Teacher Leadership Does Culture Make a Difference

IntroductionResearch about educational leading theoretical accounts and teacher leading has largely been done in western contexts such as the USA, the U.K and Australia ( Dimmock & A ; Walker, 2000 ) . One job of reassigning educational constructs from the West is undervaluing the impact of civilization on the successful execution of a policy in a context where the civilization is different ( Goh, 2009 ) , because taking an organisation is interwoven with the civilization of those supervised ( Busher, 2006 ) . In some contexts, the organisational construction of an establishment differs from that of the state. In such a instance, pedagogues are most likely to confront challenges when using leading manners that differ from what is considered the norm in that cultural context ( Law & A ; Glover, 2000 ) . Cultural diverseness has been associated with differences in universe positions that have bearing on behavioural differences ( Tajfel & A ; Turner, 1986 ) . These differences manifest themselves into comprehending oneself as a member of one group and the perceptual experience of others as foreigners ( Giles, Wiemann & A ; Coupland, 1991 ) . This necessitates more cross-cultural surveies because most of the surveies about civilization come from the concern field ( Dimmock & A ; Walker, 2000 ) . In educational establishment, leaders ‘ apprehension of their ain cultural background and that of their module is indispensable because many educational establishments now have staff from different civilizations ( Slethaug, 2007 cited in Walker & A ; Riordan, 2010 ) . This is peculiarly true in the field of TESOL in the Arabian Gulf where most module members are non- Arabs and the direction is largely Western. This instance survey purposes to research the interrelatedness between teacher leading and civilization at a multicultural English Department at an establishment of higher instruction in the State of Qatar.Literature Reappraisal:Surveies that examine leading fro m an Arab position have been conducted entirely in the Fieldss of concern and cross-cultural psychological science. There are legion models for analyzing and comparing cultural values at the social degree and their impact on household, instruction, workplace, and province ( Hofstede, 2001 ) . Research refering to the Arabian Gulf derives from either the work of Geert Hofstede ( Dedoussis, 2004 ) or from the Globe Project ( Abdallah & A ; Al-Homoud, 2001 ) . These surveies have been criticized for 1 ) trying to homogenise the different civilizations ( Walker & A ; Dimmock, 2000 ) , 2 ) issues associating to informations aggregation, analysis, and cogency ( Smith et al. , 2007 ) , 3 ) the alteration in values because of economic development ( Inglehart & A ; Baker, 2000 ) , 4 ) and using these findings to a national degree without accounting for single and organisational differences ( Robertson et al. , 2001 ) . In this vena, Theoretical model1.1 Teacher leading:There is no clear cut and agreed upon definition for the term ‘teacher leading ‘ . The deficiency of consensus on a definition for the term can be attributed to the fact that it is wide and includes many facets ( York-Barr & A ; Duke, 2004 ) . The same position is shared by Lord and Miller ( 2000 ) who province that there is deficiency of apprehension of the term teacher leading and how it works. The focal point of the construct instructor leading is based on the capableness of instructors in holding and giving input on issues related to the school, which are non merely associated with decision makers and directors ( Harris & A ; Muijs, 2003 ) . The leading functions assumed by instructors can be formal or informal ( Katzenmeyer & A ; Moller, 2001 ) . Undertaking informal instructor leader functions includes, among other things maps done by the instructor inside the schoolroom such as planning lessons, pass oning ends, oversing the pupils, and making a pleasant acquisition environment ( Berlinger, 1983 cited in Muijs & A ; Harris, 2003 ) . Taking the enterprise and sharing experiences with other instructors are besides illustrations of informal instructor leading. On the other manus, being in a formal instructor leading place involves duties associated with occupation rubrics such as coordinators, supervisors, course of study experts, or caputs of sections ( York- Barr & A ; Duke, 2004 ) . Keeping such occupations normally consequences in traveling off from the schoolroom ( Ash & A ; Persall, 2000 ; Katzenmeyer & A ; Moller, 2001 ) . A teacher leader could hold no teaching responsibilities so that s/he engages to the full in his/her leading place, or learn full-time while executing leading undertakings, or have reduced learning burden to set about the extra leading responsibilities ( Lord & A ; Miller, 2000 ) . Some research workers like Katzenmeyer and Moller ( 2001 ) believe that instructor leaders lead both inside and outside the schoolroom and this leads to lending to the wider community. This will take to betterment in educational patterns. Based on this definition, the function of a teacher leader is non merely confined within the schoolroom context and but goes beyond it in doing a alteration and act uponing others. The range of much of the definitions of the term instructor leader discussed is limited to what instructors do indoors, outside the schoolroom, and the positive results of teacher leading on pupils ‘ accomplishment. A more comprehensive and delineated apprehension of the construct is covered in Leithwood ‘s et. Al ( 2003 ) survey in which they categorized leading. Some of the aspects covered in their survey and did non have as much attending in the literature were: personality, orientation to people, and communicating accomplishments. ( finish ) – from Patricia The inclination in the literature is to associate teacher leading with administrative functions in stead of informal functions performed in the schoolroom. Danielson ( 2006 ) is of the sentiment that formal instructor leading functions designated by disposal do non represent existent leading. True leading is the self-generated response to a demand which is initiated by the instructor. For the intent of this survey, teacher leading refers to instructors ‘ ability to take outside the schoolroom without holding a formal occupation rubric.1.2 Factors act uponing instructor leading1.2.1 Teachers ‘ ain perceptual experiences and those of other co-workers of teacher leadingThe teacher leading literature reveals a figure of hindrances that make exerting teacher leading hard ( Katzenmeyer & A ; Moller, 2001 ) . Barriers to teacher leading can be instructors themselves. Teachers may non see themselves as leaders because they think they are lone instructors ( Lieberman et. Al, 2000 ) . This reflects some instructors ‘ strong belief that being a instructor involves learning merely and the undertaking of a school disposal is to pull off and take ( Barth, 2001 ) . Another related aspect is the premise that it is portion of the instructor ‘s occupation to implement programs devised by others higher up in the school direction ( Boles & A ; Troen, 1996 ) . Colleagues can suppress exerting teacher leading when they are non accepting and supportive of teacher leading enterprises ( Little, 2000 ) by doing teacher leaders feel isolated ( Katzenmeyer & A ; Moller, 2001 ) . However, co-workers can besides be a encouraging factor of teacher leading and this will be discussed in the following subdivision.1.2.2 Collaboration and collegialityCollegiality and coaction have both been identified as factors lending to instructors ‘ authorization and committedness ( Fullan, 1994 ; Jarzabkowski, 2000 ) . A sense of collegiality leads to trueness, trust, and a sens e of community ( Katzenmeyer & A ; Moller, 2001 ) . Collegiality and coaction are used interchangeably in the literature and there is a deficiency of consensus on their specific significance. Hargreaves ( 1994 ) is a good instance of point as he suggests that assorted signifiers of collegiality and coaction exist and each has a different intent. He farther notes that collegiality as a term lacks lucidity. aˆÂ ¦aˆÂ ¦aˆÂ ¦aˆÂ ¦aˆÂ ¦1.2.3 Professional developmentWithin the literature, it is argued that instructors ‘ battle in professional activities support their leading functions. Effective instructor leaders strive to better their instruction accomplishments ( Katzenmeyer & A ; Moller, 2001 ) . These professional development activities should besides concentrate on facets refering to instructors ‘ leading functions ( Harris & A ; Muijs, 2003 ) such as presenting workshops, carry oning action research, and join forcesing with others ( Katzenmeyer & A ; Moller, 2001 ; Sparks, 2002 ) . Formal professional development activities include go toing workshops and conferences whereas informal 1s involve reading about issues related to professional development country of involvement and be aftering with instructors ( Ackerman, Katzenmeyer & A ; Moller, 2001 ) . The principals ‘ function is to recommend instructors ‘ professional development by offering clip and resources ( Muijs & A ; Harris, 2003 ) . Developing instructors ‘ leading accomplishments will enhance/ optimise the likeliness that staff members will be successful when taking on a leading function ( Danielson, 2006 ) .1.2.4 School civilization and the function of the principal1.3 Why should teacher leading be promoted?One statement for advancing teacher leading is affecting instructors in the decision-making procedure will take to doing more informed determinations. Teachers have a deep apprehension due to their day-to-day contact with pupils ( York-Barr & A ; Duke, 2004 ) . Another statement in favour of implementing teacher leading is to increase instructors ‘ feelings of ownership ( ibid ) . This alteration in instructors ‘ function is needed because their feeling of impotence affects their functions and standing ( Moore, 2001 ) . Teachers ‘ engagement in determination devising makes them less disposed to experiencing they are inactive victims ( Barth, 2001 ) . She states that instructors would experience as a consequence of such authorization as â€Å" a excellent citizen in the school house instead than stay the subsidiary in a universe full of superiors † ( ibid, p. 445 ) . Teaching is a lone occupation and making an environment where instructor leading is encouraged will ensue in making a more professional work environment ( ibid ) . Research findings besides show that teacher empowerment encouragements instructors ‘ confidence and sense of fulfilment at work which play a function in better public presentation as a resulted of being extremely motivated ( Katzenmeyer & A ; Moller, 2001 ) .Methodology:Qatar background info The English Department investigated in this survey is multicultural. There are over 120 module members from 25 different states. However, the huge bulk are British and American. The direction squad consists of the Head of Department and five other coordinators, four of whom are westerners. These coordinators assist the Head of Department ( HOD ) on different issues and these five make determinations on all affairs refering to academic, administrative, and forces personal businesss. The following degree of direction includes four degree supervisors ( in-between directors ) – one supervises each degree of the plan. All Faculty service in one of the five commissions and this constitutes 10 – 20 % of their one-year assessment class. The coordinators make determinations in their countries through audience with their commission members. Faculty ‘s engagement in determinations refering to policy is done indirectly through their commission work. Their direct engagement is by finishing studies, being portion of focal point groups, and giving feedback on the different countries of the plan. Decisions and of import intelligence are communicated to Faculty and staff through electronic mail and Blackboard. A instance survey was employed in the survey because it â€Å" involves the survey of an issue explored through one or more instances within a delimited system. † ( Creswell, 2007 ) . Yin ‘s definition- what is the edge system? Theoretical justification – why interpretative paradigm? Why non positivist paradigm? The participants in the survey were 10 Faculty members in an English Department of an Institution of Higher Education in the State of Qatar, a peninsula in the Arabian Gulf. The Western participants were British and American. The Arab Faculty members come from four different Arab states. The little sample size of the survey makes it hard to generalise the findings but should offer penetration into the function of civilization and its interrelatedness with the positions of teacher leading. Informed consent signifiers were sought from the participants. There was no demand to obtain permission from gatekeepers because my ain workplace was studied. To guarantee the privateness of the participants, anonym are used and the nationalities of the participants are non revealed in order for the respondents non to be easy identified. The end of a qualitative enquiry is to understand a phenomenon from the point of position of the participant and this can be achieved by holding a purposeful sample which ( Merriam, 2002 ) defines as pre-determining the indispensable standards for taking who is to be interviewed or sites to be observed ( ibid ) . The survey trying technique is purposeful since participants were chosen harmonizing to their nationalities and cultural backgrounds.Data Collection:I collected informations utilizing interviews because utilizing interviews enable respondents â€Å" to discourse their readings of the universe in which they live and to show how they regard state of affairss from their point of position † ( Cohen et. Al, 2007, p. 267 ) . Another advantage is during the interview, the interviewer can inquire follow-up inquiries to spread out on the issue, to seek elucidation, or to contextualize ( Books, 1997 ) . A semi- structured interview format was employed to â€Å" obtain descript ions of the life universe of the interviewee with regard to construing the significance of the described phenomena. † ( Kvale, 1996, p. 5- 6 ) . The interview had aˆÂ ¦aˆÂ ¦ . points. The instructors were interviewed separately. The interview inquiries were constructed by mentioning to relevant teacher leading literature. Interview inquiries were discussed with Faculty members with cognition and expertness in the country of civilization and educational leading to guarantee the face cogency. The interview was piloted with two participants who had the same features as the research participants. Prior to carry oning the existent interview, all interviewees were sent a screen missive explicating the intent of the survey which stated its wide subjects and included a petition to audio-tape. The single interviews lasted 40 proceedingss. To triangulate the informations, focal point groups were used as the 2nd informations aggregation tool. The intent of carry oning focal point groups is to obtain the corporate position of a group sing an issue ( Morgan, 1997 ) . Two focal point groups were conducted: one with Arabs and the other with Westerners. The written texts of both interviews and concentrate groups were sent to participants for intents of informations proof. The information was analyzed inductively because most qualitative surveies aim to bring forth new theories and accounts instead than get downing with a priori theories or hypotheses to turn out ( Gibbs, 2007 ) . The function of the research worker is really of import in the interpretative paradigm in both informations aggregation and analysis since the research worker is non detached from the subject of probe ( Cohen et. Al, 2007 ) . Social and educational research is viewed as â€Å" a societal activity that it is influenced by factors like political relations and power dealingss within the research context. † The values and motive of the research workers have consequence every bit good ( Blaxter et. Al, 1996, p. 15 ) . This necessitates the research worker to be automatic about his/ her impact on the survey ( Denscombe, 1998 ) . To this extent, I am cognizant of the possible influence of my cultural background on the survey.Research inquiries:Results & A ; Discussion:Leading in category is â€Å" 2nd nature † to instructorsBoth Arab and Western staff members felt that it was normal to take in category and that it is the existent leading function for instructors. Informal lead ing functions identified by the respondents could be categorized into: instructors ‘ function, relationship with the pupils, and teacher personality. Teachers ‘ function in category was the focal point of most of the participants. Leadership facets identified under instructors ‘ function include: being a facilitator, patterning positive behaviour, set uping boundaries and pull offing category, consciousness of latest inventions and theories, accomplishing the ends and aims of the course of study. The function of being a facilitator, a function theoretical account, and successful direction were the lone functions mentioned by two participants. The 2nd class is relationship with the pupils. The survey sample mentioned motive, set uping trust with the pupils, cognizing pupils ‘ civilization and involvement, transfusing regard in the pupils. The personality facet of a teacher leader as accessible was mentioned by one Western participant. One Arab participant prov inces, â€Å" Leading in category is 2nd nature to instructors. † Another Western participant remarks, â€Å" Teachers are in charge in category because they know who they are. †There are chances to take outside category but aˆÂ ¦All participants in the survey irrespective of their cultural background did non tie in teacher leading with prima outside category. Leadership outside category is exercised through giving feedback on different issues associating to curriculum and other issues. Two Western participants expressed the position that â€Å" One of the sarcasms of instruction is that in order to hold a greater leading function you need to travel off from teachingaˆÂ ¦ You need to travel to disposal. † They expressed the sentiment that one time you have a formal leading function you can get down to do a difference outside the schoolroom context. The differences between the Arab and the Western participants emerged when replying this research inquiry . The Western participants ‘ responses focused on different facets associating to organisational civilization, and leaders ‘ personality traits that limit exerting leading in the Departmental degree. One American participant believes that it all depends on the leader of the plan and states â€Å" if instructors are allowed to follow their passion, they can go leaders in their ain countries. † Another British participant touches on the function of co-workers in furthering or hindering teacher leading. In the single interview, she maintains â€Å" with co-workers it is difficult to further some sort of leading because you feel intimidatedaˆÂ ¦ you have no right. † She stated the demand for regard of people ‘s age, gender, experience, place, and how long they have been in the Department. She is of the sentiment that â€Å" In some establishments, some co-workers may resent instructors doing determinations if they do non keep an official leading rub ric. † Harmonizing to the participants, bitterness of co-workers taking on leading functions without holding a formal occupation rubric can be attributed to personality traits instead than social civilization. One British participant was of the sentiment that due to strong hierarchy in the Middle East direction systems teacher leading can non be applied outside the schoolroom. He believes that â€Å" If you try to interrupt into that hierarchy, you are short-circuiting the concatenation of bid. † All Western participants agreed on the demand to separate between stereotype and personal experience. An American respondent contends that â€Å" like any bureaucratic establishment, there are degrees that you can lift to where you wo n't be resented. But one time you start acquiring past a certain degree bitterness will kick in. † The other three participants agreed with him on the demand to understand and cognize how to cover with hierarchies across different civilizations. The American warned that if people insist on making things the same manner they are done in their place states they â€Å" will run into a wall instantly. † The influence of the leader ‘s personality was identified by merely one participant who expressed the demand for leting instructors to â€Å" follow their passion † which will take to making unfastened duologue where people can experience free to show their thoughts. Most of the Arab participants besides believed that leading functions outside category were limited. One ground given was the fact that instructors are supervised by degree supervisors and coordinators and that a instructor ‘s function is to learn in category merely. Another ground identified was instructors felt everything was â€Å" spelled out â€Å" for them which leaves no room for instructors ‘ originative input. Those who believed in holding chances to take outside category maintained that denoting vacant degree supervisor and coordinator places reflected the Administration ‘s position that instructors are capable of taking leading functions. The Arab respondents expressed assorted positions about the function of co-workers in taking on leading functions outside category. While some respondents felt that their co-workers ( Arab transcripts ) .

Board of Education

In the history of the contemporary United States, there has been no issue that has touched off more debate than the issue of discrimination based on the skin color of an individual. The fact that one skin color is superior to another has been the topic of many a political, social and at one point military struggle in the chronology of the United States. In one of the many Supreme Court cases that have dealt with the race issue, one of them became the benchmark of cases regarding such issues, Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education( 347 U. S. 483 (1954) (Find Law).In the deliberations that went on in the High Court, the Warren Court found that the Plessey vs. Ferguson decision (163 U. S. 537 (1896) (The Oyez Project), had no legal ambit under the laws of the United States (Nina Totenberg). The Plessey vs. Ferguson ruling of the Supreme Court (163 U. S. 537 (1896) (The Oyez Project) stipulated that the term of â€Å"separate but equal† as enshrined in the 14th Amendment of the Unite d States Constitution was adequately met in the decision (The Oyez Project).In the facts of the case, Homer Plessey was incarcerated for the offense of taking a seat in a tram car designated for white people in 1892 (Lisa Cozzens). Plessey was in fact technically a white person, having only an eighth part of him being black, and the rest white (Cozzens). In the case of Plessey vs. the State of Louisiana (163 U. S. 537(1896) (Cornell University School of Law), which the state argued that Plessey was black under their laws, Homer argued that the law for which he was jailed for was unconstitutional (Cozzens).Plessey further argued that the Separate Car Act was in direct infringement of his rights under the 13th and 14th Amendment rights (Cozzens). In the opinion of Judge Howard Ferguson, the law was constitutionally infirm if the train traveled across state lines (Cozzens). But in the case of Louisiana, Ferguson ruled that the state can regulate the operations of the trains that are in their jurisdiction (Cozzens). When Plessey appealed to the Louisiana State Supreme Court, the court affirmed the ruling made by Ferguson (Cozzens). Arguing before the United States Supreme Court, the Court again found Plessey guilty of the offense (Cozzens).In their decision, with Justice Henry Brown as ponente, the law that separated blacks from whites in the trains in Louisiana did not clash with the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery (Cozzens). In the ruling, the law did not espouse inequality; it just made a separation in the color of the skin of the two parties (Cozzens). But Justice John Harlan, who voiced the lone opposing vote, averred that the United States Constitution, did not classify men according to the color of their skin, and that all individuals were covered equally by the law (Cozzens).Harlan also drew on the decision of the Court on the Dred Scott case and said that the decision will be just as controversial (Cozzens). The Plessey case was at the crux of the matter in the arguments presented in the Brown vs. Board of Education issue (Totenberg). Before the initiation of the Brown legal action, the NAACP was getting favorable rulings with regard to its cases that centered on challenging school policies that segregated or even barred black students from some universities’ schools of law (Totenberg).In the 1950’s, the NAACP turned its legal crosshairs on the issue of segregation in the nation’s primary and secondary education system (Totenberg). With future Supreme Court Chief Justice manning the offensive for the NAACP, the group first tested the waters so to speak in a case filed in Clarendon County, South Carolina (Totenberg). The case however was remanded back to the lower courts (Totenberg). Analysts aver that the decision of the High bench was heavy with political insinuations coming on the heels of the year’s electoral exercise (Totenberg).With the Topeka, Kansas argument, it was joined by several other motions along the same argument (Totenberg). The Chief Justice at the time, Fred Vinson, had just passed away, allowing for the nomination of then California governor Earl Warren to the post (Totenberg). In the decision of the Warren Court, the practice of segregation of white and black children in the schools was unlawful (Find Law). In the decision, the practice of separating black from white children, if only guided by racial concerns, is abrogation of the rights of children of color of equal coverage of the laws as enshrined in the 14th Amendment (Find Law).In the court’s opinion, the â€Å"separate but equal† legal doctrine found in Plessey vs. Ferguson was deemed infirm in law (Find Law). The cases argued together with Brown all centered on the minority children seeking legal relief to their cause of admission into their local schools on a non-segregated mode (Find Law). In the history of the Supreme Court, the Court has ruled on at least six cases all discussing the â€Å"separate but equal† clause in Plessey (Find Law). In the cases of Cumming vs. Board of Education (175 U. S.528), and Gong Lum vs. Rice (275 U. S. 78), the doctrine itself was not argued (Find Law). In some of the more recent cases, the equal rights guarantee was breached in that white students were acquired with better benefits than their African American counterparts (Find Law). Examples of these cases include Sipuel vs. Canada (332 U. S. 631) and Sweatt vs. Painter (339 U. S. 629) (Find Law). In essence, the Court found that the â€Å"separate but equal† doctrine found in the Plessey decision was not espousing equality, but inequality (Totenberg).The Supreme Court at the time was fully cognizant of the social and political ramifications of the case in Brown (Library of Congress). The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) had staged a calculated attack on the Plessey doctrine (Library). Aware of this scenario, the Supreme Court heard the case in as many years as times it heard the case, a total of three years (Library). In coming out with their decision, the Court had ordered that both sides prepare legal briefs in the case (National Archives).The briefs that the High Bench wanted each side to prepare was to focus on the opinions of the counsels if the Congress had this question in mind, the segregation of students in public schools, when they framed the 14th Amendment (Library). Several cases were in the list of cases cited by counsels in the argument of Brown (Library). The first case was the test case sent up by the NAACP, Briggs vs. Elliot (342 U. S. 350 (1952) (Library). In the particulars of the Elliott case, Harry Briggs claimed that the Clarendon County School Board, led by its President R.W. Elliott, violated their 14th amendment rights for affirming the school segregation policy (Library). In their arguments, they used the theory of noted child psychologist Dr. Kenneth Clark, who said that segreg ation affected the outlook of the child of African American children (Library). In the reargue phase of the deliberations before the court, future Chief Justice Thurgood Marshall concluded that the court can rule against their cause by declaring that African Americans were second class human beings in comparison to Caucasian Americans (Library).After waiting for close to half a year, the Warren Court, on May 17, 1954, rendered a unanimous verdict (Totenberg). It declared that the â€Å"separate but equal† doctrine as applied in the area of public education was not sufficiently argued and overturned the Plessey doctrine (Totenberg). With this decision, Thurgood Marshall led the cause to destroy the legal structure that sustained segregation practices in the country (Michael Jay Friedman, p. 1). In the next year, the Supreme Court ordered that the implementation of the decision with all possible speed (Library).The Brown decision proved to be a turning point in the fight agains t segregation (National Archives). With this decision, it rendered the Plessey decision inutile and unconstitutional (National Archives). In the rendering the decision, the Court formally ended close to six decades of legally supported practices of segregation in the public schools systems (National Archives). So is this the final indubitable expression of equality? In the article of Owen Fiss, â€Å"Groups and the Equal Protection Clause†, he argues that there should be a new interpretation of the equal protection clause in the Constitution (Roberto Gargarella).In his interpretation, the individual protection ambit of the Amendment must be replaced with one that takes into consideration of the inequalities of a certain group (Gargarella). In the theory, the wisdom of the justices in the Supreme Court cannot produce the equality that a certain group merits (Gargarella). The contrast is that the framers of the fundamental law had the question in mind; they intended judges that will interpret the law as it applies to certain disadvantaged groups (Gargarella). Marshall contributed to the legal basis for the legal motions to be used by Martin Luther King, Jr.(Civil Rights Digital Library). The Brown decision did prove to be an effective tool for the demolition of segregation, but wasn’t the driver to effect wide scale change in the society (Friedman 5). Marshall helped King, Jr. by being their attorney in the famous Montgomery bus boycott issue (Friedman 8). Both Marshall and King espoused together the peaceful way to end segregation, Marshall in the courts, King through his peaceful non violent marches. Both men stand as vanguards of the freedoms and rights that many African American people enjoy today. Works Cited Civil Rights Digital Library.â€Å"Thurgood Marshall, 1908-1993†. Cornell University Law School. â€Å"Plessey vs. Ferguson†. Cozzens, Liza. â€Å"Plessey vs. Ferguson†. Find Law. â€Å"Brown vs. Board of Educatio n†. Friedman, Michael Jay. â€Å"Justice for all: the legacy of Thurgood Marshall†. Gargarella, Roberto. â€Å"Group rights, judicial review, and personal motives†. Library of Congress. â€Å"Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas†. National Archives. â€Å"Teaching with documents: order of arguments in the case, Brown vs. Board of Education†. Totenberg, Nina. â€Å"The Supreme Court and â€Å"Brown v. Board of Ed. †.

Exploring the theme of social class within the novel ‘The Great Gatsby’ by F. Scott. Fitzgerlard

In ‘The Great Gatsby’ the first instance of social class is when we find out that Nick is privileged. ‘haven’t had all the advantages that you’ve had.’ Nick is telling us about advice that his father had given him – from this we can clearly see that Nick is better off than some people. Nick also suggests that you are born into your class by saying ‘decencies is parcelled out unequally at birth’. This shows us that at the time the book was written people didn’t work their way up the social ladder and could not move through the classes very easily, instead they were born into and expected to stay in one class. The next significant mention of class, in my opinion, is ‘I wanted the world to be uniform †¦ I wanted no more riotous excursions with privileged glimpses’. To me Nick is suggesting that he doesn’t want people to be divided by class, but that he wants everyone to be together and equal. To others this foreshadows that inequality between classes will play a big part in the story because Nick is saying what he wanted and not what actually happened. We also see that Nick is unhappy with the class difference when he says ‘well, the less fashionable of the two, though this is a most superficial tag to express the bizarre’. This shows that Nick is unhappy with the split between classes because he is privileged but cannot afford to live in the posher area of New York. Further into the novel we see again that Nick doesn’t like the class splits and how they have affected people. ‘I was confused and a little disgusted as I drove away’. Nick is not happy with the attitude and the way the upper classes behave. A reader may get the impression that he isn’t wealthy himself and is jealous of the rich or that he isn’t as rich as most people and doesn’t want to be because he is put off by the way that they come across. Another significant mention of social class is in the conversation between Nick and Jordan Baker. ‘I know somebody there’ ‘I don’t know a single-’. From this I can see that the classes don’t mix with one another because the people who live in East Egg – Daisy and Jordan – do not know many people from the West Egg; apart from Gatsby who is fairly well known anyway. This gives me a clear image of the way people in that time would have seen other classes – they knew that they shouldn’t mix with one another and that they should keep the classes as separate as they could. I can also tell that Tom thinks that he is at the top of society. ‘he reads deep books with long words in them’. Daisy is saying that he enjoys reading books, but by saying that he reads books with long words in and can understand them shows that he is educated and so it above a lot of people in society. When Tom says ‘It’s up to us, who are the dominant race’ it shows me that he thinks that the class of people of which he comes under is above everyone else. By describing himself as ‘the dominant race’ he is giving off the impression that he should have a lot of power and has the rights and ability to control everyone else. Another key instance, in my opinion, is when Myrtle is mocking the lower classes. ’These people! You have to keep after them all the time’. Myrtle is in lower class herself and when pretending to be upper class and mocking the lower classes, I can see that the classes don’t really like each other or get along. I can also tell that the classes do not have an understanding of each other as Myrtle doesn’t know how behave like a rich person. To some people this can also show that Myrtle doesn’t like the rich people, her mocking the lower classes could be an indirect way of mocking the upper class (of which she doesn’t fall under). We can also tell that the classes don’t really mix and understand each other because when they are talking about West Egg, Daisy is ‘offended’ and ‘failed to understand’. This clearly shows us that the upper class do not want to be associated with the lower classes and do not even attemp t to understand them. Further into the novel, chapter three opens with a description of Gatsby’s parties. ‘There was music from my neighbour’s house through the summer nights†¦while his two motor boats†¦Rolls-Royce†¦And on Monday’s eight servants’. This shows the reader that Gatsby is rich, and therefore could be considered part of the upper class. Nick is describing his neighbour showing that the people who live in West Egg can be part of the upper class because Gatsby is. Further into this chapter Gatsby is showing off his wealth at a party through the number of books he owns. ‘‘What do you think?’ he demanded’ after showing off his book shelf. Gatsby doesn’t read the books he just has them there to show that he is wealthy and can afford to waste his money. To some readers this can also symbolise that education is dividing the new rich from the old rich. It shows us that education can now be a factor into getting into the upper class whereas before you were born into class and only got an education if you were part of a high class. Further into the novel, chapter six, we find out that even before Daisy, Gatsby had thought that wealth was important. ‘I suppose he’d had that name ready for a long time’. The name Jay Gatsby comes from a materialistic conception which means to be successful. This shows the reader that Gatsby had always wanted to be successful and make something of himself and that it wasn’t Daisy that had caused him to want to be wealthy. From chapter six we can also see that being born into a high class and an education were not the only ways to move up the social ladder to be part of a high class. ‘drifted back to the Lake Superior and he was still searching for something to do. This quotation can show the reader that Gatsby is looking for a way other than an education to climb the social ladder because he leaves college and is searching for something else to do. Tom looks down upon the newly rich and thinks that they are all bootleggers. ‘some big bootlegger’ This shows us that Tom is not happy with the way some people have earnt their money. Again showing us that he thinks he is superior to others.

Course Reflection Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Course Reflection - Assignment Example and when held up in different circumstances .The third chapter is important, had helped me in understanding the most important aspect of the study which is coding procedure and this will help me in being a better coding professional. The fourth chapter is about the medical fee charged on to the insurance clients and this section had mathematical calculation too. This is an important phase of the study which allowed me to understand and analyze the patient’s medical fee calculation .This section also allowed me to understand the benefits avail to the clients while they are claiming medical charges from the insurance company. There are different exercise regarding claims and reimbursement in this section which allow me to grasp more easily the mathematical activities. The fifth chapter is all about the refunds and appeals of clients. Here I understood about the record keeping technique and the way in which the refund and appeals had to be handled when I am in profession. Last but not least, I studied about the billing procedure which is the final step of the

Swifts A Modest Proposal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Swifts A Modest Proposal - Essay Example The writer begins by ruing the prevalence of beggars and impoverished children and proposes to submit a â€Å"cheap and easy method of making these children sound and useful members of the common-wealth† (Swift, para 2, 1729). Starting on this apparently straightforward note, Swift adopts a tone of practical economics and moral righteousness, which prompts the reader to expect him to list some realistic solution. Swift couches his proposal in terms of apparent objectivity, economic calculation and statistical data. However, the reader tends to be uncertain about the writer’s true motivation, and there is a suspicious undertone of irony in the passage where Swift declares â€Å"we neither build houses nor cultivate land† (para 6, 1729). This suspicion is further strengthened when he goes on to speak of young children in terms of a â€Å"saleable commodity† (para 7, 1729). However, Swift succeeds in hiding his real agenda. As the reader is lulled by his argumentative tone, the â€Å"surprise ending† of Swift’s proposal comes as an unexpected jolt: he proposes that poor children be sold on the market as food for wealthy landlords. Although the â€Å"surprise ending† of the writer’s proposal is unexpected, Swift is unable to validate his suggestion. It is now evident that the writer is using satire as a weapon and the piece is not to be taken at its literal or face value. Swift’s proposal is an attack on the prevailing social relations in Ireland, the widespread poverty, the indifference of absentee landlords, and their exploitation of the peasants, and British oppression of the Irish nation. The reader is quick to grasp that Swift’s actual proposal to alleviate the misery of Ireland is stated in paragraph 29: taxation of absentee landlords, use of locally manufactured goods, nationalism, unity and virtue. Swift’s â€Å"A Modest Proposal† is a satirical attempt to rouse the conscience of the reader to the plight of the impoverished

Final essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 11

Final - Essay Example She outlines the theme of oppression and power in similar ways. The struggle for power was between the slaves and the owners of plantations who were equally ruling these slaves (Butler 9). However, the novel also shows the struggle for power between the slaves themselves. The slaves were struggling to be in higher or better ranks of slavery that is, the â€Å"field-hands† slaves were fighting to become â€Å"house slaves.† This was because the slaves who worked in the whites’ homes were entitled to proper housing conditions, could eat better foods and were expected to perform less harsh jobs. In her article, Octavia reiterates that in as much as the slaves had to vie to work as house slaves, working in the whites’ houses came with many challenges. These problems were mostly faced by the women who worked there since those roles could mostly be taken up by the females. She gives an example of female slaves who reported rape cases within themselves to maintain their positions of being house slaves. They never had their personal freedoms with their sexual body and could be inhumanly harassed by their owners. This condition of slavery makes Butler create a portrait of emotional charge showing the cruelty in slavery with all the accuracy in history that she can muster (Butler240). The novel points out the aspect of feminism in the slaves’ oppression. Dana is an example of the female slaves who went through domination in 1976, having attained only 26 years by the time of enslavement (Butler29). This shows how the most vulnerable of the blacks (the women) were exploited by the whites’ power since they could not fight for themselves. Dana further expresses her pain in parenthood stating that she seemed to be the worst possible parent. It felt so demeaning bringing up a child in a society where she felt so inferior (Butler 77). The theme of motherhood in slavery is equally emphasized in the novel.

Managing Organizations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Managing Organizations - Essay Example Modern people differ much from the people of the previous century in terms of their goals, methods of their reaching, communication, ambitions, etc. Managing people now is not an easy task thus it needs new approaches. Thus, managers of the modern companies are looking for the new ways of employee motivation. Freedom for action is an essential factor to consider. Actually, when we hear about the organization, where employees make decisions themselves, we usually can’t believe that, because a great number of successful companies are hierarchical bureaucracies (Microsoft, Apple etc.). It seems impossible also for many managers to provide staff with opportunities to set the goals for the company instead of them and to realize these goals without being controlled and thoroughly supervised. Also we all know the conclusion made by Max Weber: bureaucratic organizations are the most successful players on the stage of the market economy. However, modern experts admit that Weber’ s conclusion can’t be considered fully grounded as the famous sociologist may not know some important facts on bureaucracies. Modern investigations show that workplace stress prevents people from high performance. Working in the conditions of hierarchical bureaucracy, people are able to realize only 60% of their potential. Thus, it is essential to look for alternatives. Moreover, as it was mentioned above, modern people often refuse to work in the atmosphere of dictate, when they should only fulfill somebody’s orders and do not have an opportunity to express their own opinion. Such working conditions prevent people from the realization of their creative potential and it is obvious that such realization would contribute to company’s success. New ways of managing people should be found by modern supervisors. Recent studies held showed that there are some companies who successfully practice freedom of employees’ action. Their success is built on the principl es of liberating leadership listed below. Liberating leader is a one who: listens to employees’ propositions instead of imposing his own views; openly shares his views on successful organizational performance in order not to make employees confused; does not motivate employees to give them an opportunity to motivate themselves; plays the role of â€Å"culture-keeper†. Actually, the behavior of workers in the organization is determined by the number of factors, external and internal. These factors contribute to organization performance in freedom action conditions. Among the internal factors is first of all trust in leadership. Leadership plays an essential role in any type of organization, no matter if it is freedom company or hierarchical bureaucracy. Workers of any organization usually tend to mirror the work of leadership and the supervision should be implemented in the way so that employees may feel its support but not a dictate. The second important internal facto r is organizational culture. The atmosphere in the company should be friendly and positive, work schedule should be flexible. The external factors also mean much, for example, it is interesting to cooperate and communicate with another companies in the market. â€Å"Research findings show that collaboration with other firms and with customers can be a significant source of product

Lady Gaga Telephone Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Lady Gaga Telephone - Essay Example The song, without the video, sounds like a simple scenario where the girl isn’t picking up a phone call while she is at the club, but the music video shows a hidden, deeper meaning. In 2011, the song was nominated for the Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals at the Grammy’s. It became one of the best-selling singles of Gaga in 2010 after 7.4 million copies were sold. It was also nominated as the Video of the Year at the 2010 MTV Music Video Awards. Thus, the song has a deeper, hidden meaning which is not understandable by the masses because it is meant to be ‘hidden’. The telephone is actually used as a metaphor to describe Gaga’s brain, and she is not answering the phone means she is disconnected from the reality. Lady Gaga is an American singer, record producer, songwriter along with being a fashion designer and businesswoman. She had initially started working as a songwriter when hired by Vincent Herbert for the label Interscope Records. Her vocal abilities were soon recognized by Akon, a recording artist, who signed her for his own label. Her debut album was The Fame after which she rose to prominence in 2008. The album was a commercial and critical success with some of the best international numbers such as Poker Face and Just Dance. Then she released The Fame Monster in 2009 which was an extended play that produced some of the biggest hits including Telephone and Bad Romance. Gaga has widely recognized for her songs and more importantly her music videos. Her videos always have a deep meaning which is not noticeable from the lyrics of the song. She always adds a deeper meaning to the lyrics through her videos and her videos provide great insight into the reality and cruelty of the world. In the video of Telephone also she has succeeded in providing a deep meaning which can’t be understood by the masses because they are meant to be understood by the elites only (Marshall 148).

Week 9 Question 1 Working Capital Management Assignment

Week 9 Question 1 Working Capital Management - Assignment Example Other technologies for planning and scheduling that are offered by companies like JDA, Logility, and Manhattan Associates offer good solutions. These are especially in the computation of safety stocks. Survey respondent tools from Akzo Nobel helps in identifying obsolete inventory. Looking at cash management, businesses find themselves handling a number of huge cash transactions. These transactions include collection of receivables and making payments. Managing these processes ensure that the business grows and succeeds in the industry. This is because cash management technologies reduce errors that result from manually managing cash. Tellermate electronic cash counters are examples of such technology. This technology is especially useful for businesses that handle a lot of cash. This is because they reduce the time that it takes to count cash and also reduces errors (Tellermate, 1996). There are other technologies that would enhance working capital management. However, it is critical to ensure that the technology that the business plans to use enhances the working capital. This is mainly by looking at inventory optimization where the technology should help the business is optimizing inventory. The technology should also be able to measure the business working capital and be able borrow ideas from companies that do well in managing working capital. This is so as to be able to improve the working capital in the business (Preve, 2010). Partridge, A. R. (2007, 08). Complex Technology Optimizes Basic Concepts. Retrieved 03 06, 2013, from Inbound Logistics:

Henry Kissinger Essay Example for Free

Henry Kissinger Essay Henry Kissinger is remembered and revered for his well-documented contributions to American foreign relations. The fact that he remained in office under two US Presidents, Richard Nixon and his successor Gerald Ford is a manifestation of his success in the political arena. His political and diplomatic maneuvers earned him a reputation across the political spectrum as one of America’s great statesmen of the 20th century. Kissinger was born in Furth, Germany in 1923 and as a Jew he fled Hitler’s anti-Semitic ideology, finding refuge in New York City in 1938. Kissinger demonstrated early signs of perseverance. Once he was settled in New York with his family Kissinger attended high school at night and took on daytime employment at a factory. After graduating from high school, Henry Kissinger enrolled at City College, New York in 1943 and from there he was drafted into the military and his career as a German interpreter began during World War II. Following Germany’s surrender, Kissinger continued to hold various positions within the military. Following his discharge from the US military, Kissinger became fully matriculated as an undergraduate at Harvard University, graduating summa cum laude with a B.  A. in 1950. He continued his studies at Harvard and graduated in 1954 with both a M. A. and a Ph. D. By the year 1962, Kissinger was a professor at Harvard and simultaneously served as an advisor to both Governor Nelson Rockefeller and the Council on Foreign Relations. Kissinger’s flair for American foreign policy and diplomacy became a matter of public record when a book written by him titled ‘Nuclear Weapons and Foreign Policy’ was published. The publication gained Kissinger a reputation as a scholar of foreign policy. It was in this book that Kissinger publicized his theory that the success of America abroad was not solely dependant upon her military prowess, but also in her ability to effectively identify and respond to aggression. In 1968 when Richard Nixon took office as US President, Kissinger formed a part of the Nixon administration. He was initially appointed to the office of National Security Advisor and was subsequently elevated to the position of Secretary of State. He continued to serve as Secretary of State throughout both Nixon and Ford’s administration. In his capacity as Secretary of State, Kissinger’s role in US foreign diplomacy, although active was secret. A secret trip in July 1971 to Beijing helped prepare Nixon for his February 1972 trip to China which thawed US relations with the Chinese Republic. Kissinger continued his secretive work negotiating the terms and conditions of the 1973 Paris agreements which truncated the US involvement in the Vietnam War and resulted in the coveted Nobel Peace prize in 1973. The prize was shared with North Vietnamese peace advocate Le Duc Tho. Kissinger admired the principles and ideology of realpolitik, which is a German term for political polices based on practical concepts as opposed to idealistic concepts. Realpolitik is aligned to realism. Using realpolitik ideals, Kissinger organized a short term period of detente with the Soviets which involved the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks and the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. Kissinger also organized and negotiated an end to the Yom Kippur war in 1973. The Yom Kippur war had began with the invasion of the Sinai Peninsula by Egypt and the invasion of Golan Heights by Syria. What followed was an era in US/Middle East relations that was characterized by Kissinger’s intensive diplomatic peace negotiations and the aftermath that shapes the current US/Middle East relations. With Kissinger’s advice and cunning Egypt and Israel agreed to the terms of a peace treaty in 1979 following the Camp David meetings which were engineered by then President Jimmy Carter the previous year. But Kissinger’s most controversial conduct was in December of 1975 when he and President Gerald Ford met with Indonesia President Suharto and gave him US approval that country’s military invasion of East Timor. Approximately 200,000 Timorese natives were killed during the invasion that followed and Kissinger’s critics advocated for him to be brought up on war crime charges. Previously there had been similar accusations and cries for prosecution against Kissinger for essentially ‘authorizing’ the Cambodian bombing in 1969. When Jimmy Carter was elected President of the United States in 1976, Kissinger resigned his office. He did however continue to play a minor role on an advisory basis to both Presidents Ronald Reagan and George Bush. In 2002 President George W. Bush appointed Kissinger to the chair of a committee that investigated the September 11 attacks on the US. As a result of criticism from both Democratic and Republican party members particularly with reference to his previous secret conduct and attitude toward the public together with his refusal to disclose his financial records, Kissinger resigned from the committee in December 2002. The Arab-Israeli Conflict The Arab-Israeli conflict refers to the ongoing political struggles spanning over one hundred years over the State of Israel’s endeavor to establish itself as a Jewish nation. The Arab-Israeli conflict also involves the strained relations between Israel and Arab nations. The Arab-Israeli conflict developed at beginning of 1917 following the fall of the Ottoman Empire when World War I ended. At that time British forces occupied the area known as Palestine and there was an influx of Jewish immigrants to the area. An atmosphere of Arab hatred toward the Jewish immigrants, fueled by encouragement from Muslim religious leaders helped to generate violent conflict. By the end of the Second World War, the conflict garnered international attention. The United Nations with input from the Soviet Union, Great Britain and the United States developed and introduced ‘two-state solution,’ which was essentially a plan to solve the Arab-Israeli conflict. The United Nations called for a partition of the region and the plan was put into motion in 1948. But rather than resolve the conflict, it only contributed to make matters worse and the first real Arab-Israel war erupted with Israel winning. A number of wars followed namely, 1956 Suez War, the 1967 Six Day War, the 1970 War of Attrition, the 1973 Yom Kippur War and the 1982 Lebanon War. There have been innumerable conflicts of less intensity than the all out military conflicts and two major Palestinian uprisings called intifadas. Henry Kissinger and the Arab-Israeli Conflict Following the Yom Kippur war of 1973, Kissinger gave new meaning to the term ‘foreign diplomacy’ with his practice of ‘shuttle diplomacy’ within the Middle East. ‘Shuttle Diplomacy is a tactic most often used when two primary parties do not formally recognize each other but want to be involved in negotiations in order to disengage opposing armies as well as to promote a lasting truce’. By this method, a third party will typically liaise between the two conflicting parties. The third party spends a great deal of time ‘shuttling back and forth between the feuding parties. ’ The term ‘shuttle diplomacy’ originated out of Henry Kissinger’s mediation efforts in the Middle East during his term as U. S. Secretary of State from 1973 to 1977. ‘Kissinger was famous for primarily using shuttle diplomacy to mediate conflicts in the Middle East throughout the1970s, specifically those between Israel and Arab States following the 1973 Yom Kippur War. Kissinger implemented ‘shuttle diplomacy’ to initiate a ceasefire following the 1973 Yom Kippur war. His reason for employing this method of mediation was to stifle and outwit the Soviet Union’s mediation efforts in the ceasefire negotiations. While Kissinger played a key role in bringing an end to the conflict between Israel, Syria and Egypt, he stepped up his efforts to intervene and mediate the ongoing Arab-Israeli conflict from 1973 to 1975. Kissinger’s attitude toward the Arab-Israeli conflict was obviously one of forced conciliation. As late as 2001 he said as much when asked about the ongoing conflict. Kissinger said, ‘the Arab-Israeli conflict went from an irreconcilable cultural clash to a belief that maybe it was all a terrible misunderstanding and that if only the psychological barriers could be removed, a final settlement would be quite easy. This is what led Clinton to organize Camp David, in the belief that in one session you could finish the peace process. It turned out that there were deeply religious and philosophical obstacles. As a result, both parties have trapped themselves and have pushed the situation almost back to the point where it was when the peace process started. I think we have to go back to a much more modest understanding. We have to get back to coexistence. ’ Kissinger’s peace-making tactics during the Arab-Israeli conflict manifested itself in the days and months following the Yom Kippur war. After the ceasefire efforts primarily negotiated on behalf of the United States by Henry Kissinger, Israel was able to recapture the territory it had previously lost when the war began. In fact, Israel had acquired new territory from both Syria and Egypt. These new acquisitions included land in east Syria forming part of the Golan Heights as well as land on the west bank of the Suez Canal. Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger persuaded Israel to forfeit some of the new territory back to the Arabs and as a result the first seeds of peace between Israel and Egypt were sewn. Kissinger’s efforts also contributed to the ebbing of bitter relations between the US and Egypt, a situation that had started in the 1950s when Egypt adapted a pro-Soviet ideology. Kissinger’s peace-making strategies with Egypt came to fruition in 1976 under the Camp David Accords, spear-headed by then US President Jimmy Carter. During the Camp David Accords, Israel agreed to cede Sinai back to Egyptian control provided Egypt agreed to recognize Israeli sovereignty and put an end to the conflict. William Viorst is of the opinion that Kissinger’s peace-making efforts in the Middle East during his tenure as Secretary of State was colored by an anti-Soviet agenda. Viorst’s contention is not without merit. Kissinger made no secret of his disapproval of America’s primarily moralistic approach to the Soviet Union and advocated for a more pragmatic approach to the superpower. He acted as foreign policy advisor to both the Johnson and Kenney administrations and is said to have been ‘the main intellectual force behind JFK’s flexible response strategy, which advocated maintaining both conventional and nuclear forces to respond to Communist aggression, rather than resorting to threats of massive nuclear retaliation. ’ Viorst maintains that when Kissinger commenced his mediation following the Yom Kippur War he was forced to balance two objectives. These two objectives were ‘pressing for concessions from all sides to establish some permanent negotiated settlement, and ensuring Israel came out of the agreement strong enough to act as the U. S. proxy in the area against Soviet threats. ’ Viorst said that in order for Kissinger to knit together an exchange that called for the ceding of territory by Israel and the Arabs agreeing to a non-violent response meant that Kissinger ‘had to commit the U.  S. to crucial involvement. ’ Meanwhile, President Nixon was back in Washington hanging onto the fringes of a discredited office with Watergate scandals exposed. On the other side of the world a ‘PLO massacre of 24 children in Ma’a lot’ left Israel demanding that Syria make a promise forbidding terrorists to cross the Golan into Israel;’ Syria’s Hafez Assad, loyal to his Arabic culture to a point that interfered with his ability to agree to such a pledge fearing he might be seen as weakening to the will of the Israelis. It seemed that both sides had reached a stalemate. Kissinger responded by sending a letter to the Israeli authorities averring that it mattered little what position they took against terrorist encroaching on Israeli territory. The United States would indorse whatever position they took in that regard. Viorst observes that Kissinger’s letter meant that ‘no future president would withhold American economic or military assistance as punishment for antiterrorist reprisals. It committed Washington to support such attacks before the world, most notably at the United Nations. In effect, it imposed a serious new limitation on Americas ability to compel restraint within the cycle of violence that so often ran amok in the Arab-Israeli struggle. ’ Two weeks after Yitzhak Rabin took office as Israel’s Prime Minister, President Nixon, with his presidency in tatters embarked upon a tour of the Middle East. Nixon’s goal was to ‘establish himself in the public mind as indispensable to peacemaking in the region. ’ While the Egyptians received Nixon warmly, and the Saudi’s were respectful, the Israeli reception was rather cool. Rabin had previously claimed to be grateful to the Nixon administration for ‘opening America’s depots to Israel’ and America in general for coming to the country’s aid in two previous wars. However, Rabin did not hesitate to tell Nixon that he was not at all pleased with the present US policy in connection with the Arab-Israeli conflict and moreover ‘Rabin said candidly he did not want Kissinger to press Israel to make further concessions for peace. He much preferred the old relationship with the U. S. , Rabin said, in which Israel was supplied with all the arms it wanted, while sitting on the diplomatic status quo. Nixon, encouraged in the Arab capitals to intensify peacemaking efforts, received from Rabins new government a sharp signal to slow them down. ’ Kissinger remained adamant in his resolve and was not to be persuaded to change tact for fear that his agenda would be compromised. He feared that if he stopped his shuttling efforts, the Egyptians and Syrians would seize the moment and ‘gravitate back to the Soviet camp’. Kissinger responded by turning his attention to Jordan where he stressed that it was imperative that the Jordanians ‘reestablish’ some sort of presence on the West Bank. His reason for this suggestion was said to be that he felt that there ‘could be no progress toward a Palestinian settlement, which he now considered fundamental to reaching his goal’. Rabin did not agree with this proposition for any number of reasons, but his main objection was predicated on his belief that the Palestinian issue was not germane to the Arab-Israeli conflict. Rabin however, had an agenda of his own. He wanted to establish Israel as a strong military presence in the Middle East and saw the United States as a means of achieving that goal. Moreover, peacemaking efforts was the way to get the United States to help Rabin realize his objective for the military strengthening of Israel. ‘He reasoned that Kissinger, itching to preside over an American-brokered peace, would pay heavily to get it. ’ When Richard Nixon resigned in 1974 and Gerald Ford took office as the US’s next president, Henry Kissinger remained in office as Secretary of State. Soon after the new Presidency commenced Kissinger began a renewed barrage of shuttle diplomacy. His first shuttle took him to Jerusalem. Rabin had a new demand he would only negotiate with Egypt. ‘He acknowledged candidly was the prospect of separating Egypt from the rest of the Arab world. Rabin stated he wanted peace with normalization. But the objective he really wanted was acceptance by the Arabs of permanent changes in Israels boundaries. ’ Rabin also made it clear, that negotiations would be on his terms or not at all. Kissinger feeling, he had no choice agreed on Rabin’s terms. By February 1975 when Kissinger revisited the Middle East he found that negotiations had declined sharply. Egypt’s president, Anwar Sadat was adamant that he was only interested in negotiating if it involved significant territorial increases for Egypt. Rabin on the other hand was not interested in parting with Israel’s territory. Jordan and Syria had grown distrustful of Sadat fearing he was only looking after Egypt’s interest. OPEC was considering another round of oil sanctions against Israel and the Soviets ‘were waiting in the wings for the opportunity to cement together the pieces of their old Middle East power base. ’

Mental Illness Analysis of Film Session 9 (2001)

Mental Illness Analysis of Film Session 9 (2001) Erica Moghtader Session 9: Mental Illness Analysis Deemed as one of the major cult films of all time, Session 9 invokes terror in the most realistic way possible- through abnormal psychology. In the end of the story, the character Mary Hobbes’ evil personality alternate, Simon, chillingly states when asked where he lives to the psychologist: â€Å"I live in the weak and the wounded, Doc (Anderson, 2001). Statements such as this lead to the notion that anyone could end up in a situation with, or actually like, the main character Gordon. In this paper I will discuss the various characters’ mental illnesses shown in Session 9 along with their symptoms, portrayal, and treatment amongst peers. This intense psychological horror film, directed by Brad Anderson, is centered on the restoration of a large mental asylum, built in 1871 and closed in 1985. Gordon Fleming (Peter Mullan), owner of an asbestos removal company, agrees to restore the building in an impossible turnaround time of one week. Gordon hires a crew: Phil (David Carusoe), Hank (Josh Lucas), Jeff (Brandon Sexton III), and Mike (Stephen Gevedon). Mike, secretly listens to nine old recorded therapy sessions that he found, which focused on patient #444 Mary Hobbes. Each employee has personal issues that get in the way of the job, and in combination with stress, it leads to the pinnacle of the story. The movie ends with all characters dead except Gordon, who has made patient room #444 his home. Considering the aforementioned synopsis, there are three characters that portray mental illness throughout the movie. Gordon, the main character, seems disturbed from the beginning of the movie. As the scenes unfold, symptoms of schizophrenia begin to arise. In one of the first scenes as Gordon and Phil tour the asylum for an asbestos removal bid, Gordon has his first auditory and visual hallucination. As Gordon intently focuses on a specific room, #444, he sees a shadow move across his face while hearing â€Å"Hello, Gordon† (Anderson, 2001). Both kinds of hallucinations go on throughout the movie, in particular when his hallucination eggs him on to kill his wife and baby: â€Å"Do it, Gordon!† (Anderson, 2001). In the final scenes of the movie, the voice reappears repeating the same statement as he murders all the employees. Susan Nolen-Hoeksema (2011) deliberates that schizophrenic auditory hallucination such as these â€Å"often have a negative quality, criticizing or threatening the individuals or telling them to hurt themselves or others† (p. 223). Persecutory delusion for ms towards the end of the movie when Gordon believes that Phil is lying about a certain phone call because he thinks Phil killed/hurt Hank. Catanotic excitement is also displayed as Gordon runs aimlessly throughout the asylum looking for Hank, whom had been missing for days. There were several scenes that contained avolition. Many times Gordon sat â€Å"daydreaming† in the cemetery, room 444, and in front of his home. Gordon also presented a symptom of sleepwalking, or somnambulism, when he gave Hank a frontal lobotomy. Dr. Prakash Masand (1995) associated sleepwalking with schizophrenia: â€Å"The prevalence of somnambulism is 1 to 6 percent in the general adult population, although a higher incidence has been reported in patients with schizophrenia, hysteria and anxiety neuroses.† Not only did Gordon suffer from a mental illness, so did his nephew Jeff. Jeff, a young chap who needed a job, suffered from situational phobia. In particular he suffered from nyctophobia or in layman’s terms, fear of the dark. On his first day in the asylum, the breaker flips and in turn Mike asks Jeff to go down in the basement to turn it on. Jeff directly tells him he has nyctophobia and will not go down. When he is forced to go down in the basement the first time and has to walk through a slightly dark room, he hurriedly remedies the problem. At the end of the movie in the tunnels, as the lights slowly go out putting Jeff in complete darkness, he has a severe panic attack. The DSM-5 states that Specific Phobia disorder can be diagnosed if the individual shows immediate fear, avoidance and out of proportion reaction to the phobic situation (Nolen-Hoeksema, 2011, p. 119). By the same token, patient Mary Hobbes also displays mental illness in the film. Although former, deceased patient Mary Hobbes never physically appears in Session 9, she makes quite an impression. Mary Hobbes was admitted into the asylum and diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder. She had been traumatized by her brother Peter after he scared her causing her to fall on her porcelain doll, which in turn severely cut up her chest. At this point Simon took over Mary and killed Peter with his new hunting knife. In the taped sessions of Mary’s therapy, she does not remember anything that happened, even hysterically stating: â€Å"Nothing happened! No! I can’t remember!† (Anderson, 2001). Susan Nolen-Hoeksema (2011) explains that people suffering from dissociative identity disorder usually report significant periods of amnesia when the other personalities are in control (p. 163). Mary displayed three different identities: the Princess as the child alter, which is often associated with the development of dissociative identity disorder; Billy, the protector alter, who protects the individual from trauma; and Simon, the persecutor alter, who often inflicts pain or punishment (Nolen-Hoeksema, 2011, p. 162). Subsequently, the treatment amongst the mentally ill characters was different than the sane characters. Depending on the situation, characters Gordon, Jeff and Mary were stigmatized or treated with compassion, At first Phil empathizes with Gordon over his fight with his wife. Phil then quickly takes advantage of the situation to get a bigger bonus; he discusses with Mike that they should force Gordon off the project due to his behavior/health. Phil knows Gordon is not in the state of mind to handle being removed, and even says so when he’s smiling to himself on the roof: â€Å"It’s gonna get ugly† (Anderson, 2001). Jeff is stigmatized from the moment he announced his phobia. Mike was irritated and called him names like â€Å"Mullet Head.† Phil completely disregarded Jeff’s phobia, which forced him to go down into the basement to fix the breaker in the dark. Though Jeff’s mistreatment did exasperate his illness, the mistreatment of Gordon by Phil led the persecutory delusions of Phil hurting Hank. Though I do not condone the mistreatment, there are several other aspects I do enjoy about Session 9. Session 9 is one of the best independent horror movies, winning best director at the Catalonian International Film Festival in 2001. Considering myself a horror buff since my early twenties, this is one of my favorites. In my opinion, movies are the scariest if they could really happen. The realistic production and general plot make this movie even scarier. As I compared the mental illnesses of the characters to factual data, I realized that the symptoms portrayed were very close to being true to form. Every time I have watched Session 9 I find different aspects to debate or admire. Now that I added abnormal psychology to my mental list, there are even more to ponder! In conclusion, various mental illnesses symptoms, portrayal, and treatment amongst peers were shown in Session 9. From Gordon’s schizophrenia to Mary’s dissociative identity disorder, to Jeff’s nyctophobia, Session 9 accurately portrays the symptoms and typical mistreatment of the mentally ill. Many fans of the movie think that Mary Hobbes was possessed by Genius Loci, an ancient ideology that a spirit is attached to a place, and in turn possessed Gordon. And in all actuality, who is to say something like a Genius Loci does not exist? Maybe one day science will mesh with the supernatural, or at least get along with each other. References Anderson, B. (Director). (2001).Session 9[DVD]. Masand, Prakash. (1995). Sleep Walking.American Family Physician. http://www.drplace.com/Sleepwalking_-_includes_patient_notes.16.21241.htm Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2011). Abnormal psychology (6th ed.). Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill.

Design Of Calipers For Post Polio Paralytic Patients Engineering Essay

Design Of Calipers For Post Polio Paralytic Patients Engineering Essay ABSTRACT Over 13 million in India people suffer from various locomotor disabilities, of which 4 million have been afflicted by polio. Polio destroys the nervous system and causes paralysis of the limbs. An orthosis or brace is required to provide support to compensate for the weakened muscles, maintain proper positioning and stability of the affected joints, restore weight-bearing capabilities to the affected legs and allow the patient to walk without the risk of falls and further fractures. The objective of this project is to develop a design for adjustable polio braces, taking into consideration hinge movement at the knee. The current designs of KAFO are made of Stainless Steel, Aluminium, Thermoplastics, Reinforced Carbon fibers etc. While Aluminium is light-weight, it does not provide the required stiffness for the caliper design; Stainless Steel is corrosion resistant and has great yield strength but is heavy. Hence material analysis is done to chose a material with density between that of Aluminium and Stainless Steel, but with high ultimate strength and high fatigue endurance limit. Also the currently available designs do not incorporate flexible movement at the knee thus discomforting the patient during travel etc. The proposed design is done using CAD tools. A pilot prototype is made in PVC and field-tested to determine if adjustments can be easily performed by the patient. Based on feedback from the field-testing, the final model was designed using Titanium scr aps. ABOUT THE COMPANY M/s. AAROPNA PROTESI PRIVATE LTD. is a medical implants surgical instruments manufacturing and trading company. Our choice of this company was based on its expertise in developing biomedical instruments and implants and its association as a subsidiary of its parent company parent M/s. TITANIUM TANTALUM PRODUCTS LTD, which is an ISO 9001:2008 certified company dealing in various Titanium Products for the past 29 years. The objective of the company is to establish the necessary world-class infrastructure for design, develop, manufacture, package, trade market the Orthopaedic, Neurosurgical, Orthodontic, Dental and other similar reconstructive / replacement implants and its surgical instruments in Titanium alloys and other advanced Biomaterial. Aaropna Protesi Private Ltd. deals with designing of medical implants through biomechanical laws and the development, customization and optimization of medical implants and instruments using technology of CAD-CAM Solutions. It trades in world-class imported medical implants, surgical instruments, tools other surgical accessories in India. It has more than two decades of experience in handling Titanium, Tantalum, Zirconium and Niobium through its parent company. INTRODUCTION 1.1 WHAT IS POLIOMYELITIS? Poliomyelitis, often known as polio or infantile paralysis, is an acute viral infectious disease spread from person to person, primarily via the fecal-oral route. [1] In about 1% of cases the virus enters the central nervous system, preferentially infecting and destroying motor neurons, leading to muscle weakness and acute flaccid paralysis. Different types of paralysis may occur, depending on the nerves involved; spinal polio is the most common form, characterized by asymmetric paralysis that most often involves the legs. [2] The term poliomyelitis is used to identify the disease caused by any of the three distinct variations of poliovirus. Two basic patterns of polio infection are described: a minor illness which does not involve the central nervous system (CNS), sometimes called abortive poliomyelitis, and a major illness involving the CNS, which may be paralytic or non-paralytic. [1] In most people with a normal immune system, a poliovirus infection is asymptomatic. The virus enters the central nervous system in about 3% of infections. Most patients with CNS involvement develop non-paralytic aseptic meningitis, with symptoms of headache, neck, back, abdominal and extremity pain, fever, vomiting, lethargy and irritability. [2][3] Approximately 1 in 1000 to 1 in 200 cases progress to paralytic disease, in which the muscles become weak, floppy and poorly controlled, and finally completely paralyzed; this condition is known as acute flaccid paralysis. [4] In many countries, polio or poliomyelitis was for many years the most common cause of physical disability in children.[1] Currently through vaccination programs, Polio has been eliminated in most countries, a size-able percentage of people are still affected by the crippling disease in India, Nepal, Nigeria and Afghanistan. Often the paralysis will gradually disappear, partly or completely. Any paralysis left after 7 months, however is usually permanent and certain secondary problems may develop, especially if precautions are not taken to prevent them. These problems are further disabilities or complications that can appear after, and because of, the original disability. Contracture of joints is one commonly encountered secondary problem. In this there is a shortening of muscles and tendons so that the full range of limb movement is prevented. [5] Fig. 1.1 Typical contractures in polio Other common deformities can cause deformities including over stretched joints and dislocations. Fig. 1.2 Deformities caused by polio 1.2 EVALUATING A PATIENTS NEED FOR AIDS AND PROCEDURES Step1: Observe the patient carefully and notice which parts of the body seem strong, and which seem weak. Differences between one side of the body and the other are identified such as differences in the length or thickness of the legs. Other deformities, unusual gait, tilt to one side, supporting limbs, position of hips, shoulder and curve of back are also observed. These early observations will help you know what parts of the body you most need to check for strength and range of motion. [5] Step2: This is the physical examination. It should usually include: Range-of-motion testing, especially where there might be contractures. Muscle testing, especially of muscles that may be weak. Also test muscles that need to be strong to make up for weak ones (such as arm and shoulder strength for crutch use). Check for deformities: contractures; dislocations (hip, knee, foot, shoulder and elbow); difference in leg length; tilt of hips and curve or abnormal shape of the back. Step3: After the physical exam, again observe how the patient moves or walks. The particular way of moving and walking is related with the physical findings (such as weakness of certain muscles, contractures, and leg length). Step4: Based on observations and tests, a study is done to understand what assistance might help the patient. Different aspects of the aid must be considered such as: benefit, cost, comfort, appearance, availability of materials, and whether the patient is comfortable. Step5: Once the assist device has been decided, the necessary measurements are taken to make the brace or aid. When making it, once again it is wise to put it together temporarily so that adjustments can be made before it is rivet, glue, or nail it into its final form. Step6: Have the patient try the brace or aid for a few days to get used to it and to see how well it works. If there is discomfort or any problems, alternate improvements or necessary adjustments should be made. 1.3 DESCRIPTION OF A CALIPER Braces or calipers are aids that help hold legs or other parts of the body in useful positions. They usually serve either one or both of the purposes given below: To provide support, strength/firmness to a weak joint (or joints). To help prevent or correct the deformity. ORTHOTIC DEVICE: An orthosis or orthotic is an orthopedic device that supports or corrects the function of a limb or the torso [6]. An orthopaedic brace or orthotic is an orthopaedic device used to: Control, guide, limit and/or immobilize an extremity, joint or body segment for a particular reason To restrict movement in a given direction To assist movement generally To reduce weight bearing forces for a particular purpose To aid rehabilitation from fractures after the removal of a cast To otherwise correct the shape and/or function of the body, to provide easier movement capability or reduce pain. [6] LOWER LIMB ORTHOSIS: A lower-limb orthotic is an external device that is attached to the lower limb as a whole or limb segment in order to improve its function by providing support, reducing pain through transferring load to another area or correcting flexible deformities. NOMENCLATURE FOR CALIPERS Calipers are named after the joints that they replace the function of. The following are the acronyms used: Ankle Foot Orthosis (A.F.O.) Knee Ankle Foot Orthosis (K.A.F.O.) Hip Knee Ankle Foot Orthosis (H.K.A.F.O.) ANKLE FOOT ORTHOSIS (A.F.O.s): Ankle foot orthoses are orthotic devices encompassing the  ankle  joint and all (or part) of the  foot. AFOs are externally applied and intended to control position and motion of the ankle, compensate for weakness, or correct deformities. [6]   Fig. 1.3 Ankle Foot Orthosis KNEE ANKLE FOOT ORTHOSIS (K.A.F.O.): A knee-ankle-foot orthosis provides flexion, extension and mediolateral stabilization of the knee; may provide free or locked knee motion, or adjustable range of motion [7]. A knee-ankle-foot orthotic is typically designed to enable patients suffering from weakness or lack of control of the knee joint to walk safely. It is also used as an independent walking device for a walking-impaired person whose lower limb is paralyzed or whose muscle function is lost due to his spinal cord injury, diseases (such as polio), cerebrovascular disorder, external wounds and so forth. It is comprised of a main hinge assembly, an ankle assembly, a foot plate; a lower leg housing member; an upper leg housing member and supporting structure. Fig. 1.4 Knee Ankle Foot Orthosis HIP KNEE ANKLE FOOT ORTHOSIS (H.K.A.F.O) HKAFO is basically a KAFO with addition of hip joint and pelvic section which  provide control to selected hip motions.   The motions included at the hip are front to back, side to side, and rotation. In the HKAFO there is a minimized risk of the hip  moving out of proper position or dislocating. In this type of caliper, the  hip and lower spine is stabilized in cases where the patient is weak or paralyzed. Fig. 1.5 Hip Knee Ankle Foot Orthosis The average weight of stainless steel calipers are given below. Table 1.1 Weight of conventional stainless steel calipers TYPE OF CALIPER WEIGHT (kg) A.F.O. 1.100 K.A.F.O. 1.600 H.K.A.F.O. 2.250 2. LITREATURE SURVEY Literatures on existing Calipers and design In the literature survey, various designs of existing calipers have been proposed. The patients comfort level, flexibility, cost-effectiveness and weight form the most important basis for the design of the caliper. Some of the recently published works are as follows: Table 2.1: Literature Survey SL.NO TITLE AUTHOR TECHNICAL DETAILS CONCLUSIONS/ LIMITATIONS 1. Anatomical Models of Diarthroidal Joints: Rigid Multibody Systems and Deformable Structures JH Heggard Computer Methods in Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering- Volume 2, 2003 Mathematical methods to model diarthroidal joints. Modelling of the joints is necessary to be able to understand the difficulty faced in movement by a post-polio paralytic patient. The various forces and stresses acting on the joints were studied in order to understand various basic movements and to help in the design of calipers. 2. Bioengineering Analysis of Force Actions Transmitted by the Knee Joint JK Marrisson Biomedical Engineering, 5: 164-178, 1988 Determining forces acting on the knee joint as the caliper to be designed is a K.A.F.O(Knee-Ankle-Foot-Orthosis) caliper. Forces on knee joint during locomotion 3. Orthopaedic Prosthesis and Joint Implants Shan Fengwang, Lichun L, Michael J. Yaszemski Biomedical Engineering, 2: 1984 Study of Titanium and its properties such as biocompatibility, light weightedness, density, youngs modulus to check for its use in the manufacture of calipers Use of titanium in biomedical applications and how this could be extended to the manufacture of calipers and reduce the discomfort and weight of the same. 2.1 WORKFLOW Start Caliper Classification Similar Products Analysis Commercial Intelligence Material Selection Manufacturing Process Recognition of Tools and Machineries Development Design of Product Modelling Analysis Fabrication of Prototype Model Fabrication of Prototype Model Testing Verification I/P=O/P Stop Root cause analysis for failure Recognition of Caliper and its Application Fig. 2.1 Workflow 3. SELECTON OF MATERIAL For the design of a caliper, a material is chosen based on its physical properties such as tensile strength, elastic modulus, yield stress, etc. The choice of material is based on a comparative analysis of these factors. Ideally, a material should be chosen such that the caliper is: Comfortable Lightweight, yet strong Easy to handle Cost-effective Durable As attractive as possible Easy to manufacture [8] 3.1 MATERIALS CURRENTLY USED FOR PRODUCTION OF CALIPERS: Braces are made from various types of materials-plastic, elastic, metal, or a combination of similar materials.  At present calipers are of two types: Metallic made from Aluminum, Stainless steel Non-metallic- made from polypropylene, reinforced carbon Advantages of metallic calipers over non-metallic calipers: Less expensive to manufacture: Metallic calipers are cheaper to produce because those manufactured using poly-propylene require specialized moulds to shape the polymer. The biggest expense in making plastic braces is the plaster bandage used for casting a mold of the leg. Easier to customize for each patient: As the height and contours of each patient differs, the metal rods are easier to customize than plastic calipers. They are quick and easy to make They are more durable than plastic calipers. If used with sandals or clogs, in hot weather they are cooler than plastic. 3.2 TITANIUM AS AN ALTERNATIVE MATERIAL: 3.2.1 GENERAL PROPERTIES OF TITANIUM Titanium is a chemical element, metallic in nature whose chemical symbol is Ti , atomic number 22 and atomic weight 47.90. Ti is a transition metal silver in color It has the following properties: low density high tensile strength corrosion-resistant There are two allotropic forms and five naturally occurring isotopes of this element, 46Ti through 50Ti, with 48Ti being the most abundant (73.8%). [8] It is the ninth-most abundant element in the Earths crust (0.63% by mass) and the seventh-most abundant metal. [8] Titanium and its alloys possess suitable mechanical properties such as strength, bend strength and fatigue resistance to be used in load-bearing biomedical applications such as orthopaedics and dentistry. Titanium is a reactive metal. In air, water, or arbitrary electrolytes an oxide layer is formed on the surface of the material. This oxide belongs to one of the most resistant compounds in the mineral world. As the oxide layer is a dense film it protects the metal from chemical attack which is of importance in an aggressive biological environment. Within the human body, titanium is inert as the oxide layer which is formed is in contact with the biological tissue, is hardly soluble and in particular no ions are released that could react with other molecules. [9] There are 22 grades of commercially available alloyed and unalloyed titanium. Based on the application, a suitable grade is chosen. 3.2.2 COMPARATIVE STUDY OF STAINLESS STEEL, ALUMINIUM AND TITANIUM Metals used for the purpose of designing calipers are required to have both high static and cycle-dependent properties. Tensile yield and ultimate strength, modulus of elasticity, and fatigue endurance limit are the principal metallic strength attributes that must be determined. Wear resistance is also an important criterion for all biomaterials. Excessive wear can lead to premature mechanical failure of the replacement component. Table 3.1. Comparative study of the physical properties of the different materials PHYSICAL PROPERTIES MATERIALS Stainless steel Aluminium Titanium Density (g ·cmà ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢3) 9.0 2.70 4.51 Ultimate strength (MPa) 860 455 900 Yield strength (MPa) 520 400 830 Yield stress (MPa) 210-350 40-50 240-370 Youngs modulus (GPa) 205 70 110-125 Linear coefficient of thermal expansion ( °F-1) 7.810-6 12.910-6. 5.010-6 Density: Density of a material is defined as the concentration of matter as measured by the mass per unit volume. A higher density indicates a higher mass for a particular volume. Titanium has density between stainless steel and aluminium indicating that for the same volume of material, titanium is lighter than stainless steel but heavier than aluminium. Ultimate strength: Ultimate strength, also known as tensile strength, is defined as the maximum stress a material can withstand before necking. Ultimate strength should be desirably, high for a material. Titanium has ultimate strength higher than stainless steel and twice as high as aluminium indicating that it can withstand greater tensile stress i.e. it can withstand more stress before necking. Fig.3.1 Stress-Strain curve Yield Strength: Yield strength is defined as the property of a material to resist deformation. For a good material, the yield strength should be high. The yield strength for titanium is almost twice as high as stainless steel and aluminium indicating that it can withstand more stress without deforming permanently. Yield Stress: Yield stress is defined as the minimum amount of stress which when applied to the body causes permanent deformation. Even if the applied stress is removed at this point, the object does not return to its original dimensions. The yield stress of titanium is almost equal to stainless steel but more than 6 times than that of aluminium. Youngs Modulus: Youngs modulus is the ratio between stress applied and resulting strain. It is used as a measure of change in linear dimensions upon application of tensile stress. If this ratio is large, it indicates that the material can withstand stress better with less deformation. The Youngs Modulus of titanium is higher than aluminium but lesser than that of stainless steel. The modulus is an important concern in the orthopedic application of biomaterials because: Bone has a modulus on the order of 17 GPa. The discrepancy between the modulus of bone and that of the alloys used to support structural loads means that the metallic devices implanted in the body take a disproportionate share of the load applied as stress. According to Wolffs Law, bone adapts to applied stress. Because alloys cause stress shielding one result of the adaptation is that the bone associated with the implant does not become or remain as strong as it would in the absence of an implant. [12] Linear Coefficient of Expansion: Linear coefficient of expansion is defined as the increase in length per degree rise in temperature. If a metal is alternately subjected to heating and cooling cycles, it should maintain a certain tolerance of dimensions i.e. a low coefficient of thermal expansion is desirable. The linear coefficient of expansion of titanium is much lesser than both stainless steel and aluminium indicating that the change in the dimensions of the object with change in temperature is less, which is desirable. 3.2.3 GRADES OF TITANIUM There are 22 grades of commercially available alloyed and unalloyed titanium. [10] Referenced standards: ASTM- American Standards for Testing Materials This standard is issued under the fixed designation B 338 as revised on November 2003. [15] ASTM Specification for commercially pure titanium: F-67 Table 3.2 Grades of titanium GRADE COMPOSITION Grade 1 Unalloyed titanium Grade 2 Unalloyed titanium Grade 3 Unalloyed titanium Grade 7 Unalloyed titanium plus 0.12 to 0.25 % palladium Grade 9 Titanium alloy (3 % aluminum, 2.5 % vanadium) Grade 11 Unalloyed titanium plus 0.12 to 0.25 % palladium Grade 12 Titanium alloy (0.3 % molybdenum, 0.8 % nickel) Grade 13 Titanium alloy (0.5 % nickel, 0.05 % ruthenium) Grade 14 Titanium alloy (0.5 % nickel, 0.05 % ruthenium) Grade 15 Titanium alloy (0.5 % nickel, 0.05 % ruthenium) Grade 16 Unalloyed titanium plus 0.04 to 0.08 % palladium Grade 17 Unalloyed titanium plus 0.04 to 0.08 % palladium Grade 18 Titanium alloy (3 % aluminum, 2.5 % vanadium) plus 0.04 to 0.08 % palladium Grade 26 Unalloyed titanium plus 0.08 to 0.14 % ruthenium Grade 27 Unalloyed titanium plus 0.08 to 0.14 % ruthenium Grade 28 Titanium alloy (3 % aluminum, 2.5 % vanadium) plus 0.08 to 0.14 % ruthenium Grade 30 Titanium alloy (0.3 % cobalt, 0.05 % palladium) Grade 31 Titanium alloy (0.3 % cobalt, 0.05 % palladium) Grade 33 Titanium alloy (0.4 % nickel, 0.015 % palladium, 0.025 % ruthenium, 0.15 % chromium) Grade 34 Titanium alloy (0.4 % nickel, 0.015 % palladium, 0.025 % ruthenium, 0.15 % chromium) Grade 35 Titanium alloy (4.5 % aluminum, 2 % molybdenum, 1.6 % vanadium, 0.5 % iron, 0.3 % silicon) Grade 36 Titanium alloy (45 % niobium) From the comparative study, the following conclusions were drawn: The yield stress, yield strength and ultimate strength are much higher for titanium. Hence it serves as a suitable material for calipers as it has to withstand the stress applied by the body weight and external forces. Lower stiffness of titanium with respect to stainless steel reduces the severity of stress-shielding. The density of titanium is lesser than stainless steel; therefore the calipers would be much lighter than those made of stainless steel, almost by half. As linear coefficient of thermal expansion is lesser for titanium, the caliper dimensions would not change much with change in temperature. Titanium is more corrosion resistant than stainless steel. Stainless steel relies on chromium to render it passive to corrosion. Titanium however develops passivity on its own from the stable oxide film that forms on its surface. Unalloyed titanium grade 2 has higher ductility and is hence, cast, formed, joined, and machined with relative ease as compared to the alloyed grades.   4. DESIGN OF CALIPER 4.1 DESIGN OF EXISTING CALIPERS 4.2 DEVELOPMENT OF IMPROVED DESIGN Software that was used for the development of caliper design: Autodesk Inventor Professional 2009. 4.2.1 ABOUT AUTODESK INVENTOR PROFESSIONAL 2009 Autodesk Inventor Professional 2009 helps you design, visualize and stimulate the end product desired digitally. It not only includes the 3D mechanical design and CAD productivity, but also the essential tooling of various parts of the end product required such as plastic, that lends itself to manufacturing, and also facilitating in validation of the product digitally, sparing the need to test with physical prototypes.    With the integration of motion simulation and stress analysis tools in Autodesk Inventor Professional 2009, marketing a product becomes a much easier. Effective prediction on how the product will work in real-time conditions can be done and also automation of important aspects of the design such as the injection molds for plastic parts help greatly in minimizing errors to a good extent.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  An intuitive design environment of Autodesk Inventor Professional 2009 helps in the development of initial sketches and models of different parts. Also, this software helps by automating the basic geometrical sketches to actual prototypes making using of materials such as plastic, steel frames, tubes etc. This therefore reduces the geometry burden and the time required to make necessary changes and bring about innovation in the product, thereby reducing the time it takes to reach the market. Validation, in earlier times, was a very time consuming and expensive process involving skilled specialists but Autodesk Inventor Professional 2009 has made the entire process very simple and simulation expertise is not required now. Simulation and optimization of designs digitally has become very easy due to this software. Simple user interface helps in part by part design and integration. Stress analysis can also be performed to evaluate areas of stress concentration and hence helps in distribution of the same by slight design modifications. Improved Design: Auto Desk Inventor 2009 supports all major drawing formats like DWG and some of the improved features compared to its previous versions include: Design views in high speed Saves a lot of time. Viewing of drawings and annotation takes very less time when compared to the previous versions. Betterment in error handling High level of intelligence to give suggestions regarding geometrical issues. Faster startup time Launch time is much faster when compared to previous versions. Part by part design view Immediate definition and change in any part including dimensions and coloring and suitable assembly instantly. New Standards for 3D Modeling Ease of Use Autodesk Inventor 2009 helps focusing on the problem rather than trying to gain expertise over using the software as such, owing to its advanced user interface and features, making complex dialog boxes redundant. Inventor Fusion Simple tools to explore new shapes and easy on the spot modification of model from any source. Improved design feature creation Better control over the geometry of the design with productivity uncompromised. Assembly design features [20] Assembly Snap tool Interference analysis and contact detection Assembly configurations Large assembly performance Frame Generator Weldments Content Center Design Doctor Direct manipulation It is an important feature of Autodesk Inventor Professional 2009 which helps in uninterrupted design workflow. Being able to control all the commands exactly at the point needed gives more room for free sketching, quicker assembly and better accuracy. Sustainable Design Material selection can now be done considering environmental effects and cost effectiveness. Using Autodesk, it is now possible to access environmental information on materials required for fabrication and make prudent decisions based on careful analysis. 4.2.2 ENGINEERING DRAWINGS OF THE CALIPER During the modeling, different parameters were measured which included Diameter of the mid- thigh Diameter of distal end of the thigh Distance between mid- thigh and distal end of the thigh Diameter of proximal end of the calf Distance between distal end of the thigh and proximal end of the calf Diameter of the distal end of the calf Distance between proximal and distal end of the calf Diameter of ankle Length of the foot Breadth of the toes Breadth of mid-foot Based on these parameters, the design of the calipers was developed using Autodesk Professional Inventor 2009 The drawing was modeled in parts and later assembled into the complete caliper as shown in the drawings. All dimensions are in mm Fig 4.1 Engineering drawing of KAFO All dimensions are in mm Fig 4.2 Engineering drawing of upper leg supporting structure (thigh) All dimensions are in mmFig 4.3 Engineering drawing of lower leg supporting structure (Calf) All dimensions are in mm Fig.4.4 Engineering drawing of the ankle and foot supporting structure All dimensions are in mm Fig 4.5 Engineering drawing of Ti-Strip1 All dimensions are in mm Fig 4.6 Engineering drawing of Ti-Strip 2 All dimensions are in mm Fig 4.7 Engineering drawing of Ti-Bend Strip Fig 4.8 Engineering drawing of the Male Clamp Fig 4.9 Engineering Drawing of Female Clamp Hence, by using Autodesk Inventor Professional 2009, the design for a caliper was developed. The different parts of the caliper were developed individually and later assembled to form a complete model. These diagrams are used as a basis for the development of the prototype. The major changes that were incorporated in the design were at the knee joint: Male and Female Clamp were used to replicate the hinge joint at the knee. In order to assist in easy bending of the caliper while sitting, a rivet was introduced which when unscrewed, will faclitate flexion at the knee. This is primarily useful while sitting and travelling as the caliper need not be completely removed. 5. DEVELOPMENT OF PROTOTYPE The development of prototype was conducted in essentially three steps: Development of PVC prototype Identification of problems and corresponding corrections made Development of titanium protoype 5.1 MANUFACTURING PROCESS There are five major steps in manufacturing the Polyvinylchloride prototype. They have been listed and enumerated below: Marking This is the foremost step in manufacturing. It is also known as Material Planning. Knowing the required dimensions is a prerequisite. Once the dimensions for every part of