Unethical Desion in business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Unethical Desion in business - Essay Example what Alan Greenspan called the â€Å"increasingly complex financial instruments† that were supposed to have built â€Å"a far more efficient, flexible and resilient financial system† were actually tools designed to circumvent the banking regulatory system meant to ensure safety and prudence in the first place (Lewis et al., 2010:79). The bankers behind them were not motivated by any desire other than greed for profits, and their greed cost hundreds of thousands of people worldwide their homes, jobs, and the security of their families. In earlier times and even today in many cultures, the image of a businessman connotes shrewd selfishness that will not hesitate to pry the last dollar from an unwitting customer’s fingers. In many instances, the impression is well-justified, prompted by the oft-used phrase: â€Å"It’s only business† in explaining why the hapless customer should find himself short-changed. The multi-million dollar golden parachutes CEOs of the failed banks awarded themselves with before abandoning the ship of drowning investors are perfectly legal, they argue: it’s just business, as if that were sufficient excuse to avoid the norms of ethical behaviour. It is often thought that unethical behaviour in business is caused by the lack of time to ponder the repercussions of a decision that must be made in haste. That is not so, according to a recent study. Zhong, et al. (2010) found just the opposite, that the greater the time for deliberation, the less ethical the decision tends to be. This appears to contradict all known earlier philosophies that the time to reason ensures ethical choices. The experiment performed in the study, however, seems to suggest that when given the freedom to consult their consciences before acting, instead of simply following the rules, one is persuaded to rationalize his actions, to provide some â€Å"good† to explain why an unethical decision (usually more beneficial to himself) could be made. In simple words, the

Central Banks and Monetary Policy Essay Example for Free

Central Banks and Monetary Policy Essay In order to fully understand the nature of monetary policy, there is a need to define the function of money. According to economists, the general functions of money are as follows: 1) measure of goods and services, 2) standard of value, 3) medium of exchange, 4) storage of wealth, and 5) speculative function (related to contingency). In a very simple economy, efficiency can be achieved through general exchanges of goods and services. Every family unit or community specializes in the production of one commodity. Goods are exchanged through what economists call ‘barter system. ’ As the community grows, transactions within the simple economy become more and more complicated. There is a need to utilize a new medium of exchange. Money, whatever its earliest forms were, serves as the new medium of exchange, reducing bulkiness and inefficiency in the economy. At some point in time, the quantity of money circulating in this economy increases. This leads to rising price levels of goods and services. As the quantity of money circulating in an economy increases, price levels of goods and services also increase (inflation). The institution tasked to maintain the monetary health of an economy is the central bank. The main functions of central banks are as follows: 1)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To regulate price levels in an economy by increasing or decreasing the supply of money circulating in an economy; 2)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To provide a manageable amount of credit in an economy (serves as a stimulus to increased investments); 3)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To regulate or control exchange rates (in countries where currencies are on a non-floating status); 4)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To determine equilibrium interest rates (here monetary policy is directly related to fiscal policy, or more accurately interest rates nominally determine consumption levels, supply of money, and investment levels); 5)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To provide financial/monetary information to businesses and households (central banks report on the general status/health of an economy). The main function of central bank can be summed up as follows: if the general price levels in an economy increases, central banks decreases money supply; if the price levels decreases, central banks increases the supply of money (secondary money markets). Interest rates are also adjusted based on investment, consumption, and government expenditure patterns. When central banks sells bonds and securities, the monetary base of an economy contracts. When central banks buy bonds and securities (in capital markets), the monetary base of an economy expands. Through this process of adjustment/readjustment, central banks are able to regulate financial transactions in an economy. In recent years, the US economy experiences relative decrease in overall national output. Fiscal policies are directed to decrease equilibrium interest rate to encourage increased consumption, investment, and government expenditure (increasing output in the long-run). As of the present, the Federal Reserve monetary policy is directed to: 1) increasing the supply of money in the US economy (Federal Funds Rate), and 2) increasing the flow of credit (provide households and businesses with increased volatile funds). According to the recent Federal Reserve Report, there are indications that the US economy continues to contract. Household spending has shown signs of stabilization but gravely constrained by job losses, lower housing wealth, and tight credit. Overall sales and demand for manufactures continue to decline. There are also signs that inflation could persist for a time. To counter these economic difficulties, the Committee of the Federal Reserve will maintain the target range for the fed funds rate at 0 to 25%. To increase the money supply in the US economy (to prevent contraction), the Federal Reserve will buy a total of $1.25 trillion of agency-backed securities. At autumn, the Federal Reserve will purchase about $300 billion of treasury securities as a form of credit collateral. Note that the Federal Reserve is increasing the monetary base of the US economy by purchasing securities and treasuries. What are the general effects of monetary policy on production and employment? Suppose that the economy is in the process of contraction (not to be confused with the monetary base). The central bank has two complimentary options: decreasing the nominal interest rate and increasing the money supply. An increase in both the interest rate and the money supply would increase aggregate demand. This will shift the aggregate demand to the right, indicating a higher national output. On the supply side, this will induce firms to decrease their supply of goods to the market; indicating a leftward shift of the aggregate supply. Depending on the strength of income and substitution effect, the increase in national output via the aggregate demand may be higher or lower than the decrease in output via the supply side. In short, a monetary policy only serves to maintain the stability of an economy.

Glasgow Coma and Glasgow Outcome Scales for Brain Injury

Glasgow Coma and Glasgow Outcome Scales for Brain Injury ABSTRACT Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of death in adults under the age of 45 and an estimated 7.7 million people in the European Union are living with a disability caused by TBI. The severities of these injuries are differentiated by the use of the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), and the outcome is assessed by the Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS). These scales can be used to develop a prognosis for individuals with TBI’s in various ways. Primarily, the lower the GCS score the more severe the brain injury and therefore the worse the outcome for the patient. The GOS is applied 6 months after injury and provides a score of 1-5 with a lower score indicating the worse outcome, death. To conclude GCS by itself cannot be used to provide a long term prognosis for brain injuries. GCS can be used in addition to other factors such as presence of a midline shift on Computer Tomography and fixed pupil dilations are significant in determining prognosis. The presence of lesions on the brainst em correlates with the GCS and GOS scores allowing reliable and valid prognosis’ to be made. INTRODUCTION Traumatic brain injury (TBI) affects an estimated 1.4 million people every year in the United Kingdom (UK)[1], and is a leading cause of death in adults under the age of 45. [2] It is currently estimated that at least 7.7 million people in the European Union are living with disabilities caused by TBI’s. [3] TBI’s account for 6.6% of the Accident Emergency (AE) attendees. [4] 95% of all TBI’s presented at AE are mild, 5% severe and moderate injuries. [5] It is extremely important to determine the severity of the TBI as it has implications on the treatment and later rehabilitation of the patient. TBI can be open or closed injuries, with open TBI injuries being linked to worse functional outcomes and increased mortality. The most common method of assessing TBI is the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) and a common method for addressing the outcome of a patient is the Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS). WHAT IS THE GLASGOW COMA SCALE? The GCS is a test to ascertain the consciousness of a patient after being subject to a TBI. The maximum score with this scale is 15 and the minimum 3, this is comprised of three sections: eye opening, verbal response and motor response. (Table 1). GCS is included in National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guideline on head injury3 to provide information on survival rates for patients suffering different severities of TBI. The guideline also indicates that GCS is a measurement that should be taken at the scene of the injury by paramedics. If this is not possible it should be taken at admission to AE as early indication of TBI severity is imperative in the later treatment. The GCS differentiates between the severities of head injury by score ranges. A GCS of 13-15 indicates a mild head injury, 9-12 moderate and 3-8 severe. The GCS score can be affected by the time it is applied after injury, therefore in order to universalise this, GCS is often used once the patient has been stabilised.4 The GCS can be difficult to use in trauma cases, as localised trauma, swelling, sedation and intubation can affect testing the eye and verbal responses. [6] [7] In a survey performed by The European Brain Injury Consortium only 49% of patients could be tested fully against the scale after being stabilised in resuscitation.[8] Feature Response Score Total Eye Opening Spontaneously 4 To speech 3 To pain 2 No response 1 E: /4 Verbal Response Orientated 5 Confused 4 Inappropriate words 3 Incomprehensible words 2 No response 1 V: /5 Motor Response Obeys commands 6 Localises pain 5 Withdraws from pain 4 Flexion to pain 3 Extension t pain 2 No response 1 M:/6 Total Score GCS /15 Table 1- Glasgow Coma Scale Components of the GCS and how each section is scored individually Adapted from: Bethel J. 2012, Emergency care of children and adults with head injury, Nursing Standard, 26(43), 49-56 The GCS is considered by some to have acceptable inter-rater reliability[9] when used by experienced practitioners. However mistakes are made consistently by inexperienced users of up to 1 mark per section. Inter-rater reliability was shown to improve after exposure to a training video.[10] Reliability with scoring is imperative in making accurate TBI severity diagnosis, and then the relevant treatment associated with them. In severe TBI’s the motor component of the GCS is the best indicator of prognosis, this is due to verbal and eye scores not being able to be performed. [11] This has led to an adaption of the motor score of the GCS, called the simplified motor score (SMS). The SMS has 3 scores: 2 obey commands, 1 localises pain and 0 withdrawal to pain.[12] It was found that the SMS and GCS were useful in indicating whether neurosurgery was needed and also intubation. Overall GCS was better in predicting chance of death, however SMS was able to be used to assess patient involved in trauma more effectively as intubation and eye swelling would not be detrimental.12 This indicates that SMS may be better used in conjunction with GCS with patients who present to AE with severe head trauma. HOW CAN THE GLASGOW COMA SCALE BE USED IN BRAIN INJURY PROGNOSIS? A more severe TBI will lead to a worse 6-month functional outcome for the patient. 30% of patients with initial GCS [13] and 50% of patients with GCS ≠¤8 after being stabilized in resuscitation will die.6 Patients who have a GCS score of 3-5 have a 5% chance of survival 6 months after injury.[14] There is no direct correlation between GCS score and the patient’s ability to function in daily life afterwards. This is due to varied functional outcomes being linked to different scores on the GCS.[15] Patients with GCS ≠¥8 had 85% chance of favourable prognosis, if this score was obtained 24 hours post-admission.[16] The predictive value of GCS scores alter according to the time at which the score was obtained. GCS scores obtained at least 24 hours after trauma were linked to the grade the TBI was classified by MRI data. These grades are associated with brain stem lesions, grade 4 being the worst and grade 1 the best. The higher the GCS score the lower the grade of brainstem lesion and therefore the better prognosis in terms of functional outcome for the patient. 14 In a study performed by Utomo et al there were no patients with GCS 3-8 that were living independently 6 months after injury. In addition patients with this GCS score were 24 times more likely to die when compared to patients with GCS score 13-15.[17] GCS alone cannot accurately predict the brain injury prognosis for a patient. However, if GCS is applied with computer tomography (CT) evidence and pupil dilations, then a prognosis of possible functional outcome can be made for an individual patient.[18] WHAT IS THE GLASGOW OUTCOME SCALE? The GOS was developed to assess functional recovery of patients with brain injuries.[19] The GOS is based on a structured interview that assesses 7 areas: consciousness, independence at home, independence in the community, work, leisure and social events, relationship with family and friends and finally return to normal life.[20] The area in which the patient is living is not taken into account with the GOS but is taken note of separately. GOS is often split into two broad outcomes: favourable and unfavourable. Favourable outcome encompasses good recovery and moderately disabled. Unfavourable outcome includes: death, persistent vegetative state and severely disabled.9 The standard GOS has a 5 point scale (Table 2) but was extended after concerns were raised that it was not sensitive enough in detecting minor disabilities that may restrict the patient in returning to work. This led to the GOS extended (GOSE) being devised. Guidance has been published to increase the universal reliability of the GOSE[21], but there are still issues with its application. This is mainly due to the time period between the TBI and the GOSE being applied, this is normally taken at 6-12 months post injury. A GOS assessment at 12 months was more reliable than at 6 months[22], but it may increase the number of patients lost in follow up. 10% of patients who were moderately or severely disabled at the 6 month GOS test improved by one category. GOS GOS(extended) 1 Death 1 Death 2 Persistent Vegetative State 2 Persistent Vegetative State 3 Severely Disabled 3 Lower Severely Disabled 4 Upper Severely Disabled 4 Moderately Disabled 5 Lower Moderately Disabled 6 Upper Moderately Disabled 5 Good recovery 7 Lower Good Recovery 8 Upper Good Recovery Table 2 Glasgow Outcome Scale Shows on the left hand side the original GOS (5 point scale) and on the right the extended GOS (8 point scale) Adapted from: Nichol A, Higgins A, Gabbe B, Murray L, Cooper D, Cameron P. 2011, Measuring functional and quality of life outcomes following major head injury: Coma scales and checklists, Injury, 42(3), 281-287 The 5 sections of the GOS refer to the functional ability that will ultimately be achieved by the patient. Vegetative state refers to the patient being unable to respond; severely disabled patients cannot live on their own; moderately disabled patients can live by their selves but have reduced ability to work; good recovery infers that the patient returns to work fully.[23] It is also possible that the patient when interviewed presents a more positive outlook of their situation leading to the GOS score being faulty. In addition to this a patient may be given a GOS score of 5 indicating a good recovery, but this only refers to the patient being able to return to work. With a good recovery prognosis may still have changes in personality and an inability to cope in social situations.20 This leads to the GOS not fully indicating a good recovery, again highlighting the reason why the GOSE was devised. Under these circumstances a patient can be given a GOSE score of 7 indicating a lower good recovery. The GOS and the GOSE scores can be obtained via phone call increasing their practicality as a scale. This scale is reliable when performed over the phone due to the standardized interview which informs the score that the patient will receive.19 HOW CAN THE GLASGOW OUTCOME SCALE BE USED IN BRAIN INJURY PROGNOSIS? When applied to the GOS a patient with a severe TBI had 40% likelihood of death; 4% chance of being in a vegetative state; 16% severe disability; 19% moderate disability and 21% chance of a good recovery.6 This was a 40% likelihood of a favourable functional outcome at the 6-month GOS test. This is compared to mild brain injury that had 9% chance of dying; 0% of being in a vegetative state; 14% of severe disability; 24% of moderate disability and 53% of having a good recovery.6 This has a 77% overall prognosis of a favourable outcome for individuals with a mild brain injury. This shows that the GOS will make a differentiation in functional outcome for different severity of brain injury. This score is unlikely to change from an unfavourable to favourable outcome after this time period although some small improvements may be seen.18 Any further improvement is probably linked to rehabilitative treatment, and not the improvement of the patient’s TBI. There is a 94% chance of a good recovery with GCS >8.5 (9 +) and age ≠¤49.5 years. This is compared to an 81% chance of good recovery with GCS >8.5 (9 +) and age ≠¥49.5 years. This highlights how age can affect the probability of a patient achieving a good recovery from their brain injury.[24] Patient’s aged >75 years with a moderate or severe TBI were three times more likely to die from their TBI than patients aged 65-74 years. It was also less common for patients aged >75 years to be living independently 6 months post-injury than patients that were younger.15 The age of the patient and the severity of their TBI need to be taken into account when deciding on treatment. The prognoses for individuals in the 75+ age range are unfavourable according to the GOS. 15 Due to this treatment should be decided based on this factor. There is a correlation between the GOC score a patient is given and the grade of their brainstem lesion that is provided by MRI data. A higher grade of brainstem lesion correlates to a more unfavourable outcome for the patient.14 CONCLUSIONS Overall the GCS cannot by itself provide either long or short term brain injury prognosis. This is because there are too many variables that affect each GCS score, including the fluctuation of the GOS associated with these scores and the difference in reliability depending on who has applied the scale. The GCS is used to assess the severity of a brain injury and to allow medical professionals to constantly monitor the patient’s progress. GOS can be used to give prognosis 6 to 12 months after injury; if the scale is used before this time then the score will not indicate the full functional outcome of the patient. This time period of scoring is not beneficial for prognosis at such a time that it will be used to inform treatment of the patient. The GOS does not provide a long term prognosis for brain injury as over time and with rehabilitation improvements can be made past what is predicted. Due to the time period necessary for GOS to be more accurately applied, the GCS can be used for the interim on a general scale in order to infer the likely GOC score a patient may receive. This score will be linked to other factors such as age, pupil dilation and presence of a midline shift on computer tomography, in addition to initial GCS score.18 To conclude the GCS and GOS are vital in identifying the severity of brain injury and are still the most used scales for their purpose due to their simplicity and acceptable reliability. The use of these scales in brain injury prognosis helps direct treatment for individual patients, and allows realistic individual rehabilitation goals to be made for that individual. References [1]Hodgkinson D, Berry E, Yates D. 1994, Mild head injury – a positive approach to management, European Journal of Emergency Medicine, 1(1), 9-12 [2] Moppett I. 2007, Traumatic brain injury: assessment, resuscitation and early management, British Journal of Anaesthesia, 99(1), 18-31 [3] Roozenbeek B, Maas A, Menon D. 2013, Changing patterns in the epidemiology of traumatic brain injury, Nature Reviews Neurology, 9(4), 231-236 [4] Swann I, Walker A. 2001, Who cares for the patient with head injury now?, Emergency Medicine, 18(5), 352-357 [5] National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) 2014 Head Injury; Triage, assessment, investigation and early management of head injury in children, young people and adults Available at: http://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg176/resources/guidance-head-injury-pdf (Accessed 18/03/2015) [6] Chieregato A, Martino C, Pransani V, Nori G, Russo E, Simini B et al. 2010, Classification of traumatic brain injury: the Glasgow Coma Scale is not enough, Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandanavica,  54(6), 696-702 [7] Kushner D, Johnson-Greene D. 2014, Changes in cognition and continence as predictors of rehabilitation outcomes in individuals with severe traumatic brain injury, Journal of Rehabilitation Research Development, 57(7), 1057-1068 [8] Murray G, Teasdale G, Braakman R et al. 1999, The European Brain Injury Consortium survey of head injuries, Acta neurochirurgica, 141(3), 223-236 [9] Rowley G, Fielding K. 1991, Reliability and accuracy of the Glasgow Coma Scale with experienced and inexperienced users, Lancet, 337(8740), 535-538 [10] McLernon S. 2014, The Glasgow Coma Scale 40 years on: A review of its practical use, British Journal od Neuroscience Nursing, 10(4), 179-184 [11]  Lingsma H, Roozenbeek B, Steyerberg E, Murray G, Maas A. 2010, Early prognosis in traumatic brain injury: from prophecies to predictions, Lancet Neurology 9(5), 543-554 [12] Singh B, Murad H, Prokop L, Erwin P, Wang Z, Parsaik A, et al. 2013, Meta-analysis of Glasgow Coma Score and Simplified Motor Score in predicting traumatic brain injury outcomes, Brain Injury, 27(3), 293-300 [13] Thornhill S, Teasdale G, Murray G, McEwan J, Roy C, Penny K. 2000, Disability in young people and adults one year after head injury: prospective cohort study, British Medical Journal 320(7250), 1631-1635 [14] Maas A, Stocchetti N, Bullock R. 2008, Moderate and severe traumatic brain injury in adults, the Lancet Neurology, 7(8), 728-741 [15]  Udekwu P, Kromhout-Schiro S, Vaslef S, Baker C, Oller D. 2004, Glasgow coma scales score, mortality, and functional outcome in head-injured patients, Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgey, 56(5), 1084-1089 [16] Woischneck D, Firsching R, Schmitz B, Kapapa T. 2013, The prognostic reliability of the Glasgow Coma Scale in traumatic brain injuries: evaluation of MRI data, European Journal of Trauma and Emergency Surgery, 39(1), 79-86 [17] Utomo W, Gabbe B, Simpson P, Cameron P. 2009, Predictors of in-hospital mortality and 6-moth functional outcomes in older adults after moderate to severe brain injury, Injury, 40(9), 973-977 [18]  Husson E, Ribbers G, Willemse-van Son A, Stam H. 2010, Prognosis of six-month functioning after moderate to severe traumatic brain injury: A systematic review of prospective cohort studies, Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine, 42(1), 425-436 [19]  Brooks D, Hosie J, Bond M, Jennett B, Aughton M. 1986, Cognitive sequelae of severe head injury I relation to the Glasgow Outcome Scale, Journal of Neurological and Neurosurgical Psychiatry, 49(5), 549-553 [20] Jourdan c, Bosserelle V, Azerad S, Ghout I, Bayen E, Aegerter P, Weiss J, Mateo J, Lescot T, Vigue B, Razarourte K, Pradat-Diehl P, Azouvi P. 2013, Predictive factors for 1-year outcome of a cohort of patients with severe traumatic brain injury: results from PariS-TBI study, Brain Injury, 27(9), 1000-1007 [21] Wilson J, Pettigrew L, Teasdale G. 1998, Structured interviews for the Glasgow Outcome Scale and the extended Glasgow Outcome Scale: Guidelines for their use, Journal of Neuro-trauma, 15(8), 573-587 [22] Nalt J. 2001, Prediction of outcome in mild to moderate head injury: A review, Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 23(6), 837-851 [23] : Nichol A, Higgins A, Gabbe B, Murray L, Cooper D, Cameron P. 2011, Measuring functional and quality of life outcomes following major head injury: Coma scales and checklists, Injury, 42(3), 281-287 [24] Oh H, Seo W. 2013, Development of a decision tree analysis model that predicts recovery from acute brain injury , Japan Journal of Nursing Science, 10(1), 89-97

The First Monster at Heorot in Beowulf :: Epic of Beowulf Essays

The First Monster at Heorot in Beowulf When Grendel monstrously bursts into Heorot, tears down the heavy door with his beastly hands and instantly devours a Geatish warrior, it immediately tells us that the first climax of the epic Beowulf has arrived. As Beowulf carefully watches Grendel take action, Grendel reaches out to snatch Beowulf as his next meal. Surprised, Grendel becomes extremely frightened to discover that there is another being stronger than himself when Beowulf, using his vice-like grip, pulls Grendel’s arm from his socket. The monster, Grendel, howls with pain and runs out of Heorot leaving his blood-spattered arm still in Beowulf’s hands. An enormous celebration is thrown to record Beowulf’s victory by reciting and singing stories about the past kings. A Danish scop recites the story of Sigemund, a great hero who slays a horrible dragon. The dragon is a keeper of a treasure chest that Sigemund wins by slaying the dragon. The treasure won by Sigemund resembles the gold rewards earned by Beowulf from the ring-giver, King Hrothgar. This Norse myth is obviously recited at Beowulf’s celebration to compare both Sigemund’s and Beowulf's heroic acts. The Danish warriors want to show their appreciation to Beowulf with such mythology: â€Å"This man undertook with his art to recite in turn Beowulf’s exploit, and skillfully to tell an apt tale, to lend words to it† (Tuso 16). What is so remarkable about the epic Beowulf is that the narrator contrasts Beowulf's super-heroic accomplishments with Heremod. Heremod is known as an evil Danish king who turns against his own people. This is clearly a symbol of the reverse of Beowulf’s characteristics. By comparing and contrasting Beowulf to two different kings, the narrator is indicating that Beowulf will be king later in the epic. Yet we readers shouldn’t immediately think that Beowulf will be an evil or a good king. This leaves us to carefully observe more of Beowulf's character throughout Beowulf. During the celebration, King Hrothgar delivers an appreciation and dedication speech to Beowulf and his victory. From Hrothgar’s speech, we understand that he feels himself to be bound in a new relationship with Beowulf by his great service. He states, â€Å"Beowulf, best of men, in my heart I will love you as a son† (Tuso 17). Beowulf readers should start taking careful notice as King Hrothgar gradually becomes a mentor and a father-like figure to Beowulf. To some extent, Hrothgar even gives advice to Beowulf about how to act as an intelligent ruler through his own experience.

Economic Growth and environmental problems Essay

The industrial revolution, which began around 1750, ushered human beings into a new era of modern civilization. While the remarkable progress in science and technology has improved people’s lives greatly, our earth is changing and the environment around us is becoming worse and worse. According to Booth (1991, p.552), the† long-run economic growth relies on the creation of new industries and new forms of economic activity, these new forms of economic activity create new kinds of environmental problems†. Focusing on these aspects, the economic growth will bring about serious environmental problems such as water pollution, air pollution, ozone depletion, and acid rain. One of environmental problems is water pollution that is caused by economic growth and is very widespread and serious in the world. Industrial wastewater is one of the water pollution that people are focusing on nowadays. As we know, with economic growth, there must be setting up more industrial factories in order to satisfy people’s needs. On the other hand, more or less, these industrial factories will drain off wastewater; as we know, these wastewater contain many toxic and harmful chemical substances, such as, SO2, NO, waste gases and some other aromatic compounds. Therefore, we can see that the rapid growth of the urban industry and the high speed of economic development caused a great deal of effect on water pollution especially on industrial wastewater. In addition, with the rapid economic growth, some out of date used water supply systems in developing countries can result in water pollution, especially in the populous mega-cities. The population in developing country mega-cities is increasing so fast that the piped water supply and sewer systems cannot follow the needs of the increasing population. Many sewer networks in developing countries still stay at the standard of colonial period. Therefore, most rivers and canals in developing countries are seriously polluted by untreated waste, sewage and toxic chemicals. Some rivers like the Teito River in Sao Paolo and the Huangpu River in Shanghai have become lifeless rivers (Rampal &Sinding, 1996). As the same time that  the surface water is polluted, various wastes also seriously defile ground water. In the Journal â€Å"2000, Planets Earth at the Crossroads’, the author Jim Motavalli showed â€Å"in developing countries, more than one-third of people lack access to clean water†(1999). Meanwhile, water pollution also aggravates water shortages. With rapid economic growth, the increasing human activity is the major reason for air pollution, especially on global warming, acid rain and smog. Obvious climate changes are the results of a great deal of human-caused greenhouse gas emission. In order to satisfy the needs of continued population and economic growth, people burn more fossil fuel to get enough energy and use more fertilizer on farmland to plant more crops. In these processes, lots of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (NO) are released in to the atmosphere. These gases are generally called greenhouse gases because they can absorb infrared radiation reflected from the earth surface and create â€Å"Greenhouse Effect†. According to Rogers & Feiss (1998,p.301), with the increasing atmosphere concentration of CO2 and CH4 since 1800, the average temperature of the earth rose about 0.5 C during the 19th century, which is about 20 times the natural temperature change. And based on the prediction of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (in Rogers & Feiss, 1998, p.301) in early 1996, the global temperature will increase from 2 C to 6 C by the year 2100. Some evidence supports that the prediction about global warming is true. For example, except for1991 and 1992, the rest eight years from 1985 to1995 have become the hottest years of the past century; among this decade, the average temperature in 1995 was 0.07 C higher than in 1994. With this rising rate, the global temperature will increase over 7 C by the end of the 21st century (Rogers & Feiss, 1998, pp.300-302). Thus, we can how the global temperature has been changed by increasing human activities accompanied by fast economic growth during past 200 years. Global warming may result in some serious consequences, such as the expansion of tropical desert and arid regions; the reduction of agricultural production in tropical area; the increase of sea level; population migration from coastlines to inland; and abnormal weather including more tropical  storm, blizzards, and droughts and so on. The increasing emission of greenhouse gases will continue to affect the global worming more obvious than before. Up to now, people had no idea how to solve these potential environmental problems that will be caused by global warming. Widespread acid rain and smog comes from burning large amount of oil and coal. All kinds of automobiles, factories, industrial boilers, power plants as well as heating devices of households emit thousands tons sulfur dioxide(SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide(CO) and ozone(O3) into the atmosphere everyday. When SO2 and NO2 dissolve in rainwater and increase rainwater acidity, acid rain is formed. Acid rain can acidify many lakes and streams, and it kills all kinds of fish; it also can erode soil and make plants die. Now, in the eastern United States, eastern Canada, as well as Europe, the problem of acid rain is severe. On the other hand, these gases compound with water and dust in the atmosphere, and then form smog. Smog usually stays in the populous mega-cities and contributes to lung decease. 100 years ago, London was famous for its smog. Now, most of the 20 largest cities in the world have smog problem to some degree. Human-caused air pollution is threatening peopleâ⠂¬â„¢s health and our environment. People have entered the new millennium. The global environment has been changing over time due to rapid economic growth. Meanwhile, the economic growth will be ongoing. It is difficult to control the environmental problems that caused by economic growth although people are trying to make some policies to limit and minimize these serious problems. Up to now, rapidly increasing economic growth has seriously influenced the earth environment. All activities are due to the need of population growth and economic development. With economic growth continuing, the environment will worsen. Therefore, to reduce the world’s environmental problems, it is important to control economic growth.

History of Bar Code and Bernard Silver

History of Bar Code and Bernard Silver What is a bar code? It is a  method of automatic identification and data collection. History of Bar Codes The first patent for a bar code type product (US Patent #2,612,994) was issued to inventors Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver on October 7, 1952. The Woodland and Silver bar code can be described as a bulls eye symbol, made up of a series of concentric circles. In 1948, Bernard Silver was a graduate student at Drexel Institute of Technology in Philadelphia. A local food chain store owner had made an inquiry to the Drexel Institute asking about research into a method of automatically reading product information during checkout. Bernard Silver joined together with fellow graduate student Norman Joseph Woodland to work on a solution. Woodlands first idea was to use ultraviolet light sensitive ink. The team built a working prototype but decided that the system was too unstable and expensive. They went back to the drawing board. On October 20, 1949, Woodland and Silver filed their patent application for the Classifying Apparatus and Method, describing their invention as article classification...through the medium of identifying patterns. Commercial Use of Bar Codes Bar code was first used commercially in 1966, however, it was soon realized that there would have to be some sort of industry standard set. By 1970, the Universal Grocery Products Identification Code or UGPIC was written by a company called Logicon Inc. The first company to produce bar code equipment for retail trade use (using UGPIC) was the American company Monarch Marking in 1970, and for industrial use, the British company Plessey Telecommunications was also first in 1970. UGPIC evolved into the U.P.C. symbol set or Universal Product Code, which is still used in the United States. George J. Laurer is considered the inventor of U.P.C. or Uniform Product Code, which was invented in 1973. In June of 1974, the first U.P.C. scanner was installed at a Marshs supermarket in Troy, Ohio. The first product to have a bar code included was a packet of Wrigleys Gum.

Free Essays on Movement Into Pleistocene Era

The current 65 million year long Cenozoic Era is divided into the five epoch Tertiary Period and the present Quartenary consisting of the recent 10,000 year Postglacial and the Pleistocene epochs. The latter is characterized by extreme alterations in climate that placed intense survival pressures on hominids. Behavioral flexibility was survival selected by abrupt, extreme ecological changes. During this period Homo erectus migrated out of Africa with a most important ability, the knowldge of fire. In Europe and the Middle East Homo sapiens, also know as Neanderthals, evolved. A short stocky hominid of powerful physique with prominent brow ridges, a sharply sloped back forehead and a cranial capacity greater than modern humans, Neanderthals were well adapted to the temperate to arctic zone they occupied. Substantial evidence of human occupation in Europe appears coincident to the Mindel/Riss interglacial, 350,000 years ago. A new distinct archaic form of H. sapiens is evidenced in sub-Saharan Africa 200,000 years ago. The oldest fully modern humans are evident in the Klaiser River Mouth caves in South Africa from 120,000 - 60,000 years ago (Vbra, E 1996:214). DNA based research conclusions support the theory of African genesis of H. sapiens, sapiens between 200,000 and 140,000 years ago. Artifacts and remains place modern humans in the Near East 90,000 years ago (with typical Neanderthal associated tool assemblages), and in Europe 40,000 years ago, coincident to the Riss-Urm/Ee m/Sangamon Interglacial (Vbra, E 1996:24-25). The Upper Pleistocene includes the Middle and Upper Paleolithic. Middle Paleolithic behavioral changes evidenced include greater variety of flaked tools and flaking techniques, elaborated burials and nurturing of the weak or elderly. During this time similar characteristic Neanderthal tool assemblages are known from sites separated by thousands of kilometers. Season specific tasks are also evidenced. Important behav... Free Essays on Movement Into Pleistocene Era Free Essays on Movement Into Pleistocene Era The current 65 million year long Cenozoic Era is divided into the five epoch Tertiary Period and the present Quartenary consisting of the recent 10,000 year Postglacial and the Pleistocene epochs. The latter is characterized by extreme alterations in climate that placed intense survival pressures on hominids. Behavioral flexibility was survival selected by abrupt, extreme ecological changes. During this period Homo erectus migrated out of Africa with a most important ability, the knowldge of fire. In Europe and the Middle East Homo sapiens, also know as Neanderthals, evolved. A short stocky hominid of powerful physique with prominent brow ridges, a sharply sloped back forehead and a cranial capacity greater than modern humans, Neanderthals were well adapted to the temperate to arctic zone they occupied. Substantial evidence of human occupation in Europe appears coincident to the Mindel/Riss interglacial, 350,000 years ago. A new distinct archaic form of H. sapiens is evidenced in sub-Saharan Africa 200,000 years ago. The oldest fully modern humans are evident in the Klaiser River Mouth caves in South Africa from 120,000 - 60,000 years ago (Vbra, E 1996:214). DNA based research conclusions support the theory of African genesis of H. sapiens, sapiens between 200,000 and 140,000 years ago. Artifacts and remains place modern humans in the Near East 90,000 years ago (with typical Neanderthal associated tool assemblages), and in Europe 40,000 years ago, coincident to the Riss-Urm/Ee m/Sangamon Interglacial (Vbra, E 1996:24-25). The Upper Pleistocene includes the Middle and Upper Paleolithic. Middle Paleolithic behavioral changes evidenced include greater variety of flaked tools and flaking techniques, elaborated burials and nurturing of the weak or elderly. During this time similar characteristic Neanderthal tool assemblages are known from sites separated by thousands of kilometers. Season specific tasks are also evidenced. Important behav...