North Country Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

North Country - Essay Example However, an underlying issue in this positive feedback was the equally superb characterization of the other roles, which highlighted the value of the Josey Aimes character. One of the most important of these supporting roles was the character played by Frances McDormand, Glory Dodge. She was Aimes’ best friend and that she was the one who encouraged Josey to work on the mines. In perhaps the best description of Glory, Kyle spoke on her behalf and declared: â€Å"My name is Glory Dodge and I’m not fucking dead yet. I stand with Josey.† Through the other characters, Theron was able to deliver and demonstrate what was called for by her role. There was a requirement to give the character as well as the narrative the compelling human detail. Through Dodge, for example, the director and storyteller were able to depict a believable Josey, one who just wanted a house of her own, sufficient meals and clothes for her children and just enough extra dollars so she could buy her son hockey skates once in a while. Dodge played the proverbial best friend, who was there to highlight the need, frustrations and longings of the leading character. In many instances, she offered the ways out of the mess for Josey. Concerning the mine, it was Glory who told Josey about the mine, about how working for it could mean a decent life for her family. Dodge, besides playing the part of the best friend – the person who is there to help, cheer, scold and be nice to Josey – also reinforced Aimes’ experience as a woman miner. Like Josey, she was a miner and had been subjected to such workplace vicissitudes including being sexually harassed, discriminated upon and treated as someone inferior simply because of her gender. Glory warned that Josey have to be tough and that she should learn to get right back to the men and not to show that her experiences get to her. What is interesting here is that Dodge offered an alternative approach in dealing with

Managing teams effectively Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Managing teams effectively - Essay Example An obstructionist or a toxic group member is usually an individual who methodically and systematically impedes and blocks the progress of a project (Holpp, 1098). Hence, team leadership essentially involves the talent and the ability to deal with all forms of members in a team, be it the slackers or an obstructionist. As per the existing knowledge and theories of team management, the best way to deal with a slacker or an obstructionist is to follow a mixed approach, which aims at confronting the inherent propensities of such people, to bring them out into the open, while accompanied by soft tactics like acknowledging one’s best qualities and by motivating one to contribute to team effort (Holpp, 1998). Such a hot and cold approach towards the personality types under consideration is bound to yield the desired results, because of its moderation and versatility (Holpp, 1998). A slacker shirks responsibility or work does not mean that one is devoid of talent, skills, insight or a ptitude. So, simply speaking, a slacker stands to be a potential asset for a team if somehow one figures out a way to make one work (Holpp, 1988). Usually a slacker tends to avoid or by pass responsibility because one has a perception that the other team members are not consciously aware of one’s tactics of or predilection for doing so (Holpp, 1998). So the most effective way to disarm a slacker is to confront one and make one realize that the others are well cognizant of one’s talent for shirking work. However, confrontation here does not connote to aggressive or brazen interactions. In fact it means making a slacker realize that in a friendly and decent way, while giving one a chance to save face. A slacker is a talented person who cheats on work, and once one realizes that others are well aware of one’s propensity to cheat, one will certainly avoid repeating such a behavior, at least conspicuously (Holpp, 1998). Bringing things out into the open should be acc ompanied by meaningful soft strategies like defining the job responsibility of a slacker, appreciating one for one’s abilities and the immense contribution one could make to the team, allocating one short term targets with chalked out deadlines and the like. On the contrary, if a slacker continues to cheat even when one is revealed, then this calls for a timely disciplinary action. One way or other, sooner or later, a slacker will have to be confronted. There is no other way out, or is there? The team is bound to lose or face unrest if it indefinitely allows a member to be a non performer (Holpp, 1998). When it comes to an obstructionist, they are the team members who stymie projects while strongly believing that their stratagems are not obvious to other team members (Holpp, 1998). Again, bringing things out into the open by confronting an obstructionist is the best possible way to desist one. However, such a confrontation is bound to fail if not accompanied by a revelation o f the strategy and modus operandi of an obstructionist, as it will give one a chance to deny charges (Holpp, 1998). There are many ways in which an obstructionist operates. Some tend to withhold the information required by a team to succeed. There are others who bring in an element of aggression and controversy in the group meetings to mislead a team from its real objectives. Then there come obstructionists who play on resources by allocating resources to

Science report in Media vs. Scholarly Sources Essay

Science report in Media vs. Scholarly Sources - Essay Example Some of these tend to support the scientific views raised in various scholarly journals by asserting the relevance in the exact influence of the distance from the sun to the earth on seasonal changes. Other reports have, however, provided contesting results citing different perspectives to the development. This paper provides a comparative analysis of the scientific and scholarly sources in regard to the view on the relationship between the distances from the sun to the earth on seasonal changes taking place over the surface of the earth. Scientific literature describing the association between temperatures variations and the sun’s insulations reaching the earth at different times of the year show that the distance between the sun and the earth influence not only the time of occurrence of seasons but also the intensity and extent of occurrence for such seasonal changes. An observational study conducted by Fligge, Solanki, Unruh, FroK, & Wehrli (1998) on the amount of Pleistocene melt ice indicates different degrees of melting ice at different times of the year and at different points of the earths surface both in the northern and in the southern hemispheres. The connection between the changes experienced in the extent of glacial melts and the alignments of the earth’s orbit was first proposed by one scientific observer Adhemar. His observations were based on the fact that the Antarctic ice is present due to the fact that the winter seasons in the southern hemisphere are longer than the winter in the nor thern hemisphere by up to 8 days thus allowing additionally longer time for the Antarctic ice to form. The effect, as Fligge, Solanki, Unruh, FroK, & Wehrli (1998) observes, result in the thickness of the Antarctic ice being more than the Arctic region. Winter was defined by Adhemar as the period between the equinoxes (the period when the sun is overhead the equator). Besides these

Performance Appraisal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Performance Appraisal - Essay Example The performance appraisals are used to give feedback to the employee on the performance rating and the need for improvements. This also expresses the need for trainings, promotion, demotion, retention or firing. The performance appraisal is among the critical factors of a manger or a leader to provide employee with the feedback and clarify the job expectations. An effective performance appraisal enables employees to know about themselves and understand the management values. The performance appraisals make use of evaluations as feedback in order to improve the performance of employee and reduce the turnover. It increases motivation and instills a feeling of equity among the employees. The appraisals act as a linkage between the rewards and performance. This enhances performance as employees are told about their performance and related strengths and weaknesses. This makes the employees become proud of whatever they are doing well and enables them focus their efforts on areas that require improvement. In overall, organization will benefit when the performance of the employees improves. Every organization is interested in witnessing their employees advance in the company and get other better and well paying positions. This is normally brought about by performance appraisal. For instance, when an employee is told to improve personal skills to be eligible for the following promotion may act as a driving force to that employee to enable them improve their per formance (Goswami, 2013). The performance appraisals are used by the management in making important decisions by the management. These decisions include promotions, demotions, firing and remunerations among many others. Efficient organizations must have established means through which they can make their decisions. The decisions depend on appraisal data. The appraisals can be considered as efficient tools in documenting the organizational decisions. This

Dengue in Brazil, Situation, transmission and control Research Paper

Dengue in Brazil, Situation, transmission and control - Research Paper Example The first reported incidences of dengue in Brazil were in 1923 in Sà £o Paulo and Niteroi in which 11000 people were infected. DENV-1 and DENV-4 were the strains reported, both of which came from the Caribbean and South America over the Venezuelan border (Teixeira, 2008). The Ae aegypti virus was new in Brazil hence was quickly eliminated. DENV1 reappeared in 1986 in Nova Iguaà §u and spread rapidly, with 35000 and 60000 reported incidences in 1986 and 19887 respectively (Marzochi, 1994). DENV-2 came about in Rio de Janeiro and Nova Iguaà §u, where 462 cases and eight deaths took place. Aedes aegypti extended the spread of DENV1 and DENV-2 all over Brazil. DENV-3 serotype was responsible for the 2001 outbreak of dengue in Brazil, with 800000 cases reported. In 2008, 700000 infections and 45000 hospitalizations were reported. Since 1990 to 2008, lethality of 7.4% has occurred due to dengue. Children are the most affected by dengue in Brazil as of 2008 (Teixeira & Barreto, 2008). Preventing and controlling the spread of dengue is a nightmare because of lack of a reliable vaccine and the high competence of the dengue viruses. Ae. aegypti especially is adapted to breeding in highly populated areas and is, therefore, hard to eliminate. Wet tropical conditions also aid these mosquitoes to breed. The control of dengue also involves means that are harmful to the environment since the insecticides used are poisonous, and there are insufficient funds to carry this task (Marzochi, 1994). America stressed on controlling the spread of dengue rather than its elimination since the latter was proving impossible. However, dengue has still been a problem because its strains can spread even in places with fewer vectors. Two projects have been carried out to control it spread but both proved futile due to financial and political limitations. To control its spread, Brazilians have been educated about it through corporate events (Dione &

Breakup of the Soviet Union Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Breakup of the Soviet Union - Essay Example There were many reasons for the disintegration of USSR. Economic collapse: The cold war between the America and USSR had created a virtual battleground for the two countries in which both tried to get an advantage over the other. It initiated the race for arms and both countries tried to acquire and produce better weapons to keep the other country in line. For the USSR, the arms race created a lot of problems. A high amount of the budget was spent on the military while the industry and other sectors received only a very small share. Such a large yearly output being devoted only for the cause of military resulted in the decline of the country’s economy which finally went into stagnation. The two countries also engaged in a ‘space race’ releasing shuttles and satellites into the space to improve their technological standings. This also caused the USSR a lot of money and caused resentment among the general public as the amount was not being used to satisfy their basi c needs. A major blow to the USSR economy was also made by the change in Saudi Arabia’s oil policies.... Also the regions within the USSR like Tajikistan that had ethnic links with the Afghans did not favor the war and hence an internal unrest was born inside the USSR (The Collapse of the Soviet Union). Gorbachev's reforms: The stagnation of the country and the obsolete political system of the country forced Gorbachev to introduce new reforms that could revitalize the economy and stabilize the existing political conditions. He introduced two famous reforms namely 'glasnost' and 'perestroika' which called for freedom of speech and political reconstruction respectively. The reforms however backfired and lead to the collapse of USSR. The transparency and the freedom of speech allowed the media to talk about corruption, alcoholism, political scandals and other issues that defamed the government. As the events like Chernobyl disaster and the Afghan war began to be showed in a negative light by the media the distrust of the general public on the Soviet government gradually increased. The stor ies of political killings and massacres in individual states like Armenia instilled the spirit of freedom and peaceful protests like The Baltic way began to be held in the entire country (Spielvogel). The democratization brought in as a result of perestroika provided more authority to the public and they openly spoke against the government. Gorbachev's reforms might have been for the good of the country but it produced radical unforeseen effects and the timing was certainly not right as his reforms ultimately resulted in the disintegration of USSR. US policies: While the above three factors played the most important role in the disintegration, the role of US cannot be denied. Ronald Regan, the president of US of that time made use of the deteriorating conditions of the USSR

Reflection paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Reflection - Research Paper Example On the other side, the director did not try to make use of his individual freedom in the movie Lord of the Flies. In short, I consider the film Lord of the Flies as the visual version of the novel. This reflection paper is divided into three: human psychology, alienation and survival instinct, and struggle to gain ultimate power. Human psychology I like to visualize how I react when I happen to reach an uninhabited island. In the film, one can see that the director followed the novel, but provides ample importance to human psychology. For instance, the boys (say, military school cadets) like Ralph and Jack possess leadership quality. Ralph tries to make use of his leadership quality to help others and plans to escape from the island. But Jack makes of his leadership quality to intimidate others and to control them. The clash between Ralph and Jack divides the boys into two groups. One can see that cohesive feeling leads to unity in a diverse society. When we face a personal problem, our family members help us to solve the same. Within the context of the film, cohesive feeling helps the boys to survive. But some of the boys under Jack’s leadership exhibit their real character of savagery. On the other side, revolt against leadership is related to survival. ... In the film, Jack is not ready to use him leadership quality for the wellbeing of his followers. Instead, he tries to kill Ralph and his followers. So, the director makes use of the characters like Ralph and Jack to unveil the differences among human beings. Alienation and survival instinct If I happen to be in a far away Island, I will try my level best to survive. Then, I will consider the scope of escaping from the Island. One can see that survival is most important for an individual who is entrapped in a lonely island. In the film, the director portrays the boys’ attempt to survive in the island. The boys are military school cadets but they face alienation in the island because their motherland is far away. When we face the problem of alienation in the society, we react differently. For instance, some individuals will be ready to face the problem and some others will consider that their life is doomed. But some others will try to grab leadership. In the film, most of the b oys are ready to accept Ralphs’ leadership, because he is an inborn leader. The boys considered that Ralph can help the group to escape from the island. The survival instinct inherent in human beings is helpful to deal with critical conditions in life. But Jack considers Ralph as an enemy and tries to kill him. One can see that Jack’s aim was not to escape from the island, but to create his own kingdom in the island. He provides less importance to alienation and related issues. In the film, Ralph’s leadership proves to be unsuccessful because he fails to take apt decisions in critical conditions. On the other side, Jack exploits Ralph’s drawbacks and gains the confidence of the other members of the group. The struggle to gain ultimate power The fight between good and