Enlightenment Vs Romanticism

Enlightenment vs. Romanticism The enlightenment was an 18th century movement that emphasized reason to change society and advance knowledge. The enlightenment changed how people all over Europe, and later North America, thought about religion, hierarchy, monarchy, and science. People began to question the church and there was a loss of unity in the Christian church. It was a time in which people began to think more about themselves without the influence of the government and their church. The enlightenment brought an age of rational, scientific and secular thinking. TheEnlightenment resulted in greater freedom and more humane treatment for all individuals as well as the scientific process. Romanticism was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in late 18th century. It emphasized on individual's expression of emotions and imagination. Some people see it as the opening to modernity and others see it as the as the beginning of a tradition of resistance to the enlightenmen t. I see Romanticism as the new movement for cultural and aesthetic values and the rise of individualism. The way I understand it, enlightenment is more about basic morality and knowledge.Romanticism is more self-oriented, more about self-discovery. If I had to choose to which side I favor the most I'd go with the enlightenment because I believe more about that man are created equal and that education is important. However I can also favor romanticism because I believe every individual deserves freedom but also need to follow the rules so that we can be an orderly society. Hollywood Censored During the sass to sass moral censorship guidelines were established for many films produced by major studios in the United States.During the early sass there ere numerous of films that were morally questionable because they contained hardcore words, mature subject, and sexually suggestive dialogue. This lead to the creation of the motion picture production code, which established a series of re strictions to the production of films in the US. The church had to get involved on this subject because they were scared that their people would be morally hit. They turned in a list of the things that had to be restricted in the studios. Many of the restrictions were implemented because the studios didn't want the government to intervene.Many films even promoted traditional values that crime and sexual elation's were not attractive. Films showed that crimes had to be punished. Like in the movie surface the producers had to change the ending multiple times, the character was brought into trial at last. The studios worked under code for several decades until the sass when explicit films started appearing again and then in 1968 the code was dismissed and a new way of classifying films was established such as G for general, M for mature, and so on. I believe that the code was a good way to minimize crime because I think violent movies do a commit crimes. T us and make individual

Conan Doyle Essay

In the â€Å"The Blue Carbuncle† Sherlock Holmes solves the mystery of a stolen diamond. The criminal in this story is a man named James Ryder. After James Ryder had stolen â€Å"The Blue Carbuncle† he stuck it down a goose’s throat. The goose that had the diamond was distributed the Breckenridge Stall, then sold to a goose club at the Alpha Inn. Sherlock Holmes bumps into James Ryder outside the Breckenridge Stall. Sherlock Holmes makes the criminal confess to what he had done. Sherlock Holmes then lets him go free because he thinks that he will not commit any more crimes, because of how fearful he was. It was quite important for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to create a strange atmosphere because it adds to the tension. All three stories have strange and unusual atmospheres, but each story’s atmosphere is different. In â€Å"The Red Headed League†, Conan Doyle describes the area of Saxe-Coburg Square. He shows how unpleasant and muddled the area is. â€Å"It was a pokey, little, shabby-genteel place, where four lines of dingy two-storied brick houses looked out into a small railed-in enclosure, where a lawn of weedy grass and a few clumps of faded laurel bushes made a hard fight against a smoke-laden and uncongenial atmosphere. † The words that are used here show the messiness and unpleasantness of the area. The words â€Å"pokey†, â€Å"little†, â€Å"shabby-genteel†, â€Å"dingy† and â€Å"smoke-laden† all give a pretty good idea that the area was quite chaotic. In â€Å"The Speckled Band† Conan Doyle created a thrilling and frightening atmosphere, as if it was a horror story. â€Å"The Speckled Band† was set at â€Å"Stoke Moran† in â€Å"Surrey†, which is where Julia Stoner was killed. At the beginning of the story when Helen Stoner is talking to Sherlock Holmes about her problems she describes how the night was when Julia was killed. â€Å"It was a wild night†, this shows that that night was unlike any ordinary night. â€Å"The wind was howling outside, and the rain was beating and splashing against the windows. † This describes a lot of the atmosphere; it shows that the weather was quite stormy. This also explains why Helen couldn’t sleep. â€Å"Suddenly, amidst all the hubbub of the gale, there burst forth the wild scream of a terrified woman. † Conan Doyle’s intended effect was to thrill the reader; Conan Doyle has achieved this by using the words â€Å"wild†, â€Å"howling† and â€Å"beating†. Here the writer’s effect was to try and scare or thrill the reader. Whereas in â€Å"The Blue Carbuncle† the atmosphere was a little different. â€Å"It was a bitter night†. Here, Conan Doyle is trying to show the reader that it is cold outside. He achieves this by describing the night as â€Å"bitter†. The reader will also know that it is cold because Holmes and Watson both put on their â€Å"ulsters† and â€Å"cravats†. â€Å"Outside, the stars were shining coldly in a cloudless sky†, here Conan Doyle is trying to show the reader that the area is very calm and peaceful, unlike in â€Å"The Red Headed League† where the area is busy and unpleasant. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle used different ways to show that these stories take place in the 1880’s and 1890’s. Most of the time he mentions â€Å"carriages†, which were used in that time. Nowadays carriages are not used because they have been replaced by cars. In â€Å"The Red Headed League† when Sherlock Holmes is memorising all the shops at Saxe-Coburg Square he comes across a shop that makes carriages. â€Å"McFarlane’s carriage-building depot†. Here the writer intended to show the reader that this was a time where carriages were used as a form of transport. The effect on the reader is that the reader knows this story is set in the 1890’s. Conan Doyle also uses dates and newspapers to show that these stories are set in the 1880’s and 1890’s. In â€Å"The Speckled Band† and â€Å"The Red Headed league† Conan Doyle mentions the date, but he does not mention the date in â€Å"The Blue Carbuncle†. In â€Å"The Speckled Band†, right at the beginning of the story while Dr. Watson is narrating, he says â€Å"It was early in April, in the year ’83†; hear the writer is showing the reader that this story is taking place in the year 1883. In â€Å"The Red Headed League†, the note that Jabez Wilson shows to Sherlock Holmes had a date on it. The note said, â€Å"THE RED-HEADED LEAGUE IS DISSOLVED. October 9, 1890. † Also when Mr. Wilson is showing Sherlock Holmes the advertisement he mentions the date on the newspaper. â€Å"It is The Morning Chronicle of April 27, 1890. Just two months ago. † By saying that the newspaper was from two months ago, Conan Doyle is telling the reader that this story was set in 1890. Conan Doyle did not always use the same techniques, to show that each story was set in the 1880’s and 1890’s. Unlike â€Å"The Speckled Band† and â€Å"The Red Headed League†, in â€Å"The Blue Carbuncle† there are no dates to show that the story is set in the 1880’s and 1890’s. Conan Doyle uses different techniques to show that this story is also set in that time. In â€Å"The Blue Carbuncle† and â€Å"The Red Headed† Conan Doyle refers to gas-lit lamps, as gas lamps were used in the 1880’s and 1890’s. In â€Å"The Blue Carbuncle† when Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson were jus about to leave the Breckenridge stall, Watson narrates â€Å"Turning round we saw a little rat-faced fellow standing in the centre of the circle of yellow light which was thrown by the swinging lamp. † He also says, â€Å"He sprang round, and I could see in the gas-light that every vestige of colour had been driven from his face. † Also in â€Å"The Red Headed League† Watson says, â€Å"We rattled through an endless labyrinth of gas-lit streets until we emerged into Farrington Street. † These references to gas lamps show that the stories were set in the 1880’s and 1890’s. Conan Doyle also referred to matches in â€Å"The Speckled Band†. Even though we use matches nowadays, we do not use them for the same purposes as in the 1880’s and 1890’s. In those times they were used to see in the dark or to light lanterns. When Helen stoner is talking about what happened to her sister Julia she mentions a match. â€Å"In her right hand was found the charred stump of a match, and in her left a match-box. † This shows that when Julia woke up she struck a match to see what was going on. The value of money in the 1880’s and the 1890’s was much different than the value for money now. At that time people were paid around i 4 a week, which was considered quite a lot of money. Whereas, people now are paid much more and with i 4 you cant really buy much. The social differences in those times also show that these stories were based in the 1880’s and 1890’s. If you look at Helen Stoner, she was a rich woman that lived in a big house with servants. In those times rich people were considered superior to poorer people. Nowadays you wouldn’t find servants working for rich people, because weather your rich or poor you have rights. The audience or readers would recognise the places named in the stories, which are all in England. The intended effect of the writer was to make the reader feel as if he or she was in the story itself, which would make it feel more dramatic. Conan Doyle achieves this by using areas in London that most people live in. Places such as â€Å"Holborn† and â€Å"Harrow†. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle used very unusual titles for his stories to intrigue the reader. When a reader sees the title â€Å"The Speckled Band†, he or she wouldn’t think of a venomous Indian snake. The reader wouldn’t know what to think, which make them want to read the story to see what â€Å"The Speckled Band† is. The same with â€Å"The Red Headed League†, which is a very unusual title. The reader wouldn’t think that that â€Å"The Red Headed League† was a club for read headed people who were paid i 4 a week for copying the â€Å"Encyclopaedia Britannica†. Conan Doyle uses these unusual titles to throw the reader off track. In â€Å"The Speckled band† Conan Doyle makes the reader think that the gypsies are the ones that killed Julia Stoner. He makes it look like all the evidence points to them. Helen Stoner says, â€Å"†¦ perhaps to these very gypsies in the plantation. I do not know whether the spotted handkerchiefs which so many of them wear over their heads might have suggested the strange adjective which she used. † The effect on the reader was that he or she would be thrown off track to make the story feel more interesting. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle uses some very interesting openings to grab the reader’s attention. Also, every character that Conan Doyle introduces is different in some way, which makes the story feel more interesting and also to intrigue the reader.

Leading and Developing a Work Team

UNIT 9 LEADING AND DEVELOPING A WORK TEAM Distinguish between management and leadership and assess the implications of each on effective team performance. Managers depend on their people. They cannot do without their wholehearted commitment and support. But gaining that support, motivating and engaging them and ensuring that they know what they are expected to do and how to do it is down to managers and it is a difficult task.This book How to Manage People of Michael Armstrong 2008 is designed to make it easier by going into the main actions that managers have to carry out to get things done through people, namely: managing effectively overall, leading, motivating, team building, delegating, interviewing, managing performance, developing and rewarding people, managing change and handling people problems. As a manager you are there to get things done through people. You are engaged in a purposeful activity involving others.But you are concerned with defining ends as well as gaining th em. You decide what to do and then ensure that it gets done with the help of the members of your team. You deal with programs, processes, events and eventualities. All this is done through the exercise of leadership. People are the most important resource available to you as a manager. It is through this resource that other resources are managed. However, you are ultimately accountable for the management of all resources, including your own.When dealing with immediate issues, anticipating problems, responding to demands or even a crisis, and developing new ways of doing things, you are personally involved. You manage yourself as well as other people. You cannot delegate everything. You frequently have to rely on your own resources to get things done. These resources include skill, know-how, competencies, time, and reserves of resilience and determination. You will get support, advice and assistance from your own staff and specialists, including human resources, but in the last analy sis you are on your own.It is important to examine particular aspects of managing people, such as leadership, organizing and motivation including teamwork. There is a need to exercise your people management responsibilities effectively. It starts with an overall look at the criteria for managerial effectiveness. This is followed by a review of the attributes of effective managers. The rest of the chapter deals with a number of the key aspects of management. As a manager and a leader you will be judged not only on the results you have achieved but the level of competence you have attained and applied in getting those results.Competence is about knowledge and skills – what people need to know and be able to do to carry out their work well. You will also be judged on how you do your work – how you behave in using your knowledge and skills. These are often described as ‘behavioral competencies’ and can be defined as those aspects of behavior that lead to effec tive performance. They refer to the personal characteristics that people bring to their work roles in such areas as leadership, team working, flexibility and communication.As a manager of people your role is to ensure that the members of your team give of their best to achieve a desired result. In other words you are a leader – you set the direction and ensure that people follow you. It is necessary to distinguish between management and leadership: Management is concerned with achieving results by obtaining, deploying, using and controlling all the resources required, namely people, money, facilities, plant and equipment, information and knowledge.Leadership focuses on the most important resource, people. It is the process of developing and communicating a vision for the future, motivating people and gaining their engagement. The distinction is important. Management is mainly about the provision, utilization and control of resources. But where people are involved it is imposs ible to deliver results without providing effective leadership.Describe the processes of team formation, and evaluate strategies for encouraging team formation and development One of your most important roles as a manager is to act as a team builder – developing and making the best use of the capacity of your team so that its members jointly deliver superior levels of performance. Team building takes place when you clarify the team’s purpose and goals, ensure that its members work well together, strengthen the team’s collective skills, enhance commitment and confidence, remove externally imposed obstacles and create opportunities for team members to develop their skills and competencies.A team is a group of people with complementary skills who work together to achieve a common purpose. Their team leader sets the direction, provides guidance and support, coordinates the team’s activities, ensures that each team member plays his or her part, promotes the le arning and development of team members, consults with the team on issues affecting its work and, in conjunction with team members, monitors and reviews team performance.However, some organizations have developed the concept of self-managing teams which are largely autonomous, responsible to a considerable degree for planning and scheduling work, problem solving, developing their own key performance indicators and setting and monitoring team performance and quality standards. The role of their team leaders is primarily to act as coordinators and facilitators; their style is expected to be more supportive and facilitative than directive.An effective team is likely to be one in which its purpose is clear and its members feel the task is important, both to them and to the organization. The structure, leadership and methods of operation are relevant to the requirements of the task. Team members will be highly engaged in the work they do together and committed to the whole group task. The y will have been grouped together in a way that means they are related to one another through the requirements of task performance and task interdependence.The team will use discretionary effort – going the extra mile – to ensure that its work gets done. The main features of well-functioning teams as described by Douglas McGregor (1960) are that the atmosphere tends to be informal, comfortable and relaxed; team members listen to each other; most decisions are reached by consensus; when action is taken, clear assignments are made and accepted, and team leaders do not dominate their teams – the issue is not who controls but how to get the work done.The performance of teams should be assessed in terms of their output and results and the quality of team processes that have contributed to those results. Output criteria include the achievement of team goals, customer satisfaction and the quantity and quality of work. Process measures comprise participation, collaborat ion and collective effort, conflict resolution, joint decision making, planning and goal setting, interpersonal relations, interdependence and adaptability and flexibility.How you and your team apply these criteria will be related to the following factors that affect team performance: the clarity of the team’s goals in terms of expectations and priorities; how work is allocated to the team; how the team is working its processes in terms of cohesion, ability to handle internal conflict and pressure, relationships with other teams; the extent to which the team is capable of managing itself – setting goals and priorities, monitoring performance; the quality of leadership – even self-managed teams need a sense of direction which they cannot necessarily generate by themselves; the level and range of skills possessed by individual team members; the extent to which team members work flexibly, taking advantage of the multi-skilling capabilities of its members; the syste ms and resources support available to the team.Good support to your team-building efforts will be provided if you conduct regular team performance review meetings to assess feedback and control information on their joint achievements against objectives and to discuss any issues concerning team work. The agenda for such meetings could be as follows: general feedback review of the progress of the team as a whole and problems encountered by the team which have caused difficulties or hampered progress, and helps and hindrances to the operation of the team. Work reviews of how well the team has functioned. The group problem solving, including an analysis of reasons for any shortfalls or other problems and agreement of what needs to be done to solve them and prevent their re-occurrence.Update objectives – review of new requirements, opportunities or threats and the amendment of objectives as required. Evaluate the stages of development of their work group as a team and select and e mploy strategies to improve and develop team working. One of your most important, if not the most important, responsibilities as a manager is to ensure that the members of your team achieve high levels of performance. You have to ensure that they understand what you expect from them, that you and they work together to review performance against those expectations and that you jointly agree what needs to be done to develop knowledge and skills and, here necessary, improve performance. Your organization may well have a performance management system which provides guidance on how this should be done but ultimately it is up to the manager. You are the person on the spot. Performance management systems only work if managers want them to work and are capable of making them work. You have to believe that your time is well spent in the process of managing performance as described in the first part of this chapter. You need to know about performance planning (agreeing what has to be done), m anaging performance throughout the year and conducting formal performance reviews as covered in the next three parts.You should have no problems in appreciating the importance of the first two activities. It is the third activity – performance reviews – managers often find hard to accept as necessary and even more difficult to do well. The process of managing performance is based on two simple propositions. First, people are most likely to perform well when they know and understand what is expected of them and have taken part in defining these expectations. In other words, if you know where you are going you are more likely to get there. Second, the ability to meet these expectations depends on the levels of knowledge, skill, competency and motivation of individuals and the leadership and support they receive from their managers.As a manager or team leader you need skilled, knowledgeable and competent people in your department or team. You may appoint able people from within and outside the organization but most of them will still have a lot to learn about their jobs. And to improve your team members’ performance you must not only ensure that they learn the basic skills they need but also that they develop those skills to enable them to perform even better when faced with new demands and challenges. Most learning happens at the place of work, although it can be supplemented by such activities as e-learning (the delivery of learning opportunities and support via computer, networked and web-based technology) and formal ‘off-the-job’ training courses.It is your job to ensure that favorable conditions for learning ‘on the job’ exist generally in your area as well as taking steps to help individuals develop. To do this job well you need to know about: the conditions that enable effective learning to take place; the importance of ‘self-managed learning’, i. e. individuals taking control of their own learnin g; the contribution of formal learning; the advantages and disadvantages of informal learning and development approaches; how you can contribute to promoting learning and development in your department or team; the use of such learning and development aids as coaching, mentoring, learning contracts and personal development plans; how to instruct people in specific tasks should the need arise. Set standards and targets and review performance.Managing performance is about getting people into action so that they achieve planned and agreed results. It focuses on what has to be done, how it should be done and what is to be achieved. But it is equally concerned with developing people – helping them to learn – and providing them with the support they need to do well, now and in the future. The framework for performance management is provided by the performance agreement, which is the outcome of performance planning. The agreement provides the basis for managing performance th roughout the year and for guiding improvement and development activities. It is used as a reference point when reviewing performance and the achievement of improvement and development plans.You should treat your responsibility for managing performance as an integral part of the continuing process of management. This is based on a philosophy which emphasizes: the achievement of sustained improvements in performance; the continuous development of skills and capabilities; that the organization is a ‘learning organization’ in the sense that it is constantly developing and applying the learning gained from experience and the analysis of the factors that have produced high levels of performance. You should therefore be ready, willing and able to monitor performance and define and meet development and improvement needs as they arise. As far as practicable, learning and work should be integrated.This means that encouragement should be given to your team members to learn from th e successes, challenges and problems inherent in their day-to-day work. You should carry out the process of monitoring performance by reference to agreed objectives and to work, development and improvement plans. You have to decide how tightly you monitor on the basis of your understanding of the capacity of individuals to do the work. Identify own leadership style and skills, and assess own effectiveness in leading and developing the team and its performance. Self-managed learning style involves encouraging individuals to take responsibility for their own learning needs.The aim is to encourage ‘discretionary learning’, which happens when individuals actively seek to acquire the knowledge and skills required to perform well. It is based on processes of recording achievement and action planning, which involves individuals reviewing what they have learned, what they have achieved, what their goals are, how they are going to achieve those goals and what new learning they n eed to acquire. The learning program can be ‘self-paced’ in the sense that learners can decide for themselves, up to a point, the rate at which they work and are encouraged to measure their own progress and adjust the program accordingly. Self-directed learning is based on the principle that people learn and retain more if they find things out for themselves.But they still need to be given guidance on what to look for and help in finding it. Learners have to be encouraged to define, with whatever help they may require, what they need to know to perform their job effectively. They need to be provided with guidance on where they can get the material or information that will help them to learn and how to make good use of it. Personal development plans as described later in this chapter can provide a framework for this process. People also need support from their manager and the organization, with the provision of coaching, mentoring and learning facilities, including e-lea rning. The leadership style I would apply is the combination of a Transformational and Transactional Leader.As a leader I can be both arouse emotions of my followers which motivates them to act beyond the framework of what may be described as exchange relations at the same time be aware of the link between the effort and reward. I can be proactive and form new expectation and be responsive from the basic orientation in dealing with present issues. Transformational leaders are distinguished by their capacity to inspire and provide individualized consideration, intellectual stimulation and idealized influence to their followers while transactional leaders rely on standard forms of inducement, reward, punishment and sanction to control followers. Leaders create learning opportunities for their followers and stimulate followers to solve problems at the same time they can motivate followers by setting goals and promising rewards for desired performance.A trait that a leader should posses s good visioning, rhetorical and management skills, to develop strong emotional bonds with followers and depends on the leader’s power to reinforce subordinates for their successful completion of the bargain. Lastly, leaders motivate followers to work for goals that go beyond self-interest.REFERENCES: http://www. ehow. com/how_5485211_evaluate-team- performance. html#ixzz1sqUbPZyH accessed on July 18, 2012 How to Manage People. Michael Armstrong 2008 accessed on July 24, 2012 How to Evaluate Team Performance | eHow. com accessed on August 3, 2012 http://www. ehow. com/how_5485211_evaluate-team-performance. html#ixzz1sqUbPZyH accessed on August 10, 2012

Little Miss Sunshine as Example of American Independent Cinema Essay

Little Miss Sunshine as Example of American Independent Cinema - Essay Example This enables studios to 'test' more experimental films, taking the more successful of these to greater box office success without risking the reputation of the major sponsoring house. Film expert Bruce Kawin (1992) suggests that the term 'independent' has been used to refer to a wide variety of different types of film. There are those producers who are completely independent from the major studios, creating their films on their own and then selling studios distribution rights and those who create films on home video cameras and attempt to distribute or not on their own, both generally supportive of mainstream social power structures. While these are technically independent films, Kawin and others prefer using the term independent film to refer to producers who work outside the mainstream in terms of representation or as a means of strongly questioning the status quo and might instead be called the avant-garde. As a form of classification, the term 'independent film' has been applied most frequently to those productions which have an unusual, divergent or 'quirky' character. In attempting to pinpoint the concept of the independent film and its characteristics, some of the more common formal traits of independent films will be identified and then examined as they appear or don't appear within the film Little Miss Sunshine, an independent film that could be argued to represent a form of cross-over event between independent film and mainstream because of its social perspective. ... e common characteristics of independent film in America can include its 'quirky' character, the sense of its message, a sense of innocence and/or irony in this message delivery, unique camera angles creating what might be considered amateur professionalism with carefully orchestrated characters and scenes and a generally lower degree of post-production editing. Thus, independent film can be characterized through its plot, technique, tone and social commentary. By 'quirky', most film experts intend to mean that the film conveys slightly odd renditions of the familiar mainstream tropes rather than completely radical swings away from what one might expect. These may take the form of an unusual combination of characters, slightly strange variations of relationships or objects or somewhat different methods of presenting the audio or visual material. What is unique about the 'quirky' is that it is, as James MacDowell claims, "crucially, a comic address that requires we view the fiction as simultaneously absurd and moving, the characters as pathetic and likeable, the world as manifestly artificial and believable" (2010: 4). While the world presented in independent film is strange and different, it is still presented as relatively safe and non-controversial. In keeping with this concept, MacDowell says many independent films will include musical scores that carry connotations of sweet and simple, high in repetition, higher on the musical register and frequently within a waltz time signature as a means of encouraging an association with childhood. A strong connection with the child-like or the innocent is carried throughout the visual presentation as well. However, other experts such as Jeffrey Sconce (2002) claim a strongly ironic or nihilistic approach within the independent

The Electoral College is obsolete and should be abolished in American Essay

The Electoral College is obsolete and should be abolished in American politics. Do you agree Justify your answer - Essay Example However, it is a time-tested success, another testament to the forward thinking of the creators of the Electoral College system of voting for President, the Founding Fathers. Members of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 faced the difficult question of how to elect a president. They were severely at odds with each other over the question of presidential selection and anguished over the concept of creating a workable system. The Electoral College system that emerged during the very last week of the Convention did seem to satisfy all the diverse factions (Katz, n.d.). The intent of this system was that the selection of a president be based solely on merit and without regard to state of origin or political party by that state’s most informed and educated individuals. Each state has a number of electors equal to the number U.S. Representatives plus its (2) U.S. Senators. These electors then vote for President. The method of choosing the electors was remanded to the individual state legislatures thereby calming those states already distrustful of a centralized government. This understanding built upon an earlier compromise in the design of the congress itself and thus satisfied both large and small states. The nation of thirteen states wanted to retain their own governmental powers and the prevalent thought of the time was that political parties were detrimental to liberty. These founders were of the opinion that men should not campaign for public office. ‘The office should seek the man. The man should not seek the office.’ In 1787, the country’s population was distributed along a thousand miles of Atlantic coastline that was hardly, if at all, connected by reliable communication or transportation. â€Å"How, then, to choose a president without political parties and national campaigns without upsetting the carefully designed balance between the presidency and the Congress on one hand and states and the federal

Auditing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 2

Auditing - Essay Example The audit activity at Farhan Muscat SAOG Company revealed that due to the inappropriate keeping of financial records for the current financial year in Salalah stores (water seepage during heavy rains), it became impossible to make an audit, which a senior auditor was going to conduct. While the company staff was informed about the stick take for the certain period to be conducted in the most convenient time, their other duties, such as movement of goods production receiving and dispatch operations continued. Purchases and sales were not stopped and other daily operations were continuing. During the audit, there was revealed that the some stock items of the company were not sold throughout 2014. The storekeeper reported these goods were included in the regular stock and were also valued as regular stock. The adudit inspection observed manager was carrying out all-inclusive check of the low priced stock, however, the premium stock was not counted. The results from the audit revealed the paucity of time of company’s management led to the inability to gather the necessary information about the stock and make the stock sheets at other locations across the country. According to the audit group results, damaged, obsolete, slow-moving stock and non moving stock was valued at purchase price by the company. The manager was informed about such stock to make a little part of the entire stock and is valued at purchase price. As a rationale, since physical inventory cannot be protected from loss, the company could prevent a material misstatement of its financial statements. The material deficiency relates to misstatement of the financial statements, and the failure of such preventive control will not lead a significant deficiency. However, it prevents a misstatement of the financial statements. This circumstance had to be carefully considered before it was

Israel, Iraq and the USA in Middle East Politics Analysis Essay

Israel, Iraq and the USA in Middle East Politics Analysis - Essay Example Religious issues have also been a constant cause of conflict in these regions†.1 These problems of the region do not originate solely from the Middle East countries alone, as external interventions have contributed largely in the past and prevailing affairs in the region. These intervening outsiders do interject because of vested interest in the oil sources. Interventions of countries like the United States of America and Russia among others have led to the unending squabble and unrest in the region. In most cases, the intruders could easily set the Arabs up in arms as regions like in Israel had internal religious disparities between Christians and Arabs/Muslim. Focusing on middle East and the US relation, this paper will not only seek to unravel the relationship between these three countries, but will also deliberate on their contribution to the politics of the middle east. The Middle East has for a long time now suffered from Socio-economic and political problems. The problems in this region blossoms from the citizens of the region, as well as other countries. The interventions have both exacerbated uprisings, and led to loss of millions of lives in wars and unrest. Other than the resources that entice external countries, terrorist groups that thrive in the Middle East have attracted global attention as countries join hands in fighting terrorism. The mere mention of the word terrorist instills fear to any country or individual, as many countries have experienced terrorist attacks in the past. The relationship between Iraq, Israel and USA emanate from either of those connecting factors. Iraq Iraq has been for a long time pivotal in shaping of the Middle East politics. Other than the recently known invasion by the United States of America, Iraq has experienced decades of political and social economic issues. Baker, Shareen and Ismael3 demonstrates clearly and precisely the events of the American invasion in detail. They analytically reveal the causes of the invasion, the economic, social and political factors that are wrapped around the history of Iraq. The most empirical purpose or invasion of Iraq by the US militia emanated from the belief that Iraq was a terrorist country, a factor that led to the invasion in the attempts to wipe out terrorism completely both in Iraq and other targeted nations. All middle east countries that were suspected to condone the development of terrorist groups. This invasion, religious fanaticism and the long time conflicts with the neighbouring countries acted as pivotal determinant factors concerning the country’s political stature and its effects in the region.i Before and after t he cold war, America and the Russian governments sought to control the oil and water sources in the Middle East. These resources became an issue of conflict in the region leading to numerous political upheavals. Since the times of imperialism, America had convinced Muslims to adopt secular methods of governance and legal systems in order for modernization to take place in the Middle East. Reforms to the former Sharia government and legal systems became a fundamental issue when the secular methods failed (Cleveland and Marti). These reforms led to lengthy political squabbles for many years to the present time. Israeli also played a major role in the politics of Iraq as its neighbor and the fact that Israel collaborated with the Americans in the Anti-Arab movements. This relationship connects the three countries in a

Contract for an Independent HR Contractor and the Importance of Having Research Paper

Contract for an Independent HR Contractor and the Importance of Having A Contract - Research Paper Example As the paper declares when a company employs independent contractors, it has to be categorically established that there is no â€Å"employer-employee relationship† between the worker and the company, and the better way to make this clear-cut is by entering into a contract that may be called, Independent Contractor’s Agreement. It is very essential that a contract should be executed, wherein all the terms and conditions should be clearly stated that could strengthen what had been verbally agreed upon by the employer and the independent contractor. In reality, when there is a contract, it could easily prevent the misclassification of the other regular employees. A contract would easily differentiate the independent contractor from the regular employee. This report stresses that all contracts should start by declaring the identities of the parties who will be the signatories in the contract, and they are the independent contractor, who could be the freelancer or the agency who will supply contingent workers, and the company who will be hiring the independent contractor/s. This should be followed by the establishment of what the independent contractor can do, and what he is equipped with, and it is at this point that it should be mentioned whether the contractor possesses a license or not, when it is specifically required, and that the company is desirous of engaging the independent contractor’s skills or expertise.

Skip navigation links BFS 3460-08B-2 FIRE PROTECTION SYSTEMS Essay

Skip navigation links BFS 3460-08B-2 FIRE PROTECTION SYSTEMS (BFS3460-08B-2) - Essay Example High expansion foams acts the same but are typically used in holds of ships and basement room areas where access to fire and burning material is limited. It acts by halting convection and access to oxygen by steam displacement. This type of foam is used in controlling liquefied natural gas spill fires and helps in dispersing the resulting the vapor cloud. High expansion foams have very low water content making it suitable to use in settings where damage to equipment by water is highly probable. It is also this characteristic that results to a minimum amount of residue thus minimizing post fire clean-up requirements. The National Fire Protection Association has stipulated that this type of systems should completely fill and engulf an area where the fire is occurring thus making it suitable in settings where quick suppression is required. The high water content of low expansion foams makes it heavy and possible to be projected to burning material at safe distances. It also has a very high flow index and its wetting effect makes it more suitable in extinguishing fires in burning solid

Guidelines for Writing a Lab Report Essay Example for Free

Guidelines for Writing a Lab Report Essay Writing a good lab report is an important goal of your science education, and gives you the opportunity to enhance your writing skills and to communicate your understanding of the scientific process to others. Your lab report for this semester will be a write up of your independent research project. This will follow the standard format for a lab report and should include the following sections: Title Introduction Materials and Methods Results Discussion Conclusion References For this course we are giving extra emphasis to the materials and methods section. This section should include sufficient detail to allow others to reproduce your experiments, without being overly descriptive. A guide to writing each section is as follows: TITLE Name the experiment. The title should be descriptive of what you did or what your data showed. A reader should be able to obtain some understanding of the content of your report from the title. In the research world, scientists scan the table of contents of journals to determine if there are any papers relevant to their research that they should read. Therefore the title is important for getting your work recognized. INTRODUCTION Explain why you choose this project, and what you hoped to learn from it. You will be required to research the background information for your project, and present the current state of knowledge for the topic of your research. In addition, you must explain your rationale for choosing this project, clearly state the objective or hypothesis, and predict the outcome of the experiments if the hypothesis holds true. Example: if an independent research project investigated the effect of hand sanitizers on the growth of E. coli, then the introduction should include background information on hand sanitizers (what they are, how they are used, the ingredients that kill bacteria), and background information on E. coli (what it is, why it is a problem). It would also include the experimental hypothesis, e.g. â€Å"Hand sanitizers will be more effective at killing E. coli than soap.† MATERIALS AND METHODS Describe how you conducted your experiments in sufficient detail that someone else could repeat them, WITHOUT excess detail. First and foremost, this section is NOT simply a list of materials and a step-by-step accounting of what you did. You should write your materials and methods in descriptive form, using past tense (describe what you did). Do not include reasoning in your methods – this belongs in the discussion section. You should describe what you did in enough detail that someone could repeat the experiment if he or she wanted to, but do not use excessive details. As you are doing your experiment, be sure you keep track of what you actually did in your lab notebook, especially any details which vary from the instructions in the lab manual. What you do could have important implications for the results you get, and your interpretation of those results. The Materials and Methods in your lab report should be what you actually did, and not just what the lab manual told you to do. Points to remember: * Organize this section carefully and logically, place the methods in the order in which you ran them. * Use subheadings that break the text into distinct sections (if warranted). Do not use subheadings such as â€Å"Lab 4.† Use a descriptive subheading, such as â€Å"Agarose Gel Electrophoresis† and make use of bold text to distinguish subheadings. * Provide enough information to allow others to repeat the same experiment * Use specific, informative language (quantify whenever possible) * Omit unnecessary information. You do not need to include every possible detail of the time you spent in the lab. Include only those procedures directly pertaining to the results you plan to present in the paper. * Include complete mathematical formulas if appropriate. * Do not make the common error of mixing some of the Results in this section RESULTS Present your data in such a way that someone could go directly to the results section and understand the results of your experiments. The results section will have a text portion and a portion that contains figures, tables, photographs, graphs, etc., depending on what kind of data you have. In the text of your results section, describe the trends and important points of your data. Point out what it is that you want your reader to come away with. Be sure you refer to the relevant figures and/or tables when you are writing your text. Refer to them as if you were citing them. For example: The purity of the enzyme improved with each step of the purification scheme (Table 1). For the data portion (i.e., figures and tables), there are many ways to present your results, and you should think very carefully about which is the best way. Is it a line graph, a bar graph or histogram, a pie chart, a table, a picture or diagram, or is it some combination of these? Whatever you choose, be sure it clearly shows your results. You want your reader to be able to look at your tables, charts, figures, etc. and know exactly what experiment was done for each one. You also want the reader to be able to understand what the results actually are. ALL of your data that relates to the report should be presented (even negative data). Points to remember: * Organize your data carefully and logically. If possible, present results in the same order as the methods. * Use subheadings that break the data into distinct sections (if warranted) * Summarize the data and emphasize important patterns or trends * Do not interpret your data; do not draw conclusions; do not speculate.in the results section (save these issues for the Discussion) * Graphs, drawings, and photos are considered figures. Each figure and table must have a title and be numbered sequentially as they are introduced in the text. (figure 1, figure2, table 1, table2) * Specify units on the axes of graphs and label all columns and rows of tables. * Computer programs, such as Excel, can help you draw graphs and diagrams. If the graphs are hand drawn they must be neat and accurate. * Examples of some of the ways that you can present your data are illustrated at the end of this handout. DISCUSSION Relate your results back to the introduction. Did you add to the current state of knowledge? What did you learn from your experiments? Were there any sources of error? What future experiments might you conduct? Was your hypothesis supported by your data? This section is for an interpretation of your results, e.g. what do your results mean? Why did you think that you obtained these results? What can be learned from this experiment.? Connect your results to the concepts behind the experiments and your hypothesesAre there any questions the experimental design leaves unanswered (related to your hypothesis or not)? How would you improve this experiment in the future? What other experiments would you do now to extend or confirm your results (what is the next step)? You should also indicate if there are any inherent flaws or sources of error in the experimental design. Do not use â€Å"human error† as an explanation. Only discuss experimental errors that you think actually occurred during your experiment. You should also avoid saying that taking more samples or doing more repetitions of the experiment would improve the data. That is almost always true of any experiment, and goes without saying. Points to remember: * Interpret your results; draw attention to your major findings. * Support your conclusions with evidence; convince the reader that your interpretations are sound and that your work represents a valid contribution to the field. * Recognize the importance of negative results. * Address both the advantages and limitations of your methods; What causes may be responsible for your findings? Suggest explanations if you have conflicting or unexpected results. * Go from specific to general; Start with a discussion of your specific results and end with more far-reaching conclusions or predictions; Can you make generalizations? What would the next questions be? * Be aware of phrasing used in scientific discourse, e.g. verbs like suggest, indicate, show, demonstrate; adverbs like possibly, probably, presumably, very likely; auxiliary verbs like may, might, would, could, etc. (qualifiers) CONCLUSIONS Summarize the meaning of your results in two or three sentences. REFERENCES List all of the information sources used for your introduction. Any references that you use should be cited in the text and listed in alphabetical order in a reference section at the end of your report. Use the APA citation style: For citations in the text: (Author, year) goes after the material from a particular source. For references section: Last name, First name. Year. Title of article. Journal. Volume. Page Numbers.

Effect of Policy on the UK Commercial Property Sector

Effect of Policy on the UK Commercial Property Sector This research project intends to assess and critically analyse what the impact, whether positive or negative. The Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007, has had on the commercial property sector from the standpoint of both the landlords and the tenants. It is designed, using primary research to aid the Government in assessing the level of success the Code has had and whether legislation is required to further enforce the protection of small business tenants. It is an interesting topic as the Government has sought to promote greater choice and flexibility in the property and leasing market for some time, but has been unsuccessful, also due to the fact that there are still very few reviews on the topic. The research, undertaken in July 2009 involves an investigation into leasing practice by small business tenants and their landlords, accompanied by secondary research. Structure of the Dissertation: Chapter 1: Introduction to the subject matter; containing the hypothesis, as well as the goals and objectives of the research. Chapter 2: Literature Review; sets out to critically analyse the current literature published on the subject and understand currently established views on the topic. A gap in the knowledge is also identified in the existing published literature. Chapter 3: Research Methodology; provides the methods and an explanation of them, that were used for primary and secondary research in this dissertation. Chapter 4:Research and Analysis; questionnaires and surveys presented in tables and graphs along with their analysis. Interviews unable to be quantified are scrutinized and compared in full. Chapter 5: Conclusion; compares the research with the hypothesis. Deducing its limitations and reliability, as well as whom these conclusions will impact, and any potential additional research that could be carried out. Hypothesis: The introduction of The Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007 has had no influence upon small business properties and their tenants and as a result was unjustifiable. Context and Background information: The Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007 was launched by Yvette Cooper, then Minister for Housing and Planning, on the 28th of March 2007. It set out some key recommendations to those taking or granting new or renewed leases. The code itself comprises of three sections: For the Landlord; a 10 point requirement guide in order for their lease to be compliant. For the Tenant; an explanation of the terms and 37 specific tips. A Model Heads of Terms, made available online. The Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007 is the result of collaboration between commercial property professionals and industry bodies representing both owners (Landlords) and occupiers (Tenants). These include such members as the Association of British Insurers, the British council for offices, the British Property Federation (BPF), the British Retail Consortium, the Federation of small Businesses, The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), The Law Society of England and Wales, and the Department for Communities and Local Government. It replaced the previous embodiment of the Code, published in April 2002. The Code is voluntary so occupiers should be aware that not all Landlords will choose to offer Code-compliant leases. The Government has felt the need to promote the Code with a continual threat of legislation if it is not adopted this time by the property industry. However the Government takes a keen interest in ensuring the property industry complies with this voluntary Code. Larger business operators are expected to conform to the Code as they have the resources to employ property professionals to act on their behalf. The Code appears to be more aimed at small business tenants seeking to offer guidelines, promoting fairness in commercial leases and aiming to protect small businesses, by ensuring they have the information available to negotiate the most suitable deal. Goals and objectives: Objective One: To investigate small business tenants. A number of questions will be put forward in order to gain information into areas such as, lease terms, tenant satisfaction, and tenant awareness of The Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007. Objective Two: To investigate landlords, how they operate with regard to small business tenants, and what is their view is on The Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007. Objective Three: To gain extensive knowledge into the views of the Chartered Surveyors of The Code, and how The Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007 affects their decisions when advising a client. Objective Four: To assess the primary research gained in objectives One, Two and Three, and discover how, or if decisions made by a chartered surveyor could indirectly affect a small business tenant. Ultimately the aim of this research is to establish that the introduction of The Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007 has had no influence upon small business properties and their tenants and as a result was unjustifiable. While the existing literature discusses the changes in the relatively new Code, there is little information regarding its actual impact upon the industry. Due to the little research done on the new 2007 lease code, this document is intended to gain background information and research on lease practice in the UK, using the Island of Portsea and surrounding areas to determine the amount of business properties and their tenants that have been affected. The only published document comparable to this research is applied to the previous 2002 code and is therefore now outdated. By gathering data using interviews, questionnaires, and exploring further information written on the topic in journals and articles, my aim is to gather sufficient evidence to establish whether my hypothesis is true or false. It is hoped that the research methodology set out in chapter three is adequate enough so as to create valuable research, which until now has not been documented. Chapter 2.Literature Review: Introduction A literature review sets out to critically analyse the current literature published on the subject and understand currently established views on the topic. Secondary research also provides direction to the primary research helping to identify further any unanswered questions. In order to understand the subject, one must first acquire an understanding of the historical nature of business leases in the UK, and why there appears to be a need for market intervention through lease codes. Lease Structure within the UK and its progression. Historical Lease Length: For the purpose of this dissertation, it is necessary to understand the historical nature of a business lease, how they are changing, and what normality in the current marketplace is. The institutional lease also known as the 25 year FRI (full repairing and insuring) lease with upward only rent reviews was standard issue through the 1970s and 1980s. The introduction of more volatile economic conditions led to a change as the longevity of the leases was deemed unrealistic (Lizieri, C., Gibson, V., Crosby, N., Ward, C., 1998). This type of lease has also been described as the backbone of property investment (Hamilton, M. Cheng Lim, L. McCluskey, W., 2006). Whilst the economic climate began to recover in 1995, the expectation would have been that a recovery in the economy and the property market would precipitate a return to the bargaining strengths of landlords and tenants prior to the recession and a return to the terms of occupation which prevailed at that time (Hamilton, M. Cheng Lim, L. McCluskey, W., 2006). However there was a contrasting view to this expectation and a number of reasons are given (Crosby, N., Gibson, V., Murdoch, S., 2002). Firstly, tenants who, after being introduced to more flexible terms were unwilling to return to the institutional lease. Secondly, new accounts procedures forced tenants to show leases on their balance sheet as a liability and therefore highlighted the fact that longer leases financially burdened the tenant in many cases. Research was conducted in 2006 that showed that occupiers are still shifting toward shorter leases in order to prevent themselves from being overexposed to risk. Shorter leases tend to meet the needs of occupiers functioning in a rapidly changing economic environment (Hamilton, M. Cheng Lim, L. McCluskey, W., 2006). 10.93 years was found to be the average lease length from January 2001 to March 2004, among 106 office leases taken in Birmingham, London, Manchester and Belfast. This would appear to prove a large departure from the institutional lease. However, this research does have its limitations. It remains unclear how large the offices used for the survey are. Larger offices are more likely to have tenants that require longer leases, mainly to justify for writing off fit-out and relocation costs (Dickenson, March 2007). If this is applied to this dissertation for example, the focus of the Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007 is upon small business properties and their tenants who are unlikely to have large fit-out costs. Upwards-Only Rent Reviews (UORRs): The UORR is A clause in a lease wherein at a defined given point a rent review will occur. When this arises the rent will either be fixed at either the current rent passing or the open market value, whichever is the highest. As a lease becomes shorter in length, any fluctuations in market conditions are less likely to affect corporate liability. Therefore the lease rent review clauses become increasingly insignificant. A survey conducted in June 2005 by the ODPM (Office of the Deputy Prime Minister) came to conclusion that they had strongly polarised views about whether or not the Government should legislate against UORRs. (Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, June 2005) The government has been considering a ban on UORRs for some time but has still not felt the need to act. A further survey conducted in 2007 by GVA Grimley and the CBI focused on the opinions of corporate tenants. The survey returned only a small majority (57%) in favour of banning them (Cooke, July 2007). Cooke conti nues to comment that firstly this is not a large enough majority to consider a ban, and secondly, the size and sector spread of the survey was significant and there is a recommendation of further research. Any moves to remove UORRs will have a major effect on the security as property as an investment. Cookes view is that as any legislation is unlikely to be retrospective, and therefore a two stage system will be in place, corporate occupiers would not reap any benefit for some time. (Cooke, July 2007). Contingent Liability: There was a strong vote in favour of removing contingent liability, with 83% voting for its abolition (Cooke, July 2007). This high figure suggests that many business occupiers are despondent with their current leases; however they are not forced to sign a lease with this agreement and as the research shows tenants are aware of the liability but appear to do nothing about it. It should be noted that the size of corporate tenants questioned in the research conducted by GVA Grimley is unknown and therefore may offer a poor sample of information for what is required in my research. The Code is positioned to aid smaller tenants who often are unable to afford professional property services. Cooke describes his opinion that corporate occupiers regard it as inequitable that, having assigned a lease to a third party and having received the landlords approval to the transaction, they are required to step back in because of the failure of the assignee several years later. (Cooke, July 2007) If this is a commonplace problem in the market, then this certainly gives good grounds for a new code. 2002 Code of Practice for Commercial Leases (E2): The second edition of the Code of Practice for Leases in England and Wales was published in 2002. Philip Freedman, one of the co-contributors to the 2007 code commented that Although it was felt there had been a significant move toward shorter leases, and lease terms had become more flexible, small business tenants were still poorly informed about property matters and landlords were not offering tenants sufficiently flexible lease terms to match their business needs(Freedman, 2006). Freedman continues to mention that the government was unsatisfied with the continued prominence of upward only rent reviews (UORRs) in longer leases, and was considering outlawing them. The Code introduced in 2002 was very different from its predecessor from 1995 that it replaced. There were no objectives or aims set out in the Code, instead, ten key recommendations to business leases were listed. The first three were to promote open negotiation between parties, and to recommend financial advice on costs of occupation. The other seven points cover particular aspects of a commercial lease (Neil Crosby et al. (2005). The paper Monitoring the 2002 Code of Practice for Commercial Leases, co-written by Neil Crosby at Reading University for the UK government was designed to measure in detail the impact of the 2002 Code. It is similar to my piece of research, although it is now outdated and obsolete for professional consultation. It does however show key research that provides evidence that the 2002 Code was unsuccessful and therefore required change. An interview survey was carried out with an extensive number of chartered surveyors, and also with solicitors involved with conveyance and lease contract negotiation. The perception of property professionals acting for clients in 2005 was noted as follows. Firstly, virtually all interviewees were aware of the 2002 code. Secondly it is clear that larger and institutional landlords are more likely to have knowledge of the code and smaller landlords may not. Thirdly, tenants are perceived to have no knowledge of the code unless they are large tenants with direct access to professional property services advice. The conclusion is that Most consider that the Code is having no influence at all on lease negotiations, although some of the agent interviewees regard it as having some small, indirect, influence. Only two interviewees, one surveyor and one solicitor, are actively and regularly using the Code when negotiating on behalf of tenants. The paper concludes that there is the perception among large commercial tenants that the lease structure system is unsatisfactory in the UK, even if they are unaware of the Code. International tenants appear to be more dissatisfied than their UK counterparts. The main reasons cited for dissatisfaction are the lease lengths, and the tenants lack of break clauses. The research methods used in this paper hold credit as the results were a catalyst for a code reform. It is highlighted that the Code is underperforming, and holds no or very little influence. The paper has been useful in developing my hypothesis as it gives a benchmark for success for the 2007 Code. The Last Chance to Get Things Right: The article titled the last chance to get things right written by Philip Freedman, comments on the shortcomings of the 2002 Code and gives specific direction as to changes that should be implemented in the new Code. The shortcomings are extremely valuable to my research because it shows direct areas in which the 2002 Code has been considered to fail and these areas should be focused upon when analysing the level of success of the 2007 Code. Firstly, Freedman sights that restrictions on subletting and assignments have not been relaxed in accordance with the Code. Landlords, familiar with the landlord and tenant act 1995, had in recent years been imposing detailed restrictions on assignments, most notable with the introduction of required authorised guarantee agreements (AGAs). Tenants under such agreements are limited in their possibilities for assignment as it is difficult to find a sufficient tenant. Furthermore, the liability still remains in an event that an assignee defaults on the lease payments. His views are backed up by the research by the 2005 report conducted at Reading University. This research found that most leases that had the option for assignment automatically required the tenant to enter into an AGA. Secondly, between the period of 2002 and 2005, the courts upheld a number of landlords rights to impose strict enforcement on lease clauses that require subletting to conform to specific requirements on rent or other terms(Freedman,2006). Freedman sights the case Allied Dunbar Assurance PLC V Homebase LTD [2002]. This would suggest that the courts are not working in unison with the views held by the Government that businesses require further protection from landlords. Freedman concludes, indicating that this is the last chance for the industry. A study into whether the new Code has influence or not would seem wholly relevant as it would provide knowledge on whether this last chance has been successful or not. Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007: After Yvette Cooper introduced the Code in March 2007, Geoff Le Pard considered the contents of the new Code. The new Code is more concise than the 2002 version. It is written in plain English and provides more authoritative guidance on lease terms (Le Pard (2007). The article, from which the quote above is taken, was released 3 days after the Code was introduced. While this is time to provide commentary on the new aspects of the Code, it is unable to provide any reliable prediction as to how this will affect the market in the long run. New aspects of interest that are assessed include firstly pricing options and rent reviews. Under the 2007 Code, landlords must state whether a choice of lease terms is available and propose rents for different lease terms (Le Pard (2007). Secondly, restrictions on assignment are discussed. One of the governments principle concerns is the inflexible assignment and subletting provisions in leases (Le Pard (2007). The article continues by commenting that the Code only allows the provision of an AGA agreement, established problem of the 2002 Code, when the assigned tenant is of a lower financial standing than the outgoing tenant. Thirdly Le Pard comments that the new Code insists Break Clauses should not be prevented by conditions that effectively make the break inoperable (Le Pard (2007). Certainly the three features of the 2007 Code that are described by Geoff Le Pard can be tested using primary research as to their influence. A Code that Lacks Strength: The reach of the new commercial lease code will be limited by the ability of landlords to opt out selectively (Martin, 2007). In this article, John Martin explains that the government and BPF believe that landlords who subscribe to the Commercial Landlords Accreditation Scheme (CLAS) will gain marketing benefits. Part of the scheme involves the landlords abiding by the 2007 commercial lease code (landlord code). If rules are broken then private and public reprimand can occur however, the landlord code value is watered down in the fact that landlords can opt out of any specific requirements of the Code (subject to explanation). The extent to which landlords sign to the CLAS is not described, however is supports the view that landlords do not want to adopt the Code. Martin also has an interesting view that the new guidance on assignments appears to be an attempt to revert to the pre-1996 position, without re-instating the concept of privity of contract (Martin 2007). The article is however written with an assumption that the Code will be endorsed by property professional and therefore will spread throughout the market quickly. Gap in the Knowledge: As previously mentioned, there is a wealth of information published commenting on the Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007. What is unknown is the influence this code is having on the industry if at all. Considering the Code is thought to be the last chance for reform prior to legislation, its performance should be reviewed to show whether legislation is necessary or not. After reviewing the literature in this chapter, a conclusion has been drawn that the Code is unnecessary. There is not sufficient research to prove this and there is therefore a gap in the knowledge. The next chapter sets out the methods in which the hypothesis in Chapter 1 will be tested. Introduction: This research was designed to test this hypothesis; The introduction of The Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007 has improved the position of a tenant when negotiating a new lease. This chapter discusses the research methods applied and ultimately lead to a comprehensive conclusion that will either reject or confirm the hypothesis. Research Methods: Traditionally, there are two different types of research. These are Quantitative research and qualitative research. Miles Huberman (1994). Quantitative Research: Quantitative Research is normally presented in Data, usually in the form of numbers and statistics. Theres no such thing as qualitative data. Everything is either 1 or 0 (Fred Kerlinger). The aim is to classify what statistics are important, count them and construct statistical models. One can then explain what is observed. Fred Kerlinger considers all research can be ultimately defined as quantitative as one could argue that all information can be displayed through binary (yes or no) questions and answers. Qualitative Research: Qualitative research is based upon alternatives to statistical data such as values and opinions. Donald Campbell holds the view that all research must stem from an initial qualitative theory. All research ultimately has a qualitative grounding (Donald Campbell) It can be extremely useful when there is little or no previous research on a topic, as it can unearth new views and theories on a subject. Donald Campbell considers all research stems from an initial qualitative study. Research Strategy: Secondary Research: This type of research relies on the information and research submitted by others. The advantages and disadvantages are shown in table 3.1 above. Before writing this report, many books, internet articles, journals magazine articles were consulted so a thorough understanding of the subject was known. It should be noted that as the Code in question, The Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007, was only introduced at the end of April in 2007 there is therefore limited published material on the subject. Literature Review: The literature used in Chapter 2 for the review is a form of secondary research, and while it shows the current knowledge on a topic, much of it is outdated and therefore unreliable. The literature review also highlighted the lack of material published regarding the lease codes in the UK. There are a number of magazine articles but there is only one academic report (Crosby et al. (2005)) that holds any significant value, but as stated it is outdated. Once the gap in the knowledge was identified from the literature review, it gave direction for a number of research questions to use in my primary research. Primary Research: This is research that compounds new information. The following two types of primary research were used by my study:- Small Business Tenant Questionnaire. Landlord Questionnaire. Semi-structured Interview with Chartered Surveyors. Tenant and Landlord Questionnaires: Target Audience: The first stage of primary research involved two separate questionnaire studies firstly to tenants, and secondly to landlords. The questions aimed at the subjects were influenced by the report from Reading University Monitoring the 2002 Code of Practice for Commercial Leases (Crosby et al. (2005)). Questions were asked with a final goal of contributing to the objectives and aims of the report and testing the validity of the hypothesis. The questionnaire provides an opportunity to understand the direct influence of the Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007 on tenants and landlords. Questionnaires were completed in either of two ways. It was established that it would be far easier to gain responses from landlords if it was via email and therefore this is how the 20 landlords were contacted and how they gave response. With regard to the tenant questionnaire, it was decided that a questionnaire would be delivered to a number of tenants. After two days, these would be collected and any uncompleted questionnaires would not be counted. A total of 30 business tenants were visited. Due to the data protection act, names of tenants or landlords remain anonymous and cover notes were addressed to the Manager. Sample: Due to the large number of tenants and landlords in England and Wales, it is necessary to sample the respondents. The sample method used is a form of random and cluster sampling combined. Normal cluster samples are used when the subject research matter is too large to measure. Normally certain areas would be subject to research instead of the whole country for example. Often in cluster sampling, the total population is divided into these groups (or clusters) and a sample of the groups is selected (Wikipedia, 2008). In my research, this was further randomised down into sample of particular clusters. Areas used for the research were Windsor, Bracknell and Reading. It was considered that 30 tenants and 12 landlords would be a sufficient sample to gain the required information without mak ng the research excessively impractical. Design and Content: Each of the two questionnaires were designed to be as clear as possible for the target individuals, and they also incorporate layman wording as to ensure each question is understood fully. The majority of questions asked utilised a multiple choice answer system. This enabled each paper to be completed with ease and also provide comparable data between different questionnaires. Copies of both Questionnaires including a covering letter for each questionnaire are included in Appendix B and C respectively. Pilot: It was felt necessary for a pilot copy of each questionnaire to be reviewed by a property professional prior to conduction of the survey. This was done for a number of reasons. Firstly the design of the questionnaire is reviewed to ensure it is easy to comprehend. Secondly, the wording is reviewed and changed if necessary. Thirdly organisation and the number of questions are reviewed. The pilot questionnaires were sent to a property professional Nigel Dight (Leslie G. Dight and Partners). It was decided after the pilot that a universal do you have any other comments to add, would be incorporated as a final question. This gives the opportunity for landlords or tenants in the subject research to add any qualitative information they feel important to the subject. Response Rate: Before each email was sent to landlords, a telephone call was made to ensure they were comfortable with the questionnaire. This ensured a high response rate. A covering letter (viewable in Appendix B) was also sent to emphasise the importance of the answers and how they help the research project. A response rate of 75% was achieved which was viewed as a success. A much lower response rate was expected from the tenant questionnaires; however, the 60% achieved was largely viewed as a success. It was expected to that ten respondents from each questionnaire would be achieved however this was exceeded. After this initial response it was decided therefore that no new respondents needed to be found as both questionnaires had exceeded response rate expectancy. Semi-structured Interview: Target Audience: Interviews were carried out with chartered surveyors who have extensive current and previous experience in both tenant and landlord representation during lease negotiations. It is important that each interviewee has experience of the market over the last twenty years in order to have a comprehensive view of how the market has changed, and how this has affected tenants. Appendix D gives a list of interview candidates. A semi-structured interview technique was used to gather information from chartered surveyors because they are likely to have a wealth of experience and knowledge on the topic. The interview provides the opportunity to show the indirect impact of the Code for Leasing Business Premises in England and Wales 2007 because, unlike the questionnaires, the interviewed surveyors are more likely to have a broader understanding of the mechanisms within the market. If the code is found to indirectly affect a business lease tenant, the surveyor is far more likely indicate this than the tenant themselves. Sample: Due to the large number of chartered surveyors in the UK it is not possible to interview them all. A random sample method is used to find suitable candidates for the interview process. It is also important the prospective candidates are vetted prior to the interview to ensure they have the relevant experience to answer the questions. Although only a small number of interviews took place, an attempt to provide a full spectrum of surveyors from the marketplace was achieved. One of the interviewees acts on behalf of large corporate clients, while another acts on behalf of smaller clients for example. It was viewed that only a small number of samples would be required as a predicted response rate was a high percentage. Design and Content: Appendix D includes a list of outline questions that should be posted to interviewees. Although only a guideline, these questions were designed to gain the core information required from the interview. In practice, further questions and discussions took place during the interview. Compared with the questionnaires, this provides further in depth answers and opinions. The estimated time of each interview was intended to be around 15 minutes. This was firstly conceived to be enough time to gain the required information. Secondly it was not so long as to discourage any prospective interviewees from taking part. In practice the interviews lasted for around 25 minutes, due to the expansion of the core questions, however this did not cause a problem. A full transcript of each interview can be viewed in appendix E. Two of the interviews were carried out via telephone interview as this provided the easiest was to lease with surveyors at some distance. One interview was carried out in person d ue to the close proximity of their office. The interview in person proved to be more successful as the interviewee seemed more focused on the questions. Response Rate: The response rate was 60% which was considered poor under the circumstances. A small number of surveyors were contacted with the initial view that all would provide an interview. The response rate did however fall between 60% and 100% which wa

Longitudinally Extensive Transverse Myelitis Patients

Longitudinally Extensive Transverse Myelitis Patients Characteristics of Longitudinally Extensive Transverse Myelitis patients: a retrospective analysis of 40 consecutive cases at a tertiary care hospital from North-West India Abstract Longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM), characterised by spinal cord inflammation extending three or more vertebral segments may be caused by multiple disorders most common being neuromyelitis optica(NMO). Such is the frequent association between these two entities that there is a growing concern to regard them as being practically synonymous with each other. However, all potential etiologies should be considered in the assessment of LETM. We conducted retrospective analysis (2010-2014) of 40 patients of LETM for demographic features, clinical presentation, laboratory investigations and neuro-imaging. Result: Majority of the patients presented acutely with bladder dysfunction and paraparesis. Ten out of 40(25%) were classified as NMO among which only 4 were serum NMO antibody positive. Among the rest, there were 6 patients of MS, 3 patients of tubercular, 2 patients each of ADEM, spinal AVM and postinfectious etiology, one patient each of SACD and SLE. A group of 13 pati ents remained in whom no causative factor could be identified from the available investigations. Conclusion: LETM even with optic neuritis does not universally represent a diagnosis of NMO and one needs to be cautious while making a diagnosis of NMO without consideration of other etiologies as the treatment and prognosis differs among different etiologies. Abbreviations: MS (multiple sclerosis); AVM (arteriovenous malformation); SACD (subacute combined degeneration); ADEM (acute disseminated encephalomyelitis); TM (transverse myelitis). Key words: Longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis; Neuromyelitis optica Introduction Longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM) is a relatively recent term designating a transverse myelitis(TM) that extends three or more vertebral segments vertically. These lesions, which may occasionally span the entire length of the spinal cord, are much rarer and in general associated with greater morbidity than the typical lesions of idiopathic TM or multiple sclerosis (MS) associated TM(1). The key discriminating feature of LETM lesions is their length. The most frequent cause of LETM is neuromyelitis optica (NMO). In recent times the association between these two conditions has been so heavily emphasized that when LETM is encountered, an erroneous diagnosis of NMO may be made prior to careful consideration of other potential etiologies of LETM(1). Thus, early recognition and establishment of the aetiology of LETM from appropriate workup is essential for optimizing outcome and in some cases commencing appropriate treatment to prevent future attacks of central nervous system (CNS) inflammation. Studies comparing clinical, laboratory and radiological profiles of the LETM patients are scarce, especially from the developing countries. Thus, this study was conducted to review the characteristics of presentation and etiological classification of LETM at SMS Medical College and Hospital, Jaipur, a tertiary care centre of North India. Patients and Methods The study is a retrospective analysis (2010-2014) of 40 patients classified as having LETM on the basis of clinical manifestations of myelitis and spinal MRI finding of lesions typically extending three or more vertebral segments in length, admitted in SMS Medical College and Hospital, Jaipur with the following objectives:- To study the clinical, radiological and CSF profile of patients with LETM. To determine the aetiology of the myelitis. Patient demographics, presenting symptoms, clinical manifestations and investigations were recorded on data entry forms. The investigations included routine blood profile along with markers of connective tissue disorders (ESR, CRP, ANA, Anti dS DNA), MRI (of involved spinal cord segments in T2-weighted images of spinal MRI and MRI Brain), CSF analysis (including oligoclonal bands) and serum NMO antibody (NMO Ab) which was done by indirect immunofluorescence method. Results 40 patients were found to fulfil the LETM criteria. 22 among the 40 patients were less than 30 years age (55%). Overall Mean age was 28 years with male: female ratio of 1.8:1, suggestive of male preponderance. Apart from it no specific trend was observed among the study group in terms of their demographics. The majority of patients presented with bladder dysfunction, paraparesis and quadriparesis. Most of the patients had an acute presentation. Collectively, thoracic spinal cord segment was most commonly involved. 12 patients had clinically significant vision impairment at the time of presentation of which 10 were classified as NMO according to Wingerchuck et al criteria, one case was classified as MS and another was a case of SACD (Table 1). Table 1: Presenting Clinical features Table 2: Radiological Findings Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pleocytosis was seen in 55 %( 22 out of 40 patients) ranging from 10 to 250 cells/cumm. Among 10 NMO patients, 5 showed CSF pleocytosis of which 2 had neutrophilic predominance. The maximum cell count among NMO patients was 35 cells with lymphocytic predominance. Apart from it, 3 patients of tubercular, 2 patients each of postinfectious etiology and ADEM , one patient of MS and 4 patients of undetermined etiology also showed CSF pleocytosis. The maximum CSF cell count was 250 cells in one of the tubercular patient with lymphocytic predominance. CSF proteins were elevated in 15 out of 40(37.5%) patients of which 3 patients were each of MS and tubercular etiology, 2 patients each of NMO and postinfectious etiology and 5 patients were of undetermined category. Out of 40 patients, 18 had extensive lesions involving >6 spinal cord segments .Among 38 patients in whom MRI brain was done, 10 showed abnormalities, of which 5 patients were of MS, two were each of ADEM and tubercular etiology and another one was NMO (NMO Ab positive) (Table 2).Among the MS patients, abnormalities were seen involving deep white matter of bilateral cerebral hemispheres, corpus callosum, brainstem and basal ganglia. Based upon the above-mentioned clinical presentation and investigations, patients were classified according to their etiologies (Table 3). Table 3: Etiology of LETM patients 10 patients were of NMO fulfilling revised diagnostic criteria for neuromyelitis optica by Wingerchuk et al (7). In 8 out of 10 patients NMO antibody was sent, 2 patients refused for it. 4 out of them were NMO Ab positive and remaining 4 were negative. Among 10 NMO patients only one patient had lesions in MRI brain typical of NMO (Figure 12)). Four of ten patients in whom serum NMO Ab was done showed positivity and one of the NMO Ab positive patient had brain MRI abnormality involving brainstem, posterior part of corpus callosum, left parietal periventricular white matter. Six patients were of MS fulfilling the revised McDonald criteria for diagnosis of MS. Three patients were of tubercular myelitis ,two patients each were of ADEM , postinfectious etiology, and spinal AVM. One was having nutritional cause in form of vitamin B12 deficiency and one patient had SLE (ANA dsDNA positive). Rest of the patients could not be categorised to a definite etiology from the available investigations. Discussion In our series, common presenting symptoms were bladder dysfunction, paraparesis, quadriparesis, and visual impairment. Majority of the patients studied suffered from bladder dysfunction and paraparesis. It is a difficult task to determine the underlying etiology of LETM and it is worth exploring each case for subtle clues that may point toward the correct underlying diagnosis as the prognosis and long-term treatment decision differs in each category. Till now there are no studies describing association of clinical features and demographic features with the etiology of the myelitis (2). In our series the maximum CSF cell count (250) was in tubercular patient. Maximum CSF cell count in NMO and MS patients was 35 and 30 respectively. It is now well established that LETM does not universally represent a diagnosis of NMO, even in the setting of optic neuritis. However, in our series demyelinating disorders were found to be the most common cause of LETM and NMO was the most common etiology among demyelinating disorders. All NMO patients fulfilled the criteria laid down by Wingerchuk et al (3). Among ten NMO patients, four were NMO antibody positive. Three main laboratory techniques are utilized in identifying the antibodies. In our patients it was done by the indirect immunofluorescence method which has the reported sensitivity and specificity of 86% and 91% respectively (4). At present, it is unclear whether there is truly a subset of patients with clinical NMO that are NMO antibody negative, or if this is a result of inadequate sensitivity of existing immunoassays to detect the antibody, or inadequately sensitive and specific diagnostic criteria, or a combination of all of these factors. Although a regular follow up was not available in all NMO patients, a telephonic survey revealed that four NMO patients, of which two were seronegative and in two NMO antibody was not done, had no relapse and are doing well. Apart from this, one patient died from subsequent relapse and one could not be assessed in follow up. Among the four NMO antibody positive patients, who were under regular follow up, two (50%) presented with relapsing- remitting form of illness. One was 25 years old male who initially had 4 episodes of paraparesis with near complete recovery each time and developed vision impairment in the fifth episode and another was a 12 year old girl who had four relapses with simultaneous occurrence of vision impairment and paraparesis in the first episode. Thus, 4 patients had a monophasic disease course in 1 year follow up. However, a diagnosis of monophasic NMO should be considered with caution, because more than 90% of patients with NMO ultimately develop a relapsing cou rse. One prospective Class I study found that the presence of aquaporin-4–specific autoantibodies (AQP4) predicts recurrence of TM or conversion to NMO(5). So was our observation in the form that out of the 3 patients who had relapse, 2 were NMO antibody positive. Therefore, we speculate that AQP4 antibody status, particularly seropositivity, has some predictive value. Median age of onset of NMO is in the fourth decade. In our series all NMO patients were below 40 years of age except one who was a 52 years old female (figure 3).Interestingly this patient apart from late onset, also presented with slowly progressive paraparesis of one year duration which has not been described earlier in the literature. In spinal NMO lesions, the central part of the cord is commonly affected, including both grey and white matter with peripheral sparing (figure 3). These imaging features may therefore help to differentiate MS from NMO in patients who present with LETM(6). Among the NMO antibody positive patients, one had typical brain lesions of NMO (Figure 1). In patients with clinical and radiological features otherwise typical for NMO, 60–85% of cases have been shown to have abnormal brain lesions. Lesions involving the diencephalon and brainstem distinctly atypical for MS have been commonly reported in NMO patients. These distinctive lesions predominately involve the hypothalamus and can extend to brain tissue surrounding the third and fourth ventricle and aqueduct of Sylvius and seem to be characteristic brain lesions of NMO(7). There were 13 patients in whom a definite etiological diagnosis could not be made from the feasible investigations. This group is usually described in the literature as ‘idiopathic’. However, the idiopathic nature is a diagnosis of exclusion. In our series whether these patients were belonging to the category of postinfectious or some other form of demyelinating etiology was not clear from the investigations that were done in these patients as these patients were also later lost to follow up. Among 3 patients who were classified as tubercular on the basis of reactive CSF and positive TB PCR, one had intramedullary spinal tuberculomas (Figure 4). Intramedullary tuberculomas (IMT) are seen in only 2 out of 100,000 cases of tuberculosis and 2 out of 1,000 cases of central nervous system tuberculosis, are even rare as a cause of LETM(8).Out of these three, one had complete recovery with ATT and remaining 2 had poor outcome with bedridden status. Among 40 LETM patients, we were able to categorise only two patients as ADEM on clinical and radiological grounds (Figure 5).Both patients were of paediatric age (14 and 16 years) group, had complete and rapid recovery with no recurrence on 6 month follow up, which made the diagnosis even more certain, and correlated with the fact that monophasic course is the hallmark of ADEM. MRI features of ADEM that are unusual in MS are symmetric bilateral disease, relative sparing of the periventricular white matter and deep grey matter involvement (9). However, 22% of ADEM patients had a periventricular lesion pattern indistinguishable from that seen in MS (10).Similar radiological features were observed by us in both patients (Figure 5 and 6). The radiological features of spinal cord involvement in ADEM in adults have not been well studied. In a small Dutch series, one-third of patients had lesions extending more than two vertebral segments on spinal MRI at presentation (11). Approximately 75 % patients with ADEM have a preceding infection, and by definition there will be evidence of demyelination within the brain, as well as in the spinal cord, as seen in our patients (Figure 6). These features may help to differentiate ADEM from NMO spectrum disorders. Among the metabolic causes, subacute combined degeneration (SACD) of the cord due to vitamin B12 deficiency can produce longitudinally extensive hyperintense signal on MRI imaging as seen in one of our patient (Figure 7). Generally T2 weighted scans demonstrate focal high signal abnormalities in the white matter of the dorsal and posterior columns in SACD (12). In conclusion, the differential diagnosis of LETM is broad. Although characteristically associated with NMO, this diagnosis accounts for less than half of cases of isolated LETM in adults, and may be even less common in children. Patients presenting with LETM require a thorough work-up to exclude other treatable causes particularly infectious and inflammatory. The management of LETM is dependent on distinguishing inflammatory from non-inflammatory aetiologies and in identifying patients who are at high risk of further attacks. Figure Legends Figure 1: MRI brain showing hyperintensities (arrowheads) involving brainstem, left parietal periventricular white matter, posterior part of corpus callosum in seropositive patient of NMO (12 year old girl) Figure 2: MRI cervical spine T2 weighted sagittal and axial images of same patient showing predominant involvement of central grey matter (arrowheads). Figure 3: MRI cervical spine T2 weighted sagittal and axial images of 52 years old NMO antibody positive female showing predominant involvement of central grey matter. Figure 4:T2 weighted sagittal and axial images showing hyperintensity (arrowheads) in cervical cord with contrast enhancement suggestive of tuberculoma. Figure 5: MRI cervicodorsal spine, T2 weighted sagittal and axial images of a 16 year old girl with ADEM.MRI brain of the same patient showed lesions (arrowheads) in basal ganglia, brainstem and cortex typical of ADEM. Figure 6: MRI brain and spine of a 14 years old male with ADEM showing hyperintensities in brain involving bilateral periventricular white matter and long segment hyperintensity in the cord extending upto conus. Figure 7: Hyperintense signal in posterior aspect (arrow) of cervicodorsal cord in T2 weighted axial and sagittal images of SACD patient. References Eckstein C., Syc S. and Saidha S., â€Å"Differential diagnosis of longitudinall extensive transverse myelitis in adults† ENJ 2011; 3 🙠 1). July 2011. Scott T., Frohman E., De Seze J. et al., Evidence-based guideline: Clinical evaluation and treatment of transverse myelitis. Neurology; December, 2011 Wingerchuk et al. Revised diagnostic criteria for NMO. Neurology 2006;66:1485-9 Waters P, Vincent A. Detection of anti-aquaporin-4 antibodies in neuromyelitis optica: Current status of the assays. Int MS J 2008; 15:99-105. Weinshenker B, Wingerchuk D, Vukusic S, et al. 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