The travel industry Essay Example

The travel industry Essay The travel industry has exploded manifold in size over the past fifty years or so. Since the first commercial flights took off, the airline industry on the whole has been trying to find ways for servicing their customers in a better way. Where time is crucial and managing passengers all over the world in a safe and timely fashion is the key, the task becomes even harder especially with hundred of routes and airplanes traveling the skies at the same time. Scheduling is even tougher with the time differences between locations and customer preferences make it an even more arduous task. Hence over the years, major airlines came up with computerized systems to help them run things a bit more smoothly. A global distribution system (also known as a computer reservation system) is a computerized system specifically used to conduct transactions related to the travel industry. This system is capable of storing and retrieving information and based on this, booking flights for customers via trav el agents. Main users of such systems are therefore travel agencies, airlines etc. Hence a GDS essentially takes data from airlines in terms of routes, schedules, capacity etc and routes it to travel agents accessing it from various points around the world. Every travel agent then books a seat for each passenger and this data is updated on the system they are using. The travel marketplace is a very complex one. It has a global scope where millions of buyers (travel agents and the public) and sellers (hotels, airlines, car rental companies, etc.) interact to exchange travel, leisure, tourism services. These services are not limited to these but include everything related to travel from car rentals down to taxi pick ups. The places, in which buyers search for these services are these global distribution systems, which have become electronic supermarkets that link buyers to sellers and allow deals to be made quickly and easily. The four major global distribution systems so far have enj oyed an oligopoly sustained by the high entry costs required to build the IT booking systems to link airlines, hotels and car rental operators with travel agents and consumers. In the present times however, they are operating in a fast-changing market typified by evolving patterns of consumer behavior, the emergence of new online sales channels, and a low-cost air model. The current airline industry all over the world is based more or less on four major systems namely: 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Amadeus 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Galileo We will write a custom essay sample on The travel industry specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The travel industry specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The travel industry specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Sabre 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Worldspan According to statistics, Amadeus is the current leader with a total share of 31% followed by SABRE with 30.8%. Galileo falls in third with 26.4% and Worldspan fourth with 15.1%. These statistics are measured keeping in mind the reach of these systems being the number of ‘points’ they are accessed through and along with the number of airlines they cater to. Each point is a point of access through which travel agencies all over the world log onto the system to book flights. In addition to these major four, there also exist smaller or regional GDSs, including Tapas (Korea), SITA’s Sahara, Axess (Japan), Infini (Japan), Fantasia (South Pacific), and Abacus (Asia/Pacific). These systems however serve particular interests or specific regions or countries. The airline industry created the first GDS (SABRE by American Airlines) in the 1960s as a way to keep track of flight schedules, availability, and prices. Although they make use of legacy system technology, the GDSs were actually among the first e-commerce systems in the world to facilitate B-2-B (Business to Business) electronic commerce as early as the mid 1970s. The work was essentially started by SABRE (owned by American Airline) and Apollo (United) by installing propriety internal reservations systems in travel agencies (self owned links to their system at travel agencies). Prior to this, travel agents made reservations in the traditional way; manually entering reservations into books. The airlines realized that by automating the reservation process for travel agents, they could make the travel agents more productive and essentially turn them into an extension of their sales force; an automated sales force akin to what UPS and Fedex do now through wireless technology. It is thes e original, legacy GDSs that today provide the backbone to the Internet travel distribution system.  It is no wonder that these systems were revolutionary in their own accord. Currently, travel is the most widely sold consumer product in the world. The Internet has proven to be the perfect medium for selling travel as it joins a vast network of suppliers (without the need of propriety systems to use log onto the GDS) and a widely dispersed consumer market together into a centralized market place. Almost 37 million of the 162-million active Internet users in the U.S. purchased travel online. Online travel bookings exceeded $23 billion in 2001, and are with expectations running high, are predicted to reach $63 billion by 2005 (Das, S., 2002).An internet distribution system is a computerized system which uses the internet to distribute information among its users. Unlike traditional approaches of having dedicated line and links to a system, these systems use the internet as the medium through which users log into a system and access data. Almost all GDSs are evolving towards Internet Distribution Systems and in the near future will be operational only through the internet. Sabre stands for Semi-Automated Business Research Environment. It is a computer reservations system (a global distribution system GDS) used by airlines, railways, hotels, travel agents and other travel companies. Sabre is thus not only sued for reserving airline tickets but also for reservations of any kind related to the travel industry; form hotel reservations to car rentals, train reservations, pickups drops etc. In short, Saber is capable of planning a customer’s travel right from the point of departure down to the point of arrival, stay and tourism as well. Sabre GDS is a unit of Sabre Holdings Sabre Travel Network division. Sabre caters to many airlines all over the world including Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Cape Air Nantucket Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Mesa Airlines, Midwest Airlines, USAirways, Dragonair, EVA Airways, Garuda Indonesia, Malaysia Airlines, Pakistan International Airlines, Philippine Airlines, Royal Brunei Airlines, Silkair, Southwest Airlines, Travelocity, American Trans Air (ATA), Midwest Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Air Malta, Frontier, Airlines, Aeroflot, GoGoBudget, Cape Air, Mesa Airlines (Including go! and Air Midwest). Sabre and Amadeus alone own the largest civilian data-processing centres in the US and Europe respectively. The volume of global transactions through the GDS has risen 4% year-on-year to 343 million. Worldwide, the GDS reaches some 230,000 points of sale. In July of 1996, Sabre became a separate legal entity of AMR (parent company of American Airlines), followed by a successful initial public offering in October in which AMR released approximately 18% of its shares to be publicly traded. Sabre, represented in 45 countries, is a leading provider of technology for the travel industry and provides innovative products that enable travel commerce and services, and enhance airline/supplier operations.   It connects more than 60,000 travel agency locations around the world, providing content from approximately 400 airlines, 55,000 hotel properties, 52 car rental companies, 9 cruise lines, 33 railroads, and 229 tour operators. In addition to being one of the leading GDS companies, Sabre also provides a broad range of products and services that enhance travel agency operations and their ability to serve the traveler. Sabre-connected travel agencies use Sabre web- based technologies and low-fare finding solutions to create new sales opportunities, drive operational efficiencies, and improve customer service. Among the company’s recent innovations is Sabre Virtually There, a personalized web site service that automatically gives travelers up-to-the-minute details about itineraries, while also providing a wealth of information about their destinations.   Sabre owns Travelocity.com, the industry’s leading online consumer travel web site. In 2001, Travelocity.com’s 32 million members used the site, generating more than $300 million in revenues. Travelocity.com offers innovative technologies that help consumers find the best air, car, hotel, and vacation reservations. Sabre also owns Get There, a provider of web-based corporate travel procurement, including the purchase of air, hotel, car, and meeting planning services. Customers include more than 800 leading corporations. Sabre’s competitive strengths include market position, global reach, stable product line, diversification of revenue streams, and intellectual capital. The Sabre business model is a strong one, and continues to make significant progress in advancing both its electronic travel distribution and its information technology solutions businesses.   Revenues have been growing steadily, and the company has embarked on a strategy that fully embraces diversification of its customer base and revenue streams. Sabre is considered to be one of the most significant and competitive GDSs due to the fact that it anticipates and takes advantage of the changes in the information economy and develops innovative practices, leveraging both human resources and technology systems. The system was developed in order to help American Airlines, who were facing a serious problem by the 1950s. Their system for booking flights was entirely manual Reserving a seat and writing a ticket took up to 90 minutes on an average. The system also had limited room for growth. Meanwhile, IBM had been working with the US Air Force on their Semi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) project that used a series of large computers to coordinate the message flow from radar sites to interceptors, dramatically reducing the time needed to direct an attack on an incoming bomber. The system used teletype machines located all around the world to feed information into the system, which then sent orders back out to teletypes located at the fighter bases. This was arguably one of the first online systems. Such a system was well suited for Amercian Airlines needs and thus in collaboration with IBM, SABRE was developed and it turned out to be a success. It cost a sum of $40 million to develop and install (about $350 million in 2000 dollars). The system took over all booking functions in 1964, at which point the name had changed to the more familiar SABRE. In 1972 the system was moved to IBM System/360 systems in a new underground location in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Originally used only by AA, the system was expanded to travel agents in 1976. It is currently used by a large number of companies, including Eurostar, SNCF, and US Airways. Sabre separated from American Airlines on March 15, 2000. The system is now a publicly traded corporation owned bye Sabre Holdings. The Travelocity website is owned by this company and serves as a consumer interface to the system. Sabre currently uses Web Services to link all its customers and dealers together. In the past, customers gained access to the Sabre GDS and those of other travel providers in a variety of ways using various forms of connectivity. Now Sabre Web Services (making use of leading-edge XML and SOAP technologies) streamlines that process, offering developers a single standards-based access to the GDS. This essentialy eliminates the need for agents and Web developers to understand proprietary codes and programming languages to connect their systems to the disparate data sources needed to create bookable Web-based travel offerings. Sabre connects over 60,000 travel agency locations worldwide and divides its customers according to the following categories: Airline Sabre Travel Networks key service is its airline reservation system. It provides pacesetting products and services that help improve performance and increase revenue opportunities. Car Rental Company Provides reservation capabilities for car rentals with a range of connectivity options to link inventory systems with the travel buying audience and is similar to the airline and cruise services. CONSOLIDATOR This services helps vendors maximize fare distribution and productivity and operate more efficiently thus decreasing costs and provide additional value to customers. Cruise Line A reservations program for cruise lines, it helps manage air/sea operations and receive information from Sabre ConnectedSM travel agency locations around the globe.. Hotel Individual hotels and large, multi-national hotel chains can benefit from this service. It provides them with an opportunity to market themselves on Sabre systems. Tour Operator A range of products providing reservation capabilities, as well as the ability to offer products to a vast buying audience across the globe, it also offers sales and marketing tools to communicate to new buyers and capture new revenue opportunities to meet sales goals. Sabre more or less combines its prduct categories to provide a one stop solution for most of its customers traveling needs. Examples are given below: Travelocity: The Travelocity is responsible for marketing and distributing travel-related products and services directly to individuals who include leisure and business travelers. This is done via Travelocity-owned websites and contact centers, and indirectly through partner websites and contact centers owned by its suppliers, travel agencies and distribution partners. Travelocity offers data like offerings, pricing and information about airlines, hotels, car rental companies, cruise lines, vacation and last-minute travel packages along with other travel-related services such as show tickets and tours. Travelocity has Businessservice for its business travelers and provides an integrated corporate travel through the GetThere product. Travelocity thus facilitates transactions between travel suppliers and consumers for the booking of, and payment for, travel accommodations. Sabre Travel Network: The Sabre Travel Network segment markets and distributes travel-related products and services through the travel agency and corporate channels. It also provides travel agency office automation tools, enables travel agencies to provide services via the Internet and provide reservation management, distribution and technology services to hotel properties. Other products include its key Airline Resevation system, GeThere, etc. In 2006, approximately 36.2% of Sabre’s revenue was generated from Travelocity, 54.4% from Sabre Travel Network and 9.4% from Sabre Airline Solutions based on segment results that included inter segment revenues. Compared with the previous, this was an increase of 30.5% for Travelocity, 1.3% for Sabre Travel Network and 8.3% for Sabre Airline Solutions (Yahoo biz, 2007).

Free Essays on Dj Forums

Technical Analysis of Forums RE: DJ Forums Overview The genre I chose to do for my report is an analysis on DJ fan forum sites in comparison to the manufacturers FAQ sites. In this document I will be discussing where information is produced between manufacturer sites of DJ equipment and fan forums on miscellaneous sites. There is a big difference between the two because the manufacturer sites depend more upon paper plans and product analysis rather than being hobbyists of the musical instruments and having more hands on experience. Creators of the technical sites and forums The authors of the fan forum sites are the fans themselves. On these forum sites, different people who use the DJ equipment trade questions and answers about technical problems they have while using the equipment. These sites are not limited to just questions and answers, it is also a platform for discussion about different pieces of music equipment. There is usually not just one single person that responds to all of the questions. At times the fans may get as many as 10 different people telling them ways to fix or improve problems they may be having. These forum sites, however, are not limited to just technical problems, they tend to offer advice on how to keep your equipment running smooth, or even teach you how to make modifications to them to make them perform better. Some of the information that you find on the fan forum sites maybe not be available on the manufacturer sites. All of the fans within the particular DJ forum are responsible for asking and answering each others questions, and it is up to the user asking to questions to decide which response they will use to answer the questions they may have. So in these forums the authors are highly visible in the sense that the forum is like a conversation board, and even though the reader may not personally know the ones who respond to him, they still converse and communicate back and forth. The head W... Free Essays on Dj Forums Free Essays on Dj Forums Technical Analysis of Forums RE: DJ Forums Overview The genre I chose to do for my report is an analysis on DJ fan forum sites in comparison to the manufacturers FAQ sites. In this document I will be discussing where information is produced between manufacturer sites of DJ equipment and fan forums on miscellaneous sites. There is a big difference between the two because the manufacturer sites depend more upon paper plans and product analysis rather than being hobbyists of the musical instruments and having more hands on experience. Creators of the technical sites and forums The authors of the fan forum sites are the fans themselves. On these forum sites, different people who use the DJ equipment trade questions and answers about technical problems they have while using the equipment. These sites are not limited to just questions and answers, it is also a platform for discussion about different pieces of music equipment. There is usually not just one single person that responds to all of the questions. At times the fans may get as many as 10 different people telling them ways to fix or improve problems they may be having. These forum sites, however, are not limited to just technical problems, they tend to offer advice on how to keep your equipment running smooth, or even teach you how to make modifications to them to make them perform better. Some of the information that you find on the fan forum sites maybe not be available on the manufacturer sites. All of the fans within the particular DJ forum are responsible for asking and answering each others questions, and it is up to the user asking to questions to decide which response they will use to answer the questions they may have. So in these forums the authors are highly visible in the sense that the forum is like a conversation board, and even though the reader may not personally know the ones who respond to him, they still converse and communicate back and forth. The head W...

International Business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

International Business - Essay Example Factors that have aided the manufacturing business in China First, in order to achieve economic sustainability, the Chinese economy was transformed by various regimes from a mass market for western goods and services, to a supplier of cheap goods, materials, and labour, thus beating much of the global competition from many other countries. An example is the setting up of Honda car manufacturing plant in the northern eastern China. Secondly, the Deng Xiaoping political and economic reforms created rooms for development of liberal market business in an environment of well-controlled cheap labour, spurring rapid economic growth. Thirdly, after the reforms, China was modeled on five-year plan focusing on invest in infrastructure, increase in enterprise activity, advancement in technology and controlled population growth. This model has proven successful in the rapid economic growth of China. ... Challenges facing the manufacturing business in China First, the Chinese economy has been relying heavily on agricultural subsistence sectors to feed its population, a factor that made its economy almost to crumble in 1960 due to crop failure. Secondly, in China there has been interchange of power between leftist and rightist, with the left in power promotion ideologies at the expense economic and material development, while when rights being in government modernization, free business policies and building of economic relation with other nation encouraged spurring economic growth. These situations have been creating political struggles in China, which negatively affects the economic developments. Additionally, though doing well in terms of economic growth, China is still affected by a wide a range of problems including poverty, illiteracy levels, and political instability that can greatly affect the manufacturing business and the economy at large. Lastly, China economy largely relies on the dollars with the country’s currency Renminbi having low value, thus in times of financial crisis, the economy and industries suffer a lot due to over reliance on dollar. The IT service providers in India Indian software and IT companies compete successfully with other global companies by offering an attractive combination of quality, cost-effectiveness, short turnaround time and capacity to quickly scale up operations (OECD, 2006, P.129). The success of IT in India can be attributed to the following factors: First, India has a strong commercial sector with a wealthy middle classes and a strong culture of entrepreneurship making, India to capitalize on the emerging global IT and ICT services market. Secondly, India has allowed many

Organizational Leadership and Motivation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Organizational Leadership and Motivation - Essay Example The first important aspect of developing the correct leadership is based on the environment which is created, specifically because of the goal of having innovation as the leading factor for those managing different teams. There are three factors which are noted in the environment that develops the correct culture for an organization. This includes the stimulus, capacity and performance results. The stimulus within the environment needs to be created to invite in different levels of innovation and to build a culture that is reflective of finding and developing new ideas. The capacity which follows this continues with the understanding of the different human resources and how they are able to respond and approach the different environmental needs that are occurring. This can be combined with the performance, which becomes significant because of the way in which this reflects the organizational environment. As the culture of the organizational environment is stimulated, the performance should increase and more responses from team members should be available. The atmosphere and environment which is created from the organizational culture then has to show and reflect all aspects of how the organization is managed (Prajogo, 2006: 15). The environment that is reflected and the stimulus, capacity and performance are further reflected with characteristics that are in the organizational culture. This is led by creating ways for opportunities to be further defined while the limitations within the work structure are lifted. The concept of building the right opportunities is one which begins with developing a system through technical and non – technical applications which can be used. The approach is to find different resources and tools which are added into the environment and which build and develop an alternative approach to creating the right development within the environment. This combines with understanding types of innovation within the environment and ways i n which this can be reflected through opportunities. The main approach to take with the environment is to allow resources, ideas and expansion to be continuously available to the employees, teams and leaders. As the systems within the environment are able to create the right approaches there is the ability to develop and understand the relationships that are associated with the organization. The environment will need to create a process and understanding of this through the culture to further reflect what is needed for new innovations to be developed (Walker, 2007: 591). The environment which is created with resources and other systems should further develop with expected procedures that invite innovation. The leadership arena is one which has to create an environment that is stimulating and which offers teamwork and development to be created. Furthering this

Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) Vs. Arbitrage Pricing Theory (APT) Essay

Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) Vs. Arbitrage Pricing Theory (APT) - Essay Example The model derived rate of return will then be used to price the asset correctly - the asset price should equal the expected end of period price discounted at the rate implied by model. If the price diverges, arbitrage should bring it back into line. The theory was initiated by the economist Stephen Ross in 1976.(Ross,1976) If APT holds, then a risky asset can be described as satisfying the following relation: Some commonly accepted factors are Business Cycle, Time Horizon, Confidence, Inflation, Market Timing, oil prices, term structure of interest rates, industrial production, default premiums etc. It has been shown that the empirical specification of the APT need not be unique.( Otuteye,1991) In other words, no one set of economic factors constitutes "the factors" of the APT. Any set of factors that fulfills the requirements of the returns generating process and the resulting linear relationship between expected returns and factor sensitivities will be an equally valid set of APT factors. However, there is a gradual consensus towards the use of some common factors. (Brown, Weinstein, 1983) The CAPM does not appear to adequately explain the variation in stock returns. Empirical studies show that low beta stocks may offer higher returns than the model would predict. Some data to this effect was presented as early as a 1969 conference in Buffalo, New York in a paper by Fischer Black, Michael Jensen, and Myron Scholes(Black et.al,1972). Either that fact is itself rational (which saves the efficient markets hypothesis(EMH) but makes CAPM wrong), or it is irrational (which saves CAPM, but makes EMH wrong - indeed, this possibility makes volatility arbitrage a strategy for reliably beating the market). The CAPM assumes that investors demand higher returns in exchange for higher risk. It does not allow for investors who will accept lower returns for higher risk. The model also assumes that all investors agree about the risk and expected return of all assets(Homogeneous expectations assumption). The model assumes unrealistically that asset returns are lognormally distributed, random variables. As a result, large swings (3 to 6 standard deviations from the mean) occur in the market more frequently than the normal distribution assumption would expect. These swings can greatly impact an asset's

Evidence Based Practice for Pain Assessment

Evidence Based Practice for Pain Assessment   Introduction: Pain is a sensation of discomfort that is subjective to each individual, and it is characterized by an unpleasant feeling that can be either physiological or psychological. Acute pain is a sudden feeling of pain, occurring for a short duration lasting less than 3 months and disappearing once the injury has healed. Nurses are the most health care providers present on the unit with patients; therefore, they are the main providers responsible to carry out pain assessment appropriately. Nurses are expected to intervene accordingly to a person’s self-reported pain, and work with the person to manage the pain appropriately. Hence, nurses are required to possess the competencies to assess and manage pain, including knowledge and skills in interviewing techniques, and the ability to do physical assessment and manage pain of individuals who don’t have the ability to self –report (Herr, Coyne, McCaffery, Manworren, Merkel, 2011, as cited in RNAO, 2013). It is evident that unrelieved or poorly managed pain is a burden on the person, the health care system and society (Lynch, 2011, as cited in RNAO, 2013). In fact, 50 to 75 % of postoperative patients do not attain sufficient pain relief (Huang et al., 2001; Chung Lui, 2003, as cited in Bell Duffy, 2009) and some providers underestimate the intensity of the pain for 50% of the cases (Helfand Freeman, 2009). Therefore, this observed nursing practice gives rise to a PICO clinical question. In adult patients with acute pain, does utilizing a standard pain assessment protocol, in comparison to the current practice, affect the pain relief process? Literature review: Effective pain management is a person’s right. Hence, assessing pain, implementing interventions to alleviate it, and prevent it are priorities while caring for a person (Jarzyna et al., 2011, as cited in RNAO, 2013). The article written by Bell and Duffy (2009) inspects two important barriers that serve as obstacles for appropriate pain assessment, which are the beliefs and attitudes of patients and nurses, and time management. Research done by Sloman et al. reinforced that pain can be perceived differently in various cultures (as cited in Bell Duffy, 2009). Regarding the nurses’ attitudes, a triangulated study performed by Schafheutle et al. found that 39.3 % of respondents stated that not having enough of time, enough staff on the units and being overwhelmed with work were major features contributing to unproductive pain assessment (as cited in Bell Duffy, 2009). Regarding time management, an observational study was performed for random nurses that showed that inte rruptions, such as answering the telephones, participating in the multidisciplinary rounds, assisting other nurses and looking for things contributed in poor pain assessment practice. In addition, it was noted that nurses’ priorities were to get all tasks and activities done before the end of their shift rather than allowing time to interact directly with patients to assess their comfort and pain level (Manias et al., 2002, 2005, as cited in Bell Duffy, 2009). While assessing acute pain in adults patients, nurses have to be aware of the routine pain assessment, the choice of measure and the protocols. According to Helfand and Freeman (2009) study, there has been an agreement among most of the institutions that routine assessment of self-reported pain is the best measurement for pain assessment, since some providers underestimate the intensity of the pain for 50% of the cases. According to Helfand and Freeman (2009) study, no evidence was found that directly linked the timing, frequency, or method of pain assessment with outcomes or safety in medical inpatients. It was also noted that instituting routine pain assessment along with an educational component improved rates of assessment and treatment. The protocols in the institutions tend to guide the assessment and the management of pain; hence the assessment should be unified and accurate in order to intervene accordingly. Pain is universal but it is a subjective experience. Hence, it is challenging to obtain adequate objective information about it. Many assessment tools are used to rate and assess pain, such as the Visual Analogue Scale, the Verbal Numeric Rating Scale, Verbal Description Scales, Facial Pain Scales, Brief Pain Inventory and McGill Pain Questionnaire (Helfand Freeman, 2009). For the choice of measure, it must be simple to use by the health care providers, and easy for the patients to understand and able to respond to it (Helfand Freeman, 2009). The Visual Analogue Scale for pain assessment is used universally, however its efficacy and reliability is put to question since it may bias the results. A randomized control trial was tested over forty healthy volunteers where they were induced by thermal laser stimulations. Pain was tested during different sessions using two different visual scales; the classical pain visual analog scale (unbearable pain/ no pain), and the pleasantness visua l analog scale (very pleasant/ very unpleasant). And at same time, somatosensory evoked potentials were measured. Results showed that the thermal laser stimulations that were of low intensity were reported as painful on the visual analog scale of pain, whereas they were rated as pleasant on the visual analog scale of pleasantness. Meanwhile, following the low intensity thermal stimulation, the cerebral responses indicated the activation of only C-fibers which indicate the warm sensations that are not painful. Therefore the somatosensory evoked potential results matched with the pleasantness visual analog scale and not with the classical pain visual analog scale. This signifies that when healthy individuals rate the â€Å"no pain† using the classical visual analog scale of pain, they are more likely to rate the intensity of the stimulation and not their pain perception (Kemp, Despres, Dufour, 2012) EBP Process: Observations In hospital X, Y, Z pain assessment was observed being performed by RNs. However, in hospital X, RNs were not using a pain assessment tool to assess the pain, some were just asking if the patient was in pain or not, even though the Visual Analogue Scale was available on the floor, others for sedated patients, were squeezing the patient’s skin to check response to pain, in addition to assessment of facial expressions and vital signs (heart rate), meanwhile in hospitals Y and Z, RNs were mostly using the Numeric Rating Scale to assess for pain by asking the patient to rate the pain between 0-10, where 0 was explained to be the absence of pain and 10 to be the worst pain. In hospital X, some RNs were observed documenting the pain assessment by filling a pain flow sheet, while others were only seen to document pain assessment on the pain flow sheet if the patient was on Patient-Controlled Analgesia, meanwhile in hospital Y, RNs were observed to document pain assessment per shift b asis, whereas in hospital Z, RNs documented pain assessment only after a pharmacological intervention. In hospitals X and Y, RNs were not reassessing pain after pharmacological interventions, while in hospital Z, RNs were observed to do so. In the three hospitals, RNs were observed to inform the physician if the patient was assessed to have pain. Hospital Protocols: Pain assessment protocols were taken from 3 hospitals: X, Y Z. It is important to note that the 3 hospitals were similar in the method/system that they adopted: The American system. That is, one of the references from which the pain assessment protocol of hospital X was taken, was JCR, J.Caho, Joint Commission Resources (USA), 2003. The protocol was issued on 15/01/2011 and updated on 15/01/2013. On the other hand, hospital Y has the followings as main references: Joint Commission International standards, Hospital standards, 4th edition, January 2011, Care of patient, and 2006 Lippincott Williams Wilkins, Inc., Volume 1 (4), August 2006, p. 20-28. The pain assessment protocol is issued on January 2011 and revised on March 2012. While the pain assessment protocol of hospital Z is based on the Joint Commission International Accreditation Standards for Hospitals-5th edition, JCAHO Pain Management Standards (CAMH 2002) and The Ministry of Public Health (MOH), (2003). The protocol was i ssued on December 2006 and revised on June 2014. We can note that some references are outdated thus the protocols should be often revised to keep them equivalent with the latest evidence based practice. 3 of the pain assessment protocols stress on that pain assessment should be individualized according to the patient’s age and beliefs, values and cultural considerations. Hospital Z adds that pain assessment should be part of patient handover report. Three of the protocols state that assessment of pain should be done: Post-procedure (or within 1 hour of admission), post pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions, with routine vital signs assessment, at time of discharge, before any planned activities (physiotherapy, stress test, post-operative ambulation). Apart from the assessment of pain, reassessment is considered as a crucial aspect, to monitor the pain level, in the 3 hospital protocols. Hospital Y mentions that prior to reassessment nurses should always refer to the literature of the analgesic agent for its peak action period. In hospital Z when pain is identified (score 2 and above), DMS-MRM-Nursing Sheets-Scale is activated while in hospital Y when pain is i dentified (score three and above), pain assessment and interventions flow sheet is activated. The scales used to assess the pain of adult patients with acute pain common in 3 hospitals is the numeric scale, where the patient is instructed to choose a number from 1 to 10 that best describes his current pain, where 0 refers to no pain while 10 refers to the worst possible pain. Another common pain assessment scale among the three hospitals is the Visual Analogue Scale, where the patient points out his/her pain level across a continuum with the extremities of no pain and worst pain. The FLACC (Face, Legs, Activity, Cry, Consolability) scale is used for critically ill, sedated and paralyzed, intubated and ventilated patients in ICU in hospital Y while it is used for children up to 3 years old in hospitals X and Z. In addition, Adult Nonverbal Scale is used for patients unable to report pain in hospital Z. Similar to the FLACC and Adult Nonverbal scales used in the 2 hospitals, hospital X uses the Behavioral rating scale (components: Face, Restlessness, Muscle tone, Vocalization, Consolability) for patients unable to self-report pain. Wong Baker Facial Grimace is a common scale in the 3 hospitals for patients who cannot communicate their pain, recommended for patients of 3 years of age and older in hospital X, while up to 7 years of age in hospital Y. Guidelines: According to the guidelines mentioned in Assessment and Management of Pain Clinical Practice Guidelines (Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario, 2013), nurses should screen for the presence, or risk of, any type of pain upon admission, after a change in medical status and prior to, during and after a procedure. Nurses should also perform a comprehensive pain assessment using a systematic approach and appropriate, validated tools and using appropriate tools for persons unable to self-report. The nurses should take into consideration the person’s beliefs, knowledge and level of understanding about pain and pain management. Then, document the person’s pain characteristics. After implementing pain relieving measures, the guidelines state that re-evaluation is important and should be done by reassessment of the pain characteristics, and accordingly documenting the outcomes. There are some validated assessment tools, recommended to be used by the guidelines, and are the following: Faces Pain Scale Revised, Numeric Rating Score, Verbal Rating Score, Brief Inventory Short Form, and Behavioral Pain Scale (See Appendices). Proposed Change/Recommendations: Most of the nurses in the three hospitals were observed to be unfamiliar with the pain assessment protocol. Hence, it is recommended to implement frequent sessions for all nurses to inform them about the criteria of the protocol, identify any gaps, and train them accordingly. Additionally, supervision is essential on each floor to evaluate the effectiveness of these sessions. It is recommended by the guidelines that health-care professionals should participate in ongoing education opportunities to improve their knowledge and skills to be able to knowledgeably assess and manage pain (RNAO, 2013). Apart from hospital setting, the guidelines recommend that educational institutions include guidelines, assessment and management of pain into their curricula for registered nurses, and all health care providers programs to indorse evidence-based practice (RNAO, 2013). It was noted that some of the hospitals’ pain assessment policies were established on outdated references. It is hence recommended that hospitals always update their policies and base them on up-to-date EBP guidelines. In addition, it is also recommended for hospitals to establish a model of care to support inter-professional collaboration for the active assessment of pain and declare pain assessment as a strategic clinical priority (RNAO, 2013). Another common observation was that the three hospitals still used the Visual Analogue Scale, which is not among the list of recommended validated pain assessment tools mentioned in the guidelines (RNAO, 2013) and research found it to be unreliable, since patients are more likely to rate the intensity of the stimulation and not their pain perception (Kemp, Despres, Dufour, 2012). The University of Zurich and ETH Zurich in Switzerland, invented a new method for accurate pain assessment: The Pain Mouse. It is an electronic pain assessment tool that offers credible evaluation, lessening missing data and unclear markings concerning pain. The device captures the clenching reaction to pain through a pressure sensor that is connected to a portable computer (Schaffner et al., 2012). PM is recommended to be used in the near future considering that it distinguishes different levels of pain, is less time consuming, more accurate and can be used for patients with limited physical activity and vision impairment compared to the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) (Schaffner et al., 2012). References: Bell, L., Duffy, A. (2009). Pain assessment and management in surgical nursing: a literature review. British Journal of Nursing, 18(3), 153-156. Retrieved April 4, 2015, from http://web.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.lau.edu.lb:2048/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=6sid=ff36c8fd-ed44-444c-8182-9487d39e913b%40sessionmgr4005hid=4104 Helfand, M., Freeman, M. (2009). Assessment and management of acute pain in adult medical ‎inpatients: a systematic review. Pain Medicine, 10(7), 1183-1199. Retrieved April 10, 2015, http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail/detail?vid=3sid=7b1adb63-ced7-4486-94ef-4ecc54ddc64b%40sessionmgr111hid=123bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=rzhAN=2010437732 Kemp, J., Despres, O., Dufour, A. (2012). Unreliability of the Visual Analog Scale in experimental pain assessment: a sensitivity and evoked potentials study. Pain Physician, 15(5), 693-699. Retrieved on April 10, 2015 from http://www.painphysicianjournal.com/2012/september/2012;15;E693-E699.pdf Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO). (2013). Assessment and management of pain (3rd Edition). Toronto, ON: Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO). Retrieved April 4, 2015, from http://rnao.ca/sites/rnao-ca/files/AssessAndManagementOfPain_15_WEB-_FINAL_DEC_2.pdf Schaffner, N., Folkers, G., Kappeli, S., Musholt, M., Hofbauer, G.F.L., Candia, V. (2012). A new tool for real-time pain assessment in experimental and clinical environments. PLoS ONE, 7(11), art. no. e51014. Retrieved on April 10, 2015 from http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0051014

Clones Essay -- essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  During the past few centuries, technology has reached a new level. With breakthroughs from the invention of electricity to the development of the Internet, these advances have made a huge impact on society. Every day brings the question of what will come next, and what technologies will further enhance the world. Science fiction novels and movies are essentially based on the wonder of future technologies. One of the biggest issues in the development of technology is cloning. The word clone is used in many different contexts in biological research but in its most simple and strict sense, it refers to a precise genetic copy of a molecule, cell, plant, animal, or human being.1 Human cloning has been a largely controversial focus in the area of cloning, mainly, the ethics of cloning. People have differed opinions about the ethics of cloning. Some people think that cloning is not morally right, cloning is erosion of respect for sexuality, and it is against the will of god, fearing what is new and different. Other people think that cloning is beneficial to children, aiding to infertile couples, medically sufficient, and improving to humanity. Public law and policy also comes into play in the ethics of cloning.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Human Cloning does take place naturally to some extent. This is shown when identical twins are conceived. However, the likelihood of this occurrence is limited by chance. Even when identical twins are conceived, they originate from one single zygote that is split during the early stage of pregnancy.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Antosh 2 Scientists are able to clone DNA, which is the genetic makeup of a human being. These DNA fragments are enlarged in a host cell. This process makes many scientific experiments possible. This process, often called molecular cloning, is the mainstay of recombinant DNA technology and has led to the production of such important medicines as insulin to treat diabetes, tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) to dissolve clots after a heart atta... ...ere are many reasons why religions look down upon human cloning. Most importantly, cloning humans is in a sense, playing God. As often happens when a powerful new scientific tool is developed, the announcement that mammalian somatic cell nuclear transfer cloning was possible generated strong warnings against â€Å"playing God.†8 Religions feel that birth is and should remain a natural process. People should not try to create humans when it is not their purpose, but only God’s purpose. It is not a human being’s right to make a decision on an unnatural creation of another human, especially for the sole benefits to oneself. It is said in the bible that God created man in his own image. Human cloning would be seen as sinful in the Church’s eyes. Antosh 6 There are positive aspects as well as negative aspects to human cloning, but since it is clear that the positive aspects to cloning are limited in their benefits, there is more reason to ban human cloning. Cloning can get out of control as far as it can pose the threat of people abusing the right of the genetic engineering tool. Although it may enhance the medical field, it would still degrade the sociological structure of today’s world. Clones Essay -- essays research papers   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  During the past few centuries, technology has reached a new level. With breakthroughs from the invention of electricity to the development of the Internet, these advances have made a huge impact on society. Every day brings the question of what will come next, and what technologies will further enhance the world. Science fiction novels and movies are essentially based on the wonder of future technologies. One of the biggest issues in the development of technology is cloning. The word clone is used in many different contexts in biological research but in its most simple and strict sense, it refers to a precise genetic copy of a molecule, cell, plant, animal, or human being.1 Human cloning has been a largely controversial focus in the area of cloning, mainly, the ethics of cloning. People have differed opinions about the ethics of cloning. Some people think that cloning is not morally right, cloning is erosion of respect for sexuality, and it is against the will of god, fearing what is new and different. Other people think that cloning is beneficial to children, aiding to infertile couples, medically sufficient, and improving to humanity. Public law and policy also comes into play in the ethics of cloning.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Human Cloning does take place naturally to some extent. This is shown when identical twins are conceived. However, the likelihood of this occurrence is limited by chance. Even when identical twins are conceived, they originate from one single zygote that is split during the early stage of pregnancy.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Antosh 2 Scientists are able to clone DNA, which is the genetic makeup of a human being. These DNA fragments are enlarged in a host cell. This process makes many scientific experiments possible. This process, often called molecular cloning, is the mainstay of recombinant DNA technology and has led to the production of such important medicines as insulin to treat diabetes, tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) to dissolve clots after a heart atta... ...ere are many reasons why religions look down upon human cloning. Most importantly, cloning humans is in a sense, playing God. As often happens when a powerful new scientific tool is developed, the announcement that mammalian somatic cell nuclear transfer cloning was possible generated strong warnings against â€Å"playing God.†8 Religions feel that birth is and should remain a natural process. People should not try to create humans when it is not their purpose, but only God’s purpose. It is not a human being’s right to make a decision on an unnatural creation of another human, especially for the sole benefits to oneself. It is said in the bible that God created man in his own image. Human cloning would be seen as sinful in the Church’s eyes. Antosh 6 There are positive aspects as well as negative aspects to human cloning, but since it is clear that the positive aspects to cloning are limited in their benefits, there is more reason to ban human cloning. Cloning can get out of control as far as it can pose the threat of people abusing the right of the genetic engineering tool. Although it may enhance the medical field, it would still degrade the sociological structure of today’s world.

Human Rights and Guantanamo Essay

In 2004, the Supreme Court ruled that Guantanamo Bay detainees, most of whom have been held in the camp for years, may challenge their detention at the camp in American federal courts. (Medrano, 2006) While this is good news, at the onset this revealed a major flaw in the years-long operation of Camp Delta, the US prison camp in Guantanamo—the violation of basic human rights, a major ethical concern not only in Guantanamo but all over the world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   A typical cell at Guantanamo, sources say, is like a prison cell in the US, with the standard clothing and toiletries. Because most detainees are Muslims, each cell comes with a Koran, prayer beads, and an arrow pointing to Mecca. Each day even begins with a Muslim call to prayer. (Camp Delta: Guantanamo Bay, 2004) So where is human right violation here?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Human rights dictate that every prisoner has the right to remain silent, undergo a fair trial, be given the basic necessities in life, be protected against all forms of abuse, be able to exercise religious freedom, and be presumed innocent until proven guilty, among others. These are things that are mostly not enjoyed by the inmates at Guantanamo. To begin with, detainees at Camp Delta have been incarcerated there for years without undergoing trial. Most of them have been picked up from the streets, majority from Afghanistan. Some were turned over or pointed at as terrorists in exchange of the dollar rewards. Secondly, torture and physical abuse have been reported. Suicide cases were also existent. Thirdly, prisoners are virtually living in solitude, having no rights to family visit or to live communally. They are also not entitled to exercise the right to remain silent. On the contrary, they are interrogated everyday each week for hours by the military. These after the government branded the detainees enemy combatants but not prisoners of war. Thus, the detainees were deemed to be not entitled by he provisions of the Geneva Convention. But this was reversed in 2006, when a decision was made that the detainees are entitled with full protection of the Geneva Convention, changing the fate of the hundreds left at Guantanamo Bay camp. (Sources: Rights pledge for Guantanamo detainees, 2006)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ethics dictate that human rights should be followed and respected by everyone, towards everyone. Whether terrorists or not, these detainees are entitled to fair and proper treatment by their captors including such time that they are proven innocent and released, or proven guilty and elevated to a higher penalty. But the discussion of whether the treatment of the prisoners at Camp Delta, Guantanamo Bay is right or wrong is highly subjective, and because self expression is a human right it is worth to respect every person’s view on the situation. However, the years of struggle for freedom by the prisoners in this prison camp in Cuba are all justifiable.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   If we look at the issue in light of utilitarianism, we will be given the two sides of the coin. The first side is that of the people who are benefited by operation of Camp Delta and many other US prison camps all over the world. In this side, the inhumane treatment of the prisoners is right because it benefits them—makes them happy. It makes them happy because they are able to champion their country and their government against people who plotted against terrorism in the United States. It makes them happy because they are doing something noble and worthwhile. It makes them happy that they are getting even with people who may have played a part in the killing of many terror victims in the 9/11 attacks and many other terror attacks around the world. If they stop operating Camp Delta and close it down, it will reverse their emotions and give them the negative perception in return. This impending feeling of sadness makes shutting down Camp Delta wrong, as the utilitarian will say.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On the other hand, the situation does not make the hundreds of prisoners and their families happy. Their negative (sad) perception of the situation makes it wrong, as utilitarianism claims that whatever results in the reverse of happiness is wrong.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Psychological egoism agrees. It asserts that a person’s ultimate aim is one’s own welfare. It may appear that psychological egoism speaks about selfishness. The theory says that in fact people are always thinking about their own means and ends all the time. This can be seen with the Guantanamo prison case in hand clearly. In the Guantanamo Bay camp, self welfare was always on cue. Many situations in many news reports and coverage insist on the truth behind this theory in Camp Delta, and egoism was practiced by the authorities and the prisoners alike. Every guard, prisoner, officer, and all others act according to what will benefit themselves and their welfare more. While military personnel may be there for the service of the country, the government, and the countrymen that they are representing, it can also be claimed safely that they are there for the benefits that being a military person gives them and their family. The prisoners may say that they are innocent because they are really innocent, or because they fear that they will be killed if they say something or establish a connection with terrorism. Likewise, the real terrorists may admit what they know and give information for hopes of being freed or being treated more humanely. All of them are acting towards what they think will result in a more positive state for themselves. For instance, the suicide attempt of some prisoners is a result of their desire for a better state. They feel that they are in such a bad situation in the Guantanamo camp that death, be it self-inflicted, is the way out for them to achieve a better life than what they are receiving in prison. Reports saying that prisoners who cooperate and state information about terrorism are given special rights to live communally though under strict control are another reflection: prisoners may be revealing information to receive the privilege. The guards are in turn giving the privilege to encourage the prisoners to speak up, and because they want the information. There were also cases that have been reported where prisoners are given cups for good manners and cooperation, but many prisoners used these cups to throw urine or stool to guards; guards were quick in disciplining these prisoners in return. (Camp Delta: Guantanamo Bay, 2004) In light of psychological egoism, the action and reaction of both the guards and prisoners were theoretically correct as they aim for the welfare of themselves. The prisoners feel maligned, and they wanted to get even. They do this by throwing the cup of their waste to the guards. In return, the guards feel maligned too and will take an action to take control over the prisoners and their action, be it physical or psychological abuse. A matter of pride, and they are all results of one’s desire to save his own welfare. In this light, the action-reaction chain ongoing at Guantanamo are all legitimate and justifiable. So in totality, can the treatment of the detainees at Camp Delta be concluded as inhumane? Are they really not exercising human rights there at Guantanamo Bay? Again, at first thought, yes and no. The answer depends on who is answering the question. A person who values national security and justice for terrorism victims more will rejoice over events at Guantanamo Bay. On the other hand, a person who values parity and human rights more will most likely be moved by the events at Camp Delta and be dismayed. However, two philosophical theories assert that what is happening out there in Camp Delta, Guantanamo Bay is wrong and worth one’s dismay. Kantian deontology states that right and wrong is determined by action, so an action is right or wrong regardless of its consequences. The ends do not and cannot justify the means. In a scenario or situation, an assessment of the situation itself is needed to know if it is right or wrong, and even if it made for the positive end if it is wrong it remains wrong. Likewise, a right move despite the negative end still remains right. In the case of treating the Guantanamo prisoners without regard for human rights, it should be assessed if the treatment is right. Ethically speaking, it is wrong because it violates and gives no regard to human rights. Sure, the treatment of these prisoners may lead to useful information about terror attacks and may help combat terrorism altogether. Sure it may promote world peace. Sure it will bring justice to terrorism victims. But all these do not matter—the violation of human rights is ethically wrong.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In light of virtue ethics, Camp Delta is treating its prisoners inhumanely. The government and its guards set aside patience and humility and hurt people without concrete evidences that these people have anything to do with the terror plots and attacks. The concern for security and to aid the nation’s injured pride for having been targeted by many successful terrorist attacks overshadowed the value of the human person, and that of brotherhood.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Utilitarianism states that the events at Camp Delta in Guantanamo Bay Cuba is right and wrong depending on which side of the fence a person is in, and if the events make him happy or not. Psychological egoism seconds this, as a person values himself and aims to protect his welfare. On the contrary, Kantian deontology and virtue ethics state that the prisoners at Camp Delta are indeed being maltreated because, primarily, the action itself is wrong and despite the arguments on expected positive results it is still wrong. Second, the actions against the prisoners act against established virtues. But philosophy and theories aside, ethics dictate that prisoners be treated with respect and be given due process. If the authorities can do this, the majority will be happy, egoism takes its course positively, actions will be deemed proper, and virtues will not be violated—and there will be no argument about human rights violations at Guantanamo, or anywhere else, ever. References: Camp Delta: Guantanamo Bay. 2004. Retrieved March 31, 2007, from http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/09/16/60II/main573616.shtml Medrano, M. 2006. Supreme Court Rejects Appeal of Guantanamo Bay Detainees. Retrieved March 31, 2007, from http://abcnews.go.com/US/LegalCenter/story?id=1851981&page=1 Sources: Rights pledge for Guantanamo detainees. 2006. Retrieved March 31, 2007, from http://edition.cnn.com/2006/LAW/07/11/guantanamo.geneva/index.html

Notebooks vs. Recorders for Journalism

Notebooks vs. Recorders for Journalism Which works better when interviewing a source: taking notes the old-fashioned way, with pen and reporters notebook in hand or using a cassette or digital voice recorder? The short answer is that both have their pros and cons, depending on the situation and the type of story youre doing. Lets examine both. Notebooks Pros A reporters notebook and a pen or pencil are the time-honored tools of the interviewing trade. Notebooks are cheap and easy to fit into a back pocket or purse. Theyre also unobtrusive enough that they generally dont make sources nervous. A notebook is also reliable - no need to worry about it running out of batteries. And for the reporter working on a tight deadline, notebooks are the fastest way of taking down what a source says and accessing his or her quotes when writing the story. Cons Unless youre a very speedy note-taker, its hard to jot down everything a source says, especially if he or she is a fast talker. So you can miss key quotes if youre relying on note-taking. Also, it can be hard to get quotes that are totally accurate, word-for-word, using just a notebook. That may not matter much if youre doing a quick person-on-the-street interview. But it might be a problem if youre covering an event where getting the quotes exactly right is important - say, a speech by the president. One note about pens - they freeze in subzero weather. So if its cold out, always bring a pencil just in case. Recorders Pros Recorders are worth buying because they  enable you to get literally everything someone says, word-for-word. You dont have to worry about missing or mangling key quotes from your source. Using a recorder can also free you up to jot down things in your notes you might otherwise have missed, such as the way a source acts, their facial expressions, etc. Cons Like any technical device, recorders can malfunction. Practically every reporter whos ever used a recorder has a story about the batteries dying in the middle of an important interview. Also, recorders are more time-consuming than notebooks because a recorded interview has to be played back later and transcribed in order to access the quotes. On a breaking news story, there just isnt enough time to do that. Finally, recorders can make some sources nervous. And some sources may even prefer that their interviews not be recorded. Note: There are digital voice recorders on the market that are designed to transcribe everything thats recorded. But such recorders are usable for dictation only and the best results occur with top-quality voice recording via a headset microphone and clearly enunciated, accent-less speech. In other words, in a real-world interviewing scenario, where theres likely to be lots of background noise, its probably not a great idea to rely on such devices alone. The Winner? Theres no clear winner. But there are clear preferences: Many reporters rely on notebooks for breaking news stories and use recorders for articles that have longer deadlines such as features. Overall, notebooks are probably used more often than recorders on a daily basis.Recorders are good if youre doing a long interview for a story that doesnt have an immediate deadline, such as a profile or feature article. A recorder allows you to better maintain eye contact with your source, thus making the interview feel more like a conversation. But remember: Even if youre recording an interview, always take notes anyway. Why? Its Murphys Law: the one time you rely solely on a recorder for an interview will be the one time the recorder malfunctions. To sum up: Notebooks work best when youre on a tight deadline. Recorders are good for stories where you have time to transcribe the quotes after the interview.

Reforma migratoria de Trump y a quiénes afectaría

Reforma migratoria de Trump y a quià ©nes afectarà ­a De aprobarse la reforma migratoria que propone el Presidente Donald Trump, se modificarà ­a radicalmente la situacià ³n legal de un grupo de migrantes indocumentados, se eliminarà ­an y alterarà ­an algunos de los caminos ms comunes para sacar la tarjeta de residencia, y se reducirà ­a drsticamente el nà ºmero total de migrantes legales que se admiten anualmente en Estados Unidos. En este artà ­culo se explican cules son esas  propuestas, a quià ©nes afectarà ­a y cà ³mo es el proceso legislativo estadounidense necesario para que se aprueben y se conviertan en ley. Propuesta de reforma migratoria para los "Dreamers" Los Dreamers son los inmigrantes indocumentados que llegaron a los Estados Unidos siendo nià ±os. Cualquier tipo de reforma migratoria que se intente llevar a cabo, pasa por la necesidad de encontrar una salida legal a la situacià ³n de estos muchachos. Barack Obama, el anterior presidente, protegià ³ a 700.000 de ellos de la deportacià ³n y les permitià ³ obtener un permiso de trabajo cuando, mediante una accià ³n ejecutiva en 2012, creà ³ el programa de Accià ³n Diferida, conocido en inglà ©s por las siglas de DACA.   Sin embargo, en septiembre de 2017 y mediante otra  orden ejecutiva, el Presidente Trump puso fin a ese programa de forma escalonada y prohibià ³ presentar nuevas solicitudes. En  la actualidad, por decisià ³n judicial el gobierno est obligado a seguir procesando solicitudes de renovaciones, a la espera de que una corte dicte sobre la legalidad de la accià ³n ejecutiva que puso fin a DACA. De aprobarse la propuesta de reforma migratoria, se abrirà ­a un camino para estos muchachos hacia la ciudadanà ­a estadounidense, previa obtencià ³n de la residencia permanente, tambià ©n conocida como green card, en un proceso que podrà ­a demorarse entre 10 y 12 aà ±os. Se estima que esta propuesta beneficiarà ­a a un total de 1,8 millones de jà ³venes, es decir, los 700,000 de DACA y 1,1 millà ³n ms de personas que podrà ­an calificar. Para ellos supondrà ­a pasar de un estatus migratorio de indocumentado a uno legal. Reforma migratoria eliminarà ­agreen card por reunificacià ³n familiar Una de las iniciativas ms polà ©micas de  Trump  es la de poner fin a ciertas categorà ­as de peticià ³n de la tarjeta de residencia permanente para familiares.   Se eliminarà ­an, en primer lugar, las peticiones que, segà ºn la ley actual, pueden realizar los ciudadanos americanos en favor de sus padres, hermanos, hijos casados de cualquier edad e hijos solteros mayores de 21 aà ±os. Es decir, los ciudadanos solo podrà ­an pedir la green card para sus cà ³nyuges y para sus hijos solteros considerados como nià ±os (child, en inglà ©s segà ºn la terminologà ­a de las leyes migratorias).   En la actualidad, para la ley migratoria que rige este tipo de solicitudes, es considerado como nià ±o toda persona soltera menor de 21 aà ±os de edad. Algunas propuestas de reforma migratoria consideran rebajar a 18 aà ±os la consideracià ³n de nià ±o. En segundo lugar, segà ºn esta propuesta de reforma migratoria, tambià ©n se eliminarà ­an las peticiones de papeles efectuadas por residentes permanentes en favor de sus hijos solteros mayores de 21 aà ±os, de tal manera que los residentes permanentes solo podrà ­an pedir la green card para sus cà ³nyuges y para sus hijos solteros menores de 21 aà ±os. Tambià ©n en estos casos se considera rebajar la edad a los 18 aà ±os, en vez de los 21, que es la edad que aplica en la actualidad. Para justificar  esta medida de poner fin a ciertas categorà ­as de inmigracià ³n por reunificacià ³n familiar, Trump argumenta que, en realidad, es una forma de inmigracià ³n en cadena. Por ejemplo, un ciudadano puede pedir a un hermano y puede incluir en la misma solicitud a la esposa de este y a los hijos solteros menores de 21 aà ±os. Con el paso del tiempo, esas personas podrà ­an obtener la green card y, posteriormente, la ciudadanà ­a americana por naturalizacià ³n. A partir de ese momento, podrà ­an realizar sus propias peticiones. Por ejemplo, la cuà ±ada del ciudadano que realizà ³ la primera peticià ³n podrà ­a pedir a sus padres, hijos mayores de 21 aà ±os o hermanos. Asà ­, esas personas  emigrarà ­an a Estados Unidos meramente por razà ³n de sus lazos familiares, pero sin tener en consideracià ³n quà © le pueden aportar al paà ­s.   Si se aprobara una reforma migratoria eliminando las categorà ­as de peticiones de familia  mencionadas, se reducirà ­a automticamente en 400.000 personas el nà ºmero de inmigrantes que legalmente obtienen la green card en Estados Unidos por aà ±o fiscal. En este caso, los perjudicados serà ­an los 3,9 millones de personas que llevan aà ±os, y en algunos casos dà ©cadas, esperando  una visa de inmigrante disponible en su categorà ­a, como se puede verificar en el boletà ­n de visas que publica y actualiza cada mes el Departamento de Estado. Entre las personas que ms tiempo llevan esperando estn los hermanos y los hijos casados de ciudadanos americanos de Mà ©xico. Entre los perjudicados tambià ©n estarà ­an los ciudadanos y los residentes que presentaron la peticià ³n de papeles en favor de un familiar en una categorà ­a que se eliminarà ­a. Eliminacià ³n de la loterà ­a de visas de la diversidad Todos los aà ±os fiscales, se celebra un sorteo gratuito de tarjetas de residencia permanente que se conoce como loterà ­a de visas de la diversidad y que tiene por objeto facilitar la inmigracià ³n procedente de paà ­ses con niveles no altos de migracià ³n actual hacia Estados Unidos. Por esta razà ³n, estn excluidos de participar los nacidos en paà ­ses con altas tasas de migracià ³n, como Mà ©xico, Repà ºblica Dominicana o Colombia, por ejemplo.   En la actualidad, la loterà ­a de visas favorece principalmente a los africanos. Entre los paà ­ses de habla espaà ±ola, los venezolanos son los que estn ganando por este sistema ms tarjetas de residencia. De eliminarse este programa de la loterà ­a de visas, los perjudicados serà ­an las 50.000 personas que anualmente obtienen la tarjeta de residencia por medio de este sorteo. Construccià ³n de muro enla frontera entre Estados Unidos y Mà ©xico La construccià ³n del muro, una de las promesas electorales de Trump, tendrà ­a un costo de 25 mil millones de dà ³lares. La Casa Blanca pone como requisito para apoyar cualquier medida de regularizacià ³n migratoria para los Dreamers que el Senado y la Cmara de Representantes aprueben el presupuesto para la construccià ³n del muro y que se incremente la partida de dinero destinada a las labores de control en las zonas fronterizas que llevan acabo la Patrulla Fronteriza (CBP, por sus siglas en inglà ©s) y el ICE, la agencia encargada de ejecutar las leyes migratorias. La construccià ³n del muro tiene una fuerte oposicià ³n en Estados Unidos, ya que un buen nà ºmero de legisladores opinan que es muy caro, que la frontera entre los dos paà ­ses ya est casi en su totalidad separada por una valla y, finalmente, que no servirà ­a realmente para detener completamente la inmigracià ³n indocumentada. Esto porque se estima que ms de la mitad de todos los migrantes indocumentados presentes en Estados Unidos ingresaron legalmente con una visa y, simplemente, perdieron su estatus al no salir del paà ­s dentro de plazo. En este caso, se argumenta que la à ºnica solucià ³n para acabar con la migracià ³n indocumentada serà ­a imposibilitar que pudiese  trabajar mediante la imposicià ³n obligatoria en todas las empresas del sistema e-verify para verificar el estatus migratorio de todos los empleados y acompaà ±arla de altas multas a las empresas que den trabajo a inmigrantes sin los documentos en regla. De construirse el muro, los grandes perjudicados serà ­an los contribuyentes estadounidenses, ya que el dinero no lo pondrà ­a Mà ©xico, como se habà ­a anunciado en el fragor de la  campaà ±a presidencial del 2016. Creacià ³n de sistema de inmigracià ³n por puntos En el caso de una eventual nueva ley migratoria, el Presidente Trump favorece modificar  las categorà ­as que regulan la inmigracià ³n por trabajo estableciendo un sistema de puntos, similar al que existe en  Australia y en Canad. De crearse ese sistema, cada candidato a emigrar recibirà ­a una serie de puntos en funcià ³n de sus caracterà ­sticas personales  como, por ejemplo, educacià ³n, edad, experiencia laboral y conocimientos de inglà ©s. Cuanto mayor fuera su puntaje, mayores serà ­an las posibilidades de obtener una green card. Reforma migratoria para indocumentados que no son Dreamers Se calcula que en Estados Unidos hay unos 11 millones de inmigrantes sin papeles. Las propuestas de reforma solamente  contemplan la regularizacià ³n de los jà ³venes conocidos como Dreamers, lo cual dejarà ­a sin legalizacià ³n a aproximadamente nueve millones de migrantes. Todavà ­a no se ha articulado una propuesta sobre quà © pasarà ­a con ellos, aunque se estima que no resultarà ­a factible deportarlos a pesar de las amenazas que frecuentemente se dicen. Quà © es necesario para que se apruebe una ley de reformamigratoria La reforma migratoria es competencia federal y para que se apruebe una ley es necesario la mayorà ­a simple en la Cmara de Representantes (218 de 435)  y la mayorà ­a simple en el Senado (51 de 100). Una vez que una ley es aprobada por ambas cmaras es necesario que la firme el presidente. Sin embargo,  en el Senado hay un recurso de obstruccià ³n legislativa, que se conoce en inglà ©s como filibuster y  que permite que uno o varios senadores impidan que una propuesta de ley se vote mediante el uso continuo  de la palabra. El filibuster solo puede detenerse cuando no hay  ms senadores dispuestos a hablar o cuando asà ­ lo decidan 3/5 del total de senadores (60 senadores). Esto tiene importantes consecuencias prcticas dada la  actual composicià ³n del Senado, donde 52 senadores son republicanos, es decir, del mismo partido que el presidente. Para levantar un posible el filibuster  que impida votar en la Cmara Alta una propuesta de ley de reforma migratoria del Presidente Trump, los republicanos necesitan al menos ocho votos de senadores demà ³cratas, lo que significa en la prctica que para aprobar esa ley es imprescindible un acuerdo entre los partidos republicano y demà ³crata. Mientras Trump  intenta aprobar una reforma migratoria, es recomendable que los migrantes indocumentados en Estados Unidos se asesoren con abogados u organizaciones con excelente reputacià ³n sobre las posibilidades reales para regularizar su situacià ³n, si es que existe alguna. Este es un artà ­culo informativo informativo. No es asesorà ­a legal.

Advocacy Project Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Advocacy Project - Assignment Example Due to the fact that an increasingly technological society does not perform nearly as much physical labor as was required in the recent past, coupled with the fact that diets have not kept pace with the changes to human behavior and activity, has instigated a situation by which both children and adults are becoming increasingly overweight; oftentimes obese (a means of measurement to define 20% or more over ideal body mass). Whereas current average obesity rate is approximately 32% within the United States, New Jersey experiences a childhood obesity rate in excess of 39% (Gollust et al., 2013). This creates a systemic issue not only due to the fact that it is a precipitously higher level of obesity than the national average but due to the fact that such a high rate of childhood/adolescent obesity impacts negatively on the current and future health that these individuals can necessarily expect. As such, the purpose of this analysis will be to engage the listener with an understanding o f the fact that action is required with regards to the epidemic of obesity; action that can ultimately help the current generation to enjoy a more healthy and active life than they might otherwise (Fletcher, 2014). Recent scholarship has indicated that the situation regarding childhood obesity, in the United States, is reaching and alarming level. Scholars have indicated that roughly one in three children currently living within the United States can be considered obese. The obvious problem that exists with regards to this is not necessarily due to the fact that these children are merely obese; rather, the problem that exists is due to the fact that children who suffer from obesity facing exponentially higher risk of developing any number of other diseases (Rabbit & Coye, 2013). These can include but are not limited to diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and many others (Anderson et al., 2012). Moreover, the issue with childhood obesity, as is

Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 4

Research Paper Example This decision of making the truth known to the public is based on the ethical principle of transparency, which is an important part of communication â€Å"...based on the notion of an honest exchange† (Plaisance 44). It was mentioned in the commentary that despite Wilson’s transparency and honesty in verifying that Niger was not actually capable of exporting uranium ores due to stringent measures in the whole process, the Bush Administration decided to keep the public blind to this truth, and even dismissed Wilson’s report. This lack of transparency in reporting about the status of the uranium imports of Iraq from Africa abused the trusting nature of the public and kept them away from the issues that Wilson actually experienced first-hand, and this prompted him to air out his concerns regarding the misconception of most people with the real issues in Iraq and Saddam Hussein. The act of transparency is also rooted in the belief that people have a right to know abo ut the truth, and that the distortions of information could cause not just misinformation in the audience but also unprecedented troubles such as panic and disorder (Plaisance 47). Wilson chose not to keep quiet about how the information he knows got dismissed for the sake of the public, and he wrote it out in his commentary under the ethical principle of transparency. Question 2: Place yourself in Wilson’s position. What kinds of decisions/choices would you make if you were in the same situation? Would you have written the piece? Which philosopher and/or ethical philosophy help guide your decisions? The act of being transparent in communication is not just involved with some issues like whether or not there are hidden motives for transparency, but also the trust of the people involved in these communications is also at stake. Wilson banked on this ethical guideline in giving the public true information in creating his commentary on how his report regarding the true status of the Iraq-Niger uranium connection was silenced by the administration, which consequently perpetuated the fears within people about the potential danger that Iraq poses. His defiance of the information dispersed by the government was shown in his commentary, and while it might have cost him his life, it was worth knowing that at least somehow he did not simply stand and keep his silence. If I was in the same position as Wilson was, I would have done the same and have written a similar piece, maybe add additional and credible information for the reading public. Since this is important information that the public has a right to know but the government keeps from them, I feel that as a public servant I have a duty to the people of delivering them the truth. I would also do the same thing that Wilson did, by writing his own account of what really happened, and letting the people decide on the authenticity of my work. If I put myself in Wilson’s place on writing the commentary abo ut the reality of Niger not really having the ability to bring uranium ore illegally to Iraq, I would have chosen to be transparent with what I know, not just to regain the public’s trust on some members of the government, but also to assure them that not all threats are real, and that