Medical ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Medical ethics - Essay Example important form of commission parents) may also be the sufferers of exploitation (Laura M. Purdy). Furthermore, it is argued that there are high-quality reasons for considering that commercial surrogacy is frequently exploitative. Though, even if we believe this, the exploitation quarrel for keeping out (or if not legislatively disappointing) commercial surrogacy leftovers quite weak. One important cause for this is that ban may well backfire and lead to possible surrogates having to do additional things that are more exploitative and/or additional damaging than paid surrogacy. No doubt, it is finished so that those who oppose exploitation be supposed to (rather than attempting to discontinue exacting practices similar to commercial surrogacy) focus on: (a) humanizing the conditions beneath which paid surrogates labor; and (b) changing the backdrop conditions (in exacting, the uneven distribution of power and wealth) which make exploitative relations (Laura M. Purdy). The term autonomy is resultant from the Greek autos, which means self and from the term nomads denotation rule, governance or law. To be autonomous is to be self-determined and to be in control of ones life. In regards to health check care, being autonomous refers to one making a decision concerning personal medical care issues for his or her self. Autonomy focuses on respecting the ability of a person to make health care decisions on their own. It is much more multifaceted than considering who is in charge or who knows best the real matter is which of the basic ethical principals hold advantage in any given situation. "medical paternalism" leads to the burden of coercive life-prolonging measures in a manner insensible to the patient; and it put off dying patients and their families from lasting the touching and financial hardships caused by the continuance of desperate medical and technical intervention; (Dialogue.

FAA inspections on Boeing 737's and how it relates to Operations Research Paper

FAA inspections on Boeing 737's and how it relates to Operations Management - Research Paper Example It provides employment opportunities to over 170,000 individuals throughout 70 nations. It is also regarded as one of the oldest manufacturers of commercial airlines having its root from the last 40 years. It also manufacturers missiles, defense systems and satellites and is a major service provider to NASA (Boeing, 2013). The main aim of this research paper is to provide a broad description on the main reasons behind the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to order inspections of more than 1,000 Boeing 737 jets and to show appropriate reasons that the inspection of the airline can help the company in ensuring proper management of operations. Operation Management Operations management is considered as one of the most vital parts of an organizational life cycle irrespective of the fact that it is involved in producing goods or services or is functioning in private or public sectors. The main purpose or aim of operations management is to implement steps that may help the organization to operate efficiently. With reference to the article, â€Å"FAA Orders Inspections on Boeing's 737 Aircraft† by Andy Pasztor, it can be apparently viewed that the potential effect of factory defects in the manufacturing process of Boeing 737 has led the company to inspect more than 1000 Boeing 737s, causing an incurrence of total compliance costs of nearly US$10 million (Pasztor, 2013). The main steps which are usually followed in the process of operations management are discussed below: Contact customer: The first step in operations management is to obtain information on the demand, intension and the core customers/potential customers to buy the products’ produced. Moreover, conserving the contact information is also done to measure the market action (Mahadevan, 2009). Contribute a demand: The next step in the process is to propose a demand of service or product to the qualified customers. This can be done by offering a written proposal to potential customers. It is considered that business proposal is often determined to be a step in settling complex business processes. For instance, companies like Boeing usually adopt the policy of providing business proposals to potential airlines in order to offer them a broad description of the services they render and the way in which they differ from their competitors (Mahadevan, 2009; Neely, 1993). Sale: In this step, the contract or sale of the product is done to their potential customers. Establish a written procedure: In this vital step, both the parties agree upon a mutual agreement in keeping with the different aspects such as characteristics and date of supply of the final products among others. The step is recognized to be a vital part as both the parties are benefited from it (Mahadevan, 2009). Required resources: In this step, all the necessary equipments, products and additional resources needed to complete the project are verified. The costs of the entire requirements are measured to impleme nt it in inventory management (Mahadevan, 2009). Execution: In this phase, the written process is applied in the practical form, resulting in the formation of the defined product (Mahadevan, 2009). Effectiveness: The final expectation according to the contract or customer is measured. Delivery: This step involves the process of delivering the final product to the end customer. This step needs

Effects of the Geometrical Conditions on Side Channel Pump

Effects of the Geometrical Conditions on Side Channel Pump Effects of the Geometrical Conditions on the Performance of a Side Channel Pump: A review Appiah Desmond, Zhang Fan, Yuan Shouqi and Osman Majeed Koranteng National Research Center of Pumps, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China Abstract The side channel pump is a type of regenerative pump which plays a role in between the centrifugal pump and the positive displacement pump. This kind of pump delivers a high head at relatively small flows compared with other axial and centrifugal pumps even though it requires a low specific speed. This paper firstly focuses on the physical principle behind the flow characteristics illustrating the complex flow inside the side channel pump. Further discussions disclosed that, the hydraulic performance of the pump greatly depends on the variations of the geometrical parameters. This review draws conclusion that, enhancement of the computational modeling techniques will improve the efficiency of this pump thereby broadening its applications. Keywords: Side Channel Pump, Hydraulic Performance, head, geometrical parameters, computational modeling 1.0 Introduction The side channel pump since its inception in 1920 by Siemen and Hinsch [1] has had great influence in the world of engineering. This pump plays a role in between the centrifugal pump and the positive displacement pump. The side channel pump is a kind of regenerative pump which has a low specific speed and requires minimal Net Suction Pump Head (NSPH). Due to its unique properties to self-prime and transports both liquids and gas, it has been used mainly in the fields of oil and gas industry, mining and other applicable fields. Most of these pumps have the ability to handle liquid with gas or vapor inclusions up to about 50% and also other media close to their boiling point [2]. The side channel pumps base its operation on the momentum transfer principle moving from the impeller blade to the fluid in the side channel of the pump [3, 4]. The side channel pump delivers a large head performance at relatively small flows [5]. The fluid gets into the pump and leaves after numerous impeller movements. The fluid velocity and its head increase causing it to have the capability to produce a head (pressure) compared to the axial and centrifugal pumps. Due to the smaller pressure difference, a fluid entering this type of pump closer to its vapor pressure is less susceptible to the pressure change that can bring about cavitation[4]. Over the years, the enhancement of the total efficiency of this pump still remains a challenge to engineers and scientist. The flow rate of fluid in the side channel pump is significantly influenced by the impeller designs on this basis urgent attention needs to be given to the design and optimization of the impeller and side channel [5, 6]. 2.0 Flow Mechanism The side channel pump mainly features a side channel in figure 1a. and an impeller usually with 18 to 26 blades figure 1b, which delivers the fluid circumferentially. The assembly of the side channel and the impeller is shown in figure 1c. The fluid flows in a straight line from the inlet of the pump and leaves through the outlet in a helical form after numerous re-entries into the rotating impeller. This effect causes an upturn in the pump head (pressure) from about 5~10 times better than the impeller of a common pump rotating at the same speed [5, 6]. side channel (b) radial impeller The assembly of side channel and impeller Figure 1: Typical side channel with radial impeller This makes the flow of fluids in this kind of pump very complex as depicted in figure 2. The pump does not transport the same volume of fluid that enters out meanwhile some portion of the fluid moves back into interrupter gap and is conveyed by the pressure side of the blade to the suction side [6]. Shirinov and Oberbeck [3] explained the movement of gas in the side channel pump. They pointed out that the momentum acquired by the blades of the impeller is transferred to the gas. The velocity of the gas is then increased both in the axial and radial direction by the impeller blades in the side channel. Figure 2. Flow pattern of liquids in the Side Channel Pump [5] The turbulence and the circulation models are largely used to describe the performance of the pump and also the characteristic curve computation. The side channel pump efficiency is usually below 40% because it is a type of a regenerative pump [5, 6]. Basically, the flow is very dependent on the orientation of the impeller, impeller blade and the side channel. There are many configurations of the impeller blade and shapes of the channel as depicted in figure 3 by Song et al. [7]. Figure 3: Different kinds of blade and channel shapes [7] A study by Senoo [8] on the influence of the developing area for different geometries of the inlet region of the regenerative pump observed the large channel region at the inlet port as capable of developing high pressure head leading to a better cavitation performance of the pump. Song et al. [7] developed a model for the flow theory in the regenerative pump to help address the lapses in the works of Senoo[8] and Wilson et al. [9] which mainly concentrated on the exchange of momentum of the flow. There were inaccuracies of some of the models suggested by [8, 9] to reduce the losses and slip factor links. This made the accurate prediction of the off-design flow conditions very incapable. Song and his colleagues [7] concentrated on introducing vibrant mathematical algorithms demonstrating the true behavior of the flow in the developing area of the inlet region. They based their research on assumptions which guided them in arriving at some meaningful conclusions. The velocity triangle relation between absolute velocity, V relative velocity, W and the impeller velocity, U was defined based on the velocity triangle in figure 4 at blade inlet, R1 and blade outlet, R2. Figure 4: Velocity triangle at locations R1 and R2 [7] From figure 5, there is no tangential velocity in the front and rear faces of the blade region. Thereby, the continuity was defined in equation 1 based on their first assumption that the flow should be steady and incompressible. (1) Figure 5: Elements of one side channel and blade [7] They developed the first-order nonlinear Ordinary Differential Equation (ODE) for predicting the circulatory velocity which showed a good agreement when its results were compared with that of experimental results. A new branch of fluid mechanics developed in the last decades called Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) has been employed lately in the modern engineering science to analyze the flow of fluids in turbo machines. The study of the fluid flow in the side channel pump using the CFD tool and an analytical method was the centered of BÓ §hle and Mullers [10] research. They developed an analytical model for the flow taking into consideration some assumptions. A momentum balance was expressed for the control volume of the flow in a circumferential course. (2) Where Cin = uniform velocity in circumferential course Csc = uniform velocity in the side channel à ¡Ã‚ ¹Ã‚ exch = mass exchange flow p = static pressure A =Side channel cross-section area A1 = surface control volume à Ã¢â‚¬Å¾ = mean shear stress Figure 6: momentum balance [7] The efficiency of the impeller and side channel was defined as (3) Where ÃŽÂ ·imp = impeller efficiency Pexch = Exchange work Power Pshaft = Power of shaft Phydr = Hydraulic power losses (4) Where ÃŽÂ ·sc= side channel efficiency Peff = effective power à ¡Ã‚ ¹Ã‚  = side channel pump mass flow g = acceleration due to gravity H = head of side channel pump Cin = uniform velocity in circumferential course = flow rate volume A =Side channel cross-section area Based on the efficiencies of the impeller and the side channel, the efficiency of the side channel pump, ÃŽÂ · was computed to be (5) Later, Kristof and his colleagues [11] also applied the CFD to model the flow course in the side channel pump as displayed in figure 6. A technique was modeled to optimize the orientation of the blade and the shape of the side channel to control the flow losses. They carried out simulations with the k-à Ã¢â‚¬ ° turbulent conditions based on a 40100 cell tetrahedral mesh. Figure 6(a) and (b): Typical flow course with the side channel pump [11] In 2005, Engeda and Raheel [12] presented mathematical tools capable of examining the complex flow inside the regenerative pumps. These mathematical tools were used also used to develop the prediction performance code for regenerative pumps 3.0 Effects of the Geometrical design of the parameters of the Side Channel Pump The performance of the regenerative pump was examined by Iverson [13] with his focus on the shear stress generated by the impeller on the fluids. He then confirmed on his resulting expressions (two shear coefficients and an average impeller velocity) through experimentations. A mathematical tool was proposed by Wilson et al. [9] to investigate the performance of regenerative pumps which used radial blades. Equal pressure head rise and circulatory velocity through the channel region was anticipated by Wilson and his team. Much attention was given to the spiral flow to achieve many ways of curtailing the losses. Their results provided experimental verification after comparing the numerical and experimental performance curves. Yoo et al. [14] also tried to develop advanced mathematical equations to calculate the geometry of the rotating flows. They offered enhanced models to examine the flow rate, the average radii of the inlet and outlet impeller and the slip factor based on the exchan ge of momentum proposal by Wilson et al [9]. The models required an experimental boost to evaluate an empirical number in the proposed experimental model. The effect of the blade angle was not considered thus limiting the applicability as a design tool. The variation of the radial blade numbers, the clearance and the channel region of regenerative pumps were conducted by Shimosaka and Yamazaki [15]. Investigations conducted by varying the dimension of flow channels, impellers and clearances on a regenerative pump concluded that, the characteristic dimension of the flow channel is related to the clearances effects, which in turn influences the pump efficiency. The characteristic dimension of the flow channel was introduced as a special dimension which was given as: (6) Where Rmis the characteristic dimension of flow A is the cross-sectional area of the flow channel is the circumferential length of the blade(vane) Figure 7: Flow channel and blade profile They reported that a suitable Rm would yield a high efficiency of the pump. Therefore, the value of the Rm determines the permissible clearance. The pump efficiency was also strongly influenced by the number of blades (vanes) which is dependent on the characteristic dimension of the flow channel, the thickness and length of the blade and the width ratio as shown in figure 7. It was established that the efficiency of the pump varies with different width ratios of the vane groove which aids in the determination of the blade number. Width ratio,(7) Defining Z = Number of blades D = Diameter of impeller t1 = Peripheral width of blade groove t2 = Peripheral length of blade groove Additionally, Yamazak et al. [16] also carried out works to investigate the efficiency of the regenerative pump. Unlike Shimosaka and Yamazaki [15], they used the non-radial blades and concluded that the blade angle and the cross-sectional area of the flow channel play a vital role in the determination of the head (pressure) loss in the flow channel. Άh = Hs Hmin(8) Where Άh = the magnitude of head loss Hs = the suction head Hmin = the minimum pressure head in flow It was noted that the magnitude of Άh reduces to almost half that of water with the same velocity in the event of high viscous liquid. Motivated especially by the observations made by [15, 16], Grabow [17] also took into consideration the effects of the impeller, the number of blades and the role of the radii and thickness of the blades during his research study. The blade angles were varied to define a very satisfactory exchange of energy and pressure head levels, which in effect helps to evaluate cavitation performance better. Bartolini and Romani [18] also affirm that, the flow rate of the regenerative pumps depends on the optimization of the impeller flow. A new theory was proposed by Badami [19] on the calculation of the circulation flow rate of the regenerative pumps. This model took into account the field of the centrifugal force in both the side channel and the blade orientation. Also, his work also considered the influences of the geometry of the blades (number and angles) and the area of the side channel. Earlier it had been discussed by Sachs and Shirinov [20] that the best number of blades depends directly on the diameter of the impeller and inversely proportional to the side channels size. After that work, Shirinov and Oberbeck[3] then focused their investigations on the transportation of gas in the side channel pump by using different blade profiles. They compared C, V, and Y blade profiles with the radial (T) blade profile as shown in figure 8. Figure 8: Impeller with different blade profiles After comprehensive comparisons, it was established that blade profile C gave an optimal performance at pressures exceeding 20kPa meanwhile at pressures from 100Pa to 20kPa, the impeller with blade profile V (Chevron) recorded an optimal performance because there was a high transfer of momentum from the impeller to the gas inside the side channel within such pressure range. An extensive experimental research was also conducted by Choi et al. [21].Their work was mainly focused on the limitations of [14, 15, 17]. They examined the effects of the geometry on the blade on the efficiency of regenerative pumps. Ten different configurations of blades which comprised straight inclined blades with angles of 0 °,  ±15 °,  ±30 ° and  ±45 ° and chevron impeller blade with chevron angles of 15 °, 30 °, and 45 ° were used in conducting the experiments. The measured performance of the pump were measured based on the dimensionless flow à Ã¢â‚¬ ¢, head coefficient, à Ã‹â€ , efficiency, ÃŽÂ · and power coefficient, à Ã¢â‚¬Å¾. (9) Where Q = volumetric flow rate Qs= rigid-body rotational volume displacement rate (10) H = head Ug = rigid body rotation velocity g = acceleration due to gravity (11) The experimental results showed that the pressure head and the pump efficiency is greatly related to the geometry (shape and angle) of the blade as revealed in figure 9(a) and 9(b). Figure 9(a). Pump curve characteristics for the different blade orientation [21] Figure 9(b). Efficiency curve characteristics for the blade orientations [21] The chevron blade(V-shaped) with chevron angle of 30 ° recorded the highest head performance with a better pump efficiency as revealed in figure 8(a) and 8(b) after a comparative test of all the ten blades showing that there was an optimum chevron angle of around 30 °. This report showed good agreement with the work of [3] because of the high energy transfer at high pressures. The variation of the Reynolds number plays an important role in the performance of the regenerative pump computationally and experimentally. It was established by Horiguchi et al. [22] that, as the Reynolds number declines the pressure head of the regenerative pump rises at low flow rate and reduces at high flow rate. This effect of the Reynolds number is greatly affected by the degree of the shear force applied the impeller and the shear stress exerted by the fluid on the casing wall. Meakhail and Park [23] with the help of the CFD put forward an improved model to enhance the efficiency of the re generative pump. They based their arguments on the experimental works conducted by Meakhail et al. [24], Abdou et al. [25] and Abd El-Messih et al. [26] on the same kind of pump. They then confirmed their numerical model with the experimental results which were in good correlation. Figure 10a: Spiral flow course [23] Figure 10b: Impeller and Side channel dimensions [23] The improved model considered the tip (ÃŽÂ ²2), side (ÃŽÂ ²2s) and inlet (ÃŽÂ ²1) angles since a part of the fluid flowing leaves at the tip of the impeller and the other part of the fluid leaves at the side as indicated in figure 10. The CFX software was used to compare the efficiency of the pump with radial blades of different ÃŽÂ ²2s at the tip of the blade and ÃŽÂ ²1 for the same ÃŽÂ ²2. They confirmed that the side-blade angle has a significant effect on the performance of the side channel pump. The FLUENT software was applied in the examination of the flow of the fluid in this kind of pump by [27, 28]. The experimental results corroborated the CFD analysis. They also used a one-dimensional method to describe the energy transfer inside the regenerative pump and estimate the influence of the geometry of the blade on the efficiency of the pump. The performance of the regenerative pump was examined by Karanth et al. [29] numerically with the help of CFD. They studied the complex nature of the flow of fluid inside the regenerative pump. It was discussed that the number of impeller blades had a great significant on the performance of the pump. The head performance of the pump appreciates with the increase in the number of blades. Following the works of [29] the CFD was also applied by Maity et al. [30] to simulate the flow of fluids in regenerative pumps. It was established from their work that the pressure head loss can be minimized by curving the outlet flow domain as indicated in figure 11. Figure 11: Regenerative Pump model displaying the curvature in the outlet domain [30] It was indicated that there is a high rotating stalling flow at the outlet of the pump because of the reduction of the area. This effect enhances the static and total pressure across the pump. Hence, the curvature in turn increases the net pressure head by reducing the vortex flow as in shown in figure 12. Figure 12: Bar diagram showing the total pressure for the Pump model with outlet domain curvature [30] They also ended that, the net pressure is significantly enhanced by locating the blades on either side of the impeller by offsetting. Moreover, the net pressure is also affected by varying the number of blades on either side of the impeller. Fleder [31] numerically and experimentally examined the effects of the geometry of the blade on industrial side channel pumps in 2012. Two different impeller blade profiles were developed using ANSYS CFX 13.0 and subjected to investigations as shown in figures 13 and 14. Figure 13: Design of the Side Channel Pump [31]Figure 14: Impeller Blade Profiles [31] He concluded his work after comparison of the computational and experimental results. The experimental validation was done with a rotational speed of 750 rpm. The Imp 1 depicted good accordance both numerically and experimentally. Meanwhile, Imp 2 recorded a faster head rise because of the higher circulation frequency. This, in turn produces a greater multi-stage influence as depicted in figure 15. Figure 15: Assessment of the pressure head performance of the simulated and experimental results for Imp 1 and Imp 2[31] In addition, Fleder again with Bohle [32] carried out advanced studies to improve the performance of the side channel pump. In this paper, they extended their scope not only to cover the blade profile. The impeller diameter, the size of the gap, interrupter size, side channel height and the shape of the side channel were the main parameters considered. Variation of the height of the side channel, h, the width of the blade, w and the length of the blade, l, were applied to two different pump models in figure 15. Pump Model A Pump Model A Impeller Diameter = 150 mm Impeller Diameter = 160 mm Gap Size s, = 0.2 mmGap Size s, = 0.4 mm Interrupter size = 300Interrupter size = 460 Side Channel height, h = 35 mmSide Channel height, h = 40 mm Shape of Side Channel = semi-circleShape of Side Channel = Straight Figure 16: Variations in the pump models A and B [32] Figure 17: Parameters of the Side Channel Pump [32] The ICEM software was applied to develop the computational models which were meshed using the structured hexahedral multi-blocks grids. They chose k-w-SST profile to assess the flow fluctuations. It was gathered that the efficiency of the pump is dependent on the ratio of the side channel height, h to the blade length, l. Furthermore, sharper pressure head features and meaningfully greater efficiencies are achieved with a gap reduction of the pump. The work done by [21, 31, 32] on the influence of the blade angle motivated Nejadrajabali et al.[4] in 2016 also to analyze the pattern of the flow and the improvement of the efficiency of the pump by modifying the geometry of the blades. Their focus was on the effect of the variations of the angle of the blade, ÃŽÂ ² numerically on the efficiency of the regenerative pump such as the side channel pump. The investigations were carried out using two sets of impellers i.e. (the symmetric blade angles and asymmetric blades angles). The symmetric blade angles were designed with the same inlet and outlet angles of  ±10o,  ±30o and  ±50o whiles the asymmetric blade angles were also designed with the inlet set to 0o and different outlet angles ranging from  ±10o to  ±50o as illustrated in figure 18. Forward/backward ÃŽÂ ²1,2 =  ±10o Forward/backward ÃŽÂ ²1,2 =  ±30o Forward/backward ÃŽÂ ²1,2 =  ±50o Symmetric blades with equal inlet ÃŽÂ ²1 and outlet ÃŽÂ ²2 angles Forward/backward ÃŽÂ ²2 =  ±10o Forward/backward ÃŽÂ ²2 =  ±30o Forward/backward ÃŽÂ ²2 =  ±50o Asymmetric blades with inlet ÃŽÂ ²1 = 0o Figure 18: Geometrical designs of impellers [4] These geometrical designs were well enhanced with the application of the CFX software using the Reynolds decomposition to evaluate the complete 3D Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations. It was pointed out after the numerical simulations that, the forward symmetric blade angles compared with the other models recorded higher coefficients of heads and displayed a better performance. Recently, Zhang together with his colleagues [33] improved the head pressure performance of the side channel pump by varying the suction side blade angles from 00 to 300 as indicated in figures 19 and 20. Figure 19: Cross-sectional area of the blade [33] Figure 20: The impeller with various suction side blade profile angles indicating ÃŽÂ ¸ = 100, ÃŽÂ ¸ = 200 and ÃŽÂ ¸ = 300 [33] The CFX 14.5 commercial software was used to simulate the turbulence based on the k-w SST model. After experimentally comparing the results with the numerical simulations, it was recognized that the head performance appreciates with increasing suction side blade angles within a certain range. Even though the impeller blade profile with suction angle 300 recorded the optimal head performance, there was no significant advancement in the efficiency of the side channel pump. The regenerative pump (side channel pump) records efficiencies lesser than other types of pumps like the axial and centrifugal pumps. BÓ §hle et al. [34] lately attempted to improve the efficiency of the side channel pump by using the direct method in the context of the CFD simulations to calculate the massive losses which are associated with the various kinds of internal flow patterns of the fluid. The second law of thermodynamics was main physical principle applied in the estimation of the internal losses due to the flow patterns. According to Spurk and Aksels [35] proposal expressed in equation 10, the specific entropy s is a state variable agreeing with the second law of thermodynamics appreciates in all real and irreversible mechanical process in the case of turbomachinery. (12) Where = density of the fluid s = specific entropy u = velocity component in x direction v = velocity component in y direction w = velocity component in z direction x = x coordinate y = y coordinate z = z coordinate = heat flux density vector = Dissipation = local dissipation by heat transfer After the applications of three different models ( i.e. k-à Ã‚ µ model, k-à Ã¢â‚¬ ° model and the k-à Ã¢â‚¬ ° -SST model) to calculate and locate the coefficient of the losses, they remarked that the k-à Ã‚ µ model and k-à Ã¢â‚¬ ° model predicts estimates regions of higher coefficient of losses matched to the k-à Ã¢â‚¬ °-SST model. 4.0 Conclusion Though there have been several investigations into the theory of the flow principle of the fluid and variation of the geometry of the impeller and side channel, t

Batter my heart, three-person’d god - John Donne :: English Literature

Batter my heart, three-person’d god - John Donne 1. The paradox in the first quatrain is that god is supposed to be a good person but in this poem he isn’t. The speaker wants god to destroy him and remake him so he could have chance at salvation. The three person’d god represents the ways in which god will manifest his power in the task of giving the speaker salvation. The speaker is compare to an usurped town in may ways. The speaker is compared to a land were two political parties are having a conflict. In the parallel lines 2 and 4 knock and break represent god and how he uses direct force. Breath and blow represent the holy spirit and how it is some thing you can make. A spirit is not something you can feel. Burn and shine is Jesus and how he enlightened the people. The pun is how the heart represents the speakers believes. No matter what god does he cant change it. So he tells god to beat him into salvation. 2. The speaker compares himself to and usurped town where there is conflict. God is the minor political party or train of thought and the usurper is the devil who is the dominating party. Reason plays a big part because as in partisan faction, citizens have the choice to chose their beliefs. The speaker is saying his reason is leaning him towards the devil. This reason however is weak because god has absolute power and can change it at any time. 3. The speaker compares himself to an unfaithful wife who has been caught and is taking her punishment willingly. The speaker also compares god to the absolute power of the husband in that era. The enemy is compared to the devil who is the man that the wife is having

Competitive Strategy Essay

â€Å"Successful and unsuccessful strategies shape a company’s destiny† – R.A. Burgelman, Strategy is Destiny†¦ Competitive Strategy is the high-level strategy used by the firm to realize its business goals, and in particular, profitability, in the face of competition. We study competitive strategy within the overall context of technology firms, which operate within a so-called industry, e.g., the computer industry, the consumer electronic industry, the cellular phone industry. Each industry, ideally, serves a market, which denotes the buyers or customers of the products and services offered by the industry. The function of strategy, which has a time horizon of years, is, in general, to set the long-term direction or position of the firm, for example define the technology, product, or service that the firm intends to develop, and determine the intended market for the product or service. The function of planning, which, in general, has a time horizon of sever al months to years, is to translate long-term strategy into medium-term activities, e.g., the portfolio of projects that the firm should execute the time-phased planning of these projects, and resource allocation. The function of operations, which has the time-horizon of days to months, is, in general, to translate medium-term planning activities into short-term product design, development, and delivery activities such as prototyping, manufacturing, product release, and shipment. No company can follow only one strategy. For example, Johnson & Johnson uses one marketing strategy for its common product such as BAND-AID & Johnson’s baby products; and different marketing strategy for its High Tech healthcare products such as Vicryl Plus, antibacterial surgical sutures or NeuFlex finger joint implants. There are several different types of strategy, including competitive strategy, technology strategy, product market strategy, financial strategy, and supply-chain strategy. For a tec hnology company to be successful all these strategies need to be aligned with each other, and with the business goals of the firm. Competitive strategy, is the highest level of strategy in the firm, and is intimately related to the mission and vision of the firm and also to setting the direction for all the other strategies in the firm. There are several schools of strategy formation: design, planning, positioning (Mintzberg, 1998). We focus on two important schools or frameworks for strategy-creation or â€Å"strategy-making† that are particularly important for high-technologycompanies. The first framework is the so-called â€Å"positioning† approach due to Porter (Porter, 1980), In this approach strategy is viewed as taking a generic position in a competitive market and which views strategy-making as an analytic process performed at the industry-market structural level (Porter, 1980) and the resulting dynamics between functional groups of players (e.g., competitors, suppliers) in the industry. The second framework analyzes strategy-making at the industry-level, company level, and intra-company level using evolutionary organization theory (Burgelman 2002). In this evolutionary organizational theory approach, each company is an organizational ecology within which strategy emerges through two basic mechanisms, external selection and internal selection. When companies start, because they are new and small ¸ the external selection mechanism dominates. As a company grows in size and becomes more established, internal selection plays an important role. Based on e volutionary organization theory, views strategy-making as an evolutionary process performed at three levels: industry-company level, company-level, and intra-company level. When these two frameworks are combined, an integrated approach to competitive strategy emerges: from industry-market level all the way to intra-company level. A unique aspect of creating competitive strategy for a company, and in particular, a high-technology company, is that the time-scales for the evolution of markets, industries, and technologies are, in general, much shorter (â€Å"faster†) compared to other industries. Therefore, the strategy frameworks of the positioning school needs to be augmented with functional maps (Clark and Wheelwright, 1993), which capture the evolution of the market, industry, and technology relevant to the company, and which can therefore be used to create strategy. The objectives of this chapter are as follows: 1. Describe the positioning framework for the creation of competitive strategy. 2. Provide an integrated competitive strategy process which is useful in developing competitive strategy in a technology company. 3. Demonstrate the application of the process of competitive strategy The objective of technology strategy (Clark and Wheelwright, 1993) is to guide the technology company in developing, acquiring, and applying technology for competitive advantage. An important part of technologystrategy is the definition of technical capabilities (e.g., advanced device design, rapid prototyping, automated assembly) that provide competitive advantage. The objective of product/market strategy is to clearly establish the following: define what differentiates the product from its competitors; identify market segments for the product, the customer needs of these segments, and the corresponding products (i.e., product lines) that will be offered to these segments; etc. An important outcome of produc t/market strategy is to define the product roadmap, including sales volume and price, necessary to realize the business goals. However, in the rapidly evolving industry and market landscape of high-technology, competitive strategy, in turn, depends on three levels of â€Å"strategy-making† as follows (Burgelman, 2002): 1. Industry-company level. At this level the firm must determine its strategic position, its core competencies, and its strategic action. 2. Company level: At this level strategy-making involves induced strategy and autonomous strategy. 3. Intra-company level: At this the internal level autonomous strategy is created. In successful companies, it is the tight coupling of strategy these three levels of strategy-making with the highest-level (i.e., industry-market level) competitive strategy that, results in successful strategic action where what the company actually does, e.g., the product lines it develops and markets, results in the realization of its business goals. It is also useful to mention two other strategies that are closely related to competitive strategy. Financial strategy in cludes issues such as capital budgeting and portfolio management, i.e., deciding on which technology and product development projects to fund in order to maximize the cumulative expected profit. Another important and related strategy is supply chain strategy (Chopra), which specifies the service, distribution, and operations functions, performed either in-house or outsourced, that the company should do well in order to successfully realize its intended competitive strategy. The â€Å"Positioning† Framework We first present a historical overview of the positioning or analytic school of strategy. Then, we develop the five forces framework (Porter, 1980) and the approach to creation of competitive strategy that is closely related to the five forces framework. We will use the personal computer industry to illustrate the approach. The positioning school of strategy which emerges from the competitive school is based on the following assumptions (Mintzberg, 1998): the marketplace is competitive strategy is a generic position in the marketplace; strategy formation is the selection of a generic position based on analysis. The underlying assumption is that industry or market structure drives position which drives the organizational structure of the firm. Matrices like the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) introduced two techniques: the growth-share matrix, and the experience curve. The growth-share matrix for a firm, developed in the early 1970s, is a 2Ãâ€"2 matrix with â€Å"growth† along one dimension, and â€Å"market share† along the other dimension. Each of these variables can take two values, â€Å"high† or â€Å"low† resulting in a 2Ãâ€"2 matrix. Therefore, the product portfolio of a firm can be decomposed into four combinations of growth and market share, each with a well defined meaning: (High growth, high market share) or â€Å"stars†, (high growth, low share) or â€Å"question marks†, (slow growth, high share) or â€Å"cash cows†, and (slow growth, low share) or â€Å"dogs†. The approach to strategy using this matrix would be to have a portfolio balanced mainly between cash cows (the stable business of the firm, e.g., â€Å"MAC† computers in the case of Apple) and stars (e.g., the iPod, in the case of Apple). The experience curve, developed in 1965-66, is based on the idea that accumula ted experience by a firm influences costs and prices. The claim â€Å"for the experience curve was that for each cumulative doubling of experience, total costs would decline roughly 20% to 30% because of economies of scale, organizational learning, and technical innovation† (Ghemawat, 1999). In 1971, the consulting firm McKinsey came up with the GE/McKinsey nine-block matrix called the Industry Attractiveness-Business Strength matrix (Ghemawat, 1999), which plotted business strength [High, Medium, Low] along one axis, and industry attractiveness [High, Medium, Low] along the other axis. The basic idea was to divide the company into â€Å"strategic business units (SBUs)†, and then make the appropriate strategic recommendations for each SBU depending on its â€Å"location† in the matrix. The Five Forces Framework and Competitive Strategy In this framework there are two high-level stages in the creation of competitive strategy, each stage corresponding to a high-level determinant of profitability mentioned in the previous section. The first stage is the assessment of the attractiveness of the industry in which a given company is embedded based on a structural analysis of the industry. In this stage, called the five forces framework, five forces that influence industry attractiveness are identified, as well as the factors (e.g., number of competitors, size of competitors, capital requirements) that determine the intensity of each force and therefore the cumulative intensity of the five forces. The purpose of the five forces framework is to relate the degree (or intensity) of competition in a given industry, as qualitatively measured by the combined strength (or intensity) of five forces, to the attractiveness of the industry, defined as its ability to sustain profitability. Based on the structural analysis, a particula r company may be in a very attractive industry (e.g., pharmaceuticals) or in an unattractive industry (e.g., steel). However, though a firm exists in an unattractive industry, it can still be highly profitable by choosing the proper competitive position within the industry, for example, e.g., a mini-mill such as Nucor in the steel industry in the nineteen-eighties (Ghemawat). The second stage of strategy creation addresses the competitive strategy available to the firm in order to achieve a strong competitive position. Ideally, a firm would want to be in a very attractive industry (e.g., pharmaceuticals) and have a strong competitive position (e.g., large pharmaceutical firms such as Smith Klein or Glaxo) within the industry. The five forces framework for the structural analysis of an industry is as follows. First, we define the following terms used in the structural analysis of the industry: industry, market, competitors, new entrants, substitutes, buyers, and sellers. The term ind ustry denotes (1) the manufacturers (or producers) and (2) the suppliers of a primary product or service, as well as (3) the manufacturers of alternative products and services that could serve as a substitute. For example, the (conventional) personal computer (PC) industry would include PC manufacturers like Dell and Apple, suppliers of semiconductor chips like Intel and Micron, suppliers ofdisc drives like Seagate, suppliers of software such as Microsoft, etc. Substitute products could be pen-based tablet PCs or small hand-held personal digital assistants (PDAs). In the five forces framework described below, manufacturers and producers will designated as (1) competitors in the industry if they already have established products, or (2) new-entrants if they are trying to enter the industry, or (3) substitutes, if they provide alternative (substitute) products. The term market denotes the buyers (or customers) of the product or service. For example, the market for PCs would include enterprises and individual consumers. The analytical process of strategy analysis and creation can be decomposed into the following five steps. 1. Create a map of the industry in which the technology company is em bedded. There are five key sets of players that constitute the business landscape: competitors, new entrants, substitutes, suppliers, and buyers. Identify key players (companies) for each industry. 2. Perform a five forces analysis of the industry structure. The five forces that influence the intensity of competition in a particular industry, and therefore the profitability of the firms within the industry: Force 1: the degree of rivalry (or competition) between the competitors; Force 2: the threat of new entrants (or the inverse of this force, the barrier to entry); Force 3: the threat of substitutes; Force 4: Buyer Power (to demand lower prices); Force 5: Supplier Power (to increase material prices). For each force, determine the key structural determinants which affect the intensity of the force. Porter and Ghemawat provide a detailed set of the determinants for each force, some of which are given in the table below. In the last column of this table we indicate plausible values o f each force for the PC industry in the nineteen nineties. Table 1 |Force |Key Determinants |Strength of the force | |Rivalry between competitors |Concentration (number) and size of |Medium to high | | |competitors | | | |Fixed costs/value added | | | |Brand indentity | | |Barrier to entry |Economies of scale |Medium to high | | |Brand identity | | | |Capital requirements | | |Threat of substitutes |Price/Performance of substitutes |Low to medium | | |Switching costs | | |Buyer Power |Buyer concentration | | | |Buyer size (volume) |Medium to high | | |Switching costs | | |Supplier Power |Supplier concentration |Low to medium | | |Supplier size (volume) | | | |Switching costs | | In theory, one would, qualitatively determine the strength of each force, as indicated in the third column of the above table, and then determine the cumulative or combined intensity of the five forces. The collective intensity or strength of the forces will determine the structural strength of the industry, as characterized by attractiveness, or the profit potential of the industry. The profit potential is measured by the long term return on invested capital (ROIC). If the collective strength of the forces is high, as in the steel industry, then the corresponding profit potential or attractiveness is low, and vice-versa. At one extreme of this analysis is the perfectly competitive free market, where there are numerous firms alloffering very similar products that cannot be differentiated (therefore, the force of rivalry is high), entry is free (therefore, the threat of both new entrants and substitutes is high), and bargaining power of both suppliers and buyers is low. Using the PC industry of the 1990’s as an example, the qualitative values of the forces shown in the last column of the above table would lead one to conclude that the cumulative strength of the five forces was medium to high, and therefore the attractiveness of the industry, i.e., its profitability, was medium to low. The PC industry in the nineteen-nineties would therefore not be attractive to new entrants, and in fact, in the early 2000s, HP’s computer business was unprofitable, and IBM sold its computer business to Lenovo. (It is important to note that HP’s unprofitability in computer business in the early 2000s cannot be attributed solely to industry attractiveness being low, but is also due to issues associated with its acquisition of the computer company Compaq.) 3. Select a competitive positioning strategy The basic premise of Porter and Hall was that for a firm to be successful (in a market) it had to compete based on one of two sources of competitive ad vantage: cost, i.e., by providing low cost products, or differentiation, i.e., by differentiating its products from its competitors with respect to quality and performance. Porter also proposed that a firm needs to select its strategic target: either offering a product to the entire market (â€Å"market-wide†), or offering a product for a particular market segment. Using these two dimensions (source of competitive advantage, and strategic target), Porter proposed the following three generic competitive strategies: 1. Cost Leadership: offering the lowest costs products to the entire market 2. Differentiated: offering highly unique products (as perceived by the customer) to the entire market 3. Focus: offering products which serve the needs of a niche segment of the market Porter’s claim is that for a company to be successful in the industry in which it operates it must choose between one of the three generic strategies: cost leadership, differentiated, and focus. If one uses the personal computer industry in the US during the 1990’s as an example, then the competitive strategies of the major players was as follows: Dell was the low-c ost leader; HP had a differentiated strategy with high-quality products; Apple had a focus strategy, targeting a narrow marketsegment of users who whom the user-experience (look, feel, and graphical user interfaces) were extremely important; and IBM had a mixed strategy. 4. Link competitive strategy to strategic planning (Ghemawat 1999) In order for a company to derive competitive advantage (or position) within its industry, the company needs to maximize, relative to it competitors, the difference between the buyer’s willingness to pay and the costs incurred in delivering the product to the buyer. Therefore, the next step in the competitive analysis is for the company to link competitive strategy to strategic planning by analyzing all the activities involved in differentiation and cost, and, to this end, a value chain (Porter, 1985) is an extremely important tool. According to Porter, â€Å"the value chain disaggregates a firm into its strategically relevant activities in order to understand the behavior of costs and the existing and potential sources of differentiation.† A three step process for using these activities, first to analyze costs, then to analyze buyer’s willingness to pay, and finally to explore different strategic planning options to maximize the difference between willingness to pay and cost, is developed in (Ghemawat, 1999). 5. Competitive strategy needs to evolve, especially in a high-technology company where markets, industries, and technologies, are changing relatively rapidly. A good example of the evolution of competitive strategy is IBM’s strategic decisions to evolve from a product-based company in the early nineties to a services-led company at the present time. In the early nineties, when the company was in trouble, IBM closely examined its business model and strategic direction, and decided to â €Å"stay whole† by moving its focus from products and hardware to solutions. One result of this strategic shift was the creation of IBM Global Services in the mid-nineties. By the late-nineties the company moved into e-business solutions, and extended this model in the 2000’s to â€Å"business-on-demand†. One result of these shifts in strategy was IBM’s decision to exit the Personal Computer Market by selling its PC business to Lenovo. Functional Maps A functional map essentially is a time-based evolutionary map of a key metric for an important organizational function, e.g., a product performance metric map for the engineering function in a technology firm, e.g., the well-known Moore’s Law in the semiconductor industry. Since the time-scales for the evolution of markets, industries and technologies for technology companies, especially â€Å"high-tech† companies, is short compared to other industries, the creation of the appropriate functional maps is critical to strategy formation in a technology company. As an example, in the relatively short span of four decades, information technology evolved from mainframes through workstations, servers and personal computers to internet-based and mobile computing. An important feature of our approach to developing competitive strategy in a technology firm is the integrated approach to strategy for a technology company, which relates company strategy to the company’s busin ess goals, business strategy, technology strategy, and product marketing strategy. Since, markets, industries, technologies, and products for a technology company are continually evolving, an important concept that plays a vital role in the creation of strategy, and, in particular, competitive strategy, is the functional map (Clark and Wheelwright, 1993). Here are some useful â€Å"dimensions† along which to create functional maps for strategy creation: a) Evolution of the industry in which the enterprise operates (changes in technology, customer needs, competitive landscape, etc.) b) Evolution of strategy – business, technology, and market – of the enterprise c) Evolution of technology (including manufacturing), product platforms, and product lines of the enterprise. The processes used for technology, product, and process development within the enterprise. d) Growth (or decline) of the enterprise with respect to of market share, revenues, costs, profits, etc. e) Organizational structure of the enterprise f) Key decisions made at different stages in the life of enterprise, and the drivers for these decisions g) The interconnections and relationships between all the above dimensions A multi-dimensional functional map for Intel is given in the next section. A very simple example of how functional maps can shape strategy is in the information technology industry. A functional map of the Information Technology Industry from the 1990s to the 2000s would reveal a shift from â€Å"products† to services†. The Services business in 2007-08 is approximately $750 billion, with IBM, whose share of this market is $54 billion, being the leader. HP, whose own share in the market is $17 billion seeing this shift in the industry and the need to build competitive strength, acquired EDS, whose share of the market is $21 billion. The combined share of HP and EDS would then be $38 billion, allowing it to compete more strongly with IBM. Another simple example of the use of a functional map in creating strategy is in the software industry. In the 2000s the software market is moving from a â€Å"packaged† product to online software, where individuals can get software that is mostly free, supported by advertising. Google is using its leadership on the Web to provide online softwa re that competes with Microsoft’s packaged software. Understanding this shift from packaged to online, and the corresponding change in the revenue model from direct sales (of product) to advertising, Microsoft is aggressively entering the online advertising business. Process for developing competitive strategy in a company If we combine the positioning framework for competitive strategy due to Porter, the evolutionary organization theoretic framework due to Burgelman, and augment these with the creation of relevant functional maps, then the resulting process of developing competitive strategy in a company can be decomposed into four stages, as follows. Stage 1: Company Analysis 1. Establish the business goals and objectives (ROI, %market share, revenue, and growth aspirations). 2. Determine the technology strategy and product market strategy for the company. 3. Define the overall development goals and objectives to align business goals, technology, and market strategies. 4. Develop the functional evolutionary maps of the markets and industry in which the company is embedded. Create functional maps (time-based evolutionary maps) for technology, product market, and manufacturing strategy of the firm. These maps will be useful in the process of assessing and creating competitive strategy. Stage 2: Industry Analysis 1. Perform the structural analysis of the industry in which the company is either an active competitor, or a new entrant, or a substitute. 2. Determine the existing competitive strategy of the company within the industry. 3. Determine the relationships between the company and the other players in the industry Stage 3: Assessment and Evolution of the company’s strategy within the relevant markets and industries 1. Using the functional maps of the overall markets and industry in which the company is embedded, as well as the company specific functional maps, assess the evolution of the company’s competitive strategy. 2. Decide on what the company’s future competitive strategy should be, and the corresponding technology strategy, product market strategy, and manufacturing strategy. Glossary Autonomous Strategy (also see induced strategy). Autonomous strategy refers to actions of individuals or small groups within the company that are outside the scope of current high-level corporate strategy. While autonomous strategy is constrained by the company’s distinctive (core) competencies, it usually (1) involves new competencies that are not the focus of the firm, and (2) results in so-called â€Å"disruptive technologies† that could change the strategic direction of the firm (Burgelman, 2002). Company Structure (vertical vs. horizontal). A vertical company is one which uses only its own proprietary technologies. A horizontal company is one which (usually because of the existence of open-standards) which does not solely rely on its own proprietary technologies, but usually uses technologies and products from other suppliers. In the computer industry, traditionally, Apple is an example of a vertical company, while Dell is an example of a horizontal company. The co mputer industry, itself, moved from a vertical structure to a horizontal structure in the 1980s (Ghemawhat, 1999). Corporate Strategy (official corporate strategy). Corporate strategy is top management’s view of the basis of the company’s success. It includes distinctive (core) competencies, product-market domains, and core values (Burgelman, 2002) Industry. The term industry, e.g., the consumer electronics industry,denotes (1) the manufacturers (or producers) and (2) the suppliers of a primary product or service, as well as (3) the manufacturers of alternative products and services that could serve as a substitute (Porter, 1980). Market. The term market denotes the buyers (or customers) of the product or service. Typically markets are segmented, for example, a two-dimensional segmentation based on the types of product (product segmentation) along one axis, and the types of customers (customer segmentation) along the other axis. The market, as represented by â€Å"Buyers† is an important part of the industry analysis in Porter’s framework. Once you’ve established the key assets and skills necessary to succeed in this business and have defined your distinct competitive advantage, you need to communicate the m in a strategic form that will attract market share as well as defend it. Competitive strategies usually fall into these five areas: 1. Product 2. Distribution 3. Pricing 4. Promotion 5. Advertising Many of the factors leading to the formation of a strategy should already have been highlighted in previous sections, specifically in marketing strategies. Strategies primarily revolve around establishing the point of entry in the product life cycle and an endurable competitive advantage. As we’ve already discussed, this involves defining the elements that will set your product or service apart from your competitors or strategic groups. You need to establish this competitive advantage clearly so the reader understands not only how you will accomplish your goals, but why your strategy will work. [pic] References Burgelman, R.A., â€Å"Strategy is Destiny†, The Free Press, New York, 2002. Chopra, Sunil, and Peter Meindl, â€Å"Supply Chain Management, Strategy, Planning, and Operations†, Third Edition, Pearson Prentice-Hall, 2007. Clark, K. B., and S.C. Wheelwright, Managing New Product and Process Development, Text and Cases, The Free Press, New York, 1993. Edwards, Cliff, â€Å"Intel†, Business Week, March 8, 2004, Pages 56-64. Ghemawat, Pankaj, Strategy and the Business Landscape, Text and Cases, Addison Wesley, 1999. Mintzberg, Henry and Bruce Ahlstrand, and Joseph Lampel, Strategy Safari, The Free Press, New York, 1998 Porter, Michael, Competitive Strategy, New York, The Free Press, 1980 Porter, Michael, Competitive Advantage, The Free Press, New York, 1985 ———————– Figure 1: A strategic view of the technology firm, showing different types of strategy Revenue ($), Growth (%), Etc. Purpose of the company Financial Strategy Competitive Strategy Market Strategy Technology Strategy Business Goals †¢ Vision †¢ Mission

Diversity (Women and Lgbt)

Associate Program Material Diversity Organizations Worksheet Complete the following table with notes and thoughts related to your findings: Site| Thoughts/Notes| www. madre. org| International women’s human rights organization that uses human rights to advance social justice. This organization’s mission is to advance women’s human rights all over the world. | http://justice-equality. org| Organization for Justice and Equality. This organization’s goal is the upholding of justice and the promotion of equality in the U. S.Their emphasis is on civil rights, government policies and operations, ethical issues and consumer grievances. | www. thetrevorproject. org| A national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth. This organization is the only one that focuses only on teens and young adults. They are also the leading crisis resource for anti-bullying initiatives. | W rite a 750 to 1,050- word paper answering the following questions: * What has been the status of women in the United States throughout history?Throughout history, women have always been beneath men in the amount of respect they received, the lack of equality of rights and more recently salary. Even though women are stronger than men emotionally and sometimes it seems women are stronger than men when it comes to giving birth and then taking care of the family, while still working a full time job, women still get the short end of the stick. Even the Catholic Church doesn’t recognize women as the head of the household. There is no wonder; the Catholic Church doesn’t allow women in the pulpit either. * What is the status of women in the U. S. oday? The current status of women in the United States has improved a lot in the past 80+ years. Women don’t have to stay at home and raise the children any longer, where in the past there wasn’t a question of it happeni ng. Women now have equal rights in most areas in the country, but they are still behind in the salary department especially in specific industries. Women now hold positions as CEOs of large companies, but again their salary might be a bit lower than that of a man working for a different company The fact that women can take on just about any occupation available is a big change also.There are many occupations that are male oriented, but women have busted through some of those walls also. * What are some examples of concepts or constructions of masculinity and femininity that you see in society and in media? Concepts of masculinity in society lately have been young men sporting short hair again and wearing button down shirts with jeans. Also some middle-age and older men are starting to grow out their beards. This is most noticeable in the media though. Examples of concepts of femininity seem to change too often to notice. It seems though that short skirts are on their way back though in general.I have not noticed anything significant with the women in media or even with celebrities. The only time anything is really noticeable is during the award shows, but then that is just fashion for one evening. * Historically, what has been the social status of GLBT people? Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, Transgender and recently Questioning people have had a harder road than some of the larger minority groups in this country. Many years ago, being a ‘gay’ male or ‘lesbian’, might have meant they were going to lose their friendships or connection to family.The alternative lifestyle has opened up the doors of discussion in churches and all the way up to the White House. They have been an unaccepted people for a very long time. All the people of the GLBTQ community want is to have the same rights as married heterosexuals when it comes to marriage and adoption, as well as just to be accepted for who they are. * What is the status of GLBT people in the U. S. today? Today Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual and Transgender people are a lot more accepted then say 30+ years ago, but there is still vast room for improvement.Depending on the state, it is now legal for gay men and lesbian women to get married. The same goes for adoption also. Currently there are about twelve states in the country that do not permit GLBT adoptions. That is because some of those states don’t recognize the couple as a true couple. They are basing their decision on the Bible, even though there is supposed to be a separation of church and state. Since the church does not acknowledge the GLBT lifestyle, they will never be accepted by the church. * What are some social and political issues relevant to women and GLBT people in the U.S.? In politics, women seem to be equal to men in the United States. The Supreme Court got their first female justice on September 25, 1981 when Sandra Day O’Connor was appointed. The next major milestone was the first Hispanic female j ustice. Sonia M. Sotomayor was appointed on August 8, 2009. Because of the last election, the senate has 20 female Senators, which is the most in history. Nancy Pelosi became the first female Speaker of the House. As for members of the GLBT community, there are a handful of gay men and lesbian women who are known in government.Their lifestyle choice did not stop them from getting elected which is hopeful in the long run. They were voted into office because their constituents thought they were the best person for the job. I think the political arena is tougher for GLBT to navigate because it is such a hot topic between church and state and Democrats and Republicans. A person that claims to be conservative won’t be able to also come out as someone from the GLBT community. Most likely because Conservatives don’t accept the GLBT lifestyle to begin with.Socially, women have the edge of GLBT people also. Women have been accepted socially way longer then they had the right to vote. Granted, the socialization was usually just woman socializing with women; it was still an acceptable thing. For the GLBT community, they tend to socialize more amongst themselves than in any other forum. Not saying, they won’t socialize at all with heterosexuals. If they aren’t socializing with people that know they are of that lifestyle, they are not making it known that they are of that lifestyle. REFERENCESJohnson, R. (2013). Where is Gay Adoption Legal? About. com Guide. Retrieved from http://gaylife. about. com/od/gayparentingadoption/a/gaycoupleadopt_2. htm Supreme Court of the United States. (2013) Members of the Supreme Court of the United States. Retrieved from http://www. supremecourt. gov/about/members. aspx Terkel, A. (2012). Women In Senate: 2012 Election Ushers in Historic Number of Female Senators. Huffington Post. com. Retrieved from http://www. huffingtonpost. com/2012/11/07/women-senate-2012-election_n_2086093. html