Titanosaurus Facts and Figures

Titanosaurus Facts and Figures Name: Titanosaurus (Greek for Titan lizard); pronounced tie-TAN-oh-SORE-us Habitat: Woodlands of Asia, Europe, and Africa Historical Period: Late Cretaceous (80-65 million years ago) Size and Weight: About 50 feet long and 15 tons Diet: Plants Distinguishing Characteristics: Short, thick legs; massive trunk; rows of bony plates on the back About Titanosaurus Titanosaurus is the signature member of the family of dinosaurs known as titanosaurs, which were the last sauropods to roam the earth before the K/T Extinction 65 million years ago. Whats odd is that, although paleontologists have discovered plenty of titanosaurs- the remains of these giant beasts have been dug up all over the globe- theyre not so sure about the status of Titanosaurus: this dinosaur is known from very limited fossil remains, and to date, no one has located its kull. This seems to be a trend in the dinosaur world; for example, hadrosaurs (duck-billed dinosaurs) are named after the extremely obscure Hadrosaurus, and the aquatic reptiles known as pliosaurs are named after the equally murky Pliosaurus. Titanosaurus was discovered very early in dinosaur history, identified in 1877 by paleontologist Richard Lydekker on the basis of scattered bones unearthed in India (not normally a hotbed of fossil discovery). Over the next few decades, Titanosaurus became a wastebasket taxon, meaning that any dinosaur that even remotely resembled it wound up being assigned as a separate species. Today, all but one of these species have either been downgraded or promoted to genus status: for example, T. colberti is now known as Isisaurus, T. australis as Neuquensaurus, and T. dacus as Magyarosaurus. (The one remaining valid species of Titanosaurus, which still remains on very shaky ground, is T. indicus.) Lately, titanosaurs (but not Titanosaurus) have been generating headlines, as bigger and bigger specimens have been discovered in South America. The largest dinosaur yet known is a South American titanosaur, Argentinosaurus, but the recent announcement of the evocatively named Dreadnoughtus may imperil its place in the record books. There are also a few as-yet-unidentified titanosaur specimens that may have been even bigger, but we can only know for sure pending further study by experts.

Vitiligo Essays - Vitiligo, Depigmentation, PUVA Therapy

Vitiligo Essays - Vitiligo, Depigmentation, PUVA Therapy Vitiligo Skin Disorder: Vitiligo Vitiligo is a skin condition whose exact cause is unknown. In vitiligo, patches of skin lose their pigmentation when the pigment producing cells, the 'melanocytes' are attacked and destroyed. It may affect the skin, mucous membranes, eyes, inner ear or hairs leaving white patches. The usual type of vitiligo is called 'Vitiligo Vulgaris' (means: common vitiligo). Variant types include linear, segmental, trichrome and inflammatory vitiligo. This disease affects an estimated 1% of the world's population. It affects individuals of all ethnic origins and both sexes, but is much more easily noticed on darker skin as areas that fail to tan. It is hereditary in one third of those affected. Vitiligo often starts on the hands, feet or face, and frequently pigment loss is progressive. Half the patients first notice vitiligo before 20 years of age. It often appears in an area of minor injury or sunburn. It is believed that vitiligo is an autoimmune disorder (autoimmune means the body?s own immune system turns on itself). Certain white blood cells direct the destruction of melanocytes. People with vitiligo are also somewhat more prone to other autoimmune diseases, such as alopecia areata, autoimmune thyroid disorders, Addison's disease, pernicious anemia, and diabetes mellitus. The diagnosis of vitiligo is usually straightforward, and no special testing is needed. While vitiligo is a cosmetic problem and does not affect the health directly, it is disfiguring and may be psychologically traumatic. The condition cannot be cured at present, but treatments are available that may be very helpful. Medical treatments target the immune system, and try to reverse the destruction. Surgical treatments are less commonly done, and transplant healthy melanocytes from other areas. Both treatments may be difficult and prolonged. The goal is to restore the skin's color by restoring healthy melanocytes to the skin (repigmentation) allowing the skin to regain its normal appearance. That means that new pigment cells must come from the base of hair follicles, from the edge of the lesion, or from the patch of vitiligo itself if depigmentation is not complete. Repigmentation occurs slowly as the cells creep back in over months to years. Prescription steroid creams are the safest and simplest initial treatment, especially for recently diagnosed or spreading vitiligo. They are usually applied twice daily, and results require three to six months. If over-dosed or over-used then side effects include local skin damage, and glaucoma or cataracts when used around the eyes. Regular monitoring and adjusting the potency of the creams to be appropriate for the location can avoid these side effects. For extensive vitiligo, oral medications for repigmentation can be tried. The treatment most commonly used is PUVA (Psoralen & Ultra-Violet A light). PUVA is partially successful in over half of those treated, but complete repigmentation occurs in only 15-20%. Treatments are given in the office in a special booth 2 or 3 times weekly. It takes at least 2-3 months to begin having an effect and 200 treatment sessions are not unusual. Some insurance plans no longer cover this. Older people, those with pigment loss for more than 5 years and the hands and feet areas usually respond poorly. Another method of psoralen treatment, used occasionally for children or patients with small, scattered vitiligo patches, involves the application of a very dilute solution of the drug directly to the affected skin area. This is then exposed to sunlight. Such topical treatment makes a person very susceptible to severe burn and blisters following too much sun exposure. It has the advantages of being done at home, and does not damage the entire skin surface, as PUVA does. Recently, some experts have claimed that another form of light treatment, UVB, is just as effective and safer. If a person doesn't respond to PUVA treatment, and the vitiligo has not changed in the last year one may consider surgical treatment of vitiligo. Avoid surgical treatment if one scars abnormally or sometimes have lost pigment after a small cut or scrape. All surgical therapies must be viewed as experimental because their effectiveness and side effects remain to be fully defined. Autologous skin grafts take normal, pigmented skin from one area of a patient's body (donor sites) and attach it to an area of vitiligo. This type of skin grafting is

Discuss the role of multinationals in the globalisation of innovation Essay - 1

Discuss the role of multinationals in the globalisation of innovation - Essay Example Strategies employed by MNEs in the globalisation of innovation One strategy used by MNEs is foreign direct investment (FDI) where MNEs acquire existing assets abroad or set up new wholly or majority owned investments abroad. Other modalities of spreading innovation by MNEs include trade, licensing, cross-patenting initiatives, and international scientific and technological collaborations. Trade involves the exchange of sophisticated products such as electrical and electronic products, precision instruments, fine chemicals and pharmaceuticals (Narula and Zanfei, 2003, P.7). Exports of such products and especially information and technology products worldwide rose from 8% in 1976 to 23% in 2000. The massive increase in the share of world trade represented by research and development intensive sectors signals an increase in globalisation of innovation (Narula and Guimon, 2009, P.5). There has been a steady growth in international patenting trends characterised by non-resident patenting, which is patent applications of foreign investors in a country, and external patenting, which is patent applications of national investors abroad. ... STPs are more common in the domain of biotechnology, new materials and information technology and oftenly involve Triad nations rather than emerging economies. Developed nations’ firms take up over 90% of STP agreements while the share of STPs involving developing country firms is in the range of 5-6%. 70% of all STPs have had at least one US partner since 1960 (UNCTAD, 2005, P.51). The concentration of STPs in highly industrialised countries together with the involvement of American firms can be attributed to the fact that industrialised countries are the largest investors in R&D (Welfens, 1999, P.342). As a result of government regulation, some MNEs are forced to adopt STPs in place of internal innovation. Such situations include where firms form R&D alliances aiming to enter foreign markets protected by non-tariff barriers such environmental regulation in the chemical industries or safety standards in the automobile industry. STPs are common where partner companies share co mplementary capabilities and the integration creates a greater degree of interaction between the partner’s respective paths of learning and innovation. Cooperation helps firms keep up with technological advancements and assists firms in exploring and exploiting emerging technological opportunities (Chen, 2003, P.397). MNEs engage in considerable intra-firm and inter-firm trade with industrialised countries, and this contributed almost 90% of all outbound FDI in 2001. Most of the firms engaged in FDI are also key players in the generation and diffusion of innovation. Over 30% of the top 100 MNEs are involved in R&D intensive industries such as electronic and electrical equipment,

Risks of Social Networking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Risks of Social Networking - Essay Example As such, many users often gain friends they know little about in terms of their behaviors and morals. Friends may post photos of them engaging in delinquent behavior such as smoking or indulgence in alcohol and since another surfer may not want to feel ‘left out’ engages in the same behavior to ‘fit in’ and create a name for themselves. Cyber grooming is also a risk for many surfers. With cyber grooming, predatory pedophiles pose as young attractive people, with whom the victim can identify with, but also older, appearing to have money, cars and other attractive possessions for their victim. As Haigh notes, young people expose themselves to real danger when they give out their personal information like their address, personal phone number and where they like to hung out (19). In most cases as the writer notes, the perpetrator usually only needs the teenager’s photo and the color of the school uniform to figure out which school they attend. Once there is trust between the two, the predator may then plan out their crime, for instance in kidnapping cases, or involve the teenager in pornographic films. Many young surfers often expose themselves to cyber-bullying. Many times, a person’s image once uploaded may be used by malicious people however they like. It may be downloaded, edited and shared in new forms, to offend, or cause distress, fear or embarrassment. Tech-savvy users may even hack into a user’s account and harass them. Due to the fact that one can totally hide their identity, individuals who may not be bullies in real world may be encouraged to take part in malicious activities as they can always cover up their identity. Cyber-bullying may take forms such as harassment, where one is sent offensive or frightening communications; flaming, involving engaging the victim in arguments that use offensive language; denigration, where one posts rumors and other false information to taint the

Developing Early Warning System for Peace and Security in Nigeria Essay Example for Free

Developing Early Warning System for Peace and Security in Nigeria Essay 1. Brief Demographic Background of Nigeria: The demographic characteristics of Nigeria set the platform for an understanding of the case for conflict based National early warning system. A historical analysis of major conflicts in Nigeria since independence points to strong linkages to its demographic composition. It has been unarguably regarded as the most populous country in the Africa and also accounts for half of the entire population of West Africa. The last census exercise in 2007 conducted by the Nigeria Population Commision (NPC) put the country’s population at over 140 million. (NPC, 2006). Politically, it practices a three tier federal system of government comprising the Federal, State and Local Government Councils which implies relative levels of autonomy in governance as well as oversight and control which many political analyst has attributed as a mixture of British Parliamentary and U.S Presidential system of governance. It has 36 states with a Federal Capital Territory at Abuja. These are further sub-divided into 774 semi-autonomous local government councils. For political and economic exigencies of governance and development, it is segregated into what is referred to as six geo political zones which include the North Central, North East, North West, South East, South South and South West. With over 240 ethnic groups spread across the country, the challenges of representation, equity in political representation as well as economic accessibility has been the bedrock of many diverse conflicts in the country. This is further complicated by the heterogeneous mixture of Christian and Muslim religion greatly polarised between the Christian south and Muslim Northern region. (op cit.)The population of traditional religion is sparsely located across the six geo-political zones of the country. Despite the immense rich natural resources in the country, crude oil located at the south south, south east and south west geo political zones of the country remain the major revenue source for the country and also the major source of various causative factors of conflict in Nigeria which has led to its reference in many social science research cycles as the ‘resource curse’ to the extent that the country is now considered one of the 20 poorest countries in the world. Over 70% of the population is classified as poor, with 35 percent living in absolute poverty. This is especially severe in rural areas, where social services are limited or non existent. 2. The Peace and Security Dimension in Nigeria: In contrast, Nigeria’s complex political, socio-cultural and economic diversity has been a source of varied and multiple levels of conflicts and humanitarian crises with implication to sustainable peace, security and development within the country and the West Africa sub region. A retrospection of these conflicts highlights six basic conflict types that have pervaded the country in the last two decades. These include communal conflicts, chieftaincy conflicts, ethno-religious conflicts, oil related conflicts, election related conflicts and agro-pastoralist conflicts. These conflicts are the outcome of the deep rooted causal factors of poverty, poor/bad governance and inequitable distribution of resources and development across the country. Between 1999 to 2010 for instance there has been an estimated death of 14,000 people from various levels of these conflicts across the country and about 750,000 – 850,000 Internally displaced persons.(Internal Displacement Monitoring, 2007) Based on the lack of mechanisms to address the root cause of these conflicts, it has continued to reoccur, intensify and impact negatively in Nigerian societies to the extent of creating viscious cycles of violence and complex humanitarian crises. Communities experiencing these conflicts have remained vulnerable and usually face the risks of further conflicts and distablity. Based on the recurrence of these conflicts,the communities have been tagged, ‘flashpoints of conflict’, unusually disaggregated across geo political lines or constellations. 3. The concept of Early Warning for Peace and Security: Based on the negative impact of conflicts to development and human security, there is increasing paradigm shift from conflict resolution mechanisms regarded as reactive to conflict prevention mechanisms which is seen as more proactive and has the capacity to prevent or mitigate destructive conflict or humanitarian crises globally. As core element of conflict prevention, early warning has increasingly gained prominence, credibility and efficiency as a preventive mechanism and solution to conflicts in societies. By definition, Early Warning has been described as a process of communicating judgements about threats early enough for decision-makers to take action to deter whatever outcome is threatened; or failing that, to manage events in such a way that the worst consequences are mitigated† (WANEP: 2008). Dmitrichev Andrei defined it as organizational procedure or mechanism for the structures and systemic collection and analysis of information, and the subsequent communication of results of this analysis to policy makers in a form that would be easily recognized and understood. The recognition and appreciation of the opportunities inherent in this system resulted in the first organised platform for the systematic development of the early warning system led by the Forum on Early Warning and Early Response (F.E.W.E.R.) in 1997 in response to the Rwandan genocide of 1994. It blossomed to become the largest global network of over thirty five (35) organisations across the world that catalysed the creation of the early warning and response networks in the Caucasus (led by EAWARN/Russian Academy of Sciences), Great Lakes Region of Africa (led by the Africa Peace Forum) and West Africa(led the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding) WANEP. Further impetus to the adoption and institutionalisation of the early warning system was boosted by the former Secretary General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan when he stated that, â€Å"For the United Nations, there is no larger goal, no deeper commitment and no greater ambition than preventing armed conflict. The prevention of conflict begins and ends with the protection of human life and the promotion of human development. Ensuring human security is, in the broadest sense, the United Nations’ cardinal mission. Genuine and lasting prevention is the means to achieve that mission. (Koffi Annan: 2001) This further gave rise to the UN Security Council Resolution 1624 of 2005 with the following core declarations: 1. Reaffirms the need to adopt a broad strategy of conflict prevention, which addresses the root causes of armed conflict and political social crises in a comprehensive manner, including by promoting sustainable development, poverty eradication, national reconciliation, good governance, democracy, gender equality, the rule of law and respect for and protection of human rights; 2. Recognises the need to strengthen the important role of the United Nations in the prevention of violent conflicts, and to develop effective partnerships between the Council and regional organisations, in particular the African Union and its sub regional organisations, in order to enable early responses to disputes and emerging crises; 3. Affirms the UN commitment in â€Å"supporting regional and sub regional capacities for early warning to help them in working out appropriate mechanisms to enable prompt action in reaction to early warning indicators; 4. Recognises the important supporting roles played by civil society, men and women, in conflict prevention and the need to take into account all possible contributions from civil society; 5. Supporting regional and sub regional capacities for early warning to help them in working out appropriate mechanisms to enable prompt action in reaction to early warning indicators; 6. Promote coordination with regional conflict management machinery in Africa which provide the Security Council with additional reliable and timely information to facilitate rapid decision-making; 7. Strengthen the capacities of civil society groups, including women’s groups, working to promote a culture of peace, and to mobilise donors to support these efforts (UN: 2005) 4. Developing Institutional Platform for conflict Early Warning System: Reflecting on WANEP-Nigeria’s Experience: The participation and commitment of the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP) to the FEWER platform strengthened its capacity and hands on skill for civil society based analysis and response mechanisms towards the prevention or mitigation of conflict especially within the great lake region following the post Sierra Leone and Liberian Conflicts of 90’s. This deepened its regional expertise as the reference point for early warning system in the West Africa sub region and subsequently the network of choice for the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) in the implementation of the regional based ECOWAS Early Warning and Response Network (ECOWARN). The system principally works through three basic components of reporting/data gathering, analysis and information dissemination utilised to facilitate response to issues of peace and security within the ECOWAS sub region. WANEP became the civil society partner with ECOWAS in the implementation ECOWARN since 2006. As part of the WANEP regional network, WANEP-Nigeria was mandated as the national civil society focal point to report into the online ECOWARN system. Its task was to provide weekly and daily reports to the incidence and situation reporting template as designed into the online system. This was to give ECOWARN an up to date civil society perspective of the peace and human security threats and opportunities in Nigeria. With the participation of Nigeria in this process came ominous challenges. 1. The first was the pressure from the focal points at Lagos secretariat of WANEP-Nigeria to deliver credible reports in relation to the size of Nigeria 2. With the size of Nigeria, the focal point concentrated in getting information from national newspapers, television and radio For the focal points who were staff of WANEP, it was included as part of their job responsibility. They relied on making phone calls to members of WANEP at the state levels for local or peculiar peace and security information that was not reported in the national media. However, these information were reluctantly or half-hazardly given and also cost intensive to the staff as they often bore liability for these calls. This challenge was partially cushioned when ECOWAS resolved to pay reporters communication allowance in 2007/2008. Inspite of this, the feedback from member organizations providing information at the state level was still half hazard and questionable. To redress this challenge, the program team at the national secretariat organized a brainstorm meeting to develop a framework for a workable national early warning system that not only ensures commitment of member organizations to support the system but also is both functional and cost effective. The first trial system was developed for the Nigeria 2007 elections. An Information, Communication and Technology (I.C.T.) consultant was engaged that worked directly with the program team to capture specific indicators to monitor election related conflicts in what was referred to as the ‘election barometer’. The cost of developing the barometer was wholly borne by the secretariat while the election monitoring was performed by staf f who volunteered to report into the system as an experiential learning process to enhance their understanding of the EW system. The experience motivated the secretariat to consciously plan for a conflict intervention proposal which includes an aspect of a sustainable/operational national early warning system. The submission and approval of the proposal by international partners led WANEP-Nigeria to develop the first locally designed and operated conflict focused National Early Warning system.

Albert Camus The Stranger Essay -- Stranger

Albert Camus' The Stranger What if the past has no meaning and the only point in time of our life that really matters is that point which is happening at present. To make matters worse, when life is over, the existence is also over; the hope of some sort of salvation from a God is pointless. Albert Camus illustrates this exact view in The Stranger. Camus feels that one exists only in the world physically and therefore the presence or absence of meaning in one's life is alone revealed through that event which he or she is experiencing at a particular moment. These thoughts are presented through Meursault, a man devoid of concern for social conventions found in the world in which he lives, and who finds his life deprived of physical pleasure--which he deems quite important--when unexpectedly put in prison.   The opening line of the novel sets the tone for Meursault's dispassion towards most things. The novel is introduced with the words: "Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don't know" (3). Although the uncertainty originates with an ambiguous telegram, it seems that the tone alone could justify changing the meaning of the words 'I don't know' to 'I don't care.' In a sense, in the days following, he only goes through the motions of the vigil and then the funeral; the only emotion he expresses is joy when his bus takes him home and he is able to sleep. At one point, he looks back at the events of the past few days, realizes that he has to go to work, and notes: "that, really, nothing had changed" (24). Despite these reactions, there is evidence that Meursault did indeed love his mother, observed both in his defensive argument at the 'old people's' home as to why she was put there in the first place and in his recollections... ...has no comprehension of the objects in its existence--as he is unconcerned with the objects in his own life and finds meaning only within himself. Meursault does not care for objects in his world. He does not see the importance of certain words whose definitions attempt to explain human relationships either amongst themselves or their emotions in general. He does not follow 'conventional' social beliefs nor does he believe in God, nor salvation. Meursault however loves his life. It is a pure love derived from enjoying his existence on a day-to-day basis, rarely looking back and never looking forward. His love is not dependent on doing what society or some religion has deemed correct, but on what he feels he wants to do despite what most would consider common. Work Cited Camus, Albert. The Stranger. Trans. Matthew Ward. New York: Vintage International, 1989.

Medicaid Fraud

Medicaid Fraud HCS/545 July 9, 2012 Medicaid fraud comes in many forms. A provider who bills Medicaid for services that he or she does not provide is committing fraud. Overstating the level of care provided to patients and altering patient records to conceal the deception is fraud. Recipients also commit fraud by failing to report or misrepresenting income, household members, residence, or private health insurance. Facilities have also been known to commit Medicaid fraud through false billing.The Medicare and Medicaid fraud and abuse statute provides that an individual who knowingly and willfully offers, pays, solicits, or receives any remuneration in exchange for referring an individual for the furnishing of any item or service (or for the purchasing, leasing, ordering, or recommending of any good, facility, item, or service) paid for in whole or in part by Medicare or a state health care program (i. e. , Medicaid) shall be guilty of a felony; this is known as the â€Å"anti-kickba ck† statute (Mackelvie, 2004).Medicaid fraud affects taxpayers, recipients, and health care organizations. Measures to reduce Medicaid fraud are necessary. Individuals, facilities, and providers commit Medicaid fraud in several ways. One of the most common ways providers commit fraud is billing for services never provided. For instance, a physician may bill Medicaid for x-rays or lab work that the patient never received. Another way is double billing. Double billing occurs when both Medicaid and a private health insurance are billed for the same services.Medicaid is secondary health insurance to private health insurance and should be billed only for the charges that the primary health insurance does not pay. A third way providers commit Medicaid fraud is billing for phantom visits; charging Medicaid for seeing a patient who has not been seen. Providers have committed Medicaid fraud by billing for unnecessary tests and billing for more expensive procedures when a limited or les s comprehensive procedure was performed. Facilities such as pharmacies commit fraud by substituting brand name drugs for generic drugs and billing Medicaid for the brand name drug.Still other facilities receive kickbacks and file false cost reports. Kickbacks involve receiving payments or services for referral of patients to other facilities or providers where the patient will receive unnecessary services to generate additional income. False cost reports are seen in nursing home cases of fraud and involve owners filing charges for their own personal expenses. Individuals enrolled in Medicaid programs commit fraud by hiding resources, assets, and income.They also commit fraud by denying spouses live in their households or failing to report marriage to continue receiving Medicaid benefits. Individuals with private health insurance who fail to report this insurance and continue using Medicaid benefits are committing fraud. It is an abuse of the Medicaid program when individuals who cou ld obtain coverage on their own instead enroll in Medicaid to cover their medical expenses. Also the federal government stipulates that an individual cannot receive Medicaid in more than one state at the same time.Often, individuals move to another state and fail to report or close their Medicaid benefits with the state in which they were residing. Some individuals want to maintain coverage in more than one state because benefits differ from state to state and some individuals will travel between neighboring states using their Medicaid benefits. This constitutes Medicaid fraud. A program to fight Medicaid fraud has cost the United States at least $102 million in auditing fees since 2008 while identifying less than $20 million in overpayments, investigators found (Wayne, 2012).According to the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units (2012), Medicaid provider fraud costs American taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars annually and hinders the very integrity of the Medi caid program. Medicaid fraud affects recipients, providers, health care facilities, and taxpayers. Fraud increases the costs of providing benefits to Medicaid recipients. To compensate for such fraud, states must either raise taxes or decrease services in other areas. Those who most need Medicaid services may not be able to obtain benefits because resources are not available.For patients, Medicaid fraud could mean tampering with their medical records, which could put their health at risk. People can get hurt when doctors or other providers give less or more care than needed just to make more money. Also the public is more skeptical about social service programs as more incidents of Medicaid fraud occur every day. Providers and facilities who commit Medicaid fraud can face penalties from state and federal governments. Federal or state authorities may investigate allegations of fraud depending on where the fraud was reported, the laws broken, and the amount of money involved.The stric tness of penalties levied by state governments varies from state to state. Federal laws such as The False Claims Act, Anti-Kickback Statute, and Social Security Act are laws that address fraud and abuse. Title XI of the Social Security Act contains Medicaid program-related anti-fraud provisions, which impose civil penalties, criminal penalties, and exclusions from federal health care programs on persons who engage in certain types of misconduct (Staman, 2010).Under federal regulations, providers convicted of fraud are excluded for a minimum of five years from receiving funds from any federally funded health care program, either as a health care provider or employee (National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units, 2012). The False Claims Act imposes penalties on anyone who knowingly submits false claims for payment through a governmental program. Penalty for conviction under this Act is a fine not exceeding $10,000 or an imprisonment of up to five years, or a combination of the two (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, 2011).The Anti-Kickback Statute makes it a criminal offense to knowingly and willfully offer, pay, solicit, or receive any remuneration to induce or reward referrals of items or services reimbursable by a Federal health care program (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, 2011). Violations of this law are punishable by up to five years in prison, criminal fines up to $25,000, administrative civil money penalties up to $50,000, and exclusion from participation in federal health care programs (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, 2011). There are other federal laws to address fraud and abuse of government programs such as Medicaid.These penalties are a reactive measure to control abuse of Medicaid, but proactive measurements are needed to discourage providers, individuals, and facilities from committing fraud. On October 27, 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed the legislation that provided each state with the opportunity and resources to establish a Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) to investigate and prosecute provider fraud (National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units, 2012). The MFCU investigates Medicaid provider fraud and misuse of Medicaid recipients’ funds.The jurisdiction of the Medicaid Fraud Control Units is limited to investigating and prosecuting Medicaid provider fraud, MFCU’s do not investigate recipient fraud. States must also take initiatives to curtail fraud. Many states are looking to use new technology as a means to prevent fraud. One such technology is biometrics. Biometric technology compares a user’s feature such as a fingerprint. This technology has the potential to prevent recipient fraud by eliminating card sharing as well as preventing provider fraud by reducing phantom billing and other forms of fraud.New York, for example, has integrated targeted data mining and risk analysis into its fraud-fighting tool box. In Texas, a few simple process changes and new pattern analys is and recognition efforts moved the state closer to ‘real–time analysis’ and significantly increased the amount of fraud identified (National Conference of State Legislators, 2012). States must develop continually ways to prevent Medicaid fraud and protect the resources provided for recipients. Controlling Medicaid fraud will be a continual task.The burden falls not on just the federal government, but also state governments, facilities, providers, recipients, and citizens. States should fully commit to working with federal policymakers and agencies to improve the integrity of the Medicaid program. Clarity is needed to define federal and state government roles in maintaining integrity of the Medicaid program. Collaboration and communication between Medicaid and Medicare is needed to reduce fraud. States should evaluate the utility of existing tools used to fight Medicaid fraud. Incentives for providers, recipients, and citizens to report suspected fraud must be m ade available.Abuse of Medicaid affects everyone and costs will continue to rise if measures are not taken to use better the resources available in the Medicaid program. References National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units. (2012). What is Medicaid Fraud?. Retrieved from http://www. namfcu. net/about-us/what-is-medicaid-fraud Mackelvie, C. F. (2004). â€Å"The impact of fraud and abuse regulations – Medicare and Medicaid fraud and abuse statutes. Retrieved from http://findarticles. com/p/articles/mi_m3257/is_n10_v46/ai_13413481/pg_6/? tag=content;col1 Wayne, A. (2012). Medicaid Fraud Audits Cost Five Times Amount U. S. Found. Retrieved from

GIS – Harrow

For my report I've chosen 4 GIS maps from the Harrow council's official website (to make the results more reliable) that show the differentiation between the standards of living across the London borough of Harrow. The GIS maps that I chose (and copied as evidence) include: population density, life expectancy, street crime, and income levels; I have analysed them and described what the variations in each map are and what they show us. To conclude my report I have compared the variations in all the maps, and described what they show us. This map shows the main wards in the borough of Harrow. Pop. Density This map (see above) shows the population density levels in wards across Harrow. The map shows us that there is a mix of both high and low population density levels across the borough. The north east and west of the borough is the most sparsest, as it's got the lowest amount of people per hectare- 5-less than 40 people and 40-less than 55 High per hectare. Population density levels are more concentrated in the centre of the borough, where wards like Wealdstone, headstone north, Kenton west, and Marlborough are located, with equally high density levels spreading towards the south of the borough-towards the south east, where high pop. density levels are also highly concentrated, Kenton east is situated there. The south west of the borough has more of a mix of pop. density levels, as they're between mostly 40-less than 50 people per hectare, and 83-less than 107 people per hectare. (Wards like Roxbourne, and West Harrow which are situated in the south west of the borough have higher population density levels). Life expectancy This map (see above) shows the life expectancy levels in wards, across Harrow. The map shows us that the life expectancy levels across the borough are generally low- they're mostly around 78.5 years to less than 80 years, and 80 years to less than 81 years. The map shows us that generally the centre of the borough has got the lowest life expectancy levels in the borough, with a life expectancy of 76-less than 78.5 years and 78.5-less than 80 years. The areas with the highest life expectancies in the borough are the far north east where Cannons is located, with a high life expectancy of 81.5-less than 83 years, and the far south east, where Edgware is located, with a life expectancy of 81-less than 81.5 years. In general, I think that the graph shows us that the west-north /west of the borough has got the highest life expectancy, with mostly a life expectancy of 81.5-less than 83 years; the north-west has got a high life expectancy of 81-less than 81.5 years. Street crime-darker area=more street crime This map (see above) shows the levels of street crime in wards, across Harrow. The map shows us that generally, fairly high levels of street crime are quite widely dispersed across the borough, the fact that there is no legend available for this map makes it less reliable. The centre of the borough seems to have the most amount of street crime, as generally, there're darker areas are more concentrated, with Greenhill in the south having the highest level of crime as it is the darkest area. The whole of the eastern section of the borough also seems to have a high indicator for crime levels- where wards like Cannons and Edgware are located, as there're lots of dark areas and they're highly concentrated. The north/ west have got the lowest indicator levels for street crime, as there're a lot of light areas that are fairly highly concentrated, wards like Pinner, Hatch End, Headstone north, and Pinner south are located. Income-darker=less income, lighter=more income. This map (see above) shows us the levels of income in wards, across Harrow. The map shows us that generally fairly low income levels are widely dispersed across the borough, the fact that there is no legend available for this map makes it less reliable. The south of the borough seems to have a lower indicator level for income, as these areas are darker and highly concentrated, where wards like Greenhill, Marlborough, and Kenton are situated. Generally the east of the borough seems to have the low levels of income too (second after the centre). The north west section of the borough seems to have fairly low levels of crime as there are lighter areas, wards like Pinner, Hatch End, Rayners Lane, and Headstone north are located. Conclusion By comparing the 4 variations between the standards of living in Harrow for all 4 of the GIS maps, I have found that in general, the north west of the borough has got the lowest indicators for street crime, and population density, while having the highest indicators for life expectancy, and income. I think this is due to the fact that the categories may be interdependent. I think that because people in the north west generally have a higher income compared to the rest of the borough, so this could've had an impact on the other results from the other categories, e.g. the reason why there is a low indicator for population density in the area could be because the house prices are higher in this area, so people can't really afford to live in this area (as the majority of the rest of the borough seem to generally have a lower income level). Also, the results suggest that street crime levels are generally low in this area because of the low indicator of population density in this area. I have also found that in general, the south/west of the borough has got the highest indicator for population density levels, street crime levels, low income levels, and a low indicator for life expectancy levels. I think that this is due to the fact that the categories may have a correlation. I think that because people in the north west generally have a high indicator for population density levels, as they may have a low income compared to the north west of the borough (which has a high indicator for income), so they can't really afford to live in the north west, this could also be the reason why generally street crime levels are higher in the south east, because of the high indicator for population density. Also, the reason that the area in general has a low indicator for life expectancy may be because of the larger amount of people who live there.

What Is the Average SAT Score for Colleges

What Is the Average SAT Score for Colleges SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips If you're preparing for the SAT or have received your SAT scores, you may be wondering what score you need to get into college. What's an average SAT score for colleges? In this article, I'll explain average SAT scores and what they mean for you. Find out how to calculate the score you need to help reach your college goals. What Is the Average SAT Score for Colleges? Each year, the College Board reports the average SAT scores for college-bound high school seniors who take the SAT. Generally, the mean section score is around a 500. These are the most recent national SAT averages for the SAT in 2018: Evidence-BasedReading and Writing:536 Math:531 Total:1068 If you score a 1100 or better, you'll have a higher score than more than 50% of college-bound high school seniors. How to Find the Average SAT Score of a Specific College While you may want to know how your SAT score stacks up against others who take the test, what really matters is how your score compares to other applicants of the colleges you apply to. Even though a 1350 will be well above the national average, a 1350 is significantly below the average SAT for Ivy League schools. So although a 1350 is a very good score, you’ll be at a competitive disadvantage if you apply to any Ivy League school with a 1350. Conversely, if you apply to Cal States, a 1350 will exceed the average of any California State University campus, and you’ll improve your chances of getting accepted if you get that score. You can find the average SAT scores of different colleges in the PrepScholar database.Just google â€Å"prepscholar (name of school) SAT† to find a school’s profile. On the school profile, you can check out its average GPA, average SAT score, and acceptance rate. Scroll down to look for thenewSAT score- we've calculated it for you! According to the PrepScholar database, the average new SAT score for Princeton is 1520. For Ohio state, the average SAT score is 1330. Mark Kesling/Flickr What Does the Average SAT Score of a College Mean to You? If you want to get into a certain school, your SAT score should be comparable to the average score for the college’s admits. To give yourself the best chance of gaining admission to a specific school, we recommend that your goal should be to get at least a 75th percentile score for that college. The 75th percentile score for Princeton is 1590. Therefore, if you want to go to Princeton, your target score should be a 1590. Because Princeton's acceptance rate is only around 7%, you should try to comfortably exceed its average score to gain admission. Similarly, the 75th percentile score for Ohio State is a 1440. If you want to be an Ohio State Buckeye, you should be aiming for at least a 1440. What If You Don’t Get Your Target Score? If you don’t get the 75th percentile score or even the average SAT score for a specific college, that doesn’t necessarily mean that you have no chance to get admitted. However, if you still have time to reach your target score, it’s probably in your best interest to study and attempt to improve your score. You can compensate for lower test scores with a higher GPA. Generally, schools place a greater emphasis on your transcript than on your standardized test scores. On each school’s profile in the PrepScholar database, you can use our admissions calculator by entering your GPA and SAT score to get a rough estimate of your chances of gaining admission to that school. Also, keep in mind that colleges tend to use holistic admissions, meaning that everything is considered when colleges determine whom to accept. They’ll evaluate your transcript, test scores, extracurricular activities, recommendations, application essays, and any other factors that admissions officers deem relevant. If you've faced any significant obstacles, colleges will also take this into account. Just because you don’t reach your target score doesn’t necessarily mean that you have no chance to get admitted. However, while most colleges don't claim to have a minimum SAT score, if your score isn't close to the average score for a particular school, you may have virtually no chance of getting accepted. Even if you have great grades and stellar extracurricular accomplishments, you probably don't have a realistic shot of getting into Harvard if your SAT score is lower than 1080 (the average for college-bound seniors). While standardized tests aren't the only determining factor in college admissions, most colleges use the SAT to ensure that you're capable of succeeding academically. Do your best to get your target score! What's Next? Not sure where you want to apply to for college? Read our handy guide to help narrow down your college choices. Now that you're familiar with the average SAT score for colleges, learn more about minimum SAT scores for colleges. How do things look different if you're thinking of taking the ACT? Find out the average ACT scores for college here. Want to learn more about the SAT but tired of reading blog articles? Then you'll love our free, SAT prep livestreams. Designed and led by PrepScholar SAT experts, these live video events are a great resource for students and parents looking to learn more about the SAT and SAT prep. Click on the button below to register for one of our livestreams today!

Gwendolyn Brooks essays

Gwendolyn Brooks essays Gwendolyn Brooks is the female poet who has been most responsive to changes in the black community, particularly in the communitys vision of itself. The constant in Brooks poetry has been her loyalty to characters who find themselves trapped in an environment scarred by racial discrimination, poverty, and violence. Gwendolyn Brooks, the daughter of David Anderson Brooks, the son of a runaway slave, and Keziah Corinne (Wims) Brooks, was born on June 7, 1917, in Topeka Kansas. Brooks was the first African-American to win a Pulitzer Prize for poetry in 1950, and the first African-American woman to be inducted into the National Institute of Arts and Letters. The Brooks family moved to Chicago shortly after her birth. Her parents set a high priority on literature, and she began to collect her poems in notebooks at age eleven. Gwendolyn had a difficult time in school and was rejected for her shyness as well as her skin Brooks attended Hyde Park High School, the leading white high school in the city, but transferred to the all-black Wendall Phillips, then to the integrated Englewood High School. In 1936 she graduated from Wilson Junior College. These four schools gave her a perspective on racial dynamics in the city that continued to influence her work. Brooks was influenced at first by the Harlem Renaissance. Her early work featured the sonnet and the ballad, and she experimented with adaptations of conventional meter. Later, development of the black arts movement in the sixties, along with conceptions of a black aesthetic, turned her toward free verse and an abandonment of the sonnet as inappropriate to the times. However, she retained, her interest in the ballad, its musicality and accessibility, and in what she called "verse journalism." Brooks died in December 2000. Brooks writing is objective, but her characters speak for themselves. She uses ordinary speech. ...

Network Routing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 1

Network Routing - Assignment Example In this algorithm, whenever a status of the link changes, a routing update is exchanged between the routers; this routing update is called a Link-State Advertisement (LSA).   When routers receive this LSA routing update they recalculate the shortest path using link-state protocols to affected destinations.   Link-state routing constantly tries to keep complete networks topology by updating its routing table whenever a status of any link is changed in the network. Every router builds a map of the full network topology. OSPF (Open Shortest Path First) is an example of Link State protocol.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In distance vector protocols, routers are updated about remote networks with the help of neighbouring routers using Bellman Ford algorithm. The distance part defines the total number of hops towards the destination, while in highly developed routing protocols these hops can be weighted by components such as delay and bandwidth available. The vector in distance-vector describes which hop to move as the next step along the direction (path) for this route. This routing information is passed on using neighbouring routers with routing table up to date by using update packets. The requirement here is to design a network for an International Travel Agency that has a HQ in London and its two remote branches in Paris and Rome. An open standard dynamic routing protocol is required for the communication between all the routers. Configuration of routing protocol on all the three sites must be as per the requirement advertisement of routes to all directly connected networks except the loopback interface attached to London HQ. Network design for an International Travel Agency (ITA) is demonstrated in this report. Head Office of the ITA located in London, United Kingdom, and it is connected with branch offices at Paris and Rome. The Headquarters are directly connected with both the branches while both

Information System Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Information System Development - Essay Example System developers can create new systems according to the needs of users on request or they can have foresight and anticipate users’ needs then create systems with this in mind (Whetten 2002, p. 45-71,). As systems are created by human beings, they cannot be entirely perfect, but trying to reach perfection and minimizing errors should be priority when creating systems. This is because users tend to move on fast from systems that are prone to failures, errors and mistakes, thus running the reputation of firms creating such systems and wasting time and money. With this in mind, system developers should strive to get as many details as possible about users’ needs in order to create systems in line with their needs, and one that works efficiently to meet these needs and requirements. Development of systems usually follows a systematic set of steps in order to ensure that systems produced work in accordance with the way they were supposed to. Missing any step in the developm ent might lead to errors that could easily be avoided. These steps also make it easy to pinpoint where mistakes have been made, hence it is easy to go back and rectify the errors, rather than tearing down the whole system to find the error. The order of steps in system development begins with a feasibility study to determine if the system is worth creating in the first place or not. After the worthiness of the project has been established, the planning process is next. Planning involves setting goals, timelines and determining all the necessities required in order for the project to be carried out successfully. Planning also involves coming up with a budget, creation of a team that will be in charge of the project, assigning of duties to the various team members, determining the chain of commands and to whom progress of the project will be reported, determining external; players and partners and the parts they will be playing in the project and sorting out other details. Failing to plan on any aspect touching the development of a system will have disastrous effects on the whole project (Blanchard & Fabrycky 2006). Systems analysis is a step that involves looking into the current systems in order to determine what users want that is not in these systems, then going ahead to create systems that give users what they need and require. After this has been determined, the system has to be designed, with the needs of users in mind and other anticipated needs (Caspi et al. 2005). In the designing of the system, several aspects are considered including detailed descriptions of its main features and how they work, screen layouts, business principles, legalities involved and other forms of documentation. This part is where the load of the work lies. After this is the implementation stage. Here, the code that is unique to the system being built is written. Code writing involves various numerical, alphabets and symbols that should not be easy to crack or identify by unauth orized users or authorities. Next is the integration of all the various separate parts of the system, as developed by the different people in the team, in order to make a whole part. The integration step involves the setting up of the system and testing it in order to determine if the end product is as required, to check for errors and potential weak points that might lead to the system not operating. Any errors found are rectified at this stage, and the