Pathophysiology of COPD Essay

This assignment will explicate the pathophysiology of the disease procedure chronic clogging pneumonic disease ( COPD ) . It will analyze how this disease affects an single looking at the biological. psychological and societal facets. It will carry through this by mentioning to a patient who was admitted to a medical ward with an aggravation of COPD. Furthermore with aid of Gibbs theoretical account of contemplation ( as cited in Bulman & A ; Schutz. 2004 ) it will show how an experience altered an attitude. In conformity with the Nursing and Midwifery Council. ( NMC ) Code of Professional Conduct ( NMC. 2005 ) sing safeguarding patient information no names or topographic points will be divulged. Therefore throughout the assignment the patient will be referred to as John. John is a 57 twelvemonth old gentleman who has been married to Mavis for two old ages. John was admitted to the ward with terrible shortness of breath cough and inordinate phlegm production. By looking through Johnà ¢â‚¬â„¢s notes it was discovered this was an aggravation of COPD. To understand John’s status it is utile to look at how the normal respiratory system works. The map of the respiratory System is to provide the organic structure with O and take C dioxide ( Marieb. 2004 ) . Harmonizing to Waugh and Grant ( 2004 ) it besides helps keep organic structure temperature and extinguish extra H2O from the organic structure. The Respiratory system consists of the oral cavity. rhinal pit. throat. voice box. windpipe. bronchial tube and the lungs ( Seeley. Stephens & A ; Tate. 2000 ) . Air enters through either the oral cavity or olfactory organ which humidifies and cleans the air. ( Cohen & A ; Wood. 2000 ) unifying into a common chamber called the oropharynx ( Watson. 2000 ) . Air so leaves to the throat. a short. funnel-shaped tubing that transports air to the voice box ( Waugh & A ; Grant. 2004 ) . The air enters the voice box which is lined with mucose membrane and returns to the windpipe. which is formed of semi-circular gristle rings. The interior membrane of the windpipe contains hair cells and mucose cells which trap atoms and brush them toward the bronchial tube. The bronchial tube are besides lined with mucose membrane and ringed with gristle ( Marieb. 2004 ) . Each bronchial tube is lined with mucose membrane. ( Martini. 2000 ) and extends into a lung where it subdivides organizing smaller bronchioles ( Watson. 2000 ) . Bronchioles terminate with the air sac which are the functional units for gas exchange and are thin. moist and surrounded by capillaries ( Clancy & A ; McVicar 2001 ) . Inhaled air travels through these air passages to the air sac. Blood is pumped out of the bosom through the pneumonic arterias to the capillaries environing the air sac. ( Shaw. 2005 ) The O of the inhaled air diffuses out of the air sac into the blood. while C dioxide in the blood moves into the air sac to be exhaled ( Tortora & A ; Grabowskie. 2003 ) . The oxygen-rich blood is returned to the bosom through the pneumonic venas. The lungs can spread out and contract without clash during take a breathing due to the pleura. a thin membranous construction ( Tamir. 2002 ) . The splanchnic pleura surround the lungs. while the parietal pleura line the wall of the pectoral pit. These pleura are separated by a little fluid-filled infinite called the pleural pit. Ventilation requires work and before the lungs can go hyperbolic. a force per unit area alteration must take topographic point. The elastic belongingss of the lung let airing to take topographic point more expeditiously and the fluid in the pleural pit serves as a lubricator that allows the lungs to skid against the chest wall ( Marieb. 2004 ) . John notified the staff that he was diagnosed with COPD twelve months ago by his general practician ( G. P. ) . He added that he repeatedly went to his G. P. as he had been experiencing breathless. which was going worse and was present every twenty-four hours. more so when he exercised. This shortness of breath he revealed was accompanied by a cough alongside phlegm production. John’s G. P inquired if he smoked and how many. John informed him he has smoked around 30 coffin nails a twenty-four hours for 42 old ages. The physician so gave John a lung map trial utilizing a spirometer. John was notified by his General practitioner that he had COPD which. John was informed. was both chronic bronchitis and emphysema ( National Lung Health Education Program. 2005 ) . The World Health Organization ( WHO ) ( 2006A ) defines COPD as a disease province characterized by airflow restriction that is non entirely reversible. The airflow restriction is normally both progressive and associated with unnatural inflammatory response of the lungs to noxious atoms or gases. John’s chronic bronchitis is defined. clinically. as the presence of a chronic productive cough for 3 months in each of 2 consecutive old ages. provided other causes of chronic cough have been ruled out. ( Mannino. 2003 ) . The British lung Foundation ( BLF ) ( 2005 ) announces that chronic bronchitis is the redness and eventual scarring of the liner of the bronchial tubing which is the account for John’s dyspnoea. The BLF ( 2005 ) believe that when the bronchial tube become inflamed less air is able to flux to and from the lungs and one time the bronchial tubings have been irritated over a long period of clip. inordinate mucous secretion is produced. This increased sputum cons equences from an addition in the size and figure of goblet cells ( Jeffery. 2001 ) ensuing in John’s inordinate mucous secretion production. The liner of the bronchial tubings becomes thickened and an annoying cough develops. ( Waugh & A ; Grant 2004 ) which is an extra symptoms that toilet is sing. Emphysema affects the parenchyma of the lung through devastation of the alveolar walls. taking to lasting expansion of air infinites distal to the terminal bronchioles ( Sandford. Weir & A ; Pare. 1997 ) . The walls between next air sac interrupt down. the alveoli canals dilate and there is loss of interstitial elastic tissue ( Watson. 2000 ) This consequences in dilatation of the lungs and loss of normal elastic kick. therefore pin downing and stagnancy of alveolar air ( National Emphysema Foundation. 2006 ) . As alveoli merge there is loss of surface country for gaseous exchange ( Alexander. Fawcett & A ; Runciman. 2004 ) ensuing in less O. This loss of country for gaseous exchange is an extra account for John’s dyspnoea. John was referred to the physical therapist to assist relieve his shortness of breath and mucous secretion production. Turner Foster & A ; Johnson ( 2005 ) pronounce physical therapists are cardinal members of the intercession squad. can education and give John practical counsel on how he can take a breath comfortably and efficaciously. ( United Kingdom Parliament. 2005 ) . Van der Schans. Postma. Koeter & A ; Rubin ( 1999 ) suggest physical therapists facilitate John’s mucous secretion conveyance by utilizing take a breathing techniques. percussion and postural drainage. Furthermore they can educate John on organic structure placement as this is cardinal with people with COPD ( Gosselink. 2003 ) . Additionally John was referred to the Occupational Therapist ( OT ) who assessed his current degree of fittingness and so formulated a plan of activities which will better his overall strength and staying power. The OT can besides give advice to John to pull off his status with the least hurt and break of day-to-day life ( Turner Foster & A ; Johnson 2005 ) . Furthermore the National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence ( NICE ) ( 2004 ) urge patient with COPD should be on a regular basis asked about their ability to set about activities of day-to-day life and how breathless they become when making these. John was informed that his COPD was perchance caused by smoking. Kanner ( 1996 ) believes that the major environmental factor of COPD is tobacco fume. The Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease ( GOLD ) ( 2005 ) concurs and provinces cigarette smoke is by far the most of import hazard factor for COPD. This harmonizing to the National Heart Blood and Lung Institute ( NHLBI ) ( 2006 ) is because smoking irritates the lungs. which causes the air passages to go inflamed and narrowed. Additionally Verra. Escudier. Lebargy. Bernaudin. De Cremoux & A ; Bignon ( 1995 ) adds that enzymes released because of the redness breaks down elastin. the protein of import for structural unity of the lungs. making take a breathing air in and out of the lungs more hard ( NHLBI. 2006 ) However D’hulst. Maes. Bracke. Demedts. Tournoy. Joos & A ; Brusselle ( 2005 ) states non all tobacco users develop clinically important COPD. which suggests that familial factors must modify each individual’s hazard ( WHO. 2006B ) . John continues to smoke although he has reduced his consumption ; nevertheless NICE ( 2004 ) guidelines suggest all COPD patents who continue to smoke should be encouraged to halt. and offered aid to make so. at every chance because. smoking surcease is the individual most effectual manner to cut down the hazard of developing COPD and halt its patterned advance ( WHO. 2006B ) . John was encouraged to halt. given counsel on how to halt. was informed about a smoke surcease group that he could go to and in add-on offered nicotine spots ; nevertheless he refused and told staff that he would discontinue in his ain clip. John explained to the nurse that for the past few months he has been experiencing low. can non concentrate and has a deficiency of involvement in anything. he says he does non understand why he is experiencing this manner. Gross ( 2001 ) believes these symptoms could be a mark of depression. Harmonizing to Kunik. Roundy. Veazey. Souchek. Richardson. Wray & A ; Stanley ( 2005 ) many CODP patients develop psychological symptoms in add-on to physical ailments. Harmonizing to Kunik & A ; Densmore ( 2002 ) this is because of the nature of the disease and the fright of being breathless. The BLF ( 2005 ) concur and believe take a breathing trouble can incite anxiousness and depression. Other causes stated by Ohri & A ; Steiner ( 2004 ) include body image. increased solitariness. deficiency of societal support. and low self-pride. Kunik et Al ( 2005 ) study that depression and anxiousness are two to three times more prevailing in COPD patients than in the general population and the account f or this is because of the sustained and relentless feelings of defeat. hopelessness and weakness. John’s depressed temper could take down his degree of energy needed to get by with his chronic unwellness. which. in bend. could do his symptoms less tolerable. ( Singer. Ruchinskas. Riley. Broshek & A ; Barth. 2001 ) Depression besides can take to increased badness of John’s medical symptoms since feelings of depression can do a individual to be less active. and. in bend. may worsen physical impairment. which can escalate the psychosocially disabling effects of COPD ( Van Ede. Yzermans & A ; Brouwer. 1999 ) . However a survey by Engstrom. Persson. Larsson. Ryden & A ; Sullivan ( 1996 ) found that quality of life is non significantly affected in patients with mild to chair COPD. perchance due to get bying and/or pneumonic modesty capacity. John was given the chance to speak to a head-shrinker since mental wellness specializer can name depression and supply appropriate intervention. One intervention that was suggested was pneumonic rehabilitation. Mahler ( 1998 ) states these plans incorporate psychosocial and behavioural constituents. Emery. Leatherman. Burker & A ; MacIntyre ( 1991 ) agree and suggests that it can besides heighten cognitive operation and psychological wellbeing. Surveies by Withers. Rudkin & A ; White ( 1999 ) repeat this and demo that degrees of anxiousness and depression were significantly enhanced by pneumonic rehabilitation. John was 56 when he was diagnosed with COPD. He stated he was forced to take early retirement from his employment where he assisted in the fix. installing and care of H2O and sewer lines. This. he believes was because of the clip lost at work caused by his dyspnoea. Mavis declared she besides had to vacate from her portion clip occupation as a cleansing agent to take attention of John since she is his lone carer and is exhausted. Their income is from authorities benefits and a little pension and they say they are happening it hard to pull off on the sum of money they receive. Strassels. Smith. Sullivan. & A ; Mahajan ( 1987 ) reported that the typical COPD patient was more than 65 old ages old and had limited work loss straight related to his or her disease. However a survey by Tinkelman & A ; Corsello ( 2003 ) indicated that COPD is non merely a disease of the aged. They province a big per centum of patients with COPD are unable to work. and those who do work lose yearss as a conseq uence of their disease. This state of affairs they believe is of great concern to the single worker who may lose his occupation as a effect of inordinate absenteeism. Chronic unwellness and disablement are strongly category related ( Taylor & A ; Field 1993 ) and those in the lower socio-economic groups are the most affected. Smoking. the greatest hazard factor for COPD and exposure to occupational factors from manual unskilled occupations. such as excavation and foundry working are highest amongst males in the lower socio-economic groups ( Parnell. 2000 ) . COPD patients and their households tend to be members of this group and are frequently aged as symptoms become intrusive in the fifth and 6th decennaries of life which is John’s state of affairs. Webb & A ; Tossell ( 1999 ) maintain that pensions frequently reflect an individual’s category and societal position and as a consequence more adult females. retired manual workers and cultural minorities are disproportionately represented in old age as being on the borders of poorness. A trust on province benefits may be a effect if forced to retire early and carers may non be entitled to benefits in their ain right. The fiscal load is increased by the costs of disablement such as place changes and aid in the place or conveyance ( Young. 1995 ) . To assist John and Mavis a societal worker was involved who assisted with place attention aid when John was discharged so Mavis could hold some clip for herself. Additionally the OT was involved and provided equipment to assist John keep his independency ( Trombly & A ; Radomski 2000 ) . Although I was witting. through survey. other wellness professionals and through nurse preparation. that smoke can be damaging to wellness and can do diseases such as malignant neoplastic disease ( Newcomb & A ; Carbone 1992 ) atherosclerotic diseases ( McBride. 1992 ) and COPD ( British Thoracic Society. 1997 ) I was unwilling to give wellness publicity and smoke surcease advice since I smoke myself. Several surveies show that I am non entirely in this thought. Surveies by Dore & A ; Hoey ( 1998 ) and Adriaanse. Van Reek. Zandbelt & A ; Evers ( 1991 ) show that high smoke rates among some populations of nurses may decrease their willingness and effectivity as possible suppliers of smoking surcease attention. An extra survey by Nardini. Bertoletti. Rastelli. Ravelli & A ; Donner ( 1998 ) demonstrated that smoking wonts influence the attitude of wellness staff toward patient reding about baccy smoke. I considered that it was non my topographic point and felt hypocritical if I attempte d to give advice on halting smoke. On meeting John my feelings did non alter despite the fact that I could see the effects that COPD had on John’s external respiration. However on disbursement clip with John and Mavis my attitude altered. I realized that if John stopped smoking so his status. although his lost lung map would non be regained. ( Booker. 2005 ) will be slowed down ( Osman & A ; Hyland. 2005 ) . I became cognizant of the fact that I was in a premier place to assistance John in keeping his independency. to educate and to assist better John’s quality of life through wellness promoting and advice on smoking surcease. Although John decided non to give up this did non discourage me on giving wellness publicity advice on smoke. On speaking to other patients I took the chance to speak about halting smoking although I did non make this sharply ( Seedhouse. 2004 ) . This experience with John changed my feelings sing wellness publicity and smoke. Although I still feel slightly hypocritical. I acknowledge the importance of my place and how it can ease patients and their lives. I believe I understand the troubles patients face when trying to discontinue. possibly more than a womb-to-tomb non tobacco user. I will go on to supply smoking surcease advice throughout my preparation and besides throughout my calling. In decision this assignment has explained the pathophysiology of COPD through presenting a patient. It examined how this person has been affected holistically. Finally it demonstrated how an experience encountered altered an sentiment with aid from a brooding theoretical account. Mentions Alexander. M. F. . Fawcett. J. M. . & A ; Runciman. P. J. ( Eds. ) . ( 2004 ) . Nursing pattern infirmary and place – The grownup ( 2nd ed. ) . Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone. Adriaanse. H. . Van Reek. J. . Zandbelt. L. . & A ; Evers. G. ( 1991 ) . Nurses’ smoking worldwide. A reappraisal of 73 studies on nurses’ baccy ingestion in 21 states in the period 1959-1988. International Journal of Nursing Studies. 28. 361-375. Booker. R. ( 2005 ) . Chronic clogging pneumonic disease and nice guidelines. Nursing criterion. 19 ( 22 ) . British Lung Foundation ( 2005 ) . COPD. Retrieved March 14. 2006. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. lunguk. org/copd. aspBritish Thoracic Society ( 1997 ) . BTS guidelines for the direction of chronic clogging pneumonic disease. Thorax. 52 ( 5 ) . Bulman. C. . & A ; Scultz. S. ( 2004 ) . Brooding pattern in nursing ( 3rd ed. ) . Oxford: Blackwell. Clancy. J. . & A ; McVicar. A. ( 2001 ) . Physiology and anatomy: a homeostatic attack ( 2nd ed. ) . London: Arnold. Cohen. B. J. . & A ; Wood. D. L. ( 2000 ) . Memmler’s the human organic structure in wellness and disease ( 9th ed. ) . Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & A ; Wilkins. D’hulst. A. . Maes. T. . Bracke. K. . Demedts. L Tournoy. K. . Joos G. . & A ; Brusselle G. ( 2005 ) . Cigarette smoke-induced pneumonic emphysema in scid-mice is the acquired immune system required? . Respiratory Research. 6 ( 147 ) . Dore. K. . & A ; Hoey. J. ( 1998 ) . Smoking patterns. cognition and attitudes sing smoke of university infirmary nurses. Canadian Journal of Public Health. 4 ( 79 ) . Emery. E. F. . Leatherman. N. E. . Burke. E. J. . & A ; MacIntyre. N. R. ( 1991 ) . Psychological results of a pneumonic rehabilitation plan. American college of chest doctors. 42 ( 7 ) . Engstrom. C. . Persson. L. . Larsson. S. . Ryden. A. . & A ; Sullivan. M. ( 1996 ) . Functional position and good being in chronic clogging pneumonic disease with respect to clinical parametric quantities and smoke: a descriptive and comparative survey. Thorax. 51 ( 30 ) . Gosselink. R. ( 2003 ) . Controlled external respiration and dyspnoea in patients with chronic clogging pneumonic disease. Journal of rehabilitation research and development. 40 ( 5 ) . Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease ( 2005 ) . Global scheme for the diagnosing. direction. and bar of chronic clogging pneumonic disease. Retrieved February 19. 2006. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. goldcopd. com/Guidelineitem. asp? l1=2 & A ; l2=1 & A ; intId=989Gross. R. ( 2001 ) . Psychology: the scientific discipline of head and behaviour ( 4th ed. ) . London: Hodder and Stoughton. Jeffery. P. K. ( 2001 ) . Remodeling in asthma and chronic clogging lung disease. American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. 164 ( 28 ) . Kanner. R. ( 1996 ) . Early intercession in chronic clogging pneumonic disease: a reappraisal of the lung wellness survey consequences. Medical Clinics of North America. 80 ( 4 ) . Kunik. M. . & A ; Densmore. D. ( 2002 ) . Depression and COPD. Geriatrics. 7 ( 4 ) . Kunik. M. . Roundy. K. . Veazey. C. . Souchek. J. . Richardson. P. . Wray. N. . & A ; Stanley. M. ( 2005 ) . Surprisingly high prevalence of anxiousness and depression in chronic external respiration upsets. American college of chest doctors. 127 ( 4 ) . Mahler. D. A. ( 1998 ) . Pneumonic rehabilitation. Chest. 113 ( 26 ) . Mannino. D. M. ( 2003 ) . Chronic clogging pneumonic disease: definition and epidemiology. Respiratory care diary. 48 ( 12 ) . Marieb. E. ( 2004 ) . Human anatomy & A ; physiology. San Francisco: Pearson Education. Martini. F. ( 2000 ) . Fundamentalss of anatomy and physiology. New Jersey:Prentice-Hall. McBride. P. E. ( 1992 ) . The wellness effects of smoke. Cardiovascular diseases. Medical Clinics of North America. 76 ( 2 ) . Nardini. S. . Bertoletti. R. . Rastelli. V. . & A ; Ravelli. L. . & A ; Donner. C. ( 1998 ) . Personal smoke wont and attitude toward smoking among the wellness staff of a general infirmary. Monaldi Archive for Chest disease. 53 ( 1 ) . National Emphysema Foundation ( 2006 ) . COPD – What is it? . Retrieved March 11. 2006. from hypertext transfer protocol: //emphysemafoundation. org/copdcbro. jsp # COPDWhatNational Heart Blood and Lung Institute ( 2006 ) . What Causes COPD? . Retrieved March 8. 2006. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. nhlbi. National Institutes of Health. gov/health/dci/Diseases/Copd/Copd_Causes. htmlNational Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence ( 2004 ) . Management of chronic clogging pneumonic disease in grownups in primary and secondary attention. Retrieved February 12. 2006. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. nice. org. uk/pdf/CG012_niceguideline. pdfNational Lung Health Education Program ( 2005 ) . What is COPD? Retrieved March 19. 2006. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. nlhep. org/lung_copd. htmlNewcomb. P. A. . & A ; Carbone. P. P. ( 1992 ) . The wellness effects of smoke: Cancer. Medical Clinics of North America. 76 ( 2 ) . Nursing & A ; Midwifery council. ( 2004 ) . Code of professional behavior. London: Nursing & A ; Midwifery council. Ohri. C. . & A ; Steiner. M. ( 2004 ) . COPD: the disease and non drug intervention. Hospital druggist. 11. Osman. L. M. . & A ; Hyland. M. E. ( 2005 ) . Patient demands and medicine manners in COPD. The European Respiratory Society. 14 ( 7 ) . Parnell. H. ( 2000 ) . Respiratory disease: Lovingness for the carers of chronic lung disease sick persons in the community. Retrieved February 23. 2006. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. jcn. co. uk/journal. asp? MonthNum=05 & A ; YearNum=2001 & A ; Type=backissue & A ; ArticleID=346Seedhouse. D. ( 2004 ) . Health publicity: doctrine. bias. and pattern ( 2nd ed. ) . Chichester: J. Wiley. Seeley. R. R. . Stephens. T. D. . & A ; Tate. P. ( 2000 ) . Anatomy and physiology ( 5th ed. ) . USA: McGraw- Hill higher instruction. Sandford. A. J. . Weir. T. D. . & A ; Pare. P. D. ( 1997 ) . Familial hazard factors for chronic clogging pneumonic disease. European Respiratory Journal. 10 ( 42 ) . Shaw. L. ( 2005 ) . Anatomy and physiology. Cheltenham: Nelson ThornesSinger. H. . Ruchinskas. R. . Riley. K. . Broshek. D. . & A ; Barth. J. ( 2001 ) . The psychological impact of end-stage lung disease. American college of chest doctors. 120 ( 4 ) . Strassels. S. A. . Smith. D. H. . Sullivan. S. D. . & A ; Mahajan. P. ( 1987 ) . The costs of handling COPD in the United States. American college of chest doctors. 119 ( 9 ) . Tamir. E. ( 2002 ) . The human organic structure made simple: a usher to anatomy. physiology. and disease. Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone. Taylor. S. . & A ; Field. D. ( Eds. ) . ( 1993 ) . Sociology of wellness and wellness attention: an debut for nurses ( 3rd ed. ) . London: Blackwell Scientific Publications. Tinkelman. O. . & A ; Corsello. P. ( 2003 ) . Chronic clogging pneumonic disease: the impact occurs earlier than we think. American Journal of Managed Care. 9 ( 6 ) . Tortora. G. J. . & A ; Grabowski. S. R. ( 2003 ) . Principals of anatomy and physiology. New York: HarperCollins College Publishers. Turner. A. . Foster. M. . & A ; Johnson. S. E. ( 2005 ) . The pattern of occupational therapy: an debut to the intervention of physical disfunction ( 5th ed. ) . London: Churchill Livingstone. Trombly. C. A. . & A ; RadomskI. M. V. ( Eds. ) . ( 2000 ) . Occupational therapy for physical disfunction. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & A ; Wilkins. United Kingdom parliament ( 2005 ) . Memorandum by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy. Retrieved March 9. 2006. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. publications. parliament. uk/pa/cm200506/cmselect/cmhealth/485/485we23. htmVan Ede. L. . Yzermans. C. J. . & A ; Brouwer. H. J. ( 1999 ) . Prevalence of depression in patients with chronic clogging pneumonic disease: a systematic reappraisal. Thorax. 17 ( 4 ) . Van der Schans. C. P. . Postma. D. S. . Koeter. G. H. . & A ; Rubin. B. K. ( 1999 ) . Physiotherapy and bronchial mucous secretion conveyance. European Respiratory Journal. 13 ( 8 ) . Verra. F. . Escudier. E. . Lebargy. F. . Bernaudin. J. F. . De Cremoux. H. . & A ; Bignon. J. ( 1995 ) . Ciliary abnormalcies in bronchial epithelial tissue of tobacco users. ex- tobacco users. and nonsmokers. American Journal of Respiratory Critical Care Medicine. 151. Watson. R. ( 2000 ) . Anatomy and physiology for nurses. Edinburgh: Bailliere Tindall. Waugh. A. . & A ; Grant. A. ( 2004 ) . Ross and Wilson anatomy and physiology in wellness and wellness attention. ( 9th ed. ) . Edinburgh ; New York: Churchill Livingstone. Webb. R. . & A ; Tossell. D. ( 1999 ) . Social Issues for Carers: Towards Positive Practice ( 2nd ed. ) . London: Arnold. World Health Organization. ( 2006A ) . COPD: A definition. Retrieved February 21. 2006. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. who. int/respiratory/copd/definition/en/index. htmlWorld Health Organization. ( 2006B ) . COPD: Causes. Retrieved February 19. 2006. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. who. int/respiratory/copd/causes/en/index. htmlWithers. N. J. . Rudkin. S. T. . & A ; White RJ. R. J. ( 1999 ) . Anxiety and depression in terriblechronic clogging pneumonic disease: the effects of pneumonic rehabilitation. Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation. 19 ( 6 ) . Young. P. ( 1995 ) . Mastering societal public assistance ( 3rd ed. ) . London: Macmillan Press.

Harlem’s darkness and hardships

Baldwin’s â€Å"Sonny’s Blues† is a story of the two brothers living in Harlem. Harlem is the place where the two brothers experienced the darkness of the society. This darkness points out racism and drug abuse as one of the major problems experiencing by many African-American in Harlem. Even though racism was felt by the two brothers and drug abuse hunted Sonny, one of the two brothers, they still managed to adopt and survive through the help of each other. At the beginning of the story, the older brother is on his way to work as a schoolteacher.As he travels down the road, he also reads the newspaper and found out that his brother was caught dealing with heroine. Even before, Sonny was suspected by his older brother of using illegal drugs but the older brother does nothing. Before the drug related incident happens, the older brother who is also the narrator of the story always talks about Sonny as being a good brother. He says â€Å"When Sonny was young, his f ace was bright and open†. Sonny’s brother worries about the involvement of Sonny in illegal drugs.Sonny is being dependent on drugs and uses it as a way to escape his problems. This problem makes his brother think of the things he did wrong to make Sonny involved in drug addiction. As a result of that, the brother misinterprets all the acts Sonny is doing. He does not listen to Sonny even if it has to be about the explanation and reasons of why Sonny engaged to drug related activities. Sonny finds himself neglected by his brother. This makes him think that no one could help him but his own self. Realizing this, he diverts his attention to music.This involvement to music makes him finds the relief he is searching for. With the music playing, Sonny is able to escape the problems he is encountering. The improvement of Sonny is hardly noticed by his brother. At first, his involvement to music disappoints his brother not until his brother realizes the changes music has done to Sonny. His brother accepts the truth and realizes that music has done a good job to Sonny’s development. It all happened in the part of the story where his brother is listening to Sonny as he plays the piano.As Sonny plays the piano, his brother feels that Sonny need his guidance and love. The unconditional love by the brother to Sonny was depicted in the story. Listening to the Jazz music played by Sonny, the attitude of the brother towards life, himself and Sonny changes. The estrangement of the two brothers hurt them both. Sonny’s dedication to music and his determination to stay away from any form of illegal drugs move the older brother to change. The love and passion of both brothers are shown in the story.Their fight against the darkness in Harlem made them realize that to win is to accept the weakness of each one of them and to be able to survive is to help each other. As a final point, to be able to survive in a society where you are not the main character, you must learn to adapt and to help others that are also adapting. The challenges of Black American brothers in the time of racism and its fight against illegal drugs can be solve if trust, acceptance and love is within the family ties.

Mobile phones. Essay

Starting Point: Communication methods (25 minutes) Use your textbook or the resources on Student Portal or the Internet to help you research these topics. The first one has been done for you so you can see the level of detail expected. http://www. enkivillage. com/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-mobile-phones. html https://www. google. co. uk/search? q=teact+ict+advnat%5Cges+of+mobile+phones&sourceid=ie7&rls=com. microsoft:en-GB:IE-Address&ie=&oe=&surl=1&safe=active&gws_rd=ssl Method Of communication What is it? Benefits/advantages Drawbacks/disadvantages Mobile phones. Hand-help device for making calls, texting, listen to music, surf web, email   Portable so the communication is easy Can be contacted anytime / You are always connected   There are multiply uses   Security – children feel safer as they can easily contact their parents   In emergency situations , help can be reached You can call people anywhere on the planet   No specialist equipment is needed.   Cause accidents as they are a distraction for example driving Disturb other people   Might be inference so the quality of the call can be poor.   You can’t see body language so a lot of non verbal communication is lost. Its hard to make a record of what’s being said , things may get forgotten or misinterpreted SMS (texting) Texts are sent from one mobile phone to another. It is a quick and convenient way of sending a short message to someone . Sending messages, images, videos and sound clips between devices. Can send them at any time, day or night   Good for informal messages Good for helping friends and family keep in touch   Only short messages can be sent Needs basic typing skills Text speak spills over into written school work and formal communication.   Fast   Cheap No internet needed. Instant Messaging (IM) A system for exchanging typed electronic messages instantly via the Internet or a cellular network, using a shared software application on a personal computer or mobile device. Conversations happen in real time .   You can add video using webcams or add a mic rather than talking . This helps show that the person you’re talking to is genuine.   Useful for customer support Internet is needed There’s no time to reflect on the message before sending   There’s a lot of ads , you have to pay extra to remove ads Anyone can send you a message Chat rooms. An area on the Internet or other computer network where users can communicate, typically one dedicated to a particular topic.   Gives the ability to chat to more than one person at the same time Extremely useful for gamers where there are hundreds of players You can also private message people   People can fake their identity   Cyber bullying can occur Fax A system that normally uses telephone lines to send images of documents to others .   Good for places where security and legal issues are importan Fair inexpensive   Simple to use and require very little training. As long as the machine is on , messages can be received day and night   No specialist installation/ cabling needed because it uses the existing telephone line   No immediate response   You might dial wrong number and sent important document to someone else   If the machine is busy , the fax will not be delivered. The quality is often poor and might have some of the smaller details   You need to buy ink , the machine and paper Social networking A place where people of the same interests or backgrounds can communication .   Keep in contact with old friends Free   You can make new friends. Cyberbullying can occur Discrimination can occur People may be able to find out personal details   Its time consuming   People can easily lie about who they are   You need internet Weblogs A place where people can write down their activities on a website for others to read giving a commentary on their life . There can be photos / videos but are mainly text based.   Can easily be viewed / updated from any device that connects to the internet .   Allows you to express your thoughts   Easy to set up , little technical knowledge needed   There’s millions of blogs to read from   You can leave comments on blogs.

The Return: Nightfall Chapter 7

There was a sort of universal gasp. Stefan went white, his compressed lips showing in a tight line. Bonnie felt as if she were choking on words, on explanations, on recriminations about Caroline's own behavior. Elena may have had as many boyfriends as the stars in the sky, but in the end she had given all that up – because she fell in love – not that Caroline would know anything aboutthat . â€Å"Don't have anything to say now?† Caroline was taunting. â€Å"Can't find any cute answer? Bat got your tongue?† She began to laugh, but it was forced, glassy laughter, and then words were spilling out of her almost as if uncontrollably, all words that weren't supposed to be spoken in public. Bonnie had said most of them at one time or another, buthere , andnow , they formed a stream of venomous power. Caroline's words were building up to some kind of crescendo – something was going to happen – this kind of force couldn't be contained – Reverberations, Bonnie thought as the sound waves began building up†¦. Glass,her intuition told her.Get away from glass. Stefan just had time to whirl to Meredith and shout,†Get rid of the lamp.† And Meredith, who was not only quick on the uptake but also a baseball pitcher with a 1.75 ERA, snatched it up and threw it at – no, through – – an explosion as the porcelain lamp shattered – – the open window. There was a similar shattering in the bathroom. The mirror had exploded behind the closed door. Then Caroline slapped Elena across the face. It left a bloody smear, which Elena patted tentatively. It also left a white handprint, turning to red. Elena's expression was one to wring tears from a stone. And then Stefan did what Bonnie considered the most astonishing thing of all. He very gently put Elena down on the floor, kissed her upturned face, and turned to Caroline. He put his hands on her shoulders, not shaking, only holding her still, forcing her to look at him. â€Å"Caroline,† he said, â€Å"stop it.Come back. For the sake of your old friends who care for you, come back. For the sake of the family that loves you, come back. For the sake of your own immortal soul,come back. Come back to us!† Caroline just eyed him belligerently. Stefan half turned aside, toward Meredith, grimacing. â€Å"I'm not really cut out to do this,† he said wryly. â€Å"It's not any vampire's forte.† Then he turned toward Elena, his voice tender. â€Å"Love, can you help? Can you help your old friend again?† Already Elena was trying to help, trying to get to Stefan. She had pulled herself up very shakily, first by the rocking chair and then by Bonnie, who tried to help her under the burden of gravity. Elena was as wobbly as a newborn giraffe in roller skates, and Bonnie – almost half a head shorter – was finding her hard to handle. Stefan made a motion as if to help, but Matt was already there, steadying Elena on the other side. Then Stefan had Caroline turned around, and he was holding her, not letting her dart away, forcing her to face Elena fully. Elena, while being held at the waist so that her hands were free, made some curious motions, seeming to draw designs more and more quickly in the air in front of Caroline's face, at the same time clasping and unclasping her hands with the fingers in different positions. She seemed to know exactly what she was doing. Caroline's eyes followed the movements of Elena's hands as if compelled, but it was clear from her snarling that she hated it. Magic, Bonnie thought, fascinated. White Magic. She's calling on angels, just as surely as Caroline was calling demons. But is she strong enough to pull Caroline out of the darkness? And at last, as if to complete the ceremony, Elena leaned forward and kissed Caroline chastely on the lips. All hell broke loose. Caroline somehow squirmed out of Stefan's grip and tried to claw Elena's face with her nails. Objects in the room went sailing through the air, propelled by no human force. Matt tried to grab Caroline's arm and got a punch in the stomach that doubled him over, followed by a chop to the back of the neck. Stefan let go of Caroline to scoop up Elena and get her and Bonnie out of harm's way. He seemed to assume that Meredith could take care of herself – and he was right. Caroline swung at Meredith, but Meredith was ready. She grabbed Caroline's fist and helped her in the direction of the swing. Caroline landed on the bed, twisted, and then rushed Meredith again, this time getting a grip on her hair. Meredith pulled free, leaving a tuft of hair in Caroline's fingers. Then Meredith got under Caroline's guard and hit her squarely on the jaw. Caroline collapsed. Bonnie cheered and refused to feel guilty about it. Then, for the first time, as Caroline lay still, Bonnie noticed that Caroline's fingernails were all there again – long, strong, curved, and perfect, not one of them chipped or broken. Elena's Power? It must be. What else could have done it? With just a few motions and a kiss, Elena had healed Caroline's hand. Meredith was massaging her own hand. â€Å"I never realized ithurt so much to knock people out,† she said. â€Å"They never show it in movies. Is it the same for guys?† Matt flushed. â€Å"I†¦uh, I've never actually†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"It's the same for everyone, even vampires,† Stefan said briefly. â€Å"Are you all right, Meredith? I mean, Elena could†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"No, I'm fine. And Bonnie and I have a job to do.† She nodded at Bonnie, who nodded weakly back. â€Å"Caroline's our responsibility, and we should have realized why shereally had to come back this last time. She doesn't have a car. I'll bet she used that downstairs telephone and tried to get somebody to pick her up, but couldn't, and then she came upstairs again. So now we have to take her home. Stefan, I'm sorry. It hasn't been much of a visit.† Stefan looked grim. â€Å"It's probably as much as Elena could take, anyway,† he said. â€Å"More than I thought she could take, honestly.† Matt said, â€Å"Well, I'm the one with the car, and Caroline is my responsibility, too,† he said. â€Å"I may not be a girl, but I'm a human.† â€Å"Maybe we could come back tomorrow?† Bonnie said. â€Å"Yes, I suppose that would be best,† Stefan said. â€Å"I almost hate to let her go at all,† he added, staring at the unconscious Caroline, his face shadowed. â€Å"I'm afraid for her. Very much afraid.† Bonnie pounced on this. â€Å"Why?† â€Å"I think – well, it may be too early to say, but she seems to be almost possessed by something – but I have no idea what. I think I have to do some serious research.† And there it was again, the ice water dripping down Bonnie's back. The feeling of how close the frigid ocean of fear was, ready to topple down on her and take her on a swift trip to the bottom. Stefan added, â€Å"But what's certain is that she was behaving strangely – even for Caroline. And I don't know whatyou heard when she was cursing, but I heard another voice behind it, prompting her.† He turned to Bonnie. â€Å"Did you?† Bonnie was thinking back. Had there been something – just a whisper – and just a beat before Caroline's voice came? Less than a beat, and just the faintest of sibilant whispers? â€Å"And what happened here may have made it worse. She called on Hell at a moment when this room was saturated with Power. And Fell's Church itself is at the crossing of so many ley lines, it isn't funny. With all that going on – well, I just wish we had a good parapsychologist around.† Bonnie knew they were all thinking of Alaric. â€Å"I'll try to get him to come,† Meredith said. â€Å"But usually he's off in Tibet or Timbuktu doing research these days. It'll take a while even to get a message to him.† â€Å"Thank you.† Stefan looked relieved. â€Å"Like I said, she's our responsibility,† Meredith said quietly. â€Å"We're sorry to have brought her,† Bonnie said loudly, rather hoping that something inside Caroline could hear her. They said their good-byes separately to Elena, not sure of what might happen. But she simply smiled at each of them and touched their hands. By good luck or by the grace of something far beyond their understanding, Caroline woke up. She even seemed mostly rational, if a little fuzzy, when the car reached her driveway. Matt helped her out of the car and walked her to the door on his arm, where Caroline's mother answered the doorbell. She was a mousy, timid, tired-looking woman who did not seem surprised to be receiving her daughter in this state on a late summer afternoon. Matt dropped the girls off at Bonnie's house, where they spent a night in worried speculation. Bonnie fell asleep with the sound of Caroline's curses echoing in her head. Dear Diary, Something is going to happen tonight. I can't talk or write, and I don't remember how to type on a keyboard very well, but I can send thoughts to Stefan and he can write them down. We don't have any secrets from each other. So this is my diary now. And†¦ This morning I woke up again. I woke up again! It was still summer outside, and everything was green. The daffodils in the garden are all in bloom. And I had visitors. I didn't know exactly who they were, but three of them are strong, clear colors. I kissed them so I won't forget them again. The fourth one was different. I could only see a shattered color, laced with black. I had to use strong words of White Power to keep that one from bringing dark things into Stefan's room. I'm getting sleepy. I want to be with Stefan and feel him holding me. I love Stefan. I would give up anything to stay with him. He asks me, Even flying? Even flying, to be with him and keep him safe. Even anything, to keep him safe. Even my life. Now I want to go to him. Elena (And Stefan is sorry about writing in Elena's new diary, but he has to say some things, because someday maybe she will want to read them, to remember. I've written down her thoughts in sentences, but they don't come that way. They come as thought-fragments, I guess. Vampires are used to translating people's everyday thoughts into coherent sentences, but Elena's thoughts need more translation than most. Usually she thinks in bright pictures, with a scattered word or two. The â€Å"fourth one† that she talks about is Caroline Forbes. Elena has known Caroline almost since babyhood, I think. What bewilders me is that today Caroline attacked her in almost every way imaginable, and yet when I search Elena's mind I can't find any feelings of anger or even any pain. It's almost frightening to scan a mind like that. The question I'd really like to answer is: What happened to Caroline during the short time she was kidnapped by Klaus and Tyler? And did she do what she did today of her own free will? Does some remnant of Klaus's hatred still linger like miasma, tainting the air? Or do we have another enemy in Fell's Church? And most importantly, what do we do about it? Stefan, who is being pulled from the compu.

The Femme Fatale: Ambiguity and Death

The Femme Fatale: Ambiguity and Death In cinema, the femme fatale is an enticing, exquisitely beautiful, erotic character who plays the ultimate trick of nature: she displays her beauty, captures the man and goes in for the kill. Unfortunately for this poisonous flower, male dominated western society interferes and kills the female predator in the end. In western cinema, the femme fatale can never survive, and can never â€Å"win† in the battle of the sexes. But why must this be so? What makes the femme fatale such a dangerously curious character for the hero as well as the viewer? In E.Ann Kaplan’s’ Women in Film Noir, Richard Dyer states â€Å"†¦women in film noir are above all else unknowable. It is not so much their evil as their unknowability (and attractiveness) that makes them fatal for the hero. † (Dyer, p. 92) Dyer’s observation alludes to the connection between the ambiguous female and the desperate need for the male to reveal her in order to possess her; it is the fear of the â€Å"unknowable† woman that makes her a direct target. This essay will explore the notion of ambiguity as a source of life as well as the ultimate reason for the death of the femme fatale.Before delving into the idea of ambiguity and its power of life and death for the femme fatale, an exploration into the actual women behind the character-type is crucial. The actress who portrays an ambiguous woman must herself, possess ambiguity, or she will never be believable and the fantasy of the femme fatale character is broken. Once we can see through the â€Å"bad girl† act, the portrayal becomes completely unsuccessful. Two actresses became infamous for their portrayals of two of the most well known femme fatales: Louise Brooks as Lulu and Rita Hayworth as Gilda. In G. W.Pabst’s Pandora’s Box (1929) Louise Brooks plays Lulu, a young woman who infects men (and women) with her erotic gaze and causes much mayhem in a 192 0’s Weimar Germany. The actress who would play Lulu had to be able to truly depict the kind of femme fatale that Pabst envisioned and would successfully capture on camera. The character of Lulu is a hedonistic carefree spirit who is well aware of her feminine wilds and understands the politics of sex. In the film, we watch as she manipulates many people with her beauty and eroticism and even plays with us, the viewer, as if she is aware we are watching her perform.But the woman we are watching is not Lulu; she is Louise Brooks frolicking on camera. Brooks possess the ambiguity of the Lulu character as opposed to just portraying ambiguity on behalf of the role. Before the film even begins Louise Brooks is presenting an ambiguous persona, being an American actress starring in a German film, the audience is already simultaneously perplexed and intrigued. Molly Haskell writes in her book, From Reverence to Rape: The Treatment of Women in the Movies, that Pabst â€Å"in his searc h for the ideal Lulu for Pandora’s Box, found [Marlene] Dietrich, his ‘countrywoman,’ too ‘old’ and too ‘knowing. †(Haskell, p. 83) Pabst needed an actress who was unknowable and unknown so that the mystery of the Lulu character would always be present. The audience is wondering who Lulu is as well as who Louise Brooks is; such a game keeps the viewers attention always on Lulu/Louise. If Pabst had used the already famous Dietrich in Pandora’s Box, the initial sense of ambiguity would no longer exist, as Dietrich is a recognizable German actress and the femme fatale that is Lulu, would not be passable.Contributing to the allure of female ambiguity, Molly Haskell writes that directors and critics alike â€Å"find their erotic fancies tickled by women who are at opposite sides of the sexual-cultural pole from themselves. † (Haskell, p. 82-3) The sexual appeal of the â€Å"exotic† woman is apart of the racial ambiguity th at both Louise Brooks- an American actress playing a femme fatale in Germany, and Rita Hayworth- playing an American living in Argentina share.This idea that the men who create these films have a personal sexual investment in the choosing of the actresses who will play these dangerous beauties is a very interesting point Haskell brings about. If Marlene Dietrich couldn’t play Lulu because she isn’t ambiguous enough for Germany, her huge popularity overseas in America seems logical given the ambiguity she possess in front of an American audience. This is where Rita Hayworth’s side of the spectrum plays out in an interesting way. Rita Hayworth was an American actress in the 1940’s and portrayed the classic femme fatale in Gilda (1946) directed by Austrian-born Charles Vidor.Rita Hayworth’s emergence into Hollywood included a grueling physical transformation to, in a sense, â€Å"tone down† her mixed race background of Spanish and Irish parents . What resulted was a lethal combination of exoticism and refined beauty; Rita Hayworth had the physical ability to be racially ambiguous enough to keep people’s attention but not so much as to truly raise questions about her Latin background. She had the curves, lips and sexualized mannerisms of a fantastical Latin woman, mixed with beautiful red hair and fair skin.As Gilda, Hayworth was made for the part of a femme fatale. Hayworth may even possess an ultimate ambiguity because her look remains unique in many parts of the world; her racial ambiguity is transportable. Louise Brooks and Rita Hayworth both brought with them, to their respective film set, their own ambiguities. The rest of the mystery behind these two dangerous female lead characters lies within their stories. In Pandora’s Box, Lulu is a very youthful spirit who emerges on screen and remains on screen with a presence that is dreamlike.Her â€Å"spell† that she seems to cast on all those around her is the elimination of wrongdoing, consequence, sin, etc. All that surrounds Lulu is attention and unexplainable adoration, which she uses to try to maneuver her way out of trouble when she accidently shoots her new husband after a fight over the gun. Lulu effortlessly convinces a group of friends to help her escape the law and run away from all consequence. Lulu carelessly manipulates by seducing the people around her, all to help herself and her own desires.She is an enchantress of sorts, and even as a viewer, watching this from the outside, I found myself growing fond of this whimsical femme fatale. When things don’t turn out well for Lulu, she is starving with her â€Å"father† and her dead husband’s son who’s helped her run away, Lulu doesn’t learn her lesson on being a proper de-sexualized, grounded lady. When starved and stranded in London, she applies make-up to her face and wanders the street for another victim to charm, and on her last vo yage out into the cold, she meets her death at the hand of Jack the Ripper.The character of Lulu is ambiguous in many ways, and the first is in terms of her class. When we first meet Lulu, she is the kept woman of Schon (her soon to be dead husband), and is kept very well in a fancy flat just for her, for whenever he wants to see her. He appears to be of the upper-middle or upper-class and is a media-tycoon, where she eventually gets a part in his son’s production. Contrary to this comfortable life Lulu leads as Schon’s mistress, Lulu’s â€Å"father,† Schigolch, is a sloppy drunk who she tells Schon was her first patron, and helps him whenever he comes to her.Lulu teeters between two very clear class lines: the rich and the very poor, and we as the viewer want to consider her only one of those two categories. The ambiguity of Lulu’s class is interesting when you observe that she probably comes from a poor background, yet she acts like a spoiled lit tle rich girl throughout much of the film. Class ambiguity is also found in the Gilda story. Gilda emerges onto the screen as a game-changer for the main character, whom she sets out to destroy; a cheat gambler turned trusted casino manager named Johnny.Gilda represents the new rock wedged between Johnny and the casino owner Ballin, who doesn’t know that his new wife Gilda and Johnny were an item back in the United States before both coming separately to Buenos Aires. The social and class ambiguity that Gilda has here is that between her wealthy European husband, her ex-beau Johnny who came from next to no money (at the start of the film, Johnny nearly gets robbed of money he scams off of some sailors), and the local South American men she speaks to in Spanish and sings to in the very late hours of the night.She has an unexplained relationship to an older employee of the casino, whom she calls Uncle Pio and is very fond of. Gilda’s ambiguous class ties are no doubt lin ked with Rita/Gilda’s racial ambiguities as she can easily blend in and can clearly function, knowing the language, in the South American country alone from Johnny or Ballin. Sexual ambiguity is found with Lulu’s character, as she has the ability to cast spells on woman as well as she does with men, in particular one friend of Lulu’s, the Countess Geshwitz.Throughout the film when the Countess is present it is very obvious that she is being seduced by Lulu in such a way that it appears the Countess is acting alone, and the vision of Lulu calling on the Countess simply a mirage. The Countess appears more sincere, wanting to dance with Lulu at her wedding to Schon in such a way; it looks as if Lulu and the Countess were the bride and groom. The Countess also gives Lulu money and helps her with whatever Lulu asks when she is on the run. Both Lulu and Gilda’s character’s share an ambiguity on their origin.We, the viewer, have no sense of where these fe mmes fatales came from, and this fact has significance when breaking down the character of the femme fatale. Not having a past is a very large part of Gilda. In a few parts of the film, Gilda, Johnny, and Ballin talk about this idea that they three are beginning anew and that there is no past for Gilda and Johnny before Ballin came into their lives. They toast to the new group of three at dinner one night (referencing an earlier toast before Gilda entered the picture, between Johnny, Ballin, and Ballin’s sword-tipped cane) and this signifies the removal of any history of all three of them.In Lulu’s case, we never learn about her origins either, and with the chaos of the events during much of the film, we don’t seem to care about where she came from. The only key to a past we have of Lulu comes from her first patron, Schigolch. From that we may draw the conclusion that she may have come from the very low class up until she met Schon. But all of this is merely gue ssing, as nothing is really given away and Lulu remains ambiguous and only in the present tense. The persona of the femme fatale is that much like the Greek myth of Pandora’s box and the male anxiety that surrounds the dangerous woman.In fact, Laura Mulvey writes in Fetishism and Curiosity that, â€Å"Pandora is the prototype for the exquisite female android and, as a dangerous enchantress, she is also the prototype for the femme fatale† (Mulvey, p. 55-6). Pandora was made to by the Greek Gods to be brought to man in order to deliver all the evils of the world, which she held in a small box. She was told to never open the box, but was told this with the God’s knowing her curiosity would get the best of her, and she opened the box. Chaos escaped out of the box and the only thing that remained was hope.The femme fatale is a manufactured, cosmetic woman who is placed in a film noir to bring about destruction to the main male character while appearing to seduce him. The femme fatale may go even further and entice the audience, and in a few cases she succeeds- there is an admiration of this figure by both men and women and some to the degree of fetish- but the femme fatale can never live without meeting her demise. This happens in Pandora’s Box with Lulu’s fatal demise, as well as with Gilda in a metaphorical sense.In Gilda, after Ballin skips town abruptly, Johnny and Gilda get back together but only for a brief time until Johnny begins to get controlling. Gilda flees only to return for the famous striptease scene, and later Ballin returns again to avenge the pair for betraying him. When Ballin dies, Johnny and Gilda make up, and Gilda completely changes from this rebellious firebird we’ve watched for three-quarters of the film to a quaint and very quiet woman, ready to go home with Johnny. Here, the femme fatale dies in a figurative sense, as if Gilda were simply wearing a mask and Johnny tore it off her face to reveal he r true wholesome self.So why the abrupt endings in both films? It is possible the directors of both films wanted to keep the fantasy going for as long as possible, feeding into the male and female desire that is being explored on screen yet keep true to western convention and punish the â€Å"bad† while rewarding the â€Å"good. † It is also quite possible that the male dominated western world couldn’t handle the femme fatale winning the battle because as Mulvey observes, â€Å"within this aesthetic, masculine desire is caught in an oscillation between erotic obsession with the female body and fear of the castration that it signifies.It is, of course, the fear of castration, and subsequent disavowal of the woman’s body as castrated that Freud saw as the cause of male fetishism. † (Mulvey, p. 59) It is interesting to think the male dominated film industry at the time of these films may have been playing with an image of woman that could figuratively castrate men while visually pleasing them, creating what Mulvey says Freud observed as earl fetishism. The femme fatale must then represent an object that arouses sexual desire up until the point of castration, and then the femme fatale will always die in order for the male to survive. She was created to please and then destroy, just like Pandora.Works Cited 1) Mulvey, Laura. Fetishism and Curiosity. London: British Film Institute, Indiana University Press, 1996. Print. 2) Haskell, Molly. From Reverence to Rape: The Treatment of Women in the Movies. Canada. Holt, Rinehart, and Winston of Canada, 1973,1974. Print. 3) Dyer, Richard. â€Å"Resistance through charisma: Rita Hayworth and Gilda. † Women in Film Noir. Ed. E Ann Kaplan. London: British Film Institute, 1978, 1980. 91-100. Print.

Hyundai case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Hyundai - Case Study Example Hyundai Motor Company is considered one of the best performing motor companies even in the face of the effects that followed recession. Factors of success within the firm which has beaten fort to take the fourth place in the motor industry applies strategies like the implementation of strong leadership and the continuous introduction of new models in the market to suit the preference of consumers within the different markets (Schmitt). Even with the likes of competitors like Tata and General Motors, among other, Hyundai has managed to do well in markets like Korea and other international markets in spite of having greater production capacity than their sales capabilities. Hyundai’s success is also attributed to their sensitivity to opportunities, say to the diversity that exists within the Middle East and their efforts in partnering with other firms. Their affiliation with Guangzhou Motor Group, in the year 2002, for instance, helped boosts the level of sales within the firm a nd therefore its overall performance (Yeats 54). The firms focus on producing the right products for the markets has also been of essence in helping Hyundai succeed like it has at the global levels. Basically, the demands of the consumers govern the ways by which the firms produce their automobiles. For example, the extremely high quality demand by the Korean populace has all through the time, made the company centre on always producing the best quality products for the markets (Davidson and Goldsmith 34). The stringent competition that exists from other car makers has also forced the firm to continually improve on all the aspects of production (Hyundai Motor America). The firm has even been ranked as the best in terms of customer satisfaction. Hyundai Motor America. Hyundai Motor America Reports Record January Sales. N.d. Web. February 27, 2012. Schmitt,

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs - Assignment Example Hence, the satisfaction of the aforementioned levels prompts people to endeavor to meet the complex needs. In effect, the psychological needs includes sharing of belonging, affection, and love with friends and families. The fourth level entails self-esteem in which people attempt to gain approval, as well as recognition. People achieve self-esteem when they are comfortable with their achievements. Self-actualization represents the last level in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. In this level, people focus on building their image after accomplishing set goals. In essence, the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is an important in exploring employees’ motivation. The Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is important in improving the management of the information technology personnel. The management team should apply the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs in understanding the personnel’s motivation, as well as needs in order to create the environment that motivates employees. Disselkamp (2013) contends that money is a real motivating factor in satisfying the security and physiological needs of the workers. In this respect, money plays a significant role in satisfying the basic human needs. Similarly, money satisfies the social needs of the employees, and is recognized as the basis of the status, power, and respect. Thus, management can use financial incentives to keep the level of motivation among information technology personnel high. Similarly, the management of the information technology personnel should endeavor to offer job security. Lauby (2005) observes that employees tend to be worried about imminent lay-offs if job security does not exist. Hence, the managers should keep the levels of motivation among employees high through giving them job security. The managers should use Maslow hierarchy of needs to establish health care insurance benefits, fringe benefits, pension plans, retirement plans, and job security.

Professional portfolio Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Professional portfolio - Essay Example To the contrary, I consider my service a priceless gift to people who need it. Diligence in delivery of care, advocacy, and awareness are my fundamental principles into practice. As an advocate, I strive to learn health care needs for better quality of health and collaborate with professionals from other fields to identify possible strategies for meeting the needs. I then strive to influence policy changes at different levels of the health care sector such as at facility level and local government levels. I also participate in research for efficient and effective prevention and management of diseases through direct delivery of care and through community empowerment towards self-care. I have worked as an emergency room nurse for 12 years, an experience that has exposed me to the need for sacrifice for patients’ lives. I am currently a clinical coordinator in liver transplant where experience motivates my nursing values. My priority growth areas are policy development, leadership, and scientific research because of their significance to generation of contemporary knowledge and strategies and mobilization of resources towards policies and policy implementation. Developing and implementing SMART goals is my plan for improving my leadership, research, and policy development potentials (Powers, 2013). My goal on leadership development is to be competent in transformational and charismatic leadership styles. These are important to my advocacy and leadership in policy development that are collaborative initiatives. I plan to attend trainings and workshops o leadership and to seek mentorship from distinguished leaders. A six-month period, beginning from next month, will be dedicated to the goal that I will evaluate monthly using online assessment tests and observation on successful leadership based on the two styles. I currently have knowledge and experience in research but improvements are necessary. I plan to attend part time classes on statistics and research

Domestic violence, Criminal justice Research Paper

Domestic violence, Criminal justice - Research Paper Example The author talks of a disparity that occurs in punishing cases of domestic violence depending on perpetrators. In this case, men are shown to receive harsh treatment and condemnation when they are perpetrators as compared to women perpetrators. For example, some of the key players that have been involved in domestic violence in National Football league have been relieved their duties as opposed to Hope Solo that continues playing despite allegations of assault on her sister and nephew. Also, a major organization such as Nike are shown to continue working with Solo even after damning accusations while they were quick to end ties in public with Rice and Peterson. The argument is that the Solo scenario is not the norm and men are seen as the primary perpetrators of violence. Jarrett, T. (2014, September 10). Why she stayed: Ray Rice video sheds light domestic violence. Retrieved September 27, 2014, from http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/nfl-controversy/why-she-stayed-ray-rice-video-sheds-light-domestic-violence-n200266. The article highlights the issue of domestic violence. Specifically, the author shows how it has been challenging to authenticate due to the environment in which such violence takes place. However, Ray Rice versus Janay issues are used to show various issues related to violence. The case was significant as it helped in highlighting issues related to domestic violence with a video. Most of the women are also shown to stay with their partner despite the abuse. On the other hand, the men are shown as not seeing anything bad with the rampant abuse of women. The media are also shown to lack ethics in addressing Janay’s case. The media role appears that of highlighting various crimes that occur in the country. Moreover, the purpose appears to offer sensational reporting with no analysis. However, the media help in reviving the debate concerning crime and also attracts the attention of the policy

Hypercapitalism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Hypercapitalism - Essay Example Moreover, the total production is normally given guidance and the interests distributed through market operation. It dominated the western world after mercantilism was called to a stop. In addition to that, this system enlarges production capacity by putting in use the excess production over consumption (Colker 111). The initial goals were to allow private ownership of property, provision of capital to the firms, freedom of competition for economic gain and profit motive. Hypercapitalism is a society in which the values of capitalism are given more consideration than the other existing values (Maaasik & Solomon 522).The given essay by pulling information from various reliable resources is going to dwell mostly on hypercapitalism. In the contemporary society, market forces have penetrated almost all aspects of life (Graham 58). Not forgetting, all the companies have emerged into one. We are forced to pay for most intangible things (Perelman 87). This issue drives me to another thing a ltogether; the elements of hypercapitalism. Basically, we have gotten two. That is, excess capitalism and payments of unreal things (Perelman 50). They say that the only way to make your dream come true is by waking up. I totally agree with that. It is high time we all come to our senses and deal with the emerging issue. We should be like the cactus as opposed to the ostriches. Why do I say so? It is only the cactus that raises its head in the desert. With the ostrich, it tries to hide the head in the ground and imagine that the danger is gone. Hypercapitalism is taking stand. This is why we even find companies e.g. the Diesel advising its audience consisting of children that the best way to show their creativity is by having sex (Maasik & Solomon 522). In the recent future, most firms are bigger than what they initially used to be. Also, they are found in many countries at once. They only major on advancing their profit. Barbie’s breast for instance, is out of proportion tha t if she were to be a human woman, she would probably fall on her face (Maasik & Solomon 375). They have indeed prioritized on that rather than anything else. Single world currency has become a cliche to most of them. Moreover, money is considered to be what matters most (Maasik & Solomon 522). Formerly, in the classical duration of the political economy, production of commodities majorly depended on labor (Graham 90). In that case, the level of unemployment was quite low as compared to today. Most firms lay emphasis on the commodities which have been turned into ‘exchange values’. They are then transformed into money and try their level best to ensure that they have maximized on the profit without having a look at the quality of their products (Perelman 69). Taking for instance, United States, the issue of poor parental care is normally attributed to the negative effects of capitalism. It has also made no steps to improve or to help parents to provide parental care. Ho w is this possible? The free market together with the self-government principles that gyrate around Americans capitalism does not allow us to have consideration for social problems. In most cases, the society tries offering assistance by paying leave, insurance and maybe by offering accommodation away from the workplace. All these do not help in that they only take care of the parents and not the infants. The role of capitalism is founded on the basis that goods are meant to be exchanged in the markets. With time, the role of property is changing gradually. When a child is growing up for instance, he or she believes that the status quo of an individual is determined by what they own. We tend to be bound up that the only way human affairs are structured is through selling and buying.

Methods to deal with difficult trainees while conducting training - Research Paper

Methods to deal with difficult trainees while conducting training - THIS IS FOR A TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT COURSE - Research Paper Example Introduction: Training and development have become the quintessential factors for effective human resource development in contemporary organizations, and therefore are the value-adding factors for organizational growth and sustenance. Instead of the conventional theoretical approach to learning, training is adopted to impart learning in organizations, which Lall and Sharma define as â€Å"a systematic procedure or technique by which a skill is developed in a person/employee of an organization,† (2009, p.444). The main components of any training include trainer, trainee, training methods, and time and resources. Trainer refers to the individual that imparts learning through various activities and with the use of his/her knowledge, understanding, experience of the topic to be learned and about the individuals that are interested in learning a specific topic; these individuals that seek learning through involvement, action and commitment are referred to as the trainees. The train ees’ characteristics, skills, and motivations help the trainer in determining the training method to be used to deliver the training. Trainer will have to adopt specific approaches to handle different types of trainees and to address any behavioural issues that can affect the training execution and effectiveness. Based on teachings from literature and case studies, an analysis will be performed to understand the implications of trainee personalities on their own learning and on the other trainees as well as the impact of these personalities on the training effectiveness. Finally, conclusions will be drawn based on key findings and analysis. 2. Literature review: Effectiveness of any training can be seen only when the trainees are able to apply the knowledge, skills and attitudes acquired through the training course to work areas or real-time situations (Nijman et al., 2006). This requires optimum commitment from both trainees and trainers; however, studies identify a number o f reasons for training ineffectiveness one of which includes disruptive trainee behavior, such as anger and talkativeness as seen in following case studies. 2.a. Case study 1: Angry Trainee Hara (2010b) explains about a case where controversial subjects are taught to about 20-25 students in order to make them understand about the possible existence of different perspectives to a subject. One such subject related to the position of women in the U.S culture, which thwarted a student, Tina, resulting in a furious reaction refusing to read such topics as it challenged her belief about the status of women in the U.S culture. If such a thing was to happen in a training course related to organizational development, the trainees and the organizations will be affected. When the trainees express their anger during a training session, it will certainly affect the motivation and morale of the rest of the trainees. In this case, misunderstanding and misinterpretation will increase between the tr ainees coming from different cultural backgrounds. 2.b. Case study 2: Talkative Trainee Hara (2010a) describes the case of talkative Nancy and how this behavior disrupts the concentration and morale of other members in the session. Quoting an example of a student in a classroom, the author refers to Nancy as the ‘know it all-Nancy,’ who always tries to give all the information that she has related to the subject being discussed and goes beyond the subject topic to give information. Hara (2010a)

DB 3 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

DB 3 - Research Paper Example On the other hand, the power of virtual integration is the use of the internet or general technology to replace physical elements of a company with specific information. Ford Motor Company recorded 5.7 million motor sales worldwide last year, using a huge network of suppliers. As part of its objectives to create a competitive supply chain, the firm makes use of Six Sigma procedures through collaborating with Penske Logistics to improve and streamline supply chain activities. Before Ford sided with Penske Corp, its assembly plants in South America each took care of its logistics, an initiative that led to unexpected costs in transport and supplying materials as suppliers used to pick up light loads, carrying them from plant to plant. In an effort to solve this, the company established various Order Dispatch Centers (ODC) to merge shipments to plants (Chopra & Sodhi, 2012). Within a short time, it was noted that the majority of trucks have increased the capacity to 95% when distributing shipments to and from the ODC as well as a reduced plant inventory by 15%. New technology has been put in place to help in streamlining performance. Ford Motors has used Logistics Management System, order tracing software, and metric reporting system based on the internet to achieve this goal. This shows how technology can be used to enhance competitiveness as drivers in the company now carry an electronic log and PDA scanners to offer real-time updates and ensure that all carriers have satellite communications. Meanwhile, the supply chain is stabilized through scanners that are utilized in monitoring plants delivery (Austin, 1999). A vital facet of the strategies used in the supply chain is Ford’s emphasis on accountability at every level of supply. In order to reduce expenses and boost services, the company strengthened the car manufacturer’s bidding procedure for carriers, initiating higher specifications on technology, driver certification, safety, time

Should tablet computer replace the traditional Textbook Essay

Should tablet computer replace the traditional Textbook - Essay Example It is time globalization provided something positive to one of the internationally universal sector, academic (Reiss, 2013). Computer tablets are built to increase the efficiency of individual users. With respect to the amount of positive work they can accomplish, it is clear that their prices and usefulness provide a reasonable cost benefit tradeoff. On the other hand, the cumulative cost of all the textbooks needed for completing a course is high which makes the use of e-books cheaper. Although piracy is a crime in the US, the use of computer tablets enables different members of the academic sector to share the academic resources they have. For online courses, tuition fees paid to institutions allows students to have access to online library. With computer tablet, it is economical to access the virtual libraries rather than buying from online vendors (Rock, 2014). Being a student means being able to take notes, solve math problems, erase some errors from written text, draw in art class, and perform complex statistical analysis as coursework. All these activities require the student to have pens, pencils, calculators, and computers. Using a computer tablet combines all these factors together ensuring that the student spends less. Another reason as to why traditional textbooks should be replaced with computer tablets is because the production of textbooks involves the destruction of vegetation cover which suppresses the economy even further. Carrying heavy back packs has been associated with back issues such as injuries and lifelong complications. Carrying textbooks to and from school is an activity that largely contributes to back issues. However, the use of computer tablets resolves the issues associated with carrying heavy textbooks. Due to the small size and standard weight of 1 to 2 pounds makes tablet computers suitable for cutting back on back health issues (Tablets-Textbooks, 2014). In

The Russian Revolution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Russian Revolution - Essay Example The thirst for equal opportunities that the French Revolution inculcated in people also was one of the major reasons for the development and growth of democratic institutions of power in the world. This was seen in another revolution that took place during the twentieth century, the Russian Revolution that ended the reign of the tsars in Russia and paved the way for governments that would be based on the consent of the people of Russia. The Russian Revolution managed not only to wrest power from the Tsar but also to place it in the hands of the Bolsheviks and not in the hands of any emperor as in the case of the French Revolution when power finally ended up in the hands of Napoleon, who in a sense perverted the goals of the revolution by installing himself as the emperor of France and not upholding the ideals of the French Revolution. There are several similarities between the Russian and the French Revolutions. Both were very important events in their own times and were important in shaping the future of the world. The Russian revolution not only affirmed the world’s growing faith in democracy and rejection of autocracy but also signaled a willingness to focus on the welfare of the masses of a nation and not on the diplomatic concerns of a country. The unwillingness of the Russian people to be a part of wars was seen in the lack of popular support for the First World War and the dissent that had started to breed in the masses after the setbacks that Russia had to face during the First World War. This is similar to the French revolution in two ways. The French revolution too had a great impact on the world and its main rival, Britain felt the shockwaves of the revolution throughout the period of the Regency and the Victorian age. The fear of a revolution can be seen in the literature of this period that in some cases valorizes the revolution and in others mocks and satirizes it as an ineffectual tool for social change. The French Revolution with its slog an of â€Å"Liberte, egalite, fraternite† (liberty, equality and fraternity) caused people around the world to harbor dreams of a utopia where the lords and the peasants would be able to live as equals and share the produce of the land equally with enough for all. Like the French Revolution which made not only the French but also people of other countries clamor for freedom from autocracy, the Russian Revolution too made the claims for freedom that countries under the yoke of imperialism had been making for many years. Apart from this, the resentment of the French public was due not only to the misery that they were facing but also due to the recognition that their country had been spending their money unwisely by helping the Americans in their war for independence. This expenditure was thought of as a waste of money by thy emergent class of the bourgeois who were at the forefront of the revolution. As in the French Revolution, it was a concern for the faltering economy of th e country that was one of the major reasons for the Russian Revolution. The emergence of a bourgeois mentality in the people can be considered as a reason for the sudden uprisings that took place during this time even though the Bolsheviks were overtly Marxist in their approach to the topic of governance. Awareness and concern regarding the manner in which the national revenues were being spent and dealt with, is an indication of the increasing desire for control that the middle classes of both France and Russia felt during their respective

Responding to classmates' work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Responding to classmates' work - Essay Example The whole reference about Palestine Liberation Organization, bombings, shootings and suicide all refer to the routine lives which the western world does not understand. Thus MIA, like other artists all over the world, uses the entertainment platform to educate the audience about their problems which they cannot through any other means. I would like to say that culture and identities are all created to keep one's own interests in check. Since the resources in the world are scarce, people had to create their own identities to stamp their names on a particular resource to keep it safe from others. Thus my belief is anti-Tomlinson that 'cultural identity is a victim, not product, of globalization'. As a rationalist I believe that everybody selfishly thinks about oneself and protects ones resources. Having British accents in the movie is a sign that the 'universe parallel to our own' will have people that are just like the people in UK thus showing enforcing the superiority of the UK. Now since the flow of information is universal due to globalization, it is even more important for people to protect their own interests. Thus cultural or group identities are indeed becoming ever more meaningful as entities themselves. Globalization is a worldwide phenomenon yet the western world is involved in it than the eastern.

A Critique of Paradise Lost (Domestic Division) by TERRY MARTIN HEKKER Essay

A Critique of Paradise Lost (Domestic Division) by TERRY MARTIN HEKKER - Essay Example But in its efforts to tie in the author’s experience with the greater debate on women’s choices regarding family and career, the article offers nothing really new except probably with the shocking revelation that even women into their 60s, almost forever married by today’s standards could still be dumped by their husbands. Furthermore, some of the arguments pertaining to the debate tend to be contradictory or ambivalent. Hekker succeeds in making a significant emotional pitch for presenting herself as a cautionary tale of a woman who though, already in her four decades of marriage and well into her senior years could still be discarded by her husband with all the emotional and financial hardships of dealing with the aftermath. The article mostly centers on her case alone, and in a passing reference, to those of her two friends who were also divorced by their husbands and which she remarkably noted that among them, â€Å"they’d been married for 110 years†. What makes the article even more poignant is that the author wryly compared herself and her friends to â€Å"outdated kitchen appliances†: â€Å"Like them†, she wrote, â€Å"we were serviceable, low maintenance, front loading, self-cleaning and (relatively) frost free. Also like them we had warranties that had run out. Our husbands sought sleeker models with features we lacked who could execute tasks wed either never le arned or couldnt perform without laughing.† It is indeed quite shocking and repulsive to note that there are men, for example the author’s ex-husband who could treat a marriage of forty long years like it was nothing – although the husband’s reasons for leaving the marriage are not revealed to the readers, the sympathy goes to the author who watched herself struggled financially while her husband gallivanted with his new wife in Mexico. However the article’s main strength which is its emotional appeal of how men could abandon women also

Business Decision Making Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Business Decision Making - Essay Example The purpose of the market research is normally to choose the right customers for the business. This is to ensure that the business meets the needs of the customers and there is no wastage of resources in marketing to people for whom the business is targeted. Choosing the people to be included in the survey refers to defining the population for the research. Broadly, for any research it is essential that the targeted segments who use the products and services and are concerned with the company in some way. Thus it is essential to rightly define the population as it would allow the marketing efforts to be more effective and would also led to a gain results from the survey and any money that is spent on the business. The next section allows for a clearer understanding of why the defining of population is essential while undertaking a research. There are a number of aspects of defining the population which will be clearly understood by these examples. In short, aspects like the importanc e in terms of the marketing efforts, also to gain reliable results which can form a strong basis for the company. (i) A survey on driving: While conducting a research on driving, it would be unnecessary to interview people who do not drive or even do not have a driving license. In a case like this, if a company surveys interviews and conducts a survey of people who do not know how to drive, or people who do not have a car, or even interviewing minors, the solutions to the result will be unreliable. This is mainly because while conducting a research it is essential to rightly choose the people who are related to the research. Hence the defined market will be individuals who are above the age for obtaining a driving license, people who know how to drive and also who either have a car or have access to a car. These groups of people will form the right target for the research, and will provide reliable answers for the research. (ii) A survey on attitudes to smoking at the work place:

Smallpox Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Smallpox - Article Example There was some opposition regarding terms posted for getting vaccination. Certain difficulties were encountered during the process of eradication. WHO faced serious financial difficulties and it lacked constant support from its various offices within its framework. The above bottle necks were overcome in 1970's with the help of various governments and development agencies. U.S joined hands with countries like Russia and the WHO framework to make eradication a success. The decade of 1970 played a major role in helping the eradication of small pox by conducting expanded Programme on Immunization. The smallpox eradication was then certified based on intense verification performed in the countries by a group of scientists who confirmed it in December 1979 and was acknowledged by WHO's Health Assembly in 1980. 1980 witnessed the fulfillment of the goal which was considered impossible. This was the greatest achievement of global public health in the 20th century. After the 1980's, people were free from the deadly virus. But it did not last for a longer time. WHO announced multiple deadlines in 1993, 1995 and 1999 to eradicate the remaining virus stocks. But they failed to accomplish the task in the expected deadline. In 2002 U.S saw a sudden outbreak of small pox.

Fair Value Accounting Essay Example for Free

Fair Value Accounting Essay Topic: To what extent is â€Å"Fair Value Accounting† an effective method in measuring the values of financial instruments in financial statement? In recent years, the breakout of global financial crisis has raised controversial debates about whether or not fair value accounting (FVA) is an effective method in measuring the values of financial instruments (Laux Leuz, 2009). As two main accounting standards around the world, both International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and US Financial Accounting Standards (FAS) have adopted FVA as an accounting method to judge the values of some financial instruments (Mala and Chand, 2011). This essay will argue that although FVA can provide timely and transparent price information to the users of accounting information in some cases, there are potential problems of FVA in measuring the values of financial instruments on account of unreliable evaluation models, biased prices in inefficient markets and a negative price contagion effect. There are three main parts in this essay. Firstly, it will give the definition of FVA and then it will analyze why the effectiveness of FVA may be limited from three aspects, namely unreliable evaluation models, biased prices in inefficient markets and a negative price contagion effect. At last, it will consider the pros of FVA regarding the timely and transparent information it provides in some cases and analyze the pros. According to Financial Accounting Standards 157, fair value accounting can be defined as â€Å"an accounting method to measure the values of assets and liabilities based on the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date†. That is to say, FVA relies on the actual market prices of the financial instruments and records the exact market prices on the financial statements. In fact, FVA replaces historical cost accounting (HCA) with the development of accounting standards (Boyer, 2007). Compared with FVA, historical cost accounting can be described as an accounting measurement of values based on the original or historical cost when the company got the assets or liabilities. For example, a company bought a stock for 50 pounds last year. In this year, the price of the stock increases to 100 pounds. Under FVA, the company should record the value of  the stock at 100 pounds this year while 50 pounds will be recognized under HCA. As the replaced FVA has been regarding as accelerating the global financial crisis, it draws a lot of attention in respect of its potential weaknesses in the accounting field. Firstly, the model to estimate fair values of financial instruments in illiquid markets seems to have insufficient reliability (Laux Leuz 2009 and Mala Chand 2011). If the markets for the identical or similar financial instruments whose values need to be evaluated are active, the available prices can be used to evaluate the fair values of them (Laux Leuz 2009). However, if the markets do not exist, which means the the markets are inactive or illiquid, the fair evaluation model is needed to estimate the fair value of the financial instruments (Ball 2006). Specifically speaking, the model to evaluate fair values of financial instruments rely on the future cash flow of the financial instruments and borrowing rate of the company. The future cash flow can be described as the future cash inflow (income) and outflow (expense) brought by the financial instruments whilst the borrowing rate of a company can be considered as the cost of capital which can be invested in other investments rather than the financial instruments. The users of the evaluation model should firstly predict the future cash flow of the financial instruments and then use the borrowing rate of the company to calculate the present fair values. Ljiri (2005) states that using model to estimate the values of financial instruments provides significant discretionary power to the users and gives uncertainty, which may influence the objectivity of the valuation of financial instruments. Indeed, the same financial instrument could be evaluated differently on account of different estimation of future cash flows and distinct borrowing rate. Because the users of the evaluation model have the power to forecast the future cash flow, different users may have distinct estimations of the same financial instrument based on their perspectives of its future profitability. In addition, different companies may have different borrowing rates due to distinct industries involved. Thus, the above two uncertain factors affects the objectivity of the fair evaluation of the financial instruments, which limits the reliability of the evaluation model. Secondly, the inefficient markets could distort prices, which has a negative effect on the basis of FVA (Laux Leuz 2009). An inefficient market can be defined as a market in which the prices of financial instruments can not be measured accurately due to the inefficient information it provides (Aboody et. al 2002). Additionally, Lim and Brooks (2010) review the empirical literature about the evolution of market efficiency over time and find that the market cannot be always efficient and market inefficiency can be easily caused by investor irrationality and liquidity problems. That is to say, the market prices of financial instruments could be distorted by biased behaviors of investors, such as overconfidence or overreaction to a stock, and liquidity problems, such as illiquid market for a long-term bond. What’s more, the distorted prices can not reflect the real values of financial instruments, which makes FVA lose the reliable basis to measure the fair value of financial instruments. Therefore, the biased prices in the inefficient markets tend to the appropriateness of fair evaluation of financial instruments. Thirdly, Laux and Leuz (2009) argues that FVA could enforce negative price contagion in the financial markets, which has been considered as the main cause of rapid spread of global financial crisis. It is argued that FVA has stimulated the financial crisis in a vicious spiral and leading to the spread and depth of the financial crisis (Begtsoon 2011, Allen and Carletti 2007, Appelbaum 2009 and Jones 2009). To be specific, after financial crisis broke out, the liquidity of financial instruments’ markets dried up, which means very few trades of the financial instruments existed in the markets (Begtsoon 2011). As a result, the market pricing mechanism became dysfunctional because the prices should be evaluated from very few trades, which resulted in low prices of financial instruments (ibid). In turn, the low prices put pressure on the financial statements of some financial institutions in terms of assets depreciation under FVA (Allen Carletti 2008). In order to keep capital requirements, the financial institutions had no choice but to sell assets at low prices, which led to lower prices of financial instruments in the markets and stimulated further assets depreciation on other financial instruments’ financial statements under FVA  (Plantin et al. 2008a). To sum up, the prices in the market could negatively influence the evaluation of financial instruments under FVA and at the same time, the evaluation of financial instruments under FVA could have a further negative effect on the market prices, which forms a vicious circle that can speed up the price contagion and fluctuations. Nevertheless, supporters of FVA believe that FVA can provide transparent and timely information for the users of accounting information (Brown 2008). As Hughes (2009) says, the function of FVA is â€Å"like that of the thermometer-it mirrors reality, it does not create it†. Since FVA can reflect what is happening in the market on the financial statements immediately, it allows the information users to get easy access to the most timely and transparent market information. In addition, Hinks (2009) argues that the useful information provided by FVA allows the investors and regulators to approach to the up-to-date position of financial institutions and encourage them to make corrective decisions. Indeed, it cannot be denied that FVA can provide prompt and transparent price information in some cases. However, it is not always the case which contributes FVA to an effective measurement to value financial instruments. First of all, in an illiquid or inefficient market for some financial instruments, even if FVA could provide timely price information of the financial instruments, the timely information provided is unreliable, which leads to the uselessness of the timely and transparent information provided by FVA. Secondly, even though the financial instruments have an active or efficient market, FVA cannot result in increased transparency of information in financial statements as expected (Krumwiede 2008). Thirdly, under FVA, timely price information would lead to volatility of financial statements (Barth 2004). The continuous volatility of financial statements causes confusion for the users of accounting information and raises the company’s cost to keep accounts. Hence, although FVA could offer some timely and transparent information to the users, these information limits to some extent because of unreliable information, limited transparency and volatility of financial statements. In conclusion, this essay has discussed three aspects limiting the effectiveness of FVA to measure the values of financial instruments, including evaluation model, inefficient markets and price contagion effect. In addition, it also considers the pros of FVA in terms of timely and transparent information provided in some cases. It can be concluded that even though up-to-date and transparent information could be provided by FVA occasionally, the effectiveness of FVA to measure the values of financial instruments has been limited due to the unreliable evaluation model, distorted prices in inefficient markets and a negative price contagion effect. Because of word limit, this essay cannot cover the detailed application of FVA to specific kind of financial instrument. However, the above discussion can clearly show that FVA has some general problems in measuring the values of financial instruments. Based on above analysis, it can be suggested that the problematic aspects of FVA could be improved or revised by providing more clear explanation and more specific regulations by the constitutors of accounting standards and for some specific financial instruments with illiquid or inefficient markets, it is better to use some other methods to measure their values.