E-Culture: Ethical Issiues

Topic: E-Culture:Ethical Issiues Electronic technology is changing our life-style to a great extent. Advancement in the fields of information and communication technology (ICT) and electronics has resulted in the emergence e-commerce, e-business, e-banking, e-mails, e-organizations, e-governance, e-journals, e-books, e-medicine, internet, web-shopping, etc, which have set in a trend for e-culture. Electronic culture is enveloping the entire world, it is a global phenomenon.It is the ICT-availability and Internet access that provides opportunities for production of e-culture. e-Culutre: involves preserving and presenting cultural heritage in line with the challenges of the future; exhibiting valuable cultural assets clearly and informatively using state-of-the-art technology . However, the rapid development of ICT globally also has led to the growth of different ethical issues and made life enormously complex.These issues have virtually no boundaries and may affect any country across the globe. â€Å"Ethics are moral standards that help guide behaviour, actions, and choices. Ethics are grounded in the notion of responsibility (as free moral agents, individuals, organizations, and societies are responsible for the actions that they take) and accountability (individuals, organizations, and society should be held accountable to others for the consequences of their actions)†.ICT ethics are not exceptional from the above-mentioned view of ethics. According to some estimates, three quarter of the present generation of people in the countries saturated with computers will be spending 80 per cent of their free time in the cyberspace, therefore it is important to review the ethical issues because it threatens social environment of societies.Globalization and digital convergence in the emerging knowledge society has raised complex ethical issues in relation to the freedom of expression, access to information, right to privacy, intellectual and property rights. The concept is electronic commerce is the use of internet and the web to do businesses. ‘Commercial transactions involve the exchange of value across organizational or individual boundaries in return for products and services’.The internet and it use of e-com have raised several ethical issues about protection of customer and companies. One of the main issues for e-com is intellectual property which includes copyrights and software piracy. The explosion of interest in the internet, with growing numbers of people obtaining access to it has also increased the potential in ethical issue like breeching privacy and security. Purpose of this report is to address the several ethical issue faced by eCulture in terms of e-commerce and its impact on e-commerce .

Traditional Healing System

A PROPOSED APPLICATION OF ETHNOMEDICAL MODELS TO TRADITIONAL HEALING SYSTEMS Stanley Kipper Ethnomedicine has become a topic of intensive study in recent years due, in part, to the work of the World Health Organization and other groups attempting to facilitate cooperation between indigenous practitioners and those trained in Western allopathic biomedicine.This chapter describes two ethnomedical systems (the North American Navajo tradition and the South American Peruvian Pachakuti curanderismo) in terms of two different models, one designed by Siegler and Osmond (1974), and one designed by a task force of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Each of these indigenous systems are found to be comprehensive, covering each facet of the models, and pointing the way for possible collaboration between allopathic biomedicine and various indigenous systems of healing, a project that has accelerated due to public demand (Iljas, 2006, p. 90). The term â€Å"ethnomedicine† refers to the comparative study of indigenous (or traditional) medical systems. Typical ethnomedical topics include causes of sickness, medical practitioners and their roles, and specific treatments utilized. The explosion of ethnomedical literature has been stimulated by an increased awareness of the consequences of the forced displacement and/or acculturation of indigenous peoples, the recognition of indigenous health concepts as a means of maintaining ethnic identities, and the search for new medical treatments and technologies.In addition, Kleinman (1995) finds ethnographic studies an â€Å"appropriate means of representing pluralism†¦ and of drawing upon those aspects of health and suffering to resist the positivism, the reductionism, and the naturalism that biomedicine and, regrettably, the wider society privilege†(p. 195). In his exhaustive study of cross-cultural practices, Torrey (1986) concluded that effective treatment inevitably contains one or more of four fundame ntal principles: 1. A shared world view that makes the diagnosis or naming process possible; 2.Certain personal qualities of the practitioner that appear to facilitate the patient's recovery; 3. Positive patient expectations that assist recovery; 4. A sense of mastery that empowers the patient. If a traditional medical system yields treatment outcomes that its society deems effective, it is worthy of consideration by allopathic biomedical investigators, especially those who are aware of the fact that less than 20 percent of the world’s population are serviced by allopathic biomedicine (Mahler, 1977; Freeman, 2004; O’Connor, 1995).However, what is considered to be â€Å"effective† varies from society to society (Krippner, 2002). Allopathic biomedicine places its emphasis upon â€Å"curing† (removing the symptoms of an ailment and restoring a patient to health), while traditional medicine focuses upon â€Å"healing† (attaining wholeness of body, mind , emotions, and/or spirit). Some patients might be incapable of being â€Å"cured† because their sickness is terminal. Yet those same patients could be â€Å"healed† mentally, emotionally, and/or spiritually as a result of the practitioner’s encouragement to review their life, to find meaning in it, and to become reconciled to death.Those who have been â€Å"cured,† on the other hand, may be taught procedures that will prevent a relapse or recurrence of their symptoms. An emphasis upon prevention is a standard aspect of traditional medicine, and is becoming an important part of biomedicine as well (Freeman, 2004; Krippner & Welch, 1992). A differentiation can also be made between â€Å"disease† and â€Å"illness. † From either the biomedical or the ethnomedical point of view, one can conceptualize â€Å"disease† as a mechanical difficulty of the body resulting from injury or infection, or from an organism’s imbalance with its e nvironment. Illness,† however, is a broader term implying dysfunctional behavior, mood disorders, or inappropriate thoughts and feelings. These behaviors, moods, thoughts, and feelings can accompany an injury, infection, or imbalance—or can exist without them. Thus, one may refer to a â€Å"diseased brain† rather than an â€Å"ill brain,† but use the phrase of â€Å"mental illness† rather than of â€Å"mental disease. † Cassell (1979) goes so far as to claim that allopathic biomedicine treats disease but not illness; â€Å"physicians are trained to practice a technological medicine in which disease is their sole concern and in which technology is their only weapon† (p. 8). Healing models The Siegler-Osmond Model Comparisons between biomedicine and ethnomedicine can be made utilizing hypothetical structures such as the 12-faceted model proposed by Siegler and Osmond (1974). In the social and behavioral sciences, a â€Å"model† is an explicit or implicit explanatory structure that underlies a set of organized group behaviors. Their use in science attempts to improve understanding of the process they represent. Models have been constructed to describe human conflict, competition, and cooperation.Models have been proposed to explain mental illness, personality dynamics, and family interactions. I have modified the Siegler-Osmond model, making it applicable to both â€Å"physical† and â€Å"mental† disorders, although traditional practitioners usually do not differentiate between the two. The utility of the Siegler-Osmond model can be demonstrated by comparing a shamanic medical model, an eclectic folk healing model, and the allopathic biomedical model on 12 dimensions: 1. Diagnosis 2. Etiology 3. Patient’s behaviour 4. Treatment 5. Prognosis . Death and suicide 7. Function of the institution 8. Personnel 9. Rights and duties of the patient 10. Rights and duties of the family 11. Rights and duties of the society 12. Goal of the model. The Navaho Indian healing model The Navaho healing system serves as an example of the application of the Siegler and Osmond model. The term â€Å"Navaho† (or â€Å"Navajo†) is used by anthropologists to refer to the largest Native American tribe in the United States; the Navaho reservation in the south west part of the country comprises 16 million acres.The word â€Å"Navaho† is derived from the Spanish term for â€Å"people with big fields,† but in their own language, they call themselves the Dineh people. They are members of the southern Athapaskan linguistic group and occupy plateau areas of north eastern Arizona, overlapping into New Mexico and Utah. Geertz (1973) points out that the entire lifestyle of a culture is built upon its mythic view of â€Å"reality. † The Navaho ethic values â€Å"calm deliberativeness, untiring persistence, and dignified caution† and the Navahos view nature as â⠂¬Å"tremendously powerful, mechanically regular, and highly dangerous† (p. 30). While the dominant U. S. culture attempts to â€Å"tame nature,† the Navaho worldview seeks to live in respectful harmony with it. Theories of sickness and methods of healing make up a large part of this great counterpoint focused on harmony: The stricken patient is given a vocabulary in terms of which to grasp the nature of his or her distress and relate it to the wider world (Geertz, 1973), providing an explanation, and converting energy into a form that can heal.Sandner (1979) has identified the most important values in Navaho mythology as the acquisition of supernatural power (notably for the maintenance of health), the preservation of harmony in family relationships, and the achievement of adult status. However, this status operates in tandem with cooperation with and respect for other family, clan, and community members. The diagnosis is made by the Navaho diagnostician in consultation with the patient and the patient's family, all of whom work together in determining the cause of sickness.The role of the medicine man in diagnosis is usually limited, as he later carries out instructions given by the diviner (Sandner, 1979). Navahos have constructed three major diagnostic categories of mental illness. â€Å"Moth craziness† is characterized by fits of uncontrolled behavior (e. g. , jumping into the fire like a moth), rage, violence, and convulsions; it is attributed to incestual activities. â€Å"Crazy violence† has some of the same external manifestations as â€Å"moth craziness† but is due to alcoholism. â€Å"Ghost sickness,† ascribed to sorcery, manifests in nightmares, loss of appetite, dizziness, confusion, panic, and extreme anxiety.When someone knowingly or accidentally breaches taboos or offends dangerous powers, the natural order of the universe is ruptured and â€Å"contamination† or â€Å"infection† occurs that must be redressed. Etiology is seen as the intrusion of a harmful agent that destroys the natural harmony between individuals and their surroundings, especially in circumstances of exposure to lightning, whirlwinds, or such animals as bear, deer, coyotes, porcupines, snakes, and eagles that are inappropriately trapped, killed, or eaten.Sometimes these harmful agents appear in frightening, ominous dreams. Contact with spirits of the dead is especially hazardous, as is sorcery. The diviner, the medicine man, the patient, and the patient’s family work together in determining the cause of sickness (Sander, 1979). The patient's behavior determines what type of â€Å"Chant Way† will be utilized in his or her treatment. A person who is unable to resolve grief, who harbors fears of accidents, and who speaks of chest pains usually will be told to have an â€Å"Evil Way† ceremony.The patient's dreams are important as a diagnostic aid; the most ominous dreams are those of being burned, falling off a cliff, and drowning; dreams of dead relatives are especially portentous. During treatment, the Navaho hataalii (or â€Å"singing† shaman) utilizes a number of therapeutic procedures, most notably one or more of the 10 basic â€Å"Chant Ways† and their accompanying sand paintings. These are complex rituals that center on cultural myths in which heroes or heroines once journeyed to spiritual realms to acquire special knowledge. The symptoms for which a given chant is prescribed are based on connections with the specific chant myth.For example, the â€Å"Hail Way† is prescribed for muscular tiredness and soreness because the hero, Rain Boy, suffered from these symptoms when he was attacked by his enemies; the â€Å"Big Star Way† protects the patient against the powerful influences of the stars and the dangers of the night. The â€Å"Night Way† is said to be useful for blindness, deafness, and mental illness because the â₠¬Å"Night Way† hero confronted each of these dangers. The â€Å"Beauty Way† is used for rheumatism, sore throats, digestive and urinary problems, and skin diseases—difficulties faced by the chant hero.Ritual chanting takes a multi-modal approach that contributes to its effectiveness. The repetitive nature and mythic content is easily deciphered and often repeated at appropriate times by those patients well-versed in tribal mythology. According to Sandner (1979): â€Å"The visual images of the sand paintings and the body painting, the audible recitation of prayers and songs, the touch of the prayer sticks and the hands of the medicine man, the taste of the ceremonial musk and herbal medicines, and the smell of the chant incense—all combine to convey the power of the chant to the patient† (p. 15). The hataalii, among the Navahos a male practitioner, usually displays a highly developed dramatic sense in carrying out the chant but generally avoids the cl ever sleight of hand effects used by many other cultural healing practitioners to demonstrate their abilities to the community. The chant is considered by Sandner to facilitate suggestibility. It shifts attention through repetitive singing and the use of culture-specific mythic themes.These activities prepare participants for a lengthy healing ceremony that may involve mythic images and narratives enacted in purification rites or executed in â€Å"sand paintings† composed of sand, seeds, charcoal, and flowers. Some paintings, such as those used in a â€Å"Blessing Way,† are crafted from such ingredients as corn meal, flower petals, and charcoal. From a psychological perspective, the patients â€Å"translate† these â€Å"symbols† and â€Å"metaphors† as they sit on the painting, but from their own perspective, they are interacting with some of the basic forces and energies of nature.Six steps comprise the typical â€Å"Chant Way† ritual: prep aration (in which the patient is â€Å"purified†), presentation of the patient to the healing spirits, evocation of these spirits to the place of the ceremony, identification of the patients with a positive mythic theme, transformation of the patients into a condition where ordinary and mythic time and space merge, and release from the mythic world and return to the everyday world where past transgressions are confessed, where new learnings are assimilated, and where life changes are brought to fruition.The hataalii’s performance empowers the patient by creating an alternative domain of consciousness—a â€Å"mythic reality†Ã¢â‚¬â€through the use of chants, dances, and songs (often accompanied by drums and rattles), masked dancers, purifications (e. g. , sweat baths, emetics, fumigants, lotions, herbal medicines, ritual bathing, sexual abstinence), and sand paintings. Within the context of this â€Å"mythic reality,† especially as made visible in t he designs constructed in sand by the hataalii, the patient is taken into â€Å"sacred time† and is able to bring a total attentiveness to the healing ritual.The patient follows a specific regimen for the next four days to protect members of the community from his or her newly acquired powers. The role of the community is important in another way; the chants are attended by large numbers of people, many of whom might be asked to participate. This type of participation appears to increase the patients’ sense of personal power, magnify their imagination as they attend to the chants, providing social reinforcement and increased motivation. The mentation of the practitioner, the patient, and the community may all be affected by the ceremony.The hataalii is dusted with the decorated sand, and his patients claim to feel the power emanating from the painting. This procedure resembles the enhancement of imagination common to several hypnotic procedures, and is probably further augmented by the repetitive chanting. In addition to the â€Å"Chant Way,† there are other rituals used by the hataalii, one of which is a prayer session. For example, sacred corn pollen may be sacrificed during a time of prayer in an attempt to please the spirits needed to heal the patient: This ritual must be performed perfectly and behind locked doors, often at the patient’s home.The setting for treatment usually is the Hogan, a specially constructed octagon with log walls, sealed with mud adobe. The door opens to the East, and a hole in the center of the domed ceiling lets the smoke out. Men sit on the North, women and children on the South; the sand painting occupies most of the floor, and the patient sits in the center with family and friends nearby. The door to the darkened Hogan is fastened to prevent the prayer from escaping. Sharpened flints are used to expel the evil from both the patient and the Hogan.These procedures reduce the patient's symptoms at the s ame time as they stabilize the social and emotional condition of the community. For example, the hataalii instructs the family to make elaborate preparations for their forthcoming â€Å"house call. † Upon arriving, the patients are told that the prognosis is excellent, thus fostering positive expectations (Torrey, 1986). The most important people in the patient's life often join in the prayers, reaffirming the belief that the patient will recover.Prognosis, to a large degree, depends upon the attitude of the patient. A Navaho practitioner told Sandner (1979): â€Å"If the patient really has confidence in me, then he gets cured†¦. If a person gets bitten by a snake, for example, certain prayers and songs can be used, but if the patient doesn’t have enough confidence, then the cure won't work† (pp. 17 – 18). Premature death and suicide are attributed to sorcery, the return of the dead, or to the presence of outsiders.Kluckhohn (Kluckhohn & Leighton, 19 62) noted that funeral rituals are designed to prevent or discourage dead persons from returning to threaten their relatives. The fear of spirit possession is connected with the fear of ghosts, spirits, and the dead. High suicide rates are associated with Navaho communities marked by loss of tribal identity. When a sick person's family has determined that a practitioner is necessary, a hataalii is called in, frequently accompanied by an herbalist and/or a diagnostician (both of whom are of lower status).There are some 200 plants in the Navaho pharmacopoeia and the herbalists gather these plants and make medicines, some of which are used directly, and some of which are used ceremonially by the hataalii. The diagnosticians, or â€Å"diviners,† are usually women who â€Å"listen† to the spirits and typically provide a statement of the problem. This procedure may be accompanied by such diagnostic procedures as hand trembling, star gazing, candle gazing, and crystal gazingà ¢â‚¬â€all of which involve the inward focusing of the practitioner's attention, with the purpose of facilitating insight as to the nature of the problem.Every hataalii must go through a long and arduous period of training and apprenticeship; they must earn the approval of their teachers and their community by demonstrating that they can perform successfully (Sandner, 1979). The â€Å"singing shaman’s† memory must be impeccable; the effort required to learn one major chant has been compared to that of obtaining a university degree (Sandner, 1979). A patient with a break or fracture is usually sent to an allopathic practitioner, although Sandner observed a Navaho specialist set broken bones â€Å"in a true scientific manner† (p. 8). In the Navaho system, the patients' first priority is that of treatment, and they assume the role of cooperating with the practitioner by taking an active part in their diagnosis and treatment. The major priority of the patient's fami ly is to seek diagnosis and treatment for its indisposed family members, seeking qualified personnel. It is the family’s role to determine payment, an important responsibility because some Chant Ways last for several days and the fee may exceed several months’ salary.The major priority of the patient's community is to support the sick patient. This is done by attending the Chant Way and facilitating his or her treatment. The community plays the role of preserving traditions and training new practitioners. This latter task is difficult, given the high cost of apprenticeships, especially for the hataalii. The goal of this healing model is integration within the framework of cosmic harmony, and the rejection of the effects of sorcery which are seen as alien to this harmony (Sandner, 1979).According to Kluckhohn (1962), the Navahos are â€Å"generations ahead† of U. S. physicians in treating the whole person. The goal of Navaho healing is to restore the patient's ha rmony with his or her family, clan and universe. The U. S. office of alternative medicine model In April 1995, the Office of Alternative Medicine (OAM) of the United States National Institutes of Health (NIH) held a conference on research methodology (O'Connor, Calabrese, Cardena, Eisenberg, Fincher, Hufford, Jonas, Kaptchuck, Martin, Scott, & Zhang, 1997).The charge of this conference was to evaluate research needs in the field of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), and several working groups were created to produce consensus statements on a variety of essential topics. The panel on definition and description accepted a dual charge: to establish a definition of the field of complementary and alternative medicine for purposes of identification and research; to identify factors critical to a thorough and unbiased description of CAM systems, one that would be applicable to both quantitative and qualitative research.The panel defined CAM as follows: Complementary and alternat ive medicine (CAM) is a broad domain of healing resources that encompasses all health systems, modalities, and practices and their accompanying theories and beliefs, other than those intrinsic to the politically dominant health system of a particular society or culture in a given historical period. CAM includes all such practices and ideas self-defined by their users as preventing or treating illness or promoting health and well being. Boundaries within CAM and between the CAM domain and the domain of the dominant system are not always sharp or fixed. O'Connor et al. , 1997) The second charge of the panel was to establish a list of parameters for obtaining thorough descriptions of CAM systems. The list was constructed on 14 categories first conceptualized by Hufford (1995, p. 54ff): 1. Lexicon. What are the specialized terms in the system? 2. Taxonomy. What classes of health and sickness does the system recognize and address? 3. Epistemology. How was the body of knowledge derived? 4 . Theories. What are the key mechanisms understood to be? 5. Goals for Interventions. What are the primary goals of the system? 6.Outcome Measures. What constitutes a successful intervention? 7. Social Organization. Who uses and who practices the system? 8. Specific Activities. What do the practitioners do? What do they use? 9. Responsibilities. What are the responsibilities of the practitioners, patients, families, and community members? 10. Scope. How extensive are the system’s applications? 11. Analysis of Benefits and Barriers. What are the risks and costs of the system? 12. Views of Suffering and Death. How does the system view suffering and death? 13. Comparison and Interaction with Dominant System.What does this system provide that the dominant system does not provide? How does this system interact with the dominant system? The 14th category regards research methods and it not appropriate for this essay, one which focuses on descriptions. Peruvian Curanderismo The OAM categories can be illustrated with an Andean ethnomedical system, namely Pachakuti (i. e. , â€Å"world reversal† or â€Å"transformation†) Mesa Curanderismo, a tradition deeply rooted in the Huachuma and Paqokuna traditions and blended with aspects of Paqokuna Curanderismo. They have been adapted to become accessible to the industrialized world by OscarMiro-Quesada of the Pachakuti Mesa tradition. I have discussed this system with two of its leading English-speaking practitioners, Oscar Miro-Quesada (2002) and his student Matthew Magee (2002). In addition, I have observed Magee perform two ritualistic Mesa ceremonies. Because of its complexity and sophistication, this system can be described in terms of the OAM categories (O'Connor et al. , 1997): 1. Lexicon. Specialized terms come from Spanish, Aymara (an Andean language), and two forms of assimilated Quechua language, the â€Å"rural† form (i. e. , Runasimi) and the â€Å"high† form (i. . , Khapaqsimi) —the latter spoken by royalty or people in positions of power. In describing the ethnomedical and social communitary function of Peruvian Curanderismo, however, it is important to note that several terms have changed over time. For example, the contemporary terms used to describe the shaman and the sorcerer are maestro and brujo, respectively. However, if one traces the lineage of the Pachakuti Mesa tradition, one would find the terms curandero and malero (post-Conquest), hampiq and layqa (Inca pre-Conquest), and kamasqa and sonqoyog (pre-Inca) as well.There are also variations between charismatic and non-charismatic healers and, most recently, between Pachakuti Mesa practitioners and neo-shamanic practitioners. 2. Taxonomy. The Pachakuti Mesa tradition recognizes and addresses a wide variety of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual classes of health and sickness (Magee, 2002). Within this system, there are several types of ailments, and Spanish words are used to describ e them: enfermedad de dano (a sickness caused by human intention), enfermedad de Dios (a God-given sickness), contagio (contagious sickness), and encantos (sickness caused by enchantment).Examples of the most common, enfermedad de dano, include harmful intention directed toward the ears (por oreja), through the mouth (por boca), through the air (por aire), or by loss of one's â€Å"etheric body† or soul (sombra). The latter is typically brought about by susto or espanto (i. e. , magical shock or fright). More extreme is shucaque, or fright by trauma. In addition, there are sicknesses caused by envy and the â€Å"evil eye† (por mal de ojo) and by an â€Å"evil wind† (mal aire). The ritual encounter between the patient and the practitioner can be viewed as a dialogue about dano in which the shaman (i. . , curandero or curandera) uses a persuasive rhetoric (in speech and in song) in conjunction with ritualized activities to transform the patient's self-understandin g, hence his or her well-being. Most physical ailments fall into the category, enfermedad de Dios. In many traditions, practitioners do not deal with these conditions, but Pachakuti Mesa shamans are an exception. The visual symptoms of a God-given sickness are similar to the vista en virtud (â€Å"sight in virtue and power†) that practitioners manifest after ingesting the San Pedro cactus, a mind-altering substance.As a result these symptoms rarely show up in the campo medio, the â€Å"middle field† of the practitioner's healing altar, when he or she is performing a diagnostic rastero (i. e. , divination or â€Å"tracking†). 3. Epistemology. When tracing the origins of the Pachakuti Mesa tradition back through its oral lineage within Peruvian shamanism, one must go back to the Sechin culture, as well as the later Chavin, Tiahuanacu, Paracas, Nasca, Moche, Lambayeque, Chimu, Wari, Inca (or Inka), Aymara, Runa (or Quechua), and Mestiso traditions.Although archeolo gical discoveries in the 1980s suggest that Peru’s central highlands were inhabited from 8,000 BCE and the origins of Peru’s shamanic technology can be traced back at least to 2,000 BCE, many practitioners believe that Mesa-related healing practices were utilized far earlier. 4. Theories. When working with a Mesa, a practitioner's healing altar, the key mechanisms are believed to be his or her ability to control and direct unseen forces and entities.This is accomplished through proper utilization of the â€Å"field of the magician† (campo ganadero) as well as the â€Å"field of the mystic† (campo justiciero). Mastery of these two skills allows the practitioner to surrender his or her personal will or agenda, becoming an open, transparent vessel for Spirit to flow through, unhindered. The mastery of these â€Å"fields† is symbolized on either side of the Mesa, while the practitioner, as Master Healer or maestro, resides in the middle (campo medio). The healer also works with a supernatural hierarchy through a process of co-creation with Spirit.This hierarchy is believed to be a unified, interdependent system that provides practitioners with limitless sources of guidance and power. These sources include the Apukuna (Sacred Mountains), Huaringas (Sacred Highland Lagoons), Pachamama (Mother Earth), Mama Killa (Grandmother Moon), Inti Tayta (Father Sun), Auquis (Nature Spirits), Tirakuna (the â€Å"Watchers†Ã¢â‚¬ ), Mallquis (Tree Spirits), Machukuna (Ancestors), Machula Aulanchis (Benevolent â€Å"Old Ones†), tutelary animal allies, the elements of nature (e. g. , unu, wayra, nina, allpa), and various Roman Catholic saints (e. . , San Cipriano of Antioch, Brother Martin de Porres). Working with these sources requires a delicate balance, not only through the practitioner's negotiation of control and surrender, but through living a lifestyle that reflects this balance (ayni or â€Å"sacred reciprocity†). Train ing involves a culturally sanctioned â€Å"calling† into the tradition. When a maestro passes on his or her knowledge or bequeaths one's practice to an initiate, there is an initiatory phenomenon (karpays) and a â€Å"magical contract† (pacto magico). . Goals for Interventions. Healing is a spiritual phenomenon. Sickness is considered to have its origin in, and gain its meaning from, the Spirit world. The purpose of life itself is to be initiated into the visionary regions of Spirit and to maintain oneself in concert with all creation (Achterberg, 1985). Hence, the goal for intervention in Pachakuti Mesa Curanderismo is a successful florecimiento (â€Å"flowering of fortune† healing ritual) that is used to strengthen a person's physical and spiritual systems.Strengthening a patient's runa kurku k'anchay (â€Å"luminous body†), as opposed to suppressing the symptom, empowers the patient to remove the sickness-causing intrusion with his or her own innate he aling capacities. Once the patient's personal power has been augmented, there is often a need to go further. This is especially true if the problem is extreme, as in â€Å"soul loss,† â€Å"possession,† â€Å"enchantments,† and potent acts of dano (e. g. , curses, certain types of contagion).In these cases, there is often a need to intervene on behalf of a patient with specific techniques for removal in the form of extraction (chupa), or counteracting the attack through ritual battle (volteando, volteada, or botando in which the curse is thrown back to its sender). Successful interventions of this kind usually completely disperse the patient's negative condition and symptoms, and generate sickness in the person who initiated the curse. Depending on the original severity of the curse, death of the sorcerer has been known to occur. 6. Outcome Measures.A successful intervention is gauged primarily by the quality of the florecimiento, which brings about the energeti c restoration or supplementation of a person's potentials. This â€Å"flowering† of dormant potentialities brings forth qualities in the person necessary to maintain a sustainable livelihood. 7. Social Organization. Depending on the level of shamanic mastery attained, practitioners will be assigned various civic units of geographical space in which to work, ranging from the ayllu (extended family or community), to the llaqta (village or town), and finally the suyu (region).A curandero (or curandera) performs shamanic functions in this system. They include working with sicknesses brought about by sorcery, imbalance, envy, etc. , providing insight into conditions of the harvest, resolving interpersonal conflicts, influencing the weather, finding lost items (as well as lost persons or souls), and attending to a variety of spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical conditions. These healing sessions are primarily conducted on Tuesdays and Fridays.The curandero (or curandera) also performs specific ceremonial services for the community, such as providing ritual feedings (offrendas, despachos, or haywarikuys) for Pachamama (Mother Earth), the Apukuna (Sacred Mountains), and various supernatural beings (such as the â€Å"Watchers,† Nature Spirits, Tree Spirits, the Ancestors, the Benevolent â€Å"Old Ones†). A despacho or haywarikuy is a ritual offering used to promote a reciprocal exchange of thanks between human communities and the natural world.In the Paqokuna tradition, the pampa misayoq (ritual specialist) may learn to create and perform several hundred different types of despacho or haywarikuy ceremonial rituals. The performances are quite diverse and comprise 24 basic elements (recados) in the form of plant, animal, mineral, and human made products. All of these elements are reverently arranged on a square sheet of paper and either burned or buried as a way to promote the lifestyle of ayna (sacred reciprocity). There are offerings for birt hs, deaths, marriages, good luck, prosperity, longevity, and harvests, to name a few.It is also common for practitioners to use despachos to bless certain spaces, such as living quarters, work places, and sacred sites. There are various types of curanderos and curanderas, e. g. , the alto misayoq (herbalists), the pampa misayoq (ritual specialists), and the kuraq akulleq (literally, â€Å"master chewers of coca†). The latter is considered to have attained the highest level of mastery and rank within the shamanic hierarchy. Both males (curanderos) and females (curanderas) are employed as healing practitioners in this tradition.The services of a brujo (or sorcerer) can be purchased to adversely affect the health of a rival, or to assure success in business, love, and other aspects of personal gain. The person who has â€Å"hired† a brujo may reveal this fact to an ally, who will subsequently pass the news along a network that eventually leads to the intended target. Simi larly, the curandero’s or curandera's analysis of the source of a patient’s suffering is often a topic of subsequent conversation between social intimates of the patient; this is also true of the countermeasures (e. g. , the volteada or ritual in which sorcery is reversed) often used by the shaman.Potential patients for both the curandero and brujo include most of the members of the community, but when seeking medical assistance from the curandero, patients also commonly see both a curandero and an allopathic physician, often not openly discussing their visit to the former. This reluctance to reveal utilization of the indigenous healing system applies to any member of the social system, from the wealthy business executive to the poor farmer. Patients of curanderos and brujos include owners of businesses, political office holders, educators, military officers, and even a few medical professionals.These persons are willing to spend significant amounts of money and subjec t themselves to physically exhausting ritual treatments because they have shared with curanderos the belief that sorcery can be the cause of sickness. The majority of patients for both the curandero and brujo are women. This may be due to the inferior role of the female as a subordinate within the public transcript of male privileged society (e. g. , the values of machismo which support gender-based hierarchies, and the subsequent psychological and social conflicts that arise as a result).Through the sorcerer, women can gain access to powers that guarantee spousal fidelity (e. g. , â€Å"love magic†), thus eliminating the competition (e. g. , dano). Even the apprehension that a woman might pursue this alternative can act as an effective sanction. The curandero, on the other hand, provides women with the means to redress wrongs and to hold men accountable for their actions. 8. Specific Activities. a. Diagnosis: Diagnosis can be carried out through a variety of activities, for example, a rastreo (divining and tracking), coca leaf divination, reading the entrails of a guinea pig, or casting shells, etc.However, the source of diagnosis most commonly utilized in healing situations by Huachuma curanderos is the San Pedro cactus. The entheogenic San Pedro imbues the healer with vista en virtud (virtue, vision, and insight), which enables him or her to diagnose not only the illness, aliment, or disease of a patient, but often the source of said illness, aliment, or disease and specific ways to cure it. The curandero’s mesa (personal healing altar) also plays a vital role in the divinatory process of diagnosis, e. g. , by speaking to the curandero through the cuenta (the history, story, narrative, or â€Å"account†) of a specific piece or pieces.There are also practitioners who will â€Å"read† the energy of a person’s poq’po or wayrari (so-called â€Å"electromagnetic energy field†) to detect imbalances or deficiencies within that energy field and as a means for diagnosis. Ultimately, the above forms of diagnosis are highly effective and are commonly referred to by anthropologists because of the mystical flavor of shamanic healing arts. However, one must not overlook the curandero’s keen ability to observe with his or her senses (e. g. , simply observing how a person looks, smells, feels, interacts with the world).Curanderos will also often check a person’s tongue, nose, eyes, ears, glands, etc. , as a means for diagnosis. The combination of practical and mystical forms of diagnosis have availed the curandero with a high degree of accuracy regarding diagnosis. b. Treatment: The various modes of treatment employed by the curandero are as diverse as the conditions requiring treatment. However, nearly all treatments involve the use of a mesa (healing altar). A mesa is the sacred healing altar of a curandero, one that works in mediation with spiritual and cosmic forces for ritual healing .It is a microcosmic embodiment of a macrocosmic reality. This shamanic altar contains ritually empowered objects, which are aesthetically arranged on a sacred textile (unkhunas) to reflect the system of medicine employed by its carrier, e. g. , his or her lineage, cosmological background, animal allies, spirit guides, personal apukuna and huaringas (sacred mountains and lagoons). There are four kinds of objects primarily incorporated into a Pachakuti Mesa: khuyas (sacred stones), sepkas (power objects), estrellas (gifts from the spirits of the mountains), and enqas (totem fetishes).Among these, it is also common to find batas, palos, and espadas (staffs, sticks, and swords used for protection), florecimientos, (extractions, infusions, ritual battle), pututus (conch shells used to â€Å"call in† spiritual assistance and loosen blocks in an person’s body), seguros (good luck charms, protection pieces), rumikuna or khuyas (stones used for healing), condor feathers (used for directing energy and cleansing a person’s poq’po or energy field), huacos (objects and artifacts from Colonial and pre-Columbian times used to anchor specific energies into the medicine ground, often that of the ancestors), agua de Florida or agua de Kananga (colognes and perfumes, which are spayed through the mouth for cleansing and purification), rattles and whistles (to balance or bring in energy, commonly used when singing tarjos or medicine songs).It is also common to find candles, crosses, images of Roman Catholic saints, meteorites, ceremonially woven belts (chunpis), crystals, holy water, water from the melting ice of glaciers, San Pedro cactus, tobacco, coca leaves, singha (a combination of coca, tobacco, cane alcohol, and such perfumes as agua de florida, taboo, and siete poderes (which is imbibed through the nose), and incenses such as palo santo or copal. An herbal pharmacopoeia can occasionally be found as well. These objects (as well as the items spec ific to the individual mesa carrier) are arranged in a spatial configuration on the sacred textiles (unkhunas) and worked with to assist in the attainment of physical, emotional, spiritual, and mental integration and balance for the patient in the healing session.When a Pachakuti Mesa is used in ritual healing the distinction between the symbol and that which the symbol represents is dissolved. The objects arranged upon the mesa become the mountains, the rivers, the puma, or the empowered representation of the curandero’s own healing. Within this state of non-ordinary consciousness the line that delineates subject and object blurs, and the curandero is able to work with the mesa to bring about healing for the patient on an energetic level, which working at the source of the condition rather than through medicating the symptoms. Treatment also commonly involves incorporating the family members of the patient in the healing ceremony.This helps ensure that the patient will not o nly return to his or her community transformed, but he or she will return to a transformed community as well. Curanderos often find themselves acting simultaneously as apologists for, and avengers of, social injustices. 9. Responsibilities. a. Practitioner responsibilities: To attain a competent level of mastery through apprenticeship and experiential training, the aspiring practitioner must complete a series of rites of passage (karpays) governed by his or her teacher, elders and peers in the tradition, and the spiritual hierarchy. An example of the latter would be a demonstration of using coca leaves for diagnostic purposes.Once an apprentice is deemed qualified by his or her community, he or she may begin seeing patients on a small scale, but must build a solid reputation as a competent healer. This requires that the curandero consistently provide accurate diagnosis and effective treatment for the patients in need of healing. The curandero is also responsible to recommend alterna tive means for healing if he or she is not capable or does not specialize in the condition presented by the patient. In addition to being a qualified and capable healer, the curandero must also live a lifestyle of ayni, which reflects not the qualities of the tradition, but the living example of balance mirrored by nature and the living cosmos.This requires one to exist in uninterrupted communion with the spiritual hierarchy, to live as a perpetual student of life, and to continually deepen one’s relationship with the phenomenal world, with one’s internal world, and with the living universe around one. b. Patient responsibility: To be open and willing to participate in the healing being offered, as well as to be willing to implement the advice or prescription suggested by the curandero. The patient is also responsible to provide some form of reciprocal exchange for the healing service provided, either monetarily or through some form of barter or trade. c. Family respon sibility: To be present for the healing ceremony if possible, and to provide support with the information gained from the healing session to ensure the patient is able to recover in an environment that supports this new, transformed paradigm.The family is also responsible for communicating this information to pertinent community members who can further reinforce the transformed living environment for the patient. The family is often responsible to help compensate the curandero, either through monetary means or through trade if the patient is unable to do so. d. Community responsibility: To be a supplemental presence of support for the patient and to reinforce the transformed living environment for the person in transition. 10. Scope. This type of Peruvian shamanism has been practiced over the millennium in remote, northern areas of Peru. This isolation has helped Pachakuti practitioners preserve their independence and their prerogatives.The apparent success of the Pachakuti system i n its place of origin is an additional reason for its longevity. The scope of this healing system is comprehensive, as it is used for physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual problems. However, there are allopathic treatments and technologies that would bolster traditional medicine, and well-meaning curanderos and curanderas often endeavor to make referrals to a clinic or hospital (typically, at a distance) if that would help their patient. 11. Analysis of benefits and barriers. What are the risks and costs of the system? Due to the recent advances in allopathic medical technology, competition between biomedical organizations and indigenous systems is becoming more common.The boundaries that delineate these two systems, and the conditions they address, are often blurred. Poor people often turn to indigenous healers because biomedical treatments are too expensive. However, curanderos are not part of a recognized profession and therefore operate in legal and social marginality. Many curanderos experience harassment from local police, who use rarely enforced legal restrictions on non-licensed medical practitioners to extort protection payments. Church and civic officials have also been party to repressive measures against curanderos. Curanderos certainly recognize the tenuous position that they occupy in the Peruvian medical system.Some prefer to maintain a very low profile to avoid the notice of local officials, for example, by performing their ritual sessions in remote agricultural fields. Other curanderos bank on the support of well-connected patients to keep them out of trouble. 12. Views of suffering and death. This system holds that there is a basic continuity between life and death. When the physical body dies, life and death are not seen as separate, for life cannot exist without death. When the physical body dies it goes into the Earth and feeds it, giving life to the plants and trees. The plants feed the animals, who feed the Earth, ad infinitum, in a self-regulating interdependent relationship seen as the great web of life.All things are born from Pachamama (Mother Earth) and all things shall return to her. Views of the afterlife vary from practitioner to practitioner but most believe in life after the physical body dies. All in all, death is seen as a natural process, inseparable from life. Anthropologists have long noted that life’s transitions (i. e. , birth, death) are commonly marked by elaborate rituals, the purpose of which is to smooth the disruption to the social order that such status changes can cause. The body of the person undergoing the transition is often the target of symbolic manipulations: special decorations (e. g. , burial costumes) and purification (e. g. , cleansing).A particularly frequent symbolic message conveyed by these rituals is death and rebirth; the person is dying from the social status previously held and being born into a new identity. Indigenous rituals are reminiscent of hospital patie nts who put on the standardized garb required by the institution, as well as the strict fasting enforced before surgery, the cleansing processes requested of the patient as well as surgical staff, the process by which the patient’s vital signs and consciousness are taken to a death-like state, and the patient's frequently cited post-surgery sense of being reborn. The fact that all these features have medical justifications and explanations does not diminish their potential symbolic impact. Much of the suffering experienced by Peruvians is attributed to acts of dano, or sorcery.This is especially potent in a society like that of Peru where personal relationships are critical to economic survival and where the powers of the sorcerer and the curandero are assumed to have empirically verifiable effects. Dano, as a threat or as an accepted diagnosis, can have serious social repercussions no matter how outsiders to the tradition might view the forces that the sorcerers claim to con trol. Peruvian society’s rigid social hierarchies make people increasingly dependent upon personal networks in order to survive. The resulting burden of economic self-interest loaded onto personal relationships has contributed to a social world in which mistrust inevitably accompanies interdependence.It should not be surprising, therefore, that social relations would be the assumed source of misfortune and suffering for rural Peruvians. This stands in contrast with traditional Andean attributions of sickness to natural forces and supernatural transgressions. 12. Comparison and Interaction with Dominant System. What does this system provide that the dominant system does not provide and how does this system interact with the dominant system? On the one hand, Miro-Quesada (2002) believes that global shamanism is an emerging phenomenon of the 21st century. The Pachakuti teachings are intended to empower all interested persons, allowing them to work with unseen forces in order to promote healing and balance through spiritual mediation.But on the other hand, the dominant role being played by allopathic biomedicine often rules out people’s interest and participation in an indigenous healing system (e. g. , Levi-Strauss, 1955). Conclusion On July 14, 2003, Matthew Magee performed a ritualistic ceremony on the top of Mount Tamalpais in Marin County, California, in the spirit of Kamasqa Curanderismo, one of the components of the Pachakuti Mesa tradition. This ceremony waves together several themes that expressed the participants' reverence for the Earth as teacher and mother. Together, the group created a consecrated Earth offering (despacho) to foster a lifestyle of sacred reciprocity (ayni) and an awareness of life's interdependence, calling upon participants to live harmoniously with oneself, with others, and with the planet as a whole.There are ecopsychologists who believe that healing the planet is basically a shamanic journey; if so, traditional medi cal systems can play a vital role in this endeavor. However, while herbal medicines, indigenous treatments, and shamanism are becoming faddish in the West, indigenous systems in their original contexts are becoming increasingly endangered. It is crucial to support indigenous cultures and learn what shamanism and related systems of healing have to offer the postmodern world before archival research in libraries replaces field research as the best available method for investigating these healing systems. Their longevity indicates that they have served many groups of eople quite well over the millennia. The question remains as to what they can offer a world where allopathic biomedicine is not only revered but also powerful, a world in which reality is constricted to measurable physical dimensions and alternative perspectives are dismissed as â€Å"folk psychology† (Kelly, Kelly, Crabtree, Gauld, Grosso, & Gordon, 2007, p. 54). This discussion of Pachakuti and Navaho healing mode ls has demonstrated the adaptability of many traditional healing systems to conditions in the contemporary world. The eclectic nature of the system bodes well not only for its survival but its compatibility with collegial practitioners of allopathic medicine.Finally, the ecological emphasis of the two systems provide inspiration for ecologists and their colleagues who agree with indigenous practitioners that the Earth is at risk, and that collaborative efforts are needed to redress the natural balance. References Achterberg, J. (1985). Imagery in healing: Shamanism and modern medicine. Boston: Shambhala. Cassell, E. J. (1979). The healer’s art. Middlesex, England: Penguin. Freeman, L. W. (2004). Mosby’s complementary & alternative medicine: A research- based approach. St. Louis, MO: Mosby. Geertz, C. (1973). The interpretation of cultures. New York: Basic Books. Hufford, D. (1995). Cultural and social perspectives on alternative medicine: Background and assumptions.Alt ernative Therapies in Health and Medicine, 1(1), 53-61. Iljas, J. (2006). Introduction to psychology: Inner reality, outer reality in diversity. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/ Hunt. Kelly, E. F. , Kelly, E. W. , Crabtree, A. , Gauld, A. , Grosso, M. , & Greyson, B. (2007). Irreducible mind: Toward a psychology for the 21st century. Plymouth, UK: Rowman & Littlefield. Kleinman, A. (1995). Writing at the margin: Discourse between anthropology and medicine. Berkeley: University of California Press. Kluckhohn, C. , & Leighton, D. (1962). The Navajo (rev. ed. ). Garden City, NJ: Natural History Library. Krippner, S. (2002). Spirituality and healing. In D. Moss, A. McGrady, T. C. Davis, & I.Wickramasekera (Eds. ), Handbook of mind-body medicine for primary care (pp. 191-201). London: Sage. Krippner, S. , & Welch, P. (1992). Spiritual dimensions of healing: From tribal shamanism to contemporary health care. New York: Irvington. Levi-Strauss, C. (1955). The structural study of myth. Journal of Ameri can Folklore, 78, 428-444. Magee, M. (2002). Peruvian shamanism: The Pachakuti mesa. Chelsford, MA: Middle Field. Mahler, H. (1977, November). The staff of Aesculapius. World Health, p. 3. Miro-Quesada, O. (2002). Foreword. In M. Magee, Peruvian shamanism: The Pachakuti mesa (pp. vii-viii). Chelsford, MA: Middle Field. O’Connor, B. B. (1995).Healing traditions: Alternative medicine and the health professions. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. O’Connor, B. B. , Calabrese, C. , Cardena, E. , Eisenberg, D. , Fincher, J. , Hufford, D. J. , Jonas, W. B. , Kaptchuck, T. , Martin, S. C. , Scott, A. W. , & Zhang, X. (1997). Defining and describing complementary and alternative medicine. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, 3 (2), 49-57. Sandner, D. (1979). Navajo symbols of healing. New York: Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich. Siegler, M. , & Osmond, H. (1974). Models of madness, models of medicine. New York: Macmillan. Torrey, E. F. (1986). Witchdoctors and p sychiatrists. New York: Harper & Row.

Effects of different corticosteroids on the immune system Research Paper

Effects of different corticosteroids on the immune system - Research Paper Example The glucocorticoids are used in replacement therapies for various inflammatory diseases, in severe allergic reactions such as asthma, in the management of some autoimmune disorders and in some cancers as well (Howland, Mycek, Harvey, Champe, & Mycek, 2006). The therapeutic role of corticosteroids has expanded since their first application for the treatment of reheumatoid arthritis in 1949 (Doan, Melvold, & Waltenbaugh, 2005). Different therapeutic corticosteroids are available for replacement therapies, and they play an important immunosuppressive role by mediating the adaptive and innate immune cells of our body. Cortisol is the basic and fundamental glucocorticoid produced in the human body. The three main functions for which corticosteroids are widely used therapeutically include their use as anti-inflammatory agents, for suppression of the immune system, and as a replacement therapy for replacing the hormones not produced at normal levels by the body (NHS Choices, 2013). The prod uction of cortisol reaches its peak during the early morning followed by a drop and then again a peak, relatively smaller, in the late afternoon. Cortisol has various body functions. It promotes the production of glucose and protein catabolism and the degradation of lipids by lipolysis. Cortisol increases the body’s resistance to stress by elevating the blood glucose levels, which helps in more energy production, and fighting stress situations such as cold, trauma, infections, fright, and bleeding. Cortisol also plays an important role in decreasing the blood cell levels which include eosinophils, basophils, monocytes, and lymphocytes. This particular action is important in the treatment of leukemia. The lowering of peripheral lymphocytes and macrophages also helps in mediating an anti-inflammatory action. Cortisol increases the production of growth hormone (Howland et al., 2006). The immunosuppressive action of corticosteroids is used in the treatment of many autoimmune diso rders such as inflammatory bowel disease, systemic lupus erythematous, and rheumatoid arthritis. Corticosteroids are also helpful in treating several renal autoimmune diseases such as nephrotic syndrome (Doan, Melvold, & Waltenbaugh, 2005). Numerous corticosteroid preparations are used for therapeutic purposes. Hydrocortisone is used as a topical preparation or in an injectable form. The injections are given to reduce inflammation in joints and tendons of affected individuals. Dexamethasone is used in acute conditions such as severe breathing allergic reactions, and is utilized mainly in the intravenous form. Prednisolone is used in several autoimmune conditions and allergic reactions and is available in suppository form, injections and as oral tablets. Fludrocortisone’s fundamental usage is for Addison’s disease, in which there is a deficiency of normal body steroid production (NHS Choices, 2013). Cortef contains hydrocortisone and is readily absorbed from the gastroi ntestinal tract. It has a wide variety of indications including rheumatic disorders, adrenal insufficiency, SLE, dermatological conditions such as psoriasis, seborrheic dermatitis, exfoliative dermatitis, allergic conditions such as asthma, serum sickness, rhinitis, drug hypersensitivity reactions, ophthalmic diseases such as conjunctivitis, keratitis, herpes zoster ophthalmicus, optic neuritis, haematological diseases such as acquired haemolytic anemia, idiopathic thrombocytopenic

Outline a framework for assessing the effectiveness of aid in Essay

Outline a framework for assessing the effectiveness of aid in promoting economic development in developing countries. Critically - Essay Example Thus, the difference between government enacted foreign aid programs and private, charitable, or volunteer groups donating money and services to development causes can be distinguished as two categories of international development aid: public policy and private charity. What is classified as â€Å"foreign aid† for example under public policy and is â€Å"given† to foreign States as part of a nation like Britain or America’s foreign policy might include military and economic aid together in a package that is intended to strengthen State structures of authority rather than indigenous community economic development. Private groups that seek to implement assistance programs independently of foreign States may have different obstacles and program criteria than the government aid assistance programs. Therefore, it is important to understand the difference between public and private development initiatives, and to analyze each on its own unique set of standards and req uirements relating to the way the issues are framed and the policies set into practice. Government aid programs to developing countries may be undertaken unilaterally, as many of the developed economic States such as Britain, the U.S., Japan, France, Finland, China, Denmark and other countries enact as part of their foreign policy. At the same time, these same countries may also engage in official assistance to international aid programs as part of the UN, EU, OAS, or NATO. This foreign aid is intended as economic assistance but donated in relation to the political goals of the nations involved. Historically, this would be considered the aid most easily lost to corruption, most likely to land in the Swiss bank accounts of despots, to be wasted, funneled into military and police repression tectics, and generally used to encourage a greater system of inequality in the foreign country by exacerbating the division of wealth in the society, or the inequality of capital distribution among its citizens. This type of foreign aid may lead to crony capitalism, dictatorships, banana republics, or proxy States that exist in opposition to their populations and actually deter economic and social development through the production of a corrupt and unequal society. These patterns typified foreign assistance aid to Africa in the 1970’s, Central and South America in the 1980’s, and Pakistan, Egypt, and other countries considered vital in the war on terror in the current paradigm. The characteristic of this type of aid is that it goes to a corrupt or undemocratic and non-transparent proxy State of the superpowers and the resources are used exclusively by the corrupt or crony class of insiders related to the local national party structure. This type of foreign development aid is generally the least effective and the least likely to actually â€Å"trickle down† to the communities represented by three billion of the world’s poorest, families who live on less than $1 per day, often lacking any type of clean water, sanitation, education, or electrical facilities. Yet, the government policy driven types of foreign development assistance may also take the form of â€Å"Peace Corps†

Genetic Engineering in Oryx and Crake Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Genetic Engineering in Oryx and Crake - Essay Example From this perspective, the current paper critically analyses the novel Oryx and Crake by Atwood. To achieve this objective, the paper examines the possible outcomes of present pursuit of genetic engineering illustrated in the illusionary world created by the author and makes connections to present realities. A critical analysis of the novel Oryx and Crake reveals that Atwood’s main argument relates to the detrimental effects associated with advances in science and technology, especially genetic engineering. Genetic engineering is a technology which involves manipulation of organisms and their genetic make-up. The genetic manipulation may involve inserting foreign genes into an organism to alter its biological, physical and behavioral characteristics. While genetic engineering has been used for beneficial purposes, the advancement in DNA technology has raised numerous questions about the possible impact on society. Nicholl asserts that genetic engineering is an emotive subject (4). The novel examines these consequences from ethical, scientific, economic and social perspectives. The novel begins by illustrating an unidentified event leading to the collapse of morality and civilization. Snowman, the protagonist lives with bizarre human creatures, called the Crackers. The world depicted by Atwood is characterized by atypical beasts, products of DNA technology. From the interjected scenes, it becomes clear that Snowman grew up as Jimmy, who became friends with Glenn (Crake), a talented science student. The two liked playing computer games and watching child pornography. Crake pursues career in bioengineering while Jimmy takes on humanities and literature. Crake creates the Crakes, human-like engineered creatures and befriends a prostitute, Oryx. In addition, Crake develops a contagious engineered virus in the disguise of a drug. The virus infects all human subjects apart from Jimmy who has been innocuously vaccinated against it. The world depicted in the Oryx and Crake illustrates possible outcomes of the advancement in science and technology, especially the use of DNA technology in genetic engineering. While science and technology presents enormous benefits to societies, when these technologies and processes are not controlled they poses detrimental effects. Genetic engineering is one of the most interesting technologies in the 21st century. The ability to create organisms with super-qualities outlines the beneficial outcomes related to DNA technology. However, if scientific experimentation with the genetic-make up of organisms could also result to detrimental effects. This could happen via both deliberate manipulations to create harmful organisms or due to accidental escape of experimental biological material from contained systems. The Oryx and Crake envision a fictional society, in which genetic engineering has been used to create synthetic food products and organisms that threaten the existence of the very society they are made to benefit. A critical analysis of the masterpiece reveals that the author depicts the possible consequences that could arise due to advancement in science and technology. For instance, the novel illustrates the creation of a virulent virus in the disguise of a drug. This illustration depicts the possible use of technology to create harmful

Discussion Question Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Discussion Question - Term Paper Example He will surely give you some solid data to prove his point that overpopulation is the main cause of all the problems of the third world. He will emphasize that because of the use of scientific methods the death rate among the adult has reduced and the mortality rate of the new born is also lowered down thus increasing the number of the inhabitants of the earth dramatically. He is worried as his calculation tells him that if population continues to grow on the same speed there will be no space on earth to stand. He thinks all the problems that he is facing like price hike or unemployment is the direct result of the overpopulation. On the other hand Sudanese student is not worried about the population of the world. He has some immediate problems to attend. He thinks that his country has a lot of resources but the incompetent rulers are not using them wisely and justly. The political instability is playing with his country. He thinks that on personal level, on national level and on inte rnational level we are losing contentment. We want to have more and more and we don’t share with our poor neighbors.

Cross cultural management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Cross cultural management - Assignment Example It is Mr. A’s first experience of staying away from his hometown (India). Following presents the interview findings (see appendix-I for the interview questions) along with the quotes from the interviewee to present his views on his experiences of staying and working in a culture different from his hometown. When the interviewee was asked to share his experience from leaving his hometown to his very first assignment in Singapore he told the interviewer that â€Å"leaving home and going to a completely new place was not an easy job especially when I have never been to any new country†. Mr. A highlighted that going as a visitor and going as an employee are two completely different things. In the words of Mr. A â€Å"it was a sort of cultural shock which was aggravated due to high expectations of the employer leaving lesser time for adjustment; I was expected to get to work immediately and produce results which was not an easy task as I was still in the phase of understanding my surroundings and adjusting to it.† Mr. A told the interviewer that his first assignment was to close a deal with a client and he found it very difficult to set the meeting and meet the client in person. Mr. A says â€Å"though I have good product knowledge and prior experience of selling goods and cl osing deals in India but meeting the person of a new culture and convincing him to use the services of our company is something needs experience of selling in the same culture.† Then the interviewer asked Mr. A how he has prepared for the immersion in a new culture to which Mr. A replied â€Å"I have learned about the culture of Singapore from the internet sites and a few friends of mine who have been to Singapore but experiencing a culture in person is totally a new experience.† Continuing the conversation the interviewer asked Mr. A about his feelings upon knowing that he will be going to Singapore and about his first few days in

Science Plant Study and Animal Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Science Plant Study and Animal Study - Essay Example A mix of dense, green-grey color, they provide rich ornamental view at open places giving a natural feel in concrete neighborhood. They are intolerant of shade and require space. The name Grevillea is in memory of Charles F. Greville (1749-1807), one of the founders of the Royal Horticultural Society of London. As diverse as trees, shrubs and ground covers, Proteaceae plants are found in frost free, arid regions with scanty rainfall. Warm, dry conditions suit these plants and they thrive in environments that other plants may not find conducive to survive. Some also bloom in winter. The name Proteaceae is taken after the Greek god, Proteus, whose penchant for self-transformations in various shapes has passed on to the plant which also assumes different shapes in different regions of the world. The protea species are tough, hard and resilient. They require minimal nutrients, very little moist, and loose and gravelly soil. The plant is designed to survive in tough conditions by retaining moist in its leaves and flowers. It is not compatible with moist saturated soil and is more suited for mineral rich soil with less phosphate content and where water drains fast. Hillside slopes where the soil is loose also serve as ideal breeding ground for proteaceae plants. The flower is the size of a dinner plate. It is showy and decorative. It has brilliant orange-yellow color. The flowers are nectar-bearing, and attract birds and insects. Some species attract insects and trap them with their sticky exterior killing them for no apparent reason. Leaves Proteaceae leaves range from large, round rainforest types to the needle-like variety. Hairless and green on the surface, the leaf bears white or ash colored silky hair underneath. It is alternate and two to four inches in size. The pointed fern like leaves of Grevillea robusta give way to beautiful golden yellow bloom of the flowers during spring. (University of Connecticut). Grevillea robust leaf The leaves cause quite a litter at the onset of spring as they begin to shed in large numbers. (Edward F. Gilman and Dennis G. Watson). Pollination The plant's reproduction system is unique and contains both the male and female functions. The flower performs bisexual functions by its ability to reproduce on its own.Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 1 shows the Grevillea robusta immature flower with the perianth (four dark pink yellow border strips). Figure 2 shows G. robusta mature flower without the perianth and the ovary, style and the pollen presenter with stigma visible. The outer part of the flower is a bract called perianth. The bract is a scale like covering found around the lower part of a flower. It is hard and protects the inner portion

Explain why emissions' trading is a compromise between a) the Pigovian Essay

Explain why emissions' trading is a compromise between a) the Pigovian taxation approach and b) the pure Coase theorem approac - Essay Example 8). Pigouvian taxation approach Emission trading and Pigouvian taxation are both the approaches for reducing the emission s of greenhouse gases by providing incentives to firms and individuals. The Pigouvian tax involves the increase of cost of production of carbon by the government, and the market determines the efficient quantity. On the contrary, the emission trade entails the regulation of the amount of emission by the government with a market-determined price of the carbon, based on the reallocation of polluting permits (Mabey 2001 p. 61). Pigouvian tax effectively requires a polluter to internalize the cost of pollution by imposing taxes. This tax represents the cost to society, because of polluting the environment. The emission trade and the Pigovian approach can lead to the same reduction of pollutants. Emissions trade though is more advantageous, because the rights to pollute are given through a market to those who can make efficient use of them (Lane 2009 p. 145). For compa nies to trade their carbon credits, they have to reduce their emission. However, companies that generate higher emission will have to buy more credits (Tiwari & Dubey 2010 p. 316). Pure Coase theorem approach Coase theorem describes the financial effectiveness of an economic allocation, or the result in the presence of externality. According to this theorem, if there is the possibility of externality, and there are the absences of transaction costs, bargaining can cause an efficient result without considering the first allocation of property rights. Poor definition of property rights can obstruct the coasian agreement (Callan & Thomas 2009, p.69). The coase theorem is the motivation principle behind emission trade because when there are absence of transaction expenses, the involved individuals can negotiate to a jointly beneficial result (Fine & Milinakis 2009 p. 101) Bargaining to a mutually helpful outcome can be expensive because the transactions costs are almost never zero. This concept is very important for the market-based environmental policy. Reduction of transaction costs is a fundamental factor in facilitating people to use markets to handle and optimize pollution. Coase theorem rests upon restraining assumptions like the small size groups, and near-zero transaction costs. However, in practice, transaction costs are often prohibitive and the government has to intercede (Harris 2003 p. 39). Two major approaches to environmental regulations are the use of command and control together with economic instruments (Gokcekus, Umut & LaMoreaux 2011 p.257). Command and control methods like pollution standards and targets are commonly found in the developing and the developed countries. Actors who fail to meet the levels that were specified by the standard are liable to sanctions. This is in contrast to economic instruments, which work by modifying markets and the incentives of agents in order to achieve publicly desirable amount of pollution (Levin 2009 p. 741 ). Market creation for the emission trade is an efficient method of lowering transaction costs. In reducing the transaction expenses, it is important to define and enforce property rights so that a company that has a right to emit a certain amount per year can trade away some or all the rights, and will be held accountable for the amount that it emits. Therefore, if

Effects of Climate Change Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Effects of Climate Change - Research Paper Example Due to global climate change, areas that used to experience huge amounts of rainfall are now experiencing minimum rainfall such that they are now becoming arid like while at other times rain is falling in excessive amounts, leading to flooding. Low rainfall means that there is not enough clean water for domestic purposes. In such a circumstance, it becomes difficult to maintain hygiene and consequently, diseases such as diarrhea, typhoid, dysentery and cholera among others become a health hazard. In addition, malnutrition as a result of withering of crops due to lack of sufficient rainfall is also a health condition, which has been noted to occur in the contemporary world. According to the World Health Organization (2008), â€Å"Malnutrition, much of it caused by periodic droughts, is already responsible for an estimated 3.5 million deaths each year.† Flooding on the other hand, is a condition, which brings as much health calamities as those caused by drought. To begin with, f looding involves having stagnant water in areas that are largely flat in nature. Human beings live in these areas and every time there are floods, they are forced to take refuge on higher grounds, where they live under poor hygienic conditions especially due to lack of facilities such as toilets and latrines to dispose off human waste. In addition, flooding contributes to the mixing of ground and surface water with dirt and other effluent from raw sewerage and this becomes a catastrophe especially in third world countries and other emerging economies, which rely mainly on surface water for drinking and other domestic purposes. This water therefore carries a lot of... This research paper is a critical evaluation of climate change, as a direct consequence of global warming, and its effects on humans and nature. Climate change, as a result of global warming, is an environmental problem, which has emerged in the last 50 years and is projected to worsen significantly in the near future. it is justifiable to imagine the level of damage, which has occurred over the last 100 years. Most notably, scientists have warned that there is a possibility that this temperature will increase by 1.1o C by the end of this century if stern measures are not taken to prevent it. Green house gas emissions such as Carbon dioxide, Methane, Nitrous Oxide among others have been credited for the increases in global surface temperatures as a result of their capacity to trap and maintain heat from the sun. It is also mentioned in the research paper that human activities are the major contributing factors to this anthropogenic climate change, which has adverse effects on human h ealth, agriculture and biodiversity. Some of these activities are for example; deforestation, charcoal burning, pollution from industries, all of which increases the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. In order to save these important facets of nature, efforts must be made to control the rate at which climate change is occurring. The researcher then concluds that otherwise, the next 100 years will record an extinction of important plant and animal species, which are the surviving blocks for humans.

Welfare and unemployment Essay Example for Free

Welfare and unemployment Essay Welfare is a term used to describe a wide spectrum of parameters for human well being. These parameters include security, education, economy, housing, health and natural environment. In essence, welfare encompasses wellness of all aspects of life. Basically, welfare can be defined as wellness or well doing or wellbeing in regard to enjoyment of health and common blessings of life, free from any evil or disasters; development and happiness. Welfare can be viewed in the perspective of both an individual and community as a whole. On the other hand, unemployment refers to a situation where an individual is available to work and currently searching for work but there is no where he/she can work. The level of unemployment is measured by unemployment rate which is usually described as the percentage of the people in the labor force who have gotten employed. It is a matter of course that unemployment impacts negatively to the welfare of the people in a country. These impacts occur at individual, family and community levels. Some of the impacts of unemployment that are commonly known include: poor housing, lack of income, poor health, lack of food, insecurity, lack of education , accumulation of debts, Xenophobia, protectionism and immigration hence it is agreeable among people of different quotas that unemployment and welfare are closely related (Anderson, 2000, 67) . To begin with, one of the most important measures of welfare is health. According to WHO, health is defined as a state of complete wellness physiologically, economically, socially and emotionally and not merely the absence of a disease or disability. In this regard, economy and social factors are key determinants of human health. The welfare of the economy and social status is dependent on the availability of work that provides employment to the people. In the contemporary world, employment means work which is consistent and money can be paid for it. The need for earning money has made a paying job as a top agenda in the priorities and lives of many people. Due to this reason, job has got a significant impact on the mental, physical and social health status of the society. There is a lot of documented research and empirical evidence on the effects of lack of jobs on the health of the people. Employment to may people gives them a sense of consistency, purpose and identity, belongingness, social identity and a chance for individual’s growth and development. In some cases, some say that it provides to them self-realization and creativity. When one is unemployed, he/she is considered to have lost these vital benefits and therefore it results to adverse effects to his/her health (Earney, 1997, 102). According to numerous studies that have conducted world wide, there seems to be a pattern of increasing mortality rate during the times of negative economic growth, such as time of increasing unemployment. For example, in Scotland (1983), there was a time lag of 0 to 13 years in its population, meaning that the death rate was increased by the continuously high and rising unemployment during that time. This association of health and unemployment can be depicted well in the studies of cardiovascular diseases. From analysis of various studies, it has been proved that there is a positive relationship of unemployment and coronary heart diseases deaths. This is basically because of the stress that is related with unemployment. From these studies, it has been specifically noted that, aged employees who were retrenched and the young people who are jobless are more prone to stroke and high blood pressure disorders than the other segments of the populations. The other measure of the association between unemployment and health is number of suicides. In the studies that have been conducted so far, it has been proved that in most cases, those who attempted suicide had been unemployed or jobless. This was more so among the adolescents males. Research has also shown that high risks of injury and accidents are related to unemployment (Nelson, 1999, 33). Unemployment has also been identified as one of the cause of the many mental problems being experienced of late. It is confirmed by research that immediate job loss, long time joblessness and many mental and physical health disorders are closely related. The mental health negative effects of joblessness include consistent depression, insomnia, self-harming feelings , anxiety, dullness, pessimism , decline in self esteem and reduced ability to make decision. In one of the studies in USA, it was found that the physicians recorded the highest number of psychiatric patients during the times of economic recession which is characterized by a lot of joblessness. Also, worthy noting was the unique finding that most health facilities received the highest number of clients in the times of economic difficulties contrary to the normal assumption of the people that patients increase at the time of economic boom when there is a lot of money in circulation for seeking healthcare. Unemployment does not spare the welfare of children either. It has been noted that children are adversely affected when the parents are jobless. In such cases, the families lack finances to cater for their basic needs like seeking for health care, education, shelter and food. This results to increased infant mortality, morbidity rates and hospital admissions. In one of the studies in Britain, it was found out that unemployment doubled the risk of sickness for young children who were admitted at the health facilities. Unemployment makes the young to suffer from material deprivation, depression and other psychological problems, somatic symptoms and sicknesses, juvenile delinquency, poor performance in school and lack of attachment to the parents. It has also been observed that child abuse and neglect becomes rampant when jobless occurs (Gulluly, 1998, 23). For women, the problem of unemployment hits the hardest. It predisposes them to the practice of prostitution so as to earn income for catering for their needs and their families. Such practice has resulted to quick spread of sexually transmitted infections like HIV and others. Moreover, joblessness among women leads to increased levels of the cases of maternal mortality . This is due to lack finances for seeking maternal health services, which in most developing countries are paid for. To worsen the situation, the married women have been on the receiving end in the times of unemployment since many men divorce them or run away leaving them with a heavy burden of feeding the families. Such cases have been reported in developing countries where the men leave their wives and migrate to other areas in the name of hunting for job. The ripple effect of this kind of migration is extended to food production in that it leads to the lack of manpower in rural areas and therefore agriculture is adversely affected. When it comes to the relationship between unemployment and housing, it is evident that the low level of income which is associated with unemployment results to mushrooming of informal settlements like slums in towns and squatters in rural areas. The unemployed lack money to rent descent houses or buy land of their own thus results to deviation of the law and settling in lands owned by other people. This leads to cycle of crimes and battles between the security officers and the jobless people. In addition to this, standards of living are affected with the informal settlement dwellers lacking basic necessities like drainage systems, water and other sanitation facilities hence frequent outbreaks of diseases (Snower, 2000, 16). In other cases, chronic lack of jobs leads to xenophobic attacks that polarizes the diplomatic relation of a country with others. This occurs due to thinking that unemployment results when the available jobs are being taken by a foreigner who is regarded as non citizens. During this kind of attacks, robbery, rape, destruction of property and demonstrations become the order of the day. To evade such adverse influences of unemployment, many countries have come up with economic strategic plans that attempt to ensure there are adequate employment opportunities to absorb jobless people and graduates from both universities and other tertiary level colleges. USA has been on the fore front in endeavor. The president-elect barrack Obama has come up with policies for the country to address the low level of unemployment that had occurred during the previous government (Adam, 2003, 86). These include provision of immediate tax cut for workers and their families. This aims to make half of the tax credit be available to the workers and the jobless thus maintaining the consumer expenditure, strengthening the economy as well as rescuing many Americans who are faced with economic challenges. Another strategy which president Oboma is using is the provision of immediate supplement to social security for the low and middle income seniors. This is because the president understands that high prices are overburdening the seniors surviving on fixed incomes. He is providing to the middle and low income that are not benefiting from the tax credit, an immediate one time supplement to their social security benefit. Establishment of a kitty to assist families from foreclosure is another way which Obama is using to cushion the low income earners and the unemployed. This plan will aid people to live in their residentials and renegotiate with their lenders as well as preventing more decline in property values thus reducing the effect of a national foreclosure crisis on the state and household budgets. Lastly, he has initiated the provision of relief for local and state governments badly hit by housing crisis to protect curtailment of services like health education and infrastructure. This is because the housing crisis and sinking economy has resulted to significant decline of revenue in both state and local governments. In conclusion therefore, it is of a paramount importance for any government to ensure that the economy is properly managed to produce employment opportunities since failure to do so may result to eruption of incidences that ripple the welfare of a country. Work cited Adams Frank. Unemployment and Social Decay in Urban areas. Routledge, London, 2003, pp. 86 Anderson Ewan. An Introduction to Essentials of Economics.. Praeger Publishers, Westport CT, 2000, pp. 67 Earney Fillmore. The Global Indicators of Social Welfare. Macmillan Publishers, London, 1997, pp. 102 Gulluly James. The Principles of Economics. W. H Fremmil, 1998, pp. 23 Nelson Daniel. Unemployment Insurance: The American Experience. University of Wisconsin, 1999, NewYork, pp. 33 Snower Dennis. Unemployment Benefits: An Assessment for Reforms. Macmillan Publishers, London, 2000, pp. 16

Starting and Naming a Business Essay Example for Free

Starting and Naming a Business Essay Betty Wilson’s venture of opening a Christian Coffee House in Belmont, NC, presents her with abundant opportunities in selecting a business form. She is considering the following types of entities: 1) franchise, 2) sole proprietorship, 3) partnership of some sort, 4) corporation of some sort, 5) LLC, or 6) even as a joint venture. We will briefly explore each business option and give Betty concise recommendations as to what business form to pursue as well as what business partners to engage. Franchise A franchise is a legal agreement between franchisers and franchisees that consents use of the franchise’s trademark and trade name or marketing plan to sell products or services (Kubasek, Brennan, Browne, 2012, p. 791). Through a franchising arrangement franchisee can profit from implementing another’s efficacious business model. One of the most attractive advantages is the high probability of success of 90 % as compared to 20 % for small businesses (Staring and Naming a Business Presentation, 2012, Slide 9). Other advantages include established franchise reputation, operational support and training, product research and development, and better access to financing. On the downside, business plan rigidity can deprive the quality of customer service and hinder a creative business owner. Thus, both the Clayton Act regulates business competition and price discrimination (15 USC  §Ã‚ § 12-27; 36 Am J1st Monop etc  §Ã‚ § 141, 142) and the Sherman Act is a federal antitrust act (15 USC  §Ã‚ § 1 et seq; 36 Am J1st Monop etc.  § 141) protect the public and small business owners from monopolization and market power. Sole Proprietorship Sole proprietors own an unincorporated business on their own and this type of business constitutes the most predominant form of business enterprise in the United States (Kubasek, et al., 2012, p. 758). Advantages of a sole proprietor include complete decision-making power, flexibility, easiest and inexpensive to start, enjoyment of all profits, no corporate tax payments, and reporting losses and income on personal tax returns. A sole proprietorship is treated as one entity with the owner. The most significant disadvantage is total personal responsibility for all debts and liabilities, which constitutes the element of risk that drives away investors to more solid business ventures (Kubasek, et al. 2012, p. 758-759). Partnership General. Similar to sole proprietorship, this type of entity is uncomplicated and less costly to create. This is an association of two or more individuals who contribute labor, money, property, and skills and consequently share in the profits of the business. A general partner exists only if the profits are shared and do not only receive a wage or salary (Kubasek, et al., 2012, p. 759). Some of the most enticing features are sharing in the decision-making control, authority different aspects of the business (i.e., management, capital, etc.), and simplified taxing. As with a sole proprietorship, a disadvantage is that each partner has unlimited personal liability for all debts, contracts, and torts. And similarly to any conglomerate of people, differences in views, standards, performance, and expectations can undoubtedly clash and encumber profitable business management. Limited. Limited partnerships consist of both general and limited partners (Staring and Naming a Business Presentat ion, 2012, Slide 4). The main difference of limited partnership to general partnership is that limited partners are not liable in sharing the debts outside the funds they contribute to the partnership. A limited partner is vastly disengaged in management decisions and operations and function solely as contributors of capital. One of the main advantages of this business structure is that they enjoy direct contact to the flow of income. In North Carolina, limited partnerships are strictly controlled by the Uniform Partnership Act (1941, c. 374, s. 1; 2000 140, s. 101(j); 2001 487, s. 20.) administrates the creation, operation, and liquidation of all partnerships formed. Finally, at any time a limited partnership agreement is breached, the business entity is treated as a general partnership. Corporation A corporation is a separate legal entity that possesses distinctive liabilities and privileges than that of their members or shareholders. As an investor, a corporation’s advantage is liability for their own investments especially in risky investments (Kubasek, et al., 2012, p. 760). Among the various types of corporations for Betty to select from, an S corporation is an enticing venture for new entrepreneurs given that it grants limited personal liability for debts, sharing of corporate profits, and taxation relief. Double taxation is a main disadvantage of C corporations but not for S corporations. The General Corporation Law (Corp C  §Ã‚ §100-2319) treats S corporations similarly to partnerships for taxation purposes. Limited Liability Company (LLC) As a hybrid of partnerships and corporations, LLC’s provide limited liability for debts and flexibility to be taxed as a partnership or corporation (Staring and Naming a Business Presentation, 2012, Slide 5). Some specific advantages include being empowered authorities in the management of the business, diversity of members, limited liability, pass-through taxation, and less paperwork (appreciated by many). A drawback of this business structure is the need for a tailored operating agreement that specifies the specific needs of the company. Joint Venture A joint venture is a business partnership that usually involves a specific purpose or goal for its formation and the partnerships dissolve after the goal is attained. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) normally does not recognize a joint venture as a legal entity so it is treated as a partnership (Staring and Naming a Business Presentation, 2012, Slide 8). This is advantageous in that the partners equally distribute authority to govern, share profits and losses, and contribute labor, money, property, efforts, and skills to expand the success of the business project (Kubasek, et al., 2012, p. 759). According to the Small Business and Work Opportunity Tax Act of 2007 (Public Law 110-28), the only type of qualified joint venture that cannot be treated as a partnership it that of an unincorporated business between a husband and wife. The main disadvantages of joint ventures are uneven collaboration, expertise, management styles, and research to reinforce sound decisions. Recommendation Business name. To determine corporate name availability, Betty must comply with statutory requirements to allow her to name the coffee shop â€Å"Gathering Place.† After utilizing the search engine for the Department of the Secretary of State North Carolina to determine the name availability â€Å"Gathering Place,† generating fifteen results. The businesses range from motels, publishers, books stores, churches, and pastry and coffee shops. Under the hospitality industry, two food service businesses resulted that are Gathering Place Cafà © Sweet Treats, Inc. located in Archdale, NC and The Gathering Place and Bake Shoppe of Fayetteville, NC. Some of the basic apprehensions to the name is that it is confusingly similar and it doesn’t target the desired consumer market. Because it is in a town with no businesses with the same title, Betty can definitely brand her business with the â€Å"Gathering Place† title. Business type. In hindsight, a LLC would grant Betty needed flexibility given the diversity of interested business partners. This business structure is well suited for individuals who can invest into a new venture and have many interested parties as well as needed beneficiaries of taxation privileges. The Delaware Limited Liability Company Act (C  § 18-1101(b) set precedent to the freedom of contract of LLC’s and obligations set forth in operating agreements. Betty would be legally well protected if she entered business with John (husband), Alice (sister), or Erma (neighbor). My recommendation would be for Betty to include John and Erma in the business endeavor and keep Alice outside the endeavor given the strong opposition of her husband. Final Thoughts We can find numerous Bible passages that warn against unequal yoking (i.e., 2 Corinthians 6:14). I would advice Betty to enter into an LLC with her husband John and Neighbor Erma. In spite of her confused perfection of her â€Å"Christian† worldview, Erma can prove to be a good business partner and profit from being in business with a mature Christian such as Betty. References Clayton Act (15 USC  §Ã‚ § 12-27). Corporations Division for Department of the Secretary of State North Carolina (2012). Retrieved from http://www.secretary.state.nc.us/corporations/searchresults.aspx?onlyactive=OFFWords=ALLsearchstr=gathering%20place Delaware Limited Liability Company Act (C  § 18-1101(b). General Corporation Law (Corp C  §Ã‚ §100-2319). Kubasek, N. K., Brennan, B. A. Browne, M. N. (2012). The legal environment of business: A critical thinking approach (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Liberty University (2012, Spring). Staring and naming a business. Legal Issues in Business class presentation. Retrieved from http://bb7.liberty.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-15354309-dt-content-rid-74512567_1/courses/BUSI561_D10_201220/presentations/Module%207/index.html Small Business and Work Opportunity Tax Act of 2007 (Public Law 110-28). Uniform Partnership Act of North Carolina ( §Ã‚ § 59-31).