The Cons of Mandatory Marital Counseling

â€Å"Until death do us part† does not hold the meaning or weight that it used to in many marriages.   Divorce rates began to soar in the 1980s and by the early 1990s, the average divorce rate was 50%.   That means that every other marriage ended in divorce.   One reason many believe so many divorces occur is due to the fact that they are too easy to obtain. While this may be true, recent movements to require marital counseling prior to allowing couples to apply for a divorce have raised many questions as to the effectiveness of mandatory marital counseling.   While mandatory marital counseling may seem like a good idea, it is bad for many reasons.   Mandating couples to obtain marital counseling prior to a divorce can raise unrealistic outcomes, obstruct schedules that are already constrained, and take away more freedom of the individual. Many states are trying to pass legislation that would require pre marital counseling as well as several years of counseling before granting a divorce to couples seeking to separate legally.   While counseling may help some work out their problems, this can also lead to unrealistic expectations.   Couples who have been together for several years already know what they can and cannot work out with each other.   They may have tried previous counseling and failed at it. Just offering the counseling does not mean that it is going to work.   Counseling and working through problems can only work if both parties are open to it and wish for it to work.   When one partner is not willing to resolve issues, the other partner may be left with unrealistic expectations that the relationship can be salvaged, when in fact, the promise of counseling is only delaying the inevitable. Marital counseling takes time.   With two people on different schedules who may not even live together, time is constrained enough as it is.   Mandating someone’s time who did not commit a crime is a crime in and of itself.   Wanting a divorce is not a crime, and sentencing couples to seek counseling is like treating them like prisoners.   If one parent has restricted access to the children, this obligation could also cut into his or her already limited parenting time. Mandating marital counseling is a violation of personal freedoms.   It takes away an individual’s choice to make decisions regarding whom to be with.   It forces people who do not want to see each other to spend time together talking about their already troubled relationship.   This type of communication can often lead to more hurt and anger as more secrets are revealed during counseling sessions. Things that were not going to be shared to keep the other party from being further hurt or angered often end up being aired.   What once could have been an amiable parting gets drawn out.   There is no choice but to remain legally married until the sessions are over and the court sees fit to grant a petition for divorce. While counseling can help in some situations, mandating counseling never seems to be a good idea for non criminal activity.   When two people decide to end a marriage, they should be allowed to do so without being mandated by the government.   Forced counseling can provide unrealistic expectations and make separation all the more painful.   Already busy schedules become blocked off with mandatory meeting times with counselors and government has more control over people’s personal freedoms and rights.   Even though the divorce rates are high and don’t seem to be getting any lower, mandating marital counseling is not the answer.   

The Glass Castle

Maureen is often forgotten throughout the entire story of The Glass Castle written by Jeannette Walls. We are very tragically reminded of Maureen’s presence when she stabs her own mother while living in New York. Reflecting back to the beginning of the story, we can see why Maureen has a mental breakdown. She is born into a world of violence, her parents fail to care for her, and she lives her entire childhood in neglect. The announcement that Mary is pregnant seems to be thrown into this story as if Walls forgot to include the part in the first place.Rex is holding a job at the gypsum mine and Mary makes sculptures out of the excess dust that Rex brings home. Just as it seems that things are taking a positive turn, it is told that Mary is pregnant. Usually a family (depending on the circumstance) is happy to be bringing a new baby into this world, but the Walls family sees this pregnancy as more of a burden. Not to mention, Rex and Mary cannot even decide on how far along in the pregnancy they are. Before Maureen is even born, Rex and Mary get into a huge fight in the dessert.Mary exits the car in which the fight starts, and Rex chases after Mary. Walls writes, â€Å"[Rex] cornered [Mary] against some rocks†¦[Rex] dragged [Mary] back, legs flailing, and threw [Mary] into the car† (43). This occurrence is not justifiable in any case, but on top of this, Mary is pregnant and Maureen is put into great danger. Sadly, this proves that Maureen will be born into a very hostile environment. Three months after Maureen is born, the Walls family is in their car when a police officer tries to pull them over for not having any brake lights.Rex says that if they do get pulled over, they would all be arrested because their car is not registered and does not have any insurance. This results in a car chase during which Maureen is literally tossed around. There is not actually a car seat for Maureen and her life is put in the hands of Jeannette. No newly born baby should be exposed to this type of violence, but these instances continue to grow worse and worse throughout Maureen’s life. As Maureen grows up, she is forced to fend for herself. Mary and Rex seem almost non-existent in Maureen’s life.Though Maureen does still have her siblings, it seems that she is disconnected from her family. Every once in a while, Mary decides that Maureen deserves special treatment and will go out and steal clothes for Maureen, but other than that, it is not until the family is living in Welch that Maureen really makes an appearance. Rex keeps up his drinking habit, and is not bringing any money in for the family. Mary is forced to stop her artistic projects and get a job. Lori, Jeannette, and Brian all get jobs too, whether they be working for a paper or little odd jobs, and this is how the family just barely gets by each week.Maureen on the other hand does not get a job, but instead learns to make friends. Walls writes, â€Å"[Maureen] w ould show up at their houses around dinner-time† (173). Because of making good friends, Maureen does not even have to worry about working for her food. Though the jobs that the rest of the family members have benefit everyone, Maureen only worries about herself. In all reality, fending for her self is really all that Maureen can do. Rex and Mary are never there for her, and Lori, Jeannette, and Brian can only do so much for Maureen because they can barely provide for themselves.While the Walls family is living in Welch, big dreams are created and the children develop ideas of how to get themselves out of Welch. Lori and Jeannette want to move to New York, go to college, and start a new career and life. Brian is not really worried about where he goes, but he does want to become a police officer, and also does not want to be stuck in Welch the rest of his life. Maureen also creates a dream of her own, and wants nothing more than to go back to California. Though Maureen was young when her and her family lived in California, this is the only place that she wanted to go.Jeannette and Lori tell Maureen of the great times that they had in California and explain to Maureen that she has such blonde hair because of all the gold in California, and blue eyes because of the ocean. Maureen responds, â€Å"’[California] is where I’m going to live when I grow up’† explains Walls (207). The stories that Jeannette and Lori tell are responsible for Maureen’s dream to go back to California. However, it seems that Maureen takes after her parents, and struggles to fulfill her dream. While Lori, Jeannette, and Brian go off and start their new lives, Maureen is stuck back in Welch.Lori and Jeannette decide that Maureen should move to New York with them, so they make arrangements and Maureen goes to live with Lori, and begins going to college. Things are going great up until Rex and Mary move to New York. It is at this time that Maureen seems t o give up on her schooling. After Lori kicks her out, Maureen spends her days living with Rex and Mary in a squatter apartment. She wastes her days away by smoking cigarettes, reading, painting, and sometimes just sleeping away the day.Jeannette tries to help Maureen by talking to a doctor, but because Maureen refuses treatment, the doctors can only treat Maureen through a court order proving she is a danger to herself or others. Because she has hit rock bottom and because the rest of her family was fulfilling their happiness, Maureen has a mental break. Maureen actually stabs her mother, and ends up being jailed for an entire year. To get away from her family and her broken life, Maureen buys a ticket to get her self to California, and starts her new life there.After a lifetime of being stuck in the cycle of the Walls family, Maureen is finally going to get the chance to fulfill her dreams. Throughout the story of The Glass Castle, it is obvious that Maureen is frequently forgotten about. So many things lead to Maureen’s mental breakdown; she is born into a world of violence, her parents fail to care for her, and she endures a childhood of neglect. If Maureen were not always lost in the shadows of her siblings, and dreams of her parents, her mental breakdown could have been compromised.

Abortion Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Abortion - Research Paper Example It is well supported by a few religions including the Christianity. Abortion has been debated since ancient times, Aristotle presented his views about the issue as "delayed ensoulment". According to Ted Lockhart, "perform actions that we are maximally confident are morally permissible". This argument is known as the "moral certainty" argument. Every mother has the right to decide upon the birth of the child and therefore Ted Lockharts suggestion served to deal abortion as a practical solution in contrast to the moral issues ("Introduction to the abortion debate"). Women is the choice maker as under a given circumstances women is the best judge to nurture the fetus and later the child with utmost care and devotion, lacking to do so could culminate into psychological problems in the child. In the present situation where women are contributing equally to the economic growth and development, continuing with the pregnancy may hamper career growth. It is essential to understand that the personal ethics of women are imperative to pursue the pregnancy. Moreover, the anatomy of the body should also allow the continuity of the pregnancy, especially at the later stages of life when the female cannot afford to continue with the pregnancy and hence termination of pregnancy should be allowed. It is not moral to give birth to the unwanted child and nurture the child with least botheration. In certain cases conception could be the result of contraceptive failure or a woman may not be prepared for; such cases demand legalization of abortion ("Ethics of Aborti on: Is it Moral or Immoral to Have an Abortion"). Any pregnancy cannot occur without the male partner, consent of the father is essential before aborting the child. If the father agrees to take up the responsibility of the child, women gains confidence. In the present era where relationships are fragile, women do not want to have any binding to forgo her

The Titanic by James Cameron Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Titanic by James Cameron - Essay Example At the same time, the historical importance of the plot forces the viewers to feel that the events are real, not fictional. Within this context, the director made use of flashback technique to unearth the romantic story of the lovers in the film. To be specific, the plot moves from present condition (say, 1996) to past (say, 1912) and to present (1996). In the opening scene, the director portrays the effort of Brock Lovett (say, a treasure hunter) to unearth the secret behind a necklace sunk with RMS Titanic in 1912. Gradually, the director portrays the love affair between Rose and Jack. In the end, Rose drops the necklace into the Ocean and returns. The film ends with a fictional reunion between the lovers. The film’s casting is related to historical and fictional characters. For instance, some of the real travelers in the RMS Titanic are portrayed in the film. This is helpful for the viewers to identify the historical element of the film. On the other side, the protagonist and the heroine are fictional characters. For instance, Jack and Rose, (the protagonist and his lady love) are fictional characters who inculcated the element of romance in the film. One can see that the director’s decision to caste Leonardo DiCaprio as Jack Dawson is one of the elements behind the commercial success of the film. Besides, DiCaprio’s youthful exuberance suits his character in the film. Kate Winslet’s character as Rose DeWitt Bukater is apt because she was able to act according to the high-class status of the character. ... In the opening scene, the director portrays the effort of Brock Lovett (say, a treasure hunter) to unearth the secret behind a necklace sunk with RMS Titanic in 1912. Gradually, the director portrays the love affair between Rose and Jack. In the end, Rose drops the necklace into the Ocean and returns. The film ends with a fictional reunion between the lovers. B. Acting The film’s casting is related to historical and fictional characters. For instance, some of real travelers in the RMS Titanic are portrayed in the film. This is helpful for the viewers to identify the historical element of the film. On the other side, the protagonist and the heroine are fictional characters. For instance, Jack and Rose, (the protagonist and his lady love) are fictional characters who inculcated the element of romance in the film. One can see that the director’s decision to caste Leonardo DiCaprio as Jack Dawson (say, the protagonist) is one of the elements behind the commercial success of the film. Besides, DiCaprio’s youthful exuberance suits his character in the film. On the other side, Kate Winslet’s character as Rose DeWitt Bukater is apt because she was able act according to the high class status of the character. At the same time, the love affair between the protagonist and the heroine is portrayed in a usual manner because the casting was according to the situation in the film (say, tragic love affair between lower class and upper class characters). Caledon Nathan (acted by Billy Zane) is another character (say, the antagonist). His character leads to dramatic sequences in the film but does not prove to be over acting. Brock Lovett (acted by Bill Paxton), another character, is the back bone of the film because he is the narrator of the

Taxation System in the New York Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Taxation System in the New York - Assignment Example Since his daughter furnished the apartment using his property, he would have to pay all the property taxes for the furniture. In 2009, the taxpayer also visited his regular doctor and traveled by taxi to and from JFK airport. The hotel expenses would also add to the amount of money he would have had to pay as taxation. In 2010, the taxpayer was in New York for an additional 47 days but returned home in September that year. For the time up to September, his salary would be subject to taxation in New York as a person working abroad. When he came back home, he would go back to being taxed as a local resident since he was no longer working abroad. He would also continue being on his daughter’s apartment lease as the guarantor and therefore pay all the subsequent taxes related to the lease. The taxpayer’s taxable income would be $150,000 from the sale of stock of a California corporation which only held New York real property + $4,000 in NY State lottery winnings + $50,000 distribution from his pension plan + $1000 interest income from his savings account from ING + $100,000 in gains from the sale of a painting located in Connecticut but sold while temporarily at a museum located in New York. The cost of the painting was $20,000. To make a total of $305,000 The amount of the taxpayer’s income that would be subject to New York taxation would be around 100/365 x 100,000. The time he spent working in the company’s out-of-state field offices would not be liable to taxation in New York. The allocation formula would be simply dividing the number of days spent in New York with a total number of days in a year and multiply with his total wages from the company for a year. There are around 155 days that the taxpayer cannot account for in terms of where he was working. Since there is no way of determining this, there would be no taxes calculated for these days.  

Discovering Statistics Using SPSS Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Discovering Statistics Using SPSS - Assignment Example The data for this report was collected using a standardized questionnaire. The questionnaire contained three sets of questions. The first set comprised 21 separate questions concerning five dimensions of service quality. Sub-questions 1 through 6 focused on tangible elements of the service. Sub Questions 20 and 21 measured the empathy dimension, whilst 16 through 19 measured the assurance dimension. Questions 7, 10,11,12 focused on reliability with 8, 9, 13,14,15 measuring responsiveness. These questions followed a similar format to previous research in this field, such that measurement validity was maintained; a 5 point scale was used to allow respondents to rate the service performance. The second set of questions attempted to get the respondents to weight the importance they attached to each of the five dimensions of service quality. The third set of questions were ‘key independent variables’ which measured respondent characteristics. These allowed us to ascertain the demographics of the sample and facilitate analysis of variance later. The questionnaire was pre†tested for face validity with potential users of the sports center. There were no problems with face validity and the questionnaire was deemed to be reliable. The sampling method took the form of a probability sample of students at the University in question. The sampling frame was composed of the email addresses of all students. Using simple random sampling a sample size of 200 was deemed appropriate † with the potential sampling error of 9%. The research used a structured questionnaire which is characterized by a diverse scales; the questionnaire was divided into three categories. The first questionnaire was determined to assess the service quality of the sports center; the results obtained on a five-point Linkert scale. The second part of the questionnaire attempted to evaluate the most important sports’ services and facilities according to the views of the students; the importance was measured on a scale of one-hundred percent.

Throughput Accounting and Optimization Part II Assignment

Throughput Accounting and Optimization Part II - Assignment Example One of the ways to do this is to focus on motivation and training. Once these are in place, employees will be better positioned to be productive. As noted by Corbett (2006), strategic financing must always look into inputs as much as it looks at output. Motivation and training will therefore become ways of investing in the employees to be productive. I appreciate the concern you have raised on reasons you believe your company made the right decision by not making the purchase. In fact, your entire post is very insightful and thought provoking. I must state however that in the analysis, you put so much emphasis on what was going outside the company, as compared to what would come in if you made the purchase. Even though it is admitted that your company is a not for profit company, it is still important to know the value that such acquisition could make in the public domain. For example, it would have reinforced the commitment of the company among stakeholders and donors on the need for the company to support even more people. This would have increased chances of getting more donations and support. As suggested by Corbett (2006), it is always to look at investment as a means to an end. This is one thing that I think you failed to

The time of your life by William Saroyan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The time of your life by William Saroyan - Essay Example The bar is the site of connections and synergy among the different characters. For that matter the place can also be considered as a venue where different (Saroyan 4). Characters of the Play The different characters in the play are representatives of the types of people in the society. The owner named Nick is one the primary characters in the play since he is the owner of the venue. He is interested in helping people in different aspects, specifically those who share their views and their souls in his bar (Saroyan 5). Based on his character in the play, he can be analyzed as an open person who wanted to be involved with his clients in a more intimate level, so as to help them in even simple way, that is by making them feel at home in the bar. Based on his appearance he can be judged as a person who had a loud and proud demeanor, which can either be revolting or comforting to the clients. The main character is Joe, who is a ‘young loafer with money and a good heart.’ He i s in the bar owned by Nick. His character is the focal point of the plot. He is responsible for the different events that occurred through the play. One of the evident actions that can be attributed to his character is encouraging other characters in the plot to share their eccentricities (Saroyan 6). ... His admiration made him his errand boy, stooge and friend of the main character. According to him, Joey saved him in one occasion that changed his life, thus, he considered him as a hero. Tom is a representative of appreciative and often times fanatic people who based their objectives and way of life on other people’s life decisions. By allowing Joey to be one of the most important persons in his life, even decisions such as the partnership with a woman are also influenced by Joey’s opinions. Joey sets him up with a prostitute named Kim Duval (Saroyan 7). Kitty Duval is the prostitute who’s being matched to Joey. She is referred to in the text as the ‘young woman with memories.’ In the play she is projected as a delicate representative of the women in the society who are still beautiful regardless of the situations that they are in. She is described as a woman of strong heart and ‘angry purity’ by Joe, thus, he tried to match her with To m (Saroyan 7). In Kitty Duval’s character, the author honored the strengths of women. By recognizing her purity amidst the imperfections brought about by the world of survival, Saroyan expressed the importance of the role of the woman. There are other colorful characters in the bar, such as Arab who is an Eastern philosopher and harmonica-player. He has his own share of eccentricities which aside from his skills and talents also mutters at alone all the time. Joey referred to him as a ‘prophet in his own way because of the manner he voices out his musings on his own regarding the different aspects of his life, lives of other people and even the people on the newspaper (Saroyan 7). Other characters in the play are Kit Carson (an Indian-fighter); McCarthy (an intelligent, well-read

Library Research Assignment Scenario Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Library Research Assignment Scenario - Essay Example Secondly, individual currency leads to reduced price transparency. This poses a challenge to many firms as they find it difficult to compare the prices of goods, services and resources across various regions. This happens due to the distorting effects of exchange rate variations. Moreover, such firms are vulnerable to uncertainty caused by exchange rate fluctuations. This happens as such firm’s tries to invest in other countries with different currency. This leads to decreased investment and inefficiency in business activities. Additionally, individual currency leads to increased costs to industries because such firms will have to buy foreign exchange in their trade activities. This makes such firms unable to compete with other large trading blocs. Furthermore, this form of currency leads to reduced foreign investment (Schadler, 2005). On the other hand, individual currency has an edge to the nation. First, individual currency is more reliable as compared to integration. This helps in maintaining the exchange rate stability in the country. This prompted the UK and Italy to leave the ERM in 1990 as they found the process ineffective (Anchors, n.d.). Secondly, individual currency offers some stability. This is as compared to integration where there exist rigidities. ... In addition, an individual country is essential in maintaining sovereignty. This helps a country to control the actions of its central bank (Stoa, 2008). This also helps the government in controlling its policies and,therefore, able to pursue policies beneficial to its economic and that of its firms. A rich history exists towards the development of a single currency in Europe. Currently, the euro has become part of seventeen member states of the European Union (EU). However, other member states are required to join the union in the future. The first appeal to the achievement of the European currency began before the market crash of 1929 (Europa, 2011). However, this was not realized due to prevailing economic conditions. The other attempt was after the end of Second World War. In Europe, three treaties bringing all six signatory states (Germany, Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands) laid a foundation (Europa, 2011). The treaties led to the establishment of European Coal and Steel Community, European Economic Community, and European Atomic Energy Community. Besides, another summit in Hague defined a new objective of European integration. A task was formed to come up with various suggestions. The taskforce submitted a report in 1971 envisaging full economic and monetary union in the next ten years (Europa, 2011). Some of the recommendations were not adopted, but there was approval to the introduction of EMU in some steps. The first stage involved the narrowing of currency fluctuations margins with no further commitment. However, the US decision to float the dollar posed the challenge on the parities of the European currencies and hence the project was abandoned (Europa, 2011). Other attempts also faced the same challenge. However,

Electronic Frontiers Australia Essay Example for Free

Electronic Frontiers Australia Essay This paper is meant to analyze the role evaluation in media relations campaigns. It is an evaluation of media campaign with specific focus on the campaign done by Electronic Frontiers Australia (EFA), an Australia-based NGO working on the online liberties and rights of all Internet users. Its campaign is entitled â€Å"Generation Z†, that is teenagers between the ages of thirteen and eighteen years. The campaign’s overall intention is to create an impression of personal responsibility among members of the target group by inculcating a sense of discipline. It is also meant to inform Generation Z about the disadvantages of irresponsible use of the internet then inverse their awareness in utilizing Internet content. In order to achieve the campaign objective, it is necessary to involve parents in the process. Parents need to be involved in the process of monitoring their children’s internet use and also by teaching them how to use the internet in the most appropriate way. The campaign aims at creating appropriate communication channels for this target population so that they can adequately develop desirable internet communication plans of action. This campaign will be an opposition to government policy because it will be different from that of the government policy which advocates for internet control through external rather than internal mechanisms. Communication practitioners focus a great deal on the best ways to deliver communication strategies that are able to bring about wider awareness of the clients that they serve. Need for public relation services by the industry means that these public relation firms are always evaluating their approaches towards communication strategies that are prescribed for the industry. Crystal (2003) argues that, â€Å"Public relations provide a service for an organization by helping it provide clients better information of their functions. † Within organizations, public relations can also be viewed from the perspective of Public Information or Customer Relations (Paul 2008), â€Å"these departments help clients in answering queries, complaints, or problems that might arise in their relationship with the organization. They are usually the most helpful departments, as they exist to show the organization at their best. † The EFA campaign will use a comprehensive method and strategy to ensure success of the campaign. This will be achieved through public relations and media relations principles. Good media relations will be build through gaining appropriate insight of the media by devising ways through which appropriate relationships can be build. Furthermore, the firm has relevant information regarding internet filtering accessed through substantive internet user support from the public; hence this will be a big advantage to the campaign. Use of persuasive theories will also offer the much needed support and attention to the campaign. Generally, evaluation can be seen as the systematic application of research methods, to understand the effectiveness and usefulness of interventions. Evaluation determines the effectiveness of a programme in terms achieving goals that have been set up and the effectiveness of those goals. Evaluation therefore is a means of measurement that is meant to assess the level of success of a communication strategy. Evaluation determines the level to which a campaign has reached its goals and also helps organizations and individuals to understand how a particular campaign worked, it is therefore a tool for determining success of interventions towards a particular campaign. Evaluation should â€Å"specify explicitly the goals and objectives,† (Ronald 2000) of a particular campaign because this is what clients will use to measure the success of communication strategies and campaigns that are targeted to a particular case. When evaluating or measuring a particular strategy, there is need to put into consideration the outputs in terms of time to be taken and the budget needed. In addition, there is need for prioritization of the needs and what they are benchmarked against. Moreover, tools of evaluation may vary depending on the type of campaign and the targeted audience. There are various methods of media relations evaluations that are currently used in the Public Relations Industry. Some of these methods can be applied to the (EFA) campaign. One method of evaluation is the use of Advertising Value Equivalence (AVE). Michaelson and Griffin (2005), posits that it is â€Å"the approximate calculation of the cost of value of a purchase of advertising that has a size and location in a given publication on a specific day† However, they content that this method has characteristic pitfalls and has therefore fallen out of favour by public relation practitioners. Another method of evaluation is the simple content analysis which is â€Å"An elemental analysis that categorizes or codes what is written in categories that can be statistically analyzed. The codes are developed by a close contextual review of a sample of articles. The remaining articles are reviewed based on the presence of these codes. This method only distinctively represents only what is written. expectedmessages or specific items of information that are not included in the codes or do not appear in the articles are not included in the analysis† (Michaelson and Griffin 2005). Prominence analysis is also another method of evaluation and was also applied to the EFA research in evaluating internet use. This analysis takes into account such factors as the publication an article appears, the date, overall size, presence of photography and other art work and size of headlines. Therefore, in a â€Å"sample prominence analysis, each element is given a weight that is factored into an overall score for each article† (Stanton 2007). The EFA research basically tried to evaluate the consequences and impacts of the internet through the analysis of clicking rates of links and blog. Evaluation can also be carried out through message analysis, which differs from simple and content analysis by placing the analysis on the presence of intended messages in articles. â€Å"Key messages are developed based on communication objectives† (Michaelson and Griffin 2005). The communicative objectives are â€Å"translated† into codes that become the basis of analysis. Michaelson and Griffin suggest that the best method in evaluation is to determine the availability of key parameters in the organization that are to be measured and evaluated these parameters are â€Å"right information, incorrect information, misleading and contradicting information and information that has been left out. † This information was used to give an example of how one company; MetLife used this analysis to manage its media relations efforts on two key lines of business. As part of a national education plan to promote annuities, MetLife identified the media as a paramount passage of its messages to consumers. MetLife decided to determine the degree to which correct, incorrect and only partially correct information is included in new stories about annuities. The analysis enabled MetLife to make an association between the degree and length covered by the media when it comes to annuities and the clients’ understanding of the more than thirty years they will likely live in retirement. Through analysis of the kind of information in terms of their correctness or lack of , clients are able to comprehend the type of retirement plans they could choose from those available at MetLife; and made the company to be aware of the directions it needed to take as far as selling annuities was concerned. Evaluation research normally has three phases, that is, formative, process and summative. â€Å"The formative phase involves all activities that define the extent of the campaign† (Payne 2007). It is in this phase where the range of the problem is ascertained, data is collected regarding mediating strategies; and also provides additional illumination regarding the people being targeted by the mediation, budgetary estimates and the constraints to the full attainment of the mission as set by the problem. Focus is on basic research through focus groups and inquiries which provide opinions and attitudes that can inform campaign development. The formative phase serves as the basis for direction and also sets out the budget to be used in the research campaign. It is therefore an initial process that can also be used to analyze and get insights into the audience’s values, fears and their perceptions. In the EFA campaign, formative phase was applied in the identification of the target group that is youths between the ages of thirteen and eighteen. It also involved understanding the current internet use habits among the youths whereby the official system has been seen as being unable to safeguard the safety of these youths (Paul Dylan 2003). The process phase in evaluative research has to do with keeping track of the extent to which the objectives are being achieved. Shapiro (1996) defines monitoring as the â€Å"methodical Compilation and assay of information as projected progresses. † It is based on projections set during the formative phase. The process phase involves collection of data, time taken to carry out the campaign and the trailing classification that is employed. Monitoring occurs mainly to keep track of activities and correct any shortcomings that may arise (Edward 1945). It generally involves keeping a diary of events. Monitoring of progress of the EFA campaign will involve building media relationships through the press or media releases by creating series of professional news or feature articles. The process phase will include launch of social workshops with the aim of accessing the attention of journalists and also establish linkages with groups in the information sector that have showed concern over the EFA issue. Use of directional tactics to provide one-way flow of information and comprehensive reports to interested parties is meant to bear and achieve more support from these audiences. Other ways will be through organization of meeting among community members, visiting local schools to give speeches and use of focused groups to brainstorm on the issue. The end results of the process phase are that people would have internalized the issue at hand and thus raising the success rate of the campaign. The summative phase involves quantification of the success of goals and objectives whereby collected quantitative data is analyzed. It also involves content analysis of the measuring characteristics of the messages. Generally, the summative phase involves propagating and demonstration of the verdict of the campaign process. It involves â€Å"media responses based on readership, calculation of column centimeters in print media or minutes on air† (Salin 2003). The objectives of the EFA campaign were to train parents of Generation Z on safe internet use, as well as the negative influences on their children whenever they accept the unfitting information from websites. They are considered as the target stakeholder group in this campaign, and are the most important source of support in cultivating their children’s habit. Other objectives included the need to increase Generation Z’s awareness in utilizing Internet content and also to counter the oppression of free speech by educating the community about the social, political, and civil liberties concerns involved in the use of computer based communication systems. The outcomes of this campaign are generally to provide more protection to young children from accessing internet sources that are harmful to them. On the issue of training parents on safe internet use, the outcome was that many parents were advised and showed ways through which they could put more productive security and consciousness that is necessary in minimizing access to these sites by the generation â€Å"Z† youths. This campaign was able to shed light on the extent to which generations â€Å"Z† youths are using the internet to access harmful sites that is now a major cause of concern. It was also noted that most parents did not use internet filters to restrain their children. Hence the numerous campaigns that EFA had launched regarding filtering had not been so successful. The â€Å"issue of forcing internet service providers to block content did not only fail to achieve its intended purpose, but also raised fundamental issues regarding human rights violation of the citizens† (Greenfield 1999). Furthermore, the outcome of the campaign showed that only a handful parents utilized the filtering system, while a majority of them assumed that their children would be able to select the websites that were of importance to their development. Moreover the cost of implementing the filtration system was found to be too high hence way above the majority of most parents. Planning and implementation of this programme started with the coming up with the appropriate secondary analysis of the media and preparation of a budget that was to address the issue of brochures and advertisements. The realization timetable occurred over a period of twelve weeks and it involved various actions which included writing letters to the press, designing the advertisements in the media and writing online. All these implementing strategies were done with the focus of providing â€Å"consistent and orderly evaluations of these interventions† (Greenfield 1999). The results of these interventions in creating are varied within the context of trying to get information regarding the topic. A significant number of teenagers were able to release feature stories on the campaign. Circulation and readership of these magazines was also increased. Implementation also focused on the parents the teenagers, because they are the closest people who can check and control internet use by their children. Parents were able to give information that was used in the development of the advertisement of briefs and variations in opinions, and the public that was needed. With changing technological renovations, then it means that people should always be informed on the current changes in technology. The campaign to filter websites cannot be said to be a very effective means to control the generation â€Å"Z† youths. In terms of future campaigns, there should be emphasize on the peer group relationship and the use of the internet by the young people. Campaigns should also focus on other avenues that can be used as a substitution to the internet and public education on harmful consequences of teenagers having unlimited accesses to all sites on the web (Austin 2006). CONCLUSION The importance of evaluation in a communication strategy cannot be over emphasized. Communication strategies need to reflect the overall goals and objectives of the organization so as to bring about a continuum of order and efficiency. The role of campaigns in putting across pertinent issues with regards to communication will be effective through proper utilization of evaluation tools. Public relations agencies have to put up relevant and strong communication strategies that should address the needs of clients. Evaluation process leads to better understanding of the potential outcomes and the costs versus benefits that might accrue as a result of using a particular campaign strategy. REFERENCE Austin, E 2006, Strategic public relations management: Planning and Managing Effective Communication, Bellman Publishing Company, Boston. Edward, B 1945, Public Relations in Business, Bellman, Boston.

Dealing With Climate Change Through Interior Design Environmental Sciences Essay

Dealing With Climate Change Through Interior Design Environmental Sciences Essay Living in discomfort because of tropical climate is not desirable. Everydays challenge in Singapore is humidity, heat, and rainfall for its location that categorized in tropical climate zone. Hence, Singapore Government especially Minister for National Development stated about Singapores approach to sustainable development because it also has connection to global warming, that is why sustainable and nature are very important nowadays. For instance, the usage of garden within buildings might be the most effective way to reduce heat and humidity. The necessity to use nature is because it gives positives changes and result to the built environment and people. This essay will conduct a topic of tropical climate and natures effect in relation with various ways how to tackle the problem and response with design. It is possible to design a  comfortable living and working environment by creating  in-between spaces to  provide relief from the tropical climate through a combination of natural and vernacular architecture elements. In this essay, author will talk about Biophilic design theory as a background that explained about the inner human to be near with nature, as one of the design elements to help and achieve in reducing humidity, heat, and deal with rainfall; in which, those three factors that make people uncomfortable in their activities. Firstly, natural elements that are involved in warm wet zone and those are to be maximally used in terms of the effect of characteristic from nature which will bring positive result for the end users. Secondly, the variety ways of tackling humidity, heat, and rainfall in tropical climate, such as vernacular architecture is the most appropriate to handle this problem. Thirdly, in-between spaces which are lacking in Singapore; meaning that more intense activities in spaces or places e.g. offices do not have enough nature inside the building which actually can help reduce stress of people from work. Lastly, tropical climate case studies that link to the issue and how those spaces are workable in tropical climate. In facing tropical climate as a central issue, the design approach can be inspired from using nature elements within certain places or spaces. The reason to use nature as part of solution is because it has qualities of positive psychological effects for human being and to some extent providing visual and spatial relief. As to enhance a better way of living in tropical area, contemporary vernacular architecture nowadays exists to adapt with surroundings. All of these are guides that may lead us to develop and aim for the best design solution in the future living. II. INTERIORSCAPE, WITH NATURE: ENHANCING THE GREEN CITY Living in nature, people will get benefit from the essence of natures effect. Besides, nature shapes the built environmental to be the ideal space for peoples demand at present time. A. The Tropical Climate The tropical climate is positioned in the equatorial belt, between 230 and -230latitude which is also known as warm wet zone. Average annual temperatures can reach a maximum of 30o C during the day and 24o C at night while thermal comfort for people is between 26o C-27o C (Anon, p2). Most importantly, tropic area is distinguished by its region characteristics: high levels in humidity, heat or solar radiation in dry season and rainfall in rainy season. During rainy seasons, the level of humidity also increases. Due to high level of humidity, appropriate openings and ventilation are needed to utilize the airflow so the evaporation will increase. Another element is roof as a shelter plays an important role to be shading and keep the inside cool from the heat while it also becomes a protection during rainy periods. Tropical Climate in Singapore Context Singapore is one of the countries in South East Asia region that is located in tropical area. The most concern for Singapore is to deal with the unstable climate of heat, rainfall, and humidity since geographically it lies along the equator line. It has become everydays challenge for Singapore to deal with tropical climate. But, it is no longer new problem for people who live in tropical climate face this kind of weather every single day. Furthermore, this condition worsens most of the stressful working people and uncomfortable weather like heat may reduce their energy. Technology innovations such as air conditioners (AC) help people to achieve thermal comfort and they become reliance to AC but it is not the only solution. For over the years, Singapore has achieved itself to be a green city and currently Singapore government especially Minister for National Development, Mr. Tan in his speech (2010) stated about Singapores approach to develop more on sustainable environment. At the moment, Bedok Court HDB (Hosing Development and Board) is one of an example how Singapore deals with this tropical climate issue. B. Nature as Design Elements to Achieve the Aim in Reducing Discomfort in Tropical Climate Can we deal in a better way to response this issue? Nature is one of the solutions to help reduce heat in tropical climate. As written above, to reduce fatigue and stress which are caused by tropic weather, the importance to use nature is become fundamental, since contact with nature helps to heal and recover health, increases concentration and memory. Viewing nature can produce a rapid improvement in body restoration both psychologically and physiologically. The exposure of nature is purposed to influence the levels of activities and energy for it draws people to a positive changes. We feel and assume that the impact of heat always give disadvantages, while, the approach in tropical climate is to minimise the heat and also take advantage from it. The benefits from nature elements can be utilized as maximum as possible since they produce positive effects to peoples mind and body. This means, the essence of nature in this context is not only providing the built environment with aesthetic factor. 1. Biophilic Design Theory The reason to use nature is because it has positive effects psychologically and physiologically to the sense of human beings. It has a close relationship with a theory called Biophilia. The term of Biophilia is founded by E. O. Wilson and this theory is based on the inner of human being that essentially needs to be close with nature. Based on Biophilic Design, Kellert (2008, p3) stated that biophilia can be defined as an understanding of the inherent human affinity to affiliate with natural systems and processes, especially life and life-like features of the nonhuman environment. It is proved that people tends to depend on environmental features because it enhances human physically and mentally. Those environmental features can be described such as light, sound, odor, wind, weather, water, vegetation, animals, and landscapes. There are six biophilic design elements: environmental features, natural shapes and forms, natural patterns and processes, light and space, place-based relationship, and evolved human-nature relationship. (Kellert 2008, p6) 2. Natural Elements With that background of the importance of nature for people, this essay will discuss on the first element of biophilic which is the environmental features that consist of three key elements of nature: greeneries or plants, water, and natural light. The Essence of Greeneries, Water and Natural Light There are three main natural elements that are involved and become necessary for tropical climate in order to reduce humidity and heat as the aspects of the tropical climate. Firstly, greeneries; it has become popular and also important to have plants or gardens within buildings. Essentially, greeneries become necessary because they provide visual and spatial relief for human beings. In addition, there are some positive psychological effects of greeneries toward human beings. It effectively reduces stress, decreases mental fatigue, gives relaxations for it is good for eye relief, restores mental clarity, enhances comfort, and improves or increases sense of well being (Kellert 2008, p7). Secondly, water that produces positive physiological effect and always be the most basic human needs. Water is able to lower blood pressure, relax tension-filled muscles, ease headaches and also cure aches and pains. Water insertion to a built environment provides and enhances the quality of human life. Furthermore, water in motion such as waterfall, cascade, and a pond with circulation will add strong value to the biophilic design attraction. Other applications of water elements can be contributed in roof gardens, green roof, interior pools or basins (as a soft boundary to blur the distinction between inside and outside), exterior water gardens, and water cascade (Kellert 2008, p7). In a warm-hot climate, water is an absolute necessity. It remains cooler because water heats up slower than the land (Trocme 2006, p11). This means, the built environment which located alongside water will be cooler than one is surrounded by land. Water, you have no taste, no color, no odor, you cannot be defined, you are relished while ever mysterious. Not necessary to life, but rather life itself, you fill us with gratification that exceeds the delight of the senses. Of the riches that exist in the world, you are the rarest and also the most delicate: you, water, are the proud divinity. (Antoine De Sant Exupery, p43) Thirdly, sunlight or natural light which comes from solar radiation; the quality of its illumination and colours from light can affect mood and energy level while it also good for maintaining health. In Kellerts statement (2008, p11), natural light is preferred in contributing to improve health, productivity, and well being in a built environment. Besides, the effect of natural light also provides sense of openness. People prefer and depend on natural light for its ability in terms of giving visual acuity to satisfy human needs in physical, emotional, and intellectual aspects (Kellert 2008, p7). Direct sunlight in tropical area is not preferable, it might become our enemy. But of course it does help us in providing the advantages, so controlling the sunlight is necessary to make it desirable. Light draws people, as it does flowers, but our need for light must be balanced with keeping cool. (Trocme 2006, p11) Understanding these elements and factors may help the designers to create and built the controlled environment to adopt with the tropical climate. The prime aim is to minimise and prevent the discomfort that caused by the tropical climate in order to create a better living environment. C. Variety Ways of Tackling Tropical Climate (Heat, Humidity, and Rainfall) There are various ways in tackling tropical climate especially with vernacular architecture. Some requirements of treatments and techniques are needed in an appropriate way to tackle the tropical weather. 1. Vernacular Architecture In the book Contemporary Vernacular, according to Correa (1998, p10); the term of vernacular can be described as the notion of the building that has relation to the environmental contexts and involving society as a whole. The built forms in vernacular architecture are adapted to fulfil specifics needs regarding climate and culture, existing materials in order to accommodate the ways of life and values in producing them. In Singapore context, because of its multicultural circumstances, it may influence the local architecture. As Singapore was a British colony, historical buildings are mainly influenced by European styles. In the other hand, this small country was known as a free international port, other races such as Chinese, Malay, and Indian are also involved in influencing the local Singapore architecture. Not only cultures that shaped the vernacular architecture in Singapore but the tropical climate also determined the built environment. In other words, the local vernacular architecture is not originally come from one aspect but is combination with other aspects. These are some influences of vernacular architecture in Singapore which classified by Yeang (1987 ,p30-31) : Malay Rural Vernacular Fig.1 Typical Malay vernacular house based on Malaysian tradition, consists of atap roof, timber panels with floor raised above from the ground level. The raised floor is purposed to provide tranquillity because in the rural ancient times, they used to live in a village setting where animals might attack their houses. So, it is created in such a way for protection from ground moisture, flood and animals, ventilation, and shade. Moorish-influenced institutional building Fig. 2 Mostly the examples are the Istanas of Malay Sultanate which had larger scale and it is influenced by European and Middle Eastern countries. Dutch influences Fig. 3 Christ-Church and stadthuys are the most obvious examples of Dutch influences since most of Dutch are Christians. The straits eclectic Fig. 4 Chinese shophouses are best described this style. It emphasize in ornamentation in their facade treatment. Anglo-Indian influences Fig. 5 The local Anglo Indian style has motifs with Sino Malay influences in terms of unglazed half-around tiles and the serambi. In local context, the most appropriate of vernacular architecture in tropic area is the Malay Rural vernacular since it has the same environment and climate with Singapore. But, Malay rural vernacular cannot be called as a set style because it depends on the local circumstances, situation and environmental context that eventually created in a way to meet the specific needs of the built environment. Therefore, this built environment can be held as an approach in order to fulfil the requirement in local context. The existence of vernacular architecture in tropic area can be a guideline in developing the suitable built environment for people. Through fundamental guidelines of tropical vernacular architecture, influences from other cultures and weighing the environmental context in the same amount, that is where a critical approach means for vernacular architecture in Singapore. The responsive design to the climate, local context and environment are the key points to aim the built environment. Though Singapore does not have a fixed style, meaning of vernacular architecture in Singapore is may be more important to depend on the characteristic of a place and environment. In tropical climate, roofs are more important than walls. Roof shaped is one of the vernacular features for thermal control. There are few types that mostly used for tropical area: pitched roof shaped, high jack roof, ventilated roof, and deep roof overhangs. The main function of roof is to allow the breeze penetration in order to utilize the air flow, reduce humidity, and make the space inside cooler. First type is pitched roof shaped, usually with large overhanging eaves give protection from the direct sunlight and rain. High jack roof, usually used by typical shophouses that has gabled roof segment is mainly functioned as shelters and the small opening which separate from the main roof enhances cross-ventilation to reduce heat from solar radiation (Yeang 1987, p24). Ventilated roof is also effective for removing heat by cross ventilation. Besides ventilated, it usually combined with pitched roof shaped with wide overhang so it also able to shade walls. Deep roof overhangs with ventilation grilles above eye level protected the built environment in terms of sun shading and also allow air flows. Fig. 6 Types of Roofs Pitched Roof Jack Roof Ventilated Roof Deep Roof Overhangs Knowing these several basic types of roof shaped can lead designers to create the built environment in a contemporary context. Types of roof are invented in many ways to be the solution and improve the living environment in tropical area. Besides, in local context roofs shapes are mostly influenced from other countries either from the colony (British) or the countries which have the same climate condition as in Singapore. The applications can be seen in traditional Chinese shophouse design in Malaysia with a key feature of the continuous covered veranda-way in order to minimise the discomfort of tropical climate. Another principles are to use internal air-well that allows light, adequate amount of openness in the interior space with high ceilings and overlapping- roofs to reduce heat radiation.(Yeang 1987, p22-23) Types of roof are not the only way to tackle the discomfort from tropical climate. Openings are another aspect which is crucial for cross ventilation. Besides, air flow pattern is determined by openings because air has to circulate. Therefore the intensity of using openings is important to design a good controlled of built environment. Louvered or jalousie openings are mostly used because this system directs air to the living areas. Tight area without or less openings will give more humidity and heat. Separated and scattered layout or forms of space are purposely used for air flow. For example: house in Buzen, Japan that is formed in scattered and individual boxes. The design intention in separated layout of each functional room is to have maximum cross ventilation and enhanced with windows in each rooms. D. Lack of In-Between Space in Singapore Although Singapore already has adequate amount of greeneries around the city, it still lacks of in-between spaces in terms of inclusion of nature to the interior. However, there is an example which provides a good solution to make more comfortable living in tropical area. Good application of vernacular aspect and nature can be found in Bedok Court. Compared to other high rise residential, the difference of Bedok Court is the big supply of balconies and spaces that specially planned for plants which placed in-between living units; so called semi open forecourts. Cheng Jian Fenn was the designer of Bedok Court and the inspiration was from the rural village lifestyle whereby people live in a relaxed atmosphere and harmonious environment. But, due to the land scarcity, Cheng strategically planned each dwelling unit with garden as a whole to provide sense of landed house. (Lim 1998, p63-64) Creatively, his intention in the design is to maximise the land area with the system of high rise building yet each unit will own the garden. Fig.7 Bedok Court Fig. 8 The Balcony Through surveys, Bedok Court shows satisfying result. With high supply of garden in each unit, the semi open spaces is preferred as the most comfortable spaces among the other functions in units such as swimming pool, the balcony, the lobby, the lift, and the interior of the unit. (Bay 2006, p66) The usage of garden helps the spaces to improve the thermal comfort condition in terms of the weather become slightly cooler because of the plants. In other words, it is encouraged to increase the green areas to get a lower ambient temperature. In-between space has potential or possibility to be a break space (to be developed) In-between spaces can function as place where activity and free spaces joined (to be developed) E. Tropical Climate Case Studies 1. The Architects House in Sri Lanka by Geoffrey Bawa (need further research) a. emphasize on openings and light-well on each room b. use of greeneries or plants inside the house 2. House at Blair Road in Singapore by Richard Ho Architects (need further research) a. evokes comfort with air-well for light and ventilation III. CONCLUSION

Essay --

Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen, is a popular 18th century novel that illustrates the complex relationship between characters and the society in which they live in. In order to clearly show the audience the value of literary realism, Austen presents two characters that are so extreme, and â€Å"distorted†, in terms attitude, arrogance and opinion, that they help her justify Elizabeth's rational. Elizabeth's mother, Mrs. Bennet, and cousin, Mr. Collins, are perhaps the most overdramatic characters in the entire novel. Mrs. Bennet, though some claim to be simply a concerned mother, is in fact a foolish, and boisterous woman whose one and only intention is to marry off her daughters. Austen created her to be obnoxious so that it would seem as though Elizabeth’s decisions would be rationale. Throughout the entire novel Mrs. Bennet lets her shallow side shine. A prime example of this is when the great Mr. Collins arrives. At first, the entire Bennet family, including Mrs. Bennet agreed that Mr. Collins was a â€Å"disagreeable† man. However, as soon as Mrs. Bennet picks up the hint from Collins that he has the intention of marrying one of her daughters, Austen explains â€Å"Mrs. Bennet treasured up the hint, and trusted that she might soon have two daughters married; and the man whom she could not bear to speak of the day before was now in her good grace† (49). Even though Mr. Collins was bothersome less than a day before, as soon as Mrs. Bennet realized one of her daughters wo uld be married and wealth would be instilled into their lives, she immediately put away her previous regards. As Mrs. Bennet stated in the beginning of the novel, â€Å"The business of her life was to get her daughters married† (6). Even though, this is typical of mothers at... ... show how Elizabeth is against the status quo of marriage. Back then, women were automatically supposed to accept the proposal, because it benefitted her family. By having Elizabeth reject this proposal, Austen is able to convey her feelings of disapproval for the conventional marriage through her. In order to convey her true feelings towards marriage, Jane Austen shows them through Elizabeth, the main character. Yet in order to truly make her feelings clear, Jane Austen also creates distorted and extreme minor characters, such as Mrs. Bennet and Mr. Collins. These two characters influence the novel greatly, in that they are so extreme, that they help rationalize Elizabeth’s decisions. If it were not for them, Elizabeth would have been seen as a selfish character and Jane Austen scorn for the conventional marriage of the time would not have been clear.

Revolutions :: essays research papers

One of the six revolutions that I have studied independently is the Glorious Revolution. The Glorious Revolution took place in England during 1688 to 1689. James II and the Catholic church were in control of the land. The old regime was James II, along with the Catholic church. James II, the second surviving son of Charles I, became king of England in 1685. James crushed two revolts upon his newly found land. One, controlled by his nephew, James Scott, duke of Monmouth, and the other controlled by Archibald Campbell, ninth earl of Argyll. The people were not happy with his performance handling these revolts. James had also ended religious restrictions in 1687, which caused an increase religious tension. On June 10, 1688, William of Orange, later to become William III, was asked to take the throne of England, there by starting the beginning of the revolution. So, now Parliament and William of Orange and his wife Mary and the Catholic church help all the power in England, being the moderates of the revolution. Seeing, as how there were no radicals, there could be no accession of them, nor could there be a reign of terror. Convalescence was reached when Mary and William signed the Declaration of Power. Also, there was now a ruler again. According to Crane Brinton’s "Course That Revolutions Seem To Take", there is only one situation that occurred in the Glorious Revolution. Revolutionaries gain power and seem united. This was shown by how William and Mary and Parliament and the Catholic Church all joined up together to rule over England successfully. None of the other 9 happened during this revolution. I don’t believe that the Glorious Revolution was a revolution at all. First off, the only two things that the people didn’t like were that there was a lot of religious tension and that they thought James was a bad ruler because he was trying to protect the country. I surely hope that Bill Clinton would try to protect us from any outside enemies that tried to take over The United States.

Cancer :: essays research papers fc

Cancer My friend, Matt, was diagnosed with cancer in May 2002. I was shocked when Matt’s girlfriend, Amber, told me that he had cancer, because Matt was only twenty-three years old when diagnosed. The type of cancer Matt has is called Leukemia, which is cancer of the white blood cells. This cancer starts in the bone marrow but can then spread to the blood, lymph nodes, the spleen, liver, central nervous system and other organs. Cancer affects many people each year including my grandmother who had cancer and now one of my close friends.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The type of Leukemia Matt has is Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL), which causes his body many problems. Matt’s first symptoms of Leukemia started with him filling weak and fatigued, looking pale faced, and vomiting on occasion. Matt’s mother is a nurse at the Aiken Hospital, ambling her to know that something was seriously wrong with Matt. Matt’s mom took him to the Aiken Hospital where he was later diagnosed with Leukemia. Matt’s family and friends were shocked to find out he had this disease because of his young age. This is a disease that occurs most commonly in young children, but also affects adults. The doctors have no idea how Matt became infected with cancer. Some risk factors for some cases of cancer are smoking, exposure to massive amounts of radiation, and drugs used for the treatment of other cancers. Leukemia cells in the Acute Leukemia grow rapidly and require therapy right away (Veritas Medicine). This type of disease i s hard on the body because it affects the blood cells. Bone Marrow is the soft, spongy, inner part of bones (American Cancer Society). All of the different types of blood cells are made in the bone marrow. Bone marrow is made up of blood-forming cells, fat cells, and tissues that aid the growth of blood cells (American Cancer Society). The two types of blood cells are white and red blood cells. White blood cells (leukocytes) help defend the body against germs—viruses and bacteria (American Cancer Society). Red blood cells carry oxygen from the lungs to all other tissues of the body(American Cancer Society). They also carry away carbon dioxide. Matt began to have a shortage of red blood cells, which caused his weakness.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Since Matt had this type of disease that grows rapidly his mom had to take him to a hospital in Charleston, South Carolina immediately.

Should the Coast be Managed?

Every year land is both lost and gained in coastal areas due to physical processes, including the action of the sea. Much time and money is spent in an attempt to limit the change, seen as â€Å"damage†, that occurs. More advanced methods of coastal defence are tested and put into place and research is carried out. Yet coastal management remains as a piece-meal approach, with different areas of coast dealt with using widely varying methods, some of which are the cause of this â€Å"damage† further along the coast. â€Å"Coastal defences, by their very nature, disrupt the natural processes operating on the coastline† (www. orth-norfolk. gov. uk) and it is this fundamental fact that should be considered by all those responsible for coastal management. Although this disruption is sometimes intentional, often it is not and thus more coastal defences must be put in place in order to correct the harm done by the original scheme. Conversely, there exists much land that is considered to be valuable in terms of its economic, social and environmental significance. It may seem a waste to simply watch this land being taken by the sea when there are preventative measures that can be employed. This essay will look at why the coast is protected, from what, and will give some examples of how as well as the advantages and disadvantages of coastal management strategies including taking no action against the work of the sea. The uses of the coastal area are numerous and diverse, making it difficult to prioritise on what should and should not warrant protection. Land that is situated close to the sea is often the location of homes with a high economic value in addition to the obvious emotional attachment of the owners. Historically valuable features such as buildings or monuments are important in terms of heritage and in turn tourism. Land that provides an income, i. e. farmland and camping ground is often situated along the coast and due to the natural beauty of coastal areas, attracts tourists as well as being aesthetically appealing for those that live close to it. Another natural feature is, of course, the precious habitats that are contained by the cliffs, and the scientific interest in those habitats. Settlements were originally located close to the sea for the purpose of transport and for many coastal locations, the import and export of both people and goods remains their principal function. Indeed, it is estimated that around 60 percent of the global population live within 50 km of the sea (Briggs, Smithson, Addison and Atkinson 1997). Consequently all of these activities and uses have strong arguments as to why they justify the time, expense and risk of affecting other locations in a detrimental way, that coastal defence schemes entail. The purpose of this essay is not to evaluate which of these is the most deserving but simply to acknowledge that all of these valuable features can be found in coastal locations and are therefore at risk from erosion by the sea. The processes that affect the coastline involve the action of the sea against the vulnerable beach and cliffs. Waves attack the coast in two fundamental ways. Firstly waves are formed and their energy increased by a combination of wind, tide and current. The force of this wave action is often enough to cause fractures in the rock and sometimes failures and de-stabilization through the trapping of air. The structure and geology are obviously major contributing factors when the severity of â€Å"damage† is considered. The second way in which the waves attack the coastline is really a strengthening of the first method and this is by the transport of sediments in the water. A wave that is carrying material that it has eroded or that is originally from the seabed has more power to potentially erode. This shoreline abrasion relies on both wave energy as well as a supply of material with which to attack (Summerfield 1991). Another coastal process is weathering which also occurs inland but is exacerbated at the coast due to the very nature of the area. This includes the wetting and drying cycles and also the existence of salt. Salt weathering has a greater effect on rock that can absorb seawater as this allows the salt to penetrate the rock and so work on its structure as opposed to only the external surfaces. Coastal defences obviously do not directly combat weathering as even if the land behind is protected from the sea, salt is ubiquitous and so will still reach it. So it is this persistent force from which the shoreline is, in some locations, protected. The methods used in this protection vary in construction and purpose but also in their efficiency, with each method exhibiting both positive and negative aspects. The best defence against erosion†¦ by the sea is a natural wide beach topped off at the inshore end with either high deep sand dunes or a shingle bank† (www. north-norfolk. gov. uk). Unfortunately not every coastal location has this advantage either for natural reasons or where the beach material has been removed for human use, for example building. In the case where there is erosion occurring and shoreline assets are threatened, artificial defences are put into place. One example of a coastal engineering method is the sea wall. These were widely used in the early stages of coastline management and some modern designs have since emerged which now play a major role in defence from the sea. The sea wall is intended to reflect the wave away from the land behind as opposed to a natural beach which absorbs and dissipates the wave energy. Another form that is frequently seen is the utilization of groynes. Groynes prevent the loss of beach material by creating an obstacle. They also encourage the build-up of sediment by interrupting and thus slowing the inshore tidal current. Combined, this means that there is a â€Å"natural† defence in the form of a more substantial beach in order to dissipate wave energy, consequently less erosion occurs at that particular site (see figure 1). Revetments are another commonly employed type of defence, constructed mainly from wood or concrete. The idea is that a surface sloping towards the beach dissipates wave energy meaning that less energy is available for erosion and also that sediment builds up in front of the revetment (www. north-norfolk. gov. uk). Type of defence Cost per metre (i) Revetment 500 Seawall 5000 Groyne 1000 There are, of course, many more coastal engineering methods but for the purpose of this essay, only three have been outlined. All methods, however, have their advantages and disadvantages. Management of the coastline in the UK, in terms of erosion, is generally taken as a piece-meal approach. That is to say each area is dealt with almost in isolation, and only relatively recently have the r elevant authorities become aware that the interference in one place is likely to have a considerable effect on another, further along the coast. An example of this is the implementation of groynes. The prevention of material loss and the subsequent build-up of sediment through interruption of the inshore tidal current can, in some cases, starve beaches further along, of the material that is required to maintain size and stability. So although one area is benefiting and a â€Å"problem† being solved, other areas can lose out and thus another problem is created. Conversely if groynes are correctly designed, they can work very well and they essentially do exactly what they are designed to. As many were constructed before it was realised that harm could be caused as well as good, the knock-on effects were not taken into account. Modern groynes are designed to be permeable in order that some sediment may pass through them and reach beaches further along. These have been used successfully on the north Norfolk coast where erosion and its prevention is of great significance. Sea walls work best on large beaches, where the sea only reaches the highest point of the beach during a storm (www. orth-norfolk. gov. uk). Then, should it happen that high tide and a storm coincide, the land behind the sea wall is protected from flooding and erosion. Sea walls require regular maintenance such as in the case of Ostend in north Norfolk, where annual maintenance is required (see figure 2 for approximate cost of initial building of sea defences). In addition to the costliness, there exists the situation of beach scouring caused by the waves reflected from the sea wall. This can, over time, lead to the collapse of the wall but also means that valuable sediment is being taken away from the beach – so reducing what little natural defence there was. A controversial approach to coastal management is that of leaving it to nature. This â€Å"do nothing† strategy has been adopted in numerous locations on the north Norfolk coast, including the area between Cromer and Overstrand where the present groynes are not being maintained and will eventually fail and be removed (see figure 3). A variation of this â€Å"do nothing† policy is the so-called managed retreat. This is where, again, the existing defences are no longer maintained or their maintenance is limited but in some locations a method of soft engineering is employed for example beach replenishment. The issues surrounding these types of â€Å"management† are not as simple as may be first thought. For example the financial benefit arising from either no defence being put in place or no longer maintaining the existing defence seems rather insignificant when the loss of valuable assets is taken into consideration. It is, however, almost completely natural, with material that is eroded form one location being accreted at another. The natural processes are, in this way, allowed to continue and the lack of interference would eventually ensure that there are no negative consequences at other locations as a result of coastal defence action. Despite this, it must be considered that once action is taken to defend the coast from the erosive power of the sea, it creates an issue as to at what point the management should cease and where. To suddenly no longer protect an area of coast may generate new problems and perhaps more expense. So the proposal of an integrated shoreline management strategy seems appealing. This is looked at in much depth by Karen Nichols in her paper â€Å"Coming to terms with Integrated Coastal Management†. Fundamentally, it would involve the linkage of all areas of the coastline in terms of action taken upon them. One possible solution could consist of a review followed by the implementation of a fully integrated coastal defence scheme combined with managed retreat. If this was undertaken on a national scale, with the co-ordination of all resources and authorities, perhaps loss of important assets and further damage in the course of protecting those assets would gradually be reduced to a minimum. It seems to be that the protection of our coastal locations will remain a much-debated issue, with the needs and wants of people contrasting greatly with the power of the sea's natural activities. It is interesting that the focus of coastal management is to reduce coastal erosion yet it is the erosion of coastal land that supplies the beach with much of its material. As discussed earlier, a natural beach is the best form of shoreline defence†¦.. In conclusion it can be said that coastal protection is essential in certain localities but that it is an integrated management plan that will be most likely to succeed.

St and Lt Professional Goals

Short term professional goals – To further my education and become better qualified, with a view to changing my role or to taking on more responsibility in my current position. – To gain experience and develop my appreciation of working in multinational environments. I hope to continue to work in a multinational firm and to be able to make a more valuable and meaningful contribution as a result of my enhanced skills and learning. – To secure a management position and take on more responsibility, whereby consolidating the managerial skills I have acquired and developed over the last three years, since my promotion to Manager. To participate in the growth and success of the company I work for and to find a position where I can apply my knowledge and strengths. – To find a source of money to pay for MBA. – To help people from underprivileged backgrounds and in developing countries, by offering them professional advice and private funding on a personal level. Long term professional goals – To secure a senior management role in a leading company or to become a partner in a professional services firm.I recognise that a lot of hard work, determination and patience will be required to achieve this goal, but I am fully committed to working towards it throughout my career. – Another one of my ambitions is to start up and run my own business. I would ideally like to combine this with another goal, which is to be socially responsible in my work. For example, I would hire people that traditionally find it more difficult secure employment, such as those with disabilities, those without financial resources or pregnant women. To be a trusted advisor who has a solid business skillset, wisdom and knowledge and is able to accept and deliver challenging projects. – To become a leader and make a positive impact on society through my expertise, ethics and leading by example. – To coach entrepreneurs and help them to deve lop the key skills required to make their businesses successful. – When I retire, I intend to write a book about my experiences and ideas so that I can share them with the world.

Importance of Education Essay

Generally, at a young age, children learn to develop and use their mental, moral and physical powers, which they acquire through various types of education. Education is commonly referred to as the process of learning and obtaining knowledge at school, in a form of formal education. However, the process of education does not only start when a child first attends school, education begins at home. A person does not only acquire knowledge from a teacher, they can learn and receive knowledge from a parent, family member and even a friend. In almost all societies, attending school and receiving an education is extremely vital and necessary if anyone wants to achieve their goal. On the other side of the coin, we have places in the world where not everyone has an opportunity to receive this formal type of education. The opportunities that are offered are greatly limited as they do not meet the academic requirements. Everyone who has a job needs to use their brain which is why the importance of education is so great. In some instances, children cannot attend school because parents need their children to help them with their work. Since it is not traditional in some places to receive a formal education, the one who receives an education is usually envied, praised and even admired by members of the community. They are the ones that go on to be businessmen and work in the city. Children sometimes look at other children with awe; just the same way as one child might envy another because he got a new pair of sneakers, and wishes that he could have one too. There is a sense of admiration but at the same time there is a sense of jealousy as well. Seeing your classmate doing better than yourself causes tension and jealousy as a result of the scarce opportunities available. Listening to your teacher is one of the most important things to do in school. In Australia, education is free. Children are very lucky to live in Australia and do not recognise the importance of education. How hard you study in your early life makes a huge difference. Depending on how much you  value education, you may be the next Steve Jobs or the next cleaner of Luna Park. In conclusion, there are many reasons why education is valuable to young children. One of the main reasons is to secure your income. Having a career in sport is rare and is dangerous. You can break your leg and be scarred for life. However, if you aim to be good in the business world academically, you can’t exactly have a â€Å"work-related accident.† If you’re a child, I suggest you work hard so that your brain is overflowing of knowledge.

A Study of the Barriers of Implementation of Accounting Information System: Case of Listed Companies in Tehran Stock Exchange

Journal of Economics and Behavioral Studies Vol. 2, No. 2, pp. 76-85, Feb 2011 A study of the barriers of implementation of accounting information system: Case of listed companies in Tehran Stock Exchange 1Accounting Mahdi Salehi1 Abdoreza Abdipour2 and Management Department, Islamic Azad University, Takestan Branch, Iran, 2Payame Noor University, Andimeshk Branch, Iran [email  protected] com Abstract: Accounting information system is one of subsystems in management information system that is very important in all companies. The current study reviews barriers in implementation by postulating six hypotheses of accounting information system (middle managers, human resources, organizational structure, environmental factors, financial issues, and organizational culture) in companies listed on Tehran Stock Exchange. Finally, some results were obtained in this manner: barrier of organizational structure with 26 percent, middle managers with 26 percent, human resources with 25 percent, environmental factors with 21 percent, organizational culture with 19 percent and finally financial issues with16 percent were identified as barriers factors influencing on the establishment of accounting information systems in listed companies on Tehran Stock Exchange. Generally to eliminate these barriers, management, financial managers and staff must be trained practically by experienced teachers in accounting information systems to use the specialist and professional managers, to lengthen position of managers, to clear financial issues, to inform benefits of system establishment to company's managers. By giving reward to managers and staff try to encourage these people to use the new system. To justify staff that the establishment of new system would be their advantages; by the lever of reward, to encourage staff to compete in learning and work with the system in staff and learn to compete with systems that can accelerate performing and implementing the system. Key words: Accounting information systems, Corporate accounting system, financial system 1. Introduction Today, dramatic changes have occurred in the field of Information Technology (IT) and its progress has been so pervasive so that it has created changing trends in different in areas. The most important features of it are; high speed data processing, extremely high accuracy, and high speed access to information, to be up-to-date, the possibility of electronic exchange of information, high quality, very cheap and declining price. By considering these factors there will be no need to justify the use of IT in today's world (Salehi et al. , 2010a). Addition in accounting has to use and apply all or some of the new techniques in their services and obligations. So, providers of information especially accountants, should be the providers of advanced and high-quality information so that their services to be bought in high prices. Otherwise, in the future they will not have any place. Accounting information System (AIS) is developed between one or two or more units of a company to achieve a specific goal (Salehi et al. , 2010 b; Salehi and Alipour, 2010). It contains small sub-systems that support larger systems, includes people, methods, information and software and information technology infrastructures (Romney and Barrett, 2003). System consists of a set of incorporated components that are affiliated to achieve one or several particular goals in a way that, if one or more input can enter in it, one or more output exits (Frederick, 1984). AIS is a completely designed system for the production, collection, organization (processing), storage, retrieval and dissemination in an institution, organization or any other defined areas of society. AIS can helps business units and solve short-term problems of managers in the areas of final price, cost and cash flow through providing information to support and supervision of companies in the dynamic and competitive environment, and to help the integration of these companies and the operational considerations and strategic programs in long term (Mitchell et al. 2000). Progress in the fields of accounting, information technology and information systems during the past two decades suggest conditions to consider the role of accounting information system. For example, the evolution of active database technology, implementing new models, such as accounting resources and factors of planning resources and allowing accounting information to attract financial old data. 76 Available literat ures show little evidence of developing AIS within medium companies. In fact considerable evidences suggest that financial accountings n medium companies are the main source of information and management (McMahon and Davies, 1994). Advantages of JIT The advantages of the JIT philosophy are many. Giunipero et al. , (2005) say that JIT has led to several benefits which include lower production cost, higher and faster throughputs, better product quality, reduced inventory costs, and shorter lead times in purchasing. According to an American study of U. S. Manufactures, companies can expect improved performance in lead times, quality levels, labor productivity, employee relations, inventory levels and manufacturing costs (White, Pearson, and Wilson, 1999). Fullerton and McWatters (2001) summarised benefits in to five categories: quality benefits, time-based benefits, employee flexibility, accounting simplification and firm profitability. The increase in performance is usually attributable to a decrease in inventory levels, smoother production flow, lower storage cost and ultimately a decrease in average cost per unit (Hall, 1989). Callen et al. , (2000) reported that JIT plants have significantly less WIP than non-JIT plants. JIT plants also store fewer finished products and have lower variable and total costs than the non-JIT equivalent. Callen et al. , (2000) further found that JIT plants are significantly more profitable than non-JIT plants, but are neither successful at minimizing WIP and costs nor maximizing profits. It is possible to observe that traditional performance measurement system is inconsistent with JIT system benefiting from technological innovations at a maximum level and also that it prevents or hides broad-based effectiveness of new production methods. In this sense, the restrictions of traditional measurement system in JIT environment might be listed as follows: 1. Continuous development in production process is basic element in JIT manufacturing environment. To reach this aim easily, it’s intended to make flow of production possible with minimal parties and decreasing stock levels to a minimum. Yet, production and productivity measures of traditional understanding have reported that the productivity is low when small-lot production is made (Drury, 1990). For this reason, traditional accounting system suggests increasing batch capacity rather than decreasing lot size, which leads to raising stock levels, long supply process, increasing cost and declining customer satisfaction (Mcnair et al. 1990). As in standard costing, appropriate operational control of traditional accounting system cannot be carried out in today’s production environment (Allott, 2000; Cheatham and Cheatham: 1996; Ezzamel, 1992). Besides, due to the reliability and consistency of manufacturing processes in JIT environment, deviations do not exist or exist in qui te low level and it also leads to less use of deviation analyses. JIT manufacturing system changes will bring about changes in information requirements (Upton, 1998). As it is known, normally traditional performance, reporting is prepared monthly or weekly and cannot detect on time real reasons of processes that are not realized as expected. Yet, in JIT production system there is a possibility of short production cycle, so it requires information for the problems coming out in accordance with one-day or â€Å"real time† principal. 2. 3. Ahmad et al. , (2004) presented potential benefits and performance improvements achieved through JIT implementation. The summary of main benefits of JIT is listed below: 1. 2. 3. . 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Reduced process time, setup time and lead time; Reduced raw material, wip and finished goods inventory levels and lot size; Improved machinery and reduced machine breakdowns and downtimes; Minimized space requirement; Improved flow of products; Lowered production costs; Simplified production processes; Improved quality; Improved flexibility, multifunctional ability, motivation and problem solving capability of emplo yees; 10. Increased productivity and performance; 77 11. Improved consistency of production scheduling; and 12. Increased emphasis on supplier integration Following are the main objectives of the study: 1. 2. Identify barriers in the establishment of AISs in companies. Provide strategies for the establishment of the obstacles companies AIS in listed companies on TSE. 2. Theoretical issues and review of literature IT is a company's key infrastructure that includes physical information technology infrastructures, information technology of human resources to get information (technical and managerial skills), and technology of irreplaceable resources (Bharadvj, 2000). An important study problem in management accounting and concern about AIS decision-making with organization regarding the need for information is communication and control of accounting information system. Computer system is based on a process that supports financial data for decision-making tasks of managers within the frame of coordination and control of company's activities that in the researches of different studied models, between accounting information system with technology organization, organization's structure and organizational environment have been studied (Chen and Hall, 1994). AIS is an important mechanism of an organization that is vital for effective management decision-making in controlling organization (Zymrmn, 1995). Generally, AIS is classified in two categories: a: effective decision-making for information that is largely for control of organization and b: to facilitate information that is mainly used for coordination of organization in decision-making are used (Kern, 1992). Effectiveness of AIS to increase system integration is to improve internal communications throughout the organization (Huber, 1990). Top management team with various planning and management information system influences on strategic performance (Gil, 2009). Behavioral changes following Joint development show AIS support and participation of users that has been influencing on in accounting information system development and improved financial performance, which eventually lead to successful troubleshooting cost accounting system, are based activities (Alden burg et al. , 2009). About the productivity of information technology within the information systems in public accounting is that a small number of respondents aware of the technology components were the major component of respondents information technology data, but not the information system Accounting and usefulness were aware of the development and effects in this study started the organization, human resources management and knowledge of technology and acceptance of data were evaluated (Madshary, 2008). Comparative advantage as a model of efficiency value accounting information systems research for scholars is significantly effective and that represent the financial resources and human resources as the two basic pillars of research and development supplement industry regarding information systems that are accounting absolute superiority ensures business operations (Eles, et al. , 2008). Management stress on critical factors in success to implement organizational resources planning systems suggests that the selecting appropriate time, completing the project by one management, training personnel, superiority of project results in comparison with other projects, use of consultants, management interaction with users, the use of project control committee, shows the difference between successful and unsuccessful projects (Bradley, 2008). Test of textual factors and the impact of characteristics of technology on implementing auditing decisions is in such a way that the use of computer techniques by experienced auditors shows that companies which have experienced the ability of influencing on implementation of new technology using long-term budgets, have assed different courses through indirect control of the software (Curtis and Payne, 2008). Intelligent business systems and measuring, its effects in connection with business processes and organizational performance when measuring performance is important as information technology systems through specialized texts and literature is outstanding (Bashir, et al. , 2008). Test of the influence of international investors on the quality of accounting information demonstrates that the choice right of investment and increasing work quality of international investors on the quality information has influenced on Russian accounting companies (Baguya, 2008). Current economic and the traditional model of accounting reports: challenges and opportunities ahead of AIS researches prove that the economy in real condition can accelerate measurement and evaluation of business. Decision-making processes as a 78 new business model results in decrease of internal and hidden processes. Therefore, AISs together with research literature have been successful in development of new models to accelerate accounting processes (Vasarahly and Els, 2008). Organizational determining factors acceptance and implementation of information technology in mean companies: private and public companies shows that limiting factors in the implementation and information technology overhaul, reform arranged, changes, lack of qualified personnel and Run the same technology and information systems quality are essential (Muyanu and Brook, 2007). Strategic Planning of information systems: case study in inancial services companies in Germany represents that lack of scientific literature in implementation of strategic information systems planning, data transfer isn't mainly due to scientific literature, although scientific literature inspiring, in practice to run strategic planning, information system not included. Professional characters of management and different resources are of scientific characters. Thus the role of management in the information technology practice through the opinions of staff need more experience (Tabnar, 2007). More regulatory practices on information technology function of information technology organizations and business sector common understanding with the goals are associated with information technology. For example, active participation in the committee information technology, trade balance, decisions regarding technology information and understanding of strategic policies and administrative information technology in successful exploitation of information technology projects (Buyan et al. , 2007). Appropriate review between designing of AIS and performance of commercial units by analyzing strategies explains that high performance of commercial units depends on a wide range of accounting information systems (Boolean, 2007). Study of integrated information systems literatures of management accounting with consideration to the existing strengths within the framework of management accounting elements, new integrated information systems of accounting results in more development and understanding of theatrical frameworks in this regard. It identifies research gaps and suggests using research opportunities with different patterns and different methods. Ranking of AISs on performance of medium companies in Malaysia after study of 310 companies through electronic questionnaire showed that, a significant and important part of medium companies in Malaysia placed in high rank, and only a limited number of medium companies because of low organizational performance were in low level of accounting information systems (Nur Azizi and Kynk, 2005). Factors of users' concentration, measurement, and report making, quality of provided management information, reviewing and checking group work of outcomes affect the quality of accounting information (Hong-Jiang, 2005). To develop and spread of AIS a special team should be organized for designing input and output concepts and processing stored information so that company's decisions for main outputs and comparing of them with computer information to be possible and achievable (Romney and Stein, 2003). Future development of AIS in investment shows that the successes in avoiding risking the capital of companies are of five categories as: 1- clear and bright offers. 2 – Internal changes in institution investment. 3 – The variety of variables and repeating information change 4 – More use of information for supportive decisions support 5- world-wide impacts on investment. These evidences are good reasons for the judge and further research in the future and development of AIS (Gavyn et al. , 1997). Mistry (2005) found that, though JIT has been widely implemented, interest in documenting its impact on financial performance and productivity was generated during last few decades. For example, Inman and Mehra (1993) established the link between JIT benefits and bottom line financial measures. Olsen (2004, cited in Swamidass, 2007) is stated that â€Å"lean/JIT firms tend to have better return on equity†, since lean/JIT is associated with low inventories. However, according to Fullerton and McWatters, (2002), the use of financial performance measures under the present competitive market conditions appears unsustainable due to various reasons. Therefore, performance measurement system of a corporate using JIT production system should support basic variations such as increasing product or service quality, continuous development and reducing the losses (Hendricks, 1994). 79 Chart (1): General Plan of Financial Automation 3. Research methodology The statistical society of the study includes the financial managers of the companies listed on Tehran Stock exchange (TSE). For this purpose, a number of 442 companies were selected from TSE website. From the entire number of the selected companies 36 companies were omitted from the list of listed companies of TSE following the session of Security Subscription Board on June 10, 2008. Eventually, the study was concentrated on 406 companies from 36 different industrial sectors. The statistical community in this research could be all of companies all over the country, but with different directions and limitations of the personal facilities and we limited statistical community and selected 100 companies listed on TSE. Research data collection instrument is a questionnaire which has been standardized in the academic community and validity of it considering the opinions of specialized literatures and comments of expert managers in relevant areas were analyzed and its validity is acceptable. In order to determine the proper size of the specimen and calculate the Cronbach ? coefficient a pre-testing process was conducted. The methodology of the process was as follows: A number of 13 questionnaires of which narration style had been confirmed were distributed by the researcher among the financial managers of the admitted companies of TSE as an initial specimen. The original data showed that, on average, the affectivity of financial expenses in order to establishing an internet financial reporting was rated at 13. 90 with the standard deviation of 4 within the range of 5-25. In the society average comparison test, with the constant number of 15 (the middle point of the above range), at least, a number of 86 persons at 5% error rate provided 80. 26 percent level of ability. In order to testing of hypotheses, T-Test was employed in the study which it fits to the testing of hypotheses. Research hypotheses H1: middle managers prevent the establishment of AIS in financial units. H2: organizational structure prevents the establishment of AIS in the company's financial units. H3: organizational culture prevents the establishment of AIS in financial units. H4: financial problems prevent the establishment of AIS in the company's financial units. H5: labor prevents the establishment of AIS in financial units. H6: environmental factors influencing on AIS prevent the establishment of the company's financial units. 4. Data analysis In this section, demographic information of participants based on research experience and education level is presented in Table 1. 80 Table 1: General information of participants Item Variable Diploma Educational background B. A M. A Field of the Study Accounting Management Lee than 5 years Experience 6-10 years 11-15 years Manager Designation deputy expert clerk Testing of hypotheses Frequency 26 59 12 59 38 62 28 7 11 7 41 38 Percentage 26. 80 60. 80 12. 40 60. 80 39. 20 63. 90 28. 80 7. 20 11. 30 7. 20 42. 30 39. 20 H1: middle managers prevent the establishment of information systems in the company's financial units. In order to testing of the first hypothesis, One sample T-test is employed which the detail has presented in Table 2. Table 2: The results of testing first hypothesis Test Value=20 First hypothesis Middle managers H0: M = 20) (H1: = M> 20 degrees of freedom T Significant level 0. 001 Information contained in Table 2 shows the level of significant 0. 001, and since the significant level is less than 0. 005 shows the acceptance of hypothesis, so H0 is rejected and H1 is approved. H2: organizational structure prevents the establishment of accounting information system in the company's financial units. Table 3 shows the results of testing of hypothesis, according to the results of Table 3 the research hypothesis is accepted. Table 3: the results of second hypothesis The second hypothesis Organizational structure HO: M = 7) (H1: = M; 7 Test Value=7 Degree of freedom T Significant level 0. 001 Table 3 shows 0. 001 level of significant, and since the significant level less than 0. 005 is accepted, hypothesis H0 is rejected and, H2 is approved. Therefore, organizational structure is one of the barriers of the establishment of AIS in companies listed on TSE. 81 H3: organizational culture prevents the establishment of accounting information systems in financial units. For the above hypothesis single-sample T-test using SPSS software with confidence level of 0. 095 used and the results are mentioned in Table (4) Table (4): the results of testing third hypothesis Test Value=12 The third hypothesis Organizational culture HO: M = 12) (H1: = M; 12 degree of freedom T Significant level 0. 001 Information contained in table (4) shows significant level of 0. 001, and since the significant level less than 0. 005 is, hypothesis H0 rejected, so H3 is approved. Therefore, organizational culture prevents the establishment of AIS in companies based in financial units of companies. H4: financial problems prevented the establishment of accounting information system in the company's financial units. Table (5): the results of fourth hypothesis Test Value=6 Fourth hypothesis Financial problems HO: M = 6) (H1: = M> 6 degree of freedom T Significant level 0. 001 Information contained in the table (5) show 0. 001 level of significant, and since the significance level less than0. 005, H0 rejected, therefore, financial problems prevent the establishment of AIS in companies listed on TSE. H5: Labors don’t prevent the establishment of AIS in financial units. For the above hypothesis one- sample T-test, using SPSS software with confidence level of 0. 95 is used and the results are mentioned in Table (6). Table (6): the results of testing fifth hypothesis Test Value=17 fifth hypothesis Labors HO: M = 17) (H1: = M> 17 degree of freedom T Significant level 0. 001 Information contained in the table (6) shows 0. 001 level of significant, and since the significance level less than0. 005, H0 rejected, so H5 is approved. Hence we can say that issues related to human resources are of barriers in the establishment of accounting information system in companies located in stock exchange. H6: environmental factors affecting accounting information system prevent the establishment of accounting information system in companies' financial units. For the above hypothesis single- sample Ttest using SPSS software with confidence level of 0. 95 used and the results are mentioned in Table (7). 82 Table 7: Results of testing sixth hypothesis Test Value=12 sixth hypothesis Environmental factors HO: M = 12) (H1: = M; 12 degree of freedom T Significant level 0. 001 Information contained in the table (7) shows 0. 001 level of significant, and since the significance level less than 0. 05, is accepted, H0 rejected, so H6 is approved. Hence, we can say that environmental factors can also regard as barriers in establishment of accounting information system in companies located in stock exchange. 5. Conclusion and Discussion: Middle managers prevent implementation of AIS in companies listed on TSE. Results of above hypothesis through single-sample T-test with confidence level of 0. 95 r epresent the acceptance of this hypothesis of the research. It means that middle managers are of affecting barriers in failure of implementation of accounting information system in companies located stock exchange . There is a meaningful relation between middle managers and implementation of accounting information system. Further, environmental factors prevent the implementation of AIS listed companies on TSE. Results of the above hypothesis through single-sample T-test with confidence level of 0. 95 represent the acceptance of this hypothesis in the research. It means that organizational structure is one of affecting barriers in failure of implementing AIS in companies listed on TSE. There is a meaningful relation between and between organizational structure and implementation of AIS. By the way the results reveal that organizational culture prevents the implementation of AIS listed companies on TSE. Results of the above hypothesis through single-sample T-test with confidence level of 0. 95 represent the acceptance of this hypothesis in the research. It means that organizational culture is one of the affecting barriers in failure of implementing accounting information system in companies located in stock exchange. It means that there is meaningful relation between organizational culture and implementation of accounting information. The authors come to conclusion that several barriers lead to implementation AIS on listed companies on TSE. In such a condition it seems that without solving these problems the Iranian companies do not enjoy of advantages of AIS, so it cause very big problem in near future. In order to solving these problems all together from top managers to simple clerk should give hand in hand and at least reduce these problems in competition world. 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