Happy Endings by Margaret Atwoods Essay

Every literature tries to make a specific point. A good writer always associates her opinion, ideas and thoughts in her or his masterpiece. Some produce literature are purely for entertainment stressing that life is funny and humorous, some include many ironies highlighting that life is complicated and hard to understand, some literature especially those classics are for the purpose of political movement portraying the kind of values and morality the society has, some are for the purpose of religion and spirituality and some literature was made to emphasize creativity or unconventional way of creating a literature. Happy Ending by Margaret Atwoods  was used by her to portray what makes a literature genius, more authentic and interesting. Most readers consider a literature ‘nice’ if the ending satisfies them and satisfaction is always in connection to happy ending, giving a social justice to the characters’ predicaments especially of those protagonists. However Margaret Atwoods illustrates in her short story that it is not the end of the story that is important but how well the beginning especially the middle were structured. How and the characters’ circumstances happened are more significant than what happened in the end. The creation of â€Å"Happy Endings† by Margaret Atwoods is not so much about the how the story ends. The writers give different options on how the story might end and the various possibilities of John and Mary’s love story. The story is divided into six possible life scenarios of John and Mary’s love story. Atwood sums it up in her concluding remarks. â€Å"John and Mary die. John and Mary die. John and Mary die. † On plot A, it offers the classic boy meets girl story that demonstrates the usual â€Å"live happily ever after† ending. This is the type of story that most readers wanted to believe in. However the succeeding version breaks away from the cliche of fairy tales, introducing a more realistic perspective in the midst of dominance, tragedy and cynicism. The point is that the writer compels and reminds us to the basic reality of life, that every body dies and that everybody fades away- that is the real and ultimate ending for every human being. Margaret Atwoods is particularly stressing that the readers should not seek the satisfaction on the ending because the ending will not help them to relate about life because all lives has the same ending. In order to fully embrace the importance of literature, one must critically meditate on how and why the characters commit a particular action and decision. The story is not found in the ending but it’s in what we do while we are alive that gives meaning to our existence. Literature for Atwoods has no ending if the characters did not die. The author’s belief that fiction has many beginnings and middles, but only one eventual ending. Margaret Atwoods suggests that we can do nothing about our mortality but we can precisely do something about the quality of our lives. Atwoods says that life is a continuous and never ending journey that there is no concept of happy ending as long as you live in this world. You might end up marrying your dream person but that doesn’t already mean and guarantee that your life is a happy ending; no one knows what will happen next. Every existing being has only one ending and that is death. This story also takes us through our childhood preconception about how love and life is supposed to turn out based on what has been written in fables and fairy tales. As human being grows older, they slowly realize through experience that most fiction fairy tales ending is unattainable. Obviously Atwoods opens up with various settings, different versions and opportunities that are grounded to reality. Atwoods may also want to redefine the stereotypical characterization of men and women and to the readers who readily accepts such gender typing. Most love stories always employ women as a weaker sex who is incapable of themselves most of the time. But in this story, Atwoods introduces the different facets of women who are both capable of vulnerability, unselfish love and extraordinary strength just like men. Atwoods employ both the weaknesses and strengths of Mary and John from those various possible plots. It challenges the writers on where to proceed next from the typical and conventional creation of love story with a more realistic endings and scenarios. Writers must not stay to those predictable stories that will not help the readers much. Writers must be more realistic in portraying themes so that the readers’ life will not lead to destruction. Typical fairy tales as we all know has been destructive, it makes the readers detach to reality, hoping unreasonably that everybody has a happy ending. Hoping of something unattainable will corrupt one person and eventually the society.

George Orwell

In the George Rowel's short story, A Hanging, Orwell is a British police officer who witness an inmate, who is Hindu, being hung to death. While the officers are marching the prisoner to the hanging site, the prisoner comes to a puddle and side steps it. Orwell and some other officers are following behind them and that's when he realize how healthy the prisoner is and disgusted he was of the decision to hang a healthy man.In the story he was scared to speak up for the prisoner, so that's why he dog was put In the story, the dog was Orwell voice. The dark mood at the beginning shows how Orwell felt during the hanging. The major conflict of the story is Orwell watching a healthy man die right in front of him. After the hanging was done the warders returned to feed the convicts. Everyone was relieved that the hanging was done, even Orwell. Then they started telling each other stories related to hangings. They all laughed at each other, Orwell even found his self laughing at some of the stones.After everyone finished they went out and had a drink together, forgetting about the dead man. Orwell just needed to get the hanging out of his mind, so he did that by laughing and having a good time. The theme of Orwell story is that the life of any healthy man should never be taken. Today similar things are happening in this world, police officers think that they have power and control over us, they think they can do anything to us, For example, an eighteen year old young man named Michael Brown was shot for no apparent season Michael was Just walking down the street. N a Saturday afternoon, to his grandmother house, when an officer stopped him trying to arrest him just because he was a black male walking and the officer assumed he was some thug carrying a weapon. When the officer tried to arrest him, Michael started running with his hands up in the air, when Michael reached ten yards, the officer shot him. The body was not moved for hours. The officer claimed that he only shot him a couple of times but when they viewed the body It was more than a couple. Police are getting out of control, they are taking Innocent young black male lives.That's not the only thing that has happened where a healthy young man done lost his life. This young man was a seventeen year old black male, his name was Adoration Martin. On February 26, 2012, Tyranny was walking back from the store wearing a hooded and carrying a drink and some skittles. The neighborhood watch, George Zimmerman, assumed that he was some bad guy Just because he Is black. Just before the shooting happened George Zimmerman was on the phone with the police saying hat Tyranny looked suspicious and that he was following him, the police told him to stop following him and that they was going to handle it but he didn't listen.At the time Tyranny was on the phone with his girl friend, and he said that he was being followed so his girlfriend told him to run, before he could do so George Zimmerman got out his t ruck to confront him. When the cops arrived George Zimmerman told the cops that Tyranny attacked him but most people TLD believe that. Most people thinking that he was up to no good but he was Just trying to get home. Throughout the story Orwell shows how the prisoners are treated. They were treated like animals. The cells they had the prisoners in were like small animal cages.The prisoners are treated so badly, when they were escorting the man to the hanging spot, it took six guards to escort him but in the story he was described as a puny wisp of a man, which means he was really weak. The officers were being really rough, Orwell said that it was like men handling a fish that is still alive and trying to Jump jack in the water, they were being super aggressive with a weak man. This story also reminds me of when the concentration camps were open in 1940. The Jews were sent their to work at the camps.The families were split up boys and the men had to go to one side and the girls and women went to the other side. When they split them up they had to take all of their clothes off, get disinfected, after that they were giving new clothes, then they had to get their heads shaved both men and women, last they were assigned to a camp, some people didn't make it if they were eek or sick they got killed with the gas, they would put up to a hundred people in a small little room and kill them all, after that they would cremate the bodies.They fed them bread and soup, the bread was stale and the soup was old and thick, sometimes the didn't even give them food. They were treated way worse than the prisoners in A Hanging. In conclusion, George Orwell wrote A Hanging to express his feelings. This really happened to him in reality. He poured out his feelings through the dog and the rain. He feels like no individual life should be taken away from them.

Lawrence Kohlberg’s Research

It is true that the research of Lawrence Kohlberg was focused around the concept of moral reasoning, which also can be called moral development (Answer 1). Lawrence Kohlberg was a known American specialist in psychiatry, who was interested in problems of moral development: moral judgments and moral choices. He is famous for his long-term experiments with young children (some of them lasted more than 20 years), during which Kohlberg studied the development of moral judgments and moral choices of the children. As a result, in 1981the theory of moral development was created. According to the findings of the specialist, there are six stages of moral development, which can be grouped into three different levels: (1) pre-conventional morality, which includes two sub-stages: (a) punishment-obedience orientation, and (b) instrumental relativist orientation; (2) conventional morality, which includes two sub-stages: (a) good boy-good girl orientation, and (b) instrumental relativist orientation; and (3) post-conventional morality, which includes the following sub-stages: (a) social contract orientation, and (b) universal ethical principle orientation (Wong, 2000). Therefore, during the process of moral development, every individual gradually passes through all these six stages. At that Kohlberg was underlining that not every adult individual can reach the highest stage in his/her moral development. Besides, not every time real behavior of an individual was correspondent to the achieved stage of moral development. This theory was criticized and the opponents of Kohlberg’s scientific conclusions pointed on several drawbacks of this research. In particular, the fact that all the experiments were made with male children is considered to be a serious disadvantage. References Wong, A. S. (2000, September). Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development. Blessed to Be Blessing. Retrieved April 23, 2008, from: ;http://www.vtaide.com/blessing/Kohlberg.htm ;.

Team Building Exercise - Team Building Resolution Defined Research Paper

Team Building Exercise - Team Building Resolution Defined - Research Paper Example This paper thus aims to discuss various exercises of team building for resolving conflicts. Team Building Exercise for Conflict Resolution As also mentioned earlier, conflicts can be possessed optimistically as well. However, there can even be situations when conflicts take the negative form and these situations generally arise when the members of the team begin to develop feelings of being defeated and experience a workforce scenario of disbelieve and mistrust. Before finding solution to problem, it is essential to diagnose the problem with regard to the reason of its occurrence. Thus, reasons of conflict are required to be identified preliminarily. Reasons for Conflict in Teams One of the most common reasons of conflict is mismanagement of the procedures of administration. Lacking of strong base knowledge among the members will ignite the problem of co-ordination and thus conflict will arise. Overrunning of costs also becomes a factor of conflict when the members show reluctance in generating additional funding before the occurrence of these overruns. Project schedules often creates the conflict as not all the team members show co-operative moves for accomplishing a task within set deadlines. Erroneous realization of responsibilities also creates the conflicts which happen when team members become unaware of their assigned areas of work. It is within the hands of the team members to evade conflicts’ occurrences. If the members stay aware of the possible reasons of conflict, they can generate required steps for making certain effective planning and this can be an effective move towards good planning for exercising team building (The Team Building Directory, 2011). Roles to Be Played By the Team Leader The team leader plays an extremely important role in enhancing the spirits of working in a team among the members. The first movement that the team leader can initiate is that of making the members spend lots of time collectively in works they perform. Alt hough interaction among the members is not constantly possible, the team leader should strive for creating situation where they can interact. Team leader should organize periodic sessions of refreshment for making greater cohesion among the team members. Inclusion of group session for training, presentation session on inspiring areas and organization of socials would provide scope for joint session among the team members. The team leader should try out innovative ways of keeping the team energized by incorporating brand new ideas and information. Energizing the team would stimulate the members to co-ordinate with each other (Priscoli, 2003). Conduction of Team Building Exercise The â€Å"group stage formation theory† by Tuckman provided five stages essential for conducting team building approach among team members. The stages include forming, storming, norming, performing and transforming. In the forming stage, the team decides on the particular member whom to follow througho ut the accomplishment process of any task. Storming stage reflects the generation of negative performance among the team members and this is the decider stage for the leaders because in this stage the members develop critical

The Reasons for Adopting a Single Set of International Financial Essay

The Reasons for Adopting a Single Set of International Financial Accounting Standards - Essay Example The preceding arguments will employ IFRS as a proxy to IAS. The structure of the paper will comprise of the discussion and the conclusion. The discussion section will critically evaluate presented reasons for the adoption of IFRS. The Key highlight of the reasons will include: IRFS advancement of timely information for investors, better quality accounting, comparability, improved earning and management, political incentives and the capital market benefits. The essay will conclude with a summary of the identified driving factors for the implementation of IAS. According to Chua and Taylor (2008), IAS highly promotes timely access to information by investors. The adoption of a single set of IAS enhances the evaluation of companies across regions by investors based on a single standardized accounting framework. IAS underpin timeliness through the standardization of accounting procedures and reporting formats thereby eliminating time lag that has traditionally emanated from the analytical adjustment of the financial statements for the purposes of international comparison. Apart from time aspect, the existences of IAS also leads to cost reduction that could have been incurred in the processing of the financial information in a manner that will allow comparison to be conducted. In light of the globalization effect, it is further imperative that the multinationals adopt a single accounting standard that reconciles financial statements globally across their entire branch network. The provision of financial statement on single IAS further underpins the significance of the value relevance for investors. According to Edwards (2009), value relevance refers to the ability of the financial information documented in the financial statement to adequately expound on the predominant parameters in the stock market.

Business and Political Trends in Japan and China Research Paper

Business and Political Trends in Japan and China - Research Paper Example   Among the biggest complaints that Japan’s trading partners have made over the years is that its domestic market is not as competitive as it should be. This assertion has been found to be true especially when one considers that the Japanese government is partly responsible for this lack of competition within its market. The Japanese government has adopted such hindering policies as the imposition of high tariffs as well as heavy regulations which have ensured that it is extremely difficult for other countries to conduct business within Japan (Mito & Sakurada, 2003). In addition, the extremely concentrated nature of the Japanese market has led to a situation where it is very difficult for companies from other countries to place their products within it which can effectively compete with domestic products; a factor which is essentially discouraging for foreign investors. It is mainly because of the abovementioned situations that it has become necessary for the Japanese govern ment to put in place those policies which not only encourage the deregulation of its markets but also works towards the development of stronger antitrust laws that aid all the businesses that operate within its economy. While it has been argued that the Japanese market is concentrated, this situation has come to be alleviated over the years as it has been reported that when compared to the market of the United States, the Japanese market has become less concentrated while that of the latter has essentially remained the same.   

School Safety and Security Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 84

School Safety and Security - Case Study Example During a normal school hour, for example, a crisis management requires the input of the principle, security officers, counselors and the society’s security managers. Â  The case at Central Park High School requires effective crisis management in order to protect both Brian’s family and the disturbed Carl Turner who appears disturbed. As the principal, I would consider Turner’s records of fighting as relevant in managing the case. The history of a student provides adequate information on both his mindset and behaviors. This way, it becomes possible to take the necessary precautions thus protecting Brian and his family from any possible threat that Turner Presents. Â  Turner’s absence from the fourth lesson, while he was in class for the last three lessons, portrays ineffective management of the school. The school lacks an effective system of tracking the students and their actions at any given time during the day. This creates a chance for Turner to sneak out of class. Despite such, Turner’s absence from class influence the decisions on the case since it implies that Turner is free to do whatever he pleases. As such, the principle must contact all the parties involved in the case thus minimize the threat. Â  As the principle, I would guarantee the safety of Brian and his sister especially when they are in school. Additionally, I would ensure that I find Turner. This may require the involving the police especially after confirming his absence from the school premises. In doing these, I would involve the various stakeholders as principal Milhoviak does. The security guard has a history of working with the city’s security system. As such, he understands the threat the case presents and the way the police should handle the whole case.

Matrix review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Matrix review - Essay Example In regard to Richard Paul article, critical thinkers remain as those who can see past what is before them and inquire more to get the reality. He insists on the value of critical thinking to evade delusions and find the reality of things commonly perceived real. The three emphasize on the existence of illusions plus reality and how the society should perceive them in deeper thought. 2) How does the film "Inception" reflect how powerful people gain access to our unconscious mind? Stated differently, what does the film attempt to tell us about how media influence our deepest sense of unconscious desires and world/political view? In Inception, Dominic Cobb, the dream architects specialized in stealing or implanting information in people’s dreams when they were vulnerable most. In likening to that movie, the media also gains entry to people’s mind unconsciously and influence their desires or political view through constant advertisements or positive recommendations of certain candidates. An excellent example entails the media constantly advertising a certain product. People unconsciously become influenced into liking or purchasing that product. In the movie, The Matrix, the actor, Neo becomes pulled from a given kind of cave and comes to view the real world from another perspective. In likening the matrix to Plato’s allegory about the cave as Neo come to realize that the world he knew before was an illusion just like the prisoner who climbed out of the cave, and realized a real world existed (Plato, 2010). Neo in discovering that his old world was an illusion becomes likened to the shadows that existed in the cave and the other prisoners though were real. Plato insists that people often perceive illusions which they commonly think it’s real. Plato continues by saying that reality can only be perceived by individuals who free themselves and accept it (Plato, 2010). In the addition,

Philosophy questions Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Philosophy questions - Assignment Example Also, in a utilitarian context, the outcome of prop 30 will be propitious in the sense that the proposed increase in taxes will not impact the high income segments that drastically, since they will yet be left with much money to support their lifestyle, and will still lead to an outcome that will be favorable and good for the entire society that is the best possible outcome (Scarre 126). Answer 2. Given the context that a CEO decides to lay off 10 percent of the workforce to restore profitability of a firm that has shown looses for two consecutive quarters; Gandolfi will certainly disagree with this strategy. In the vast body of literature produced by Gandolfi on the concept of downsizing, he has immaculately proved beyond doubt that the firms opting for large scale layoffs in response to constrained financial and economic scenarios are not only very rarely able to outperform financially, but layoffs also lead to debilitating consequences, which negatively impact the moral of the left over employees and managers (Gandolfi 3). Yet, most of the CEOs prefer to opt for downsizing, which though registers favorably in the financial statements in the short run, leads to unfavorable long term consequences like lose of the trained and skilled labor, creation of distrust and apprehension in the human resources, depletion of moral, shaking of the investor confidence, falling of stock prices and unemployment. This viewpoint will certainly be supported by Aristotle, who held that the highest good was desirable for itself and all the other goods were subservient to it (Peters 10). Hence, retaining the workforce during tough times is a good that brings within its fold many other goods like employment, investor confidence, high moral and profitability in the long and the short

Text Linguistics Essay Example for Free

Text Linguistics Essay Module I. Classificationally meaningful characteristics of the text as an integral and independent object of investigation. Lecture 6. Conceptual variability of linguistic interpretations of the text essence and status and their reflections in the models of the text descriptions. Problem for discussion Evolution of the text description approaches. Models of the text descriptions. Grounds for the chosen models and schemes of the text descriptions as a scientific object. It has already been mentioned that despite the fact that there are many publications devoted to problems of text linguistics. There does not exist an adequate definition of the text that would find satisfaction with all researchers. The difficulties that arise when trying to work out an universally acceptable definition of the text can be explained by the fact that scholars study the text in its various aspects : grammatical, stylistic, semantic, functional and so on. The text can be studied as a product ( text grammar) or as a process (theory of text). The text-as-a-product approach is focused on the text on the text cohesion, coherence, topical organization, illocutionary structure and communicative functions; the text-as-a-process perspective studies the text production, reception and interpretation. Text can be understood as an instance of (spoken or written) language use ( an act of parole) , a relatively self-contained unit of communication. As a â€Å"communicative occurrence† it meets seven criteria of textuality (the constitutive principles of textual communication): cohesion, coherence, intentioanality, acceptability, informativity, situationality, and intertextuality and three regulative principles of textual communication: efficiency, effectiveness and approapriateness.(cf. de Beaugrande and Dressler 1981, Maljaer 1991) 1. Regular Principles of Textual Communiction. The principle of efficiency requires that a text should be used with a minimum effort hence the use of plain ( stereotyped and unimaginative)  language. Which, however booring and unimpressive, is easy to produce and comprehend. In contrast, effectiveness presumes leaving a strong impression and the creation of favourable conditions for attaining a communicative goal; this presupposes the use of creative ( original, imaginative) language which, however effective, may lead to communicative breakdown. The principle of appropriateness attempts to balance off the two above mentioned principles by seeking an accord between the text setting and standards of textuality. Common text features. Some common text features found in books are Table of Contents, Glossary, Index, Bold Words, Headings and Titles, Maps, Diagrams, Illustrations and Charts. Why is Understanding Text Features an important reading strategy? Text Features help us to identify the big ideas and topics that the author is focusing on. Visual text features such as maps and charts help to support the information the author presents in the text. How do we use text features to help us understand what we are reading? Before reading, preview the kinds of text features throughout the book. Think about what the big ideas the author wants you to remember. Make sure to read captions Functional Classification  The functional classification identifies illocutionary text types according to the type of the dominating illocutionary act (see 10.2): representative or assertive type (e.g. research reports, public notices, administrative texts, weather forecasts, diaries, CVs, lectures), directive type (e.g. commands, orders, invitations, instructions, directions, giving advice), expressive type (e.g. apologies, thank-you notes, greeting, condolences, compliments, toasts, congratulations), commissive type ( e.g. promises , pledges, swears, offers, vows, contracts, bets), declarative or performative type (e.g. , nominations, appointments, dismissals, accussations: I find you guilty as charged, marriage ceremonies, testaments, certificates). Texts viewed from this perspective satisfy diverse communicative needs of the society members. Situational Classification  The situational classification sorts out texts according to the sphere of activity (e.g., private, official or public, such as a private letter, a  letter addressed to an institution) and form of communication (dialogical and monological, spoken and written texts). Strategic Classification  The strategic classification deals primarily with the topic and the ways of its expansion 9 the term slohove postupy is used in Slovak stylistics to denote macrocompositional principles, cf. Mistrik 1997): narrative, descriptive, and argumentative.

Effects Of Moderate Hyperhydration On Blood Pressure Biology Essay

Effects Of Moderate Hyperhydration On Blood Pressure Biology Essay Introduction The heart is an efficient machine that supplies the body with oxygenated blood and recycles unoxygenated blood (Weedman, 2009). Unoxygenated blood comes into the heart, is pumped to the lungs, oxygenated, and then returned to the heart to be pumped to the rest of the body (Weedman, 2009). Blood pressure (BP) can be found by measuring systolic over diastolic pressure. Systolic pressure is the pressure in the blood vessels while the hearts beats while diastolic pressure is measured by the pressure after the heart beat (Weedman, 2009). Diastolic pressure is also called the filling stage because it occurs when the heart is in a state of relaxation and the semi-lunar valve is closed (Weedman, 2009). In opposition, systolic pressure transpires during contraction where the tricuspid and bicuspid valves are closed (Weedman, 2009). Heart Rate (HR or also referred to as pulse rate (PR)), read by taking a pulse either on neck, upper arm (most precise measurement) or wrist, uses arterial pressure to calculate the rate that blood is flowing through the arteries (Weedman, 2009). It differs from blood pressure and is the number of times the heart beats in one minute (Weedman, 2009). Heart rate and blood pressure are great points of interest in the human population because of the importance of the heart in human anatomy. The heart muscle is pertinent to survival and therefore been tested and experimented on habitually. Many tests have been done on the heart by many well established doctors. One of these studies tests the effect of respiratory ailments and stress on heart rate (Weber, 1985). The results show that heart rate and blood pressure are directly correlated with stress, meaning that when someone is stressed the harder their heart pumps and the more pressure is put on the muscle(Weber, 1985). Nevertheless, there are many other factors that affect heart rate and blood pressure. Most of the factors discussed share a direct correlation with heart rate. There are also some lifetime diseases that stem from vascular problems that were before thought to have little to no affect (Skoog, 1996). For instance, a study conducted about Dementia revealed that most victims also consistently had high BP. There is more hypothesized evidence that supports this claim, but it has yet to be proven. Despite the ambiguity of the correlation of BP and Dementia, there are many health related concerns that surrounds BP and HR. This is pertinent to the experiment conducted because it questions what health hazards surround dehydration. As the research of BP and HR becomes more involved, so do the experiments concerning them. In the experiment conducted in LIFE103, a biology class at Colorado State University, 27 subjects tested the affects of hydration on BP and HR/PR. It is hypothesized that there will be a significant change in both BP and HR this is relevant because previous studies showed that a change occurred in similar experiments (Mountain and Edward, 1992). Its predicted that BP and HR will decrease after the addition of water into the body. Materials and Methods All variables were kept as similar as the environment would allow and subjects didnt consumer water for two hours before experimentation was started. There was an uneven mixture of male and female and all students were of different weights, but roughly fell into a broad spectrum of normal weight. Three basal readings were taken from the 27 participants. The participants measured themselves using a sphygmomanometer and recorded both heart rate and blood pressure. These were then averaged and if the average was off, additional measurements were taken. Heart rate and blood pressure served as the independent variables, while the dependent variables were the water and the environmental factors. After basal measurements were completed students drank 2 cups of water. Water temperatures varied from room temperature to cold and data was separated according what temperature water subject drank. The subjects were given five minutes to consume the water. A reading was taken directly after the water was completely consumed. Readings of BP and PR were taken in increments of three minutes since the initial reading until the time struck twelve minutes. There were five total readings. Information from all of the subjects was gathered and charted. Data was analyzed by comparing data to previous tests, earlier hypothesized values, and T tested. Probabilities were found and then information was compiled into a list of results. Excel was used to assemble the results and create graphs and tables. Results The experiment took approximately twelve minutes after water was consumed. The 27 subjects did not drink anything for at least two hours prior, dehydration levels; however were minimal because students were told to keep at a comfortable hydration level (and two hours isnt sufficient to dehydrate a body completely). Hydration levels after drinking approximately two ounces of water were also minimal because of the small amount drunk. Differences between heart rate and pulse rate are not obvious before and after consumption of water. The pulse rate (or heart rate) had a more visible change. Comparing averages of final PR (twelve minutes after water was drunk) to the basal reading yielded a change, but it was within a hundredth of a decimal point. The change in blood pressure was also nonexistent. Though, if compared the values of diastolic and systolic pressure change more significantly than the values of the PR. The data is summarized below in a mixture of charts and written description. This simply surmises that the average PR basal reading is less than the average post PR at twelve minutes. However, the data is inconsistent because the basal reading is a collection of three different measurements and there could be unknown outliers. Doing a T test, the information is shown to be probable (P PR T Test PR vs PR PR1 Basal vs PR 12 min PR2 Basal vs PR12 min PR3 Basal vs PR12 min PR0 min vs PR12 min PR3 min vs PR12 min PR6 min vs PR12 min T Test .00028 .00028 .00079 .772211 .979664 .413052 T test scores based on excel calculations concerning an experiment performed in class. (P Table 1 The results were inconclusive, the changes were so minimal that (when averaged) the difference between the beginning pulse rate and the final pulse rate were within hundredths of a decimal of each other. Blood pressure had little change. Systolic pressure decreased slightly as did diastolic, but it was too such a degree that the change could be accounted by many variables. Drawing these conclusions, earlier hypothesis and prediction cannot be supported (this conclusion supported by T-test). The chart below shows the change of pulse rate after the water was consumed. There is no significant change as the time progresses. Average of PR taken at times 0,3,6,9 and 12 were used compared to the time that the experiment progressed over. Figure 2 Comparatively, blood pressure had similar results. On a time scale, blood pressure had no distinctive change. Figure 3 is the change in systolic pressure over time while Figure 4 is the change of diastolic pressure over the time stretch that the experiment was done in. It shows that nothing can be conclusively found about either pressure because the unpredictable nature of the line. Discussion As earlier hypothesized blood pressure will change and so will heart rate, however they will not be affected heavily because of the small amount of change that is being inflicted upon the subjects. It was predicted that after an amount of time without drinking any water the subjects heart rate will speed and after water has been added, heart rate will slow down. Alternatively, the experiment could have been improved with more control. There were many variables that were not accounted for. Water temperature, amount of water drunk, amount of exercise allowed to be exerted by the subjects, sex of subjects, size of subjects and normal heart rate and blood pressure of subjects were not consolidated in the experiment. This could contribute to experimental error, for the hypothesis and predictions are supported according to many experiments done by professional, scientists. These experiments have slightly different variables and test for slightly different results, but their results are conclusive to what should have been found in the experiment conducted in class (this experiment was also performed more professionally with greater differences in the control group and tested group). In opposition to hydration, dehydration has a lasting effect on heart rate as well (Montain and Edward, 1992). Understanding how dehydration affects heart rate is pertinent to understanding how hydration affects it (Montain and Edward, 1992). Expectations would be that they are complementary of each other and this study titled Influence of graded dehydration on hyperthermia and cardiovascular drift during excursive focuses on the dehydration aspect on the body and how the heart rate and blood pressure react (Montain and Edward, 1992). Hyperthermia is another aspect of this experiment, but seeing as it does not pertain to the experiment conducted in class, it will be overlooked (Montain and Edward, 1992). Directly pulling information from the Montian experiment, there were a certain number of cyclists that took part in the experiment, but they all fell into the same category: capable, normally low heart rate people (1992). Though there was no difference in the amount of sweat that the cyclists produced, there was a significant difference in their heart rates based on what amount of liquid that they consumed (there were four different groups, each assigned to a different amount of water) (Montain and Edward, 1992). The study shows that the level of dehydration directly correlates with HR (Montain and Edward, 1992). The amount of water in the blood indirectly correlates with Heart Rate meaning that the less water there is the harder the heart has to beat in order to get the stagnant blood through the veins and arteries and into the entire body (Montain and Edward, 1992). The x-axis is time (out of 110), this shows that heart rate. The heart rate increases with the smaller amount of fluid. An experiment performed by Nadel et al. similarly tests the effects of hyperhydration and hypohydration on the heart rate and the circulatory system, however, the investigation compares and contrasts the two different conditions other than going into depth in one over the other (1980). Maximal arm blood flow was taken for both of the experiments and when in a hypohydration condition, the blood flow was reduced by almost 50% (Nadel et al. 1980). Though there was a difference in the amount of blood when hyperhydration conditions were met (subject drank 2 liters of water), the difference was not significant enough to make a large impact on the subjects heart rate (Nadel et al. 1980). However, when the subject then exercises the heart rate is abnormally slow compared to normal and hypohydration conditions (Nadel et al. 1980). A sufficient amount of water also helps maintain a constant internal temperature (Nadel et al. 1980). Temperature is actually a very good way to measure the blood p ressure and as seen in the figure 7 blood flow can be measured against temperature to find that the less water a person has, the higher the temperature is (Nadel et al. 1980). Measures blood flow versus temperature (rectum or esophageal temperature is always used in cases like this). An earlier experiment performed in the early 1940s noted in Effect of hydration state on circulatory and thermal regulations studied the same topic, but in a different manor (Nadel et al. 1980). Their findings were conclusive that even when hypohydration conditions are achieved, when water is given to the subject in large quantities, hyperhydration conditions are easily established and a quick rebound of water replacement in the body takes place (Nadel et al. 1980). In fact, the body reaches a steady condition in much less time than it takes the body to get into a critical condition. This illustrates the fast effects of water retake in the heart rate and body (Nadel et al. 1980). These detailed experiments are crucial in helping to understand why the classroom experiment had differed results. The study size, though it certainly inflicted the value of the data, was not the problem, but the quality of the subjects. They were all of different athletic potential and did not have similar heart rates or blood pressure rates. The collection procedure itself could also have some error. Subjects measured their own pressures and rates and did not exactly time it between each three minute intervals. There was also not enough time to collect sufficient data (hours of dedication were needed, not minuet minutes). However, this cannot completely dismiss the experiment, but seeing further evidence from the studies illustrated earlier, it is clear that the classroom results do not correlate with any of this previous research. Even though the experiments were exactly the same, similar results should have been expected because the basic outlines for both of the experiments were the same (Mountain vs. classroom experiment). Therefore, even if both experiments were testing for something different they should have experienced comparable outcomes. Data and conclusions drawn from this experiment are skewed and cannot accurately portray what happens when a sudden increase in hydration happens in the body. Therefore the null hypothesis has failed to be rejected. Sources Cited Weber KT, Janicki JS. 1985. Cardiopulmonary exercise testing for evaluation of chronic cardiac failure. The American journal of cardiology 55: Issue 2. Weedman and Sokoloski. 2009. Biology of Organisms: A Laboratory Manual for LIFE103. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning. p 173 184. Skoog MD, L. Nilsson MD, G. Persson MD, B. Lernfelt MD, S. Landahl MD, B. Palmertz MD, L-A. Andreasson MD, A. Odà ©n PhD and A. Svanborg MD. 1996. 15-year longitudinal study of blood pressure and dementia. The Lancet 347: 1141 1145. Montian J and Coyle F. 1992. Influence of graded dehydration on hyperthermia and cardiovascular drift during exercise. Journal of Applied Physiology 73: Issue 4. Nadel E R, Fortney M S, Wenger C B. 1980. Effect of hydration state of circulatory and thermal regulations. Journal of Applied Physiology 49: Issue 4.

Norwegian International Ship (NIS) Register: Pros and Cons

Norwegian International Ship (NIS) Register: Pros and Cons Introduction The concept of ship registration dates back to the time when vessels started to sail under national flags. Belonging to different countries, the nationality of a ship provides not only protection of the owners rights, support and other advantages, but also responsibilities and certain limitations. Registration means subjecting the ship to the jurisdiction of a country. However, the ways and approaches to ship registration were not rigid and inflexible. Prior to the 1980s, national registers were the only phenomenon in the ship registration practice. But the so-called open registers appeared due to several developing countries, such as Panama, Liberia and the Bahamas. They provided more flexible conditions and lower costs than national registers. Ship owners were attracted by open registers to become more competitive in comparison with their rivals. The response of the developed countries was to introduce international or second registers that gave wider opportunities than national on es, but provided better technical support and service to the member-vessels. The current literature review is aimed at providing the overall classification of ship register types and to concentrate on the four registering companies: NIS, NOR (Norwegian Ship registers), IOM Ship Register (Isle of Man) and UK Ship Register. Definition, Classification and Functions of Ship Registers Rayfuse (2004) argues that according to existing international legislation, ships are allowed to sail under the flag of one country only. Consequently, the concept of a ship register or flag state addresses a vessel to the state, which carries out the regulatory control over this ship (Harwood, 2006). However, this registration will imply further certification and inspection of the ship. Special attention is given by ship registers to the maintenance of environmental regulations and the prevention of pollution (Raikes, 2009). Hinkelman (2005) proposed an overwhelming classification of ship registers types. The researcher argues that all the register types are subdivided into national registers, flags of convenience (FOCs), second registers and bareboat charter registers. In the case of national registers, the direct link between the nationality of the vessels owner and the flag state is implied. National registers are often referred to as closed registers (Hinkelman, 2005). Flags of convenience (FOCs) do not directly link the nationality of the owner with the state flag. On the contrary, they are foreign registers, which provide more convenient conditions for the ship owners. Bareboat charter registers grant the possibility to obtain for vessels a foreign registration for a certain time period. However, they retain their primary registration (Hinkelman, 2005). The current dissertation focuses predominantly on second and national registers. Second registers are often referred to as offshore registers. Their operation is determined by the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) (Mulcahy and Tillotson, 2004). This type of register is usually established either by the separate legislation in the country, which already has a national (primary register), or in the offshore territory with the direct legal connection to the host country. The main second registers are the Norwegian International Ship Register (NIS) (Norway), Isle of Man (UK), Madeira (Portugal), Kerguelen (France) and Danish International Ship Register (DIS) (Denmark) (Farthing and Brownrigg, 1997). From the standpoint of the world economy, the main function of international ship registers is to assist in global maritime commerce. According to Odeke (1998) this assistance may be seen in eliminating certain restrictions and limitations imposed by primary registers. Besides the implementation of the official control function, international registers protect the rights of the owners of vessels. Furthermore, second registers tend to subscribe certain original regulations for vessels owners. They stipulate definite manning, taxation rules and safety requirements (Chircop and LindÃÆ'Â ©n, 2006). For instance, the nationality requirements for manning are usually relaxed by the international registers. At the same time, the second register country has the right to call all registered vessels in the event of war or other emergencies (DeSombre, 2006). Klikauer and Morris (2002) argue that it is beneficial for countries to have their own second registers. International registers charge registration taxes and fees from the vessels owners. Even providing the above mentioned services to the ships, they remain profitable. International registers attract ship owners, as they ordinary provide more favourable conditions and terms than those of the home states (Raikes, 2009). It may be even stated that the second registers compete against each other in attracting new candidates. Norwegian International Ship (NIS) Register Background The Norwegian International Ship Register was founded in 1987. The second register provides the possibility of the registration and certification for vessels under the flag of Norway, which has been an outstanding nautical nation since the time of the Vikings. The main purpose of the NIS is formulated as the following: to offer a flexible and commercially attractive alternative to open registers while retaining the essential features of quality registers (Branch, 2007, p. 164). The organisation was established to compete against other international registers for the benefit of Norway. The Norwegian International Ship Register allows the certification of the following types of ships: hovercraft, cargo and self-propelled ships, movable platforms and installations. The citizenship of the owner is not limited or restricted by the NIS. The ships sailing under the Norwegian flag have to subject to the jurisdiction of that country. The key differences with the ordinary NOR may be seen in the following. First, according to the NIS, direct certification of foreign companies is allowed which is not possible in case of NOR. Secondly, according to the NIS, the employment of foreign crew with the standard local salary level is allowed. Limitations of the NIS The limitations subscribed by the NIS were originally formulated by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) of Norway and the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The main limitation of the NIS is that the ships under the Norwegian flag are not allowed to carry passengers or cargo from one Norwegian port to another Norwegian port. Furthermore, regular transportation of passengers between foreign and Norwegian ports is not permitted either. It is specified that Norwegian gas and oil installations are considered to be Norwegian ports from the standpoint of this limitation. Despite the fact that the NIS legislation allows foreign ownership of the vessel, owners are obliged to have a Norwegian representative. This requirement may be also interpreted as a limitation for foreign owners. Another limitation may be seen in the fact that a foreign crew of the vessel is not allowed to carry out all the technical and commercial maintenance operations by themselves. Furthermore, their home country cannot be involved in these operations either. The NIS legislation implies the participation of the third party, a Norwegian company, which will accomplish the minimum set of technical and commercial operations for a foreign vessel. Hence, a certain degree of dependence in technical and financial operations for foreign vessels may be classified as a limitation because crew cannot make a choice of their own. At the same time, the NIS legislation does not limit the age of the vessel to be registered. The main requirement is satisfactory technical functioning of the ship. The Number of Registered Ships It is reasonable to trace back the dynamics of the registered quantities of vessels in the NIS. At the beginning of 1999, the number of registered vessels was equal to 705. In forthcoming years it was fluctuating and finally dropped. In 2000, 2001 and 2002 the number of the registered vessels constituted 712, 717 and 693 respectively. However, in 2008, this figure constituted only 577 vessels. The NIS registered 358 vessels owned by the Norwegians and 192 owned by foreigners. This illustrates that the general tend in the number of NIS registration was decreasing. To estimate the NIS registration in tonnage, the following indicators can be mentioned. During the period from 1999 to 2005, the tonnage of the NIS registered vessels changed from 19,000 gross tons to around 14,000 gross tons. Again, the overall trend for the NIS registers in tonnage was decreasing. Advantages The following advantages can be attributed to registration in the NIS. Norwegians are universally recognised as a competent and experienced maritime nation. The Norwegian taxation system is relatively mild in comparison with the overall European taxation regulations. The Norwegian judicial system characterises itself as one of the most predictable and sophisticated towards the maritime business. The NIS system has a very good reputation, which eliminates further inspection of the cargo in foreign ports. The registered vessels will reap all the benefits of high-quality tonnage. The implementation by the NIS of other international standards, such as ILO, IMO, ISM, SOLAS, WTO, OECD and MARPOL, increases the universality and uniformity of their legislation, which is advantageous for trade. The NIS provides more than 500 service stations on a global scale, which are easy to apply to for technical and financial management and support. The income of the crews including foreign citizens is not taxed by the Norwegian authorities. Disadvantages It may be argued that the following disadvantages can be found in the NIS. Foreign owners and cargo or passenger transportation companies are not permitted to enter the internal Norwegian market. The NIS legislation does not allow transportation between Norwegian ports for foreign vessels. However, this disadvantage is recognised by foreign owners only. The Norwegian authorities secure themselves against additional competition in the sea transportation market, which is recognised as an advantage for them. Foreign ships have no possibility to turn to their domestic technical and financial support services. Ship owners have to coordinate their payments to the employees within Norwegian legislation. Mandatory participation of the Norwegian representative in the communication with the Norwegian government. Norwegian Ordinary Register (NOR) Background The Norwegian Ordinary Register (NOR) has certain similarities with the NIS, but the main difference may be found in the class of the register. According to the above given classification, the NOR belongs to the national type of registers. It means, that it emphasises the direct link between the nationality of the owner and the host country. The NOR can be considered a closed register. The NOR legislation implies two options upon registration of vessels: mandatory and voluntary registrations. The mandatory registration is necessary for all the Norwegian vessels, which have a length of 15 meters or more. However, if they are already registered in other countries (have international or second registration), the NOR registration is not required. The voluntary option of registration can be applied to the Norwegian vessels, which have a length from 7 to 15 meters. In addition, other vessels, which are not used for commercial purposes may be registered voluntarily according to the NOR. Floating docks and cranes, hovercrafts and installations and moving platforms can be registered on the voluntary basis. In all the other cases, which are prescribed by the Act concerning the Registration and Marking of Fishing Vessels, the registration of vessels is mandatory. Limitations of the NOR According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (2005), the main limitations of the NOR may be found in its nature of being a national or closed register. In particular, to be registered by the NOR, the shipping company is to be owned by an EEA citizen. Nevertheless, non-EEA ownership is possible too, but the share owned by the EEA citizens must be no less than 60%. If compared with the NIS, such limitation does not exist there. On registration in the NOR, the company that owns a vessels becomes a company with limited liability. The headquarters of a cargo or passenger transporter must be on the territory of the EEA. Similar requirements are attributed to the crew of the vessel registered in accordance with the NOR standards. The prevailing majority of the crew members including the captain itself are to be EEA citizens, who had resided in the EEA area the two preceding years. Another limitation deals with the technical and financial management of the registered vessel. The NOR legislation allows technical support for a vessel from a Norwegian technical servicer only. The maintenance may be given abroad, but this company has to ultimately belong to Norway. The Number of Registered Ships In 2007, the total number of vessels registered in NOR was equal to 749. In 2008, this figure increased by 2.8% and was equal to 770. The NOR registration in tonnage was equal to 2,411 gross tons in 2007. In 2008, this figure decreased and constituted only 2,305 gross tons. It is quite difficult to comment about the tend in the NOR registrations because the two recent years demonstrated a small rise in numbers, but a fall in tonnage. Advantages The following advantages are usually attributed to the NOR. The vessels operating in the inner market reap the benefits of high-quality support and the protection of foreign competitors. Sophisticated and highly experienced maritime tradition contributes greatly to the development of sea transportation businesses for different types of vessels. It is beneficial for ship owners that the country has two types of ship registers: national and international. Disadvantages The following disadvantages may be seen in the NOR registration for vessels. The registration fees are not stable and fluctuate from year to year depending on the prescriptions of the Maritime Act. Opportunities of technical support are limited only to the domestic providers of this service. It may be concluded that as Norwegian International Ship (NIS) Register and Norwegian Ordinary Registers (NOR) belong to one country, they have much in common. However, the main difference between these registers is that they belong to different register groups: national (NOR) and international or second (NIS) registers. The NOR completely binds the registered ships to the host country, Norway. It may be noticed in terms of ownership, cooperation with maintenance and support services and the location of the headquarters. The NIS naturally allows foreign ownership, but the limitation of mandatory service remains. Moreover, companies are obliged to have a Norwegian representative. UK Register Background The UK register is part of the Maritime and Coastal Agency (MCA), which controls and monitors all of the marine activity in the UK. Since the UK is a kingdom, all of the activity is ultimately answerable to Her Majesty the Queen of Great Britain. The UK register is a closed register. The UK register handles: Merchant ships Fishing vessels Large yachts Pleasure Crafts/ Small ships With 116 (UK Ship Register, 2010) ports around the UK, all of the above vessels can register and receive a UK flag. Although the register provides a list of restrictions on who can be registered, it covers quite a wide range of geographical locations (e.g. British Dependant territories citizens, EEA countries, those that have a registered business in one of the EEA countries). Benefits of having a UK Flag The UK flag is considered to be one of the best performing flags in the world, ranking 3rd (lowest by risk) in the Paris MoU list The UK Flag is one of the top performing Flags on the Paris MoU White List' (UK register, 2010). The register is proud to offer their customers assistance both before and after registration. Financially, it rewards its members with relatively low annual renewal fees and contributes around ÂÂ £1.4 million to a Crew Relief Cost Scheme. Furthermore, UK registered ships are not targeted by Port State Control regimes in the worlds major trading areas ISPS plan approvals and verification audits at no cost to owners and operators An international reputation for expert advice and guidance with a proactive leading role at the IMO, EU and Quality Shipping Committees Worldwide security threat level information provided to UK registered ships with support for British Nationals on board from British Consuls and Royal Navy protection dependent on the availability of assets and exact situation Quality Assurance offering certification to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 standards with audits being taken in harmonisation with ISM Alternate Compliance Scheme: A voluntary scheme that streamlines the survey and certification process by minimising duplication of effort with Classification Societies. Eligibility is conditional upon certain criteria being met (UK Register, 2010). Disadvantages of the UK Flag The National Audit Office (2009) has reported that the efficiency with which the MAC operates has deteriorated over the years. Until 2000 the agency have managed to carry out all of the required surveys in order to check the quality of the ships that operate under a UK flag. However, by 2007, the targets were not met. Furthermore, it was predicted, that the targets would not be met again in 2008-2009. Failure to meet its targets will increase the risk that UK vessels which do not comply with regulations operate without detection in UK ports and waters (National Audit Office, 2009, p.5). In order to be efficient, the MAC needs more resources However, at the moment, even the cost of surveys are not met by the revenues that are brought in by the owners of the vessels. Another worrying fact, is that the quality of the UK flag, which has been enjoying a very good reputation over the years, is starting to disappear. The audit has found that an increasing number of UK flag holders are being detained overseas due to the inability to pass quality checks. Although relatively this detention number is lower compared to other flags, it has been argued that the difference is getting smaller every year. Partly, because the quality of the other flags is increasing and partly because the quality of the UK flag vessels is deteriorating. Registered Ships In order to increase the growth in registered ships, the Government has introduced a tonnage tax in 2000. In turn, instead of charging vessels on the profits that they make off their activities, they are now charged on the tonnage of their vessels. This regulatory measure has allowed the UK register to see a good increase in the number of vessels. By the end of 2007 the UK registered merchant fleet had grown from 1,050 to 1,518. Of these, 646 vessels were trading vessels compared with 417 vessels in 2000 (National Audit Office, 2009, p.5). The tonnage that was brought in also increased. In 2007, the average tonnage per vessel increased from 11,000 to 19,000. This increase had an interesting effect on the number of overseas surveys that the MCA had to perform in 2007. Nearly a quarter of them had to be done overseas. This is a large increase, considering that in 2000-2001, 5% were performed overseas, while the rest were done domestically (National Audit Office, 2009, p.5). Large increases were also seen in the number of Certificates of Equivalent Competency that were issued, from 3,244 in 2003 to 4,722 in 2007. However, although absolute numbers have increased, the overall rate of growth has declined. In 2007, the fleet grew by 10%, compared to 13.33% average growth from 2001 to 2003. The MAC argues that too many external factors are at play, which do not allow them to enhance the growth with more control. For example, the MAC found that some shipping companies were happy to wait and see whether the EU would bring in a tonnage tax as well, before making the final decision on their flagging. In turn, this shows that although the UK ship register provides a large number of benefits, they are not relatively strong enough to become a deciding factor for the shipping companies. Isle of Man Registry Background Isle of Man Registry (IOM) works closely with the Isle of Man government to provide relevant solutions to its members. Tynwald (the local parliament) is ultimately answerable to the Crown, however, as has long been agreed, the UK government does not legislate the IOM, and therefore, shipping legislation is approved by Tynwald alone. The Isle of Man operates a Category One, Red Ensign Group British Register that provides for the registration of ships of any size or type. The Isle of Man Register is a component part of the British Register (The Red Ensign Group, 2010). IOM registry is relatively new, established only in 1984. Over the years, the IOM has seeked local private solutions for its clients, and today works closely with local marine lawyers, accountants, PI clubs and even banks, bringing a diverse, one-stop-shop solution to anyone who registers. Due to its offshore jurisdiction capabilities and proximity to Europe, IOM can provide a highly competitive solution. The IOM strongly competes on its tax exemption regime, its financial centre capabilities and developed technical solutions whilst on the island. The IOM registers a large number of different vessels, including VLCC, superyachts, fishing boats and pleasure crafts. Advantages of the IOM The Isle of Man Ship Registry has recently been voted best in the world, claiming the top spot in the international shipping industry round table annual flag state performance table (PDMS, 2008). Like the rest of the registrars, IOM conveys that it will provide the ship owners with the cost-efficient and customer-friendly solution. Quality is key to the Isle of Man, where our reputation as a high quality jurisdiction makes us the flag of choice for todays modern maritime business (IOM, 2010). Furthermore, the website states that this registers customer service has a can-do approach. A professional Ship Registry providing a high quality of service available 24/7 with fast response to queries Reasonable costs and no annual tonnage dues A favourable taxation regime designed to encourage business The right to fly the Red Ensign and access the support of British consular services world-wide and British Royal Navy protection Flexibility in the requirements for registered owners The availability of Demise registry both IN and OUT Support for ships treated unfairly by Port State Control Full political support for shipping ISO 9001/2008 Accreditation Not a Flag of Convenience Regular advice bulletins on key issues to help owners respond to them (IOM, 2010). Unlike the rest of the registers, it can be argued that IOM offers a number of unique solutions and help. For example, the Ship Managers and Owner Association (IOMSA) brings together the ship owners with the relevant legal and financial representatives, where they are able to discuss outstanding issues and come up with solutions. A similar association is offered to the superyachts sector (Manx Yacht Forum). In turn, it can be argued, that the register can see the issues quickly and address them, which takes the customer service to a different level. Furthermore, since a large proportion of its business is coming from the private yacht owners, the IOM offers one annual yacht fee, which includes all of the charges and exemptions in it already. This makes it very easy for the owners to delegate all of their paper work to the registers, without getting involved in the complex structure of the system. The Annual Report (2008) puts strong emphases on the quality of the vessels that register with the IOM registry. Consistent quality checks before the registration and during the time that the vessel is under the IOM flag, reflects in the strong decline in the number of accidents that the IOM are subject to. Over 5 years, the number of accidents declined from 53 in 2004 to 35 in 2008 (Annual Report, 2008, p. 20). The Number of Registered Ships The IOM has grown over the years, yet, this growth has never been aggressive. In 2008, its main growth was in the registration of yachts, where the target was to register 1 per month. In 2008, 995 vessels were sailing under the IOM flag. Figure 1. IOM registered vessels by type Source: IOM, Annual Report, 2008, p. 10 It is extremely important for the IOM register to be within the first third on the Paris MOU register. So far, out of 83 members of the Paris MOU, they have managed to stay within the first 11. Figure 2: Paris MOU register and IOM position Source: Annual Report, 2008, p. 21 Conclusion The literature review has shown that there are the second registers have been developed by the countries in order to compete with those that were offered by the developing countries. The closed registers examined still prevail in size (by the number of registered vessels), however, the difference is not very large. Each of the registers offers their members a large number of benefits. However, as the case with NIS has shown, reluctance to be flexible is likely to results in less demand for their services. It was interesting to see the results produced by IOM. The registry has managed to grow steadily, despite having a large amount of competition. The low costs that the IOM offers has not impacted on the quality of the service provided. It has been found that the UK Register is much bigger in size than NOR and enjoys a steady growth. Despite the deteriorating ability to meet its survey targets, it still has the 3rd place in the MOU whitelist (see Appendix). It can be argued that if the vessels are less likely to be detained overseas due to deficiencies, this plays an important part on their ability to make a profit. Therefore, low risk registers, such as the UK Register is likely to be more attractive. Both NIS and NOR has seen a decline in their registered members. It can be argued that unlike the UK register and the IOM, they did not make enough competitive changes to stay attractive. References AppleBy (2009) Brief: Ship registration in the Isle of Man [online]: http://dc.co.im/uploaded/Publication/1362_File_5.pdf [Accessed on 2 March 2010] Branch, A. (2007) Elements of shipping, 7th ed., Taylor Francis, p. 164 Burroughs R (1984) Offshore supply vessels: An emerging maritime industry Maritime Policy Management, Vol. 11, No. 4, pp. 269 276 The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (2008) UK Ship Register continues to grow [online]: http://www.ciltuk.org.uk/pages/industry-news/article?EBA1745A-D18A-4443-A2FE-946C24DFD242 [Accessed on 2 March 2010] Chircop, A. and LindÃÆ'Â ©n, O. (2006) Places of refuge for ships: emerging environmental concerns of a maritime custom, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, p. 265 Department of Trade and Industry (2010) Registration of Manx Ships [online]: http://www.gov.im/lib/docs/dti/shipregistry/Registration/rans/ran01registrationofmanxships.pdf [Accessed on 2 March 2010] DeSombre, E. (2006) Flagging standards: globalization and environmental, safety, and labor regulations at sea, MIT Press, p. 83 Farthing, B. and Brownrigg, M. (1997) Farthing on international shipping, 3rd ed., the University of Virginia, p. 187 Harwood, S. (2006) Shipping finance, 3rd ed., Euromoney Books, pp. 200-204 Hinkelman, E. (2005) Dictionary of international trade: handbook of the global trade community includes 21 key appendices, 6th ed., World Trade Press, p. 374 IOM (2008) Annual Report, [online]: http://www.gov.im/lib/docs/dti/shipregistry/formsdocs/reports/iomsr/reportfinalwebsiteonly.pdf [Accessed on 2 March 2010] Isle of Man (2010) Ship registry [online]: http://www.gov.im/dti/shipregistry/ [Accessed on 2 March 2010] Isle of Man Government (2010) Registry: Qualified Owners [online]: http://www.gov.im/dti/shipregistry/registration/qualifiedowners.xml [Accessed on 2 March 2010] Klikauer, T. and Morris, R. (2002) Into murky waters: Globalisation and deregulation in Germanys shipping employee relations, Employee Relations, Vol. 24, Issue: 1, pp. 12-28 Mulcahy, L. and Tillotson, J. (2004) Contract law in perspective, 4th ed., Routledge Cavendish, p. 147 National Audit Office (2009) The Maritime and Coastguard Agencys Response to Growth in the UK Merchant Fleet Great Britain, [online]: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=n5QIqJW-eVsCHYPERLINK http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=n5QIqJW-eVsCdq=UK+Ship+Registerlr=source=gbs_navlinks_sHYPERLINK http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=n5QIqJW-eVsCdq=UK+Ship+Registerlr=source=gbs_navlinks_sdq=HYPERLINK http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=n5QIqJW-eVsCdq=UK+Ship+Registerlr=source=gbs_navlinks_sHYPERLINK http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=n5QIqJW-eVsCdq=UK+Ship+Registerlr=source=gbs_navlinks_sUK+Ship+RegisterHYPERLINK http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=n5QIqJW-eVsCdq=UK+Ship+Registerlr=source=gbs_navlinks_sHYPERLINK http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=n5QIqJW-eVsCdq=UK+Ship+Registerlr=source=gbs_navlinks_sHYPERLINK http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=n5QIqJW-eVsCdq=UK+Ship+Registerlr=source=gbs_navlinks_slr=HYPERLINK http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=n5QIqJW-eVsCdq=UK+Ship+Registerlr=source=gbs_navli nks_sHYPERLINK http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=n5QIqJW-eVsCdq=UK+Ship+Registerlr=source=gbs_navlinks_ssource=gbs_navlinks_s [Accessed on 2 March 2010] NOR (2010) NOR [online]: http://www.nis-nor.no/NOR.aspx [Accessed on 2 March 2010] NIS (2010) NIS [online]: http://www.nis-nor.no/NHYPERLINK http://www.nis-nor.no/NOR.aspxISHYPERLINK http://www.nis-nor.no/NOR.aspx.aspx [Accessed on 2 March 2010] PDMS (2008) Client: Isle of Man Register [online] http://www.pdms.com/clients/casestudies/marineadmin.xml [Accessed on 2 March 2010] Odeke, A. (1998) Bareboat charter (ship) registration, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, pp. 8-9 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (2005) National treatment for foreign-controlled enterprises, OECD Publishing, p. 73 Paris MOU (2010) Black Grey White list [online]: http://www.parismou.org/upload/anrep/BGWlist2006-2008.pdf [Accessed on 2 March 2010] Paris MOU (2010) Basic Figures [online]: http://www.parismou.org/ParisMOU/Statistical+information/Basic+figures/xp/menu.4270/default.aspx [Accessed on 2 March 2010] Raikes, F. (2009) The Maritime Codes of Italy, BiblioBazaar, LLC, p. 115 Rayfuse, R. (2004) Non-flag state enforcement in high seas fisheries, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, p. 22 Saunders, M., Lewis, P. and Thornhill, A. (2009) Research Methods for Business Students, 5th ed., Pearson Education, pp. 56-66 Ship Management (2010) Isle of Man to introduce annual fee in April [online] http://www.shipmanagementinternational.com/?p=1557 [Accessed on 2 March 2010] Sletmo G. and S. HosteÂÂ  (1993) Shipping and the competitive advantage of nations: the role of international

Automobile Safety Essay -- Automobile Safety Essays

People in developed countries all over the world have come to see automobiles as the preferred way to travel. They allow independence: point to point transportation without having to rely on others to get where we want to go, to do what we want to do. Long range travel and short range travel can be undertaken whenever one desires, either alone or with other people. Citizens of the modern world must often wonder how people ever lived without automobiles. To think that human beings once traveled everywhere by foot or on horseback is not just a humorous idea to reminisce; it is foreign concept that would not allow the social and business culture of today to exist. It is almost as foreign a concept that early automobiles were driven by steam. The challenge of steam engines was making them small, but still powerful enough to provide enough power to move more than themselves. In addition, these engines burned coal, a messy, inefficient fuel.1 With the invention of the internal combustion engine came a long line of innovations around the world that led us to the automobiles we enjoy today. Along the way, automobiles have become an essential part of life for many people in the United States. Their operation and usefulness have also become commonplace; something most people take for granted, without any knowledge of the years of innovation that led to the automobiles we enjoy today. Dangers of Driving With the convenience of driving comes many risks. Automobiles are heavy, powerful objects moving at rapid rates. When they collide with each other or other objects, enormous unfavorable forces come into play. The composition of the human body is not designed to fend against mishaps that can occur with such machi... ... and the General Estimates System (Washington, DC: ) i. [back to text] 4. Inventor Profile: Nils Bohlin, 2002, National Inventor’s Hall of Fame, 28 Feb. 2004, . [back to text] 5. Technical Recruitment, 2004, Volvo, 28 Feb. 2004, . [back to text] 6. Volvo Safety Center, 2004, Volvo, 28 Feb. 2004, . [back to text] 7. Volvo Saved My Life, 2004, Volvo, 28 Feb. 2004, . [back to text] 8. Autoliv, Inc, 2003, Illustrations, 1 March 2004, . [back to text]

Another Heart of Darkness Essay -- essays research papers

Ignorance and Racism Joseph Conrad develops themes of personal power, individual responsibility, and social justice in his book Heart of Darkness. His book has all the trappings of the conventional adventure tale - mystery, exotic setting, escape, suspense, unexpected attack. Chinua Achebe concluded, "Conrad, on the other hand, is undoubtedly one of the great stylists of modern fiction and a good story-teller into the bargain" (Achebe 252). Yet, despite Conrad's great story telling, he has also been viewed as a racist by some of his critics. Achebe, Singh, and Sarvan, although their criticisim differ, are a few to name. Normal readers usually are good at detecting racism in a book. Achebe acknowledges Conrad camouflaged racism remarks, saying, "But Conrad chose his subject well - one which was guaranteed not to put him in conflict with psychological pre- disposition..." (Achebe, 253). Having gone back and rereading Heart of Darkness, but this time reading between the lines, I have discovered some racism Conrad felt toward the natives that I had not discovered the first time I read the book. Racism is portrayed in Conrad's book, but one must acknowledge that back in the eighteen hundreds society conformed to it. Conrad probably would have been criticized as being soft hearted rather than a racist back in his time. Conrad constantly referred to the natives, in his book, as black savages, niggers, brutes, and "them", displaying ignorance toward the African history and racism towards the African people. Conrad wrote, "Black figures strolled out listlessly... the beaten nigger groaned somewhere" (Conrad 28). "They passed me with six inches, without a glance, with the complete, deathlike indifference of unhappy savages" (Conrad 19). Achebe, also, detected Conrad's frequent use of unorthodox name calling, "Certainly Conrad had a problem with niggers. His in ordinate love of that word itself should be of interest to psychoanalysts" (Achebe 258). Conrad uses Marlow, the main character in the book, as a narrator so he himself can enter the story and tell it through his own philosophical mind. Conrad used "double speak" throughout his book. Upon arriving at the first station, Marlow commented what he observed. "They were dying slowly - it was very clear. They were not enemies, they were not cri... ... (Singh 278). Conrad didn't write his book to the extreme of racism. Overall, the natives appeared better humans than the Europeans in Heart of Darkness. Conrad's ignorance led to his conformity to racism. His ignorance of not completely "granting the natives human status" leads him to social categorization. C. P. Sarvan wrote in his criticism, quoting Achebe, "Racism and the Heart of Darkness," "Conrad sets up Africa 'as a foil to Europe, a place of negations... in comparison with which Europe's own state of spiritual grace will be manifest.' Africa is 'the other world,'..." (281). Achebe, Chinua [An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness.] Heart of Darkness. By Joseph Conrad 3rd ed. Ed. Robert Kimbrough. New York: Norton Critical 1988. Conrad, Joseph Heart of Darkness 3rd ed. Ed. Robert Kimbrough. New York: Norton Critical, 1988. Sarvan, C. P. [Racism and the Heart of Darkness.] Heart of Darkness. By Joseph Conrad 3rd ed. Ed. Robert Kimbrough. New York: Norton Critical 1988. Singh, Frances B. [The Colonialistic Bias of Heart of Darkness.] Heart of Darkness. By Joseph Conrad 3rd ed. Ed. Robert Kimbrough. New York: Norton Critical 1988. Another Heart of Darkness Essay -- essays research papers Ignorance and Racism Joseph Conrad develops themes of personal power, individual responsibility, and social justice in his book Heart of Darkness. His book has all the trappings of the conventional adventure tale - mystery, exotic setting, escape, suspense, unexpected attack. Chinua Achebe concluded, "Conrad, on the other hand, is undoubtedly one of the great stylists of modern fiction and a good story-teller into the bargain" (Achebe 252). Yet, despite Conrad's great story telling, he has also been viewed as a racist by some of his critics. Achebe, Singh, and Sarvan, although their criticisim differ, are a few to name. Normal readers usually are good at detecting racism in a book. Achebe acknowledges Conrad camouflaged racism remarks, saying, "But Conrad chose his subject well - one which was guaranteed not to put him in conflict with psychological pre- disposition..." (Achebe, 253). Having gone back and rereading Heart of Darkness, but this time reading between the lines, I have discovered some racism Conrad felt toward the natives that I had not discovered the first time I read the book. Racism is portrayed in Conrad's book, but one must acknowledge that back in the eighteen hundreds society conformed to it. Conrad probably would have been criticized as being soft hearted rather than a racist back in his time. Conrad constantly referred to the natives, in his book, as black savages, niggers, brutes, and "them", displaying ignorance toward the African history and racism towards the African people. Conrad wrote, "Black figures strolled out listlessly... the beaten nigger groaned somewhere" (Conrad 28). "They passed me with six inches, without a glance, with the complete, deathlike indifference of unhappy savages" (Conrad 19). Achebe, also, detected Conrad's frequent use of unorthodox name calling, "Certainly Conrad had a problem with niggers. His in ordinate love of that word itself should be of interest to psychoanalysts" (Achebe 258). Conrad uses Marlow, the main character in the book, as a narrator so he himself can enter the story and tell it through his own philosophical mind. Conrad used "double speak" throughout his book. Upon arriving at the first station, Marlow commented what he observed. "They were dying slowly - it was very clear. They were not enemies, they were not cri... ... (Singh 278). Conrad didn't write his book to the extreme of racism. Overall, the natives appeared better humans than the Europeans in Heart of Darkness. Conrad's ignorance led to his conformity to racism. His ignorance of not completely "granting the natives human status" leads him to social categorization. C. P. Sarvan wrote in his criticism, quoting Achebe, "Racism and the Heart of Darkness," "Conrad sets up Africa 'as a foil to Europe, a place of negations... in comparison with which Europe's own state of spiritual grace will be manifest.' Africa is 'the other world,'..." (281). Achebe, Chinua [An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's Heart of Darkness.] Heart of Darkness. By Joseph Conrad 3rd ed. Ed. Robert Kimbrough. New York: Norton Critical 1988. Conrad, Joseph Heart of Darkness 3rd ed. Ed. Robert Kimbrough. New York: Norton Critical, 1988. Sarvan, C. P. [Racism and the Heart of Darkness.] Heart of Darkness. By Joseph Conrad 3rd ed. Ed. Robert Kimbrough. New York: Norton Critical 1988. Singh, Frances B. [The Colonialistic Bias of Heart of Darkness.] Heart of Darkness. By Joseph Conrad 3rd ed. Ed. Robert Kimbrough. New York: Norton Critical 1988.

Pharmacology; Clinical review assignment: Renal failure Essay

Renal failure is an increasing concern in Australia, with over 54 people dying every day from kidney related disease. The incidence of this pathology has been shown to be growing, with the number of people on dialysis rising by 4% from 2010 to 2011 (National Kidney Foundation, 2013). It is estimated that approximately 1.7 million Australians over the age of 25 show signs of renal failure, either chronic or acute. Indigenous Australians are also four times more likely to die from renal failure than non-indigenous Australians (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2006). Signs of renal failure often show themselves in the form of reduced kidney function, proteinuria (protein in the urine) or haematuria (blood in the urine). Renal failure is a condition involving the failure of the kidneys, or more precisely the nephrons within the kidneys. The nephron is the functional unit of the kidney, with approximately 1.5 million working to filter blood of wastes and reabsorb water and electrolytes necessary to maintain homeostasis (U.S. Patent No. 5,092,886A, 1992). Renal failure occurs when the kidneys fail to filter blood adequately, it is often undetected until late stage failure has occurred. There are two main forms of renal failure; acute kidney disease and chronic kidney disease, both with underlying pathologies (U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2013). Treatment for renal failure involves either dialysis; filtering of the blood to remove metabolic wastes, or a kidney transplant, which is not a cure and requires permanent care and maintenance post-surgery. As of December 2012, 1080 people are waiting for a kidney transplant in Australia (Better Health Channel, 2013). It is important for paramedics to recognise and understand the underlying pathology behind renal failure as the condition results in a wide range of secondary effects & has many different presentations, with some as simple as headaches and â€Å"stomach pain†; pain in the kidney region, and more serious presentations such as metabolic acidosis (National Kidney Foundation, 2013). Pathophysiology: All 1.5 million nephrons in the kidney are working constantly to filter  blood. The kidneys receive approximately 25% of cardiac output via the afferent arteriole, into the bowman’s capsule which surrounds the glomerulus. The glomerulus is often described as a colander, as it is semi-permeable, only allowing certain things to pass through it. The kidneys main functions are to filter the blood, but they also have many other functions, such as regulating acid/base and fluid/electrolyte balances, reabsorbing water and electrolytes and excreting urine. â€Å"In addition, the kidneys excrete metabolic waste products, including urea, creatinine, and uric acid, as well as foreign chemicals† (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). The kidneys also serve an endocrinological function, â€Å"secreting rennin, the active form of vitamin D, and erythropoietin. These hormones are important in maintaining blood pressure, calcium metabolism, and the synthesis of erythrocytes, respectively.† (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). The progression of renal failure is often undetected, with renal function able to continue until 50% of the nephrons per kidney are destroyed. After nephrons are destroyed they never regenerate (Tilgner, n.d.). Compensatory buffer mechanisms exist in the body to counterbalance the effects of renal disease. As the kidneys are responsible for water and electrolyte balance, shifts in solute concentrations due to nephron destruction can be seen. Isosthenuria, which is excretion of urine that has not been concentrated by the kidneys and therefore has the same osmolality/gravity as plasma, is the first clinical sign of impaired renal function. Water along with sodium is flushed from the body resulting in dehydration & an electrolyte imbalance (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). â€Å"In a healthy body, the acid-base balance is maintained via buffers, breathing, and the amounts of acid or alkaline wastes in the urine; this is because the daily load of endogenous acid is excreted into the urine with buffering compunds such as phosphates.† (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). When the kidneys functions are impaired, a backlog of hydrogen (H+) ion occurs and the nephrons ability to excrete acid becomes inadequate. This results in ketoacidosis, a condition in which the body’s pH falls dangerously below it’s normal homeostatic range, commonly detected by the ‘fruity’ scent of a patients breath which occurs due to acetone; â€Å"a direct byproduct of the spontaneous decomposition of acetoacetic acid† (DiTomasso, Golden & Morris, 2010). Diagnostic tools; The main ways of diagnosing renal failure include serum chemistry/blood tests, urinalysis and creatinine clearance tests. Serum chemistry is the analysis of blood, when diagnosing renal failure, changes in â€Å"Sodium, chloride, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), glucose, creatinine, carbon dioxide, potassium, phosphate, and calcium levels provide a useful tool to evaluate the degree of renal impairment and disease progression.† (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). The most important of these are creatinine and blood urea nitrogen, both of which are byproducts of protein metabolism which in healthy people is excreted in urine after filtration. In patients with renal failure the levels of createnine and BUN increase to toxic levels, indicating significant functional loss of the kidneys (â€Å"Creatinine Levels and BUN,† 2012). Urinalysis involves examining a patients urine sample, detecting protein, blood, determining osmolality and microscopic examination (Klatt & Georgia, 2013). The main indications of renal failure that urinalysis detects are hematuria and protienuria. Hematuria is defined as â€Å"†¦the presence of red blood cells in the urine. It can be characterised as either â€Å"gross† (visible to the naked eye) or â€Å"microscopic† (visible only under the microscope)† (â€Å"Blood in the urine (Hematuria)†, 2013). Hematuria is commonly benign in younger age groups, with cases of patients less than 40 years old almost always benign. In older age groups hematuria is seen as more serious, prompting medical investigation into the pathology to rule out other causes, such as infection or cancer, as many different types of cancers (bladder, kidney, prostate, urethral) also present with hematuria (American Urological Association, 2005). Proteinuria is another indication of renal failure, occurring when urine samples contain an elevated level of protein, or albumin, which is the main protein in the blood (National Institute of Health, 2010). Proteins are large molecules and should not pass through golmerular filtration. â€Å"The upper limit of normal urinary protein is 150 mg per day; patients who excrete > 3g of protein per day carry a diagnosis of nephrotic syndromeâ€Å" (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). A creatinine clearance test is another diagnostic tool used to determine renal failure, focusing on the glomerular filtration rate to determine the level of functioning renal nephrons. Creatinine is a metabolic by-product of creatine, which remains at a constant value in the urine. It is caused by breakdown of muscle tissue, and is 100% filtered by the glomerulus. No reabsorption of creatinine should  occur in normal functioning tubules within the nephron (National Institute of Health, 2010). This diagnostic test is done via collecting a urine and blood sample within 24 hours. â€Å"In chronic renal failure and in some forms of acute disease, the GFR is decreased below the normal range of 100 to 150 mL/min. Advancing age also diminishes the GFR, by approximately 1 mL/min every year after age 30 years.† (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). Acute vs. Chronic; Renal failure classification is broken down into two different parts; onset and location. Renal failure can be acute; occurring within a timeframe of days to weeks, or chronic; renal failure that develops slowly over years. The location of the failure is the second criteria, determining the type of destruction within the nephron (pre-renal, renal, intrinsic or post-renal) (The Renal Association, 2012). Determining the type of renal failure is important as acute renal failure is mostly curable, whereas chronic renal failure is progressive and irreversible, often leading to death. Acute renal failure is characterised by the rapid loss of kidney function, occurring over a few days to weeks, causing azotemia, a condition where a build-up of nitrogenous wastes products occurs, causing metabolic acidosis (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). It can be broken down into sections based on where the failure is occurring within the nephron. Pre-renal failure occurs due to a reduction in blood flow/renal perfusion to the kidneys, causing loss of function. The kidney remains undamaged in this condition, with the problem being based solely on blood flow. It is the most common type of acute renal failure and can occur as a secondary illness from â€Å"almost any disease, condition or medicine that causes a decrease in the normal amount of blood and fluid in the body† (WebMD, 2013). Post-renal failure is less common, and is caused by an obstruction of the flow of urine â€Å"from the kidneys at any level of the urinary tract and that subsequently decreases the GFR† (WebMD, 2013). It is most commonly caused by prostatic enlargement or cervical cancer, usually found in older males. Intrinsic renal failure is the final type of acute renal failure, occurring from direct damage/trauma to the kidneys. The most common types of intrinsic renal failure are â€Å"acute tubular necrosis (ATN), acute glomerulonephritis (AGN) and acute interstitial nephritis (AIN)† (WebMD, 2013). Causes of the decreased blood-flow/obstruction include;  surgery, cardiovascular disease, direct trauma/impact to the kidneys, severe burns, severe muscle injury or severe physical exertion (WebMD, 2013). Chronic renal failure focuses around nephron destruction. Renal conditions such as glomerulonephritis affects the filtration rate of the glomerulus, while polycystic kidney disease involves the failure of the renal tubules. Nephrosclerosis interferes with blood perfusion, but the most common diagnosis of chronic renal failure is â€Å"diabetes mellitus, followed by hypertension, glomerulonephritis and others† (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). Although causes vary, each condition shares the common trend of irreversible nephron destruction. Application to paramedic practice: Paramedics must be considerate of all patients with renal impairments. Prophylactic measures are often taken in renal patients, managing â€Å"diet, fluid, electrolytes and calcium-phosphate balance†, as well as dietary modifications to counterbalance the common difficulties renal patients have with hypertension, oedema and weight gain (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). Emergency care workers should be weary to maintain a blood pressure lower than 130/85mmHg. Bleeding disorders and anaemia are common conditions patients with renal failure will suffer from. Haemorrhaging and bruising are common. â€Å"The antidiuretic hormone vasopressin has been shown to be effective int he short term management of bleeding in patients with renal failure† (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). Renal patients on dialysis should not have their intravenous injection site compromised by any medication an ALS paramedic may administer. Blood flow through the arm must not be blocked or obstructed, and as these patients are immunocompromised, efforts to avoid sources of infection must be made (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). Pharmacotherapeutics is a serious concern for anyone treating a renal patient, as most drugs are excreted by kidney, â€Å"and renal function affects drug bioavailability, the volume of drug distribution, drug metabolism and the rate of drug elimination.† (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008). Drug dosage schedules must be altered according to the amount of residual renal function. Drugs that would normally be safe for most patients may be toxic in patients with renal failure. â€Å"The plasma half-lives of medications that are normally eliminated in the urine are often prolonged in renal failure and are effectively reduced by dialysis. Even drugs that are metabolized by the liver can lead  to increased toxicity because the diseased kidneys fail to excrete them effectively. Theoretically, a 50% decrease in creatinine clearance corresponds to a twofold increase in the elimination half-life of any medication excreted fully by the kidneys.† (DeRossi & Cohen, 2008) Knowledge on the pharmacology on all ALS paramedic drugs must be known as certain drugs are nephrotoxic and should not be administered. The early recognition of signs of renal failure is important as mortality rates from acute renal failure (the most common type of renal failure) are high, remaining constant over the past 40 years at approximately 40-70% (Fry & Farrington, 2006). References: National Kidney Foundation. (2013). Facts on CKD in Australia. Retrieved from http://www.kidney.org.au/Kidneydisease/FastFactsonCKD/tabid/589/Default.aspx Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2008). National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survery Retrieved from http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4715.0/ Dobos-Hardy, M. (1992). U.S Patent No. 5,092,886A. Boston, Massachusetts. Patent Buddy. U.S. National Library of Medicine. (2013). Kidney Failure. Retrieved from: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/kidneyfailure.html Better Health Channel. (2013). Kidney Failure. Retrieved from: http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Kidney_failure. National Kidney Foundation. (2013). What are the risk factors for kidney disease? Retrieved from http://www.kidney.org.au/KidneyDisease/RiskFactorsandSymptoms/tabid/819/Default.aspx DeRossi, S. & Cohen, D. (2008). Renal disease. Burket’s oral medicine, 11(2), 407- 427. Tilgner, S. (n.d.). Urinary – Kidney support. Journal for the Clinical Practitioner, 10(3), 1-13. DiTomasso, A., Golden, A. & Morri s, J. (2010). Handbook of Cognitive-Behavioural Approaches in Primary Care. New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company. DOI: 10.1037/O.0027784 Creatinine Levels and BUN. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.kidneyfailureweb.com/creatinine/ Blood in the urine (Hematuria). 2013. Retrieved from: http://www.urologyhealth.org/urology/index.cfm?article=113 Klatt, E., Georgia, S. (2013). Urinalysis. Retrieved from: http://library.med.utah.edu/WebPath/TUTORIAL/URINE/URINE.html WebMD. (2013). Prerenal Acute Renal Failure. Retrieved from: http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/prerenal-acute-renal-failure American Urological Association. (2005) Hematuria. Retrieved from www.urologyhealth.org/content/moreinfo/hematuria.pdf National Institute of Health. (2010). Proteinuria. Retrieved from http://kidney.niddk.nih.gov/kudiseases/pubs/proteinuria/ National Institute of Health. (2010). Creatinine Clearance. Retrieved from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003611.htm The Renal Association. (2012). Acute Kidney Injury. Retrieved from https:// www.clinicalkey.com/topics/nephrology/acute-kidney-injury.html Fry, A., Farrington, K. (2006). Management of acute renal failure. Postgraduate Medical Journal, 82(964), 106-116.