Portrait of Dr Gachet Essay Example for Free

Portrait of Dr Gachet Essay A. Introduction When the name Van Gogh comes up, one can imagine sunflowers, stars at night, rice fields, and lonely portraits. His works resemble writing. (Berger, 2001, p.87) His life rendered to writing. When one hears his name, one remembers a song, a play, a book.   Van Gogh’s appeal is world-wide. Collectors, dealers, and museums place a high price on a painting. Artists, art critics, and even an ordinary person who knows a thing or two about Western art can appreciate his works as well as his life story.    He was a post impressionist painter. (vangoghgallery.com) One of the controversial paintings of Van Gogh is the Portrait of Dr. Gachet. The subject (Paul Ferdinand Gachet) was the painter’s physician and friend. He made the portrait six weeks before he committed suicide. (businessweek.com, 1998) B. Description / Analysis The subject in the painting occupied much of the space. It cuts a diagonal line in the middle of the canvass. The slant gives the mood of the subject. Dr. Gachet is in a reclining position as if exhausted and sad. The subject’s outline – from his hat, to his shoulders, to his hand, was drawn with soft curved lines. The features of the face and the coat are also of curves. The curves give the work an over-all softness which contributes to the idea of sadness; as opposed to sharp lines which usually denote coldness. There were very few straight lines used. They can only be seen in the objects (two books) beside the subject. There are also the famous small strokes using semi-curved lines used by Van Gogh to give texture. The strokes have little space between them. And, the background colors of these strokes are still very visible. These small strokes create a pattern-like detail ( it used the principle of repetition) to the visual objects that uses them such as subject’s clothes and his background.   The main subject is oval. He is like a fruit reclining on a table. The dominant colors are blue and green. There are many shades using these colors. They are contrasting to the subject’s skin tone which is mostly a combination of yellow and cream. The face and the arms are fair with soft details using light brown and green. The contrast of the dark and the light colors brings attention to the face, and thus the mood of the subject; which as mentioned earlier looks exhausted and sad. The subject was placed in the middle ground.   The foreground are the other visual objects such as books, table and the flowers in a vase. The foreground gives an idea to the setting; that the portrait was done during a casual encounter. The background is an outline of a landscape (in dark blue) and sky (in pale blue). The background colors are of the same shade which create harmony. The Portrait of Dr.Gachet was painted in 1890. Its size is 67 x 56 cm. It used oil on canvas.(paletaworld.org) Van Gogh used this medium the most as shown in his most famous paintings. There are debates on whether Van Gogh’s art is impressionist, expressionist or post-impressionist. Partly, due to the small brush strokes he used to give detail to visual objects, some say he belongs to the impressionist painters. The small strokes are signs of the artist’s swift motion during painting. Since the outline of the visual objects are simple, one gets the idea that the artist must have paid attention to the affect reality such as the mood or feeling of the subject at that time. This presents a way of seeing; as opposed to hyperrealist artworks which concentrate on the mastery of details. (Berger, 2001, p. 8) C. Interpretation The over-all impact of the painting is sadness. It was an intimate portrait because the painter was drawing out feelings. This can be seen in the choice of colors, soft lines and -most obvious- the details of the subject’s face. By the title alone Portrait of Dr. Gachet, one expects to see a serious man. Visual details show the same characteristic as the subject appears to be a serious man. Beside the subject were books. Reading suggests educational or professional background. The subject wore a dark coat and a defined moustache -which are the common symbols of being proper. The usual portraits are arranged like a pictorial. The Portrait of Dr. Gachet deviates from this. It is not a display of attributes. The painting is affective. This means that it shows a relation between the subject and the painter. The subject was relaxed enough to recline and show his emotions. He looks exhausted or resigned from something, and he is conveying it. The table used as a foreground suggests the looker (the painter) might be on the other end. Facts concerning the subject’s relation to Van Gogh came as no surprise. He was said to be unable to help Van Gogh in his depression and is suffering from it as well. (Bertman, 2006) The subject’s relation to the painter is relevant. He was his doctor. And he was with him days before the painter’s death.   The sad and tired look on the doctor’s face symbolizes surrender. The death of Van Gogh came days later. In the Portrait of Dr. Gachet, Van Gogh was painting vulnerability. He was keen to the moment being lived by himself and his subject. D. Judgment The Portrait of Dr. Gachet stirred controversy for the high price it was bought and the mystery of its vanishing. It was auction in 1990 with a bidding that started with $20 million and sealed with $ 82.5 million. A Japanese industrialist kept it in a secret store room. He gained notoriety when he exclaimed in jest that the piece would be cremated with him. After his death, the painting was said to have been sold, but it was no longer seen by the public. The Portrait of Dr. Gachet is controversial not only because it was the painting bought with the highest price for an auction. The very manner of passing it from one collector to another who did not have any interest in sharing it to the public, and not even to view it himself, (Kleiner, 2000)   show how art is a property of the privileged. Its vanishing act sparked further debates on the commodification of art. The common sentiment revolves around the seemingly waste of art because Van Gogh was important to the public. But, the pr ivileged (collector) did not have the intention to give. It seemed their own love of art is a pretension. (Berger, 103) E. Conclusion The Portrait of Dr. Gachet is a portrait of many values. It is a portrait drawn to portray beyond social status. It also described social relations. It is an artwork about perception and emotions. It is an intimate portrait of a man who was supposed to cure the painter. It is significant to all who appreciate Van Gogh. It is also valuable to all who regard art beyond one’s private collection.

Evaluate Assessment Activities Essay Example for Free

Evaluate Assessment Activities Essay Describe, use and evaluate two different assessment activities used to check the learning of either individuals or a group of learners. Analyse the purpose of assessment and produce a written justification of your chosen assessment method. Use an extract from your teaching practice portfolio and reflect on how your feedback has informed your learners progress and achievement and how feedback from others has informed your own professional practice. Introduction In my first year at College I have delivered Entry and Level 2 Motorvehicle Maintenance and with no previous experience of this course assessment was something I leant on the job so to speak. Initially it was games and questions and answers followed by tests which were mainly practical. As the year progressed I then started doing formal practical exercises (observed assessments), Web based exercises and finally multiple choice exam style questions. The Entry level course is assessed purely by portfolio (questions and answers plus job cards) but the Level 2 course has a summative exam element. These are spread over the year and total 5. The two I am going to discuss are the observed assessments and job card creation. Job card creation The first assessment method I will discuss is the completion of job cards. As part of the course (either group) the learners all complete practical tasks in the workshop. Indeed this is one of the highlights for them as they are not an academically based group on the whole. Each practical task is designed to reinforce the theory element that was covered in the previous lectures. During the practical we (staff) make sure the learners understand what they are doing and its relevance to the topic in hand. We also check they make notes to help with job card completion. Differentiation is also practised, not in the task itself but the bike they are given to work on. Some are easier than others for given jobs. Once the task has been completed and the workshop cleared up and all tools put away etc. (i. e. there is a break from the original task in hand) they all have to complete a job card to reflect what they have been doing. During this time I keep a close eye on what they are writing and often challenge them on various facts. I found ome learners struggled to remember what they had just done even with the help of notes whilst others completed the task almost unaided. During this task the results of assessing learning really became obvious. It was interesting that for the most part it was always the same learners that has the same problems. Over the year they did become better, some more than others. There were some however who had hit their ceiling with what we might consider these ver y simple tasks. Fortunately the course demands a very formative assessment approach and this final task of completing the job cards is almost a formality and not something you can fail at. The bulk of the course assessment was done actually during the practical task. This was more the case for Entry level learners than the Level 2 learners. Level 2 learners had to complete similar tasks etc. but were slightly better at completing job cards. Again this was not something they could fail at. If it was not right they simply adjusted it until it was. For the learners this task was not one they relished as almost exclusively they are kinaesthetic learners with an aversion to both reading and writing and often listening. This was consequently quite a hard task for the learners but a necessary one as the course demanded it as evidence of their learning. It did open the opportunity for discussion however and lots of them learnt a lot during these sessions. There was also an element of team work as for the most part they worked in groups doing the workshop tasks. As the year progressed and reflecting on my teaching portfolio, without exception all my learners improved and in some cases gained the confidence and desire to help others which was very encouraging. Interestingly this was the less able helping those that may have missed a session etc. A great boost in self confidence for them and the class generally. As the teacher from this whole workshop process I was able to differentiate between those likely to be technician material, those who may make fitters and those who were not going to make it in the field. With the benefit of hindsight these impressions are accurate so far. Observed assessments This is for the Level 2 learners only and involves carrying out a practical task on a motorvehicle under near exam conditions i. e. no talking to other learners in the room etc. They could talk to the teachers and ask some questions. This was a particularly instructive task for us the teachers as the learner is suddenly on his/her own rather than in a group as they had been in the normal workshop sessions. As the teacher we had few surprises with the performance of the learners but there were one or two early on. These were mainly because it was possible during the workshop sessions to take a back seat and let your group do most of the work. Because of this they were unsure when it came to their assessment which is only to be expected. Whilst most learners completed the tasks correctly there were a few problems as expected. Going back to my ethic of trying to treat them as adults I tried to relax them whilst doing the task and relieve the usual stress associated with this type of task. This was mainly around failure either in the task or to complete in the allotted time. I spent a lot of time reassuring them that if it didn’t work out it was not a problem, we would just do it again after some more practice. In the early assessments the learners looked as though they were treading on glass but as the year progressed and they relaxed and began to know our boundaries it became an enjoyable exercise for them. For the teacher again it provided a wealth of information on their progress, knowledge and confidence and gave us discussion material for both the learners and parents evening. These tasks gave the learners an opportunity to show their knowledge and expertise and consequently progress through the course curriculum. There was no learning from one student to another of course but there was a good competitive spirit around success and time keeping. The purpose of assessment ‘Assessment is a measure of learning, at a given point in time’ [ ]. Taken on its own this is rather insular so it should be noted that the assessment process is a ‘a two way process’ [ ]. This means that the teacher should take on board feedback from the assessment process and where necessary modify their teaching practices to improve the overall learning experience. At its simplest this is for planning further teaching and assessment. There are several methods of assessment, some of them formal e. g. observations, tests, exams etc. and some are informal e. g. questions and answers, quizzes etc. and finally there are initial, formative and summative assessments. In these early days of the course it seemed logical to use the above assessment methods as they were contributing directly towards the outcome of the course and its evidence based criteria. The college choice of examining board (City and Guilds) has left me very little scope for alteration of the assessment methods I have outlined. Looking forward though I plan to make the job cards a lot easier to complete which will aid in hitting the City and Guilds targets whilst going some way towards removing the dependence on reading and writing especially the English element. I have other plans to re-introduce this though with research based homework as the functional skills elements must not be neglected. Feedback from my learners on my initial attempts has been very encouraging. So, whilst my aim is to follow on what Dr Patrick Geoghegan says ‘the students could test themselves in a non-intimidating way that could be fun’ [ ] I realise there is a way to go but we have made great strides this year and next year will be better. Certainly, this year has been a steep learning curve for both the learners and teachers but we are progressing together and it is looking promising on the progression from one level to the next. I was observed by my supervisor and during the catch up session later received feedback about my teaching session. The most interesting point for me was the level of the lecture. It was a seemingly simple subject on exhaust systems but during the lecture the class and I got into an interesting discussion which veered off into the speed of sound through different temperature gases and so on. The feedback was simply to keep the lecture on track. To this end I have now started to pre-empt little diversions like this with additional slides either at the end or in a separate presentation. This way I can cover these points at a later time or at the end if appropriate. Separating these out also means when I put my presentations on Moodle I can only put up the core show and keep some back for differentiation purposes. Conclusion Good assessment techniques particularly formative ones can be embedded into the lesson and almost unnoticeable to the learners. There are of course the more formal techniques which are more obvious e. g. QA, tests etc. For myself I have been using a large range of assessment techniques some of which I did not even realise I was doing at the beginning. During the year the assessment process has been an interesting learning curve for both myself and my learners. I have involved them as much as I can and some of the feedback from them has been very insightful and consequently fed back into the process. Finally, feedback to the learner from assessment should always be as constructive as possible. This is supported by the following quote ‘assessment feedback †¦. should always be constructive’ [ ]. Bibliography Books Ann Gravells and Susan Simpson, planning and Enabling Learning in the Lifelong Learning Sector, 2008 Susan Wallace, Teaching and Supporting Learning in Further Education, Learning Matters, 2001 G Petty, Teaching Today, Nelson Thornes, 2009 Websites Geoghegan P M (2006) Hot potatoes formative assessment, in Every Student Matters Activities for Engaging and Widening Participation in Higher Education: A Preliminary Collection, Higher Education Academy Ireland Blending assignments and assessments for high-quality learning http://www. enhancementthemes. ac. uk/themes/IntegrativeAssessment/IABlendingInclusivity. asp

Nature and process of communication

Nature and process of communication Explain the Nature and Process of Communication 1.1 COMMUNICATION IS INTEGRAL TO HUMAN LIFE. Communication is deeply intertwined with the human existence. It is an integral part of it. One cannot think of human life without communication. Can you imagine what would happen if you are not allowed to talk for a long time? You would feel suffocated. In personal life, we need to communicate to deal with various concerns and problems of daily life. In professional life also, it is communication that helps us to build healthy relations and credibility with co-workers. Only speaking/talking is not communication. Communication can take place in many forms. Sometimes, we communicate by talking about our ideas, thoughts or emotions; at other times, we may wish to communicate through the written word or even non-verbally. Whatever form we choose, getting the message across is what communication is all about. Communication is a process that is dynamic, continuous, and irreversible but at the same time, it is reciprocal in nature. It is an ongoing process. Roughly, we can define communication as a shared meaning between two or more individuals. The shared meaning arises out of the individuals experiences, background, education and training. Similarity in experiences, background, training, etc. makes communication successful between individuals. Communication helps us to understand others. The inability to communicate can lead to a lot of problems both personally and professionally. Imagine a day without communicating! We can instantly feel the void it would create. Can we ever forget that it is our ability to communicate verbally that distinguishes us from animals? Communication helps form a powerful bond among people and makes us social beings. Besides, knowledge is not the sole requirement for the achievement of success. A person may possess good knowledge, but his/her performance will be evaluated largely on the basis of his/her ability to communicate. Therefore, if you are a good communicator, you have better chances of success in life and in business. 1.2 COMMUNICATION FOR BUSINESS Communication has become indispensable today. Human activity will come to a standstill if there is no communication. All human transactions become possible only through communication. It is the life-blood of every business organization. Especially in todays globalized market economy, effective communication is vital to the success and survival of any organization. Businesses need people with good communication skills because communication is an essential part of the kind of work that is done in business organizations. It extends across all areas of business, including managerial, technical, clerical and social positions. In present times, several factors have contributed to the significance of communication. They are- faster means of communication because of scientific and technological advancements shrinking geographical boundaries because of the availability of faster means of transport growth of the multinational companies that has resulted in the creation of a globalized market economy generation of highly advanced management techniques as a result of the growing importance of professionalism in the management of business the information revolution that has brought with it highly sophisticated networking technologies multiplication of systems of communication at all levels of organization because of specialized knowledge that has lead to departmentalization advancements in the field of social sciences such as in psychology and in sociology that have created an awareness about the human mind and behaviour and how they influence communication Communication undertaken by a business organization with the purpose of achieving certain specific goals is known as business communication. In fact, business communication is a special type of communication undertaken to meet the needs of the organization. Powerful concepts in modern management like participation, motivation, involvement revolve around communication. According to R. Ludlow, Business communication is a process of transfer of information and understanding between different parts and people of a business organization. It consists of various modes and media involved in communication interchanges. Effective communication is needed for growth and development of any organization. H.G. Hicks has rightly pointed out- Communication is basic to an organizations existence from birth of the organization; when communication stops, organized activity ceases to exist. Improving communication skills improves the chances for success of a business. Effective communication brings progress and prosperity to it. Moreover, in this age of specialization, planning, production, sales, advertising, finance, welfare, etc. are handled by different departments. In absence of effective communication, there would be a serious problem of co-ordination among these departments and there would only be chaos and confusion in the organization. Communication is also quite significant keeping in mind the growing importance of human relations and human resource management in todays world. Communication helps a manager in developing meaningful relationships with the subordinates, changing their attitudes, boosting their morale and soliciting their cooperation. Communication links people together to achieve common goals. It is also required to maintain good public relations. Thus, executives are often expected to give speeches and interviews to the media in order to project a favourable image of the organization. Effective communication is required to handle various crises and conflicts of interests in an organization. It is also needed in order to impart adequate training to the employees in handling latest technology. Subordinates often resent the introduction of changes in the methods of working. This poses a challenge to the management to educate the employees so that they can smoothly adapt to the dynamic character of the organization. They also have to work at alleviating the fear that these changes are likely to generate unemployment. Thus, effective communication can help in changing the negative attitude of the employees towards technological advancement. It facilitates meetings which play an important role in the functioning of an organization. Effective business communication depends not only on the skills of the sender of the message but also on the skills of the one who receives that message. Thus, one may say that communication is not an end in itself; rather, it is a means to achieve an end. (For more details, refer 1.6 Objectives of Communication) 1.3 PRE-REQUISITES OF COMMUNICATION Now the question is- What is communication and how it can be accomplished? What do we require to carry out communication? Hence, prior to looking at the meaning of communication, it would be helpful to know how we prepare for it. For instance, you want to write a letter. What all do you need for it? A piece of paper. A pen. A desk for support. Is there anything else that you require besides these things? Certainly you do. You need to dwell on three important things- 1. Purpose 2. Content 3. Skills These three precede all speaking or writing. WHAT TO COMMUNICATE- CONTENT Information Observation/ Receive by Select/Reject Think and Understanding Attention listening or as per your evaluate results into by reading interest, need the information knowledge or expectation This is how information is processed in to being knowledge. Knowledge generates in you the confidence to communicate. If you are well prepared with the content, then half the work is done. It is the urge to express something that begins communication. It can be an idea, an emotion, an opinion or some information. Without this basic idea/need, there can be no communication. However, we do not communicate whatever comes to our mind immediately. There is a need to plan- what to communicate, how to communicate and whom to communicate it to. We do not communicate without a purpose; therefore, it is essential to answer these questions before actually communicating. This helps us to communicate effectively and to get a desirable response from the person with whom we are exchanging our ideas. WHY TO COMMUNICATE- PURPOSE Speakers/ will hear/see Purpose of Writers Listener/ Communication Expectation Reader will listen/read will understand will act/respond THE PURPOSE IS FULFILLED Purpose is the primary pre-requisite of all meaningful communication. The sender initiates communication with some purpose i.e. expectation. S/he expects the receiver to hear/see his message, to listen/read it attentively, to understand it and to act/respond to it. When the receiver gives feedback or performs the expected action, then communication is said to be successful. However, the response would depend on various factors like concentration, physical surroundings and psychological makeup of the receiver. The next question is- how do we communicate? Communication does not just mean speaking or writing. We are communicating even when we smile or shrug our shoulders. However, when we decide to communicate, we need some medium through which to transfer that idea to the other person. HOW TO COMMUNICATE- SKILLS You may possess good knowledge and may be ready to convey it but if you do not know how to do it, it would not be effective. Poor speaking or writing skills is a real hurdle in communication. Speaking Skills Read aloud: Take a small piece of writing from a newspaper, magazine or a book and read it out loud. This will help you to know how you speak- your voice tone, pitch, etc. Observe: Observe how people speak- their pronunciation, accent, intonation, stress, style, rhythm, etc. Try to emulate the speaking style of good speakers. This will help you to improve your own style of speaking. (For a detailed note on speaking skills, writing skills and non-verbal communication, refer Chapter 2 Types of Communication.) Just the idea/information that the communicator has, the media of transmission available and the presence of the receiver are not enough for communication to take place. We need a proper context and an atmosphere where there are no hindrances in the communication process. Does communication end after the idea is communicated? As stated earlier, we communicate with a purpose. Expression of the idea/information is half the work done. But communication is considered complete only when there is some response from the receiver. Only then we can say that the purpose of communication is fulfilled. Communication involves three basic activities on the part of both the participants i.e. the sender and the receiver. On the senders part, they are- Thinking to develop the content to form a message Speaking/Writing to convey the message to the other person Feeling to make the message persuasive On the receivers part, the activities include- Listening/Reading to absorb the idea/information contained in the message Interpreting to understand the meaning of the message Responding to convey the acceptance or the disagreement with the message Communication has always been an important part of human life. Language and the ability to express ourselves using that language come to us spontaneously. And the need to communicate is so inherent in human nature that we hardly realize that effective communication skills can be acquired and honed. There are four basic communication skills- speaking, writing, listening and reading. They always work in the following adjacency pairs- Speaking/writing is handled by the sender of the message and listening/reading by the receiver of the message. Mastering these four skills is very essential if one wants to become an effective communicator. As children, we learn to speak by listening first. Thus, listening is the first skill that we acquire as we develop the language instinct. Then follows the reading skills once we start schooling and lastly we learn the writing skills as a part of our formal education. Thus, learning language/s and the related communication skills follow a systematic process. It does not happen accidentally and instantaneously. Despite of this, people often turn out to be poor communicators as most of us tend to take its importance for granted. Most of the time, we fail to achieve our objective while we communicate. This happens because of our failure to convey our ideas in a precise and clearly understandable manner. There may be a lack either in the content of the message or in the way in which it is conveyed to the intended audience, or both. The point is we do not normally focus much on what to communicate, when to communicate and how to communicate. Also, we need to consider another equally important aspect why to communicate i.e. the purpose. Thus, it is very important for us to recognize and study the essential elements involved in the process of communication in order to become effective communicators. Every aspect of life, whether personal, social or professional, involves communication. The basic meaning of the word communication is- an exchange of thoughts, messages, or information, as by speech, signals, writing, or behaviour. The meaning of the word has not undergone much change. However, the ways and means of communication have changed greatly as a result of technological and other socio-cultural developments in recent times. Thus, these advancements have added numerous new dimensions to the communication process, which has become more complex over a period of time. It, thus, calls for a detailed study of the various components that are involved in it in order to be able to communicate effectively. 1.4 DEFINING COMMUNICATION In order to understand the term communication, it would be useful to have a look at some definitions given by the experts. The word communication is derived from the Latin word communis which means to transmit, to impart, to exchange, to share, or to convey. Communication means the imparting or exchanging of information by speaking, writing, or using some other medium. (Oxford English Dictionary) Communication is a two-way process of reaching mutual understanding, in which participants not only exchange (encode-decode) information but also create and share meaning. (Business Dictionary) According to Newman and Summer, Communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or emotions by two or more persons. Keith Davis states Communication is a process of passing information and understanding from one person to another. F.G. Meyer defines communication as the intercourse by words, letters or messages, the intercourse of thoughts or opinions. It is the act of making ones ideas and opinions known to others. In the words of Theo Haimann, Communication is the process of passing information and understanding from one person to anotherà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ it is the process of imparting ideas and making oneself understood by others. According to C.G. Brown, Communication has been defined as the transfer of information from one person to another, whether or not it elicits confidence or becomes an exchange or interchange. But the information transferred must be understandable to the receiver. William Scott defines communication as a process which involves the transmission and accurate replication of ideas ensured by feedback for the purpose of eliciting actions which will accomplish organizational goals. Louis A. Allen says, Communication is the sum of all the things which a person does when he wants to create understanding in the mind of another. It involves a systematic and continuous process of telling, listening, and understanding. According to McFarland, Communication may be broadly defined as the process of meaningful interaction among human beings. More specifically, it is a process by which meanings are perceived and understanding is reached among human beings. These definitions explain communication as a process of passing information and understanding (Keith Davis) a two-way process of reaching mutual understanding (Business Dictionary) the act of making ones ideas and opinions known to others (F.G. Meyer) the process of imparting ideas and making oneself understood by others (Theo Haimann) the transmission and accurate replication of ideas ensured by feedback for the purpose of eliciting actions (William Scott) a systematic and continuous process of telling, listening, and understanding (Louis A. Allen) a process by which meanings are perceived and understanding is reached among human beings (McFarland) Thus, these definitions adequately highlight and express in concise form the important features of the process of communication. In short, we can define communication as a process in which two or more elements of a system interact in order to achieve a desired outcome or goal. (Larry L. Barker and Deborah A. Gaut, Communication; 2001) 1.5 FEATURES OF COMMUNICATION On the basis of the above discussion, let us now discuss certain important features of the process of communication. 1. It is an exchange of ideas. Communication is the process through which an exchange of information takes place. It is the sharing of information, ideas, concepts and messages. 2. Two parties are involved in it. In communication, the exchange of information takes place between two or more persons. This implies that there are minimum two people involved in the communication process at any given time. The one who initiates the exchange is the sender of the message (speaker/writer) and the one who receives and interprets it is the receiver of the message (listener/reader). 3. It is a two-way process. Communication is a two-way process of exchanging ideas or information. One person alone cannot carry out communication. When you communicate, there has to be a receiver or an audience that would reciprocate. Then only your communication can be complete. Thus, communication is a process of transmitting and receiving verbal and non-verbal messages. It is considered effective only when it achieves the desired reaction or response from the receiver. The response may be positive or negative. In case of absence of any response, communication is incomplete. Thus, communication is effective only when a concise and clear message is delivered well, received successfully, understood fully, and responded to promptly. 1.6 OBJECTIVES OF COMMUNICATION There is no human action that is done without any purpose. Even the simplest and most natural action like breathing has a purpose- to stay alive. Communication is also always carried out with some purpose. (Refer 1.3 Pre-requisites of Communication) Communication begins with two-fold objectives or purposes that occupy the senders mind: Immediate or Primary to convey or to share Objectives information of Communication Ultimate or Secondary to convince or to persuade people To inform and to persuade are the two basic purposes (goals) that are ever present in the mind of a communicator. Sometimes, he seeks only to inform, as in scientific writings; sometimes, his goal is to persuade the reader, as in journalistic writings; and oftentimes, he wants both to inform and to persuade the reader, as in sales letters, advertisements, etc. Communication is vital to business. The communication activities of an organization fall into three broad categories: 1. Intra-organisational Communication FORMAL Business 2. Inter-organisational Communication Communication 3. Personal INFORMAL Communication 1. Intra-Organisational Communication It is communication within an organization. It is done to implement business plans. It takes many forms like orders, instructions, reports, emails, etc. 2. Inter-Organisational Communication It is communication that a business organization does with people outside the organization i.e. with other companies, customers, clients, general public, etc. It takes the form of planned publicity to improve its image and public relations with the help of business messages, advertising, displays, etc. The success of a business depends on its ability to fulfill the customers needs. Besides providing services, it must communicate effectively with outside people and groups for its success. 3. Personal Communication It is communication without a specific business objective i.e. without an ulterior motive or purpose. Man is a social animal, therefore we have a compulsive need to communicate even when we have nothing substantial to convey. Such communication also occurs in the workplace. For example, personal conversations, gossip, Grapevine phenomenon, etc. If one is not allowed to engage in such casual communication, it may lead to frustration and other such psychological problems. (For a more detailed discussion on corporate communication, refer Chapter 7 Formal and Informal Networks of Communication.) The primary objective of communication is to convey or share information. Business organizations have to deal with a large and varied amount of information on a daily basis in order to conduct various business activities. Thus, proper flow of information helps them to make right decisions. Another equally important objective of communication is to persuade people to accept a point of view or to change their attitude and accept a new or modified attitude. Persuasion is achieved through logical arguments or an emotional appeal to accept the change. Advertisements are an apt example of the persuasive nature of communication. Essentially, all communication is a deliberate and intentional act of persuasion. A communicator wants the reader not only to understand the message but also to be influenced as intended by him. (For a detailed discussion, refer 10.6 Persuasive Communication, Chapter 10 Nature of Attitude and its Influence on Communication) Communication helps to convey information from experts to trainees in an organization for the purpose of educating or training them to handle new technology or to adapt to the changes in the work environment. Communication is an effective tool in the hands of the managers to motivate and to boost the morale of the employees. This enables the organization to achieve higher productivity. Through advice and counseling, the management can help the employees in dealing with their emotional problems as well as problems pertaining to maladjustment and also to give career guidance. By means of letters of appreciation, special mention in reports, minutes of meetings, etc., the management can appreciate the work of the employees. In case of strikes, lockouts, and dismissal of individual employees or disciplinary action against them, the management uses communication channels to issue warnings. Communication also helps in co-ordination of intra-organisational activities, inter-organisational transactions, business transactions, and commercial transactions by means of conferences, meetings, advertisements, requests, suggestions, reviews, and discussions. Without communication, coordinating the activities of different persons engaged in running a business is a remote possibility. The management and the subordinates come closer through communication. Communication promotes cooperation and good industrial relations as it conveys feelings, ideas, opinions, and viewpoints of one party to the other party. The policies and programs formulated by the organization to guide the workforce have to be conveyed to those who are responsible for the execution of work to achieve the organizational objectives. Only effective communication can translate the plans into actions. It aids teamwork by enabling people to work together. It helps perform basic management functions like instructing, coordinating, staffing, planning, etc. Thus, these are the few important objectives of communication in the context of business organizations. So far, we have discussed what comprises communication and the significance of communication in our personal, social as well professional life. We have also highlighted some of the fundamentals of communication. Let us now analyse the process of communication and see how it is accomplished. 1.7 PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION Process is a series of things done to achieve something. Communication also follows a process. Communication begins when the sender/encoder identifies the need to communicate some idea/concept/information. He then encodes/formulates it into a message using a medium which can be understood by the receiver/decoder of the message who in turn processes it in his mind and responds to it. When the decoder understands the message completely, fidelity of communication is said to be 100% and the communication process is said to be complete. (Refer David Berlos Model of Communication) Thus, communication is a two-way process. Fidelity of Communication Idea Idea Concept Encoder Medium Decoder Concept Message Message Information Information Fidelity of Communication David Berlos Model of Communication If necessary, the receiver may send a reply or may respond or react to the message. This response or reaction is also known as feedback. But sometimes, there may be no response at all from the receiver even if it is required. Absence of feedback can be attributed to either of the following reasons- a) the message does not reach the receiver or b) the receiver fails to understand the message. Such situations may arise due to the presence of some factor/s that can- a) obstruct the message from being transmitted or b) distort the meaning of the message. The factors that hamper the flow of communication are known as barriers to communication. (Refer Chapter 4 Resolving Barriers to Communication) Communication occurs in five phases and it consists of the following eight components which are inter-related: Idea Sender/Encoder (Speaker/Writer) Encoding Message Channel and Medium Receiver/Decoder (Reader/Listener) Decoding Feedback Let us now discuss in detail the various stages and elements involved in the communication process. PHASE I- IDEATING: 1) Idea Every message whether oral or written has its origin in an idea that germinates in the mind of the sender of the message. Every idea refers to some context. Context is a common frame of reference within which the sender and the receiver communicate with each other. Thus, the idea or information that the sender wants to convey to the receiver is the source of the message in the communication process. 2) Sender/Encoder The person who initiates the communication process is referred to as the encoder. The process of communication begins with the sender who identifies the need to communicate. He may want to inform or to persuade or to influence or to make the receiver take a particular course of action. The sender must have a clear picture in his mind about what he wants to communicate and should accordingly select symbols, words, images, etc. that would best convey his ideas to the receiver. He must identify his audience and formulate the message in such a way that the receiver understands fully what he intends to convey and interprets it within the same context. PHASE II- ENCODING: 3) Encoding Encoding takes place when the sender formulates his idea into a message to be transmitted to the receiver, using a series of symbols- verbal and/or non-verbal, written or oral. The sender should encode his message keeping in mind the purpose of communication and he should select words or symbols so as to make the receiver understand the communication correctly and to achieve the expected feedback. The sender as well as the receiver should attach the same meaning to the symbols or words, otherwise communication would fail. Thus, proper encoding is essential for successful communication. 4) Message That which is encoded, i.e. the idea/concept/information, is the message. Message is an idea transformed into words. It can be expressed in different ways depending on the subject-matter, purpose, audience, personal style and cultural background of the sender. It can be transmitted effectively only when it is well-formulated, clear, and complete in itself. PHASE III- TRANSMITTING: 5) Channel and Medium An appropriate medium chosen to send the message is known as channel. It is the vehicle which facilitates the sender to convey the message to the receiver. Channel is the system used to transmit a message, whereas medium is one of the forms or types used under that system. For example, oral communication is a channel and telephone conversation (a form of oral communication) is a medium. There are three broad channels of communication and there are several media under each- Channel Medium 1. Oral face-to-face conversation, telephone conversation, audio-tapes, voice mail, etc. 2. Written letters, memos, reports, manuals, notices, circulars, questionnaires, minutes, email, fax, etc. 3. Audio-visual cinema, television, video-tapes, video conferences, video chat, etc. Thus, there is a difference between medium and channel. The sender should decide the best possible channel and medium to transmit the message. The selection of an appropriate channel/medium would be influenced by the following factors- a) the nature of the message, b) the urgency of the message, c) the number of receivers, d) the cost factor, and e) the relationship between the sender and the receiver. PHASE IV- RECEIVING: 6) Receiver/Decoder The person who receives the encoded message is referred to as the decoder. He is the intended audience of the message. The receiver may be an individual or a group of individuals. As communication is a two-w

time travel Essay -- essays research papers

For many years time travel was the stuff of science fiction. This was all just part of the world’s imagination until recently. Scientists now believe that the current laws of physics allow us to travel though time. They believe that we can now travel back to see our founding fathers sign the declaration of independence. We could travel to 2999 to witness the birth of the next new millennium. Such travel would require a machine capable of withstanding great pressures and incredible amounts of speed. The act of actually traveling though time is for the most part, agreed upon, but the implications of such travel is not so decided upon. Many different theorists have different views of what could happen and some go, as far as to say that if we did travel to the past, we would end up in a different universe that is a replica of this one. One of the most basic concepts is that of Dilation, a stretching of something. Some scientists believe that the main gateway to the past or future is a wormhole. Einstein’s general relativity theory explains about universal constants, this is important to understand the concepts of travel at light speed. Traveling to the past could create problems if someone tried to change something. This is a paradox. A few of these paradoxes are explained through the use of quantum mechanics. Sailing though the cosmos at the speed of light with no time passing us by, moving throughout time to witness the ancient Egyptians create their masterpieces. This is an exciting concept that we could actually formulate and make happen. Before the time of Einstein, Newton and other great investigators thought of space as an infinite expanse in which all things exist (Hewitt 213). We are in space and we live in it along with all of the planets and stars. It was never clear if the universe exists in space or space exists in the universe. Dose space exists outside the universe or only within the bounds of it. The similar question, does the universe exist only in time or does time only exist in the universe? Was there time before the universe, and will there be time after it ceases to exist? â€Å"Einstein’s answer to this is that time and space only exist within the universe. There is no time or space ‘outside.’(Hewitt 213)† Einstein said that space and time are two separate parts of a whole called space-time (Hewitt 213). To understand this, consider our presen... ... all his work. His younger self could reproduce the paintings and profoundly and irrevocably affecting the future of art. This would involve no creative energy by the â€Å"inventor.† The reproductions would exist because they are copies from the original and the originals exist because they are copies of the reproductions. No creative energy would ever have to be put forth to create these masterpieces. Because of the chronology principal time travel, by some, has been ruled out. The cosmos await us, and the history of our world is at our fingertips. Would we use this great power for good, bad, and wealth? All we have to do is get in our spaceship, set sail for the nearest wormhole, and hope for a little luck, and we can witness things only told in stories. Only the traveler can decided what he or she wishes to go back for. The theories today state that traveling through time is possible, however they do not say what could be the repercussions of our actions. This great frontier awaits us; we have the knowledge, and are slowly but surly developing the technology. Only time will tell when time itself no longer rules our lives as one of the chief amendments of the universal constitution.

Macbeth :: essays research papers

Macbeth was one of William Shakespeare’s finest plays. Although many people have read Macbeth, not many people know that King Macbeth of Scotland actually existed and what influenced Shakespeare to write about him. English culture and society as well as the historical figure Macbeth impacted Shakespeare’s infamous play. The historical King Macbeth reigned in Scotland for 17 years from 1040-1057. He had a wife named Coruoch and a stepson named Luloch. Although Macbeth did kill Duncan, he was not the gentle king as described in Macbeth. Killing a king was not uncommon at this time as, Macbeth’s 7-9 predecessors were killed as well. In 1050, Macbeth went on a religious pilgrimage to Rome to seek absolution for Duncan’s death. Unlike Macbeth, Malcolm (rather than Macduff) killed the historical Macbeth. Luloch, known as the â€Å"Idiot,† reigned for five months after Macbeth’s death until Malcom overthrew him. Although there are differences between Shakespeare’s Macbeth and the historical figure Macbeth, it is obvious that Shakespeare based his character on this Scottish king. The person who influenced Shakespeare to write Macbeth was King James I of England, who reigned from 1566 to 1625. King James, who was also known as King James 6 of Scotland, succeeded the throne of Queen Elizabeth. James’ mother, Mary Queen of Scots, was known as a tragic queen since she killed James father. At age sixteen, rivals kidnapped James and at age 20, James’ mother was executed. King James was intellectual, scholarly, and an â€Å"insatiable curiost.† His ideal of heaven was the Oxford Library. In 1584, while he was only 18 years old, James wrote Essays of Apprentice in Fine Arts of Poetry. He discussed a new translation of the bible, The Authorized Version, which is the most popular bible today. James also wrote in defense of the Divine Right of Kings- that kings were chosen by God, but they must rule well. King James succeeded in ruling an authoritarian government, but he ruled no better than today’s democratic governments. He was known as the wisest fool in Christendom. James was also eager for social reform. He wrote A Counterblast to Tobacco, which is much like the anti-smoking campaigns of modern times. When Shakespeare wrote Macbeth, he was obviously aware of James concern with witchcraft. King James wrote the Daemonologie, an account of his experiences with witchcraft. Once a witch tried to melt James’ image in wax, and another witch tried to poison him with toad venom.

Cultural Communities Essay -- Sociology, Culture

In this essay, I will argue that to understand a person’s behaviour, ways of life and their development, we need to understand their cultural practices and circumstances of their communities. I will also discuss how this can be done and the implication for this in early childhood education. Rogoff (2003) argues that humans are develops as cultural beings: â€Å"people develop as participants in cultural communities. Their development can be understood only in light of the cultural practices and circumstances of their communities- which also change† (p. 3-4) According to Gonzalez- Mena (2003), understanding cultural differences can be confusing and no one can possibly know all about the culture of every family who might come into early childhood centres. So she questions whether this means that should educators ‘throw up their hand’ and give up rather than seek answers by understanding cultural difference, by exploring its broad themes and organising concepts. Everyone’s activities are from their â€Å"universal social-ecological community. Their social relationships, political influences, historical events, movements, economic situation and cultural background affect their activities† (Prout, 2005, p. 25). Understanding deeply the reasons behind their activities is more important than lightly watching their surface activities. By understanding the reasons behind their activities, one gains more knowledge about another’s ethnic context and is less likely to misunderstand the other’s ethnic life meaning. Whether the activity is an everyday chore or academic performance depends in large part on the circumstances that are routine in their community and on the cultural practices they are used to. An example in the Democratic Republic of Con... ...ment the beliefs and the cultural activities in the individual ways. So, I might avoid activities, which against the child’s family’s culture and beliefs, to the child. In Te WhÄ riki (Ministry of Education [MoE], 1996) under Communication strand: the languages and symbols of their own and other cultures are promoted and protected. The curriculum goal states â€Å"children experience an environment where: they experience the stories and symbols of their own and other cultures† (p. 16). In conclusion, understanding reasons behind people’s activities is more important, because the understanding could help us to suspend our own interpretations and values and beliefs in order to make sense of others actions and culture. As well as this, the accurate understanding about young children, family and community could help me to implement early childhood education better.

Invasive Species Climate Change And Aquatic Ecosystems Environmental Sciences Essay

Climate alteration and invasive species have been a disputing job in this planetary alteration. When many emphasiss act in synergy they may finally hold unexpected and irreversible effects for the native communities and besides may impact economically valuable human activities such as piscaries in a peculiar part ( Ambrogi, 2007 ) . To avoid and minimise impact of invasive species, appropriate sensing and control should be find to accomplish optimal consequence, include sing influence of clime alteration. This paper attempt to give general overview of the consequence of clime alteration on invasive species, started with reexamining consequence of clime alteration on aquatic ecosystem, so specific to aquatic invasive species ( AIS ) peculiarly the consequence of altered thermic government, and eventually place steps to be taken. Invasive species, clime alteration and aquatic ecosystems As defined in Executive Summary of the National Invasive Species Management Plan ( NISMP ) the term invasive species is â€Å" a species that is non-native to the ecosystem under consideration and whose debut causes or is likely to do economic or environmental injury or injury to human wellness † ( NISC, 2006 ) . Raaymakers ( 2007 ) has observed that homo has contributed in the procedure of species dispersal every bit long as they have sailed across the seas ; moreover, in modern times with canal development, motion of big Marine construction, marine being attached to drifting marine dust, flight of species from fish tank, and ballast H2O and hull fouling of commercial transportation. Natural scientists besides have determined that human activities have become dominant force in act uponing clime, greatly exceeds the influence by natural procedure such as volcanic eruption and solar alterations. Incoming solar radiation and out-going infrared ( thermic ) radiation that are portion of Earth ‘s energy balance are altered by nursery gases and aeroA ­sols. The overall consequence of human activities on clime has been a warmA ­ing influence ( IPCC, 2007 ) . Ecosystem was influenced by clime in many ways ; some are more vulnerable and sensitive than other. Animal, workss and micro-organism lives are strongly attuned in clime, for illustration temperature fluctuation ; sum, timing or signifier of precipitation ( Committee, 2008 ) . In aquatic system, Rahel and olden ( 2008 ) province that warmer H2O temperatures, shorter continuance of ice screen, altered streamflow forms, increased salinization, and increased demand for H2O storage and conveyance constructions is projected as consequence of clime alteration. As an illustration, in instance of US aquatic ecosystem, Poff, Brinson & A ; Day ( 2002 ) sum up several of import points sing possible impact of clime alteration, such as exposure of aquatic and wetland ecosystems to climate alteration, displacement in thermic suitableness of aquatic home grounds for occupant species by increasing of temperature, and negative effects caused by seasonal displacements in watercourse overflow. However, in their research, most specific ecological response to climate alteration can non be predicted because of new combinations of native and non native species interaction in fresh status. Climate alteration induced on ecosystem conditions besides can enable spread of invasive species through both range enlargement and creative activity of home grounds and conditions suited for freshly introduced invasive species. Research on clime alteration and invasive species is limited ; nevertheless, many surveies on possible climate-change impacts to aquatic systems and AIS exist ( US-EPA, 2008 ) . Consequence of clime alteration on aquatic invasive species AIS can do broad scope of ecological impacts, including loss of native biodiversity, altered home grounds, alterations in H2O chemical science, altered biogeochemical procedures, hydrological alterations, and altered nutrient webs ( US-EPA, 2008 ) . Gritti in Hellmann ( 2008 ) noted that due to its pervasiveness and possible consequence on cardinal biological procedure, clime alteration will interact with other bing stressor to impact distribution, spread, copiousness and impact of invasive species. Altered conditions such as increased atmospheric C dioxide, modified precipitation governments, warming ocean and coastal currents, increased ambient temperature, and altered nitrogen distribution can increase invasive species success in some contexts. Increased temperatures and altered precipitation governments are likely to hold larger effects on AIS than increasing degrees of C dioxide ( US-EPA, 2008 ) . In general, figure 1 shows classification of aquatic system features that will be altered by clime alteration and how these alterations will impact invasive species. Figure 1. Features of aquatic system that will altered by clime alteration and how these alterations will impact invasive species ( Rahel, 2008 ) As identified by several researches mentioned supra, there are many altered status which perchance influence AIS ; nevertheless, this paper will merely concentrate to reexamine the consequence on AIS by altered thermic government. Consequence of altered thermic government on aquatic invasive species Since most aquatic beings are poikilothermic, temperature is of import in their physiology, bionenergetics, behaviour, and biogeography. Warmer clime will spread out the geographic countries with suited temperatures for warmwater aquaculture, tropical fish civilization, and out-of-door H2O gardens ( Rahel, 2008 ) . For illustration, McCauley in Rahel ( 2008 ) identified that optimum temperatures for aquaculture of mudcat are projected to travel 240 km northerly in the southeasterly US for every 1i‚ °C addition in average one-year air temperature. Change in likeliness of invasive species that will be established besides caused by H2O temperatures warmwith climate alteration. Fish are frequently classified into thermic clubs based on temperature tolerance. Coldwater temperatures can be viewed as a filter that prevents warmwater-adapted species from set uping self-sufficient populations. This filter is decreasing, and warmwater species could distribute to new countries ( Rahel, 2008 ) . Warming H2O temperatures may besides do thermic lake stratification governments, ensuing in earlier commixture and phytoplankton blooms that may change zooplankton development. Changes to timing of zooplankton reproduction and/or copiousness could prefer certain species over others and have possible negative effects for aquatic ecosystems ( Winder in US-EPA, 2008 ) . Furthermore, Rahel ( 2008 ) province that â€Å" altered thermic governments could intercede the impacts of established non-native species on native species through displacements in competitory laterality between native and nonnative species, increased ingestion of native quarry species by non-native marauders, or increased effects of non-native parasites on native species. † Water temperature raise their nutrient ingestion rate until thermally nerve-racking conditions are reached. This status could amplify impacts of non-native marauders on native quarry species. Marcogliese in Rahel ( 2008 ) besides conclude that clime heating may increase virulency of nonnative parasites and pathogens to native species through leting disease beings finishing their life rhythm more quickly and achieve higher population densenesss. Another consequence of warming temperatures may be an addition in figure of sexual versus nonsexual generative periods for works species, ensuing in increased rates of spread. Diaz-Amela in US-EPA ( 2008 ) associated the blossoming rhythms of a Mediterranean seagrass to warming H2O temperatures. Rahel ( 2008 ) examined that most researcher focal point on how climate alteration will increase figure and badness of invasions. However, in specific instance, positive consequence in diminishing AIS besides exist ; for illustration, some invasive coldwater species may be unable to prevail under new clime conditions. However, since clime alteration has high possibility to alter ecosystems, the influence of clime alteration should be taking into consideration in finding sensing and control steps to pull off the menaces. Measures There are several steps sing Invasive species. It should be start with national scheme and supported by international co-operation. Then, early sensing and schemes for obliteration, containment, control and extenuation through mechanical, biological and chemical method should be developed ( GISP, 2001 ) . Sing clime alteration influence, supervising study can supply foundation for measuring combine effects of clime alteration and invasion by supplying baseline biotic and environmental status, though public-service corporation of a study depends whether the consequence are quantitative or qualitative, and other design consideration ( Lee, 2008 ) . Although clime alteration is planetary graduated table procedure, it has diverse regional manifestation. Ecological impact normally has local features and varies from topographic point to topographic point ( Committee, 2008 ) . To forestall farther effect that might be occurred, more research in each specific location should be conducted to explicate steps that can be taken sing this mater. There are several ongoing control plans for AIS that besides should be review related to climate alteration. For illustration, in instance of mechanical harvest home and weedkillers which used to command Eurasiatic watermilfoil in the littoral zone of lakes, and scouring or molluscicides which used to forestall clogging of H2O intake pipes by zebra mussels in the Laurentian Great Lakes, warmer H2O temperatures could let these and other invasive species to get down growing earlier in the twelvemonth and maintain growing subsequently into the autumn. Therefore, dearly-won control actions would necessitate to be implemented more often. Review besides have to be done for migration barrier building or step with cut downing solar input into watercourses by increasing shadowing from riparian flora ( Rahel, 2008 ) . Decision Human has contributed in doing clime alteration and AIS job. Measures have been developing to get the better of economic, environment and human wellness job caused by AIS. Since clime alteration has high possibility to alter ecosystem, it is an of import thing to see influence of clime alteration in pull offing hazard of AIS. Specifically, altered thermic government cause by clime alteration has altered pathway, change the likeliness of AIS constitution and switch competitory laterality between native and nonnative species or increased effects of non-native parasites on native species. Therefore, these alterations should be integrated in schemes for sensing, obliteration, containment, control and extenuation of AIS.