Homeschooling: A Growing Trend Essay -- Education, Parents, early edu

Introduction Today, many parents are homeschooling their children. A U.S. Department of Education’s report shows that approximately 1.5 million children were being homeschooled in 2007 (Lips & Feinberg, 2008). This is almost 3 percent of all school age children (Lips & Feinberg, 2008). A private researcher, the National Home Education Research Institute, estimates 2.5 million children were being homeschooled in the 2007 – 2008 academic years (Lips & Feinberg, 2008). By either count, homeschooling is growing exponentially. Parents have been teaching their children at home for centuries. During the 1970s, the interest in homeschooling increased. Legal advocates had lots of opposition when pressing for the legal right to educate their child at home and change compulsory school attendance. The National Education Association fought to place restrictions on home schooling. However, most of the efforts have failed. As a result, homeschooling is legal in every state. Reasons for Homeschooling Growth There are numerous reasons why parents turn to homeschooling. Changes in the families and public schools drive the increase. Public schools grew larger, more bureaucratic, and more impersonal. Parents felt more alienated as the school was less responsive and less adaptive to cultural needs. This was combined with the loss of the Christian culture and curriculum the parents found offensive or against their social values (Gaither, 2008). The major reasons for homeschooling cited by two-thirds of the parents interviewed are concern about the school environment, dissatisfaction with the academic programs, and the desire for religious or moral instruction (National Center for Education Statistics [NCES], 2004). Parents feel ... ...ated, this was not true of the homeschoolers. The homeschoolers also tended to vote more often. They were also involved in more community service than the general population. The homeschoolers were not isolated, but politically and socially active (Ray, 2004). Conclusion There are a growing number of homeschooled students and it appears homeschooling is successful. Most parents homeschool because of the environment, both academic and moral. The states need to insure all children are being educated. However, the requirements vary by state. Michigan is the most liberal, not even requiring homeschoolers to report to the state. The internet has expanded the types of homeschooling. Combined with the availability of the public school system for specialized programs, homeschooling is now a more popular option. Homeschooling will continue to be a growing area.

Song Analysis of Hands Down by Dashboard Confessional Essay -- Music

â€Å"Hands Down† By: Dashboard Confessional Song Analysis Everyone has that one song they can listen to over and over again. There are various reasons people press the repeat button, whether it be the sound of the singer’s voice, the quality of their musicianship, or their heartfelt lyrics and the story they tell. The song â€Å"Hands Down†, by Dashboard Confessional tells the story of a day-in-the-life of lead singer, Chris Carrabba, in high school. Carrabba has said that this song is about the best day he has ever had, and introduces it as such at concerts. Dashboard Confessional effectively uses paradox, irony, imagery, and repetition, to enable the listener to create a visual and experience emotions felt by the writer. â€Å"Hands Down† is an acoustic and emotional song about a teenage boy who has fallen in love with a girl. The setting that is established is a series of events on a significant and passionate night in their relationship. â€Å"Hands Down†, was written to express the feelings and hopes the boy has for their relationship. The song is speaking to the girl he is in love with, and to anyone and everyone who has felt the way he feels in this stage of a relationship. Dashboard Confessional uses the literary device of paradox multiple times throughout the song. Paradoxes seem to contradict themselves, which makes its use so effective when writing about the feelings of a teenage relationship. â€Å"This night is wild, so calm and dull. These hearts, they race from self-control† This line, from the beginning of the song, relates to the anxious and nervous feelings both the boy and girl were feeling. It is describing the anticipation the couple was experiencing about the events to come. Another example of paradox that... ... The repetition used clearly shows the sincerity and meaningfulness of the girl’s kiss. The boy knew that she was sincere in her actions and wasn’t just doing it because it was expected. On the contrary, the night was very special and meant something to her and she expressed her feelings through a kiss. Here, both the boy and the listener realize that she sincerely loves him. Thus, the story is comes to an end, the boy gets what he sought out from the beginning: a real kiss. In conclusion, â€Å"Hands Down†, explains the expectations of our generation and how we, as teenagers react to them. Dashboard Confessional has exceptional talent when it comes to writing relatable lyrics and engaging their fans. This song is a rare example of a boy who is not focused just on â€Å"getting some†, rather he has his sights set on getting the girls’ heart before he gets into her pants.

Long Term Illness Essay

In this assignment a focus on an individual with the long term illness/ condition of a stroke will be undertaken, examining the impact of the condition/illness from the perspective of the individual and their family and also the impact of person centred care upon nursing practice. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC, 2008) Code of Professional Conduct Guidance has been maintained throughout this essay and therefore, all names have been altered for the purpose of confidentiality and anonymity. Currently there are around 1.2 million stroke survivors in the UK, which is every year an estimated 152,000 people. More than half have been left with disabilities that affect their daily life. Stroke can affect anyone, no matter what their age. Around a third of all strokes happen to people under the age of 65, and around 400 children (0-18) have a stroke each year. Furthermore stroke is the largest cause of complex disability in adults. (Stroke Association 2012). A stroke is caused by the interruption of the blood supply to the brain, usually because a blood vessel bursts or is blocked by a clot. This cuts off the supply of oxygen and nutrients, causing damage to the brain tissue (WHO 2012). Mary is a 75 year old white British lady who suffered from a Cerebrovascular Accident (Stroke) approximately five years ago. She is a divorced lady who lives alone in a two storey house, however she has three children and numerous grandchildren who live within walking distance and whom visit on a daily basis. Mary was admitted to hospital as she had sustained a fall, fortunately nothing was broken, but she had suffered with severe bruising to her face and left side of her body resulting in loss of confidence. Mary currently takes medication for hypertension and hypercholesterolemia which her G.P monitors quite closely. On assessment it was identified that Mary has been finding it hard to accept her diagnosis, she was hoping that she would return to the same quality of life that she had before the stroke as she had never been poorly or took medication prior to this happening. CHSS (2012) state that denial initially protects you from being overwhelmed by the changes in your life. Some people may become ‘stuck’ in denial. The author has chosen this condition/illness as her grandmother suffered from a stroke 10 years ago and fights everyday with her disability, because of this experience the author decided to join the nursing profession and possibly work on a stroke unit or neurology department. This assignment will help to support, educate and contribute to patients ability to care for themselves after being diagnosed with any long term illness and will be part of life long learning, the Royal College of Nursing explain that nurses are committed to lifelong learning and continuous professional development (RCN 2012). Clinical reasons for choosing this condition/illness are that on this placement the author was allocated with the stoma nurses which gave her the opportunity to work on the wards of her choice on the final two weeks of the placement, she chose the stroke unit which also allowed her to complete many achievements and outcomes for example proficiency 2.4 was met which involved working with patients and families in order to use their strengths to achieve their goals and aspirations. As a nurse it is vital that patient centred care is met in today’s NHS and the care management of patients with a long term condition meaning putting the patient and their experience foremost, through communication, discussion of treatment options, potential outcomes and possible psychological effects also empowering the patient and allowing them to make choices about their healthcare (Nursing Standard 2011). As Mary was admitted with a fall investigatory questions needed to be asked to find out whether trips and falls are a common occurrence within Mary’s life and whether any member of the multi disciplinary team has implemented any changes to prevent these from happening. Through engaging in a therapeutic relationship allowing us to gain mutual respect and collaboration to develop with Mary she informed us that she has had many trips in her own home and only this one major fall outside, along with her worries and concerns which were listened to attentively. Nicol, J (2011) explain that as a nurse managing risk and promoting health and wellbeing whilst aiming to empower choices to promote self-care must be a priority therefore certain referrals need to be put in place. Firstly a referral to the physiotherapist was made within the hospital in order to improve posture and balance and make sure it is safe for Mary to return home to her own surroundings, as this was not managed post stroke admission and it is within the nurses role to make sure the patient and family are comfortable with there discharge. It is known for stroke suffers to have problems such as weakness, clumsiness or paralysis usually to one side of the body or loss of balance (Stroke Association 2008) which is why Mary has not received any further treatment from a physiotherapist after her stroke five years ago as treatment is stopped when it is no longer producing any marked improvement to your condition (NHS Choices 2012). Although from this admission it is recommend from the physiotherapist that a cane will be useful to Mary in order for her to gain more strength and move about more freely when walking outside within her limitation. A lot of time and advice was given to Mary and her family through discussion, education and effective communication, in order to help her in the decision making process and allowing Mary to realise that regaining independence requires patience (National Stroke Association 2011). Furthermore from a staff nurse’s experience in the past a referral to the Falls clinic was also put in place which was deemed successful from previous stroke survivors who have been left with similar disabilities to Mary and found this useful in the rehabilitation pathway. The Falls Clinic, (2011) aims to reduce your risk of falling and falls-related injuries and review your progress every two months for the first year. From this it enables Mary to be followed up in others ways apart from the GP ensuring that nothing significant is being missed in her care. Good engagement and collaboration allows the patient to gain full confidence and allows the nurse to develop a therapeutic nurse patient relationship providing care in a manner that enables the patient to be an equal partner in achieving wellness, which Mary had never felt before. However the family stepped forward at this point and informed the nursing team that they felt that Mary is starting to struggle around her usual housing environment and made it clear that they had no knowledge of any movement aids or assistive device until this hospital visit and talking to other families with the same problems. A referral to the Occupational Therapist was then put in place to assess and treat the physical condition using specific, purposeful activity to prevent disability and promote independent function in all aspects of daily life (NHS Careers 2012). From this referral it was decided that assistive grab bars, shower seats, supportive hand rails were put in place for easier movement around her home and further safety. This helped put her family at ease as she lives alone and copes by herself. Many stroke survivors continue to improve over a longer time in many different ways. Their recovery is in fact a long period of rehabilitation, as they learn to deal with the effects the stroke has had on them, however the psychological impact of living with a long term condition are very popular such as 30% of patients will suffer from depression at some point post-stroke (British Psychological Society 2010) and a significant proportion these remain undiagnosed or inadequately treated ( Hackett ,Yapa, Parag & Anderson 2005). Therefore as a nurse it is vital all the common problems after a stroke are investigated in depth. Upon Mary’s admission these psychological issues were assessed, Mary revealed that she had a feeling of hopelessness as she was unable to look after her younger grandchildren, worrying all the time and unable to sleep furthermore she felt like a burden to her family as they now had to do her housework and her weekly shop. Feelings of loss of energy were also described and a feeling of being isolated from her friends .As this attitude from a nurses perspective is not seen as a positive one the signs and symptoms of depression after stroke were researched. Stroke Association (2012) suggest that it is vital to seek help if four or more symptoms are present which include feeling worthless, avoiding people, feeling anxious or feeling blue and patients with long term conditions being more likely to develop depression, A Two Question Screening Tool was used which also determined that depression was a strong possibility NICE (2009) recommend a two question screen tool to determine who may have depression. These questions link to the key symptoms required for a diagnosis to be made and with both questions answered yes it meant things can be put in place to manage this. However this diagnosis for Mary and her family was hard to accept as she had felt like this for numerous years and nothing had been done about it. The nursing referral to GP for further screening in the community was put in place which has to include the diagnosed stage of depression which for this patient is mild disorder and the treatment and management needed. Then it is the GP’s responsibility to set up an active review which includes self help, cognitive behavioural therapy and exercise (CSIP 2006) NIMH (2011) suggest cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT ), a type of psychotherapy, or talk therapy, that helps people change negative thinking styles and behaviours that may contribute to their depression, from this as a nurse a recommendation of a day hospice was suggested to Mary, as similar patients from the nurses experience had thoroughly enjoyed there time visiting a hospice weekly. This form of empowerment allows Mary to take greater control over decisions and actions affecting her health facilitating choice, self care and self management. Using Gibbs model of reflection (1988) it was clear to me from a student nurse perspective that Marys psychological needs were not adequately addressed, as it took six years to pick up on this adjustment in her life the healthcare in this case was not acceptable. It was upsetting to observe the patient and her family feel frustrated that nothing was done as continuing health care in stroke is a primary need and stroke survivors are eligible for NHS funding for all the individuals assessed needs ( Department of Health 2009) In order to improve nursing the stroke patient the nursing role should involve preventative care which includes providing adequate information on stroke, risk factors and any lifestyle modifications, followed by curative care which involves accurate assessment’s, planned care that is person centred, physiological monitoring and risk assessment. Finally Rehabilitative/ promotive care which entails the carry on role (therapies), safe discharge planning and excellent communication with family/carers in which most of these steps should involve depression awareness and the importance of it as those people who have a Stroke and become depressed, failure to treat results is a less than optimal rehabilitation outcome (Stroke Recovery Association 2010). In addition to this nursing staff should aim to facilitate psychological adjustment and to support understanding of the emotions associated with recovery as the interaction of psychologists and nurses provides an opportunity to normalise patients’ reactions to post-stroke difficulties also they can exchange evidence-based and patient knowledge with each other (Vohora & Ogi 2008). In Mary’s case I found that this aspect of her care was dealt with very well as Mary found it a challenge to accept this change in her life the and nurses spent endless amounts of time and dedication to help Mary come to terms with her disabilities. It may be argued that staff nursing levels were a relating factor to Mary’s poor post stroke care, from working on a stroke unit previously the workload is very heavy and consists of many clinicians with appropriate levels of expertise in medicine, nursing, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, speech- language pathology, social work and clinician nutrition. Additional disciplines may include pharmacy, (neuro) psychology and recreation therapy, however it is within the nurses role to ensure all of these clinicians see there patient. In which some cases this maybe missed therefore implementing higher staffing levels may avoid this and signs of Marys depression could have been picked up amongst all of the reviews. In 2005 Lankshear published a systematic review of international research since 1990 that looked at relationships between nurse staffing and patient outcomes. Across the 22 studies covered the report stated that, †[The results] strongly suggest that higher nurse staffing and richer skill mix (especially of registered nurses) are associated with improved patient outcomes, although the effect size cannot be estimated reliably (Royal College of Nursing 2010). This would also be applied when the patient returned to there own home as people who have had a stroke and their carers value continuity, being kept informed, being included and having a clear, consistent point of contact with all the clinicians and services available.(Department of Health 2007). Another implementation that could be put in place not only for Mary’s psychological needs but also her physical needs is that Stroke specialist professionals could be involved in application and review of eligibility for Continuing Health Care in the community so that complex or hidden post stroke deficits which may be missed by generic staff can be considered. This could be included in the six week, six month and annual stroke reviews, and form part of the joint health and social care plan. (Department of Health, 2009). With this put in place Mary’s fall may have been prevented and her home could have become safer for her earlier putting her family at ease and allowing Mary to become more independent and less reliant on help. If the situation arose again and these changes were implemented then Holistic care, which is essential in nursing skills would be successful taking into consideration the psychological, environmental and spiritual needs of the patient, as well as the physical so that people are treated as whole human beings and the impact of the illness on their quality of life is met.(Nursing Standard, 2011). To conclude the role of the nurse in the management of care delivery for the patient and their family is to share their skills and knowledge with patients and their carers, acting as a key resource and providing a route to other services and professionals ( DOH 2005). As a person centred approach was used on this admission for Mary and her family it was clear that she was discharged more aware of services available to her in the community and the care given was beneficial in her life long rehabilitation process, leaving the Multidisciplinary Team confident they have done all they can for the patients individual needs.

Sony Research Paper

Journey of SONY : A Revolution of Walkman to I-Pod 1981 Walkman II Sony is arguably Japan's best known company and one of the world's largest and most well respected consumer-product manufacturers. Its products are world famous and sold everywhere around the globe. Surveys in early 2000s have showed that Sony was the most recognized and esteemed brand name in the United States (ahead of Coca Cola, General Motors and General Electric) and is third coolest global brand after Nike and Tommy Hilfinger among American teens. Although Sony has some of its luster since then it is still a remarkable company.Sony is the world’s No. 2 consumer electronic maker after Panasonic with around $70 billion in worldwide sales. One of Japan’s first internationally-minded companies, it has relied heavily on exports and was among the first Japanese firms to build a U. S. factory. In the 1960s, 70s and 80s it helped turned â€Å"Made in Japan† from a joke into a symbol in unsurpassed q uality. Sony has traditionally been known as a great innovator that transformed entire categories of electronics with products like the Walkman music player and PlayStation game console, and was able command premium prices for its top-quality products.Sony not only changed business and the electronic industry it also changed the world. Before it came along electronics were large bulky products that kept people sequestered in their homes. After Sony, they became small products that people they could to take with them to enhance their surroundings wherever they went. Sony topped a Harris poll for best brands for the 7th consecutive year in 2006. Dell and Coca Cola were 2nd and 3rd respectively. In 2004, it was ranked by Forbes as the 72nd largest company in the world. Sony placed 35th in the 2011 Interbrand Best Global Brands ranking. Coca Cola and IBM were No. and 2. Sony had 160,000 employees and 57 manufacturing sites as of September 2008. It has traditionally been regarded as one of the top transnational companies in terms of foreign assets and foreign employees. The goal of the company has been to apply the most advanced technology to consumer products for fun and enjoyment rather than just practical uses. Sony Walkman Walkman prototype The Walkman miniature cassette player first went on sale in July, 1979. Inspired by pocket cassette recorders designed for dictation, it changed the way we lived by making music and electronics portable, personal and mobile.It changed the lifestyles and listening habits of millions and was particularly embraced by young people, commuters and joggers. In 1986, â€Å"Walkman† was added to the Oxford English dictionary. For a while it was used as a generic term for all portable music devices. The Walkman was originally made as a prototype so that Sony co-founder Akio Morita could listen to opera on long-distance flights. The device, which was original marketed in Britain as the Stowaway, almost didn’t happen. â₠¬Å"Everybody gave me a hard time,† Morita said in his memoirs.Sony engineers and executive said it was ludicrous to sell a tape-player without a recording function. It took a while for the Walkman to catch on. Sales initially were sluggish. The Walkman has been described as Morita’s product and his greatest contribution to Sony. It was Ibuka who came up with the idea for product but Morita was the one who overcame resistance of senior Sony executives to bring the product to market. The Walkman was the right product for the right time. It was the prefect device for the me generation era and the fitness craze.Its headphone output jack was originally named â€Å"guy† and input hole â€Å"doll. † A famous Walkman ad from the 1980s featured a monkey (a Japanese macaque) listening to a Walkman with a very human-like relaxed, content expression on its face. The Walkman was followed by Watchman mini television (1982) and Discman compact disc player (1984) and hund red of imitations by competitors. As of 2004, 340 million Walkman had been sold and130 different Walkman models had been released. They included models that ran MDs and memory sticks. The first device to gain as much attention as Sony’s Walkman was Apple Ipod, released in 2004.In response to that Sony introduced a hard disk Vaio pocket and a hard disk Walkman. In October 2010, Sony announced it was cease producing conventional Walkman cassette players. They were done in by competition from MP2 players and Ipods. They lasted for 31 years. Sony and Sweden’s Ericsson produce cell phones together, mainly making mid- and high-range handsets, In recent years sales have suffered. It has profits have been around $300 million on around $4. 5 billion in sales Sony and KDDI developed a Walkman brand cell phone that downloads music Sony: How did the former gadget king lose its mojo?Before the iPod, everyone's headphones were plugged into the Sony Walkman. But as the Walkman lost i ts relevance, Sony seemed to, as well posted on April 2, 2012, at 6:25 AM Sony has faded since its classic '80s-era Walkman went out of style, but a new CEO is trying to change that. Photo: DK Limited/CORBIS Like Xerox, Kleenex, and Google, Sony's Walkman was the rare brand that was so popular it became the thing itself. The Japanese electronics giant was ubiquitous in other ways, too, and there was a time when it seemed as if everyone owned a Sony device, whether it was a television, a camcorder, or a stereo.But in the iPad age, Sony seems to have all but disappeared from the marketplace for must-have gadgets. What happened? And how can its new CEO, Kazuo Hirai, turn the company around? Here, a guide to Sony's woes: How badly is Sony struggling? It's not pretty. The company is set to post a loss of $2. 7 billion for the current fiscal year. It was worth $100 billion in 2000, but since then has lost 80 percent of its value. And it's even struggling in its native Japan, where Apple f or the first time was just voted the country's top consumer brand. Where did Sony go wrong?Sony is an enormous company, and its movie unit (which produced the Spiderman movies) and music business (which distributes Adele and Taylor Swift) post profits. In fact, its biggest moneymaker is Sony Life, an insurance company. The problem is lackluster gadgets. Consumer electronics still account for half of Sony's sales, and the company's once-unrivaled television division, for example, â€Å"is drowning in red ink,† says Matt Burns at TechCrunch. Why can't it make another Walkman? Sony's â€Å"gift for innovation† came more easily when the company was â€Å"young and streamlined, not sprawling,† says Chico Harlan at The Washington Post.Sony has become an â€Å"unwieldy multiheaded beast,† says Burns, and is simply less focused on product development. Furthermore, Sony is reluctant to take the draconian steps — firing workers, for example — that are often necessary to make companies more nimble. Like other struggling Japanese companies, Sony still adheres â€Å"to cultural expectations of lifetime employment,† says Harlan. What is Sony's new CEO planning to do? Hirai, who took the helm on April 1, is proposing a new business structure called â€Å"Sony One,† which will see the company focus on gaming, mobile devices, and digital imaging.For a company that missed out â€Å"completely on the iPod era of portable music devices,† it's hoping to â€Å"make up for lost time† with a big splash in the smartphone industry, says Devindra Hardawar at VentureBeat. Gaming is still a â€Å"cash cow† for Sony, and its digital cameras are â€Å"better† than most, so the Sony One plan seems solid. Can it make a comeback? Hirai says he's willing to take the â€Å"painful† steps it will take, says Cliff Edwards at Bloomberg Businessweek, including cutting costs. But Sony will also have to do a bet ter job of wedding its gadgets with the vast music and movie content at its disposal.Sony's â€Å"engineers were slow to weave it all together, as Apple did seamlessly with its iPod and iTunes,† says Harlan. It's an ironic twist of fate for the reigning company â€Å"Apple and Steve Jobs were aiming to dethrone 15 years ago,† says Burns. Sony's Walkman Disappears With a Whimper Few tears were shed as Sony announced plans to shelve most editions of its once ubiquitous Walkman cassette player. The now-unwieldy device, which debuted in 1979, was credited with beginning the portable music player craze and ushering the transition of music fans â€Å"from listeners into users. But many columnists, instead of penning fond farewells to the iPod's ancestor, are bidding the device good riddance, asking why it wasn't discontinued â€Å"years ago. † Still, there were a more than a few who waxed nostalgic about those tinny headphones blaring their favorite '80s tunes. A Ver y Subdued Goodbye for the Device The Wall Street Journal's Daisuke Wakabayashi wonders how the iconic device managed to disappear so inconspicuously, especially in Japan. â€Å"Perhaps there was no raucous send-off in Japan, because the Walkman has come to symbolize, fairly or unfairly, how Sony relinquished its portable music player lead to Apple Inc. s iPod on its ways to taking a backseat to Steve Job’s seemingly endless string of hits†¦. To be sure, most consumer electronics products disappear with barely a whimper†¦. However, one can not help but think the Walkman and its incredible success deserved more than a gadget’s equivalent of a gold watch and a pat on the back. † ‘The Best Symbol of the Demise of Sony' Douglas A. McIntyre at 24/7 Wall Street pens a eulogy for the Walkman and, in turn, Sony. â€Å"There will be many histories of Sony written and most will question why the company was not more aggressive to court music companies and c reate its own iTunes store. Unfortunately, McIntyre argues, â€Å"Its digital version of the Walkman came to market too late†¦. The burial of the Walkman signals the death of Sony’s own ambitions in the portable multimedia device industry. It will be a case study at business schools for decades to teach how a company can lose a market it has dominated. † It Used to Be Amazing, Today It's ‘Kind of a Joke' Talking Points Memo editor Josh Marshall briefly recalls 1979. â€Å"It wasn't just that the device was small, though it was — not that much bigger than the size of a cassette itself.It was that the headphones were so small and managed to provide — right up against your ear — a surprising degree of audio fidelity. Remember, holding a boombox up on your shoulder wasn't just an affectation. It was the only real way to listen to music on the go. † We Wouldn't Have the iPod Without It After making the requisite quips about the Walkman (â€Å"at least it outlived disco†) CNet's Greg Sandoval notes that the devices designers â€Å"likely influenced† the eventual concept of the iPod. â€Å"[Steve] Jobs took portable music to a new level, one where even [Sony] couldn't compete.Jobs wrapped his offering around a cohesive and as yet unbeatable combination of hardware, software, and digital retail. Sony knew hardware but was at best so-so in retail and a total disaster at developing software (see Sony Connect). Some have speculated that Sony's failure to keep up in a segment that the company created was one of the reasons it has given the Walkman such a quiet send off. † ‘Enough Nostalgia. Let's Recall the Bad Times. ‘ NPR's Jacob Ganz remembers the music players with little fondness. Walkman was all about smaller and cheaper: headphones were light, but breakable. You could hear your music on the go; so could everyone else, since the speakers in the headphones were so bad that you had t o crank the volume. † It also had the interesting effect of turning â€Å"music into a drug, boiled down into capsules that were lower in purity but easier to acquire and manipulate. The device itself may have been too rigid and flawed to survive changing times, but the Walkman changed us from listeners into users. † 30 facts from 30 years of the Sony WalkmanThe first Walkman was launched 30 years ago today Related stories Three decades ago today, Sony launched the Walkman in Japan. It changed how and where we listened to music and its legacy and name still continue today. To celebrate the anniversary of the launch, we've gathered together 30 facts from the last 30 years of one of tech's biggest product icons. 1. The idea for the Walkman came from Masaru Ibuka, the founder of Sony. He was a regular user of the 1978 TC-D5 portable tape recorder, but found it too heavy.He and Sony's Executive Deputy President Norio Oga challenged Nobutoshi Kihara to come up with a simple, playback-only stereo version of the small Pressman tape recorder. 2. Despite initial troubles with batteries and the strangeness of a large pair of headphones teamed with a small device, Ibuka said to Sony's Chairman Akio Morita â€Å"Don't you think a stereo cassette player that you can listen to while walking around is a good idea? † 3. Over 300 different Walkman models have now been produced. 4. Walkman was chosen as a name partly because of the popularity of Superman in 1979. 5.In early 1979, Morita held a meeting in which he held up the prototype Pressman-derived device and said the product should be manufactured and would be a hit among the young. He gave the engineering team less than four months to produce the model, which needed to launch in June. 6. Due to the short time frame, members of the engineering team had to work through the night two or three times a week. 7. The first H-AIR MDR3 headphones weighed just 50 grams at a time when most headphones were 300-400 grams. They were being developed in Sony's research labs at the time of the Walkman project. . By June 1989, a decade after the original, 50 million units had been shipped. 9. Morita ordered an initial production run of 30,000 Walkman units to be made – double the montly sales of the best-selling tape recorder. Poor initial response and sales 10. The first TPS-L2 model was shown to the press on 22 June 1979. Journalists were driven to a park, given a Walkman and were told to walk around while listening to an explanation of the Walkman in stereo. 11. However, initial press responses were very lukewarm. They believed it wouldn't take off. 2. By the end of the first month on sale only 3,000 units had been sold. 13. Retailers weren't keen on the product as they didn't think they could sell something that wouldn't record. 14. Yet, the word of the Walkman spread quickly among the young in Summer 1979. So much so that Marui Department Store placed an order for 10,000 units – even though major Japanese retail was still ignoring it. 15. The initial batch of 30,000 units sold out by the end of August and Sony had problems fulfilling orders for the rest of the year. 6. A worldwide launch was planned for six months after the Walkman's Japanese launch, but Sony subsidiaries didn't like the Walkman name. 17. Other proposed names were Soundabout in the US, Freestyle in Sweden and Stowaway in the UK. 18. But Morita went on a business trip and in both France and the UK people asked him when they would be able to get a Walkman. The name was already set in stone. 19. The latest Walkman line is the X-Series portable video player. A complete success 20.To emphasise the nature of the product, the 1979 launch event was held outside with Walkman demos in the form of people roller skating or cycling while listening to the device. 21. 100 million units were shipped by 1992. 22. In 1986 the name Walkman was included in the Oxford English Dictionary. 23. Many at Sony initia lly felt that the Walkman should be able to record, but Morita was determined to produce a playback-only unit. 24. Again, due to the short time frame, the development team was told not to worry too much about what the original Walkman looked like. 25.In the UK, the first Walkman in the UK came with stereo and two mini headphone jacks – even though it only had one pair of MDR-3L2 headphones. 26. Sony does not like Walkman to be pluralised in the traditional form – either as Walkmans or Walkmen. 27. The first Discman was launched as early as 1984 – the D-50 or D-5. Later models included ESP for shock protection. 28. 1992 saw the launch of the digital re-recordable, MiniDisc Walkman. 29. The Sports line of waterproof players was introduced in 1983. 30. Incredibly, Sony still manufacturers cassette-based Walkman players today.

Remodeling HR at Home Depot Essay

Abstract Home Depot went through many changes as a result of new CEO Frank Blake and Vice President of Human Resources, Tim Crow. The culture inherited by both Executives from their predecessors went through a transformation process for the business to thrive once again. Blake and Crow justified laying off 1,200 workers as a result of their vision to enhance Home Depot’s position in the market and to go back to the organizations foundations embedded by founders Arthur Blank and Bernard Marcus. Specifically, a closer look at the Human Resources function in the organization was focused on in order to align an HR strategy with the business model. This paper will discuss the strategic initiatives taken by Blake and Crow and how they created a sustainable competitive advantage at Home Depot by focusing on strategic HR. Further, this paper will examine John Kotter’s Eight-step Change Model, the Organization and People Strategy, the â€Å"outside-in† HR approach, and Lepak and S nell’s HR Model. Organizational change became a necessity at Home Depot when the business failed to increase shareholder value and rivals were outperforming the company. Change at Home Depot started at the top with new CEO Frank Blake and Vice President of Human Resources, Tim Crow. Specifically, Blake and Crow transformed the way Human Resources contributed to the organizations success. Blake and Crow’s approach is comparable to a change model put forth by John Kotter—the Eight-steps Change Model. This model focuses on driving organizational changes through analysis, management, and communication. The first step in Kotter’s model is to establish a sense of urgency (Esther & Green, 2009). That is, looking at conditions within the organization to see where adjustments are needed. In Home Depot’s case, HR and its strategic role needed some attention; hence it was analyzed and modified to meet business needs. In the second step, Kotter’s suggestion is to find groups of people who can work together (Esther & Green, 2009). At Home Depot, the Store manager and HR manager were not working â€Å"together†. There seemed to be a barrier as one HR manager, overwhelmed with tasks, could not produce at the highest level. The third step in the Eight-step Change Model elaborates on creating a vision (Esther & Green, 2009). Both Blake and Crow had a vision when they took office. What is more, both Executives wanted to go  back to Home Depot’s core principles to see what changes should be made for the business to out-perform its rivals. Moving forward, the fourth and fifth steps in Kotter’s model talk about the importance of communication (fourth step) and empowering the vision onto others (fifth step) (Esther & Green, 2009). This step at Home Depot was critical—Tim Crow communicated his vision to Frank Blake and others in the company and drove them to change the way HR performed in the organization by eliminating positions that were not efficient. Step six in Kotter’s model recommends creating short-term goals (Esther & Green, 2009). Blake and Crow set realistic short-term goals and shared why taking away an HR manager from each store would be a beneficial move. That is, the Store managers gained 3 HR Generalist instead of one HR manager (Mello, 2010). Step seven in Kotter’s model rewards employees for promoting the chang e and step eight defends the organization’s position on how the new change leads to corporate success (Esther & Green, 2009). Home Depot has taken initiatives discussed later in this paper to carry out steps seven and eight. By using John Kotter’s Change Model, Home Depot went from not having an effective Human Resources presence to employing an operational HR strategy. Right now, Home Depot’s current state of HR is embedded with the company’s overall corporate strategy. The organization has HR professionals who are true business partners, something Tim Crow planned and worked towards during the Human Resources Planning (HRP) stage. Moreover, Crow has taken a strategic approach, one that compares to the Organization and People Strategy. The strategy focuses on three key areas: Reward and Recognition, Talent Management, and Organizational Effectiveness (Armstrong, 2011). Reward and Recognition programs at HD consist of the following: Success Sharing for stores that achieve sales targets (paid out $63 million in 2007), Homer Badges for employees who exemplify company values, and the Product Knowledge Recognition program to reward learning initiatives (Crow, 2008). As far as the Talent Management aspect of the strategy, Home Depot has a Master Trade Specialist program in place that hired 3,000 trade specialists who are licensed electricians and plumbers (Crow, 2008). What is more, the company has HR managers who are more involved than their predecessors with Store managers and the company has its own insourced call center to address employee concerns. To accomplish the third component of the Organization and People Strategy—Organizational Effectiveness, Home  Depot has the Aprons on the Floor program, action based training modules, and an Aware Line telephone service for individuals to call and comment on particular situations (Crow, 2008). Before Blake and Crow took over Home Depot, it was led by former CEO Robert Nardelli and his regime. Nardelli and his choice of Executives turned the Home Depot culture upside down. That is, company officers were at the top, employees in the middle, and customers on the bottom of the pyramid. It took Crow’s strategic mindset to turn the pyramid back to its original position. Further, Blake played a significant role by making employee morale and career development a strategic priority (Crow, 2008). Blake and Crow did not turn the corporation around overnight. Instead, it was an ongoing process that needed commitment from everyone in the company. The reduction in force was the first step. The layoffs assisted Home Depot to take an â€Å"outside-in† approach to focus on strategic HR. This type of approach starts with analyzing the customer, competitor, and other challenges faced by the business (Armstrong, 2011). Further, the â€Å"outside-in† approach tackles ineff ective HR practices that should be revisited and aligned with corporate strategies. To integrate corporate and HR strategies, Home Depot replaced Human Resources managers from each store with additional Sales Associates (Mello, 2010). As Home Depot moves forward with strategic HR in the organization, the focus is on both the technical and managerial strategies. Technical strategies deal with the mathematical and behavioral methods of forecasting HR needs while managerial strategies consist of ways decision-makers tackle human resource issues (Reilly & Williams, 2006). Examples of technical strategies at Home Depot are the reduction of 1,200 human resource positions and establishing fresh roles for new HR teams. From a managerial standpoint, instead of having one Human Resource manager inundated with tasks, the three new Human Resources Generalist each are responsible for one function only—staffing and development, associate relations, and performance management (Mello, 2010). Both technical and managerial HR strategies are helping create a sustainable competitive advantage at Home Depot. When Crow decided to eliminate positio ns, resistance was inevitable. However, the cuts were an advantage to HR at Home Depot because organizational resources were not being allocated in the most efficient way. The trade-off of having a Human Resources manager in each store was the lack of manpower on the floor and that meant shifting  away from selling merchandise. By eliminating the HR manager position and creating regional HR teams, the organization went back to focusing on its core competence of providing customer service and increasing sales. Revenue growth at Home Depot suggests HR regional teams are better than one Human Resource manager in each store. Further, Home Depot’s reasoning behind changing the function of Human Resources can be examined closely by using the Lepak and Snell Model. Lepak and Snell have four quadrants in their model which classify Human Resources configurations. Right now, Home Depot appears to fall under the second quadrant. That is, the focus is on Job-based Employment and the company has Productivity Based HR (Mello, 2010). However, Home Depot is striving to reach Quadrant I: Knowledge-based Employment and Commitment-Based HR by having programs such as the Master Trade Specialist and a robust HR system in place. Overtime, Home Depot can drive their HR strategy to reach Quadrant I to get the most out of th eir business objectives. Conclusion: Home Depot is an example of how strategic HR can influence growth, productivity, and success in an organization. It starts with the willingness of the organization’s leaders to drive change. When Black and Crow eliminated 1,200 employees, the move was alarming to current workers and others in the industry. However, to revamp the HR strategy, layoffs were a necessity. By using theories similar to Kotter’s Eight-step Change Model, the People and Organization strategy, the HR â€Å"outside-in† approach, and Lepak and Snell’s HR Model, Blake and Crow turned around Home Depot’s culture to focus on customer service—its core business competence. Further, the company now has HR business partners who act as liaisons to Store managers to have an effective HR presence in stores. Home Depot is headed in the right direction as a result of its strategic HR focus. References Armstrong, M. (2011). Armstrong’s handbook of strategic human resource management. London: Kogan Page. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy.library.georgetown.edu/login.aspx? direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=390442&site=ehost-live&scope=site Crow, T. (2008). Home REMODEL. Workforce Management, 87(12), 1-1,24,26,28. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.proxy.library.georgetown.edu/docview/219795604?accountid=11091 Esther, C., & Green, M. (2009). Making Sense of change Management. Philadelphia, PA: Kogan Page. Mello, J.A. (2010). Strategic Human Resource Management, Third Edition. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning. Reilly, P. A., & Williams, T. (2006). Strategic HR : Building the capability to deliver. Aldershot: Gower. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy.library.georgetown.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=269752&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Italo Calvino

Saad Ahmed Prof. Frank Meola EN-2013W Assignment 3 Italo Calvino’s deceptively easy style of writing gives captivates the interest of the readers. He makes one simple tale interesting and well anchored. His writings are very well-constructed; it’s like the soft cotton inside the seed: Even if the topic is hard to think about, the writer makes it warm and soft and makes his point very clear to the reader. Italo Calvino not only writes short well-crafted tails but also focuses on real life and relates them to scientific aspects.An example of this can be Cosmicomics; one of his very popular books where the appearance of the characters were very simple. The writer synthesized the characters with his great scientific vision and humanized writing; also he was able to show how scientists might reflect their ability to work and handle science in order to have a great impact on human life. â€Å"It narrates the war adventures of a young street urchin, a boy of about twelve of t hirteen, mischievously wicked and at the same time native.Their mother is dead and their father has long abandoned them. Pin, who has no friends of his own age, fends for himself, working as a cobbler’s apprentice, stealing and getting free drinks from the men at the local taven†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (pp 10-11). Siegel, Kristi explained the humanizing characteristics of Italo Calvino’s Cosmicomics in the above way. She pointed out how in Cosmicomics, Italo Calvino not only has focused on well-constructed science and its importance but also how it affects daily lives and how the affects can be improved and be made useful for human. Calvino modulates the novel on two distinct tones† (pp 14). â€Å"With this story Calvino dramatizes the ills of our society where all our values can be booth and sold and everything is valued in terms of production and consumption† (pp 35); The writer shows the great sight Calvino’s way of humanizing stories integrated by not onl y science but also by economics. Martin L. McLaughlin also described Calvino’s way of attaching science with human life. Alongside these scientific thematic, this early dialogue also evinces Calvino’s admiration for the two Italian writers for whom the moon and space had a special resonance, and who would become key literary models for the new Cosmicomics genre, Galileo and Leopardi. † (pp 82: Chapter 6). From the writers opinion on Italo Calvino, it can be recognized that he (I. C) was passionate about science and its huge domain of covering up the whole universe, but again he focused more on how these kind of scientific ideas are actually helping human and improving their abilities.In his book, â€Å"The Castle of Crossed Destinies†, Italo Calvino has attached fiction with great art and his aim was to improvise thinking skills. According to Great Science-Fiction & Fantasy Works, â€Å"In The Castle, the tarots that make up each story are arranged in a d ouble file, horizontal or vertical, and are crossed by three further double files of tarots (horizontal or vertical) which make up other stories.The result is a general pattern in which you can â€Å"read† three stories horizontally and three stories vertically, and in addition, each of these sequences of cards can also be read: in reverse, as another tale. Thus we have a total of twelve stories. † In his book t-zero, Italo Calvino showed how to humanize science again. He described his characters out of a mathematical formula and simple cellular structures. â€Å"Orbit? Oh, elliptical, of course† for a while it would huddle against us and then it would take flight for a while.The tides, when the Moon swung closer, rose so high nobody could hold them back. There were nights when the Moon was full and very, very low, and the tide was so high that the Moon missed a ducking in the sea by a hair’s-breadth; well, let’s say a few yards anyway. Climb up on the Moon? Of course we did. All you had to do was row our to it in a boat and, when you were underneath, prop a ladder against her and scramble up. † This couple of lines shows his great sense of organizing thoughts regarding fiction including human life.Robert M. Philmus has talked about Italo Calvino’s writing style and his ability to connect two separate items in one point. In his (Robert) book â€Å"Visions and re-visions: re-constructing science fiction, he mentioned, â€Å"Calvino’s habitual solemnity in addressing the public in propria persona as a critic confirms his comic vocation a fiction writer not just because these two Calvinos appear to be at odds with one another, but more because they together fit the usual psychological profile of the comedian. †In â€Å"Mapping complexity: literature and science in the works of Italo Calvino†, the writer Kerstin Pils showed another great example of Italo Calvinos way of conjugating science and hu manity together in his (I. C) book â€Å"Qfwfq†. In writer’s (K. P) own voice, â€Å"Qfwfq’s fear of disorder is mirrored by the Khan’s melancholic reflection that the feeling of pride that accompanies the conquest of vast territories is only a short-lived emotion that is quickly superseded by, What distresses him in the insight that the Second Law of Thermodynamics has pushed the universe and empire down a path of dissipation and disintegration.It is a destructive force that escapes the scepter of conquest and reason. † Italo Calvino has used science as a very common part of his stories. The way one character goes along, the writer has also improved science, economics and fiction the same way. His aim was to identify one bullet point in his stories and explain it to the readers in the simplest tale possible; also by adding his humorous approach and fiction based intense words. His support was towards the good deeds; but throughout his writings, he has left the final decision upon every mind after raising the question.Works Cited Siegel, Kristi. Italo Calvino’s Cosmicomics: Qfwfg’s Postmodern Autobiography. Robert M. Philmus. Visions and re-visions: (re)constructing science fiction. 10: ‘Elsewhere Elsewhen Otherwise’: Italo Calvino’s ‘Cosmicomics’ Tales, pp 190-223. Martin L. McLaughlin. Italo Calvino. Chapter 6: Experimental Space; The Cosmicomics Stories, pp 82-98. Kerstin Pilz. Mapping complexity: literature and science in the works of Italo Calvino, pp 80-120, pp 150-176. Beno Weiss. Italo CALVINO. University of South Carolina Press, 1933, pp 123-168.

Health disparities in Rural areas Research Paper

Health disparities in Rural areas - Research Paper Example Great health care disparities prevail in United States. Health status of the negatively privileged population is poor. Ethnic and racial minorities suffer great segregation problems in America. The African Americans, Native Americans, Hispanics, and Asian Americans struggle to meet the medical expenses. They are comparatively more vulnerable to chronic diseases than the whites. This ill-privileged group has high mortality rate and negative health outcomes. The heavy racial and ethnic disparities in United States reflect in health care sector also. For example, cancer rate is found to be very high among the African Americans (nearly 25% higher than the whites). Other blacks, especially Hispanics, are highly risky towards diabetes. The black minorities who live in unhealthy environment are also vulnerable to various other problems like AIDS and infant mortality. The healthcare policy of the United States is least favorable for this minority groups. The minority population residing in t he rural areas does not have a proper access to healthcare facilities. There is great disparity in the healthcare access of minorities and rest of the population. Minorities are deprived of efficient and good quality healthcare facilities. Rural residents of United States report poor health. They are more vulnerable to chronic conditions like diabetes. Heart disease is also not uncommon among them. Compared to their urban counterparts, minorities living in rural areas are more prone to diseases and are also deprived of good healthcare facilities. Negatively privileged minorities seldom receive the preventive services, and do not get access to good healthcare service providers. Even though they have more healthcare needs compared to others we find that they do not take proper treatment. The statistics of cancer screening and treatment of diabetes and heart diseases show that minorities are not always benefited of the treatment. Minorities residing in rural areas are disadvantaged bec ause of several reasons. Only nine percent of the doctors of the United States practice in the rural areas though rural areas have a heavy population who are in real need of healthcare facilities. Almost 20 percent of the nation’s population lives in rural areas. Rural residents choose not to avail medical facilities for they have to travel long distance to reach quality healthcare service providers. Certain improvements in healthcare for chronic conditions, availability of preventive services and access to quality healthcare have contributed to the reduction of disparity in healthcare field. These day minorities are fortunate to get better access to healthcare facilities. For example, access to pediatric vision care, timing of antibiotics, counseling for addictions, receipt of mammography and various other things have improved for negatively privileged people. However still there are disadvantaged populations who are not benefited out of these improvements. Asians, Indians, Alaska Natives, Hispanics, Latinos and few other populations still suffer from the lack of quality healthcare service. For example, when we look at the colon cancer screening statistics we can find this disparity. The disparity is increasing in spite of other attempts to give more privileges to the negatively privileged population. Disparities have also affected Hispanics and other people of color. Treatments for psychological disorders also give only a second privileged to blacks and other minorities. Health