ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Introduction Society and business are closely interrelated in the aspect that society has an impact on business through policies and laws, and diverse companies influence society through their activities. One of the fields where this impact is well observed is health care because health care is one of the fundamental rights granted to every citizen and thus regulated by the state. The Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as “Obamacare,” is one of the most meaningful laws in health care enacted during the recent decade. It was put into power in 2010 and was expected to provide more American citizens with affordable insurance, expand the Medicaid program, and support innovative methods of care delivery (“Affordable Care Act (ACA), n.d.). Nevertheless, Medicaid could not provide the necessary coverage, which gave an opportunity to private insurance companies to provide affordable insurance for citizens with income below the poverty level. One of the corporations involved in insurance service under ACA is Keiser Permanente. It is an integrated managed care consortium with headquarters in Oakland, California. Founded in 1945, Keiser Permanente developed into a corporation that unites such entities as the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, and some other regional Permanente Medical Groups. The mission of the company is to “provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities” they serve (“About Keiser Permanente,” 2018, para. 3). Therefore, the corporation is likely to be influenced by the adoption of ACA, which is also aimed at the provision of affordable care. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact of the Affordable Care Act on activities related to insurance provided by Keiser Permanente. Analysis Pre-Conditions of the Affordable Care Act ACA is the law that pushed a change in the healthcare system of the United States. It was a need for time and a result of thorough preparation before it passed. ACA was expected to provide insurance coverage for more than 94 percent of Americans (“History and timeline of the Affordable Care Act (ACA),” 2018). Passage and implementation of ACA were vital for a vulnerable population such as low-income individuals. Thus, studies conducted before ACA implementation revealed from 9 to 19
Porifera or sponges do not have true digestive system. They exhibit intracellular digestion and they do not release digestive enzymes in the sponocoel to cause extracellular breakdown of nutrients. Concerning excretory system, they do not have. Porifera reproduce asexually or sexually. The later can take either of this forms; gonochoristic or hermaphroditic. On the other hand, Platyhelminthes have a digestive system that is incomplete and usually much branched. They have mouth but no anus. They exhibit both intracellular and extracellular complementary digestion In terms of reproductive system, Platyhelminthes are monoecious. Fertilization takes place internally (Margulis & Schwartz, 1988). Eggs are usually microscopic and enclosed in a shell having either direct development or having one or more stages in larva development. Examples include monogenetic trematoda and digenetic trematoda respectively. There are instances that some reproduce asexually. They do have a primitive system used to excrete consisting of a duct pores for excretion and solenocytes. The Cnidaria do not have an excretory system just like the sponges. Cnidaria exhibit both asexual and sexual reproduction. Among the common methods of asexual reproduction include regenerating, splitting horizontally, budding among others Anatomy of a mollusc Mollusc have a shell made up of calcium and protects main organs, ligaments aid in enhancing elasticity, umbo is where the shell grows, foot are short and flat located on the ventral surface and allows movement, the mantle is a thick fold tissue enveloping the organic mass as well as secreting shell, the intestine is responsible for absorption of nutrients, the cerebropleural ganglion is the nervous system made up of pedal, cerebropleural and visceral. Molluscs do have anus used to eject faecal matter, kidney is an excretory organ, the heart help in blood circulation, gills are used to take in nutrients from water, and gonad are the reproductive organs producing sperm and egg (Margulis & Schwartz, 1988). Finally the mollusc have mouth which allow food to enter, labial pulp which help in grasping food, digestive glad which produces secretion useful in digestion and stomach which receives food and stores for digestion to take place (Refer to fig. 1) Fig 1: Diagram showing internal anatomy of a Mollusc Life stages of arthropods Arthropods usually undergo three or four live stages. After mating, eggs are laid and hatched outside the body of the females. This is done on dump places. To attain adulthood, the young ones undergo a series of developmental stages, metamorphosis. The changes are more pronounced towards the end post embryonic development. Moulting or ecdysis then occurs which is a process where the insects shade off the outer parts in order to accommodate the increase in body size. The stages take either of the following, egg-nymph-adult or egg-larvae-pupa-adult. Metamorphosis refers to developme
Introduction Zamil Air Conditioners Company (ZAC) strategic analysis gives an account of the changes that have taken place to the business since the time it started up to its current modern status. It details the events that the company’s management had to tackle, for example increase in the level of competition, and gives the reaction of the management to these circumstances, which most of the time involves transforming the business or its corporate level strategy. This case study strategically analyses Zamil Air Conditioners Company. The history, development, and growth of the company over time Zamil Air Conditioners (ZAC), one of the four business units of Zamil Industrial Investment Company, is based in Damman, Saudi Arabia, with a production facility in Italy. The company is the market leader in the supply of air conditioning systems in the Middle East and the world. ZAC produces and sells a wide range of air conditioning systems for both small-scale and large-scale use in various places. The company designs, makes trials, sells, and provides services for the air conditioning systems and other products. ZAC business criteria are based on four Strategic Business Units (SUBs) that provide five in-house products and service brands under the Original Equipment Manufacturing (OEM) agreements. The five various products and services are sold under a range of brand names, “Classic, Cooline, Cool Care, Clima, Tech, Kessler Clima Tech and Geoclima,” which varies according to the targeted market. ZAC is also engaged in manufacturing of branded air conditioning systems for a number of international companies under the (OEM) accord. The company is involved in collaboration between Zamil Industrial and General Electric, referred to as Middle East Air Conditioners Limited (MEAC) (“About Us”). The four SBUs that ZAC operations are based on are the “Consumer Business Unit supporting Classic, Cooline, GE and OEM brands for consumers, Unitary & Applied Business Unit Supporting Cooline, GE and OEM brands for commercial and industrial customers.” The other two are “Zamil CoolCare providing engineering and project management services, HVAC maintenance, retrofit services and parts,” and lastly Geoclima srl which is an autonomous business that assists the other three SBUs for their need of Chillers and double skin AHU’s. The first three Strategic Business Units – “Consumer Products, Unitary & Applied Products, and CoolCare Service” base their production and marketing actions at the main headquarters in Dammam, Saudi Arabia, while Geoclima direct its manufacturing and production operations in Monfalcone, Italy, with a plant for design located in Austria. Although the four SBUs function are self-regulating, they complement one another’s operations in a way aimed at meeting the varied needs of the customers. Since its establishment in 1974 as one of the first dealers in air conditioning systems in Middle East, Zamil Air conditioners has expanded its level of production to beat the other competitors in the market. Currently, the company has an annual production capacity of 550,000 r
Introduction The term nationalism has a wide base of meaning. It could mean a person’s commitment to his or her country, the idea of existence and recognition of individual nations or even a move to acquire independence of a nation from external forces. Peppermint Candy was a film produced in Korea in the year 1999 that directly expressed the history of South Korea. This paper seeks to discuss nationalism in that Korean cinema. The paper will, with reference to the film, Peppermint Candy, look into elements of nationalism, figures and characters as well as the Korean history. The film: Peppermint Candy The film is an expression of the history of South Korean. It represents a society that existed in a time of revolutionary developments in the country. During this period of time, that majorly covers the second half of the twentieth century; the environment was characterized by extensive changes that included political and economic transformations that were transmitted to social lives of South Koreans. The film starts by a suicidal move by Yongho who jumped and crushed on a train. The film’s set up is a reflective one that takes audience back to events in the Yongho’s life experiences that could be seen to have probably resulted in his self destructive nature. As Yongho attempts his suicide mission, he makes the exclamation that he needs to go back, an expression that could possibly represent his past encounters in life. The film then takes the audience, through flash backs, to events of Yongho’s life. As illustrated, these scenes included time frames such as “spring 1999, summer 1994, spring 1987, autumn 1984, may 1980 and autumn 1979” (Class notes 9). The scene in the year 1999 depicts a man in his early forties who is jobless. He has been through a lot of frustrations in his life that caused him almost, if not all, that a man can value in life. He is for example presented in the film as a man who was previously married and was financially stable with a good civil job. He is however a victim of time that had robbed him of all these things. The film then transcends to the year 1994, in which Yongho’s private life is illuminated. He was at this time running a business that dealt with furniture and at the same time a business man in the stock market. His social life is, however, troubled as both his wife and he are involved in affairs outside their marriage. These could have been illustrations of social frustrations that were experienced by the South Korean society during this time set up. The next flashback takes the audience to the year 1987 when Yongho is a detective. He is also just married though he is involved in extra marital affairs. In the course of his duty as a police officer, he arrest citizens and in the process tortures one by the name Myongsik in attempt to maintain order in the society that is marred with protests. A further backward step in time reveals the character in the year 1984 in which he left the military service and was registered in the department of police. He is at this moment portrayed to have lost his innocence and is for example identified as violent. It i
Introduction General Motors is one of the biggest multinational corporations in the world. It is the second-largest car manufacturer after Toyota based on the 2008 sales units. The company was founded in the year 1908 and deals with cars and trucks in 34 countries. The headquarters are in Detroit but it has different branches in countries all over the world. General Motors brands include, Opel, Saab, Pontiac, Saturn, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, HUMMER, Wuling and Vauxhall. The main markets for General Motors are China, the United States, Brazil, The United Kingdom, Germany, Canada and Russia. (General Motors Corporation, 2009) Mission and Vision and Objectives The current vision of General Motors is to be the world leader in transportation products and related services. The company aims to keep the customers’ interest by continually improving its products. The core values of General Motors are Customer Enthusiasm, Teamwork, Innovation, Continuous Improvement, Integrity and Individual respect. (Crsglobe) The employees of the company ensure that they adhere to these values in their day-to-day performance. General Motors intends to use threats such as rising fuel prices, environmental changes and global warming as opportunities. (General Motors Corporation, 2009) The changes in consumer habits of the market mean that the company has to change as well. General Motors wants to change the previous perception of the company in the market as a dull and of poor quality manufacturer. It intends to do this by portraying an image of quality and environmental friendliness. The values of the customer and the environmental needs will have to be considered. The customers will be listened to directly so as to give them exactly what they want. The firm intends to persuade the stakeholders of General Motors to remain in the company by giving them financial incentives and providing them with pride to be in the company. (Scribd, 2008) The new proposed vision of General Motors is to become a world industry leader not just a follower. It will also focus on regaining the lost market share so as to become the leader in sales and market share. (Scribd, 2008) The marketing strategy that general motors use is very different from that of other automakers. It sells its products under different brand names. Therefore the marketing mix is very complex. Countries of manufacture and sale General Motors is very active in Africa. The key markets are Kenya, Egypt,
Introduction We are now in the Internet age. Emails, websites, and blogs, among others, have become a way of life. With the advent of blogs and personal websites, self-publishing is now the norm. Anyone can now become an opinion shaper or a citizen journalist. With the advent of the Internet come newer and greater challenges, particularly in the implementation of copyright law. Protection of one’s work from theft, and avoiding committing infringement are among the important things every user of the internet should be interested in. In this paper, issues related to copyright will be discussed. Questions like what is copyright and what constitutes copyright infringement will be answered, and suggestions as to why international copyright laws do not work effectively in an online environment and what copyright owners can do their creations, particularly images, will be given. At the end of the paper, it is hoped that the reader would have a clear understanding of what copyright is and of the other concepts related to copyright, as well as have a good grasp of the fact that there are things he can — and must — do to protect his works, although in a very limited way. Copyright Explained Copyright, symbolized by © (the letter C inside a circle), is a form of intellectual property (IP) protection for such materials such as literature, sound recordings, music, films and broadcasts, and images and artworks. A copyright gives the owner the exclusive right to reproduce, distribute, perform, display, or license his or her work, as well as to produce or license derivatives of his or her work (Cornell University Law School). It is not a right given to the copyright owner to publish his or her work, but to exclude others from use of the work, and to define the parameters by which the work may be used. It is a right given to the copyright owner to enjoy the financial benefits of the work. Its very essence, broadly speaking, is the right to exclude all others is the essence of copyright (Kalanje, n.d.). Authors or owners of the copyright may — and often do — sell their rights to their works to individuals or companies to market the works, as in the case of an author selling his work to a publisher. This is because of the cost that is entailed in the reproduction of their works and make them available for sale. Moreover, even with the advent of self-publishing, works published by certified publishers still enjoy more prestige than those that the author self-published. In return for the copyright, the publisher pays the author outright payment, and often but not always, royalty to the work, depending on the actual use of the work. Although copyright is exclusive, mea
Introduction At equivalent levels of nicotine intake, pregnant women metabolize nicotine more slowly than men and therefore experience higher sustained blood levels of nicotine. Three things to be learned from the research are the impact of smoking on a woman, possible dangers and complications and the importance of smoking cessation interventions. This slower metabolism is thought to enhance the reinforcing properties of smoking. Moreover, evidence suggests that there are also racial differences in nicotine metabolism which may further increase the dependence properties of nicotine for minority pregnant women. Clinical evidence of greater perceptions of muscle tension and reaction time that have been associated with nicotine deprivation in women compared to non-pregnant women suggests that pregnant women may derive greater physiologic benefits from nicotine (Albaum et al 2002). Although there appear to be no gender differences in the severity of symptoms experienced during nicotine withdrawal, it has been suggested that women experience withdrawal differently than men, with women reporting more depressive affect and cigarette craving than men (Pregnancy and Smoking, 2010). There is consistent evidence that nicotine increases the metabolism of smokers as evidenced in smokers weighing less on average than nonsmokers. Discussion section Despite widespread public awareness of the multiple health risks associated with smoking, one out of every four pregnant girls under age 18 is a smoker and more than 25 million American women smoke. If current trends continue, smoking rates of women will overtake those of men by the year 2000. Smoking rates are highest, approaching 30%, among women of reproductive age (18–44 years). Rates of smoking are particularly high among young White women with a high school education or less and low income (Pregnancy and Smoking, 2010). Cessation rates are lower among pregnant African American women (30% have quit) compared to White women. Minority pregnant women who have low rates of self-initiated cessation are also underrepresented in formal smoking cessation programs. A greater proportion of women than men are pre-contemplators, that is, not considering quitting smoking within 6 months and have low
Change Plan Stakeholders In a change process, there are many stakeholders who are involved. Some lose while the others gain. This is because any change process is viewed as a threat of “how things have comfortably been operating” (Levine, 1995). In Kudler Fine Foods, there are various stakeholders. These include the administration team that runs the three Kudler fine foods branches. The administrative team is composed of Kent Vesper who is the La Jolla store manager, Laurie Priest, who is the Del Mar store manager, and Juanita Lopez who is the Encinitas store manager. These managers will be affected in the change process since they will be required to make more decisions on their own without consulting Kent who is the owner of the Kudler Fine Foods. Since the leadership management is autocratic, the owner of the Kudler fine foods is to initiate a change which means empowering most of the employees to make independent management decisions. Other stakeholders to the management change plan include the employees who will be required to adapt to the new leadership style anticipated. Empowering employees enables them to be actively involved in meetings, to diagnose various issues and identify accurately possible and practical solutions to the problems. Current State of Kudler Fine foods The current state of the organization is wanting in many areas. The leadership style is autocratic where the owner heads all the functional areas of the organization. She hires and fires employees by her own, signs all inventories, makes all orders manages the accounts and she only includes the stores managers on a need to know basis. This has led the organization to having a kind of culture where the owner dictates and decides a lot of things. This has killed the innovativeness of the employees as they only act on instructions which are mostly issued during the weekly meetings held with them. The organization, however, has an elaborate structure that has chain of command in executing management decisions. This chain of command is fully effective since the Kent issues majority of the orders and due to the type of leadership style; the orders are passed down from the management. The organization also uses psychological and monetary rewards system. Evaluations are carried out by the various supervisors who give appraisal results to the management for rewards. The rewards system in the organization can be termed as effective since employees who show excellence in performance are rewarded with high pay, bonuses, promotions and top levels in the organization. Desired future Kudler Fine Foods desires to have an organization where the decision making process involves the inputs of the supervisors and managers. This is because they are always at a functional level and thus able to make decisions from a more informed and competent point of view. Enabling supervisors and managers to make decision will ensure that the organizational processed will become more efficient and effective (Kirkpatri