ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Monitoring employees’ performance is critical for any organization, a company’s profitability and customers’ loyalty are dependent on the commitment of the workforce (Rehman, Shareef, & Ishaque, 2012). In this case, various indicators and standards such as “average tenure of employees”, quality of the completed work, and time required to complete a particular task can be used to measure the effectiveness of the employees (Mathis, Jackson, & Valentine, 2014, p. 378). The feedback about the employees could be given in personal emails or private meetings. The staff who does not meet the set goals have to be informed and given some time for improvement. Detailed feedback will help increase the efficiency of the employees faster. Meanwhile, the individuals, who pursue excellence, have to be offered a reward and praised for their efforts (Mathis et al., 2014). As for the conflicts, it is critical to find a suitable negotiation pattern to have a win-win result. Following this concept will assist in building trusting relationships within the organization. It remains apparent that I as a supervisor had to use assertive communication to avoid future conflicts and develop trusting relationships with the employees (Potts & Potts, 2013). Consequently, I have to discover the position of the opponent and evaluate the argumentation for his position in the first place. Next, I have to highlight the benefits of his/her opinion and explain my viewpoint. At this step, I have to take into account his/her potential interests and propose alternative win/win solutions in case of disagreement. The consequence of following this negation pattern will be a win-win outcome, as both parties will be able to satisfy their needs. The supervisor and HR practitioner have to be able to recruit, select, and induct the candidates and staff wisely. The employees are the critical assets of the company, and its success is dependent on the decision-making during the hiring procedure (Rehman et al., 2012). Speaking of recruitment, a job posting is the first step of the hiring process (Mathis et al., 2014). The description of the job has to be clear and concise, as it has to contain only the essential information about the offer. This procedure will assist in doing the initial screening and ease the recruitment process (Mathis et al., 2014). The information can be posted on the online Internet panels, and the organization can contact recruitment agencies if it experiences any difficulties with finding suitable candidates. The next step is the selection of the candidates, as the company’s efficiency is dependent on the actions of the HR department (Mathis et al., 2014). To ensure the effectiveness of the selection process, the company has to assess the background of the applications. Meanwhile, conducting an interview will h
Early Economic History of Nova Scotia The citizens or inhabitants or the people who live in a certain area are the ones around whom the economy of the region revolves. The real populace of Nova Scotia was called the Micmac, who can be traced in origin to the Algonquian people. These people were ones with small settlements around the region and who used to rely on hunting and fishing as means to nourish themselves. (Aliprandini 1-3) The early history of Nova Scotia thus can be traced back to The Mi’Kmaq Indians or the MicMac, who were settled in the area long before any of the explorers from Europe entered the region. In the early 11th century, the first visitors came to Nova Scotia and these were Norsemen, later in 1497, the area came into the notice of an Italian sea captain John Cabot for its rich fishing grounds. The region was formerly known as Acadia but the name was changed to Nova Scotia in 1621 by King James 1 of England. In the 17 th century, the French came and inhabited not only this region but also certain areas of ‘Quebec, New Brunswick, and Maine’. Due to the influx of immigrants from the USA, Nova Scotia was partitioned in 1784 and consequently, the colonies of New Brunswick and Cape Breton Island were created. In 1848, Nova Scotia was bestowed with the honor of becoming the first British colony that won responsible government. (ECN, n.p.) The province had traditionally been linked to its fishery and sea harbor and these were the sources through which income was earned and the economy developed but the region reached its economic boom in the epoch of the ‘tall ships’ which had wooden masts and hulls. This promoted international shipbuilding and the lumber trade, the area was also well known for its fish trade, thus natural resources were the backbone of the economy. But all these trades were later washed out with the depletion of the resources and the replacement of the old wooden boats by metal ships. (ECN, n.p.) The First agricultural settlement in Nova Scotia was done by Europeans by the establishment of Port-Royal in 1605 and this was also the beginning of the former Acadia. (Beck, n.p.) The signing of the British North America Act made Nova Scotia one of the four provinces to constitute the new federation called the Dominion of Can
On 15 April 2015, Margrethe Vestager filed a formal antitrust lawsuit against Google’s operations in Europe. The following day, an investigative journalist headed to Europe to verify some of the claims presented by the EU’s competition commissioner. One of the first interviewees, Miriam Hofer, owns a small retail shoe business in London. Her business started as a simple retail outlet in the small town of Newbury, but after receiving some funds from her husband, she relocated to London. Her husband proposed the development of a website to expand market reach. Additionally, the couple argued that there was a need to redesign their business model to fit within the current digital platform. Their small website was hosted in the UK in 2009. In 2010, Miriam’s daughter advised her parents to implement an online marketing strategy in order to improve the company’s ranking in the search engines. The strategy was very effective because it managed to improve the ranking. Additionally, it identified some changes in the company, among the first page of Google, and among the first three results in Yahoo. Miriam claims that the situation started changing two years ago when she realized that her ranking had shifted to the second page on Google. Despite the change in Google’s ranking order, the investor claims that it did not change in Yahoo. During the interview, the journalist asked whether Miriam had subscribed to Google’s advertisement service at which she said she could not afford. The investor also argued that she noted an increase in the number of competing firms in the region. According to Macnab, the competition law maintains that all companies must offer the most favorable terms to their goods and services (13). Additionally, it encourages firms to be efficient, innovative, and reasonably competitive. The type of competition emphasized by this law allows companies to operate independently but within the constraints of the competitive pressure created by other firms. However, if one company interfered with the competitive pressure, then an antitrust law is breached. Pace defines antitrust as an act of creating unfair competition by restraining the operations of other companies of creating monopolies that discourage new entrants into the market (par. 4). According to Article 102 of the EU Treaty, dominant companies are not supposed to misuse their competitive advantage to suppress the marketing strategies of their competitors. In Google’s case, the company had been manipulating its search algorithms to the advantage of
Interdependence and Interactivity Construct Identification Group communication is the form of interaction, which provides not only unity for the sake of achieving a common goal but also the individual contribution of team members. In this regard, the phenomenon of interdependence and interactivity described by Harris and Sherblom can be considered the methods of maintaining consistently high productivity (11). According to the authors, it is not enough to communicate with one another to comply with the conditions of this approach (Harris and Sherblom 11). It is essential to build on the benefits that can be derived from interaction since each of the members of a particular team has specific strengths, and his or her contribution to work may be valuable. Therefore, the phenomenon of interdependence, along with interactivity providing adjustment to the current model, is an efficient mechanism for group communication. Application to Specific Examples Since our group was small (five members, including me), the implementation of the concept of interdependence and interactivity was successful. Each of the team members had certain ideas about how to achieve the ultimate goal, and opinions were summed up to summarize and draw up a working plan. For instance, one participant was responsible for assessing the risks of a particular step, while another analyzed necessary resources. One of the cases that reflect the successful use of the construct was the solution to the problem of involving stakeholders within a few minutes by brainstorming and comparing one another’s ideas. Such a mechanism of work allowed achieving maximum productivity and saved time significantly. Ways of Improving Communication In addition to the aforementioned advantages, applying the concept of interdependence and interactivity might help improve communication. For instance, Harris and Sherblom note that team members’ frequent meetings are one of the provisions of this construct (11). Accordingly, if the representatives of our group met more often, it would be of great benefit for productivity and, at the same time, would improve the quality of communication. Coordinating Mechanisms Construct Identification An ability to apply leadership qualities timely and motivate colleagues within one group is evidence of successful interaction. According to Harris and Sherblom, coordinating mechanisms help to “build a positive team atmosphere” and maintain consistently high performance (13). Therefore, the use of such a concept in teamwork is the factor enabling cohesion through the involvement of each of the participants in the workflow for achieving ultimate goals. Application to Specific Examples The construct of coordinating mechanisms used in our small team was an efficient technique for stimulating the interests of all participants in performing individual tasks competently. For instance,
Ford’s fleet customers have had an increasing urge to shift to greener vehicle technologies. The customers purchase many vehicles after one year and they approximately take up 30 percent of Ford’s vehicle dealership (Reich et al., 2015). The main challenge is pinpointing the better vehicle option for the drivers involved. The other challenge is to financially justify the pricy initial investment costs resulting from utilizing fuel-efficient technologies. The solution developed was a combination of tools that start with easy-to-use calculators, which would slowly transform to accurate full-fleet optimization tools. The calculator would be used to compare the green vehicle technologies. Ford merged with Azure Dynamics to create an emission and fuel cost calculator that would respond to the frequent questions from the fleet customers (Reich et al., 2015). The fleet customers ask standard questions such as the extent to which the electric version is environmentally friendly, how much their organization will be saving up for fuel, and whether the vehicles’ emission is the same. The release of the initial version of the calculators made Ford and Azure Dynamics understand the customers and their suggestions of the areas that could be improved. They realized that the customers were keen on comparing a wide range of technologies. Following the customers’ suggestions, they increased the calculator capacity by including flex-fuel, compressed natural gas, and plug-in hybrids (Reich et al., 2015). The fuel cost calculator was well developed for interactions with the consumers. The fuel cost calculator was implemented in Excel and specifically developed to allow customers to compare and contrast different vehicles. The calculator allowed the customers to compare two vehicles in terms of the fuel type, fuel price, and the power grid composition of electric vehicles. The calculator can produce a report to compare the cost and sustainability of the different vehicles. The solution developed has many benefits to the fleet customers. The customers are now able to have solid discussions revolving around the rising green vehicle technology. The new technology produces statements that could be used to explain and justify investments in more sustainable vehicles. The main challenge of identifying the better vehicle option for each driver was solved because the new technology allows customers to see the type of drivers that could gain more advantages from driving an electric or hybrid vehicle (Reich et al., 2015). There are also the e
Literary writers often get their creative juices working when certain events, persons, or things strike them in such a way as to significantly impress upon their senses. Most love poetries, for example, are written at a time when their respective writers are in the ecstasy of being in love or at the lowest point of despair from being rejected by their object of love. Moreover, there are historical events in the nation’s history that have so created a great impact on poets and literary writers inducing them to write some of their literary works. This paper tackles some literary works that have been inspired by certain events or periods in the history of the country that have made a serious impression on their respective writers such as “On a Soldier Fallen in the Philippines” by Stephen Crane, “Democratic Vistas” by Walt Whitman and “Wealth” by Andrew Carnegie. Stephen Crane’s “On a Soldier Fallen in the Philippines” was incited by American expansionism at the turn of the 20 th century. Cuba, which has always been an important country for the US because of its proximity and resources, was under Spanish control before 1898. The US interjected herself by helping the Cubans launch a successful rebellion against Spain, which has also colonies in the East, particularly the Philippines. In a display of naval power, the US secured Spain’s defeat by destroying the Spanish fleet in Manila Bay and driving out the Spanish forces, and liberating the Philippines from several centuries of Spanish colonization. It did not stop there, however, but tempted by expansionist dreams, it continued to hold on to the Philippines as it did with Guam and Puerto Rico for twenty million dollars paid to Spain in exchange for the latter’s cession of these territories. The natives, however, had an agenda of their own: complete freedom from foreign control. Thus, a war ensued that led to the loss of the lives of both
One of the key issues addressed by Jessica Valenti in her book “Full Frontal Feminism” is violence against women. The book mainly addresses young women by encouraging them to participate in feminism. Other people that the book speaks to include: young women, young people of color and people who identify as queers. Valenti explains that violence against women is not only a women’s issue and recommends that young men should also be trained on gender equality (Valenti 80). The book also addresses young people of color by encouraging them to report cases of sexual violence and queers by talking about same sex relationships. The book majorly aims at speaking to young women who shy away from being called feminists. Jessica Valenti wrote this book to clarify why feminism is so essential and pertinent. The aim of the book remains relevant in the modern society as young women continue to be the key victims of violence against women. Specific women groups that are more susceptible to violence include: native and immigrant women; expatriate women and those in circumstances of fortified conflicts; women in marginal groups; women in establishments and custody; women with physical impairments; aged women and young girls. Violence against women remains a global issue as it represents a violation of fundamental human rights and is an impediment to the attainment of the goals of peace, growth and equality (Kimmel 27). In the United States, domestic violence is the principal root of injury amid women of reproductive age. It is also estimated that in every six minutes in America, a woman is raped. As a young woman, am seriously concerned about this issue since young women are principally affected by violence as they are most likely to be battered (Valenti 61). Prevalence of Violence against Women Violence against women goes on to be a worldwide epidemic that kills torments and hurts physically, economically, mentally and socially. It violates human rights thus repudiating women security, equality, self-esteem, confidence, and their freedom to have basic rights (Hooks 17). Violence against women exists in every nation cutting across borders of age, class, traditions, education, earnings and ethnicity.
Introduction Culture can be defined as the way of life of a given people. It entails how people behave and perceive different life issues. It includes aspects like religion, ethnicity, customs, language, beliefs, and food among others that define a people. Culture varies from one place to the other depending on the circumstances surrounding a place, for instance, climate and environment as well as how people perceive different things. Chinese culture is unique in its way and stands out distinctively among other cultures through different cultural aspects such as foods taken on different occasions. This piece of work will give an in depth discussion of Chinese culture with the central focus being on the Chinese New Year Foods and its relationship with the changes that have been experienced in the Chinese Cultures. How the cultural production or cultural producer struggled to change the boundaries and meanings of what can be said or done will also be discussed. To have a clear understanding of the concept in question, it is advisable to give some background information. Chinese New Year is a concept that has received a lot of concern among different people. It has been celebrated for more than 4000 years. In China it was a holiday that was initially meant to mark the end of winter and the beginning of spring, which was deemed to be the start of a New Year (Flanagan, Zhurkina, & Labbo 7). It is one of the most significant holidays in Chinese traditions that is celebrated all over east and South-East-Asia. A lot of importance is attached to this celebration to an extent of influencing the overall Chinese culture to a large extent. Most things done during this festive are clearly seen in carrying out of different Chinese cultural aspects. What the Chinese New Year Foods reveal about the changing and contested nature of Chinese cultures and how this cultural production or cultural producer struggled to change the boundaries and meanings of what can be said or done Chinese culture is a unique one. It is considered to be one of the world’s complex and oldest cultures. The Chinese culture is portrayed in a relatively large geographical region of eastern Asia. Although there exists some differences in the customs and traditions among different cites, towns, and provinces some cultural aspects are usually maintained. These include traditional food, cultural celebrations, music, martial arts, literature, and visual arts among others (Davis 10). Just like any other aspect, culture is subject to changes with passage of time. Although Chinese culture has been perceived by many to be static, the reality is that no one culture is absolutely static but rather undergoes some changes no matter how minor they may be. The modern civilization that emerged from Europe and America is one of the factors that are linked with the changes in the Chinese culture. Modern Chinese culture has been invaded by other external cultures especially from Europe and the United States of America. Over the past 20 years, the Peoples Republic of China has been observed to be adop
Introduction Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental disorder in which individuals repeatedly experience invasive thoughts and ideas, and feel a strong, irresistible urge to repeatedly engage in certain behaviours. Carrying out these behaviours (rituals) may take a considerable amount of time of an affected individual each day. Furthermore, many patients suffering from OCD show a high degree of resistance to both pharmacotherapeutic and psychological treatment (Drubach, 2015; O’Connor & Aardema, 2012). This paper is aimed at assessing the current evidence pertaining to the causes of OCD, in order to decide whether biological or psychosocial factors lead to this condition. However, it is found out that the causes of the disorder are still unclear; researchers hope that unveiling these causes might help to find more effective treatments for the condition. Symptoms of OCD OCD is a rather widespread disorder which affects nearly 1-3% or 2-3% of the general population (Figee et al., 2011; Milad & Rauch, 2012); in nearly three-fourths of cases, the onset of the disorder occurs at the mean age of 11 years; in other situations, the onset often takes place at the mean age of 23 years (Taylor, 2011). There is a debate pertaining to the classification of this disorder; it is uncertain whether it should be considered a putative obsessive-compulsive-related disorder or an anxiety disorder (Abramowitz, Taylor, & McKay, 2009). The symptoms of this condition include repetitive thoughts, impulses, ideas, and images, which are called obsessions, as well as recurrent behaviours (rituals and habits) or mental acts, which are labelled compulsions; these take place spontaneously and frequently, and are intrusive, i.e. an individual suffering from OCD perceives them as unwanted, but is incapable of controlling them (Kearney & Trull, 2015, p. 110; Gillan et al., 2014). The diagnostic criteria for obsessions include the following: a) the person experiences persistent or repetitive thoughts, images, or impulses, which are not “simply excessive worries about real-life problems”, are intrusive, and lead to distress and anxiety in the individual; b) the patient tries to disregard or suppress these thoughts or replace them with some other types of mental acts; c) the individual realises that the obsessions are rooted in their mind, and are not of external origins (Hudak & Dougherty, 2011, p. 2). Simultaneously, the diagnostic criteria for compulsions are as follows:  1. the person feels a strong urge to repetitively carry out