Public Policy- Environmental Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Public Policy- Environmental Policy - Essay Example and more so, the influences of population growth, urbanization, industrialisation, new expanding technological advances, exploitation of resource and their impact. Critical value of restoring as well as enhancing environmental quality to the welfare and progress of man are well emphasized. The role of stakeholders- Federal Government, public and private organizations in using practicable measures and means that include technical and financial assistance to promote the welfare and maintain states under which nature and man can coexist in a productive way to fulfil the economic, and social needs of future and present generations .The policy was to directly educate the Americans that, safe, aesthetically- culturally pleasing, healthful, productive, safe, important historic, and natural aspects of our heritage, biodiversity, and free choice can only be attained through environmental preservation. And this could only be achieved when a state of equilibrium is attained between population and the available resource for use to allow high standards of living and enhance promote renewable resources and approach to maximise recycling of the non-renewable resources. This therefore calls for recognition that every person is entitled to enjoy a healthful environment and the responsibility he has to contribute towards preserving and the environment. The policy vividly states the responsibilities of each individual as trustee of the environment for succeeding generations and assure the society of productive ,culturally, safe, healthful, and aesthetically pleasing surroundings the legislation should further enhance positive use of the environment without degradation other unintended consequences. Furthermore it stresses that government should utilize interdisciplinary approach to ensure integrated use of social and natural sciences in planning and for indecision making to impact on the environment. In the present societies, economic and social activities are

Should spanking young children be considered a form of child abuse Essay

Should spanking young children be considered a form of child abuse - Essay Example The grey area involved in spanking comes into play when deciding at what point spanking is actually no longer spanking but hitting or beating. Also, at what point is a spanking deemed necessary and appropriate. Statistically speaking, â€Å"more than 4 out of 5 American adults, who were spanked as children, felt that it was an effective form of discipline. (Spare the Rod, 2008) This statistic however, leaves room for the one out of five who felt that spanking was not effective or that it was a form of abuse. Many parents feel that the only affective means of discipline is in fact, spanking. Essentially, spanking is a physical way to let the child know that their actions are not acceptable. Children rely on their parents for protection, comfort, love and basic needs. When a child is being corrected by a parent and is then spanked, the level of praise or acceptance a child normally feels is diminished and there is then a threat of losing the acceptance that the child felt before the punishment. Still other parents and many experts are overtly opposed to spankings as they feel that any type of physical punishment is abusive. Certainly, a fine line exists between an appropriate disciplinary spanking and abuse, but a good parent can make that distinction. Many critics feel that spanking leads to adult dysfunction, but are unable to distinguish between appropriate and controlled spanking as loving discipline as opposed to hitting or punishing out of anger. It can be said that punishment of any form out of anger is in fact, abuse as opposed to discipline, which should be done out of love. It has been argued by some within many faiths, that parents that do not use spanking as a form or correction are doing a disservice to their children and to God. According to Christians, God’s law prescribes that corporal punishment is the appropriate form of punishment that parents should use. Many Christians feel that they

Developing good study skills Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Developing good study skills - Essay Example Furthermore, it is possible to overcome procrastination by developing proper studying habit, and hence improving the studying habit of an individual is the key of good study, and success in education. This paper takes a stand that good studying habits are an important tool that a student should have in their toolbox of life. Ability to develop good studying habits is able to create great organizational skills, and this develops the testing ability of a student, providing less stress and frustration when meeting and preparing deadlines. Rawlings (2008) explains that the tips of achieving success for onsite classroom students, is the same as the tips of achieving success for online students. Following a series of studying tips are essential in helping students to effectively learn new academic theories as well as concepts. Zimmerman and Schunk (2011) explains that effectively following these studying tips is an example of a good studying habit, and hence it helps a student to be organized in his or her work. One of the best methods that a student can use to stay organized is through using folders which can help him or her to keep assignments and any school work, until the time when these assignments and school work are needed. Rawlings (2008) explains that when children are able to reach a grade whereby tests and homework are part and parcel of their school curriculum, then there are a variety of actions that parents can undertake for purposes of encouraging good studying habits. It is important to explain that when students are faced with a variety of home work and tests, without proper guidance, chances are high that they may develop stress. On this basis, a good and proper studying habit is to carry a study before and during the process of doing the homework. It is important to understand that little amount of home studies will play a great role in helping elementary school

Media literacy Essay Example for Free

Media literacy Essay Media Education is the process of teaching and learning about media. [1] It is about developing young peoples critical and creative abilities when it comes to the media. Media education should not be confused with educational technology or with educational media. Surveys repeatedly show that, in most industrialized countries, children now spend more time watching television than they do in school, or also on any other activity apart from sleeping[2] Media Education has no fixed location, no clear ideology and no definitive recipients; it is subject to whims of a financial market bigger than itself. [1] Being able to understand the media enables people to analyze, evaluate, and create messages in a wide variety of mediums, genres, and forms. A person who is media literate is informed. There are many reasons why media studies are absent from the primary and secondary school curricula, including cuts in budgets and social services as well as over-packed schedules and expectations. Education for media literacy often uses an inquiry-based pedagogic model that encourages people to ask questions about what they watch, hear, and read. Media literacy education provides tools to help people critically analyze messages, offers opportunities for learners to broaden their experience of media, and helps them develop creative skills in making their own media messages. [3] Critical analysis can include identifying author, purpose and point of view, examining construction techniques and genres, examining patterns of media representation, and detecting propaganda, censorship, and bias in news and public affairs programming (and the reasons for these). Media literacy education may explore how structural features—such as media ownership, or its funding model[4] affect the information presented. Media literate people should be able to skillfully create and produce media messages, both to show understanding of the specific qualities of each medium, as well as to create independent media and participate as active citizens. Media literacy can be seen as contributing to an expanded conceptualization of literacy, treating mass media, popular culture and digital media as new types of texts that require analysis and evaluation. By transforming the  process of media consumption into an active and critical process, people gain greater awareness of the potential for misrepresentation and manipulation (especially through commercials and public relations techniques), and understand the role of mass media and participatory media in constructing views of reality. [5] Media literacy education is sometimes conceptualized as a way to address the negative dimensions of mass media, popular culture and digital media, including media violence, gender and racial stereotypes, the sexualization of children, and concerns about loss of privacy, cyberbullying and Internet predators. By building knowledge and competencies in using media and technology, media literacy education may provide a type of protection to children and young people by helping them make good choices in their media consumption habits, and patterns of usage. [6] Concepts of media education Media education can be in many ways. In general, media education has come to be defined in terms of conceptual understandings of the media. [1] Usually this means key concepts or key aspects. This approach does not specify particular objects of study and this enables media education to remain responsive to students interests and enthusiasms. David Buckingham has come up with four key concepts that provide a theoretical framework which can be applied to the whole range of contemporary media and to older media as well: Production, Language, Representation, and Audience. [1] These concepts are defined by David Buckingham as follows: Production Production involves the recognition that media texts are consciously made. [1] Some media texts are made by individuals working alone, just for themselves or their family and friends, but most are produced and distributed by groups of people often for commercial profit. This means recognizing the economic interests that are at stake in media production, and the ways in which profits are generated. More confident students in media education should be able to debate the implications of these developments in terms of national and cultural identities, and in terms of the range of social groups that are able to gain access to media. [1] Studying media production means looking at: Technologies: what technologies are used to produce and distribute media texts? Professional practices: Who makes media texts? The industry: Who owns the companies that buy and sell media and how do they make a profit? Connections between media: How do companies sell the same products across different media? Regulation: Who controls the production and distribution of media, and are there laws about this? Circulation and distribution: How do texts reach their audiences? Access and participation: Whose voices are heard in the media and whose are excluded? [1] Language Every medium has its own combination of languages that it uses to communicate meaning. For example, television uses verbal and written language as well as the languages of moving images and sound. Particular kinds of music or camera angles may be used to encourage certain emotions. When it comes to verbal language, making meaningful statements in media languages involves paradigmatic choices and syntagmatic combinations. [1] By analyzing these languages, one can come to a better understanding of how meanings are created. [1] Studying media languages means looking at: Meanings: How does media use different forms of language to convey ideas or meanings? Conventions: How do these uses of languages become familiar and generally accepted? Codes: How are the grammatical rules of media established and what happens when they are broken? Genres: How do these conventions and codes operate in different types of media contexts? Choices: What are the effects of choosing certain forms of language, such as a certain type of camera shot? Combinations: How is meaning conveyed through the combination or sequencing of images, sounds, or words? Technologies: How do technologies affect the meanings that can be created? [1] Representation The notion of representation is one of the first established principles of media education. The media offers viewers a facilitated outlook of the world and they re-represent reality. Media production involves selecting and combining incidents, making events into stories, and creating characters. Media representations allow viewers to see the world in some particular ways and not others. Audiences also compare media with their own experiences and make judgements about how realistic they are. Media representations can be seen as real in some ways but not in others: viewers may understand that what they are seeing is only imaginary and yet they still know it can explain reality. [1] Studying media representations means looking at: Realism: Is this text intended to be realistic? Why do some texts seem more realistic than others? Telling the truth: How do media claim to tell the truth about the world? Presence and absence: What is included and excluded from the media world? Bias and objectivity: Do media texts support particular views about the world? Do they use moral or political values? Stereotyping: How do media represent particular social groups? Are those representations accurate? Interpretations: Why do audiences accept some media representations as true, or reject others as false? Influences: Do media representations affect our views of particular social groups or issues? [1] Audience Studying audiences means looking at how demographic audiences are targeted and measured, and how media are circulated and distributed throughout. It means looking at different ways in which individuals use, interpret, and respond to media. The media increasingly have had to compete for peoples attention and interest because research has shown that audiences are now much more sophisticated and diverse than has been suggested in the past. Debating views about audiences and attempting to understand and reflect on our own and others use of media is therefore a crucial element of media education. [1] Studying media audiences means looking at: Targeting: How are media aimed at particular audiences? Address: How do the media speak to audiences? Circulation: How do media reach audiences? Uses: How do audiences use media in their daily lives? What are their habits and patterns of use? Making sense: How do audiences interpret media? What meanings do they make? Pleasures: What pleasures do audiences gain from media? Social differences: What is the role of gender. social class, age, and ethnic background in audience behavior? [1] UNESCO and media education UNESCO has had a long standing experience with media literacy and education. The organization has supported a number of initiatives to introduce media and information literacy as an important part of lifelong learning. [7] Most recently, the UNESCO Action for Media Education and Literacy brought together experts from numerous regions of the world to catalyze processes to introduce media and information literacy components into teacher training curricula worldwide. [7] UNESCO questionnaire In 2001, a media education survey was sent out by UNESCO in order to better understand which countries were incorporating media studies into different schools curriculum as well as to help develop new initiatives in the field of media education. A questionnaire was sent to a total of 72 experts on media education in 52 different countries around the world. The people who received this questionnaire were people involved in academics (such as teachers), policy makers, and educational advisers. The questionnaire addressed three key areas: 1) â€Å"Media education in schools: the extent, aims, and conceptual basis of current provision; the nature of assessment; and the role of production by students. †[8] 2) Partnerships: the involvement of media industries and media regulators in media education; the role of informal youth groups; the provision of teacher education. †[7] 3) â€Å"The development of media education: research and evaluation of media education provision; the main needs of educators; obstacles to future development; and the potential contribution of UNESCO. †[7] The results from the answers of the survey were double-sided. It was noted that media education had been making a very uneven progress because while in one country there was an abundant amount of work towards media education, another country may have hardly even heard of the concept. One of the main reasons why media education has not taken full swing in some countries is because of the lack of policy makers addressing the issue. In some developing countries, educators say that media education was only just beginning to register as a concern because they were just starting to develop basic print literacy. [7] In the countries that media education existed at all, it would be offered as an elective class or an optional area of the school system rather than being on its own. Many countries argued that media education should not be a separate part of the curriculum but rather should be added to a subject  already established. The countries which deemed media education as a part of the curriculum included the United States, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, and Australia. Many countries lacked even just basic research on media education as a topic, including Russia and Sweden. Some said that popular culture is not worthy enough of study. But all of the correspondents realized the importance of media education as well as the importance of formal recognition from their government and policy makers that media education should be taught in schools. [7] History Media literacy education is actively focused on the instructional methods and pedagogy of media literacy, integrating theoretical and critical frameworks rising from constructivist learning theory, media studies and cultural studies scholarship. This work has arisen from a legacy of media and technology use in education throughout the 20th century and the emergence of cross-disciplinary work at the intersections of scholarly work in media studies and education. Voices of Media Literacy, a project of the Center for Media Literacy representing first-person interviews with media literacy pioneers active prior to 1990 in English-speaking countries, provides historical context for the rise of the media literacy field and is available at http://www. medialit. org/voices-media-literacy-international-pioneers-speak Media education is developing in Great Britain, Australia, South Africa, Canada, the United States, with a growing interest in the Netherlands, Italy, Greece, Austria, Switzerland, India, Russia and among many other nations. UNESCO has played an important role in supporting media and information literacy by encouraging the development of national information and media literacy policies, including in education[9] UNESCO has developed training resources to help teachers integrate information and media literacy into their teaching and provide them with appropriate pedagogical methods and curricula. United Kingdom Education for what is now termed media literacy has been developing in the UK since at least the 1930s. In the 1960s, there was a paradigm shift in the field of media literacy to emphasize working within popular culture rather than trying to convince people that popular culture was primarily destructive. This was known as the popular arts paradigm. In the 1970s, there came a recognition that the ideological power of the media was tied to the naturalization of the image. Constructed messages were being passed off as natural ones. The focus of media literacy also shifted to the consumption of images and representations, also known as the representational paradigm. [10] Development has gathered pace since the 1970s when the first formal courses in Film Studies and, later, Media Studies, were established as options for young people in the 14-19 age range: over 100,000 students (about 5% of this age range) now take these courses annually. Scotland has always had a separate education system from the rest of the UK and began to develop policies for media education in the 1980s. In England, the creation of the National Curriculum in 1990 included some limited requirements for teaching about the media as part of English. The UK is widely regarded as a leader in the development of education for media literacy. Key agencies that have been involved in this development include the British Film Institute,[11] the English and Media Centre[12] Film Education[13] and the Centre for the Study of Children, Youth and Media at the Institute of Education, London. [14] Australia In Australia, media education was influenced by developments in Britain related to the inoculation, popular arts and demystification approaches. Key theorists who influenced Australian media education were Graeme Turner and John Hartley who helped develop Australian media and cultural studies. During the 1980s and 1990s, Western Australians Robyn Quin and Barrie MacMahon wrote seminal text books such as Real Images, translating many complex media theories into classroom appropriate learning frameworks. In most Australian states, media is one of five strands of the Arts Key Learning Area and includes essential learnings or outcomes listed for various stages of development. At the senior level (years 11 and 12), several states offer Media Studies as an elective. For example, many Queensland schools offer Film, Television and New Media, while Victorian schools offer VCE Media. Media education is supported by the teacher professional association Australian Teachers of Media which publishes a range of resources and the excellent Screen Education. Africa In South Africa, the increasing demand for Media Education has evolved from the dismantling of apartheid and the 1994 democratic elections. The first national Media Education conference in South Africa was actually held in 1990 and the new national curriculum has been in the writing stages since 1997. Since this curriculum strives to reflect the values and principles of a democratic society there seems to be an opportunity for critical literacy and Media Education in Languages and Culture courses. Europe In areas of Europe, media education has seen many different forms. Media education was introduced into the Finnish elementary curriculum in 1970 and into high schools in 1977. But the media education we know today did not evolve in Finland until the 1990s. Media education has been compulsory in Sweden since 1980 and in Denmark since 1970. In both these countries, media education evolved in the 1980s and 1990s as media education gradually moved away from moralizing attitudes towards an approach that is more searching and pupil-centered. In 1994, the Danish education bill gave recognition to media education but it is still not an integrated part of the school. The focus in Denmark seems to be on information technology. France has taught film from the inception of the medium, but it has only been recently that conferences and media courses for teachers have been organized with the inclusion of media production. Germany saw theoretical publications on media literacy in the 1970s and 1980s, with a growing interest for media education inside and outside the educational system in the 80s and 90s. In the Netherlands media literacy was placed in the agenda by the Dutch government in 2006 as an important subject for the Dutch society. In April, 2008, an official center has been created (mediawijsheid expertisecentrum = medialiteracy expertisecenter) by the Dutch government. This center is more a network organization existing out of different partners who have their own expertise with the subject of media education. The idea is that media education will become a part of the official curriculum. The history of media education in Russia goes back to the 1920s. The first attempts to instruct in media education (on the press and film materials, with the vigorous emphasis on the communist ideology) appeared in the 1920s but were stopped by Joseph Stalin’s repressions. The end of the 1950s the beginning of the 1960s was the time of the revival of media education in secondary schools, universities, after-school children centers (Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Voronezh, Samara, Kurgan, Tver, Rostov on Don, Taganrog, Novosibirsk, Ekaterinburg, etc.), the revival of media education seminars and conferences for the teachers. During the time when the intensive rethinking of media education approaches was on the upgrade in the Western hemisphere, in Russia of the 1970s–1980s media education was still developing within the aesthetic concept. Among the important achievements of 1970s-1990s one can recall the first official programs of film and media education, published by Ministry of Education, increasing interest of Ph. D. to media education, experimental theoretic and practical work on media education by O. Baranov (Tver), S.Penzin (Voronezh), G. Polichko, U. Rabinovich (Kurgan), Y. Usov (Moscow), Aleksandr Fyodorov (Taganrog), A. Sharikov (Moscow) and others. The important events in media education development in Russia are the registration of the new specialization (since 2002) for the pedagogical universities – ‘Media Education’ (â„â€" 03. 13. 30), and the launch of a new academic journal ‘Media Education’ (since January 2005), partly sponsored by the ICOS UNESCO ‘Information for All’. Additionally, the Internet sites of Russian Association for Film and Media Education (English and Russian versions) were created. Taking into account the fact that UNESCO defines media education as the priority field of the cultural educational development in the 21st century, media literacy has good prospects in Russia. Canada In North America, the beginnings of a formalized approach to media literacy as a topic of education is often attributed to the 1978 formation of the Ontario-based Association for Media Literacy (AML). Before that time, instruction in media education was usually the purview of individual teachers and practitioners. Canada was the first country in North America to require media literacy in the school curriculum. Every province has mandated media education in its curriculum. For example, the new curriculum of Quebec mandates media literacy from Grade 1 until final year of secondary school (Secondary V). The launching of media education in Canada came about for two reasons. One reason was the concern about the pervasiveness of American popular culture and the other was the education system-driven necessity of contexts for new educational paradigms. Canadian communication scholar Marshall McLuhan ignited the North American educational movement for media literacy in the 1950s and 1960s. Two of Canadas leaders in Media Literacy and Media Education are Barry Duncan and John Pungente. Duncan passed away on June 6, 2012, even after retired from classroom teaching but was still active in media education. Pungente is a Jesuit priest who has promoted media literacy since the early 1960s. Media Awareness Network (MNet), a Canadian non-profit media education organization, hosts a Web site which contains hundreds of free lesson plans to help teachers integrate media into the classroom. MNet also has created award-winning educational games on media education topics, several of which are available free from the site, and has also conducted original research on media issues, most notable the study Young Canadians in a Wired World. MNet also hosts the Talk Media Blog, a regular column on media education issues. The United States Media literacy education has been an interest in the United States since the early 20th century, when high school English teachers first started using film to develop students critical thinking and communication skills. However, media literacy education is distinct from simply using media and technology in the classroom, a distinction that is exemplified by the difference between teaching with media and teaching about media. [15] In the 1950s and 60s, the ‘film grammar’ approach to media literacy education developed in the United States, where educators began to show commercial films to children, having them learn a new terminology consisting of words such as fade, dissolve, truck, pan, zoom, and cut. Films were connected to literature and history. To understand the constructed nature of film, students explored plot development, character, mood and tone. Then, during the 1970s and 1980s, attitudes about mass media and mass culture began to shift. Around the English-speaking world, educators began to realize the need to â€Å"guard against our prejudice of thinking of print as the only real medium that the English teacher has a stake in. †[16] A whole generation of educators began to not only acknowledge film and television as new, legitimate forms of expression and communication, but also explored practical ways to promote serious inquiry and analysis—- in higher education, in the family, in schools and in society. [17] Typically, U. S. media literacy education includes a focus on news, advertising, issues of representation, and media ownership. Media literacy competencies can also be cultivated in the home, through activities including co-viewing and discussion. [18] Media literacy education began to appear in state English education curriculum frameworks by the early 1990s as a result of increased awareness in the central role of visual, electronic and digital media in the context of contemporary culture. Nearly all 50 states have language that supports media literacy in state curriculum frameworks. [19] In 2004, Montana developed educational standards around media literacy that students are required to be competent in by grades 4, 8, and 12. Additionally, an increasing number of school districts have begun to develop school-wide programs, elective courses, and other after-school opportunities for media analysis and production. There is no national data on the reach of media literacy programs in the United States. [20] The evolution of information and communication technologies has expanded the subject of media literacy to incorporate information literacy, collaboration and problem-solving skills, and emphasis on the social responsibilities of communication. Various stakeholders struggle over nuances of meaning associated with the conceptualization of the practice on media literacy education. Educational scholars may use the term critical media literacy to emphasize the exploration of power and ideology in media analysis. Other scholars may use terms like new media literacy to emphasize the application of media literacy to user-generated content or 21st century literacy to emphasize the use of technology tools. [21] As far back as 2001, the Action Coalition for Media Education (ACME) split from the main media literacy organization as the result of debate about whether or not the media industry should support the growth of media literacy education in the United States. Renee Hobbs of Temple University in Philadelphia wrote about this general question as one of the Seven Great Debates in media literacy education in an influential 1998 Journal of Communication article. [22] The media industry has supported media literacy education in the United States. Make Media Matter is one of the many blogs (an â€Å"interactive forum†) the Independent Film Channel features as a way for individuals to assess the role media plays in society and the world. The television program, The Media Project, offers a critical look at the state of news media in contemporary society. During the 1990s, the Discovery Channel supported the implementation of Assignment: Media Literacy, a statewide educational initiative for K-12 students developed in collaboration with the Maryland State Board of Education. Because of the decentralized nature of the education system in a country with 70 million children now in public or private schools, media literacy education develops as the result of groups of advocates in school districts, states or regions who lobby for its inclusion in the curriculum. There is no central authority making nationwide curriculum recommendations and each of the fifty states has numerous school districts, each of which operates with a great degree of independence from one another. However, most U. S. states include media literacy in health education, with an emphasis on understanding environmental influences on health decision-making. Tobacco and alcohol advertising are frequently targeted as objects for deconstruction, which is one of the instructional methods of media literacy education. This resulted from an emphasis on media literacy generated by the Clinton White House. The Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) held a series of conferences in 1996 and 1997 which brought greater awareness of media literacy education as a promising practice in health and substance abuse prevention education. The medical and public health community now recognizes the media as a cultural environmental influence on health and sees media literacy education as a strategy to support the development of healthy behavior. Interdisciplinary scholarship in media literacy education is emerging. In 2009, a scholarly journal was launched, the Journal of Media Literacy Education,[23] to support the work of scholars and practitioners in the field. Universities such as Appalachian State University, Columbia University, Ithaca College, New York University, the University of Texas-Austin, Temple University, and the University of Maryland offer courses and summer institutes in media literacy for pre-service teachers and graduate students. Brigham Young University offers a graduate program in media education specifically for inservice teachers. The Salzburg Academy for Media and Global Change is another institution that educates students and professionals from around the world the importance of being literate about the media. Impacts of Media Literacy Education on Civic Engagement Media literacy education appears to have a positive impact on overall youth civic engagement. [24] Youth who attend schools that offer media literacy programs are more likely to politically engage online and are more likely to report encountering diverse viewpoints online. [25] Youth Interest in Media Literacy A nationally representative survey found that 84% of young people think they and their friends would benefit from training on verifying information found online. [26] National Association for Media Literacy Education More than 600 educators are members of the National Association for Media Literacy Education (NAMLE), a national membership group that hosts a bi-annual conference. In 2009, this group developed an influential policy document, the Core Principles of Media Literacy Education in the United States. [27] It states, The purpose of media literacy education is to help individuals of all ages develop the habits of inquiry and skills of expression that they need to be critical thinkers, effective communicators and active citizens in today’s world. Principles include: (1) Media Literacy Education requires active inquiry and critical thinking about the messages we receive and create; (2) Media Literacy Education expands the concept of literacy in all forms of media (i. e. , reading and writing); (3) Media Literacy Education builds and reinforces skills for learners of all ages. Like print literacy, those skills necessitate integrated, interactive, and repeated practice; (4) Media Literacy Education develops informed, reflective and engaged participants essential for a democratic society; (5) Media Literacy Education recognizes that media are a part of culture and function as agents of socialization; and (6) Media Literacy Education affirms that people use their individual skills, beliefs and experiences to construct their own meanings from media messages.

Importance of Quality Assurance in Forensic Science

Importance of Quality Assurance in Forensic Science Introduction How important is ‘Quality’ in Forensic Science? Some may say ‘Quality’ is very important and others may disagree. The purpose of this essay is to outline the importance ‘Quality’ has in Forensic Science and whether ‘Quality’ is practiced in all Forensic settings. What is Quality assurance? Quality assurance is the basic maintenance of a specific level of Quality within a working practice, designed to ensure attention to detail is achieved and products are free of faults (5). In this case Quality assurance has become an essential element of modern forensic science (8), it is guarantying that a consistent set of standard and integrity and the level of maintenance is achieved and sustained throughout Forensic science establishments. This means ensuring that reliable and accurate testing are undertaken at all times (6). Quality assurance involves Quality control checks to be done to confirm that test results obtained are accurate and re liable (6) which guarantees that the standard of Quality is being maintained. Forensic Science has an important part to play in criminal investigations when a case is taken to court. Forensic science involves the search for and examination of evidence which can be useful in securing convictions (1). It is a very important aspect as it relies on science testimonies rather than witness statements. In order for Forensic Science to be fully relied on within a case, the Quality of the Laboratory where the evidence is examined should be an appropriate operating working standard (Quality assurance). Main Why is Quality deemed to be important? Well if Quality assurance and control are not programmed within an establishment such as a Laboratory, many companies will end up customising their own policies. This will only result in random testing being done and different interpretations being met that will not coincide with each other. But why is this important in Forensic Science? It is important in the Forensic science setting because if every laboratory adopted their own policies, for example how evidence is tested and what conditions they are tested in, when evidence is presented in court there could be questions on ‘how do we know what conditions evidence is tested in (could there b contamination) and if protocol and procedures used by this company is right’. In order for standard of procedure to be maintained, I believe it is important that all Laboratories that handle evidence are accredited and use the same procedures and policies throughout to ensure all results are c o-insistent with each other. Andrew Rennison the Forensic Science Regulator from 2008-2014, main job was to ensure that all Forensic Science services had the appropriate regime of scientific quality standards (2). Over the years he improved or made new standards of quality to ensure Forensic science services such as Laboratories underwent accreditation. He wanted to ensure that all crime scene evidence were being tested in the best (accredited) Laboratories there were. However under the time Andrew Rennison was the Forensic Science Regulator there were many Laboratories that were handling criminal evidence without being officially accredited. Could these results of evidence pieces be fully relied on? Why weren’t these Laboratories accredited? Accreditation is the means of assessing the reliability and integrity of an organisation such as a Laboratory ensuring it meets the specific requirements in order to reduce risks under the international accreditation standards (3). The organisations which appoint accreditation are called ‘accreditation bodies’ (4). There are many steps that are taken for a company to gain accreditation. One of the first steps requires registry, this involves money. Could this be the reason why many Laboratories are not accredited? Well in 2013 many companies lost accreditation, not because they were dirty and seen as unreliable with evidence testing but due to a failure of not paying the fees. Accreditation seems to be a voluntary process, but how does one know if the level of Quality is being maintained in a company were accreditation has not be achieved? Surely it should be compulsory, especially for Laboratories that are handling evidence that may be presented to court. Are accredited Laboratories better to use than the non accredited ones? Well that is a personal opinion. Put yourself in this situation, evidence presented against you. Would you want it to be tested in a Laboratory, where the standard of quality is high as they have passed inspections and gained an accreditation certificate or in a Laboratory where the quality of the Laboratory is unknown and they have not gained accreditation, due to not paying fees or some other reason? In London right now there are many Laboratories that are in the process of gaining accreditation, but are still undergoing evidence testing. Although accreditation has a big part to play with the maintenance of quality, there are other factors that affect quality standards. For example the closure of the Forensic Science Service (FSS) had an effect on quality in the Forensic science industry. This was because many small companies had the pressure placed on them and were given a heavier workload which lead to many mistakes occurring, questioning their standard of quality (7). What happens if Quality is not maintained? Well there are many cases where poor quality standards in a Laboratory have caused cases to be reviewed or collapse, this is due to the Forensic evidence being examined and tested inappropriately or with possible contamination. There are also cases where good standard of quality has lead to evidence being tested correctly and lead to convictions. For example the convictions made in the Stephen Lawrence case was due to the extensive work and excellent standard of quality both in the Laboratory and the scientists work. Analysis was done on a jacket and sweatshirt worn by the suspects in the case, twice in 1993 and 1995. Both times scientists found no conclusive evidence. Could this have been due to the way in which quality was controlled in Forensics? Well in 2006 all evidence items in the case was submitted to LGC Forensics (9), at this time the Laboratories used were all accredited and so were deemed to comply with the standard of quality (1 0). Not only did the Laboratory and the scientists find DNA particles, they also found hair and 7 fibres from the sweatshirt, where 6 matched the victim’s trouser and a lone fibre which matched the victim’s polo shirt (11). Another 16 fibres were found on the jacket of the second suspect which was also a definite match to the victim (9). Surely the two failed attempts of not finding any evidence could have seen the suspects get away with murder if the LGC Forensics an accredited Laboratory had not got involved. However although LGC Forensics were credited for the great work they undertook in the Stephen Lawrence case, this company was put under scrutiny in 2011 when a suspect was wrongly convicted of rape. The evidence submitted to the Laboratory was later shown to have an error of contamination during the time the evidence was tested (12). This shows that although a Laboratory is accredited and is believed to have a high standard of quality, there can be many situations where the standard of quality can be flawed. Conclusion In this essay the importance of quality in Forensic science has been explored. How accredited Laboratories have had good standard of quality and also how accredited Laboratories have failed in maintaining their quality has been discussed. When quality within a Forensic setting falls below a certain standard mistakes such as contamination in the rape case seen above can occur. If quality is to be maintained throughout, more routinely checks should be done by both the Accreditation bodies and owners of companies. This will ensure the level of maintenance needed is maintained always, all standard procedures are being followed for testing done by new and existing scientists and equipment is thoroughly checked and cleaned to prevent contamination. The standard of quality may have dropped when the FSS was closed, as they received heavier workloads which lead to them making many mistakes but also because many experienced and knowledgeable scientists in specific areas were left without a job . Although the standard of quality may have dropped, I believe the standard of quality has risen in the Forensic world as cases such as Stephen Lawrence, would not have had the breakthrough it did if the standard of quality in the Laboratory was low and if the quality undertaken by the scientist‘s did not reach the levels needed in today’s Forensic science services. Hopefully in the future there will be a rise in the number of accredited Forensic Laboratories so maintenance of quality can be somewhat controlled as I believe quality has a significance importance within Forensic science.

A Central Processing Unit

A Central Processing Unit A central processing unit, also known as central processor unit, is the hardware inside a computer system that process instructions of a computer program by performing the simple arithmetical, logical, and input/output (I/O) operations of the system. The term has been utilized in the computer industry about since the early 1960s. The concept, design, and implementation of CPUs have altered over the period of its history, but the foundation of its operation is still un-change. On big machines, CPUs need at least one printed circuit boards. For the personal computers and small workstations, the CPU is installed into one silicon chip called a microprocessor. In the 1970s the microprocessor type of CPUs had nearly fully implement all other CPU implementations. Modern CPUs are in big scale integrated circuits in packages usually smaller than four centimeters square, with hundreds of connecting pins. Two usual things of a CPU are the arithmetic logic unit (ALU), which process arithmetic an d logical operations, and the control unit (CU), which extracts instructions from memory and decodes then executes them, calling on the ALU when needed. Not every computational systems depend on a central processing unit. An array processor or vector processor has many parallel computing elements, with no unit to be known the center. For the distributed computing model, issues are corrected by a distributed interconnected set of processors. (Himes, A. 2012) Answer for question 1 Computers such as the ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer) need to be physically rewired to carry different operations, that results these machines to be known as fixed-program computers. Since the word CPU is basically known as a device for software (computer program) execution, the very first devices that could rightly be known as CPUs came with the arrival of the stored-program computer. The concept of a stored-program computer was already existed in the design of J. Presper Eckert and John William Mauchlys ENIAC, but was not included in the beginning so that it could be complete faster. On June 30, 1945, before ENIAC was created, mathematician John von Neumann distributed the paper called First Draft of a Report on the EDVAC (Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Computer). It was the plan of a stored-program computer that should be finished in August 1949. EDVAC was made to carry out some amount of instructions (or operations) of various types. The instructions can be combined to make useful programs for the EDVAC to work. The programs made for EDVAC were saved in high-speed computer memory instead of specified by the physical wiring of the computer. This settle the problem of a serious limitation of ENIAC, which was the cquite an amount of time and effort needed to reconfigure the computer to carry out a new task. Using the von Neumanns implementation, the progra m, or software, that EDVAC perform could be modified easily by changing the contents of the memory. (Himes, A. 2012) Every of the computer designs of the beginning of year 1950s was a unique design. There were no upward-compatible devices or computer architectures with numerous, varying implementations. Programs designed for a machine might not function on another kind, even other kinds from the similar company. This was not a great drawback at that time due to there was not a huge body of software made to work on computers, so starting programming from the beginning was not a serious issue. The design flexibility of the time was very crucial, for designers were very restrictive by the cost of electronics, yet just started to discover about how a computer could best be organized. Certain fundamental features implemented during this time like the index registers (on the Ferranti Mark 1), a return-address storing instruction (UNIVAC I), immediate operands (IBM 704), and the detection of invalid operations (IBM 650). (http://www.inetdaemon.com/tutorials/computers/hardware/cpu/ 2012) By the late of the year 1950s commercial builders had made factory-constructed, truck-deliverable computers. The most well known installed computer was the IBM 650, which used drum memory into the programs that were loaded using either paper tape or punched cards. Certain very high-end machines also utilize core memory which results in higher speeds. Hard disks were also start to become more widely use. (http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/C/CPU.html 1970) A computer is an automatic abacus. The type of number system will result the way it operates. In the early 1950s majority computers were made for specific numerical processing operations, and many machines utilized decimal numbers as their basic number system. That is the mathematical functions of the machines laboured in base-10 instead of base-2 as is general today. These were not solely binary coded decimal. Most machines usually had ten vacuum tubes per digit in each register. (Himes, A. 2012) At the end of year 1970, main computer languages were not able to standardize their numeric behavior due to decimal computers had groups of users too big to alienate. Even when designers utilize the binary system, they still had many strange ideas. Some used sign-magnitude arithmetic (-1 = 10001), or ones complement (-1 = 11110), instead of modern twos complement arithmetic (-1 = 11111). Majority computers used 6-bit character sets, due to they moderately encoded Hollerith cards. It was a serious revelation to designers of this period to be aware that the data word should be a multiple of the character size. They started to make computers with 12, 24 and 36 bit data words. (RMI Media Productions. 1979) As opposed to contemporary CPUs which was from the year 1990 until today, the design and growth of the CPU has new execution and levels which makes modern CPU more quicker, small and efficient in comparison to the early designs of CPU. One of the implementation is multi-threading. Present designs perform best when the computer is operating only an application, however almost every current operating-system permit the user to perform several applications at the exact time. For the CPU to alter over and do task on another program needs costly context switching. In comparison, multi-threaded CPUs can manage instructions from several applications at once. To do this, this kind of CPUs involve numerous sets of registers. When a context switch takes place, the contents of the working registers are merely duplicated into one of a set of registers for this intent. This kind of designs usually involve thousands of registers rather than hundreds as in a typical design. On the disadvantage, registers are likely to be somewhat costly in chip space required to implement them. This chip space could otherwise be utilized for some other function. Second implementation is multi-core. Multi-core CPUs are commonly multiple CPU cores on the similar die, linked to each other through a shared L2 or L3 cache, an on-die bus, or an on-die crossbar switch. Every of the CPU cores on the die share interconnect components with which to interface to the other processors and the rest of the system. These components might consist of a front side bus interface, a memory controller to interface with DRAM, a cache coherent connected to other processors, and a non-c oherent connected to the southbridge and I/O devices. The words multi-core and MPU (which is Micro-Processor Unit) have come into common usage for an individual die that consists of multiple CPU cores. Thirdly is very long instruction word(VLIW) and Explicitly Parallel Instruction Computing (EPIC). VLIW relates to a processor architecture made to utilize the advantage of instruction level parallelism (ILP). Whilst conventional processors typically only permit programs that specify instructions to be carried out one after another, a VLIW processor permit programs that can clearly specify instructions to be performed at the exact time (i.e. in parallel). This kind of processor architecture is meant to enable higher performance without the inherent sophistication of some other ways. Intels Itanium chip is based on what they call an EPIC design. This design supposedly offers the VLIW benefit of enhanced instruction throughput. Nevertheless, it prevents some of the problems of scaling an d complexity, by clearly giving in each bundle of instructions information concerning their dependencies. This information is calculated by the compiler, as it would be in a VLIW design. The initial versions are also backward-compatible with existing x86 software by means of an on-chip emulation mode. Integer performance was not good and regardless of enhancements, sales in volume markets continue to be low. One of the earliest CPU was the UNIVAC I (Universal Automatic Computer I) in the year 1951 and the speed of this CPU was 0.0008 IPS (Instructions per second). As in year 2011, one of the fastest personal computer CPUs was the Intel Core i7 Extreme Edition 3960X which has a staggering speed of 53.3 IPS. Compared to the early CPU like the UNIVAC I, the latest CPU is at least sixty-six times faster. (Mostafa, E. and Hesham. 2005) Conclusion for question 1 Central processing unit (CPU) is a very important component in a computer because it process instructions of a computer program by performing the simple arithmetical, logical, and input/output (I/O) operations of the system. That is why CPU also known as the brain of the computer. The CPU has rich in history since the year 1945 before the CPU term had been use and the design and implementation of the CPU had improved tremendously over the years, thus, becoming more powerful and efficient. CPU had been used in various type of computers, from personal computer to super computer. Introduction for question 2 Speaking of computer architecture, a bus is a subsystem that moves data among elements within a computer, or between computers. Initial computer buses were parallel electrical wires with several connections, but the term is now applied for any physical layout that offers the similar logical functionality as a parallel electrical bus. Current computer buses can use both parallel as well as bit serial connections, and can be wired in either a multidrop (electrical parallel) or daisy chain topology, or linked by switched hubs, as in the case of USB. Buses function in units of cycles, messages and transactions. Talking about cycles, a message needs an amount of clock cycles to be delivered from sender to receiver through the bus. Speaking of messages, these are logical unit of information. For instance, a write message contains an address, control signals and the write data. Speaking of transactions, a transaction comprises of a sequence of messages which collectively form a transaction. For instance, a memory read needs a memory read message and a reply with the requested data. (http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/B/bus.html 2007) Answer for question 2 Buses can be parallel buses, which transport data words in parallel on numerous wires, or serial buses, which transport data in bit-serial form. The addition of extra power and control connections, differential drivers, and data connections in every direction generally indicates that mojority serial buses have extra conductors than the minimum of one utilized in 1-Wire and UNI/O. As data rates raise, the issues of timing skew, power usage, electromagnetic interference and crosstalk across parallel buses turn into more and more hard to circumvent. One partial solution to this issue is to double pump the bus. Usually, a serial bus can be worked at greater overall data rates than a parallel bus, regardless of having less electrical connections, due to the fact a serial bus basically has no timing skew or crosstalk. USB, FireWire, and Serial ATA are the likes of this. Multidrop connections will not perform properly for fast serial buses, so most contemporary serial buses utilize daisy-ch ain or hub designs. Traditional computer buses were bundles of wire that linked computer memory and peripherals. Anecdotally termed the digit trunk, they were known as after electrical power buses, or busbars. Almost often, there was single bus for memory, and one or more independent buses for peripherals. These were accessed by separate instructions, with entirely different timings and protocols. (Null, L., Lobur, J. 2006) One of the initial complications was the utilization of interrupts. Early computer programs carry out I/O by holding out in a loop for the peripheral to become prepared. This was a waste of time for program that had other tasks to perform. Also, if the program tried to carry out those other tasks, it may take too long for the program to check again, causing a loss of data. Engineers therefore set up for the peripherals to interrupt the CPU. The interrupts had to be prioritized, simply because the CPU will only perform code for one peripheral at a time, and some systems are more crucial than others. (Lochan, R. and Panigrahy. 2010) High-end systems implemented the plan of channel controllers, which were primarily small computers committed to deal with the input and output of a given bus. IBM implemented these on the IBM 709 in 1958, and they became into a usual feature of their platforms. Other high-performance vendors like Control Data Corporation utilized identical designs. Commonly, the channel controllers would perform their very best to manage all of the bus operations internally, transferring data when the CPU was deemed to be busy elsewhere if likely, and only utilizing interrupts when necessary. This tremendously reduce CPU load, and allows outstanding all round system performance. To provide modularity, memory and I/O buses can be combined into a unified system bus. In this situation, a single mechanical and electrical system can be utilized to link together numerous of the system components, or in some instances, all of them. Later computer programs started to share memory common to some CPUs. Accessi ng to this memory bus needed to be prioritized, as well. The easy method to prioritize interrupts or bus access was with a daisy chain. In this scenario signals will normally pass through the bus in physical or logical order, eliminating of the need for complex scheduling. (Null, L., Lobur, J. 2006) A system bus is an independent computer bus that connects the primary components of a computer system. The method was created to cut down costs and boost modularity. It combines the functions of a data bus to transport information, an address bus to decide where it should be delivered, and a control bus to identify its function. Every mainboard has a set of wires running across it that interconnect all the devices and chips that are lugged into it. These wires are jointly known as bus. The amount of wires in the bus determines how wide the bus is. A data bus is a computer subsystem that enables for the transporting of data from one component to another on a motherboard or system board, or between two computers. This can involve transporting data to and from the memory, or from the central processing unit(CPU) to other components. Every one is made to manage a quantity bits of data at a time. The quantity of data a data bus can deal with is known as bandwidth. The data bus comprises o f 8, 16, or 32 parallel signal lines. The data bus lines are bidirectional. Numerous devices in a system will have their outputs linked to the data bus, but only one device at a time will have its outputs enabled. Any device linked on the data bus must have three-state outputs so that its outputs can be disabled when it is not getting utilized to put data on the bus. An address bus is a computer bus architecture function to transport data between devices that are known by the hardware address of the physical memory (the physical address), which is kept in the form of binary numbers to allow the data bus to access memory storage. The address bus is utilized by the CPU or a direct memory access (DMA) enabled device to find the physical address to convey read/write commands. All address busses are read and written by the CPU or DMA in the form of bits. An address bus is part of the system bus architecture, which was created to reduce costs and improve modular integration. (Ram, B. 2007 ) Nevertheless, majority of current computers use a wide range of single buses for certain tasks. An individual computer consists of a system bus, which links the main components of a computer system and has three primary elements, of which the address bus is one of them, together with the data bus and control bus. An address bus is gauge by the quantity of memory a system can access. A system with a 32-bit address bus can handle 4 gigabytes of memory space. More sophisticated computers utilize a 64-bit address bus with a supporting operating system able to deal with 16 gigabytes of memory locations, which is virtually infinite. A control bus is a computer bus that is utilized by the CPU to interact with devices that are contained inside the computer. This happens via physical connections such as cables or printed circuits. The CPU transfers a wide range of control signals to components and devices to transfer control signals to the CPU making use of the control bus. One of the primary goals of a bus is to reduce the lines that are required for communication. An individual bus enables communication among devices employing single data channel. The control bus is bidirectional and helps the CPU in synchronizing control signals to internal devices and external components. It is made up of interrupt lines, byte enable lines, read/write signals and status lines. Interaction between the CPU and control bus is required for operating an efficient and functional system. With the lack of control bus the CPU unable decide whether the system is obtaining or transmitting data. It is the control bus that manages which way the write and read information need to go. The control bus consists of a control line for write instructions and a control line for read instructions. When the CPU writes data to the main memory, it sends a signal to the write command line. The CPU also transmits a signal to the read command line when it requires to read. This signal allows the CPU to receive or transmit data from main memory. (Ram, B. 2007) Conclusion for question 2 Bus in computer architecture is a very important component in a computer. A bus is a subsystem that moves data among elements within a computer, or between computers. A system bus is an independent computer bus that connects the primary components of a computer system and this method was created to cut down costs and boost modularity. It combines the functions of a data bus to transport information, an address bus to decide where it should be delivered, and a control bus to identify its function. One of the primary goals of a bus is to reduce the lines that are required for communication.

Myths and Legends of Japan :: essays research papers

Myths and Legends of Japan Japan has many myths believed to be true by the Japanese culture. Such as: "You can tell a person's character from their blood type". The Japanese creation myth starts off with brother and sister gods Izanagi and Izanani. They dipped a spear into the churning sea and when they pulled it out the drops that fell on the water surface became the islands of Japan. Next the sun goddess Amaterasu, was created and was soon sent to heaven to rule over the world. She some time ago left the universe in darkness and chaos. Amaterasu sent her grandson to calm Japan, giving him the sacred mirror, sword, and jewel, which became imperial motifs. In Japanese mythology there are a lot of things that can make up a myth. Japanese myths frequently include serpents in them. There are tales of woman turning into snakes. Not all myths are about snakes. But most of the time when people think about Japanese mythology, they might think of snakes because they are so closely connected with the Japanese myths ordinarily. There are two different types of snake women; ones that are evil are ones that are good. One closely related story to the snake woman is that there is a palace under the sea at the very depth: â€Å" A snake woman lives there who is believed to be the daughter of the sea god. Any man who goes down and meets her there she marries and she takes good care of them. When the man has to return to his world she gives him special powers or wealth. There is a story of a snake woman that every Japanese school child knows. It starts with a young boy fishing one night and catches a multicolored turtle and he brings it home. The next morning he wakes up, not to see the turtle but a beautiful woman in place of it. He is then asked by the snake woman to come down to the sea and live with him. He lives with her for three years and he gets homesick so he asks the snake woman if he can return home. She says yes and gives him a box and she says if you want to come back down and live with me again then you cannot open the box. The turtle then guides him back to his village.