That vs. Which

That vs. Which That vs. Which That vs. Which By Ali Hale One of our readers, Justin, recently wrote to ask: When proofreading a peers article on the solar system, I realized that she, and I, are unsure of the proper use of that and which in a sentence. Below is [SIC] two examples of the same sentence, one using that and the other which. To our knowledge, it is the only body in the solar system which currently sustains life, although several other bodies are under investigation. To our knowledge, it is the only body in the solar system that currently sustains life, although several other bodies are under investigation. Which is the correct sentence, and what is the general rule of thumb? Justin, Ill give you the answer now, rather than making you read to the end of the whole article: the second version of that sentence, using that is correct. When To Use That and When To Use Which Before I come on to the that/which rule, just a reminder that â€Å"who† should always be used when referring to people. The boy who threw the ball. This is the woman who always wears a black shawl. When referring to objects, though, the rule for using â€Å"that† and â€Å"which† correctly is simple: THAT should be used to introduce a restrictive clause. WHICH should be used to introduce a non-restrictive or parenthetical clause. If that leaves you more confused than when you began this article, read on A restrictive clause is one which is essential to the meaning of a sentence – if it’s removed, the meaning of the sentence will change. For example: Chairs that don’t have cushions are uncomfortable to sit on. Card games that involve betting money should not be played in school. To our knowledge, it is the only body in the solar system that currently sustains life A non-restrictive clause can be left out without changing the meaning of a sentence. Non-restrictive clauses are either in brackets or have a comma before and after them (or only before them if they come at the end of a sentence): Chairs, which are found in many places of work, are often uncomfortable to sit on. I sat on an uncomfortable chair, which was in my office. Why You Need to Use That or Which Correctly Changing that to which or vice versa can completely change the meaning of a sentence. Consider the following examples: My car that is blue goes very fast. My car, which is blue, goes very fast. The first sentence uses that – suggesting I own more than one car (and even implying my other cars might not be so fast). This is what happens if we leave out the clause and write: My car that is blue goes very fast. My car goes very fast. The sentence’s meaning has changed: the reader does not know which one of my cars goes very fast. However, the sentence using which simply informs the reader that my car is blue. We can take the clause out without losing any essential information: My car, which is blue, goes very fast. My car goes very fast. That and Which in Common Usage It is common today for which to be used with both non-restrictive and restrictive clauses, especially in informal contexts: Who ate the cake that I bought this morning? Who ate the cake which I bought this morning? The clause â€Å"that I bought this morning† is essential to the meaning – I’m not asking about a cake which I bought yesterday, or this afternoon. Therefore, the first example using â€Å"that† is the correct one, but many people would not consider the second ungrammatical. It is, however, incorrect even in informal contexts to use that for a non-restrictive or parenthical clause. For example, these sentences would be considered incorrect: This computer, that I have never liked, is very slow. The blue desk, that my father gave me. An easy way to watch out for these is to look for instances where you have a comma followed by the word that. If Id know this years ago, it would have saved me a lot of frustration with Microsoft Word! Even though the usage of which has been relaxed to some extent, it is still better to keep your writing as clear as possible by using which for only non-restrictive clauses, and that for restrictive ones. So, to return to Justins example: To our knowledge, it is the only body in the solar system which currently sustains life, although several other bodies are under investigation. To our knowledge, it is the only body in the solar system that currently sustains life, although several other bodies are under investigation. The second sentence, using that is correct, but many people would consider the first sentence permissible too. In a formal context such as a scientific paper, it is better to use that for total clarity. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:50 Slang Terms for MoneyDo you "orient" yourself, or "orientate" yourself?Neither... or?

Free Essays on Pre-Interview Preparations

What preparation needs to be done before the interview? For starters, pre-interview preparations should actually begin with determining the type of job opening available within the company. In this scenario, the job opening is one of sales personnel. Hence, in this example, the Human Resource Manager of ABC Pharmaceutical would have conferred with the head of the department in which the position is open, i.e. the Sales Manager. Together, they would have firstly, discussed the job qualifications and the criteria for the â€Å"ideal† candidate, and secondly, made sure the job description accurately reflected the current job opening. Once that is accomplished, the next few steps are crucial in determining the success and effectiveness of the ABC Pharmaceutical interview. This is also, where the main bulk of time is spent preparing and planning. There are several tasks the three interviewers can do beforehand to improve their chances of success. The first is to follow a systematic approach starting with defining the objectives of the interview. With that in mind, the very first questions they should ask themselves before conducting the interview are â€Å"Why am I conducting this interview?† and â€Å"What do I want to achieve from it?† A good second task is to, by reading all relevant applications and have available all necessary documentation including the job description and the personnel specifications. This means, to consult the five application forms, CVs, references, letter of applications, job specifications, and test results. By reviewing the five candidates’ application forms and/or resumes, the three interviewers of ABC can create, in their minds, a more complete picture of the applicants in terms of what is represented on the resumes and applications, and what the job requires. From example, by doing research before the interview, the interviewers will then know enough about their candidates to ask intelligent... Free Essays on Pre-Interview Preparations Free Essays on Pre-Interview Preparations What preparation needs to be done before the interview? For starters, pre-interview preparations should actually begin with determining the type of job opening available within the company. In this scenario, the job opening is one of sales personnel. Hence, in this example, the Human Resource Manager of ABC Pharmaceutical would have conferred with the head of the department in which the position is open, i.e. the Sales Manager. Together, they would have firstly, discussed the job qualifications and the criteria for the â€Å"ideal† candidate, and secondly, made sure the job description accurately reflected the current job opening. Once that is accomplished, the next few steps are crucial in determining the success and effectiveness of the ABC Pharmaceutical interview. This is also, where the main bulk of time is spent preparing and planning. There are several tasks the three interviewers can do beforehand to improve their chances of success. The first is to follow a systematic approach starting with defining the objectives of the interview. With that in mind, the very first questions they should ask themselves before conducting the interview are â€Å"Why am I conducting this interview?† and â€Å"What do I want to achieve from it?† A good second task is to, by reading all relevant applications and have available all necessary documentation including the job description and the personnel specifications. This means, to consult the five application forms, CVs, references, letter of applications, job specifications, and test results. By reviewing the five candidates’ application forms and/or resumes, the three interviewers of ABC can create, in their minds, a more complete picture of the applicants in terms of what is represented on the resumes and applications, and what the job requires. From example, by doing research before the interview, the interviewers will then know enough about their candidates to ask intelligent...

CLOUD COMPUTING Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

CLOUD COMPUTING - Research Paper Example SQL injection or cross site scripting vulnerabilities have a high probability, as Google docs are one of the victims of them (Singh & Sharma, 2011). Moreover, threat of phishing is also always available, as automated emails and messages on cloud based applications can steal passwords, personal credentials and other personal information. Organization’s authentication and authorization policy do not addresses cloud security issues. In spite of having several security controls integrated within the cloud based applications, only a password is required to breach into the cloud based application. One of the recent security breaches of exploiting secure passwords that is called as Twitter gate (Singh & Sharma, 2011). Moreover, virtual machines on a single physical machine are shared with multiple instances. Every instance is connected to the Internet or virtual tunnels. This concludes, if a single machine is compromised, all the instances available in that machine are also compromis ed. In addition, risk of data corruption or storage that may not limited to memory storage, random access memory storage is also in the scope of cloud computing vulnerabilities (Singh & Sharma, 2011). 2 Cloud Computing Storage Issues The storage of cloud computing requires a lot of space, in fact humongous data centers where data is collected and managed. These data centers pose several threats and security risk that may impact these data storage machines. The threat may be from a professional hacker and also in the form of the cloud provider itself, if data is not adequately dealt with. A minor security incident or misconfiguration can lead to a system failure or unavailability. (OGIGAU-NEAMTIU, 2012) Moreover, another security breach occurred in 2009, password of an employee working on Twitter was hacked that resulted in breaching the email security questions page that was located in the Google apps account (Talbot 2010). In relation to that, one more incident occurred when data w as erased from one million T-mobile smart phones due to a server failure that was managing the data of these smart phones (Talbot 2010).As Peter Mell, who is a team lead of cloud security team at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) says, public cloud computing models are more vulnerable to threats, as every customer has access to a broad range of services and levels. Therefore, if any one of the services is breached, they gain access to all the data. As cloud-computing usage is increasing with its connection to the public through an Internet, new opportunities also originate for hackers, cyber terrorists, viruses and worms. These threats will increase and focus on cloud computing enables services and applications for stealing classified data, denial of service attacks on data centers etc. ‘Google apps’ is the major player in the market for providing ‘SaaS’, it was attacked and hacked. The report from cyber forensics indicated that the attacks were originated from China (Bisong & Rahman, 2011). The security and privacy in cloud computing are associated with data storage and data protection. Moreover, monitoring the utilization of resources available on the cloud by the service providers is also included. In order to secure the data in the cloud, it can be stored internally in the organization’s premises. (Talbot, 2012) Moreover, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) in the US and Data Protection directives along with the EU are only two compliances from many other compliance concerns

Knowledge Management in Healthcare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Knowledge Management in Healthcare - Essay Example This paper would expound on the need for and how Knowledge Management is adopted in healthcare, what problems does it address, what are the considerations to maximize its total benefits, what factors may hinder it from being an effective tool in effecting development in the field of healthcare and what are the importance of transferring the explicit knowledge.. "Healthcare organizations are facing many challenges in the 21st Century due to changes taking place in global healthcare systems. Spiraling costs, financial constraints, increased emphasis on accountability and transparency, changes in education, growing complexities of biomedical research, new partnerships in healthcare and great advances in IT suggest that a predominant paradigm shift is occurring. This shift is necessitating a focus on interaction, collaboration and increased sharing of information and knowledge which is in turn leading healthcare organizations to embrace the techniques of Knowledge Management in order to create and sustain optimal healthcare." (Sharma et al., 2005) Indeed healthcare plays by the rules of the economy and the society too, it lends itself vulnerable to the limitations of the body administering it. As acquiring information does not come without a cost, readily available yet reliable information are sought for, thus the role of Knowledge Management to regulate and pass on information. (Tandon, Angrish, Anand, 2006) Knowledge Management, though having relative definitions sums up the process of creating, controlling, channeling and transferring knowledge assets to address competitive advantage and optimal performance. (Morgan, Doyle, Albers, 2005) In healthcare, most especially in nursing care, knowledge continuity is posed as an organizational challenge. In the US, there is a high turnover rate among hospital staff-already amounting to 20% (Morgan et al., 2005). This dynamics breaks the links of transferring knowledge from old to new employees leading to poor acquisition or transfer of valuable knowledge assets. In basic terms, knowledge is shared through a "traditional scholastic medical education" through "textbook based" learning, and acquiring lessons through experience and mentorship. Although this, in the beginning, could let the workers harness best business practices, it could also mean lack of diversification in knowledge unless branching out to different hospital units is initiated. "There are a number of organizational benefits to KCM [Knowledge Continuity Management] such as decreasing job turnover costs, increasing organizational effectiveness, improving training for new employees, facilitation of organizational learning, speeding the maximal productivity of new employees, and improving the decision making and decreasing the process errors of new employees." (Morgan et al., 2

Basket Exercise Essay Example for Free

Basket Exercise Essay Georgina Ryan, HR Director SUBJECT: Speaking engagement next week Ms. Williams, Mr. Armstrong has been transferred to a new location, earlier than expected. My apologies, however, if you would allow me to fill in for Mr. Armstrong, I would be honored to address the Business Club It is common for a large number of calls to come in all at once. When this happens, the customer relations–contact employee is supposed to take the customer’s phone number and get back to him or her within an hour. We’ve found in the past that this is a reasonable target since, after a big rush of calls, things usually settle down for a while. But when we check up on the contact employees, we find that they get back to the customer within an hour only about one-third of the time. Sometimes they don’t get back to the customer until the next day! I sent a memo to all contact employees about a month ago reminding them of the importance of prompt responses on their parts, but it did very little good. We need a training program from your department to improve this critical performance area. Can we get together early next week? MEMO TO: Ralph Herzberg, Manager of Customer Relations From: Georgina Ryan, HR Director. New Training Program Ralph, we will definitely have to address this situation. Let me get with my training program administrator and work out a training session/schedule for your department. I will get back with you on a date and time for next week.

Education - What is it Really Worth? Essay -- Educate Education Essays

Education - What is it Really Worth? Carl Jung believed that, One looks back with appreciation to the brilliant teachers, but with gratitude to those who touched our human feelings. The curriculum is so much necessary raw material, but warmth is a vital element for the growing plant and for the soul of the child (Fitzhenry 135). Education is important to succeed in life, but it needs to come along with compassion and learning on a personal level rather than in an autocratic atmosphere. Everyone has different views of education, but what they all have in common is how necessary it is when one wants to become a self-actualized individual. Education also plays an important role in getting a job in todays world and leading a self fulfilled life. Authors such as Bell hooks, Mike Rose, Jon Spayde, and Adrienne Rich all see education through the eyes of the excluded and emphasize the importance of education and what its really worth. I believe that education helps us achieve what we want to do but its actually up to each and every one of us to carry through. Every one of us could be educated but it doesnt necessarily mean that we learned anything to help us in the real world. We also need to self educate ourselves and not always rely on the classroom. We could do this by reading newspapers, magazines or even watching the news to expand ones awareness of the worlds issues. We need to be able to think for ourselves and make our own decisions rather than relying on what we have been taught in school. I am not saying that we should disregard what we have been taught, we just need to be able to relate to what we have been taugh t and make our own decisions. Education is especially valued in North America, it is very hard to truly succe... ...homework and sitting in class, it also about learning to work with others and making choices about the future. Works cited Fitzhenry, Robert I., ed. The Harper Book of Quotations, Third Edition. NY: HarperPerennial, 1993, 135. Hooks, Bell. Keeping Close to Home: Class and Education. The Presence of Others. eds. Andrea A. Lunsford and John J. Ruszkiewicz, NY: Bedford/ St.Martins, 2000, 93-103. Rich, Adrienne. What Does a Woman Need to Know? The Presence of Others. eds. Andrea A. Lunsford and John J. Ruszkiewicz, NY: Bedford/ St.Martins, 2000, 65-71. Rose, Mike. Life on the Boundary. The Presence of Others. eds. Andrea A. Lunsford and John J. Ruszkiewicz, NY: Bedford/ St.Martins, 2000, 105-118. Spayde, Jon. Learning in the Key of Life. The Presence of Others. eds. Andrea A. Lunsford and John J. Ruszkiewicz, NY: Bedford/ St.Martins, 2000, 58-63.

Applying Leadership Theories Essay

According to Wikipedia, leadership has been described as â€Å"a process of social influence or persuasion by which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task†. Studies of leadership have produced theories involving traits, situational interaction, function, behavior, power, vision, values, charisma, and intelligence, among others. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leadership). There are various leadership theories that have been created that encompass how a leader relates to others within and outside of the educational organization. There a six that were specifically proposed by Martin, Wright, and Danzig (2003) that are appropriate when describing educational leaders. They are Directive, Participative, Collaborative, Coaching, Affiliative, and Laissez-Faire. A leader can possess all of these styles depending on the current situation. For example, a leader can use a Directive Approach when dealing with low assessment scores especially when being pressured from his or her superiors, when deadlines are not being met, or when a teacher or staff has neglected their duties. But also display a Participative or Collaborative style by taking input from others. The leadership style that is displayed can have a negative and positive influence on the school community and the organization. It is very important to understand the styles indivially and in detail to know which ones are more and less effective in your environment. The school where I currently work just received a new principal, but prior to her there was Principal R, who had inherited her position as the leader because her entire career was built at the school. She started off her teaching career there, three years later was advanced to Reading Coach, and then was assigned as Vice Principal. The Superintendent, formal principal, and others felt that she was the best fit for the job because of her years spent there and her experience as Vice Principal. Prior to her receiving the role of prinicpal, we were excelling in reading, writing, and mathematics. The principal prior to Principal R had moved us from a failing grade of an â€Å"F† to an excelling grade of an â€Å"A†. Principal R indeed knew the ends and outs of the school because she was trained and mentored by our previous principal, Principal P. Not knowing that once the school was completely turned over to Principal R, we will be on a descending trip to failure. Principal R took a Directive approach, very similar to the Autocratic Leadership Style. By her having experience, she insisted on doing it all herself even though she had an administration team which consisted of a vice principal, reading and math coach, and an ESE liaison. She felt that the ultimate decision in any situation should be hers regardless of whom or what it affected. Research states, that Autocratic Leaders often maintain authority by force, intimidations, threats, rewards, punishment, or position (http://ctb.ku.edu/en/tablecontents/sub_section_main_1122.aspx). If you challenged Principal R in any way, regardless of how simple or how large the issue may have been your evaluation would be affected. Principal R used this role for her own personal gains. Principal R had built many personal relationships prior to her taking on the leadership role, those relationships were soon affected when she became principal. Favoritism became a common word around the school. Things that we thought we would never get away with, was done often by the people in Principal R’s circle. This leadership style brought a negative image to the school. The morale went down and teacher’s lost their drive for teaching. Our school grade went from an â€Å"A† to a â€Å"C†, then to a â€Å"B† to an â€Å"F†. Principal R was transferred to another school where we hope her style would change for the benefit of the vision of the school. While under the leader of Principal R, we also had Vice Principal E, who was a very sweet person with more than 16 years of experience in the education field. Our school was labeled for having struggling readers which put more accountability upon the teachers. Regardless of what issues the st udents had years prior or even home structure that affected their abilities to read, we were held accountable for them if they were below average or even failing. Vice Principal E shared many strategies with us that were very beneficial to our students. Her education specialty was ESE and autism; we were able to use those same strategies to assist our students. Vice Principal E displayed a Coaching Leadership style also very similar to an Instructional Leadership style. Her main concern was teaching and learning and assist us in relaying information in a way that the students comprehended. Instructional leadership focuses on modeling, monitoring, professional dialogue and discussion (Bush, 2002). She mentored us on what routes we should use to assist our students. She increased our confidence and also our test scores. When the results came in and we seen how much gains our grade level had shown, Vice Principal E took no credit, even though it was all because of her. She remained in the mentor role and assisted us in anything we may have needed. Vice Principal E was surplused to another school due to budget issues and was missed dearly when she departed. We are currently under the leadership of Principal K, which is the true reason why I am pursing my master’s degree. Principal K is a new principal, but has 12 years experience as a vice principal in secondary education. Principal K is a true leader that models and motivates others to accomplish goals, while at the same time encouraging others to work toward their own professional goals. Principal K, came ready to work but with little knowledge of what direction to start. Principal K created groups of those teachers and staff, whom prior had experience at the school to assist her with understanding the vision and desegregating the data. Once Principal K understood the vision and the direction of where the school should be headed, she quickly took the Collaborative approach, also known as the Democratic Leadership style. She involved the faculty, staff, and stakeholders in the decision making process. Even though the final decision would be ultimately made by Principal K, she allowed everyone to be a part of the process. She allowed them to have the sense of belonging of being a part of the team. She encourages participation, values our opinions, group discussions, and motivates us to become leaders as well. Principal K’s leadership style provides direction and guidance. She states often that even though her title is principal her job description is to work for us and whatever we need to give the students a quality education, she will make sure it is provided. Overall, leadership styles is the manner and approach of providing direction, creating visions, implementing and acting on plans, and motivating people to excel beyond their comfort zone. Leaders styles will vary based on situations. A leader does not strictly lean toward one style, however one may seem to be dominate over another, but it all depends on the situation at hand. My goal is to use the styles that are most effective and meant to strengthen the performance of the teacher, staff and students and also the styles that will bring improvement on student achievement. References . http://ctb.ku.edu/en/tablecontents/sub_section_main_1122.aspx http://www.leadership-with-you.com/directive-leadership.html Bush, Tony 2003. Theories of Educational Management, 3rd edn. London: Sage.

Memory

Three participants ages 19, 19, and 20 were asked to listen to three lists of words whose contents ranged from low to high association. The low-association list was defined by words that had no particular relation to each other. Conversely, the high-association list was characterized by words that had very close relationships with each other, whereas the in-between list of medium association contained words among which loose relationships existed. Each list contained ten words. The three lists were read to each participant in a slow and systematic way, leaving an interval of approximately one second between the calling of each word. Each participant was then given a minute to write down as many words as they could recall. The average number of words remembered from the low-association list was three (3), which represents a low level of recall for short term memory. This is consistent with the idea that the brain employs a short-term memory system that is able to hold limited information, and this can be done for only a short time without the aid of semantic prompters (Brown et al., 1985). The group of words on the low-association list contained almost no semantic prompters, as these words belonged to no specific category that could have been called up in the schema of the persons involved in the experiment.    As a result, the first few words called in each list allowed the participants no leeway to use schema as a mnemonic device for recalling them. Relying therefore only on short-term memory, the participants were able only to remember a small portion of the words. It is also important to note that those which were remembered were the ones located near the end of the list. This indicates that the effort to remember those later words nullified any earlier efforts made at memorization, and consequently removed the earlier words from the participants’ short-term memory. The second list of words containing a limited number of related words (medium association) showed a recall level for the participants of approximately six (6) words. The final two words on the list were recalled by two of the participants, and the other recalled the last word. However, the few words on the list that were related were universally recalled by the participants. The experiment apparently enabled them to make connections among the related words and to further connect them to a category in their schemata. This occurrence points to the tendency of the mind to categorize the information it receives, and the long-term memory of these participants appears to have been activated by associating the related words to their appropriate category. This categorization is most likely the factor that aided the short term memory of the participants, allowing them to recall a greater percentage of the words (almost twice as many) than they were able to recall from the first list. The third list contained words that were all highly related to each other. The experiment demonstrated even more the extent to which semantic categorization has the ability to aid short-term memory. The participants remembered an average of approximately nine (9) words on the list. This represents a vast increase over the previous two tries. This part of the experiment indicates the participants appeal to their long term memory as an aid in memorizing the contents of this list. For instance, despite the fact that the words on the low-association list were familiar words, their ability to remember them was compromised by the fact that they had no method of selecting them from all the other things that reside in their memories. Conversely, the fact that the words from the third experiment were all members of a particular category allowed these participants to use the taxonomic feature of long-term memory to aid recall in this memory experiment (Brown et al., 1985). The parallel trend of increased remembrance alongside increased association therefore underlines the importance of schema in the enhancement of memory. Reference Brown, A. S., S. L. Whiteman, R. J. Cattoi & C. K. Bradley. (1985). â€Å"Associative strength level   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   and retrieval inhibition in semantic memory.† The American Journal of Psychology.    98(3):   421-432.   

Geography of Kiribati

Geography of Kiribati Population: 100,743 (July 2011 estimate)Capital: TarawaArea: 313 square miles (811 sq km)Coastline: 710 miles (1,143 km)Highest Point: An unnamed point on the island of Banaba at 265 feet (81 m)Kiribati is an island nation located Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. It is made up of 32 island atolls and one small coral island that are spread out over millions of miles or kilometers. The country itself however has only 313 square miles (811 sq km) of area. Kiribati is also along the International Date Line on its easternmost islands and it straddles the Earths equator. Because it is on the International Date Line, the country had the line shifted in 1995 so that all of its islands could experience the same day at the same time. History of Kiribati The first people to settle Kiribati were the I-Kiribati when they settled what are the present-day Gilbert Islands around 1000-1300 B.C.E. In addition Fijians and Tongans later invaded the islands. Europeans did not reach the islands until the 16th century. By the 1800s, European whalers, traders and slave merchants began visiting the islands and causing social problems. As a result in 1892 the Gilbert and Ellice Islands agreed to become British protectorates. In 1900 Banaba was annexed after natural resources were found and in 1916 they all became a British colony (U.S. Department of State). The Line and Phoenix Islands were also later added to the colony. During World War II, Japan seized some of the islands and in 1943 the Pacific portion of the war reached Kiribati when United States forces launched attacks on the Japanese forces on the islands. In the 1960s, Britain began giving Kiribati more freedom of self-government and in 1975 the Ellice Islands broke away from the British colony and declared their independence in 1978 (U.S. Department of State). In 1977 the Gilbert Islands were given more self-governing powers and on July 12, 1979 they became independent with the name Kiribati. Government of Kiribati Today Kiribati is considered a republic and it is officially called the Republic of Kiribati. The countrys capital is Tarawa and its executive branch of government is made up of a chief of state and a head of government. Both of these positions are filled by Kiribatis president. Kiribati also has a unicameral House of Parliament for its legislative branch and Court of Appeal, High Court and 26 Magistrates courts for its judicial branch. Kiribati is divided into three different units, the Gilbert Islands, the Line Islands and the Phoenix Islands, for local administration. There are also six different island districts and 21 island councils for Kiribatis islands. Economics and Land Use in Kiribati Because Kiribati is in a remote location and its area is spread over 33 small islands it is one of the least developed Pacific island nations (CIA World Factbook). It also has few natural resources so its economy is mainly dependent on fishing and small handicrafts. Agriculture is practiced throughout the country and the main products of that industry are copra, taro, breadfruit, sweet potatoes and assorted vegetables. Geography and Climate of Kiribati The islands making up Kiribati are located along the equator and International Date Line about halfway between Hawaii and Australia. The closest nearby islands are Nauru, the Marshall Islands and Tuvalu. It is made up of 32 very low lying coral atolls and one small island. Because of this, Kiribatis topography is relatively flat and its highest point is an unnamed point on the island of Banaba at 265 feet (81 m). The islands are also surrounded by large coral reefs. The climate of Kiribati is tropical and as such it is mainly hot and humid but its temperatures can be somewhat moderated by the trade winds (CIA World Factbook). To learn more about Kiribati, visit the Geography and Maps page on Kiribati on this website. SourceCentral Intelligence Agency. (8 July 2011). CIA - The World Factbook - Kiribati. Retrieved from: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/kr.htmlInfoplease.com. (n.d.). Kiribati: History, Geography, Government, and Culture- Infoplease.com. Retrieved from: infoplease.com/ipa/A0107682.htmlUnited States Department of State. (3 February 2011). Kiribati. Retrieved from: state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/1836.htmWikipedia.org. (20 July 2011). Kiribati - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiribati

Biography of Ashoka the Great, Indias Mauryan Emperor

Biography of Ashoka the Great, India's Mauryan Emperor Ashoka the Great (c. 304–232 BCE) was the emperor of Indias Maurya Dynasty from 268 to 232 BCE and is remembered for his remarkable conversion to nonviolence and his merciful reign. In 265 BCE after witnessing the devastation of his own attack on the Kalinga region, he converted from being a brutal conqueror of a vast empire to a benevolent emperor who successfully ruled according to nonviolent principles. His edicts encouraged the protection of animals, mercy for criminals, and tolerance of other religions. Fast Facts: Ashoka the Great Known For: Ashoka was the ruler of Indias Mauryan Empire; after an epiphany, he became a promoter of Buddhist non-violence.Born: 304 BCE in Pataliputra, Mauryan EmpireParents: Bindusara and DharmaDied: 232 BCE in Pataliputra, Mauryan EmpireSpouse(s): Devi, Kaurwaki confirmed; many others allegedChildren: Mahinda, Kunala, Tivala, JalaukaNotable Quote: Dharma is good. And what is Dharma? It is having few faults and many goods deeds, mercy, charity, truthfulness, and purity. Early Life In 304 BCE, the second emperor of the Maurya Dynasty, Bindusara, welcomed a son named Ashoka Bindusara Maurya into the world. The boys mother Dharma was only a commoner. She had several older children- half-brothers of Ashoka- so Ashoka seemed unlikely to ever ascend the throne. Ashoka grew up to be a bold, troublesome, and cruel young man who was always extremely fond of hunting. According to legend, he killed a lion using only a wooden stick. His older half-brothers feared Ashoka  and convinced his father to post him as a general to distant frontiers of the Mauryan Empire. Ashoka proved to be a competent general, putting down a rebellion in the Punjabi city of Taxshila. Aware that his brothers viewed him as a rival for the throne, Ashoka went into exile for two years in the neighboring country of Kalinga. While he was there, he fell in love with and later married a commoner, a fisher-woman named Kaurwaki. Introduction to Buddhism Bindusara recalled his son to Maurya to help quell an uprising in Ujjain, the former capital of the Avanti Kingdom. Ashoka succeeded but was injured in the fighting. Buddhist monks tended to the wounded prince in secret so that his eldest brother, the heir-apparent Susima, would not learn of Ashokas injuries. At this time, Ashoka officially converted to Buddhism and began embracing its principles, though they were in direct conflict with his life as a general. He met and fell in love with a woman from Vidisha called Devi who also attended to his injuries during this period. The couple later married. When Bindusara died in 275 BCE, a two-year war for the throne erupted between Ashoka and his half-brothers. The Vedic sources vary on how many of Ashokas brothers died- one says that he killed them all while another states that he killed several of them. In either case, Ashoka prevailed and became the third ruler of the Mauryan Empire. Imperial Rule For the first eight years of his reign, Ashoka waged near-constant war on surrounding regions. He had inherited a sizable empire, but he expanded it to include most of the Indian subcontinent, as well as the area from the current-day borders of Iran and Afghanistan in the west to Bangladesh and Burma border in the east. Only the southern tip of India and Sri Lanka  and the kingdom of Kalinga on the northeast coast of India remained out of his reach. In 265 BCE, Ashoka attacked Kalinga. Although it was the homeland of his second wife Kaurwaki and the king of Kalinga had sheltered Ashoka before his ascent to the throne, the Mauryan emperor gathered the largest invasion force in Indian history and launched his assault. Kalinga fought back bravely, but in the end it was defeated and all of its cities were sacked. Ashoka had led the invasion in person, and he went out into the capital city of Kalinga the morning after his victory to survey the damage. The ruined houses and bloodied corpses of nearly 150,000 slain civilians and soldiers sickened the emperor, and he experienced a religious epiphany. Although he had considered himself more or less a Buddhist prior to that day, the carnage at Kalinga led Ashoka to devote himself completely to Buddhism, and he vowed to practice ahimsa, or nonviolence,  from that day forward. Edicts Had Ashoka simply vowed to himself that he would live according to Buddhist principles, later ages would likely not remember his name. However, he published his intentions for the whole empire to read. Ashoka wrote out a series of edicts, explaining his policies and aspirations for the empire and urging others to follow his enlightened example. The Edicts of King Ashoka were carved onto pillars of stone 40 to 50 feet high and set up all around the edges of the Mauryan Empire as well as in the heart of Ashokas realm. Dozens of these pillars can still be found in India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. In his edicts, Ashoka vowed to care for his people like a father and promised neighboring people that they need not fear him- that he would use only persuasion, not violence, to win people over. Ashoka noted that he had made available shade and fruit trees for the people as well as medical care for all people and animals. His concern for living things also appeared in a ban on live sacrifices and sport hunting as well as a request for respect for all other creatures, including servants. Ashoka urged his people to follow a vegetarian diet  and banned the practice of burning forests or agricultural wastes that might harbor wild animals. A long list of animals appeared on his protected species list, including bulls, wild ducks, squirrels, deer, porcupines, and pigeons. Ashoka also ruled with incredible accessibility. He noted that I consider it best to meet with people personally. To that end, he went on frequent tours around his empire. He also advertised that he would stop whatever he was doing if a matter of imperial business needed attention, even if he was having dinner or sleeping. In addition, Ashoka was very concerned with judicial matters. His attitude toward convicted criminals was quite merciful. He banned punishments such as torture, removing peoples eyes, and the death penalty, and he urged pardons for the elderly, those with families to support, and those who were doing charitable work. Finally, although Ashoka urged his people to practice Buddhist values, he fostered an atmosphere of respect for all religions. Within his empire, people followed not only the relatively new Buddhist faith but also Jainism, Zoroastrianism, Greek polytheism, and many other belief systems. Ashoka served as an example of tolerance for his subjects, and his religious affairs officers encouraged the practice of any religion. Death Ashoka the Great ruled as a just and merciful king from his epiphany in 265 until his death at the age of 72 in 232 BCE. His body was given a royal cremation ceremony. Legacy We do not know the names of most of Ashokas wives and children, however, his twin children by his first wife, a boy called Mahindra and a girl named Sanghamitra, were instrumental in converting Sri Lanka to Buddhism. After Ashokas death, the Mauryan Empire continued to exist for 50 years before going into a gradual decline. The last Mauryan emperor was Brhadrata, who was assassinated in 185 BCE by one of his generals, Pusyamitra Sunga. Although his family did not rule for long after he was gone, Ashokas principles and his examples lived on through the Vedas and his edicts, which can still be seen on pillars today. Sources Lahiri, Nayanjot.  Ashoka in Ancient India. Harvard University Press, 2015.Trainor, Kevin.  Buddhism: the Illustrated Guide. Duncan Baird, 2004.

Discussion 7 Art Conservation & Restoration and Art Therapy Essay

Discussion 7 Art Conservation & Restoration and Art Therapy - Essay Example These individuals have skilled training in drawing, sculpting, painting, and other visual media in order to apply it as treatment and analysis (What Is Art Therapy, 2011). These skills are applied toward assisting other individuals using artworks as a form of treatment. Basically the therapist art materials to counsel patients during sessions. The practice of art therapy has only been a significant consideration for about forty years. It can naturally be assumed that the growing practice has several issues. To name a few, art therapist suffer encounter issues in cultural boundaries, ethical standards, and limitations in practice. Misunderstanding between cultures is a typical process this day in age. Since art therapy has been growing in the number of practitioners and it is readily available to anybody who wishes to seek its assistance there ethnic boundaries. Individuals who seek help with an art therapist can easily be miss diagnosed if they therapist is not familiar with how their culture relates to their expression. The lack of words in this case could be harmful to the patients well being. In the case of the therapist, it is important to recognize cultural differences in order to be able to understand where the client is coming from. When dealing with professional positions ethical practices are important. Therapist have to be careful how much in-depth information is given to the client. When using art therapy the interpretation of the therapist could easily be transferred to the work of the patient. Avoiding this might be tricky in the field of art therapy, but it is significant because the patients stability could depend on it. There is also a lack of information that can be processed. When art therapist administer to their patients they are expected to treat them while handling art materials. But, there is only so much a person can offer in the form of art. The

Article Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Article Report - Essay Example There is a balance in the report as problems inherent with standardization were likewise presented as posing possible contrast with motivational theories that encourage innovativeness, creativity and ingenuity; and inability to comply with applications of standardized methods (Reid, 2010, 2). The applicability and usefulness of the information discussed by Reid comes in terms of indicating which particular practices and concepts could be standardized for the organizations’ benefits. Reid’s presentation of issues on metrology, interchangeability, and technological definition (Reid, 2010, 1), among others, provide a glimpse on the areas where standardization could be most beneficial. However, Reid could have cited actual scenarios and experiences of contemporary organizations that have proven standardization to increase their competitive advantage and leadership in their respective fields of endeavor, to make the discourse more meaningful and appropriately supported. Refe rence Reid, D. (2010). â€Å"Benefit Without a Doubt.† Quality Progress, 43, 11; pg. 56.