Should Americans Deport Illegal citizens Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Should Americans Deport Illegal citizens - Essay Example The massive numbers of illegal aliens pouring across mainly the southern border has and continues to cause substantial economic, social and physical harms to legal citizens. These harms occur predominantly to those who are among the most vulnerable segments of the population, minorities, children and the poor. Simply enforcing the laws presently on the books and deporting illegal aliens is an economic necessity that would also result in decreased crime rates. Illegal immigrants receive more from public monies than they contribute which lowers the standard of living for legal citizens. Illegal immigrants contribute greatly to the overall population growth and health care, education and employment are the most impacted. Salaries are driven down by illegal immigrants willing to work for much less while their children, illegal and legal, overcrowd the schools. It’s the U.S. taxpayer who is sent the bill for their health care services as well. In addition, the large influx of illegal aliens burdens the already inadequate number of units classified as affordable housing and other welfare resources such as energy, water and land usage (â€Å"Illegal Immigration†, 2003). Those that support amnesty of illegal aliens currently in the U.S. argue that deportations would result in the splitting of families. Children born in this country could stay but their illegal parents would have to leave. They also express that it would be unfair for a child that has lived in the U.S. all their life to be suddenly thrust into the conditions of a third world country. While that is a compelling and reasonable argument, the cost is too great.

“Little Warrior” by Lucille O’Neal Essay Example for Free

â€Å"Little Warrior† by Lucille O’Neal Essay Lucille O’Neal wrote â€Å" Little Warrior†. The story is about the way Shaquille O’Neal got his name. A young single mother, strict grandparents house, and it was a racist time. A racist time was happening and Martin Luther King was killed. Giving her child a Muslim name with great meaning. Raising a child by yourself is hard to do and she gave her son the best foundations while growing up. The responsibilities and together in order to survive. Andy Greenberg wrote â€Å" A Step Beyond Human† . The story is about Hugh Herr both Herr’s legs were amputated six inches below the knee after a rock climbing trip ended in severe frostbite. His goal to build artificial limbs that are superior to natural ones. He lost both his legs as an adult and a man died saving his life. This Motivated him to help others by creating better prosthetic limbs. Nearly thousand soldiers who have lost limbs in Iraq and Afghanistan. Paralympics athletes will regularly outperform Olympic athletes. May need special disability laws for humans who decline to have their bodies mechanically enhanced, Herr says. The theme of the short story â€Å" Indian Education† by Sherman Alexie is despair, poverty, and alcoholism amongst the lives of the Native American people. In the beginning of his school, he was weak and always bullied and beaten by higher grade students, and punished by his teacher because of his race. As he was growing up, Victor was demanded by his teacher preparing to be a doctor in the future. However, he knew that all Indians had their own dream. Later, he talked more about his life, about how he learn to obey teachers order, his kiss to a white girl, his poor life, death of another Indian and the lost of football his game. At last, he finished his school year with a good ending, but his most of his former classmates learned almost nothing. Victor education was spend in an poor, tragic and full-of-discrimination life, and ended in a numb stoic. He was not the only one, but one among all the Indian tribe whom were called Indians during the past time. I can imagine that it was hard for the O’Neal family during a racist time and Ms. O’Neal was the only provider for the family. I would have been just like Shaquille by obeying my mother and striving for the best. I can’t relate to Hugh Herr awful mishap of loosing both legs. However, I like how he turned a awful accident into a great invention by inventing prosthetic legs. Victor definitely had a hard-life ass a Native American, He had dreams just like many of us today, however we have a greater chance of fulfilling or dreams.

Administration of Colonoscopy Reflective Account

Administration of Colonoscopy Reflective Account This essay aims to provide a reflective account of the authors personal and professional experience of a patient being admitted for a colonoscopy. To achieve this, a model of reflection will be used and a rationale provided to support this choice. The main point of discussion is communication and advocacy. Advocacy is central to communication and part of a caring nurse-client relationship (Arnold Boggs, 2003). The author as a newly appointed nurse on the Endoscopy Unit, will reflect upon how they could have been a better advocate for the patient in question. Ethical and legal issues will be examined. Finally implications for practice will be discussed. Using a model of reflection allows the nurse to re-appraise the care they have delivered to a patient/client and in doing so can evaluate the effectiveness of that care (Basford Slevin 1995), thus with the intention of influencing future practice for the better. Before starting the reflection process it will be more helpful for the professional to have a guideline or framework from which to work from (Palmer, Burns and Bulman 1994). Palmer et al (1994) view the process as something that is dynamic and they advise a cyclical style model using questions to provide a format for reflection. It is for these reasons that the Gibbs Reflective Cycle has been chosen (Gibbs 1998) for this essay. In accordance with the Nursing and Midwifery Council standards on respecting confidentiality in practice, all names and locations have been made anonymous (NMC 2008). As this is a reflective essay the author will refer to herself as I where appropriate. The reflective cycle is divided into six sections each with their own key questions. These are: Description: What happened? Feeling: What were you thinking and feeling? Evaluation: What was good or bad about this experience? Analysis: What sense can you make of the situation? Conclusion: What else could you have done? Action Plan: If it arose again what would you do? (Gibbs 1998) These areas for reflection provide the main topics for the rest of this assignment. When the practitioner has developed an action plan they can then return to the beginning of the cycle with the extra knowledge they have obtained from the first reflective experience (Gibbs 1998). It is here though with the description of the incident that the reflective cycle will begin. The following situation led me to question my actions when admitting a patient for a colonoscopy. The patient a 43 year-old male was referred for a colonoscopy by his GP following a three-week history of fresh rectal bleeding, anal itching (pruritus ani) and a change in bowel habit. Two weeks prior to the scheduled test, a pack containing a letter of appointment was sent to the patient by the endoscopy administration staff. Enclosed were two sachets of Picolax bowel preparation, full instructions for usage, highlighting the need to follow instructions precisely to ensure clarity of view and aid diagnostic accuracy. Included with this pack was a pre-endoscopy questionnaire to enable the nurse to assess the patients general state of health and identify any potential risk factors or complications, which may arise. A booklet was in this pack explaining the procedure, reasons for the test, complications and risks and what to expect during the test. The booklet stated other available investigations in order that he could make an informed decision and enable him to give informed consent for the test to go ahead. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) (2008) state that before any treatment or care is given to the patient, consent must be obtained. The BSG (2008) warn that consent issues are a major source of problems, sometimes leading to both complaints and litigation throughout the NHS. Therefore valid and robust consenting is now a required standard for the Endoscopy Global Rating Scale (GRS, 2009) which is a tool that enables endoscopy units to assess how well they provide a patient-centred service. Information in the booklet covered the option of sedation and the need for appropriate after-care. A consent form was enclosed for him to sign at home, providing the patient had read, understood an d agreed to under-go the procedure. A morning appointment was made for the patient and he arrived at the unit by himself. He was greeted by myself, I checked his personal details. This is in accordance with the BSG (2008) guidance for obtaining a valid consent for elective endoscopic procedures as it states that identity checks at key stages in the procedure are essential as some patients have even been known to undergo procedures intended for another due to loss of autonomy and anxiety which can result when entering the hospital. When this information was confirmed he was made to feel comfortable in the preparation room. The patient was clearly anxious. He was looking down a lot and he had his arms folded. He spoke very quickly and with a quiver in his voice one of the first things he said to me was, please knock me out for this. I explained to the patient that although we could give him some sedation which would make him feel more relaxed, he would still be awake as it would be unsafe to knock him out for the test. The sedation used for all endoscopic procedures is conscious sedation. This has been defined as: A technique in which the use of a drug or drugs produces a state of depression of the central nervous system enabling treatment to be carried out, but during which verbal contact with the patient is maintained throughout the period of sedation. The drug and techniques used to provide conscious sedation should carry a margin of safety wide enough to render loss of consciousness unlikely. BSG (2003, p3). He explained that he saw on the consent form that sedation would be offered and he interpreted this to be a general anaesthetic. I further explained to him that although the patient may feel sleepy, he would be conscious throughout the test and he would be able to talk to us. Cotton and Williams (2003) agree, believing that the desired effect of the sedation on the patient is sleepy, relaxed but rouse able. The patient clearly expressed a preference for sedation and it was established that the patients wife could collect him after his procedure and would remain with him over the next 24 hours. It is a requirement that any patient undergoing a procedure with sedation should be accompanied home by a responsible adult who will remain with them for 24 hours as sedative effects are known to remain in the body system for up to this period of time (Royal College of Surgeons, 1993). At this point, I as a newly appointed staff nurse on the unit was unsure whether the consent form that the patient had signed was valid as he originally thought that he was going to have a general anaesthetic when he had signed the form. I had been trained in taking consent which is documented in my e-portfolio as regards the national GIN training programme (Gastrointestinal in Nursing Training Programme), but was unsure what to do in this instance as I had never experienced the situation before. My initial thought was that is was not valid as the patient had a different perception of the test. I explained to the patient that I was just going to get some advice from my colleague (who had worked in the endoscopy unit for several years) as regards the validity of his consent form. I said that I would need to explain the situation to my colleague and he agreed to this joking that we did not both want to get into trouble from the headmaster and get a detention. I said that I would only b e a couple of minutes and left the room to find advice. I explained the situation to the nurse who was sat in recovery. The nurse said that the Endoscopist performing the procedure would go over consent again in the procedure room and not to worry about it. I expressed concern at this because I knew that consent must never be obtained in the procedure room. Guidelines readily available in relation to consent include British Society of Gastroenterology guidelines (BSG) (2008) and the Joint Advisory Group Guidelines (JAG) (2001). Booth agree that consent should not be taken in the procedure room. Guidance on good practice in consent implies that all patients must have had adequate time to absorb and reflect upon new information. This is not achieved if consent is obtained at the last possible moment which is in the procedure room itself. The nurse was dismissive and made unpleasant comments regarding men in general. There was a short distance between the nurse and the preparation room where the patient was so it is likely that the patient heard her remarks. I did not comment at this time even though I felt her remarks to be inappropriate. Luckily this gentleman was the first patient on the mornings list and as such, no other patients were in recovery to here the comments. The nurse picked up the patients notes and knocked on the preparation room door. I thought that I had better observe too as the nurse looked ready for a challenge. The nurse was very brusque in manner and asked the patient if he had read the booklet which the unit has sent out for the test and the section regarding sedation. The patient said that he had read the booklet and indeed the section regarding sedation but there was no mention that he would be awake after he had been given the sedative and assumed therefore that he would be asleep. The nurse then got a copy of the booklet. As she was flicking through trying to find the page with the relevant sedation information on, she said it clearly states in the booklet that if sedation is given, the patient will be awake throughout the test. However, when she got to the page regarding sedation there was no mention of this. It just stated that sedation would be offered prior to the colonoscopy but if the patient decided to have sedation that it was essential that someone was available to stay escort the patient home and stay with them overnight. The nurse went bright red, but did not apologise to t he patient and said that she was going to have words with the administration staff and left the procedure room. I felt guilty that I had not challenged the nurse regarding her rude manner with the patient at the time but felt intimidated and unable to voice my opinion, I also felt I had failed in my duty of care. I thought that the nurse had made a big deal when there was no need. I apologised unreservedly for my colleagues attitude and said that I would take steps to make sure that the booklet was clearer. I then realised that my original question regarding the consent form had not even been answered. I asked the patient if it was okay if I asked another colleague their opinion. The patient said yes but not that do-lally nurse and said that he would be making a complaint regarding her attitude. I then found the endoscopist who was actually going to be undertaking the patients test and asked them about the consent issue. They said that the consent form was fine as long as I reiterated that the patient would be awake and that they fully understood the test. The Endoscpist said that they would d iscuss the consent form with the patient again prior to the procedure as this is normal practice. I went back into the preparation room and said that the consent form was not a problem and that we would discuss it further. I spoke to the patient in a reassuring way, trying to compensate from his previous treatment from my colleague. I asked the patient if he understood the test he was about to have and its related risks. When I felt like the patient had a clear understanding of the procedure I asked him if he had any questions regarding the procedure, the patient replied he had no further questions. He added that he was even more nervous now after the experience with the nurse but just wanted it to be over as quickly as possible. I began to explain the procedure that he was going to undergo and asked if he knew why the GP had referred him for this procedure and relayed the benefits of viewing the bowel in this way. The patient was happy that a diagnosis might be forthcoming from this test. I then reiterated the possible risks of the procedure to the patient explaining that they w ere rare but never the less very real. The patient said that he understood the risks involved but wanted to go ahead with the test to obtain a diagnosis of his problems. I stated that if the patient was going to have sedation, then he should not drive or operate any machinery and should not sign any legally binding documents as the side effects from the sedation would still affect him for twenty four hours. I explained that the endoscopist would endeavour to complete the investigation however, if complications were to occur such as patient distress or poor bowel prep that the test would be abandoned. During a Gastrointestinal Endoscopy and Related Procedures Course at The University of Sheffield (Feb 2010, SNM 2215/3232) it was suggested that the guideline for informed consent was signified by the acronym EMBRACE, Explanation of the procedure, Motive for the procedure, Benefits, Risks, Alternatives, Complications and side Effects of the procedure. I believe that these guidelines were fully complied. Following the taking of a medical history and completion of a further in-depth health check questionnaire to ascertain any condition or reason to which sedation would be contraindicated such as elderly patients who may have significant co-morbidity and even in younger patients, the presence of heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, lung disease, liver failure, anaemia, shock and morbid obesity (BSG, 2003). It became evident that sedation would be an option. I explained to the patient that a nurse would be with him continuously throughout the procedure and would encourage him to breathe through any discomfort he may feel, or to push some of the air out of his bottom to relieve any pain. The patients blood pressure, pulse and saturations were taken and all were within acceptable limits. This provides a good baseline of the patients observations for the procedure itself and can determine any changes that may occur as a result of the cardio or respiratory depression that may be induced by sedation. Pascarelli (1996) states that during the procedure, the nurses primary responsibility is to monitor the patients vital signs along with communication with the endoscopist, administration of medications and emotional support to the patient. Clarke (1994) warns that patients who undergo invasive procedures are usually anxious and their vital signs are commonly elevated however the sedation lessens the anxiety, and all of the vital signs decrease therapeutically to that patients resting level. The sedation of choice in my workplace is intravenous Midazolam. Midazolam is a benzodiazepine reputedly well suited for use in endoscopy. It has an amnesic affect causing a reduction in memory recall. Clarke (1994) agrees saying that the goal of IV conscious sedation is some degree of amnesia. Patients will occasionally remember some parts for example, the initial introduction of the colonoscope. It is for this reason clear written discharge instructions are given to the patient prior to discharge, with a contact telephone number in the event of any problems and this was explained to the patient. Sedation may be indicated for many reasons. In the main these may include allaying of fears regarding a procedure, and aims to facilitate compliance with repeat procedures as a result of the amnesic affects induced. In many cases it assures co-operation and eases difficulties for the endoscopist and generally provides a rapid, safe return to the normal activities of daily living. The patient was asked to undress from the waist down and to put on the gown provided. When the patient was ready he was taken by myself into the procedure room and introduced to the endoscopist and the appointed staff nurses where the issues of consent and sedation would once more be discussed with the patient as it is the endoscopists ultimate responsibility. Throughout the experience, I felt that several important issues had been highlighted. One issue is that of the booklet that is sent out to the patients prior to the test. I believe that individual patients perspectives regarding the effects of sedation may vary greatly, from a mild sedative to a general anaesthetic. I conclude this to result from the individual interpretation of patient information received and relatives and friends giving a distorted image of their own experience due to the amnesic affect of the sedation. I would advocate good effective communication skills are paramount in allaying misconceptions and fears and the giving of a realistic overview is therefore essential. It was clear that there needed to be some improvement of the explanation of conscious sedation as I felt that is merely skimmed the surface explaining that the option of sedation was there and that there needed to be someone to escort the patient home and stay with them overnight. I felt that it needed to be clearer in the fact that it needs to mention that the patient will not actually be anaesthetised and furthermore that amnesia is a common side effect from the sedation given. This has subsequently been mentioned to the ward sister and the booklet has been updated to clarify conscious sedation. Perhaps one of the most obvious issues is that of the attitude of the other nurse. The BSG (2008) state that the patient must not be put under any pressure and have sufficient time to digest the information in order for consent to be valid. I felt that the attitude of the nurse in question did put pressure on the patient and caused further anxiety for the patient. I felt that the nurse spoke to the patient in a degrading way and showed a lack of professionalism. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC 2008) state that nurses must treat people as individuals and respect their dignity, must not discriminate and must treat people kindly and considerately. This was not the case in the above example. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (2008) state that no matter your circumstances you should always be treated fairly and with respect when using healthcare services. The Department of Health (2008) cite the UK Human Rights Act in their guidelines about human rights in healthcare when they state that people have an absolute right not to be treated in a degrading way. This means that it is unlawful for the NHS organisations to act in a way that is incompatible with the human rights act. Endoscopy nurses and indeed all NHS staff should be thinking about their practice and how their response to a situation may impact on a patient or clients human rights. If the patient had chosen to complain (as he said he was going to do) about the nurses attitude towards him, then the nurse may have well been in trouble. This experience has made me question my future practice as a registered nurse and how I would deal with a similar situation. Arnold and Boggs (2003) suggest that an advocate is someone who speaks out; supporting a person so that their views are heard and their rights are upheld, with the sole purpose of maximising the patients health. I was not assertive as I did not defend the patient and therefore did not fulfil my duty of care by becoming an advocate for the patient, ensuring he was treated with dignity and respect. I was worried about what may happen if I challenged the nurses practice. I need to develop my assertiveness and be able to communicate confidently and effectively with both patients and health care professionals. It is quite easy for a nurse to be an advocate for the patient when there is no stress involved but it can be quite difficult when it goes against other health professionals (Kendrick 1994). In this instance there was a conflict between the patients best inter est and my fear of challenging the nurse. If I had been a more experienced nurse on the endoscopy unit and known the nurse involved in this situation better, I think I may have been able to foresee her reaction to the patient and perhaps may not have approached this particular nurse or used my communication skills together with advocacy to diffuse the situation. Gates (1994) states advocacy is one of the main responsibilities nurses have; it is part of communicating on behalf of the patient and/or their families, acting as a mediator to express their needs and experiences. In health care, communication is fundamental to promoting the safe and effective care of patients. The Department of Health Knowledge and Skills Framework (KSF) (DoH 2004) is a competence framework to support professional development and career progression through the NHS and is about lifelong learning. It has core dimensions essential to providing quality care. Core dimension 1 (level 4) is concerned with communication. It states that the purpose of communication may include advocating on behalf of others. In order for me to progress as a nurse on the endoscopy unit I need to be familiar with and work within the KSF and other guidelines. On reflection, I feel that I did communicate with the patient well. Smith (1995) proposes that reflection does not necessarily entail an incident that was dramatic or negative; it could easily be something positive that a person finds they obtain valuable learning experience from. Communication with the patient has to be one of the most important aspects of nursing care. An integral part of this process is the way a nurse should use and understand body language (Wilkinson 1991). It is as vital a part of the communication process as speaking and should be treated as such. Body language can convey all human emotions either consciously or not and can show a persons true feelings regardless of what they have said (Pease 1984). I could tell by the way that the patient was communicating non-verbally that he was anxious. His facial expressions and posture showed the classic signs of someone being anxious (Teasdale 1995). Seeing this, perhaps I should have explained to the nurse beforehand t hat the patient was anxious so that she may have acted with a bit more respect towards the patient. It is clear that good clear communication skills can improve patient satisfaction and compliance, thus reducing anxiety. I believe that during the admitting process with the patient I did actively discuss the procedure with the patient. I felt that I gave the patient opportunity to ask questions and allay any fears he was harbouring. I sat beside the patient and spoke to him about the procedure in an informal and pleasant manner, giving him opportunity to voice any concerns that he had. I believe that the patient is at their most vulnerable and anxious upon entering the endoscopy unit and some encouraging reassurance makes the patients experience less of an ordeal. It is my opinion that an assessment of a patients personality and level of understanding regarding consent and sedation enables the development of a communication strategy accordingly thus providing a sound knowledge of the test, sedation offered and therefore informed consent. This essay has allowed me to reflect upon my own practice and how I should have acted differently by standing up for the patient at the time, not allowing my own lack of confidence to prevent this. I understand that the care of the patient is my first concern and that I must work with others as a team to protect and promote the health and wellbeing of those in my care (NMC 2008). Perhaps with this understanding, I will be less anxious about felling inferior around other professionals. I will articulate my professional judgement given a similar situation, using what I have been taught which is the best evidence based practice to rationalise my reasons for questioning their practice. I will aim to develop my assertiveness (as I realise that assertiveness does not come naturally to me) to speak out in the interests of the patient, whatever the situation. I will develop my ability to communicate with both patients and other professionals to offer them the opportunity to rationalise their own care delivery and reflect upon it. I believe these actions will enhance my professionalism and promote best practice, in the interest of the patient. I had chosen to focus on communication and advocacy as these are areas in which I feel I need to work on. Gibbs (1998) reflective cycle was used in this assignment because it is a familiar tool that I have found to be useful and uncomplicated. Learning from an experience and then reflecting on that experience is an excellent way of improving the skills in my chosen profession (Kolb 1984). From my own personal point of view, I went into this assignment with some degree of emotional imbalance for the fact that I did not speak out for the patient but now I feel that I have gained in several areas. I feel my reflective skills have increased and with it my confidence regarding tackling such situations again. Also I feel more relaxed with the idea of reflecting uncomfortable incidences because I can see the benefits in doing so.

Jungian Perspectives of Shakespeares Hamlet :: GCSE Coursework Shakespeare Hamlet

Hamlet:   Jungian Perspectives  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The term consciousness refers to "one’s awareness of internal and external stimuli. The unconscious contains thoughts, memories, and desires that are well below the surface of awareness but that nonetheless exert great influence on behavior."(Weiten)   In the view of the Jungian analyst, there are two forces that drive Hamlet. One is his anima, which is the "personification of the feminine nature of a man’s unconscious"(Platania). The second is Hamlet’s desire to reach individuation, which will be discussed later. In reference to the anima, Platania states that "we experience the opposite sex as the lost part of our own selves." There is in each man a feminine side hidden beneath his masculinity. The mystery of Shakespeare’s Hamlet is a phantom of literary debate that has haunted readers throughout the centuries. Hamlet is a complete enigma; a puzzle scholars have tried to piece together since his introduction to the literary world. Throughout the course of Hamlet, the reader is constantly striving to rationalize Hamlet’s odd behavior, mostly through the play’s written text. In doing so, many readers mistakenly draw their conclusions based on the surface content of Hamlet’s statements and actions. When drawing into question Hamlet’s actions as well as his reasons for acting, many assume that Hamlet himself is fully aware of his own motives. This assumption in itself produces the very matter in question. Take for example Hamlet’s hesitation to kill the king. Hamlet believes that his desire to kill King Claudius is driven by his fathers’ demand for revenge. If this were true, Hamlet would kill Claudius the moment he has the chance, if not the moment he knows for sure that Claudius is guilty of murdering his father. Why does Hamlet hesitate? One must call into question what Hamlet holds to be true. If Hamlet’s given motivation for killing the king is legitimate, then Claudius should die at about Act 3. Because Hamlet’s actions do not correspond with his given reasoning, one is forced to look for an alternate explanation for Hamlet’s behavior. In doing so, one will come to the conclusion that Hamlet is driven by forces other than what is o bvious to the reader, as well as Hamlet himself. Given this example, one must denounce the assumption that Hamlet is aware of the forces that motivate him, and understand that Hamlet’s true motivation is unconscious This unconscious force is the true reason behind Hamlet’s mysterious behavior.

Intel Company Analysis

Today, Intel is used in many personal computers and lab-tops. The company has made a brand for itself and has been able to sustain ranks among many notable competitors. Today, Intel holds greater than 80 percent of the microprocessors market because of the success of its Pentium chip (Semiconductor 1). This report contains information pertaining to the Intel Company from the beginning and up to 2001. As many computer chip companies Intel had battles being at the top of the competitor’s lists, as well as producing products worth individual attention. This report will give a background of the company, an industry analysis that will explain Intel’s top competitors in detail, a SWOT analysis, a financial analysis and will conclude with suggestions that can help the company grow further. The Intel Corporation began in 1968. Two men are named the founder’s of this company; Robert Noyce, Gordon Moore. Originally, Noyce and Moore wanted to name the company â€Å"Moore Noyce† after their names but realized it sounded like â€Å"more noise† and was not a suitable name for a computer chip company. The company was then named Intel for â€Å"integrated technology. The early focus of the company was on integrated circuit memory devices. One of the first tasks encountered by Intel was producing a DRAM (dynamic random access memory) with a lower price. In 1970, the 1103 was produced. The 1103 was the world’s first 1-kilobyte DRAM. This undercut prices and had increased performance while being smaller. By 1972 the 1103 was the bestselling semiconductor memory chip in the world and the first commercial computer available was the HP 9800 series. Intel was able to gain market share at this time and this allowed them to continue researching and developing new products. However, by 1978 Intel was a full generation behind the Japanese when it came to the 16K DRAM and by 1984 Intel’s total share in DRAMs was barely 1%. The EPROM was produced and it allowed easy programming and gave users the capability to erase memory with ultraviolet light. It was not until Intel decided to raise the prices of the EPROM technology that it made money and in 1984 the EPROM was Intel’s â€Å"money maker. † The microprocessor was invented in 1971 and at that time Intel did not see the potential to use it for personal computers. The 4004 microprocessor was primarily used in calculators but in 1974 the 8080 microprocessor became the standard and Intel became the Industry leader in 8- bit market (Intel 1). Then in 1980, Intel’s 8088 microprocessor was teamed with IBM’s first Personal Computer. This gave Intel a large competitive advantage. Grove stated: â€Å"The presence of IBM in the early ‘80s was crucial. By winning that contract, we won the whole industry design. † This led to the development of the 80386, the first 32-bit processor in 1985. The 386 was an instant success and at that time Intel also decided to sole-produce and stop sourcing to AMD. This led to an eight year legal battle that was eventually negotiated in 1995. To continue gaining competitive advantage Intel moved into other markets. In 1998 Intel begins moving into digital photography, video, networking equipment and Internet commerce markets by manufacturing special chips (Intel 1). However, by 2001 Intel announced it was going remain focused on microchips. At that time Intel had a clear competitive advantage over the microchip market. The SIC code for Intel is 3674 for semiconductors and related devices. The NAICS code is 334413 for semiconductor and related device manufacturing. The semiconductor industry is very cyclical. For instance, in the year 1995 sales grew 40% and were up to $150 billion but in 2001sales fell sharply to $139 billion (Semiconductor 1). In order for Intel to gain and maintain market share they needed to have unique success factors. There are many key success factors for Intel. Intel started with innovators. Noyce and Moore were able to take chances and risks that caused a very successful company. These two were also good managers. They made few mistakes and really took advantage of all their employees. They placed their employees as a top priority and stressed openness, innovativeness and responsibility (Carmichael 1). Intel Corporations top competitors are Texas Instruments, AMD, and Motorola. Texas Instrument started in 1930 by Dr. Clarence Karcher and Eugene McDermott. It started as a Geophysical service that had a unique way of using seismology to explore oil. In order to keep their equipment out of sight from competitors they hired J. Erik Johnson. The company made headway by teaming with the military and in 1961 TI invents the first computer with a silicon integrated base for the Airforce. Then, in 1967 TI invented the first hand-held calculator. Texas instruments have a variety of products from clocks to digital signal processors. Texas Instrument’s main competitive advantage over Intel is calculators. While Intel’s focus was personal computers, Texas Instruments was dominating calculators and the education campaign. AMD Corporation is a company similar to Intel. During the early years AMD and Intel worked together to produce quality products. AMD began in 1969 by founder Jerry Sanders. In 1982, IBM had AMD sign as a second source to Intel for their manufacturing (AMD 1). It was clear that these companies were competing to have the competitive advantage over each other. Another semiconductor company in the industry is Motorola. Motorola began in the 1920s by Paul Galvin. In 1993 Motorola was ranked third of the world’s semiconductor manufacturers (Semiconductor 1). During the early years Motorola had a communication focus. There first product was a battery eliminator that allowed customer’s to use radios without batteries. They began developing pagers and cell phones and their six sigma quality allowed for good competitive advantage. The five forces model helps to draw conclusions about the entire industry. For threats of new entrance the condition is low. In the semiconductor business many companies have patented products. The products produced in this industry are based on innovation. These patents will make it hard for a new entrant to join the industry. Another reason the threat of a new entrant is low in this industry is the asset specificity. This industry requires highly specialized technology and most potential entrants will be reluctant to acquire these specialized assets. For these reasons the threat of new entrants in this industry is low. For bargaining power of suppliers the condition is high. The condition is high because there is a significant cost to switch suppliers. An example of this is Intel’s relationship with PC manufacturers. Intel cannot switch manufacturers without expecting a high cost. The bargaining power of customers is associated with the impact that customer’s have on a producing industry. In the industry of Intel the power of customer’s is medium to low. In this industry the producer’s supply a critical portion of buyer’s input. Intel is the producer in this instance. They are supplying a crucial piece to the buyer and the buyer needs to be willing to pay the price for the piece of equipment. However, to have a competitive advantage in this industry there needs to be some bargaining power to the customers. Maintaining a reasonable price compared to other competitors is very important so the buyer’s keep coming back. In any industry there is going to be a threat of substitutes. In the industry of Intel the threat of substitutes is medium. Competitors in this industry are always going to try and invent the best processor that all individuals will eventually need. However, because of the number of patents and copyrights in this industry substituting other firm inventions become difficult. The last condition facing industries according to the five forces model is rivalry. In this industry the rivalry condition is high. There are many reasons it can be said that the rivalry is high in this industry. For one, the exit barriers are high. Even if the firm is unprofitable at a certain time the cost to exit the industry forces the firm to compete and stay in the industry. Second, high fixed costs in this industry intensify rivalry. The fight for market share in this industry is high because firms must fight to sell the large quantities in production. Another reason of high rivalry in this industry is the number of firms. With the large number of firms competing the rivalry increases because each firm wants to gain market share. Intel as a company can be looked at more in depth by a SWOT analysis. This analysis focuses on strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to the company. Intel has many strengths. One strength is their strong market position and brand name. The company started out with nothing and has become one of the best microprocessor companies. Advanced technology capabilities are also strength to the Intel Company. Without these advance technologies Intel would not be a successful company. The innovative technologies are at the core of the company. Another strength of Intel is their strategic alliances and partnerships. â€Å"The company has partnerships with major players including Asustek Computer, Comstar, Cisco, Fujitsu, IBM, Microsoft, Micron Technology, Sun Microsystems, Sprint,Verizon, and Yahoo! (Datamonitor). These partnership have enabled Intel to produce very significant projects. Also, partnering limits competition in the market. Without worrying about what the other company is going to come out with next, partnering allows for both companies to work together to come up with a great product Some weaknesses of the Intel company include their lack of customer concentration. Intel is a micro processing manufacturing comp any so the number of customer’s consuming the products is low. Intel has high dependence on these customers which reduces bargaining power. Not being able to reduce prices quickly can also hurt Intel. With Intel, reducing prices for customer’s quickly could hurt other areas of production which could lead to dissatisfaction in other areas. The response to customers is seen as weakness because in order to have a competitor advantage appealing to the customer is crucial. There are many opportunities for Intel as a company. Proposing acquisitions could broaden Intel’s portfolio and help them gain competitive advantage in the market. Intel could also grow in the global and PC market. â€Å"Intel offers products including microprocessors and related chipsets designed for the notebook and netbook market segments. Moreover, the company's Atom processor for these segments is very prominent with growing demand. Growing PC market will contribute to steady revenue flows for the company in near term (Datamonitor 11). † The last part of the SWOT analysis is the threats a company has. Increasing competition is a threat to Intel. When Intel’s competitors succeed in producing something a customer wants before them, Intel could run the risk of losing market share or position. No company wants to lose market share to another competitor. In Intel’s industry there is always a threat that another company will produce something at greater speed. Another threat to Intel is litigations and the regulatory commission. In the past Intel was investigated for alleged unfair business transactions, and alleged security failure. Future occurrences of these event will harm Intel’s reputation and investor reputation. The financial ratios and graphs can be found on the attached pages. The first analysis to look at is profitability. The net margin was used in calculating these numbers. By the graph you can see that Intel’s margin was the most profitable in the time periods 1999-2001. When a company has a high profit margin it means that they are selling their products at higher premiums. The graph shows that Intel sold its products at the highest premium. The next analysis estimates liquidity. Liquidity is the ability for a company to be able to meet there near term obligations. The current ratio was used in calculating these numbers. A firm wants a current ratio greater than one. If a firm has a current ratio greater than one it means that they are able to satisfy their near term liabilities. If a firm has a current ratio less than one it means the firm could have a liquidity issue. The graph shows all the companies were able to maintain a liquidity higher than one except Motorola in 2000. The next financial analysis was looking at leverage. The debt-to-equity ratio was used to determine how leveraged Intel and the competitor companies were. The debt-to-equity compares the companies liabilities to their equity. Companies want to have a lower percentage because that means they are using lower leverage and have a stronger equity position. From the graph it is apparent that Intel has the best leverage because of the lower percentage rates. The results shows that Motorola has a very low equity position because there liabilities outweigh there equities. The other two companies, AMD and Texas Instruments seem to be decreasing there liability numbers over time and in the coming years may have a better equity position. The last financial analysis estimate efficiency. The inventory turnover ratio was used to estimate these numbers. The inventory ratio tells you how often a company moves or sells inventory. To predict if a company has a good inventory turnover it is helpful to look at competitor’s results. In the graph included in the attachments, it can be observed that in 1999 and 2000 Intel had the second highest inventory turnover. This means that it took longer for Intel to sell inventories than Texas Instruments or Motorola at that time. However, in the year 2001 it had the lowest inventory turnover. In order to obtain a long lasting company these recommendations could help the company. Some immediate recommendations that should take place in 90 days or less could be to obtain ideas from employees to improve the company or how to gain competitive advantage. Listening to individuals that work for the company may help gain new ideas. Intel prides itself on the innovativeness their employees and it is important to give them a say in how they think the company is doing or where they think it can improve. Another immediate recommendation is a new marketing campaign to seek computer users to switch to Intel processors as opposed to competitors. I think it is important for consumer’s to understand the difference between core processors (such as Intel and AMD) not just the difference in the actual computer (like Dell and Apple). The average American does not know the difference and educating these individuals will help Intel gain a competitor advantage. Short term recommendations could include a price-reducing analysis. If the company could find ways to lower the prices of manufacturing they can gain competitive advantage. Also a short-term recommendation could be to research more about the cellular and wireless industry to see if it would be worth it to the company to branch out further form micro processors. Long term recommendations expand industry further not just for computer but gain market share in cellular and wireless devices. Intel has been the leader of microprocessors for many years. If they can use their knowledge Intel could expand .

Child Development Essay

Purpose of the course: The course meets Mondays and Wednesdays from 8:45 to 10:00 in Mayborn 105. My office hours are Wednesdays from 10-12 and nearly anytime by appointment in Hobbs 217a. The course is about experimental methods of research on child development. It is designed for students concentrating in child development, cognitive studies, or psychology. The prerequisites include at least one course about child development and at least one course about statistics. The course is built around empirical articles about child development (many of the articles are â€Å"classics† that you may have read about in your other courses) and around readings about statistics & research methods. The main purpose of the course is to bring to life the basic elements of experimental approaches to psychological science in the context of child development research. To accomplish this we will read chapters about statistics and research methods. These concepts will be anchored to child development by applying them to classic (and recent) research reports, by applying them to hands-on experiences of designing and implementing data collection protocols, and by applying them to the entire research process by writing a research proposal. Requirements: 1. Come to class and participate. This will count 5% of your final course grade. I hope everyone receives the entire amount of credit. I’ll distribute an attendance list at the start of each class. It is fine to miss two classes. If you need to miss, please email me the day before. As for participating in class – it is a good thing for students to ask & answer questions in class. Sometimes I’ll ask people to hold on to their questions and ask me after class, so I can continue with the lecture. 2. Midterm exam. This is the only test in the course and will count 40% of your final course grade. It is a â€Å"concept mastery† test. You will be expected to define, explain, and apply the statistical concepts and the research design concepts to the empirical papers that we have read up to that point. It involves teaming-up with classmates in order to identify a classic research study, to design dependent variables and independent variables based on that study, create an observation sheet, and observe a few children. Then students should, individually, summarize what you observed in a table, and report your observations within a scientific style format. It will count 15% of the your final course grade. 3. Term paper in lieu of a final exam. This is to be a 12-20 page paper roughly following the format of an NIH research proposal. It will count 40% of your final course grade. 4. Letter grades: Excellent or outstanding work will receive a grade of â€Å"A† or â€Å"A-â€Å". Good or very good work will receive a grade of â€Å"B+† or â€Å"B†. or â€Å"B-â€Å". Work that minimally fulfills the assignments will receive a grade of â€Å"C†, and work that does not fulfill the assignment will receive a grade of â€Å"D† or â€Å"F†. The Vanderbilt Honor Code: I strongly encourage students to brainstorm together, to study together, and to team up to prepare for tests together. However, all written work should be your own. Tests are to be taken on the scheduled day and assignments are due on the scheduled day. I will make exceptions for documented medical emergencies, family emergencies, and participation in official Vanderbilt events.