Obsessive compulsive disorder Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Obsessive compulsive disorder - Essay Example Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a psychological experience considered an Axis 1 mental illness in the DSM-IV-TR (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 1994). According to the DSM OCD is defined as either a person being obsessed with a topic or concept or compelled to think particular thoughts or to undertake particular actions. Obsessions can be defined as recurrent and persistent thoughts, images of impulses that are experienced during the OCD experience, and these are perceived as being intrusive and inappropriate and generally cause distress and or anxiety to the person experiencing them (March, 2006; Salkovskis et al., 2000; Wroe & Salkovskis, 2000). Common distressing thoughts, actions or verbalizations may be sexual in nature (10%), moral/religious/blasphemous (11%), aggressive (29%), contamination-disease (46%), or to do with symmetry and sequence (27%) (Matthews, Reynolds, & Derisley, 2006). These excessive thoughts, impulses and images are not just over stressing about day-to-day life, for as the person tries to suppress or dispel such thoughts, impulses or images or attempts to supplement them with other thoughts, images or actions, they cannot suppress or dispel their experience. ... nuously checking that a door is locked, or repetitive mental acts, such as praying or counting, results in the person feeling driven to undertake the behavior of thought according to a rigid set of rules (Rosack, 2004). The behaviors and mental acts prevent or reduce the anxiety and distress that is experienced, alternatively, the thoughts and behaviors may inhibit a dreaded event from occurring. Obsessions and compulsions cause significant distress, can take up much of the person's time during the day, and can dramatically interfere with their normal routine in everyday life, such as inhibiting them from carrying out their work role or attending to academic studies (Simonds, Thorpe, & Elliott, 2000). Experiences also negatively affect their ability to engage in social activities or to have fulfilling relationships. Additionally, if another Axis 1 mental illness is present then the content of the obsessions and or compulsions may not be restricted to it; for example, being preoccupied with food when an eating disorder is also present. Hollander, Cohen and Stein (2005) categorises one type of OCD experiences as repetitive behaviors that are driven by pleasure or arousal, such as pathological gambling, as the act of gambling involves risk and reward. In a study by Anholt and colleagues (2004) a comparison of the dysfunctional beliefs of those with diagnosed OCD and participants diagnosed as pathological gamblers or panic disorder, and a group of normal controls. Beliefs were measured using the Obsessive-Compulsive Beliefs Questionnaire-87 (OBQ-87). It was anticipated that the pathological gamblers would have similar cognitions to the OCD group; and have high levels of OCD symptoms. The results showed that the OCD group and the gambling group had similar OBQ-87 scores;

Sleep is a facilitator of information processing

Sleep is a facilitator of information processing The human body and mind are constantly subjected to stressors and new stimuli during the course of a day. Sleeping is crucial for coping with such as it nourishes the bodies need for physiological rest and repair after such stress, and also simultaneously facilitates crucial information processing in the mind. In fact, sleep is one of the most essential functions of the human body. The unconscious information processing that takes place during sleep plays a significant role in cognitive information processes such as memory and learning. Essentially, during sleep the mind integrates new information acquired during the previous day into memory and processes it by making necessary connections. The culmination point of these unconscious information processes seems to be in rapid eye movement sleep (REM-sleep) as brain activity is at its height during this phase of sleep. The activation during REM-sleep resembles that of a conscious state. Also, sleep research has shown that the majority of complex dreaming occurs during REM-sleep (Revonsuo, 1996, 277). However, the exact function of dreams is unknown. Even so, dreams are often a repetition of influential experiences and feelings from the previous day and therefore seem to be linked to information processing that takes place (Partinen, 2007, 18). Consequently, it would seem safe to conclude that REM-sleep has some role in unconscious information processing. Yet, there is a great amount of controversy within the scientific and psychological community regarding the role of REM-sleep in cognitive information processing. One view suggests that REM-sleep is merely a mechanism used by the brain to assist in recovery from sleep by retaining necessary activation levels in the central nervous system (Vertes, 2000, 876), whereas others find that REM-sleep is clearly connected to information processes such as learning, threat-response and problem solving. Hence, the focus of this essay is to investigate the relationship between REM-sleep and cognitive information processes. The research question of this essay is: To what extent does REM-sleep entail cognitive information processing? 1.1 Phases of sleep Sleep can be divided into REM-sleep and four phases of non-REM sleep (NREM). The first and second phases of NREM are the closest to a fully awake state, and the third and the fourth phases are the least conscious phases of deep sleep. It is hypothesised that NREM-sleep is in fact the restoring phase of sleep as metabolism is comparatively low in NREM-sleep in comparison to a conscious state (Revonsuo, 1996, 277). Interestingly, there is relatively little brain activation in NREM-sleep, actually sleep research has shown that there are often only simple dreamlike experiences in NREM-sleep and sometimes more complicated dream experiences. In fact, over half of the participants in dream researches, awoken in the deepest phases of NREM-sleep do not recall any dreams. Moreover, in between these phases of NREM-sleep there are several phases of REM-sleep. Brain activation in these phases resembles that of a conscious state i.e. high frequency beta and gamma waves similar to those found in a conscious state of mind are visible in EEG scans of sleep research participants during REM-phase sleep. Furthermore, participants woken from REM-sleep almost always recall event rich dreams (Revonsuo, 1996, 277). However, sleep research can only reach so far in terms of understanding the processing that takes place in sleep. Data is usually obtained through either physiological measurements or dream journals (Hobs on, 2002, 7). This significantly affects the depth of the scientific understanding that can be gained. As physiological measurements tend to be quite superficial, whereas journals are often either incomplete or lacking in objectivity. In any case, there seems to be a large amount of information processing that takes place unconsciously. The difference between NREM-sleep and REM-sleep can be attributed to the type of information processing that takes place. It is thought that NREM-sleep involves relatively passive encoding of memories from the hippocampus to long-term memory. On the contrary, REM-sleep is thought to involve processing of procedural and emotional memory, which shows in dream content and vibrancy (Partinen, 2007, 40). It might be the case that dreams are not present at all in deeper NREM-sleep as the brain activity is relatively low. Information processing Cognitive psychology focuses on understanding the how the mind processes information. Behaviourism Cognitive psychology is concerned with information processes in the mind such as memory, learning, problem solving, and perception (Bourne, 1986, 30). Even so, cognitive psychologists have only recently have come to accept the importance of unconscious processes, namely the importance of sleep time unconscious processes for cognitive information processing (Shevrin, 1996, 2). In reality, cognitive information processing takes a relatively long time. Essentially, for any new information to have an effect on the human mind the information needs to first be perceived by the sensory system; eyes, ears, or the skin. Some type of change has to be first registered and only then can any further information processing take place. This further processing can happen immediately, but it is more often than not the case that the stimulus is gone before any conclusions can be drawn (Bourne, 1986, 12). Therefore, memory plays a key role in information processing as we often have to rely on it to draw any conclusions. The multi-store memory model suggested by Atkinson and Shiffrin in 1968 gives a relatively accurate model of cognitive information processing. It suggests that memory can be split into three phases sensory, short-term memory, and long-term-memory. Information moves between the different types of memory through rehearsal and retrieval. However, the model has been subjected to critique over being too simplistic in terms of transfer between the different types of memory. In fact, the model relies solely on rehearsal as a means of transfer ignoring the importance of effort and strategies used by an individual (Hill, 2001, 106). In particular, the multi-store memory model works on the principal that information is processed as it is given attention to. Naturally, as new stimulus are constantly entering the mind and the sensory organs, while in a conscious state of mind, the mind can only give attention to so many things and is often preoccupied in the processing and storing of new more prominent information. Therefore, it would seem logical that as there is little time during the conscious period to process all the information entering the brain during the day, that is most information processing actually happens during some other time, namely during sleep. Theories of dream function Dream research is essential to the study of sleep time unconscious information processes as it provides a view into any processing that takes place during sleep. However, the exact function of dreams is difficult to determine. Some psychologists and the general public alike would like to think that dreams are meaningful in themselves. Conversely, the activation synthesis dream hypothesis suggests that dreams might just be derivatives of the neuron activation during sleep (Hobson, 2002, 71). Either way dreams appear to be of significance in terms of study of REM-sleep information processing, since dream-experiences are most common in REM-sleep (Revonsuo, 1996, 277). The psychoanalytic level of analysis is largely based around Freuds theory of personality and dream theory. The primary theory on dream function presented by Freud was that of wish fulfilment i.e. dreams are disguised expressions of unconscious desires and impulses (Tulonen, 2008, 56). However, Freuds theory is largely without empirical evidence as it is based on case studies that he conducted himself, in spite of this, his theory seems to suggest that dreams have a meaningful content and therefore there is some type of information processing that occurs during sleep. However, perhaps the most widely accepted theory is the reprogramming dream theory. The proposal made is that dreams are necessary for the brain to process new information and make necessary connections. The brain also works to remove any excess unnecessary information from memory during dreams (Tulonen, 2008, 55). This theory also supports the idea that there is information processing during sleep and more specifically during the REM-phase of sleep. Information processing during REM-sleep Learning processes in REM-sleep Learning is undoubtedly one of the most important cognitive information processes as it entails a number of other information processes e.g. perception, problem solving, and memory. Learning can take place through a number of pathways and constitute anything from a simple learned motor function to understanding of abstract scientific concepts. Therefore, a distinction should be made between repetitive learned motor function and information that is consciously and deliberately learned, understood, and stored in memory i.e. factual or semantic information. That is, procedural and declarative memory respectively. More in depth, learning is a compilation of different cognitive processes i.e. perception, memory, and problem solving. There are a number of models that conceptualise the learning process. For instance, David Kolbs experiential learning model identifies four stages of the learning cycle: concrete experimentation, reflection, abstract conceptualisation, and active experimentation. Concrete- and active experimentation involve learning from experience, whereas reflection and abstract conceptualisation involve inferring based on memory of past experience (Kolb in Sternberg, 2000, 227). The reprogramming theory of sleep suggests that different phases of sleep are of central importance for processing and interconnecting of memories i.e. reflection and abstract conceptualisation, and therefore achieving learning (Tulonen, 2008, 55). 2.1.1 Early brain development REM-sleep information processing is central to learning and development from the very onset of brain activity in a foetus. The human foetus spends around 16 hours a day in rapid-eye movement sleep. This is necessary for brain growth as REM-sleep involves high brain activity and continuous neuron stimulation creating new links in the cortex (Hobson, 2002, 76). Furthermore, a similar phenomenon is also present after birth, that is, the amount of REM sleep for an infant is unusually large; around 8 hours whereas by adulthood this declines to at most 2 hours per night (Partinen, 2007, 43). Majid Mirmiran conducted an experiment on the functional significance of REM-sleep in relation to infant rat development, which showed how essential REM-sleep is for early development. In the study infant rats were deprived of REM-sleep by interfering with monoamines in the brain from 1 week of age to 3 weeks of age. The rats were then tested as adults and compared with normal rats. Unsurprisingly the rats were severely affected and the findings showed that the deprived rats had hyperactivity, hyperanxiety, attentional distractability, reduced sexual performance, and reduced cerebral cortical size in comparison to control rats (Mirmiran, 1986, 283). Without a doubt the findings are limited in how much they can be generalized to human infants and foetuses. However, the same research could not have been carried out on human infants without raising serious ethical issues. In any case, the research clearly exemplifies the importance of REM-sleep for brain development in early life of a m ammal. 2.1.2 Memory consolidation Not only is REM-sleep necessary for infant development and learning, but its also essential in learning new skills regardless of age. For instance, visual recognition of different objects is a process that is learned from very early on in life. The importance of REM-sleep for forming procedural memories necessary for learning a visual recognition task is illustrated by a study conducted by Karni et al. on sleep deprivation. The study showed that performance in a given visual discrimination task improved significantly over a single night of sleep, whereas when participants were selectively deprived REM-sleep there was no significant performance gain. Moreover, when participants were deprived of NREM-sleep the performance gain remained unaffected (Karni, 1994, 679). The reliability of Karnis study is relatively high as it demonstrates that the given task is unaffected by NREM deprivation and will improve over a single nights sleep, whereas other studies are not as clear and may have been affected by the stressfulness of the sleep deprivation procedure. Furthermore, Stickgold et al. attained similar results in a more recent study on visual discrimination and REM-deprivation (Stickgold, 2000, 1237). In any case, sleep deprivation is a very stressful procedure and has a great impact on the validity of any research. However, REM-sleep seems to be clearly important for developing of procedural memory. The significance of REM-sleep for developing procedural memory and visual recognition skills may be one reason for unusually large amounts of REM-sleep in infancy. It may even be the case that without REM-sleep an infant may be unable to develop a consciousness and perceptual and motor skills. However, currently there is little evidence available for su ch. Conversely, there are several researches that refute the role of REM-sleep in procedural memory consolidation. For instance, a recent research conducted by Genzel et al. on REM-sleep and slow-wave NREM-sleep deprivation showed that neither procedural memory nor declarative memory seems to be affected by REM-sleep or deep NREM-sleep awakenings. However, the task used to test procedural memory was a motor task requiring finger tapping, whereas declarative memory was tested by recall of word lists. It may be possible that different types of memory are processed in different phases of sleeps. In fact, the conclusion reached by the researchers is that declarative memory consolidation takes place in stage two NREM-sleep and that simple motor tasks are processed in stage two NREM-sleep or require very little REM-sleep (Genzel, 2009, 302-304). However, the sample size was relatively small in this research (n=12) so further research is necessary to establish any firm conclusions on declarativ e memory consolidation. The role of sleep in declarative memory consolidation was first demonstrated by Jenkins and Dallenbach (1924). The participants of the experiment were asked to learn non-sense syllable lists after which they either went to sleep or continued awake. Recall was then tested at one hour intervals. When the results for the sleeping condition were compared with the waking condition it was found that after eight hours; 6 times more non-sense syllables were remembered in the sleeping condition (Jenkins in Bourne, 1986, 104). However, the sample consisted of only two participants so the findings are very limited in how much they can be generalised. Nevertheless, further research into the area has shown that at least some consolidation of declarative memories takes place in sleep, namely in phase slow wave NREM-sleep (Stickgold, 2005, 1275). However, REM-sleep seems to be of little importance to declarative memory consolidation. Cohen even (1979) went as far as to claim that the dreaming that takes place in REM-sleep interferes with memory consolidation (Cohen in Bourne, 1986, 105). However, the sleep phase in which memories are consolidated does not only depend on the type of memory i.e. declarative or procedural, but also it seems to be dependent on emotional content. As mentioned earlier, REM-sleep seems to be related to processing of emotional memories (Partinen, 2007, 40). That is, if a memory has emotional context then it is likely that it is processed in REM-sleep. For example, a study conducted by Wagner et al. gave clear empirical support for processing of emotional declarative memories in REM-sleep. The study showed that retention of emotional texts was significantly improved in comparison neutral texts over a period of late-night sleep. Similar effects were not found in early-night sleep, which consists mainly of NREM-sleep, whereas, in late night-sleep REM is predominant. In fact, earlier studies have shown that REM-sleep shows increased activation of the amygdala, which is associated with processing of emotional memories (Wagner, 2001, 112-113). Wha ts more, is that the study avoids adverse effects of deprivation and is therefore more reliable than studies conducted using sleep deprivation. In other words, REM-sleep is of some importance in terms of processing of emotional content even though other studies have shown that REM-sleep is not significantly involved in consolidation of non-emotional declarative memories. Creative problem solving in REM-sleep Problem solving in relation to REM-sleep, anagram problem solving Walker MP, Liston C, Hobson JA, Stickgold R. (2002). http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090608182421.htm creative problem solving enhanced by REM Dreams as information processing vessels Dreams are often considered to be deficient of cognitive activity; however, several studies have shown that this is not necessarily true. The threat simulation dream theory presented by Antti Revonsuo suggests that evolutionary success depends on successful threat response, which is rehearsed in the relative safety of dreams. Revonsuo suggests that the mind actively generates dreams, which are comprised of threatening events in different combinations. These dreams are often repeated over several nights in order to develop and maintain threat response capabilities (Revonsuo, 2000, 482). Empirical support for the threat simulation dream theory comes from dream content analysis studies. For instance, a study conducted by Valli et al. found that threatening events are overrepresented in dreams in comparison to actual number of threatening events experienced when awake. Also, the events experienced in dreams were often very realistic and focused on to the dream self i.e. the self is often actively engaged in combating these threatening events in the dreams (Valli, 2000, 491). Clearly, if dreams are merely a repercussion of neuron activation during REM-sleep, as suggested by the activation-synthesis hypothesis, then its quite likely that dream content would be disorganized and incoherent. Conversely, Vallis content analysis suggests that the mind actively engages in coherent rehearsal of threat response. However, the study was conducted by a dream journal method, where the participants record their own dreams after a night of sleep. This raises questions of validity and objectivity. Even so, the study not only indicates that there is clear support for Revonsuos threat simulation theory, but it also indicates that the mind processes information through dreams in REM-sleep. Furthermore, there is evidence that during dreams the mind engages actively engages in self-reflection i.e. becomes aware of ones own thoughts and actions. Research has shown this to be beneficial to mental health. For example, recently Kontkanen showed that dreaming is helpful in trauma coping for children. Kontkanen conducted a dream content analysis on traumatised Palestinian children aged 5-17 and children, of the same age, living in normal conditions. High levels of self-reflection and self-awareness were found to be beneficial to the mental health of the traumatised Palestinian children. In the control group high levels of self-reflection in dreams were found to be dysfunctional. However, several individual with high levels of self-reflection in the control group, conversely, showed symptoms of poor mental health. Consequently, Kontkanen suggests that self-reflection processing in dreams should increase and diminish according to need in order to maintain good mental health (Kon tkanen, 2000, 523-524). Surely, the dream journal method used in the study has its limitations and there is also doubt whether results gathered from children can be generalised to adults as such processing might also be attributed to development. Nevertheless, the study points at the necessity of dreams in cognitive information processing and mental health. Conclusions Draw conclusions based on presented evidence, on how necessary is REM-sleep for cognitive information processing.

Argument Evaluation :: essays research papers

By reading the articles, the debate questions addressed by both arguments are about the poly changes in national securities or homeland securities after the terrorist attack on Sept 11, 2001. The tragedy made all Americans afraid of their safety in flying an airplane and made them felt miserable when their friends had died on the attacked. It is very important that the US need to take measures to improve homeland securities to eliminate any possibilities from terrorist attack (terrorist threat) again. The US have employed extra security measures rather than sacrificing security of the people for some comfort and convenience. The viewpoint of the writer on John Ashcroft (Attorney General) is basically to point out on the Patriot Act that brought the latest law to prevent the terrorist. One of the Ashcroft opinion on this articles is â€Å"Once detained, these lawbreakers are accorded the rights to which they are entitled.† I think the INS plays an important role to conduct as a front line in the border that guard the US from the terrorist threat, but it might give an uncomfortable feeling for foreigner who has nothing to do with the terrorist activity. I have a friend who has a citizenship of Oman, but he is originally from India who immigrated to Oman when he was child. One of the times when he was returning back from vacation to enter the US he has a problem with the immigration due to his citizenship of Oman. Well this situation might happen to a lot for the people who come from Middle East countries who want to enter the US. Another statement that the writer mentioned is â€Å"To keep the publ ic informed, we have consistently released criminal documents and redacted Immigration and Naturalization Service document as they have been unsealed. We would violate our own creed, a pillar of justice, if we aside civil liberties in pursuit terrorist.† This statement concluded that any kind of possible actions will be taken by the authorities to avoid any threat from terrorist attacks. It might violate the civil liberties in order to get a full action against the terrorist threat. The writer view on Anthony D. Romeo, Executive Director of ACLU, was assurance that the Josh Ashcroft and President George W. Bush would not erode civil liberties in oppose to this crisis. One of the examples of that is when Romeo stated that â€Å"From establishing military tribunal without limiting judicial oversight, from expanding wiretapping authority while limiting judicial oversight, from.

The Correlation of Psychological Stress amd Human Body’s Response

This article looks at different ways, methods and ideologies to have to deal with stress on a daily basis. There continually is research being done to look at the effects of it as well as causes of it. The way it impacts a person†s health is the subject of many research endeavors. So a few suggestions were made and printed to help those on a daily basis. Scientists are studying the correlation between psychological stress and the human body†s immune response to come with a better management for certain diseases. The body responds to stress in the â€Å"fight or flight† syndrome. When such a time that the body can not adapt anymore to the numerous stressful events, diseases set in. Symptoms affecting the immune system, blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar levels occur, which often lead to certain diseases. Adverse effects include behavioral problems, weight gain, among others. Researchers advocate that prolonged exposure to stress can lead to adverse physiological changes and that managing stress can help people lead longer, healthier lives. Know what â€Å"triggers† your anger by keeping a journal to record what is happening when you get angry. Recognize the humor in a situation, but make sure the laugh†s on you, not on the other person. Practice relaxation techniques and mediate or focus your thoughts on something pleasant. This article gave some interesting pieces of advice, some making your more aware of looking at different situations. Also helped me to see the number of pieces of research that is being done in the area of reducing stress, especially in those areas of society where the job you have may bring more than you can handle.

A Synopsis of the Movie I Not Stupid Too

FIRST PAPER REQUIREMENT Movie Analysis Prepared by: LEONILA C. MIRANDA 2011-79515 Title:I NOT STUPID TOO Director:Jack Neo Producer:Chan Pui Yin Seah Saw Yam Writer:Jack Neo Casts:Shawn Lee (Tom Yeo) [pic] Ashley Leong (Jerry Yeo) Joshua Ang (Chengcai Lim) Jack Neo (Mr. Yeo) Xiang Yun (Mrs. Yeo) Huang Yiliang (Mr. Lim) Studio:Media Corp Raintree Pictures Distributor:United International Pictures Release date:26 January 2006 Running time:124 minutes Country:SingaporeLanguage:English, Mandarin, Hokkien |I NOT | |STUPID | |TOO | | | | | |SUMMARY OF THE STORY |I Not Stupid too is a satirical comedy film focused on the theme of problems in educational system, generation gap, upshots of media and abusive use of technology as a form of escapism, juvenile delinquency and other related social issues. Throughout the film, you will tend to reflect with some scenarios which you will find tremendously familiar with our country’s pertinent issues which make it appears that we are not alon e with these pandemic diseases that inflict our contemporary society.It was written and directed by Jack Neo who is widely known for his films which he used to present annotations with the intention of addressing serious issues that matters and presenting it in a humorous and youthful perspective. â€Å"When was the last time someone praised you? When was the last time you praised someone? † – These are the questions posed at the beginning of the film which made me contemplate on myself for a while and somehow gave me a glimpse of what the movie is all about.The film is narrated and seen through the eyes of the eight year old Jerry Yeo; presenting the lives, struggles and adventures of him and his brother Tom Yeo and their friend Chengcai Lim. Jerry enjoys performing arts, while Tom excels in technological aspects and a talented writer and blogger. They come from a well heeled family with busy parents. On the other hand, Chengcai is physically active and an adept fight er. Unlike his friends, he comes from a working class background and was raised by his widowed ex-convict father.The story started with Tom, receiving a trophy for being a champion blogger. But instead of being proud of his son, Mrs. Yeo confronted him, saying that writing nonsense is not awesome. As Jerry narrated, â€Å"Grown-ups think that, by telling us a lot, they are communicating. Actually, they are running their own shows. † – their parents keep on blubbering too much and don’t care about their children’s feelings as long as they are able to say their pieces. At school, Jerry was chosen as the lead narrator for their school play and encouraged by his teacher to get his parents to attend.But he falters because he knows that his parents are very busy and view performances as just a waste of money and time. Aside from this, he got bullied by his classmates who made her kiss a girl and fallaciously made him believe that he might impregnate her as what they’ve seen from the television. This made him anxious and tried to ask from adults around him on how do babies come about but none of them bother and open enough to tell him the truth. Confuse of what to do, he bought pineapples for her based from what he heard that eating this will cause miscarriage.As a result, the girl was brought in the school clinic and their parents were then called. Because of this, Jerry’s parents had an argument which then resulted to what he termed as â€Å"cold war. † On Father’s day, Tom gave Mr. Yeo a razor, while Jerry gave him a drawing illustrating how he views his father absence because of being too busy with his work. Both gifts were not appreciated. During dinner, Tom’s cell phone rang and his parents reprimanded him when he got the call. But after several minutes, their cell phones rang and left the table to answer it, leaving their children eating on their own. And when Mr.Yeo lose his important files in his laptop which he will use for a business presentation at work, Tom managed to fix it before going to school. He then delivered it to his father hoping that he’ll be praised because of what he did. But instead of thanking him, Mr. Yeo scolded him for touching his things and not being in school. Mr. Lim on the other hand, loves Chengcai very much and doesn’t want him to end up loser like him who once thought of being a good fighter but broke his leg that’s why he don’t want his son to develop his fighting skills. He has gone to great lengths to ensure that his son will turn to be good and responsible.Alas, he doesn’t communicate well with his son and disciplined him by using physical violence and throwing verbal abuses at him. After their previous fight, he accidentally tore Chengcai’s bag when he tried to pull it. So, keeping in mind of his friend’s advice about how he should show his love to his son, he bought him a cheap bag and hesi tantly gave it. Chengcai refused to accept it especially when his father failed to explain the bag’s worth and value for giving it to him. Apart from their parents, Tom and Chengcai have also problems with their teacher, Mr. Fu, who often regard them as â€Å"rotten apples. He teaches them Chinese and even bought dictionaries for them to understand his lesson aside from giving remedial classes. But he doesn’t really connect with his students through his teaching strategies and frequently focus or attack his students’ flaws and weaknesses. During a spot check of cellular phones, Tom was caught possessing a pornographic VCD. As Mr. Fu tried to confiscate it, the students passed it on each other until he was able to get it. Chengcai made an impertinent remark which provoked his teacher to hurt him and eventually leads to an exchange that intensified physical fight.Consequently, their parents were called. They begged to the principal to forgive their children and e ven tried to bribe her with various offers. But the principal remained firm as what she believes, â€Å"Rules are rules! I have to go according to the law! † And so, Chengcai was expelled, while Tom received a public caning. After few days, video of the incident was uploaded and watched in the internet which then began to appear in the newspapers and television. The public caning and teacher’s violent action towards the students was questioned.The principal stood by the school rules, policies and corporal punishments which she believes and emphasized that caning is not just about pain, but the shame that the students will feel and will then made them afraid of doing it again. After the incident that led to various school controversies, Mr. Fu submitted a resignation letter which then refused by the principal and faculty to accept. Conversely, Tom and Chengcai got recruited by a street gang. Mr. Lim again talked to the principal to plea for his son but the latter remain ed firm in her decision. Thus, with the help of his friend, Mr.Lim tried to look for other schools in the country but none of them agreed to accept his son. On the other side, Mr. Yeo set a dinner with Tom to spend time with him and tried to somehow make a connection through uttering his son’s generation lingo and giving him a 3G phone. But just the same, he didn’t also win his son’s heart and respect. As part of their initiation, Tom and Chengcai were forced to steal by their senior gang members. However, they were caught by conmen who pretended to be police detectives and demanded them to pay $2000 within their given days or be arrested and jailed.Jerry on the other hand, stole a big amount of money which then found out by his parents. Mr. Yeo enraged and caned him but got embarrassed when Jerry told him the reason behind his action. He explained that he tried to save money and resorted to stealing just to earn $500 to buy an hour of his father’s time s o they will be able to attend in his school presentation. This made Mr. and Mrs. Yeo depressed and blamed their selves because of what their children has gone through as a result of their failures and shortcomings as parents.Moreover, this also brought them to reading Tom’s blogs which he uses as his outlet to vent all his hurts, frustrations and disappointments set off by his parents and teacher who always misunderstands and misjudges him. One of his blogs contains, â€Å"My mom? She oppresses me. Everything I do is never enough for her. When I was in secondary one, I took a wrong bus and got lost. I was terrified. I called Dad from a public phone. He said he was too busy to talk. It’s scary to be lost. I got home after night fall. Mom lashed at me without asking. Slowly, I came to realize that my house is just a place where I sleep.This family seems to have it all. Actually, it feels so empty. † Through these, Mr. & Mrs. Yeo came to realize how unappreciated a nd emptied their children feel as well as their deep disappointments about them. Incapable of raising the money asked from them by the conmen and being scared of being jailed, Tom and Chengcai opted to rob an old woman of her necklace. But as they ran off, they slowly realized that what they did was wrong. Being remorseful by their action, they decided to return the necklace. After learning about what they did, the people around attacked and chased them.Tom bumped into several bystanders and dropped his cell phone. Mr. Yeo was accidentally dialed and made him saw what was happening to his son. He then left his work presentation and went to the scene together with his family. He pleads the old woman to forgive his son and explained their realizations about how he came up with it as a result of their mistakes as parents. Fortunately, the old woman listened and understood what their family was going through and told the police that she just made a prank call. On the other side, Chengca i who was also chased, slammed into gangsters and got beaten up.Mr. Lim, who happens to be on the same area saw him and tried to help and protect his son. Unfortunately, he was accidentally pushed down the stairs and got critically injured. He was then rushed to the hospital, suffering from a serious head trauma. Mr. Lim’s friend told Chengcai about his father’s struggles and efforts just to save money for his studies, look for other school that will let him in and somehow fix their relationship. She than added, â€Å"He’s willing to give up his life for you. Your Dad loved you too much. But, he didn’t know how to show his love. †Being hammered by his conscience and realizing his faults as a son, he decided to go back to school and took the risk of begging the principal to accept him again. On his last agony, Mr. Lim requested to see the school principal. He openly voiced out his failures as a father and how he grew up in a violent environment wher e no one ever cared for him which in the long run caused him being naive on how to show and give love to others. Moreover, he told Chengcai to pursue his talent for fighting and how much he loves him. Sighting this, the principal’s heart melted and allowed Chengcai to return to school and gave him chance to prove his worth.Chengcai developed and enhanced his talent with the school’s support and became an internationally recognized martial artist. Meanwhile, Mr. and Mrs. Yeo finally understood their children and managed to build up their communication and relationship with their children. They joyfully and proudly watched Jerry’s school concert and showed their full support to their talented son. The film ended with Jerry’s narration on how each of them found the key to win everyone’s heart by giving more encouragements and compliments. His last remarks avowed, â€Å"We learned that appreciation is a powerful force.This powerful force may result to the simplest words that you say or an action, or a simple expression. You never know, what you have changed. † |I NOT | |STUPID | |TOO | | | |conflicting / inconsistent beliefs, practices, views, principles, | |and/or philosophies that fall under the discourses on educational | |goals / contents and manner of teaching |The film tackled various areas – from bad parenting, up to juvenile delinquency, misuse of technology, effects of media and most especially, the problems encountered in the educational system. It provides us tough questions and paints a grim portrait of the increasingly problems and troubles of today’s youth in the society. The key point that Jack Neo tries to set forth in this motion picture is the generation gap, communication barriers and the irony in how acts of love and care by children, parents and educators wind up peeving each other.The love manifested by parents to children, children to parents and educators to students are undeniable a nd evidently viewed in the story but often disregarded by the receiving faction. These sentiments are actually true not only to Singapore, where the film was based, but also to the majority of fast paced countries – even in the developing countries similar to the Philippines. Parents’ failure to set off and build good relationship and communication with their children also of giving attention and appreciation is irrefutably the main reason of the problems facing our youths today.The movie clearly depicts how children feel muffled by their environment and often feels pressured by the adults who don’t bother to listen, instead, frequently criticized, judged and labeled them as hopeless and doomed to failure. And with parents who are way too busy to be involved in their children’s lives, but are disgusted if they don’t live up to their expectations, those youths are left with no one else to turn to – especially if they don’t even have or feel the support system from school, particularly their teachers, being their surrogate parents.In our country, being known and true to our values of having close family ties, the school plays a big role in developing our youths. Conflicting and inconsistent beliefs, practices, views, principles, and philosophies that fall under the discourses on educational goals and contents as well as manner of teaching are very apparent in the film. These has been one of the focal points that the movie wants to discuss and give consideration – the underlying problems both in the objective and subjective areas of the educational system.In the film, the lead character’s school is beset with incensed teachers who are extremely dedicated in their work, yet, exceedingly inadequate in imparting knowledge and learning. Jerry’s teacher for instance, she was not able to explain her answer in a proper way when asked by his student about where babies come from. She used other words in stead of the true terminologies in the process of reproduction in explaining. This just added confusion to the child and did not help him in dealing with the situation he was going through.He did not get any clarification to what he’s been curious at or help in solving his problem both in his family and teachers. Mr. Fu, on the other hand, characterized a Chinese teacher who can’t establish connection to his students. He developed this certain barrier between him and his students making it harder for him to establish a good teacher-student relationship. He uses a teacher-centered approach as his way of teaching. Yes, this approach focuses in the student achievements but teachers are driven to meet accountability standards and often sacrifice the ndividual needs of students just to be firm and guarantee that they will be able to meet those standards. More so, this environment only places the control of learning to the hands of the teacher where he makes connections by u sing his expertise in content knowledge. The effort to get to know his students, processing the learning, and identifying their needs are only secondary. Mr. Fu set this atmosphere of a traditional classroom where the student’s interaction is basically just responding to teacher-directed questions and lesson flow.He rarely gives chance to his students for them to construct their own learning. Mr. Fu has high hopes and expectations to his students. So to enhance their Chinese language skills, he bought dictionaries for each of them to be used in his class. But on the contrary, it didn’t serve its purpose because it was also written in Chinese characters, so the students were not able to understand its content. When he was called by the school principal about it, he was advised to somehow translate the Chinese words that he’s teaching and use in English sentences or examples so that the students will able to understand it.Aside from this, he was reminded to think forward and reflect why his students don’t show interest and fail in his subject. Because of not taking his student’s needs into consideration, he was not able to use appropriate materials and teaching strategies. As a result, he was not able to attain his learning objectives and reach his expectations from them. Apart from these, he also failed to teach and inculcate values to his students. As I quoted from his argument with Chengcai, the student told him, â€Å"If we were rotten apples, as our teacher, wouldn’t you be responsible? We often say that teachers should be a role model to his students. Mr. Fu frequently makes violent comments and utterances towards his students which made them hate him and lessen their respect to him. Instead of giving them praises and encouragements so as to develop their confidence and self-esteem, he keeps on criticizing and nagging them, pointing out their flaws and mistakes. Mr. Fu came also to the extent of hurting one of his students when the latter provoked him with harsh comments. He was questioned on as to what degree teachers should do to impose discipline to their students.This brings us to the issue of corporal punishment which was also supported by the school principal in the film. After the incident between Chengcai, Tom and Mr. Fu, she immediately decided to expel one of the students and give public caning as sanction to the other. As I’ve seen, the incident did not go through proper and deep investigation, considering that it involves a serious offense. The student’s sides and rights were not given attention. Then even right after she was able to watch the video containing the incident, she still stood to his decision.She even uttered that corporal punishment, particularly the public caning, does not only involves pain, but also the shame that the students will feel. And because of this, the child and other students will be reminded not to do offenses like those. The school prin cipal depicted a common characteristic of officials who relies on the typical phrase, â€Å"according to the law,† to avoid responsibility, thorough analyzation of the situations or problems at hand and giving of common sense solutions. Furthermore, the school principal was also questioned of not speaking in Chinese, while Mr.Fu was pushing his students to become excellent in that language. The film somehow wants to imply the importance of learning and using their own language. At least, the principal managed to explain why she has poor skills in speaking Chinese and that she’s willing to learn and improve. Aside from these, I also observed that the teachers don’t communicate with the parents in various matters about the student. For instance, Jerry’s teacher did not make it a pint to at least help the child in reminding and encouraging the student to make his parents attend the concert.Knowing that she always reminds Jerry about the concert tickers for h is parents, she should have thought that there’s a problem and she could make a way to communicate them, explain the importance of the performance to their child and encourage them to come. On the other side, Mr. Fu was not also able to communicate especially to those students who he observed to have difficulties and failing in his class. In this event, he could make an inquiry to the parents if the child has personal problems which hinder him n participating in the class or somehow suggest how he could help with the parents to work out on the child’s improvement. |I NOT | |STUPID | |TOO | |STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF CONFLICTING POSITIONS | |REQUISITES OF SUCCESSFUL | |TEACHING INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE SCHOOL SITUATION | Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire. † ~ William Butler Yeats. † Formal education aims to cultivate the intellect, develop reasoning, inculcate moral and sound judgment, develop values and spirituality, and as sist individuals towards attaining full potential growth. All individuals can be taught, it’s how the teachers teach them. When we teach, we do not just teach the content, we teach students the content. Effective teaching involves organizing the learning objectives, assessments and instructional activities focusing on the student’s overall development.There are two contrasting viewpoints on how to properly instruct children in the classroom. In teacher-centered approach, the role of the teacher is to dispense knowledge and student’s role is to listen and memorize. While in student-centered or constructivist approach, the children are more in control of their learning. Is a teacher simply the dispenser of information or a facilitator of learning? Both approaches works best if we will blend it together. With these, teachers can promote higher order thinking skills and develop students holistically.If teachers will apply both of these methods, they will be able to achieve their learning objectives with the help of providing proper teaching strategies, techniques and materials. Moreover, teacher-student communication should also be developed because it will lead to good learning relationship and improvement. Making connection with the students will greatly help the teachers in identifying their individual and specific needs so as to be able to supply and provide appropriate teaching methods and approaches.Through this, educators will not only develop the child’s intellect but also inculcate values which will then complete their totality as a person. Student’s rights as learners and as person should be recognized and take into consideration. Using reinforcements will help in motivating and encouraging them to focus and develop interest in their studies. More so, they should be given proper guidance and counseling to help them in mental, emotional, social and spiritual adjustments and development as they go through the path towards becoming a productive and worthy individual.There’s an idiom that says, â€Å"the exception proves the rule. † This implies that the presence of an exemption applying to a specific case establishes that a general rule existed and that there’s always an exemption to the rule. Even if we have this rules like giving corporal punishment, as what the film showed, school officials should consider the specific consequences that it may resulted. Children cannot only be taught by scolding and hurting them. There are various ways that educators can do to impose and develop discipline among students.As part of the academe, we should be sensitive enough in molding the future generation. We should make decisions not only from the basis of the rules or laws but also taking into concern the responsible, moral and fair judgments, foreseeing its consequences and outcomes especially when our children’s future is at hand. An effective teaching and educational objective sho uld include the following ABCD approach: Audience, Behavior, Condition and Degree. The main focus of teaching is the audience which includes the learners.Identifying their needs and skills are the key of knowing what kind of methods or techniques that teachers can apply. Next is the behavior which involves the three learning domains – cognitive, affective and psychomotor. It should focus on developing student’s behavior in understanding, value clarification and performance. Meanwhile, condition connotes the learning environment and atmosphere that the teacher imposed which may motivate and encourage students to learn and improve oneself. Lastly, the degree which suggests the rocess of evaluating the student’s outcome and standard or criterion for judging the academic and behavioral performance of the learners. Teaching students is not an easy job to do. It should not end in the classroom. Teachers are considered as one of the most important agents of constructiv e change in society. With the proper knowledge, understanding, techniques, strategies and experiences in handling learners, we can be able to mold the hearts and minds of the youth who will become the future leaders and citizens of the country.

Biography of Queen Elizabeth I, Virgin Queen of England

Biography of Queen Elizabeth I, Virgin Queen of England Elizabeth I (Born Princess Elizabeth; September 7, 1533–March 24, 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 1558 to 1603, the last of the Tudor monarchs. She never married and consciously styled herself as the Virgin Queen, wedded to the nation. Her reign was marked by immense growth for England, especially in world power and cultural influence. Fast Facts: Queen Elizabeth I Known For:  Queen of England from 1558–1603, known for defeating the Spanish Armada and encouraging cultural growthAlso Known As:  Princess Elizabeth, the Virgin QueenBorn:  September 7, 1533 in Greenwich, EnglandParents: King Henry VIII and Anne BoleynDied:  March 24, 1603 in Richmond, EnglandEducation: Educated by William Grindal and Roger Ascham, among othersPublished Works:  Letters, speeches, and poems (collected in modern times in the volume, Elizabeth I: Collected WorksNotable Quote: I know I have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a king and of a king of England too.† Early Life On September 7, 1533,  Anne Boleyn, then Queen of England, gave birth to the Princess Elizabeth. She was baptized three days later and was named after her paternal grandmother,  Elizabeth of York. The princesss arrival was a bitter disappointment, as her parents had been certain that she would be a boy, the son  Henry VIII  so desperately wanted and had married Anne to have. Elizabeth rarely saw her mother and before she was 3, Anne Boleyn was executed on trumped-up charges of adultery and treason. The marriage was declared invalid and Elizabeth was then declared illegitimate, as her half-sister,  Mary, had been, and reduced to the title of Lady instead of Princess. Despite this, Elizabeth was educated under some of the most highly regarded educators of the time, including William Grindal and Roger Ascham. By the time she had reached her teens, Elizabeth knew Latin, Greek, French, and Italian. She was also a talented musician, able to play the spinet and lute. She even composed a little. Restored to the Line of Succession After Henry fathered a son, an act of Parliament in 1543 restored  Mary  and Elizabeth to the line of succession, though it did not restore their legitimacy. When Henry died in 1547, Edward, his only son, succeeded to the throne. Elizabeth went to live with Henry’s widow,  Catherine Parr. When Parr became pregnant in 1548, she sent Elizabeth away to set up her own household, following incidents of her husband, Thomas Seymour, apparently attempting to groom or seduce Elizabeth. After Parr’s death in 1548, Seymour began scheming to achieve more power and secretly plotted to marry Elizabeth. After he was executed for treason, Elizabeth experienced her first brush with scandal and had to endure rigorous investigation. After the scandal passed, Elizabeth spent the rest of her brother’s reign living quietly and respectably,   A Focal Point for Discontent Edward VI attempted to disinherit both his sisters, favoring his cousin  Lady Jane Grey for the throne. However, he did so without the backing of Parliament and his will was patently illegal, as well as unpopular. After his death in 1533, Mary succeeded to the throne and Elizabeth joined her triumphant procession.  Unfortunately, Elizabeth soon lost favor with her Catholic sister, likely due to English Protestants seeing her as an alternative to Mary. Because Mary wed her Catholic cousin,  Philip II of Spain, Thomas Wyatt (the son of one of Anne Boleyns friends) led a rebellion, which Mary blamed on Elizabeth. She sent Elizabeth to the Tower of London, where criminals including Elizabeths mother had awaited execution. With no evidence found against her, and Queen Mary’s husband viewing her as an asset for a political marriage, Elizabeth avoided execution and was released. Mary suffered a false pregnancy in 1555, leaving Elizabeth all but certain to inherit. Elizabeth I Becomes Queen Mary died on November 17, 1558, and Elizabeth inherited the throne, the third and final of Henry VIII’s children to do so. Her procession into London and coronation were masterpieces of political statement and planning, and her accession was treated warmly by many in England who hoped for greater religious toleration. Elizabeth quickly assembled a Privy Council and promoted a number of key advisors: One, William Cecil (later Lord Burghley), was appointed principal secretary. Their partnership would prove to be fruitful and he remained in her service for 40 years. The Marriage Question One question that dogged Elizabeth, particularly in the early part of her reign, was the question of succession. Numerous times, the parliament presented her with official requests that she marry. Most of the English population hoped that marriage would solve the problem of a woman ruling. Women were not believed to be capable of leading forces into battle. Their mental powers were considered to be inferior to men.  Men often gave Elizabeth unsolicited advice, particularly in regards to the will of God, which only men were believed to be able to interpret. Elizabeth I’s Image Despite the frustration, Elizabeth governed with her head. She knew how to use courtship as a useful political tool, and she wielded it masterfully. Throughout her life, Elizabeth had a variety of suitors. The closest she came to marriage was likely with longtime friend Robert Dudley, but that hope ended when his first wife died mysteriously and Elizabeth had to distance herself from scandal. In the end, she refused to marry and also refused to name a political successor. Elizabeth cultivated the image of herself as the Virgin Queen wedded to her kingdom, and her speeches made great use of romantic languages, such as love, in defining her role. The campaign was entirely successful, maintaining Elizabeth as one of England’s best-loved monarchs. Religion Elizabeth’s reign marked a change from Mary’s Catholicism and a return to the policies of Henry VIII, whereby the English monarch was head of an English church. The Act of Supremacy in 1559 began a process of gradual reform, effectively creating the Church of England. As part of her path of reform in the church, Elizabeth famously declared that she would tolerate all but the  most radical sects.  She demanded only outward obedience, unwilling to force consciences. This wasn’t enough for more extreme Protestants, and Elizabeth faced criticism from them. Mary, Queen of Scots and Catholic Intrigue Elizabeth’s decision to adopt Protestantism earned her condemnation from the pope, who gave permission for her subjects to disobey and even kill her. This inflamed numerous plots against Elizabeth’s life, a situation exacerbated by Mary, Queen of Scots. Mary Stuart, Elizabeth’s Catholic cousin, was the granddaughter of Henry’s sister and was seen by many to be a Catholic heir to the throne. In 1568, Mary fled Scotland after her marriage to Lord Darnley ended in murder and a suspicious remarriage,  and she begged for Elizabeths help to be restored to power. Elizabeth didn’t want to return Mary to full power in Scotland, but she didn’t want the Scots to execute her, either. She kept Mary in confinement for 19 years, but her presence in England proved to be detrimental to the precarious religious balance within the country, as Catholics used her as a rallying point. Mary was the focus of plots to kill Elizabeth during the 1580s. Although Elizabeth resisted calls to accuse and execute Mary at first, ultimately, she was persuaded by evidence that Mary had been party to the plots, not just an unwilling figurehead. Still, Elizabeth fought against signing the execution warrant until the bitter end, going so far as to encourage private assassination. After the execution, Elizabeth claimed that the warrant was dispatched against her wishes; whether that was true or not is unknown. War and the Spanish Armada England’s Protestant religion put it at odds with neighboring Catholic Spain and, to a lesser extent, France. Spain was involved in military plots against England and Elizabeth came under pressure from home to become involved with defending other Protestants on the continent, which on occasion she did. The execution of Mary Stuart convinced Philip in Spain that it was time to conquer England and restore Catholicism within the country. Stuart’s execution also meant that he would not have to put an ally of France on the throne. In 1588, he launched the infamous  Armada. Elizabeth went to Tilbury Camp to encourage her troops, declaring: â€Å"I know I have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and a king of England too, and think foul scorn that Parma or Spain, or any prince of Europe, should dare invade the borders of my realm†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Ã‚   In the end, England defeated the Armada and Elizabeth was victorious. This would prove to be the climax of her reign: Only a year later, the same Armada all but destroyed the English Navy. Ruler of the Golden Age The years of Elizabeth’s rule are often referred to simply using her name- The Elizabethan Age. Such was her profound effect on the nation. The period is also called the Golden Age, for these years saw England rise to the status of world power thanks to voyages of exploration and economic expansion. Toward the end of her reign, England experienced a blossoming literary culture.  Edward Spenser  and  William Shakespeare  were both supported by the queen and likely drew inspiration from their regal leader. Architecture, music, and painting also experienced a boom in popularity and innovation. The presence of her strong and balanced rule facilitated this. Elizabeth herself wrote and translated works. Problems and Decline The last 15 years of her reign were the hardest on Elizabeth, as  her most trusted advisers died and younger courtiers struggled for power. Most infamously, a former favorite, the Earl of Essex, led a poorly-plotted rebellion against the queen in 1601. It failed miserably and he was executed. Toward the very end of Elizabeth’s long reign, national problems began to grow. Consistently poor harvests and high inflation damaged both the economic situation and belief in the queen, as did anger at the alleged greed of court favorites. Death Elizabeth held her final Parliament in 1601. In 1602 and 1603, she lost several dear friends, including her cousin Lady Knollys (granddaughter of Elizabeths aunt  Mary Boleyn). Elizabeth experienced ever more depression, something she had experienced her entire life. She declined notably in health and died on March 24, 1603. She was buried in Westminster Abbey in the same tomb as her sister Mary. She had never named an heir, but her cousin James VI, the Protestant son of Mary Stuart, succeeded to the throne and was likely her preferred successor. Legacy Elizabeth has been remembered more for her successes than her failures and as a monarch that loved her people and was much loved in return. Elizabeth was always revered and seen as almost divine. Her unmarried status often led to comparisons of Elizabeth with the Roman goddess  Diana, the Virgin Mary, and even a  Vestal Virgin. Elizabeth went out of her way to cultivate a wider public. In the early years of her reign, she often went out to the country on annual visits to aristocratic houses, showing herself to most of the public along the road in the country and townsfolk of southern England. In poetry, she has been celebrated as an English embodiment of feminine strength associated with such mythic heroines as Judith,  Esther, Diana, Astraea, Gloriana, and Minerva. In her personal writings, she showed  wit and intelligence. Throughout her reign, she proved to be a capable politician and  she reigned for almost half a century. She consistently maintained her control on government, remaining cordial with parliament and ministers, but never allowing them to control her. Much of Elizabeth’s reign was a careful balancing act between both factions of her own court as well as with other nations. Keenly aware of the increased burdens due to her gender, Elizabeth managed to construct a complex persona that awed and charmed her subjects. She portrayed herself very much as her father’s daughter, fierce if need be. Elizabeth was lavish in her presentation, part of her brilliantly orchestrated campaign to mold her image and retain power. She impresses people even today and her name has become synonymous with strong women. Sources Collinson, Patrick. Elizabeth I.  Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press, 2004.  Dewald, Jonathan, and Wallace MacCaffrey. Elizabeth I (England).  Europe 1450 to 1789: Encyclopedia of the Early Modern World. Charles Scribners Sons, 2004.  Kinney, Arthur F., David W. Swain, and Carol Levin. Elizabeth I.  Tudor England: an encyclopedia. Garland, 2001.  Gilbert, Sandra M., and Susan Gubar. Queen Elizabeth I.  The Norton Anthology of Literature by Women: The Traditions in English. 3. ed. Norton, 2007.

The Han Dynasty essays

The Han Dynasty essays The Han Dynasty was a one of the most influential Chinese civilizations. This dynasty was from 202 B.C.E. 220 C.E. It began when Liu Bang took over rule from the Qin Dynasty. Another important leader of the Han was Wu Ti. The Han had some of the same laws and regulations as the Qin, but they gradually incorporated Confucian ideals into their Legalist form of government to make them less burdensome. The Hans realized that the Qins extreme Legalistic ideology had not worked and that a bureaucracy was needed for governing the empire. By the end of the Han dynasty, China had about 130,000 bureaucrats, representing 0.2 percent of the population. This brought on a revival of the intellectual life that was suppressed. Government officials were chosen through civil service exams based on Confucianism. These exams covered classics of Chinese literature as well as law. If you passed the test, you could become a government official; if you failed the test you could not be a government official. Schools were established to train the citizens for the examinations. Citizens were also now promoted by merit. This Chinese bureaucracy lasted from the Han period until the twentieth century. This Confucian wa y of ruling Buddhism came from India and became an important religion, however Confucianism became the most used philosophy/religion. Shrines were established to promote worship the ancient philosopher as a god. Under Confucianism, people have respect for others but recognize that others below them are important to life as well. The ruler should also rule by example to keep his people following the laws and doing right. As stated before, Confucian ideals were also a major part of the Hans political ideals. Art of the past served only as a religious purpose. During the Han however, it was replaced by realistic art that portrayed ordinary life. The importance of education became more important as well. ...

Interesting Persuasive Essay Topics for Teenagers

Interesting Persuasive Essay Topics for Teenagers Interesting Persuasive Essay Topics for Teenagers There are several things which make writing a persuasive (also called â€Å"argumentative†) essay a special task, and it is worth mentioning all of them. First of all, the word â€Å"persuasive† speaks for itself. Your main task is to persuade those who will read your essay that your point of view is correct. In order to do that, you should back up your idea with facts from reliable sources, because your point of view is not so authoritative to persuade people without citing well-known and established scientists, writers, or politicians. Study all available materials which can be used for your essay. Second, you have to believe in your point of view. If you try to persuade people something is true, but you dont believe in it yourself, chances are your words will sound insincere, and it will be easily noticeable. So, choose a topic that is rather debatable and choose a point of view that can be proven to be true. As you can see, choosing a topic is a rather difficult task. When choosing a topic, you should plan what you can write about and predict whether the choice is going to be successful. The easiest way to choose the topic for a persuasive essay is to think of your last argument with someone. What caused that argument? What did you disagree about? Or perhaps there is a certain stereotype and you would like to prove its not true. Anyway, there are plenty of debatable topics to choose from. If you are a teenager, you may have a feeling that your point of view somehow differs from adults point of view. This is called a generation gap and is typical of all people of different generations. Does your granny think the Internet is evil? Well, you have a great opportunity to prove shes wrong. What if shes right? Be ready to use strong arguments to persuade her. Use statistical data of recent researches, use quotes by people who are respected professionals in their particular sphere. Other topics you should consider include modern technology, video games, movies, books, contemporary art, and whatever you are interested in. After all, there is no better topic than the one you really like and know everything about it. Saying that all teenagers are the same would be so wrong. There is probably a teenager who is interested in ancient Indian literature. Why not? Now stop and think what makes you special. Use this priceless knowledge you have to write an essay. Writing an essay may be fun, but its a rather time-consuming task. Would you like us to help you? A team of skilled writers will provide you with an essay of high-quality. We do our best to make our customers satisfied with what we do. You can get a custom persuasive essay on any topic from our professional essay writing service.

Choose a good topic for me Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Choose a good topic for me - Essay Example Graph 2 compares the oil taxes and revenues gained from oil sale from the period of 2009 to 2013. In the period revenues gained from oil sale was an average of $966 billion yearly while average taxation was $1,082 billion every year. Moreover, the revenue received has to cater for oil transportation, exploration and transportation therefore; they can end up making losses under low oil prices. Graph 3 compares the annual taxes earned from each barrel of oil and taxes earned per each barrel in the same period. It is clear that an average oil export revenues for each barrel is $95 while the average taxes per barrel is $116. Thus, taxes impose a great burden on the consumer oil products prices. The country graph illustrates each country breakdown of each barrel of oil in the oil producing countries relative to their taxes. From the results, it is very evident that the greatest beneficiaries are the governments through taxation and if oil products were not heavily taxed, they would cost the consumer just a fraction of their prices. OPEC. (September, 2014). Who get what from imported oil? OPEC Annual Statistical Bulletin. Retrieved from

American indian Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

American indian - Essay Example us people, the descendants that remained from the genocide that occurred during the 1800’s, have been supplanted to distant outposts of despair called reservations. During the late 1700’s trappers established trading posts which initiated business relationships with the native population. This new relationship introduced tribal members to firearms which aided them while hunting or defending themselves. The association also brought smallpox which devastated the tribes’ population. The trading posts offered provisions outside of what was supplied in nature and enhanced the tribal economies which were previously tied directly to following the buffalo herds. Otherwise, buffalo provided almost everything the Indians needed including food, clothes, weapons and shelter until they were nearly hunted into extinction in the 1880’s, forcing the Indians to depend upon the white man for trade. From the first landing of the Europeans in America to the present, Indians have desperately attempted to retain their land and culture. However, as there was then, there are now some Indians who learned the white mans’ customs well enough to use this knowledge as an advantage benefiting both personal and tribal interests. Throughout the history of the nation, Indians have learned to speak English well enough to articulate their beliefs, art, folklore and culture to those outside the Indian reservation. It is because of this effort to at least partially assimilate into white society that Indian culture, religion and traditions have become of interest and widely respected among mainstream Americans. Some have become good students of capitalism as evidenced by the success of the casinos (Hoxie, 1992). A number of Indians have gone to great lengths to be equally adept in both Indian and non-Indian cultures over the past quarter century. These individuals have been able to express the concerns of tribal society at the congressional and judicial level thus positively

COMPUTER RESEARCH PAPER (YOU PICK TOPIC) Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

COMPUTER (YOU PICK TOPIC) - Research Paper Example Our way of life, due to the technology provided by this advancement, will never be the same. It is fascinating that although a majority of people are familiar with computers, the concepts behind how they actually work have not been duly given emphasis, especially on how computer memory works. According to Hamacher, et.al. (1990), â€Å"memory is the part of the computer that holds data and instructions for processing. Although closely associated with the central processing unit, memory is separate from it. Memory stores program instructions or data for only as long as the program they pertain to is in operation.† Most people have interchangeably used memory with other terms such as primary storage, primary memory, main storage, internal storage, main memory, and RAM (Random Access Memory) (Pfleeger 2000). However, it is important to note that memory has many classifications or types, of which RAM, falls under it. Hard disks provide large quantities of inexpensive, permanent storage. Because storage space on a hard disk is so cheap and plentiful, it forms the final stage of a CPUs memory hierarchy, called virtual memory. The next level of the hierarchy is RAM. Accordingly, Tyson emphasized that â€Å"a computers system RAM alone is not fast enough to match the speed of the CPU that is why you need a cache. Caches are designed to alleviate this bottleneck by making the data used most often by the CPU instantly available. This is accomplished by building a small amount of memory, known as primary or level 1 cache, right into the CPU.† CPUs with diverse features differ in speed and accessibility of containing a specific amount of data or information. Those CPUs which are faster and more powerful need quick and easy access to large amounts of data in order to maximize their performance. Frenzel (2004) averred that â€Å"if the CPU cannot get to

The Effects of Global Warming on Polar Bears Research Paper

The Effects of Global Warming on Polar Bears - Research Paper Example Despite ongoing activism this decrease in numbers still continues up to the present day. Indeed, it is a frightening possibility that soon, polar bears will be just parts of history and will become another name on the list of extinct animals. The decline in Polar Bear population is due to many harsh realities in today’s world. With not only traditional adversaries in the wild to contend with, the additional factors of climate and the encroachment of man begin to play a big factor in the Polar Bear saga. Chief among the causes of the polar bear’s steep mortality rate is hunting by humans (Schliebe et al. 34). Another cruel by-product of the influence of man is the exposure of the bears to Persistent Organic Pollutants (POP), highly toxic chemicals. The high levels of accumulation of POP compounds cause impacts to the polar bear’s nervous system, reproduction, and even their immunity (IUCN Red List 1). This man made problem has begun to substantially threaten the health and well-being of the animals. Taken together, these problems alone would be hard for any species to face. However, overshadowing other issues is the advancing argument that the biggest threat to the existence of polar bears is the phenomenon of global warming. The continuous and intensifying climate changes have already made impacts on the polar bears’ sea – ice habitat. With entire shelves falling prey to the cracking and once mighty ice floes reduced to a mere shade of their former selves the ability to deny that the polar caps are warming is nearly impossible to dispute. As a result, their ice covered habitat has been disrupted in a complete and fundamental manner. With even the very fabric of their existence shifting under their feet, their instincts hold little recourse. This deeply affects their access to prey and den areas. It is a very strong position to state that the effects of global warming are seen to be critical to the polar bear’s extinction (IUCN Red List 1). This research will explore the possible effects of global warming on polar bears. The issue i s in need of special attention because the likelihood of polar bear’s extinction is a very important environmental concern. With the continuous climate changes, and the human population stuck in perpetual deadlock, affecting the habitat of polar bears, it is very likely that our environment will lose another biological component. This research paper will assess how the impacts of global warming are contributing to the likelihood of polar bear’s extinction. In order to gain a full understanding of the effects of global warming on polar bears, this paper will focus on three areas of literature. First, the study looks at the area that attempts to comprehend and illustrate that the polar bears are the bears of the sea. Second, the paper will examine the literature that discusses the effects of global warming on the earth in general. Third, the research will delve into the effects of global warming on polar bears specifically. By taking the time to examine all of these basi c facets, the picture of the plight of the Polar Bear begins to come into focus. First, we start by learning about the polar bear. Long regarded as the largest terrestrial carnivore in the whole world (World Life Fund for Nature’s Status Report), the bear has few natural enemies. According to Norris et al, its scientific name is Ursus maritmus (8) was

Business Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Business - Assignment Example The academic journal by Orlando Behling (1998) titled â€Å"Employee selection: will intelligence and consciousness do the job† has put concerted effort to settle this challenge. According to Behling (1998), there seems to be commonalities among the employers during the recruitment of employees which attempt to match the best employee to the jobs. The interest of all employers is to recruit the best that they can select, however the method that they use does not lead to the wish that they have. On that account, a number of the managers now questions the succinct matching approach that can give the best from the group of job seekers. In that line, the managers now have an idea that top performers are those that can be successful in almost, if not all jobs. This is one of the yard stick that can be used. In further attempt to unknot this conundrum, an examination that was made at Gatewood and Fields Human resource selection, had footsteps that could establish the best matching approach of the best performer with the job. According to the examination, an emphasis was made on the imperativeness of the industrial psychologist and the human resource managers in in matching the best performers and the employment (Behling, 1998). The article goes ahead to explain the other modalities that are on the use to enhance the matching of the best performer to the employment. The use of intelligence is hinged on the idea that the smart people finish first. Using this mantra, most of the employers having been using this matching technique to have the recruitment work done. The explanation of the word has been used in getting into the core reason why it has been used weather consciously or unconsciously. It defined as the human talent to solve problem. There are ten intelligence that human being are endowed with. They include deductive, inductive, memory, mechanical, numerical, perpetual reasoning, spatial, verbal and vocabulary. Using this

Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 6

Essay Example Christina Hoff Sommers, in â€Å"Philosophers Against the Family† discusses that there is a false dichotomy as there is the great divide which distinguishes the radical feminist from the simply feminine and the mutual exclusivity of the two concepts which completely overlooks the reality that both can co-exist. Sommers (2005) offers that there is a middle ground, though this has not been widely recognized by both views, especially radical feminism in the United States. Liberal feminism gives focus on reforms which touches base on the very root of feminism. The oppression and the discrimination that necessarily entails sexism as commonly seen in the workplace and in society is the very nature that belittles women and that affects them on a regular basis. This is the fight of feminism on a daily basis that is in the heart of the average woman and her understanding of what feminism is. This, however, is far removed from the philosophical feminist’s view. â€Å"But to be a ntisexist in the technical, radical philosophical sense is not merely to be opposed to discrimination against women; it is to be for what Wasserstrom calls the assimilationalist ideal† (Sommers, 2005, p.313). The truly antisexist in this sense would neither fight nor agree for laws that give preference to women such as maternity leave. Equality is achieved by overlooking and consequently extinguishing gender and all notions that come with it. The wider perspective that transcends the philosophical feminist movement is best understood by first appreciating the average woman. â€Å"The average woman enjoys her femininity† (Sommers, 2005, p.314). She has goals which include being with a man, having children and maintaining a career with the same opportunities that her male counterpart has. â€Å"These are the goals that women actually have, and they are not easily attainable. But they will never be furthered by an elitist radical movement that views the actual aspirations of women as the product of a false consciousness† (Sommers, 2005, p.314). The goals and aspirations of the average woman must first be understood in order to make a correlation with these and how they are achieved. The characterization of a woman in the realistic sense juxtaposed to the ideal woman of the radical feminist movement made by the author brings forth a wider understanding on why the two concepts cannot meet. The illustration made by the radical feminist movement of the woman is arguably deductive and brings it to a realm that makes it incomprehensible most especially to the average woman herself. The false consciousness that is attributed her makes her very existence appear to be a pretense together with all of her life’s worth along with all her hopes and dreams. Sommers is correct in concluding that goals for marriage, family, career, and more logically, equal opportunity for all of the foregoing are the main points that calls for what is deemed as the av erage woman’s feminist ideals as oppose to the scholarly feminism written of extensively. Radical feminism, at the heart of it, attacks societal pressures to conform to gender roles which has been proliferated for ages and has been inculcated in every person from the moment of conception. The idea of an assimilationist society is the very purpose of many feminist movements which has often been likened to Marxism in many regards. Citing the famous feminist Simone de Beauvoir, Sommers

Business Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Business - Assignment Example The academic journal by Orlando Behling (1998) titled â€Å"Employee selection: will intelligence and consciousness do the job† has put concerted effort to settle this challenge. According to Behling (1998), there seems to be commonalities among the employers during the recruitment of employees which attempt to match the best employee to the jobs. The interest of all employers is to recruit the best that they can select, however the method that they use does not lead to the wish that they have. On that account, a number of the managers now questions the succinct matching approach that can give the best from the group of job seekers. In that line, the managers now have an idea that top performers are those that can be successful in almost, if not all jobs. This is one of the yard stick that can be used. In further attempt to unknot this conundrum, an examination that was made at Gatewood and Fields Human resource selection, had footsteps that could establish the best matching approach of the best performer with the job. According to the examination, an emphasis was made on the imperativeness of the industrial psychologist and the human resource managers in in matching the best performers and the employment (Behling, 1998). The article goes ahead to explain the other modalities that are on the use to enhance the matching of the best performer to the employment. The use of intelligence is hinged on the idea that the smart people finish first. Using this mantra, most of the employers having been using this matching technique to have the recruitment work done. The explanation of the word has been used in getting into the core reason why it has been used weather consciously or unconsciously. It defined as the human talent to solve problem. There are ten intelligence that human being are endowed with. They include deductive, inductive, memory, mechanical, numerical, perpetual reasoning, spatial, verbal and vocabulary. Using this

Ibsen and his discontents Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ibsen and his discontents - Essay Example bsen, would yet appreciate that marriage, with all its flaws, is still better than its alternative (celibacy) and that human existence (more so in the confines of marriage) can never be perfect. Ibsen, on the other hand, simply asserts that marriage is the root cause of all evil and sadness in the world (Dalrymple, 2005). A gifted yet controversial writer, many people (mostly women) regard Ibsen as the writer who was not afraid to write about the ‘facts’ that others feared to write about. Ibsen looks at marriage and proposes new ways of approaching it that, according to him, will liberate mankind from the relentless strife and turmoil present in marriages. Ibsen first reckons that most people marry for money and that there is no true love in marriages hence. He says that women go for the security and pride in marrying rich made men while men opt for women who are cheap to manage financially. Secondly, Ibsen underlines that societal pressures put a lot of pressure, and thus melancholy, in couples who have to put up appearances in the public which are contrary to their genuine feelings and selves. He adds that notions of respectability and the fear of shame (such as of a struggling/ broken marriage) enslaves married couples and renders their lives meaningless, miserable, degraded and viole nt (Dalrymple, 2005). Ibsen also insinuates that marriages pair people who would not choose each other if circumstances of life had been better/ different. In the wake of these marital and life ‘issues,’ Ibsen offers a solution - philosophical autonomy (Dalrymple, 2005). This is basically the call for each person to live according to their own standards/ principles, put self first (ahead of the partner and children) and pursue their own desires. Theodore disagrees with this remedy and records that he has seen countless such minded parents who abandon their children and so subject them to lives of despair, damage, disease, moral degradation and death. According to Theodore,

Analysis Of Celcom Axiata Investment In Tune Talk Marketing Essay

Analysis Of Celcom Axiata Investment In Tune Talk Marketing Essay Celcom Axiata is a member of Axiata Group is facing tough competition against the other major telecommunication rivals. Having coined as malay telco provider that is, Celcom Axiata has weak penetration into some major markets and the strategy to overcome this is by appointing the Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNO) to penetrate into the identified markets using their own brand, look and feel. Celcom Axiata business model for Tune Talk MVNO is by having 35% stakes in the company. After over 11 months in operation, Celcom Axiata is reviewing its position in this company whether to remain its stake, increase its shareholding or pullout. Prior to making any decision with its investment, Celcom Axiata needs to evaluate the existing Tune Talk financial standing and its capability to provide the required return on investment as well as its ability to handle the issues at hands especially those concerning the cash flows. Introduction Celcom Axiata is one of the 4 major mobile telecommunication companies in Malaysia. As at 31st March 2010, Celcom Axiata was ranked as second largest mobile telecommunication company behind Maxis, and ahead of Digi and U Mobile respectively. Celcom Axiata is a member of Axiata Group of companies who manage a group of Mobile Telecommunications in the Asia region. Axiata Group was previously known as TM International and part of TM (Telekom Malaysia) Group. The process of de-merger within TM Group saw the birth of Axiata Group, meant to focus on mobile telecommunications arm of the corporation within the region whilst TM continue to maintain its fixed lines business as well as broadband provider. According to the first quarter financial report, Celcom Axiata continue to show double digit growth on a YoY basis in all key indicators. Revenue was up 15% whilst Earning Before Interest Tax Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA) increased by 16%. In tandem, Profit After Tax (PAT) was up 24% in the same period. On a QoQ basis, Celcom continued to show positive performance. Despite coming off an exceptional 4Q09, which recorded the highest ever quarterly growth, revenue growth was marginal, but still up by 0.2%. Continued focus on costs saw EBITDA up by 2% with margins improving by 0.7 percentage points QoQ to 45.4%. PAT showed a robust increase of 7% to RM441 million (Celcom Axiata media release, 27th May 2010). Celcom Axiata has been aggressively expanding its network and coverage to cater for the increasing demand by the customers. Despite its continuous efforts to penetrate into the various segments in this country, Celcom Axiata still lagging in some of key markets such as the Chinese market segment, immigrant market segment and student market or low income earners segment. These markets are predominantly controlled by Maxis and Digi and will be the key success factor for Celcom Axiata to capture in order to become the number one mobile telecommunication provider in this country. One of the strategy to penetrate into these segments as single out by Celcom Axiata is by way of having a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) approach. MVNO means Celcom Axiata will appoint a third party to run the mobile business using their own brand, leveraging on their own strength such as networking, channel of distribution, marketing and customer service. By doing this, Celcom Axiata can reduce its financial burden on the go-to-market cost which in turn will be born by the MVNO partners themselves. To date there are four MVNOs appointed and launched by Celcom whereby each of them is given different market segment to penetrate and capture. Each MVNO is treated as separate entity from Celcom Axiata where the respective MVNOs have full control over their own operations and management of the companies except for Tune Talk Sdn Bhd where Celcom Axiata has 35% share of the company. Being different business model from other MVNOs, Tune Talk Sdn Bhd is seen as another Celcom Axiata joint venture company. Tune Talk is owned by the following shareholders as shown in figure 1 below : Tune Ventures (owned by Datuk Seri Tony Fernandes and Datuk Kamarudin Meranun) Individuals shareholders are Datuk Seri Kalimullah Masheerul Hassan, Lim Kian Onn, Jason Lo (the CEO of Tune Talk), Gurtaj Singh (the COO of Tune Talk) and Mark Lankaster (the CEO of Tune Hotels) Celcom decision to have its stake in Tune Talk is to ensure it has some form of control as one the major shareholder. Although Tune Talk management will have the control over the management of the company but the shareholders will have their voice heard during the monthly board exco meeting. Having represented by 2 permanent exco members from Celcom, it can ensure that Tune Talk business plan and strategies are in line with its goal to become one of the top mobile service provider in this country. The Situation Tune Talk is approaching its first anniversary on the coming 19th August 2010. Celcom need to assess its investment and evaluate whether Tune Talk business is moving to the right direction and hence generate the desired dividends to shareholders. In order to achieve the target, Celcom needs to keep track of Tune Talk managements way of running the business. The permanent exco members sitting in the boardroom must be able to drill down to the bottom line and analyze their way of spending their fund. This is very important to Celcom as the major shareholder in Tune Talk so it can decide on the next course of actions such as to inject more fund into Tune Talk, or to remain its position without adding anymore cash or worst case decide to pull out from the pack. Prior to such decision, Celcom needs to gather as much information as possible with regards to Tune Talk financial position, business directions, marketing strategies and other commercial matters which will be the key determination factors. Based from the previous exco meeting it was learned that Tune Talk is facing difficulties to move forward with its business plans and marketing strategies due to shortage of cash flow. Tune Talk Chief Financial Officer (CFO) during his presentation to the board of directors highlighted the following scenarios : a. Increase in Managed Services Costs Tune Talk adopted the managed services concept to deploy and maintain the Intelligent Network (IN) billing system, network related infrastructure namely Short Message Services Centre (SMSC), Home Location Register (HLR) and other Value Added Services (VAS). Managed services concept is a new trend in telecommunication and information technology (IT) business whereby the customers or business operators do not buy outright the related systems but pay to the supplier or provider on usage based. This method saves the company from spending an upfront purchase of an asset, hence reduce the cash outflow. Managed services can help a particular company to avoid from having to allocate depreciation cost which may impact the company balance sheet. In the case of Tune Talk the burden they are facing now is due to the increase in the amount to be spent on this managed services. The deal they are having right now is based on the number of subscribers using the system, the higher the number of subscribers the higher the managed services cost to be incurred. The amount will grow in tandem with the intake of new subscribers where the average cost per subscriber remain unchanged. Unlike buying own fixed asset, the average cost will tend to reduce as the number of new subscribers grow until it reaches the economic of scales. Increase in Channel and Distribution Cost In Malaysia, all the mobile operators are highly dependant to the normal traditional channel ie. mobilephone dealers to sell its SIM card and recharge vouchers. Being too dependant to this type of distribution channel will increase the companys cost of sales whereby for every sales of SIM cards or recharge voucher the company needs to allocate some amount of percentage as an incentive for them to push its products over the competitors. Traditionally, in mobile telecommunication business the channel of distribution consist of 3 layers : distributors master dealers ordinary dealers Normally only a handful of distributors are being appointed to distribute to the master dealers whom will then sell it through the ordinary dealers. Each of these channels will keep a small percentage as their incentive from the retail price. Operators are normally stuck with this channel cost which they cannot run away with in order to push their products to the customers. On average an operator will have to spend not less than 10% from its retail price being part of the channel cost. Allocation for Marketing Cost As a new mobile operator in Malaysia competing against the other 4 major mobile telecommunications service providers Tune Talk is facing a tough time to introduce its brand to the market. According to Nielsen Co Malaysia 2009 report (a research company), the telecommunication companies are among the highest contributor to the total advertising expenditure in Malaysia with Celcom leading the pack at RM 115.8 million, followed by Telekom Malaysia at RM 94.3 million, Maxis with RM 89.7 million and Digi for RM 87.1 million (see Figure 2 below). Newspaper and TV advertisement represent the top 2 categories for advertising followed by Radio, Magazine and Outdoor. To date Tune Talk had already spent RM 2 million in their advertising cost through billboards, newspaper, TV and radio advertisements. This amount is rather very small compare to the amount spent by the big giants and it may not give the required exposure that Tune Talk expected to create its brand awareness to the market place. Based from the report and dip stick survey conducted by Tune Talk marketing department their brand index is still very low and they would require more fund to be pumped in for this purpose. Slow Moving of Customer Recharge Activities Tune Talk is only selling prepaid mobile and it main source of income is by selling the SIM card and recharge vouchers. As far as Tune Talk is concern the revenue generated from these sales are considered as their income (based on the generally Accepted Accounting Principle). This is due to the fact the income will be reported when it is earned (Ross, Westerfiled, Jaffe, Corporate Finance, 7th edition). The good thing about prepaid business is the transactions are in cash terms. This means Tune Talk will get to record the transaction into its book as and when the SIM cards or vouchers are sold to the distributors. In accounting, the revenue from sales of SIM cards and recharge vouchers will only be realized upon usage and not upon sales. Nonetheless, as far as Tune Talk income is concerned it has already acquired the money from the distributor and realized in its book as income as per GAAP. As a rippling effect to lack of awareness of its brand in the market place, Tune Talk sales of SIM cards and recharge vouchers are moving rather at a very slow pace. Table 1 below is example of the average sales and projected 1st year revenue from SIM cards and recharge vouchers : Table 1 Items Average Monthly Revenue Projected 1st Year Revenue SIM Cards RM 500,000 RM 6,000,000 Recharge Vouchers RM 900,000 RM 10,800,000 Total RM 1,400,000 RM 16,800,000 This figure is far cry from the original budget that Tune Talk has to make which is RM 36.0 million for its first year operation and increase to RM 50.0 million and RM 72.0 million in year 2 and 3 respectively. High Customer Turnover or Attrition Rate It is common in the prepaid business industry that users tend to move or hope around from one operator to another operator to find for better offer and cheaper cost. Tune Talk is also affected by this game by the customers whereby the rate of customers churning out or leaving for another brand keep on increasing on month-on-month basis. Malaysian prepaid business industry rate of customers staying in a particular operator (industry language is length of stay) is in average of 6 months. However in the case of Tune Talk its customers average length of stay is a mere 3 months which is about half of the industry average. The impact of this short stay will cause a high acquisition cost to Tune Talk whereby its cash flow will be badly affected. In order to stay healthy, Tune Talk needs more than 3 months for each customer with average usage of RM 30 per month to recover its upfront acquisition cost such as the channel incentive, marketing cost and the other variable costs. Shortage of Cash Tune Talk started off its business with RM 7.5 million worth of shares with 35% own by Celcom whilst the remainder are by several other individuals. After 11 months of operations, Tune Talk is now facing with the most critical moment in its business where their cash flow is deteriorating. Despite being a lean and mean in expenditure and had not spent any money on fixed asset, Tune Talk still face the cash flow difficulty. An area that has badly affected Tune Talk cash flow is the channel incentive and the wholesale airtime rates that it has to pay back to Celcom. With intense competition Tune Talk needs to set its incentive on par or slightly better than the competition in order to get the channel attention and support. On the other hand, the prepaid business market is competing on the call rates to be offered to the end users in order to beat the others. Since Tune Talk is buying its airtime from Celcom at fixed rate, the competition which had forced Tune Talk to also lower down its selling rate to the end users had cause Tune Talk margin to shrink and became smaller. The result is, the income collected from the sales of SIM cards and recharge vouchers will have to be spent largely to incentive and wholesale airtime to Celcom, leaving only peanuts to Tune Talk to be used to re-generate its business. It is also better for Tune Talk to maintain a level of working capital that allows it to make it through those crunch times and continue to operate the business within tight budget (Cater McNamara, Authenticity Consulting LLC). Action Celcom Axiata really need to review its investment in Tune Talk Sdn Bhd by looking at the present situation and its potential. It is a known fact that every new business need some times to be able to stabilize and start to show positive result out of its investment. As far as telecommunication industry is concerned, a minimum of 3 years is required in order for a particular mobile operator to have a strong foothold and have substantial subscriber base to be relevant. The question here is whether Tune Talk strategies are gearing towards the right direction which will guarantee to bear fruits at the end of 3 years? How much will investor need to pump in to ensure that Tune Talk can still survive until the 3rd year ? It is imperative that Celcom Axiata representatives in the Tune Talk board of directors to insist Tune Talk management to review their existing business models which had obviously affected their cash flows. Serious attention must be given by Tune Talk management to revisit its dependency on the existing channel which will become its biggest threat in trying to minimize its cash out flows. Tune Talk management also needs to re-negotiate with its managed services provider to review the charges being imposed to Tune Talk for every new subscribers added into the system. The charges should be on decreasing trend as more customers being added. Tune Talk may also want to consider finding new manage service provider should the negotiation come to a dead end. This is important in managing Tune Talk spending over the long run. Prior to Celcom Axiata to make any decision with its investment, it needs to analyze Tune Talk financial condition. It is advisable for Celcom Axiata to scrutinize the Tune Talk financial management and ensure that all the monies are well spent and efficiently managed to protect its interest. Celcom Axiata finance manager needs to advice the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the real condition of Tune Talk by analyzing its financial statement cash flows. Having spent for over RM 2.6 million and holding 35% of Tune Talk shares, Celcom Axiata has the responsibility to report to its board of directors on the progress of its investment. The Celcom Axiata board of directors must be very interested to know whether the management of Celcom Axiata has made the right decision by investing in Tune Talk. One thing interesting in this business model ie MVNO is because the airtime being sold by Tune Talk (in this case the MVNO) is using Celcom network infrastructure. This means even though Tune Talk does not make huge profit and may not be able to provide the required rate of return in terms of dividends to the shareholders but as far as Celcom Axiata is concerned, it still make money from the airtime sold. Thus, board of directors of Celcom Axiata may well be pleased by the increase in Celcom Axiata revenue alone rather than going down to the details of earning through the Tune Talk dividends. Another area that needs special attention is to assess the existing Tune Talk management team style and business competencies. This industry is regarded as highly competitive and it takes excellent team to be able to compete with the big boys (as being referred to the seasoned mobile operators). Celcom Axiata representatives in the Tune Talk exco members must be able to provide information to the Celcom Axiata management whether there is an existence of conflict of interest in the Tune Talk management team. Although according to Vishny and Robert W, NBER Reporter, September 1989 said that the standard and ideally corporation allows management to have 5% of shares. This can be ascertained by judging into their way of running the business, their seriousness in fulfilling the required tasks as outlined in the business plans, their priorities in spending and handling the cash flows. Conclusion It is probably premature for Celcom Axiata to make decision to pull out from this pack by merely basing on the first 11 or 12 months Tune Talk operation. However any decision to increase its capital in Tune Talk either by buying more shares or by pumping more money to support Tune Talk operations must be done with great detail analysis. It is not advisable for Celcom Axiata to simply inject more cash to Tune Talk without seeing any progress or improvement on some of the area of concern which have been highlighted in previous pages. The major issues that need to be really scrutinize by Celcom Axiata financial manager is on the cash flow management. The action items highlighted in previous pages suggested Tune Talk to improve the way it runs its business which will eventually give a positive impact to its cash flow. It is said that high risk will normally generate high rate of return, but having said that, the save decision at the moment is for Celcom Axiata to remain its position without adding more cash but to continue to monitor Tune Talk progress and improvement. After all, Celcom Axiata is the one who makes more money from anyone else in the pack which is through the sales of wholesale airtime. This investment although had not been able to generate dividends to Celcom Axiata but somehow has managed to complement the weak area that cannot be penetrated by Celcom Axiata using its own brand.