How To Guess if a Spanish Noun Is Masculine or Feminine

How To Guess if a Spanish Noun Is Masculine or Feminine Although it is seldom possible to predict with certainty whether a given Spanish noun is of masculine or feminine gender, Spanish has numerous guidelines that can usually be followed. Key Takeaways: Spanish Noun Gender Nouns ending in -a, -cià ³n, -à ­a, or -dad are usually feminine.Nouns ending in -o, an accented vowel, -or, or -aje are usually masculine.Names of rivers, lakes, and oceans are usually masculine; names of mountains are usually feminine. The most well-known rule or guideline is that nouns ending in -o are masculine and those ending in -a are feminine, but there are numerous exceptions to this gender rule, especially for those ending in -a. Some of the exceptions are listed below. Following are some other guides to gender determination. Note that many words have definitions in addition to those listed: Feminine Suffixes Nouns ending in certain suffixes are usually feminine. They include -cià ³n (usually the equivalent of -tion), -sià ³n, -à ­a (usually the equivalent of -y, although not in the diminutive sense), -za, -dad (often used like -ty), and -itis (-itis). la nacià ³n (nation)la intervencià ³n (intervention)la hospitalizacià ³n (hospitalization)la ocasià ³n (occasion)la tensià ³n (tension)la economà ­a (economy)la taxonomà ­a (taxonomy)la probreza (poverty)la felicidad (happiness)la caridad (charity)la mastitis (mastitis)la meningitis (meningitis) Masculine Endings Nouns of Greek origin ending in -a, often -ma, are nearly always masculine. Most of these words have English cognates. el problema (problem)el drama (drama)el poema (poem)el tema (subject) Nouns ending in an accented vowel are usually masculine. el sof (sofa)el tabà º (taboo)el rubà ­ (ruby) Nouns with certain other endings are usually masculine. These include -aje (usually the equivalent of -age), -ambre, and -or. An exception is la flor (flower). el coraje (courage)el mensaje (message)el espionaje (espionage)el hambre (hunger)el calambre (cramp)el calor (heat)el dolor (pain)el interior (interior) Masculine Infinitives Infinitives used as nouns are masculine. el fumar (smoking)el cantar (singing)el viajar (traveling) Months and Days Months and days of the week are masculine. el enero (January)el septiembre (September)el martes (Tuesday)el jueves (Thursday) Letters and Numbers Letters are feminine while numbers are masculine. One way to remember this is that letra is feminine while nà ºmero is masculine. la d (d)la o (o)el siete (seven)el ciento (100) Abbreviations and Shortened Words The gender of abbreviations and acronyms typically matches the gender of the main noun of what the shortened version stands for. la ONU (the O stands for Organizacià ³n, which is feminine)los EE.UU. (United States; estados (states) is masculine)las FF.AA. (armed forces; fuerzas is feminine)la NASA (NASA; the word for agency, agencia, is feminine)el FBI (FBI; burà ³, the word for bureau, is masculine) Words that are a shorter form of another word or of a phrase retain the gender of the longer word or of the main noun in the phrase. la moto (motorcycle; the word is a shortened form of la motocicleta)la disco (disco; the word is a shortened form of la discoteca)la foto (photo; the word is a shortened form of la fotografà ­a)la bici (bicycle; the word is a shortened form of la bicicleta)un Toyota (a Toyota. The masculine may be used here as a short form of un coche Toyota, as coche, the word for car, is masculine. However, una Toyota may refer to a Toyota pickup truck, because the common word for pickup is the feminine camioneta.)la Alcatraz (the word for prison, prisià ³n, is feminine) Compound and Two-Word Nouns Compound nouns formed by following a verb with a noun are masculine. el rascacielos (skyscraper)el dragaminas (minesweeper)el guardarropa (clothes closet)el tragamondedas (slot or vending machine) Two-word nouns, which are unusual in Spanish, carry the gender of the first noun. el kilowatt hora (kilowatt-hour)el sitio web (website)el aà ±o luz (light-year)la mujer objeto (sex object)la noticia bomba (bombshell news story) Chemical Elements With the exception of la plata (silver), names of the chemical elements are masculine. el flà ºor (fluorine)el cinc (zinc)el hidrà ³geno (hydrogen) Geographical Names Names of rivers, lakes and oceans are masculine because el rà ­o, el lago and el ocà ©ano, respectively, are masculine. el Danubio (the Danube)el Amazonas (the Amazon)el Titicaca (Titicaca)el Atlntico (the Atlantic) Names of mountains are usually masculine, because el monte (mountain) is masculine. An exception is that the Rockies are usually referred to as las Rocosas or las Montaà ±as Rocosas. los Himalayas (the Himalayas)el Cervino (the Matterhorn)los Andes (the Andes) Names of islands are usually feminine because la isla (island) is feminine. las Canarias (Canary Islands)las Azores (Azores)las Antillas (West Indies) Company Names Names of companies usually are feminine, because la compaà ±Ãƒ ­a (company) is feminine, as are sociedad anà ³nima (corporation), corporacià ³n (corporation), and empresa (business). This rule is not consistently followed, however, and some well-known companies (such as Google) are referred to as either masculine or feminine. la Microsoft (Microsoft)la ExxonMobil (ExxonMobil)la Nestlà © (Nestlà ©) Imported Words The default gender for foreign words adopted into the language is masculine, but a feminine gender is sometimes acquired if theres a reason for doing so. Thus foreign nouns that end in -a sometimes become feminine, as do some words related in meaning to a Spanish feminine word. el marketing (marketing)la web (the Web or World Wide Web; the feminine is usually used because the Spanish words red and teleraà ±a, words for web and network, respectively, are feminine)el internet, la internet (both genders are used)los jeans (jeans)el rock (rock music)el software (software)el show (show)el champà º (shampoo)el bistec (beefsteak)la pizza (pizza)

The History and Invention of Pottery

The History and Invention of Pottery Of all the kinds of artifacts which may be found at archaeological sites, ceramicsobjects made from fired clayare surely one of the most useful. Ceramic artifacts are extremely durable and may last thousands of years virtually unchanged from the date of manufacture. And, ceramic artifacts, unlike stone tools, are completely person-made, shaped of clay and purposely fired. Clay figurines are known from the earliest human occupations; but clay vessels, pottery vessels used for storing, cooking and serving food, and carrying water were first manufactured in China at least 20,000 years ago. Yuchanyan and Xianrendong Caves Recently redated ceramic sherds from the Paleolithic/Neolithic cave site of Xianrendong in the Yangtse Basin of central China in Jiangxi province hold the earliest established dates, at 19,200-20,900 cal BP years ago. These pots were bag-shaped and coarse-pasted, made of local clay with inclusions of quartz and feldspar, with plain or simply decorated walls. The second oldest pottery in the world is from Hunan Province, at the karst cave of Yuchanyan. In sediments dated between 15,430 and 18,300 calendar years before the present (cal BP) were found sherds from at least two pots. One was partially constructed, and it was a wide-mouthed jar with a pointed bottom that looks very much like the Incipient Jomon pot illustrated in the photograph and about 5,000 years younger. The Yuchanyan sherds are thick (up to 2 cm) and coarsely pasted, and decorated with cord-marks on the interior and exterior walls. The Kamino Site in Japan The next earliest sherds are from the Kamino site in southwestern Japan. This site has a stone tool assemblage which appears to classify it as late Paleolithic, called Pre-ceramic in Japanese archaeology to separate it from the Lower Paleolithic cultures of Europe and the mainland. At the Kamino site in addition to a handful of potsherds were found micro blades, wedge-shaped microcores, spearheads and other artifacts similar to assemblages at Pre-ceramic sites in Japan dated between 14,000 and 16,000 years before the present (BP). This layer is stratigraphically below a securely dated Initial Jomon culture occupation of 12,000 BP. The ceramic sherds are not decorated and are very small and fragmentary. Recent thermoluminescence dating of the sherds themselves returned a 13,000-12,000 BP date. Jomon Culture Sites Ceramic sherds are also found, also in small quantities, but with a bean-impression decoration, in a half-dozen sites of the Mikoshiba-Chojukado sites of southwestern Japan, also dated to the late Pre-ceramic period. These pots are bag-shaped but somewhat pointed at the bottom, and sites with these sherds include the Odaiyamamoto and Ushirono sites, and Senpukuji Cave. Like those of the Kamino site, these sherds are also quite rare, suggesting that although the technology was known to the Late Pre-ceramic cultures, it just was not terribly useful to their nomadic lifestyle. In contrast, ceramics were very useful indeed to the Jomon peoples. In Japanese, the word Jomon means cord-mark, as in cord-marked decoration on pottery. The Jomon tradition is the name given to hunter-gatherer cultures in Japan from about 13,000 to 2500 BP, when migrating populations from the mainland brought full-time wet rice agriculture. For the entire ten millennia, the Jomon peoples used ceramic vessels for storage and cooking. Incipient Jomon ceramics are identified by patterns of lines applied onto a bag-shaped vessel. Later, as on the mainland, highly decorated vessels were also manufactured by the Jomon peoples. By 10,000 BP, the use of ceramics is found throughout mainland China, and by 5,000 BP ceramic vessels are found throughout the world, both independently invented in the Americas or spread by diffusion into the middle eastern Neolithic cultures. Porcelain and High-Fired Ceramics The first high-fired glazed ceramics were produced in China, during the  Shang  (1700-1027 BC) dynasty period. At sites such as Yinxu and Erligang, high-fired ceramics appear in the 13th-17th centuries BC. These pots were made from a local clay, washed with wood ash and fired in kilns to temperatures of between 1200 and 1225 degrees Centigrade to produce a high fired lime-based glaze. Shang and Zhou dynasty potters continued to refine the technique, testing different clays and washes, eventually leading to the development of true porcelain. See Yin, Rehren and Zheng 2011. By the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907), the first mass pottery manufacturing kilns were begun at the imperial  Jingdezhen  site, and the beginning of export trade of Chinese porcelain to the rest of the world opened up.   Sources Boaretto E, Wu X, Yuan J, Bar-Yosef O, Chu V, Pan Y, Liu K, Cohen D, Jiao T, Li S et al. 2009. Radiocarbon dating of charcoal and bone collagen associated with early pottery at Yuchanyan Cave, Hunan Province, China. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 106(24):9595-9600. Chi Z, and Hung H-C. 2008. The Neolithic of Southern China–Origin, Development, and Dispersal. Asian Perspectives 47(2):299-329. Cui J, Rehren T, Lei Y, Cheng X, Jiang J, and Wu X. 2010. Western technical traditions of pottery making in Tang Dynasty China: chemical evidence from the Liquanfang Kiln site, Xian city. Journal of Archaeological Science 37(7):1502-1509. Cui JF, Lei Y, Jin ZB, Huang BL, and Wu XH. 2009. Lead Isotope Analysis Of Tang Sancai Pottery Glazes From Gongyi Kiln, Henan Province And Huangbao Kiln, Shaanxi Province. Archaeometry 52(4):597-604. Demeter F, Sayavongkhamdy T, Patole-Edoumba E, Coupey A-S, Bacon A-M, De Vos J, Tougard C, Bouasisengpaseuth B, Sichanthongtip P, and Duringer P. 2009. Tam Hang Rockshelter: Preliminary Study of a Prehistoric Site in Northern Laos. Asian Perspectives 48(2):291-308. Liu L, Chen X, and Li B. 2007. Non-state crafts in the early Chinese state: an archaeological view from the Erlitou hinterland. Bulletin of the Indo-Pacific Prehistory Association 27:93-102. Lu TL-D. 2011. Early pottery in south China. Asian Perspectives 49(1):1-42. Mà ©ry S, Anderson P, Inizan M-L, Lechevallier, Monique, and Pelegrin J. 2007. A pottery workshop with flint tools on blades knapped with copper at Nausharo (Indus Journal of Archaeological Science 34:1098-1116.civilisation, ca. 2500 BC). Prendergast ME, Yuan J, and Bar-Yosef O. 2009. Resource intensification in the Late Upper Paleolithic: a view from southern China. Journal of Archaeological Science 36(4):1027-1037. Shennan SJ, and Wilkinson JR. 2001. Ceramic Style Change and Neutral Evolution: A Case Study from Neolithic Europe. American Antiquity 66(4):5477-5594. Wang W-M, Ding J-L, Shu J-W, and Chen W. 2010. Exploration of early rice farming in China. Quaternary International 227(1):22-28. Yang X-Y, Kadereit A, Wagner GA, Wagner I, and Zhang J-Z. 2005. TL and IRSL dating of Jiahu relics and sediments: clue of 7th millennium BC civilization in central China. Journal of Archaeological Science 32(7):1045-1051. Yin M, Rehren T, and Zheng J. 2011. The earliest high-fired glazed ceramics in China: the composition of the proto-porcelain from Zhejiang during the Shang and Zhou periods (c. 1700-221 BC). Journal of Archaeological Science 38(9):2352-2365.

Macca and Madina Revelation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Macca and Madina Revelation - Essay Example Discussion The Mecca sanctuary lies in the SW region of the Modern day Saudi Arabia, close to the Red Sea. Many years prior the emergence of Islamic Religion, the city served as the fundamental, trade, socio-cultural and evangelistic House for all communities in Arabic world. Mecca City gave rise to the most prominent antichrist ever to exist in the last over two thousand years) and to the Islamic religion. It became the epitome of Islamic territory and the main dwelling palace of Allah. Therefore, and hence then, Mecca sanctuary attained its title â€Å"almadina almukarrama† (a sacred and bountiful city). All Muslims should direct their players to the sanctuary and Ka’ba, Mecca’s shrine. Similarly, it is Muslims obligation and a fundamental five aspects of Islamic doctrine to go to the prayer center once in the course of their living age. Additionally non-believers are restricted to touch the sacred Mecca soil, and if one touches it, the law states that he shoul d be sentenced to death, (Nomachi and Seyyed 85). Mecca is a popularly known sacred center and Islamic religious universe. Mecca is a sanctified preservation recommended for believers and is humanity guidance. Mecca is an indisputable memorial (of the guidance of God), a holy place where Abraham prayed, and every person who enters Mecca is safe. Humanity has a Hajji or excursion obligation unto the creator to the center. The Islamic holy book, Koran states that every person who enters the sacred Mecca is safe and believers should not harm or interfere with people going to the city for pilgrimage, (Shahrukh 25). According to Islamic traditions, even criminals are safe from the penalty and imprisonment inside the sanctuary. The safeguarded reputation of the sanctuary and the inviolability of the city are further reinforced historically in that all over the period of drastic warfare amid Medina Muslims, and Meccan pagans, the sanctuary of Mecca was exempted from struggles and bloodshed within its quarters. Similarly, when Mecca was lastly captured, about 8 years after the departure of Muhammad and his believers, the city was a nearly bloodless conquest. Significance of the city to Muslims The significance of the city for Muslims believers is irrefutable, and all Muslims around the world must pray at least five times daily facing Mecca’s shrine, Ka’ba. Additionally, a pilgrimage to the city is a requirement for all believers who can afford a tour to the city as a crucial aspect of the five faith pillars. Every year more than 3m people gather for main Hajj (pilgrimage) during the Dhu’l-Hijja Muslim month, and others perform Umrah (a minor pilgrimage) at diverse periods in the year, (Locate 36). Some non-Muslims have witnessed Hajji Rituals and rites, as they are mainly restricted from entering sacred Medina and Mecca cities. Several roadblocks are designed along the pathways and roads heading to Mecca to prevent non-Muslim entry. The popular no n-Muslim case entering the sanctuary was that of Richard Burton, a traveler from Britain, exploration in 1853. Sir Richard camouflaged himself as an Islamic believer from Afghanistan to enter and draft unique excursion story to both Mecca sanctuary and Medina. Muslim believes that the primary center of Mecca

Roles of School Administrator Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Roles of School Administrator - Essay Example An administrator should prioritize through zeroing on the most integral activities for bringing all learners to high levels of achievement. This can be done by setting clear expectations, deciding on a planning system, and taking stock of the daily school operations in order to determine the most urgent and effective (Hopkins, 2000). Administrators should ensure they build a positive aspects of the teaching ability of the teachers. This is important because it helps them to know where teachers should improve. The objective should be to create a relationship with all faculty members through offering advice and ideas on the way to improve wherever refinement is needed. The staff should always be encouraged to find a better way and continue in their pursuit of quality education. It is vital that an administrator keeps proper record so that each time a faculty is conducted, it should be noted on the date and a brief summary of the observation. This helps in cases where a teacher has areas of inadequacy and refuses to make improvements in those areas (Hopkins,

Study of Teachers Essay Example for Free

Study of Teachers Essay Teaching profession is always looked up as a noble and respectful occupation because the teachers impart knowledge for the nation. Something cliche, without them there would not be any doctors, engineers, astronauts, politicians and the list goes on. However, how many people realise that there are countless of obstacles in becoming an effective teacher? I will be discussing on todays apparent phenomena that involves the reality in teaching in our very own beloved country, Malaysia. Teachers face challenges in the school when they do not receive co-operation from the parents. It is obvious that parents support can be shown through the simplest action of attending the schools Parent Teacher Association meeting, providing generous amount of financial support for school fund, and supporting the effort of the school towards betterment. However, lately it has been reported in the national mass media about parents complaints and dissatisfaction towards teachers approach in punishing their children. The issue that raised their concern involved the way teachers exert punishment at school. In fact, some of them lodged police report and even filed a law suit on teachers. Compared to the good old days, parents allow teachers to apply any kind of punishment towards their children so they would be well educated and disciplined. Besides, there are parents who complain when they need to provide extra support which usually involves little amount of money to improve the quality of their childrens education at school. In addition, disciplinary problem, which is not a tale, really happens in school and the people who are involved are the students. Therefore, all of us have to be alert of students disciplinary problems that are becoming uncontrollable because students go to the extreme when they are involved in truancy, gangsterism, vandalism, attitude problem, disrespectful and other critical unthinkable behaviour problems. Parental guidance is very important because a child naturally observes and imitate the adults actions. However, when the students are at school, the adults who these teenagers are with are the teachers, while the parents attend work or complete house chores. It is relevant to add that peer pressure also adds up to the present disciplinary problems because they are easily influenced at this stage where they are in search for self-identity. The students who are less concerned about gaining knowledge usually lose their main objective of attending school. I will not say that their actions reflect their parents attitude and behaviour for this one reason. In my opinion, some overinvolved or uninvolved parents do not really know their children. The students wear different masks at home and at school, which means that they behave differently at home and at school. Hence, teachers are to be solely blamed when their children are punished or shall I say, literarily abused by the teachers when they commit disciplinary problem. How funny is that? If parents themselves are not convinved of the capability of the school as a whole, it is certainly impossible to successfully improve our countrys education system. The question to be asked here is why are the parents behaving weirdly? In relation to the countrys effort towards paradigm shift and global thinking, it is indeed surprising to witness some citizens who still lack of general knowledge and self-awareness although our country has been independent since year 1957. Anyhow, I am not 100% blaming the parents for this happening but these are some of the truths in our developing country. The next point is that being a teacher requires the person to be physically and psychologically ready to carry the idealistic image of a teacher. Once a person is a teacher, he or she is automatically seen as a role model. In other words, the teachers have to fulfill the expectations and demands from the public in terms of the specific way that teachers should behave, present themselves, and to some extent, pretend to be the figures that they are expected to be. Believe it or not, it happens. Practice what you preach made a discipline teacher at my previous school trimmed his hair until there was almost completely none because he wanted to show the right example to the fellow students. People should bear in mind that teachers are homosapiens that live like others of their kind. It means that they have their own daily routines to deal with such as themselves, family, friends, society and the environment. In this case, a teacher is always a teacher no matter if he or she is inside or outside the educational settings. Teachers are usually aware of the roles that they will play once they have decided to end up in this profession. Therefore, even if the teacher does not want it to happen, they have no other options but to accept the fact that they are public figures, in a way or so. It is not so bad afterall because teaching is very rewarding once the teachers discover that their students excel in their academics and succeed in their life as individuals who are able to contribute to the community. It would take years and centuries for an effective teacher to be forgotten by the students, considering their performance at school. Teaching should never be a last resort for desperate unhired post-graduates who are job hunting nor does it should be seen as a relaxing job because of the short working hours compared to other government professions. For example, the Malaysian government has introduced the Post-Graduate Teaching Course (Kursus Perguruan Lepasan Ijazah) to train the post-graduates for the teaching world. So now the questions are, What makes us so sure that they are really interested in teaching? and Are effective teachers born or made? . There are certain qualities and favourable types of personality that teachers should possess. I did a research on how students view teachers personality and classroom management in Malaysian secondary school. It was found that 90 out of 115 respondents (78%) mentioned that they are able to notice when teachers are not interested to teach in the classroom. Majority of the respondents agreed that they are able to do so by looking at teachers’ facial expressions and teaching style. In my personal opinion, we should never just let any individuals without sufficient knowledge and suitable personality to be a teacher. Students are not guinea pigs that should be constantly used in this kind of experiment, because this would imply a bad perspective on the teaching profession itself. Furthermore, students are able to think for themselves. If our education sector lacks of quality manpower in the teaching profession, try looking again because there are many other qualified candidates who are sincerely wanting to work with the children genuinely. Next, where on earth do people get the idea that teaching is a getaway or escapism to a more relaxing occupation. Todays teachers are not like yesterdays teachers, I am not being judgmental but it is apparent nowadays that teachers carry more responsibilities or burden, depending on how they perceive their tasks. Furthermore, they do not just have to teach but they  are given other responsibilities in the school administration too. I could still remember having a separate conversation with two different teachers in a school during practicum. The first teacher mentioned that teaching has now become the second importance for her after other school related activities because she has to handle co-curricular activities, school administrative work and other workloads. The next teacher who will be retiring in a few years mentioned that her passion level for teaching has decreased for the increase of new responsibilities in school other than teaching. Moreover, in todays globalisation world, teachers are required to get in touch with new technology, new knowledge and new skills to be incorporated in the classroom as well as for self-improvement. An example would be the ability to utilise the computer and the internet resources to assist them in teaching. They are very fortunate because the government is also providing them with free laptops to assist them in their work, and hopefully they are able to utilise them to their fullest. Several years ago, my friend whose mother is a teacher asked for my clarification if I really want to take up the teaching course because from her observation, all her mother does was basically routine work. Besides that, a tuition teacher expressed his surprise when I told him the same thing. Previously, I mentioned that teaching is indeed a noble job, and now whats with this clarification and surprise? It is not so bad afterall, isnt it? Maybe it should be mentioned over and over again that once a person becomes a teacher, he or she does not need to dream too much in changing the system. After few years they will be going with the flow and if they survive, thank God, whereas if they drown, just follow the light at the end of the tunnel. In other words, teachers still have to follow what the Ministry of Education has planned for the schools. In my Professional Development class discussion, I found out that not many educators are up there in the ministry to implement the changes and development in education. I think that we need real people who deal with the real school experience to be making the decisions in improving the school system. There was once an issue about placing the Excellent Teachers (Guru Cemerlang) in the Ministry of Education because it would shake the performance of the students and the school once they left. They should then be remained in the same school to benefit the teacher and students by sharing their ideas, experiences and knowledge so that they can improve. I hope to see that my country has a well structured plan that is workable, so that precious time for planning is saved and the people can start progressing instead of lagging behind, wondering about the already knowns. We have built the tallest building, became the best host for the Commonwealth Games, we claimed ourselves as a global community and there is no doubt that we should be able to improve our approaches in improving the educational system. In conclusion, teachers in Malaysia still face many kind of obstacles in this profession. In fact, teachers from all around the world might face the similar obstacles in the profession. The responsibilities, expectations, issues and happenings that relate to teachers really exist. Teachers play an important role in the society thus, everyone in the country should be aware of their contributions to the improvement of our national standard of education. Innovations IN THE CLASSROOM Efforts to make learning more interactive and more fun for students appear promising, but it may be too soon to judge if they are positively impacting childrens performance in standard tests and surveys. Meanwhile, teachers complain that these efforts have added to their already heavy burden. Padmalatha Ravi reports. 11 January 2007 The census of 2000-01 showed that the dropout rate from schools in Karnataka stood at 10. 5%. One of the main reasons cited for the dropouts was that teaching methods used in the schools are archaic, and do not sufficiently motivate students to remain in class. Educationists say that in addition to outdated teaching methods, inadequate teaching learning material (TLM) and laboratory equipment are also factors that contribute to dropouts. Taking heed of these observations the state government decided to revamp the education system in the state-run schools. Educationists and teachers were roped in to devise new teaching methods. An interesting curriculum, along with interactive learning, was the new mantra adopted. Chaitanya a special programme to train the teachers in adopting new interactive teaching methods, was designed. Chaitanya was an extension of the Nali Kali or joyful learning programme that was tested successfully in some of the schools in Heggadedevana Kote taluk in Mysore. Nali Kali was a collaborative effort of the state government and UNICEF. Both these programmes stress interactive learning methods. The teachers use colourful charts and stories to explain concepts from the textbooks. Picture: Students listening to a radio programme in a government school in Hebbagodi, near Bangalore. More than 50,000 teachers have undergone training under the Chaitanya programme in the last four years. Both primary and higher secondary students have benefited as a result. Dr. T Padmini, a retired Head of the Department of Education at Mysore University, who was part of the Chaitanyas design team says The states intended curriculum is very well designed, so what we needed was a child friendly way of teaching it. Boring teaching methods can cause cumulative deficiencies of interest in children, which may lead to dropouts. The Chaitanya programme teaches teachers to use stories, songs and even drama to teach concepts. Alongside government action, NGOs too are leading from the front in interactive learning. Pratham, in Mysore, is promoting Universal Elementary Education (UEE) by partnering with the Department of Public Instruction. The organisation works with government schools in the slums of the city. They run Balawadi and Balasakhi programmes in these areas. The Balawadi programme prepares children for formal education using play-way methods, ensuring the children enjoy their school-going experience. Balasakhi is a remedial education programme, in which the NGO appoints a special teacher at the government school who aids the children in learning languages and mathematics using the special packages developed by Pratham. The government also introduced the trimester system to reduce the burden on the students. †¢ An instruction set for teachers Mr. Chandrashekar, principal of government higher secondary school in Mysore says Prathams intervention has been very useful for us. The children have fun learning Kannada and arithmetic and because of that it becomes easier for us to teach them what is in the syllabus. The children too like the new way of learning. Salman, a Class 4 student from Mysore, says addition and subtraction is more fun now. Earlier I was scared of arithmetic problems. The language kit developed by Pratham along with Dr. Padmini is hot favourite among parents too. They say it is especially helpful to students who dont speak Kannada at home but have to learn it in school. The new method however is not without problems. Teachers say it has increased the burden on teachers. Meera Bai, headmistress of Sri Ramakrishna Education Society, Bangalore says It is true that the new method is good for students but we have to spend a great deal more time on preparing for the lessons and evaluating them. Giving individual attention becomes very difficult when there are more than 40 students in each class. Why is India still a developing country and what is stopping it from being a developed country? This particular question strikes me every time when I read something about India’s education system. I see India’s education system as a stumbling block towards its objectives of achieving inclusive growth. Let me inform you about certain startling facts. India is going to experience a paradox of nearly 90 million people joining the workforce but most of them will lack requiste skills and the mindset for productive employment according to a report in DNA. India has about 550 million people under the age of 25 years out of which only 11% are enrolled in tertiary institutions compared to the world average of 23%. I wouldn’t be laying too much emphasis on the drawbacks of India’s public education system because it has been an issue well debated over in the past and the main flaws have already been pointed out before. I will be focussing on how the education system’s failure is leading to another social issue of income inequality and hence, suggest certain policies to improve India’s education system and reduce inequality. The really critical aspect of Indian public education system is its low quality. The actual quantity of schooling that children experience and the quality of teaching they receive are extremely insufficient in government schools. A common feature in all government schools is the poor quality of education, with weak infrastructure and inadequate pedagogic attention. What the government is not realising right now is that education which is a source of human capital can create wide income inequalities. It will be surprising to see how income inequalities are created within the same group of educated people. Let me illustrate this with the help of an example: Let us take P be an individual who has had no primary or higher education. His human capital is zero and hence it bears no returns. Let Q be an individual who completed his MBA from S. P Jain college and let R be an individual who completed his MBA from IIM Ahmadabad. The average rate of return for an MBA student is 7. 5% (hypothetical). Q gets a rate of return of 5% and R gets a rate of return of 10% due to the difference in the reputation and quality of the management school. Let the income of P, Q and R be 1. In a period of 10 years, P will be having the same income as he does not possess human capital. For the same time period Q will earn an income of (1+0. 05)^10=1. 63 and R will earn an income of (1+0. 10)^10=2. 59. Now lets see what happens when the rate of return on human capital doubles. Earnings of P will not change since he does not have any human capital. Now Q is going to earn (1+0. 10)^10=1. 63 and R is going to earn (1+0. 20)^10=6. 19. Flabbergasting! As soon as return on human capital increases proportionately income inequality increases. With return on human capital doubling, Q’S income increases by 59% and R’s income increases by 139%. The above example just shows the effect of the quality of human capital n income inequality. So if the government does not improve education system particularly in rural areas the rich will become richer and the poor will get poorer. Hence, it is imperative for the government to correct the blemishes in India’s education system which will also be a step towards reducing income inequality. Certain policy measures need to be taken by the government. The basic thrust of government education spending today must surely be to ensure that all children have access to government schools and to raise the quality of education in those schools. One of the ways in which the problem of poor quality of education can be tackled is through common schooling. This essentially means sharing of resources between private and public schools. Shift system is one of the ways through which common schooling can be achieved. The private school can use the resources during the first half of the day and the government school can use it during the second half. It is important to remember that the quality of education is directly linked to the resources available and it is important for the government to improve resource allocation to bring about qualitative changes in the field of education. Common schooling is one of the ways in which government can use limited resources in an efficient way and thus improve resource allocation. Another reason for poor quality of education is the poor quality of teachers in government schools . Government schools are unable to attract good quality teachers due to inadequate teaching facilities and low salaries. The government currently spends only 3% of its GDP on education which is inadequate and insufficient. To improve the quality of education , the government needs to spend more money from its coffers on education. Most economists feel that the only panacea to the ills of the public schooling system is the voucher scheme. Under the voucher system, parents are allowed to choose a school for their children and they get full or partial reimbursement for the expenses from the government. But however, the voucher system will further aggravate the problem of poor quality of education in government schools. Such a system will shift resources from government schools to private schools. This will worsen the situation of government schools which are already under-funded. Moreover, if the same amount given as vouchers can be used to build infrastructure in schools then the government can realize economies of scale. For example- The centre for civil society is providing vouchers worth Rs 4000 per annum to 308 girls. This means that the total amount of money given as vouchers is Rs 1232000. If the same amount can be used to construct a school and employ high quality teachers who are paid well then a larger section of the society will enjoy the benefit of education. A school can definitely accommodate a minimum of 1000 students. I hope government takes certain appropriate policy measures to improve the education system otherwise inequalities are going to be widespread and India’s basic capabilities will remain stunted. Let us strengthen the case for a stronger education system. High School Teacher Requirements Prospective high school teachers should enroll in a bachelors degree program in secondary education with an area of concentration in the subject that they wish to teach. Alternatively, aspiring high school teachers may major in their content area and minor in secondary education. Most undergraduate programs in secondary education prepare students for licensure in the state in which the program is accredited. Students usually complete a student teaching requirement as part of the curriculum. High school teachers instruct students in subjects such as mathematics, history, English and science through classroom discussions, lectures and other methods. Also known as secondary school teachers, high school teachers evaluate a students progress in a subject through examinations and coursework. An individual interested in becoming a high school teacher needs to be proficient not only in the subject matter, but also in the administrative and technological aspects of the classroom. Teachers should also be able to communicate effectively with parents, students, and other staff members. Listed below are common requirements for becoming a high school teacher: Common Requirements Degree Level Bachelors degree* Degree Field Secondary education with a minor in subject area teaching or  major in subject area with a minor in education (also sometimes called a teacher education program). * Licensure and Certification Secondary or high school certification; private schools dont require licensure* Experience Student or mentorship teaching to obtain licensure* Key Skills Passion and a dynamic approach to the subject matter; ability to retain names; flexible teaching approaches specified to each students needs; coaching and development techniques; high level of organization*** Computer SkillsMaintaining a website and/or managing online discussion boards may be required**; instructional and video editing software*** Technical Skills Proficient in use of films/slides, overheads and other projectors and/or video cassette players and recorders, as well as photocopiers, scanners and other commonly used office equipment*** Additional Requirements Background checks Sources: *Teach. org, **U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, ***O*Net Online. Step 1: Complete a Bachelors Degree and Teacher Preparation Program State requirements or preferred degree programs can vary. Generally, students will complete a major in the subject area they intend to teach with a minor in education or with concurrent enrollment in a teacher preparation program. However, some schools have students major in secondary education and minor in the particular subject area in which they plan to teach. Whether a student is enrolled in a teacher preparation program or another type of education degree, they generally complete a student teaching or mentorship teaching component in the program. Success Tips: Participate in internship and student teaching opportunities. Most teacher preparation programs (and their varying forms/names) include student teaching; however, there will likely be additional opportunities to gain field experience or complete volunteer work through the school or community. Students should consider these opportunities to gain an understanding of the subject matter as well as to round out and populate their resume for obtaining positions after graduation. Become a tutor. Students who show a proficiency in subject areas, demonstrated by grades in related classes and cumulative GPA, are likely eligible to tutor these subjects through the school or university. These positions are often paid and students can specialize in one subject area or tutor in several. Complete an alternative teacher program if applicable. Alternative teacher programs generally take 1-2 years to complete and are available to students who already possess a bachelors degree that is closely related to the subject area in which he or she wishes to teach. This can be an expedited route to begin teaching for students who already hold a relevant bachelors degree. Step 2: Earn Teaching Credentials  After bachelors degree attainment, there are additional exams and requirements necessary to complete in order for a student to obtain his or her initial teaching credentials. These also vary by state. Generally, the student will have a basic skills exam in addition to an exam specified to the subject in which they intend to teach. These test scores in conjunction with transcripts showing completion of the bachelors degree and teacher prep program as well as state and federal background checks must be submitted with a completed application to the State Board of Education. States also require teachers to complete several requirements to obtain permanent credentials. This can include additional coursework, exams and tests. Some teachers may be required to earn a masters degree, as well as a minimum amount of teaching experience. Success Tips: Complete additional coursework requirements online. There are online and hybrid online/on-campus courses available to complete state requirements for permanent credentials. This includes masters degree programs. Use development resources. Most teachers associations offer programs that teachers can utilize to gain additional teaching techniques and other skills in addition to staying current on technology commonly used in the classroom. Step 3: Pursue Voluntary Certification  According to the BLS, pursuing additional credentials, such as those offered by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS), can increase job prospects for teachers. The NBPTS offers the National Board Certification, which is an advanced teaching credential. These certificates are available in a variety of areas, including health, library media, mathematics, physical education and science, for secondary teachers. Teacher workload In high schools, it is important to consider not only the number of students per class but the nature of the class, and the subject the teacher is teaching. For example, a math teacher might have no problem teaching an advanced math class, or several math classes, with 35-40 students. But an English teacher teaching four classes of 40 students would probably not be able to give the proper attention to written assignments from that many students, and might not give as many assignments because of the large number of students. Team teaching Some schools might have classes of 40 taught by a team of two teachers. The class size by itself is not necessarily an indication of the attention students are getting. Volunteers Some schools effectively use parents and upper-grade students as volunteers in the classroom. This type of instructional help may not appear in a schools data about class size. Teaching Methods in Indian Schools. An understanding of modern less formal methods of teaching is greatly needed in the Indian Service. Indian schools should at least reach the level of better public schools in this respect. This is especially necessary because the best modern teaching, especially with young children, takes into account the kind of personality problems that are basic in the education of Indians. Need for Knowledge of Modern Methods. Although there are some striking exceptions, principals and teachers in Indian schools as a rule are not acquainted with modern developments in teaching, though educational leave has brought some improvement. The impression a visitor almost inevitably gets upon entering the classroom of an Indian school is that here is a survival of methods and schoolroom organization belonging in the main to a former period. The nailed-down desks, in rows; the old-type recitation; the unnatural formality between teacher and pupil, the use of mechanistic words and devices, as class rise ! , class pass!; the lack of enriching materials, such as reading books and out-of-doors material, all suggest a type of school-keeping that still exists, of course, but has been greatly modified in most modern school systems, if not abandoned altogether, as the result of what has been made known in the past twenty-five years about learning and behavior. This condition is, of course, only what one would expect from what has already been said about personnel. If methods of teaching in Indian schools, with a few conspicuous exceptions, are old-fashioned, without, for the most part, the redeeming quality of thoroughness that some of the old-time teaching is supposed to have had, it is due almost entirely to the lack of training standards and professional personnel. An encouraging feature of the situation is that here and there one does find interesting and successful efforts to get away from the formal and routine in teaching; a first-grade teacher trained under Montessori getting a delightful spontaneous activity out of her little Indian children; young college women coming back from a summer-session demonstration school touched with the newer way and struggling to put the new ideas into practice; Still other teachers using the Indian interest and talent in art to give Indians a creative opportunity; a principal and group of boarding school teachers demonstrating that Navajo children, proverbially so shy that they hang their heads and will not speak in the presence of visitors, can in a few short months, with the abandonment of the stiff furniture and stiffer military routine characteristic of government boarding schools, become as lively human beings as any white children. These suggest the possibilities if personnel can be improved, if teachers can be helped by supervisors and staff specialists who know better methods, and if every effort is made to keep the education of the Indian in the stream of modern education development instead of isolated from it. Study of the Individual Child. Perhaps the most characteristic fact about modern education is the attention given to study of the individual child and the effort to meet his needs. This is the real justification for intelligence testing and for the whole measurement movement. Given more knowledge on the part of the school and teacher of the health of the child, of his abilities, of the home conditions from which he comes, it should be possible to help him more satisfactorily to capitalize on what he has for his own sake and for the sake of society. So little measurement work has been done in government Indian schools that one danger in the measurement movement has not developed to any extent, but it needs to be borne in mind: Testing, particularly intelligence testing, should never be used in a school as a means of denying opportunity, but only as a means of directing opportunities more wisely. Most of the talk about some Indian children not being worthy of an education beyond the grades is indefensible. It is based on a misconception of the reason why society furnishes schooling at all. Discovery of low mental ability in any child, white or Indian, no more relieves society of the responsibility of educating him than diagnosis of a weak heart by a physician would relieve society from giving the person thus diagnosed a chance at life—in both cases the diagnosis becomes the first step in a process of improvement.

President Bushs War on Iraq Essay examples -- Argumentative Persuasiv

President Bush's War on Iraq Introduction: Since the war on Iraq began on March 20, 2003, at least 1,402 coalition troops have died and 9,326 U.S. troops have been wounded in action. This is no small number and the count grows daily. One would hope, then, that these men and women were sent to war with just cause and as a last resort. However, as the cloud of apprehension and rhetoric surrounding the war has begun to settle, it has become clear that the Bush administration relied on deeply flawed analyses to make its case for war to the United Nations and to the American people, rushing this country, and its soldiers, into war. This is not to say that this war was waged against a blameless regime or that our soldiers have died in vain. Rather, that the Bush administration took advantage of the vulnerability and solidarity of the American people following the attacks of September 11 to create an environment in which any scrutiny of the justifications given for war was deemed unpatriotic and a threat to our nation’s security. In this way, the war, and Bush’s bid to maintain power through the 2004 election, went forward despite evidence that the reasoning behind going to war was, at best, misleading. The Case for War: The case for war put forward by the Bush administration rested on the establishment of Iraq as an imminent threat to the United States’ national security (see Table 1), which could only be lessened by attacking Iraq and toppling Saddam Hussein’s regime. In outlining the Iraqi threat, the Bush administration brought together two incidents—the September 11 attacks by Al-Qaeda and U.N. efforts to disarm Iraq following the Gulf War—which in reality had nothing to do with one another. The logic went ... ...ushed forth their own war by misleading the American public into believing an Iraqi threat was imminent and by taking advantage of the willingness of the American people to find strength in their American identity following the attacks of September 11. In such a climate, the path to war was not laid down by reason or necessity, but by the hawkish vision of those in power, who by coupling fear and nationalistic sentiments with a questionable body of intelligence, convinced the majority of the American people and their elected representatives that the time for war was now and the cause of war was just. In the face of such self-serving leadership, it is up to the American people to take back their democracy. The first step is to rekindle the spirit behind Thomas Paine’s reflection, â€Å"It is the responsibility of the patriot to protect his country from its government.†

Motivation at Panasonic Essay

Motivation at Panasonic Introduction Panasonic is very huge and world famous corporation. Panasonic is much more than a well-known brand name. It stands for the depth and diversity of our research capabilities, manufacturing expertise and product selection. It stands for the advanced technology of products, from easy-to-use consumer goods to sophisticated medical, broadcast, business and industrial systems. Visit the Panasonic Web site (http://www. panasonic. com) and you’ll quickly see the broad range of consumer, business, industrial and broadcast products offered. Business customers, seeing this wide range of expertise, have asked us to provide entire system wide solutions for all their electronics needs. Our engineers are rising to the challenge. The demand for this â€Å"one-stop shopping† is becoming a major growth area for the company as technology becomes more sophisticated and omnipresent. No matter if it’s a giant hotel, a stadium or a major metropolitan transit system, Panasonic is meeting customers’ needs. The research Question What motivate customers? What motivate employees and supervisor? How could this theory help you motivate the various individuals who work for you? How could you encourage the need for achievement in others? What are some of the difficulties in attempting to motivate high –NACH individuals in organizations? What evidence exits for the use of various types of reinforcement, vicarious learning, and self-control? What makes people kill others? There are questions that are unclear in many minds. Through this research, it is hope that the readers likewise will have a clearer view and understanding of motivations. Methodology The university library has very limited materials available for research purposes, and internet resource is not enough. For this reason and for fact that the scope of this research is limited to motivation, the research only used resources available. Literature search How to define motivation To define what motivation is, let us begin by point out what motivation isn’t. Why? Because many people incorrectly view motivation as a persona trait, that is, they think that some have it and others don’t. In practice, this attitude would characterize the manager who labels a certain employees as unmotivated. Our knowledge of motivation, though, tells us that people can’t be labeled in this way. What we know is that motivation is the result of the interaction between the individual and situation. Certainly, individuals differ in motivational drive, but an individual’s motivation varies from situation to situation. As we analyze varies both between individuals and with individuals at different times We’ll define motivation as the willingness to exert high levels of effort to reach organizational goals, conditioned by the effort’s ability to satisfy some individual need. Although general motivation refers to effort toward any goal, here it will refer to organizational goals because our focus is on work-related behavior. The three key elements in our definition are effort organizational goals, and needs. Motivation is the willingness to exert high levels of effort toward organizational goals, conditioned by the effort’s ability to satisfy some individual need. The motivation process begins with an unsatisfied need, which creates tension and drives an individual to search for goals that, if attained, will satisfy the need and reduce the tension. Motivation is the forces that energizes behavior, give direction to behavior, and underlines the tendency to persist. It is an internal force. NO one can really measure it; even the person involved himself or herself. How we measure motivation is by simply watching the behavior, actions, and performances of the people in their search for fulfillment towards their goals. These actual performances are likely to be a function of their own abilities, motivations, and working conditions of their environments. Motives are dynamic and they are constantly changing as a result of the rise and fall of a motive’s importance as it is satisfied or not. Dr. Abraham Maslow The best known theory of motivation is probably psychologist Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. He stated that within every human being there exists a hierarchy of five needs. Physiological needs . This most basic level of Dr. Maslow’s hierarchy includes the needs for food, water, sleep, oxygen, warmth, and freedom from pain. If these needs are unsatisfied, an individual’s actions will be dominated by attempts to fulfill them. If these needs are sufficiently met, the second set of needs will emerge. Safety needs. These needs relate to obtaining a secure environment in which an individual is free from threats. It includes security and protection from physical and emotional harm Social needs. The third set needs include the need for affection, belongingness, acceptance, and friendship. Esteem needs. Internal esteem factors such as self respect, autonomy, and achievement and external esteem factors such as status, recognition, and attention. Self-actualization needs. Growth, achieving one’s potential, and self-fulfillment; the drive to become what one is capable of becoming. As each need is substantially satisfied, the next need becomes dominant. From a motivation viewpoint, the theory says that, although no need is ever fully gratified, a substantially satisfied need no longer motivates. If you want to motivate someone, according to MASLOW, you need to understand where that person is in the hierarchy and focus on satisfying needs at or above that level. MASLOW’S need theory has received wide recognition, particularly among practicing managers. Its popularity can be attributed to the theory’s intuitive logic and ease of understanding. David McClelland David McClelland and others have proposed the three-needs theory, which maintains that there are three major relevant motivates or needs in work situations: Need for achievement(NACH) , Need for power(NPOW) , Need for affiliation(NAFF). Some people have a compelling drive to succeed, but they are striving for personal achievement rather than for the rewards of success per se (NACH). They have a desire to do something better or more efficiently than it has been done before. This drive is the need for achievement. From research concerning the achievement need, McClelland found that high achievers differentiate themselves from others by their desire to do things better. They seek solutions in which they can attain personal responsibility for back on their performance in order to tell whether they are improving or not, and in which they can set moderately challenging goals . High achievers are not gamblers; they dislike succeeding by chance. They prefer the challenges of working at a problem and accepting the actions of others. An important point is that they avoid what they perceive to be very easy or very difficult tasks. The need for power is the desire to have impact and to influential. Individuals high in NPOW enjoy being â€Å"in charge†, strive for influence over others, and prefer to be in competitive and status-oriented situations. The third need isolated by McClelland is affiliation (NAFF), which is the desire to be liked and accepted by others. This need has received the least attention by researchers. Individuals with high NAFF strive for friendships, prefer cooperative situations rather than competitive ones, and desire relationships involving a high degree of mutual understanding. Mr. McClelland proposed that a culture’s growth is due to level of need for achievement inherent in its population. His research indicates that increases in the level of need for achievement precede increases in economic activity. He also proposed that achievement motivation can enhanced in adults who others lack high level. Adams’s theory Employees don’t work in a vacuum. They make comparisons. If someone offered you $60,000 a year on your first job upon graduation from college, you would probably grab the offer and report to work enthusiastic and certainly satisfied with your pay. How would you react if you found out a month or so into the job that coworker -another recent graduate, your age, with comparable grades from a comparable college -was getting $70,000a year? You probably would be upset! Even though, in absolute terms, $60,000 is a lot of for a new graduate to make, that suddenly would not be the issue. The issue would now center on relative rewards and what you believe is fair. There is considerable evidence that employees make comparison of their job inputs and outcomes relative to others and that inequities influence the degree of effort that employees exert. Developed by J. Stacey Adams , equity theory says that employees perceive what they get from a job situation (outcomes) in relation to what they put into it (inputs) and then compare their inputs -outcomes ration with the inputs-outcomes rations of relevant others. Worker will balance the input and out put in different way. Such as 1Change their own perception 2Change other’s inputs or outputs Change our own inputs or outputs 4Choose another comparator 5Quit job. Reward System Motivating employees can be through extrinsic rewards which come form sources that are outside and intrinsic rewards which are more accurately characterized as self administered, arising form within the person. More specifically, motivating different employees are done differently. Motivating professionals differ from mo tivating contingent workers, motivating volunteer differ from motivating temporary employees. The professional employees are usually university graduates. They receive intrinsic satisfaction from their work. They are differing from non professionals. They have long term commitment with their field of expertise. They are loyal to their profession and not to their employees. They need regular update of their knowledge. They are well paid and enjoying what they do. The contingent employee would be more interest in having an opportunity to get a permanent job than anything else. They work contingent, if the company now are lack of secretary, then they must do the job as secretary; if the company need operators, then they must do the job as operators, they are not the formal employees in the company. The hours volunteers give to make programs and special events successful, and the fundraising contact they have with your donor base, make them key spokespersons. Volunteers can be your organization’s strongest recruiters, whether for additional volunteers, or for financial contributions. The most credible source of information within your organization to someone without any personal knowledge of it, volunteers must be informed and up-to-date about your organization’s mission, projects and plans. They need support and feedback. The temporary employees enter into a new company, whether it is for a few hours or a few weeks, they are naturally unsure and uncomfortable with the new environment. They are adapting to new and different management styles and are challenged by assuming somebody else’s responsibilities. Temporary employees are not second hand employees. Many choose to be a temporary employee for flexibility, variety of work experience, and mobility or are looking for permanent work in a company of choice. They have their own professional goals and are there to make things easier for your company. They are motivated by respect of others. Motivation at Panasonic The researcher will talk about motivation at Panasonic from two aspects. 1. Motivating employees The employees at Panasonic are only of two kinds: the supervisor and the employees. The supervisors are likewise well chose, and promoted from its own company, they must at least be university graduate and have rich experience. As supervisors, they set good examples to all their subordinates. They are very professional and mainly are old man, so the motivators to them are not money any more; they want esteem, the accepted of others. The employees are almost young and have very little experience, they want training to make them become stronger and also money to give their parents, even support their family. They also need to be treat equity, and need the understanding of managers; they want to feel managers keep an eye on them 2. Motivating customers The Panasonic are also taking some actions to motivate customers. The customers of Panasonic are mainly two kinds: Government purchasing officials and the user community. Why the customers want buy Panasonic products, because the high quality, good service, and the world famous brand, the good grantees. More importantly, Panasonic stands for a commitment to quality, value and innovation. In North America, this commitment is backed up by employees working in research and development centers from California’s Silicon Valley to Video Valley in New Jersey, state-of-the-art manufacturing plants, one of the country’s largest customer call centers in Virginia and sales and service organizations that deal with the public and business-to-business relationships in nearly every state. In all of our dealings, the customer is always first. This was our bedrock philosophy through the 20th century and it will carry us through the 21st century. Panasonic always make customers satisfied. Analysis and Interpretation Motivation helps people attain their goals and objectives easily. All people have motivation in doing anything, whether it is for a good cause, an ambition or a bad thing. Many times people don’t know their motivation in doing what they’re doing because they are simply following some unwritten rule of the society or that of they are simply following the wishes of others. At Panasonic, there are two aspects that motivate employees. How to motivate them? 1. The Panasonic itself as a large world famous corporation. Panasonic has very good organizational culture. At Panasonic, the working condition is pretty good, the salary is tie to the performance, the employees have equal chance to be promoted, and the outstanding persons at Panasonic will have chance to self-actualizations. â€Å"The reason I stay, is not they particularly enjoy the actual work that I do is because of the company. They all know, from experience and through exposure, that there are few companies out there that treat their employees as well as Panasonic. † One employee at Panasonic said. People and the Environment they work in are the reasons why they stay at their organization. Often people will dislike their work or the product, but they will remain at an organization because of the people they work with all week. Great companies create a home for their employees. No one wants to leave a nest where one is cared for and a part of a â€Å"family. † As one employee commented, â€Å"My current job satisfaction is the people! I love everyone I work with. This company has gone out of its way to create the perfect â€Å"culture† of people to work with. † 2. Motivation is about making an employee feel valuable. Provide a valuable salary to your employees for the value they deserve and for the void you would feel if they were to leave. You make efforts to make them feel valued as an employee in your organization and they will most likely feel valuable and appreciated. Run incentive and reward programs. Make the investment to organize and rally the troops around a goal and reward them for their efforts. They want to know they are being invested in as much as they are investing their time and talents in the company. In conclusion, motivation and retention appear really complex, but they are simple. Write the things down that make you feel valued at your company and try to do those same things for your co-workers and employees. You don’t have to be a mind-reader and you don’t have to have a degree in psychology or a heavy pocketbook to make your team members feel valued. It is all about trial-and-error and the fact that you are concentrating on making your work place like a home. At Panasonic, it also takes some actions at motivating customers such as provide the products that customer needs, From humble beginnings with one man producing one product on a table in his apartment, to current status as the world’s largest manufacturer of consumer electronics, Panasonic has strived to develop products and services that meet the needs of all of customers. Panasonic products have had access-friendly features for many years. They strongly believe that everyone should be able to enjoy the benefits of accessible products. To achieve this goal, they endeavor to assure that Panasonic products use all readily achievable means to make them ever more accessible to, and usable by people with disabilities. The popular DVD format is an excellent example of Panasonic’s engineering and marketing prowess. Panasonic developed many of the key technologies that make possible DVD, the format that is now transforming home entertainment and the computer industry. Their engineers took that technology from the laboratory and created high-quality, affordable components for the industry. At the same time, they used their expertise in storage media to make DVD discs a reality. For their DVD efforts, they were awarded a technical Emmy Award by the television industry. While they are proud of that award, it hasn’t stopped the technological advances. Panasonic was first to introduce recordable DVD for the PC and is moving forward with recordable DVD players for video enthusiasts. And this is only the beginning. Good service of guarantees procedures. In-warranty whole unit service is for in-warranty units that require service at the Panasonic repair center. 1. The specialist will make a determination of your warranty status* based on the date of purchase, serial number and problem description. Please refer to the green warranty card provided with your unit. 2. The specialist will provide you with a service authorization number, shipping company account and phone number, and address of the Panasonic repair center. If you need a box to ship the unit, we will send one to you. Make sure you backup your hard drive before sending your unit in for service. 4. Schedule a pick up of your unit with a shipping service company. Arrangements must be made within 30 days after you receive your service authorization number. 5. On the average, Panasonic’s repair center will troubleshoot and repair your unit within 48 hours of receipt. We will then return your computer via next day air service. All the above things make employees and customers highly motivated. Conclusion Motivation works differently for different people at different situations. According to Maslow hierarchy, our first need is survival, so we concentrate on basic physiological needs, such as food, water, and shelter, until we feel fairly sure that these needs are covered. Next, we concern ourselves with safety needs, which person to the desire to feel safe, secure, and free from threats to our existence. Once we feel reasonably safe and secure, we turn to attention to relationships with others in order to fulfill our belongingness needs, which involve the desire to affiliate with and be accepted by other. ow at Panasonic, employees mainly at this level, every few supervisors such as CEO, at the fourth level, even fifth level, the highest level of hierarchy, money is not their motivation any more. Because they already have a lot of money, they need excellent working conditions, others respect etc. But, the employees at lowest level of Panasonic, the main motivation to them is money, because they need support their family, they need satisfy their own needs of survival and safety. But when their needs are satisfied, then they will go to higher level of hierarchy.

India: Diversity Essay

Introduction India is a huge multicultural country with different religions and different languages. The culture of India is one of the oldest and unique. In India, there is amazing cultural diversity throughout the country. Every religion has their own rituals like clothing, food and festivals. But they all live like family all over the world. India is home to some of the most ancient civilizations, including four major world religions, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. . India is a vast country, having variety of geographical features and climatic conditions. Its geographical feature gives it a seasonal quality quite different from what one may have witnessed anywhere else. In fact the monsoons, or the rainy season, summer and winter are one of a kind. This assorted qualities itself is the pride of the country. The living styles of individuals, their clothes, musings, sustenance and society, everything has engravings of this differing qualities. To such an extent, that all together they appear to be a piece of an as one unit. Indian Languages: The Indian subcontinent consists of a number of separate linguistic communities each of which share a common language and culture. In India people mostly used to speak many languages and dialects which are mostly variations of about 22 officially recognized regional languages by the Constitution of India and each has produced a literature of great vitality and richness. Hindi and English are national official languages of India. According to Census of India of 2001, 30 languages are spoken by more than a million native speakers, 122 by more than 10,000. Some Indian languages have a long mythical history. Sanskrit literature is  about more than 5,000 years old and Tamil 3,000. The number of individual languages listed for india is 461. Of these, 447 are living and 14 are extinct. Of the living languages, 75 are recognized, 127 are developing, 178 are vigorous, 55 are in trouble, and 12 are dying. For example, (Ethnologue: Languages of, 2013).Some languages in India do not have written forms. Though distinctive in parts, all stand for a homogeneous culture that is the essence of the great Indian literature. The number of people speaking each language varies greatly. For example, more than 41% people in India speak Hindi. Although some of the languages are called â€Å"tribal† or â€Å"aboriginal†, their populations may be larger than those that speak some European languages. India’s schools teach 58 different languages. The nation has newspapers publish in 87 languages, radio programmes telecast in 71, and films in 15 languages. (Indiansaga : Indian Languages, 2000). Indian way of Greeting: In India the most common form of welcome is to join the palm of both hands and say â€Å"Namaste† or â€Å"Namaskar†. Both are Sanskrit words which mean â€Å"I bow to you†. This is an appropriate form of greeting between all castes and rank of people. Religion wise, regional wise and culture wise the system of greeting is different, but the form is same. For example, Hindi speaking people greet the guest by saying à ¤ ¨Ã  ¤ ®Ã  ¤ ¸Ã  ¥ Ã  ¤ ¤Ã  ¥â€¡ – (Namaste) –Welcome, Gujarati People say à ª ªÃ  ª §Ã  ª ¾Ã  ª °Ã  «â€¹ (Padharo)– Welcome and à ªâ€¢Ã  «â€¡Ã  ª ® à ªâ€ºÃ  «â€¹? (kem chho?) for – How are you?, and Punjabi people used to say à ¨ ¸Ã  ¨ ¤ à ¨ ¸Ã  © Ã  ¨ °Ã  ©â‚¬ à ¨â€¦Ã  ¨â€¢Ã  ¨ ¾Ã  ¨ ² (Sat sri akaal) – Welcome. To say â€Å"Dhanyawad†(thank you) to express one’s appreciation is recognized to be great way. Then again, the Westerners utilize these two words so regularly and on so fool an event that really the words have lost their centrality. Actually the majority of the individuals say â€Å"Thank you†, not out of commitment yet to abandon the same then and there. Simply formally say â€Å"Thank you† and disregard the consideration always is the pervasive reasoning. Actually, Indians feel and admire one’s commitment profound from their hearts. As the power of appreciation, it is confirmed by the eyes and not by the lips. So Indians don’t jump at the chance to be formal at each  moment. They realize that these are words that matter and not to be enjoyed untrustworthily. Religions in India: Religion in India is described by differing qualities of religious convictions and practices. India is the origination of four of the world’s significant religions; specifically Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. All around India’s history, religion has been a vital a piece of the nation’s society. Religious assorted qualities and religious tolerance are both built in the nation by the law and custom. According to the 2001 census [1], 80.5% of the population of India practice Hinduism. Islam (13.4%), Christianity (2.3%), Sikhism (1.9%), Buddhism (0.8%) and Jainism (0.4%) are the other major religions followed by the people of India. There are likewise various minor tribal conventions; however these have been influenced by significant religions, for example, Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity. [1]. â€Å"Census of India 2001: Data on Religion†. Office of the Registrar General, India. Retrieved 2007-12-31. The most predominant religion in India today is Hinduism. Around the range of 80% of Indians are Hindus. Hinduism is a vivid religion with a boundless exhibition of Gods and Goddesses. Hinduism is one of the old religions on the planet. It should have created something like 5000 years back. Later on in aged period different religions created in India. Many religions have started in the nation and few religions of outside inception have likewise prospered here. India has the refinement of being the area from where significant religions in particular Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism have begun in the meantime the nation is home to a few indigenous beliefs tribal religions which have survived the impact of real religions for quite some time and are holding the ground solidly Regional con-presence of various religious gatherings in the nation makes it truly special and the appellation solidarity. Clothing in India: Clothing in India fluctuates from region to area hinging upon the ethnicity,  topography, atmosphere and social conventions of the individuals of that district. Generally, men and ladies’ dress has developed from basic Langotas and loincloths to blanket the form to expound ensembles utilized within every day wear as well as on festival occasion, additionally ceremonies as well as rituals and dance performances. In urban ranges, western garments are regular and consistently worn by individuals of all divisions. India likewise has extraordinary differences regarding weaves, filaments, shades and material of apparel. Color codes are followed in attire dependent upon the religion and custom concerned. Case in point, Hindu women wear white dress to show grieving, while Parsis and Christians wear white to weddings. Every province has its own tradition and clothing style for men and women. Generally, men wear Kurta, Shervani, Payzama, Dhoti, Pant-Shirt and women used to wear Saree, salwar-kameez, Gaghara-Choli according to their tradition and regional culture. The men in sikh community of India wear Turban (Dastar or Pagri) on their head to protect their hair, which is part of religious manners. Festivals in India: India is a place that is known for extraordinary differing qualities. The Indian schedule is one long parade of celebrations. These are as fluctuated in inception as they are expansive in number. India is a multilingual, multi-religious, multi-social country. It depicted as a place that is known for numerous religions and incalculable dialects, it may well be portrayed as a place where there is celebrations also. India, being a socially diverse and deep social order, praises different holydays, occasions and festivals. Every last event from the reaping of products, respecting the spring or drizzle, to seeing the full moon fits euphoric festivals sprinkled with colors, music, society moves and melodies. Indeed the special days of perfect creatures are praised by associating them with specific celebrations. There are three national holidays in India: Independence Day on 15 August, 2 October- Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday and Republic Day from 26 January. States and local religions have their own local festivals, neighborhood  celebrations relying upon common religious and semantic demographics. Prominent religious celebrations incorporate the Sikh celebrations like Guru Nanak Jayanti, Baishakhi, Hindu celebrations of Makar-Sankranti, Maha-Shivaratri, Diwali, Navratri, Ganesh Chaturthi, Holi, Dussehra, Islamic celebrations of Eid ul-Fitr, Eid al-Adha, Mawlid a Nabi and Christian celebrations of Christmas and days of observances, for example, Good Friday are watched all around the nation The homes are flawlessly brightened, new dresses are worn for each event, petitions to God offered to Gods, and part of sweets and goodies are cooked. The vast majority of these celebrations are regular to most a piece of India anyway they may be known by distinctive names in diverse parts of the nation. Distinctive societies additionally imply that diverse ceremonies are accompanied. (Budhiraja) Indian Food: India cooking or Indian cuisine encloses a wide mixed bag of territorial foods local to India. Given the reach of differences in soil sort, atmosphere and occupations, these foods vary essentially from one another and utilize mainly accessible flavors, herbs, vegetables and fruits. Indian nourishment is likewise vigorously affected by religious and social decisions and customs. Indian sustenance is not the same as rest of the world in taste as well as in cooking techniques. It reflects a flawless mix of different societies and ages. Much the same as Indian society, sustenance in India has likewise been affected by different civilizations, which have helped their portion in its in general improvement and the present structure. Food of India is better known for spiciness. All around India, be it North India or South India, flavors are utilized liberally as a part of food. Yet one must not disregard that each and every zest utilized as a part of Indian dishes conveys some or the other nourishing and medicinal lands. Indian nourishment is rich in variety, taste and flavor. Every locale has its own particular style of cooking and interesting food. Famous for outlandish sauces and zesty kababs, Indian food has something to fulfill each sense of  taste. The solid flavors of Indian cooking are a direct result of the seasonings, flavors, and the fundamental fixings which incorporate grains, beats, verdant vegetables, fruits, and meat. Flavors and seasonings were utilized even many years back, both for their capability to captivate the sense of taste and likewise for their medicinal qualities; for instance turmeric, cloves and cardamoms are disinfectant in nature. Ginger and cloves help assimilation. Pepper is extraordinary solution for throat diseases. According to Indian food recipe, there are six different tastes: sweet, sour, salty, spicy, bitter and harsh. An Indian meal is a well-balanced combination of all the six tastes. Often one or two of them will stand out and it is not often that all six are employed in a dish. (â€Å"Indian food,†) Conclusion There are diverse parts of the Indian society. Every perspective is honed by individuals not everybody trusts in the diverse viewpoints. As should be obvious it is an exceptionally accepted society, everybody has their assessment towards it, positive and negative. Hence the Indian Culture is an extremely extraordinary society and has different practices. In spite of the fact that the adolescent don’t have faith in the customary perspectives, the society will change with time and won’t be accepted any longer due to the advanced world. With everything taken into account the perspectives are every now and again honed however tomorrow’s era are set to transform it. It is always honored about India â€Å"Unity in Diversity†, we believe it. References Budhiraja, V. [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://www.angelfire.com/ca/VinitBudhiraja/festivals.htm Ethnologue of the world : India. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.ethnologue.com/country/IN (2013). Ethnologue: Languages of the world. (17 ed.). Dallas, Texas: SIL International. Retrieved from http://www.ethnologue.com/country/IN (n.d.). Retrieved from http://indiansaga.com/languages/index.html Indian food. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.indianfoodforever.com/food-guide/indian-food-cuisine.html The office of The Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India, office of The Registrar General & Census Commissioner. (2001). Scheduled languages in descending order of speaker’s strength – 2001 (Statement No. 4). Retrieved from The Registrar General & Census Commissioner website: http://www.censusindia.gov.in/Census_Data_2001/Census_Data_Online/Language/Statement4.aspx

Biography of Captain William Kidd, Scottish Pirate

Biography of Captain William Kidd, Scottish Pirate William Kidd (c. 1654–May 23, 1701) was a Scottish ship’s captain, privateer, and pirate. He started out on a voyage in 1696 as a pirate hunter and privateer, but he soon switched sides and had a brief but moderately successful career as a pirate. After he turned pirate, his wealthy backers back in England abandoned him. He was later convicted and hanged in England after a sensational trial. Fast Facts: William Kidd Known For: Kidd was a Scottish ships captain whose adventures led to his trial and execution for piracy.Also Known As: Captain KiddBorn: c. 1654 in Dundee, ScotlandDied: May 23, 1701 in Wapping, EnglandSpouse: Sarah Kidd (m. 1691-1701) Early Life Kidd was born in Scotland sometime around 1654, possibly near Dundee. He took to the sea and soon made a name for himself as a skilled, hardworking seaman. In 1689, sailing as a privateer, he took a French vessel: the ship was renamed the Blessed William and Kidd was put in command by the governor of Nevis. He sailed into New York just in time to save the governor there from a conspiracy. In New York, he married a wealthy widow. Not long after, in England, he became friends with the Lord of Bellomont, who was to be the new governor of New York. Setting Sail as a Privateer For the English, sailing was very dangerous at the time. England was at war with France and piracy was common. Lord Bellomont and some of his friends suggested Kidd be given a privateering contract that would allow him to attack pirates or French vessels. The suggestion was not accepted by the government, but Bellomont and his friends decided to set up Kidd as a privateer through a private enterprise: Kidd could attack French vessels or pirates but he had to share his earnings with the investors. Kidd was given the 34-gun Adventure Galley and he set sail in May 1696. Turning Pirate Kidd set sail for Madagascar and the Indian Ocean, then a hotbed of pirate activity. Nevertheless, he and his crew found very few pirate or French vessels to take. About a third of his crew died of disease, and the rest became surly because of the lack of prizes. In August 1697, Kidd attacked a convoy of Indian treasure ships  but was driven off by an East India Company Man of War. This was an act of piracy and clearly not in Kidd’s charter. Also, about this time, Kidd killed a mutinous gunner named William Moore by hitting him in the head with a heavy wooden bucket. The Pirates Take the Queddah Merchant On January 30, 1698, Kidds luck finally changed. He captured the Queddah Merchant, a treasure ship heading home from the Far East. It was not really fair game as a prize, though. It was a Moorish ship, with cargo owned by Armenians, and was captained by an Englishman named Wright. It was allegedly sailing with French papers. This was enough for Kidd, who sold off the cargo and divided the spoils with his men. The holds of the merchantman were bursting with a valuable cargo, and the haul for Kidd and his pirates was 15,000 British pounds, well over $2 million today). Kidd and his pirates were rich men. Kidd and Culliford Not long after, Kidd ran into a pirate ship captained by a notorious pirate named Culliford. What happened between the two men is unknown. According to Captain Charles Johnson, a contemporary historian, Kidd and Culliford greeted each other warmly and traded supplies and news. Many of Kidds men deserted him at this point, some running off with their share of the treasure and others joining Culliford. At his trial, Kidd claimed that he wasnt strong enough to fight Culliford and that most of his men abandoned him to join the pirates. He said he was allowed to keep the ships, but only after all the weapons and supplies were taken. In any event, Kidd swapped the leaking Adventure Galley for the fit Queddah Merchant and set sail for the Caribbean. Desertion by Friends and Backers Meanwhile, news of Kidd becoming a pirate had reached England. Bellomont and his wealthy friends, who were very important members of the government, began distancing themselves from the enterprise as quickly as they could. Robert Livingston, a friend and fellow Scotsman who knew the king personally, was deeply involved in Kidds affairs. Livingston turned on Kidd, trying desperately to keep secret his own name and those of the others involved. As for Bellomont, he put out a proclamation of amnesty for pirates, but Kidd and Henry Avery were specifically excluded from it. Some of Kidds former pirates would later accept this pardon and testify against him. Return to New York When Kidd reached the Caribbean, he learned he was now considered a pirate by the authorities. He decided to go to New York, where his friend Lord Bellomont could protect him until he was able to clear his name. He left his ship behind and captained a smaller ship to New York. As a precaution, he buried his treasure on Gardiners Island, off of Long Island. When he arrived in New York, he was arrested and Lord Bellomont refused to believe his stories of what had transpired. He divulged the location of his treasure on Gardiners Island and it was recovered. He spent a year in prison before being sent to England to face trial. Death Kidds trial took place on May 8, 1701. The trial caused a huge sensation in England, as Kidd pleaded that he had never actually turned pirate. There was plenty of evidence against him, however, and he was eventually found guilty. He was also convicted of the death of Moore, the rebellious gunner. Kidd was hanged on May 23, 1701, and his body was put into an iron cage hanging along the River Thames, where it served as a warning to other pirates. Legacy Kidd and his case have generated a great deal of interest over the years, far more than other pirates of his generation. This is probably due to the scandal of his involvement with wealthy members of the royal court. Then, as now, his tale has a lurid attraction to it, and there are many detailed books and websites dedicated to Kidd, his adventures, and his eventual trial and conviction. This fascination is Kidds real legacy because, frankly, he wasnt much of a pirate. He didnt operate for very long, he didnt take a great many prizes, and he was never feared the way other pirates were. Many pirates- such as Sam Bellamy, Benjamin Hornigold, or Edward Low, to name just a few- were more successful on the open seas. Nevertheless, only a select handful of pirates, including Blackbeard and Black Bart Roberts, are as famous as William Kidd. Many historians feel that Kidd was treated unfairly. For the time, his crimes were not truly terrible. The gunner Moore was insubordinate, the meeting with Culliford and his pirates may have gone the way Kidd said it did, and the ships he captured were at the very least questionable in terms of whether they were fair game or not. If it were not for his wealthy noble backers, who wished to remain anonymous at all costs and to distance themselves from Kidd in any way possible, his contacts probably would have saved him, if not from jail then at least from the noose. One other legacy Kidd left behind was that of buried treasure. Kidd left behind some of his loot, including gold and silver, on Gardiners Island, which was later found and cataloged. What intrigues modern treasure hunters is that Kidd insisted until the end of his life that he had buried another treasure somewhere in the Indies- presumably in the Caribbean. People have been looking for that lost treasure ever since. Sources Defoe, Daniel.  A General History of the Pirates. Dover Publications, 1972.Konstam, Angus.  The World Atlas of Pirates: Treasures and Treachery on the Seven Seas, in Maps, Tall Tales, and Pictures. The Lyons Press, 2010.

Using Ruby Environmental Variables

Using Ruby Environmental Variables Environment variables are variables passed to programs by the command line or the graphical shell. When an environment variable is referred to, its value (whatever the variable is defined as) is then referenced. Though there are a number of environment variables that only affect the command line or graphical shell itself (such as PATH or HOME), there are also several that directly affect how Ruby scripts execute. Tip:  Ruby environment variables are similar to ones found in the Windows OS. For example, Windows users may be familiar with a TMP  user variable to define the location of the temporary folder the for the currently logged in user. Accessing Environment Variables from Ruby Ruby has direct access to environment variables via the ENV hash. Environment variables can be directly read or written to by using the index operator with a string argument. Note that writing to environment variables will only have an effect on child processes of the Ruby script. Other invocations of the script will not see the changes in environment variables. #!/usr/bin/env ruby# Print some variablesputs ENV[PATH]puts ENV[EDITOR]# Change a variable then launch a new programENV[EDITOR] geditcheat environment_variables add Passing Environment Variables to Ruby To pass environment variables to Ruby, simply set that environment variable in the shell. This varies slightly between operating systems, but the concepts remain the same. To set an environment variable on the Windows command prompt, use the set command. set TESTvalue To set an environment variable on Linux  or OS X, use the export command. Though  environment variables are a normal part of the Bash shell, only variables that have been exported will be available in programs launched by the Bash shell. $ export TESTvalue Alternatively, if the environment variable will only be used by the program about to be run, you can define any environment variables before the name of the command. The environment variable will be passed onto the program as its run, but not saved. Any further invocations of the program will not have this environment variable set. $ EDITORgedit cheat environment_variables add Environment Variables Used by Ruby There are a number of environment variables that affect how the Ruby interpreter acts. RUBYOPT - Any command-line switches here will be added to any switches specified on the command line.RUBYPATH - When used with the -S switch on the command line, the paths listed in RUBYPATH will be added to the paths searched when looking for Ruby scripts. The paths in RUBYPATH precede the paths listed in PATH.RUBYLIB - The list of paths here will be added to the list of paths Ruby uses to search for libraries included in the program with the require method. The paths in RUBYLIB will be searched before other directories.

Enterprise knowledge management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Enterprise knowledge management - Essay Example discussions on theories pertinent to the progress of a company or organization in the business realm (even lay persons think of business success in this way) is always equated to the continued accumulation of wealth or profit in terms of monetary returns or other similar concrete and measurable outputs. There is, indeed, nothing wrong with the old, traditional conception of business success. But what is made crystal-clear is the fact that such measure is not enough to gauge real capital of companies or organizations at play in our era – the era of knowledge. James Brian Quinn, Philip Anderson and Sydney Finkelstein in their article Managing Professional Intellect: Making the Most of the Best have explicitly stated that â€Å"intellectual assets, unlike physical increase in value and use. Properly stimulated knowledge and intellect grow exponentially when shared.†1 And this claim properly presents the notion that the call and demand of the time among and between companies and organizations is to continuously destroy all boundaries and hindrances of knowledge via sharing of knowledge from within and from without. But what does it entail? Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton in their article The Balance Scorecard: Translating Strategy into Action have highlighted the stark reality that if companies in the contemporary period want to be competitive, aggressive and progressive they should learn to project not only within short term perspectives but that they should also be able to come up with a viable and workable long term plans. The idea of having long term plans and projections entail the presupposition of having human resources being thrust in the center as the main and focal point in business environment, in the connection and collaboration of organizational and structural systems moving towards the establishment of a harmonious and friendly yet very, very competitive ambiance in the business world. However, if one is going to be honest to one’s self one