Using Your Manager Skills Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Using Your Manager Skills - Research Paper Example Most companies are using sustainability as a key component in their business strategies. Consumers have also increased their demand for companies to be attentive to their environment of operation. The price of petroleum-based packaging plastics has continued to rise leading to a decline of its competitive advantage over biodegradable packaging material. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) foresees a continued increase in the prices of the plastics in the coming year (Pekhtasheva, & Neverov, 2012). This will boost the marketability of the biodegradable material. Simply Green Products Company has capitalized this market trend and established product chain of biodegradable packing materials. Valued at $10 million, the company produces packing material for pears, apples and peaches that orchards use in the Shenandoah Valley. For its marketing, Simply Green Products has adopted the name SafePack to imply the biodegradability of the material. The eco-friendly agricultural that is e mphasized by lobby groups has contributed to the market advantage of SafePack over the non-biodegradable packing material. However, there have been recent internet campaigns that argued that SafePack is not biodegradable. The environmental group, SafePack Materials Pollute, which is behind the campaign, argues that SafePack materials cause environment pollution due to seepage into surface waters. The group campaign is done on the internet where fruit producers are discouraged from buying SafePack materials. The issues raised by the group touch on the Clean Water Act (CWA) and Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA). It is necessary to assess the environmental concerns raised by the environmental group against the relevant laws so that the company can devise strategies to safeguard its market. The claims made by the lobby are critical to the reputation of Simply Green Products. However, for such claims to be considered valid under the law, they

Business Entities, Laws, and Regulations Paper Term

Business Entities, Laws, and Regulations - Term Paper Example The next step is to fulfill these legal formalities by complying with the mentioned regulations and lastly to keep a track of the time period for submission of the taxes and trademark fees to remain eligible for the protection and enforcement rights (‘Business’, 2011). In the United States, there are various options for owning the rights in a business. The SBA website of US Government highlights that apart from sole proprietorship and partnership form of business entity, one can form a Limited Liability Company (LLC), non-profit organization, S corporation or a cooperative (‘Follow’, 2011). Each of these business ownerships require that it should be registered with the government within a stipulated time frame. 1.2) Trade Name/ Trademark Search According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the business entity has to apply for trademark availability search. Once the desired trademark has been allowed for adoption, the trademark is applied for re gistration in the name of the applicant. The registration of the trademark acts as a legal document which authorize the owner to use, manufacture, export, import, sell, license or assign the trademark and goods under the trademark for a defined period. Those cases where the trademark used is the ownership of another applicant would be considered an infringement of intellectual property rights which is penalized. Therefore, it is important for the business to take a thorough check of the availability of the trademark before the founding of the business entity. 1.3) Taxation The US Government have laid down the various taxes which a business entity has to pay on a frequent basis to remain legalized. An import or export business has to pay custom taxes, excise duties, and other related taxes upon every consignment or shipment of cargo. The restaurant business however, is required to charge sales tax on each order and to file the sales tax returns along with business tax returns every f iscal year. Additionally, there are property and automobiles taxes which have to be paid accordingly. 1.4) Insurance The insurance is a necessary part of a business in the modern times. Particularly, in the import or export business the law requires that each consignment is fully insured to remain protected of the future unprecedented occurrences. 1.5) Risks Business involves risks. However, one has to identify them and take necessary precaution to avoid any losses. 1.5.1) Failure: In a newly launched business of a restaurant, the first and primary risk is of failure in business which ends up in winding up and withdrawal from the market. Due to high competition in this field and high demand of quality food, there are high risk factors that signal towards loss. Nevertheless, the sports bar concept act as a competitive edge to the business and can help it to remain afloat. 1.5.2) Entry of New Competitors: Other risks include the copy-cats or the entry of new competitors in the busines s copying the similar method of forming a sports bar with a different and advanced style. This is the most expected risk in a business which is the driving force for strengthening or failure of the business. 1.5.3) Lowering of Profits: Another risk is of increase of competition leading to lowering of

Surgical Treatment Method of Isthmic Spondylolisthesis

Surgical Treatment Method of Isthmic Spondylolisthesis Comparison of Two and Three Vertebral Segment Posterolateral Fusion in the Treatment of Isthmic Spondylolisthesis Serkan BILGIC, Omer ERSEN, Tolga EGE, Kenan KOCA, Selahattin OZYUREK, Safak EKINCI, Erbil OGUZ, Ali SEHIRLIOGLU ABSTRACT Background Optimal surgical treatment method of isthmic spondylolisthesis remains unclear. Complications can be invited while saving a segment for lumbar motion. Objective The aim of this retrospective study was to determine the effect of the number of fusion levels on the clinical results of adult isthmic spondylolisthesis patients who had undergone posterior instrumentation and PLF. Patients and Methods This retrospective study comprised 37 (20 male, 17 female) patients with isthmic spondylolisthesis who had undergone posterior instrumentation and PLF (Postero-lateral fusion) between January 2005 and May 2011. Pre and post-operative radiological evaluation was made by anteroposterior, lateral, oblique and lateral flexion-extension x-rays. Preoperative spondylolisthesis slippage grading was evaluated according to the Meyerding classification from the preoperative radiographs. Results The mean age of the patients was 36.4 ± 9.2 years and the mean follow-up period was 34.3 months. Two-level fusion was applied to 22 patients and single-level fusion was applied to 15 patients. Decompression was performed on 7 patients in the two-level fusion group and on 6 patients in the single-level fusion group. There were no neurological complication after surgery in either group. No union complications were seen in the two-level PLF group but in the single-level PLF group, screw loosening occurred in 3 patients and screw breakage in 1 due to the pseudoarthrosis. These four patients were revised with two-level PLF. Conclusions This study has demonstrated that two-level posterior instrumentation and PLF with local bone grafts and DBM have significantly better clinical and radiological results than single-level surgery. To avoid potential complications of PLIF, two-level PLF can be an alternative treatment option. Key words:Istmic spondylolisthesis, Posterior lumbar interbody fusion, Fixation Background Lumbar spondylolisthesis is present in about 5% to 6% of the population with various etiopathogenesis. Due to its variant pathological anatomy, the radiological appearance, age and clinical aspect of the patients are different on diagnosis. It generally starts as spondylolysis, a bilateral pars fatigue fracture and becomes spondylolisthesis with a slip of a vertebra over the adjacent one. As the slip increases, disc degeneration and pain starts (1-3). Although conservative treatment is the first treatment option, surgery for symptomatic spondylolisthesis in adults has been found to have better clinical results than conservative treatment choices (3, 4). However, it remains unclear which surgical strategy should be adopted, as there is limited scientific evidence on which to base an optimal treatment method. Discussions on spondylolisthesis treatment have generally focussed on reduction, fusion levels, graft choices, and surgical techniques (5-7). One of the most preferred surgical treatment options for spondylolisthesis is posterior transpedicular instrumentation of the relevant segments and posterolateral fusion (PLF) (5, 7). However, it is still a matter of controversy in literature as to how many levels should be fused and instrumented. Objectives The aim of this retrospective study was to determine the effect of the number of fusion levels on the clinical results of adult isthmic spondylolisthesis patients who had undergone posterior instrumentation and PLF. Materials and Methods This retrospective study comprised 37 (20 male, 17 female) patients with isthmic spondylolisthesis who had undergone posterior instrumentation and PLF between January 2005 and May 2011. Patients with spondylolisthesis other than Type 2 according to the Wiltse classification were excluded from the study. Pre and post-operative radiological evaluation was made by anteroposterior, lateral, oblique and lateral flexion-extension x-rays. Preoperative spondylolisthesis slippage grading was evaluated according to the Meyerding classification from the preoperative radiographs. The decompression decision was made preoperatively according to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and patients preoperative neurological evaluation. Preoperative and postoperative neurological status, duration of surgery, number of fused and instrumented levels, total blood loss and complications were evaluated from the clinical database. For clinical evaluation of surgical outcomes, the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) a nd Visual Analog Scale (VAS) applied at the final follow-up were used. 3.1 Surgical procedure: Exposure was obtained from the spinous processes to the transverse processes bilaterally throughout segments planned for fusion. Under fluoroscopic control, 6.5 mm pedicle screws were placed by free-hand technique. No reduction manoeuvre was used. Decompression of the segments, which had been determined by preoperative MRI and clinical examination was performed for the patients with neurological deficit. In all cases PLF was performed. In the area planned for fusion, the spinous processes were resected, peeled off from soft tissues and used for grafting with demineralized bone matrix. Patients were mobilized with a soft brace on the first postoperative day and the brace was continued for 3 months. (Figure 1, 2) 3.2 Statistical analysis We used the SPSS software package (version 15.0, SPSS, Chicago, IL) and expressed categorical variables as percentages and continuous variables as mean ± standard deviation (SD) or median (quartiles). Kolmogorov-Smirnov test was used to evaluate whether the distribution of continuous variables was normal. For parameters that showed normal distribution we used the paired sample t test and for parameters that did not show normal distribution the Mann-Whitney U-test was used. Chi-square test was used to analyze categorical variables. Statistical significance was set at p Results All patients had a history of at least 3 months of lumbar pain due to the spondylolisthesis, which had proved to be resistant to conservative treatment. The mean age of the patients was 36.4 ± 9.2 years and the mean follow-up period was 34.3 months. Low-grade isthmic spondylolisthesis was present at L5-S1 level in 23 patients, at L4-5 level in 13 patients and at L3-4 level in 1 patient. Two-level fusion was applied to 22 patients and single-level fusion was applied to 15 patients. Decompression was performed on 7 patients in the two-level fusion group and on 6 patients in the single-level fusion group. There were no neurological complications after surgery in either group. Mean duration of surgery for single-level and two-level surgery was 160 minutes and 190 minutes (160-240), and average blood loss was 285 ml and 390 ml respectively. There were no differences between the two groups in terms of demographic properties (Table 1). One of the patients in the two-level PLF group had superficial infection and was treated with debridement and antibiotheraphy. No union complications were seen in the two-level PLF group but in the single-level PLF group, screw loosening occurred in 3 patients and screw breakage in 1 due to the pseudoarthrosis. These four patients were revised with two-level PLF. (Figure 3) ODI scores from the final follow-up were 12.2 ±6.2 in the single-level PLF group, and 9.2  ± 6.4 in the two-level PLF group (p=0,035). VAS scores were 3.2 ±1.7 in the single-level PLF group and 2.9 ±1.6 in the two-level PLF group (p=0.043). The ODI and VAS scores of the patients revised with two- level PLF were excluded from the clinical evaluation. Discussion Lumbar spondylolysthesis has several etiopathogenetic factors as was shown by Marchetti and Bartolozzi giving rise to variations in pathological anatomy, radiological findings, age and clinical symptoms of the patients on diagnosis. When conservative treatment options fail, surgery becomes the next step. Although there have been a large number of studies on spondylolisthesis, there is no clear evidence for a single superior treatment option. Anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF), posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF) and PLF with/without instrumentation are the most widely accepted surgical methods. Whilst PLF with instrumentation is the most preferred treatment for most authors, there is no scientific evidence showing that PLF is disadvantageous compared to PLIF or circumferential fusion (8-11) even though the major theoretical advantage of PLIF and circumferential fusion seems to have resulted in improved outcomes compared with PLF. Ekman et al (12) found that the type of fusi on, whether PLIF or PLF, did not affect the outcome of surgical treatment of adult isthmic spondylolisthesis over a two year follow-up period. Furthermore, PLIF is a more invasive, technically more difficult method requiring a longer operative time, which may result in increased blood loss and higher complication rates (12, 13). Similarly, Kim et al. could not demonstrate any difference between ALIF and PLF with instrumentation (11). Although circumferential fusion was reported as significantly better than PLF at 6 months and 1 year in a study by Swan, no difference was determined at two years (14). In a systematic review of 29 high quality studies, Jacobs and al. found no difference between different fusion techniques (15). In the current study the treatment choice was PLF with instrumentation which is a relatively easy method with a shorter operating time and lower blood loss compared to other techniques in literature. When performing PLF, slip reduction can be achieved during the same procedure. The advantages of slip reduction include improved spine biomechanics, better nerve root decompression and a better opportunity for fusion by relieving tension and shear forces (5). Although the major disadvantage of slip reduction is increased risk of neurological injury, there have been numerous studies evaluating slip reduction for adult low grade spondylolisthesis (14, 16-18). In the current study, slip reduction was not performed to avoid the possibility of potential neurological damage and as all the cases had low grade isthmic spondylolisthesis. To protect one more mobile segment, some authors have preferred single-level postero-lateral instrumentation and fusion instead of two-level (6, 13, 15). However, there is no scientific proof to help determine the number of fusion levels and this decision is based on the surgeon’s empirical experience. In a prospective study by Inage et al, two-level fusion with local bone grafts was shown to cause increased pseudoarthrosis (6). Similarly in a study by Deguchi et al, single-level fusions showed an 82% fusion rate, and two-level fusions, a 74% rate radiologically (19). Higher fusion rates in the two-level fusion group were achieved with rigid spinal implants. The clinical success of that study correlated with the radiological fusion rates. Contrary to the information in literature, local bone grafts mixed with demineralized bone matrix (DBM) were used in the current study to achieve union for both groups and no union problem was seen in the two-level fusion group. Pseudoarthros is was observed in four cases in the one -level fusion group. Although some authors have reported incongruity between the clinical results of spondylolisthesis patients and union rates, VAS and ODI are the most reliable clinical tests to evaluate spondylolythesis (9, 10, 20). The results of the current study reveal that two-level posterior instrumentation with PLF has better results than single-level surgery according to VAS and ODI. This study has some limitations. Firstly, the retrospective design did not allow for uniformity of the groups. The number of patients was also limited to achieve generalized results. Although the pedicle screws were all 6.5 mm in size, they were not all from the same manufacturer, so implant problems were disregarded. In conclusion, this study has demonstrated that two-level posterior instrumentation and PLF with local bone grafts and DBM have significantly better clinical and radiological results than single-level surgery. To avoid potential complications of PLIF, two-level PLF can be an alternative treatment option. References 1.Floman Y. Progression of lumbosacral isthmic spondylolisthesis in adults. Spine. 2000;25(3):342-7. 2.Fredrickson BE, Baker D, McHolick WJ, Yuan HA, Lubicky JP. The natural history of spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis. The Journal of bone and joint surgery American volume. 1984;66(5):699-707. 3.Osterman K, Schlenzka D, Poussa M, Seitsalo S, Virta L. Isthmic spondylolisthesis in symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects, epidemiology, and natural history with special reference to disk abnormality and mode of treatment. Clinical orthopaedics and related research. 1993(297):65-70. 4.Moller H, Hedlund R. Surgery versus conservative management in adult isthmic spondylolisthesisa prospective randomized study: part 1. Spine. 2000;25(13):1711-5. 5.Floman Y, Millgram MA, Ashkenazi E, Smorgick Y, Rand N. Instrumented slip reduction and fusion for painful unstable isthmic spondylolisthesis in adults. Journal of spinal disorders techniques. 2008;21(7):477-83. 6.Inage K, Ohtori S, Koshi T, Suzuki M, Takaso M, Yamashita M, et al. One, two-, and three-level instrumented posterolateral fusion of the lumbar spine with a local bone graft: a prospective study with a 2-year follow-up. Spine. 2011;36(17):1392-6. 7.Zagra A, Giudici F, Minoia L, Corriero AS, Zagra L. Long-term results of pediculo-body fixation and posterolateral fusion for lumbar spondylolisthesis. European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society. 2009;18 Suppl 1:151-5. 8.Bernhardt M, Swartz DE, Clothiaux PL, Crowell RR, White AA, 3rd. Posterolateral lumbar and lumbosacral fusion with and without pedicle screw internal fixation. Clinical orthopaedics and related research. 1992(284):109-15. 9.Fischgrund JS, Mackay M, Herkowitz HN, Brower R, Montgomery DM, Kurz LT. 1997 Volvo Award winner in clinical studies. Degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis with spinal stenosis: a prospective, randomized study comparing decompressive laminectomy and arthrodesis with and without spinal instrumentation. Spine. 1997;22(24):2807-12. 10.Herkowitz HN, Kurz LT. Degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis with spinal stenosis. A prospective study comparing decompression with decompression and intertransverse process arthrodesis. The Journal of bone and joint surgery American volume. 1991;73(6):802-8. 11.Kim NH, Lee JW. Anterior interbody fusion versus posterolateral fusion with transpedicular fixation for isthmic spondylolisthesis in adults. A comparison of clinical results. Spine. 1999;24(8):812-6; discussion 7. 12.Ekman P, Moller H, Tullberg T, Neumann P, Hedlund R. Posterior lumbar interbody fusion versus posterolateral fusion in adult isthmic spondylolisthesis. Spine. 2007;32(20):2178-83. 13.Madan S, Boeree NR. Outcome of posterior lumbar interbody fusion versus posterolateral fusion for spondylolytic spondylolisthesis. Spine. 2002;27(14):1536-42. 14.Swan J, Hurwitz E, Malek F, van den Haak E, Cheng I, Alamin T, et al. Surgical treatment for unstable low-grade isthmic spondylolisthesis in adults: a prospective controlled study of posterior instrumented fusion compared with combined anterior-posterior fusion. The spine journal : official journal of the North American Spine Society. 2006;6(6):606-14. 15.Jacobs WC, Vreeling A, De Kleuver M. Fusion for low-grade adult isthmic spondylolisthesis: a systematic review of the literature. European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society. 2006;15(4):391-402. 16.Sears W. Posterior lumbar interbody fusion for lytic spondylolisthesis: restoration of sagittal balance using insert-and-rotate interbody spacers. The spine journal : official journal of the North American Spine Society. 2005;5(2):161-9. 17.Spruit M, van Jonbergen JP, de Kleuver M. A concise follow-up of a previous report: posterior reduction and anterior lumbar interbody fusion in symptomatic low-grade adult isthmic spondylolisthesis. European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society. 2005;14(9):828-32. 18.Suk SI, Lee CK, Kim WJ, Lee JH, Cho KJ, Kim HG. Adding posterior lumbar interbody fusion to pedicle screw fixation and posterolateral fusion after decompression in spondylolytic spondylolisthesis. Spine. 1997;22(2):210-9; discussion 9-20. 19.Deguchi M, Rapoff AJ, Zdeblick TA. Posterolateral fusion for isthmic spondylolisthesis in adults: analysis of fusion rate and clinical results. Journal of spinal disorders. 1998;11(6):459-64. 20.Ohtori S, Suzuki M, Koshi T, Takaso M, Yamashita M, Yamauchi K, et al. Single-level instrumented posterolateral fusion of the lumbar spine with a local bone graft versus an iliac crest bone graft: a prospective, randomized study with a 2-year follow-up. European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society. 2011;20(4):635-9. Tables Table 1. Paramaters of groups during surgery 1

Genetically Modified Foods: To Label or Not To Label? Essay -- Genetic

Plants or animals that are created through gene slicing techniques of genetic engineering are called genetically modified organisms or, GMOs. This technique for creating plants and animals was first done in the 1970s. According to Non-GMO Project, â€Å"This experimental technology merges DNA from different species, creating unstable combinations of plant, animal, bacterial and viral genes that cannot occur in nature or in traditional crossbreeding.† (Non-GMO Project). This type of genetic modification has started to worry people. Companies are currently not required to label their products to inform customers that their product contains GMOs, and only a few of the many companies voluntarily label their products as GMO-free. Many such as, Journalist for the Santa Fe New Mexican, Jessica Emerson, feel like it is our right to know what companies are putting in the foods we are buying. There are others that disagree such as, physician and molecular biologist Henry Miller; he argues that it is unnecessary and unconstitutional for companies to be required to label their products. This has made quite a controversy. Products sold in Oregon that contain GMOs should be required to be clearly labeled so consumers can make healthy and informed choice on the foods they decide to purchase. The use of GMOs in foods has drastically risen in the United States. The Non-GMO project, a non-profit organization supports this by saying, â€Å"In the U.S., GMOs are in as much as 80% of conventional processed food†(Non-GMO Project). I decided to go shopping to try and find as many products as I could that were labeled GMO-free, I only found one product labeled GMO-free. Many people that purchase vegetables or fruits at the store are unaware that the foods they ar... ...ael. "Why GMO Labeling Won’t Increase Food Prices." Grist.org. Grist, 13 Oct. 2013. Web. 01 Dec. 2013. Miller, Henry I., and Gregory Conko. â€Å"Labeling of Genetically Modified Foods Is Unnecessary and Unconstitutional.† Genetic Engineering. Ed. Noà «l Merino. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 20 Nov. 2013. "Labeling Food and Ingredients Developed from GM Seed." Monsanto.com. Monsanto, Mar. 2013. Web. 02 Dec. 2013. â€Å"MRSA.† CDC. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 16 Sept. 2013. Web. 30 Nov. 2013. Weise, Elizabeth. â€Å"Washington State Voters Reject Labeling of GMO Foods.† USA Today. Gannett, 6 Nov. 2013. Web. 29 Nov. 2013. Tady, Megan. â€Å"Genetically Modified Foods Should Be Labeled.† Genetic Engineering. Ed. David M. Haugen and Susan Musser. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2009. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 20 Nov. 2013.

Pros and Cons of Social Network Essay

According to Tynan (2005, p. 72), 70% of online users are concerned about their online privacy. Many users of social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter complain about how these sites do not have the appropriate settings to prevent online threats such as identity theft and the invasion of privacy. They believe that it is the responsibility of social networking sites to safeguard users’ privacy. However, users often forget how willing they are when it comes to revealing intimate details and information of their lives on these sites. This willingness to give out their personal information invites the online privacy ‘troubles’ that users often complain about. With all these information exposed to hackers, identity thieves are given a green light to tap into users’ database when users decide to reveal their information online. Thus, we can say that the users of social networking sites are the biggest threat to their own online privacy and cases of identity thefts. There are three main reasons why people choose to reveal their personal information on social networking sites. Firstly, people use social networking sites to connect, and to do so, they have to reveal personal information about themselves. As Andrews, L. (2011, p. 2) has said, â€Å"Social networking has enormous benefits, helping us stay in touch with people from our pasts and introducing us to people who share our interests. † These information includes their name, age, city they are staying in, company or school they belong to and etc. The information they provide will help long-lost friends connect with them, help them make new friends with common interests and perhaps even help them find a love interest. Another reason why people choose to reveal information about themselves is to create identity. This ‘identity’ is like the information sheet of how the user is like. Users might even want to post their every thought and actions even places they have been to, it becomes a part of their life to log on to social networking sites and post their current status (Andrews, 2011). Writing about the groups and activities a person is involved in for example, tells friends and people around him what are his interests and helps people to understand him better. Lastly, people reveal personal information to gain access to certain websites. These include gaming sites and articles provided by social networking websites, and they often request for the user’s personal information. Users might find it worth it to reveal their information in order to enjoy the entertainment provided by these sites. Thus, they might decide that since their information will be kept confidential, it is safe to provide their personal details without a second thought. It is understood that people choose to reveal their personal information online in exchange for the benefits of using social networking sites. However, they might want to think twice after hearing what dangers they are putting themselves in. Users should be aware of how they are putting their Internet privacy at risk when they reveal personal information about themselves; there are three major threats that users should be wary of. First of all, there is there is the threat of cyber bullying. Cyber bullying is a serious problem among teenagers and it might cause mental illnesses such as depression to the victim. It can happen when a bully gets hold of the content a user posted on the Internet. Unlike normal bullying, where the victim can escape home to safety, the victim can get bullied even at home as it happens on the Internet. The bully can even get hold of the victim’s home address or phone number if the victim had posted it online. One of the most famous cases of online bullying is the â€Å"Star Wars Kid†, Ghyslain Raza, whose homemade video of him fighting with a pretend light sabre was leaked and had more than 15 million downloads. He had been so affected that he was admitted into a child psychiatric ward (Johnson, 2004). We can see from this case study how badly cyber bullying can affect a victim, and this started from a post that the victim had not expected would be leaked. All of these threats occur because people choose to post their details on the social networking sites. While social networking sites are growing, more people are online than ever before and this includes the bad guys on the net (Viega, 2009). Thus, we have to be even more careful about the threats that we might face online. Other than that, users should also beware identity theft. Identity theft is the use of one person’s personal information to commit fraud or other crimes (Columbia University Press, n. d. ). This can happen to users who reveal too much information on the Internet for an identity thief to pose as him or her. As Waldrop, B. (2011) has said, â€Å"A case of identity theft can be as serious as having your entire bank account to be wiped out. † This can be a very serious threat and users should beware of it. Finally, there is the lack of privacy online. The thing about social networking websites is that it has the weakest data link and was even rated by The Cocoon Blog as the second biggest online privacy threat in 2011. With a weak data link, it is easy for even non-users of social networking sites to hack into a user’s database and gain access to what the user has posted. In fact, Mark Zukerberg, the founder of Facebook himself had hacked into the email accounts of two Harvard Crimson reporters using data obtained from TheFacebook. com’s logs (Carlson, 2010). This shows how information is easily accessed on social networking sites. People often believe that it is the responsibility of social networking websites to safeguard its users’ privacy. However, here are some of the reasons why users have a major role to play in protecting their own online privacy. Firstly, social networking sites can only protect their users to a limited extent. Social networking sites have really weak data links and they have too many users to be able to take care of all of them. Facebook for example, would be the third largest nation in the world if it were a country (Andrews, 2011, p. 1). We can think Facebook as the government and its privacy settings as the law. In a real country, there would be people breaking rules despite knowing the laws. A weak data link is like Facebook’s version of a weak police force, being unable to prevent data from being stolen. Hence, users cannot choose to rely solely on social networking sites to protect their privacy. Secondly, it is the user’s responsibility to provide his or her loved ones. Some of a user’s information such as home number or address is shared with his or her non-user family members. Thus, revealing information as such might bring harm to the family. An example would be if a burglar decides to break in to a user’s house, whose address he found on the Internet. If a social networking site user had revealed his address and phone number online, all the burglar has to do is to type in phone number or address in Google Search and it will direct him to the user’s home (Tynan, 2005). Finally, it is important that users are aware of what harm information they post can bring. This is so as the information that had been posted cannot be taken back. Even if the user had used the best services to get all of his data removed, the information can be reinstalled within a short period of time (Andrews, 2011). Hence, users are considered the biggest threat to their own online privacy as they are the ones who have a final say on what information they choose to post on the Internet. As mentioned in Cocoon’s 2011 List of the Top 10 Internet Privacy threats, the weakest link in the privacy chain could be the users themselves. Everything that Internet users do online leaves a digital footprint from search engine tastes to browsing patterns and social interactions. Therefore, users should be responsible for what they choose to do on the Internet, as they will never know who is watching and what online privacy threats awaits them. While enjoying the benefits that social networking websites provide them with, they should also be aware of the threats they are facing and learn to protect their own privacy. I strongly believe that the best way to do so is for users to limit the amount of intimate information they reveal online. Privacy settings on social networking sites might help but only to a certain extent and it is better to be safe then sorry. All in all, users should understand that while they are limiting the amount the intimate information of themselves online, they are also protecting themselves from their greatest Internet privacy enemy- themselves.

Homosexulity & A sexual behavior Essay

A sexual behavior involving attraction towards individuals having the same sex is called Homosexuality. People have been wondering whether a homosexual couple should come out and tell all that they are homosexual. (Sullivan, 05) This is a great debate of present society over homosexual marriage, adoption by homosexual couples and the fight for homosexual partners to be treated the same as heterosexual partners in society‘s eyes. Homosexuality is not a disease even though it is treated as such. Homosexuality has been condemned in modern day society but was widely tolerated by the Greeks and Romans. When looking back at the history of the Greeks, Spartans and Romans , it is revealed that they were great fighters; one reason for this is because most soldiers were homosexual and their fellow soldiers were their lovers and they would do anything to save their lovers life. Homosexuality was actually encouraged by the ancient Greece which was written about in the heroic relationship between Achilles and Patroclus in the Iliad by Homer. It was thought that homosexuality would boost morale as well as bravery amongst the soldiers. The Greeks even practiced pederasty as a way of population control, education and crime reduction. It was also encouraged within the military to boost troop morale, bravery and overall fighting. Pederasty is a sexual relationship between an adolescent boy and an adult male who is not a family member. This could be referred to today as pedophilia. Some of the greatest men in history were homosexual or had homosexual tendencies such as (President) Abraham Lincoln, (artist, scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, architect, writer) Leonardo da Vinci, (Greek King) Alexander the Great, (Roman Leader) Julius Caesar to name a few. According to the church and modern day society, homosexuality is wrong, Most of the religions believe that God hates homosexuals, homosexuals will never go to heaven and God destroyed Sodom because of homosexual behavior within the city. However, the church also says not hate the homosexuals but to only hate their behavior. Homosexuality is much more prevalent that one may want to admit; the figures are actually startling. ‘Alfred Kinsey‘s 1948 study of the sex lives of 5,000 white males shocked the nation: 37 percent had at least one homosexual experience to orgasm in their adult lives; an additional 13 percent had homosexual fantasies to orgasm; 4 percent were exclusively homosexual in their practices; another 5 percent had virtually no heterosexual experience; and nearly one-fifth had at least as many homosexual as heterosexual experiences. Two out of five men one passes on the street have had orgasmic sex with men’. (Nicolosi, 105) According to that study close to 80% of the male population has had or is having homosexual experiences. The reason why it is so shocking is because of the number of people that speak out against homosexuality far outweighs the 20% that supposedly is not or does not have homosexual experiences. Society ‘s misperception of a homosexual is an effeminate man that goes around talking in a feminine manner, talks about clothes or a butch woman who dresses like a man and talks like a man. However this perception is often wrong and in reality most homosexuals are people who we say are normal, our neighbors, friends, hairdressers and police. This has really opened my eyes and I am now questioning everyone around me; are they outspoken about gays because they are but they do not want to draw attention to themselves by keeping quiet so they shout the loudest? The numbers are quite astonishing which means they also may encompass any man a girl dates or even someone’s ex-husband. Is this study flawed? This means that two out of five men one may see walking down street have had some form of homosexual experience. Then question arises, should gay marriages be allowed? To date there are only two states that allow homosexuals to marry and they are the state of California and the state of Massachusetts. In 2004 Massachusetts became the first state to allow same sex couples the right to marry. California became the second state in 2008. Looking back at interracial marriages in the United States, the first state to allow interracial couple to marry was in 1948 in the state of California and it took 19 years before the U. S. Supreme Court changed the definition of marriage in 1967 and made interracial marriage available to committed couples that were in love throughout the entire country. If it was to use this as an example as to how long it will take same sex marriages to be accepted in every state, it would probably not be until 2023. In the bible it says marriage is a union between a man and a woman. Why does society cares about what other people do if it will never affect us in any way? Is homosexuality a genetic thing? It is for sure that there is a great excuse for homosexuals to use in order to brush people off and explain why they are gay. A scientific study that was conducted by a university in Ontario Canada suggested that male same sex orientation is linked to having older brothers even if they are not all rose together. They suggested that homosexuality results from an immune response to the mother to her male child in the womb. The research claims that a woman that has given birth to multiple males will be more susceptible to this abnormality. After having a male child or children sometimes the mother‘s immune response to her succeeding male pregnancies is to affect the child‘s future sexual orientation; which would be maternal anti-male antibodies on the sexual orientation of the brain. The immune response by the mother‘s body would damage the sexual differentiation of the brain of the male child in the womb which will in turn produce an abnormality in the fetus. This would conclude that homosexuality is not learned but a birth abnormality. There have not been enough studies done on this and there are no scientists that would come out and say this is definitive. (Sullivan, 305) However, after saying that homosexuality in animal world is widespread and has been well documented; this makes me rethink that there may be some validity to the genetic study above or maybe it ‘s just something that is a learned behavior in both the human and animal world. After all, it is known that animals do learn and explore different things so it may be that they learned this behavior and all others learned by example. Homosexuals believe that to have children is more about dependability and dedication, not sexual point of reference. They say that there is no valid reason behind passing the anti-homosexual adoption law by the government. Those who are against homosexual adoption believe that being adopted by parents who are living together as homosexuals, may bring out unrestrained homophobia from the rest of society. Children can be very harsh with their words and actions against others who know not how to react and defend themselves because they do not know the â€Å"normal† lifestyle in which the other children lead. They would probably be teased and tormented to no end and there is nothing anyone could to about it. If the male and female household has not been the norm for millions of years, this may not propose such a problem. The children may not even be the main problem. It is most likely that parents of male/female relationships would not allow their children to associate with gay or lesbian adopted children, and would probably create a major dispute with the school system in which they are attending school. (Mark, 3) Those who disagree with homosexual adoption also think that in response to being a child of such a lifestyle, it would encourage the children to be homosexual themselves. Whether this is true or not, I don’t know, but I do think that because that is all that they know they would most likely turn to a form of it sometime during their life ,which would in turn increase the homosexual population. This could also pose a problem for the many people who disagree with homosexuality and it is scary to think of the extremes people may take to rid or exclude this population from their lives. Think of the times of the Civil War days, when blacks were practically banned from the majority of public places because they were not the majority or the â€Å"normal† color. Could this ever happen to gays and lesbians? This is a question we must ask ourselves. I know there are laws prohibiting such acts, but there are laws discouraging many things that still go on today, like murder, sexual abuse, etc. There is nothing really stopping people from moving out of town ,taking their kids out of school, or utilizing the same public places that they share with homosexual people. There are cases where this has already happened. (Nicolosi, 104) Children have been moved to different schools because parents don’t want their child to be influenced in any way by a homosexual, or even a child of one. There is nothing to stop them from taking such actions or even actions much worse. It is hard to tell the extremes that people may go to in order to carry out their beliefs. There are several different web-sites that contained a lot of good information on homosexual adoption. First ,http://www. homes4kids. org/gay. htm is a web-site that explains some of the problems that gay and lesbian adoptive parents encounter. One of the problems that may be encountered is trying to find an agency that will work with them. A growing number of agencies are accepting applications from gay and lesbian adults, however, when the child to be adopted is a child with special needs. If the home study reveals that the applicant will be a good parent, his or her sexual orientation is immaterial. If state law does not prohibit gays and lesbians from adopting, most agencies will be willing to work with you. If you are successful in finding an agency, there are great places where you can find adoption support groups for gay and lesbian adults. One of these places is the National Adoption Information Clearinghouse, NAIC. The address and a little of their information is posted on the web-site mentioned above. Web-sites such as this one are good in my opinion because of the fact that I’m sure that people get down when they are turned away adoption agencies because of their sexual orientation, even though they know they would make fantastic parents and provide greatly for a child. Therefore,support groups may be needed at times to help individuals to keep their heads up and to keep trying until they find someone who can see it from their point of view. They may even be able to point you in the right direction in helping you to find an agency who works well with gays and lesbians wanting to adopt. This is a good site to utilize because like mentioned before, sometimes we need some assistance when we are trying to make a lifetime decision. People who have experienced such times as we may be going through are often times a lot of help and usually have a lot of information to share. This site was created by the North American Council on Adoptable Children. They are a valuable resource because they have experienced many different situations and know a lot about what the possibilities are of becoming an adoptive parent as a gay or lesbian. This particular web-site has any downfalls except that the could’ve put a few more links on it to point people to other options if these certain ones aren’t working for them. There are homosexuals in today‘s society that resist identifying themselves as homosexuals. They have homosexual encounters but have girlfriends so they do not consider themselves to be homosexual and they are mostly black college students. However alarming this may seem one can understand in the black culture homosexuality is looked down on more than in the white culture. (Gerard, 4) Like in Jamaica homosexuality is not tolerated at all, if you are found to be having a homosexual relationship whether it is men or women they are almost always stoned or hacked to death. The killers are never brought to justice since the society considers homosexuality as an immoral thing. Homosexuality is usually seen as abnormal however one should not forget that there are a number of other things too in present world that can be said as aberrant. However, a lot of individuals also believe that consenting adults are free to choose who they want to be with sexually as long as it does not include minors and we as society should not have a say in what other people do. Modern day society is way too concerned with what others do and not concerned enough with what is going on in their own household. If it does not directly affect us no one really care. Works Cited Baird, R. M. Same-sex Marriage: The Moral And Legal Debate Contemporary Issues, Prometheus Books, 2004, pg 135-150. Gerard, J. M, Aardweg. V. The Battle for Normality: A Guide for (Self)Therapy for Homosexuals. 2006, pg 1-5. http://www. religioustolerance. org/homosexu. htmhttp://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Homosexualityhttp://www. narth. com/menus/born. html . Mark. L. Homosexuality, Morality, and the Truth of Church Teaching, 2007, pg 1-4. Nicolosi. J. A ‘Parent’s Guide to Preventing Homosexuality’ IVP Books, 2002, 100-120. Rauch. J. ‘The Marriage Amendment : Constitutional issues’ , National Review, 2001, Retrieved from http://old. nationalreview. com/23jul01/letters072301. shtml. Sullivan. A. ‘Virtually Normal: An Argument about Homosexuality’, Vintage, 1996, 10-20. Sullivan. A. ‘Same-Sex Marriage: Pro and Con’ Vintage, 2004, 300-310. Sullivan. A. ‘What are homosexuals for? ’ 2010, Retrieved from http://mrglennjchs. files. wordpress. com/2010/01/sullivan. pdf