A comparison between cardiac CT scanning and cardiac digital subtraction angiography (DSA)

Abstract Coronary artery disease affects nearly one tenth of the UK population and remains the leading cause of death in the western world. To investigate and provide interventions for coronary artery disease, imaging of the coronary arteries to enable visualisation of atheromatous plaque is required. This review looked at the techniques of cardiac computed tomography scanning and cardiac digital subtraction angiography, and their contribution to the investigation of coronary artery disease. Comparison of the procedures considered technique, radiation exposure, contrast agent, clinical indications and efficacy in diagnosis of coronary artery stenosis. On comparison of the effectiveness of the techniques, both were shown to have been effective non-invasive procedures that may be used to rule out diagnoses and avoid inappropriate use of invasive angiography. The research shows mixed evidence for cardiac computed tomography angiography as a test of high specificity, however sensitivity and speci ficity of cardiac digital subtraction angiography is high, and therefore suggest that the techniques may be useful in low risk patients. Introduction Coronary artery disease remains the main cause of death in the UK and western world (Hacker, 2013; Liu et al., 2002) and contributes a substantial disease burden, affecting 7% of men and 5% of women in the UK in 1999 (Liu et al., 2002). Coronary artery disease results from the build up of atherosclerotic plaque within the arteries supplying the myocardium. This plaque limits the flow of blood through the arteries, and can cause ischaemia of the heart muscle. If the plaque becomes unstable and ruptures, this may lead to thrombus formation and the complete occlusion of an artery, resulting in a myocardial infarction (McClure et al., 2009). Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is a sub-classification of coronary artery disease and encompasses unstable angina, non-ST elevation myocardial infarction and ST elevation myocardial infarction. ACS represents a range of conditions that result from thrombus formation in coronary arteries, and if untreated has poor prognosis and high mortality (NICE, 2010). To investigate and provide information for interventions for coronary artery disease and ACS, visualization of the coronary arteries and any lesions caused by atherosclerotic plaque is required. Advances in technology have given rise to several sophisticated perfusion analysis techniques, which provide greater prognostic value than morphological imaging (Hacker, 2013). Perfusion analysis allows the blood flow through the coronary vessels to be observed and any abnormalities in the perfusion can be interpreted as a functional consequence of atherosclerotic changes within the vessels (Hacker, 2013). Currently, UK guidelines (NICE, 2010a) recommend coronary angiogram as first line management for patients presenting with ACS. This enables imaging of the coronary arteries to assess perfusion. It is important to assess the circulation as arteries can be affected from the earliest stages of endothelial dysfunction to high-grade coronary artery stenoses (Hacker et al., 2010; Bugiardini et al. 2004; Kaufmann et al., 2000), and this provides the information necessary for prognosis and intervention. With the advances in technology, there are now various diagnostic tests available to assess coronary artery disease, including coronary angiography and computed tomography (CT) scanning (Gorenoi, Schonermark & Hagen, 2012). This review aims to review the literature on coronary CT scanning and digital subtraction angiography, their clinical applications, techniques and comparative value in coronary artery assessment and diagnosis. Cardiac Digital subtraction angiography Coronary angiography is the conventional diagnostic procedure used in coronary artery disease. It is a minimally invasive technique, whereby a catheter is placed into the radial or femoral artery and is advanced through the arterial system to the coronary arteries. A contrast agent is then injected at the aortic root and allows visualization of the arteries using x-ray in real time at up to 30 frames per second. This allows a view of the extent, location and severity of coronary obstructive lesions such as atherosclerosis and enables prognostic indication (Miller et al., 2008). Coronary angiography also enables catheter placement either side of the lesion to assess pressure changes and determines the degree of flow obstruction (Miller et al., 2008). . Digital subtraction angiography (DSA) again works by introducing a contrast agent into the coronary arteries and taking x-rays in real time, however a pre image is taken by x-ray. This allows for the post images to be subtracted from the original mask image, eliminating bone and soft tissue images, which would otherwise overlie the artery under study (Hasegawa, 1987). Unlike conventional angiography, it is possible to conduct DSA via the venous system, through accessing the superior vena cava via the basillic vein (Myerowitz, 1982). This removes the risks associated with arterial cannulation (Mancini & Higgins, 1985). The procedure can also be performed with a lower dose of contrast agent and be done more quickly therefore eliminating constraints of using too much contrast during a procedure (Myerowitz, 1982). Whilst DSA is the gold standard in arterial imaging of carotid artery stenosis (Herzig et al., 2004), the application of DSA to the coronary arteries is limited due to motion artefacts associated with each heartbeat and respiration (Yamamoto et al., 2009). There are numerous cardiac clinical applications of DSA, it can be used to assess coronary blood flow (Molloi et al., 1996), valvular regurgitation (Booth, Nissen & DeMaria, 1985), cardiac phase (Katritsis et al., 1988), congenital heart shunts (Myerowitz, Swanson, & Turnipseed, 1985), coronary bypass grafts and percutaneous coronary intervention outcomes (Katritsis et al, 1988; Guthaner, Wexler & Bradley, 1985). However, others have suggested that the coronary arteries are not visualized well due to their small size, movement, their position overlying the opacified aorta and left ventricle, and confusion with other structures such as the pulmonary veins (Myerowitz, 1982). Cardiac CT Scanning Development of CT scanning in the 1990s enabled an increase in temporal resolution that was sufficient to view the beating heart, and they now provide a non-invasive technique for diagnostic and prognostic purposes. Cardiac CT scans have clinical applications that go beyond perfusion investigation, and can be used to assess structure and function of the heart (for example in electrophysiology disorders or congenital heart disease) due to its ability to provide anatomical detail (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010). CT scans can be used to assess coronary artery disease with and without injection of contrast agent (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010) by calcium scan or CT angiography. Coronary calcium CT scanning uses the evidence base that coronary artery calcium is a correlate of atherosclerosis (Burke et al., 2003) and is a strong prognostic predictor of the future development of coronary artery disease and cardiac events (Arad et al., 2000; Budoff et al., 2009; Achenbach & Raggi, 2010). Calcium is easily depicted on CT scan due to its high CT attenuation, and is classified according to the Agatson score, which considers the density and area of the calcification (Hoffman, Brady & Muller, 2003). Coronary CT angiography (CTA) allows visualization of the coronary artery lumen to identify any atherosclerosis or stenosis within the vessels. Patients are injected intravenously with a contrast agent and then undergo a CT scan. There are limitations regarding the suitability of patients for coronary CTA due to prerequisites of sinus rhythm, low heart rate and ability to follow breath-holding commands. Additionally, obesity presents a problem for patients that cannot fit into the scanner and affects the accuracy of the procedure. (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010). Comparison of cardiac DSA and cardiac CT scanning The technical differences between cardiac DSA and cardiac CT scanning give rise to differences in the clinical indications for the procedures, their diagnostic efficacy and also different risks or relative benefits to the patients. Due to the nature of the images produced by coronary CTA and DSA, each lends itself to different indications for use. Whilst coronary DSA provides imaging of all aspects of perfusion, CTA used with contrast agent also provides this however has the additional advantage of being able to assess structure and function of the heart. Coronary CTA has been shown to have a high accuracy at detection and exclusion of coronary artery stenoses (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010). In a multicentre trial conducted by Miller et al. (2008), patients underwent coronary calcium scoring and CT angiography prior to conventional invasive coronary angiography. The diagnostic accuracy of coronary CTA at ruling out or detecting coronary stenoses of 50% was shown to have a sensitivity of 85% and a specificity of 90%. This showed that coronary CTA was particularly effective at ruling out non-significant stenoses. Additionally, coronary CTA was shown to be of equal efficacy as conventional coronary angiography at identifying the patients that subsequently went on to have revascularisation via percutaneous intervention. This was shown by an area under the curve (AUC), a measure of accuracy of 0.84 for coronary CTA and 0.82 for coronary angiography. Miller et al.’s (2008) study included a large number of patients at different study sites , and additionally represented a large variety of clinical patient characteristics. The author’s claim that these factors contribute to the strength and validity of the study findings, and suggest that in addition to using patients with clinical indications for anatomical coronary imaging, should be used as evidence that coronary CTA is accurate at identifying disease severity in coronary artery disease. Miller et al. (2008) did however,, find that positive predictive and negative predictive values of coronary CTA were 91% and 83% respectively and therefore suggested that coronary CTA should not be used in place of the more accurate conventional coronary angiography. A low positive predictive value (in relation to the prevalence of disease) was proposed to be due to a tendency to overestimate stenosis degree as well as the presence of artefacts leading to false positive interpretation (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010). Other research providing comparison between coronary CTA and conventional coronary angiogram has highlighted variability in results. A meta-analysis conducted by Gorenoi, Schonermark and Hagen (2012) investigated the diagnostic capabilities of coronary CTA and invasive coronary angiography using intracoronary pressure measurement as the reference standard. The authors found that CT coronary angiography had a greater sensitivity than invasive coronary angiography (80% vs 67%), meaning that coronary CTA was more likely to identify functionally relevant coronary artery stenoses in patients. Despite this,, specificity of coronary CTA was 67%, compared to 75% in invasive coronary angiography, meaning that the technique was less effective at correctly excluding non-diagnoses than invasive coronary angiogram. This research appears to contradict the power of cardiac CTA at excluding diagnoses of coronary artery stenosis as suggested by Miller et al. (2008), he study did combine evidence from over 44 studies to provide their results and therefore had a large statistical power. The authors interpret the results in light of the clinical relevance of cardiac imaging, suggesting that patients with a higher pretest possibility of coronary heart disease will likely require invasive coronary angiography for revascularisation indicating that coronary CTA may be a helpful technique in those patients with an intermediate pre-test probability of coronary heart disease that will therefore not require invasive angiography. Goldberg et al. (1986) investigated the efficacy of DSA in comparison to conventional coronary angiography in 77 patients. They found that the two angiograms agreed within one grade of severity in 84% of single cases and 90% of multiple cases, identifying both patent and lesioned arteries. The results led the authors to conclude that there was no significant difference between the two methods and that DSA could be used in selective coronary angiography to find results comparable to that of conventional angiography. In addition to being a small study into the efficacy of DSA, the study also had several sources of inherent variability that should be considered when interpreting the results. These included differing sizes of digital imaging screen and non-use of calipers, meaning that the interpretation of the images could vary throughout the study. The authors also suggest that whilst showing strong support for the use of DSA in coronary artery disease, the technique may not actually p ermit better prognostic determinations or clinical judgements that are better than conventional angiography, and therefore the further implementation of the techniques may not be founded or necessitated. More recently, there has been further research looking at the effectiveness of DSA as a way of measuring coronary blood flow. Whilst motion artefacts have proven a problem in lots of past research (Marinus, Buis & Benthem, 1990; Hangiandreou, 1990), recent research has developed methods to minimise these. Moilloi and colleaues (1996) showed that using a motion-immune dual-energy digital subtraction angiography, absolute volumetric coronary blood flow could be measured accurately and thus provide an indication of the severity of any arterial stenosis.This may provide further suggestion for clinical implementation of DSA. Although these studies provide evidence for the efficacy of cardiac DSA and CTA, they often make comparisons to conventional angiography. This is useful as a baseline comparison, however it is difficult to make comparisons between the two procedures directly due to less available evidence making direct comparisons. Lupon-Roses et al. (1985) conducted a study investigating both coronary CTA and venous DSA. The study looked at the efficacy of both techniques at diagnosing patency of coronary artery grafts compared to the control conventional angiography. CT was shown to diagnose 93% of the patent grafts and 67% of the occluded grafts whereas DSA correctly diagnosed 98% and 100% of patent and occluded grafts respectively. Interestingly, the DSA picked up the 11 grafts that were misdiagnosed by CTA and the CTA picked up the 2 grafts misdiagnosed by the DSA. This data may suggest that individually, DSA has a better profile for diagnosis of coronary artery occlusion, however if the two procedures are used in combination exclusion of patent arteries and diagnosis of occluded arteries would be effective (Lupon-Roses et al., 1985). Coronary DSA and CTA are both non-invasive procedures (unlike the conventional coronary angiography where a wire is placed in the coronary vasculature). With the only invasive part of the procedure being the injection of the contrast material into a vein. This presents a significant advantage to both procedures over that of conventional angiography, and may even permit investigation on an outpatient basis (Meaney et al., 1980). Similarly, both DSA and coronary CTA are favoured because of their intravenous approach, eliminating the risks of bleeding or arterial injury from an intra-arterial catheterization and being able to be used in those with limited arterial access. However, although the intravenous approach used in cardiac DSA makes it favourable, it does lead to difficulty with visualisation of the coronary arteries due to the overlying iodinated pulmonary and cardiac structures (Mancini & Higgins, 1985). Therefore,, intra-arterial DSA is also sometimes used (Yamamoto et al., 20 09). As with all CT scanning, coronary CTA carries with it a dose of ionizing radiation (Brenner & Hall, 2007). Studies have estimated that for diagnostic CT scanning, patients are on average exposed to 12mSv of radiation during the procedure, the equivalent of 600 x-rays (Hausleiter et al., 2009). Estimates of radiation doses associated with conventional coronary angiography are lower than that of coronary CTA at 7mSv (Einstein et al., 2007). Additionally, DSA technique reduces the radiation dose from that of conventional coronary angiography as the vessels are visualised more clearly (Yamamoto et al., 2008). The dangers of radiation exposure are increased risk of developing cancer, skin injuries and cateracts (Einstein et al., 2007). It is therefore important that the benefits of conducting the procedure greatly outweigh the risk of radiation exposure. CT calcium scanning provides a low radiation dose at around 1mSv (Hunold et al., 2003). Cardiac CT calcium scanning does not require administration of a contrast agent, unlike in coronary CTA and DSA that use iodine based contrast agents. The risks associated with contrast agent include nephrotoxicity and risks of hives, allergic reactions and anaphylaxis (Maddox, 2002). The amount of contrast agent used is partly dependent on the length of the procedure and how clearly the arteries can be visualised. For this reason, both cardiac CTA and DSA use less contrast agent that conventional coronary angiography (Brant-Zawadzki, et al., 1983). CT calcium scanning of the coronary arteries is therefore recommended in those with less likelihood of coronary artery disease (NICE, 2010). Both coronary CTA and DSA require interpretation by trained physicians, and the importance of training and achieving intra-rater reliability should not be underestimated (Pugliese et al., 2009). Conclusion Overall, both coronary CT and DSA have been demonstrated as effective procedures for the imaging of the coronary arteries in CAD (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010; Miller et al., 2008; Moilloi et al., 1996; Goldberg et al., 1986). Whilst cardiac CT scanning does provide a wider range of clinical applications, allowing assessment of perfusion as well as cardiac structure and function (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010), coronary DSA has many applications that allow assessment of coronary blood flow (Molloi et al., 1996; Katritsis et al, 1988; Booth, Nissen & DeMaria, 1985; Guthaner, Wexler & Bradley, 1985; Myerowitz, Swanson, & Turnipseed, 198). Both cardiac DSA and CTA procedures have their advantages. As non-invasive procedures, these techniques pose less risk to patients, and enable the possibility of outpatient investigation, to be used to rule out diagnoses and to avoid inappropriate invasive coronary angiogram (Gorenori et al., 2012). Additionally, intravenous access is preferential to arterial cannulation for the contrast infusion, removing the risks associated with bleeding or intra-arterial injury. Cardiac DSA exposes the patient to a lower dose of radiation that coronary CTA (Hausleiter et al., 2009; Yamamoto et al., 2008; Einstein et al., 2007), which is beneficial at reducing the risk of genetic mutations and cancer. Cardiac CTA and DSA also have their common disadvantages. The use of contrast agent may present side effects for the patient including kidney damage and risk of allergic reactions and anaphylaxis (Maddox, 2002). For this reason, calcium CT scanning can be useful in patients that are not at high likelihood of coronary artery disease (NICE, 2010b). Additionally, both cardiac DSA and CTA are subject to motion artefacts from respiration and heart beats, which can cause difficulties with interpretation (Achenbach & Raggi, 2010; Yamamoto et al., 2009). In the case of cardiac CTA, this excludes a subset of patients that are unable to follow commands and those who have high heart rates. Overall, cardiac CTA and cardiac DSA are effective, non-invasive imaging techniques for assessment of coronary artery disease. Whilst they are not the gold standards in cardiac monitoring, they can provide important diagnostic information without exposing patients to the risks of invasive angiography. Due to this, their use should be weighted against clinical need, the risks of the procedures, and the suitability of the patient. Interpretation of cardiac CTA and DSA imaging should be by trained individuals. 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All About Dyes

No one really knows how or when people first learned that colors could be taken from natural materials to be transferred onto stone, wood, clay, skin, or cloth. Many early discoveries were probably accidental: a section of cloth stained brown by someone sitting on iron-rich soil; a cook’s hands absorbed color from food during preparation. An interest for color is next to human nature. Color perceives life, things, moods and movements as well as taste. Can you imagine a world devoid of color? Certainly not. For example, an art aficionado cannot properly appreciate Michelangelo’s painting of â€Å"The Last Supper† if it lacks color because color depicts the theme of that painting. Mercifully, necessity always comes into play for as they say, â€Å"necessity is the mother of all inventions†. Man’s necessity drove him to be resourceful and make things out of nothing either by accident or sheer force of nature, to fulfill his needs and improve the lives of others. The discovery of coloring materials such as dyes were the by-products of a man’s never-ceasing thinking cap, signaling a domino effect to the invention of synthetic dyes—dyes produced from chemical infusions. This paper will discuss the common information one has to learn in order to know the benefits people gain from using dyes and to use it with concern on its effects on the environment and on the user itself. The process of tie-dyeing, a method common in many societies and in the fashion industry, will also be discussed as a form of craft and an alternative to the different fashion trends being followed today. Origin and History A dye is a substance capable of coloring materials such as textiles, paper or plastics and is generally applied in a solution or dispersion. Dyes, as said are usually of natural origin but nowadays are all synthetically made. Various discoveries were made by leading chemists such as Peter Woulfe, Michael Faraday and Sir William Henry Perkin as the years progressed. Earliest records of using dyestuffs dates’ way back 2600 B. C. in China. As no chemical-producing colors were yet to be invented, colors were derived by natural means. Natural dyes such as quercitron, a black oak’s bark yields a yellow dye, and cudbear, a red or purple dye obtained from lichens used as a colorant in pharmaceutical preparations were some early sources. Cudbear is another natural dye patented by its discoverer Dr. Cuthbert Gordon. From dated artifacts and early manuscripts we know that long before the Christian era many civilizations in various parts of the world were using dyes and pigments for many purposes. All dyes available to men from antiquity came from natural sources. Most of these were vegetable extracts and a few were from animal products a popular example of which was the Tyrian purple dye derived from a Mediterranean mollusk murex, utilized for the emperor’s robes and tunic (http://www. dyesonline. net). Hence, the colors produced from these sources were scarce and limited. The middle Ages and early years of the Renaissance saw the dye industry spread from the eastern Mediterranean toward the west and northward into Europe. It is said that there were some 200 dye enterprises in Jerusalem during the 12th century. In 1160 A. D, Jewish dyers gained influence westward and took control of most of the Italian dye industry. Florence, Italy in the 14th century was famous for their dye works. As the Renaissance progressed and Europe began importing indigo and other dyes, controversy arose concerning the handling and control of foreign dyestuffs (http://www. herbsociety-stu. org/Dyeing. htm). Dyes were also a part of the ancient Egyptian civilization. Proofs were unearthed Egyptian mummies wrapped a cloth dyed red, probably from the juice of the madder plant. Even Alexander the Great of Macedonia fooled his adversaries by sprinkling red dye on his army to deceive that they were mortally wounded. Based on legend, dyes were a part of a Roman civilization. The demi-god Hercules discovered Tyrian purple, when his dog bit a snail which stained his jaw purple. It can be explained why most of the kings and queen’s robes were usually purple. The color indigo is found in many antique quilts, both in cloth dyed by traditional methods of vat dyeing, and fabric that has been synthetically-dyed. In Malaysia and Indonesia, a method called Batik dyeing was used in ancient times. It employs wax treatment to the cloth beforehand to produced unusual designs and patterns to the cloth. From natural dyes came the discovery of producing synthetic dyes that can be used easily and can adopt well when applied into different kind s of surfaces and fabrics. The British chemist, Peter Woulfe, treated the natural dye indigo with nitric acid to create picric acid. Though able to stain various materials yellow, it was not used for this purpose until the late 1840’s (http://www. micro. magnet. fsu. du/micro/gallery. html). The birth synthetic dyes started with the discovery of Scottish chemist, Sir William Henry Perkin of â€Å"mauve or mauveine†, a pale purple dye obtained from crude aniline, and the first synthetic dye to be manufactured and used. This breakthrough opened the possibilities of creating a variety of dyes through the synthesis of materials. The emergence of synthe tic dye industries phased out the previously used natural dyes among manufacturers. Composition Chief compositions of dyes are substances synthesized from aromatic hydrocarbons such as toluene, benzene and naphthalene. Traditionally, hydrocarbons were derived from a raw material called coal tar. Coal tar is a thick black liquid obtained by the destructive distillation of bituminous coal in coke oven or retort to give such important products such as benzene, discovered by Michael Faraday, phenol, naphthalene and creosote. As the name suggests, hydrocarbons are compounds that contain hydrogen and carbon only (Sakheim and Lehman, p. 248). Sources of hydrocarbons are petroleum and natural gas. Classification Dyes are classified in several ways. They may be classified to the fiber or materials to which they are applied or on their chemical contents. Types of dyes include direct or substantive dyes, which can color fabrics with the aid of an affixing agent called mordant; disperse dyes, which are generally used to dye nylon and other hydrophobic fibers, the fiber-reactive dyes, mordant dyes and vat dyes (Abrahart, p. 7). Vat dyes such as indigo are commonly used for cotton and other cellulosic fibers. Direct dyes are cheaper in usage because it can be applied by just simply dipping the fabric in the solution. Fixation rate or the rate of how fast a dye stains a material may depend on the pressure, heat and the ability of the substance to permeate the given material. Other types include Azo dyes. It is the largest group of dyes. All types of azo dyes amount to over one thousand and are commercially the most important class of synthetic coloring (http://www. dyesonline. net). Forms Forms of dyes include powder, granules, pastes, liquids, pellets and chips to suit different kinds of surfaces and fabric textures and also for flexibility in application. Liquid and powder dyes are generally for fabrics. Forms of dyes are alternated to best adopt to heat, weather conditions, ultra-violet rays and also in reinforcing fiber, free from heavy metals. Methods The process of dyeing may be done depending on the specific dye to be used as well as the material on which it will be applied. Silk, wool and some other textiles may, for instance, be directly applied by simply dipping them into the colorant (http://micro. magnet. fsu. edu/micro/gallery/dyes. html). In the Philippines, the method of dyeing involves dissolving the powdered dye into boiling water. The t-shirt to be dyed beforehand is tied with rubber bands on desired area of the shirts to create circular designs or prints. Other method involves the use of vats and the affixing agent mordant for better color cohesiveness. Uses Anything can be tie dyed – T-shirts, jeans, sheets, pillowcases, fabric, scarves, and sportswear. From acting as colorants in plastics as well as in the field of biotechnology, Dyes were commercially used in the textile industry for variations in fabric colors such as in t-shirts, handkerchief, draperies and other fabrics. The world of art has never been the same again since the emergence of different color variations from acrylic supplies. The first acrylic-based color was Prussian blue. In the field of cosmetics, hair dyes were invented. The first hair coloring was sold in 1907 in France. In 1956, Miss Clairol became the first in-home hair dye that was also used as a shampoo (Buckley, p. 72). Photography also benefited from the invention of dyes. Men like Eastman-Kodak, Daguerre and Niecephore made used of dyes in their attempt to improve photography by putting in colored forms (Rigg and Stone, p. 8). Dyes are also used as a colorant for food and drinks. Carbonated drinks, junk foods and preserved foods make use of dyes to stimulate appetite among its patrons. Other dye applications includes paper and pulp products, adhesives, art supplies, beverages, ceramics, construction materials, glass, paints, polymers, soaps and in the industry of inking and tinting. Modern technology made money and investment s in this industry. Without dyes, we never would have colored printed documents from the computer. In fashion, dyed shawls became a part of a person’s accessory. Beautiful sarongs and malongs with varying styles and designs can be seen almost everywhere on the beach. Men and women alike cannot resist showing off their fashion statements, whether in or out of the sun. Dyes are an integral part of Microbiology. Dyes are used to make microorganisms distinctly visible and or to differentiate them. Crystal violet (C-8650) and safranine (S-0700) are the two dyes that are used in Gram’s stain, a technique of staining to classify bacteria respectively. In it, a bacterial specimen is stained with crystal violet, afterwards it is treated with iodine solution, decolorized with alcohol and lastly again counter-stained with safranine. It has been found out that Gram-positive bacteria is able to retain the violet stain, while Gram-negative cannot (http://dyespigments,com/applications. html). Tie-Dyeing Tie-dyeing method is common to hand-loom weavers of the ancient times and became popular in the revival of craft in the 1960's. It is used to decorate curtains and table cloths but is now been utilized to create artistic designs on casual clothes. Since then tie-dyed clothes and cloths are now a common feature in craft fairs. Even though tie-dyeing is truly an art, the process can involve ordinary people and engage them in relatively easy methods on designing their clothes. First, the materials to be used must be prepared. Home tie-dyeing do not require any chemicals of some sort thus removing the risks of hazardous exposures. Materials include cotton t-shirt, dye in various colors, rubber gloves, rubber bands, salt, mixing containers, and water. The rubber gloves do not only prevent the person to color his or her own hands with dye but also prevents harmful dusts common in dye powders. Mixing containers are used in mixing dyes to have different colors and also used for dipping the clothes. The rubber bands will be used to tie the shirts. Other safety instruments like a face mask should be used. The next step is to tie portions of the shirt. Different techniques in tying can create different patterns and designs. Basically, the areas tied by the rubber bands become the border of colors. Through random or patterned ties, horizontal pleats create vertical stripes and vice versa, one can create designs using the rubber bands. However, one should make sure that the ties are tight to prevent the dye from penetrating and coloring the entire cloth. Using the instructions provided by the manufacturer, mix the dyes accordingly in separate containers. Some powder dyes generally require to be mixed in boiling or hot water in order to dissolve. Do so carefully. One may also combine colors to create other desired but unavailable ones. After it is mixed add a few teaspoons of salt to the mixture. The salt can help set the pigment of the dye. Using rubber gloves, swirl the tied shirt in the dye mixture, immersing different areas in different dye colors. Leave the areas soaked for about an hour for it to fully absorb the colors. After soaking let th shirts sit and dry for about 3-4 hours. After drying rinse it with water and remove the rubber bands. Tie-dyeing is usually constituted with trial and error. The maker cannot really see the designs made by his or her ties. However one should always make sure that the ties are tight. Also, proper working clothes should also be worn. Old clothes are suggested and rubber gloves are required. Lastly, always protect work areas with old newspapers and other protective materials to prevent it from being colored. Environmental Issues and Health Hazards For one thing, dyes are toxic. As synthetic dye industries began to flourish with time, certainly, there is need to produce dyes in large quantities and efficiencies. And since dyes are chemically synthesized, environmental hazards were encountered by dye manufacturers and textile companies. In the research, Health Hazards in the Dye Industry, A. K. Smith, M. D. hazards concerning chemical compounds threaten workers in crowded dye industries of severe diseases. Smith saw the mixture of nitric and sulfuric acids used to nitrate benzine or toluene components as very dangerous to workers exposed on such mixed acids. Nitrous fumes also causes severe respiratory conditions together with atomized acids including nitric peroxide which can be inhaled by workers in the industry. Hair products like hair dyes in cosmetics are said to be harmful to the scalp when a person changes his hair color frequently. Chemicals like AZO in dyes can easily penetrate the scalp and may cause itchiness, allergies and irritation, even cancer as recent studies shows. In the world today, we are exposed to many agents, some of them naturally occurring and some of them man-made, that either cause direct genetic damage or therefore might be able to produce cancers, or which alter our hormone levels which might encourage cancerous cells to grow. Powder dye in particular can cause adverse health effects like asthma, eczema, and severe allergic reactions on people exposed to its dust. The handling of powder dye and its transfer from large to small containers releases dust which may be inhaled or may stick on a worker's skin. This exposure to dust are also perceived to be a source of cancer due to its potent occupational carnocinogen (Wallace). From the invention of the first synthetic organic dyes in mid 19th century till late sixties, textile world was oblivious of the hazardous effects of textile dyes on humans, living species and environment in general. Also, then came the findings of the various Research Institutes of Europe who were engaged in the field of Textile research, that some of these dyes are potentially carcinogenic. The manufacturing of Eco-labeled dyes are now being promoted to increase awareness on the adverse effects of using dyes on human health and on the environment. Though many new policies are making it hard for the dye industry to survive, these new regulations are necessary for human and environmental welfare. â€Å"The extensive use of dyes often poses pollution problems in the form of colored wastewater discharge into environmental water bodies,† said by R. Kaur, TPS Walia, and Sumanjit in a research presented in the Online Journal of Health and Allied Sciences. A lot of cases throughout the whole world are reported about the roles of dyes in connection with variety of skin, lung, and other respiratory disorders. † They also added that the chemicals in dyeing processes causes variations in wastewater chracteristics like pH, color, and chemical oxygen demand. These changes in characteristics prevents typical wastewater treatment facilities and procedures from handling con taminated waters effectively. In 2006, the Yellow River in China has been reported to have turned red caused by the discharge of dyed water in the river (AP, 2006). China is known to be a major user of dyes even in the ancient past and is still using it in large quantities. The accident turned a half-mile section of the river into bright red due to spill and then feared to have some toxic effects on the people around the area. It would take some time in chemistry to produce products that are environment-friendly. People should do their share in making this world a healthy place to live in. Conclusion Certainly colors are everywhere. People can find it even in the most unexpected materials. Dyeing has been used for thousands of years already starting with soil and certain leaves as sources of colors. Now certain chemicals can be used to create artificial colors in decorating cloths for various uses. Dyes are also being utilized in fashion, through hair coloring and clothings. Various forms, powder, liquid, or chips are made to fit in every methods. Regardless of its many uses, careful application should be maintained in order not only to protect ourselves from its hazardous implications but also to prevent our environment from deteriorating due to wastes. Still, one can never erase the diverse benefits people have from using dyes, simply on its adding of color in their life. Online Sources http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/micro/gallery/dyes.html March 01,2004 http://dyespigments,com/applications.html http://www.herbsociety-stu.org/Dyeing.htm. http://www.dyesonline.net http://www.tokyopop.com/Robofish/tp_article/286950.html http://www.greenbeans.co.nz/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=265_209 http://www.wormspit.com/dyeing.htm http://www.pburch.net/dyeing/howtotiedye.shtml

Health Care in the United States and Affordable Care Act

C4C Haylie Stanat POL SCI 211 – T5 14 February 2013 Healthcare in the United States Michael Tennant, a software developer and writer, questions why we should have the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. â€Å"From page 1 to page 906, ObamaCare is chock full of expensive, intrusive, and downright scary programs such as these. The law gives the federal and state governments virtually unlimited power to interfere in Americans' lives, even within the confines of our own homes† (Tennant). This act is often referred to as â€Å"Obamacare. The idea of this act first came up during the Clinton administration. They tried to develop a healthcare system just like â€Å"Obamacare† but it never went through. The system is similar and based off of what is happening in Europe, where the government controls the medical care system. Why did they want to start this? The Clinton administration believed too many people were not receiving adequate medical care and coverage. They wanted everyone to have healthcare regardless of their financial means.The socialized healthcare system has been said to intrude on the population’s right to make decisions for what their life requires and also be very costly to the people and the United States as a whole, and Tennant wants to do away with everything regarding â€Å"Obamacare†. Tennant points out that this act allows â€Å"the US government to expand its reach into the lives of its citizens. † Some of the provisions of the act allow the government home visitations by government agents, possibly including forced immunizations, and â€Å"Community Transformation Grants†.These grants are â€Å"designed to alter Americans’ lifestyles to conform to the whims of bureaucrats in Washington† (Tennant). This act seems like to Tennant, and many other advocates against Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, another way for the government to intrude on the freedom of its popula tion. Others, like Matt Welch, the editor in chief of Reason magazine, argue there are many benefits that come from this act. He points out that France has a socialized health care system and it makes treatment less expensive and more accessible.The point being made is that the system only helps in areas of service and quality. There is no intrusion on the lives of its citizens, only trying to benefit their lives. Edmund F. Haislmaier also points out that when coverage that is basic, people with special needs have to work harder to make a plan that specifically fits them. Haislmaier states, â€Å"The effects will be one-size-fitsall coverage—so that patients are not â€Å"confused† by having choices—and elimination of employers’ freedom to design their own self-insured plans. When â€Å"confused† is used, it makes one believe that the government thinks we are incapable of helping ourselves and making the right decisions for our own lives. Like Ten nant says, â€Å"It destroys individual self-reliance and, through a variety of provisions such as school-based health clinics and home visitation programs, the family unit. These are the foundations of the American Republic; without them the United States will become a society of helpless, dependent sheep with neither the desire nor the will to resist the state's relentless encroachments on our liberties. Also, if Congress expands what benefits are essential and required to be given, the more Congress will make insurers, employers, and patients pay more for these essential services provided. This brings us to our next topic: the cost Obamacare will have on the Nation’s citizens. Those for â€Å"Obamacare† say that socialized healthcare has many benefits, and these benefits are better than the standards we have in the United States today. For example, Welch says, â€Å"ObamaCare opponents often warn that a new system will lead to long waiting times, mountains of pape rwork, and less choice among doctors.Yet on all three of those counts the French system is significantly better, not worse, than what the U. S. has now. † The side that opposes also raises awareness to another flaw in the single-payer health care program. Some drugs that are life-saving are withheld from patients in countries with this health care system because these drugs are deemed â€Å"too costly. † When these people try to acquire these drugs outside the system, the government will go as far as to take their coverage away. Governments with this system are willing to do many things that affect the lives of their citizens to keep costs down.The system is also affecting businesses, small and large. Businesses with more than 50 full-time workers will be required to give their employees coverage. Most small businesses are supposed to benefit from this act. Sy Mukherjee states, â€Å"Studies have shown that Obamacare’s employer mandates will actually lower healt h spending for small businesses and only modestly increase large companies’ health care costs, all while substantially helping low-wage and working Americans receive the affordable health coverage they need. With this act, many more people will be covered, with little increase of cost to larger to businesses, and many more small businesses will have to spend less on healthcare. Throughout his article, Tennant, being biased against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, does not think that the problems can be fixed with provisions. Michael Tennant believes the act should be completely repealed by Congress and he believes they violate one of government’s key values, freedom. He suggests the act needs to also be nulled by each state; this is the only way to help the United States’ healthcare system. These problems cannot be fixed merely by modifying a clause here and a proviso there. ObamaCare needs to be repealed in full before it can metastasize into a f ull-blown single-payer system. State-by-state nullification should also be undertaken. Then we can work on dismantling the rest of the federal healthcare behemoth. These are the only cures for what ails the American healthcare system†(Tennant). In other words, Tennant does not believe anything beneficial has come from this act. It should be completely abolished, not just fixed, because according to him, these problems in the act cannot be fixed by minor adjustments.Republicans have already tried to repeal this act, 33 times as of July 11, 2012. They keeping trying to pass bills of repeal through the House of Representatives but the Democratic-dominant Senate would not do the same. If the Republicans can get a bill to be approved by the Senate, they have a chance to make a difference. Of course the bill will go to the President, who will most likely veto since it was his main idea last election, but then it will go back through Congress. If the bill can be approved once again, they can over-ride the President’s veto and repeal the act.The question is: Should the United States reap the benefits of a socialized healthcare system the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act provides, or should she keep the values of the Founding Fathers and not let the government control every aspect of our lives? The Constitution gives the power to the government to promote general welfare. Then again, right after that the Constitution also secures â€Å"the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our posterity. † As Janda says, â€Å"in other words, the government exists to promote order and freedom†(55).Is the government not trying to promote order to the healthcare system we previously had, but at the same time controlling our lives and limiting the decisions we can make? The Founding Fathers relied on four principles to create the Constitution, one of these was Republicanism. According to The Challenge of Democracy, â€Å"Republicanism is a form of government in which power resides on the people†¦ † (Janda 56). The federal form of government should strong enough to maintain order but not strong enough to completely control the states or the Nation’s citizen’s freedoms. Works Cited Haislmaier, Edmund F. The Case Against Obamacare A Health Care Policy Series for the 112th Congress. † WebMemo. The Heritage Foundation, 20 Jan. 2011. Web. 12 Feb. 2013. Janda, Kenneth, Jeffrey M. Berry, Jerry Goldman, and Kevin W. Hula. The Challenge of Democracy. Third ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2004. Print. Mukherjee, Sy. â€Å"Five Ways Obamacare Will Help Americans Now That The Election Is Over. † Think Progress. Center for American Progress Action Fund, 7 Nov. 2012. Web. 12 Feb. 2013. Tennant, Michael. â€Å"Health Care Reform Law Expands Government Control. † Health Care. Ed. David M. Haugen. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012.Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from â€Å"The New World of ObamaCare. † New American 26. 16 (16 Aug. 2010). Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 13 Feb. 2013. Welch, Matt. â€Å"Socialized Medicine Offers Many Advantages. † Is Socialism Harmful? Ed. Ronald D. Lankford, Jr. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2011. At Issue. Rpt. from â€Å"Why I Prefer French Health Care. † Reason (Jan. 2010). Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 13 Feb. 2013. Documentation I took my paper down to the writing center and received feedback such as not to start or end a paragraph with a quote, and to fix one sentence to be unbiased.

Sociological imagination Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Sociological imagination - Essay Example People see themselves merely as recipient of society rather than recognizing their dual roles as both creators and receivers of the artifacts of society and socialization. The film â€Å"A Better Life† demonstrates many of these characteristics. Its main characters, Carlos, and undocumented immigrant, who buys a friend’s gardening business only to have its main asset (a truck), only to have it stolen, and Luis, seem to only be able to brave the struggles that are thrown at them every day without being able to act to change the systems that oppress them. The film makers, thus, fall into the trope of creating victims of society and socialization, without giving them agency to actually be a force for change in the social fabric. The film â€Å"A Better Life† is certainly a heart rending story, with people working incredibly hard just to make ends meet, and who face an unfair system that tilts their struggle for life against them. One of its main problems, whoever, i s that it does not give its characters a great deal of agency beyond simply responding to one crisis after another – reacting to the things that are presented of them. This trope begins from the very opening of the film, when Carlos is (apparently for the nth time) offered his partner’s gardening business. He faces a choice foisted on him from outside circumstance: to buy or not to buy? When he hires someone who then steals his car, he likewise faces choices on how to deal with it, and eventually decides to steal the car back. Finally, when pulled over and deported, he has a choice of remaining in Mexico or of trying to get back in to America, and he chooses the latter. This sequence of outside crisis is certainly how many people imagine their lives, noticing only what Mills calls the â€Å"millieux† around them, that is, their circumstances, without recognizing that they have a part in shaping those circumstances. This is not at all to seem critical of the char acters – that they should be doing more to give themselves a better chance at life. This issue is the film plays into a problem with the way people imagine themselves in the world with being solely the receivers of society and culture, rather than the creators and recipients of it. This film could have been better if the main characters at least recognized that they had some ability to shift the dynamics that were occurring, and that if many people like them made likewise changes then long lasting, changes for the better could actually occur. As it currently stands, the film tells the story of a valiant fight against a society that stacks the deck against much of its own population, but is not critical of the dynamic and trope of the individual responding to crisis foisted upon them by an outside, distinct society that they have no role in creating. â€Å"A Better Life† is certainly a good film outlining many important issues in sociology, such as oppression, the inter action between race and culture, the situation of immigrants and acculturation to new cultures and so on. Yet it falls into a trap that is very easy to stumble in to,

Value at risk Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Value at risk - Assignment Example Value at risk provides a way to depict the probability of on making losses. In the paper below, various methodologies are going to be used to calculate the value at risk of the 4 portfolio shares for the given year. The methodologies that would be use include: The historical simulation, the Monte Carlo simulation and the parametric approach. In each of the following, there are various crucial steps that would be used in calculation of value at risk in the value at risk to come up with conclusions for the various portfolio shares. The structure of the paper would mostly be description based of the following approaches mentioned above. While calculating value at risk in a specific methodology, the following will need to be observed carefully. In each methodology, a description on how one is going to arrive at the specific value at risk for the given portfolio is going to be calculated and even a histogram plotted where necessary. In addition, one would be expected to comment on the important steps used and give a final verdict of the advantages and the disadvantages of using the given method. After calculating value at risk using the three approaches mentioned above, then a discussion will be conducted to compare the differences in the three methods while attempting to get the value at risk (Jorion 2007, p.6). Then the paper would end with a conclusion that would comment on the value at risk of the 4 portfolio shares used. ... cause the end product of any of the two approaches will be to estimate value at risk, often the most important points remain on whether results calculated by other different methods may differ from each other. In addition, one would still like to know which approach is the most reliable in estimating value at risk. Generally, intuitiveness shows that non-parametric methods, like the historical simulation as well as the parametric methods i.e. Risk metrics, will often yield the same Value at risk if historical returns data will be normally distributed. In addition, empirical studies also shown that the given predicted results from different Value at risk methodologies are often not close (Choudhry 2006, p.7. The historical simulation often does not impose a given distributional assumptions, sometimes it can be limited when used to forecast the range of certain portfolio value changes since it incorporates no volatility updating plus it produces inaccurate values once the future succum bs to extreme events. In contrast, the Risk metrics, is relatively easy to put in practice. Nonetheless, a given empirical observations on a given returns of financial instruments often do not exhibit the given normal distribution and hence the method do not fit data with certain heavy tails. Background to the data sample The following 4 companies have been chosen to have the analysis of their value at risk of their share portfolios calculated. They are Aggreko PLC, Admiral Group PLC, Amec PLC and the Anglo- American PLC. The Aggreko PLC is a very large international company that deals with supplying temporary power plus dealing with temperature control too. Admiral Group PLc is a large motor insurance company that has a head office at Wale, Cardiff . The Amec PLC is hence a global

Castration as a punishment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Castration as a punishment - Essay Example Castration is a method of punishment that involves the authorities chopping off the private parts of the offender. Various debates have existed on whether this method of punishment is fair and it is appropriate to go through several facts that show why it ought to continue. Many people have argued that this method of punishment is not fair for it involves messing with the body parts of a human being. This argument does not have much support for going through the areas that have passed this law; they pass it for it assists in punishing criminals who engage in uncouth activities such as rape (Goldin, 2013). When carrying out rape, the criminals get to mess with the private parts of innocent individuals and thus the reason why it is fair for the authorities to carry out the same type of punishment on the person. Another argument that can be used to show the fact that these people ought to be castrated is the issue of repeat offenders. Many cases exist where the person who carried out the raping crime carries out the same mistake again (Becker, 2012). After being caught and imprisoned for the first time, these people have the ability to feel as if they did not deserve the punishment and as a sign of rebellion may rape again. This matter has existed for a very long time. However, if a person is castrated after carrying out the crime for the first time, then there is no chance that he can carry out the crime again. Castration ought to be a sentencing option to the judges and this ids for the fact that when a person is sentenced to punishment of castration, he goes through much pain and suffering that may be effective enough to act as a warning to other people that may have had similar intentions. Moreover, this method of sentencing ensures that the offender does not carry out the crime again even after the release (Tracy, 2013). There are different cases that have come up over the

Domestic Terrorism History Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Domestic Terrorism History - Term Paper Example The terror acts carried out include violent demonstrations destroying property, using any weapon that harms life especially use of grenades, poisonous gases, machine guns and others. Domestic terrorism can have gross effects on a nation as those carrying out the attacks are living among the people they want to attack. A government should be aware of the possible risk of terrorism from within and take the necessary precautions. The American government is wary of domestic terrorism more than any nation. The government comprises of several states coming together to form one hierarchical ruler -ship. The issue of mixed race also increases the chances of occurrence of domestic terrorism as one race rises against the other (Hewitt, 2003). Different religions all demanding a voice exist .Human right activists are very assertive and can stage demonstrations to air their grievances or influence one group of people against the other. With all these possible risks of terror from within, the int elligence unit has a responsibility of ensuring that the people enjoy security and peace. Domestic terrorism therefore still poses a great threat to America’s security. In the recent past, several cases of domestic attacks appear in police reports. There was the case of a man who tried to harm people in a large building with poisonous gas. Luckily, police arrested before he could execute his mission. A different case in record was when a group of people broke windows of democratic offices expressing their dissatisfaction with the services they offered. These people demanded more from them. Reported also are several other cases of people plotting out attacks and making orders for materials for use in such attacks. Other Americans reported to oppose some military activities staged a protest. According to Cleto (1999), other reports of domestic violence are cases whereby scientists face accusations of engaging in bio-terrorism either intentionally or accidentally. In such cases, chemical toxins or harmful biological materials are released into the environment, harming human or the environment. These scientists compromise on the rules of bio-security and therefore leak material. In other cases, potential terrorists gain entry into laboratories and access hazardous material. According to the rules of bio-security, such material should be inaccessible. This type of terrorism can cause gross negative effects on the environment and on man. Scientists are educated on the procedures or ensuring responsibility. In addition, they should be more aware of the people gaining entry into research laboratories. The research laboratories are fitted with a tight security system to minimize entry of unauthorized personnel. Despite all these prevention measures, bioterrorism poses a risk of harm in America. After America managed to defeat al-Qaeda, a new form of domestic terrorism evolved. Members of this group have been attempting to buy Americans, train them, and supply th em with weapons. These Americans can therefore plot terror attacks in their own country with little suspicion. Non-patriotic Americans can agree to an agreement of this type and therefore pose a threat to society. A terror attack of this type is risky as it is not easy to identify such individuals. Another form of domestic terrorism occurs when the military are involved in extra-judicial killings. In this case, the military that is supposed to protect the people harms the people. Cases like these may occur

Edgar Allan Poes message on life and death Research Paper

Edgar Allan Poes message on life and death - Research Paper Example Among the literary figures who tried to analyse these two terms, Edgar Alan Poe stands apart from the common category. His perspectives on these two terms were the contributions of the great man’s experience with his life. He has not clearly stated his perspectives directly about life and death, but the works and characters display the way he viewed both life and death. According to Harold Bloom, Poe’s life â€Å"presents almost as much mystery, drama, melancholy, and in some cases fiction as his tales and poems do† and one can also find that â€Å"Poe’s personal image is closely associated with many of the characters and imagery contained in his works: dark, gloomy, half –mad (Bloom 5). In most of his works, the characters show the true replica of Edgar Allan Poe’s own ideas regarding life and death. The narrator in the poem, The Raven, is believed to be Poe himself. The personal experiences of Poe from his early child hood to the adulthood are reflected in his works. Almost all his works are filled with the element of melancholy and disillusionment in it as he had witnessed in his life. In his essay, The Philosophy of Composition, he states, â€Å"Beauty of whatever kind, in its supreme development, invariably excites the sensitive soul to tears. Melancholy is thus the most legitimate of all the poetical tones† ("The Philosophy of Composition": Edgar Allan Poe (1809?1849) 3). His works are a combination of the twin aspects- life and death. It can be seen that the attitude of Poe towards life was something pessimistic. This paper analyses Poe’s perspectives on life and death as shown by his characters in various works. For this, some of his important works are taken into consideration, to elucidate how much these aspects- life and death, are portrayed in his works. Life sketch of Edgar Allan Poe and the making up of the philosophy: The experiences that one receives from one’s personal life create an influence on one’s own perspectives. It was true with the case of Poe. The background of Poe was very dismal from his early child hood. He was born on January 19, 1809. In his short span of life (40 years) he had gone through all sorts of struggles and his personal life was a series of tragedies. Being orphaned at the very small age due to the death of his mother and the desertion of his father, he was entrusted with the care of John Frances Allan. The name, Allan he took from his care taker. His step father and step mother could not soothe the young Poe in his agonies. The antagonistic attitudes that developed between his step father and Edgar made their relationship become very uncomfortable. As a result, young Edgar had to struggle a lot to earn money. The futile studentship due to lack of money in the University of Virginia was another hit in his life. Even though he succeeded to become a soldier at the end the undesired incident could make its effect in his life. He h ad some kind of attachment to Mrs. Allan, his step mother. The death of his step mother also contributed to his peculiar character and thereby constructed a philosophy of dark comedy in his works. He had to part with the Allans as the struggle between the two increased, and he moved towards the outside world and tried to get foot in his literary career. The experiences that he acquired from working in various journals and periodicals paved the way for his literary career. The movements he had made far and across the places had also made an influencing effect to picture his philosophy in his works. In considering his very personal life many ill-fated sequences can be seen. His first courtship with Sarah Elmira Royster was a failure. When he wooed his 13 year old cousin Virginia Clemmm, he was faced

Authentic Assessment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Authentic Assessment - Essay Example The concepts of organizing, planning, leading, staffing, and controlling should be taken seriously by the supervisor. Supervisors act as intermediaries by communicating upper management’s objectives so as to realize the set goals. Supervisors facilitate the processes so as to keep the business operating. Based on the functions of the supervisors as well as their major roles, it is good for them to remain a key in steering forward the organization. The decisions made by supervisors on day to day activities affect attitudes and morale of employees as well as profits (Mosley et al, 2010). In the case of this supervisory development plan, the approaches of improving organizational performance through employee development will be reviewed. Developmental goals The goals of the supervisory development plan will be as follows. a. Improvement of communication between employees b. Better training for employees c. Develop a reward system for employees d. Efficient conflict management As a supervisor I have to ensure that my employees are well versed with skills and knowledge required for undertaking their roles. One of the main goals is to establish good communication with the employees. Good communication is essential in running efficient department. Without good communication, daily tasks will not be executed smoothly. Communication enhances efficiency in employee performance by minimizing workplace conflicts. It is essential for the supervisor to be a good listener and teach the employees how to be good listeners of one another. Good communication facilitates problem-solving and teamwork, which is essential for attainment of organizational objectives. Another key goal is ensuring better training of employees. This is essential for ensuring efficiency and increasing productivity. Well trained employees will be efficient in executing his or her duties. With proper employee training, issues of time wastage and flaws in business operations will be addressed. From an other perspective, the supervisory plan seeks to come up with a better reward system for employees. Employees need to be motivated by offering them regular rewards based on their performance. Rewarding employees serves as motivation, uplifts their esteem and acts as appreciation for their hard work. It is also a primary goal for the development plan to ensure effectiveness in conflict resolution. It is my focus that all departments are run well and as smoothly as possible without conflicts. This will be attained by ensuring good communication, proper training, motivation, and building trust with employees. Since best development plans are not always perfect, critiquing will be welcome to ensure constant review of the goals and adjust them accordingly for the benefit of all (Houldsworth & Jirasinghe, 2006). Performance gaps In order to improve employee performance, proper communication and training will be adopted. Employees will be taught on the fundamentals of good communication wi th one another as well as with their managers. There is a great performance gap in good employee performance. This entails the creation of a shared vision with all employees. There is need to communicate effectively with employees on the objectives of the organization and how to executive their roles. By creating a shared vision, the employees will be inspired

Asda Stores - Internal communications Assignment

Asda Stores - Internal communications - Assignment Example It does this to build trust in the organization. Townley (1994) and Caruth et al. (1995) both emphasize on the importance of providing stakeholders and staff with enough information in order to avoid cases of mistrust and build staff morale. Benefits of transparent communication in an organisation It gives the staff a clear picture of picture of their tasks and the subsequent outcome. This in turn helps to build their morale and motivation to put more effort to their tasks. Transparent communication makes the staff feel part of the organization or have a sense of ownership. Asda has greatly tapped into this in ensuring that the colleagues feel like the owners of the store. Transparency in communication also ensures that in case of problems at work the manager or owner will be freely informed therefore avoid incidents that can easily be solved. The staff could also bring in their individual suggestions and ideas to foresee the success of the store. The store will therefore be able to enjoy a greater contribution of ideas. Distinction between internal and external communication is another strategy Asda uses in its communication as well as maintaining regular and frequent communication among the staff (Boxall 2003, p. 13). Media Used in Communication in the Organisation 1. Employee Branding Miles and Mangold (2004) define employee branding as the act by which employees of a particular organization internalize the organization’s trademark and project the same to customers and the entire public. Employee branding works well where the employees or colleagues as referred to by Asda willingly make an emotional connection with the store’s products by deciding to be part and parcel of all the store’s ventures. Successful employee branding leads to increase in number of customers and eventually increased sales and profits. Employees need to like a particular brand in order for them to effectively connect with it and decide to be branded using the same . Artain and Schumann (2006) came up with thirteen points that are important to note about employee branding. These are discussed below. The organization’s promise to its employees The organisation has to explain what is in store for the employees. For instance, the benefits could be accumulated by the decision of employees to be part of the organization. This will help the employees to be motivated to work for the organization. Business Strategy Employees must have complete information of the organizations plan of action. They must fully understand the goals, objectives and strategies that the company wishes to adopt. The organizations expectation from its employees is also critical to be known in advance for effective branding. Doing this will help the employees decide whether this is what they want to experience through their professional life (Enz & Siguaw 2000, p. 54). Customers Employees should know how the organization wants them to treat the customers. For example, ma nagers should take lead by example when it comes to treating customers with respect and high esteem. Employees’ tasks: The company should lay down in advance what is expected from the employees for example the mode of action, dressing, and working hours among others. The company should also invest in ensuring that employees fully understand what the brand is all about. Connection of what happens outside the organisation and what happens inside: The organisation must find a way to

Marco Polo and Matteo Ricci Accounts of China Essay

Marco Polo and Matteo Ricci Accounts of China - Essay Example The imperial power of the Chinese passes from the father to the son, however the people have a say in the staying in power of a ruler. When the people grow inept of a ruler they have the ability to strip him the throne and place a new man with courage and the qualities of being a leader. The Chinese prefer dying honorable death rather than be under a monarch who is usurping and swear allegiance to him. They therefore use and employ the ideologies of this proverb more frequently that, â€Å"no woman is moral who has two husbands nor any vassal faithful who has two lords†. The laws that are governing China are not enshrined to any logical way, however any person who succeeds in getting the throne makes his own laws and he who succeeds him is obliged to implement the laws .The Chinese people have a government that is monarchial ,however to certain degrees this government is an aristocracy .Decisions in relation to governance are made by the magistrates but the king has to make co nfirmations by writing though he has no powers to make any final decision without first consulting with the magistrates. The income does not go to the exchequer but is a resource of the public and is taken to the public treasury. The running of most of the national issues like the military and management of the prisons are met by the national treasury and where the funds cannot be met by the available resources, new taxes are imposed to raise the extra income to meet the national demands of the republic of china (Kashlansky). The magistrates are grouped into two, those from the national levels and those at the provincial levels. Besides the magistrates there is a group of about 60 philosophers who have proved allegiance to the king and are loyal to the realm. This group is kept by the king for the good of business and benefits to the royalty. In addition to the magistrates ,at the national palace there are various organizations which are instituted for various purposes .there are al so members of the cabinet who have no public administrative powers but have the highest office dignity. Marco gives an account of the tartars who had an eloquent ruler who came into power with approved integrity, justice and valor. The king came into power with so much moderation and fairness that his fame spread all over the world. By finding himself as the head of so many brave men he ordered them to arm themselves with arrows and bows so as to fire an assault to the neighboring provinces. The king ensured that he developed love with the people and gained their respect. However in later stages he became a dictator and developed strict regulation which had even penalties for death of defaulters of regulations .The tartars had a nomadic life and never stayed in one place, constantly moving in search of greener pastures. They had women with courage and virtue for the management of their homes (Marco).The women observe chastity and no quarrel is heard of or experienced in the families with the women always taking care of the children and the provision of food for the family. The city of Kin say is reported to have men and women who love life and use gold and silver. The authority of this city equally felt quite insecure and made it a rule to guard its numerous bridges with numerous precautions especially after dusk such

Of Kind and Cruel Fates Essay Example for Free

Of Kind and Cruel Fates Essay Irony, in its essence, is the humor of contradiction. It is contradiction, in the sense that where we would expect events to lean on one way, events instead completely take the opposite direction. A crude example would be where a string of freak accidents occur at a factory where the manager is showing off to his potential clients that his company is â€Å"accident-free†. Irony is humorous because if one saw it with impartiality, one would find it funny. Having a car accident right after a road is â€Å"improved† to avoid further accidents, would be funny. To study irony further, one could study an average persons sense of humor. While as a child, he may delight in the curiosities of the environment, eventually he becomes adjusted to seeing it everyday, and eventually his enjoyment of it fades. Humor takes on a different characteristic for him. There is the slapstick comedy, where he finds the antics of the performers as funny and absurd, and there is the situational comedy, where he finds funny ordinary people falling to ridiculous situations. The common thread to this humor is that it attacks at something. Whether it is to ridicule a person behaving out of the social norm (as the slapstick), or to ridicule a persons belief or principle that is generally viewed as absurd (the parody), the higher the degree of abuse at the object of humor, the funnier. Irony, then, is humorous in the sense that it attacks something, through its contradiction. As an impartial viewer, we may find funny things that we know to be true as envisioned by the ironic set-up, but which is obscured in the minds of those who are involved in the irony. Humor moreover has intrinsic values it seeks to instill to its impartial witnesses, and consequently irony occurs as some way to inform the viewer of a cosmic lesson. We can delve in this further through the study of three stories, Tartuffe, The Princess of Cleves, and Nathan the Wise. There are several ironic situations that occur throughout the play Tartuffe. The story revolves around a household scandalized by having its head (the father) entertain and welcome as part of the family a man who openly and vocally shows his displeasure at what he deems as vices borne by the various members of the family and the house. One of the first ironic situations occurs with the son, Damis, who hides in the room while Tartuffe has a private conversation with his mother, Elmire. His intention is to unmask Tartuffe to his father as a hypocrite and get him out of the house (Moliere, 39-46). When he finally sees evidence of the mans scandalous behavior towards his mother and reveals it to his father, not only does his father not believe (owing to the hypocrites skillful use of words), but has Damis instead kicked out and even encourages Tartuffe to continue his scandalous behavior towards his wife, in order to spite his family (47-51). The humor in the situation centered on how big a fool the father was to believe in Tartuffes virtue, and an even bigger fool not to see the truth when it is right in front of him. This is further stressed in the next ironic situation, where after Orgon (the father) finally realizes the extent of his friends deceit, he tries to tell his mother, who was also fooled by the hypocrite. For all his protestations she does not believe him until she sees it herself (Moliere, 68-71). The irony is that where he once ignored the loud protests of his family, likewise his mother does not believe him, even for his loud protests. The final ironic twist, however, turns out for the good as the hypocrite Tartuffe, having been unmasked and set his plans for revenge, intrigues on the King and plans to have them all arrested, only to have him as the object of arrest, as the King was â€Å"wise† to his intrigues (77-80). The play has these alternating reversal of fortunes, and its ironic humor attacks two things: that blind faith without reason in open Virtue is folly, and that any malice masked in virtue never remains unpunished. A more tragic tale of irony is that of the Princess of Cleves. Introduced to a court as Madam Chartres, she wins the affection of the Prince of Cleves, who endeavor to marry her despite the protests of his father; she falls, however for someone else, the Duke Nemours (Lafayette, 15-17). The story then centers around him trying to find the opportunity to confess his love, and she, now married, desperately tries to stave off his affections while suppressing hers. We do not see the irony unfold until the very end: the Princess anguishes over her affection for the Duke throughout her marriage, but following the death of her husband suddenly she has a change of heart and is convinced that her husband was a far better man than the Duke (101-107). It is only after the husband dies and they finally have an opportunity to be together does she decide not to be with the Duke. The irony here attacks the notion that love borne from adulterous intention will eventually bear fruit. It might have been attack towards the growing acceptance of the public towards the notion of infidelity, (almost every character is involved in an affair with someone else) and their giving it idealistic fervor. The Princess of Cleves, despite the best of her intentions, continued to bear her love to someone else, and pined for that other person, and consequently, in her husbands death she realized her folly too late, and chose to suffer the rest of her life in that guilt. Nathan the Wise has such a complicated string of ironies, that one who skims through even the slightest of details would not appreciate the ironies that eventually occur. Originally, the story of the Jewish merchant Nathan centered around the Muslim conqueror Saladin trying to fool him out of his money—and this tale has found itself in the pages of Boccaccios Decameron. Nathan answers so skillfully that ironically it was Saladin who was put to shame by his own question and humbled before the Jew (Lessing, 90-97). This story is, however, expanded by Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, and this encounter between the Egyptian conqueror and the Jew becomes the main theme. The tale then revolves around a Templar, who was pardoned by Saladin for the reason that he resembled the conquerors brother (Lessing, 36); the consequences of his rescue of a Jewish maiden (and subsequent encounter of the grateful surrogate father Nathan), and the intrigues of the Patriarch who would have him either kill Saladin or turn over Nathan, who he found had raised a Christian child to the Jewish faith (the same Jewess he rescued) (37-40). The irony, from an impartial point of view, might have been to some degree absurd. The Templar, in almost the fashion of Oedipus, tries desperately to seek the truth, and unmask what he sees in his prejudice as malice committed by the Jew Nathan (Lessing, 109-127). And, also in the fashion of Oedipus, not only does he discover that the girl he was trying to save (and hope to marry) was his sister, but Saladin who he would have killed had he agreed to the Patriarch, was his uncle after all (165-172). The irony also hits Saladin, as his pardoning the Templar Conrad because he looked like his brother, redounds to the truth that Conrad was his brothers son. While the ironic twist might seem ridiculous to the trained eye, in the sense it fits to the lesson first imparted by Nathan to Saladin: that all men are equal before God, regardless of Faith. This is a happier chide at the Medieval sensibility of hostility between Faiths. Irony is humorous, because we find that the contradiction it creates makes sense. We might have felt our sensibilities offended when we saw that the Princess of Cleves did not end up with the Duke Nemours, but the cosmic twist was to show to us that infidelity was wrong. We would have preferred that the Templar should have instead ended up marrying the Jewess, but the irony was there to impart the lesson that prejudice has, after all, no place in the world. We sometimes do not find ironic circumstances that funny, as if we lived the life of Duke Nemours or became as aghast as the Templar Conrad. But eventually, we will learn that the contradiction was to impart to us that our plans may go completely the other way, because they may not have been right in the first place. And, the wiser we become to this truth, the more we will realize that irony, though it might strike sad for us, has a reason. The better we accept this, the more we will be prepared to just take a step back, take a view of the bigger picture, and laugh. WORKS CITED Lafayette, Madame de. The Princess of Cleves. New York: Project Gutenberg. 27 Sept. 2008 http://www. gutenberg. org/files/467/467. txt. Lessing, Gotthold Ephraim. Nathan the Wise. New York: Page, Curtis. Project Gutenberg. 01 Mar. 2003. http://www. gutenberg. org/dirs/etext03/natws10. txt. Moliere, Jean Baptiste. Tartuffe. New York: Project Gutenberg. 26 Oct. 2008. http://www. gutenberg. org/files/2027/2027. txt.

Roles and Functions of the Music Industry

Roles and Functions of the Music Industry The music industry is one of the largest creative industries in the world, combing different elements of the business to produce and sell music to its audience. The development of the industry has evolved on a very large scale since the 19th century, when it was the printed sheet music being the leading product. Moving forward with societys technological progression, in the 20th century, the way we were listening to music was changing with it becoming ubiquitous. popular music was an early global commodity, with record companies establishing branches around the world for both marketing and the recruitment of talent at the beginning of the twentieth century, (Gronow and Saunio, 1998). When these record labels began to emerge, they were producing and selling more recorded music, CDs, cassettes and live performances and introducing more musical genres to the world. All of these aspects have brought us to todays technologically advanced society, making the music business a very powerful industry consumed by the masses. In this essay I shall discuss the role and functions of the music industry, drawing upon particular theorists opinions including Theodor Adorno. I will also touch upon the study of popular music and the many factors contributing to the current crises of the music industry itself. In an age where music has become one of the more dominant and influential forms of entertainment in our society, the factors driving its production should be explored. Firstly, I shall look at the concept of music ownership. Record companies have an enormous amount of control over what music gets produced and what doesnt as it is the main goal for them to sell and make profit. They will not sign an artist unless they truly believe that they will make them money. The major companies in the business today are, Sony BMG, Universal Music, EMI and Warner Music, which are collectively known as The Big Four who then own smaller labels as well. After managing the production and distribution of the music, it is their responsibility to handle the marketing for musical artists, organising promotions, music videos, endorsements and so on, giving the artist well-known status among the mass audience. In the early days of this music industry, being signed to a label was essential for an artist to b e successful. However, in todays digitally advanced world, it is much easier for an artist to have their music shared with an audience using information technology like the internet, which paved the way for independent labels becoming more popular as well. In the documentary Money for Nothing, they go behind the business of pop music and look at how it has changed in this society of digitally experienced consumers. We are shown insights from music journalists and artists about corporate control and the restraints given to contemporary music. With major labels only looking at the artists who they believe are the most profitable, the independent labels take on artists that they can help develop and take risks with different talent. Although, with the current economic climate and the decline in revenue from various aspects of the industry, even the independent labels are having trouble staying out of the corporate system. REFERENCE. Recording companies becoming this hyper commercialized system is a largely stated opinion among musical talents and media theorists. Major record labels are owned by the huge media conglomerates that are the core reason why creativity in music has become so limited. The conglomerates of the industry use the re cord companies to sign acts that can get them the quick sell as the only aim for them as a business is to make a profit. Cross media marketing or synergy, is something these conglomerates use to make this profit and to develop other media industries. They buy into other companies in entertainment, which they can then use to advertise and sell across different markets. The music industry on the other hand is completely dependent on the media as a promoter, user and distributer of its products. Most professional musical artists communicate with their audience primarily via some kind of electronic medium and only a fraction of the audience is able to experience the artists live performance. For instance, Warner Music Group, one of the largest media conglomerates, owns various entertainment companies including television, film and publishing along with music labels. The record labels use these companies to advertise and promote artists across markets such as radio, television and retail which are then consumed by the mass audience. A successful example in the current music charts is Ellie Goulding and her new song which is a cover of Elton Johns Your Song. It was not that popular to start with as Goulding is not an extremely well known artist compared to other artists currently in the charts. However, when the music label gave permission for the retail chain, John Lewis, to use the song in their new Christmas advertisement, the song rocketed up the charts and is now a favourite for Christmas number one. Goulding has begun to appear on radio and television promoting the song and she has become a household name in a matter of weeks, all thanks to the instant fame John Lewis have given her. This shows how popular music is so commercially driven and how the absence of real talent, experimentation and creativity in music has begun to disappear. Most of todays new acts are manufactured because this is cheaper and easier for labels to produce rather than finding new talented artists. With television shows such as The X Factor, a concept of combining reality television with the music industry, created by music mogul Simon Cowell, we are brought together as this unthinking homogenous mass with the music acting as a social cement. We are being brainwashed through these simple ideologies of music, rendering us as a passive and unthinking mass audience. Adorno argues that the whole structure of popular music is standardized, even where the attempt is made to circumvent standardization. In his work he characterizes popular and serious music of which he then uses to underline his theory of popular music being standardized. This theory highlights that pop music is just a product of mass culture, and how the formula of producing a song is just endlessly replicated with a fixed structure and yet creates the illusion of creativity, what Adorno refers to in his theory of pseudo-individualisation. The song structure is replicated so much so, that the consumers do not actually realise they have heard it before, what Adorno refers to as pre-digested. So the listening of a song is not spontaneous and no intellect is required as it has done the thinking for them and the listeners consume what is already familiar. However, I do believe that with the current crisis of the music industry, there is a certain layer of pop music that is standardized but there is still an element of creative autonomy. Although saying that, the industry will always be driven by money and not creativity as that is the prerogative of a capitalist society we live in today. Compared to popular music, serious music is not standardized as it is produced with the whole aesthetics of a song in mind and every detail derives its musical sense from the concrete totality of the piece. With serious music being genres such as folk, pre-industrial music, classical, or art music, it is focusing on the experimentation and meaning of a piece rather than the repetitive, fixed structure of a popular song. Independent music labels have a slightly different outlook on producing music compared with the major labels. They take a less economic approach and more a social approach to music and without a corporate conglomerate steering them they can decide what to produce. However without corporate finances indie labels still have trouble getting the music out there to be heard. Not wanting to be a part of the commercial music industry, the American punk band Fugazi stayed with their independent record label Dischord Records which was also co-founded by the bands guitarist Ian MacKaye, refusing offers to become part of major label. Their main focus was their music and they did not want to rip off their listeners, which a major label would make them do. Michael Azerrad mentions in Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground 1981-1991, In response not only to a corrupt music industry but to an entire economic and political system they felt was fraught with greed for money and powerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Fugazi staked out the indie scene as the moral high ground of the music industry; from then on, indie wasnt just do-it-yourself, it was Do the Right Thing. This is one example where the music is more important than the sell and the artist keeping control over their music. Even when managing to not sell out to the commercial music industry, Fugazi gained loyal fans through their honest and passionate attitudes towards their music and do not charge extortionate amounts of money for tickets to their performances or CDs escaping the capitali st business. However, for the major record labels, charging large amounts of money for concert tickets seem to be the only way for an artist to make money these days. With the music industry in a crisis, losing money through illegal downloading and file sharing over the internet, artists are losing money through CD sales so have to charge more money for ticket prices to make up for this loss. Going back to the use of synergy in the music business, we have come to find that the status of Radio itself has also changed. With radio stations being owned by the bigger conglomerates, they are not spontaneous anymore, when playing different types of music. It used to be that, Radio DJs would play the music that they believed was good music and having their particular music personality broadcasted to their listeners. Today, the conglomerates that own the stations have a strong say in what gets played. For instance, there would be a particular song they have to play a number of times in so many hours, so technically they have no control over whats played. Adornos belief on how culture gets polluted when it meets commerce plays a quiet role here. The media conglomerates controlling the radio stations are selling the listeners an illusion. They are hiring celebrities as DJs who know little or sometimes nothing about music other than their own personal interests to host shows, who the n become these big media personalities become with the public from media marketing and promotion. For example, Vernon Kay, BBC Radio 1 DJ, was a TV presenter before his big break in to radio in 2004. His television status made him a well known name, and so naturally he was then hired to be the DJ for a prime spot on a mainstream station. So, overall, they are selling him more than the station, to acquire a larger proportion of listeners. It was radio play of music that constituted its popularity, but with many radio stations sounding the same nowadays, only playing the popular chart music, it is much harder for unknown bands and artists to get air time on the more popular stations. Looking back at the documentary Money For Nothing again, we can see that there are the four main companies that reach consumers in the selling of music. From the production at the record companies, the music then gets played over the radio, the music videos will be shown on television and then touring will promote the music. For manufactured new artists, the record companies will pay other radio stations to play this music so its heard by the masses, and then this will also give the opportunity to promote other areas of the industry that they own. So in the end, the variety of music heard on the radio has now decreased on a large scale. Coming into todays digitally advanced world, the music industry has fallen into a crisis. In a generation where virtually everything is digitally recoverable, the sales of records are on continuing decline, not only from legal downloads from sites such as iTunes, but illegal file sharing over the internet has also become major factor. In an interview with Simon Frith for the online music magazine Perfect Sound Forever, Simon Frith says that, With digital CDs, records can now live forever and there is far more back catalogue available and less incentive to buy records that just came out. iTunes is one of these catalogues where music files from virtually any artist are readily available to purchase. It was established in 2001 by the global corporation Apple and has since been one of the main outlets of digital media. Napster, was a peer to peer file sharing service online created by a university student, Shawn Fanning. It began in 1999, allowing people to share their music libraries across this system. This service became very popular with its easier way of obtaining music files that could be expensive to purchase or just hard to come by. However with this technology its popularity grew to over 20 million users and music artists and bands became more aware of the seriousness of the copyright infringements of the company. Metallica and Dr Dre were one of the first bands to sue Napster for copyright violations of their music with a successful outcome. Rapper Dr Dre stated that I work hard making music thats how I earn a living. This is a shared opinion of all musical artists as they are losing money through file sharing technology, and this is ultimately damaging the future of the industry. In the end Napster had to stop the service, but not completely shut it down. They turned it into a subscript ion service to abide by the copyright laws; however this still did not get them out of the financial struggle they were in, paying legal settlements to the music industry. They finally went bankrupt and had to liquidate their business. Even though the illegal file-sharing was stopped through Napsters service, the core idea and technology has gone on to a larger problem with many more illegal downloading services such as Limewire, Ares or torrent software. These newer services have built upon Napsters original technology and have made a larger dent in the music industrys revenue today. Even Fanning saw the greater potential for peer to peer technology stating, peer-to-peer technology or distributed computing also has tremendous opportunity for sharing resources or computing power, lowering information and transaction costsPeer-to-peer also has the potential to change todays understanding of the relationship between source and site. He saw how this could make searching for files easie r, explaining that it is less complicated and less time consuming to just let a program find the file source to rather than connecting to a central server. Looking at the music industry as a whole, the main aspects of technology, music and commerce Conclusion: Internet has made music ubiquitous. Using our emotions and vulnerability to sell us music catharsis adorno synergy, which Ben H. Bagdikian, in his book Media Monopoly,