A certain idea Essay

The â€Å"ports† are referring to new places that an individual should visit and see for the first time. Mother of pearl and the other precious stones and items are imageries of the important joyful moments in life and achievements; whether they are large moments like achieving a goal or just a small moment where something happens along your way to accomplishing your goals, they are all equally important and precious. The author states in the poem that Individuals should not let anything get in the way of achieving their goals and should never give up. â€Å"The Laistrygonians and the Cyclops, angry Poseidon† are allusions to three types of beings who are powerful and seeked to delay or destroy Odysseus on his return journey from Troy to Ithaca. . If an individual wanted to swim the channel but could not swim that would be their Cyclops or if a person wanted to be a singer but had a lisp that would be their angry Poseidon. Throughout Odysseus’ journey he encountered many challenges but he was determined to return to Ithaca and to his wife so he managed to overcome the challenges due to the fact that he was aware of what he wanted and did not let anything get in his way. This lesson transcends into everyday life as well, therefore the author is expressing that if an individual is aware of their goals in life they should be determined to achieve them. They should, like Odysseus, not let challenges and problems in life interfere with their ultimate aim to achieve their goals. An individual should not just give up as soon as a difficulty arises, â€Å"Do not fear them†, otherwise the individual will never get anywhere in life and later on will most likely feel some form of regret towards not attempting to get past the problem that arouse. The author clearly explains that if an attempt is made to overcome the problem, then it should not interfere with the goals due to the fact that this will lead to the individual ceasing to see them as a problem and see them more as another goal to complete, throughout the journey of life. â€Å"you will not meet them unless you carry them in your soul, unless your soul raise them up before you†, shows that as long as a person is thinking positively and is determined that anything can be achieved.

International studies Essay

1. Business and Economics WEEK 4: Theories of International Trade and Investment 2. Mercantilism is a bankrupt theory that has no place in the modern world. Discuss. 3.   Mercantilism – a country should maintain a trade surplus, even if that means that imports are limited by government intervention. Bankrupt theory because: – Inconsistent with the general notion of globalization. †¢ Eventually, a country will find it difficult to export if it imposes oppressive quotas and tariffs on its imports. – Consumers in the mercantilist country suffer. †¢ Denied access to either â€Å"cheaper† or more â€Å"sophisticated† goods from other countries. 4. Is free trade fair? Discuss. 5. Trade theory suggests that specialization and free trade benefits all countries. However, a case can be made in some situations for imposing trade barriers. E.g.: – Infant industry argument – National security 6.What are the potential costs of adopting a free trade regime? Do you think governments should do anything to reduce these costs? What? 7. Job loss Government should: –provide retraining programs OR –Do nothing, it will all come out in the wash 8. THE RISE OF BANGLADESH’S TEXTILE TRADE (PG. 206) CLOSING CASE: 9. Why was the shift to a free trade regime in the textile industry good for Bangladesh? 10. Until 2005, Bangladesh’s opportunities in the developed nations were governed by a quota system. Introduction of free trade policies enabled Bangladesh to increase its exports. Competitive advantage in the production of textiles. – low cost, productive labour force. – strong network of supporting industries. Also, attracted Western importers looking to diversify their supplier base. 11. Who benefits when retailers in the United States source textiles from low wage countries such as Bangladesh? Who might lose? Do the gains outweigh the losses? 12. BANGLADESH low cost, lower price ï‚ §competitive advantage US Higher price – fewer garments purchased locally Possible job loss 13. What international trade theory, or theories, best explain the rise of Bangladesh as a textile exporting powerhouse? 14. Exporting powerhouse: – Relatively low wages. – Investments in boosting productivity levels. – Network of supporting industries.   Theory of comparative advantage ï‚ § Porter’s theory of competitive advantage 15. How secure is Bangladesh’s textile industry from foreign competition? What  factors could ultimately lead to a decline? 16. Bangladesh is attractive due to: – low cost garments – the opportunity for importers to diversify their supply base (Importers do not want to solely rely on China and see – Importers do not want to solely rely on China and see Bangladesh as an attractive alternative to hedge risks.   However, their infrastructure could prove to be problematic for its exporters. – If importers find that infrastructure problems disrupt their supplies, they could begin to look for new source countries. – Bangladesh should make the necessary investments to avoid any disruptions in the industry. 17. THE REGULATORY FRAMEWORK NEXT WEEK:

King Oedipus Essay

* In one of the early Greek tragedies written by Sophocles in 470 BC, ‘Oedipus the King’ demonstrates the arrogance portrayed by human nature which he therefore turns away the obvious truth. This early Greek Myth shows the way in which Oedipus, the King of Thebes, is so arrogant in wanting the truth in regards to the mishaps that shroud his land and so persistent that he is ultimately leading himself into his own demise. * Oedipus’ arrogance is demonstrated very early on in the play, when his uncle ‘unknown at this time’, Creon, returns with news from the Gods. On his arrival at the palace of Thebes, Oedipus demands the news. Creon is reluctant though as he brings only bad news, â€Å"If you want my report in the presence of these people†¦I’m ready now or we might go inside†. Oedipus in reply say’s, â€Å"Speak out, speak to us all. I grieve for these my people, far more than I fear for my own life†. This ignorance to accept advice from Creon, led the problem to become public to the people of Thebes, which later results in Oedipus’ own demise as he had the potential to deal with it privately. * When Oedipus calls upon the Oracle Tiresias to prove this theory of banishing the murderer of Laius from his land, he is confident in himself that he can discover and devastate the curse which clenches his city state in its grasp. He is however mistaken in his views as when he calls upon the oracle, a new truth is revealed. The refusal of the oracle to relay the truthful message of the god’s to Oedipus infuriates him. â€Å"I will never reveal my dreadful secrets†, from the Oracle’s refusal comes Oedipus’ bewilderment as to the refusal of his command. â€Å"You’re bent on betraying us, destroying Thebes?† Due to Oedipus’ constant taunts towards the Oracle, the truth is finally revealed and shock and bewilderment fill him up and untold stories and cobwebs within Oedipus’ life are revealed, much to his shock and disbelief. * As Oedipus rose to the thrown through his bravest of actions his demise was the result of his only weak links, his arrogance and self confidence. As the truth unfolds in regards to the murder of King Laius, so does the unfolding of the hidden secrets in Oedipus’ life creating shock and horror among his nation’s people as to the darker side of their hero. He is so determined to provide his people with another act of heroism that he is blinded to the obvious truth that he could of learned through himself when hearing the words of the Oracle, telling him to drop the matter. It is through his own thoughtless actions that undermine the power in which King Oedipus once held firmly in his grasp, confirming his own responsibility in his destiny.

Theoretical Approaches to International Development Essay

Theoretical Approaches to International Development - Essay Example Although the world bodies on development argue that poverty has been reduced, the rates of under-development are still too high in many countries. World Bank argue that world population living in poverty has reduced tremendously in the past as a result of implementation of development policies on poor countries. This implies that if their data is correct, the world has attained one of the millennium development goals of reducing poverty levels by 50%. This review of international development approaches has considered three articles by Onis and Senses, Leftwich, and Kiely. These authors have analysed various features of development and approaches in measuring equality. This review covers a summary of key points raised by the authors, analysis of their strengths and weaknesses and comment based on these authors’ articles. Onis and Senses in their article, â€Å"Rethinking the Emerging Post-Washington Consensus,† have analysed the outcomes of new Post Washington consensus as a development debate. The authors have also analysed the new development orthodoxy that advocated for a new development model based on the fact that individualisation should be primary, outward orientation, liberalisation of market, and state contradiction. According to them, the state is viewed as the cause of retarded development. States are viewed as causing delay in development through many sectors they have created. These sectors make development processes longer (Onis and Senses, 2005, p. 264). Neoliberal orthodoxy was supported by ‘new political economy’ model which was opposed to sectors claiming that they were supporting majority interests. In essence, ‘new political economy’ model fostered individualism. Later, there were challenges that were noted in development by the use of neoliberal orthodoxy that led to the rise of Post-Washington Consensus. This consensus emphasised the importance of the state in development. It represented critical anal ysis of former paradigms in development i.e. national developmentalism and neoliberalism. This new approach recognises the place of the state in development but also emphasises the need for the state to avoid failures in the market. Post-Washington Consensus is challenged by its narrow look of issues related to market (Onis and Senses, 2005, p. 279). The agenda of this consensus is not adopted by Bretton Woods institutions like IMF. Onis and Senses conclude that there still are inequalities that are resulting in poverty even with Post-Washington Consensus (Onis and Senses, 2005, p. 287). Onis and Sense’s article has analysed various development models distinguishing their efficiency. However, their argument does not show explicitly the most favourable methods towards development. They cited different challenges of each models but never came with a recommendation of one. Kiely’s article is an evaluation of whether there has been any significant reduction in poverty leve ls. Kiely criticises the World Bank’s report that population living in absolute poverty were reduced by 400 million from 1.4billion in 1980. Other researchers indicate that poverty levels were reduced to 18% by the year 2000 from 46% in 1980. His work is a criticism of the definition of absolute poverty, which World Bank defines as Purchasing Power Parity. He claims that this method was just aimed at creating optimism of having achieved reduction in poverty level. Kiely criticises the method of measuring poverty level by Purchasing Power Parity saying that prices of commodities are likely to change in different

Analysis of John Dewey's Ideas of Education Essay

Analysis of John Dewey's Ideas of Education - Essay Example Mostly, educational instructions have an established pedagogical method, and each student will react to it and grasp from it, depending upon one’s quality of experiences. So, the teaching curriculum needs to be designed taking into account and caring for the individual differences. Dewey writes, â€Å"The history of educational theory is marked by the opposition between the idea that education is a development from within and that it is formation from without; that it is based upon natural endowment and that education is a process of overcoming natural inclination and substituting in its place habits acquired under external pressure.†(1998, p.1) According to Dewey, education apart from being a private ambition and accomplishment has a broader social purpose, to shape oneself as an effective member of the democratic society.† Dewey argues that the one-way delivery style of authoritarian schooling does not provide a good model for life in a democratic society. Inste ad, students need educational experiences which enable them to become valued, equal, and responsible members of society.† (John Dewey†¦.) What is the theory? The theory is based on another man’s experience. The misunderstanding about Dewey is about his support for progressive education. According to Dewey, just by attacking the traditional education methods, one doesn’t become progressive. Freedom eulogized by votaries of progressive education is no solution. Structure and order are hallmarks of the learning method, and it must adhere to a clear theory of experience; the whims of teachers or students are of no consequence and they will not deliver goods expected of a good system of education. Dewey articulates a system of education on the basis of a theory of experience.  

Male Cultural Competence response Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Male Cultural Competence response - Assignment Example Therefore, the multiculturalism cornerstone remains in establishing an appropriate understanding of people’s sociopolitical histories as well as the people’s histories and the groups to which they belong. During treatments, it is significantly important for the development of an alliance between the clinician and the client for a better therapy. In such a perspective, masculine oriented therapy does not necessarily mean that the clinician has interests in an individual’s masculinity; however, such information is important for the establishment of an alliance. From the student post, it is evident that the patient is given unsatisfactory treatment based on his past behaviors. Because of discriminations, it is proper that clinicians understand their therapist’s values and worldview in order to develop a strong alliance during therapy and offer appropriate treatment (Healy, 2005). As such, the clinicians and another medical staff would offer treatments without any bias, or assumptions by understanding that indeed people are different from the varied cultural variances. Appropriate training and education are crucial in the development of male- culturally appropriate interventions and strategies, especially for therapists as in instances of learning to discuss issues of race and racism. Male as a gender has certain characteristics and activates associated with it. As such, men tend to participate in certain activities, having the strengths-based approach, which are ideally positive factors of engagements in optimizing the available conditions for positive development and creativity in the minimization of the possible risk practices (Berg-Weger et al., 2001).  Certain elements  of the  male  strengths approach of a man’s interaction with other men involve the recognition and focus on strengths and capabilities as a means of responding to challenges that one faces as well as depersonalizing the problems.

Discuss Why Risk Management is not a Good Objective for the Criminal Essay

Discuss Why Risk Management is not a Good Objective for the Criminal Justice Process - Essay Example Risk in the criminal justice system is widely associated with young offenders. There are those who have a lot of risk factors such as truancy, the low achievers and those from a single-parent family. The children who have less parental supervision are also vulnerable to anti-social behavior that may lead to criminal activities. In fact, crime statistics chow that the youth are more susceptible to involvement in criminal activities than adults. This correlation between crime rate and age does not only apply to the offenders, but also to the victims of those criminal activities (Kemshall, 2003). The process of assessing and managing risk has, therefore, become a prime issue for discussion in every criminal justice system. In the assessment of risk in a criminal offence, the character of the individual is evaluated to determine whether there is the possibility for them to commit other acts of violence. Because risk management requires the consideration of both situational and psychologi cal factors, it requires constant modification and review so that public safety is ensured. The management of dangerous offenders in the recent past has brought about a lot of concern the world over. This concern has been mostly reflected in the media and other social forums (Armstrong, 2004). One of the areas that have sparked too much concern from the public is area of sexual offences. This type of crime has led to the outcry in the media where there have been campaigns against sexual offences in the society. In these campaigns, the media seeks to identify the sexual offenders, publish their names and shame them so that they do not repeat the same habit again. The campaigns also encourage the use of vigilante justice as well as the formation of a punitive attitude in the public towards sexual offenders. In the long run, such a campaign would lead to the isolation and stigmatization of sexual offender who would be expected to seek rehabilitative programs and reforms (Kemshall, 2003 ). A lot of articles in the media today contain news about sexual offences. Sexual crime has been dominating the media headlines probably because of the prevalence rate of the crime. This type of crime has, therefore, provoked public outcry because of the publicity it receives. This publicity generated by the media has, however, caused a number of negative effects on the perspective of sexual offences and offenders. It has affected the public’s opinion on sexual crimes as well as their perception on the necessary measures that should be taken in cases of sexual crime (Kemshall, 2000). The general perception created is that of a looming danger to all women and children. They are continually reported as the target group for sexual monsters. When the media concentrates on only one category of sexual offenders, they create the impression that pedophilia, for example, is increasingly rampant. Media may also influence a punitive attitude in the public in relation to sexual criminal s. Increased political and media outcry on this subject provokes the public to assume activities like vigilante policing. The attitude of the public towards sexual offenders as well as heightened hysteria is also provoked. It is these attitudes formed towards sexual offenders that necessitate the management of risk. The public should, therefore, be protected from sexual offenders at all costs (Phoenix, 2010). The concept of risk management in the criminal justice system has been

Which reflections of Islam are in the tale of Maruf the Cobbler Essay - 1

Which reflections of Islam are in the tale of Maruf the Cobbler - Essay Example One of the most important Islamic teaching that the story entails is the trait of being steadfast and patient, which in Islam every person is supposed to practice, as it is a characteristic loved by God. Ma’aruf is a humble man, who is constantly tormented by his wife and taken advantage of his meek nature. However, despite the problems and hardships that he is put through, he continues to remain steadfast and patient. As a matter of fact, he shows great strength of his moral character, which is reflected when his wife commands him to get a vermicelli cake drenched in bee honey and Ma’aruf is unable to earn enough money to get her what she desires. Despite the turmoil he is in, Ma’aruf continues to pray to Allah and eventually he was given help after one of his neighboring shop owner decides to give him food and the cake for free. Therefore, this event reinforces the belief that regardless of what calamity that may afflict a person, he is supposed to stay patient and ask Allah for help. (Kritzeck 1964, p. 299) This aspect of the Islamic faith is demonstrated and reinforced through several incidents within the story. Even to the extent that it is implied that after Ma’aruf invokes God for help, he even get it through supernatural entities like djinns (Kritzeck 1964, p. 302, 318). Moreover, Ma’aruf is often known for giving alms to the poor and needy, and helping others out which is another fundamental Islamic practice that pleases God and gets his protection granted to the individual. Therefore, Ma’aruf was always protected, even when there was a serious threat to his life, he was able to get away with the help of the people and even supernatural beings. Various aspects of Ma’aruf’s life is also reminiscent and takes heavy inspirations from the life of the Prophet Muhammad. For instance, when Ma’aruf is completely tired of his wife’s trickery and retreats to a cave

Thesis Statement Studies have shown that exercise decrease Research Paper

Thesis Statement Studies have shown that exercise decrease hypertension and organ damage in elderly, more so than Medications - Research Paper Example In this sense, the historical and current bases of this debate are mentioned, albeit lightly. III. Medication versus exercise This section specifically highlights the points and issues brought forward by both sides of the debate. That is, the arguments brought forward by those believing that exercise is a more effective preventive and treatment technique for hypertension compared to medications. However, the importance of seeking medical advice prior to engaging in any form or period of exercise is emphasized. IV. Exercise and Its Effects on the Heart This section narrows down on the exact benefits and effects of exercise, which makes it better and more effective than medication in preventing and treating hypertension and reducing organ damage in elderly people. V. Recommendations This section is about the various techniques and approaches by which health care professionals and individual elderly persons may engage in sports and other exercise to prevent, treat, and manage hypertensi on and organ damage. VI. Conclusion This section is a summary of the entire paper, especially on the reasons exercise is more effective than medication in preventing and treating organ damage and hypertension. VII. References This is the list of some of the references used in gathering the information contained in the paper. Abstract It is common knowledge that a healthy lifestyle is quite an important part of the treatment and prevention of hypertension, thus indispensable in this regard. According to the American Heart Association and the American College of Sports Medicine, moderate-intensity resistance exercise or training should be used to complement aerobic exercise programs in any efforts to prevent, treat, and control hypertension. According to numerous past and current studies on short-term post-exercise blood pressure reduction in elderly hypertensive patients, the rationale for such exercises is the control of blood pressure. The issue of blood pressure control is more pr ofound in the aged and people already diagnosed with hypertension, especially with regards to the lowering of resting blood pressure. Although exercise activities elicit post-exercise blood pressure drop, the mechanisms causing these responses are not entirely understood. In most of these studies that target elderly hypertensive patients aged about 65, cardiac output and blood pressure are the variables commonly measured, both at rest and after short periods of low-intensity exercises such as bicycle rides. The results of most of these studies indicate that in hypertensive patients, exercises provoke a considerable drop in blood pressure and cardiac output. The therapeutic and preventive uses of exercise have made it to be compared with medication with respect to the treatment and prevention of hypertension. In fact, many a stakeholder feels that exercise is more effective than medication in the treatment of hypertension. However, there are those with opposing opinion who believe me dication still has an upper hand in treating and preventing hypertension. Introduction Quite a number of health literatures cover the techniques by which one may reduce or manage high blood pressure and other heart-related conditions. However, fewer health literatures recommend techniques for controlling and preventing heart conditions without involving medications. Most literatures emphasize the effectiveness of

The Role of Myanmar Poems in Environmental Conservation Essay Example for Free

The Role of Myanmar Poems in Environmental Conservation Essay I would first like to express my thanks to the organizers of the Irrawaddy Literature Festival for this opportunity to discuss my â€Å"view on the significant role of Myanmar traditional Literature and culture in environmental conservation and sustainable development†. The topic I have chosen is on how Myanmar traditional poems can contribute towards environmental conservation and sustainable development from the aesthetic perspective. Like all organism, human beings rely on the natural environment for survival and well-being. But, unlike other living beings human needs not only physical nutrients, but mental supplement such as aesthetic feeling plays a vital role for his survival. Appreciation of beauty is one of the distinctive element that distinguishes humans from other creatures, that is, we like to live in beautiful places full of blooming flowers, green trees, singing birds as mental nutrients while we need fresh air and clean water with full of minerals as our physical nutrients. The natural environment provide our aesthetic needs through its amazing beauty such as ranges of purple mountain, snowy peak, green forests and prairies, the far-reaching spaces of blue oceans and colourful seashells, flowing yellowish rivers, the twittering sounds of birds and beasts with their mates, colourful flowers in bloom, and so forth. In my view the beauty of nature has always stimulated awareness that we have to preserve our environment to preserve this beauty. Today this beauty is rapidly vanishing; mega cities have replaced many beautiful landscapes and this has left human beings empty-hearted. It may be one of the causes in the rise of crime and violence in the inner cities of megapolices. The phenomena of natural world have historically been the subject and object of aesthetics. When we use the term ‘natural’ it has been conceptualized as the beautiful, pastoral, sublime, and picturesque. These aesthetic categories have historically functioned to frame and construct the natural world for us against a human, technologically determined environment. Environmental Aesthetics leads into questions and forms an analysis of our aesthetic relationship Dr. Le Le Wynn, Professor Head, Department of Philosophy, University of Yangon Irrawaddy Literary Festival (Myanmar) 3-2-2013 2 and judgments of the natural world as a methodology for setting up a better relationship that will promote environmental respect; not just preservation. 1 In his A Sand County Almanac, the founder of ecological science Aldo Leopold stated that â€Å"A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community† and â€Å"It is wrong when it tends otherwise. † 2 It means that integrity, stability, and beauty are necessary for preserving the natural environment. Of these, integrity and beauty are especially human concerns because nonhuman beings that live in the biotic community are not concerned with ethical or aesthetical value. Besides, it seems to suggest that both ethical and aesthetical considerations are crucial for the environmental conservation. Immanuel Kant, in his Critique of Judgment, stated that beautiful items in nature such as flowers, birds, and seashells provide a source of disinterested pleasure because their significant form alone can lead us to pleasurable imagination and understanding. â€Å"Beauty is a symbol of Morality,† and â€Å"The enjoyment of nature is the mark of a good soul† are key sayings of Kant. For him, the shared enjoyment of a sunset or a beach shows there is harmony between us all, and the world. In this respect, judgments of pure beauty, being selfless, initiate one into the moral point of view. 3 For that reason, it is clear that the role of aesthetic appreciation of Nature is crucial for awakening the human’s conscience with regard to ethical responsibility to the natural environment. In this sense, environmental aesthetics stresses its interest in the potentialities of artistic representations which can stimulate aesthetic appreciation which will lead to realization of the ethical obligations of human being towards nature. In fact, it is an undeniable fact that the power of aesthetic stimulation of the perceptual faculties of humans is more effective than the power of ethical guidelines to their conceptual awareness of them. In Myanmar culture, like other Eastern traditions, it is usually considered that human beings and natural environment coexist peacefully side by side in the world. This idea is reflected in the writings of Myanmar Poets and Authors. http://unnatural. ucsc. edu/environmental_aesthetics/index. htm Aldo Leopold (1981). ‘A Sand County Almanac’, The Land Ethic. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 237-265. 3 Barry Hartley Slater. ‘Aesthetics’, The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy.  http://www.iep.utm.edu/

Meningitis Due To Intravenous Immunoglobulin Therapy

Meningitis Due To Intravenous Immunoglobulin Therapy Acute Aseptic Meningitis Due To High Dose Intravenous Immunoglobulin Therapy for Guillain-Barrà © Syndrome Abstract The majority of adverse reactions of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) therapy are mild, transient and self-limiting; however, potentially serious complications are rare and occur in less than 5% of patients receiving IVIG therapy. IVIG associated transient aseptic meningitis is an uncommon adverse effect and this phenomenon has been seldom described in literature. We report a case of aseptic meningitis due to high dose IVIG therapy in a Guillain-Barrà © syndrome (GBS) patient. The cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis revealed high cell counts with predominance of lymphocytic cells, raised protein, normal glucose level and no growth of the organism on culture. He was managed symptomatically with adequate hydration and analgesic. Our patient improved without neurological complications. This case emphasizes the importance of recognizing IVIG associated neurological complications in GBS patients. Keywords Aseptic meningitis; Guillain-Barrà © syndrome; Intravenous immunoglobulin Introduction Intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) therapy is recommended in Guillain-Barrà © syndrome (GBS) patients. The majority of adverse reactions of IVIG therapy are mild, transient and self-limiting; however, potentially serious complications are rare and occur in less than 5% of patients receiving IVIG therapy. According to Kemmotsu et al., IVIG associated transient aseptic meningitis is an uncommon phenomenon occurring in about 1% of patient. The common adverse effects are headache, nausea and vomiting, myalgia, low backache, tachycardia, mild grade fever and flushing. The serious complications are aseptic meningitis, thromboembolism, transverse venous sinus thrombosis, myocardial infarction, acute stroke, acute encephalopathy, posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome, anaphylactic reaction, acute renal failure and serum sickness. IVIG associated transient aseptic meningitis is a very rare complication. Our patient developed aseptic meningitis following intravenous immunoglobulin therapy. Case Presentation A 14 years old boy presented with two days history of acute onset pure motor, progressive, symmetric, areflexic, flaccid quadriparesis without bladder/bowel, bulbar, respiratory symptoms or autonomic dysfunction. He had no history of fever, preceding illness of diarrhea, respiratory tract infection or any toxin exposure. A clinical diagnosis of Guillain-Barrà © syndrome (GBS) was made with Hughes Disability Scale 4. Nerve conduction study was suggestive of pure motor, predominantly demyelinating affection of right ulnar, bilateral median, bilateral tibial and bilateral peroneal nerves. Electrocardiogram (ECG) and serum potassium level were normal and urinary porphobilinogen was negative. Clinical profile and electrophysiological parameters fulfilled the Asbury criteria of GBS. Intravenous immunoglobulin was given according to the recommended dose (0.4 mg/kg/day). His weight was 45 kg and total 90 gm IVIG was planned over five days in divided doses. On the fourth day, after receiving 72 grams of IVIG infusion, the patient developed progressive worsening headache, neck pain and recurrent vomiting. There was no history of fever, loss of consciousness or visual symptoms. His temperature was normal. On neurological examination, meningeal signs: neck rigidity, Kernig signs and Brudzinski signs were positive. Bilateral fundi were normal. There were no other focal neurological signs. Investigations Hemogram and blood biochemistry were within the normal range. Blood culture was sterile. X-ray chest was normal and Mantoux test was negative. Lumbar puncture showed normal opening pressure and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis revealed pleocytosis (Total cell counts: 180 cell/dl) with lymphocytic predominance (85%), raised protein (110 mg/dl), normal sugar (56 mg/dl) and normal chloride (111 mEq/L) levels. CSF gram stain, AFB stain, KOH preparation, India ink and CSF culture for bacteria and fungi were negative. CSF TB PCR and HSV PCR were negative. MRI brain with gadolinium contrast was normal (Figure 1). Differential Diagnosis Diagnosis of acute aseptic meningitis was based on clinical features, CSF findings, negative viral markers and negative culture. The diagnosis of IVIG associated aseptic meningitis was made as there was a strong temporal relationship between onset of aseptic meningitis and high dose IVIG therapy; the extensive search for other causes of meningitis was negative and the improvement of symptoms within few days. However, possibility of viral meningitis was also thought, but absence of prodromal symptoms, no identifiable rise in serum viral titres and self-improvement of symptoms ruled out the possibility of viral meningitis. Treatment His symptoms were managed with hydration and analgesics. No antibiotic or antiviral therapy was given. A very slow infusion of IVIG was continued under strict supervision until completion of full dose therapy on the next day. The signs of meningeal irritation-neck rigidity, Kernig’s signs and Brudzinski signs disappeared over next two days. Outcome The patient was discharged in stable condition with Hughes GBS Disability Scale 1. He recovered completely without any neurological sequelae. He was asymptomatic after three months of followup. Discussion The exact pathophysiology of IVIG induced aseptic meningitis is not clear. The various postulated mechanisms of IVIG associated aseptic meningitis are direct toxic effect, immunologic drug hypersensitive reaction, allogenic immunologic reaction, hypersensitivity reaction to various stabilizing agents and cytokine release triggered by the therapy. Wada et al. showed the excitotoxic effect of IVIG in acute encephalopathy following IVIG therapy. The IgG is an active ingredient of intravenous immunoglobulin capable of crossing the blood-brain barrier, penetrates the meninges, and enters the brain parenchyma. In our patient, aseptic meningitis developed after 72 hours of initiation of IVIG. However, in literature, most patients developed aseptic meningitis within 48 hours of beginning IVIG therapy. According to Jarius et al., aseptic meningitis was frequently associated with polymorphic pleocytosis in the CSF examination; however, our patient had lymphocytic pleocytosis. Most of the side effects associated with IVIG are mild, self-limited and related to the infusion rate and no specific therapy is required. Risk factors for IVIG associated aseptic meningitis are history of migraine and rapid, high dose infusion of IVIG. Slower infusion rate, proper hydration, antihistamines and analgesics may help to prevent mild reactions. Systemic steroid may be required in severe cases. Our patient was under strict supervision and no medical treatment was given. He improved without any neurological complications. Headache and fever are well-recognized side effects of high dose IVIG, aseptic meningitis has rarely been reported in the literature in GBS patients. A high index of clinical suspicion should be kept for IVIG induced aseptic meningitis and should be confirmed by careful neurological examination and CSF analysis. Take-Home Message Acute aseptic meningitis may develop as a transient, self-limiting complication of high dose IVIG therapy in GBS patient. Early recognition and management is required to prevent permanent neurological sequelae. IVIG therapy should be continued in mild aseptic meningitis as the IVIG infusion is a life saving drug for GBS patient, at a slow infusion rate, with proper hydration, histamines and analgesics. This case emphasizes the importance of recognizing IVIG associated neurological complications in IVIG treated GBS patient. References Figure Legends Figure 1. Normal MRI brain with gadolinium contrast

Evaluating The Waste Water Treatment Processes Environmental Sciences Essay

Evaluating The Waste Water Treatment Processes Environmental Sciences Essay Domestic wastewater treatment or sewage treatment, is the process of removing contaminants from wastewater and household sewage, both runoff (effluents) and domestic. It includes physical, chemical, and biological processes to remove physical, chemical and biological contaminants. Its objective is to produce an environmentally-safe fluid waste stream (or treated effluent) and a solid waste (or treated sludge) suitable for disposal or reuse (usually as farm fertilizer). Using advanced technology it is now possible to re-use sewage effluent for drinking water, although Singapore is the only country to implement such technology on a production scale in its production of NEWater. 1.2 ORIGIN OF WASTE WATER Sewage is created by residential, institutional, and commercial and industrial establishments and includes household waste liquid from toilets, baths, showers, kitchens, sinks and so forth that is disposed of via sewers. In many areas, sewage also includes liquid waste from industry and commerce. The separation and draining of household waste into greywater and blackwater is becoming more common in the developed world, with greywater being permitted to be used for watering plants or recycled for flushing toilets. Sewage may include stormwater runoff. Sewerage systems capable of handling stormwater are known as combined systems. Combined sewer systems are usually avoided now because precipitation causes widely varying flows reducing sewage treatment plant efficiency. Combined sewers require much larger, more expensive, treatment facilities than sanitary sewers. Heavy storm runoff may overwhelm the sewage treatment system, causing a spill or overflow. Sanitary sewers are typically much smaller than combined sewers, and they are not designed to transport stormwater. Backups of raw sewage can occur if excessive Infiltration/Inflow is allowed into a sanitary sewer system. Modern sewered developments tend to be provided with separate storm drain systems for rainwater. As rainfall travels over roofs and the ground, it may pick up various contaminants including soil particles and other sediment, heavy metals, organic compounds, animal waste, and oil and grease. (See urban runoff.) Some jurisdictions require stormwater to receive some level of treatment before being discharged directly into waterways. Examples of treatment processes used for stormwater include retention basins, wetlands, buried vaults with various kinds of media filters, and vortex separators (to remove coarse solids). CHAPTER TWO 2.1 OVERVIEW OF WASTE WATER TREATMENT PROCESSES Sewage can be treated close to where it is created, a decentralised system, (in septic tanks, biofilters or aerobic treatment systems), or be collected and transported via a network of pipes and pump stations to a municipal treatment plant, a centralised system, (see sewerage and pipes and infrastructure). Sewage collection and treatment is typically subject to local, state and federal regulations and standards. Industrial sources of wastewater often require specialized treatment processes as shown in the diagram below: Process Flow Diagram for a typical treatment plant via Subsurface Flow Constructed Wetlands (SFCW) Sewage treatment generally involves three stages, called primary, secondary and tertiary treatment. Primary treatment consists of temporarily holding the sewage in a quiescent basin where heavy solids can settle to the bottom while oil, grease and lighter solids float to the surface. The settled and floating materials are removed and the remaining liquid may be discharged or subjected to secondary treatment. Secondary treatment removes dissolved and suspended biological matter. Secondary treatment is typically performed by indigenous, water-borne micro-organisms in a managed habitat. Secondary treatment may require a separation process to remove the micro-organisms from the treated water prior to discharge or tertiary treatment. Tertiary treatment is sometimes defined as anything more than primary and secondary treatment in order to allow rejection into a highly sensitive or fragile ecosystem (estuaries, low-flow rivers, coral reefs etc.). Treated water is sometimes disinfected chemically or physically (for example, by lagoons and microfiltration) prior to discharge into a stream, river, bay, lagoon or wetland, or it can be used for the irrigation of a golf course, green way or park. If it is sufficiently clean, it can also be used for groundwater recharge or agricultural purposes. 2.2 PRE-TREATMENT Pre-treatment removes materials that can be easily collected from the raw waste water before they damage or clog the pumps and skimmers of primary treatment clarifiers (trash, tree limbs, leaves, etc.). SCREENING The influent sewage water is screened to remove all large objects like cans, rags, sticks, plastic packets etc. carried in the sewage stream. This is most commonly done with an automated mechanically raked bar screen in modern plants serving large populations, whilst in smaller or less modern plants a manually cleaned screen may be used. The raking action of a mechanical bar screen is typically paced according to the accumulation on the bar screens and/or flow rate. The solids are collected and later disposed in a landfill or incinerated. Bar screens or mesh screens of varying sizes may be used to optimize solids removal. If gross solids are not removed they become entrained in pipes and moving parts of the treatment plant and can cause substantial damage and inefficiency in the process. GRIT REMOVAL Pre-treatment may include a sand or grit channel or chamber where the velocity of the incoming wastewater is adjusted to allow the settlement of sand, grit, stones, and broken glass. These particles are removed because they may damage pumps and other equipment. For small sanitary sewer systems, the grit chambers may not be necessary, but grit removal is desirable at larger plants. FAT AND GREASE REMOVAL In some larger plants, fat and grease is removed by passing the sewage through a small tank where skimmers collect the fat floating on the surface. Air blowers in the base of the tank may also be used to help recover the fat as a froth. In most plants however, fat and grease removal takes place in the primary settlement tank using mechanical surface skimmers. 2.3 PRIMARY TREATMENT In the primary sedimentation stage, sewage flows through large tanks, commonly called primary clarifiers or primary sedimentation tanks. The tanks are used to settle sludge while grease and oils rise to the surface and are skimmed off. Primary settling tanks are usually equipped with mechanically driven scrapers that continually drive the collected sludge towards a hopper in the base of the tank where it is pumped to sludge treatment facilities. Grease and oil from the floating material can sometimes be recovered for saponification. The dimensions of the tank should be designed to effect removal of a high percentage of the floatables and sludge. A typical sedimentation tank may remove from 60 to 65 percent of suspended solids, and from 30 to 35 percent of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) from the sewage. 2.4 SECONDARY TREATMENT Secondary treatment is designed to substantially degrade the biological content of the sewage which are derived from human waste, food waste, soaps and detergent. The majority of municipal plants treat the settled sewage liquor using aerobic biological processes. To be effective, the biota require both oxygen and food to live. The bacteria and protozoa consume biodegradable soluble organic contaminants (e.g. sugars, fats, organic short-chain carbon molecules, etc.) and bind much of the less soluble fractions into floc. Secondary treatment systems are classified as fixed-film or suspended-growth systems. Fixed-film or attached growth systems include trickling filters and rotating biological contactors, where the biomass grows on media and the sewage passes over its surface. Suspended-growth systems include activated sludge, where the biomass is mixed with the sewage and can be operated in a smaller space than fixed-film systems that treat the same amount of water. However, fixed-film systems are more able to cope with drastic changes in the amount of biological material and can provide higher removal rates for organic material and suspended solids than suspended growth systems.[6]:11-13 Roughing filters are intended to treat particularly strong or variable organic loads, typically industrial, to allow them to then be treated by conventional secondary treatment processes. Characteristics include filters filled with media to which wastewater is applied. They are designed to allow high hydraulic loading and a high level of aeration. On larger installations, air is forced through the media using blowers. The resultant wastewater is usually within the normal range for conventional treatment processes. A generalized, schematic diagram of an activated sludge process. A filter removes a small percentage of the suspended organic matter, while the majority of the organic matter undergoes a change of character, only due to the biological oxidation and nitrification taking place in the filter. With this aerobic oxidation and nitrification, the organic solids are converted into coagulated suspended mass, which is heavier and bulkier, and can settle to the bottom of a tank. The effluent of the filter is therefore passed through a sedimentation tank, called a secondary clarifier, secondary settling tank or humus tank. ACTIVATED SLUDGE In general, activated sludge plants encompass a variety of mechanisms and processes that use dissolved oxygen to promote the growth of biological floc that substantially removes organic material. The process traps particulate material and can, under ideal conditions, convert ammonia to nitrite and nitrate and ultimately to nitrogen gas. SURFACE-AERATED BASINS (LAGOONS) Many small municipal sewage systems in the United States (1 million gal./day or less) use aerated lagoons. Most biological oxidation processes for treating industrial wastewaters have in common the use of oxygen (or air) and microbial action. Surface-aerated basins achieve 80 to 90 percent removal of BOD with retention times of 1 to 10 days. The basins may range in depth from 1.5 to 5.0 metres and use motor-driven aerators floating on the surface of the wastewater. In an aerated basin system, the aerators provide two functions: they transfer air into the basins required by the biological oxidation reactions, and they provide the mixing required for dispersing the air and for contacting the reactants (that is, oxygen, wastewater and microbes). Typically, the floating surface aerators are rated to deliver the amount of air equivalent to 1.8 to 2.7  kg O2/kW ·h. However, they do not provide as good mixing as is normally achieved in activated sludge systems and therefore aerated basins do not achieve the same performance level as activated sludge units. Biological oxidation processes are sensitive to temperature and, between 0  °C and 40  °C, the rate of biological reactions increase with temperature. Most surface aerated vessels operate at between 4  °C and 32  °C. CONSTRUCTED WETLANDS Constructed wetlands (can either be surface flow or subsurface flow, horizontal or vertical flow), include engineered reedbeds and belong to the family of phytorestoration and ecotechnologies; they provide a high degree of biological improvement and depending on design, act as a primary, secondary and sometimes tertiary treatment, also see phytoremediation. One example is a small reedbed used to clean the drainage from the elephants enclosure at Chester Zoo in England; numerous CWs are used to recycle the water of the city of Honfleur in France and numerous other towns in Europe, the US, Asia and Australia. They are known to be highly productive systems as they copy natural wetlands, called the Kidneys of the earth for their fundamental recycling capacity of the hydrological cycle in the biosphere. Robust and reliable, their treatment capacities improve as time go by, at the opposite of conventional treatment plants whose machinery age with time. They are being increasingly used, alt hough adequate and experienced design are more fundamental than for other systems and space limitation may impede their use. FILTER BEDS (OXIDIZING BEDS) In older plants and those receiving variable loadings, trickling filter beds are used where the settled sewage liquor is spread onto the surface of a bed made up of coke (carbonized coal), limestone chips or specially fabricated plastic media. Such media must have large surface areas to support the biofilms that form. The liquor is typically distributed through perforated spray arms. The distributed liquor trickles through the bed and is collected in drains at the base. These drains also provide a source of air which percolates up through the bed, keeping it aerobic. Biological films of bacteria, protozoa and fungi form on the medias surfaces and eat or otherwise reduce the organic content. This biofilm is often grazed by insect larvae, snails, and worms which help maintain an optimal thickness. Overloading of beds increases the thickness of the film leading to clogging of the filter media and ponding on the surface. SOIL BIO-TECHNOLOGY A new process called Soil Bio-Technology (SBT) developed at IIT Bombay has shown tremendous improvements in process efficiency enabling total water reuse, due to extremely low operating power requirements of less than 50 joules per kg of treated water. Typically SBT systems can achieve chemical oxygen demand (COD) levels less than 10  mg/L from sewage input of COD 400  mg/L. SBT plants exhibit high reductions in COD values and bacterial counts as a result of the very high microbial densities available in the media. Unlike conventional treatment plants, SBT plants produce insignificant amounts of sludge, precluding the need for sludge disposal areas that are required by other technologies. BIOLOGICAL AERATED FILTERS Biological Aerated (or Anoxic) Filter (BAF) or Biofilters combine filtration with biological carbon reduction, nitrification or denitrification. BAF usually includes a reactor filled with a filter media. The media is either in suspension or supported by a gravel layer at the foot of the filter. The dual purpose of this media is to support highly active biomass that is attached to it and to filter suspended solids. Carbon reduction and ammonia conversion occurs in aerobic mode and sometime achieved in a single reactor while nitrate conversion occurs in anoxic mode. BAF is operated either in upflow or downflow configuration depending on design specified by manufacturer. Schematic diagram of a typical rotating biological contactor (RBC). The treated effluent clarifier/settler is not included in the diagram. ROTATING BIOLOGICAL CONTACTORS Rotating biological contactors (RBCs) are mechanical secondary treatment systems, which are robust and capable of withstanding surges in organic load. RBCs were first installed in Germany in 1960 and have since been developed and refined into a reliable operating unit. The rotating disks support the growth of bacteria and micro-organisms present in the sewage, which break down and stabilise organic pollutants. To be successful, micro-organisms need both oxygen to live and food to grow. Oxygen is obtained from the atmosphere as the disks rotate. As the micro-organisms grow, they build up on the media until they are sloughed off due to shear forces provided by the rotating discs in the sewage. Effluent from the RBC is then passed through final clarifiers where the micro-organisms in suspension settle as a sludge. The sludge is withdrawn from the clarifier for further treatment. A functionally similar biological filtering system has become popular as part of home aquarium filtration and purification. The aquarium water is drawn up out of the tank and then cascaded over a freely spinning corrugated fiber-mesh wheel before passing through a media filter and back into the aquarium. The spinning mesh wheel develops a biofilm coating of microorganisms that feed on the suspended wastes in the aquarium water and are also exposed to the atmosphere as the wheel rotates. This is especially good at removing waste . MEMBRANE BIOREACTORS Membrane bioreactors (MBR) combine activated sludge treatment with a membrane liquid-solid separation process. The membrane component uses low pressure microfiltration or ultra filtration membranes and eliminates the need for clarification and tertiary filtration. The membranes are typically immersed in the aeration tank; however, some applications utilize a separate membrane tank. One of the key benefits of an MBR system is that it effectively overcomes the limitations associated with poor settling of sludge in conventional activated sludge (CAS) processes. The technology permits bioreactor operation with considerably higher mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS) concentration than CAS systems, which are limited by sludge settling. The process is typically operated at MLSS in the range of 8,000-12,000  mg/L, while CAS are operated in the range of 2,000-3,000  mg/L. The elevated biomass concentration in the MBR process allows for very effective removal of both soluble and particula te biodegradable materials at higher loading rates. Thus increased sludge retention times, usually exceeding 15 days, ensure complete nitrification even in extremely cold weather. SECONDARY SEDIMENTATION The final step in the secondary treatment stage is to settle out the biological floc or filter material through a secondary clarifier and to produce sewage water containing low levels of organic material and suspended matter. TERTIARY TREATMENT The purpose of tertiary treatment is to provide a final treatment stage to raise the effluent quality before it is discharged to the receiving environment (sea, river, lake, ground, etc.). More than one tertiary treatment process may be used at any treatment plant. If disinfection is practiced, it is always the final process. It is also called effluent polishing. FILTRATION Sand filtration removes much of the residual suspended matter. Filtration over activated carbon, also called carbon adsorption, removes residual toxins. LAGOONING Lagooning provides settlement and further biological improvement through storage in large man-made ponds or lagoons. These lagoons are highly aerobic and colonization by native macrophytes, especially reeds, is often encouraged. Small filter feeding invertebrates such as Daphnia and species of Rotifera greatly assist in treatment by removing fine particulates. NUTRIENT REMOVAL Wastewater may contain high levels of the nutrients nitrogen and phosphorus. Excessive release to the environment can lead to a build up of nutrients, called eutrophication, which can in turn encourage the overgrowth of weeds, algae, and cyanobacteria (blue-green algae). This may cause an algal bloom, a rapid growth in the population of algae. The algae numbers are unsustainable and eventually most of them die. The decomposition of the algae by bacteria uses up so much of oxygen in the water that most or all of the animals die, which creates more organic matter for the bacteria to decompose. In addition to causing deoxygenation, some algal species produce toxins that contaminate drinking water supplies. Different treatment processes are required to remove nitrogen and phosphorus. NITROGEN REMOVAL The removal of nitrogen is effected through the biological oxidation of nitrogen from ammonia to nitrate (nitrification), followed by denitrification, the reduction of nitrate to nitrogen gas. Nitrogen gas is released to the atmosphere and thus removed from the water. Nitrification itself is a two-step aerobic process, each step facilitated by a different type of bacteria. The oxidation of ammonia (NH3) to nitrite (NO2à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢) is most often facilitated by Nitrosomonas spp. (nitroso referring to the formation of a nitroso functional group). Nitrite oxidation to nitrate (NO3à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢), though traditionally believed to be facilitated by Nitrobacter spp. (nitro referring the formation of a nitro functional group), is now known to be facilitated in the environment almost exclusively by Nitrospira spp. Denitrification requires anoxic conditions to encourage the appropriate biological communities to form. It is facilitated by a wide diversity of bacteria. Sand filters, lagooning and reed beds can all be used to reduce nitrogen, but the activated sludge process (if designed well) can do the job the most easily. Since denitrification is the reduction of nitrate to dinitrogen gas, an electron donor is needed. This can be, depending on the wastewater, organic matter (from faeces), sulfide, or an added donor like methanol. PHOSPHORUS REMOVAL Phosphorus removal is important as it is a limiting nutrient for algae growth in many fresh water systems. (For a description of the negative effects of algae, see Nutrient removal). It is also particularly important for water reuse systems where high phosphorus concentrations may lead to fouling of downstream equipment such as reverse osmosis. Phosphorus can be removed biologically in a process called enhanced biological phosphorus removal. In this process, specific bacteria, called polyphosphate accumulating organisms (PAOs), are selectively enriched and accumulate large quantities of phosphorus within their cells (up to 20 percent of their mass). When the biomass enriched in these bacteria is separated from the treated water, these biosolids have a high fertilizer value. Phosphorus removal can also be achieved by chemical precipitation, usually with salts of iron (e.g. ferric chloride), aluminum (e.g. alum), or lime. This may lead to excessive sludge production as hydroxides precipitates and the added chemicals can be expensive. Chemical phosphorus removal requires significantly smaller equipment footprint than biological removal, is easier to operate and is often more reliable than biological phosphorus removal  . Another method for phosphorus removal is to use granular laterite. Once removed, phosphorus, in the form of a phosphate-rich sludge, may be stored in a land fill or resold for use in fertilizer. DISINFECTION The purpose of disinfection in the treatment of waste water is to substantially reduce the number of microorganisms in the water to be discharged back into the environment. The effectiveness of disinfection depends on the quality of the water being treated (e.g., cloudiness, pH, etc.), the type of disinfection being used, the disinfectant dosage (concentration and time), and other environmental variables. Cloudy water will be treated less successfully, since solid matter can shield organisms, especially from ultraviolet light or if contact times are low. Generally, short contact times, low doses and high flows all militate against effective disinfection. Common methods of disinfection include ozone, chlorine, ultraviolet light, or sodium hypochlorite. Chloramine, which is used for drinking water, is not used in waste water treatment because of its persistence. Chlorination remains the most common form of waste water disinfection in North America due to its low cost and long-term history of effectiveness. One disadvantage is that chlorination of residual organic material can generate chlorinated-organic compounds that may be carcinogenic or harmful to the environment. Residual chlorine or chloramines may also be capable of chlorinating organic material in the natural aquatic environment. Further, because residual chlorine is toxic to aquatic species, the treated effluent must also be chemically dechlorinated, adding to the complexity and cost of treatment. Ultraviolet (UV) light can be used instead of chlorine, iodine, or other chemicals. Because no chemicals are used, the treated water has no adverse effect on organisms that later consume it, as may be the case with other methods. UV radiation causes damage to the genetic structure of bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens, making them incapable of reproduction. The key disadvantages of UV disinfection are the need for frequent lamp maintenance and replacement and the need for a highly treated effluent to ensure that the target microorganisms are not shielded from the UV radiation (i.e., any solids present in the treated effluent may protect microorganisms from the UV light). In the United Kingdom, UV light is becoming the most common means of disinfection because of the concerns about the impacts of chlorine in chlorinating residual organics in the wastewater and in chlorinating organics in the receiving water. Some sewage treatment systems in Canada and the US also use UV light for their effluent water disinfection. Ozone (O3) is generated by passing oxygen (O2) through a high voltage potential resulting in a third oxygen atom becoming attached and forming O3. Ozone is very unstable and reactive and oxidizes most organic material it comes in contact with, thereby destroying many pathogenic microorganisms. Ozone is considered to be safer than chlorine because, unlike chlorine which has to be stored on site (highly poisonous in the event of an accidental release), ozone is generated onsite as needed. Ozonation also produces fewer disinfection by-products than chlorination. A disadvantage of ozone disinfection is the high cost of the ozone generation equipment and the requirements for special operators. ODOUR CONTROL Odours emitted by sewage treatment are typically an indication of an anaerobic or septic condition. Early stages of processing will tend to produce smelly gases, with hydrogen sulfide being most common in generating complaints. Large process plants in urban areas will often treat the odours with carbon reactors, a contact media with bio-slimes, small doses of chlorine, or circulating fluids to biologically capture and metabolize the obnoxious gases. Other methods of odour control exist, including addition of iron salts, hydrogen peroxide, calcium nitrate, etc. to manage hydrogen sulfide levels. PACKAGE PLANTS AND BATCH REACTORS To use less space, treat difficult waste and intermittent flows, a number of designs of hybrid treatment plants have been produced. Such plants often combine at least two stages of the three main treatment stages into one combined stage. In the UK, where a large number of wastewater treatment plants serve small populations, package plants are a viable alternative to building a large structure for each process stage. In the US, package plants are typically used in rural areas, highway rest stops and trailer parks. One type of system that combines secondary treatment and settlement is the sequencing batch reactor (SBR). Typically, activated sludge is mixed with raw incoming sewage, and then mixed and aerated. The settled sludge is run off and re-aerated before a proportion is returned to the headworks. SBR plants are now being deployed in many parts of the world. The disadvantage of the SBR process is that it requires a precise control of timing, mixing and aeration. This precision is typically achieved with computer controls linked to sensors. Such a complex, fragile system is unsuited to places where controls may be unreliable, poorly maintained, or where the power supply may be intermittent. Extended aeration package plants use separate basins for aeration and settling, and are somewhat larger than SBR plants with reduced timing sensitivity. Package plants may be referred to as high charged or low charged. This refers to the way the biological load is processed. In high charged systems, the biological stage is presented with a high organic load and the combined floc and organic material is then oxygenated for a few hours before being charged again with a new load. In the low charged system the biological stage contains a low organic load and is combined with flocculate for longer times. SLUDGE TREATMENT AND DISPOSAL The sludges accumulated in a wastewater treatment process must be treated and disposed of in a safe and effective manner. The purpose of digestion is to reduce the amount of organic matter and the number of disease-causing microorganisms present in the solids. The most common treatment options include anaerobic digestion, aerobic digestion, and composting. Incineration is also used albeit to a much lesser degree. Sludge treatment depends on the amount of solids generated and other site-specific conditions. Composting is most often applied to small-scale plants with aerobic digestion for mid sized operations, and anaerobic digestion for the larger-scale operations. ANAEROBIC DIGESTION Anaerobic digestion is a bacterial process that is carried out in the absence of oxygen. The process can either be thermophilic digestion, in which sludge is fermented in tanks at a temperature of 55 °C, or mesophilic, at a temperature of around 36 °C. Though allowing shorter retention time (and thus smaller tanks), thermophilic digestion is more expensive in terms of energy consumption for heating the sludge. Anaerobic digestion is the most common (mesophilic) treatment of domestic sewage in septic tanks, which normally retain the sewage from one day to two days, reducing the BOD by about 35 to 40 percent. This reduction can be increased with a combination of anaerobic and aerobic treatment by installing Aerobic Treatment Units (ATUs) in the septic tank. One major feature of anaerobic digestion is the production of biogas (with the most useful component being methane), which can be used in generators for electricity production and/or in boilers for heating purposes. AEROBIC DIGESTION Aerobic digestion is a bacterial process occurring in the presence of oxygen. Under aerobic conditions, bacteria rapidly consume organic matter and convert it into carbon dioxide. The operating costs used to be characteristically much greater for aerobic digestion because of the energy used by the blowers, pumps and motors needed to add oxygen to the process. Aerobic digestion can also be achieved by using diffuser systems or jet aerators to oxidize the sludge. COMPOSTING Composting is also an aerobic process that involves mixing the sludge with sources of carbon such as sawdust, straw or wood chips. In the presence of oxygen, bacteria digest both the wastewater solids and the added carbon source and, in doing so, produce a large amount of heat. INCINERATION Incineration of sludge is less common because of air emissions concerns and the supplemental fuel (typically natural gases or fuel oil) required to burn the low calorific value sludge and vaporize residual water. Stepped multiple hearth incinerators with high residence time and fluidized bed incinerators are the most common systems used to combust wastewater sludge. Co-firing in municipal waste-to-energy plants is occasionally done, this option being less expensive assuming the facilities already exist for solid waste and there is no need for auxiliary fuel. CHAPTER THREE TERTIARY TREATMENT 3.1 SLUDGE DISPOSAL When a liquid sludge is produced, further treatment may be required to make it suitable for final disposal. Typically, sludges are thickened (dewatered) to reduce the volumes transported off-site for disposal. There is no process which completely eliminates the need to dispose of biosolids. There is, however, an additional step some cities are taking to superheat sludge and convert it into small pelletized granules that are high in nitrogen and other organic materials. In N

Immigration in America Essay -- essays research papers

Coming to America†¦Maybe Immigration has been a part of the United States ever since its inception. When Christopher Columbus made his way across the Atlantic Ocean he discovered a land that was almost entirely inhabited. The colonists, essentially the first immigrants to what would be the United States, began to come over group after group until they finally decided that there were enough people living in America that they were a strong enough power to be a separate entity. In 1776 the Americans declared their independence from Great Britain and through the revolutionary war, created the United States. Views from varying sources as well as some insight from North Dakota representatives will be used in order to examine current immigration laws, explain how and why changes should be made, and determine who will be affected by the changes. Early in its history, the United States was often called a melting pot because it was a new nation with no distinctive culture at the time it was established. As immigrants came to the United States, oftentimes they quickly lost their original culture and integrated into the new nation rapidly. Although the United States has been shaped by successive waves of immigrants, Americans have often viewed immigration as a problem. Established Americans often look down on new immigrants. The cultural habits of immigrants are frequently targets of criticism, especially when the new arrivals come from a different country than those in the established community. This type of behavior towards immigrants can be found throughout the nation. When interviewing my district representatives what they were currently doing with immigration laws I received a very common answer from all three of them. They all said that currently they weren’t dealing with any immigration laws because they are usually determined at a national level. Representative Ole Aarsvold said in an e-mail response, â€Å"Immigration is primarily a federal concern but we have had a couple of bills dealing with this issue, very generally, in this legislative session in ND. I will do some research for you.† This led me to open my eyes to the national scope of immigration laws. The United States had no type of immigration laws during its colonial years. Leonard Dinnerstein is a Professor of American History and Director of Judaic Studies at University of Arizona. His Encarta entr... ... Americans declared their independence from Great Britain and through the revolutionary war, created the United States. Views from varying sources as well as some insight from North Dakota representatives were used in order to examine current immigration laws, explain how and why changes should be made, and determine who will be affected by the changes. Work Cited Aarsvold, Ole. â€Å"Re: Thoughts on Immigration.† E-mail to State Representative 22 Mar. 2001. â€Å"American Presidents Talk About Immigration.† American Immigration Law Foundation 1997. 27 Feb. 2001. . Dinnerstein, Leonard. â€Å"Immigration.† Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia. 2000. â€Å"Ellis Island Lesson Plan (Immigration).† MSNBC Pencil News. 2000. 27 Mar 2001. . Goldsborough, James. â€Å"Out-of-Control Immigration.† Foreign Affairs. Sept. 2000: 89 Hicks, Chester. â€Å"Remaking the political landscape: how immigration redistributes seats in the House.† Spectrum: the Journal of State Government. Spring 1999: 17. Vialet, Joyce. â€Å"Immigration Legislation and Issues in The 106th Congress.† Migration World Magazine. Sept 1999: 41.

For Whom The Bell Tolls :: essays research papers

Part II The title For Whom the Bell Tolls symbolizes the uncertainty of life and destiny, where the main character in this story finds himself in a series of unpredictable situations that are beyond his control. The only certain event in life is death and knowing that this may happen to anyone at any time, renders the protagonist powerless against destiny, which he approaches with a fatalistic disposition. Part III For Whom the Bell Tolls takes place in Spain, during the bloody civil war, between the years of 1938 and 1942. It unravels among people who live in the rural mountain areas of Spain. They were forced to kill others in order to survive and to defend their country from fascist. The environment where the actions unfolds are the roughed mountains. A lot of killing takes place in this story. It certainly was a time of fear and desperation. Many heroic military deeds are depicted here: Robert Jordan and his group of internationalists sabotaged bridges, trains and building. Lots of peasants are starved, tortured and killed, and many children were left orphaned. Part IV 1 "He lay flat on the brown, pine-needle floor of the forest, his chin on his folded arms, and high overhead the wind blew in the tops of the pine tree"(p.1) 2 "He crosses the stream, picked a double handful, washed the muddy roots clean in the current and then sat down again beside his pack and ate the clean, cool green leaves and the crisp, peppery-tasting stalks"(p.12) 3 "Robert Jordan breathed deeply of the clear night air of the mountains that smelled of the pines and of the dew grass in the meadow by the stream. Dew had fallen heavily sin the wind had dropped."(p.64) 4 "Now the morning was late May, the sky was high and clear and the wind blew warm on Robert Jordan’s shoulders."(p.311) 5 "Then he heard the far-off, distant throbbing and, looking up, he saw the planes"(p.329) 6 " Sweeeish-crack-boom! It came, the swishing like the noise of a rocket and there was another up-pulsing of dirt and smoke farther up the hillside"(p.494) 7 "The others came behind him and Robert Jordan saw them crossing the road and slamming on up the green slope and heard the machine gun hammer at the bridge"(p.505) 8 "He looked very carefully around the withers of the dead horse and there was a quick hammering of firing from behind a boulder well down the slope and he heard the bullets from the submachine gun thud into the horse"(p.

Test Inventory Management

Inventory Management 2. With the advent of low-cost computing, do you see alternatives to the popular ABC classifications? The alternatives would be that by minimizing the sums of the set-up cost and carrying-cost, you would also minimize the overall costs. 5. Explain the major assumptions of the basic EOQ model. 1. Demand for an item is known, reasonably constant, and independent of decisions for other items. 2. Lead time, the time between placement and receipt of the order, is known and consistent. 3. Receipt of inventory is instantaneous and complete, the inventory order arrives in one batch at one time. 4. Quantity discounts are nor possible. 5. The only variable costs are the set-up and holding costs. 6. Stockouts can be completely avoided if orders are placed at the right times. 7. What is the relationship of the economic order quantity to demand? To the holding cost? To the set-up costs? The relationship is that with both EOQ and demand, that the demand for the items are known, and independent of decisions. The holding costs and set-up costs are reduced substantially over time by planning for them correctly. 8. What are the advantages of cycle counting?Inventory items are counted, records are verified, and inaccuracies are periodically documented . You can then trace the inaccuracies and the appropriate remedial action is taken to ensure the integrity of the inventory system.9. What impact does a decrease in setup time have on EOQ? It is an excellent way to reduce inventory investment and to improve the productivity.11. What is meant by service level? It is the concern of management in maintaining an adequate service level in the face of uncertain demand.17. How are inventory levels monitored in retail stores?Inventory is monitored at retail stores using the Perpetual inventory system. This keeps track of each withdrawal or addition to inventory continuously, so that the records are always correct.1. Develop an inventory plan to help ZBC. I think that an EOQ inventory would be good for ZBC because of the demand for the item is known, lead time is known and consistent, receipt for invento ry is instantaneous, quantity discounts could be possible, stockouts could be completely avoided if the orders are placed at the right times. This would reduce their loss of money for not having the inventory on hand that they need. Which would mean bigger profits for them, and by ordering more they would be able to receive discounts on the inventory items.2. Discuss the ROPs and total costs. Well the ROP at ZBC needs to be addressed because the items ordered are taking way to long to get which makes the lead time much longer than what it needs to be, and in return it is making the total cost rise because of the money they incur for each order they make.

Life and it’s colours Essay

Have you ever imagined life without color? We are so used to seeing colors that they have become something we take for granted. We can judge the significance of colors with the fact that most are associated with our emotions and different activities in life. White symbolizes peace, red symbolizes both love & anger, yellow is for friendship, green implies jealousy. All colors have their own place. But what if our life had no colors? How would things look, and most importantly, how would our pictures look? For this post, we’ve collected around 30 examples to show you the importance and significance of colors in our life. Have you ever imagined life without color? We are so used to seeing colors that they have become something we take for granted. We can judge the significance of colors with the fact that most are associated with our emotions and different activities in life. White symbolizes peace, red symbolizes both love & anger, yellow is for friendship, green implies jealousy.

Problems Identified In The Las Cad System

First and foremost, from the investigations carried out, it is clearly shown that the CAD system was not fully mature or on time to be executed. Its users either were not ready or fully prepared to absorb it. The software itself was not comprehensive, it was not appropriately adjusted and finally it was not effusively tested. The flexibility of the hardware was also not tested when in operation and while fully loaded. Problems were also identified with the transmission of data from the mobile data terminals and back.There was also some cynicism about the accurateness of records of the automatic vehicle location system (AVLS). The people who worked in the Central Ambulance Control and the ambulance crew itself, did not trust the system and were neither fully trained about the system. The layout of the control room was changed with the introduction of the CAD system. The staffs working in the control were in a mix up because they were working in a very unfamiliar environment where ther e was not even any paper backup.Due to this, simple problems that they used to solve with their colleagues became monster problems. The CAD system was over ambitiously put in place. It was developed and put into operation in opposition to an impracticable timetable. The project itself was poorly managed and ambiguous from the development phase through the implementation process. Full time professional and qualified project management was lacking. A decision that had been made earlier to implement the full CAD system was erroneous.Putting into place a system such as CAD requires a step by step kind of approach, while establishing the efficiency of each step before moving on to the next. Each step should be justified by analyzing each aspect of it like costs and benefits. It’s true to say that the management, the supplier and all the concerned parties really put all their efforts into the implementation, but due to the fact that they implemented it as a single phase then they h ad no time to do the analysis and hence the couldn’t recognize the connotation of the numerous problems that were in due course to make it fail.Another cause of failure to the system was the fact that most of its users did not own up completely to accept the system. Some of the components of the system were recognized with certain problems over the previous months such that they created an atmosphere of distrust with the staff. Instead of wishing for its success, the staff rather expected a system failure. For the system to work efficiently, it required a number of adjustments to the existing working practices. The senior staff making the implementation had the idea that the system itself would bring about these adjustments.Btu instead most of the staff found it to be an outfitted line of restrictions within which they tried to operate and seem to be flexible with. This brought further perplexity rather than orderliness. The LAS management always attributed the problems of CA D to the misuse of the system by some ambulance crews. But the management did not coincide with the inquiry team which indicated that this would only have been one of the contributing factors, together with many others, that brought to the system failure. In some of the days of month of October (26th and 27th), there was an increase in the number of calls.This was not because of the increase in the number of patients but rather as a result of anonymous replica calls and recalls from the public as they reacted to ambulance delays. On this day the system did not fail from a technical sense but it did what it had been designed to do, though the response times were unacceptable. A substantial amount of the design had terminal defects that cumulatively lead to all of the systems failure. On this day several changes were made to CAC that made it very difficult for the staff to intervene and make corrections to the system.Therefore the system could only identify the location and status of fewer and fewer vehicles. This in effect led to poor, duplicated and delayed allocations; the awaiting list and the exceptional messages piled up in the computers; this pile up caused the system to slow up; this further led to an increase in the number of call backs and finally delays in telephone answering. Each effect reinforced the other. In the morning when the system was fully implemented it was lightly loaded therefore the staff could cope with the various problems and hence the imperfect information in the system about the fleet and its status.As the incidents increased, the incorrect information about the fleet, received by the system increased. Due to the new room configuration and method of operation the allocators were limited in solving the errors. The amount of incorrect information increased with the effects that the system made incorrect allocations thus many vehicles were sent to the same incident or either the closest vehicle was not sent; the system had less resour ces to allocate thus increasing the first effect; the system then placed covered call that had not gone through the amber, red, green status cycle, back on the attention list.a) The system made incorrect allocations: multiple vehicles sent to same incident, or not the closest vehicle sent; b) The system had fewer resources to allocate, increasing the problems of effect a); c) As previously allocated incidents fed through the system, placed covered calls that had not gone through the amber, red, green status cycle, back on the attention waiting list. The last two effects contributed to incorrect allocations, a slowing of the system and uncovered incidents all this leading to delays to patients.Incorrect allocations led directly to patient delays and crew frustration. Crew frustration was further heightened by the prolonged delays before arriving at the scene and more so the reaction of the public. Crew frustration the could be held responsible for those instances when the crew did no t press status buttons correctly or in an incorrect sequence and also, the crew taking different vehicles than those that the logged onto or a different crew or vehicle reporting to the incident.In the month of November, this frustration led to the increase of radio traffic which having been brought about by the radio blockages increased the number of failed data mobilizations and voice communication delays. The increase in the volume of calls together with a slow system and too few call takers caused significant delays in telephone answering and thus an increase in delays to patients. After CAD had developed problems, the staff reverted to using a semi manual mode of operation. They were comfortable with operating this system because they found the computer based call talking more reliable.The vehicle crews were also comfortable owing to the fact that the stations still had limited flexibility in deciding which resource would be allocated to what incident. The radio voice channels were available to assist in clearing up any enlistment understandings. An additional call taking staff had been allocated to certain shifts thus the average call waiting time was considerably reduced. But on another occasion the system failed due to minor programming errors that caused the system to crash.The protocol to be used when changing from the crashed system to the back up system had not been sufficiently tested and therefore at such a point the whole system had to be brought down. Quintessential Glitches As I have put it across here above, there were numerous rudimentary defects in the CAD system and its secondary organization. These problems can be classified simply into three, to bring the whole issue to a summary: i) The need to have a near perfect input information in an imperfect worldii) The meager crossing point between crews, MDTs and the system iii) Unpredictability, sluggishness and operator interface. The system had put so much faith into the near perfect informa tion it received from the vehicle location and the status of the vehicle or its crew. The system did not have accurate information of the vehicle location and the status of that vehicle or its crew. Therefore it became very hard for it to allocate the ideal resources to a certain occurrence. Some poor allocation was attributed to the allocation routines.But though this may be true, it is believed that the majority of allocation errors were caused by the fact that the system did not actually know where the vehicles were located, nether did they know the status of the crew in the vehicles or the vehicles themselves The second point pin points on the poor interface between the teams, the Mobile Data Terminals and the system. The system required perfect or almost perfect information on vehicle location and the status of each of the player parts of the chain. This ran from the crews to the dispatch systems, all of which were expected to operate and cooperate perfectly.But this was not th e case because investigations a few reasons were evident for the system not really knowing vehicle locations or vehicle status. These included a failure by the system to collect or receive all the data, accompanied by a genuine failure by the teams to press the appropriate status button due to the state and the pressure brought by certain incidents. In some black spots there was also poor coverage of the radio system which went hand in hand with the crew failing to press the status button due to frustrations from the re-transmission problems.There was also a radio communications blockage for instance when staff reported for duty and tried to confirm arrival via their vehicle units or Mobile Data Terminals, more so, on very busy periods. Also identified were the missing or swapped call signs. There were defects in the grip routines between the MDTs and the dispatch system. For instance sometimes the MDT would indicate Green and Ok but back in the systems screen the status would be sh own as something very different. Also some crews would intentionally press the wrong buttons or even press them in an incorrect order.Some of the crews would even take different vehicles rather than the ones they logged onto or different crews would respond to different vehicles allocated to them by the system. Some of the vehicle locations were also missing or incorrect. Another fault is where there was very few staff to take calls. All of these faults and defects used to flow in a very connected manner such that the errors were sometimes running concurrently. The third point came about after the system collapsed a number of times just before the end of October in 1992.The most common was the incarceration of computers. The staff had been instructed to reboot their computers incase they locked up. This happened mostly when the computers were doing their back ups or when they were fully loaded. The most common inadequacies included the failure to identify duplicated calls; the lack to prioritize exceptional messages; these exceptional messages and attentions on queue scrolling off the top of allocators’ or attention rectifiers’ computers.The software resources had also been allocated incorrectly; there was general heftiness of the system and finally there were also slow responses to certain computer based activities. THE WAY FORWARD FOR CAD; A SOLUTION TO CAD After going through and analyzing the problems of CAD, the enquiry team had to make certain recommendations so that the implementation of the future CAD would not have any errors. By following these recommendations, then LAS will have a solution to all its problems with CAD. The future CAD system must have the following objectives;i) It must be fully dependable and flexible with completely tested levels of backup. ii) It must be fully owned up by the staff and management within CAC and the ambulance crews. iii) It must be developed and introduced within a time scale which will allow for adeq uate consultation, quality assurance, testing and training while still considering the fact that they want to introduce it earliest possible. iv) The management and staff must have entire, verifiable, poise, in the steadfastness of the system.v) The new CAD must be geared towards improving the level and quality of the provision of ambulance services in the capital. vi) The new system should be introduced step by step while introducing first the steps that give maximum benefits. vii) Finally, any venture in the new system should be safe guarded and put forth into the new system if and only if it does not compromise the above objectives. REFERENCE Anthony Finkelstein (February 1993): Report of the Inquiry Into The London Ambulance Service. International Workshop on Software Specification and Design Case Study

How Hilton Hotels Builds a Relationship with Its Customers

Introduction This study aims to apply the application of value chain to a selected organisation in a service industry. This study aims to use Hilton Hotels as the focus of this paper. The main purpose of this study is to examine how Hilton Hotels builds a relationship with its customers, how it improves the added value to retain customers and what should be improved under the context of value chain to improve the better services in order to effectively deliver customer satisfaction and exceed their expectation. The paper will start from providing brief information about Hilton Hotels and then move on to analyse and discuss the key issues. About Hilton Hotel Hilton Hotels is one of the leading international premium hotels in the world. The company was founded by Conrad Hilton (Hilton Hotels, n. d. ). It offers full-services hotels and resorts to customers in many major cities around the world. Through different kinds of customer service programmes, it attempts to develop a good relationship with the targeted market. It also attempts to use the ‘Hilton Honors’ which is customer loyalty programme to retain existing customers (Hilton Hotels, n. . ). The programme does not only enable Hilton Hotels to assess quality premium services from the hotel and its affiliated firms, but also helps them to experience the feeling of privilege. How effective are the organisation’s resources in delivering its service offering? Based on the concept of value chain, it can be assumed that Hil ton Hotels attempts to add value to its offerings with the use of effective support value chain activities. Hilton Hotels uses different support value chain activities to sustain the effectiveness of primary activities to exceed customer satisfaction and expectation. These can be explained below. Primary Value Chain Activities of Hilton Hotel Inbound Logistics Hilton Hotels have several suppliers in each country in order to have sufficient supplies as part of a good quality service for customers. There are three most important areas that Hilton Hotels pays a lot of attention on because they influence people to pay more for premium services. These include food and drink, pick-up and other motor service and interior design. For example, Hilton Hotels decides to use different suppliers for fresh meat and vegetables to get the best products from suppliers with specialised offers. Once the goods are delivered, food and catering department of Hilton Hotels will store them in the right temperature until they are required. Before they are put in the stockroom, catering staff will put different colour stickers on the package. For example, fresh meat will have the maximum lifetime of five days. If it arrives on Monday, the blue sticker with the word ‘FRI’ should be put on the package to inform the chef and other kitchen staff that it should be used by Friday or otherwise, it should be binned to avoid food poisoning. The same practice is also true for car courtesy service and interior design. For example, Hilton Hotels has a contract with Mercedes Benz and other luxurious car brands to support its car courtesy services, while its interior design is done by a professional firm which will be in charge for all events held at the hotel. Operations As previously explained, this stage involved with transforming the goods into the finished offerings for end users. At Hilton Hotels, there are many goods that need to get through the operations process before being delivered to the end users. For example, all rooms will be cleaned once the customers check-out to ensure that that they are ready to serve the next guest. Outbound Logistics This is about delivering the finished goods to final users. For Hilton Hotels, this is about the presentation of both tangible and intangible products to customers. For example, the room must be spotless and equipped with facilities as promised and advertised. Also, the food should be cooked in the right manner, such as if the customer asks for a medium rare steak, they should get what they have requested. Once the food is cooked, it should be served to the customer within five minutes and the table must be cleared within ten minutes. Marketing & Sale This is about developing the marketing communication and promotion strategies that meet the needs and demands of customers. The marketing communication message used by in the poster is ‘Never feel away from home †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ When living any of our over 514 hotels worldwide!!! ’ This slogan informs the target market that wherever they go, they can always be comfortable like staying at home at the Hilton Hotels which has more than 514 outlets worldwide. Hilton Hotels does give some discounts to customers during the low season. It does not do this on a regular basis like many budget accommodations. This is because it targets customers who are less price-sensitive and they are willing to pay more for premium services. Service Through the customer loyalty programme ‘Hilton Honors’ to monitor behaviour of customers. This loyalty program enables card holders to access other premium quality services from the partnership companies of Hilton Hotels, such as car rental firms and airlines. The loyalty scheme allows the hotel to improve the products and services to meet new demand in the market more effectively. Support Value Chain Activities of Hilton Hotel Firm infrastructure Hilton Hotels is an international hotel chain with many resorts and leisure accommodations in many cities around the world. Customers should expect to get the same quality standard of leisure hotel services. This is because Hilton Hotels has an effective system to control the performance of the company. There are five main factors that Hilton Hotels uses to maintain its performance in all cities. These include cleanliness, quality, service, maintenance and atmosphere (Roubi & Litteljohn, 2004). All hotel rooms and common areas of the hotel should be spotless, the service should be delivered in a professional manner, cars, tools and equipments should be maintained and checked to ensure that they work effectively when required and the interior design should provide comfort. All of these elements are part of the organisational culture of Hilton Hotels. Human resource management Both frontline and management workers of Hilton Hotels are well-trained to deliver a perfect customer serving. Hilton Hotels tends to select employees with the right skills and knowledge. It is revealed that Hilton Hotels welcomes and prefers employees who have degrees from hospitality institutes in Switzerland. However, those with appropriate experiences are also welcomed. All workers of Hilton Hotels are required to attend both on-the-job and off-the-job training programmes to ensure that they are equipped with the right tools to carry out a good customer service. At the same time, to motivate all workers to work towards the assigned tasks with their best effort, Hilton Hotels provides its workers with financial and non-financial rewards. Some employees who have been working for the hotel for more than two years are eligible for organisational rewards, which are in the form of shares that are sold to workers at a discounted price (Watson et al. , 2007). Technology department Like other companies in the hospitality segment, the technology development and web-technology is used by Hilton Hotels to improve customer satisfaction in terms of fast and instant customer service. Hilton Hotel develops an official website which enables customers to book a hotel room, make a request for the airport pick up and other additional services. The website of Hilton Hotels does not only make it easy for customers to access the services of the hotel, but it also enables the hotel to promote its brand and offers worldwide at the lowest cost (Lo et al. , 2010). Procurement Hilton Hotels is very selective about its suppliers. This is because it positions itself as the international premium hotel chain. Thus, apart from good quality products and services that these suppliers have to provide, they must also follow the rules set by Hilton Hotels. Hilton Hotels requires all of its suppliers to be environmental-friendly and should not be involved in any kind of unethical issues, such as sweatshop and using underage workers (Hilton Hotels, n. d. ). How is Hilton Hotel attempting to build a relationship with the customer? Under the concept of value chain, it can be assumed that the targeted customers of Hilton Hotels are those who are quality conscious and they are willing to pay extra for the best service. Hilton Hotels uses differentiation strategy to develop a good relationship with customers and this enables it to retain customers more effectively. Differentiation & Value Chain – Customer Service Based on the analysis in the previous section, it can be assumed that Hilton Hotels develops a strong bond with targeted customers through value chain differentiation strategy. This is done by making its customer service different from others in the same segment. Hilton Hotels aims to offer the best leisure products and services in the industry. This strategy does not only enable it to charge customers premium price, but it also allows Hilton Hotels to retain and influence the repeated purchase behaviour (Vukmir, 2006). The loyalty scheme ‘Hilton Honor’ does not just makes customers feel that they are more privilege than others, but also enables them to access many premium services. Hilton Hotels must work hard to ensure that the promised offerings are delivered to customers. Differentiation & Value Chain – Technology To keep customers updated with new offers, Hilton Hotels sends electronic mails to customers who sign up for the service. The technology makes it easy for Hilton Hotels to develop a customer database and this can help them to monitor the behaviour of targeted customers more effectively. Hilton Hotels also utilises other new forms of media to keep a good relationship with customers through social networks like Facebook and YouTube. This enables customers to share experiences about their stay at Hilton Hotels. At the same time, this also allows Hilton Hotels to keep customers informed about recent events and activities. Conclusion According to the analysis in the previous sections, it can be assumed that there is little evidence about customer satisfaction towards the services of Hilton Hotels. However, based on the review of Hilton Hotels on TripAdvisor website (2009), it can be seen that it receives four out of five stars and 87 percent of customers who stay at the Hilton recommend it to others. The only problem that many customers appear to complain about is the pricing tactic of Hilton Hotels. Thus, under the current difficult economic conditions, it seems that customers will become more price-sensitive as they have less disposal income or start being cautious about their spending habits. They may look for substitute leisure accommodations which offer quality lodging services at affordable and reasonable prices. This means that even customers with a high spending power may still want to stay in a hotel room without breaking a bank. Therefore, there are two possible tactics that Hilton Hotels can consider in order to add value to its offerings. These include (1) promotional offer or competitive deals; and (2) complimentary or free gifts. The first strategy does not only add value to the offerings and exceed customer expectation, but it is also attractive to those who look for value for money. By contrast, the second strategy will satisfy customers who pay a full price on services. Complimentary offers would be perceived by them as a thank you gift from Hilton Hotels. This tactic will also make high spending-power customers feel privileged. Thus, it can be concluded that both strategies should effectively add value to the offerings of Hilton Hotels and satisfy customers with different spending powers.