Response paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Response paper - Essay Example Although the demise of the Aztec empire opened up the New World for European settlers, it is a tragic event when seen from the viewpoint of the natives. Their millennia long indigenous culture and civilization was abruptly and most violently cut short by the foreign conquest. In my opinion, rather than merely being a historical fact, this tragic facet to this historical episode should serve as a warning for contemporary politicians and policymakers, and make them realize that greedy ventures lead to humanitarian losses. I would like them to understand that while Spain and later European contingencies benefited from this conquest, from broader perspective humanity was the loser. Another aspect of the book I was most impressed with is its objectivity. Although author Miguel Leon-Portilla was trained in western scholarly tradition, his analysis and presentation does not betray this fact. At the same time, the empathy shown toward the disadvantaged Aztecs is matter of fact and not melodramatic. In this regard I like the subaltern approach adopted by the author in constructing history. I appreciate this book for features such as these. The extensive research conducted by the author is also quite impressive. Not only did he peruse primary sources for gathering evidence (which are in indigenous Aztec language), he also gives numerous cross references for further study, which is useful for college students like me. The detailed list of bibliographical entries at the end of the book is another handy feature. As I read through the book, I was able to appreciate the effort that went into researching this book. For example, previous to this work there was scarce scholarship on pre-Columbian culture in Mexico and the Americas. This book fills that void that its value cannot be overstated. The author also succeeds in bringing lots

Gender-role in Advertisement Essay Example for Free

Gender-role in Advertisement Essay This paper explores gender-role in modern advertisement. Sample modern-day advertisements will be analyzed in relation to gender-roles. Gender-role refers to a person’s way of actions and thinking that is identified as either related to male or female characteristics (Haig, 2004). It is a set of expectations on how females or males should think, behave, and feel. It is in the adolescence stage that male and females start to define their roles while their gender is intensified by conformity to transitional gender-roles in during puberty (Hill Lynch, 1983), which indirectly signals that they begin to act in ways that resemble the stereotypic female or male of their culture (Huston Alvarez, 1990). In addition to the demands of work and changing trends in the society and the increased number of employed mothers in the mid twentieth century, adolescents exposure to the media is considered to have a possible impact on their attitudes and perceptions about gender relationships, identity formation, and gender-roles (ODonnell ODonnell, 1978; Durkin, 1986; Lovdal, 1989; Richards Duckett, 1994; Dietz, 1998; Hovland et al. , 2005). The effects of advertisements to the perpetuation of gender-role stereotypes have received considerable importance in research and it has been debated whether it stereotyped advertisements have long term or short term impact on people’ own gender-role and whether advertisements with stereotypic portrayals gain more profit or does not have significant influence in people’s buying behavior at all. Effects of media in gender-role There are many factors that that affect gender-role development and the media is considered to be one (Golombok Fivush, 1994; Durkin, 1995). Dietz (1998) asserted that the media, in addition to environmental or social factors, affects people’s perception of gender-roles. The impact of advertising on audiences is often explained by social learning theory or by theories that are based on it. The argument is that, as people are repeatedly exposed to advertising images, they tend to internalize the advertisers views of themselves and others. The more ubiquitous the images are in advertisements, and the more frequently they see the advertisements, the deeper the audience identifies with the images. In addition to social learning theory (Bandura, 1977), framing research or frame analysis, introduced Goffman (1974), was used to obtain empirical evidence regarding the effects of media portrayals in people’s thoughts and consciousness. Framing assumes that the media frame reality is used to explain how people perceive and think about gender-roles because of the things they see and experience. Framing is used as a remedy sort in selecting a particular aspect of a perceived reality in order to emphasize, convey, or interpret something. However, framing may directly or indirectly influence people’s judgments on recognizing ideas presented in advertisements (Entman, 1993). Another issue on the effects of media is identified by Mead (1962) in his theory, arguing that individuals’ characterizations in the media affect children’s attitudes, relationships with other people, and behavior expectations. When traditional feminine or masculine roles become distinctive and children starts to identify with a particular gender-role, they are likely to expect specific characteristics and behaviors from females and males. Gender-role stereotyping negatively affects young individuals’ attitudes towards males and females since traditional portrayals of women are usually portrayed as dependent, obtaining approval from family and males, weak, victims, supportive of mens roles, sex objects, and adornment rather than individuals (Hall, Iijima Crum 1994; Artz, Munger, Purdy, 1999). As a result, these negative or substandard characteristics of women adversely affect children’s perception that women may ever find it difficult to attain gender equality and function as effective as men do in the society. This female portrayal restricts young females to think of achieving beyond their potential because many attributes, activities and traits are being designated as inappropriate for their gender (Dietz, 1998). Traditional stereotyped gender-role portrayals in advertisements Most advertisements portrayed both males and females stereotypically. Since 1950s, significant changes in gender-roles have occurred as the division of labor has become less distinctive and the entry of increased number of women into the workforce where professional positions, which were used to be exclusively for men, have opened opportunity for them to progress. Images of men and women in advertising in the early times have been heavily stereotyped. Men were depicted as independent, active, assertive, work-oriented while women were portrayed as dependent, passive, and domestic. Advertisements in the 1970s to 1980s continued to portray gender-stereotyping due to the difficulty of presenting people without specific gender-roles, especially when advertising specific products of particular gender. The strategies of advertisers in attracting people’s intentions and behaviors were more likely to favor gender-stereotyped representation since the public was more familiar and comfortable with gender-stereotyped advertisements (Morrison Shaffer, 2003). Gender portrayals in the context of advertisements were found to be predominantly stereotypic with dominant males and nurturing females in the mass media, music, film, as well as the print media. Although changes in the society and culture have been apparent, advertisements still rely upon women’s roles as subordinate. Women’s subordination was a useful tool in selling a wide variety of products such as alcohol, medicine, cigarettes, perfume, and vehicles. Constant exposure to derogatory portrayals of females in advertisements may result to socially induced depression and lowered levels of aspirations in achieving ones goals. Women portrayal as subordinates has been consistently practiced and presented in advertising until today although some changes and reversions have been observed (Mclaughlin Goulet, 1999). Advertisements usually portray men as being strong who are expected to have jobs that require much physical strength. They are portrayed as being the authority, dominant, having higher intelligence, becoming public figures, belonging to upper-middle class, being able to take medicine, law or business courses, aggressive, and sometimes gentlemen or bad guys. At home, men are portrayed to use car wax, auto parts, carpentry tools, motor oil, and lawn mowers. Women are rarely depicted as professionals in advertisements (Dietz, 1998). When women in advertisements are presented as professionals or experts in the products they advertise, they are often backed up by male figure or an authoritative male voice-over to strengthen the efficiency of convincing the audience since males were viewed as the authority (Lovdal, 1989). In traditional male magazines (e. g. , Esquire and Field Stream), gender-role stereotyped advertisements that portrayed men with masculine or manly activities have not decreased as much as the traditional female and general interest magazines. Although there have been some trends toward less stereotypic portrayals of masculine images in some print media advertisements, the traditional stereotype of the male gender still provides cultural representation (Furnham Thomson, 1999) Women are stereotypicly depicted in relation to beauty, physical attraction, family, domestic responsibilities, parenting, occupations such as teacher, waitress, masseur, bride, actress, secretary, vendor, household cleaners, maid, model, guest relations officer, and the like, as well as negative representation like evil, witch, possessions of men, passive, deferent, object for men’s pleasure. At home, women are portrayed to take care of every member, do all the chores, and maintaining relationships. They are often portrayed as supportive wives, mothers, sex objects, dependents, lack exploration, skills, knowledge, credibility, self-expression, and sense of mastery. Advertisers market products in magazines, like in television, using young, professional women as a product of beauty techniques and methods in order to attract and keep handsome, lucrative, and sophisticated men. Comic strips and children’s books also continued to adopt and support traditional portrayals of women in the society. For instance, illustrations show traditional female activities or a situation in which there is a dutiful wife in the bathroom or kitchen wearing an apron to model cleaning products, kitchen wares and appliances or food (Dietz, 1998; Peirce, 2001).

Batch Reactor As A Plant Engineering Essay

Batch Reactor As A Plant Engineering Essay What is a plant unit. All Equipment that make up a plant can be divided into 3 different categories or levels, the highest being the Plant as a whole, then the plant units and the lowest are the plant items. While the actual plant performs an overall production, the Plant unit refers to the main components of a Plant which perform a major production function of the Plant and without which the Plant can not continue its operations. A Plant unit is made up of items but it can be replaced as a whole (Anthony Kellyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦) In this Plant, the Batch Reactor receives raw materials from the raw material storage, processes them for a certain amount of time then transfers them to the centrifuge feed vessel. From the above diagram, it is obvious that the Batch Reactor is a major component of the plant and from its function it is seen that the reactor must process the raw material for progress to be made to the next stage of production. I am therefore concluding this as my explanation as to why the Batch reactor is a plant unit. Explain Your Reasons For Concluding That This Unit Is Critical For Production. Several Factors determine how critical a piece of equipment is to production. They include: Will the Equipment affect safety in the plant? Will the Equipment not working cause downtime in the plant? How easily can the Equipment be maintained? What is the cost of this maintenance? What is the current situation of the Equipment? (Paul Wheelhouse) Now each of the factors can be used to examine the Batch Reactor and after which an educated decision can be made. The Batch Reactor affects the safety in the plant because its function involves the heating of chemicals under pressure and its failure might cause the leakage of these chemicals or at the worst lead to an explosion in the Plant. If the Batch Reactor was to stop working, there would be prolonged downtime until it is fixed; this is due to the fact that the Reactor performs a major function in the Plant without which further production would come to a halt. The Batch Reactor is made up of a number of different items, some of which can be run-to-failure, but for the most an established schedule of maintenance must be made for. Without such a schedule, maintenance would be most difficult to carry out. The cost of maintaining the Batch Reactor may vary but if is not properly attended to; one fault might lead to another even bigger one so the cost of maintaining might increase. The items in the Batch Reactor have a life plan which is currently not being kept to; this means the Equipment requires monitoring to avoid random failure or prolonged breakdown and downtime. On the account of the above facts, it is my belief that the Batch Reactor needs to be labelled as critical. Extract Any User Requirements For This Designated Unit From The Plant Description. Are There Any Production Windows? What are User requirements? This simply refers to the specifications that are inbuilt in a piece of equipment so that it might be able to fulfil the end users needs according to those tasks which it is used to perform. In line with the plant description given on this particular Batch Reactor, a number of user requirements can be ascertained and these are listed below: To receive 18te of raw materials from the raw material storage. To remain sealed and heat its contents through a preset temperature / time profile by use of a temperature control system consisting of a thermocouple in a temperature pocket, a temperature controller and a control valve. That the control valve regulates the supply of low pressure steam. That its temperature alarm signal when the temperature exceeds 1250C. That all safety relief valves work in event of an increase of temperature past the safety limit of 1250C. That the bottom run off valve opens when the operation is complete and releases the contents from the Batch reactor to the centrifuge feed vessel by the discharge pump. That the operation lasts 10 hours only. What is a production window? This is a period during production in which maintenance procedures can be carried out without causing a halt in production. With emphasis on the Batch reactor it can be seen that there is a production window and this can be explained below. While the batch reactor makes 18te of product every 10 hours, the centrifuge processes this product at a rate of 1.5te an hour i.e. it would have completely used up the 18te of product in 12 hours. Since it takes 10 hours for the batch reactor to work, this would give a 2 hour production window in which it can be properly maintained. Also depending on the capacity of the centrifuge storage vessel, it is possible for the batch reactor to work overtime filling this feed vessel up and then be switched off and maintained while the centrifuge is operated using the previously stored produce in the centrifuge feed vessel. Extract Any Corporate Requirements for This Unit From The Plant Description. What are corporate requirements? These are the requirements which the upper management or Business sector of the company running plant desire from its industrial operations in order to make a suitable return on its investments (ROI). From the plant description the following corporate requirements can be made below: That its keeps to its scheduled annual shutdown period of 16 hours during week 40 each year. That all maintenance pertaining to the batch reactor abides by the permit to work system which controls all maintenance activities. That the batch reactor achieves a 25 year life and that the gearboxes achieve a 15 year life as well. That the batch reactor remains well-painted, clean and tidy at all times. Extract Any Legislative Requirements for This Unit From The Plant Description. What are legislative requirements? These are Plant requirements made by the Law, rules or regulations or the Country in which the Plant operates. They must be implemented in order for the plant to avoid sanctions or being shut down. In this particular plant description they include: That the Batch Reactor abides by the rules by the FDA and British pharmaceutical Society put in place for their license holders. All production and maintenance activities involving the Batch reactor comply with the Good Manufacturing practise (GMP). That the processes involving the Batch Reactor are as okayed by the quality standard ISO 9002. That the batch reactor conforms to the environmental standard ISO14000. That if used by the Pharmaceutical inspection team, the batch reactor must pass any risk-based inspections based on a DNV methodology that might be carried out. Comment On If Some of The tasks Designed For Shutdown Could be Done During Production Windows Or When The Plant Is Online. Could Any Of These Tasks Be Designated For Completion During Production Windows Be Completed Online? We have previous explained what production windows are and when a Plant is online refers to when the plant is carrying its usual operational procedures. From the work done previously in section 1.3, we now know that there is a definite 2 hour production window during which the batch reactor can be maintained while the centrifuge is working. In looking at the life plan for the batch reactor unit, there are a certain amount of tasks that could be done in 2 hours and should be moved from shut down to production window, these are: The replacement of the trim of the CV1 every 2 years. The pressure testing and inspection of the SV1 every 6 years. The visual check of the Agitator every 6 years. The SV2 pressure testing and inspection every 6 years. There is only one task put to be completed when there is a production window and it can be done while the Plant is online. This is the weekly visual check on the Agitator coupling, because if it is checked while online it might lead to the location of which wouldnt have being seen if the equipment was offline. Analyse The Recorded Jobs From The Computer Maintenance Management System (CMMS) For This Unit. Is There Any Evidence Which Confirms That The Life Plan Is Being Carried out? Is There Any Evidence To Say If The Life Plan Is Effective Or Not? What is a Life plan? All plant units or manufacturing stages in production are designed to have a certain life. To fulfil this, maintenance plans are put in place to achieve this expected equipment life and if possible, to exceed it. These maintenance plans are called Life plans. (Wheelhouse, 2008) On comparing the life plan of the batch reactor to the computer maintenance management system (CMMS) it can be seen that the life plan isnt being carried out. This is due to the factor that there is a remarkable difference between the standard time taken to maintain every single unit item in the reactor and the actual time the job was done in hours, meaning the maintenance done cannot be adequately planned for and could lead to excessive downtime. It can be seen that for this singular reason the life plan of the batch reactor is not capable of being effective. Use The Figures, Plant Description And The Data From The CMMS To Analyse The Unit Into Its Maintenance Causing Items. Using the figure 1 shown previously and the figure 2 shown directly above as well as the Life plan and the CMMS, the maintenance causing items can be broken down as done bel Batch Chemical Reactor CV1 Agitator Coupling Temperature controller Gearbox Motor bearing Oil seal Agitator Trim Agitator gear box Reactor Vessel Temperature sensor Pump Motor Pump bearing SV1 SV2 P1 V1 Vessel Jacket Figure 3: The Maintenance Causing Items in a Batch Chemical Reactor Develop your own life plan for these maintenance causing items using the task selection logic for Reliability Centred Maintenance. RCM WORK SHEET SYSTEM: CHEMICAL PLANT SUB-SYSTEM: BATCH CHEMICAL REACTOR SUB- SYSTEM FUNCTION FUNTIONAL FAILURE FAILURE MODE FAILURE EFFECT CRITICALITY RESPONSE TIME FREQUENCY CV1 Regulates supply of low Pressure steam Unable to supply Steam at all. Supplies Inadequate steam Faulty Trim Absence or insufficient Supply of steam High Replace trim 3 hrs 2 yearly (Production window) Agitator Motor Gearbox Transmit motion to the Agitator Fails to transmit motion To the Agitator. Broken seal Shortage of lubrication Damaged bearings Worn gear teeth Oil leakage Damage to gearbox Medium Monitor vibrations and check oil seal and condition. 2 hrs (vibration monitoring), 12 mins oil inspection Monthly Vibrations, Daily oil seal checks (Online) Agitator Coupling Connects Agitator motor gearbox to Agitator for motion transmission Doesnt transmit motion From gearbox to agitator. Transmits inadequate Motion. Slackness in fitting Doesnt give agitator The necessary Transmitted motion. Medium Tighten coupling as required. 6 mins Daily (online) Temperature Controller Controls the temperature making sure it doesnt exceed 1250 C Unable to read the correct temperature. Faulty temperature sensor . Increase or reduction of reactor temperature on wrong information. High Recalibrate temperature sensor. 2 hrs 2 year (Production window) SV1 Releases the pressure steam in the vessel during times of alert. Unable to release excess pressure steam Blockage at valve outlet. Crack in valve Pressure steam is not released properly or in time. High Inspect, pressure test and recondition if necessary. 3 hrs 6 yearly (Shutdown) SV2 Releases excess steam in the jacket in times of alert Unable to release excess steam Blockage at valve outlet. Crack in valve Pressure steam is not released properly or in time. High Inspect, pressure test and recondition if necessary 3 hrs Yearly (Production window) Agitator Shakes, stirs mixes the raw materials in the reactor. Unable to stir or mix Raw materials. Damaged blades Eroded surface Raw materials are not mixed properly. Medium Recoat or replace as necessary. 3 hrs Re-coat or replace as necessary.(Shutdown) Jacket Maintain its integrity and contain raw materials during processing. Leakage of materials during processing. Damaged or eroded Parts. Contents leak out causing contamination. High Pressure test and repair as necessary. 5 hrs Yearly (Shutdown) V1 Releases processed material to P1 pump Processed materials not released Leakage of material during release Blockage at valve outlet Crack in valve Contents not released properly. Contents leak out causing contamination. High Leak test and repair if necessary. 15 mins Daily test (Online) P1 Transfer processed materials from reactor to centrifuge feed vessel Leaks material Unable to pump materials at all. Pumps materials at Wrong rate. Replace seal if necessary. Replace pump if necessary. Contents leak. Contents not pumped properly High Condition monitoring Replace seal if necessary Replace pump if necessary. 1.5 hrs (Condition Monitoring) 4 mins (Leak test) Monthly condition Monitoring (Online), Daily leak checks (online) Figure 1.4: Life Plan using RCM logic. Compare and contrast between your Life plan with the one described previously, comment on any similarities and differences. There are a number of ways in which my Life plan differs from the one previously given but there are also ways in which both are similar. Some of them are as listed below: To begin, the first detail that can be noticed when comparing both life plans is that since I used the RCM selection logic, my life plan carries much more details as I included the functions, functional failures, failure modes, failure effect and criticality of each subsystem or item. This will be particularly useful in settling up priorities as the criticality of each subsystem is set at low, medium or high depending on the considerations of safety, performance and impact of the subsystem or item on the rest of the plant. I brainstormed and added more failure modes and their activities than had being previously discovered or had activities planned for in the previous life plan so as to further prepare maintenance personnel to be able to tackle these failures if and when they do occur. I changed the time frame for certain activities to take into consideration the new 2 hour production window that was discovered earlier. This will help reduce the amount tasks that are done during a shutdown and therefore cut down the downtime which the plant undergoes. I increased the amount of time to be used to accomplish most tasks due to the fact that in the previous life plan, insufficient time was allocated to these tasks so therefore they couldnt be planned or executed properly within the targets set for them. Now in terms of similarities, I observed that the preventive maintenance and condition monitoring carried out on the Batch Reactor had ensured breakdowns were kept to a minimum so bearing this in mind, I retained all the activities from the old life plan and continued using them for the various items. I also continued to carry out maintenance activities at the same frequency that was mapped out in the old life plan as I believe that the punctuality with which activities were carried out improved the reliability of the equipment. CHAPTER 2 Describe The Philosophy of Total Productive Maintenance. What is TPM? Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) refers to a management system for optimizing the productivity of manufacturing equipment through systematic equipment maintenance involving employees at all levels.   Under TPM, everyone is involved in keeping the equipment in good working order to minimize production losses from equipment repairs, assists, set-ups, and the like. (http://www.siliconfareast.com/tpm.htm). The goal of TPM is to increase production while at the same time boosting employee morale and job satisfaction. (Venkatesh. J) This is possible because there would be less downtime as TPM is carried out by the Operators on the items or machinery which they use as they, the maintainers and Designers work as a team towards the total elimination of equipment defects in the Plant (Paul Wheelhouse). History of TPM TPM is a Japanese idea that can be traced back to 1951 when preventive maintenance was introduced into Japan from the USA. Nippondenso, part of Toyota, was the first company in Japan to introduce plant wide preventive maintenance in 1960. In preventive maintenance operators produced goods using machines and the maintenance group was dedicated to the work of maintaining those machines. However with the high level of automation of Nippondenso, maintenance became a problem as so many more maintenance personnel were now required. So the management decided that the routine maintenance of equipment would now be carried out by the operators themselves. This is known as Autonomous maintenance, one of the features of TPM. The maintenance group then focussed only on maintenance works for upgrades. For pioneering TPM, Nippondenso became the 1st company to receive TPM certification (wikipedia). Why Use TPM? For TPM to be used in an Organisation, everyone from senior management to the operators on the floor must be carried along and made to understand why this particular system is being used. For this to happen effectively, the Motives, Objectives and benefits must be fully stated out and properly absorbed. The table below gives a generic illustration: Motives of TPM Adoption of life cycle approach for improving the overall performance of production equipment. Improving productivity by highly motivated workers which is achieved by job enlargement. The use of voluntary small group activities for identifying the cause of failure, possible plant and equipment modifications. Uniqueness of TPM The major difference between TPM and other concepts is that the operators are also made to involve in the maintenance process. The concept of I (Production operators) Operate, You (Maintenance department) fix is not followed. TPM Objectives Achieve Zero Defects, Zero Breakdown and Zero accidents in all functional areas of the organization. Involve people in all levels of organization. Form different teams to reduce defects and Self Maintenance. Direct benefits of TPM Increase productivity and OPE (Overall Plant Efficiency ) by 1.5 or 2 times. Rectify customer complaints. Reduce the manufacturing cost by 30%. Satisfy the customers needs by 100 % (Delivering the right quantity at the right time, in the required quality.) Reduce accidents. Follow pollution control measures. Indirect benefits of TPM Higher confidence level among the employees. Keep the work place clean, neat and attractive. Favourable change in the attitude of the operators. Achieve goals by working as team. Horizontal deployment of a new concept in all areas of the organization. Share knowledge and experience. The workers get a feeling of owning the machine. Figure 4 .TPM table Source: An Introduction to Total Productive Maintenance (Venkatesh. J) For TPM to start properly, the OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) should be calculated and a loss analysis performed to give both a baseline for continuous upgrading and ascertain the improvement priorities. This will allow the operator/core maintenance team to prioritize and then tackle the 6 classic losses of: Breakdowns Set-ups and changeovers Running at reduced speeds Minor stops and idling Quality defects, scrap, yield and rework Starting up losses The above losses add to the direct costs. Implementation of TPM attacks these and other direct (visible) costs as well as indirect (hidden) costs and follows each step in the production and supply chain from Management to the human resources to the Machine to the process, then to suppliers and finally to the customers (Willmott and McCarthy). Components of TPM Figure 4: Pillars of TPM Source: An Introduction to Total Productive Maintenance (Venkatesh. J) As shown above, TPM is made up of 8 main aspects which when combined present the full TPM package. They are: The 5 S which are primarily the foundation of TPM and involve organising the workplace. These are sorting, systematising, sweeping, standardising and self-discipline. Autonomous maintenance which refers to the operators handling most or in cases all of the maintenance concerning the machines which they operate. Kobetsu Kaizen means small improvements or changes for the better of the organisation. Planned maintenance entails scheduled maintenance which is done to ensure trouble free machines and equipments producing defect free products for total customer satisfaction. Quality maintenance is aimed at providing customer satisfaction by providing the highest quality through defect free manufacturing. Training to give employees a multi skilled edge. Office TPM to ensure administrative efficiency as well. Safety, health and environmental awareness to ensure zero accidents, zero health damages and zero fires (Venkatesh. J). Describe a Case Study Where TPM has been successfully applied The case study which I wish to use is that of RHP Bearings. This RHP Bearings branch which is in Blackburn, manufactures cast iron bearing housings for a variety of uses from agricultural machinery to fairground rides, and is one of seven RHP manufacturing sites in Europe owned by Japanese group NSK, the worlds second largest bearings manufacturer. How TPM was carried out. NSK acquired RHP in 1990, when the Blackburn site was under the imminent threat of closure because of high costs and the subsequent lack of competitiveness. Employing a staff of 93, TPM was then introduced to the site in 1993 but it didnt see much success till 1996 due to the fact that the earlier efforts to drive TPM had been largely theoretical and the workforce faded to see its relevance to the everyday running of the plant. In 1996 a maintenance company was brought in to do a scoping study of the plant, conduct a workshop and support two pilot TPM projects. The Plant Manager and the TPM facilitator then began to implement measures to ensure TPM was made directly relevant to the jobs of the staff. Operators were sent off to climb over their machines and log problems through a detailed condition appraisal, to establish a foundation for future TPM improvements. TPM was piloted on two key machines, the PGM core making machine in the foundry and the Shiftnal sphering machine in the machine shop, using a detailed seven-step TPM implementation programme: Collection and calculation of Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) Data Assessing the six losses Criticality assessment and condition appraisal Risk assessment Refurbishment plan Asset care and best practice routines Regular review for problem solving TPM is applied to machines of all ages from new to 30 years old, ensuring that older machinery is brought up to modern specification and newer machinery is kept in as-new condition. The TPM was applied at the site by 9 different equipment teams focusing on specific machinery and involving 60% of the workforce. These teams included operators, maintainers, quality technicians and group leaders also drawing on help from personnel with specialist skills when necessary. Each Team developed a standard routine for their respective machines using: Autonomous Maintenance System (AMS) boards which show a schematic of the machine then tags with labels to show losses affecting availability, performance and quality. These labels are then used to generate TPM agendas for team meetings. TPM step notices which illustrate the machines progress in TPM seven step programme. Mainpac database which is used to gather machine performance details and calculate the OEE. Key performance indicators which the teams use to accesses their improvement and progress in areas of waste sand, Gas emissions, Kaizen, Customer returns, lost time incidents, injurious accidents, Audit and product conformance. Each team then has an activity board covering subjects such as milestone activities and previous days conformance result among others. To ensure TPM succeeded, Teams had to dedicate substantial time to carrying out laid down activities and held meetings as needed. Benefits of TPM Implementing TPM had both direct and indirect effect on the production system a combination of which generated major savings at RHP, Blackburn. Major Site-wide benefits were scored in the following areas: à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬400,000 running costs saved Unit cost reduced by 21% Scrap reduced by 8% Attracting increased capital investment currently at 15% of turnover and Customer returns reduced by 11% Increased customer satisfaction Improved safety record Environmental and quality awards Improvement in staff morale The two key machines (The Shiftnal sphering and the PGM core making machine) also had major total cost saving OEE improvements as well as other time saving and cost reduction achievements making the TPM well worth it (Willmott and McCarthy). Reliability Centred Maintenance (RCM) As Applied in a Section of a Plant What is RCM? RCM is a method for developing and selecting maintenance alternatives based on safety, operational and economical criteria. RCM employs a system perspective in its analyses of system functions, failures of functions and prevention of these functions (Jones, R.B). So RCM requires in-depth of the machinery, detailing all logic problems and their maintenance solutions and as such can be quite time consuming, for this reason it is usually used only on the critical equipment. The use of RCM methodology requires that 7 questions be answered: What are the functions of the Asset? What are the functional failures? What causes the functional failures? What happens when the failure occurs? How much does each failure matter? Can we predict or prevent failure and should we be doing so? How should we manage the failure if prediction or prevention is not an option?(Paul Wheelhouse) Now in order to answer the above questions, a System analysis process is used to begin RCM on any section of the plant. This System process will implement several steps, all of which define and characterize RCM and will methodically delineate the information required for the maintenance: Step 1. System selection and Information collection: Taking decisions as to what level of the plant at which to do the RCM and also choosing this system or section based on criticality i.e. based on function and impact on plant and environment. Step 2. System Boundary Definition: This involves creating an accurate list of what is or is not part of the section so an accurate list of components can identified and to establish what comes in and what leaves the System(IN and OUT interfaces). This is necessary to ensure the accuracy of the Systems analysis process. Step 3. System description and functional Block diagram: This is used to identify and document the essential details of a system that are needed to perform the remaining steps in a thorough and technical fashion. The five separate items are developed in this step: System Description Functional Block Diagram IN/OUT interfaces System Component list Equipment history Step 4. System Functions and Functional failures: involves classifying each OUT interface of the system into its functions and identifying the failures which might hinder these functions. Step 5. Failure Mode and Effect analysis (FMEA): involves analyzing each component failure to discover which have the potential to disruption their function and then detailing what exactly these effects could be. This is done using functional failure-equipment matrix. Step 6. Logic (Decision) Tree Analysis (LTA): the failure modes which pass through effects analysis will now go through this process. The purpose of this step is to further prioritize the emphasis and resources that should be devoted to each failure mode on the basis that all Authority (TVA). TVA is a power production plant wholly owed by the US government and equipment, functions and failures are not the same. The LTA identifies the failure modes in 3 aspects: Safety Downtime Economics (Finance) Step 7. Task selection: In this step, applicable maintenance tasks which are most effective to combat the detailed failure modes are listed, at the same time decisions on whether to run-to-failure or design out

Works of Howard Phillips Lovecraft Essay -- Howard Phillips Lovecraft

Works of Howard Phillips Lovecraft It is morning on August 20, 1890 and the world of literature is about to change, though it will not understand just how much so for decades. It is on this morning that a precocious child, Howard Phillips Lovecraft, is born. Lovecraft would begin his writing career at the tender age of six with his short story â€Å"The Noble Eavesdropper†. He would grow up to be well read and well learned (he was producing scientific journals for his friends at age nine), despite never finishing high school (Joshi para 1- 4). Now, nearly three quarters of a century after his death, he still influences the genres of horror, science fiction, and fantasy. His influence can be felt in the creations of Robert Bloch (Psycho), Stephen King (The Dark Half, et al), Neil Gaiman (Sandman, The Day I Sold My Dad for Two Fish), and Alan Moore (Watchmen, From Hell). (Wikipedia: Lovecraft para 1-2) How can one man influence so many, and not just in the genres of fiction? A simple internet search will reveal site after site devoted to the works of HP Lovecraft, the creatures of his creation, and the mysterious Necronomicon. This last is especially interesting as many of those sites recount the significance of this tome to magical and spiritual endeavors. In fact, books claiming to be English translations can be purchased online and in bookstores. It is, of course, purely fictitious. The writer of the tome, one Abdul Alhazred, was a name that Lovecraft had created at the age of five because of his fascination with Arabian Nights. (Straub 831) So what is it about his works that they have such an effect that people would believe a work of fiction to be real? Could he indeed be a conduit of greater myster... ...e faith. Bibliography Fonda, Marc. â€Å"Fonda’s Jung Notes: Summary of Jung’s Psychology.† Notes on CG Jung. 8 December 1996. 6 December 2005. Joshi, S.T. â€Å"Howard Phillips Lovecraft: The Life of a Gentleman of Providence.† The HP Lovecraft Archive. 13 April 2004. 6 December 2005. â€Å"Lovecraft’s Influence In Popular Culture from: Lovecraft.† WikiPedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 5 December 2005. 6 December 2005. Lowell, Mark. â€Å"Lovecraft’s CTHULHU MYTHOS.† Explicator Fall 2004. 6 December 2005. Database: Academic Search Premier. P 48 â€Å"Monomyth.† WikiPedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 6 December 2005. 6 December 2005. Straub, Peter ed. HP Lovecraft: Tales. New York: Literary Classics of the United States, 2005. pg 831 and text quotations for â€Å"The Thing on the Doorstep†

Advantage and Disadvantage of Offshore Outsource

Benefit of the Offshore Outsource 1) Improve the customer service Using high-quality specialist external providers can allow companies to capitalize on their strengths and, indirectly, help to improve customers’ experience of using such companies’ products or services. External providers can help a company’s competitiveness by delivering greater flexibility and responsiveness than would be available in-house. 2) Swiftness and Expertise Most of the times tasks are outsourced to vendors who specialize in their field.The outsourced vendors also have specific equipment, technical expertise, better experience and skills. Most of the times better than the ones at the outsourcing company. Effectively the tasks can be completed faster and with better quality output. 3) Concentrating on core process rather than the supporting ones Outsourcing the supporting processes gives the company more time to strengthen their core business process. The company will have more time to put more effort, develop ideas and plan the strategies on the core business activity. ) Risk-sharing Usually the main factors to outsource the company is risk-analysis. Outsourcing certain business activity process helps the company to shift certain responsibilities to the outsourced vendor. Since the outsourced vendor is a specialist, they plan your risk-mitigating factors better and recommend several method to improve the operations. 5) Reduced Operational and Recruitment costs Outsourcing prevent the need to hire individuals in-house; hence recruitment and operational costs can be decreased to a great extent.This is one of the prime advantages of offshore outsourcing to make the company operation cost-effective. The Disadvantages/ Weaknees of Offshore Outsourcing Even though offshore outsourcing gives advantage mainly on cutting the cost site but the other way offshore outsourcing sometimes bring disadvantage to the company. A company must identify what is the risk to offshore ou tsourcing to avoid loss. The disadvantage are : 1) Loss of the managerial control Once a company sign a contract to outsource all or several part of the department, the company are turning the managerial function to other company.The managerial control will belong to the different company and its function will not be driven by the same standards and mission of the main company. The outcource company will only focus on how to gain profit rather than to meets the main objective of the management. 2) Loss of gain knowledge and information When a company outsourcing the business activity, the company will loss the opportunity to get knowledge and information that could benefit other company. Knowledge provide competitive advantage to sustain the strengthness of the company.As a result, when a business activity been given to the other company, the company will have more skills, knowledge regarding to manage the activity. 3) Threat to security and company secret Data and information relat ed to the company will given to the outsource company for the operation matter. The information can be threat to the company because the other company can use the information to compete with our company. Most of the outsource company their goals are only to make more profit rather than to follow the objective oforiginal company.At the end, both of the company compete each other to conquer the market. 4) Quality problem The outsourcing company will be motivated by profit. Since the contract will fix the price, the only way for them to increase profit will be to decrease expenses. As long as they meet the conditions of the contract, you will pay. In addition, you will lose the ability to rapidly respond to changes in the business environment. The contract will be very specific and you will pay extra for changes.

Law Enforcement Agencies Critical Issues Essay

There are many different ways law enforcement agencies fight crime and solve them. The continuous usage of technology is one of those major ways. Law enforcement agencies uses different technologies that are needed depending on the situation and the outcome of it. Some examples of technology that police use Today are GPS systems(global positioning systems), cellphones, surveillance equipment, communication systems, license plate readers, and mobile computer systems that have features such as WiFi, video, etc. The GPS system is used to track down a certain location or to reach a destination. The GPS system is very common in law enforcement agencies. For example, if a car is stolen or a criminal is on the run and it has a GPS system in it, the officers can use this device to track the car down. The GPS will give the current location of the car which would help officers to find the victim and follow them. Officers also use the GPS system to locate another patrol car. Cellphones is anoth er popular device law enforcement uses. Cellphones can be used in numerous ways during any situation. For example, if a teenage girl is kidnapped but is able to still use her cellphone to call nine one one, officers can try to trace her call. By tracing the call, it will be able to give off a location or give a close range of the location to help find the girl. Another popular technical device law enforcement agencies use is surveillance equipment. Surveillance equipment is used to watch and keep track of a individual or a place and their activities. For example, if a drug dealer is going out everyday to sell drugs and officers need proof of that to convict him or her, they will use the surveillance equipment to take pictures, videos, etc. They may use a special kind of camera to get the pictures they need and take them to court to use for evidence. By using these devices, it will help to enhance law enforcement agencies by assisting them to help bring criminals down. It  improves the efficiency and effectiveness of how law enforcement reacts to a situation and how quickly. Over the years, law enforcement agencies have dealt with a lot of criticism when it comes to officers using their firearms. In some cases, after being involved in a shooting, officers are thoroughly investigated to find out why and how the shooting happened. Because of this, officers now have the opportunity to use less-than-lethal weapons. One popular less-than-lethal weapon is the taser. â€Å"A Taser is a battery-powered electro-muscular (EMD) that fires two metal prongs, which are attached to a wire that delivers approximately 26 watts of electricity at more than 50,000 volts. The electricity causes substantial muscular pain and typically results in the immobilization of the suspect† (Walker, S, & Katz, C.M. 2011 pgs. 508). By law enforcement using a taser, there are lesser injuries occurring than before. Another type of less-than-lethal weapon is a shotgun. Although it is a shotgun, real bullets do not come out of it. This type of shotgun shoots rubber bullets. Although the bullets are rubber, they still have enough force to temporarily hurt a victim. If a victim is acting out of control, this type of gun is used to drop him or her to the ground. One other popular less-than-lethal weapon is pepper spray. This type of weapon is very popular amongst large and disruptive crowds. In order to control the crowd, an officer may use the pepper spray and shoot towards the crowd with it and spray it in someone’s eyes. This will instantly cause a burning sensation and temporarily boundless to the eyes. In most cases, this will force the victim to sit down and the officer will remain in control. Each and everyday, police officers risk their lives to help protect communities and to keep the streets safe. There are many dangers that police officers face on a daily basis. For example, stress is a major factor in a police officers life. Being stressed about something can take its toll on the officer. It can affect his performance at work or it can affect his home life. Stress is something you have to pay attention too by taking it seriously. Another example of danger police officers face is the chance of being shot. Officers pull over people for traffic laws or anything else simple. A person may panic seeing a cop pull them over. They may think it’s for something major when it’s really not so they will try to shoot the officer so they can get away. Another danger police officers deal with is the high temperature changes. This may sound  simple, but an officer stands around and walk around his entire shift. He may do this outside and if it’s hot outside, it can be very dangerous for an officer if he didn’t keep himself dehydrated.

Milgram experiment analysis The WritePass Journal

Milgram experiment analysis Milgram’s Study of Obedience Milgram experiment analysis Milgram’s Study of ObedienceSituational InfluenceReferencesRelated Milgram’s Study of Obedience The name Stanley Milgram is eponymous with the study of obedience. In his controversial 1970s study of the human behaviour, Milgram (1974) discovered that when under direction from a member of authority, study participants could be instructed to inflict a 450 volt electric shock on another individual.. In one study, Milgram (1974) assigned participants to the role of ‘teacher’ or ‘learner’. Unbeknown to the participants, they would only ever be assigned to the role of teacher. As the teacher, participants were told that they were to investigate the effects of punishment on learning. The teacher administered a learning task to the learner who was based in a different room, and the learner indicated their response through buttons that lit up answer lights on the teacher’s side of the wall. When the learners provided incorrect answers, the participants were instructed by the experimenter to administer the learner an electric shock. Again, unbeknown to the participant teachers, the shocks were not actually administered and the learners were acting confederates. The teacher was also instructed to increase the voltage of the electric shock with each wrong answer provided. As the voltage reached 150 volts, the learner would scream cries of protest, which c ould be heard by the teacher participant through the wall. At 300 volts, the learner refused to answer the question, and at 330 volts they made no response at all to the shock, suggestive of lack of consciousness. Whenever the participant faltered or showed signs of resistance to administering the shock, they would be prompted to continue by the experimenter. The experiment only ended when the teacher refused to administer the shock in response to instruction after four prompts, or after the maximum shock had been given. In 65% of cases, the participants administered the maximum shock of 450 volts, a shock that was marked on the severity as â€Å"XXX†, following the description â€Å"Danger: Severe Shock† at 375 volts. Milgram’s (1974) demonstration of the unsettling capabilities of human behaviour presents many questions as to why so many people had not stopped administering the shocks when they knew that the learner was in significant distress. Was it that these individuals would have acted this way whatever the circumstance? Were they examples of the malevolent side of human nature? Or were there many contributing factors about the circumstance that led these individuals to behave in such a way contrary to all expectations of human benefiance? This essay will aim to address these questions through the work of Milgram and his contemporaries. Situational Influence The findings of an earlier study by Milgram (1963) provided evidence that the individuals administering the shocks were not acting out of their own desire for cruelty, but instead were acting in conflict with their wanted or expected behaviour. Milgram (1963) found that administering shocks caused the participants to experience â€Å"extreme nervous tension†, demonstrated by sweating, trembling, stuttering, and even nervous laughter. Burger (2009) proposes that despite the many attempts to interpret the results of Milgram’s (1974) experiment, the main point of consensus is the importance of situational forces in influencing an individual’s behaviour. Additionally suggesting that this is something underestimated by most individuals. This was highlighted by the opinions of Yale students and psychiatrists who were unanimous in their belief that virtually no one would continue the experiment to the point of maximal shock (Milgram, 1974). Burger (2009) suggests a compelling reason as to Milgram’s participants were so ready to administer potentially lethal shocks under the instruction of the experimenter; that of the power of authority. The experiment provides a seminal example of the phenomenon of obedience, where individuals conform (often against their will) to an authority figure (Martin Hewstone, 2009). This obedience to authority in the abandonment of alliance to morality (Elms, 1995) is something that has not only been demonstrated in research studies, observed from the abhorrent crimes committed by those under the rule of Hitler in Nazi Germany (Cialdini Goldstein, 2004), to the behaviours of suicidal religious cults. Whilst Milgram’s (1974) experimenter had both legitimacy and expertise (Morelli, 1983) with affiliation to the university, the experiment, and to science (Burger, 2009), other obedience has been shown to occur in the absence of this (Blass, 1999), therefore suggesting other situati onal influences at play. The importance of the experimenter’s expertise may have been of crucial significance in Milgram’s (1974) research, in that the scenario was not one that any of the participants had experienced before. Burger (2009) proposes that in the absence of any other sources of information, the participants turn to the reassurance of the experimenter who does not seem perturbed by the cries from the learner and insists on the continuation of the experiment. In this case, it may be suggested that the participants defer to the expertise of the experimenter, believing that they will instruct the most appropriate action. As purported by Milgram (1974), this has powerful implications for the determining effect of the situation on the action of individuals. Kolowsky et al. (2001) suggest two types of authority; that derived from soft influences which results from factors within the influencing agent (eg. Credibility and expertise) and that derived from external social structures (such as hierarchy) known as harsh sources. It may be concluded that Milgram’s experimenter portrayed both of these, perhaps explaining why the situation induced such high levels of obedience. Burger (2009) also suggests that the levels of obedience of the participants in Milgram’s (1974) experiment may be attributed to the gradual increase in demands of the experimenter. He suggests that the 15-volt increments created a task that gradually increased in demand being put on the participants. Initially participants would provide shocks to the learner causing only a slight discomfort, however, by the end of the experiment, the participants were agreeing to give shocks that were labelled ‘Severe’. Freedman and Fraser (1966) demonstrated the power of the so called ‘foot-in-the-door’ effect, showing that individuals that first complied with a small, minimally invasive request were more likely to comply with a larger related request. The authors proposed that the situation inflicted a change upon the participants’ self-perception, where upon agreeing to the first request they ascribe the traits reflecting their previous actions (ie. I am so meone that complies with such requests) which then influences their subsequent actions. Burger (2009) suggests that the desire for personal consistency may be a factor with such incremental voltage increase, where refusing the 195 volt shock would be difficult having just pressed the 180 volt switch. The Milgram (1974) experiment also raises the question of the role of responsibility in obedience. Under authority, it may have been that the individuals were able to go ahead with the behaviour due to a diminished sense of responsibility for their actions. Bandura (1999) suggests that this occurs as when not perceiving themselves as the agents of their actions, individuals are therefore spared their self-condemning reactions. It appears, therefore, that given a different situation, many of the participants in Milgram’s (1974) experiment may have acted differently. Questions are raised as to whether they would have committed the same act without a diminished responsibility, or if the experimenter had initially asked them to give the learner the highest voltage shock. Zimbardo (1972) illustrates the importance of the situation on the influence of human behaviour in his ‘Stanford Prison Experiment’. Randomly assigned to be prisoners or guards, participants in Zimbardo’s (1972) experiment took on their roles with extremity and haste. With relevance to the behaviour elicited by Milgram in his experiments, the behaviour of the guards is of particular interest. Once given the power-laden role (Zimbardo, 1972), and faced with prisoner rebellion, the guards used physical and psychological tactics to confuse, intimidate, and harass the prisoners. Whilst not obeying any particular authority except for the demands of the experiment, these ‘guards’ had become blinded by the situation, illustrating how situational confines can dramatically alter behavioural norms. By day 5 of the experiment, prisoners were withdrawn and behaving in pathological ways. None of the people involved in the experiment called a halt to the experiment , which had, by day 6, become of very questionable morality. In Zimbardo’s (1972) experiment, the guards, selected for being representative of the average middle class American, with above average intelligence and emotional stability (Haney, Banks Zimbardo, 1973), displayed anti-social and pathological behaviour, a phenomenon later described by Zimbardo as ‘The Lucifer Effect’ (Zimbardo, 2007). This was something that Haney et al. (1973) suggested occurred as a result of the pathology of the situation rather than the nature of those that entered it. With the nature of the situation suggested as such a powerful influence over human obedience, the work of Burger (2009) helps to investigate the factors underlying the phenomenon of such morally deviant behaviour. Burger (2009) replicated the work of Milgram (1974), with the aim of further investigating the situational factors underlying the high levels of obedience to the experimenter in such a scenario. Due to ethical constraints, Burger’s (2009) participants were only allowed to continue to the 150 volt shock, at which point the learner confederate would protest greatly and make reference to a heart condition. The experiment ended either if the participant refused to continue, or when they read the next question out to the learner. The study included an added condition in which participants saw a previous participant (who was a confederate) refuse to administer any shocks over 90 volts. The results of Burger’s (2009) study showed that in the same situation some 40 ye ars later, individuals still succumb to the situational factors and obey the experimenter’s instructions. Interestingly, Burger (2009) also found that despite seeing another teacher decline to administer any further shocks, and receive no negative consequences, participants took over the shock administration and continued the experiment. He took this as evidence of the power of the situation, where even a small normative influence was not enough use as an inference of how to behave in the situation. Burger’s (2009) research, does however, rely on the assumption that those administering 150 volt shocks would have continued to administer shocks up to the maximum voltage. There may have been individuals that would have stopped after this point that would not have been considered as doing so in the results of the study, which may lead to a false interpretation of individuals’ obedience. Despite this, review articles have suggested it to be a convincing alternative end point (Packer, 2008; Miller, 2009). Another issue raised by Miller (2009) regarding Burger’s (2009) replication of Milgram’s (1974) study, is the screening out of those participants that might experience high degrees of emotion or distress. The effects of this on the results are two-fold. Initially, the experiment therefore is less likely to show any of the adverse emotional effects of conflict which was a particularly powerful finding from Milgram (1974) (Miller, 2009). Additionally, it may be that those participants that would have experienced more emotion and distress were those that would have stopped administering the shocks before 150 volts. It has been suggested that in his quest to provide an ethical replication of Milgram (1974), Burger (2009) may have failed to replicate the experiment at all (Miller, 2009). Much of the research from Milgram and his contemporaries points to the powerful influences of the situation on behaviour, and this is supported by further evidence from Burger’s (2009) replication of the Milgram (1974) experiment. Whilst those with high empathetic concern (as assessed by a personality questionnaire) expressed a greater reluctance to continue administering shocks compared to those with low scores for this trait, they did not refuse to continue at any earlier point. This shows that even individuals that one would consider less likely to commit such actions were influenced by the situational power. It was found, however, that those with a high desire for control were more likely to disobey the experimenter and act on their own feelings, terminating the shocks at an earlier stage than those with less of a desire for control. This was not found in the situation where the other confederate teacher declined to administer any shocks however. This shows that there is s ome modulation of behaviour as a result of personality, but suggests that the specific influences of personality interact greatly with the situation and context. Conclusion Evidence suggests that the behaviour of obedience is strongly determined by a variety of situational factors, and that the power of these can be so great that individuals will obey an authority figure even regardless of the consequences. Factors of diminished responsibility, credibility and expertise of the experimenter, social hierarchy, and gradual increases in demands have all been shown to increase the likelihood of obedience. These have even been shown to supersede the power of someone disobeying the authority (as in the case of Burger 2009). The power of situational influence on obedience in society has huge implications. Obedience to an authority can be hugely detrimental as demonstrated by Milgram (1973). These situations appear to most often occur when the authority figure is attributed misplaced expertise and status. For example, obedience to an aeroplane pilot who is in error can have catastrophic consequences (Tarnow, 1999), and dictatorships have resulted in obedience that has led to the suffering of millions throughout history. Obedience does have its role in the functioning of society however, and as an alternative to disobedience, is portrayed as a positive trait from an early age. Most organisations require the obedience to authority as a norm, with an inefficient operation if this was not the case (Cialdini Goldstein, 2004). However, again, obedience relies on the authority figure having the morals and interest of society in consideration, as even in the scenario of business, personnel managers have been sho wn to discriminate against employees on the basis of race when instructed by an authority figure (Brief et al., 1995). The belief that it is not so much the man, but the situation which determines how he will act (Milgram, 1974) carries a strong onus for creating an authority and situation which promotes what is perceived as ‘good’ behaviour. It suggests that whilst people may have their own beliefs and morals, these can be easily acted against in certain circumstances. This may explain civilised society’s pursuit for rules, regulations and the attributing of individual responsibility. It has disastrous implications however, for a society ruled under the wrong hands. References Bandura, A. (1999). Moral disengagement in the perpetration of inhumanities.Personality and social psychology review,  3(3), 193-209. Blass, T. (1999). The Milgram Paradigm After 35 Years: Some Things We Now Know About Obedience to Authority1.  Journal of applied social psychology,29(5), 955-978. Brief, A. P., Buttram, R. T., Elliott, J. D., Reizenstein, R. M., McCline, R. L. (1995). Releasing the beast: A study of compliance with orders to use race as a selection criterion.  Journal of Social Issues,  51(3), 177-193. Burger, J. M. (2009). Replicating Milgram: Would people still obey today?.American Psychologist,  64(1), 1. Cialdini, R. B., Goldstein, N. J. (2004). Social inï ¬â€šuence: Compliance and conformity. Annual Review of Psychology, 55, 591–621. Elms, A. C. (1995). Obedience in retrospect. Journal of Social Issues, 51, 21–31. Freedman, J. L., Fraser, S. C. (1966). Compliance without pressure: the foot-in-the-door technique.  Journal of personality and social psychology,  4(2), 195. Haney, C., Banks, C. Zimbardo, P (1973). Interpersonal dynamics in a simulated prison. International Journal of Criminology and Penology, 1, 69-97. Martin Hewstone (2009). In Bickman, Leonard, and Rog, (Eds.) (2009).  The Sage handbook of applied social research methods. SAGE Publications, Incorporated. Milgram, S. (1963). Behavioral study of obedience.  The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology,  67(4), 371. Milgram, S. (1974). Obedience to authority: An experimental view. New York: Harper Row. Miller, A. G. (2009). Reflections on Replicating Milgram(Burger, 2009). American Psychologist, 64(1), 20-27. Morelli, M. F. (1983). Milgrams dilemma of obedience.  Metaphilosophy,  14(3†4), 183-189. Tarnow, E. (1999). In Blass, T. (Ed.). (1999).  Obedience to authority: Current perspectives on the Milgram paradigm. Psychology Press. Zimbardo, P. G. (1972).  The psychology of imprisonment. Society, 9, 4-8. Zimbardo, P. G. (2007).  The Lucifer Effect: Understanding how good people turn evil. New York: Random House.

Gender and the Decision to Run f essays

Gender and the Decision to Run f essays The article Entering the Arena explores the relationships of women entering the political arena of electoral office. Richard Fox and Jennifer Lawless explore why women choose to run for elective office and why there are more men in these elective offices than women. The authors argue that there are not enough surveys taken to fully understand why women choose to enter the electoral arena. Political scientists seem to focus on three phenomena that have come from surveys from past years. The incumbency advantage, candidate recruitment and the professions of the candidate play a role in why women do not run for electoral offices. Yet none of these explanations for womens under-representation considers the decision-making process by which women or men become candidates for public office (Entering 2). If the proper research is implemented in the next few years, I believe we will find the answers to these questions. The authors argue the experimental research on the initial decision to seek elective office is scarce and the experimental research on how people choose to run for office is difficult to implement. Their hypotheses are to study gender differences in political ambition through a survey of eligible women and men for electoral offices. Richard Fox and Jennifer Lawless used the Citizen Political Ambition Study, a national survey of possible men and women in the eligible pool for elective office, to explain why this under-representation of women exists (EtA 6). For the most part the prospective candidates backgrounds were made up of, law, business leaders, educators, and political activists. The political activists group was added for a diversity of occupations. The final results concurred that womens under-representation is prevalent in todays society. The gender-balanced eligibility pool ended up to be controlled by men. Regardless of the fact that women are just as...

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Health Promotion Package for Diabetes - Essay Example Health promotion can take varied forms, depending on the concerned groups or individuals. Different constructs of health and well-being exist. In the context of Edna, various constructs are applicable in enhancing her well-being and health status. The constructs are multi-perspective and addresses various health concerns highlighted in the case study. Most relevant constructs includes; Social model theory of health promotion remains addressed from different perspective. It does not focus on medical profession domain alone. The social model does not entirely rely on the medical model on addressing various health issues. A multi-perspective approach that includes all the individual experiences and defined places are taken into consideration in this approach. Principally, there is a correlation dynamic interaction between the social structures and the concerned human agency. In addressing the medical conditions of Edna, a multi-perspective social model can find use in efficiently remedying her health concerns. Psychological model differs from medical model from the test that confirms and qualify an individual as sick. While the medical model may require an independent test to determine a medical condition, psychological model relies mostly on the psychological examinations that do not involve medical tests. For the case of Edna, psychological therapy may help relieve conditions such as stress due to death of the husband. Psychological model relies more on the subjective manifestation of the condition rather than the objective determinants of a given condition. Medical model of disease management utilizes the scientific theories and doctor patient relationship in managing a disease condition. Independent objective test are carried to determine specific condition affecting an individual. The medical models rely on the use of medicine in the management of health. For the case of Edna, medical

Literature Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Literature Review - Essay Example The culture of an organization has also come to be defined as the values that contribute to the creation of an environment that is conducive both psychologically and socially and enable employees to work effectively without worrying about any conflict related to their work procedure (Kilcullen & Judith 1999). Because of its great importance to the organization, it is a fact that it is subject to change and this change has to be well managed by the organization’s administration for it to become effective. Plenty of literature has been written concerning the various aspects of change that take place in an organization’s culture and most of this literature has spanned decades. Changes can be made to the organizational culture through strict management of all the new behaviours that are introduced within the organization. The implementation of change to the culture of an organization is the process through which changes are made in an organization with the intention of achi eving a certain result in the future. In addition, it can be said to be a process which comes to affect the daily activities of an organization, such as how it is managed and how teams and individuals work together in order to achieve the goals which have been set (Arce 2006). While there has been some dispute concerning whether change to the culture of an organization can be changed, it is a fact that change is necessary for the continued thriving of the said organization. This is the reason why, despite the resistance that may be encountered from those individuals within the organizations who have become too comfortable in the current culture, changes have to be implemented. This is the reason why there has to be a procedure which is followed in getting changes in an organization to be introduced and after the introduction, to achieve approval from all those involved (Shook 2010). The implementation of changes to the organizational culture has come to be recognized as one of the m ost important aspects of the running of organizations and as such, plenty of literature concerning it has been written, as the different ways of conducting such changes have been analyzed (Lakos & Phipps 2004). While most of the said literature often adopts a negative attitude concerning the implementation of changes within organizations, it is a fact that most of the organizations that have attempted these changes have witnessed a measure of success. This is because as stated by Sims (2000) change is inevitable within the culture of an organization if it is to remain relevant in the performance of its duties. One of the most important aspects of the organizational culture is that the values embodied within it are based on the knowledge that has been gained in the history of the organization from its founding as well as the existing knowledge of the organization, which forms the philosophies that hold the organization together. It is these philosophies which have to be changed over a certain period of time in order for the management of an organization to be able to achieve a complete change to its culture (Nastase, Giuclea & Bold 2012; Wines & Hamilton 2009). However, there are certain instances

SUMMARY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

SUMMARY - Essay Example The overall aim was to lighten the building. The ends of the beam were reduced to a depth of 10 inches. This was aimed in ensuring that a wide flange chosen was ideal to maximize ceiling heights while accommodating a thin perimeter roof overhang (Douglas J. Rothermel). Lightening is one of the most important factors when it comes to constructing an institution building especially in a learning environment. For this reason, it was time to break the tradition and include less weight in the 12th man hall and provide a wider spacing for the students to learn. Lightening was achieved by use of 12 pairs of exposed tapered steel HSS. The 12 pairs of HSS steel used was a symbol of the 12th man according to the culture of the University. In addition to this was a glass curtain made of integral steel and aluminum shading devices. This was also aimed at ensuring that there is sufficient light in the hall. Thin cantilevered entrance canopies with suspended stairs in addition to connector bridges summarized the lightening purpose. The 12 steel supported the whole building which is also an indication that if people work together in unity they can support each other. Each of the 12 pillars had two arms spread upwards whose aim was to support the roof. The arm se ctions were made of half cone shaped pieces of half inch in thickness and 50-ski steel plate which were welded together on each side. The 12 arms were each 16 inches in diameter and extended 8ft above the cruciform shape. This was intended to support the roof. In addition to this, the pillars were painted with fire resistance paint. They were also skewed 29Â ° in one direction and 12.35Â ° on the other side. This was aimed at accentuating the intended abstract from visible through the perimeter curtain wall. Lighting is one of the most important factors when constructing a hall since light is needed for studies. Natural light was infused in the hall via a floor-to roof curtain wall

Health Promotion Package for Diabetes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Health Promotion Package for Diabetes - Essay Example Health promotion can take varied forms, depending on the concerned groups or individuals. Different constructs of health and well-being exist. In the context of Edna, various constructs are applicable in enhancing her well-being and health status. The constructs are multi-perspective and addresses various health concerns highlighted in the case study. Most relevant constructs includes; Social model theory of health promotion remains addressed from different perspective. It does not focus on medical profession domain alone. The social model does not entirely rely on the medical model on addressing various health issues. A multi-perspective approach that includes all the individual experiences and defined places are taken into consideration in this approach. Principally, there is a correlation dynamic interaction between the social structures and the concerned human agency. In addressing the medical conditions of Edna, a multi-perspective social model can find use in efficiently remedying her health concerns. Psychological model differs from medical model from the test that confirms and qualify an individual as sick. While the medical model may require an independent test to determine a medical condition, psychological model relies mostly on the psychological examinations that do not involve medical tests. For the case of Edna, psychological therapy may help relieve conditions such as stress due to death of the husband. Psychological model relies more on the subjective manifestation of the condition rather than the objective determinants of a given condition. Medical model of disease management utilizes the scientific theories and doctor patient relationship in managing a disease condition. Independent objective test are carried to determine specific condition affecting an individual. The medical models rely on the use of medicine in the management of health. For the case of Edna, medical

SUMMARY Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

SUMMARY - Essay Example The overall aim was to lighten the building. The ends of the beam were reduced to a depth of 10 inches. This was aimed in ensuring that a wide flange chosen was ideal to maximize ceiling heights while accommodating a thin perimeter roof overhang (Douglas J. Rothermel). Lightening is one of the most important factors when it comes to constructing an institution building especially in a learning environment. For this reason, it was time to break the tradition and include less weight in the 12th man hall and provide a wider spacing for the students to learn. Lightening was achieved by use of 12 pairs of exposed tapered steel HSS. The 12 pairs of HSS steel used was a symbol of the 12th man according to the culture of the University. In addition to this was a glass curtain made of integral steel and aluminum shading devices. This was also aimed at ensuring that there is sufficient light in the hall. Thin cantilevered entrance canopies with suspended stairs in addition to connector bridges summarized the lightening purpose. The 12 steel supported the whole building which is also an indication that if people work together in unity they can support each other. Each of the 12 pillars had two arms spread upwards whose aim was to support the roof. The arm se ctions were made of half cone shaped pieces of half inch in thickness and 50-ski steel plate which were welded together on each side. The 12 arms were each 16 inches in diameter and extended 8ft above the cruciform shape. This was intended to support the roof. In addition to this, the pillars were painted with fire resistance paint. They were also skewed 29Â ° in one direction and 12.35Â ° on the other side. This was aimed at accentuating the intended abstract from visible through the perimeter curtain wall. Lighting is one of the most important factors when constructing a hall since light is needed for studies. Natural light was infused in the hall via a floor-to roof curtain wall

Role of Students Essay Example for Free

Role of Students Essay Students constitute a vast segment of India’s population. They are young and dynamic. They can play a major role in various developmental activities going on in the country. This can come about only if their energies are channelised properly. During the freedom movement, Mahatma Gandhi, Pt. Jawahar Lai Nehru and other political leaders gave a lead to the students. The result was that students joined the struggle for Independence in large numbers. India became Independent on 15th August, 1947. It seems that after India achieved Independence, students were left with no worth-while aim. Students have been indulging in acts of indiscipline and rowdyism in different universities, colleges and schools. This shows that the student-power is being misused for destructive purposes. In fact, students lack proper guidance and good leadership. There is no one to tell them how they should use their energies for constructive purposes. Students played a crucial role during the pre-Independence era under the able leadership of leaders and there is no reason why they cannot play the same role in the post-Independence era for the betterment of the country and its people Every university, college and school is in the grip of student indiscipline. Students hold rallies, stage demonstrations, conduct agitations and resort to strikes to press their various demands. They do not respect even their own teachers. They disobey the orders of college authorities. They go to the extent of taking the law into their own hands. They do not spare even the police. All this adversely affects their studies. But no one cares for their future. For this state of affairs, we cannot blame the students alone. Often, it is the political leaders of our country who incite the students against the authorities. They exploit student-power for their own political ends. They do not realise that they are playing with the lives and careers of the students. In fact, students possess great power. Because of the lack of able leadership, they do not know how to use this power in the best interests of the country. If there is a constrictive and healthy leadership, students’ power can be utilized for bringing about social, economic and political reforms in the country. If the students respond to their duty towards their country, there is no doubt that they will become worthy citizens of a worthy country. There are a number of ways in which students can serve their country. First, students should inculcate in them the spirit of discipline. No nation can progress without discipline. If countries like U. S. A. , U. K. , Germany, France and Japan have become advanced countries, it is all due to the discipline of their people. The Indian society suffers from a number of social evils. The worst is the evil of dowry. Dowry deaths are taking place almost every day in all major cities of the country. No doubt the Government has passed a law by virtue of which giving or accepting a dowry has become an offence. But law alone is not enough. Students can help to root out this evil by taking a pledge that they will not demand or accept any dowry at the time of their marriages. The students can also help in the removal of other social evils like child marriage, casteism, untouchability, drinking, gambling, etc. Another important role for the students can be to work for National Integration. They should fight evils like communalism, casteism, linguism, regionalism, etc. They should think of themselves as Indians first and Indians last. Sometimes natural calamities like earthquake, flood, drought, etc. afflict one part or the other of our country resulting in heavy loss of life and property. Students can provide relief to the stricken people by raising funds for them and organising relief works. Students can use their vast knowledge by providing education to the illiterate. The students of today are the citizens of tomorrow. Thus the India of tomorrow belongs to the students. By performing a positive and a constructive role, students can make India strong and prosperous.

The Spanish Waste Water Environmental Sciences Essay

The Spanish Waste Water Environmental Sciences Essay Aznalcollar, a town in the region of Andalusia, is located in the south west of Spain. The region of Andalusia is the second largest region of Spain, and it is the countrys highest populated region. Andalusia is known to be an economically poor region with the majority of growth in its industry and service sectors. The region can be divided into two major sub regions; in the north, the Sierra Morena Mountains can be found and below this in the south is the valley of the Guadalquivir. This valley is home to the regions most fertile land, which is found along the banks of the river Guadalquivir and its tributaries. One of these tributaries is the river Guadiamar which flows through the town of Aznalcollar. The flow of the Guadiamar River is very seasonal; however it still sustains agricultural activity throughout the area. 45 percent of the Andalusia region is responsible for agriculture. Agriculture is mainly located around the fertile banks of the regions Rivers such as the river Guadiamar. The main agriculture in this area is made up dry land farming of cereals such as barley and oats. Other cereals grown in the area use irrigation. These cereals include maize, cotton, olives and rice. Only 17 percent of Spains cultivated land is irrigated, proving that this region is of great importance to Spains primary sector. Taking the type of crop into account, this land could also allow for the harvest of two successive crops in the same year proving its benefits to the area. Other primary sectors in the region include: fishing and mining which are all located around the Guadiamar River. The Guadiamar River is a valuable source to the population of Aznalcollar, providing a source of food, materials and employment. Fish is the main source of protein in the Spanish diet and it is commonly found in traditional Spanish dishes. Fishing not only provides a source of food to the area but also employment due to its demands. Mining still holds a great level of importance to the Andalusia region. The region is responsible for producing half of Spains mining product by value. The product comes from different provinces of the region including Seville, where various metals are extracted from the mine at Aznalcollar. The Los Frailes mine at Aznalcollar produces around 125000 tons of zinc and 2.9 million ounces of led per year. This mine offers a great source of employment and income to the area from raw materials which are exported. Tourism is also a major beneficial source to the tertiary sector of the region. The coast of Andalusia offers a very obvious source of tourism however The Donana National Park located along the bank of the Guadiamar River, is thought to be a Mecca for bird watchers. The national Park covers 543km ²(337.41  mi ²) of which 135  km ² (83.89  mi ²) is a protected area. It is made up of marsh, shallow streams and sand dunes. In 1963 the park was established as a nature reserve when the World Wildlife Fund joined with the Spanish government and purchased a section of marshes to protect it. Donana National Park is one of Europe most important wetland reserves and a major site for migrating birds. The park itself is internationally recognized for its great ecological wealth and has become a key center in the world of tourism. It has become very popular due to its enormous variety of bird species, permanent residents, winter visitors from north and central Europe or summer visit ors from Africa, such as its numerous types of geese and colorful colonies of flamingo. The park is also home to one of the worlds largest colonies of Spanish imperial eagles. As a whole, the park offers three distinct types of ecosystems: the marismas, the Mediterranean scrublands and the coastal mobile dunes with their beaches. The park attracts a vast amount of tourists annually, which in turn benefit the economy of the area. The park is also used by pilgrims taking part in the Romeria de El Rocio. This event alone can attract up to one million pilgrims each year. It is visible from the information above that the area surrounding the Guadiamar River is extremely dependent on its sourrouding natural sources. The town of Aznalcollar is reliant on the following; agriculture, fishing, mining and tourism. However in April 1998 when the dam of the mining residual tank of a pyrite mine in the locality ruptured, releasing sludge and contaminated waste water. The wastewater entered the Agrio River and the Guadiamar River. Both these rivers had low water levels due to a spring drought. In turn the rivers flooded nearby cultivated fields and threatened to flood the Donana National Park further downstream. This had an enormous affects on the population of Aznalcollar. Initially families living near the river were physically threatened. They had to flee their homes immediately, not only due to rising flood levels, but the fact that the water had been polluted with toxic heavy metals. These families lost vast amounts of their belongings in the flood and the polluted water threatened their health. Fortunately there were no initial fatalities, just a small number of people injured. However it was not recorded but these families were at the greatest risk of contacting terminal disease from the toxic water. PUT IN WHAT AOIFE SAID http://fuentesdeciencia.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/hungria-aznalcollar.jpg?w=480h=268 Initial affects to the area surrounding the Guadiamar River. The cultivated lands along the banks of the River Guadiamar were also destroyed. As the toxic waste water entered the river the level rose and flooded the cultivated land along the river banks. Not only were the crops damaged by the polluted water but by the residual mud. Any of the crops that had little water damage still could not be harvest due to fears of toxic contamination, so all harvest had to be destroyed. This occurrence lead to a great economic loss, believed to estimate at $10million. Not only is this a very large sum of money for a poor region, but it was spread mainly among 2,000 small farmers who had a great dependence on agriculture. This in turn also increased the price of rice, cotton and olives (main crops grown) in the area as they had to be bought and transported from other areas. However not only were harvest effected in 1998, due to the pollution of soils, crops could not be grown for a least another five years, until analysis had deemed the land safe for culti vation. This caused great loss for the farming community in the area as they had to abandon farming for this period and find another source of employment. Pasture farmers were also affected in a similar way. When the area flooded rapidly farmers had to abandon their farms, without any time to bring their animals to higher ground. These animals either drowned from high flood levels or were poisoned from drinking the contaminated water. When farmers could return to the area, their herds had been killed and no vegetation would grow for years after due to level of pollution in the soil. These farmers also had to seek different forms of employment, which deemed very difficult in this poor region. images.jpg Fishing in the area was a great source of income for the community as there was a great demand. However once the contaminated wastewater entered the river all fish stocks were killed by the toxins. Fears also remained within the community years after the incident of how clean the river really was and was it safe to consume fish from the river. Mining was another great source of income for Aznalcollar, as a poor region it depended greatly on its natural resources. However when the incident occurred at the Los Frailes Mine, the mine was closed down instantly due to further risk of contamination to the area. This impacted the area greatly as the mine employed 500 people and an estimated 1800 people indirectly. The employment of the area had a great dependency on the mine. Once the mine closed there were more that 2000 people in the area left unemployed. Also the material extracted from the mine when sold brought a source of income to the area, which was lost due to the closure of the mine. As visible from above the Donana National Park is Aznalcollar main source of tourism and bring in a great source income to the area. The park was not directly affected by the incident however it was under threat from the toxic flood water entering the site. The sand and dirt dikes which were constructed to control the flow of the contaminated water prevented the park from begin affected. However the surrounding areas were covered in a thick toxic sludge. This area was then covered with dead fish, frogs, crabs etc which had been killed by the contaminated water in the river and were then washed up in this area of sludge. Although the park was not directly affected, the birds in the park were attracted to these poisoned animals on the sludge. When the bird consumed these poisons creatures they were poisoned themselves. The number of birds in the park decreased dramatically. Also these birds spread disease from these dead creatures to other creatures inside the park, creating a continuo ue negative affect within the park. The national parks main water source was cut off as it was sourced from the contaminated river Guadiamar. This also created difficulty in the running to the park as a new water supply had to be sourced immediately. The park was closed for a short occasion; so that staff could help assist in the cleanup operation outside the park and so that a new water supply could be sourced. When the park did reopen there was a report in a drop of numbers of tourist visiting the park. The local association for tourism ACETA reported that in 1998 about 40 percent of reservations for tourist visits were cancelled, within the national park which calculated to a loss of approximately à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬480,000. This was possibly due to health fears in the areas. One of the most prominent human impacts from the disaster was its affect on human health. Short term health problems resulted in a small number of minor casualties recorded. However the long term health effects were most feared. The toxins found in the water consisted of heavy metals such as lead, zinc, arsenic, cyanide and other heavy metals from the mines reservoir. The fear was that these toxic metals could be consumed by humans through drinking water. Even after the area was cleaned, trace elements of these metals could still remain in water pipes etc. Also the soil which may also contain trace elements of these toxins could transfer the toxins from the soil into crops and contaminate the food chain. The fear behind long term human health effects is the high risks of cancer and neurological disease which can be caused by these toxins. The final human impact caused by the catastrophe at Aznalcollar was the large scale cost involved. It is estimated that over all cost for the Boliden company came to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 89 million, these were figures given out by the Boliden. This figure included the cost of cleaning up the northern sector of the Guadiamar à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬27 million, the acquisition of the harvest of 1998 à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 11 million, the operations of decommissioning of the tailings lagoon à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 41 million and the loss due to the stop of the mining activity in 1998. The regional government of Andalusia provided à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 145 million for the disaster remediation. This budget was mainly used for cleaning up operations, the acquisition of the polluted land à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 48 million and restoration à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 90 million. The Ministry for Environment provided a budget of à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 136.7 million. à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 13 million was used in the removal of the tailings; à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 15 million was used for the treatment of toxic water accumulation in the marshlands. The Ministry for Environment has also approved to provide à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 93.7 million for a hydric regeneration plan for Donana National Park and the Guadiamar riverbed. The overall cost of the whole devastation amounted to à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 377.7 million, which impacted humans as this was mainly funded by tax payers money. http://awsassets.wwf.es/downloads/mining_in_donana_english.pdf http://www.fhs.se/Documents/Externwebben/forskning/centrumbildningar/Crismart/Forskning/Fallbanken/BOLIDEN_.PDF http://countrystudies.us/spain/57.htm Aznalcollars spilling from IES Gustavo Adolfo Bà ©cquer Lessons Learned Although the disaster resulted in great negative affects for the region, positivity can be taken from the tragedy by learning from mistakes and putting systems in place to prevent a toxic spill of such size from occurring again. There were four main lessons learned: Need to know the possible environmental threats from mining lagoons in further detail and the post implementation to prevent these actions. Nessesity to strengthen the mine legistration due to the inappropriate environmental management of Aznalcollar mine before and after the incident. The good practices in cleaning up activities techniques of the sludge have reduced the pollution levels of the affected area. Oppurtunity to create new restoration projects and to implement the Ramsar Convention recommendations. Need to know the possible environmental threats from mining lagoons in further detail and the post implementation to prevent these actions. The good practices in cleaning up activities techniques of the sludge have reduced the pollution levels of the affected area. The cleanup activities of the emergency were rapid and efficient since the area was flooded by contaminated wastewater. On the 25th of April 1998 in Aznalcollar, Spain, the Los Frailes tailings dam, ruptured. It contained tailings from the mining of arsenic, silver, cadmium, copper, zinc and lead. The Los Frailes mine had a mining rate of approximately 4 million tones per year. The ruptured dam released about 5-7 million cubic meters of toxic tailings sludge and contaminated wastewater into Agrio River, which is a tributary to Guadiamar River. Cause of the Los Frailes tailings dam failure: The actual cause of the Los Frailes tailings dam failure is still to this day exactly 100% clear as the final report has yet to be published and released. The authorities blamed the Swedish-Canadian operator of the mine, Boliden Ltd, and Boliden Ltd claimed instantaneously after this terrible incident occurred that they were not at fault. Immediately after the accident happened it was suspected that a foundation failure occurred in the separation dam thats located between two parts of the impoundments, e.g.: the soil underneath the base of the Los Frailes dam lost its mechanical strength. The separation dam is positioned among the basins, which are filled with tailings from pyroclastic rock and pyritic rock and the foundation failure of this lead to the breaking of the main dam. The Swedish-Canadian operator of the mine, Boliden Ltd, has assured the authorities and the people of Aznalcollar that there was no possible way of foreseeing the foundation failure. There have been many different reports and opinions given as to why the dam failure occurred. The company Boliden Ltd stated at the start, that the cause of the dam rupturing was a landslide, which resulted in the movement of a part of the wall. However, the authorities stated that the damn was not of adequate construction and also that any signs of a probable break were ignored by the company in charge. Three independent investigations were carried out into the cause of the dam failure. One investigation was commissioned by Boliden Ltd and carried out by EPTISA, another was commissioned by the regional authorities and carried out by CEDEX and the 3rd investigation was commissioned by the judge who was in charge of leading the legal proceedings of the accident and was carried out by the University of Bar celona. From the findings of the three investigations it was agreed that the cause of the dam failure was from the formation of sliding surfaces in the marl beneath the foundation. The foundation failure occurred because of the chemical attack of the impounded acidic pyritic sludge on the marl. Marl contains calcium carbonate and clay. The attack of acid on the marl decomposed the calcium carbonate present, which resulted in the deterioration of the mechanical stability of the soil. Fig 1: The breaking of the dam: A large part of soil, which was located underneath the dam, moved towards Rà ­o Agrio (approx. 1 metre). The front part of the moving soil was approx. 20 metres wide and positioned where the junction of the two impoundments. This caused the dam to crack and break suddenly causing the wall to collapse move forward along the separation dam, between the two impoundments. Approximately 5 million cubic metres of toxic tailings sludge and contaminated wastewater seeped through the opening. The bed of Rà ­o Agrio increased by roughly 3 metres and changed its course. Fig 2: Detailed diagram showing before the displacement had occurred and after the displacement had occurred. The Los Frailes dam is approximately 25 meters in height and lies on 4 meters of alluvium, which is situated under 70 meters of blue marl. By the overstressing of the blue marl, it resulted in the dam, alluvium and the marl to slide. This sliding caused the pyrite tailings to liquefy, which then resulted in increasing the loading on the dam while the foundation resistance was decreased. These various processes were the result of the 60 meters of horizontal displacement of the Los Frailes dam. Various other factors were ruled out as being contributing factors to the failure of the dam, e.g.: blasting, earthquakes etc. Fig 3: Actual photograph of the Los Frailes tailings dam failure showing a total of approximately 60 meters of displacement. In the beginning of November 1998, Boliden sent a report to the judge who was in charge of the case. In the report it stated that a new displacement (3 millimetres) of the dam had taken place since the spill. The Government confronted the public, as there was an increased risk of a new spill. Mid-November 1998, the Environmental Protection Department warned that there was still a higher amount of tailings than what was lost when the dam ruptured in April, and if it rains and the dam fills with the rainwater then it would apply even more pressure to the walls of the dam. In February 1999, Boliden Ltd finally admitted for the first time that the tailings dam was not properly designed. They directed the blame entirely on the contractor (Dragados y Construcciones) and the two engineering firms used by them. Interventions: Emergency measures put in place in order to minimize the social, economic and environmental impact of the Aznalcollar spill. An emergency operation had to be put in place in order to minimize the damaged caused by the spill. The Spanish Authorities, the Regional Government of Andalusia and also Boliden Ltd (Apirsa) were involved in the clean up. On the 1st of May 1998, the different administrations created a Mixed Commission of Coordination. The 1st task that was carried out was the immediate removal of the tailings, which were found at the old part of the mine. Removing the tailings was spread out over two operations, in 1998 and 1999. Approximately 99% of the tailings were recovered as a result. According to the Regional Government of Andalusia, the collection of nearly all the tailings means that around 7000 million litres of soil and tailings have been recovered. In 1999, Boliden Ltd was granted the licensing of stabilization works for the dam as it was found that there was a significant movement after the initial spill (17 centimeters) and was a cause for major concern. Another campaign was then undertaken by the Mixed Commission of Coordination, which involved treating the soil. The soil was treated using a chemical procedure, which would result in immobilizing the various heavy metals that remained in the soil. The construction of the Entremuros dike caused the retention of 2 billion litres of acid water. In order to allow the Guadalquivir River Basin Authority to purify the dammed waters, a water treatment plant was constructed beside the Entremuros dike. After the purification process, it would then discharge the purified water to the estuary of Guadalquivir. Another drastic measure was put in place in order to control the environmental quality in the surface waters, the air, the subterranean waters, the estuary, and also a sanitary control program of the people living in the surrounding area who were affected by the Aznalcollar spill. The entire process was established in a series of published laws, decrees and also orders between May 5th 1998 and 1999. Also in May 1998, the Council of Ministers of the Regional Government of Andalusia had approved the various actions that were necessary for carrying out a project of regeneration and adaption for public use. This was called the Guadiamar Green Corridor. The Guadiamar Green Corridor project was developed in 1999. The reason it was developed was to restore the Guadiamar basin and its surrounding ecosystems. The plan of action of the project was described in the Guadiamar Green Corridor Strategy, which was supported by the International Seminary on Ecological Corridors in March 1999. The Guadiamar Green Corridor project is also reveled in the results of an investigation program, which is known as PICOVER. PICOVER was developed between the years of 1998 and 2002. The Regional Government of Andalusia published the conclusions found as a result of this program. The estimated total amount of the PICOVER was à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 5.8 million. It was divided down into 2 different stages. The 1st stage was developed between 1998 and 2001. The effects of the Aznalcollar spill were studied (on organisms and ecosystems) and the necessary guidelines for the restoration were set out. The 2nd stage was developed between the years of 2002 and 2003. The ob jective of the 2nd stage was to control the factors that were most effected by the spill, which were soil and water. Attention was also given to the species that were considered to be the most important bio indicators e.g. plants, fish, etc. The Green Corridors objectives and the plan of action: To decontaminate the water, soil and also organisms of the riverbed. Also the decontamination of the flooded plains and the marsh that was damaged by the acid water and tailings. Water: The Green Corridor has a technical office, which had set up stations. These stations were put in place to control the surface water (17 stations). From all 17 stations, only one of them has had an increased value (El Guijo). A study that was carried out by the Guadalquivir River Basin Authority back in 2003 concluded that the El Guijo station, which was situated in the Guadiamar River, had continued to present an increased level of zinc, cadmium and copper metals. The El Guijo station, out of the 17 stations, is one of the closest to the Los Frailes mine. It is 2.5 km beneath water. All of the remaining 16 stations are within the legal limits and fit for human consumption. The Guadalquivir estuary was tested after the spill and it showed an increase in the level of contamination. This problem solved itself after a few short months as the contamination level returned to what it was before the spill occurred. Soil: Since the Aznalcollar spill, the process of decontaminating the soil had been successfully carried out for the most part. The monitoring of the soil to ensure the contamination level remains low has continually been followed up, especially focusing on the main affected area (the Aznalcollar mine and the bridge of Doblas). The reason this area was the main affected area was because of its closeness to the disastrous lagoon. This resulted in high levels of zinc, arsenic and lead contamination. Since 2002, the majority of soil areas that were affected were cleaned. The cleaning process eliminated central points of contamination but in some particular stains of the land, minuet residual contamination still remains. Fauna: One of the main populations affected were fish and amphibians. Since the Aznalcollar spill, the riverbed has been recolonized with fish and amphibians and they have survived without any problems. In 2004, it was detected that 6 different species of fish had laid eggs. It was the 1st year since the spill that different species of fish laying eggs was detected. Flora: The contamination of metals in plants has decreased with time. 2.5 million plants have been planted in order to restore the affected area. The majority were planted between the Entremuros marsh and the Los Frailes mine. The Entremuros area was restored by replanting in small plots. This method allowed the ecosystem to improve naturally. To restore the functioning of the terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems which were damaged or ruined by the Aznalcollar spill. The large amount of area that was affected, from the mine to the entrance to the Entremuros swamp, has now been restored. The aim is to create a fluvial ecological corridor. The gravel extractions, or the agricultural occupation has caused the Guadiamar riverbed to suffer extreme transformations. When the riverbed was being restored it was thought that it was more critical to recover the processes for fluvial dynamics, which had been modified, rather than recreate the original morphology of the river. In 2004, it had been noted that the natural dynamic of the river, particularly the flood plains, had been recuperated. Also, non-indigenous vegetation had been removed as instructed. Since the spill, there used to be many gravel exploitations found on the bed of the river of the Guadiamar, between the upper and middle branches. These were reformed serving two purposes. One use is environmental recuperation and the other is for the use of the public. Entremuros marshes: The main reasoning behind the activities was to ensure the riverbed was recuperated by the removal of the impacts that hindered the natural functioning. The results have shown to be considerably good. The fauna and flora have quickly colonized the area. To promote a model for the management of the various uses of the region so that ecological heterogeneity could be promoted in order to reinstate the different species and natural processes among the mountain range and the coast. Positive results were found on the movement of land animals through the Corridor, in the middle course of the Guadiamar River. There are many communities that began to become established in the Corridor, such as the eagle, rabbit, and the lynx. As a result it has aided the purpose of the ecological corridor of the Guadiamar River. The Corridor has needed to be attached through the northern part as this restored the river basin of the Guadiamar River and the mining region in its upper course. The restoration continues to be followed up, even today, as it ensures its function as a fluvial ecological corridor and the future tendencies of the river. To improve and promote the quality of life of the many people living in the area through the strategies of development fitting with the conservation of the functions of their natural systems. Public use: The Green Corridor is now recognized as a tourist destination. It has tails that can be used for walking, biking and horse riding. A variety of infrastructures have been constructed including recreational areas, a botanical garden, visitor centers, etc. There has been sign posts put up of the area, and also the roads. There have also been guides produced on the infrastructures and programs in the Green Corridor (for public use). Other uses: In the Green Corridor there are many kind of acts prohibited which include hunting, fishing, and raising livestock. Also, on the grounds of the old mine an environmental services site has been constructed. Relations with the surrounding population: Many environmental educational activities were developed in order to educate the population, but mostly for schoolchildren. A lot of the people living in the surrounding area were not aware of the many activities in the Green Corridor and its ideas. To make it clear to the population, it was necessary to cover the wildlife values, historical, landscape etc of the Green Corridor. To contribute to the conversion of the Network of Protected Natural Areas of Andalusia as an arrangement of areas, which are connected by ecological corridors and which fluvial ones stand out the most. The Green Corridor had to be declared as a Protected landscape in order to comply with this objective. The Green Corridor does not reach up to the north of Aznalcollar therefore it is not connected as an ecological corridor with the coast and mountain range. To operate as a model of integrated planning of a Mediterranean basin with could be extrapolated to other regions. The WWF has recognized that the Guadiamar Green Corridor operates as a model of basin restoration. The office for the Mediterranean selected one of its projects to be a model of management and restoration of Mediterranean wetlands. The WWF gave the lessons learned of the Guadiamar to Romania to help them after the mine accident of Baia Mare.