Why Is Making Rational Decision Difficult free essay sample

Why Is Making Rational Decision Difficult for Higher Executives? How Do Information Systems Assist Decision Makers of Unstructured Problems? By ahazwan Mohamed Hafiz Bin Othman 8 December 2009 Why is making rational decision difficult for higher executives? How do information systems assist decision makers of unstructured problems? Decision making occurs as a reaction to a problem or an opportunity, requiring consideration of alternative courses of action. Rational decision making describes choices that are consistent and value-maximizing within specific constraints. It ssumes the problem is clear and unambiguous, there is a single and well-defined goal is to be achieved, all alternatives and consequences are known, preferences are clear, constant and stable, the final choice will maximize economic payoff and no time or cost constraints exist. Decisions can be classified into 3 categories, namely structured, semi-structured and unstructured. Structured decisions are repetitive and routine, having short term impact, low risk and usually involve clear standard operating procedures or SOPs (PK/ SK: problems and solutions are known). We will write a custom essay sample on Why Is Making Rational Decision Difficult or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page These type of problems occurs more egularly at the operational level. Some examples are the decision made by a production floor supervisor on the amount of labour needed to achieve a particular production volume, or when a purchasing staff has to decide which vendor to choose from to order office furniture. Information required to make such decisions is readily available and thus easily automated or programmed, thus have a higher chance of deriving rational decisions. Semi-structured decisions involve tactical issues that have medium term impact such as when middle managers determine production schedules, select new employees, nd decide how pay raises are to be allocated. At the other end of the spectrum are unstructured decisions, which involve judgement, evaluation, intuition and urgency (PU/SU): problems unknown, solutions unknown). A study of experienced professionals holding high-level positions found more than 90 percent of managers said they were likely to use a mix of intuition and data analysis when making decisions. The higher one goes in the managerial hierarchy, the more unstructured decisions seem to shape organizational destinies (long term impact). Such decisions are usually unprecedented and complex that uidelines and procedures are deemed useless. Thus, years ot accumulated experience combined with resourcefulness are crucial qualities of higher executives. This is because they have to rely on methods of sense-making based on acculturated knowledge in reacting to emerging and uncertain conditions. They based on the experience to recognize patterns and clusters of the problem to make a decision. At the strategic level, making sense of fragmentary signals or conflicting information becomes a challenge about human cognition and organizational culture rather than bout business technologies or automation. Due to the non-programmable nature of such decisions, to use rational decision making for unstructured problems is a great challenge for higher executives. Examples are when top managers such as those at Dell determine their organizations goals, what products or services to offer, how best to finance operations, or where to locate a new high-tech research and development facility. Another example is when Singapore Airlines decided keep a young fleet of airplanes (average Just over 6 years). Despite of the high costs of such a policy, it was ne of the strategic decisions that have made it one of the most profitable airlines in the world. Because the capacity of the human mind for solving complex problems is far too small to meet the requirements for full rationality, individuals operate within the confines of bounded rationality. By extracting the essential features from problems, individuals can then behave rationally, albeit within the limits. The decision maker partakes in satisficing by reviewing alternatives until the first alternative that is good enough is met, such that the final solution represents a satisfying choice rather than n optimal one. Programmed decisions minimize the need for managers to exercise discretion. Discretion costs money, so the more non-programmed decisions a manager must make, the higher salary he or she will command because greater Judgment is needed. There are strong economic incentives for top management to create standard operational procedures, rules, and policies to guide other middle- and lower-level managers. Information Systems (IS) can help reduce human errors by assisting decision makers to consider the implications of various courses of options by reducing the uncertainty hen facing complex issues. Because there are different interests, specialties, and levels in an organization, there are different kinds of systems. No single system can provide all the information an organization needs. The organization has executive support systems (ESS) at the strategic level; management information systems (MIS) and decision-support systems (DSS) at the management level; knowledge work systems (KWS) and office systems at the knowledge level; and transaction processing systems (TPS) at the operational level. Systems at each level in turn are specialized to erve each of the major functional areas. Thus, the typical systems found in organizations are designed to assist workers or managers at each level and in the functions of sales and marketing, manufacturing, finance, accounting, and human resources. Transaction processing system (TPS) collects and stores information about transactions and supports the operational level of the business, used to make structured decisions at operational level. It also supplies data for higher-level management decisions (e. g. MIS, EIS). An example is manufacturing and production ystems that supply data to operate, monitor and control the production process. Management information systems (MIS) evolved out of transaction processing systems when it was realised that computers are capable of performing rapid calculations and data comparisons could produce meaningful information for management. Transactions recorded in a TPS are analyzed and reported by an MIS. They have large quantities of input data and they produce summary reports as output. Because it generates reports on a regular basis, by condensing and converting TPS data into information for monitoring performance and managing the rganisation, a MIS is sometimes called a management reporting system (MRS). Used by middle managers, an example is an annual budgeting system. Though TPS and MIS provide information on a regular basis, frequently higher executives need information not provided in these reports to help them make decisions. A sales manager, for example, might need to determine how high to set yearly sales quotas based on increased sales and lowered product costs. Decision support systems (DSS) help strategic management staff (often senior managers) make decisions by roviding information, models, or analysis tools, supporting semi-structured and unstructured decisions (structured decisions can be automated). Their inputs are aggregate data, and they produce projections. Used for analytical work, rather than general office support, they are flexible, adaptable and quick. The user controls inputs and outputs and they often are sophisticated modelling tools used in making simulations and predictions. Using spreadsheet software, for example, the user can complete simple modelling tasks or what-if scenarios. An example Job for a DSS ould be a 5-year operating plan. A special type of DSS, called an executive information system (EIS), is designed to support the information needs of executive management. Information in an EIS is presented in charts and tables that show trends, ratios, and other managerial statistics. Because executives usually focus on strategic issues, EISs rely on external data sources such as the Dow Jones News service or the Internet. These external data sources can provide current information on interest rates, commodity prices, and other leading economic indicators. EIS or Executive Support System (ESS) rovides executives information in a readily accessible, interactive format. They are a form of MIS intended for top-level (strategic) executive use, designed to the individual such as the CEO, CIO or CFO to tie into all levels of the organization. An EIS/ESS usually allows summary over the entire organisation and also allows drilling down to specific levels of detail. They also use data produced by the ground-level TPS so the executives can gain an overview of the entire organization, providing possible outcomes and quick reference to statistics and numbers needed for decision-making.

Personal reaction Essay Example

Personal reaction Essay Example Personal reaction Essay Personal reaction Essay While reading the first couple pages of wild swans, I was immediately amazed by the culture and the perspectives of the citizens. For example, the men valued women with small petite bonded feet and it was said that a woman with large feet would bring shame onto the family. Mind you that so called large feet were what is now a womans average shoe size. Mothers did this to their young daughters. Can you imagine the pain of having a stone smashed on your foot every day? This caused bruising and ingrown toenails which are very disgusting. I cant imagine how men loud have found that attractive. Another thing that caught my attention was how on earth did Change know so much about her great grandmothers life, not only did she know about it, but she described it in detail, and all of her stories seem credible. Changes Wild Swans, has many situations where a Chinese woman was affected by their culture. However, the situation that stood out the most was in chapter six, when Jung Changes mother, De-Hong, was getting married to her boyfriend, Shoo-you. Less than two months after returning from Hardin my mother and father filed their application. Change 118) For people to get married they have to file an application for their society to approve their relationship. Marriage had traditionally been a contract between families, and there had never been civil registration or a marriage certificate. Now for those who had Joined the revolution, the Party functioned as the family head. (Change 118) The criteria to be able to get married was called 28-7- regiment-I . (Change 118) The criteria Is called 28-7-regiment-l because The man had to be at least 28 years old, a Party member for at least seven years, and with a rank equivalent to that of a regimental commander; the 1 referred to the only qualification the woman had to meet, to have worked for the Party for a minimum of one year. Changes 118) If the man or women did not meet these requirements, they were not to be married. Overall, Jung Changes book, Wild Swans, Is Interesting and inspiring. It Is changing my perspective on things, and how much the world has developed since then. Its great to read about a culture and how It grows. Its Like Im reading a personal diary from generation to generation.

The development of beauty salon services Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

The development of beauty salon services - Essay Example The concept of beauty salons started back in the days of ancient civilization, where people mostly of upper class loved to set up fashion trends for thousands of years. Although through the ages, hairstyles, cuts and trends have changed a thousand times but some things like women wearing wigs, coloring hair are not new, and are still practiced. Back then, beauty salons were the places where wigs were being made and ordered. Rich and noble people had their beauty salons in their palaces. Ever since then, the concept of beauty salon is constantly evolving and people have become accustomed to having hair styled to them throughout the years. Though, today beauty salon does not only offer different hair styling, but a number of other services such as perms, massage, waxing, tanning, facial treatments, pedicure, manicure and many more. ANALYZE HOW INNOVATION HAS CHANGED A SERVICE WITHIN THE BEAUTY INDUSTRY: Beauty industry is now a multinational and million dollar business. The services wi thin the beauty industry have widely changed, as now beauty salons are not places where simply you have your hair cut and get your nails done, but also emphasize to refine and polish the inner beauty through physical and spiritual therapy. It is not just the beauty salons and beauty shops that come under the heading of beauty industry but sales of cosmetics, perfumes and products for hair and skin care synthesize it. While beauty shops and salons are mere the service sector of this industry. In addition, some economists include cosmetic surgery and health club in this market. Beauty matters most, to most of the people in this world and so from ages the beauty industry is providing and innovating its services in order to satisfy the needs of its customers. According to the business analyst, the best selling beauty products are that clean and beautify hair. But today beauticians believed that beauty and health are interlinked, and so that is how the idea of spas and health care center s came under this heading. Queen Elizabeth was the main female icon and set the trends in the 16th century. Beauty was limited to the appearance only, where a little of face powder, glowing cheeks and red glossy lips had done it all. People used to bleach their hair using either saffron or onion skins. It used to take immense of hard work and contrary styling techniques to make a person look beautiful and presentable to attend some event. But with the ace of time and development of technology, beauty industry has also been able to advance itself by inventing artistry equipments and researching in the biological and chemical sciences which offer more sophisticated, high-performance skin care products, all in the quest for beauty. Women used to risk their life with many of their homemade cosmetics. They used burnt matches to darken their eyes, berries to stain their lips, and even used young boy’s urine to get rid of their freckles. They even used lead, mercury and even leeches to give them pale appearance. Thankfully, beauty industry has come a long way from using toxic and hazardous mixtures, and has advanced scientifically for providing a vast range to enhance our looks. Previously, people had limited hair dressing and hair treatment techniques, but more and more are developed in the market. These do not only require temporary techniques but also a permanent makeover of a person. From wigs and temporary hair

There are 3 parts in this assessment and i decided to write about Essay

There are 3 parts in this assessment and i decided to write about topshop this brand. The titles are in the assessment brief and pleas use them as the title for each part of the assessment - Essay Example While some retailers in the competitive environment have lead times in the weeks or even months, Zara has managed to be able to procure their products and have them manufactured and delivered within 15 days when demand requires it. This is unprecedented on this competitive environment, giving Zara much competitive advantage in areas of supply chain, manufacturing, and stock replenishment. In terms of the supply chain, Zara is consistently benchmarked for their efficient supply chain process as no other retailer across the globe has been able to achieve a more workable supply chain which can promise merchandise to be delivered twice daily with new fashions and new stock. The macro environment, in relation to supply chain, supports the ability for Zara to produce fast fashion merchandise and still maintain control over how the business is able to develop new merchandise fashions. There is a well-developed business infrastructure in terms of distribution and the availability of manufacturers of various textiles and fabrics to give Zara a considerable amount of diversity in product line and fashion variety. Zara also maintains ownership of many of these elements of the supply chain, giving them the ability to coordinate activities related to replenishment and distribution at the internal level. While other competitors have to rely on the expertise and timely delivery of supplier services, Zara can ensure these activities are efficient and is not affected as much by breakdowns within the supply chain caused by external inefficiencies. The macro environment is also putting pressure on retailers to adopt new payment systems, since many clothing retailers, including Zara, offer their products online. More convenient and efficient online payment systems are required in order to get consumers interested in making purchases. Therefore, Zara has developed a partnership with PayPal, the international company which provides a multitude of

Talent Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Talent Development - Essay Example Today, it is trendy to subcontract and privatize metropolitan services especially in government organizations. However, human resource department suffers in the bases of status as compared to other sub-units in an organization. Perhaps, this is because of increasing manipulation of procession managers in human resource (HR), which erodes the scientific proficiency stand of the HR departments character (Farndale & Hope-Hailey, 2009). To correct this malice, talent development in the HR departments becomes vital in helping managers deal with future challenges of the company. Strategic efforts of developing leadership intervention begin earlier in the life cycle of an individual. It optimizes a genuine leadership development in the future. Current research suggests that, when an individual’s brain matures it is impossible to develop new things especially new languages, thus majority of schools introduces languages at much earlier ages (Stewart, 2005).Therefore, leadership development begins at an earlier time of an individual, so as to make good leaders in the future. The leaders can handle crucial challenges of the group in the future because of an earlier training. On the other hand, protecting market failure of an organization incorporates career direction and development as a critical subject. In terms of business language, career guidance views terms of â€Å"market- maker.† The sole reason for career development interventions involves creating a business for the company’s products. Career development makes education and labor m arkets work efficiently, by guarantying supply face actors within the markets ensuring admission to market information and legible market signals. Moreover, business in career direction likely delivers public interest as a market maker. Therefore, leadership intervention ensures a well established leadership roles in future markets,

Medical Advances

Medical Advances Three of the most significant medical advances of the last two centuries are sanitation, vaccination, and antibiotics. Each of these advances has engendered enormous positive social and economic impacts in developed societies. Sanitation has successfully impeded pathogenic growth in human living spaces, vaccines have protected humans from historically prolific diseases such as smallpox, and antibiotics have also saved countless human lives through daily sanitation and disease cure. However, the impact of these three advances has not been fully realized because they have not yet reached substantial portions of the developing world, vaccines for several prolific diseases continue to elude researchers, and misuse of antibiotics has led to resistant bacterial strains and other health hazards. The rudiments of urban sanitation systems have been developed several times throughout human history but was nowhere near fully realized until the era of western industrialization in the 20h century. Once urbanization in the bronze age began to increase population densities in urban centers, increases in waste production required the use of outflowing systems like rivers to properly dispose of waste. The first documented system for sanitation was developed in the city of Mohenjo-Daro in 2600 BCE, and consisted of slits cut in the floors of houses to allow waste to drop into containers next to streets, and bath houses with covered channels that led to the nearby Indus River (â€Å"Mohenjo-Daro†). In addition, cities in the Roman Republic built the first documented sewer networks; for instance a massive combined sewer and storm drain called the Cloaca Maxima, or â€Å"The Great Drain† that carried waste and runoff water from Romes civilian houses, public buildings, and b ath houses to the Tiber River (Rich). However, the era that followed the fall of the Roman Republic saw a regression in sanitation technology in which most of the worlds civilizations operated without sanitation systems. For instance, the most common method to remove waste from living spaces in medieval Europe was to dump it into the street, where materials such as urine, feces, and wastewater from other domestic activities gathered and fostered bacterial, viral, and pest growth (Faria). Exponential growth of populations around industrializing centers without planned infrastructures made the immediate need for sewer systems evident. Citizens had heretofore relied either on dumping waste directly into waterways or simple cesspits, and the rapid growth of households using primitive sanitation methods increased the rate of contamination of groundwater, rivers, and other sources of fresh water. Stagnant sewage in cramped urban living conditions provided ideal conditions for growth of pathogens and caused outbreaks in many m ajor cities in the mid-19th century; the most common were those of cholera and typhoid fever. It was clear that the need for advances in sanitation was imminent. The most famous outbreak of the industrialization period is that of cholera linked to the London Broad Street water pump in 1854, in which a nearby cesspool had leaked sewage into groundwater and contaminated the well the water pump was drawing water from. The statistical analysis of cholera cases by physician John Snow that determined the connection between disease and contaminated water from the river provided irrefutable evidence that separating water resources and sewage is key to maintaining public health (Johnson). Outbreaks such as these in combination with the proliferation of the strong repulsive odor of sewage across all major industrialized cities prompted government authorities to take action and begin implementation of large sewer networks to isolate sewage from local water supplies. Arguably the greatest advance in sanitation came about in 1908, when Jersey City Water Works began to add chlorine to its water supply network in a practice now called chlorination. The process involves the addition of chlorine to water to form an equilibrium solution composed of chlorine, Hydrochloric acid and Hypochlorous acid, the last of which plays the main role of disinfection. Systemic chlorination drastically decreased the incidence of water-borne illnesses such as typhoid and cholera (Kitsap Public Utility District). The final major advance came in the 1950s, when the United States government provided funds for states to build wastewater treatment plants, which resulted in the majority of U.S. cities discharging treated water into rivers and oceans instead of raw sewage, an important component of sanitation that minimizes re-uptake of water harboring harmful pathogens and microorganisms. Development of modern sanitation systems has a significant effect on economic growth because its presence dramatically reduces the incidence of water-borne diseases and precludes their burden on worker productivity, student absenteeism, and medical costs. In addition, the reduction of sewage contamination in the developed world saves governments the cost of cleaning up environments to protect resources for human use. These benefits place in stark contrast the crude state of sanitation in parts of the developing world, who fail to reap these benefits because sanitation systems have not been implemented. In fact, according to the World Health Organization, investing in sanitation technology in developing countries is cost-beneficial and results in a â€Å"US$5 [to] US$11 economic benefit per US$1 invested† (Walter, and Hutton 39). Thus, cost-benefit analysis clearly favors investment by humanity for the whole of humanity. The social benefits of effective sanitation are not as tangible as economic ones but are no less significant. Accessible facilities for private and sanitary hygienic activities preserves human dignity and encourages sanitary habits. The relationship between cleanliness and moral purity has been culturally accepted throughout human history, and scientific support that clean environments promote moral behavior is presented in an upcoming paper in Psychological Science (Elton). The social harmony that proper sanitation promotes supports the idea of implementing sanitation in the developing world to deal with social unrest and violence. The second medical innovation, vaccination, is a more recent and specific advance in disease prevention. Its conceptual predecessor was inoculation, which was first documented credibly in 15th century China. The practice involved implantation of a disease agent such as pus from smallpox into a healthy individual who had never been infected to produce immunity (Needham 134). Vaccination replaced inoculation in 1796 when Edward Jenner used pus from a cowpox patient to inoculate a child; the child was then exposed to smallpox and subsequently did not exhibit infection with the virus. Shortly afterwards the British government mandated vaccination of children from smallpox, the first government push for mass vaccination in history; by 1800 â€Å"100,000 people had been vaccinated in Europe, and vaccination had begun in the United States† (Minna Stern, and Markel 613-614). In 1885, Louis Pasteur developed a rabies vaccine using samples obtained from dried infected rabbit tissue, wh ich was the first to be manufactured from weakened microorganisms. Further advances in biology and understanding of germs from the 19th century led to widespread research, development and implementation of vaccines to spread immunity from prolific diseases in the 20th century. A vaccine is now known as a preparation of attenuated or dead bacteria or viruses to stimulate production of antibodies in a patient. Although weakened pathogens carried a greater risk for infection than dead ones, they generally induce a stronger immune response and longer lasting immunity. A principal medical advance that allowed the production of durable vaccines is attenuation, the practice of passing the target virus through a nonhuman host to encourage adaptation through mutations when the virus replicated. Subsequent introduction into a human host to which the virus is not adapted to replicate allows the immune system to produce antibodies to recognize the same pathogen in future exposures. The development of consistently effective vaccines led to systematic mass immunizations against several worldwide diseases such as smallpox starting in the 19th century and polio in the mid-20th century. Government oversight in cooperation with the World Health Organization (WHO) was essential to these worldwide efforts, and smallpox was in fact declared eradicated by the WHO in 1979 . Polio and measles are currently in the process of eradication (â€Å"Smallpox†). However, not all viruses are created equal, and certain viruses have eluded attempts by scientists to engineer an effective vaccine. The HIV virus is one such example; its high mutability and genetic divergence complicate attempts to design a vaccine in the same fashion as that of historically successful ones. To address this need, research to develop new types of vaccines that utilize only protein subunits of pathogens or delivery of viral DNA is ongoing. The elimination of globally endemic disease has been key to lowering mortality and raising life expectancy around the world, but has also engendered an interesting array of social and economic developments. For instance, the unequivocal success of vaccines against globally prolific viruses has undermined the economic motive for further production for vaccines for diseases more prevalent in the developing world. Because citizens in poorer nations cannot come close to affording the price of a vaccine in developed nations, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies lack the financial incentive to expand their markets. Solutions to lack of economic incentives include academic research and government incentives for vaccine development. Mass vaccination against the worlds historically endemic viruses has altered social attitudes in many ways. For instance, during the Middle Ages life expectancy was short due to the rampant disease and epidemics; death was accepted as a necessary part of life, and often as an act of God (Dumond). The drastic drop in mortality due to diseases such as smallpox in the late 19th and 20th centuries raised the life expectancy of the average human and replaced the cultural acceptance of death with a cultural appreciation of life. In other words, living longer and delaying death is now a universal goal because disease has dramatically improved the prospect of living up to biological potential. Thus, the success of vaccines has cultured a social ignorance of the danger of viruses because deaths due to disease are so much rarer than in previous historical eras. The last of the three medical innovations, antibiotics, has been used since humans have experimented with chemicals and substances from plants to discover remedies for diseases. Disinfection typically involved use of either plants believed to have healing properties or chemicals known to inhibit or kill organisms. Arsenic was one such remedy, and its broad toxicity meant that patients would also suffer serious side effects. Thus, the discovery of substances with high specificity and few side effects in humans was one of the great historical developments in modern medicine. The first discovery in modern antibiotics was of penicillin in 1928 by Alexander Fleming due to a coincidence now famous in science: a Staphyloccocus sample mistakenly left in the open had been growth-inhibited by a Penicillium mold. However, a German scientist named Gerhard Domagk was the first to develop a commercial antibiotic called Prontosil with broad action against Gram-positive cocci. Mass production of antibiotics was simple and relied on fermentation in large containers of growth medium for the target organism to produce the secondary metabolite. Modern development of partially synthetic or entirely synthetic antibiotics involves either chemical modification of metabolites after fermentation or synthesis from a naturally occurring skeleton. Unfortunately, the misuse of antibiotics is leading to increasing prevalence of resistant strains of bacteria around the world. Incorrect diagnosis, improper administration, improper disposal, and overuse in livestock often lead to antibiotic resistance because bacteria can perform horizontal gene transfer through plasmid exchange. Thus, resistance genes can rapidly proliferate in a population of bacteria once one has genetically mutated and become immune to a particular antibiotic. For example, if a patient using a prescribed antibiotic stops taking it before the infection is completely eradicated, horizontal gene transfer will allow the few bacteria who have developed resistance throughout the duration of the infection to pass on the resistance gene and prolong the infection. One of the most alarming cases of resistance is that of Staphylococcus aureus, or the staph infection; the bacterium has shown historically to be extremely adaptable. For example, 40% of patients with staph i nfections were resistant to administration of penicillin by 1950, less than 10 years after the antibiotic was introduced (Chambers 178). Staphyloccocus aureus is now also resistant to a variety of other antibiotics such as tetracycline and methicillin. Although this problem has traditionally been isolated to hospitals, Community-acquired MRSA is now expanding in urban communities, and is responsible for several fatal conditions such as necrotizing fasciitis, or flesh eating disease. The economic benefits of antibiotics, which are similar to vaccines because it deals with pathogens through a direct biological pathway, are complicated by the rise of bacterial resistance. However, this has also provided economic impetus to invest in development of synthetic antibiotics as demand for alternatives rises. More specifically, the threat of antibiotic-resistant bacteria like MRSA has spurred the development of oxazolidones, a newer class of antibiotics against Gram-positive bacteria. The first generation of this class of antibiotics is Linezolid, which disrupts the protein synthesis of Gram-positive bacteria; its mechanism for disruption occurs at a much earlier step than most other protein inhibitor antibiotics (Brickner 175). Linezolid is currently utilized as a last resort against MRSA and resistance has been low ever since its introduction in 1999 (Jones, Ross Castanheira, and Mendes 424). It is likely that research into synthetic drugs, the newest development in th e antibiotic industry, will continue as long as antibiotic resistance persists. The widespread use of antibiotics in medicines, soaps, and household cleaning supplies has created the social perception of a sterile domestic environment for human activities. This perception is partially justified in that regular use in daily routines and sicknesses has dramatically reduced illness and engendered a social paradigm shift away from the concept of death comparable to that of vaccination. In fact, use of antibiotics may have brought about a complacency towards bacterial threats to the human body because its use is ingrained in human hygienic habits. However, the recent revelation of superbugs like MRSA has also brought about a social awareness of antibiotic resistance, and this may result in another shift towards understanding how to handle antibiotics responsibly. In sum, sanitation, vaccination, and antibiotic implementation has drastically reduced the prevalence of classic diseases in modern society. Previous scourges of humanity such as smallpox, cholera, and the black plague that ravaged human life are now essentially historical footnotes in the chronology of human medical achievements. Medical advances have brought about generally positive economic and social changes through reduction of health care through prevention, and a culture less concerned with death on a daily basis. However, these advances have not been distributed equally among all peoples of the world; many citizens of developing countries without effective sanitation, medical supplies, and access to vaccines of antibiotics continue to be at the mercy of the aforementioned scourges of humanity. References Brickner, SJ (1996). Oxazolidinone antibacterial agents. Current Pharmaceutical Design 2 (2): 175–94. . Chambers, HF (2001). The changing epidemiology of Staphylococcus aureus. Emerg Infect Dis 7 (2): 178–82. . â€Å"Chlorination of Drinking Water. Kitsap Public Utility District. 005 2004. Department of Health, Web. 5 Nov 2009. . Development and Cooperation SDC, Web. 6 Nov 2009. . Dumond, Katie. Attitudes Towards Death: Past to Present. University of Maine at Machias. 12 005 2009. Web. 2 Nov 2009. . Elton, Catherine. Do Clean Smells Encourage Clean Behavior? TIME 23 010 2009: n. pag. Web. 5 Nov 2009. . Faria, Miguel A. Medical History Hygiene and Sanitation. Hacienda Publishing, Inc.. 2002. Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, Web. 5 Nov 2009. . Hodges, L. (1977). Environmental Pollution (2nd ed.). New York: Rinehart and Winston. p.189. Hutton, Gary, and Lawrence Haller. Evaluation of the Costs and Benefits of Water and Sanitation Improvements at the Global Level. Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene. 2004. World Health Organization, Web. 1 Nov 2009. . Johnson, Steven (2006). The Ghost Map: The Story of Londons Most Terrifying Epidemic and How it Changed Science, Cities and the Modern World. Riverhead Books. p.206. Jones RN, Ross JE, Castanheira M, Mendes RE (December 2008). United States resistance surveillance results for linezolid (LEADER Program for 2007). Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Disease 62 (4): 416–26. doi:10.1016/j.diagmicrobio.2008.10.010. Minna Stern, Alexandra, and Howard Markel. The History of Vaccines and Immunization: Familiar Patterns, New Challenges. Health Affairs 24.3 (2005): 612-614. Web. 1 Nov 2009. . Mohenjo-daro. Encyclopà ¦dia Britannica. 2009. Encyclopà ¦dia Britannica Online. 25 Oct. 2009 . Needham, Joseph. (1999). Science and Civilization in China: Volume 6, Biology and Biological Technology, Part 6, Medicine. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Page 134. Olesen OF, Lonnroth A, Mulligan B (2009). Human vaccine research in the European Union. Vaccine 27 (5): 640–5. doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2008.11.064. Rich, Hamper. Roman Sanitation. The Rth Dimension. 20 001 2008. Rich Hamper, Web. 5 Nov 2009. . Smallpox. Armed Forces Institute of Pathology: Department of Infectious and Parasitic Diseases. http://web.archive.org/web/20071009141639/http://www.afip.org/Departments/infectious/sp/text/1_1.htm. Waksman, Selman A. (1947). What Is an Antibiotic or an Antibiotic Substance?. Mycologia 39 (5): 565–569. doi:10.2307/3755196.

The Selfish King in Shakespeares King Lear Essay -- King Lear Willia

The Selfish King in Shakespeare's King Lear In Shakespeare's King Lear a king is stripped of his land, wealth, soldiers, and all of his power because he is stubborn, egocentric, and unkind. Other than losing money and power he loses his three daughters as well. Lear?s pride is so overwhelming that he is unwilling to allow anyone to contradict him. If anyone (besides his fool) even remotely hints that his actions were wrong he gets unnecessarily enraged. King Lear acts very harshly to his daughters and should receive the appropriate punishment. Although King Lear completely deserves what he gets and has put his youngest daughter through so much torture, he is not entirely awful. He is a respectable king who people look up to. When Kent informs Lear of his drastic mistake Lear?s pride takes control of him and he banishes his loyal friend, Kent. Kent is almost like a brother to Lear. He is Lear?s most trusty friend and basically the king?s right hand man. Because Lear is so arrogant and proud, he will not accept any disagreement from anyone. Kent explains to Lear that he has made a mistake in banishing Cordelia and Lear explodes with fury at Kent. This is the response Kent receives in return for correcting the king. ?To come betwixt our sentence and our power, which nor our nature nor our place can bear, our potency made good, take thy reward: ?turn thy hated back upon our kingdom. If ?thy banished trunk be found in our dominions, the moment is thy death.? (I.1.194-202). King Lear is saying that Kent is now a traitor, and since he points out a mistake in the king?s judgment he should be banished. If Kent shows his body in Lear?s kingdom once again h... ...ecisions. When Kent reveals that banishing Cordelia was an unwise decision Lear exiles Kent, his most trusted friend. There are many terrible deeds that Lear commits, but also has several unpleasant ones committed on him by his daughters. Even though there are horrible things done to king Lear, the terrible things that Lear do outweighs them. Lear deserves his punishment, should live up to his mistakes, and do whatever he can to correct those mistakes. Works Cited and Consulted Schneider, Ben R. Jr. "King Lear in Its Own Time: The Difference That Death Makes." Early Modern Literary Studies 1 (1995). Shakespeare, William. "King Lear." William Shakespeare: the Tragedies, the Poems. Ed. John D. Wilson. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2006. Stern, Jeffrey. ?King Lear: The Transference of the Kingdom.? Shakespeare Quarterly, 1990. Folger Shakespeare Library.