Monday, September 30, 2019

Christ in His Suffering and Death

The death of Christ on the cross gives the meaning to all the undertakings of God.   In His sacrificial death Christ revealed the holiness, righteousness and love of God, and His infinite wisdom. Disputing the actual death of Christ and His resurrection is destructive for Christian faith. Many biblical passages predict the death of Christ and state or assume His actual death. Definition of Terms Atonement  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Guilt  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Penalty  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Reconciliation  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Righteousness  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Substitution Expiation  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Justice  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Propitiation  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Redemption  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Sanctification Forgiveness  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Justification  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ransom  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Remission  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Satisfaction Theories of the Atonement There are principal theories of atonement, which arise from the disputes around the meaning of the death of Christ. 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Substitutional Atonement. 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Payment-to-Satan Theory. 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Recapitulation Theory. 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Commercial or Satisfaction Theory. 5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Moral Influence Theory. 6.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Theory of Thomas Aquinas. 7.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Theory of Duns Scotus. 8.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Example Theory. 9.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Mystical Experience Theory. 10.   Governmental Theory of Grotius. 11.   Theory of Vicarious Confession. Although the upper theories have some aspects that can be recognized as having merit, the true concept of the death of Christ may be understood from the biblical passages that reveal the doctrines of redemption, reconciliation and propitiation, and the death of Christ thus is the substitutional or penal concept of the atonement. The doctrine of Redemption is an important aspect of the work of God in salvation accomplished by the death of Christ. The doctrine of redemption in Christ can be erected from the study of three words: agoraz?, lutro?, and peripoie?. Agoraz? (exagoraz?) is the basic word for redemption in the scripture and expresses the idea of purchasing Christians by Christ, and His death was the praise paid. Peripoie? means to save or to preserve one’s self, and lutro? has the meaning to rescue by paying a ransom. The study of redemption through Christ in the New Testament discloses clearly that the death of Christ was the praise He paid to God and thus purchased the sinner from the bondage of sin. The doctrine of Propitiation represents the idea that the death of Christ fully satisfied the demands of a righteous God in respect to judgment upon the sinner. The word is mentioned in both Testaments. Propitiation had a substitutional character and three important results. The doctrine of Reconciliation as one of the most important in theology is being discussed wildly and has four basic interpretations. Several biblical passages reveal that reconciliation effects the change in man which reconciles him to God: II Corinthians 5:17-21, Romans 5:6-11, Ephesians 2:16, Colossians 1:20-22. Reconciliation is provided to all men, but applied only to the elect when they believe. Those who reject the love and grace in Christ are still judged according to their work. Reconciliation is applied to the whole Universe. The work of reconciliation extends to the work of God on the behalf of the believer. Christ in His Resurrection The doctrine is essential for the whole Christian faith and theology. The resurrection of Christ is the first step in the series of the exaltation of Christ and His ministry as our Intercessor. Evidences for the resurrection of Christ are abundant. The Scriptures fully describe the appearances of Christ after resurrection to many people under different circumstances; therefore resurrection is a well-documented historical event. Between the evidences for the resurrection of Christ are the following. 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The empty tomb. 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The character of the human witnesses to the resurrection. 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The dramatic change in the disciples after the resurrection. 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The disciple’s experience of the divine power in the postresurrection period. 5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The events of the day of Pentecost. 6.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The evidence in the custom of observing the first day of the week. The Origin of Christian Church The foundation of the Christian church in the first century, its convincing power and dynamic stemmed from the belief in the resurrection of Christ.  The Scriptures evidences the resurrection of the body of Christ, not only His resurrection in spiritual sense. His resurrection body was the same, though changed a little, that the one in the tomb and Scriptures evidence this fact. Who Raised Christ from Dead? The resurrection of Christ is the work of triune God.  The significance of the resurrection of Christ is underestimated in all branches of systematic theology. The major facets of the significance of the resurrection of Christ are: 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Proof of His person and His offices (Prophet, Priest, and King). 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Key to all of His present work. 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Consummation of the divine plan in the prophetic future. 1. The article â€Å"The nature of the atonement: how should one view the cross?† by Steve Sullivan emphasises the importance of understanding the doctrine of atonement and pays particular attention to the Payment-to-Satan and Recapitulation theories of atonement. According to classical views presented by Walvoord in â€Å"Jesus†, Payment-to-Satan theory is one of the earliest in the church and it is not held in modern times. This theory implies that Christ was paid to Satan as the ransom for sinner. Recapitulation Theory is based on the idea that Christ recapitulates all the phases of human life including being made sin in His death on the cross. Sullivan combines these theories, presents the short historical intercourse into each, and then upholds the point of view that merging some of these views one can capture the Word of Faith Movement (WFM) leaders’ view of Christ’s death. The WFM teachers assert that ‘Jesus took upon himself a satanic nature, died physically on the cross, suffered spiritual death in hell for us, and then was reborn (or born again) in hell and rose from the grave’. Therefore, when the believer is born again he becomes like Christ. Even from the short overview of the WFM ideas about one of the existing doctrines we can see how deep the interpretations of Bible can differ. I would recommend this article as it presents the view on the death and atonement of Christ and lets the reader to compare traditional catholic teaching with one of modern Christian branch’s views. This article is a good source for critical thinking evaluating. 2. The article â€Å"The Reality of Resurrection† by Darrell Young is focused on historical proofs of Christ resurrection. The resurrection of Christ is recognized equitable to be the most powerful event in all history. Further, the author cites numerous passages from the New and Old Testament concerning the prophecy of resurrection, its vital importance for the Christian faith, and its significance in the context of the Second Coming. I would recommend this article as a rich source of historical approach to resurrection and to some questions related to the doctrine of resurrection, such as resurrection of believers during the Second Coming, the resurrected bodies of believers, the time of resurrection and others. The Bibliography Sullivan, Steve. The Nature of the Atonement: How should One View the Cross? – Part–I [on-line]. Ankerberg Theological Research Institute; available from http://www.ankerberg.com/Articles/_PDFArchives/theological-dictionary/TD1W0600.pdf; Internet; accessed 9 November 2005               

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Risky Business: Consent, Safety, and Firefighter Culture

A child’s world is full of violence. It appears in video games, films, and TV programs and many parents in the hope of removing their children from some of this violence are encouraging and sometimes pushing their children into participating in sports. Some parents are losing sight of why these children are playing- and that to the children is what they are doing: â€Å"playing. † Many parents come to their child’s practice or game with their own agenda of win, win, win at all costs.These unreasonable expectations of winning, not messing up, being the star player, and making mom and dad proud are everything. †These parents expect perfection from their children. †(Sachs, 2000, p. 62) The major problem seems to be that these parents are not considering what the children want. According to a â€Å"Kid think† survey conducted by Jerry Kirshenbaum for sports, the kids want things like ‘unlimited free throws until they miss in basketball, every one having a turn to play, less violence in hockey, using their hands in soccer, and to have fun†(p. 2). Perhaps the parents should listen to the children on this issue. Originally, the purpose of organized sports for young children was to teach them the basics of the game and skills needed to play, to practice good sportsmanship, and to have fun. If we look back to the beginnings of organized sports over 100 years ago, the purpose then was to get the growing numbers of rowdy children off the streets and to teach them values.Children’s sports are supposed to teach them skills and values-such as fair play, working with others and dealing well with adversity-which kids can draw upon throughout their lives. What has gone wrong with that purpose? Where has this sense of sportsmanship, learning, and fun gone? The incidence of violent behavior among sports parents is increasing throughout the United States and Canada and it needs to be stop. The age range of the children obse rving these incident is 6 to 12 years old, and some as young as 4 and 5 ee these outbursts. Athletic associations and organizers of youth sports are attempting to educate parents on the needs of young athletes, but this effort needs to be expanded to all organized youth sports. (Nack & Muson, 2000; Gardner, 1999) Many organized athletic associations are now requiring parents to attend sportsmanship classes, adhere to parental conduct handbooks, sign codes of conduct, and observe silent Saturdays.Many groups are working to return youth sports to a time of teaching fundamental skills, developing fitness and promoting the development of positive attitudes, values, and self-esteem. Parents across the United States and into Canada need to let go of their own agendas, and athletic associations need to enforce parental codes of conduct through classes and training. As a result, the world of youth sports can be returned to the children where they can all learn to enjoy a sport, learn the sk ills of sport, play, and most of all have fun.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Ethical analysis on a contemporary issue in the news Essay

Ethical analysis on a contemporary issue in the news - Essay Example Goldman Company is not an exception to this because; it has been in several occasions engaged in shoddy business. The company is seen as a greedy, with the sole intention of making money, and allowing its managers to acquire large wealth in the process leading to the creation of a negative image. The company is among other companies on Wall Street that are engaged in several business operations, and managed to overcome the storm of the financial crisis, and still doing well despite the challenges facing the company in relation to ethics. The role of the company in ensuring that it collects a lot of money is visible from the inception. The company, Goldman Sachs began in 1869 as a humble company with the sole purpose of clearing for commercial paper. The company founded by Marcus Goldman, and his son in law Samuel Sachs began as a loan provider for small banks. Later the company was influenced with the market environment thus moved from the set idea of the founders to start of the one-on-one loans. The company due to the method of operation led to the market crash of 1929. Despite the negative contribution, the company managed to overcome the negative image and continued to become a greater company with increased revenue and capital. The company engaged customers in making money leading to the development of a new strategy of operation, which created a chance for the company to raise more capital. The approach employed in the system was to create an investment company buys 90% shares. In buying 90% of the investment company shares, Goldman drives the share prices up, and because the shares have been bought by the company. In response, the buyers rush to buy the shares of the company which the Goldman sells at a price higher than the initial buying price. In such case, the company becomes a broker and has defied the honesty issue in business ethics. Goldman by conducting such businesses raises a lot of money. The money

Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Ethics - Essay Example This paper discusses the virtue theory, utilitarianism, and deontological ethics together with a personal experience that explains the relationship between virtue, value, and moral concepts. The Theories and Their Approach in Addressing Ethics and Morality Virtue theory The virtue theory is one of the applicable theories in determining morality of an act. The theory bases morality on a person’s character and not on intention or possible results of his or her actions. Admirable characteristics of an individual define morality within social systems. The theory further defines character as people’s demonstrated behavioral tendencies and classifies a person’s behavior as moral if such behavior is admirable among members of the society and promotes social cohesion. Further, the behavior must foster rationality in people’s actions that need to be free from selfishness and bias. Virtue ethics also avoids extremes. It is, however, criticized for its high-level var iability across societies (Brook & Dunn, 2009). Utilitarianism Utilitarianism, however, focuses on the intent to maximize utility, and is based on beneficence doctrine. This means a promotion of what is good and voidance of all sorts of action that can cause harm to other people. In either of its forms, whether act utilitarianism or rule utilitarianism, the theory identifies a person’s motive and considers morality when an action causes more benefits that harm. Act utilitarianism measures morality in terms of results of an act of omission or commission while rule utilitarianism relies on set rules of ethics, which regulate acts for beneficence, to determine morality. Utilitarianism can also be explored from philosophical perspectives that include â€Å"welfarism, consequentialism, aggregative and maximizing† (Kanniyakonil, 2007, p. 66). Welfarism focuses on the society’s well being, consequentialism focuses on impacts of actions, and aggregative aspect compares levels of good or bad that an action elicits. These approaches apply either singularly or dependently to determine morality in an act (Kanniyakonil, 2007). Deontology Deontology is another approach to determining morality. It is based on moral rules and obligations to do right in the society and its general scope defines an act as moral when a person fulfils an obligation. It, however, disregards consequences of such actions. Failing to honor an obligation with the aim of promoting good, and even achieving the desired objective, defines immorality. There exist two types of deontology: â€Å"act deontology and rule deontology† (Kanniyakonil, 2007, p. 60). Act deontology requires that a person evaluate all factors around a situation before making a decision based on direct or implied obligations. Rule deontology, however, pre-establishes standards upon which obligations are derived (Kanniyakonil, 2007). Similarities Among the Theories The major similarity among the three concep ts is their objective of determining and consequently ensuring morality. They all establish bases for evaluation and classification of people’s advances as moral or immoral, ethical or unethical. Further, deontology and utilitarianism are similar in their mode of approach. They both apply action and rules to determine morality. Applicability of all the theories also varies from one society to another based on cultural values. Their strict application in one setup may, therefore, not correspond to application in another setup (Brook & Dunn, 2009; Kanniyakonil,

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Architecture and the Critique of Ideology Essay

Architecture and the Critique of Ideology - Essay Example In effect, architecture can serve as critique of ideological beliefs as much as it is a testament to it by its design and object. Relating these concepts to that of architecture one realizes that as architecture characterizes ideology it also drives it. Therefore it can be expected that given enough time the ideology that drives the precepts of ideology today will eventually off shoot to contradict it self or diverge to form a totally new ideology. Jameson cites that "The new Utopianism for high modernism thus unwittingly and against the very spirit of its own revolutionary and Utopian affirmations prepared the terrain for the omnipotence of the full "rationalized" technocratic plan" (457). The promotion of ideology needs a high degree of economics and it can not be conclusively be considered a representative of the whole society. Instead, it can be simply driven as the interest of those who control the greatest interest in society (Pinker). For example, the emphasis in the ideal Utopian society may be in the theme of creating a model society but there is an underlying motivation by those who control the construction and organization of the city (Jameson 452). For city administrators, they will likely benefit from the organization by easing management burden. For those constructing the city itself, there are driven by the assumption that the Utopian settings will provide them limitless potential for expansion. This supports Richard Lewis' view that ideology is a practical means of defining society and delineating its identity from that of others (30). By channeling these ideologies in architecture, the ideologies are given concrete and substantial testament when they are adapted or shunned by other cultures. Constraints Karl Marx's view on ideology presented it as the ideas of the ruling class, that legitimate the rule of the bourgeois class, as a means of hiding the true state of social conditions such as oppression and inequality. He believed that these ideologies produced a false sense of consciousness and furthered bourgeois class domination over the disenfranchised in society (Goldman 71). In this way, ideology is structured as the foundation of the state of power in a society giving legitimacy to the action in support of the ideology. At the same time, Marxian ideologies also serve as a contradiction to the existing system particularly in economics (Jameson 450). The distinction of an ideology does not lie on the utility of the ideology but rather should be on the ideas that constitute the ideology itself. Otherwise, the tendency is for the development of far-reaching interpretations that can prompt action against others. According to Ernst Bloch, one of the main dilemmas in the concept of ideology is that when it is "broached from the side of the problem of cultural inheritance, of the problem as to how works of the superstructure progressively reproduce themselves in cultural consciousness even after disappearance of their social bases". Therefore, the ideologies may contain the same core ideas like in the case of religions but the cultural components that influence the practice of the religion and the individuals who practice it create the variances that delineate them

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Africa and challenging development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Africa and challenging development - Essay Example The question on whether there is still a chance for Africa to be in the proper place in the competing world is still a question that is left unanswered. It can be remembered that the very cause of Africa's challenges and crisis as a whole and for several decades already is the colonialism of different empires due to space expansion and the quest for power. But because it has been a long time now and Africa still seemed to be in need of development, the better question to ask is that is it still valid to blame colonialism or neocolonialism for Africa's dependence to the colonialist.Before we can truly answer this, it is important to look at this neocolonialism or the small hands coming and going in and out of the country.It is true that the powerful empires have ceased literally in holding the people of Africa and there was a turn over of flags to the elite African leaders recently. But still, many people say that it was all just a turning over of flags, the powerful colonialists who play in the big world of capitalism are still at work through the elitist process of education. Education works in a way that Western oriented way of the colonialist inform and teach Africans to be more loyal to the Western way of living. This is the very simple yet powerful way of controlling the country which continuously causes Africa's dependence to other countries. (Abubakar 1989)The challenge of development can also be placed in the hands of the elite leaders of Africa who tend to control development and focus on projects that can benefit only their families and relatives. There is also another way of looking at Africa's position in the world. The people and the leaders for a long time have settled to the idea that they are already buried to the power of neocolonialism and because of this, lesser action is being done. People have already ceased to question if there is still a possibility to attain freedom in their own country. The hope as we can see still relies on the idea of becoming independent and relying on Africa's resources to be self-sustaining. (Abubakar, 1989) In the book Africa and the Challenge of Development, the writer quoted specific internal solutions to the problem and that's all coming from the preamble of African LPA. Africa's almost total reliance on the export of raw materials must change. . . . Africa must, therefore, map out its own strategy for development and must vigorously pursue its implementation. . . . Africa must cultivate the virtue of self- reliance [and] efforts toward African economic integration in order to create a continent-wide framework for the much needed economic co-operation for development based on collective self-reliance. . . . The primary responsibility of developing their economies remains with the African least developed countries themselves and the total political commitment of the Member States to the pursuit of these objectives is necessary . . . [and] social and economic reforms should be undertaken . . . to ensure full participation of the people in the development process. . . . [We] confirm our full adherence to the plan of Action, adopted at the Assembly of Heads of State and Government for implementing the Monrovia Strategy for the Economic, Social and Cultural Development of Africa and to adopting, among other measures, those relating to the setting up of regional structures and strengthening of those already existing for an eventual establishment of an African Economic Community. (Abubakar, 1989) At present though, self-sufficiency is becoming the goal of Africa and aside from the above suggested points, there is also a need to focus on external affairs more than just collective effort to attain the so-called self sufficiency. The external affairs that can be attained and is being talked about here is that Africa, more than just being affiliated in different international organizations where help form other countries are being sourced, African leaders who are in charge of coordinating with these

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Student Accomodations in Lesson Planning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Student Accomodations in Lesson Planning - Essay Example This emphasis on creating hopes in students' heads so that they can work to make them into a reality is a contrast to putting all our energy into developing and creating an effective subject-centered lesson plan. Cooperative learning is effective in IEP education because hey help students to communicate and socialize. In contrast to other lesson formats, cooperative learning is based on discussions and group work. The main similarities between these formats are that they set clear objectives and require instructions; they check understanding and have a practical application step. The main difference is that discovery lesson and cooperative learning models require additional equipment and assessment, while a critical thinking model uses evaluation step. It means being totally involved, completely engaged in doing one's schoolwork. It means total attentiveness and participation in the learning activity (Bateman, 2006). 2. The essential elements of IEP are general intelligence, emotional intelligence, academics: health issues and effective communication. Also, each EIP should have clear ejectives and aims, measurable and observable behavior and stipulated assessment criteria. In a standardized lesson format, a critical thinking model can be used as a frame work of the lesson plan. ... del implies sessions in which teachers encourage students to imagine what it would be like to be successful (including how it might be scary in some ways); how they would feel to know the subject well, to get a good grade, to get approval from their parents and teachers. Students as well as athletes need hopes; not just problems, not just the current reality (Irvine et al 2000). Cooperative model can be a part of the lesson required discussions and personal opinion. Students can begin to focus on improving those areas that are particularly retarding their school success, whether it be some character trait, a health issue, self-management skills, self-defeating ways they think, writing skills, and so forth. To do that, a student is going to have to learn to ask for and accept help from the school. And the school and community, from their side, must be prepared to give the help students need. For example, if a student sees that he has a problem with alcohol that is getting in the way, somewhere in his world there has to be people and programs waiting to respond. The general accommodations for students should involve the use of yellow chalk to reduce glare, the teacher should repeat words written on the blackboard, it is better to use only black print handouts, alternative assignments should be proposed to students who cannot follow the lesson plan. A special attention should be paid to starting, lighting, timing (extended time for tests and more breaks), repeat presentations and immediate response, special test preparation. Sorting students by ability, past achievement, or skill, or whatever, narrows the range of diversity in a classroom and enables teachers to gear materials, assignments, and content to the students' capabilities, interests, and styles. Moreover,

Monday, September 23, 2019

Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 9

Literature - Essay Example She has been judged to be good at her art despite being a woman, because she fosters patriotism, however the poet questions the patriarchal roots of society that mandate the raising of boys as little soldiers and demanding the ultimate sacrifice from women rather than from men. According to Cooper (1988:147) the poem â€Å"Mother and Poet† appears to be an indictment of patriarchy. This work of the poet must be examined within the context of her earlier work in Aurora Leigh, where she described the poet’s act of creation as one that is invariably attributed to be male, since poets are those who produce poems which â€Å"are men, if true poems.† (Barrett-Browning, AL:5,1181, 3:90-91). However, in the poem â€Å"Mother and Poet†, the male figure of the boys’ father is dispensed with altogether and the mother appears to be the all encompassing figure in the poem, subtly alluding to the need for a resurgence of the importance of females. The entire poem is centered upon the female figure of the mother and the deliberate exclusion of the father figure appears to reinforce an underlying indictment of patriarchy which decries the ability of women to produce poetry, as illustrated in Browning’s earlier Aurora poem. The growing awareness of the poet about the tragedy of war is reflected in the poem â€Å"Mother and Poet†. The poet upholds the ideals behind the war, especially in the context of the Italian struggle for independence, and believes that the war is succeeding. But her focus in the poem is on the experiences of Italian women and she has highlighted how women actually give up more than the men, during a war, because â€Å"the birth pangs of nations will wring us [women] at length into wail such as this – and we sit on forlorn† (Barrett-Browning:93-94). Even the woman who is able to bear the pains of child birth

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Biography of Plato Essay Example for Free

Biography of Plato Essay Plato was a Greek philosopher, mathematician, rhetorician, writer, founder of Academy, and even a double Olympic champion. He was born in 427 BCE in family of wealthy and influential Athenian parents: Ariston and Perictione. Platos real name was Aristocles. For his athletic figure his wrestling coach called him Plato, which means â€Å"broad†. As Plato was from a wealthy family, he got the best teachers of that time, who taught him music, grammar and athletics. At the age of 20 years old, Plato meets Socrates, who became his teacher, mentor and closest person. Eight years with Socrates influenced Platos life path. After Socrates died, Plato travels to Egypt, Italy, Sicily and Cyrene. Then he came back and opened his famous philosophical Academy. The Academy was an institution of higher education. Such philosophers as Aristotle, Heraclitus, Crates and Xenocrates attended Platos Academy. Plato’s writings are dialogues and letters to his teacher Socrates, which talks about a variety of different topics, ranging from philosophy to ethic, from mathematics to rhetoric. In these dialogs Plato used Socrates as a fictional person. His early dialogues are typically devoted to investigation of a single issue, where results are rarely achieved. The middle age dialogs developed, expressed, and defended Platos conclusions about central philosophical issues. And his later writings often modify or abandon the structure of a dialogue, they were critical examinations of the theory of forms, discussions of the problem of knowledge and cosmological speculations. Platos most famous works are: The Apology of Socrates, The Symposium and The Republic. Plato started the very first University in Europe – The Academy in 387 BC in Athens. Though the Academic was not open for the public, it did not charge fees for education there. Therefore no formal teachers or students, but there was unspoken distinction between teachers and students. One of the most famous Platos student, who also attended Academy for more than 20 years was Aristotle. There are evidences of lectures given in the Academy, such as Platos lecture On the Good and The use of dialectic. Academy continued on for nearly 1000 years until it was closed by emperor Justinian, because it was believed not to follow the Christian religion. Plato died on the day of his birthday at 347 BC. It is unknowing how he died, there are multiple versions from committing suicide to according to The American Scholar, Plato died in his bed, whilst a young girl played the flute to him. Plato moves his finger to indicate the beat and rhythm to get the right measure for her. When the girl gets the right measure, Plato died listening to the correct measure. References: Schall, James V. , â€Å"On the Death of Plato. † The American Scholar 65 (1996): 401-15. Print. Kemerling, Garth. â€Å"Plato. † Philosophy pages. Web. 9 Aug. 2006 Kraut, Richard, Plato, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2011 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed. ), .

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Objectives of the Firm Essay Example for Free

Objectives of the Firm Essay The standard economic assumption underlying the analysis of firms is profit maximization. Real world firms, however, might not, and many times do not, make decisions based on the profit-maximization objective, or at least exclusively on the profit-maximization objective. Other objectives include: (1) sales maximization, (2) pursuit of personal welfare, and (3) pursuit of social welfare. Although firms are assumed to make decisions that increase profit in standard economic analysis, real world firms often pursue other objectives on a day-to-day basis. Some firms set their sights on maximizing sales. For other firms the owners or employees are inclined to enhance personal living standards. And more than a few firms take steps that promote the overall welfare of society. In some cases, these other objectives help a firm pursue profit maximization. In other cases, they prevent a firm from maximizing profit. Profit Maximization Profit maximization is the process of obtaining the highest possible level of profit through the production and sale of goods and services. This is the guiding principle underlying the analysis of short-run production by a firm. In particular, economic analysis is assumed that firms undertake actions and make the decisions that increase profit. Profit is the difference between the total revenue a firm receives from selling output and the total cost of producing that output. Profit-maximization means that a firm seeks the production level that generates the greatest difference between total revenue and total cost. Consider how profit maximization might work for The Wacky Willy Company. Suppose that The Wacky Willy Company generates $100,000 of profit by producing 100,000 Stuffed Amigos, the difference between $1,000,000 of revenue and $900,000 of cost. * If profit falls from this $100,000 level when The Wacky Willy Company produces more (100,001) or fewer (99,999) Stuffed Amigos, then it is maximizing profit at 100,000. Alternatively, if profit can be increased by producing more or less, then The Wacky Willy Company is NOT maximizing profit at the current level of production. Suppose, for example, that producing 100,001 Stuffed Amigos adds an extra $11 to revenue but only $9 to cost. In this case, profit can be increased by $2, reaching $100,002, by producing one more Stuffed Amigo. As such 100,000 is NOT the profit maximizing level of production. * In contrast, suppose that producing 99,999 Stuffed Amigos reduces cost by $11 but only reduces revenue by only $9. In this case, profit can also be increased by $2, reaching $100,002, by producing one fewer Stuffed Amigo. As such 100,000 is NOT the profit maximizing level of production. Sales Maximization A reasonable, and often pursued objective of firms is to maximize sales, that is, to sell as much output as possible. Clearly sales lead to revenue, meaning that maximizing sales is also bound to maximize revenue. But as the analysis of short-run production indicates, maximizing sales does NOT necessarily maximize profit. So why do firms do it? Are firms unreasonable? Are they irrational? Do they NOT understand the basic economic principles of short-run production? For some firms, the answers to these questions could be yes. But for other firms, sales maximization is actually a reasonable, even better, alternative to profit maximization. Consider, the day-to-day production of Wacky Willy Stuffed Amigos. Suppose the President of The Wacky Willy Company, William J. Wackowski, issues a corporate directive to sell as many Stuffed Amigos as possible, to maximize sales. Is Willy Wackowski wacky? It might be that Mr. Wackowski has no knowledge of basic economic principles. Alternatively Wacky William might have more business sense than it appears. In particular, if the price received from selling Stuffed Amigos is greater than the cost of producing each one, and looks to remain that way regardless of the quantity produced, then a reasonable goal is to maximize sales. If sales are greater, then so too is profit. Wacky Willy does NOT maximize profit under these circumstances. That is, it does not produce the quantity that achieves the highest possible profit. However, with each Stuffed Amigo produced, profit increases. In fact, Wacky Willy might not KNOW the profit-maximizing production level. All it knows is that selling more Stuffed Amigos, increases profit. While sales maximization can serve as a means of pursing profit maximization, it can also prevent a firm from maximizing profit. The reason, of course, is that if sales become so large that the cost of production increases such that marginal cost exceeds marginal revenue, the maximizing sales does not maximize profit. Pursuit of Personal Welfare The people who make decisions for a business are, in fact, people. They have likes and dislikes. They have personal goals and aspirations just like people who do not make decisions for firms. On occasion these people use the firm to pursue their own personal welfare. When they do, their actions could enhance the firms profit maximization or, in many cases, prevent profit maximization. How about a few examples? Once again, consider William J. Wackowski, the president of The Wacky Willy Company. Perhaps Willy enjoys the finer things in lifea large house, fancy cars, and expensive vacationswhich require a hefty income. As the primary stockholder of The Wacky Willy Company, when the business maximizes profit, then William J. Wackowski benefits with more income. In this case, the pursuit of personal welfare coincides with profit maximization. Alternatively, suppose that the Mr. Wackowski hates the color purple. He simply refuse to produce ANY purple Stuffed Amigos. However, market studies clearly indicate that buyers want purple Stuffed Amigos. Moreover, the purple fabric that would be used to produce purple Stuffed Amigos is significantly less expensive than other colors. Mr. Willy clearly is wacky in this case. His purple-phobia prevents profit maximization. William the Wackster might also decide to enhance his corporate lifestyle at the expense of corporate profit. He could, for example, give himself a bigger, more luxurious (but unneeded) office, a higher (but unneeded) salary, a company jet (also unneeded), season tickets to Shady Valley Primadonnas baseball team (clearly unneeded) and other (unneeded) amenities that are NOT needed to profitably produce Stuffed Amigos. These improve Williams personal welfare, but at the expense of corporate profit. Pursuit of Social Welfare The people who make decisions for firms also have social consciences. Part of their likes and dislikes might be related to the overall state of society. As such, they might use the firm to pursue social welfare, which could enhance or prevent the firms profit maximization. How might William J. Wackowskis pursuit of social welfare enhance or prevent profit maximization of The Wacky Willy Company? Suppose that William wants a cleaner environment. As such, he might implement more costly environmentally friendly production techniques and materials. He does his part to clean the environment, but at the expense of company profit. Then again, Mr. Wackowski might feel that government environmental quality regulations restrict capital investment and economic growth. As such, William might have The Wacky Willy Company use part of its advertising budget to promote this view point. He might even use company revenue to set up the Wackowski Foundation for Policy Studies that is both a scientific think tank and a special interest lobbying organization with the goal of reducing environmental quality regulations. While the pursuit of social welfare is likely to reduce company profit, it could have the opposite effect as well. Such activities could give The Wacky Willy Company a likeable public image that motivates people to buy more Stuffed Amigos than they would otherwise. In fact, some firms use the pursuit of social welfare as one aspect of their overall advertising efforts. They enhance their public image at the same time they do something good for society. Natural Selection Whichever objective a firm pursues on a day-to-day basis, the notion of natural selection suggests that successful firms intentionally or unintentionally maximize profit. That is, the firms best suited to the economic environment, and thus generate the most profit, are the ones that tend to survive. The natural selection of business firms is an adaptation of the biological process of natural selection, in which biological entities best suited to the natural environment are the ones that survive. The concept of economic natural selection means that those firms that generate the greatest profit are the ones that avoid bankruptcy and survive to produce another day. While firms might pursue sales maximization, personal welfare, or social welfare, only those firms that also maximize profit remain in business. 2) The following   is from chapter one in the text   Financial Management and Policy, by James C. Van Horne, Copyright 1974 by Prentice-Hall. It is classic finance. THE OBJECTIVE OF THE FIRM In this [course], we assume that the objective of the firm is to maximize its value to its shareholders. Value is represented by the market price of the company’s common stock, which, in turn, is a reflection of the firm’s investment, financing, and dividend decisions. Profit Maximization vs. Wealth Maximization Frequently, maximization of profits is regarded as the proper objective of the firm, but it is not as inclusive a goal as that of maximizing shareholder wealth. For one thing, total profits are not as important as earnings per share. A firm could always raise total profits by issuing stock and using the proceeds to invest in Treasury bills. Even maximization of earnings per share, however, is not a fully appropriate objective, partly because it does not specify the timing or duration of expected returns. Is the investment project that will produce $100,000 return 5 years from now more valuable than the project that will produce annual returns of $15,000 in each of the next 5 years? An answer to this question depends upon the time value of money to the firm and to investors at the margin. Few existing stockholders would think favorably of a project that promised its first return in 100 years. We must take into account the time pattern of returns in our analysis. Another shortcoming of the objective of maximizing earnings per share is that it does not consider the risk or uncertainty of the prospective earnings stream. Some investment projects are far more risky than others. As a result, the prospective stream of earnings per share would be more uncertain if these projects were undertaken. In addition, a company will be more or less risky depending upon the amount of debt in relation to equity in its capital structure. This risk is known as financial risk; and it, too, contributes to the uncertainty of the prospective stream of earnings per share. Two companies may have the same expected future earnings per share, but if the earnings stream of one is subject to considerably more uncertainty than the earnings stream of the other, the market price per share of its stock may be less. For the reasons above, an objective of maximizing earnings per share may not be the same as maximizing market price per share. The market price of a firm’s stock represents the focal judgment of all market participants as to what the value is of the particular firm. It takes into account present and prospective future earnings per share, the timing, duration, and risk of these earnings, and any other factors that bear upon the market price of stock. The market price serves as a performance index or report card of the firm’s progress; it indicates how well management is doing in behalf of its stockholders. Management vs. Stockholders In certain situations the objectives of management may differ from those of the firms stockholders. In a large corporation whose stock is widely held, stockholders exert very little control or influence over the operations of the company. When the control of a company is separate from its ownership, management may not always act in the best interests of the stockholders [Agency Theory]. [Managers] sometimes are said to be satisficers rather than maximizers; they may be content to play it safe and seek an acceptable level of growth, being more concerned with perpetuating their own existence than with maximizing the value of the firm to its shareholders. The most important goal to a management [team]of this sort may be its own survival. As a result, it may be unwilling to take reasonable risks for fear of making a mistake, thereby becoming conspicuous to the outside suppliers of capital. In turn, these suppliers may pose a threat to management’s survival. It is true that in order to survive over the long run, management may have to behave in a manner that is reasonably consistent with maximizing shareholder wealth. Nevertheless, the goals of the two parties do not necessarily have to be the same. Maximization of shareholder wealth, then, is an appropriate guide for how a firm should act. When management does not act in a manner consistent with this objective, we must recognize this as a constraint and determine the opportunity cost. This cost is measurable only if we determine what the outcome would have been had the firm attempted to maximize shareholder wealth. A Normative Goal Because the principal of maximization of shareholder wealth provides a rational guide for running a business and for the efficient allocation of resources in society, we use it as our assumed objective in considering how financial decisions should be made. The purpose of capital markets is to efficiently allocate savings in an economy from ultimate savers to ultimate users of funds who invest in real assets. If savings are to be channeled to the most promising investment opportunities, a rational economic criteria must exist that governs their flow. By and large, the allocation of savings in an economy occurs on the basis of expected return and risk. The market value of a firm’s stock embodies both of these factors. It therefore reflects the market’s tradeoff between risk and return. If decisions are made in keeping with the likely effect upon the market value of its stock, a firm will attract capital only when its investment opportunities justify the use of that capital in the overall economy. Put another way, the equilibration process by which savings are allocated in an economy occurs on the basis of expected return and risk. Holding risk constant, those economic units (business firms, households, financial institutions, or governments) willing to pay the highest yield are the ones entitled to the use of funds. If rationality prevails, the economic units bidding the highest yields will be the ones with the most promising investment opportunities. As a result, savings will tend to be allocated to the most efficient users. Maximization of shareholder wealth then embodies the risk-return tradeoff of the market and is the focal point by which funds should be allocated within and among business firms. Any other objective is likely to result in the suboptimal allocation of funds and therefore lead to less than optimal level of economic want satisfaction. This is not to say that management should ignore the question of social responsibility. As related to business firms, social responsibility concerns such things as protecting the consumer, paying fair wages to employees, maintaining fair hiring practices, supporting education, and becoming actively involved in environmental issues like clean air and water. Many people feel that a firm has no choice but to act in socially responsible ways; they argue that shareholder wealth and, perhaps, the corporations vary existence depends upon its being socially responsible. However, the criteria for social responsibility are not clearly defined, making formulation of a consistent objective function difficult. Moreover, social responsibility creates certain problems for the firm. One is that it falls unevenly on different corporations. Another is that it sometimes conflicts with the objective of wealth maximization. Certain social actions, from a long-range point of view, unmistakably are in the best interests of stockholders, and there is little question that they should be undertaken. Other actions are less clear, and to engage in them may result in a decline of profits and in shareholder wealth in the long run. From the standpoint of society, this decline may produce a conflict. What is gained in having a socially desirable goal achieved may be offset in whole or part by an accompanying less efficient allocation of resources in society. The latter will result in a less than optimal growth of the economy and a lower total level of economic want satisfaction. In an era of unfilled wants and scarcity, the allocation process is extremely important. Many people feel that management should not be called upon to resolve the conflict posed above. Rather, society, with its broad general perspective, should make the decisions necessary in this area. Only society, acting through Congress and other representative governmental bodies, can judge the relative tradeoff between the achievement of a social goal and the sacrifice in the efficiency of apportioning resources that may accompany realization of the goal. With these decisions made, corporations can engage in wealth maximization and thereby efficiently allocate resources, subject, of course, to certain governmental constraints. Under such a system, corporations can be viewed as producing both private and social goods, and the maximization of shareholder wealth remains a viable corporate objective.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Diagnosis and Assessment: Patient Presenting Knee Pain

Diagnosis and Assessment: Patient Presenting Knee Pain Stephen Chiang Presenting Complaint Mr X is a 72 year old man who presented to the GP clinic with worsening right knee pain for the past 3 weeks. History of Presenting Complaint Pain has worsened over the past 3 weeks. Pain is around the patella with no radiation of pain. Described as a constant dull ache that worsens at the end of the day after activities. Not relieved by any pain medication. Previous trial on NSAIDs and panadolosteo. Pain and movement does not improve during the day. Denies any morning stiffness. Complains of knee being swollen and restricting the range of movement. Denies any locking or catching of the knees. Pain has restricted his movement causing him to lose balance. No history of falls. Denies any recent injury or trauma to the knee. Past Medical History Abdominal aortic aneurysm2014 Pulmonary Fibrosis2014 COPD infective exacerbation2012 GORD Medications Metoprolol 50mg Panadol Osteo SR665mg Vytorin10mg/20mg Rabeprazole10mg Prednisolone25mg Allergies/ Adverse Reactions Penicillins skin rash Immunisation -VAXIGRIP provided Family History nil known Social History Lives alone in Collie. No support services required. Non-smoker. 1 standard drink several times a week. Limited physical activities No history of substance abuse Examination Pleasant looking elderly man. Not in any obvious distress. Alert and oriented to time, place and person. Good mobility Vitals BP 155/88 mmHg, HR 78bpm and regular, RR 17, afebrile Cardiovascular Heart sound dual, nil added. JVP not elevated, all peripheral pulses are palpable Respiratory symmetrical rise and fall of chest with respiration, bibasal crepitations heard, no wheeze. Not in respiratory distress Abdomen – no scars noted, abdomen soft, non tender, bowel sound present Knee – no deformities, swelling or muscle wasting noted. No obvious signs of effusion. Bulge test and patellar tap negative. No erythema and not warm. Crepitations heard with movement of knee. Not tender on palpation. Full range of movement with active and passive movement with pain. (extension, flexion, rotation). Ligament stability test NAD Investigations Ordered Bilateral Knee X-ray Murtagh’s Diagnostic Model Factors in initial history / examination supporting diagnosis Factors in initial history / examination NOT supporting diagnosis Factors in subsequent history / examination / investigation influencing diagnosis PROBABLE diagnosis Osteoarthritis Swelling of the knee Age, Chronic Pain, Asymmetrical, Weight bearing joint, Worse with movement, Crepitus on movement Ligament strains No previous injuries or trauma Asymmetrical knee pain Serious disorders not to miss Neoplasia primary in bone metastases No night sweats, no weight loss, no indication of previous X-ray constant ache day and night Severe infections septic arthritis No fever, no redness, warmth or swelling of joint. No hx of trauma Vascular disorders deep venous thrombosis superficial thrombophlebitis No long periods of immobilisation No previous hx of clots Nil tenderness around muscle unilateral pain Pitfalls Gout/ pseudogout No previous hx of gout Referred pain back or hip Denies any pain of the back and hip Masquerades Diabetes No polyuria, polydipsia, Normal Fasting BSL Spinal dysfunction Another agenda? Depression Lives on his own, poor supportive relationship, Management Plan (Whole person) 1. Knee pain RICE therapy, Weight loss knee X-ray Adequate pain management Referral to orthopaedic surgeons for review Referral to physiotherapist – strengthen quadriceps 2. Pulmonary Fibrosis/ COPD Prevent infective exacerbations Continue follow up with respiratory physicians in Perth Yearly influenza vaccination/ 5 yearly pneumovax Referral to chest physiotherapist 3. Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Yearly monitoring of AAA Continue follow up with vascular surgeon in Perth Preventative Health Activities 1. Nutrition – patient education on maintaining healthy diet. Referral to dietician 2. Weight – review 6 monthly to ensure BMI 2 3. Physical activity – education on appropriate exercise routine. Referral to physiotherapist 4. Alcohol intake – reduction of alcohol intake 5. General – monitor BP 6 monthly, yearly monitoring of FBC UEC Lipid profile 6. Cancer screening – colorectal every 2 years 7. Vision, hearing and fall risk assessment Unable to follow up with patient as patient returned to GP in Collie while I was based in Bunbury. No access to patient’s result from Bunbury. Clinical Evidence Base In patients with osteoarthritis of the knee (OAK), is intra-articular steroid injection more effective compared to other pharmacological treatment such as NSAIDs and glucosamine in terms of efficacy and managing pain? Osteoarthritis is the most common joint disease affecting adults older than 65 years old. In Australia alone, osteoarthritis affects more than 1.3million adults.1 Osteoarthritis can significantly impact the quality of life because of the restriction in mobility caused by the pain. In osteoarthritis of the knee (OAK), the main form of treatment remains partial or total knee replacement.4 However, there are still a large number of patients who are unable to undergo such intervention. In such patients, treatments are limited to safer alternatives such as NSAIDs, opioids, glucosamine supplements and intra-articular steroid injection. The OneSearch UWA library database was searched and keywords used were â€Å"osteoarthritis†, â€Å"knee†, â€Å"pharmacological†, â€Å"NSAIDs†, â€Å"steroid†. Other related terms were included in the search. One study was identified, â€Å"short term efficacy of pharmacotherapeutic interventions in osteoarthritis knee pain by Jan Magnus Bjordal, Atle Klovning, Anne Elisabeth Ljunggren and Lars Slordal.2 The study is a meta-analysis of randomised placebo controlled trials with a sample study size of 14,060 patients in 63 trials measuring pain intensity within 4 weeks of treatment and at 8-12 weeks follow up using the visual analogue scale (VAS).2 Results Within 4 weeks oral NSAIDs, pain relief measured 10.2mm on the VAS (95% CI8.8-11.6). Steroid injection showed 14.5mm (95% CI9.7-19.2), paracetamol 3.0mm (95% CI1.4-4.7), glucosamine 4.7mm (95% CI 0.3-9.1), chondroitin sulphate 3.7mm (95% CI0.3-7.0).2 8-12 weeks follow up – oral NSAIDs and steroid injection showed decline in efficacy 9.8mm. Paracetamol did not show change in efficacy. Glucosamine showed 3.8mm efficacy and chondroitin sulphate showed an increase in efficacy of 10.6mm.2 Strength and Weaknesses of this study: 1. Level 1 evidence based on NHMRC 2. Outcome and methods of measure was clearly explained and defined. 3. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were clear. 1. Measuring of pain intensity with the visual analogue scale (VAS) is very subjective. 2. Bias in terms of NSAIDs users selection in certain trials. 3. Comparing different treatment options by assessing separate meta-analyses for each treatment may have different baseline data and prognostic factors. 4. All steroid injection trials were performed in a fixed setting limiting their application into primary care context. Duration of trial of 4 weeks may be too short to analyse efficacy of some treatments. Findings showed that there is better short term pain relieve when using steroid injection compared to the other treatment options. However, steroid and oral NSAIDs have the same efficacy in long term. Chondroitin sulphate also showed a minimal pain relieve in the long term. Application – This study was done in Norway and it showed that there is minimal pain relieve by using current treatment options such as steroid injections, oral NSAIDs and supplements. Further studies should be performed to compare patients in Australia. Patients should be educated about the efficacy of such pharmacological treatment to lower their expectations. We should start reconsidering the role of these treatments in future pain management of osteoarthritis. This patient was started on many treatments that did not offer any pain relieve that corresponds to the results of the study stated above. Hence, he was referred to an orthopaedic surgeon for further review and management plan. References 1. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. A Picture of Osteoarthritis.Department of Health and AgeingOctober 2007; Arthritis Series Number 5 2. Jan Magnus Bjordal a,*, Atle Klovning a , Anne Elisabeth Ljunggren a , Lars Slà ¸rdal b. Short-term efficacy of pharmacotherapeutic interventions in osteoarthritic knee pain: A meta-analysis of randomised placebo-controlled trials.European Journal of Pain8 May 2006; 11, 125-138 3. Carlos J Lozada, MD Director of Rheumatology Fellowship Training Program, Professor of Clinical Medicine, Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology and Immunology, University of Miami, Leonard M Miller School of Medicine.Osteoarthritis. http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/330487-overview (accessed 17/06/2015) 4. S.P. Krishnana, , J.A. Skinnerb. Novel treatments for early osteoarthritis of the knee.Current OrthopaedicsDecember 2005; Volume 19(Issue 6), Pages 407-414

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Motives for Female Adolescents Participation in Physical Activity Essa

It has been demonstrated that there is a strong correlation between age and physical activity. The amount of physical activity declines significantly as age increases. This correlation has been found to be true regardless of gender. However, research has shown that the participation in regular physical activity declines more in females than males (Butt Joanne, Robert Weinberg, Jeff Breckon & Randal Claytor, 2011). Studies have been conducted to investigate explanations for the decline in participation in physical activity. Exploring the motives and goals for participation gave a better understanding for the decrease in physical activity. Reasons for participation in physical activity among female adolescents were both intrinsic and extrinsic. Goals and motives for physical activity in the two contexts resonate with concepts and ideas of the Self-Determination Theory (O'Dougherty Maureen, Kurzer Mindy & Schmitz Kathryn, 2010). The Self-Determination Theory possesses the idea that participation in physical activity comes from both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation is described as motivation associated with enjoyment to the activity whereas extrinsic motivation is externally imposed (O'Dougherty Maureen, Kurzer Mindy & Schmitz Kathryn, 2010). The continuum of self-regulation is central to this theory. Proposed by this theory is the idea a person’s level or intensity of self-regulation varies on a continuum. These variations have important implications for the individual’s physical and mental well being (Puente Rogelio & Anshel Mark, 2009). The four types of regulation are expressed in the Self-Determination Theory. The four types of regulation are external, introjected, identification, and integrated. Exter... ...ary, (2010). Coping with â€Å"bad body image days†: Strategies from first-year young adult college women. Body Image, 8(4), 335-342. Jankauskiene Rasa. , & Kardelis Kestutis, (2005). Body image and weight reduction attempts among adolescent girls involved in physical activity. Medicina (Kaunas), 41(9), 796-801. O'Dougherty Maureen. , Kurzer Mindy, S., & Schmitz Kathryn, H. (2010). Shifting motivations: Young women’s reflections on physical activity over time and across contexts. Health Educ Behaviors, 37(4), 1-19. Puente Rogelio. , & Anshel Mark, H. (2009). Exercisers’ perceptions of their fitness instructor. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 51, 38-45. Sanda Solfrid, B., & Borgen Jorunn, (2011). Symptoms of eating disorders, drive for muscularity and physical activity among norwegian adolescents. European Eating Disorder Review, doi: 10.1002/erv.1156

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

The Mill on the Floss :: essays research papers

The Mill on the Floss is a book written by George Eliot, whose real name is Mary Anne (later Marian) Evans. There is a great deal of autobiography in this book. The facts of Mary Anne's life do not match Maggie Tulliver, but there is an obvious reflection of her own life. Book One: Chapter1-13 The novel opens up with a description of the countryside around the town of St. Ogg's and the river Floss. In the second chapter Maggie, Mr. Tulliver, Mrs. Tulliver, and Mr. Riley are introduced. Mr. Tulliver states his intention to send Tom to a different school. In the third chapter Mr. Riley gives his advice about a school for Tom. In the forth chapter Mr. Tulliver goes after Tom, while Mr. Tulliver is gone you learn about that Maggie's mother is concerned mainly with what her family thinks. In the fifth chapter Tom is home and you learn that he cares for his sister Maggie deeply, and that Tom's opinion is very important to Maggie. In the sixth chapter the Tulliver's are getting ready for the aunts and uncles to arrive. In the seventh chapter the family arrives and you are introduced to Mrs. Glegg, Mrs. Pullet, Mrs. Deane and Maggie's cousin Lucy. Mr. Tulliver states his intention to send Tom to school and it is met with opposition. In the eighth chapter he goes to his brother-in-laws house to demand the money that he owes him so that he can pay his wife's sister Mrs. Glegg. In chapter nine you read about the Tullivers going to visit the Pullets. In the tenth chapter Maggie pushed Lucy in the mud because she is receiving most of Tom's attention. When Tom goes to tell on her she runs off and can't be found. In the eleventh chapter Maggie decides to run away to the gypsies, but after learning how poor they were and how little of food they had she decides to go back home. In the twelfth chapter you read that St. Ogg is named for it's patron saint who showed pity on a woman and child. St. Ogg is the town where the Gleggs live. In the thirteenth chapter Mr. Tulliver borrows money from a client of his old enemy Wakem. Book One: Chapter 1-7 In the first chapter of this book Tom is at school, and he is Stelling's only student. Maggie goes to visit him in October. In the second chapter Tom gets to come home for Christmas. Mr. Tulliver has a lawsuit against Mr. Pivart , his next door neighbor. It has also become known that Wakem's son will be sent to school with The Mill on the Floss :: essays research papers The Mill on the Floss is a book written by George Eliot, whose real name is Mary Anne (later Marian) Evans. There is a great deal of autobiography in this book. The facts of Mary Anne's life do not match Maggie Tulliver, but there is an obvious reflection of her own life. Book One: Chapter1-13 The novel opens up with a description of the countryside around the town of St. Ogg's and the river Floss. In the second chapter Maggie, Mr. Tulliver, Mrs. Tulliver, and Mr. Riley are introduced. Mr. Tulliver states his intention to send Tom to a different school. In the third chapter Mr. Riley gives his advice about a school for Tom. In the forth chapter Mr. Tulliver goes after Tom, while Mr. Tulliver is gone you learn about that Maggie's mother is concerned mainly with what her family thinks. In the fifth chapter Tom is home and you learn that he cares for his sister Maggie deeply, and that Tom's opinion is very important to Maggie. In the sixth chapter the Tulliver's are getting ready for the aunts and uncles to arrive. In the seventh chapter the family arrives and you are introduced to Mrs. Glegg, Mrs. Pullet, Mrs. Deane and Maggie's cousin Lucy. Mr. Tulliver states his intention to send Tom to school and it is met with opposition. In the eighth chapter he goes to his brother-in-laws house to demand the money that he owes him so that he can pay his wife's sister Mrs. Glegg. In chapter nine you read about the Tullivers going to visit the Pullets. In the tenth chapter Maggie pushed Lucy in the mud because she is receiving most of Tom's attention. When Tom goes to tell on her she runs off and can't be found. In the eleventh chapter Maggie decides to run away to the gypsies, but after learning how poor they were and how little of food they had she decides to go back home. In the twelfth chapter you read that St. Ogg is named for it's patron saint who showed pity on a woman and child. St. Ogg is the town where the Gleggs live. In the thirteenth chapter Mr. Tulliver borrows money from a client of his old enemy Wakem. Book One: Chapter 1-7 In the first chapter of this book Tom is at school, and he is Stelling's only student. Maggie goes to visit him in October. In the second chapter Tom gets to come home for Christmas. Mr. Tulliver has a lawsuit against Mr. Pivart , his next door neighbor. It has also become known that Wakem's son will be sent to school with

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Marketing and Full-service Pet Salon

Chapters 1-3 1)The public is becoming more aware of how marketers’ activities affect the welfare of consumers and society. As a result, more firms are working to -create a responsible approach to developing long-term relationships with customers and society 2)A Junior marketing executive at MegaGrain Cereals suggests increasing the package size and price of its best-selling brand without increasing the amount of cereal inside the box. Her superior warns that this might be a bad idea because MegaGrains long-term survival, like most companies, depends on creating and maintaining satisfying exchange relationships 3)Which of the following statements about marketing environment forces is not correct? -They fluctuate slowly and thereby create threats to a firm’s marketing mix 4)Which of the following is not an example of the implementation of the marketing concept? -Burger King reduces the labor costs to produce its sausage-egg biscuits 5)Which one of the following statements by a company president best reflects the marketing concept? -We have organized out business to make certain that customers get what they want )Three basic forms that a product can take are -services, ideas, and goods 7)SunnyD is aimed at mothers with children under age 12. The mothers represent SunnyD’s -target market 8)Which of the following best describes the acceptance of the marketing concept by American organizations? -The marketing concept has yet to be fully accepted by all organizations 9)Greensprings Cemtery in upstate New York, Offers a full service funeral and burial that is non-toxic to the environment. All materials used in the burial are natural and will decompose with no negative impact†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. The owners of the Greensprings Cemeteries are apparently operating under which of the following orientations? -Marketing Orientation 10) Marketing knowledge and skills -enhance consumer awareness and help provide people with satisfying goods and services A change in the minimum drinking age in any given state illustrates a change in the _____________ for Miler Brewing. -Marketing environment 12)Paws and Claws Hotel is a full-service pet salon and boarding kennel. Paws and Claws has an interactive website where customers can directly booka grooming appointment, obedience class, or overnight accomodation for their dog and cat†¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Previously, Paws and Claws was most likely using which type of orientation? ?-sales 13)Which of the following is most likely to be an idea marketer? -abuse counselor 14)A physical product you can touch is a -good 15)Long-term relationships with profitable customers is the key objective of -customer relationship management 16)P aws and Claws Hotel is a full-service pet salon and boarding kennel. Paws and Claws has an interactive website where customers can directly booka grooming appointment, obedience class, or overnight accomodation for their dog and cat†¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. †¦.. The fact that Paws and Claws is open 24 hours each day is part of which marketing mix variable? -distribution 17)Resource deployment and coordination of functional areas of business are determined by -corporate strategy 18)A firm’s unique symbols, personalities, and philosophies compromise its -corporate strategy 19)The Acme Corporation is expanding operations into countries outside the U. S. To improve local managers’ responsiveness to local conditions, Acme’s senior management has decided to delegate decision-making authority further down the chain of command. Acme is decentralizing 20)Electronic marketing has greatly improved the ability of marketers to target individual customers. As a result, ma ny fell that marketing’s emphasis is shifting from share of market to share of -? customer 21)A ________ is created when a company matches its core competency to opportunities it has discovered in the marketplace. -competitive advantage 22)Starbucks is presently involved in a process of assessing marketing opportunites and resources, determining marketing objectives, re-defining marketing strategies, and developing guidelines for implementation and control. Thus, Starbucks is involved in -marketing planning 23)According to the text, a market is defined as -a group of individuals and/or organizations that have needs for products in a product class and have the ability, willingness, and authority to purchase these products. 24)Borders Books uses technology to help them identify specific customers, establish interactive dialogues with them to learn about their needs, and combine this information with their purchase histories to customize products to meet those needs. Borders Books is using the ________ approach. customer relationship management ? 25)A competitive advantage exists when a -firm matches a core competence to opportunities it has discovered in the marketplace. 26)The marketing plan is -a written document detailing activities to be performed to implement and control marketing actions 27)EXperience Limited is a company which offers tours and vacations that include participation in an extreme sport, such as hang-gliding, bungee ju mping, skydiving, and motorcross. Adrian Moss†¦ The information in EXperience Limited’s database could be best used to develop a CRM program 28)Harley-Davidson’s Harley Owner’s Group (HOG) helps to foster strong relationships between riders and their motorcycles, giving it a ________ over other motorcycle manufacturers. -sustainable competitive edge 29)Which of the following is false with regard to customer lifetime value? -All customers have equal value to a firm 30)The Boston Consulting Group classifies products that have a dominant market share but low prospects for growth and that generate more cash than is required to maintain market share as -cash cows 31)A market opportunity results from the right combination of circumstances and timing that permit and organization to take action to reach a particular target market. EXperience Limited is a company which offers tours and vacations that include participation in an extreme sport, such as hang-gliding, b ungee jumping, skydiving, and motorcross. Adrian Moss†¦ According to the BCG matrix, the hang-gliding and bungee jumping tours have been a _________ for EXperience Limited, while the skydiving and motorcross tours represent a ________. -cash cow; questionmark†¦ ? or star 33)A new U. S. utomobile company, Specialty Motors, was established in 2004. In 2008, a recession caused disposable income to decline, and the annual amount of dollars spent by consumers dropped drastically. Specialty Motors faced a problem of trying to determine whether the economy would turn toward prosperity or toward depression. No matter what happend, Specialty Motors was also worried†¦.. The income a consumer would use to purchase a Specialty Motors automobile is considered _______ income. -discretionary ? 34)____________ competitors provide very different products that satisfy the same basic customer need. Generic 35)Marketers who attempt to influence and change the various environmental forces have a _________ response to these forces. -proactive 36)Which of the following is not a reason that marketers try to maintain good relations with political officials? -Political officials can accept direct corporate compaign contributions. 37)More than half of the research of technology created is paid for by -the federal government 38)Meyer’s Sporting Goods, a national chain, has been doing business with Soljur Sports†¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦. Where should he file a complaint? -Better Business Bureau? g 79 39)The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America sets guidelines for its member firms to follow regarding the use of unethical practices. Thus, it is engaging in -self-regulation 40))Meyer’s Sporting Goods, a national chain, has been doing business with Soljur Sports†¦. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ What action should the BBB take against Meyers if the complaint was substained and Meyers did not change the offending practice? -Issue a warning to consumers t hrough the local newspaper 41)Which of the following industries is most commonly regulated by state regulatory agencies? Utility companies 42)Why are marketers interested in consumers’ levels of disposable income? -It is a ready source of buying power 43)Consumers begin to become more price and calue conscious during periods of -recession 44)One way for corporations to attempt to influence the political environment is through -contributions to poilitical action committees 45)Marketers primarily focus their environmental analysis on ____ competitors. -brand 46)Which of the following are the most frequently sentenced organizational crimes? -fraud and antitrust violations 7)Companies that compete for the same limited financial resources of the same customers are known as _________ competitors. -total budget 48)When a firm has many potential competitors and tries to develop a marketing strategy to differentiate its porducts from the competitors’ products, a ___________ str ucture exists in the competitive environment. -monopolistic competition 49)The best approach for a company to take when monitoring its competitors is -developing a system for gathering ongoing information about competitors. 50)The amount of money received through wages, rents, investments, pensions, and subsidies is called -income

Monday, September 16, 2019

Rephrasing Essay

To make sure effective implementation of university’s health and safety policy and codes of safe working practices, Deans and Directors are responsible to the Vice Chancellor for managing the health and safety department. In order to achieve this they will have to ensure effective monitoring of health and safety issues to upraise the health and safety environment which is an important part of the school, faculty, and service activities. Risk assessment people should be hired to make sure that proper training is provided. Also to make sure that annual health and safety return is timely submitted to health and safety committee and to make sure that they thoroughly implement the health and safety policies within the area of their control. They will have to take care that basic training is provided to drivers who are carrying passengers in passenger carrying vehicles (except cars). To take timely actions on complaints from different areas like Faculty, Trade Union safety representatives, school, health and safety environmental services and advisors. To make sure that annual inspection of workplace is carried out in a planned and systematic manner but biannual inspection can be conducted to deal with high risk activities. To take timely advice from health and safety department on issues related to health and safety. Also to make sure that all safety policies and codes along with safety work procedures are in place as required. Health and safety advisors should be provided with enough time to carry out their duties like internal audits of university. Ensure that annual health and safety action plans have been prepared and submitted to the Health & Safety Committee upon request. To make sure accidents are taken into notice and accident investigation reports are submitted. In this regard sufficient training should be ensured to overcome these accidents. Proper risk assessment should be conducted of every activity and proper results must be recorded where necessary. While executing the health and safety audits they need to cooperate with the head of health and safety. Appointment of health and safety advisor of each school, faculty and services is very important. Safe working environment should be encouraged. University emergency procedures should be known to all. Whenever new equipment are installed, staff training should be mandatory. Also new staff should be given proper induction on health and safety. Before installing and after installation of all electrical equipments should be annually tested i. e every 4 years for IT equipments. Those who are affected by changes in rules of school, faculty and services should be provided proper consultation on every procedure. Assuring proper arrangement of regular assessment needs of health and safety performance. To make sure that all training needs are identified and met on time. Also to make sure that people hired from external contractors meet the criteria and requirements of ‘Code of Safe Working Practices for Contractors employed by Staffordshire University’. Sub divisions headed by senior managers will be included in the structure of school, faculty and service. The implementation of university’s health and safety will be under control of these managers according to their area of concern. All these activities will be coordinated by health and safety advisor of school, faculty and service. Proper training will be provided to dean and directors to make sure that they meet all their responsibilities and compliance with statutory requirements. This training will help them to carry out their responsibilities in an efficient manner. Appropriate standards and guidance will be provided in this regard. Director of Estates In addition to those general health and safety responsibilities as directors, the Director of Estates holds the following responsibilities: Proper supply of drinking water, proper lightening, and proper ventilation must be ensured. For all university buildings suitable fire risk assessments must be up to date. Entry and exit of university emergency should be properly assessed and maintained. Proper and timely results must be recorded of risk assessment of each and every activity, substances and processes undertaken. University buildings and services should not harm or endanger the person working or using them. Proper maintenance of these buildings and services must be ensured. Maintenance staff should be informed and should be well aware of any health and safety issue that may arise in university premises including student accommodation units. Timely actions must be taken on every complaint regarding health and safety implications from faculty or services. Emergency lightening, fire alarms and smoke alarms all such equipments must be properly tested and maintained according to the timely plan (Including student accommodation units). Student investigators must be appointed and trained to deal with hazardous situations. People having good and sound knowledge should be considered in this regard. University’s Accident Investigation Report Form has been completed after investigating relevant estate activities and spheres of duties. Periodic inspection must be carried out of university buildings to ensure the effectiveness of maintainenece program and remedial actions must be taken on timely basis. Estate vehicles must be properly maintained and serviced to avoid accidents. In accordance with the Electricity at Work Regulations and the IEE Code of Practice for In-Service Inspection & Testing of Electrical Equipment the proper and fixed wiring of each and every university building must be ensured along with proper inspection and all records must be kept. A planned cleaning program must include all lecture theatres, toilets, classrooms, corridors and offices etc. Development of proper health and safety â€Å"Action plan† must be ensured and this must be submitted to Health & Safety Committee upon request. Standards outlined in the ‘Code of Safe Working Practices for Contractors Employed by Staffordshire University’ must be followed by external contractors commissioned by Estates complies with relevant statutory provisions. Also to make sure that all portable electric appliances used within the premises are thoroughly tested and does not in any way harm the people using them.  Proper records must be maintained of their testing. The grounds chemical, equipment and machinery all must be maintained and used safely according to current regulation authority. Head of Health & Safety The Head of Health and safety is basically a competent officer appointed under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. He reports to the Director of Estates on daily basis for executing his duties, but he can access to the University Executive directly on matters considered appropriate. His duties involve a combination of advisory and executive functions. In order to maximize the effectiveness of his role, he will work closely with Dean’s/Directors and other colleagues. His main duties will involve: To promote health and safety within the university. A proper database to be maintained for safety information and guidance. Regular review on effectiveness of health and safety training. Support and help must be provides to Safety Advisers of school, faculty and services in the execution of their duties. A continued professional development program must be followed. On all the issues and matters related to health and safety, the Vice Chancellor must be advised through Human resources. Proper advice on statutory provisions must also be delivered. University health and safety procedure, codes of safe working practices, policies, rules and routines all must be developed, implemented and monitored. Compilation of accident data ant to prepare an annual health and safety report for submission to the Board of Governors is also the main duty of head of health and safety. Annually appraising the effectiveness of health and safety policy of university and providing an effective information service is also mandatory. Regular audit of school, faculty and services health and safety management to ensure their effectiveness and remedial training must be provided for any gap identified during these audits. In case of any reported health and safety incident, investigation must be carried out and timely remedial actions must be taken by the head. The bodies whose activities can influence the health and safety issues of university must be shown their interest in general meetings. External safety services, Trades’ Union Safety Representatives and specialists must be provided with efficient and effective communication. Well off communication must be kept with appropriate enforcement agencies and co-coordinators during their inspection and visits. Work as an administrator in all aspects of work related to health and safety committee and also to carry many other such health and safety activities assigned by university.

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Balance And Stability

A true athlete develops his entire body to compete with the very best in his sport. He trains both his mind and body to reach his goals. His mind should be able to handle the pressure and stress that are involved in his competitive sport. He must be emotionally fit to compete in his sport; otherwise, he’ll lose or fair far below his expectations. His body should also be able to act and react in the right manner. The mental, emotional and physical aspects of his game must all come together as one.Whether an athlete is a catcher in baseball, a center in basketball, or a quick-running lineman in American football, he must perfectly develop all his faculties to achieve an above average level of balance and stability in his sport. Athletes should pay more attention to balance and stability because these factors are extremely critical in the success of their goals. The terms balance and stability may seem to have the same meaning, but they don’t (Carr, 2007, p. 89). These ter ms however, are very much related to each other. Balance and stability don’t always go together.Depending on the sport, an athlete may have more balance and less stability or none at all and vice versa. Both of these factors are necessary in almost all physical sports though because athletes have to constantly move their bodies while staying on the ground. Balance is a person’s ability to get rid of forces that ruin the evenness or equilibrium of things. Almost all people have balance to some degree. Young and old people use balance to stay on their feet while they're walking, running or hopping. Balance is also used in other movements, such as when a person tiptoes or dances a complex routine.Maintaining one's balance gets harder as the person encounters obstacles in his path. For example, a running back maintains excellent balance while he pierces the defense of the opposing team. In basketball, a point guard also displays above average balancing skills as he dribble s the ball around players guarding the basket (Carr, 2007, p. 89). There are many levels of balance. Not all people have the same level of balance. Athletes typically have greater balance than normal people because they arduously train to improve it. The concept of balance has been used in various sports for a very long period of time.As Sprunt (2000) and others noted, the term off-balance is also widely used in different types of sports. Thus, a basketball player may be said to have been caught off-balance if he loses his footing as he scrambles for the ball. Generally, it is not good to lose your balance in any kind of sport (Sprunt, 2000, p. 63). Balance itself is related to another important factor in executing movement: stability. Stability is the ability to maintain a person’s balance while encountering things that ruin that balance. To put it another way, stability is how balanced a person is.Different athletes have different tactics that increase the level of their st ability as they encounter forces that may be going against them. According to Foran, athletes typically face gravity, air resistance and friction when performing in sports (Foran, 2001, p. 119). For this reason, some athletes train hard to raise their stability to the level of being as steady as a rock. Sports shows typically have play by play slow-motions that showcase moving stability by players of different sports. For instance, stability is clearly shown on highlights of football plays.A football player displays excellent balance when he reaches out for the ball whizzing through the air. He jumps high using a single leg and lands gracefully on the same leg. However, that excellent balance may be disrupted by a rampaging opponent that slams into him as he's floating above the ground or standing on one leg. After the dust clears, you'll usually see the other player down on the ground because he traded stability for balance. Compare the previous example of a 300 pound lineman with his body arched and his center of gravity positioned low.This athlete can receive the hammering force of a 400 pound lineman, pushing him to get out of the way. The athlete does not drop to his knees, spread-eagle on the ground because his stability is way off the charts. If the lineman is really stable, he may even have the ability to push back his opponent or ram his way through the defense, sending him crawling on the ground. In this case, his opponent is the one that lacks stability and so he pays dearly for it (Foran, 2001, p. 119). Also, stability may be harder to maintain if forces are coming from many different directions.A lineman may be able to defend against the opponent directly in front of him, but he may not fare as easily if the opponent comes from his left, right or back. It's still possible to hold a great level of stability however, if the athlete's position is correct and if he has the right body to counter massive objects that's coming at him from different direc tions. Almost all kinds of physical sports showcase balance and stability. Sports like baseball and basketball are no different because athletes continuously move their bodies in these sports.As Thompson and Baldwin (2007) observed, athletes in these sports and others must do various drills to improve their balance. They must train their core muscle groups to have the excellent level of balance and stability that their sports require (Thompson and Baldwin, 2007, p. 369). In baseball, balance and stability are shown in the role of the catcher who tries to catch baseballs sent flying by the pitcher. In basketball, balance and stability are exemplified by huge, tall centers or post players that play near the basket.It is important to note that these sports are played very differently but both of them require superb balance and stability nonetheless. First, the baseball catcher has to have great physical attributes such as fast feet and hands, mighty arms and excellent balance and stabi lity. He spends much of his time on the baseball field crouching and anticipating the ball that the pitcher will throw. His weight is distributed on his heels. He bends his knees so that his upper leg is parallel to the ground. You'll also notice that his backside is positioned close to his heels.His back must not curve and shoulder blades must be positioned a little bit backward to give him more stability. To further increase stability, he must hold his head up high and he must hold out his glove. This unique crouching position is supported by the baseball catcher's amazing balance and stability (Thompson and Baldwin, 2007, p. 369). The baseball player in the previous example shows linearity in his balance and stability. Remember that balance is a person's ability to get rid of forces that ruin the evenness or equilibrium of things.Compare this to stability which refers to the level at which a person can maintain his balance while encountering things that may ruin it. Simply put, l inear stability occurs when you are able to resist an object that tries to move you. In the previous example, the catcher's stability is put to the test when tries to stop a ball that's flying toward him at 80 or 90 mph (Thompson and Baldwin, 2007, p. 369). Stability that is based on linear movement is influenced by the mass of the moving object that carries force and the object that tries to stop that force.The moving object here is the ball that flies toward the pitcher and may end up in the catcher's resisting hands. For many catchers, reaching the optimal stability that is based on linear movement is very easy. Baseball is a tough sport because it requires players to have great balance and stability while maintaining focus on the ball that's flying toward them. The catcher in the previous example must train hard to be able to block bad pitches and throw out runners who attempt to steal bases. In some cases, the catcher may have to abandon his crouching position to block a bad pi tch.This move trades stability for balance to catch the ball. The crouching position shows the three most important principles of a stable body (Mull, 2005, p. 174). First, the catcher increases his stability by broadening his base. The resulting position is that the catcher's feet are wide apart and firmly on the ground. Second, the baseball catcher centralizes his line of gravity by straightening his back and holding his head up high. Third, he crouches with his knees bent to lower his center of gravity, further adding to the stability of his whole body.When all of these positions are combined, the catcher comes up with a stable crouching position that allows him to easily move his whole body when catching a flying ball even when it is outside the normal zone. Stability is also based on an athlete’s capability to move his line of gravity forward, anticipating a fast-approaching force. This type of movement may unbalance him for a short duration of time, but the force of the approaching object might restore him to his previous balance. This is not the case though for a baseball catcher who blocks bad pitches.Even though the ball flies fast toward the catcher, its mass is still little compared to other balls. The catcher then puts his line of gravity directly in front of the approaching ball but quickly restores his balance. He also usually drops to his knees to bring down his center of gravity and increase his stability. Balance and stability can also take each other’s place in baseball. For example, balance and stability are reversed when a runner steals a base and is challenged by a catcher. The catcher positions his line of gravity directly in front of the fast-approaching force to throw the runner out.Another skill of a baseball catcher is throwing the ball to the base, which consists of applying force rather than resisting it. The catcher tends to rise to keep his line of gravity in the center and avoid falling down before throwing the ball . His weight is transferred to the back of his foot as he moves his body backward to throw the ball. There are also cases where the player who throws the ball temporarily moves his center of gravity outside the area where support is strongest. As the ball is thrown, the center of gravity moves from the back of the support area to the center and then to the front.The dynamics of balance and stability can also be seen in the sport of basketball. There was a time when post players were players that are massive and tall. This allowed them to block offensive players that run to the basket. Today, however, post players are not that huge anymore and they have better footwork. They are faster and more agile, so they can keep up with quick short players that have many tricks to drive to the basket. While post players of the past and today are different, they both still use the principles of balance and stability when playing their game.A post player or a center receives huge forces when guar ding the basket. This is a prime example of static stability in the face of opposing forces (Moran and McGlynn, 1997, p. 56). Post players from the opposing team constantly push and pull him to get him out of the way. Mass is important in being a post player to have enough balance and stability to withstand those vicious offensive moves. The more massive a player is, the greater is his stability. For example, Shaquille O’Neal or Shaq was extremely successful because of his extraordinary mass. There was a time when basketball experts claimed he weighed around 380 lbs.90 percent of that weight consists of muscle tissue and other nonfat tissue. Because of O’Neal’s great mass, other players find it very difficult to break his defense. Offense under the basket is also easy because his defenders just seem to bounce off him. His level of stability is excellent, which makes him an almost perfect post player. The perfect post player though, is not the perfect basketball player. In fact, a player who has a great mass often finds it difficult to change his direction when moving. In this case, quickness and agility are sacrificed for stability and balance.This is similar to a rampaging sumo wrestler that gets easily thrown out of the ring when his quick opponent steps to one side. Post players though, typically play within a very short distance from the basket, so their weakness in terms of quickness and agility is hard to exploit. New centers or post players like Yao Ming have less mass but are quicker and more agile. They are less stable because of their small base, but they can change direction quickly, which is useful in guarding against fast players that drive to the basket. Tall players however, may have lesser balance than shorter players because their center of gravity is very high.You’ll notice that short players are very balanced even when they are dribbling around a number of defenders because their center of gravity is nearer to the ground. Having a wide base is extremely important in being a post player (Chandler and Brown, 2008, p. 87). For this reason, many post players spend long hours in the gym to build their body and widen their base. If a post player’s base is not wide enough, he’ll find it harder to stop offensive attacks coming directly at him from the opposing team. Blocking a player with a small base is easy if the post player’s base is large.Another important factor in being a good post player is the center of gravity. It’s always best to lower a player’s center of gravity to increase his balance and stability. The reason why post players play with knees bent is that they have to widen their base and lower their center of gravity. It’s not always best to widen the base and lower your center of gravity though, as the post player will be sacrificing his height. This makes him vulnerable to high-jumping players from the opposing team who can always drive to t he basket and jump high against the short post player.A post player may also move his base forward to face the opposing force. Moving the line of gravity forward stabilizes the post player, helping hem to successfully guard the basket. It’s not advisable to move the center of gravity too near the front of his base though, because this might result in the player losing his balance. In conclusion, applying balance and stability when playing different sports is important to athletes for them to achieve their goals. Both athletes and coaches should pay more attention to balance and stability to be more successful in their sports.Various sports skills should be honed and trained so the athlete becomes more effective. The physical, mental, and emotional aspects of his game must all come together and become one. While other attributes such as agility and speed are also important in executing different sports skills, balance and stability are very basic in almost all kinds of sports. Without balance and stability, an athlete has a higher chance of failing in his chosen sport. He must constantly weigh the pros and cons of developing balance and stability over other attributes.He may also review the tradeoffs between balance and stability because each one presents their own advantages in a sport. He’ll be more effective in his chosen sport once he perfects his balance and stability. References Carr, G. (2007). Mechanics of Sport: A Practitioner's Guide. Detroit, MI: Human Kinetics Foran, B. (2001). High-performance Sports Conditioning: Modern Training for Ultimate Athletic Development. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. Sprunt, K. , Kerwin, D. , & Fowler, N. (2000). An Introduction to Sports Mechanics: A HomeStudy Pack Providing Sportspeople with an Introduction to the Basic Mechanics of Movement. Coachwise. Thompson, W. , & Baldwin, K. (2007). ACSM's Resources for the Personal Trainer: Techniques, Complications, and Management. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Moran, G. , & McGlynn, G. (1997). Cross-training for Sports: Programs for 26 Sports. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. Chandler, T. J. , & Brown, L. (2008). Conditioning for Strength and Human Performance. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Mull, R. , Bayless, K. , & Jamieson, L. M. (2005). Recreational Sport Management. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.