How to Live a Long Life

How to live a Long Life As technology and medicine evolve over time, the life expectancy in most countries is increasing. Here are a few additional ways of increasing the odds that you'll make it to that ripe old age of 85 and beyond. Steps 1. Eat healthy. Some health professionals will state that eating healthy is more important to your body than getting regular exercise. Indulge only when necessary and have a well-balanced diet. Read and understand â€Å"Nutrition Facts†. 2.Introduce regular exercise into your life. While most people lead quite busy lives, the benefits of exercise usually present themselves in all areas of your life. Gradually introducing exercise will lead to longer patterns of fitness rather than adopting a harsh workout regime each New Year's. 3. Develop a sleep schedule. It's not as important to get a certain number of hours of sleep; so much as it is to get the same amount of sleep, at the same time, day in and day out.Sleep gives your body a chance to heal and regenerate; having a stable sleeping routine will help your body take care of itself more easily. If you do not carry out successful sleep cycles over an extended period of time (48+ hours) you can seriously affect your physical and mental health. 4. Drink plenty of water. This universal solvent is a most effective weapon against toxins and many other violators. It flushes out your system like nothing else does. 5. Think first.This step includes looking both ways before you cross the street, as children are taught but many adults take it for granted, and wear protective gear when necessary; whether you're while riding a bike or skateboard, working on a construction site, or handling potentially harmful substances. While the human skull is quite thick and sturdy, severe head trauma can result from the brain being jostled around inside the skull from an impact, potentially resulting in permanent brain damage or even death. 6.Reduce stress in your life. By cutting stress or st ressful things in your life you can drastically change your life expectancy. The first way is through the direct, unhealthy effects of stress on your body in the long term. The second way stress may shorten your life expectancy is through the negative behaviors that being stressed triggers. These behaviors include comfort eating and smoking. Learn to relax through de-stressing techniques or meditation to keep your life expectancy up where it should be.

Describe the functions of managers Essay

Good management and leadership are critical for organisations to function and also for the organisations to thrive. When organisations are well managed just like Barclay, they can operate effectively and they can operate efficiently. Managers have very good and clear plans, mangers have organised structures, systems, and they also evaluate results. When organisations are well led, they adapt to changes in the environment and develop cultures that inspire commitment and innovation. Both good management and good leadership are necessary to sustain organisational performance. Mangers are responsible for getting work done usually through other people; the term manger may also refer to a number of different people within a business. Some job titles include the word manager, such as a personal manger or managing director. Other jobholders may also be mangers even through there titles do not say it. * Mangers act on behalf of the owners – in a company, senior management are accountable shareholders * Mangers set objectives for the organisation, for example, they may decide that a long-term objective is to have a greater market share than all of the company’s competitors. * Managers make sure that a business achieves its objectives, by managing others. * Managers ensure that cooperate values which means the value of the organisation are maintained in dealings with other business, customers, employees and general public. When an organisation is managed well mangers effectively perform four essential management functions Henry Fayol the French management theorist listed a number of functions or elements of management these are: * Planning * Organising * Commanding * Coordinating * Controlling Planning This involves mangers setting objectives and also the strategies, policies, programmes and procedures for achieving them. Planning might be done by line mangers who will be responsible for performance. However advice on planning may also come from staff management who might have expertise in that are even if they have no line authority. For example, a production may carry out human recourse planning in the production department, but use the skills of the personal manager in planning recruitment for vacancies that may arise. In general, planning involves defining organisational goals and proposing ways to reach them. Managers plan for 3 reasons: * To establish an overall direction for the organisations future, such as a target say for example to increase profit, expand market share,, etc, etc. * To identify and commit the organisations resources to achieving its goals. * To decide which tasks must be done to reach those goals. * Barclays mangers set up objectives * Barclays bank makes up smart plans to achieve set objectives. * Manpower planning * Production budgets * Cash budgets * Sales targets Organising Mangers set task, which need to be performed if the business is to achieve its objectives. Jobs need to be organised within sections or departments and authority and authority needs to be delegated so that jobs are carried out. For example: the goal of a manufacturing company may be to produce quality goods that will be delivered to customer on time. The tasks such as manufacturing, packaging, administration, etc. that are part of producing and distributing the goods, need to be organised to achieve this goal. For example in Barclays within Barclay’s managers, supervisors must lead the employees with the delegated job. After mangers have prepared plans, they must translate those relatively abstract ideas into practice reality. Organising is the processes of creating a structure of relationships that will enable employees to carry out management’s plans and meet organisational goals. By organising effectively. Mangers can better coordinate human, material, and information resources. An organisations success depends largely on management’s ability to utilise those resources effectively and efficiently. * Organise working procedures * Organisational structure, chain of command needs to be established. * Organising which member of staff in Barclays does what. * Distribution channels. * Quality systems Commanding This involves giving instructions to subordinates to carry out tasks. The manger has the authority to make decisions and responsibilities to see tasks carried out. For example in Barclays plc the management team must put plans into action by allocating the best use of resources to achieve the plan. To make sure the plans are achieved mangers use their delegation skills. Coordinating This is the bringing together of the activities of people with the business. Individuals and groups will have there own goals, which may be different to those of the business and each other. Management must make sure that there is a common approach, so that the company’s goals are achieved. * Mangers coordinate the work force * Mangers in Barclays bank direct employees what they are doing. * Delegating tasks * Mangers resolve conflicts of interests in the different functional areas of the business. * This helps mangers to motivate their staff. Controlling Mangers measure and correct the activities of individuals and groups to make sure that their performance fits in with plans. Control is the monitoring of evens and progress within each department. For example within Barclays the organisation a range of departments for example the finance department they will monitor there budget and performance. The process by which person group or organisation consciously monitors performance and takes corrective action this is called controlling, another example would be that Barclays finance department will be controlling and monitoring customers transactions, etc, etc and they will keep a history and they will keep a record file of that customer. Management control system sends signal to managers that things are not working out as planned and that corrective action is needed. * Barclays bank monitor and measure what is being archived in each of their department. * Barclays control, monitor there sales performance. * Barclays control and monitor their cash flow against their budget. Leading After management has made plans, created a structure of work practice, and hired the right personal, someone must lead the organisation, leading involves communicating with and motivating others to perform the tasks necessary to achieve the organisations goals. Leading is not done only after planning and organising end, it is a crucial element of these functions.

“Does this Milkshake Taste Funny?” Essay

The major players in this case study are George Stein and Paul Burnham with regards to their employment at Eastern Dairy. The major issues at play relate to poor business planning, improper management, lack of ethics (decisions made by George and Paul) and social responsibility (the possible health issues of related to the contaminated products). Analysis of the Issues and Players In this case, there are several instances of poor management including but not limited to: lack of proper training, accountability and adherence to manufacturing industry standards, etc. A company as large as Eastern dairy should have a manager on site and more than 4 employees for the night shift, especially given how critical the night shift is in meeting production needs. The so†called â€Å"leader† of the group, Paul is worried about going home early and the cost impact to the company if product needs are not met for one night. Paul’s decision to ignore the issue puts George in an extremely difficult situation. Another problem to note is the management in many corporations today. All too often, employees have self†serving motives and conflicts of interest that essentially stems from culture of the organization and how it operates. When George initially brings the issue to Paul, we learn quickly from Paul’s demeanor that he had encountered the problem in the past and

Social media - the new communication tool - what's in it for companies Research Paper

Social media - the new communication tool - what's in it for companies - Research Paper Example Meanwhile, the 35+ demographic makes up 30% of the user database.2 There are also many users who use Facebook quite frequently – 48% of 18 to 34 year olds check Facebook right when they first wake up, and 28% check their Facebook from their smart phones before they get out of bed.3 The reasons why people use Facebook are shown in the activities on Facebook – on an average day, 20% of the users will comment on another users photo, 26% of users will like another users content, 10% of users will send another user a private message, 15% of users will update their own status, and 22% of users will comment on Facebook has made one’s social circle wider, but much more shallow, with some people having 1,000s of â€Å"friends.† And, since it would presumably be impossible for any one person to have that many â€Å"friends†, a person’s friends list is mainly populated by â€Å"weak ties† who might be mere acquaintances – â€Å"it might be someone they met at a conference, or someone from high school who recently ‘friended’ them on Facebook, or somebody from last year’s holiday party. In their pre-Internet lives, these sorts of acquaintances would have quickly faded from their attention. But when one of these far-flung people suddenly posts a personal note to your feed, it is essentially a reminder that they exist.† 5 While this is an accurate description of the vast majority of â€Å"friends† on one’s Facebook account, it often gets even further removed. Some of the â€Å"friends† , in fact, for a lot o f us, many of the â€Å"friends† are people to whom one has never spoken a word – random people from school that you know of, have seen around, but have never spoken to, along with many â€Å"frenemies† who you maybe never liked, all show up on one’s â€Å"friend† list and proceed to bombard you with their everyday mundane activities. Yet these silly, mundane, borderline narcissistic news feed

Genetic Modification a Hybrid DNA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Genetic Modification a Hybrid DNA - Essay Example In case of genetic modification, a hybrid DNA is produced by combining DNA from different organisms. These organisms could be far apart in nature – like producing an organism by combining DNA of dog and cat. In case of non-genetically modified organism natural crossing is done between two different breeds of the same species to produce the combination of the better of the two. This is rather a natural evolutionary process, while the genetic engineering is a completely artificial synthesis of DNA in a test tube. 2. This is possible but this will require the techniques of genetic engineering. To differentiate critically, one requires identifying genes of both the plants. In case of genetically modified plants there will be genes of genes of some other type of plants, while in case of plants modified by molecular genetics, all the genes will be from the same plant. 3. Some relevant examples are - food poisoning, dysentery, nausea or vomiting, obesity, lack of micronutrients, excessive intake of different constituents like iron, allergy, retarded growth etc. All of this can be caused by genetically modified food. But, here I must add a word of caution, all of these can be caused by conventional food as well. The problem is not with the conventional or genetically modified food but is with unsafe food. The only thing that goes in favor of conventional food here is that these are tested and tried since time immemorable, while genetically modified foods are recent phenomena and therefore, some lack of trust is but natural. 4. To answer this we need to go to the basics. For any organism its characteristic is coded in its DNA – be its nutritional composition, shelf life, yield, disease resistance. In case the DNA is suitably modified, these characteristics can be modified. For example, extract a gene resp, possibly for higher yield from a plant and put this into a low yield crop.  

Measuring Marketing Performance Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Measuring Marketing Performance - Assignment Example There is not a single measure that is best for measuring marketing performance but three very famous measures of marketing performance are return on investment, comparison of marketing cost with result, and brand knowledge.Marketing Return on Sale:Marketing return on sale is an important measure of marketing performance and determines that how efficient the firm is. It provides the deeper understanding of impact that organization has on its profits due to marketing strategies. It is a percent of net sale attributable to the net marketing contribution. The higher marketing return on sale of current year as compare to prior year describe the positive performance of marketing (Ambler, Kokkinaki, &Puntoni, 2004).Compare the Cost of Marketing Activities with Results:Marketers use the revenues - that are the result of marketing program - as a measure of marketing performance. For example marketing programs like direct mailing and advertising develop contacts and some contacts has higher va lue as compare to others that depends on the number of responses. Marketing department compare the cost spent on each contact with the value of the result. If the marketing program results in increasing numbers of orders and generates greater revenue on per order then the marketing performance will be considered good (Srinivasan &Hanssens, 2009).Marketing department is liable to make people understand that why the brand exists in market, how it is different from others, and what values it can deliver.

TPP-Pacific Trade Partnership and International Business Research Paper - 1

TPP-Pacific Trade Partnership and International Business - Research Paper Example Trans-Pacific Partnership is also of great interest because of its ambition to extend well beyond the limits of trade and trade policy including other different issues that affects trade agreements. The common issues that are likely to affect TPP are linked to the ambition of TPP to go beyond the limits of trade and its policies including trade in services, intellectual property, and technical barriers to trade. Supply chain complication has been cited as a major challenge likely to face Trans-Pacific partnership especially in this era of global business and cross enterprise collaboration. As stated by Inkyo et al (145), the Supply chain conference held in 2003 had cited development in the digital economy such as cloud computing, green growth and inadequate approaches to ensuring competitive business environment as some of the major challenges that are likely to face TPP. However, according to Deardorff (5), TPP is creating a framework to deal with all concerns and that could be the reason for the long time negotiations. The areas of negations in the Trans-Pacific Partnership include services and investments and other barriers to trade include in services, goods and investments, capacity building, government procurement, custom rules, labor, phytosanitary standards, e-commerce, telecommunications, intellectual property and technical barriers to trade. Researchers and economists have cited a lot of implications of what has been described as â€Å"spaghetti or noodle bowl† problem of overlapping preferential trade agreements (PTA) at the beginning of the year 2012, the world trade organization had reported more than 319 agreements that were already on force. According to Inkyo et al (147), each agreement signed between two or more countries continue to complicate and increases the complexity of the global trading system. The new PTA, Trans-Pacific Partnership that is currently under

Business Law and Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Business Law and Ethics - Essay Example Secondly, the Parol Evidence Rule states that the final contract, and the provisions within it, makes all the previous negotiations concerning the matter null and void. The final contract is considered the final piece of agreement, and is deemed to contain all the information that is necessary for the deal to take place effectively. Moreover, the Parol Evidence Rule not only includes previous oral negotiations and agreements, but also those, which were put in writing. Therefore, when the final contract is signed, previous agreements are nullified because it is considered to supersede all of them. If the furniture was not included in the final contract, then the company, which is selling the warehouse, does not have to hand over the furniture, unless it chooses to do so as a gesture of goodwill. When one considers the second scenario, it can be said that, despite the fact that the furniture is in the agreement, the provision for their transfer cannot be enforced because there is no agreement concerning the price of the mentioned furniture. This situation is brought about because the terms of the agreement concerning the furniture in the contract, are vague and were not conclusively considered. In order to enforce such an agreement, its provisions have to be reasonably certain concerning the issues that are within it. The rationale for this is to ensure that the provisions are put into effect with little or no disagreements concerning with the terms of transfer. In this case, the provisions of the agreement do not state the price of the furniture, although the transfer of such furniture is mentioned. This agreement can be interpreted as one that is undeveloped and as such, its character can be considered promissory (Salbu 209). This means that the agreement was not supposed to be implemented immediately and that it is in fact, supposed to be implemented at a future date after further negotiations, concerning the matter,

Dark Knight Massacre Shooting of Aurora Colorado Essay

Dark Knight Massacre Shooting of Aurora Colorado - Essay Example This resulted in 12 deaths and 50 injuries. Holmes himself was covered in bullet resistant clothes and addressed himself as ‘the Joker’ from the Batman villain fame. He had dyed his hair a flaming orange. Holmes did not resist arrest and was taken into custody. He is 24 years old PhD neuroscience student who is claimed to be brilliant and troubled at the same time. Upon investigation Holmes revealed that he had booby trapped his apartment and after a massive search operation police managed to recover hand grenades from his apartment. At the time of the shootings Holmes had setup loud music to play from his apartment, which was heard by many witnesses. I believe Holmes was a deranged man. He was unbalanced beyond awareness. Although he was a scientific genius, many proofs of his unbalanced, social behavior have been uncovered. He was not insane; I believe he was experimenting the same subject he was studying. Arguments of Opposition Many reports have emerged over time cla iming different things. One such report is that James Holmes was on a pharmaceutical drug Vicodin which the actual â€Å"Joker†, Heath Ledger, is also supposed to have abused. Report also suggests that exceeding Vicodin’s recommended levels makes for unusual behavior and altered mental states (Gucciardi, 2012). There are also reports of Holmes seeing a campus psychiatrist on June 11, 2012 (Press, 2012). Holmes made the last call to his psychiatrist just before the shootout. He is said to have submitted a notebook to his psychiatrist which is protected by patient-doctor privacy laws. A report states that Chris Townsond, who escaped unharmed, believes that a mental illness does not give anyone any right to kill somebody (Banda, 2012). No matter how badly broken and ill a person was no one has the right to massacre shoot an audience and spread mistrust and panic. Discussion and Analysis If Holmes was on a drug, especially one like Vicodin, he must have taken time to excee d the recommended dosage. He had seen a psychiatrist a month and 10 days back which would land him in a safe zone for drug abuse, which his psychiatrist would have detected. Vicodin is an opioid pain reliever, having narcotic properties. Unless it is used in combination with other substances, it has minor side-effects, with nervous system side-effects ranging from dizziness, delirium, depression to stupor. So far there has been no news on the notebook that was given to the psychiatrist by Holmes. The book which is protected by so-called laws is a very insightful piece of evidence which can evict the case. The deliberate attempt to keep the notebook under locks can be viewed as irresponsible on the part of judiciary. To keep the evidence sealed and hidden using laws is a clever way of concealing it. Initial reports by the police confirmed that Holmes was not mad or deranged when they caught him. He was in his senses. Some reports which reported survivor stories told how some survivor s saw him screaming at people to stand up from the crowd so he could shoot them at point blank range (Reporter, 2012). Yet his lawyers try time and again to prove he is mad and insane. His first appearance in court was a shock to many as he sat with glazed eyes as though medicated. When initial reports confirmed he was not medicated and not high, all his appearances in court have been put up to buy time and convince people that he had lost his mind and had committed a crime without knowing. Even in cell, his behavior

Essay on the policy formation process Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

On the policy formation process - Essay Example batier, noted social scientist, has conceptualized ‘Advocacy Coalition Framework’ or ACF and ‘Multiple Streams Framework’ for the policies in different areas of public welfare, that have proved quite effective. The essay would be discussing these models of policy frameworks in the areas of healthcare and education in the United States. ‘Advocacy Coalition Framework’ takes into account the interests of various stakeholders by incorporating opinions and feedback from wide ranging external and internal resources that may significantly impact the masses in the specified areas. The stakeholders comprise of beneficiaries of the schemes, institutions and intermediaries that facilitate the schemes to the public and the decision making bodies that are responsible for various processes for policy framework and subsequent implementation of those policies. The coalition broadly comprises of two major sources who seemingly reflect the welfare of the people: media, researchers and analysts; actors at all levels of government (local, state and international) (Sabatier, 1988). These sources help to study the various perspectives of the policy in the particular field by taking into account the different variables like socio-economic changes, political paradigms, evolving socio-cultural values, normative beliefs and environmental constraints. Thus, while incorporating the finer details of the policies in the relevant area, the view point of these agencies and the feedback widens the policy perspectives and ensures better decision making in framing the policies. ‘Multiple Streams Framework’ primarily believes that three vital streams of thoughts significantly impact the process of formulation of policies. The first is the problem identification that necessitates the process, second is the diversity in the requirements of the communities and lastly the political imperatives of vested interests that are influenced by public opinions, changing socio-economic and

Film journal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Film journal - Essay Example The experience comes over a period, and it is born out of creative and the technical expertise, and above all the love for the job of film production with the ability to choose the right talent. For a film to be able to realize itself, the producer will have the responsibility of assessing the film to ensure it is to the expected level. He will tend to the film from the time of conception to the time it will be completed. The producer will serve as the organizer of the film, and he will provide a good environment so that the entire team that is involved in the production of the film can flourish for the good of the film. Most films made in Hollywood the producers are the decision makers during studio system. This is because they supervise a variety of films at the same time, controlling the stories, the budgets and the overall production taking care of each aspect of the production on a whole, thereby being responsible for the fate of the entire films. Producers are responsible for t he development of ideas, and once they are attached to the idea, they put around the right team and go ahead to supervise the entire functioning. For instance, Irving Thalberg, who was once famously involved in over a hundred productions. David O. Selznick, the producer of ‘Rebecca’ was instrumental in bringing Alfred Hitchcock to Hollywood to direct the film because of Hitchcock’s expertise with thriller-suspense cinema. Hitchcock took charge of the film and was so good with his work that Selznick famously said that the only director he can ever trust a film with was Hitchcock. The producer, in some instances such as the one mentioned above, might have a situation that is fragmented. The producer, in such a situation, will have many associates with him so that they may help him with his tasks. In other instances, he may not be the sole producer of the film and instead have many producers with him, and each of them will be performing different roles for the produ ction. One of the producers will be in charge of the business activities while the other can handle creative responsibilities in the production of the film. One of the producers, on the other hand, can be a major investor and, therefore, may not be directly involved in the production of the film. A co-producer may buy the script or the film’s star to the production, on the other hand. Martin Scorsese’s film of ‘The Aviator’ had four producers – Michael Mann, Graham King, Sandy Climan, and Charles Evans Jr. - sharing the responsibilities. A producer is, therefore, responsible for providing the final film to the audience. He, therefore, enjoys the entire responsibility of the film. In several occasions, a writer, star of a film, or a director will produce his own film for having a full artistic control of the film. The most spectacular and perilous example being of Francis Ford Coppola who was the co-writer, producer and director of his most famous fi lm ‘Apocalypse now’. Producing children films have a different experience because the producer usually chooses to be attached to a specific project together with his team. Most of the children films have limited resources, and it is the responsibility of the producer to make the film possible. The producer will work together with his people, together with the director of the film and try to achieve the specific goal

Prigogine Investigation Essay Example for Free

Prigogine Investigation Essay The origination and evolution of living organisms is considered by many scientists, due to general laws of nature, especially the second law of thermodynamics. In this paper this idea is explored, taking in account the dissipative structures and Prigogine’s thermodynamics. Introduction The use of thermodynamics in biology has a long history rich in confusion (Morowitz, 92) (Klyce, Brigg, http://www. panspermia. org/seconlaw. htm) The second law of thermodynamics was discovered by Clausius, who coined the term Entropy, which is usually defined as the degree of disorder. In the most general sense, Evolution of life means, growing in ordered combinations from cells, to tissues and organs, to plants and animals, families, communities, and ecosystem. It can be seen that these two terms: evolution and entropy express totally contradictory concepts. According to second law, Entropy of a closed system can never decrease, i. e. dSV ? 0 (Gibbs, 1928). But, in case of evolution, the living systems increasingly go on to complex state of more order, suggesting that entropy in this closed system has decreased. This is the paradox that has baffled both biologists and physicists alike. Hence, an initial theory which both physicists and biologists agreed upon was: life violates the second law of thermodynamics. Evolution of life and Entropy The contradiction can however be explained, by subscribing to one of the two very different schools of thought. Either we can accept that the order that is seen in the evolution and growth biological systems is maintained at the expense of thermodynamic order. That is to say, sustenance in the form of external energy is always provided to the organism from external environment and entropy of this larger system is increasing. Hence, living beings attract negative entropy, in order to compensate for this increase in the entropy, which explains the order. This concept was formed by Schrodinger. There is another explanation, which was proposed by Prof. Ilya Prigogine. According to him, the living organisms function as dissipative structures, i. e. thermodynamically open systems operating in non-equilibrium environment. These have the capacity for self-organization in the face of environmental fluctuations. In other words, they maintain their structure by continuously dissipating energy. Such dissipative structures are permanently in states of non-equilibrium. Ds/dt 0 away from steady state Ds/dt = 0 steady state (Prigogine, 1977) In this case, equilibrium is the state of maximum entropy. A system that is not in equilibrium exhibits a variation of entropy, which is the sum of the variations of entropy due to the internal source of entropy, plus the variation of entropy due to the interaction with the external world. The former is positive, but the latter can be negative. Therefore, total entropy of the system can decrease. Life according to this theory can then be summarized as: An organism lives because it absorbs energy from the external world and processes it to generate an internal state of lower entropy. It can live as long as it can avoid falling in the equilibrium state. According to the second law, only irreversible processes contribute to entropy production. This means the existence of a function in an isolated system which can only increase in time. It follows that the positive time direction is associated with entropy (Prigogine, 1977). Now, biological evolution is hierarchical and can be considered as an irreversible process of the variation of life with respect to the evolutionary time scale. The Law of Temporal Hierarchies makes it possible to identify quasi-closed thermodynamic systems and subsystems within open biological systems (Gladyshev, 2003). This facilitates the study of individual development (ontogenesis) and evolution (phylogenesis) of these subsystems. For instance, it is seen that the specific Gibbs function for the formation of supramolecular structures of biological tissues, G tends towards its minimum in the course of both ontogenesis and phylogenesis. (Gladyshev, 2005) The above model implies that, the mean flow of matter is quasi-stationary and the nature of incoming matter to the system remains practically unchanged. In other words, the supramolecular phase (structure) of the organism evolves against the background of the incoming flow of chemical substances of practically constant composition. This principle of the stability of chemical substances is a thermodynamic principle. Accordingly, the tendency of biological systems during evolution to generate relatively highly stable structures of higher hierarchies leads to the selection of relatively less stable structures of lower hierarchies. This rejuvenates the lower hierarchical structures and causes nearly unbounded evolution of the biological world. (Gladyshev, 2005) Conclusion The findings of hierarchical thermodynamics, specifically supramolecular thermodynamics of quasi-closed systems, confirm the thermodynamic tendency of biological evolution. Additional experiments could refine this model and further verify that second law can be applied in its classical definition to explain the origin and evolution of life References 1. Gladyshev, Georgi P. â€Å"What is Life- A physical chemist’s viewpoint†, 12th Dec. 2005 http://www.panspermia.org/seconlaw.htm

Criminological Praxis And Tearoom Trade Media Essay

Criminological Praxis And Tearoom Trade Media Essay Laud Humphreys study of the tearoom trade has proved to be an extremely controversial piece of research, so controversial in fact that many called for his PhD to be revoked. Humphreys used covert observation in order to study impersonal sexual encounters between men in public restrooms, this is an extremely controversial subject, and was even more so at the time when the research was undertaken; furthermore, covert research is often heavily criticised for being unethical, leading to additional controversy. Covert research is where researchers go undercover to obtain their information. To lessen the potential for reactive effects and to gain entry to otherwise inaccessible settings, some researchers have adopted the role of a covert participant. By doing so they keep their research secret and do their best to act like other participants in a social setting or group. (Bachman and Schutt, 2007:267) This essay will explore whether the controversy surrounding the tearoom trade is a result of the subject matter studied, or the methodological approach used. The research undertaken by Humphreys will be discussed in some detail, describing what the research consisted of, and evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the methodology. Consideration will also be given to the use of covert research in general, assessing the pros and cons of the method, as well as covert research conducted by other researchers. Laud Humphreys conducted his research in the 1960s and his book Tearoom Trade: A study of homosexual encounters in public places was published in 1970, with a second edition published in 1975. Humphreys carried out his research in order to determine who the men were, who were willing to risk arrest in order to indulge in impersonal sex in public places, as well as to uncover the dynamics of the encounters between the men involved, and discover what this could tell us about human behaviour. The main finding of his research was that the majority of individuals engaging in homosexual activities within the tearoom led the rest of their lives at heterosexuals. Humphreys used covert methods in order to enter in to the tearoom. A tearoom is a public toilet where men meet for sex with other men. (Banyard and Flanagan, 2005:27) Humphreys (1970, pp page 2-3) suggests that the reason public restrooms are so ideal for impersonal sex is because they can provide both a public and private setting. Public restrooms are easily accessible, yet they provide little public visibility. Due to this Humphreys focused his study on restrooms within public parks, as they were often frequented by men seeking instant sex due to their easy access and limited use by general members of the public. In order to be accepted by the participants of the tearoom trade, Humphreys, assumed the role of tearoom watchqueen by serving as a lookout with the responsibility to warn of approaching strangers in exchange for the right to observe the homosexual activity. (Kimmel, 1988:22) By acting as the watchqueen, Humphreys was able to freely observe what was occurring in the tearooms without suspicion from the genuine participants. This use of deception has been heavily criticised by many, as deception within research is seen as highly unethical. Many social scientists feel that it is unethical for a researcher to conceal his identity to gain inside information. Others feel disguised observation is ethical as long as the welfare of the subjects is protected. (Fitzgerald and Cox, 2002:133) Although he did use deception, Humphreys did go to some lengths to protect his participants, which will be discussed later. Furthermore if he were to have entered the tearooms, and announced his role as a researcher, the likelihood is that all sexual activity would have been terminated and the men who frequented the tearooms would have left, either for fear of being discovered as a person who seeks impersonal sex, the fear or criminal conviction, or for the sheer fact of not wishing to be observed by a researcher. Even if the participants remained, it is likely that they would have altered their behaviour, as they knew they were being observed. If Humphreys had informed the tearoom goers of his research, the results which he obtained would probably not have been as valid, as the results he obtained by using covert methods. Another issue that arises from the use of covert methods and deception is that of informed consent. Covert participant observation is clearly a violation of the principle of informed consent. (Bulmer, 1982:218) Covert methods rely on the research subject being unaware of the research taking place; it can therefore be argued that by studying people without their prior knowledge is a breach of human rights. People should clearly have the right to decide whether or not to participate in any research, and their decision should be based on full understanding of what the research consists of, and how any personal information or data obtained will be used. Every code of ethics designed to guide research involving human subjects gives primacy to the requirement of fully informed voluntary consent on the part of the individual concerned. (Gregory, 2003:35) Humphreys research clearly violates this need for informed consent; however, it again can be argued that his research findings could not have been obtained by any other means. It is also important to note, that at the time the research was conducted, there were no professional guidelines making informed consent a research requirement. By observing the participants covertly it can be argued that Humphreys was also invading their right to privacy, however, as they were conducting private acts, in a public domain, is this criticism justifiable? Any male is free to enter the mens restroom, and observe the goings on, it was only by recording his observations that Humphreys can be criticised for invading privacy. As well as observing the homosexual acts conducted in the tearooms, Humphreys engaged in verbal relationships with twelve men he encountered during his research, he named these the intensive dozen. Humphreys revealed his true identity to these twelve men, informing them of his true reason for attending the tearooms. This enabled him to conduct in-depth interviews. With the help of some meals together and a number of drinks, all agreed to cooperate in subsequent interviewing sessions. (Humphreys, 1970:36) It can easily be argued that the intensive dozen, were the only participants in Humphreys study who gave full informed consent. Interestingly, especially to those who criticise Humphreys use of deception, Laud himself states that, Apart from the systematic observations themselves, these conversations constitute the richest source of data in the study. (Humphreys, 1970:37) This brings in to debate whether the covert methods used were really called for, as Humphreys obtained valuable information from the intensive dozen, by revealing to them his true identity and purpose. However, it could be argued, that without his use of deception, and the fact that he often frequented the tearooms, that the twelve men would not be willing to cooperate. If a total stranger had approached these men, would they be willing to confess all about their homosexual exploits? Social deviants inside restrooms and elsewhere develop careful defences against outsiders, including special gestures and extreme caution with strangers. (Warwick, 1982:39) Was it because they had become acquaintances with Humphreys already that they were willing to tell all? Unfortunately it is impossible to be able to answer these questions. In order to gain even more information about the men who participated in the tearoom trade, Humphreys made notes about the physical appearance of the men he observed as well as noting the licence plates of their vehicles. By posing as a market researcher Humphreys was able to obtain the registration details for the vehicles in question from a friendly policeman; again this procedure is ethically questionable as Humphreys once again used deception to gain private information about people. Upon receiving the names and addresses of the participants, he visited their homes and made observations and notes about the physical appearance of the house, as well as the location. Humphreys then took advantage of his role as a research associate for a local research centre. He was asked by the centre to produce a questionnaire for a social health survey, for men in the local community. Humphreys saw this as an opportunity to include the tearoom participants in the survey, selecting 50 participant s to be surveyed along with 50 other members of the community. Approximately a year after his attendance at the tearooms, he sufficiently altered his appearance, so that the tearoom participants would be unable to recognise him as the voyeuristic watchqueen, and proceeded to enter their homes, under the premise of a social worker, in order to conduct the social health survey. This again raises ethical issues, as Humphreys is once again using deception to enter in to the private domain of the men he is researching, and because of this deception he was able to gain private information under false pretences. It may also be argued that Humphreys was putting his participants in harms way, as the issue of impersonal homosexual encounters is a sensitive one. As many of the men he surveyed led heterosexual lives, with wives and families, he was putting them in real danger of being exposed, which may of led to their personal lifes being destroyed. However, regardless of how the information was obtained, Humphreys ensured he took every measure to prevent the information being used by anybody else, and to protect the anonymity and confidentiality of the participants. The British Sociological Association state that, The anonymity and privacy of those who participate in the research process should be respected. Personal information concerning research participants should be kept confidentialWhere possible, threats to the confidentiality and anonymity of research data should be anticipated by researchers. The identities and research records of those participating in research should be kept confidential Appropriate measures should be taken to store research data in a secure manner. (British Sociological Association, 2002) The survey data and all other research materials which were obtained by Humphreys, were secured in a safety deposit box, in a different city to where the research was conducted, and upon finishing with the data, it was destroyed. This is good ethical practice, despite the way the information was gathered. As the information was so sensitive, and could have been used for blackmailing purposes or to bring about criminal convictions, it was vital that Humphreys treated the information in such an appropriate way. So far, it is evident that one of the major controversies surrounding Humphreys research was his repeated use of deception. Warwick (1982:46) suggests that, Humphreys research provides a unique case study of deception. The concatenation of misrepresentation and disguises in this effort must surely hold the world record for field research. (Warwick,1982:46) Warwick then continues with a list of shortcomings regarding the research Humphreys conducted. Included in the list are the facts that Humphreys misrepresented his identity while serving as a watchqueen in public restrooms, the fact that he deceived the police in order to obtain personal information about the tearoom participants, and the fact he altered his appearance and conducted the surveys in disguise. When all the uses of deception are put so bluntly into a list, it is clear to see why there is such controversy surrounding the methodology used by Humphreys. But is this criticism unique to Humphreys work, or can it be applied to all covert research? Many people strongly object to the use of covert research, this essay will now explore why this is so. Roger Homan (1991, pp page 109-113) lists thirteen separate objections to the use of covert research. He argues that covert methods flout the principle of informed consent, help erode personal liberty, betray trust, pollute the research environment, are bad for the reputation of social research, discriminate against the defenceless and powerless, may damage the behaviour or interest of subjects, may become habitual in the everyday life of the person doing the research, are seldom necessary, have the effect of confining the scope of the research and finally he suggests that the researcher suffers excessive strain in maintaining the cover. With so many objections to covert research is it any wonder that Humphreys has been so heavily criticised for his work? All these objections and criticisms of covert methods, begs the question, why do some researchers employ covert methods? Many researchers do so, as they feel that they would be unable to infiltrate and obtain information from certain groups or settings, if covert methods were not used. For example, Calvey (2000) who went undercover for six months to research club bouncers and nightlife, states that, In terms of taking a covert role, some argue that such a stance is ethically indefensible. However, given my concern with authenticity and the lived experience of this dangerous work, it would have been nearly impossible to gain access any other way. (Calvey, 2000:46) What Calvey is saying here, is that he felt that the only way to gain accurate, valuable information from his research was to adopt a covert approach; he felt that by honestly approaching bouncers as a researcher he would be unable to obtain information on their culture and way of life. Like Humphreys, Calvey has been heavily criticised for his work, due to his use of deception and the fact he was putting both himself and the people he was researching at risk. However, not all covert research has come under such heavy fire when it comes to criticism; an example of such research would be that conducted by Howard Becker on dance hall musicians and becoming a marijuana user. Becker also used deception, and often recorded conversations without informed consent, yet his work has not been criticised as relentlessly as Humphreys work has. It would appear, that although covert methods are widely criticised as unethical practice, the subject matter being studied is capable of stoking the fire, and influencing peoples judgement even further, helping to produce heavier criticisms and distain for both the research and the researcher alike. At the time when Humphreys conducted his research, homosexuals did not have the same freedom to explore and enjoy their sexuality that they do today; the gay liberation movement was only just beginning to emerge. At the time, homosexual sex was characterised as criminal sodomy and very little research had been conducted on the gay subculture in general, never mind research pertaining to sexual acts between members of the same sex. It is interesting to think that, if Humphreys conducted his research in todays modern times whether he would have received the same criticism that he did when his book was published in 1970. It is clear that, through his use of covert methods, and controversial subject matter, Humphreys has come under fire, and his research has been heavily criticised. But was his research justified and did the outcome of his research benefit those involved and society as a whole? Although his use of covert methods are controversial and may be considered unethical, Humphreys probably would not have been able to uncover the information which he did without using such methods, therefore, in these circumstances, the use of such methods are justified. There are serious ethical and legal issues in the use of covert research but the use of covert methods may be justified in certain circumstances. (British Sociological Association, 2002) Humphreys also went to incredible lengths to protect the information he obtained, which can only be seen as a strong asset to his research. Also, it was due to the research undertaken by Humphreys, and other such research conducted at a similar time, that many of the current ethical codes and guidelines pertaining to research exist today. These guidelines have enabled recent research to be much more ethically sound, and therefore not be so heavily criticised. Therefore, Humphreys work has helped in the advancement and evolution of social research. It is also interesting to consider whether the research conducted by Humphreys should have received such criticism considering that these ethical codes did not exist at the time. In relation to the impact his research has had on both the homosexual community and society as a whole, Humphreys managed to disprove many of the myths surrounding the tearoom trade. Many believed that the tearoom trade put young people at risk of sexual assault, yet Humphreys managed to show that the only sexual activity occurring in public restrooms was between consenting adults, and that no advances were made to disinterested parties. He also managed to show that the men engaging in the tearoom trade were not merely criminals or transients, but that the majority were upstanding members of the community, many of which were employed and had families, and a considerable amount were members, or had been members of the armed forces. This can only been seen as shedding a positive light on the then, underground homosexual subculture. As West (1970) states, [there can only be] benefit in the long term from the information the author has been able to obtain about a little understood but important facet of deviant behaviour. (West, 1970: viii) In conclusion it can be argued that the controversy surrounding Humphreys research is down to a combination of his methodological approach, and his chosen subject matter. His work drew attention to a little known deviant activity, which many people may have been disgusted by, and his findings are somewhat graphically depicted in his book Tearoom Trade. This controversial subject matter coupled with his ethically flawed methodology is what has led his research to become so infamously controversial within the field of social research. Warwick (1982), one of Humphreys main critics acknowledges that some of the controversies surrounding the research come from the research topic, yet he defends Humphreys decision to research into the tearoom trade, and only finds fault with the research methods that he used. Undoubtedly public reaction to Tearoom Trade will be strongly affected by the subject matter and the way in which the findings are presented. Many readers, finding the whole topic revolting, will channel their distaste against the author and sociology in generalEven so I would strongly defend Humphreys right to study this topic, however controversial it may beSocial scientists have not only a right but an obligation to study controversial and politically sensitive subjects, including homosexuality, even if this brings down the wrath of the public and government officials. But this obligation does not carry with it the right to deceive, exploit, or manipulate people (Warwick, 1982:54-55) However in defence of his methodology, it is important to consider that there were no formal guidelines and ethical codes relating to social research at the time Humphreys conducted his study of the tearoom trade. Also, many of the criticisms relating to the possible harm to participants are what ifs. Is it justifiable to criticise a piece of research on the fact that harm may come to the participant? Humphreys went to incredible lengths to ensure harm would not come to his participants, and that their identities would not be disclosed. In relation to his use of covert methods, deception and lack of informed consent, it is difficult to see how else he would have been able to conduct the research and still achieve the same results. Furthermore, deception is not restricted to covert methods, as can be seen in the example of Milgrams Study of Obedience, where informed consent was obtained, yet deception was still used. It is my opinion that although Humphreys research is ethically flawed, the reason it has become so controversial is not solely down to the methodology, the controversial subject matter has served as an accelerant in fuelling the controversy surrounding the research. Word Count: 3277

Urban Waterfront Revitalization Through Landscape Approach Environmental Sciences Essay

Urban Waterfront Revitalization Through Landscape Approach Environmental Sciences Essay Urban waterfronts have heavily degraded and received bad perception from urban dwellers. There are needs of effective urban waterfront revitalization programs to achieve a sustainable development of those waterfronts. This research studies is to formulize a landscape approach principles into revitalization program of urban waterfront. This study uses archival analysis to identified type of urban waterfront revitalization programs around the world and to understanding the role of urban waterfront. Finally, it uses literature survey to identified design considerations of landscape approach. Expected results of the study would include the types of waterfront revitalization programs, role of urban waterfront and design consideration for waterfront landscape. They are expected to lead towards formalizing the urban waterfront revitalization principles based on landscape approach. After the introduction of the background problem, the proposal will present the literature on waterfront revita lization, urban waterfront and waterfront revitalization program, and describe the research methodology before presenting the expected results. This study contributes in developing principles for waterfront revitalization program. Besides adding value to existing urban assets, the proposed principles for waterfront revitalization program support the sustainable development agenda of the world. Keywords: Landscape approach, urban waterfront, waterfront revitalization program. 1.1 BACKGROUND Urban rivers provide many functions to the cities such as water supply, transportations, biological protections and promoting for the development of the cities with its social, economical and environmental values. However, with the not planned well urbanization, the rivers have been disturbed which resulting in degradation of urban ecosystem. River restoration has increasingly drawn attention, and corresponding activities have been carried out extensively (Holmes, 1998). Urban rivers that once were the most importance element of city were neglected. They were channelized and turn into big drain. The properties on its corridor turn their back to the river and the cities tried to treat river as unwanted thing. Nonetheless, river corridors remain as continuous natural feature within suburbanized landscapes, which make it more important resource for habitats restoration and nature preservation. The encroachments of development into this area have fragmented, diminished and divided the vegetation along this corridor into small patches. These lead to substantial loss of habitat and biodiversity especially in urban areas. Due to the natural recourses destruction in urban area, importance of rivers has become realize by city dwellers. It becomes important places for recreation and leisure. This why in recent years, the riverfront design and planning initiatives have increased. There are two major issues for this development, conservation and human use. Most of approaches for river developments have difficulties to deal with both of them, which they tend to choose either one. These lead to the failure of the project. This thesis aims to bring these issues together to inform the practice of landscape architecture. 1.2 APPROACH This research study used a set of literature addressed waterfront development around the world. The literatures have covered many perspectives such as ecological, historical, cultural and built design. Even though the literature review provides a broad overview of waterfront development, the designs and planning of these waterfront developments have been superficial especially in ecology perspectives. Furthermore, for river corridor development, most literatures are focusing to non-urban landscapes, leaving the river corridors in urban landscape open for exploration. 1.3 Problem statement 1.4 Research question 1.4.1 Main Research Question 1.4.2 sub Research Question 1.5 GOAL AND OBJECTIVES 1.5.1 GOALS Revitalize the urban river through comprehensive landscape design solutions. 1.5.2 OBJECTIVES To ensure the goal can be achieved, these objectives have been derived: To assess the literature on waterfront revitalization programs around the world. To assess the design that using landscape approach to understand their characteristic, strengths and weaknesses. To investigates and understand of the role of urban river to the users. To formulize the design principles for urban riverfront revitalization programs. 1.6 CHAPTER OUTLINE Chapter One introduces and contextualizes the research problems. The literature reviews are presented in Chapter Two. It examines the development of waterfronts, its design and planning approaches. Chapter Three is describing the research method. It analyze the landscape approach literature to define the concepts and highlight the principles that will guide the development of landscape design principles for urban riverfront on Chapter Four. Chapter Five summarizes the findings of this study; discuss the application of the principles and presents areas of further research. It is considered that the design principles here proposed will be useful for landscape architects, designers and planners in designing the waterfront. Hence, it is expected they will help designers establishing and creating sustainable waterfront that celebrating the past, enjoying the present and respecting the future of urban environment. Figure 1.1 Research design diagram 1.7 significant of study 1.8 TERMINOLOGIES 1.8.1 URBAN watercourse Walsh, Christopher J. et al. (2005) indicated that an urban watercourse is a formerly natural waterway that flows through a heavily populated area. Urban watercourses often significantly polluted due to urban runoff and combined with sewer outflows. 1.8.2 RIVER CORRIDOR From Malaysian Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) guidelines of river development (2004), river corridor is the area outside the river reserved and in 50 meters from the river-reserved boundary. 1.8.3 SUSTAINABLE watercourse The sustainable watercourse covers an important element in Agenda21 about sustainable development. This is because the watercourse have capacity to contribute in increasing biodiversity and profit from development, improving and enhance conditions of the areas and people who live surround it. Sustainable development elements are economic development, social progress, conservation of resources and protection of the environment (UN Earth Summit Agenda 21, Rio de Janeiro, 1992). 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction 2.2 WATERFRONT REVITALIZATION Hoyle et.al (1993, 2000) said that pioneer in waterfront rehabilitation studies was Canada in early 1970s. In his studies, he found out that focus of waterfront rehabilitation was including wide range of development such as recreational, residential, retail, commercial, service and tourist facilities. According to him and Breen et.al (1996), the development of waterfront in America and Europe has occurred since 1960s. Perspective that tent to integrate design, environmental, social and economic objectives more efficiently (Johes, 1998) was the European approach towards waterfront development in 1990s. Manning (1997) adding that no use or treatment of waterfront should be allowed to exclude recreational value that no feature or operation however mundane needs to lack an aesthetic aspect and finally that ever the demands of conserving fragile nature need not exclude people from the scene. In other part of the world, the development of waterfront is relatively recent phenomenal. Lately, many countries start to open their eyes on potential of their river. South of Korea has demonstrating some wonderful projects of river rehabilitation development such as Chengyecheon River and Han River rehabilitation project. Franco (2000) states that in Brazil, there are many proposals of waterfront projects have been presented since early 1990s, unfortunately, few have been implemented. Most of them are because lack of funds and supports. Waterfront project could be divided into six categories based on Bren and Rigby (1994) studies. This categorization was used by Breen and Rigby as tool to compile a huge numbers of designs. The categories are: historical, residential, recreational, cultural, environmental and working waterfront. Usually, the development of waterfronts would include one or more categories in order to support various demands to the site. There are many cases that the waterfront project have mixed-used characteristic. For example, a project that has ecological features may be designed infused with recreation, education and trails. These multipurpose designs are to encourage the maximum use of the space. Table 2.1 shows some of the waterfront projects that have a major characteristic but have several other features abound. This categorization does seem have significant role in effecting the frameworks and design either. In order to use the categorizations, the heuristic devise should be taken to emphasis the major characters of each project. Table 2.1 Waterfronts, their major character and uses No. Waterfront / City Major Character Uses Source 1 Baltimore Waterfront Mixed used Urban renewal; cultural complex, office, residential Breen and Rugby (1994) 2 Boston Waterfront Historical Public promenades, hotel, residential www.theboston waterfront.net 3 Charleston Waterfront Park Public Space Park, pier Thompson (1991) 4 Elbe River, Dresden Open Space Entertainment, art, park Friedrich (1998) 5 Elbe River, Hamburg Mixed used Transportation, residential Trelcat (2001) 6 Thames River, London docklands Public space Recreation, cultural Chaline 2001 7 Thames River, London Millennium Village Mixed use Promenades, institutions, residential, commercial Burdett (1998) 8 Thames River, London Millennium Dome Public space Recreation, cultural Arnold (1998) 9 Potomic River, Georgetown Historical Residential, office, public space www.georgetown waterfrontpark.org 10 South Platte River, Danver Public space Industrial landscape, park Leccese (2001) 11 Puerto Madero, Buenos Aires Mixed use Residential, commercial, service, open space Schneier Madanes (2001) 12 Aa River, Aarhus Public space Steam daylighting, trail Nielsen (1998) 13 Yarra River, Melbourne Cultural Residential, commercial, entertainment Sandercock Dovey (2002) 14 East River, New York Public space Promenades Freeman 2003 15 Meurthe River, Nancy Public space Promenades Bruel Delmar (1998) 16 San Antonio River, Texas Public space Commercial, hotel, entertainment, historical Posner (1991) 17 Maas River, Rotterdam Mixed use Public spaces, residential, office Mayer (1998) 18 Coal Harbour, Vancouver Residential Open space, office, marina Quayle (1991) 19 Danube River, Vienna Public space Dam, ecological restoration, leisure Hansjakob hansjakob (1998) 20 Chengyecheon River, Seoul Public space Historical, commercial, entertainment, cultural www.preservenet.com 2.3 Role of urban watercourse Urban watercourse is a waterways that flowing through the populated areas. It often in bad condition and heavily degraded. Many of urban rivers have been polluted mostly by urban storm water runoff and combined sewer system. Initially, such watercourses were managed as a resource for human benefit including water supply, flood mitigation, disposal of wastewater and minimization of disease (Walsh 2000; Paul and Meyer 2001; Morley and Karr 2002). However, this has led to the degradation of river ecological functioning, an issue that was initially ignored (Paul and Meyer 2001). Important factor for early settlement was water. Water transportation and construction of flood embankments have turn the water into the background of urban concerns. Most literature agree that these earlier settlements were settle where there were enough water and land for food production, and there were no or rare disaster related to water. Water management became the basis for religious and social institutions. As the region began to produce surplus food, there was a societies restructuring. Dubos (1972), a humanist, states that the urban areas are identified by evaluating their cultural practices in spite of changes in technology. Social scientists begin to acknowledge the water may have played a role in determining the social characteristics of urban areas (Lind, 1979). Increasing of impervious surface area modified of natural drainage system and local climate changes have stressed the urban river. The increasing in impervious area make the runoff of rainfall in urban area has increase, compared to rural area. Furthermore, installations of storm sewer, culverting and channelizing the natural river have transmitted the water into drainage network faster. These events increase the flow velocity, reduce the timing of the runoff hydrograph, increase the flow rates which finally giving a hydrological problem; flooding. In term of flood mitigation, authorities who in charge in river development have change the course of the river flow, in order to prevent localized flooding. They use engineering practices known as river channelization. These technologies including lining the riverbed and banks with concrete or other materials, divert the flow into storm drains and culverts. These changes are often bringing negative effects. It includes flooding of downstream due to changes in the floodplain, loss of habitat for fish and other species, fragmentation of riparian and others, leading to deterioration of water quality. Fortunately, some communities have taken some effort to correct these problems. Their effort is to deal with bank erosion, due to the large amount of rainwater and using technologies such as daylighting and re-meandering. Example of successful project of daylighting is Cheonggyecheon river restoration project. Another major problem of urban hydrology is water quality degradation. McPherson (1974) states that oil leakage and spill, mining activities, surface or streets have contaminated the urban river. Other factors in this problem are soil erosion from construction, industrial process effluents, and combined sewer overflows, urban storm runoff, leakage from septic tanks and cesspools and contamination. As a result of pollution in urban watercourse water, many of the biological and aesthetic functions of water in urban areas cannot be fully utilized, disrespect and sometimes leading to abandoning the river from urban life itself. Litte (1990) states that there has been increasing public concern for the protection of urban watercourse water. Numerous watercourse commissions have been establish in an effort to plan use and protection. There is reason to be optimistic about combining human use and natural environments as many river cities are rediscovering their waterfronts and commissioning planning studies (Kim et al., 1991). However, the effect of waterfront development projects is not always good. All development projects have environmental and economic impact, and the development of the waterfront is not an exception. Any development project that will benefit some people is inevitable. Social and environmental impacts of water development, a number of effects obtained are usually extends far beyond the design of the site itself. Ecologists, environmentalist and designers have difficulties to predict overall effects because of complex interaction of diverse forces. For example, current knowledge of the man made wetland ecosystem might desirable for present of time. Thus, unless the design and planning precedes by five to ten years, something unexpected situation might to develop which some with preferable effects or some are not. In the current state of the art, this group often has difficulties to convince engineers, economists, and politicians that certain developments are unwise, or spending for remedial measures because of lack of solid scientific evidence or facts. Furthermore, engineers traditionally handle an urban watercourse development project. Sadly, they often ignore the social and environmental considerations in their planning process.  In some cases, social scientists, landscape architects and environmentalist have been brought only after the damage (Biswas and Durie, 1971). In principle, it is expensive to fix compensation after they occur: It is cheaper to take preventive measures. However, overall framework for the planning, design and management of urban river corridors still not well establish. An integrated planning that concerns every aspect regarding to urban watercourse corridors revitalization program must be develop. 2.4 LAndscape approach design for waterfront The word landscape is a complex word appears in a wide range of scientific literature. Various authors have treated this topic. Saltzman (2001) overview the term of landscape as notion of landscape has changed and evolved over time and between the various fields of disciplines. Saltzman (2001) indicates that other disciplines has a different approach. For example, natural scientists are often focused on the biophysical environment related to the interaction between species or ongoing natural processes as a landscape. Landscape architects tends to view landscape as planning tool while for archaeologists, they are more interested in the memory of landscape and its temporal aspects. An ethnologist, anthropologists, in literature or even among other disciplines, the landscape term refers for other purposes. In this study, writer defined the landscape using the concept of landscape as Elbakidze and Angelstam (2007). They interpret landscape as social interactions between biophysical landscape and human society as a central idea. In European Landscape Convention, a landscape defined as an area, as perceived by people, whose character is the result of the action and interaction of natural and/or human factors (Anon. 2000b). The Elbakidze Angelstam (2007) concluded that the social-ecological systems contain elements of both natural and cultural landscape is intertwining with each other. Landscape characters have developed by both physical and cultural factors that evolved over the years. These aspects of the landscape must to consider in addition to the biophysical environment. Therefore, to fully describing a landscape, the number of variables that representing all the dimensions of sustainability have to use (Forman et al 2003, Berkes 1995s, Anderson et al, 2005). To implementing such landscape, approach needed some changes to suit the reality. One is to include of the different perspectives from different disciplines. For example, as described by Angelstam and Richnau (2008), while forest and landscape planners and managers try to accommodate commodity and non-commodity values in the same management unit, conservationists often define functional conservation landscapes, and other stakeholders such as farming communities or district officials may refer to their cultural or livelihood landscapes (e.g., Innes and Hoen 2005). More important in landscape approach is to explore the resources sustainably and untraditionally. Attention has to be making in evaluate the relationship between human with human, human with nature and human with god.   The landscape approach sometimes can be use as basic for ecological development scheme. It deals with the physical, ecological and geographical entity, integrating all human and natural patterns and process. In addition, the structure, composition and function analysis helps in forecasting the landscape dynamic. Landscape approach ultimate goal is to maximize the long-term benefits for biodiversity for sustainable development. This can be achieve by optimizing the balance between economic purposes, ecology and social. A landscape approach that considers whats happening at both the local, water body scale and at the broader regional scale is really the only way to study these types of issues, Cheruvelil (2010) states. If you look at only one ecosystem in isolation, you dont see the whole picture. Wiens (2002) states that systematic analysis of conservation and restoration management for aquatic ecosystems in riverine is not a tradition. However, the complex interactions between land and water systems are getting recognition from governance policies, planning and management practices. Singer (2007) states that being a social-ecological system, the term landscape approach capture the need for applied interdisciplinary approaches. Term landscape approach also emphasizes the ecological effects of spatial patterns of ecosystem and brad spatial scales. It is including the exchange and interaction within the entire landscapes, dynamics of development and spatial heterogeneity, the influence of spatial heterogeneity of biological and abiotic processes, and the management of spatial heterogeneity. Risser (1984) and Angelstam (2004) reflects the idea that landscapes evolve through time, as a result of being acted upon by natural forces and human beings, which underlines that landscapes forms a whole, whose natural and socio-cultural components are taken together, not separately (Berkes et al., 2003). 2.5 summary 3.0 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 3.1 Introduction In order to conduct research on the application of landscape for the urban waterfront more effectively and achieve desired results, the method to be used in this study is divided into two main phases. Each phase consists of research method that leads to the gathering of constructive information needed to the realization of the targeted goals Phase One will be involve mostly on the data gathering; determination and review of available information while in Phase Two, based on the date acquired, a practical guidelines shall be formulated and analyzed. Detailed reasoning and clarification of the aforementioned methodology proposed are as per the next subchapter. 3.2 PHASE ONE DEtermine and review Vast collection of waterfront designs and frameworks from various literatures are collected. It is crucial to establish a good data management in order to have a full understanding of the subject and its related issues, either explicitly or holistically. The assessment of the data gathered in each project is necessary where these elements are identified: Design consideration of urban waterfront Proposed design Planning frameworks Based on the collected data, principles of the projects are reviewed, segregated and tabulated into a table of nine-design consideration, which are open space, human use, character, ecology, accessibility, land use, management, design issues and economy. It is easier to review the quality and impact of a particular project through a list of segregated factors, which will be helpful for the implementation of Phase 2. 3.3 PHASE TWO DESIGN Guideline formulation The segregated list of design consideration from Phase 1 will be further analyzed. Each factors, its correlation, priorities and impact is review and ranked. Next, the first five best design consideration which is implemented will be selected. From the selected design consideration, their principles are outlined in another table for analysis and incorporated in the guideline formulation. . 3.4 LIMITATIONs 3.3 PROCEDURES The research will be divided into 5 stages as show in the figure below: Stage 5 Final Product Figure 3.1: Study Approach Flow Chart 4.0 RESULT AND ANALYSIS 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Design and planning of Waterfront The existing frameworks and designs, which developed by government agencies, researches and private consulting firms, need to be examined and used as the base guidelines for proposed waterfront development and its design. This study applied the design concept definition by Lyle (1999). He stated that design activity is equals to the participation in the process of nature creatively, which means giving form to physical phenomena in every scale. The study also accepted his opinion on the difference of planning and design. Based on his judgment, planning involves administrative activities in spite of physical form shaping while design is the creative physical activity in all scale; this design definition is similar to those explained by Steinitz and McHarg. Even though this thesis is aimed to discuss the design of riverfronts, it is also deals with certain part of the framework planning stage. This is due to the close relation of design issues discussed in the planning stage. Even Lyle (1999) himself acknowledged that the design and planning are closely linked and sometimes indistinguishable. Boston, Baltimore and Toronto were among the pioneers and being the model for the waterfront issues (Penteado 2004). Since 1970s, several publications illustrated the analysis of these cities waterfront (e.g. Breen and Rigby 1996 and Brutomesso 1993). In Toronto, for example, different frameworks, design and planning for its metropolitan waters edge were introduced (e.g. Reid 1997). Central Waterfront Planning Committee (1976) in Toronto listed the physical properties that affecting the waterfront quality. They stated that it depends on the use, history, landscape, immediacy, views, activity, contrast, drama, intimacy, sound and wildlife. The Committee primarily focused on design, explores, and suggests the quality of the water edge form, visual quality, building materials and construction details, and a variety of uses. Waterfront design by Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs (1987) on the other hand addressed the following issues for designing waterfront; shoreline protection, public access area, beaches, recreational boating, landscape for improving the waterfront and urban design. Royal Commission on the Future of Toronto Waterfront RCTFW (1992) proposed a framework of design principles for its waterfront which incorporated nine significant principles: Clean: Incentive of natural processes instead of engineering solutions Green: Infrastructure composed of natural features and topography such as habitats, aquifers and parks Connection: Relation between wildlife habitats, social communities, humans and nature. Open: Maintenance and restoration of vistas Accessible: Incorporation of public transit Useable: Mix of public and private uses and public access Diverse: Variety of uses and programs Affordable: Efficient use of government resources and integration of socio economic and environmental objectives (RCTFW 1992) Attractive: Excellence in design to create memorable places Out of all frameworks reviewed, these principles above were the most comprehensive context in the establishment of a waterfront. They dealt with both natural systems and integration of human needs. In contrast, Reed (1997) focused on the minimization of the impact to natural habitats when designing a trail along the Ontario Lake and thus came out with design guidelines. He proposed that each design should: Avoid most sensitive zone Balance the effect of alternatives Use previous disturbed areas Maintain natural processes Limit access Incorporate habitat enhancements. Unfortunately, he failed to mention the wildlife in urban areas along the coast. Alternatively, the Metropolitan Toronto Planning Department (1994) developed a framework based on these principles: Accessibility Sharing the benefits Balance Diversity Responsible stewardship Many of the guidelines reviewed incorporate different principles. Another case in point is Landplan Co Ltd (1995) who proposed a framework design called generic guidelines for managing visual change in the landscape for the Toronto Waterfront. The general guidelines required these principles to be addressed: Residential Industrial Commercial Recreational Rural Historic area Community character Vegetation Signage Lighting Hierarchy of open spaces Several authors combined their expertise and formulated a framework for the waterfront development in the United States. One of them was from Harvard University Design (1980). They proposed a Guideline for East Boston, which was dealing with: Open space Public access Orientation Views Neighborhood scale Activity Parking There was a successful case where a comprehensive guideline was developed. Torre (1989) presented a framework of waterfront project design based on these principles: History Climate Special elements Image Authenticity Function Public perception of need Financial feasibility Environmental approvals Construction technology Effective management Goodwin and Good in 1990 formulated a framework to rebuild the waterfront in a small town. The framework displayed a list of six fundamentals in the planning process. They called them the tool and technique which are: Waterfront uses and activities Land use control and incentives Land acquisition Financing of riverfront revitalization Choosing and using consultants Obtaining waterfront development permits Coolman (Breen and Rigby 1990), stated that these general issues must be addressed during the development of design guidelines: Simplicity and clarity Compatibility with zoning Publication and communication Table 4.1 summarizes the information of frameworks and design presented above and others world recognized waterfront project. Table 4.1 Interpretation of concern presents in planning and design frameworks. Tick cells indicate the issues addressed by each framework. No Project, City/Literature Human use Open Space Character Ecology Accessibility L

Technology - A Futuristic Prom :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

A Futuristic Prom RING, RING! "Hello, this is Matty337." "Hey Matty337, it's Zinc451, what's up?" "Nothin' much, I am just enjoying my Saturday afternoon home alone." "Oh, I Just called to ask you a question." "What is it Zinc? Is something wrong?" "No, Matty, I was just wondering if... well I know it's kind of short notice, but I was wondering if... you would like to go to the Neptunian Starlight Prom with me." "Sure Zinc I'd love to go!" "Yeah, I'll pick you up at 7:30, O.K.?" "Ya, I'll see you at 7:30, bye!" "Bye, Matty!" Finally, he asked me. I've been waiting all my life for Zinc to ask me out on a date. After all, I've only had a crush on him since the year 2149. Just think, the most astronomical guy in school asked me to the Neptunian Starlight prom of the year 2153. It's going to be the best night of my life! Oh no, I totally spaced it out. The prom is tonight and I don't have a dress. The Mars Mall is too many miles for my spacecraft to fly this afternoon from my galaxy purple house on 95070 Jupiter Street. What will I do? Suddenly, it dawns on me; I can order a dress off of the Universal Wide Web and have it teleported to my own house! My teleporter is a very complex machine used to make one object disintegrate and appear somewhere else in perfect replica. This is a machine that works on 3-dimensional objects as opposed to 2-dimensional sheets of paper. It looks almost like a fax machine and scans the original object, breaks it up into billions of tiny atoms, scans it to a new location and rearranges it in its perfect form. I run down stairs as quick as possible, there is no time to waste. I open the office door and plop down in the chair in front of my new 2153 Model Astrocomputer. After turning on the super fast computer and atomic laser printer I begin to work. When the 3-D super pixel screen comes up I immediately click on the blue U for Universal Explorer. I plug in my Interstellar Satellite Modem. I go to the top of the screen where the word DESTINATION: jumps out at me. I suddenly get a rush of excitement all throughout my body. Finally I am going to get the perfect prom dress! I click on the destination box and begin to type- www. Technology - A Futuristic Prom :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers A Futuristic Prom RING, RING! "Hello, this is Matty337." "Hey Matty337, it's Zinc451, what's up?" "Nothin' much, I am just enjoying my Saturday afternoon home alone." "Oh, I Just called to ask you a question." "What is it Zinc? Is something wrong?" "No, Matty, I was just wondering if... well I know it's kind of short notice, but I was wondering if... you would like to go to the Neptunian Starlight Prom with me." "Sure Zinc I'd love to go!" "Yeah, I'll pick you up at 7:30, O.K.?" "Ya, I'll see you at 7:30, bye!" "Bye, Matty!" Finally, he asked me. I've been waiting all my life for Zinc to ask me out on a date. After all, I've only had a crush on him since the year 2149. Just think, the most astronomical guy in school asked me to the Neptunian Starlight prom of the year 2153. It's going to be the best night of my life! Oh no, I totally spaced it out. The prom is tonight and I don't have a dress. The Mars Mall is too many miles for my spacecraft to fly this afternoon from my galaxy purple house on 95070 Jupiter Street. What will I do? Suddenly, it dawns on me; I can order a dress off of the Universal Wide Web and have it teleported to my own house! My teleporter is a very complex machine used to make one object disintegrate and appear somewhere else in perfect replica. This is a machine that works on 3-dimensional objects as opposed to 2-dimensional sheets of paper. It looks almost like a fax machine and scans the original object, breaks it up into billions of tiny atoms, scans it to a new location and rearranges it in its perfect form. I run down stairs as quick as possible, there is no time to waste. I open the office door and plop down in the chair in front of my new 2153 Model Astrocomputer. After turning on the super fast computer and atomic laser printer I begin to work. When the 3-D super pixel screen comes up I immediately click on the blue U for Universal Explorer. I plug in my Interstellar Satellite Modem. I go to the top of the screen where the word DESTINATION: jumps out at me. I suddenly get a rush of excitement all throughout my body. Finally I am going to get the perfect prom dress! I click on the destination box and begin to type- www.

Czar Nicholas II :: essays research papers

On May 6, 1868, an event happened that would change the fate of monarchy in Russia. Czar Nicholas Alexandrovich Romanov II was born in the Blue Bedroom of the Alexander Palace. Ominously, this occurred on the Orthodox day of feast for St. Job the Sufferer. This omen would prevision the never-ending trials he would face in his lifetime. In 1894, Nicholas's father, Czar Alexander III, died from a liver disease called nephritis. At age 26, Nicholas felt that he was not ready to rule Russia. However, he believed that his autocracy was a God-given right. To give up any part of it would go against the traditions of his country and religion. This belief, though seemingly right at the time, would later have a part in the death of his reign. Czar Nicholas II was short, only about five foot six inches tall. His other relatives seemed to tower above him. Though he worked out in his private gym daily, he would always be seen as slight and wiry. Because his legs were so short, most people agreed that he looked most regal when mounted on horseback. He always wore his brown hair parted on the left. His beard, also brown, was streaked with golden highlights as if the sun had reached out and stroked it with a kindly finger. The Czar had a nervous habit of brushing his mustache up with the back of his hand. In time, this gesture would become his distinct signature. Because of his sheltered life under the fear of terrorists, Nicholas grew up secluded from the world. Unfortunately, this caused him to never had the self-confidence and self-reliance he would need later in his life as the last czar of Russia. Though seemingly weak, his first love was Russia and the second his family. He refused to have secretaries, in the belief that this would help bring him closer to his people. Again, it did not work. He was seen as a phony by the entire country. Nicholas and his wife, Alexandra, soon had a family. After four girls were born in succession, they were still hoping for a boy to fall heir to the throne. On July 30, 1904, their wish was granted. A son they would call Aleksey was born and Nicholas and Alexandra were ecstatic. However, the joy was short lived. Aleksey had hemophilia, a hereditary disease in which the blood does not clot right.

Motivating Teachers Essay

In today’s school system where ‘no child is left behind’; the teacher is set up for failure. Combined with achieving metrics on standard testing scores; these extrinsic motivators seem to be the only thing presented to teachers today. They are expected to be high quality teachers who are able to inspire, mentor, design and align lessons, differentiate instruction, craft assessments, analyze data, grade homework, connect with parents, enforce discipline, promote fitness, cultivate a love of learning, write individualized education programs, and so on. Look at what we are expecting of our teachers today, and how we are trying to motivate them. The joy of teaching students to make their own decisions and succeed in life seems to be gone. Perhaps it is time to rethink the teaching job itself so that more people might do it well. One idea is to create more specific teaching jobs so that each teacher isn’t asked to excel at so many different tasks on a day to day basis. The idea is to revamp the job in a way that allows individual teachers to spend more time doing what they’re best at. Rocketship Education (www. rsed. org) is an example of a high-performance charter school that uses a hybrid model of classroom instruction, real-time assessments, and customized, supplementary services in its â€Å"learning lab. † Using this type of a method means that the actual tasks that each teacher must do have been recreated. It allows the teacher to concentrate on coaching, motivating, instructing and problem solving around student issues and needs. In Boston, there are examples of Citizen Schools (www. citizenschools. org) which provide a new idea of who can teach. These schools leverage local professionals on a part-time basis to teach on specific topics and areas of expertise. These examples suggest opportunities to expand and better use the pool of teaching talent through smart differentiation and specialization. These methods use intrinsic motivation to increase teaching effectiveness by allowing autonomy for teachers to instruct students in the topics that they have an affinity for. It seems that current standard practice in schools has all teachers—regardless of skill or demonstrated performance—taking equal turns monitoring the lunchroom, supervising bus loading, patrolling the hallways, filling out stacks of mandated paperwork, and the rest. Increase in effectiveness would be shown by allowing more specialization.

Media Review: On Climate Change

Even before the post-contemporary period, various environmental problems have been detected as one of the principal factors that affect the change on the way of life all over the world. It is for the reason that environment serves as the prime setting wherein people do their thing and improve their way of living. Climate change has been one of the factors that people consider in performing their daily tasks and endeavors. It has significantly seen as something that changes the outline of the world and civilizations, geographically and sociologically wise. Global Warming is not a new issue. Global warming is the primary cause of sudden climate change that tends to make the climate hotter (Tyagi). The greenhouse gases are trapped in the atmosphere which makes the increase in temperature. This effects of this phenomenon are severe such that all regions of are feeling and witnessing them. The melting of the ice caps of the Polar Regions is one of its effects likewise, drought and intense heat (Tyagi). These effects have also bad effects on mankind’s daily activities. Vegetations and agriculture have been sternly affected by climate change. Various diseases that are triggered from having a very high temperature are also detected to debilitate the health of the people (Tyagi). These are just some of the ill-effects of untoward climate change. Nevertheless, such detrimental effects of extreme climate change could be treated and even prevented from impairing the world and the mankind. By being aware and involved on campaigns and programs that tend to rehabilitate the environment, one could really be assured that the problem on climate change could be addressed if not instantly at least gradually. Lastly, environmental issues should not be used for selfish interests and political propaganda. No matter how perfect the economy and the politics of one country if the environment is at risk, all the things that it has would disappear if environment problems would not be addressed and given priority. Work Cited: Tyagi, Avinash. Climate Change and Global Warming. Rajat Publications , 2006. Â  

Life in Madinah of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) Essay

The first significant event after the migration of Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) was the construction of the mosque of the Prophet. It not only acted as a spiritual centre for worship, but also the political and military headquarters for the new state. It soon developed into an institute of learning where discussions and seminars were held. A social institution where Muslims learnt and practiced discipline, unity and brotherhood. The land on which the mosque was build was bought from two orphan brothers. The Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H) and many other prophets themselves worked hard to construct the mosque. This mosque was known as â€Å"Mosque of the Prophet† or Masjid-e-Nabawi. To this Quran says in Surah-At- Tawbah: â€Å"—, a mosque founded on righteousness from the first day is more worthy for you to stand in. Within it are men who love to purify themselves; and Allah loves those who purify themselves.† (9:108) Walls of the mosque were made of unbaked bricks. The roof was of mud and date palm leaves and the trunks of date palm trees were used for pillars. A large platform with a thatched roof, was built in one of the corners of the mosque. This was known as Suffah. Azan In order to call believers of Islam to mosques, the system of calling Azan was introduced. Hazrat Bilal (R.A) was appointed as the Muezzin. Arrangements for the inhabitants of Madinah People of Madinah belonged to two categories; Ansars (Madinites) and Muhajirin (Makkans). Even the richest emigrants were now poor as they had left their belongings in Makkah during the hijrat. The people who belonged to Madinah promised to help Muhajirs. The Holy Prophet (PBUH) established brotherhood between these two groups of Muslims. The Ansars happily agreed to help the Muhajirs and they took them to their homes, took care of them and shared all of their possessions with them. The Holy Quran mentions this in these words: â€Å"Those who and adopted exile, and fought for the faith, with their property and their persons, in the cause of Allah, as well as those  who gave (them) asylum and aid, these are (all) friends and protectors, one of another.† (8:72) The emigrants and their hosts were united into a bond of brotherhood, which proved, in practice, to be stronger than real brotherhood. Even the enmity between two tribes of Madinah, Aus and Khazraj was forgotten, as mentioned in the Holy Quran: â€Å"†¦ And remember with gratitude Allah’s favour on you; for ye were enemies and He joined your hearts in love, so that by His grace, ye became brethren†¦. (3:103) Treaty with the Jews: (Charter of Madinah) There were three main tribes of Jews: Banu Qainuqa, Banu Nazi and Banu Quraiza, settled in the suburbs of Madinah in their own strong fortresses. The Holy Prophet (PBUH) realised that the foundation of Islam would be very weak unless it was based upon the support of all the people living in Madinah. The situation call for a strong measure of co-ordination and adjustment, particularly as the Muslims were seriously threatened by the Quraish. Therefore, as soon as the Holy Prophet (PBUH) was settled in Madinah, he called together the Muslims and the Jewish tribes for consultation.

Lateral thinking

Lateral thinking is a term coined by Edward de Bono, a Maltese psychologist, physician, and writer, although it may have been an idea whose time was ready. De Bono defines Lateral Thinking as methods of thinking concerned with changing concepts and perception. He invented the term ‘lateral thinking'. It was first written up in a book called â€Å"The Use of Lateral Thinking†. (1967) It is similar to creative thinking. It is also seeking to solve problems by unorthodox or apparently illogical methods. â€Å"A set of systematic techniques used for changing concepts and perceptions and generating new ones†, (de Bono, 1967) â€Å"Exploring multiple possibilities and approaches instead of pursuing a single approach.† (Infinite Innovations, 1997)There are numerous ways of defining lateral thinking, ranging from the illustrative to the technical. First, â€Å"You cannot dig a hole in a different place by digging the same hole deeper† (de Bono, 1997a) This m eans that trying harder in the same direction may not be as useful as changing direction. Effort in the same direction (approach) will not necessarily succeed. Second, â€Å"Lateral Thinking is for changing concepts and perceptions† (de Bono, 1997b) With logic you start out with certain ingredients just as in playing chess you start out with given pieces. But what are those pieces? In most real life situations the pieces are not given, we just assume they are there. We assume certain perceptions, certain concepts and certain boundaries. (Wikipedia, 2006)Lateral thinking is concerned not with playing with the existing pieces but with seeking to change those very pieces. Lateral thinking is concerned with the perception part of thinking. This is where we organize the external world into the pieces we can then ‘process'. (de Bono, 1994b) Third, â€Å"The brain as a self-organizing information system forms asymmetric patterns. In such systems there is a mathematical need f or moving across patterns. The tools and processes of lateral thinking are designed to achieve such ‘lateral' movement. The tools are based on an understanding of self-organizing information systems.† (de Bono, 2004). This is a technical definition which depends on an understanding of self-organizing information systems.Fourth, â€Å"In any self-organizing system there is a need to escape from a local optimum in order to move towards amore global optimum. The techniques of lateral thinking, such as provocation, are designed to help that change.† (de Bono, 2005). This is another technical definition. It is important because it also defines the mathematical need for creativity. Lateral thinking is about reasoning that is not immediately obvious and about ideas that may not be obtainable by using only traditional step-by-step logic.Techniques that relate lateral thinking to problems are characterized by the shifting of thinking patterns away from predictable or entre nched thinking to new or unexpected ideas. A new idea that is the result of lateral thinking is not always a helpful one, but when a good idea is discovered in this way it is usually obvious in hindsight, which is a feature lateral thinking shares with a joke. (Harleys, 2004) Edward de Bono points out that the term problem solving, â€Å"implies that there is a problem to respond to and that it can be resolved. That eliminates situations where there is no problem or a problem exists that cannot be resolved. It is logical to think about making a good situation that has no problems, into a better situation. Some times a problem cannot be solved by removing its cause.† (de Bono, 1994a)Lateral thinking can be used to help in solving problems but can also be used for much more. (Wikipedia, 2006) With ‘parallel thinking' both sides (or all parties) are â€Å"thinking in parallel in the same direction.† (Davis, 2005) There is co-operative and co-ordinate thinking. The d irection itself can be changed in order to give a full scan of the situation. But at every moment each thinker is thinking in parallel with all the other thinkers. There does not have to be agreement. Statements or thoughts which are indeed contradictory are not argued out but laid down in parallel. In the final stage the way forward is ‘designed' from the parallel thought that have been laid out. (Davis, 2005)MethodsAn easy and convenient way of carrying out ‘parallel thinking' is the Six Hats method which is now being used commonly worldwide both because it speeds up thinking and also because it is so much more constructive then conventional argument thinking. (de Bono, 2005) The use of the Six Hats method is now growing speedily globally. Those who have become familiar with the technique look back at argument as primitive, crude and ego-driven. (de Bono, 2002)â€Å"With the Six Hats method you can still show off. But you now show off by performing better than anyone else under each hat. It is no longer a matter of proving someone else to be wrong. Our ingrained habits of critical disagreement are so often not just a matter of sensible caution, but a mixture of ‘power plays' and ego strutting.† (de Bono, 2003) On the other hand, there is a necessary and proper place for caution. â€Å"That place is provided by the ‘black hat’.† Under this hat every person sets out to look for dangers, risks, shortfalls, problems, etc. Even those who most like the idea make a authentic effort to recognize the faults. Power plays have no place. There is no longer an chance to show that some particular individual is wrong or that you are smarter than that person. (de Bono, 2003)There are six symbolic hats, each one a diverse color. The thinker wears one hat at a time and only uses the mode of thinking which goes with that particular color. â€Å"The white hat is neutral.† While wearing this hat, the thinkers simply focus on in formation. What information is available on the subject, and what is missing? â€Å"The red hat signifies emotion and intuition – aspects of human thinking which are traditionally excluded from ‘rational' discussion. But since they still exist, they often get expressed indirectly.† The red hat allows them to be expressed usefully and openly. â€Å"The black hat puts the thinkers into the role of judge.† Wearing this hat, they assess the risks associated with an idea and see how the idea fits with what is already known (our values, experience, objectives, etc.). (de Bono, 2003)â€Å"The yellow hat brings out the positive side of assessing an idea.† With this hat on, the thinkers look for the values and benefits in an idea. As with the black hat, the thinkers have to use logic when wearing the yellow hat.   â€Å"The green hat signals deliberate creative effort.† Under this hat all the possibilities can be discovered, using precise techniques of lateral thinking, like provocation. This is an chance for vision. Lastly, the â€Å"blue hat is there for the overview.† (de Bono, 2003)   It is typically worn by the person chairing a meeting but can be used by anyone. The process of thinking is managed with this hat and all the different threads drawn together. (Hellers, 2006)How can it be applied to the corporate world?Lateral thinking is of very great importance in such a way that it gives a new and an alternative way of solving a problem. By the use of lateral thinking, an individual can recognize dominant ideas that polarize perception of a problem, the person can search for different ways at looking things, can have a complete control of rigid thinking, can use a chance to encourage other ideas. Lateral thinking can also be applied in human problem solving. Lateral thinking can be used in the management development. This lateral thinking can be greatly used in schools where in de Bono had also done his study(. Cu rtin, 2004)Lateral thinking is also perfect for: Groups in need of new thinking like companies with an â€Å"innovation† initiative in need of tools that actually work; Professionals in the new idea development business — R&D, PD, marketing, advertising; Executives feeling the heat, same old, same old just isn't working anymore; Teams frustrated with old predicable ideas that keep surfacing in their creative thinking meetings, Scientists and engineers who need systematic tools to break open their thinking; Proactive people that want to strengthen their Innovation Instinct— their ability to generate, build on and implement valuable new ideas. Human resource / Organization development professionals needing tools to facilitate ideation meetings; (de Bono Thinking Systems, 2006)Lateral thinking will also help individuals to develop skills to: Increase productive idea output; Design the future; Find fresh new solutions to intractable problems; Escape the constraints of routine thinking; Appreciate the diversity of thinking among team members; Plan and lead innovation meetings that deliver powerful results; Secure company’s leadership edge; Find new areas of opportunity. (de Bono, 2004)Hence, Lateral thinking is an alternative way to solve problem in a different approach. It could also greatly help in strengthening your business with fresh new thinking bringing innovative solutions to life. Lateral Thinking provides a flexible framework with systematic creativity tools so that you can.Referencesde Bono, E. (1994) Parallel Thinking. London: Viking.de Bono, E. (1994b) The Teaching of Thinking: Why and How? In J.Edwards (ed.) Thinking: International Interdisciplinary Perspectives. Melbourne: Hawker Brownlow, 45-55.de Bono, E. (2004) â€Å"Parallel Thinking: the Six Hat Methods†. Retrieved from: http://www.thinkingmanagers.com/management/parallel-thinking.phpWikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia (2006) â€Å"Lateral Thinking† Retriev ed 12 October from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lateral_thinkingde Bono, E. (2005) Parallel Thinking and Lateral Thinking. The De Bono Library.   Retrieved October 2006, from: http://www.edwdebono.com/debono/lateral.htmInfinite Innovations. (1997) â€Å"Definition of creative, creative thinking, parallel and brainstorming†. Retrieved from: http://www.brainstorming.co.uk/tutorials/definitions.htmlCurtin, L. (2004) â€Å"Lateral Thinking Systematic Creativity Tools†. Retrieved from: http://www.lyndacurtin.com/programs/lateral_thinking/lateral_thinking_index.aspde Bono, E. (1997a) â€Å"Effective Thinking: a General Course†. Retrieved from http://www.edwdebono.com/course/index.htmde Bono, E. (1997b) â€Å"Lateral Thinking: TIP Theories, Psychological†. Retrieved from: http://tip.psychology.org/debono.htmlHellers, M. (2006). â€Å"Serious Creativity†. Retrieved from http://www.sixhats.com.htmlde Bono, E. (1995) â€Å"Idea Focus†. Retrieved fr om http://www.ideafocus.com/products/serious/_serious.htmlde Bono, E, 2004, â€Å"De Bono Consulting: A Division of Resources Unlimited†. Retrieved from: http://www.debonoconsulting.com/Lateral_Thinking.aspDavis, A. (2005) â€Å"Timothy Mcsweeney’s: Developing Your Lateral Thinking Skills†. http://www.mcsweeneys.net/2004/12/1stallard.htmlde Bono, E. (2006) â€Å"Practical, Radical and Innovative Thinking Systems†. http://www.debonothinkingsystems.com/home.htmHarleys, C. (2004) â€Å"Creative Tools: A Creative Process, Mind Tools, Essential Skills for an Excellent Career†. Retrieved from: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newCT_00.htmde Bono Thinking Systems. (2002) de Bono for Business. Retrieved from† http://www.debonoforbusiness.com/asp/lateral_thinking.asp