Sun Tzu The Art of War essays

Sun Tzu The Art of War essays Sun Tzu was a Chinese general from around 500 B.C. A collection of essays on the art of war is attributed to Sun Tzu. These are the earliest know treatises on the subject. Two thousand five hundred years ago these principles were a novel. Back then war was very disorganized and more or less a giant free-for-all, and for what is known, organized military strategy did not exist At least in written from until The Art of War. There is a story about Sun Tzu and it said that he commended an army of thirty thousand men in a battle against an army of two hundred thousand men and won. Had his opponent know of his principles or had some of his own, the outcome would most likely been different. Sun Tzu was unknown to his contemporaries until he wrote the Art of War. The Manuscript brought him attention from King Ho Lu, who appointed him to the rank of general. With his military genius and strategies he became a legendary figure in his own time. We must realize that Sun Tzu was not a businessman, a strategy game enthusiast, or a diplomat he was fighting real wars in ancient China. It was not till later on in the history humanity when we began to apply the teachings in his manuscript to mental wars than physical wars. The Art of War is divided into thirteen chapter and their names are: Laying Plans, Waging War, Attack By Stratagem, Tactical Dispositions, Energy, Weak Points And Strong, Maneuvering, Variation In Tactics, The Army On The March, Terrain, The Nine Situations, The Attack By Fire, and finally The Use Of Spies. There are a growing number of translations on the art of war mostly titled Sun Tzu The Art of War but you can find the wording reversed. Sun Tzu is some times referred to as Sun Wu, and Sun Tzi. Written more than Two Thousand Five Hundred years ago, Sun Tzus The Art of War is the first known study of the planning and conduct of military ...

JFK Assassanation essays

JFK Assassanation essays The Assassination of John F. Kennedy Over thirty years ago, John F. Kennedy was assassinated. He was supposed murdered by Lee Harvey Oswald. Many suspect differently. What does the proof say? What proof is real? Who can we trust? On November 22, 1963, President Kennedy arrived in Dallas Texas. He was touring the United States as part of his campaign to run for president in 1964. The motorcade left the airport. A short time later when the limousine was traveling through Dealey Plaza, a shot rang out. Then two or three more shots were fired. The president and the governor were both wounded. One half hour later the president was announced dead. The authorities immediately began questioning eyewitnesses and then started to search for the assassin or any trail he left behind. Patrolmen J.D. Tippit and M.N MacDonald were following the suspect behind a theatre. Officer Tippit opened fire and the suspect, later identified as Lee Harvey Oswald, returned fire killing officer Tippit instantly. After Oswald was subdued he was taken to the police station were he was interrogated immediately. Oswald denied having anything to do with the murder of John Kennedy, but Captain Will Fritz was quoted saying He hasnt admitted anything yet, but he looks like a good suspect. Oswald was to be moved to a state prison to wait to be tried for the assassination of the president. Before he could be safely away Jack Ruby cane up to him and fired on him at point blank range killing him in front of hundreds of reporters. This was also on live television, but what connection does Jack Ruby have to the assassination. Lee Harvey Oswald, the man charged with killing the thirty-eighth president of the United States. The question why did he do it? Or did he do it? Lee Harvey Oswald was an ex-marine, said to be at a medium level of proficiency with a rifle when he was in the marines. After being discharged from the marines he went to Russia. He...

Human Resource Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 5

Human Resource Management - Essay Example They have therefore devised innovative human resource management practices that empower workers to make decisions on matters that affect them. As a result, employee involvement and participation has become the central pillar of HRM. Employee participation and involvement (EIP) are often used interchangeably but as Hyman and Mason (1995) puts it; the two concepts have different meanings. Participation efforts are achieved through a legal framework designed by the government to enable employees to have a voice although at times they may exist in absence of such legislations like in Japan. On the other hand, involvement mechanisms are initiated by the management to enable them cope with the challenges of today’s economic climate. For the sake of this paper the two concepts will be used interchangeably since there is a very thin line between involvement and participation. The choice of the mechanism is determined by the political, social and economic conditions of the country and organization for which it is designed. Recently, there have been changes in the legal climate due to European Union initiatives aimed at improving working conditions and standards of living thereby initiating various participation mechanisms such as consultations (Knudsen, 1995). The paper will discuss the extent to which EIP initiatives have been a success. Definitions Employee involvement and participation can be defined as efforts geared towards empowering employees to influence decisions on matters that affect them by pushing responsibility for decisions down the organization hierarchy. The role of the employer in decision making process thus declines while that of the employee increases (Heathfield, 2011). This is done with the belief that by empowering employees, they will have a sense of ownership and hence gain morale, job satisfaction and commitment to organization goals. It is also believed that job satisfaction and commitment lead to improved retention as well attraction of the best talent in the labour market thereby achieving a sustained competitive advantage. Furthermore, the management requires to make quality decisions and this is enhanced by input from the workforce (Gennard & Judge, 2005). Participatory activities are also aimed at complying with legal requirements and in Europe it has led to increased role for trade unions. Historical Background Management efforts to improve productivity and efficiency began decades ago with the advent of scientific management systems advanced by Taylor and Ford. They believed that division of labour was the key to organization effectiveness and efficiency. Taylor thus concentrated on how to get most work done by analysing all tasks and designing jobs to eliminate wasted time. He ensured maximum job fragmentation and minimisation of skill requirements; employees were considered as stupid hence not able to make decisions (Bratton & Gold, 2001). Ford on the other hand, introduced assembly line method of produc tion which entailed short-cycles and standardization of commodities and processes. The division of labour led to monotony and boredom, job dissatisfaction, high absenteeism and turnover as well as increased costs in terms of monitoring and cooperation costs. This led to pressure for better methods of management by the human relations movement. The human

Career Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Career - Assignment Example According to Holland’s fit graph I am interested in helping to keep others emotionally or physically healthy, or in teaching others. I enjoy giving advice and working directly with people, either in groups or individually. In addition to my obvious talents I may also have hidden talents. I’ll find out what my managers, peers, friends and family appreciate most about me in the course of duty. It is evident also I have very little passion for health service. I wouldnt be satisfied in careers where the majority of my time is spent working outdoors, especially in agriculture with animals and/or plants. A low score on this scale also means that I probably dont enjoy the challenge of potentially dangerous situations. Teaching is occupation that matches my skill. The task interests me greatly, I currently have the skills to take the occupation of teaching, all this match my work style and values. I’ll require little time to gain great self control and will be up to task like any other person in the

University Admission Process in Chile Essay Example for Free

University Admission Process in Chile Essay Learning implies having had access to it, counting with quality books and teachers and being in an enviroment where culture is important. Therefore, what PSU does is to prevent poor students -who have abilities but did not have acces to knowledge-, from developping a professional course of high standards. In addition, PSU does not accomplish its main task, which is selecting the more qualified students to go to traditional universities. Because it does not messures abilities, nor skills. Just training. The ones who are good at memorizing and trained themselves correctly can have a high score. There are schools (normally private schools) that dedicate exclusive time to prepare their students for this exam, leaving behind other important subjects. This situation leads us to a third negative characteristic of our university admission process. In Chile exists the business of something similar to pre-colleges. Here, the ones who can afford these classes are taught the mechanism of PSU. And in concequence, they are the more prepared to take the exam than the ones who were not able to pay for extra lessons. ALTERNATIVE ADMISSION PROCESSES. One of the main achievements of last year’s strike in our university was the posibility of having an alternative admission process, apart from PSU. Senior year students from schools with low budget can be matriculated at University of Concepcion with only de minimum PSU score this university requires (475 or 500) and having had at least a 5 in their high school grades average. There is a quota of 56 students in 49 courses. Medicine, Law, Astronomy, Sociology, Psicology, History Teaching, among others. Another admission process in Chile is the pre-college system. It is found in several universities in the country. (de Santiago, Cardenal Silva Henriquez, Alberto Hurtado, Tecnologica Metropolitana, Metropolitana de Ciencias de la Educacion y Catolica del Norte) In University of Santiago, this programme started in 2007 with the support of UNESCO (united nacions. Educational, scientific and cultural organization). This system allowes students with the best grade averages of low budget schools, be matriculated at this university. No PSU score required. After selecting the students, they take classes of Spanish, Maths and Cultural Management for five months. If the sudents attend all lessons, they get matriculated in college at the University of Santiago with a full scholarship. And afterwards, they are able to study a professional course at this university. CONCLUSION As we said before, our current university admission process helps to increase our social differences and discriminates students from low economic stratums. Thus, we realised the solutions we suggest will be useless unless there is a deep structural change in our educational system, and if we look further, a change in our society. However, we hope these alternatives get massively increased in the near future. This way, the university access will be improved for the ones who really want to study regardless of their economic condition. So what we -common citizens students and teachers- must do, is get informed and communicate others about the problems that bother us. And take advantage of oportunities like last years strike to accomplish our aims and demands.

Gangs of New York, A Film Analysis :: Film

Bill the Butcher was the ideal "bad guy" for a movie. He was a stubborn individual who would not change his ways of thinking for anyone. If you came off a boat and tried to settle in the United States you were automatically hated by Mr. Cutting. Bill was a tall man, very skinny, and he had long hair with a matching mustache. Bill and his party believed that the only rightful people to have jobs, families, and make money were people who were born in the U.S., not immigrants. Women and children are not even spared by Bill and his rugged party. They hatred for the immigrants was so strong that they would shout profanities at them or hurl rocks at them when they unloaded from the massive ships. At times they would beat an immigrant close to death just because they looked at them the wrong way. Cutting's father installed these beliefs into him, Bill's father was killed in a gang war with the immigrants and he would never live that down. The way the immigrants were treated by some of the townspeople made some of the immigrants become very poor. Shop keepers and other store owners would not hire immigrants mainly because they did not like them and secondly that they did not want to upset Bill and his gang. Immigrants would soon leave New York and look for an easier life but most remained behind and lived in the side streets to fend for food with the rats. This is where thievery came in. Since most of the immigrants were poor they had to learn to steal to survive. "Pick-Pocketing" became the most famous means to steal in the streets of New York. The immigrants who would come off of the boats had no idea what was in store for them as they unloaded their boat. The immigrants were friendly people for the most part, they were not looking for a fight in America just a new start to their life.

Media Portrayal of Women in Sports Essay

The mass media and all its components have always played an essential role in shaping the way society views and thinks about certain issues and events. The type influence, which television shows, radio shows and other mediums of mass media have on their audiences, go widely unchecked by the professionals involved in that field and by society in general. The effects could be damaging and entirely maladaptive and yet only a few organizations and individuals take on the role of serving as the counterchecking department of the products of this industry. One of the many fields into which mass media have dipped their fingers into is the field of sports. What little attention is given to the effects of mass media on society is focused on children’s shows, violence-related topics and religion-based issues. The field of sports has been relatively untouched by those who monitor the mass media. The public has mainly stood by and accepted the information and manner of presentation that mass media has taken with regards to sports. This type of attitude has proven to be increasingly damaging to women in particular. Sports has become a highly gender-based field. Despite efforts to assimilate women into the various games and competitions, it has become increasingly evident, despite the lack of monitoring organizations, that mass media has not gone beyond the days of bias towards women in sports. There are still many issues that need to be addressed in terms of how television, radio, magazines, newspapers, and other such media have come to portray women professionals in the field of sports. How does mass media affect the way their audiences perceive women athletes and other female sports professionals? What steps can be taken to correct wrong practices in this field? This paper aims to answer these questions as well as to specifically understand the way mass media has shown females involved in various sports activities and whether there truly is reason for these women to be concerned. Television Coverage of Women in Sports   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Of all the instruments of mass media available today, the television set is perhaps the most successful and most popular. It has invaded the living spaces of almost all homes worldwide and is able to communicate to its audience in much more modalities than that offered by other instruments of mass media. It also allows for coverage of events at the exact moment the said event occurs.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Research regarding how women have been portrayed through the medium of television has been much more numerous as opposed to research on portrayal via other mediums. The literature regarding this research has shown that women in sports have been greatly marginalized and stereotyped. The following section will delve deeper into this aspect of mass media coverage in sports.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The most encompassing research done on television coverage of women in sports may be that of Higgs & Weiller (1994). They conducted a research to assess gender bias in the television coverage of the 1992 Olympic games. The two researchers found much to disappoint the many women athletes involved in the said games as well as all other women who were just as concerned about women’s rights, equality of the sexes, and politically correct representation of males and females in different fields.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Commentators of the different events in the Olympic games were noted to most commonly use terms such as â€Å"girl† â€Å"babe† and â€Å"sweetheart† to refer to the women competitors whereas none of the male competitors were referred to as â€Å"boy† even when the contestant was obviously of a very young age. Also, strength and weakness descriptions and allusions were clearly gender-biased. Men in swimming were lauded for their strokes whereas female swimmers would receive comments such as â€Å"a powerhouse of a stroke from a 16-year old girl†. There were clearly ways by which the commentators were able to inject their own prejudiced views of the genders of the competitors.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There were also findings pointing to the fact that events wherein males competed were aired for longer times than those where females competed. Time differentials were noted for each event and there was a noted significant difference for each. This was applicable for such sports as basketball, volleyball, and the likes. Although individual events such as gymnastics were prone to have more airtime dedicated to women athletes, these were highly edited and sometimes even spliced together.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Each broadcast was also done with use of narratives. This was to draw the audience deeper into the mood of the game. However, researchers found that games with men contestants were broadcast with narratives of competition and strength. Women contestants, on the other hand, were often accompanied by emotional narratives pertaining to the athletes aspirations and the achievement of these with their success in the particular event they were entered in. If emotional narratives were not used by the television broadcasters, none at all were provided. It was either emotional or not at all.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is therefore, a well-known fact that ambivalence in reporting of women’s sports on television exists. There is   a denial of power for women in this particular type of mass media. Although women athletes are equally as capable and equally as competent as their male counterparts, this is not credited by professionals reporting their games. Where women have been noted for their involvement in sports, negative allegations and prejudiced reporting have served to undermine the efforts of these athletes. Radio Coverage of Women in Sports   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Radio coverage of women in sports has also been one of the more devastating instruments of undermining women’s efforts and women participation in various sports activities. The radio set, however, is less of a weapon of the mass media at present than the television set. The radio set does not cater to the visual modality of its audiences and as such may prove less of a weapon. However, it is also advantageous because reporting of the sporting event can occur at the same time that the actual event occurs. This means that up-to-the-minute, live coverage is possible.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, airing time on the radio set is significantly less for sports events than that on television sets. The large percentage of non-recognition that goes on in television broadcasting of women participation in sports is thus multiplied by great factors on the radio set. Only limited numbers of sports are chosen to be reported and reviewed over the radio and most, if not all, of these are male-dominated sports. Sporting events that are not action-packed, that do not provide the reporter with a message full of strength, adrenaline, and passion are not marketable on the radio waves. And because of the trend and well-established fad of reporting male events and male athletes with narratives involving competition, strength, and passion, these are the events that radio broadcasters and radio networks focus on. Women-dominated sports and women athletes prove to be less of a popular choice of broadcasting for professionals in the radio industry as these gives them, to their perception, with a softer story that is not full of the characteristics they look for in reportable stories and which audiences will not much favor or listen to. Thus the perception that male athletes and male-dominated sporting events will have more popularity than their counterparts. Publication Coverage of Women in Sports   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another instrument used in mass media are magazines and other similar published sources. These cater only to the audiences visual modalities and are not able to give audio feedback. Also, publications such as newspapers and magazines are only able to give a reporting of the event after a period of time has elapsed. It cannot be given during the time the actual event occurs. A processing time for writers, photographers, layout artists, editors, publishers and other personnel involved in the production process is required. Thus newspapers come one day after the events have occurred and magazines are released at particular time intervals within the year – monthly, quarterly, annually, and the like.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A study by Hardin et al (2005) showed that women were often portrayed as sexually different even in sports magazines. Sexually different in sports can mean the portrayal of women as dissimilar. This can be shown through the presentation of sport type in the said magazine or given publication. This could be shown in a manner such that women, who participate in sporting events wherein women are not usually included as competitors, are either excluded or represented as masculine.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, it has been seen that certain sporting magazines have been very generous to the female component of sporting activities. However, this balance is only present in magazines that have been produce through the efforts of staff that were consciously aware of the disparity in gender reporting of sports events. These magazines are, more commonly, actively fighting for women’s equality in this field. As such, they are few and not representative in the publishing industry.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It should be acknowledged, however, that such magazines were launched and that these were successful in their goals. Perhaps this will provide the much needed gender-equality into the field of sports and mass media. Although these types of magazines form the minority in published mass media, they offer hope and raise out a cry of challenge to their colleagues, a cry for gender-equality and female liberation from the marginalization and disempowerment occurring in their field. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The large discrepancies in sports portrayals of women athletes has been seen to be significant in all mediums of mass media specifically that of the television set, the radio set, and published sources. Women have been marginalized, stereotyped, and stripped of power through the way these mass media instruments have been used to represent their participation in sports activities.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, no matter how anyone looks at it, this type of portrayal is unwarranted and unnecessary. Women have just as much talent, skill and capability as their male counterparts. The efforts they exert in order to actively and competently engage in their given sporting event is equally similar to that which males exert. The strain and stress they undergo during training and during the actual competition are just as nerve-wracking and exhausting as that which male athletes experience. In all respects, female athletes should be considered and hailed as equal to male athletes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, this has not been the case. Mass media, whether through television, radio, or magazines, has proven to be unforgiving and thoughtless in bringing justice to the efforts of women athletes. There is a great need for change and renewal in the way mass media portrays females.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   One of the best first steps towards a better and more fair portrayal of women in sports is by actively disseminating information about the marginalization and disempowerment that is occurring. Most audiences and most reporters are perhaps so tied down to the hegemony of sports and mass media that they are no longer aware when stereotypical remarks are made on air. Knowledge of the fact that sports is for both females and males and that both sexes are equally capable of succeeding in this field must be spread. Without awareness, there is no chance for gender issues to be resolved in this field.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It would, perhaps, also be constructive for organizations and bodies to be set up that would monitor the violations to women’s rights that occur during broadcasting of sporting events. This would help to check the prejudiced actions and comments of those involved in the mass media industry. This would also make other individuals aware that what is currently going on is not acceptable and that there is a growing need for better treatment and appreciation of women athletes.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There is still much improvement that can be done to the way mass media portray women. Mass media has come to influence the way society thinks in that women themselves have congregated around socially acceptable sports. Only the few who are not afraid of being dubbed masculine are able to compete in the sports where the male sex has dominated. There should be adequate measures taken to ensure that future biased and stereotyped thoughts will no longer exist. Women portrayal in sports still has hope to become much more fair and with this hope comes the assurance thaw women participation in sports will also become less prejudiced and stereotyped. Reference Higgs, C., & Weiller, K. (1994). Gender bias and the 1992 summer Olympic games: an analysis of television coverage. Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 18,   234-246 Hardin, M., Lynn, S., Walsdorf, K. (2005). Challenge and conformity on â€Å"contested terrain†: images of women in four women’s sport/fitness magazines. Sex Roles, 53(1), 105-117

Solution Focused Brief Therapy

Ahmad’s case story presents interesting facts about how he thinks and feels about his situation. He seems to think about his life as something destined to be what it is. Ahmad said that his friends did not make him bad; he was already bad to begin with. This demonstrates a way of thinking with a strong locus of control. He knew why he turned out to be a problem child and he did not blame his friends for his mistakes, crimes and decisions. But he did emphasize that his mother had told him what he was going to be in the future.As a child, Ahmad may have come to believe in this prophecy which is why he thinks like that. This tells us that Ahmad is capable of thinking logically; he actually did not blame his mother for turning out to be the person he is, but to him his mother was right in saying he was going to be a bad person in the future. Ahmad seems to have the ability to take responsibility for his actions and maybe in this case he can also plan for his future. These are the reasons why Ahmad can benefit with solution focused brief therapy.Solution focused brief therapy would help Ahmad think about his present situation which he already have done in his case interview. The focus of the therapy is on helping the client recognize his ability to negotiate, plan and act on his desired outcomes of the therapy even in one session. It is important to note that solution focused brief therapy believes that the client is motivated to achieve his goals in therapy, and Ahmad has all the indications that he is motivated.Moreover, solution focused brief therapy is suitable in cases where the client firmly believes that what he/she is cannot be changed but rather to be able to find the means to move on with their life. For Ahmad, the focus is not on knowing why he became like this but rather to plan for his goals after this therapy. Solution focused brief therapy had been found to work well with all kinds of clients even with children, thus increasing the suitability of the approach to this case. 2. Discuss some of key counseling issues that Ahmad is facingThe key counseling issues that Ahmad is presenting include a poor self-concept, a deterministic sense of where his life is heading and an inadequate relationship with significant others. Ahmad says that he is destined to be a thief just as his father was destined to be a drug addict. This tells us that Ahmad had begun on the path of self-fulfilling prophecy because it was what he always heard from his mother. Moreover, he did not resist this prophecy because it validated his relationship as his father’s son which he might have not known while he was a child.At the same time, Ahmad seemed to be mostly affected by his mother’s behavior towards him. He even blamed his mother for starting him on smoking when he was in kindergarten. From this statement, it could be surmised that Ahmad’s mother was not very present in his early life, the mother was permissive, did not show any a ffection or care even when he did not go home for days and beat him when she knew he did something wrong. The attempts of the mother to discipline Ahmad only contributed to the child’s belief that he was not wanted or that he was a bad person.His poor self-concept was probably developed from what he heard from his mother who to him is the most significant person. These key cousnelling issues are important because it would hinder Ahmad’s chances of realizing his goals in therapy. His self-determinism and poor self-concept may stop him from thinking about his future since he is already a bad person there is nothing that could be done about it. His inadequate relationship with his mother has actually caused his poor self-concept which can be worked on during therapy.3. Discuss the therapeutic goals and how you would manage the case of Ahmad using your chosen therapeutic approach Solution focused brief therapy relies on three fundamental questions that needs to be asked by the therapist to the client which if done properly can lead to realizations that would help the client reach his goals. The therapist has to trust the client that he would answer the questions and the therapist has to ask the questions in such a way that the client would be able to adequately answer it.The basic questions include what are client’s hopes for the outcome of the therapy, what would be the client’s life be if these hopes are realized and what have the client been doing now and in the past that would help the client realize his goals. In Ahmad’s case the therapist first asks the question what are his goals in this therapy. Whatever Ahmad’s response be, it would be accepted as valid and real to him and can be established as the desired goals of the therapy. Ahmad’s goals should be placed foremost in the therapeutic relationship.The therapist can further ask Ahmad what he would feel if he realized this goal, would it make him feel better or not. In this way the client could further examine his goals if it is really what he wanted. The therapist also does not impose his/her own values or beliefs into the client’s goals. After establishing the desired goals of the client, the therapist then can begin asking the second question centering on the preferred situation or kind of life that Ahmad wants to have when his goals are realized.In this stage of the therapy, the client is asked to elaborate on what his goals would bring him in the future. If his goal is to stop being apprehended then a likely approach would be to ask Ahmad what would his lie become if he does not have to face the police and the court as much, in this way Ahmad would realize a future without the threat of being caught by the police a likely possibility and which he can attain. By discussing the client’s feelings, thoughts and reactions to the desired goal for the future, it becomes more present to Ahmad and become more attainable.In th is part of the therapy, the therapist can ask Ahmad the â€Å"magic question†. The magic question had been developed to help the client think more about his/her desired goals. The magic question is phrased as â€Å"if you wake up in the morning and all of the things you would want to happen have happened already how you would feel? † The goal is to be able to help the client realize that there is something after the problem, that there is no need to figure out the solution because occasionally the solution will present itself and the client just have to recognize it.In Ahmad’s case, the magic question would be â€Å"if you wake up in the morning and a miracle had occurred to wipe all your problems, what would be the things you would notice that tells you that a miracle did occur? † After this elaboration, the therapist then asks Ahmad to describe what he had been doing now or in past that he thinks would likely lead him to his goals. The idea here is to d raw out the skills and resources that the client already has in attaining his goals, it focuses more on the strengths of the client rather than his past or his problem behaviors.The client must be able to make the connection between what he already has done that have worked to help him reach his goal and the therapist can do this by asking the right questions and leading the client to discover for himself what those resources are. Solution focused brief therapy is called brief because sessions would only range from one to six times where significant realization and improvement can already occur. Ahmad is an intelligent person and he may be able to benefit from 2 or 3 sessions just to get his work through his issues with his relationship with his mother.4. Discuss the limitation challenges and ethical issues you might face in managing this case The limitations of solution focused brief therapy are dependent on the kind of problems and clients that come to the therapy. For example, if the client has substance abuse problems and would actually want to stop being caught by the police as her likely goal, this becomes an ethical dilemma for the counselor since solution focused brief therapy would accept all the goals of the client be it bad or good.However, a skilled therapist can always lead the client to positive future behaviors rather than dwell on the negative goals of the client. If the goal is to learn how to get away from the authorities, then the therapist has to ask the client what she thinks would lead her to this goal, and naturally the client would say to stop doing bad things. On the other hand, solution focused brief therapy generally work well with logical clients, if the client had a mental illness or a disability and is not capable of making decisions by themselves, then the approach would not work.Ahmad is clearly logical but a limitation would be that he is already convinced that he is bad and he does not see any problem with it. Solution focused brief therapy is only possible when the client has a clear idea of his problems, and Ahmad clearly does not think that being bad is an issue, he was maybe born to be bad. Solution focused brief therapy also does not allow therapists to change the values, ideas and emotions of the client and working with Ahmad’s concept of his being bad would definitely be a challenge. 5. Discuss the therapeutic technique that you would use this case and discuss the limitation of the techniqueSolution focused brief therapy had been borne out of the belief that instead of trying to understand the problem and finding solutions to it, it is more beneficial to focus on the future and the solution to the problem. More importantly, the client often has the resources to solve the problem which can be drawn out by the therapist using magic questions. This approach also says that the past is done with and the client or the therapist cannot do anything to undo it, so it is more worthwhile to focus on t he future and the solution to the problem.The approach is called brief since therapy is initiated only when the client needs to work on a problem and when the client already knows what to do with the problem, then the therapy is terminated, in this case one or two sessions would be sufficient. The limitations of the technique heavily depend on the inability of the client to work past the problem identification stage to the goal identification stage. If the client has difficulty in this area, the therapist can throw questions that lead the client to coping behaviors which also facilitate a clear identification of goals.Although solution focused brief therapy is simple in theory, it is actually very difficult to apply in real cases since it lacks structure and the therapist must have the presence of mind to stop from delving into the past since it is not relevant to the approach. Person Centered Therapy 1. After reading the story of Ahmad use one approach in counseling that you think might be helpful in managing this case. Explain briefly why you have chosen this approach. Ahmad’s case story is the best candidate for the application of the person centered therapy since Ahmad had issues with his self-concept and this is the forte of person centered therapy.Ahmad’s poor self-concept that is being a bad person because he was born that way was an acceptance of his mother’s conditional regard for him. He would rather be a bad person because his mother says so and which tells him he is like his father and therefore gain acceptance than to resist the idea of being a bad person and be ignored by his mother. From Ahmad’s narrative, it was obvious that his mother only paid attention to him when he was found to misbehave or when he did something really bad.Not going home for several days was not bad since his mother according to him trusted him; it was only when his mother knew of his stealing and vandalism that he was punished. To Ahmad, even a negative attention is more important than no attention at all from his mother. The person centered therapy specifically believes that psychological problems or disturbances stem from the inadequacy of unconditional positive regard that the client experiences in his childhood thereby stifling his growth and personal development.The person centered approach also believes that each one of us has the ability to grow and to achieve our potentials given the right amount and quality of positive regard. 2. Discuss some of key counseling issues that Ahmad is facing Ahmad has already formed his identity and self concept based on other people’s opinion of him, and that is a bad person. He even goes as far as saying that some people are borne to be good or bad and he is one of those who were already bad when they first came to the world. All the experiences he had in his life seemed to affirm this idea which has led to his own acceptance of that self-concept.Ahmad’s life had prob ably turned from bad to worse as he got older because he lacked the caring and nurturing relationships that would initiate change in his life. All his life, he had been doing bad things such as smoking in kindergarten, dropping out of school, stealing, leading a pack of boys to commit stress crimes, and yet he does not seem to be bitter about it. Ahmad had come to believe that it is his birthright to be bad, which to the person centered therapist, is a very alarming and poor self-concept.Another counseling issue that Ahmad needs to work with the therapist is how his relationship with his mother had contributed to his self-concept and that not because his mother sees him as a bad person does not mean that all the people in the world see him as such. 3. Discuss the therapeutic goals and how you would manage the case of Ahmad using your chosen therapeutic approach The person centered approach rests on the principle that when the client experiences the core conditions that are necessary for the therapeutic relationship, he/she will begin to experience change.The therapy first begins with the therapist establishing a relationship with Ahmad wherein the therapist must let Ahmad feel that he is accepted for who is and what he has done in the past, that Ahmad is a person of worth and that the therapist is there to listen and to understand his experiences. The person centered approach also believes that the client knows his/her problems better than any other person and the focus is not to find solutions or to explore the client’s problems but to provide the necessary core conditions to inspire change in the client.Thus Ahmad would be asked to return for a regular session, wherein the therapist would make the client feel that he is happy to be with Ahmad, that he listens and empathize with Ahmad, when Ahmad says he does not like being in therapy, the therapist would not be quick to refute any of it but rather accepts that feeling as valid and help Ahmad explore m ore that feeling without the need for meeting any desired behavior or rules of the therapist.If Ahmad refuses to talk during therapy, then the therapist must not force him to talk but rather make him feel that even if he does not talk, the therapist still values his effort in coming to the session. The third core condition is congruence which means that the therapist is genuine and honest about his feelings and ideas, this demonstrates to Ahmad that the therapist is transparent and that he does not have to be someone else than himself during their counseling sessions. During each session, the therapist must strive to make Ahmad feel that he is accepted, loved, listened to and welcomed.In this way, Ahmad would soon trust and realize that the therapist is a real person who is willing to give him attention and care without being anything else other than himself, during sessions the therapist can ask Ahmad questions about his life, his experiences, his goals for the future and his feeli ngs and thoughts which would later on make Ahmad share his dreams and aspirations and maybe on his own begin to act on his plans or change his behaviors because each person is capable of change, of doing good and of becoming better persons.Hopefully, the quality of the therapist’s relationship with Ahmad makes him realize that he is not a bad person, that he just believed he was because it was what he always heard. 4. Discuss the limitation challenges and ethical issues you might face in managing this case The limitations in using the person centered approach in Ahmad’s case is that he may not have the luxury of time to always come for sessions, he may be in a facility for youth offenders or he may even be imprisoned due to his crimes which would make it impossible for him to work with a therapist.Although group homes have in-house counselors and Ahmad might be able to work with them. Another challenge is the fact that an accepting and emphatic counselor might instead validate or reinforce Ahmad’s belief that there is nothing wrong with his behavior because he is destined to be bad. In fact, Ahmad may seem to have rationalized his self-concept into saying that bad people naturally do bad things, so if he is a bad person, then it is natural for him to do bad things.Moreover, there is no way to verify Ahmad’s stories because in this approach the therapist believes and relies on the client’s accounts as being true. 5. Discuss the therapeutic technique that you would use this case and discuss the limitation of the technique The person centered approach believes in the fundamental goodness of all human being, thus no matter how bad a person is, there will always be room for goodness to grow in his person. As such, the therapeutic relationship is established to provide the client with the core conditions necessary fro growth.Psychological disturbances occur because people do not always receive unconditional positive regard, empathy and genuineness; moreover, the individual comes to accept the positive regard of other people despite its being conditional because it is better to have any kind of attention than no attention at all. This approach also believes that by providing the right nurturing environment the client would become more aware of his thoughts and feelings would be able to understand more of himself and his behaviors.This approach however is not for everyone, very young children who lack self-awareness, and those who do not want to explore their thoughts and feelings or expose their inner self to other people would not find this approach very useful. The goal of person centered therapy is found its fundamental belief and faith in the person, thus the therapy is also focused on the person’s experiences, beliefs, wishes, feelings and issues which have either prevented him/her from growing into the person that he/she should be.There are a number of criticisms leveled against person centered ap proach because it lacks direction and it structure. It depends heavily on the problems that the client brings to the therapy. Another criticism is that if person centered therapy claims that a healthy relationship is more important than the expertise of the therapist then what then the difference of this approach from other approaches is.However, research although controversial at this point had found that the effectiveness of the therapeutic relationship is strongly associated with the quality of the relationship of the client and the therapist. References de Shazer, S. , Berg, I. , Lipchik, et al. (1986). Brief therapy: Focused solution development. Family Process, 25, 207-221. Mearns, D. & Thorne, B. (1999). Person-Centered Counseling in Action, 2nd ed.. London: Sage.

Type I vs. Type II Errors in Hypothesis Testing

Type I vs. Type II Errors in Hypothesis Testing The statistical practice of hypothesis testing is widespread not only in statistics but also throughout the natural and social sciences. When we conduct a hypothesis test there a couple of things that could go wrong. There are two kinds of errors, which by design cannot be avoided, and we must be aware that these errors exist. The errors are given the quite pedestrian names of type I and type II errors. What are type I and type II errors, and how we distinguish between them?  Briefly: Type I errors happen when we reject a true null hypothesisType II errors happen when we fail to reject a false null hypothesis We will explore more background behind these types of errors with the goal of understanding these statements. Hypothesis Testing The process of hypothesis testing can seem to be quite varied with a multitude of test statistics. But the general process is the same. Hypothesis testing involves the statement of a null hypothesis and the selection of a level of significance. The null hypothesis is either true or false and represents the default claim for a treatment or procedure. For example, when examining the effectiveness of a drug, the null hypothesis would be that the drug has no effect on a disease. After formulating the null hypothesis and choosing a level of significance, we acquire data through observation. Statistical calculations tell us whether or not we should reject the null hypothesis. In an ideal world, we would always reject the null hypothesis when it is false, and we would not reject the null hypothesis when it is indeed true. But there are two other scenarios that are possible, each of which will result in an error. Type I Error The first kind of error that is possible involves the rejection of a null hypothesis that is actually true. This kind of error is called a type I error and is sometimes called an error of the first kind. Type I errors are equivalent to false positives. Let’s go back to the example of a drug being used to treat a disease. If we reject the null hypothesis in this situation, then our claim is that the drug does, in fact, have some effect on a disease. But if the null hypothesis is true, then, in reality, the drug does not combat the disease at all. The drug is falsely claimed to have a positive effect on a disease. Type I errors can be controlled. The value of alpha, which is related to the level of significance that we selected has a direct bearing on type I errors. Alpha is the maximum probability that we have a type I error. For a 95% confidence level, the value of alpha is 0.05. This means that there is a 5% probability that we will reject a true null hypothesis. In the long run, one out of every twenty hypothesis tests that we perform at this level will result in a type I error. Type II Error The other kind of error that is possible occurs when we do not reject a null hypothesis that is false. This sort of error is called a type II error and is also referred to as an error of the second kind. Type II errors are equivalent to false negatives. If we think back again to the scenario in which we are testing a drug, what would a type II error look like? A type II error would occur if we accepted that the drug had no effect on a disease, but in reality, it did. The probability of a type II error is given by the Greek letter beta. This number is related to the power or sensitivity of the hypothesis test, denoted by 1 – beta. How to Avoid Errors Type I and type II errors are part of the process of hypothesis testing. Although the errors cannot be completely eliminated, we can minimize one type of error. Typically when we try to decrease the probability one type of error, the probability for the other type increases. We could decrease the value of alpha from 0.05 to 0.01, corresponding to a 99% level of confidence. However, if everything else remains the same, then the probability of a type II error will nearly always increase. Many times the real world application of our hypothesis test will determine if we are more accepting of type I or type II errors. This will then be used when we design our statistical experiment.

Problems with Included Tree Bark

Problems with Included Tree Bark Included bark or ingrown bark tissues often develop where two or more stems grow closely together causing weak, under-supported branch angles. Bark often grows around the branching stem attachment and into the union between the two stems. Bark has no strong supportive fiber strength as wood does so the connection is much weaker than a union without included bark. Pruning All maturing trees are subject to having bark inclusions and need pruning while limbs are smaller and easier to remove. Any signs of a cracked weak branch angle (shaped like a V) with included bark that occurs on the main stem or any included bark areas on larger, lower limbs should be considered a defect. Connected stems with a supported U or Y shape are desirable.  Proper pruning will help prevent included bark and encourage the proper shape. Dont Automatically Worry about Decay The presence of decay by itself does not make the tree a hazard tree. All trees have some rot and decay with advancing age. Decay is a problem where the wood is soft and hollowed out along with the presence of mushrooms/conks. Take immediate action if advanced decay is present or associated with weak branches or included bark. Signs for Concern   A weak branch union occurs on the main stem.A weak branch union is associated with a crack, cavity, or another defect.

American History Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 3

American History - Research Paper Example would bring back to life their dead ancestors, return vanished buffalo herds, and restore the customs and traditions of the old ways, before the coming of the "white man"† (The Battle Of Wounded Knee). The government soldiers perceived as an attempt by the tribal to re-take their lost lands and revolt against their new government. However, tribal did not have any such plans even though the soldiers misunderstood them. The soldiers thought that the Lakota collecting arms to fight against the government and they tried to disarm the tribal. The battle of Wounded Knee happened on December 29, 1890, near Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakota, USA. A simple incident resulted in a massacre at Wounded Knee Creek. On the morning of December 29, U.S. 7th Cavalry Regiment troops tried to disarm the Lakota who fought against the American troops earlier. During the process of disarming the Lakota, a deaf tribesman was reluctant to give up his rifle which resulted in the 7th Cavalry opening firing indiscriminately from all sides, killing innocent people including men, women, and children, as well as some of their own fellow troopers. â€Å"It is believed that the accidental shot, fired while the deaf Native tried to maintain his hold on his weapon, caused others in the crowd (Native or white, there are counter claims as to which) to open fire† (The Battle Of Wounded Knee). â€Å"A single shot fueled the already charged atmosphere into a full-fledged eruption within a matter of seconds†(What Was The Battle Of Wounded Kn ee In 1890?). Even unarmed people were killed in this brutal incident. It is estimated that at least 150 men, women, and children of the Lakota Sioux had been killed and 51 wounded in this incident. Some people claim that more than 300 were killed in this incident. Along with the Lakota Sioux, twenty-five troopers were also died in this incident. The brutalities of the soldiers continued even after the completion of the disarmament process. Since some of the

Contemporary art vs visual work of the past Essay

Contemporary art vs visual work of the past - Essay Example The essay "Contemporary art vs visual work of the past" explores the art of the past and compare it with the contemporary art. Dating back to the time of Da Vinci and other classical painters and artists, they hooked more on depicting things, humans, landscapes and places in a realistic presentation. They adhere to meet the quality of being a classical artist, which is, â€Å"what you see is what you get†. That is the reason why you can see such painters creating their forms of art that depicts almost exactly lifelike. There might be a lot of reasons for us to come up to the conclusion why contemporary and classical visual arts or painting may look different from one another. By comparing it, we can say that they do belong to the same intention of its form, to be aesthetically appealing to the people, and this is only achievable if one artist find the real value of what really an art is. An art might be of visual form that might appeal to the sense of sight. But we could say t hat that is only the preliminary reaction of the person/s that sees the art. The over all perception to the piece of art might be affected by important factors wherein the viewer could relate. For example, one art form could be appealing enough to get the heart of the spectator, but on the other hand make others frown and left unsatisfied. Starting from the motivations itself, art is a way of communicating to the spectators. It depicts something which is more than portrayed, an interpretation that is kni.