Air Pollution Essay 24

What are the effects and sources of air pollution Assignment III Rachita Mittal Western International University SCI 270 Mrs. Saudamani Sharma Introduction Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological materials that cause harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or damages the natural environment, into the atmosphere. The atmosphere is a complex, dynamic natural gaseous system that is essential to support life on planet Earth. Stratospheric ozone depletion due to air pollution has long been recognized as a threat to human health as well as to the Earth's ecosystems. History Humans probably first experienced harm from air pollution when they built fires in poorly ventilated caves. Since then we have gone on to pollute more of the earth's surface. Until recently, environmental pollution problems have been local and minor because of the Earth's own ability to absorb and purify minor quantities of pollutants. The industrialization of society, the introduction of motorized vehicles, and the explosion of the population, are factors contributing toward the growing air pollution problem. At this time it is urgent that we find methods to clean up the air. The primary air pollutants found in most urban areas are carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, hydrocarbons, and particulate matter (both solid and liquid). These pollutants are dispersed throughout the world's atmosphere in concentrations high enough to gradually cause serious health problems. Serious health problems can occur quickly when air pollutants are concentrated, such as when massive injections of sulfur dioxide and suspended particulate matter are emitted by a large volcanic eruption. Air Pollution in the Home You cannot escape air pollution, not even in your own home. â€Å"In 1985 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reported that toxic chemicals found in the air of almost every American home are three times more likely to cause some type of cancer than outdoor air pollutants†. (Miller 488) The health problems in these buildings are called â€Å"sick building syndrome†. â€Å"An estimated one-fifth to one-third of all U. S. buildings are now considered â€Å"sick†. (Miller 489) The EPA has found that the air in some office buildings is 100 times more polluted than the air outside. Poor ventilation causes about half of the indoor air pollution problems. The rest come from specific sources such as copying machines, electrical and telephone cables, mold and microbe-harboring air conditioning systems and ducts, cleaning fluids, cigarette smoke, carpet, latex caulk and paint, vinyl molding, linoleum tile, and building materials and furniture that emit air pollutants such as formaldehyde. A major indoor air pollutant is radon-222, a colorless, odorless, tasteless, naturally occurring radioactive gas produced by the radioactive decay of uranium-238. According to studies by the EPA and the National Research Council, exposure to radon is second only to smoking as a cause of lung cancer†. (Miller 489)   Radon enters through pores and cracks in concrete when indoor air pressure is less than the pressure of gasses in the soil. Indoor air will be healthier than outdoor air if you use an energy recovery ventilator to provide a consistent supply of fresh filtered air and then seal air leaks in the shell of your home. Air pollution has unhealthy effects on people, animals and plant-life across the globe. Every time we inhale, we carry dangerous air pollutants into our bodies. These pollutants can cause short-term effects such as eye and throat irritation. More alarming, however, are the long-term effects such as cancer and damage to the body's immune, neurological, reproductive and respiratory systems. Acid Rain is a significant air pollution problem that affects rural, suburban and urban areas that are down-wind of major industrial areas. Acid rain is caused when sulfur and nitrogen pollution from industrial smokestacks is combined with moisture in the atmosphere. The resulting rain is acidic which destroys natural ecosystems ands buildings. Global Warming, as pollution gathers in the Earth's atmosphere, it traps heat and causes average temperatures to rise. It is hard to predict exactly how climate change will affect a particular area. Here are a few likely results: †¢ A rise in sea level between 3. 5 and 34. 6 in. 9-88cm) leading to more coastal erosion, flooding during storms and permanent inundation †¢ Severe stress on many forests, wetlands, alpine regions, and other natural ecosystems †¢ Greater threats to human health as mosquitoes and other disease-carrying insects and rodents spread diseases over larger geographical regions †¢ Disruption of agriculture in some parts of the world due to increased temperature, water stress and sea-level rise in low-lying areas such as Bangladesh or the Missi ssippi River delta. Sources and health effects of air pollution | |Pollutants |Sources |Health Effects | |Nitrogen dioxide |All combustion processes (for example road vehicles |General irritation to airways including increased | | |and domestic heating) produce oxides of nitrogen (NOx)|chance of respiratory infection and impaired lung | | |which particularly in the presence of ozone is |function. | |converted into nitrogen dioxide. | | |Primary |Road traffic (for example diesel engines, brake and |Respiratory and cardiovascular problems. Concerns | |Particulates |tyre wear); industrial sources (for example power |about long-term effects. | | |stations). | | |Secondary |Formed through the oxidation (presence of ozone) of |Respiratory and cardiovascular problems. Concerns | |Particulates (e. g. |particular gases (for example sulphur dioxide, |about long-term effects. | |sulphates, nitrates) |nitrogen dioxide) in the atmosphere condensing to form| | | |fine particles. | | |Carbon monoxide |Road transport and industry (all combustion of carbon |Reduces the oxygen carrying capacity of blood and at | | |based fuels). low levels reduces concentration and at higher levels| | | |causes headaches, nausea, dizziness. At very high | | | |levels it can lead to death. | |Sulphur dioxide |Combustion of fossil fuels (mainly coal and heavy |Causes breathing difficulties, and irritation of the | | |oils). |eyes, nose, throat and lungs. People suffering from | | | |asthma are particularly susceptible. | |Lead |Petrol and industry (such as smelting, and paint |Can effect the intellectual development of children, | | |works). |and at very high doses poisoning, brain and organ | | | |damage can occur. | |Benzene |Combustion and distribution of petrol. |Exposure over a long time can lead to cancer. |1, 3 Butadiene |Combustion of petrol and diesel, and the production of|Exposure over a long time can lead to cancer. | | |rubber for tyres. | | |Ozone |Ozone is a photochemical pollutant which means it is |Exposure can cause an irritant effect on the lungs, | | |primarily formed by the reactions of other pollutants |airway inflammation and short term respiratory | | |such as nitrogen oxides in the presence of sunlight. |symptoms. |

Recruitment and Selection Essay

DISCRIMINATION,SELF-FULFILLING PROPHECIES IN THE SELECTION-RECRUITMENT INTERVIEW Employers always want to have an interview when they want to select new personal in their company. Ofcourse, they want to be sure about new personal about that he or she does suit in their position in the company. Accordingly, interviews are important for their company in that finding right person. Therefore, it is possible to say recruitment and selection forms a core part of the central activities underlying human resource management: namely, the aquisition, development and reward of workers. Essential aspect of the interview, the social interaction occuring between interviewer and interviewee. The thesis of this paper discussing the influences which effect state of affairs during the interview according to Robert Merton’s ‘Self-Fulfilling Prophecy’. Merton is describing self-fulfilling prophecy as a ‘false definition of the situation evoking a new behaviour which makes the original false conception come ‘true’. This specious validity of the self-fulfilling prophecy perpetuates a reign of error.’ We can say that, interviewer’s bias or stereotypes might effect their initial impression about employee, according to Merton’s theory. Giving a spesific example will make it clearer; if interviewer has some stereotypes about black people, when they have interview with one of interviewee who is black, they will behave them according to their bias. Regarding this, firstly pre-interview information on the interviewee will effect interviewer’s pre-interview evaluation of the interviewee’s qualifications; secondly, first step will effect interviewer’s perception of the interviewee’s performance in the interview, then second step will effect interviewer’s post-interview evaluation of the interviewee’s qualifications; finally it will effect interviewer’s last decision on the interviewee. Consequently, it is possible to say having some bias or stereotypes cause of discrimination during the  interviews. Several studies have provided indirect support of the proposition, although they do not constitute direct test of the effects of pre-interview decisions. For instance, interviewers appear to decide on whether to hire or reject applicants before the end of the interview. The findings, however, are somewhat mixed as to just how early they make their decisions. (Springbett, 1958) Springbett (1958) found that 88 percent of the post-interview evaluations of the applicants could be predicted succesfully from pre-interview evaluation of the candidates based on their applications. Huguenard, Sager, and Ferguson (1970) manipulated the interviewer’s pre-interview impressions by providing bogus feedback from personality tests that the interviewee was either warm or cold. Regardless of whether the interview was 10,20, or 30 minutes in length, the interviewers describe the interviewees with words that were consistent with pre-interview set. The sum up, the self-fulfilling prophecy can be used for examine the discrimination in pre-interview step and having stereotypes effects all steps druing the interview. The laws prohibiting discrimination on grounds of sex, race, disability, sexual orientation and religion expressly outlaw discrimination in the process of recruitment and selection.(Daniels K., Macdonal L., 2005) Effective recruitment requires an objective, systematic and planned approach if unlawful discrimination is to be avoided. Also it is important to avoid discrimination during the recruitment process. This not only is a legal requirement, but also gives employers the best chance of getting the right person for the job. The review of articles say us, interviewer might behave to interviewee according to his or her ideas from pre-interview step, during the interview. With an example we can make it clearer, differences between amount of men employers and women employers might be result of discrimination on pre-interview step. If interviewer believe that women should take care of children at home, when interviewer has interview with a woman, he will behave to interviewee according to this idea. Interviewer might not recruit a woman for job because of concerns that she might want to start a family and she might want to have children. Also, according to self-fulfilling prophecy, when women experienced that situation more than once they might be convinced to stay at home and work in less-cost  jobs. REFERENCES Daniels, K., & Macdonal, L.Equality, Diversity and Discrimination, chapter 5 CIPD, 2005 Huguenard, J. M., &Sager, E. B., &Ferguson, L. W. Interview time, inerview set, and interview outcome. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 1970. Merton, R., Social Theory and Social Structure. Glencoe, 3: pp. 193-210. The Free Press, 1957 Springbett, B. M. Factors affecting the final decision in the employment interview. Canadian Journal off Psychology, 1958

Prophecy of the sisters

Alice and Lila were always close, but after her father's death Alice seemed strange and distant, sneaking around the ameliorate manner. It Is soon realized the two have become enemies due to the prophecy, one good and one evil. The setting and world of the book seemed very realistic and interesting to me, the way the author incorporated literary themes into the unrealistic areas of the book made it hard to put down! The twin sisters are not your typically good versus bad twin, â€Å"only time will tell who is the guardian and who is the gate† (98) which gives it a retain mystery element that gets you captured.You get sucked into this world where what you think you know, Is not what you really know. Is Alice the good twin or Is Lila? While the two are battling to either close the Gate forever or release the beast and all the lost souls from other traveling worlds you you get a taste of good versus evil and you find yourself despising Alice and rooting for Lila, who has â€Å"n ever denied her sister to be careless, self centered, even spiteful, but it never occurred to her before the prophecy that she might actually be cruel. 132) As they discover their true roles in the prophecy that has turned generations of sisters against each other, Lila has a choice to make, save herself or save everyone around her that she loves. As she races to end the prophecy before her sister does the anticipation only builds, despite the unrealistic ideals of the book. I feel that because the book started in a â€Å"normal† or realistic setting and led up to the untangling of the mysterious prophecy it was easier to believe and I often felt I was deciphering the prophecy along with Lila, this kept my interest throughout the whole book. Some real world Ideas that popped out to me while reading the book were how everybody treats you Like your fragile or different after the death of a loved one, especially a parent. (I know about this first hand). Everyone feels as if they owe you an apology, so when Lila and Alice go back to Housewife everyone at school â€Å"avoids eye contact and whispers what could only be about them† (46) until Mrs†¦ Gray speaks for everyone when she tells the girls that she is sorry for their loss.I also noticed how they didn't get in as much trouble as their friends, Impartially Louisa, an Italian orphan who was taken In by another teacher, even though they all left school together. Alice and La got off easier because their father was one of Housewife's biggest beneficiary's. Mrs†¦ Gray did not want them to know this so she tried to cover it up by saying â€Å"her pity for their recent loss was the only thing that kept them from getting a report sent to their aunt Virginia† (56) but the girls knew better.I feel this portrays class differences and the different treatment wealthier people get, or how if you're somebody who has money you often get off easier or get a lesser punishment. All were the ones th at stuck out to me the most. 3. This is personally my favorite genre to read, when I'm upset or stressed I can Just emerge myself in a great science fiction book such as The Prophecy of the Sisters and forget about the world around me for awhile.It is often hard for me to focus in on a book unless it really catches my interest, and I find myself fascinated with science fiction novels about mythology and the fantasy world. I have read many books much like this one, that I actually read a couple years ago and it became one of my personal favorites because many of the elements in it (souls, legends, the dead still being all around us, physics, etc. ) I actually believe in.I forgot the details of the book and I loved it so much the first time I read it I had to reread it again because I thought it would be perfect for this assignment and I will definitely be reading the next three books of the series as soon as possible. I love the way it starts out as a â€Å"normal† book but on ce an old legend (prophecy) is discovered you feel like you're unfolding the mystery and learning the prophecy for yourself as if you are Lila, protecting your family and saving the world room destruction by the lost souls and â€Å"the seven deadly plagues of no return, death, famine, blood, fire, darkness, drought, and ruin. (36) I think focusing more on books of this genre in school would be more beneficial to students and teachers instead of the boring classical novels we're forced to read. If teachers assigned students books they WANT to read, instead of ones they had to, they would get more involved and more students would actually read the books. This would result in overall better test grades which makes teachers and students happy.

Do Corporate Incentive Programs Pay Thesis Proposal

Do Corporate Incentive Programs Pay - Thesis Proposal Example According to a survey conducted by Incentive Federation in 2005, organizations implement incentive programs with aim to: boost morale; show concern for workers; generate leads; improve customer service; improve quality and productivity; foster teamwork (Incentive Performance Center, 2008). Of these, increase in workers’ productivity and efficiency is an important corollary of the corporate incentive programs. A Russell Index study on publicly held stocks of Fortune magazine’s list of â€Å"100 Best Companies to Work For† observed that since 1998, these companies have returned to the investors five times that they could have earned by a broader market index, such as the S&P 500 (Incentive Performance Center, 2008). This undoubtedly exemplifies the relationship between â€Å"best places to work for† and return on investment (ROI) viewed from the stand point of investors. But does the same relationship hold good for productivity and efficiency; more important ly in organisations that are outside the gambit of Fortune magazine’s list of 100 best companies to work for; though, the researcher personally believes it to be. Further, does â€Å"best-place-to-work-for† include corporate incentive? Therefore, it becomes necessary to empirically verify that corporate incentive programs invariably do have a strong positive correlation with workers’ productivity and overall organisational efficiency.... This undoubtedly exemplifies the relationship between â€Å"best places to work for† and return on investment (ROI) viewed from the stand point of investors. But does the same relationship hold good for productivity and efficiency; more importantly in organisations that are outside the gambit of Fortune magazine’s list of 100 best companies to work for; though, the researcher personally believes it to be. Further, does â€Å"best-place-to-work-for† include corporate incentive? Therefore, it becomes necessary to empirically verify that corporate incentive programs invariably do have a strong positive correlation with workers’ productivity and overall organisational efficiency. In other words, do corporate incentive programs work well in enhancing workers’ productivity and organizational efficiency? It also becomes necessary to understand about the elements that are contained in the recipe of â€Å"best-place-to-work-for† and their interrelatio nships; and how they are correlated? Literature Review In pursuit of this research question, it is intended that a thorough understanding of the current conditions in the field of study is made so that besides being familiar with the studies undertaken so far and current thinking on relevant issues, the researcher is also aware of the general problems and opportunities existing in this field of research. Nonetheless, the necessity of identifying the key gears of this study and developing sufficient insight on how they work cannot be overestimated. The researcher identified a three-component assembly for this research: (1) corporate incentives, (2) workers’ productivity, and (3) organisational

Corporate governance - Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Corporate governance - Law - Essay Example According to Andreasson (n.d. P 2) corporate governance in emerging markets is a critical issue where companies are constantly struggling for investors to raise capital base. About the scope of governance, Abdulla and Valentine (2009, p89) point out that â€Å"corporate governance includes all types of firms and its definitions could extend to cover all of the economic and non-economic activities† p 89. This needs to be embraced by the UK in its bid to improve its corporate governance. One way by which the UK can improve its corporate governance as shall be discussed in diversity is by incorporation of corporate governance and the complexity theory which encompasses many approches integrated into the governance system. Because the perception that the stakeholders about a company is an elastic issue that depends on the corporate image created by the company there has been experienced varying business performances by corporations in the financial and stock markets. This has led to the new wave seeking to transform the way legislative and procedural policies are made and employed by companies to stay afloat in the internal and external market. Therefore board actions on corporate management need effective monitoring so as to avert the corporate failures resulting from traditional corporate strategies as experienced in the UK capital markets. Their short-term policies are feared to be the main reasons for the low efficiency and low return on invested capital yet the companies largely depend on public equity financing amidst their many financial access options (DoB 2010, p 10). A look at the Bitish policies on company opertations shows an emphasis on the accountability of the directors to the shareholders while they set the policies for the company (FRC 2010, p9-11). However the weakness in the Companies Act 2006 which allows for freedom by companies to adjust corporate rules using their constitutions remotely diminishes the corporate sense of the shareholder s who are the main contributors of investment through public equity funds. This calls for real improvement that will address the weaknesses that have led to failure of many corporate organisations which lies in the role played by the company directorate (Kiarie 2007, p2). Kiarie identifies the non-specificity of the management roles in the companies especially the non-executive directors (NEDs) whom she says must play an important role in checking the power wielded by CEOs based on their independance and autonomy. This is possible if the companies willingly offer relevant and sufficient information other than the one the NEDs solicit for use in decision making and judgment. Therefore the NED should be part of the shareholder pressure on the corporate board that would enhance the value of the firm in form, of policies and strategies (Brenner, 2008 p 3-5). It is realised that most companies are reluctant to freely disclose their portfolio in the bid to cut on costs and keep competitor s at bay a fact that has made the shareholdders and the NEDs in darkness on the exact positioning of the company in the corporate market in what Brenner calls â€Å"free rider problem† p 5. This in a way has been the reason for mixed responses from stakeholders ranging

Employee Relations And Customer Satisfaction Case Study

Employee Relations And Customer Satisfaction - Case Study Example It is the classification of a society according to the values, interests, and behaviors. It is determined by the social categories’ income, education, wealth among other factors. The higher the classification of a people in society, the greater their ability to afford a better lifestyle. The society is mostly categorized in divisions of high class, the middle class, the working class and the low-class citizens. A higher class of people will desire the banking services of a higher class and vice versa (Beryl, 1996). Subculture, yet another characteristic refers to who share certain values, based on their similar experiences in life and exposure to similar situations. These groups of a society exhibit similar buying characteristics since their taste and preferences in purchasing products and services are influenced by similarity is situations and experiences. These are the characteristics that play a major role in determining the tastes and preferences of individuals or groups of people in the society that also influences the banking services and facilities they seek (Jefferson, 2011). The buyer makes a decision to purchase goods and services by following a process well defined. The buyer first recognizes the needs and wants that they have, which needs to be fulfilled. Information search follows, where the buyer seeks to understand the ranges of products and services that can meet their identified needs. The buyer then embarks on analyzing the alternatives provided to him, based on the potential range of products and services that can meet their needs (Heskett, 2008). The buyer then settles on the product or service to buy. Once he has made the decision on what to purchase, he then goes on and purchases the product, and applies it to fulfill the needs and wants that he had. The last stage of the process is a post-purchase evaluation, where the buyer assesses the products or services he purchased for their suitability to meet his needs.

Global Warming is Manmade Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Global Warming is Manmade - Essay Example Scientists have implicated this phenomenon in causing the general rise in temperature that is global warming. The objective of this essay is to outline the various ways in which human activities generate the gases that are primarily responsible for global warming, and also argue that global warming is mainly due to the effect of human activities. One of the major anthropogenic causes of global warming is the use of fossil fuels in industries and transport (Nardo , Don; Johnson, Roberta; Young, Terrence Jr. E, 2008). Fossil fuels, when burned, produce carbon IV oxide. Carbon IV oxide is a dense gas, and when emitted, it blankets the earth, helping to retain the heat on the surface of the earth. This, over time, causes an increase in the temperatures on the surface of the earth, leading to global warming. There has been widespread controversy over whether human industrial activity fosters global warming. Some skeptics have come out to proclaim that global warming and climate change are largely natural events that do not need human input so as to manifest themselves (Alexander, Ralph B, 2009). They argue that even in the absence of human activities, global warming would still be a reality. The skeptics have gone so far as to claim that the statistics provided by scientists are all part of a hoax. However, there is sufficient scientific evidence to pin down these skeptics as to the truth of whether or not anthropogenic activities contribute to global warming. Another cause of global warming is deforestation. The rate at which forest trees continue to be felled contributes significantly to global warming. Trees help eliminate carbon IV oxide from the atmosphere. When forests are disturbed, the practice interferes with this natural source of carbon IV oxide management. Therefore, carbon IV oxide levels continue to rise unchecked. This

Business Intelligence Information Systems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Business Intelligence Information Systems - Essay Example There are many other roles of business intelligence systems as well (Mulcahy, 2012). The reason why companies use business intelligence systems is for the reason that they collect a lot of data from their business operations. Data are then stored, and in order to maintain and keep a check on these data, the business needs a reliable software such as MS Word and Excel and many other data keeping software and applications. Maintaining such data becomes complicated if two or more applications are used. That is why businesses use business intelligence software which provides adequate maintenance of all the data (Mulcahy, 2012). This paper aims to discuss two business intelligence software products along with their features and a description of their manufacturers. Spotfire The real factor of success for a business in terms of exploiting information in order to gain a benefit is ‘reporting’. When the reporting software of a business is down, it means that the software is not relaying information to the right people at the right time due to which decision making problems arise. Spotfire is business intelligence software developed by TIBCO which contains all the necessary functions (TIBCO, 2011). ‘TIBCO Software Inc.’ is a software company which manufactures business intelligence software amongst other infrastructure software for large and small business organizations. The software manufactured by TIBCO is used on-premise and or as cloud computing setting. There are many customers which enjoy the products built by TIBCO Inc (TIBCO, 2011). ‘Spotfire’ is business intelligence software which provides much optimized intelligence analytical applications for the maintenance and efficiency of data. There are plenty of features of Spotfire; it offers analytical software combined with visuals and an interactive component which allows companies to exploit their data and retrieve whatever data they want to. The main feature of the Spotfire software system is the fact that you can actually view your intelligence and the interaction pertaining to your business’s intelligence due to the fact that Spotfire has a very good data visualization interface (TIBCO, 2011). Spotfire’s technical and intelligent approach to business intelligence is aiding various business enterprises in increasing their performance efficiently. Finance companies use Spotfire to maintain and keep a check on compliance and risk, manage various selection tasks and maintain attribution analysis (TIBCO, 2011). Necto ‘Necto’ is very good business intelligence software which is manufactured by Panorama. Necto is the latest in the line of business intelligence products and what sets it apart from other business intelligent programs is the fact that it is a socially enabled intelligence solution which has been never seen before. The Necto software has a wide variety of features which are very beneficial to business and other organi zations; it offers a very innovative, ingenious and simple way to link data, analysis of the data and the people working in the company. Necto is a new technology which is more efficient and much faster; it is a generation of

Analysis of Global Governance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Analysis of Global Governance - Essay Example On the other hand, it has been proved that the decisions of governments on crucial political, social and economic issues may present similarities in countries internationally – a phenomenon observed especially in countries with common social or cultural characteristics. In this way, local political choices may influence the forms of international policies – a trend well developed in areas such as security and governance. The current paper focuses on the critical examination and comparison of two studies focusing on global governance: the study of Held & McGrew (2002) and that of Wilkinson & Hughes (2002); both of these studies refer to the criteria, the characteristics and the implications of global governance. The interpretation of global governance – as given by the above writers – is critically discussed by referring to the actual political and social conditions in the international community. Moreover, the examination of their work led to the assumptio n that global governance can have a long-term impact on various aspects of international political and social framework. In this study, an emphasis is given on the implications of global governance for security – as these implications can be identified in the work of Held et al. (2002) and Wilkinson et al. (2002). It is concluded that the above studies indicate a relationship between global governance and security; however, the level at which this relationship is developed is depended on the grade of acceptance of the relevant schemes by the authorities of each country – which are asked to adopt a specific global governance or security scheme. In order to evaluate the potential differences in the interpretation of global governance as developed by Held et al. (2002) and Wilkinson et al. (2002), it would be necessary to refer primarily to the criteria on which these two studies have been based.  Ã‚  

USA Today December 8, 2008 Essay Example for Free

USA Today December 8, 2008 Essay The first article â€Å"Toxic Air and America’s School† talks about how the air that we breathe has been increasingly becoming toxic, which puts children studying in schools that are near areas that emit toxic substances to the air. Because of the growing concern, USA Today together with the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, and the University of Maryland in College Park, conducted a study to determine just how toxic the air that school children breathe when inside the campus. The study showed there were seven schools that had high readings of toxic chemicals and â€Å"the concentrations of chemicals were high enough that they could cause serious illnesses or increase the risk of cancer if people were exposed to those levels for a long time† (USA Today, 2008). The most possible solution for air toxicity, especially in areas where children are constantly present, is for the local government and other concerned agencies to put a stop to those companies that produce the harmful substances. It should be suggested that these companies be relocated to other areas where there are little population so that it does not affect not only the health of children but also of everybody. Another article from USA Today entitled â€Å"Schools can be hit by chemicals from several industries† talks about just how much school children are exposed to harmful substances everyday in school due to the presence of not just one but several chemical industries in the vicinity. Although there are many factors that can affect the dispersion of the chemical substances produced by the companies, the school within the vicinity cannot escape from their harmful effects because there are other factories that can pollute the air and contribute to the overall toxicity of the air. Children are in danger of developing serious health problems because they are exposed in this kind of air throughout the day since they spend the whole day inside the school. As with the first solution, it is recommended that factories that are proved to be emitting high levels of toxic substances in the air should be relocated to places where there are not much people who can get affected. However, it would be a better solution if these companies could lower their toxicity levels such that they do not cause harm to the people and the environment whether they are near schools or in rural areas where the population is fewer. The government and concerned agencies should be stricter when it comes to making sure that these companies do not exceed the levels of the chemical substances so that they do not cause any harm. References USA Today. Schools can be hit by chemicals from several industries. Retrieved December 10, 2008, from http://content. usatoday. com/news/nation/environment/smokestack/interactive/5 USA Today. What USA TODAY monitors found. Retrieved December 10, 2008, from http://www. usatoday. com/news/nation/environment/school-air-snapshotchart. htm

Discoveries And Inventions In Fundamental Sciences History Essay

Discoveries And Inventions In Fundamental Sciences History Essay There is a general concept that the sciences are exclusively the products of Western minds. Review of any standard book or encyclopedias regarding the history of science makes evident that the only contributors are Europeans and/or Americans. The most oft-mentioned names are Kepler, Galileo, Copernicus, Bacon, Da Vinci, Franklin, Newton, Benjamin etc. Thus it is made unavoidable to conclude the major contributions to the development of the modern sciences by other cultures are minimal. The advancements made by ancient Chinese, Indian or particularly, Muslim scholars are hardly mentioned in most standard books and literature. Although Western civilization has made many invaluable contributions to the development of the sciences however, so have numerous other cultures. Unfortunately, Westerners have long been credited with discoveries that were made by muslims scientists many centuries before. Thus, many of the basic sciences were invented by non-Europeans. For instance, George Sarton states that modern Western medicine did not originate from Europe and that it actually arose from the (Islamic) orient. inShare91 515 points on reddit Major Inventions of Muslim Scientists: A number of inventions and discoveries were made by the Muslim scientists throughout the history. Muslim geographers and navigators learned the use of magnetic needle, from the Chinese, and were the first to use magnetic needles in navigation. Muslims invented the compass and its use in navigation, which was later on passed to the West. European navigators relied on Muslim pilots and their instruments while exploring the unknown territories. Gustav Le Bon claims that the magnetic needle and compass were the inventions of Muslims. The Chinese, probably learned of it from Muslim traders. It is noteworthy that after the interaction with the Muslims during the 8th century the Chinese improved their navigational expertise. Ibn Firnas a Muslim scientist of Islamic Spain invented, constructed and tested a flying machine in the 800s A.D. Roger Bacon learned of flying machines from Arabic references to Ibn Firnas machine. According to Will Durant, Ibn Firnas of Islamic Spain, invented a watch-like device in 9th century, which kept accurate time. The Muslims also constructed a variety of highly accurate astronomical clocks for use in their observatories. As early as the 9th century A.D Muslim mathematicians, the inventors of algebra, introduced the concept of using letters for unknown variables in equations. They solved a variety of complex equations through this system, including quadratic and cubic equations. They used symbols to develop and perfect the binomial theorem. Thabit bin Qurrah was among the first Mathematicians of the Islamic Empire who accomplished this precisely this as early as the 9th century A.D, and he was followed by Abul Wafa, whose 10th century book utilized algebra to advance geometry into an exact and simplified science. In the 9th century Muslim astronomers made numerous improvements upon Ptolemys findings. They were the first astronomers to dispute his archaic ideas. They produced hundreds of highly accurate astronomical tables and star charts. Many of their calculations are so precise that they are regarded as contemporary. Copies of works on astronomy the Alphonsine Tables was transmitted to Europe via Islamic Spain, i.e. the Toledo Tables. In their critic of the Greeks, Muslims synthesized proof that the sun is the center of the solar system and that the orbits of other planets and the earth might be elliptical. During the 9th century the Muslim physician originated the science of pharmacology and was developed into a highly refined and exact science. Muslim chemists, pharmacists and physicians produced thousands of drugs and/or crude herbal extracts one thousand years prior to the supposed birth of pharmacology. During the 9th century, eyeglasses were invented by Ibn Firnas of Islamic Spain and they were manufactured and sold throughout Spain for over two centuries. Any mention of eyeglasses by Roger Bacon was simply a regurgitation of the work of al-Haytham (d. 1039), whose research Bacon frequently referred to. During the 8th through 15th centuries, Muslim geographers produced untold volumes of books on the geography of Africa, Asia, India, China and the Indies. These writings included the worlds first geographical encyclopedias, almanacs and road maps. The 14th century masterpieces of Ibn Battutah provide a detailed view of the geography of the ancient world. The science of ethnography was invented by the Muslim scholars of the 9th through 14th centuries. A number of Muslim geographers classified the races, writing detailed explanations of their physical appearances and unique cultural habits. Blumenbachs works were insignificant in comparison. Muslim physicians used a variety of specific substances to destroy microbes. They applied sulfur topically specifically to kill the scabies mite. Ar-Razi (10th century) used mercurial compounds as topical antiseptics. During the 9th and 10th centuries, the Venetians learned of the art of fine glass production from Syrian artisans. Glass mirrors were in use in Islamic Spain as early as the 11th century. Ibn Yunus al-Masri discovered the pendulum in the 10th century, and was the first to study and document its oscillatory motion. Its value for use in clocks was introduced by Muslim physicists during the 15th century. Muslim mathematicians as early as the 10th century solved numerous equations of even higher degrees with ease. Binomial theorem was utilized and perfected for its use in the systematic solution of algebraic problems by hundreds of the Muslim mathematicians. In the 10th century numerous Muslim chemists produced medicinal-grade alcohol through the process of distillation and manufactured the first distillation devices on a large scale for use in chemistry. They used alcohol as a solvent and antiseptic. The prophet Muhammad wisely warned against entering or leaving a region suffering from plague thus introducing the concept of quarantine for the very first time in the 7th century A.D. later in the 10th century, Muslim physicians innovated the use of isolation wards for individuals suffering with communicable diseases. As early as the 10th century, Muslim physicians and surgeons of 10th century used to apply purified alcohol to wounds as an antiseptic agent. In Islamic Spain surgeons utilized special methods for maintaining antisepsis prior to and during surgery. The origin of specific protocols for maintaining hygiene during the post-operative period raised the success rate so high that dignitaries throughout Europe came to Cordova, Spain, to be treated at what was comparably the Mayo Clinic of the Middle Ages. Islams ar-Razi wrote an in-depth treatise on the venous system, accurately describing the function of the veins and their valves in the 10th century. Timeline of Muslim Scientists from 700 900 AD: 8th century: 700s [petroleum; civil engineering] In Baghdad the streets were constructed and paved with tar, coming from the petroleum that oozed in natural oil fields in the region.   700s 800s [cosmetics] In Spain a beauty institute was started by Ziryab (Blackbird). 740 828 Al-Amai, Zoology, Botany, Animal husbandry.   770 840 [mathematics] The Calculus of resolution and juxtaposition (hisab al-jabr wal-muqabala), more briefly referred to as al-jabr, or algebra, was developed by Kharazmi, Algebra was a unifying theory which allowed rational numbers, irrational numbers, geometrical magnitudes, etc., to all be treated as algebraic objects. It gave mathematics a whole new development path so much broader in concept to that which had existed before, and provided a vehicle for future development of the subject. Another important aspect of the introduction of algebraic ideas was that it allowed mathematics to be applied to itself in a way which had not happened before.   Al-Khwarizmis successors undertook a systematic application of arithmetic to algebra, algebra to arithmetic, both to trigonometry, algebra to the Euclidean theory of numbers, algebra to geometry, and geometry to algebra. This was how the creation of polynomial algebra, combinatorial analysis, numerical analysis, the numerical solution of equations, the new elementary theory of numbers, and the geometric construction of equations arose.   Late 700s 800 [musical science] Mansour Zalzal of Kufa was a musician (luth) and composer of the Abbasid era. Contributed musical scales that were later named after him (the Mansouri scale) and introduced positions (intervals) within scales such as the wasati-zalzal that was equidistant from the alwasati alqadima and wasati al-fors who made improvements on the design of the luth instrument and designed the Luth. In 715 800 [chemistry] The Muslim chemist, Geber (Jabir ibn Hayyan), is considered the father of chemistry, for introducing the experimental scientific method for chemistry, such as alembic, still, retort, pure distillation, liquefaction, crystallisation, purification, oxidisation, evaporation, and filtration. He was the first chemist known to produce sulfuric acid, as well as many other laboratory instruments and chemical substances. His works include The elaboration of the Grand Elixir, The chest of wisdom in which he writes on nitric acid, Kitab al-Istitmam (translated to Latin later as Summa Perfectionis), and many others.   715 800 [alchemy] Geber, introduced the first theories on the transmutation of metals, the philosophers stone, and the artificial creation of life in the laboratory.   715 800 [glass] Geber added colour to glass by introducing small quantities of metallic oxides to the glass, such as manganese dioxide (magnesia). This was a new advancement in the glass industry unknown in antiquity.   9th century: 800 868 [biology, zoology, linguistics, language,] Amr ibn Bahr al-Jahiz wrote a number of works on zoology, lexicography, rhetoric, and Arabic grammar. In his most famous book the Book of Animals, he was the first to discuss food chains, and environmental determinism by arguing that the environment can determine the physical characteristics of the inhabitants in a certain community he also stated that the origins of different colors of human skin is the result of the environment. The struggle for existence and the theory of evolution by natural selection was first discussed by him. 800 873 Ibn Ishaq Al-Kindi (Latinized, Alkindus.) was an expert in Optics, Metallurgy, Cryptography, Medicine, Mathematics, Physics and Philosophy. He worked at the House of Wisdom which was set up in 810. He introduces quantification into medicine in his book De Gradibus.   In 810 the works of Greek and Indian scientists on astronomy and mathematics were translated into Arabic in Bayt al-Hikma (House of Wisdom) which was set up in Baghdad. 820 [mathematics] Mahani (full name Abu Abdollah Muhammad ibn Isa Mahani in Arabic Al-Mahani). Conceived the idea of reducing geometrical problems such as duplicating the cube to algebraic problems.   836 901 [anatomy; astronomy; mathematics; mechanics] Born Thabit Ibn Qurra (Latinized, Thebit.) made considerable contributions in mathematics particularly in number theory and geometry while studying at Baghdads House of Wisdom under the Banu Musa brothers. He discovered the theorem by which pairs of amicable numbers can be found; i.e., two numbers such that each is the sum of the proper divisors of the other. Later, al-Baghdadi (b. 980) and al-Haytham (born 965) developed variants of the theorem.   838 870 Tabari (full name: Ali ibn Sahl Rabban Al-Tabari) made many contributions in Calligraphy, Mathematics, Literature, and Medicine.   In mid 800s [chemistry] Al-Kindi gave 107 recipes for making perfumes and also wrote on the distillation of wine as that of rose water, in his book Kitab Kimia al-`otoor wa al-tas`eedat (book of the chemistry of perfumes and distillations).   850 930 [mathematics] Abu Kamil of Egypt (full name, Abu Kamil Shuja ibn Aslam ibn Muhammad ibn Shuja) made an important link in the development of algebra between al-Khwarizmi and al-Karajis time not using the symbols, but writing powers of x in words, he had begun to understand what should be written in symbols. 852 [aviation, flight] Abbas Ibn Firnas (Armen Firman) made the first successful parachute fall near CÃÆ' ³rdoba, Spain using a huge wing-like cloak. 858 929 [astronomy mathematics] Al-Battani (Albategnius) made valuable works on astronomy, trigonometry etc.   860 Al-Farghani (Al-Fraganus) was master in Civil engineering and Astronomy. 864 930 [chemistry; medicine] Al-Razi (Rhazes) studied Astronomy, Chemistry, Medicine, Ophthalmology and Smallpox. He wrote on Naft (naphta or petroleum) and its distillates in his book Kitab sirr al-asrar (book of the secret of secrets). When choosing a site to build Baghdads hospital, he hung pieces of fresh meat in different parts of the city and selected the location where the meat took the longest to rot, for building the hospital. He also suggested that patients must not be told about their real condition so that fear or despair may not affect the healing process. His notable works were on soap, alkali, caustic soda, and glycerine. He also gave the descriptions of equipment, processes and methods for their preparation in his book Kitab al-Asrar (book of secrets) in 925.   870 950 Al-Farabi (Al-Pharabius) wrote on early Islamic philosophy, logic in Islamic philosophy, Muslim sociology, musical science and political science. In   875 [aviation, flight] Abbas Ibn Firnas made the first flight in a hang glider with artificial wings, but his landing was unsuccessful. He also worked on mechanics of Flight, Planetarium, and Artificial Crystals. Ibn Firnas was the first to investigate the means of flight.   800s [chemistry; petroleum] Oilfields in Baku, Azerbaijan, generated commercial activities and industry. These oilfields, were wells dug to get the Naft (or naphta, or crude petroleum) these were described by geographer Masudi in the 10th century and by Marco Polo in the 13th century, who described the output of those wells as hundreds of shiploads.   10th century: 900s [mathematics; accounting] By this century, three systems of counting were used in the Arab world. First was the Finger-reckoning arithmetic, in this system the numerals were written entirely in words this system was used by the business community. Second was the sexagesimal system, originated by the Babylonians, in this system the numerals were denoted by letters of the arabic alphabet it was used by Arab mathematicians in astronomical work. The third was the Hindu-Arabic numeral system, which was used with various sets of symbols. Arithmetic of this system required the use of a dust board (a sort of handheld blackboard) because the methods required moving of numbers in the calculation and rubbing some out as the calculation proceeded. Later these methods were modified by Al-Uqlidisi (born 920) for pen and paper use. Eventually the advances enabled the decimal system to be used throughout the world in its standard form.  

Pattern of Multinational Corporation based on cultural difference

Pattern of Multinational Corporation based on cultural difference With the development of economical globalization, the internationaloperation has become an important trend of development for enterprises.Multinational corporations are playing more and more important roles in theworld economy. While getting the big world market, they have to be facing morecomplex internal and external management environments. The cultural differenceis a noticeable influence factor. With more practice of management, moremanagers and scholars began to pay attention to this problem and do a lot ofresearches. How to reduce the adverse influence of culture difference inmultinational corporations human resource management (HRM) has become afocus in the field of trans-culture management. Subsidiaries and joint ventures in foreign countries are primary vehicles to market products internationally and to take advantage of the manufacturing capabilities of other countries (Li and Scullion 2006). Providing with the competitive labor cost and abundant resources, China now is the ideal manufacturing powerhouse where foreign investments have been booming up over the past decade. However, if there are major gains to be made, there are also risks. One of these is the management of human resources (Sergeant  and Frenkel 1998). Challenged by mainly the culture differences, managing the Chinese employees is never an easy task for a foreign manager. The high rate of turnover has been a substantial problem in managing Chinese employees in joint ventures in the Peoples Republic of China (Beamer, 1998). Many of the foreign executives still hold the concept that Chinese employees are eager to work for foreign companies in order to learn those advanced management knowledge and so on, and simply believe that the employees commitment is driven by such attitude. And therefore behave like evangelists on a mission to convert Chinese people to Western business practices (Jean 2009). However, as mentioned by Courtois (2009), the expectations and characterizations of Chinese nationals are shifting. Mentioned by Gross (2007) as well, most importantly, there is the need to ensure that differences in local practices and management are ironed out. At the very least, such differences should be understood and respected.  In another word, it is crucial that foreign managers shall understand the importance of learning how culture difference could be a key issue when managing Chinese employees and therefore make sure that they have the right attitude on managing Chinese employees before they start it. Cross-cultural researchers have argued for the need to develop frameworks that can help people from different cultures overcome obstacles to work together productively (Bond 2003). Some of the typical Chinese culture which are easily to be involved in work must be fully understood and foreign executives shall be aware of how to play with these culture differences so that enable themselves to manage people in an effective way. Such management which is based upon learning the culture and behavior of Chinese employee will help the company to form a stable and efficient HRM method in the long run. With increasing of the practical experience gained by foreign executives, more and more typical work related Chinese culture has been familiarized by western countries. Such as face and guanxi, were once and maybe still are the hard culture concepts for foreign executives to deal with when managing Chinese employees. Another challenging issue foreign managers have to face is that there is no such mature HRM knowledge in China. In earlier time, Child (1994) pointed out HRM is absent in Chinese companies while recently Li et al. (2007) mentioned that in China, HRM policy and practice are in a state of flux. Therefore, this has made it difficult for foreign managers to introduce their preferred approach in joint ventures (Sergeant  and Frenkel 1998). Literature Review Human resources management theory Human resources management functions Human resource management (HRM) is a function in an organisation wherein it focuses on employee-related activities. In other words, it deals with the management of, recruitment of and providing direction for the people who work in the organisation. It is usually involved with issues that are related to people. Among these is the process of hiring, organisation development, compensation, wellness, employee motivation, administration, performance management, safety, training, communication and the benefits . Similarly, Ledge (2005) states that human resource management is the management of a workforce and it can be both an academic theory and business practice. In addition, According to Lipiec (2001), human resource management is the process of coordinating an organisations human resources, or employees, to meet organisational goals. Human resource professionals deal with such areas as employee recruitment and selection, performance evaluation, compensation and benefits, professional d evelopment, safety and health, forecasting, and labour relations. Price (2004) defines human resource management as a belief of people management on the idea that human resources are significant factors in maintaining the success of a business. He discussed that a company obtains a competitive advantage by practicing an efficient usage of its personnel, using their expertise and creativity to reach the organisations purposes. Moreover, human resource management (HRM) seeks to employ capable, flexible and committed personnel. In contradiction, Bach (2005) stated that HRM is unitarist, the interests of employees and other stakeholders are marginalised, there is a great importance on the individual firm that is channeled on each employee, there is a logical playing down of external and collective issues. Some of the challenges today in human resource management are maintaining a diverse workforce, dealing with major technological changes, keeping up with governmental regulations, handling corporate restructuring and downsising, and formulating strategies essential to personnel management . These challenges need to be addressed in order to render an effective management of human resources. It is said that the philosophy of human resource management is based on the simple belief that human resources are the most important asset in achieving and sustained business success. This realisation became the driving force behind the creation of human resource management resulting in organisations taking a strategic approach to the management of their people. The true worth of human resource management is becoming more widely understood as human resource management steadily interweaves all aspects of people management and development within the company . Thus, the HR has to gain knowledge of and become skilled at in the host country because the setting may be diametrically opposed to the home nation. Even on a more personal note, managers in HR have a lot to do with the employees in the company. Especially in a foreign country, the manager should be aware of the local practices and traditions if there are any. The fringe benefits the company offers may have to be adjusted in rela tion to what the host country deems acceptable. Considering all these responsibilities and the ramifications involved if there is no proper implementation, the position as HR manager should be handled by one who has relevant qualifications and experience.Although the knowledge may be gained and experience earned, it is necessary primarily because the tasks involved calls for managerial functions. They may not be very necessary if the need is for HR staff. As a member of the staff, there will be a lot of information to be gleaned and eventually, imbued. However, as the position specifically requires managerial functions, so should there be expertise in the field.HRM should not be underestimated. Efficient management is no mean feat, especially in a foreign setting like in host countries where there are a myriad of differences in the social, cultural, political, economic and ethical aspects. Overall, it can be said that the human resource management is not just about the functional responsibility of a company. More so, there is a need for managers to participate in the practices of the human resources in a daily basis. In other words, the human resource management is not just a mere department of the company but it entails the active participation of the head of the company such as the manager (Human Resource Management, 2007). we adopt a holistic perspective in considering the impact of the countrys environment as well as the multinational corporations (MNCs) strategy on human resource (HR) practices. More importantly, we argue that within MNCs human resource management (HRM) is playing a central role in the process of balancing local and global forces. HR can be critical in helping MNCs deal with local differences while also helping the company implement practices that are critical for its global strategy. Specifically, we argue that HR plays a key role in developing s ocial capital, which may provide the necessary substitutes for formal control that would otherwise be neglected. Our contribution lies primarily in outlining how this new role of creating human capital confers on HR the task of filtering mission-critical practices through a localization mesh that ensures success. In addition, given the importance of social capital as an informal mechanism that allows MNCs to coordinate and integrate activities, we suggest ways in which an MNC can build social capital within the context of the Latin American pan-regional cultural values. 2.3 International Human Resource Management International human resource management or IHRM is about the management of people in the international environment. By international, IHRM implies that it involves the intersection of multiple fields in the management. For instance, it includes the human resource management as well as international management. Through the phenomenon of international human resource management, one is able to gain a broader meaning and understanding of the traditional HRM (Academy of Management Human Resource Division, 2004). Many expatriate human resource (HR) policies, particularly in the area of compensation, remain rooted in the past because they continue to favor the expatriate over local staff and do not take into account the increasing qualifications and aspirations of these local employees. Inequitable treatment leads to low commitment and poor work performance among local staff. More importantly, inequitable treatment creates tension between local and expatriate employees and causes the local staff to be less willing to be cooperative or supportive of the expatriates with whom they have to work. Without local support, expatriates may experience greater difficulty adjusting to their new jobs and the new environment, which is a contributing factor in the failure of expatriates. It is critical that multinational companies are aware that some existing HR practices have potentially unintended negative consequences and that neglecting the impact of these practices on local employees hurts the effectiveness of the organization as well as the ability of expatriates to succeed in their assignment. According to Briscoe and Schuler (2004), there is an increasing need to discuss the issue on international human resource management because the conduct of business is increasingly international in scope and managing human resources is critical to the successful conduct of global business. With the emerging trends such as globalisation and modernisation, the process of international human resource management is greatly affected. Particularly, the changes incurred by international human resource management have been greatly shaped by these trends. Through globalisation, there is a perceived disappearance of the national or geographic boundaries. The conduct of business activities from one country to another has become highly possible through the globalisation process. And with the aid of modernisation, the conduct of business affairs or activities has become faster and more convenient. Budhwar and Debrah (2001) provide various factors that paved the way for the increased need in human resource management by business organisations. According to them, human resource management is all the more important because of the increasing levels of globalisation as well as internationalisation of business, the growth of new markets (such as in Africa, Eastern Europe, China, India, South-East Asia and Latin America), the growth of new international business blocs (such as NAFTA, the European Union, ASEAN) and an increased level of competition among firms at both national and international level. And so, it seems to be that the world develops to become a global business village, thereby increasing the need to know the ways in which managers in various parts of the world cope with the problems and issues that are related to the management of human resources. This study aims to get a clearer picture of why multinational companies (MNCs) send out expatriates. It identifies three organizational functions of international transfers: position filling, management development and coordination and control. Based on an empirical study with results from 212 subsidiaries of MNCs from nine different home countries, located in 22 different host countries, it shows that the importance that is attached to these functions differs between subsidiaries in MNCs from different home countries, between subsidiaries in different host regions and in addition varies with the level of cultural difference. Sees position filling as most important for subsidiaries of US and British MNCs and in the Latin American and Far Eastern regions. It argues that these differences might have important consequences for expatriate management. It sees management development as most important for subsidiaries of German, Swiss and Dutch MNCs and as tending to occur more in Anglo-Sax on countries than in the Far East. Indeed, the internationalisation of almost all business is evident on the prevalence of MNCs/MNEs (Multinational Corporations/Multinational Enterprises). And so, as the business organisations become more active in the international arena, the need for human resource management becomes more crucial. But as one tends to venture into the international business, there are more problems and issues that need to be addressed. And so, the globalisation of business presents the managers and the organisations more challenges and difficulties especially in the field of human resource management. This has been confirmed by Clark et al. (1999) by stating that while there is an increasing number of organisations that seek to operate in foreign markets, there is also an increasing challenge for the international management of human resources. Among the key three challenges to international HRM are marginality, parochialism and ethnocentrism. With this, it is essential to develop a better understanding of, and sensitivity to, the impact of different national settings on the management task. 2.4 Significance of Human Resource Management The need for human resource management by business organisations, especially the major ones, is crucial to its success. In fact, this aspect cannot be eliminated by organisations if they are to ensure an effective and successful conduct of business. This is because human resource management serves as an organisational function that realises the goals of the company. With the effective management of human resources, the company is also effective in the conduct of its activities or the delivering of its business. And so, it can be said the human resource management is integral to the success of every business organisations. Jahn (1999) considers the humans as the greatest assets of the organisation. Because without the humans, organisations will not be able to complete the everyday functions such as cash flow management, dealing with customers, communicating through all forms of media as well as making business transactions. Indeed, it is the humans and their potentials that drive the organisation. The human resource management ensures that employees are able to meet the goals of the organisations. In other words, HRM maximises the productivity of an organisation through the process of optimising the effectiveness of its employees. And in spite of the ever-increasing pace of change in the business world, this mandate on HRM is unlikely to change in any fundamental way. According to Encyclopedia of Small Business (2002), the basic mission human resources will always be to acquire, develop, and retain talent; align the workforce with the business; and be an excellent contributor to the business. Furthermore, the managing of international employees by multinational and domestic organisations is perceived to be important in the changing landscape of the business environment. In fact, there has been a fundamental change in the global thinking, as evident in the actions, of the organisations. With this, human resource management is important in realising the need for organisations to remain innovative in what may be contracting and rationalising markets or even markets that are being shaken up by new entrants and new competitive behavior. Meanwhile, the initiatives which are aimed at improving the financial, temporal as well as functional flexibility are introduced in order to address the need to deliver the radical cost improvements. And with the increasing flexibility, there is also the desire of the firms to change their employee and their sense of involvement (Brewster, Harris and Sparrow, 2004). Today, the true worth of employees among business firms is more widely expressed through human resource management. The idea that human resources are the most important asset in achieving and sustained business success becomes the driving force behind the creation of human resource management resulting in organisations taking a strategic approach to the management of their people. Since this conceptual realisation, human resource management has become increasingly influential in the fashions and implementations of corporate strategy. A review of the origin guides us in providing an adequate definition of strategic HRM. Management development as defined by Bromley as follows: A conscious and systematic process to control the development of managerial resources in the organization for the achievement for goals and strategies (Molander,C. (1986) Management Development. Bromley: Chartwell-Bratt) The traditional concept of workforce or succession planning (forecasting vacancies and/or new knowledge, skills, and abilities, identifying/cultivating in-house and outside talent pools) is more important than ever in a fast paced environment. (Robert Kreitner., 2001). The idea Human Resource Management (HRM) came from the U.S. in the 1980s because the companies in USA were developed at that time, because of this, the models of Strategic HRM were emerging. The strategic HRM pays its attention to the manpower planning. It focuses on the effective management of people. It views people as a source of competitive advantage. HRM i s a strategic way of developing, motivating and gaining the potential of both the people and the external resources. The combination of a globalized workforce with massive mobility is compelling organizations to work with growing numbers of people from different cultures, with different customs, values, beliefs, and practices. This article describes some of the factors HR managers and company leadership must account for to create global people policies and practices that reflect the common culture of the organization, yet adapt to local realities and business needs. Cases drawn from the authors consulting work with multinational business not only describe specific challenges faced by those firms, but also highlight the broader trends that all global companies need to understand and manage. As multinational corporations become increasingly central to the world economy, the need to attract and retain executives to manage these corporations gains in importance. For the multinational executive, the traditional business functions of marketing, finance, production and personnel must be synthesized with u nfamiliar political, economic and sociocultural systems. These unique dimensions of the multinational executives job require a reward/compensation system that considers these diverse variables. Through a detailed literature review and discussions with specialists in the field, thirteen factors were identified as being unique to the multinational executives job: (1) size of the company, (2) number of expatriates abroad, (3) industry characteristics, (4) relative inflation, (5) relative living costs, (6) cultural differences, (7) currency fluctuations, (8) relative buying power, (9) difficulty with communication systems, (10) freedom to act enjoyed by the executive, (11) key strategic and financial measures for which the executive is responsible, (12) exposure to different legal systems, and (13) working under different political systems. These factors were then presented (via questionnaires) to samples of international line executives and human resource management executives, who wer e asked to rate the desirability of using these variables in a compensation program for international executives. The similarities and differences of opinions contained in their responses were analyzed, and reasons for the differences were studied and documented. Finally, using statistical techniques, the researcher developed a set of decision-making systems that incorporated many of the traditional and nontraditional variables developed earlier in the research. Customer satisfaction has become a very important aspect of business management in the high technology market. Companies that provide products and services worldwide often are concerned that customer satisfaction may be impacted by cultural differences. This study examines measures of customer satisfaction in areas around the world to determine whether or not there is a difference in satisfaction scores provided by Help Desks. A sample of more than 11579 surveys from three large international companies in the computer and me dical electronics areas was used. The statistical results at a 5% confidence level indicate there is a difference in customer perception in Help Desk support between that provided to US customers than that provided to Thailand customers. The results clearly indicate that companies need to understand these differences in order to optimize the use of their resources and to adjust their service offerings to respond to their different customer needs and expectations. A growing body of research has challenged the commonly accepted view that multinationals have evolved into globally integrated networks, demonstrating instead that such organizations are sites of conflict between competing rationalities emerging from distinctive national institutional contexts. However, this research has neglected professional service firms (PSFs) in spite of them often being held as exemplars of the integrated network model. This article redresses this imbalance by focusing, in particular, on how PSFs seek to coordinate the horizontal flow of their human resources as a mechanism of inter-unit knowledge sharing. The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of individual factors on the transfer of human resource management (HRM) knowledge in Chinese subsidiaries of multinational corporations, and to explore the relationships between individual factors and introduce the concept of joint effect-integrated capability. Based on the notion that certain factors can affect knowledge transfer (KT), Cindy ¼Ã‹â€ 2008 ¼Ã¢â‚¬ ° examines the effect of four factors, i.e. cultural difference and adaptability, language and communication, working relationship, and motivation and willingness, on the transfer of HRM knowledge. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews conducted between January and April 2004 and an exploratory data analysis was carried out with the assistance of Nvivo software. The study has found that Chinese HR managers have the ability of all four factors to fac ilitate the transfer of HRM knowledge. The findings further suggest that integrated capability-joint effect could be generated from the four factors and affect the transfer process jointly. When the capability is positive, it facilitates the transfer. Conversely, when the capability is negative, it impedes the transfer. The findings not only extend the understanding of the effect of single factor on KT, but also the interrelationship between individual factors, their joint effect-integrated capability and the transfer process. Existing research has concentrated on studying the effect of single factor on KT, knowledge management by and large. There is little research investigating the correlations between individual factors. He addresses this gap and introduces the concept of joint effect, integrated capability. So-called cross-culture human resource management, the enterprise is cross-cultural human resources management. Cross cultural enterprises, just as its name implies, it is to point to by from different cultural backgrounds and cross-cultural differences exist composed of staff. In cross-cultural in human resources management, enterprise or the company is due by the two countries or multinational companies in the host country composed of partnership and across the nation, the government and international business management of cross-cultural economic entity, so the cultural factors of influence multinational enterprise is comprehensive. Research method and methodology There are two research methods, that is ,qualitative and quantitative research methods. The former focuses on a descriptive method,the laster is to be gathered from the source are in descriptive form and thus may vary based on the source or the respondent. quantitative research method can be useful for the study if the focus is on driving towards a point or deriving a particular information based on the other information that were gathered. We try to combine both the qualitative and quantitative research method. 2.1qualitative and quantitative research While the research will be using statistical means for the interpretation of the data, descriptive assessment will also be combined to give the researcher more insight concerning the cultural adaptability of companies in the foreign market as well as issues regarding the human resource management of the corporations.so one of the most important approaches for this research is the semi structured interview which can provide abundant objective information and help me to gain insight into the related problems and phenomena. Interview can be more in-depth and can address more complex hypotheses and it is easier to obtain the appropriate respondent through interview (Alderman 2009). In order to explore the ideas behind related problems, both foreign managers and representatives of Chinese employees will be interviewed as I believe that comparison of ideas from both sides will help this research to generate more depth and objective view towards the research question. Moreover, the informat ion provides by Chinese employees could explore the idea of how Chinese employees view their foreign managers management methods, and that paves the way for further analysis. The interviewed will be conducted with both structured questionnaire and free talk. The aim of such a design is to collect basic required data for analysis and obtain any new ideas could possibly be given by interviewees at the same time as the interview goes on.Besides, through interview, other specific HRM practices could be explained in a detail way, issues such as recruitment, performance management, training, retention, etc. These information are essential for the research to deploy the analysis of HRM issue. Beside, with these data gained from the interview and the previous review of related literatures, a qualitative analysis could be achieved eventually.Another effective approach is email contact with key persons in the organization. Such approach is particular effective as the way of operating it is re latively easy and free. When the research proceeds, some new information may need to be acquired in order to help develop necessary analysis in different stage of the research. Through email contact, such information acquisition could be achieved in an effective way. Telephone interview could be more effective compared to email contact, however, considering that the topic of the conversation may not be that free as it involves different culture and ideas about other peoples behaviour and so on, therefore, telephone interview is not an appropriate approach for this research.In addition, one of the superior managers from headquarters who is in charge of the overall HRM within the whole group will also be contact through email. By doing so, a view on managing Chinese employees in the subsidiary from the parent company could be derived, which could help the research to achieve a more complete analysis towards the topic. Meanwhile, email contact could also be perceived as an effective wa y to prove the information gained from interview. Questions in the email will be designed differently according to the position and the role of the receiver within the company. 2.2Comparative research Comparative research focus is found the differences and similarities between different cultures, and then determine what theory is applied to all cultures, which is only applicable to a particular cultural background. This method is not the premise of so-called body culture, only different culture of the similarity is believed to be the universal phenomena. Most experts and scholars all previous is adopted the method of comparison research of cross-cultural management problems, because in the management of cross-cultural environment, you need to identify the differences between the different cultures, and only after comparing to identify. 2.3 Data Collection Design For the research strategy of this study, the fundamental idea is to make comparison of related literatures and empirical experiences provided by communicating with related employees in the case study, so that to obtain depth understanding of opinions explained by those related literatures and to explain the practical situation with more relative literature reviews, therefore, to achieve a more overall and practical research on this topic through such comparison.For the research design of this study, basically, this research will be conducted based on a case study of a multinational manufacturing company in China. Before that, relative literature review will be processed in order to generate more accurate analysis and ideas on the research question. The ultimate quality and success of research are often a reflection of the time and effort invested in developing research ideas and concepts, a stage of planning that includes becoming familiar with the literature (Congdon and Dunham 1999 ). Then, taking the advantage of the fact that I had been working for the company for almost 5 years and had built up good relationship with all related managers and other employees, I can easily get access to the company and get sufficient information as required for this research. Besides, the company is showing great interest of this research and would like to cooperate with my work since this research could somehow help them to improve the management of Chinese employees in some way. This research adopted the personal administered questionnaire. Clark et al, (1998) stated that the great advantage of the personally administered questionnaire is that the researcher has more control, can clarify or repeat any questions and can strengthen open-ended questions by allowing larger answers and asking supplementary questions. Through this process, new factors maybe identified and a deeper understanding of the

Old Chinatown of Los Angeles Essay examples -- Chinese China History E

Old Chinatown of Los Angeles Chinese first established their community in Los Angeles at today's El Pueblo Historical Monument. About two hundred settled by the year 1870. This number gradually increased over the years when the Southern Pacific began to construct a railroad from San Francisco in the 1870s. They were farm laborers, servants, road builders and small shopkeepers. Even with heavy discrimination during this time, Chinese held a dominant economic position in the Los Angeles laundry and produce industries for several years. Due to this old Chinatown explained its' boundaries eastward from the Plaza across from Alameda Street and grew to a population of over three thousand. The Chinese never owned major land or property but, were lessees, subleases or tenants. Laws were in place preventing them from becoming citizens and in turn property owners. The Chinese settled mostly on land owned by Juan Apablasa and controlled by his widow. This inability to own land would latter come back to haunt them. One of the most serious incidents of racial violence that has ever occurred in Los Angeles happened in October of 1871. Nineteen Chinese men and boys were murdered in a racial violence by a mob of five hundred locals. This riot was triggered when a fight broke out between two Chinese men over a Chinese girl. A Caucasian man was accidental slayed while caught in the crossfire. This was fueled by the growing movement of anti-Chinese discrimination in California, which would climax in the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882. This would be known as the infamous Chinese Massacre. Old Chinatown's heyday was between the years of 1890-1910. It could count 15 or so streets and alleys, and perhaps 200 building units. I... ...arge of their needs and problems. The local property owners joined together to build a legal group, BID, to help them realize common goals for their properties and surrounding areas. BID, which stands for Business Improvement District, has goals that include creating a clean, safe and friendly environment, increasing visitors to the area and enhancing property values. This is to help secure their place as a huge tourism site in Los Angeles. Bibliography BID. http://www.chinatownla.com/bid_main.htm Chinese Americans in Los Angeles. http://www.camla.org/history.htm Chinatown Walking Tour. http://www.chinatownla.com/walkingtour.htm History of Old Chinatown Los Angeles. http://oldchinatownla.com/history.html 1871 Los Angeles Chinese Massacre: A Statement of Remembrance. http://www.camla.org/history/massacre.htm See, Lisa. On Gold Mountain. Old Chinatown of Los Angeles Essay examples -- Chinese China History E Old Chinatown of Los Angeles Chinese first established their community in Los Angeles at today's El Pueblo Historical Monument. About two hundred settled by the year 1870. This number gradually increased over the years when the Southern Pacific began to construct a railroad from San Francisco in the 1870s. They were farm laborers, servants, road builders and small shopkeepers. Even with heavy discrimination during this time, Chinese held a dominant economic position in the Los Angeles laundry and produce industries for several years. Due to this old Chinatown explained its' boundaries eastward from the Plaza across from Alameda Street and grew to a population of over three thousand. The Chinese never owned major land or property but, were lessees, subleases or tenants. Laws were in place preventing them from becoming citizens and in turn property owners. The Chinese settled mostly on land owned by Juan Apablasa and controlled by his widow. This inability to own land would latter come back to haunt them. One of the most serious incidents of racial violence that has ever occurred in Los Angeles happened in October of 1871. Nineteen Chinese men and boys were murdered in a racial violence by a mob of five hundred locals. This riot was triggered when a fight broke out between two Chinese men over a Chinese girl. A Caucasian man was accidental slayed while caught in the crossfire. This was fueled by the growing movement of anti-Chinese discrimination in California, which would climax in the passage of the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882. This would be known as the infamous Chinese Massacre. Old Chinatown's heyday was between the years of 1890-1910. It could count 15 or so streets and alleys, and perhaps 200 building units. I... ...arge of their needs and problems. The local property owners joined together to build a legal group, BID, to help them realize common goals for their properties and surrounding areas. BID, which stands for Business Improvement District, has goals that include creating a clean, safe and friendly environment, increasing visitors to the area and enhancing property values. This is to help secure their place as a huge tourism site in Los Angeles. Bibliography BID. http://www.chinatownla.com/bid_main.htm Chinese Americans in Los Angeles. http://www.camla.org/history.htm Chinatown Walking Tour. http://www.chinatownla.com/walkingtour.htm History of Old Chinatown Los Angeles. http://oldchinatownla.com/history.html 1871 Los Angeles Chinese Massacre: A Statement of Remembrance. http://www.camla.org/history/massacre.htm See, Lisa. On Gold Mountain.

Cognitive Radio Essay -- Technology

A problem facing cognitive radio is the need for accurate estimations of performance metrics. Performance estimation algorithms are limited when facing new situations. For example, heuristics, such as genetic algorithms (GA), require specific knowledge about the interference conditions in order to adapt fitness functions. This paper presents an experimental design approach that analyzes performance results of a small set of configurations to create an empirical model. The method overcomes the need for specific knowledge of the channel or noise environment and is capable of addressing new situations.par This problem is difficult given the limitations inherent in any theoretical system model and the complexity of sensing the wireless environment. Existing GA-based cognitive engines identify radio configuration settings based on mathematical models for defining objective functions cite{Rondeau2007}. The methods rely on additional knowledge of noise conditions in order to customize the objective functions to the current environment. Advancements in the decision-making architecture tied case-based reasoning to the GA in order to increase time-to-decision and take advantage of past experiences cite{He2009}. However, CBR relies on the assumption that a past decision will work in the current situation if the two are similar enough. In both methods, the identified solution's true performance is unknown until after it is implemented on the system.par Theoretical models of wireless performance rely on assumptions in the channel conditions, and often do not represent the actual situation. In contrast, statistical methods base all conclusions from empirical evidence without requiring knowledge of the channel or interference conditions. T... ...rameters settings are then pared down by repeating the DOE with focus on another response meter. This process is repeated for each response meter available until a final parameter setting is identified. The authors developed a reconfiguration algorithm that draws its decision from multivariate DOE analysis on the system. The algorithm was implemented on an open-source software controller for off-the-shelf 802.11 wireless cards cite{Weingart2007}.par In contrast, we implement RSM experimental design that leads to quadratic models as opposed to linear. This approach increases accuracy and identifies overall better solutions. We implement the techniques on a software defined radio platform more indicative of deployable cognitive radio. Our focus emphasis the statistical fit performance of different designs and contrasts performance to a reference heuristic engine.

Hcs-490 Demographic Paper Essay

San Diego’s Children Obesity In this day of age, everyone is busy with life; taking short cuts anywhere possible seems to be the solution for many people. This means turning to fast foods and an unhealthy lifestyles sweeping over humanity. This paper will focus on child obesity in San Diego, California, and the impact it has caused on the health care marked. Furthermore, health related challenges, chronic wellness programs that affect health care cost, and marketing needs for this population. The community in San Diego can come together to provide a healthier lifestyle for their children. Demographic Data San Diego is known as a hot spot, a place where people love to get away and enjoy a great vacation. However, there is a huge epidemic taking place within the San Diego community. San Diego’s obesity rates pass the nation’s average, there is more than one out of every four children who are overweight and considered obese (Childhood Obesity Initiative, 2011). There are several factors that play into obese children in San Diego primarily starting with genetics and family history with poor functioning family and limited education. Secondary is behavioral and social risk factors. This is because a lack of physical activates, excessive screen time such as television, poor nutrition, and limited to fresh food access. The tertiary outcomes of these factors result in eating disorders and overweight children turning into adults (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2012). In the years of 2009 to 2010, girls in the age range of 12 to 19 had a higher prevalence of obesity th an girls age two to 11. That same year boys age ranging from six to 11 had the highest prevalence of obesity than boys aging from two to six and boys aging 12 to 19 (County of San Diego. 2009). In 2008, boys ranging in the age of two to 19 had a higher chance of becoming obese than non-Hispanic White boys. Within that same year, non-Hispanic Black girls had a greater chance of becoming obese that a non-Hispanic White girl (County of San Diego. 2009). San Diego County projects every one in three children who come from a low income family are considered obese before they even have their fifth birthday (County of San Diego. 2009). Child Obesity Effects on Health Care Obesity has a wide range of health factors and risks that follow; however, that is not the only problem. California spends more public and private money on health care related to obesity than any other state. This includes a loss of productivity in overweight and the obese costing families, health care industry, employers, and the government more than 21 billion dollars each year (Babey, 2012). Poor eating habits are becoming a big problem costing billions of dollars. San Diego like many other neighborhoods have unhealthy, inexpressive foods that contributing to this obesity epidemic. This is why the hospital systems across San Diego County are coming together to promote healthy eating within their cafeterias, patient meals, and the community (Childhood Obesity Initiative. (2011). In 2012 the Nutrition in Healthcare Leadership Team (NHLT) completed a plan for healthier food choices. This goal include making healthy foods and beverages the standard, give leeway on buying powers to buy healthier foods, collaboration among healthcare organizations, raise the food literacy, and track food practices in the health care system (Childhood Obesity Initiative. (2011). Health Care Challenges There are both direct and indirect costs that are associated with obesity among children who face challenges for San Diego County. Direct costs are healthcare cost as well as pharmaceuticals, while indirect costs are lost productivity and costs that would be associated with workdays and earning wages lost (Cohen, 2000). San Diego County spends more than three billion dollars on direct and indirect cost annually. As the percentages of child obesity are on the rise, the cost of medical care and productivity will rise (Childhood Obesity Initiative. 2012). Wellness Programs Affecting Cost Fusion Academy and Learning Center of San Diego is introducing a comprehensive Wellness Program for school children in sixth to twelfth grade. This program will educated these students and give them a chance to make healthier lifestyle choices and easily navigate through childhood adolescence (Fusion Academy & Learning Center, 2012). Fusion academy runs 20 sessions that focus on four separate disciplines. These are emotional wellness, art expression, music expression, yoga, nutrition, and meditation (Fusion Academy & Learning Center, 2012). The cost for the program is $1,680 (Fusion Academy & Learning Center, 2012), it may seem a high price to pay; however, this wellness program will pay off by educating the young on how to live a healthier lifestyle and make healthier decisions. This would lead to lower healthcare cost in the future and a fresh start for the children of this county. Markets Needs Marketing needs for obese children in San Diego County start off with planning. Planning is one of the most important steps in marketing. Knowing the targeted audience in which planning to market for such as races, ethnicities, cultures, and backgrounds. A large population of obese children in San Diego County comes from lower income families who are not well educated (County of San Diego. 2009), so this would be the targeted audience. Apart of this plan for marketing San Diego County would need to address the following: †¢ Build awareness for childhood obesity†¦ [paragraph continues] †¢ Build a guide for everyone interested in San Diego County; addressing childhood obesity, including businesses, and instructions with neighborhoods to be addressed†¦ [paragraph continues] †¢ Building drive for the plan of action†¦ [paragraph continues] †¢ Teaming partnerships with already existing organization on this issue with new new sectors†¦ [paragraph cont inues] †¢ Make sure that strategies follow policy and environmental changes and not just individual needs and family efforts†¦ [paragraph continues] †¢ Develop a planned document to support the community partnerships in their efforts†¦ [paragraph continues] This would call for everyone in San Diego County to collaborate in the fight against childhood obesity (Call to Action, 2006). Once all the criteria are addressed, it would be presented to seven different domain areas such as: †¢ County and city governments†¦ [paragraph continues] †¢ Healthcare systems and providers†¦ [paragraph continues] †¢ Schools†¦ paragraph continues] †¢ Preschools, childcare providers and other school programs†¦ [paragraph continues] †¢ Community-based programs†¦ [paragraph continues] †¢ Media†¦ [paragraph continues] †¢ Different businesses†¦ [paragraph continues] Relaying the message about childhood obesity and the impacts it has on San Diego will help in the fight to turn the epidemic around. Addressing Child Obesity Addressing childhood obesity takes the whole community to get involved. There are several initiatives that address childhood obesity in San Diego County, such as Halloween Candy Buy Back program (Childhood Obesity Initiative, 2012). This program consists of 13 different dental offices and pediatric offices that buy back children’s Halloween candy and send it as a treat to the United States troops through a nonprofit organization called Operation Gratitude (Childhood Obesity Initiative, 2012). In 2011, the healthcare domain collaborated with health care physicians to build a menu for children in a fight to cut back on childhood obesity. Annual Anderson Memorial Conferences are held to bring dental providers and medical providers together to cross-collaborate and communicate child obesity prevention (Childhood Obesity Initiative, 2012). Conclusion There is no doubt that child obesity has become a huge issue in San Diego County. This is a problem that can be changed with educating the community. Getting the community involved and educating the children to live a healthier lifestyle are steps to take for a bright future in San Diego County. The children are the future and taking action will give these children a chance to live a long and health life while saving costs in health care and fighting off diseases. References Babey, S. H., Bloom, A., & Goldstein, H. (2012, June). Overweight and Obesity among Children by California Cities – 2010. UCLA Center for Health Policy Research and California Center for Public Health Advocacy,. Retrieved from http://cbsla.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/patchworkcities6-4-12.pdf Call to Action. (2006). San Diego County. Childhood Obesity Action Plan. Retrieved from http://eatbettermovemore.org/sa/policies/pdftext/SDobesity_action_plan.pdf Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2012). Overweight and Obesity. Causes and Consequences. Retreived from http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/adult/causes/index.html. Childhood Obesity Initiative. (2011). Overweight and Obesity in San Diego County. Overview. About us. Retrieved from http://ourcommunityourkids.org/ Childhood Obesity Initiative. (2012). The Challenges of Childhood Obesity. Call of Action Child Obesity Action Plan. Retrieved from http://ourcommunityourkids.org/media/17878/action%20plan%20revision%202010%20final.pdf Cohen, J. (2000, December). Overweight Kids: Why Should We Care. CRB, 1-42. Retrieved from http://www.library.ca.gov/crb/00/08/00-008.pdf County of San Diego. (2009). Health and Human Services, Public Health Services, Community Heal th Statistics Unit. Healthy People 2010 Health Indicators for San Diego County; Full Report. Retrieved from www.SDHealthStatistics.com. Fusion Academy & Learning Center. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.fusionacademy.com/news/san-diego-fusion-san-diego-introduces-wellness-program