Is playing Sports a Good Hobby ?

Sport is identified as a physical activity carried out by human beings usually executed by following a set of rules and principles to ensure fair competition among the candidates. Playing sports and indulging in physical activities aids in confirming various health benefits including comfortable respiration, muscular development, bone strength, advanced life expectancy, and coronary fitness. Playing sports helps in safeguarding the body and prevents it from contracting various types of diseases like cancer.Also, it assists in controlling unnecessary weight gain and depression by diverting the mind in a positive direction. Some of the affirmative effects of playing sports have been discussed below. It is a known fact that regaling in any kind of physical activity leads to a healthy workout and consequently promotes weight loss. Sports acts as a catalyst for the metabolic processes and resultantly increases lean body mass, burns calories and aids in attaining perfect body shape.There i s a lot of variation in the amount of suggested physical work. It is mainly due to the variation in the shape/size of the body of different individuals and amount of calorie input, nonetheless it is remedial for people who are obese. As enumerated by the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, Weight stability can be obtained if 2-5 hours are invested in playing averagely demanding sports. Playing high intensity sport is extremely significant for people who wish to reduce their weight adequately.It is advised by physicians that people of all age groups must undertake any kind of physical activity or sport as it in helps in cultivating a healthy heart and mind. As delineated by the British Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, about 40 percent of deaths related to coronary heart disease take place due to insufficient physical work, overweight, mental stress and increased blood pressure. Sports can help in dealing with these physical ailments by reducing the contingen cy of coronary disease by almost 50 percent.Decrease in the strength of muscles, bones and joints, is an inevitable corollary of growing old. Aged people are advised to go for regular walks and practice numerous physical exercises so that their body parts are in healthy and working condition. Thus, it can be concluded that playing sports is very significant for people of all age groups and must be taken up seriously in order to maintain a healthy body.

Scaling Social Entrepreneurship

Social Entrepreneurship Should Address the Large Social Problems 53 VII- Scaling Social Entrepreneurship 58 VIII- The Conclusions 81 Footnotes 5 Many people stimulated my thinking on social entrepreneurship during my years at the non-profit foundation One Laptop per Child (OLAP). Their ideas may not be fully acknowledged in this book. I would like to thank Giuliani Atomic, Marina Cortes, Chuck Kane, Walter Bender, and Miguel Brenner for their friendship, patient explanations and insights that enabled me to hopefully better understand social problems and how social entrepreneurship can be applied to achieve solutions to such problems.Chuck also arranged for me to teach a course in social entrepreneurship each January in 2011-2015 at the MIT Sloan School of Management. Richard Bernstein of Greenberg Trauma should also be recognized for bringing me the opportunity to work for the first time In my career in the non-profit sector. As explained in the following Introduction, a single comme nt by Nicholas Negotiate led me to write this book. Another comment from Nicholas may be the basis for my third book. Any errors in this book are solely my responsibility.Many people encouraged me to write a book about OLAP. I elected not to do such a book but rather to more generally discuss the lessons I learned about how to scale a social entrepreneurship project. For more on the philosophy and history of OLAP I My favorite OLAP picture. West Bank 2010 8 Introduction From September 2009 until April 2013 1 served as the CUFF of One Laptop per Child Association. The mission of OLAP is to provide a modern education through a connected laptop to every child in the developing world.Nicholas Negotiate, Seymour Paper and several other professors and staff at the MIT Media Lab founded OLAP in 2005. Nicholas was the co-founder of the oral famous MIT Media Lab and Seymour, his colleague at the Media Lab, was one of the leading authorities in the area of how to facilitate child learning thr ough computers. When Nicholas founded the MIT Media Lab he adopted two principles that established the culture of the organization: 1. â€Å"Demo or die† 2. â€Å"Do the impossible† â€Å"Demo or die† basically determined the type of research that was desired.Rather than writing academic papers, students at the Media Lab were required to develop working prototypes, either physical working models or working computer code for computer-based solutions. Paper's views on constructionist and constructivism in learning probably contributed to this approach. Alan Kay, another MIT faculty member of considerable distinction, may have also influenced this tenet. â€Å"Do the Impossible† defined the types of problems that were acceptable to work on and was based on the thinking of the legendary MIT professor Marvin Minsk.Students were encouraged to work on large, difficult problems where the technology for a solution did not already exist. This focus on large problem s is consistent with the concept in entrepreneurship to focus on large market opportunities, although at the Media Lab it was understood that the sponsors of the Media Lab would license and commercialism the new technology developed. This orientation toward large, difficult problems guided the philosophy and development of OLAP Loop's mission is to provide a laptop to 1. Billion children in primary schools throughout the world. To achieve this end OLAP needed a solution that would scale on several dimensions. In one of our occasional discussions said to Nicholas that OLAP, although it originated as a detonative non-profit, was a great example of social entrepreneurship. Nicholas spooned, â€Å"social entrepreneurship does not scale. † As was the case several times, Nicholas made a single statement that prompted me to go off and think about an issue-?sometimes for several years-? which resulted in this book. Note: Nicholas' view of the limitations of social entrepreneurship is based on a belief that to achieve scale in solving social problems an organization had to engage national governments around the world. Such governments were much more likely to â€Å"partner† with non-profits that did not have the profit motive of an entrepreneur. ] Prior to OLAP I spent 30 years working in the private sector and twenty of hose years I worked outside the U. S. I have worked in over forty countries, mostly in Asia 10 and Latin America, and I lived in Peru and Indonesia.One advantage of spending so much time overseas is that I was able to first hand observe a country's development over a significant period of time. With the exception of China, every country that I visited beginning in the 1 sass exhibited a significant improvement in the standard of living by the start of the 21 SST century through the capitalist system of free enterprise. The examples I would cite to demonstrate my point would include Mexico, Singapore, Korea,Taiwan, Peru and Thailand, all o f which were very undeveloped countries in the early 1 sass and today are vibrant economies with a significant improvement in the standard of living. While stable governments, democracy and globalization were all contributing factors in certain countries, see capitalism as the one common factor in the countries I cited and in many other countries. Based on my own experience I have great confidence in capitalist, profit companies as a way to improve peoples lives anywhere in the world and thereby address social needs.During the financial crisis of 2008 when the world economic system purportedly came close to collapse, the issue of the morality of capitalism re- emerged as a popular topic and encouraged the growth of social entrepreneurship. History often paints capitalism as fundamentally amoral, lacking a moral system. Milton Friedman's now famous dictum that the purpose of a corporation is to maximize shareholder returns did much to popularize the absence of morality in capitalism. However, to criticize capitalism for a lack of morality based on the egregious behavior of a few individuals is comparable to criticizing the social system of 11 â€Å"government† because of the behavior of Hitler or Stalin. It is the people pirating the social system that may be immoral and generally not the system itself. My belief that capitalism can behave morally and make a social contribution is in part based on the nine years spent working in Indonesia. Indonesia is one of the poorest countries in Asia with per capita income of $600 or about $2 per day during most of the time I lived there (1990-1999).With a lot of other people helping, I built a billion dollar retail company in seven years that purchased $700 million dollars a year in locally manufactured merchandise, created 20,000 new retail jobs, built out one million square feet of retail space ere year and was one of the largest private sector tax payers in the country. These activities had a positive social and economic benefit beyond just our employees for thousands of other workers and their families in Indonesia. No socially motivated MONGO, multi-lateral bank or non-profit organization improved the number of lives we benefited operating a for-profit company.Perhaps only the Indonesian government affected more people than this private retail company. The point here is not to toot my horn but rather to show the positive impact in a poor country of a large, private, for-profit many with no explicit â€Å"social† mission. This confidence in the capitalist system instinctively makes me suspect of the need for the adjective â€Å"social† to modify entrepreneurship. (This may be similar to the debate in microeconomics over whether â€Å"utility† needed the modifier â€Å"marginal†. â€Å"Social† to modify entrepreneurship implies that this form of entrepreneurship is 12 more focused on societal, economic and environmental problems than traditional entreprene urship. Also implied is the idea that creating social value is better or preferred to merely creating economic value. Setting aside he problem of how one might measure â€Å"social† value, would question the premise that we even need a distinction for the social value component in social entrepreneurship, particularly given my experience in Indonesia.Despite my reluctance to acknowledge â€Å"social† as a meaningful distinction in entrepreneurship, I have organized this book on social entrepreneurship to develop the following themes: Why social entrepreneurship emerged as a new â€Å"business model†, which includes an argument for how to combine capitalism and morality as an integrated approach (Chapter I-The Emergence of Social Entrepreneurship in he 21st Century) The government's defined role as the sole provider of â€Å"public good† has been relaxed, opening the door for the private sector to provide social services (Chapter II- Government and the Pub lic Good) The non-profit movement has influenced the development Of social entrepreneurship, resulting in social entrepreneurs erroneously electing non- profits status.Such an election restricts access to capital markets (in my experience) and deprives them of a key resource to scale their organizations 13 which we call â€Å"society' and the former [state] ought to provide merely a Hayes rotational entrepreneurship have made a significant contribution to addressing social problems worldwide. (Chapter VIII-The Conclusions) 15 Chapter I-The Emergence of Social Entrepreneurship in the 21 SST Century Many believe that social entrepreneurship emerged as an alternative form of entrepreneurship in the first decade of the 21st century because more and more people were turning away from â€Å"big business† in order to â€Å"do good† and â€Å"save the world†. While true for some individuals, I believe that four factors explain the emergence of social entrepreneurship: 1. A Nobel prize for Muhammad Nuns . A renewal of the question of whether capitalism is moral 3.A wide spread recognition that government alone cannot solve social problems 4. The writings of C. K. Parallax and Clayton Christensen Muhammad Nuns and C. K. Parallax deserve much of the credit for the emergence of social entrepreneurship. The fact that Nuns is from Bangladesh and Parallax is from India is not a coincidence, but rather the basis for their more profound understanding of the dynamics of developing markets and their populations. Social entrepreneurship gained international acclaim when Muhammad Nuns on the Nobel Prize in 2006 for his micro-lending activities in Bangladesh. Providing loans to foster economic development for very poor people had never been done on a large scale prior to Nuns' Grahame Bank.Grahame Bank is now one of the largest companies in the world using social entrepreneurship as its business model, with 16 annual revenues in 201 1 exceeding $170 million. T om's Shoes, to be discussed in Chapter V, may indeed be larger, but I could not find any reliable information on annual revenues. The key factor to explain the success Of the Nuns' program was that poor people actually do repay their loans (despite life to the contrary by many). I learned the same lesson in Indonesia in the asses building a credit card program for customers that earned only $1000 per year. The economic crisis of 2007 re-opened the debate from the asses about the morality of capitalism and the reasons for renewed debate were the same.A period of high economic growth and significant wealth accumulation was followed by a period of major economic collapse. Such wide swings in the economy were perceived as the fault of the capitalists and their immoral behavior, as evidenced by all the average people whose lives were disrupted hen the economy crashed. Faced With such stern criticism and claims of immorality, a natural outgrowth was for everyone, including for-profit corp orations, to act in ways that were more socially responsible. One derivative idea was social entrepreneurship. Harvard Business School (HOBS) weighed in with several articles in support of capitalism and social responsibility.After all why do we need a business school if capitalism is doomed to collapse under the weight of its immoral behavior? Michael Porter, the world-renowned strategy professor at the school, described the situation after 2007: 17 The capitalist system is under siege. In recent years business increasingly has been viewed as a major cause of social, environmental, and economic problems. Companies are widely perceived to be prospering at the expense of the broader community. † porter's solution is the concept of â€Å"shared value†, which he defines as: creating economic value in a way that also creates value for society by addressing its needs and challenges†¦ He concept of shared value†¦ Recognizes that societal needs, not just conventional economic needs, define markets. It also recognizes that social harms or weaknesses frequently rate internal costs for firms-?such as wasted energy or raw materials, costly accidents, and the need for remedial training to compensate for inadequacies in education. † 1 A classic example of shared value is a company that should avoid polluting a river because the pollution kills the company's potential customers down river. If this example does not move you to reconsider the morality of capitalism, other professors at HOBS offered perhaps more persuasive arguments.Rebecca Henderson and Karachi Raman from HOBS produced a paper titled â€Å"Managers and Market Capitalism†. Long overdue, in my opinion, the authors introduce the need for morality in capitalism. The paper argues that businesses have a moral responsibility in addition to Milton Friedman's economic dictum to maximize shareholder returns. The authors argue that businesses have a moral 18 obligation to serve societ y by preserving free markets and capitalism and not just satisfy the self-interest of shareholders. Essentially if capitalism and free markets were to end, the shareholders would be harmed by a significant or total loss in the value of their shareholdings.Therefore, egregious behavior, such as the 2007 financial crisis, undermines the integrity of capitalism and ere markets and is therefore immoral. Although the authors did not extend the argument, I believe that they would agree that more socially responsible behavior by corporations fosters more confidence in capitalism and thereby benefits shareholders. Many argue implicitly or explicitly for the need for more social ventures, including social entrepreneurship, due to the lack Of a moral compass in for-profit ventures as a result of the underlying concept of self-interest. I believe that Henderson and Raman present a simple logic that shows for-profit managers a reason for moral behavior-?the reservation of the capitalist system. While it may not meet the standards of the Ten Commandments or other well-known moral systems, preserving the capitalist system does provide the basis to infuse capitalism with an easily understood morality-?act in ways which foster an appreciation and respect for capitalism by society. All but the most die-hard communist should see value in the argument. If not yet convinced about the role Of morality in capitalism, Herbert Simon, the 1978 Nobel Prize winner in economics offers support to introduce morality in capitalism. Simon developed the concept of bounded rationality– sections can only be optimal and never maximized. Bounded rationality offers for-profit managers the 19 â€Å"flexibility† for considerable moral and socially beneficial behaviors to perpetuate the capitalist system. Optimal decisions are by definition a matter of interpretation and not held to the more rigorous standard of minimization.

The cairn energy and the energy crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

The cairn energy and the energy crisis - Essay Example The entire study has been conducted in order to find out the management theories applied to the organization and also the theories which should be followed in future in order to excel in its performance. Introduction The theories of management namely Internal Process Model, Rational Goal Model, Human Relations Model and Open System Model became popular in the sequence stated above in response to the business environmental requirements. The Internal Process Model can also be termed as professional bureaucracy or Weberian Bureaucracy. In this model it is assumed that the efficiency of the worker would grow if they are kept under policies and procedures. Their responsibilities should be clearly defined, positions should be organized in a hierarchy of authority, standard rules and procedures should be guiding all in the organization, promotion and selections should be done on the basis of employees’ technical abilities, decisions should be recorded and well maintained in written f orm and last but not the least in this bureaucratic scenario the employees in an organization should be uniformly guided by policies and procedures (Boddy, 2008). ... The leaders were task and goal oriented where human relations did not have any value. Time came when the Rational Goal Model started to be obsolete since it is very difficult to suppress the humane feelings of employees for a longer time, and relationships among the co workers started taking the greater priority for determining the efficiency level of the employee in an organization. Hence the Human relations theory propagated by Elton Mayo took birth through a series of studies at Hawthorn plant of the General Electric Company. The better the relations among the co workers the higher the productivity would be. The theory also suggested that the empathetic behavior of supervisor and his attention to the employees also enhances their productivity. Thus the human relations theory of management was successful in its approach. In modern times the business environment has become very dynamic and unstable (Boddy 2008). To complement the other three approaches the fourth theory which evolve d was the Open systems model. In this model the organization in a business environment would be required to accept the input received from the outer environment and accordingly modify its own system of work, policies and procedures (Boddy 2008). This paper shows the application of the mentioned management theories in case of Cairn Energy especially in the midst of energy crisis. Application Cairn Energy is a one of the biggest and prominent oil and gas companies in Europe. It is based in Edinburg with main interest in India and Greenland. It finds its name on the list of London Stock Exchange. The company produces oil and gas assets across the world with key focus in South Asia, comprising of more than 40 discoveries in the nations of India (focus on Rajasthan with

Speech, Language and Communication are different aspects of the same Essay - 3

Speech, Language and Communication are different aspects of the same process. Compare and contrast these aspects - Essay Example Therefore, language and speech are both different aspects of a communication process. It is regarded as a process with various characteristics including its continuous, dynamic and has elements that occur simultaneously (Miller, 2011). It is also regarded as a process because of its symbolic nature, that is, it relies heavily on symbols with arbitrary meanings. Communication as a process also occurs in a contextual manner. That being another feature of communication, the context includes language, cultures, social structure and the individual relation between the receiver and the source (Miller, 2011). A speech is also regarded as what one gives in front of a group of either people, which can be interpersonal or public speaking, which, in turn, means language is what we use to deliver the speech (Miller, 2011). Communication, therefore, is the way the speech is delivered. Language is different from speech because it consists of socially shared rules, which include how to put words together to make a meaning, what or the exact meaning of each of the words used, how to make or constitute new words from those existing, and what best word combinations are thoroughly placed, in a situation, to give meaning (Kuhl, 2010). On the other hand, speech is a verbal means of communication, which constitutes articulation that exactly ease how the speech sounds are constituted. It also consists of voice whereby vocal folds and breathing are initiated to produce sound. Fluency is another vital constituent of speech, which is described as the rhythm of speech (Kuhl, 2010). Therefore, language can be grouped, in terms of problems, whereby, receptive language is when a person has trouble with understanding others. Sharing thoughts, ideas and feelings perfectly with others with poor conveyance is categorized under expressive language disorders (Crosbie et al. 2005). Lang uage

Assignment 2 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

2 - Assignment Example In the current methodology of commissions for the front-line salesmen, the annual break-even point in dollar sales and in unit sales for Shop 48 is sales of 12,500 pair of shoes for gross sales of $375,000. Appendix 1 shows a graph from zero to seventeen thousand units sold in a given year, with both fixed and variable expenses taken into account. Based upon projected annual sales of 17,000 pairs of shoes, potential profit for Shop 48 would be $54,000 on annual sales of $510,000. Another question raised was what the profit or loss would be on 12,000 pairs yearly. After expenses, the store would realize a net loss of $6,000. In the next circumstance, the company is toying with the idea of offering the store manager of Shop 48 an incentive commission of $0.75 (seventy-five cents) per pair of shoes, leaving the salespersons’ commission intact. What would this added commission have on the break-even point in dollar sales and in unit sales? It is clearly shown that the break even point would indeed rise considerably. Technically there would be no â€Å"break even point†, for at 13,333 pairs the shop would be operating at a loss of $3.75 and one more pair (13,334) would give them a net profit of $7.50. Either way, sales would have to be roughly $400,000 per annum to achieve a profit, or an increase of $25,000 in gross sales annually. As an another option to the situation above, what if the store manager was given fifty cents commission on each pair of shoes sold beyond the break-even point? Their question on this was what the shops net operating income would be based upon 15,000 pairs of shoes sold annually. This would include the data as discussed for current operations in that 12,500 pair of shoes for gross sales of $375,000 is the BE point. With this, 15,000 pairs of shoes would give the store gross sales of $450,000 annually. With the added expense of the fifty cent commission on 2,500 pairs net profit would then be

Seminar in criminology Discussion 5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Seminar in criminology Discussion 5 - Essay Example For example, defendants have to provide 10% of the amount to the bail bondsman that is requested by the court (Thistlethwaite & Wooldredge, 2013). Some of these bondsmen usually work together with attorneys and recommend them to their clients. Some of the attorneys recommended to clients by the bondsmen are not qualified or as experienced as a client would want. Some suspects are not allowed to make phone calls or write letters to their family. It results to delays in communication with the family members and attorneys and it interferes with the suspect’s ability get the re-trial release. A suspect’s bail gets determined after the court gets the advice from the legal counsel (Thistlethwaite & Wooldredge, 2013). The legal counsel always gives the court advice on previous bail jumping behavior for the suspect. For counsels who advise suspects not to show up to court so that they delay the trial process makes it hard for the suspect to become eligible for future pre-trial releases. On page 128, Thistlethwaite and Wooldredge (2013) assert that research on how the bail is made needs proper documentation and communicated to the defendant, the court and the public to ensure that the bail decisions made are fair. As Thistlethwaite and Wooldredge (2013) note, it ensures that the bail made is more individualized. Thistlethwaite, A., & Wooldredge, J. (2013). â€Å"Part II: Chapter 1: Pre-Conviction dispositions.† In Forty Studies that Changed Criminal Justice: Explorations into the History of Criminal Justice Research (2 ed.). New Jersey: Pearson Higher Ed

Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Essay Example Further, turnaround firms, in order to achieve their objectives do not entirely rely on uninterrupted, fast response time, information technology in order to achieve their objectives. Rather, their future applications play a great role in ensuring that they achieve their strategic objectives. On the other hand, factory firms heavily depend on reliable, -efficient, information technology support. It is only through highly reliable system that such firms can survive the danger of failing. However, although development applications in a factory are important in their own right, they are not entirely responsible for the success and profitability of the organization. Support firms however, do not associate performance with information technology; it has low strategic impact in their operations. Such firms rely on support systems in order to support their operations. Although they could survive for a long time without these applications, they require them to leverage their productivity. Organizations currently operate under high competitive environments. Porter argued that for an organization to survive high levels of competition, it must strategically place itself within these competitive factors (Karagiannopoulos, et al., 2005). In porter’s competitive model, he proposed five factors that would give a firm competitive advantage over other firms operating in the same industry. As porter argued, the five forces bring about industry rivalry of the existing firms. Threat of new entrants according to porter determines the ease with which customers can switch to products offered by competitors (p. 129). All industries have numerous substitute products available, and as such, factors such as price and quality contributes significantly to customers switching their products to their competitors. The ease of customers in finding a product offered by one company at a cheaper price, or higher quality goods increases the threat of

E Government in the UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

E Government in the UK - Essay Example E government implementation in the UK includes the use of cards with smart chips for passes to pay for school meals, public transportation and for online voting and online payment transactions. Websites are setup for public consultation, paying parking tickets. E-government is big business in the twenty-first century, amounting to over 1% of GDP in most industrialized nations and around  £14 billion annually in the United Kingdom, according to recent estimates (Margetts, 2010). The core factors that occur, when assessing national E government in the form of providing human resources, correspond with the ushering in of globalization and the internet and the balance this new era must maintain between the diffusion of ideas and innovation, as opposed to the replication of practices from one area to the next. As noted by Dempsey, â€Å"E-government is the delivery of online government services, which provides the opportunity to increase citizen access to government, reduce government bureaucracy, increase citizen participation in democracy and enhance agency responsiveness to citizens needs (Dempsey, 2001).† These are the ideal policy changes that E-government is set about to enhance government and private sector practices in the U.K. The problem is this implies E-government practices improve the quality of government practices, which some naysayers argue is not the case. In the Guardian U.K. article, â€Å"E-government is not a financial cure-all,† the author notes that advancements the internet has brought on to be utilized by local and federal governments, as well as private sector institutions in the U.K., does not necessarily mean enhanced quality of these services. The author says, â€Å"When all else fails, reach for the ‘e’. In the past week, both the prime minister and the chancellor of the exchequer have cited e-government to explain how they are going to cut the cost of public services, but not their quality (Cross, 2010).† The author then goes onto point out the key to petitioning for e-government initiatives can be traced to a specific term that dictates how e-government is identified in the public eye, he says, â€Å"The current buzzword is ‘smarter government’, but the basic concept has been policy for a decade, since Tony Blair's first e-envoy, Alex Allan, unveiled the national e-government str ategy in April 2000 (Cross, 2010).† The author goes on to note that after billions of dollars invested in the 2005 E-government policies to improve public services placed UK on a European commission’s annual benchmarking survey as the leader in Europe of the electronic public services.

Influences of economics and marketing on relationships in the global Essay

Influences of economics and marketing on relationships in the global food supply chain - Essay Example Exporting countries benefit from increased revenues from trading of surplus items, importing nations gain access to vital food reserves (Arda et al., 2005). Growing industrialization and profit making objectives have made a deep impact on the way food is being produced and supplied to the consumers today (Deep and Dani, 2009). The food supply chain is deeply impacted by rising prices, inflationary trends, and growing demands of increasing population have increased food prices. This has also led to multi-tiered supply chains that increase the complexity of the whole logistics process (Sowinski, 2012). The food supply chain begins with the farmer producing the supplies and the food items produced are sold by the farmers either directly to the food processor or indirectly through cooperative groups. The processed food is then sold to distributors to be distributed to various retailers and marketers and from there the food is finally sold to the consumers (FAO, 2004). The role of the far mers in the food supply chain is hence limited to the food processors and cooperative groups that are responsible for selling the farm produce to various distributing agencies, factories or processing units. This pattern limits the transparency of the whole system and farmers do not benefit much from the complex supply chains (Fearne et al., 2000). The globalization of economies has increased consumerism trends within the nations and this has led to a dramatic growth in consumption of food and related items. In context of the food supply chain this also reflects a shift in food movement from local and regional levels to global levels (Dicken, 2011). This has added to the complexity of the food supply...Global food security and governance have become increasingly complex in the past few decades owing to a gradual shift from local to global food supplies. â€Å"The capacity of single households to ensure an adequate supply of food for its members is affected by developments from loca l to global. Increasingly even nation states are losing control over the factors that determine the food security of their populations†. Conclusion In spite of the fact that an abundant quantity of food is being produced on the planet, millions are starving. The primary reason behind this is the corporate control over the food supply. The supply, distribution and manufacturing of food products have been controlled by the corporate system. The process of globalization has contributed to the advancement of biotechnology and agribusiness, which from the business’ perspective is profitable. Most of the capital invested on the production of food and food products goes to non-farmers. With the virtue of global economy, the corporations and supermarkets are churning a huge amount of money, which contributes to the imbalance of power between the farmers, consumers and food corporations.

Interdependence of subject matter and method in social studies Essay

Interdependence of subject matter and method in social studies - Essay Example The link between the content and the method in Social Studies is vital in ensuring that the goals of teaching are achieved (Thornton, 2005). Through the method, the educators can manipulate the curriculum which is the content. This, therefore, involves planning that confines the educators to the selected content not outside what had been planned (Thornton, 2005). A good example in a Social Studies class is the educator focusing on the role of technology in the society using the role play method. This confines the educator to the selected content as well as the method selected. Social Studies, as indicated by Thornton (2005), involves connection between the content and the personal experience. In this case, methodology of teaching and the content have to be interrelated if the learners have to attain personal fulfilment. Zevin (2013) says that this will also ensure that the learners engage in the activities in the learning process. For instance a study of the culture of the Asians will need content on the Asians lifestyle and method of teaching that will create interest in the

Mcbride Financial Services Marketing Plan Essay Example for Free

Mcbride Financial Services Marketing Plan Essay The firm will specialize in conventional, FHA, and VA loans for home purchasing and refinancing. The company intends to expand its operations into Wyoming, Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota. † (McBride Financial Services website, 2003) According to their intranet site, McBride’s target market is: 1. Professionals purchasing either a primary or secondary residence. 2. Retirees purchasing a primary or secondary residence. 3. Families and/or individuals purchasing recreational properties. This document will review McBride Financial Services’ existing marketing approach and offer suggestions for focusing market research and what types of media to use. Additionally a review will be made of McBride’s target market and how the existing strategy relates to the marketing principles of the 4Ps and SIVA. Target Market McBride’s target market is professionals and retirees purchasing a primary of secondary residence as well as individuals or families looking to purchase recreational properties. They service the following states: Idaho, Wyoming, Montana and North and South Dakota. In addition, McBride is focusing on using state of the art technology in order to be able to offer their low cost mortgage services which means that the target market must also be willing and able to conduct are large portion of the mortgage application transaction using electronic means, i. e. Internet and email. Media types McBride’s current marketing plan, as listed on their intranet site, includes the use of the following media types: localized TV ads, newspapers, radio and realtors in addition to informational handouts available at airports and major tourist attractions. McBride’s annual advertising budget is $80,000. Given that McBride utilizes technology to reduce the cost of the mortgage application process, it is surprising that the existing marketing plan does not include an online advertising strategy. 4Ps The 4Ps are product, price, promotion and place. McBride’s product is low cost conventional, FHA and VA mortgages. The price for a credit report, the mortgage application, an inspection and appraisal is fixed at $1,500. Promotions are created through the above mentioned media types of TV, radio, newspapers and realtors and through informational handouts at the airports and at tourist attractions. The placement for the application process is via McBride’s website. Marketing Strategy The SIVA marketing methodology is defined as solution, information, value and access. According to Dev and Schultz (2005) this approach to marketing starts with understanding the market and the customers based on true and deep customer insights and then identify and clarify what customer’s value. Market research needs to be focused on identifying customer’s core wants and needs from a mortgage lender so that targeted value propositions can be created. McBride needs to adjust or change their services to align with the marketing research results. Additionally, McBride needs to focus on gaining insight from existing customers as to how to improve their services as well as potentially tapping that customer base for referral, perhaps by creating an incentive for existing customer’s to bring in new clients. Put another way, the market research should investigate McBride’s target market of professionals, retirees, individuals and families to create a solution (S) based on what those customer’s value. That solution can in turn be used to create multiple targeted value propositions (I) highlighting how McBride’s services address the needs and wants of their customers. McBride then delivers on the value proposition as determined by customer needs and wants gained in the research (V). The value is measured through both market research on potential customers and through feedback loops from existing customer’s so that solutions can continually evolve to better meet the needs of the target markets.

The Study Of Paranormal Phenomena Psychology Essay

The Study Of Paranormal Phenomena Psychology Essay The study of paranormal phenomena or paranormal belief is a component of parapsychology. According to Kennedy (2005), paranormal belief is still a poorly understood aspect in humanity. Some people believe in it but some are strongly opposed to the idea of paranormal phenomena; both parties are standing firmly in their own viewpoint to an extreme. According to Cline (n.d.), parapsychology is a field that engages the study of psychological phenomena which are unexplainable by means of science or can say that it has against the principles and theories of science. The term parapsychology was invented in year 1889 by a psychologist, Max Dessoir. Paranormal phenomena can be divided into three types which are clairvoyance or precognition, telepathy, and telekinesis. Telepathy is the capacity to sense and exchange information across the spaces through mind power. Telekinesis is the using of mind power to move objects. Clairvoyance or precognition is the capability to predict future events. Y et Tobacyk (2004) has divided the belief in paranormal phenomena into seven dimensions namely traditional religious belief, psi, witchcraft, superstition, spiritualism, extraordinary life forms, and precognition. Paranormal beliefs have been found in many cultures for more than a thousand years (Jahoda, 1969 as cited in Wiseman Watt, 2004) and the recent surveys showed that these paranormal beliefs are continuing to flourish nowadays (Newport Strausberg, 2001 as cited in Wiseman Watt, 2004). Paranormal phenomenon was experienced and believed by people of all cultures. This means that people from different cultures will have different belief systems toward paranormal phenomena. According to Irwin (2009), people will normally reckon all these paranormal phenomena as realities or truths instead of just a belief system that should be adopted by them in term of their own cultures. Besides, the paranormal belief within a society also consists of its cultural and chronological contexts. In the cultural context, a particular paranormal belief is largely endorsed by a culture setting but it is not necessary to have endorsed by people from other places who practiced different cultures. On the other hand, in the context of chronological setting, the paranormal belief that is mostly adopted in one time might be abandoned in another time within the same community. This may be due to that particular community has become skeptical and is being more emphasized on scientific evidences in viewing events or maybe the belief is just no longer adopted within that community. Why are there so many people believing in the paranormal phenomena? According to Hood (2009), paranormal beliefs are not simply spreading by people and making others what to think. However, he claimed that human brain has a mind design that guides them naturally to form and understand the world schema and to make sense of it by constructing the intuitive theories. These intuitive theories produce a paranormal sense and feeling. He declares that all these can take place early in the development before culture emerges to lead peoples thinking styles. The influences of culture may happen later during childs development stages. Children will construct information about the world through their own intuitive reasoning which directs them to both normal and paranormal beliefs. Nevertheless, there is something in the human mind that guides people to belief. The sense of paranormal experiences or beliefs is a part of our mind design and thus it is deeply implanted in the ways of how we explain all these paranormal phenomena. On the other hand, according to Fritscher (2012), paranormal belief is a possible sign of  disordered thinking in the field of psychology. There may have some lesions in the brain of the paranormal believers which cause them to have hallucinations. However, it is undeniable that the paranormal phenomenon has formed a crucial part of many belief systems and world views of the people which affected their interpretation of the world throughout their life. Problem Statement A lot of researches have been carried out in order to test the paranormal beliefs based on the demographic variables such as age, gender, socioeconomic status, races and culture. However, the hypothesis of social marginality had been used to predict the paranormal belief in these demographics (Irwin, 1993). Bainbridge (1978) and Wuthnow (1976) as cited in Irwin (1993) had declared that the socially marginal groups such as the people from low society status, jobless or having the low education level were prone to believe in paranormal phenomena. This may because they believe that these can lead them to a better life. On the other hand, a research which examines the social marginality hypothesis in paranormal belief has been conducted by Emmons and Sobal (1981). The finding of their research shows that females and unmarried people will normally associate with paranormal belief. The factors such as age, low education level and jobless usually do not have any correlations with paranormal belief. Therefore, it can be concluded that in terms of education level and employment, the social marginality hypothesis has a contradictory finding which failed to obtain the consistent results in all situations. Many researches such as the study of Irwin (1985), Mc-Garry and Newberry (1981), Randall (1990), Randall and Desrosiers(1980), and Tobacyk and Milford (1983) as cited in Irwin (1993) have showed that there are more female than male paranormal believers. However, according to Gray (1990), there was an absence of gender differences for the students from science or non-science courses. The male students of non-science courses showed the same level of strong paranormal belief as female students. Besides, the female science students showed low level of paranormal belief as male students. Thus we cannot generalize that females have stronger paranormal belief than males. Some researchers have claimed that the belief in traditional religions is same as the belief in paranormal phenomena, but this still remains questionable whether paranormal belief is related to religious belief (Irwin 1993). Some of the researches stated that religious belief was correlated with paranormal belief, for example, the research of Buhrmann and Zaugg (1983), Orenstein (2002), Thalbourne and Hensley (2001) as cited in Tam and Shiah (2004). On the other hand, the study of Ellis (1988) and Rice (2003) as cited in Tam and Shiah (2004) declared that religious belief is not related with paranormal belief. However, according to Rice (2003), in the relationship between religious belief and paranormal belief, there was a lack of confirmation whether their correlation is significant or not. This is because the relationship between them is much more multifaceted and diverse among the theories proposed. Besides the researches stated above, there are also many other researches about paranormal beliefs. There are some psychological inquiries which are very important and needed to be investigated and known by everyone. Why do people believe in paranormal phenomena? Which group of people will tend to believe in these phenomena? In this modern era, most people tend to be more logically and scientifically in forming their ways of thinking which are evidence-based yet it still has many people who believe in these paranormal phenomena. Therefore, it is necessary for us to know what kind of people and what are the reasons that lead them to believe in paranormal phenomena. On top of that, the identification of the effects or consequences of paranormal belief that may have for human life are very important because it may have a great impact on the development of human civilization. Significant of Study The research and career that related with parapsychology or transpersonal psychology are not popular in Malaysia. There is no research done on this topic by Malaysian as their dissertations or theses temporarily. Therefore, there is a need to carry out a research on this topic in Malaysia. People from different parts of the world will have their own unique type of paranormal beliefs regardless of their cultures. These paranormal beliefs will have some influences in different aspects of human life. For example, it can influence the critical thinking or cognitive ability, socioeconomic status and creativity of an individual. Thus, it is necessary to carry out a project at Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) based on the students in Perak campus in order to examine their paranormal belief level and to identify the effects of strong paranormal belief in their life. It is important to know whether Asian females are stronger in paranormal belief compared with males, since almost all the western researches showed the consistent results that females will have a stronger paranormal belief compared to males. Moreover, it is interesting to know if religion(s) will make their followers to have strong belief in paranormal phenomena and how they achieved that. Lastly, it is interesting to know whether students from Arts and Science stream will have different paranormal belief level in Asian countries like Malaysia as most of the Western researches showed that Science stream students tend to have less paranormal belief compared to Arts stream students. All these researches carried out to examine gender differences, different religions and Arts and Science streams in level of paranormal belief are aimed to investigate whether the findings have cross-cultural consistency. Objectives To determine whether females are stronger in paranormal belief compared to males as shown in most of the researches carried out by psychologists from western countries. To identify whether Science stream students will have less paranormal belief compared to Arts stream students as they have more scientific knowledge and more scientifically ways of thinking. To find out whether the different religious beliefs will influence the belief of paranormal phenomena. Research Question Is there any difference in paranormal belief between males and females? Is there any difference in paranormal belief between Arts and Science stream students? Is there any difference in paranormal belief among different religious beliefs? Hypothesis Females will have stronger paranormal belief than males. Students from Arts stream will have stronger paranormal belief than Science stream students. There is a difference in paranormal belief among different kinds of religious beliefs. Operational Definition Sex According to American Psychological Association (APA) (2011), the term of sex is referred to the biological category of an individual, which is being classified as male and female. The term of gender was not suitable to use in this study as gender is referred to the behavior or attitude given by culture or society that is linked with the individuals biological sex according to APA (2011). Religion It still remains undefined under the international law (Gunn, 2003). However, according to Yinger (1970), religion is a system of beliefs and practices in which a group of people are struggling with the ultimate questions of life. There are many different religions in Malaysia, such as Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism and Sikhism. However, this study is mainly focused on Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism and Christianity as most of the UTARs students are Chinese and Indian. Nevertheless, other religions like Islam and Sikhism are very rare. Arts stream The faculties of Arts stream in UTAR Perak campus are Faculty of Business and Finance (FBF), Faculty of Arts and Social Science (FAS), Faculty of Information and Communication Technology (FICT). The courses offered by FBF are Banking and Finance, Business Administration, Communication and Network, Accounting, Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Financial Economics, and Finance. In FAS, it consists of the courses such as Languages and Linguistics, Psychology and Counseling, Journalism, Public Relation and Advertising. For FICT, the courses offered are Computer Science, Business Information Systems, Information Systems Engineering and Computer Engineering. Science stream The Science stream departments in UTAR Perak campus are Faculty of Science (FSc) and Faculty of Engineering and Green Technology (FEGT). The courses of FSc included Logistics and International Shipping, Agricultural Science, Biological Science, Biomedical Science, Biotechnology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Statistical Computing and Operations Research and Microbiology. While FEGT offered the courses of Electronic Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Petrochemical Engineering, Construction Management and Industrial Engineering. CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW Numerous journals, dissertations and theses about paranormal beliefs have been published by Western researchers. Almost all findings are consistent with the hypotheses stated. Below is the review of some journals, dissertations and theses about the concept and history of paranormal beliefs, its theoretical framework and paranormal beliefs based on the demographic variables of sex differences, religions and different areas of study (arts and science stream). Paranormal Beliefs Besides the term of paranormal, there are also other words which have the same meaning such as superstitious, magical and supernatural. According to Lindeman and Svedholm (2012), psychologists have raised the awareness and interest in the issues of paranormal, superstitious, magical and supernatural (PSMS) since the year of 1800. The term PSMS belief is defined as category mistakes which confuse the basic knowledge of material objects, mental phenomena, living organisms, and the development as a whole. This term has been applied inconsistently in many research literatures. PSMS came out with the conceptual definitions which are classified into domain-general and domain-specific since last two decades. The definition of domain-general consists of five sets, namely belief in scientifically impossible phenomena, false beliefs, and associative biases (irrational acts, co variation bias and laws of sympathetic magic). Nevertheless, this definition failed to differentiate other unfounded b eliefs from PSMS beliefs as they covered a wide range of beliefs. The domain-specific definition can be further divided into two groups which are intuitive and counterintuitive beliefs about the phenomena of biological, physical and psychological. This definition is more appropriate to classify the PSMS beliefs because it can explain some of the types and dissimilarities among them. Overall, there is no significant difference among the operation of PSMS beliefs. (pp. 1-11) Richman and Bell (2012) found that the levels of paranormal belief dropped over the years. This can be seen from two experiments by Richman and Bell (2012) with the university student latest sample (2010) as well as Tobacyk and Milford (1983), which were both carried out in Southeastern US state university. Even though there were similar levels of belief in a variety of phenomena for two samples, there were still some aspects of the paranormal beliefs which decreased dramatically over the period of 27 years. The paranormal belief subscales of precognition and traditional religious belief showed less significant differences for the two samples. Precognition will be endured due to the reality that more people had experienced the predictive dream compared to other paranormal phenomena. In this case, the study of Royalty (1995) showed a significant relationship between the paranormal belief levels and the self-reported history of paranormal experience (as cited in Richman Bell, 2012). F or the subscales of traditional religious belief in paranormal belief, it has been a human continuous lifestyle regardless of cultures and age groups. Furthermore, there were some researches, including Richman and Bell (2012), proposed that traditional religious beliefs have little or no relation with paranormal beliefs, for example, Randall and Desrosiers (1980) and Rice (2003) as cited in Richman and Bell (2012). There are various personalities and factors which cause people to belief in paranormal phenomena, for instance, high fantasy proneness, sensation seeking and high openness, external locus of control and neuroticism may also contribute to paranormal beliefs. (pp. 197-206) Moreover, Oh, Kim and Oh (2011) had done a cross-cultural study and revealed that Korean students have higher paranormal beliefs compared with United States (US) students in general. Nevertheless, the paranormal beliefs, in both religious and non-religious people, have decreased in Korea and US throughout the ten year period whereby it can be seen from the two testing periods which are 1999 and 2009. A dramatically decrease can be seen in Korea. Korean students have higher paranormal beliefs in all subscales besides traditional religious belief compared with US students at the year of 1999. In 2009, Korean students still have stronger paranormal beliefs than US students apart from spiritualism and religiosity although there is more decrease in Korean students compared to US students. Therefore, the differences in paranormal beliefs between Korean and US students were not significant in 2009. This result obtained is most likely due to the advance in scientific knowledge which may affe ct their thinking. The findings showed that people who possess and understand scientific knowledge will have lower paranormal beliefs and this idea is consistent with the study of Lim (1983) as cited in Oh, Kim and Oh (2011). (pp. 35-51) Sex and Paranormal Beliefs There are many researches that have been done to examine the relationship between sex and paranormal beliefs. Many researches reported that females have higher level of paranormal beliefs than males. The review of Irwin (1993) pointed out some of the studies which proved that females will have higher global paranormal beliefs than males, such as Randall and Desrosiers (1980), McGarry and Newberry (1981), Tobacyk and Milford (1983), Irwin (1985), and Randall (1990). There are lots of studies stated in the review of Irwin (1993) illustrated that females will normally has higher belief in ESP than males in terms of precognition and telepathy, for example, Kennedy (1939), Emmons and Sobal (1981), Thalbourne (1981), Haraldsson (1981, 1985a), Tobacyk and Milford (1983), Irwin (1985), Gray (1990b), and Clarke (1991). According to Irwin (1993), females also portray higher paranormal belief in the subscales of psychic healing (Gray, 1990b), superstitions (Emme, 1940; Scheidt, 1973; Blum Blum , 1974; Blum, 1976), traditional religious concept (Hay Morisy, 1978; Emmons Sobal, 1981; Tobacyk Milford, 1983; Black, 1990), reincarnation (Gray, 1990b), astrology (Salter Routledge, 1971; Zarour, 1972; Wuthnow, 1976; Emmons Sobal, 1981; Fichten Sunerton, 1983; Grey, 1988; Gray, 1990b; Clarke, 1991), and hauntings (Haraldsson, 1985a). On the other hand, males have showed higher belief in extraordinary life forms like Loch Ness monster (Tobacyk Milford, 1983; Tobacyk Pirttila-Backman, 1992), and in UFOs (Gray, 1990b; Clarke, 1991). (pp. 8-9) The research of Wolfradt (1997, pp. 15-19) revealed that females have higher level of paranormal belief compared to males because they scored higher on some subscales of the Revised Paranormal Belief Scale (RPBS) such as superstition, psi belief, spiritualism, witchcraft and precognition. Nevertheless, there were no sex differences at the RPBS subscales of belief in extraordinary life forms and religious belief. On the other hand, Eder, Turic, Milasowszky, Adzin and Hergovich (2010, p. 521) declared that females will generally portray higher paranormal beliefs in the subscales of spirituality and traditional religious belief, but it was less significant to the subscales of witchcraft and psi. Besides, males showed higher paranormal belief in subscale of extraordinary life forms. However, there was no sex difference in the subscales of precognition and superstition. On the contrary, the study of Blackmore and Moore (1994) stated that there were no significant gender differences in par anormal beliefs in term of Paranormal Belief Scale (PBS) score (p. 95). Gray (1990) revealed that females are prone to adopt the paranormal beliefs like psychic, reincarnation, astrology and ESP, while males tend to believe in extraterrestrial life forms like aliens compared to females (p. 181). This is because males will take the initiative to think and learn while females put more emphasis on their feelings or sentiments (Abele, 2003, pp. 768-776). Thus, females are more likely to believe in verbal phenomena such as psychic readings and males tend to believe in physical paranormal phenomena or science phenomena like UFO or aliens (Hauser, 2008, p. 1). Simultaneously, Houran and Lange (2007) concluded this as the cognitive differences between males and females in which males are more headed to naturally related phenomena while females are prone to humanly related paranormal phenomena (as cited in Hauser, 2008, p. 1). Therefore, these researches indicate that there are sex differences in the type of paranormal beliefs, but not the quantity of paranormal beliefs. Furthermore, the study of Preece and Baxter (2000) drew a conclusion that sex differences were basically being discovered at each year group with females are normally less skeptical than males in term of paranormal beliefs such as ESP and psychic ability. This is because according to Preece and Baxter (2000), females have been influenced by the popular media such as newspaper articles or magazines. On the other hand, males are usually less skeptical than females about the UFO belief. Males tend to belief that aliens from other planets had visited Earth in the past. This may due to the particular interests of males in space traveling and universe which are always being portrayed in the films or novels according to Preece and Baxter (2000). Nevertheless, the critical reasons for both males and females to adopt different types of paranormal beliefs might be the combination of biological aspects like genetic and cultural aspects like social norms whereby different roles were being instil led to them based on their gender. (pp. 1147-1156) Kennedy (2003, pp. 27-39) claimed that males will always be extreme skepticism toward paranormal belief because they tend to put a significant assessment on manipulation and rational thinking. Therefore, they may frequently imagine that they are threatened by all these paranormal beliefs and thus showing aggressiveness toward different belief systems. National Canadian survey also obtained a consistent finding which claimed that males are prone to be the extreme skeptics of paranormal beliefs and think that spirituality was insignificant, while females will have the higher paranormal beliefs and think that spirituality was significant. According to Blackmore (1994b), most of the males were not concerned or attracted by the paranormal phenomena in terms of examining the atypical declaration or trying out the psychic experiences by themselves, they just uphold their own belief systems (as cited in Kennedy, 2003). The fact contributed to these phenomena which has been stated by Kennedy (2003) is that males possess the genetic predispositions for analytical thinking and social authority. On the other hand, the findings of Lindeman and Aarnio (2006, pp. 597-599) stated that females possess higher intuitive and lower logical thinking and thus it seems to be the generative mechanisms for females to have adopted more paranormal beliefs compared with males. Art and Science Stream text in Paranormal Beliefs The research of Gray and Mill (1990, pp. 162-172) showed that English graduate students tend to adopt more paranormal beliefs such as ESP, UFO, astrology, psychic healing and reincarnation compared to Biology graduate students who have stronger belief in non-paranormal phenomena like evolution. The Biology graduate students needed fewer signs compared to English graduate students for the analysis of the information in the text they read. Even though less signs are needed by Biology graduate students on the scientific contents, their performances were not significant different with English graduate students. However, there was a significant positive relationship between the number of signs required and paranormal belief in which the more signs required in order for completing a scientific context, the stronger the belief in paranormal phenomena. This is because they do not approach the scientific evidences with a proper critical standpoint. Therefore, this study pointed out that there were more English graduate students who have the higher paranormal beliefs compared to Biology students. Besides, the study of Craig (1991) demonstrated that the students from music-art and English-foreign language majors have stronger paranormal beliefs than the students from social studies and mathematics-science majors (p. 64). Morier and Keeports (1994, pp. 443-453) stated that students from science and pseudoscience class (treatment group) were generally having lower level of paranormal belief compared with the students in psychology and law class (control group). Initially, both groups did not show any differences before the course started. However, the participants from treatment group revealed a significant decrease in paranormal belief than control group in which the standard score units for control group only dropped with an average of 0.17 while treatment group was dropped with an average of 1.08. The ultimate cause that science and pseudoscience course has successfully changed the level of paranormal beliefs may be due to the dealing with such beliefs obviously and clearly during the class. In addition, Jones (1980) also proposed that paranormal beliefs can only be eliminated through the direct confrontation with the paranormal phenomena (as cited in Morier Keeports, 1994). This is because the sci ence and pseudoscience course has provided students with more scientific knowledge which lead them to acknowledge science as a way to investigate and evaluate the paranormal events or misconceptions. Overall, the findings for this study discovered that skeptical behavior can be achieved by scientific teaching or critical thinking abilities. These results support the study of Grimmer and White (1992) whereby it claimed that science education may add to the better skeptical attitude as science students will normally have a lower level of paranormal beliefs compared to arts students (as cited in Preece Baxter, 2000, p.1154). We can see that when an individual has more scientific knowledge or is interested in science, then he or she will tend to have lower paranormal beliefs compared to others who know little or nothing about science. Prichard (2011) had done a research to investigate paranormal beliefs and science motivation among the biology and psychology students. The participants consist of the students from advanced biology, introductory psychology, and advanced psychology. The findings showed that introductory psychology students have more paranormal beliefs compared to the students from advanced biology and advanced psychology. Although science motivation is assumed to have an effect in reducing the paranormal beliefs, there was no significant difference between advanced biology and advanced psychology students in paranormal beliefs, albeit Biology students have higher level of science motivation compared to both introductory and advanced psychology students. Thus, Prichard (2011) had found that s tudy through psychology course may become the greater predictor for reducing the paranormal beliefs compared to science motivation. Therefore, it cannot be concluded that science motivation will lead to a more rational thinking about paranormal beliefs as it is not the only factor for skepticism. (pp. 2-20) Religious Belief and Paranormal Beliefs There are a lot of researches that have been carried out to investigate the relationship between paranormal beliefs and religiosity. In the review of Irwin (1993), Irwin (1985) reported that global paranormal beliefs such as psychic healing, precognition, telepathy, psychokinesis (PK), and astral projection have a positive relationship with religiosity; however there is no relation between the global paranormal beliefs and religiosity reported by Alcock (1975). Besides, Tobacyk and Milford (1983) declared that there is a positive correlation between belief in precognition and religiosity (as cited in Irwin, 1993). Both researches of Haraldsson (1981) and Thalbourne (1984) claimed that belief in ESP was associated with religiosity in which ESP belief is positive correlated with praying, reading the religious materials and attending religious gathering (as cited in Irwin, 1993); but according to Irwin (1993), this was not proved by Irwin (1985) and Clarke (1991). Nevertheless, Jones et al. (1977) claimed that church involvement do not have significant relationship with global paranormal belief and belief in various paranormal phenomena (Alcock, 1975; Sheils Berg, 1977), but Wuthnow (1976) reported that there is a negative correlation between church involvement and astrology belief (as cited in Irwin, 1993). On the other hand, according to Irwin (1993), religious affiliation has been declared that there is no significant relationship with either ESP belief (Murphy Lester, 1976) or global paranormal belief (Jones et al., 1977). Although Sheils and Berg (1977) reported a correlation between religious and paranormal beliefs, Thalbournes (1981) had reexamined the data and pointed out that the result was not significantly different (as cited in Irwin, 1993). Tobacyk and Milford (1983) had examined the religiosity in which it has a positive relationship with witchcraft belief, a negative relation with spiritualism, and do not have significant relationship with superst itions and extraordinary life forms belief (as cited in Irwin, 1993). The study of Clarke (1991) revealed that religiosity have a positive relationship with psychic healing belief and negative relation with belief in UFO or aliens (as cited in Irwin, 1993). (pp. 13-14) The research of Shiah, Tam, Wu and Chang (2010, pp. 367-382) had been conducted in Chinese population to find out the relationship between paranormal beliefs and religiosity. They reported that the believers of traditional Chinese religious will generally have stronger paranormal belief compared to Christian believers and atheists. Therefore, the greater participation of traditional Chinese religious believers in the activities which focus on paranormal experiences might contribute to greater paranormal belief, especially when it was compared to Christianity. The findings are consistent with the connotation that Christianity might have less paranormal belief compare with other religions. According to Hergovich, Schott and Arendasy (2005, pp. 293-303), the findings showed that there was a low but significant relationship between paranormal belief and religiosity. People who are self-reported religiosity and intrinsic religiosity have stronger relation with paranormal belief compared to people who held extrinsic religiosity. Yet, the relation of Catholics and Protestants to paranormal belief is little or even portrayed a negative relationship between intrinsic religiosity and paranormal belief. Besides, there was a stronger paranormal belief with the participants who do not have the religious attachment. However, all these findings proposed that paranormal belief can be a substitute for the traditional religious belief. The main idea of this research is that there was a slightly positive relationship between paranormal belief and religiosity. Aarnio and Lindeman (2007) had conducted a research showing that the different results have been found for the correlations of religious

Study on Competency Model of an effective teacher

Study on Competency Model of an effective teacher The paper builds on comprehensive review of 13 research papers and a book on teachers competencies on basis of which a Competency Model of an effective teacher has been suggested that can be used during recruitment, training, and performance appraisal and also can be used as a mean for compensation of a teacher. Competencies of an Effective teacher Model has been categorized into three categories as shown in the above diagram which are as follows: Concern for College, Concern for Self and Concern for Students. Therefore, this paper produces data on what attributes in todays academic market place and in particular in classroom produces effective teachers. INTRODUCTION: Education has become essential these days. But along with it there are several challenges of education as well which require change in the quality and structure of education. For this integration of education with corporate sector is required for which course contents needs to be upgraded. But this is not sufficient as teachers are the education providers they play a vital role in bridging the gap between what is now available in the form of curriculum and the demands of the corporate world. Hence teachers should therefore react to the changing scenario and equip themselves to meet the need of the hour. Hence this paper identifies competencies (behavioural indicators) required for an effective teaching according to the changing scenario. Therefore, this paper produces data on what attributes in todays academic market place and in particular in classroom produces effective teachers. The theory being, the more effective the teacher the better prepared the student is for tomorrows challenges, not yesterdays and the more competitive the school can make itself. The paper will first review the literature highlighting competencies [behavioral indicators] of effective teacher given by other researchers. First it is important to understand the word competency. A competency is an underlying characteristic of an individual that is causally related to criterion-referenced effective and/or superior performance in a job or situation [1] Underlying characteristic means the competency is a fairly deep and enduring part of persons personality and can predict behavior. Causally related means that a competency causes or predicts behavior and performance. Criterion-referenced means that the competency actually predicts who does something well or poor, as measured on a specific criterion or standard. The history of competency can be traced to the early 1970s when industrial psychologists and human resource managers were seeking ways to predict job performance. There was significant evidence to show that personality testing was very poor at predicting job performance (about 10 percent success rate was achievable). In 1973, David McClelland, Professor of Psychology at Harvard University wrote a seminal paper Testing for Competence Rather than for Intelligence, which appeared in American Psychologist in 1973 [2], that created a stir in the field of psychology (McClelland, 1973). According to his research, traditional academic aptitude and knowledge content tests seldom predict on-job performance. He went on to argue that the real predictors of job performance are a set of underlying personal characteristics or competencies. McClellands concept of competency has been the key driver of the competency movement and competency-based education. LITERATURE REVIEW Attempts to define teacher behaviors have blossomed into a movement known as Competency-based teacher education (or Performance based Teacher Education). The State of Florida has been a leader in identification of generic teaching competencies and in the movement of competency-based teacher education. In 1975 the Council on Teacher Education (COTE), spearheaded a project to identify those competencies which are most essential to all teachers. 48 generic competencies consistently appeared in the search was selected for a final survey instrument. A random sample of 5 percent of all certified personnel in the state were asked to rate the competencies. 23 competencies met the specified acceptance criteria. The 23 generic competencies were grouped into 5 major categories namely communication skills, basic knowledge, technical skills, administrative skills and interpersonal skills. The state of Florida has included the 23 generic competencies in state policies requiring all personnel to de monstrate them in order to be certified as a teacher in the state [3]. A few of the sub-skills under each of the five major categories are as follows: Communication Skills, Basic Knowledge, Technical Skills, Administrative Skills and Interpersonal Skills. Peter F Oliva [3] has described an effective teacher as one whom: Is fully prepared in his or her subject Has a broad general education Understands the role of a school in the society Holds an adequate concept of himself or herself Understands basic principles of learning process Demonstrate effective techniques of instruction Efficiently handles the management of the classroom Possesses personal characteristics conducive to the success in the classroom A similar list has been developed by Kenneth P Henson [3] of an effective teacher as one whom: Is interested in students as individuals Has patience and is willing to repeat Displays fairness Explains things thoroughly Is humorous Is open minded Is informal Does not feel superior Knows the subject Is interested in the subject Is neat in appearance Similarly Dwight Allen and Kevin Ryan [3] have given skills which are generic or common to teachers at all level as follows: Stimulus variation, Set induction, Closure, Silence and Non-Verbal Clues, Reinforcement of Student participation, Fluency in asking question, Probing question, High order question, Divergent question, Recognizing attending behavior, Illustrating and using examples, Lecturing, Planned Repetition, Completeness of communication Teachers Competency has been defined as any particular knowledge, skill, or attitude or any set or combination of them that we may choose to specify (Donald M Medley Patricia R Crock). The knowledge specified may involve subject-matter knowledge, general knowledge, knowledge of psychology, sociology or one of the other disciplines, knowledge of pedagogy-any knowledge that may enhance teacher performance. Skills specified may also relate to content, to writing and speaking skills, to skills in arithmetic, they may be perpetual or diagnostic in nature, they may be performance skills such as those involved in lecturing, leading a discussion or planning instruction, they may be related to deployment of knowledge and skills of other types, or to the integration and implementation of complex strategies. Attitudes specified may pertain to the self, to pupils, to colleagues and to the profession, to values, or whatever [4]. A recent Research in 2008 by Faculty of Education, Adnan Menderes University, Turkey aimed to determine the teachers competencies Turkey needs in the European Union harmonization process [5]. The research used Delphi technique to determine the teachers competencies. Delphi application was completed by participation of 37 experts. As a result of analysis of the third round data removal of items with a standard deviation above 1 and arithmetic average below 6, 142 competency items were obtained. Removal and combination of overlapping opinions was done and hence 137 competency items were obtained. The competencies were divided into four competency categories which are as follows: Competencies Regarding Professional Knowledge Competencies Regarding Field Knowledge, Competencies Regarding Improving Oneself, Competencies Regarding National and International Values. Competencies Regarding Professional Knowledge were addressed in five categories as follows: Professional Competencies Regarding Getting to Know the Students and Enabling Their Improvement Professional Competencies regarding the process of learning-teaching process Professional competencies regarding monitoring and evaluating learning and improvement Professional Competencies regarding School, Family, Colleagues and Society Relations Professional Competencies Regarding the Programme and Content (Abdul Rahim Hamdan et al, Faculty of Education, University of Malaysia) studied the teaching competency and dominant characteristics of 309 teachers from different secondary / primary schools in Johor Bahru [6]. Their competencies were determined through teaching skills, concern for school, concern for students and concern for self, forming a comprehensive and practical model of teachers competency characteristics. Factor analyses of the instrument with various samples revealed 19 stable subscales. Skills Scales were divided into seven sub-scales. There were scales on Subject Knowledge, Teaching Prowess, Classroom Management, Updating Knowledge, Instructional Planning, Teaching Effectiveness; and Teaching and Learnings Progress Evaluation. Concern for School Scales was divided into five sub-skills. There were testing on teachers concern on School Vision and Mission, Objectives and Goals, School Policy and System, Collegiality and Commitment. Scales on Concern for Student were divide d into four sub-scales. There were testing on teachers concern on Student Needs, Academic Performance, Motivation and Behavior. Concern for Self Scales was divided into three sub-scales. There were testing on teachers concern on Self-Development, Self Management and Performance Standard. The most dominant competency of the teachers was in concern for school scales followed by skills, concern for self and concern for students. The result showed that there is significant relationship between gender and teaching competency. The result for the ethnic and teaching competency showed that there is no relationship between ethnic and teaching competency in this study. The data analysis showed that there is no relationship between teaching experience and teaching competency. The result also showed that there is no significant relationship between academic qualification and teaching competency. Thus, it can be summarized that, teachers with higher academic qualification does not mean more comp etent in teaching. (Naree Aware Achwarin, R.N., Ed.D., Graduate School of Education, Assumption University of Thailand) aimed to determine the teacher competence level and investigate the relationship between teacher qualification, teaching experience, and school size and teacher competence of teachers at schools in the three southern border provinces of Thailand [7]. The method of survey research was used through questionnaire. The unit of analysis was teachers, 750 were selected by simple random sampling methods from nine educational regions, 18 secondary schools, under the Basic Education Commission of Thailand (OBEC) at Narathiwas, Pattani, and Yala province. The instrument used for collecting data was a questionnaire, constructed by the researcher, employing the professional standards of knowledge and experience from the Teacher Council of Thailand (2005) containing nine competence areas. The Cronbachs Alpha coefficient for the reliability was 0.96. The content validity was evaluated by five exper ts in the field of Educational Administration. The findings revealed Teachership was the highest teacher competence. In order from the highest to the lowest of nine competence areas, the ranking was teachership; psychology for teachers; educational measurement and evaluation; classroom management; learning management; educational innovation and information technology, language and technology for teachers; curriculum development; and educational research. (Earl Simendinger Bella Galperin, The University of Tampa Daniel R. LeClair, AACSB International A.G. (Tassos) Malliaris, Loyola University) described the design, development and delivery of this curriculum [8]. The objective and what the reader can expect to learn from this work is what are the most important attributes of effective business teachers. Incorporating these attributes into course design and delivery should lead to improvements in teaching effectiveness and students evaluation scores, which results in students better prepared for the business field. In addition to it, reviewing the past literature in particular, student evaluations have received the most attention- this statement shows the gap that competencies derived about the teachers were basically based on student perception not on the basis of management, professor and industry professions. (Kirk Tennant Charles Lawrence, 1975) focused upon teaching strategies and scheduled class hours and their effects upon instructor and course evaluations, student performance, and student absenteeism [9]. The study indicated that discipline teaching strategy produced much better student academic performance. This study indicates that in those situations in which student performance was considered a primary goal, a discipline teaching strategy should be adopted. In all cases the finding suggest that a discipline teaching strategy will improve both attendance and performance. In this multisection course, classes scheduled at good hours had higher student attendance, better student performance, and more favorable teacher evaluation by students. (William J. Read, Dasaratha V. Rama K. Raghunandan, 2001) surveyed administrators of accounting programs from a cross-section of schools and programs to determine whether there is an association between the weight given to teaching and the weight assigned to SEs [10]. The respondents were asked to allocate 100 points among research, service and teaching representing the weights that were attached to each in decision on tenure and promotion to full professor in their institution. The Result showed a statistically significant inverse relationship between the weight given to SEs and the weight assigned to teaching in faculty evaluations for tenure and promotion to full professor. This suggests that as institutions increase the relative emphasis on teaching in their tenure decision and promotion to full professor decision, they place significantly less weight on Student Evaluation. (Stephen A. Stumpf et al, New York University) investigated the relationships among several variables outside of the instructors classroom control and student ratings of teaching effectiveness are investigated in a causal network [11]. The student ratings are relatively independent of external variables. Variables external to the construct of student perceived learning include: (a) variables that students do not agree relate to their learning, (b) variables that the instructor cannot control with his or her instructional efforts within a class (e.g., instructor sex, class size), and (c) variables that students cannot observe and thus cannot accurately evaluate. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis was performed; the six independent variables account for a statistically insignificant 9% of rating variance. The set of six external variables were then entered into a regression equation already containing the three intrinsic variables (instructor in class, instructor in general an d graded assignments). The additional variance accounted for is .6%, indicating that no unique contribution is made by any or all of the external variables. The variables were instructor sex, the year the instructor received her/his last degree, instructor rank, proportion of required courses that an instructor taught over the two semester period and class size. (Dr Paul Isely Dr Harinder Singh) analyzed different factors that influence student evaluations, based on large set of data, reveals that class size, the difficulty of the class, the percentage of students responding, and the length of class are important determinants of students perception [12]. Moreover, although higher expected grades results in more favorable student evaluations, this relationship is significantly different depending upon faculty rank. Based on these findings, the author makes two policy recommendations. First, student evaluations of teaching should be adjusted for specific major determinants to obtain less biased estimates. Second, evaluating teaching effectiveness by a broad teaching portfolio that includes actual grades given to students and other teaching supplements may discourage faculty from exploiting the relationship between higher expected grades and favorable student evaluations. (James E. Whitworth, et al, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, Georgia) analyzed 12,153 student faculty evaluations to investigate the effects of: (a) Faculty member gender (b) Course type (required business core courses, classes within designated majors, or graduate classes) (c) Course level (graduate versus undergraduate classes) on student faculty evaluations [13]. The authors explored the effect of these three factors on students perceptions of how much they learned in particular classes. They found that female instructors rated better than male ones and that rating differed significantly by course type and by students perceived amount of learning. Graduate students tended to give higher scores than undergraduates. These findings could indicate that comparing evaluation data across different courses might not produce valid overall effectiveness rankings. (Richard L. Peterson et al, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ)conducted a study within a large department of a business school and recommends that the process used be adapted by other business school departments and other academic units across the university and at other universities to ensure a more universally appropriate usage of students ratings [14]. The central objective of the research was to identify variables that provide a valid rationale for assigning faculty into norming groups for the purpose of comparing one member of that group to all other members of that group. Given the objective and the data set they had available, they selected the following six variables to explore: Semester Effect, Course Session Effect, Faculty Type Effect, Course Level Effect, Course Focus Effect Course Type. Overall, this study makes two primary contributions to the literature. First, it provides an empirical examination of the factors that might be influencing students ratings. Seco nd, it offers suggestions on how these ratings might be used by administrators. These two contributions offer more evidence that supports Brightmans (2005) recommendations that any evaluation instrument focused on faculty teaching must be reliable and valid and have a meaningful norming report. COMPETENCY MODEL OF AN EFFECTIVE TEACHER A Competency Model of an Effective Teacher has been obtained after reviewing the literature and also by using Competency Dictionary obtained by colleagues of Richard Boyatzis in 1981 which was obtained by analyzing the data [i.e transcripts of behavioral event interviews] from a number of competency studies which produced set of competencies that consistently distinguished superior performance across organizations and functions [1] COMPETENCY MODEL OF EFFECTIVE TEACHER Concern for Self Concern for College Competencies of an Effective Teacher Concern for Students Figure 1: Competency Model of an Effective Teacher Competencies of an Effective teacher can be categorized into three categories as shown in the above diagram which are as follows: Concern for College, Concern for Self and Concern for Students. As teacher has duty towards for College it is defined as the first category where teachers competencies are adoption of College Vision and Mission, teacher should be committed towards his/her work, a teacher should be high on competencies like credibility, integrity and sincerity. Next comes the category Concern for Self which is very important as teacher always carry these competencies such as teacher should be high on analytical thinking, conceptual thinking, also have good meta qualities such as creativity, teacher should have excellent communication skills, should always be information seeking, should have self-control, self-confidence, be flexible, achievement oriented, open and receptive and most important is that teacher should be able to balance work and his/her life perfectly. Coming to Concern for Students teacher should have competencies like interpersonal understanding, should be able to influence others, should be good in developing others and should be assertive when required. The three categories have been diagrammatically represented below: The broad areas of Competencies under this category are: Organizational Awareness, Adaption Commitment Concern For Order, Quality And Accuracy The competencies can be as follows: Mission Orientation, Commitment to work contract, Ethical conduct and Credibility, integrity and sincerity Concern for College Figure2: Concern for College Competencies The broad areas of Competencies under this category are: Analytical Thinking Conceptual Thinking Meta Qualities Communication Knowledge and Information Orientation Self-Control Persistence Flexibility Achievement and Action Being open and receptive Being organized Work Life Balance The competencies can be as follows: Reasoning, Ability to Generate Theories, Creativity, Presentation skills, Resistance to Stress, Persistence, Strong Self-Concept, Adaptability, Result Orientation, Composure, Humor, Time Management, Work/Life Balance Concern for Self Figure 3: Concern for Self Competencies The broad areas of Competencies under this category are: Interpersonal Understanding Impact and Influence Developing Others Being Directive The competencies can be as follows: Empathy, Approachability, Sensitivity to Others, Interpersonal Savvy, Showmanship, Teaching and Training, Realistic Positive Regard, Motivating others, Classroom Control and Discipline, Assertive Concern for Students Figure 4: Concern for Students Competencies USE OF COMPETENCY MODEL: This Competency Model can be used for identifying policies for teacher training, Pre-service teacher training programs of institutions of higher education for teacher training, In-service training of teachers, Professional Development of Teachers, Selection of teachers, Evaluation of teacher performances, Self-knowledge and self-development of teachers.

interlopers :: essays research papers

In a forest of mixed growth somewhere on the eastern spurs of the Karpathians, a man stood one winter night watching and listening, as though he waited for some beast of the woods to come within the range of his vision, and, later, of his rifle. But the game for whose presence he kept so keen an outlook was none that figured in the sportsman's calendar as lawful and proper for the chase; Ulrich von Gradwitz patrolled the dark forest in quest of a human enemy. The forest lands of Gradwitz were of wide extent and well stocked with game; the narrow strip of precipitous woodland that lay on its outskirt was not remarkable for the game it harboured or the shooting it afforded, but it was the most jealously guarded of all its owner's territorial possessions. A famous law suit, in the days of his grandfather, had wrested it from the illegal possession of a neighbouring family of petty landowners; the dispossessed party had never acquiesced in the judgment of the Courts, and a long series of poaching affrays and similar scandals had embittered the relationships between the families for three generations. The neighbour feud had grown into a personal one since Ulrich had come to be head of his family; if there was a man in the world whom he detested and wished ill to it was Georg Znaeym, the inheritor of the quarrel and the tireless game-snatcher and raider of the disputed border-forest. The feud might, perhaps, have died down or been compromised i f the personal ill-will of the two men had not stood in the way; as boys they had thirsted for one another's blood, as men each prayed that misfortune might fall on the other, and this wind-scourged winter night Ulrich had banded together his foresters to watch the dark forest, not in quest of four-footed quarry, but to keep a look-out for the prowling thieves whom he suspected of being afoot from across the land boundary. The roebuck, which usually kept in the sheltered hollows during a storm-wind, were running like driven things to-night, and there was movement and unrest among the creatures that were wont to sleep through the dark hours. Assuredly there was a disturbing element in the forest, and Ulrich could guess the quarter from whence it came. < 2 > He strayed away by himself from the watchers

The Function of Desire in Relationships Between a Man and a Youth Essay

The structure and function of different types of sexual relationships were an important part of Athenian culture, and many rules and traditions formed around these relationships based on the mores of society. The male citizens were considered the most important segment of the population, and many Greek writers address the cultural conventions, ideals, and beliefs that formed around these relationships. The three main types of sexual relationships that involved a male citizen are marriage, the relationship between a young man and an older mentor, and sexual encounters with prostitutes. Plato’s Symposium, a dialog on the nature of love and desire, describes many of the beliefs that Athenians held, especially about the relationship between a man and a youth. The main focus of this paper is the ideal function and place of desire in these male with male relationships, and the benefits this particular bond held for society. The socially accepted structure of these relationships between an Athenian man and youth was characterized by pursuit and courtship on the part of the man. He was to go after an attractive youth, hoping to make him his beloved [eromenos]. The older man was expected to be the aggressive partner, pursuing the youth out of his erotic desire. In turn, the beloved was expected to be the passive partner, rejecting the man’s advances for a respectable amount of time, and then to enter the relationship to gain the older man as a mentor, not as a sexual partner. This aggressive man and passive youth structure continued into sexual acts, with the older male acting as the dominant, penetrating partner, while the younger man was the passive receptive partner. According to cultural rules, however, it was considered emascul... ...in parentage of any children the wife might give birth to after this time. In the realm of politics, a failure to serve or to fulfill ones duties was also a stain on the honor of the household and family- it is portrayed as much more public than the ideal private bond between lover and beloved. This manifestation of Celestial love benefited both the lover and beloved, as well as serving society by creating a strong bond that was characterized by its honor and virtue. This bond generated the most powerful form of loyalty a citizen man would experience, and he believes that more than any other loyalty, this love would make men honorable in battle, politics, and business in order to make their beloved proud. In turn, the beloved sought to learn form his mentor in order to become an honorable citizen and individual, eventually passing these values on to his own beloved.

My Business Essay -- essays research papers

Personal Assessment: After doing comprehensive research I come to the conclusion, that by opening a Restaurant with Bosnian food would be very good business venture. By opening a restaurant with authentic Bosnian food within the Bosnian community of fifty thousand people would be very profitable. In a way risk free. My only concern is that this is my first time investing a large amount of money. Bosnian Food is very unique. Most Bosnian people have very busy schedules and they don’t have time to cook. My restaurant would feature traditional Bosnian food and atmosphere to make people feel as if they were in Bosnia. By opening this restaurant, families would be able to come to dine or to take food home that would make them feel at home and also employ many Bosnian people who can’t find jobs because of the language barrier. Uncontrollable variable in this case is that someone else may come up with the same idea shortly after I start my business. I want to start my own business for several reasons. My money, hard work, time, and effort would be invested in something that would, in the long run, benefit me, my family and also the Bosnian community. Research: Chicago is home to fifty thousand Bosnian people. Which makes it the largest Bosnian community in the United States. Bosnians started immigrating to United States in 1993Which means that this is a very young community with great potential. Memories of their homeland and home cooking are still very fresh in their minds and i...