Social networking site does more bad than good Essay

Social networking site does more bad than good - Essay Example Evidence exists that the use of these sites has a negative effect on individual lives. A research done concluded that longer use of internets had a strong association with â€Å"increased depression, loneliness, and smaller social circles† (Ahn 1441). The effect occurs, as individuals are mostly isolated from their friends and families due to heavy reliance on SNS. As a result, such individuals psychological well-being is affected. Secondly, SNS have been found to affect student’s performance in schools. The effect has been noted in reduced grades to persistent users of these sites. For example, in one of a conference paper by Karpinski (2009), it noted that college Facebook users have lower GPAs as compared to nonusers of the site (Ahn 1442). The argument was that users are most likely to spend longer time at the expense of studying. On the other hand, these sites have led to cyber bullying. Perpetrators of cyber bullying have significantly used these sites (Jung 1). Hence, those that use these sites especially kids are more prone to cyber bullying. Usually, perpetrators hide their real identities to terrorize victims (Jung 1). The vulnerable kids are likely to develop mental problems and sometimes even contemplate committing suicide. Ahn, June. â€Å"The Effect of Social Network Sites on Adolescents’ Social and Academic Development: Current Theories and Controversies.† Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology 62(8) (2011): 1435-1445.

Gestational Diabetes Essay Example for Free

Gestational Diabetes Essay Gestational Diabetes is high blood sugar (diabetes) that starts or is first diagnosed during pregnancy. It is a condition in which women without previously diagnosed diabetes exhibit high blood glucose levels during pregnancy, especially during third trimester. There is still the question whether the condition is natural during pregnancy (Serlin Lash 2009). Causes, Incidence, and Risk Factors Pregnancy hormones can block insulin from doing its job. When this happens, glucose levels may increase in a pregnant women’s blood. You are at greater risk for gestational diabetes if you: are older than 25 when you are pregnant, have family history of diabetes, gave birth to a baby that weighed more than 9 pounds or had a birth defect, have high blood pressure, have too much amniotic fluid, have had an unexplained miscarriage or stillbirth, or were overweight before the pregnancy (Benjamin Pridijan 2010). Symptoms Usually there are no symptoms, or the symptoms are mild and not life threatening to the pregnant woman. The blood sugar (glucose) level usually returns to normal after delivery. Symptoms may include: blurred vision, fatigue, frequent infections, including those in the bladder, vagina, and skin, increased thirst, increased urination, nausea and vomiting, and weight loss despite increased appetite (Benjamin Pridijan 2010). Signs and Tests Gestational diabetes usually starts halfway through the pregnancy. All pregnant women should receive an oral glucose tolerance test between the 24th and 28th week of pregnancy to screen for the condition. Women who have risk factors for gestational diabetes may have this test earlier in the pregnancy (Serlin Lash 2009). Once you are diagnosed with gestational diabetes, you can see how well you are doing by testing your glucose level at home. The most common way involves pricking your finger and putting a drop of blood on a machine that will give you a glucose reading (Serlin Lash 2009). Treatment The goals of treatment are to keep blood sugar (glucose) levels within normal limits during pregnancy, and to make sure that the growing baby is healthy (Cohen-Almagor R. 2000). Watching the baby The health care provider should closely check both mother and baby throughout the pregnancy. Fetal monitoring will check the size and health of the fetus. A nonstress test is a very simple, painless test for the mother and baby. A machine that hears and displays the baby’s heartbeat (electronic fetal monitor) is placed the the mother’s abdomen. The health care provider can compare the pattern of the baby’s heartbeat to movements and find out whether the baby is doing well (Cohen-Almagor R. 2000). Diet and Exercise The best way to improve the diet during pregnancy is by eating healthy foods. The expectant mother should talk to her doctor or dietitian if vegetarian or on a special diet. In general, when diagnosed with gestational diabetes the diet should be moderate in fat and protein, provide carbohydrates through foods that include fruits, vegetables, and complex carbohydrates such as bread, cereal, pasta, rice. Foods that contain a lot of sugar, such as soft drinks, fruit juices and pastries should be avoided. If managing the diet does not control blood sugar levels, then the physician may prescribe diabetes medicine by mouth or insulin therapy (American Diabetes Association 2008). Prognosis Most women with gestational diabetes are able to control their blood sugar and avoid harm to themselves or their baby. Pregnant women with gestational diabetes tend to have larger babies at birth. This can increase the chance of problems at the time of delivery, including: birth injury (trauma) because of the baby’s large size, delivery by c-section. The baby is more likely to have periods of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) during the first few days of life. Mothers with gestational diabetes have an increased risk for high blood pressure during pregnancy. There is a slightly increased risk of the baby dying when the mother has untreated gestational diabetes, controlling blood sugar levels reduces this risk (Serlin Lash 2009). High blood glucose levels often go back to normal after delivery. However, women with gestational diabetes should be watched closely after giving birth and at regular doctor’s appointments to screen for signs of diabetes. Many women with gestational diabetes develop diabetes within 5-10 years after delivery (Serlin Lash 2009). Prevention Beginning prenatal care early and having regular prenatal visits helps improve the health of expectant mother and her baby. Having prenatal screening at 24-28 weeks into the pregnancy will help detect gestational diabetes early. If overweight, decreasing BMI to a normal range before getting pregnant will decrease the risks of developing gestational diabetes (Benjamin Pridijan 2010).

Public Expenditure on Education in India

Public Expenditure on Education in India Abstract Prioritizing amongst the competing ends for the government treasury is a big challenge for a developing country like India. Poverty eradication, health and other crucial social needs compete with education and create fiscal pressures. But an investment in education is considered inevitable. This research paper compares public expenditure on education in India in 2005-06 and 2010-11. As observed, government spent more on revenue account than capital account. Share of the State and Union territories in public expenditure on education was more than that of the Centre. States/UTs spending were highest for Non-plan expenditure across all categories of public expenditure on education. Spending was almost double in 2010-11 as compared to 2005-06 in absolute terms but the relative shares between categories hardly changed. Share of expenditure on education was highest for elementary education followed by secondary education, university education higher education, technical education and then adult education. Key words Public expenditure, education, plan, non-plan, revenue, capital, India INTRODUCTION There are primarily three sources of financing the education in India i.e. financing through central government, state government and non-government sector (including parents, non-government organizations, banks, philanthropic contributions and as a part of corporate social responsibility activities amongst others). Government is expected to shoulder greater responsibility in providing for education due to the social returns associated with education. The central and state financing is further bifurcated in Revenue account and capital account and Plan and Non-plan expenditure. Expenditures on capital account are long-term in nature. They are used for acquiring fixed assets such as land, building, machinery and equipment. Other items that also fall under this category include loans and advances sanctioned by the Centre to the State governments, union territories and public sector undertakings. However, expenditures incurred for the routine functioning of the government departments and various other services, largely not associated with acquisition of assets such as subsidies, salaries, interest, etc. incurred by the government are referred to as revenue expenditure. Plan expenditure refers to the expenditure devoted towards the funding of the plans by the government. On the other hand, non-plan expenditure refers to the expenditures other than those devoted for the plans of government. Plan and non-plan expenditure are incurred on capital and revenue accounts. The objective of this paper is to analyze in detail the contributions made by the Centre and the State governments towards expenditure on education in 2005-06 and 2010-11 and observe the changes thereby. The selected years were chosen due to the availability of comparable data. Data for actual expenditure, revised estimates of budgeted expenditure and budgeted estimates were available, but for the purpose of analysis the data related to actual expenditure incurred was only considered. Henceforth State would refer to State and Union territories combine, CAPITAL AND REVENUE EXPENDITURE ON EDUCATION In absolute terms the budgeted expenditure on education and other departments by Central and State governments in 2005-06 accounted for INR 1,14,389 crores out of which the expenditure on revenue account was about INR 1,13,229 crores (98.99%), on capital account was about INR 1,143 crores (1%) and on loans and advances was about INR 17 crores (0.01%). Similarly for 2010-11 the total expenditure accounted for INR 2,97,311 crores out of which the expenditure on revenue account was about INR 2,93,478 crores (98.71%), on capital account was about INR 3,776 crores (1.27%) and on loans and advances was about INR 57 crores (0.02%). While the absolute budgeted expenditure on education almost increased 2.5 times over the period of five years, the relative share of revenue account, capital account and loans and advances almost remained same. There was just a shift of 0.27% from revenue to capital account. It was further observed that the entire contribution on capital account came from the Sta tes with no share at all from the Centre. As can be observed the share of revenue account left almost negligible share for capital account and loans and advances from the total expenditure. Since capital expenditures are incurred on procurement of fixed assets, the data indicated that lesser expenditure was incurred in acquiring land, building, machinery and equipment. Growth in education would be difficult if it was not duly supported by a growth in acquisition of assets. It can also be observed that the contribution for expenditure on salaries, subsidies and interest payments through revenue account was high. PLAN AND NON-PLAN EXPENDITURE While plan and non-plan expenditure were also incurred on capital account, the amount being comparatively meager, plan and non-plan expenditure on revenue account only had been analyzed. The total budgeted Plan and Non-plan expenditure by education and other departments on revenue account were INR 1,13,229 in 2005-06 and INR 2,93,478 in 2010-11 as suggested in the previous section. In 2005-06 Plan expenditure accounted for 27.9% and Non-plan expenditure accounted for 72.1% of the total budgeted expenditure on revenue account. Similarly in 2010-11 Plan expenditure accounted for 33.2% and Non-plan expenditure accounted for 66.8% of the total budgeted expenditure on revenue account. Therefore over a period of five years about 5% of the share of Non-plan expenditure was shifted to Plan expenditure. For 2005-06 and 2010-11 the Plan expenditure for Center was more and Non-plan expenditure of State was more. Across the total budgeted Plan and Non-plan revenue expenditure the highest share was of Non-plan expenditure by States. The Non-plan expenditure by States accounted for 67% of the total revenue expenditure in 2005-06 and 59% in 2010-11 respectively as can be seen in figure 1. Figure 1: Budgeted Plan and Non Plan Expenditure on Revenue account for Center and State for 2005-06 and 2010-11 Source: MHRD (2008, 2014) Hence it can be concluded that the budgeted expenditure on education was incurred most on the revenue account and of the revenue account the contribution of the non-plan expenditure by the State was highest. EXPENDITURE ON EDUCATION AS A PERCENTAGE OF GDP Expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP is a globally accepted criterion which is widely used for international comparisons of financing of education. Figure 2 depicts public expenditure on various sectors of education namely elementary, secondary, university higher, technical education as a percentage of GDP. Expenditure of Adult education was nominal and so has not been included. Public expenditure included the expenditure incurred by education department and other departments and ministries respectively for various sectors. India being a developing nation highest public expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP was incurred on elementary education in 2005-06 (1.61) and in 2010-11 (1.7). It was followed by expenditure on secondary education, university and higher education and technical education for 2005-06 as well as 2009-10. In comparison with 2005-06 public expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP was incurred more in 2010-11 across all levels of education. Expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP by states was highest for elementary education followed by secondary education, university higher education and technical education for 2005-06 and 2010-11. But the expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP by Centre was highest for elementary education, and was followed by university and higher education, technical education instead of secondary education, that got the least share. Compared to 2005-06 in 2010-11 the commitment by the Centre increased for university higher education and technical education with little left for secondary education. The contribution by the Centre almost doubled for university and higher education and more than doubled for technical education. For secondary education there was a fall in the public expenditure on education from 0.7% to 0.1% of the GDP from 20 05-06 to 2010-11. It can be further observed that the contribution of state for all levels of education was more than that for Centre for both the years 2005-06 to 2010-11 as can be observed in figure 3. While not much change could be observed in the share of State and Centre as a percentage of GDP in 2005-06 and 2010-11 for elementary and secondary education, a dramatic rise in the share of the Centre as compared to State could be observed for university higher education and technical education for the same period. Figure 3: Sector-wise share of State and Centre in Public expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP for 2005-06 and 2010-11 Source: MHRD (2008, 2014) The share of State (76.4%) and Centre (23.6%) for elementary education in 2005-06 almost remained stagnant as observed for State (74.7%) and Centre’s share (25.3%) in the GDP in 2009-10. Similarly the share of State (92.2%) and Centre (7.8%) for secondary education in 2005-06 was almost the same for State (89.9%) and Centre (10.1%) in 2009-10. Share of Centre for university and higher education in public expenditure as a percentage of GDP increased from 23.9% to 38.4% and that of the States decreased from 76.1% to 61.6%. Likewise the share of Centre for technical education increased from 33.3% to 50% and that of the States decreased from 66.7% to 50% from 2005-06 to 2010-11. Therefore the shift from the Centre to State in the share of university and higher education was to the tune of about 15% and for technical education it was about 17%. CONCLUSION The present scenario calls for serious action in support of financing the higher education access in India. A bigger financial commitment surpassing the inflationary conditions both by the central and the state government is warranted. A larger share as a percentage of GDP should be allocated for the expenditure on education to enhance the access to education. Higher funds would be required to address the expenditures on revenue account, like that for filling the vacant faculty positions. On the other side, the expenditure on capital account like raising the qualitative learning infrastructure would be obligatory to achieve a higher rate of enrolments. Access to equitable and qualitative higher education is the need of the hour for a country like India aspiring to excel in the economic growth and development. The commitment from government and private sector towards the investments in developing human capital will determine if the demographic advantage will be a dividend or a liability. Governments today increasingly face the limitation to raise means owing to the fiscal pressures, increased demand for access to education, rising costs, expectations for improvement in infrastructure, increasing the resources, enhancing, quality and competing prioritized demands on the government treasury. For a developing country like India, it is difficult to assume that government alone would be able to achieve the mammoth task of assuring access to education for the masses. Higher efficiencies can be achieved by the allocation of the funds on the criterion of ‘performance based funding’. Increased accountability should be accompanie d by increased autonomy to raise funds at the institutional level, with wisdom to assure the opportunity of access to quality education for anyone willing to pursue the same. The government through necessary regulatory changes should incentivize philanthropic and alumni contributions by allowing tax rebates on incurring such expenditures by individuals. Income generated through consultancies, research and development and providing training workshops in the area of expertise should be appreciated and encouraged. Considering the present and future demand for higher education in India, it cannot be denied that financing remains a serious challenge. To achieve this mammoth task, all possible sources of funding will have to be explored to assure a qualitative and equitable access to higher education.

The Gap :: Clothing Retail Sales Papers

The Gap Formating problems GAP.à  It’s on every third glass window that covers the front of the store.à  The windows display large posters and body forms, not mannequins because they don’t have heads, hands, or feet.à  They wear the latest items to arrive in the store, and look impeccable most of the time, because most of the time I dress them.à  The tiled floor between the glass doors gives way to a scratched and scuffed hard wood floor in desperate need of a wax and buff.à  The dust bunnies that seem to breed and quickly distribute themselves until they are under every fixture and on top of every shelf must first be exterminated.à  The lighting is a combination of muted fluorescent in the middle with focused spotlights on the items toward the outside of the store.à  I can catch a whiff of wool, or leather every so often, but usually my nose is polluted with Dream, Heaven, and Blue, constantly sprayed by customers testing it.à  Just smell the bottle, ok?à  Music is always pump ing out of the speakers from a tape that is sent to us from the corporate office.à  Sometimes the songs are danceable, sometimes not, but the volume is always loud enough so that you can listen to it if you get bored, but still hold a conversation over it.à  Conversations that often times occur between employees themselves.à  I’m not big on the conversing side of it.à  I listen to the music, thinking about what I really want to be doing right now.à  Do I want to fold this sweatshirt?à  Do I want to look for another size?à  No I want to put my tongue piercing back in and dance around the store busting a move for all the world to see.à  I can’t do that.à  I have to obey the corporate law because I’m on â€Å"Gap Time.†Ãƒ Ãƒ Ãƒ  Women’s items are on the left side, men’s on the right.à  Each is divided further into four sections: sections one two and three, and the denim section.à  They all have themes.à  Section one is usually seasonally casual; currently it’s filled with sweaters and wool pants, scarves, hats and mittens.à  Section two has all the khakis; it’s sometimes the Gap at Work section, or the Smart and Snappy section.à  Right now Women’s Two is filled with velvet pants, silk shirts, tuxedo skirts and pants, button up shirts, and turtleneck sweaters in merino wool.

Importance of Mother Nature

More and more people are becoming aware of the importance of saving mother earth. Indeed, the sense of urgency behind the drive to save the environment is stronger than ever before. After all, we only have one planet; if this one becomes totally ruined, our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren will not have a home. If we all do our part to save mother earth, it is definitely possible. Therefore, people should learn as much as they can about ways that they can help save the environment; by working together, our planet can remain habitable for centuries to come.Save Mother Earth Tip #1: RecyclingThe popularity of recycling has increased a great deal in recent years, as people search for ways of saving mother earth. Recycling can have a dramatic impact on helping to save the environment. Many different things can be recycled and reused, reducing waste and garbage in landfills and around the planet. In terms of helping to save the environment, recycling is an excellent strateg y. It makes sense, in saving mother earth, to reuse her resources as much as possible. Increasing recycling efforts can help us save the environment.Save Mother Earth Tip #2: EducationTeaching our children about the importance of saving mother earth is a great way of instilling lifelong habits that can help save the environment. Schools are increasing the teaching of subjects that pertain to helping to save the environment. Young children are encouraged to help save mother earth by engaging in various habits that promote eco-friendly techniques. Parents can also increase the green-education of their children by demonstrating every day strategies for helping in the fight to save the environment.If everyone does their part, today’s children will be tomorrow’s environmentalists, helping to save our planet from ruin.One major problem of the environment is lack of knowledge. If that little girl knew that she killed trees when she crumples the paper if she draws an oval inst ead of a circle, I think she wouldn’t continue doing that. And if she still did, it will be lesser compared to before. If only she knew. If only we knew. If only we knew earlier.

Analysis of Interracial Adoption essays

Analysis of Interracial Adoption essays The purpose of this paper is to introduce, discuss, and analyze the topic of adoption. Specifically, it will argue why interracial adoption should be allowed and why single parent adoptions should be allowed, as well. Interracial adoption (often referred to as "Transracial Adoption" or TRA), has become far more common in the United States, especially with all the attention stars such as Madonna and Angelina Jolie have received after adopting children from other countries and nationalities. Interracial adoption works because it helps place more children in loving homes and it helps create more understanding between the races, as well. In 1994, the Federal Government passed the Multi Ethnic Placement Act (MEPA), and in 1996, they passed the Adoption and Safe Families Act. These two acts ensured that race could not be used as a reason to deny placement of a child in an adoption or into a foster home (Simon, and Roorda 3). Thus, according to law, race cannot be used as a determining factor in an adoption, and it should not be a factor. One reason interracial adoptions became popular is the number of black children available for adoption. Traditionally, white families adopt white children, but there are fewer blacks who adopt, and this leaves more black children without adoptive families. One expert notes, "Blacks adopt at higher rates than their white counterparts, controlling for socioeconomic class, but there are not enough black adopters to adopt all of the black children in need of placement" (Fogg-Davis 4). Thus, interracial adoption guarantees more children a chance at adoption and a new life. Perhaps one of the biggest arguments against the practice of interracial adoption is the argument about how it affects the child. In fact, many social workers and adoption experts believe that interracial adoptions are not in the best interest of the child, who will lose the valuable and vital aspects of growing up with members...