The existence of botnets is the most serious threat to the information Essay

The existence of botnets is the most serious threat to the information security today - Essay Example In other words, when one downloads bot software embedded in an email using a computer, the computer gets infected with the bot software and becomes part of the botnet. For a botnet to qualify as a botnet, it must always take action on a client machine through IRC channels, without the intervention of a bot herder. This means that the hacker (or group of hackers) need not personally log onto the client’s computer. Botnets usually are host to several threats as one package. Typically, the botnet is made up of the bot server and at least one botclients. History of Botnets The origin of bots is associated with positive objectives, mainly to automate activities, the first real botnet being established in 1993. Botnets for example were used to run activities such as internet games, protect channels and perform conversions (Hudak, nd). Over time, the positive attributes evolved and started to be exploited for malicious purposes. Today, the negative activities carried out by botnets i nclude sending of spam, controlling of client PCs against their wishes and to propagate viruses and worms. Botnets first existed with DoS and DDoS with hackers creating better ways of managing the bots over time. From the traditional Command and Control (C&C) mechanism, botnets became transmitted signals based on P2P, IRC and HTTP according to Hudak (nd). The potential of botnets today cannot be understated. It is not uncommon for example for one botnet to consist of over 10,000 computers. It is also not rare to find a botnet consisting of over 400000 computers.The potential of having so many bots interconnected makes the potential of any botnet go beyond common imagination. In fact, it is this potential that is normally harnessed by botmasters (whether with positive or negative intentions) to achieve their goals or accomplish goals fast and efficiently. How Botnets Work and What they are used for The establishment of a botnet depends on the existence of a hacker, a server and clien t computers. The hacker creates and transmits commands to a computer through a server. The server performs this function repeatedly thereby creating an army of bots that lie in the control of the botmaster. Botnets having been created may be used for a myriad of activities including spamming, phishing, executing click fraud, transmitting Ad-ware as well as for Distributed Denial of Service (DDos) among pother purposes. In 1988 for example, a person by the name of Morris infected over 6,000 computers with Worm worm which represented about 10 percent of Fi (Schiller, 2007). The loss associated with this infection was approximated at between 10 and 100 million USD. Impact of Botnets on Information Security Those in favor of the establishment of botnets argue that botnets make work easier and is a creative way of making cash just like any other job (Schiller, 2007). In consideration of the fact stated above, botnets have been used before to make mega kills by persons with malicious inte ntions as they seek financial motivation or publicity. It has, for example, been reported that Jeanson James in 2006 earned over 60,000 US dollars using a botnet of 400,000 computers that transmitted ad-ware. The amount of publicity that botnets draw to their creators is usually amazing when they are discovered. Apart from the economic benefits of botnets to their creators, a lot of harm is associated with their existence especially considering that a lot of important information is stored by individuals and

Media Racism, Sexism, and Stereotyping Essay Example for Free

Media Racism, Sexism, and Stereotyping Essay His wife constantly has to tell him how to take care of the kids. His children outsmart him and are shown to be out of control at times. On the other hand, the middle class family has a calm, brilliant child. He constantly has to give the working class dad guidance in his day to day decision making. The working class dad is represented as a failure at life, at supporting his family, and the main element highlighted in his role is how stupid he is. The middle class dad is always the calmer one, he takes care of everything whenever a crisis arises, he teaches his kids manners, and is shown as a loving husband. I cannot find any examples of middle class men that are portrayed in the same demeaning way as working class men. Butsch’s piece discusses how inferior statuses are represented by using negative stereotypes of minorities, women, old, and young. These stereotypes are placed into character roles. The problem with this is that viewers are not consciously thinking about the negative images they are watching and the ways in which it affects their view of the depicted group. Think of children and teens watching shows with such inaccurate representations. They start believing and connecting these made up characters with how the real world works. If blondes or black people are portrayed on television as dumb then teens will assume that all people belonging to this category are of inferior intelligence. Butsch also mentions that television can devalue higher status characters by making them have opposite characteristics. He gives example like men acting feminine and adults acting childish. They often will use this strategy when showing a person with contradicting status positions and the lower status characteristic will overshadow the high status characteristic. This is greatly degrading to both sides. For instance, a man in real life that is very feminine will be thought of as a less than for demonstrating characteristics associated with femininity. This sends the message that acting like a woman is a horrible thing to do because women are the lesser gender. The reading was extremely interesting because you can think of numerous examples in our day to day life of stereotyping and character roles. It is frightening how racist and prejudice these shows can be. With the documented impact that advertising has on our culture, we realize how significant the portrayals of different minority groups in advertising can be. In the case of Native Americans, American advertising has a long tradition of exploiting their image and names in order to sell goods. This commodification and corruption of their names and images leads to distorted views of Native Americans by not only other populations, but by Native Americans themselves. Native Americans â€Å"must† act or look a certain way in order to be â€Å"true† Native Americans. Merskin stated, â€Å"Racial and ethnic images, part of American advertising for more than a century, were created in â€Å"less enlightened times† but have become part of American popular culture and thought and persist to this day† (Merskin, 2001, p. 480). The image that has emerged of Native Americans is â€Å"always alien to white† and, thus, seen as not fully human (Merskin, 2001). As Merskin (2001) wrote in her article, we have, to a great extent, become desensitized to the use of Native American imagery and names in advertising. So much so, that we often do not realize how prevalent this practice still is. I know that I am guilty of this as well. When I first read Merskin’s article I thought she was referencing advertising of the past. Then I opened an old issue of Glamour magazine and found a full color, two-page advertisement for American Spirit cigarettes with its use of an American Indian in headdress in its branding. As I looked at the advertisement with disbelief, I glanced at the bottled water I was drinking from; the bottled water company was Arrowhead. There is certainly something to this notion of Native American imagery playing a negative role in advertising today. Reference Section Butsch, R. (2005). Five Decades and Three Hundred Sitcoms about Class and Gender. The Social Construction of Difference amp; Inequality: Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality. Merskin, D. (2001). Winnebagos, Cherokees, Apaches, and Dakotas: The persistence of stereotyping of American Indians in American advertising brands. The Social Construction of Difference amp; Inequality: Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality.

Soft skills using in public universities in Malaysia

Soft skills using in public universities in Malaysia Malaysians, especially the institutes of higher learning, begin to realize the importance of soft skills after the Higher Education Ministry introduced the Soft Skills Module to all public universities in August 2006. With the emphasis on soft skills, it has then become a necessity to integrate soft skills into the undergraduate programmes. Such remedial action is taken due to the increased of graduates unemployment rate in Malaysia, as well as the rapid expand of job market through the globalization. The graduates in education play a great role in the human capital development one of the utmost crucial aspects in developing our country. The power of our human capital is highly connected with the graduates mentality and intellectual capacity. Producing graduates in education with the essential elements of soft skills would heighten the countrys capability to compete with the rest of the world. This is a must if Malaysia aims to realize the vision of the New Economic Model, the Government Transformation Programme, and the 10th Malaysia Plan (2011 2015). Indeed, institutes of higher learning around the world indisputably are working their best to mould graduates with skills that are highly regarded by employers and able to contribute to the countrys prosperity and social capital. Even more important is, the society would generally expected that besides the solid theoretical knowledge (hard skills), a quality education graduate should acquire additional soft skills. This balance is what gives one graduate competitive edge over another. The term soft skills, which can also be referred as process skills, generic attributes or transferable skills, has no single definition on a particular set of skills. The general common descriptions of these skills include communication skills, life-long learning, team work, leadership, creative and critical thinking skills. All these qualities can be obtained beyond the classroom and of course, the textbooks. Thus, book education alone will no longer suffice in building successful educators. Besides equipping themselves with knowledge, it is also important that the graduates must acquire practical skills and good values. According to Chapman (2006), Blooms Taxonomy of Educational Objectives comes with three learning domains: Cognitive, Affective and Psychomotor Domains. The Cognitive Domain involves intellectual capability such as knowledge, whilst the Affective Domain involves feelings, emotions and behaviour just like attitude, and Psychomotor Domain involves manual and physical skills. Hence, the measurement of TESL undergraduates knowledge, skills, and attitude require appropriate tools, which are certainly more than just the traditional pen and paper. In Malaysian context, institutes of higher education are perceived as having a very important role in instilling soft skills to students. No doubt, it would be challenging in the attempts to offer an optimum learning environment. Still, it is crucial to get our students ready to compete with the rest in todays rapidly changing world. Students should be well-rounded academically and personally. In other words, besides knowing-what, students must know-how. Statement of the Problem The system and focus of education in Malaysia has witnessed immense changes over the past two decades. The nature of universities is changing in seeking to meet the new demands and needs of the industry from time to time. Furthermore, through the reinterpretation of the universitys purpose and role in the face of societys changing aspirations, universities have attempted to clarify the nature of the education which they offer to their students. This is crucial in order to extend their graduates potential of contribution to the society (Barnett 1990). The most evident attempt in which universities have sought to articulate their role and purpose is through the description of their graduates qualities, in another word, soft skills. The acquirement of soft skills is pivotal in terms of improving the nations development and curbing the latest issues in society, such as the increased rate of unemployment and complaints about graduates performances which are way below expectations. In 2005, the Malaysian government declared that there were 67,000 unemployed graduates, where most of them had graduated between 2000 and 2004. About 92.6% of these unemployed graduates were from public universities; in contrary, only 5.3% from private institutions. Even before the nation received this alarming news, the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (MIER 2004) had announced the results of a survey on the employability and marketability of university graduates, showing that 46.2% of public university graduates were unemployed in 2003. The reasons cited for the low unemployment prospects of public university graduates are that they are inadequately prepared for the job market, lack linguistic (English proficiency, both oral and written) (Lim and Normizan 2004; Chiam 2005; Norizan et al. 2006; EPU 2007; Marina 2007) and technical skills, plus cognitive abilities (analytical thinking, problem-solving, reasoning). Many other countries have also recognized that higher education has not met the expectations of employers (Leckey and McGuigan 1997; Bennett et al. 1999; Kember et al. 2006). The issue of graduate employability seems to be associated with the quality and relevance of programmes offered by public universities (World Bank 2007). Apparently, the formal syllabus structure of public universities has inadequate focus on the integration of soft skills in the curriculum (see also Quek 2005; Quah et al. 2009). Not only that, the teaching approaches has also been mainly didactic, where the students are so used to receive inputs rather than discovering themselves. Studies, researches and employers have suggested it is important for the public universities to incorporate additional soft skills into their curriculum (communication, critical thinking, and problem-solving). By bridging the gaps between universities and the demands of current industry, it creates opportunity for students to be exposed with workplace experience in different sectors (World Bank 2007). Purpose of the Study The main objective of this research is to examine the perspective of TESL undergraduates on the most important soft skills for professional development. Secondly, the study also aimed to investigate the TESL undergraduates perception on the soft skills developed by University of Malaya. The last purpose is to identify if difference exists in the level of importance and competency in soft skills. Significance of the Study It is crucial for the government and public universities to improve the quality and employability of graduates. This study reviews the infusion-acquisition of the soft skills in the curriculum of TESL the undergraduates perspective. Hence, it provides the society a clearer picture on the current achievement of the university in bridging the gaps between soft skills and the formal curriculum. The study would show whether the graduates that the university produced possess a right balance of diverse abilities. Besides that, this study helps to gain wider attention on the importance of soft skills among the undergraduates. They would obtain greater realization that students are now both inputs and outputs (see also Newman et al. 2004), under the broad dimension of quality in higher education. Furthermore, it also increases recognition where student learning must be enhanced beyond the mastery of content. This is important as it ensures the graduates to succeed in the local labour market. Therefore, this paper aims to shed light on the importance of soft skills as perceived by TESL undergraduates on the role and values of these skills in educating the future educators, in an attempt to understand what value they attribute to this set of skills. Research Questions The research questions for this study are as follows: 1. What are the most important soft skills as perceived by TESL undergraduates? 2. How do TESL undergraduates perceive the soft skills development by University of Malaya? 3. What is the relationship between the importance of soft skills and the levels of soft skills developed? Background Literature Review What are soft skills? There are no specific skills that are listed as soft skills; it is being defined differently around the world. In the context of Malaysia, the Malaysian Institute of Higher Learning interprets soft skills as incorporating aspects of generic skills. It includes non-academic skills such as leadership, teamwork, communication, and lifelong learning. The seven traits of soft skills that are introduced for the institutes of higher learning in Malaysia are communication skills, critical thinking, problem-solving, lifelong learning and information management skills, leadership, entrepreneurship skill, team work, ethnics and morals. First, from the aspect of communication, students are required to achieve fluency while conversing in Bahasa Malaysia and English language. As graduates, they should be able to express their ideas with clarity and confidence both in written and oral forms. Aside from that, they are expected to be active listeners where while providing the necessary response. Graduates should also be capable of using technology during presentations confidently (Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia 2006). The following trait, critical thinking and problem solving skills, allows graduates to reflect in a critical, creative, innovative, and analytical way. Not only that we want the graduates to obtain higher level of knowledge, we also want them to be capable in applying the knowledge. Elements that graduates must possess under this aspect are the ability to identify and analyze complex situation as well as making evaluations that are reasonable. In addition, they should have the ability to expand and improve thinking skills, to provide ideas, and alternative solutions (Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia 2006). Apart from that, the skills of team work are also being integrated to the curriculum. Such skills involve the ability to work and cooperate with people from various social and cultural backgrounds in order to accomplish a shared goal. Forming a good working relationship with the peers is essential. Graduates are inculcated with sense of respect towards others attitude, behaviour, and belief. From time to time, graduates are also expected to undertake the role of a leader and a group member interchangeably (Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia 2006). In addition to that, from the aspect of lifelong learning and information management, graduates are nurtured to acquire skills and knowledge in practicing self-directed learning independently. They should have the skills to look for relevant information from diverse sources and able to organize them efficiently. Moreover, they should be responsive to new ideas and able to develop an inquiry mind (Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia 2006). Entrepreneurship skill, also one the traits of soft skills, involves the ability to venture into business and work-related opportunities while creating risk awareness. This skill includes the ability to identify business opportunities and be able to prepare, build, and explore business plans which eventually leads to self-employment (Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia 2006). Aside from that, ethics and professional moral is significant in moulding quality graduates as well. With the above skill, graduates are able to practice high moral standards in their respective professional fields. Graduates should own the capability to understand the effects of economy, environment, and socio-cultural factors of their professional practice. In relation to ethical issues, graduates should have the capacity to analyze and make decisions in matters concerning ethics. Beyond the working environment, graduates should be able to practice good ethics while being responsible towards the society (Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia 2006). Last but not least, the Malaysian Institute of Higher Learning also seeks to develop leadership skill Leadership skill entails the ability to lead in various activities. Graduates should have the knowledge on basic leadership theories which will enable the graduates to lead a project. It is also essential that graduates are able to understand the role of a leader and a group member and be able to carry out those roles interchangeably (Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia 2006). The Pre-Employment Programme of the University Malaya Soon after the Malaysian Institute of Higher Learning has launched the Soft Skills Module for Malaysian Public Universities, in 2007, University of Malaya has introduced Pre-Employment Programme for graduates who scored below CGPA 3.0. The objective of this programme is to encourage the use of English in and beyond the classrooms setting. It is also strive to develop communication skills in English but also to motivate cooperative learning. The aims of the curriculum and activities designed for this programme are to assist students to write effective letters of application, to conduct themselves favourably at interviews, and to improve their fluency and accuracy in English. Furthermore, it aims to prepare the students to be more confident and train them as active communicators at the workplace. In the pre-employment programme, communication skills are being improved by the reading of advertisements as well as to learn and using social greetings. The graduates would practice telephone conversations, role playing, make speeches, and express their opinions and suggestions. Plus, they would learn the use of discourse markers and persuasive skills in interpersonal communication, grammar and vocabulary as well as writing cover letters and resumes. The graduates would also have to participate in public speaking and stage presentation. Apart from that, this programme promotes cooperative learning among the graduates. They are divided into small groups with different gender, ethnics and backgrounds. Being in smaller groups enables the graduates realize that each group members efforts are required and indispensable for group success; they should know everyone has a unique contribution to make. Critical thinking and problem solving skills are also learnt through the group activities. Friendly competitions are created between groups to identify the group with the best solution. Groups with the best solution and with the most critical ideas would be announced as winners. Such competition between the groups helped to develop not only the communication and negotiation skills in English, but also the inter-personal and small group skills, where social skills such as leadership skills, decision making, trust building, communication, and conflict management skills are learnt and developed as well. Teaching Practicum Teacher training or teaching practicum can assist in bridging the gap that exists between education and employment. It has become a recognized method for developing the carrier potential of students and making education more relevant (Hymon-Parker Smith, 1998). Teaching practicum presents the student with an opportunity to gain invaluable experience. Classroom learning alone is no longer sufficient to adequately prepare students for the demands of our education field. The right training can be the key to a great job success because it gives the student a change to take on real responsibilities while working side-by-side with professionals. According to Dennis (1996, as cited in Verney, Holoviak, Winter, 2009), internships can help expand upon immediate skills that can improve course performance, such as better time management and communication skills, better self-discipline, heightened initiative and an overall better self-concept. These skills cannot be properly developed if it is just from classroom learning. In University of Malaya, TESL undergraduates will have the opportunity to personally experience the real working culture during the final year for 12 weeks. Mihail (2006) asserted that job training can instill the real work values, gain direct access to job sources, impress potential employers and assist in making wise career choices, all of which can help to improve future job opportunities. Hence, in order to compete and survive in the challenging and competitive working environment, students must develop their work skills, both hard and soft through real work experience. This real work experience has been employed by the education system in developing soft skills in students. The real job setting is expected to enhance students soft skills effectively. Research also suggested that the development of any skill is best facilitated by giving students practice and not by simply talking about it or demonstrating how to do it (D.R. Woods, et al., 1997 as cited in Kamsah, 2006). A study by Cook, Parker and Pettijohn (2004) has shown that job training has improved the general ability to get along with people in work situations, increased confidence level and influenced the future career of the graduates. Furthermore, collective feedback obtained from the evaluations can also be used to revise the curriculum in order to improve student performance and meet employers needs and expectations in the future. Issues such as the lack of practical application as commented by the employers can be minimized and the students can develop various applied workplace skills for transition from the classroom to the world of work. Therefore, with the teaching practicum, development of soft skills among TESL graduates is projected to be more effective. Perception of graduates towards soft skills According to the study of Devadason, Subramaniam, and Daniel (2010), the general perspectives of final undergraduates in University of Malaya shows that the skills embedded in both coursework and training has not met the needs of the students, with the exception for a few skills. This implies that these skills are not adequately infused or acquired either by coursework or training. Plus, their perception also shows that there is insufficient of infusion and acquisition on lifelong learning and information management skills. This reveals a lack of dynamism in the existing programmes of public universities. Courses should be structured to cultivate lifelong learning through active reading and research beyond textbook learning. The result also shows that there is insufficient of integration of leadership skills in the formal curriculum. In fact, this skill is perceived as a critical weakness of local graduates (Quah et al. 2009). In total, the perceived low and selective appreciation of skills by students implies that graduates are still ill-equipped with the necessary competencies. It reflects that there is indeed a need to readdress the existing strategies within the teaching-learning process to ensure a better integration of soft skills. The findings of selective acquisition of certain soft skills in Malaysian universities correspond to the study by Aida et al. (2006). The current situation that happens to Malaysia is many students are equipped with the latest technical certifications and solid work experience; yet lacking the non-technical skills (Kamsah, 2006). While graduating, students may enhance their employability by obtaining an extra degree or certificates, they may not realize on the payoff in acquiring soft skills until after graduating (Brown, Hesketh, Williams, 2003). Another research by Kamsah (2007) indicates that the graduates of University Technology Malaysia believe that each of the soft skills is developed moderately. Therefore, more effort should be put in to empower soft skills among the students through co curricular activities or even during the teaching and learning processes. The university graduates happen to realize that critical thinking and problem solving skills as well as the team working skills are essential to survive the working field. Both domains are viewed as equally important for professional development. Aside from that, from a graduate perspective, soft skills are seen as being deficient in graduates relative to hard skills (Arnold Davey, 1994; Mullen, 1997) although Strebler (1997) notes that technical or hard skill are perceived by graduates as being relatively more critical for getting a job. Similarly, soft skills are generally viewed as less important by academics in comparison with workplace professionals (Page, Wilson, Kolb, 1993). Whereas, Arnold and Davey (1994) note that as graduates spend longer in industry, they rate themselves as more competent in their hard skills but not soft skills. Methodology The main objective of this research is to examine the perspective of TESL undergraduates on the most important soft skills for professional development. Secondly, the study also aimed to investigate the TESL undergraduates perception on the soft skills developed by University of Malaya. The last purpose is to identify if difference exists in the level of importance and competency in soft skills. These objectives led to the following research questions: 1. What are the most important soft skills as perceived by TESL undergraduates? 2. How do TESL undergraduates perceive the soft skills development by University of Malaya? 3. What is the relationship between the importance of soft skills and the levels of soft skills developed? Population and Sampling The population for this research is defined as the TESL undergraduates in University of Malaya. The undergraduates participation in the study would be of voluntary. Selecting TESL undergraduates as the participants creates rich authenticity data for this research. The future teachers of English play significant role in nation building; therefore, their perspectives on soft skills are very much appreciated and valuable. The selected site for this research is University of Malaya. Choosing the oldest and one of the most established universities in Malaysia enhances the research data by reflecting the perspectives of the undergraduates from the university. At the same time, the suitable location and comfortable setting of University of Malaya greatly allows the research to progress smoothly.

Multiple Sclerosis :: essays research papers

The name itself is revealing: multiple, more than one, and sclerosis, which refers to areas of sclerotic (scarred) tissue. Multiple sclerosis is a demyelinating disease of the white matter of the central nervous system.These areas of sclerosis, also referred to as lesions or plaques, occur in the white matter of the central nervous system. Gray matter consists primarily of nerve cells. Axons (nerve fibers) are the connections between the cell body and the muscles, sensory organs, and primary organs such as the heart. These nerve cells are the communication system both within the central nervous system and between it and the rest of the body. Axons are sheathed in myelin, a white substance (hence the term "white matter") that insulates them and speeds transmission of impulses along the cell fibers. Electrical impulses move along the nerve fiber to the synapse (the connection point between cells) to the next nerve cell.The lesions or plaques of multiple sclerosis are areas of tissue damage arising from inflammation, which occurs when white blood cells and fluid accumulate around blood vessels. This inflammation causes destruction of myelin. After the fragments are cleared away, a scar is formed--the lesion--in the area of demyelinization. The cause-and-effect process of inflammation and demyelinization is unclear. These lesions impede conduction of signals by blocking or slowing communication, either completely or partially and from time to time. The process can be thought of as similar to an electrical short circuit. The symptoms of multiple sclerosis result from that loss or diminution of signal conduction.MS is the most common demyelinating disease of the central nervous system. In the United States alone, there are at least 250,000 cases. For reasons that remain unclear, it is more prevalent in northern temperate zones and affects noticeably more women than men. The average age of onset is thirty years.Research into the underlying causes and processes of MS is ongoing, and in recent years, advances in virology and immunology have rapidly increased knowledge and understanding of the disease. However, its etiology remains unclear. Epidemiological studies indicate that an environmental factor, perhaps exposure to a virus, when combined with a genetic predisposition to the disease, may well control occurrence of the disease. MS is not a genetically transmitted disease. MS may also be or involve a defect of some kind in the body's autoimmune system--some part of the body may, in effect, attack itself.Diagnosis of MS is difficult.

Different Things That Can Affect the Rights of an Individual

UNIT 10 Task 2. 1 List 4 different things that can affect the rights of an individual (2. 1) Explain how the things you have listed could affect the rights of an individual (2. 1) 1. Murder- murder is really a serious factor that really affects all the rights of an individual, because taking one’s life is taking also all of his rights. As what it is written by the Law, every individual has the right to live. 2. Slavery and Forced Labour- slavery still exists nowadays, particularly this forced labour where an individual is working without any payment and in an unlimited hour.Individuals are working to have a source of income, to subsidize everyday’s needs like foods and money. Blood and sweats of individuals are the greatest sacrifice of an individual in order to live and to face the hardships of living. 3. Respect and Privacy- invasion of privacy is taking away one’s freedom. Disrespecting an individual is degrading one’s rights. Privacy is very important thing owned by an individual, it is like a treasure that should be kept carefully and must be respected by the others.Others should respect others’ privacy as they respect their own because having each own privacy is having a smuch secured freedom. 4. Discrimination- discriminating makes an individual thinks unworthy of himself. It sometimes forces an individual to commit suicide that caused him to death. Death is the end of life, the end of an individual’s rights. Task 2. 2 Produce a booklet that explains how we should respect the rights of others in the workplace. We can demonstrate respect with simple, yet powerful actions. These ideas will help us avoid needless, insensitive, unmeant disrespect, too. Treat people with courtesy, politeness, and kindness. * Encourage coworkers to express opinions and ideas. * Listen to what others have to say before expressing your viewpoint. Never speak over, but in, or cut off another person. * Don’t think of yourself only, we should think of others too. * Use people’s ideas to change or improve work. Let employees know you used their idea, or, better yet, encourage the person with the idea to implement the idea. * Never insult people, name call, disparage or put down people or their ideas. Do not nit-pick, constantly criticize over little things, belittle, judge, demeanor patronize. A series of seemingly trivial actions, added up over time, constitutes bullying. * Never ever covet your co-workers’ belongings; it is also a way of respecting them. * Treat people the same no matter their race, religion, gender, size, age, or country of origin. Implement policies and procedures consistently so people feel that they are treated fairly and equally. Treating people differently can constitute harassment or a hostile work environment. * Include all coworkers in meetings, discussions, training, and events.While not every person can participate in every activity, do not marginalize, exclude or leav e any one person out. Provide an equal opportunity for employees to participate in committees, task forces, or continuous improvement teams. Solicit volunteers and try to involve every volunteer. * Praise much more frequently than you criticize. Encourage praise and recognition from employee to employee as well as from the supervisor. * Be always a humble co-worker for others. * Don’t show poker acts towards your co-workers. Respecting others is respecting you too. We should respect others for them to respect us too.

Biopsychosocial Models for Schizophrenia

This paper will explore one of the most severe mental disorders, schizophrenia, with the goal of providing an actualized understanding of this disorder, including its etiology, course, epidemiology, diagnostic and treatment. Schizophrenia is characterized by an unadaptive pattern of general though and emotions, including delusions, auditory hallucinations, paranoia, disorganized thinking and disorganized speech. These symptoms cause a significant impairment in personal and social life.There are a wide range of symptoms that can be present in individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia, for which some researchers have questioned the validity of the concept of schizophrenia as a single disorder (Baier, 2010). Despite of the fact that the symptoms of schizophrenia continue to be considered as representing a unitary disorder, diagnostic manuals do classify schizophrenia into different subtypes: paranoid, disorganized, catatonic, undifferentiated and residual. Diagnosis is usually made on cr iteria established by the DSM-IV-TR or ICD-10.This criteria make use of self-reported experiences and clinical judgments of mental health professionals. The etiology of schizophrenia, while not completely understood, is thought to be complex, as multiple factors seem to contribute to the development and the course of the disorder. While psychology-including abnormal psychology-has experience a significant increase of empirical knowledge in the last few decades, no other area of psychology research has developed as much as psychobiology (Baier, 2010).The technology available today allows researchers to scan brains-both topographical and functional; hence, ‘’schizophrenic brains’’ have been studied in order to seek out for structural or functional differences in contrast to ‘’normal brains’. Scientists have found several differences of brain structures in 40 to 50% of cases, as well as in brain chemistry during psychotic states (Kneisl & Trigoboff, 2009). Brain imaging technologies-such as PET and fMRI-showed functional differences in frontal lobes, temporal lobes and the hippocampus.Reduction in brain volume has also been observed in many cases, usually in the frontal cortex and the temporal lobes (Baier, 2010). Since neuronal circuits are altered, some scientists have proposed that schizophrenia is actually a manifestation of a constellation of neurodevelopmental disorders (Baier, 2010). The neurotransmitter which seems to play the most important role in the development in the manifestation of schizophrenia is dopamine, in the mesolimbic pathway (Baier, 2010).The dopamine hypothesis proposes that the excessive activation of D2 receptors cause the positive symptoms of schizophrenia (Kneisl & Trigoboff, 2009). The dopamine hypothesis of schizophrenia is supported by data which proves the effectiveness of antipsychotics that block D2 receptors, but also on PET and SPET imaging. Nevertheless, as new medication with a different mechanism of action seem to have similar effects (Baier, 2010), the dopamine hypothesis seems to be reductionist. Glutamate also seems to play a role in schizophrenia, as schizophrenic individuals tend to show a reduced function of the NMDA glutamate receptor.Reduced function of glutamate is linked to lower performance on taks that require the frontal lobe and the hippocampus. Genetic data suggests that schizophrenia is highly heritable; apparently genetic vulnerability in interaction with certain environmental factors are a common cause of the disorder. Twin studies’ results estimate an 80% of heritability of the disorders. Concordance rates between twins are around 50% for monozygotic twins and around 17% for dizygotic twins (Kneisl & Trigoboff, 2009).On the other hand, molecular genetic studies attempt to identify specific genes which may contribute to the etiology of schizophrenia. Until now, allelic variation of two genes show a stronger correlation with schizo phrenia: dysbindin (DTNBP2) and neuregulin (NRG1) (Kneisl & Trigoboff, 2009). Several environmental factors can contribute to the development and course of schizophrenia. Prenatal factors, such as obstetric complications, maternal malnutrition, maternal stress or even been born in winter or spring or are common risk factors for schizophrenia,though they do not represent factors of high-risk (Baier, 2010). Less-common factors for schizophrenia are increased paternal age and gluten intolerance. Studies with small samples have identified certain psychosocial factors that are likely to be risk factors for schizophrenia: living in urban areas, poor family environment, low socio-economic level, disrupt school behavior, low social competence and immaturity (Kneisl & Trigoboff, 2009).Schizophrenia affects about 0. 7% of world population. It is slightly more common in males (1.4 times) and the usually ages of onset are 20-28 years for men and 26-32 years for women. Different countries have s lightly different rates of schizophrenia, which reflect the importance of environmental effects in the development of the disorder (Kneisl & Trigoboff, 2009).Schizophrenia is a societal concern, as it cause considerable costs. Life expectancy is 15 years lower in schizophrenic individuals, in great part due to the comorbidities of the disorder, such as depression and substance abuse. Three-fourth of schizophrenics have disability with relapses (Baier, 2010).Most people with schizophrenia have an independent life, though sometimes they make use of community support. There is a high suicide rate in schizophrenic population, around 4. 9%, which shouldn’t come as a surprise considering that many schizophrenic also suffer from different forms of clinical depression (Baier, 2010). Modern treatment of schizophrenia corresponds to the bio-psycho-social paradigm. About all schizophrenics receive antipsychotics, many times in combination with psychological and social intervention.Antip sychotics are efficient at reducing positive symptoms, but fail to do the same with negative symptoms and with cognitive functions. There is evidence that a continue use of antipsychotics prevents relapse, but not longer than 2-3 years.Antipsychotics are classified into typical and atypical, and little evidence suggest that any of them is better than the other (Kneisl & Trigoboff, 2009). Typical antipsychotics tend to provoke a higher rate of extrapyramidal side effects, while atypical antipsychotics are associated with weight gain, metabolic syndrome and diabetes (Kneisl & Trigoboff, 2009).Psychosocial intervention for those with schizophrenia include family therapy, cognitive remediation, cognitive-behavioral therapy, assertive community treatment, skills training, supported employment, token economic intervention and interventions for weight management or substance abuse. Currently new medication and psychotherapies for treating schizophrenia are been investigated. Minocyclineâ⠂¬â„¢s effects in schizophrenia, a bacteriostatic antibiotic, is currently under study, giving its great penetration into the central nervous system (Kneisl & Trigoboff, 2009).On the other hand, nidotherapy is been applied by some clinicians; this therapy aims at changing the environment of schizophrenic individuals, in order to improve their capacity to adapt (Kneisl & Trigoboff, 2009).It is to be seen whether this new treatments will prove effective or not. As it has been showed throughout this paper, schizophrenia is a complex disorder, and it cannot be explained or treated from a reductionist perspective. Hence, most researchers and clinicians adopt a bio-psycho-social perspective, which reflects in theories of schizophrenia as well as in its management.

Importances of Effective Communication Essay Example

Importances of Effective Communication Essay Example Importances of Effective Communication Essay Importances of Effective Communication Essay pTHE IMPORTANCE OF EFFECTIVE COMMINUCATION DEFINATION:- 1)Communication is a Process by which some thoughts, fleeings ideas (i. e. information) are Conveyed by One Individual to another Individual or by One Individual to a Group or by One group to another group In such a manner that there is Reception, Understanding, and Feedback. Petter Little 2)â€Å"Human Communication is sending Meaningful Messages from one Person to Another† Denis Mc Quail Introduction to Communication:- Communication is an essential part of Human Interaction. The benefits of effective communication are many and obvious as they enhance all aspects of our personal and professional lives. Ineffective or misunderstood communications in our personal lives may give rise to problems. IMP OF COMMUNICATION IN OUR TO DAY PERSONAL/SOCIAL LIFE:- A)Communication is a personal Asset. B)It is very usefull and essential in every walk of life. C)In spite of computers and other modern machine of communication. The ability to communicate effectively is a valueable skill. If we use communication properly. D)It will be a blessing. E)Communication will make our life happy and meaningful. However, if we don’t use communication carefully then A)It will become a curse, and B)Make our life Miserable. IMPORTANT TERMS USED IN THE PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION:- Although used in a slightly different context, a phrase from some British propaganda during WWII neatly sums up the dangers of ineffective communications: ‘Careless talk costs lives’. That may be over-dramatic in most cases where communications between seafarers or between ship and shore go awry but it does illustrate the importance of effective communications and the real dangers if they go badly wrong. A)There are 2 stages and 5 factors of communication. B)Communication Cycle, C)Communication Situation, and D)Communication Gap. Stages are of types i. e. Sender and Receiver. The Factors for Sender are proper channel, Message Encoding. And The Factors for Receiver are Decoding Feedback. Conclusion Effective communications are an essential ingredient to safe and efficient ship operations. Communication can be achieved in many ways but the prime method for operational communications is through speech.