Humanities- World Cultures (Week 3) Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Humanities- World Cultures (Week 3) - Term Paper Example Various forms of Art that depict history, including war, have also been used for many centuries by various cultures. One of the world’s best examples of this is the Bayeux Tapestry, dubbed the world’s first comic book strip, which depicts the invasion of England by the Normans, led by William the Conqueror. Many times history is presented to the world by the victors of a conflict, and it is for this reason that it is very likely that the Bayeux tapestry was portrayed from the Norman perspective. There are many examples of this form of propaganda which is still being used today. For example, Ronald Maxwell’s God’s and Generals, which depicted the American Civil War from a Confederate soldier’s point of view, portrayed the Confederacy as God-fearing, morally sound, Christian people. The bias presented in the film is also evident by the fact that there are very few scenes that actually deal with the issue of slavery. Architecture is another example of religious expression in art form. The Chartres Cathedral, which was constructed during the 12th century, displays some of the greatest examples of stained glass windows in the world.

Working arrangements at Richer Sounds Essay Example for Free

Working arrangements at Richer Sounds Essay The majority of the people Richer Sounds employ are employed on a permanent basis. All these people are issued with a written contract of employment. Permanent workers are given a 20 day paid holiday each year, this increase after six years by 1 day extra holiday per year, so if they work for 10 years they can get up to 25 days paid holiday a year. They are also entitled to sick pay, where they will be paid their normal wage for the first 10 days, then half of the wage for the next 20 days and after 30 days they will need to claim for government statutory sick pay. People who come to work on a temporary basis wouldnt be issued with a written contract of employment. Temporary employment is mainly done during busy periods such as Christmas, where colleges will be employed for a short time and their work will end as soon as the sale period is over.  Most colleagues in Richer Sounds work full time although their hours vary, because not all stores have taken the new working arrangement, which is to work from 12 noon to 7pm. A normal working week will be a total of 42.5 hours per week and for the stores who have changed to the new working arrangement it will be less. Contract of employment The contract is a written legally binding document provided by the employer for employee, the contract states in detail of what the employees terms and conditions are.  The terms of employment for colleagues in Richer Sounds are that they obey the rules of employment and codes of conduct; these are the two main and most important terms in Richer Sounds. The rules of employment are split into two sections. Section A are rules that Richer Sounds have decided for the company and section B are rules for the colleagues of Richer Sounds. Richer Sounds Advertise for new colleagues by advertising their vacancies within every edition of the in-store catalogue and website. Usually these vacancies are for needs of new sales person or need of new employees to work in the departments. This generates ongoing applications (CVs) from many interested people. If there are no vacancies at the time, then the company keeps a record of all the people who have applied for Richer Sounds, for a max of six months. These adverts saves the company major amounts of money, because if they were to publish it on the newspaper then they would have to pay a certain amount of money to the newspaper company, therefore the idea of publishing vacancy adverts on their catalogues and website is a really good way to save money. If the company doesnt receive any phone calls or reply from any people regarding an interest in the job, then the company will have to publish the ad in the newspapers, this way a wider range of people would be able to view it. Colleagues in Richer Sounds are also advised to introduce his/her friends or relatives to the business; however these applicants must also follow the same rules of the application process as all others do. Richer Sounds Advertise for new colleagues by advertising their vacancies within every edition of the in-store catalogue and website. Usually these vacancies are for needs of new sales person or need of new employees to work in the departments. This generates ongoing applications (CVs) from many interested people. If there are no vacancies at the time, then the company keeps a record of all the people who have applied for Richer Sounds, for a max of six months. These adverts saves the company major amounts of money, because if they were to publish it on the newspaper then they would have to pay a certain amount of money to the newspaper company, therefore the idea of publishing vacancy adverts on their catalogues and website is a really good way to save money. If the company doesnt receive any phone calls or reply from any people regarding an interest in the job, then the company will have to publish the ad in the newspapers, this way a wider range of people would be able to view it.  Colleagues in Richer Sounds are also advised to introduce his/her friends or relatives to the business; however these applicants must also follow the same rules of the application process as all others do.

Classification Of Computers :: Computer PC Desktop Technology

Classifications of Computers According to the U.S. Census "Forty-four million households, or 42 percent, had at least one member who used the Internet at home in 2000" (Home Computers 2). Today, no doubt, even more family members in the United States use computers. Most people are aware of the desktop computers which can be found in the home and in the workplace. What are the different types of computers and what are their purposes? Computers can be classified into three different categories of home computers, portable computers, and business computers including workstations and super computers. First, what is a computer? "While the term computer can apply to virtually any device that has a microprocessor in it, most people think of a computer as a device that receives input from the user through a mouse or keyboard, processes it in some fashion and displays the result on a screen" (What are the Different p. 1). Home computers are being used by children, teenagers, and adults. The PC or personal computer is designed to be used by one person. The term, Mac, is a PC, but most people link computers with Windows software such as Windows 98, Windows 2000, or Windows XP. A PC is actually a desktop that is designed to be used in one set location. "Most desktops offer more power, storage, and versatility for less than their portable brethren" (What Are p. 3). Many desktop computers are used at home and at work. Various types of software have been designed to meet individual needs of the computer user. The use of home computers or PCs can be for various purposes such as education, w ork at home, personal communication through e-mail, to gain knowledge about different topics, to find recipes, and even to play games. The second classification of computers is portable computers. This type of classification includes lap tops and palm tops. The personal digital assistant or PDA was designed to help people stay organized. This was expanded upon and now PDA's offer a variety of services. PDA's are "easy to use and capable of sharing information with your PC. It's supposed to be an extension of the PC, not a replacement" with many different types of services (How PDAs Work p. 1). Many PDA's are even capable of connecting with the Internet and act as global positioning devices. Other portable computers are now available. Another portable computer is the palmtop.

Adult Assumptions On Teenagers :: essays research papers

Adults Assumptions On Tennagers Everyone knows that throughout life, assumptions and stereotypes are made. Whether they concern age, gender, race, class and so on, it does not matter. Stereotypes are always made in some form or another, some can be referring to positive aspects, while others can be bad. Whether good or bad, stereotypes should not be made, if a person has not met someone, they shouldn’t presume to know them or their ‘type’. No two people are identical and so they should not be treated as though they are. Many people have similar interests and characteristics, but not identical. A common group that receives a lot of stereotyping is the youth of today. Not everyone, but a lot of people follow the assumption that the youth of today’s society are nothing but bludgers. Youth usually have plenty of negative assumptions placed upon them such as being known as ‘Know alls’, ‘Trouble makers’, ‘Druggies’ and irresponsible. This names just a few of the negative assumptions that youth have placed upon them nearly, if not, everyday. There are also some positive assumptions made in regard to the youth of today, these are statements like they (the youth) are beginning to understand the importance of education in order to have a chance at a secure future. Youth are very out going and don’t have a concern for tomorrow as they prefer to live for today. Youth have a creative imagination, not just towards art and work, but towards life in general and are willing to learn new skills in order to forward their knowledge, and are being thought of as the future generation. I believe that all of these as sumptions have an element of truth, but in the way of being stereotypes. To certain individuals, these assumptions may be true, but not every youth is a trouble maker or a drug addict and so on. As I said before, everyone is an individual and so should be treated as one, and not just as ‘one of them’. The reason I think this is because I know that I wouldn’t like it if someone treated me the same as other people who are nothing like me. I know that I’m not a ‘Druggie’ or a ‘Know all’ and so I do not want to be treated the way people treat these sort of youths. I know that this is sounding as though I am stereotyping but I am not, I am saying that people do put these groups under headings such as ‘Druggies’ and they then treat them different.

Is It Possible for Organizations Operating in Dynamic Environments to Achieve Person-Organisational Fit to Improve Organizational Effectiveness?

Today we live in a world where change is inevitable. Organisations today face dynamic environments characterized by substantial and often unpredictable technological, political and economic changes. The key to survival and succeeding is adaptation, in dynamic environments often an organisations only option is to literally â€Å"do or die† with regard to change. Tyagi & Gupta (2005) indicates that the central point of personal and organisational effectiveness is a sense of being able to make contributions and make somewhat of a difference in any way possible. As individuals we feel content and fulfilled when we make positive contributions to our communities, families and organisations. Similarly organisations can only achieve their potential when they positively impact the lives of various stakeholders and related entities. However the opportunity to contribute only arises if there is a fit between what people want to achieve and what the organisation wants to achieve. Thus creating a fit between the person and organisation allow both to be effective. In the past few years the concept of Person-Organizational fit (P-O) has been in a state of flux, with many theorists putting forward conflicting views on the conceptualization of fit, its measurements and its boundaries. In the broad sense of the word it is defined as the compatibility between the person and the organisation (Li, 2006). As many organisations operate in dynamic environments; many changes take place and organizations have to cope with these changes by adapting their business and strategies to the turbulent environments. This essay goes on to explore the effects the changes mention have on the P-O fit and if dynamic environment allow organisations to achieve person-organisational fit in order to enhance and reach organisational effectiveness. According to evidence it can be seen that it is possible to achieve P-O fit in dynamic environments however it would not be the ideal tool to implement to improve effectiveness due to the evolving nature of the environment as it hinders growth and discourages innovation which would not lead to organizational effectiveness (Tyagi & Gupta, 2005). P-O fit refers to the extent to which and individual and the employing organization are compatible. There are however many definitions that have been put forward over the years such as value congruence (O’Reilly et al. , 1991), Goal congruence (Vancouver et al. , 1994), needs and supplies demand abilities (Edwards,1991) in addition a personality-climate fit (Ryan and Schmit, 1996). However the most commonly used definition is the value congruence perspective. Verquer et al (2003) value congruence as the extent to which individual and organizational values match. Rynes and Gerhart have gone a step further and pointed out that the P-O fit is more than a mere match, as it usually implies a sense of chemistry (Bellou, 2009). Another way of conceptualising the compatibility between the person and organisation uses the distinction between supplementary and complementary fit. Supplementary fit occurs when a person supplements or possesses characteristics that are similar to other individuals in an environment. This congruence can be differentiated between complementary fit, which occurs when a person’s characteristics make whole the environment or add to what is missing (Tyagi & Gupta, 2005). Further more Cable and Parsons (2001) states that P-O fit is a crucial factor in maintaining a flexible workforce and creating a high degree of organizational commitment in a tight labour market and a competitive business environment. Supporters of P-O fit state that the construct is crucial in the study of organizational effectiveness because it has made improvements to the traditional view of matching skills, knowledge and abilities in predicting if an individual will be successful in a particular organization (Chuang & Sackett, 2005). Ambrose et al, 2008 posit that individuals whose values will result in positive contributions to organizational effectiveness and lower turnover. These models may be under the assumption of static environments; one must apply the dynamic nature of the current environments organisations operate in today. Kammeyer-Mueller (2007) proclaims that even though static and dynamic perspectives are portrayed as mutually exclusive alternatives, they need not be opposed to one another. Research goes on to show that constant external shocks injected into the organisations may result in changes been implemented that affects the P-O fit. These changes may sometimes lead to negative results such as turnover and intention to leave as the employees feel they no longer â€Å"fit† with the organisation. In addition Chatman et al (2008, p. 64) notes that, because a lack of congruence is aversive, â€Å"misfits† are unlikely to remain with that organization. There are also instances when individuals no longer are compatible or unhappy with the fit between the organisations and themselves due to adaptations the company undergoes however choose to remain with the organisation solely because they have no other job options. In instances where â€Å"misfits† remain as they perceive that it is their only choice they bring about many negative aspects into the organisation such as demotivation, low commitment, this is mainly because they try to overcompensate and manipulate the work input output equation to fill the missing void. On the other hand the Social identity theory suggests that another mechanism by which individual dispositions might influence fit within a dynamic context. The social identity argues that the self-concept is a patchwork of various identities, such as demography, occupation, organization, department and workgroup which provide proscriptions for behaviour (Ashworth & Johnson, 2001). It also states that depending on the pressures applied the identity a person adopts will differ. This however does not change the fact that the individual still has within himself or herself, the same core set of identities. Interestingly at least in Oriental Chinese societies, leaders or managers may change their leader behaviours to create a better person-organisation value fit. This study shows that behaviours have positive effects on person-organisational fit. A crucial finding in this study was that even among employees who have been below average O-P fit can be influenced in terms of motivation commitment and trust in their leader by leader behaviours. For example employees working under high team oriented leaders had higher motivation and commitment and trust compared to those under low team oriented leaders. This goes on to show that even though the dynamic environment may affect and the person-organisation fit and sometimes lowers the P-O value fit , organisations can still effectively operate and manage those employees with the proper management and leadership methods (Li, 2006). However this method might not an appropriate universal method to implement as business environments vary across nations due to cultural, legal and other aspects that are followed. However the P-O fit may not be in the best interest of the organization at times and lead to negative results. For example, extremely high levels of person-organization value fit may lead to high levels of conformity and homogeneity. High levels of conformity and homogeneity will bring about a range of adverse effects which may hinder the success of the organisation, by making the organisation and its members far less adaptable to the changes surging in the dynamic environment as well as less innovative (Li, 2006). Some evidence even go to the extent of pointing out that organisations with slight internal variation in employees perspective lead to better performance in the short run but worse in the long run , presumably as a result of inferior adaptation (Li, 2006). Person-Organisation Fit in theory sounds like a tool that should be implemented by every organisation. Taking a closer look one can see that even though initially achieving a fit will lead to organisational effectiveness in the long run it will cause the organisation more harm than good. This is due to the fact that organisation operating in dynamic environments thrives on adaptability and innovation which is opposed by the negative by products of long term P-0 which include homogeneity and high levels of conformity. This does not mean that the concept of P-O should be completely ignored as evidence shows that it has a greater impact on individuals in an organisations resulting in positive results in comparison to organisations as a whole. In an ideal situation the individuals should adapt with the environment and perceive the changes as a learning experience to mould them to achieve the best, keeping in mind that sometime change is the key.

The Thirty-Nine Steps Essays

The Thirty-Nine Steps Essays The Thirty-Nine Steps Paper The Thirty-Nine Steps Paper How does John Buchan create suspense in the book The Thirty-Nine Steps? The Thirty Nine Steps by John Buchan is about a man who has to escape London to find the real criminals behind a political assassination. The author throughout the story uses many techniques to create suspense through using the main character Richard Hannay. In the first chapter sets the scene by giving some background history of Hannays life before he gets a visit for Scudder. Buchan in the first few pages of the book is already creating the feeling of suspense when Hannay and Scudder meet outside Hannays flat. The line, Is the door locked? He asked feverishly. This gives me the image that Scudder is really nervous. I feel this creates the impression that something quite serious is going on and that the rest of the story is also going to be exciting. Buchan ends the chapter quite suddenly by finishing with, My guest was lying sprawled on his back. There was a long knife through his heart which skewered him to the floor I feel this ending made it very clear that the man who had confided in Hannay had been killed and left me wondering what was going to happen next in the story. The second chapter deals more with the thoughts of Hannay, who is devising a plan to try and leave London. He does this by stealing the uniform of a milkman. Hannay way gives exact details of timing, six thirty passed, then six forty and At one minute after the quarter to seven. I feel that the exact details of timing keeps the reader involved in the story as it creates a much stronger feeling of suspense and what will happen next. As Hannay sets out to travel to Scotland his decides he must disguise his voice so that he wont be caught out, in my broadest Scots. I feel this continues the deception of Hannay trying to hide from the Police and it also adds to the suspense that he may be caught out at any time and wont be able to stop the political assassination that is about to happen. As Hannay is in a manhunt in Scotland is becoming scared, Crouching low in the tunnels of the bog, I ran till the sweat blinded my eyes. This shows that Hannay is now becoming scared and he could be found at any time. Throughout the story Hannay fools the people he meets and causes suspense because I wonder if the people will believe his story. I pitched him a lovely yarn Hannay had been told lies by Scudder when been told about his situation. The little man told me a pack of lies I feel this created suspense because Hannay is now lost and if it wasnt for Scudders notebook he would have to give himself in. After Hannay is nearly caught by a policeman, I felt that he had no longer any who could help him, it was as if it was him against everyone. my friends at the inn had come to the understanding, and we were united in desiring to see more of me. Then follows an action packed section of the story. The plane that found him before finds Hannay and then he crashes the car and his nearly killed. This gave great suspense as I was faced with the idea that he might be killed at any time, and he would not be able to stop the political assassination that was about to happen. When Hannay spots his enemies in the hills of Scotland he begins to think clearly. He thinks of the time he changed roles with the milkman when he was trying to leave London and thinks he must do the same now. He spots a road worker and swaps role with him. Ill take on your job for a bit and see the surveyor. Here Hannay who was seconds away from death he still managed to think clearly which created suspense. Hannay is starting to struggle with hiding from his pursuers. My lack of local knowledge might very well be my undoing. By showing that Hannay was struggling, I feel that Buchan is building the reader for an exciting ending, which then creates suspense. After Hannay has found safety in the house of an old man he realises that he has made a big mistake. After being locked in a room that hid him from the men who where chasing him, he found himself held at gunpoint. I turned, and saw two men-servants who had me covered with pistols. I think this action packed section of the story has made the story far more exciting as I wondered if Hannay would be killed or would he escape and tell of the political assassination that is about to happen. Hannay realised that he had to get away. I was doing an experiment as simple as Gut Fawkes fireworks. His small knowledge of explosives might just let him escape. In this part of the story great suspense was created here. I wondered would Hannay blow himself up or manage to escape. After managing to escape he headed for a hideout. I feel at this stage in the story that Hannay might actually get free. The final section of the story is action packed when he finds out where he will be able to meet the enemy and find out their plans for the political assassination. Thirty-nine steps-I counted them-High tide, 10. 17pm. I was now very much interested as Buchan as built the story about this section. I also became interested in the story as I thought to myself Hannay might now save the day. As Hannay begins to figure out what the thirty-nine steps are, I become more positive that he would save the day. I felt that there was a lot of suspense here so Buchan could give the ending a maximum impact. When Hannay burst in on the group of criminals he thought he had made a terrible mistake but he noticed that he had seen on of the men from when he was held at gunpoint. I had stood before him in the moor land farm, with pistols of his servants behind me. Everything had now fallen in to place and I knew Hannay would catch the group of criminals. Hannay and his troops chased them and caught them. I feel that John Buchan has succeeded in creating suspense through use of the main character Richard Hannay. Which I thought made the story action packed and interesting.

How To Calculate the Variance and Standard Deviation

How To Calculate the Variance and Standard Deviation Variance and standard deviation are two closely related measures of variation that you will hear about a lot in studies, journals, or statistics class. They are two basic and fundamental concepts in statistics that must be understood in order to understand most other statistical concepts or procedures. Below, we’ll review what they are and how to find the variance and standard deviation. Key Takeaways: Variance and Standard Deviation The variance and standard deviation show us how much the scores in a distribution vary from the average.The standard deviation is the square root of the variance.For small data sets, the variance can be calculated by hand, but statistical programs can be used for larger data sets. Definition By definition, variance and standard deviation are both measures of variation for interval-ratio variables. They describe how much variation or diversity there is in a distribution. Both the variance and standard deviation increase or decrease based on how closely the scores cluster around the mean. Variance is defined as the average of the squared deviations from the mean. To calculate the variance, you first subtract the mean from each number and then square the results to find the squared differences. You then find the average of those squared differences. The result is the variance. The standard deviation is a measure of how spread out the numbers in a distribution are. It indicates how much, on average, each of the values in the distribution deviates from the mean, or center, of the distribution. It is calculated by taking the square root of the variance. A Conceptual Example The variance and standard deviation are important because they tell us things about the data set that we can’t learn just by looking at the mean, or average. As an example, imagine that you have three younger siblings: one sibling who is 13, and twins who are 10. In this case, the average age of your siblings would be 11. Now imagine that you have three siblings, ages 17, 12, and 4. In this case, the average age of your siblings would still be 11, but the variance and standard deviation would be larger. A Quantitative Example Let’s say we want to find the variance and standard deviation of the age among your group of 5 close friends. The ages of you and your friends are 25, 26, 27, 30, and 32. First, we must find the mean age: (25 26 27 30 32) / 5 28. Then, we need to calculate the differences from the mean for each of the 5 friends. 25 – 28 -326 – 28 -227 – 28 -130 – 28 232 – 28 4 Next, to calculate the variance, we take each difference from the mean, square it, then average the result. Variance ( (-3)2 (-2)2 (-1)2 22 42)/ 5 (9 4 1 4 16 ) / 5 6.8 So, the variance is 6.8. And the standard deviation is the square root of the variance, which is 2.61. What this means is that, on average, you and your friends are 2.61 years apart in age. Although it’s possible to calculate the variance by hand for smaller data sets such as this one, statistical software programs can also be used to calculate the variance and standard deviation. Sample Versus Population When conducting statistical tests, it’s important to be aware of the difference between a population and a sample. To calculate the standard deviation (or variance) of a population, you would need to collect measurements for everyone in the group you’re studying; for a sample, you would only collect measurements from a subset of the population. In the example above, we assumed that the group of five friends was a population; if we had treated it as a sample instead, calculating the sample standard deviation and sample variance would be slightly different (instead of dividing by the sample size to find the variance, we would have first subtracted one from the sample size and then divided by this smaller number). Importance of the Variance and Standard Deviation The variance and standard deviation are important in statistics, because they serve as the basis for other types of statistical calculations. For example, the standard deviation is necessary for converting test scores into Z-scores. The variance and standard deviation also play an important role when conducting statistical tests such as t-tests. References Frankfort-Nachmias, C. Leon-Guerrero, A. (2006). Social Statistics for a Diverse Society. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press.