...Volkswagen Research “The Volkswagen emissions scandal explained” http://www.theguardian.com/business/ng-interactive/2015/sep/23/volkswagen-emissions-scandal-explained-diesel-cars * “Volkswagen has been cheating in emission tests by making its cars appear far less polluting than they are. The US Environmental Protection Agency discovered that 482,000 VW diesel cars on American roads were emitting up to 40 times more toxic fumes than permitted - and VW has since admitted the cheat affects 11m cars worldwide.” * “…far more harmful NOx emissions, including nitrogen dioxide, have been pumped into the air than was thought – on one analysis, between 250,000 to 1m extra tonnes every year. The hidden damage from these VW vehicles could equate to all of the UK’s NOx emissions from all power stations, vehicles, industry and agriculture.” * “VW’s “defeat device” is not a physical device but a programme in the engine software that lets the car perceive if it is being driven under test conditions - and only then pull out all the anti-pollution stops.” * ““Clean diesel” engines cut emissions through techniques such as adjusting air-fuel ratios and exhaust flows, and in some (though not most VWs) injecting a urea-based solution to render NOx harmless. When running normally, requiring greater performance, VW’s controls would not operate in the same way.” * “How does the defeat device know it's being tested? The EPA tests have known practices and profiles. In many...
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...Collapse- book is about a history topic about how societies choose to fail or survive. The main characters are historical people and unknown kings of Mayan cities or Easter Island villages. Jared Diamond tells the story of the Viking explorer Erik the Red, who discovered Greeland and Vinland (Terranova, in Canada). Another character is captain Olafsson, a norse sailor who wrote the last news about Greenland in 1410. Another main character is Christopher Columbus, who arrived at Hispaniola in 1492, but now this island is two countries, the Dominican Republic and the Haiti. Diamond studied the politics of two presidents. the dominican Rafael Trujillo, who protected the enviroment and the dictator François, Papa Doc, Duvalier, who decided on politics of deforestatation of his country, Haiti. The author considered the bad politics of another main character, king George II, who was interested in sending merinosheeps from Spain to Australia, an idea which was succesful from 1820 to 1950 but then the farmers understood their lands lost fertility. Another main character is Tokuwaga Jeayasu, a shogun of Japan in 1600, who prohibited Christianity in 1600 and protected his country againt deforestation. The book takes us to a lot of places around the globe: Mayan cities, Rwanda, Viking colonies of Vinland or Greenland, Haiti and Dominican Republic, Easter Island and Polynesian colonies in Pacific, and the Chaco villages in New Mexico (United States). The time period was from 800 AC, when...
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...Implications of the Turkmenistan-China Gas Pipeline Alex Goeman alextgoeman@gmail.com MC 492, Graham 4/26/2012 Abstract The struggle over energy export routes in Central Asia has taken the form of a new Great Game, one in which Western energy companies (encouraged and assisted by their governments) compete with state owned Russian and Chinese firms for the right to exploit Central Asian resources. The implementation of the Turkmenistan-China Gas Pipeline, which began to pump gas to China in 2010, has been the most significant development of the past five years and signals, more than any other event, the primacy of Chinese influence in the region. Turkmenistan now possesses the proven reserves and a partnership with China that could help it achieve sustainable development, although there are many domestic factors impeding this. As China increases its presence in the region, it seems that Russia and the West are being left behind in the race for Central Asian hydrocarbons. Executive Summary In the complex geopolitical environment of the Caspian region, all the players involved must carefully balance political and economic objectives. Each actor brings its own set of goals for the region, and in the case of the external actors these interests are generally in conflict. While Russia seeks to preserve its hegemony over export routes of Caspian hydrocarbons, Western governments overtly seek to undermine precisely this element of Russian influence. To the...
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...org ARTICLE COLLECTION Your emotions are highly contagious. Which ones are you spreading through your firm? Best of HBR on Emotionally Intelligent Leadership, 2nd Edition Included with this collection: 2 What Makes a Leader? by Daniel Goleman 14 Leadership That Gets Results by Daniel Goleman 30 Primal Leadership: The Hidden Driver of Great Performance by Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis, and Annie McKee 42 Social Intelligence and the Biology of Leadership by Daniel Goleman and Richard Boyatzis Product 12088 Best of HBR on Emotionally Intelligent Leadership, 2nd Edition Collection Overview What distinguishes great leaders from merely good ones? It’s not toughness, vision, or industry smarts. It’s their emotional intelligence—a potent combination of self-management and relationship skills. Studies strongly suggest that emotional intelligence plays a far greater role than IQ in determining leaders’ effectiveness, and thus their organizations’ success. To increase your emotional intelligence, start by understanding the skills that define it. Then learn how to flexibly interchange those skills to meet the needs of shifting circumstances. Finally, use mood contagion (a powerful neurological process) to create positive chemical connections between your and your followers’ brains. COPYRIGHT © 2008 HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL PUBLISHING CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Featuring the work of Daniel Goleman, this HBR Article Collection...
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...Trends and Issues in Victimology Trends and Issues in Victimology Edited by Natti Ronel, K. Jaishankar and Moshe Bensimon Trends and Issues in Victimology, Edited by Natti Ronel, K. Jaishankar and Moshe Bensimon This book first published 2008 Cambridge Scholars Publishing 12 Back Chapman Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2XX, UK British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Copyright © 2008 by Natti Ronel, K. Jaishankar and Moshe Bensimon and contributors All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. ISBN (10): 1-4438-0069-4, ISBN (13): 978-1-4438-0069-3 TO THE VICTIMS OF TERRORISM AND VIOLENCE. LET US PRAY THAT EXPANDING THE RIGHT KNOWLEDGE INTO THE RIGHT HANDS WILL CONTRIBUTE TO THE ATTENUATION OF HUMAN EVIL AND CONSEQUENT SUFFERING. TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword ..................................................................................................... x Gerd F. Kirchhoff Editors’ Introduction ................................................................................... 1 Between perception and victimization: Trends and issues in victimology Natti Ronel, K. Jaishankar & Moshe Bensimon Part I: Justice for victims Chapter One.....................
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...elementary, middle, junior, and high schools as well as specialized schools for special needs students. It is headed by a city mayor who oversees the system as well as a chancellor. There have been many changes in educational philosophies over the years, including sweeping changes in the curriculum. Many of these changes have originated from the federal No Child Left Behind Legislation (NCLB) legislation to reform educational practices. The main tenet of the change sought to raise reading and math scores on standardized tests. They also included reforms on how teachers are evaluated and how low performing teachers need to be removed. This change has led many principals to struggle with the issues of how to contend with red tape that makes it very difficult if not impossible to remove teachers. In addition they must also fight unions who are struggling to keep their teachers from being dismissed arbitrarily. The issue has become whether or not principals may be using coercive management techniques to persuade teachers to leave. Many principals appear to be engaging in bullying tactics, resulting in a negative work environment that is unconducive to efficiency and impedes the quality of education provided by already overwhelmed instructors. When we examine articles about the ABC school system as well as other school systems across the world we see a pattern emerging. Teachers are struggling to save face, they are being yelled at in front of students and peers, they...
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...both have advantages and disadvantages: Face-to-face communication: Advantages: * Visual cues and social presence in face-to-face dialogue also stimulates members to more easily develop interest about one another's background and expertise. * These cues also build trust. Disadvantages: * The price pays a major role for business that is spread across multiple locations. * Minority expression is lower in face-to-face mode. Virtual communication: Advantages: * The teams from multiple locations can merge with lesser cost of travel, by making use of advanced technology. * It allows communication across time zones. * Since the technology plays a major part here, the available information is better shared, and explained concretely. Disadvantages: * Technology has the potential to 'de-stabilize' the relationship between the organization and its employees. Although virtual communication cannot offer advantages of face-to-face communication, some simple strategies may improve virtual knowledge transfer. 1. Improve communication among the virtual teams - Verbalize rules, terminology and descriptions. 2. Use tools that support highly inter-dependant work, such as advanced groupware or video conferencing. 3. Encourage training or mentoring programs - where one team of the virtual...
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...Development, International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development, The Regional and International Networking Group This publication is available online at http://www.trade-environment.org http://www.iisd.org http://www.ictsd.org http://www.ring-alliance.org Cover photos from iStockphoto. Readers are encouraged to quote and reproduce this material for educational, not-for-profit purposes, provided the source is acknowledged. Printed on 100% post-consumer recycled paper. Trade and Environment: A Resource Book The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD, http://www.iisd.org) contributes to sustainable development by advancing policy recommendations on international trade and investment, economic policy, climate change, measurement and assessment, and natural resources management. Through the Internet, we report on international negotiations and share knowledge gained through collaborative projects with global partners, resulting in more rigorous research, capacity building in developing countries and better dialogue between North and South. IISD’s vision is better living for all—sustainably; its mission is to champion innovation, enabling societies to live sustainably. IISD is registered as a charitable organization in Canada and has...
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...Intelligence in Leadership and Everyday Life. Systems Analysis Laboratory, Helsinki University of Technology, Espoo. CHAPTER 11 Reasons of Systemic Collapse in Enron Matti Rantanen This article studies the moral development at Enron from the perspective of its long-term CEO and chairman Ken Lay. I focus on some critical decisions in the early years of Enron and speculate why Lay chose in favour of non-systems intelligent solutions in leading morale. According to the outlook developed it is plausible to think that immoral behaviour at Enron stemmed not so much from Lay’s immoral character but from his Christian values. Neglecting opportunities to change his value structure Lay avoided tough decisions that marked loss for others. Consequently, unable to make decisions objectively based on systemic rather than individual motives, he lost his opportunity in creating coherent corporate values promoting moral integrity. If the suggested causality is true, it underlines the importance of conscious moral leadership as an everyday discipline. Introduction This article discusses the story of Enron, the infamous American energy company that December 2, 2001 filed the largest bankruptcy case in US history, totalling losses around 66 billion US dollars,1 forcing 4,000 unemployed,2 and bringing down Arthur Andersen, 3 its auditing company. For many of the “bad” and publicly convicted Enron executives it has been the worst nightmare come true, a personal travesty. Cliff Baxter, an Enron...
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...This article was downloaded by: [Academy of Management] On: 11 February 2014, At: 16:20 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK The Academy of Management Annals Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rama20 An Aspirational Framework for Strategic Human Resource Management Susan E. Jackson , Randall S. Schuler & Kaifeng Jiang a b a a School of Management and Labor Relations, Rutgers University b Mendoza College of Business, University of Notre Dame Accepted author version posted online: 04 Dec 2013.Published online: 04 Dec 2013. To cite this article: Susan E. Jackson, Randall S. Schuler & Kaifeng Jiang (2014) An Aspirational Framework for Strategic Human Resource Management, The Academy of Management Annals, 8:1, 1-56, DOI: 10.1080/19416520.2014.872335 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/19416520.2014.872335 PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views...
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...Page No. 2 Index Swachh Bharat Mission FEB & MARCH, 2015 AUGUST, 2012 Page No. 4 Insurance Sector In India Page No. 5 Bharat Ratna Award Designed by: Chandan Kumar “Raja” For Advertisement Contact at : 9958790414 Join us at Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/iasexamportal Follow us at Twitter: https://twitter.com/iasexamportal CURRENT AFFAIRS National Issues International Issues India & the World Economy Science and Technology Sports Awards & Prizes In The News 6 14 20 23 39 51 58 64 Disclaimer: Editor and Publisher are not responsible for any view, data, figure etc. expressed in the articles by the author(s). Maps are notational . All Disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of competent courts and fourms in Delhi/New Delhi only. Selected Articles from Various Newspapers & Journals Page No. 67 91 Cyberspace Page No. 93 Regional Rural Banks The Mauryan Empire Model Paper G.S. Paper I 94 117 Join Online Coaching For IAS Pre & Mains Exams http://iasexamportal.com/civilservices/courses Project Mausam and Maritime Silk Route SWACHH BHARAT MISSION Throughout the world around 2.5 billion people do not have toilets to use, out of those 250 crore people 65 crore live in India alone. In order to solve this big challenge government of India has launched “Swachh Bharat Mission” on the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi and former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri...
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...The Cosmopolitan Society and its Enemies Ulrich Beck I N THIS article I want to discuss three questions: (1) What is a cosmopolitan sociology? (2) What is a cosmopolitan society? (3) Who are the enemies of cosmopolitan societies? What is a Cosmopolitan Sociology? Let me start by attempting to nail a pudding to the wall, that is, defining the key terms ‘globalization’ and ‘cosmopolitanization’. At the beginning of the 21st century the conditio humana cannot be understood nationally or locally but only globally. ‘Globalization’ is a non-linear, dialectic process in which the global and the local do not exist as cultural polarities but as combined and mutually implicating principles. These processes involve not only interconnections across boundaries, but transform the quality of the social and the political inside nation-state societies. This is what I define as ‘cosmopolitanization’: cosmopolitanization means internal globalization, globalization from within the national societies. This transforms everyday consciousness and identities significantly. Issues of global concern are becoming part of the everyday local experiences and the ‘moral life-worlds’ of the people. They introduce significant conflicts all over the world. To treat these profound ontological changes simply as myth relies on a superficial and unhistorical understanding of ‘globalization’, the misunderstandings of neoliberal globalism. The study of globalization and globality, cosmopolitanization and cosmopolitanism...
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...viable within GM’s corporate structure and can generate systemic benefits throughout the company. Thank you to our client, David Tulauskas, and our advisor, Professor Thomas Gladwin. Executive Summary 4 Introduction 6 Client GM Corporate Overview 7 Sustainability & General Motors Sustinability & the Auto Industry Green Ranking Systems 14 Competitor Trends 17 About the Project Proposal & Opportunities Scoping 26 22 Contents 11 Research GM Interviews 28 Conferences 31 Corporate Trends & Innovations Regulations & Legislative Activity Recommendations Recommendation Development Carbon Monetization 39 Sustainable Supply Chain Strategy 32 35 36 42 Supporting Statements Support for Recommendations 45 Supporting Statements and Analysis Framework 48 #1: Reduce GM’s exposure to the financial risks associated with carbon regulations 49 #2: Mitigate operational risk in resource-constrained and/or highly polluted geographies such as China #3: Reduce exposure to electricity cost increases and generate revenue from renewable energy credits #4: Mitigate financial risk...
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...Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi—110 017, India Penguin Group (NZ), Cnr Airborne and Rosedale Roads, Albany, Auckland 1310, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd) Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R ORL, England First published in 2005 by Viking Penguin, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc. 13579 10 8642 Copyright © Jared Diamond, 2005 All rights reserved Maps by Jeffrey L. Ward LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING IN PUBLICATION DATA Diamond, Jared M. Collapse: how societies choose to fail or succeed/Jared Diamond. p. cm. Includes index. ISBN 0-670-03337-5 1. Social history—Case studies. 2. Social change—Case studies. 3. Environmental policy— Case studies. I. Title. HN13. D5 2005 304.2'8—dc22 2004057152 This book is printed on acid-free paper. 8 Printed in the United States of America Set in Minion Designed by Francesca Belanger Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or...
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...Policy Analysis No Child Left Behind to The Blueprint for Reform/Rise to The Top Program Frances Kaye Williams PAD 510: Into to Public Policy Analysis Strayer University Scholl of Professional Studies Thomas Walkington PAD 510 Intro Public Policy Analysis Strayer University January 27, 2014 Abstract The purpose of this research is to identify the reformation from the No Child Left behind Act that was reform from President Bush to the President Obama Blue Print for Reform Act and the Raising to the Top for Education. The research proves that the reformation of the Blue Print has greatly increased in the education of all children to indulge in a higher education. This reformation has not only help with the children but the welfare of the economy and the communities as well. The report identifies key elements of the policy and makes recommendations for future policy development identifying official and unofficial actors, interest groups, the influence of two of those actors, their influence in further development of the policy Executive Summary A substantial body of evidence has shown that past reforms have largely failed to improve schools, but The Blue Print for Reform along with the Rise to The Top Program (RTTT) has made a significant change in education. The Blueprint for Reform builds on the significant reforms already made in response to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 around four areas: (1) Improving teacher and principal effectiveness...
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