Children Should or Should Not! Be Paid for Good Grades

Children should or should not be paid for good grades? I believe that children should not be paid for good grades for several reasons. First of all, To get good grades depend on how each student learns and handles with the result he or she will receive at last. According to Sylvia Rimm, a child psychologist, money does not play an important role in achievement but consistency does. To illustrate, successful students always try to maintain their scores with unchangeable effort while others who once fail give up easily because they believe that there is no second chance to get rewards and compliment. Another reason is that paying for good grades does not mean paying for any knowledge at all. Like a case of Kasama and her 13-year-son, each grade in the report card has its price – laptop, cellphone, portable DVD player and even money. Thus, many children are so eager to have tutorials just to get ‘A's and then what remain in their heads will be soon replaced with what they want and eventually receive as a prize. Finally, paying for good grades can ruin children's confidence. For instance, I had never pay for better better grades until high school when almost all of my friends paid for tutorials. I felt like I could not be good enough without taking extra courses in spite of the fact that I could succeed my self-studying. To sum up, with these reasons given above, a lot of money should not be spend on getting only good grades.

Anti-Colonialism and Education Essay

In Anti-Colonialism and Education: The Politics of Resistance, George J. Sefa Dei and Arlo Kempf have given us a stimulating intellectual account of the issues surrounding the active attempt for educational liberation. The authors who have contributed to the volume have been well chosen to present creative approaches to this abiding problem in most of the world. As we engage the legacies of colonialism we are more certain today that the nonmaterial legacies are as important in our thinking as the material ones when we engage questions of resistance and recovery. The colonizer did not only seize land, but also minds. If colonialism’s in? uence had been merely the control of land that would have required only one form of resistance, but when information is also colonized, it is essential that the resistance must interrogate issues related to education, information and intellectual transformations. Colonialism seeks to impose the will of one people on another and to use the resources of the imposed people for the bene? t of the imposer. Nothing is sacred in such a system as it powers its way toward the extinction of the wills of the imposed upon with one objective in mind: the ultimate subjection of the will to resist. An effective system of colonialism reduces the imposed upon to a shell of a human who is incapable of thinking in a subjective way of his or her own interest. In everything the person becomes like the imposer; thus in desires, wishes, visions, purposes, styles, structures, values, and especially the values of education, the person operates against his or her own interest. Colonialism does not engender creativity; it sti? es it, suppresses it under the cloak of assistance when in fact it is creating conditions that make it impossible for humans to effectively resist. And yet there has always been resistance and there are new methods of resistance gaining ground each day. The intricacies of engaging colonialism are as numerous as the ways colonialism has impacted upon the world. Indeed, the political-economic, socialbehavioral, and cultural-aesthetic legacies of the colonizing process have left human beings with a variety of ways to confront the impact of those legacies. What we see in Anti-Colonialism and Education is a profound attempt to capture for the reader the possibilities inherent in educational transformation through the politics of resistance. Professors Dei and Kempf have exercised a judicious imagination in selecting the authors for the chapters in this book. Each author is an expert in the area of the topic, skilled in presentation of the facts based upon current theories, and articulate in the expression of a need for educators to understand the pressures ix FOREWORD both for and against colonialism. However, they all take the position that it is necessary to explore all formulations that might achieve a liberated sphere of education. Since education normally follows the dominant political lines in a country where you have colonial political principles you will ? nd colonial education. If you have the vestiges of past colonial practices, you will see those practices re? ected in the educational system. I remember a colleague from Algeria saying to me that when the French ruled the country the students learned that their ancestors were the Gauls. When independence came to Algeria, he said, the people were taught that their ancestors were Arabs. The fact that this was only true for those individuals who had Arab origins, and thirty percent did not have such ancestry, was uninteresting to the political agenda. And so it has been in every nation where you have a political intention to mold a country on the basis of domination you will also have resistance. One seems to go with the other regardless to how long the process seems to take to commence. This is not just an exciting work intellectually; it is a beautiful book edited with intelligence and executed with the kind of research and scholarship that will bring us back to its pages many times. Each author seems to feel the same desire to teach us to be truly human; that is enough for us to inaugurate our own anti-colonialism campaign in our schools and colleges. I shall gladly join the fray to make the world better. Mole? Kete Asante Elkins Park, PA 19027 USA x ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This book could not have been completed without the political interest and will of the many people who shared their knowledge in this joint undertaking. While the task of re-visioning schooling and education for the contemporary learner and teacher may be daunting at times, we believe strongly that it is by no means insurmountable. In fact, we have a wealth of knowledge with which to help transform education into a process and practice that serves the needs of the collective. We hope this book will contribute to the debate and discussion of how to address not only the imperialization of knowledge but also the various forms of intellectual colonization that mask themselves as everyday academic truth and valid knowledge. George Dei would like to thank the students of his graduate level course, SES 3914S: â€Å"Anti-Colonial Thought and Pedagogical Challenges† in the fall of 2004 whose insights and discussions helped propel the vision for this collection. Arlo Kempf would like to thank Lola Douglas, Meghan Mckee and Randy Kempf for their support and loveliness. He would also like to thank George Dei and the contributors for their ideas and hard work over the duration of this project. We both owe a great deal of intellectual depth to our colleagues, peers and friends who constantly challenge us to think more deeply and avoid academic closure. It is in the actions and resistance of the people that theory is born and takes life – to all who struggle against colonialism without the privilege of a pen in hand, we thank and salute you. Our academic objective for the book was also shaped by a desire to let our community politics inform intellectual pursuits at all times. We want to thank Geoff Rytell, who initially helped proofread sections of the book, as well as Cheryl Williams for her ongoing support. Finally we say â€Å"thank you† to Joe Kincheloe, Shirley Steinberg and Peter de Liefde who made this book a reality. George Dei Arlo Kempf xi GEORGE J. SEFA DEI INTRODUCTION: MAPPING THE TERRAIN – TOWARDS A NEW POLITICS OF RESISTANCE INTRODUCTION I begin this chapter with a question germane as to why and how we articulate anticolonial thought. Informed by Steven Biko’s (1978) earlier work, I ask: â€Å"Why is it necessary for us as colonized peoples to think and re? ect collectively about a problem not of our creation i. e. , the problem of colonialism? † This question is central since colonialism has not ended and we see around us today various examples of colonial and neo-colonial relations produced within our schools, colleges, universities, homes, families, workplaces and other institutional settings. It is often said that globalization is the new word for imperialism. History and context are crucial for anti-colonial undertakings. Understanding our collective past is signi? cant for pursuing political resistance. Haunani-Kay Trask (1991) writes about the importance of the past to Indigenous peoples as a way to challenge the dominant’s call to amputate the past and its histories. For the people of Hawaiia, Trask notes that â€Å"we do not need, nor do we want [to be] liberated from our past because it is source of our understanding . . . [We] . . . stand ? rmly in the present, with [our] back to the future, and [our] eyes ? xed upon the past, seeking historical answers for present-day dilemmas† (p. 164). In order to understand the knowledge and resistance of the past as it relates to contemporary politics of resistance, one has to know and learn about this past. As noted elsewhere (Dei, 2000, p. 11), for colonized peoples decolonization involves a reclamation of the past, previously excluded in the history of the colonial and colonized nations. They must identify the colonial historical period from the perspectives of their places and their peoples. Knowledge of the past is also relevant in so far as we as people must use that knowledge â€Å"responsibly†. But our situatedness as knowledge producers and how we perform â€Å"the gaze† on subjects, at times accord power and privilege to some bodies and not others. Therefore, an anti-colonial struggle must identify and de? ne a political project and show its connections to the academic engagement. Franz Fanon and Karl Marx have both cautioned us that â€Å"what matters is not to know the world but to change it†. This assertion calls for a recognition of the multiple points/places of responsibility and accountability. For example, what does it mean to talk of accountability as far as identity and subjectivity, however complex? It may well mean taking the stance that in political work for change, certain issues are not negotiable. In other words, we need to see there are limits and possibilities of â€Å"negotiating† in anti-colonial struggles and politics. As Howard (2004) asks: How much can be G. J. S. Dei and A. Kempf (eds. ), Anti-Colonialism and Education: The Politics of Resistance, 1–23.  © 2006. Sense Publishers. All rights reserved. DEI accomplished if we decide to â€Å"negotiate† around domination or oppression? Are we negotiating as part of a democratic exercise? Rabaka (2003) has argued that â€Å"one of the most important tasks of a critical anti-colonial theory . . . is to capture and critique the continuities and discontinuities of the colonial and neocolonial in order to make sense of our currently . . . colonized life and . . . worlds† (p. 7). Therefore as we begin to ? esh out anti-colonial theory and practice, it is ? tting to ask some critical questions (see also Butler, 2002): Is there still a colonized South? What about a colonized North? Do we think of neo-colonialism/colonialism/post-colonialism as bridges, as new articulations, or as a continuation with no marked differentiation? What is â€Å"post† about/in the â€Å"post-colonial†? Is the theoretical distinction between neo-colonialism and colonialism spurious at best? What are the purposes and underlying intentions of making such distinctions? What are the convergences and the divergences in post-colonial and anti-colonial thoughts? Does â€Å"neo† in neo-colonial mean â€Å"new†, or â€Å"transformed†? What is neo-colonialism? What are its antecedents and its marked practices? What are the mechanisms and institutions that constitute neo-colonialism? Why do we speak of neo-colonialism and not anti-colonialism? Are the structures, practices and ideas which enable colonialism really that different from those of neo-colonialism? Are the differences between neo-colonialism and colonialism more than theoretical? Whose interests are advanced in speaking of neo-colonialism/post-colonialism? What are the [dis]junctures and [dis]continuities between colonialism and neo-colonialism? How do discursive forces and material aspects interact to further our understanding of colonial? How do we speak of power, coercion, subjectivity, agency and resistance in anti-colonial discursive practice? What are the relations between neo-colonialism and White supremacy? The book does not presume to offer full answers to all these questions. But it is hoped the discussions that follow offer some entry points into a new politics of engagement towards the formulation of a critical anti-colonial lens. The power of the anti-colonial prism lies in its offering of new philosophical insights to challenge Eurocentric discourses, in order to pave the way for Southern/indigenous intellectual and political emancipation. In this discussion, anti-colonial is de? ned as an approach to theorizing colonial and re-colonial relations and the implications of imperial structures on the processes of knowledge production and validation, the understanding of indigeneity, and the pursuit of agency, resistance and subjective politics (see also Dei and Asgharzadeh, 2001). Colonialism, read as imposition and domination, did not end with the return of political sovereignty to colonized peoples or nation states. Colonialism is not dead. Indeed, colonialism and re-colonizing projects today manifest themselves in variegated ways (e. g. the different ways knowledges get produced and receive validation within schools, the particular experiences of students that get counted as [in]valid and the identities that receive recognition and response from school authorities. The anti-colonial prism theorizes the nature and extent of social domination and particularly the multiple places that power, and the relations of power, work to establish dominant-subordinate connections. This prism also scrutinizes 2 INTRODUCTION and deconstructs dominant discourses and epistemologies, while raising questions of and about its own practice. It highlights and analyzes contexts, and explores alternatives to colonial relations. Loomba (1998) sees colonialism as signifying â€Å"territorial ownership† of a place/space by an imperial power, while imperialism on the other hand is the governing ideology for such occupation. Anti-colonial thought works with these two themes/projects – colonialism and imperialism as never ending. The colonial in anti-colonial however, invokes much more. It refers to anything imposed and dominating rather than that which is simply foreign and alien. Colonialism reinforces exclusive notions of belonging, difference and superiority (Principe, 2004). It pursues a politics of domination which informs and constructs dominant images of both the colonizer and the colonized (Memmi, 1969). Colonialism is not simply complicit in how we come to know ourselves and its politics. It also establishes sustainable hierarchies and systems of power. Colonial images continually uphold the colonizers’ sense of reason, authority and control. It scripts and violates the colonized as the violent â€Å"other†, while, in contrast, the colonizer is pitted as an innocent, benevolent and [imperial] saviour (see also Principe, 2004). This historical relationship of the colonizer and colonized continues to inform contemporary subject identity formation and knowledge production. It shapes and informs identities by recreating colonial ideologies and mythologies (Tuhiwai-Smith, 1999). In theorizing the anti-colonial discursive framework, I would highlight some key salient points. All knowledge can be located in the particular social contexts from which it emerges. Such location shapes the ways of knowing and understanding the social and political relations at play in constructing social realities. The anti-colonial prism takes the position that all knowledges are socially situated and politically contested. The anti-colonial discourse is situated in colonial relations of power that are contested through resistant practices against domination and oppression. In working with resistant knowledges, the liberating in? uence of critical anti-colonial discourse becomes clear. The anti-colonial discourse works with the idea of the epistemological power of the colonized subjects. The colonial knowing is situated and informed within particular social contexts (see also Harding, 1996). Such â€Å"situated knowledges† (hooks, 1991; Collins, 1990) also point to the importance of subjectivity, positionality, location and history. In this regard, the anti-colonial referent is to the epistemologies about, and of, marginalized, colonized subjects. Particular and different interests are served by knowledge systems, and the anti-colonial aim is to subvert dominant thinking that re-inscribes colonial and colonizing relations. The ability and strength of the anti-colonial prism to draw upon different discursive traditions to explain social and political phenomena is an important strength for multiple knowings. But anti-colonial thought, while borrowing from other theoretical frameworks, is not constrained by dominant epistemologies. It calls for a critical awareness of the social relations and power issues embedded in the ways of organizing the production, interrogation, validation and dissemination of knowledge in order to challenge social oppression and 3 DEI consequently subvert domination. It also calls for acknowledging accountability and power. Since the burden of oppression is not shared equally among groups, and that even among the oppressed we are not all affected the same way (see also Larbalestier, 1990), we must all be able to address questions of accountability and responsibility of knowledge. It is within such a context that one must evaluate the politics of anti-colonial thought, in its call for a radical transformation of the analytical and conceptual frames of reference, used both in the academy and in mainstream public discourse so that the minoritized, subjugated voice, experience and history can be powerfully evoked, acknowledged and responded to. Unless we are able to articulate the grounds on which we share a dialogue and challenge the power relations of knowledge production, we will be shirking the responsibility of acting on our knowledge. The academic project of anti-colonial thinking and practice is to challenge and resist Eurocentric theorizing of the colonial encounter. Such Eurocentric theorizing is best captured in representations of minoritized/colonized bodies and their knowledges, and through the power of colonial imageries. The anticolonial critique also deals with interrogations of colonial representations and imaginaries examining processes and representations of legitimacy and degeneracy through the mutually constitutive relations of power. Colonialisms were/are practised differently; they differ in their representations and consequently have myriad in? uences, impacts and implications for different communities. Colonial practices can be refracted around race, gender, class, age, disability, culture and nation as sites of difference. In many ways the â€Å"anti-colonial thought† is the emergence of a new political, cultural and intellectual movement re? ecting the values and aspirations of colonized and resisting peoples/subjects. The Western academy cannot continue to deny the intellectual agency of colonized peoples. As resisting subjects, we will all have to confront and deal with the historic inferiorization of colonial subjects, and the devaluation of rich histories and cultures. What is required is critical educational praxis that is anchored in anti-colonial thought to challenge and subvert the â€Å"Western cultural and capital overkill†, and shed the insulting idea that others know and understand us [as colonized subjects] better than we understand ourselves (see also Prah, 1997, pp. 19–23). Colonized peoples require an anti-colonial prism that is useful in helping to disabuse our minds of the lies and falsehoods told about our peoples, our pasts and our histories (see also Rodney, 1982). We need to present anti-colonial discourse as a way to challenge Eurocentric culture as the tacit norm everyone references and on which so many of us cast our gaze (Kincheloe and Steinberg, 1998, p. 11). This approach to anti-colonial discursive thought and practice is also informed by the academic and political project calling for knowledge that colonised groups can use to ? nd authentic and viable solutions to our own problems. In this struggle we can point to some positive developments. For example everywhere today, we (as colonized peoples) are reclaiming and reinvigorating our marginalised, and in some cases, lost voices and are speaking for ourselves. Within educational academies in North America and in the South, there 4

Environmental Determinism Related to Ancient Greece, Rome and Medieval Times Essay

Environmental determinism essentially means where you live has a direct correlation with how you live. Countries that need to focus on hunting and gathering cannot focus on other aspects of their society like military power, religion, technology and education. Geographic luck is another factor of environmental determinism. Geographic luck means that people have strong advantages to their lives because of where they currently live. Environmental determinism allowed countries to grow their military power and allowed them to enhance their weaponry, which was shown during the Peloponnesian War, the Punic Wars and the Viking Invasions. During the period of Ancient Greece, the Peloponnesian War showed military changes because of environmental determinism. After the Persian War, the Persian Empire was very weak (â€Å"Peloponnesian War. â€Å"). The Athenians saw this as a great opportunity to attack and take control of some very important land. Some of the land that they wanted to capture was called the Fertile Crescent and was very rich with many resources such as very rich soil which is opportune for growing crops, as well as large rivers of water for drinking (â€Å"Fertile Crescent. â€Å"). The Athenians were able to attack the Fertile Crescent because of environmental determinism. The land the Athenians were on allowed them to create a strong civilization early, which allowed them to grow their military power, which in turn also allowed them to defeat the Persians in the Persian War. Environmental determinism also allowed the Athenians focus on upgrading their navy to a high enough level that they could travel the long distance of attacking the weakened Persian Empire. Environmental determinism also factored into the primary reason the Peloponnesian War started. When the city states divided up between the Delian League and the Athenians, and the Peloponnesian League and the Spartans, in the agreement it stated that each side was to not get involved with the opposite sides affairs and the Athenians ignored that rule because of environmental determinism (â€Å"Peloponnesian War. â€Å"). Corcyra and Corinth were in a small war of their own and it was a Peloponnesian League matter, however, Corcyra had a large navy and Athens was afraid of Corinth taking this navy because they were a part of the Peloponnesian League, while Corcyra was still undecided on which side it was on. Environmental determinism factors into this because Corinth was powerful enough because of their developed civilization to make Athens worried, and Corcyra had a powerful enough navy that Athens was willing to start a war with the Peloponnesian League to start a war. At the beginning of the war, environmental determinism seriously affected the Athenians. Pericles, the most important general in Athens, decided at the beginning of the war to take a defensive strategy by keeping the army within the Athenian walls (â€Å"Peloponnesian War. â€Å"). He thought this would wear the Spartan army out to the point where they would retreat. The main problem with this strategy was that all of the Athenians crops were located outside of the Athenian wall. Athens still had a secret trade route which allowed them to eat, however they could not sell their crops and they had to keep buying crops so they were rapidly losing a large amount of money. The plan also backfired a second time, because the Athenians were hit with a plague which killed a third of their people in 3 years, including Pericles. Environmental determinism is shown because the crops had to grow there because the soil within the city was not rich enough and the Athenians could not grow crops outside the other side of the Athenian walls, because they were located right on the coast of the Aegean Sea (â€Å"Ancient Greece Map. â€Å"). Athens was hit by the plague before the Spartans because of environmental determinism as well. They are closer to where the plague started, which was in Ethiopia, where it then moved through Rome and the Persian Empire. In the next phase of the war, environmental determinism influenced the decisions of Athens and Sparta. One of the new leaders of the Athenian war party, Cleon wanted to be much more physical than Pericles was, and he saw his opportunity in Italy (â€Å"Peloponnesian War. â€Å"). The city state of Syracuse in Sicily was allied with Sparta and when they attacked a tribe called the Leontini, Cleon chose to help fight back. He chose to fight against Syracuse for the reason that he wanted to weaken the Spartans because their grain supply came from Syracuse. The Spartans used Cleon’s over-aggressiveness against him, by setting up a Spartan colony named Heraclea right near Athens. This forced Athens to make a decision of sending its troops to Syracuse and getting attacked in Athens, or not attacking Syracuse altogether. This goes back to environmental determinism again, because generals such as Brasidas of Sparta was able to come up with this plan, because the Spartans had a growing and strong enough colony that they did not need to focus on hunting and gathering and could focus on military matters. Focusing on military matters helped the Spartans again when the Athenians attacked the city state Boetia. This was important for the Athenians, because Boetia was a short distance away from them and did not want to get attacked, as well as they needed morale boost because they were losing the war, however the Spartans outsmarted them. When the Athenians were attacking and the fight seemed to be over, Boetia brought out their two hidden lines of cavalrymen and encircled the Athenians, and then routed them. In the final stage of the war, the Athenians were finally finished off because of environmental determinism. The Athenians sent 130 ships in one final effort to attack in Sicily (â€Å"Peloponnesian War. ). Because of environmental determinism however, the Syracusians were able to upgrade their navy with a new piece of equipment, which rammed the ships and damaged them on water, which made them not mobile and sink. In this battle the Athenians lost twenty thousand people, and that was enough for the Persians to get involved in the war and ally with Sparta. Environmental determinism takes a big part in this move, because the Persian army was now attacking from the east, while the Spartans were attacking from the west and the Athenians were conquered. Because of where Athens was situated, they could not even flee from the incoming attacks, because they were surrounded by the Persians coming over the water, and the Spartans coming by land. In conclusion, the Spartans were successful in defeating the Athenians by outsmarting them with new tactics that were studied and by defeating them with a stronger army, which they were able to create because of environmental determinism. Environmental determinism influenced other parts of history too, as shown in Punic Wars in the period of Ancient Rome. During the three Punic Wars fought by Rome and Carthage, Rome was successful because of military power and strategies they could develop because of environmental determinism. Before the Punic Wars started, Carthage extremely wealthy and was the most technologically advanced city in the region, as well as having the strongest naval power (â€Å"Punic Wars. â€Å"). Rome was very powerful as well with the biggest land army in the region. These two countries were allowed to become this advanced and this powerful because of environmental determinism. Both cities were so well developed and had such a strong way of life that they could focus on expanding their empires instead of worrying about if they were going to survive. In 264, there was a dispute in Sicily and both Rome and Carthage got involved and that was the beginning of the Punic Wars. Because of Carthage’s large navy, they were able to win many battles on water, however the Roman fleet were able to break their naval superiority, with allowed them to take Sicily as their own, making it their first overseas province. Carthage and Rome went to war over Sicily because of the land. The Sicilian land was very rich with its soil and natural resources, as well as having many wealthy cities and many major ports for trading. It was also located right between the capitals of Carthage and Rome. Rome and Carthage also wanted to go to war because of where they were located. Both cities were located on either side of the Mediterranean (â€Å"Ancient Rome Map. â€Å"). By defeating the other power there, Carthage or Rome could become the main power in the Mediterranean which would allow them to trade and make themselves even more powerful. So, because of environmental determinism and greed, the Punic Wars had begun. In the second Punic War, environmental determinism would urge Carthage to attack the Roman Empire once again. In 237 B. C, Carthage established a new base of influence in Spain under the powerful general Hamilicar Barca (â€Å"Punic Wars. â€Å"). After his death, his son Hannibal took command of the forces in Spain, and in 221 B. C, Hannibal took these forces and marched his army across the Ebro River into Saguntum. This was an important gesture, because Saguntum was under Roman protection which showed that Hannibal wanted to continue war against the Roman Empire. Carthage, using its ninety thousand infantry, killed as many as fifty thousand Roman soldiers, destroyed the Italian countryside and recaptured Sicily, but since the Romans have such a large infantry, this was not a large enough causality to faze them as they fought back. Rome pushed back and took all of Italy, as well as Carthage’s ties in Spain and North Africa. Environmental determinism played a role in many factors in this part of the Punic Wars. Firstly, the Roman Empire was able to bounce back so easily after losing fifty thousand troops because their population was so large and was still growing. This has to do with the fact that the land the Romans were on was very rich in resources and could maintain a large amount of people living there. Secondly, Carthage used a maneuver where they destroyed the Italian countryside. This was a smart move by the Carthaginians, because it stopped the Romans from getting some of their food supplies, as well as them losing a large sum of money, and the Carthaginians were able to do this maneuver before the Romans could stop them because they are located closer to the countryside than Rome is. In the third and final of the Punic Wars, the Romans used environmental determinism against Carthage to capture the Carthaginian power, money and land. Before the war started, Rome and Carthage had signed an agreement that they could not attack Rome or anyone else without consulting Rome, or else war would start again (â€Å"Punic Wars. â€Å"). This treaty was broken by Carthage, when they chose to attack Numidia, who was allied with Rome. Carthage was fending off the Roman army until the young general of Rome Scipio the Younger used environmental determinism to defeat Carthage. Rome launched a forceful attack on the harbour side of Carthage, and pushed the enemy troops towards their citadel. Carthage then surrendered after seven days and the Romans succeeded in destroying Carthage. This was important, because Rome destroyed a city that no one could defeat for 700 years, and the Romans were not done there as they later moved east and gained Macedonia. Environmental determinism allowed Rome to attack from both sides of Carthage and surround them, because Carthage was located right next to the Mediterranean Sea. The Roman Empire succeeded in becoming the main power in the Mediterranean because of military techniques, a strong army, and advantages of positioning because of environmental determinism. During Viking Invasions in the Medieval Times, the Vikings and Europe would experience cases in which environmental determinism aided them as well. During the Viking Invasions, the Vikings disrupted and benefitted many European countries because of environmental determinism. The Vikings began their raids in 789 A. D when Norwegian ships attacked Portland, located in the British Iles (â€Å"Medieval Maritime Culture. ). The Vikings then continued to raid Europe including Spain, France, Constantinople and England and find parts of Russia, Greenland, Norway and Canada. This is important because it shows how powerful and influential the Vikings were in Medieval Times, by finding new land and establishing it as a major trade centre, and converting whole countries to different religions as shown when they converted Greenland and Iceland to Christianity in 1000. Environmental determinism is shown in why the Vikings began to raid. The Vikings began to raid partially because of the terrible weather conditions that they were subject to in Scandinavia, as well as a lack of agriculture which led many Vikings to sail south in search of land. Because Scandinavia was farther away from the equator, this made the weather colder, which also allowed for fewer crops to grow. This was the main premise on which the Vikings began to head south. Environmental determinism also allowed the Vikings to have a large army which allowed them to attack many places with a high degree of effectiveness. The Vikings were able to sail in fleets of many hundreds of ships filled with 100 people each, because of environmental determinism. The Vikings developed themselves into a powerful people in Scandinavia which allowed them to focus on strengthening their people instead of keeping their population or army at the same level. This is much like what happened in the Peloponnesian Wars and the Punic Wars. The Vikings were also able to attack strong countries so well because of their advanced technology. The Vikings developed a ship called a â€Å"longship†, which was very fast and very agile (â€Å"Viking Timeline. â€Å"). They used these boats to travel quickly, allowing them to attack more people at a faster rate and gain more land. This along with their strong navigation system called â€Å"celestial navigation†. This was important because it allowed them to find land and capture it efficiently. The Vikings were able to invent these powerful and innovative ships and means of travel because of environmental determinism. The Vikings were a very civilized culture that were very strategic and very smart because of their way of life. Their way of life was so enhanced because of environmental determinism. The Vikings could not grow as many crops as countries that were closer to the equator, so they had to adjust to their surroundings accordingly (â€Å"Viking Timeline. â€Å"). For example, the Vikings of York were very close to a river, so they consumed a large quantity of freshwater fish. Around the year 1000, the Vikings used their innovative ways to develop a square rigged sailboat that they called the â€Å"knaar†. The knaar was used as a merchant ship that the Vikings used to form and trade with their colonies in the Orkney Islands, Shetland Islands, Faroe Islands, Iceland and Greenland. This was important because this allowed them to solve one of the problems that is caused by environmental determinism. The colonies the Vikings had were so far apart that it would take long periods of time to trade between them, or they would not trade at all, so the Vikings made the knaar to help solve this problem. This showed once again that the Vikings were ground-breaking with new technology during the Medieval Times. This technology along with their large military power allowed them to attack larger armies and successfully defeat them. The Vikings used environmental determinism as a reason to claim new land as their own by attacking and using their large armies, innovative weaponry, and navigation. They also solved their problem that environmental determinism caused by making their colonies too far away by adapting and creating new technology. In conclusion, in all three cases the main factors of the reasoning or victories of the winning sides were because of environmental determinism. Whether it was the Spartans defeating the Athenians because of new militaristic techniques combined with their strong army, Rome using Carthage’s positioning against them to conquer the Mediterranean, or the Vikings successfully defeating armies much bigger than theirs in Europe using new technology; environmental determinism was the main factor in success.

Post-reading and study activities Research Paper

Post-reading and study activities - Research Paper Example This is an unfortunate situation, but it does happen. â€Å"Kids who struggle with reading dont need a dramatically or categorically different approach (Feldman)† what they need are dedicated teachers who are willing to spend more time with them and make reading interesting. Gone are the days when teachers stand before a class and read; while the students sit and look as if they are listening to boring sermon. Teachers need teaching aid and the ability to make reading fun. Reading is no longer an activity of turning the pages, and testing students in order to see if they know the words in the lesson. More time should be given to students who are â€Å"delinquent.† Of course, they will not appreciate the extra attention. However when they are grouped, and given an aid like the graphic organizer, they will begin to have fun. In this first activity, the Graphic Organizer will be used. Teacher will give students this work sheet after they have read and discussed the reading, explain to them what is meant by cause and effect (of course most of them have already used this), assume no one knows. Teacher may ask some cause and effect question by way of explanation. Students will work in groups of four or three. They will be given the work sheet and whether they want to use the book or memory, they should fill in the effect map as best they can. The objective of this activity is to help students to think logically. In this activity, students will answer question about the passage. The objective of this activity is to help students develop their comprehension skills, to use inference, and to express themselves in writing. Everywhere you hear it. On the streets, in churches in the media, sometimes even from teachers. People using â€Å"you know what I am saying?† It is even worse when their only adjective is a curse word. Students are no different, their vocabulary is limited and it is obvious

The Golden Age of Byzantine Empire Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Golden Age of Byzantine Empire - Essay Example The very issue indeed of Justinian I's ruling is the ruling of him in this period. For the traits and characteristics of this ruler opposed of those great rulers. The author of The Secret History added his descriptions to him as "deceitful, devious, false, hypocritical, two-faced, cruel, skilled in dissembling his thought, never moved to tears by either joy or pain, though he could summon them artfully at will when the occasion demanded, a liar always, not only offhand, but in writing, and when he swore sacred oaths to his subjects in their very hearing. Then he would immediately break his agreements and pledges, like the vilest of slaves, whom indeed only the fear of torture drives to confess their perjury. A faithless friend, he was a treacherous enemy, insane for murder and plunder, quarrelsome and revolutionary, easily led to anything evil, but never willing to listen to good counsel, quick to plan mischief and carry it out, but finding even the hearing of anything good distastef ul to his ears". One issue is the changing of the law in the Emperor's own favor. A definite instance is to permit him to marry a courtesan, in which the former law forbids him to. The ignorance in state of affairs of the Empress Euphemia permitted him to perversed the law especially after her death. Justinian's choice of wife put him in shame as Theodora is known and condemned for several abortions, but blinded by his own preference. Procopius put this marriage this way "I need hardly mention any other proof of the character of this man: for all the perversity of his soul was completely displayed in this union; which alone was ample interpreter, witness, and historian of his shamelessness". In an independent minded citizen during that period like Procopius, having someone like Theodora in the monarchial power is a disgrace that is yielded and majestically honored by many. Their marital affair affected christianity, as it was split in two, siding one side to the Emperor and the other to Theodora every time they were having disagreement. Each party stands as an opposition to one another. Theodora supported the Blues, and encouraged them to make the most of the heinous violence against the opposing party; while Justinian, lead the opposition pretentiously not opposing her orders. The Blues being punished and compensated whenever she was being defeated by her husband. Both were in guile to serve their own selfish intentions, even reached to the point of dropping their parties and stripping off the properties of the members once they were not in used anymore. Procopius clearly stated that "as soon as Justinian came into power he turned everything upside down" pertaining the perversion he made within the previous laws just to serve his intentions. As the Romans were in peace to the world before his term, he managed his way to set battle between the barbarians unfortunately for no logical reason. This proves his lust for slaughtering leveling him as a mass murderer indirectly. The slavery of the Roman empires under the Huns was through the will of the Emperor himself, even paying the Huns' chieftains to proceed on their barbaric domination. This condition of Romans invited others to robbed them off their own wealth, and after these

How did Syria got impacted the Middle-East and especially Turkey Research Paper

How did Syria got impacted the Middle-East and especially Turkey - Research Paper Example The World Food Programme offers monthly food donations to about 4 million people who are victims of the civil conflict in the region (â€Å"World Food Programme† 1). Moreover, other humanitarian agencies offers clean drinking water to about 1.1 million people in Syria (â€Å"Government of Canada† 1). Notably, most of the countries in the Middle East region are downstream riparian states and have scarce water resources and hence the continued debate and conflict on water issues in this region (â€Å"The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs† 1). Ideally, agriculture accounted for about 25 percent of gross domestic product in this region and hence the water shortage is hindering efforts to maintain economic growth in this region (Williams 1). The water conflict is equally a source of tension as many countries including Syria seek to increase its political dominance where it competes for the water resources with Turkey, Iraq, and Israel. Analysis shows that Turkey is likely to face water shortages in the near future although it presently has significant water resources (â€Å"The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs† 2). As a result, of the crisis there have been continued debates and efforts geared towards addressing the Syrian crisis. In the meantime, many Syrians fled the violence in their country and took refuge in Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, and Iraq (â€Å"World Food Programme† 1). Indeed, about 2.2 million Syrians are refugees in these countries, which further strain the infrastructure, food security, and water supply in this region. Additionally, more countries including the U.S are still offering the refugees agencies a leeway to settle more refugees and conflict victims in Syria thus influencing the social and economic aspects in Syria. However, as we expect the need for humanitarian aid to increase in Syria over the next few years, there is international pressure on the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, to remove bar riers to the delivery of humanitarian assistance in Syria (Cumming-Bruce 1). Saudi Arabia has been opposing the Syrian government and continuously calls for action against Syrian President Assad (â€Å"BBC NEWS† 1). On the other hand, Iran has been supporting Syria and criticizes any international action on the current crisis in Syria. Nevertheless, although Iraq is less significant to Syria, it opposes any US military action in Syria and hosts a significant number of refugees from Syria. Conversely, Israel does not offer its public opinion on the Syrian crisis but warns other nations into dragging Israel into the conflict and assert its readiness to deal with the crisis if the civil war extends to Israel (â€Å"BBC NEWS† 1). Additionally, Qatar supports the proposed military action on Syria while Egypt opposes any military action without the authorization of the UN (â€Å"BBC NEWS† 1). Jordan supports limited military action in Syria upon proving the use of che mical weapons in Syria by the US Congress (â€Å"BBC NEWS† 1). Indeed, Jordan hosts refugees from Syria and therefore opposes any international intervention that would cause civilian casualties. The Jordan government advocates for a political settlement to the Syrian crisis (â€Å"BBC NEWS† 1). Nevertheless, some people believe that in 2013, Jordan facilitated the supply of weapons to rebel fighters in southern Syria (â€Å"

Customer is always right Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Customer is always right - Essay Example Business pressure has increased over the years, "and there was no alternative for the boss but to start letting go of some of his workload and his requirement to do all of the thinking".1 Furthermore, the owner of company had to purchase technologies to stay ahead . As the result, staying ahead forced him to concentrate on sales and customer service, and the information regarding technologies he employs partially lost its importance in the boss's minds. But the modern customers are becoming quite inquisitive and frequently need thorough information about the product, so many companies are running 'clarifying policy' to explain to customer the main technologies used. Company executives arrange presentations and press conferences to introduce a new product or a new strategy of the organization. The rapidly-growing Craters & Freighters franchisees view customers as the key to their success. "In the three years since they took over the Dallas Craters & Freighters franchise, Tony Alleman, Choyet Terro and Don Theriot were named Rookies of the Year and recognized for having the fewest claims and largest sector growth within their franchise's system. This year, Alleman, Terro and Theriot, ages 39, 40 and 38, respectively, continue their winning streak. They were singled out for the 2003 All Star Award, based primarily on how well franchisees run a business".3 The main priority of their business is dealing with customers - this, probably is a secret of their growth. The franchisees work in several directions to show to a customer that he receives the best service. "When a customer calls for a quote, our policy is to get back to that customer within 20, 25 minutes," Theriot says, "Our response time, our attention to detail, making sure the paperwork is correct ... the employees understand all this needs to be done."4 Based on their different work expirience, each partner manages a certain part of the business--Alleman handles production, Terro oversees finance and Theriot is responsible for sales, so it allows them to share the responsibility. Those perspectives are useful in crafting work policies, including those relating to customer service. Theriot says that they get together and discuss the major decisions in order to run an honest discussion and to make a decision, which is suitable for everyone.Yet not a single company can work without any problems. If something goes wrong, the franchisees ensure customers' concerns are addressed, via a low-tech solution. The customer always deals with a living person, not with a voice mail, as it makes him sure that his complaint will be examined carefully. Each problem is addressed immediately; as a result the customer sees feedback and attention to his opinion - whatever it is.Customers have taken notice of these initiatives. The

MOD 5 FIN SLP Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

MOD 5 FIN SLP - Essay Example The challenge for non-profits is to effectively research and find funding resources to receive the necessary funds to perform all projects and functions within the company without missing out of any potential opportunities. We have two major projects we are currently working on that will be examined in this paper. The first project is attempting to improve our development budget to expand the company and purchase equipment and necessary resources for better care to the individuals. The second project is a local nonprofit book festival to allow developmentally challenged persons to interact with members of the community. The first project that we are currently implementing is one in which we are seeking funding for developmental avenues to expand the current operations of the company. We have been seeking different funding methods to increase our development budget and make necessary equipment and supplies purchases that are essential to providing proper care to these individuals. The primary source of funding that should be examined comes straight from state, federal and local grants that can be awarded to nonprofits for providing special care (Foster, Kim & Christiansen, 2009). These grants can be offered to any organization, group or individual based on very specific or broad criteria. Oftentimes, nonprofit organizations attempt to utilize these fiscal resources because grants are essentially free money that never has to be repaid. Grants can involve a lot of paperwork and man hours, but most require no fiscal obligation or investment and can pay for part or all of the necessary expenses to expan d operations given the type of care that is being provided and that we are indeed a nonprofit organization. These are two essential areas that work in our favor and will provide strong reasonable support to justify why we need the funds and that they will be put to good use to improve several of the local communities as

Nikes Strategic Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Nikes Strategic Management - Assignment Example The intention of this study is Nike Incorporation as world leader in designing, developing and worldwide distribution and marketing of sports equipment, ranging from athletic footwear, athletic clothing lines, sports equipment and accessories. Nike’s main focus is on markets where the political environments are relatively stable and democracy flourishes. Nike’s main markets are considered to be USA, European Countries, developing countries of Asia, South Africa and few countries of North and South America. Usually, in these countries, the government has been elected through a general election. The economic conditions in these countries are relatively stable and favorable for businesses, despite of the economic slowdown experience in rest of the world. These political conditions provide a competitive advantage to Nike as it does not have to face the adverse effects of economic fluctuations and fluctuations in exchange rates. The policies regarding the interest rates and other monitory responsibilities are made keeping in view the requirements of the businesses, therefore; it becomes easier for Nike to utilize the disposable income in a more productive way. Although, the political scenario seems to b e favorable for Nike, but within governments, there are certain groups and lobbies that put pressure on authorities to ban the methodologies used by Nike for producing and marketing its products. Nike also needs to consider the subsidies it might get from the Government as it can be helpful for the company to setup its factories in these countries and import goods into the respective countries. ... Economic Conditions In most of the countries, where Nike sells its products, economic conditions are either getting improved or they have already flourished or target customers’ purchasing power is improving on a regular basis. Especially in European countries and USA, Nike’s products are considered to be reliable and durable and purchased by customers on regular basis due to their ever increasing purchasing power and better economic conditions. Also, sports are considered to be an essential part of an individual’s life in these countries which helps Nike to sell more units of its products in a year as compare to the previous year (Petkova and Pattabiraman 2010). Social Being a USA based multinational company, Nike is widely accepted as a brand in USA and European countries, but at the same time, Nike faces criticism and neglected to be accepted by the society in some Asian and South and North American countries. For catering this strategic problem, Nike designs different products for every region of the world and markets the products according to the societal norms and values. These products are designed keeping in view the local customers’ buying behavior, their culture, the society in which they live and the attributes of sports equipment that these customers look for. Lifestyle also plays a pivotal role in Nike’s decision regarding designing a product. Majority of the markets that Nike caters, have a social background where sports events are paid especial attention, which implies that the purchasing of sports equipments is higher in these countries or markets (Mishra 2010). Technological Nike utilizes latest technology for manufacturing

Inequality undermines democracy Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Inequality undermines democracy - Assignment Example ality provokes a generalized anger that finds target where it can-immigrants, foreign countries, American elites, government in all forms-and it rewards demagogues while discrediting reformers†. I find this to be the key sentence because it encapsulated the ultimate danger that inequality can bring which is anger that begets hatred. The anger that begets hatred wrought by inequality as enunciated in those sentences to target where it can is not only in peculiar in the US but also in other countries and culture. In fact, these effects of anger wrought inequality are universal. What will change is the target but it will always find a target to vent that anger and hatred. Notice in countries, societies and cultures where there is so much anger, hatred, animosity, murder and other forms of onslaught – they have one common denominator which is inequality. Inequality which breeds poverty as Parker explained in his other sentence â€Å"creates a lopsided economy†. This inequality that breeds anger and hatred undermines democracy which explains why Parker ended his article with the sentence â€Å"Inequality undermines democracy†. He used the operating word â€Å"undermining† to illustrate that inequality is incompatible with democracy. Democracy, which provides an equal opportunity for all cannot thrive in an environment where equal opportunity cannot be had due to inequality. It cannot also thrive in any country or society where there is so much anger due to inequality because such anger would also target democracy

Ethics in Criminal Justice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 4

Ethics in Criminal Justice - Essay Example Blagojevich was, ultimately, found guilty of nearly 20 different counts of soliciting bribes, conspiracy to illicit and accept bribes, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit extortion, and attempted extortion.(Davey, and Emma G. Fitzsimmons ) But why does it exist? What causes people within politics to attempt such acts? What can be done to deter and prevent it? In order to get the answers to these questions it is necessary to understand more about corruption in government. Political corruption has a very strict definition, in that it involves political decision makers at high levels of the political system. When the people who are charged with the responsibility of making and upholding the laws are the very people who are corrupt, that is political corruption. It is widely accepted that corruption and the temptation to commit it is highly dependent on a person’s ability to believe they can successfully â€Å"get away with it.† The act of bribery, extortion, selling votes, accepting gifts and kickbacks are all reprehensible behaviors that can undermine the people’s faith in their elected officials. The overall cost of corruption is, also, rather high, and manifest in three typical ways. The first is, is the funds required to finance the bribes to get the favorable treatment , financing meetings, maintaining silence, and negotiating all add cost to whatever endeavor the involved group are attempting to illicit. The second, corruptio n can undermine the efficiency of the free market. Lastly, it can misrepresent resources towards the projects that generate â€Å"payoffs.†(Lanza, 2004) There are two ways that are encouraged to help curtail and deter corruption. The first is eliminating opportunity. Much in the way businesses are working harder and harder to fortify their companies from potential fraud. They structure their company to make the likelihood of successfully succeeding in committing fraud more and more risky to attempt.

Greek and Roman Art Essay Example for Free

Greek and Roman Art Essay Greek sculptures embody a lot of things and meanings. The way they create a certain object reflects to their psychological state that human beings are ‘the measure of things. ’ One of the known Greek artists during the ancient times is Praxiteles. He is the most famous ancient Greek artist because of his countless masterpieces such as the Aphrodite of Knidos and Nike Adjusting Her Sandal. Another well-known magnum opus that is crafted by Praxiteles is Hermes and the infant god Dionysus. Hermes and the infant god Dionysus is created by Praxiteles in a way that it is anchored to his ultimate decision of altering the rules and principles of the standard and ideal body proportions. It is the most famous example of an adult and child statuary. Praxiteles traces the Kephisodotos step by creating and sculpting a piece delineating a relationship between two figures (Praxiteles, 2008). This sculpture is found at Olympia where it has been commissioned for the said sanctuary. It conveys and expresses the secular world of the period (Hermes and the Infant Dionysus, n/d). Due to the artist’s manipulation and alteration of the standard body proportion, the adult on the artwork which is Hermes, is portrayed as tall and slender, standing in calm, tranquil and relax position. His figure encompasses various lines—from vertical, horizontal, curvilinear and spiral. Vertical lines are visible in his nose, neck and lower part of his leg. Horizontal lines are evident in his eyes and lips. Spiral lines are noticeable in his twisted and curly hair. Curvilinear dominates the whole figure—from Hermes’ face down to his feet. His phallus is not rendered. Nevertheless, a part of the male organ is still exposed and depicted. On the other hand, the baby figure, which is Dionysus, is illustrated in such a way that it is carried by Hermes in his left arm. The infant is just composed of curvilinear. He faces sideways making its physical features appear summarily represented. The cloth that wraps his lower body demonstrates horizontal lines, as well as the trunk of the tree which functions as support of the sculpture per se. On the contrary, Roman sculptures are said to be copied in Greek’s even though they are said to be purely Roman in origin and conception. Some statues are imitations and pastiche of more than one Greek original; some are combinations of Greek gods/athletes’ image and Roman head (Department of Greek Art and Roman, n/d). One of the ancient Roman sculptures which is said and believed that is copied from Greek’s is The Hope Dionysos. It embodies a retrospective Greco-Roman style (Hemingway, 2007). It is crafted during the late 1st century A. D. but during the 18th century it is restored by Vincenzo Pacetti (Vincenzo Pacetti. The Hope Dionysos: 1990. 247, 2006). The main figure in the sculpture is Dionysos. He is portrayed standing at ease and his left arm is resting on a female figure traditionally recognized as Spes, the embodiment and representation of hope. Dionysos wears a panther skin overlapping his chiton while a cloak envelops around his upper right arm and shoulder (Vincenzo Pacetti. The Hope Dionysos: 1990. 247, 2006). The statue is composed of various intricate lines—horizontal, vertical, curvilinear and spiral. The robes of the two figures possess a myriad of draperies which illustrate various vertical lines; however the cloth that is on Spes head shows curvatures. The two sculptures are depicted realistically with their complete body parts as compared to some statues that are lacking with head, arms or feet. Both sculptures possess two figures at the same time. If Hermes and the infant Dionysus showcases Dionysus as a baby, The Hope Dionysos illustrates the grown up one. The former is accompanied by a known Greek god Hermes, the latter is escorted with archaistic female figure, Spes. If Hermes is naked, Dionysos is very well-wrapped. The two statuaries imply dichotomies: the main focus (Hermes and Dionyos) and the out-of-focus (baby Dionysos and Spes), adult and baby, male and female. References Department of Greek and Roman Art. n. d. Roman Copies of Greek Statues. In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000. Retrieved January 15, 2009 from http://www. metmuseum. org/toah/hd/rogr/hd_rogr. htm. Hemingway, Colette. (July 2007). Retrospective Styles in Greek and Roman Sculpture. In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000. Retrieved January 15, 2009 from http://www. metmuseum. org/toah/hd/grsc/hd_grsc. htm. â€Å"Hermes with the Infant Dionysus. † n. d. The Museum of Antiquities Collection. Retrieved January 15, 2009 from http://www. usask. ca/antiquities/Collection/Hermes. html. Praxiteles. (2008). PEOPLE: Ancient Greece. Retrieved January 15, 2009 from http://www. ancientgreece. com/s/People/Praxiteles/. Vincenzo Pacetti: The Hope Dionysos-1990. 247. (October 2006). In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000. Retrieved January 15, 2009 from http://www. metmuseum. org/toah/hd/grsc/ho_1990. 247. htm . List of Figures Hermes and the infant Dionysus. n. d. Greek Art: Hermes and Dionysus of Praxiteles. Retrieved January 15, 2009 from http://www. mlahanas. de/Greeks/Arts/HermesPraxiteles. htm. The Hope Dionysos. (October 2006). Vincenzo Pacetti: The Ho

Crowdsourcing As An Effective E Commerce Strategy Business Essay

Crowdsourcing As An Effective E Commerce Strategy Business Essay ABSTRACT With the growing trend of social websites and their usage for e-commerce activities, crowdsourcing has become an innovative strategy to conduct e-commerce. The paper aims to explore on its effectiveness as an e-commerce strategy, firstly by trying to understand the history of crowdsourcing. Secondly the paper will look at the methodology and definitions of various types of crowdsourcing. Thirdly, the paper will define how crowdsourcing is used in e-commerce. Next, some case studies of business that uses crowdsourcing are discussed, with analysis on its success and failures. Finally, the paper will provide suggestion on how crowdsourcing can be an effective strategy. 1. INTRODUCTION Introduced by Jeff Howe and Mark Robinson in the June 2006 issue of Wired magazine, the term crowdsourcing describes a process of how new web-based businesses organize labor, by outsourcing tasks, traditionally performed by contractors or employees, to a community (usually online) through what amounts to an open call for proposals. Howe offers the following definition: Simply defined, crowdsourcing represents the act of a company or institution taking a function once performed by employees and outsourcing it to an undefined (and generally large) network of people in the form of an open call. This can take the form of peer-production (when the job is performed collaboratively), but is also often undertaken by sole individuals. The crucial prerequisite is the use of the open call format and the large network of potential laborers. (Howe, 2006) Howe further explained that true crowdsourcing involves a company accepting the idea received, processing it and producing for sale; and the idea provider being rewarded, in most cases, monetarily. This is to differentiate crowdsourcing from open sourcing, which is a cooperative activity initiated and voluntarily undertaken by members of public. In other words, crowdsourcing happens when a company posts a problem online, individuals in the community offer solutions to the problem, the winning ideas are awarded some form of a monetary reward, and the company mass produces the idea for its own gain. In another article, titled Power of Crowdsourcing, by Matt H. Evans, he states that Crowdsourcing taps into the global world of ideas, helping companies work through a rapid design process. From both definitions, it can be understood that crowdsourcing needs a channel that is able to reach out to the masses to be effective, and the most obvious choice is the internet. This is further complimented by the rise of Web 2.0 technologies, whereby individuals are able to interact and define the web rather than being passive browsers of the web. This makes crowdsourcing even more attractive as it allows companies to tap into the potential vast collective intelligence of the masses to achieve their business strategy. As such, e-commerce businesses (businesses that uses the internet to handle the buying and selling of products or services) are the most likely adopter of crowdsourcing technique for their e-commerce strategy. E-commerce strategy is the plan and courses of action that a company undertakes to offer its products and services on the internet to achieve its business goal. For companies that have existing offline operations, e-commerce strategy will most likely be focused on integrating its offline operations into an online presence. This will include how to best represent the company online, the infrastructure and framework required to do so and the range of activities needed to promote the companys core activities on the World Wide Web. Another reason that crowdsourcing is gaining popularity is because in todays globalised market, competition in innovation is very fierce and in-house research and development is getting more costly. As mentioned in The Global Brain, by Nambisan Sawhney, 2008, These forces rapidly decreasing product life cycles, decreasing internal innovation productivity, and global competition together are creating a Red Queen effect  [1]  in innovation: Companies have to invest more and more just to maintain their market position. This make crowdsourcing a viable option, as it allows the tapping into the vast intelligence of the masses, like what former Sun Chief Scientist, Bill Joy says, Most of the smart people in the world dont work for your company. More importantly, this intelligence can be obtained at relatively low cost. 2. POPULUARITY OF CROWDSOURCING To understand the current popularity of crowdsourcing, this paper has referred to PBworks ( http://crowdsourcingexamples.pbworks.com/ ), one of the worlds largest provider of hosted collaboration solutions for business and education, which has a wiki that provides a comprehensive list of companies that uses crowdsourcing. In addition to the wiki, as the list provided by PBworks is purely textual, this paper has also referred to Grant Silverstones article, Friday Fact Box Crowdsourcing ( http://www.gottaquirk.com/2010/01/29/friday-fact-box-crowdsourcing/ ), for graphical representation of the list. Extracted are two graphical breakdowns of industries that use crowdsourcing, one group using purely crowdsourcing as their business strategy, and the other using crowdsourcing as an add-on initiative to their current business, without disrupting their own core business strategy. In the chart (Fig 1.1), it shows the current industry breakdown of companies using Crowdsourcing as their main business strategy. According to PBworks, out of the listed 141 companies, the majority, or 43% belongs to general business, such as marketing, sales, advertising and finance. This is followed by Design (15%) and then Media (13%), while Tourism makes up the least at 1%. Fig 1.1 (Source: Grant Silverstone, Friday Fact Box Crowdsourcing) In addition to that, in Fig 1.2, it shows that of these 141 companies, a huge majority comes from USA (65%), Europe (13%) and UK (6%), while Brazil, Africa and Russia only make up 1% each. Fig 1.2 (Source: Grant Silverstone, Friday Fact Box Crowdsourcing) From these two charts, it can be derived that majority of companies using crowdsourcing efforts are those in industries that traditionally requires large community networks (such as sales, news and marketing) and creativity capacity (such as design, advertisement, media). While industries that requires specific skills (such as Education) and are more systematic (such as Science and IT) are less popular with companies to consider using crowsourcing as a business strategy. Moreover, crowdsourcing is mainly engaged in western countries, which the economy and infrastructure are much more developed. This is an important factor as mentioned earlier that a good networking channel is needed for the success of crowdsourcing. Next in Fig 1.3, it shows the industry breakdown of companies that initiated crowdsourcing efforts to complement their current business strategy, with the majority from IT at 33%. It is also interesting to note too that nearly all these companies in the list are big players in the industry, such as Adobe, BMW, Nokia and so on. Fig 1.3 (Source: Grant Silverstone, Friday Fact Box Crowdsourcing) From the chart and the list, it can be seen that currently, crowdsourcing is still a new idea and not attractive enough to draw companies to venture into it as a complement process to their existing business strategy. However, big companies, with huge resources, do see the potential of crowdsourcing and are able to invest into it. This is also the reason why IT industry is the major contributor to crowdsourcing initiatives, as they have the knowledge and expertise to tap on the internet to maximize crowdsourcing potential. 3. Examples of Business using Crowdsourcing To understand how crowdsourcing is currently being used in businesses and its effectiveness, it is necessary to look at real cases. The paper will look into 3 companies, each with distinctive methods of engaging crowdsourcing, namely Threadless, Amazon Mechanical Turk and Cambrian House. Threadless Threadless is a community-centered online apparel store launched in 2000 by Jake Nickell and Jacob DeHart, with $1,000 in seed money after entering and meeting in an Internet t-shirt design contest. They wanted to start their own design competition, but instead of hiring a jury, they decided to let the designers themselves pick the winner. Source: Threadless: http://www.threadless.com How it works In the beginning, members of the Threadless community will submit their t-shirt designs online, where the designs are then put to a member vote. The winner would get free T-shirts bearing the winning design, while everyone else would get to buy the shirt. Currently, Threadlesss receives on average, one thousand designs in any given week, of which, only ten designs from the voted top hundred to print and sell through an online store. DeHart and Nickell also increased the bounty paid to these winners to $2,000 in cash, a $500 gift certificate ($200 in cash if they trade in the certificate), as well as an additional $500 for every reprint. This is because limited batches are printed and sold out shirts will only be re-printed if there is enough demand from customers requesting for a re-print. On occasion, special contests will run in association with various sponsors. These contests set a theme for designs, with a selection of additional prizes, often related to the sponsor, being awarded to the chosen winner. How Successful was Threadless The Threadless community is currently six hundred thousand strong, producing about one thousand designs for voting each week. In 2006, Threadless had managed to generate $17 million in revenues and it is still growing rapidly. Threadless boasts, according to Jeffrey Kamikoff (Threadless Chief Creative Officer), incredible profit margins. Each shirt that sells for between $12 to $25 is produced at a cost of just $5. Moreover, Threadless need not do any advertising or marketing, as the community itself will self-perform such functions. The designers will persuade friends and community members to view and vote for their work. Threadless will also rewards the community for those who submit photos of themselves wearing a Threadless shirt or refers a friend who buys a shirt with store credits (worth $1.50 and $3.00 respectively). This crowdsourcing strategy helps Threadless to sell an average of ninety thousand T-shirts a month. However, Threadless had also suffered by their own success. Their spring sale in March 2008 resulted in serious server downtime, resulting in the offer of $50 vouchers to inconvenienced customers and the promise to never ever let this happen again forever ever. Eighteen months later, a special one day sale to tie into the 09/09/09 date saw Threadless pummeled again by insane amounts of traffic, with users reporting inability to access the site for extended periods some never getting through. The customer experience was impacted by such a lack of planning of traffic which was to be expected from a company dealing with such huge social community. It was only from these experiences that Threadless had begun to look into better managing their wildly fluctuating levels of traffic in their infrastructure. Amazon Mechanical Turk Amazon Mechanical Turk is a service launched on November 2, 2005 by Amazon.com, which was initially invented for in-house use by Peter Cohen as a service to find duplicates among its web pages describing products. As of 2010, though still in beta, Mechanical Turk has grown to be a crowdsourcing internet marketplace for work where businesses (known as Requesters) publish tasks (known as Human Intelligence Tasks or HITS), and workers (known as Providers) complete them for a monetary payment that was set by the Requesters. Amazon Mechanical Turk gives businesses immediate access to a diverse, global, on-demand, scalable workforce and gives Workers a selection of thousands of tasks to complete whenever and wherever its convenient. Source: Amazon Mechanical Turk: https://www.mturk.com How it works Amazon Mechanical Turk, as mentioned is a market place for tasks that computer and machines cannot do, or cannot do it precise enough. These tasks can only be done by human intelligence, such as writing reviews or detecting specific objects in images. The process of Mechanical Turk is firstly, companies will post jobs (HITS) at MTurk (Amazon Mechanical Turk Market Place), then deposit the HITS payout amount into their MTurk account. Next, workers, who are registered members of MTurks, will look for tasks that they feel that they can perform. Once they take up the task, they will be assigned to it, but there will not be any contract. These HITS are tasks that are fairly easy and quick to execute, with most of them being able to be completed under 20 to 30 seconds or less and payout at about 10 to 50 cents. After the HIT is completed and submitted, Amazon Mechanical Turk will automatically transfer the money from the Requesters prepaid HIT balance to the workers Amazon gift certificate account. With the payout, workers can choose to either transfer the money to their bank account or to their amazon.com gift certificate balance. For every task performed, Amazon will take a cut. In addition, Requesters can also give bonus to workers w hom they like the task done. Besides the Official MTurk website, there is another website, Turker Nation (http://www.turkernation.com ), a forum for workers and requestors to meet and discuss the work at hand. Issues with Hits are discussed here. The site is independent from Amazon, and is not related to Amazon in any way. How Successful was Mechanical Turk Since its launch in 2005, the number of worker members in Amazon Mechanical Turk had grown in numbers. By March 2007, there were reportedly more than 100,000 workers in over 100 countries. MTurk is popular with companies as they find that HITS are a very affordable way to outsource large groups of similar tasks that are very simple to complete. Companies find the MT task auction model attractive because it reduces payroll costs of having to employ normal workers to perform such tasks. However, while Companies or Requesters find the cost of engaging MTurk to complete HITS attractive, there are many criticisms. As HITS are typically simple, repetitive tasks and users are paid often only a few cents to complete them, many have criticized Mechanical Turk as a market place for slaves. Moreover, workers are paid as contractors rather than employees, requesters enjoy tax advantages and low cost, and they also avoid laws regarding minimum wage, overtime, and workers compensation. Workers, on the other hand, must report their income as self-employment income. In addition, some requesters have taken advantage of workers by having them do the tasks, then rejecting their submission in order to avoid paying. Amazon.com does not monitor the service and refers all complaints to the poster of the HIT. Nevertheless, in view of such criticism, MTurk is still attracting workers, especially those living in second and third-world economies, because the impact of earning those few extra dollars will be magnified many times over. Cambrian House Launched in 2006, Cambrian House started as a crowdsourcing community that pioneered the idea of harnessing the power of the crowd to create ideas for websites and software products. Its mantra is You think it; crowds test it; crowds build it; you sell it; you profit. Source: Cambrian House: http://www.cambrianhouse.com How it works Cambrian House calls itself a community of people with broad talents and interests to create web-based products that the world wants, markets those products, and shares in the profits. They cater to people with no time to pursue new ideas or anyone with a vision and motivated to submit ideas. The way Cambrian House works is, firstly, Individuals register and create a profile of their capabilities in its website. They can then participate within the community by initiating ideas. The community will then test these ideas and give the approval on those that are feasible. Next, Cambrian House staff will create a brochure site to test the winners popularity and usability within the community. If the idea survives, the contributor will then seek people with passion and skills in the community to construct or co-develop the commercial version of the idea, by awarding them with Royalty Points (the amount you receive for coming up with an original idea) or Cambro (Cambrian Houses currency, 1 Cambro = $1 USD). Cambrian House will fund the project and if needed, they can also seek additional funding from the community. Once the product is created, the project champions can then seek marketers, business development professionals, and or SEO (Search Engine Optimization) experts in the Cambrian House community to deal with the promoting, selling and delivery of the product. Finally, once the product starts to sell, every member that contributed will earn Royalty Points or Cambro that had been negotiated with the business champion. In short, every member in the Cambrian House community can participate by not just giving ideas but also in bringing members ideas to life. There are no limits to number of projects members can join. During every development stage, everyone involved will also participate as peer-reviewers at select decision gates along the way to measure the individuals contribution. Although Cambrian House crowdsources the conception and creation of its products, ideas are subject to editorial review by a core team and actual production is subject to a set of quality guidelines. In the case of conflicting code or design contributions, the community decides which the best is. An example of how Cambrian House involves in every project is its first product (a video game) which was emerged from the community forums and seemed popular, so it risked $8,000CAD on a preliminary website to promote the game. It sailed through the market test selling hundreds of pre-orders at half-price ($9.95CAD) in a single weekend. That response encouraged Cambrian House to invest more for the next development stage. Cambrian Houses eventual goal is to turn each project into a separate, independently funded firm, but only after it has been market-validated. How Successful was Cambrian House The original Cambrian House community was deemed successful as it managed to achieve the most important component of crowdscourcing by attracting 50,000 plus members and more than 7000 ideas from the crowd. However, Cambrian House did not realized that although the crowd was great at thinking and testing, it was less interested when it came to the building element of Cambrian Houses model. Moreover, there are weaknesses in the idea-community model which include the challenge of convincing users to study and vote a rapidly growing pool of ideas, of which some are of relatively low quality, the management difficulty of distributed development, and the large number of duplicate submissions. After unsuccessfully trying to raise a new round of capital, in May 2008, Cambrian House announced the sale of much its assets to the New York-based venture capital company Spencer Trask. While Cambrian House will carry on as a vendor of Crowdsourcing software, its existence as a crowdsourcing community had come to a close. In reflection, Cambrian House CEO Michael Sikorsky states in a letter (excerpt): Indeed, our model failed. In short: we became a destination people loved to bookmark more than they loved to actively visit. The limiting reagent in the startup equation is not ideas, but amazing founding teams. A key assumption for us, which proved out NOT true: given a great idea with great community support and great market test data, we would be able to find (crowdsource) a team willing to execute it OR we could execute it ourselves. We needed amazing founding teams for each of the ideas this is where our model fell short. What we learned: it would have been better to back great teams with horrible ideas because most of the heavy lifting kept falling back on us, or a few select community members. A vicious cycle was created leading all of us to get more and more diffuse. Hence: the wisdom of crowds worked well in the model, but it was our participation of crowds aspect which broke down. Trying to find people willing or capable to take on the offspring (our outputs) of the Cambrian House model was hard and/or incredibly time consuming. (Michael Sikorsky, 2008) The lesson from Cambrian House is that the crowd only is not enough as it needs to be managed and needs an inspiring leader to guide it. 6. How can Crowdsourcing be an Effective E-Commerce Strategy? After looking at the definition and cases of crowdsourcing, it is understood that crowdsourcing has the potential to help e-commerce businesses gain competitive advantage, but like all business strategies, it is does not guarantee success. Nevertheless, crowdsourcing can be effective as an e-commerce strategy by helping companies in 5 ways. Crowdsourcing, firstly, can help companies to do market prediction by using the crowd to understand market desires. Companies can use the crowd to test the appeal of any new business ideas. Besides that, companies can derive from the crowd, emerging market desires and trends. Secondly, in addition to the knowledge of market desire, companies can draw information from crowdsourcing for product and business innovation. Based on information drawn from the crowd, companies can prioritize new business ideas, conduct product tests, rank next best enhancements with existing products and uncover methods to reduce costs and improve service. Thirdly, as mentioned, the knowledge of the crowd is very powerful. As such, crowdsourcing is a good option to solve problems that are difficult to solve internally with the companies current resources, by inviting answers or solutions from the crowd. Companies can also collaborate with the crowd to find new scientific discovery. Fourthly, besides solving internal problems, crowdsourcing can also help to tackle external issues, such as marketing. Companies can invite crowd to help in the creation of campaigns. Lastly, crowdsourcing is relatively much cheaper than hiring workforce for doing similar jobs. As companies only need to reward those who had contributed in the crowd, and it is usually not of huge amount, crowdsourcing is able to help companies to cut cost. With the above it mind, crowdsourcing effectiveness depends on how and under what environment it is used. Based on all the information gathered, the paper has come up with a few key points to effective crowdsourcing. Firstly, the crowd that crowdsourcing wants to tap into must be of substantial size. For example, if Threadless has only a member base of 100, and maintains its process of choosing ten winning designs every week, it will come a time whereby members might lose interest or doubt the integrity of these winning designs. Moreover, one of the characteristic of crowdsourcing is that the crowd is to represent the market, as such, the larger the community or crowd, the better the representation it will be. Secondly, companies must understand the crowd. When companies use crowdsourcing, they are usually targeting a specific community, which is formed by a common interest. Therefore, if companies want to crowdsource, they will need to know the community strengths and weaknesses. For example, if Threadless decides to request its community to submit computer programming works, it might not get anything or the works might be of inferior qualities. Thirdly, companies need to know what they want and need from the crowd. This is one important factor that determines the effectiveness of crowdsourcing. For example, in Amazon Mechanic Turk, if requesters post HITs with ambiguous requirements, the workers might have difficulty understanding what is needed of them and provide works that are irrelevant or not to the intended requirements. This will cause many rejected tasks, which is a waste of time of the companies and crowd, thus causing inefficiency. Next, companies need to recognize the contributions of crowd. Monetary reward is a way to acknowledge the crowds contribution, but usually crowd works mainly not for monetary reason. Participants of crowdsourcing are often leisure users, whose main motivation to participate is to be recognized and feel they are part of the community. The more affiliated they feel towards the community, the more willing they will be in providing help in tasks presented. Lastly, companies need to have adequate resources to manage the crowd and support the output from the crowd. This is one mistake that many companies make when they do crowdsourcing, as they thought the crowd will be able to contribute in every part of their business plan. This is generally not the case, as experienced by Cambrian House. As mentioned in the previous point, the crowd is usually made up of leisure participants, as such, they will be more willing to engage in task that requires less effort like providing ideas and suggestions, as compared to more tedious task like building the actual product which will be avoided. 7. Conclusion The above discussion has shown that crowdsourcing, when used correctly can be highly effective as an ecommerce strategy. It is able to tap into the power of the crowd for knowledge which is virtually unlimited at very low cost. Just like Threadless, by keeping the crowd motivated, business will grow as knowledge from crowd grows. However, it is important to note that there are situations where crowdsourcing is not possible or impractical. First of all, jobs that are confidential in nature, such as lawyers and accountants, and high level jobs, like business process planning, are not possible to be crowdsourced. As shown by Cambrian House, the crowd needs to be monitored by the company and provide resources when needed for successful manifestation of ideas. As such, it is not possible to fully crowsource a business process to the crowd. Internal workforce is still needed as the crowd might not fully understand the companies business models and goals and these internal employees are able to monitor and ensure the crowds contributions are within the companies guidelines and process. Moreover, too much reliance on the crowd could be construed as unethical and open the company up to criticism about the true nature of its social mission. By using Amazon Mechanical Turk, many companies have been seen as operating virtual sweat shops. As such, physical workforce is needed to balance the image of the company.

Spasticity Following Stroke: a Literature Review

Spasticity Following Stroke: a Literature Review ABBREVIATIONS UMN: UPPER MOTOR NEURON SPASM: SUPPORT PROGRAMME FOR ASSEMBLY OF DATABASE FOR SPASTICITY MEASUREMENT CNS: CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM PMS: PASSIVE MUSCLE STRETCHING TS: TRICEPS SURAE TA: TIBIALIS ANTERIOR ROM: RANGE OF MOTION INTRODUCTION: Spasticity is a major disabling symptom that most commonly arises after stroke, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, some traumatic brain injuries and other central nervous system (CNS) lesion (Dietz and Sinkjaer 2007). Lesion of the cortico-fugal pathway along with the pyramidal tracts, at any level, like cortex, brainstem, internal capsule or spinal cord results in spasticity (Carr et al. 1995). The term spasticity was derived from the Greek word ‘spasticus’ meaning ‘to pull or to tug’ (Ghai et al. 2013). The definition of spasticity that has been formerly cited is that of Lance in 1980: ‘Spasticity is motor disorder characterised by a velocity dependent increase in tonic stretch reflexes (muscle tone) with exaggerated tendon jerks, resulting from hyper-excitability of the stretch reflex, as one component of the upper motor neurone (UMN) syndrome.’(Brown 1994). Though this definition is useful for diagnosis, yet for the purpose of understan ding and managing the effects of inappropriate muscle actions after stroke, it is too restrictive (Bhakta 2000). Recently SPASM (Support Programme for Assembly of database for Spasticity Measurement) redefined spasticity as â€Å"disordered sensori-motor control, resulting from an UMN lesion, presenting as intermittent or sustained involuntary activation of muscles† (Mirbagheri et al. 2009). For the purpose of study the clinicians have divided the UMN syndrome into ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ effects. The characteristics of the negative features are loss of dexterity, weakness and easy fatigability on the other hand spasticity, increased tendon reflexes, extensor and flexor spasm, clonus etc are the features of positive UMN syndrome. The later definition of spasticity includes all the characteristics of positive UMN syndrome excluding its negative features and the biomechanical changes in the joints and soft tissues (Mirbagheri et al. 2009). The negati ve features of UMN syndrome are regarded to be more disabling than the positive features (Carr et al. 1995) but recent studies have showed that spasticity adds on to the impairment of function and to limitation of activity for the affected person (Bovend’Eerdt et al. 2008). The core feature of spasticity is increase in stretch reflex, manifested as hypertonus. Muscle tone is defined as the tension of a muscle due to involuntary contractions of its motor units; it is determined both by the passive elasticity of muscular tissues, the viscoelastic properties of the fibrillary proteins contained within each muscle fibre and by the active (though not continuous) contraction of muscle in response to the reaction of the nervous system (Grabowski and Tortora, 2003). Alternately active and inactive motor units help in maintaining normal tone in a muscle. Any imbalance in the input from central motor pathways like the cortico-reticulo-spinal and other descending pathways to the inter-neuronal circuit of spinal cord results in alteration in the involuntary contraction in a muscle. The main tract restricting the spinal reflex activity is the dorsal reticulospinal tract that runs along the lateral spino thalamic tract. It arises from the ventero medial reticular for mation which has less facilitatorty control over the cortical motor areas, thereby augmenting the inhibitory drive. The main excitatory pathway also arising in the brainstem is the medial reticulo spinal tract. Damage to these tracts give rise to a net loss of inhibitory control leading to increased alpha motor neurone excitability at the segmental cord level and subsequent increase in muscle tone. Several studies also claim that peripheral neural changes also contribute to the increased muscle tone. Muscle tone has two components, neural involving CNS and musculoskeletal, where muscles are involved (Barnes, M. P. et al. 2003). Both the components help in maintaining normal muscle tone. Normal tone is the slight amount of constant tension in the healthy muscles offering small resistance to displacement (Barnes, Michael P. and Johnson 2008). There is change in mechanical, visco-elastic properties of muscle fibres as a result of paresis and immobilisation after an UMN lesion. Activation of actin and myosin cross bridges also increases muscle tone (Lee et al, 2005). CNS and neural pathways maintain tone by overlapping actin and myosin filaments on muscle contraction. Insufficient contraction results in decreased muscle tone due to insufficient development of tension (Grabowski and Tortora 2003). Through the phasic and tonic stretch reflexes the muscle spindle plays an important role in regulating the muscle tone (Cameron-Tucker 1983). These muscle spindles can be adjusted in terms of their response to stretching. Spasticity is generated due to the over activity of the alpha motor neurons. Over activity occurs when the monosynaptic input via Ia afferent fibres and polysynaptic afferent input via the Golgi tendon organs and cutaneous receptors loose descending inhibition from the cerebral cortex and basal ganglia, which is relayed through the dorsal and medial reticulospinal and vestibulospinal tracts. Spinal inter-neurons are responsible for presynaptic and reciprocal inhibition of Ia fibres. Due to the loss of this inhibition inappropriate muscle co-contraction occur disabling voluntary limb movement (Bhakta 2000). The course of development of both cerebral and spinal spasticity after an insult is slow in humans, except for the cases of high brain stem lesion like traumatic brain injury where the increase in the tone is immediate (Carr et al. 1995). The time gap between the injury and appearance of spasticity may vary from days to months, depending upon the level of lesion (Ghai et al. 2013). The effect of spasticity ranges from mild muscle stiffness to severe, very painful and uncontrollable muscle spasm. If left untreated spasticity gives rise to many problems like pain, spasm, contracture and deformity leading to a loss of mobility and dexterity, problem in self hygiene, inability to wear orthotics hence resulting in decreased functioning, participation and low self esteem (Ghai et al. 2013). A multidisciplinary approach is required for the effective management of spasticity taking into consideration other variables that might affect treatment outcome. Aim of treatment should include prevention of abnormal limb or trunk posture and facilitation of movement in the context of functional activities (Bhakta 2000). Secondary to the neural changes there are dramatic changes of the structural and mechanical properties of the spastic muscle. A review conducted by Jared et al. concluded that the following changes occur in a spastic muscle: a) alteration of the size of muscle fibre and the type of fibre distribution; b) morphologically and biomechanically measured there is proliferation of extracellular matrix material; c) increased stiffness in the spastic cell muscle; d) compared to the normal muscle there is inferior mechanical properties of extra cellular matrix in the spastic muscle (Foran et al. 2005). As a management of spasticity the researchers have tried to alter the motor neuron excitability by many interventions like electrical stimulation (Bajd et al. 1985), pressure (Leone and Kukulka 1988), muscle tapping (Belanger et al. 1989), vibration (Gillies et al. 1969), cooling (Bell and Lehmann 1987), massage (Sullivan et al. 1991) and stretch (Kunkel et al. 1993, Avela et al. 1999). Among all of these, stretching has been intensively used as it is safe, economical and convenient (Tsai, KUEN-HORNG et al. 2001). Stretching is the process of applying tension to the soft tissue structures like muscle, tendon, and vascular, dermal, connective, neural tissues for elongation. Stretching can be applied mechanically (example- with dynamometer or an intelligent feedback control device) offering well controlled intervention and manually, which is difficult to standardise but represents clinical practice better. Stretching changes the viscoelastic, structural and excitatory property of the muscle. (Nielsen et al. 2007). However many neural as well as non neural property of stretching remains unclear. Stretching aims on decreasing muscle tone, maintain or increase soft tissue extensibility leading to improvement in function (Barnes, Michael P. and Johnson 2008). Lots of variation can be done while implementing stretching as an intervention. The amount of tension, the duration of the stretch, the velocity of stretch, the number of repetition can all be varied. LITERATURE REVIEW: A study was done by Harvey et al. in the year 2000 on the â€Å"Effects Of Four Weeks Of Daily Stretching On Ankle Mobility In Patients With Spinal Cord Injuries†. 14 recently injured subjects with paraplegia and quadriplegia were taken from two spinal injury units in Sydney, Australia. Their ankle was stretched into dorsiflexion, continuously for 30 minutes with a torque of 7.5 Nm for every weekday, for 4 consecutive weeks. The main outcome measure was measuring the torque angle in knee flexed and extended position. Measurements were taken pre-test and post test. Post test measurements were also taken thrice I,e, during the study (2nd week), just after the study (4th week) and one week after the study (5th week). Intervention was given by a custom made stretching device that is able to give ankle stretch. The baselines of all the subjects were same. The result showed that even after stretching for a longer time than usual there was no significant difference in the post test value in any of the three parameters from pre test. Hence the study concluded that there is no significant change in ankle mobility after 30 minutes of stretching for 4 weeks in SCI patients. The strength of the study is good, with random allocation, blinding of assessor, similar baseline of all the subjects but the intervention device needed to be more standardised. The study has a score of 8 on PEDro scale of assessment. A study by Tsai et al. 2001 examined the effect of a single session of prolonged muscle stretch (PMS) on the spastic muscle. 17 spastic hemiplegic patients were selected for the study and as an intervention PMS was given on the triceps surae (TS) muscles by standing on the tilt table with feet dorsiflexed for 30 minutes. Here the outcome measures were Modified Ashworth scale of the TS, the H/M ratio of TS and the F/M ratio of tibialis anterior (TA) and passive range of motion (ROM) of ankle dorsiflexion,. The measurements were taken pre test, post test and 45 minutes after the test. ROM was measured with a goniometer and electromiograph was used to perform nerve stimulation and reflex recording. The results showed non-significant difference in the Modified Ashworth scale, significant change in the ROM of ankle dorsiflexion, F/M ratio and H/M ratio. There was increase in the passive ROM of the ankle dorsiflexion post treatment compared to pre treatment, additionally PMS reduced motor neuron excitability of the TS and increased that of TA in the post treatment. There was no significant difference of result with in immediate post test and 45 minutes after post test. The study was well written but the sample size was too small. The age of the effected patients varied from 33 till 79 years which is a very wide range and the acuteness of the patients varied from 4.5 months post attack to 79.6 months post attack. These factors may cause a problem while generalising the results and the amount of stiffness may vary with the duration of illness. Bressel and McNair (2002) did a study to compare prolonged static stretch with cyclic stretching on ankle joint stiffness, torque relaxation and gait in stroke patients. 10 community dwelling people were randomly allocated into two groups; one of the groups received single session of static stretch and the other cyclic stretch of the calf muscle for 30 minutes. There was a washout period for one week and then the group interventions were exchanged. The interventions were given by an isokinetic dynamometer that measured the torques and the angles also. Before and after treatment the time taken to walk 10 m was taken and stiffness of the ankle joint was calculated from the slope of the torque and angle curves before and immediately after the treatments. Over the 30 minutes stretch the percentage of the decrease in peak passive torque was the torque relaxation achieved. Results showed that there was significant decrease in ankle stiffness in both the intervention but there was not much significant difference between the post test values of the two interventions. The amount of torque relaxation was 53% greater in static stretching than that of cyclic stretching. And the 10 m walk duration did not have any significant difference pre and post test. The sample size of the study was very small to generalise the results and the wash over period between the two sessions were of just one week. Since the prolonged effect of the stretching is unknown hence it can’t be commented that whether there was any residual effect of the previous session that may have affected the results of the second session. Nowhere in the study blinding was done hence there may be a chance of being bias from the assessor. The baselines of both the groups were not similar. A study by Yeh et al. (2005) compared the effectiveness of constant-torque prolonged muscle stretching (PMS) treatment in subjects with ankle hypertonia. The study design was a pre and post test analysis. 30 subjects suffering from hemiplegia and calf muscle hypertonia were given stretching device using a motor driven stretching device for 30 minutes in constant torque or constant angle mode. The main outcome measures were Modified Ashworth scale, passive range of motion and viscoelastic property of the planter flexors were measured pre and post treatment. Result showed significant improvement in all the measures, but the in the viscoelastic component the constant torque showed more evident changes compared to the constant angle measure. This study proved that there is significant reduction in spasticity after a single session of PMS. The methodology of the study was appropriate and the analysis of the data leading to the result was done well. the study also mention about the future scope of study by changing the mode of stretch from constant to intermittent. Neither the subjects, nor the assessor was blinded in the study, so the question of bias remains. A systemic review done by Bovend’Eerdt et al. (2008) was the first review done on the effects of stretching in spasticity. Studies were taken from databases like Medline, Cochrane library, CINHAL, Web of Science, PEDro and Alied and Complementary medicine for review. 10 RCTs and 11 clinical trials were assessed. Randomised control trails were assessed on PEDro scale for methodologic quality and the other clinical trials were assessed using data extraction form containing 13 items from CASP guidelines and CONSORT statement. The methodological qualities of the RCTs were low and there was a huge diversity on the methodology, intervention, population etc. Both manual and mechanical stretching was given. The review concludes as there is not much evidence on the basis of which the review can say if stretching on spasticity has its clinical benefit. A recent study by Gao et al. (2011) aims to investigate the changes occurring in biomechanical properties of the calf muscle–tendon unit after controlled ankle stretching in stroke survivors. Comparison was done between 10 stroke patients with ankle spasticity/contracture in one group and ten healthy subjects in the control group. 60 minute ankle stretching was given as an intervention to both the groups. Joint biomechanical properties like resistance torque, index of hysteresis and stiffness were evaluated pre- and post-intervention. Length of Achilles tendon was measured with ultrasonography. The force output of the triceps surae muscles was given in torque–angle relationship, by stimulating the calf muscles at a definite intensity across different ankle positions. The device used for intervention was an ankle stretching device with intelligent control (the velocity of stretching was inversely proportional to the joint resistance torque) was used. Pre test the stroke survivors showed significantly higher resistance torques and joint stiffness, which were to a large extent reduced after the stretching intervention, especially in dorsiflexion. Stretching also significantly improved the force production of the impaired calf muscles in stroke population under matched stimulations, along with the ankle ROM. The study interpreted that at the joint level, repeated stretching leads to increased passive ROM and decreased joint stiffness; at the muscle–tendon level, calf muscle force output improved. The study provided evidence of improvement in muscle tendon properties through stretching intervention. Apart from the small sample size the study was well written and the methodology was well described. DISCUSSION: Spasticity is a disabling and often painful condition that occur secondary to the UMN lesion that leads to hypertonicity, exaggerated reflexes, weakness of muscle and loss of dexterity. Spasticity has both neural and non neural components. Stretching is a very commonly used intervention used in clinical physiotherapy. But stretching and spasticity together is a very complicated concept. From the articles reviewed one can conclude that stretching does have a positive effect on spasticity, but its effect on the neural component of spasticity alone is yet not proved. In this study the stretching that has been described are mechanical stretches, but there are various other form of stretches given through splinting, plaster cast, weights which could not be discussed because of their low level of evidence. Many studies could not be included because there stretching was combined with strengthening, stimulation, passive motion etc. Even among the articles taken in this study there is heterog eneity in methodology of stretching, its duration, the type of stretch and even the outcome measures used. Inspite of being a component in the definition none of the articles investigated spasticity by using different velocities of displacement. Due to so much of diversity it is tough to comment on which mode of stretching is most beneficial for spasticity. To come down to a conclusion, future studies are needed to be done to find a standardised protocol of stretching for spasticity. In the future studies the outcome measure should be chosen carefully and intervention should be planed keeping the aim of the study in mind. CONCLUSION: The studies taken in this review shows a great diversity in respect to methodology, intervention, population and outcome measures. Though from the reviewed articles it can be said that stretching is effective for spasticity but there is need of good quality of studies to decide on a stretching protocol, its long term and short term effects and to come down to a conclusion as to which type of stretching is most effective in spasticity . TOTAL WORD COUNT IS 2978.