Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Improving Employee Productivity

As you may already know, improving the employee productivity is one of the most important goals In any business. But, In spite of this, a lot of human resources professionals do not consider this field very relevant. Even though most of the human resources professionals do admit that their job Is all about establlshlng schedules and rules concerning people management, only a few of them succeeds in bonding all these connections, in order to be able to increase productivity.John Sullivan (2011) refers in his article to several factors divided in a few categories, which are onsiderably influencing not only the individual productivity, but also the team productivity. Employee productivity is the main leading power behind a company's profitability and Its growth. Momentarily, the demand for employee productivity Is Increasing more and more, making this a feature that Is actually missing In todays workforce and also leaving most of the managers wondering what they should do next and what the causes are.This is the result of all the distractions and all the separate activities happing in the work environment. Nowadays, it seems that mployees are too busy tweeting, updating their statuses or chatting on Facebook, or simply texting. Because of that, most employees are not taking their tasks to an end, they are not finishing their work and they miss their deadlines. Another key aspect of this problem concerns the employee training tools. unfortunately, this aspect receives too little attention.Most of the time, the provider with the lowest costs is often chosen, even though the most effective provider is recommended. As a result, the recruitment is also poor, because of having as a main goal to minimize costs as uch as possible, but without enough consideration of the quality and the capability of each employer. No matter how you think it, the drawn conclusion here Is that the human resources department, Instead of being more Interested In finding solutions for Increasi ng the productlvlty, they are actually less Interested In doing transactions and more interested in cutting off the expenses.In order to increase the employee productivity and the performance of the workforce, considering the help you can expect from the human resource department, you must know and understand the factors that are influencing this rocess. Overall, taking In consideration John Sullivan's article, I have selected the most Important 16 factors from four main categories, which are going to be discussed next. As for the categories, the first one taken In consideration Is â€Å"Foundations of Productivity. According to John Sullivan (2011), a first factor mentioned here is â€Å"High- performing and Innovative employees are the foundation of productivity.By working together, managers and human resources professionals can find, hire, grow and keep high performing employees. It was proved that the most important factor in orkforce and productivity is hiring and keeping emp loyees with the best capabilities. Unfortunately, even the best people may sometimes need help. Without the head managers, much-needed resources and proper guidance, It's very hard to achieve your goal. Another factor measured in this category, according to John pawns are the second most important productivity factor because they play a very important role in defining the roles and the goals of the workforce.More is the pity that many managers are the weak ring in the productivity chain, therefore most of the time not only the employees needs guidance and education, but also their eaders. The second category taken in sight is â€Å"Direction and Guidance†. According to John Sullivan (201 1), a first mentioned factor here is â€Å"A corporate strategy and plan that builds commitment†. Most of the time, a very good business strategy and planning will increase the chances of having a successful and committed organization.Moreover, if the strategy is very clear and very we ll communicated, your employees will be more focused and their motivation will considerably increase. Another factor measured in this category, according to John Sullivan (201 1), is â€Å"A defined purpose for teams makes roles clear†. The managers need to develop a clear communicated purpose that has to be persuasive and also has the role to make their employees from their department to feel important. Employees sometimes can contribute even more to their work and tasks if they had a role in creating and understanding the main purpose.Still according to John Sullivan (201 1), next factor mentioned here is â€Å"Team and individual goals†. Defining some clear goals will let everyone know what is expected and what really has to be done. Also, giving some heads up on some perfect clear goals will also contribute for their employees to nderstand exactly what is and what is not important. Another factor measured by John Sullivan (2011) in this category is â€Å"Prioritiz ation for impactful resource allocation†. Establishing some clear priorities will help to better assign resources and funds, in order to achieve more important objectives.Next factor mentioned by John Sullivan (2011) here is â€Å"Performance metrics for continuous improvement†. Measuring performance in a successful way strengthens both individual and group goals. This will provide more attention, better feedback and better results for an ongoing improvement. Last factor measured in this category, according to John Sullivan (201 1), is â€Å"Effective rewards drive performance†. When the rewards are more connected to one goal, you double the strength of the message related to the importance of the Job that needs to be done.The third category taken in consideration is â€Å"Support Factors†. According to John Sullivan (201 1), a first factor mentioned here is â€Å"Team member support increases individual performance†. Only a few tasks can exclusivel y be done by an employee. If the employees are not working together with other people in a group as a team and if they are also not receiving all he necessary support from their managers, productivity will be lost. Next factor measured in this category by John Sullivan (2011) is â€Å"Best-practice sharing and collaboration improve productivity'.Productivity will considerably improve when the other people outside the team collaborate and brainstorm together. When the employees are using the â€Å"trial and error† method, all the growth of your business will slow down. Another factor mentioned here, according to John Sullivan (201 1), is â€Å"Support for innovation can dramatically increase productivity'. Having in mind as a oal to be on top of their business environment, companies struggle to achieve a double digit percentage improvement in their productivity (at least 10%, sometimes even goes to 25%) for every year.In order to reach this, a sustained level of sometimes no t enough in order to provide a double digit rise. Because of this, the human resources department must develop training measures, good processes, and stimulants that help the innovation. Still according to John Sullivan (201 1), next factor measured in this category is â€Å"Control and authority can result in a better decision aking process†. When there is a certain balance between freedom and control, so that employees have the authority to take most of the operational decisions, at that point we can talk about maximum productivity.Another factor mentioned here by John Sullivan (2011) is â€Å"Non-monetary factors that can also excite employees†. In addition to the usual rewards (as money), the managers can also provide a few non- monetary rewards, such as: feedback on their Job, appreciation for their work and so on. This is one of human resources department's most important responsibilities to e sure that the managers are using all of these methods in a right way, in order to increase the productivity process. The fourth category taken in sight is â€Å"Skills, Communication and Information Factors†.According to John Sullivan (201 1), a first factor mentioned here is â€Å"Employee skills and knowledge must be continually updated to maintain productivity'. Because of the changes brought by the high level global competition, the expectations of the employee's skills are much higher. The main role of the human resources department is to develop a plan that helps in an ngoing increasing employee's knowledge and training. Next factor measured by John Sullivan (2011) in this category is â€Å"Effective communications and feedback reduce errors and frustration†.As feedback is one of the most important strategies in the process of motivation, the failure of providing good feedback will lead to a poor work quality and maybe errors. You can best avoid this kind of situation if a company comes up with a well-organized internal communicat ion channel (like an intranet). The last overall factor mentioned here, according to John Sullivan (201 1), is â€Å"Providing he right information improves decision-making†. In order to take the best decisions and to increase the productivity, the managers and the employees will have to use the right information and to process the data.

Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Immaculate Perception

The stance of immaculate perception is a false one. Immaculate perception describes a pure and untainted perception, one that has no bias. Bias is acquired with experiences and teachings, both of which create expectancy, which taints perception with bias. One may argue that a newborn baby has immaculate perception, a clean slate with no expectations or sense conditioning. However, this point cannot be proved because where is the division between the experiences of the mother and the baby, or is there even a division between the two? Does the baby's formation count as an experience? With no clear answers to these questions how can immaculate perception occur in reality? This question leads to another one. What is reality and how does it relate to perception? Reality is the truth that we try to ultimately reach through perception as we sort through our sense datum. Yet, this truth can vary between people. The conclusion or truth that people search for through perception analysis can be determined by one's own needs and expectations. Though two creatures may be exposed to identical stimuli and sense datum their inferences achieved through perception will vary greatly because each has a tainted or biased perception. For example, a human and a dog are both put in a forest where they are lost and must find their way home. The person will rely highly on sight to sort through the wilderness and arrive home safely because he has conditioned himself to rely heavily on the sense of sight while, the dog may rely on scent more so then sight to track his way home. Both have perception that has been flawed or somewhat polluted. Both the human and dog are exposed to the same stimuli yet they each perceive their situations differently. This is due to their biased perception, the human through previous experiences has conditioned himself to perceive his experiences mainly through sight while the dog has done the same but with smell, neither has an unprejudiced perception because both have been conditioned through experiences. Perception is controlled and created by experience. The goal of perceiving is to know your surroundings. However your surroundings control your experiences. Therefore perceiving is a way of analyzing your experiences. But if this is true then there is no such thing as immaculate perception. Every individual's experiences are each unique. The way in which they are accepted or rejected depends on cultural conditioning as well as previous experiences. With this bias no one can claim to have untouched or virgin perception because it has been trained to only acknowledge certain elements of the surrounding. For example, I have been trained to rely on sight to gain the bulk of my knowledge of my surroundings but a blind person would have trained their senses or perception tools very differently having no sight. Therefore each experience and the sense datum gained from it would be different. The stance of immaculate perception claims that since the act of perceiving has no bias each experience for every person results in the same knowledge. This is false because it is impossible for two beings to infer the same information from a protocol. In a world made of unique creatures it's impossible for immaculate perception to exist.

Explain Why the American Economy Expanded so Much and so Fast Between 1890 and 1920.

Explain why the American economy expanded so much and so fast between 1890 and 1920. Between 1890 and 1920, the American economy expanded hugely at an extremely fast pace. This growth saw, by 1900, people employed in manufacturing, mining, construction and services rise from 4 million to 18 million and the USA was producing 30% of the worlds’ manufactured goods. There were many factors that caused this growth such as the development of the railways, immigration, a large supply of natural resources, the idea of the ‘American Dream’ and monopolies. One of the biggest factors of the rapid economic expansion was the development in transport and communication systems. The development of the railway provided links that allowed the creation of a national market and access to raw materials. Also, the building of the railroads was a stimulus to industrial development in itself. By 1890, the revenue from railroads was over $1,000 million; double that of the federal government, and the mileage had increased from 30,000 miles to over 190,000 between 1860 and 1900. This development of the railway was partly due to the mass immigration that came from Europe. The huge, sudden growth in population formed an unending supply if cheap, eager labour. Men were paid considerably small wages to complete tasks such as building the railways. Developments in communications such as the telegraph in 1944 and the telephone in 1876 were also very significant. This allowed large scale management to communicate effectively nationwide and meant that companies could establish operations all over the country with no communication problems. Industrial development, sales and purchases were also now much easier to deal with and wide scale marketing and advertising spread across the West. Another important factor of the economic growth is the fact that America had an almost unlimited supply of useful natural resources such as coal, iron, lead, copper and timber. These great numbers of natural materials meant that America could almost become self sufficient and needed not to rely on other countries in order to be stable. The USA was able to put high tariffs on the land to protect their goods from foreign competition and the development of he railway meant that the transport of these goods from place to place was made much easier. Furthermore, the powerful entrepreneurs, such as J. P. Morgan, the Rockefellers of New York and Carnegie also played a big part in this economy expansion. The fact that there was barely any regulations on big business meant that people could pretty much do as they pleased when it came to business a nd companies. These entrepreneurs, controlling much of the economy and the political scene, had a huge amount of control over production and marketing. The development of monopolies; with one firm controlling an entire market with absolutely no competition, and vertical immigration; with one firm controlling all stages of production, these firms were able to become very powerful and rich. This idea of money and power spread to the everyday citizens in America and became a source of inspiration. These entrepreneurs were living proof of the ‘American Dream’ and gave people more reason to believe that if they too worked hard, they would achieve success. The ‘American Dream’ was a big pull factor for immigrants. It gave the immigrants hope and belief that they could move to the USA and start a new life. In conclusion, there are many explanations and reasons as to why America’s economy expanded so much in such a small period of time. The rise of big business meant that the economy was thriving and America were almost self sufficient. However, evidently the arrival of immigrants was a huge factor as they mostly built the entire railroad system, allowing huge advances and developments to be made.

Monday, July 29, 2019

Profile in crime Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Profile in crime - Essay Example "My mother was cancer. She slowly destroyed everything around her. She produced two killers; me and my brother Joe." – (Richard Kuklinski in an interview on HBO) In fact, in 1940, his father Stanley Kuklinski had beat his elder brother Florian to death and hid this fact stating that he fell to his death down a flight of steps. Richard Kuklinski had witnessed the harsh realities of life ever since his childhood and by the age of ten he was filled with remorse, hate and rage. He followed the footsteps of his father by inflicting torture on animals as well as his friends if he felt offended by them. He committed his first murder by the young age of fourteen (thirteen?) and from then on he began feeling a sense of power when he discovered that he could be in control of the situation. ‘The Ice Man’ was another name given to Richard Kuklinski because he froze some of his victims in an ice-box. "We called him 'the Ice Man' because he froze some of his victims, kept them in an icebox he had for a while, then put them out so we could not tell when the murder actually took place, you see." (Paul Smith, new Jersey Organized Crime and Racketeering Bureau investigator.) Though he appears to be a quiet person, yet his looks are quite deceiving when considering the brutal way in which he murdered his victims and had kept the secret away from this family for so many years. In an interview program on HBO, Kuklinski confessed to having worked as a contract killer for many Italian- American families involved in crime and says how he had to travel to places such as Africa, Brazil and Europe on his ‘business trips.’ He also states that he doesn’t particularly enjoy killing his victim, but he gets more pleasure from planning, stalking and hunting down his victim. Facts of the Case I have chosen to write about Richard Kuklinski’s first murder that he committed when he was only thirteen years old. The murder took place in the year 1948 an d was of Charley Lane, a small time leader of a gang of teenagers who call themselves as â€Å"The Project Boys.† Charley and his gang had bullied Richard for some time and following a bad beating, Richard wanted to take his revenge on all of them. Richard attacked Charlie with a solid wooden dowel from his closet, when he was walking home alone, and beat him to death. He then took his body and disambiguated some of its parts by removing his teeth and chopping off the tips of his fingers with a hatchet, in order to prevent identification of the body. (Carlo Phillip, 2006) The above actions he had made use of were taken from a Magazine that he had read. Kuklinski then took his body and dumped it off a bridge in South Jersey. Richard Kuklinski admitted that he had no intentions of killing Charley Lane, but harboring revenge against him proves his intentions to be false. This point is again proved when we find that Kuklinski went further to beat and wipe out the other six boys b elonging to Charley Lane’s gang by making use of a metal pole taken from a thrash can. The first weapon used for the first murder of Charley Lane was a wooden dowel, but as years passed by Kuklinski is found to have used a variety of weapons such as guns, hand-grenades, ice-picks, knives, bats, strangulation and even fire for murdering his victims. This he did in order to remain elusive from the Police and to divert their attention towards other criminals. He never regretted committing any of his murders. As Douglas Martin, New York Times

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Special Interest Tourism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Special Interest Tourism - Essay Example Tourism is deemed to be one of the most popular recreational activities adopted by people across the world. In this rapidly altering environment, where technological advances have increased the degree of stress in the life of professionals, tourism can act as a remedy or relief in the lives of such individuals. However, in modern days tourism has been classified and named distinctly according to the nature or specific qualities, such as wildlife tourism, conventional mass tourism and tourism in terms of pilgrimage. Although, wildlife tourism is gaining popularity across the world due to the association of adventure and thrill, its impact on different species has attracted major concerns (Sinha, 2001). Wildlife tourism has been observed to be playing an imperative role in the tourism industry and has considerably contributed to the growth of economy for several countries and communities. Activities such as watching wildlife animals in their natural setting, sports hunting, fishing and videotaping are associated with wildlife tourism which has been the major attractions for majority of the tourists. In addition to its negative impacts, this form of tourism has contributed significantly to the growth of awareness concerning wildlife by generating revenue for the purpose of conserving the forests. Furthermore, wildlife tourism has been able to generate jobs for the local communities, thereby reducing the unemployment rate of various developing countries and regions (Tapper, 2006). (Tapper, 2006). The report will discuss the common characteristics of wildlife tourism. Furthermore, it will evaluate the distinct factors between wildlife tourism and Conventional Mass Tourism (CMT). The report will moreover discuss the motivational factors that attract tourists to participate in this form of tourism. It will also help to determine the impacts on the environment due to wildlife tourism. In addition, the report will identify the risks associated and recommend strategies for minimising those. Common Characteristics of Wildlife Tourism Wildlife tourism gained rapid recognition after the World War II by enabling tourists to get a view of different animals and species in national parks or forests owned by the government. Furthermore, this form of tour

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Introduction to Quality Assurance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Introduction to Quality Assurance - Essay Example (p. 11) Now, this marked its main difference with quality assessment: While assessment monitors and evaluate individual hospital processes during the analytic phase only, QA goes far beyond that as it continuously reviews hospital policies and procedures in order to identify problems and areas of improvement. Early emphasis on quality control was directed to the inspection and acceptance of past efforts but in contrast, current attention to continuous quality improvement looks to the advancement of future performance. Today, as quality assurance has matured, there has been a shift to a more consumer-oriented, more positive approach to health care management. (McClatchey, p. 10) It has been the central focus of some of the most successful efforts at management improvement in recent years. There is no question that quality assurance (QA) is important in the future our institution both as a health care provider and as commercial enterprise. And this is not without reason. I would like, therefore, to outline the benefits that will justify the cost of our institutions QA that some of you might deem unnecessary. I classify these benefits into three: client satisfaction, cost cutting and our responsibility as health care providers including their impacts in our long-term success. The main issue in health care is to treat a patient who enters the health system after consultation with his general practitioner or a specialist. There are numerous institutions out there that are ready to provide services to patients. The ensuing episode of care is therefore related to the treatment as well as the quality of service that is satisfactory to the client. Abraham Maslow described an ascending hierarchy of human needs, which each individual strives to achieve in his personal and work environments. These are physiologic or survival needs; safety or security needs; social

Friday, July 26, 2019

Pathophysiology of hyperglycemia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Pathophysiology of hyperglycemia - Essay Example This occurs as a result of increased production of Adrenocorticotrophic Hormone (ACTH) as a stimulus to stress; this has the effect of stimulating the production of cortisol which triggers glycogenolysis and gluconeogenesis, therefore, increasing the blood glucose levels (Fowler, 2009). This stimulus to stress has been called a life saving mechanism to reset the normal optimum conditions in the body. Pathological conditions may also increase blood glucose levels by increasing the level of cortisol. These include Cushing’s syndrome due to adrenal hyperplasia and adenocarcinomas of the adrenal gland (Miller, 2010). Administration of exogenous steroids like prednisone leads to hyperglycemia. The pituitary gland secretes hormones which stimulate the production of other hormones that have a role in carbohydrate metabolism (Nikolic & Jovanovic, 2009). Any lesion in the pituitary gland that increases the levels of these tropic hormones also increases the levels of blood glucose increases. For instance, ACTH secreting adenocarcinomas increases ACTH levels in the blood, which, in turn, increases blood glucose levels via the actions of cortisol (Ruderman, 2010). Conditions that lead to an increase in Thyroid Stimulating Hormone levels (TSH) levels induce to an increase in absorption of glucose from the intestinal tract and basal metabolic rate via the actions of thyroid hormone. Growth hormone produced in the anterior pituitary has anti-insulin effects and any condition that increases its levels during acromegaly, thereby increasing blood glucose (Marino, 2008). Catecholamines such as epinephrine and norepinephrine increase blood glucose level via beta and alpha receptors and inhibit the secretion of insulin via alpha receptors. Conditions that cause increase in the levels of these amines are adrenal gland tumors (Miller, 2010). Pancreatitis is another condition that causes hyperglycemia (Pfaff, 2008). This

Thursday, July 25, 2019

Quality Improvement Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Quality Improvement - Assignment Example Quality Improvement lth care services have the ability of bringing about substantive changes in the health status of a particular patient target group. It is based on this perspective that this paper discusses the different aspects attributed to quality improvement and an analysis of quality improvement story covering the seven steps involved in quality improvement. It is a critical aspect that for organizations to achieve a new level of performance, then there are various aspects that would have to change and provide evidence for quality improvement. Despite having different programs in Quality Improvement, substantive evident results in the incorporation of the four basic principles including focus on patients, focus on working as a team, focus on the use of data, and the aspect that Quality Improvement operate through the means of processes and systems. In order to understand Quality Improvement effectively, one has to have a substantive idea on what attributes Quality Improvement story. Quality Improvement story refers to a seven-step process and procedure on the various ways through which business processes can be improved. All the seven steps towards improvement of performances integrate each other, ensuring a collective way of performance towards the realization of a common goal. In the first step, there is the selection of appropriate theme, which should ideally focus on the particular problem that requires solution of a particular opportunity that requires exploitation.

Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Erotic elements in The Brothers Menaechmus Essay

Erotic elements in The Brothers Menaechmus - Essay Example There is a homoerotic and incestuous undertone to the union of the brothers at the end of the play that contributes to the production of humor. This paper shall seek to analyse these aspects of the play and why these can or cannot be used in a modern play. Erotic elements in The Brothers Menaechmus The erotic elements in The Brothers Menaechmus contribute greatly to the comedy that is an intrinsic part of the play. The presence of a wife and a mistress and the confusion that ensues is something that is a stock situation that is used for humor in many plays. Plautus combines this with the presence of the twin brothers who look exactly like each other to create situations that are not only funny but also educative and subversive of contemporary ideas of appearances and reality. Subversion occurs at another level, where the homoerotic element is hinted at. However, it is not developed fully and is turned into another occasion for laughter and the production of comedy. The name Erotium i n itself lends itself to suggestive explanations that produce situations that are worthy of laughter to an audience that heard the dialogues in the original Latin that the play was written in. The recourse that Menaechmus takes is that of taking refuge in the arms of his mistress. His wife remains an insignificant character as opposed to the prostitute. His wife is not even provided with a name in most translations.

Will the Protests known as the Arab Spring bring Democracy to the Research Paper

Will the Protests known as the Arab Spring bring Democracy to the Middle East - Research Paper Example These countries are Yemen, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt. These protests have shared methods of civil resistance in campaigns involving demonstrations, rallies, marches, strikes, and use of the social media. The Arab spring protestors comprise of youths (Mair, 45). Most demonstrations of the Arab Spring have met violent responses from the authorities in power and counter-demonstrators. Arab Spring protestors desired to bring down regimes of corruption and dictatorship so as to build regimes of democracy that are corruption free (Manhire, 23). This assignment will discuss whether the Arab Spring protestors will bring democracy to the Middle East through looking at the pros and cons of the protests. Pros of the Protests The protests have helped in clarification of what Middle East scholars have discovered about principal political schism in the Middle East. The protests have made the voice of the mass, which was irrelevant before, vital in the state politics. The leaders of the protests com prise of young, skilled individuals, who appreciate the use of technology and social media in conveyance of messages and arrangement of rallies. The protestors involved in the protests and demonstrations use relevantly little violence to make their demands heard by those in power (Pollack, 89). Bringing down of at least four dictatorship political governments has adhered to their policy of bringing down regimes and promoting democracy, which can be emulated by the counter-demonstrators. Cons of the Protests There is uncertainty about the extent to which these protests will continue, spread or be sustained in the Middle East countries. Youths lead the protests and although they are pushing for democracy, youth movements are void of organization leadership and policy platforms which will continue to press their agenda. The protests have had profound impacts on the political settlements in assorted nations of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region but they have failed in bringi ng out any key change in the regional power structures (Prashad, 87). Formulation and lack of economic reforms are considerable challenges to the group; given their agenda of bringing down regimes. The protests pose a new security challenge to the region; the threat of sectarian conflicts remains at large in the region. The protests have assisted in clarifying what the Middle East scholars have understood for a remarkably long time. According to the scholars, the principal political schism in the Middle East is not between the Anti-Western and Pro-Western forces or between Arabs and Jews but it is the vast gulf which separates authoritarian regimes from the people that they rule. Hence, the protests have promoted this understanding to all nations. Initially, the voice of the people in the Middle East region did not matter in the western policy, but with the protests, the voice of the people can now be listened to by the policy makers. Although the voice seemed too fractured and poli tically immature, it has become relevant through the protests, which is an indication of democracy. The skillful, youth leaders who lead the protests appreciate the use of collective media and expertise in their communication. Use of the social media and technology helps in reaching a vast number of people within a remarkably short time. This helps the protestors in informing and educating the mass on the need to have these protests, in gaining democracy. Through these communication tools, the protestors can organize individuals to fight for democracy within a short time. The protests involve the use of relatively little violence. Through the protestors using relatively less violence, they show a high level of maturity for fighting corrupt and dictatorial regimes. This increases

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Influence the West Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Influence the West - Essay Example Body Influence on Democracy of Modern West The Greek civilization has a major impact in shaping the current democratic system of America. Greeks were the ones who developed the system recognized as Direct Democratic System, this system can be easily witnessed in the way American government is operated. The Persian Empire was the one to use the centralized way of ruling the nation in which decisions were made by the head of the states and these decisions were followed by the citizens (Richard, 2010). On the other hand, the Greek Empire was created of the elements of state and cities and the empire was heavily dependent on the public’s participation in the political system. This kind of political system and means of running the country was fairly new to the way an empire was governed. During that era, other empires failed to understand the importance of the participation of the citizens of a country in decision making and running of the political system. They even failed to unde rstand how public can handle the issues faced by the governments of that time. ... Later the scenario changed and all individuals of US were granted the right to vote and were recognized as citizens. The Greeks were the ones who recognized the importance of votes of all the citizens of the nation. Therefore they created an assembly in the city of Athens where all the citizens participated in political process of electing the government body. The citizens were responsible for electing officers to different government positions and these officers were compensated for the services they offered in the government. Similarly, the assembly in comprises of individuals that represent the public and these individuals are responsible for voting for the election of different individuals to different government positions (Osborne, 2006). Influence on Republic Government The government of the Romans start with the creation of constitution, their constitution provided the government with the guideline for operating the nation. Similarly the US functions according to a constitutio n and all the activities conducted by the government are in compliance with the constitution. If activities against the constitution are conducted, the conductor of such activities is held responsible in the court of law. The US process of creating rules and regulations is even similar to the law making system of the Roman period. During the Roman period an assembly consisting of the citizens initiated the process of rule making by passing a legislation, which was later approved by the individuals that were categorized as the upper class and then the rule was passed in the name of the public (Watkin, 1986). In US, same procedure for making rules is followed, first the rule is passed by the representatives of the public which is then accepted by the senate and then the legislation is

Monday, July 22, 2019

Mark Zuckerberg Essay Example for Free

Mark Zuckerberg Essay Mark Zuckerberg is the Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of Facebook. Zuckerberg started Facebook in 2004 at the age of 19 from the confines of his Harvard dorm room. Facebook has grown from a college students only craze to the leading social networking sight around the globe. Mark later dropped out of Harvard and moved his company to Palo Alto, California to pursue the growth of his business. Zuckerberg’s job as Chief Executive Officer is to set the tone and direction for product strategy for the entire company. At 27 years old Zuckerberg is one of the youngest Chief Executive Officers in the world. He leads the design of Facebook’s service and development of its core technology and infrastructure (Facebook, 2012). His leadership style is to lead by example, showing passion for his work, he is also about rising to the challenge ever challenging his employees and he expects them to rise to the occasion. Mark is not one to coddle people or give positive feedback, he has been known to seem uninterested even when listening to a pitch or idea weather one on one or in a boardroom (Carlson, 2012). In all actuality he is listening and taking everything in and putting the puzzle pieces together he usually does not acknowledge an employee’s good idea until he takes it and puts it into action (Carlson, 2012). Employees that have confidence in their own abilities, are self-motivating, and emotionally sound are most likely to flourish in the presence of Mark Zuckerberg (Carlson, 2012). Mark’s philosophy is to innovate and execute. One of the values as stated on the company website is: â€Å"We have a saying â€Å"Move fast and break things.† The idea is that if you never break anything, you’re probably not moving fast enough. At Facebook, we’re less afraid of making mistakes than we are of losing opportunities† (Facebook, 2012). In a technology based industry it pays to be cutting edge and the first to the drawing board with new ideas this is important to the Founder of the company as well as the survival of the company as technology advances into the future. Sometimes this philosophy makes Zuckerberg seem reckless like when the company launched Beacon, an advertising program, which would automatically share what you bought online with all of your Facebook friends (Deneen, 2010). This program was launched around the holidays and reviled what some had bought as gifts or even engagement rings all without the users consent (Deneen, 2010). After being first to launch a program of its kind the company then had to rewind and apologize for all the trouble it caused and alter how it would work in the future(Deneen, 2010). Even though Zuckerberg is a kid genius of sorts starting a company so young that has been continually successful as it continues to grow even he had a mentor. His mentor was Steve Jobs who was Co-Founder and CEO of Apple and whom recently passed away (Farooq, 2011). It shows that he admired someone in a similar industry and wanted to learn how Steve grew and managed his company(Farooq, 2011). I think it is important to have a mentor that one can confide in and learn from who is a part of the same industry and has had a career or success that you admire. Having a mentor can help one realize and reach his or her own goals and possibly prevent making mistakes first hand. In this research I learned that your leadership philosophy can change and grow. A lot of the change and growth in Mark Zuckerberg’s philosophy may have come from being so young and having to change and grow with his ever growing business. Being able to adapt to change and rise to the occasion as a CEO of a company is imperative. I hope to apply this in my own industry by thinking outside of the box and being confident enough in myself to share my new ideas. I also learned that you may not always be perceived the way that you hoped while in a leadership position. Mark has been labeled as carless and rash when making decisions to launch new ideas on Facebook. He has launched many concepts that had negative back lash or did not have all the kinks worked out before introducing them to the public. His main goal though is to be innovative and on the cutting edge of his industry and he has stayed true to this regardless of the mistakes made and negativity and scrutiny that comes along with the growth and innovation. As I move up in the business world I hope to stay focused on my personal and company goals and not let negativity from co-workers, media, or friend derail me from my personal goals. My employees may not always understand my methods but it isn’t there job to understand it is there job to rise to the challenges I set in front of them. He has also been criticized for his choice of clothing as a Chief Executive Officer he wears jeans, t-shirts, hoodie sweat shirts, and tennis shoes on the job. He even wore this attire when discussing the possibility of his company becoming publicly traded on Wall Street. He is a no non-sense kind of guy who is not afraid to be and come as he is. He is the brain child of his organization so he is able to dress as he likes on the job without anyone telling him otherwise but outsiders do not agree an let him know that his attire is inappropriate. I think that as I move up in my industry I will keep in mind that first impressions are very important even down to the clothes on my back regardless of how successful I am making a great impression and dressing appropriately for my job will help others to take me and my ideas seriously. References Carlson, N. (2012, January 25). Confessions of a Facebook Employee: What Its Really Like Working For Zuckerberg. Retrieved from http://articles.businessinsider.com/2012-01-25/tech/30662019_1_mark-zuckerberg-andrew-bosworth-facebook Deneen, S. (2010). The Facebook Age. Retrieved from http://www.success.com/articles/1287-the-facebook-age Facebook. (2012). Careers at Facebook. Retrieved from http://www.facebook.com/careers/?ref=pf Facebook. (2012). Mangement. Retrieved from http://newsroom.fb.com/content/default.aspx?NewsAreaId=1 Farooq, S. (2011, November 8). Steve Jobs Mentored Me: Mark Zuckerberg. Retrieved from http://www.nbcsandiego.com/blogs/press-here/Steve-Jobs-Mentored-Me-Mark-Zuckerberg-133456048.html Raising, M. (2011, March 8). Mark Zuckerberg: Transformational Leadership In Action. Retrieved from http://ezinearticles.com/?Mark-Zuckerberg:-Transformational-Leadership-in-Actionid=6053695

Sunday, July 21, 2019

Violence in Video Games

Violence in Video Games The concern over how much of a child’s actions, if any, are influenced by the violence contained in the video games they choose to play, has been become a topic of debate in recent times. Certain heartbreaking events, such as the Columbine High School shooting in April of 1999 where two students open fired on their fellow classmates killing in total 13 victims followed by their own suicides, sparked a renewed interest in researching if video games could cause acts of violence in adolescents. (Baertlein, 2007) This apprehension is mostly due in part, because children are in theory, more inclined to behavioral influences when they actively participate, as opposed to when they are merely observing. The belief has been that, a child playing violent video games can have more of a tendency to commit violent acts. On the contrary, there has been no clear-cut substantiation to show these violent video games are to blame for youth violence. The fact remains; it is actually not an easy task to prove a real world connection between violence and video gaming. Youth violence reports show crimes rates have decreased while video game playing has become trendier. (Baertlein, 2007) In January of 2001, the Surgeon General David Satcher released his report findings concluding that, youth crime rate was not rising, and that the increase youth crime rate was merely a myth. â€Å"Since 1993, when the epidemic peaked, youth violence has declined significantly nationwide, as signaled by downward trends in arrest records, victimization data, and hospital emergency room records† (Satcher, 2001). Moreover, the study showed the amount of lethal violence has declined. This was primarily attributable to the decline in use of firearms among youth. (Snyder, 2006) This goes contrary to the claims of those who say that violent video games are teaching youth to use guns. The study performed by Surgeon General Satcher, along with other research performed on the topic, further substantiates the argument that violent content found within video games is not the cause for violent acts committed by the youth. According to the Surgeon General, the strongest risk factors for scho ol shootings centered on mental stability and the quality of home life, not media exposure. (Satcher, 2001) The reality is recent reporting has shown a decrease regarding violence in teens since games have become more graphic. The violent crime rate has decreased from a rate of 51 victimizations per 1,000 members of the population age 12 and over in 1994, down to 21 per 1,000 members in 2005. (Bureau of Statistics, 2006) In addition, the Juvenile Violent Crime Index has also shown a declining rate since 1994. Crimes of murder committed by juvenile offenders have actually fallen 65% from 1994 to 2002. (Snyder Sickmund, 2006) Although the crime rate has declined, concern regarding violent acts by juveniles is still an issue; the public continues to hold fast on its views that children participating in playing violent video games are being led to commit violent acts. Theorists such as Bruce Barthalow, Mark Sestir and Edward Davis have based their opinions according to a large quantity of research performed by many esteemed scholars. They state that a connection has been made known between real life violent crimes and violent content in video games. (Barthalow, Sestir Davis, 2005) The main positions in the argument for these theorists are derived from results of several types of studies, lab experiments, field studies as well as correlation studies. Correlations are a measure of how strongly associated two events are. However, co relational studies and other studies such as those cannot account for whether or not violent video games can cause aggression. Furthermore, some co relational studies find no sign ificant relationship with aggression. Even still, those studies cannot prove violence contained in video games is the cause of true-life violence. After all, what is lacking from the studies used video game research? Crucial factors are missing in research studies conducted on violent video games. The players in these particular studies are not in control. Their free will and freedom of choice are not included when researches test their theories. They are selected to play a video game not of their choosing, when the action of play is in essence, a self directed and voluntary activity. The element of forced exposure to a video game can alter the player’s reaction to the experience. Play is not an action that can be recreated in an experiment held in a laboratory. There are other questionable factors regarding the testing video games as well. For example, â€Å"the duration of play is too short, typically 5-15 minutes, for anything like the play experience to be duplicated† (Calvert Tan, 1994). In these laboratory studies, no individual really â€Å"plays†. A video game is played by individuals for entertain ment and therefore, being instructed to â€Å"play† a video game defeats the purpose of electing to play for amusement. The studies performed do not take in to consideration why individuals play video games at all. (Calvert Tan, 1994) Research on video games also fail to recognize that a player of video games participates freely and ceases to play when they so desire. (Calvert Tan, 1994) Players are free to enter the world they create for themselves in these games, and this freedom remains missing from the laboratory studies conducted on violent video games. Studies completed have concluded that there has been no definitive link between violent acts and violent content found in video games, and that some fashion; violent video games may actually provide a venue for children to vent their aggressions, rather than taking physically taking action. (OBrien, 2007) In studies performed by the U.S. Department of Justice’s, Office of Justice Programs, it is reported that the largest influential factor in adolescent delinquency is the family dynamics within the children’s homes. (Snyder, 2006) Parents have a certain obligation to their children. They play an important role in the child’s life and are responsible to provide them with guidance as to what is wrong or right. If children cannot clearly determine the differences between fantasy life in video games and reality, they cannot be blamed for committed violent acts such as those contained within video games. Without parental guidance, children are susceptible to misinterpret scenarios they come across in real life. (Anderson, et al., 2003) Violence from video games will not make submissive adolescents violent when they have been made aware of the limits within a fictional world. Many factors can cause a child’s incapacity to make a distinction regarding right from wrong, reality from fiction. An adolescent or teenager may be lacking the maturity level necessary to understand the impact of their actions, or perhaps can suffer from mental instability limiting their perception of reality. However, is it the violent content found within video games to blame? The studies suggest that when parents actively participate in a child’s life, discuss real life conflicts, the inappropriateness violent solutions, and help the child generate alternative solutions to violent actions, it can help reduce the actual impact of media violence on the youth. (Anderson, et al., 2003) Psychologists have also concluded that, children whose parents have regulated the length of time video games are played are less likely to show aggressive behavior. (Anderson, et al., 2003) It is the parent’s responsibility to monitor their children and to educate them. It is a par ent’s role to discipline their children and to teach them social norms and values. After all, it would be impossible maintain a child from the outside world. There will always be negative influences out there. It is the parent’s duty to their children, to ensure they are taught the consequences of their behavior, as well as right from wrong. Parents should be the ultimate decision makers of what they allow their child to watch, play or do. Parents have the responsibility to be aware of the content involved in the games their child plays. Video games are labeled to describe the content within them, as well as specify when they include strong language, violence, mature sexual themes, as well as other subject matter that may be unsuitable for a child. In 1994, the video game industry established the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB), a self-regulating labeling body. (Entertainment Software Association, 2006) The ESRB ratings method is astonishingly all-inclusive. According to the ESRB, it rates over 1,000 games per year. Practically every title produced by major game developers for retail sale today carries an ESRB rating and content descriptors. â€Å"The ESRB rating system helps parents and other consumers choose the games that are right for their families. ESRB ratings have two parts: rating symbols that suggest what age group the game is best for, and content descriptors that indicate elements in a game that may have triggered a particular rating and/or may be of interest or concern† (Entertainment Software Association, 2006). These ratings provide the parents with information they need to determine whether the video games is suitable for their child to play. Even with the ratings and the violent content, some parents still purchase these games for their young children without screening the video games. According to the Entertainment Software Association, 89% of the time parents are present at the time games are purchased or rented, 61% of parents believe games are a positive part of their children’s lives, and 87% of the time children receive their parents’ permission before purchasing or renting a game. (Entertainment Software Association, 2006) Parents, teachers, guardians, mentors or anyone else a child may look to for guidance, should be able to provide them with proper direction, lessons about choice and consequences in life that could affect them and those they hold close as well. â€Å"When the fantasy world is brought into the picture, these lessons should let the child know that certain actions in a fantasy world are not appropriate in the real world, thus the separation† (Goldstein, 2001). Video game violence contains simulated acts of aggression. Video games cannot actually emphasize acts of aggression if there is none to begin with. (Delamere, 2005) The same features that hold back the audience from rushing the stage during a murder scene in a play are present in video games. When and adolescent plays a video game that is labeled as violent, it is actually containing simulated acts of violence. (Goldstein, 2001) There is not an actual physically performed action taken, since the child is in an imaginary wor ld. They cannot abuse, damage or violate because there is nothing to abuse, damage or violate. (Goldstein, 2001) The child has ultimate control what occurs which is a major deciding point in separating reality from video games. In the real world, consequences are certain. When a child commits and act, either good or bad, something will happen. In video games, the player can suspend the game play and even bypass consequences. These factors provide cues that the game play is not real, and that they child is merely doing something for amusement. (Goldstein, 2001) Video games can actually be beneficial to children.They provide cognitive benefits such as system thinking, pattern recognition, strategy, decision making, and even patience. A book written by author Steven Johnson makes another point in favor of viewing video games from a new perspective. Johnson argues that video games are growing progressively more refined, they present players a mental exercise that is far more invigorating, satisfying, and even more educational than much of the media content they were force fed in the past. (Johnson, 2005) Particularly, Johnson states, modern games, including those filled with violent material demand children to mange resources, evaluate multifaceted social networks, and recognize long-term patterns. (Johnson, 2005) A common video game presents a predicament to be solved and diverse means to accomplish the resolution. Children playing video games are driven to play video games because they can achieve the impossible. (Simpson, 2005) Distribution of resources, trial and error and completing tasks are all part of the learning experience. (Simpson, 2005) The software embedded in these video games clearly establishes roles, powers, and limitations. Video game players have the ability decide their course of actions and recognize that they must take accountability for their own actions. The children playing these games are aware that there are both harmful and helpful consequences during game play. Games can mimic real-life consequences, and playing them teaches children that patience and perseverance lead to successful results. (Simpson, 2005) Violence in video games is not cause of violence in adolescents; this is a rumor or myth made by people looking for an excuse or a solution to why things happen. With the level of violence in video games increasing, adults have been linking the acts of violence contained in video games with violent acts that have been committed by children. Rather than look in to all the determining factors that can be reasons for children to act aggressively, they would rather lay blame on something new. The public has not even taken a moment to reflect on the past and realize that video games are just another source of media added to the list excuses justifying a child’s actions. Films, radio, novels, television programming, have all had been faulted for leading young people off course and stirring up aggressive or unsociable behavior. Video games violence is a handy scapegoat for individuals who do not care to explore deeper into the quandary of where the desire to murder comes from. The myth that video games reveal a new, excessive collective fixation with violent entertainment is untrue. Harold Schechter, in the manuscript Savage Pastimes: A Cultural History of Violent Entertainment, painstakingly documents the incidence of violent media all the way through the history of art and entertainment. Schechter remarks that even the purportedly quiet days of the 1950s were complete with violent media, most of it aimed at children. (Schechter, 2005) â€Å"The fact is that, contrary to popular belief, there was a shockingly high level of sadistic violence and gore in some of the most popular commercial entertainments of the 1950s† (Schechter, 2005). Violence and aggressive media and behavior have always been a part of civilization, so why it is receiving so much attention these days? Perhaps the degree of youth violence has not changed at all, but the factors mentioned above have simply created a heightened awareness of violence amongst youth. Perhaps a heightene d awareness and a lower tolerance for such acts have simply caused an increase in reporting violence, creating an illusion of an increase in youth violent behavior. There are extreme cases of youth violence in recent years that stand out, and were covered extensively by the media. The Columbine incident is an example. This type of incident is rare, but the media attention it received contributed to the perception of an increase in youth violence. Youth violence did not increase during this time; it just became more of social issue. Many factors contributed to those crimes, leaving the public many ways of laying blame. Youth violence is not caused by content found within a video game; it is more of an issue with the individual committing the violent acts. The underlying problem deals with the individual having a firm grip on reality and knowing the difference between those actions and the ones found within a video game. The adolescents are less apt to see violent video games in an unconstructive way if the individual is there not already a predisposition to violent acts. (Zarozinski, 2001) â€Å"Media in all forms can move people to consider things they had not considered before. But media cannot take over a mind and make anyone do something hes not predisposed to do† (Zarozinski, 2001). Stating, in essence, violent video games do not create violent children, however they may add to the troubles of an already violent youth. (Zarozinski, 2001) The public is quick to fault violence in the planet on video games, movies, television and music for the reason that they are effortless plausible targ ets. Although these media sources can influence and individual to a certain degree, the public has to look further than this particular focal point and start searching for the real cause for the violent behavior in civilization. A game cannot and will not make a human being kill another. Numerous individuals view violent images on a regular basis, yet only a small percentage of those actually commit crimes of violence. As studies by respected academics show, people that are already predisposed to violence are those that tend to gravitate towards playing video games. (Delamere, 2005) â€Å"The violence present in these media sources may help instigate a violent act; it is never the only cause† (Delamere, 2005). However, the groups of alarmed individuals that plead for the government to take action to against video games will not openly admit that the source for their civilizations problems may be due to their own actions. The people want a scapegoat that will appease their conscience and at the same token, avert the fingers of blame from pointing in their direction. This day and age, humankind is a world where real violence is everywhere, from neighborhood shootings to the war in Iraq. People are mostly helpless to stop it, and just have to live through it, but when a juvenile turns on a violent video game and spends endless hours playing, the question remains, does it change their perception of the real world and cause them to become delinquent? Violence in video games has been at the forefront of a lot of controversy recently. Incidents, like the Columbine High School shooting has come and gone, reopening old wounds and revisiting unanswered questions. What could have caused two seemingly average kids to go on such a rampage? Some of the blame has fallen on violent video games. Are these games actually part of the problem, or just an easy target? Fueled by myths of increased youth violence, and tragedies such as school shootings, youth violence is an increasing concern in for the public. Nevertheless, there is a lack of hard evidence to suppor t the supposed increase in youth violence, much less, that violence in video game plays a part in it. Violence in Video Games Violence in Video Games RQ: Should any restrictions be applied to violence in future video games to prevent any negative changes in childrens behavior? Abstract: Introduction: People, nowadays, are always arguing about the problem of violence in video games; and violence, in this case, includes use of drugs, blood, gore, offensive language, and many other things, that exist in modern video games. According to the statistics, over a billion people play video games, and the majority of these people are children or young teenagers. Of course, there are games, which are perfectly fit for children, games, which do not contain any type of violence, and they are usually designed specifically for kids to play. But many children prefer playing violent video games, because they think it is more enjoyable. Even though, it is usually up to their parents or guardians to decide whether these children are allowed to play violent video games or not, in most cases, parents do not want to restrict their kids from playing games, they like, so they just allow children to play almost any games, they want to play. The problem here is, that psychologically underage people might be more vulnerable to impact, coming from video games, than adults are; so violent video games might have a negative impact on shaping childrens behaviour (Publications, Harvard). Even though, millions of children play violent video games, only a few actually become violent (John Bingham). And this controversy leads me to a question: Should any restrictions be applied to violence in future video games to prevent any negative changes in childrens behaviour? I conducted the research, which provided me with the information about the ways, in which video games might affect childrens behaviour and the consequences of video game influence for children. That information will help me understand which restrictions should be applied to violence in video games, if any. Body: Even though, there is evidence of the link between violence in video games and the increase of childrens aggressive behaviour during the past two decades, there are still a lot of facts, which prove that there are many other factors, which could have caused negative effects on childrens behaviour. A lot of various psychological and media institutions, such as Oxford University, have conducted the research on the influence of violence in video games and other types of media. There are about 350 research papers conducted from 2005 to 2013, and non of them really explore every aspect of the effects of media violence on kids behaviour. For example, the combinations of effects of different risk factors, such as depression or stress with this kind of violence, or the differences between the effects on different genders. Such factors as the gender and living in poverty have greater impact on the outcomes (Bavelier, Green and Dye 692-701). In the majority of the studies kids younger than 10 years of age werent even included. The importance of these factors is certainly undeniable, especially considering the fact that there are not too many cases of chilren aggressive and violent behaviour, proved to happen due to violent video games. There was one of the high-profile incidents in the USA, which was caused by 17 year-old Dylan Klebold, and 18 year-old Harris Eric. It is called the Columbine High School Massacre. The shooting happened on the 20th of April, 1999, at Columbine High School, in Jefferson County. Two pupils killed twelve other pupils and a teacher (Library, CNN). The two shooters in the massacre were regularly playing weapon-based combat games. Specifically, the two shooters used to play Doom, which is a violent video game (The Columbine Shooters: Video Game Addicts?) Since the moment when violence was introduced to media, hundreds of studies have focused their research on viewing these acts of violence and aggression, such as Columbine High School shooting. When violent video games emerged, researchers started analyzing these acts much more closely. Many of the studies were focused on persons sex and studying male versus female aggression after viewing and playing violent video games. Some of them researched viewing violent video games against playing these games to find out if there was any link between the two ways of experiencing video game violence (Polman, de Castro and van Aken 256-264). Very little of these studies have researched the positive effects, which video games might have on chldren. For example, watching video games   improves hand eye coordination, and increases some of the persons abilities, for example some kids become better at solving puzzles (Ferguson 309-316). Ferguson found no connection between violent video games and negative behaviour. He concluded, that research made up of current studies, which have been analyzed, cannot link watching or playing violent video games to aggressive behavior afterwards (Ferguson 309-316). Each study, which has been reviewed, usually shows that there is some link between viewing violent video games and aggression. However, it doesnt completely prove the existence of this connection. Some evidence suggest that there is a link between exposure to violent video games and violent behavior (Porter and Starcevic 422-426). Can aggressive behavior with a good level of certainty be linked to watching video games? Or are there other circumstances that influence this kind of behaviour? Studies suggest a link between video watching and aggression, but researchers have not yet been able to find a direct relationship between the two. As in most behaviours, there are still loads of other factors that may contribute to the persons behaviour. Concluding, that experiencing violence in video games is linked to aggressive behaviour, is only possible if other factors, which influence a persons behaviour can be controlled. Those factors can include family history, sex, cases of aggressive behavior before watching video games, and many other potential factors that might influence childrens behavior (Persky and Blascovich 57-72). Not all studies have found a relationship (Ferguson et al. 109-122) between exposure to violent video games and aggression in children. However, the   most part of all the work actually shows a relationship. In a meta-analysis of 98 studies, which involved 36,965 participants, violent video games were convincingly shown to influence social behaviour (Greitemeyer and Mà ¼gge 578-589). The fact, that studies have taken many different forms, increases the certainty of the relationship. Jim Blascovich, at the University of California at Santa Barbara, in the study, he conducted, he concluded that the more realistic the graphics are the more of a possibility there is to display aggressive behavior right after viewing violent video games. Explicit viewing material usually looked more realistic, though letting aggressive behavior in the real world.   For example, Pacmans graphics were very simple in their content, and as graphics have become more realistic, the violence and death scenes have become a lot more realistic in modern video games (Persky Blascovich 57-72). Some of the work looks at the causal effect of game play. Some individuals have been asked to play violent games in the lab, while others were asked to play non-violent games. Then the behaviour of each group was measured in social tasks after the experiment. These studies have shown that playing violent games results in instantaneous changes to behaviour (Anderson, Carnagey and Flanagan 199-249). Young adults have shown physiological desensitisation to scenes of real life violence (Carnagey, Anderson and Bushman 489-49). Individuals who had played violent, in comparison with non-violent, games were less likely to report hearing a fight staged outside the laboratory, considered the fight more common and were slower to respond when some of them decided to help (Bushman and Anderson 273-27). Desensitisation to violence is considered to link violent game play with later aggressive behaviour (Engelhardt et al. 1033-1036). Other studies have included longitudinal effects, where individuals have been followed over a period of time; and video game play at one point in time has been related to aggression later, both in lab and in real life. The more violent play individuals took part in, the steeper the increase was in aggressive behaviour (Willoughby, Adachi and Good 1044-1057). The size of the effects found in most studies is either small or medium, but its quite consistent. This pretty much indicates that violent games do influence violent behaviour, rather than that violent children engage in video games. The most part of the negative effects, as a result of playing violent video games among children, can be blamed on the violent scenes included in these games. If a kid spends a big amount of time playing violent videogames, he or she becomes socially isolated. This basically means that this child doesnt have enough time to interact with his or her peers (Anderson and Bushman 353-359). The child who spends lots of hours per day playing videogames will have almost no time to make new friends. Such children may become more depressed and lonely in their homes. They are also very likely to stop spending time on other activities such as sports, reading, and studying.   Children stop being socially active, since they dont get involved in real-life events anymore. A child, who ends up spending most of his or her time playing videogames, does not get a chance to think creatively and independently, due to the fact that videogames reduce a childs imaginative thinking. This kind of thinking is crucial in developing a childs creativity. By encouraging isolation, videogames may also put a childs health at a serious risk. Since such kids do not lead a healthy lifestyle, due to the lack of sports and social activities, children, who are used to spending the majority of their time playing videogames, are very likely to suffer from obesity, and muscular and postural disorders. Quite a large number of videogames are addictive. Rather than studying or completing homework, a child spends time playing videogames, because the addiction wins over this child. When a child spends an large amount of time playing such videogames, he or she becomes socially isolated. Some of the negative effects as a result of playing these kind of videogames among children can be blamed on the addictiveness of these games. Due to the lack of time, which a child has while not playing games, he or she does not have an opportunity for rich social life (Anderson and Bushman 353-359). The child who spends almost the whole day playing videogames will have little time to meet and make new friends. They may very easily become more depressed and lonely in their homes. Children will also spend little time on other activities such as sports, reading, and doing homework. These children become socially inactive since they do not get involved in almost any social activities. Such video games redu ce a childs imagination as well. This basically means that children who spend most of their time playing videogames do not get a chance to think creatively or independently. Imaginative thinking is essential in developing a childs creativity. By promoting isolation, videogames may have some effects on a childs health. Quite some videogames may teach children wrong values (Gunter). Videogames encourage children to associate positive emotions such as happiness and pleasure with the ability to cause pain to others. They develop the feeling that they have to hurt other people in order to be happy themselves. Children who play videogames usually tend to develop selfish behavior (Anderson and Bushman 353-359). Videogames make the players depend on them. As a child is very often left alone, while playing a videogame, he or she can develop this dependent behavior. A study, which was done at a Minneapolis-based national institute for media, found out that kids can get addicted to videogames and exhibit social phobias. Video games are quite different from other visual types of media, because of their interactivity. The games allow players to be active participants in the storyline. In games the players, who benefit from acts of violence, are able to proceed to the next level. Violence in children behaviour has increased, as a negative result of playing videogames. There are a lot of incidents of violent and aggressive behaviour among children, who play violent videogames worldwide (Gunter).   Right after these incidents, the most of newspaper articles claimed that the key cause of that incident was violent videogames. The effects of violent games arent equal for everyone. Short-term effects in the lab are discovered to be bigger for undergraduate men than women (Bartholow and Anderson 283-290), and younger children are at a bigger risk of being affected by violent games if theyve got a high level on a personality trait, called neuroticism, and a low level on the traits agreeableness and conscientiousness (Markey and Markey 82-91). In terms of the game, playing with a customised avatar was found to cause more aggressive and violent behaviour, than when playing with a generic character (Fischer, Kastenmà ¼ller and Greitemeyer 192-195). Conclusion: Although the link between real-life violence and video game violence is still debated, and certainly other factors have a more significant influence on aggression. The impact of video games violence on the behavioural development of children is quite obvious both in the short-term and the long-term. The effectiveness of video games is a very important issue for society, and at the same time a benefit, because their effects can be both negative and positive; indeed it would be extremely hard to argue for one of these positions without the other. What is crucial is that we understand what aspects of game play behaviour have an influence, and on whom they have it. So whats the final answer to my question: Should any restrictions be applied to violence in future video games to prevent any negative changes in childrens behavior? Its quite simple. No new restrictions should be applied to violent video games in the future. Partly, its because the effects of this kind of violence are differe nt from one person to another, so they can also be positive; and partly because other factors usually affect childrens behaviour more, than video game violence. Althogh, parents can take some action to prevent possible negative impact of video games. For example, limit the number of ours, their children spend playing, or simply not allow kids to play games, which they consider too violent. Bibliography: Greitemeyer, Tobias and Dirk O. Mà ¼gge. Video Games Do Affect Social Outcomes. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 40.5 (2014): 578-589. Web. 22 Dec. 2016 Library, CNN. Columbine High School Shootings Fast Facts CNN.Com. CNN. N.p., 2017. Web. 16 Dec. 2016 The Columbine Shooters: Video Game Addicts?. NY Daily News. N.p., 2017. Web. 16 Dec. 2016 Bavelier, Daphne, C. Shawn Green, and Matthew W.G. Dye. Children, Wired: For Better And For Worse. Neuron 67.5 (2010): 692-701. Web. 4 Dec. 2016 Polman, Hanneke, Bram Orobio de Castro, and Marcel A.G. van Aken. Experimental Study Of The Differential Effects Of Playing Versus Watching Violent Video Games On Childrens Aggressive Behavior. Aggressive Behavior 34.3 (2008): 256-264. Web. 12 Dec. 2016 Ferguson, Christopher John. The Good, The Bad And The Ugly: A Meta-Analytic Review Of Positive And Negative Effects Of Violent Video Games. Psychiatric Quarterly 78.4 (2007): 309-316. Web. 17 Dec. 2016 Porter, Guy and Vladan Starcevic. Are Violent Video Games Harmful?. Australasian Psychiatry 15.5 (2007): 422-426. Web. 20 Dec. 2016 Persky, Susan and Jim Blascovich. Immersive Virtual Video Game Play And Presence: Influences On Aggressive Feelings And Behavior. Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments 17.1 (2008): 57-72. Web. 25 Nov. 2016 Ferguson, Christopher J. et al. Not Worth The Fuss After All? Cross-Sectional And Prospective Data On Violent Video Game Influences On Aggression, Visuospatial Cognition And Mathematics Ability In A Sample Of Youth. Journal of Youth and Adolescence 42.1 (2012): 109-122. Web. 4 Dec. 2016 Carnagey, Nicholas L., Craig A. Anderson, and Brad J. Bushman. The Effect Of Video Game Violence On Physiological Desensitization To Real-Life Violence. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 43.3 (2007): 489-496. Web. 13 Dec. 2016 Anderson, Craig A, Nicholas L Carnagey, and Mindy Flanagan. Violent Video Games: Specific Effects Of Violent Content On Aggressive Thoughts And Behavior. 1st ed. 2004. Print Bushman, Brad J. and Craig A. Anderson. Comfortably Numb: Desensitizing Effects Of Violent Media On Helping Others. Psychological Science 20.3 (2009): 273-277. Web. 14 Dec. 2016 Engelhardt, Christopher R. et al. This Is Your Brain On Violent Video Games: Neural Desensitization To Violence Predicts Increased Aggression Following Violent Video Game Exposure. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 47.5 (2011): 1033-1036. Web. 21 Dec. 2016 Willoughby, Teena, Paul J. C. Adachi, and Marie Good. A Longitudinal Study Of The Association Between Violent Video Game Play And Aggression Among Adolescents.. Developmental Psychology 48.4 (2012): 1044-1057. Web. 19 Dec. 2016 Anderson, C. A. and B. J. Bushman. Effects Of Violent Video Games On Aggressive Behavior, Aggressive Cognition, Aggressive Affect, Physiological Arousal, And Prosocial Behavior: A Meta-Analytic Review Of The Scientific Literature. Psychological Science 12.5 (2001): 353-359. Web. 13 Dec. 2016 Gunter, Barrie. The Effects Of Video Games On Children. 1st ed. Sheffield, England: Sheffield Academic Press, 1998. Print Fischer, Peter, Andreas Kastenmà ¼ller, and Tobias Greitemeyer. Media Violence And The Self: The Impact Of Personalized Gaming Characters In Aggressive Video Games On Aggressive Behavior. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 46.1 (2010): 192-195. Web. 16 Dec. 2016 Markey, Patrick M. and Charlotte N. Markey. Vulnerability To Violent Video Games: A Review And Integration Of Personality Research.. Review of General Psychology 14.2 (2010): 82-91. Web. 18 Dec. 2016 Bartholow, Bruce D. and Craig A. Anderson. Effects Of Violent Video Games On Aggressive Behavior: Potential Sex Differences. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 38.3 (2002): 283-290. Web. 15 Dec. 2016 Publications, Harvard. Violent Video Games And Young People Harvard Health. Harvard Health. N.p., 2017. Web. 18 Dec. 2016 John Bingham. Study Finds No Evidence Violent Video Games Make Children Aggressive. The Telegraph. N.p., 2017. Web. 15 Dec. 2016

Literary Components Of M Commerce Information Technology Essay

Literary Components Of M Commerce Information Technology Essay The present assignment on Secure Mobile Transactions: m-commerce, aims to present a comprehensive view of all the technological and security aspects that influence and govern monetary transactions done on wireless networks. This paper refers to some basic concepts related to m-commerce and then proceeds to discuss various purely technical issues involved in m-commerce. This work identifies presently available technologies that facilitate m-commerce and gives explanation about each of such technology. Further, the assignment focuses on the security challenges involved in mobile transactions and various aspects of mobile payments. Finally, the paper gives a brief list of m-commerce solutions currently available. Table of Contents 1. Introduction: Mobile commerce or simply m-commerce relates to commercial business operations and transactions carried out on wireless telecommunication networks with the infrastructural assistance of handheld mobile electronic devices. E-commerce is the commercial business processes done on internet and the m-commerce is making all monetary transactions on mobile devices (wireless electronic commerce). The technology of m-commerce offers many services and facilities that make commercial dealings simplified and reduce time consumed in those transactions. But the users and service providers have to be cautious of possible treats of wireless trade operations. Security of information, privacy to personal details and protection to the money involved are the real touch stones of strength of m-commerce. 2. Literary components of m-Commerce: The concept of mobile commerce came into existence in the last decade of the 20th century. What has started as a facility to make payments to a soft drink vending machine, has now effectively subsumed nearly every aspect of electronic commerce. Today, m-commerce has emerged as a viable extension to e-commerce. Now the customers of any service or product can make their payments over mobile phones staying anywhere or even on move. Fundamental difference between e-commerce and m-commerce is that, in electronic commerce business dealings and transactions are made on internet, but the mobile commerce services can be used with the help of simple and inexpensive SMS and IVR systems (Rediff.com, 2010). Statistics inform that, the penetration of personal computers is still limited and the mobile penetration is nearly ten times more than that of PCs. Further, the wide internet access is still a distant dream with the exception of big cities and conurbations. Thus with the presently available u ser share and the further spread in future would certainly point mobile commerce as a viable and popular option to make swift and secure monetary transactions. Further, people with basic literacy can also make use of various services of mobile commerce unlike the electronic commerce, which requires the users to have good command on PC knowledge and its operational procedures. The central point of mobile commerce is making payments on mobile phones. It is a point of sale payment made over a mobile gadget like cell phone, PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) ,a smart phone, gadgets of personal area networks and other newly coming wireless equipment (Krueger, 2001). Here, not only the merchandise transactions made through cell phones but the monetary payments made to utility vending machines, cab services, car wash machines etc also constitute acts of mobile commerce (Paavalainen, 2001). The core idea is the convenience. This convenience should not turn into a nightmare because of lack of security of the data exchanged in these commercial transactions over wireless networks. Important services offered by m-commerce are, Making reservations of tickets of journeys Booking various entertainment show tickets Making payments of civic utility bills Transferring gift vouchers Booking hotel rooms Booking cab services Make money donations to social service foundations Making stock market trading To avail all these facilities, mobile users can make use of SMS, BREW, GPRS and IVR services. Key issues of mobile transactions are the questions of authentication and security. The service providers have to follow robust security standards that are in vogue world wide. Some of the presently accepted standards are PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard). Advantages of m-commerce are: Reduction of time consumed in serving merchandise orders Reduction in the cost of management of commercial transactions Gives extensively broad reach Helps in effectively coordinating all the business processes involved Gives competitive advantage in matters of product pricing Provides high speed access to modern cellular applications (Answers Corporation, 2010). Disadvantages of mobile transactions: Cost of establishing and managing wireless telecommunication infrastructure Concerns over safety of information and data exchanged over mobile gadgets Mobile devices come with small screens and this limited display can limit the types of data and files that can be exchanged and accessed Advanced mobile technologies are now largely confined to big cities Technical limitations of mobile telecommunication equipments (Answers Corporation, 2010). Given the comparative merits and demerits of mobile commerce, one can be perfectly sure that, the ongoing technological researches would certainly find viable answers to problems of this new paradigm in wireless commerce. 3. How m-commerce differs from e-commerce? The level of wide availability of wireless telecommunication networks to use m-commerce applications practically from any location. The convenience in handling these small and low weighed devices is unique when compared to equipment required for carrying out electronic commerce transactions. Further these mobile devices are purely personal electronic gadgets and this guarantees maximum personalization unlike the PCs with Internet which are needed for e-commerce actions that are often shared among multiple users. Localized positioning of users can be done on all mobile commerce transactions. As the users carry their mobile phones with them, they can utilize their preferred personalized settings with which they can transact. This personalization is not available in electronic commerce transactions and dealings. 4. Technical areas related to secure m-commerce: There are various aspects on the technical front that are closely related to safe money transactions done on wireless telecommunication networks with the help of mobile handheld devices. They are: 4.1. Need for secure m-commerce: According to Yeun (2001), there are more cell phones which are connected to internet than the number of net connected Personal Computers. Though the PC penetration is also gaining pace, the spread of mobile phones and related gadgets has already surpassed all the future projections. The comfort given by mobile merchandise transactions is fueling the further expansion of m-commerce. As more and more people are resorting to the m-commerce utilities, the service providers have to take every care to ensure that all the transactions done, payments made, business deals concluded and the information exchanged over wireless networks is best guarded and strongly protected. Already the electronic commerce has seen any worst cases of security breaches and fraudulent infringements in high value commercial transactions done on electronic media through PCs connected to internet. This shows the dire need to research, design, invent and implement robust security standards for every small monetary tr ansaction done over mobiles. Propensity of threat should be reduced and the vulnerability of supportive wireless networks should be reduced to sub-terrestrial depths to complement the growing demand for m-commerce. 4.2. Security Challenges in m-commerce: As the wireless telecommunication networks are spreading fast and becoming a ubiquitous resource, the user base of m-commerce is fast expanding. But to ensure the continuity of this boom, high security of mobile transactions is in dire need. Important data and transaction security problems that pervade over m-commerce transactions are analyzed by Grosche Knospe (n.d.). As the mobile gadgets are purely personal devices, they are bound to carry some important private and confidential information which needs protection from unauthorized intruder access. To answer this threat these, smart and sensitive gadgets must employ user authentication mechanisms like passwords and PIN. Further, these cell phones must come with good data backup and crash recovery tools pre-installed in them, to cater to any unforeseen data loss and authentication breach. The operating systems used in the wireless gadgets must have tested perfection in defending owners data security needs. While the owner of the mobile phone intends to transmit some data over wireless telecommunication network for any commercial dealing, the wireless interface that guides this information exchange must be strong enough to maintain high levels of confidentiality, content integrity and more particularly user authenticity. Eavesdropping is a big threat which the wireless networks have to confront ser iously. Data security mechanisms vary from one mobile technology to another. The end user access networks need to be strongly protected from data theft within and out side these network loops. And the network operator concerned must ensure that the money transactions made are concluded to the maximum satisfaction of both parties. Money payment actions done on wireless networks should have assured secrecy and protection to the money involved. This task should cover all the stages starting from the payment or committing to make a payment up to the conclusion of the deal and authentication systems have to guard the entire transaction leaving no chance to intruder attack. 4.2. Technologies involved in m-commerce security: With the increasing widening of mobile penetration, and all other similar wireless handheld devices, the services offered by mobile commerce have assured future. The technologies involved in the mobile commerce mainly deal with transferring of data and information over the available wireless telecom networks. Presently, widely used supportive network technologies are 2nd generation (2G), 3rd generation (3G) etc (Grosche Knospe n.d.). 2nd generation wireless telephone technologies include, GSM (TDMA based), CDMA One etc. 2G telecommunication technologies are also known as PCS (Personal Communications Service) in USA. Advanced version of 2G services is 2.5G. This new one offers data transfer at higher speed. These services gave way to 3G services. This 3G technology comes with wireless telecom services like CDMA2000, UMTS, GSM EDGE, WiMAX, DECT etc. These new mobile standards support data transfers up to 14Mbits per second while downloading. The security of data transfers is higher in 3G when compared to earlier 2G technology. 3G services come with user authentication facilities while connecting to any network. This guarantees high security to all the transactions done of that specific telecom network (Grosche Knospe n.d.).. GSM is the most used media for carrying out mobile commerce transactions. The data transfer and sharing services offered on GSM networks are, SMS (Short Messaging Service) for sending short messages having maximum 160 characters on the network media, WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) to access internet APIs designed in WML (Wireless Mark-up Language), HSCSD (High Speed Circuit Switched Data) tool of channel clustering for high data transfer rates and GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) actually, this is an extension of GSM services. Fundamental architecture of GSM network generally contains GPRS, Intelligent Network(IN) and SMS services. UTMS (Universal Mobile Telecommunication System) is a modern telecommunication system offered by 3G services. This is largely an extension of existing GSM. It has WCDMA (Wireband Code Division Multiple Access) radio channel signaling technology (Grosche Knospe n.d.). WLAN (Wireless LAN) works in 2.4 GHz 5 GHz spectrum. Normally WLANs are low in data security. IEEE stipulated WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) to provide some security to transactions done on WLANs. 5. Security at various levels of mobile transactions: 5.1. Safety in data transport channels: The technologies like GSM, GPRS, WLAN, UTMS provide considerable security to all deals transacted on wireless networks. But they cannot handle the safety constraints, when the commercial transactions involve multiple access networks. To ensure end to end security in such cases that communicate over Internet Protocol, SSL/TLS is widely used. SSL works with TCP (Transmission Control Protocol). Another transport layer security protocol designed and used for this purpose is WTLS with WAP services (Grosche Knospe n.d.). 5.2. Safety of network services: To make m-commerce transactions more secure, Intelligent Network (IN) concept in GSM networks is introduced. This GSM framework contains IN logic i.e. CAMEL (Cuatomized Application for Mobile Enhanced network Logic). IN handles all the m-commerce conversations. These services can also be used with SMS systems. Other technologies for secure services are, Parlay / OSA (Open Service Access) and USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) (Grosche Knospe n.d.). 6. Security models presently in use: GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication) is the widely used mobile security standard in European countries. According to Zobol (2001), Europe has the highest mobile penetration and the European Commission is presently implementing 15 new projects that operate mobile telecommunication networks. These projects are using WAP, GPRS, UTMS technologies. For ensuring high security of mobile transactions, they are using NESSIE encryption and E-PASTA environment. Further, 4G an ultra speed broadband is also under implementation. 7. m-Payments: The commercial transactions concluded on mobile wireless networks do involve money payment. The concept of m-payments related to payment of charges for services or the price of goods sold or purchased over mobile wireless telecommunication networks. Significant advantageous aspects of m-payments are, less time consumed, no need to carry physical money and remote operability of accounts safely. There are different variants of m-payment systems like, pre paid payment systems, pay now payment systems and post payment systems. There are various agreed limits of money transactions that can be done on mobile networks. In Europe micro, small and macro payments are in vogue form 1euro to more than 10 euros. In India the monetary transactions up to Rs.50000 can be done (Rediff.com, 2010). The level of safety such mobile transactions need varies based on the money involved and the items that are traded in that transaction. But in each of such case anonymity of customer has to be protected safely. Mandatory and common requirements of mobile transactions are authenticity, reliability, confidentiality, authorization and integrity. Further the response time has to be reduced to minimum. And, conformity to ACID (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation and Durability) principle for all deals involving monetary payment. Depending on the sources of money from where customers make payment over mobile networks, various m-payment systems presently available are: Software electronic coins, Hardware electronic coins, Background amount (Grosche Knospe n.d.). 8. Examples of m-commerce security solutions: Irrespective of the mode of payments made on mobile phones, there are various standardization bodies that deal with mobile commerce transactions. Some of them are, MoSign, Mobile Payment Forum, mSign etc. Another famous data security standard related to m-commerce is PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) (TechTarget, 2010). Visa International has recently developed Mobile 3D. It is a global security specification standard system that makes money transactions made by mobile phones and on internet more secure and safe (CellularOnline, n.d.). Finacle m-commerce solution developed by Infosys has many good security features like, generation of One time Password (OTP), USSD application, strong inclusivity framework and ability to register multiple bank accounts to a single mobile (Infosys, 2010). 9. Conclusion: Security of transactions concluded on mobile telecommunication networks is of fundamental necessity for the very concept of m-commerce. This assignment attempted to through light on every important aspect related to mobile commerce. The technologies discussed in this paper do need further improvement to cope up with the increasing threats to data and money transfer over internet and on wireless networks. Growing fraudulent intrusions on mobile information systems and individual gadgets make up a persistent need to continuously refine existing solutions and design new ones that can better resist attacks on transaction security over wireless media.

Saturday, July 20, 2019

UKs Economy in Europe Essay -- Economics Economy England United Essay

UK's Economy in Europe When one talks about a strong economy, a few key economic indicators will get mentioned; inflation, unemployment and economic growth. These are considered the three main macroeconomic indicators of any economy. To define a strong economy in the simplest form you must have a low rate of inflation, low unemployment and steady economic growth. During this essay there will be comparisons between other European countries (e.g. France, Germany, Luxemburg, Belgium, Spain, Italy) and these economic indictors mentioned as well as others. We will start to look at inflation rates. "The British economy has slowed over the past 12 months, but remains among the strongest in the developed world, a report has said" (BBC News Online). Last month the Underlying rate of inflation in the UK remained unchanged at 2.3%, which is below the governments target rate of 2.5%, this is good for the economy. The headline rate of inflation, which includes mortgage interest payments, fell last month by 0.4% to 1.7%. These figures show the rate at which prices are increasing. When we compare the UK's annual inflation figure of 1.2% to that of Germany and France (-0.6% in October), which is around the 2% mark, it seems that our rate is quite low and therefore good for our economy. The Eurozone inflation is expected to be 2.1%; this is measured by the Monetary Union Index of Consumer Prices (MUICP). By looking at this we can see that this figure is very close to the UK's inflation rate. On the whole inflation in the UK is at a lower rate than that of its European neighbours, which is an indicator of a strong economy. When we look at unemployment in the UK we can see that it is around 900,000 or 2.3%. This is the lowest it has been since the 1970's and is at a lower percentage rate than Japan and the USA. Germany who has recently announced that they have just entered a recession has a very high rate of unemployment at around 8.0% and France, Finland and Spain even higher. The UK, Netherlands and Luxemburg are amongst the lowest unemployment rates in Europe. "Unemployment is up again in France and Germany, in a sign that the eurozone's two biggest economies are still in the grip of a downturn" (BBC News Online). France and Germany have the largest economies in Europe and recent figures show that unemployment increased by 15,000 a... ...ong performance is reflected by such indicators as solid growth and forecasts for next year predicting an annual growth of 2.75% - 3.75%. Inflation currently at 2.3% is lower than forecasted which is a strong indicator for a strong economy. Our unemployment is at the lowest it has been since the 1970's and lower than that of the two biggest economies in the world at present at 2.3% or around 900,000. Interest rates are remaining unchanged at 4%, which is low, and the reason for the British economy having a firm housing market. The UK's main economic problem is the manufacturing output. It could be argued that this sector of the economy is in recession after figures of negative growth in the last two quarters. As a result of this the UK is suffering from an all time high trade deficit, which is also due to the high value of the pound. But overall the UK economy is in a good state taking into advantage the global economic slowdown which is going on around it. References: www.bbc.co.uk Sources:  · www.bbc.co.uk  · www.bized.ac.uk  · www.europa.eu.int  · www.ukonline.gov.uk  · The Daily Mail Newspaper  · The Business Environment - Brooks/Weatherston