The strong earthquakes happened in Sichuan province, how it influence Research Paper

The strong earthquakes happened in Sichuan province, how it influence local people - Research Paper Example The Wenchuan and Ya’an earthquakes have been devastating to the local people. Wenchuan earthquake occurred in 2008 while Ya’an earthquake occurred in 2013 (Chen et al 2013). This paper seeks to discuss the occurrence of the Sichuan Province’s earthquake and how influenced local people. Sichuan Province has a pre-cambrium basement with a double layer texture (Yueqiao et al 2013). This is exposed in the province forming the Western region. This pre-cambrium basement is what forms the Upper Yangtze Platform. In the time of late Palaeozoic-Masozoic geology states that the Sichad seat was the point where the Asian plates extended from. It led to Palaeo-Tethys extended from Southwest Asia to Southeast Asia. Sichuan Province harbors plateaus on its Western side. This  plateaus are cited as the greatest Indosinian fold zones on the planet Earth. The province has also experienced very strong Post- Triassic intercontinental modifications. This includes cases of various geotectonic movements in the Province like block faulting, seismic activity, glaciations and mudflows. This incidence has led to a situation referred to as a geological mystery in Sichuan province (Gioncu & Federico 2011). Sichuan Province is susceptible to earthquakes and studies have shown reasons for the occurrences of earthquakes in the region (der Hilst 2008). The man-made activities together with the natural factors have led to the high prevalence of earthquakes in Sichuan Province. Engineers in Geology and Seismology have reported that that the water collected in the Zipingpu water reservoir triggered the earthquake. The dam is made up of 470 fit high concrete upstream from Dujiangyan (der Hilst 2008). It was seen that the Sichuan earthquake in May 2008 its epicenter was close to the dam. It was four miles from the dam and the area around the dam was highly affected by the earthquake (Macdougall 2011). According to the world Commission on dams, the 2008

Art Under Napoleon Essay Example for Free

Art Under Napoleon Essay In 1794 Jacques-Louis David barely escapes death, due to his connections in the revolutionary war. He stood trial and went to prison. After his release he worked hard to reconstitute his career. The highlight of his career is when Napoleon asked Jacques-Louis David to work for him. Of course David accepted. Napoleon knew that David was a very accomplished artist, whom style was Neoclassical-Idealist painter. Napoleon favored painting of the classical times and of the Roman renaissance masters (Kleiner 2006). In reading, we will compare paintings by David, The Oath of Horatti and the Coronation of Napoleon. He also conquered enlightenment, so each subject matter to be of a moral, noble standing and conflict. David was born in Paris on August 30, 1748. His well to do parents sent him to school with the rococo manner, his eminent painter Francois Boucher, to whom David was apparently distantly related. Perhaps because of his own advancement David study under Joseph Vien, a painter who had been attracted by the new wave of interest in antiquity while study in Rome. In 1771 David won second place in the Prix de Rome completion. It was not until 3 years later and after some severe mental frustrations that he won the first prize for the painting Antiochus Dying for Love of Stratonice (Anonymous, 2011). David went to Rome in 1775 in the company of Vien; David studied the ancient architectural monuments, marble reliefs and freestanding statues. In addition, he strove for a clearer understanding of the classical principles under laying the styles of the Renaissance and baroque masters Raphael, the Carracci, Domenichino, and Guido Reni. He was admitted to the French academy in1783 with his painting, Andromache by the Hector (Anonymous, 2011). When the French war broke out in 1789, David threw in his lot with the Jacobins, the radical and militant revolutionary faction. He accepted the role of de facto minister of propaganda; He arranged political pageants, and ceremonies that included floats, costumes, and sculptural props. David believed that art could play an important role in educating the public and that dramatic paintings emphasizing patriotism and civic virtue would prove effective as rallying calls. However, rather than continuing to create artworks focused on scenes from antiquity, David began to portray scenes from the French Revolution itself. David intended Death of Marat not only to serve as a record of an important event in the struggle to overthrow the monarchy but also to provide inspiration and encouragement to the revolutionary forces. A writer friend of David’s was tragically killed; he depicted his friend’s death into that portrait (Kleiner, 2006). His friend was named Charlotte Corday (1768-1793) a member of a rival political faction, stabbed him to death in his medicinal bath. (He suffered from a painful skin disease. ) David presented the scene with directness and clarity. The cold neutral space above Marat’s figure slumped in the tub produces a chilling oppressiveness. The painter vividly placed narrative details-the knife, the wound, the blood, the letter with which the young woman gained entrance-to sharpen the sense of pain an outrage and to comfort viewers with the scene itself. Death of Marat is convincingly real and yet David masterfully composed the painting to present Marat as a tragic martyr who died in the service of the revolution (Kleiner, 2006). The following year David returned to Rome to paint Oath of Horatti, a work in which immediately acclaimed a masterpiece both in Italy and in France. There are more to come within the next five years. With the French revolution in full swing, David for a time stopped painting with his classical approach and began to paint scenes describing contemporary events. David began to paint martyred heroes in the fight for freedom (Galitz, 2004). Napoleon hired Jacques-Louis David to paint for all his empire desires and aspirations. These paintings were emotional works of art, not only did David portray the feelings of the characters inside the paintings perfectly, and he was also able to create deep emotions with his audiences as well. Unfortunately David’s paintings showed wars and the results of them were brutal. David’s most famous paintings of the time were the Oath of Horatti and Coronation of Napoleon, and they were obviously painted for political propaganda purposes because of their content. Napoleon Bonaparte was born in France in the year of 1769 and grew up to over throw the Monarchy. In 1799, after serving in various French army commands, including major campaigns in Italy and Egypt, Napoleon became first consul of the French Republic, a title with clear and intentional links to the ancient Rome Republic. In May 1804, he became the King of Italy. Napoleon was very aware of David’s talents. He knew David had a sharp â€Å"understanding of cult of political personality and the sophisticated craft of shaping public image† (Anonymous, 2001). The Coronation of Napoleon was the name of the painting done for the new Emperor of France. The celebration was held at the Paris’s Notre-Dame Cathedral on December 1804 (Kleiner, 2006). In the painting, David, has painted the Pius lifting his hands in a half-hearted blessing gesture. He also lowers the Popes chair so that Napoleon’s would appear relatively larger, with his back symbolically turned towards the dwarfed and older man. It also included 150 guests from pomp and pageantry, to help in celebration. In this painting Napoleons mother was late arriving in Paris (in time to miss it) but Napoleon, instructed David to paint her in. David painted Josephine (Napoleons wife) with her kneeling to receive her crown. David does make other adjustments to the paintings to make her look better for his works. David conceptually divided the painting to reveal polarities. David painted the pope, priests, representing the Catholic Church on one right, contrasting with members of the Imperial court on the left. For the painting commemorating the occasion, the emperor insisted that David depict the moment when, having already crowned himself which create more tension between state and church Napoleon placed a wreath upon his wife’s head, further underscoring his authority even more (Galitz, 2004). This focus on Josephine’s crowing, some historians believe, was also away to highlight the future of Napoleonic Empire. This was the woman after all, who would (theoretically) bear Napoleon’s heir. To that end, David painted the 41 year old Empress to appear much younger than she does in a far more sensitive, intimate pencil sketch. When a visitor to his studio noted that David had made Josephine look in the final painted version-where she loses the double chin from the tender drawing-the painter retorted: â€Å"Eh bien, allez le lul dirre! (Yeah? Go tell that to her that) (Anonymous, 2011). Others in attendance of the festivities and the painting was, besides Napoleon and his wife Josephine and Pope Pius VII others were Joseph and Louis Bonaparte, Napoleon’s ministers, the retinues of the emperor and empress, and a representative group of clergy, as well as David himself, seated among the rows of spectators in the balconies. Despite the artist’s apparent fidelity to historical fact studies show that David made adjustments to his drawing at Napoleons request. An example, he had David paint the pope’s hand in a blessing position, and his mother to be painted in the center background when in fact she was not in company (Kleiner, 2006). Although David had to incorporate numerous figures in lavish pageantry in his painting, he retained the structured composition central to the Neo-classical style of painting. Like his Oath of the Horatii, David presented the action as if it were on theater stage, which in this instance it is literally the case, even if the stage Percier and Fontaine constructed was inside a church. In addition, as he did in his arrangements of men and women in the Oath of Horatii. David conceptually divided the painting to reveal polarizers (he divided them into sections. ) The pope, prelates, and priests representing the Catholic Church appear on the right, contrasting with members of Napoleon’s Imperial court on the left. The relationship between church and state was one of this period’s most contentious issues. Napoleon’s decision to crown himself, rather than to allow the people to perform the coronation, as was traditional, reflected Napoleon’s concern about the power relationship between church and state. For the painting commemorating the occasion, the emperor insisted that Napoleon places a crown on his wife’s head, further underscoring his authority. Thus the painting represents a visual document in the tradition of history. It is also a more complex statement about the changing politics in Napoleonic France (Kleiner, 2006). Artists also will use devices to help in the development of a painting. Some use dramatic, mythology, poetry, and situations for ideas. When painting, no one model (figure) is dominate. They will even hire models to pose for them; it may take hours maybe even days of sitting in the same place in the same pose before the artist is finished. They will make their own props; by sewing clothing or hats to make a scene complete. David having had experience with the military and now working with Napoleon had the tools and experience for his first place painting the Oath of Horatii which brought him much fame and fortune (Haggo, 2010). David’s painting of the Oath of Horatti was completed in 1784. David embodies the neo-classical style in this painting as well as the Coronation of Napoleon. The Oath of Horatti illustrates the event written in the Livy’s history of Rome. This painting was an instant success and was proclaimed â€Å"the importance of reason and the intellect over and above feeling and sentiment, and it defended the ideals of male and self- sacrifice in the interest of one’s country† (Tate, B. 2011). In the painting of the Oath of Horatti, we look upon a scene in ancient Rome, In a Roman families’ dispute. David presents the sons individuals by stressing differences in facial features and uniforms. But the threat to their country demands the suppression of individually. To underline the son’s solidarity, David gives them almost identical poses. We come to the house of Horatti, with three brothers are standing together hulled in a group silent and calm (neoclassic) muscular, and toned, and instructed with the belief that State First, the three brothers arms stretched out and fingers are just millimeters way from the blades that are held out by their father to ready for war, they are about to fight the Curiatii Family to decide war between the nations (Haggo, 2010). The bearded father stands in the middle in a red cloak, legs flexed to keep his balance while holding the massively sharp swords, facing his three sons. He stands with authority and pride. Then our eyes naturally move to the next focal point, which being the next large group of huge swords that the Horatius Father holds in his expansive arms. Horatti address his sons independently stressing their facial features and uniforms that each wore. But a threat to their country demands the suppression of individually to underline the son’s solidarity. David gives them almost the same position and one brothers hand on the others waist (Kleiner, F. 2006). In the front to the left of the painting is a groups of women huddled together these women are dressed in silken garments seemly melting into tender expressions. Their despair is partly due to the fact that they may lose one or all their men in battle. One of the Horatti men was married to a Curiatii women sitting on the bench, a sister was engaged to the Curiatii man. Then in the back in the dark a woman is sitting in the dark and tries to hide a child’s face from what would be happening with just one word. The woman behind in the corner with the young child is said to be the mother to the three men, and the grandmother to whom she holds a small child in a protective manner, suggesting fright of the present surroundings. Unlike Horatti who is willing to sacrifice his family in exchange for state (Haggo, 2010). There was scarcely a young painter of the following generation who was not influenced by David’s style, a style which had within it such diverse aspects as classicism, realism, and romanticism, and humanism among his foremost pupils, each of whom developed various different facets of his style, was Antoine Jean, Baron Gros, Pierre Narcisse Guerin, Francois Gerard, Girodet de Roucy-Trioson, and perhaps most important, Jean-Auguste-Dominique. In portraiture, the carefully molded and polished surfaces of works by Gerard, Gros, and Girodet-all students of David reflect the legacy of their master. In his 1823 portrait of Madame Reizet, Girodet, whose portraits were in great demand, convincingly renders the varying textures of fur, velvet, lace, and flesh, creating a smooth surface with no visible brushwork. Yet another Davidian, Ingres, who was briefly in David’s studio in the late 1790’s, would transform his master’s neoclassical portrait model in the nineteenth century. While the precise draftsmanship of his portrait drawings attests to his training under David, the stylized contours and anatomical distortions characteristic of his painted portraits subvert David’s Model. In his pair of portraits of the LeBlanc’s, Ingres flattens forms and elongates limbs; such stylized abstractions counter the almost hyperrealism of such fabrics as the cashmere shawl and tulle sleeves. He creates a similar dialogue in his portrait of the princess de Broglie of 1853 the virtuoso rendering of the multiple folds of her silk skirt, the tufted damask chair, and the marabou feathers of her hair ornament counters the mannered elongation of her arms, her seemly boneless fingers, and her idealized face (Galitz, 2004). By the 1820’s the new romantic style, with its free handling of paint and expanded repertoire of subjects, offered an alternative to Davidian neoclassicism. David himself has been exiled to Belgium in 1816, where he died in 1825, and his studio was run by his loyal pupil Gros until his own death in 1835. In pursing the stylistic alternative that Romanticism offered, French, artist looked beyond their borders, emulating British prototypes, particularly in landscape and portraiture. In addition, the boundaries between Neoclassicism and Romanticism blurred, as evidence in the works of many of David pupils. By 1840, then, the emergence of an artist such as Theodore Chasse Riau, whose hybrid style fuses Davidian classicism-which he learned in Ingres’ studio-with the Romantic painterliness and exotic subjects of Eugene Delacroix, captures the contradictory stylistic impulses of his generation (Galitz, 2004). With Bonaparte’s defeat at waterloo and the subsequent restorations of the Bourbons, aid tried to retreat into quiet seclusion, but his earlier politician affiliation and more particularly, his actions during the heat of the Revolution were not calculated to warm his relations with the new rulers. He was declared persona non grata and fled. After short time he settled in Brussels, where he continued to paint until his death on Dec. 29, 1825. His family’s urgent request that his ashes returned to France was denied. To the drawings, fans of all things shinny will enjoy the display of regalia, swords, and scepters used in the actual ceremony. Most of these the heavily symbolic objects were supposed to have belonged to the emperor Charlemagne himself. This was another politically expedient, if not entirely accurate link to the past. The whole event with its carefully elaborated references to both past and to the future-took five hours and demanded several costume changes by the Emperor. The white satin tunic that Napoleon wore while the pope anointed his head and hands in oil (the part of the ceremony to which Le Sacre actually refers) is here, but the Imperial robes and gold Laurel wreath depicted in the painting were intentionally destroyed in1819. Only one leaf from the original crown remains, encased like a saint’s relic. In 1819, the cult of personality that Napoleon had masterfully created was too dangerous for his Bourbon successors to have his holy relics lying around. But 200 years later, we can marvel as its creation from safer – and enormously edifying distance (Anonymous, 2011). As we come to the end of our journey looking into some of the works of Jacques-Louis David, we find that he painted, and sketched over hundreds canvas. The two masterpieces that that are here in these few pages were those painted under royal patronage and for his country. Even though it would be two years before the revolution, his painting Oath of the Horatti became semiofficial voice of the French Revolution because the painting shows country before family. The voices of France say Napoleon â€Å"He is a symbol of France and the origin of our law†. His reign did not last, but not without many men who lost their lives. David, as a craftsman of his trade he used different devices and techniques to accomplish his works. David went on to be a phoenix-like recovery and become Napoleons image maker. David painted both painting with state before family, he became something even with the mistakes he made in 1794, and Jacques-Louis David barely escapes death, due to his connections in the revolutionary war. He stood trial and went to prison and almost lost his mind. After his release he had to work hard to reconstitute his career. That is exactly what he did, and he will be forever History for his fine works of Art.

Adapting to variable change in the market

Adapting to variable change in the market Adapting to change continuously is something thats very essential for an organization to survive and prosper into todays business environment.The focus of customer value is changing focus from product innovation to business innovation . Companies today need to evolve with customer needs, especially companies in the technology sector where innovation is fast paced and obsolescence is always around the corner .However trying to implement changes without adapting its strategy ,structure and processes to the change being implemented would almost surely lead to failure because a successful change needs to be a synergy of all the components /processes within the company. There are many companies which failed to capitalise on their success and lost out to their competitors over time because they were unable to successfully adapt themselves to the change . some of the examples of such stories are Canon , Nintendo and now Nokia ( Nintendo however managed to recover from the setback and that is something Nokia is looking to learn from/replicate) . Nintendo was the leader in gaming consoles till the years leading to 2000s but then Sony with it Playstation 2 took over the game and was the leader in gaming console but amongst the current generation of gaming consoles Nintendo has managed to recapture its position as the market leader with its offering the Nintendo Wii. Same was the case with Xerox , who was the leader in photocopier machines however it failed to evolve with the market and eventually lost out to Canon and Kodak and never manage to recapture its initial position of the market leader. The lesson to learn from the above cases is that being the market leader doesnt necessary guarantee you security from the environment , there is still a dire need to evolve with the market . infact the company at the front has to LEAD from the front . Changes the Source of Opportunities Innovation  is the weapon of choice for entrepreneurs.  Doing things in a different improved way or trying to do old things different is how organizations  leverage changes as a business opportunity. Innovation need to be approached systematically , with a watchful eye for changes and by looking for the opportunities that the company can capitalise on . In todays market innovation is the key driver towards success if the current success stories are anything to go by ranging from the iPhone to the Nintendo Wii.Companies look to knock out the competition by leading from the front . There are 2 trends that are successful and are popularly known as leap frog and second one is known as disruptive technology. The leapfrog strategy basically implies that you leap over the competition ,it might be developing new technologies or using a new business model to completely bypass the competition.The idea is as the name suggest to jump over the competition so that the competition . Disruptive technology is an innovation that disturbs the market forces. It basically refers to do innovations which improves on a product or service in a way not expected by the market , it typically could be by lowering the price or even offering a lower quality product which caters to a different customer segment such as in the case of Ryanair . Models of change management : There are a few models proposed for effective change management ,I will discuss a couple of them so that they can be leveraged to study the given case in a more analytical manner ,namely Kotters 8 step model and ADKAR model. Kotters 8 step model has the following steps: 1)a sense of urgency : for a change to occur there has to be a sense of urgency around the need for change .this help motivate other people so that you have more support you and help you build a sense of urgency . 2)form a powerful coalition: You have to make sure that the people around you believe in the change being necessary . This requires convincing key people in the organisation so you can garner their support and approval which helps you build momentum . For that you will need to find the non traditional /radical leaders ,people who are willing to adapt change and approach with an open mind . Once the coalition is formed , sense of urgency has to be continued and built upon . 3) create a vision for change : There would be many ideas/concepts for the change but the idea here is to link all of them so as to have a coherent vision for change providing a more holistic view of the change to occur and also a better understanding . This will the people around you understand your ideas better as well as help them help you better by having a better sense of your objectives. 4) communicate the vision : The vision needs to be communicated in a clear ,succinct manner on a frequent basis so it can compete with the other messages being broadcasted daily and stands out . 5)Take care of the obstacles : After all the above steps , it is highly likely that you will come across some obstacles maybe on an operational level or at a support level where you will have people questioning your ideas or resisting change , afterall its innate to every human to resist change as pointed out the only person who probably likes change is a wet baby. 6) create short term victories : the short terms victories as in positive feedback from the initial steps of change will help convince both the company and the support about the positive effects of the change being brought about . It will reaffirm the faith of your supporters as well as silence the critics . 7) build on your success: often many changes fail because victory is declared too early . Build on your initial success to keep up the momentum and see it through till the end . You should continuously be looking to make improvements. 8)ingrain the changes into the corporate culture : the changes need to be ingrained into the culture of the company to keep up the success else it will fail as soon as the processes and culture returns to its original state. So the change has to be maintained inorder to ensure long term success. The ADKAR model [Source: http://www.change-management.com/Tutorial-ADKAR-series-1.htm ] The ADKAR model What is change ? Change as per Websters dictionary is described as : To make something different in some particular way To replace with another To give a different direction , position etc And so on [Source : http://www.merriam-webster.com/ ] So what is change management  ? Change management can be defined in many different way but some of the best ones as per the KISS ( Keeping it short and simple ) are mentioned below  : The systematic approach and application of knowledge, tools and resources to deal with change. Change management means defining and adopting corporate strategies, structures, procedures and technologies to deal with changes in external conditions and the business environment. -SHRM Glossary of Human Resources Terms, www.shrm.org. Change management can be divided into three phases : Adapting to change Controlling the change /trying to manage it Effecting the change Successfully adapting to change is as crucial to the business world as it to the natural world , however in business the change is much more rapid and the pace at which an organization needs to adapt has to be much quicker than in the business world since the pace of change is also much quicker and the magnitude of change more extreme, so the change has to be well planned and well thought out to ensure maximum efficacy. Leading from the front [Source: http://www.gaebler.com/Leading-from-the-Front.htm] Leading from the front is a commonly used term in business jargon ,but if you stop and think about its exact meaning it can be interpreted in 2 ways: that you as a leader expect everyone else to follow the exact same route That you do whatever youve been asked to do ,exactly as per instructions Now these 2 interpretations may not seem that different at first but on deeper inspection it has to be realised that a person /organisation may only have x capacity or y resources and that these are the limitations of the organization. For e.g. no matter how many years or how many tournaments of golf you may have played in your life , its still next to impossible to be as good as Tiger Woods at golf because there are just some inherent resources which are at Tiger Woods disposal that you may not have such as a natural deep swing etc . so the second interpretation in most scenarios is the most feasible one on account of the fact that it takes into account the limitation factor. I will later extend on this argument to explain Nokias position in the current market . Leading from the front driven change Leading from the front driven change would imply going ahead and being a source of change . Instead of following a leader , you try and be the leader of that particular change .Its best explained with an example, like in case of Apple when they came up with the iPhone they went ahead and made the key differentiator to the be the user experience , they didnt go over board in the hardware war against Nokia instead they created a niche for themselves with the user experience . The key to the iPhone was the sheer simplicity and joy of using one , infact in terms of hardware Nokia was way ahead ,Nokia offered a camera of resolution of the magnitude of 5 megapixels with a xenon flash ( N82 announce 2007) as compared to a measly 2 mega pixel with no flash offered by the Apple iPhone first generation . There were a lot of similar points of comparison where in terms hardware Nokia was way ahead of the offering made by the Apple iPhone ( first generation ) and yet the Apple iPhone did really w ell despite being the companys first offering in the mobile phone market .( Apple sold 2,70,000 iPhones in first quarter and till Q1 2010 had sold over 42 million handsets put together)[Source : http://gorumors.com/crunchies/quarterly-breakup-of-iphone-sales/ ] What Apple did right was they didnt try and race ahead in the handset war against Nokia instead they formed a new class and started a new race where they were the leaders and now Nokia has to play catch up . Another example of such a story can be found in the gaming console wars between the 3 biggies of the industries : Nintendo , Microsoft and Sony. Nintendo , Sony and Microsoft each had their gaming console and while Microsoft and Sony were busy with their hardware wars for their Xbox and Playstation console in system in the mid 2005-2008 trying to outdo the other in terms of sheer processing power ,Nintendo decided to change game by concentrating on the gaming experience rather than the hardware specifications of the machine . What this resulted in was leading from the front driven change scenario . Nintendo lead from the front and while Microsoft and Sony were busy in their hardware specification war (which eventually escalated the prices of the consoles further up : eventually close to double the price of a Nintendo Wii ) came out with a gaming console which was so different (with the Wii stick ) that it actually has outsold both Xbox and Sony Playstation in the current generation of gaming consoles in terms of sales . As mentioned in the case this success story is something Nokia can learn from since Nintendo has been through a similar change of fortunes over the years, initially it was the leader, then it lost out to the play station and Xbox and then it recapitalised it position as the market leader in the current gaming console generation similar to what Nokia is planning on replicating through it new CEO.

Genitourinary Disorder Alteration in Fluid Elimination UTI Essay

Genitourinary Disorder Alteration in Fluid Elimination UTI Introduction Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) is a bacterial infection that affects the various parts of the urinary system such as the urethra, bladder, ureters, and kidneys. In young children, this disease is common and potentially serious. Statistics show that approximately 1% of boys and 3-5% of girls are affected by UTI. While most cases of UTI in boys usually occur within the first year, the age at which the first case of UTI is diagnosed in girls varies greatly. There are many factors that predispose young children to UTI including vesicoureteral reflux (VUR), incomplete emptying of the bladder, sexual abuse, pinworms, and fecal incompetence (Berreman, 2002). Correct diagnosis of UTI is paramount in order to avoid prescribing the wrong medication. In addition, correct diagnosis is critical in developing effective management and care plans for the patient which would go a long way in improving patient outcomes. During diagnosis, various diagnostic methods are used and the patient’s medical history as well as signs and symptoms ought to be a central focus by the clinician. This is important because as opposed to the more clear symptoms in older children and adults, UTI symptoms tend to be less specific and thus hard to detect in young children and infants. In fact, fever may turn out to be the only sign pointing to the possible presence of UTI in infants. In this case study, a case of UTI in a four month old female is examined with a special focus on the medical history, signs and symptoms, diagnosis, etiology, treatment, and management and care of the patient. Medical history and physical assessment of the patient A female infant aged 4 months presents with chi... ...t should be taken. If they appear nontoxic, oral antibiotics and fluids can be used for treatment. However, for patients who appear toxic, parenteral antibiotics and intravenous fluids should be aggressively administered. Most patients with uncomplicated UTI respond well antibiotic treatments in outpatient care without further problems. However, patients with severe or chronic infections require close follow-up, imaging, and appropriate treatment to prevent further sequelae in the long term. If a patient’s condition responds well to therapy, repeated urinalysis and urine cultures are not necessary. Before choosing a particular empiric therapy, clinicians should be aware of antibiotic resistance due to previous exposure of some uropathogens to antibiotics such as in cases of otitis media (Fisher, Pediatric Urinary Tract Infection Treatment & Management, 2011).

How Birds Fly

The Flight Physiology of a Bird When a bird lifts off, it uses mass amounts of energy. This energy continues throughout the time the bird is in the air, but they are able to expend so much energy because of their natural diet. The food birds eat contains high energy proteins and carbohydrates. Birds are also equipped with hollow, lightweight bones that make it easier for them to stay in the air. Their feathers are light and positioned in a way that allows them to catch wind for greater lift.One additional perk birds have is their lung capacity, which allows for great reserves of oxygen that keep them from tiring during flight. Gliding and Lift Birds glide in the air in much the same way planes do. As they propel themselves through the air they also stretch their wings out and allow the moving air to flow over them. As they do this, their wings are pushing down on the air around them.Newton's third law of motion, which states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite react ion, comes into play here, meaning that as the bird puts pressure on the air, there is also pressure being put on the bird by the air. In this case it is pressure on the underside of the wing that lifts the bird in the air. This is the principle physics behind lift. Hinged Wings and Propulsion Birds have specialized wings that allow them to fly. First, they are slightly curved on the top, due both to bone structure and feathers.Air travels faster over the curve on top of the bird's wing than it does along the bottom. This makes the pressure under the wing higher, which puts more lift on the bird. In order to propel itself through the air, it takes advantage of its hinged wing. When the bird brings its wings down, they are straight and flat and at a slight angle that will propel the bird through the air. When the bird lifts its wings back up, though, it folds them in so they exert less pressure on the air. That keeps them from slowing down. All of these aspects combine to allow a bir d to successfully fly.

The Effectiveness of Franklin Roosevelt

The Effectiveness of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal Hannah Mickelson United States History Hour 4 After suffering three long years of economic hardships, Franklin Roosevelt was elected president which gave the nation hope of overcoming the awful years of the Great Depression. The New Deal was Roosevelt’s response to the depression and became effective as soon as he was elected into office. The New Deal was intended to bring relief, reform, and recovery to the country.Although the New Deal did not end the Great Depression, Roosevelt had great success in reaching his goals of providing relief and reform to the nation, but was unsuccessful in providing recovery for the struggling Americans. Franklin Roosevelt created many different laws and agencies to reach his goals of relief, reform, and recovery. Roosevelt created the Social Security Act. The Social Security Act provided modest pensions, unemployment insurance, and financial assistance to handicapped, elderly, and depen dent children.It was a system that provided for the welfare of individuals in the new industrial act. The National Recovery Administration as meant to encourage cooperation between businesses, government, and labor to achieve economic progress. The Agricultural Adjustment Administration was an effort to support farmers back into success. Relief was one of the 3 R’s that was a success during Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal. The different laws and agencies Roosevelt developed were all to help the people out of the depression, but on the way he came up with different ways for the citizens to feel relief.The Civilian Consercation Corps and the Works Progress Administration were made to design new work programs for people and kept people from starving. It also helped citizens restore their self-respect that they had lost during the hard years of the Great Depression. These agencies provided needed labor for public projects. For women, the depression made their position in the economy worse. More than 20% of women were unemployed, but if the women that did work had their wages lowered a significant amount.If women were raising children, often the oldest male child would have to go out and find work to provide for the household. In the sense of reform, Roosevelt was successful by including Negroes in the government for the first time ever. The New Deal greatly changed the government. Before the Great Depression the government was mostly laissez faire and allowed businesses to act however they pleased. By the end of the New Deal, the government had a much bigger role in regulation businesses and affecting the lives of citizens.Many citizens felt like the new agencies that were created would help greatly in the role of the government as â€Å"an instrument of democratic action. † Many also disagreed and though it was leading the country towards socialism and communism. The New Deal changed the government into a much larger, more individual government . Although World War II was the reason the Great Depression ended, Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal greatly reduced the worst effects of the depression.After the New Deal ended, Roosevelt was still extremely popular and had revived American optimism. When the New Deal ended, the unemployment rate had dropped significantly from 12,830,000 to 7,700,000. There were many things Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal did to lighten the impact of the Great Depression although it did not end it itself. It changed the way the government functioned and the optimism in Americans. It gave citizens hope in overcoming hardships. Roosevelt built a dominant new political coalition, creating a democratic majority.Bibliography McElvaine, Robert. The Great Depression. New York: Times Books, 1947. Print. Ross, Stewart. Causes and Consequences of the Great Depression. Texas: Steck-Vaughn Company, 1998. Print. Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal. 1995-2010 http://wps. ablongman. com/long_divine_app ap_7/23/5931/1518562. cw/index. html FDR’s New Deal Summary & Analysis. http://www. shmoop. com/fdr-new-deal/summary. html The Effectiveness of Roosevelt’s New Deal. July 29, 2010. http://voices. yahoo. com/the-effectiveness-roosevelts-6418844. html

How to Write a Comparative Essay †Be Careful. BestEssay.Education

How to Write a Comparative Essay – Be Careful. How to Write a Comparative Essay – Be Careful Remember those comparison/contrast essays you wrote in high school? Sometimes you wrote ones that only compared two things; sometimes you wrote ones that only contrasted two things; and sometimes you wrote essays that included both comparisons and contrasts. When you are assigned comparative essays in college, however, the terminology of the assignment itself is really important, because there are really two types. You need to be certain that you understand the assignment before you begin to choose a topic and produce an essay. If you are to write just a comparative essay, you will be addressing those things that two or more people, things, events, beliefs, or other ideas have in common. For example, how are the democratic systems in England and India alike? Or, how are Macbeth and Brutus, two characters from to different Shakespearian plays, alike? If you are to write a comparative analysis essay, however, the common definition of such an essay is that you will address both similarities and differences – like the comparison/contrast essay you wrote in high school Understanding the difference between these two types will be your first step in figuring out how to write a comparative essay that will meet the requirements of your instructor’s assignment. Organizing Your Essay If you are only to write an essay on the comparison of people, events, things or ideas, your organizational structure will be pretty basic. Make a list of those similarities, each of which will be addressed in a separate paragraph. If, however, your essay is a comparative analysis, things are a bit more complex, as you must address both similarities and differences. Your best bet in this case is to make two lists – similarities and differences and then to organize your essay by first assigning a paragraph to each of the similarities and then a paragraph to each of the differences. There are other format, of course, but this is really the easiest, and if you just want to get the thing done, choose this format. If, for example, you were to compare Macbeth and Brutus, you would want to address the facts that they were both highly ambitious, that they were both power-hungry to a fault, and that they were both willing to kill to obtain that power. On the other hand, there were differences. Macbeth was a military hero; Brutus was a politician; Macbeth was strongly influenced by his wife’s ambition; Brutus was driven by only his inner drive. So, your essay will have two sections – paragraphs on si milarities followed by paragraphs on differences. Write an Essay that Will Impress If you spend a good amount of time thinking about the things you are to compare and/or compare and contrast, and you prepare your lists well, you should have an easy organizational structure. The rest is in the writing. Be certain that you review and edit that rough draft so that it is really polished by the time you turn it in. Remember, a great essay grade is comprised of both what you say and how you say it.

Aldis Micro environment

Aldis Micro environment Introduction Aldi is a German Based multinational company that operates in the discounted stores sector. Having started its operations back in the year 1946, the company has grown to the extent that it controls 8078 stores around the world today. The company entered the United Kingdom in 1990 with the opening of a single store. As of today, the company has managed to open four hundred stores across the United Kingdom.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Aldi’s Micro environment specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This growth has put the company amongst one of the most competitive companies in the Hypermarkets, Supermarkets and Superstores sector in the United Kingdom. In the United Kingdom, the company operates within a competitive micro environment. This implies that there are a substantial number of stakeholders in the sector in which Aldi operates (International Markets Bureau 2011). This paper explores the inter nal and external environment in which Aldi operates in the United Kingdom. The paper begins by examining the key stakeholders of the company. This is followed by a Porter’s five forces analysis, which helps to capture the macro environment in which the company operates. The paper ends by drawing recommendations from the findings, which can be used by Aldi to gain a competitive position in the United Kingdom. Key Stakeholder Groups in Aldi’s Micro Environment The government and regulators Each stakeholder plays a given role in as far as the influence of operation for companies is concerned. The government plays a greater role in setting the business environment. It influences the operation of a given company from the macro and even narrows down to shape the micro environment (Fassin 2009). The UK government, especially the ministry of trade ensures that comprehensive trade policies are in place in order to steer the operation of business companies. The government ensure s that the operational environment is fair for all the companies operating in the HSS. The retail laws are set by the government. Also, the government ensures that labour laws are effectively developed. The social and environmental policy matters are also coordinated by the government. The government does not have needs per se, but helps in setting standards that are required for effective business operation (International Markets Bureau 2011). Customers The other critical stakeholders in the micro environment are the customers (Fassin 2009). Research has pointed out that customers are the most valid stakeholders by any company, including Aldi. The reason behind this is that customers are the main sources of competitive advantage by virtue of their shopping trends and habits.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The growth of Aldi is associated with its ability to prov ide diverse services, which have enabled them to gain a substantial number of customers over time. Customers have their expectations of the company. Customers have been demanding for services at discounted prices. This enables the customers to attain goods at lesser costs. This is because of the higher cost of living that has been brought about by the recent tough economic conditions in the country and the world at large (NFU n.d). Suppliers Suppliers are vital for companies that deal with the marketing of a wide range of products. Aldi offers a wide range of products. This is one of the positioning factors for the company. The relevance of the suppliers to the company is to ensure sustainable supply of goods to the company (Fassin 2009). Aldi gets its supplies from different manufacturers and processors. In order to ensure that it maintains its relationship with its customers, a company has to ensure that it maintains a stable relationship with its suppliers so that they can keep s upplying quality products. Through the maintenance of a working relationship with their suppliers, the company is able to get a constant supply of products and services. The main need for suppliers is to ensure that they secure a relationship with the company so that they can maintain the company as one of their chains where they make their supplies. Employees According to Fassin (2009), employees are the immediate stakeholders in the company. When it comes to the issue of employees, Aldi focuses on two things: The maintenance of their employees through deployment of best practices in human resource management and the outsourcing of high quality employees from the lumber industry in the United Kingdom. As mentioned earlier, Aldi operates four hundred stores in the United Kingdom. This points out that the company has a substantial amount of employees in the country. The company has attained most of its managerial employees from the Universities in the United Kingdom. The employees ne ed to be maintained by the company through a better pay and other practices of performance management (NFU n.d).Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Aldi’s Micro environment specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Communities Communities are another critical group of stakeholders in the company. The company draws its customers from the communities in areas where it has set its retail stores. It is argued that the only way through which a company can establish positive relationships and attachment to the community is by employing best practices in corporate social responsibility (Fassin 2009). These entail the support of activities and functions within the community. It also involves engagement in sustainable management and environmental conservation. These practices make the communities to be drawn near the company. Aldi has a policy on corporate social responsibility, which helps it to establish and sustain relationsh ips with the communities in the UK (NFU n.d). Porter’s Five Forces Analysis of Aldi in the UK’s HSS Sector The HSS sector is comprised of a substantial number of operators, thereby making the sector to be quite competitive. This implies that any company that aims at attaining a competitive position in the sector has to make efforts to understand the factors of competitiveness in the sector. Though still faced with challenges that impede its competitiveness in the UK HSS sector, Aldi has been active in the sector and has managed to gain a substantive amount of customers due its mastery of the macro environment and the subsequent adoption of competitive practices. Threat of new competition One thing that is feared by business companies, yet the most critical determiner for their performance is competition. Firms are required to keep monitoring and assessing the developments in the industry in which they operate to gain knowledge on how to adjust their activities in the m arket. This ensures competitiveness in the market (Draganska Klapper 2007). The HSS in the UK retail industry is comprised of a number of companies that have operated in the industry for a relatively longer period of time. Such companies include Tesco, Sainsbury, Morrissonswhereas and Asda (Hall 2011). Aldi is not considered as a new entrant in the HSS of the UK since it has operated in the UK for more than 20 years. The company has gained competitiveness in the industry through a strategic move, which made it venture into discount retailing. However, it has been noted that a substantial number of companies are opting to invest in the discount retailing in the future because of the developments in the current market (Brown 2013). This calls for Aldi to adjust its activities by making adjustments to the offers made to its customers.Advertising Looking for report on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This is the best way through which the company can maintain its customers. The advantage for Aldi is that it has already operated in the discounted retailing for an extended period of time, thereby attracting a substantial number of customers. Threat of substitute products or services When there are numerous companies operating in an industry, substitute products or services are used as differential factors for companies in the market (Lusch, Vargo O’Brien 2007). The HSS industry in the UK has a high number of players who provide varied services to their customers. When a company uses the feature well, it easily gains a competitive advantage over other companies in the market. Aldi provides a wide range of products and services to its customers, for instance the weekly price offers and the special buy deals. This enables the company to attract a wide range of customers in the UK retail market (International Markets Bureau 2011). Bargaining power of customers The customers pu rchase the products and services of firms, thereby enabling firms to sustain their operations in the market. The purchasing behaviour of customers is shaped by a number of factors. Among these factors are the economic conditions and the offers that are made on purchases by the company. Brown (2013) observed that the current economic conditions in the world raised the conditions of living, forcing customers to cut down their expenditure on goods and services. This means that the bargaining power of customers is low, and they prefer to purchase from retailers who help them save. Therefore, the offers on the prices of goods and services favour a substantial number of buyers. This is what has enhanced the performance of Aldi in the recent years of operation in the UK HSS sector (Hall 2011). Bargaining power of suppliers Grewal and Levy (2009) observed that each company seeks for suppliers who can ensure it gets quality products at competitive prices in order to draw profits from the sup plies. Aldi offers its customers a wide range of products. This implies that the company has a large number of suppliers from which it gets the products. The prices that are offered to the suppliers by the company are drawn from the industry since the company has to ensure that its customers get the goods at affordable prices. Therefore, Aldi has developed strong links with a number of suppliers, who offers them supplies at discounted prices. This in turn enables the company to extend the discounts to their customers, which boosts their sales. In turn, this enables the company to get more supplies and benefit the suppliers (International Markets Bureau 2011). Intensity of competitive rivalry The intensity of competition in an industry is dictated by the number of active players in the industry and the nature of service offing to the customers by the players. The UK HSS has a number of well established companies like Sainsbury, Morrissonswhereas, Asda and Tesco. These companies are c onsidered as the main competitors for Aldi in the sector (Hall 2011). Their higher level of competitiveness resonates from the fact that they have been in operation in the country longer and have well expanded retail stores when compared to Aldi. However, Aldi has been strategic, a factor that enables the compact to ease the competitive pressures from the giant companies in the sector. Aldi has managed to ease the competitive pressure by fully venturing into discount retailing. As of today, it is argued that Aldi is one of the leading companies in discounted retailing in the UK. The discount retailers have continued to mount pressure on large supermarkets across the UK (International Markets Bureau 2011). Conclusion and recommendations According to the findings of this paper, Aldi is one of the most competitive companies in the UK retailing industry. The company has managed to gain competitiveness through the deployment of a number of strategic moves, such as venturing into discount ed retailing and higher diversification of the number and types of products. Therefore, the company has a high likelihood of continuing performing remarkably in the UK. This can be done through a number of practices. Aldi needs to increase the diversity in its service offering in order to capture the diverse groups of customers in the UK. The number of discounted offers ought to be extended so that they can favour buyers from the middle class, as well as those from the high class. At the same time, there is need for the company to start venturing into other sectors of the UK retail industry. This can be attained through research in order to enable the company to identify the best way to diversify its operating segments. Future prospects point to the fact that customers prefer discounting as a way of saving. Therefore, Aldi can enhance its competitiveness by opening more discounted stores across the entire UK. Presentation Speech In this paper, I present a clear picture of the comp etitive position of Aldi by putting the company within the perspective of the HSS industry in the UK. The three issues in areas of analysis of the company that I have focused on are: The stakeholder analysis, the Porter’s five force analysis and the recommendations. The stakeholder analysis has focused on five main stakeholders. These are: The government and regulators, suppliers, customers, employees, and the communities. The five forces analysis has explored the key areas of competitiveness of the company in the UK retail industry. From the discussion, I have derived three main recommendations for the company. Reference List Brown, J 2013, ‘Every Lidl helps: bargain hunters flock to German masters of no-frills shopping’, The Independent, independent.co.uk/news/business/news/every-Aldi-helps-bargain-hunters-flock-to-german-masters-of-nofrills-shopping-7888984.html Draganska, M Klapper, D 2007, ‘Retail environment and manufacturer competitive intensityâ₠¬â„¢, Journal of Retailing, vol. 83 no. 2, pp. 183-198. Fassin, Y 2009, ‘The stakeholder model refined’, Journal of Business Ethics, vol. 84 no. 1, pp. 113-135. Grewal, D Levy, M 2009,’ Emerging issues in retailing research’, Journal of Retailing, vol. 85 no. 4, pp. 522-526. Hall, J 2011, ‘Aldi and Lidl increase market shares as shoppers cut back’, The Telegraph, telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/8296774/Aldi-and-Lidl-increase-market-shares-as-shoppers-cut-back.html International Markets Bureau 2011, The United Kingdom: A sophisticated retail sector, ats-sea.agr.gc.ca/eur/5735-eng.htm Lusch, RF, Vargo, SL O’Brien, M 2007, Competing through service: Insights from service-dominant logic, Journal of Retailing, vol. 83 no. 1, pp. 5–18. NFU n.d, Review of grocery retailer CSR policies, https://www.google.com/url?sa=trct=jq=esrc=ssource=webcd=10cad=rjaved=0CHsQFjAJurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nfuonline.com%2FOur-work%2FF ood-chain%2FNews%2FNFU-Supermarkets-CSR-report-28-6-12%2Fei=WPAIUePTNIHTtAbDioDgAwusg=AFQjCNHyaeMIz0hL-7px0Anow06OnGTvmAbvm=bv.41642243,d.Yms

Constructivism and Instructivism in Teaching and Learning Essay

Constructivism and Instructivism in Teaching and Learning - Essay Example This essay describes and analyzes the effects of the â€Å"No Child Left Behind Act of 2001† that was established in the United States and meant â€Å"to ensure that all children have a fair, equal, and significant opportunity to obtain a high-quality education and reach, at a minimum, proficiency on challenging State academic achievement standards and state academic assessment†. As the No Child Left Behind Act’s main aim was to improve the quality of education in the United States, educators and teachers have been forced to ask uncomfortable but important questions as to how such improvement can be attained in their professional field. The researcer mentiones that countless debates have since taken place in the academic world to pinpoint where the problems lie in the hope of identifying the right and the best solutions. These debates have been heated and not without controversy, which is what makes them interesting. Of the wide range of debated topics, this essa y focuses on one of the most basic battle lines – Constructivism versus Instructivism. The researcher then compares these two basic theories of how people learn and analyzes which of these two really works and is more effective. To conclude, the researcher gives his own recommendations on the topic and sums up that every teacher must learn how to account for one of the greatest missions anyone can receive, that of shaping other human minds and launching them on their way to learning, discovery, and survival in a complex world.

Your thoughts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Your thoughts - Essay Example f literature that is useful for a teacher to understand the culture of a classroom and the students’ psychology, nothing compares to a practical experience gained by a teacher in the classroom. A teacher learns a lot by observing the students and other teachers. To learn the best way, it is advisable for a teacher to take some classes as a silent observer among the students while another teacher is teaching. The first and the foremost thing I have learnt from other teachers is management. This includes controlling the students’ discipline and finishing the curriculum within the required duration. One thing that I have particularly learnt is never to bring my ego in while dealing with the students. 2. Students like Ernest (special needs) need that extra attention from the teacher sometimes in order to succeed. In some classrooms they have so many students that it is hard for the teacher to give that one on one attention that may help the student progress. So by Ms. Hodges implementing the current tactics into her curriculum it really will help Ernest especially the group work. Some kids feel more comfortable learning from other kids, because some kids may feel inferior working with the teacher. What do you think? Ans. There is no doubt in the fact that the age difference of a student with the person he/she is working with makes a lot of difference when it comes to understanding things and participating in activities. Age difference between a student and a teacher is much more than that among two or more students. Students generally take teachers for their parents, and would only be able to expose themselves in a restrained manner. Students are influenced by the seniority and maturity of the teachers. As a result, they are likely to consider their questions too immature to be asked, when the questions might not be immature at all. On the other hand, when students are working in groups with other students their age, they are psychologically relieved and have

Madison federalist 10 and 51 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Madison federalist 10 and 51 - Essay Example Such tendencies can have far-reaching repercussions in a human society because a specific group that commands the majority may try to exercise arbitrary control over the minority, favoring one class or faction and exploiting the others. Therefore, it becomes imperative on the government to have some system in place to control the damage caused by such factions. It is with this view that the constitution has been created. Thus one can argue that the constitution is designed to prevent the tyranny of the majority and to protect the rights of the minority. The Federalist Papers is a treatise on free government in peace and security, and written in support of the ratification of the Constitution. The Federalist Papers is written and compiled by Alexander Hamilton and James Madison under the pseudonym of â€Å"publius†. Madison believes that there are two ways to control a faction; one is to remove its causes and the second is to control its effects. He wishes to multiply the deposits of political power in the state itself sufficiently, to break down the sole dualism of rich and poor, and thus to guarantee both liberty and security. In Federalist 10, Madison predicts that the size of the United States and its variety of interests could be made a guarantee of stability and justice under the New Constitution. A verity of interest precludes forming of factions and the New Constitution, by safeguarding the interests of all parties irrespective of race, class or regional preferences, guarantees equality. In Federal 51, Madison holds that to ensure liberty to all, each branch should be, for the most part, independent and no one branch should have too much power in selecting members of the other branch. Madison also suggests that the best security against a gradual concentration of power in any one branch is to provide constitutional safeguards that would render such concentration difficult. Madison also observes that dividing power checks concentration of power

Applying Leadership Styles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Applying Leadership Styles - Essay Example iated by the leadership of Apple include Tim Cook as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and also inspiring employees to work with innovative ideas along with rewarding the employees for motivation. Additionally, previous CEO and charismatic leader of Apple, Steve Jobs shared the vision of launching cell phone in the market besides the computers and motivated the employees to follow his vision (Docstoc, 2012). Generally, there are three styles of leadership namely transactional, transformational and situational leadership styles. Transactional leadership style can be defined as a style of a leader with which he/she promotes acquiescence of the employees with rewards and punishes according to their performances along with focusing on every operation and activity of the organization. In other words, transactional leadership style is also known as managerial leadership style (Dibley, 2009). With due consideration to this aspect, it can be stated that a leader following this style might desire to promote innovation in the organizational operational processes by inclusion of promotions and rewards to obtain best out of the employees. Similarly, it is observed that Apple’s leaders considered this style into its operational process. Apple’s management led by Steve Jobs prudently considered the inclusion of Tim Cook as the new CEO to lead Apple to further growth and prosperity (Docstoc, 2012). Transformational leadership style can be classified as the quality of a leader who changes the state of mind according to the organizational requirements through motivating and implementing various mechanisms, further which also helps the employees to enhance their performances. The roles performed under this style include idealized influence, inspirational motivation and intellectual stimulation. Moreover, idealized influence can be stated as the manager who is identified to be the best in his/her abilities to guide and to respond to the employees’ requirements.

Is there a relationship between age and gender with PTSD symptoms Research Paper

Is there a relationship between age and gender with PTSD symptoms - Research Paper Example Approximately more than two thirds of people within the general population may experience an axiological event of trauma within their lives with up to a fifth of persons living in the United States experiencing such an event in any year (Sandro, Arijit, & David, 2005). These events range from rape, motor vehicle accident, physical assault, and natural disasters. Events such as motor vehicle accidents, floods, terrorist attacks are traumatic events which many persons experience within their life and have the potential of precipitating into a wide array of physical and mental health disorders. For instance in a survey carried out united States residents, thirteen percent reported a lifetime exposure to human generated or natural disasters (Davidson, Hughes, & Blazer, 1991). PTSD is one of the most commonly studied and to a great extent, the most pleonastic and debilitating psychological disorder culminating from traumatic events. This has increased interest and attracted attention of p sychiatrists, psychologists, and interested researchers alike and is rapidly taking center stage when it comes to psychological disorders in the medical world. It is the sole intention of this paper to demonstrate how age and gender of persons relates to the occurrence of PTSD symptoms. It will focus on the difference in severity of PTSD symptoms in terms of gender and age. The study will target adult male and female persons ranging from thirty to sixty years and children ranging from six to twelve years. Another group will be included ranging from fifteen to twenty nine years composed of both male and female persons. Literature Review This study has been limited to research studies that were conducted between 1990 and 2008. Within this period there has been research events conducted as relates to PTSD but a profound absence of work that underscores the relationship between the severity of PTSD and the age and gender of persons. Therefore the bulk of the research seeks to investigat e this particular issue and give critical information contributing to the known facts as relates to PTSD. I have singled out pre-existing literature that contains critical information that is of great importance to this research event. One such article is the epidemiology of post-traumatic stress disorder after disasters (Sandro, Arijit, & Vlahov, 2005). It gives reliable epidemiological information that relates to PTSD symptoms and sets stage for a more conclusive and a much wider research effort to develop statistics of PTSD severity symptoms with relation to not only disaster but many other etiologies of PTSD. Although specific traumas have their effects well documented and established, many persons both in research and clinical settings have experienced more than a single traumatic event in their lives (Breslau, Chilcoat, Kessler, & Lucia, 1999). Of these persons, some report symptoms of PTSD that indicate the combined effects of two or more of these traumatic experiences as opp osed to mainly their latest trauma or the severest from of trauma they have been exposed to. There is an increasing amount of literature suggesting that the severity of a persons PTSD symptoms can be predicted by the lifetime number of traumas that an individual has experienced (Norris, 1992). These studies and cumulative trauma literature fail to give significant information

The quality management in Applebee's Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

The quality management in Applebee's - Essay Example It was found that there was a significant problem concerning with the quality of food. Although, the evidence presented was a single case of an outlet somewhere in the outlets in 1050 Wayne Ave, Chambersburg, PA, there is still a tendency among customers to consider the negative feedbacks to be taken against the whole Applebee’s as a brand. Therefore, in order to eliminate the possibility of taking this point especially in some cases found in some other outlets concerning food quality, the work at hand presents some solutions and recommendations. Keywords: quality management, restaurant chain, Applebee’s Introduction The work at hand tries to present a significant quality management issue linked to the operation of Applebee’s. In particular, this paper discusses the problem that Applebee’s faced in their managing the quality and in matching customers’ satisfaction. Applebee’s is widely known as the American company with three essential goals, to develop, franchise, and operate the grill and bar restaurant chain. In 2011, it is reported that the said chain had over all 2,019 restaurants operating across the US and in 15 other countries. All of these restaurants focus on the concept of casual dining, which particularly includes American dishes like shrimp, chicken, pasta and Applebee’s signature dish. Applebee’s also serves alcoholic beverages as it is integrated with bar area. Applebee’s chain is therefore trying to offer a complete package for restaurant and relaxation program. This document covers the fundamental issue of how far the Applebee’s manages to maintain the level of its quality with particular inclusion of the problems it faces with respect to the prevailing concerns and reviews of the customers who were able to try both of their product and service offerings. A special consideration of a certain outlet in the US is the primary focus considered in the work at hand. Concerning this , this paper is subdivided into four essential sections after the introduction. The next section covers the description of the company as an extension of the brief discussed so far in this section. Next to this is the description of the problem, where there is an inclusion of the various negative feedbacks that Applebee’s receives from its customers particularly in the case of those franchises operating across the US. After the presentation of the description of the company and the problem, the solutions and recommendations are provided and followed by the conclusion. To start with, it is important to dig deeper more into the description of the company in in order to link the potential problems associated with how the chain eventually operates. Description of the company Applebee’s like all the other successful restaurants in the US had also its humble beginning. Its inception was remarkably stated to be initiated by Bill and T. J. Palmer on the 19th of November 1980 i n Decatur, Georgia (Fournier, Sosnik & Dowd, 2006). However, this company was sold to W. R. Grace and Company in 1983 changing the concept of Applebee’s as Neighborhood Grill & Bar (Fournier, Sosnik & Dowd, 2006). However, on the 16th of July 2007, the IHOP Corp or DineEquity Inc., bought Applebee’s for about $2.1 billion (Fournier, Sosnik

Applying Leadership Styles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Applying Leadership Styles - Essay Example iated by the leadership of Apple include Tim Cook as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and also inspiring employees to work with innovative ideas along with rewarding the employees for motivation. Additionally, previous CEO and charismatic leader of Apple, Steve Jobs shared the vision of launching cell phone in the market besides the computers and motivated the employees to follow his vision (Docstoc, 2012). Generally, there are three styles of leadership namely transactional, transformational and situational leadership styles. Transactional leadership style can be defined as a style of a leader with which he/she promotes acquiescence of the employees with rewards and punishes according to their performances along with focusing on every operation and activity of the organization. In other words, transactional leadership style is also known as managerial leadership style (Dibley, 2009). With due consideration to this aspect, it can be stated that a leader following this style might desire to promote innovation in the organizational operational processes by inclusion of promotions and rewards to obtain best out of the employees. Similarly, it is observed that Apple’s leaders considered this style into its operational process. Apple’s management led by Steve Jobs prudently considered the inclusion of Tim Cook as the new CEO to lead Apple to further growth and prosperity (Docstoc, 2012). Transformational leadership style can be classified as the quality of a leader who changes the state of mind according to the organizational requirements through motivating and implementing various mechanisms, further which also helps the employees to enhance their performances. The roles performed under this style include idealized influence, inspirational motivation and intellectual stimulation. Moreover, idealized influence can be stated as the manager who is identified to be the best in his/her abilities to guide and to respond to the employees’ requirements.

The quality management in Applebee's Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

The quality management in Applebee's - Essay Example It was found that there was a significant problem concerning with the quality of food. Although, the evidence presented was a single case of an outlet somewhere in the outlets in 1050 Wayne Ave, Chambersburg, PA, there is still a tendency among customers to consider the negative feedbacks to be taken against the whole Applebee’s as a brand. Therefore, in order to eliminate the possibility of taking this point especially in some cases found in some other outlets concerning food quality, the work at hand presents some solutions and recommendations. Keywords: quality management, restaurant chain, Applebee’s Introduction The work at hand tries to present a significant quality management issue linked to the operation of Applebee’s. In particular, this paper discusses the problem that Applebee’s faced in their managing the quality and in matching customers’ satisfaction. Applebee’s is widely known as the American company with three essential goals, to develop, franchise, and operate the grill and bar restaurant chain. In 2011, it is reported that the said chain had over all 2,019 restaurants operating across the US and in 15 other countries. All of these restaurants focus on the concept of casual dining, which particularly includes American dishes like shrimp, chicken, pasta and Applebee’s signature dish. Applebee’s also serves alcoholic beverages as it is integrated with bar area. Applebee’s chain is therefore trying to offer a complete package for restaurant and relaxation program. This document covers the fundamental issue of how far the Applebee’s manages to maintain the level of its quality with particular inclusion of the problems it faces with respect to the prevailing concerns and reviews of the customers who were able to try both of their product and service offerings. A special consideration of a certain outlet in the US is the primary focus considered in the work at hand. Concerning this , this paper is subdivided into four essential sections after the introduction. The next section covers the description of the company as an extension of the brief discussed so far in this section. Next to this is the description of the problem, where there is an inclusion of the various negative feedbacks that Applebee’s receives from its customers particularly in the case of those franchises operating across the US. After the presentation of the description of the company and the problem, the solutions and recommendations are provided and followed by the conclusion. To start with, it is important to dig deeper more into the description of the company in in order to link the potential problems associated with how the chain eventually operates. Description of the company Applebee’s like all the other successful restaurants in the US had also its humble beginning. Its inception was remarkably stated to be initiated by Bill and T. J. Palmer on the 19th of November 1980 i n Decatur, Georgia (Fournier, Sosnik & Dowd, 2006). However, this company was sold to W. R. Grace and Company in 1983 changing the concept of Applebee’s as Neighborhood Grill & Bar (Fournier, Sosnik & Dowd, 2006). However, on the 16th of July 2007, the IHOP Corp or DineEquity Inc., bought Applebee’s for about $2.1 billion (Fournier, Sosnik

Life of Being an African American Essay Example for Free

Life of Being an African American Essay Throughout my life, I have had to battle with my own identity, as many people do. It is not just a black thing, I’m sure. I know people from all different ethnicities, who struggle to find themselves, but this has little to do with the way they look on the outside – it is the quest to find out who they are on the inside. I found that person when I was thirteen years old, but then when I moved to the United States from Chicago eight years ago, I underwent another sort of struggle with identity. This time it was because of the way I looked, and it was less than a personal struggle than it was a fight against discrimination. I had never really experienced any form of racial discrimination in Chicago; almost everyone who lived in our area was African American, with a few exceptions. There were a few white people, but they apparently were not indicative of the general population in America, as I never received any mistreatment or discrimination from them, and likewise, I do not believe they suffered any discrimination by my fellow African Americans. Everyone sort of just fit in and carried on with their daily lives. I am ashamed to admit that this is how I thought that my life would be in Texas as well. I did expect things to be different. I knew that Dallas were more affluent and I knew that there were buildings as big as some of our smaller towns. The buildings in the brochures seemed to reach the sky. I believed that the sky would be bluer, the air cleaner, and the people would be as friendly as they seemed to be on television and in the brochures. All of these shiny, smiling white faces would greet me with open arms and assist me in any way possible to make my stay wonderful. However, the exact opposite has happened to me. Although I am not the only African American by far to come to Dallas, I certainly felt all alone my first six months here. While I did meet other African Americans, and they welcomed me, they were all busy struggling to make a living or to learn the language just as much as the next. It seemed even the older African Americans who had lived here for over ten years still never managed to fit in. I have been called â€Å"stupid†, â€Å"ignorant† and â€Å"dumb† despite the fact that I am more intelligent than many of the people calling me this. .One of the things that annoys me the most is when I try to talk to someone and they talk back to me with a slang accent. I have had people speak very slowly and with raised volume and exaggerated hand movements when they are trying to talk to me. I guess they think that deaf and dumb. Stereotypes exist, I understand this, and it really doesn’t affect me as much as being discriminated against does. For example, I can take people assuming that I work at a chicken place or even asking â€Å"what are you†. But when I take the time to talk to people and explain and let them into my life a little, I expect a bit more than from someone on the street, but I don’t often get it. In my small group of friends, which is mainly white people, they don’t think I’m stupid or ignorant, unlike those strangers I meet on the street, and they don’t think I’m deaf and dumb; they actually think that I’m of the most caring person, and will do anything for them. Living in America is a dream for many, and while there are so many opportunities here, I have to say that it is a struggle for an African American to fit in. I can only hope that future employers will not discriminate or that the only jobs that I can find will be dishwashing and working for a place that sells chicken. While these jobs are suitable for some, they are not why I came to America. In essence, I am chasing the American dream, and while many Americans have discriminated against me, I can only hope that the dream will not.

Design of Spatial Decoupling Scheme

Design of Spatial Decoupling Scheme Design of Spatial Decoupling Scheme using Singular Value Decomposition for Multi-User Systems Abstract In this paper, we present the use of a polynomial singular value decomposition (PSVD) algorithm to examine a spatial decoupling based block transmission design for multiuser systems. This algorithm facilitates joint and optimal decomposition of matrices arising inherently in multiuser systems. Spatial decoupling allows complex multichannel problems of suitable dimensionality to be spectrally diagonalized by computing a reduced-order memoryless matrix through the use of the coordinated transmit precoding and receiver equalization matrices. A primary application of spatial decoupling based system can be useful in discrete multitone (DMT) systems to combat the induced crosstalk interference, as well as in OFDM with intersymbol interference. We present here simulation-based performance analysis results to justify the use of PSVD for the proposed algorithm. Index Terms-polynomial singular value decomposition, paraunitary systems, MIMO system. INTRODUCTION Block transmission based systems allows parallel, ideally noninterfering, virtual communication channels between multiuser channels. Minimally spatial decoupling channels are needed whenever more than two transmitting channels are communicate simultaneously. The channel of our interest here, is the multiple input multiple output channels, consisting of multiple MIMO capable source terminals and multiple capable destinations. This scenario arises, obviously, in multi-user channels. Since certain phases of relaying involves broadcasting, it also appears in MIMO relaying contexts. The phrase MIMO broadcast channel is frequently used in a loose sense in the literature, to include point-to-multipoint unicast (i.e. private) channels carrying different messages from a single source to each of the multiple destinations (e.g. in multi-user MIMO). Its use in this paper is more specific, and denotes the presence of at least one common virtual broadcast channel from the source to the destinations. The use of iterative and non-iterative spatial decoupling techniques in multiuser systems to achieve independent channels has been investigated, for instance in [1]-[9]. Their use for MIMO broadcasting, which requires common multipoint-to-multipoint MIMO channels is not much attractive, given the fact that the total number of private and common channels is limited by the number of antennas the source has. Wherever each receiver of a broadcast channel conveys what it receives orthogonally to the same destination, as in the case of pre-and post-processing block transmission, the whole system can be envisaged as a single point-to-point MIMO channel. Block transmission techniques have been demonstrated for point-to-point MIMO channels to benefit the system complexities. Other advantages includes: (i) channel interference is removed by creating $K$ independent subchannels; (ii) paraunitarity of precoder allows to control transmit power; (iii) paraunitarity of equalizer does not amplify the channel noise; (iv) spatial redundancy can be achieved by discarding the weakest subchannels. Though the technique outperform the conventional signal coding but had its own demerits.   Amongst many, it shown in cite{Ta2005,Ta2007} that an appropriate additional amount of additive samples  still require individual processing, e.g. per- tone equalisation, to remove ISI, and   the receiver does not exploit the case of structured noise. However, the choice of optimal relay gains, although known for certain cases (e.g. [10], [11]), is not straightforward with this approach. Since the individual equalization have no non-iterative means of decoding the signals, this approach cannot be used with decode-and-forward (DF), and code-and-forward (CF) relay processing schemes. The use of zero-forcing at the destination has been examined [12], [13] as a mean of coordinated beamforming, since it does not require transmitter processing. The scheme scales to any number of destinations, but requires each destination to have no less antennas than the source. Although not used as commonly as the singular value decomposition (SVD), generalized singular value decomposition (GSVD) [14, Thm. 8.7.4] is not unheard of in the wireless literature. It has been used in multi-user MIMO transmission [15], [16], MIMO secrecy communication [17], [18], and MIMO relaying [19]. Reference [19] uses GSVD in dual-hop AF relaying with arbitrary number of relays. Since it employs zero-forcing at the relay for the forward channel, its use of GSVD appears almost similar to the use of SVD in [1]. Despite GSVD being the natural generalization of SVD for two matrices, we are yet to see in the literature, a generalization of SVD-based beamforming to GSVD-based beamforming. Although the purpose and the use is somewhat different, the reference [17, p.1] appears to be the first to hint the possible use of GSVD for beamforming. In present work, we illustrate how GSVD can be used for coordinated beamforming in source-to-2 destination MIMO broadcasting; thus in AF, DF and CF MIMO relaying. We also present comparative, simulation-based performance analysis results to justify GSVD-based beamforming. The paper is organized as follows: Section II presents the mathematical framework, highlighting how and under which constraints GSVD can be used for beamforming. Section III examines how GSVD-based beamforming can be applied in certain simple MIMO and MIMO relaying configurations. Performance analysis is conducted in section IV on one of these applications. Section V concludes with some final remarks. Notations: Given a matrix A and a vector v, (i) A(i, j)  gives the ith element on the jth column of A; (ii) v(i)  {ˆ y1 }R(r+1,r+s) = ˜Π£{x }R(r+1,r+s) + _ UHn1 _ R(r+1,r+s) ,   {ˆ y2 }R(pà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢t+r+1,pà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢t+r+s) = ˜Άº{x }R(r+1,r+s) + _ VHn2 _ R(pà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢t+r+1,pà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢t+r+s) , {ˆ y1 }R(1,r) = {x }R(1,r) + _ UHn1 _ R(1,r) , {ˆ y2 }R(pà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢t+r+s+1,p) = {x }R(r+s+1,t) + _ VHn2 _ R(pà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢t+r+s+1,p) . (1)  gives the element of v at the ith position. {A}R(n) and  {A}C(n) denote the sub-matrices consisting respectively of the  first n rows, and the first n columns of A. Let {A}R(m,n)  denote the sub-matrix consisting of the rows m through n  of A. The expression A = diag (a1, . . . , an) indicates that  A is rectangular diagonal; and that first n elements on its  main diagonal are a1, . . . , an. rank (A) gives the rank of  A. The operators ( à £Ã†â€™Ã‚ » )H, and ( à £Ã†â€™Ã‚ »)à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢1 denote respectively the  conjugate transpose and the matrix inversion. C mÃÆ'-n is the  space spanned by mÃÆ'-n matrices containing possibly complex  elements. The channel between the wireless terminals T1 and  T2 in a MIMO system is designated T1 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢T2.   II. MATHEMATICAL FRAMEWORK Let us examine GSVD to see how it can be used for  beamforming. There are two major variants of GSVD in the  literature (e.g. [20] vs. [21]). We use them both here to  elaborate the notion of GSVD-based beamforming. A. GSVD Van Loan definition Let us first look at GSVD as initially proposed by Van Loan [20, Thm. 2]. Definition 1: Consider two matrices, H à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C mÃÆ'-n with  m à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥n, and G à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C pÃÆ'-n, having the same number n of  columns. Let q = min (p, n). H and G can be jointly  decomposed as H = UÃŽÂ £Q, G = VΆºQ (2) where (i) U à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C mÃÆ'-m,V à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C pÃÆ'-p are unitary, (ii) Q à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€  C nÃÆ'-n non-singular, and (iii) ÃŽÂ £= diag (à Ã†â€™1, . . . , à Ã†â€™n) à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€  C mÃÆ'-n, à Ã†â€™i à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥0; Άº= diag (ÃŽÂ »1, . . . , ÃŽÂ »q) à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C pÃÆ'-n, ÃŽÂ »i à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥0. As a crude example, suppose that G and H above represent  channel matrices of MIMO subsystems S à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢D1 and S à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢D2  having a common source S. Assume perfect channel-stateinformation  (CSI) on G and H at all S,D1, and D2. With  a transmit precoding matrix Qà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢1, and receiver reconstruction  matrices UH,VH we get q non-interfering virtual broadcast channels. The invertible factor Q in (2) facilitates jointprecoding  for the MIMO subsystems; while the factors U,V   allow receiver reconstruction without noise enhancement. Diagonal  elements 1 through q of ÃŽÂ £,Άºrepresent the gains  of these virtual channels. Since Q is non-unitary, precoding  would cause the instantaneous transmit power to fluctuate. This is a drawback not present in SVD-based beamforming. Transmit signal should be normalized to maintain the average  total transmit power at the desired level. This is the essence of GSVD-based beamforming for  a single source and two destinations. As would be shown  in Section III, this three-terminal configuration appears in  various MIMO subsystems making GSVD-based beamforming  applicable. B. GSVD Paige and Saunders definition Before moving on to applications, let us appreciate GSVDbased  beamforming in a more general sense, through another  form of GSVD proposed by Paige and Saunders [21, (3.1)]. This version of GSVD relaxes the constraint m à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥n present  in (2). Definition 2: Consider two matrices, H à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C mÃÆ'-n and  G à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C pÃÆ'-n, having the same number n of columns. Let CH = _ HH,GH _ à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C nÃÆ'-(m+p), t = rank(C), r = t à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢rank (G) and s = rank(H) + rank (G) à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢t. H and G can be jointly decomposed as H = U (ÃŽÂ £ 01 )Q = UÃŽÂ £{Q}R(t) , G = V (Άº 02 )Q = VΆº{Q}R(t) , (3) where (i) U à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C mÃÆ'-m,V à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C pÃÆ'-p are unitary, (ii) Q à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C nÃÆ'-n non-singular, (iii) 01 à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C mÃÆ'-(nà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢t), 02 à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€  C pÃÆ'-(nà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢t) zero matrices, and (iv) ÃŽÂ £Ãƒ ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C mÃÆ'-t,ΆºÃƒ ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€  C pÃÆ'-t have structures ÃŽÂ £_ à ¢Ã… ½Ã¢â‚¬ º à ¢Ã… ½Ã‚  IH ˜Π£ 0H à ¢Ã… ½Ã… ¾ à ¢Ã… ½Ã‚   and Άº_ à ¢Ã… ½Ã¢â‚¬ º à ¢Ã… ½Ã‚  0G ˜Άº IG à ¢Ã… ½Ã… ¾ à ¢Ã… ½Ã‚  . IH à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C rÃÆ'-r and IG à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C (tà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢rà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s)ÃÆ'-(tà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢rà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s) are identity  matrices. 0H à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C (mà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢rà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s)ÃÆ'-(tà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢rà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s), and 0G à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€  C (pà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢t+r)ÃÆ'-r are zero matrices possibly having no  rows or no columns. ˜Π£= diag (à Ã†â€™1, . . . , à Ã†â€™s) ,˜Άº= diag (ÃŽÂ »1, . . . , ÃŽÂ »s) à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C sÃÆ'-s such that 1 > à Ã†â€™1 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥. . . à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥ à Ã†â€™s > 0, and à Ã†â€™2 i + ÃŽÂ »2i = 1 for i à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€  {1, . . . , s}. Let us examine (3) in the MIMO context. It is not difficult  to see that a common transmit precoding matrix _ Qà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢1 _ C(t) and receiver reconstruction matrices UH,VH would jointly  diagonalize the channels represented by H and G.  For broadcasting, only the columns (r+1) through (r +s)  of ÃŽÂ £and Άºare of interest. Nevertheless, other (t à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s)  columns, when they are present, may be used by the source  S to privately communicate with the destinations D1 and configuration # common channels # private channels S à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ {D1,D2} S à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢D1 S à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢D2 m > n,p à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤n p n à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢p 0 m à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤n, p > n m 0 n à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢m m à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥n, p à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥n n 0 0 m + p à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢n n à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢p n à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢m (m + p) > n n à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥(m + p) 0 m p TABLE I NUMBERS OF COMMON CHANNELS AND PRIVATE CHANNELS FOR  DIFFERENT CONFIGURATIONS D2. It is worthwhile to compare this fact with [22], and  appreciate the similarity and the conflicting objectives GSVDbased  beamforming for broadcasting has with MIMO secrecy  communication. Thus we can get ˆ y1 à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C mÃÆ'-1, ˆ y2 à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C pÃÆ'-1 as in (1) at  the detector input, when x à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C tÃÆ'-1 is the symbol vector  transmitted. It can also be observed from (1) that the private  channels always have unit gains; while the gains of common  channels are smaller. Since, à Ã†â€™is are in descending order, while the ÃŽÂ »is ascend  with i, selecting a subset of the available s broadcast channels  (say k à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤s channels) is somewhat challenging. This highlights  the need to further our intuition on GSVD. C. GSVD-based beamforming Any two MIMO subsystems having a common source  and channel matrices H and G can be effectively reduced,  depending on their ranks, to a set of common (broadcast) and  private (unicast) virtual channels. The requirement for having  common channels is rank (H) + rank (G) > rank (C) where C = _ HH,GH _ H. When the matrices have full rank, which is the case with  most MIMO channels (key-hole channels being an exception),  this requirement boils down to having m +p > n . Table I  indicates how the numbers of common channels and private  channels vary in full-rank MIMO channels. It can be noted  that the cases (m > n,p à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤n) and (m à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥n, p à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥n)  correspond to the form of GSVD discussed in the Subsection II-A. Further, the case n à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥(m + p) which produces only  private channels with unit gains, can be seen identical to zero  forcing at the transmitter. Thus, GSVD-based beamforming is  also a generalization of zero-forcing. Based on Table I, it can be concluded that the full-rank  min (n,m + p) of the combined channel always gets split  between the common and private channels. D. MATLAB implementation A general discussion on the computation of GSVD is found  in [23]. Let us focus here on what it needs for simulation:  namely its implementation in the MATLAB computational  environment, which extends [14, Thm. 8.7.4] and appears as  less restrictive as [21]. The command [V, U, X, Lambda, Sigma] = gsvd(G, H);  gives1 a decomposition similar to (3). Its main deviations  from (3) are,   1Reverse order of arguments in and out of gsvd function should be noted. ) ) D1 y1 , r1 S x ,w ( ( ) ) D2 y2 , r2 _ H1 __ n1 _ __ H2 n2 Fig. 1. Source-to-2 destination MIMO broadcast system  Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ QH = X à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€ C nÃÆ'-t is not square when t . Precoding  for such cases would require the use of the pseudo-inverse  operator. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ ÃŽÂ £has the same block structure as in (3). But the structure  of Άºhas the block 0G shifted to its bottom as follows: Άº_ à ¢Ã… ½Ã¢â‚¬ º à ¢Ã… ½Ã‚  ˜Άº IG 0G à ¢Ã… ½Ã… ¾ à ¢Ã… ½Ã‚  . This can be remedied by appropriately interchanging the  rows of Άºand the columns of V. However, restructuring  ÃƒÅ½Ã¢â‚¬ ºis not a necessity, since the column position of the  block ˜Άºwithin Άºis what matters in joint precoding.   Following MATLAB code snippet for example jointly  diagonalizes H,G to obtain the s common channels (3)  would have given. MATLAB code % channel matrices H = (randn(m,n)+i*randn(m,n))/sqrt(2); G = (randn(p,n)+i*randn(p,n))/sqrt(2); % D1, D2: diagonalized channels [V,U,X,Lambda,Sigma] = gsvd(G,H); w = X*inv(X*X); C = [H G]; t = rank(C); r = t rank(G); s = rank(H)+rank(G)-t; D1 = U(:,r+1:r+s)*H*w(:,r+1:r+s); D2 = V(:,1:s)*G*w(:,r+1:r+s); III. APPLICATIONS Let us look at some of the possible applications of GSVDbased beamforming. We assume the Van Loan form of GSVD  for simplicity, having taken for granted that the dimensions  are such that the constraints hold true. Nevertheless, the Paige  and Saunders form should be usable as well. A. Source-to-2 destination MIMO broadcast system   Consider the MIMO broadcast system shown in Fig. 1,  where the source S broadcasts to destinations D1 and D2.  MIMO subsystems S à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢D1 and S à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢D2 are modeled  to have channel matrices H1 ,H2 and additive complex   Gaussian noise vectors n1 , n2. Let x = [x1, . . . , xn]T ) ) R1 y1 , F1 ( ( S x ,w ( ( ) ) D y3 ,r1 y4 ,r2 ) ) R2 y2 , F2 ( ( _ ___ H3 _ n3 H1 ___ n1 _ ___ H2 n2 _ H4 ___ n4 Fig. 2. MIMO relay system with two 2-hop-branches  be the signal vector desired to be transmitted over n à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤Ã‚  min (rank (H1 ) , rank (H2 )) virtual-channels. The source  employs a precoding matrix w. The input y1 , y2 and output ˆ y1 , ˆ y2 at the receiver filters   r1 , r2 at D1 and D2 are given by y1 = H1wx + n1 ; ˆ y1 = r1 y1 , y2 = H2wx + n2 ; ˆ y2 = r2 y2 . Applying GSVD we get H1 = U1 ÃŽÂ £1 V and H2 = U2 ÃŽÂ £2V. Choose the precoding matrix w = ÃŽÂ ± _ Và ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢1 _ C(n) ; and receiver reconstruction matrices r1 = _ U1 H _ R(n) _ , r2 = U2 H _ R(n) . The constant ÃŽÂ ± normalizes the total average transmit power. Then we get, ˆ y1(i) = ÃŽÂ ±ÃƒÅ½Ã‚ £1(i, i) x(i) + Ëœn1(i) , ˆ y2(i) = ÃŽÂ ±ÃƒÅ½Ã‚ £2(i, i) x(i) + Ëœn2(i), ià ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€  {1 . . . n}, where Ëœn1 , Ëœn2 have the same noise distributions as n1 , n2 .  B. MIMO relay system with two 2-hop-branches (3 time-slots) Fig. 2 shows a simple MIMO AF relay system where a  source S communicates a symbol vector x with a destination  D via two relays R1 and R2. MIMO channels S à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢R1, S à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ R2, R1 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢D and R2 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬  Ã¢â‚¬â„¢D are denoted: Hi , i à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€  {1, 2, 3, 4}. Corresponding channel outputs and additive complex Gaussian  noise vectors are yi , ni for i à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã‹â€  {1, 2, 3, 4}. Assume relay  operations to be linear, and modeled as matrices F1 and F2 . Assume orthogonal time-slots for transmission. The source  S uses w as the precoding matrix. Destination D uses  different reconstruction matrices r1 , r2 during the time slots  2 and 3. Then we have: Time slot 1: y1 = H1wx + n1 , y2 = H2wx + n2 Time slot 2: y3 = H3 F1 y1 + n3 Time slot 3: y4 = H4 F2 y2 + n4 Let ˆ y = r1 y3 +r2 y4 be the input to the detector. Suppose n à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¤min i (rank (Hi )) virtual-channels are in use. ) ) R y1 , F ( ( S x ,w ( ( ) ) D y2 ,r1 y3 ,r2 _ ___ H3 _ n3 H1 ___ n1 H2 _ n2 Fig. 3. MIMO relay system having a direct path and a relayed path  Applying GSVD on the broadcast channel matrices we get H1 = U1 ÃŽÂ £1 Q and H2 = U2 ÃŽÂ £2 Q. Through SVD we  obtain H3 = V1 Άº1 R1 H and H4 = V2 Άº2 R2 H. Choose w = ÃŽÂ ± _ Qà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢1 _ C(n) ; F1 = R1U1 H; F2 = R2U2 H; r1 = _ V1 H _ R(n) ; r2 = _ V2 H _ R(n) . The constant ÃŽÂ ± normalizes  the total average transmit power. Then we get