Chapter 5 Case Solutions

CHAPTER 5:ACCOUNTING FOR GENERAL CAPITAL ASSETS AND CAPITAL PROJECTS OUTLINE NumberTopicType/TaskStatus (re: 13/e) Questions: 5-1Distinguishing general capital assets from fund capital assetsDescribeNew 5-2Capital asset disclosuresExplainNew 5-3Modified approach for infrastructureDescribeNew 5-4Capital lease accountingDescribe5-8 revised 5-5Asset impairmentExplainNew 5-6Use of capital projects fundsExplain5-4 revised 5-7EncumbrancesExplainSame 5-8Construction work in progressExplainNew 5-9Multiple capital projectsExplainSame 5-10Special assessment capital projectsExplainNew Cases: 5-1Modified approach for infrastructure assetsEvaluate, write5-2 5-2Options for financing public infrastructureEvaluate, explainNew 5-3Political versus economic factors in financing capital improvementsEvaluate, explain5-1 retitled Exercises/Problems: 5-1Examine the CAFRExamine5-1 revised 5-2VariousMultiple Choice5-2 revised 5-3General capital assetsJournal EntriesSame 5-4Capital asset disclosure statementF inancial Statement5-4 revised 5-5Lease classification and accountingCalculate; JEsNew -6Asset impairmentJEs; ReportingNew 5-7Special assessment financingJEs and Explain5-6 revised 5-8Statement of revenues and expendituresCompute; FS5-5 5-9Construction fundJEs & FS5-7 revised 5-10Capital project transactionsJEs & FS5-8 revised CHAPTER 5:ACCOUNTING FOR GENERAL CAPITAL ASSETS AND CAPITAL PROJECTS Answers to Questions 5-1. General capital assets are those that are acquired with the resources of governmental funds and that are reported only in the Governmental Activities column of the government-wide financial statements.Capital assets acquired with the resources of proprietary or fiduciary funds are reported in the financial statements of those funds, as well as in the Business-type Activities column of the government-wide financial statements for enterprise fund capital assets. 5-2. Capital asset disclosures required by the GASB are quite well illustrated by the City and County of Denv er’s capital asset disclosures shown in Illustration 5-2.In brief, the disclosures should include policies for capitalizing assets and for estimating the useful lives of depreciable assets. In addition, the disclosures should include: (1) beginning-of-year and end-of-year balances showing accumulated depreciation separate from historical cost, (2) capital acquisitions during the year, (3) sales or other dispositions during the year, (4) depreciation expense showing amounts charged to each function in the statement of activities, and (5) disclosures regarding collections of art or historical treasures. -3. The modified approach permits a government an alternative to depreciation of certain eligible infrastructure assets. Eligible assets are parts of major networks of infrastructure assets or subsystems of networks, where a network might be a highway system, for example. If the government meets two requirements it can avoid reporting depreciation on its eligible infrastructure assets.The two requirements are: (1) management of eligible infrastructure assets using a management system that includes an up-to-date inventory of eligible assets, condition assessments and results using a measurement scale, and estimates of annual costs to maintain assets at the established and disclosed condition level, and (2) documentation that the assets are being preserved at or above the established condition level. If the government fails to maintain the assets at or above the established condition level, it must revert to reporting depreciation for its nfrastructure assets and discontinue use of the modified approach. 5-4. If the lease meets one or more of the FASB SFAS 13 criteria for a capital lease, as discussed in this chapter, the lease must be reported as a capital lease. If the lease is deemed to be a capital lease, the governmental fund journal entry on the date of inception will include a debit to Expenditures and a Credit to Other Financing Sources—Capita l Lease Agreements.The journal entry at the government-wide level will be the same as that used in business accounting—a debit to Equipment and a credit to Capital Lease Obligations Payable. Ch. 5, Answers (Cont’d) 5-5. Disagree. GASBS 42 requires the government to assess assets for which value might have become impaired. If impairment is judged to have occurred, then the amount of impairment loss must be estimated using one of the approaches described in GASBS 42. The amount of loss will be recorded as an expense of the appropriate function or program and as a reduction in the carrying value of the asset. -6. The use of a capital projects fund is usually required for major construction projects requiring large amounts of financing. The use of a capital projects fund may also be useful for purchases of high-cost items such as acquisitions of land, buildings, and high-cost equipment. A capital projects fund must also be used whenever required by law or grant provisions. 5-7. To facilitate preparation of financial statements at the end of the fiscal year, all operating and budgetary accounts should be closed, including Encumbrances.However, since the project is still underway and contractual commitments still exist to pay contractors when billed, it is essential that Encumbrances be reestablished at the beginning of the next year in order to maintain budgetary control over outstanding commitments. 5-8. All ordinary and necessary costs to construct the asset are appropriately reported as construction work in progress. This includes all legal costs, engineering and architectural services, site preparation, materials used, and billings from contractors, among other items.Interest incurred during construction is not capitalized for general capital assets, however. Construction Work in Progress is found in the ledger for governmental activities at the government-wide level for general capital assets, and not in the ledger for the capital projects fund. In the capital projects fund, all capitalizable items are debited to Construction Expenditures. 5-9. For a multiple-projects fund, encumbrances and construction expenditures should be identified in a manner that will indicate to which project each applies.This can be accomplished by adding a project identifier to the Encumbrances and Construction Expenditures accounts, such as Encumbrances? Street Project or Construction Expenditures? Project No. 10. Identifying encumbrances and expenditures by project facilitates comparisons to budget for particular projects and presentation of cash and expenditure statements for multi-project operations. For example, the City of Smithville Continuous Computerized Problem that accompanies this text has two capital projects funds named the Springer Street Project and the Alzmann Street Project. 5-10.Capital projects fund accounting for special assessments is virtually identical in both of these situations. The only difference is that the credit entr y for issuance of special assessment bonds is to Other Financing Sources—Contribution from Property Owners if the government assumes no responsibility for the debt, rather than to Other Financing Sources—Proceeds of Special Assessment Bonds with Governmental Commitment. Solutions to Cases 5-1. a. Discuss with students various methods of obtaining financial statements and getting â€Å"benchmark† data to make comparisons across entities.Professional associations such as the Government Finance Officers Association, National Association of State Auditors, Controllers and Treasurers, and Association of School Business Officials publish â€Å"best practices† for various areas of public finance, accounting, and financial reporting. Since each student will have a different list of cities, ask them to compare their results with other students and look for patterns in which types and sizes of governments make similar choices in accounting methods, particularly, in this case, regarding choice of infrastructure asset accounting methods. . An important communication skill for students to master is to convey technical financial accounting information in an effective way so that decision makers find the information useful for making informed decisions. You may wish to ask students to show their memo or essay to a finance director of a city and get their opinion about whether the student has captured the fundamental issues relating to infrastructure and communicated it in a professional and informative manner. c.During the implementation years of GASBS 34, the GFOA and some state auditors released policy statements indicating to governments that they did not have to capitalize infrastructure assets to meet minimum standards for the GFOA’s Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting or the states’ reporting compliance regulations. Despite such statements, most governments that sought a â€Å"clean† audit op inion voluntarily developed inventories of infrastructure and followed GAAP for infrastructure reporting.For most general purpose governments, omitting infrastructure assets would cause their statement of net assets to be materially misstated resulting in a qualified or adverse audit opinion—likely the latter. A government receiving an adverse audit opinion may experience a downgrading of its bond rating and thus face considerably higher cost of borrowing. 5-2a. Option (1), the sales tax approach, offers the advantage of spreading the burden for infrastructure improvements across a larger number of taxpayers, including many non-residents who visit or shop in Desert City.From an equity standpoint, the sales tax approach has appeal because infrastructure improvements enhance the city for visitors and shoppers, as well as for residents. Disadvantages of this approach are the necessity of scheduling and conducting a special election and the political risk of advocating for a tax increase. Option (2), the development fee approach, has the advantage of being relatively â€Å"invisible† to the public and efficient to administer since the number of developers will be relatively small.Although real estate developers can be expected to pass the development fee to new homeowners and businesses, property values may be increased by enhanced infrastructure (e. g. , improved streets and highways, adequate storm drainage, and so forth). As a result, taxpayers may recoup a portion of the development fee. The main disadvantage is the potential inequity of the development Ch. 5, Solutions, Case 5-2 (Cont’d) fee since a relatively high financial burden is imposed on new homeowners and new businesses for infrastructure expansion and improvement that may substantially benefit the entire city.A city council member may prefer the development fee approach since it holds less political risk than asking residents to approve a tax increase. The city manager may prefe r the sales tax approach as retail sales may be less volatile than new construction, which can be strongly impacted by the local, regional, and national economies. Since the city manager is responsible for ensuring that infrastructure stays abreast of population and new development, he or she may prefer a more stable source of infrastructure financing.Current homeowners and businesses might be expected to prefer the development fee approach since those fees would not directly impact on their property and would place the incidence of the tax on others. It would be surprising if new homeowners or new businesses favored the development fee approach as they would probably view it as inequitable. b. Accounting and financial reporting would be minimally impacted by which option is ultimately chosen. Either way, there is revenue to be recognized in a capital projects fund (a tax in one case and development fee in the other).Accounting for infrastructure construction would not be affected b y the source of financing. 5-3. a. Regardless of how a student voted, he or she had plenty of company. With a record voter turnout for such an election, the half-cent sales tax was barely approved. Only 51. 7 percent of the voters in Brown County voted for the tax. As expected, 56. 5 percent of the voters in the City of Brownville voted against it. Except for a few precincts in other cities and towns, voters outside Brownville voted overwhelmingly in support of the tax.While there is no â€Å"right† answer to this question, each student should have provided a rationale similar to one of the arguments provided in the case. A few students may develop unique arguments in support of their vote. Generally, the students who voted for the proposed tax must have thought the county-wide benefits of improved roads and bridges were worth the extra tax costs and outweighed the possible detrimental effects on the City's financial flexibility.Those who voted against it presumably did so us ing the rationale expressed by some voters in exit polls, â€Å"why should I pay more for roads that will benefit rural county residents more than me. † b. Although some students may profess an altruistic motivation for their vote, most are expected to reflect economic rationality. That is, they would likely vote for the sales tax increase if they were an owner of a large commercial or manufacturing property, and would therefore realize a net economic benefit from the property tax rollback and sales tax increase.Even then some students may justify the â€Å"yes† vote on the basis of the county-wide benefits of improved infrastructure rather than their financial self-interest. Ch. 5, Solutions, Case 5-3 (Cont’d) c. Again, there is no right answer to this question. Students (Brownville voters) who voted against the tax probably would argue that residents who primarily benefit should pay for the improvements (i. e. , special assessment financing should have been us ed). Those who voted for the tax probably would argue that the broader (county-wide) economic benefits of improved county infrastructure justifies inancial support by all county residents. Some who voted for the tax may have preferred special assessment financing but possibly feared that failure to approve the sales tax would doom the needed improvements altogether. d. The County's procedures for accounting for the financing and the capital projects activities will differ slightly for the option approved by the voters compared with those that would have been used if special assessment financing had been used.But, as explained in Chapter 5, the procedures for accounting for special assessment-financed capital projects are quite similar to those for other capital projects, especially when, as is often the case, the government is committed in some manner for repaying debt issued for the project. Since bond financing is typically used for special assessment capital projects, accounting for both special assessment taxes and debt service would have been required for an extended period, probably ten years or more.Whether these differences would be termed â€Å"significant† accounting issues is a matter of conjecture; they might be considered significant by the financial staff of the County. Solutions to Exercises and Problems 5-1. Each student will have a different annual report, so he or she will have different answers to questions in this exercise. The various kinds of capital assets and capital projects, wide variety of financing mechanisms, and different accounting policies used in and by governments should generate interesting classroom discussions. 5-2. 1. a. 6. c. 2. d. 7. d. 3. c. 8. c. 4. a 9. a. 5. b. 10. c.

Humanitarian Intervention in Iraq Essay

In March of 2003 the United States of America invaded the Middle Eastern nation of Iraq. Under many pretenses, the stage was being set for this invasion, one reason calling for the invasion was that Bush administration and its officials assured the world that the Hussein regime was producing weapons of mass destruction or WMD’s, which would pose a huge security threat to all the nations around the world. Another being the fact that Hussein supported the group responsible for the attacks on our country on September 11th 2001, which angered plenty of Americans and seemingly justified violence to be used. And also the fact that Hussein needed to be removed from power as he was a brutal dictator who was committing egregious acts of violence against his own people. Therefore a humanitarian intervention would be called for using militaristic means. The administration under President Bush pushed the idea on the American people and the world that Iraq would be a better place without H ussein in control, also making the world a safer place. This war has cost the lives of approximately 600,000 Iraqis and 3,163 American soldiers, not to mention other soldiers from other nations involved in the conflict. The actions leading up to the subsequent invasion and occupation affected Iraq negatively and caused consequences that harmed all of Iraqi society, mainly innocent people. The way the world dealt with Saddam Hussein wasn’t proper nor in the best interests going forward for the Iraqi people and the citizens of the world based on many factors. Years before boots were even on the ground in Iraq, the world had taken extreme steps to curb Iraqi aggression, most notably beginning in 1990 when Iraq invaded its neighbor Kuwait in August. There were many reasons why Iraq may have invaded Kuwait. Some say that it was because Kuwait was stealing Iraqi oil and even the fact that Iraq owed Kuwait large sums of money after the Iran-Iraq war. But one of the very first steps that were taken was that the United Nations (UN) became heavily involved. The UN includes the UN Security Council (UNSC) which is the group that has control over UN military force and is in charge of implementing resoluti ons against regimes that may be breaking international law. The first resolution put in place against Iraq was UNSC 678, which was implemented just a few days after the Iraqi Revolutionary Guard invaded the country. UNSC 678 â€Å"authorized force against Iraq, to eject it from Kuwait and to restore peace and security in the area.† This action was ordered through all necessary means including use of the military. This was known as the Gulf War, but UNSC 678 only applied to the actions taken in 1990 through 1993 and does not include the intervention in 2003 by American and coalition forces. Next was UNSC resolution 1154, passed in 1998 and which mandated that Iraq was not allowed to be in possession or manufacture chemical, biological, or nuclear weaponry. This resolution also stated that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and its inspectors were required to inspect Iraq’s suspected nuclear and weapons manufacturing facilities. Iraq did not completely comply with the resolution because they did not allow unrestricted access with what the IAEA inspectors wanted to see. This was seen as a shady move to much of the world and as if the Hussein regime had something to hide. A final warning to Iraq was issued in 2002 in UNSC resolution 1441, which was the last warning to the Hussein regime to comply with the demands of the previous UNSC resolutions and limit their weapons capabilities. In Alex Conte’s book, Operation Iraqi Freedom he states that, â€Å"Resolutions 678, 687, 1441, and 1154 do not legitimize use of force in Iraq† (Conte 139-162). There are only a select few instances in which the UNSC authorizes the use of force, one being if the expression â€Å"all necessary means and measures† is used in the resolution or if a member state of the UN is granted a mandate for action in another state and it is approved by the UNSC. Wording for many of these resolutions was very controversial be tween representatives of various nation states on the UNSC, regarding what powers one could legally take. But overall none of these UNSC resolutions approved of any military action to be taken in Iraq humanitarian or not in 2003; so in other words, all of the military actions that were taken were not legal in any form and against international law. The economic sanctions against Iraq also heavily affected the country before it was invaded by the coalition forces in 2003. â€Å"Iraq’s devastation is not primarily the result of American bombing†¦but the economic crisis that befell the country before the first shot was fired† (Rieff 185). The sanctions placed on Iraq were intended to hurt the Hussein regime, but in fact they just hurt the people under Hussein’s rule and put the entire Iraqi economy into terrible condition. The sanctions were a response to Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990 and reportedly used as a deterrent to Hussein’s aggression in the area, but the people hurt most by the sanctions were innocent Iraqis. â€Å"From 1991 until 2003 t he effects of government policy and the sanctions led to hyperinflation, widespread poverty, and malnutrition† (Dodge 706). This goes to show the negative effects that the sanctions had on the citizens of Iraq. Also mentioned in Rieff’s book, Democratic Dreams and Armed Intervention: At the Point of a Gun, is the fact that daily life was getting harder for Iraqis and their ability to receive the same goods as they had before the sanctions diminished drastically; â€Å"Before the sanctions Iraq imported 70% of its food, medicine, and chemicals, UNSC resolution 661 stopped all of that† (Rieff 187). These facts made the Iraqi citizens hate the crippling sanctions that were being placed on them because of the aggression of just their dictatorial leader. Many scholars believe that the sanctions made life already under a brutal dictator even more constrained and restrictive. Iraq before the sanctions was a very strong welfare state just like many of the oil rich nations of the Middle East which gave pensions to their citizens based on oil income, about â€Å"40% of Iraqi households were dependent on government payment† (Dodge 709). But because of the sanctions that same forty percent had to find other ways to receive income in a worsening economy. Many citizens such as Khaled Afra, a student opposed the sanctions just as they opposed the rule of Hussein, â€Å"Saddam was a criminal, the biggest. But the sanctions were also criminal†¦ You see the sanctions really crushed our dreams – not my personal dreams only, but those of my Iraqi people, all of us† (Rieff 193). Hussein did use the sanctions to his advantage though; he used them as premise to form Iraqi public opinion against the sanctions, the various governments of the West, and the United Nations. Huge propaganda campaigns began in the country and in a way were very successful, Hussein, for example, would convince his people that in fact he wasn’t evil and it was the nations of the West that were evil as they placed the sanctions on Iraq to try and starve innocent Iraqis. Hussein even agreed to the Food for Oil program, which help ed relieve some of the pressure and troubles faced by civilians as a result of the sanctions. The program allowed Iraq to sell its oil not for money but for food, medicine, and other supplies that were highly needed in Iraq at the time. Iraqi citizens loved this and praised Hussein for going through and agreeing with the program. A highly questioned component of the sanctions placed on the regime is why did they last so long? As mentioned earlier, the sanctions began right after Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990 but yet they didn’t end until 2003 when the American invasion of Iraq began. Most in the international community believed that the sanctions should’ve ceased to exist after the Gulf War was over or maybe just for a few more years after Iraqi forces were pushed out of Kuwait, but not for a full thirteen years. â€Å"Even many Arab nations who supported the sanctions at first believed that they should have been removed after Iraq left Kuwait† (Rieff 190). Most nations, even those who were against the Hussein regime saw the sanctions being in place after Iraq was ejected from Kuwait as unnecessary, cruel, and throwing salt on the wounds of a nation. The sanctions just made life worse for the regular citizens of Iraq, but the worst was yet to come. One good thing that may have come out of the sanctions is the fact that they did prevent the Hussein regime from obtaining or creating any weapons of mass destruction because the country just could not afford the types of technology needed to do so. Another factor that made conditions even worse for Iraq was the failed planning and research that should’ve been completed before the invasion of the country. â€Å"Fear that Iraq was developing a weapon of mass destruction became sufficiently unbearable to Bush and Congress that they launched and supported a preemptive war based on a poorly defined threat† (Sheenan 6). For one many were forced to believe that Hussein was in possession of WMDs which he wasn’t, therefore that threat did not even exist at all and should be exempt from reasons to invade and occupy the country. Planners of the invasion came up with a plan to oust Hussein from power using what they referred to as the decapitation thesis. The decapitation thesis is just as literal as it sounds, remove the head of the government, referring to Hussein and other high ranking Ba’ath party officials, and continue to use the body, which would be the institutions still under state control, as the head is replaced with new leadership. But the plan did not work as it was supposed to; after Hussein was ousted the country just fell into a power vacuum. Who would the people turn to for leadership? Because Iraq no longer had very strong state institutions, they were collapsed and were no longer working since the country was invaded. â€Å"In the space of two years, because of invasion a nd then state collapse, Iraq went from Rogue, the first category of problematic state, to the second, collapsed. Although military intervention into Rogue states has become increasingly common since the Cold War, it has to date been largely unsuccessful† (Dodge 706). This goes to show that largely — based on the past and places in similar situations — that Iraq was destined to fail. And besides the fact that the planners didn’t fully investigate the situation it seemed that they have even had other objectives besides the ones being expressed to the public. For example, â€Å"In April 2006, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld visited Baghdad to intervene in internal discussions about the government and to seek assurances that any future government would allow the United States to preserve its military bases in Iraq† (Arnove 116). Why would the U.S. need to establish bases in Iraq if the primary goal was humanitarian and to free the repressed people under the Hussein regime? Humanitarian intervention was also a huge factor in why the invasion and subsequent occupation was being justified in Iraq. Humanitarian interventions are usually mandated and put in place at the request of the legitimate government that needs the intervention. In this case the government of Iraq would have needed to explicitly ask outside powers to intervene, in which they did not. â€Å"The Security Council did not approve the invasion and the Iraqi government; its existence on the line, violently opposed it† (Roth 1). The Hussein regime opposed such an intervention obviously because it would signal an end to their rule. Even if it was to be a humanitarian intervention by the rules of international law the leaders accused of the alleged crimes against humanity should be brought on trial by the International Criminal Court (ICC). This was not the case for Iraq; none of the high ranking Ba’ath party officials including Hussein were even tried.

Professionalism values and ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 1

Professionalism values and ethics - Essay Example This report aims at investigating how professional values and ethics are employed by the architect contracted to turn UAL Campus. The design’s main goal was to optimise connections between departments within the building, which include the movement of materials and students. The idea behind the design can be said to be the same historical reason, which comprised movement of grain around the granary using wagons. This report will analyse comprehensively the purpose retrofitting and architectural design of University of Arts London, Kings Cross campus in the context of the build environment. The historic, economic, aesthetic and ecological context of the built environment will be evaluated in terms of professionalism, values and ethics. There are a range of factors that shape the built environment posing an architectural dilemma that need to be solved in adherence to professional values and ethics of architect. This project was considered for this paper since the building exemplifies an exemplary conversation of a derelict historic building into a glorious public space and still retain sustainable values (Harries, 1998). Some of the questions that emerged from people with regards from this case include: The architects commissioned were Stanton Architects to design the campus that was estimated to cost  £200 million in the Grade II listed Granary Complex. The university sought to transform the historical building into an aesthetic centre of learning which would be sustainable enough to meet the needs of the students and those of the community too. The University of Arts London campus project was completed in 2011. The building consolidates the Central Saint Martins’ college’s activities under one roof. It comprises of the Granary Building, Eastern Transit Shed, and there are two new four storey studio buildings. The environmental location of this project is very impressive as well as the atmosphere (Fox 2012). It is in

Accomplishment as an Acquired Skill in Life Essay

Accomplishment as an Acquired Skill in Life - Essay Example I have done my best to become an outstanding clinical dentist. I do my best to make sure that their visit is as painless as possible and they walk out feeling at ease. While some dentists try to stick with old methods, techniques and procedures because it keeps them in their comfort zone of practising dentistry, I like to think beyond to ensure that my patients have access to the utmost in technological advances and procedures to maintain their dental health. While some do not accept challenges to learn how to do new procedures or step outside their boundaries, I do. Through my work as a managing dentist for two large dental corporations, every day I go outside of my boundaries, trying to learn more about new methods and procedures, whether it be through hands-on experience or through attendance to several classes and seminars to master all aspects of clinical dentistry. There is always room for improvement. Another one of my greatest accomplishments is when I had the opportunity to participate in the Doctors Award program in which doctors were outsourced to provide care outside of the clinic. In my case, my goal was to help youth learn more about dental health. Other dentists, as well as myself, went to different area elementary schools to screen children for cavities and additional hygiene-related diseases, even cancer. Unfortunately, many children do not even have the opportunity to visit a dentist for an annual check-up so it was a pleasure to offer my services free of charge to teach them how important it is. It was as rewarding to me as I hope it was for them. Later on, this program was adapted into a standardized program in which all school-aged children I southern California are to now be screened for oral and dental hygiene health or deficiencies.

To Have or To Be by Erich Fromm Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

To Have or To Be by Erich Fromm - Essay Example The problem with the â€Å"having† mode is that the greed for money and possession can never be satisfied no matter how much has acquired. People will always use dubious means to get more; including the exploitation of fellow human beings. â€Å"The ordinary man with extraordinary power is the chief danger for mankind† Fromm, (67). There is always a cut-throat competition among members of society in getting more possession. And when one has acquired a certain amount of riches, he is struck by paranoia. He or she is in a constant state of fear that the property may be stolen or that death may come so soon. Unlike the â€Å"having† mode, the â€Å"being† mode is quite a stationary state in life. Here, man does not really seem to toil for money and other materialistic things of the world. Man is satisfied with the intangible aspects of life such as peace and harmony. He adores love as the only source of joy: â€Å"Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problems of human† (Fromm, 70). He can get pleasure without using money. In fact, everything is a source of his happiness, depending on the perception. The individuals in this state are selfless and can freely share whatever little they have. To them, all the worldly things are meaningless and perishable. Therefore, they see no great deal in investing in material things. The problem with the â€Å"being† mode is that an individual may be isolated from the modern society whose most members are in the â€Å"having† mode. Since the pleasure of the people in this mode is free, they may sometime s misuse this freedom. The problem with â€Å"industrial religion† is that it is economic oriented and enslaves its followers by work. According the ancient religion was viewed as matriarchal where; the church was full of unconditional love and mercy. However, the modern churches are viewed as patriarchal; justice is the order of the day. Fromm states, â€Å"The deepest desire of the human

Environmental Science Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Environmental Science - Essay Example ies to make the environment arsenic free and phytoremediation is considered one of the most efficient and cost effective ways to remove arsenic from arsenic contaminated soil. In this paper, Lampis et al, test the efficiency of a fern Pteris vittata inoculated with certain bacterial strains, on arsenic phytoextraction in an arsenic contaminated soil. The researchers aimed to investigate the capability of Pteris vittata or Chinese brake fern to remove arsenic from an arsenic contaminated soil sample when inoculated with certain bacterial strains. The soil sample sued for the study was procured from an arsenic contaminated area in in Scarlino Industrial area in Tuscany, Italy. This particular site served as a landfill area where almost 1.5milion tons of arsenopyrite cinders had been dumped thereby exposing the dump site to rain and subsequent leaching of the arsenic into the soil to the groundwater table. The researchers procured the rhizosphere of different autochthonous plants that grew in and around the Scarlino area and used the plant parts to extract bacterial strains that were naturally arsenic-resistant. They cultured the bacterial strain under laboratory conditions to obtain pure colonies. The ability of the bacteria to promote plant growth was also checked by conducting assay for IAA production and measuring the 1-amino-c yclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) deaminase activity. Taxonomic analysis of the bacterial isolates was conducted using both wet lab and dry lab methods. The researchers, at the end of the experiment, measured the biomass and the arsenic level in the roots as well as the fronds of the ferns. The results showed that there was a significant increase of almost 35% in the biomass of the plants which had been inoculated with bacteria when compared to those that had not received inoculation. The test results also confirmed that plants that received mixed inoculum had a greater capability to phytoextract arsenic from the soil as compared to

Identification Essay on American History Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Identification on American History - Essay Example It is fascinating to note that the colonist did not see their efforts as leading to their independence. Their drive was the belief that they were fighting for their natural rights. They believed too that they were resisting the corrupt and misguided government representatives and officials. They redoubled their efforts and activism with every new assertion of British authority, which raised the stake higher and higher. King George III condemnation of the rebellion and protests as unlawful and the rejection of the colonist’s appeals sharply dashed their faith. American nationalist and patriots eventually lost their faith in reason and righteousness of the monarchy and out rightly rejected it and went ahead to gain their independence. This beginning of a new society and authority replaced the old. Discussion The American Revolution was a political cataclysm in which thirteen North American colonies came together to oppose the British patriarchal rule during the last part of the 18ht century. This upheaval led to their break-free from the British Empire and saw the establishment of the United States of America. It began by the outright rejection of the Britain Parliament that governed them without representation from overseas. The British Patriarchalauthority suffered an even bigger upset when all its royal officials were expelled. Each of the thirteen colonies had effectively established Provincial Congress that would govern them by 1774. Although they were still under the British Patriarchy, the British sent combat troops to impose direct authority. The thirteen states ultimately determined that, through acts of totalitarianism, the British could no longer claim their allegiance legitimately1. They thus broke ties with the British Monarchy in July 1776 when the Congress issued the U.S Declaration of independence, rejecting in all totality the British Empire on behalf of a separate, sovereign new nation. The American Revolution was prompted by a series of political, social, and intellectual transformations in the American government and society. This is what was referred to as the American Enlightenment. It was the period between mid and late 18th century that saw Americans undergo intellectual transformations and thriving. Americans at this time, rejected the aristocratic developments in Europe, and instead, championed for republicanism development based on Enlightenment of liberalism. Ethnicity and racism were among the ideals that the Americans rejected during this period. The racism concept viewed from different perspectives. The idea of â€Å"the Great Chain of Being† which suggested that all creation was a kind of hierarchy within which there were different groups of human2. At the time, most Americans were Protestants who vastly believed in the creation theory which asserted that all humans were descendants of Eve and Adam. They therefore, did not agree with racism and instead tried to use other parts of the Bible to ex plain the various differences in racial appearances. This greatly opposed the idea of Great chain of being. Other significant results of the revolution included the formation of a legitimate government that was democratically elected and was responsible of the peoples will. The level of democracy appropriate in the new government prompted fierce debates with most of the

United States Postal Service Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

United States Postal Service - Case Study Example Rather, it creates revenues out of its sale of postage stamps, products and services. Over the last 2 years (2007-2008), the USPS has been hit by increase in cost of postage stamps, cost of deliveries and shipments and the increasing tendency of people to use email to send messages rather than posting letters or cards. It has absorbed a loss of $5.3 million in 2007 and $2.8 million in 2008, leaving it strapped for cash and increasing the possibilities of bankruptcy or business failure. This has been eating into its retained earnings for the period (David, 81). Meanwhile its revenues stand at $75 million and though it has cut back on employees and increased the number of points served, this is not translating into an increase in profitability, mainly due to the rise in costs. USPS clearly needs to follow the lead of its competitors UPS and Fedex, who have leaner and more profitable operations. Its service agreements with them need to be scrapped. USPS also needs to reduce the number of service outlets it has which will reduce the cost of maintaining them. At best one service location per district will work fine. It needs to adopt a centralized system. The internal analysis for USPS shows that it is suffering from many problems. Its employee unions have been successful in bargaining for compensation and benefits, while the employees have been working less hours due to lack of work. As 52 percent of its revenues derive from first class mail, a decline in this volume has affected its revenues. Meanwhile the fact that its Board is appointed by the President and its prices are regulated by CPI, there is a double bind on USPS in that it cannot increase its prices beyond a certain limit. The separation of business into market regulated and Government regulated areas has been the death knell for USPS (David, 83). No organization can be run as a combination private and public enterprise- it is either one or the other. In spite of all its efforts,

No Ordinary Sun and to Sea Essay Example for Free

No Ordinary Sun and to Sea Essay In The Sea, to the Mountain, to the River the use of simile establishes the perspective of the readers about the workmen, Tuwhare leads the readers to see them as despicable- destroying our environment for the sake of progress. Then, he uses personification for the same effect. The readers empathize with the environment and consider the sea, the mountain and the river as people like them who has feelings. By doing this, Tuwhare appeals at the readers emotions, making them see how terrible t is to destroy the environment. While in the first poem, Tuwhare appeals to readers by encouraging them to feel what the nature is feeling, in No Ordinary Sun imagery is used to show the effects of a man-made weapon, atomic bomb and make them realize what would happen to them and the environment. Tuwhare used adjective to create images in the minds of the readers. [G]allant monsoon flash and dashing trade winds blast are old- fashioned, positive sounding words that Tuwhare used to describe the monsoon and he wind. He wants the readers to know that compared to the bomb, these two are almost benign, almost nothing. Another example of imagery was in the last stanza: shadowless mountains, White plains and drab sea floor. This creates an image of a lifeless planet. Tuwhare is telling the readers, this is what happens. Everything will be destroyed- our lives, nature- all because we seek power and progress. Tuwhare also used symbolism to help people understand how devastating an atomic bomb can be. He explored the irony of the comparison to show the big difference between our sun and the not ordinary sun. Our sun gives us life, energy and warmth. We need it to live. The other sun, the one mentioned in the poem, is a monstrous sun. It kills people and annihilates the environment. By calling it monstrous, Tuwhare is implying that this sun is an unacceptable product of a merger between nature and man. Thus, what we created for power will destroy us. Also, by using sun as a symbol for atomic bomb, the readers are more affected as the sun is irectly related to our everyday lives. In this poem, Tuwhare made it clear how much we are affected when our environment is destroyed. We cannot live alone in this planet. Our hunger for power and progress blind us and we need to stop. Both poems used fgurative language to engage the readers and to show the effects of our actions. Tuwhares message is very important as in todays society, especially in New Zealand, destruction of environment for the sake of progress is not uncommon. Earlier on March, news of national parks becoming mining grounds sparked protest from all over the country. The government believes that this will help New Zealands economy prosper. But are we really going to forsake the environment for the sake of progress? Also, North Koreas nuclear testing hasnt stopped. To further their power, the government of Korea ignores the devastating effects of nuclear bombs. Tuwhares poems The Sea, to the Mountain, to the River and No Ordinary Sun urges us to open our eyes and stop destroying our environment.

The French Revolution Essay Example for Free

The French Revolution Essay The events leading to the French Revolution are quite obvious. 30 million people living in France, most living in small, rural villages while less than a million people lived in Paris. The population was growing rapidly but the economy was not. The previous king had spent too much money fighting wars and the national debt was staggering. There was an obvious rift between classes; peasants were starving while the noble class continued to live opulent lifestyles. At the beginning of the Revolution, after the storming of the Bastille, the French monarch attempted to clean up their finances and a representative government was created, complete with a Declaration of Rights. This phase was led by the Third Estate of the Estates General. A legislative assembly was formed, and war was declared on Austria and Prussia. It was at the end of this phase in 1792 when King Louis XVI was forced to flee the throne. The second phase of the Revolution is known as the National Convention. After the death of the king in the beginning of 1793,the economy did not improve. This led to riots and counter-revolutionary activities which led toâ€Å"The Reign of Terror â€Å", run by Maximilen Robespierre. A committee for public safety was created, which arrested people for committing crimes, sometimes as small as stealing food, and sent them to the guillotine. Almost 17,000 people were be-headed during this time. In 1795, after the execution of Robespierre, a new constitution was created along with a new legislature. The French were tired of fighting and suffering, so despite distrusting the new legislature, called the Directory, most were willing to accept these changes. The Revolution ended in 1799, thanks to the military direction of Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military leader who eventually became the Emperor of France. He spent the first years of the Revolution fighting on the French island of Corsica. When he came to mainland France, he continued to fight for the Republicans. His military career, along with his popularity, had many ups and downs. He led military campaigns in Italy, Egypt and other countries and often had differences with higher ranking military officials. Napoleon became Emperor of France in 1804, five years after the revolution ended, essentially reinstating a type French monarchy. Over the course of ten years, he led more battles across Europe, divorced and re-married, and had the Pope imprisoned when he attempted to ex-communicate Bonaparte. Napoleon abdicated the throne in 1814 to his son, and was sent into exile, which he later escaped and was finally defeated at Waterloo in 1815. He died in 1821 under British surveillance.

Relationship Between Photography Art And Psychology Photography Essay

Relationship Between Photography Art And Psychology Photography Essay I believe that great art and photography can be produced as a result of psychic energy created from repressed drives and instincts being effectively sublimated into a creative activity. I also believe that a great deal of art created is a result and expression of what Freud referred to as the Death Drive. Furthermore I believe that increased levels of psychic energy and tension can be linked to the production of great art. Freuds death drive theory was first revealed in his 1920 essay Beyond the Pleasure Principle. Feud formulated this theory after working closely with patients suffering from severe trauma. Throughout the First World War Freud spent a great deal of time working with and observing the behaviour of the soldiers who had returned from the battlefields and trenches. Many of these soldiers were suffering from Traumatic War Neuroses (which is now referred to as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). Freud observed that the soldiers often had a tendency to dream, obsess, mentally repeat and in some severe cases re-enact the traumatic events they had witnessed. This obsessive attachment to the trauma seemed to contradict Frauds previous essay The Pleasure Principle which suggests that the individual is constantly seeking to maximize his or her own pleasure. Freud suggested that the mind is split into three distinctive groups. Firstly we have the conscious, which is home to those thoughts and percepti ons of which a person is fully aware. Secondly we have the pre-conscious, which is where we store our knowledge and memories and thirdly we have the unconscious, which is material that cannot be made available voluntarily such as fears, unacceptable sexual desires, irrational wishes, shameful experiences, selfish needs, immoral urges and violent motives. The three layers of personality are often portrayed as a mental iceberg, which is used to illustrate the incredible size of the unconscious. It is important to understand that according to Freud the death drive is part the id. The id is the most instinctive and primitive part of a persons personality and is the system we come equipped with at birth. According to Freuds essay The Pleasure Principle the id does not know right from wrong, it has no perception of morals, values or standards it simply seeks to maximise its own pleasure. The ego begins to develop after birth as the child begins to interact with their environment. The ego operates on the reality principle, which is survival orientated and prevents the person from doing anything that is overly detrimental. The super ego develops later as a result of societys values, morals and standards being passed onto the child through interaction with other people and adults. The super ego is the part of the personality that strives for perfection and works in contradiction to the id. Because the id and super ego are so dramatically opposed it falls on the ego to act as the m iddleman. The ego must satisfy the ids primitive impulses without offending the super egos moral character whilst also taking into consideration the reality of the situation. Human beings are torn between two opposing instinctive drives. On the one hand we have the Eros (the life drive). The Eros is a creative drive that promotes and supports harmony, reproduction, sexual connection and preservation of both the self and the species. On the other hand we have the Thanatos (Death Drive). The Death Drive is self-destructive and instinctively seeks aggression, compulsion, repetition and obliteration. Freud believed that the Death Drive is a persons drive towards death and the wish to return to an inanimate state. There are more socially acceptable ways of expressing the creative and sexual needs of the Eros without offending the moralistic super ego. It is the Death Drives destructive and aggressive characteristics that are more difficult to express. This could result in mindless aggression, masochism and hate. Because the ego has such a difficult time satisfying the impulses of both the id and the super ego it uses tools often referred to as Ego Defence Mechanisms to reduce anxiety and protect self-esteem. These defence mechanisms include denial, displacement, intellectualization, projection, reaction formation, rationalisation, regression, sublimation and suppression. The ego defence mechanisms are used to push something that causes you anxiety into the unconscious. Freud believed that any psychic energy that is repressed would later have to emerge in one way or another. Freud stated that the psyche works to get rid of this energy in three ways. The first is catharsis, which will discharge the psychic energy through unconscious impulses such as laughter and crying. Sublimation is the second method that the psyche uses to channel the psychic energy. Sublimation converts the instincts and impulses to allow the person to express them in a way that is acceptable to the super ego write books, paint pictures, build bridges, do research, learn mathematical equations and so on (Nye 1999 pg 14) .If you cannot sublimate enough it can seriously affect your mental health. The displacement of the suppressed instincts then takes the form of the third method, which is neuroses. The neurosis is revealed in the form of symptoms. These symptoms work to reduce the psychic tension but are also detrimental to the person. These symptoms could manifest themselves in many forms such as depression, phobias, obsessions, denial and psychosis. This is why art is often used as an alternate therapy. The psychic tension is encouraged to manifest itself into something creative rather than letting it quietly fester into symptoms. Of the three defence mechanisms sublimation is the one that interests me the most. Sublimation is the mechanism that Freud believed could offer an overall explanation for artistic talent and the production of great art Since artistic talent and capacity are intimately connected with sublimation we must admit that the nature of the artistic function is also inaccessible to us along psychoanalytic lines (Clark 1965 pg165). Freuds essay on Leonardo da Vinci illustrates his theory regarding sublimation and its connection to artistic creativeness and genius. It is popularly believed that Leonardo da Vinci was homosexually inclined. He never married and was in fact charged with the act of sodomy twice in 1476 but was later released and the case dropped due to a lack of witnesses. Although anonymously accused of the act many of Leonardos contemporaries also believed him to be homosexual, Freud also believed this. It is the Oedipus complex that Freud believed could explain Leonardos homosexual inclinations. According to the Oedipus complex small children whilst in the Oedipal phase of libidinal and ego development (between the ages of three and five) harbour unconscious drives and feelings which centre around the complete possession of the parent of the opposite sex, in the case of a male child the mother would become the subject of this fixation. The child would then be in direct competition for the mothers affection with the father who at this point according to the child has become an intruder in the relationship. This would at first lead to conflict but the child soon realises that the father is bigger and in a position of authority. As the child then begins to recognise that the mother loves the father he wants to emulate his fathers masculine traits and behaviour in order to become more like him to earn favour with his mother. It is interesting that the Oedipus complex takes it name from the Greek mythological charter Oedipus who kills his father and marries his mother. Freuds views on this character were sympathetic he stated; His destiny moves us only because it might have been ours because the oracle laid the same curse upon us before our birth as upon him. It is the fate of all of us, perhaps, to direct our first sexual impulses towards our mother and our first hatred and our first murderous wish against our father (Freud 1889 p296) Leonardo was an illegitimate child, later adopted by his father and brought up in his fathers household. There is no historical record which indicates what kind of relationship Leonardo may have had with his mother or his step mother, or which tells us what kind of people they were. Nor is it known at what age Leonardo was removed from his mother to be brought up by his step mother and father (Storr 1999 pg75/76) According to Freuds theory regarding the Oedipus complex if Leonardo did not have a sufficient mother figure he would have had no need to emulate his fathers masculine traits and behaviour. This is what led Freud to conclude that Leonardo was homosexual. Being homosexual, and not being able to express himself openly would have been a great cause of stress and anxiety for Leonardo. This stress and anxiety was repressed into his unconscious and could have ultimately led to mental heath symptoms had he not been able to sublimate it so effectively. Freud believed that Leonardo was sublimating his sexuality into something more appropriate. The suppressed drives and instincts of Leonardos id were being sublimated through his creativity so effectively that he was able to create some of the worlds most amazing art works and inventions. The irony of Freuds theory is that if Leonardo had been allowed to be openly gay he would not have created this work. So what characteristics reveal the presence of the death drive and when is the death drive recognizable in art? I believe that the death drive can be observed in the work of many great artist and photographers. Common physical manifestations of the death drive in art include such bleak and morbid imagery as the grim reaper, skulls, blood, crows and hooded figures, but the manifestation does not always appear in such a literal way. The death drive is often expressed in works of art through subliminal and symbolic methods. Freud interpreted art in a similar way to how he interpreted dreams It was natural that he should apply the same technique of interpretation to works of art as he did to dreams, phantasies and neurotic symptoms. Just like dreams Freud believed that art is an expression of unconscious. The Death Drive cannot always manifest itself overtly in art. Its representation is often symbolic as the super ego would be damaged by anything that society deems a taboo or unacceptab le. Although Freuds theory regarding the interpretation of dreams was not an aesthetic one, I believe that the connection between what a person dreams and what is expressed by the subconscious during the process of sublimating psychic energy into a creative form draws many similarities and could indeed be analyzed in a similar way. Although the Freudian analysis of dreams focuses more on how the subconscious deals with and associates with our memories and emotions I think the same analysis can be used to look at how our subconscious deals with and expresses these same memories and emotions physically. One of the most obvious examples of an artist that depicts the death drive in his artwork is Damian Hirst. Hirst who has been described by a London art critics as the hooligan genius of British art seems to have an unhealthy obsession with death, his work is famously dark and notoriously unpleasant and morbid. Death, destruction and imagery related or connected to mortality are reoccurring themes in a great deal of Hirsts work, so much so that his work is often instantly identifiable purely from its subject matter. Hirst became a household name after exhibiting a series of dead animals that included a fourteen-foot tiger shark a sheep and a cow that were all preserved in a specially created formaldehyde solution. The title of the exhibition The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living seems to suggests that you cannot witness or experience your own death, an interesting title given the contents and the nature of the exhibition. Hirsts work is an examination of the processes of life and death: the ironies, falsehoods and desires that we mobilize to negotiate our own alienation and mortality. By preserving and then exhibiting these dead animals Hirst forces his audience to confront death head on. In my eyes this shocking tactic sums up exactly how the death drive can express itself in art . The death drive Hirst is also famous for creating a life size human skull cast in platinum titled For the Love of God. The skull is encased in 8601 diamonds and is currently the most expensive piece of art ever created. The use of a real human skull -which according to Hirst was purchased in Islington emphasises his fixation with mortality. The skull, which to many is regarded as the ultimate sign of death could be interpreted as an obvious incarnation of Hirsts own death drive. When interviewed by the Guardian newspaper regarding his luxurious crystal skull Hirst was quoted I just want to celebrate life by saying to hell with death, Death is such a key aspect of Hirsts work but so to is the controversy that surrounds it. Not only is Hirsts work an artistic representation of the themes and imagery often associated with the death drive but I believe that it is also a direct manifestation of the psychic energy created by the death drive. This energy is being sublimated into a creative art form. The work of Hirst would seem, if anything to be the artistic representation of someone with a wildly overactive active death drive, if this is true what has caused this? Looking into Hirsts childhood and early life there are several interesting events that could explain his need to sublimate psychic energy into other activities. Sigmund Freud believed that by viewing and analyzing a piece of art in a way similar to analyzing dreams he could gain an incite into the unconscious drives and instincts that helped create them. what he did with varying success, was to discover in the work of art evidence of the artists presumed infantile conflicts Hirsts parents separated when he was still very young, as a result his mother struggled to deal with his wild and often criminal behavior. Hirsts relationship with his mother became ever more strained as she failed to tolerate his acts of rebellion. The separation of his parents at the age of twelve would have been a great cause for stress and anxiety. A stress that could have easily developed into a mental illness had he not been able to sublimate this psychic energy so successfully through his works of art. The breakdown in the relationship between Hirst and his mother would also have been cause of anxiety. It is perhaps due to this anxiety that he was able to achieve and be so successful in later life. Hirst struggled as an artist throughout the first 23 years of his life, He persisted despite many complications and rejections, first at school and then sixth form where he was finally admitted only after his art teacher pleaded passionately with the staff begging them to give him a place. After two years spent in sixth form he left with an E grade A-Level in Art. After sixth form Hirst was then turned down and refused admission to the Leeds College of Art and Design but eventually managed to gain admission after he submitted a successful application. After his time at college Hirst worked for two years on various building sites before applying for a place to study Fine Art at Goldsmiths University in London. Again Hirst was initially refused admission but later reapplied and was granted a place. The struggle of Hirst to succeed in his artistic career in itself would be a great cause of stress and negative tension. Could this tension and psychic energy be the underlying cause of his Hirsts confrontation with death Artists have always been fascinated with death. The artist almost instinctively seeks to address and confront death. This desire to seek out and face death is reflected in the photographic work of Erik Van Der Weijde. Weijde is a professional self-publishing photographer whose work is usually architecture related and whose work is often released in intricately created limited editions. Weijdes work based in Germany looks at buildings and architecture built and used by the Nazis between 1943 and 1945. The project titled Siedlung which translates as neighborhood or settlement is a journey that focuses on houses built by the Nazis for the German working class NSDAP members. The creation of these houses was a powerful propaganda tool for the Nazi party, which artificially removed people from unemployment and enforced a deliberate sense of unity and uniformity. The first thing that I notice about these images is how cold and sterile they appear. The houses are well kept but there is no sign of life. There are no people in the streets, no visible animals. There is not even a single bird visible in the sky. This bizarre deadpan aesthetic is obviously an expression of Weijdes death drive and his deliberately simple images create a surreal soberness that unsettles the viewer. The photographs themselves whilst working well as a set do not follow any traditional systems or ru les regarding traditional architectural photography. The images have a candid feel to them, the effect of which is a sinister voyeuristic overtone that adds to the uncomfortable image subjects. Weijdes other photographic projects include a set of photographs taken at a location where Marc Dutroux used to go skating before he started kidnapping girls This project is very similar to his project about Nazi architecture. The project simply titled Ice-skating lanes consists of a collection of images taken outside a skating rink. Similarly to the Nazi project the images show no evidence or make any reference to the events that took place. Perhaps taken out of context these images would not be so cold and sobering. Both of these projects have been shot within the last couple of years Ice-skating lanes is dated 2006 and Third Reich 2007. Weijde has decided to shoot the majority of the images in these projects not in colour but in black and white. I feel that the black and white images are much more effective and evoke a much stronger sense of dread. Death is a state of minimalism and this deliberate decision to remove colour from the images gives them an archival feel, which if anything strengthens the morbidly unsettling atmosphere captured in the photographs. The production or creation of an archive reflects the death drives compulsive need for repetition. Weijdes images are so simple in fact that they gain a surreal, otherworldly characteristic. The subject of Weijdes work is so frequently morbid that it is impossible to ignore his obvious fascination with death nor is it possible to ignore his deliberate pursuit and confrontation of death. I believe that Weijde is a true example of how the d eath drive can inspire art or photography. Weijdes interest lies purely in the fascination he has regarding the locations of these terrible incidents, he is not financially motivated nor does he seek controversy. The fascination of documenting death and destruction does not end with Eric Van Der Weijde. Photographers from all over the world share a similar bond with death, a bond draws them to scenes of unimaginable carnage. Enrique Metinides is known for his macabre depictions of life in Mexico City. Having photographed his first dead body before the age of twelve, Metinides developed an obsession with documenting the recently deceased, for years he slept with his radio tuned into the frequencies of various emergency services such as the police, fire brigade and ambulance, desperately trying to eavesdrop and listen in on breaking news on disasters and tragic events that was being relayed from call centers to the emergency services. Sleeping in his clothes and listening long into the night Metinides was always prepared to leave his house at a moments notice in order to follow a scoop. Metinides employed a series of unconventional methods to ensure that he was always first on scene, these methods included hanging around outside the various police stations and morgues and volunteering with the Red Cross so that he could arrive on scene with ambulances and paramedics, by doing this he was able to document the events without any interference from the public or police. The length that Metinides went to in order to ensure his place at the front of each incident illustrates his commitment and dedication to his work, a dedication that is shared by many artists and photographers. It is possible that this energetic drive was fuelled by Metinidess own death drive the sublimation of which resulted in the obsessive habits and behavior he developed in order to successfully pursue his work. Metinidess preparations often gave him the edge over the press and other reporters allowing him to be first on the scene of each disaster, armed with his trusted camera he documented each gru esome and bloody incident. During his career Metinides worked for the Nota Roja (bloody news). Whilst working for the bloody news Metinides built a morbid portfolio of suicide jumpers, decapitated bodies, street stabbings, crime scenes, accidental electrocutions, car wrecks, airplane crashes, exploding gas tanks, train derailments and other disasters. Metinidess photography is unpleasantly tragic; he depicts these scenes of carnage in such a stark and unforgiving way. The images differ considerably from the archival styled work of Eric Van Der Weijde in both content and style. Eric Van Der Weijdes images exhibit the death drive in a more subtle and symbolic way that at first glance could easily be missed, whereas the work of Metinides expresses the death drive in a much more aggressive way. This is partly because the work of Eric Van Der Weijde is inspired by acts from the past concentrating on documenting them in the present whereas Metinidess work focuses on the chaos, unpredictable and spontaneous nature of life and death. The subject matter of Metinidess work is so brutally shocking that it almost seems unreal. The images are almost driven to the point of abstraction as the audience is forced to confront the death that Metinides has photographed. These images arent cheap magazine photoplays. The deaths and disasters are real. So why was Metinides so obsessed with confronting death? What was it that he sought to document? The underlying cause of Metinidess build up of psychic energy which lead to the necessity of sublimation was not a result of repressed sexual as it had been with Leonardo Da Vinci, nor was it the result of a broken home or childhood conflicts with his mother. I believe that Metinidess entire career developed as a result of the first dead body he encountered as a child. The son of a popular restaurant owner young Metinides befriended the policemen and women that would eat there. They invited him to the station where he encountered his first corpse; the corpse had been laid on a track and beheaded by a train This scene took the fear out of me, so I could continue to look at these kinds of images for the next fifty years From then on Metinides used his box camera to take and collect pictures of accidents. Now this of course is not the usual behavior of a teenage boy and I believe could be the route of his lifetime fascination with the dead. Other interesting facts known about Metinides are that he is a passionate collector of various objects, particularly model ambulances and police cars which he owns over 4000 of. Excessive collecting is often linked to the death drive as the death drive seeks repetition. Metinides is also an obsessive archivist who even till this day compulsively catalogues video footage of live accidents from television for a growing personal archive again this behavior could be argued to be the result of the death drive but interestingly could also be explained by the Eros, the life drive that instinctively seeks to preserve and create. In an interesting interview with Metinides conducted by VMAGAZINE he tells of an incident where a man attempted to jump from the top of the Torero Stadium building because, he said he wanted to feel what death felt like. Metinidess work cannot visually convey what death feels like but it does however illustrate what death feels like to those around it. Personally I believe that Metinides work goes way beyond even the most compelling of photojournalism. When viewing Metinidess work I feel myself drawn into his images. I feel like I am watching the events from a safe distance but then the realization dawns that I am not alone. In many of Metinidess images large crowds of people have gathered around the scene of the accident and as I stare transfixed on the limp, lifeless body of a child or the cold dead face of a motor accident victim I slowly begin to pan out and notice the crowds of people not looking at the wreckage and chaos, instead there gaze is directly at me. People in the crowds are often looking straight into the lens of Metinidess camera it makes us, as the audience feel uncomfortable as there eyes meet with our own but at the same time this awkward eye contact completes the cycle of voyeurism. In a similar fashion to Damian Hirst Metinidess work exploits death. His whole career has been built around the sad and unfortunate events that ended with a person losing their live. It seems that being able to face death, whether morally right or not can be very profitable business. Death is a constant theme in the history of art and photography, I believe that the popularity of the subject lies in the audiences desire to understand and confront their own mortality. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦..work shows how fragile we are and how suddenly life can be taken away from us. The fact that these images remain so admired and that Metinides is still regarded as Mexicos most popular newspaper photographer suggests that the obsession with death lies not just with the artist or the photographer but also with the audience. Perhaps the need for an artist to confront or portray death is not only a response to their own death drive but also to the death drive of their audience. I believe that by viewing work by artists such as Metinides the audience is able to sublimate some of their own negative energy. Art has long been known for its therapeutic properties Conclusion>>> Psychic energy is what fuels a persons actions. Art is a direct sublimation of this psychic energy. If you are well balanced and mentally well rounded you will have less of this psychic energy to draw from. So basically the more screwed up and mentally unstable you are the more psychic energy you have to express in your artwork. This is why many great artists are often on the edge/ verge of a mental break down.

Lady Macbeth - A Wife in Support of Her Husband :: Macbeth essays

Lady Macbeth: A Wife in Support of Her Husband One of the main characters in Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, has been an object of intense criticism. Although sometimes regarded as cruel and vile, evidence exists that Shakespeare did not intend for her to be judged so harshly. By evaluating her character in relation to her actions, her overall relationship with Macbeth, and her death, we can see that Shakespeare quite possibly wanted Lady Macbeth to be judged in association with the actions of Macbeth. What appears to others as ruthlessness and ambition, is really her loyalty and love for him. Just as Macbeth is ambitious for the throne, so is Lady Macbeth driven to assist him. All of her actions are done out of devotion and allegiance to Macbeth. Throughout the play, the character of Lady Macbeth is developed through her actions, which reveal her inner cravings. She plays the important role of one who gives incentive to Macbeth, as well as one who supports him through difficult times. She is the catalyst who starts Macbeth's thinking. She possesses an aspect which cares for the future of her husband, and therefore inspires him to pursue the possibilities. More important than advocating actions to take the kingship, Lady Macbeth encourages Macbeth to remain strong. When his weaknesses appear, she remains firm. Because of Lady Macbeth, Macbeth achieves success. Once set on attaining the crown, Lady Macbeth pushes Macbeth to remain valiant and assists him in his pursuits. The goals of Macbeth become her aspirations as well. When Macbeth informs Lady Macbeth of his new found glory, she immediately begins thinking of the possibilities that lie in the future. Her initial desire to help Macbeth take the crown becomes clear when she speaks, "That I may pour my spirits in thine ear,/And chastise with the valor of my tongue/ All that impedes thee from the golden round/ Which fate and metaphysical aid doth seem/ To have thee crowned withal" (I.v.26-30). Although it appears that she is monstrous, she is expressing her care for Macbeth by wanting to assist him. She continues on to say, "Come, you spirits/ That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,/ And fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full/ Of direst cruelty!" (I.v.40-43). This quote is voiced with the intention to become strong to help murder Duncan for her husband's grandeur. Upon Macbeth's arrival to see her, she expresses her plan to kill Duncan, and then utters, "Only look up clear./ To alter favor ever is to fear./ Leave all the rest to me" (I.

The Lost Tools of Learning :: Teaching Education

The Lost Tools of Learning "The Lost Tools of Learning" was first presented by Dorothy Sayers at Oxford in 1947. It is copyrighted by National Review, 150 East 35th Street, New York, NY 10016, and reproduced here with their permission. That I, whose experience of teaching is extremely limited, should presume to discuss education is a matter, surely, that calls for no apology. It is a kind of behavior to which the present climate of opinion is wholly favorable. Bishops air their opinions about economics; biologists, about metaphysics; inorganic chemists, about theology; the most irrelevant people are appointed to highly technical ministries; and plain, blunt men write to the papers to say that Epstein and Picasso do not know how to draw. Up to a certain point, and provided the the criticisms are made with a reasonable modesty, these activities are commendable. Too much specialization is not a good thing. There is also one excellent reason why the veriest amateur may feel entitled to have an opinion about education. For if we are not all professional teachers, we have all, at some time or another, been taught. Even if we learnt nothing--perhaps in particular if we learnt nothing--our contribution to the discussion m ay have a potential value. However, it is in the highest degree improbable that the reforms I propose will ever be carried into effect. Neither the parents, nor the training colleges, nor the examination boards, nor the boards of governors, nor the ministries of education, would countenance them for a moment. For they amount to this: that if we are to produce a society of educated people, fitted to preserve their intellectual freedom amid the complex pressures of our modern society, we must turn back the wheel of progress some four or five hundred years, to the point at which education began to lose sight of its true object, towards the end of the Middle Ages. Before you dismiss me with the appropriate phrase--reactionary, romantic, mediaevalist, laudator temporis acti (praiser of times past), or whatever tag comes first to hand--I will ask you to consider one or two miscellaneous questions that hang about at the back, perhaps, of all our minds, and occasionally pop out to worry us. When we think about the remarkably early age at which the young men went up to university in, let us say, Tudor times, and thereafter were held fit to assume responsibility for the conduct of their own affairs, are we altogether comfortable about that artificial prolongation of intellectual childhood and adolescence into the years of physical maturity which is so marked in our own day?

Why I Dance

Ever since I was a little girl dance has always been in my life. I can still remember as a three year old putting on my favorite pink sparkly costume on, and applying bright red-hot lipstick all over my chirpy face. I would put glitter all over my face and run around the house twirling. I felt like I was a princess whenever I danced, but sometimes I think I got so into my own fantasy, that I got so dizzy I knocked myself into the wall. And the wall wasn’t the only thing I got myself knocked into, I got myself into chairs, tables and even a lamp!Usually I would just cry for a couple minutes and my mother would comfort me but then I’d get right back on my feet and start twirling. But once I knocked into my mother’s lamp, I think that was the last straw she finally said to me, â€Å"Honey, if I put you in a dance class will you PROMISE me you wont dance in the house again? † and that’s how it all began†¦ Now 10 years later I still keep dancing. Da ncing is not so much as a choice to me as a need. When one is thirsty, one drinks water.When I hear music, my body naturally starts moving because this is what I need to do to stay alive. Dance is and will always be my passion. People tend to ask me why I love dance so much, but words can’t explain, you have to be a dancer to completely understand the love of this art. Maybe it’s the control of the dancers body to execute each move flawlessly that enraptures me? Or it could be the look on the dancers’ face that that says they love what they’re doing? Either way I love to dance. It brings such joy to so many people, both the dancer and the people watching.Some people may disagree and say, â€Å"Dance is not a sport! † But I say it is. Sports require pushing your body physical body to reach its maximum performance level. Some people consider throwing a ball and tackling a sport. But in my mind that is not a sport. Dance is a sport. Dance requires gra ce and elegance. Dance requires you to feel the music, and let the music seep into you. To dance you have to take all your emotions out and mix them with your body and muscles and you get a beautiful aroma of dance.Dance requires pushing your bodies to the ultimate limit, to dance you have to stretch daily and get as flexible as you can be. Dance requires patience and practice. In dance you may not get a new move right away, so you have to be patient with yourself and keep practicing and practicing till you finally get the move. So when you combine all these elements passion, practice, patience, flexibility and emotion you get something beautiful, you get dance. In a way dance is like life. Whenever I’m learning a new move I always find myself landing on the ground head flat hard.I yelp in pain from the sore in my thigh, but I just get right back on my feet for more. In life you always find yourself facing new challenges. But if you run into a new challenge you just need to g et right up back on your feet, live your life, and face the challenges. The shiny lemon-scented smooth wood bar tightly screwed onto the wall is like my friends and family. The ballet bar is like my family because when I’m going through tough things in life my friends and family are always there to comfort and help me through the problem.Well the ballet bar is like that to because when I dance or use the bar to stretch and I feel I a little off balance I just grip the bar. So the bar is like my family and friends because it gives me the support I need when I dance. I remember the day I bought my first pair of Pointe shoes. They were so perfectly wrapped and pretty. They were a beautiful shade of light pink leather and smelled like a new car. They were as soft as velvet and just absolutely perfect. In Ballet each time I master a new step, its like life, my ballet shoes represent new beginnings.When I graduate college, that will be a new beginning, and when I am older and get m arried, that will be a new beginning. All throughout life, we begin new things whether there good or bad we just have to keep living our lives and enjoy it because we only have one. Now ten years later from twirling around my house and knocking into walls, and lamps I think about how much I’ve grown as a dancer and a person. Dance has helped me in a lot of areas; I am very athletic, strong, and have high self-esteem.I am encouraged now more than ever to try my best in class, at competitions, and in life in general. So in conclusion, dance is a perfect example of everything I want to be when I’m older: Strong, beautiful, smart and hopeful. I know I’m not completely those things now, but I can strive to become them, as I get older. I love dance, and I hope to dance for the rest of my life, and when I’m 60 years old I’ll still be able to do my splits. And that’s why Dance is and will always be my passion.

Diversity in the workplace Essay

a.) Diversity in the workplace is recognized positively in many different ways, and can make up a strong workforce of all aspects inside different organizations. These include a variety of age, gender, their background, race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and personality or even the style of how somebody works. All these factors create a diverse work force. By embracing these factors into the daily running of an organization it can be beneficial for both employer and employee, working pleasantly where everybody feels valued and respected. New talents are discovered and people are treated as individuals and are not stereotyped due to popular beliefs. see more:explain the principle of informed choice Employers must abide by, practice and integrate all aspects of the Equality Act 2010 as a legal requirement. Employees of the organization can help to create and carry out these policies and have the responsibility of ensuring a positive outcome in workforce tasks. Having a wider area of skills and talents to choose from will help generate new ideas helping the organization to run smoothly and exceed success on new levels. The workplace becomes host to diversity’s benefits recognizing the different terms of knowledge and differences in all work related areas. In feeling valued and respected as an individual this reflects on that persons work persona in a positive way, sympathizing with customers and working better in general to achieve the organizations crucial targets and goals. The Equality Act 2010 was introduced on 1st October 2010 and is a key piece of legislation. This Act provides the overall legal guidelines that protect the individual’s rights in the workplace and provides the correct legislation that promotes opportunity amongst all diverse platforms. The key acts that comprise the act as a whole are: * Equal Pay Act 1970 * Sex Discrimination Act 1975 * Race Relations Act 1976 * Disability Discrimination Act 1995 * Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003 * Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003 * Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 * Equality Act 2006, Part 2 * Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2007 Within the workplace there are policies/procedures and legislation materials that employers and employees can have easy access to on a day to day basis by using the organizations in house systems such as intranet or company website which will have sections specifically targeted to that area of the business. These sources of information can be readily available at the click of a button. By having access to the human resources department this also can offer a wealth of information in regards to company policies, company legislations, handbooks and information with regards to the courses and training that can further background knowledge on this information and can then allow both parties to put what they have learnt into practice. b.) It is of the highest importance to make sure we are all working in a healthy and safe environment and it is the responsibility of all staff to take reasonable care of your own health and safety and of others. It is important to follow instructions and cooperate with the health and safety department on regulatory matters that will arise and to attend relevant health and safety training where necessary. We must also familiarize with the health & safety at work manuals these can be found on the DRI intranet or the Human Resources department. We must report any injuries, strains or illnesses as a result of your job role or potential hazards and defects observed in the workplace to the health & safety department, so they can be resolved before it can lead to potential escalation. In recognition of these problems it is important that you utilize the company facilities for example this could be in the form of using of VDU’s (visual display unit) which could potentially cause eye strain as a result of prolonged use. The company can reimburse the cost of spectacles and lenses. If in specific departments you require personal protective equipment (PPE) or adequate welfare facilities, these are used free of charge and it is important you notify health & safety department, should you need to order more. This is a fundamental rule when working with abrasive products. It is also vitally important to us you that you have the correct amount of rest breaks during the working day. Security of all employees is crucial, so we must make sure to fob in and out of the building when arriving or leaving the building so as to safely access the building and have a record of when and what times you leave during the day. If you happen to leave the fob at home or lose it you must contact reception to be provided with a temporary or a replacement from payroll. If you are expecting a visitor you must request they sign in and out of the building at all costs this ensures we have a record of who has been in and out of the building should an incident occur. By working in a healthy and safe environment we can remain motivated and enthused in order to prevent incidents occurring. We can be confident in our workplace surroundings striving for a much better working atmosphere. The two types of decision making made at DRI (Diamond Resorts International) are those of operational decisions which are carried out on the everyday running of the business, and decisions derived from other departments (strategically) which factors in senior management staff to make long term decisions for the business and to pin point the direction the business is going to take with more beneficial effects. Operational decisions are made up of key stages that we strategically follow; firstly we identify the decision and analyze all factors. Grid Analysis is one stage in the process that helps you to decide between several options, where you need to take many different factors into account. An alternative way is also writing out the pros and cons of that area presenting it to you in balance. An example of using grid analysis; in the key stages of making decisions. By consulting a team leader and organizing a group meeting you will be able to obtain ideas and advice from all knowledgeable bodies and consult with senior staff before a decision is made. This can give you wider pool of avenues to consider whilst going through the key stages. If the decision to be made is predominantly made by two people from separate parties they must have the knowledge to negotiate with each other to implement the decision and be satisfied in all areas. The use of feedback is important in these key stages as it allows us to gain feedback from people who hold down different job roles and responsibilities; therefore are given a variation of information that may assist in the final decision. Most operational decisions are being made day to day by team leaders and departmental managers which factor in team member’s assistance and views. Departments that deal with more executive decisions will have a larger span of control; when a manager oversees the day to da y smooth running of his/her department of staff. When training on the job role we are trained to identify what decision would need to be referred through for approval. An example of this would be the procedure that Human resources department at Diamond Resorts follow which is known as a Recruitment Authorisation form (SRAF), this is used for the recruitment of any new member of staff. If the Resort Manager at Pine Lake wanted to recruit a new housekeeper she would fill this form in and send it to the HR department. Human Resources review this by checking we are paying the correct wage or the number of hours worked is reasonable. It is then sent to the Regional Director (Carmina Saiz) for approval. Once returned to us with approval we ask Vice President of European Resort Operations (Suzana Gomercic) for approval. Once approved HR then send the form, to Executive Vice-President Steve Bell, for final approval only when these processes happen can the recruitment process begin. At each of these levels the approver has the potential to decline the request or to make a change, for example, to suggest the hours worked should be 40 hours instead of 37 hours. This would implicate the span of control going through the different processes identifying who would approve each decision before a permanent decision is made. Task 2 a.) The Importance of planning & prioritizing work at DRI – Notes for guidance To help support you and achieve to the highest standard here at Diamond Resorts International it is important you are able to plan and be organized in order to meet the set deadlines for the daily running of all the departments. It is important that you are able to use your time correctly to ensure that all deadlines are met and so that you can achieve the required goals and objectives’ in daily set tasks to help other people in their responsibilities to others. We have a number of facilities at DRI and it is important we use them in order to be timely and efficient, and allow all outcomes of the day be less stressful for you and your team members. * The online mailing system is a key part of the organization and is vitally important for the outside communications and communicating inside all departments around the building. Diary systems are very useful for booking/referring back to appointments and can be used to schedule any tasks or work you may need to prioritize before the end of the day. * You may have access to different calendars’ for meeting rooms around the building. By gaining this access it allows you to see who and what time a room is booked out for, enabling you to book in and around it for yourself or upon a request via another team member. This could include any visitors meeting with you or senior management. The calendar sends you reminder so you can make the necessary arrangements for their arrival. * To do lists can be simple and easy to do on paper or electronically. If for any reason IT department is having issues via the computer software and you become unable to access your computer and cannot use the software to input your data. You can do a simple to do list on paper this will be a temporary measure to remind you and help your day run more smoothly whilst the repairs are underway. Under some circumstances we take under consideration the reasons deadlines could be late, interrupted and may not potentially be met due to certain contributing fa ctors inside the office. * Communication is important throughout working hours, between team members, and is important to have the right level at all times to ensure work is communicated effectively around the office. Too much communication can cause distractions if certain topics are not work related and can be discussed out of office times. This can be avoided by talking about unrelated work topics out of office hours, on lunch breaks or short breaks throughout the day. * It is possible you may be interrupted frequently throughout the day. This could simply be to help another team member, due to technical difficulties or answering the telephone to a customer which could unfortunately take you off task. Make sure you log where you are in order to resume where you left off. The technical difficulties can have a knock on effect for everyone in your department and it is important to try and do as much paper based work as possible to get you up to speed and prepared for the deadline so you are ready to carry on once the issues have been resolved. * There may be times when there is lack of resources around the office if you feel this will have a significant effect on areas of your work then you need to notify a member of the senior management team so they can replenish stock or locate resources from an alternative means. If the department you are working in is short staffed, senior management may want to hire temporary staff to complete clerical/admin tasks. If there are unforeseen circumstances for example you are unable to get to work on time due to problems with public transport, family emergencies or problems etc. In this case some issues cannot always be helped; you must notify your department of issues and if possible explain what work may need to be completed in order to help contribute with the work that is being delayed. b.) After three months of working for Diamond Resorts International it is company procedure to have an appraisal after three months service. I first received a letter from my head of department a week before my appraisal was due. Stating where the meeting was to be held, what time and who it would be with. It was held on the 23rd of October at 3.00 pm with the Human Resources manager. Before I was to attend the meeting I did a small self assessment on paper to remind me what needed to be outlined during the discussion. Once we sat down to commence the meeting I was asked if I was enjoying the new job role also if there was any ongoing problems that needed to be resolved. I explained that I had been enjoying the job role very much and found the prospects for working for DRI very exciting. I was told during my appraisal that all my hard work had been satisfactory and what I had been achieving was more than up to standard. As the job role was new to the company I felt proud to say that I had built the reception area up by myself and enjoyed co-coordinating the maintenance of the building. Making the area more organized and flow with the filed systems I had created. Whilst in the meeting I thought that it would be a good idea to discuss what I had planned for the future, as although I like the job role I require something more challenging and something that can test and push my abilities to what I am more capable of. This meeting was vital for the communication between manager and employee as is important to see where can be improved and problems can be raised and dealt with properly to the discretion of the employee. c.) My career goals illustrated via the SMART technique Complete Level 3 Diploma in Business & Administration course with all distinctions aiming for the highest mark possible and pass the functional skills math’s exam, after attending all after hours classes and get back up to speed with mathematic skills. Consider moving job roles/departments after completion of the six month probationary period. All technical certificates will be prepared, passed and achieved in order to start the NVQ level units. Keep practicing for the functional skills math’s test, continuing the drop in math’s sessions allowing learning and improvement on the subject. I will be looking at different job role summaries and familiarizing with them. All the technical certificates have been prepared for and have the correct resources and information to achieve each unit. Each certificate will have a specific time to achieve handouts and activities to complete in order to gather all the information required to achieve set target scores. By completing and concentrating on each unit at once I can put 100% into each unit, also enabling me the flexibility of fulfilling my own job role. There will be points in the day where I will have to break of and do my duties that are required of me as an employee of DRI. I will also be completing functional skills out of office hours. Each unit I have set myself minimum of 2 weeks to complete. This is ample time to have completed each individual unit and have the feedback comments sent over to me via email from my assessor. Each 2 weeks my assessor will come and visit and discuss my progress. Section B 1. a) The key points that are included in a contract of employment could be any of the following; the contract will have the name of your employer and the employee also the date the employment commenced. The number of working hours you will be required to work during the week. The contract will inform you of how much holiday entitlement you are allocated annually, also how they will calculate them yearly. The details of sick pay and statutory pay will be enclosed in a contract of employment also the pension details. The contract will describe the job title and the brief job description of the work, and the location of where work has to be carried out. b.) A contract of employment is an agreement between employer and employee which determines the relationship between both parties. A written contract can include one short handwritten page or a lengthy document containing detailed components. Each business should take the time to carefully prepare a contract of employment for each employee. All businesses have different needs and outlooks, the style and content of each contract of employment will be different. 2. There are a number of representative resources that can assist employees with information and support them where necessary; The Equal Opportunities commission (EOC) is a regulatory body that promotes statutory rights within the employment sector and monitors human rights; offers on hand legislation and legal frameworks to the members of the public informing them of their rights. ACAS (Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service) is a regulatory body available online and is available for employees/employers that aim to improve organisations through better employment relationships. They also help by updating their website with the most current forms of legislation, and offering free independent advice. 3. a.) There are many factors that can lead to being under pressure in a workplace environment, where a professional manner can become difficult to maintain. If you are running by a tight deadline it could become increasingly difficult to reach, due to lack of resources or due to your organizations department being understaffed. The nature of your work could become strained as a result of more elements being added to a task than originally identified. There could be fundamental changes in your job role with new standards that need to be met in order to meet company deadlines pressuring the work environment further. b.) It is important in any departments of organizations that we declare our work progress; this is so we can keep up to date with targets and deadlines also so that team members can utilize the use of support they may need in the work processes, where necessary in order to complete tasks. It is also important to log our progress of work so we can anticipate any problems that we could encounter, and identify them before them before they happen. To identify our progress we are not impacting on others workloads in a negative way, we are working alongside them resulting in a positive outcome. 4. By continuously seeking to improve our performances at work we are able to assess and consider the possible options going forward in the work place, you are exceeding your own limitations/performance, learning new skills and producing quality work that meets the high standards of your organization. By achieving targets and goals are of a higher standard because you are putting more effort into your work. This not only gives the employer a good impression but can give you more chance of increasing your income or getting a promotion, it also gives you the motivation needed to proceed with your work. The efficiency and effectiveness in producing work can give you a sense of satisfaction, as well as receiving positive feedback from the people around you. By using certain analytical procedures we can assess our progress and see where would be the need for improvement. By using SWOT analysis or SMART techniques we can identify our skills, threats, our strengths which can be used to our advantages helping us to focus on our career pathways. Feedback (whether formal or informal) is a key way of enabling us to improve our own performances in the workplace whether it be positive or negative feedback we can take pointers away and work on them to improve work place performances inside of office hours. 5. There could potentially be problems in the workplace which cannot be solved without the interjection of another member of staff. This could be caused by lack of resources for example being short staffed, which is the responsibility of senior management who overlook the Rota’s to make sure there is significant cover ensuring the team can operate as a whole. If the department you are working in has frequent interaction with customers; there may be customer complaints that are not being dealt with correctly. Customers may wish to speak to senior members of staff who can investigate further taking the customer down a different route to solve their query, which only they will have the authorization to do. You may need to refer a problem if the solution involves reimbursement of company funds, or the problem may have a serious impact on an overall company targets. If there is a serious risk to a person’s life or the problem is in breach of a Health and Safety procedure, you must ensure that the information is passed on and dealt with by a member of the correct department as they will be familiar with all the policies and be able to devise a solution.