Importance of Smoke Alarms in Homes Research Paper

Importance of Smoke Alarms in Homes - Research Paper Example This paper will outline the significance of installing smoke alarms in homes as a means to secure them from risks of potential fires. A fire disaster is a dreaded situation, which can result from gas leaks, short-circuits or overheated appliances. Smoke alarms are very helpful in considerably reducing the chances of fire hazards in homes. However, there are many households that have neglected to install smoke alarms, despite their life-saving potential and low cost, or have been careless in maintaining the installed detectors. Like any other battery-operated device, smoke alarms also require regular maintenance to ensure that they are in good operating condition and have sufficient batteries at the time of a hazardous situation (UL 2011). Effective and reliable smoke alarms are easily available at reasonably low prices; whereas more advanced models can be linked to a security system that automatically notifies the fire department. According to a recent study by the US Fire Administra tion (USFA), the number of household fires has increased on a year-on-year basis by almost 2%, resulting in an overall loss of over 2,500 lives and 6.5 trillion dollars (USFA 2011). Another research, carried out by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has estimated that 96% of all households have a smoke alarm present, but only 70% of these are in working condition. However, from the 400,000 household fires that have been approximately reported, 72% of the deaths were caused by either an unmaintained or missing smoke alarm (NFPA 2011). Most of these fires also cause injuries, which may result in disfigurement and other mental effects (Miller et al. 1982). A working smoke alarm  doubles  the chances of survival from a fire (NFPA 2011). The majority of fire hazards take place at night, especially when people are asleep and may not detect the spreading smoke or fire. Smoke alarms keep that risk down by alerting everyone in the household when smoke is detected. It helps t he occupants find a safe passage out of their homes, before they become trapped in the fire. Most of the deaths that take place are usually due to suffocation from smoke or other gaseous substances, which are invisible to the human eye and can spread rapidly around the house. Hence, without smoke alarms, smoke is likely to go unnoticed, especially during the night, posing a great threat to the occupants of the house (DOS 2007). However, with a functioning smoke detector, the residents can easily discover and sense if there is smoke spreading in the house and save themselves and their loved ones from possible dangers. Smoke alarms do not prevent fires, but because they provide warnings of small fires, or smokes, that can be easily extinguished, they reduce the number of fires that become serious enough to cause injuries or burns, leading to fatalities. In a recent tragic incident, a family was using a space heater to heat their house. Their house did not have a smoke alarm installed. Unfortunately, the heater malfunctioned, causing a small local fire, which went unnoticed due to the absence of a smoke alarm. The fire spread rapidly, and in a couple of minutes, the fire had engulfed the house completely, trapping the whole family inside it. Sadly, by the time the fire department arrived at the scene, the family members were critically injured. They were immediately shifted to a hospital, where three children succumbed to their injuries and passed away. The parents are still recovering

Performance management plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Performance management plan - Essay Example Conclusions and recommendations 11 7. References 13 8. Appendices 15 I. Tables 15 II. Figures 17 Executive Summary: The report is an analysis of performance management system at the multinational IT giant Accenture. The analysis was carried out on the basis of learning from literature related to a comprehensive performance management. Literature teachings highlight following points about effective performance management: 1. Performance management is a comprehensive process of assessing organizational performance with respect to all its stakeholders. 2. The Balanced Score Card system provides a comprehensive and flexible framework to translate organizational strategies to measurable objectives. 3. The Management By Objectives approach provides a good model to manage performance at individual level. 4. Performance measurement is only a part of performance management. 5. Performance management comprises of all activities that enhance employee motivation, commitment, performance and lear ning. Thus, approaches such as performance appraisals, performance development plans, feedback, performance review etc should focus towards enhancing employee commitment, motivation, performance and learning. These points have been applied to performance management system at Accenture in order to assess its, and the same is validated with information obtained from web sources related to the company. 1. Introduction Effective performance management

Cutting edge material - interior design Assignment

Cutting edge material - interior design - Assignment Example The natural cooling element in sports apparel is among the cutting edge fabric technology of this time. Technical apparel fabrication from the company VIRUS is a good example of such technology. The fabric is used to reduce the skin surface temperatures (Poon, 2014). The fabric becomes the athlete’s friend at high temperatures (Poon, 2014). It can reduce the temperature on the skin by up to 5 degree Celsius (Poon, 2014). It is made my recycled jade shavings and has apparently no negative impact on skin. Cowhide rugs can adorn your walls and floors with elegance. They are fashionable and convenient as they are very easy to clean (Shackelford, 2013). One can put them in libraries, halls, family rooms and just about anywhere. If one spill something on them, the stain be easily cleaned with dry cloth or paper towel (Shackelford, 2013). If the stain is a tough one, use a wet cloth. Sticky and dried up stains can come off easily by brushing them off. Poon, Cassidy. â€Å"VIRUS – Cutting Edge Action Sport Performance Apparel launches in Australia.† LinkedIn. N.p. 2014. Web. 26 August 2014 https://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20140407100610-13040073-virus-bleeding-edge-fabric-technology-to-the-action-sport-athlete. Renzi, Jen. "Joseph La Pianas Mesmerizing Rugs for Patterson, Flynn & Martin."Architectural Digest. N.p., 2013. Web. 26 Aug. 2014.

Engineering accomplishments Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Engineering accomplishments - Essay Example In the year 2004, the EEG Simecsol, under Eiffage Construction, the main contractor, completed the Millau Viaduct project, the most beautiful bridge in the world today. The project kicked off in the year 2012 when the Foster and Partners Company completed their design work and handed their plan to the construction company. The bridge is located in South West France, constructed across the River Tarn Valley. Apart from being one of the largest bridges, its features are unique and completely designed expertly. The most unique features of the bridge are the seven reinforced concrete pylons, whose height range between 78 and 245 metres, supporting 32m wide steel super structure. The hollow box girders and the steel pylons carrying the stay cables make it a heavy and stable structure. This bridge has become a source of public attraction in France as many people come to see the world most beautiful bridge. The engineering perspective of this bridge shows the development of the metal-streng thening technology and new ways of meshing the support structure in the construction industry (Matthew Para. 1). Therefore, the bridge is rated as one of the greatest construction and civil engineering achievements in the 21st century. Another engineering achievement is the QingZang Tibet Railway built in China. This railway traverses across permafrost land on a very high altitude. From the start, the engineers knew that the project was a big challenge especially given to the terrain and the unfavorable weather conditions of the land. For many years, the Chinese engineers had sought solution to how this project would succeed as it was an urgent project that aimed at connecting the Chinese business market. However, the project delayed due to the challenges that way laid the construction of such a railway. The railway spans between Golmud and Lhasa, traversing a tough landscape.

Financial Statement Analysis and Valuation Assignment

Financial Statement Analysis and Valuation - Assignment Example The organization has a rich history which dates back to the industrial revolution. The company was founded on September 19, 1759. The human capital of the firm is what has made this organization so successful. The biggest companies in the world are recognized by their talent and the attitude of their people (Martinez, 2014). The global workforce of the firm is composed of 49,700 employees. The majority employees of the firm are located in the UK and Europe. GKN has operations in 33 countries across five continents. GKN has expanded its operations using both wholly owned subsidiaries and joint ventures. The strategy of the organization is to maximize shareholder value by growing its earnings, dividends paid to shareholders, and maintaining sustainable growth in sales, profitability, and cash generation (Gkn, 2015). A main competitor of the company is Meggit PLC. Meggit PLC is a global engineering company that specializes in extreme environment components and smart sub-systems for aerospace and energy markets (Meggit, 2015). The global workforce of this firm is composed of 10,000 employees and the operations of the company are located across Asia, Europe, North America, Brazil, India, and the Middle East. One of the goals of the corporate governance initiatives of the company is to maintain internal control. The board of directors of the company is composed of nine members. Kevin Cummings is the chief executive officer (CEO) of the firm. Within the board of directors there are four committees. These four committees are the executive committee, audit committee, remuneration committee and nominations committee. Over the last few years three of the awards that the company has won include Quality Achievement Award 2013, Excellent Quality Supplier Award, and Fords certification for manufacturing excellence. GKN generated revenues of  £7,136 million of 2013. The revenues of the company

International Economics paper Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

International Economics paper - Article Example They should also change their message by not reinforcing fears but reassuring citizens that trade is just one of many forces that affect their lives and government's role is to help them adapt to change. WTO should encourage governments address barriers to competition within countries. The victims of restrictive practices are consumers inside each country who must pay higher prices because of a less competitive market. These barriers also harm exporters and foreign consumers. Liberalizing should address investment restrictions too. There are fears insufficient investment restriction encourages companies to relocate to lower wage countries, but people should understand foreign direct investment would go from rich countries to other rich countries rather than poor ones. Nevertheless, there are differences between views people have in the U.S. and the views people have in most developing countries about the WTO and trade liberalization. In developing countries people fear that increase trade liberalization will lead developed countries to take advantage of their resources. In the U.S., the perception is that increased free trade will lead to a loss of sovereignty. Litan, Robert. Moving Towards an Open World Economy: The Next Phase. 6 Dec. 2009.

Explain Christian views on suicide Essay Example for Free

Explain Christian views on suicide Essay In a broad sense suicide can be defined as, â€Å"the act of intentionally ending your life.† However, there are many different types of suicide. Durkheim identified four kinds: egoistic suicide, which is the result of feeling one’s life is meaningless; altruistic suicide, the act of giving one’s life for the greater good; anomic suicide, the result of a major social change that disrupts a person’s sense of order; and fatalistic suicide, the results of excessive regulation, when one’s future is pitilessly blocked by oppressive discipline, such as in a prison or dictatorship. Christians believe that all life is sacred, and therefore the vast majority of denominations are against all forms of suicide. In examining the reasons behind this, a good place to start is the Christian teaching on the sacredness of human life. Christians believe in the sanctity of life, meaning that all human life is created in God’s image and has intrinsic worth. The Decalogue teaches, â€Å"Do not kill.† This includes killing oneself. Elsewhere in the Old Testament, Ecclesiastes 7:17 states, â€Å"Be not over much wicked, neither be you foolish: why should you die before your time?† Prematurely ending your life prevents the believer from serving God to his full potential. This idea is backed up in the New Testament, where the Apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 3:16, â€Å"Know you not that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?† Christians reject the idea of total bodily autonomy, meaning that they do not believe we have the right to do whatever we want with our bodies. The Bible suggests that our bodies are not our own, but God’s, and therefore we do not have the right to destroy them. Historical church fathers have held consistently negative views on suicide. Augustine was one of the first to publically speak out against it. He opposed it because we have a duty of selfà ¢care arising from natural inclination and we have a debt of love that we owe to others. In The City of God he wrote, â€Å"certainly he who kills himself is a homicide, and so much guiltier of his own death, as he was more innocent of that offence for which he doomed himself to die.† To take one’s own life into one’s hands and act precipitously by committing suicide is to look away from God (a final and definitive refusal of trust in God and a denial of trust in his providence, by the very nature of the act itself excluding any subsequent repentance/penance). Furthermore, Aquinas was also against suicide. In Summa Theologica he set forth three reasons why suicide is immoral. Firstly, it is contrary to natural law. Secondly, suicide does injury to the common good because the person’s community will suffer. Thirdly, it is a sin against God because life is God’s gift to man. For it belongs to God alone to pronounce sentence of death and life, according to Deuteronomy 32:39, â€Å"I will kill and I will make to live.† However, there is one form of suicide that some Christians would accept, and that is altruistic suicide in the form of martyrdom or self-sacrifice. Jesus taught that, â€Å"Greater love has no-one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.† For example, in Judges Samson brings down a temple killing both himself and the Philistines. Augustine said that suicide was rooted in pride and lack of charity, whereas martyrdom is commendable and for the good of others. The different Christian denominations are generally unified when it comes to views on suicide. In the Roman Catholic Church it is regarded as a mortal sin, and the Catechism asserts, Everyone is responsible for his life before God who has given it to him. It is God who remains the sovereign Master of life.† The Presbyterian Church would hold a similar view, as the Westminster Confession reads, â€Å"The sins forbidden in the sixth commandment are, all taking away the life of ourselves, or of others, except in the case of public justice, lawful war, or necessary defence.† Even though they clearly teach that suicide is a sin, it is not an unpardonable sin. Salvation is by grace alone and if one is truly saved, nothing (not even suicide) can separate them from Jesus. The United Methodist Church believes that suicide is not the way life should end, but would be hesitant to label it a sin. Therefore, they denounce the condemnation of people who commit suicide, and do not believe surviving family should be stigmatised. Modern psychology has impacted the Christian view of suicide. In the past Christians were guilty of separating physical and mental illness and although they were in support of treatment for physical ailments, they were wary of psychiatric treatment. Even today some fundamentalist churches would see illnesses such as depression as purely spiritual afflictions. In the wake of high profile suicides such as Rick Warren’s son Matthew, most leaders are encouraging the Church to acknowledge that matters of depression and suicide are medical in nature and should be addressed no differently than other physical illnesses. They imply that to do otherwise promotes stigma, shame and restricts the believer’s access to appropriate care. Another reason why Christians are against suicide is the profound negative effect it can have on other people. Suicide does not just harm the person who dies, it is a form of bereavement even more devastating than usual because the family will forever agonise over what led the person to take their life, and if they could have prevented it. This is especially so if the family discover the body or witness the suicide. Suicide can damage close communities such as schools and churches. Wyatt said that, â€Å"suicide can have devastating effects on others. In fact, it can be one of the most selfish and destructive acts anyone can perform.†