ShantanuT01/DACTYL-Pretraining huggingface dataset:
Introduction There are several examples of very successful companies that became the leaders of various industries due to their effective supply chain and operations strategies. For instance, one can mention Wal-Mart and Toyota. These organizations represent different industries, namely retailing and automobile manufacturing, but their performance indicates the optimization of supply chain and manufacturing procedures can assist an enterprise. This report is aimed at defining operations and supply chain strategies well as explaining how they are applied by businesses. In particular, one should explain how companies like Toyota or Wal-Mart can achieve competitive advantage. Furthermore, it is critical identify the differences between lean and agile supply chain strategy. This paper will include a literature review and case studies showing how these theoretical notions can be used by practitioners. Literature review Supply Chain management operations and strategies have evolved since the late 1950’s when few companies or corporations existed. However, today’s corporations utilize myriads of systems to ensure their supply chain management systems have a competitive edge over most of their rivals. Supply Chain Management (SCM) can be defined as “all systems that work together in a linked chain with the customer at the end through the main purpose of ensuring customer satisfaction.” The concept of supply chain management emerged in the 1980’s when companies were in the need of expanding their customer base. Several supply chain management techniques such as in-time, lean, agile and leagile strategies have been adopted in the market (Mangan 2008). However, all of these systems stem from the early days of industrialization and globalization in terms of reaching out to the customers. The key factors of supply chain management systems are: operation management, procurement, logistics and information technology. These factors have been constantly applied in the past and currently in the process of delivering value and quality to customers in different sector of the economy. All these factors have to be organized in a proper manner for the entire SCM to be effective (Leeman 2010). For instance, within a manufacturing firm, if the procurement of raw materials or production tools is flawed or disorganized, then it might affect production considerably. One of the most important factors is distribution which falls under operation management in terms of organization. For instance, how does a company organize the distribution of finished goods or positioning of presence of the company in different locations? When we look at the distribution strategy, we have to examine if the system is centralized, decentralised or shared. Operation management looks into production facilities, suppliers, warehouses and core consumer
The study by Schellenberg titled “Cognitive Performance after Listening to Music: A Review of the Mozart Effect” explored the relation between music and cognitive performance demonstrated after listening to music. The hypothesis tested in the study investigates the phenomenon known as the Mozart Effect. The main argument of the review is that this effect has nothing to do with spatial abilities or Mozart; in turn, it is believed that the effect appears because the sound of classical music can impact the overall feeling of comfort and thus the individuals’ cognitive performance changes; the author refers to this idea as the arousal and mood hypothesis (Schellenberg 9). The origin of the theory concerning the Mozart effect is explained in the study; the emphasis is made on the fact that this idea is over 20 years old. The sample of research articles exploring this subject was collected based on the use of keywords. The impact factor was compared to the interest towards the subject during different periods in throughout the middle of the 1990s and the beginning of the 2000s and the association of the two criteria was found to be ambiguously negative (Schellenberg 8). Further, a review of the literature is done including a variety of sources that prove that music can be employed to alter people’s emotions, which proves the arousal and mood hypothesis. Moreover, Schellenberg points out that the reliability and validity of the source that conceptualized the Mozart Effect are very low since multiple attempts to replicate it proved unsuccessful. In this study, the information is presented in a very clear manner providing a substantial proof of the unreliability of the Mozart Effect and the existence of the connection between the sound of classical music and the overall emotional state of people listening to it. Moreover, the author relied on a number of scholarly sources that have researched the same issue and demonstrated negative and inconsistent results. Overall, it is possible to state that the author proves the hypothesis successfully and in a comprehensive manner with the inclusion of multiple reliable sources of data. As a result, his conclusion can be characterized as valid. Article 3 The study by Hudziak et al. focused on the analysis of the connection between playing musical instruments and cortical thickness maturation using a sample of 232 healthy youths aged 6 to 18. The subjects of this longitudinal study were observed for a long period of time and involved several sessions of behavioral and IQ testing and MRI scanning over three two-year periods. Cortical thickness of the subjects was measured taking into consideration such factors as the participants’ age and the number of years they have been practicing playing musical instruments. The results of the study indicated that no relation between the cortical thickness and the number of years of musical training; however, this correlation was found positive for the thickness of premotor, motor, and supplementary motor cortices (Hudziak et al. 2). In addition, a faster maturation of the cortical thickness was connected to the prov
Introduction In the article, The effects of band Director leadership style and student leadership ability on band festival ratings , Davison (2007) outline presented a quantitative research to examine different relationships between leadership styles of band directors and student leaderships on band festival ratings. The present paper is a critique on specific aspects of the article such as the design method, validity and reliability. Design The research design of the article was not explicitly stated by the author. In that sense, it can be said that the design is non-experimental correlational design. In correlation designs the researcher does not control or alter the research setting. The design can be called correlation when obtained results only imply to which degree the dependant and independent variables “tend to co-occur or are related to each other.” (Price, 2000) Applying the aforementioned to present study the research examines to which degree the independent variables, which sometimes called predictors, i.e. reported director leadership styles or reported strength of student leadership, can be related to the dependant variable, which sometimes called criterion v
A brief description of the archaeological work under investigation The purpose of this paper is to review the article “Alpine archaeology reveals high life through the ages”, published by ScienceDirect. The study in question was conducted for a period of 14 years, starting in 1998. Archaeologists from the University of York played a key role in this study led by Dr. Kelvin Walsh. The main aim of undertaking this study was to determine the existence of human life in the French Alps 8000 years ago. The palaeoecologists and archaeologists who carried out the excavation were from both France and the UK (University of York par. 1). The study revealed that climatic and human activities in the Alpine region that date as far back as the Bronze Age, Iron Age, Roman Age, and the Medieval ages have helped to shape the landscape of the region. This is an important archaeological discovery to palaeoecologists, archaeologists, and other stakeholders since it has shed light on human activities in the alpine and sub-alpine zones. The archaeological discovery has also revealed the influence of climate on the inhabitants of the Alpine region during the Mesolithic era (University of York par.4). The excavation is also important from a historical point of view because it reveals the activities of the inhabitants of this region and the effect they had on the French Alps. The study has also revealed the shift in lifestyle of the inhabitants of the French Alps from hunting and gathering of food to mechanised agriculture. Another important thing about this archaeological discovery is that it has revealed how the inhabitants of the French Alps exploited its beautiful and remote landscape in order to survive. The study, that took 14 years to complete, is now considered one of the most elaborate archaeological investigations in high altitude areas (University of York par. 3). The team of French and British researchers who conducted this excavation surveyed more than 300 sites in several valleys. The team also studied pollen collected from cores in lakes, peat areas, and carbonized wood remains (University of York par. 10). The project explored the Alpines and other remote areas in the hope of finding evidence of human existence in higher altitudes. In their investigation, the archaeologists evidence hunting camps dating back to the Stone Age. The hunting camps were located 2000 meters up the Alpines. They also discovered evidence of a Neolithic flint arrowhead at 2475 meters. The inhabitants of the Alps region also practiced pastoralism, albeit seasonally. They also cleared the forest cover to make room for agricultural activities (University of York par. 10). A review of the popular press piece, including the author’s spin on the information The article by the University of York (par.1) explores a study conducted by a team of French and British researchers in the Parc National des Eìc
Introduction Trauma results from painful or distressful emotional and psychological effects of painful events. Briere and Scot (2006) posit, “Trauma is used to refer to both negative events that produce distress and the distress itself” (p. 3). Thus, trauma is an emotional and psychological distress that occurs in response to negative painful events. Trauma overwhelms the ability of people to cope with traumatic events, thus rendering them powerless in the face of adversity. When one experiences a negative event that is shocking or extraordinary, fears develop, which eventually lead to trauma. Trauma weakens the emotional and psychological strengths of people, which makes them helpless for they cannot overcome traumatic experiences. In society, traumatic experiences that one can encounter include sexual assault, death of a close person, violence, war, disasters, accidents, and witnessing of horrific death among others. Fundamentally, trauma emanates from diverse traumatic experiences that people face in the course of life. Hence, this essay describes trauma in terms of nature and cause before examining sexual assault as a type of trauma and its spiritual and professional therapies, which enable people to cope. Nature of Trauma Trauma in psychology refers to the impact of traumatic experiences on emotional, biological, and psychological aspects of human beings. Flannery (1999) postulates, “traumatic events may arise when an individual is confronted with actual or threatened death or serious injury or some other threat to one’s physical integrity” (p.78). Trauma can also occur when one witnesses others undergoing traumatic experiences such as wars, disasters, robbery, and violence. Experience of these traumatic events causes people to develop intense fear, shock, and feelings of helplessness. Trauma destabilizes mental and emotional status, and thus force people to become susceptible to subsequent traumatic experiences. It is hard for a traumatized individual to endure other traumatic events because trauma has a cumulative effect on emotional and psychological stability. One unique thing about trauma is that it depends on the ability of an individual to cope with traumatic events. Different people have different capacities of coping with traumatic events in life. Normally, traumatic events cause trauma when they overwhelm psychological, physical, and emotional capacity of an individual. Risk factors such as limited social support, genetics, limited intelligence, and deficient formal education enhance susceptibility to trauma. Moreover, Flannery (1999) asserts, “prior mental illness, dysfunctional family life, and a previous history of being traumatized all increase the risk of impaired functioning in the face of traumatic events” (p. 79). This assertion shows that a combination of congenital, soc
Introduction The ankle is among the sites that are most affected by acute musculoskeletal injuries. Anankle sprains make up 75 percent of these injuries. Intense trauma of the ankle is common in athletes. Sports injuries are composed of at least 10% – 30% ankle trauma. The number of people who consult physicians per annum with acute ankle injuries is estimated to be about one million people. About a half of sprains that occur in patients can potentially result in chronic health problems (Nieman2009). The most vulnerable part of the ankle is the joint connecting the lower leg with the foot. This joint is affected by a number of exposures, which include twisting, unusual pressure, etc. These injuries may happen while one is walking, running, in athletics or even as one engages in day-to-day activities (Nieman2009). There are three bones in, the ankle joint. The major one is called the tibia. This bone carries the largest percentage of a person’s body weight. Its bottom part is referred to as the medial malleolus. This is the internal bump in the ankle. Tibia’s smaller counterpart is referred to as the fibula. Its bottom end which is seen as the outer bump is referred to as the lateral malleolus. The top bone in the foot is called the talus. Bones and muscles are joined together by connective tissues known as tendons. Body motion, including that of the ankle, is facilitated by muscles. The muscles that form part of the ankle are therefore connected to the bones of the foot by tendons. These can easily get torn or stretched. This normally happens when they are under intense stress. They can also be separated from the bone if the stress is too much. Achilles tendon rupture is a good example of this type of injury. Bones are connected by ligaments. If ligaments have been strained, the resulting injury has termed a sprain (Assal and Crevoisier 2009, 1551). The ankle is made up of a number of bones and thus it is composed of several ligaments. They can also get torn or stretched in intense stress like the tendons. The ligament that is most affected by injury is known as the anterior talofibular ligament. Its function is to connect the fibula to the talus. It, therefore, forms the front part of the external ankle joint. The complicatedness of an ankle sprain can be categorized by grade I to III. If the ligament is partially torn, the sprain is classified as grade I. This can be diagnosed by symptoms like mild swelling and tenderness, mechanical stability, and absence of functional loss. Grade I sprain is normally exhibited by calcaneofibular ligament stretching and anterior talofibular ligament stretching (Ivins 2006, 1714). Grade II sprain is said to occur if the ligament gets torn partially leading to moderate functional impairment. This is diagnosed by moderate swelling and pain, tenderness over the structures that are involved in the sprain, mild or moderate ecchymosis, some degree of function and motion loss (i.e. pain with ambulation and weight-bearing), and moderate or mild instability. In this injury, one ligament is torn
Like any other language, Mandarin Chinese is also quite challenging and interesting to learn at the same time. Certain, much depends on the way you approach learning as well as teaching techniques applied by the instructor. I has interested in Ms. Wang’s amazing and unconventional techniques to mastering Mandarin Chinese and this is one of the core reasons I agreed on attending this course in future. In fact, being in the 8 th grade at Pierre Van Cortlandt School has become a real adventure for me to enjoy because all lessons dedicated to studies languages do not involve ordinary techniques as I used to apply. Instead of boring drill and practice, I have realized that singing pop songs and rhyming words is much more effective and exciting. Integrating music and technologies into Mandarin Chinese lessons greatly encourages learning more about the language and developing personal skills, abilities, and approaches to learning. Besides, composing your own chants is also a great idea because it is quite creating and engaging and because it allows to memorize new sentences and vocabularies much faster. It is just like a song that you are humming and that you can get out of your head. This is why I am extremely keen on learning this course in future and apply the obtained skills to other subjects. In my opinion, desire, interest, and realization of purpose for learning are the main underpinnings to start learning any discipline (Tovani, 2004, p. 11). Yet, the approaches that have been chosen for learning matter as well because they create a favorable climate for gaining experiences and mastering literate skills. Learning Perspectives In Terms Of Literacy Main Students’ Strengths and Challenging Areas in Learning Mandarin Chinese While learning languages, there is a great number of vocabulary, semantics, grammatical structures that should be learnt. What is more interesting is that learning another language often implies comparison with the languages you have mastered and, therefore, the new information is always processed and acquired with particular reference to personal background and experience. In addition, learning language is also learning more about new culture and traditions. In this respect, songs and music are exactly the ways to convey the essence of Chinese culture and ethnicity. Besides, students seem to be fully engaged into this activity beca
It is possible to remember several situations when income of the US citizens declined or was stagnant. Remembering the crisis of 1930s, the reaction of US government should be stressed. People were affected by the changes in power and ideology. Great shifts in the government took place and many economic problems were solved by the government as its role in the country’s economy increased. A new wave of crisis with the similar characteristics took place after the World War II. That time government reacted to the income stagnation or even decline by “an active fiscal policy; providing an extended social safety net for low-income people; and regulating business activity” (MacEwan and Miller 39). These measures were directed at regulating the total demand by means of regulating the taxation and government’s spending. Government did all possible to assist US citizens. After the Second World War the situation began to improve due to the international relationships which expanded and developed. It allowed the country to become stronger in the limited period and to make sure that situation is going to increase. In summary, the following actions were done after the situation in 1930s’. Unionization was promoted, government increased its regulation of industry and finance, minimum salaries were established just for social security, to restrain unemployment. The banks were considered as the strongest ones, which are too big to fail. Absolutely different situation has occurred in 2008. The declining and stagnation of incomes could not be reacted by the measures taken by the government in 1930s and after the World War II. It should be stated that “consumer spending declines as income remains stagnant” (The Associated Press). This is the phrase taken from the title of the newspaper from November 30, 2012. It should be stated that the affect of the crisis remains up to now and the economy just starts to recover. The reaction of the population to the stagnation was a complete limit of spending. People bought only the things of the first necessity and did not have an opportunity to spend more. Additionally, limited employment and high prices on gasoline also restricted people in their actions. Looking at the existed situation, it may be stated that international trade in this case does not support the country but creates higher competition at the market which is not a positive factor. Moreover, immigration creates additional problems at the labor market increasing the demand. Businessmen cautiously conduct their activities. The banks and the government try to react, supporting population, however, slow pace of economic growth may not be implemented. Therefore, it should be stated that the same actions of the government which were taken in 1930s’ do not work
Photography is a powerful tool that allows people to tell stories of what they are passionate about and depict their ideas. For some individuals, photography becomes an integral part of their lives and helps them overcome the difficulties they face or insecurities they have. The essay Photography Changes Who We Think We Might Be by Candice Bergen describes the author’s journey over the years and how it helped her become more confident with acting. In summary, Photography Changes Who We Think We Might Be describes the life story of Candice Bergen. The author states that because her parents were famous, she became accustomed to being photographed, one example of which is the chronicle of her turtle’s funeral published by Saturday Evening Post. When she grew up, Bergen worked as a model and later as an actress. But because she was passionate about photography and admired figures such as Margaret Bourke-White and Robert Capa, she bought a camera and routinely took photos of people or events she thought were interesting. This led to magazines asking her to work for them, which continued until she decided to pursue acting seriously. This essay is interesting and was chosen because Bergen is famous for her acting and not for photography, yet she clearly has a passion for this trade. The experience in working for magazines and photographing celebrities such as Arnold Schwarzenegger or Richard Nixon is also remarkable. Hence, her passion allowed her to express herself through her photos while also showing others what she thought was important, as Bergen mentions that she covered a range of stories from presidential elections to endangered chimpanzees. Perhaps, photography allowed her to escape from acting when she did not feel that she could be a professional and allowed her to build her confidence. Regardless of the implications, the text highlights how photography can accompany a person throughout his or her life and help them develop their personalities. The connection that the author has with this art form is remarkable, and I would argue that photography helped her become more confident over the years. It would be interesting to find out more about this question. As she mentions in the final paragraph, she wanted to be a professional actress, which forced her to stop working as a photographer. This choice raises some questions since Ber