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After suffering a lot of devastating epidemic attacks and mass deaths, humanity invented antibiotics and started applying them against known bacterial diseases. Using antibiotics for the last 6 decades, we are now facing the results of the process caused by genetic changes and mutations in bacteria. This can be explained by one of the basic principles of evolution: natural selection, which suggests that the fittest and the strongest survive, and the weakest disappear. Bacteria are one-celled organisms, which are very vulnerable to mutations. It is known that the most of the mutations affect the organisms. But certainly, there are some chances of positive outcomes of mutations as well. Mitosis of bacteria is a very fast process, which brings to rapid growth of the population. Having such huge number of bacteria, the chances of positive mutation are higher, therefore, more and more bacteria can become resistant to antibiotics treatment. Nowadays, different types of pathogen bacteria can already survive the existing antibiotics, and using an excessive amount of antibiotics we dramatically fastened the process of natural selection in bacteria evolution. This situation threatens the effectiveness of traditional treatment methods to bacterial diseases. That is why world scientists are facing the necessity of searching for new antibiotics, either modifying the known ones or looking for something absolutely different. According to the research of the Harvard School of Public Health, in 2005 â€Å"..more than 40% of Streptococcus pneumoniae strains in the United States could resist both penicillin and erythromycin† (Powledge, 2004). The other researches, based on mathematical modeling, show that in the nearest future more and more species of bacteria will be able to resist old antibiotics. Therefore, if no new antibiotics are available, we’ll become totally unprotected against hard diseases, like tuberculosis, etc. Bibliography: Powledge, T. M. (2004, February 17). New Antibiotics—Resistance Is Futile. PLoS Biol 2(2): e53

Project topics †Journal of Engineering Research and Studies Essay

Journal of Engineering Research and Studies E-ISSN0976-7916 Research Paper SEPARATION OF OIL AND PECTIN FROM ORANGE PEEL AND STUDY OF EFFECT OF pH OF EXTRACTING MEDIUM ON THE YIELD OF PECTIN Shekhar Pandharipande*a, Harshal Makodeb Address for Correspondence *a- Associate Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, Laxminarayan Institute of Technology, Rashtrasant Tukdoji Maharaj Nagpur University, Bharat Nagar, Amravati Road, Nagpur,India. b B. Tech student, Department of Chemical Engineering, Laxminarayan Institute of Technology, Rashtrasant Tukdoji Maharaj Nagpur University, Bharat Nagar, Amravati Road, Nagpur, India. ABSTRACT An orange, specifically, the sweet orange (Citrus sinensis (L.)) is the most commonly grown tree fruit in the world. The present work addresses to the development of the part of the process needed for the extraction of value added products like orange oil and pectin from orange peel, which is the waste of orange juice processing industry. The outcome of the present work highlighted that the sweet orange peels are good source of orange oil and pectin and does have the potential to become important raw material for food processing industries. Two methods namely simple distillation & leaching have been explored for separation of oil from peels. The remains of cake in this part is further treated for isolation of pectin. It is found from the experimental observations that the peel source, for extraction of pectin, when taken after extracting orange oil through simple distillation gives higher yield than leaching residue. It is concluded that the process in which orange oil is first extracted using technique of simple distillation followed by acid extraction of pectin is most suitable for industrial production for isolation of pectin. These results demonstrate the successful extraction of orange oil and pectin, providing potential benefits for  industrial extraction of pectin from an economic and environmental point of view. KEYWORDS orange peel, pectin extraction, orange essential oil 1.1 INTRODUCTION An orange, specifically, the sweet orange (Citrus  sinensis (L.)) is the most commonly grown tree fruit  in the world. Orange trees are widely cultivated in  tropical and subtropical climates for the sweet fruit,  which is peeled or cut (to avoid the bitter rind) and  eaten whole, or processed to extract orange juice, &  also for the fragrant peel. Citrus fruits are at the top  not only in total production, but also in economic  value. The albedo is the main source of pectin. Pectin  includes all the esterified polygalacturonic acids at  different degree of neutralization. In the presence of  saccharine and small quantities of organic acids  (usually citric acid), pectins gelatinized, and this  property is exploited by the agrochemistry and  pharmaceutical industries for pectin isolation. Orange  essential oil is present in small ductless gland  contained in the peel of the orange fruits. The main  constituent of orange peel essential oil is d-limone ne  (present to the extent of at least 90 %), which is the  only hydrocarbon present. The d-limonene is  extracted from orange rinds or solids. The rinds and  pulp are sent to an evaporator and the d-limonene is  steamed out. It is widely known for its pleasant scent  and degreasing properties. d-limonene is currently  being used in many applications such as chlorinated  solvents replacements, hand cleaners and sewage  treatments. The orange processing industry can get a  complete makeover if due importance is given for  separation of useful ingredient from orange peel.  Researchers and Scientists have been working on the  separation of oil and pectin from orange peel and  reporting their findings in journals of repute. A brief  summary includes orange peel: organic waste or  energetic resource(1), Waste to wealth: Industrial raw  materials potential of peels of Nigerian sweet orange  (Citrus sinensis)(2), method of distilling a volatile  constituent from liquid mixture(3), Optimization of  pectin acid extraction from passion fruit peel  (Passiflora edulis flavicarpa) using response surface  methodology(4), Extraction and Qualitative Assessment of African Sweet Orange Seed Oil(5), JERS/Vol. III/ Issue II/April-June, 2012/06-09 Comparisons between different techniques for waterbased extraction of pectin from orange peels(6) , microwave-assisted Isolation of essential oil of  Cinnamomum iners Reinw. ex Bl.: Comparison with  Conventional hydrodistillation(7), Microwave-assisted  extraction of pectin from orange peel(8), microbial  production of pectin from Citrus peel(9), Optimization  of Pectin Extraction from Peel of Dragon Fruit  (Hylocereus polyrhizus)(10), Determining the Yield  and Quality of Pectin from Fresh Peel & Pectin  Pomace(11) and Microbial Production of Pectin from  Citrus Peel(12) . The present work (13) explored the possibility of  separation of essential oils and pectin from the  orange peels. Nagpur is major orange producing  centre in the subcontinent and even recognised in the  name of oranges as, Orange city. 1.2 MATERIALS AND METHODS: The present work is divided into following parts: I. Separation of oil from peels. a) Using the method of simple distillation b) Using ethanol as solvent in the method of leaching II. Extraction of pectin from oil peels a) From fresh peels, the leftover b) From dried cake remained after simple distillation and leaching as in part I 1.2.1 Separation of oil from peels: Raw Material: The raw material taken under examination for the extraction of orange oil (d-limonene) and pectin is orange peel. Orange peels are removed from fresh oranges which are procured from local market and which were harvested in the month of December 2011 to January 2012. Methods: Simple distillation is employed for removal of essential oil from orange peel. Dried and fined ground orange peel powder is added with known quantity of water which is simple distilled off for approximately one hour. The solid remains of the residue are dried to obtain the dry cake. The distillate Journal of Engineering Research and Studies E-ISSN0976-7916 resulted in to two phases, oil and water. Two phases  are separated and orange oil is obtained. For 350 gm  of orange powder taken, 8 ml of oil and 126.3 gm of  dried cake is obtained. The method of leaching is also explored for removal  of oil from peels. 380 gm of fresh orange peel are extracted with 225 ml of ethanol. After adequate  contacting, two phases, solid and liquid are separated,  198 gm of wet slurry resulted into 150 gm of dry  cake. However oil could not be recovered following  this method. The dried cake obtained is further  treated for separation of pectin in next part of present  work.  1.2.2 Extraction of pectin from orange peels:  The objective of this part of work is extraction and  isolation of pectin from fresh orange peel sample and  the dry cake sample left after extraction of oil using  simple distillation as in part I. The objective includes  the study of the effect of pH of the medium on the  yield of pectin extracted. The process flow chart is as shown in the figure 1. Table no 1: Experimental observations of yield of pectin at different pH Fig no 1: Process flow chart for extraction of pectin from orange peel sample Citric acid in distilled water solutions of desired pH  values 1, 1.5, 2, 3, 4 and 5 are prepared. Orange peel samples weighing 10 gm each are dipped in to the  solution and heated at 800C for 10 minutes. After  cooling the solution, it is filtered using cloth filter  and Whatman filter paper under vacuum. Ethanol is  added to the filtered solution to facilitate filtration of  pectin. The solution is filtered using fine filter cloth  or centrifuge at 8000 rpm for 15 min at 100C to  separate jelly pectin which is dried under vacuum at  500C and -100 mmHg gauge for two hours. Dried  pectin is thus obtained. The observations are given in  table no 1.  Yield % of pectin is based on the gram of peel sample taken, and is calculated by formula as given below; Fig no 2: Pectin yield at different pH of extracting medium 1.2.2.1: Comparison of yield of pectin from the dry cake residue left after simple distillation and leaching: Same procedure is applied for separation of pectin in  this part of present work, as followed in part 1.2.2.the  observations are tabulated in table 2 & pictorial  details & output of process are depicted in fig 3. Table no 2: Experimental observations of  comparison of yield of pectin from the dry cake  residue left after simple distillation and leaching  where Ypec (%) is the extracted pectin yield in per cent (%), P is the amount of dry pectin in g and Bi is the initial amount of orange peel in gram. Results and discussion: The maximum yield of pectin is obtained at   extraction medium pH of 1. However negligible yield  is obtained at pH of 4 and 5 as can be seen from  graph plotted between pectin yield % obtained for  various values of pH of medium as shown in fig 2. JERS/Vol. III/ Issue II/April-June, 2012/06-09 Journal of Engineering Research and Studies Result and discussion: The yield of pectin obtained is highest in turbid  extract, but this might be due to some suspended  impurities present in the extract. The maximum  overall yield of the pectin is obtained from orange  peel residue sample through simple distillation. Therefore, in the process of orange oil and pectin  extraction from orange peel, it is recommended on  basis of results obtained, that to first extract oil using  simple distillation and then isolate pectin with acid  hydrolysis technique. 1.3 CONCLUSION Nagpur region is well known in central Asia as  largest orange producing region. It is also known as  the California of India, producing excellent quality  oranges in large number. Though it has great  production of oranges, the downstream processing  and value added product manufacturing technology is  not yet developed. The present work is dedicated for E-ISSN0976-7916 the development of the part of the process technology  needed for the extraction of value added products i.e.  orange oil and pectin from orange peel, which is the  waste of orange juice processing industry. The  present work revealed that the sweet orange peels are  good source of orange oil and pectin and does have  the potential to become important raw material for  food processing industries. It is found from the  experimentation that the peel source, for extraction of  pectin, when taken after extracting orange oil through  simple distillation gives higher yield than leaching  residue. So it can be concluded that the process in  which orange oil is first extracted using technique of  simple distillation followed by acid extraction of  pectin is most suitable for industrial production. These results demonstrate the successful extraction of  orange oil and pectin, providing potential benefits for  industrial extraction of pectin from an economic and  environmental point of view. Fig no 3: Pictorial presentation of the process for comparison of yield of pectin from the dry cake residue left after simple distillation and leaching Amboni. (2009). optimisation of pectin acid extraction REFERENCES 1. 2. 3. 4. Martà ­n M.A, Siles J.A.1, El Bari H, Chica A. F, Università © Ibn Tofail. Facultà © dos Sciences. Kenitra (Maroc) .(2008). Orange Peel: Organic Waste or Energetic Resource? Tobias I. Ndubuisi Ezejiofor, N. V. Eke, R. I. Okechukwu, R. N. Nwoguikpe and C. M. Duru. (2011) Waste to wealth: Industrial raw materials potential of peels of Nigerian sweet orange (Citrus sinensis). African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 10(33), pp. 6257-6264. Gorden P. Gerow, Davenport, Fla.(1982). Method Of Distilling A Volatile Constituent From Liquid Mixture. United States Patent, 4,326,926. Erika Kliemann, Karina Nunes de Simas, Edna R. Amante, Elane Schwinden Prudeˆncio, Reinaldo F. Teo ´ filo, Ma ´ rcia M. C. Ferreira & Renata D. M. C. JERS/Vol. III/ Issue II/April-June, 2012/06-09 5. 6. 7. from passion fruit peel (Passiflora edulis flavicarpa) using response surface methodology. International Journal of Food Science and Technology, 44, 476–483. Nwobi BE, Ofoegbu O & O B Adesina. (2006). Extraction And Qualitative Assessment Of African Sweet Orange Seed Oil. African Journal of food agriculture nutrition and development. Vol. 6 ISSN 1684-5374. S. Yeoh, J. Shi, T.A.G. Langrish. (2008). Comparisons between different techniques for water-based extraction of pectin from orange peels. Elsevier, Desalination 218, 229–237. Weerachai Phutdhawong, Rungthip Kawaree, Samart Sanjaiya, Waya Sengpracha & Duang Buddhasukh.(2007). Microwave-Assisted Isolation of Essential oil of innamomum iners Reinw. ex Bl.: Journal of Engineering Research and Studies Comparison with Conventional Hydrodistillation. Molecules ISSN 1420-3049 8. Zheng Jie, Yang Ting, Wu Qiang, Li Jing, Wang YaNa. (2009). Microwave-assisted Extraction of Pectin from Orange Peel. Vol. 30, No. 20, p. 134-137. 9. P.Y. Tang, C.J. Wong and K.K. Woo. (2011). Optimization of Pectin Extraction from Peel of Dragon Fruit (Hylocereus polyrhizus). Asian Journal of Biological Sciences, ISSN 1996-3351, Knowledgia Review, Malaysia, 4 (2): 189-195. 10. P. G. Crandall, R. J. Braddock, and A. H. Rouse. (1978). Determining The Yield And Quality Of Pectin From Fresh Peel And Pectin Pomace. Proc. Fla. State Hort. Soc. 91:109-111. 11. Takuo Sakai & Minoru Okushima. (1998). Microbial Production of Pectin from Citrus Peel.Applied and Environmental Microbiology, Vol. 39, No. 4, p. 908912. 12. Harshal Makode (2012).Project report submitted for B Tech to Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University,Nagpur. JERS/Vol. III/ Issue II/April-June, 2012/06-09 E-ISSN0976-7916

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Vera Drake - Movie Review Example The really shocking element with Vera is that she is introduced as completely dedicated to her family and her duties as wife and mother. Keeping this horrible secret from her family and being undisturbed for many years, for her this was a regular visit to someone's house and helping them out of the situation. At the time single women in particular would be socially and economically condemned if they got an illegitimate child. So in order to avoid the catastrophic situation, women would do anything to save their social appearance and image. What the film tries to imply to the audience is that the heroine acts on the bases of her own principles and she is guided by her good will to save the women and empower them with the right to decide for themselves what is best for them. What we do not expect from the movie is that such a kind and agreeable, wife and mother would ever thought of performing illegal abortions at a time when social norms and restrictions do not justify it. Vera possesses the inner strength and stamina to do these procedures and she is always soothing the misfortune women showing deep understanding and support for their situation. The director very carefully explores and plays with the roles that Vera fulfills - wife, mother and criminal. Though we are introduced to Vera's family, friends and social surrounding we are never given the argument what made Vera into practicing the then illegal abortions. So we can only assume that she is doing it out of her good will and belief that she is helping. She is supported by her response when the inspector comes into her home. In fact, they never ask her what she is doing, she gives her in by admitting that she knows already why they are here. And she replies: "I help girls out." Using this euphem ism leads us to believe that her desire is to aid the girls. Vera's action can be best described as "getting girls out of trouble". Another evidence of her good will is that she is not taking money. Instead she is brought food or milk or other ingredients. When asked about that she is repulsed. It seems that her explanation is far more complicated than simply gaining extra cash. Vera's discreet services and house to house visits give away that she is oblivious about taking advantage of women's situations and instead risks it all - her family and her good name in order to assist the women in their desire to make abortion. The audience is also given other perspectives after Vera's arrest. We have Reg's opinion (Vera's daughter potential husband) - "It ain't fair. Me mum brought up six of us in two rooms. If you can't feed 'em, you can't love 'em, now can you" His point shows understanding about the role that women play as mothers, homemakers and care providers. Vera has very affectionate bond with her husband - Stan. What he thinks about her arrest is that "Whatever she done, she done it out of the goodness of her heart!" Since the viewers have to rely on clues that other characters give away, Stan and Reg provide us with possible explanations why Vera initiated her actions. The reason for Vera's arrest is a life threatening mishap that happened to one of her customers a daughter of a wealthy bourgeoisie family for whom Vera cleans. Susan's desperation is as intense as Vera's

Past, Present and Future Essay Example for Free

Past, Present and Future Essay Before studying at the University of Phoenix program, I thought that my career is at its peak, I am married, I have three kids and I have a stable job for 15 years, but then I feel something missing. I attributed that void within me to my lack of a degree, and I want to prove to myself and to others that I deserve everything I have right now by backing it up with a degree. Education, for me, is a very important part of a person’s growth and development. That is why I strive not just to be able to provide my family’s basic needs, but to also provide my kids the best education possible. Then it hit me, I had to set myself as an example to my children that, indeed, education is and will always be important. I had to earn my degree. During the course of my work, I can say that I am competent enough in my analytical skills; I can solve basic problems, find solutions, think logically and perform my tasks efficiently. But one problem I had is that I was weak at my written and oral communication skills because I have not undergone the proper training to develop them both; yes, I was able to apply them all throughout my career, but I was not able to produce formal letters without having to browse through guides that will help me produce my work. Information retrieval was never a problem because I am still young and my memory, although not as sharp as it used to be, is still very much dependable; regarding the utilization and collaboration of this data though, I have been able to manage, but I fear that it is not as efficient as I would like to be because I have not yet been able to hone my skills and tackle formal ways to address issues efficiently. When I started to work, my goal was simple: stay in this job so that in the long run, when I start my own family, I can be able to provide them with their basic needs such as a proper home, enough food, and good education. But no one hinders me from dreaming; as time passed I started to change these goals, I want to be better-off, now I’m dreaming of gaining a high position someday, be able to pamper my wife and my children luxurious gifts, and basically live the good life. Once again I thought about my lack of education; these dreams became the stepping stones which motivated me pursue my education and realize these career goals that I once thought are just dreams. During my stay at the University of Phoenix, the two core courses that I enjoyed the most were public relations and international marketing. The course in public relations has helped me a lot with my abilities to interact with people, the proper ways of doing things – how to address them, how to project myself in a way that it exhibits confidence and knowledge at the same time – these kinds of things. The international marketing course has helped me understand the do’s and don’ts in markets in a global scale, as well as be able to predict trends and fads. Considering that I am in the beverage industry, these courses will pretty much help me as I interact with people, not just the customers but also the higher –ups in both the domestic and foreign markets. The other two subjects that got me interested most were Critical Thinking and Human Motivation. In the Critical Thinking course, I was able to hone my problem solving and =general data processing and it has helped me a lot professionally because of the nature of my work. The cut throat world of industry has become a little easier for me now that I have these skills. The other course, Human Motivation, has helped me with in interacting with people from all walks of life, and I believe that it has been and will be very helpful in my future endeavours. Human motivation, as I see it, does not box the people in, rather it helps them get â€Å"out of the box† by motivating them, not forcing them. My completion of this degree helps prove one of the most obvious facts in life – that life is indeed a never ending journey. I will never learn everything there is to know, but this will not stop me from being curious, that is why I have started to crave for learning not just because it will help me develop myself into an educated, motivated individual, but it will also help bring out all that is best within me. For the next five years, hopefully I can further pursue higher learning and expand my career by getting a promotion. I feel that I now deserve any type of promotion that I will be able to achieve given that I can already back it up with my degree. If I will come across programs such as seminars, forums, and such discussions about critical thinking and human motivation, then I would gladly undertake it because I feel that there is still much to learn in these subjects. For me, human interaction is a skill that one can be good at but can never master, and I will, as I have always done, continue to work on these skills by interacting with my peers, my customers, and my superiors. The difference now, though, is that I have formal knowledge on how to tackle situations that I would not have otherwise known if I had not finished my education.

Impact of Globalisation and FDI on Chinese Labour Law

Impact of Globalisation and FDI on Chinese Labour Law The Impact of Globalisation and Foreign Direct Investment on Chinese Labour Law and Policy Appetiser There I was, situated in Shanghai as part of a new student program with the University of Sydney. I drew back the curtains of my hotel suite on the thirtieth floor and beheld the Shanghai skyline. I had been told that not a single building was more than ten years old and I believed it. Before me stood a futuristic New York with sturdy glass skyscrapers towering above the masses as they went about their day on rudimentary cycles. I felt Caucasian and large in a world of physically short men and women whose world was running away from all that they had been and understood. I almost felt as though I were more at home in this strange, capital leviathan of structures, fitting precariously at the doorstep of wealth and clutching like a lost child to the parent sleeve of communism. Over the next four weeks I would study the impact of globalisation on China’s economical, political and social traditions. I was to tear away at the old fabric of a people’s country and in my own way seemingly justify intellectual property, uneven distributions of wealth and a drive for profits in this world that was steadily before my eyes, turning from red to green. Those students who had come before me had ignored the sheer impact of such factors on this socialist world. They focused merely on the steps that would need to be taken to eradicate bad habits that were hostile to Foreign Direct Investment. Yet the irony was that each and every one of us would venture into the markets and pick up accurate knock-offs of Prada and Hugo Boss for a fraction of their genuine retail value. I did however choose to focus on the people that remained behind the curtain of global market triumph. These were men and women whose lives were left uncertain in a country now becoming more a nd more devoid of lifetime guaranteed jobs. I wondered at their predicament, I focused on thinking of the changes to their lives and hoped that they would understand that it was all for the best. Nicola L Tysoe Introduction The clear combination of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) welcoming policies and a relatively low cost economy spells a formula which, with the addition of cheap labour will become an area that foreign investors are only too happy to target by means of outsourcing the bulk of their services to the People’s Republic of China (PRC). China is rapidly growing in strength into a super power of the future and it becomes necessary to take a good look at the anatomy of this prosperous period of growth. This paper will begin in Chapter one by focusing on the substantive legal reforms that have been brought on by China’s bid for a more FDI welcoming environment. This will begin by giving an historical account of the social factors that encouraged reform Chapter two will then provide substantive analysis of the Chinese Labour Law of 1994, the Trade Union Law of 2001, Occupational Health and Safety and social security. In theory, and in a perfect world, the rapid race to FDI impacts on the economy of the target State in much the same manner as the Marshall plan that brightened the horizon for West Germany after the Second World War. Analysts would be forgiven for assuming that it is only a matter of time before the standard of living and sophistication of infrastructure of China begins to reach levels that are on a par with Western markets. This does after all go hand in hand with development in many infrastructures such as pensions and insurance, banking, intellectual property enforcement, taxation and corporate governance. It is also assumed that the process of acceleration will become exponential due to China’s recent accession to the WTO. In March of 2003, three major institutions came together to convene the International Conference on the Labour Reform: Employment, Workers’ Rights and Labour Law in China. These were; the International Institute’s Advanced Study Centre (ASC), the Institute of Labour and Industrial Relations and the Centre for Chinese Studies. In addition delegates from the World Bank, Amnesty International and University of Michigan faculty members and event co-sponsors[1]. The central point of discussion for this two-day conference was to discuss changes to the labour market of China as a result of over twenty years of rapid economic reform. Interestingly, this conference went beyond the mere analysis of new laws and looked more closely into the socially impacting factors of implementation in order to illustrate the true reality for workers in post economic reform China. This conference illustrated the clear need for a social analysis of labour in addition to the more procedural concepts of law reform and economic policy changes. Chapter three will therefore provide the contrasting reality for workers and give an account of China’s weak implementation policies as well as the emergence of inequality of worker treatment due to geography, gender and, surprisingly, the corporate entity of the employer. Finally, no social, financial and economic analysis of labour in post economic reform China would be complete without also analysing the issue of China as a global influence that may be set to create an international benchmark for attracting FDI. Chapter three will explore this point with reference to the existing impact of China on the global investment scene. The question asked will be whether the international community has cause for concern given China’s poor implementation strategy against promising legal harmonisation such as recent accession to the WTO. This will raise the worrying issue of risking a trend within workers rights that will witness a ‘race to the bottom’. Chapter One: Analysis – Social-Economic reform in China AHistorical Changes to Labour The political reason for economic reform in China was derived from unrest between 1966 and 1976[2] in which there had been a loss of confidence in the communist regime. By instigating reforms towards the creation of an open market, the Government hoped to establish popularity in an ever more dissatisfied population[3]. In addition to politics, China instigated reforms as a result of practical necessity and clearly prioritised economic welfare over purely communist ideals. This revolutionary compromise saved the regime and is exclusively responsible for China’s preservation of communism to this day[4]. China initially instigated its experiment with private ownership in 1978 but prior to this time annual growth rates in industrial production were measured at an average of 9.59 percent between 1952 and 1978[5]. In addition, industrial capital assets increased by an average of 11.08 percent and this contrasted with employment growth of a mere 5.98 percent per annum[6] and a wage rate increase of a mere 0.1 percent! The increased labour was resourced from rural regions as prospects in these areas diminished and young people undertook economic migration in search of better wage rates in China’s urban centres. This displacement of the population placed pressure on the maintenance of food supplies into the cities and called upon increased spending on housing and public services. The resulting reduction in rural labour resources also resulted in a decrease in agricultural output thereby increasing food costs across the country. The response from the Chinese government was to prioritise on the development of industries that yielded the highest revenue and these were centred in the urban districts[7]. Unfortunately this resulted in a destabilization of equilibrium of employment availability between the urban and rural regions thereby resulting in increased unemployment in the latter by the late 1970s. The result was an increased migration of rural populations seeking work and numbered a staggering, albeit modest estimate of 5 to 6 million Chinese between the years of 1978 and 1980[8]. The Government was effectively faced with a crisis as the traditional communist solution to simply create jobs within state owned sectors proved to be wholly unrealistic given the scale of the problem. Clearly relaxation of FDI restrictions, coupled with the attractive incentive of low cost labour would open the door to investment from the West. It was also conceded by the Chinese Government that this economic reform would create widespread modernisation of existing infrastructures and provide a breeding ground for technological advancement, as well as facilitate greater responses to consumer demands[9]. The Chinese Government regarded the allowance for economic growth within a private sector to tackle the problem of unemployment and treated the venture as an experiment. However these areas of private growth had originally formed part of the old communist infrastructure and this alleviated the brunt of political connotation for creation of a thriving private sector within a socialist regime. As is typical for developing States, China utilised the system of allocating Special Economic Zones (SEZs) for the purpose of concentrating FDI into specific geographic locations. Allocation of the location of these zones began in the early 1980s and there are now five SEZs in the provinces of Guangdong, Fujian, Hainan Hunchun and Pudong (Shanghai). To this day these zones provide huge tax incentives in the early days of development and can typically entail tax exemption during the first years of business until profits are declared[10]. Thereafter a ‘Tax Clock’ is counted whereby corporations tax would fall payable after the second year of profitable business[11]. Tax is then chargeable at a discount until the end of year five[12]. This method does however create vast inequalities of economic wealth between SEZ and non SEZ regions. This will be discussed further in chapter insert. B.Direct Implications for Labour 1986 saw China make the bold step of awarding further preferential treatment to businesses within the SEZs that had been established with overseas capital. Under new regulations these firms were permitted to independently determine the size of their own workforce and were given carte blanche discretion on setting wages. In addition, the Government acknowledged the need for entrepreneurs and hence, increased freedoms for domestic companies. Earlier in 1978 China had therefore given leave for small, privately run businesses to be given permission to exist and grow. In 1981 the State Council set up regulations governing the business ventures of entrepreneurs. By 1988 large domestic companies had been awarded the same workforce level control and profit distribution freedoms as FDI funded companies[13]. Chapter Two: Understanding Labour Law in Post Reform China AUnderstanding Chinese Labour Market Structure In order to fully appreciate the effects labour reforms that were brought on by FDI and globalisation it is essential to fully understand the current labour market structure. There are now four types of in addition to privately owned companies and urban collectives. Firstly there are State owned enterprises which, while resembling a capitalist entity by being profit-driven, remains under the control of the People’s Republic of China (PRC)[14]. These enterprises form the historic legacy of the pre-reform days of centralised State planning. This type of entity is used for the implementation of public policy ventures. However, since these reforms have taken hold, there has been a need for wages to be competitively set in accordance with market trends thereby facilitating external, capitalist behaviour when dealing with human resources. Secondly township and village enterprises (TVEs) consist of groups of firms that are inextricably and contractually linked to the local governments of a township or village[15]. These types of business entity are restricted to the employment of local people and must adhere to stricter budget constraints than their state owned enterprise counterparts. Township and Village Enterprises are clearly also connected to local markets such as fishing and agriculture and are not subject to state planning policies for the implementation of public sector ventures. Thirdly Joint Ventures (JVs) are largely located in the five SEZs of the PRC where one party to the venture is a foreign investor. Where however domestic enterprises engage in a similar agreement, no such geographic restriction applies and as a result JVs tend to be scattered around the whole of the PRC. JVs enjoy the contractual freedom of being able ensure that they may hire and fire whomsoever they please within their constituent workforces and are therefore awarded far more flexibility than their state owned enterprise counterparts. Lastly, foreign owned firms are similar in this respect but they of course obtain far more advantageous tax advantages than any of the other three types of entity. This therefore means that of all the types of corporate forms, the foreign owned firm is by far the least restrained[16]. This description of the status of the various separate entities throughout the PRC is, as stated above, essential for a full understanding of the labour law reforms. Part B will now explain reform in relation to the Labour Law of 1994. Part C will do the same for the Trade Union law of 2001 and Parts C and D will explain current Chinese policies on Occupational Health and Safety and social security respectively. BThe Labour Law of 1994[17] The Labour law of China was passed by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress in 1994 and became effective on 1 January 1995 and was in fact the first substantive legal source for labour relations in the history of the PRC. The statute consists of a series of principles that are derived from China’s administrative regulations and, as will be seen, represents a clear desire of the PRC Government to create a system of labour and industrial relations that is far more in keeping with the international community’s standards. Interestingly, there exists a clear attempt to combine the two concepts of traditional command economy with the Western market economy ethos. This balancing act may seem to be a conceptually awkward marriage. Scope of the Law Article 4 of the Labour Law firmly states: â€Å"The employing units shall establish and perfect rules and regulations in accordance with the law so as to ensure that labourers enjoy the right to work and fulfil labour obligations.† The Labour Law of 1994 is applicable to all business entities, whether nationally or internationally owned and governs employment across the skills spectrum. The clear aim to remove distinctions in labour rights between the various skills types and corporate entities is a positive effort to create one high standard of rights for workers in China. A further aspect of the Labour Law is contract employment is given a great deal of attention within Chapter 3 of the Law whereby it has become necessary for all employment to be protected in accordance with a contract. Article 16 states: â€Å"A labour contract is the agreement reached between a labourer and an employing unit for the establishment of the labour relationship and the definition of the rights, interests and obligations of each party. A labour contract shall be concluded where a labour relationship is to be established.† Prior to the economic reforms that were brought on by unrest and global pressure, the PRC Government was solely responsible for the allocation of labour. Instead, the Labour law follows 1986 regulations[18] whereby the standard contract of employment is described. By 1995, the Ministry of Labour had stated that this contract employment system was already in operation among some 85% of the state workforce[19]. A further internationally respected issue of the Labour law is direct address to anti-discrimination. Article 12 states: â€Å"Labourers shall not be discriminated against in employment, regardless of their ethnic community, race, sex, or religious belief.† This is followed by Article 13 which provides that: â€Å"Females shall enjoy equal rights as males in employment. It shall not be allowed, in the recruitment of staff and workers, to use sex as a pretext for excluding females form employment or to raise recruitment standards for the females, except for the types of work or posts that are not suitable for females as stipulated by the State.† The issue of gender equality does in reality reflect the PRC’s existing policies of equality that are not unusual for a communist state. In addition to the Labour Law, the PRC also produced the Law on the Protection of Women’s Rights and Interests in 1992[20] and is in keeping with the international campaign of the United Nations Development Fund for Women[21] . The law also consists of mandatory periods of rest, restrictions to overtime and overtime pay. In relation to factories that are set up within the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) it is surprising to note that these mostly foreign owned companies are the worst culprits for worker exploitation. The reason for this is that the bulk of those employed are from the rural areas and tend to be on a temporary basis, which is associated with the fluctuating demands for labour in privately owned firms. This is by contrast to the state owned businesses that promote longevity of working contract as a legacy of the communist era. The Labour Law stipulates in Article 36 that workers are to be engaged for no more than 8 hours per day and that the working week is no to exceed 44 hours. In addition, Article 38 calls for the right to have at least one day off per week. It is also interesting to learn that only three months after the coming into effect of the Labour Law, one State Council reduced the mini mum standards of working hours within the Labour Law to a maximum of 8 hours per day for five days per week. The Labour Law also provides for criteria for the calculation of a minimum wage within Article 48, which specifies that: â€Å"The determination and readjustment of the standards on minimum wages shall be made with reference to the following factors in a comprehensive manner: the lowest living expenses of labourers themselves and the average family members they support; (2) the average wage level of the society as a whole; (3) labour productivity; the situation of employment; and the different levels of economic development between regions.† As stipulated above, Article 48 also provides for the reporting of wages to the State Council which means that the Central Government has the power to supervise wages across the nation. This is only a slightly more invasive policy than that of Western Civilisations that specify a minimum wage but is arguably superior given that the wording of Article 48 provides for relative considerations such as geographic cost of living and worker commitments in order to determine wage levels. This therefore means that deemed income that is sufficient for comfortable living is more realistically achievable for Chinese workers than many low income earners in the West. This also provides for the availability of a large amount of data concerning minimum wage levels across the PRC and there is a sizeable difference between the South Coast SEZ provinces by comparison to the Northern regions. This will be discussed further in Chapter 2. A new kind of relationship between the worker and the state The Labour Law has cleverly converted administrative sanctions into liability for breach of contract, thereby maintaining a sense of obligation for workers without the stigmatising concept of the over-lord State. An example of this can be seen in Article 25 which stipulates situations that would permit the revocation of the contract of employment: â€Å"The employing unit may revoke the labour contract with a labourer in any of the following circumstances: to be proved not up to the requirements for recruitment during the probation period; to seriously violate labour disciplines or the rules and regulations of the employing units; to cause great losses to the employing unit due to serious dereliction of duty or engagement in malpractice for selfish ends; and to be investigated for criminal responsibilities in accordance with the law.† Another example is the right to sue workers for damages in the event that they walk away from the job[22]. As regards the obligations and duties of the employer to the employees, the Labour Law deals with Legal Responsibility[23] of the employer exclusively in such areas as excessive overtime and breaches of occupational safety but these will be dealt with further in part D. This incentive of shifting the premise for disciplinary violation as a contractual breach is also in keeping with the PRC’s efforts to award legal personality to businesses, regardless of whether they are state or privately owned. Indeed, as far as state enterprises are concerned, there will be a marked change in its relationship towards its workers and the contractual format of establishing such a relationship will be the basis for this change. In addition it is clear that the Chinese Labour Law was written to combat the inevitable onslaught of problems of abuse of uneven bargain positions that are common in the West. Indeed, with the introduction of a market dependent labour force it is clear that Western style abuses would arise and that therefore, workers would require to be entitled to the internationally recognised right to privately instigate litigation. This does however contrast with continued State control over the process of employment termination and this reflects the ongoing strength of pre-reform ethics concerning security of employment. This therefore means that lay-offs are statutorily regulated, as is illustrated in Article 27 which stipulates a requirement to consult trade unions: â€Å"During the period of statutory consolidation when the employing unit comes to the brink of bankruptcy or runs deep into difficulties in production and management, and if reduction of its personnel becomes really necessary, the unit may make such reduction after it has explained the situation to the trade union or all of its staff and workers 30 days in advance, solicited opinions from them and reported to the labour administrative department.† The result of this law is that termination for employment as a means of increasing productivity is prohibited. The main reason for this is that communist manufacturing infrastructures create more than a mere job for labourers but also provide workers with an array of fringe benefits that overshadow those of Western counterparts. These benefits traditionally include housing and free medical care with the result that a loss of work often means a loss of home and health! Layoffs therefore carry serious implications for political upheaval and are to be avoided at all costs and an employment culture of relocation, retraining and early retirement is unlikely to arise in the foreseeable future[24]. This does contrast with pressures from both the World Bank and the World Trade Organisation of which China has now been a member since 11 December 2002[25] but in general it would be prudent for these global organisations to be sensitive to the impact of economic restructuring on a workforce that is dependent on the full-life-package derived through their employers. It does seem that the influence of FDI into China has led to reforms that result in the workforce becoming a mere producer of manufactured goods as opposed to a fully rounded human being with social needs. C.The revised Trade Union Laws of 2001[26] Following the economic reforms that have caused China to become globally open to FDI, the resulting reforms of labour laws and trends in labour activity have resulted in a new role for trade unions as safeguards of worker’s interests during the difficult period of reform that would give rise to dissatisfaction from the workforce. This is stipulated in the November 2001 report of the International Confederation of Trade Unions[27]. Interestingly this report regards the revised Trade Union laws of 2001 as representing only a minimal departure from the 1992 version. This earlier version had been heavily criticised by the International Labour Organisation’s Committee on Freedom of Association which condemned the 1992 law as a: â€Å"serious constraint on the rights of unions to establish their own constitutions, organize their activities and formulate programs.[28]† However, the following substantive analysis will reveal that Trade Unions have been awarded substantial powers in their role as organisations that are established to represent the welfare of the labour force but also maintain a central system of regulating these Trade Unions. As stated above, the original 1992 Trade Union Law was revised in 2001 in order to create a more comprehensive response to the continuing market foundation of the Chinese economy[29]. The role of the Trade Union is defined in the basic functions under Articles 2 and 6 of the Trade Union Law of 2002. Article 2 states that: â€Å"Trade unions are mass organizations of the working class formed by the workers and staff members on a voluntary basis. The All-China Federation of Trade Unions and all the trade union organizations under it represent the interests of the workers and staff members and safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of the workers and staff members according to law.† In addition, Article 6 states that the basic function of the Trade Union is the safeguarding of the rights and interests of workers. Further to this, Trade Unions are to coordinate labour relations and arrange for members to partake of democratic decision making and remain in close relation with workers as their representatives to employers. Before China’s economic reforms, Trade Unions were chiefly involved in the fringe benefits of workers such as education and welfare. This was based on the premise that worker unrest and industrial action were unique to capitalist regimes although the truth of this matter is debatable. It is however true that the profound change to relationships between the worker and the employer are significantly different to justify an alteration of the role of the Trade Union. One of the main differences is the realisation that workers can no longer be automatically enrolled into Trade Union Membership. According to Union Chairman and Politburo member Wie Jianxing[30] only 5% of workers in the private sector were actually Union members. This was by comparison to a mere 3.4% in township enterprises. Incentives to increase Union membership are therefore present in the 2001 Union Laws. Article 10 encourages increases in Union branches and recruitment drives by the more superior branches also form part of the Union policy of increased membership under Article 11. In addition, Article 43 and Chapter VI have been introduced to protect the interests of maintaining Union property and income. Clearly this issue could not have arisen under the pre-economic reform era of Chinese communism. This initial analysis of laws that are geared towards the protection of the Union does motivate us to question whether this has become a priority that exceeds the interests of workers. Clearly the path of the Chinese Government is to ensure that Trade Unions should work hard to remain at the forefront in order to continue to provide support to workers. This is especially important during a time in which Chinese workers are arguably more vulnerable in a commercial environment where traditional guarantees of life-time work and fringe benefits are becoming ever more unstable. In addition to the above changes, Article 20 stipulates increased power for Trade Unions in collective bargaining and in Article 21 a right has been created whereby the Union may interfere in disciplinary proceedings and unfair dismissals. In the case of workers taking their employer to court, the Trade Union is obliged to assist. Equally significant is the power for Unions to assist in strikes and work to rule action. Clearly the role here is for the Trade Union to act as the voice of the labour force and a theme of the collective, communist labour force versus the potentially corrupt, capitalist employer screams out through the provisions of the 2001 Law. Occupational Health and Safety are dealt with in relation to Trade Unions in Articles 23 to 26. Here Trade Unions have heightened powers in relation this matter which will be dealt with in greater detail under part C below. As regards the relationship between Occupational Health and Safety and Trade Unions, the latter are obliged to conduct investigations into accidents where there have been infringements of health and safety. Trade Unions also have the power under Articles 33 and 34 of the 2001 law to assist in the process of creating new labour laws, further health and safety regulations and policies relating to social security. Consultation rights are also enjoyed by Trade Unions under Articles 37 to 39 of the new 2001 law in relation to these self same issues of pay, health and safety, social security and the democratic election of ‘worker directors.’ By comparison to the old law relating to the power of Trade Unions it is clear that their increase in power is in response to exposure of China to the international community. It is therefore more of a protective mechanism in the face of a more mobile, market influenced labour force as opposed to any international Trade Union movement. In addition, the reforms ought not to be mistaken for a step in the direction of democracy. This is blatantly illustrated in Article 4 which announces a clear adherence to the Communist state: â€Å"Trade unions shall observe and safeguard the Constitution, take it as the fundamental criterion for their activities, take economic development as the central task, uphold the socialist

Midified Bunnell Suture in Achilles Tendon Injuries

Midified Bunnell Suture in Achilles Tendon Injuries I. Samota, R. Necula, Florin Sabou, Radu Vaidahazan, I. Szava, Alina Pascu. SUMMARY The treatment of Achilles tendon lesions is still controversial. Even the usual Bunnell technique of suture is appreciated to be a good ones, it is steel associated with a low rate of reruptures. In order to improve the suture strength, we modified the original Bunnell suture by using two sutures in Bunnell manner, one starting from the superior and the other from the inferior tendon stumps. The manner of fixing the knots is in double points and realizes a superior tight fitting than the usual Bunnell suture. We used this suture in four cases of accidental section and in 11 cases of acute rupture, with no reruptures. Based on our own experience, we consider this modification of Bunnell sutures increases the strength of the sutured tendon and generates a low rate of reruptures. BACKGROUND The Achilles tendon is the largest and the most frequently injured tendon of the human body (1, 2, 3). In cases with accidental section, the only surgical treatment is accepted. Treatment protocols for patients with acute Achilles tendon rupture include surgical and nonsurgical management, but they are constantly being modified (4, 5). The rerupture following acute lesion is the most frequent major complication and it is higher in nonsurgical treatment than in surgical one (6). In surgery the rates is lower, but it is still up to 3% (7, 5). Various surgical methods have been described including open, minimally invasive and percutaneous repair (8, 9). In chronic ruptures of Achilles tendon, most authors consider the surgical treatment to be the only satisfactory one (12, 13, 14). In chronic ruptures, we never used any type of suture but the angmentation only. Each surgeon chooses one surgical techniques because considers it to be associated with a low rate of complication. Base on our experience, we consider, in the acute Achilles tendon ruptures, the surgical treatment has some advantages. We present our experience with Bunnell modified suture surgical of Achilles tendon lesions and discus the used techniques in accidental sections and acute ruptures. We believe our modified Bunnell suture to be associated with a lower level of rerupteres than the original one. MATERIALS AND METHODS This study is a retrospective evaluation of patients with accidental section or acute Achilles tendon ruptures treated by a modified Bunnell suture. Every patient who underwent a modified Bunnell suture of an Achilles between January 2010 and December 2014, was identified and information was abstracted from the medical records. All the patients with Achille lesions operated in this period by a modified Bunnell suture were included. It was a number of four patients with section and 11 with acute rupture. In cases with accidental sections the diagnoses was established by clinical examination, and in all cases an immediate surgical repair were performed. It was three male and one female, between 37 and 42 years old. In all of them an end-to-end modified Bunnell suture was done. In acute ruptures cases the diagnoses was based on history and physical examination. In some cases, an ultrasound or MRI examination was added. All the patients accepted for surgery had to present a palpable depression on the tendon, a positive Thompson test and disability to stand on their tiptoes on the injured side. The duration of ruptures from injury to surgery was from a couple of days to five weeks. The patients group comprised 11 men and two women ranging in age from 24 to 59 years. The majority of the ruptures were at about 4 to 6 cm proximal to the calcaneal insertion. All the patients were treated by the same technique, a modified Bunnell suture. SURGICAL TECHNIQUES With the patient under anesthesia, tourniquet control and in prone position, the surgery started by a posteromedial incision from 4 cm. up to 4 cm. down to the rupture site. The incision is without dissection, sharply through the skin, subcutaneous tissue and fibrous tendon sheath. Then, the synovial sheath is carefully dissected and then longitudinally incised on both side of tendon section or rupture, and protected in order to be easy sutured at the end of tendon repair. The ragged ends of the ruptured tendon are limited excised and with the ankle plantarflexed up to 35Â ° a direct modified Bunnell suture is done. Fig. 1. Original Bunnell suture (from Coughlin MJ, Schon LC. Disorders of Tendons. In: Surgery of the Foot and Ankle. Eighth edition, Mosby, Inc. 2007.) Fig. 2 Modified centrally running Bunnell suture with two distal knots fixation. This initial variant was not used in cases included in this study. Fig. 3 Modified Bunnell with two laterally sutures. This is our technique which was used in all cases of the study. Fig. 4. Our technique – detail. In our technique, instead of one centrally running suture as in original Bunnell (Fig. 1), two laterally sutures on both sides of each stamp, were used (Fig. 3 and Fig. 4). One of the sutures starts from the superior and the other from the inferior tendon stumps. Each of the two sutures is passed through the level of section or rupture and then is fixed in the opposite tendon stump. This fixation is by four knots, two in the end of the proximal stump and two in the end of the distal stump in the manner described in fig. 2. In some cases, especially in cases of tendon sections, the tendon repairing was supplemented with interrupted circumferential sutures. After tendon repairing, we pay special attention to the synovial sheath suture. It is carefully sutured to cover as long as possible the repaired tendon. Postoperatively, a series of three casts a used. First is a long cast with the knee in 20 degree of flexion and the ankle in 30 degree of plantar flexion is applied. After three weeks another below-knee with the ankle in 15-20 degree of plantar flexion is applied. The patient is encouraged to move his knee. Five weeks after surgery the third below-knee walking cast with the ankle in neutral position or slight flexion is applied. The last cast is for another two weeks and the progressive weight-bearing is commenced. After cast removal the patient is advised to wear shoe with high heel for another three month and increased activity and physical therapy are begun. RESULTS In the cases of section the average follow-up was 6 months and ll of them have had the evolutions with no major or minor complications. In the cases of acute ruptures the average follow-up was 12 months. In all cases, no surgery related major complications, such as tendon rerupture or necroses, sural nerve injury, skin necrosis, wound infection, or deep infection. As minor complications, there were two tendon contracture and one superficial wound infection which were conservatively treated. In all patients with minor complications, no supplementary surgical treatment was done. None of them had tendon adhesion to the skin and the skin over the tendon was movable. Two patients had cosmetic complaints concerning the scar but without affecting the ankle function. All patients were able to stand on their tiptoes and single affected side leg hopping was possible one year postoperatively. Active range of motion was found to be reduced with limited dorsiflexion in two cases with acute rupture, and the difference was less than 10Â °. At the last follow-up, there had been no cases of rerupture and the subjective satisfaction was excellent or good in all the patients. DISCUSSION In accidental section of Achilles tendon, an end-to-end tendon suture is usually done but simple interrupted suture are not sufficient. In these cases, we consider Bunnell suture to be the method of choice. Initially, we modified centrally running Bunnell suture in the manner depicted in fig. 2. This initial variant was not used in cases included in this study. Then, in order to improve the suture strength we used two running suture of the original Bunnell, in the manner depicted in fig. 2. This surgical variant was used in all patients of this study. In acute ruptures of the Achilles tendon the treatment options include nonsurgical and surgical variants. The nonsurgical one avoids the surgical risks but it is associated with a high risk of rerupture (15). Despite the surgical risks, a number of authors consider surgery as a common treatment of Achilles acute ruptures (16, 17, 7). Although, in acute cases, percutaneous procedure increases in popularity, surgery is commonly performed as an open technique (16). The most usual techniques for primary open repair are Bunnel, Kessler and Krackow sutures (6, 19). Although there were reported reruptures after a Bunnell suture, we consider this method and used a modified Bunnell one in the majority of our patients with direct primary sutures. This modified Bunnell is a preference of the main author (IS). Our manner of fixing the knots realizes a superior tight fitting than the usual Bunnell suture. In this variant, instead of two knots both of them placed in the level of section or rupture, there are four knots, two in the end of the proximal stump and two in the end of the distal stump. These four knots are not in the level of section, but two up and two down, proximal to the level of section. Our results suggest this modified Bunnell suture improve the suture strength and is associated with a low rate of reruptures. We consider to be important the protection and dissection of the synovial sheath. At the end of the tendon repairing, a carefully synovial sheath suture has the advantage to create good biological conditions for tendon healing. Based on this special attention to the synovial sheath, in our series none of them had tendon adhesion to the skin. Conclusions The results of this study suggest the modified Bunnell suture in our manner has some advantages. In Achilles tendon section or acute ruptures, it is associated with good functional results and a low rate of complications. We consider this type of suture increases the strength of the sutured tendon and generate a low rate of reruptures.

Ellen Foster Essay -- Essays Papers

Ellen Foster "When I was little I would think of ways to kill my daddy." [P.1], says eleven-year-old Ellen. Thus the young narrator begins her life-story, in the process painting an extraordinary self-portrait. â€Å"Ellen Foster† is a powerful story of a young girl growing up in a burdensome world. As one reads this work presented by Kaye Gibbons, a chill runs down their back. Ellen, the main character is faced with a hard life dealing with endless losses, with the deaths of both her parents and her grandmother being included. Why would one get a chill you wonder? This individual has thoughts and feelings that many have never experienced and cannot express. Ellen is merely a child no older then the age of ten but if not knowing this fact, readers would think she was an aged woman who has lived their life sufficiently. In this book Ellen refers to herself many times as "Old Ellen." I believe that she uses this name because throughout the book Ellen is always taking care of someone beside herself: her colored friend, Starletta, and her dying mother. Ellen's parents die, and her grandmother dies, but this isn’t really a great loss for Ellen. Her mother was a frail and sick woman whom Ellen was constantly protecting from her drunken father. For a time, Ellen’s Art teacher, Julia, and her husband move Ellen into their home. She feels, for the first time, that she is apart of a loving family. She describes, in the book, â€Å" the three of us could pass for a family on the street...

Rates Of Reaction :: Papers

Rates Of Reaction Aim: To find out the effect of acid concentration in dilute hydrochloric acid and magnesium ribbon, and how much hydrogen gas is given off. Prediction: I predict that as the concentration of the hydrochloric acid increases the time taken for magnesium ribbon to dissolve will decrease. Apparatus: Saturated test tube Rubber bung Bowl water Magnesium ribbon Concentrated hydrochloric acid Plastic tube Stopwatch Conical flask Measuring cylinder The concentration of the acid is going to be my only variable. It will vary the time taken for the magnesium ribbon to dissolve into the acid. Other things that I will be using are not going to be varied these are volume of hydrochloric acid and magnesium ribbon. The magnesium ribbon dissolves into the hydrochloric acid because then it collides with the particles inside the hydrochloric acid. Activation energy is minimum amount of energy required for a reaction to take place. For each of the concentrations I use the activation energy will be different. If the activation energy is high then only a small amount of particles will have enough energy to react but if the activation energy is low then a lot more particles can react. The reaction will also be exothermic because it will be giving off heat and hydrogen gas. A change in concentration is a change in the number of particles in a volume. If we increase the volume the particles will collide more because they are crowded. Factors: The factors that could affect the rate of reaction are as follows: Concentration of Acid This could affect the rate of reaction because the higher that concentration of the acid the more particles there are so there is more collision per second. Temperature: If the starting temperature of the acid is different each time then the speed at which the atoms will collide will increase or decrease depending on what the temperature is.

Medical Analysis of The JFK Assassination :: John F. Kennedy American History Essays

Medical Analysis of The JFK Assassination Dr. Charles Crenshaw's book Conspiracy of Silence caused a minor sensation when it was released in 1992, even attracting the attention of the New York Times. Coauthored by Jens Hansen and Gary Shaw, it told several conspiratorial stories about the assassination, and especially about the role of Dr. Crenshaw, then a resident physician at Parkland Hospital, in the care of John Kennedy and Lee Harvey Oswald. It has since been reprinted as Trauma Room One. Among the "interesting" things that Crenshaw claims are: The back of Kennedy's head was blown out, clearly implying a shot from the Grassy Knoll in front of Kennedy. A small wound in Kennedy's throat was an entrance wound, proving a shot from the front, and not from the Sniper's Nest behind Kennedy. Parkland doctors, knowing there was a conspiracy, have feared to speak out. The President's body was altered between Parkland Hospital and the autopsy at Bethesda. And the most sensational: Lyndon Johnson called the operating room were Oswald was being treated and demanded a confession be extracted from the accused assassin. Conspiracy authors, wanting to push the idea of a shot from the Grassy Knoll, have lapped up Crenshaw's account. For example, Gary Aguilar quotes Crenshaw as follows: He, with co-authors, Jens Hansen and Gary Shaw, recently published a book, "Conspiracy of Silence" (Crenshaw, CA, Hansen, J, Shaw, G. "Conspiracy of Silence". 1992, New York, Signet). Crenshaw has claimed both in his book and in public interviews that the President's head wound was posterior on the right side. In "Conspiracy of Silence" he wrote, "I walked to the President's head to get a closer look. His entire right cerebral hemisphere appeared to be gone. It looked like a crater—an empty cavity. " Conspiracy writer Gary Aguilar accepts Crenshaw's account. His essay on supposed "back of the head" witnesses is useful and interesting — although many of his assessments of the testimony are to be treated skeptically. How does Crenshaw know such things? According to the book, he had a central role in treating Kennedy. Yet when the New York Times called up Crenshaw in reponse to his book, he backed away from the book's claims as to how central he was, saying that Hansen and Shaw "took poetic license" on this issue. Crenshaw "admitted . . .that the role he played in Kennedy's case was minor." See the Times of May 26, 1992. It hardly inspires confidence in the book when Crenshaw says things like this.

A brief history of entertainment Essay

Entertainment is a keyword, when we speak about the spare time of modern people. Anyway, entertainment is nothing particularly new on this globe†¦ The execution and use of entertainment has just developed, adapted to modern world and its spectrum has grown bigger. I think that entertainment is and was aroused when people were bored, and it seems to be a human’s habit to want to be entertained. Since humans are so intelligent and on top of the food-chain they have got more and more bored through time. Our x-great-grandparents, the stone-age-people, had already learned to entertain. They did it, probably by fighting, struggling and measuring forces on each other. Later on in world history humans have learned to tell stories, to sing, to act, – simple theatre was invented. At this time primitive games were also applied. Games had the advantage that their users were not only passively entertained but they could compete against each other and all be active. Theatre has since tat time been an important point in entertainment history. Because people were very much separated in older times, things have developed differently in the different parts of the world. In Italy, Greece and France the theater styles were unusually different. These countries were leading the formation and the developing of modern theatre. Nowadays the video film is mostly more common and liked by humans, than the theatre. The invention of the video began a hundred years ago†¦ In 1885 the German Max Skladanowsky presented his so-called â€Å"Lebendige Bilder† in Berlin and the French Lumià ¨re brothers presented the so-called â€Å"Cinà ©matographe† in Paris to a wider audience. At that time films were made for science; and of course – entertainment! It took another 40 years, until the foundation for modern cinema was made.  The film â€Å"The Jazz Singers† was the first film with sound and voices. Warner Brothers already ruled the cinema business at that time. The film technique developed extremely fast; today we have an enormous bunch of film stars and an extreme amount of movies. Later on another milestone of entertainment was invented. It’s called home entertainment and it began with the gramophone. After that the radio was invented. It struck like a bomb, because people could hear live news and music from home. Later on the T.V., the television, had its debut. Today we have so many possibilities of getting entertained, but the good old theatre is still there and the very simple games are to. That’s because they still have so much charm!

Outback

Outback Steakhouse in Knoxville, TN, who recently assumed the new position of Joint-venture partner, and who will now be overseeing 12 restaurants located between Huntington, WV, and Pittsburgh, Is profiled as part of Nation's Restaurant News' NOR 50 General Managers Orchestrating Success feature. Throughout his years at the Knoxville property, Stanton Increased sales by a whopping 133% to $4. 3 million dollars. While Stanton rewards his employees financially, he also is keen on showering them with the respect they deserve.He notes that one of the most blissful aspects of his Job is to attach his staff evolve, slowly working their way through the ranks of the restaurant world. Joint-venture partner raises the stakes, ropes in customers, lassoes $4. 3 million in sales Since 1995 Tim Stanton has spent much of his time at the bustling Outback Steakhouse In Knoxville, Teen. He has watched sales grow, led a staff that Is alert and happy and enjoyed the unwavering support of his family. No w things are about to get even better.View Image – Stanton, who recently was made Joint-venture partner, soon will oversee 12 restaurant locations as well as four more that still are under construction. This month Stanton assumed the new position of Joint-venture partner. Instead of overseeing one Outback in Tennessee, the 43-year-old now will watch over 12 restaurants located between Huntington, W. Va. , and Pittsburgh, as well as four that are under construction. â€Å"This Is It,† Stanton says. â€Å"This Is my best tour of duty. All the rest were stepping stones. At Outback those with generalization responsibilities are not known as general managers. Instead, they are called managing partners and have partial ownership of their restaurants. As a result, managing partners have a personal stake in the success of their operations. For Stanton, who served as managing partner of the Knoxville restaurant for nine years, It was that vested Interest that motivated him to generate sales aggressively. â€Å"It's an ownership,† Stanton says. â€Å"l made a commitment to generate sales. Without sales, there are no profits.Without profits, there Is no business. It's the perfect triangle. Ten percent of the bottom line is profit. † Throughout his years at the property, he increased sales by a whopping 133 percent to $4. 3 million dollars. Colleagues are in awe of the accomplishment. He took a store that was in a good place and increased sales,† says Sheer Monnet, who worked alongside Stanton in Knoxville, helping to manage the front-of-the-house as well as tend bar. â€Å"His bosses weren't seeing those results in other stores, and so they said, ‘Maybe you can show us how to do it. † As a Joint-venture partner, Stanton will work hand in hand with managing partners, guiding them through operational challenges and keeping Outback's mission fresh and alive. His new home base will be Pittsburgh, and his hours, often 70 to 75 h ours weekly while he is in Knoxville, are likely to get longer. You goat do what you goat do,† he says of his managing-partner days. â€Å"If I needed to be in early, I came in early. If I needed to work late, I worked late. † In Knoxville, Stanton managed a staff of 70, with more men in the kitchen and more women in the front-of-the-house.As Joint-venture partner, Stanton will oversee 840 people, and that number is likely to grow because building the Outback brand within his new territory will be one of his mandates. But Joe Roberto doesn't foresee any problems. Station's supervisor for a year and a half, Roberto is a Nashville, Teen. -based Joint-venture partner who worked directly above Stanton and now shares similar responsibilities for a different regional market. â€Å"He's incredibly driven and extremely motivated,† Roberto says of Stanton. â€Å"He's detail-oriented and passionate about food quality. He's demanding but fair. † View Image – T he in Knoxville, Teen. Has been the site of many community fund- raisers and has contributed to such organizations as The Heart Association, The Lupus Foundation and Race for the Cure. As Monnet recalls, Stanton was an inspiring boss. â€Å"He's an extreme perfectionist,† she says. â€Å"He sets his expectations high and knows what needs to be done. † Stanton is no stranger to the restaurant industry. The Illinois native actually went to school for coal-mining technology, mistakenly thinking that's how he wanted to spend for mom-and-pop establishments and fast-food chains, and decided he needed to become a part of it.To escape the cold Midwestern winters, Stanton became area manager of the Long John Silver's franchise market in the Southeast. He also worked for eight and a half years as a Chili's general manager and credits that company with teaching him the importance of fresh food. When he learned about the opportunities at Outback, he made the leap. Based in Tampa, Flat. , Outback now has 825 namesake steakhouses as well as several other full-service concepts. View Image – Stanton says he rewards his financially and also is keen on showering them with the respect they deserve.Monnet says the fact that Stanton was such a dedicated managing partner made the Knoxville Outback feel more like a comfortable home than an impersonal and stuffy business. She says Station's own family was very involved with the dynamics of the restaurant. It was not uncommon to see his wife helping out with the books. His sons and daughters also worked there at different times. L would love to Just slow my kids down from growing up,† says Stanton, a self- described family man who has been married for 21 years and has four children.While Stanton rewards his employees financially, he also is keen on showering them with the respect they deserve. He notes that one of the most blissful aspects of his job is to watch his staff evolve, slowly working their way thr ough the ranks of the restaurant world. â€Å"There is someone who came on board with me who went from [being] server to bartender to key employee,† he notes. â€Å"Someone else also came on board as a server, hen started working in the back on salads, then went on to become key employee and then manager. Some people are not focused on life yet but have that fire in them. For his employees Stanton likes to keep it simple, believing that it is the little things that keep everyone happy. He's the kind of guy who might let someone take the day off or, for a more morale-boosting team event, rent a movie theater out for a fun afternoon flick. He says the most important thing he has learned along the way is that communication is vital. He always listens and also encourages his staff to get involved. And he does so not Just in the restaurant. An avid community leader, Station's generous spirit reaches out to his own backyard.Under his leadership the Knoxville Outback has been the s ite of many community fund-raisers for grade schools and churches and has contributed to such diverse causes as The Heart Association, The Lupus Foundation and Race for the Cure. Once, around Halloween, local children were encouraged to pick pumpkins, decorate them and bring them to the Knoxville Outback to display them so that customers could vote on their favorites. Despite his stellar accomplishments, Stanton maintains that he is doing nothing less Han acting upon his commitment to Outback. We have to be committed and set the bar high,† he says. â€Å"We have to be ready and take care of the guests as a group goal. You need great food and great people. It's a team. Some people are exceptional in themselves. Surround yourself with great people, instill pride in them and give them something they can take pride in. † Sidebar Tim Stanton Outback Steakhouse Outback Steakhouse Inc. Concept type: casual Steakhouse Company location: Tampa, Flat. Unit location: 330 N. Peters Road, Knoxville, Teen. No. Of years with company: 9 years, 6 months Age: 43 Hometown: Carbondale, Ill.Personal: married, four children, ages 9 to 21 Most rewarding part of your Job: seeing the people I work with grow with the company work with. Tip for otter general managers: Surround yourself with great people. What the boss says: â€Å"I've known Tim Stanton for eight years,† says Ben Novel, vice president of operations for Outback Steakhouse. â€Å"He Joined Outback in 1994, and since then he's been up there, winning Proprietor of the Year six times. â€Å"During his tenure Tim became a managing partner and grew sales from $3. 2 million to $4. 3 million. It's a spectacular thing. He's a developer of people.