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American Revolution

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Institution

American Revolution

The 19th century was a period that the slave trade was abolished on an international platform. However, this action did not affect the slave trade business in the internal states of America. Many people continued enslaving individuals in their homes to carryout various chores such as house and farm works. African-American men and women were victims of slavery and suffered during the first half of the 19th century. It was during this period that the northern part of America was in disagreement about slavery while the southern region comfortably accepted it as part of their culture (Steele and Brislen, n.d.).

Many of the African-Americans in the southern region were kept as slaves doing house and farm chores for the ‘white’ Americans under minimum or no wage. The first half of the 19th century was a moment when industrialization was established in America. At this point, women were viewed as inferior beings in the society with house chores delegated to them while men went to work in the industries. Indeed, African-Americans were inferior to their employers, but so were the ‘white’ women to their husbands (Steele and Brislen, n.d.).

Unfortunately, the ‘white’ American men exposed some of the African-American women to sexual abuse (Parish, 2013). This was not a common occurrence to the ‘white’ women, although several had unfaithful husbands. Such men took the African-American women in as slaves, and some were their mistresses. Consequently, they ended up bearing children for these men. Additionally, some of these women used sex as a way of attaining freedom from their superiors. African-Americans in the north, unlike those in the south, had the opportunity to acquire formal education. During this period of the 19th century, women, whether ‘white’ or African-American, were inferior in the eyes of many. However, various opportunities emerged that changed the perception people had towards both African-Americans and women. These opportunities included emancipation and exposure to chances of attaining formal education. In turn, many of the affected individuals could have the opportunity to take up jobs in the industrial world, just like the ‘white’ American men.

References

Parish, J. P. (2013). Reader’s guide to American history. Chicago, IL: Routledge.

Steele, K. & Brislen, J. (n.d.). Women in 19th century America. Retrieved on 24 Oct. 2013 from http://womeninushistory.tripod.com/

American Revolution

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Affiliation

Introduction

All the thirteen colonies that later become the United States of America were at first the colonies of Great Britain. Just before the American Revolution took place the people of these Colonies were tired with the British rule. From time to time, there existed discontent and rebellion amid the people (Egnal, 2010, p. 12). For those individual who think that the change the American government is a real revolution they are wrong as the change is an economic and social one. One of the reasons that the colonies were rebellious against England was the heavy taxation issue bestrewed upon them. Were taxation and discomfort amid the colonies the only reasons that the revolution took place? The below sections will highlight other reasons why the American Revolution took place.

The thirteen colonies disputed that the British had no legal power to overtax them, in addition, they wanted a representation if there were taxed but England could not offer this. This was the main cause of the American Revolution. Based on the Revenue Act of 1764 a constitutional agenda was discussed whether the King had the mandate to Tax the colonies. This later led to wedge in the dispute that finally freed the United States Colonies from Great Britain power. Taxation without representation that prompted the reasons of the American people against their mother country (England) (Hobsbawm, 2010, p. 23).

The response against taxation among the colonies was very rampant. Most articulate and powerful political and social groups in the population went against the rule that caused this taxation issue. Resolutions against the eve of taxation with any representation that on the view of the Americans was a threat to colonies liberties were passed. In 1765, all the representatives held a closed-door meeting for the first time to choose the best options to mobilize their people against interference in American issues and Affairs. From this time onwards, the Americans reached a point of no return. In November, 1773, at the Boston Tea Party, a reaction to the compromising Tea Act prompted a reaction among the colony representatives. The following year Continental Congress met for the first time and formed the “Association.” The body assumed the leadership of their mother country (England) and started domestic organizations to end Royal Authority. Many people opted to join the movement, thanks to the Association formed. Mobilization of the army and collection of suppliers began to take effect. The management of the Association was able to propel public concern into a revolutionary devotion.

The other reasons that the American Revolution took place is because of resource sharing. The British were known by taking resources such as minerals from the thirteen colonies without at accountability. Without the French assistance, the Americans would not have succeeded with their revolution because the Americans were not strong enough to fight the British alone. They had reliable and unlimited resources, as well as their army, were bigger and trained as compared to that of the USA. Thus, France supplied them with soldiers, Ammo and other resources needed. Despite the fact that the French assisted the Americans in bringing the British down, their biggest intention was to ensure the Royal territory was down as they were their enemies. Hence, the reasons why the Americans allied with the French to attain their revolution. This was another reason the American Revolution took place.

Despite the fact that the revolution movement was one of its own and brought various advantages to the people of America, not everyone was on its favor. This was evident in areas of varied ethnic cultures as well as those that were not liked the British Regime. The people of the middle colonies were unresponsive about the revolution (Young, 1976, p. 21). Amid those that supported change in the government framework or structure, not all who took part in the war favored violence. Members of regions, Quakers, and farmers from the middle and southern colonies opposed the use of force and violence and rather preferred compromise and discussion (diplomatic). However, the majority were in favor of the war. The unity amid the people was the main reason for their success.

Conclusion

Most of the revolutions that have ever happened in the world start with the eruption of violence that is caused due to extra demands from the government against its people. The American Revolution is an example of these revolutions. The congress was the leaders of the revolutionary war. This revolution was the first of its kind in history. The Americans demanded representation which the British denied, this prompted them to fight their colonizers. The Americans were able to set up their government after the war. Therefore, what was originally started to offer security for British Americans individual rights equal to the ones enjoyed by other Englishmen, this become the struggle for political independence. The revolutionary cause come from the challenge of legislative power. The will to have the power to manage their country started the revolution. The country gained independence from the England, and the United States was born.

References

Egnal, M. (2010). A mighty empire: The origins of the American Revolution. Cornell University Press.

Hobsbawm, E. (2010). Age of Revolution 1789-1848. Hachette UK.

Young, A. F. (Ed.). (1976). The American Revolution. Northern Illinois University Press.

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Exchange-Trade Fund

One may wish to understand what passive trading or active trading may mean in the stock exchange. Exchange-traded fund (ETF) is closely related to passive trading, and it refers to an investment fund that is majorly traded on the stock exchange market just like many other stocks. An Exchange-traded fund is in hold of assets such as commodities, bonds, trades, and stocks that are closer to the net value of the assets in the progress of trading day. Most ETFs track an index that includes bond index or stock index. ETFs might be attractive in a way as forms of investments, simply because of their lower costs, stock-like features, and tax efficiency. In order to understand Exchange trade fund properly, a comparison between currency of two nations namely Turkey and USA has to be carried out because both are developed countries and have almost similar expenditure values. The comparison will be done based on a five year period that ends in 2010. USA and Turkey are both developed countries but have different economy. The difference in economy can be reviewed through the use of Exchange-traded fund (ETF) .Additionally, various forms of ETFs which include Dow Jones Istanbul 20 (DJIST), Non-Financial Istanbul 20 (NFIST), Smaller Companies Istanbul 25 (SMIST), and Istanbul GOLD ETF (GODIST) will be considered while trying to understand ETF in the two countries.

The authorized participants, comprising of large broker-dealers that have ensued various agreements with exchange-traded funds distributor, are basically engaged in buying or selling of ETF shares directly to or from the ETF. Turkey and the USA buy or sell the ETF either directly from the fund company or through the use of a broker. This can also occur in creation units, “which comprise of large segments of several ETF shares that are normally exchanged duly with baskets of underlying securities” (Wiandt and Will 37). This means that the eligible participants may opt for long-term investment in ETF shares mainly due to its high return rates and global recognition. Indeed, they play a bigger role in the open markets during the process of market making. This is mainly through the utilization of their ability towards exchanging the creation segments with their varying forms of securities. This hence provides a wide range of ETF liquidity in terms of its shares, thus assisting in ensuring that the net asset value of all the underlying assets are approximates of their intraday market pricing values.

Trading can be rated in terms of net asset worth, with the traceability element of a closed-end stock, which trades all along the trading period at prices that might seem to be less or more than its general asset value. Wiandt and Will claim that, “Closed-end funds are not normally considered as ETFs, although they are certified funds and should be transacted on the exchange basis” (Wiandt and Will 39). Therefore, ETFs have been in existence in US since 1993. ETFs customarily had been in the form of index funds until 2008 when the U.S. However, “Securities and Exchange Commission authorized the establishment of actively managed exchange-traded funds” (Wiandt and Will 40). All in all, ETF combines the valuation aspect of a unit investment trust or a mutual fund. These can either be sold or bought at closing stages.

The value of Turkish currency (TUR) versus the US dollar has a little variation which can be evaluated by comparing the two currencies. For the past five years, the rate of US dollar versus the Turkish Lira has remained at an almost constant rate of 1.00 USD being equivalent to 2.23651 TRY. This little variation is mainly because the Turkish economy is currently regarded as one of the most emerging global economies. Turkey received momentum in its economy as a result of fuelling in of cheap credit into its growing construction industry by foreign investors who sort after emerging markets. Both the US and the Turkish economies seem to be growing at a higher rate. However, the US economy is at a much higher level compared to Turkish economy because there is massive action towards forward guidance, credit easing, and the simulative fiscal policies with the policy mix whereby many conservatives decry as being the ultimate lead to an inevitable higher inflation. However, high inflation is what has made US thrive well as compared to other economies such as the Turkish.

As an emerging economy, Turkey has got various notable Exchange –trade funds. Some of these ETFs includes; Dow Jones Istanbul 20 (DJIST) considered as the first exchange-traded fund, Non-Financial Istanbul 20 (NFIST) which is considered as the secure sector Turkish ETF, Smaller Companies Istanbul 25 (SMIST) which is a first style Turkish ETF, Istanbul GOLD ETF (GODIST) that is traded with regard to gram indistinguishable shares, and even FTSE Istanbul Bond ETF (FBIST) that is considered as the first firm remuneration both in Turkey, and the entire Europe (Hiriyappa 67).

The most explored exchange trade fund in Turkey is the DJIST since it allows investors to acquire proper exposure to the major and most liquid blue-chips that are listed on Borsa Istanbul. DJIST ETF can be transacted on the Istanbul Bond Exchange (BIST) just like other stocks and can even be sold and bought through any brokerage house or licensed bank. DJIST shares are easily obtained through the BIST. This has mainly been because there are well-set protocols that are meant to ease the transaction whereby, protocols, as referred, include implementation of Takas-bank system, which is a form of Economic Traded Fund. It bases its ideology on a liquid index that can ease favorable realizations even if there exist infrequent trades of the ETF. Also, institutional investors using only a single transaction, gain exposure to the Turkish Capital Markets. The other factor is that, it is considered as the first and leading Turkish Exchange-traded Fund. DJIST also offers the institutional investors with the sole ability of acquiring exposure to the entire Capital Markets of Turkey just with a single transaction. On this note, DJIST has got 20 largest liquid stocks all in the BIST. All in all, DJIST shares are easily obtained through the BIST.

Conversely, DJIST offers diversification since it comprises of the prevalent and most liquid Turkish blue-chips that are easy to trade with. Dow Jones Istanbul 20 ETF hence plays a role in minimizing the risks and uncertainties that are imposed by single stocks. It makes company risks as well as liquidity to be more manageable because it can be used in diversification of the entire form of portfolio and/or comprehensive investment policy as a major holding.

 DJIST allow investors to venture in twenty stocks once and for all instead of just investing in a single stock thereby reducing more risks and uncertainties, hence initiating higher stock market returns in. Additionally, this Turkish exchange traded fund uphold transparency to a greater extent because, it is a trading trend is subject to publication on its extensive website every trading day, hence enabling investors efficiently keep track of their daily investments (Lerman 54). The trading portfolio or trend has to do with the market exchange of TUR against other global currencies, including the Dollar. Finally, the aspect of continuous pricing of its shares on the BIST has led to the success of DJIST. Intraday NAV also are issued by the manager almost every 15 seconds of BIST trading hours. This hence allows investor to amass intra-day liquidity. Therefore, efficient and effective intra-day pricing ensures reduced deviation from the fund’s Net Asset Value.

Compared to other global economies of the developing or emerging economies, “the Turkish economy seem to be booming in relation to the exchange value with some of the leading currencies, for instance, the US dollar” (Lofton 46). Consequently, for the past five years or so, the Turkish Lira has tried to maintain its constant rate against the US dollar ranging between 1.978 and around 2.456. This owes to the acceleration of the industrial output of Turkey, assisted by strong growth in the export sector, as well as the booming construction industry witnessed within the stated years. From the analysis, this has been mainly boosted by its emerging trends in terms of the virility of its exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the stock and money market. Being the most efficient and effective investment funds that can hold assets such as bonds, commodities, or stocks, and being traded on stock exchanges; exchange-traded fund (ETF) has been very attractive to investments simply because of their tax efficiency, and low costs that has currently made them more popular and lucrative in nature.

In conclusion, as evident, ETFs track an index that includes bond index or stock index. ETFs might be attractive in a way as forms of investments, simply because of their lower costs, stock-like features, and tax efficiency. However, ETF varies from country to country evident through the comparison of currency of two nations; Turkey and USA. Touching on the Turkish Lira against the US currency, the main factors, which had to be considered in terms of such valuation, had to do with this aspect of exchange-traded funds simply because they are the main determinants of the country’s currency value, and the global recognition. Though, regardless of the efforts that are being exerted by Turkey, the US currency has still maintained its value since they have also got well-established stock and money market systems.

Work Cited

Hiriyappa, B. Investment Management: Securities and Portfolio Management. New Delhi: NewAge International (P) Ltd., Publishers, 2008.

Lerman, David. Exchange Traded Funds and E-Mini Stock Index Futures. New York: JohnWiley & Sons, 2001. Print.

Lofton, Todd. Getting Started in Exchange Traded Funds (efts). Hoboken, N.J: Wiley, 2007.

Print.

Wiandt, Jim, and Will McClatchy. Exchange Traded Funds. New York: Wiley, 2001.

Exclusion of Evidence- Cases and Legislations

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Institution

Introduction

The judiciary is one of the most fundamental institutions in any country. It is charged with the responsibility of defending, as well as upholding the constitution and ensuring that the rule of law has prevailed. It is worth noting, however, that a pervasive aspect of the role of judiciary at each level is safeguarding every person’s human, legal and constitutional rights. In instances where a court attempts to settle a dispute, it is charged with the responsibility of determining the facts pertaining to the case. This is usually through adducing the evidence that the contestants, from which it will determine the laws applicable to the circumstance or controversy (Wolchover, 1986). As an interpreter of the laws of the land, the judiciary is expected to safeguard the fundamental legal, human and constitutional rights through examination of the evidence. The evidence, in this case, may be in the form of physical items found at the scene of crime, the statements of the accused, witness or victims, testimonies from experts or even law enforcement agencies (Wolchover, 1986). However, the admissibility of evidence is never automatic. There are instances where evidence produced in a court of law may be excluded during the determination of the case. This is the situation in the case provided.

The 32-year old man charged with rape was interviewed by a detective. He initially admitted to the crime but later retracted his statement saying that he made the admission as he was under coercion by the arresting officer. In addition, he has stated that he was not subjected to a medical examination and was suffering from withdrawal symptoms at the time resulting from his drug addiction.

The key reason as to why statutes or rules limit the admissibility of evidence is to ensure that the accused individuals is accorded a fair trial that is only based on reliable and factual evidence (King, 2002). It aims at ensuring that the innocent are not convicted and that only guilty individuals are convicted. In the case presented, it is imperative that one determines whether the human, legal and constitutional rights of the defendant were infringed upon, or whether the law enforcement agencies acted in a manner that would render the testimony of the defendant inadmissible in a court of law.

Rule 95 of the Statute of the International Tribunal and the Rules states that evidence would be inadmissible in cases where the methods through which it is obtained would cast significant doubts pertaining to its reliability or in instances where its admission would be seriously damage and be antithetical to the proceedings’ integrity. This statement is complemented by S90 of the Evidence Act of 1995, which gives discretion for the exclusion of prosecution evidence in instances where the circumstances under which such admission was made would be unfair to the accused individual (King, 2002). This is the same case for S135 of the Evidence Act of 1995 which states that the court would have the discretion to exclude evidence in instances where its probative value has been significantly outweighed by the danger that that evidence would be unfairly prejudicial to one of the parties (Allen, 2012). This is not a simple fact of the evidence advancing the prosecutor’s case or even rendering the defense case weak, rather it underlines the fact that such evidence would destroy the case of the defendant in a manner that is deemed unacceptable and prejudicial (King, 2002). This is the case for the 32 year old man. As much as the prosecution may want to bring in the self-made confession as evidence in the court, the technique through which it was obtained is questionable. The defendant has stated that he made the confession under duress from the arresting officer. Given the arresting officer’s history of assaulting individuals, it is highly likely that the same was done to the defendant in this case. The evidence so obtained would, therefore, be inadmissible due to this impropriety. Scholars note that constitutional provisions pertaining to such impropriety extends to actions which, although not unlawful or criminal, are clearly or quite inconsistent with the minimum standards that the society requires or expects from individuals who are entrusted with enforcing the law (Allen, 2012).

On the same note, given the duress that he alleges during arresting interviewing and making the confession it is logical to conclude that the defendant was not given the option of having his counsel present. This is contrary to Rule 42B (Rights of Suspects during Investigation) of the Statute of the International Tribunal and the Rules. It states that the suspect shall not be questions in the absence of a counsel except in instances where the suspect, by his own volition, waives this right (Khan et al, 2010). In instances where the suspect has waived the right, questioning would cease if he expresses his desire to have counsel and resume only after the suspect has been assigned or obtained counsel.

This was the case in The Prosecutor V. Zejnil Delalic, Zdravko Mucic A/K/A “Pavo”, Hazim Delic, and Esad Landzo A/K/A ‘Zenga” of 1997. In this case, the defense for the accused, Zdravko Mucic outlined that there had been serious violations of the constitutional rights of the accused during the investigation and interrogation. In this case, the defense objected to the admission of a confession that the Austrian police had obtained from the accused stating that the man had been extremely tired (Khan et al, 2010). This part was built on the admission of one of the interviewers named Mr. Moerbauer that he was extremely tired at the end of the four hour interview. Considering that the interview was conducted by five individuals who would move in and out of the room, a luxury that the accused did not have, it goes without saying that he was extremely exhausted (King, 2002). This was considered coercion by the interviewers in which case the court ruled that such evidence had to be excluded from the case. This ruling can be applied to the case at hand where the accused confesses that he was suffering from withdrawal symptoms from his drug addiction. Needless to say, he was in no position to make a confession in a fair manner, in which case the admission of such a confession would be prejudicial to his rights as an individual (Khan et al, 2010).

In conclusion, the judiciary makes decisions in cases based on evidence presented in the court. However, the evidence may be inadmissible in varied instances. This is the case for the 32-year old man accused of rape. As much as the prosecution has brought in a confession from the accused admitting to the crime, it is worth noting that the defendant made the confession under duress. He was assaulted by the arresting officer, an individual who has on previous occasions been accused of assault. In essence, the confession cannot be admissible in the case especially considering that the defendant was not subjected to a medical examination before being interrogated. This was a violation of his legal, constitutional and human rights, which raises doubts as to the authenticity of such a confession.

References

Allen, C (2012). Q&A Evidence 2011-2012. London: Taylor & Francis

King, M.T (2002). Security, Scale, Form, and Function: The Search for Truth and the Exclusion of Evidence in Adversarial and Inquisitorial Justice Systems, 12 International Legal Perspective. 185, 218

Khan, K. A. A., Buisman, C., & Gosnell, C. (2010). Principles of evidence in international criminal justice. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Wolchover, D. (1986). The exclusion of improperly obtained evidence: With special reference to the Police and Criminal Evidence Act. Chichester: Barry Rose.

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Biology Essay

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American River and the Nimbus Fish Hatchery

The salmon is famous for its bright colors and jumping more than 20 steps; moreover, it is on the upmost level of the Nimbus Fish Hatchery ladder due to its migration that takes place annually. Families enjoy the experience in the month of November where they visit the hatchery to witness the event; all the same, the migration is very essential to the survival of the salmon and steelhead in the lower part of the American River.

The Nimbus Fish Hatchery has been providing mitigation for the loss of natural fish since 1998; furthermore, it has been successful through forming alliances with the US fish and Wildlife Service, the California department of Fish and Game, and the US Bureau of Reclamation. In the case of the Salmon, they are organized and spawned once they make their way up the ladder with an average salmon female having more than five thousand eggs. Generally, the eggs are housed in a building, and the fish are looked after until they are four to six to six inches long after which they are released in the Sacramento River.

At the beginning of the year, the news about California’s Chinook salmon sounded more than just good with Federal fisheries biologists predicting big numbers of Sacramento River fall run Chinook (the state’s biggest, most commercially important salmon fishery and the biggest population of the river’s fall-run fish in memory). The California salmon council predicted a harvest of 3 million pounds which is three times of last years, and was meant to signify the Great Salmon Crash comeback where they were forced to shut down the whole program in 2008-2009 due to a sudden collapse.

Salmon fishermen and, the sellers of gear and supplies who were gravelly affected by the collapse were looking forward to a prosperous season and year of 2013. Moreover, fans and lovers of the salmon fish were promised by the head of the Golden Gate Salmon Association (GGSA) that they would have the best food and a load of fun come November.

However, this was just the tip of the iceberg with most of these people overlooking the negative side, or rather the limitation that are yet to be addressed. For instance, not I alone that am really sure of the results of the year’s season but the three million catch only seems impressive if compared to the recent years where things were disastrous. If compared to the years before the collapse, the forecast is three times lower; additionally, statistics form the National Marine Fisheries Service show that the catch per season has been slowly decreasing since the 50s with the pace increasing in the 80s.

Reflectively, if you look at the population crash in 2008, the fishing communities and scientists were not aware and did not expect such a thing to happen, and hence they were not prepared in any way. Personally, I would like to know the cause of the collapse, and am pretty sure they large numbers of people that would support me on this notion. There has been news about scientists studying factors from water pollution and a big bridge project that may have facilitated the collapse, where the noise from construction is suspected to have caused harm to the young salmons that were in the course of migration.

All the same, there has been no single factor that has been established to be a cause of the collapse; I have read articles where some scientists ‘think’ that chances are that it might have been caused by poor ocean feeding conditions or water diversions from the delta played role. Altogether, this still does not answer our question, and if truly this was the cause is there anything been done about it? I think the answers are hidden in plain sight all we need to do is add a little bit more effort.

Significantly, from history the salmon have been returning every year with millions of them being seen on the Bay, the Delta, the rivers and streams in the Central Valley and places like Sacramento were known to be crowded with them. If compared with today, something has seriously changed, and the question on our minds is what?

Many people think the answer to my question is “Everything”, but I disagree to agree. Yes, particularly everything has changed from the Gold Rush that brought fabulous wealth and produced inconceivable destruction to the environment (salmon streams) to the dams, cities, farms, and industries that have also had significant impact. According, to my perspective, I argue that we are the ones who changed hence making everything else change.

For instance, most of our efforts to preserve commercial Chinook salmon population might be doing more of hurting than the helping itself e.g. Sacramento’s river population collapse happened despite the efforts to use hatcheries to replace spawning streams destroyed by dams, logging, and development- ever come to think that the process itself might have been the cause of the collapse?

The efforts to improve the nature to an extent of even tracking the baby hatchery fish downriver could be impacting negatively much more than expected and instead of building we might demolishing what we already have. Biologists are of the idea that, the cause of the Sacramento collapse might have been a combo of habitat loss and hatchery production focusing on these as the main issues; but I think this should be the least of their worries since the surviving hatchery lacks the genetic variety of wild fish making it more vulnerable to changes in the conditions of the ocean and finally making it more prone to such collapses.

In conclusion, there is still hope for California’s salmon with the government and resource managers having made the initiative of restoring both water and habitat for Chinook salmon over the years. Conversely, I think that the idea of pumping from the Delta should be limited and should only take place at certain parts of the year to enhance protection of the salmon and other species that are in danger is a good one. The environmental lawsuit that prompted this action plus a few others should create a platform for all the other factors that require to be enforced for the sake of the salmon and California’s future. However, most people are against such actions since due to the cost but prevention is always better than cure; moreover, if such laws are enforced the salmon will not only survive but also thrive and only “US” can make this happen.



American Modernism: The Influence of Industrial Efficiency as it was Expressed Through Modern Art

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American Modernism: The Influence of Industrial Efficiency as it was Expressed Through Modern Art

With World War II ending, there were tremendous changes on Western from a general perspective, and many other different changes both in the lives and art of the citizens found in various Allied countries. The cultures of the allies of the United States in the war commenced the process of rebuilding, which was a long one. These allied countries were mainly England and France, which came to form part of Western Europe. The United States on the other hand was bathing in the glory of the military victories within the Pacific and European fronts. This was due to the fact that the United States had its industrial complex intact. There was also a widespread innovation as well as increased production of technology and programmes of manufacturing existent in the wartime. A remarkable trend in the artistic sphere was the influx of artists into the United States, which was as a result of these artists fleeing the Nazi occupation in Europe. This phenomenon led to the development of the Art that was prevalent in the period of American Modernism. This study therefore delves into the concept of American Modernism in light of industrial development. The research looks at the manner in which modern art has been used in expressing this important phase of the concept of American modernism.

With the advent of American modernism emerged renowned creative individuals who exhibited, taught as well as shared and influenced a generation that developed during this time. These notable people included Piet Mondrian, Arshille Gorky, Salvador Dali and Marcel Duchamp. Surrealism as a technique of art became very popular among these practitioners of this important historical time. Surrealism was a very new experience for the artists, as it offered them the freedom towards the exploration of their own psyches. Furthermore, it helped in establishing a connection, which was direct between the deep archetypal self and the art of painting. There was a reawakening characteristic of the modernism period in America whereby individuals went to college to gain knowledge that would help them to make universal sense of the experiences they went through. Art during this time also went through some sort of revolution as it gained academic respectability. Universities began to offer a new graduate professional diploma as well as the distinguished Master of Fine Arts degree. Different theories and criticisms explain the art of the American Modernism era. These theories and criticisms are instrumental in understanding the art of this important phase of American history.

In tackling the period 1915-1935, Corn uncovers the roots of an exceptionalism discourse, a concept that is prominent in the arts and letters of America during the modernism period . What the theory means in essence is the grand narrative of American exceptinalism, which was a guiding concept for research and writing for the period following World War II in the United States. This ideology hinges on the assumption that the exceptional circumstances that informed the American experience gave rise to the alteration in the course of artistic development as well as development in other fields, whose general trends had been hitherto predictable. There were pertinent questions prevalent in the culture of graduate school of the 1960s concerning the concept of exceptionalist discourse. Corn asserts that the most common of these questions was why the American abstract expressionism more spontaneous abroad as compared to the abstract paintings of 1950s in the same front. The Revisionist texts of the late 1970s and early 1980s attempted an explanation of these questions and revealed the ideological assumptions bases that were responsible for this school of thought. The origins of these trends were established to be in the Cold War as well as the politicized sites that attempted cultural legitimization, which included sources such as journals, some which drew their funding from the Central Intelligence Agency (C.I.A), exhibitions, and organizations such as the Congress for Cultural Freedom affiliated American Committee for Cultural Freedom. In an attempt to examine the cultural history identified with a generation of artists, who perceived the notions of America and Europe as mutually dependent concepts that could not be looked at without the other. These pertinent questions about the art of the modernism period trace their roots to the early twentieth century. The quest to trace these roots is of high relevance to the body of art as there has been an invigorated attempt at rehabilitating nationalist accounts concerning the politics and culture of the people of America dating from World War II. Furthermore, revisionist historians have also undertaken this cause of revisiting American art during this important phase of history.

Existentialism

Theory and Criticism

The renowned artist Fredrich Nietzche described the image of the modern man as ambitious, lone but suffering and coined this image in the phrase “Will to Power.” This was a very descriptive form of the coming phase of psychic evolution among the human circles. The propounded theory within the period of modernism lay bare the individual as being responsible for, and primarily to his or her own will. This was possible after doing away with all pretense, piety, and false authority. This was the basic concept of existentialism that created the way for a new idea about humanity, referred to as Ubermensch or translated as Super-human. This character would be able to act out the new consciousness and in the process bringing in the newly discovered freedom and exultation dealing with the notion of being alive. Ayn Rand, a Russian who had migrated into the United States p5rovided a classical example of the theory of existentialism in her writings. Her renowned book of 1943, The Fountainhead had a great influence in the history and literature in the United States in the modernism period. In the book, the protagonist, who is a visionary and self-driven architect, prefers to destroy his design in order to get a big commission, instead of having it changed and made inferior by an agency from outside. The author gained the reputation of being a prophet of anti-communist individualism in which she depicted benevolent selfishness. The underlying idea in her theory was that there is need for humans to act basing purely on self-interest in order to become fully human. This ideology which uncompromisingly championed the pursuit of the self, influenced many forms of expression which included art, literature and film in this era

Another notable writer that influenced this phase of development of the art is Clement Greenberg who published in some known New York journals alongside other theorists. He was instrumental in coining of the term “abstract expressionism.” The theorist leaned towards action painting in the 1950s and 1960s. There was the development of language, definitions, and apologetics of what the scholars deemed to be viable new art and the direction in which American Art was supposed to take. The theorists of this school of thought supported the idea that painting possessed a greater number of expendable conventions more than other art forms. This in essence would pave way for other forms of art sculpture and painting whose aim was to do away with all the other aspects except the essential ones. The common pursuit for the artists working on different styles was the authentic purity. This saw some of them turning to Native American as well as other aboriginal cultures with a reduction of superfluous elements in their work. Others immersed themselves into the politics of creation of image itself, while others searched for authenticity in the painting process. The common characteristic among the artists of this time was their belief in the existence of a truth that needed to be ascertained. This therefore saw them exhibit the same vigor that the governments in the Cold War had when they aspired to conquer outer space, as well as the inner space of the atom, which had a lot of mysteries surrounding it.

Abstract expressionism

New York school

The artists of this school are not known to have attended a common art school but they shared the common characteristic of fascination with the development of the influences of European Surrealism and Cubism that had classical principles of a new form of process oriented and expressive art. There was a replacement of the architectonic composition with the entire aesthetic of the hand. The highest ideal of this movement was potent improvisation. The Cedars Bar was the institution that most of the artists working in the city shared in common. In this place, there were intense discussions on important topics such as sex, art, and politics, which many times led to fistfights between artists like de Kooning and Pollock. This state of things created a microcosmic American Bohemian, which energized the European interest in the concepts of eccentric imagination and erudition.

One notable artist from this era is the Armenian Arshile Gorky who fled his country because of the genocide and settled in New York. The artist had been a casualty of the ethnic cleansing that had taken place just before the onset of World War II, whereby more than one million Armenians were killed and Turkey and the remains of what was the Ottoman Empire exiled over two million. The artist settled in the United States in 1920 with a heavy influence of the pioneers of European art such as Picasso, Miro and Kandinsky. The artist applied the improvisational techniques that belonged to the modern masters of the early time on the photograph of him and his mother, which a he had carried into exile. There was an expansion of the visual language that belonged to the quasi-figurative and suggestive form. This approach to art was refreshingly original.

Progressivism

The art of the modernism period was in harmony with the ideology of progressivism. According to Wiebe, progressivism was the central force in the changes that were exhibited in the structure which the politics and governments that marked the onset of the twentieth century. The scholar differs from his colleagues, who were in existence both in his time and afterwards in the sense that he perceives progressivism as a progressive ideology. In essence, he saw it as modernizing, reforming, and forward-looking. This departs from the view that the ideology was regressive, reactionary, and retrograde. Progressivism involved the replacement of the age old values of community life such as promptness, frugality, efficiency and foresight that were concentrated in a small town set-up, with the assumptions arising from a bureaucratic order the focused on regularity, rationality, continuity, functionality and management.

The abandonment of the values that concentrated more on relationships between individuals in favor of a bureaucratic orientation was a big leap towards the establishment of a capitalistic society that was characterized by impersonality and urban industrialization. Progressivism as such shaped the political and intellectual tools that were important for Americans to face the twentieth century economy that was highly industrialized and interconnected. Bureaucracy was the underlying pillar of the ideology as it provided the worldview that provided a sophisticated approach to the social problems that had become complex as opposed to community centered moralist approach of the era that had existed before. The art and literature in the progressivism era responded to the needs of the bureaucratic order, departing from the moralist approach that had been dominant in the previous phase. This was a new social order and it found expression in works of art that belonged to this school of thought. These works highly exalted the industrial advancement while presenting the conservative community life as outdated and not compliant with the technological innovations of the time. These works promoted a sense of anti-communist individualism in which the pursuit of self-preservation was overriding. Marcel Duchamp’s painting of the lone modern man highlights the individualistic characteristic that is an inherent characteristic of capitalism. In his painting 1954 painting of Head Surrounded by Sides of Beef, oil and pastel on canvas in which he brings together a copy of Velazquez’s painting, Portrait of Pople Innocent X and other images that he draws from a slaughterhouse, Francis Bacon makes comparisons between raw meat, the crucifixion, and the tribulations an individual goes through. He brings out the hidden aspect that every individual has within their “self” which in a way makes the viewers come to terms their own experiences in a rapidly changing modern world.

Music and Theatre

Both in the United States and the West, the post World War II celebrations were short-lived as there were the fears of the Cold War as well as the nuclear standoff that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union. For the artists of this era, the Suburban lifestyle of the war veterans that was characterized by pleasantness, comfort, predictability, and safety were the repressive and cold features that were purely Capitalistic. A genre of jazz known as Bepop challenged all the pleasures of that conventional era. Musicians such as Dizzy Gillepsie, Charlie Parker, and Thelonious Monk composed forms of music that was both eccentric and innovative in a bid aimed at deconstructing the swing styles that were associated with the Harlem Renaissance. This break from the conventional formed the inspiration for the artistes of the 960s and 1970s to reinvent Jazz and create a new genre out of it referred to as fusion. Closely associated to this form was Beat poetry. This genre, just like Bepop dwelt on unveiling the unsocialized consciousness, and condemned the pretentious suburban culture that ignored this important point. The form blamed modern society for undermining what was pure and natural through industrialization. Young and educated audiences of white background experienced the earthy forms though a blend of Blues. These developments in conjunction with other influences gave rise to Western Counterculture, a philosophy that emphasized rebellion and self-expression as well as gratification.

Conclusion

It is evident from the above discussion that there was a remarkable revolution in the art of the modernism era owing to the different developments in the industrial sphere. Industrial developments and modernity shaped the manner in which art developed. The era produced experiences and circumstances that eventually led to a rich art culture expressed in various forms of paintings, films, and music.

Bibliography

Corn, Wanda M. 1999. The great American thing: modern art and national identity, 1915-1935. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Dreiser, Theodore. 1997. Sister Carrie. New York: Doubleday.

Weibe, Robert. 1998. The Search for Order, 1877-1920. Oxford. Oxford University Press.

Example Case Scenario: Scope of Malpractice

Oberon is a newly minted BCBA, who has passed the BCBA exam in the last month. During his supervision, he specialized in working with children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, specifically those individuals who needed acquisition skills training. He helped create programs to teach kids to request for items, or ask for a break, and to stay on task with assignments. Some of the kids had tantrums, but they were relatively minor. He was head-hunted by a company, SunTrust Behavioral, and the director of the company, Miles O’Brien, has asked him to take on five cases. Mile is a doctoral level behavior analysts, a BCBA-D and has had over 20 years of experience working in the field.

One of the cases is an adult male that engages in serious self-injurious behavior in the form of flopping to the floor and head banging. When a mat is put down, this individual tries to avoid the mat and make contact with the concrete, and has previously suffered a detached retina from engaging in this behavior. Oberon immediately raises his concerns to the Miles. However, Miles says he will learn on the fly, and he will offer him supervision if anything goes wrong. He indicates that for now it is up to him to earn his keep, and show him why he hired him in the first place. He mentions this is how he learned back in his day, and he did not get kid gloves to learn the skills he needed to be effective. Later Miles emails him that day some articles to read to make Oberon feel more comfortable with the case. Oberon notes that because Miles is the director, and is far more experienced, it probably means he should just defer to his judgement. He takes on the case and decides to keep Miles in the loop if anything goes wrong, as it appears if he asks for help too early, Miles will likely think less of him. After reading the articles, and creating a behavior plan based on an assessment previously completed about 8 months ago by the previous behavior analyst working with the client, Oberon is very successful and the self-injurious behavior ends up decreasing to near zero levels. Miles is pleased with his work, and Oberon continues with SunTrust Behavioral. However, Oberon sometimes ponders what would have happened if the behavior did not go in the expected direction.

Contingency Map Example: The Unethical Decision

Antecedent Behavior Consequence

Despite his concerns about taking a case that is outside of his scope of practice, Oberon does not want to go against his supervisor’s guidance or make a bad impression at his new job. It seems likely that Oberon will receive praise from his supervisor if he is able to “learn on the fly.” Oberon takes the case that is out of his scope of his practice. He decides to make a new behavior plan based on old information and strategies he learned from reading articles.

The client’s self-injurious behaviors decreased after Oberon implemented the behavior plan he created.

Oberon’s worry about this case decreases and he feels confident with his work.

Private Thoughts

Thought #1 (supporting the unethical decision):

Oberon feels pleased that he was able to impress his supervisor and is more confident in his ability to take on cases that he doesn’t have much experience with.

Thought #2 (prompting a more ethical decision next time):

Oberon has a private feeling that things could have gone the wrong way easily, and wishes he had a backup plan if things did not have the same outcome.

Contingency Map Example: The Ethical Decision

Antecedent Behavior Consequence

Oberon is nervous about taking a case that is outside of his scope of practice. He has worked with individuals with autism in the past but does not have experience with adults or with severe self-injurious behaviors. Despite his concerns, Oberon does not want to go against his supervisor’s guidance or make a bad impression at his new job.

Oberon discusses the case with the BCBA-D. He tells his supervisor he is not comfortable with the case and requests more oversight/training. Oberon also tells his supervisor that he will not take on the case without a proper training plan in place.

Oberon is no longer nervous about the case because he has received proper training while the current case was transferred to a more capable BCBA. Self- injurious behavior decreases. Oberon feels confident about his request for more training and feels better about taking on a similar case in the future or continuing to help out with the current case.

Oberon also believes he has the interpersonal skills to manage conflict in the workplace, and feels this experience gave him room to grow professionally.

Case Scenario A: Burning Hours

Jack Bean has been working with a company Downstar Horizon for 11 years. It is a company that offers behavioral services for individuals funded by Medicaid. The company has recently not been doing well financially. During the monthly meeting the owner mentions the financial issues, and says that they are implementing an incentive program for BCBA that bills the most hours. Each month the individual that bills the most will receive a $50 amazon gift card to reward the winner’s hard work. One of the senior BCBAs notes that the Medicaid service authorizations have a specific number of hours allocated to each client that must last throughout the year. The owner, acknowledges the BCBA’s input and thanks them for their insight, but goes on to note that the new Governor has been cutting Medicaid funding without consideration for the clients. The owner then states that five cases that had roughly 100 service hours each remaining at the end of the fiscal year had reduced cost plans the following year. This resulted in them having each 100 hours cut even though this year they desperately need those extra hours. The Senior BCBA says: “if you don’t use them… you lose them in this system! It’s probably best to make sure that we use them up, and then we can request additional hours by submitting a crisis report… indicating that the individual is in need of more hours.” The owner looked pleased that they were on the same page with the Senior BCBA in terms of the evaluation of the position the company was currently placed by the harsh political terrain.

Jack Bean immediately starts working on trying to win the prize. Jack keeps track of his hours diligently, and sometimes bills for phone calls, and indicates treatment that is at the group level is sometimes individual 1:1 work. Jack Bean earns the first prize for 3 months, but realizes many of his cases are running out t of hours. The owner asks Jack to make the appropriate crisis reports to request additional hours, and sends him a draft which has some language that hypes up the issues Jack is experiencing with his clients, for example, one the kids crumples paper and throws the crumpled paper, but the draft indicates that this kid throws projectiles as weapons. Not sure how best to interpret the wording, as he has been hit previously albeit accidentally by the crumpled paper, and because it would sound better to receive funding, Jack decides to submit the draft and see if he can get the best result for his client in terms of getting additional funding.

Contingency Map B: The Unethical Decision

Antecedent Behavior Consequence (provide two outcomes)

0.5 points 0.5 points 2 points

Private Thoughts

Thought #1 (supporting the unethical decision):

0.5 points

Thought #2 (prompting a more ethical decision next time):

0.5 points

Contingency Map B: The Ethical Decision

Antecedent Behavior Consequence (provide two outcomes)

0.5 points 0.5 points 2 points

Case Scenario A: Burning Hours- Discussion Questions

List at least 2 specific codes from Bailey and Burch that were violated in the case scenario “Burning Hours”. (0.75 points)

List at least three barriers to making an ethical decision in this case scenario. (0.75 points)

How could you overcome those barriers to make sure you make an ethical decision? Describe three specific plans that go along with each of the barriers you listed in #2. (1.5 points)

Case Scenario B: Most Restrictive Not Effective

After passing the BCBA exam, you open a private practice. You receive your first inquiry for services from a parent named Elena who lives in the neighboring school district. She is seeking your services because her son, Matt, who is eight-years-old, is exhibiting challenging behaviors at home. When you follow-up about specific behaviors that are problematic, she says that he rarely finishes his homework, is refusing to do his chores, consistently uses disrespectful language, and does not comply with her directions. Elena says that she has sought help from the school but what they have suggested has resulted in little improvement and the school says that they cannot control his behavior at home. You meet with Elena to discuss the situation and take Matt on as a client. You obtain parental consent to conduct a functional behavioral assessment and identify what you believe to be the function of the behavior. You then take the time to explain the results of the FBA and your ideas for an intervention/treatment plan. When doing this, you are careful to describe the goals and rationale for your intervention procedures in easy to understand language and also model them for Elena. Satisfied that she understands the plan and is capable of carrying it out, you and the parent sign a contract to begin the treatment that was agreed upon. As part of the contract, you will visit the house weekly to work with Matt and record data on progress each week. After working with Matt for one month, you sit down for your treatment effectiveness meeting with Elena at which time you share the data that has been collected. During this meeting, she tells you that although she is generally happy with the course of therapy and appreciative of your work with Matt, she does not agree with your plan of providing rewards (e.g., attention; tokens; praise) to Matt for things that he should be doing already (e.g., homework; using respectful language; complying with requests).  She desires to move forward with treatment but wants to significantly reduce the amount of rewards Matt receives and focus on using punishment as this is the only way that kids learn what and what not to do.  She states that she does not want to implement anything cruel (e.g., hitting; screaming, deprivation of food) but does want to raise him how she was raised and not reward him for things that she did as a child without rewards. You decide to implement a punishment protocol and remove the reinforcement based system, hoping to appease the mother. You decide if it works then the mother will be happy, and if it does not you can revisit the change with the mother at that point.

Contingency Map B: The Unethical Decision

Antecedent Behavior Consequence (provide two outcomes)

0.5 points 0.5 points 2 points

Private Thoughts

Thought #1 (supporting the unethical decision):

0.5 points

Thought #2 (prompting a more ethical decision next time):

0.5 points

Contingency Map B: The Ethical Decision

Antecedent Behavior Consequence (provide two outcomes)

0.5 points 0.5 points 2 points

Case Scenario B: Most Restrictive Not Effective- Discussion Questions

List at least 2 specific codes from Bailey and Burch that were violated in the case scenario “Most Restrictive Not Effective”. Make sure to explain why you think the codes were broken. (0.75 points)

List at least three barriers to making an ethical decision in this case scenario. (0.75 points)

How could you overcome those barriers to make sure you make an ethical decision? Describe three specific plans that go along with each of the barriers you listed in #2. (1.5 points)

Examining Emotions, Attitudes, and Job Satisfaction

Student’s Name:

Institution:

Examining Emotions, Attitudes, and Job Satisfaction

Positive work Environment

In improving positive environment Joe creates great correspondence so as to make employees feel they can identify with the manager and that they are congenial, they will believe the manager. Making a decent correspondence style from the earliest starting point make workers feel better and help keep more content. Furthermore, group attitude get employed. When staff considers they are group unit; they are certain to each other instead of everybody for themselves. Also, positive contribution frequently offers feedback when something is not correct, while they ignore giving attention when an employee has made a decent presentation. Joe searches for genuine motivations to furnish staff with positive input by praising when they do things right more regularly than when they are doing things erroneously. Additionally positive working surroundings are available. A positive environment amplifies the demeanor and activities of the individuals who work. There is periodical examination to check whether the physical setup makes a positive feeling. Joe keeps it positive whether one is attending to an issue or giving an assessment; one attempts to say everything on a positive note. The leader concentrates on the changes that one wants to see, as opposed to harping on what the individual has not been doing (Aniket al., 2013).

Improving job Performance

Workers are persuaded by accomplishment of objectives, and they discover pride in attaining or surpassing the objectives. The administrator makes objectives intended to bring individual and expert fulfillment. For instance, issues a quarterly reward focused proceeds, and then set an objective to surpass those numbers and a bigger reward. Joe as well set an objective to increment departmental generation to get the official group to take into account vital updates and progressions to departmental supplies. According to Taneja, (2014), administrators who feel the need to perform the majority of the regulatory and managerial errands for their specializations alone are adding anxiety and distancing the staff. They know hot figure out how to get workers included in settling on the day by day preferences by enabling members to create their work routines, have a week by week staff meeting where the workers give departmental issues. The representatives will experience a feeling of contribution in the accomplishment of the division, and one will have diminished the anxiety and gather the fulfillment of enhancing worker advancement (Taneja, 2014).

Emotional intelligence in leadership

In managing relationship, leaders can employ mindfulness and regulation towards one-self. In the case of mindful, one know how one feel, and know the feelings and one’s activities that can influence the individuals around. The leader starts by being mindful when in an administration position. Additionally, it means having a reasonable picture of the qualities and shortcomings, and it means acting with tranquility. Keeping a diary – diaries help one enhance the mindfulness. In the event that one uses a couple of minutes every day recording the contemplations, this can move one to a higher level of mindfulness. Ease off – when one encounter annoyance or other solid feelings, back-off to inspect why. Keep in mind; regardless of what the circumstances, one can simply pick on the response. The second trait is the regulation toward oneself. Pioneers who direct themselves viable seldom verbally assault others, settle on hurried or enthusiastic choices, generalization individuals, or bargain their qualities. Regulation toward oneself is about staying in control. It is the component of enthusiastic knowledge, as indicated by Jansen et al. (2014), additionally covers a pioneer’s adaptability and duty to individual responsibility (Jansen et al., 2014)

Leadership traits to increase competitive advantage

First is to communicate. In any association, information is force, and extraordinary pioneers guarantee that each representative, from the extremely top to the exceptionally bottom of the organization line, is furnished with complete and forward facts about the association’s objectives, execution, triumphs and disappointments. To accomplish this level of association, one ought to likewise give sufficient channels to two-path correspondence in the middle of management and supervisors, enthusiastically requesting their thoughts for development and remunerating workers for putting forward (Daft, 2014).

Secondly is to be an unequivocal. A standout amongst the most fundamental obligations of any pioneer is to decide. Profoundly powerful pioneers are not hesitant to be conclusive and to make extreme calls immediately when circumstances oblige. When one has the entire facts one have to settle on a well-informed choice, then don’t flatter -make it. Also, once one settles on a choice, then stay with it unless there is an especially convincing purpose behind to transform. Regardless of what kind of association or industry, it is conceivable to turn into a more successful pioneer, moving the people to give absolute best each day of the week. Make a state of honing these seven initiative characteristics, and one will be a profoundly successful leader.

Thirdly is to help and encourage the group. For individuals to do the absolute best work, they require a hierarchical environment that back the people by making it sheltered to go out on an extremity, to come clean, and to talk up … without being rebuffed for doing so. Help the members by making this sort nature’s domain, and it is going to encourage advancement to accomplishing the firm’s objectives and hence creating a competitive advantage (Landis, Hill, & Harvey, 2014).

References

Anik, L., Aknin, L. B., Norton, M. I., Dunn, E. W., & Quoidbach, J. (2013). Prosocial bonuses

increase employee satisfaction and team performance. PloS one, 8(9), e75509.

Daft, R. (2014). The leadership experience. Cengage Learning.

Landis, E. A., Hill, D., & Harvey, M. R. (2014). A Synthesis of Leadership Theories and

Styles. Journal of Management, 15(2), 97.

Jansen, C. A., Moosa, S. O., Van Niekerk, E. J., & Muller, H. (2014). Emotionally intelligent

learner leadership development: a case study. South African Journal of Education, 34(1), 1-16.

Taneja, S. (2014). Violence in the Workplace: A Strategic Crisis Management Issue. Journal of

Applied Business and Economics, 16(1), 33.

Variables into a Regression Equation and Summary of Recent Research

Name of the Student

Name of the Institution

Example of a Quantitative Study using Regression Analysis

Childhood obesity is currently one of the major health concerns in the US. The high rate of obesity among children aged below 12 years has been attributed to the consumption of energy-dense foods (Maher et al., 2007). A study can be conducted to confirm whether the high rate of obesity among children who are below 12 years is associated with the consumption of energy-dense foods. The National Health and Nutrition Examination has been conducting surveys on the consumption behaviors and the causes and rates of obesity and other health-related problems. I would use the national representative data collected by the organization to determine whether there is significant association between the consumption of energy-dense foods and the high rate of obesity among children who are below 12 years. I would use quantitative data on dietary energy density and the predictors of obesity (measures of Body Mass Index and waist circumference). I would apply regression models to the variables to determine whether there is significant association between dietary energy density and the predictors of obesity.

Methods of Selecting Variables into the Regression Equation

During the process of selecting variables into the regression equation, I would use either the forward inclusion method or the stepwise-selection multiple regression. The forward inclusion method involves addition one independent variable at a time to the regression (Sawilowsky, 2007). I would select one predictor of obesity that I expect to have the highest correlation with the dietary energy density and put it first into the equation. Then, I would then conduct regression analysis with just the selected variable. I would check whether dietary energy density has significant association with the variable. I would then repeat the same process with the other variables, each at a time. Alternatively, I can use the stepwise-selection multiple method. The stepwise-selection multiple regression is almost similar to the forward inclusion method (Sawilowsky, 2007). In the forward inclusion method, a variable that is added to the regression equation remains there during the subsequent regressions. However, in the stepwise-selection multiple regression, a variable that has no significant contribution to the equation is not included in the subsequent calculations. The two methods would help to determine whether each of the three predictors of obesity has significance association with dietary energy density (Veney, Kros & Rosenthal, 2009).

A critical analysis and application of this study

Over the past one decade, the rate of obesity among children has been rising rapidly. Studies have linked the problem to lifestyle behaviors (Maher et al., 2007). In particular, studies have linked the high rate of obesity among the children to the consumption of energy-dense foods. In most cases, energy-dense foods, high in added fats, added sugars and refined grains are inexpensive and palatable. However, they are associated with poor diet quality and high level of energy intake. Such foods have been found to contribute to obesity (Maher et al., 2007). However, the link between the consumption of energy-dense foods and the development of obesity is not well understood. Whereas some studies have found significant association between the two, others have not. The findings of the study would be useful to add more evidence on the existing knowledge. If the study would show significant association between the independent and dependent variables, the findings would be useful to the public, health professionals and organizations that campaign against lifestyle behaviors that may lead to obesity.

Summary of Recent Research

Mongkolsomlit, S., Patumanond, J., Tawichasri, C., Komoltri, C. & Rawdaree, P. (2012). Meta

Regression of Risk Factors for Microalbuminuria in Type 2 Diabetes. Southeast Asian J

Trop Med Public health, 43(2), 445-466

Mongkolsomlit et al. (2012) conducted a study to determine the risk factors that are associated with microalbuminuria in patients with type 2 diabetes. Mongkolsomlit et al. (2012) analyzed 22 previous empirical studies related to the study topic and conducted a meta-regression analysis on the risk factors and microalbuminuria. As well, the researchers applied the random effect model to obtain pooled odd ration estimates. Mongkolsomlit et al., (2012) found four risk factors to have significant association with microalbuminuria, namely smoking, uncontrolled hypertension, poor glycemic control and central obesity. Mongkolsomlit et al. (2012) concluded that there is need for establishment of health promotion programs in order to mitigate the risk factors in patients with type 2 diabetes.

The null hypothesis and alternative hypotheses

The null hypothesis (H0): Smoking, age, gender, uncontrolled blood pressure, dylispidemia, uncontrolled hypertension, duration of diabetes, poor glycemic control, and central obesity (body mass index) do not have significant association with microalbuminuria in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Alternative hypothesis (H1): Smoking, age, gender, uncontrolled blood pressure, dylispidemia, uncontrolled hypertension, duration of diabetes, poor glycemic control, and central obesity (body mass index) have significant association with microalbuminuria in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Regression Analysis Results

Mongkolsomlit et al. (2012) applied meta-regression analysis to the identified risk factors and microalbuminuria. The analysis found that out of the risk factors identified in the previous studies, smoking, uncontrolled hypertension, poor glycemic control and central obesity were the only risk factors that were significantly associated with microalbuminuria in patients with type 2 diabetes. The regression results for smoking, uncontrolled hypertension, poor glycemic control and central obesity were; 1.37, 95% CI 0.95-1.98; OR 1.26, 95% CI 1.08-1.46; 0.79, 95% CI, 0.63-0.99; and 1.43, 95% CI, 1.14-1.80, respectively (Mongkolsomlit et al., 2012).

Type of Data Required and the Assumptions of the Test

The study needed to use quantitative data on the results of the previous studies examined. The researchers needed to extract data from previous cohort studies, case-control studies and analytical cross-sectional studies. The main assumption of the study was that the there was a high level of heterogeneity in the findings derived from previous studies. The researchers found significant level of heterogeneity inn the results of the previous studies.

Whether the Study is Statistically Significant

Mongkolsomlit et al. (2012) conducted tests for statistical significance of the level of heterogeneity in the studies from which the data was derived. The results indicated that the heterogeneity in the previous studies, with regard to smoking and central obesity, were not statistically significant (p< .05). The study found a statistically significant level of heterogeneity with regard in the results for uncontrolled hypertension and poor glycemic control (p< .05).

Statistical significance refers to the probability that an outcome has a high probability of being true and that it has not occurred due to chance (Veney et al., 2009).

The Possible Implications of the Study

The previous studies on the risk factors associated with microalbuminuria have found mixed and controversial results. The meta-regression analysis by Mongkolsomlit et al. (2012) highlighted the overall effect specific risk factors examined by previous researchers. The study harmonized the findings from previous studies and it identified the specific risk factors that have significant impact on the development of microalbuminuria in patients with type 2 diabetes. In addition, previous studies have shown that microalbuminuria causes cardiovascular and nephropathic complications in persons with type 2 diabetes. Mongkolsomlit et al. (2012) highlighted the importance of avoiding health behaviors that may lead to the development of microalbuminuria and the associated complications.

References

Jekel, J. F. (2007). Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Preventive Medicine. London: Elsevier

Health Sciences

Maher, E. J., Li, G., Carter, L. & Johnson, B. D. (2007). Preschool Child Care Participation and

Obesity at the Start of Kindergarten. Pediatrics, 122 (2), 322 -330

Sawilowsky, S. S. (2007). Real Data Analysis. New York, NY: IAP

Veney, J. E., Kros, J. F. & Rosenthal, D. A. (2009). Statistics for Health Care Professionals:

Working With Excel. California: John Wiley & Sons

Name:

Instructor:

Subject;

Date:

a.)What did the framers mean by a republican form of government?

Framers defined republican form of government as government established by the people and not by the state. The government sought to protect both liberty and order, based on a written constitution, which combined federalism, separation of powers and principles of popular consent (Wilson et al. 47).

b.)What offices were elective offices in the early years of the Constitution?

The elective offices were the same in today’s constitution. They were the President, members of the House of Representatives and senators. The people directly elected House of Representatives while state legislatures elected the senators. An electoral college elected by the people elected the President.

c.)Who was allowed to vote?

Only the adult white males who owned property were allowed to vote. The delegates excluded all white males without property, all women, slaves, servants, Native Americans and some African Americans from voting (Wilson et al. 43).

d.)What offices were changed to elective, directly or indirectly?

The senate was elected by the legislatures of the various states while this changed where the Senate is now elected by popular vote. An electoral college selected the President and Vice-President. This changed where electors vote by balloting for two people, and the person with the greatest number of votes becomes the President (Wilson et al. 43).

e.)How was the electorate expanded to include voters that are more eligible? What events, amendments, laws, etc. brought this enlargement of the voter base about?

Suffrage was expanded to include more people based on different age groups, sex and race. Lowering the voting age to 18 years, banning literacy tests and providing translations on all electoral material for non-English speaking citizens are amendments to include a greater number of voters.

f.)Why don’t eligible voters take advantage of this right today?

Young people constitute about 42% of the voters. They eligible to vote, but they do not vote. This is because they feel neglected during campaigns where they are not targeted during the campaigns. The older people do not vote because they have busy schedules, thus cannot find time to vote (Wilson et al. 176).

g.)What, if anything, should be done to increase voter participation?

Presidential candidates should not ignore the young people during campaigns. The government should make the voter registration easier by making it available on the internet, satellite locations and Election Day registration. It should also increase polling stations on Election Day.

Work Cited

Wilson, James, Dilulio, John, Bose, Meena. American Government: Institutions & Policies, 12th ed. Massachusetts: Cengage Learning, 2011. Print.