Appraising the Research Evidence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Appraising the Research Evidence - Essay Example Rapid Risk Assessment in Acute Hospital for Patients with Intellectual Disabilities Background to the Study Nurses that work with patients with intellectual disabilities are faced with various challenges. For instance, they are required to use evidence based practice while treating their patients. However, there is not adequate and clear research regarding evidence based practices for safety available to nurses. This brings up debates regarding practices that will ensure safety and quality care for people with intellectual disabilities. Nurses are required to check out current evidence based interventions that are suitable for treating these patients. Calls have also been made against using unfounded and pseudoscientific interventions to treat these patients. There is increased pressure on nurses to ensure their practices are based on sound evidence. Evidence based practice has gained influence as an approach to clinical decision making. As health care becomes more and more evidence based, nurses are required to be aware of the skills, resources and principles needed for evidence based practices (Kline et al., 2011). There are doubts regarding just how effective and applicable the results of evidence based treatments are to the general clinical application. Nurses continue to handle patients with complex life experiences and also those that have very severe intellectual disabilities. These stressful circumstances will undermine participation of treatment and can ultimately contribute to non-adherence to available treatment options (Read and Johnson, 2012). Advances in medical care ensure that life expectancy of individuals with intellectual disabilities approaches that of quite normal and healthy people. Severe intellectual disabilities are mostly accompanied by other medical conditions and physical disabilities. Health care needs of people with intellectual disabilities should, therefore, be met by mainstream health services. Highly skilled nurses are also req uired to work with these patients as they have a high intensity of health care support needs. Research conducted into this group of patients revealed some areas of concern. These areas include inadequate patient assessment as well as inadequate communication between nurse and patient. It is essential for nurses and patients to communicate effectively as this will help them understand their health needs and they will be able to prevent frequent admissions to hospital. Delivery of quality health care relies upon a series of interaction between a patient and clinician (Hart, 2010). Interaction will assist the clinician to make an accurate diagnosis and provide suitable treatment option. Each acute health care facility is required to conduct a proactive risk assessment using risk assessment tools. This provides avenues for identifying, reducing and prioritizing risks associated with patient safety. This enables clinicians to choose appropriate treatment options, therefore, reducing the chances of developing undesirable outcomes in patients. Health care is a high risk industry that is prone to serious errors. However, clinicians, through evidence based research, can reduce the chances of making medical errors. Commonly cited barriers to use of evidence based practices by clinicians include information overload, limited time, lack of research evidence as well as lack of skills

Psychological Testing and Assessment Selection Paper Research

Psychological Testing and Assessment Selection - Research Paper Example An expectancy table provides an indication or prediction of the possibility that the scores of a person taking test will lie within interval on the measuring criterion that qualify categorization as failing, passing or acceptable. For instance, an expectancy table applied in experimental test on personnel in an employment setting may show that the higher the score of a worker on a new test is a prelude that the worker may be gain approval as successful. Commonly used expectancy tables include Naylor-Shine tables and Taylor-Russell tables (Cohen, Swerdlik & Sturman, 2013). Decision theory and test utility are another combination or resources that can help a counselor select a psychological test or assessment. Decision theory provides guidelines for setting cutoff point for particular scores recorded from tests. Another tool that counselors can use in selecting a psychological test or assessment is the Brogden-Cronbach-Glaser formula (Ployhart & MacKenzie, 2011). This is mostly useful in calculating the amount of dollar of utility retrievable from the use of particular instrument selected under a given condition. A counselor selecting a psychological test for a client needs to consider the four issues that include difficult-index of an item, reliability and validity indices of items and discrimination index. To determine an item’s difficulty index, one has to calculate the proportion of the number of test takers that answered an item in correct way. Usually, a lower case â€Å"p† helps in denoting item difficulty with subscript to show an item’s number. Cohen, Swerdlik and Sturman (2013) educate that the value of item index can range from zero incase everyone failed the item and one incase everyone passed the item. The larger the item difficulty index, the easier is the item, and the smaller the item difficulty index, the tougher the item. Easier items scored by all people and difficult items failed by all test takers are inappropriate

Neo-Liberals versus Social Democrats in Security and Tax

Neo-Liberals versus Social Democrats in Security and Tax What are the different views of neo-liberals versus social  democrats with regards to social security and taxation? One of the most important features of democracy, that allows it to be such a successful form of government is the diversity of political stances. Social democracy is a political ideology that supports both economic and social interventions. Neo-liberalism however offers juxtaposing economic liberalization policies such as privatization and reduced government spending. Social security and taxation have always been a large topic of discussion, I look to explore the contrasting views held by these two ideologies focussing on the effect that has on the population in UK history. Neo-liberalism has only been around for about thirty years, liberalism refers to economic and political ideas based on the political economy of Adam Smith and neo means a new form of liberalism. Neo-liberalism is associated with laissez faire economics which follows the beliefs that the world is a self-regulating system and there is no need for the involvement of government. Government involvement, according to this economic theory, would include any type of regulation, minimum wage, taxation, or oversight. Laissez-faire economists see taxation on companies as a penalty for production. (Investopedia.com, 2003) The popularity of neoliberalism is arguable but was used in many economic policies adopted in the UK and US by political leaders such as Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Raegan in the 1980s. Their main aim is for the market to become dominant as it increases the general performance of the business which puts more money into that countries economy and reduces the role of the state. When public companies become private the general public can buy shares which creates a positive incentive and makes the general public money. In the UK, the shares rocketed in value as soon as they were issued, giving these new shareholders an instant profit of anything between 20% (British Gas) and 85% (British Telecom). (veronica, 2015) With this being the focal point of the policy, it is clear to see that neo-liberalism accentuates economic climb as opposed to social justice. It is argued that this leads to an increase in inequality as the government were selling state assets, which were owned by everyone to a wealthier subset of people which in turn increases the gap between the rich and the poor. (veronica, 2015b) The neoliberal practice of giving public wealth to a small wealthy elitist privatized group, approving tax cuts for the rich and reducing wages for the less fortunate majority is why neo-liberalism is such a controversial political stance. Social democracy was the main political standing held by the public and the government in the UK after the world wars. It supports social and economic interventions, a political movement advocating a gradual and peaceful transition from capitalism to socialism by democratic means. (Merriam-Webster, 2017) William Beveridge is one of the most influential people is social democratic history, his belief in the community and that the well-off should support those in society who are in need and less able started the creation of the welfare state. Social democratic political standing has a far-left ideology, they believe in democratic government and individual freedoms. They highlight the need for the protection of the poor and minority groups, support trade unions, free education and strive for gender equality. Social democrats believe in rewarding talent and hard work rather than privilege which is beneficial as it doesnt waste the talent of individual citizens, which in turn encourages s ociety to become more integrated. In contrast to the beliefs of the neo-liberals, social democrats do not believe that the privatized market is positive asset to the government as its undemocratic. Companies are owned by very few wealthy individuals and as it is not self-regulated which can end in economic crisis with high levels of unemployment and unreasonable inflation which many people cant afford. The welfare state is a safety net for the flaws of free market, it aims to provide a level of social security for many people by redistributing the wealth of the market by taxation. (veronica, 2015c)    Taxation is the amount of money paid to the government by citizens and businesses that is then redistributed into the wider society. The main types of taxation in the UK is: income tax, national insurance, VAT and corporation tax. A tax system that takes a higher proportion of tax from the income of rich than poor is known as a progressive system. Under a regressive system, the poor pay a higher proportion of their income in taxes than the rich. Income taxation is a progressive system, while indirect taxes e.g. VAT tend to be regressive as poorer groups spend a higher proportion of their incomes on VAT. Where social democrats would implement the funding of taxation in systems such as healthcare services and the welfare state, neo-liberals have a very different set of standing views on taxation, seeing high tax as a negative thing for the economy. One of the main goals of many neo-liberals is to privatize public companies with the belief that if privatized, citizens will not have to p ay tax towards the company and only those who use it will have to pay (e.g. privatizing the railway in 1990) making the economy fairer. The idea that cutting taxes will leave room to stimulate economic growth however often leads to public services being exploited for profit, and redesigns systems to become more elitist, something social democracy aims to avoid. In both the UK and the US during the 1980s a political movement that neo-liberalists would view as innovative was implemented. In the US Ronald Raegan reduced the top income tax rates from 70% to 50% and then a 25% reduction in income tax for everyone, in the UK income tax was reduced to 25% for lower and 40% for higher earners. (Ferrara, 2011) Whilst the intent of Mrs Thatcher, a figurehead for neo-liberalism, during this movement was to minimalize the discouraging effect of high tax to those who work hard what transpired was a huge increase in the inequality of financial divide as income tax dropped VAT rose in order to res tore balance to funding, allowing easier purchase for wealthy citizens but not the poor. This is a prime example of how neo-liberalism aims to use taxation to give more responsibility to the individuals of the public by rolling back the state, but often leads to benefiting social and financial hierarchy. Neo liberals judge state intervention as problematic and strive for it to be minimised and conceive taxation to be a burden, often critiquing the high taxes put in place by social democrats. Margaret Thatcher famously said: The trouble with Socialism is that eventually you run out of other peoples money. (Mikkelson, 2014) Social democrats believe that the state has a responsibility of its own to look after the public who are lesser abled through the funding created by tax thus showing a clear difference in view. Social security is all forms of financial support provided by the state, it is an essential part of every government however other forms of social security can include aspects not paid by the state .e.g. sick pay. In the UK, the concept was introduced in the early 1900s. It is a system put in place to insuring against the risks of particular events in life, such as unemployment and short-term sickness, relieving poverty or low income, redistributing resources across peoples lifecycles, especially from working age to retirement, redistributing resources from the rich to the poor, compensating for some types of extra cost (such as children or disability) and providing financial support when traditional families break down. (Fox, 2016) Social democrats argue that social security and state intervention is vital to reduce inequalitys and combat social injustice, the belief they hold is every person is interdependent and we will all during our lifetimes pay taxes and receive some form of s ocial security benefits. Social democrats aim to put in place a universalised system of social benefits and security which means that all services are available to all citizens, this eradicates the need for means tested benefits which can be embarrassing and bureaucratic for those who are entitled to claim them; they believe that universal benefits are easier to administer and more effective. For social democrats, the low take up of means tested benefits is an important failing of the current social security system. In 1980, no means tested benefit had more than an 80% take up. (Limited, 2015) The main figure head for social security in the UK was Sir William Beveridge, his push for the creation of a universal and compulsory welfare state and social security system to eradicate inequality by creating a shared and orderly society. There are also many negatives about universal social security the main being the high cost which is the main reason the UK implements less of a universal s ystem today. Neo-liberals have very contrasting view, they see universal provision of benefits and social security as nonsensical; it gives to those who dont need it and wastes resources. Child benefit, for example, costs nearly  £5 billion a year (1988), going to 6.8 million households with 12 million children regardless of income. (Limited, 2015) Neo-liberals ideally want the welfare state and social security to be in line with the residual model which only gives social security and welfare benefits to the deserving poor, the individuals right at the bottom of society. Means testing is a vital part of neoliberal governing, it limits the needs for goods and services by charging for things like dental checkups so will reduce the demand for these services. In the eyes of neo-liberals, poverty is seen as something that is caused by the idleness of the individuals at the bottom of society and isnt considered to be an economic problem to be combatted by the government. Welfare and soc ial security recipients tend to become welfare dependent so become complacent and do not try to earn money in the marketplace relying on the safety net of the state. The contrasting views of social democrats and neo-liberals are obvious. Neo liberals focus on the economic development of a country where as social democrats view social justice as the paramount feature of governing society. There are many drawbacks and needs for both political stances in UK history, where neoliberalism is seen to be the main driving force behind globalization producing wealth for the economy it is argued that it is also the main driving force behind inequality and treats citizens as consumers for the privatized market. Social democrats however reduced inequality by creating state run systems that act as a preventative measure for social ills but this created an economic crisis as the surplus of wealth could not fund the social security and welfare of state run systems so taxes had to be increased and the economy was severely damaged. Taxation and social security will always be a major discussion point in global politics, there will always be a need to both as they a re co-dependent in order to be effective. The only way to achieve a fair democratic system is to compromise between both neo-liberal and social democratic political stances, both considering the economy and social justice as a means to achieve a fully functioning government. References Ferrara, P. (2011) Reaganomics vs. Obamanomics: Facts and figures. Available at: http://www.forbes.com/sites/peterferrara/2011/05/05/reaganomics-vs-obamanomics-facts-and-figures/#30c60c963a1d (Accessed: 20 January 2017). Fox, Paul (2016) Available at: https://studentcentral.brighton.ac.uk/bbcswebdav/pid-2833560-dt-content-rid-5267320_1/courses/SS407_2016/SS407%20Seminar%20taxation%20and%20the%20public%20purse.doc (Accessed: 20 January 2017). Investopedia.com (2003) Laissez Faire, in Available at: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/l/laissezfaire.asp (Accessed: 20 January 2017). Limited, S.Y.M. (2015) Social policy: Philosophies of welfare. Available at: http://www.s-cool.co.uk/a-level/sociology/welfare/revise-it/social-policy-philosophies-of-welfare (Accessed: 20 January 2017). Merriam-Webster (2017) Definition of SOCIAL DEMOCRACY. Available at: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/social%20democracy (Accessed: 20 January 2017). Mikkelson, D. (2014) Margaret Thatcher on socialism. Available at: http://www.snopes.com/politics/quotes/thatcher.asp (Accessed: 20 January 2017). veronica, risie (2015a) The advantages of Privatisation. Available at: http://www.s-cool.co.uk/a-level/economics/privatisation/revise-it/the-advantages-of-privatisation (Accessed: 20 January 2017). veronica, risie (2015b) The disadvantages of Privatisation. Available at: http://www.s-cool.co.uk/a-level/economics/privatisation/revise-it/the-disadvantages-of-privatisation (Accessed: 20 January 2017).

Euthanasia Essay -- essays research papers fc

Imagine yourself lying on a hospital bed totally unaware of the happenings around you. Doctors and family members come and go, mostly out of habit now, because they know there’s nothing more they can do. Many of their visits are a blur to you, with their voices and movements becoming unrecognizable. The pain you experience is nothing short of excruciating, but the hospital has exhausted all of their resources in their attempt to help you. After months of medication and efforts to assist your recovery, you’re left with nothing to show for it other than the dreadful bills. Your family is just patiently waiting for your final days.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Luckily, you are not in a situation like this, and hopefully you never will be. However one must wonder what they would want to be done if they ever were. Would you want the hospital to keep searching for answers and cures? Or would you rather be brought to the comfort of your home to die peacefully? Or would you, like many others seem to, prefer ending your personal suffering and inconvenience to family through euthanasia? In the article titled â€Å"Euthanasia Definitions†, euthanasia.com defines euthanasia as â€Å"the intentional killing by act or omission of a dependent human being for his or her alleged benefit.† An action similar to euthanasia, defined in the same article is known as physician assisted suicide. While sometimes the two terms are used interchangeably, physician assisted suicide is when a doctor provides a patient with education and or instruments useful to ending their own life without truly partaking in the death. â€Å"Euthanasia Definitions† also passionately stresses the fact that there is no such thing as passive euthanasia, which is thought of as death resulting from ending treatment that was ineffective, or providing too much medication without the intention of ending life. Euthanasia is fully an intentional act resulting in death. With a growing public awareness and its abundant levels of controversy, the currently illegal act of euthanasia has come of widespread interest. Derek Humphry is a significant advocate for the legalization of euthanasia for the terminally ill. He wrote the book Final Exit: The Practicalities of Self-Deliverance and Assisted Suicide for the Dying that became a #1 Bestseller for the New York Times. In this book Derek Humphry provides information to the terminall... ...a growing concern of most Americans.† Works Cited â€Å"Arguments Against Euthanasia.† Euthanasia.com. 2004. 22 December 2004 Baskin-Jones, Michelle. â€Å"Biographical Profile of Dr. Jack Kevorkian.† Death and Dying. 2004. About, Inc. 29 December 2004. Cundiff, David. Euthanasia is Not The Answer: A Hospice Physician’s View. Totowa, New Jersey: Humana Press, 1992. â€Å"Euthanasia Definitions.† Euthanasia.com. 2004. 22 December 2004   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Humphry, Derek. Final Exit: The Practicalities of Self-Deliverance and Assisted Suicide for the Dying. New York, New York: Dell Publishing, 2002. Kirkland, Michael. â€Å"Analysis: Life, death in the Schiavo case.† United Press International. 2004. The Washington Times. 29 December 2004.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"Live Suicide Show and Related News.† Hell On Earth. 2004. 2 January 2005 MacQueen, Ken. â€Å"Choosing Suicide.† Maclean’s 5 Aug. 2002: 40. MAS Ultra – School Edition. EBSCO. CLS High School Lib., Crystal Lake, IL. 9 December 2004. â€Å"Reasons for Euthanasia.† Euthanasia.com. 2004. 22 December 2004   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"The Thanatron.† The Kevorkian Verdict. 1998. PBS. 29 December 2004.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Censorship of internet in China

Since the Faceable and Youth are blocked in main land China, feel totally disconnected with the US after go back to China for vacation. Not only myself, but also the whole country Is blocked from rest of the world because of the censorship for the Internet. The censorship of Internet Is not good for the country and Its nation. Censorship of the Internet block the people In China from the rest of the world which Is harmful for the development for the country. Nobody can progress all on themselves, they cannot see the defects clearly as other do.The theory is the same for progress of the country, no communications and connect with other countries will only lead to fall behind. However, there are still some people support the censorship. They state that the censorship of internet is necessary. Because children can see sexually explicit materials which is unhealthy for them through the opening internet. Surely we should keep the bad information away from the children but there is no need to forbid everything about the sex in the internet. Proper and moderate Information Is necessary and good for the children.Whereas, government makes a sensitive topic even more awkward. Forbid of healthy sex education and free thoughts will not make country progress. Likewise, block the Chinese people from the world, often get blabs Information. If the news on the Internet Is fact, the government do not have to censor It. In addition, If the Information Is blabs, people still will find out the truth someday which means censor the internet is useless and harmful to people. Besides, people get curious when they can't see something and they will do anything that it takes to find what they want.The hiding of the fact could not last forever, people will find the information navy. ‘ay. The anger of feeling betrayal will cause and develop the disappointment from the nation. As the disappointment increase day by day, people will do violence things to release the feeling. Also, govern ment expresses free and open internet environment causes social unrest. However, that is the pretext of government which fears retaliation from the public if all the truth came out. The reason for social unrest Is not come from nowhere, there must be something wrong and causes people's dissatisfied.One of the reason Is the government hide the truth and no lies can last forever. In addition, the censorship harms the right for freedom of speech. People have the right to talk whatever they want to and that is the natural rights. Share the opinions also help the government and country find out error which can be corrected. All things considered that internet censorship offers more disadvantages than the benefits. Hiding the fact, blocking country from the rest of world in digital way and forbidden for the freedom of public speech strongly against the people's right as well s the impress for the country.Next question appears to us that how can we change the situation of censorship? Since the Faceable and Youth are blocked in main land China, I feel totally disconnected with the US after I go back to China for vacation. Not only myself, but also the whole country is blocked from rest of the world because of the censorship for the internet. The censorship of internet is not good for the country and its nation. Censorship of the internet block the people in China from the rest of the world which is harmful for the development for the country.Nobody can progress all on moderate information is necessary and good for the children. Whereas, government world, often get bias information. If the news on the internet is fact, the government do not have to censor it. In addition, if the information is bias, people still will find out forever, people will find the information anyway. The anger of feeling betrayal will all the truth came out. The reason for social unrest is not come from nowhere, there must be something wrong and causes people's dissatisfied. One of the reason i s the

Copyright Infringement Research Paper Essay

We are well into the year of 2011 and technology is continuing to advance and a faster and faster rate. As technology advances there continues to be more of an opportunity for things to go wrong. The ability of our society to obtain information has been becoming as easy as it has ever been. I simple line into the google search bar and you are looking at millions upon millions of lings and opportunities to attain information. With this source and hundreds or even thousands of these resources just like it, piracy and copyright issues have never been more of a problem. And a very serious problem at that. Copyright is defined as a set of exclusive rights granted to the author or creator of an original work, including the right to copy, distribute and adapt the work. The exclusive rights are however balanced for public interest purposes with limitations and exceptions to the exclusive right – such as fair dealing and fair use. Copyright does not protect ideas, only their expression . In most jurisdictions copyright arises upon fixation and does not need to be registered. Copyright owners have the exclusive statutory right to exercise control over copying and other exploitation of the works for a specific period of time, after which the work is said to enter the public domain (1). While piracy is simply defined as the unauthorized use of another’s production, invention, or conception especially in infringement of a copyright (2). The definition of these two is strongly correlated and leaves them both dealing with the same issues that have been plaguing the creative minds of many people in recent times. Copyright and piracy issues have had a huge effect on how we are able to access information on the internet. Information is going to continue to get more difficult to attain the further into the future we get, but how will this directly effect us? First a generalized overview over the types of copyright and piracy strategies. The most common types of piracy of copyright-protected materials concerns books, music, films and software. Books: Book publishing has the longest history of dealing with piracy. Any unauthorized use of a copyrighted work, such as a book, school manual, journal article or sheet music, represents an infringement of copyright or a case of copyright piracy, unless covered by a copyright exception. Piracy of printed works affects both paper copies and works in digital format. In some developing countries, trade in pirated books often exceeds the legitimate market. Educational institutions represent a primary target market for pirates. Infringing activities include both illegal commercial photocopying and/or printing and reproduction of books and other printed material in digital form, as well as distribution in hard copy or digital format. Music: Music piracy includes both traditional unlawful use of music and unauthorized use of music on on-line communication networks. Bootlegging (unauthorized recording and duplication of a live or broadcast performance) and counterfeiting (unauthorized copying of the material support, labels, artwork and packaging) are the most widespread types of traditional music piracy. The unauthorized uploading and making available to the public of music files or downloading such files from an Internet site is referred to as Internet or on-line piracy. On-line piracy may also include certain uses of â€Å"streaming† technologies. Films: As in the case of music, film piracy is either traditional or done over the Internet. It includes, but is not limited to, videocassette and optical disc piracy, theatrical camcorder piracy, theatrical print theft, signal theft and broadcasting piracy, and on-line piracy. Software: Software piracy refers to practices that involve the unauthorized copying o f computer software. Internet (on-line) piracy: The unauthorized downloading or distribution over the Internet of unauthorized copies of works such as movies, music, video games and software is generally referred to as Internet or on-line piracy. Illicit downloads occur through file-sharing networks, illegal servers, websites and hacked computers. Hard goods pirates also use the Internet to sell illegally duplicated DVDs through auctions and websites.While trafficking copyrighted works through increasingly sophisticated electronic means, such as peer-to-peer file trading networks, Internet chat rooms, and newsgroups, has an ever increasing negative impact on cultural industries, it is also argued that curtailing this phenomenon limits the right of access to information, knowledge and culture (4). The problem in trying to prevent digital copyright infringement is tied up in the problem of regulating the Internet – an almost impossible feat, considering the World Wide Web today comprises more than 100 million individual Web sites. Regulators have been severely tried in recent years with the rise of peer-to-peer networks, with the most infamous being Napster. The brainchild of a 19-year-old college student, Napster launched in 1999 and revolutionized the way music sharing was conducted online. However, with such a quick rise to success comes the inevitable problems; in this case, the problems arose in the form of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and copyright lawsuits. While users of Napster saw nothing wrong with sharing music, the RIAA, which represents the four major music labels, saw the situation quite differently. By late 2000, the courts had ruled that Napster must restrict access to copyrighted files, a death-blow to the young network, for all intents and purposes. The media industry probably thought it was in the clear after the Napster fall-out, and to a degree it was, until a new source of copyright infringement rose up in 2005 and became even more widely success than Napster.†¨The story of YouTube, an online video-sharing network, is reminiscent of the beginnings of its music predecessor, Napster. Founded in February of 2005 by two 20-somethings, the idea for the company arose due to difficulties in sharing home videos with friends. When the site launched in May 2005, it contained about 30,000 videos. As with Napster, word of mouth allowed the company’s popularity to spread like wildfire. Less than 20 months later, visitors to the site watched 100 million videos a day. While many visitors to YouTube go to see the homemade videos, the company shares another similarity to Napster: its success is, in part, due to the illegal sharing of copyrighted files. YouTube’s terms of service forbid sharing of copyrighted materials, and the company monitors content to limit the number of violations, but copyrighted material still gets through. With such material widely popular among users of the site, the companies whose videos were being shared on the site saw the situation differently. In March of 2006, NBC asked YouTube to remove a Saturday Night Live skit. Viacom soon followed suit, threatening action against YouTube if it did not remove clips from Comedy Central shows like South Park and The Daily Show. Many industry insiders speculated that YouTube’s fate would follow in the footsteps of Napster. Rather than sit idly by, however, YouTube took action. The company began signing licensing agreements with companies including Warner Music, Sony BMG and CBS Corp., allowing the content providers to supply the clips and share in advertising revenue. YouTube also attempted to assuage the companies’ concerns with a promise to develop new software capable of finding and removing copyrighted materials. The biggest hope for YouTube, however, lies in its acquisition by Google, the search engine giant worth approximately $130 billion, which paid $1.65 billion to purchase YouTube on Oct. 9, 2006. While this acquisition did not remove the threat of future lawsuits, most analysts believed the power of Google and its many existing media partnerships will allow YouTube to avoid Napster’s fate. Additionally, Google’s technological advantages in finding and removing copyright infringement threats go far in easing the minds of the media companies. In my opinion Google’s many existing partnerships suggest that these companies will continue to do business with a Google-owned YouTube, rather than following the legal path they did with Napster and its related music piracy companies (3). The example of Napster and YouTube is a very generalized and a very modern look at the issue of copyright and piracy issues but I also feel that they are very high scale cases that represent the problem at hand very well. There are millions of similar small scale websites such as these that are stealing information and making money off of other peoples work. But as stated by Jessica Vitak above, how could you possibly be able to monitor such a vast array of internet sites? It is almost impossible to even fathom. Now that these two giants have brought the issue of copyright and piracy into the general publics eye we need to explore how this will effect the collection of information in our lives. Following up Napster and YouTube the new revolution with high speed internet connections is the ability to go after movies. As we know and have seen there is a lot of power in Hollywood. It is a multi-billion dollar industry and is a point of serious concern. A movie is a large amount of information that takes a lot of time and internet speed to be able to download. But again with the advancement of technology getting this type of file is no long more than a 20 minute download period. Many argue to say that this can have great effect on our economy because of the amount of money that this industry brings in. The Motion Picture Association of America warned against a â€Å"growing global epidemic† of movie piracy over the Internet this week, citing a survey of Internet users in which nearly one in four respondents had illegally downloaded a movie online. The study, conducted by online research company OTX, queried 3600 Net users in eight countries, and was cited by the MPAA as the harbinger of the tough times the industry faces ahead in grappling with online piracy. Although the MPAA participated in delivering the survey results it did not fund the study, an OTX representative says, adding that the company undertook the survey independently. According to the survey, 24 percent of respondents reported that they had downloaded a movie online, and 69 percent said that they did not believe that online music piracy was a major concern. The study was performed in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Korea, Japan, the U.K., and the U.S., and shows a direct correlation between broadband penetration and the incidence of piracy, the researcher says. In Korea, for instance, where broadband penetration is estimated to stand at 98 percent, 58 percent of respondents said that they had downloaded a movie online (5). These are clearly alarming numbers and much higher than I think any one would guess if they were asked but, now that we know how high those numbers are what exactly is the effect. Clearly there must be a large loss of money but how great? And is that a number that we can even guesstimate on? The economic impact of movie piracy equated to $1.37 billion in lost revenue to the Australian economy and 6,100 jobs forgone over the 12 months to July 2010, according to a new report from the Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT). The report, carried out by IPSOS and Oxford Economics and surveying 3500 adults, also found tax losses to movie piracy amounted to $193 million, while direct consumer spending losses to the movie industry, local distributors, producers and retailers amounted to $575 million. As much as one third of the Australian adult population had downloaded, streamed, burned or otherwise not paid for movie content during the period. Some 92 million pirated movies were also estimated to have been viewed or obtained within the period. According to AFACT executive director, Neil Gane, the findings showed that movie piracy had a destructive impact throughout the economy. â€Å"The film community is no different than any other sector of the economy that relies on skill, investment and hard work,† Gane said in a statement. â€Å"The losses are significant and the report highlights the need for urgency in addressing this problem.† AFACT members include Village Roadshow Limited, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Australia, Paramount Pictures Australia, Sony Pictures Releasing International Corporation and Twentieth Century Fox International. In September the Australian Federal Police (AFP) said it had embarked on a major crackdown of counterfeit goods, including pirated software, computers and CDs and DVDs, in a move hailed by as a victory by software companies such as Microsoft and representatives of the music and film and TV industries. The arrests were the result of investigations which had stemmed from information provided by industry stakeholders such as Music Industry Piracy Investigations (MIPI), the Australian Federation against Copyright Theft (AFACT), the Trade Mark Investigations Service and the Union of European Football Associations (6). To me these numbers are amazingly alarming and are clearly a huge issue. Though they are not numbers from the United States of America they make it very evident that this is a world wide epidemic. The way that our economy is these days we cant afford to be losing out on any amount of money, let alone billions.

How to Structure Modern Marketing Departments For Success

How to Structure Modern Marketing Departments For Success Could an outdated marketing department structure hold you back from success? It’s certainly possible. This industry moves fast. In order to keep up, you need the right people, with the right skills, doing the right tasks. If silos prevent your team from doing its best work, you could wind up spinning your wheels, without realizing why you’re not moving forward. Unfortunately, many organizations are unprepared to adapt to future changes. Leaders will staff talent skilled in emerging technologies and tactics, while followers with catch up too late (if at all). If your business is going to thrive, both today and in the future, it’s imperative your org chart is built to scale. So, how can you make sure your company is built for the future of marketing? Start planning now to determine: What skills will you need (and who has those skills)? How will you organize your team for maximum efficiency and success? What tools and software do you need to keep everyone in sync? This post will help answer those questions (and more). How to Structure Modern Marketing Departments For Success via @Snag Your Free Marketing Org Chart Template It’s easier to achieve success when you can visualize it. Using this template, you can map out your org chart easily to help you and your company see what a successful team structure should look like. This also helps everyone understand their coworkers’ roles and big-picture value.I'm planning my marketing team structure with this free template from @... And Manage Your Marketing Department With the Team Managment Dashboard in Managing marketing teams effectively requires the right tools. And there's no better choice than with Team Management Dashboard. This nifty new tool helps teams: Coordinate internal resources effectively to ensure the right team members are working on the right things. Balance workloads and resource allocation  so your team can plan ahead without burning out. Plan project timelines and monitor progress  so you can plan your work, work your plan, and measure productivity. See what you can do with it: Why Pay Attention to Team Structure? With so many competing priorities vying for your attention, what makes this so important? The answer is simple: well-organized teams are better positioned to succeed than ones that aren't. But, getting it right isn't easy. What if you have the right people on the wrong team? Or lack the right teams to support the right people? Or the right people can’t communicate because of a communication barrier between teams? ^^^ If any of the above scenarios is true for your organization, you’re shortchanging your success. Fortunately, correcting these issues can have an outsized impact on future success. Not only that, but getting on the track is within your reach. A good team structure can have an outsized impact on future success.What Do Common Marketing Team Structures Look Like? There’s no such thing as an ideal one-size-fits-all team structure. Different models may work better for different organizations and industries. The size of your company overall plays an impact, too. If you’ve spent much time searching for examples to follow, odds are you’ve felt overwhelmed, too. It’s not uncommon to hear advice suggesting you need a dozen roles for one team, and multiple teams spread across your entire marketing department. That might make sense for large enterprises with tons of resources. But, for the majority of companies, that may not be realistic. To simplify things, here are some theoretical examples for companies of different sizes. Small Business Marketing Team Structure: Lean and Scrappy. In a small business, odds are you’re hiring one or two people to tackle marketing. If you’re fortunate, you may have three or more. When available talent is this thin, how do you prioritize what these folks should be doing? Content Creation: Your marketer(s) will need to be able to update website content, write blog posts, and craft catchy copy for social media and email. Graphic Design: At a minimum, a working knowledge of Photoshop (or, failing that, free design apps like Canva) will be necessary. Technical Skills: A basic grasp of SEO is likely essential. A general ability to use a content management system (like WordPress) will be useful, too. Social Media Management: This can easily consume tons of time. (Scheduling tools can help). Project Management: How will you keep everything on track? This is just a handful of the different tasks they might be responsible for. What could this look like when its mapped out? Mid-Level Marketing Team Structure: Building for Growth. At this point, your marketing department may have multiple teams. Enterprise Marketing Team Structure: Specialists With Deep Expertise. Large companies (those with 200+ employees) may have more layers of management, with more specialized teams with deep expertise in specific areas. Here’s a generic example: Take a Look at Example Marketing Org Charts (Courtesy of HubSpot) So far, this post has looked a few general examples. HubSpot did an excellent job breaking down seven common org structures  (along with their respective pros and cons), getting a bit more granular into each one. Functional Org Chart This example is broken down across business functions. One can assume each spoke under Marketing leads down to more sub-teams (content, social, analytics, and so forth). It’s also interesting to note how marketing and sales operate side-by-side (after all, someone has to close deals on the leads marketing generates). Source: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/team-structure-diagrams How can you construct a functional marketing org chart?Divisional Org Chart In this next example, the company is organized based on product-category departments. Each department could presumably have its own marketing team. This type of structure is common at large enterprises that make lots of different types of products. For example, consider a company like Samsung, which produces everything from phones to refrigerators. Source: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/team-structure-diagrams How can you construct a marketing team structure based on clear divisions?Market-Based Org Chart This example is similar to the previous one, except teams are split up based on customer-centric divisions instead of product-based ones. Source: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/team-structure-diagrams How can marketing teams be organized around specific marketing segments?Geographical Org Chart For extremely large enterprises or companies with offices around the world, a geographic org chart like this one may make sense. A company with different geographic-based teams within a country might use something similar as well. Source: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/team-structure-diagrams Is your marketing org chart based on geography and location?Process-Based Org Chart Next up is a process-based structure, where teams are divided up based on where they fit in the production of a product, from ideation all the way through to customer service. In this example, however, it’s unclear exactly where marketing may fit (though content can certainly support all initiatives shown). Source: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/team-structure-diagrams How can marketing leaders develop process-based org charts?Matrix Org Chart If this one reminds you of a certain early 2000s movie series, you’re not alone. This example illustrates a different kind of matrix though. It’s similar to some of the examples above, but instead of different divisions having their own marketing teams, the marketing, sales, and service functions all answer to one department head. From there, smaller sub-teams work with each division. It’s a subtle but important distinction. Source: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/team-structure-diagrams Here's how to plan a matrix-based marketing org structureCircular Org Chart In a circular organizational structure, a marketing services department responds to work requests from other areas. Source: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/team-structure-diagrams Have you tried using a circular marketing org structure?Team-Based Org Charts Next, let’s look at what individual teams could look like when mapped out. Content Marketing Team You don’t need an enormous team to start content marketing. But, the work requires lots of different tactics and disciplines, and the more help you have, the better. What can this type of team look like at a large organization? Here’s an example from Hubspot, a company that certainly knows how to do content marketing, via Revenify: Source: revenify.com/decide-structure-content-marketing-team-marketing-organization/ Social Media Team Seem a little complex? This example from Weber Shandwick takes a more high-level view: Source: http://webershandwickseattle.com/2012/11/a-crash-course-on-social-content-planning/social-content-team-structure-3/ Origin offers another way of looking at your social media team, introducing an analyst role: Source: https://www.originoutside.com/insights/what-should-your-social-media-team-look-like Public Relations Team It’s easy to think of PR as nothing more than media relations (which is a complex discipline unto itself). But, this would be a misnomer. Modern public relations is multi-faceted and spans lots of areas, as this illustration of the PESO model from Spin Sucks illustrates: Source: https://spinsucks.com/marketing/peso-model-affiliate-marketing/ What does your PR team org chart look like?Following this diagram, several staffers would likely divide up work across paid, earned, shared, and owned media strategies. The diagram below from MMI  breaks down in a bit more detail how a team might be structured: Inbound Marketing Team Now, what about holistic inbound teams that bring paid and organic strategies together under one roof? Here’s how Mojo Media Labs  breaks it down: Planning an inbound marketing team org chart? Read this first.SEO Team Search engine optimization is interesting because it often spans several teams across an organization. BuiltVisible  breaks down four different areas a single SEO team needs to cover: technical SEO, content, outreach and off-site SEO (links), and analytics. Source: https://builtvisible.com/build-a-great-seo-team/ How should SEO teams be structured?What makes this intriguing? The technical aspects may require assistance from a development team. Content might be created by a content team or a separate marketing department (although SEO should be aligned with marketing). A PR team or specialist might help with link acquisition and other off-site strategies (even if the terms a link builder and a PR pro use may differ according to their goals). Analysts often measure all aspects of a company’s marketing efforts. So, while this may look like a simple diagram, but there’s more than meets the eye. What’s the Problem With Following Someone Else’s Org Chart? It’s easier to know what to do, when you have a good example to follow. But, when it comes to organizing your marketing department, you have to do what makes the most sense for your company. That may or may not entail following a template down to a T. Collectively, the examples above illustrate one overarching point: there are a lot of different types of companies and organizations out there. Different sizes. Different industries. Different teams spread across different departments. How can one-size-fit-all recommendations work for your business? At best, they may offer either a starting point, or something to compare yourself against. If your current team structure doesn’t work, and it also looks nothing like what’s considered standard, you know where to start diagnosing issues. But, what will always work best, is figuring out what your specific organization needs to succeed. The best marketing org structure is the one that's designed specifically for what your organization...How Did Grow Its Marketing Teams? When first started, Nathan Ellering (now Head of Demand Generation) was a one-person team. While CEO and co-founder Garrett Moon contributed content and guidance, all things marketing were owned by a single staffer. Talk about a high-pressure environment. The upside? Nathan had total creative control and free reign to test what worked (and what didn’t). He’d learn a new tactic or get started with a new channel. Then, once he figured it out, another team member would be brought on board to take it over. Eventually, more teams were added to tackle new tasks, each strategically selected to support business growth for a fast-moving startup. Product Marketing promotes the product itself: While Branding and PR helps tell 's story to the world: Is it time to rethink your marketing org chart? See how @structures its marketing teams...How to Build Your Own Marketing Department The best marketing team layout is the one you build yourself. A structure that’s tailored to your own needs is going to work better than rigidly sticking to the way things have always been done, or filling roles you think you need because they’re what everyone else is doing. Start With Jobs to be Done Before thinking about specific roles, think about the work that needs to be completed. This doesn’t necessarily mean figuring out what’s the next hot marketing trend and hiring to fill that gap. It means figuring out what makes the most sense for your business, and finding talent to fit your own needs. That’s what the team did when it started out. The results speak for themselves, and might not have been attained as easily had the company followed a traditional hiring pattern. In the early days (and even now) leaned heavily on inbound marketing, creating top-notch blog content to attract leads. The strategy was simple: Do basic keyword research. Create content answering those queries. Promote it via social media and email. That’s effective for bringing in an audience, and eventually converting that audience into a paid customer base. It then added product marketers to help sell the product once an audience had been built. Next, a PR team was built out to help manage key relationships, 10X the buzz around the product, and more. Recommended Reading: The Best Formula for 10X Marketing Growth is Here Research Your Industry Your competition got where they are somehow. Copying them isn’t necessarily a recipe for duplicating success. But, studying them might give you ideas on which roles you need to hire for. Start by searching names and job titles on LinkedIn. Enter a company of similar size to your own (or one you admire, or perhaps a competitor) into the search bar: Next, scroll through the results to find Job Titles: Then, build a spreadsheet mapping out roles you find and where they might logically fit: This can help you sketch out a loose idea of how a marketing department like yours might be structured. You might also reveal roles or opportunities you hadn’t considered before. Recommended Reading: The Marketing Research Process That Will Take Your Content to the Next Level Determine the Most Important Work That Will Make the Most Impact focuses on 10X marketing. This means prioritizing projects that deliver 10X improvements, rather than 10% improvements. It’s allowed the company to grow immensely, and guides how decisions get made. Any marketer or team can follow a similar framework for determining which roles should be filled first. Here’s a brief explanation of what its about from CEO Garrett Moon:Here’s a visual rundown illustrating how this philosophy works in practice: This process is geared toward content marketing, but you can adapt the core concept to prioritizing marketing roles and activities across the board. The goal: figure out the channels, tactics, and strategies that will contribute to 10X business growth. Easier said than done, right? Prioritize Channels Here are some findings from a survey conducted by Get Response: Determine the Roles That Fit Each Channel Broadly speaking, which roles will own which tactics and channels? Some channels might touch multiple teams (for example, customer service, PR, and content might all use social media for different purposes). Determine the Tasks Each Role Should Be Responsible For You know what needs to be done. Now, who will own which tasks? This ties back into your Jobs to be Done. For each job or task, list the steps required to complete it. Here’s an example of what this might look like for creating a blog post: Generate an idea. Do keyword research. Write an outline. Execute post based on outline. Design visual content. Editing and review. Schedule on editorial calendar. Measure performance. Each of these tasks could fall onto different team members: Ideation and writing execution might fall onto content marketing. Keyword research might too, if the organization doesn’t have a dedicated SEO specialist. A graphic designer would be best for creating stunning visual content. An editor or manager would need to review and schedule content. If a team has a dedicated analyst or analytics team, they’d own measuring performance and extracting actionable insights from data. Beyond knowing what you need done, understand what it will take to complete the work effectively. Then, hire accordingly, and divide tasks between the team members best suited to handle each one. Do This With : Task Templates are reusable checklists you can build directly into your marketing management platform with . See how they work. Find the Best Talent Sports teams sometimes draft talent using what’s called a â€Å"best available player† approach. This means that regardless of current talent gaps on their roster, they’ll take the best overall players they can find. Then, they’ll strategize on how to make the best use of those players. It’s all about doubling down on strengths, and finding ways to mitigate weaknesses (if they can’t be eliminated completely). Businesses often do something similar, where they’ll make room for talented team members, even if they weren’t initially hiring for their role. Where can you find these folks? Consider the following places: Networking Events: Are there any relevant professional groups or marketing meetups in your area? Conferences: Large marketing conferences like Inbound and Content Marketing World may be great places to find talent. Social Media: Reach out to your network for referrals. Someone you know might pass along your next great hire. Be sure to post about job opportunities on LinkedIn, or even consider doing some cold outreach to promising prospects you find. Looking to find the best talent in your area (or beyond)? Use these resources: Indeed Workable Jobvite Group Talent Into Logical Teams As you add staff and roles, you may find different people fit better on different teams. Now, here’s the kicker: your org chart might not look exactly like anyone else’s. You’re not your competition. In fact, you’re not anyone but yourselves. So, why be beholden to copying a rigid structure, when you could custom tailor your own talent to your own needs? Take this as permission to put people where they’re best suited to succeed, not where a chart says they have to be.

How to Use the Perl Array Push() Function

How to Use the Perl Array Push() Function The Perl  push()  function is used to push a value or values onto the end of an array, which increases the number of elements. The new  values  then become the  last elements  in the array. It returns the new total number of elements in the array. Its easy to confuse this function with  the  unshift()  function, which adds elements to the  beginning  of an array. Heres an  example of the Perl push() function: myNames (Larry, Curly);push myNames, Moe;print myNames\n; When this code is executed, it delivers: Larry Curly Moe Picture a row of numbered boxes, going from left to right. The push() function pushes the new value or values onto the right side of the array  and increases the elements.   The array can also be thought of as a stack. Picture a stack of numbered boxes, starting with 0 at the top and increasing as it goes down. The push() function pushes the value onto the bottom of the stack  and increases the elements, like this: myNames (Larry,Curly);push myNames, Moe; You can also push multiple values onto the array directly ... myNames (Larry, Curly);push myNames, (Moe, Shemp); ... or by pushing on an array: myNames (Larry, Curly);moreNames (Moe, Shemp);push (myNames, moreNames); Note for beginning programmers:  Perl arrays begin with an symbol. Each complete line of code must end with a semicolon. If it doesnt, it wont execute. In the stacked example in this article, the lines without a semicolon are values contained in an array and enclosed in parentheses. This isnt an exception to the semicolon rule, as much as a result of the stack approach. The values in the array are not individual lines of code. It is easier to picture this in the horizontal approach to coding. Other Functions for Manipulating Arrays Other functions are also used to manipulate arrays. These make it easy and efficient to use a Perl array as a stack or as a queue. In addition to the push function, you can use: Pop function – removes and returns the last element of an arrayShift function – moves the whole array to the left. The element that is the first element of the array falls off the array and becomes the return value of the functionUnshift function – the opposite of the shift function, places a value at the beginning of an array and moves all the other element to the right.

How Long Should The Perfect List Post Be

How Long Should The Perfect List Post Be List posts, the stuff of magic. The staple food of Buzzfeed and social media and content marketing everywhere. Maybe Martin Luther started a trend when he nailed a list to that door. Readers  love lists. Content marketers love lists. But a Buzzfeed list is one thing, with its catchy photos, quick blurbs, and fast takeaways for the reader. How  about a long-form blog post, on a topic that isnt so fun and full of baby animal photos? Do list posts still perform even if youre not  selling Buzzfeeds brand of emotional adrenaline? 3  Unbelievable Reasons List Posts  Create Traffic Why are list posts so popular? Why is your social media feed either filled with Upworthy-type headlines or numbered lists? 1. List posts stir up curiosity. 50 Laws That Are Ruining Your Life,  5  Signs Youre About To Be Rich, 7 Ways To Lose Weight In Just One Week – I wrote these fake headlines and Im dying to know the answers myself! List post headlines tend to promise big with just a hint of the vague to make you wonder how such a promise could ever be fulfilled. A 2009 study by the University of Athens discovered that readers preferred a slightly ambiguous headline. In talking about the power of lists and this study, The New Yorker writer Maria Konnikova wrote  that people preferred headlines that were both creative and uninformative, like â€Å"THE SMELL OF CORRUPTION, THE SCENT OF TRUTH† or â€Å"FACE TO FAITH.† These were headlines that didnt give away the farm. You had to read the article to make complete sense of them. List posts answer the questions we have and the questions we didnt know we had. They do this with headlines that have just enough ambiguity to pull us in. 2. List posts are finite. As a reader trying to quickly consume content during the day,  a list post looks easy to scan or read. I can zip through the listed items, which are like mini packaged blog posts all on their own. I dont have to commit to the full post if I dont want to. I can just read the listed item (or even their headings) and be fine. The great Umberto Eco even wrote a book about how lists help us comprehend (and manage) the infinite. Lists are a powerful tool. They help us know there is an ending. They help us  remember it easier. We all like simplification. We like to know there is a beginning and an end. The finite is comforting. List posts simplify complex subjects. Readers like that.3. Lists bring order to chaos. There is a lot of information available. It is chaos, if you ever bothered to step back and consider it all. We have too many options, too many choices, and its harder to make a decision. This excessive choice sometimes leaves us unable to process any of it, a frustrated state of being called analysis paralysis. We want to have to think less, when faced with all of this choice, and list posts stand out. They are ordered, and orderly.  According to David Wallechinsky, co-author of the Book of Lists, lists help us in organizing what is otherwise overwhelming. 5  Expert  Secrets That Guarantee  List Post Success How long should your list post be? How can you make your list post as viral as possible? How do you get your list post read? 1.  The magic number for lists posts seems to be 25. According to the (fascinating) research on the RJMetrics blog, a list post of 25 is the number that gets the most hits on Buzzfeed. RJMetrics ran several tests to determine which posts were top in search results and which ones were shared the most. After the averages were taken, the winner was 25 (or thereabouts). 2. Odd or rounded numbers are best. In the same research, RJMetrics learned that numbered lists that ended with a 5 or a 0 received better traffic  (Oops.) This preference for 5 and 0 is backed up by a study done by Robert M. Schindler of Rutgers University. Schindler discovered that we prefer and understand those round numbers most of all. But wait. After studying 300 articles, online instruction specialist  Abreena Tompkins discovered that students learn better when things are grouped in odd numbers. She described how the brain best remembers no more than nine items in a group, with three or five being an optimal amount. According to Tompkins,  odd numbers work better than even numbers. If you’re going to give students a list of six things to do, make it one, two, three, whitespace, four, five, six. The brain responds to whitespace because the brain processes things in groups. Perhaps the takeaway here is that our brain likes simple groupings, and that for small lists, odd numbers are best. Once your list heads past nine, you should start aiming for the round numbers ending in 5 and 0. The best list post has an odd or rounded number in the title.3.  Successful headlines have  emotional words  in them. Merely assembling a list of items isnt going to get it read. You will always  need a compelling headline to sell it. There is still no getting away from the need to use emotional words in your headlines. You still must work on finding the best possible headline, even if you are writing a headline with a list number in it.  So is there a list post blog headline formula that works? Blogger Steve Davis came up with one: (odd number) (adjective) (mistakes/tips/insights/shortcuts) for (achieving/avoiding) (desired outcome/disaster) And then Davis wisely recommends you be cautious in using a formula because formulas are not where greatness comes from.  Good headlines are still good headlines, whether youre using the magic of the list post or not. 4. Use the actual number, not the word. I struggled, when I first started blogging, to abandon the AP Style Guide and use a numeral instead of the word in a headline. It still bothers me quite a bit, but thats the way online content handles numbered headlines now. Why do we write 10 Reasons instead of Ten Reasons? Lazy brains and character counts, thats why. We see and comprehend 10 better than ten. We can save a character or two when we use the number 3 instead of writing three. 5. List item content is inversely related to the number. Hubspot makes a great point  by stating that the best list posts have the right balance between list length and list item explanation. In other words, the longer your list is, the shorter the content under each item should be. A list post of five can get away with several paragraphs, but could you imagine a list post of 100 doing the same? Youd never finish!

Local ownership a dilemma in peace building Essay

Local ownership a dilemma in peace building - Essay Example Local ownership as far as the peace building is concerned refers to the degree of involvement of the domestic actors in formulation and implementation of a political process. In addition to local ownership issues, the Afghanistan state has remained crippled due to rampant corruption, emboldened insurgency and political disunity. The citizens have already grown tired of having international bodies present and demand the return of ownership of policies to their state. However, there is great tension that chaos might reemerge once the international communities hand over the local ownership to the Afghanistan citizens. The paper gives a analyses the dilemma that faces the local ownership especially in the Afghanistan state. The citizens of Afghanistan began opposing the idea of local ownership after making several findings about the local ownership process, according to the Afghanistan case study. The case study shows that local ownership process in Afghanistan is subject to both practical and structural problems. Practical problems identified by the case study include mutual mistrust, dependence on external forces and lack of capacity among others. Structural problems identified include moral superiority and problem of the independence in the state. Primarily, the findings show that the local ownership process in Afghanistan was not feasible because there was mutual mistrust and suspicions between the various actors involved in the peace-making process. This deepened the tension amongst the citizens. They no longer trusted each other and thus making it difficult to have a common political leadership that all the citizens and the actors, both local and international would agree to. Despite the local and international actors having a common goal of intervention, differences arose over what a sound end state capable of sustainable peace appears like and how to attain it. The various actors could not agree due to mistrust. Another factor that made the local

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

ECT - Assignment Example These attacks interrupt a message between two segments of a system by inserting themselves as malicious actors who then impersonates both parties to gain access to information that the two parties are exchanging (Strebe 25). Prevention from MITM attacks include using PKI or public Key Infrastructure, reinforced mutual authentication like secret keys, second channel authentication, and reinforced encryption. Involves ensuring that one’s computer is protected against possibly lethal materials or suspicious software obtained online. Browser security is obtained through simple security tips like deletion of spam, use of password, using firewall, and only opening email attachments deemed safe. DLP is crucial way of protecting susceptible information or data via messaging, endpoints, and web gateways. Effective implementation of DLP involves proactive identification, tracking, and securing sensitive organizational data from all vulnerable points within the organization with little or no effect on employees’ routine and output. I would apply snort in my organization but only on condition that the primary organizational antivirus as a threat or untrusted programs does not perceive it (Strebe 136). The advantage is that all employees will have their computers protected from intrusion on real time basis. Additionally, the administrator can use the traffic analysis and packet logs to trace any intrusion issues on each user’s computer. SYN flood presents attacks that deny services by dominating immense server resources of host thereby preventing the system from being responsive to genuine interchange. Prevention techniques include firewalls and proxies, filtering, SYN cache and cookies, and elevated backlog amongst others. WiMax or Wireless Interoperability for Microwave Access is a convention for communication using set wireless networks with data transfer of up to 49 Mb/s. In data terminals and

'Critically discuss the common law duty of seaworthiness' Essay

'Critically discuss the common law duty of seaworthiness' - Essay Example It is also used as a shipment receipt after the goods have been delivered. This receipt is mandatory for the shipment process and it is required that an authorized individual from all three parties, i.e. carries, shipper, and receiver, signs this document as it serves as an evidence of receipt of goods in the desired condition (Schmitz). This bill is very useful in situations where the good received are damaged while they were in good condition when loaded on to the vessel or when the receiver does not receive the goods at all. The process of carrying goods by the sea can be somewhat complicated with reference to defining the parties involved and their position in the entire process (Low). The contract begins between the shipper and the carrier who takes the responsibility of delivering the good from one port to another. Since the bill of lading receipt is issued by the carrier, the responsible party in case of any discrepancies in the quantity, quality, or condition of the good deli vered would be the carrier. It must be noted that the receiver of good is in more cases not the shipper but the consignee. It can be said that the bill of lading is the prima facie evidence between the shipper and carrier and conclusive evidence between the carrier and the consignee (Andersson). In the entire process of shipment, the ship owner has certain obligations to the shipper and the consignee. These obligations can be divided in to three parts of before commencement of the voyage, during the voyage, and after the voyage has been completed (Baughen). These obligations include providing a vessel which seaworthy, a reasonable dispatch of cargo, protection of cargo, not deviating from the route and delivering the cargo in time, at the right destination, in the desired condition (Baughen). Providing a Seaworthy Vessel The obligation to provide a seaworthy ship for the voyage is understood between all parties even when it is not explicitly agreed upon. There has been much debate r egarding the definition of the term â€Å"seaworthiness†. Though it generally implies that the carrier provides a ship which is physically fit to stand any perils of the sea and complete the journey. Not only is it settled that the ships provided by the carrier will be seaworthy in the general sense but it will also strong and sit enough to make it through any perils that might come across on the voyage along with strong furniture and other equipment in order to receive the cargo (Dockray and Thomas). Though different branches of Maritime law make use of the same definition of the term â€Å"seaworthiness†, this definition is little broad to explain the condition of the ship in this context. Seaworthiness under Carriage of Goods by Sea Even though the definition of seaworthiness has been changed a number of times under common law, Harter Act, and Hague/Hague-Visby rules, the term is still based on the same principles. It has been stated under common that the ship must be fit enough â€Å"to meet and undergo perils of the sea and other incidental risks which of necessity she must be exposed in the course of the voyage† (Kopitoff v. Wilson 380). Moreover, seaworthiness has

The Black Death 1348-1350 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

The Black Death 1348-1350 - Research Paper Example Epidemics similar to the Black Death have followed over the centuries. The Great Plague of 1665 was also akin to the Black Death and led to the deaths of around 15-20 percent of the populationi. The controversies around the Black Death’s causes and effects bring out the historical significance of the pandemic in more than one way. Causes The deaths during the second pandemic (The Black Death) were brought about by an epidemic which entailed appearance of sore swelling of lymph nodes in different parts of the human body (especially armpits and groin). High fever followed this and caused deaths rapidly. The epidemic was supposedly caused by black rat fleas and popularly known as the Bubonic plague. The initial belief about the endogenous nature of the Black Death does not hold true in the modern time. Rather, scientists have detected some external pathogen, a rod shaped bacteria called Yersinia pestis as the responsible factor. A Swiss biologist Alexandre Yersin identified this in 1894, much after the plague had mercilessly cut down the population of Europeii. Yersin also concluded that rodents and insect vectors spread this bacterium amongst human beings. The particular flea which causes this disease is known as xenopsylla cheopisiii. Despite the differences in opinions amongst historians, they agreed on some common points while analyzing the factors behind the Black Death. During the High Middle Ages, Europe was undergoing a persistent population growth along with almost disease-free society. Apart from this, innovations and advancements in technological and agricultural fields, Europe also managed some political stability which brought about a decrease in invasion. This provided a perfect environment for the increase in population from 25 million to 75 million (from 950 to 1250) and a rapid urbanization or development of townsiv. Despite all, a majority of wealth came from the land and its produce. The advancements made in agricultural techniques led to improvements in soil and seed quality and therefore, brought about better cultivation. The Medieval Europe reached the peak of development during 1200-1250. From 1250 onwards some changes took place and environmental or climatic changes were significant among these. According to historians understanding these changes were important to observe the impact on pre-modern society. The movements of glaciers and pollens indicate an improvement in this respect till early thirteenth centuryv. This situation of â€Å"little optimum†vi enabled all round development in political, social and economic arenas. But the environment grew colder gradually and this affected agriculture. Even trade was hampered and hence supply of foodstuffs became scarce. High fertility rates and continuous population growth worsened the situation. The surplus in food production built over the years began to fall. While the environment grew colder and wetter, a severe Malthusian crisis emerged in Europe which w as growing economically poorvii. Food prices also began to increase and conditions of peasants worsened under pressure from the landlords. However the population of peasants began to increase owing to low mortality rates and absence of any killing disease. Crop failures and famines pursued. As food crops became scarce, people began to live more on livestock. Unhealthy eating habits

Evidence-based Policing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Evidence-based Policing - Essay Example 128). It offers a new approach to policing because it encourages the application of best practices from relevant literatures contrary to the traditional way of â€Å"just doing things the way they’ve always done it.† Encouraging law enforcers to look at relevant researches and adapt any best practices that are specified in literatures is one of the advantages of evidence-based policing because it helps in structuring their thinking and approach to various situations. Another advantage of this concept is that it is created to further help reduce the crime rate in the country by adapting new tactics and police responses that are proven effective by previous researches. On the other hand, one essential disadvantage of evidence-based policing is that not all procedures, results, and recommendations from previous researches are always reliable. Most of the time, adapting research procedures and policies may not be sufficient to address some situations, not to mention that not all law enforcers are knowledgeable, or trained, about proper implementation of these strategies. Evidence-based policing was, during the early 1990s, applied to resolving issues on domestic violence (Flynn, 2011). The traditional method of addressing this issue led to increasing cases of domestic violence. However, after using the concept of evidence-based law enforcers eventually realized their possible shortcoming in resolving domestic violence issue. They changed their method of handling these kinds of disputes that later on resulted to a sharp decline in domestic violence cases. Another example is when this concept was used to resolve street-level narcotics issue (Flynn, 2011). The traditional method of seizing the culprits did not apparently suffice to resolve the problem. After applying the concept of evidence-based, most police jurisdictions modified their traditional way of handling this concern. Instead, they created and enforced comprehensive, centered,

The power of media on consumerist behaviour Essay

The power of media on consumerist behaviour - Essay Example In our daily lives, individuals are continually bombarded with advertisements encouraging them to buy things. These advertisements promote specific products and give an impression of a good life and what it means to be happy in the modern times (Crocker and Lehmann 45). Most people find shopping to be an exhilarating leisure activity. There are those that go deeply into debt trying to buy products that are beyond their means. Manufacturers mainly concentrate on profits and this means that they concentrate on capital gain over environmental sustainability. This means that most companies in the contemporary world are more concerned about capital gain as it is more profitable to them. On the other hand, environmental sustainability is seen as an expense to the company (Johan and Anthony 11). Some companies do not even have an environmental sustainability policy in place and instead devote all their time and resources towards capital gain which unlike environmental sustainability has immense gains for the company. Entities that fail to take issues of environmental sustainability into consideration are likely to have a reduction in the number of consumers. There has been an increase in the corporate outsourcing of the manufacture of products to developing countries. These lack appropriate safeguards against worker exploitation which is referred to as sweatshop labor. This helps companies to minimize on their labor expenses and maximize on profits (Johan and Anthony 11). However, it results to a rise in employee exploitation in developing economies since they are forced to do a lot of manual labor with minimal pay and under poor working conditions. Companies that are associated with sweatshop labor are likely to experience a decline in popularity among consumers. The media is a powerful tool that has contributed to the shape of consumerist behavior in society and this can

Evidence-based Policing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Evidence-based Policing - Essay Example 128). It offers a new approach to policing because it encourages the application of best practices from relevant literatures contrary to the traditional way of â€Å"just doing things the way they’ve always done it.† Encouraging law enforcers to look at relevant researches and adapt any best practices that are specified in literatures is one of the advantages of evidence-based policing because it helps in structuring their thinking and approach to various situations. Another advantage of this concept is that it is created to further help reduce the crime rate in the country by adapting new tactics and police responses that are proven effective by previous researches. On the other hand, one essential disadvantage of evidence-based policing is that not all procedures, results, and recommendations from previous researches are always reliable. Most of the time, adapting research procedures and policies may not be sufficient to address some situations, not to mention that not all law enforcers are knowledgeable, or trained, about proper implementation of these strategies. Evidence-based policing was, during the early 1990s, applied to resolving issues on domestic violence (Flynn, 2011). The traditional method of addressing this issue led to increasing cases of domestic violence. However, after using the concept of evidence-based law enforcers eventually realized their possible shortcoming in resolving domestic violence issue. They changed their method of handling these kinds of disputes that later on resulted to a sharp decline in domestic violence cases. Another example is when this concept was used to resolve street-level narcotics issue (Flynn, 2011). The traditional method of seizing the culprits did not apparently suffice to resolve the problem. After applying the concept of evidence-based, most police jurisdictions modified their traditional way of handling this concern. Instead, they created and enforced comprehensive, centered,

The Rise of the Novel in the Eighteenth Century Essay Example for Free

The Rise of the Novel in the Eighteenth Century Essay The new form, i.e the novel is about certain realistic people living in a certain society and not about fanciful characters, supermen or monsters. On the contrary, the characters are ‘individualized’: which means that every individual, person or character ( ordinary or extraordinary) is independent from other individuals. In the past, individuals or characters in the prose works never stood for themselves: they stood for certain abstracts or qualities :Mr. Greedy, Mr. Angry, Mrs. Domineering, ..etc. With the rise of this literary form, individuals are drawn realistically as independent, regardless of their social status or personal capacity. The characters are analyzed in detail, and shown as complex individuals, affected by social pressures. b) The rise of the middle class: The new middle class in England ( consisting of merchants, lawyers, businessmen, doctors,..etc.) were very educated, but they were unlike the upper classes who were taught in Greek and Latin. The middle-class people could read in English, so they among the readers of then novels at that time. c) Educated women: Women became educated at that time , and so they were a crucial factor in producing a readership for fiction. They benefited from the rise of the novel because they were not educated in Greek and Latin but in history, English grammar, geography,..etc. d) Better education for the middle classes coincidedwith a period of great leisure for women in the middle and upper classes. This left a vacuum in their lives which demanded to be filled. Men, also, demanded imaginative works because they looked for other interests beyond their jobs. Thus, the novel opened new real worlds. e) The increase and spread of newspapers during the eighteenth century is evidence of this interest. Many periodicals such as The Spectator and The Tattler were popular. Addison and Steele, the editors of those periodicals created characters such as Sir Roger de Coverley-an individualized character with essay-like short stories. f) Thirst for travel books characterized by realistic incidents and realistic characters during a period where the British Empire was expanding show the people’s need to learn about other people from other cultures and other lands with different traditions and manners..Many of the eighteenth-century novels were written in the form of travel books such as Robinson Crusoe and Gulliver’s Travels to satisfy this thirst. g) The thirst of the reading public to learn about the manners, and circumstances of other classes and localities. Richardson’s Pamela is a plan to write a series of letters which provide examples of the correct way of behaving in different social situations. h) The novelists, too, felt it was their duty not just to inform bu t also to teach moral lessons. This shows the moral usefulness of the novel. Thus while the novelists introduce their readers to new social worlds, and show the manners of others, they provide the best moral way for their readers to behave. This triple aim- to reveal, to educate, and to encourage moral behavior was an important feature of the eighteenth-century novel. i) As a consequence, the novels were detailed , long, and therefore expensive which means that the rich only could buy them. But by the middle of the eighteenth century, there appeared circulating libraries. So, people could borrow novels free of charge. That was a very important development. j) The rise of modern industrial capitalism, also, emphasized the idea of individualism. Because of industrial capitalism, people started to believe that the individual could choose and decide his future because it taught people how to earn and keep money. Thus, because of those social factors, novelists started to study the individual. In the past, characters were seen as general concepts, without emphasis on their personalities. With the rise of modern industrial capitalism and individualism, the social attitude changed. Novelists started to study the individual’s ehavior, appearance , feelings and materialistic attitude. They chose characters from the real society around them, and who were individualized to the extent that most of them named their novels after the main characters. Some of the themes to be discussed The Moral Significance in Robinson Crusoe (Points to be considered about the theme of moral and spiritual re-awakening) 1- In his novel, Robinson Crusoe, Defoe emphasizes the moral element and â€Å"the wisdom of Providence in our life.† 2- Although R. Crusoe blamed his fate and bad luck at the beginning of his adventures, he would gradually believe that his misfortune was â€Å"a judgment of Heaven†, or a punishment of God because he disobeyed his father, and went to sea ignoring his advice. 3- When his ship was first overtaken by a strong storm, Crusoe prayed to God that if He spared his life, he would directly go home. However, when the sea became calm again, he forgot his vows. 4- The ship was overtaken once again by another storm, and the captain told him that it was â€Å"the hand of Providence† punishing Crusoe for his disobedience and breaking his vows to God. 5- The captain warned him that henceforth he would meet with â€Å"disasters and disappointments† if he did not go back to his father. What the captain said proved to be true. 6- On his next voyage to The Canary Islands, Crusoe was kidnapped by pirates and became a miserable slave for two years. 7- On his next voyage to Africa, â€Å"the Hand of God† punished him again. A strong storm struck the ship, and all the other seamen were drowned except Crusoe who found himself in a deserted island. 8- It was not until several horrible incidents took place in the island ( the earthquake, the hurricane, his illness, and the terrible dream), that Crusoe realized for the first time his ‘wrongdoings’, that he lived in wickedness â€Å"without desire of good or consciousness of evil.† 9- From now on, Crusoe starts to re-evaluate his life, to pray to God sincerely, and to reappraise his duty to God. Thus, after much soul-searching, he reaches self-discovery and spiritual re-awakening. 10- The novel ends with Crusoe being a mature individual, in full control of his wealth, using it not for pleasure but to help his old friends and relatives. Industrial Capitalism, Individualism and the Rise of the Novel 1-The rise of the novel during the eighteenth century is greatly associated with the rise of individualism at that time. 2- Individualism stressed the fact that every individual was independent from other individuals, and as a direct result of industrial capitalism, it emphasized that the individual had to choose and decide his future. Modern industrial capitalism, also, taught people how to earn money ,and how increase it. Thus it brought emphasis on the individual and his money. 3- In the past, characters in the romances stood for certain qualities(e.g. Mr. Greedy, Mr. Angry,†¦etc.) and not for themselves. 4-In the eighteenth -century novel, individual characters are drawn as independent regardless of their social status or personal capacity. They are portrayed as complex characters, affected by social pressures. 5-Eighteenth –century novelists such as S. Richardson, H. Fielding, and D. Defoe studied the individual’s attitudes, feelings, and motivations. Defoe emphasized individualism by writing a novel that has one central character with independent individual characteristics. Likewise, Richardson and Fielding concentrated on the individual and named their novels after their main characters. 6-The modern industrial capitalism made people pay great attention to money: how to gain it and how to keep it. In the earlier prose fiction, the main character had moral ideas, and thought only of virtues and good deeds. The eighteenth-century writers became more realistic and dealt with the only interest of the individual at their time, i.e. money. All Defoe’s characters pursue money, and they pursue it very methodically according to the loss and profit of book-keeping. Thus Robinson Crusoe leaves his father’s house and the secure life of the middle class to seek more money. This materialistic point of view began to have a tremendous influence to the extent that idealistic moral values were no longer the core of stories, but the individual and his struggle to gain money. Points to be stressed about The Character of Robinson Crusoe 1. Robinson Crusoe is the central round character who learns the moral lesson which Defoe is trying to convey to his readers. 2. From the beginning, Defoe presents him as an individual endowed with a capability for moral development because of his natural possession of moral sensitivity. 3. As events open, he appears as lacking a certain degree of moral insight and self knowledge, but gradually he gains moral and spiritual re-awakening and self discovery. 4. This gradual change can be traced in three stages in his life: a) When the novel opens, Crusoe leaves home in disobedience of his father and without asking for God’s blessings in search for more wealth, neglecting his father’s advice concerning the advantages of the middle class. Crusoe ,then, goes through four adventures in the sea during which he experiences many misfortunes, and has very narrow escapes from death. At this stage, Crusoe’s character is shown as discontented, rash, romantic ,lacking reason and any sense of moral duty towards God and father. Despite the dangers he faces, he never realizes the moral lesson or that these dangers are a punishment of God for his wrongdoings. He blames his bad luck, fate, or his companions. b) The second stage in Crusoe’s moral and spiritual development starts with his journey to the coast of Guinea which ends up in his shipwreck, the death of all his fellow sailors and his own survival after he swims to a remote deserted island. During this stage, Crusoe suffers, first, physically to provide for his food, shelter, and security. As he struggles to do this, he shows his great abilities of a resourceful, energetic, and inventive individual, although he has never had any knowledge of mechanics or mathematics. At the same time, however, he has many moral reflections which show his mental stress. c) The final stage of this process of gradual moral and spiritual re-awakening culminates in the episode his illness and dream after the earthquake. For the first time, Crusoe recognizes that he is the doer of all his misfortunes, and realizes that he is responsible of all his wrongdoings for has neither asked God for help when he is in danger, nor thanked Him when he is rescued. With this admission of guilt, Crusoe moves quickly in the road of moral and spiritual recovery. Thus he sincerely prays to God for help for the first time. After that, he feels not only physical but also spiritual ease and comfort. As he triumphs over the cannibals, saves Friday and the captain of the ship and his crew, and finally saves himself, he reaches complete satisfaction 5. Thus Crusoe is portrayed as a complex round character who reaches his moral and spiritual growth, after many experiences, .

The Reign Of Charlemagne

The Reign Of Charlemagne Why Was The Reign Of Charlemagne So Important In The Development Of The Early Medieval Monarchy? Charlemagne or Charles the Great was born on the 2 April 748 AD, the son of Pippin; the King of the Franks. At the time of his accession, the Frankish kingdom was already the most important power in Europe. However, that power and prestige was increased greatly by Charlemagne during his reign, in which he came to rule the vast majority of Western Europe. Charlemagnes power and prestige culminated on Christmas Day 800, when he was crowned Imperial Emperor by Pope Leo III. This act was incredibly significant as it founded the empire that would be known as the Holy Roman Empire, an empire that lasted for over a thousand years. As a result of the immense power Charlemagne had, he has been often been referred to as the ‘father of Europe. Ultimately, Charlemagne was the founding father of the French and German monarchies, a key player in the spread of Christianity throughout Western Europe, and ruled over an empire, the likes of which had not been seen since the Roman era. Charlemagne instigated various administrative reforms throughout his empire that were key in the development of the early medieval monarchy. One of Charlemagnes foremost concerns was maintaining unity within his empire. In 802, two years after his imperial coronation, Charlemagne required the entire population of the realm to swear an oath of loyalty; all people were expected to keep Gods commandments, to respect all the emperors possessions, to acknowledge his protection over the churches and the weak, especially widows and orphans, and finally to obey imperial commands. He Charlemagnes demands of loyalty were a way of exerting a manner of control and authority over a vast empire. Furthermore, the same year as Charlemagne introduced the oath of loyalty, he also set about bringing in new legislative reforms, which are seen as being key in the development of the early medieval monarchy. For the first time in history a king wrote down the laws of his kingdom. Charlemagne recorded the laws of the Frankish, Frisian, Saxon and Thuringian people. He also corrected the ‘defective laws of his people, rewriting and removing laws he deemed to be vicious and useless, and adding to them where it was needed. Certainly this was a key reform, as it enabled law to have a more central authority, and aided the spread of the knowledge of law within the empire, fundamentally, what was right and wrong. To a certain extent, he allowed for differences on law, within the provinces of his empire. However, Frankish law certainly had its influence throughout the region. Furthermore Charlemagne required that all leading members of society within each province hear their laws read al oud in their own language. Thus, aiding the implementation of law enforcement throughout the Frankish empire. Charlemagne sought a more civilised empire, founded on Christian values, and one of his key concerns was not only lowering rates of crime but also a move away from the more personalised ‘taking the law into their own hands way of dealing with criminals that had existed for hundreds of years, to a more structured system of law enforcement and criminal punishment. Charlemagne introduced legal cases and a judicial system within each district that consisted of a count passing judgement and delivering sentences. This movement was a key component of the development of early medieval monarchy, as both the French and German monarchies, after the collapse of the Frankish empire, followed this more structured judicial system, and it could be argued that Charlemagne founded the beginnings of a judicial system, the likes of which are in existence in western civilisation today. Furthermore; Charlemagne established the office of the so called reprimandary witnesses who were required to bring crimes to the attention of the court if the victims did not do so themselves Thus, Charlemagne took it upon himself to enforce justice within his empire, and by establishing these offices his aim was to see the criminal members of society reap the rewards of their actions, even if victims themselves did not desire to carry the criminals actions forwards. However, such matters are not as black and white as Charlemagne imagined them to be, and it is debatable as to what extent Charlemagne was able to fulfil his goal. Nonetheless Charlemagnes judiciary reforms were key in the development of early medieval monarchy as many monarchs sought inspiration from Charlemagnes founding judicial system basis, and they also encouraged a more civilised society in the early medieval ages. Charlemagne certainly sought to improve the administration of the empire as a whole, reforming various aspects of administration. One of his reforms related to his persistent aim of exerting a greater level of control over his empire. He established middle authorities in each region, to oversee local officials. Thus, in a sense Charlemagne inaugurated a form of local government. However, he amended this system over the years, he grew distrustful of those he had sent to oversee, as he believed them to be open to bribery. Hence, he instead chose archbishops, dukes, and abbots; generally members of high nobility, whom he did not believe to be open to bribery. It can be said that a key theme of Charlemagnes reign was justice. Charlemagne wanted it not only for himself but also for every loyal subject of his empire, as exhibited through his judiciary reforms and distaste for subjects whom used their positions for their own selfish benefits. In Einhards Vita Karoli Magni or Life of Charlemagne, Einhard states how Charlemagne also made reforms relating to the language of the Franks; ‘He began a grammar of his native language and the history of his people; ‘he had the old rude songs that celebrate the deeds and wars of the ancient kings written out for transmission to posterity. Thus Charlemagne was keen to preserve the history of the ancient kings. Furthermore; Charlemagne had an important role in determining the immediate economic future of Europe. He got rid of the gold currency and implemented a new silver currency. Additionally, Charlemagne standardised currency throughout most of Europe, abolishing many of the local currencies in existence. This monetary standard remained the basis for the currency for a long time. Hence, Charlemagne instigated economic reforms that were key to the development of the early medieval monarchy as he standardised currency throughout Europe, and implemented changes that remained in place in Europe for a very long time. The Carolingian renaissance is also believed to be a requisite to the development of the early medieval monarchy. Similar to the renaissance that occurred in the early modern period, it was characterised by the re discovery of ancient roman works, the flourishing of art and literature. Charlemagne was a very keen advocate of education, even returning to education himself, although he never learnt to write. He did however study grammar, logic and astronomy. Furthermore, some of the earliest manuscripts still in survival today are from the Carolingian era.Charlemagne also introduced the use of the classical Latin language as the language of scholarly study ‘Thus, the West saw the development of a pure language, which was used almost exclusively by the learned, and from which the romance languages grew increasingly distinct Hence, he increased the availability of education within his realm, increasing monastic schools. Therefore, Charlemagnes keenness for education was important t o the development of the early medieval monarchy as it lead to a period of greater emphasis on education, a pattern that following monarchs were keen to emulate, and ultimately led to a greater number of educated persons within western civilisation. Charlemagnes reforms influenced nearly every corner of society, including the Church. Charlemagne was an extremely pious man and sought to be the ideal embodiment of both a Christian man and King. Charlemagne asked the Pope to send him texts on church law. This Dionysio-Hadriana was used enthusiastically in the Frankish kingdom. By doing this Charlemagne encouraged future monarchs to take a more scholarly than blind approach to the Church. Charlemagne was also very interested in Church music and encouraged the spread of proper church liturgies throughout his empire, taking a personal interest in papal music, and banning melodies such as those found in Milan. Charlemagne also introduced changes to the organisation of the military service. Obligation to military service of the empire was based upon personal wealth and Charlemagne instigated reforms that would make it fair for those obliged to join the military, based on the individuals wealth. Charlemagne ordered that every tenant with three to five so-called hides (homesteads), as well as the holders of fiefs, were required to serve against the enemy. Many monarchs followed these reforms in the early medieval period. In conclusion, Charlemagne was certainly a founding father of Europe. He strove to implement justice in his empire and he instigated reforms in almost every important aspect of early medieval society. Charlemagnes reign was a period of change for Western Civilisation. However, it is foolish to assume that all these reforms were greatly successful, as not all were, for example Charlemagnes judicial reforms. However, early medieval monarchs followed Charlemagnes reforms, as they were eager to reach the level of power and prestige, which Charlemagne had possessed, Charlemagnes reign saw the emergence of Western civilisation, a civilisation that moved away in terms of religion, currency and thought from the East. Furthermore, Charlemagne made it easier for other early medieval monarchs to govern and handle their kingdoms, for example his judicial reforms made law enforcement an easier task for future monarchs, as he had recorded laws in a written form and implemented a sort of court syst em throughout his empire. Ultimately Charlemagnes reign was not only very important in the development of early medieval monarchy, but also important in the development and advancement of western civilisation. His reign has no doubt affected the world in which we live today. Bibliography Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003) Einhard, The Life of Charlemagne, translated by Samuel Epes Turner, (New York, 1880) ‘Charlemagne, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlemagne Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003) p. 19 Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003) p. 99 Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003) p.100 Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003) p.105 Einhard, The Life of Charlemagne, translated by Samuel Epes Turner, (New York, 1880) p.11 Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003 p.106 Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003 p.106 Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003 p.108 Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003 p.108 Einhard, The Life of Charlemagne, translated by Samuel Epes Turner, (New York, 1880) p.11 Einhard, The Life of Charlemagne, translated by Samuel Epes Turner, (New York, 1880) p.11 ‘Charlemagne, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlemagne [accessed 31 August 2009] Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003 p. 112 ‘Charlemagne, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlemagne [accessed 31 August 2009] Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003 p.116 Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003 p.115 Matthias Becher, Charlemagne (London 2nd Ed, 2003 p.113