Monday, September 30, 2019

The Teachings of Christ For Christian Education

In my opinion I feel that the biblical basis of educational ministries are four basic ideas that teaching should be seen as a light of the world, it should bring out old as well as new feelings in people, be an example to all mankind, and be followed always. There are many more biblical basis for Christian education, but in my eyes I find these the most important. In Proverbs 6:23 the Lord states, â€Å"For these commands are a lamp, this teaching is a light.† Teaching should not feel like a burden of the church, or of the parents. Look at teaching the word of Christ as a gift and teach this gift wholeheartedly. As a Christian one of our duties of the Lord is to pass down His teachings as well as His faith. God has given you a wonderful gift and it would be no less then sinful to hoard it all for yourself. (Note: This was described perfectly by Lou Foltz today in chapel.) A teacher has the hard task of not only teaching the gospel but also bringing out each of the students individual strengths, so that they may use them to serve Christ. Matthew 13:52 says † Therefore every teacher of the laws who has been instructed about my kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a home who brings out his storeroom new treasures as well as old.† This is where imaginative, dynamic, analytical, and common sense learners come into play. You must cater to every type of learner so everyone has a chance to shine and become all God wants them to become. When the students have finally learned the Christian walk of life they must submit their lives to Jesus Christ. They cannot only talk the talk; they must also walk the walk. Deuteronomy 5:1 gives us an example when Moses summoned all Israel and said: â€Å"Hear, O Israel, the decrees and laws I declare in your hearing today. Learn them and be sure to follow them.† This shows that it is not good enough to just learn the word; we must follow the word as well. Otherwise, we are no better off then where we started. The final basis I have is that you must spread the word of Christ. What good does it do when twenty people know about Christ and do not share this with others? Nothing. Christianity would cease to exist without teachers training new Disciples of Christ. John 13:14-15 states † Now that I, your God and Teacher have washed your feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.† Jesus taught twelve disciples the word of Christ and it is now our job as potential teachers to keep this cycle going. All of these principles I have talked about all together create my biblical basis for Christian education. These ideas show basic rules to live by as Christian educators. If I ever do teach Christian education I will do my best to live by these rules for teaching as well as life itself.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Emotion and Body Language Essay

A relationship is about being able to share your ideas, thoughts and feelings with the one person that is supposed to love you without judgment. It is that fear of judgment that sometimes keeps us from proper and effective communication in that relationship that are so necessary to keep a relationship going. We become very good at composing our outside persona so that no one really sees our true inner thoughts and feelings. Sometimes we do it so well that not even the other partner in the relationship ever knows that there is anything wrong until it is too late. In the movie The Last Kiss that is what happens. The movie portrays a couple in a long relationship, where the question of marriage has always been on the table, and then they end up pregnant. The female character feels that their new life will start with the baby then end in marriage when work and everything else begins to get easier. This was the start of the conflict. As a couple you need to notice signs in your partner. The male character, you can tell, loves the female character but you can see there is a mound of emotions and doubts weighing on in his mind. He does not make these feelings aware to his partner. Instead he turns to another female he feels he connects with instead of talking to his girlfriend about his doubts and worries about losing his old self. He shares some of his issues with the other female. As a results that mistake in communication escalates into the male character almost losing his pregnant girlfriend. The interpersonal conflict started with a lack of communication in the very beginning of the movie that caused multiple other interpersonal conflicts. This lack of communication was the worries of the male characters thinking his old life will end due to his girlfriend’s pregnancy. Not wanting to share these worries with his girlfriend puts a lack of communication between partners. Although they carried a communication between each other it was lacking self- disclosure, in order to avoid conflict between their relationships. Instead the male character ops for silence and keeps all of his inner feelings and insecurities to himself. If the silence is prolonged, the parties in the relationship may drift apart or seek other people to provide them with emotional support. (Sole, 2011). This is what eventually happened in the movie. The male character turns to another females shoulder to lean on instead of communicating the issues to the person it involves. By this point in the movie I became aware that the communication between the boyfriend and girlfriend was lacking that emotional communication and neither one had great listening skills before the story line even began. I came to that conclusion due to the fact the male character did not feel he could disclose his true feelings and the female was not ever in tuned to his emotions that were obviously displayed in his body language and facial expressions in the beginning when they announce they are pregnant. The most common problems in relationships stem from silence or refusing to communicate, placating the other person, and playing games. These behaviors can sabotage a relationship and prevent honest, open communication. (Sole, 2011). Had the communication been really working between them earlier on the male would have felt secure enough with their relationship to express what was on his mind and she in return would have known something was troubling him without even having to speak. Their lack of communication due to the fact the male character wanted to avoid the conflict of admitting doubts and second thoughts about starting a family ended up escalating in a near loss of everything that he ended up realizing was most important. The movie was a great show of what avoidance and preventing conflict can do to a relationship. I think that if the characters would have been open and honest with each other as well as had the proper self -disclosure along with effective listening skills with one another they would have been able to both make a basic assertion of the problem at hand. Expressing his true emotions may have made him feel vulnerable in the moment but if there was any trust in the relationship it would have been a place to begin analyzing the problem together. The conflict in this movie showed the downward spiral of what happens when morals are questioned and true communication is not involved or avoided. A relationship is being able to come to someone you love with your insecurities and feel like you can both work on a solution. Sometimes that  is easier said than done for some. Trying to keep positive communication with your partner needs to be a priority. Making sure we are aware of issues can be done with effectively listening to everything about your partner from emotion to body language. When your partner discloses his or her thoughts it needs to be without judgment. Have sympathy for them. You can try to better understand the problems if you ask questions to make sure you comprehend everything so that you can both work to find a solution.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Evaluate How Own Knowledge Understanding and Skills in Literacy

UNIT 303 How my knowledge, understanding and skills in Literacy, Numeracy and ICT impacts on my practice. In this assignment, I am going to describe how my knowledge and understanding and skills in Literacy, Numeracy and ICT help and impacts on my teaching assistant role at my school. All teachers and their assistants are required to have the literacy, numeracy and ICT knowledge, understanding and personal skills. This will equip us to develop inclusive approaches to addressing the literacy, numeracy and ICT needs of our pupils.I believe I know how to find information from books and know how to use the Internet efficiently to provide me with a good background idea. I often take notes to help me be ahead of the lesson or to remember what is the lesson about and I refer to the planning, which I am provided with by the teacher on daily basis. I believe I am confident in feeding back information to the teacher I am working with about our activities or group work. Literacy, Numeracy and ICT support: I play a key role in supporting the children with their activities after the teacher’s input.I usually support smaller, lower ability groups. I find out from the teacher about our activities beforehand, how is the lesson organized and or what is my specific role in the learning activity. I would prepare the resources needed for the particular lesson ahead, often while the teacher is providing the input for the children and do necessary photocopying or sticking pupil’s work into their books. While working with the groups I make sure I am being encouraging during the activities and that all the children implement the right, agreed strategy throughout the lesson.I provide the feedback and monitor the progress of the pupils and report any problems to the teacher. I often get to mark my group’s work if there is enough time afterwards or possibly in the afternoon while children do more independent work. Within the Literacy timetable I am often reading with children and provide constant feedback to the teacher about their progress as well as assessing them in t heir reading ability and benchmarking them to the next level if required after the discussion with the teacher.I also support lower ability group in their phonics lesson, I prepare daily activities for this sessions and provide progress report to the teacher on weekly basis. I play games with the children, use visual strategies and revise with them all the time to extend their phonics basics. I also do weekly spelling tests in groups and keep records of their progress in spelling area of Literacy. I regards to Numeracy sessions, again they often run similarly to Literacy lessons, where I get to prepare appropriate maths resources and organize the group work or work with certain individuals.I often need to repeat teacher’s instructions to re-enforce what pupils should be able to achieve and maybe introduce follow-on tasks to extend learning of the more able pupils. I feel, I still have a lot to learn in Numeracy department, partly due to the fact that I was not educated in the UK and the strategies for some mathematical activities are solved very differently here that I would had been used to. Luckily in Year 1 I can catch up fairly quickly and I am learning along side our children. I can pick right resources for their activities – like number lines, numbers squares, counter and on.I am fairly confident computer user and I use it in every day activities or planning time. Our children use ICT suite facilities on weekly basis and I have found that my ability in ICT has improved over time. I usually help children with logging in if some struggle, I help with opening particular programs and save and retrieve work when and where necessary. Also I can use email, which I often use in communicating with teacher or currently my tutors. I understand about health and safety related to using computers not just thinking about unsafe cables but also computer ergonomics and e safety.I am not necessarily always aware of how the programmes the children use work, b ut on this level it is all quite self-explanatory or if I’m unsure I ask our ICT lady and she is always happy to brief me before the session. I believe I am able to solve problems related to I. C. T to a certain extent. I am confident with printing documents although am cautious when determining the number being printed. Also I am confident with straight forward photocopying and getting more practice with more complex photocopying features like enlarging or manipulating the image.Every so often I come across the situation in the classroom where I need to ask or be advised about how to resolve the issue or find out the answer from the teacher or other staff. That is a proof of my need to improve and learn every day because I as long as there are questions that need answering, my learning does not stop yet. I would like to extend and put in better use the correct mathematical vocabulary and try to use various prompts to encourage mathematical skills in our pupils. I would also like to become more familiar with wide variety of techniques in problem solving exercises.I have learnt basics of the Phonics sessions, but would like to extend this knowledge further and hoping to receive the training from my school in near future about the Phonics system in more detail. I would help me tremendously as I sometimes run out of ideas to teach my group the same sounds over and over again without them getting bored and uninterested at times. There are few areas in ICT I would also need to brush up on – for example PowerPoint programme, as I do not use it very often, but do find it useful when I do get to use it.Also spreadsheets on Excel programme are not my strong point. But as with anything, if you do not use it very often, it becomes less familiar. Smart boards are a little bit of a mystery to me, too as I do not get involved in preparing daily input on it or uploading the files, but I can use it when it is on and running. So plenty to improve on and develop i n future and that is why I am also attending this course – to provide me with better and deeper understanding of my role in school and improve my knowledge and skills in various types of the curriculum.

Friday, September 27, 2019

The impact of modern technology ( mobile phone and the internet) on Essay

The impact of modern technology ( mobile phone and the internet) on young people - Essay Example This paper provides a critical analysis of the impact of modern technology on young people. The proliferation of the Internet and online growth has facilitated novel societal trends and business opportunities through the piecemeal evolution of electronic commerce, thereby creating a new social and business model accommodating the contemporary market and thereby redefining youth culture. The creation of multi-faceted digital space has seen a significant uptake by youth on a global scale, thereby perpetuating a domino effect on culture, sub-cultures and social behaviour through the â€Å"commercialisation of youth† on the one side to changing communication trends with social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace and Bebo on the other (Cross, 2004: 3). Moreover, this directly correlates with the fact that 70-90% of teenagers have access to the Internet at home and the commercialisation of youth has led to market segmentation and a changing consumer market, forcing retailers to adopt a multi-retailer strategy geared towards the youth market (Levy & Weitz, 2008: 27). This has in turn created polarity in debate relating to the wider impact on youth of modern technology, which is the focus of this paper. For example, the diversity of social spaces through networks such as Facebook, internet chat rooms and MySpace for example not only changes the way in which teenagers interact, it provides a backdrop for a multitude of complex interrelated factors, which are difficult to monitor (Barabasi, 2003: 10). On the one side of the spectrum is the issue regarding commercialisation of youth through modern technology with its concurrent impact on multi-retail strategy. This is further highlighted by the increasing influence of media on youth through the deregulation of the media. The Communications Act 2003 deregulates the media in the UK to permit more cross ownership models and integration and under the Act the Office of Communication

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Texas Roadhouse Wont Scrimp on Making Employees Happy Essay

Texas Roadhouse Wont Scrimp on Making Employees Happy - Essay Example However, an ideal organization in the modern day and age has the managerial information at its disposal on the effectiveness of full implementation both at strategy and at policy level (Baran, Zerres and Zerres, 2009). An illustration using the Texas Roadhouse restaurant is well descriptive of the extent that the modern firms can go to ensure that this end is achieved. Basically, two important human resource tools that have been researched on to deliver satisfactory results on employee productivity include employee commitment and motivation. In the service industry, it rolls back on the customer service giving a direct impact on the consumer loyalty and brand image. The implication of the above observation is that employee productivity in the service industry has a direct impact n the consumer satisfaction and the overall organization image projected to the market. In a competitive market as the food market is in which Texas Roadhouse deals in, consumer loyalty and satisfaction is one of the most powerful competitive weapons that an organization can boast of (Gerhart et al, 2011). By establishing a strong market presence through the consumer perception about the delivery of services across the outlets, an organization in the service industry is equipped to face any form of competition. Human resource management findings in the 21st century demonstrate the need for the management team to pay the appropriate attention that the most important resource an organization has in this age; human resource. Paying attention implies that the management invests enough resources based on the cost benefit analysis in enhancement of the employees’ team that the organization puts together. There are a number of employee motivation as well as commitment boosting approaches that the modern organization can employ. According to (Senyucel, 2009), there are three forms of motivation

Should the Oxford's word of the year to be included in a formal Research Paper

Should the Oxford's word of the year to be included in a formal dictionary - Research Paper Example To facilitate common understanding, all these words, whether easy or hard, common or unique should be appropriately documented in a dictionary (Winchester 87, qtd. in Brown). In the recent years, the society has used various words for informal communication and self expression in the internet. Among the most popular are the words â€Å"selfie, bitcoins, and twerk† which Oxford had announced as the new international words of 2013 (Rabe). This paper attempts to describe the qualifications of new words to be placed in a dictionary. It will also illustrate the implications for educators and students for including Oxford’s new words in a formal dictionary. Finally, it attempts to show why these new words should not be contained in formal dictionaries. Definition of Oxford’s New Words The new Oxford’s international words were developed at the height of technology and digital communication. For instance, selfie is used to describe a person who is fond of taking pictures of oneself which are then posted in the social networking sites. This word was first used in an online forum in Australia (Rabe). In addition, twerk is defined in the social media as â€Å"work hips in a sexual way† (â€Å"Twerk†). On the other hand, bitcoin refers to the new form of currency for making online purchases. It has been popularized as the new digital currency (â€Å"Bitcoin†). At present, the usage of bitcoins is still in the experimental stage so there is a probability that this word will not remain permanent. Qualification of Words in Formal Dictionary The general rule for a new word to be qualified in a dictionary is that the word should gain a significant number of citations from different publications. This proves that many people are using the word. However, this rule does not apply to all situations. There are cases when too many citations give editors difficulty to identify the real meaning of the word (â€Å"How Does a Word†). For instance, after the word selfie became popular in an online forum in Australia, several words were also developed such as â€Å"drelfie† to refer to â€Å"drunken selfie† and â€Å"welfie† for â€Å"workout selfie† (Rabe). Moreover, a new word should also be cited for at least two to three years in various sources before it can be placed in a printed and formal dictionary (â€Å"How Do You Decide†). Many of the new words such as selfie, bitcoins, and twerk that were recognized by Oxford come largely come from soc ial media. Since there is a lack of variation of sources, the new words still lack qualification even though they have reached an enormous amount of citations from social networking sites. A group of editors is responsible for evaluating whether or not certain new words are qualified to be placed in a formal dictionary. Their judgments are primarily based on the currency of the words, clarity of meaning, and the establishment of the words in the language of a society (â€Å"How Does a Word†). For this reason, editors need to have a substantial period of time to effectively evaluate the qualification of the new words. With the presence of the internet, it is very easy for certain words to become highly popular and gain numerous citations. Thus, the editors should not base their judgments solely on the frequency of citations. This applies to the various new words that Oxford is considering to place in its formal dictionary. Moreover, the new words identified by Oxford especiall y selfie and twerk are commonly considered as slang words which are used for informal communication in blogs and online forum among surfers in the internet community. This is evident in the dictionary for slang words which defines selfie as a photograph of oneself which is taken by oneself (â€Å"Selfie†

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Human Genome Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Human Genome - Essay Example Learning about the diseases imminent in one’s genetic code and sharing it with doctors could facilitate many new opportunities for and ways of curing common diseases. For instance if I receive a genetic test that states that I have a 85 percent chance of developing Parkinson’s disease, I will approach the associated medical experts with these results and will solicit their advice. I will ask them as to what is the realistic likelihood of me developing Parkinson’s disease and will also ask them regarding the medications and treatment I could avail to avoid developing the Parkinson’s disease or to slow down the progress of this disease if I ever develop it. Knowing about this in advance will endow me with much time and resources to deal with it. The biggest challenge before the researchers and research administrators conducting genetic trials is to find the fasters and easier ways of sequencing DNA (Lee, 1991). The other challenge is to decide as to how multiple human genes collaborate to control one single human trait (Lee, 1991). The researchers also need to know as to how to regulate and control gene

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Poetry Analysis on Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven Essay

Poetry Analysis on Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven - Essay Example Before â€Å"The Raven,† none of Poe’s writings â€Å"garnered him much recognition in the literary world.† However, â€Å"The Raven† was â€Å"hailed by critics as a work of genius, earning Poe a respected reputation as a serious writer† (Iorillo). The work became one of the most recognizable poems of the twentieth century, and Iorillo attributes this to Poe’s meticulous skill, stating that he â€Å"was a deliberate, precise wordsmith.† The setting of â€Å"The Raven† is a good example of Poe’s precise execution of language, with his images combining to create an atmosphere that is quintessentially Gothic. Iorillo states, â€Å"Poe was not the first Gothic writer but he is undeniably one of the most potent.† The term â€Å"Gothic literature† is defined as â€Å"literary style popular during the end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th. This style usually portrayed fantastic tales dealing with horror, despair, the grotesque and other ‘dark’ subjects† (Taylor). The Gothic setting of â€Å"The Raven† is evident from the very beginning of the poem. The poem begins to paint its setting by describing the night as a â€Å"midnight dreary,† creating suspense, misery and dread even before the finish of the poem’s first line. The next image Poe presents is â€Å"a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore.† Poe’s diction heightens the mysterious and eerie setting by using the words â€Å"curious† and â€Å"forgotten† to describe the book that the narrator is reading as the poem begins. As the narrator peruses the pages of his â€Å"curious† book, he hears a noise outside his door, which he dismisses as an unwelcome visitor. The next stanza further enhances the poem’s Gothic setting as the narrator clearly recalls the â€Å"bleak December† night when he first encountered the raven. He tells us how he recalls the burning wood in his fireplace as each â€Å"separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the

Monday, September 23, 2019

Public Adminstration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Public Adminstration - Essay Example Among several issues like the history of a government, its form and reform, stands the topic on governmental organizations and classifications, on which a number of authors have written. Among these outstanding authors is Luther Gulick in his 'Notes on the Theory of Organization' (1937). This discussion focuses on the component parts of Gulick's ideas relative to organizational classification, how they interrelate and contribute to the whole. In chapter 3 of the, 'The Craft of Public Administration', George Berkley and John Rouse attempt an Anatomy of Public Organisation. 'The article on the Machinery of Government Reform: Principles and Practice', (:Machinery of Government Reform Principles and Practice.htm) quotes the Haldane Report of 1918 on the 'distribution of government activities between government departments.' In effect, the Report proposes ten divisions in government ranging from Finance to Justice, despite recognising impossibility in 'co-operation between Departments in dealing with business of common interest" (Haldane 1918: 16). Contrary to the Heldane report, the American Public Administrator and Educator, Luther Hasely Gulick, 1892 - 1992, proposed four criteria for allocating government activities: purposes, such as furnishing water or conducting education; processes (employed), such as engineering, medicine, carpentry: place, for example Hawaii, Bos

Sunday, September 22, 2019

Some Productive Ways Students Can Spend Their Leisure Time Essay Example for Free

Some Productive Ways Students Can Spend Their Leisure Time Essay Leisure time may not come very frequently for students and should therefore be used wisely. Students should value this time as taking time out from their set routine of studying is of vital importance.Leisure time can be used for reflection, relaxation and setting goals into perspective.A good start would be to create a list of activities they would like to accomplish.They can then schedule these activities.These activities should bebeneficial to the body and mind. Staying healthy and activeis vital for a well balanced life. A good diet with nutritional meals is important for students who want to stay healthy. Being active can lead to one having increased energy and can be relaxing as well! This does not need to include a rigirous exercise routine but can include a walk to the park to get some fresh air.Cleaning out personal belongings by tidyingup and organising is also a form of staying fit and can lead to a great sense of accomplishment when completed. Students can stimulate their minds by meditating or learning new skills. This time can be used to try something they have wanted to do for ages but never had time for. There is perhaps even a book they have wanted to read. This can be relaxing and build up ones vocabulary at the same time! They could find their creative side by starting a hobby which can reduce stress and keep their minds active and creative. They can also use their time to reflect on their studies by looking at what they have learnt and what they may need to place more focus on. Ensuring they are up to date with everything will give them peace of mind. Reviewing of the list of activitiesplanned is important as students will be able to see what they have accomplished during their leisure time. Crossing off activities will motivate students as they will see the goals they have reached and lead to them set new milestones. Time needs to be made to clear theirminds and gain perspective of the path they are following in life. This is crucial for self developmentand fulfillment of personal and developmental goals. Students need to focus onspending their leisure time on activities that ar e beneficial, worthwhile and will lead them to feeling empowered with a sense of accomplishment.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

Case Study Of River Severn At Caersws Environmental Sciences Essay

Case Study Of River Severn At Caersws Environmental Sciences Essay River is freshwater providing natural resources for food, recreation, energy, transportation, irrigation and drinking. However, the quality and quantity of river water have been limited due to climate change and other pollutions from sewage and food waste or farm effluent in the whole world. Moreover, other river issues which results from hydraulic principles of river have occurred frequently since the ancient civilizations in many countries, such as erosion and floods. This can not only cause destruction of life including fauna, flora and human, but also damage property like roads and bridges especially in urban areas and destroy farmlands in rural areas. Therefore, various types of techniques and practical schemes have been discovered and utilized in managing and restoring river in order to create sustainable (complex) ecosystems and protect human health and other vegetations. Take the United Kingdom for example, the largest river-River Severn, which is approximately 354 kilometres length from source that locate in the Plynlimon Mountains in West Wales to the sea (Witts, 2011), flows through several countries such as Shropshire and also has a large number of tributary rivers, which can be illustrated in Figure 1. BBC News (2011) states that it has various types of pollution and needs major restoration to comply with new European Union Legislation. However, the attractiveness of river restoration in recent years is normally following the damage of the point source of water pollution. Thus, diffuse pollution of the proposal river will be focused in the upper stretch of River Severn at Caersws and the related restoration will be introduced in the following sections. The main objective of this project is to critical analyze the potential pollution or issues of a stretch of River Severn at Caersws and to discuss the effects of restoration on local ecosystems and economy. Moreover, the several types of restoration schemes and techniques will be analysed including stream bank stabilization, enhancing riparian buffers by adding trees and natural grasses and other additional techniques. In additional, the changed hydraulics will also be explained and analyzed before restoration and afterward in this paper. Figure 1. Map of River Severn image map of the river Severn (Source: Mandy Barrow, 2011a) 2. Description of River Severn at Caersws 2.1 Site Description of the River Caersws is a small village in the upper valley of the River Severn, which can be illustrated in Figure 2 and Figure 3 (National Grid Reference SO 033 917). At Caersws the River Severn has a catchment area of 375 km2 and bankfull discharge is approximately 70 m3/sec (Williams and Rhodes, 1982). The main rock type of the proposal area is resistant rock and the bed is formed in coarse alluvial deposits (gravel and cobbles) having a mean grain size of 40mm (Haslam 1978; Williams and Rhodes, 1982). According to measurement in Figure 3, the average width of the proposal stretch of river below Caersws is around 20 metres and the length is approximately 4.2 kilometres. The aimed stretch of the river is surrounded by a large scale of farmland and green land with some trees. Figure 2. Map of the Location of River Severn at Caersws image: map (Source: Mandy Barrow, 2011b) Figure 3. The Google Map of the River Meander near the Victorian Workhouse in Caersws make-Meanders-near victorian workhouse in Caersus-google map.jpg Note: Red star shows the location of Caersws; Blue lines are boundaries of restoration; Red arrow line is the direction of the flow (Source: Google Map, 2011) 2.2 Why Restore River? It also can be seen that many meanders have been formed around Caersws as the river is flowing across low land where the water flows slower than other areas and the main erosion tends to be horizontal (sideways) which is different from the vertical erosion in mountains. As a consequence, the river has cut through a loop and an ox-bow lake has been formed in a long time period, which shows in Figure 4. As can be seen in the figure, a large number of sands are formed and the old river bed has charged, which results in the loss of local ecosystems and vegetations. For example, the uprooted trees and branches and sediments have been eroded by the force of water especially when the river is fall. To some extent, it will affect biodiversity of species, blockage of river which also related to floods and water turbidity. Furthermore, fertilizer, feaces of sheep and other chemicals from farming can be washed out into river, which can affect water quality whether in local area or downstream. On the other hand, there are some instability problems of channelization in the stretch of river as showed in Diagram 1, which results in expensive maintenance for controlling sediment and erosion in a long term. As for the principles of river management, natural development of river is more sustainable rather than control; thus, a less expensive and sustainable scheme with monitoring programme can be accepted for river restoration to achieve effective transport sediment and avoid erosion if the net value of aggradations or degradation of the river will reach nearly zero (Soar and Thorne, 2001). To sum up, it is better to restore the river bank and manage surrounding areas in sustainable methods in order to avoid potential issues of river and enhance the biodiversity of local ecosystems. Figure 4. An Example of Ox-bow Lake image: casersws (Source: Mandy Barrow, 2011c) Diagram 1. The Current Description of the River Severn at Caersws tu-1.jpg (Source: Hand Drawing by Chai, 2011) 2.3 Analysis of formation of Ox-bow Lake and Hydraulics of the River As hydraulic theory states that energy may be constant along the streamline for an ideal fluid (i.e. viscous of frictional effects are insignificant), which means the large number of energy can be created when the water dash on the river bank as the velocity of flow is zero (Chadwick, Morfett and Borthwick, 2004). Thus, hydraulic action can break down the rocks, remove and drag rocks from the bed and banks of the river by the force of the running water, especially in the extreme rainfall period because of unstable flows of great water force. Moreover, in this large stream the plants become more wispy and are confined to the sides. Based on these theories, Ox-bow Lake has been formed as the speed of river flows is faster on the outside of meander causing erosion and is slower on the inside of the meander resulting in deposition (Diagram 2). The part of the meander has been cut off and changed to Ox-bow Lake, such as point A in Diagram 1. Although other areas of the river are not forme d Ox-bow Lake at moment, they have eroded and deposited of the sites, which means the change of river channel and potential pollutions may be found in the future. This is also a reason why we need to restore the river bank and improve local ecosystem as well. Diagram 2. The Formation of Ox-bow Lake and Erosion of Meander draw1.jpgdraw2.jpgdraw3.jpg http://www.geographyhigh.connectfree.co.uk/s3riversgeoghigh26g.gif (Source: Mandy Barrow, 2011d; Geograph High, 2011) 3. Critical Analysis of River Restoration Downs (2001) mentioned that river restoration is an important activity of river management in Europe to enhance aquatic and riparian habitat, improve water quality and quantity, and facilitate human use. The River Severn at Caersws, which is a good case in point, needs to be restored because of erosion and deposition of the site. The main objective of restoration engineer includes: i) Dredging sediment in the river bank and improving the aesthetic quality of stream; ii) Protecting the bank-lines from erosion; iii) Maintaining the current level of river bank and flow regime; iv) Enhancing diversity of vegetation and sustainable of local ecosystem. The variety of schemes and techniques can be used in different point of the river in Diagram 2 to minimize aggradation or degradation and mitigate tendency of the meandering river, including regular meander path of similar meander bends, rock vortex weirs at meander crossings, riprap (stone) around bendways, and various vegetation around river bank. In the following section, the detailed planning of restoration will be explained (Diagram 3 4) and the impacts of river restoration on economy, local ecosystem and visual aspect will also be analysed. 3.1 The Restoration Plan and Hydraulic Analysis It is not necessary to change the main shape and structure of the river; however, it is possible to restore the river bank at the similar conditions in different parts such as meander bends and width. According to Diagram 1, the area A, B, and C should be focused on in the restoration as the major erosion and deposition are occurring in these areas. During the first stage, the general mechanical dredging can be used to remove damaged trees and other blockages in the river and remove hard rock and rocky materials from deposition sites to erosion sites in A, B, and C to create similar river width as possible as we can. The flow picture shows the potential mechanics used during dredging process in the development. Diagram 3. The Plan of River Restoration in A, B, and C Diagram 3.jpg (Source: Hand Drawing by Chai, 2011) Diagram 4. The Plan of River Restoration in D and E Diagram 4.jpg (Source: Hand Drawing by Chai, 2011) Secondary, a large number of soil that is suitable for grass and othe vegetation growth should be filled in the derdged site achieving the same level of surrounding fields. Then, the derdged rock should be binded together with large size of rock using meshes, which are like Gabions and placed and filled on the sites of cut banks as rock-lined embankments showed in Figure 5. Before restoration a large number of warer force washed out soil and sand from the river bank and then form the steep slop with ÃŽÂ ± (Diagram 5). However, the slop with ÃŽÂ ² (Diagram 5) will become more gently after resotration, which result in that the force of running water can be mitigated and reject bank erosion and lateral shift of planform of the river. Additionallly, Chadwick, Morfett and Borthwick (2004) stated that spiral vortex around the outside of the bend causes an asymmetrical flow pattern which tends to erode material from the region near the outside of the bend and deposit it near the insid e (Figure 6). Thus, stone riffles (vortex weirs) will be placed at meander crossings in the river to maintain the grade and to decrease meander wavelength showed in Figure 6. Consequently, both Rip-rap and weirs may not only change the wavelength of flow and the bed slop, but also maintain the stability of channel cross sections. To some extent, the landform and flow regime of the river may not be changed in a long term peroid after restoration, such as 50 years later. Figure 5. The Rip Rap of the River Restoration imagesCANNFEL4.jpgimagesCAL178I3.jpg (Source:Google Picture, 2011) Diagram 5. The Bed Slop Before and After Restoration à ¥Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃ‚ ¾7.jpgà ¥Ã¢â‚¬ ºÃ‚ ¾5.jpg (Source: Hand Drawing by Chai, 2011) Figure 6. Current Pattern of the River Figure.jpg (Source: Chadwick, Morfett and Borthwick, 2004 Page 529) Moreover, willow spiling and faggots should be ultilised to control erosion in D and E and also to stabilise wide and shallow point bars as they are generally suitable for light erosion and may not withstand stronger forces (Environment Agency, 2010). However, the hyrdaulic will also be changed after restoration and the principle of the hydraulic change is similar to the change of that from strech A to C. According to Figure 7, the wood stick can break up the water force and wave prior to scouring of the river bank and damage the force of backwater. Faggots are normaally installed underwater to limite degradation and spiling can be applied on steep and vertical banks (Figure 7); in addition, the materials of both techniques can be sourced locally or imported to site. Take some practices in the UK for example, willow faggots and spiling have bee successfully applied sperately in the River Cam and River Skerne. Figure 7. Schematic Diagram of a Bank Protected Using Willow Faggots and Spiling http://evidence.environment-agency.gov.uk/FCERM/Libraries/SC060065_Images/4d3dc743-0a76-474b-880f-a372e4daebb4_8.sflb.ashxhttp://evidence.environment-agency.gov.uk/FCERM/Libraries/SC060065_Images/4d3dc743-0a76-474b-880f-a372e4daebb4_9.sflb.ashx (Source: Environment Agency, 2010). Furthermore, coir fibre products (Aquatic Planting), which support the growth and development of plants that physically secure the bank or shoreline (Ponds UK, 2011a), have been provided in some tree-lined areas to stabilise eroding banks. It means that the rolls can sperate and break the water force directly to the river bank in order to protect trees and further problems of the river such as blockage. Because the river is located in the low farm land and resistant rock area, verious rooted plants and other species can be established whether formed as rolls or not, including water-lilies, Canadian waterweed and water starwort, potamogeton natans, mosses, sparganium erectum, and Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum agg (Haslam and Wolseley, 1981; Haslam, 1978; Readers Digest, 1985). The coir fibre rolls are 3 metres long and normally six plants per metre (18 plants per roll) (Ponds UK, 2011a), which is illustrated in Figure 8. At the last, fences which was damaged by water force might be rep laced arround the river bank in order to keep animals (sources of pollution) far away from water body. Figure 8. The Photo of Coir Fibre Rolls http://www.pondsuk.com/wp-content/uploads/coir-rolls-and-nicospan.jpg (Source: Ponds UK, 2011a) In conclusion, verious types of techniques have been ultilised for river restoration to control erosion and deposition and improve biodiversity, such as derdging, rip-rap, vortex weirs, willow spiling and faggots, coir fibre rolls and fencing. Dredging which is the first stage of the restoration, can maintain the similar width of river bank in most parts in order to keep velocity of river flow. Rip-rap and vortex weirs can change the slop of the river bed, the length of the water waves and stability of channel cross sections to reject bank erosion and lateral shift of planform. Other options are sustaianble methods not only to cove large areas of erosion quickly but also to install aquatic vegetation where none currently exists. As a result, the hydraulics of the river after restoration will be changed and also become more stable and sutiable for renatural river. 3.2 Economy Analysis of Project IEPA (1998) stated that mechanical dredging is less expensive than hydraulic dredging in small project and usually cost from  £5 to  £20 per cubic yard including disposal. In the project, dredging is mainly utilized to move rock from the site to other site and it is hard to calculate the actual volume of dredging because of missing data; thus, the potential total cost of dredging cannot be assumed. Although there is no available cost of transporting rock from other regions, the cost effective and cheapest rock will be accepted. Ponds UK (2011b) mention that gabions (Rip-rap) are economic and well established tools for the construction of river walls revetments for river restoration project. As can be seen in Diagram 4, about 680 metres willow spiling will be placed in the river bank. It may cost  £115 per metre which is cheaper than other complex and mixed spiling (River Restoration Centre, 2011a). According to calculation, the total cost of spiling is around  £78,200. Moreover, 600 metres faggots, which are formed from local materials, will be installed in D (Diagram 4). Therfore, it is not easy to calculate the particular cost during restoration; on the other hand, the cost might be cheaper than spiling and also can be limited and saved in the operation phase. The cost of coir fibre rolls is approximately  £130 per metre (River Restoration Centre, 2011b), and 720 metres of rolls will be planted in the tree-lined bank. Thus, the total cost of the rolls is  £93,600 which is more expensive than other methods. In summary, coir fibre rolls, willow spiling and derdging are more expensive in all techniques, but the cost Rip-rap and willow faggots is sitting in the middle level and others such as fences and weirs are the cost effective options for restoration project. 3.3 The Impacts of Restoration on Local Ecosystem It is truely that every development or restraotion of river has negative and possitive impacts on environmental and social aspects whether in short or long terms. Restoration may take place in the sourrounding fields and can disturbance some normal activivties of animals and farmers, which may give occurison to pulic attention especially focused on the adverse impacts such as using private land during planning and construction processes. Therefore, the feedback of local farmers and related organizations should be collected before designing river restroation. During re-construction phase, mechancial derdging can cause adverse impacts on aquatic ecosystem as potential toxic chemicals and other contamination may be released from the bottom sediments into water body. Furthermore, it also increase water turbidity in short time period; to some extent, the change of water turbidity can affect aquatic species metabolism and interfere with spawning and water quality for ultilization especiall y in downstream regions (New World Encyclopedia, 2008). Although restroation has some adverse impacts on aquatic ecosystem and water turbidity, it is not means that restoration has no possitive impacts on local environment and water body. On one hand, restoration of the River Severn in Caersws aims to control erosion and deposition to recreate more sustainable, stable and natural river in a long term. On the other hand, it also has some benefits for local ecosystem; for example, willow spiling and faggots and coir fiber rolls can bring biological, ecological and engineering concepts together by using natural materials and growing vegetation to stabilise the river structure and flow regime and maintain natural ecosystem in the site. Moreover, a number of native wetland plants used in these techniques can make a varied physcial adaptated conditions for invertebrates, fish and wildlife in the river. It means the biodiversity of local vegetation and habitats will increase after restoration and water quality will also be improved as potential chemical pollution from frams and erosion ot the river bank can be controlled, which results in safety ultilisation of water for fauna, flora, and human. In a word, river restoration may control erosion and deposition and improve the hydraulics of river and water quality and also create a susatianble and natural river with great visual view in long terms (Diagram 3 4). 4. Conclusion The clean-up of the River Severn at Caersws illustrated why and how the river restored as natural source of water and how affect local ecosystem in the site. The more likely cause of restoration is the river erosion and deposition with continuous wavelength and water force, which will affect water turbidity and pollution in the local site and downstream. Moreover, the goals of restoration projects are often ecological in nature combined with analysis of hydrology and geomorphology of the channel. The variety types of techniques have been introduced during restoration processes, such as mechanical dredging, Rip-rap, vortex weirs, willow spiling and faggots, coir fibre rolls and fences. In a short term, restoration of the River Severn has some negative impacts on local aquatic ecosystem and water quality; for example, dredging can bring potential toxic condition and turbid water for aquatic species. However, the restoration is a sustainable activity of river management in Caersws to en hance aquatic and riparian habitat, improve water quality and hydraulics of flow regime, and control erosion and deposition of the river bank especially in long term periods. The width of river bank, wavelength, water force of damaging river bed and other flow regime will be changed after restoration programme. In conclusion, the restoration of River Severn in Caersws within suggested techniques is an effective method to redevelop the river become stable and natural in terms of social, economic and environmental aspects.

Friday, September 20, 2019

The ‘War on Terrorism’ v Civil Liberties

The ‘War on Terrorism’ v Civil Liberties Abstract The security of the State is of paramount importance to the integrity and wellbeing of a nation and to citizens whose rights and freedoms are protected by the security of the State. However, the rights of citizens may be affected by such powers and there exists the possibility for governments to disappear behind the doctrine of national security with the intention of preventing scrutiny of executive action. This raises two constitutional questions: the extent to which arrangements secure some form of balance between the competing needs of State Security and protection of the individual, and; the way in which, and the degree to which, the government is held accountable for powers exercised in the name of State Security, either through supervision of the courts or through the democratic process (Barnett, 2000). The focus of this essay is to analyse what this writer perceives as the central problem we are faced with: how to deal with the fact that as a society we cling tightly to our rights and freedoms whilst expecting to enjoy everyday life without fear of terrorist attacks. From the point of view of our government and police force, the law at present is not tight enough to deal with terrorism. How do we deal with this whilst retaining a democratic society? Is security worth having if the price is unacceptable restrictions on our hard-won freedoms? More specifically, this essay proposes to closely scrutinize the government’s proposals in order to draw informed conclusions about the perceived challenges to democracy and shed light on these before, as many fear, we find ourselves led like sheep into a dark place. Can we preserve judicial scrutiny of the restrictions on our freedoms whilst trying to forestall the types of terrorist activity the world has witnessed? To conclude this section, the final word of this controversy should perhaps be left to Mrs. Thatcher: when we talk of liberties, freedoms and rights, whose are we talking about? To answer that charge, perhaps I can refer to a letter I received from the mother of a young serviceman who was murdered by the IRA. She said and I quote: ‘Where is the freedom of the press? I hear them cry. Where is my son’s freedom? (Ewing Gearty, 1990) This writer agrees with the view expressed above and, whilst there are certain civil liberties and rights which are non-negotiable, others require compromise. It is necessary to debate the way in which these are safeguarded and secured. Introduction This section will provide a brief history of anti-terror legislation, in the United Kingdom. It will then outline the main terms of the debate. Northern Ireland- The ‘Troubles’ The Birmingham bombings in 1974 which were believed to have been carried out by the Irish Republican Army, leaving sixteen people dead and many more injured, prompted the passage of the Prevention on Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1974, and successive Acts including: the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1989, the Prevention of Terrorism (additional Powers) Act 1996, the Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1996 and the Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions Act) 1998 (Bell, 1979). Space does not permit more than a brief overview of the rich and troubled history of Northern Ireland, but it is significant in that it sparked the enactment of the first Terrorism laws. In 1968, a campaign of civil disobedience and unrest began in Ireland. The reasons for the violence concerned the discrimination which existed against Catholics and the continued union with the mainland (Disturbances in Northern Ireland, 1969). In 1969, British troops were deployed to support the police in matters which had become subject to military control; in 1970, the Provisional Sinn Fein Party was formed and, in 1971, the Reverend Ian Paisley founded the Democratic Unionist Party. Those suspected of being Irish Republican Terrorists became bound by the Civil Authorities Special Powers Act (Northern Ireland) 1922. In January 1972, thirteen Catholic civilians were shot dead by British paratroopers during a banned civil march, known as ‘Bloody Sunday,’ and by 1974, 472 deaths had taken place by Protestant murderers and the IRA. Allegations of ill treatment of detainees led to proceedings against the United Kingdom by the Republic of Ireland government under the Europe an Convention on Human Rights (hereinafter ECHR). It was ruled that the procedures amounted to inhumane and degrading treatment contrary to Article 3. Reforms were initiated in an attempt to improve relations between the Catholic community and the Unionist by the Northern Ireland Parliament. However, The Northern Ireland Parliament became prorogued and its powers transferred to a Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. It was confirmed here that there was a need for detention without trial and special courts were introduced, to sit without the jury. These became known as the ‘Diplock courts’ (Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1973). In 1973, a new system of power sharing between the Northern Ireland Assembly and the Westminster Parliament was initiated (Northern Ireland Constitutional Proposals, 1973). The Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973 provided a statutory guarantee that Northern Ireland should remain part of the United Kingdom until the time at which a majority of the people, voting in a referendum, should determine otherwise. In a referendum held in 1973 on the question of the union with the Unite d Kingdom, a majority voted in favour of the continuation of the union. The breakdown of the system resulted in the Northern Ireland Act 1974, which resulted in the restoration of the direct rule by Westminster over Northern Ireland. The legislation also attempted to prevent the discrimination which existed in the fields of housing and employment, but this was to little affect (Chambers, 1987). Throughout the 1970s and 1980s a civil war existed (Gearty, 1991). From 1971 to 1977 an average of 252 persons were killed and 3,269 shootings occurred each year. Between 1978- 81, the averages fell respectively, to 82 and 2,574 (Dickson, 1993). A Constitutional Convention was elected, under the Northern Ireland Act 1974, in an attempt to devolve power to the province. This attempt failed as the Unionist insisted that they hold a majority of the new assembly. A new assembly, designed to be a debating and deliberative forum, was provided for, but dissolved in 1986. The Republic of Ireland Act and the Anglo-Irish Agreement, signed by the Ministers of the United Kingdom was the result of the New Ireland Forum, in 1983. This agreement supported the principle that no constitutional change concerning the relationship between the north and south could come about other than with the consent of the majority of people in Northern Ireland. In the absence of this consent, it was agreed that clos er co-operation in security, economic, social and cultural matters, as well as, the promotion between the two parts of Ireland would be called for, with the help of an Inter-governmental Conference, consisting of representatives from both the north and south. This was to be reviewed after three years, with the sovereignty over Northern Ireland remaining with the United Kingdom. However, in an application for judicial review it was claimed that the Agreement would fetter the powers and duties of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. The application was dismissed. In 1993, a Joint Declaration was signed between the British and Irish governments. The Declaration indicated that the British government had ‘no selfish strategic or economic interest’ in Northern Ireland, giving effect to the neutrality of the government’s position. In 1994, the IRA announced ceasefire and, in response, the government announced that the ban on live sound broadcasts by members of Sinn Fein should be lifted. This ceasefire provided some realignment of judicial practice in support of the language of civil liberties. Gearty notes that, ‘for the first time,’ decisions such as DPP v Jones and Redmond-Bates v DPP showed a ‘judicial branch sensitive to the underlying importance of the exercise of civil liberties, in the context of association and assembly in the first case and assembly and expression in the second’ (Gearty, 2003). However, in 1996 the IRA bombed Canary Wharf in London, ending the ceasefire. At the end of the sam e year, the British government announced terms for including Sinn Fein in all discussions in order to reach a settlement. All of these demands were nevertheless rejected by Gerry Adams, President of Sinn Fein. 1997 resulted in the election of the labour government. Following a renewal of ceasefire by the IRA, and Sinn Fein’s rejection of the use of force, peace talks commenced between all parties. On Good Friday, 10 April 1998, agreement was finally reached. The agreement concerned the principles that: Northern Ireland would remain part of the United Kingdom, with the Republic of Ireland agreeing to amend its constitution to remove the claim to Northern Ireland; a Northern Ireland Assembly of 108 members was to be elected under a system of proportional representation; a North-South ministerial council was to be established by the Assembly in order to coordinate relations between Ireland and Ulster; a Council of the Isles was to be established, and; all participants expressed the commitment to the disarmament of parliamentary organisations, which was a condition for the devolution of power. Referendums were held in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The 1998 elections for the membership of the Northern Ireland Assembly produced an Assembly with power shared by four main political parties and five minority parties. In 1999, the devolution of power was complete, and the Assembly elected, and a power sharing executive in its place. When the IRA refused to cooperate, the Assembly was suspended and the power was returned to Westminster, under the Northern Ireland Act 2000. The Terrorism Act 2000 The Terrorism Act 2000 reformed and extended all previous legislation. The Act repealed the earlier Acts and placed the law on a permanent basis, no longer subject to the restriction of an annual renewal by Parliament. In relation to Northern Ireland, it was hoped that following the peace settlement, special provision would no longer be required. However, due to the problems implementing full devolution to Northern Ireland, special provisions were included in Part VII of the Act which are limited to five years. Under the Terrorism Act 2000, a wider definition was adopted which was intended not only to cover terrorism for political ends, as in the case of Northern Ireland, but also terrorism undertaken for religious and ideological motivations (Barnet, 2000). The Act covers the proscription of terrorist groups throughout the United Kingdom, the appeals process by which such an order may be challenged, offences relating to terrorist property, and police counter-terrorist powers. The Anti- Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 It was the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 which represented a new dimension of terrorist attack, with suicide bombers striking without warning and their motivation of causing mass casualties. In the heightened response to threat of terrorist attacks, in December 2001, Parliament passed the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act (hereinafter ATCSA). The Act incorporates measures designed to increase the effectiveness of authorities in combating those directly involved, and those supporting terrorism. Its main provisions will now be briefly discussed: the ATCSA allows the police authority to freeze assets of terrorist organisations and individuals when they pose a threat to the United Kingdom or its nationals; it permits disclosure of information to security and intelligence agencies, thus improving access to information; it includes a range of provisions, including the power to detain an aircraft for security reasons and the stopping and searching of passengers, as well as the regulation of laboratories of diseases and noxious substances, and; an increase in the range of police powers to photograph, search and examine to establish identity. However, perhaps the most notable introduction is the detainment of suspects without trial, in the basis that they cannot be deported to another country without breaching our human rights legislation, for example, if they might be subjected to torture. The Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 In the wake of the bombings which caused death and destruction, on the 7th of July 2005, there was bound to be a danger, that in response, the government would rush out ill-considered measures. It appears, at first sight, to be exactly what has happened. Speaking on the day of the bombings, Prime Minister Tony Blair stated: It is important †¦that those engaged in terrorism realize that our determination to defend our values and our ways of life is greater than their determination to cause death and destruction to innocent people†¦Whatever they do it is our determination that they will never succeed in destroying what we hold dear in this country and other civilized nations throughout the world (Fox News, 2005). Most would passionately agree with what we understand the government to mean here: That it must not hand the terrorists a victory by taking away long held liberties and principles of justice. Why then does Liberty, these few months later, have fundamental concerns about aspects of the new draft Terrorism Bill? Among other measures, the government wants to increase the time police can hold suspects without charge from two weeks to three months, send deportees to countries known to practise torture and introduce a new offence of ‘justifying or glorifying terrorism’. The new anti-terrorism legislation comes with Tony Blair stating the existence of ‘absolutely compelling’ justifications for the crackdown, despite the potential implications for both human rights and civil liberties (Fox News, 2005). To many, however, no justification exists for proposals which demonstrate a willingness on behalf of the government to tamper with the Human Rights Act 1998 (hereinaf ter HRA) which could jeopardize Britain’s adoption of the European Convention on Human Rights (hereinafter ECHR), as well as dangerously undermine centuries of democratic tradition. Contemporary debate on this issue thus centres around the Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005, which came into force on 11 March 2005. In brief, the Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005 gives the Home Secretary power to make Control Orders in respect of suspected terrorists, whether they are British or foreign nationals. The Control Orders include a range of possible conditions including bans on mobile phones, restrictions on associations with named individuals, and the use of tagging. On the Human Rights website, it is noted that since the government removed the detention provisions of the ATCA and replaced them with Control Orders under the 2005 Act, it is ‘once again fully complaint with its international obligations under Article 5.’ Nevertheless, the new Act has been condemned by Liberty for contravening our basic rights to freedom and liberty; saying that ‘to allow their erosion, and to give in to intolerance, would give victory to the terrorists.’ There are new measures calling for the criminalisation of speech; these vague definitions of prohibited speech raise serious concerns that the measure is overbroad and the punishment without trial provision lives on. The new Act contains the substance of which there are negative implications on our human rights. Setting the Terms of the Debate Compelling objections to several of the proposals made are not based solely on the fact that they intrude upon the human rights of every single resident and citizen of this country, but that these measures would have done nothing to stop the attack on London’s transport network on the 7th or to prevent future attacks. It is not hard to share the view that the first and best test of any legislation must remain whether or not it will work, but it is suggested alongside Martin Kettle of ‘The Guardian’(November, 2005), that whether a Bill is right in every respect can be disputed. This is crucial on a very important conceptual level which relates to the way in which debates on terrorism law are usually conducted: If one takes the view that security considerations must always triumph over those of civil liberty, anything justified by security is acceptable. If, however, one takes the converse view that no restriction of civil liberty is ever acceptable, then every such argument made on behalf of security is an attempt to betray the identity of the democratic state. The work of the European Community, the United States Supreme Court, judges elsewhere, and the United Kingdom’s human rights history to date, reveal that the enactment of a Bill of Rights can be a powerful legal and political weapon in the hands of those who are in danger of having their rights infringed. In this way, the incorporation of the Human Rights Act 1998 (hereinafter HRA), will only be as extensive as the rights which they identify and protect, as powerful as those who draft them, and as commanding as the judges who enforce them and wish to be bound by them. How will international terrorism influence Parliament’s commitment to human rights? Rights will inevitably conflict, and the limits of each will have to be established by political and legal decision. The dilemma is not new, with democratic governments in the past having to strike a balance between the state and individuals: Abraham Lincoln suspended the rights of the habeas corpus in the 19th Century civil war for example (Home Office, 2004). Although Article 5 of European Convention on Human Rights will nowadays provide more protection against unlawful detention than the habeas corpus, this has also been derogated from in light of the Terrorism Acts. Furthermore, under ‘Operation Kratos,’ an innocent man believed to be a terrorist, was shot dead by police. The basic principle is that if the police deem the lives of the public to be in jeopardy, their shooting to cause death, regardless of whether the person is in fact a terrorist, is justified (July 23, 2005). I s it right that the innocent should be deprived of their human rights, and in this case killed, due to mere suspicion? By contrast, it is worthwhile to recount Operation Flavius (Kitchin, 1989). The murders of three IRA members came before the Court of Human Rights, and in reaching its decision, the Court considered Article 2 of the Convention (McCann, Farrell and Savage v United Kingdom, 1995). The British forces killed these three terrorists in Gibraltar, as they had believed that a terrorist attack was imminent. The Court ruled that the deprivation of life under Article 2 was justified only where ‘absolutely necessary,’ and that, accordingly, the use of force was greater than absolutely necessary in defence of persons from unlawful violence within the meaning of Article 2. Where is the line attributing to ‘absolutely necessary,’ to be drawn, and what stage are we to be deprived of our human rights? How will the new legislation affect this? Chapter 2 This chapter introduces the concepts of the rule of law, civil liberties, human rights and autonomy, analysing the changing approach to these in light of our multi-level constitution. Before proceeding, it is necessary to briefly explain the concept of the United Kingdom’s constitution. In lay terms, a constitution is a set of rules which governs an organisation. The characteristics of the United Kingdom’s constitution in summary are that: it is largely unwritten in character; it is flexible in nature; it is supreme; it is unitary in structure, although there is a degree of devolution; it exhibits mainly but not completely separated powers, and; it is monarchical. In discussing terrorism and the powers of our constitution, we are referring to the concept of constitutionalism. The doctrine suggest that: the exercise of power be within legal limits conferred by Parliament on those with power and that those who exercise power are accountable by law; the exercise of power must conform to the respect for the individual and the individual citizen’s rights; the powers conferred on institutions within a State must be dispersed between the various inst itutions so as to avoid abuse of power, and; the government, in formulating policy, and the legislature, in legitimating that policy, are accountable to the electorate on whose trust the power is held. It is against these conceptual and practical requirements that the constitution of the United Kingdom should be examined. The Basic Values: Rule of Law; Civil Liberties, Human Rights, Autonomy The rule of law represents one of the most challenging concepts of the constitution. There are many rich and varied interpretations which have been given to it, and it is important to recognise that the rule of law ensures limited governmental power and the protection of individual rights and freedoms. Dicey’s view on the rule of law, although ‘not capable of precise definition,’ by his own admission, is as follows: ‘It is an attitude, an expression of liberal and democratic principles, in themselves vague when it is sought to analyse them, but clear enough in their results’ (Dicey, 1959). The spirit of the rule of law is thus the sovereignty or supremacy of law over man: irrespective of rank and status, it is prescriptive, dictating the conduct required by the law, and; protective of its citizens. It is inexplicitly linked with Western democratic liberalism (Neumann, 1986). However, the acceptance of the rule of law is not universally accepted: from a Marxist perspective, the law conceals the injustices of a capitalist system and so denotes a false idealisation of the law, and from the socialist perspective, liberalism pays too much regard to equality and protection of property interests (Lustgarten, 1988.) Despite of such criticisms, and there are many, even within the Western liberal tradition, the rule of law retains a hold on political and legal perspective: it displays ‘enduring importance as a central artefact in our legal and political culture’ (Raz, 1977). In its simplest and general meaning, liberty involves non-interference by others with one’s freedom of choice and action. It supports personal autonomy, where the person displays a degree of reflectiveness, self-awareness, and social awareness which allows him or her to form plans and understand their impact on everyone in the immediate social group (Feldman, 2002). However, Dworkin warns that this is only one of many personal and social aptitudes, and is not determinative of a person’s self respect (Dworkin, 1988). Recognising and protecting someone’s right or liberty, and tolerating their exercise of it, involves a potential cost to other individuals and to the public generally. Seeing individual choices of goods as the highest human good, and the priority of liberty over other values, are therefore highly controversial ideas. Socialist and communitarian theorists have challenged any political theory which places the individual and his or her choices somehow ou tside society. Rather, it is said that, people’s values and choices are shaped by the public good, and liberty is possible only if nurtured by society (Mulhall Swift 1996). For this reason the term ‘human rights,’ in this essay, shall refer to those rights which have been enshrined in human rights treaties to all those within a state’s jurisdiction. The analysis of what it is to be the bearer of a right is problematic in the case of terrorism where, by definition, intrusion with the freedoms of those inciting terrorism, is defective in the very characteristics that are highlighted by the autonomy theory. The regulation of matters relating to state security is therefore at risk of state interference that applies to few other human groups. The state many not need to differentiate systematically between these groups, as the traditional approach in the United Kingdom has been to treat liberty as an undifferentiated whole, so that Parliament has a very wide discretion to decide how to balance liberties against each other or against public interests (Feldman, 2002). However differentiated, at first sight the intrusion of liberties is in effect discriminatory and therefore contrary to Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights, as it permits the deprivation of liberty, and thus autonomy, on grounds that do not apply to other persons. The most general rhetoric of human rights reinforces this element this uncertainty. Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, begins with the assertion that ‘all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.’ This could be taken to suggest that, in the area of human rights at least, those inciting terrorism have the same status as everyone else. However, the Declaration then goes on to state that ‘they (all human beings) are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood,’ thereby implicitly introducing an element of uncertainty about the status of those who lack the intellectual and moral reasoning ability upon which the assertion of ‘brotherhood’ is said to be founded (Hart, 1972). Indeed, the Declaration seems to harbour the basis for depriving those inciting terrorism of fundamental rights; it is often assumed in practice that those who cannot be reasoned with, and those whose deranged minds, render them incapable of making sensible decisions for themselves, and those whose irrational conduct, uninhibited by natural moral inhibitions, makes them threatening to others, must be controlled, segregated and remove d from ordinary social relations, if necessary against their express and vehement protests (Campbell, 1986). Therefore, a state which ‘arbitrary kills, imprisons or tortures its citizens so chills the political atmosphere that it cannot be described as democratic, regardless of how free speech formally is or how regularly secret votes are polled: freedom cannot be constructed on such authoritarian foundations’ (Gearty, 2003). Certainly, the word ‘civil,’ from civil liberties, is taken to refer to the way in which liberty contributes to the relationship between the individual and the state in civil society. Mrs Thatcher said the following about her conservative government’s legislative stance on the question of terrorism, which coincides with this argument, in 1988: Yes, some of those measures do restrict freedom. But those who choose to live by the bomb and gun, and those who support them, can’t in all circumstances be accorded exactly the same rights as everyone else. We do sometimes have to sacrifice a little of the freedom we cherish in order to defend ourselves from those who aim to destroy that freedom altogether- and that is a decision we should not be afraid to take. Because in the battle against terrorism we shall never give in. The only victory will be our victory; the victory of democracy and a free society. (Ewing Gearty, 1990) An opposing view is uttered by Robert Nozick. Nozick describes Mrs. Thatcher’s stance as a ‘minimal state,’ providing security from internal and external threats, but performing no other functions (Nozick, 1980). This view sees the conservative governments approach as exhibiting what is described as ‘negative liberties:’ freedoms from harm, rather than rights to goods (Berlin, 1980). This view sees the state as having no responsibility to take positive steps to ensure that people are able to take advantage of liberties, but only to prevent others from interfering with their liberties (Feldman, 2002). Therefore, the only illegitimate interference with autonomy concerns what other people do to you (Paul, 1982). The conservative government’s stance seems to be mirrored with the present governing by Labour. If Nozick is right to criticise such a perspective, how can a replacement be affective against terrorism? What would the alternative involve? Protecting Rights Liberty: What is Necessary in a Democratic Society? Thus it follows that in developed societies: persons inciting terrorism are lawfully excluded from human society and denied autonomy in terms of their personal liberty, self-determination and self-expression. This is licensed by the European Convention on Human Rights (hereinafter ECHR) which states in Article 5(1): Everyone has the right to liberty and security of person. No one shall be deprived of his liberty save in the following cases and in accordance with a procedure prescribed by law †¦ the lawful arrest or detention of a person effected for the purpose of bringing him before the competent legal authority on reasonable suspicion of having committed an offence or when is reasonably considered necessary to prevent his committing an offence or fleeing after having done so. The essence of liberty, and terrorism fuelled due to religious reasons, is also contained in Article 9 ECHR: 1. Everyone has the rights to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief, in worship, teaching, practice and observance. 2. Freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs shall be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of public safety, for the protection of public order, health and morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others. However, Article 14 warns: The enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in this Convention shall be secured without discrimination on any ground such as sex, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth or other status. Article 14 does not provide a right to non-discrimination per se but, rather, a right not to be discriminated against in relation to the other rights and freedoms protected by the Convention. Therefore, Article 14 enjoys no independent existence; it is tied to other Articles in the Convention (X v Federal Republic of Germany 1970). In assessing what is ‘necessary in a democratic society,’ the Court will operate according to the ‘rich’ model of democracy, rather than the majority rule (Feldman, 2002). By virtue of the decided case, Handyside v United Kingdom (1976), this means that in honouring the Convention rights, minorities must be protected against unfair treatment and abuse by the majority. This means that any interference with a right must be justifiable on the basis of: a response to a pressing need to act for that purpose, and; a proportionate response to that purpose (The Spycatcher cases). The definition of proportionality relates to balancing the seriousness of the threat to the interests which are protected within the purposes for which it is legitimate to interfere with that right (McBride, 1999). The margin of appreciation offers a way of arbitrating between claims to state sovereignty in international institutions and the need to universalise human rights standards under international law. These concepts will be discussed more extensively in the latter part of this essay. The conclusion thus far is that those inciting terrorism are inevitably associated with some deprivation of rights. The law which protects state security is nevertheless viewed with suspicion by democrats and civil libertarians, as the threat to state security can be asserted by those in power to justify restricting freedoms to protect the interests of the governing party, rather than the public (Feldman, 2002). Moreover, governmental demands for security will provoke scepticism.<

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Tibetan Oracles: Fact or Fiction? :: Tibet Oracle Oracles Essays

Tibetan Oracles The miraculous feats of the Tibetan oracles are well known sources of mysticism. Stories of men who can bend metal swords with their bare hands, dance wildly and proclaim the future have piqued the curiosity and fascination of many. However, most rationale people will question, how real is the Tibet oracle? Are these men really visited by the deities who they claim to be visited by or are they merely masters of illusion? â€Å"The desire to know the future is probably as old as the human race. Early cultures all over the world have left fragments of evidence telling us that divination was of paramount importance in their daily lives.† (Housdan, 7) This desire causes most Tibetans to fervently believe in the power of these oracles. Like most other cultures, the Tibetans are curious about the future and use the methodology of the Oracle as a means for divination. The Tibetan oracles are highly respected members of the community whom the Tibetans consult to find out the future of their own lives as well as the future of the Tibetan country. Despite the Tibetan’s belief in the spiritual nature of the trance, anthropologists who have studied it have been able to come up with other explanations for the trance state that do not involve the religious belief in spirit possession. These explanations often involve subjects such as psychology and neurology that look at the physiological state of the body during the trance. Through scientifically analyzing the trance state, it raises the question of whether or not the oracles who enter into these trances are able to do so intentionally and if an oracle can willfully enter into a trance, then how does an oracle become valid? The Tibetan oracles are both sources of mysticism but they have also been sources of great controversy in Tibet for these questions involving the authenticity of the oracle. The traditional Tibetan belief is that Tibetan deities will take possession of men or women in society who act as mouthpieces of the gods. â€Å"Spiritual possession is defined as an altered state of consciousness that is characterized by desertion of a person’s original personality, followed by temporary replacement of another.†(AvRuskin, 286) The god enters into the body of the medium and the medium will enter a trance-like state during which the deity is using the mediums body as a tool. Tibetan Oracles: Fact or Fiction? :: Tibet Oracle Oracles Essays Tibetan Oracles The miraculous feats of the Tibetan oracles are well known sources of mysticism. Stories of men who can bend metal swords with their bare hands, dance wildly and proclaim the future have piqued the curiosity and fascination of many. However, most rationale people will question, how real is the Tibet oracle? Are these men really visited by the deities who they claim to be visited by or are they merely masters of illusion? â€Å"The desire to know the future is probably as old as the human race. Early cultures all over the world have left fragments of evidence telling us that divination was of paramount importance in their daily lives.† (Housdan, 7) This desire causes most Tibetans to fervently believe in the power of these oracles. Like most other cultures, the Tibetans are curious about the future and use the methodology of the Oracle as a means for divination. The Tibetan oracles are highly respected members of the community whom the Tibetans consult to find out the future of their own lives as well as the future of the Tibetan country. Despite the Tibetan’s belief in the spiritual nature of the trance, anthropologists who have studied it have been able to come up with other explanations for the trance state that do not involve the religious belief in spirit possession. These explanations often involve subjects such as psychology and neurology that look at the physiological state of the body during the trance. Through scientifically analyzing the trance state, it raises the question of whether or not the oracles who enter into these trances are able to do so intentionally and if an oracle can willfully enter into a trance, then how does an oracle become valid? The Tibetan oracles are both sources of mysticism but they have also been sources of great controversy in Tibet for these questions involving the authenticity of the oracle. The traditional Tibetan belief is that Tibetan deities will take possession of men or women in society who act as mouthpieces of the gods. â€Å"Spiritual possession is defined as an altered state of consciousness that is characterized by desertion of a person’s original personality, followed by temporary replacement of another.†(AvRuskin, 286) The god enters into the body of the medium and the medium will enter a trance-like state during which the deity is using the mediums body as a tool.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Essay On Origins Of World War -- essays research papers

The thesis in the article ‘The origins of the World War’, by Sidney B. Fay, can clearly be stated as the explanation for World War I. Fay states that no one country is responsible for the creation of the war. Furthermore, he goes on to explain that each of the European country’s leaders did, or failed to do ‘certain’ things to provoke the other countries into a war. Fay states, â€Å"One must abandon the dictum of the Versailles Treaty that Germany and her allies were solely responsible. It was a dictum exacted by victors from vanquished, under the influence of the blindness, ignorance, hatred, and the propagandist misconceptions to which war had given rise.† (Fay, The Origins of the World War). His main arguments are his explanations of how each country was responsible for the creation of the war. His first explanation is that of how Serbia was partly responsible. Fay explains that Serbia knew that by not co-operating with the Austrian governm ent over the implications of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand assassination they were indirectly preparing for a war they would fight but did not want. Fay says that Austria was more responsible for the war than any other power but not in military attack, but more in the form of self-defence. He makes it clear that Austria was justified in their battle and that they didn’t have to, â€Å"sit back and await the dismemberment at the hands of its neighbors.† (Fay, The origins of the World War). Fay believes that Berchtold wanted a local war with Serbia but knew and was content with the fact that the rest of Europe could very easily become involved with the war. Fay’s third country’s explanation was that of Germany. He believed that Germany did not want a war and tried to avert one completely. It is his belief that since Austria was Germany’s only dependable ally, they were dragged into the war. Furthermore, he explains that Germany’s geographical location, being in the middle of the conflict between France and Russia, they had little choice in the matter and had to defend their territory as well as Austria-Hungary’s. Fay’s fourth country and major power discussed, was Russia. He believed that Russia supported Serbia because of the frequent guidance and encouragement given at Belgrade, and if a war were to break out they would more than happy to fight along with the belief of France and Britain helping out. Furthermore, at the same ... ...to win this continental war, if it was to come to that. They also in turn had the belief that ‘France may panic, and advise peace’. This would have been a diplomatic win in the German’s books. This would have ‘split Russia from France and isolate both without war’. Although this second point was believed to be unlikely by the German’s it still was a happy, and reassuring possibility. Fischer then went on to say that Hollweg told Bulow that any war that was to occur would last at the most three to four months. Hollweg then went on to explain the possibilities of a ‘friendly relationship’ with England, and then through England, a similar friendship with France. He then stated that this would bring forth a triple alliance with England, France, and Germany all extinguishing the existence of Russia, which would easily threaten the civilization of Europe. Fischer then concludes his essay in Hollweg’s address to the Central Com mittee of the Reichstag at the beginning of October during the ever increasing debate on the unlimited submarine warfare. Fischer states that, â€Å" †¦ this outlines Germany’s real guilt, her constant over-estimation of her own powers, and her misjudgment of realities.†

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Management and University Simmons Case Essay

In time of economic crisis, companies are looking for innovative methods to improve production and to meet the needs of a diverse workforce in order to improve or maintain the organization’s profit margin in a stress global economy. Indeed, companies are extremely concerned about their future, as well as, preventing closure of their establishment. SimmonsCompany is no exception. However, how does a major company make those changes when tradition is the foundation of their organization and the economic status of their company is in jeopardize of folding, if the right decision is not made? The need to allocation funds for the training and development of its and employees when major debts are owed to the company; thus, threatening bankruptcy is a problem facing Simmons Company. Accordingly, there is certainly a need to change the culture and structure of the organization, if it wants to survive a depressed economy, while other organizations are advancing. In so doing, the company is considering the Great Game of Life (GGOL) whose underlying purpose is to change the dynamics of an organization in order to achieve maximum satisfaction for both the customers and employees. If customers and employees are satisfied, they are loyal, cooperative and creative, thus creating a culture conducive to the workforce. In order to establish such an environment, it is necessary to empower its workers by changing the attitude of each individual employed by Simpson Company. The program will be used to improve morality and empower the lower level of the company in performing their respective jobs in order to improve the outcome of the company. Changes are often difficult to make and, are usually resisted from the top because control of the company is centralized. The result is a poor culture and dictatorial practices. Immediate changes are normally discouraged by those in control, but gradual changes are encouraged, if done overtime or gradually phased into the daily operation of the company. Management must recognize that if changes are not made, their position might be null and void for not doing so. The question is whether changing the culture of the organization is in its best interest? Indeed, some changes must be made considering the state of fair of the company. There are several outstanding debts owed to SimmonsCompany and the debtors are threatening bankruptcy. Additionally, a major supplier has caused havoc for the production department. The need to change the culture and the way it operates is more apparent than ever before. To stay the same, means eventual failure for the company. GGOL is a great opportunity to enhance or change its culture and improve its staff’s level of expectation through effective management in order to meet the needs of today’s demanding economy. As previously mentioned, the company is already experiencing a decline in its profits margin because of its accounts receivables from customers and their major supplier has an item in the form, emitting afoul odor, causing the company to compromise production schedules and posed a serious threat to its profit margin. It would certainly influence my decision to implement GGOL at Simmons. The video was both inspirational and informative. Since diversity is a major concern for most global companies, this is not the case with Simmons. That is, it was prevalent at Simmons, as well as, their enthusiasm in working with each other at the company and for the company. Their positive attitude resonated throughout the video. It is evident from the video that they work collectively and are eager to assist others in different department, when asked to do so. Coming to work seems second nature for them. They are able to share with the upper management areas of concerns and questions, and as such, not prohibited from doing so, which was not the case in the past. In short, they are empowered to take on task without being micro-managed. Now, it is a shared vision by the top, middle, and lower levels of the company with one mission in mind to do what is in the best interest of company. The company should use the top-down and bottom-up design in implementing the GGOL program. However, the company should employ a professional evaluation team to determine which plant should be the catalyst to receive the program. After selecting the plant, the program should start at the top level of the plant because they are responsible for the day-to-day operation of the plant and if they buy into the program other levels are more willing to accept it. The top-level can assist in delivering the GGOL program to the other employees. The next level should be the middle level because they are responsible for inspiring the workers to work collectively towards a common goal, i.e., what is in the best interest of the plant. Needless to say, these individual are very reluctant to change, but must be done gradual due to their commitment to the company, embedded old core values, and long history with the company. When the worker realizes that the change is positive, their outlook improves and this attitude has a snowball effect. That is, one worker at a time starts to embrace middle management’s vision for the company. Now, the workers are willing to trust middle manager because they are open for suggestions and are encouraging empowerment of workers, unlike the past, when the decision from the top was purely totalitarianism with no questions asked or else be fired. Finally, the workers should be the last to receive the program. The middle-level can introduce the program. In so doing, it encourages team work, which will ultimately change the culture of the plant. Changes are needed and welcomed, if it benefits both the employer and employees. If this company continues to operate in a vacuum, the destiny of the company is almost sudden death with uncollectible debts arising and plant processing being restricted because of the foul odor. Emotions were running high, each level of the organization realizing the potential of closure of the company, if it did not change the culture of the organization. The old way of handling concerns and questions is pseudo at best. The company would continue to experience apathy at the workplace. Thus, the $7 million dollar investment for the training and development of personnel is an extremely prudent investment for the company. References Kotter, J. P. (1994). Leading Changes. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press. Leading Change at Simmons (A)http://gcumedia.com/digital-resources/harvard-business-school-press/2007/change-at-simmons-part-a_1e.php Leading Change at Simmons (B)http://gcumedia.com/digital-resources/harvard-business-school-press/2007/change-at-simmons-part-b_1e.php

Monday, September 16, 2019

History of informatics Essay

1. Briefly summarize the article. Be sure to discuss the registry. What is it? Who is included in it? 2. Describe the study and its purpose. How was it conducted? What are the limitations of the study? 3. Discuss the improved outcomes that the researchers uncovered. How does it benefit patients? What are the estimated cost savings? 4. Identify and discuss the three organizational characteristics that allowed disease registries to effectively promote continuous improvement of clinical practice and health outcomes. 5. Based upon your research and understanding of this topic, do you agree that this is a worthwhile project to undertake? The health care system all over the world has been struggling with the ever rising costs as such a consensus to refocus efforts on value driven by evaluation of patient outcomes relative to costs. The registry is an organized system that uses observational study methods to collect uniform data to evaluate specific outcomes for a population defined by a specific disease, condition or exposure that serves one or more predefined scientific, clinical or policy purpose. The thirteen diseases registry uses outcome data to improve health care value. It comprises of five countries namely Australia, Denmark, Sweden, United Kingdom, and United States. The study shows that by making outcome data transparent to both practitioners and the public well managed registries enable medical professionals to engage in continuous learning and to identify and share best clinical practices. This leads to improved health outcomes, at a lower cost often. The purpose of the study is to help document changes in health outcomes in patient populations covered by disease registry. The purpose of the study not only helps identify the changes, but also helps quantify the cost savings made possible by those improvements in the form of avoided health care costs as well as the role the registries played in these improvements. The study was conducted by analyzing data published, unpublished, observing as well as interviewing physicians who used the registry. However their were some limitations to the study as it was conducted in a setting that was not randomized nor controlled hence they could not demonstrate a casual connection between the registry and improvement in health outcomes. The improved outcomes the researchers uncovered were numerous in the thirteen disease registries. One such improved outcome was in 2005 when the created the quality index that tracked how well the nations hospitals were complying with clinical guidelines. The study showed improved health outcome at a compounded annual growth rate of 13 percent from 2005 to 2007 after public disclosure. By having these improved health outcomes achieved in various sectors, patient’s benefit in numerous ways such as lower healthcare costs, lower mortality rates, improvement in quality of services rendered to patients as more and more hospitals improve their clinical practices and adhere to the clinical guidelines. The US health care system spent $6 billion on total hip arthroplasty in 2005, and according to one estimate, these costs are expected to rise to $24 billion by 2015. Based on these assumptions, we estimate that if the US health care system could lower its revision burden by 2015 to Swed en’s current level of 10 percent, it would avoid $2 billion of the expected $24 billion in total costs.