The Sound Systems Of Language English Language Essay

The Sound Systems Of Language English Language Essay Phonology is one of the core fields that compose the discipline of linguistics, which is defined as the scientific study of language structure. One way to understand what the subject matter of phonology is, to contrast it with other fields within linguistics. A very brief explanation is that phonology is the study of sound structure in language, which is different from the study of sentence structure (syntax) or word structure (morphology), or how languages change over time (historical linguistics). A common characterization of the different between phonetics and phonology is that phonetics deals with actual physical sounds as they are manifested in human speech, and concentrates on acoustic waveforms, formant values, measurements of duration measured in milliseconds, of amplitude and frequency, or in the physical principles underlying the production of sounds. On the other hand, phonology is an abstract cognitive system dealing with rules in a mental grammar: principles of subconscious thought as they relate to language sound. CONCERNS OF PHONOLOGY: The most important to appreciate at this moment is that the sound which phonology is concerned with is symbolic sounds- there are cognitive abstractions which represent but are not the same as physical sounds THE SOUNDS OF A LANGUAGE: One expect of phonology considers what the sounds of a language are. We would want to take note in a description of the phonology of English that we lack a particular vowel that exists in German in words like schon beautiful, a vowel which is also found. In French (Spelled eu, as in jeune Young) or Norwegian (beer). Similarly, the consonant spelled the in English thing, path does exist in English as well as in Icelandic where it is spelled with the letter p, or Modern Greek where it is spelled with O, or Saami where it is spelled ) but his sound doesnt occur in German or French and it is not used in Latin American Spanish, although it does occur in continental Spanish in words such as cerveza beer, where by the spelling conventions of Spanish, the letters c and z represent the same sound as the one spelled the (in English) RULES FOR COMBINING SOUNDS: Another aspect of language sound which is phonological analysis would take account of is that in any given language, certain combinations of sounds are allowed, but other combinations are systematically impossible. The fact that English has the words brick, break, bridge, bread is a clear indication that there is no restriction against having words begin with the consonant sequence br; besides these words one can think of many more words beginning with br such as bribe, brow and so on. Similarly, there are many words which begin with bl, such as blue, blatant, blast, blend, blink, showing that there is no rule against words beginning with bl. It is also a fact that there is no words blink in English, even though the similar words blink, brick do exit. The nonexistence of blick is English is accidental, the exclusion from English of many other imaginable but nonexistent words is based on a principled restriction of the languages. VARATIONS IN PRONOUNCIAITON In addition to providing an account of possible versus impossible words in a language, a phonological analysis will explain other general patterns in the pronunciation of words. For example, there is a very general rule of English phonology which dictates that the plural suffix on nouns will be pronounced as (iz), represented in spelling as es, when the preceding consonant is one of the certain set of consonants including (S) spelled (sh) as in bushes, (c) (spelled as ch) as in churches, and (j) (spelled j, ge, dge) as in cages, bridge. This pattern of pronunciation is not limited to the plural, so despite the difference in spelling, the possessive suffix s2 is also subject to the same rules of pronunciation: thus, plural bushes is pronounced as same as the possessive bushs and plural churches is pronounced same as the possessive churchs. This is the sense in which phonology is about the sound of the language. From the phonological perspective, a sound is a specific unit which combin es with other such specific units and which represent physical sounds. PHONETICS Phonetics is about the concrete, instrumentally measurable physical properties and production of these cognitive speech sounds. The two basic aspects of speech sounds as there are studied in phonetics, namely acoustics which is the study of the properties of the physical sounds wave that we hear, and articulation, which is the study of how to modify the shape of vocal tract, thereby producing a certain acoustic output(sound) ACOUSTICS A sound is a complex pattern of rapid variation in air pressure, travelling from a sound source and striking the ear, which causes a series of neural signals to be received in the brain: this is true of speech, music and random noices. WAVEFORMS A concrete way to visually represent a sound is with an acoustic waveform. A number of computer programs allow one to record sounds into a file and display the results on the screen. This means one can visually inspect a representation of the physical pattern of the variation in air pressure since we are interested in the part which makes this two words sound different, we might get a clearer picture of the physical difference by expanding the scale and looking just at a part of the vowel. Vowels are periodic, which means that the pattern of their wave form repeats over time. A portion of the vowels from the middle of the words seed and Sid, involving around 30 milliseconds (ms) of each of the words. We can indeed see that there is a pattern which is repeated. Though there are visible differences between the waveforms, the basis for distinguishing these vowels remain unclear. SOUND SPECTRA: All sound waves are definably, namely in terms of three properties that characterize a sine wave familiar from trigonometry, namely frequency measure in cycles per second also known as Hertz (Hz), amplitude measure in decibels and phase measured in the angular measure radians. These characteristics suffice to define any sine wave, which is the analytic basis of sounds. The property phase, which describe how far into the infinite cycle of repetition a particular sine wave is, turns out to be unimportant for the study of speech sounds, so it can be ignored. Simple sine waves (termed pure tones when speaking of sounds) made up of a single frequency are not commonly encountered in the real worlds, but can be created by a tuning fork or by electronic equipment. Speech sounds (indeed all sounds) are complex wave forms which are virtually impossible to describe with intuitive description of what they look like. Fortunately, complex wave can be mathematically relate to a series of simple waves which have different amplitudes at different frequencies, so that we can say that complex wave from is build from asset of simple waves. Inaccuracy in spectral data has three main sources. Half of the information in the original signal, phase, has been discarded. Frequency information is only approximate and its related to how much speech is analyzed. Finally, a spectrum assumes that sound properties are constant during the period being analyzed. If too large a piece of speech is taking for analysis, a misrepresentative blending of a continuously changing signal results. SPECTROGRAM: The spectrogram shows both frequency and amplitude properties as they change over time, by adding a third dimension of information to the display. A spectrogram can be made by a mechanical spectrograph, which uses an adjustable filter to select different frequency ranges and display the changes in amplitude at each frequency ranges; or, it can be created by a computer program, which use fouler analysis to determine these component amplitudes. A spectrogram is a reasonably informative accurate display of properties of sound. It is less accurate than the spectrum at a single point. Spectrograms are created either by special machinery or specials computer programs, which are not always available. It is therefore quite impractical and also unnecessary to base the scientific study of languages sound systems exclusively on spectrograms. CONCLUSION: Phonetics and phonology both study language sounds. Phonology examines language sound as a mental unit, and encapsulated symbolically for example as (ae) or (g) and focus on how these unit function in grammars. Phonetics examines how symbolic sounds are manifested as a continuous physical object. The conversion from physically continues event to symbolic representation requires focusing on the information that is important, which is possible because not all physical properties of speech sounds are cognitively important. One of the goals of phonology is than to discover exactly what these cognately important properties are how they function in expressing Regularities about languages. CHAPTER TWO PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS PREVIEW: This chapter gives an overview of phonetic transcriptions. It: Gives the important transcriptional symbols Introduces the two major schemes of phonetic transcriptions Present the main articulators classification of sounds Surveys the main variations in phonetic properties exploited by the languages Further develops the relevance of phonetics for the study of phonology INTRODUCTION: In phonetic transcription, speech is represented a small set of symbols with a standard interpretation. This chapter looks at the different systems for phonetic transcription. They are two major schemes, the informal American schemes used in especially North America, sometime known as APA (American Phonetic Alphabet), and the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) promulgated by the international Phonetics association. VOWELS: The first division in speech sound is made between vowels and consonants. Symbols for vowels will be considered first because they are fewer vowels than consonant. Some dialects English make no distinction in the pronunciation of the words cot and caught; even among speakers who distinguish the pronunciation of cot and caught, the precise pronunciation of the two vowels differs considerable. An important point is that the transcriptional symbols are approximations representing a range of similar values, and that symbols do not always have absolute universal phonetic values. CONSONANT: There are many more consonant than vowels, English only has a fraction of the full range of possible consonants, so illustration of many of these symbols involve more extensive consideration of languages other than English. Consonants symbols are treat as the place of articulation where the major constriction occurs as one axis, and treating properties such as voicing, being a continuant, or nasality as the other axis. Eleven places of articulation for consonants are usually recognized: bilabial, labiodentals, dental, alveolar, alveopalatal, retroflex, palatal, velar, uvular, pharyngeal and laryngeal, and arrangement which proceeds from the furthest forward to furthest back points of the vocal tract. MANNER OF ARTICULATION: largely independent of the place where a consonant constriction is formed, the manner in which the constriction is formed can be manipulated in various ways. If a constriction is formed which completely blocks the flow of air, the resulting sound, such as t, is called a stop? A consonant can be produced by forming a narrow constriction which still allows air to pass through the vocal tract, resulting in noise in at the constriction, and such consonants, for example s and v are called fricatives. A combination of complete constriction followed by a period of partial constriction is termed an affricate. SYLLABICITY A phonetic property of consonants that may be transcribed is whether the consonant is syllabic. There is a phonetic difference between the n of American English cotton and that of con: the n of cotton is syllabi, where as the n of con is no syllabic. A syllabic consonant is indicated by placing a vertical tick under the consonant, so cotton is transcript (Ka? n) and con is transcribed (Kan). The main phonetic correlate of the distinction between syllabic and no syllabic consonant is duration, where syllabic consonants are generally longer than their no syllabic counterparts. Especially in tone languages, syllabic consonants can have distinctive tone. SYMMENTRY IN CONSONANTS The symmetrical universal table consonants were we to list all the consonants found in human languages. In some instances, the gap reflects physiological impossibility, such as the fact that one cannot produce a nasal pharyngeal, analogous to velar nasal but at a pharyngeal place of articulation. A nasal involves making a complete obstruction at a given point of articulation and also requires air to flow through the velum. In order to make a pharyngeal nasal, it would be necessary to make a complete constriction at the pharynx. But since the pharynx lies below the velum, no air can flow through the nasal passages if the pharynx is totally constricted. However a nasalized pharyngeal continuant, i.e. the consonant produced with simultaneous nasal airflow, would not be a physical impossibility, since that consonant doesnt not require complete constriction of the pharynx. In other cases the gap indicates that no such sound has been found, but there is no immutable physical reason for suc h a sound not to exist. Thus bilabial affricated not seem to be attested, nor to plain no affricated alvepalatal stops, nor do nasalized pharyngeal fricatives. Similarly, while pharyngeal zed consonant exist and rounded consonants exist, there are apparently no cased of consonants which are both rounded and pharyngeal zed, though such segments are not logically impossible. These lacunae may be an indication of a deeper constraint on sound systems however; it is also possible that these segments do exist in some languages which have not been studied yet, since there are many languages in the world which remain uninvestigated. PLACE OF ARTICULATION The place of articulation of consonants is divided into primarily place of articulation something that every consonant has and secondary place of articulation-something some consonants may add to primary place of articulation. LINGUAL CONSONANTS: The tip or blade of the tongue is the active articulators in the production of many consonants, including dental, alveolar, alveopalatal, retroflex and palatal consonants. These consonants form constrictions involving the tongue and an appropriate place on the teeth, or hard or soft palates. The contract is with the teeth in the case of dentals, on the hard palate behind the teeth in the case of alveolar, behind the alveolar ridge in the case of alveopalatals and retroflex consonants, and with the blade of the tongue at the boundary between the hard and soft palate in the case of palatals. In many traditional organization in segments, retroflex consonants are classified as a separate place of articulation from alveolar and alveopalatals. This traditional concept of place of articulation combines properties with both active articulators and a passive articulator- the target towards which an active articulator moves. What unifies that various kinds of retroflex consonants across langua ges is not the specific location of the constriction on the hard palate, but rather the manner in which just the tongue tip approaches the palate. SECONDARY ARTICULATIONS: Consonants may have more than one point of constriction: generally, one of these constrictions is the major (most radical) constriction and other constrictions are less radical more vowels like in nature. CONCLUSION: Phonology views speech sounds symbolically, knowledge of the system of symbols for representing speech is a prerequisite to doing a phonological analysis. It is also vital to know the phonetic parameters for describing the sounds of human languages which have been presented here. The main characteristic of vowels involve fronting of the tongue (front, central and back), rounding, and vowel height (high, mid and low, with tense and lax variant of high and mid vowels. Other properties of vowels include stress, tone and the phonation types creaky and breathy voice. Primary consonantal places of articulation include bilabial, labiodentals, alveolar, alveopalatal, retroflex, palatal, velar, uvular, pharyngeal and laryngeal. These may be supplemented by vowel like secondary articulations including palatalization, valorization, and pharyngealization and rounding. Consonant may be produced with a number of constrictions and release types, and is stops. Fricatives or nasals and stop consonant s may be unreleased or released, the later type allowing plain versus affricate release. Differences in the laryngeal component for consonants include voicing and aspiration. And the distinction between ejectives and implosives. Vowels and consonant may also exploit differences in nasalization and length.

The Building Defects Of Construction Construction Essay

The Building Defects Of Construction Construction Essay Introduction Building defects are always under the spotlight and the grave concern of the construction industry. Different buildings or structures produce different types of defects and require numerous levels and types of quality, which rely on the building functions, the construction or maintenance systems and also materials adopted. According to Watt (1999), a defect may be considered to be a failing or shortcoming in the function, performance, statutory or user requirements of a building and it might manifest itself within the structure, fabric, services or other facilities of the affected building. Josephson and Hammarlund (1998) quoted from Svensk Standard, SS 020104 (1987) states that defect is defined as the non-fulfilment of intended usage requirements in which requirements are determined by law, regulations, building standards as well as in contract documents, site meeting records and other project documentation. However, not all requirements can be specified as there are many details which are difficult to specify such as non-expressed basic needs of each individual. Therefore, these demands are referred as usage requirements. Opinions and responses from project participants are needed whenever specified requirements are wrong and defects will likely occur if those opinions are not complied. There is a clear difference between failure and defects. Failure is defined as deviation from original specifications which can or cannot be corrected prior to the handing over of the building. On the other hand, defect is termed as deficiency of the performance which becomes apparent once the building is operational. Failing to differentiate the two terms may lead to inaccurate and incomplete measurements, cost determination and perhaps inappropriate methods to reduce its occurrence (Atkinson, 1987). Georgiou et al (1999) suggest that defects can be classified as major defect or minor defect. Major defect is considered as those which cause the building to become unsafe, unsuitable for living in and not suitable to be used for the purposes for which the building was designed. On the other hand, minor defects is considered as those originate from poor workmanship or deficient materials used in the construction of the building but do not cause the building to become unsafe, unsuitable for living in and not suitable to be used for the purposes for which the building was designed. Defects which require less than Australian $500 to repair are considered as minor defects. In the meantime, major defects are defects exist after 12 months which need more than Australian $500 to repair and most of them are structural deficiencies (Georgiou et al, 1999). Georgiou (2010) and, Andi and Minato (2003) state that defects occur if a component has a shortcoming and does not comply its intended functions and acceptable level of quality as required by owners, contractors or regulations. Causes of defects Some of the defects are caused by natural consequences that developed over the period of time such as aging and typical uses. However, many premature defects occur due to the fact that improper skills and care are assigned on the building. The study by Building Research Establishment concludes that over 90 per cent of the building defects are caused by the promptly diagnosable faults in design or construction which could be foreseen beforehand and prevented. Generally the causes of defects are stated as the followings: (Lee, 1987) Insufficient brief Defects are often interpreted as originated from the strokes of designer or on the drawing board in many instances but in some cases they can be attributed as occurring at an even earlier stage. For instance, client may lay down unrealistic cost limits or fail to give clear indication about the functional requirement of the building. Normally, there is no clear information about the intended building life-cycle or maintenance requirements. Inaccurate design decisions The most common faults can be sorted as follows: Failure to follow well established design criteria in the choice of structural system and selection of materials Ignorance of the basic properties of material. For example, failing to make allowance for the differing thermal and moisture movements of materials used in combination. Usage of new materials or technologies which have not been thoroughly examined its effectiveness. This is often the result of uncritical reliance on manufacturers literature quoting stimulated laboratory tests. Misjudgement of user and climatic conditions under the material will have to perform. Complex details which have low probability of successful execution on an open building site. Poor communications between different parties such as design and construction teams. Construction method The construction projects normally take place in less ideal conditions and always emphasize on speedy completion due to time constraint which often resulted in careless delivery. Some manufacturers of so-called high technology components have little awareness of the strictness of a building site or the standards of accuracy achievable under such conditions although only a small proportion of defects were attributable to faulty materials. Materials may easily be damaged during transportation, loading and unloading, inappropriate condition of storage on site and placing in position even though the materials may be flawless upon leaving the factory. The defects can be prevented with by taking greater care during all the stages during construction project, providing appropriate training to all the workers and staffs, and ensuring closer supervision. User Activities Defects may be caused by unintended misuse due to the lack of knowledge on the correct method of usage or intentional acts of vandalism. This problem can be solved by providing more information such as the degree of severity of use and condition of use to the designer so that a better output can be yield. Besides, some defects may be correlated to the users financial conditions and also social attitudes. For instance, condensation is affected by the amount of money spent on heating and ventilating, and occupancy pattern. Maintenance Incorrect identification of root of the defects may lead to inappropriate remedial work. It wont rectify the original defects but may deteriorate the condition of the building further. Furthermore, negligence during inspection and repair works may lead to defects in previously satisfactory structures or elements. For example, stepping on unprotected felted roof can drive the gravel into the felt which can cause splits and cut and eventually lead to roof leaking. On the other hand, defects often occur due to the designers decisions. Designers often do not take into consideration how the materials will behave and react toward other adjoining materials during construction and during the life of the building. For instance, the application of green, rotting or damaged timber for floor joists will result in floor in the floor after completion. It is obvious that a material is often wrongly used even though the material itself is in perfect condition. Effective communication between designers and construction workers aids in solving problems. Sometimes, construction workers readily implement their own ideas of how to construct rather than discussing with designers when they encounter with messy construction drawings produced by inexperience designers. This is quite common in design-and-build form of contracts as the contractor stands to gain contractual advantage from drawing attention to design defects (Evans, 2005). Building defects are a matter of concern for a various reasons: The employer is eligible for what he or she is investing for. The presence of defects means that he or she doesnt get anything proportional of the amount paid for. Defects might delay the completion of the project and thus affecting the handover of the building. This is because it will take some time to inspect and rectify the defects. Lot of time and money may also be used up in identifying possible causes of defects, especially to attach blame. There may be significant disruption and consequential loss if defects are to be corrected in occupied buildings. Resources spent on defect rectification are not available for use elsewhere. Defects represent inefficiencies in construction procurement processes. Design defects affecting maintenance Civil Inadequate provision for movement Ignoring aggressive environment and weather condition effects Ignoring biological effects Inadequate structural design such as foundation Ignoring variations in soil conditions Ignoring load impact on structural stability Exceeding allowable deflection limits Ignoring wind effect on the structure Inadequate concrete cover on the reinforcement Improper locating conduits and pipe openings at critical structural locations Architecture Narrow stairs, passages doors Incompatible finishes with climate Specifying finishes which need complete replacement Ignoring climatic effects on exterior shapes Inadequate joints between faces Maintenance practically Ignoring access for maintenance equipment Designing permanent fixing which should be removable for maintenance Ignoring maintenance equipment availability Ignoring maintenance requirements in the design Civil Inaccurate measurement Damaged form work Excavation too close to the building Painting in unsuitable condition Inadequate water proofing and drainage Insufficient reinforcement concrete cover Cold joints Loss in adhesion between materials Early form work removal Poor soil compaction Inadequate curing Materials Different thermal movement in dissimilar material Selection of material which is unsuitable for the existing climatic condition Use of non-durable material Use of expired material Poor material handling storage Inadequate provision for movement This happens when designers ignore the spacing needed for contraction and expansion movements. Such movements will cause cracking of the structures which will result in corrosion of the structural elements such as beams, columns and slabs. It will also cause cracking on the wall which will affect the aesthetic value of the building. The most severe case attributed to inadequate provision for movement will be the structural collapse. Ignoring aggressive environment and weather condition effects The designers should always select and specify the suitable materials which are capable of withstand the existing weather condition during building design. This will result in less maintenance during the post-occupancy stage. Problems occur when a designer is used to certain weather condition in a region and then moves to another region which has different weather without giving consideration to the weather changes. It will cause material to deteriorate in a shorter time and might affect the other parts of the building. Ignoring biological effects Designers should be familiar with the building location and type of plants and insects existing in that area or in the vicinity. Designers should also determine whether any special treatments are needed to prevent these biological attacks. These preventions should be specified in the design drawings with certain degrees of clarity. Failing to deal with biological factors might require continuous maintenance which can be avoided during the design and construction stage. Inadequate structural design such as foundation Inadequate structural design happens when designers didnt design or under-design the structural elements of the building. This will lead to buildings settlement or failures. Besides, it will also cause cracking of the wall finishing. Settlement is movement within a structure due to the distribution or re-distribution of loading and stresses within the various elements of construction. Foundation failures may be caused by the changes in ground conditions affecting early footings, failure of foundation arches, and decay of timber piles or chemical attack on concrete foundation (Watt, 1999). Ignoring variations in soil conditions Soil conditions are almost the same in most places. But, soil structure may vary in certain places or conditions. Hence, designers should always determine whether buildings are able to be built on it by determining the soil condition and structure. This can be done by carry out proper soil investigation and surveyor geo-technical test. Poor soil condition might cause cracking of the structural elements or exterior and interior walls of the building. Ignoring load impact on structural stability The impact of movement resulted from physical or mechanical activities such as elevators, lifts, the vibrations of central air-conditioning systems or wind load in high rise building might causes cracking on the wall surface. Besides, vibrations from heavy traffic, machinery and piling operations will more or less produce the same impact of movement. The problem cannot be solved until the impact of the movement is isolated. Inadequate concrete cover on the reinforcement Insufficient concrete cover may result in the corrosion of the steel bars and cracking of the concrete. This is because the corrodents might reach the concrete reinforcement faster if there is inadequate cover or protection to the steel bars. The failing of the steel reinforcement will cause the failure in the structure. Improper locating conduits and pipe openings at critical structural locations Some designers do not amend the layout of the mechanical and electrical design which installs the conduits and pipes at a very critical location which might cause defects or cracking of the structural elements and damage to the electrical and mechanical system of the building. Incompatible finishes with climate Designers should always consider the climate, weather and environmental condition that the buildings will exposed to before choosing suitable buildings exterior finishes. Suitable colour and type of exterior building finishes should be selected carefully in order to prevent environmental effects on the finishes. For example, building with dark colours painting might not resist heat during hot weather. Specifying finishes which require complete replacement Designers should always prevent the usage of finishes which require complete replacement after failure. On the other hand, finishes which are easily available and require minimum maintenance should be adopted. The usage of wallpaper as wall finishes is not encourage as it requires total replacement if any part if it is damaged in order to match the colour. Ignoring climatic effects on exterior shapes Designers should make sure that the collection of moisture, water and dust can be prevented after the buildings are ready to be occupied. Proper designs which consider the climatic effects on exterior shapes might result in less maintenance need on cleaning and repairing damages due to climatic effects such as moisture, water and dust. Improper exterior designs might cause water collection at the building roof which in turn might constitute to moisture penetration into the building. Inadequate joints between surfaces Designers should specify appropriate joints between structures such as floor slabs and walls to accommodate the expansion and contraction caused by thermal. This is because insufficient joints will cause overlapping of the floor tiles and cracking of the surfaces such as walls and tiles due to thermal expansion. Ignoring access for maintenance equipment Buildings should be designed to allow for the maintenance access. The maintenance access factor should consider the clearance of the maintenance staffs and equipment. Failure to provide necessary access for the maintenance to be carried out will obstruct the maintenance work and deteriorate the specific part further which will cause the raise in maintenance cost. Designing permanent fixing which should be removed for maintenance Designers should avoid the usage of permanent fixations which require continuous maintenance and complete removal during maintenance works. All these will increase the maintenance frequency and also the maintenance time needed to be carried out. Permanent fixations that should be avoided are lamps, carpets and external windows. Ignoring maintenance equipment availability Building designs should be designed according to the current and existing maintenance equipment on the market. Designers should aware of the maintenance equipment on the market in designing a certain building. For example, problem may occur when cleaning a building exterior or window in a high-rise building and also changing light bulbs in a very high location. Maintenance cost may be accelerated if maintenance equipment is not available. Inaccurate measurement Inaccurate measurement happens when the construction contractor wrongly measure the building element size and the material mixture ratio such as concrete ratio. For example, the changes or alteration of the gap between door and door frame or window and window frame will causes water and moisture penetration. Besides, the construction contractor wrongly increases the water content to the concrete mixture will yield porous concrete which in turn will causes corrosion to the steel reinforcements and then, collapse of the structure. Damaged formwork Damaged formwork will produce a honeycomb or porous concrete surface which decreases the quality of the formwork. The porous concrete surface will enable moisture penetration which can cause corrosion of the steel bars and cracking of the structure. Inadequate water proofing and drainage Water proofing and drainage of building are normally being carried out wrongly and inadequately. Inadequate water proofing or water proof membrane may result in water seepage or leakage through slab, wall, balcony or deck. The building will be exposed to erosion, mold, decomposition, and construction damage if there is no proper waterproof membrane to prevent water penetration. For example, the building will expose to serious construction defect if there is no water proof membrane under the ground slab which helps to prevent ground water from penetrate into the foundation. Cold joints Cold joints normally happen between old and new concrete as the concrete is poured in part and left to dry before the rest of the concrete is poured. The dried concrete will not totally combine or fix together and lines will appear on the concrete. The cold joints will decrease the aesthetic value of the building. The severe case of cold joints will allow the water penetrate into the concrete gap which might cause damage to the steel bars inside the concrete. Cold joints can be overcome by inserting reinforcement bars into the fresh concrete which will bind the new concrete effectively. Construction materials Defects can be caused by the wrong selection or specification of materials by the designers. Selection of non-durable or low quality materials that is available at cheaper price may require plenty of maintenance during post-occupancy period. The climatic factors must be considered during selection of materials as materials quality will be affected and require replacement in a short time. For example, specifying indoor materials to be used at outdoor will cause the materials to perform irregularly. In addition, some materials which is highly adopted in overseas, might not perform effectively in Malaysia due to its hot climatic condition. On the other hand, the properties of materials should be considered when combining two or more materials together. This is due to the chemical reactions that might occur between them. For instance, tile glue and cement will separate from each other when used together as thermal expansion of cement is higher than the tile glue. The selection of the materials needs to be done carefully as it will affect the building quality and maintenance needs. Unqualified designers

Leonardo Da Vinci :: essays research papers

It was the period of the renaissance when Leonardo da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452. Leonardo was born a farmhouse in Anchiano, which is 2 Â ½ miles away from Vinci. The family of Leonardo lived in this area since the 13th century. The father of Leonardo da Vinci, Ser Piero, was 25 years old; he was a public notary when Leonardo was born. The mother of Leonardo was called Catarina. Her first name is all what is known today. The Baptismal chapel in Vinci is where Leonardo was christened. Leonardo was christened from the name Piero da Bartholomew to the name Lionardo not Leonardo. The chapel is inside the church of Vinci. The church beside the castle of Vinci are formed the skyline of his town. Leonardo lived in Anchiano for five years until he settled to Vinci. Vinci is a small town, placed at the foot of Monte Albano. From this time he was member of his fathers family, but he was never considered born to his mother and father. In Vinci Leonardo went to school. It was told that teachers of Leonardo da Vinci were despaired about all the questions and doubts of Leonardo. Leonardo learned at school to read write and mathematics. He also learned geometry and Latin. Later Leonardo tried to improve his knowledge in Latin, because he thought that he didn't learn enough Latin in school. This may be the reason why Leonardo did his notes in Italian. Leonardo lived in Vinci until 1466. With the age of 14 Leonardo moved to Florence where he began to work in the workshop of Verrocchio. Verrocchio was at this time the most gifted artist in Florence. He was a sculptor, painter, goldsmith, bronze caster and more. Verrocchio had a lot of influence on Leonardo. Verrocchio was fascinated by the drawings of Leonardo so he gave him a place in his workshop. Leonardo worked at the workshop of Verrocchio with some other famous artists like Botticelli. Leonardo started working with mixing of colors and then he painted simple parts of paintings. There are no works of Leonardo known between 1466 and 1472, but Leonardo taught himself to paint in oils at this time. In June 1472 Leonardo was listed in the red book of painters from Florence. With the membership in the painters’ guild of Florence ended the apprenticeship of Leonardo.

Business Model of Toyota :: essays research papers

Business Model of Toyota As one of the leading automobile manufacturers in the world, Toyota ranks within the top three worldwide. Due to their unique business model, they are now have a market share of 14% in the first four months of this year. That is an astonishing 2.3% jump from the previous year. According to Autodata.com, the Toyota City based automaker ranks fourth in United States sales. We have determined that their business model is an Integrated Low Cost – Differentiated Strategy. It involves finding the lowest operational cost along with a unique niche or strategy that separates them from the competition. Toyota’s new statement â€Å"Moving Forward†, reflects their plans and expectations for the future. This includes the known and the unknown factors that a business must face. In 2000, Toyota launched a new cost effective strategy called CCC21 (Construction of Cost Competitiveness for the 21st century), for Low Cost operational expenses. With this aspect Toyota plans to advance such initiatives globally, based on its policy of purchasing the world’s best parts at the lowest cost with the shortest lead times. According to Toyota, they have undertaken a manufacturing revolution that has fundamentally changed established practices; all the way back to the product development and design. They have done this by integrating four areas: design, production engineering, procurement, and component supply. They have achieved higher quality at lower costs by creating standardized, multipurpose components. Also the reduction in cost has heightened the value and fortifies the competitiveness of product. To do this, Toyota has required intensive coordination with its suppliers. Another factor of their Integrated Low Cost is that Toyota steadily feeds cost improvements back into the product to raise their value along with the fact that four Toyota’s seven corporate auditors are outside corporate auditors. Toyota’s Integrated Differentiated Strategy is very unique to the automotive industry. Its main focus, according to the president of Toyota, is that Toyota is not trying to rival other automakers; Toyota is trying to conquer customers with great products and service to obtain high customer satisfaction.

Teaching Assistant Essay

Question 1 Describe how you might contribute to a lesson given to a group of seven year old children learning to play percussion instruments. First I would speak to the class teacher I was working with and find out the following points. 1. Which percussion instruments will be needed? 2. How many students will be in the group? 3. Where will we be practising with the instruments? 4, When will the instruments be required? 5. Where the instruments are kept? 6. What is required of me during the lesson (help students? Take photographs or other tasks needing completing) 7. If the member of staff requires me to research some fun activities that can be done to build up the children’s confidence in using the instruments. Firstly I would research the fun confidence building activities if it was required by talking to a musically inclined member of staff or search the internet for age appropriate tasks that lend to the varying skills of the students. After the directions were discussed I would make the space suitable for the lesson, taking into consideration adequate space for the group of students to work comfortably with the instruments with out fear of hitting one another, I would also check the surrounding area for any other dangers present. Next I would gather the necessary equipment making sure to check that it was in working order and safe to be used by the students noting any damaged equipment that I found needing repair or replacing to inform the class teacher, also recording what equipment I have borrowed and when so that others going for the same equipment knew where it was. Then I would set out the instruments in the space the students will be using for this lesson before the teacher is ready to bring the students in so that the lesson could commence with out disturbing the students by making them have to wait for equipment to be set up. During the lesson I would do the tasks discussed with member of staff before the lesson so that they could concentrate on the lesson at hand. Finally after the lesson has finished I would gather up the equipment I had borrowed and check it again to make sure no damage had occurred and it was still in safe working order, return the items and store them safely in there correct storage space noting that the equipment had been returned. Question 2 What might your role be in organising, using and maintaining the learning resources, material and equipment for this percussion lesson? My role organising would be determined in the discussion I would have prior to the lesson with the member of staff which might be to check the amount of working instruments we have available in school and if they are available for the time we require them. I might have to record the lessons for use on a DVD or school website if parental consent has been given, meaning I would need to acquire and be proficient in the use of a digital camera or camcorder. If a CD containing music is to be used I would need to set up a CD player. Any electrical equipment needed I would check to make sure they have been tested recently by a qualified electrician. If a music CD is required to help give the students an idea of keeping timing with a rhythm or beat so this would need to be sourced and checked for scratches, making sure we have the relevant rights to use the material on the CD. In respect of using and maintaining the equipment would check all the available equipment needed for the lesson as much in advance as I could so that I would be able to inform the member of staff of damaged or broken equipment that needs repaired or replaced. Doing so in advance would be of great benefit to the teacher, as then depending on how many instruments we have in safe working order a decision could be made to either source more or maybe get the students to share. After the lesson I would gather the items we used and check them once more before I put them back into storage and inform the teacher of any change in the condition of them. Question 3 Describe how you act in class in order to be an effective role model for the standards of behaviour expected in pupils? In class and also anywhere around school premises I would act in a respectful manner towards all people staff, parent or student meaning I would talk to them politely and listen carefully to what they had to say. Respect also comes in the way to approach a student I would walk over ready to help however possible instead of race over in a hurry to get a job done. I would conduct myself in a calm and collected manner where my voice would sound friendly and my body language would be welcoming so that students could feel relaxed and safe helping them to work well with myself and build a rapport. When working with students who have good standards of behaviour they would be praised verbally in front of there peers with an added bonus of maybe a sticker for a full lesson or full day of good behaviour and contribution in class giving that student a sense of accomplishment. Where as a student who does not practice good standards of behaviour would be asked in front of the other students on the table to think how that action was not appropriate and told it will not be accepted again. I would always talk to the student misbehaving with a sterner voice but never yell or shout as it would be counter productive and a form of bullying in itself, if the behaviour remained unacceptable I would refer them to the class teacher. At anytime with a student or group of students and I had to correct them for example a misspelled or incorrect pronunciation of a word, I would correct them in a way that did not make them feel unimportant or belittled because they got something wrong as it is always better to try and fail than never try at all. I would then make more of an effort to find something that the student does well and give praise for there contribution to the task at hand as well as for trying there best with the thing they got incorrect. My behaviour and approach in class and outside of class towards the people I would come into contact with would always be consistent so that the students would know what I accept in regards to standards of behaviour. Which would also help students think that I would be approachable and not over react or dismiss a problem they may have with there work or in there life. Question 4 What strategies might you employ to encourage pupils to behave appropriately? Describe how you might react to incidents of bullying and violence. I would first off read the schools behaviour policy to get an outline of what is expected from the students along with any notes on consequences and rewards for any actions, also use common knowledge of acceptable behaviour. Consistency in my standards of behaviour would be foremost in a practical example to the students of what behaviour is acceptable; giving them a model they can see to work towards in respect to how they want to act. My consistency would also breed predictability for example when I first see the students in the morning they would be greeted warmly and asked how they were feeling today, nurturing there social and empathetic development while they express there feeling. Respect will be shown at all times to who ever I interact with making it easier for students to show respect towards myself and in turn their peers. I think the student would better understand and be more likely if as a school or a class to make it more personal made a poster of what they consider good and unacceptable behaviour. This way they have contributed and feel the rules are fair as they made them not just told this is what you have to do. Confrontation should always be respectful meaning do not just start shouting at a student for there inappropriate behaviour but develop numerous ways to confront a student by discussing with staff to see which forms they believe work well. In promoting good behaviour I would reward with praise as my main reward and if I believe a student does something extra to what is normal, say opening a day to a member of staff or helping someone in their group comprehend the task they are having difficulty with I would reward them with a sticker which would serve as a visible sign of recognition to a good deed and encourage other children to do the same. The sticker would also make the student who received it feel important and appreciated for their effort, especially knowing that rewards are not given out at random but for consistent good work or behaviour, not forgetting to reward students who are trying but are not as good as others in certain areas to give a confidence boost. If I witnessed or an incident of bullying was brought to my attention I would firstly ensure I was calm and consistent to what my interaction with a student in an everyday matter would be so not to make anyone feel uncomfortable whether it be a child informing, bullying or being bullied. Then I would start a record in a note book at first of people involved and what it was about. The incident would be isolated from the other students so that no one else was involved giving a calmer atmosphere to ascertain what is happening by talking calmly to the students as always practiced in school. Once the situation has calmed down I would inform the class teacher as to what happened giving any notes taken so they could read the account. I would then be inclined to do an assembly on bullying and why it is not accepted in our school so that the messages went out to all the students and did not target any one person. This would be better learned if I got students involved in maybe suggesting how to deal with a situation before it escalates to bullying or if an incident of bullying is observed, making anti bullying posters would be a good task to perform to raise awareness. Question 5 Describe how you might appropriately observe the physical abilities and skills of a nine year old boy. I would discuss with the teacher as to what kind of observation they required as they may want a observation of where the child’s abilities are at the moment or how they develop over a set period of time. Then understanding exactly what is required from the observation and the protocols set out within the school for observing students I would plan the observation. Firstly I would plan to do it either at an active play time or when the students are all doing P.E. so that I can observe the student with out them realising it giving a more accurate account. I would make a sheet for the observation stating date, time started, time finished, student and reason for observation and have boxes for small notes regarding different aspects of physical abilities and skills such as; 1. Confidence setting up a sports game to be played.  2. Hand-eye co-ordination. 3. How they completed the task asked of them 4. Did they require any assistance during the task? 5. The way they interact with others during tasks. 6. Is the child challenged by the tasks or did they find them easy. 7. Concentration of student during task. And a conclusion along with any other points discussed with the teacher before hand. Once the observation had finished I would then make a neater copy of the notes making sure everything recorded is fact and not my interpretation of events. I would keep a blank copy of the sheet used so that I could observe the same aspects each time. At a pre arranged time I would give feedback to the member of staff in which ever way they requested be it written or talked about with or with out the student present. If the student is present I would praise there accomplishments and constructively subject areas that could be improved. The notes taken during the observation would be kept in a safe place for five years designated by the member of staff and would not be open for discussion to anyone respecting the student’s confidentiality.

“Company Profile of Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd”

Assignment ON â€Å"Company Profile of Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd†. Submitted to: Chowdhury Sifat Kamal Course Instructor of Introduction to Business Department of Business Studies Prepared by: Fuad Mohammad Shah – UG01-22-09-007 Kawsar Ahmed – UG01-24-10-023 Md. Emdadul Hasan Santo – UG01-24-10-001 Bachelor of Business Administration Batch – 24, Section – A STATE UNIVERSITY OF BANGLADESH Date of Submission: 20th April , 2011 [pic] â€Å"Company Profile of Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd. † [pic] Founder Late A. C. Abdur Rahim (1915-1982) Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Limited 01. Background Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Limited was established in 1950A.D. as a trading company. Late A. C. Abdur Rahim was the proprietor in this time. From 1954 it was established as a limited company. In the new environment he had to start afresh. He had little capital. His main assets were self-confidence and a strong faith in the Almighty, which carried him through all th e difficulties with a remarkable triumph. He finally established a small proprietary trading company named Rahimafrooz & Co, in Chittagong in 1950 which was later incorporated on 15th April 1954, which is now Rahimafrooz (Bangladesh) Ltd. Rahimafrooz expanded rapidly into various trading items. Within 5 years, Mr.Rahim was able to enter into a joint venture with Lucas (UK) to set up a modern automotive battery factory. He acquired the principal company Lucas Service Ltd in 1980 which is now known as Rahimafrooz Batteries Ltd. Apart from business, he engaged himself in benevolent activities. All through his life he was respected for his values and caring attitude. After a few years he left that job and ventured into a small partnership business. During early 1940s, he got active in commercial trading of scarce items and gained valuable experience. In 1947, he decided to move to Chittagong to live in an environment of religious freedom. pic] Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Limited was started in business agreement with world famous England battery company Lucas from 1959. Later on, they established an ultramodern battery production factory in Nakhalpara Tejgaon, Dhaka with the â€Å"Lucas† Brand name. Then from 1980 it got license from the England Lucas Company collaborating technological and information support. He passed away on the 14th March 1982 in London leaving behind his dream, Rahimafrooz. At present Rahimafrooz has been producing and marketing various kinds of batteries like automotive battery, storage battery etc. Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd. lso has been marketing world famous tire â€Å"Dunlop†. Now Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd. is involved with various kinds of production distribution and agency ship business. 02. Vision â€Å"To be leader in each market segment by being the most preferred supply source of quality products and services with high degree of customer delight. † 03. Mission Statement 1. †¢ Increase volume & value share 2. †¢ Reduce per unit distribution cost 3. †¢ Increase product portfolio 4. †¢ Strength distribution network 5. †¢ Ensure quality people with high level commitment 6. †¢ Benchmark customer services. 04. Milestones |1954 |Incorporated by Mr. A. C.Abdur Rahim   | |1959 |Distributorship of Lucas Battery | |1978 |Exclusive distributorship of Dunlop tyre | |1980 |Acquisition of Bangladesh operations of Lucas UK | |1985 |First producer of industrial battery | |1985 |Pioneering Solar Power in collaboration with BP | |1992 |First ever battery exports to Singapore | |1993 |Launched Rahimafrooz Instant Power System | |1994 |Acquisition of Yuasa Batteries (Bangladesh) Ltd and launched Excel Retreads. |1997 |Attained ISO 9002 certification for RBL operations | |2000 |First India office opened in Ahmedabad | |2001 |Awarded â€Å"Bangladesh Enterprise of the Year† | |2001 |Attained ISO 14001:1996 for RBL operations | |2001 |Launched â€Å"Agora† â€⠀œ the first ever retail chain | |2002 |Launched Rahimafrooz Energy Service promoting distributed power | |2003 |Established Rahimafrooz CNG Ltd. |2003 |Awarded â€Å"National Export Trophy† | |2004 |Metro net Bangladesh, a fiber optic based digital solution provider for data  communication, launched  in joint | | |venture with Flora Telecom | |2004 |Received McGraw-Hill Platt Global Energy Award for Renewable Energy | |2004 |The Group celebrated its 50th anniversary on April 15, with a renewed, enhanced commitment to being successful | | |while upholding its core values | |2006 |Received the â€Å"Ashden Award† for Sustainable Energy | |2009 |Established Rahimafrooz Globatt Limited and Rahimafrooz Accumulators   limited | |2009 |Rahimafrooz   launched  multi  brand  consumer  electronics  outlet  UREKA   | |2009   |Rahimafrooz   launched world renowned consumer electronics brand  Daewoo | |2010 |Rahimafrooz Inaugurates its biggest and m ost modern warehouse at Hemayatpur, Savar. | 05. Product & Service Products: Rahimafrooz mainly deals with electronics products like (TV, FRIEDGE, IPS, BATTERY, TYRE, LUBRICANTS etc). The brands that Rahimafrooz launch are given below†¦ [pic] Service: Rahimafrooz Bangladesh Ltd service center is situated in 13 Mahakhali commercial areas in Dhaka. Here the product of Rahimafrooz is sold and servicing also. Here the service is done in modern computerized system.The complaints are also solved and handle from here. [pic] 06. Organization chart [pic] 07. Awards & Achievements [pic]  Ã‚   [pic]  Ã‚  Ã‚  [pic] Asia's Best Brand  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Asia's Best Employer  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  C& FE,  CSR  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  CMO Award 2010  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     CMO Award 2010  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Award 2008 [pic]  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   [pic]  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  [pic] Brand Leadership  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ashden Award  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   National Export Trophy   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Award 2008  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Award 2006  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚   Award 2001-2002 08. Delivery Network The manufacturer and wholesaler must decide how to distribute their products. Working through the whole sellers, dealers or agents generally is easiest way of entering in the market.Whole sellers and dealers consider about cost and traffic flow, commission before keeping a product in the store. Location is less a concern for products or services that customers are willing to go out of their way to find. 08. 1: Dealers They are the authorized vendor who deals with the specific brand. (John M. Rathmell, Manager of the Marketing Function. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ) 08. 2: Retailers Traditional: Home to home, general stores, single line stores, specialty shops, department stores, catalog retailers, planned shopping centers The Mass Marketers: Supermarkets and discount houses (John M . Rathmell, Managing the Marketing Function. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. ) 08. 3: WholesalersDefinition: Wholesaling is concerned with the activities of those persons or establishments who sell to retailers and other merchants, or to industrial, institutional, and commercial users. But who do not sell in significant amounts to ultimate consumers. But in the tyre market, the wholesaler serves the purpose of the retailer at the same time. Functions from the producer perspective: provide part of selling Four strategies can be produced through the tows matrix. SO strategy represents internal strength to take advantage with the external environment. WO strategy represents the internal weakness and to overcome that weakness by the external opportunity. ST strategy represents the strength of the company and to over come that the threat by the strength.WT strategies are defensive tactics directed at reducing internal weakness and avoiding external threats. 09. Advertising & Promotion [pic] Rahi mafrooz Company limited carefully integrates and coordinates its many communications channels to deliver a clear, consistent, and convincing message about the organization and its products. [pic]Rahimafrooz is using all kinds of promotional afford including: †¢Print Media †¢Broadcast media †¢Outdoor Media †¢Internet & Websites Rahimafrooz is using huge promotional afford in print media. This is the biggest promotional afford of  the company. They are giving advertisement on the news paper, they are also publishing there own newsletter service through by them. [pic] [pic]Promotion, in its broadest sense, provides extra incentives for any group that is an important factor in the marketing of a brand. It is most often directed to the consumer or to the trade or other influential group. It is used to encourage sales or purchase a product. (Principal of marketing 8th edition Philip Kotler, Gary Armstrong) 09. 1: TRADE SALES PROMOTION TECHNIQUES Push Policy emphasize s promotions focused on the next intermediary. Trade sales promotion techniques-stimulate wholesalers and retailers to carry products and to market them aggressively. Producers use sales promotion techniques to encourage resellers to carry their products and to promote them more effectively. 09. 2: TYPES OF SALES PROMOTIONSSamples (offer consumer for trail), Coupon (certificate that gives buyer savings), Cash refund (Refund money who send a proof of purchase), Price pack (Reduce price marked by producer), Patronage reward (reward for regular use), Discounts (direct reduction of price), Allowance (money offered to the seller to feature the manufactures product) (Principal of marketing 8th edition Philip Kotler, Gary Armstrong) 09. 3: PREMIUM ITEMS OFFER Offer free or at minimum cost as a bonus. Use to attract competitors customers, different sizes of established products. Study identified from the net that Burger King with the Lion King movie was offered few years back in USA. 10. SW OT Analysis The SWOT analysis is a valuable step in your situational analysis.Assessing your firm’s strengths, weaknesses, market opportunities, and threats through a SWOT analysis is a very simple process that can offer powerful insight into the potential and critical issues affecting a venture. 10. 1: Strength o High company reputation. o Enable to provide much more customer satisfaction than competitors. o Higher product quality. o Provide higher service quality. o Distribution effectiveness is better than the others. o Strong management team enables to provide geographical coverage. o Able to launch a new product faster than the competitor o Financial position is much more stable than the other. 10. 2: Weakness o The major weakness of Rahimafrooz is the internal conflict of the management.Working sprit sometimes hampered by management conflict of the organization. o Though Rahimafrooz has a very good team for the marketing plan, but not all the people are experienced. o C ommunication barrier is the major weakness of the organization. o Expectation of the top management is very high. Sometimes they set very high target which is not achievable at all time. Sometimes it becomes burden for the employee. 10. 3: Opportunity o To get new customers after modification. o To provide more qualities in products. o Providing more benefit for products to increase more customer satisfaction. o Increasing the advertisement. o Increasing the distribution channel. Incentive for the employee who dose outstanding performance in their respective area. 10. 4: Threat o Major threat arises from the new entrants. o Many competitors in the electronic market. o Unethical competition. Such as, price cut, advertising, giving gift by the competitor may threaten position of Unilever. o Following the same strategy by the competitors. o Worsening law and order situation of the country. o Availability of the substitute product in the market. —————à ¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€œ MANAGING DIRECTOR ACCOUNTS MANAGER REGIONAL MANAGER DISTRIBUTION MANAGER MARKETING MANAGER CHIEF OPERATION OFFICER PRODUCT MANAGER ADMIN MGR C & F MANAGER NI SYSTEM DIRET SALE RETAIL MGR

Critique of Transcultural Nursing

Discuss whether nursing Is a profession or an occupation. What can current and future nurses do to enhance nursing's standing as a profession? Nursing Is a profession. According to Mencken and Wills (2014) â€Å"profession Is a learned vocation or occupation that has a status of superiority and precedence within a Dillon of work† (p. 2). I believe this describes nursing but needed more evidence to make my decision.I considered the â€Å"characteristics off profession: a defined and specialized knowledge base, control and authority over training and education, credentialing system, altruistic service to society, formal training within institutions of higher education, lengthy colonization to the profession and autonomy† (Mencken & Wills, 2014, p. 2). The National Council of State Boards of Nursing (â€Å"NCSA Home,† n. D. Help to define the nursing knowledge base, have authority over training by requiring that training at institutions of higher education meet the standards of approval by boards of nursing and that nurses graduating from an approved nursing program are clinically competent to practice nursing by assign the national council licenser exam (â€Å"UNCLE Examinations,† n. D. ). Nursing at Its core Is an altruistic profession. Altruism Is defined as â€Å"feelings and behavior that show a desire to help other people and a lack of selfishness† (â€Å"Altruism – Merriam- Webster Dictionary,† n. D. ).Nurses provide care because it is needed and not because the nurse will have personal gains from providing such care. Autonomy in nursing can be viewed as a partnership in a multi-disciplinary team in which each ember has a different skill set and working together the patient receives the best possible care. Each member works independently and inter-dependently to meet the varied and unique needs of each individual patient. Nursing as a profession meets or exceeds each characteristic of a profession in my view. Experienced nurses need to help grow the skills and critical thinking of new nurses.Nurses with a wide variety of experiences and skills are better able to act autonomously. When nurses think critically and act In a safe way they provide better, ore efficient care. This leads to Increased patient satisfaction, Increased physician, peer and self-confidence. I find that the area new nurses need the most guidance on is his/her ability to call on knowledge already gained to provide the most effective care. For example, knowing which IV size to choose for a patient who has a possible GIG bleed is something that the preceptor teaches the new nursing graduate.