Cloudstreet Essay

How is your personal interpretation of Cloudstreet governed by its treatment of enduring values? Cloudstreet, a sprawling saga composed by Tim Winton, explores the enduring values of reconciliation, hope and the inevitable unity of family that forms the basis for our existence. Through the overarching techniques of context and the use of the Australian vernacular, Winton presents his nostalgia for the traditional Australian life, as well as encouraging the responder to consider universal issues which lie at the core of human experience, such as the need to treat others equally. By passing the Pickles and the Lambs through a series of trials and tribulations, in accordance with the strength of sagaic novels, Winton examines important ideas and philosophies about humankind. Through the examination of pivotal moments within the text, such as Fish’s near drowning in the river, the responder is able to gain their interpretation of the book and its treatment of the universal values of reconciliation, hope and family unity. Cloudstreet’s treatment of the theme of reconciliation highlights the need for people to find reconciliation within their existences, hence showing individual reconciliation with the forces of existence to be a central thematic concern. In Cloudstreet, this idea is expressed through Sam’s meeting with the blackfella after he returns from voting. While Sam implements classic Australian colloquialisms in his complaints about â€Å"some rich bastard†, he simultaneously plots to â€Å"sell the house for some real money†. This use of irony highlights Sam’s (symbolising the typical white man) ignorance of the fortune which he holds and which he considers to be mainstream. As a result, Sam is portrayed as a representative of white ignorance, and while he seems to be an average Australian, Winton portrays him to be a symptom of what is wrong with Australia as, while Sam is able to sense the â€Å"otherworldliness† of the blackfella, he perseveres with his callous plans to exploit home and to be disconnected from his spiritual existence. This idea is further exemplified through Sam’s gesture of offering a cigarette to the blackfella. The symbolism in this image presents Sam as the epitome of all that the class that he represents is able to provide. Reconciliation provides the basis for the emergent and disturbing spirituality of the house. The origins of the horror and ominous spirituality that exudes from the house lies in the misguided and ignorant need to socialise Aboriginals, evidenced in the horrendous treatment of the Aboriginal girls in the house that emerges from this ignorant misunderstanding. Hence, through the metaphor of Sam, Winton comments upon contemporary social and political problems and particularly the culture of denial within Australian culture at the time. This idea of the need for reconciliation is also expressed through the idea of family. The importance of family is another consistent theme throughout the novel. In Debts, Winton explores the instinctive force that drives members of a family to protect one another, despite all previous conflict. This is evidenced through Lester and Quick’s feelings of responsibility for Fish, which, particularly in the case of Quick, is driven by the guilt of Fish’s near drowning. As Lester says, â€Å" We owe him things†¦don’t forget Fish†¦don’t pretend to Fish. † The desperate, beseeching tone represents his instinctive desire to help Fish, in order to find reconciliation within himself. This idea is further expressed in â€Å"Ghostly sensations†, where Rose supports Sam during his desperate attempt at suicide. Despite Rose’s feelings towards her father’s burden on the family, which Sam himself recongises, â€Å"I’m a weak stupid bastard. † Rose assumes responsibility and protects her father. This is expressed through the motherly image of â€Å"She grabbed his head and pulled it to her breast. † The characters demonstrate the almost primeval urge that drives family members to protect one another, effectively communicated through Winton’s use of language. Thus, Winton shows his nostalgia for earlier times, when these values were at the core of Australian society. The theme of hope in Cloudstreet is expressed primarily through the Pickles’ stringent belief in the presence of the â€Å"shifty shadow†. The motif of the shifty shadow runs throughout the novel, presenting itself as a satirisation of the ideas of conventional religion and its affiliated dogma, and establishes a means by which characters such as Sam and Rose justify the unfathomable forces which govern their lives. The imagery of the â€Å"spinning knife†, which is used to decide whether the Lambs will start a shop or who is washing up, presents the idea that, for these characters, religion is more significant as a social context than as any element of a resolution of faith. The dislocation that the Pickles and the Lambs feel from the idea of God echoes Winton’s view that the contemporary working class could not relate to Christian ideals because of their own lack of fortune. Sam’s own nterpretation of the shifty shadow reflects pagan views of the world, in that he maintains a respect for rituals that is fundamental to all societies. â€Å"You stay right there till the shadow’s fallen across whoever’s lucky or unlucky enough, and then when it’s all over, you go out and get on with your business. † The colloquial tone of this sentence emphasises to the responder that, despite his working class background, there are ritualistic ideas bred into him and which he will not contravene. As such, Cloudstreet’s treatment of the theme of the shifty shadow examines spirituality as well as the unknowable. Cloudstreet’s treatment of the values of individual reconciliation, the importance of family and hope reflects its contextual situation, that of late 20th century Australia. Moreover, it reflects Winton’s desperate longing for an era of post war Australia. Through a close examination of the text, the responder gains insight into the central and enduring values of Winton’s society.

Indirect and Direct Racism

Indirect and Direct Racism Racism is a blot on society that has transgressed mankind over hundreds of years. It is conscience of humans that few things are far superior to others. This can be explained in the detail with example of skin color, origin and culture which are the key factors in defragmenting the human society which eventually leads to racism. Cultural difference between various communities was one of the reason for the development of racism.As societies tries to bind itself together it compels people to adapt to different cultures, influencing hatred and eventually given rise to racism. Racism still exists in today’s society in both direct and indirect ways. This can be explained with the recent examples of Asians been targeted in the western world. Asians are attacked because they have different culture and when they settle in western world they bring uneasiness to western lifestyle thus leading to racism.As the author quotes in this article â€Å"Under a byline of Lian Ji, the article published Wednesday used broken English and spouted racial stereotypes to bash the school for his rejection. † The author explains that the student mentioned in the article feels discriminated against due to the fact that he was rejected from Preston University. Clearly showing the flow of racism in the atmosphere within the article, impacting people directly. Skin color is another factor that also has influenced racism.Though subconsciously humans have the tendency to relate things with each other, color is one of those factors. Africans are targeted because they are black and human conscience considers black to be related to bad or evil. Thus they have been victims of racism from the white community, as they consider themselves to be superior to blacks. It can also be noted that origin and cast of people also plays a significant role in influencing racism. In countries particularly where different communities co-exist there seem to be a divide betwee n different communities on faith and cast.Thus people of upper cast will never rub shoulders with the lower cast ones. Eventually there is divide in the communities. Although literacy level has increased, the divide from ages among different communities still exists based on racism. Showing an indirect effecting resulting in racism, not meaning a fully planned riot, but not limited to harassment. Students within an elementary school for example, a student whom is the victim of being verbally bullied due to his fellow classmates lack of literacy skills.Only for the reason that all of the Asian culture has a higher grade average then the Latino Americans. Unlike judging his skin color or the way his facial features varies and being bullied on the spot, it takes tame for one to make fun of another over test scores. Out of the many factors that has led to racism that is thriving in today’s society the one’s discussed area few highlights that presence among us. So it can be concluded that racism among humans still exists and is displayed in both direct and indirect ways.Bibliography â€Å"Racism Agaisnt Asians. †Ã‚  Racism Agaisnt Asians. Web. . Kershner, Isabel, and Mark Landler. â€Å"Racism in Sports And Society – New York Times. â€Å"The New York Times – Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. Web. 09 Dec. 2011. .

Memory Management Essay

The difference between Windows and Linux memory management starts with understanding the requirements of memory management in today’s multiprogramming systems. Memory management requirements are relocation, protection, sharing, local organization, and physical organization. These requirements play a vital role in the processing speed response when using the computer. Windows and Linux have several similarities in regards to memory management but also differ especially with Windows being a sophisticate system and Linux being open sourced. â€Å"Linux shares UNIX characteristics but has its own features and is very complex† (Stallings, 2012, p. 384). Linux virtual memory uses a three- level page structure. The first part is the page structure which is an active process having the size of one page. The entry goes to the page directory and the page directory must be in the main memory to be active. Next is the page middle directory which can span multiple pages. Each entry will point to one page of the table. Last is the page table and refers to one virtual page of the process. A virtual address is used consisting of four fields which are the index into the page directory, index into the page middle directory, index into the page table, and the offset in the selected page of memory. The table structure was designed for 64-bit Alpha processor and is independent. Linux uses the buddy system for efficiency of reading in and writing out pages to and from memory. The buddy system splits and merges pages which are allocated and deallocated in the main memory. The page replacement algorithm in Linux deals with a simple clock which gives each page an age variable. The more times the page is accessed, the age variable is increased. A page that is old would be replaced since it has not been accessed in quite a long time. Linux kernel memory allocation manages the main memory page frames which allocates and deallocates frames for the virtual memory management. When the minimum amount of allocation is less than a page, Linux uses a slab allocation for these smaller chunks making the system more efficient. Windows memory manager is designed to use 4 to 64 Kbytes page sizes and controls how memory is allocated. On 32-bit systems, the Windows process  shows a 32-bit address which allows 4 Gbytes of virtual memory for each process which half is for the operating system and half is for the virtual address space when running in kernel-mode. With the introduction of 64-bit, systems can run more efficiently with larger memory intensive programs. Windows paging can make use of the entire space which can then be brought into the main memory. The operating system manages the address in three regions; available references the address not currently used, reserved for setting aside the process through the virtual memory manager, and committed address for processes to access virtual memory page. When virtual memory is high, the processes increase, and when they are low, older pages are swapped out. In conclusion, Windows and Linux have a few similarities. Both swaps out older pages that are no longer needed to improve the processes Window memory management is more secure and performance orientated, but is more complex. Linux is simpler and easier to maintain but is not secured due to being open sourced and need improvement. Linux was originated in a hacker’s environment while Windows is in a commercial environment. Windows has more effort through design and Linus was favored for simplicity. Each one has their own positives and negatives and the final decision is what system is he and she more comfortable with. References Stallings, W. (2012). Operating Systems: Internals and Design Principles (7th ed.). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database.

Video games for children Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Video games for children - Essay Example In earlier days, when children did not have video games to play with, they often spent time playing outside their homes, with their friends and family members. They spent time reading and inculcating various hobbies and habits that helped them to pass time as well as develop varied interests in different fields. Video games had never been a part of that period or culture for people. A few games did begin to develop with the advent of the 90s but during that time they were far too expensive to be affordable by the common man. It was for this reason that parents and children alike were able to spend time together and interact with each other. As video games started becoming a part of children’s’ lives, parents began to complain that children were not giving them enough time, or putting in much effort into their homework from school. (Norcia, Andrea) Video games popularized themselves in the 90s with a number of games like Super Mario and Tetris forming the lead into taking children into the virtual world. Instead of running around and gaining some physical exercise, children now began to move joysticks sitting in one place for hours at an end, making the characters within the game run and jump around. Today, there are millions of different video games produced all around the world as children have become completely addicted to playing them in an attempt to reach higher levels every time.

Capital markets Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Capital markets - Essay Example sically is a promise to pay back the face value of the bond on maturity together with making periodic interest fees known as coupon rate (Palmiter, 2009). Plowback-Earnings is another important source of new funds which corporations use on capital projects. Instead of paying out dividends to shareholders, a company may decide to plowback the profits made back into the corporation. Plowback is basically reinvesting profits back into the business. It is an attractive way of raising capital since it is usually subject to the control of management. There is no approval required from the government for its use, as happens when a corporation seeks to raise funds via selling of stocks, bonds and securities. In addition, bonds and stocks have costs related to them, for instance, interest that is paid on bonds whereas profit retention avoids such costs (Tirole, 2010). Private equity-This is a source that is popular with small firms or start-ups that cannot raise funds through the stock exchange or rather do not desire to subject themselves to other financing options available. Thus they prefer raising capital via private equity, a process that basically comprises of private investors offering capital to a corporation in exchange for a given stake in the firm. A private equity company is a consortium of investors that pool their capital together for purposes of investment, mostly in other companies (Scanlan 1997). Equity securities-commonly referred to as stock is the fourth source of capital for corporations. Equity is basically an ownership stake in a business or property. Stock being the smallest form of new capital is of great importance to a firm in beginning a company and its early operations. A stock will offer an investor several legal rights such as ownership, sharing in earnings, transferability as well as the power to vote. Stocks are acquired through payment of cash (Jenkins 2013). 2. A financial market basically entails a market where entities and people

Marriage between Hijra and men in modern India Research Paper

Marriage between Hijra and men in modern India - Research Paper Example Hijras are used to cite people who regard themselves as transgender or transsexual. It is a typical error within the South Asians and absence of courtesy for wanting to understand the transgender community that they presume hijras to be men who adopt feminine gender roles, have feminine identity and dress up like women. A long recorded history of hijras is present in the Indian subcontinent, from ancient times onwards. This history highlights a number of conventional roles within the sub continental cultures that are part survival and part spiritual. The word ‘hijra’ is Urdu-Hindustani and is derives from Semitic Arabic root and has been borrowed into Hindi. Since, there is mix up among the real hijras and the ‘invented’ one, some hijra activists and western non-government organizations (NGOs) are working together to locate and separate the born hijras from the artificial ones and educate them. Fanatics of the mother Goddess Bahuchara Mata, their precious power are fortuitous upon their asexuality. However, in reality most of the hijras are actually prostitutes, who are frowned upon in the society, therefore to be out of the circle of criticism and humiliation many of the prostitutes prefer to have a husband (Nanda. 1986). Transgender may be rejected in the society and are frequently insulted and robbed off their right, but no one can deny the fact that as a human being they are eligible to have basic rights no matter what they look like or how the society perceive them to be. Therefore, to have some warm and affectionate relationship in their life they look forward to the institution of marriage. Following is an example of a hijra living in Mumbai and working as a sex worker was married for nine years. Lalita, a very feminine looking hijra was married to a well stabled man and enjoyed the marital bliss for nine years until his husband got married to a real woman and left him, but still

Hinduism Paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Hinduism Paper - Assignment Example Hinduism has its roots in India and dharma, which is their way of life, has similar beliefs that every follower should follow. The religion absorbs beliefs and practices from a variety in the world and incorporates them into their practices to make the unique religion. This absorption of ideas from various sources extends to a wide range of life issues, which guide the followers’ way of life. They share the same themes of ethics and duties, rebirth, right action, liberation from the cycle of rebirth. Hinduism shares common ethical standards and they believe in telling the truth and karma. Karma is the belief that people should act knowing that the same actions they do to others could happen to them later. Hinduism is deeply rooted on the cultural practices of the ancient days, and they believe that followers should ensure that they stick to the Hindu Dharma (Rood, 2008). This is because it lays down the actions to take for different life issues using the traditional beliefs th at their ancestors were practicing. Dharma is the pivotal law, which governs actions of every Hindu follower with their basic scriptures being the Shastras. 2 Hinduism is an ancient way of life and dates back to millions of years ago and its unique due to the fact that it has no founder. It also does not have a specific doctrine that governs how the followers should live, but its doctrines are associated with the place it originated, India. It has picked religious beliefs of people from different religions to come up with the Hindu umbrella. It originated from India and the cultural and society practices of people of ancient India are the core values that people from this religion practice. In 1500 BC, India was invaded by the indo-Aryan tribe, which took over the territories of the Mohenjo-Daro who were the main tribe in the area. These two tribes interconnected and they started sharing commo0n beliefs and practices with the first one being worship of goddesses and performing simil ar practices such as bathing in temples and performing yoga. As time progressed, they started forming idols of god’s of war which they could worship. The invasion of Sakas further transformed Hinduism and they started building temples, and came up with their sacred laws, which could govern their way of living. As time passed, the Hindus incorporated the practices of the time into their way of living, and they continued to gather a following over the years. They continuously took up the traditional practices they came across over time and altering them to fit into their religion, and this has continued to the present times. Today, their beliefs still have the ancient beliefs in their practices, and they believe that people are free to believe as they desire provided the actions are good. The cultural and societal practices such as worship of idols and reincarnation have survived over the years, and they are still under practice today. 3 People from all religions seek from eart hly liberation so that they can escape from earthly suffering, to continue into the after life, and for the purpose of spiritual blessings. However, Hindus do not believe that when people die they either go to heaven or hell. They believe in reincarnation and the way people live their lives determines what they will come back on earth as. They believe that when good people die, they will come back as good creatures, and when the bad people die, they come back as bad or

Chinese Current Religion Development Situation Term Paper

Chinese Current Religion Development Situation - Term Paper Example Indeed, the religion has enjoyed a lot of support from the masses and became a guiding ideology in the Chinese context. However, Confucianism did not actually develop into a concrete national belief. Presently, over 85 % of the Chinese people subscribe to some form of religious orientation while the rest are regarded as real atheists. The atheists comprise those who do not have any religious guiding philosophy and do not engage in any religious activities in their lives. Since the beginning of Chinese history, religion in the country has always been characterized by pluralism. Religion in the country basically depends upon the free will of the people and does not really require any form of adherence. In this regard, Buddhism remains one of the most widely practiced forms of religion in the country. Indeed, this religion has a very rich history in the country dating back to the 1st century. In the same way, popular religion is one of the most widely accepted religious traditions. ... Christians make up close to 4% of the total population while Muslims stand at 1.5%. It is further important to note that several religious movements are scattered across the country considering that China is a very large country with a huge population. Many of the intellectuals in China mostly subscribe to Confucianism. Indeed, religion is a very integral part of Chinese society and this is clearly evidenced through the presence of many tall religious statues across the country. These statutes were created to represent various deities and religious personalities from the different forms of religion realized in the country (Clart, 54). The republic of China was established in 1949 and the government of the country is officially atheist. Indeed, the government views religion as a form of feudalism and an imposition of colonialism on the people and does not therefore support or regard any religion as above the other. However, the people of China are always free in terms of making their decisions. More importantly, the government has established a strong separation between the state and the church. Much of the changes with respect to religion were realized during the Cultural Revolution between 1966 and 1967 which was a policy basically geared towards the elimination of religions. During this time, many places of worship in the country were destroyed. There was a considerable relaxation of this policy in the 1970s which marked the end of the Revolution and subsequently religious expression was permitted in the country (Jenner, 46). The 1978 Constitution of China guarantees freedom of religion for everyone in Article 36. As such, it is a policy that no one shall be discriminated upon on the basis of their religion or compelled to join any religion. There

Business Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 11

Business Ethics - Essay Example Utilitarianism theory states that an action is ethically right on the basis that it encourages the best consequences. Accounting on the Mackenzie VS Miller Brewing Company with consideration of the utilitarianism theory, Smith, the supervisor of Mackenzie can be spared the convictions because his action of assuring Mackenzie that his salary and grade status level 14 would not be affected was esteemed to promote the best consequences. Smith’s assurance to Mackenzie meant to avert the plaintiff any stress and unrest. Thus, Smith in this case should not be convicted on the grounds of intentional misrepresentation. Best on other hand, was eligible to be convicted on the grounds of intentional misrepresentation and torturous interference with prospective contract because her accusation of Mackenzie was not meant to promote best consequences. In that case, it was therefore right to award the plaintiff compensatory damage, as the claims were sensitive to continuation of Mackenzie’s services and punitive damage to bring to an end such false and intentional misrepresentation. Viewing the case from deontogical theory angle, which consider an as action as right only if it accords to the moral principles and norms, Best’s accusation against Mackenzie was questionable considering the fact that Mackenzie had not express any sexual intentions in his speech. Thus Best’s verdict against Mackenzie equals tom intentional misrepresentation, which worth the bail of punitive damage against Best. Smith on the other hand and with consideration to the deontological theory, responded to Mackenzie out of good faith just to ensure that Mackenzie’s emotional uprightness is maintained. Therefore, he was not eligible to any fines for the upheld the moral principles of business. Miller on the other extreme, as can be viewed from deontological theory deserved the conviction and the bails altogether. His actions against Mackenzie with regard to the

Audio and Visual Advertising Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Audio and Visual Advertising - Assignment Example 3. The two ways in which there an order of content according to fowler include an appeal to deep that involves running drivers into the minds of consumers(Altstiel, Grow and Altstiel). Further, the information regarding the good or service being sold; its name, manufacturer, picture, packaging, objective attributes, and functions,e.g the reader of a brassier advertisement sees a partially undraped but blandly unperturbed woman standing in an otherwise common place public settling and may experience certain sensation. 4. Henry Murray motivation factors are the ones that enabled Fowles to develop factors that led to many advertisement projects; Murray pinpointed out the susceptible and least quiescent factors that enable advertising. 5. The need for sex in advertising has the effect of reducing brand recall coz it’s too blurring and it tends to obliterate the product information also the need for aggress the reality of life pressure creates strong retaliatory feelings in every functioning human being and the feeling of anger and violence can be exercised in reality propagated by the advert. 6. Humour and celebrity fit into fowlers’ scheme when it comes to appealing to human minds and information packaging. Copy Writers and Copy Writing According to (Fowles) 1. Challenges of copywriting i. It highly deals with planning and coordinating with clients, legal staffers, accounting executives, researchers and art directors. ii. It involves accuracy and dealing with deadlines and tight schedule iii. It involves meeting advertising objectives.

The American Pursuit of Happiness Beyond US Borders Essay Example for Free

The American Pursuit of Happiness Beyond US Borders Essay In recent times, more and more Americans are immigrating to countries like Canada and Australia in a spirited search of the American Dream. Catalysts for this recent trend are tied largely to the American economic crisis which has been afflicting Americans for quite some time. The incredibly high levels of crime in the United States have also influenced Americans to pursue happiness beyond U. S. borders. Countries like Canada and Australia demonstrate lower rates of crime than the United States and that seems to resonate with most Americans. Another convincing factor towards emigration is the high cost of healthcare in the United States compared to some of the government-funded healthcare systems around the world. All of these dynamics are deeply valued in American society and are seen as worth chasing. I believe emigration towards countries that promote economic stability, low crime rates and socialized healthcare is the ideal thing to do for U. S. citizens in search of these pursuits. America is experiencing a high unemployment rate, large income gaps and an evident lack of growth for the working middle class due to the modern economic crisis and this is swaying Americans to search for jobs in foreign countries. According to Trading Economics and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the percentage of unemployed Americans is 8. 3% as of January, 2012. This fares out higher than the Canadian unemployment rate which is at 7. 6% and especially elevated compared to the Australian unemployment rate which is 5. 1% (Trading Economics). Also, the latest studies show that mobility between classes in the United States is less apparent than in other countries due to the large American poor class and the tall demand U. S. employers place on the need for college degrees from prospective employees (DeParle). It has become clear to me that the opportunities needed to develop into a successful and effective worker can be found, with less effort, in a foreign country. The United States has a ghastly reputation of having some of the highest crime rates in the world including considerable quantities of violent offenses. As indicated by the Disaster Center and the F. B. I. Uniform Crimes Report, in 2010 the United States had over ten million reported criminal offenses and over one million of them were violent crimes. This measures up much higher than Canada’s crime rates which in 2009 were reported at just over two million criminal offenses (Rodriguez). What is dumbfounding is the significant difference in violent offenses which was under four-hundred and fifty thousand (Rodriguez). That is less than the amount of aggravated assaults in the United States in 2010 which totaled over seven-hundred and seventy-five thousand (Disaster Center). The pursuit of happiness certainly entails residing in a safe and sound country and the evidence points towards the land beyond U. S. borders. There is very little the American people treasure more than their health, but with healthcare prices soaring to astronomical heights, it has become difficult to acquire the necessary coverage that Americans need. Statistics show that Americans pay over fifty percent more on premiums per capita for health care over other countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) which includes, among others, Canada and Australia (Med Health Insurance). Canadian citizens benefit from publicly funded healthcare coverage without the need to consider their income or medical history (Canadian Health Care). In Australia, the government is primarily responsible for healthcare funding by covering roughly seventy percent of medical costs (Australian Law Reform Commission). The peace of mind gained by having a socialized government funded health care plan is invaluable and a worthy basis for emigration from the United States. The American Dream is sought after by all Americans and comprises of several key principles. A primary principle is social and financial stability through employment and mobility. The second standard is the sense of security brought on by reduced crime rates and a reduced amount of violent crimes in particular. A final and yet crucial ideal for those in pursuit of happiness is the sense of tranquility acquired through a government-financed healthcare plan. All of these standards cannot be met within the United States, but they can be attained in countries like Canada and Australia. I consider it imperative for Americans to search for these ideals across American boundaries through the act of emigration. I encourage U. S. citizens to think outside this country.

VBE value based education Essay Example for Free

VBE value based education Essay Abstract Today in the era of competitiveness, learner seem to prefer their education based on what they could derive from it in their near future. No one gives it a choice that how could it be useful to the society and to the people around them-Everyone is looking for the survival in the society. The main objective of the learners are to earn monetary benefits from their education, when such a mindset is prevailing in the minds of the learner, then where are the values of VALUE ORIENTED EDUCATION ? In the present scenario everyone is walking on the trails left by someone , no one gives a thought of finding out their capabilities and deciding their road to success, which ultimately creates a havoc in one’s life. This is clearly evident from the increasing rates of suicide in our society. One of the very common factors responsible for this is over pressure on students to get the high marks in their exams. It is for sure a very unhealthy and unethical competition. It is not only limited to a school level education, several suicide cases happen even at top level academic institutions worldwide here the race is for getting employment. Everywhere we see the learners are indulged in winning the races, in this dieu of time all have forgotten the basic objectives of our contemporary education. The contemporary system of education which stands on the pillars of social values, national values, ethical and aesthetic values like truth, goodness and beauty (Satyam , Shivam, Sundaram) are being eroded speedily. Therefore to delay the time of erosion we need to inculcate the value oriented education in our societies. Value Oriented Education is highly needed in our modern society because our lives have become more miserable. The quantity of education has considerably increased, but the quality has decreased. It is so because the number of educated people has reached at a high level, but murder, hatred, and selfishness have spread out like wildfire everywhere. Institutions are opening day by day, but only few civilized people are produced. It is so because the Degrees are available for all, but the dignity has gone down. Therefore, we need Value Oriented Education which will not only improve the status of the society but also enhance the life of the learners. â€Å"The central task of education is to implant a will and facility for learning; it should produce not learned but learning people. The truly human society is a learning society, where grandparents, parents, and children are students together.† Eric Hoffer

Crime Victim Provisions: An analysis

Crime Victim Provisions: An analysis Critically explore the needs of victims of crime and the services currently provided for them. Include reference to the demands of the victim movement and the limitations of the current criminal justice system. The recent years in the UK and throughout the world has seen the importance and influence of human rights growing. This has had an effect on the law as a whole, but instead of the good of society being protected by statute and common law the individual has come to the forefront, i.e. an individuals rights cannot be derogated unless a set criterion is followed. Therefore this focus on the individual has not only given stricter rules for the courts and police to follow in respect to suspected and convicted criminals, it has also laid an emphasis on the individual victim and the resources, after-care and support, as well the effect on sentencing in respect to criminal cases and restitution or compensation in respect to civil cases. The recent rise of the role of victims in the Criminal Justice system is highly important, which will be identified in the discussion of restorative justice. The role model for incorporating the victim providing restitution and their needs can be seen in Australia within Victorian Criminal Justice System. Therefore this case study is not going to explore not the medical help that victims need and which have been procured, but their search for justice and restitution and compare it to the UKs approach to the victim in the Criminal Justice System. It is here that the victims rights groups are calling for justice, as seen in the recent Home Office Survey of Victims Rights Groups wishes, i.e. a true role for the victim in the Justice system, especially Criminal Justice:To genuinely reflect the needs of victims, the social rights referred to in the paper The social rights of victims of crime should be included in the new Charter, clearly identifying the agencies responsible for delivering them. Restorative Justice: This is the most modern reasoning for sentencing and balances the various elements of the sentencing, such as the victims needs, the rehabilitation of the offender, interests of protecting society. It could be adapted to include public opinion, but in the interests of justice it would need to be informed public opinion because the theory is Rawlsian in nature, which results in a theory from the standpoint of justice. Rawls in his thesis for engendering equality states that justice is the prime basis of all government and to ensure justice, the access to justice for all is the obvious means and end to ensure justice is fulfilled; therefore in the Criminal Justice system this would include the access to justice for the offender, the victim, and the rights for the public to voice their opinion on sentencing of a convicted criminal. Rawls theory is based on a few key ideas, which are the rights and duties of government/institution of society and the burdens and benef its of citizens co-operating. Rawls bases his theory on distributive justice, where inequalities are restrained by the greatest benefit of least advantaged and each person has the condition of fair equality of opportunity. Therefore Rawls would allow for restorative justice but retribution would be unjust, rather aims to rehabilitate and return the perpetrator to society would be appropriate, i.e. in order for the perpetrator to compensate society because if the perpetrator is rehabilitated and educated then society will be benefited. Rawls would argue that there is a role for the victim in the sentencing procedure and for public opinion as long as the perpetrator is not subject to hatred, prejudice and vengeance that would be the fear if public opinion was allowed to take over the proceedings. Rather Rawls would argue there needs to be a balance between the rights of the perpetrator, the publics opinion and its protection and the victims access to justice. There still needs to be the rule of law and objectivity but within the realms of these new considerations. It is possible that the perfect model the Victorian Sentencing Advisory Council has met these obstacles and created a system that allows an ap propriate mixture of these elements. Victorian Sentencing The Victim Role in the Criminal Justice System: The VSAC was set up to ensure that there was just sentencing as well as allowing for the victim to have a sufficient statutory role in the sentencing procedure. This follows ensuring that the victim plays a proper role in respect to the criminal justice system. Yet in order for there not to be retributive and vengeance sentencing and in order to stop tainting of the trial before the judgment the role of the victim is closely monitored. Section 5 of the Sentencing Act 1991 ensures: Just punishment to punish the offender to an extent and in a manner which is just in all of the circumstances; Specific and general deterrence to deter the offender or other persons from committing offences of the same or a similar character; Rehabilitation to establish conditions within which it is considered by the court that the rehabilitation of the offender may be facilitated; Denunciation to denounce the type of conduct engaged in by the offender; Community protection to protect the community from the offender; or a combination of two or more of the above purposes. Therefore this limits the role of the victim and ensures that the defendants rights and the victims rights and community views are balanced. It also allows for informed public opinion to be taken into account in the sentencing procedure. This sentencing procedure takes the views of victims and the public in to account through a thoroughly monitored manner, rather than allowing the press to have a field day and public outcry. The Victorian sentencing procedure allows for the victims views to be taken in the form of an impact statement and this only occurs if the defendant is found guilty, i.e. this system does not allow such views to taint the defendants right to a fair hearing. In addition sentencing is gauged against informed public opinion rather than the outcry of the uneducated or the enraged so that there is a rounder understanding on the effects of the crime on the society and the individual. The British Approach to Victims: The government has always been on the side of the victim it takes on his or her case and seeks to punish the perpetrator but it has no always done so with enough rigour or sensitivity of their needs.Helena Kennedy focuses on the problem with the Criminal Justice System in the UK in respect to the lack of acknowledgment for the victim. In many ways the system is cold to the victim; it forgets there is more than retributive justice. The England and Wales Sentencing Advisory Council is made up of judges and academics, there is no real voice for the victim as in Australia. The only impact statements by the victim are those taken by the police and prosecution, when the victim is in a highly stressful situation. It pervading culture of the UKs system is that a conviction will satisfy the needs of the victim; this is not the case as the VSAC has seen. In many cases the victim needs to know why the crime happened and have the ability to talk the perpetrator . Also this is a method that can help the perpetrator acknowledge the harm done and hopefully rehabilitate the offender, especially in the youth justice system. The UK system has recognized this and in has instituted this as an alternative to imprisonment in the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999. The key is the use of restorative justice, the approach taken in Australia, which is understanding and balancing the needs of the perpetrator and the victim. The problem in the UK is that on some levels it recognizes the need for this balance, but on others especially in the recent wakes of the terrorist attacks to forget about justice and civil liberties in order to have to power to punish anyone who may be a threat. It has followed the media frenzy of the US and forgotten about justice. The victim no longer figures in such approaches but the needs of the state. In order to satisfy the victims needs there needs to be an inclusive role, such as answers, apologies, informing the offe nder of the impact of their crimes on innocent people, crime prevention and restitution. This is harder in respect to serious crimes, but sometimes the reasons for the actions of the perpetrator not only help the victim to reconcile their experiences but it also ensures that the government understands the reasoning for certain crimes and make the perpetrator understand the impact of their crimes. Therefore the role of the victim in the Criminal Justice System is more than just attending a court room but can play a role in understanding and preventing crime. The VSAC has understood this problem and has introduced impact statements, as well as more diverse advisory panel and the influence of informed public opinion; rather than the pick n mix that the UKs government is taking whenever it suits the needs of the state. This approach was verbalized by John Major during his leadership as condemn more and understand less but as Helena Kennedy argues the victims of crime, their desire is often to understand why a criminal acted as they did. Conclusion: The objective approach that the VSAC makes it very hard for the press to create witch hunts and put pressure on the court to impose an unjust sentence in favour of perceived public opinion; rather the specific victims of the crime are taken into account. This objective approach halts and the fears that the courts will become a place for the media based witch hunts are stopped and justice for the victim is considered at the same time as balancing the justice for the defendant. This creates a unique approach to criminal justice and possibly a way forward for ensuring that victims do gain a voice, without the witch hunts that have been seen recently in the US, especially those held in Guatanamo Bay. Also the UK system which is on the brink of following the US should heed the fears of those in the UK justice system against the media/witch hunt approach and follow the approach the VSAC and subsequent jurisdictions in Australia have taken, which is to balance the criminal justice between the public opinion, the victim and the defendent in an objective manner as Justice Badgery-Parker states: [T]he need which the criminal justice system exists to fulfil is the need to interpose between the victim and the criminal an objective instrumentality which, while recognising the seriousness of the crime from the victims point of view and, in the case of murder, the magnitude of the loss which the victims family and friends have sustained, attempts to serve a range of community interests which include but go beyond notions merely of retribution. In order to do this there needs to be easy access to forums and practioners from the Criminal Justice system in order to stress the different reasoning behind sentencing procedures, as well as Victims AND Offenders rights groups in the UK. Bibliography: R G Fox, 1995, Victorian Criminal Procedure: State and Federal Monash Law Book Co-operative Freiberg, 2001,Sentencing Options, Sentencing Review 2001Discussion Paper Freiberg, 2002, Pathways to Justice Sentencing Review 2002 Discussion Paper Graycar Morgan, 2005, Law Reform Whats in it for Women, Windsor Yearbook on Access to Justice Volume 23 Home Office, 2001, Review of the Victims Charter: Summary of Responses can be found at: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/docs/vcreviewvictims.html Helena Kennedy, 2004, Just Law, Vintage BooksJohn Rawls, The Theory of Justice (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1971) Rawls J., Justice as Fairness: a restatement, (E. Kelly Ed) (2001, Cambridge Mass, Harvard University press) Ridge, M. 2003 Giving the dead their due Ethics 114: 38-59. Sentencing Advisory Council, About Sentencing Principles and Purposes, can be found at: http://www.sentencingcouncil.vic.gov.au/CA256F82000D281D/page/About+Sentencing?OpenDocument1=20-About+Sentencing~2=~3=~

Reticence :: essays research papers

Reticence THIS MORNING there was a dead cat in the harbor, a black cat that was floating on the surface of the water. It was straight and stiff and was drifting slowly along the side of a boat. From its mouth dangled a decomposed fish head with a piece of broken line about two inches long coming out of it. At the time I had simply imagined that this fish head was what remained of the bait from a discarded fishing line. The cat must have leaned into the water to catch the fish and, as he grabbed it, the hook caught in his mouth and he lost his balance and fell. The water of the harbor was very dark where I was standing, but from time to time I suspected there was a procession of fish, mullets and wrasse, passing silently below my eyes, while on the bottom, among the pebbles and algae, thousands of wriggling fry worked over the gutted remains of a decomposing eel. Before setting off again, I lingered a moment longer on the pier staring at the dead cat still drifting in the harbor in a very slow back and forth movement, first to the left, then to the right, following the imperceptible ebb and flow of the current at the surface of the water. I had arrived in Sasuelo at the end of October. It was already autumn and the tourist season was coming to an end. A taxi dropped me off one morning, bag and baggage, on the village square. The driver helped me undo my son's stroller from the roof-rack of the car, an old 504 diesel that he left running and that continued to hum slowly in place. Then he pointed in the direction of the only hotel in the area, that I was familiar with since I had already stayed there. I left my bags near a bench and set off in the direction of the hotel with my son who was installed in his stroller in front of me and paying no attention to anything around him, absorbed as he was in the contemplation of a toy seal that he turned over and over in his hands examining all its seams and releasing for the occasion an imperturbable burp as naturally as a prince. At the entrance of the hotel flowers lined a little flight of steps at the top of which opened double French doors, and I took the stroller in my arms to climb the steps. Reticence :: essays research papers Reticence THIS MORNING there was a dead cat in the harbor, a black cat that was floating on the surface of the water. It was straight and stiff and was drifting slowly along the side of a boat. From its mouth dangled a decomposed fish head with a piece of broken line about two inches long coming out of it. At the time I had simply imagined that this fish head was what remained of the bait from a discarded fishing line. The cat must have leaned into the water to catch the fish and, as he grabbed it, the hook caught in his mouth and he lost his balance and fell. The water of the harbor was very dark where I was standing, but from time to time I suspected there was a procession of fish, mullets and wrasse, passing silently below my eyes, while on the bottom, among the pebbles and algae, thousands of wriggling fry worked over the gutted remains of a decomposing eel. Before setting off again, I lingered a moment longer on the pier staring at the dead cat still drifting in the harbor in a very slow back and forth movement, first to the left, then to the right, following the imperceptible ebb and flow of the current at the surface of the water. I had arrived in Sasuelo at the end of October. It was already autumn and the tourist season was coming to an end. A taxi dropped me off one morning, bag and baggage, on the village square. The driver helped me undo my son's stroller from the roof-rack of the car, an old 504 diesel that he left running and that continued to hum slowly in place. Then he pointed in the direction of the only hotel in the area, that I was familiar with since I had already stayed there. I left my bags near a bench and set off in the direction of the hotel with my son who was installed in his stroller in front of me and paying no attention to anything around him, absorbed as he was in the contemplation of a toy seal that he turned over and over in his hands examining all its seams and releasing for the occasion an imperturbable burp as naturally as a prince. At the entrance of the hotel flowers lined a little flight of steps at the top of which opened double French doors, and I took the stroller in my arms to climb the steps.

Wuthering Heights - Series of Contrasts :: essays research papers

A) Catherine’s love for Heathcliff is torn between both Heathcliff and Edgar Linton – conflicting loyalties. Her love for Heathcliff is prompted by impulses to disregard social conventions. Her love for Heathcliff causes her to throw tantrums and to run around the moor. She considers Heathcliff her soul mate: their life growing up together, their enjoyable times on the moor, and her freedom and innocence of her childhood. â€Å"If I’ve done wrong, I’m dying for it. It is enough! You left me too – but I won’t upbraid you! I forgive you. Forgive me!† represents Catherine’s love and yet her cruel treatment of Heathcliff for marrying Edgar to attain material and social gains. B) In chapter 17 Isabelle returns to the Grange in physical disarray. She saw Heathcliff as a romantic figure, like a character one would find in a novel. Yet, her decision to go with Heathcliff ruins her life. He never returns her feelings and treats her as a tool in his perusal of revenge on the Linton family. C) Both women have an initial desire to be with Heathcliff, while only Isabella ends up marrying Heathcliff. Heathcliff’s love for Isabella is a mere tool to achieve his ultimate goal of revenge. He marries her as a mean of revenge. On the other hand, Heathcliff and Catherine would complete each other, they are soul-mates. Neither of their experiences are successful and they both do not get what they originally desired (the love of their life). 2. A) When Hindley's wife Frances dies shortly after giving birth to their son Hareton, Hindley lapses into alcoholism and dissipation. Nelly expected Hindley to become sober and attend his wife’s funeral. â€Å"'Yesterday, you know, Mr. Earnshaw should have been at the funeral. He kept himself sober for the purpose - tolerably sober: not going to bed mad at six o'clock and getting up drunk at twelve. Consequently, he rose, in suicidal low spirits, as fit for the church as for a dance; and instead, he sat down by the fire and swallowed gin or brandy by tumblerfuls.† B) â€Å"But, I thought in my mind, Hindley, with apparently the stronger head, has shown himself sadly the worse and the weaker man. When his ship struck, the captain abandoned his post; and the crew, instead of trying to save her, rushed into riot and confusion, leaving no hope for their luckless vessel. Linton, on the contrary, displayed the true courage of a loyal and faithful soul: he trusted God; and God comforted him† Wuthering Heights - Series of Contrasts :: essays research papers A) Catherine’s love for Heathcliff is torn between both Heathcliff and Edgar Linton – conflicting loyalties. Her love for Heathcliff is prompted by impulses to disregard social conventions. Her love for Heathcliff causes her to throw tantrums and to run around the moor. She considers Heathcliff her soul mate: their life growing up together, their enjoyable times on the moor, and her freedom and innocence of her childhood. â€Å"If I’ve done wrong, I’m dying for it. It is enough! You left me too – but I won’t upbraid you! I forgive you. Forgive me!† represents Catherine’s love and yet her cruel treatment of Heathcliff for marrying Edgar to attain material and social gains. B) In chapter 17 Isabelle returns to the Grange in physical disarray. She saw Heathcliff as a romantic figure, like a character one would find in a novel. Yet, her decision to go with Heathcliff ruins her life. He never returns her feelings and treats her as a tool in his perusal of revenge on the Linton family. C) Both women have an initial desire to be with Heathcliff, while only Isabella ends up marrying Heathcliff. Heathcliff’s love for Isabella is a mere tool to achieve his ultimate goal of revenge. He marries her as a mean of revenge. On the other hand, Heathcliff and Catherine would complete each other, they are soul-mates. Neither of their experiences are successful and they both do not get what they originally desired (the love of their life). 2. A) When Hindley's wife Frances dies shortly after giving birth to their son Hareton, Hindley lapses into alcoholism and dissipation. Nelly expected Hindley to become sober and attend his wife’s funeral. â€Å"'Yesterday, you know, Mr. Earnshaw should have been at the funeral. He kept himself sober for the purpose - tolerably sober: not going to bed mad at six o'clock and getting up drunk at twelve. Consequently, he rose, in suicidal low spirits, as fit for the church as for a dance; and instead, he sat down by the fire and swallowed gin or brandy by tumblerfuls.† B) â€Å"But, I thought in my mind, Hindley, with apparently the stronger head, has shown himself sadly the worse and the weaker man. When his ship struck, the captain abandoned his post; and the crew, instead of trying to save her, rushed into riot and confusion, leaving no hope for their luckless vessel. Linton, on the contrary, displayed the true courage of a loyal and faithful soul: he trusted God; and God comforted him†

Hitler’s Years Before the War Essay --

"I will employ my strength for the welfare of the German people, protect the Constitution and laws of the German people, conscientiously discharge the duties imposed on me and conduct my affairs of office impartially and with justice to everyone.† (Bradley n.pag.) Quote by Adolf Hitler, being sworn in as Chancellor of Germany, in 1933 to the German people. This and other famous speeches are how Hitler was voted in to power in Germany through peaceful speeches and rallies. Many people just believed that all Germans were evil just because of whom they voted into office before the war and that just because they were German they all hated Jews. The Germans voted Hitler in because it was during the Depression and times were hard for people who had little faith in their government giving Hitler a perfect chance to take power. Through speeches and peaceful rallies he had most of the German people in his favor giving him a quick and sort of harmless rise to power that eventually went bad. In the late 20s after his release from prison Hitler decided to take Germany in a more peaceful w...

Organisational Study at Bhel

Organisational Study At Bhel Organization Study EDN INTERNSHIP REPORT ON ORGANISATIONAL STUDY AT BHARATH HEAVY ELECTRICALS LIMITED& MICROSCOPIC STUDY OF QUALITY MANAGEMENT & CONTROLING Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of The M. B. A Course of Bangalore University Submitted By Veeresh (REGD. NO. 05XQCM6106) Under the Guidance and supervision Of Prof. Sumithra Sreenath M. P. Birla Institute of Management Associate Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Bangalore-560001 2006-07 M P Birla Institute of Mgmt 1 Organization Study EDN DECLARATION I here by declare that the â€Å"Internship report on Organization study & Microscopic Study on Quality Management & Controlling† at BHARATH HEAVY ELECTRICAL LIMITED, Bangalore is a record of independent work carried out by me, towards partial fulfillment of the requirements for MBA course of Bangalore University at M . P. Birla Institute of Management. This has not been submitted in part or full towards any other degree or Diploma. Date: Place: Bangalore Veeresh 05XQCM6106 M P Birla Institute of Mgmt 2 Organization Study EDN PRINCIPAL’S CERTIFICATE This is to certify that this report entitled â€Å"An Internship Report on Organization study & Microscopic Study on Quality Management & Controlling† at BHARATH HEAVY ELECTRICAL LIMITED, Bangalore has been prepared by Veeresh bearing register number 05QXCM6106 under the guidance and supervision of Professor Sumithra Sreenath of MP Birla Institute of Management, Bangalore Place: Bangalore Date: Dr. N. S. Malavalli (Principal) M P Birla Institute of Mgmt 3 Organization Study EDN GUIDE CERTIFICATE This is to certify that the report entitled â€Å"An Internship Report on Organization study & Microscopic Study on Quality Management & Controlling† at BHARATH HEAVY ELECTRICAL LIMITED, Bangalore done by Veeresh bearing registration No. 05 XQCM6106 is a bonafide work done carried under my guidance during the academic year 2006-2007 in partial fulfillment of†¦

Expository research paper Essay

Minority students have been discriminated against for a very long time; many people think that minorities don’t have the same opportunities as others, but in reality they have many advantages. Minority students have opportunities to get into good colleges and getting more scholarships than other non-minority students. Colleges look for the obvious things like grades, and extracurricular activities and all those things but what most really want is to have diversity in the college and therefore colleges need minority students. Colleges read students’ applications thoroughly, so colleges’ look for stuff that sticks out, stuff that makes a student different than the rest one thing that might sticks out is race. In the article is says, â€Å"An applicants final determination of what to say about race is often made consultation with a college counselor. Many counselors may convey to families that a multiracial applicant has a better chance of being admitted to a highly selective college than those in any other racial or ethnic category. †(Saulny). This tells how a multiracial student may have a better chance of getting into a good college than those in other racial or ethnic categories. â€Å"Many private scholarships are geared toward minorities because they are looking for something in particular†(Borowski). The author talks about how private colleges seek at minorities, which tells that they consider race are when choosing students. Molina 2 Scholarships are used to help students get into college, but some scholarships are targeted to specific students, most likely minority students. This also could equal disadvantages to non-minority students. In this article the author says, â€Å"Some private scholarships are based on a students characteristics such as race, ethnicity, and religion, and some are based on professional affiliations or future career choices†(Borowski). Private scholarships look for very specific things in students which show how much of a disadvantage some students have in. The article talks about one student’s problem, â€Å"As Johnson found, private scholarships can extremely selective. â€Å"When I research all the grants and scholarships out there, they are all really specific, targeted towards everyone but me, he says, Are you a Pacific islander who plays tuba? There is a scholarship for you. Or a woman from an inner city who works with animals? There’s a grant for you. But a hard working boy from the suburbs? Nothing. †(Borowski). The author shows how very specific scholarships can be and how they affect other people who do not fit the description of what that scholarship wants. Another reason why minorities have an advantage is because of stereotypes even if it doesn’t apply to that student. In an article a student says, â€Å"I just realized that my race is something I have to think about,† she describes herself as having an Asian mother and a black father. â€Å"It pains me to say this, but putting down black might help admission. †(Saulny). This states how putting down a specific race might better or worsen someone’s chances depending on that particular race. A mother states, â€Å"My 17 year old son is a high B student and an excellent athlete, but we’ve been unable to find any scholarships for him because he’s white. † Elizabeth says, Johnson also says â€Å"We aren’t wealthy. We don’t take on fancy vacations and we do without a lot of things. Yet because I’m white, I don’t get a hand. There are all kinds or nationalities at Molina 3 my high school, whose families have a lot more money than we have, and yet they are getting scholarships. †(Saulny). This tells how stereotypes can give minority students an advantage by colleges stereotyping and giving help to those who don’t really need it instead of to the ones that do. Minority students also think that it is a disadvantage being a minority but in reality it can be an advantage against non-minority students. Minority students are what colleges look for. There are scholarships targeted towards minorities, and due to stereotypes there are advantages. These affect more than just minority students, it basically affects everyone because being a non-minority is at a disadvantage of getting a scholarship or getting into a good college. In today’s society someone’s race could affect their future. Saulny, Susan, and Jacques Steinberg. â€Å"On College Forms, a Question of Race, or Races, Can Perplex. † New York Times 13 June 2011: n. pag. The New York Times. Web. 13 Apr. 2014. . Borowski, Susan. â€Å"Scholarships and the White Male: Disadvantaged or Not? † Insight into Diversity. N. p. , n. d. Web. 13 Apr. 2014. .

Skills & Characteristics of Mental Health Human Services Workers

Personal characteristics of a human services professional can be both essential and detrimental for success. Essential characteristics of a professional do not make the job easier. However, they create a higher tendency for the professional to work successfully with clients. An open-minded professional recognizes differences between themselves and clients. They treat those differences with respect and include them in treatment according to the clients’ desires. Judgment can be appropriate in a human services setting. For example, a counselor may judge a recently relapsed client by revoking privileges within a clinic.Patience is the most essential characteristic. A professional must be able to deal with relapses in negative behavior. They cannot let human weakness impede progress. Professionals who choose the human services field in order to help people make genuine progress with clients. They maintain connections that benefit both parties. Detrimental characteristics of a prof essional do not make the job impossible. However, they can impede a professional’s relationship with their client when unchecked. A narrow-minded professional does not recognize differences between themselves and clients.They assume that differences result from a harmful lifestyle on the clients’ behalf. Judgment becomes inappropriate when it results in ill-informed assessments of the client. For example, judging a mother as incompetent without a full assessment is inappropriate. Impatience from professional to client can cause the professional to rush the clients’ progress. Internalized impatience within the professional can cause a lot of mistakes. Professionals who choose the human services field mainly for money make artificial progress with clients. The quality of their work is usually lacking.On the one hand, understanding both types of characteristics can provide a platform for change. On the other hand, that understanding merely provides a distinction fo r self-limitations. Aspiring professionals need to have or develop specific skills prior to employment in the human services field. Organizational skills are key to updated client information as well as clients themselves. A personal system – however ordered or disordered – must be easy for the aspiring professional to access and peruse. They must be able to find information as soon as they need it for whatever reason.Communication skills are key to creating connections with clients. Active listening includes physically and verbally showing the client that their message is being received. An aspiring professional must be prepared to create a report with their clients. Their ability to communicate effects the process of their relationship. Professional writing is key to documenting communication with and progress of the client. The aspiring professional must be prepared to use this skill daily. Moreover, other professionals may need to understand the writing.So if the a spiring professional uses shorthand, they must be prepared to provide a legend. Basic recognition of symptoms is key to referring clients to other professionals. For example, a nurse who encounters a patient who seems to need a referral to the behavioral health unit. When questioned, he or she must be able to provide specific rather than vague reasons. Safety training is key to effectively responding to emergency situations. Basic firefighting and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) abilities are essential to potential to saving the lives of one’s self, clients, and fellow professionals.Overall, an aspiring professional must understand how to preserve life until more qualified professionals arrive. These specific skills will not only help professionals develop effective, positive relationships with their clients. They will also help professionals overcome personal roadblocks to successfully carrying out their work. Skills become more effective as they develop. Even an aspirin g professional who naturally has these skills can only benefit from continually developing them even after entering the human services field. Primary and secondary education (K-12) teach students organization skills and practices.Aspiring professionals can use these techniques as foundation for adult application. They can take the basic and develop them according to their individual needs. An institution of higher education (i. e. college or university) provides students with in-depth lessons for communication and professional writing skills. They help students work effectively and successfully within a professional setting of various sorts. Many employers in the human services field expect aspiring professionals to have a basic recognition of symptoms as well as safety training.Therefore, many provide continuous training for employees after they have obtained employment. Consistent development of these skills ensures the relevance and ease of their application. It also ensures that the professional will easily recall the lessons when needed. Learning is fundamental, but practice is vital. Actually putting learned lessons to use when applicable ensures ease of use by the professional with continued practice. Constructive criticism measures the effectiveness of practice from an outside point of view. It informs the professional of how their practices are perceived by others.Application of feedback combines learning, practice, and constructive criticism. This assemblage is important to the formation of a successful human services worker with their given field. As long as skills are continually developed within accredited settings, then the specific location of development does not matter. That the skills are developed is most important. Yet, while some aspiring professionals have some difficulty developing these skills, others will have an easier time. They are â€Å"natural born helpers†. â€Å"Natural born helpers† (NBH) exist.An NBH is someone w ith a set of traits that easily lend themselves toward helping others in the human services field. On the one hand, these traits will develop naturally mentally, psychologically, and emotionally as the individual matures into an adult. On the other hand, the environments in which the individual matures can be conducive in the advancement of these traits. An NBH tends to be somewhat sociable. They can be outgoing and conversational when necessary. Active listening is a skill that an NBH naturally has a tendency toward from birth.An NBH usually develops the ability of understanding in their environment because they naturally tend toward it. An NBH is born with the ability to be resourceful then naturally develops it as they mature. An NBH tends to either be aloof or overly-friendly in response to being overloaded with human service-like needs (i. e. counseling). Drama tends to naturally gravitate toward an NBH because their need to help is apparent. The tendency toward helping many pe ople concurrently leaves an NBH with little time for themselves.As a result, an NBH usually has a reputation as being meddlesome. An NBH needs to find a healthy balance between being aloof and friendly with clients. An NBH must learn early on how to tell whether or not they can help someone. Delegating time between self and others is crucial for an NBH in order to maintain healthiness. Finally, the desire to help should never challenge a person’s desire to be left alone. Some people are born with attributes that either make it easier to work as human services professionals or that drive them toward the human services field.

Poverty-a Social Evil Essay

Poverty is the cause of all social Evils This universe is replete with innumerable masses who are unable to afford the bare minimum necessities of life. They live below the poverty line and even face the problem of getting a square meal. They lack in food, clothes and shelter. Generally they live in slums and jhuggis. They move from pillar to post in search of food but return in the evening empty handed. They even spread their hands before all but remain devoid of alms. Poverty leads to criminal activities like robbery, thefts, Murder, kidnapping and looting. Now and then one can find headlines in the papers about their criminal activities. We often come across reports about whole family committing suicide by taking poison as they cannot afford a square meal. Even the parents do not hesitate to sell their children for just Rs. 1000. These are such a people who kill their small wards because they cannot provide them the minimum necessities of life. Woman you can be even seen selling their bodies or working as sex-workers. When people are unable to get their livelihood by honest means, they are bound to turn into criminals. Very often people find criminals living only in slums. Poverty is the cause of all social Evils This universe is replete with innumerable masses who are unable to afford the bare minimum necessities of life. They live below the poverty line and even face the problem of getting a square meal. They lack in food, clothes and shelter. Generally they live in slums and jhuggis. They move from pillar to post in search of food but return in the evening empty handed. They even spread their hands before all but remain devoid of alms. Poverty leads to criminal activities like robbery, thefts, Murder, kidnapping and looting. Now and then one can find headlines in the papers about their criminal activities. We often come across reports about whole family committing suicide by taking poison as they cannot afford a square meal. Even the parents do not hesitate to sell their children for just Rs. 1000. These are such a people who kill their small wards because they cannot provide them the minimum necessities of life. Woman you can be even seen selling their bodies or working as sex-workers. When people are unable to get their livelihood by honest means, they are bound to turn into criminals. Very often people find criminals living only in slums.

Information Technology on Individuals, Organizations and Societies

Part VI Implementing and Managing IT 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. Chapter 17 IT Strategy and Planning Information Technology Economics Acquiring IT Applications and Infrastructure Security Impacts of IT on Individuals, Organizations, and Society Impacts of IT on Individuals, Organizations, and Society Movie Piracy Learning Objectives 17. 1 Perspectives on IT Impacts 17. 2 IT Is Eliminating the Barriers of Time, After studying this chapter, you will be able to: Space, and Distance Understand the changes that take place in the workplace and the lives of individuals when information technology eliminates geographical and spatial barriers.Describe some of the major impacts of information technology on individuals, organizations, and society. 17. 3 Information Is Changing from a Scarce Resource to an Abundant Resource Discuss the positive and negative effects associated with the abundance of information made available by IT. 17. 4 Machines Are Performing Functions Identify the issues that arise du e to uneven diffusion of information technology across countries and socioeconomic classes. Previously Performed by Humans 17. 5 Information Technology Urges People to Reexamine Their Value Systems Understand the complexity of effects of technological rogress on labor markets and individual employees. 17. 6 Conclusion 17. 7 Managerial Issues Discuss the impacts of information technology on the quality of life and interpersonal relationships. Recognize the legal, ethical, and moral issues that become particularly critical due to proliferation of information technology. Minicases: 1. Megachurches 2. RFID for Consumer Products Integrating IT ACC FIN MKT POM HRM IS SVC 663 MOVIE PIRACY The Problem Generations of moviegoers went to movie theaters to enjoy the latest films. They accepted the idea of paying for their movies. However, movie piracy, which has been reatly accelerated by information technology, is challenging this notion. Now, movie pirates are bringing the latest motion pictu re releases to an Internet-connected computer near you. For years, movie studios suffered minor losses due to high-tech piracy (theft of digital content) that was carried out by people duplicating videotapes and DVDs. The need to produce and distribute physical media presented a number of technical and logistical difficulties for movie pirates, which limited the scope of their operations. Thus, picture studios largely ignored these activities. When Napster. com and other sites began to se the Web and peer-to-peer technologies to share pirated music, movie producers felt reasonably immune to this trend. After all, it would take more than a week to download a 5-gigabyte DVD-quality movie using a 56-kilobits-per-second modem. Some individuals argue that piracy does not hurt film studios but, rather, makes movies available to those people who would not be able to enjoy them otherwise. Information technology that enables movie piracy raises a number of significant issues, such as intelle ctual property rights, fair use, and the role of government in regulating these issues.Furthermore, information technology makes it easier than ever to cross national borders, adding international implications to the issue of movie piracy. The Solution To deal with movie piracy, picture studio executives attacked several aspects of the problem simultaneously. First, media companies tried to shape public opinion in a way that would discourage movie piracy. For instance, to raise public awareness of the issue, filmmakers launched an advertising campaign with the slogan â€Å"Movies. They’re worth it. † Second, the movie industry performed a number of ctivities that made it more difficult to copy and distribute pirated movies without being noticed. For instance, 664 enhanced physical security at movie theaters, which may include the use of metal detectors and physical searches for recording devices, helps the film industry deter piracy at â€Å"sneak previews† and movie premieres (Ripley, 2004). Technology plays an important part in this process. The Results Hollywood had several high-profile wins in its fight against Internet movie piracy in 2005 and 2006. The film industry’s trade organization, the Motion PictureAssociation of America (MPAA), slapped hundreds of people with lawsuits for illegally downloading and trading films online. The U. S. departments of Justice and Homeland Security shut down Elite Torrents, a popular Web site that spread copies of Star Wars: Episode III— Revenge of the Sith before the movie officially opened. Even Bram Cohen, creator of BitTorrent (a peer-to-peer file-sharing program responsible for an estimated 65% of illegal movie downloads in 2005), agreed to cut links to MPAA-pirated content off his Web site (Leung, 2006). Yet the problem seems to be getting worse.According to London-based research firm Informa, illegal movie downloads cost the industry U. S. $985 million in 2005, up from U. S. $860 million in 2004. Growing access to broadband likely played a role, as higher Internet speeds made downloading large movie files faster. Studio executives realize that enforcement is only part of the solution. As in the music industry, many believe the best way to prevent illegal downloads is to offer legal alternatives. Warner Bros. turned a technology used by Internet movie pirates to its advantage. In March 2006, in Germany, Austria, and parts of Switzerland, the company aunched In2Movies, a peer-to-peer file-sharing network that lets users download movies for the price of a DVD or less. Kevin Tsujihara, the president of the Warner Bros. ’ home entertainment group, said Germany has all the right ingredients for such a service: high rates of piracy due to high levels of broadband penetration, a tech-savvy population, and consumers willing to pay for downloaded movies. Sources: Compiled from Leung (2006) and Ripley (2004). Lessons Learned from This Case Obviously, information technology is not the cause of movie piracy, just as it is not the cause of music iracy. (See Online File W17. 1 for a discussion of music piracy. ) However, it is the tool that tremendously heightens the importance of legal, ethical, and regulatory issues related to this phenomenon. Copyright, trademark, and patent infringement, freedom of thought and speech, theft of property, and 17. 1 fraud are not new issues in modern societies. However, as this opening case illustrates, information technology adds to the scope and scale of these issues. It also raises a number of questions about what constitutes illegal behavior versus unethical, intrusive, or undesirable behavior.This chapter examines these and numerous other impacts of information technology on individuals, organizations, and society. Perspectives on IT Impacts Concern about the impact of technology on people, organizations, and society is not new. As early as the 1830s, English intellectuals expressed philosophical argumen ts about the effects of technologies that had given rise to the Industrial Revolution some 60 to 70 years earlier. Samuel Butler, in his 1872 book Erehwon (an anagram for nowhere), summarized the anxiety about the disruptive influences of technology on the lives of people.The book described a society that made a conscious decision to reject machines and new technology; in it, people have â€Å"frozen† technology at a predetermined level and outlawed all further technological development. While there are many philosophical, technological, social, and cultural differences between society at the start of the Industrial Revolution and the society of the middle of the Information Age in which we now live, there are, nevertheless, people who continue to believe that humankind is threatened by the evolution of technology. Overall, however, our society has not rejected technology but, rather, has embraced it.Most of us recognize that technology and information systems are essential t o maintaining, supporting, and enriching many aspects of the lives of individuals, operations of organizations, and functioning of societies. Humans are involved in a symbiotic relationship with technology. All the same, we must be aware of its effect on us as individuals and as members of organizations and society. Throughout this book, we have noted how information systems are being rationalized, developed, used, and maintained to help organizations meet their needs and reach their goals.In all these discussions, we have assumed that development and implementation of information technology produce only positive results and leave no major negative consequences. However, is this really true? Abundant evidence unmistakably points to potential negative effects of technology in general, and information technology in particular. Information technology has raised a multitude of negative issues, ranging from illegal copying of software programs to surveillance of employees’ e-mail. The impact of IT on employment levels is of major concern, as are the effects on sociability and the quality of life. A more critical issue, however, involves questions such as: Will proliferation of technology cause irreversible changes to the society as we know it? Will humans benefit from the new capabilities of information technology, or will they be harmed by machines playing more and more prominent roles in the society? Who will investigate the costs and risks of technologies? Will society have any control over the decisions to deploy technology? 665 666Chapter 17 Impacts of IT on Individuals, Organizations, and Society This chapter will discuss several major themes that can be identified among the countless effects of information technology. We will discuss how information technology removes spatial and geographic barriers, transforms information into an abundant resource, enables machines to perform â€Å"human† tasks, and forces people to reconsider their value syste ms. Each of these trends is comprised of the effects of multiple technologies and has far-reaching implications for various groups of people. 17. 2 IT Is Eliminating the Barriers of Time, Space, and DistanceOne of the most noticeable developments precipitated by information technology is the elimination of numerous barriers that traditionally separated individuals, organizations, and societies at different geographic locations. In essence, information technology is redefining the entire concept of time, space, and distance. Proliferation of high-speed data communication networks that span the globe enables companies to integrate geographically distant manufacturing and research facilities, link international financial markets, and even provide customer service from halfway around the world.GLOBALIZATION Offshore outsourcing is one of the manifestations of the trend toward globalization— blurring of geographic barriers—that is accelerated by information technology. Well -educated English-speaking employees residing in countries like India and the Philippines can perform services demanded by firms based in the United States, Great Britain, or any other country. In fact, outsourcing of white-collar services has already become mainstream, with software development and call-center operations being among the most prevalent.Furthermore, the outsourcing trends are naturally expanding into such activities as processing of insurance claims, transcription of medical records, engineering and design work, financial analysis, market research, and many others (â€Å"The Remote Future,† 2004). From a macroeconomic perspective, the effects of offshore outsourcing are quite positive: It facilitates a more efficient allocation of human resources by removing the imperfections introduced by geographical boundaries. On a microeconomic level, numerous companies will benefit from lower costs of outsourced activities.For example, by outsourcing back-office work to Costa Rica, the Philippines, and Great Britain, Procter & Gamble was able to realize $1 billion in cost reductions (La Londe, 2004). Nevertheless, outsourcing, as any other impact of information technology, raises an array of complex interrelated issues that are not always positive. For instance, outsourcing may be advantageous to some groups of people, but detrimental to others. Nasscom, the Indian IT industry lobby, forecasts that employment in the â€Å"ITenabled services† industry in India will grow from 770,000 in 2004 to 2 million in 2008 (â€Å"The Remote Future,† 2004).Yet, employees and trade unions in Western nations are expressing concerns about job losses resulting from offshore outsourcing. The U. S. federal government and the majority of individual states are already considering laws that would prevent government agencies from contracting their services out to foreign firms (Schroeder, 2004). As the volume of sensitive data processed offshore increases, o utsourcing will raise the questions of privacy and confidentiality.Privacy standards in a country where data originate may vary dramatically from the privacy laws and privacy safeguards in the country where the data are processed. An incident in which a disgruntled worker in Pakistan threatened to post medical records of U. S. patients on the Internet highlights the seriousness of this issue (Mintz, 2004). 17. 2 IT Is Eliminating the Barriers of Time, Space, and Distance 667 The remarkable communications capabilities delivered by IT promote globalization not only through offshore outsourcing but also through enabling firms to distribute core corporate functions around the globe.TELECOMMUTING Broadband Internet access, secure virtual private networks, and mobile computing technologies are making it possible for many professionals to telecommute, or work from outside the office. According to some estimates, by the year 2010 more than half of workers in the United States will spend 2 o r more days a week working away from the office. However, experts estimate that even in 10 years it would be uncommon to find workers who telecommute 5 days a week, suggesting that telecommuting would not fully eliminate the need for central office locations.From 1990 to 2000, the number of those who worked more at home than at the office grew by 23 percent, twice the rate of growth of the total labor market. Since 2000, telecommuting has continued to increase. Approximately 4. 5 million Americans telecommute a majority of their total working days, with some 20 million commuting at least some days each month and 45 million telecommuting at least once per year. Telecommuting offers a plethora of benefits, including reducing rush-hour traffic, improving air quality, improving highway safety, and even improving health care (see IT at Work 17. ). Among the large metropolitan areas in the United States, the largest amount of telecommuting occurs in Denver, Portland, and San Diego. The pr ojected growth of IT-related jobs is on the rise. Five of the top ten highest-growth jobs are IT-related, including computer software engineering for applications, computer support specialists, computer software engineering for systems software, network and computer systems administrators, and network systems and data communication analysts (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook; see money. cnn. om/magazines/ business2/nextjobboom/), and the rates of telecommuting are expected to grow even higher. Many of these IT-related jobs can now be effectively performed from home, thanks to excellent bandwidths and improved technologies to support telecommuting. IT at Work 17. 1 Telemedicine Helps Indian Tribe Get Better Health Care The Alabama Coushatta Indian Tribe Reservation, located 45 miles outside of Houston, Texas, in Livingston County, has experienced an outmigration of its people to more metropolitan areas in search of better education, jobs, and health care.Wanti ng to preserve its race and culture, the 300-member tribe sought ways to make living on the reservation more attractive to its young members. In partnership with Sam Houston State University (SHSU) and with $350,000 in funding from the Rural Utilities Services, a network called RESNET was created to bridge the information and communication gaps for residents of Livingston and surrounding counties. A fiber-optic network links the medical clinic on the reservation to the University of Texas Medical Branch in Polk County as well as to the Tyler County Hospital. Tribal members can ow receive more specialized care as two-way consultations between the clinic on the reservation and the hospital in Polk County or Tyler County are now possible. Individuals with ailments that might require hospitalization, but about which they are not sure, such as a diabetic with a concern about a swollen limb, can first check with the medical clinic on the reservation. Vital signs can be taken and radiology images shared with the specialist physicians at one of the hospitals, and then informed decisions about whether the patient needs to travel to a hospital can be made.This helps improve the quality of care as well as saves time both for patients and for medical staff. Source: USDA (2006) and shsu. edu (1997). For Further Exploration: What are potential legal problems associated with telemedicine? What are some trade-offs to be considered? 668 Chapter 17 Impacts of IT on Individuals, Organizations, and Society The typical telecommuter is well-educated, financially stable, has children, works in management and/or sales, and had worked in his or her current position for several years face-to-face before starting to telecommute Balaker, 2005). Likewise, as the percent of service-related jobs increases—by 2002, 82 percent of the U. S. workforce worked in service-related jobs—the potential for more telecommuting also rises. It is simply not possible for factory or agricultur al laborers to telecommute, but many service-related jobs do offer the potential for telecommuting. One area where telecommuting is having a promising impact is that of telemedicine. For instance, in 2001, doctors in New York performed the first successful crossAtlantic telesurgery on a patient in Strasbourg France.The removal of the patient’s gallbladder was conducted via a robotic arm that was remotely controlled by the surgeons. A fiber-optic cable operated by France Telecom enabled the high-speed link so that the images from the operating table in France were on display in front of the doctors in New York, with an average time delay of only 150 milliseconds (Johnson, 2002). Other areas of medicine are experiencing surges in telemedicine as well. Replacing the couch with a monitor and video feed, telepsychiatry in particular is becoming popular, fueled in part by the need to serve rural patients and the need to service prison populations.Data from the National Conference o f State Legislatures indicates that as of 2006, six states in the United States required private insurers to reimburse patients for telepsychiatry. Impacts of Working from Home or Virtual Office. All forms of telecommuting— working from home (WFH) or a virtual office—give employees greater flexibility in their working locations and hours. Working in a virtual office is one way an employee can telecommute by completing job duties virtually anywhere—a car, hotel room, airport, or any hotspot.Telecommuting (or telework) played a significant role in business continuity and continuity of operations planning. Companies who had employees in New York City on 9/11 or New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina relied on telework. Their employees were able to work immediately after these tragedies because of the telework programs they had in place. The Telework Coalition (TelCoa. org), a nonprofit membership organization that promotes virtual and distributed work, conducted a be nchmarking study of employers in public and private sectors with large telework programs. Employers represented roughly 00,000 employees and 150,000 teleworkers and mobile workers. The 2006 study, sponsored by Intel, looked at how these large organizations resolved problems to create successful programs that benefited the organization and employees through reduced real estate costs, increased employee retention, and a higher rate of employee satisfaction. The survey was valuable because it examined details such as benefits, costs, challenges, and unexpected consequences experienced by managers. Most participants emphasized the importance of the mobility that telework enables when dealing in a global economy.To read the Executive Summary of the telework survey, visit telcoa. org/id311. htm. An interesting finding was that telework was being regarded as â€Å"just work† and not an unusual form of work. As long as employees had a phone, laptop, high-speed Internet access, and fa x, they are in business wherever they are. With the convergence of technologies, such as a wireless-equipped laptop with a VoIP phone, or a new-generation PDA, work can be done from almost anywhere. Telework is also of great importance to the local community and society because of effects on the environment, safety, and health.For example, the strength of a society depends on the strength of its individuals and the strength of their families. Other potential benefits 17. 2 IT Is Eliminating the Barriers of Time, Space, and Distance TABLE 17. 1 669 Potential Benefits of Telecommuting or Virtual Work Individuals Organizational Community and Society †¢ Reduces or eliminates travelrelated time and expenses †¢ Improves health by reducing stress related to compromises made between family and work responsibilities †¢ Allows closer proximity to and involvement with family †¢ Allows closer bonds with the family and the community Decreases involvement in office politics â € ¢ Increases productivity despite distractions †¢ Reduces office space needed †¢ Increases labor pool and competitive advantage in recruitment †¢ Provides compliance with Americans with Disabilities Act †¢ Decreases employee turnover, absenteeism, and sick leave usage †¢ Improves job satisfaction and productivity †¢ Conserves energy and lessens dependence on foreign oil †¢ Preserves the environment by reducing traffic-related pollution and congestion †¢ Reduces traffic accidents and resulting injuries or deaths Reduces the incidence of disrupted families when people do not have to quit their jobs if they need to move because of a spouse’s new job or family obligations †¢ Increased employment opportunities for the homebound †¢ Allows the movement of job opportunities to areas of high unemployment of telework to individuals, organizations, and communities are listed in Table 17. 1. There are numerous potential negative effect s of telework, including a sense of isolation when working from home even though such work often requires a lot of telephone contact with people in the office.Growth in telecommuting raises the questions of whether the benefits of working from home outweigh the costs, and whether telecommuting is appropriate for everyone or only for workers with certain qualities and personality types. Few of us want to work around the clock, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, but the pressure to do so could be considerable if the facility exists. Another pressure may be to work antisocial hours—night shifts, for example, or weekends—which can adversely impact the quality of social interactions and interpersonal relationships. For more on teleworking, see Online File W17. 2. ) Globalization and telecommuting are only two examples of how information technology removes the barriers of time, space, and distance. Far-reaching results of this trend are changing the way we l ive, work, play, and do business, bringing both improvements that we can enjoy and the challenges that we need to overcome. In the context of organizations, these changes have important implications for structure, authority, power, job content, and personnel issues. STRUCTURE, AUTHORITY, POWER, JOB C ONTENT, AND PERSONNEL ISSUESThe IT revolution may result in many changes in structure, authority, power, and job content, as well as personnel management and human resources management. Details of these changes are shown in Table 17. 2. In addition, other changes are expected in organizations. IT managers are assuming a greater leadership role in making business decisions. The impact goes beyond one company or one supply chain, to influence entire industries. For example, the use of profitability models and optimization is reshaping retailing, real estate, banking, transportation, airlines, and car renting, to mention just a few.These and other changes are impacting personnel issues, as shown in Table 17. 3. Many additional personnel-related questions could surface as a result of using IT. For example: What will be the impact of IT on job qualifications and on training 670 Chapter 17 Impacts of IT on Individuals, Organizations, and Society TABLE 17. 2 Impacts of IT on Structure, Authority, Power, and Job Content Impact Effect of IT Flatter organizational hierarchies IT increases span of control (more employees per supervisor), increases productivity, and reduces the need for technical experts (due to expert systems).Fewer managerial levels will result, with fewer staff and line managers. Reduction in the total number of employees, reengineering of business processes, and the ability of lower-level employees to perform higher-level jobs may result in flatter organizational hierarchies. The ratio of white- to blue-collar workers increases as computers replace clerical jobs, and as the need for information systems specialists increases. However, the number of profess ionals and specialists could decline in relation to the total number of employees in some organizations as intelligent and knowledge-based systems grow.IT makes possible technology centers, e-commerce centers, decision support systems departments, and/or intelligent systems departments. Such units may have a major impact on organizational structure, especially when they are supported by or report directly to top management. Centralization may become more popular because of the trend toward smaller and flatter organizations and the use of expert systems. On the other hand, the Web permits greater empowerment, allowing for more decentralization. Whether use of IT results in more centralization or in decentralization may depend on top management’s philosophy.Knowledge is power, and those who control information and knowledge are likely to gain power. The struggle over who controls the information resources has become a conflict in many organizations. In some countries, the fight may be between corporations that seek to use information for competitive advantage and the government (e. g. , Microsoft vs. the Justice Dept. ). Elsewhere, governments may seek to hold onto the reins of power by not letting private citizens access some information (e. g. , China’s restriction of Internet usage).Job content is interrelated with employee satisfaction, compensation, status, and productivity. Resistance to changes in job skills is common, and can lead to unpleasant confrontations between employees and management. Change in blue-towhite-collar staff ratio Growth in number of special units Centralization of authority Changes in power and status Changes in job content and skill sets requirements? How can jobs that use IT be designed so that they present an acceptable level of challenge to users? How might IT be used to personalize or enrich jobs?What can be done to make sure that the introduction of IT does not demean jobs or have other negative impacts from the w orkers’ point of view? All these and more issues could be encountered in any IT implementation. TABLE 17. 3 Impacts of IT on Personnel Issues Impact Effect of IT Shorter career ladders In the past, many professionals developed their abilities through years of experience and a series of positions that exposed them to progressively more complex situations. The use of IT, and especially Web-based computer-aided instruction, may short-cut this learning curve. IT introduces the possibility for greater electronic supervision.In general, the supervisory process may become more formalized, with greater reliance on procedures and measurable (i. e. , quantitative) outputs and less on interpersonal processes. This is especially true for knowledge workers and telecommuters. The Web has the potential to increase job mobility. Sites such as techjourney. com can tell you how jobs pay in any place in the United States. Sites like monster. com offer places to post job offerings and resumes. U sing videoconferencing for interviews and intelligent agents to find jobs is likely to increase employee turnover.Changes in supervision Job mobility 17. 3 Information Is Changing from a Scarce Resource to an Abundant Resource 17. 3 671 Information Is Changing from a Scarce Resource to an Abundant Resource Few people disagree with the notion that information is a valuable resource and that increased availability of information can be beneficial for individuals and organizations alike. However, information technology’s capability to introduce ever-growing amounts of data and information into our lives can exceed our capacity to keep up with them, leading to information overload.Business users are not suffering from the scarcity of data; instead, they are discovering that the process of finding the information they need in massive collections of documents can be complicated, time consuming, and expensive. The impact of information overload is felt not only in business circles b ut also in many other parts of the society, including the military intelligence community. At the onset of the Information Age, intelligence professionals acquired never-before-seen data collection tools, including high-resolution satellite imagery and versatile sensors capable of penetrating natural and manmade barriers.Furthermore, information technology enabled the intelligence community to establish high-speed communication links to transfer the data, build vast databases to store the data, and use powerful supercomputers with intelligent software to process the data. Clearly, information technology has greatly increased both the amount of information available to the intelligence community and the speed at which it can analyze this information. However, existing computer systems and human analysts are unable to deal with the increasing volumes of data, creating the information-overload problem.For instance, according to MacDonald and Oettinger (2002),â€Å"information that mig ht have prevented some of the September 11 attacks apparently existed somewhere within the vast quantity of data collected by the intelligence community, but the systems for using such information have lagged far behind the ability to collect the data. † To be effective at solving the problem of information overload, information systems must differentiate between the data that can be safely summarized and the data that should be viewed in its original form (DeSouza et al. , 2004). INFORMATION OVERLOAD INFORMATION QUALITY FINAs organizations and societies continue to generate, process, and rely on the rapidly increasing amounts of information, they begin to realize the importance of information quality. Information quality is a somewhat subjective measure of the utility, objectivity, and integrity of gathered information. Quality issues affect both the simple collections of facts (data) and the more complex pieces of processed data (information). To be truly valuable, both data and information must possess a number of essential characteristics, such as being complete, accurate, up-to-date, and â€Å"fit for the purpose† for which they are used (Ojala, 2003).The value and usability of data and information that do not satisfy these requirements are severely limited. Issues relating to information quality have become sufficiently significant that they now occupy a notable place on the government’s legislative agenda. The Data Quality Act of 2001 and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 impose stringent information quality requirements on government agencies and publicly traded corporations (Loshin, 2004).For example, one of the provisions of the Sarbanes–Oxley Act makes chief executive and financial officers personally responsible and liable for the quality of financial information that firms release to stockholders or file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This rule emphasizes the importance of controlling and measuring data qualit y and information quality in business intelligence, corporate performance management, and record management systems (Logan and Buytendijk, 2003). Information quality problems are not limited to corporate data. Millions of individuals face information quality ssues on a daily basis as they try to find information 672 Chapter 17 Impacts of IT on Individuals, Organizations, and Society online, whether on publicly available Web pages or in specialized research databases, wikis, blogs, or newsfeeds. Among the most common problems that plague online information sources is omission of materials. A number of online â€Å"full-text† periodicals databases may omit certain items that appeared in the printed versions of those publications. In addition, online sources of information leave out older documents, which are not available in digital form.Thus, one cannot be assured of having access to a complete set of relevant materials. Even materials that are available from seemingly reputab le sources present information quality concerns. Information may have been reported wrong, whether intentionally or unintentionally, or the information may have become out of date (Ojala, 2003). These and other information quality issues are contributing to the frustration and anxiety that for some have become the unfortunate side effect of the Information Age. SPAM THE DIGITAL DIVIDESpamming, the practice of indiscriminately broadcasting unsolicited messages via e-mail and over the Internet, is one of the most widespread forms of digital noise. Spam is typically directed at a person and presents a considerable annoyance, with 70 percent of users indicating that â€Å"spam makes being online unpleasant† (Davies, 2004). Bulk unsolicited electronic messages—spam—accounts for more than 66 percent of all e-mail traffic on the Internet. Some 25. 5 billion spam messages were sent in 2004 (reported by Defacto, 2005).This volume of messages significantly impairs the ban dwidth of Internet service providers and places excessive capacity demands on mail servers. In electronic commerce, spam can delay transactions and can cause problems in supply chains where business data are exchanged through specially configured e-mail accounts (Davies, 2004). Spam hurts businesses even more by lowering the productivity of employees who have to deal with unwanted messages. Spam can originate in any country, making the anti-spam legislation of any given country largely ineffective in keeping spam out.The 2004 Ferris Research Study on spam found that the average amount spent on anti-spam products was $41 per user per year, so for a company with 10,000 employees, this would total $410,000 for the company per year. Thirty-four percent of the respondents in the Ferris study indicated that between 50 and 74 percent of all incoming messages were spam. Fortythree percent reported that managing spam was a major managerial concern. Of the approximately 500 organizations stud ied, 56 percent had already implemented antispam software with another 30 percent planning to.For the 14 percent that did not plan to implement spam software, the major reason was the fear of â€Å"false positives†Ã¢â‚¬â€ that is, the concern that messages that are quite important will be filtered as junk. In fact, unless employees occasionally browse their junk mail, they might very well miss important messages. Thus, in addition to the cost of the software, there is no way around the fact that spam costs organizations in terms of employee time. See Online File W17. 3 for discussion of the U. S. Can-Spam Act.Internet service providers and software companies have embarked on a technological campaign to eradicate spam. Mail-filtering software and other technologies have made it more difficult for spammers to distribute their messages. However, spammers have responded with creative new schemes to defeat the anti-spam solutions. The battle of innovations and counterinnovations between spammers and anti-spam companies continues. Some of the major anti-spam software providers include SpamAssassin, Symantec, Network Associates McAfee, TrendMicro, GFI, SurfControl, and Sophos.Technologies enabling access to information are not distributed evenly among various groups of people. For some people, information continues to be a scarce resource, which puts them at a comparative economic and social disadvantage. The gap in computer technology in general, and now in Web technology in particular, 17. 3 Information Is Changing from a Scarce Resource to an Abundant Resource 673 between those who have such technology and those who do not is referred to as the digital divide.However, by 2003, nearly 100 percent of the public schools in the United States had Internet access (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2005). Not only has the divide in terms of access per se been reduced, but the divide in terms of the quality (or speed) of access has been reduced. By 2003, 95 percent of public schools used broadband connections to access the Internet, as compared with 80 percent in 2000 and fewer than 15 percent in 1996. Greater access in public schools is helping break the racial digital divide that has been noticeable since the Internet first emerged.The New York Times reported in March 2006 that a Pew national survey of people 18 and older found that 61 percent of African Americans reported using the Internet, compared with 74 percent of whites and 80 percent of English-speaking Hispanics (Marriott, 2006). However, what these studies do not indicate is the purpose of the Internet use, the frequency of it, or the benefit of it. Nor do the studies provide evidence that the divide is shrinking across households. Poorer households remain less likely to have Internet access from the home than do wealthier counterparts (Marriott, 2006).Moreover, even as the divide lessens in regard to mature technologies, it continues to exist for newer technologies. Fo r example, some schools with sufficient resources are now making iPods a tool for all students (see IT at Work 17. 2). IMPACTS ON I NDIVIDUALS Together, the increasing amounts of information and information technology use have potential impacts on job satisfaction, dehumanization, and information anxiety as well as impacts on health and safety. Although many jobs may become substantially more â€Å"enriched† with IT, other jobs may become more routine and less satisfying.Dehumanization and Other Psychological Impacts. Many people feel a loss of identity, a dehumanization, because of computerization; they feel like â€Å"just another number† because computers reduce or eliminate the human element that was present in the noncomputerized systems. Some people also feel this way about the Web. On the other hand, while the major objective of technologies, such as e-commerce, is to increase productivity, they can also create personalized, flexible systems that allow individua ls to include their opinions and knowledge in the system.These technologies attempt to be people-oriented and user-friendly (e. g. , blogs and wikis). The Internet threatens to have an even more isolating influence than has been created by television. If people are encouraged to work and shop from their living rooms, then some unfortunate psychological effects, such as depression and loneliness, could develop. Some people have become so addicted to the Web that they have dropped out of their regular social activities, at school or work or home, creating societal and organizational problems.Another possible psychological impact relates to distance learning. In some countries, it is legal to school children at home through IT. Some argue, however, that the lack of social contacts could be damaging to the social, moral, and cognitive development of school-age children who spend long periods of time working alone on the computer. Information Anxiety. Another potential negative impact is information anxiety. This disquiet can take several forms, such as frustration with our inability to keep up with the amount of data present in our lives. Information anxiety can take other forms as well.One is frustration with the quality of the information available on the Web, which frequently is not up-to-date or incomplete. Another is frustration or guilt associated with not being better informed, or being informed too late (â€Å"How come others knew this before I did? †). A third form of information anxiety stems from information overload (too many online sources). 674 Chapter 17 Impacts of IT on Individuals, Organizations, and Society IT at Work 17. 2 The Dog Ate My iPod Schools and universities are finding new ways to keep up with technology, such as the emergence of iPods on campuses.All levels of education are using this brand of portable media players, designed and marketed by Apple Computer, as a learning tool. Duke University was one of the first to embrace thi s technology. Duke’s provost, Peter Lang, said, â€Å"the direct effect of iPods is they learn better in the classroom. † Duke was awarded a grant to give their freshmen 20-gigabyte iPods—enough storage for up to 5,000 songs. The results are mixed; about 75 percent of those surveyed at Duke said they use their iPods for academic work. Half the time, they use the device in ways recommended by the professors.The positive feedback is that the iPod is similar to the old recording devices used in the past, but with the ability to store, organize, and access with a click of a couple of buttons. Students do not have to attend the class to download the materials online or from a fellow student. Some schools feel that students will skip out on classes and rely on each other’s recordings, or even use the device to cheat. According to Don McCabe, a Rutgers professor who surveyed nearly 62,000 undergraduates on 96 campuses over four years, two-thirds of the students admitted to cheating.That is a concern, especially with the compact size, wireless earpieces, and the ability to hold podcasts—audio recordings that can be distributed over the Internet. But with an abundance of electronic gadgets, including handheld email devices, wireless access in classrooms to the Internet, calculators that are preprogrammed with formulas, and pensized scanners used to copy text or exams for other students, universities have to stay ahead of the curve. Some other concerns are: How will the lecturer’s words and actions be used for unknown purposes and when/where is copyright eing infringed when students and faculty make their own recordings? In spite of the worries of skipping class, personal use, and cheating, Apple Computer is behind the iPod in the education field. Six schools (Duke, Brown, Stanford, the University of Michigan, the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and the University of Missouri School of Journalism) recently participated i n a pilot program called iTunes U (apple. com/educastion/solutions/ itunes_u/). The program was so popular that Apple began to offer the program to all colleges for lectures, notes, podcasts, and information in a library for students to download.Other schools, such as Brearley School, a private school for girls on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, use iPods predominantly in interactive exercises, such as foreign language classes. Katherine Hallissy Ayala, the head of the computer education department, says â€Å"the hope is that if students are interested in this, they’ll download and explore on their own without being told to. † And Jacques Houis, a French teacher at Brearley, feels that â€Å"listening to many different types of French, not just the teacher, is very important. Students have said that the iPod has helped their foreign language skills by listening to playbacks, music, and other sources besides what is taught in the classroom. One thing is for sure, th e iPod is changing the academic field and schools will have to stay ahead of generations born in the ever-changing world of technology. Sources: Ferguson (2005) and Moore (2005) For Further Exploration: How does the use of iPods shift responsibility from teachers â€Å"teaching† to students â€Å"learning†? What excuses might a student use for not completing an ssignment correctly or submitting it on time? Impacts on Health and Safety. Computers and information systems are a part of the environment that may adversely affect individuals’ health and safety. To illustrate, we will discuss the effects of job stress and long-term use of the keyboard. Job Stress. An increase in workload and/or responsibilities can trigger job stress. Although computerization has benefited organizations by increasing productivity, it has also created an ever-increasing workload for some employees.Some workers, especially those who are not proficient with computers, but who must work wi th them, feel overwhelmed and start feeling anxious about their jobs and their job performance. These feelings of anxiety can adversely affect workers’ productivity. Management’s responsibility is to help alleviate these feelings by providing training, redistributing the workload among workers, or by hiring more individuals. Repetitive Strain (Stress) Injuries. Other potential health and safety hazards are repetitive strain injuries such as backaches and muscle tension in the wrists and fingers.Carpal tunnel syndrome is a painful form of repetitive strain injury that affects the wrists and hands. It has been associated with the long-term use of keyboards. 17. 3 Information Is Changing from a Scarce Resource to an Abundant Resource 675 Lessening the Negative Impact on Health and Safety. Designers are aware of the potential problems associated with prolonged use of computers. Consequently, they have attempted to design a better computing environment. Research in the area of ergonomics (the science of adapting machines and work environments to people) provides guidance for these designers.For instance, ergonomic techniques focus on creating an environment for the worker that is safe, well lit, and comfortable. Devices such as antiglare screens have helped alleviate problems of fatigued or damaged eyesight, and chairs that contour the human body have helped decrease backaches (see A Closer Look 17. 1). A Closer Look 17. 1 Ergonomic and Protective Products Many products are available to improve working conditions for people who spend much of their time at a computer. The following photos illustrate some ergonomic solutions. Wrist support Back support Eye-protection filter optically coated glass) Adjustable foot rest 676 Chapter 17 Impacts of IT on Individuals, Organizations, and Society 17. 4 Machines Are Performing Functions Previously Performed by Humans One of the distinguishing traits of humankind is the continuous quest to find tools and techniqu es to replace human work and manual labor. Information technology greatly accelerates this process and allows machines to perform a variety of complex functions, which, in the past, could be performed only by humans. Robotics offers a clear example of information technology eliminating the need for human labor.Computerized transaction processing systems, automated teller machines, intelligent scheduling software, and voice recognition systems illustrate information technology’s capability to replace administrative and clerical work. Moreover, artificial intelligence and expert systems are now able to perform the work of white-collar professionals. As functionality of machines and computer systems continues to evolve, it will transform societies by influencing such critical factors as the quality of life, the dynamics of labor markets, and the nature of human interactions. QUALITY OF LIFE GOVQuality of life refers to measures of how well we achieve a desirable standard of livi ng. For example, the use of robots in uncomfortable or dangerous environments is one of the primary ways of improving the quality of life with information technology. For decades, robots have been used to replace physically demanding or tedious activities in manufacturing plants. Robots and other quasi-autonomous devices have become increasingly common on farm fields, in hospitals, and even in private homes, improving the quality of life of numerous people. A type of robot works at the University of California Hospital at San Francisco.The five-foot-tall machine, which can drive down the hallways and call an elevator to travel to other floors, carries medicine and blood samples around the building (Stone, 2003). Specialized robots that can relieve people of the need to perform certain household tasks are becoming commercially available. For instance, robotic vacuum cleaners capable of finding their way around furniture and other obstacles in any room are already sweeping the floors in thousands of homes around the world. Military applications of robotics hold the potential not only to improve the quality of life but also to save the lives of soldiers.The Pentagon is researching selfdriving vehicles and bee-like swarms of small surveillance robots, each of which would contribute a different view or angle of a combat zone. In March 2004, DARPA, the research arm of the U. S. Department of Defense, held a race of fully autonomous land vehicles across a challenging 150-mile stretch of the Mojave Desert. Thirteen entrants designed vehicles that could navigate and drive themselves without humans at the remote controls. This race ended without any winners. The machine that traveled the farthest—12 km—was built by Carnegie Mellon University (â€Å"Robots, start your engines,† 2004).These initial results suggest that significant advances in IT will need to be made before robots can handle complex, unfamiliar situations and operate entirely autonomou sly. Somewhat less obvious, but very noticeable improvements in the quality of life arise from the ability of computers to â€Å"make decisions†Ã¢â‚¬â€an activity that used to be in the exclusive domain of human beings. Although such decisions are typically limited in scope and are based on rules established by people, they are successfully employed in a variety of practical applications.For example, automobile navigation systems may be incapable of guiding a vehicle across the unpredictable desert terrain, but they are quite adept at finding the optimal route to the desired destination using a network of existing roadways. Global positioning systems (GPSs) integrated 17. 4 Machines Are Performing Functions Previously Performed by Humans SVC 677 with geographic information systems (GISs) available in many modern vehicles allow the driver to hand over navigational decisions to the computer, thereby offering an additional level of safety and convenience.Expert systems used in the health-care industry offer another example of quality of life improvements that follow from machines’ abilities to perform â€Å"human† work. For instance, some systems can improve the diagnosis process by analyzing the set of symptoms experienced by the patient. Other systems can supplement a physician’s judgment by analyzing prescriptions for dosage and potential drug interactions, thus reducing the frequency and severity of medication errors, which translates into a higher quality of life for the patients. Partners HealthCare System, Inc. for example, reported a 55 percent reduction in the number of serious medication errors following the implementation of such a system (Melymuka, 2002). Whether robots will be of the quality of R2D2 (the Star Wars robot) is another issue. It probably will be a long time before we see robots making decisions by themselves, handling unfamiliar situations, and interacting with people. Nevertheless, robots are around that can do practical tasks. Carnegie Mellon University, for example, has developed self-directing tractors that harvest hundreds of acres of rops around the clock in California, using global positioning systems combined with video image processing that identifies rows of uncut crops. Robots are especially helpful in hazardous environments, as illustrated in IT at Work 17. 3. IT at Work 17. 3 The Working Lives of Robots Laying Fiber-Optic Cables. Cities around the world are transforming themselves to the digital era by replacing copper wires with fiber-optic cables or by installing fiber optics where there were no wires before. Because fiber-optic cables are a choice method to deliver high-speed voice and data ommunication (see Technology Guide 4), demand for them is expanding. Cities know that in order to attract and hold on to high-tech business they must provide fiber-optic access to all commercial buildings. You may have seen this activity many times without realizing it: Workers cut up the street, creating noise, dust, and traffic problems. But the worst part of it is that the disruption to people may take weeks, or even months, just to complete one city block. Now, robots are changing it all. One company that invented a technology to improve the ituation is City Net Telecommunications (citynettelecom .com). The idea is to use the existing sewer system to lay the cables. This way no trenches need to be dug in the streets. Pioneering work has been done in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Omaha, Nebraska, and Indianapolis, Indiana (in spring 2001). How do the robots help? Robots are waterproof and do not have noses, and so they are not bothered by working in the sewer. They do not complain, nor do they get sick. As a matter of fact, they work faster than humans when it comes to laying the fiber-optic cables inside the sewer system. POM GOVWhat does it cost? The company claims that laying the fiber-optic cable with robots costs about the same as the old method. The major ad vantage is that it can be done 60 percent faster and without disruption to people’s lives. Cleaning Train Stations in Japan. With growing amounts of rubbish to deal with at Japanese train stations and fewer people willing to work as cleaners, officials have started turning the dirty work over to robots. Since May 1993, the Central Japan Railway Company and Sizuko Company, a Japanese machinery maker, have been using robots programmed to vacuum rubbish.A railway official said the robots, which are capable of doing the work of 10 people each, have been operating at the Sizuko station in Central Japan. The robots measure about 1. 5 meters wide and 1. 2 meters long. The railway and Sizuko spent 70 million yen to develop the machines and are planning to program them for other tasks, such as sweeping and scrubbing. Sources: Compiled from the New York Times (March 6, 2001); from the Wall Street Journal (November 21, 2000); and from â€Å"Robots Used to Clean Train Station in . . . à ¢â‚¬  (1993). See also â€Å"The Robot Revolution Is on the Way† (2000).For Further Exploration: If robots are so effective, what will be the impact on unemployment when more tasks are robotized? What will people do if robots take over? 678 Chapter 17 Impacts of IT on Individuals, Organizations, and Society IMPACT ON L ABOR MARKETS One of the most prominent concerns is the fear that due to technological advances, machines will replace millions of workers, leading to mass unemployment. Robots and office automation systems are effectively competing with humans for blue-collar and clerical jobs. It is important to note that white-collar occupations are not immune to the impact of information technology either.In fact, machines are beginning to challenge scientists, interpreters, computer programmers, lawyers, aircraft pilots, and other professionals in their jobs. Researchers in Great Britain, for instance, have built a robot-scientist capable of performing simple genetic exper iments. The computer-controlled robot independently formulated hypotheses about the functions of unknown genes, designed experiments to test them, manipulated laboratory equipment to conduct the experiments, analyzed the results, and accepted or rejected hypotheses based on the evidence it obtained.The robot’s performance was comparable to the performance of graduate students working on similar tasks (Begley, 2004). Translators and interpreters also face competition from information technology in the form of speech- and text-based machine translation systems. While existing machine translation software cannot rival the accuracy, clarity, eloquence, and vividness of human translations, it is typically able to convey the gist of the message and comply with the major rules of grammar and syntax (Schwartz, 2004). (Visit online-translator. com, google. om/language_tools, and world. altavista. com to review several online translation services. ) Legal professionals may discover som e unusual contenders, eager to take over their jobs. Some software packages used by law firms rely on artificial intelligence to analyze facts, determine applicable regulations, and prepare drafts of appropriate documents—all of which are activities traditionally performed by entry-level lawyers and paralegals. These and other examples illustrate a valid threat that information technology presents to workers in numerous occupations.In addition, they prompt the question of whether you should be concerned about the prospects of computers acquiring the capabilities of doing your job more effectively and efficiently. Following the introduction of new technologies that mimic the functions of human workers, it is common to observe some job losses as old jobs are replaced by computerized equipment. However, this negative impact on employment levels offers a very simplistic and incomplete picture of the chain of events associated with technological advances.One of the more straightfo rward positive side-effects of technological advances is the creation of new jobs, which takes place in other sectors of the economy that produce and operate the new equipment and computer systems. Furthermore, introduction of new information technologies results in more efficient allocation of scarce resources, such as labor, capital, and raw materials. As the production processes become more efficient, they apply downward pressure on price levels, which leads to higher demand, as consumers respond to lower prices.To satisfy the growing demand, producers tend to increase the output of goods and services, which is frequently accomplished by hiring more workers. Other entities in the affected supply chains react to increased demand and instigate further employment growth. Thus, from the macroeconomic perspective, technological progress generally increases the aggregate level of employment (Soete, 2001). Fluctuations in unemployment rates are generally associated with business cycles and do not indicate that information technology is likely to displace a large number of workers (Handel, 2003). IT at Work 17. demonstrates one of the impacts of information technology on employment in the retailing industry. Although the net effect of information technology proliferation is generally positive for the economy as a whole, on a personal level, IT-induced job displacement 17. 4 Machines Are Performing Functions Previously Performed by Humans 679 IT at Work 17. 4 Do-It-Yourself Retailing The concept of allowing shoppers to scan and bag their own items at retail stores has been around for quite a while. In the 1980s, technology necessary to implement self-checkout systems was already available.However, at that time, the costs of such systems were prohibitively high, and consumer acceptance was extremely low. As this technology continued to evolve and mature, self-checkout registers turned into attractive propositions for supermarkets, grocery stores, and other retailers. In winter of 1997, Wal-Mart was among the first merchants to test the self-checkout systems in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and other selected markets. The self-checkout machines were developed by Optimal Robotics based in Montreal, Canada.Each register included a holding area with a conveyer belt, a barcode reader, a touchscreen display, and a voice synthesizer to provide the customer with vocal and visual instructions, as well as a bagging area, which rested on scales that checked whether the weight of the scanned item corresponded with the weight of the item placed in the bag. The checkout stations also included currency readers and equipment to accept credit and debit cards, which allowed the customer to pay for the goods. The results of the initial tests were quite encouraging; thus, in 2002 the company began a large-scale rollout of selfcheckout units.Wal-Mart is installing self-checkout machines in most new Supercenters and Neighborhood Market Stores. A significant number of exis ting stores were also retrofitted with the new technology. Typically, the company installs from four to eight self-checkout stations in a store, depending on its size and sales volume. The main reasons that persuade retailers to adopt the new systems include the desire to provide a better customer MKT experience and the need to control costs. Self-checkout stations occupy 25 percent less space than traditional registers, which allows retailers to place more stations within the same floor space.Furthermore, with only one employee overseeing four machines, the store is able to keep a sufficient number of registers open while driving down labor costs. A set of four registers, which costs $80,000 to $100,000, has a payback period of only 6 to 12 months, if implemented correctly. Consumers enjoy shorter lines, faster service, and greater control over the checkout process. As self-checkout machines gain the capabilities to perform the functions of human cashiers (with some help from shopp ers), they gradually displace store employe