Assess The Functionalism

Functionalism is a predominant perspective in which to analyse the British educational system. The functionalist sees education as a miniature society, where the individual develops a sense of commitment to the social group; it is a place to learn rules where the individual learns to conform to societies cultural norms and values. The functionalist perspectives of Emile Durkheim are particularly relevant to the British educational system. He believed that the major function of education was the transmission of societies norms and values. This would allow an advanced division of labour, thus contributing to economy. He believed in the process known as socialisation, where cultural norms transpose a conditioned individual, allowing entry to modern society. The economy greatly relies on educational conditioning, and it is essential that educational achievement is well balanced in the meritoractic society, for role allocation to occur. The individual must be suitably-fitted for his or her post. From a functionalist perspective schools sieve individuals in accordance to their ability for example by tiered examinations. This process in which educational failure is seen positively, aids role allocation. Parsons backed Durkheim s theory. He believed that education fulfils the function of secondary socialisation, thus allowing role allocation to occur. He firmly believed that role allocation was necessary for the functioning of society and the economy. His perspectives encouraged meritocracy, where the individual is rewarded on the basis of merit or ability. There are various conflict theories, which give different view regarding the role of education on modern Britain. For example the Marxist perspectives of education argue that the education system imposes values of a higher class origin. In addition, achievement is based merely on social background and therefore makes failure inevitable. Bowles and Gintis believed that the hidden curriculum benefits only the employer in a capitalist society, whereas a functionalist perspective would argue that without socialisation in education, the individual would not recognise the norms and values of modern society. They believed that there is a strong relationship between capitalism and the educational system. The correspondence theory of Bowles and Gents illustrates school as entry into a world of exploitive work, where the individual learns to believe in meritocracy. In contrast to a functionalist perspective, Giroux believed that the educational system is a site of ideological struggle, where the enforcement of class differences by aiding the middle class and neglecting the working class from achieving are obvious. Marxists believed that functionalism was to blame for the failure of the educational system, and because individuals are made to conform, they mostly oppose values espoused by schools. The enforcement of complacency therefore encouraged a counter school culture, the consequence of unappealing and monotonous tasks. Illch supported this view and felt that education should be an enjoyable and inspiriting institution where group work is encouraged to prevent bad behaviour and rebellion to authority. A functionalist would argue that bad behaviour, is exactly why individuals need to reform to the cultural norms of a modern day society if they are to succeed at all. Marxist and Functionalist perspectives of the role of education in modern Britain are evidently very different. Functionalism seems to be the main consensus perspective. Analysis of Functionalist views conveys the positive contribution made by education to the social system. Whereas the Marxist theories argue that the education system imposes dominant values of the middle class and neglects the working class. Marxists perspectives also believe that a disproportional amount of lower class individuals will continue to higher education as a result of ideological factors such as class and race (suggested by literature in sociology in focus ). Marxists believed that the myth of meritocracy ( Haralambos ) made the individual feel responsible for his or her own failure in education as opposed to the functionalist factors such as role allocation and the hidden curriculum which are clearly to blame for the inevitable failure of the individual. A Marxists perspective is probably more relevant to my own experience. I have experienced pressure from pier groups from higher social backgrounds of my own, and feel that without dress sense, posture, accent and money we are all able to achieve to similar standards, despite allowances sometimes made for richer more fortunate individuals. Assess The Functionalism Functionalism is a predominant perspective in which to analyse the British educational system. The functionalist sees education as a miniature society, where the individual develops a sense of commitment to the social group; it is a place to learn rules where the individual learns to conform to societies cultural norms and values. The functionalist perspectives of Emile Durkheim are particularly relevant to the British educational system. He believed that the major function of education was the transmission of societies norms and values. This would allow an advanced division of labour, thus contributing to economy. He believed in the process known as socialisation, where cultural norms transpose a conditioned individual, allowing entry to modern society. The economy greatly relies on educational conditioning, and it is essential that educational achievement is well balanced in the meritoractic society, for role allocation to occur. The individual must be suitably-fitted for his or her post. From a functionalist perspective schools sieve individuals in accordance to their ability for example by tiered examinations. This process in which educational failure is seen positively, aids role allocation. Parsons backed Durkheim s theory. He believed that education fulfils the function of secondary socialisation, thus allowing role allocation to occur. He firmly believed that role allocation was necessary for the functioning of society and the economy. His perspectives encouraged meritocracy, where the individual is rewarded on the basis of merit or ability. There are various conflict theories, which give different view regarding the role of education on modern Britain. For example the Marxist perspectives of education argue that the education system imposes values of a higher class origin. In addition, achievement is based merely on social background and therefore makes failure inevitable. Bowles and Gintis believed that the hidden curriculum benefits only the employer in a capitalist society, whereas a functionalist perspective would argue that without socialisation in education, the individual would not recognise the norms and values of modern society. They believed that there is a strong relationship between capitalism and the educational system. The correspondence theory of Bowles and Gents illustrates school as entry into a world of exploitive work, where the individual learns to believe in meritocracy. In contrast to a functionalist perspective, Giroux believed that the educational system is a site of ideological struggle, where the enforcement of class differences by aiding the middle class and neglecting the working class from achieving are obvious. Marxists believed that functionalism was to blame for the failure of the educational system, and because individuals are made to conform, they mostly oppose values espoused by schools. The enforcement of complacency therefore encouraged a counter school culture, the consequence of unappealing and monotonous tasks. Illch supported this view and felt that education should be an enjoyable and inspiriting institution where group work is encouraged to prevent bad behaviour and rebellion to authority. A functionalist would argue that bad behaviour, is exactly why individuals need to reform to the cultural norms of a modern day society if they are to succeed at all. Marxist and Functionalist perspectives of the role of education in modern Britain are evidently very different. Functionalism seems to be the main consensus perspective. Analysis of Functionalist views conveys the positive contribution made by education to the social system. Whereas the Marxist theories argue that the education system imposes dominant values of the middle class and neglects the working class. Marxists perspectives also believe that a disproportional amount of lower class individuals will continue to higher education as a result of ideological factors such as class and race (suggested by literature in sociology in focus ). Marxists believed that the myth of meritocracy ( Haralambos ) made the individual feel responsible for his or her own failure in education as opposed to the functionalist factors such as role allocation and the hidden curriculum which are clearly to blame for the inevitable failure of the individual. A Marxists perspective is probably more relevant to my own experience. I have experienced pressure from pier groups from higher social backgrounds of my own, and feel that without dress sense, posture, accent and money we are all able to achieve to similar standards, despite allowances sometimes made for richer more fortunate individuals.

Gender roles in Sitcoms Essay

â€Å"Gender is the crucial factor in characterization in the majority of sitcoms. Up until the impact of feminism in the 1970s, in the UK at least, it is clear that most of the successful sitcoms featured leading male characters (Hancock, Steptoe, Dad’s Army, Till Death Do Us Part, Porridge etc.). Women were more likely to feature in ‘ensemble casts’ – The Rag Trade, Are You Being Served? This was also a function of the employment opportunities for women. Since the 1970s, women in leading roles have been more common (but the most successful comedies have tended to be based on couples rather than single women).† (Roy Stafford, TV Sitcoms and Gender, ONLINE) Based on television analysis it is very simple to notice what it means to be a mother, from the television’s perspective: to be a mother means to cook when your husband is hungry, to clean the house when necessary, to take care of the children etc. To be a father means to work and to come home expecting a cooked meal for whenever you are hungry, to make the tough decisions and to be the dominate figure in the household. Television is saying a lot about the roles of male and female couples. In what concerns the female types in sitcoms, Roy Stafford suggested a specific classification, across comedy and drama since the 1950s: †¢ Matron/Working Battleaxes †¢ Sexy assistant †¢ Business matriarch †¢ Woman in a Man’s World †¢ The Vamp (1980s) †¢ Woman in Power †¢ Women who fight other women †¢ Woman who watches her ‘biological clock’ For my paper I chose to talk about three different sitcoms, namely: Bewitched (1964 –1972), The Nanny (1993–1999) and Cougar Town (2009). Bewitched (1964–1972) â€Å"A young-looking witch named Samantha meets and marries a mortal named Darrin Stephens. While Samantha pledges to forsake her powers and become a typical suburban housewife, her magical family disapproves of the mixed marriage and frequently interferes in the couple’s lives. Episodes often begin with Darrin becoming the victim of a spell, the effects of which wreak havoc with mortals such as his boss, clients, parents, and neighbors. By the epilogue, however, Darrin and Samantha most often embrace, having overcome the devious elements that failed to separate them. The witches, most having names ending with the soft â€Å"-a† sound, and their male counterparts, known as â€Å"warlocks†, are very long-lived; while Samantha appears to be in her twenties, many episodes suggest she is actually hundreds of years old. To keep their society secret, witches avoid showing their powers in front of mortals other than Darrin. Nevertheless, the perplexing inexplicable effects of their spells and Samantha’s attempts to hide their supernatural origin from mortals drive the plot of most episodes. Witches and warlocks usually use physical gestures along with their magical spells, and sometimes spoken incantations. Most notably, Samantha often twitches her nose to perform a spell. Modest but effective special visual effects are accompanied by music to highlight the magic.† (Wikipedia, Bewitched, ONLINE) â€Å"Bewitched† is one of the many examples were the father goes out to work and the mother stays at home, cleaning, cooking, taking care of the children. Samantha attempts to denounce or leave her witch world behind because she is now married to Darrin, a mere mortal, for whom she would do anything. She is a home-loving wife who does everything to support her husband by promising to leave her magical powers at the door in order to try to live a normal life as a housewife. The Nanny (1993–1999) †Jewish-American Fran Fine, fresh out of her job as a bridal consultant in her fiance’s shop, first appears on the door step of Broadway producer Maxwell Sheffield (Charles Shaughnessy) peddling cosmetics, and quickly stumbles upon the opportunity to become the nanny for his three children. Soon Fran, with her off-beat nurturing and no-nonsense honesty, touches the whole family as she gives the prim-and-proper Maxwell and his children a dose of ‘Queens logic,’ helping them to become a healthy, happy family, a family that she later fully joins when she becomes engaged and then married to Maxwell. She then adds to this family of five when she and Maxwell have fraternal twins. Other characters include sardonic butler Niles (Daniel Davis), and Maxwell’s socialite business partner C.C. Babcock (Lauren Lane), who views Fran with jealousy and skepticism.† (Wikipedia, The Nanny, ONLINE) †The Nanny† † is no longer the type of sitcom where the wife stays at home and just her husband goes to work. Compared with †Bewitched†, this sitcom is more modern and more different in what concerns the gender roles. Fran Fine is no longer just a home-loving wife who does everything to support her husband, but she exposes her point of view and most often she dose so as everyone to do as she wants to. She has a stronger character and is more independent comparing with Samantha. Cougar Town (2009) †Jules Cobb – a recently divorced single mother exploring the truths about dating and aging. Jules spent most of her 20s and 30s married to Bobby and raising a son, Travis. She tried to relive her 20s and make up for lost time by dating younger men, but has since come to terms with the limitations of her age and has had relationships with men her age. She resides in a small town in Florida and is a real estate agent who is successful in business. Because she has been out of the dating world for a while, Jules discovers it is difficult to find love again.[10] A close-up of her driver’s license in a season 2 episode reveals her full first name to be Julia and her birth date to be November 15, 1968 (age 43).† (Wikipedia, Cougar Town, ONLINE) †Cougar Town† is a modern sitcom with modern elements, modern characters and modern women. The home-loving wife, the devoted mother to the family, the wife that does everything for her husband and for supporting him, the wife that just stays home and takes care of the children, cleans the house, cooks, is no longer the type of the female character used in this sitcom. Here, Jules is a modern woman that decides to find some excitement in her dating life. She is divorced and is more concerned with her ​​looks than her family. Jules is working, is going out with her friend, dates younger boys, wants to have a perfect body so she can hide her real age†¦so, she is a modern woman with modern desires. Television is a powerful influence in determining the roles of men and women in society. Young people are especially influencd by its portrayal of gender roles. †Throughout the history of television, the role of the housewife and mother has changed from a subservient woman to the more controlling, powerful, and dominant female portrayed in today’s culture. In early television, the 1950’s and 1960’s, the housewife or mother was always seen as submissive towards the more assertive father or husband. In Common Culture, Harry Waters explains in his article, â€Å"Life According to TV,† that males often got a deviation of roles, and females were usually playing the part of a mother, wife, or girlfriend. (Waters 167) As time progressed, that role was changed to a more authoritative and domineering woman who controlled a somewhat of a bumbling idiot of a husband.† (Example Essays, Roles Of Women In Television, ONLINE) There are no limits to what the genders can do. Now days you find most women out in all of the workplaces which were once deemed male oriented. And you find men staying home and raising families, doing the job that once only women did. †The idea of feminity has evolved over time just as women’s roles in the media have. Women on television in the past had very few roles but the main one was to be the wonderful mother of the wholesome family program. [†¦] In today’s society women are not expected to stay home and live off their husbands, women are not even expected to get married or to have children if they so choose. Women’s roles on television have changed from the housewife to the working woman. Yet the woman’s role is still usually a support of the leading character who happens to be a male.†

Arizona Statehood and Constitution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Arizona Statehood and Constitution - Essay Example According to Lockwood (2008), the first country that had dominance over Arizona was Spain in the 1500’s. In this period, it established a colony on the ruins of Aztec empire which was named New Spain. In the year 1539, father Marcos de Niza explored Arizona, claiming it for Spain. In the year 1752, Spanish made its first settlement in Tubac after facing a lot of revolts from Papango and Pima tribes. The future colonization of Arizona was anticipated to come from the south making it to part of Mexico. In the year 1756-1763, there was French and Indian war which lasted for seven years due to land disputes was won by Britain. The Spanish gave up west and east Florida to the English for it to get Cuba in return. In the year 1776, a Spanish fort was built at Tucson. United States declared independence in the same year while French declared war against Britain in the year 1778 and made alliance with American revolutionary forces. The year 1783 saw the signing of the treaty of Paris by the Great Britain and the United states. In the year 1812, there was a war between Great Britain and America which ended in stalemate but gave America its independence. In the year 1821 Mexico gained military control of Arizona. The Mexican war was won by the United States in the year 1848 and got gain of all Arizona and north of the Gila River by a treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. In the year 1853, the United States purchased the rest of Arizona through the Gadsden Purchase to gain its full control. Copper was discovered in Arizona in the year 1854. The year 1861-1865 saw the emergence of the American Civil War. John Brown invaded Hepers ferry in the year 1859 which brought in motion series of events that led to the outbreak of the civil war. Abraham Lincoln was then elected president and the south succeeded in the year 1861. In the year 1862, the Apaches attacked soldiers at the pass of Apache which began a ten year war with the settlers. The

Employment Law Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Employment Law - Assignment Example There exist instances when such rules may be acceptable without being discriminative. An English-only rule may only apply under justification of business necessity. That means that the employer may only use such a rule in as far as the employee needs to communicate in English to operate efficiently and to ensure safety. According to the Equal employment opportunities Commission, EEOC, English-only rules are justifiable in limited instances. According to EEOC, some of these circumstances that warrant the application of such rules include; a paid speaking position where one is meant to continuously speak to and English speaking audience, when communicating with customers and fellow employees who only speak English, during emergencies where there is need for a common language to ensure safety, where a supervisor needs to monitor employee’s performance, and for cooperative assignments that require workers to speak a common language for efficiency (Rutherglen, 2007). An employer may be allowed to prohibit employees from using any other language apart from English when speaking to customers who speak only English. That would be to enhance communication with clients and ensure flawless business transactions. Also, the employer may require employees to speak English when addressing their colleagues who speak only English or who may not understand the language that such employees may be comfortable using (Rutherglen, 2007). During emergencies, there is need for there to be a common language that can be understood by all. That is to ensure safety for everyone. That also includes those working on or operating machinery, chemicals or items that may cause harm if not handled with care. In such circumstances, the employer may apply English-only rules as they would help safeguard everyone’s safety. For cooperative duty that requires employees to work in teams, English-only rules may come into application especially if some

Management issue Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Management issue - Essay Example Naturally, business environments are dynamic and volatile; however, information systems have to deal with the volatile nature of business requirements thus Information systems in an organization can easily be outdated. IS environment is changing at an increasing rate since technology which is apparently up-to-date becomes outdated at a high speed. IS flexibility is the ability of an information system to respond to changing technology and business environments. For instance top enterprise technology companies like Microsoft, Citrix, Dell, IBM, HP, and Cisco embrace NVIDIA GRID thus offering organizations flexibility of the GRID enabled solutions and servers. Use NVIDIA GRID technology is crucial in helping companies grasp the gains of virtualization like flexibility, manageability and security, while at the same time offering a complete PC experience to users. IT departments grapple with the challenge of employees increasingly bringing their gadgets to work expecting great mobility a nd experience offered by virtualization through secure and consistent access to company resources; however, this is often done at the expense of performance and features nevertheless, GRID eliminates the compromise. Enterprises are taking advantage of the globalization trend and mobility through virtualization of desktops together their applications to offer users the ability to work anytime, anywhere on any gadget while ensuring security of company IP address (NVIDIA, 2013). To operationalise information system flexibility, there are three categories of application and they include personnel, integration of data and functionality and the module of system components. With the multidimensional nature of information system flexibility, recognizing and assessing the necessary levels of flexibility required to respond to change is changeling for organizations. Nevertheless, contingency theory emphasizes the fact that managers make decision in accordance with the prevailing conditions an d act on aspects that are vital to the situation. For instance managing IS flexibility in an organization various aspects are considered like IS requirements, IT staff and the end-users. Management has to consider the degree of fit between ideal IS and its capability; even though, the environment is conceptualised with uncertain forces like complex competition, global challenges and market shifts as well as the rapid technological developments like e-commerce. Due to the changes in environmental forces, there is need to address the turbulent changes in order to effectively deal with opportunities brought by the changes. Since there is increasing pressure on businesses to respond and deal with the environmental changes efficiently, it is essential that organizations be flexible and adaptable. A flexible information system is a crucial element of organizational flexibility; thus, IS has to quickly and inexpensively adapt to new situations in the business. Information system changes in volve changes in both internal and external business requirements and changes in IT in the implementation of information systems. The system theory states that a system consists of objects, attributes, internal relationship with its objects and it exists in an environment; thus, a system is a set of entities that affect one another in an environment to form a large pattern different from any of its parts. In an open system, information is received which

HR Assingment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

HR Assingment - Essay Example Human resource management is a way that a company or any other firm can use to manage its staff; in fact this aspect of organization has been identified as an academic theory of business functions which identifies workers or employees as resources with changing needs and ambitions. Workers are not just like other business resources like machinery, transport and raw materials as people ability to work depends on knowledge, training, and the processes set in place. The 21st century is a critical period in the growth of business departments especially the information and communications departments and the human resources departments as these have become every critical for the development of any organization (Fisher & Ashkanasy 2000). The following are major functions of the human resource department as identified many organizations with well developed department divisions; Human resource planning (keeping workers records, forecasting, career modelling and succession planning); employment (recruitment, training, selection, testing and orientation); training and development (primary and advanced skills training, devising working programs); labour relation (solving employee concerns, monitoring morale, labour management programs); compensation ( incentives, analyses of job performance, salary surveys and performance reviews); workforce benefits ( administration of policy, health insurance, designing vacation and sick benefits schemes) (Fisher & Ashkanasy 2000); safety (making sure that the workplace complies with safety regulations like Occupational Safety and Heath Act, supervising security, carrying out possible accident investigations, and evaluation of the physical environment); discipline ( policy formulation and coordination, conduction of disciplinary measures); and personnel research (conducting opinion surveys,

Health Care Administration Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Health Care Administration - Research Paper Example It is important to identify the individual strengths within a healthcare team that can contribute to the success of the group and also to define specific areas of expertise required from different healthcare provider roles that are critical to teamwork. Healthcare management education programs stress the important skills and competencies necessary in healthcare management. These skills are essential for accreditation and also provide an organizational superiority that affects the reputation and effectiveness of a healthcare institution. Health service managers define different sets of competencies for management teams. Among the important teams involved in healthcare organizations are human resource management, operations management and organizational learning. Each of these organizational units plays an important role in defining the work structure, the coordination and the effectiveness of healthcare delivery services. In regard to management teams, the areas of expertise that rank the highest generally are the commitment to teamwork collaboration, a strong motivation to achieve positive patient outcome, and a strong commitment to the healthcare organization. Important environmental components that support effective healthcare management teamwork include an environment that is perceived as comfortable and safe, one that encourages high level involvement at all levels of management and a system that supports high standards for performance among team members. Management employees who are committed to the success of the team and to enabling the success of others within the team represent effective organizational approaches. Best practice human resource management promotes the strengths of the individual as part of an effective team. . This is an important goal for healthcare management education. It is also important for the

The Necessity of Landfill Diversion in the United States Research Paper

The Necessity of Landfill Diversion in the United States - Research Paper Example In fact, the U.S. is not just one of the world leaders when it comes to manufacturing consumer goods; it is also taking the lead in waste generation. In 2010 alone, â€Å"Americans generated about 250 million tons of trash and recycled and composted over 85 million tons of this material, equivalent to a 34.1 percent recycling rate† (EPA 2010). With this data, it would appear that every individual in the U.S. generates 4.43 pounds of waste every day. However, the possibility of solutions in the near future is still dim and proving this is another estimate from the Environmental Protection Agency or EPA that out of the 250 million tons generated, only 85 million tons of waste would actually make their way to the recycling and composting plants. This is only 34.1 percent of the waste generated. This means that majority of the said waste are directed to one of the most commonly used solid waste management method in the world, the landfill. There are basically two kinds of wastes, organic and non-organic. The former are those that could be left to decompose through natural means while latter could not be subjected to the same treatment because of its highly synthetic composition. Both, however, contribute to the growing problem of solid waste management, especially because both could become hazards to the environment. Despite the fact that organic wastes could decompose and its composition be assimilated by the soil, these could still produce threats to the environment. During the process of putrefaction, organic wastes are known to trigger gas emissions and leaching that could contaminate the air and the soil respectively. There have been many cases also where groundwater is contaminated because of leaching. The non-organic wastes, on the other hand, pose a threat to both humans and the environment because these could contain substances that could be toxic. Since non-organic wastes do not decompose, the solutions that have been applied to these are recycling and reusing. As for the organic wastes, these are delivered to landfills where these are left to decompose through purely natural means or through the intervention of certain treatment that would hasten the process. Due to the fact that landfills are basically environmentally hazardous, there had been various studies carried for the purpose of determining safer designs that could be applied for their construction. However, there have been countless cases when leaks did occur resulting to the bacterial or viral contamination of the groundwater. Aside from this, landfills also contribute to air pollution and to the greenhouse effect because of its methane emissions. In the U.S. and in Europe, where the landfill is an integral part of solid waste management, areas that could be designated for such purpose are fast running out even as the demand for more numerous and bigger sites continue to increase. It is because of the â€Å"large numbers and the expanses of valuable real estate th ey occupy† that the landfills are problems that are becoming increasingly serious (Tammemagi 5). With all these issues attributed to landfills, there is clearly a need to determine alternative solid waste management methods. The introduction of such methods should lead to the reduction of the U.S.’s reliance on landfills and to shift instead to methods that are more viable and safer for both humans and t

Consumer Protection Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Consumer Protection - Research Proposal Example As a trainee solicitor with Wise and Wise solicitors, I am instructed by my supervisor, Margaret Andrews to interview the company's new client, Mr. Richard Williams and then report my findings back to her. Below is my report which contains two main sections. The first section deals with the items Mr. Williams purchased from Bobby's local garden center and his legal position. The second part, on the other hand, is likewise going to handle those items purchased by our client from Mr. Stanley Robinson. After interviewing our new client Mr. ... For him to carry out this task successfully, he needed some items he could only get from Bobby, his local garden center. At the garden center, he paid for the items by cheque. Among these items was a Venus de Milo Statue, which he decided to take home with him in his car. He arranged for the other items to be delivered later. Incidentally, it emerged later that the Venus de Milo Statue had been sold to another customer and Bobby needed ourBobby'st to take it better the store for a refund of the full price, on the other hand,y, this is not what our client had bargained for. The statue is one of the objects excluded from the laws of price fraud 2 because it does not have a standardized price (Howells & Wilhelmsson, 1997). An object lacking a standard price is referred to as an object of exclusion 3 (Boom & Loos, 2007). Thus to determine the right amount of refund involving an object of exclusion becomes a weighty obligation. But on the other hand, the law provides that society has an obligation to protect the consumer. There is a great assertion that the seller should not deceive the consumer either by concealing any imperfection or suppressing any relevant information about the item being sold (Sadeleer, 2006). In the case of Mr. Williams, there is no blemish in the item itself and thus virtually the consumer has no basis to claim that he has not received what he settled to purchase. Therefore it is my advice to our client that he stays put with the Statue as it is rightfully his (Howells & Wilhelmsson, 1997).

Motivation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Motivation - Essay Example His vision is geared to improve the existing working dynamics within his organization as well as to properly scrutinize the effects of productivity as per the domains of the organization. Rewarding employees for the sake of motivation could work wonders for them since these employees are mostly dependent on fiscal and economic upheavals within their lives. If the entrepreneurial firm understands these concerns, it would not be wrong to suggest that growth and development within such reins would happen in a very quick way. The employees will understand the fact that the organization is sincere towards their working basis and hence it makes all the more reason for them to remain loyal and dedicated as per the cause of the entrepreneurial firm itself. This will thus form a symbiotic relationship – where each of the stakeholders within the organization itself will look to provide benefit to the other party (Brewer, 2000). An entrepreneurial firm must be proactive in its approach towards motivating its own employees as this will manifest its attachment with the work processes, business realms and so on. If this firm does not pay proper heed towards the concerns of the employees and has no interest in motivating them on a consistent basis, it is a given that the employees will either start taking their work for granted or would leave their respective jobs and pursue their careers elsewhere. An entrepreneurial firm cannot afford such inactions and needs to devise policies and mechanisms through which growth levels could be further boosted (Wright, 2001). This can however exponentially increase and in a dramatic way if motivation comes about in full circle. If the rewards are in monetary terms, the employees appreciate the concern shown by the organization itself. Also at times, promotions and other incentives like bonuses, added privileges, etc are given to the employees who in essence get

P.E.P. for rugby Essay Example for Free

P.E.P. for rugby Essay Multi-stage Fitness Test  The multi-stage fitness test, also known as the 20 meter shuttle run test, beep or bleep test among others, is nowadays a very common test of aerobic fitness.  Diagram:  Description: This test involves continuous running between two lines 20m apart in time to recorded beeps. For this reason the test if also often called the beep or bleep test. The time between recorded beeps decrease each minute (level). Scoring: The athletes score is the level and number of shuttles reached before they were unable to keep up with the tape recording.   Press up test  Diagram:  Description: Can be the total number of push-ups completed or the number completed in a set time period. The starting position is with the hands and feet touching the floor, the body and legs are in a straight line, the arms extended and at a right angles to the body. Scoring: The number of correctly completed push-ups is recorded.  Sit and reach  Diagram:  Description:This test involves sitting on the floor with legs out straight ahead. Feet (shoes off) are placed flat against the box. Both knees are held flat against the floor by the tester. The athlete leans forward slowly as far as possible and holds the greatest stretch for two seconds. Make sure there is no jerky movements, and that the fingertips remain level and the legs flat. Scoring:The score is recorded as the distance before (negative) or beyond (positive) the toes. Repeat twice and record the best score. The table below gives you a guide for expected scores (in cm) for adults  Description:The ruler is held by the assistant between the outstretched index finger and thumb of the athletes dominant hand, so that the top of the athletes thumb is level with the zero cm line on the ruler. The assistant instructs the athlete to catch the ruler as soon as possible after it has been released. Scoring:The assistant is to record distance between the bottom of the ruler and the top of the athletes thumb where the ruler has been caught.  Balance Beam  Diagram:  Description:the person stands on one leg on a beach for as long as possible.  Scoring:time length of time person can stay in balance position.  Fitness Requirements for Rugby  The game of basketball requires many different aspects of fitness which I will outline below.  Aerobic Endurance-a good level of cardio-vascular fitness is needed because of the continuous nature of the game. Speed -needed to move into position quickly both in attack and defence  Strength -leg power is probably more important than upper body strength although this is required for long distance passing and in my position lifting the man in the line- out. Explosive leg power is needed for rucking, maul and scrum situations. Muscular endurance is also needed because of the repetitive nature of the game.  Flexibility needed for all aspects of the game to reduce the risk of injury and to allow movement around the park in a variety of situations.  As well as the health related aspects of fitness, several skill-related components are important. Agility, balance, co-ordination reaction time are needed for all aspects of the game. As the game has so many different requirements I have decided to use circuit training to develop my current levels of fitness as this develops most of the aspects I need. It also will allow me to be specific and adapt the exercises and work intensities easily as the programme develops.  As well as doing the circuits I will also attend four rugby practices, two in school and two at the club, and also play matches when arranged. Because of this I will arrange the time of the circuits to ensure I have either ample recovery after a match or rest before a match.

Introduction to Synchronization

Introduction to Synchronization Synchronization is a mechanism which helps to use shared memory resources in an operating system. In the current world, most of the computers are multi-tasking computers. So these computers can do more than one process at the same time. And the networking technology is has become one of the most modern and developed technologies in the current worlds. So both these computer and network technologies work together in order to achieve common goals. While working together these technologies have to share resources such as memory at the same time. While sharing memory, there can be many problems. To avoid these problems synchronization mechanisms were implemented. Concurrency As it is mentioned above, operating systems share memory in order to achieve common goals. The data can be shared among two processes in one operating system or two operating systems over a network. However there are sometimes that the shared data can be accessed by only one process at a time. As a real life example, shared bathroom can be taken. A shared bathroom can be used by many people but it can be used by only one person at the time. If someone is using the bathroom, others have to wait until that person to come out. Then the one of the waited people can use the bathroom. Another real life example for this is shared streets or junctions. In shared streets, people can use only one direction at one time. If the shared street is used by any direction, people from other direction have to wait till others to stop using the shared street. Otherwise there can be clashes and a lot of problems. Like these, when the operating systems use shared memory, sometimes only one process can acc ess the data at one time. So this is called concurrency. There must be some mechanisms to avoid this concurrency. In the above given two real life examples, the shared bathroom can use a lock in its door to make sure that only one person is using the bathroom at one time. In the shared streets, traffic lights can be used to make sure that only one direction is using the street and avoid the clashes. Like this, locking and synchronizations are the mechanisms that can be used to avoid concurrency in operating systems. Properties of systems with concurrency There are some properties of the systems with concurrency. Those properties are, multiple actors, shared resources and rules for accessing the resources. In the above given two real life examples, the multiple actors are people and vehicles while the shared resources become bathroom and street. The rules for accessing these shared resources are one person at one time for the bathroom and one direction for one time for the shared streets. When talking about these three properties in relating to the operating systems, it can be explained like this. Here, the multiple actors are processes within the operating system or threads in processes. Shared memory, global variables and shared devices can be taken as the examples for the shared resources property while locking and semaphores techniques become the rules for accessing the shared resources in operating systems. These are the three properties of the systems with concurrency and it helps to understand what the concurrency is. Situations with no risk of concurrency In the current computer technology, there are some situations that there is no risk of concurrency but the shared resources are accessed by more than one processes or threads at the same time. Those situations are as follows, No shared memory or communication :- Here, the processes or threads do not have shared memory or communication. So those processes or threads work only with its private memory. Shared memory with read-only access :- Here, the shared memory can be accessed by one or more processes or threads at the same time. But in this situation, the shared memory is only available for processes or threads to read-only. So the shared memory cannot be modified in this situation. Copy-on-Write (COW) :- Here, the shared memory is accessed by one or more processes or threads at the same time and each process or thread has a separate copy of the shared memory. So each process is accessing its own copy of the shared memory and there is no risk of concurrency. Situation with risk of concurrency As well as the situations with no risk of concurrency, there are some situations with risk of concurrency in the current operating systems. Those situations can be explained as follows, Using of shared memory without any synchronization :- Here, if the shared memory is accessed by more than one processes or threads at the same time without and synchronization (without having any separate copy for each process or threads), there is a risk of concurrency. Any modification to the shared memory :- If the shared memory is accessed by more than one processes or threads, and at least one of the processes or threads makes any changes to the shared memory, then there is a risk of concurrency. These are the situations with risk of concurrency. If one of these happens, then there is a risk of concurrency in the system. If a concurrency is happened, then there may be a lot of problems in the system. And the risk of happening the concurrency is known as race condition. Race condition Under this topic, the race conditions is discussed by using an example. Here, an example of a bank account is taken to discuss the race condition. In this example, there are two peoples and a bank account. Execution of the code of this example as follows, account.balance =  £200; int withdraw (account, amount =  £50){ balance = account.balance; balance -= amount; int deposit (account, amount= £100){ balance = account.balance; balance += amount; account.balance = balance; return balance; } account.balance = balance; return balance; } For this example, the two persons are named as person1 and person2. The code executed by the person1 is coloured with blue colour while the code executed by the person2 is coloured with red colour. This is a sketch of the programme but not coded with any programming language. In the very first line, the balance of the account is set to  £200. The rest of the code is explained as follows, Line 1 :- person1 starts executing the code and calls the withdraw() by giving the account and  £50 of amount as the parameters. Line 2 :- person1 reads the balance from the account class and assigns the value of balance variable in account class to his balance variable in his withdraw(). Line 3 :- person1 modifies the value of the balance variable in his withdraw() by subtracting the value of amount. So the value of the balance variable in his withdraw() becomes  £150. Line 4 :- In this line, the person2 starts executing the code by calling his deposit() by parsing account and  £100 of amount as the parameters. Line 5 :- Here, person2 reads the value of the balance variable in account class and assigns it to the balance variable in his deposit(). Here, still the value of balance variable in account class is  £200 as the person1 has not updated the balance in account class. Line 6 :- Person2 modifies the value of the balance variable by adding the value of amount variable to it. So the value of balance variable in deposit() becomes  £300. Line 7 :- person1 updates the value of the balance variable in the account class as  £150. Line 8 :- person 1 returns the value of the balance variable in withdraw() Line 9 :- person2 updates the value of the balance variable in the account class as  £300 Line 10 :- person2 returns the value of the balance variable in his deposit() After executing this code 2 peoples complete their transactions by leaving the final value of the balance variable in account class as  £300 while the real value of the balance variable in account class has to be  £250. So there is clear error in the final output of the process and this is called as the race condition. Manage concurrency Manage Synchronization means, use synchronization mechanism programs to write rues for control concurrency situations. One of these rules are as follows: Atomicity Atomicity allows one threat to access data to manipulate at a single situation. In another way, will allows no other threats to change data while one is running. This will either will lock the threat is in progress of manipulating the record or let other records to be waiting while one record access record. The other rule is conditional synchronization In this explain threats will be in a particular order to access the record. When threats arrives to access record rule will check the order and add to the queue and let wait until the turn of the threat to access the records. All above access methods will be easy to implement when can identify which is the critical part of the process should allow to access at a time. i.e. When Person A accessing account balance person B not allows to access balance at the same time. If extract further as bellow. 1.int withdraw (account, amount) { 2.int balance = account.balance; 3.balance -= amount; 4.account.balance = balance; 5.return balance; 6.} Line 1: will initialize threat and pass external parameter values into the threat withdraw as account and amount in this situation. Line 2: will declare balance variable locally to retrieve stored account balance from the database for threat to process and pass account balance in the account table account.balance. Line 3: will manipulate balance variable value (in this situation, we will deduct since it is withdrawal) from the amount has been pass form external parameter. -= notation for the deduction. Line 4: will update database with new balance value after withdrawal amount deducted from original balance. balance which is a local variable holding the new balance transfer to the account.balance and update record with new balance value. Line 5: will return new balance value to the screen if necessary Line 6: will terminate the process of withdraw by } There will be no concurrent when two threat access lines 1, 5 and 6. But if any threat try to access lines 2, 3 and 4 will be given incorrect information for one of the threats. Therefore from line 2 to 4 is very critical to let access only for one threat at any given time of the process as explain bellow. int withdraw (account, amount) { int balance = account.balance; balance -= amount;Critical Section account.balance = balance; return balance; } This identified sections will call as a critical section in another word, no other threats will allows to access while one threat is using at any given time because data will be manipulate when access line 2, 3 and 4. Critical section Critical section is set of codes access shared resources and there are several ways of developing critical section such as: Locks, Semaphores, Monitors and Messages. In this report will describe locks and semaphores how behave and how priority will work. Locks in synchronization First method of synchronization is locks. Locking is a very primitive system been used. Lock will lock the threat in the critical section while it is processing the record. Mainly lock has two stats Held and Not Held. At the Held state, one threat is in the critical section and at the Not Held state no threats in the critical section and can prioritised threats to have access. Also locks having two operations Acquire and Release. Which threat will request the lock to be held to access critical section and once threat previously use critical section release the lock acquired thread will get a chance and change the state as held. When threat finish it process in the critical section must release the lock to use by the other threats which are waiting in the queue. Figure The above figure has explain how acquire and release will behave at the critical section access, i.e. threats A, B and C request access permission to critical section at the same time by Acquire operation and threat A will grant access with the lock Held state enable. Once threat complete the process will call release operation to change the lock state to Not Held and lock will change state to Held with threat B and so on will be proceed to complete different threat request at the critical section. By using previous example take a look where to use Acquire and Release operations threat. int withdraw (account, amount) { acquire (lock); // Request lock to held to access critical section int balance = account.balance; balance -= amount;Critical Section account.balance = balance; release (lock); // Release lock after complete critical section access return balance; } With further explanation considering previous withdraw and deposit situation Figure 2. Overcome concurrency situation had occurred while both people access same account balance to manipulate the amount. Figure When implement locks use Boolean variable to check is lock held TRUE or FALSE? Acquire operation will keep other threats in the waiting state while lock held values is TRUE. If lock held VALUE is false, will change to TRUE with requested threat. When the threat completed process in critical section will call release operation and change lock held value as FALSE to make lock available for other threats will show in below construct. First create a global Boolean type variable held values TRUE or FALSE to check is lock holding by a threat or not and by default lock will not hold by any threat and value will be FALSE. structure lock { bool held; // initial value FALSE } Construct acquire by requesting a lock to be held and if lock à ¯Ã†â€™Ã‚  held value TRUE request threat will wait in the queue for lock to be released. If lock à ¯Ã†â€™Ã‚  held is FALSE and by acquire change value of lock à ¯Ã†â€™Ã‚  held to TRUE and take the control of the critical section access. void acquire (lock) { while (lock à ¯Ã†â€™Ã‚   held) ; // Hold other threats in the wait queue lock à ¯Ã†â€™Ã‚   held = TRUE; // Once get the lock, change lock value to TRUE } Construct release operation simply will change the start of lock à ¯Ã†â€™Ã‚  held value to false and allows other threat to access critical section for the next process. void release (lock) { lock à ¯Ã†â€™Ã‚   held = FALSE; // When complete process in the critical section, change lock value to FALSE } Semaphores in synchronization This is the second method of synchronization. This method is a very basic and powerful mechanism but difficult Implementation method and use blocking threats to access critical section instead of locking threats while using critical section. Semaphores has two operations and they are: wait (semaphore) or P() First of all as soon as threat request access permission P() or wait (semaphore) will decrease the counter values which is 1 by default. Then check is counter value become 0 or signal (semaphore) or V() Once a threat complete process in the critical section will call V() or signal (semaphore) and will increase counter value by 1. i.e. if a P() had decrease counter value 0 while it was in critical section and no other threats can access, but second threat has decreased to -1 while requesting permission to access critical section and waited. Also since second threat is still waiting to get permission it goes to sleep mode, hence V() will wake up threat in a sleep to start it process in critical section explains in Figure à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Figure à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. Figure Readers/Writers synchronization This is another powerful method of synchronization. In this method, the data is accessed by two different ways. Those two ways are, readers and writers. Here, the readers only read files and writers update file contents or data. There are four (4) rules while using the readers/writers synchronization methods and they are as follows, If any reader(s) read the file and no writer is pending, the next reader can read the file without waiting. Writers have to wait till the reader(s) finish reading file. After readers finish reading, writer(s) will can start writing. If any writer is writing to the file, acquiring readers have to wait till writer finish writing. If one writer is writing to the file and if both readers and writers are waiting, at this situation priority will be given for writers who are waiting. Therefore readers will wait till all writers to compete writing and then readers will start reading. So readers can read most updated file. Future trends of synchronization In the current situation, locks and semaphores are widely used in order to prevent the concurrency. So it is very important to deal with the codes in critical section as otherwise there will be a lot of problems with the reliability of information systems. However using of systems with the locks are not time efficiency. So in the current situation of the computer technology, there is a trend of implementing lock free systems. According to the previous example of shared street, the shared street has to be controlled by using traffic lights. So on the shared streets, only one direction is allowed at one time. So the other directions are blocked at the same time. But there is a technique that does not need of using any traffic lights on the shared street. Here, fly over technique can be used and avoid blocking the directions. So all the directions on the shared street can be used at once without having any problem. But here, this technique may has some more waiting time as the length of the street can be increased while using fly over technique. Like in this example, lock free systems can be implemented in information systems. Semaphore method can be taken as an example for lock free system. But here as well, the processes have to wait sometimes as in the give example of fly over technique on shared streets. The weakness of this method is that lock free and wait free features cannot be implemented in the same information system. So only one of these methods (lock free or wait free) can be implemented in information system.

Childcare Management Systems | Literature Review

Childcare Management Systems | Literature Review CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.0 OVERVIEW Literature reviews are conducted in order to fully understand a topic being researched about. By doing so, we could define and establish our area of study, as in my topic childcare management systems. Reviews are done on existing systems by explore how existing childcare or daycare centers management systems have been introduced, implemented and evolved. Comparisons of the systems are made for better understanding of systems functions. Advantages and disadvantages of the systems have to be understood as well. Section 2.1 depicts background study of three existing childcare management systems which are analyzed for better understand of this project. Section 2.2 summarizes the proposed system which will be designed and developed on later stages of this project. The features have been tabulated in Table 2.1. 2.1 BACKGROUND STUDY Nowadays the need of daycare and childcare centers are increasing due to working parents and need of proper care of children. The management has to be efficient to keep up with these demands. In order to ease the work done in the centers, owners purchase or subscribe childcare management system software. There are so many different types and quality level of childcare management system software in the market. Even though each of them is used for similar purpose that is to manage a daycare centers but the design of functions and implementations of the systems are different. A system that provides all important functions needed by childcare centers will be the top priority in the market. Following existing systems have been choosing for comparison because they have higher market value and many customers favor them. In order to understand the similarities and differences of existing systems in different platform as well, comparison have been made between fully web based system, software based system and mobile application based system. Exploring the systems have been done by understand fully how the systems works and finally list out the advantages and disadvantages. 2.1.1 Centers Online (https://www.centresonline.com/index) Centers online is an online childcare management system designed for both long and short day care centers. Centers Online provides childcare services with simple and easy to use online software for daily reporting and communication needs. The site updated continually and modified to ease users needs. The management system also helps every parent receives frequent updates about their child instantly. Centers Online provides a login interface for childcare centers and parents that is easy to use allowing parents to continually be aware of their childrens activities. Centers Online applications are available for all smartphones and tablets. Centers Online is designed to be used by three types of users which are admin/owner of the childcare centers, teachers and parents. All of the users have their own login ids and viewing page. The owner can access, view, create users and create rooms. They also can manage events and contact parents. Teachers can update all information regarding children in their room such as feeding schedule, activities, performance, health condition and etc. Parents get instant update regarding their children. They can view daily activities, update parent profile, view event details and view pictures uploaded by teachers of their children. Figure 2.1 shows user management page where the owner or admin of the childcare center manages users profile such as registration of students, parents profile and assigning teachers to classes. The panel on left side gives access to all functions for users. Figure 2.1: Display of User Management Page Figure 2.2 shows the group permission page which grants owner or admin of childcare center to categorize users and their level of permissions on using the service. For instance, parents have limited access on site and more focus in viewing children’s update. Senior teachers have additional permissions since they have extra work to be done compared to new teachers. Figure 2.2: Display of Group Permission Page Figure 2.3 shows children management page where all profile of children will be managed. Teachers and sometimes owners will assign children to classes according to their ages here. Status of students can be viewed here. All reports can be saved as pdf and excel files for reference or print out. Figure 2.3: Display of Children Management Page Figure 2.4 shows the calendar in schedule management of the system. All the activities that are carried out in the daycare center are recorded in the calendar. Upcoming events will be marked as well for easy reference and updates. Admin and teachers can access and view all the events and activities carried out on particular day. Parents only have access to view marked activities by teachers for their children. Parents will not fall behind knowing important dates of events. Figure 2.4: Display of Calendar Page Advantages: Easy to use GUI (graphical user interface) The user interface is friendly and understandable. free access via website to parents account Parents who register with childcare that use Centers Online will get free access to get updates from the center. no server needed No server and IT maintenance needed since it is web based software. The service provider maintains all the data and all data are secured. register and use The childcare center owner that is interested using this system simply registers with the service provider and start using. application for smartphones and tablets The service provider also has created application for devices such as smartphones in order to give an easy access and portability for users. Disadvantages: compulsory need of internet connection Since it is a web-based software system internet connection needed in order to use the service provided and no offline option is given for the users to work offline. 2.1.2 The Pre-School Partner (http://www.on-qsoftware.com/pspscreens.html) The Pre-School Partner is a software-based childcare management system. The software is available for a single PC or buyer could choose to take a package contains of license key for up to 20 personal computers which labeled as Network (1- 20). The software is obtained by either getting an installation CD or e-mail link to download and install. It facilitates the daily functions andmanagementof the center by tracking and instantly making available all family, child and staff related information. It is complete and up to date with emergency contacts, guardians, drop off/pick up contacts, family and children notes, medical information, vaccination management, billing, accounts receivable, remote terminal logging and child scheduling and attendance. All the reports are easy to manage and printable for additional purpose. The software also has feature to manage staffs. The owner can keep track of staffs training histories. Figure 2.5 shows children registration page where owner or staff at childcare center can register new children with the system. Children’s full detail such as full name, age and family information required for registration. Picture of registered children will be uploaded in the profile as well. Figure 2.5: Display of Children Registration Page Figure 2.6 shows family or sponsor info page where all details of parents or sponsor are added such as contact details and address. Detail about particular people not permitted to be close to children added here as well to increase awareness of management. All records of drop off and pick up are keyed in here as well. Figure 2.6: Display of Family/Sponsor Info Page Figure 2.7 shows guardians detail page where all information of child parents registered with the daycare center will be recorded and updated regularly. Contact details of parents given importance in order to get hold of them in case of emergency. Picture of the parent will be added as well. Figure 2.7: Display of Guardians Detail Page Figure 2.8 shows invoice record page where all invoices for the parents or sponsor of children registered recorded. All details of payments such as dates, amount and identification will be recorded accordingly for easier reference and record keeping. Figure 2.8: Display of Invoice Page Advantages: user friendly screens The GUI (graphical user interface) of the software is designed well by placing all the essential keys and buttons in easy accessible and understandable way. larger scale of choice, more detailed and more functional The software provides all essential functions that needed to run a daycare center. User has the option to choose use functions only they required. work can be done offline (online only needed for cloud backup and sync) No internet connection needed to use pre-school partner Disadvantages: one software one pc The software is limited to one personal computer unless the owner buys a network package. Even though the network package consists of a maximum of 20 key licenses for personal computers the portability of the software is still limited. sever maintenance The server of the software installed has to be maintained regularly. The files saved have to be fragmented to remove bad sectors. Firewall, virus and spyware protection needs regular review and management. minimum requirements The software installed needs hardware specifications that meets its minimum requirements in order to function well and fully. Operating System : Windows XP Professional (Service Pack 2) Processor : Pentium 4 with Hyper-Threading, 2GHz Ram : 512MB minimum Disk Capacity : 80GB 2.1.3 Tadpoles (http://www.frogsquared.com) Tadpoles is a web-based application aided childcare management system. The use of smartphone application is integrated with the system for easy and effective use. Tadpoles is revolutionizing the childcare market by helping to streamline operations and parent communication through mobile technology. Tadpoles focuses more on the importance of parent involvement in the learning process. Teachers are able to share photos and videos to parents throughout the day. They could record meals, activities, naps and more to daily reports. Teachers also could prepare lesson plans up to four weeks ahead. Directors are able to view real time counts per class. They can manage classroom, children and employees. All the pictures and videos teachers send to parents have to be approved by directors or owners. They can view charts and graphs of reports on children progress under their care. They are able to send official letters to parents and emergency alerts as well. Parents can receive daily update of their children via email. They can download and share the photos and videos of their children. In case of emergency, they will receive text message first before further notice for a head start. Parents also can view their children’s profile using mobile application provided and they also able to mark their child sick or on vacation. Figure 2.9 shows classroom page in tadpoles application where teachers can view all the children in their class accordingly. The children will be categorized by their age. Teachers can choose and update information on children from here. They could edit notes for their teachings and send photo to parents as well. Figure 2.9: Classroom Page Figure 2.10 shows children profile page where a children’s profile can be viewed by selecting a child. All detail about meal taken, sleeping time and activities done by children will be added here by the teacher. They can tag category of the child for easier reference. Figure 2.10: Children Profile Page Figure 2.11 shows the dashboard which offers a live view of the activity in the center. The classroom counts, attendance, and parent communications updates in real time without refreshing. The owners or directors can view the update anywhere and anytime. Figure 2.11: Live Dashboard Figure 2.12 shows communication page where owner can notify all parents by text messages in case of emergency, school closings or other urgent messages. This method is effective and fast compare to individual notification. Figure 2.12: Communication Panel Figure 2.13 shows email snapshot parents receive from the daycare center with all current detail of their children, activities they are doing, sleeping times, meals and more. Pictures that are taken for their children during activities are attached as well. Parents are able to get update on their children anywhere anytime through their email. Figure 2.13: Display of Parent Email Advantages: children information up to date for parents via email Teachers and owners update children’s profile throughout the day by updating profile, uploading pictures and updating schedules. Parents get the updates via their email and mobile application. application for teachers The designed application is easy to use and give better functionalities for teachers in carrying out their daily activities. All details of children, schedule and study plans can be accessed almost instantly. live view and real time updating for directors and owners The directors and owners are up to date with activities carried out in centers and children’s statuses. All without software installations and no per-user licenses. They can check on things easily and securely even while away from the center. portable Since it is an application on device, it gives more portability to teachers. All children’s attendance and emergency details are within teachers’ reach when they bring children to playground or field trip. Pictures and videos taken can be uploaded instantly. Disadvantages: limitation of devices can be used The application is only designed for apple products with IOS. The teachers are encouraged to use devices such as ipad mini or ipad only for easy access and portability. 2.2 PROPOSED SYSTEM The proposed childcare center management system is a web-based system that has all the features stated in Table 2.1. The name of the system would be Kool-Child Childcare Management System. Kool-Child provides all functions needed to manage a childcare or daycare center efficiently. With Kool-Child, child care centers are able to record down feedings, nursing, milestones, activities children are doing such as playing, sleeping and others. Apart from that, they are allowed to make photo galleries of the children. Parents will be updated with all their children information. Kool-Child provides tuition/billing management as well. The billing is done automatically with little information about chargers and individual child’s program. With Kool-Child, owner of the childcare center will be able to manage employee profile by record and update personal details of employee. Parents also will be able to log in into Kool-Child with limited access to view their children’s schedule. Kool-Child also will have chat space where all parents could share ideas and get to know each other. Kool-Child will also provide simple tutorials on how to use the system for the customers. Customer support is also available to assist customer and receive feedbacks. Table 2.1 Features Comparison FEATURES Centers Online Pre-School Partner Tadpoles Kool-Child 1 Classroom and Schedule Management √ √ X √ 2 Food Program records √ √ √ √ 3 Immunization Records √ √ X √ 4 Daily Activities Planning √ √ √ √ 5 Photo Gallery √ √ √ √ 6 Billing Management X √ X √ 7 Online Registration √ X X √ 8 Employee Database X √ X √ 9 Customer Support √ √ √ √ 10 Parents Update √ X √ √ 11 Reports Management √ √ √ √ New Feature 12 Chat Space X X X √ Table 2.1 shows the comparison in features of Centers Online, Pre-School Partner, Tadpoles and the proposed system Kool-Child. All three existing systems have important features which are classroom management, food program records, photo gallery and customer support. Pre-School Partner is only a system among three that has billing management and employee management features which needed by most childcare centers to ease their workload. Chat space is an additional feature that will be implemented in Kool-Child. All twelve features will be integrated in Kool-Child to maximize functionality of the system.

Influences On Early American L :: essays research papers

It is strange to consider Thomas Jefferson’s writings when speaking on traits of the American. Jefferson never wrote directly on the topic of the general character of the American. It was he, who was more responsible for setting the parameters of a society which would fulfill the ideals of what would become a part of the American character. He knew that liberty and equality could not exist in a hierarchical society. He also was aware that a society which was primarily production oriented, bound together by interdependence on those who controlled the the financial resources would put to much power in the hands of a few. A society of farmers, he believed, could support a society based on individualism and not conformity. This view, read by early Americans, led to the view of the American being an individualist and not a conformist. In order to be considered a nation the people have to be united through a series of common qualities and values. The most important of these is the quality of individualism. To be an individualist ties in all the other essential qualities of being an American such as the right to create your own destiny. The opposite of this value is conformity, an essential trait of those under a hierarchical system such as a monarchy. Conformity is not only seen as a trait of the subservient but also a destroyer of true democracy. Individualism was a trait actual selected for by the very processes which led a certain type of person to come to America. The non-conformists were people who would not allow themselves to be goaded into directions the monarchs of the old world wanted them to follow. This type of person has to be and individualist because a conformist would just remain in the old world content to follow the lead of others. The effect of settling a wilderness also was a contributing factor to the formation of this trait. Being isolated from others and most of the time totally dependent on yourself or the small band to which you belonged for all your needs is very conducive to further development of individualism. This individualism could only thrive in a society such as the one Jefferson conceived. As society develops and the populations become concentrated interdependency grows killing off the independent spirit. As society changed from an agrarian one to production oriented society, starting in the early 1800’s, Americans became dependent on others for things which they no longer produced as a family unit.

Plato’s Concept of the Soul and its Relationship with the Body Essay ex

Plato’s Concept of the Soul and its Relationship with the Body Plato’s theory of the body and soul originated from his earlier theories and dialogs, ‘the analogy of the cave’ and ‘the theory of forms’. Plato believed that the soul is immortal. That the soul existed before it came to the physical body, and it is still there when the body dies. This is a dualistic interpretation of the mind/body problem. Plato linked the soul to a charioteer in charge of two horses, the mind and the body, which are pulling in completely opposite directions. The soul wanting to go back to the world of the forms and the body wanting to enjoy the five sense plus pleasure. In Plato’s words - the body is the source of endless trouble†¦it fills us full of love and lust and fear and fancies of all kinds†¦and takes us away from all power of thinking at all. Therefore emphasised that the philosophers must live simply and avoid sensual pleasure so as to focus the mind on the soul and gain its knowledge. The analogy of the cave relates to the...

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie Essays -- Then There Were

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie And Then There Were None, is an intriguing murder mystery novel that follows the lines of a poem called "Ten Little Indians". The story is intricately written to keep the reader in absolute suspense from the beginning to end. The novel involves eight people being mysteriously invited to spend a summer holiday on "Indian Island". Among the eight are a judge (Justice John Wargrave), doctor (Edward James Armstrong), military general (General John Macarthur), former inspector/current private detective (William Blore), mercenary (Phillip Lombard), young rich athlete (Tony Marston), religious woman (Emily Brent), and a schoolteacher (Vera Claythorne). Additionally, a married couple consisting of a butler (Thomas Rogers) and a maid (Ethel Rogers) are both already present on the island. With the exception of the Rogers', only the host, who is expected to arrive the next day, is absent. As the guests begin talking together, they discover that all of them were invited by a Mr. U.N. Owen. Wargrave surmises that their host's name is fictitious since it so closely resembles the word "unknown." The other guests agree, and tension begins to build. Another mystery is the fact that each of the guests has found a po em titled "Ten Little Indians" in each of their rooms, and mysteriously enough, it appears that there are ten small Indian statuettes arranged at the dinner table. It doesn't take long for each of the guests to realize that the poem and statuettes are representative for each of them. With passing of the first night's dinner, the group hears a mysterious voice condemning each one of them to a specific murder. A phonograph i... ...led, and even made comments to other guests that he was ready to die. In an absolute panic, Vera ends up killing Blore and then, not being able to deal with what is happening, she commits suicide. The last topic of discussion I found was the one pertaining to death. Death occurs continuously throughout the novel. After the guests realize that the other guests are not having mere accidents or killing themselves, they realize they are all going to die. With the exception of Wargrave, all of the island's guests die. Rather, they are all murdered. This was an exceptional novel, masterfully written to propel the reader into feeling the very same fears, doubts and suspicions as the characters. The only thing I didn't like was the fact that Wargrave is never found, nor is there a mention as to why his body is never found.

Response paper to Ian Hodder’s “Ethics and Archaeology” Essay

Ian Hodder’s article, â€Å"Ethics and Archaeology: The Attempt at Eatalhoyuk,† basically discusses in detail the different roles that archaeologists assume during an excavation and also their ethical obligation and duty to the different communities on the site. Hodder claimed that the roles of archaeologists are not only limited to studying human culture through unearthing, recovering, documenting, analyzing, and interpreting remains, historical objects, artifacts, and landscapes. In addition, he also claimed that they do not also work solely to serve the interest of their benefactors and sponsors. Rather, Hodder stated that archaeologists have bigger roles and wider responsibilities to the different sectors of the excavation site. In short, aside from the interest of their sponsors and other organizations that fund the digs, Hodder believes that it is also the duty of archaeologists to reach to the multiple communities, interest groups, or stakeholders of any excavation site. In his paper, Hodder mainly focused his arguments on the Eatalhoyuk excavation site where is the director of the archaeological dig. According to him, the stakeholders of most sites can be narrowed to four: the politicians, the local residents, the New Age Goddess followers, and the artists. Hodder noted each of these communities has its own agenda or interest and it is part of the archaeologist’s duty to somehow satisfy them. One of the stakeholders that are common to almost all archaeological sites is the politicians or those in the seat of power. Generally, based on Hodder’s paper, all politicians support archaeological digs have their own agenda or interests. These may involve governors, mayors, or government representatives from the surrounding area of the site. Hodder claimed that although a lot of these politicians hail the archaeological site for its richness in history, culture, and identity, among others, their interests mainly lie on a single thing— widespread publicity. While the politicians’ desire to be seen on television or read on the newspapers is normal, Hodder stressed that it is the archaeologist’s role to limit the ways in which they use the site for their personal motives. He also stated that archaeologists should also verify every piece of information that a politician gives to the public about the site. For example, there are certain politicians who claim to be descendants of the site’s residents and speak about his or her origins. In this case, it is the archaeologists’ responsibility to verify these claims and ensure that they are true. Another community that has its own interests is the local residents. According to Hodder, in general, these residents, who have low incomes and limited education, mainly have practical concerns such as earning money for helping in the excavation. However, they are also concerned about the history of the sites and how they contributed to their identity. In this regard, Hodder stated in his paper that is archaeologists job to educate them about their cultural history and identity using solid evidence found on the digs. In turn, these local residents may relate their personal experiences from living in the site’s environment to tourists and researchers as these are helpful information. The New Age Goddess groups, on the other hand, mainly go to excavation sites, such as in Eatalhoyuk, to pray and to practice their beliefs which are in honor of their Goddess, which was a highly significant figure in the past. Their main concerns, according to Hodder, would mostly be regarding the history of the Goddess and the role of women in the Eatalhoyuk’s past. Thus, the archaeologists should try to address these concerns and provide evidence that would show how women lived in the communities of Eatalhoyuk thousands of years ago. By doing so, Hodder surmised that this would not only serve the Goddess’ groups interests but also avoid any misinformation regarding the site’s history. Finally, another sector that has shown significsnt interest in Eatalhoyuk is the artists group. Hodder noted that over the past years, more and more artists have arrived at Eatalhoyuk mainly to create works about the site. However, he claimed that there are also certain artists who help in the interpretation, reconstruction, and visualization of the art objects found in the site. Hodder stated that the main concern of this group is whether the objects unearthed during digs and excavations could be considered art or not. Meaning to say, most of these artists are particularly interested in identifying and describing the works of art recovered from sites. In this regard, the archaeologists involved, according to Hodder, should ensure that these works of art or aesthetic objects are verified to be genuine using past studies and other evidence found on the site. Certain artists also inquire about the role that art played in the history of Eatalhoyuk and it is the archaeologist’s duty to satisfy those questions to the best of his or her abilities. In short, what Hodder was trying to point out in his paper was that archeologists should always consider the agenda and interests of all the groups and sectors concerned during an excavation as it reaps greater rewards and is also more ethical than serving only personal interests. Personally, I agree with Hodder’s claims in his paper. His use of historical evidence and real life situations make his arguments very convincing. I also think it is unethical for archaeologists to go on digs mainly to become famous or serve their own interests only. Rather than setting one agenda, I believe it is important to work with different communities as exemplified by Hodder’s work in Eatalhoyuk as there are greater things at stake. Since archaeologist’s experiences firsthand what it’s like to be in an excavation site or dig, he or she should use his or her knowledge and skill to verify all the information and answer all the questions surrounding an archaeological site. This is not only professional obligation but also an ethical duty. Works Cited Hodder, Ian. â€Å"Ethics and Archaeology: The Attempt at Eatalhoyuk. † Near Easter Archaeology 65 No. 3 (2002): 174-181.

Newton Weights Essay

As it is known, different materials have different properties. They act differently under different circumstances. There are a number of properties of matter which can be explained in terms of molecular behaviour. Among these properties is elasticity. Intermolecular forces: these are electromagnetic forces between molecules. The strength and direction of these forces differ in accordance to the separation of the molecules. Materials are often subjected to different forces. Forces can be distorting, that is they can alter the shape of a body. Two distorting forces I shall look at are tension and compression. Tension/tensile stress, more generally referred to as stretch, happens when external forces (larger red arrows) act on a body so that different parts of that body are pulled to go in different directions. In most materials, the intermolecular force (smaller aqua arrows) of attraction shows resistance to these external forces, so that once the external forces have abated, the body resumes its original shape/length. Compression/compressive stress, more generally referred to as squashing, happens when external forces act on a body of material so that different parts of that body are pushed in towards the centre of the body. In most materials, the intermolecular force of repulsion acts against these external forces, so that when the distorting force is removed, the molecules return to their original arrangement and spacing. Materials that do this are known to have the property of elasticity. In short, elasticity is the ability of a material to return to its original shape and size after distorting forces (i.e. tension and/or compression) have been removed. Materials which have this ability are elastic; those which do not have this ability are considered plastic. This always happens when the distorting force is below a certain size (which is different for each material). This point where the body will no longer return to its original shape/size (due to the distorting force becoming too large) is known as the elastic limit (which differs from material to material). As long as the distorting force is below this size, the body that is under the external forces will always return to its original shape. As the body is put under more and more stress (distorting force), the body strains (deforms, extends) more and more. Right up to the elastic limit, the body will continue straining, in accordance to the size of the stress. This is where Hooke’s Law comes in. Hooke’s Law states that, when a distorting force is applied to an object, the strain is proportional to the stress. For example, if the load/stress is doubled, then the extension/strain would also double. However, there is a limit of proportionality (which is often also the elastic limit), only up to which Hooke’s Law is true. Since the strain is proportional to the stress for different materials where Hooke’s Law is true, then there should be a fixed ratio of stress to strain for a given elastic material. This ratio is known as its Young’s Modulus. Young’s Modulus can be calculated from the stress and the strain of an object under tensile/compressive stress. e = change in length/extension of object, in cm p = original length of object, in cm a = cross-sectional area of object, in cm2 f = size of force applied, in newtons For example, the Young’s Modulus of Mild Steel = 2 x 1011 N m-2 Copper = 11 x 1010 N m-2 Hooke’s Law and Young’s Modulus apply to most elastic materials, with the exceptions. A special shape which material can be bent into to in order to optimize use of the elasticity of a material is a spring. Springs are used by us everywhere: in seats, mattresses, cars, toys, and all other sorts of necessary objects and items we encounter in our daily lives. They are normally made from metal, though they can come from plastics, rubber or even glass. When compressive stress is applied to a spring, the spring noticeably ‘shortens’, though the actual length of the body material shortens very little. It is due to this special shape of springs that let it do this. The same occurs when tensile stress is applied. When a spring is being extended or pulled on, it may seem the spring is changing length dramatically, but in actual fact the spring’s body material relatively doesn’t change shape at all, but rather the shape of the body is more spaced out. AIM My objective in this experiment is to find out how a spring varies in length with added load. I also want to witness Hooke’s Law in action, and I want to observe the behaviour of the spring/s even after the load added causes the stress in the spring to exceed the elastic limit. PLAN My experiment is fairly straight forward to set up and carry out. In my experiment the data that I intend to assemble is the extension of the spring each time new/extra load is added to it. It is necessary that I use the most appropriate equipment for my experiment, hence I have chosen to use a retort stand which will hold up the spring and its weights up, a second retort stand from which a meter rule will be suspended. The metre rule will be right up against the spring, so as to ensure an accurate reading. There is no evidence that I can take before hand, other than the material of the spring. This entire experiment has to be as accurate, fair, precise and reliable as can practically be, but it is only possible to make it so to a certain extent. For instance, I cannot be absolutely sure that that all Newton weights weigh exactly 1000 grams, nor is it practical to find a ruler that is absolutely accurate. Hence I am forced to settle for the metre rule, which is accurate to about 1 millimetre, and I will be aware that the Newton weights will be within an accuracy of about i 20 grams. These factors will not really be in my control; however I can reasonably account for them when I construct a graph from my table by using error bars for each point plotted. Another measure I am taking is that I shall not be the only one to take readings from the metre rule; I shall have two other peers who will also be reading off the same metre rule. From these 3 readings I shall draw up averages of level of weight applied to the spring. To be practical and observing at the same time, I must choose an appropriate extent and range, as well as appropriate integers, for the data that I intend to collect. I will be going to take the first measurement as the length of the spring when there is no mass attached to it. The last measurement shall be right up to when the spring can no longer hold on to the weights. I have a rough idea of the spring that I shall use, and I am assuming now that the spring shouldn’t be able to hold much more than 13 kg. I shall be adding the weights one at a time (one Newton/kilogram at a time), and I shall be taking measurements at each of these intervals. The measurements that I shall take of the length of the spring will be in millimetres. So basically, once I have set up the entire apparatus, I shall start off taking the measurement of the spring when it is free of load, then let my peers take theirs. Then I shall add a Newton weight one at a time, taking measurements with my helpers each time I add one. Of course we’ll be wearing our goggles, because I don’t want to take any risks. 1) Collect equipment. 2) Prepare apparatus as shown in diagram. 3) Record the length of the spring when it is load-free, to cm, in the prepared table for results. 4) Add a weight/mass of 1 kg or 1 N, and then take the new length of the spring. Record in the prepared table for results. 5) Continue adding on weights/masses of 1 kg, recording the length of the spring each time in the prepared table for results. This should be carried on until the weights can no longer be attached to the hanging spring. APPARATUS. The apparatus that I shall need set up for my experiment consist of the following items: 1. Retort Stands (x 2) 2. Boss and Clamps (x 2) 3. Metre Rule 4. Spring (length: 50 mm) 5. Newton Weights (x 15 approximately) Other items I shall need are three pairs of goggles. SAFETY I must consider my safety when working in the laboratory. It is common when this type of experiment is carried out that when a weight or anything for that matter is suspended from something as unstable as a hanging spring, the item in being suspended is prone to fall.

Bicycle Theives: the Unspoken Allure of Communism

Bicycle Thieves: The Unspoken Allure of Communism Bicycle Thieves is an exemplary demonstration of Italian neorealism that seeks to use non-professional actors to illustrate the struggle of average people surviving under a Fascist government. De Sica's use of film techniques such as close-ups heightens the effect of his neo-realist aesthetic, especially seen in his street-level depictions of Rome in the aftermath of World War II. The poverty and despair captured by De Sica's cinematography and narrative choices illustrates that capitalism has failed the Italian people, providing them only with grinding poverty and inward despair.By focusing on the mundane details of a simple man's life, rather than a narrative involving high drama, the film effectively captures the humiliating effects of class disparity while highlighting the role that communism could play in the improvement of life for the Italian people, if only a sense of community could be established. Director Vittorio De Sica u ses Bicycle Thieves as a vehicle in which to stress the burdens faced by the individual in a heartless and uncaring society.He has stated that his aesthetic intention with the film was to â€Å"reintroduce the dramatic into quotidian situations, the marvellous in a little news item [†¦ ] considered by most people throwaway material† (Cheshire), and so too is his main character, Antonio, a throwaway person. As an unemployed person, he has no value to the larger society and no apparent worth to his family as a provider. It is only once he secures a position as a poster-hanger that he begins to see himself as a productive member of society.De Sica illustrates the importance of this job by demonstrating Antonio's increasing desperation when his bicycle–an item he cannot do his job without–is stolen. His neorealistic style stems more from moral imperative than from necessity because, as critic Godfrey Cheshire notes in â€Å"Bicycle Thieves: A Passionate Commit ment to the Real,† the film was not shot in the low-budget style associated with neorealism, and instead was â€Å"mounted by a team of movie professionals working on a budget generous enough to allow for large-scale scenes, hundreds of extras, and even the apparatus necessary to create a fake ainstorm† (Cheshire). However, De Sica manages to retain an atmosphere of true realism that is heightened by scenes carefully chosen to display Antonio's quick downward spiral as he and his son ultimately fail to recover the lost bicycle. This devastating loss propels Antonio into a life of crime, demonstrating that under an uncaring government and without social support, the poor have no choice but to hurt each other for lack of a better outlet, and that those who are stolen from eventually become thieves as well. De Sica creates drama and illustrates his point by putting his protagonist in an unwinnable situation.Although Antonio has been offered a job, he can only take it if he has a bicycle. Due to financial circumstances, the bicycle has been pawned. In this way, De Sica establishes the character of Antonio's wife, Maria, who agrees to pawn their bed sheets to pay for the bicycle. This demonstrates that material comfort is secondary to the security that will come with stable employment. The actors themselves play a huge role in successfully portraying De Sica's message, and he sticks to the requirements of neorealism by using only non-professional actors.As film theorist Andre Bazin states, â€Å"none [of the actors] had the slightest experience in theatre or film. The workman came from the Breda factory, the child was found hanging around in the street, the wife was a journalist† (Bazin). An added level of realism can be found in using average people with faces that show the effects of time and experience. In his essay, â€Å"Bicycle Thieves: Ode to the Common Man. † Charles Burnett notes the effect of De Sica's choice to use non-professi onal actors, writing that â€Å"their faces are so expressive [†¦ ] they seem to be playing themselves† (Burnett).To further this realism, the director takes a similar approach with his background players. For example, in the pawn shop scene the director captures an elderly man with a tired, lined face who is trying, without success, to pawn a pair of binoculars. His expressiveness makes the scene seem more real, squalid, and filled with pain, while also illustrating that the Ricci family are not alone in their poverty. Indeed, the upwards panning shot that displays a towering pile of pawned sheets just like the set that Maria is exchanging for the bicycle, overwhelmingly shows the terrible effect of unrestrained capitalism on the poor.To further show the damage caused by a social and governmental system that doesn't value human needs, De Sica characterizes the upper class as the true villains of the piece. This is seen very clearly while Antonio is fruitlessly searching the stalls filled with disassembled bicycle parts while a good-looking young man blows bubbles into the air, filled with self-satisfaction and utterly unaware of Antonio's total terror. Symbolically, the bicycles can represent both the destruction of his ability to earn a living wage, and his own mental breakdown in having to confront the loss of such a vital mode of transportation.In this scene, also, a pedophile tries to lure Antonio's son, Bruno, into his clutches. Although the scene is populated with passerby, nobody pays any mind to the dangers faced by the vulnerable boy, let alone steps forward to offer assistance. By showing the oblivion of the group, De Sicoemphasizes the isolation of the individual, as well as demonstrating that no one, not even small children, are safe from the avaricious nature of the rich in a society where, as Burnett writes, â€Å"the predators are the rich and disconnected† (Burnett).The gripping conclusion of Bicycle Thieves further demonstr ates how the need to secure employment in order to survive can cause honest people to behave in a dishonest manner. De Sico uses a shot of Antonio sitting outside of a football stadium, hungrily eyeing countless parked bicycles; a temptation that is akin to showing a starving man a plate of food. Through the director's use of close-up shots of Antonio's pained expression, we experience his inner turmoil as morality fights with his baser needs.The climax occurs when he finally tries to steal a bicycle outside of an apartment building and is caught by a group of men who taunt and abuse while Bruno watches in horror. Cheshire writes that this point marks â€Å"where Antonio's solitary ordeal reaches a humiliatingly public climax† (Cheshire), and indeed it is a fitting conclusion for a film that has taken place entirely in the public environment of Rome.By making use of the city streets as his set, and the city's population as his background cast, De Sico manages to show all of t he missed opportunities where Antonio's life could have been changed for the better, were someone to have only taken an interest in his plight. As Bazin states in â€Å"Neorealism and Pure Cinema: The Bicycle Thieves,† â€Å"the thesis implied is wondrously and outrageously simple: in the world where this workman lives, the poor must steal from each other in order to survive.But this thesis is never stated as such, it is just that events are so linked together that they have the appearance of a formal truth while retaining an anecdotal quality† (Bazin). In such a manner, the irony of Antonio's predicament remains subtle, left for the viewer to determine based on their own experiences and observations. De Sico's film is most notable for what it avoids saying about the benefits of communism when held up against a corrupt, bloated style of capitalism that treats the working person as fodder for a greater machine.Rather than treat Bicycle Thieves as a propaganda device for his opinions, the director instead allows the audience to draw their own conclusions based on the realistic information he has provided to them. But the implication of Antonio's struggle is clear: community support is vital for the individual to survive under difficult circumstances. Without a collective group from which to seek solace and assistance in times of trouble, the individual is left as aimless and panicked as Antonio during his solitary and unsuccessful attempt to retrieve his stolen bicycle.Works Cited Bazin, Andre. â€Å"Neorealism and Pure Cinema: The Bicycle Thieves. † Theory Kit. 21 October 2007. Web. 1 May 2011. Bicycle Thieves. Dir. Vittorio De Sica. Perf. Lamberto Maggiorani, Enzo Staiola, Lianella Carell. Criterion, 2007. DVD. Burnett, Charles. â€Å"Bicycle Thieves: Ode to the Common Man. † Criterion Film Essays. Criterion. 7 February 2007. Web. 1 May 2011. Cheshire, Godfrey. â€Å"Bicycle Thieves: A Passionate Commitment to the Real. † Cri terion Film Essays. Criterion. 7 February 2007. Web. 1