Ell Assessments Essay

With the rise in immigrant students comes a rise in students who do not speak English. Schools are facing the need to not only teach these students their regular academics but also a new language. In Guthrie, Oklahoma, there may seem like there would not be as much need for such programs but the fact is that English language learners are also here. ELL students need assistance from the schools they attend in order to master their English skills and be able to become productive citizens when they graduate. Schools have had to come up with procedures to identify ELL students, assess and monitor their learning and proficiency, keep teachers informed, and ensure ELL students access to grade-level content and develop language simultaneously. When a new student enters school in Guthrie, Oklahoma first they are required to fill out a home language survey form, (Oklahoma Department of Education, 2012). This form basically asks what the primary language spoken at home is. If another language other than English is spoken then students are required to take the WIDA placement test, (Miles, 2013). If a student scores below a 5. 0 they are considered to be an English language learner, (Miles, 2013). That is how they identify ELL students at Guthrie Public Schools. Parents also need to be informed of these tests wither 30 days before school starts or within two weeks of school starting, (Oklahoma Department of Education, 2012). Throughout the school year schools have to assess ELL students to determine their progress. At Guthrie public schools ELL students in elementary school are monitored for progress every quarter by a bilingual tutor, (Miles, 2013). In junior and high school students are monitored daily by their teachers for progress, (Miles, 2013). The tutor and teacher monitor students social activities, their regular classroom environment, their activity in class, behavior, learning comprehension, as well as formal assessments. Formal assessments are tests done every quarter to see how much a student has progressed from the previous quarter. If a student is being social with other students during recess, actively participating in class, and learning the curriculum being taught then the ELL student is considered to be learning and comprehending English. ELL students are exempt from taking standardized tests for two years so they can become proficient in how to read, write, speak, and understand English, (Miles, 2013). Students must show proficiency in English in order to not be considered ELL anymore, (Oklahoma Department of Education, 2012). Another important part of ensuring the progress of ELL student is keeping their teachers informed of ELL student’s status. The way Guthrie public schools inform teachers of the ELL’s status is by sending them and email or letter with a copy of their test scores, (Miles, 2013). Teachers need to make accommodations for the students because they want the ELL students completely immersed in English. ELL students attend regular classes with regular peers, (Miles, 2013). Teachers assess ELL students daily just like they assess non ELL students. They do informal assessments like how they participate and communicate in the classroom to assess how they are progressing in English language proficiency and comprehending the curriculum. Formal assessments teachers may do would be homework sheets where students need to fill in the blank with the correct word or a spelling test. Teachers take the grades ELL students make in their class and assess if students need extra help like a tutor to better their English proficiency skills, (Miles, 2013). The way a school helps an ELL student achieve proficiency will vary depending on the requirements of the school district and state. Guthrie public schools is located in central Oklahoma. In the 2009-2010 Guthrie public schools had 108 English language learners out of 3,309 total students enrolled in the school district, (USA. com, 2011). They have adapted all of the state requirements which meet the federal No Child Left Behind act. Regardless, of the number of ELL students or location of the school, there school always be a way to identify, assess progress and proficiency level, keep teachers informed of ELL’s language proficiency and ensure ELL students have access to grade-level content and develop new language skills simultaneously. Schools should always be prepared to receive new students into their school and welcome them with a positive school spirit. REFERENCES Miles, S. (2013). Phone interview, Head of ELL department for Guthrie Public Schools. Oklahoma Department of Education. (2012). Identification and Exit Criteria for Oklahoma’s English Language Learners. Retrieved from: http://ok. gov/sde/sites/ok. gov. sde/files/Bilingual-ID-ExitCriteria. pdf.

The Customs of Marriage and the Rights of Women in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream

It is hard to imagine in today's world that there could be or ever have been restrictions on the choice of one's spouse or the bonds of marriage. Yet history shows that only recently has the freedom to choose one's spouse become a reality, more so for women than for men. Women's rights, especially when it came to choosing a mate, were minimal. Marriages for women tended to be arranged, pre-paid, or not allowed before, during, and after the 16th century. One might wonder what rights did women have concerning marriage and how can they be seen in the play, A Midsummer Night's Dream, by William Shakespeare. According to â€Å"The Law's Resolutions of Women's Rights,† published in 1632, women were taught from birth that they were inferior to men. It was a common belief at the time that women were the â€Å"authors of original sin who lured men away from God and salvation† (Tudor Women, 2). Young women, from birth had few rights whether born into privilege or not. The women born into nobility or the upper classes such as Hermia, Helena, and Hippolyta, were given the opportunity to be educated, but mostly in the ways of housewifery such as how to manage a household, needlework, music, meal preparation, and duty to their future mate. All of these qualities were considered imperative in becoming a good wife. Very few women, even those from wealthy backgrounds, were able to become scholars. Some women were taught to read and write, but the majority remained illiterate as it was not deemed a necessary part of their education as future wives. Women's rights concerning marriage were even fewer. â€Å"Husbands of upper class girls were chosen for them by their fathers or other male relatives. Very few women of noble birth chose their own partners† (Tudor Women). Marriages were almost always arranged for political reasons, whether it was to fortify alliances, for land, money, social status, or to strengthen the bonds between two families. It was also considered foolish to marry for love. In A Midsummer Night's Dream, Shakespeare presents this very problem in the story line involving Hermia and Lysander. Hermia is in love with Lysander but her father, Egeus, demands she marry Demetrius, whom he has deemed the only man worthy of his daughter's hand. Although we know that Demetrius and Lysander are both from similar wealthy backgrounds, Demetrius has Egeus's approval for reasons we are unaware. When Lysander proclaims his love for Hermia, Egeus responds heatedly by stating, Scornful Lysander! True [Demetrius] has my love; And what is mine my love shall render him, And she is mine, and all my right of her I do estate unto Demetrius (1.1 95-98). Exercising his rights as the father leaves Hermia unable to marry the man she loves. To add to this sad affair, if she does not do as her father wishes, her father will â€Å"dispose of her, / which shall be either to this gentlemen/ Or to her death† (1.1 43-45). As the law of the land and Biblical law both stated that women and children should submit and obey their parents and husbands, it would have been highly unlikely for Hermia to have married Lysander as she did in the play. This is just one of many political and societal changes Shakespeare made in his play. Weddings during the Elizabethan time were much more time consuming and extravagant than most weddings of today. First there came the betrothal. Theseus and Hippolyta are betrothed although we know through classical history that Theseus captured Hippolyta and owned her. But readers can see that he has a deep admiration for her and we can assume that their betrothal is a somewhat happy one. According to the Compendium of Common Knowledge of Elizabethan England, the betrothal is the giving of what we know as the engagement ring to be put on the right hand. The contract is then sealed by a kiss. This same ring though also becomes the wedding ring and changes to the left hand at the wedding. Also stated in the Compendium, were the rules of the betrothal period. â€Å"The intention to marry must be announced in the church three times; that is, on three consecutive Sundays or holy days, in the same parish† (Compendium, pg 1). If this announcement is not made, then the marriage is considered â€Å"clandestine, and illegal.† Hard as it is to believe, women's rights became even fewer after marriage. According to a Homily on the State of Matrimony from the Elizabethan period states that â€Å"yee wives, be ye in subjection to obey your own husbands. As for their husbands, them must they obey, and cease from commanding, and perform subjection† (pg 4). This belief is taken directly from the Bible and was considered the ultimate rule of marriages during this time. The Homily also says to, â€Å"Let women bee subject to their husbands as to the Lorde: for the husband is the head of the woman, as Christ is the head of the Church.† Shakespeare addresses this belief in an unusual and almost satirical way through Oberon and Titania. Titania is a headstrong and independent fairy Queen who defies her husband's will. Oberon in turn, plays a deviant trick on her to make her fall in love with Bottom, a mortal turned into a donkey. The trick is played because Oberon desires a little changeling boy that Titania has obtained. Another common belief during this time was â€Å"That which the wife hath is the husband's† (Laws pg 5). As it states in The Law's Resolutions of Women's Rights, For thus it is, if before marriage the woman were possessed of horses, meat, sheep, corn, wool, money, plate, and jewels, all manner of moveable substance is presently by conjunction the husband's, to sell, keep, or bequeath if he die. And though he bequeath them not, yet are they the husband's executor's and not the wife's which brought them to her husband (Law's pg 4). As we do not know whether Titania or Oberon were married when she obtained the boy, belief was still that Oberon had the rights to the little changeling boy and not Titania, whether he was given to her or not. She was not submitting to her husband's will and therefore, was punished by being tricked into loving an ass. Throughout A Midsummer Night's Dream, Shakespeare addressed numerous political and social customs of the aristocracy. Although not much changed for the rights of women during the Elizabethan period, readers today can gain a better understanding of the time through historical documents and literary works. To be unable to marry for love, to have no choice in your mate, and to be completely submissive to your husband's every whim, had to have been depressing no matter what the customs were. A great deal has changed now since then, but in all actuality it has only been a few decades since women have been allowed so much freedom in their own lives.

Simple Pricing

The new service as „i-mode† start on 22 February 1999. Initially 67 content providers participated in the new service, with sites ranging from banking to Karaoke. Thanks to „i- mode† always and everywhere we can use from informative services, the universal bank services, stock quotations, reservation of tickets. Telephone is guide after cinemas restaurants, clubs etc. However the largest popularity have service LadyCall (which addressees are teenage Japanese), dedicated the newest trends of fashion, the most popular idols and actors including many different information which was should know, to distinguish in peers' company. Young users are the prime motor of success „i- mode†. They are almost half of all subscribers. The users „i- mode† not pay for time duration the connection, but for quantity of sended data. Dispatch or receipt one packet (128 bytes) carries out 3 yens (about 12 groszy), and regular payment 300 yens (about 12 zloty) monthly. Some services available by authorized partners require bringing additional, small payments. They are small, but they make up the powerful source of earnings. Provides by that example of Bandai firm- the Japanese potentate of amusement industry- in price 1 USD monthly sends every day everyone of subscribers the small animation. Only this one service is in Japan about 2 million users. „I-Mode's† Business model „I-mode† has been extraordinarily successful in Japan. This is because of its outstanding convenience and it's unique business model. Its reliance on this system offers an innovative approach to the mobile service value chain and to wireless service / Internet relationships. Exists close cooperation with equipment manufacturers, content providers, and other platforms to ensure that wireless technology, content quality, and user experience evolve jointly. This synchronization guarantees that customers, partners and shareholders share interests with end-user's, thus enabling all parties to maximize value and to continue to improve the quality of products and services connected with i-mode. By adopting an HTML subset is able to creation of sites exceptionally simple. Is enabled the compatibility of many other standards including: GIF, Java, MIDI, Macromedia Flash, and HTTP. Additionally DOCOMO promoting beneficial alliances with a variety of international partners, including content providers, overseas operators, ISPs, software developers and manufacturers. These alliances endorse international coverage; encourage the development of new collaborative products, and offer i-mode users the most cost-effective, high-quality products and services available globally. Simple Pricing System DOCOMO collect monthly information charges for the i-Menu listed content providers via a consolidated bill for all mobile phone activities, thus eliminating the need for provider billing. This arrangement reduces expenses for the content partners and encourages them to generate high-quality offerings to attract new subscribers, thereby boosting their profits. Additionally, they are able to generate incremental revenue by charging a small commission for the clearinghouse billing system service.

Intervention strategies and assessment for disasters in japan and Essay

Intervention strategies and assessment for disasters in japan and proposed ways to deal with associated difficulties - Essay Example Vulnerability is envisaged as both a biophysical hazard and a social response which is specific to a geographical domain. According to Brillinger (2003) risk analysis can be defined as a way which is used for estimating the probabilities of some rare events and the magnitudes of damage that comes along with them. The papers considered risk analysis of different natural disasters like earthquakes, floods and wildfires. Risk can be defined as probability that some hazardous event or catastrophe can occur. Statistical methods are the basic ways to assess risk and used for the computation of insurance premiums as well. These methods are favourable as they use probabilities and data which can help in risk management. McEntire (2005) discussed the positive and negative aspects related to different views about the disasters and he suggested that the concept of vulnerability can be used for finding for academia and make policy guidance for different professionals in different fields especially for the natural hazards. Paton (2007) worked and examined the relationship between people and sources of information that provide information which can influence people’s perception about the hazard/ disaster preparedness. To analyze this relationship between trust and the hazard preparedness a regression analysis was conducted. The study showed that there exists a relationship between people and the community services/civic agencies and the information they provide is very important and should be a part in planning risk communication. Strà ¶mberg (2007) examined and suggested that societal factors affect and place an important impact on disasters. This papers takes into account many of the natural disasters taking place that includes volcanoes, floods, tsunami as to where they take place and what their development with the period of time. Then this paper discusses that how come societal factors act in favour of people by

In may 2010 the people of britain elected a new government, which was Essay

In may 2010 the people of britain elected a new government, which was a historic moment in British politics. Explain what has ch - Essay Example After one year of power people have now begun to weigh the change in terms of their aspirations and ambitions materialized. Though it might be considered a little early to evaluate the change, nonetheless the change is yet not as evident as masses desired it to be. Specially, the change in student fee structure has disappointed a large majority of public. The raise was fully backed by the Conservatives and partially by the Liberal Democrat MPs. The main idea is to give universities more financial liberty to face the challenges of the technological advancements and other changes at global level and thereby improve the quality of education. As the Prime Minister David Cameron has said in an interview, â€Å"We won't go back. Look, even if we wanted to, we shouldn't go back to the idea that university is free.† (Guardian, 2010) Thought the intend is good behind the change in fee structure but it is not gradual as most of the critics have pointed out. The maximum allowable annual fee is now ?9,000 which is too much for many poor students. The universities have shown there intend to increase the fees to a maximum allowable limit which can adversely affect the education system. The liberty provided by the government to these universities is said to be more than the needful.

Should Campus security be allowed to search students for drugs or Essay

Should Campus security be allowed to search students for drugs or weapons - Essay Example Because today the exposure to media and violence is so high that it can affect the young minds negatively. This stigma can be avoided if the schools and colleges help to eradicate such evils because training begins at educational institutions. For this purpose and many other some campuses have started searching students for drugs and weapons so that students who are used to such habits can be punished severely for bringing in such stuff (so that they never repeat the mistake again) but the question that is being discussed here is that should the campus security be allowed to carry out searches? If schools experience high level of violence and drug use then school officials may wish to consider adopting search policies that permit under certain circumstances to screen students and search school property for drugs and weapons. There is definitely no harm in doing it since a school is conducting it for the safety of its students and to make them better people who can serve the nation. Violence at school often involves the use of weapons. Traditionally, weapons prohibited on school grounds are firearms and explosives, but recently, many states have widened these guidelines. For example, in Kansas, weapons include firearms, explosive devices, bludgeons, metal knuckles, throwing stars, electronic stun guns, specific types of knives (such as switchblades and butterfly knives), and any weapon that "expels a projectile by the action of an explosive. For example if your child comes back from school and tells you about an incident where his/her friend pointed a knife at him/her during a common fight, would you feel okay? Obviously not! And these kind of situations have become so common now a days that school authorities are left with no option but to conduct security checks since if anything happens on school grounds it comes under the responsibility of the concerned authority, and in such cases parents are the first ones to come up and blame the schools. Sometimes

Under non-ideal conditions, it is necessary to trade off between Essay

Under non-ideal conditions, it is necessary to trade off between relevance and reliability when estimating future cash flows. Critically appraise this statement - Essay Example In this regard, the reliability of accounting information as an apparatus for forecasting future cash flows require accreditation from the actual source to ascertain its relevance to the study of future trends concerning cash flows (Gandevani 74). For accounting information to be relevant in the estimation of future cash flows, it must be in accord with the established international accounting principle. Financial analysts argue that accounting transactions that are not supported by the reality in contextual market are defective and misleading, and their reliability is irrelevant in predicting future cash flows (Gandevani 73). In fact, failure to incorporate both reliability and relevance in decision making will always lead to unprofitable returns. For instance, unreliable information might lead to overestimation or underestimation of future cash flows, and this may result in poor planning of activities. It is important to recognize that accounting conservatisms is pro relevance at the expense of reliability which means that relevance of accounting figures and transaction is a vital tool for estimation of future cash flows. In summary, both reliability and relevance must be put into consideration when estimating future cash f lows for an

Work & non-work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Work & non-work - Essay Example This would call for effective planning, that is, creation and maintenance of a working strategy or policy, combined with organizing the available resources and leading/ directing the work force and finding the best combination of resources and capital to match them with the available time span of the project (Drucker & Maciariello, 2008). Effective work management should help both the team members and the management to understand and organize their work better; evolve into a more collaborative process that gives individuals control over what to do and when to do it, and in one way or the other promote specialization to ensure that employees do what they understand best (Easterby-Smith & Thorpe, 2008). This promotes democratization at work place empowering workers to give maximum value giving management the visibility to the totality of the project and other works, and to create workplace harmony by enfranchising workers and/ or and demonstrating the innovative aspect of each worker a t his/her unit. From this we can define work as sustained physical or mental effort; energy expanded by natural phenomenon whereby one exerts strengths or faculties to solve a given problem, or the specific duties and assignments performed by one as means of livelihood and means to achieve a predetermined and mutually beneficial objective. Non-work on the other hand can be viewed as the other activities that do not directly involve exertion of energy/ faculties but are in line with human development process and help to promote productivity (Creager, 2011), time spent away from the chore duties in daily life or work life; usually for pleasure and refreshment or reflection of the previous periods, a prerequisite for productivity at work place. The greater prevalence of single parenthood and dual careers in the workforce has resulted employees trying to juggle between demands at home and work which can result into work- family conflict, where demands of home and work interfere with eac h other making it difficult to combine both activities. This paper will analyze the various job-related relationships, their merits and demerits; causes and their impacts to the work and family environments, evaluation of jobs in relation to technology, social stratification, gender and the nature of the job. Spillover Spillover in this context may refer to the overall impacts of individuals work life, positive and negative, in relation to their personal growth and development and/ or family life, that is, how the individual’s work- perceived emotions affect his/her life and the impacts in other social structure/ environment around him/ her. Spillover can largely be influenced by the need to maintain a work-life balance which involves prioritization, planning and personal organization on career and profession/ lifestyle, that is, pleasure, leisure, spiritual development and meditation and/or health (Young, 2012). A perfect combination of these factors will ensure individual p erforms best at work and in other areas, for instance, good health will ensure an individual performs his/her duties correctively and timely despite the field that one is in as long as there is effective training. The spillover can be positively felt within individual’s social structure, the family and the society, and in the work place in that a clear career definition helps individual plan responsibilities and allocate ample time within the cause of the day, month, or annually; giving him/her time to attend to other functions which are essential for human development (Reis & Sprecher, 2009). For instance, work spillover can be felt through the non-work effects of relaxation of leisure, that is, when an individual has had a break from his natural duties at work (Levis, 2011),

Risk Management and Investment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words - 1

Risk Management and Investment - Essay Example From the report, it is evident that the performance of the firm is better than the performance of other investment funds. Additionally, various risks come along the portfolios. Consequently, the recommendations reside on the basis that adding, modifying, and excluding some of the investment funds in the portfolio with improve the performance of portfolio. The investment portfolio is aimed at maximizing income located in the United Kingdom. The investment fund comprises of Greggs Plc., Tate & Lyle, Domino Printing Services, JD Sports Fashion PLC, Bellway PLC, William Hill PLC, Beazley PLC, RPC, Group PLC, Huntsworth Plc, CSR Plc., and cash worth 5 million pounds. From the stock 10 of them are securities and only one is 5 million pounds on deposit, which will earn, one per cent since the date inception (Markon 2010). The investment fund is a type of income whose main purpose is to maximize return with very low risk. Therefore, the investment fund needs to invest in securities having stable income like fixed income securities, blue chips, and deposit receipts. Although the growth of the securities is not stable, they are not exposed to various risks. The report discusses the past performance of the investment fund. Thereafter, the paper analyses the risk of the investment fund, which may hinder the fund from achieving income maximization (Fama 1970). Finally, the paper outline crucial and helpful recommendation for the investment portfolio to make sure that the aim of the fund is satisfied. Before the third section, it is assumed that the date of inception is 1st January 2012 and cut off date is 3rd Februrary. Secondly, the paper ignores the changes effect, inflation rate, trade cost, and commission, which the factors will be nil. Thereafter, the return of the investment fund will be lower that the return of the investment fund. Consequently, the inter-bank lending rate of one year represents FTSE

Financing Greece and European Union Economy Article

Financing Greece and European Union Economy - Article Example Reports are that Greece wanted to ask the European Union for the write-off of a large part of its debt, something that the EU was difficult to swallow. This would mean the creditor nations to Greece essentially writing off a large part of its loans. It would solve the problem of the large debt of Greece crippling its ability to finance itself because of having to source funds to pay its loans, among other things. On the other hand, the write-off of the debt undermines the EU by sullying the balance sheet of the nations who had been lending money and providing the resources to try and make the Union work financially. In the integrated economy of the EU, every economy either boosts or drains the whole Union, and the problem of Greece, therefore, affects all countries in the EU. The problem is urgent too, owing to the way the problem of Greece, according to the US, likewise can have a long-term negative effect not just on the EU economy but on the American economy as well (Verlaine and O’Donnell 2015). The problem is that since Greece received aid in 2010 to shore up its economy and to bail it out essentially, the Greek economy has continued to flounder, so much so that since that time the economy has shrunk by 25 percent. Financing its debt, therefore, continues to cripple the already hurting economy, so the Greeks thought of asking the rest of the EU to condone its debt. That being rejected, the Greeks have turned around and asked for a refinancing of its loan essentially. That entails the conversion of its current loans, some of them, into bonds that the other member EU countries can purchase, and whose value is tied to the way the Greek economy performs. This move is the alternative to condoning the debt, and can potentially save Greece from going into default on its loans to the EU and the rest of the world.

Marketing strategies of low cost airlines in Europe Essay

Marketing strategies of low cost airlines in Europe - Essay Example In the second section, the cross tabulations have been created to relate different questions and variables. The independent variables in this case are five including short distance, direct flights, affordable transport, number of flights per day and affordable hotels. Since I have found that these are the four major attractions for the people traveling in low cost airlines therefore, they are the independent variables. The dependent variable is the sales of the tickets of each low cost airline. The following table describes the result of question that do people prefer to travel with low cost airlines. In the survey 77 people out of 120 claimed that they would prefer travelling in low cost airlines. However, out of 120, 43 people stated that they do not go for low cost airlines. It means more than 63 percent out of the total sample prefer travelling in low cost carriers, which is a significant percentage. Out of 120 individuals, 83 belonged to the age group of 19-25 and 35 belong to the age group of 25-45. On the other hand, only 2 persons fall in age group 45-65. Therefore, majority were professionals and students. Since the survey sample consist of 120 individuals belonging to different professions therefore, following table shows the description of their occupations. 38 respondents are professionals, 32 have managerial occupation and remaining respondents have other occupations (students). The following table shows why people are attracted by the low cost airlines. It is interesting to note that out of 120 respondents, 37 argued that short distance attracts them to travel in low cost airline. On the other hand, 36 argued that they are attracted to fly in these airlines because of their direct flights, 35 go for these airlines because of affordable transport. The major attractions for these people are short distance, direct flights and affordable prices. Basically the low cost airlines are

The work of one religious agency working for world development Essay Example for Free

The work of one religious agency working for world development Essay Christian Aid was established in 1945 when the Second World War was drawing to an end. A coalition of British and Irish Churches formed Christian Aid with an aim to aid as many people as possible who had been affected by the war. In 1948 the organisation decided it was in order to raise money for third world countries. Christian Aid has since expanded over sixty countries worldwide. Christian Aid recieves a majority of its revenue from the Governments of Ireland, Britian and The European Union (The EU) and also from the help of supporters and donators. 28% is recieved from fundraising and 34% is from Government grants. Christian Aid also holds many charity events such as sponsored walks and book sales. Its income comes up to à ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½40 million per year through donations from members, supporters and the general public. Since the expansion in and over 60 countries, Christian Aid has managed to help different countries in many situations. An example would be when Christian Aid joined forces with The Madras Christian Council for Social Service (MCCSS) in India to help the people living there. Many residents had no jobs or practical skills to offer which meant they were not very rich and lived in poor conditions. The MCCSS have taken on life projects to provide countries like this with proper housing, healthcare, sanitation and education. Christian Aid also helps other countries such as; Cambadia, Ethiopia, India, Sudan and Uganda. In these battles Christian Aid helps with hunger and poverty. Christian Aid is not a group of Christians helping other countries. It is an organisation, started by the Churches, in which Christians and Non-Christians work together to help all in great need, whatever their religion, politics, colour or country. Christian Aid is religious because Christians concerned about the worlds poorest countries, founded it. Even though the founders of Christian Aid were Christians, all may join in its work, whatever their race or faith. The Christian faith provide a base for Christian Aid because Christians believe that God loves the world and everything in it. They believe God became a human in Jesus so that people could meet God in every human. Many Christians follow the example of Jesus. He cared for those whom never cared for him; he was a friend to those despised by others. An example of Christian Aid work would be campaigning. Christian Aid has argued that poverty is caused and often made worse, by the more developed countries such as Britain. An example of this would be that in past decades Western Governments and banks lent billions of pounds to developing countries who now, cannot repay the debts. Christian Aid argue that the interest that the poorer countries are having to pay on top of their debts, is draining the wealth out of these developing countries. So Christian Aid and many other agencies campaign to cancel these debts so that the poorer countries can concentrate on developing their countries without worrying about their on-growing debts. Overall, Christian Aid was founded to express the concerns of Christians towards those whom were facing hardship, hunger and war. Christian Aid has certainly fulfilled its initial cause and has moved on to aiding many more.

7-Eleven Underpayment Scams

7-Eleven Underpayment Scams Introduction Human lives are directed by course of actions and decisions. Whether its personal life or professional conduct, humans are bound to follow proper code of ethics. In workplace, each organisation has guided rules and practices. Employers are bound to these rules and regulations in order for any organizations to work smoothly (Schermerhorn, 2010). Sometimes the morality of business decision is challenged due to individual preference or limitations. This scenario is called an ethical dilemma whereby individuals are forced to weigh the right and wrong of their actions (Westerholm, Nilstun, Ovretveit, 2004). This essay examines impact of ethical practices and leadership in taking business decision. The organisation that is used for ethical study is 7-Eleven convenient stores in Australia. It discusses how organisations commit fraud and mock award system by underpaying staff. The Ethical Problem The shocking revelation by ABCs Four Corners in August 2015 exposed exploitations at 7-Eleven stores gives an insight on how big corporations make profit without paying legit wages. A joint Fairfax Media-ABC investigation exposed that most of these exploited staff are international students who are forced to work long hours even after their visa condition restricts them to work only 40 hours per fortnight (Ferguson, Danckert Hatch, 2015). These students are easy targets for franchise operators as they are looking for extra money to manage their expenses. It shows that entire work structure at 7-Eleven is flawed and franchisees make profit by underpaying their staff is a common practice in most stores. The head office claims that most of the franchise stores are paying legit wages and the underpayment were done by a marginal store partners. This blame game has raised a debate that who is sole responsible for this scam; the head office authority or the franchise owner. According to head office, the payrolls are monitored by franchisees and company merely provides administrative supervision. They claim that underpayment issue has nothing to do with the franchise profit sharing model and only a small number of franchisees are doing this wrong practice. But similar malpractice in multiple stores reveal that this is an organised fraud. The franchisees are trained to run their stores in a particular manner to make profits and more than dilemma it is a thoughtful unethical practice. 7-Elevens survival on employee exploitation The Fair Work Ombudsman has conducted various raids at different stores and revealed that situation has worsen over the years. The entire work structure at 7-Eleven is flawed and franchisees make profit only by underpaying their staff who are international students and work limitless hours to make up for underpayment. The reason behind students breaching visa conditions is to manage their expenses because they are underpaid and only means to recover that loss is by working extra hours. The head office is not just turning a blind eye, its a fundamental part of their business. The reality is its built on something not much different from slavery, 7-eleven insider (Ferguson, Danckert, Hatch, 2015). It is evident that these scam happens under the watch of head office management. They cannot blame the franchisees alone for this malpractice. Unscrupulous employers allow students to work more hours but threaten to report them to authorities for breaching their visa if they complain about working conditions. Employers sheets and rosters are doctored to maintain the scam (Ferguson, Danckert, Toft, 2015). Companies can easily monitor the payrolls across the stores by surprise visits and take legal actions against frauds. Following the investigations, 7-Eleven Australian office has marginalized the issue by suggesting that there are only small numbers of Franchisees who are culprit of underpaying and head office will ask them to pay penalties. The 7-Eleven chief executive Warren Wilmot said: The key factor here is that the panel will receive, review, and process any claim of underpayment, and authorise repayment where this is appropriate, The practices continuous in other forms underpayment, employees are still asked to back-pay part of their wages. Theoretical Framework The given ethical dilemma is a conflict between moral and business ethics. Loucks (1987) suggests that ethics is seen as something beyond obedience and adherence to the law. It implies an understanding of what is the good, or right, thing to do and of an internal system of beliefs and values that guide those actions. Solomon (2001 cited in Singer, 2013) argues that there is some confusion in defining exactly what constitutes ethical behaviour in an organisation. The given ethical condition poses an important questions about personal honesty and organised fraud. The virtue of honesty is crucial for personal and business ethics. The choice of practising underpayments can be explained by two ethical theories; Utilitarian perspective and Subjectivism. The Utilitarian theory holds that what an individual ought to do is to promote the maximum good for everyone i.e. the general good (Wong, 2006). The maximum good for everyone should be assessed by being neutral and thinking from multiple perspective. On the contrary, Rachel (2001 cited in Singer, 2013) states that ethical subjectivism is a theory which says that in making moral judgements, people are doing nothing more than expressing their personal desires or feelings. The 7-Eleven scam is more about personal choices of the franchisee. They are legally entitled to pay fair wages but for their personal gains they malpractice. From franchisees perspective, it is assumed that the operational structure of the store asset management doesnt make enough profits and thats one of the reasons for underpayment. Another important factor that governs this malpractice is known as Agency Theory. The theory explains that business owners and managers emphasize more on maximizing profit as they believe it as business rule (Eisenhardt, 1989). The market trend tells the morality of the practices that what is right or beneficial for business. The moral choice is sometimes explained in terms of the influence of external factors, such as the environment or influence of others. All of these may bias judgment and action by shaping a decision makers perceptions (Morell, 2004). The franchisee believe that they are just following the ideal business model that will help them in managing operational funds by underpaying staff. In business ethical dilemma, there must be prominent line between personal choices and business needs. It is important to understand that personal choices are subjective and may affect other employees of the business. Therefore while taking business decision, a leader must abide by the corporate codes of conduct. As suggested by Thakor (2003), the dividing line between law and ethics is a constantly moving one. What is legal but unethical today may well become illegal tomorrow. It is essential in this case to reflect on the stakeholders view of ethics. It criticises the agency argument that business operators must constitute their leadership that look after and protects the interest of employees. The debate between moral values and business ethics in case of dilemma is mostly resolved by Utilitarian theory. However it is also necessary to understand that business situations can change how a professional takes decision based on personal choice and corporate needs. The franchisee may imply agency argument to protect their interest but from utilitarian perspective this directly affects the interest of the employees. The core issue is the leadership that has completely failed in case of 7-Eleven scam. Firstly, head office should have eradicated this malpractice at initial level. Secondly they need to develop a business structure that promotes mutual benefits and not just agency approach. Critical Analysis The underpayment by multinational companies is just the tip of the iceberg. We need to understand the factors that contribute to these foul practices. Profit Sharing model that restricts franchisees to manage operational expenses. International students who are eager to work extra hours to manage their funds. The lack of regulators responsibilities in creating awareness and monitoring the operations. The new Chief Executive of 7-Eleven Mr Michael Smith, who replaced Mr Withers in October 2015, said the company was making significant progress towards satisfactory remediation and prevention of wage abuse (Gartrell, 2016). The issue is now facing worse where many franchise stores are out for sales because franchisees believe that they do not have enough resources to pay running cost if they pay fair wages. This will also increase unemployment as a contributing factor. According to Ferguson, The regulator also needs to be better resourced and the government needs to give amnesty for a period to foreign workers to come forward and expose what is going on without the fear of being deported for breaching their visa conditions (Barraclough, 2015). The remedial option is to change the profit sharing model or head office sharing some per cent of the running cost that enables franchisees to operate store efficiently without underpaying staff. The cause of the issues is the operational model that needs a revision under the governance of regulators who can strictly monitor the fair practices at these franchise stores. From ethical point, franchisees need to understand the core business needs and personal interest. One critical aspect of this malpractice at huge level is the influence of franchisee network. The new franchisees learn from the existing practices of the old franchisees and thus this malpractice becomes their routine. Business model for Ethical practice 7-Eleven franchise model is unique in terms of how it shares the profit margin and it varies in different countries. In Australia, this model is unfair for franchise partner where head office takes 57 percent of the gross profit and franchisees are left with 43 percent to manage their expenses and overheads. The deficit is mostly paid by franchisees and they are left with only one options and thats underpayment and back-pay wages. The revelation has put all franchise stores under surveillance resulting in many store out for sales in past 1 year. The issue is pertained due to 7-Eleven Australian model that doesnt allow franchisees to make profit in that 43 percent profit share. The situation can only be resolved if head office shares 50-50 profit margin like other countries. It will allow franchisees to manage their overheads and pay fair wages to the staff. Another aspect of this malpractice was the discrimination in hiring the staff. Franchisees mainly hire international students from India, Pakistan, China and other Asian countries because they are willing to work at less pay. It also raise questions about the head office responsibilities as they didnt check the staff profiling or merit of recruitment. Most of these international students have trouble with English language and are less competent to work any other job. They are ideal fit for the 7-Eleven scam model because they are unaware about their work rights and hesitant to contact authorities for assistance. The ethical safeguarding of these employees is an integral part of store operations. Ideally, the head office should conduct induction training that includes work rights awareness. Leadership and Decision Making Such organised scams unveil how these big corporation make profits by exploiting their staff specifically vulnerable groups. The investigations also reveals how franchisee seek alternate payment methods to avoid taxes and super-annuations. The company claims that they do not have direct involvement in these practice but insiders reveal that it all happens under their watch. Companies need to monitor the working hours and payroll records to scrutinize frauds. Even though after such investigations company do take responsibilities and commit to help the victims. Such situations should be monitored from start and strict measures should be taken on head office part. The payback is not a solution to such huge scale scams that steals tax by doctoring the payrolls. Therefore it is necessary that organisation have a defined ethical policy for business dilemma cases. It will help the decision makers to think rationally but will also remind them about the corporate good. Partiality or personal preference will bring subjectivism in the decision making process. Hechter Kanazawa (1997) maintain that reservations about rational choice only arise where people misunderstand its application. The rational decision from an organisational perspective and individual perspective will differ depending upon the number of external factors influencing the decision. These ethical systems are normative in nature that means they imply the right or wrong factors but do not completely involve rational choice from multiple perspectives. They do tell us about what ought to be done and it helps in takin decision but it doesnt provide clarity of argument, basis for decision and personal stand on the dilemma. The company leaders need to be more specific about their operat ional plans and communicate the same values to the franchisees. It should be a wake-up call to make sure their house is in order. The world is changing and the community is becoming less tolerant of non-compliance to the law (Ferguson, 2015). The underpayment scam is not an issue that can be rectified by paybacks. The entire model of franchise stores needs to be reviewed considering Australian market stakeholders. This will allow fair share of profit to franchisees and will restrict them from ripping wages from the staff. The remedy needs to be planned in terms of reviewing head office responsibilities in cross checking payrolls and fair works. Strict actions should be taken against culprits to avoid further victimization of international students. Recommendations The investigations has only revealed one side of the scam. There is a need to review head offices responsibilities in auditing these franchised stores. Temporary paybacks will not solve the evident fact that the entire 7-Eleven model is flawed for Australian market. Franchisees will keep finding such malpractice until they get fair share from the profit. This not only affect the employees but also damages the brand in the market. This is just the tip of the iceberg and there are many other companies who are in line for malpractice. This issue can only be settled with strong ethical framework that shares rights for franchisees and employees by maintaining transparency and accountability. The world is changing and the community is becoming less tolerant of legislative non-compliance. There is strong need to modify the Franchising agreement for transparency and compliance. These are some of the majors that companies can implement; Develop code of conduct to immediately terminate a franchise agreement if there is serious breach of workplace legislations by a franchisee. Develop an auditing model that shares equal responsibilities between company and franchisees to monitor the operations Take severe disciplinary actions against employees complaint and investigate based on evidence Monitor recruitment process and diversity of employees to ensure minorities or vulnerable groups are not victimized The company must hire independent investors and mystery shoppers to identify culprit franchisee for noncompliance. Company must develop forum to share store practices and employees feedback that are anonymous and directly under the higher management The franchisees can develop union and workout a model that supports equal benefit for multi-stakeholders The companies need to ask whether underpayment is an act of being strategic in organizing businesses. This will decide the approach for business operations and compliance. Underpayment should never be considered as an options for managing expenses. Instead, business operators must generate revenue from other sources. It is not ethical operate a business that makes profit by sacrificing the employees interest. Even after accepting their mistake, company operator must redevelop their operational framework to ensure that such incidents does not happen in future. This can only be achieved by strong compliance and transparent auditing. Conclusion The exploitation still exist at other franchise chains like McDonalds, Pizza hut who operates on the somewhat similar franchise model like 7-Eleven. The scandal uncovered that such exploitations are common practice and mostly organized at management level. Underpayments not only affects the business but it also destroys the brand reputation in global market. It also brings bad name for the country considering that most of the staff are international students who work in stores to manage their expenses. Without remedial process this exploitation will become part of work policies and there will be no one answerable for wrong-doings. Although, this revelation has opened a Pandora box for other business operators but until there is a strong compliance legislation, such scams will continue. The Fair work Ombudsman and government has tough task in eliminating such organised frauds and support workforce. Such scams forces business operators to assess their business ethics policies against the impact they create for multiple stakeholders. If business operators follow ethical leadership then they will have better control over compliance and mutual benefits for the business. The operational model can be modified to increase the stakeholders share and it will eventually help both parties to take ownership. References       Barraclough, C. (2015). Calls for action after the Inconvenient Truth about 7-Eleven is revealed Procurement and Supply Australasia. Procurement and Supply Australasia. Retrieved 31 January 2017, from http://procurementandsupply.com/2015/09/calls-for-action-after-the-inconvenient-truth-about-7-eleven-is-revealed/ Eisenhardt, K. M. (1989). Agency theory: An assessment and review. Academy of management review, 14(1), 57-74. Ferguson, A. (2015). 7-Eleven wage abuse scandal has lessons for all directors ACAPMAg The voice of downstream petroleum. ACAPMAg The voice of downstream petroleum. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from http://acapmag.com.au/home/2015/10/7-eleven-wage-abuse-scandal-has-lessons-for-all-directors/ Ferguson, A., Danckert, S., Hatch, P. (2015). 7-Eleven scandal: Company announces review of pay practices. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 31 January 2017, from http://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace-relations/7eleven-scandal-company-announces-review-of-pay-practices-20150831-gjbof4.html Ferguson, A., Danckert, S., Toft, K. (2015). 7-Eleven: A sweatshop on every corner. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from http://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace-relations/7eleven-a-sweatshop-on-every-corner-20150827-gj8vzn.html Gartrell, A. (2016). Malcolm Turnbulls financial stake in 7-Eleven under scrutiny. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 30 January 2017, from http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/malcolm-turnbulls-financial-stake-in-7eleven-under-scrutiny-20160204-gmlikw.html Hechter, M., Kanazawa, S. (1997). Sociological rational choice theory. Annual review of sociology, 23(1), 191-214. Loucks, V.R. (1987) A CEO looks at ethics. Business Horizons, March-April, 2-5 Morrell, K. (2004). Decision making and business ethics: the implications of using image theory in preference to rational choice. Journal of Business Ethics, 50(3), 239-252. Schermerhorn Jr, J. R. (2010). Management. John Wiley Sons. Singer, P. (Ed.). (2013). A companion to ethics. John Wiley Sons. Thakor, A. (2003) Competence without credibility wont win in the long run. in N. Tichy and A. McGill (Eds.) The Ethical Challenge (2005) San Francisco: John Wiley and Sons Inc. pp. 125-134. Westerholm, P., Nilstun, T., Ovretveit, J. (2004). Practical Ethics in Occupational Health. Abingdon: Radcliffe Publishing. Wong, P. W. H. (2006). A study of business ethical practices in Australian organisations: a multiple case study. Theses, 47.

VOIP Technology to Make Voice Calls

VOIP Technology to Make Voice Calls Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Science Computer Networks Program Course Number CN8814 Course Title Network Mathematics and Simulations Semester/Year Summer 2015 Instructor Dr. Alagan Anpalagan Lab Assignment No Lab 2 Assignment Title QoS for VOIP Submission Date June 21,2015 Due Date June 21,2015 Student Name(s) Ishtiaq Ahmed Mohammad Shariful Ikram Student ID(s) 500666959 500543793 Signature(s) [emailprotected] [emailprotected] Table of Contents (Jump to) Objective Introduction Lab topology: Question 1: Question 2: Question 3: Question 4: Question 5: Question 6: Question 7: Conclusion   Objective In this lab, we have used VOIP technology to make voice calls. We have analyzed by implementing WFQ,CBWFQ and LLQ queuing techniques for improving the call quality. Introduction Quality of Service or QOS is used to increase the performance of voice application. End user can get voice call performance based on the QOS. It is a very critical implementation for voice over IP or VOIP based calls.QOS deals with reducing the delay and drop of packets compare with low priority traffic. If the delays are long, voice quality will be noisy and conversation will be very bad.QOS make sure the standard voice services by using existing resources. With this lab we have learned fragmentation with frame relay, traffic shaping techniques for improving the voice quality. In the first part of this lab, we will make voice call with FRF12 and analyze the voice quality. Then we will implement WFQ,CBWFQ and LLQ queuing techniques and will recognize suitable techniques for voice. In our network topology, router 7 is working as frame-relay switching. Router 1 and Router2 are connected with two telephones. Lab topology: Figure 1 Lab 2 topology We have configured VOIP peer between router 1 and router 2 with our lab instruction. 1. Configure voice over IP over Frame-Relay (FRF.12) and appropriate dial peers at Router 1 and Router 2 with the following information: Committed burst size (Bc) = 12000 bits Committed bit rate (CIR) = 64 kbps Frame relay fragment = 1500 bytes Voice codec: G.729 In this lab, we have used below information between router 1 and router 2: Following table shows initial configuration between router 1 and router 2: 2. Test your configuration by making a call between the two phones. Note the voice quality. With making a call between these phones, we have found voice quality is good. 3. Generate two ping traffic flows with 3000-byte packet size across PVC1. Make a voice call. Note that the voice quality deteriorates. To increase the traffic flow, we have changed the packets size 3000 byte by using extended ping command. After that we make call between our phones and gets distort voice because of delay and jitter. 4. Configure the frame-relay fragmentation and traffic shaping at the serial interfaces to improve the voice quality (the fragment delay is required to be less than 10 ms). To improve the voice quality, we have configured frame-relay fragmentation and traffic shaping between router 1 and router 2 serial interfaces: Question 1: How do you choose appropriate fragment size and committed burst size (Bc) to implement the frame-relay fragmentation and traffic shaping? Why the voice quality is improved after the configuration? In our lab requirements, fragment delay is less than 10 ms. So we have calculated the fragment size based on the following formula: Fragment size (Maximum): †¢ Fragment_size = (0.01 sec) * CIR = (0.01 sec) * 64 kbps = 80 bytes Parameters of Traffic Shapping: †¢ Burst size (Committed): Bc = 0.01 seconds * CIR = 640 bits After these configuration, we have made voice calls and have get better voice quality. Voice quality have improved because of smaller fragmentation. Question 2: Explain why FIFO queuing should not be used if fragmentation is configured. Fragmentation helps to break large data traffic into smaller data traffic. For this voice traffic gets priority and have served faster. In the FIFO technology, if any large data entered into the queue then in that time if any voice traffic comes, then it needs to be wait until large data traffic finishes. There is no way to prioritize the voice traffic in FIFO techniques. 5. Set IP precedence of the voice traffic to 5. Generate two ping traffic flows with 3000-byte packet size across PVC1. Make a voice call. Note the voice quality. In the type of service or TOS byte of Header, we have set IP precedence. IP precedence can identify class of services. Out of seven bits, left three digits are use in IP precedence. These values can be from zero to seven. Here larger number means higher priority. We have set IP precedence 5 and we make ping traffic with 3000 bytes in the PVC1.We have get voice quality good than the previous quality. Following table shows the configuration between router 1 and router 2: 6. Configure a RTP priority queue for voice traffic. Generate two ping traffic flows with 3000-byte packet size across PVC1. Make a voice call. Note the voice quality Following table shows the configuration between router 1 and router 2: We have generated two ping traffic between router 1 and router 2 with 3000 bytes packet size. After that we have test voice calls between our phones. We have get voice quality is good than previous. It has happened because 27 kbps bandwidth is reserve for voice packets and voice packets has no need to wait in the queue. Question 3: Determine the minimum bandwidth required for the RTP priority queue configuration. We have configured voice traffic with RTP priority queue. Our size of voice packet is 66 bytes. So the minimum requirement of bandwidth is 8*66/0.02 or 26,400 bps or 26.4 kbps. We have used G729 codec and voice payload size is 20 bytes. We set our lab bandwidth is 27 kbps. Question 4: Compare the voice qualities at Steps 4, 5, and 6, and explain the causes of quality differences. To compare voice qualities between steps 4,5, and 6, we have found voice quality is worst in step 4.It has happened for voice call and ping is ready at a time, all packets are transfer in the same queue. So lots of packet are drop because of more queuing delay. Voice traffic has high priority when we use IP precedence 5 in step 5.Our voice and data traffic still use the same bandwidth. Data traffic still transfer even voice traffic arrives. So ping traffic transfers and voice traffic waits. For this, voice quality is not good because there is no bandwidth reservation for voice traffic. In step 6,we have configured 27 kbps bandwidth in RTP priority queuing. This bandwidth is reserve for voice traffic. So voice packets always use this defined bandwidth and voice traffic has priority than ping traffic. So in this case, voice quality is better. 7. Configure three classes: VoIP, VoIP signaling, and default. Reserve bandwidth 25 kbps for VoIP class, and 8 kbps for VoIP signaling class, respectively. Do not assign priority queue to any class. Three different classes has been created in this case. They are assign with fix bandwidth. We have used access-lists for voice traffic classification. Following table shows configuration between router 1 and router 2. Question 5: Explain the differences and similarities between CBWFQ and WFQ. CBWFQ can utilize bandwidth effectively compare to WFQ. It is actually the extended version of WFQ. During the congestion period, CBWFQ can guarantee the minimum bandwidth. It will switch when it gets more bandwidth again. In the CBWFQ, we can define different classes and each different classes we can assign separate bandwidth. The differences and similarities between WFQ and CBWFQ are as follows: Similarities CBWFQ has default traffic class but if we do not define this class then CBWFQ and WFQ has no difference in queuing techniques. Differences Based on the user define classes ,CBWFQ can traffic queuing but WFQ cannot queue traffic. For the traffic flow, CBWFQ can make sure specific bandwidth for it but WFQ can not guarantee that. Network administrator can use CBWFQ more flexibly. They utilize this CBWFQ with different priorities for different types of traffic. Question 6: Based on the above configuration, what are the maximum and minimum bandwidths that are available for the default class? The maximum bandwidth that are available for the default class was 64 kbits/s Default class is use all available bandwidth like bandwidth = CIR = 64 kbit/s if there are no voice traffic Because if there is no voice or voice signaling traffic then the default class is use all available bandwidth (bandwidth = CIR = 64 kbit/s). The minimum bandwidth that are available for the default class is 31 kbit/s But if for voice or voice signaling flow, the reserving bandwidth will be 25 kbits/s and 8 kbit/s respectively. Other will be available for default class. So, minimum bandwidth available for default class is: 64kbps (25kbps + 8kbps) = 31 kbit/s We have generated two ping traffic through PVC1 and at the same time we do voice call. Our packet size is 3000 bytes. We have found same voice quality like step 6. 8. Establish a voice call between the two phones. At the same time, generate two ping traffic flows with 3000-byte packet size between the two routers. Note the voice quality. We have generated voice calls in our phones. At the same time between router 1 and router 2 we have generated 3000 byte ping traffic. We have found the acceptable voice quality. For voice traffic we have assign different class but there is no priority assign for this class. So, in the receiver end, both data and voice packets are receive similar way. So voice is not be clear because of delay introduce. 9. Configure a priority queue for VoIP class using LLQ. We have configured priority queue with LLQ. Following table shows the configuration: 10. Make a voice call between the two phones. Note the voice quality. After the configuration, we have make phone call with 3000 byte ping traffic in the same time. We found the improved voice quality. Question 7: Explain why the voice quality is improved after the priority configuration. Voice quality has improved for priority configuration. Previously we do not assign priority for different define classes of voice and voice signaling. So, voice quality is improved because of priority assigned. So for any ping traffic comes first it is served first. With the priority queue configuration, it has been resolved. So for any voice traffic arrival, it is use priority queue with allocated bandwidth. Conclusion In this lab, we have configured two routers and make phone call. We have observed the different call quality. Call quality depends on traffic flow. Traffic flows depends on different parameters like delay, jitter, loss of packets, etc. These hampers the quality of services. We have implemented three queuing discipline here like WFQ,CBWFQ,CBWFQ with LLQ. The objective of this lab is to analyze and improve the quality of voice service. We have found, the best voice quality when we have implemented different class for voice traffic and assign high priority value for voice traffic. Page | 1

The Daily Life of Ancient Greeks :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

The Daily Life of Ancient Greeks Life in Greece in ancient times would remind you of your own life in many ways. There was school, family, athletic competition, and social gatherings. Knowing that participants in their sporting events competed nude or that you rarely knew your husband/wife until the wedding day does however, make you grateful for the society that you live in today. Â   Babies Life for the Greeks in Athens began in their home. Babies were delivered by the women of the family, and only in cases of serious complications was a mid-wife called. Large families were not desired by Athenians since the inheritance was to be divided up equally among sons and daughters requiring dowries. So, unwanted children were not uncommon. Killing the babies was illegal, but a new-born could be exposed to die. These unwanted babies were left outside in a clay pot either to be claimed by a childless woman or rescued and brought up as a slave (Connolly, 32). Slaves were common in ancient times, if a family was reasonably well off they usually had two or three slaves. Slaves would take on the tasks of motherhood, some would even breast feed the babies. The slaves also worked the fields and helped the mother with other household duties, such as making clothes (The Study of Women, online). Â   Education Boys would begin school at age seven. They were also given a paidagogos, a slave that accompanied them everywhere. The paidagogos taught the boy manners, punished him when he did wrong, and even sat through classes with the boy to make sure he did his work. School went from half an hour after daybreak to half an hour before the sun set. Physical education was a big part of a boys education (Connolly, 34). When boys were 18, they no longer went to school; instead they began their 2 year military training. Young girls did not go to school. Middle and upper class girls leaned to read and write from a female tutor at home (Connolly, 35). Girls generally stayed at home until they were married, which was around the age of 15 (Ancient Civilizations, online). They helped their mother in the house and worked in the fields when they were needed (Exploring Ancient, online). Â   Marriage Marriages were arranged. Because girls lived such sheltered lives, they usually had never even met the men their fathers agreed for them to marry. Men were mostly in their twenties when they got married, the girls were usually 15.

Being Careful about Putting Animals in Captivity Essay -- essays resea

Animals in captivity. It has been an issue since the first zoo was opened. Many people are for and against it. I think that there are many pros and cons to having them in captivity. The main issue in the world is how do you possibly make it as close to the animal’s natural environment in captivity. It is almost impossible. You can’t start building sea world all over the ocean and hope the animals show up. I live in Agoura hills, big for horse property. At my grandma’s we have three Arabian horses. The thing is that they are wild animals, and need to do what they do best, RUN. We have three acres of pasture they can run around and play and be horses. Now let me tell you, they love their treats. Animals love to learn. I see it in our horses every day. They are happy. They get kept clean, fed, ridden, and get treats. Wild horses live on hundred of thousands of acres. If you take one of those and train it they love it. They like being fed, cleaned, and get treats. Now a lot of people would say that is different than keeping a killer whale at sea world. In some ways it is and in some ways it isn’t. The whales at sea world are always happy and love attention that they receive. I watched a program on the discovery channel a while a go. It was about the marine animals that were in captivity. Those whales loved being trained and getting a reward of fish when they do something correct. Now look at the con of this situation. Is this anything close to what they would get in nature. No. They do not get the mass oceans to swim. They do not get the freedom to live. But in some ways it is better. The have some of the most amazing trainers, vets, and marine experts in the world on call 24/7. Now I am not saying that we should take ... ...est care and get sick or die (Keiko in Mexico) So you see their a lot of pros and cons. Another point people bring up is the mental stability of the animal. There have been cases that have occurred where the animal snaps and attack the human is usually in captivity. If some idiot goes walking in the Brazilian forests and get attacked by a jaguar that’s his fault. The elephant that attacks humans is usually the humans fault. Either the elephant is cooped up to long and snaps or the trainer did something that made them snap. They are wild and this is the risk. Usually the animals don’t want to hurt the trainers or keepers. This is the risk of having wild animals in shows and captivity. If you can take the risk that is fine but you must make sure all the pros are met and cons kept in mind. They are wonderful creatures and they want to please, but there is a limit. Being Careful about Putting Animals in Captivity Essay -- essays resea Animals in captivity. It has been an issue since the first zoo was opened. Many people are for and against it. I think that there are many pros and cons to having them in captivity. The main issue in the world is how do you possibly make it as close to the animal’s natural environment in captivity. It is almost impossible. You can’t start building sea world all over the ocean and hope the animals show up. I live in Agoura hills, big for horse property. At my grandma’s we have three Arabian horses. The thing is that they are wild animals, and need to do what they do best, RUN. We have three acres of pasture they can run around and play and be horses. Now let me tell you, they love their treats. Animals love to learn. I see it in our horses every day. They are happy. They get kept clean, fed, ridden, and get treats. Wild horses live on hundred of thousands of acres. If you take one of those and train it they love it. They like being fed, cleaned, and get treats. Now a lot of people would say that is different than keeping a killer whale at sea world. In some ways it is and in some ways it isn’t. The whales at sea world are always happy and love attention that they receive. I watched a program on the discovery channel a while a go. It was about the marine animals that were in captivity. Those whales loved being trained and getting a reward of fish when they do something correct. Now look at the con of this situation. Is this anything close to what they would get in nature. No. They do not get the mass oceans to swim. They do not get the freedom to live. But in some ways it is better. The have some of the most amazing trainers, vets, and marine experts in the world on call 24/7. Now I am not saying that we should take ... ...est care and get sick or die (Keiko in Mexico) So you see their a lot of pros and cons. Another point people bring up is the mental stability of the animal. There have been cases that have occurred where the animal snaps and attack the human is usually in captivity. If some idiot goes walking in the Brazilian forests and get attacked by a jaguar that’s his fault. The elephant that attacks humans is usually the humans fault. Either the elephant is cooped up to long and snaps or the trainer did something that made them snap. They are wild and this is the risk. Usually the animals don’t want to hurt the trainers or keepers. This is the risk of having wild animals in shows and captivity. If you can take the risk that is fine but you must make sure all the pros are met and cons kept in mind. They are wonderful creatures and they want to please, but there is a limit.

A Systematic Review on the Comparison of Avandia and Actos in Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a condition that is characterized by a chronic rise in the glucose levels of the blood.   It can lead to changes of the blood vessels of the retina, nephron, heart, nerves, etc, causing a lot of complications.Individuals, who suffer from type 2 diabetes, may or may not require insulin (as the condition primarily occurs due to insulin resistance or improper utilization of insulin by the blood cells).   In many cases, people who suffer from type 2 diabetes, are ultimately given insulin, even though the drug is not very effective in control the high blood sugar levels (Ligaray, 2008).Studies conducted in the UK effectively demonstrate that 25 % of the patients who suffer from type II diabetes require insulin within 6 years of initiating therapy with oral hypoglycaemic agents (Edelman, 2005).In clinical practice, type 2 diabetes mellitus is one of the commonest diseases that are seen.   The insulin levels may be low, defective in nature or the very utili sation of insulin by the fat, liver and the muscle cells may be hampered.   The individual may not depend on insulin for bringing back the blood glucose levels back to normal.   Ketosis seldom develops, but is common under stressful conditions (Inzucchi, 2007).Today, in the US, the screening for diabetes is usually performed in elders or high-risk individuals, and as such there may be several members of the general population who may be silently suffering from the disorder.The prevalence of diabetes mellitus in the US is about 7 %, but in individuals above the age of 50 years, the incidence may be about 15 %.   Certain minority groups including the Hispanics, African-Americans, Native Americans, etc, are at a higher risk of developing the disorder.   The mean age of incidence of the disorder in high-risk populations usually occur at a younger age compared to the White American populations.   If we look at the prevalence of diabetes mellitus type 2 throughout the world, the incidence is high in Indians, Polynesians, Micronesians, Latin Americans, etc.In Australians, Africans, Aborigines, Asians, etc, the incidence is relative lower when they live in the native countries.   However, when they migrate to the US, the prevalence of the disorder is relatively higher, owing to the change in lifestyle, poor control over risk factors, etc.A great proportion of diabetic patients die from cardiac diseases such as heart attacks, stroke, etc.   Studies have effectively demonstrated that the risk for cardiac disease raises two-folds in men, and up to four folds in women (Ligaray, 2008).The main pathophysiology of diabetes is the rise in the blood glucose levels (hyperglycaemia) due to the low insulin levels in the blood, improper utilisation of insulin by the cells, defective functioning of the insulin or resistance to insulin.   The pancreatic beta islet cells may not produce sufficient amounts of insulin required by the body or several groups of cells pres ent in the body such as the fat, muscle, liver, etc, may be resistant to the action of insulin.Studies conducted during autopsy have effectively demonstrated that the beta cell mass in type 2 diabetics are reduced to about half the normal size.   The body cells find it seemingly difficult to utilize glucose resulting in lower amount of glucose transportation to the muscles, greater production of glucose by the liver and greater breakdown of fat (Ligaray, 2008).Other causes of diabetes type 2 include production of substance by the body that hamper the action of insulin, glucotoxicity and lipotoxicity.   When the individual consumes carbohydrates, there are chances that the blood glucose level would raise further, as insulin is not available to control (Inzucchi, 2007).The ability of the body to use insulin immediately to control carbohydrate and sugar level following ingestion is difficult (Ligaray, 2008).   Studies may have shown that although the insulin deficiency may be mil d, the ability of the insulin to stop an immediate rise in the blood glucose level would be absent.   When the individual suffers from mild type 2 diabetes during the initial stages, there are chances that the insulin secretion would respond to other secretogogues such as amino acids.However, in severe type 2 diabetes, the condition does not respond to other secretogogues resulting in a severe deficiency of insulin.   In individuals suffering from type 2 diabetes, there may be deposition of an amyeloid-like substance in the beta-cells of the pancreatic islets.   The beta-cells begin to malfunction following the deposition of amyloid (Inzucchi, 2007).In some of the type 2 diabetics the insulin secretion may be defective in nature.   The ability of the cells to respond to insulin is reduced and the normal response is less.The cells may not be able to use the insulin effectively to ensure utilization of glucose by the cells.   In an environment of hyperglycaemia, the cells fi nd it very difficult to utilize the insulin and the glucose.   The body finds it difficult to produce glycogen from glucose in the liver and breakdown of fats, as a result of the decreased sensitivity of the insulin.The exact reason for the poor response of the cells to insulin is not understood clearly, but scientists suggest that it has to do with the defective mitochondrial functioning and the accumulation of free fatty acids in the cells that are usually supposed to respond to insulin.   The insulin receptors in such cells may be normal, but the insulin pathways that are related to the insulin receptors may go haywire.The functioning of the glucose transporting agent GLUT may become abnormal.   Scientists also feel that the defects in insulin use and glucose transportation may be due to a genetic defect.   Obesity also increases the risk of the individual developing resistance to insulin.   The presence of free fatty acids in the body would suggest greater amount of li pid deposition in the liver and the muscles thus playing a major role in developing insulin resistance (Inzucchi, 2007).When the blood glucose levels are high, the sensitivity of the cell to insulin and the ability of the cell to utilize glucose are seriously affected.   Besides, a rise in the lipids in the blood can affect glucose metabolism, causing a raise in hepatic gluconeogenesis, and raising the free fatty acid levels.   The pancreas functions abnormally and the muscles are unable to utilize glucose effectively (Inzucchi, 2007).It may be difficult to assert whether the primary defect in type 2 diabetics is due to insulin insufficiency or insulin resistance.   Studies have demonstrated that in high-risk populations, the initial defect is primarily due to insulin resistance and a decrease in the insulin sensitivity.However, diabetes would not occur only with insulin resistance alone.   Studies have shown that frequently due to the secretory defects, the beta cells seem to get exhausted.   It may also be that chronic stimulation of the beta-cells along with the genetic defects would result in insulin insufficiency (Inzucchi, 2007).Evidence strongly supports that genetics and environmental factors both play a major role in the development of diabetes mellitus type 2 (some even suggest complex genetic factors).   Most of the forms of type 2 diabetes mellitus have been polygenic in nature, whereas maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY) has been monogenic in nature.   There is a clear familial linkage seen in diabetes mellitus type 2, but there seems to be no classical Mendelian inheritance (Inzucchi, 2007).Diabetes mellitus patients are at the risk of high mortality in case their condition worsens and complications develop.   Hence, one the keys to ensure a longer lifespan in diabetes patients is effective management using drugs and medications.Studies have clearly demonstrated that diabetes patients require an aggressive, intensive and e arly intervention that would be able to identify a rise in the blood sugar level and ensure that it is brought within normal range.   One of the most difficult complications of diabetes patients would be developing is heart disease.The mortality from heart disease is quite high (70 %) in diabetics.   Besides, the costs of managing a patient suffering from diabetes and heart disease are about three times higher (Unger, 2008).Diabetes mellitus is mainly diagnosed on the basis of the plasma glucose levels.   The fasting blood glucose level should be more than 126 mg per dl of blood.   The post prandial blood glucose level should be greater than 200 mg per dl of blood (typically taken 2 hours after a meal).   The impaired glucose tolerance levels include 140 to 199 post-prandially.In diabetes, a random blood glucose test should demonstrate reading above 200 mg per dl along with the presence of symptoms of diabetes.   For the individual to be classified as diabetic, the blood glucose tests should demonstrate consistent results.   Haemoglobin A-1c is also useful in demonstrating the retrospective glucose levels, but cannot be taken as standard as there are several potential errors that may be associated with this test (Buse, 2008).

Contrast of Carrefour and Wal-Mart Essay

Since the American entrepreneur, Clarence Saunders, opens his first Piggly Wiggly store in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1916, the concept of self-service store has swept the globe. With the largest population in the world, China is expected to be the world’s biggest retail market which is now already the world’s fastest-growing market. ( Anon, 2011:1) As the world’s first and second largest retail groups, Carrefour and Wal-Mart are one their way piling in. However, with 5000 years of traditional history and 30 years of planned economy, china has already formed its own market tradition. Though, the two giants both need to face the special Chinese market, in some aspects, they use different strategies and have different market feedback. This essay will illustrate the similar strategies the two retail groups have been using and also analyze the ways they use to adapt to the Chinese market differently. To begin with, for opening the Chinese market, Carrefour and Wal-Mart both choose to cooperate with the local commercial. $1 billion was given to Wal-Mart’s 100 hypermarkets’ supply chain, ranging from food to electronics (Shu-Ching, 2010, P. 1). Similarly, Carrefour also tried to adapt to local conditions, i. . cooperate with Lianhua Supermarket Company in Shanghai. The reasons why they cooperate with local partners is not just because of the legal considerations, but also to have a deep understanding of the difficult and complex Chinese market (Peter, 2006, P. 6). Nevertheless, they use different strategies according to different company development plan. Wal-Mart focuses more on the long term partnership nationally or even internationally. Considering the different regional culture and local policy, Carrefour changes partnerships by local markets (Peter, 2006, P. ). Furthermore, Carrefour adopts different strategy throughout all its global market, focusing on locally sourced products, as well as its local management teams, which are almost comprised of domestic employees to be more familiar with the local tastes. Also, on purchasing larger market shares, expansion strategy is common used by the two retail market giants. Since Carrefour opened its first store in china in 1995, it has already operated 73 hypermarkets in 29 cities which makes about $2 billion profit (Peter, 2006, P. ). Likely, 338 shops in 124 cities makes Wal-Mart $7 billion annually which is just a little bit lower than whole Carrefour shops’ profit (Anon, 2011, P. 2). Moreover, they both regard second- and third-tier cities as a good growth opportunity, and have already built shops in western cities which are not so developed. Even though, they perform different strategies in expanding their market. Firstly, Wal-Mart aims at making central distribution center, while local distributors are more considered by Carrefour. Secondly, hypermarkets often constitute larger shopping and entertainment complexes, therefore, a large amount of Carrefour stores are built at the city center for customers to go by foot or by bike. Comparing to this, edge-of-town is where Wal-Mart outlets often located, where customers can have large parking facilities or even shuttle bus provided (Moreau, 2008, P. 1). Last but not the least, Carrefour builds its stores based on the organic expansion primarily. By contrast, Wal-Mart combines organic growth with large-scale acquisitions, which leads to its Chinese revenues doubled. Lastly, to perform well in Chinese tradition market, Carrefour and Wal-Mart both have their changes in shops and marketing. On the one hand, for saving a million yuan in electricity and water costs, two retail chains’ common aim is to achieving â€Å"zero-carbon† stores by next year, which forces them to open a range of new energy saving stores in China, such as using waste gas to heat water and fluorescent lights, making use of natural lighting and integrating energy-saving technologies (Anon, 2009). On the other hand, to discover new growth areas in retail profit, selling medicine has been put on the agenda. The two giants have already been in close contract with the Ministry of Commerce on the medicine retail business and affirming that world’s largest retailer’s distribution network will be covered by medicine sales (Anon, 2005). Although there are a lot of similar strategies in market development, the two retail groups also have their different development focus. In the first place, Wal-Mart awards its employees based on profit-sharing stock, which will improve employees’ skills, trust and constant work, while Carrefour focus more on salaries. In addition, Carrefour adopted a multi-format strategy, i. e. open smaller outlets in the discount format to create another profit growth, while Wal-Mart develops its presence in the hypermarkets format exclusively (Moreau, 2008, P. 3). In details, proved to be a dynamic format competing against hypermarkets operators, department stores get a CAGR increase of 9%, 2002-2007. Therefore, department stores sales continue to be boosted by the expansion period decided by Carrefour (Moreau, 2008, P. 2).

Are People Inherently Honest? Essay

There are numerous theories that attempt to explain the motivation behind people acting in certain ways. This paper will address three of these theories, apply these theories to how people choose to behave honestly or dishonestly, and will attempt to determine whether or not people are inherently honest. Before looking into the motivation behind people’s decision to be honest, it is important to define some key terms in order to fully understand and explore what it means to be inherently honest. Merriam-Webster defines honest as â€Å"free from fraud or deception,† or simply put, truthful. It defines inherent as â€Å"belonging by nature or habit. † The majority of people simply associate something being inherent as ‘natural’ or ‘innate’. Interestingly, this definition expands our view on what one may consider ‘inherent’ by noting how past habits can also play a vital role in how one behaves. Now that we have defined what honesty and inherent behaviour entails, we can now look at the various theories that attempt to identify the motivation behind people behaving honestly. One of these theories is the fact that humans choose to act honestly or not based on what we feel is ‘morally good’ or the ‘right thing to do’ according to a very personal set of rules and morals. An individual’s behaviours are heavily influenced in order to satisfy this individual set of rules. Of course, there are a number of positions one can take on when defining this set of rules. Deontologists would argue that one should be honest one hundred percent of the time, regardless of the situation. They believe that it is ones’ moral obligation to behave honestly and have a duty of adhering to this universal rule. On the other hand, utilitarianism claims that the decision to act honestly or dishonestly varies depending on the situation, considering all costs, benefits, and consequences that will result from the behaviour. Regardless of the person’s moral standpoint, their choice to behave honestly or not is strongly influenced by their personal, or inherent, set of behaviours that they consider morally ‘right’. This supports the argument that people are in fact inherently honest. Another theory that attempts to explain the motivation behind behaving honestly is focused on the consequences that will result from behaving honestly or dishonestly. Uri Gneezy’s paper on the role of consequences in lying looks at how different benefits and costs influence one’s decision to behave honestly or dishonestly. From his studies, he comes to a number of conclusions describing how people conduct a cost-benefit analysis when deciding to lie or not. First, he finds that people are particularly sensitive to their personal gain when deciding to lie, meaning that they place a high priority on personal gain in their cost-benefit analysis. He also finds that people also tend to lie less when the lie harms another party. However, this harm plays less of a role in choosing not to lie compared to the increased gains from lying. This suggests that the marginal personal gain from a lie is greater than the marginal harm that is caused from the lie. Because people are constantly trying to maximize their personal utility, these findings display how one will behave dishonestly when doing so maximizes their utility. This suggests that people do not inherently behave honestly, but rather behave in a way that will create the most personal gain. A third theory that explains how people behave is based on the image that is associated with behaving honestly or dishonestly, as well as the use of excuses to justify dishonesty. There tends to be a negative stigma attached with lying; therefore, people are inclined to be honest simply to maintain a positive image of themself. There are a number of ways to look at this. First, people have a natural desire to see themselves in a positive light and like to feel that they are doing what is right. Much of this plays into the previously discussed individual set of morals that people have and doing what they consider ‘morally right’. However, there are cases when people create excuses to justify to themselves that acting dishonestly is the right thing to do. For example, if a man lies by telling his pregnant wife that she doesn’t look overweight, he will justify this lie to himself by claiming that he doesn’t want to hurt her feelings, maintaining a positive image of himself. In addition, people will tend to lie less to avoid making a bad impression to others. Similarly to above, people may use excuses to justify acting dishonestly, simply to maintain their positive impression on others. This shows that in order to maintain a positive impression of oneself on oneself as well as on others, people are inclined to behave honestly and are willing to make excuses to justify acting dishonestly to maintain this impression. This suggests that due to the natural desire to create and maintain a positive impression, people are inherently honest. The above theories and discussion suggest both that people are and are not inherently honest. This is precisely why many social scientists have difficulty in this area. On one hand, people behave honestly to satisfy their personal set of morals and to promote a positive image of themselves (in their own as well as others’ eyes), but are willing to be dishonest if it results in enough personal gain to justify the lie. From this, we conclude that one cannot make an overarching statement claiming that people are or are not inherently honest. Whether a person is inherently honest depends on how they weigh and balance the importance of their morals, personal gain, their self-image, and the image they want to portray to others.

Blue Jeans †American Cultural Artifact Essay

Blue jeans in the last thirty years have attained such world wide popularity that they have come to be considered an American icon. However jeans have not always been held in high stead, but rather have had a troubled history including its beginnings within the working class movement, being considered unsavory by religious leaders and also seen as a rebellious statement about ‘western decadence’. According to the University of Toronto, no other garment has served as an example of status ambivalence and ambiguity than blue jeans in the history of fashion. Throughout this essay I will discuss how jeans have become such a common treasured and even expensive item crossing over class, gender, age, regional, and national lines as reflected by the many changing political views and acceptance from various social classes over the past 50 years. History of Blue Jeans According to the University of Toronto, blue jeans were originally created for the California coal miners in the mid-nineteenth century by the Morris Levi Strauss, a Bavarian immigrant who relocated to New York in 1847. Mr Strauss’ fate and the history of clothing changed forever when in 1872 he received an offer from Jacob Davis, a tailor from Reno Nevada. Mr. Davis, in order to improve the durability of the pants that he made for his clients, had been adding metal rivets to the highly stressed seams. The idea was successful and he wished to patent it, but due to financial constraints required a partner and hence Levi became the financial backer and partner. In 1873, the new partners received a patent for â€Å"an improvement in Fastening Pocket-Openings†, and thus the history of blue jeans as we know them began. Blue jeans were originally called â€Å"waist overalls† by Levi Strauss and Co and in the 1920’s these were the most widely used worker’s pants in America. The name of these trousers changed to â€Å"jeans† in the 1960’s when Levi Strauss and Co. recognized that this was what the product was being called by the young, hip teenage boys. The history of â€Å"waist overalls† continues as the history of blue jeans. â€Å"Jeans† is now generally understood to refer to pants made out of a specific type of fabric called â€Å"denim† (Fashion Encyclopedia). Blue Jeans through the decades The popularity of blue jeans spread among working people, such as farmers and the ranchers of the American West. According to the Encyclopedia of Fashion, in the 1930’s jeans became so popular among cowboys that Wrangler formed just to make denim work clothing for those who rode the range. Jeans have tended to follow along in popularity with popular culture as evident with the popular Western films which found adventure and romance in the adventures of the cowboys who rode horses, shot bad guys, and wore blue jeans. Those who wished to imitate the casual, rugged look of the cowboys they saw in films began to wear jeans as casual wear (Fashion Encyclopedia). This effect is not hard to understand, as even today fashion trends are greatly influenced by what highly publicized celebrities choose to wear. During World War II blue jeans became part of the official uniform of the Navy and Coast Guard, and became even more popular when worn as off-duty leisure clothing by many other soldiers. In his book, â€Å"Jeans: A Cultural History of an American Icon†, James Sullivan states that the rise of the popularity of jeans after the WWII can greatly be attributed to the influence of the film and music industry, during the 1950s many young people began to wear jeans when they saw them on rebellious young American film stars such as Marlon Brando and James Dean. By 1950, Levi’s began selling nationally and other brands started emerging, such as Lee Coopers and each with its own particular fit (Sullivan 287). According to the University of Toronto, in the 1960’s and 1970’s jeans were embraced by the nonconformist hippie youth movement, and the history of blue jeans even gets linked to the downfall of communism. Behind the iron curtain, jeans became a symbol of â€Å"western decadence† and individuality and as such were highly sought. Jeans had become extremely popular, but were still mainly worn by working people or the young. In the 1980’s through to the 1990’s jeans were no longer seen as rebellious or a source of individuality, but they were transformed as the term ‘designer jeans’ was discovered. Many designers such as Jordache and Calvin Klein came on board to create expensive jeans and some jeans even reached haute couture status (Fashion Encyclopedia). In the new millennium denim is seen on designer catwalks and there are now hundreds of styles, types and labels available and of various price ranges. Changing Popularity According to Peter Beagle in his book â€Å"American Denim: A New Folk Art†, the popularity of jeans can be attributed to the fact that jeans can be seen to embrace the American democratic values of independence, freedom and equality. Some Americans even consider jeans to be the national uniform. Blue jeans have evolved from a garment associated exclusively with hard work to one associated with leisure. What began as work clothes has transformed into one of the â€Å"hottest† items available on the consumer market today. What was once apparel associated with low culture has undergone a reversal in status. Blue jeans were the first to accomplish a rather revolutionary cultural achievement bringing upper class status to a lower class garment. Conclusion At one point or another throughout history, blue jeans have been the uniform of many groups and are considered the one garment of clothing that has remained hip for over a century and has survived everything from World War II to the eighties. For half a century blue jeans have helped define every youth movement, and every effort of older generations to deny the passing of youth. Fifty years ago America invented the concept of teenager, and it is probably no coincidence that the enduring character of blue jeans, claiming independence and the right to self-expression, can be traced to the same time. Jeans were once seen as clothing for minority groups such as workers, hippies or rebellious youth, but are now embraced by the dominant American culture as a whole.