The defence of Roman Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The defence of Roman - Essay Example Literary works by Strabo portrayed the Romans as invincible people, and regarded those from the East as less equal humans. Moreover, the geographical works of Strabo that Romans used as references are his personal opinions he puts down without research. For example, he avers that the area occupied by Arabia is found in the Gulf of Aqaba, though he is not sure of the existence of such gulf (Ball 34). As a matter of fact, the Romans’ perception of the East was a paradox of the reality on the ground. This comes to the forefront when the Romans and barbarians met on the battlefield. Crassus initiated a high-profile campaign, which portrayed Parthians as lazy and weak people. Assumptions about the Eastern people made Rome lose the war to the barbarians. Consequently, the turn of events after war, when Rome fell to states of the East, contradicts their perception. This confirms Orientalism theory (Said 26). Why Were Commagene and Armenia Important for the Defense of Roman Syria? Com magene was situated northeast of the Roman border. It was strategically located between the river Euphrates and directly adjacent to Mesopotamia and Armenia. Commagene and Armenia played a key role as war entry and exit routes for the Romans since it made the East easily accessible. Because of the geographical position of Armenia, it was critical in strategizing military operations as it enabled easy evasion of threats compared to other neighboring states such as Judea. Trajan specifically employed this as a tactic when strategizing for enemy attacks and counterattacks in the event of war. The fact that the Euphrates had bridges enabled the Roman soldiers to transit easily during war. Additionally, Commagene had cool temperatures unlike the south, which is an arid area (Edwell 67). Commagene and Armenia acted as buffer states in the sense that their strategic location enabled the Romans to watch what happened across their borders. The location of Armenia and Commagene allowed Rome t o access infantry especially from their clients, which indirectly necessitated the expansion of their army. As a buffer state, Armenia played a role equivalent to a watchtower for Rome. Rome could easily reorganize its troops and respond to attacks owing to its accessibility to the northeast and proximity to the Euphrates (Ando 65). Additionally, the people of Commagene were among the wealthiest in the client kingdom. They were of equal importance because their territory was a section of the middle course crossings of the Euphrates. The Armenians organized Cappadocia into provinces and attached Syria to Commagene. This threatened the economic stability of Rome, thus making the society vulnerable to external attacks as the loyalty of the Romanians kept altering. Armenia was also a gateway to the northern communities and their hidden treasures. With this knowledge, the Romans fought to gain control and loyalty of those communities, as they were powerful enough to earn the Romans the d esired economic might. The Romans understood that they would develop effective structures of governance and safeguard the security of their societies by gaining economic might that could consequently make the development of armies easier. Armenia was its connection with the northern states and Mesopotamia. By gaining control of Romania,

A Psychological History of the German Film Essay - 2

A Psychological History of the German Film - Essay Example However, in the news coverage, the objective of the film’s original authors seemed distorted. In Wiene’s version, the story is screened with Caligari more of a conformist rather than Janowitz’s and Mayer’s intention of portraying the film as a revolutionary one. Wiene’s version of the film Caligari utilizes pictorial presentation to demonstrate the fantasies of a madman. The use of pictures bonds well with the audience, who develop a clear understanding of the background and gestures used. The film is basically a blatant expression of psychological issues. Caligari depicts how the film industry has developed from ancient periods. It uses motion pictorial presentation to convey the themes covered to its audience. Caligari portrays life amidst and after the war, exhibiting the error of Hitler. The film covers the reality that the Germans had gone through during the war and the illumination of the scenes was such that it appeared soul-oriented. Caligari presents the evolution of cinema in the 19th century as new techniques emerged.

Phylum Porifera Essay Example for Free

Phylum Porifera Essay Which phyla lack organs? What type of symmetry do they have? Phylum Porifera which lacks any symmetry (asymmetry) and phylum Cnidaria which has radial symmetry. List all of the phyla that show cephalization. Phylum Annelida, Phylum Mollusca, Phylum Arthropoda, Phylum Platyhelminthes, Phylum Nematoda, and Phylum Chordata. Do all organisms on the table have 3 germ layers (endoderm, ectoderm, and mesoderm)? If not, which Phyla have fewer than three germ layers? Not all the organisms have three germ layers. The organisms with less than three germ layers belong to Phylum Porifera which has no true germ layers and phylum Cnidaria which has two germ layers (diploblastic). One phylum has more species than all the others. State the name of this phylum and provide several different examples of species found in this phylum. Phylum Arthropoda. Examples of species in this phylum include Brazilopelma colloratvillosum, Dermacentor variabilis, Limulus polyphemus, Colossendeis megalonyx, Branchinecta gigas, Pyromaia tuberculata, Asterocheres echinicola, Narceus americanus, Scaphiostreptus parilis, and Musca domestica. According to chapter 24, fish do not all have the same skeletal structure. Describe the differences among fish from the most primitive to more advanced types. Fishes greatly differ in their anatomical features especially their skeletal structures. The most primitive group of fishes based on skeletal structure is known as class Agnatha and the fishes in this class are referred to as â€Å"the jawless fishes†.   These have a cartilaginous internal skeleton which means that they have no true bones (Layman, 2003). They also lack true teeth, true jaws, and true vertebrae (Layman, 2003). The other group of fish is referred to as the cartilaginous fishes and they belong to a class of fishes known as Chondrichthyes. Their skeleton is made up of cartilage. Unlike the jawless fishes, fishes in this group have jaws and true teeth which are bony as is seen with sharks (Layman, 2003). The final group of fish is known as the bony fishes and fishes in this group belong to a class known as Osteichthyes. These fish are very advanced and unlike the other two groups, fishes in this group have a skeletal structure that is made of true bones meaning that their skeletal structure is mineralized (Layman, 2003). They have a bony jaw, bony teeth, and bony vertebrae (Layman, 2003). Describe the three types of mammals based on how their young develop? One group of mammals is referred to as placental mammals. The young ones of mammals under this group develop for long inside their mothers. This prolonged development is facilitated by the presence of an allantoic placenta (Go Pets America, 2010). This placenta allows close contact between the vascular systems of both the mother and the growing embryos and this ensures that the embryos are adequately and continually nourished (Go Pets America, 2010). The placenta also allows for removal of waste products from the womb. In addition, the embryos are protected inside their mothers. For example the body temperatures of the mothers are usually constant and this protects the developing young ones from the harsh surroundings. These conditions provide a conducive environment which allows for development of the young ones to a very high degree. The other group of mammals is known as marsupial. The young ones of mammals under this category develop in the womb just like in placental mammals but their period of development is short. The reason for the short development period is due to presence of a yolk placenta whose ability to nourish the fetus is limited (Vaughan Ryan, 2010). After birth, the undeveloped young ones continue their development inside their mothers’ pouches where they cling to the mothers’ nipples with their mouths (Vaughan Ryan, 2010). The young ones get fed on milk through the nipples. The final group of mammals is referred to as monotremes. Mammals in this group reproduce by laying eggs. With these mammals, two eggs are laid each time and the young ones grow inside the eggs for a short while before they are hatched (Vaughan Ryan, 2010). Inside the eggs, the young ones are nourished by use of egg yolk. The hatched young ones are always very immature at birth and they continue to develop by feeding on milk from their mothers. But unlike the other groups of mammals, these mammals lack teats and milk oozes from the mothers’ abdomens and the young ones feed by licking the oozing milk (Vaughan Ryan, 2010).

Augmented Reality Ar Is A Live Media Essay

Augmented Reality Ar Is A Live Media Essay Hardware components for augmented reality are: processor, display, sensors and input devices. Modern mobile computing devices like smartphones and tablet computers contain these elements which often include a camera and MEMS sensors such as accelerometer, GPS, and solid state compass, making them suitable AR platforms.[8] [edit] Display Various technologies are used in Augmented Reality rendering including optical projection systems, monitors, hand held devices, and display systems worn on ones person. [edit] Head-mounted A head-mounted display (HMD) is a display device paired to a headset such as a harness or helmet. HMDs place images of both the physical world and virtual objects over the users field of view. Modern HMDs often employ sensors for six degrees of freedom monitoring that allow the system to align virtual information to the physical world and adjust accordingly with the users head movements.[9][10][11] HMDs can provide users immersive, mobile and collaborative AR experiences.[12] [edit] Eyeglasses AR displays can be rendered on devices resembling eyeglasses. Versions include eye wear that employ cameras to intercept the real world view and re-display its augmented view through the eye pieces[13] and devices in which the AR imagery is projected through or reflected off the surfaces of the eye wear lens pieces.[14][15][16] [edit] Contact lenses Contact lenses that display AR imaging are in development. These bionic contact lenses might contain the elements for display embedded into the lens including integrated circuitry, LEDs and an antenna for wireless communication.[17][18][19][20] Another version of contact lenses, in development for the U.S. Military, is designed to function with AR spectacles, allowing soldiers to focus on close-to-the-eye AR images on the spectacles and distant real world objects at the same time.[21][22] [edit] Virtual retinal display A virtual retinal display (VRD) is a personal display device under development at the University of Washingtons Human Interface Technology Laboratory. With this technology, a display is scanned directly onto the retina of a viewers eye. The viewer sees what appears to be a conventional display floating in space in front of them.[23] [edit] EyeTap The EyeTap (also known as Generation-2 Glass[24]) captures rays of light that would otherwise pass through the center of a lens of an eye of the wearer, and substituted each ray of light for synthetic computer-controlled light. The Generation-4 Glass[24] (Laser EyeTap) is similar to the VRD (i.e. it uses a computer controlled laser light source) except that it also has infinite depth of focus and causes the eye itself to, in effect, function as both a camera and a display, by way of exact alignment with the eye, and resynthesis (in laser light) of rays of light entering the eye.[25] [edit] Handheld Handheld displays employ a small display that fits in a users hand. All handheld AR solutions to date opt for video see-through. Initially handheld AR employed fiduciary markers,[26] and later GPS units and MEMS sensors such as digital compasses and six degrees of freedomaccelerometer-gyroscope. Today SLAM markerless trackers such as PTAM are starting to come into use. Handheld display AR promises to be the first commercial success for AR technologies. The two main advantages of handheld AR is the portable nature of handheld devices and ubiquitous nature of camera phones. The disadvantages are the physical constraints of the user having to hold the handheld device out in front of them at all times as well as distorting effect of classically wide-angled mobile phone cameras when compared to the real world as viewed through the eye.[27] [edit] Spatial Spatial Augmented Reality (SAR) augments real world objects and scenes without the use of special displays such as monitors, head mounted displays or hand-held devices. SAR makes use of digital projectors to display graphical information onto physical objects. The key difference in SAR is that the display is separated from the users of the system. Because the displays are not associated with each user, SAR scales naturally up to groups of users, thus allowing for collocated collaboration between users. SAR has several advantages over traditional head-mounted displays and handheld devices. The user is not required to carry equipment or wear the display over their eyes. This makes spatial AR a good candidate for collaborative work, as the users can see each others faces. A system can be used by multiple people at the same time without each having to wear a head-mounted display. Examples include shader lamps, mobile projectors, virtual tables, and smart projectors. Shader lamps mimic and augment reality by projecting imagery onto neutral objects, providing the opportunity to enhance the objects appearance with materials of a simple unit- a projector, camera, and sensor. Handheld projectors further this goal by enabling cluster configurations of environment sensing, reducing the need for additional peripheral sensing.[28][29] Other tangible applications include table and wall projections. One such innovation, the Extended Virtual Table, separates the virtual from the real by including beam-splitter mirrors attached to the ceiling at an adjustable angle.[30] Virtual showcases, which employ beam-splitter mirrors together with multiple graphics displays, provide an interactive means of simultaneously engaging with the virtual and the real.[31][32] Altogether, current augmented reality display technology can be applied to improve design and visualization, or function as scientific simulations and tools for education or entertainment. Many more implementations and configurations make spatial augmented reality display an increasingly attractive interactive alternative.[11] Spatial AR does not suffer from the limited display resolution of current head-mounted displays and portable devices. A projector based display system can simply incorporate more projectors to expand the display area. Where portable devices have a small window into the world for drawing, a SAR system can display on any number of surfaces of an indoor setting at once. The drawbacks, however, are that SAR systems of projectors do not work so well in sunlight and also require a surface on which to project the computer-generated graphics. Augmentations cannot simply hang in the air as they do with handheld and HMD-based AR. The tangible nature of SAR, though, makes this an ideal technology to support design, as SAR supports both a graphical visualisation and passive haptic sensation for the end users. People are able to touch physical objects, and it is this process that provides the passive haptic sensation.[7][33][34][35] [edit] Tracking Modern mobile augmented reality systems use one or more of the following tracking technologies: digital cameras and/or other optical sensors, accelerometers, GPS, gyroscopes, solid state compasses, RFID and wireless sensors. These technologies offer varying levels of accuracy and precision. Most important is the position and orientation of the users head. Tracking the users hand(s) or a handheld input device can provide a 6DOF interaction technique.[36] [edit] Input devices Techniques include speech recognition systems that translate a users spoken words into computer instructions and gesture recognition systems that can interpret a users body movements by visual detection or from sensors embedded in a peripheral device such as a wand, stylus, pointer, glove or other body wear.[37][38][39][40] [edit] Computer The computer analyzes the sensed visual and other data to synthesize and position augmentations. [edit] Software and algorithms A key measure of AR systems is how realistically they integrate augmentations with the real world. The software must derive real world coordinates, independent from the camera, from camera images. That process is called image registration which uses different methods of computer vision, mostly related to video tracking.[41][42] Many computer vision methods of augmented reality are inherited from visual odometry. Usually those methods consist of two parts. First detect interest points, or fiduciary markers, or optical flow in the camera images. First stage can use feature detection methods like corner detection, blob detection, edge detection or thresholding and/or other image processing methods.[43][44] The second stage restores a real world coordinate system from the data obtained in the first stage. Some methods assume objects with known geometry (or fiduciary markers) present in the scene. In some of those cases the scene 3D structure should be precalculated beforehand. If part of the scene is unknown simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) can map relative positions. If no information about scene geometry is available, structure from motion methods like bundle adjustment are used. Mathematical methods used in the second stage include projective (epipolar) geometry, geometric algebra, rotation representation with exponential map, kalman and particle filters, nonlinear optimization, robust statistics. [edit] Applications Augmented reality has many applications, and many areas can benefit from the usage of AR technology. AR was initially used for military, industrial, and medical applications, but was soon applied to commercial and entertainment areas as well.[45] [edit] Archaeology AR can be used to aid archaeological research, by augmenting archaeological features onto the modern landscape, enabling archaeologists to formulate conclusions about site placement and configuration.[46] Another application given to AR in this field is the possibility for users to rebuild ruins, buildings, or even landscapes as they formerly existed.[47] [edit] Architecture AR can aid in visualizing building projects. Computer-generated images of a structure can be superimposed into a real life local view of a property before the physical building is constructed there. AR can also be employed within an architects work space, rendering into their view animated 3D visualizations of their 2D drawings. Architecture sight-seeing can be enhanced with AR applications allowing users viewing a buildings exterior to virtually see through its walls, viewing its interior objects and layout.[48][49] [edit] Art AR technology has helped disabled individuals create art by using eye tracking to translate a users eye movements into drawings on a screen.[50] An item such as a commemorative coin can be designed so that when scanned by an AR-enabled device it displays additional objects and layers of information that were not visible in a real world view of it.[51][52] [edit] Commerce ViewAR BUTLERS App Placing furniture using AR AR can enhance product previews such as allowing a customer to view whats inside a products packaging without opening it.[53] AR can also be used as an aid in selecting products from a catalog or through a kiosk. Scanned images of products can activate views of additional content such as customization options and additional images of the product in its use.[54][55] AR is used to integrate print and video marketing. Printed marketing material can be designed with certain trigger images that, when scanned by an AR enabled device using image recognition, activate a video version of the promotional material.[56][57][58] [edit] Education Augmented reality applications can complement a standard curriculum. Text, graphics, video and audio can be superimposed into a students real time environment. Textbooks, flashcards and other educational reading material can contain embedded markers that, when scanned by an AR device, produce supplementary information to the student rendered in a multimedia format.[59][60][61] Students can participate interactively with computer generated simulations of historical events, exploring and learning details of each significant area of the event site.[62] AR can aide students in understanding chemistry by allowing them to visualize the spatial structure of a molecule and interact with a virtual model of it that appears, in a camera image, positioned at a marker held in their hand.[63] Augmented reality technology also permits learning via remote collaboration, in which students and instructors not at the same physical location can share a common virtual learning environment populated by vi rtual objects and learning materials and interact with another within that setting.[64] [edit] Everyday 30 years of Augmediated Reality in everyday life. Since the 1970s and early 1980s, Steve Mann has been developing technologies meant for everyday use i.e. horizontal across all applications rather than a specific vertical market. Examples include Manns EyeTap Digital Eye Glass, a general-purpose seeing aid that does dynamic-range management (HDR vision) and overlays, underlays, simultaneous augmentation and diminishment (e.g. diminishing the electric arc while looking at a welding torch).[65] [edit] Industrial design AR can help industrial designers experience a products design and operation before completion. Volkswagen uses AR for comparing calculated and actual crash test imagery.[66] AR can be used to visualize and modify a car body structure and engine layout. AR can also be used to compare digital mock-ups with physical mock-ups for efficiently finding discrepancies between them.[67][68] [edit] Medical Augmented Reality can provide the surgeon with information, which are otherwise hidden, such as showing the heartbeat rate, the blood pressure, the state of the patients organ, etc. In particular AR can be used to let the doctor look inside the patient by combining one source of images such as an X-ray with another such as video. This helps the doctor to identify the problem with the patient in a more intuitive way than looking at only type of image data. This approach works in a similar as the technicians doing maintenance work. Examples include a virtual X-ray view based on prior tomography or on real time images from ultrasound and confocal microscopy probes[69] or visualizing the position of a tumor in the video of an endoscope.[70] AR can enhance viewing a fetus inside a mothers womb.[71] See also Mixed reality. [edit] Military In combat, AR can serve as a networked communication system that renders useful battlefield data onto a soldiers goggles in real time. From the soldiers viewpoint, people and various objects can be marked with special indicators to warn of potential dangers. Virtual maps and 360Â ° view camera imaging can also be rendered to aid a soldiers navigation and battlefield perspective, and this can be transmitted to military leaders at a remote command center.[72] [edit] Navigation Augmented reality map on iPhone AR can augment the effectiveness of navigation devices. Information can be displayed on an automobiles windshield indicating destination directions and meter, weather, terrain, road conditions and traffic information as well as alerts to potential hazards in their path.[73][74][75] Aboard maritime vessels, AR can allow bridge watch-standers to continuously monitor important information such as a ships heading and speed while moving throughout the bridge or performing other tasks.[76] [edit] Office workplace AR can help facilitate collaboration among distributed team members in a work force via conferences with real and virtual participants. AR tasks can include brainstorming and discussion meetings utilizing common visualization via touch screen tables, interactive digital whiteboards, shared design spaces, and distributed control rooms.[77][78][79] [edit] Sports and entertainment AR has become common in sports telecasting. Sports and entertainment venues are provided with see-through and overlay augmentation through tracked camera feeds for enhanced viewing by the audience. Examples include the yellow first down line seen in television broadcasts of American football games showing the line the offensive team must cross to receive a first down. AR is also used in association with football and other sporting events to show commercial advertisements overlaid onto the view of the playing area. Sections of rugby fields and cricket pitches also display sponsored images. Swimming telecasts often add a line across the lanes to indicate the position of the current record holder as a race proceeds to allow viewers to compare the current race to the best performance. Other examples include hockey puck tracking and annotations of racing car performance and snooker ball trajectories. [41][80] AR can enhance concert and theater performances. For example, artists can allow listeners to augment their listening experience by adding their performance to that of other bands/groups of users.[81][82][83] The gaming industry has benefited a lot from the development of this technology. A number of games have been developed for prepared indoor environments. Early AR games also include AR air hockey, collaborative combat against virtual enemies, and an AR-enhanced pool games. A significant number of games incorporate AR in them and the introduction of the smartphone has made a bigger impact.[84][85] [edit] Task support Complex tasks such as assembly, maintenance, and surgery can be simplified by inserting additional information into the field of view. For example, labels can be displayed on parts of a system to clarify operating instructions for a mechanic who is performing maintenance on the system.[86][87] Assembly lines gain many benefits from the usage of AR. In addition to Boeing, BMW and Volkswagen are known for incorporating this technology in their assembly line to improve their manufacturing and assembly processes.[88][89][90] Big machines are difficult to maintain because of the multiple layers or structures they have. With the use of AR the workers can complete their job in a much easier way because AR permits them to look through the machine as if it was with x-ray, pointing them to the problem right away.[91] [edit] Tourism and sightseeing Augmented reality applications can enhance a users experience when traveling by providing real time informational displays regarding a location and its features, including comments made by previous visitors of the site. AR applications allow tourists to experience simulations of historical events, places and objects by rendering them into their current view of a landscape.[92][93][94] AR applications can also present location information by audio, announcing features of interest at a particular site as they become visible to the user.[95][96] [edit] Translation AR systems can interpret foreign text on signs and menus and, in a users augmented view, re-display the text in the users language. Spoken words of a foreign language can be translated and displayed in a users view as printed subtitles How Augmented Reality Works Video games have been entertaining us for nearly 30 years, ever since Pong was introduced to arcades in the early 1970s. Computer graphics have become much more sophisticated since then, and game graphics are pushing the barriers of photorealism. Now, researchers and engineers are pulling graphics out of your television screen or computer display and integrating them into real-world environments. This new technology, called augmented reality, blurs the line between whats real and whats computer-generated by enhancing what we see, hear, feel and smell. On the spectrum between virtual reality, which creates immersive, computer-generated environments, and the real world, augmented reality is closer to the real world. Augmented reality adds graphics, sounds, haptic feedback and smell to the natural world as it exists. Both video games and cell phones are driving the development of augmented reality. Everyone from tourists, to soldiers, to someone looking for the closest subway stop can now benefit from the ability to place computer-generated graphics in their field of vision. Augmented reality is changing the way we view the world or at least the way its users see the world. Picture yourself walking or driving down the street. With augmented-reality displays, which will eventually look much like a normal pair of glasses, informative graphics will appear in your field of view, and audio will coincide with whatever you see. These enhancements will be refreshed continually to reflect the movements of your head. Similar devices and applications already exist, particularly on smartphones like the iPhone. In this article, well take a look at where augmented reality is now and where it may be headed soon. Augmenting Our World The basic idea of augmented reality is to superimpose graphics, audio and other sensory enhancements over a real-world environment in real time. Sounds pretty simple. Besides, havent television networks been doing that with graphics for decades? However, augmented reality is more advanced than any technology youve seen in television broadcasts, although some new TV effects come close, such as RACEf/x and the super-imposed first down line on televised U.S. football games, both created by Sportvision. But these systems display graphics for only one point of view. Next-generation augmented-reality systems will display graphics for each viewers perspective. Some of the most exciting augmented-reality work is taking place in research labs at universities around the world. In February 2009, at the TED conference, Pattie Maes and Pranav Mistry presented their augmented-reality system, which they developed as part of MIT Media Labs Fluid Interfaces Group. They call it SixthSense, and it relies on some basic components that are found in many augmented reality systems: Camera Small projector Smartphone Mirror These components are strung together in a lanyardlike apparatus that the user wears around his neck. The user also wears four colored caps on the fingers, and these caps are used to manipulate the images that the projector emits. SixthSense is remarkable because it uses these simple, off-the-shelf components that cost around $350. It is also notable because the projector essentially turns any surface into an interactive screen. Essentially, the device works by using the camera and mirror to examine the surrounding world, feeding that image to the phone (which processes the image, gathers GPS coordinates and pulls data from the Internet), and then projecting information from the projector onto the surface in front of the user, whether its a wrist, a wall, or even a person. Because the user is wearing the camera on his chest, SixthSense will augment whatever he looks at; for example, if he picks up a can of soup in a grocery store, SixthSense can find and project onto the soup information about its ingredients, price, nutritional value even customer reviews. By using his capped fingers Pattie Maes says even fingers with different colors of nail polish would work a user can perform actions on the projected information, which are then picked up by the camera and processed by the phone. If he wants to know more about that can of soup than is projected on it, he can use his fingers to interact with the projected image and learn about, say, competing brands. SixthSense can also recognize complex gestures draw a circle on your wrist and SixthSense projects a watch with the current time. Mistry demonstrates SixthSense Photo courtesy Sam Ogden, Pranav Mistry, MIT Media Lab The SixthSense augmented reality system lets you project a phone pad onto your hand and phone a friend without removing the phone from your pocket. See more gadget pictures. Photo courtesy Lynn Barry, Pranav Mistry, MIT Media Lab Augmented Reality on Cell Phones While it may be some time before you buy a device like SixthSense, more primitive versions of augmented reality are already here on some cell phones, particularly in applications for the iPhone and phones with the Android operating system. In the Netherlands, cell phone owners can download an application called Layar that uses the phones camera and GPS capabilities to gather information about the surrounding area. Layar then shows information about restaurants or other sites in the area, overlaying this information on the phones screen. You can even point the phone at a building, and Layar will tell you if any companies in that building are hiring, or it might be able to find photos of the building on Flickr or to locate its history on Wikipedia. Layar isnt the only application of its type. In August 2009, some iPhone users were surprised to find an augmented-reality easter egg hidden within the Yelp application. Yelp is known for its user reviews of restaurants and other businesses, but its hidden augmented-reality component, called Monocle, takes things one step further. Just start up the Yelp app, shake your iPhone 3GS three times and Monocle activates. Using your phones GPS and compass, Monocle will display information about local restaurants, including ratings and reviews, on your cell phone screen. You can touch one of the listings to find out more about a particular restaurant. There are other augmented reality apps out there for the iPhone and other similar phones and many more in development. Urbanspoon has much of the same functionality as Yelps Monocle. Then theres Wikitude, which finds information from Wikipedia about sites in the area. Underlying most of these applications are a phones GPS and compass; by knowing where you are, these applications can make sure to offer information relevant to you. Were still not quite at the stage of full-on image recognition, but trust us, people are working on it. Weve looked at some of the existing forms of augmented reality. On the next page, well examine some of the other applications of the technology, such as in video games and military hardware An iPhone user displays the augmented reality app Monocle, which combines the phones camera view with tiny tags indicating the names, distances and user ratings of nearby bars, restaurants and more. AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez Augmented Reality in Video Games and the Military Video game companies are quickly hopping aboard the augmented-reality locomotive. A company called Total Immersion makes software that applies augmented reality to baseball cards. Simply go online, download the Total Immersion software and then hold up your baseball card to a webcam. The software recognizes the card (and the player on it) and then displays related video on your computer screen. Move the card in your hands make sure to keep it in view of the camera and the 3-D figure on your screen will perform actions, such as throwing a ball at a target. Total Immersions efforts are just the beginning. In the next couple of years, well see games that take augmented reality out into the streets. Consider a scavenger-hunt game that uses virtual objects. You could use your phone to place tokens around town, and participants would then use their phones (or augmented-reality enabled goggles) to find these invisible objects. Demos of many games of this order already exist. Theres a human Pac-Man game that allows users to chase after each other in real life while wearing goggles that make them look like characters in Pac-Man. Arcane Technologies, a Canadian company, has sold augmented-reality devices to the U.S. military. The company produces a head-mounted display the sort of device that was supposed to bring us virtual reality that superimposes information on your world. Consider a squad of soldiers in Afghanistan, performing reconnaissance on an opposition hideout. An AR-enabled head-mounted display could overlay blueprints or a view from a satellite or overheard drone directly onto the soldiers field of vision. Now that weve established some of the many current and burgeoning uses of augmented reality, lets take a look at the technologys limitations and what the future holds. Augmented reality can breathe a little life into your sports trading cards. Photo courtesy Total Immersion Limitations and the Future of Augmented Reality Augmented reality still has some challenges to overcome. For example, GPS is only accurate to within 30 feet (9 meters) and doesnt work as well indoors, although improved image recognition technology may be able to help [source: Metz]. People may not want to rely on their cell phones, which have small screens on which to superimpose information. For that reason, wearable devices like SixthSense or augmented-reality capable contact lenses and glasses will provide users with more convenient, expansive views of the world around them. Screen real estate will no longer be an issue. In the near future, you may be able to play a real-time strategy game on your computer, or you can invite a friend over, put on your AR glasses, and play on the tabletop in front of you. There is such a thing as too much information. Just as the CrackBerry phenomenon and Internet addiction are concerns, an overreliance on augmented reality could mean that people are missing out on whats right in front of them. Some people may prefer to use their AR iPhone applications rather than an experienced tour guide, even though a tour guide may be able to offer a level of interaction, an experience and a personal touch unavailable in a computer program. And there are times when a real plaque on a building is preferable to a virtual one, which would be accessible only by people with certain technologies. There are also privacy concerns. Image-recognition software coupled with AR will, quite soon, allow us to point our phones at people, even strangers, and instantly see information from their Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, LinkedIn or other online profiles. With most of these services people willingly put information about themselves online, but it may be an unwelcome shock to meet someone, only to have him instantly know so much about your life and background. Despite these concerns, imagine the possibilities: you may learn things about the city youve lived in for years just by pointing your AR-enabled phone at a nearby park or building. If you work in construction, you can save on materials by using virtual markers to designate where a beam should go or which structural support to inspect. Paleontologists working in shifts to assemble a dinosaur skeleton could leave virtual notes to team members on the bones themselves, artists could produce virtual graffiti and doctors could overlay a digital image of a patients X-rays onto a mannequin for added realism. The future of augmented reality is clearly bright, even as it already has found its way into our cell phones and video game systems. For more information about the subject and where its headed, take a look at the links on the next page Augmented Reality Augmented reality (AR) is a live, direct or indirect, view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are augmented by computer-gener

Existing recruitment and selection process ITcom in India

Existing recruitment and selection process ITcom in India Imagine that you have been asked by an organisation to review an area of HR practice and suggest ways in which it could be improved so as to contribute to HRM strategy and organisational goals. Draw on research literature and contemporary organisational practice to address this issue, and ensure that your answer also pays attention to issues of the methodology employed in the studies you quote. You can choose any area of HR practice that we cover during the second half of the course (that is, recruitment, selection, talent management, performance management, employee involvement and participation). You will also need to provide a short description of the organisation on which you are basing your recommendations so that answers can be evaluated within the context of their application. Objective: The objective of this essay is to undertake an examination of the existing recruitment and selection process forming an organizational framework. The current author will review an Indian based Multinational Company ITcom (Organizations name changed) with respect to globalisation and international market, emphasising on finding the effectiveness on cost/time and quality parameters to identify areas of improvement and suggest ways to improvise on its recruitment and selection procedures drawing on the literature and analysing the research methodology of studies used. Introduction: Increased global competition coupled with enhanced customer/client expectations makes the growth or even the survival of any firm difficult (Back S, 2005). Organizations need to perform and respond to a rapidly changing global environment and thus require attracting and retaining a dedicated, high quality workforce by means of recruitment and selection. From the psychometric perspective (UK Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development), jobs are defined in terms of their tasks or descriptions which are specific. Recruitment is a process of attracting individuals who might meet specifications of task or description. Selection is the process of measuring differences between these candidates to find the person who is best fit. The importance of hiring should not be underestimated because a poor recruitment decision can cost an employer an amount equal to 30 per cent of the employees first year earnings (Hacker 1997). These costs can include: lower productivity; potential loss of clients; training costs; advertising costs; recruitment expenses and redundancy packages (Smith and Graves 2002). According to the CIPD, 20 percent of employees leave within the first six months. This is sometimes called the induction crisis. It was found that numbers varied dramatically by industry, clothing industry figure was 26.5 percent, with 45 percent leaving during first three months, only a third remaining beyond a year (Tarpin et al, 2003). Overall turnover rates in the UK/Ireland fell from 25 percent per year (2000) to about 18 percent per year (2007). However, more people left voluntarily than through dismissal, redundancy, or ending of contracts. Thus it is imperative for an organization to have a strategized HR policy in place for recruitment for selecting and retaining the workforce. Although its recognised as crucial to many organisations, recruitment is often done in an ad hoc and reactive manner. Eight in ten employers rank attracting and recruiting key staff to the organisation in their top three resourcing objectives, but only 50% of organisations in the UK have formal resourcing strategies in place. Many employers acknowledge that they experience tremendous recruitment difficulties (86% according to CIPD). Hence given the costs of filling a vacancy, its important for firms to recruit well and select the most appropriate employees. About the company: ITcom Business, a division of ITcom Limited, is amongst the largest global IT services, Business Process Outsourcing and Product Engineering companies. In addition to the IT business, ITcom also has leadership position in niche market segments of consumer products and lighting solutions. The company has been listed since 1945 and started its technology business in 1980. Today, ITcom generates USD 6 billion (India GAAP figure 2009-10) of annual revenues. Its equity shares are listed in India on the Mumbai Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange; as well as on the New York Stock Exchange in the United States. ITcom makes an ideal partner for organizations looking at transformational IT solutions because of its core capabilities, great human resources, commitment to quality and the global infrastructure to deliver a wide range of technology and business consulting solutions and services. ITcom enables business results by being a transformation catalyst. It offers integrated portfolio of services to its clients in the areas of Consulting, System Integration and Outsourcing for key-industry verticals. It has a wide geographical diversity of operations with over 50 development centers and 10 near shore centres spread across India, Japan, China, France, Austria, Sweden, Germany, UK and USA. In recent years, ITcom has faced a number of workforce challenges, such as an increasingly diverse workforce, increased cut throat competition in market giving rise to attrition rate and uncertainty of workforce requirement. As one of the strategies to address these challenges, a need rises to review and streamline recruitment and selection business processes to support ITcom as a leading organization and to increase the ability to make high quality hires and meet workforce needs. Literature Review in Context with ITcom: The Recruitment Process: Organizational review and Job Analysis: Perhaps the most one can say with any certainty is that many UK companies continue to express a commitment to the idea of HR strategy and planning. How this translates into practice, however, is less clear (Liff, 2000 p.125) When the pattern of planned human resource deployments and activities [is] intended to enable an organization to achieve its goals'(Wright and McMahan 1992: 298), HRM can be said to be strategic. More specifically, for recruitment to become strategic, HR practitioners must answers to the following questions (Breaugh 1992; Breaugh and Starke 2000): Whom to recruit?, Where to recruit?, What recruitment sources to use (e.g. the web, newspapers, job fairs, on campus, etc.)?, When to recruit? And (5) what message to communicate? HR planning is regarded as essential for at least four sets of reasons (Marchington, 2005): Clear links between business and HR Plans: It draws the link or degree of fit between HR planning and strategic plans, so that the ability of HR function can be measured to deliver precisely what the business requires. It can also be viewed as a relationship between corporate and HR plans, where HR plans will contribute to the development of the corporate. In either ways HR planning can be viewed as major facilitator of competitive advantage. Better control over staffing costs and numbers employed: Making projections about anticipated staffing needs is imperative, irrespective of whether a growth or decline in numbers is predicted. This makes it easier to match supply and demand and therefore make decisions about recruiting from the external labour market, relocating staff, or preparing for reductions in numbers employed in order to achieve greater control over staffing costs (Taylor, 2005. P.101) More informed judgements about the skills and attitude mix in the organization: It is very critical to get the right mix of skills in the employed workforce to attain the confidence of customer and for productivity and profit generation. In case of ITcom, some of its customers are domain based, for example one of its clients is Boeing, which has specifications of employing only citizens in the USA geography and highly skilled professionals in Product Life Cycle Management (PLM). In this scenario what is expected is either ITcom should search and acquire people skilled in this field or get professionals who can be trained on these platforms to give quality results. Maintain a profile of existing staff: By maintaining a profile in terms of age, gender, race and disability etc helps any organization to claim for providing equal opportunities. Without accurate and up-to-date figures on existing staff numbers and their breakdown by grade and position, it is impossible for employers to make decisions about how equality management can be achieved (Liff 2000, p103). In 2008, ITcom was asked by the DOJ (Department of Justice) of US legislations to prove that it offers equal employment opportunity for all. ITcom was using online software (known as SYNERGY) for database generation. This software had a peculiar questionnaire (like age, sex, nationality etc) to understand the background of the candidate applying for jobs. Later these questions were omitted as it was believed that interviewers might get biased at the initial stage of application and may not proceed ahead with the prospective employees candidature. Hence all the details of employee were transferred and saved in the SAP software for internal use and data storage, it helped the company to keep track of its existing employees along with amendments in Synergy software which helped in refraining its managers and recruiters to avoid any discriminatory practice by human error at the stage of recruitment and selection. The primary step in the recruitment process after HR planning, involves a systematic review of the organizational requirements which lead to a thorough analysis of the requirements of jobs called job analysis. The above process of HR planning and job analysis which translates demand for labour, leads to forecasting the internal and external supply. Based on these decisions can be made about the balance between external recruitment, internal staff development or workforce reductions. Table I is an example of a typical seven days of business taken from a hotel operation. The figures have been reduced to two functions: for example, rooms and food and beverage or restaurant and bars, and for simplicity it is assumed that functional flexibility covers two skills, i.e. staff from function A would be able to work in function B and vice versa. In operational terms the seven days depicted here would be a point in a rolling forecast that would change daily. The demand patterns described here are typical of departments within a hotel operation but could also represent patterns in restaurant operations, retailing and many tourism attractions. ITcom has been able to work well in this area of HR planning and setting up a stringent policy to which all the employees/recruiters are bound to be compliant. The Executive Vice President of Human Resource Management personally regulates the HR policies which are formed by the leaders and Senior Managers of the company. A dedicated team continuously works on mapping the market trends and predicts the upcoming problems and opportunities to work pro-actively on demands to incur with supply of labour. Job description, person specification and competencies: Once the job analysis has been collected, the next step is to develop a job description. They are particularly prevalent in public sector and large organizations. A job description usually includes: Job title, location, responsible to (job title of supervisor) and for (job titles of members who will report directly under the job holder), main purpose of the job, responsibilities or duties, working conditions (contains contractual agreements, fringes and benefits etc) other matters such as if travelling is required etc and performance standards along with any other duties that might be assigned by the organisation. (Marchington, 2005) Traditionally, it is divided into two main topics: work-oriented analysis (focussing on the job itself) and worker-oriented analysis (focussing on the worker) (Searle, 2003). Rodgers seven-point plan (Physical make-up, attainments, general intelligence, special aptitudes, interest, disposition and circumstances) and Frasers five-point plan (Impact on others, acquired knowledge and qualifications, innate abilities, motivation and adjustment) rely heavily on personal judgment to specify human qualities associated with successful performance (Newell and Shackleton 2000, p115). The significance of these job descriptions is that they focus on the behavioural aspects of the candidates. Therefore it is not required to make inferences about personal qualities that might underpin behaviour (Newell and Shackleton, 2001, p26). Job descriptions and specifications of person often exist alongside the competency-based approaches (Taylor 2002c), not least because they set a framework within which subsequent HR practices, for example performance management, training and development, pay and grading can be placed (Whiddett and Hollingforde 1999). According to IRS (IRS Employment Review 782 2003, p45) the most commonly used competencies are team orientation, communication, people management, customer focus, results orientation and problem solving. Surprisingly, ethical behaviour, responsibility, enthusiasm and listening are rarely used. Competency can be differentiated in four types (Roberts 1997, p71-72) a) namely: natural which is made up by the big five dimensions of personality; extraversion/introversion, emotional stability, agreeableness, conscientiousness and openness to experience b) acquired: where knowledge and skills acquired through work or other avenues. c) Adapting: this competency area revolves around the ability to adapt natural talents and acquired skills to new situation. And lastly, performing: which comprises observable behaviours and output. Recruitment Methods: Choosing a cost effective method for recruitment is essential and depends on factors specific to organisation. Recruitment is typically regarded as poor relation to selection, typically afforded limited space in most of the publications and gives very little evidence of the theoretical underpinnings (Breaugh and Starke 2000). Recruitment provides the candidates for the selector to judge. Selection techniques cannot overcome failures in recruitment; they merely make them evident (Watson, 1994, p203). It is very important that the organisation decide whether or not to recruit, which sources to be used and what cost. Legal issues are also to be borne particularly while using media and publishing the adverts (Taylor 2002c). Internal and External Searches: ITcom uses various tools for recruitment internally and externally. Internal Sources: It moves its potential employees from one department to another which fills the vacancies and proves to be a career development for the employees. The knowledge transfer from one position to another embarks the capabilities in the staff and enhances their skills and abilities. These practices are more prevalent during rationalisation than in boon or recession (Marchington, 2005). Staffs are also transferred from temporary posts to open ended contracts or from agency work onto the direct payroll. This provides employers with a form of quasi-internal labour market where they can observe people at work before committing to a more secure employment offer (Rubery et al 2002, 2004). There is indication from wider research on agencies that they are progressively taking up strategies to expand markets in which potential recruits, as well as employers, are receptive to temporary opportunities and for whom the profit of agency working outweigh the costs. * There is also an internal marketing team in recruitment department in ITcom which focuses on publishing the job vacancies in the company and gain the references from the existing employees. The CIPD survey showed that word-of-mouth recruitment remains widely used though it is sometimes hard to differentiate from speculative applications. A major advantage of referral programs is the quality of candidates, as most employees are unlikely to recommend friend who will not fit the culture of the organization and who is not suited for the role. The Coventry Building Society filled nearly a quarter of all its posts through this method (IRS Employment Review 804 2004). In ITcom there are various award schemes for recruiters to encourage employees to refer their friends and families. Although it is cheap and readily available, organizations such as Acas, the EOC and the CRE are worried such ring-fencing may strengthen the existing imbalances (gender, race and disability), upsetting the attempts to encourage greater workforce diversity. (Marchington, 2005) One of the major and critical hiring in ITcom is for the Sales division, where the Industry experts like evangelists, practice managers, sales director etc are required to lead the business. ITcom has a dedicated team of leadership hiring professionals who evaluate the candidature for these positions. The current author suggests that the company should try to engage with head-hunters for sourcing and recruiting for such high-level and critical roles. Head-hunters may have extensive contacts which can be beneficial. This method is expensive, and is used much in private sector than in public or voluntary bodies (Marchington, 2005) Apart from the middle and senior level positions, for the fresh recruits the most effective way can be campus placements and the CIPD survey found that it was on a par with the companys own website in popularity. Sources of external applicant and Methods of attracting applicants: Largest number of lists comes under external sources which constitute the open sources. Advertisements in national and local papers are amongst the most widely used methods, and for the specialist posts trade press can be more effective (CIPD 2004b). Radio and TV adverts are rarely used. ITcom in 2009 advertised its employee referral programmes which were based on theme of friendship, aired the adverts on a local radio channel (94.3 Radio One FM in Bangalore), to let the message be conveyed to mass. This had helped the company to gain many applicants through existing employees. E-Recruitment is another one tool which has gained its significance in recent years. According to IRS 90% of firms use some form of e-recruitment. Like job boards (monster.com, dice.com, careerbuilder.com. jobsahead.com etc) for advertising the vacancies. Social networking sites (linkedin.com, myspace.com, facebook.com etc) are also gaining popularity amongst the job seekers and recruiters for filling the positions. Main advantages of e-recruitment are reduced costs, improved corporate image, reduced administration, etc. The Selection Process: Consulting various sources such as Cook (1998), Taylor (2002c), Cooper et al (2003) and Searle (2003) it is conferred that no single technique, no matter how well it is designed and administered, can be capable of being perfect selection decision. Employers are advised not to rely on one method (Marchington, 2005). According to a CIPD survey of more than 1000 employers, it is concluded that the most common and widely used techniques were traditional interviews, competency-based interviews and tests for specific skills. Robertson and Smith (2001) also indicated that most techniques have very low levels of accuracy in terms of producing effective selection decisions. Of techniques used on their own, work sampling offers the highest likelihood of success, closely followed by intelligence tests and structured interviewing (Schmidt and Hunter, 1998) Various authors (Newell and Shackleton 200; Taylor 2002c; Cooper et al 2003 and Searle 2003) discuss the criteria for assessing the value of selection methods: Practicality: According to Cooper et al (2003, p94), it is the most important criteria of all. The method suggested has to be economical in terms of cost and benefits, the time required to administer it and should be within the capabilities of those who are supposed to run it. Most critical is the cost issue. For example, it makes very less sense to run a sophisticated and complex personality test if only one candidate has applied for the post. Sensitivity: A lot of care must be taken to avoid any kind of discrimination based on race, gender, age or disability. Reliability: comprises of different elements but refers essentially to consistency of method used to select individuals (Newell and Shackleton 2000, p119). It should not be too much influenced by chance factors (Cooper et al 2003, p 50-52). For example: inter-rater reliability is crucial if many interviewers take interview, where one rejects and other selects. In ITcom, at many occasions this problem exists, as for certain job roles, several levels of interviews are conducted. It must be taken in consideration to measure the accuracy of each interviewer before concluding a rejection or selection of the candidate. Validity: This defines the correctness of the inferences that can be drawn from the selection methods. (Newell and Shackleton, 2000, p121) define this as the relationship between the predictors (the result from the selection methods used) and the criteria (performance of the job). Key Themes and Recommendations: The assessment of market scenario of ITcom suggests that while there are quite a few areas for upgrading and improvement, there are also many areas that are working well, including: ITcom appears to have more flexibility in identifying the suitable appointment method, establishing the merit criteria to be considered in determining the most suitable candidate with its strong value based strict compliance policies. The range of options (internal and external sourcing) available to recruit staff provides flexibility and supports timely and effective hiring decisions. The Jobs Websites (monster.com, dice.com, careerbuilder.com, linkedin.com etc) appears to be an effective method of attracting successful candidates, and feedback about the job postings, application and interview process and the quality of hires seems positive. Staffing Operating Principles related to fairness, integrity and selection of the most suitable person was seen as both useful and being achieved. The staffing proce ss was perceived to be transparent and able to withstand scrutiny. Executive Search recruitment and screening processes were generally considered to work well and support hiring high quality executive management and senior leaders, in a timely fashion. Opportunities for improvement: Themes emerged including the need to formalize processes that will progress into a more strategic approach to recruitment: Focus must be increased on long-term forecasting of workforce needs in new development centres (e.g. newly opened development centre in Atlanta, GA in USA and Germany), which will help to directly connect workforce planning to the staffing function and developing strategies to address gaps. In this context of globalization, many multinational organizations search for suitable employees from across the globe and apply similar selection criteria with limited attention to effectiveness and less knowledge of different cultural backgrounds (Searle, 2003). Searle also believes that this is an area where practice is far ahead of research and comment. One way firms are trying to manage their operation within this new global context more effectively is by using sophisticated selection assessment practices. If the underlying basis for their assessment is flawed, then these more high-powered tests and assessments will inevitably be a further waste of resources. Increase focus on recruitment planning and implement a project management approach to the hiring process. Increase focus on branding and candidate sourcing for active and passive candidates, including more targeted sources of media. Research has indicated that the media exposure of a firm is a sign of its reputation (Newell and Shackleton, 2001). Technology in form of media and internet helps reducing the cost and time of travel for both applicants and companies. ITcom with most of its offices across the globe uses the telephone and video conferencing for conducting interviews. Expand methods for facilitating the identification of potential internal candidates for executive positions, including if possible, information from succession management and workforce planning initiatives. Enhance utilization of summer employment, work experience, co-op and internship initiatives as a strategy to attract and develop students and recent graduates in conjunction with workforce forecasting needs. Improve efficiency and effectiveness through increased collaboration and use of technology. Increase all stakeholders knowledge of staffing process including the recruitment strategies available. Conclusion: The Recruitment and selection within the wide organizational context highlights the relationship between organizational strategy and human resource policy and procedures. Key changes in methods and practices are identified responsible for increased attention and use of selection systems. Application of techniques enhances the confidence of HR processes. The growth in process oriented research highlights an alternative view of selection and recruitment and is at odds with the psychometric approach. As there is increased sophistication in the selection methods, it is often forgotten that without a proper set recruitment method, there would be less number of applicants for selection; this can have reverse impact on the performance of employment contract. Conversely, usage of well chosen methods can be helpful in choosing the staff which can be fit to meet targets of the organization. Recruitment is one area of HRM where assistance might be sought from the external providers, as being aw are of the limits and using the right techniques are equally important. It is very important that recruitment and selection processes be well organised, delivered and evaluated for the organisational growth. Methodology: The research work or sample used in the essay are pure and applied (from the perspective of application in various situations) and descriptive, co relational, explanatory or exploratory (from the perspective of objectives of the literature view). Most of the information is gathered by the literature from texts and journals and was related to real life experience of the current author from ITcom. Data collection of most of the articles and references cited in the essay are from the companies which is generally the primary data, secondary data is the one used from literature. Wherever required while collecting the data, the interviews were commenced, questionnaires were formed, and observations were made for example the IRS employment reviews and CIPD conducted surveys (which are quoted in the essay) in such styles or formats. Each of the articles and examples portrayed in the essay were based on literature review which brought in the clarity and focus to research problem and improved the methodology by enhancing the knowledge base. The literature pertinent dealt with two types of information, one universal and second specific (local trends). In some of the journals, a number of sources were used to compile databases, for example data was collected from local employment agencies, yellow pages along with interviews and surveys were conducted. These give a broad platform to compare and relate the data by empirical methodology of data accumulation.

Eating Disorders Essay -- essays research papers fc

Eating Disorders   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the most prevalent disorders amongst the youth of this era is eating disorders. While some overlook it and don’t think it is a problem eating disorders should be given serious consideration. This is because the psychological ramification of eating disorders tends to have lasting effects over the course of the adolescents’ life.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  An eating disorder is any of various psychological disorders, such as anorexia nervosa or bulimia, which involves insufficient or excessive food intake. They are a silent epidemic and a exceedingly negative response to a misinterpretation of one’s role in the world. Adolescents with eating disorders are usually convinced they’re ugly, worthless, and untalented. While some overlook it and don’t think it is a problem it should be given serious consideration because the psychological ramifications of such a disorder has lasting effects over the course of the adolescents life. While eating disorders are a serious problem there are two distinct forms of eating disorders. One is anorexia and the other is bulimia.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Anorexia nervosa is characterized by self-starvation to avoid obesity. This is also known as the "starvation sickness" or the "dieter’s disease". Statistics show that 95% of all anorexics are women found primarily in upper-middle class homes ranging from ages 12 to 18. (Maloney, 81). A person dealing with this sort of disorder is usually, striving for perfection has low self-esteem, and sometimes feels they don’t deserve to eat.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Anorexia usually starts when they or someone else feels that the anorexic needs to lose some weight. They feel good when they start losing the weight because they feel they have reached and made progress on their goal. Unfortunately, this causes physical damage and sometimes-even death. Statistics have estimated about 10% will eventually die. (Patterson, 31). Although as an adolescent most go on a diet and give it up in about a week or two, anorexics don’t. If one is suffering from this they have signs and symptoms such as: noticeable weight loss, excessive exercising, odd eating habits, feeling cold, dressing in baggy clothes, irregular menstruation, a frequent feeling of insecurity, loneliness, inadequacy, and helplessness.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There is no one single reason for anorexia, or how it goes unnoticed, but there are some explanations. One is that the perso... ...e without proper treatment and acknowledgement. People need to be educated about the disease and that the so-called 'glamour' looks aren’t so pretty after all in fact looks unhealthy. What happened to the healthy curvatious Marilyn Monroe look? Now there is the unsightly look of bones sticking out of skin. Young teens want to be like the famous ones. People that are looked at as role models are pressured but if they were to all rebel against this and think about what they stand for perhaps things would change to the way they used to be, or even better. This is a serious matter that people need to be educated about. The disease will prevail and many young women will suffer a great deal of their lives if it is left ignored. Works Cited Abraham, Suzanne, and Derek Llewellyn-Jones Eating   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Disorders: the facts. Oxford New   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  York: Oxford   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  University Press, 1997. Claude-Pierre, Peggy The Secret Language of Eating   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Disorders. New York: Times   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Books 1997. Maloney, Michael, and Rachel Kranz Straight talk about   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  eating disorders. New York:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Facts on File, 1991. Patterson, Charles Eating Disorders. Austin tex: Raintree   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Steck-Vaughn, 1995.

Empowerment on Girl Child Essay

With sacrificing family resources to educate a girl child and a potential future leader still a big societal challenge, any effort to see the education of a girl is a huge boon. So when millions of dollars are poured into the effort, the impact cannot be overemphasised. The Campaign for Female Education (Camfed), introduced some few years back, has seen remarkable change of fortunes to many a rural folk. Now, a US$19 million bursary programme has been launched to benefit 24 000 girls from disadvantaged families in rural Guruve, Mashonaland Central. The launch was conducted at colourful ceremony at Chifamba Secondary School in the area recently. With testimonies of previous beneficiaries of the programme giving the clear picture of changed lives, more girls are set to change for the better. Already, lives have changed and tales are being told. More are coming, definitely. Twenty-five-year-old Bridget Moyo was born in the dusty village of Wedza in a polygamous family. Her mother sired six children and the other children under the genealogy of her father are incalculable. She needs to sit down and count them from her father’s first wife until the last. Being a girl on a polygamous family, she was not spared from challenges women as a whole face. From birth she was automatically rendered a future beggar. Her education was considered optional and it was the first thing to be sacrificed in a crisis. Her brothers, uncles and male cousins’ needs had to come first for the family. The family’s future was seen to be in their hands and blood, so it was to them that the family’s resources should be spent primarily. As if that was not enough, the family was so much immersed in poverty. School fees and levies were a luxury they could only dream of and there wasn’t enough for the family to eat. â€Å"I lost count of how many other people’s fields we worked in to make ends meet with my mother. It was not unusual for people to approach my mother and offer me a job as their housemaid,† Bridget said. She said it was very tragic in that some people had the audacity to exchange her labour services with a bucket of maize a month. â€Å"I am a proud member of the Johane Marange Apostolic Sect and my growing up in the church came with benefits and challenges. â€Å"I feel at home hen at church where I am accepted with expectations like other girls who have to get married at a tender age. † â€Å"In my teenage years, I was only supposed to dream about the kind of husband I was going to marry. Even if it meant dropping out of school, I did not drop out until I attained my university degree,† Bridget went on to narrate her ordeal. The turning point in Bridget’s life came after she got a bursary before attending secondary education. â€Å"In primary school I vividly remember being nominated a prefect before the school authorities reversed the decision because I did not have a school uniform. I never had a worry about the strategy to use to sneak back into classroom after being sent home on numerous occasions to collect the fees . Currently I am a holder of Bachelor of Science Honours Degree in Business Management and Entrepreneurship,† she said. This is not the only sad tale about girls who rise from invisibility to visibility after attaining education. Another is Talent Tokoda, who grew up as an orphan and single child. Talent was born and bred in Chivhu, where her mother took care of all the family needs. â€Å"It was a nightmare getting shoes or having a proper uniform. I struggled through primary school to completion but fortunately I passed with five units which are a sharp contrast to the struggles I went through. † â€Å"Time to enrol for secondary education came and my hope was like a dim light at the far end of a tunnel which could turn off anytime. A week before I was supposed to go to secondary school, I neither had school fees nor secured a place at any school. † â€Å"I could spend the whole day in the garden with my mother. I got the surprise of my life when I was told that my fees were going to be paid for until I complete Advanced Level,† Talent said in front of the dumbfounded crowd. She passed Advanced Level and was enrolled at the University of Zimbabwe where she is doing her final year studying for a Bachelor in Medicine and Surgery. â€Å"I am proud that I proved to doomsayers that I can achieve any goal men can achieve. In August next year I will be a qualified medical doctor,† Talent said in front of the cheering crowd. This mirrors how the personality can be moulded to greatness. Guruve District’s pass rate is pegged at 25 percent with the national pass rate sitting at 21 percent. Assisting the girl child with resources will help improve the pass rate at rural schools. For example, at Chifamba Secondary School the pass rate for girls is pegged at 10 percent. Research revealed that in Sub-Saharan Africa, 24 million girls cannot afford to go to school and as a result a girl may marry as young as 13. Camfed executive director for Zimbabwe and Malawi, Ms Angeline Murimirwa said it is vital to improve educational access, progression and completion for marginalised secondary school girls. â€Å"The coverage of bursaries will span for four years in 28 rural districts including resettlement areas. The other money will provide a package of support to schools, training of school development committees and support for parents to enable children currently out of school to enrol,† she said. Ms Murimirwa said it is imperative to enhance participation of women in national activities from district level. â€Å"Most secondary school girls drop out of school opting to get married or as a result of lacking financial support. â€Å"Organisations need to cherish marginalised communities and the idea that women constitute a greater percentage to the national population,† she said.