Lifestyle habit of obesity and the affects it has on the body's Research Paper

Lifestyle habit of obesity and the affects it has on the body's systems and functions - Research Paper Example According to World Health Organization databases, the population of people with obesity had doubled since 1980. This alarming rate calls for immediate action. Moreover, in 2008, around 200 million men and 350 women had obesity signs. Two thirds of the world population lives in countries where the condition kills due to the maladies that accompany obesity resulting to chronic illnesses. However, despite all these facts, obesity is a preventable upon creating awareness on the preventable methods (WHO, 2012). There are numerous causes of obesity. The core cause is the imbalance between the calories consumption and calories breakdown. The affected population exhibits an increase in the intake of high-energy foods rich in fats. A decrease in physical activity resulting to sedentary lifestyle is a factor of consideration. These factors arise due to sudden changes in developmental patterns and poor policies in the health and other governmental departments(P. T. James, Leach, Kalamara, & Shayeghi, 2001). A team consists of all cadre of professionals in the hospital, who ranges from nurses, dietician, pharmacists, physicians and psychologists is necessary to address this trend. The team works in unity in coming up with an effective community diagnosis about obesity. The selected team works hand in hand to establish the number of cases diagnosed to be obesity through physical examination and critical evaluation. The team evaluates the epidemiologic data after a quick survey. A final program development is finally mandatory to take control of these rising incidences Obesity has many implications to the body systems. It is the core cause of non-communicable disease related to cardiovascular system such as diabetes, atherosclerosis and stroke. In addition to that, it predisposes one to musculoskeletal conditions such as osteoarthritis, a painful and degenerative

Supply Chain and Operations Management of Ferruccio Lamborghini Essay

Supply Chain and Operations Management of Ferruccio Lamborghini - Essay Example From this study it is clear that   Lamborghini produces both engines and cars, Aventador being its latest mainstream product. Named after a well known Spanish bull, Aventador has incorporated Lamborghini’s trademark theme as a product; power and exquisiteness inspired from bulls and bullfighting. Priced at $376,000 and performing a 0-100 km/h acceleration in just 2.9 seconds, Aventador has gotten the interest of many sports car enthusiasts from the start of its production. The sales of the car were high enough to make its 1000th sale within 15 months   Like its predecessors, Aventador has continued to break the records of previous Lamborghini models and has shown the sales to be high enough to beat the model it replaced, Murcielago, within five years. Considering the challenges Lamborghini faces from its rivals, profitability from its expensive cars has to be kept in line with the performance and care has to be taken so as not to compromise the car’s high performanc e for the sake of higher sales. ... With the tight production and delivery schedules of a multitude of produced units, the suppliers get under enormous pressure from the manufacturers who want to keep their products on top of the market. In order to maintain the tight schedule, component suppliers have been pushed to set up their factories with the top commercial vehicle producers by their requisition of geographically feasible regions of Asia. This paper highlights that employing production systems like Kanban to fulfill customer oriented production to achieve just in time production, the commercial manufacturers have driven the market to an unlikely position for sports car manufacturers. Lamborghini’s production facility has 831 employees and is located at Sant'Agata Bolognese, Italy. As such, the company gets to use the country’s vast automotive production set up and does not get affected by the production dynamics of the domestic usage cars. Yet, the sport car prod uction has its own competition to deal with. The tight schedule and intricate timings make the manufacturers outsource some parts of their supply chain to reduce the load while the rest are carefully managed by the company. Lamborghini also uses the best possible routes to manufacturing often outsourcing some noncore aspects of production or supply chain either to reduce load or to increase efficiency. The high sales, with the first year’s production of Aventador - the first new model introduced in 10 years - all sold out, have put a high demand strain on the company . Lamborghini announced at a press event in Sant’Agata that the production of Aventador had increased its production capacity to 3.5 cars a day.  

Contract law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 5

Contract law - Essay Example â€Å"When at the desire of the promisor, the promise or any other person has done or abstained from doing, or does or abstains from doing, or promises to do or abstain from doing something, such an act or abstinence or promise is called a consideration for the promise.† â€Å"A contract is an agreement enforceable at law made between two or more persons, by which rights are acquired by one or more to acts or forbearance on the part of the other or others.† (Quoted in ReportBD.com) In the case under study, the contract between Helena and the London Theatre is unilateral one in nature, where though there is a consensus ad idem i.e. both the offerer i.e. London Theatre agrees to sell its product, and the offeree i.e. Helena agrees to pay  £500 as a consideration against the tickets offered by the theatre, yet as the theatre has offered its product to a large number of people, the contract between Helena and the theatre is unilateral one in nature. Unilateral Contract: â€Å"Unilateral contract† according to legal-dictionary, â€Å"is a contract in which only one party makes an express promise, or undertakes a performance without first securing a reciprocal agreement from the other party.† (Quoted in http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/unilateral+contract) The same is applied in the case under study, where the London Theatre has made an express promise without first securing a reciprocal agreement from the public and masses. Helena has tried to enter into the contract with the theatre according to the terms and conditions described in the advertisement made by the theatre. In addition, Helena has made her performance in a prescribed mode as well as within the time period determined by the theatre. Moreover, the offer has been made to the world at large; so it is a general offer. Hence, in the case above-mentioned, both the parties to the contract observe the situation as the court verdict announced by the court of law in the

Resume Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 3

Resume - Assignment Example My previous work experiences entail dealing directly with people through administering functions and through managing organizational campaigns. I am highly skilled in undertaking effective communication, in various medium. I am an exemplary team player and could work in diverse environments; even in demanding or highly challenging situations. My ability to discern appropriate conflict negotiating techniques, as well as apply problem-solving strategies, make me highly competent for the position. Likewise, my aviation knowledge and skills would be a potential advantage for an Air and Marine Interdiction Agent, in the near future. I am hereby attaching my resume for your perusal. I would be available for interview at your most convenient time. I could be reached in any of the stipulated contact details. I am confident that when considered for the position, we would be establishing a mutually beneficial business relationship. I would be looking forward to hearing from you

Rhetoric Essay Essay Example for Free

Rhetoric Essay Essay Rhetoric devices make persuasive writing very effective and more interesting to read. Studying rhetoric devices in English class, I have learned how to use and see these in effective writing. While some may argue that persuasive writing is not strengthen by rhetoric devices but by evidence, I certainly believe that rhetoric devices connect and deliver very strong persuasive writing to an audience. Rhetoric devices, mainly ethos, logos, and pathos, make persuasive writing very effective because they support and strengthen the arguments. Ethos is the art of connecting or appealing to an audience ethically. Both Martin Luther King Jr. and Barbara Jordon are well known and have many supporters; therefore they are very credible, and many people would listen. Hundreds of people come to the speech and thousands more listen to it afterwards; these events, due to the size of the audience, draw more and more supporters. Being well known is very important because it gives a foundation and support to build on. Using facts, logos are very strengthening because it shows how some goals can be achieved. Barbara Jordon use of logos is one of the major reasons why the speech is. A perfect example of this is Barbara Jordon’s All Together Now speech. Being very truthful, Jordon is able to strengthen her argument and appeal to her supports. She shows that democrats have made mistakes and how racial segregation affected her life. She also is able to show that equality, regardless of gender, race, religion, or economic position, is necessary and how is transforms the country as a whole. Martin Luther King, although not as much a Jordon, uses logos to define his speech. Bringing a different view, he is able to convey how life would be better without the segregation. He tells about the dreams he has and says that it is possible to gain. Logos show the facts; however, it is not the strongest element when it comes to persuasion. The most effective of the rhetoric devices, pathos connects deeply to the audience by using emotional characteristics. Because it shows that the speaker knows and experiences what the audience does, pathos gives a very important reason on why the audience should support the speaker. Unlike Barbara Jordon, Martin Luther King uses pathos very efficiently throughout his speech, I Have a Dream. Civil rights activist, MLKJ gives the speech to increase the support for equality. Being segregated against and viewed upon as different, King is easily able to connect to his audience, who are also segregated against and viewed differently. In his dreams, King  tells about his children, however speaking as a whole community, he emotionally expresses that not only his children, but also the children of the audience should be able â€Å"live in a world where they are not judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character†. Using repletion, King shows confidence and how everything he talks about is possible. that Barbara Jordon also uses this technique by asking question and showing, like the audience, she does not know the answer to everything. She also shows this by showing the audience the effects of a national community, where everyone is equal. To sum up, rhetoric devices are crucial elements when it comes to persuasive writing. Ethos, logos, and pathos are examples of rhetoric devices that support and strengthen the arguments being made. Martin Luther King Jr. and Barbara Jordon both use rhetoric devices and are able to create very strong and effective speeches and bring more supports f or their cause.

History Of Fairness And Ethics Business Essay

History Of Fairness And Ethics Business Essay Fairness is a very broad concept which requires scholars to define the term fairness comprehensively and clearly because the term fairness is a dimension, meaning it is conceptual and we cannot use our senses to know what does the term actually means or set the boundary of the term. Therefore, we need to scholars to define the term and as more scholars define the term, the clearer or precise the definition will be. Taylor (1975, p. 109) defined fairness as inquisition into the character and area of morality which included rules of conduct, moral judgments and standards. Rawls (1971, p. 194) define fairness as the understanding of other peoples need. Aristotle (1968, p. 140) defines as equals should be treated equally and unequally. Plato (1974, p. 181) defines as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ the requirement we laid down at the beginning as of universal application when we founded our state, or else some form of it. We lay down; if you remember and have often repeated that in our state, one man wa s to do one job, he was naturally most suited for. Cooke (2011, p. 84) defined fairness as peoples position in society which able to determine by factors within their control. From the definitions above, we can conclude that fairness is derived from several variables. Therefore, fairness consists of variables where the single variable is unable to define the term as a whole. Therefore, when the variables add up, it forms or creates the term. We can observe that the dimensions of fairness consist of needs, equal and morality. Hence, we can conclude that fairness requires the equality in the way peoples are treated and the difference in treatment are based on morally justifiable reasons such as need, effort or merit (Velasquez, Andre, Shanks Meyer, 1996). There are several types of fairness from the concept of fairness which are distributive fairness, procedural fairness and interactional fairness and Hornibrook, Fearne and Lazzarin (2009) suggested that if these three aspects of fairness are perceived positively, it will reflect to the organizational outcomes. Types of fairness 1.1 Distributive fairness Distributive fairness, a theory based on writings of John Rawls, has a major focus of distributing assets fairly among a dynamic and diverse group of members from a community. Rawls argues that everything must be done in an act of achieving fairness throughout and he did not want anything to be done that may hurt or damage another person. For example, Rawls (1971) felt that throughout a society, every demographic should be allowed the same treatment and goods as any other. Issues of distribution are pervasive in society, existing in any situation where there is an exchange type of relationship (Deutsch, 1985). Velasquez et al. (1996) refers distributive justice as the extent to which societys institutions ensure that benefits and burdens are distributed among societys members in ways that are fair and just. When the institutions of a society distribute benefits or burdens in unjust ways, there is a strong presumption that those institutions should be changed. For example, the American institution of slavery in the pre-civil war South was condemned as unjust because it was a glaring case of treating people differently on the basis of race. There are four specific principles of distributive fairness that can be considered in situations involving the distribution of material goods and resources, especially those that are scarce (Munson, 2004). The principle of equality requires that all benefits and burdens be distributed equally. The advantage to this concept of fairness is that everyone is entitled to an equal share of resources. However the principle becomes problematic when not everyone is perceived as equally deserving of an equal share. The second principle is the principle of need, which suggests that resources should be distributed based on need so that those with greater need will receive a greater share. In theory, this supports the principle of equality in that everyone will end up with the same share of goods. A problem occurs from this principles is the question of exactly what material goods and resources we are entitled to. Definitive agreement has not been reached in this society as to whether health care is such a good although Lamont (2002) argued that the poor should receive the same health care as the rich. The third principle is the principle of contribution which maintains that persons should benefit in proportion to their individual contribution. Those who contribute proportionately more to the production of goods should receive proportionately more goods in return. Finally, the principle of effort similarly recognizes the degree of effort made by an individual as the determining factor in the proportion of goods to be received. Obvious difficulties with these principles lie in defining the exact nature and impact of a contribution and accounting for the inherent differences in the outcomes of individual efforts regardless of the amount of effort spent. In organizations, distributive fairness affects performance when efficiency and productivity are involved (Charash Spector, 2001). According to Honans (1961) fairness in organizations concerns with distributive fairness that is, the manner in which organizational resources are distributed among personnel (Freedman Montanari, 1980; Leventhal, 1980) and on employees reactions to those resource distributions (Greenberg, 1982). Furthermore, performance appraisal and salary are some of the important determinants of employees perceived fairness (Lawler, 1971). Similarity, Chang and Hahn (2006) define distributive fairness as the perceived fairness of the quantity of compensation that employees get. Hence, in a business relationship, distributive fairness is based on the evaluation of the outcomes or results (Ferrell, 2010). The outcomes or results in distributive fairness may be tangible such as salary as well as intangible such as praise. Perceptions of distributive fairness can be fostered when outcomes are perceived to be equally applied (Adams, 1965). According Adams (1965) people compare the ratio of their own outcomes such as salary or promotion and inputs such as effort or qualification and make compare with others (Greenberg, 1982). On the other hand, when people perceive or expect fairness to occur, they may react positively towards the organization and recommend the organization to others, thus building on the positive image of the organization as a potential employer as well as an organization as a whole (Hà ¼lsheger Anderson, 2009). When an organization is perceived to be distributively just, employees tend to support of the organization by doing tasks outside the scope of their job description (Charash Spector, 2001; Karriker Williams, 2009) or in other word, improving perceptions of fairness increases performance (Karriker Williams, 2009). On the other hand, perceptions of distributive fairness are also strongly related also to the withdrawal of employees from the organization (Charash Spector, 2001) and the relationship between effort invested and outcome received often results in legal issues which can damage an organizations image (Anderson, 2004; Anderson, 2011; Anseel, 2011). If employee found out that he or she is being treated unfairly, he or she will be unmotivated to do the work. Suliman (2007) once said that, organizations that distributed the resources unfairly will create argument, disrespect and mistrust among them. It is because employees perceptions on distributive fairness are mainly based on comparisons with colleagues. If the comparison comes out with positive result, they will feel positive toward the organization management. Hence, the organization performance will be improved. However, if the comparison is negative, the outcome will become negative too. Therefore, managers must notice employees perceptions on distributive fairness as well as procedural fairness since these two dimensions play a main role related to intentions to quit and job dissatisfaction (Dailey Kirk, 1992). It is very important to make employees feel in part of the decision making when amending appraisal and reward systems. Organization can seek for employees opinion when making the changes to show respect to employees. 1.2 Procedural fairness According to Leventhal (1980, p. 156) procedural fairness is define as ones perception of the fairness of procedure components of the system that coordinate allocation process. Rawls (1971) argues that the procedure used is pivotal to the outcome reached and if fair procedure is utilized, principles of justice based on fairness and equality will be an inevitable result. The procedure is referring to the means whereby various ends are attained. Whether the outcomes are pay raises to be distributed to employees, labor disputes to be settled, or performance evaluations to be recorded, a key determinant of these decisions involves how they are made (Folger Greenberg, 1985). In short, procedural fairness concerns about the processes through which decisions are made from (Thibaut Walker, 1975). Thus, this concept is opposite of distributive fairness, which is concerned with the perceived fairness of the content and consequences of those decisions (Walker, Lind Thibaut, 1979). Forret and Love (2007) define procedural fairness as the perceived fairness of an organizations procedures and policies used to determine an individuals outcomes. It influences a wide range of human behaviors, perceptions, emotions, and across diverse social settings. Leventhal (1980, p. 160) define procedural fairness as ones perception of the fairness of procedure components of the system that coordinate allocation process. Leventhal (1980) and Forret and Love (2007) have identified several similar criteria and perception of procedural fairness. Viewpoints of procedural fairness are related to employees morale and trust and they are characterized by solidity in the procedures, accuracy of the information, and free of bias (Forret Love, 2007). Leventhal (1980) classify six criteria of perception of procedural fairness which are procedures are fair when they are consistency, bias minimization, accurate information, consist of technology gadget for wrong decisions correction, maintain usual concept of morality and the last is it is representative. Procedural fairness has been found that it able to increase the feelings of being appreciated. Hence, it is very important that procedural fairness is perceived positively in order to an organization to achieve maximum productivity and its strategic goals (Prooijen, 2009). If there is unfair procedures occurred, trust between the employees and company will be low, and therefore employees will have low commitment and motivation (Cremer, 2005). An organization who wants to have positive outcomes should have a good perception of procedural fairness. Research has showed that there are few benefits of procedural fairness for organizations. A good perception of procedural fairness creates positive attitudes toward management control and hence produces a number of good behavioral reactions (Collett, 2008). It is important for an organization especially in performance appraisal to create harmony among employees in order to increase organization performance. Organizational researchers found that procedures are perceived to be more fair when affected individuals have an opportunity to either influence the decision process or offer input (Thibaut Walker, 1975; Gilliland, 1993; Muhammad, 2004). The decision making can be included in salary determination or promotion of employees. If procedural fairness is used in salary determination, it will eventually improve the ability of organization to manage the salary determination process effectively (Cloutier Volhuber, 2007). Bagdadli, Roberson and Paoletti (2006) said that fair promotion decisions influence feelings of organizational commitment of employees. By other words, organizations are able to keep employee commitment when promotion decision making involve procedures fairness and employees will perceive it to be fair. For example, Wainwright Bank and Trust Corporation in Boston have made a commitment to promoting fairness to all stakeholders by providing a sense of inclusion and diversity that extends from the boardroom to the mail room. In other words, the bank uses method of procedural fairness to establish positive stakeholder relationships by promoting understanding and inclusion in the decision making process. Furthermore, Gilliland (1993) states that perceptions of procedural fairness are influenced by the extent to which procedural rules are satisfied or violated. Procedural rules, listed by Leventhal (1980) suggest that in order to be fair decisions should be made consistently; without personal biases, with as much accurate information as possible, with interest of affected individuals represented in a way that is compatible with their ethical values, and with an outcome that can be modified. Other researchers have suggested additional rules such as the importance of two-way communication (Greenberg, 1986). . 1.3 Interactional fairness Interactional fairness is defined by sociologist John R. Schermerhorn (2006, p. 140) as the degree to which the people affected by decision are treated by dignity and respect when executing procedures and determining outcomes. Therefore, the quality of interpersonal treatment that people receive from authorities during the decision-making procedures is very important (Bies Moag, 1986; Greenberg, 1993). In other word, interpersonal fairness reflects the degree to which people are treated with politeness, dignity, and respect by authorities and third parties involved in executing procedures or determining outcomes (Colquitt, 2001; Kickul Troth, 2003; Janssens, Sels Brande, 2003).This concept focuses on explanations provided to the people that convey information about why procedures were used in a certain way or why outcomes were distributed in a certain fashion (Greenberg, 1993). The assessment of organizational practices and behavior of authority in terms of fairness does not usually depend on how fairly the employee was actually treated, but rather on how fairly the employee perceives that he or she was treated (Greenberg, 1990). Perceptions of interactional fairness play a role in the determination of employees work attitudes and behavior (Cohen Spector, 2001; Colquitt, Conlon, Wesson, Porter Yee, 2001). According to Greenberg (1993) interactional fairness can be broken down into two fairness which are interpersonal fairness and informational fairness. Interpersonal focuses on treating people with dignity and respect while informational fairness deal with the justifications provided to people. There are four factors that affect perception of employees on fairness of the interpersonal treatment get from the organization (Narcisse Harcourt, 2008). These factors are the organization is unreliable, interfere employee privacy, make offensive judgments and disrespectful to employees (Narcisse Harcourt, 2008). The explanation for interactional fairness in the workplace is grounded in social exchange theory and norm of reciprocity (Cropanzano Mitchell, 2005). From the social exchange perspective, employees expect fair, honest, and truthful treatments from the organization or its agents. Based on the norm of reciprocity, employees who perceive fair treatments by authorities are more likely to evidence positive actions through greater commitments to the values and goals of the organizations, exhibit increased job satisfaction, organizational citizenship behaviors, improved job performances and reduced withdrawal behaviors (Cohen Spector, 2001; Colquitt et. al., 2001). Research on psychological contract indicated that employees expect their employers to provide pleasant work environment that supports harmonious working relationships (Kickul Troth, 2003). Because of the importance of good quality social exchange relationships in workplaces, organizations strive to encourage supervisors and employees to willingly interact with each other. However, regular supervisor-subordinate social exchange relations are important in influencing desirable individual and organizational outcomes (Becker, Billings, Eveleth Gilbert, 1996; Zdaniuk Levine, 2001; Raabe Beehr, 2003). Muzumdar (2011) found that the organizational commitment (loyalty) and work satisfaction are the most affected variables of the interactional fairness system. This showcases that the treatment by a supervisor directly influences the variables of loyalty and work satisfaction of an individual employee. Reward satisfaction is the least affected variable by the treatment by a supervisor. As such, being rewarded could be a reduction in the influence of the treatment given by the supervisor on the employee. In the business relationship, interactional fairness is based on evaluating the communication processes used. Because interaction fairness is linked to fairness in communication, it often involves the individuals relationship with the business organization through the accuracy of the information the organization provides. Employees can also be guilty in interactional fairness disputes. For example, many employees admit that they stay at home when they are not really stick if they feel they can get away from it. Such workplace absenteeism costs businesses millions of dollars each ear. Being untruthful about the reasons for missing work is an example of an interactional fairness issue. Part B: Origin According to Dr. Angie Hobbs (2010) fairness started to appear in the ancient Greece where Plato raised the debate on justice, but a lot of issues that were raised are the same issue with fairness. In the dialogue, Plato challenged the Athens democrats by saying that it is fair or just by having the same equal voices in the democratic Athens and also goods and power should also be shared equally. However, against Platos concept is the oligarchy thinkers who debated that equal voices, goods, or power should be shared proportionally, whether proportional to marriage or statuses in the society. Thus, there should be no equal shares exist in the oligarchys concept. There are several scientific researches on fairness to date. Dr Waal found that the sense of fairness might be developed in our genes naturally. Primatologist Frans de Waal and his team found that our closes mammal, chimpanzees do have the same human senses of fairness. This is because there are concrete evidences in evolution that argues chimpanzees are sensitive to unequal distribution of outcomes. Teamwork is shown during hunting, defending territory and distributing foods (Boesch, 1994; Muller Mitani, 2005). A clear illustration of sensitivity of chimpanzees in fairness is when the chimps refused to participate in an experiment where their partner received more rewards for the same accomplishment and also refused to accept better rewards when partner receive less (Brosnan, Schiff Waal, 2005). The advantage of using chimpanzees is humans cannot ask questions to them, thus by observing their behavior, we can know their decision. In animal kingdom, fairness and reciprocity elements are also found, not just in human societies. There are many animals such as zebras, deer, and wolves survive in groups by unity or reciprocity where empathy and teamwork is essential survival mechanism, just like humans as humans are highly cooperative species. (Waal, 2012) The second scientific research on fairness is done by archaeologist  Brian Hayden who  excavated an ancient settlement in British Columbia near Keatley Creek and  uncovered evidence indicating that two distinct classes lived within large  pit houses  that sheltered several families under one roof. Hayden supports Waals research by showing that inequality grew out of the natural variability in human personality traits, among which are inclinations to be greedy or to share. He found that self-serving individuals were presented with new opportunity with the availability of surpluses of resources in Keatley Creek. They exploited the extra resources to their favor, raising the survival odds of themselves and their successors and simultaneously accumulate wealth and power in societies. Thus, phenomenon enables the rich to redefine the meaning of fairness in the society economically and politically and this process is the repeating itself around the globe, explaining how power has been distributed (Hayden, 2012). The importance of fairness and ethics to organization and its effects on the organization performance Fairness is important in organizations because there are a lot of benefits by practicing the concept in the organizations. The first benefit is the practices of fairness are proven to be able to increase profitability. This is because the connection between fairness and profitability is proven to have positive correlation with each other (Donaldson, 2003). Research found that fairness in organization responsibility is able to increase corporate financial performance (Allouche Laroche, 2005). Thus, it can be considered as one of the manipulative variable on profitability because fairness and profitability can be the source of major competitive advantage (McMurrian Matulich, 2011). The competitive advantage is referred to higher levels of efficiency in operations, having firm relationship with the stakeholders and higher levels of customer loyalty and retention (Ferrell 2004). Another importance and effects of fairness in organization is able to produce high quality of employees as the role of fairness in the workplace can impact heavily on the employees attitude and behavior (Greenberg, 1990; Cropanzano Greenberg, 1997; Colquitt, Conlon, Wesson, Porter, Ng, 2001). Hence, organizations that practice high value of fairness and justice are able to produce better individual work performance (Cohen Spector, 2001; Colquitt et al., 2001). Furthermore, these individuals tends to have greater job satisfaction which is very important to increase revenue growth and profitability (Heskett, James, Earl Leonard, 1997) as high level of job satisfactions are able to generate higher levels of loyalty and subsequently showed by the customers behavior such as repeat purchases and referrals of additional customers (Robert Erika, 2006). The importance of the fairness and ethics and its effects on society and in general According to Al-Hassar (2010) found that fairness is the final outcome of the process of the law, whereby fairness is distributed by the State. Based on this definition, fairness is the mechanical process of the structure of law which mean set in place and agreed to by the people of the State. Another definition is concerned with the value inherent in fair behavior. One distinction between these two definitions is the difference between an individual viewpoint and the larger view of the society. Either view incorporates the concept of moral judgment: good as opposed to bad (Al-Hassar, 2010). Unfairness in our society can be seen in the execution of criminals and whenever there is an execution, the morality of capital punishment usually causes heated debate (Al-Hassar, 2010) although many people believe that the death sentence discourages those who might commit horrible crimes. To these people, they feel that since life is precious, the death penalty helps to affirm this fact. However, Richard (2011) define that a majority of countries in the world has now abandoned the use of the death penalty and he state that a civilized society has no right to put another person to death especially when there is a lack of strong evidence. Most of the industrialized world has abolished the death sentence, because they consider it barbaric. Instead, barbaric or not, the law of the land must be followed even if we do not like the death penalty. Moreover, the officers of the law must always avoid errors of sentencing based on skin color, poverty, class, and political gain. If we create a society in which fairness is not tolerated and racism at play then more incidents of state killing will continue and the law of jungle will take place (Al-Hassar, 2010). In ancient Greece, fairness was believed to be derived from the order of society-a good society fostered fairness, and fairness fostered a good society. According to Plato (2000) fairness is the bond that holds a society together. Both individualism and personal rights had little to do with the Platonic conception of fairness those appeals even today to collectivists who emphasize the social context of fairness. Fairness was seen as the supreme virtue with respect to our relations with others. Al-Hassar (2010) also state that fairness must be distributed equally to all members of society in order to live in harmony and peace. Judicial and police officers must not use the law as a shield to insulate their racism, hatred, and political gain. In the eye of the law, fairness must not differentiate between the poor and rich, the weak and the strong. To solve the poverty problem, the state should spend more money on education, employment, and child welfare. The state must give the individual his rightful place of dignity as a free man equal to all his fellow men where he shall have the right to live under a rule of law based on a sense of obligation. In that society, respect for law must be the cohesive force holding it together and not mere obedience based on surrender to the weapons of state power. Relevant Theories Ethics is closely related to fairness. Ethics studies are focused on how an employees beliefs influence their perception of fairness in the organization. Research on fairness is also concerned with how the situation will influences an employees perception in the organization (Schminke, Ambrose Noel, 1997). According to Greenberg (1990) people who have experienced being treated unfairly would be more likely to taking some unethical behavior to the organization. For example, if employees perceived that they are being treated unfairly such as pay cut and they will probably taking some unethical behavior such as steal from the organization. Employees who perceive unfairness in the workplace will look for opportunities to increase their own benefit in their own ways and may shift to unethical conduct in order to balance the unfairness that have been done to them (Trevino Weaver, 2001). According to Gartenstein (n.d.) ethical human resource policies are also vital when creating and maintaining an ethical culture in an organization. Employees who are treated fairly are more likely to be satisfied with their works. When employees feel that they are being treated unfairly, they will prone to explicit some unethical behavior such as using company resources for personal gain. However, when they are fairly compensated for their work, they will contribute more to the organization and less taking opportunities to exploit situations for personal gain. On the other hand, when employees perceived that they are being treated fairly such as when top management fairly distribute the resources, they have the intension to preserve well-being of their organization (Manrique, 2010) and reduce their own interest to the organization (Lind Tyler, 1998). Furthermore, their behaviors also tend to be ethical and in line with the organizations expectations (McCain, Tsai Bellino, 2010). Trevino and Weaver (2001) agree that there is a strong relationship between employee perceived general fair treatment and ethics-related outcomes in an organization. Their study shows that if employees believe that their organization generally treats them fairly, those unethical behaviors will significantly decrease. According to Trevi (2001), employees perceptions of being treated fairly not only reduce a broad range of unethical behaviors that may harm the organization, but it can also increase their positive behaviors. For example, employees are willing to cooperate with organization to achieve the organizations goals by reporting ethical problems to management. The values that shape an organization to be ethical will influence the relationships between the organizations with its customers. An ethical organization will train employees to treat their customers with respect and to be fair with them. For example, when employees know that such ethical behaviors as an important part of customer services, they will understand the strength of the organizations obligation to those behaviors. Hence, they will more likely to perform their work accordingly because ethical behavior can inspire fairness (Gartenstein, n.d.).

Effects of Enhanced CO2 on Tropical Forest Growth

Effects of Enhanced CO2 on Tropical Forest Growth James P. Smith Effects of enhanced atmospheric CO2 concentrations on tropical forest growth: experimental studies and interactions with nutrients, light, water and temperature Abstract (150 words) Introduction (300 words) Approximately 90% of earth’s 652Gt terrestrial biomass carbon is locked up in forests. Tropical and subtropical forests store 340Gt carbon; or ~52%; but only make up 13% of total forested area (table 1). Achard et al (2002) estimated 1Gt/yr carbon losses, through activities such as deforestation and clearance for agriculture (Geist et al, 2002). All terrestrial plants have become exposed to increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations, as part of global change. This has changed from 180ppm 18ka (Petit et al, 1999) to 390ppm today, by degassing from oceans and fossil C burning (Crowley et al, 2001). Increased CO2 could stimulate photosynthesis, raising plant productivity. This can have a role in storing more carbon and mitigate the atmospheric rise in CO2 concentrations (Beedlow et al, 2004). Table 1: Areal extent, carbon storage and net primary productivity of earth’s major biomes (from Roy et al, 2001). Figure 1 demonstrates CO2 enters plants at the source (leaf); where it becomes photoassimilated to produce carbon sugars; which are transported around the plant to carbon sinks; for different processes such as structural growth, metabolism and export. Sugars can also be stored as reserves in the form of NSCs (non-structural carbohydrates). CO2 is lost through respiration, herbivory and litter production and decomposition (Korner, 2003a). Figure 1: CO2 pools and fluxes in plants, as well as source-sink interactions (modified from Korner, 2003a). The aim of the review is to evaluate research on the effects of enhanced CO2 on tropical forest growth. This will be achieved by looking at experimental studies, as well as the effects of enhanced CO2 on the limiting factors of nutrients, light, water supply and temperature. I will be reviewing literature from 1999-2013. Experimental studies There have been few experimental studies of the effects of enhanced CO2 on plant growth in tropical forests in relatively natural conditions (ambient climate, natural soil and inter and intra-species competition). Two studies using a canopy crane in a tropical dry forest in Panama was used to assess the effects of enhanced CO2 on canopy tree leaves. Over a 40 week period Lovelock et al (1999) measured responses of leaf and branchlets of a single tree species. Photosynthesis rates increased 30% with enhanced CO2. However, no increases in biomass occurred (reproductive organs and foliage). Branchlet TNC (total non-structural carbohydrates) increased 20%, inferring localized carbon saturation. Wurth et al (1998a) found stronger TNC increases (41-61%), upon exposing canopy leaves of four tree species to enhanced CO2, in situ. Wurth et al (1998b) planted seedlings of five local species (tree, shrubs and grass) in the understorey of a closed Panamanian forest. These were grown over a 15 mo nth period, in which 50% were in ambient CO2 and 50% in elevated. All species showed significant seedling growth under elevated CO2, but decreased as understorey light levels increased, and inter-species variation was apparent. Again TNC levels increased under enhanced CO2. One experiment has studied communities of tropical trees, which have been outplanted in natural soil and subjected to elevated CO2. Lovelock et al (1998) grew groups of ten tree species at ambient and elevated CO2 in open-top chambers at the forest margin in Panama. Over six months, there was no enhancement in biomass accumulation. There were also reductions in leaf area index, increased photosynthesis rates and increased nitrogen: carbon ratios. Response was species-specific, but late-successional species were less sensitive than pioneer and midsuccessional species. Table 2: Comparison of mean TNC concentrations (% dry weight) across four studies under ambient and elevated CO2 concentrations. From table 2, it is clear that all four studies mentioned showed increased mean TNC concentrations when exposed to elevated CO2. Despite the increases, this does not necessarily mean TNCs from carbon sources are being transported to carbon sinks, into plant biomass for growth. They include carbohydrates, sugar alcohols, organic acids and lipids, and represents carbon reserves or stores, for future use on demand (Korner, 2003a). So, photosynthesis rates may increase under elevated CO2, producing more TNCs, but may not be used in plant growth, unless needed. Figure 2: Variation in mean concentration of TNC with height in two wet and dry seasons (from Wurth et al, 1998a). Wurth et al (1998a) also compared TNC concentrations, exposed to elevated CO2, with height from canopy height to roots, between wet and dry seasons (figure 2). They found TNC to increase in all plant compartments during the dry season. The TNC again not incorporated into structural growth, because growth was directly limited by dry conditions, and not photosynthesis. More TNC was being stored in reserves. In the wet season, TNC pools reduced, coinciding with resumed tree growth and new leaf production. They inferred TNC concentrations were controlled by moisture availability, in agreement with another study in the area (Newell et al, 2002). On the other hand, Korner and Wurth (1996) found TNC to increase significantly in both dry and wet seasons. This infers plants have a store of carbon, and can mobilize it when needed for growth. To further the understanding of increasing CO2 on tropical forest growth, more and longer-term experiments are needed. Arnone (1996) and Korner (1998) criticize these experiments, as they cannot be scaled up to actual forest size; use only small plants; have a higher than normal nutrient supply; absence of competition; and key processes; such as herbivory and effects of pathogens. CO2-nutrient interactions Nitrogen is commonly seen as the main limiting nutrient of tree CO2 responses (Finzi et al, 2006). However, although this is theoretically an unlimited resource (atmospheric), provided N fixation balances N losses through processes such as N20 losses or leaching (Korner, 2009). Litter mineralization is the predominate source of N in forests. All other nutrients are in limited supply in a given area, with older, more weathered (humid tropics) soils making these nutrients much more limiting to plant growth (Bergametti et al, 1998). Enhanced CO2 can accelerate the rate of symbiotic N fixation, as demonstrated by Tissue et al (1997). Seeds of fast-growing woody legumes from a seasonal tropical forest in Costa Rica were inoculated with N2 fixing Rhizobium bacteria and grown in greenhouses for ~70 days, exposed to ambient (35Pa) and elevated (70Pa) CO2 levels. Seedlings were watered adequately with N-free water solution. Under elevated CO2, photosynthesis rates increased by 49%, compared to those exposed to ambient CO2. As a result growth in elevated CO2 increased 36%. Figure 3 illustrates this, with total plant biomass growing 84% under elevated CO2. Greater rates of photosynthesis mean greater quantities of carbon are transported to the nodules. More carbon supplied to nodules means specific nitrogenase activity (SNA); that is N-fixing enzyme activity; is increased; more energy is available to power the fixation process. Thus a greater proportion of nitrogen is fixed by the legumes and incorporated into the plant for biomass accumulation and growth. Figure 4 shows this clearly, with increases in N content across all parts of the plant. Figures 3 4: Dry weight biomass (gDW) of whole plant, as well as different areas of the plant (left). N content (mg) of whole plant, and different sections of plant (right). (From Tissue et al, 1997). Although there is a high abundance of nitrogen, and fixing increases under CO2 levels, Pons et al (2007) inferred N-fixation is also strongly limited by phosphorus availability, and is absorbed by trees much more efficiently than N (Medina and Cuevas, 1994; Herbert and Fownes, 1995). Pons et al (2007) measured N and P concentration changes in leaves of leguminous plants, in different soil types, in a tropical forest in Guyana. From table 3, general increases in N and P led to positive accumulations of N in leaves. They inferred increases in phosphorus were the main cause for increasing N-fixation, with increasing N concentrations having negligible effect. Contrary to Tissue et al (1997)’s findings, Houlton et al (2008) found N fixation to be less prominent in tropical forests. Pons et al (2007) approximated 6% of total N uptake by trees in Guyana was by N-fixation, and only ~50% legumes used the symbiotic pathway. Nardoto et al (2008) found near negligible N-fixation levels in legumes in Amazonia. Thus, nitrogen is unlikely to majorly constrain C-fixation in tropical forests, but phosphorus is more likely to (Martinelli et al, 1999). Table 3: Phosphorus and nitrogen concentrations in five different soil types, and their affect on N-fixation rates by N contents in leaves (Modified from Pons et al, 2007). Studies in tropical forests in Panama provided clear evidence that trees grown in close proximity to their natural habitat, under elevated CO2, within original soils and under local climatic conditions, exhibited accelerated growth rates when soils were enriched with mineral nutrients (Winter and Lovelock, 1999; Winter et al, 2001; table 4). In the absence of fertilizer there was no significant change in growth rate under elevated CO2 (Lovelock et al, 1998; Winter et al, 2000). No major changes in growth rates were found again were found by Korner and Arnone (1992) and Arnone and Korner (1995). Table 4: The effect of fertilizer/absence of fertilizer application on biomass accumulation for tropical plants under elevated CO2. Clearly the effects of elevated CO2 on have caused mixed responses from different studies. In some studies, greater photosynthesis rates led to increased carbon supply to allow accelerated N-fixation for biomass growth. Other studies highlighted the greater importance of phosphorus in regulating N-fixation and biomass accumulation. Plants grown in the absence of nutrients consistently showed minimal to no change in growth rates, opposed to increasing biomass with those that were enriched with mineral nutrients. CO2-light interactions It is known that shaded plant growth rates are limited by light and CO2. Illuminating plants will lead to accelerated growth, by forest canopy thinning or removal. As enhanced CO2 increases light use efficiency and decreases the light compensation point within the leaf, stimulation by enhanced CO2 in shaded areas can be seen to be similar to canopy thinning or illumination (Long and Drake, 1991). The effect of elevated CO2 on tropical plants grown in deep shade can be significant and can possibly exceed effects grown under horticultural conditions under full light (Korner, 2009). Wurth (1998a) exposed seedlings on the forest floor to ~700ppm CO2 under extremely low light levels (~11ÃŽ ¼mol photons m-2s-1). Tree seedlings grew 25-44% and shrub seedlings grew 59-76%. Lovelock et al (1996) observed similar results of mycorrhizal growth of tree seedlings, although P supply may have had an influence. Thus elevated CO2 promotes expansion into shaded areas. As expressed, as most tree seedlings wait to exploit an opening in the canopy, lianas employ a different strategy. Lianas are situated in deep shade and aim to occupy maximal space, but with minimal structural investment (Korner, 2009). Elevated CO2 increases the probability of lianas reaching the upper canopy. Granados and Korner (2002) studied biomass and growth rates for three liana species; simulated in a tropical understorey environment with seed and soil from Yucatan; under high and low light levels; and under ambient and elevated CO2 levels. From figures 5-7 it is apparent that liana biomass increases at higher light levels for all three species. However, liana growth rate is much larger at lower light levels (up to +249%), opposed to higher light levels (up to +52%). These higher growth rates are at moderately elevated CO2 levels of ~420ppm. At ~700ppm, growth rates reduced or even reversed. Thus, individuals within the understorey with low light levels (under moderately elevated CO2 levels) have the potential to grow upwards towards the canopy at a faster rate than those in higher light levels. Figure 8: Comparison of biomass change and growth rates; under ambient and elevated CO2 concentrations; between temperate and tropical liana species (from Korner, 2009) This consistent trend in increased growth rates under low light levels has also been confirmed for temperate liana species (figure 8). Hattenschweiler and Korner (2003) found growth rates between 64-80% under low light opposed to 23-40% under high light. These results could support reasoning for the enhanced vigour and reproduction of lianas observed in recent decades in Panama (Wright et al, 2004) and Amazonia (Phillips et al, 2002). Elevated CO2 may cause lianas to behave more aggressively, thereby inducing faster forest turnover, and reducing tree carbon storage in the long-run (Korner, 2004). Other factors have also been attributed to explain current liana growth, such as reduced rainfall (Swaine and Grace, 2007). Epiphytes are another important organism that influence tropical forest tree dynamics, and grow in tree crowns. Epiphytes derive from succulents, and may utilize CAM (Crassulacean acid metabolism) photosynthetic pathways, although some can use C3 pathways also (Korner, 2009). Contrary to lianas, evidence suggests epiphytes don’t benefit from elevated CO2 (Monterio et al, 2009). They tested the effect of doubling CO2 concentration; as well as increasing light and nutrient levels; on growth of six epiphyte species from the Neotropics. Figure 9: Relative growth rate (mgg-1d-1) of six epiphyte species under increasing CO2, light and nutrient levels for six different species. C3 pathways (V=Vriesea; C=Catopsis; O=Oncidium). CAM pathways (T=Tillandsia; B=Bulbophyllum; A=Aechmea). From Monteiro et al (2009). From figure 9; across the six species; elevated CO2 increased relative growth rates by only 6%. Although C3 species grew 60% faster than CAM, the two groups showed no significant difference in their CO2 responses. High light increased average growth rates by 21%; high nutrients by 10%. The findings contrast with those noted by Granados and Korner (2002) and Wurth et al (1998a), who found significant positive responses of lianas to elevated CO2 and deep shade, opposed to high light intensities. Thus, epiphytes will pose a lower risk to forest turnover and carbon stock losses. CO2-water interactions CO2-water interactions have two sides: the CO2-driven stomatal response; and the interactions with weather; such as drought. Under elevated CO2 conditions, plants will always absorb more CO2 per unit of water lost; regardless of stomata respond. However, experimental evidence confirms stomata may not be as sensitive to CO2 as previously thought (Korner and Wurth, 1996; Lovelock et al, 1999). The increase in atmospheric CO2 over the last century has highlighted the dynamic relationships between CO2 gain and water loss. The evidence for this is within tree rings, in the form of stable carbon isotope signals. Hietz et al (2005) observed these changes in Amazonian trees, where a change in ∂3C over the past two centuries infers increased intrinsic water use efficiency. Traditionally, when water acts as a limiting factor, scientists have drawn upon an array of responses; such as stomatal closure; reduced photosynthesis and growth. However, it has been understood for decades that photosynthesis is less sensitive to reduced water potential than biomass growth. Most of the evidence is derived from non-woody plants (Korner, 2003a). Less water uptake reduces turgidity, which reduces tissue formation, eventually limiting CO2 uptake. Wurth et al (2005) completed an extensive inventory for 17 tropical tree species in both the dry and wet seasons in Panama. They found NSC pools to be largest when growth was lowest and smallest when growth reaches a maximum. This is counterintuitive to what is normally expected! It had been suggested that high NSC levels found in trees under growth limitations by environmental factors, such as drought, does not reflect source saturation by C, but a precaution strategy by which NSCs are stored in a reserve (Lewis et al, 2004a).