its stakeholders. I have never been late for work and although I have a big family at home waiting for me I will stay over whenever I’m needed.I think I am exceptionally good at my job. I am very enthused about my job, I enjoy my job and I am motivated to get the results that you are looking for. I’m the type of person that doesn’t mind you delegating jobs to me. If I’m at the job I want to work, so I stay busy. Most of the time you don’t have to tell me to do something, If I see it need doing I do it. I also catch on very fast so whatever you tell me to do all you have to do is show me one time how to do it and I will do from then on. When you tell me to do something specifically, I make sure that I get to it.I prioritize and do what’s most important first. I think I show a great deal of leadership qualities. Showing these qualities cannot be done without working well with others and having a positive attitude. I am friendly and I always make an effort to get along with my co-workers. Even if there are people in the place of employment where I don’t get along with I keep my personal feelings to myself. I respect my co-workers as individuals with unique ideas. I can take constructive criticism from anybody if it helps ge t the job done.I tell the truth even when the news is bad. I have never argued with you or any of my co-workers. I believe in agreeing to disagree and respecting everyone’s opinion. I am a team player, pleasant and respectful towards everyone I encounter. Having great attendance and being on time shows that I have many other great personal attributes such as showing leadership qualities, and working hard. When I am given a task, I do a good job and see the task through to completion. I am responsible for my own actions and the work that I produce.I am always the first one on the job and the last one to leave, because I believe in being prepared, not getting there at the last minute in case there is a problem that needs to be resolved. A lot of other workers come in late or right on time that will not give them time to handle a situation if one occurs. I also always try to schedule my personal matters such as my doctor’s appointments after office hours. I think Iâ€℠¢m obligated to give my all into my job and nothing should come between that. I keep the customer first. Anything that I can do to please the customer that’s what I will do.I am grateful for the opportunity to work for your company and I enjoy doing so. I hope you agree that in the 5 years I have worked for you, I’ve become an integral member of your team and accomplished many company goals. However I am still working on the initial salary on which we agreed upon 5 years ago. As I recall we also agreed to renegotiate my salary after five years based on my accomplishments and that time has come. In light of my accomplishments and as per our agreement, I’m respectfully requesting an immediate pay raise of 6 percent and as stated earlier I feel that I am eligible for this raise.

Marrying Absurd

Joan Didion’s essay entitled â€Å"Marrying Absurd† tells about how marriages in Las Vegas are conducted. She narrated that Las Vegas weddings can be celebrated anytime the couple wishes to have it.   All that one need is for the bride to be eighteen years old, the groom to be twenty one and a five dollar for the license. Joan Didion describes how the Las Vegas weddings have taken away the essence of what a marriage is. That marriage is a sacrament which should be taken seriously and solemnly. Holy Matrimony is a sacred rite.   It is a special event because it holds a special meaning to the bride and groom.   It conveys that one gives herself totally to one person for purposes of creating a family. It represents love and honor.   It regards husband and wife as symbols of the nuptial of Christ and his church.   It is a contractual bond for eternity. It is not simply saying I will love you for only one and a half year and be married to you only within that time.   Marriage is the communion of two families as well.   It is not simply you and me.   It includes extended families of your in-laws, their friends and relations. Hence, it is a major decision to take on, which should be thought over many times and not simply at the spur of the moment. Joan Didion’s description of Las Vegas as a place for immediate gratification is true. Everywhere temptations abound.   It takes a lot of self-discipline not to be lured into enticing distractions. My idea of marriage is traditional.   One, where marriage preparations will be painstakingly made, the service well thought of, the invites well chosen, and the entire entourage – will be those people that have in one way or another affected my life.   I do not choose to be part of a 3-minute Las Vegas wedding where the ceremony seems like a task to get done as easily as one can; where the solemnity of the marriage vows are disregarded.   Marriage in Las Vegas gives the impression that the marriage bond will break as swiftly as it was solemnized. Las Vegas, a city that never sleeps, has spoiled and dishonored the sacrament of Holy Matrimony.   I wonder how many broken families these five dollar ceremony have produced.   It is a pity that despite the great number of people wanting to get married, divorce equals the number.   A marriage not well thought  of, entered into hastily, for the wrong reasons, is doomed from the very start.   These Las Vegas weddings have stripped the people of the true essence of marriage and have taught them that marriage is not at all a respectable ceremony. These Las Vegas marriages are tasteless and cheap and should be denounced. Read also: â€Å"My Ideal Wife† BIBILIOGRAPHY JOAN DIDION.      

Junior Cert Study

[email  protected] com www. cyclonerepertory. com Romeo and Juliet Session Themes & Topics 1 – Shakespeare’s Main Source: Arthur Brooke’s 3020 line narrative poem â€Å"The Tragicall Historye of Romeus and Juliet† (first published in 1562). Brooke was reported to have translated it from an Italian novella â€Å"Giulietta e Romeo†, a novella by the Italian author Matteo Bandello, written in 1554. The poem's ending differs significantly from Shakespeare's play: the nurse is banished, the apothecary is hanged for his involvement in the deception while Friar Laurence leaves Verona to live in a hermitage until he dies.Another notable plot difference is that the story takes place over nine months while Shakespeare’s version takes place over 5 days. A key theme of Brooke’s epic poem which permeates Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is: 2 – Love as a Religious Experience (or Love as a Form of Religious Worship). This idea of love is based on medieval courtly love poetry and was a strong influence on Brooke’s version of Romeo and Juliet. Love in this sense is not just lust but is tempered by patience, romance, spirituality and heroism. The language used in this poetry was full of religious references.This idea of love was borrowed by Shakespeare in his version of the tale. Here are a few examples which reflect this theme: â€Å"If I profane with my unworthiest hand this holy shrine† Romeo, Act I Scene 5 â€Å"Call me but love and I’ll be new baptized. † Juliet, Act II Scene 2 â€Å"Swear by the gracious self, which is the god of my idolatry. † Juliet, Act II Scene 2 This theme of love as religious worship demonstrates the young couple’s passion and devotion to one another. This return of affection from Juliet inflames the young Romeo as opposed to his advances towards the â€Å"unfeeling† Rosaline which were not reciprocated. – Synopsis of the Play: The extract below is the synopsis as staged in â€Å"The Romeo and Juliet Session†: Day 1, Sunday: The star crossed lovers meet and fall in love. Day 2, Monday: They secretly marry in Friar Lawrence’s cell. Later, Romeo gets in a brawl with Tybalt and his best friend, Mercutio, is killed . Taking revenge, Romeo in turn kills Tybalt. For this murderous act The Prince banishes him. But before fleeing to Mantua Romeo has a passionate night with his new bride. Day 3, Tuesday: Mr. & Mrs. Capulet brutally force the rebellious Juliet to marry Paris.A now desperate Juliet runs to Friar Lawrence begging for help. He gives her a potion that induces a death-like state. Later that day Capulet moves the day of the wedding from Thursday to Wednesday. Day 4, Wednesday: The nurse finds Juliet â€Å"dead†. The wedding preparations now become funeral preparations. Romeo hears of Juliet’s death and makes the journey to Verona. Day 5, Thursday: Romeo arrives in Capulet’s tomb and takes his own life just before Juliet awakes. Seeing her dead lover by her side, the young Juliet takes Romeo’s knife and ends it. – Benvolio, Romeo & Mercutio: The function of Benvolio’s character is to provide a peaceful, passive personality in contrast to the lively and aggressive Mercutio. This is important as both characters have a significant influence on the young Romeo. Our hero demonstrates aspects of both characters at various points throughout the play. Benvolio’s character foretells an end to the feud. He is only member of Romeo’s generation to survive by the end of the play. We also know that Benvolio is trustworthy. After Mercutio has been slain, Benvolio recounts the events accurately and fairly to the Prince.Even though he belongs to one of the families in the feud, the Prince does not see it necessary to doubt his word, further proving his sincerity and earnestness. It might prove useful to think of the characters of Romeo , Mercutio and Benvolio as three brothers: Mercutio is the aggressive, jaded and, sometimes, mean eldest, Romeo is the youngest and most spoilt as he’s allowed to indulge his feelings and cries a lot and Benvolio, the middle child, is a good mediator as he helps to dissolve tensions between the two (as middle children often do in real life).However, in our Romeo and Juliet Session, the actor’s confusion over how to play Benvolio is also a devised conflict point between the actor and Shakespeare which acts as a bridge to discuss: 5 – Elizabethan Attitudes to Homosexuality: Freedom of choice, in this sense, was not allowed in Shakespeare’s day. Acceptance of Homosexuality as has been happening in today’s Western society was non-existent, at least publicly. If such attitudes were expressed in public then it could have serious repercussions as it went against acceptable norms of society.Practice of homosexuality was often punishable by death. 6  œ Lack of Female Performers: In Shakespeare’s day women were not allowed onstage, in fact it was illegal. Their place was in the home. Every female character in those days was performed by men. In this play for example, teenage boys would play the role of Juliet, and older (generally burly and heavy) men, would play the Nurse. It’s interesting to notice that the character of the pantomime Dame, can be traced back to this type of roles. Women we only allowed on stage after 1660 (many years after Shakespeare death). – Mercutio’s Queen Mab Speech: What’s the point of this monologue? Most productions of this play cut it out. Mercutio’s cynical take on love serves as a counterpoint to Romeo’s wistful one. Mercutio is warning Romeo that love is a trap that comes with many pitfalls and burdensome obligations. In addition to this Shakespeare seems to have been making a bit of a pun with the name Queen Mab. Traditionally, Queen Mab is known as the queen of the fairies. But in his time the words â€Å"quean† and â€Å"mab† were also references to whores. Ultimately, Mercutio is trying to deflate Romeo’s illusion of love.Ergo: life is not a lover’s fairytale. 8 – Medieval Tragedy: A common plot device in Medieval Tragedy is that of unseen, hostile forces determining the destiny of the lovers. Shakespeare uses this concept in the play. When Romeo says, â€Å"†¦expire the term of a despised life clos’d in my breast† (Act I Scene 4) he is foretelling his own death. This is not because he wants to die but more because he feels that it is in his fate. That’s the reason why Shakespeare call them â€Å"star crossed lovers† in the Prologue to the play: their fate’s written in the stars.But they’re ill-fated too: conspiring against them are events, coincidences and accidents. For example: 1. Romeo’s bad timing in arriving too early to Julietâ⠂¬â„¢s tomb. 2. Romeo not getting Friar Laurence’s letter explaining his scheme of Juliet’s pretended death. 3. The dark shadow of the feud influences the secretive actions of the hasty lovers. This hastiness is a tragic flaw that both characters share and it plays its part in the tragedy. In Juliet’s own words: â€Å"Too rash, too unadvised, too sudden. † (Act II Scene 2) In fact, Romeo and Juliet are fated to die.This tragic device of impending doom was meant to make the audience pity the young and innocent lovers. In Romeo’s own words: â€Å"I am fortune’s fool†. (Act III Scene 1) 9 – Love vs. Lust: Is Romeo really in love with Juliet or is he just a boy with a strong libido? Wasn’t he hopelessly in love with Rosaline before? In his own words: â€Å"The all seeing sun ne’er saw her match since first the world begun. † (Act I Scene 2). Romeo was gutted after Rosaline rejected him. If Juliet rejected him, would he have just found someone new, pined longer for Juliet, returned to Rosaline or do something else?Would it be fair to say that Romeo is in love with the idea of being in love? If we take the side of the argument that Romeo is really in love this time, then this harks back to the theme of Love as a Religious Experience. Romeo and Juliet’s relationship is spiritual, heroic & romantic but it also contains lust, as in any romantic relationship. The world of Romeo and Juliet’s love is so all-consuming that, to quote John Donne, â€Å"Nothing else is†. (The Sun Rising, Stanza 3). This disregard for the outside world is the beauty of their pure love and the reason for their downfall.This meeting of these two soul mates has awoken them to a new world of feeling and passion that goes beyond anything they’ve ever known before. 10 – Conflict: All the conflicts in the play are a result of the feud between the Montagues and Capulets which we are told in the play was â€Å"Bred of an airy word† (Prince, Act I Scene 1). No one seems to know what started it in the first place. All we know is that the family’s of the Capulets and Montagues have born a grudge for a long period of time, passing on the hatred from one generation to the next, and they’re not even sure why.However, the feud between the families has an historic basis. The period referred to in the play is between 1269 & 1387. This was a time when Verona was split between competing noble families. Italians at that time were divided. Some of them favoured a government ruled by the German emperor while others were part of a congress of city-states under the moral leadership of the Pope in Rome. So noble Families would often fight over the political high ground. But what’s most important in this play is how the feud affects the young lovers and other characters.The feud is responsible for the fiery Tybalt seeking out Romeo for daring to show his face at the Capulet’s ball, it’s responsible for the lovers secret marriage, Mercutio’s and Tybalt's murders, Romeo’s banishment and the Friar’s scheme which eventually leads to Romeo and Juliet’s death. 11 – Realism vs. Telling the story: There are inconsistencies in the play: No one question why the young, 14 your old Juliet just suddenly dies. The vial of potion by her side is never found. Rosaline, was a Capulet too, a cousin of Juliet. But the feud between the families was never addressed in that case.Was Shakespeare unaware of these inconsistencies? Why were they not addressed? This has a lot to do with how writing has changed over the years. Realism as we know it was an invention of the novels of the XVIII & XIX centuries. In Shakespeare’s day there wasn’t an interest in depicting everyday life. Therefore consistency wasn’t as important as telling a story. Famous and quotes from Romeo and Juliet: Below are some quotes that you may find useful to quote in your exams. â€Å"A pair of star-crossed lovers†. Prologue â€Å"One fairer than my love? The all-seeing sunNe'er saw her match since first the world begun†, Romeo, Act I, scene 2 â€Å"O! she doth teach the torches to burn bright†, Romeo, Act I, scene 5 â€Å"Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! For I ne'er saw true beauty till this night†, Romeo, Act I, scene 5 â€Å"My only love sprung from my only hate! Too early seen unknown, and known too late! † Juliet, Act 1, scene 5 â€Å"O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo? † Juliet, Act II, scene 2 â€Å"O, swear not by the moon, the inconstant moon, That monthly changes in her circled orb, Lest that thy love prove likewise variable. Juliet, Act II, scene 2 â€Å"Good Night, Good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow. † Juliet, Act II, scene 2 â€Å"What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. † Juliet, Act II, scene 2 â€Å"Wisely and slow; they stumble that run fast,† Friar Laurence, Act II, scene 3 â€Å"Men's eyes were made to look, and let them gaze. † Mercutio, Act III, scene 1 â€Å"A plague o' both your houses! † Mercutio, Act III, scene 1 â€Å"O, I am Fortune's fool! † Romeo, Act III, scene 1 â€Å"Give me my Romeo; and, when he shall die,Take him and cut him out in little stars, And he will make the face of heaven so fine That all the world will be in love with night, And pay no worship to the garish sun. † Juliet, Act III, scene 2 â€Å"Then I defy you, stars! † Romeo, Act V, scene 1 â€Å"For never was a story of more woe Than this of Juliet and her Romeo. † Prince, Act 5, scene 3 Shakespeare’s Contribution to the English Language Shakespeare is credited by the Oxford English Dictionary with the introduction of nearly 3,000 worlds into the language. I t doesn’t mean that he created them all but that his works were the earliest citation.Below is small list of words and phrases from Shakespeare’s plays. Many widely used today: Words: †¢ Accommodation †¢ Amazement †¢ Apostrophe †¢ Assassination †¢ Auspicious †¢ Bloody †¢ Bump †¢ Courtship †¢ Critic †¢ Critical †¢ Dwindle †¢ Exposure †¢ Frugal †¢ Generous †¢ Gloomy †¢ Hurry †¢ Invulnerable †¢ Laughable †¢ Lonely †¢ Majestic †¢ Misplaced †¢ Monumental †¢ Multitudinous †¢ Obscene †¢ Pious †¢ Premeditated †¢ Radiance †¢ Road †¢ Sanctimonious †¢ Sportive †¢ Suspicious Phrases: †¢ all that glitters isn't gold †¢ as dead as a doornail †¢ break the ice †¢ catch a cold †¢ clothes make the man †¢ disgraceful conduct eaten out of house and home †¢ elbowroom †¢ fair play †¢ foregone c onclusion †¢ heart of gold †¢ heartsick †¢ hot-blooded †¢ housekeeping †¢ in a pickle †¢ in stitches †¢ in the twinkling of an eye †¢ it's Greek to me †¢ lackluster †¢ laughing stock †¢ leapfrog †¢ long-haired †¢ method in his madness †¢ mind's eye †¢ mum’s the word †¢ naked truth †¢ neither a borrower nor a lender be †¢ neither here nor there †¢ send him packing †¢ set your teeth on edge †¢ sorry sight †¢ to be or not to be †¢ to thine own self be true †¢ too much of a good thing †¢ vanish into thin air †¢ wear one's heart on one's sleeve [pic] [pic] [pic]