Disagreements about the ideals of management will always exist. But Essay

Disagreements about the ideals of management will always exist. But the realities of management can be established on the basis of evidence, rather than ideas about what they ought to be - Essay Example Management facilitates the production of desired and useful outcomes in the system of organization. However, management faces many disagreements about its ideals which always exist. However, management realities can be established on basis of evidence, instead of what they ought to be. Managers are the business drivers of an organisations goals and objectives, so as to realise its realities. Therefore, management has many challenges that result into conflicts. Fortunately, if these conflicts can be solved on the basis of evidence, they can be turned into great opportunities for the business, rather than ideas of what they would have been (Pruitt, 1983). Hence, a skilled manager will always seek to turn challenges into opportunities by basing his decisions and actions on evidence. This essay looks into the disagreements that exist in business, how management realities can be established on the basis of evidence rather than ideas about what they ought to be. Some of the issues raised in the statement are what the disagreements and their causes, what are the management realities and what evidence are required. In the past, management was looked at from the functional perspective, which is, regularly measuring a quantity and undertaking necessary adjustments of the initial plans in order to attain the desired goals, even without planning. One of the greatest contributor of modern management concepts, Henri Fayol (1841-1925, pg, 23) however considers management functions as planning, forecasting, coordinating, commanding, and organizing the activities of a business. However, Mary Follet (1869-1933) describes management as the philosophy of having things done by other people (Gomez-Mejia, 2008, pg 19). The difficulties of defining management, changing nature in its definitions, and difficulties of connecting managerial practices with the class or cadre of management shows how critical and difficult management task involve, since they finally dictate the well being

English Composition Essay Example for Free

English Composition Essay In the aspect of writing English composition, several rules and guidelines must be followed for the aspect of clarity, clearness, and understandability. This grammar rules are established to follow a clear and concise presentation of the ideas and concepts being communicated in each composition. Included in these guidelines and rules is the use of examples and how they are used to promote the main argument in each composition. In the use of examples in the English composition, several approaches are established to guide the use of this strategy for the clearness in the composition. First, is using example in a word or phrase employing short approaches towards the presentation. The second is through sentence-length examples, which are more specific as they employ the idea along with the specific example explaining the said concept. Third is through the use of extended examples, which are commonly to be an entire paragraph for more detailed explanation and presentation. For better composition, most writer use different styles and conjoined different approaches in a single essay for more detailed explanation of the main topic. For example, in the composition of John Head entitled â€Å"The Brutal Business of Boxing†, the author was able to clearly and specifically presents his topic and ideas through the use of both single word or phrase example and sentence-length examples. In most paragraphs, the author mentioned specific words to support his topic and in the others, he used the sentence-length examples, which includes the idea and the specific argument explaining the concept. Through this approach, the author has able to present clearly his main argument and reasons about his opinions towards the brutal nature of boxing explaining why the said act should be condone not as a sport but as an uncivilized fight in the society.

Leonardo Da Vinci :: Visual Arts Paintings Art

Leonardo Da Vinci Leonardo Da Vinci is a world renowned Italian painter, sculptor, architect, musician, engineer, and scientist. His curiosity for the things around him and the research was the fundamental point of his artistic and scientific accomplishments. His creations in painting influenced Italian art centuries after his death and his scientific studies (anatomy, optics and hydraulics) have helped made many developments of modern science. His famous paintings for example the Mona Lisa and the Last Supper are known world wide. People crave to own his paintings, or even just to have a look at them; Leonardo had influenced everyone up to this present day. Even Bill Gates used $30 million US for Leonardo’s painting ‘Codex Leicester’! Who is this remarkable man? And what did he do that taught the world to look at art and science in a new perspective? Leonardo told us that he was born on April 15th 1952 in the city of Vinci in Italy and was the son of a notary and a peasant girl. His parents had a lot of kids, but not with each other and having him ending up with 17 half sisters and brothers. He said that living in Vinci was the place where he developed his creativity and interest in nature. He was also exposed to the ancient Vinci painting tradition at that time. In 1466, he moved to Florence where he was apprenticed in the famous workshop of ‘Andrea Del Verrochio’. While working there, he painted an angel in Verrochio’s ‘Baptist of Christ’. His painting was so much better than his master that Verrochio never painted again. In 1482, Leonardo wrote a letter to the Duke of Milan telling him that he could build portable bridges that would enable dry routes for people to travel. At this time, he carried notebooks and started to keep all his ideas, opinions on everything including domestic, personal, scientific and philosophical along with explanatory sketches. These notebooks were full of advice for science and art not only for the people in the Renaissance but also useful painters now. The Duke gave lots of jobs to him that included designing weapons, buildings and machinery. He produced lots of ideas for nature, flying machines, geometry and mechanical things. His eager to start new things made it hard for him to complete the things that he had started making him only completing 6 of 17 works that he had done. He started to find himself interested in painting, architecture, the elements of mechanics and human anatomy from 1490 to 1495. He spent this time studying science or locking himself up in his room

Descriptive Essay. My Favorite Place for Relaxing

AMERICAN REVOLUTION The beginning at the Atlantic coast of Northern America was necessary to English possession in 1607. v When first of colonies – Virginia has been based. Its founders were merchants from the London trading company. On the courts the company transported in a colony of poor men, sold itself is temporary in debt servitude and worked in a colony under supervision of inspectors of the company. For ocean from England the puritans oppressed by government Stewart directed, the poor men who are looked for in New World of improvement of the   fate.In colonies they got in servitude to merchants and the large land owners who have received the letters from king on the grounds in America. One step at a time at the Atlantic coast from the grounds grasped at Indians 13 colonies were formed. In the south – in South Carolina and Georgia the slaveholding facilities has developed. On plantations cultivated tobacco, a sugar cane, indigo. Characteristic feature grower fa cilities was injurious use of the grounds quickly lost the fertility then plantations were transferred on other seats.This feature of a slaveholding facilities and pursuit of a profit pushed planters to continuous expansion of territory of colonies. Import of Negros – slaves in a colony has begun quickly increased. In the middle Atlantic colonies – Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey – wheat was cultivated. The part of the ground belonged to large proprietors – to the aristocrats leased it to small farmers, paid for it the rent. Here was also independent farmers much. In seaside cities crafts, shipbuilding developed.In the North – in New England covered colonies New-   Hampshire Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island, handicraftsmen and manufactories was even more. The Major part of the population was engaged in fishing and navigation. England and its possession used a monopoly of commerce with colonies. Turns of this commerce quickly incr eased. From colonies the furs, tobacco were taken out to England, indigo, a fish, a wood and iron. Manufacture of iron was officially forbidden by the English government, but colonies did not reckon with these interdictions.To West Indies were taken out bread, a fish and other goods. Despite of distinction in social attitudes between separate colonies, their general characteristic feature there was a fast progress of initial capitalist accumulation and the bourgeois attitudes interwined with slaveholding in the south. Progress of colonies at all was not peace idyll. In a basis of territorial expansion of colonies in the West capture of the American Indian grounds, destruction and replacement of Indians in the remote areas laid. Wars with Indians differed cruelty and barbarity.Colonists seats exterminated all American Indian population, tortured and burnt captives. Merchants for nothing exchanged at Indians dear beaver skins and other furs, accustomed to drinking vodka and set Americ an Indian tribes against each other. In the favourable way of initial accumulation served slave trading. Merchants of New England conducted so-called † triangular commerce † – bought treacle in West Indies, processed it in rum and for rum, cheap fabrics and knickknacks exchanged slaves – Negros at slave-traders, engaged the armed robbery and capture of Negros at coast of Africa.Usually not less than thirds of Negros perished from illnesses during transportation through ocean, and the others were exposed to brutal operation on plantations. Sharp social contradictions developed and among the white population of colonies. The major part of white immigrants many years was in debt slavery at merchants and large agrarian proprietors, the agrarian aristocracy aspired to spread in colonies feudal attitudes, inalienability and transfer to an indivisible condition of manors by right of succession to the senior son, nobiliary titles and privileges.Large land owners ra ised the rent from the tenant, rigidly maintained small farmers, is frequent raising on revolts. In seaside cities there were many the hired working and poor handicraftsmen tested greater deprivations. City poor and tenants aspired to leave on the West and to become independent farmers. Chains of the armed immigrants – â€Å"squatters† – with families and house belongings moved west, based settlements and grasped the grounds of Indians. Management of colonies was in hands of English authorities.King appointed governors of the majority of colonies, and in three of them, private persons considered by possession, – in Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland– king only approved the governors appointed by owners. At governors there was advice appointed by them and the lower chambers which members were selected rich proprietors on the basis of a high property qualification. In English parliament of a colony had no representation. The English government cons idered itself in right to publish the laws, concerning colonies, without their agreement.An arbitrariness of governors and English agrarian aristocracy caused numerous revolts of farmers and the handicraftsmen required the political rights, expansions of self-management of colonies and restrictions of authority of governors. Economic growth of colonies wakened at the population aspiration to independence. Between colonies mutual economic relations one step at a time amplified. The generality of territory, economic life and language at remoteness from England assisted folding.Conditions of a life in colonies, despite of distinctions between the North and the South and on class contradictions, generated known features of a mental constitution at the population. Formation of the North American bourgeois nation was accelerated as a result of an aggravation of contradictions between colonies and England, led liberation war. In the 60s of the XVIII century colonial oppression of England i ncreased. Seven Years' War 1756 – 1763 GG exhausted its financial resources. Britain's public debt grew from 53 thousand to 140 thousand pounds.The king and the ministers wanted to improve their financial position through the colonies. The capture of Canada by England, Florida and the land west of Allegan facilitated the holding of new coercive measures in the 13 colonies. In 1765 the British Parliament imposed a colony of so-called stamp duty on each trade transaction documents, newspapers, and ads. Resistance of the population forced the British government to abolish stamp duty, but the policy taxing the colonies without their consent continued.Dissatisfaction with stamp duty has given strong impetus to the broad democratic movement against the British colonialists in New York and New England. In many towns and villages there were rallies, people smashed home a new tax collector. Began a boycott of British goods. In the years in colony 17773-1774 revolutionary situation. Th e masses of the people no longer willing to endure the situation. Conflicts with the British colonialists sharpened. For communication between the individual colonies were established correspondent committees.In Virginia, the leaders of this committee were supporters of the revolutionary actions of Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry, Massachusetts – Samuel Adams. The movement for the boycott of British goods was expanding. The British government cut duties on tea imported to the colonies of the East India Company, in the hope that increased sales of tea and the colonies reconciled to the payment of at least a little of the tea duty. But this led only to new countermeasures.At the end of 1773 there was an event known as the Boston Tea Party: the inhabitants of Boston, disguised as Indians, entered the ship with a cargo of tea waiting in the harbor, and threw him into the sea. In response, the British authorities have moved to new repressions and decided to July 1774 to close t he Boston port, the city had entered a state of siege. The king has deprived the inhabitants of New England, the right to engage in fishing in Newfoundland. Local government in Massachusetts was abolished. All these measures meant that the British colonialists have not been able to maintain its power over the colonies previous methods.The armed struggle began in the spring of 1775 April 19. In May, 1775 in Philadelphia, opened the Second Continental Congress. The participants were representatives of the planters and the big bourgeoisie. But under the influence of the revolutionary upsurge of the people most inclined Congress to break with England. Congress recognized his army, arose early in the war of guerrilla groups, appointed commander of a wealthy Virginia planter George Washington (1732-17. Washington participated in hostilities against the French and Indians, and gained a reputation as capable military leader.July 4, 1776 Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence. The declaration announced that the colonial oppression against â€Å"inalienable rights† to liberty, life and the pursuit of happiness, and that the rebellious colonies, united in the United States of America are â€Å"free and independent states. â€Å"The main author was Thomas Dzhefferson. Congress it has made up his draft Declaration of Independence, after making any editorial changes specifically chosen for this commission. Item, who condemned slavery was excluded. The proclamation of the Declaration raised he authority of Congress to the people and the bourgeoisie, and enabled planters to retain the leadership in North America during the Revolution. Congress sought to bring to an alliance with the rebellious colonies, France and Spain, and sent for this purpose in Europe, Benjamin Franklin. The government of Louis XVI and the Spanish court willing to take advantage of falling away from the American colonies of England, to bring England to settle old scores and bring back some lost possessions in America. Entry into the war of France and Spain dramatically worsened the situation in England at sea. 782 the British government decided to stop fighting and start peace talks. United States joined with Britain in a preliminary conspiracy to restrict colonial ambitions of its allies – France and Spain. These states would again extend their possessions in America, not in the interests of neither the U. S. nor Britain. September 3, 1783 in Versailles, signed peace treaties. United States recognized the independent state. Each of the 13 states had its own trade laws and regulations. There was no single monetary system and paid a lot of different currency.The bourgeoisie tried to overcome these obstacles to the development of the national market. In May 1787, in Philadelphia, opened the Constitutional Convention convened to revise the â€Å"Articles of Confederation† in 1781 and develop a new Constitution. The social composition of the members of the Convention clearly testified, whose interests are served his activities. Of the 55 members turned 20 planters, 23 – bankers, merchants and manufacturers, 10 lawyers. Two seats occupied by a physician and teacher, but there was no farmer, artisan or a worker.Meetings of the Convention took place in strict secrecy, disclosure of the debate is strictly forbidden. In September, the Convent finished his work. The Constitution created a Federal 1787 or the federal government, although the states retain broad autonomy and their individual constitutions. Legislative power is transmitted to the Congress, consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate. The executive power constitution passed on to the president, elected by the two degree of choice, and gives him enormous powers. The President appoints ministers (secretaries) who are responsible only to him, and is the chief of the rmed forces. If the law does not receive the approval of two thirds of all members of Congr ess, the President may impose on him veto. The Constitution establishes the Supreme Court of irremovable and for life appointed judges. The Supreme Court can overturn laws if found unconstitutional, and is one of the most reactionary institutions in the U. S. , which provide solutions aimed against the interests of workpeople In comparison with the feudal monarchy bourgeois constitution in 1787 was progressive, but it was Not democratic. In the States rose a broad movement for the democratization of the constitution.With great difficulty the planters and the bourgeoisie have to ratify the Constitution by a majority of states with the condition of amending it, but in some states, the fight against its ratification lasted until 1790s. In 1789 he was elected to Congress. Became the first U. S. president George Washington. Congress was forced in 1791 to include in the constitution of 10 amendments, proclaimed freedom of speech, press, right of assembly and petition, the inviolability of their persons, houses, the introduction of trial by jury in criminal cases to the civilian population.Despite the reservations and omissions made in 1791, 10 amendments to the Constitution were very progressive and marked an important achievement of the American people. In U. S. history the amendments entered under the name â€Å"Bill of Rights. â€Å"†The Bill of Rights† did not change the essence of bourgeois slavery and the Constitution, but he made it difficult to arbitrary repression against the people and facilitate the struggle of workers for their rights.

Ageing problem in China

The second half of the 20 century, human beings has experienced the most rapid population ageing population process, especially in developed countries. Meanwhile, China followed the step to get in an ageing society with weak economic strength and an Imperfect system which have significant Impact In economy and society. In addition, the current old-age security, health care Institutions and traditional management system have not kept pace with the development of old age boom, so that China's government should take a series of measures to encourage people to prepare for old age.The United Nations believe that if the old people in a country over the age of 60 are more than 10 percent or over arrears old of population for more than percent of the total number, then it is already belongs to an ageing population country. This problem is generated by population age structure, while the change depends on three factors: births, deaths and migration. The most Important element determining the ageing population Is the decline of fertility rate. [l] So far, In our country there are 144 million of classified old people, making 1 1 percent population in total, and Increasing at percent average annual rate.It Is predicted that by 2020 China's elderly population will reach million, accounting for 17. Percent in total, and after 2050, the data will jump to percent, getting into severe ageing stage. The ageing levels rise from Percent to percent in Just less than arrears, while Britain, France, the united States and other western industrialized countries of will take roughly arrears. [2] As a developing country with a large population, this rate is indeed staggering. Impact Ageing population Is the product related to national economy, politics, culture and any other fields.It concerns the people's livelihood and national sustainable development strategies of major social Issue. In this paper I will discuss two mall Impacts related In economy and the whole society. With the growt h In the number of people living longer, it brings financial difficulties, especially in China, the number of old people is large and the number increases dramatically which means the government needs to increase the financial expenditure in retirement pay, pensions, health care, health insurance and elderly welfare.Moreover, there is not a perfect social security system in our country. The labor market is also affect by an ageing population. To be specific, it causes a decline in the proportion of working-age population and the ageing labor force, leading to a reduction in supply of workforce and labor productivity. In this case, China will find it hard to change the situation In cheap labors focus and get some competitive edge in the International market. The consumption structure and Industrial structure might be changed.We cannot Ignore the fact that old people are a kind of special consumer group In living goods, housing, tourism and medical care. With the number of old people going up, those consumer rodents gain their position in the market which is the reason to make the medical industry in a large extent. The elderly are the major consumer of health care group and main beneficiaries in medical insurance system. On the one hand, old people belong to the group of easily attacked by diseases because body tissues and organs are heading into a higher speed aging process, and the resistance is too weak to resist the attack of disease.The relevant research indicates that percent of critical illness shared by the people who are over arrears old is 5. 6 times more than the total in the whole country. On the other hand, there are varieties of demands in health service and the medical expenditure is become more and more expensive, so that numerous families can not afford it. The burden of family will be heavier than before. A family with old people is required long-term care services, rehabilitation care and spiritual consolation and so on.Nowadays in China, the structure of family affected by One Child Policy, one person required to support the four elderly and one child. How stressful they are. Strategies Facing the severe situation of an ageing population, it is a challenge for the Chinese overspent. In order to promote sustainable development and harmonious society, the three below strategies can be done by government to encourage people to have a happy life in their old age. To improve the old-age medical security system and continue to be improved.It can offer a effective and a whole set of services from hospital to daily health care, as well as medical insurance, pension insurance and elderly welfare for the old people. In addition, it stimulates the economic boom of relevant industry, such as home-care agencies. Paying greater attention to the elderly community service system and strengthening community- based social welfare and the basic community service function. The overwhelming majority of old people are empty nesters, which m ean they like the birds living in the empty nest and no one take care of them.Considering this situation, government should invest more on building elderly community service system, like increase the sport equipment, medical services, elderly community activities and projects. To make people more aware of elderly health care by promoting or advertising. In this way people will gradually notice and improve the ability to remain independence. It can also help the elderly to be self-reliance, self-care and self-help capabilities which will benefit for their physical and mental health.On the other words, it can cultivate a healthy aging environment to reduce aging, so that many organs and functions could be extended as much as possible. In conclusion, much needs to be done to deal with the ageing population, and it not only depends on a robust system of government but also the effort of the public. As the saying goes, Rome was not built in a day. We need to develop step by step and lear n from experiences other countries to help us to promote strategy of sustainable development.

Chinese Cinerella Essay Essays - Chinese Cinderella, Adeline Yen Mah

Chinese Cinerella Essay Essays - Chinese Cinderella, Adeline Yen Mah Adeline is much stronger and wiser person at the end of this book. To what extent do you agree? Introduction: Adeline Yen Mah is a young girl in the autobiography Chinese Cinderella where she tells her life story and her struggles she goes through. In the novel she explains how she got through hard situations and how she managed to become a stronger and wiser person. It all started when she was blamed for the death of her mother resulting in total rejection by her siblings, father and stepmother. At the end of the novel, she shows that she had become a stronger and wiser person through the cold experiences and that through the help of her school friends and her family she was able to apply for University. Body Paragraph 1: When finding out that she was going to university she knew she had grown into a stronger and wiser person. For Adeline going to University only showed her how much wiser she had gotten. Her father was shown this when she won the playwriting competition. He offered her a trip to medical school in England. She was wiser, and being wiser gave her positivity for a positive future. She didnt know that she had become wiser until she had written the winning story. It had only showed her that she had grown in knowledge and strength and from all the years of listening. After winning the competition it showed Adelines father that not only had she gotten stronger but had gotten wiser as a woman. His years of discipline payed off and from all the wisdom he was showed from her he wanted her to be a doctor which acquired a lot of attention and knowledge which Adeline had. So going to University from being offered showed her that she had only become wiser over the years of her str uggling. She had gained knowledge and wisdom and had become a wise woman. Body Paragraph 2: After PLTs death Adeline had definitely become a stronger person. She had built up her self-esteem as a young girl after PLTs incident. She had only become stronger to make PLT proud. This made her determined and confident. When PLT had died, Adeline had built up her confidence because she had made a promise to her duckling. She knew that the only way she could fulfil it she would have to be strong and move on. Third brother also noticed that she was trying to become stronger because of the way she acted towards his death. He knew she would make it because she had a hope. Her promise to PLT was that whatever happens, we must never let them win. (pg.98) This promise meant that she would fight back no matter what happened. Third Brother noticed she had become stronger because he decided to go to the funeral with her and started then on supporting her. Therefore, PLTs death gave her a self-esteem boost and a strength boost. She had ended up building these qualities so that she could fulfil the promise that she could never break. Body Paragraph 3: When Adeline won the playwriting competition, she knew that she had gotten wiser because of the academic excellence. The confidence boost from her friends and loving close ones they had lifted her back up and given her confidence in knowing she had gotten wiser. Her wisdom showed when she won the playwriting competition. When her father had appreciated her for her excellence she had confidence in knowing she had gotten wiser. Her father showed her that in offering for her to go to England to study for a doctors certificate. Her knowledge from keeping to herself and listening had ended up wither her being ready for the future. Her confidence boosted when her father had offered for her to go to England Going there only told her that she had gotten wiser. Her father had shown that to her. Therefore, when she won the playwriting competition, her confidence advanced forward and only confirmed to her that she had gotten stronger and wiser. Conclusion: Throughout her difficult life, Adeline learnt to face different situation that changed her life for the better. In the novel, she shows through

Naram-Sin - The King of the Akkad Dynasty

Naram-Sin - The King of the Akkad Dynasty Naram-Sin (2254-18) was the grandson of Sargon, founder of the Akkad Dynasty [see 1st Empire] that was headquartered in Akkad, a city somewhere in northern Babylonia. While Sargon called himself King of Kish, military leader Naram-Sin was King of the four corners (of the universe) and a living god. This status was an innovation that is recorded in an inscription that says the deification was at the request of the citizens, possibly because of a series of military victories. A victory stele now at the Louvre shows a larger than normal, divinely horned-helmeted Naram-Sin. Naram-Sin expanded the territory of Akkad, improved administration by standardizing accounting, and increased the religious prominence of Akkad by installing several daughters as high priestesses of the important cults in Babylonian cities. His campaigns seem to have been waged mostly in western Iran and northern Syria, where a monument was built at modern Tell Brak made of bricks stamped with Naram-Sins name. Naram-Sins daughter Taram-Agade appears to have been married to a Syrian king for diplomatic reasons. Source: A History of the Near East ca. 3000-323 B.C., by Marc Van De Mieroop. Go to other Ancient / Classical History Glossary pages beginning with the letter a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h | i | j | k | l | m | n | o | p | q | r | s | t | u | v | wxyz Also Known As: Naram-Suen Alternate Spellings: NarÄ m-Sà ®n, Naram-Sin

The Basics of String Theory

The Basics of String Theory String theory is a mathematical theory that tries to explain certain phenomena which is not currently explainable under the standard model of quantum physics. The Basics of String Theory At its core, string theory uses a model of one-dimensional strings in place of the particles of quantum physics. These strings, the size of the Planck length (10-35 m), vibrate at specific resonant frequencies. Some recent versions of string theory have predicted that the strings could have a longer length, up to nearly a millimeter in size, which would mean theyre in the realm that experiments could detect them. The formulas that result from string theory predict more than four dimensions (10 or 11 in the most common variants, though one version requires 26 dimensions), but the extra dimensions are curled up within the Planck length. In addition to the strings, string theory contains another type of fundamental object called a brane, which can have many more dimensions. In some braneworld scenarios, our universe is actually stuck inside of a 3-dimensional brane (called a 3-brane). String theory was initially developed in the 1970s in an attempt to explain some inconsistencies with the energy behavior of hadrons and other fundamental particles of physics. As with much of quantum physics, the mathematics that apply to string theory cannot be uniquely solved. Physicists must apply perturbation theory to obtain a series of approximated solutions. Such solutions, of course, include assumptions which may or may not be true. The driving hope behind this work is that it will result in a theory of everything, including a solution to the problem of quantum gravity, and to reconcile quantum physics with general relativity, thus reconciling the fundamental forces of physics. Variants of String Theory The original string theory focused only on boson particles. Superstring theory (short for supersymmetric string theory) incorporates bosons with another particle, fermions, as well as supersymmetry to model gravity. There are five independent superstring theories: Type 1Type IIAType IIBType HOType HE M-Theory: A superstring theory, proposed in 1995, which attempts to consolidate the Type I, Type IIA, Type IIB, Type HO, and Type HE models as variants of the same fundamental physical model. One consequence of the research in string theory is the realization that there is an immense number of possible theories that could be constructed, leading some to question whether this approach will ever actually develop the theory of everything that many researchers originally hoped. Instead, many researchers have adopted a view that they are describing a vast string theory landscape of possible theoretical structures, many of which do not actually describe our universe. Research in String Theory At present, string theory has not successfully made any prediction which is not also explained through an alternative theory. It is neither specifically proven nor falsified, though it has mathematical features which give it great appeal to many physicists. A number of proposed experiments might have the possibility of displaying string effects. The energy required for many such experiments is not currently obtainable, although some are in the realm of possibility in the near future, such as possible observations from black holes. Only time will tell if string theory will be able to take a dominant place in science, beyond inspiring the hearts and minds of many physicists.

Cultural Assessment slp3- 414 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Cultural Assessment slp3- 414 - Essay Example The most affected group in the South African society is those between 15 and 49 years of age according to (Avert, 2011). Avert further states that the prevalence of the disease in the country varies according to provinces, KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumulanga leading with 15.8 percent and 15.4 percent prevalence respectively. Behaviour Contributing to the high Prevalence of HIV?AIDS in South Africa The high prevalence and incidences of HIV/AIDS in South Africa is mainly associated with irresponsible sexual behaviour and the denial of its actual existence. Statistics show that a minor portion of the population of South Africa start having Sex beyond the age of 15, a time when most people are not yet married. At this age, it is highly unlikely that the youths use contraceptives. Yet another major cause of the health problem is sexual violence, rape being a major factor in this category. The engagement in sex with multiple partners whether or not in a polygamous setting has also featured promin ently as another cause of the disease. The scourge is also noted to be more prevalent among heavy drinkers and drug abusers. Many South Africans are reluctant to go for testing which means that they do not know their HIV status. Because of this, the spread of AIDS has not been curbed effectively as such people spread the disease without knowing.

Building Sector and Energy Consumption Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Building Sector and Energy Consumption - Essay Example From this essay it is clear tha the ‘average’ building implements materials with relatively low embodied energy and a limited amount of HVAC equipment. The energy ‘efficient’ building achieves an 80% reduction in heating energy demand and 40% reduction in cooling energy demand. The LCA shows how, even with a very significant reduction in operating energy consumption, the energy ‘efficient’ building may consume more energy than the ‘average’ one in relatively short life times if no care is taken about its embodied energy.This paper stresses that the effect of transportation energy requirement becomes also evident in this case, being the highest energy contribution for the ‘average’ building, and the second one, after the embodied energy, for the energy ‘efficient’ building. From a building energy point of view, these distributed urbanization schemes offer more chances for energy efficiency measures and appli cation of renewable energy technologies than centralized urbanization schemes. It is just through transportation energy requirements that sustainable building considerations interact with the higher structure sustainable urbanization approach.  Building energy assessment, extended to its design, construction, and useful life, allows for a proper quantification of the building's energy implications, and hence provides the basis for appropriate planning in the sector.  Energy regulation has a perceptive character, and its objective should be to establish and limit the upper bound for the buildings energy consumption.... ows how, even with a long analysis period (100 years), the energy 'efficient' building may consume more energy than the 'average' one if care is not taken about its EE. Evolution of accumulated energy consumption for two 150 m2 dwellings, an average one and another with pretensions of energy efficiency on basis of its reduced operating energy demand. (Laustsen, 2003) The results presented in Fig. 1 assumed a rather low increase in operational energy efficiency, but even with higher energy efficiency improvements we may find similar results with lower life cycle periods. The 'average' building implements materials with relatively low embodied energy and a limited amount of HVAC equipment. The energy 'efficient' building achieves an 80% reduction in heating energy demand and 40% reduction in cooling energy demand. The LCA shows how, even with a very significant reduction in operating energy consumption, the energy 'efficient' building may consume more energy than the 'average' one in relatively short life times if no care is taken about its embodied energy. Life cycle analysis for two 150 m2 dwellings, an average one and another with pretensions of energy efficiency on basis of its reduced operating energy demand, for a life time of 30 years. (Addis, 2002) The effect of transportation energy requirement becomes also evident in this case, being the highest energy contribution for the 'average' building, and the second one, after the embodied energy, for the energy 'efficient' building. From a building energy point of view, these distributed urbanization schemes offer more chances for energy efficiency measures and application of renewable energy technologies than centralized urbanization schemes. It is just through transportation energy requirements that sustainable

Manage Employee Relations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Manage Employee Relations - Essay Example Employee relationship management plays a vital role in the management of issues that could impact the satisfaction of the employees, which might have a subsequent effect on the productivity of the employees and the overall organizational culture. Hence, the goal of effective employee relationship management is to enable two-way communication between the employees and the employers which ultimately plays a pivotal role in mitigating cases of conflicts among the employees. An efficient employee relationship management program encompasses all the issues and problems that may exist between the employer and the employees (Gennard, & Judge, 76). As such, the report seeks to review and discuss three aspects of employee relationship management namely employee communication strategy, employee attraction and recruitment as well as employee induction, training and development. The report also looks at how each of the above-mentioned aspects impacts on the culture, legal compliance and obligation to employees, and the management of risk, conflict, and diversity of Jim’s Cleaning Company. The costs to a business organization due to inefficient employee communication are very high. This is because inefficient communication between the management of the organization and the employees could lead to communication gap which might result in low employee morale and competence of the business. Basically, communication serves four major functions in the organization which include the following: control, motivation, emotional expression and information (Robbins, 328). Therefore, effective employee communication has a strong positive association with employee understanding, since apt, pertinent and precise communication assists in the process of comprehension of corporate strategies as well as goals by the employees (Gennard, & Judge, 2000).  Ã‚  

Regina Carter Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Regina Carter - Assignment Example With her album, Regina Carter pays tribute to her grandfather who worked as a coalminer in Alabama and whom he never saw (â€Å"Violin Virtuoso Regina Carter†). The entire album is the mix of folk jazz, contemporary jazz, gospel, country music, spirituals, blues and R&B. Personally for me, the most striking and interesting pieces appeared to be I’m Goin’ Home, See See Rider, and Trampin’; they impressed me greatly. The melody of I’m Goin’ Home reminded of a traditional spiritual. The piece started with the guitar party which was then picked up by accordion. The piece reminded of a spiritual because of its emotional coloring and the way the instruments, guitar, accordion, and violin, reflected longing and even homage. The piece was performed moderato, and such a choice of tempo created the feeling of spaciousness. In the piece titled See See Rider Regina Carter used elements of country music. In fact, it was the melody that reminded of some rural song. The main thing that defined the piece as jazz was the rhythm. More specifically, the piece was characterized by syncopation and swung notes. However, the most notable was the second part of See See Rider because of the soloist’s masterful improvisation. Trampin’ was the piece that impressed me most of all. It was so because of its funky and greasy character. It is possible to say that there were two lines in the piece. The first line was comprised of the parties of drums, guitar and recorded vocal party, and the second was the actual party of the soloist. The piece was also energetic because of the great number of syncopations and swung notes characteristic of blues. Overall, the jazz concert was the best I had ever attended. First of all, music itself was so sophisticated and full of emotional honesty. Secondly, performance was amazing as well. Not only the soloist, Regina Carter

Process Analysis In Software Engineering Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Process Analysis In Software Engineering - Essay Example There are various goals of process analysis. One of the goals of process analysis is to understand the processes that are run in these processes. It is good to understand the processes that are run in a system. This will give a clear working relationship and will enable one to update the system with ease. Another goal of process analysis is to be able to understand the relationships that exist between processes and their associated activities. This will enable the system analyst to understand the process that is being analyzed to the various processes that are integrated in the software that is being developed. The last goal of a process analysis is that of relating the specific process that is found in a system with a process that is found in another part of the organization. This will help to analyze the processes and know which one is optimized and perform a better than the other one. This will help in undertaking an analysis of the performance of the processes in the various depa rtments and parts of an organization (Patten, G. Larry, 2007). When one undertakes a process analysis, what they are doing is that they want to know about the process and undertake the necessary corrections that will improve on the inefficiencies that have been found in the program (Kerzner, 2003). It is important to know how the program works in the system. In the agile method of undertaking process analysis which is: Exploration phase This is the phase where the different requirements of the user will be translated to different tasks that are to be performed by the user. These tasks are then noted done on task cards. Commitment phase This is the stage where the tasks that have been identified are given to different programmers. The programmers are also given the approximate time when the tasks will be required to end. Steering phase This is the stage where tasks are undertaken and then the user story and the products are compared to see if there is an outcome. There are tools that are used in the undertaking. One of the procedures that are used is that of process mapping. With this, it is possible to analyze a process and know what is required and how information flows between them. Process mapping tools include Flowcharts. These are used to analysis the flow of information in the system. This is an important tool that is commonly used to analyze a process. It brings out the issues that are associated with the various processes. References Kerzner, H., 2003. Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling. 8th ed. New York: Wiley. Patten, G. Larry. 2007. Strategic Organization Development. AuthorHouse. Question 2 There are various processes metrics that are mentioned in the text. The three metrics that are mentioned include the time that a process takes to be completed. This is an important issue that should be taken into consideration. Another process metric that will be considered is that of the resources that should be used in undertaking a particular process. The last metric is that of the number of occurrences that have been experienced in a particular process(Sprankle, & Hubbard, l 2008). The time that is taken for a given process to undertake a given task is very important. The time that a process takes can be evaluated based on the time that a particular process has been assigned to operate. This process measurement metric can be used to gauge whether a process has improved the efficiency of a particular process. In a normal system development, there are various paints that are considered when developing the processes. These points could include collecting system requirements, the development

Interview Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Interview Questions - Essay Example The interview questions will be divided into five groups targeting different data set and they will include: 4. Do you think that religious scholars and liberal oriented society members can get together for a common cause? What do you think would be the common ground that could bring these two different oriented societies together? How will this collaboration be helpful in the development of the society and what would be the possible outcome? Will this outcome be beneficial? 12. Do you think your organization is among the organizations that could serve as a mediation point between society and government? If so, in what manner and on what issues can it mediate and the instances that it has already mediated. 10. Do you think that the leap in technology and media are helping the Saudi women in sharing her interests and thoughts to other women in society? What other ways do you think exist that may allow Saudi women to be more actively effective in

Process Analysis In Software Engineering Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Process Analysis In Software Engineering - Essay Example There are various goals of process analysis. One of the goals of process analysis is to understand the processes that are run in these processes. It is good to understand the processes that are run in a system. This will give a clear working relationship and will enable one to update the system with ease. Another goal of process analysis is to be able to understand the relationships that exist between processes and their associated activities. This will enable the system analyst to understand the process that is being analyzed to the various processes that are integrated in the software that is being developed. The last goal of a process analysis is that of relating the specific process that is found in a system with a process that is found in another part of the organization. This will help to analyze the processes and know which one is optimized and perform a better than the other one. This will help in undertaking an analysis of the performance of the processes in the various depa rtments and parts of an organization (Patten, G. Larry, 2007). When one undertakes a process analysis, what they are doing is that they want to know about the process and undertake the necessary corrections that will improve on the inefficiencies that have been found in the program (Kerzner, 2003). It is important to know how the program works in the system. In the agile method of undertaking process analysis which is: Exploration phase This is the phase where the different requirements of the user will be translated to different tasks that are to be performed by the user. These tasks are then noted done on task cards. Commitment phase This is the stage where the tasks that have been identified are given to different programmers. The programmers are also given the approximate time when the tasks will be required to end. Steering phase This is the stage where tasks are undertaken and then the user story and the products are compared to see if there is an outcome. There are tools that are used in the undertaking. One of the procedures that are used is that of process mapping. With this, it is possible to analyze a process and know what is required and how information flows between them. Process mapping tools include Flowcharts. These are used to analysis the flow of information in the system. This is an important tool that is commonly used to analyze a process. It brings out the issues that are associated with the various processes. References Kerzner, H., 2003. Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling. 8th ed. New York: Wiley. Patten, G. Larry. 2007. Strategic Organization Development. AuthorHouse. Question 2 There are various processes metrics that are mentioned in the text. The three metrics that are mentioned include the time that a process takes to be completed. This is an important issue that should be taken into consideration. Another process metric that will be considered is that of the resources that should be used in undertaking a particular process. The last metric is that of the number of occurrences that have been experienced in a particular process(Sprankle, & Hubbard, l 2008). The time that is taken for a given process to undertake a given task is very important. The time that a process takes can be evaluated based on the time that a particular process has been assigned to operate. This process measurement metric can be used to gauge whether a process has improved the efficiency of a particular process. In a normal system development, there are various paints that are considered when developing the processes. These points could include collecting system requirements, the development

Physical Science Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Physical Science - Essay Example This situation could be reversed and normal operation restored after diagnosing the problem. In this context, the portable room heater needs to have high resistance so as to be effective in emission of heat. As such, a high current would be required for this function. The high current demanded by the heater would cause a high flow of current in the electric connection in the room. The circuit breaker exposed to the high current would cause the metal strip in it to warm up and bend away, breaking the circuit connection in the room, breaking normal electric supply which causes the lights to go off. Similarly, the metal strip in the circuit breaker could be of too low resistance. As such, it fails to contain the flow of current required for normal operation of the room heater. As such, any slight rise in the current above what sustains lighting of the bulbs in the room would exceed its resistance threshold, warming up the metal strip causing it to bend away from the circuit and breaking the electric connection and the lights go

The Global Economic Crisis Essay Example for Free

The Global Economic Crisis Essay The current global financial has spawned a renewed interest among economists and policymakers to identify its causes and to come up with possible solutions. There were a number of financial crises that have taken place in the 20th century, a considerable number of which elicited panic that the whole economy was at the verge of collapse (Karabell). Countries previously affected by economic crises seem to be rebounding, with improvements in credit ratings and returns of foreign capital. Despite the lessons learned from the past crises, it is inevitable for history to repeat itself. Moreover, not even the world’s strongest economy is immune from this terrible fate. The meltdown in the US mortgage industry started the series of unfortunate events that led to the massive economic crisis. The perception that real estate prices would rise encouraged financial institutions to loosen their standards to borrowers (Shiller 29). However, this economic slowdown was not contained in the mortgage industry. Months after the initial signs of such slowdown, bigger financial institutions have been hit of what has become a global financial crisis. It was like dominoes falling one right after another: The demise of Lehman Brothers tipped to the rush sale of Merrill Lynch to Bank of America, followed by the federal takeover of AIG (Duffy). Now that the U. S. government has granted a $7-billion bailout, the U. S. financial market shows promising potentials of recovery. Yet, none can be of infallible certainty as to its sustainability (Sahadi). It is impossible to account at this early point of time the effectiveness of the bailout. What is possible is to recognize what is happening and to take basic steps in the restructuring of the institutional foundations of the financial economy. These include taking short-run remedies to put a halt at least to the continuing detriments of the crisis and to employ long-term changes that would reduce, if not totally eradicate, the risk of another global financial crisis. Works Cited Duffy, Michael. â€Å"After the Financial Crisis, a Cleanup That Changes Everything. † Time Magazine. 22 September 2008. 28 October 2008 http://www. time. com/time/business/article/ 0,8599,1843213,00.html. . Karabell, Zachary. â€Å"In A Few Fateful Days. † Newsweek. 18 October 2008. 28 October 2008 http://www. newsweek. com/id/164593. Sahadi, Jeanne. â€Å"Bailout is law: President Bush signs historic $700 billion plan aimed at stemming credit crisis. † CNNMoney. 4 October 2008. 28 October 2008 http://money. cnn. com/2008/10/03/news/economy/house_friday_bailout/index. htm? postversion=2008100309 Shiller, Robert J. The Subprime Solution: How Todays Global Financial Crisis Happened, and What to Do about It. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 2008.

The One Minute Manager by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson

The One Minute Manager by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson When a leading American Management consultant (Ken Blanchard) and a psychologist (Spencer Johnson) decided to get together to write a book on management the result could be a learner tome which is incomprehensible to many of those for whom its message is intended. Authors avoid the pitfall and have produced a simple complication of what they have learned how people work best with other people. Contrary to this idea that the age and services are the best possible qualification to manage the people, The One Minute Manager explodes the myth that the ability to manage ones own behavior and attitudes is an essential prerequisite to managing other people. The One Minute Manager provides Managers, an insight on how to be more effective in communication within their teams and with external interests. This book ensures that productivity (Quantity + Quality) of each individual as well as that of the organization increases multi folds if we make an organization people oriented rather than resul t oriented. People will feel good in People Oriented Organizations and ensure the involvement in the product / services they provide. Usefulness to intended audience: This book proved very useful in any area where one has to interact with peoples especially for the administration and H.R department of the any organization as it address the key areas where most of the managers and management of an organization lack. Managing people is a fun and this book provides an opportunity by motivating the intended audience in a very short, simple way to manage people in One Minute with specific examples from daily life. Simple and practical ideas may cause profaned difference on ones management skills. After reading this book one surely gets a chance to become an effective manager by adopting and practicing three secrets of The One Minute Manager. Introduction The Best Minute I Spend Is the One I Invest In People About book The One Minute Manager is one of the best selling business books of all time and still make appearance Amazons list of Best -Selling business books. Very busy people as its target audiences it is designed to be read quickly. This is the symbolic book. The One Minute Managers symbol-a one minute readout from the face of a modern digital watch- is intended to remind each of us to take a minute out of our day to look into the faces of the people whom we manage and to realize that they are our most important resources. An easily-read story, demonstrates three very practical management techniques. As the story unfolds, it discovers why these apparently simple methods work so well with so many people. By the end of this one will also know how to apply them to ones own situation. Authors Dr. Kenneth Blanchard Dr. Kenneth Blanchard Chairman of Blanchard Training and Development, Inc. (BTD), is an internationally known author, educator and consultant/trainer. He is the co-author of the highly acclaimed and most widely used text on leadership and organization behavior, Management of Organization Behavior: Utilizing Human Resources, which is in its fourth edition and has been translated into numerous languages. Dr. Blanchard received his B. A. from Cornell University in Government and Philosophy, an M.A. from Colgate University in Sociology and Counseling and a Ph.D. from Cornell in Administration and Management. In addition, he is a member of the National Training Laboratories (NTL).He has extensive leadership experience as business executive and as a military officer. He has been a hands-on leader in a variety of organizations large and small. Most recently he was a human resources executive for a Fortune 100 company. His book Victory Principles, Leadership Lessons from D-Day illustrates seven bedrock leadership principles that all successful leaders use. He presently serves as a professor of Leadership and Organizational Behavior at University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Books by author Management of Organizational Behavior: Utilizing the human resources (with Paul Hersey). Organizational Change through Effective Leadership: (with Robert H. Guest and Paul Hersey). The family game: a situational approach to effective parenting (with Paul Hersey). Putting the One Minute Manager to Work: (with Robert Lorber, Ph.D.) Dr. Spencer Johnson Dr Spencer Johnson is the Chairman of Candle Communications Corporation, and an active author, publisher, lecturer and communications consultant. He has written more than a dozen books dealing with medicine and psychology, and has over three million copies of his books in print. Dr. Johnsons education includes a degree in psychology from the University of Southern California, an M.D. degree from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, and medical clerkships at Harvard Medical School and the Mayo Clinic. Books by author The one minute father The one minute mother The precious present Who moved my cheese Summary of the book Overall story Authors Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson use a parable style story to describe the plight of a young manager who is not having success; however, he hears about a successful manager who is so effective that he has time to spare He wanted to work for one. He wanted to become one. He was beginning to see the full spectrum of how people manage people. But he wasnt always pleased with what he saw. He had spoken with many managers. He saw that some managers are interested in results and some are interested in people. Its like being half a manager, he thought. He might have given up his search long ago, but he had one great advantage. He knew exactly what he was looking for. Effective managers, he thought, manage themselves and the people they work with so that both the organization and the people profit from their presence. Then he began hearing marvelous stories about a special manager who lived, ironically, in a nearby town. The young manager calls him up to find out what he can learn, and the successful One Minute Manager shares with him three secrets to his success. The young man excitedly explores his three secrets and adopts these secrets and himself became famous as One Minute Manager. Key points: In the One Minute Manager, there are three types of managers. Autocratic Manager They are rigid demanding They are decision maker They are only interested in results. They always keep on top of the situation They are hard-nosed, profit minded individuals Their organizations seemed to win while they lose people Democratic Manager They are participative, supportive and nice individuals They want to be more close to their subordinates They give more importance to people than results They are friendly with staff They are trusting nurturing Effective Managers Effective managers, manage themselves and the people they work with so that both the people and the organization profit from their presence. Effective managers believe in that People Who Feel Good about Themselves Produce Good Results. The One Minute Manager doesnt make decisions for others; rather encourage them to take their own decisions. One Minute Manager: One minute manager is an effective manager who value people and take keen interest in the welfare of people or his staff. He doesnt believe in hiring the winners. He believes to train them and make them winners by themselves. He has three secrets of his One Minute Management which he shares with the young man (who came to him). These three secrets are: One Minute Goal setting One Minute Praising One Minute Reprimand The First Secret: ONE MINUTE GOALS Setting The foundation for One Minute Management 80-20 goal-setting rule Behavioral terms (observable, measurable) Versus Complaining (attitudes or feelings) Summary Agree on your goals. Write out each of your goals on a single sheet of paper using less than 250 words 80% of really important results will come from 20% of your goals. So its important to do One Minute Goal Setting on that 20%. Read and re-read each goal, which requires one minute or so each time when ones do it. See what good behavior looks like Take a minute every once in a while out of day to look at your performance, and see whether or not your behavior matches your goal. The Second Secret: One Minute Praising How to handle when people do well Try to catch them doing something right Crystal-clear feedback; Tell precisely what was right Close contact Habit: To catch yourself doing things right People who feel good about themselves produce good results Summary Tell people right from the start that you are going to let them know how they are doing. Praise people immediately. Dont wait for the praise discussion to praise them Tell people what they did right, be specific Tell people how good you feel about what they did right, and how it helps the organization and the other people who work there. Stop for a moment of silence to let them feel how good you feel. Encourage them to do more of the same Shake hands or touch people in a way that makes it clear that you support their success in the organization. The Third Secret: One Minute Reprimands How to handle when people make mistakes Reprimand as soon as something wrong is done Specify exactly what was wrong Dont attack anyone as a person Be consistent Summary: Two parts of one minute reprimand: The first half of the reprimand The second half of the reprimand The first half of the reprimand Reprimand people immediately Tell people what they did wrong be specific. Tell people how you feel about what they did wrong and in no uncertain terms. Stop for a few seconds of uncomfortable silence to let them feel how you feel The second half of the reprimand: Shake hands, or touch them in a way that lets them know your are honest on their side. Remind them how much you value them. Reaffirm that you think well of them but not of their performance in this situation Realize that when the reprimand is over, its over. Overall Game Plan of One Minute Manager: Analysis of Book The One Minute Manager: Its very important to analyze that how the content of this book is affecting the different aspects of intended audience. So in the analysis, focus will be on the good points of the content of the book. After knowing the three secrets of One Minute Manager its important to know how these secrets work and benefited the managers and everyone who manages the peoples. The One Minute Manager doesnt mean that One should do all work in One minute. This is allegory use for quick and clear response to people about their behavior. As a manager you have only three choices. First: You can hire winners, they are hard to find. For winners One Minute Goal Setting is enough for productive behavior. Because they are experts of their fields and they try to achieve according to their abilities. Second: If you cant hire the winners, hire someone who has potential of winners. For the people who have potential to win, One Minute praising is enough, as you praise them they get more motivated and feel good with themselves and next time they try to do it better. By doing one minute praising they become winners. Third: If you cant do above two choices, then you have only one choice, prayer. Why One Minute Goals Work: Every one is a potential winner Some People are disguised as Losers; dont let their Appearance fool you The pinball game Explanation: The One Minute Goal Setting work because of all the people in any organization is willing and motivated to do some thing and they become more motivated after work. Nobody ever work for anybody else. For example, if you are on the playing field and you are striking the ball to the pins. And when you strike, you started screaming and get more motivated to strike again. This is the same as we do the One Minute Goal Setting. When you know, what are you going to do and how then you are more confident about your task. And you are motivated to do it again until you become expert in striking the pins. You can analyze yourself by reviewing your goals. When you assume that people know whats expected from them, you are creating confusion and over-rating them. This happened all the time in our daily life, in our relations and doing our daily work routines. So One Minute Goal Setting is very important step in becoming the One Minute Manager. And when you feel that your performance is not up-to- the mark, go back to your goals and again spend One Minute to set your goal again. Why One Minute Praising Work: Feedback is the Breakfast of Champions People will go so far for money, however will go the Extra mile for praise and recognition Sea aquarium shows a huge whale jumping over a rope which is high above the water. Explanation: When the trainers captured the whale, the whale knew nothing about jumping over ropes. So when they began to train the whale in the large pool, they started the rope from the bottom of the pool. Every time the whale swam over the rope-which was every time he swam past-whale got fed. Soon, trainers raised the rope a little. If the whale swam under the rope, he didnt get fed during training. Whenever he swam over the rope, he got fed. So after a while the whale started swimming over the rope all of the time. Then they started raising the rope a little higher. But the question is why they raise the rope. Because they are clear on the goal: to have the whale jump high out of the water and over the rope. Over a time they keep on raising the rope until they finally get it to the surface of the water. Now the great whale knows that in order to get fed, he has to jump partially out of the water and over the rope. As soon as that goal is reached, they can start raising the rope h igher and higher out of the water. So for whales, to get food is One Minute Praising. And by jumping again and again the whale become expert for high dive. Catch freshers doing things right and slowly raise their bar This example illustrates that the most important thing in training someone to become a winner is to catch them doing something right. Slowly, you keep moving them towards the desired behavior. It can be done with childrens and as well as with new staff. Why One Minute Reprimands Work: We are not just our behaviors We are the persons managing our behaviors Monthly feedback Explanation: The feedback as One Minute Reprimand is very important. That is, you get to the individual as soon as you observe the misbehavior or your data information system tips you off. It is not appropriate to save up negative feelings about someones poor performance. The fact that the feedback is so immediate is an important lesson in why the One Minute Reprimand works so well. Most managers are gunnysack discipliners. That is, they store up observations of poor behavior and then some day when performance review comes or they are angry in general because the sack is so full, they charge in and dump everything on the table. They tell people all the things they have done wrong for the last few weeks or months or more. went on, and then the manager and subordinate usually end up yelling at each other about the facts or simply keeping quiet and resenting each other. The person receiving the feedback doesnt really hear what he or she has done wrong. After genuine reprimand a centric praise is needed So, One Minute Reprimand is very important because they are chances of improvement in their performances or people. The purpose of One Minute reprimand is to ensure the people that you want to eliminate the wrong behavior and keep the person. When the peoples know their value in an organization, they give their best to that organization and dont repeat the same behavior again. Reaffirm that you think well of them but not of their performance in this situation. Your intent is to get them back on course, not to try to make them feel badly. Behaviors are not important what is really important is the person managing their own behavior. To becoming One Minute Manager you have to be Tough and Nice manager rather than Nice and Tough manager Discussion: Now-days it is wrong with the most organizations that their people do not produce-either quality or quantity. And the main reason of this poor performance is simply because the peoples are not managed properly. The feeling of importance, psychologically satisfy peoples and motivates them to give the best. This One Minute Manager is very much similar to the theory of behaviorism (psychology), in which main focus on the change in the behaviors by setting task, praising the good and punishing/pointing the wrong behaviors. The One Minute Manager may help you to go beyond for better results, you will have to learn and use other beneficial habits as well. These are simple and easy-to-use basic management skills; however, many managers dont use them. Like any other skill, it takes practice in the beginning. Once you use these skills, then they will become second nature. If you are not using the One Minute Managers secrets, try them out and see how you can make them work for yourself and your team. If you do them well, you too can become an effective One Minute Manager. The One Minute Manager is a remarkably simple system to learn and apply and will help you improve employee performance. The One Minute Manager is a happy manager because of following reasons: Peace of Mind Reduce Stress Levels Increase Productivity Criticism of the Book One Minute Manager and Change: The rapidity of change that is taking place in the social, political and economics environment is creating a marked impact on organizations as well as individual. K.Harigopal One Minute Manager may be proved very effective at the time of change. No organization is stable today. Globalization makes the Business and organizations doubtful and undeceive. And the most effected part of any organizations due to change is the HR department. If there is any type of change weather it is a behavioral change, no matter its internal and external, rather to hire the people from outside to cope with change, managers should have vision of One Minute Manager. People are afraid and conscious about change. They dont tolerate any type of changes in their circumstances, so as a One Minute Manager you can manage your staff very simply by setting their goals and addressing their behavior. You can train staff and develop vision of change in them. Being a One Minute Manager you dont need to tell your staff to set one minute goal which is a very important target in any type of change in the organization. Similarly The One Minute Praising and The One Minute reprimand alerts people and motivate them to adopt and face the change. This book lacks one important point which is about managers him/her self. It is not possible that every time manager is right, his vision is broad and he understands each and every thing. He can make mistakes. So as managers, having powers you have to take right decisions at right times. This book deals with very simple approach to the complex art of managing people. There is much more to management than the one minute manager, depending on the culture and decorum of the organization.ÂÂ   You cant learn to manage people by reading a book but you can get an idea how to manage This book is full of implications for managers. But the focus has been on one minute. When every process is reduced to one minute, it leads to over simplification of the process which a manager has to undertake. It has ignored the dual role that a manager performs in structured organization where there are both subordinates and seniors. No doubt this is the effective book on One Minute Manager but it doesnt deal with the complexities of the organizations as the organizations and behaviors are more complex as discussed in this book. Key Message of the book Too many organizations leave employees uncertain over what is expected of them and provide little feedback until the annual review. At that time a series of criticisms are laid out with smattering the praise but neither the manager nor employee can remember the details. At other times, managers are quick to blame employees for things going wrong and will criticize in a way that leaves the employee resenting the way he or she has been treated by the manager. The One Minute Manager boils management down to three actions goal setting, praising and reprimands on the basis that clear objectives and quick, accurate feedback are the basis for improved performance. After reading the one minute manager you will not become a autocrat and democrat manager, but you try to become an effective manager. Conclusion An eye opener for many indeed A measurement of a good leader is ability to develop other leaders, not followers. In todays world, many new supervisors are thrust into a baptism by fire management environment. I found this book to be an easy to read and arm newcomers to management with the basic tools for building worker relationships and getting the best out of their staffs. As a result, their efforts are guided into decisions that generate increasingly positive outcomes in uncomfortable situations. Self confidence builds and leadership/management styles improve. This book talks of empowering people and giving them onus of their lives through applications of various principles of human relations and communications. It will make your feel that you are a better manager because you have become proactive rather than reactive. You are setting goals and providing quick feedback on performance whether good or bad. The secrets of one-minute management will help a manager boost profits and productivity immediately through increases employee morale, job satisfaction and manage people in time of change. Unlike most business books, this one is short and easy to read. The academic language has been banished, and it is well written. For any person who is currently a manager and striving to get the most from people, or who is planning to become one in the near future, The One Minute Manager is an indispensable success tool. After knowing the secrets of One Minute Manager; you can also become a One Minute Manager. Goals beings behaviors, consequences maintain behaviors Now you are a new One Minute Manager, You can set One Minute You can give One Minute Praising You can give One Minute Reprimands You can also speak the simple truth You can laugh and you can enjoy your work.

Wrestling and Creatine Monohydrate Essay -- Sports Drugs Weight Loss P

Wrestling Practices and Creatine Monohydrate: A Deadly Combination? Introduction On December 9th, 1997 Michigan University wrestler, Jeff Reese, attempted to cut 12 lbs in one day. His goal was to wrestle at the 150 lb weight class for the Wolverines in the team's match against Michigan State. Reese died trying to reach his goal. Cutting weight is a common practice in the sport of wrestling. In fact, wrestlers have been shedding pounds to qualify for lower weight classes since the NCAA made wrestling a sport in 1928. Prior to any match, disciplined wrestlers will subject themselves to grueling workouts in rubber suits and overheated rooms. The wrestlers try to sweat the weight off, risking severe dehydration all for the sake of winning. Unfortunately, 21-year-old Jeff Reese, and two other wrestlers, died before he reached the wrestling mat. Doctors reported that Reese died from a heart malfunction and kidney failure (Younge, 1998). In a news report by The Minnesota Daily, Dr. David Wang said, "the deaths most likely were a result of the weight-cutting process" (Younge, 1998). Assistant Coach for the Gophers, Marty Morgan, defends the medically unpopular methods for cutting weight saying, "the medical world wants this [the deaths] to be wrestling related, and the way we cut weight, because for years they've wanted to ban this, and outlaw it and change it" (Younge, 1998). Although many plead for research and scientific data on the matter, Dr. Wang believes the medically community will not be the one to furnish the information (Younge, 1998). The human subjects committee would never allow such dangerous practices, such as exercising in a sauna with a rubber suit on, to be implemented for scientific study (Younge,... ...ropean Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology, 76, 566-567. Quick, J. (1997). Deaths force change in wrestling. Oregon Live: Sports: Local and National, [Online]. Available: http://oregonlive.com/sports/spst/9801/spst01162.html. Stout, J., Eckerson, J., Noonan, M. S., Moore, G., & Cullen, D. (1999). Effects of 8 weeks of creatine supplementation on exercise performance and fat-free weight in football players during training. Nutrition Research, 19, 217-225. Volek, J. S., Kraemer, W. J., Bush, J. A., Boetes, M., Incledon, T., Clark K. L., & Lynch J. M. (1997). Creatine supplementation enhances muscular performance during high-intensity resistance exercise. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 97, 765-770. Younge, A. (1998). Weighing in. The Minnesota Daily [Online]. Available: http://www.mndaily.com/daily/1998/02/09/news/.

Spring Break Essay

Dylan Farmer 1/24/2012 English 101 Spring break is mainly a time of partying for most teenagers that go to my high school, but I was off to California with my girlfriend’s family to pretty much explore a whole other side of the U. S. California is the place that every person and the world wants to go for their spring break. I was very happy that my girlfriend’s mom is a travel agent, so we got a pretty good deal for the prices of our flight and on the hotel prices. Just for extra fun we drove to Chicago and stayed there for two nights. We explored downtown Chicago, all the amazing buildings.We even got to go into the old Sears Tower, which was something that I think everyone needs to see. It's probably one of the best sights I've ever seen, other than the fact I've only seen a good view going down Quincy hill near my hometown. I forgot to mention that when we left for our flight to California that was going to be my first time ever flying on an airplane. It was very exc iting to fly, especially since it was going to be a long three hour flight. I felt like a little kid again when the flight attendant gave me my wings for flying for my first time.Not all people in the world get to experience flying, so I thought I was pretty lucky to get to enjoy this experience. We arrived in Los Angeles, California. The hotel we stayed in was one of the best hotels I've ever been in. This hotel was so big and fancy, and the weight room that was there was bigger than the fitness center back home. This hotel also had two pools. The outdoor pool looked really beautiful, because it had a giant water fall leading into the pool, but it was closed down while we were was staying there, so I just used the normal everyday hotel pool, which was indoors.It was very incredible to see something like this on how beautiful a single hotel could be, and look. Exploring the streets of California was really fun. I adventured through the fashion district, which has a lot of cheap item s. There was some kid trying to sell me copyrighted DVDs, which I actually bought, but out of the three I bought, but only one of the movies worked. One of the obvious reasons of why I went to California was that I got to see all the amazing sites that all normal tourists go and see.We all walked around the Sanna Monica Pier, Manhattan Pier, and also to the great Venice beach. It was very pretty place to see all the people walking around and all the little gift shops on the beach. However, out of the three piers I went to, the Manhattan Pier was one of my favorites, because I got to see my first dolphin, which was pretty awesome, and I never thought I’d actually have the chance to see one with the little time that I was there. Later in that week our last trip was to Hollywood Boulevard, which was a crazy place to meet some weird people.There was a lot of people singing, dancing, selling stuff, or any other random ways to make a dollar. Hollywood Boulevard was still a very int eresting place, seeing all the stars on the ground with some hand print in it or their writing. One pretty interesting thing that I noticed is that Muhammad Ali’s star was the only one that was hanging up, because all the other stars where just on the ground, but I guess he was the fighter of America. When it was about time to leave California, I was feeling something different than usual, like I didn't want to go back home just right yet.I just wanted to stay there and enjoy the sun. I knew that my spring break had to end at some point, though It was just amazing how different the society was here than Michigan. I think I liked it better here, but that is probably because I’m not living here 24/7 like I am in Michigan. I thought to myself how I would rather go on vacations than partying for my spring break. Spring break is where one can actually learn about a different state and see new sightings for the first time. It was a great experience to go on this trip to Cali fornia.

Macbeth’s character Essay

It is a fair assessment of Macbeth’s character to call him nothing but a brutal and ruthless villain? In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Macbeth is a very complex character showing many different traits in his many appearances throughout the play. The story starts after a battle; Macbeth then meets three witches who foresee that he will become King of Scotland. These witches knew all about Macbeth’s fatal flaw, his greed for power. This fatal flaw, as a typical tragic hero was the cause of his downfall. There is no doubt that throughout the play Macbeth is a brutal and ruthless villain, but it is certainly questionable to say that they are his only qualities Before Macbeth is even introduced to the audience, we are already told of his capacity for brutality. The captain describes Macbeth’s actions to the king when he says, â€Å"Like Valour’s minion, carved out his passage / Till he faced the slave.† The captain goes on to say, â€Å"Which ne’er shook hands, nor bade farewell to him, / Till he unseamed him from nave to chaps.† This statement also shows the brutality and barbarity of Macbeth’s character very well as he did not just end this mans life in an honourable and quick way, but instead sliced him all the way from his stomach to his jaw. Macbeth is also obviously very highly regarded among his colleagues and indeed enemies as being both brutal and brave, as the captain again says to Malcolm, â€Å"For brave Macbeth (well he deserves that name)†, showing that others thought of him as a very brave man. There is a lot of irony in this point as at this point in the play, Macbeth is being very highly regarded as being brave and ruthless, whereas later on these same qualities will lose him all his respect. As the play unfolds Macbeth finds it increasingly easy to kill innocent people, which shows clearly the ruthlessness and the brutality of his character. The first person that Macbeth kills in the play is King Duncan. Shakespeare’s audience would have taken this particular crime of regicide very seriously as they believed in divine right, that the king was chosen from God and anyone who took that power away was defying God and it was the ultimate wrong. King James would have been very pleased at this element of the play, as it showed that any person who committed regicide suffered greatly as a consequence of it. Also the fact that Macbeth murdered a King while he was sleeping and was utterly defenceless would have been seen as being very dishonourable. The most innocent of all of Macbeth’s victims of his barbarity is Lady Macduff and her son. Macbeth’s other victims are all directly blocking his path to supreme power and so one could argue that they were necessary, but Lady Macduff and her family are just a precaution that Macbeth took to try and get to Macduff. . In the scene where Lady Macduff and her son are killed, the innocence of the child is emphasised in his language and the questions that he asks his mother. When his mother questions how he will live after his father’s death he replies, â€Å"As birds do, mother†, clearly showing his naivety and vulnerability. This further enhances the barbarity, as Macbeth’s victims were so unaware of Macduff’s business and also Macbeth was not even honourable enough to do the deed himself. Although Macbeth is unaware of his fatal flaw, he still acknowledges that he is becoming more and more ruthless as the story progresses. He uses a metaphor of a river of blood to clearly show how he feels inside. Macbeth says: â€Å"I am in blood Stepped in so far, that, should I wade no more, Returning were as tedious as go o’er.† By using this metaphor, Macbeth is saying that he has killed so many people now that it would be easier to carry on being ruthless and barbaric then to go back and repent. Macbeth is here admitting that he has done wrong and thinks of himself as a lost cause that has no hope of doing good ever again. Macbeth also says, â€Å"We are yet but young in deed†, suggesting that Macbeth sees the deeds he has committed so far as small in comparison to the deeds that he will commit in the future. Finally in Act Five Macbeth says that he has ‘forgotten the taste of fear, showing that because of the witches telling him that no man born of a woman can harm him, he does not fear anything anymore. The character that was the driving force behind all his wrong doings starting from the murder of King Duncan was Macbeth’s wife, Lady Macbeth. Therefore one would imagine that when she died, Macbeth would be devastated, but in reality when she does die Macbeth shows no remorse at all. When Seyton informs Macbeth that his wife is dead, all Macbeth can say is: â€Å"She should have died hereafter: There would have been a time for such a word – Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow†. In this Shakespeare is trying to emphasis just how much Macbeth has changed throughout the book, from going from a loving husband to not even caring about the death of his wife. It is almost as if Macbeth at this point is incapable of human emotions anymore, like he has turned into the beasts that first gave him these apparitions. Macbeth is an extreme tyrannical ruler of Scotland and chooses to rule with fear rather than ruling out of respect. When Malcolm and Macduff are describing Macbeth’s rule, they use personification to emphasise the amount of damage that Macbeth is doing to Scotland. Macduff says, â€Å"Bleed, bleed, poor country, / Great tyranny. Lay thou thy basis sure.† This makes Scotland’s suffering seem human and the use of personification enhances the bad feelings that the reader has for Macbeth and also the feelings that Scotland is a victim is enhanced. Macbeth’s brutality and ruthlessness leads to him being very short of loyal followers as they all disapprove of his tyrannical ruling methods. The few that do remain do so only out of fear of what Macbeth would do if they did not obey him. When Rosse and the messenger warn Lady Macduff that Macbeth’s murderers are on the way to kill them, Rosse says, â€Å"I am so much a fool, should I stay longer† and the messenger says, â€Å"I dare abide no longer†. These two statements clearly show the fear that these men have for their lives in disobeying Macbeth. The fact that even Macbeth’s own men fear him enhances the evil feeling that the reader has for Macbeth. Shakespeare strengthens the image that Macbeth is a ruthless villain by the opinions that others have for him. In Acts 4 and 5, the English leaders refer to Macbeth as a ‘butcher’, a ‘hell-hound’ and an ‘abhorred tyrant.’ This shows the disrespect that the neighbouring countries felt for Macbeth’s reign. Shakespeare also uses pathetic fallacy to emphasise the evilness of Macbeth’s crimes, when the porter says, â€Å"This place is too cold for hell. I’ll devil-porter it / no further,† this is quite an extreme statement showing that Macbeth’s castle is even worse than hell, indicating evil and wrong doing is present in some way. All this imagery is used by Shakespeare to further add to the evil feelings that the reader has for Macbeth’s crimes against the King. It can however be argued that Macbeth has certainly not been a brutal and ruthless villain all throughout the play. Before we even meet Macbeth we are presented with a view of him being a noble man as we are told this by the king when he describes Macbeth as a ‘valiant cousin!’ and a ‘worthy gentleman!’ The captain also says ‘brave Macbeth (well he deserves that name’. These two accounts of Macbeth clearly show both the Captain and the King’s respect for Macbeth. Shakespeare builds up Macbeth like this so that when he does fall, it will be so much greater. Macbeth’s first major crime is the murder of King Duncan. Although this in itself could definitely be seen as brutal and ruthless, Macbeth did show a lot of anxiety about performing the crime before and he did show a great deal of regret after the deed. Macbeth hears knocking after he has murdered Duncan and Macbeth says, â€Å"Wake Duncan with thy knocking: I would thou couldst,† it is apparent from this that Macbeth has certainly got a conscience, as he wished that he could reverse his actions. Shakespeare also uses a metaphor of blood on Macbeth’s hands to emphasise his guilt when Macbeth says: â€Å"Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood Clean from my hand† Macbeth is experiencing the feeling that no matter what he does, he can never wash off the stain of his guilt. Macbeth is not the only one to blame for his crimes and had it not been for Lady Macbeth it could certainly be argued that Macbeth would not have acted on any of his ideas of murder. Lady Macbeth says that Macbeth is ‘too full o’ the milk of human kindness’, using the word ‘too’ to make it sound like it was a weakness on Macbeth’s part, showing that she feels Macbeth is too pleasant to be committing these types of crimes. Also Lady Macbeth uses all her powers of persuasion to get Macbeth to do what he wants. She questions his manhood, she uses flattery when she says, â€Å"And, to be more than you what you were, you would / Be so much more the man,† and she also uses emotional blackmail to twist Macbeth’s mind. With this constant source of irritation always near him, it is no wonder that he gave in in the end. It is not surprising that Macbeth eventually gave in to his wife as she is such a powerful and dominating character in the book Shakespeare re-enforces the idea of Lady Macbeth being powerful and evil when Lady Macbeth says: â€Å"Come, you spirits That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here† This statement makes Lady Macbeth sound like the witches and therefore enhances her evilness and domination of Macbeth. Macbeth would not be considered ruthless and brutal had it not been for the forces of evil in the three witches. Macbeth was merely a puppet in their plan. They knew his weakness for power and used it against him. They told him exactly what he wanted to hear and that consequently led to the death of the king. Macbeth would have remained faithful to king and country, if the witches had not filled his head with thoughts that he could not escape. Therefore Macbeth was not the evil and villainous one, he was merely a victim of the witch’s evil. The evil in the witches is emphasised by Shakespeare’s use of pathetic fallacy. At the beginning of the play Shakespeare says in the stage directions ‘[Thunder and lightning]’, using pathetic fallacy to make the witches seem even wicked and their power emphasised as it almost seems that they have control over the weather. As there is so many factors that show that Macbeth is not just merely a brutal and ruthless villain, it would be wrong to call Macbeth ‘nothing but’ a villain. The very fact that Macbeth is a tragic hero is evidence in itself that Macbeth has the potential for good but is merely destroyed by his fatal flaw, because tragic hero’s have to start with power and respect and gradually lose that throughout the play. This is summed up perfectly in Act 4 Scene 3 when Malcolm says: â€Å"This tyrant, whose sole name blisters our tongues, Was once thought honest: you have loved him well.† Despite all the crimes that Macbeth has committed, Malcolm is still saying that this was not always the case, showing further evidence that Macbeth is more than just a brutal and ruthless villain.

Dementia

Dementia Dementia  has become an all-important  disease  because the population is aging rapidly and the cost of health care associated with  dementia  is ever increasing. In addition to cognitive function impairment, associated behavioral and psychological symptoms of  dementia  (BPSD) worsen patient's quality of life and increase caregiver's burden.Alzheimer's  disease  is the most common type of  dementia  and both behavioral disturbance and cognitive impairment of  Alzheimer's  disease  are thought to be associated with the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) dysfunction as increasing evidence of dysfunctional glutamatergic neurotransmission had been reported in behavioral changes and cognitive decline in  Alzheimer's  disease. We  reviewthe literature regarding  dementia  (especially  Alzheimer's  disease), BPSD and relevant findings on glutamatergic and NMDA neurotransmission, including the effects of memantine, a NMDA receptor antagonist, and NMDA-enhancing agents, such as D-serine and D-cycloserine.Literatures suggest that behavioral disturbance and cognitive impairment of  Alzheimer's  disease  may be associated with excitatory neurotoxic effects which result in impairment of neuronal plasticity and degenerative processes. Memantine shows benefits in improving cognition, function, agitation/aggression and delusion in  Alzheimer's  disease. On the other hand, some NMDA modulators which enhance NMDA function through the co-agonist binding site can also improve cognitive function and psychotic symptoms.We propose that modulating NMDA neurotransmission is effective in treating behavioral and psychological symptoms of  Alzheimer's  disease. Prospective study using NMDA enhancers in patients with  Alzheimer'sdisease  and associated behavioral disturbance is needed to verify this hypothesis. Mental disorders constitute a huge social and economic burden for health care systems worldwide [1], raising the quest ion of effective and lasting treatments. Physical activity (PA) and exercise (EX) continue to gain the attention of practitioners and researchers with regard to prevention and treatment of different psychopathological abnormalities.In the general population, several epidemiological studies have found significant cross-sectional correlations between mental health and PA levels. In an adult US population, regular PA is associated with a significantly decreased prevalence of current major depression, panic disorder, agoraphobia, social phobia, and specific phobia [2]. A study from Norway confirmed this negative cross-sectional association between depression and leisure-time PA of any intensity (not work-related PA), and pointed out that social factors such as social support, rather than biological markers, play an important role [3].Recently, a Dutch study replicated this finding, reporting lower rates of any affective, anxiety, or substance use disorder in subjects who exercised at le ast 1 h/wk, without finding a linear dose-response relationship [4]. Prospectively, the overall incidence of mental disorders and co-morbid mental disorders, as well as the incidence of anxiety, somatoform, and dysthymic disorder, decreases by PA [5]. Furthermore, a four-year prospective study revealed that PA decreases the incidence rates of depressive and anxiety disorders in older adults [6].Finally, ten Have et al. reported in their epidemiological study that patients engaging in regular PA were more likely to recover from their mental illness at a three-year follow-up In psychiatric patients, different mechanisms of action for PA and EX have been discussed: On a neurochemical and physiological level, a number of acute changes occur during and following bouts of EX, and several long-term adaptations are related to regular EX training.For instance, EX has been found to normalize reduced levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and therefore has neuroprotective or even n eurotrophic effects [7-9]. Animal studies found EX-induced changes in different neurotransmitters such as serotonin and endorphins [10,11], which relate to mood, and positive effects of EX on stress reactivity (e. g. , the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis [12,13]). Finally, anxiolytic effects of EX mediated by atrial natriuretic peptide have been reported [14].Potential psychological mechanisms of action include learning and extinction, changes in body scheme and health attitudes/behaviors, social reinforcement, experience of mastery, shift of external to more internal locus of control, improved coping strategies, or simple distraction Several prospective studies have found that a high level of PA seems to delay the onset of dementia (see [74] for a review). Since improvements in strength and endurance after training were found in cognitively impaired patients as well as healthy controls [75], PA interventions are generally feasible in this population.For Alzheimer's disease (AD) , preliminary evidence suggests that EX interventions may improve communication performance [78], Mini Mental State Examination scores and verbal fluency [79], and disruptive behavior [80]. Four studies [81-84] found that PA slowed down and partially reversed the decline in performance of activities of daily living and progression of the cognitive symptoms related to dementia, in contrast to an older study, which did not find improvements in functional ability [85]. Zschucke , E. and Gaudlitz, K.Exercise and Physical Activity in Mental Disorders: Clinical and Experimental Evidence Zschucke , E. and Gaudlitz, K. (2013) Exercise and Physical Activity in Mental Disorders: Clinical and Experimental Evidence. Journal of Preventative Medicine and Public Health  , 46 (1), p. 12-21. Available at: http://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/pmc/articles/PMC3567313/ [Accessed: 6th Mar 13]. Leptin, an adipocytokine produced in the peripheral system as well as in the brain, is implicated in obesity, food intake, glucose homeostasis, and energy expenditure.Leptin expression levels and signaling pathways may also be linked to the pathophysiology of neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s disease. Epidemiological studies have demonstrated that higher circulating leptin levels are associated with lower risk of dementia including Alzheimer’s disease, and lower circulating levels of leptin have been reported in patients with Alzheimer’s disease. Leptin receptors are highly expressed in the hippocampus, a brain area involved in learning and memory and severely affected during the course of Alzheimer’s disease.In laboratory studies, several in vivo and in vitro studies have shown that leptin supplementation decreases amyloid-? (A? ) production and tau phosphorylation, two major biochemical events that play a key role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease. In this review, we will review the structure of leptin, the type of receptors of leptin in the brain, the various biological functions attributed to this adipocytokine, the signaling pathways that govern leptin actions, and the potential role of leptin in the pathophysiology of Alzheimer’s disease.Leptin exerts its functions by binding to the leptin receptor (ObR). This binding can involve several signaling pathways including JAK/STAT pathway, ERK pathway and the PI3K/Akt/mTOR Pathway. Modulation of these pathways leads to the regulation of a multitude of functions that define the intricate involvement of leptin in various physiological tasks. In this review, we will specifically relate the potential involvement of leptin signaling in Alzheimer’s disease based on work published by several laboratories including ours.All this work points to leptin as a possible target for developing supplementation therapies for reducing the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Leptin is a 146 amino acid protein with a molecular weight of 16 kDa encoded by the  ob   gene and primarily, but not exclusively, expressed by the white adipose tissue (WAT) and is implicated in obesity, food intake, and energy homeostasis. Leptin protein was discovered by the molecular geneticist Jeffrey Friedman in 1994 at Rockefeller University and the work was published in a landmark  Nature  paper in December 1994 [1].The human  ob  gene has been mapped to chromosome 7q31. 3 [2] and encodes a 4. 5 kb mRNA transcript that is translated into a 167 amino acid peptide and subsequently processed in the ER into the 146 amino acid mature leptin protein [1]. Antecedent to the discovery of the leptin protein and positional cloning of the  ob  gene in 1994, the  ob/ob  mouse characterized by hyperphagia and a marked obese phenotype was serendipitously discovered by animal caretakers in 1950 at Jackson Laboratories [3].It was the general consensus that the  ob/ob  mouse possessed a mutation in the  obgene, but this was not elucidated and unequivocall y established until the discovery of the leptin protein and mapping of the  ob  gene by Friedman and colleagues in 1994 who showed that the mutation resulted in the loss of leptin production. In 1966, the  db/db  mouse was discovered, again at Jackson Laboratories, which not only exhibited a similar hyperphagic, obese phenotype, but also hyperglycemia [4].Tartaglia and colleagues in 1995 showed that the  db/db  mouse phenotype can be attributed to the mutation in the  db  gene that codes for the long-form of the leptin receptor obRb [5]. However, it was the seminal work of Doug Coleman and colleagues who demonstrated by a series of parabiosis experiments using  ob/ob  mice and  db/db  mice pairs and established that the  ob/ob  mice lacked a circulating factor whereas the  db/db  mice produced the circulating factor but were not able to respond to it [6,7].The validity of these breakthroughs was affirmed by subsequent discovery of the leptin protein a nd cloning of the  ob  gene [1] as well as the cloning of the  db  gene which coded for the long-form leptin receptor obRb [5]. Further corroboration emanated from the finding that the  db  mice produced the truncated form of obRb that was incapable of transducing leptin-mediated intracellular signal transduction [8-12] and administration of exogenous leptin obviated the obese, hyperphagic, hypothermic, and hypometabolic phenotype in  ob/ob  mice [13-15]. Go to: ————————————————-Leptin – structure, expression, and secretion The crystal structure of leptin has revealed the secondary and tertiary structure of the leptin molecule. The three dimensional crystal structure of leptin depicts the presence of four antiparallel ? -helices (A, B, C, and D) [16]. Two long crossover loops connect the A-B and C-D ? -helices, while a short loop connects the B-C ? - helices [16]. The entire leptin molecule is oblong shaped with the dimensions of 20x25x45 A0[16]. The entire molecule comprising of the bundle of four ? -helical loops adopts a bilayered stratified structure with ? helices A-D in one layer contiguous with ? -helices B-C in the other layer [16]. The conformation adopted by the leptin molecule results in the surface emergence of a few key hydrophobic residues like Phe41, Phe92, Trp100, Trp138, and Leu142  which not only play an indispensable role in the regulation of solubility and aggregation kinetics of the leptin protein, but are also critically requisite for as well as modulate the binding of leptin to the leptin receptor and determine the binding kinetics of the leptin-leptin receptor interaction [16].The three dimensional four-helical bundle crystal structure of leptin exhibits an overt, conspicuous congruence with other cytokines such as growth hormone (GH) [17], leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF) [18], and G-CSF (G-colony stim ulating factor) [19], despite lack of primary sequence homology with these proteins or other proteins [1]. Leptin is expressed primarily by the white adipose tissue [1,20] and circulating leptin levels are proportional to the white adipose tissue mass [21,22]. In humans, leptin expression in the subcutaneous adipose tissue is significantly more in magnitude than omental adipose tissue [23-26].Other studies have demonstrated no difference in leptin expression between the subcutaneous and omental adipose tissue [27]. Leptin expression in humans also exhibits sexual dimorphism with circulating leptin levels about 3-fold greater in females than males [25,28,29]. It is now certain that other tissues also produce leptin, including stomach [30,31], mammary gland [32], human placenta [33], ovaries [34], heart [35], skeletal muscle [36], pituitary gland [37], and the brain [37-39]. In the brain leptin mRNA expression and immunoreactivity has been seen in the hypothalamus, cortex, dentate gyr us and the hippocampus of the rat [38,39].Leptin immunoreactivity has also been reported in the mouse and hamster brain [40]. Leptin expression and circulating leptin levels are primarily contingent on the white adipose tissue mass [21,22] and are significantly elevated in obesity [21,22,41,42]. Consistent with this observation, weight loss is associated with a decrease in leptin levels in the plasma [22]. Leptin levels in the plasma also fluctuate in an ultradian manner and exhibit diurnal rhythm [43,44]. Leptin secretion occurs in a pulsatile rhythm with ~30 pulses of leptin secretion in a 24-hour cycle [43,45].Acute caloric restriction reduces leptin levels by ~30% within 24 hours [46-48] whereas caloric excess elevates leptin levels in the plasma by ~35% within 5-8 hours [47]. Therefore, nutritional intake regulates leptin expression in an acute as well as chronic fashion. The physiological and hormonal parameters that increase leptin expression include obesity [21,22,41], overf eeding or excess caloric intake [49,50], insulin [51-55], glucocorticoids [51,52,56,57], glucose [58], tumor necrosis factor ? (TNF? ) [54,59], estradiol [60-62], and IL1 [63,64] among others.The physiological and hormonal factors that decrease leptin expression include androgens [61,65], acute caloric restriction [49,50], growth hormone [66-69], somatostatin [68,70], exposure to cold temperatures [50,71,72], ? 3  adrenergic agonists [70,73-76], long-term exercise [77,78], cAMP (51, 57), PPAR? agonists such as thizolidinediones Pioglitazone, Troglitazone, and Rosiglitazone [79], and free fatty acids [80] among others. Go to: ————————————————- Leptin receptors Leptin receptors (obR) are encoded by the  db  gene [5].The obR are transmembrane spanning proteins that transduce and mediate leptin signaling. The obR exhibit structural and functional homology to the class I cytokine receptors [81,82]. The obR along with other class I cytokine receptors are typified by the characteristic presence of four cysteine residues and a â€Å"WSXWS† motif [81,83] which are a part of multiple fibronectin Type III subdomains in their extracellular domains [84]. The obR transcript undergoes alternate splicing to generate six different receptor isoforms (obRa – ob-Rf) [11].The six isoforms of obR are distinguished by and exhibit very little homology in their intracellular domain [85]. However, all the six isoforms have the same extracellular domain of over 800 amino acids and a transmembrane domain that spans 34 amino acid residues [85]. The six isoforms of obR are pigeonholed into three different groups, namely – short form, long form, and secreted obR [85]. The short-form of obR subsuming obRa (894 amino acids), obRc (892 amino acids), obRd (901 amino acids), and obRf (896 amino acids) possess a short 30-40 amino acid residue intracellular dom ain [85]. bRb (1162 amino acids) is the only functionally active leptin receptor isoform capable of transducing leptin signaling as it contains an intracellular domain that spans ~280 amino acid residues [5]. The obRe isoform (805 amino acids) lacks the intracellular domain and is therefore classified as a secreted soluble receptor and functions as a buffering system involved in the transport of leptin and bioavailibility of free circulating leptin [86,87].The short isoforms obRa, obRc, obRd, and obRf are abundantly expressed in the choroid plexus and endothelial cells of the brain microvasculature that form the BBB and may therefore regulate the flux of leptin across the BBB [88,89]. obRb is pervasively expressed in the human and rodent brain with the highest density in the ventromedial, arcuate, and dorsomedial hypothalamic nuclei [90-93]. obRb is termed the long-form leptin receptor and is solely responsible for propagating signal transduction mechanisms initiated by leptin [5,94 ].The short forms of the leptin receptor ob-Ra, ob-Rc, obRd, and obRf are devoid of intracellular signaling motifs that are obligatory for signal transduction [5]. However the short form receptors obRa and obRc are highly expressed in the choroid plexus and it is speculated that they mediate the uptake of leptin across the BBB (88, 89). obRb expression has been reported in several regions of the rodent and human brain including the hypothalamus [90,92,93], hippocampus, brain stem (nucleus of the solitary tract and the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus), amygdala and the substantia nigra [92,93,95,96].In the hippocampus leptin receptor immunoreactivity is observed in the CA1/ CA3 region and the dentate gyrus [95,97]. Furthermore, axonal and somato-dendritic regions and hippocampal synapses exhibit leptin receptor immunolabeling in primary hippocampal cultures [97]. Go to: ——————————————à ¢â‚¬â€Ã¢â‚¬â€- Biological and physiological functions Leptin was discovered as the endogenous hormone that precludes obesity and regulates energy homeostasis [1].Antecedent to the discovery of leptin in 1994, about two decades ago, Doug Coleman had posited the role of a circulating hormone that thwarted obesity via its action in the brain to regulate food intake and energy homeostasis and in the peripheral tissues to regulate energy catabolism, thermogenesis as well as basal metabolism [7]. This was corroborated in the mid 1990s after the discovery of leptin by studies that demonstrated in rodents that administration of exogenous leptin decreased food intake and augmented energy expenditure [13-15,98,99].Leptin administration augments energy expenditure by actuating the ? -oxidation of fatty acids in the mitochondria and also inducing the expression of enzymes involved in ? -oxidation [100]. However, the notion that high levels of leptin augment weight loss and circumvent obesity must be tempered with the fact that high endogenous leptin levels have been effete in thwarting obesity in humans and other mammals [21,22,41]. This can be ascribed to a phenomenon termed â€Å"leptin resistance† [101-103]. Leptin plays a pivotal role in the induction of puberty and fertility.Leptin reinstates puberty, restores fertility in  ob/ob  mice, escalates puberty and fosters reproductive behavior in wildtype rodents [104-107]. Leptin directly regulates the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis by inducing gonadotropin release and modulating estradiol production in the ovarian follicles [108,109]. Leptin also regulates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis by attenuating corticotrophin releasing hormone (CRH) production and release [110,111] as well as directly inhibiting ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone)-induced glucocorticoid release from the adrenal cortex [111-113].Leptin is also integrally involved in the physiological homeostasis of the circulat ory system. Emerging evidence implicates leptin in hematopoeisis as leptin is involved in proliferation and differentiation hematopoietic precursors [114-116]. Higher plasma levels of leptin (~100ng/mL), suchas those observed in obese individuals, foster and promote platelet aggregation [117]. Leptin is also one of the most potent inducers of vascular epithelial cell growth and angiogenesis and the short forms and the long-form of the leptin receptor is abundantly expressed in the vasculature [117-119].Go to: ————————————————- Leptin function in the brain Hypothalamus Leptin signaling in the hypothalamus regulates food intake and energy homeostasis in mammals. The arcuate nucleus (ARC), dorsomedial nucleus (DMH), and the ventromedial nucleus (VMH) of the hypothalamus express the obRb in the greatest density. In the ARC, the obRb is abundantly expressed in two disparate neu ronal cell types, ones that express neuropeptide Y (NPY) and agouti-related peptide (AgRP) and the others that express pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) [92,120-122].Leptin induced activation of the obRb in the POMC neurons results in depolarization and increased biosynthesis of ? -melanocyte-stimulating hormone (? -MSH) which signals downstream by actuating the melanocortin system comprising of melanocortin-3-receptors (MC3R) and melanocortin-4-receptors (MC4R) expressed by the second order neurons downstream to evoke an anorexiogenic (decreased appetite) response [122-127]. Activation of the melanocortin pathway not only suppresses appetite but also increases energy expenditure by increasing sympathetic tone resulting in ? oxidation of fatty acids in skeletal and adipose tissue. While leptin activates the POMC-expressing neurons, the actuation of obRb by leptin in the NPY/AgRP neurons results in the decreased genesis of NPY and AgRP peptides which are orexiogenic (increase appetite) in nature [122,128]. Therefore, in conspectus, leptin signaling in the hypothalamus results in the decreased expression of orexiogenic peptides (NPY, AgRP) and increased expression of anorexiogenic peptides (? -MSH) as well as increased energy expenditure in the adipose tissue and skeletal muscle tissue.Hippocampus Leptin receptors are abundantly expressed in the CA1 and CA3 regions of the hippocampus as well as the dentate gyrus [95,97]. Leptin regulates the excitability and firing of hippocampal neurons via the modulation of BK potassium channels [97]. Leptin also improves memory processing and retention when administered directly into the CA1 region in mice [129] and rodents that are deficient in the leptin receptor (db/db  mice and  fa/fa  rats) exhibit profound deficits in spatial learning and memory [129-131].Treatment of acute hippocampal slices with leptin results in the conversion of short-term potentiation (STP) to long term potentiation (LTP) by enhancing Ca2+  influ x through NMDA receptors [132]. Leptin increases synaptogenesis and aids in memory formation in the hippocampus and is purported to be a cognitive enhancer [133]. Leptin also increases neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus of adult mice [134]. Leptin also plays a critical role in hippocampal neuronal survival by activating the PI3K-Akt and JAK2/STAT3 signal transduction pathways [135].Leptin upregulates the expression of potent endogenous antioxidant enzyme Mn-SOD (manganese superoxide dismutase) and the anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-xL (B-cell lymphoma xL) in a STAT3-dependent manner in the hippocampus [135]. Leptin stabilizes mitochondrial membrane potential and attenuates the glutamate-induced mitigation in mitochondrial membrane potential and also extenuates the free iron-induced augmentation in mitochondrial ROS [135]. Go to: ————————————————- Leptin signalingLeptin binding to its long-form receptor obRb actuates four major signal transduction pathways that are coupled to obRb – JAK/STAT pathway, ERK pathway, PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway, as well as the AMPK/SIRT1 signal transduction pathways. JAK/STAT pathway Leptin signaling via the obRb is integrally coupled to the JAK2/STAT3, JAK2/STAT5 and JAK2/STAT6 pathways [10]. The long-form of the leptin receptor obRb is constitutively coupled to Janus kinase 2 (JAK2) via the evolutionary conserved domains proximal to the membrane [136].The binding of leptin to obRb evokes a conformational change in the receptor that actuates JAK2 by phosphorylation at Tyr1007/1008  residues [136]. Activated phosphorylated JAK2 subsequently phosphorylates evolutionary conserved tyrosine residues of obRb [94] at Tyr985, Tyr1077  and Tyr1138  [137,138]. The obRb phosphorylated at Tyr1077  and Tyr1138  serves as a docking site and recruits Srchomology 2 (SH2)- and Src-homology 3 (SH3)-domain comprising roteins that sub sume proteins such as Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3 (STAT3), Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 5 (STAT5), and Src homology region 2 domain-containing phosphatase 2 (SHP2) [139]. The phosphorylated Tyr1138  residue of obRb recruits STAT3 and STAT5 which are subsequently phosphorylated by JAK2 at Tyr705  and Tyr694  respectively. The phosphorylation STAT3 and STAT5 causes their disengagement from the leptin receptor, results in the dimerization of STAT proteins via their phosphotyrosine residues in the SH2 domains [140-142], and culminates in their nuclear translocation [142].In the nucleus, STAT dimers bind to distinct motifs or elements in the DNA called ? -IFN-activated site (GAS) in the enhancer regions of target genes and thereby modulate and regulate gene expression of target genes [142-146]. In the nucleus, the STAT signaling is abrogated by dephosphorylation and subsequent export of STAT proteins from the nucleus to the cytosol [142,14 4,147] or by targeted degradation of the STAT proteins via the Ubiquitin Proteasomal System (UPS) [148].The JAK/STAT pathway is negatively regulated by three classes of proteins, namely – suppressors of cytokine signaling (SOCS), protein inhibitors of activated STATs (PIAS), and protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTP) [149]. There are eight members of the SOCS family and their expression is induced by JAK/STAT signaling (STAT3 in particular) thereby suggesting the existence of a negative feedback loop that abrogates JAK/STAT signaling [150].The SOCS proteins negatively regulate the JAK/STAT pathway by competitively engaging and occupying the phosphotyrosine residues in obRb via their SH2 domains and obviating the recruitment of STAT proteins to obRb, thereby precluding STAT activation [150,151]. SOCS proteins via their SH2 domains also directly bind to JAK2 and extenuate the kinase activity of JAK2 [150,151]. The PIAS proteins negatively regulate the JAK/STAT signaling pathway by impeding the binding of STAT proteins to the response elements in the DNA by physically interacting and binding with STAT proteins via their zinc-binding RING-finger domains [151].SHP1 and SHP2 are most well characterized protein tyrosine phosphatases implicated in the negative regulation of the JAK/STAT pathway [149]. SHP1 and SHP2 possess two SH2 domains and therefore bind to phosphotyrosines of JAK2 and obRb and effectuate the dephosphorylation of JAK2 and obRb thereby terminating the JAK/STAT signaling [149]. ERK pathway The extracellular regulated kinase (ERK) pathway is an integral part of a larger signaling network called mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway that is activated by leptin signaling via the leptin receptor (obRb).While phosphorylation of Tyr1138  and Tyr1077  are both requisite and mediate the activation of STAT3 and STAT5 respectively, the phosphorylation of Tyr985  of obRb mediates the activation of ERK pathway [138]. Leptin signaling via the obRb evokes the actuation of ERK pathway, both centrally and peripherally, as well as in  in vivo  and  in vitro  experimental paradigms [85]. Leptin evokes the activation of ERK pathway by both JAK2-mediated and JAK2-independent signaling effects [94,152].Contemporary evidence has implicated the protein tyrosine phosphatase SHP2 and the adaptor protein Grb2 (growth receptor bound 2) as the requisite mediators in the leptin-induced activation of ERK signaling pathway [153]. Leptin signaling also activates other members and signaling cascades subsumed under the MAPK signaling pathway, namely p38 [154-157] and JNK pathways [156]. PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway Leptin signaling also induces the activation of the ubiquitous, pervasive, nutrient-sensitive anabolic, and the broad spectrum PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway [152,158-161].Empirical evidence has demonstrated that the adaptor proteins IRS1 (insulin receptor substrate 1) and IRS2 (insulin receptor substrate 2) mediate the leptin-obRb induce d activation of PI3K-Akt pathway [94,158,162]. A multitude of studies have demonstrated that leptin induces the activation of Akt via phosphorylation of Akt at Ser473[163,164]. As a consequence, Akt activation is ensued upon leptin signaling which results in inhibition of GSK3? through phosphorylation at Ser9  residue [165-167].Evidently leptin also activates the serine/threonine kinase mammalian target of Rapamycin (mTOR) in the hypothalamus and macrophages [168,169] through the PI3K-Akt pathway [170]. mTOR is an evolutionary conserved kinase that modulates translation of several mRNA transcripts involved in cell growth and proliferation. mTOR regulates translation by phosphorylation and attenuation of the inhibitor of mRNA translation, eukaryotic initiation factor 4E-binding protein (4E-BP) [171-175], as well as through the phosphorylation and activation of S6 kinase (p70S6K1) [176,177]. TOR is autophosphorylated at Ser2481  and exhibits spontaneous intrinsic kinase activity u nder the activation of Akt [178,179]. mTOR phosphorylation and activation is negatively regulated by the TSC1/TSC2 protein complex [170]. Akt phosphorylates TSC2 causing disintegration of the TSC1/TSC2 complex which consequently results in mTOR activation [180]. Furthermore, Akt has been shown to directly phosphorylate mTOR at Ser2448residues and consequently activate mTOR [181,182].Therefore, Akt positively regulates mTOR activation by direct phosphorylation at Ser2448  as well as by indirect means which involves relieving the repressive effects of the upstream inhibitor TSC1/2 complex. Thus leptin, by virtue of its inherent ability to activate Akt, is expected to increase mTOR phosphorylation and activity. AMPK-SIRT1 pathway The 5’AMP activated protein kinase (AMPK) is the master regulatory kinase termed the â€Å"fuel gauge† that integrates signals from upstream mediators and effectors of hormones and cytokines to maintain metabolic homeostasis [183].AMPK activati on leads to increase ? -oxidation of fatty acids in the mitochondria and inhibition of lipogenesis [184,185]. Multiple lines of evidence have cogently demonstrated that leptin activates AMPK and consequently increases fatty acid oxidation [186-188]. One exception to this is the hypothalamic neurons, where leptin inhibits AMPK activation to evoke satiety and other hypothalamic effects of leptin [189-191]. In general, AMPK plays a catabolic role and engenders energy production via effects on glucose and lipid metabolism.AMPK activation also effectuates the induction of the NAD+  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ dependent deacetylase SIRT1 (silent mating type information regulation 2 homolog) [192,193], a metabolic master regulator unequivocally implicated in ageing and the regulation of lifespan [194-198] as well as regulating metabolism [199,200]. The anorexic effect of leptin mediated by the activation of POMC neurons in the hypothalamus is contingent on SIRT1 expression and activation in the neurons of the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus [201]. Go to: ————————————————- Role of leptin in Alzheimer diseaseAlzheimer Disease (AD) is a progressive, debilitating and the most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder typified by memory impairment and cognitive dysfunction eventually leading to fatality. The gross pathologic hallmarks of autopsied brains of patients with AD include atrophy with widened sulci and narrowed gyri in the temporal, parietal, and frontal lobes as well as the neocortex and cingulated gyrus areas of the cerebral cortex. The entorhinal cortex, amygdala, hippocampus and the para-hippocampal gyrus also exhibit pronounced atrophy due to neuronal loss [202,203].There is a decrease in gross weight of brain by 10-15% in AD patients [202]. The thickness of the six cortical layers (cortical ribbon) is usually reduced by 10-20% in AD [202] and ventricular dilation is apparent prominently in the temporal horn as a consequence of the atrophy of the amygdala and the hippocampus. Furthermore, there is a propensity for the loss of larger neurons than the loss of smaller neurons or glial cells in AD [202]. Microscopically, AD is characterized by two most common and distinct â€Å"hallmark† microscopic lesions namely senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles (NFT).Senile plaques are extraneuronal deposits of accumulated and aggregated amyloid-? (A? ) protein in the brain parenchyma, while the NFT are intraneuronal aggregates of protein tau in the hyperphosphorylated state. Other pathological features of the AD brain include synaptic loss, neuronal and dendritic loss, neuropil threads, granulovacuolar degeneration, dystrophic neurites, Hirano bodies, and cerebrovascular amyloid deposition. There is substantial evidence that leptin modulates A? production and metabolism. Chronic peripheral leptin administration in Tg2576 mice has been reported to reduce the brain A? evels [204]. Moreover leptin also decreases the BACE1 activity in SH-SY5Y cell line [204]. Leptin decreases tau phosphorylation explicitly at residues Ser202, Ser396, and Ser404  in retinoic acidinduced differentiated SH-SY5Y cells, differentiated human NT2 cells (NT2N), and rat primary cortical neurons [205-207]. Leptin also increases synaptogenesis and aids in memory formation in the hippocampus and is purported to be a cognitive enhancer [133]. Leptin has been shown to convert STP into LTP in hippocampal cultures and hippocampal slices [132].Recent evidence suggests that leptin facilitates spatial learning and memory [130] and also increases neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus of adult mice [134]. Recent epidemiological studies have also unequivocally implicated decreased leptin levels in the pathogenesis of AD. In the Framingham prospective study, 785 subjects were followed between 1990 and 1994 from the original Framingham cohort [208]. The study conclud ed that leptin levels were inversely related to the risk of developing dementia of the Alzheimer type [208].A year preceding the findings of Lieb and colleagues, a morphometric study in Japan conducted by Narita and group found higher leptin levels were positively correlated with higher hippocampal volumes [209]. Leptin decreases Amyloid-? (A? ) levels by attenuating the genesis and augmenting the clearance of the peptide The A? peptide is derived from a two-step successive proteolytic cleavage of Amyloid-? precursor protein (A? PP) [210]. In the first step, A? PP is cleaved by the membrane-bound protease BACE1 (? -site APP cleaving enzyme 1) (also called ? secretase) to generate CTF? (carboxy terminal fragment ? ) (also known as C99 fragment) [211-215] which in the second step is subsequently cleaved by the ? -secretase complex to generate A? peptide [216-218]. According to the â€Å"amyloid cascade hypothesis†, A? is considered as the culpable factor in the instigation and progression of all the neurodegenerative events that characterize AD [219]. A plethora of studies have demonstrated that leptin decreases A? levels in several  in vivo  and  in vitro  paradigms [204,220-223]. Leptin has been shown to mitigate A? roduction by extenuating BACE1 activity in neural cultures [204]. Recent studies have implicated the AMPK/SIRT1 pathway in the leptin-induced modulation of A? levels [222]. Emerging data from our unpublished work has not only corroborated the finding that leptin regulates A? metabolism via SIRT1, but also implicated the ubiquitous transcription factor NF-? B as a SIRT1 target downstream in the modulation of A? genesis (unpublished). Leptin decreases A? levels by targeting all facets of A? metabolism, namely – production, clearance, and degradation.We have shown that leptin increases the expression levels of insulin degrading enzyme (IDE) putatively by activating the Akt pathway [223], thus augmenting the degradation of A?. Fur thermore, leptin also increases the expression levels of LRP1 [223], suggesting that leptin may foster the uptake of A? by astrocytes and microglia or reuptake of A? by neurons and therefore target A? for intracellular degradation or for clearance across the blood-brain-barrier (BBB). Leptin also effectuates the ApoE-mediated clearance of A? [204].Specifically, leptin dose-dependently increased the LRP1-mediated uptake of ApoE-bound A? , therefore committing A? toward the endosomal/lysosomal degradation pathway [204]. Leptin attenuates BACE1 expression and activity The first line of evidence linking leptin signaling dyshomeostasis in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer disease emanated from the work of Tezapsidis and colleagues [204], who demonstrated in neural cultures from transgenic mice that leptin mitigates BACE1 activity by evoking changes in lipid composition of lipid rafts of cell membranes.Furthermore, the study also demonstrated that the lipolytic ability of leptin as a conseque nce of increased ? -oxidation of fatty acids and decrease  de novo  synthesis of fatty acids and triglycerides underlies the mechanistic link between the effects of leptin on lipid composition of membranes and BACE1 activity. Recent data from our studies [223] and other laboratories [221] cogently demonstrate that leptin negatively regulates BACE1 expression, both  in vitroand  in vitro  paradigms.Moreover, Greco and colleagues have attributed this effect of reduced BACE1 expression on the ability of leptin to induce PPAR? expression and activation [221]. Indeed, leptin is a well characterized inducer of PPAR? expression and activity [220,224]. In light of this, it is important to reiterate that multiple lines of evidence exist in current literature demonstrating the role of PPAR? as a negative regulator of BACE1 expression [225]. Another mediator of leptin induced modulation of BACE1 expression may be the transcription factor STAT3.The BACE1 promoter contains a multitude of STAT3 binding sites [226]. Multiple lines of evidence have implicated STAT3 in the regulation of BACE1 expression [226-228]. Leptin may also modulate BACE1 activity via the activation of the PI3K/Akt and ERK signaling pathways [229]. BACE1 expression is also modulated by the master transcription factor NF-? B [230]. We have found that leptin represses NF-? B transcriptional activity via induction of SIRT1 expression and activity and thereby attenuates BACE1 expression (unpublished).Furthermore, inhibition of SIRT1 activity significantly compromised the mitigating effect of leptin on BACE1 expression (unpublished). Therefore, the entire range of discrete signal transduction pathways activated by leptin may be implicated in the modulation of BACE1 expression. Leptin mitigates tau phosphorylation It is now the consensus that tau hyperphosphorylation precedes and leads to PHF formation in NFT [231] and aberrant tau hyperphosphorylation is implicated in neurodegeneration in AD [232-23 6].Recent studies by Tezapsidis and colleagues as well as our work has cogently demonstrated that leptin decreases hyperphosphorylation of tau, primarily by the activation of known canonical signal transduction pathway coupled to leptin receptors. Firstly, Greco  et al. demonstrated  in vitro, in SH-SY5Y and NTera-2 human neuronal cell lines, that leptin reduces the phosphorylation of tau at Ser202, Ser396, and Ser404  residues [205]. In the same study, it was shown that leptin was ~300-fold more potent than insulin at mitigating tau phosphorylation and the activation of AMPK pathway was implicated in mediating this effect [205].The following year, the same group systematically investigated the involvement of other signal transduction pathways activated by leptin that may contribute to the attenuation of tau phosphorylation and concluded that leptin-induced activation of Akt, p38 MAPK, as well as AMPK were all intricately involved [206]. Notably, of great mechanistic importanc e, was the revelation that all the three aforementioned pathways activated by leptin, culminated in the phosphorylation of the tau kinase GSK3? at Ser9  residue leading to the inhibition of its kinase activity.Therefore, leptin-induced activation of Akt, p38 MAPK, and AMPK signal transduction pathways converged at the focal point – GSK3? , a bona fide tau kinase [206,207]. Data from our studies carried out in organotypic slices from the hippocampi of adult rabbits has also cogently demonstrated that leptin inhibits GSK3? -induced tau phosphorylation at AT8 (Ser202, Thr205) and PHF1 (Ser396, Ser404) epitopes via the activation of Akt [223,237]. Of greater importance and relevance, was the finding that 8-weeks of leptin treatment in CRND8 transgenic mice resulted in a ~2-fold decrease in tau phosphorylation at AT8 and PHF1 epitopes [221].Leptin fosters synaptogenesis and synaptic plasticity Several studies have shown that synaptic dysfunction and synaptic loss are the cardina l hallmarks of incipient AD [238-244]. Electron microscopy [238,241,245-248], immunohistochemical and biochemical studies [240,249-251] have demonstrated that synaptic loss in the neocortex and the hippocampus is an early episode in Alzheimer’s disease [252,253]. Synaptic loss is also the most important structural correlate of cognitive impairment in AD [250,254-260]. Synaptic dysfunction can be detected in patients diagnosed ith mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a condition which may or may not progress to AD and characterized by many as a prodromal state of AD [247,261]. Leptin plays an indispensable role in learning, memory, and maintenance of synaptic plasticity [262]. Leptin receptor mutant  db/db  mice and  fa/fa  rats have deficits in spatial memory and inadequate short term memory processing as assessed by the Morris water maze [130] and T-maze footshock avoidance test paradigms [129]. In the CA1 region of the hippocampus, leptin exclusively enhances the NMDA r eceptor-mediated synaptic transmission [132].Leptin facilitates the trafficking of NMDA receptors to the plasma membrane and this may contribute to the effect of leptin on enhancing the NMDA receptor-mediated current [133]. This was also corroborated in a  Xenopus  oocyte model system expressing recombinant NMDA receptors [132]. Leptin evokes the conversion of STP to LTP in acute hippocampal slices. Further delving into the molecular mechanism underlying this effect has implicated the PI3K/Akt and ERK signaling cascades at the nexus as the inhibitors of these signaling pathways mitigated this effect of leptin [132].Furthermore, in the CA1 region of the hippocampus, leptin also fosters the induction of a novel form of LTD and this effect was attributed to NMDA receptor activation [263]. The study by Durakoglugil also examined the signal transduction cascades involved in the induction of this novel LTD by leptin and concluded that this effect was contingent on the PI3K signaling c ascade, but independent of the ERK signaling pathway [263]. In addition to regulating synaptic strength by modulation of LTP and LTD, leptin also fosters synaptogenesis.The leptin deficient  ob/ob  mice have decreased synapse density and exogenous leptin corrects this deficit in these mice [264,265]. Leptin also induces the expression of a multitude of pre- and postsynaptic proteins such as synapsin2A and synaptophysin in the hippocampus [266]. Leptin also has a profound effect on dendritic morphology. Leptin augments filopodial stabilization, fosters mobility and boosts their density, thus promoting synapse formation [267]. Interestingly, this effect of leptin on filopodial stability and density is contingent on ERK signaling pathway and not on the PI3K signaling pathway [267].Leptin increases neuronal survival and mitigates cell death There is growing consensus that leptin is a growth and survival factor in the CNS. Leptin increases the viability of SH-SY5Y cells and suppresse s apoptosis by down-regulation of caspase-10 and TRAIL and this effect is contingent on the ability of leptin to activate the JAK-STAT, PI3K-Akt, as well as ERK signaling pathways [268]. Leptin has been shown to exert neuroprotective properties in cultured MN9D rat dopaminergic cells against 6-OHDA.Leptin also averted the 6-OHDA-induced dopaminergic cell loss in the substantia nigra of mice when administered intracranially [269]. This pro-survival effect of leptin on dopaminergic neurons was attributed to the JAK2-dependent activation of the ERK signaling pathway resulting in increased levels of survival factors p-CREB and BDNF [269]. Our recent work has unequivocally demonstrated that leptin upregulates the expression of Insulin-like Growth Factor – 1 (IGF-1), a known neurotrophic and survival factor in the brain [270].Leptin has also been shown to attenuate apoptotic cell death of cultured cortical neurons in an  in vitro  oxygen-glucose deprivation model of global isch emia [271]. Furthermore, the study by Zhang  et al. , also cogently showed that intraperitoneal administration of leptin in mice reduced the infarct volume and significantly improved behavioral parameters in a middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model of global ischemia [271]. This effect of leptin was attributed to the activation of ERK signaling pathway as the general inhibitor of ERK signaling abolished this effect of leptin, both  in vitro  and  in vivo  [271].Another study employing hippocampal cultures has demonstrated that leptin inhibits neuronal cell loss in response to growth factor withdrawal and oxidative insult by evoking JAK-STAT activation leading to enhanced expression Mn-SOD and Bcl-xL and stabilizing the mitochondrial membrane potential [135]. Leptin also mitigated neuronal loss in response to excitotoxic insult evoked by glutamate in hippocampal cultures by the aforementioned molecular mechanism [135]. Leptin also protected the hippocampal neurons fr om kainite-induced damage in response to excitotoxicity evoked seizures in a mice model of temporal lobe epilepsy [135].A recent study found that leptin also attenuates MPP+-induced cell death in neuronal cultures via the activation of STAT3 and inducing the expression of UCP-2 that culminates in the obviation of mitochondrial dysfunction by MPP+  [272]. Of particular interest is the finding that cultured cortical neurons secrete prodigious amounts of leptin in response to oxygen-glucose-serum deprivation that results in enhanced expression of IL-1? and increased intransigence to apoptotic cell death [273].Moreover, neutralization of this endogenous leptin with an antibody resulted in increased susceptibility of these cultured cortical neurons to oxygen-glucose-serum deprivation – induced cell death [273]. The salutary effects of leptin on neuronal viability and function have also been corroborated by electrophysiological studies. One such study has cogently demonstrated th at leptin combats the hypoxia-induced inhibition of spontaneously firing hippocampal neurons by activating the BK channels (large conductance Ca2+  activated K+  channels) [274].Leptin induces proliferation of neuronal progenitors – evokes neurogenesis As Alzheimer disease is typified with selective neuronal loss in the hippocampus and other regions of the brain, the debunking of the dogma that neurogenesis occurs exclusively prenatally and the revelation that neurogenesis persists in the adult mammalian brain has opened novel therapeutic avenues to combat the neuronal loss in AD. Chronic leptin treatment increases hippocampal neurogenesis in mice and induces proliferation of adult hippocampal progenitor cultures [134].This effect of leptin on adult hippocampal neurogenesis is attributed to increased cell proliferation in the dentate gyrus and not enhanced cell differentiation or cell survival [134]. The study by Garza and colleagues unequivocally implicated the JAK2-STAT 3 and PI3K-Akt signal transduction pathways in the leptin induced enhancement of hippocampal neurogenesis [134]. Furthermore, leptin rescues the attenuation in adult hippocampal neurogenesis in a mouse model of chronic unpredictable stress-evoked depression via the inhibition of GSK3? nd subsequent stabilization of ? -catenin [275]. Leptin has also been documented to evoke neurogenesis and angiogenesis in a mouse stroke model (Avraham  et al. , 2011). Go to: ————————————————- Conclusion Here we have reviewed the contemporary knowledge on the protective role of the adipokine leptin and its signaling in Alzheimer’s disease. In conspectus, leptin impinges on all facets of Alzheimer’s disease pathophysiology (Figure 1). These attributes of leptin such as the decrease in A? production and increase of A? learance, reduction in tau hyperphosphorylation as well as increased synaptogenesis, increased memory, increased spatial learning, and increased neurogenesis catapult leptin treatment as a unique therapeutic intervention and an indispensable tool in the elucidation of biochemical mechanisms involved in the etiology of the sporadic form of Alzheimer’s disease. Marwarha , G. and Ghribi, O. Leptin signaling and Alzheimer’s disease Marwarha , G. and Ghribi, O. (2012) Leptin signaling and Alzheimer’s disease. American Journal of Neurodegenerative Disease, 1 (3), p. 45-265. Lifestyle nonpharmacological interventions can have a deep effect on cognitive aging. We have reviewed the available literature on the effectiveness of physical activity, intellectual stimulation, and socialization on the incidence of dementia and on the course of dementia itself. Even though physical activity appears to be beneficial in both delaying dementia onset and in the course of the disease, more research is needed before intellectual stimulation a nd socialization can be considered as treatments and prevention of the disease.Through our paper, we found that all three nonpharmacological treatments provide benefits to cognition and overall well-being in patients with age-related cognitive impairments. These interventions may be beneficial in the management of dementia. Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder with devastating consequences [1]. Despite being the most common cause of dementia, affecting approximately 5. 4 million Americans [2] and almost 50% of people over the age 85 [3], no cure has yet been discovered.Efforts are also focusing on the development of more effective strategies to slow the progression of AD to increase the quality of life of those affected. Even a two-year delay in disease onset would reduce the prevalence of AD among Americans by two million people within fifty years [4]. If an intervention that delayed the onset of AD by five years had been applied back in 1997, we would have seen a 50% reduction in AD incidence [4]. Research on strategies to slow the development and progression of AD is arguably more important now than ever before, since the number of people with AD is expected to nearly triple over he next forty years [4], and dementia is the most important contributor to disability in the elderly [5]. Among others, three nonpharmacological interventions are particularly relevant as they might positively influence cognition, general functioning, and overall quality of life. These three strategies arephysical exercise,  intellectual stimulation,  and  social interaction. While there are studies that evaluate the role of individual and multimodal interventions on AD, there is a lack of literature on the combination of all three.The purpose of this paper is to review key areas of the literature that focus on the effects of physical exercise, intellectual stimulation, and socialization strategies on AD evolution, as they collectively play an important ro le in the management of Alzheimer's disease. Physical exercise encapsulates both aerobic exercises (e. g. , walking and cycling) and nonaerobic exercises (e. g. , strength and resistance training; flexibility and balance exercises). For intellectual stimulation, we examine studies that have evaluated the prognostic effects of either cognitive hobbies (e. g. reading, word puzzles, and card games) or cognitive training (e. g. , computer training games/paradigms that target specific cognitive domains such as memory and attention). Social interaction is defined as the participation of an AD patient in group-related activities, such as mealtime conversations, support groups, or other forms of social engagement. The health benefits attributed to physical activity are numerous and well known. Exercise has been associated with a lower incidence in many chronic diseases, such as coronary heart disease [6], type 2 diabetes [7], obesity [8], cancer [9], bone loss [10], and high blood pressure [11].We have reviewed the effects of physical exercise on cognition. Higher cardiorespiratory fitness has been related to higher scores on tests of cognitive function [12]. A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials examining the relationship between exercise and cognition showed modest improvements in attention, processing speed, executive function, and memory among older adults in the treatment arms [13]. This is highly relevant for the elderly population, as it suggests that physical activity can serve as a preventative measure against age-related cognitive decline [14].Several large longitudinal studies followed older adults without cognitive impairments at baseline and measured rate of incident dementia to clarify the relationship between physical activity and incident cognitive loss. A large prospective study by Podewils et al. identified an inverse relationship between physical activity and dementia risk [15]. Compared to no exercise, physical activity has been linked wi th reduced risks of developing cognitive impairment and dementia [16] with the risk for dementia being further reduced with increasing levels of physical activity.Larson and colleagues found that persons who exercised three or more times per week had a reduced risk of developing dementia compared to those who exercised less, and the reduction was more marked among those with the poorest physical function at baseline [17]. These results were corroborated by Buchman et al. who found that participants in the lowest percentiles of physical activity had more than twice the risk of developing dementia than those in the highest percentiles of physical activity [18].Furthermore, Lautenschlager et al. demonstrated that these results might be transferable to adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and, thus, at high risk for dementia; participants who underwent exercise training showed modest improvements in cognition after six months [19]. Physical exercise has, therefore, been recommen ded as a preventative measure of mild cognitive impairment and dementia [20,  21]. There is much less research focusing on the effect of physical activity in AD patients.This may be due to the challenges of implementing an exercise regime while managing the behavioral and emotional disturbances in AD patients, particularly in the later stages of the disease. However, the results in the available literature are promising. Early research involving AD patients in nonrandomized controlled trials showed significant cognitive improvements among participants who underwent cycling training and somatic and isotonic-relaxation exercises [22,  23]. Physical exercise may have beneficial effects in AD patients beyond cognition as well.A meta-analysis on 30 randomized controlled trials that employed exercise, behavioral and environmental manipulations in patients with cognitive impairment found exercise had positive effects on strength and cardiovascular fitness in addition to improvements in behavior and cognition [24–26]. Further evidence supporting multifaceted positive effects of exercise on AD can be traced to recent randomized controlled trials of physical exercise regimes on AD patients (Table 1). Compared to controls, patients in the intervention programs showed better physical functioning (functional reach, walking, and mobility).After treatment, these patients also showed improved performance of activities of daily living (ADLs), and less cognitive decline and cognitive improvement in some cases. Physical exercise, therefore, appears to be beneficial for AD patients. While the majority of the studies did not find any differences in depression, one study by Steinberg found increased depression and decreased quality of life in patients who underwent the exercise intervention [31]. Further research into the effect of physical exercise on mood and quality of life in AD patients is, therefore, required.When considering the role of exercise on AD, it is impor tant to note that any positive results may be due to a placebo effect, even in randomized controlled trials. However, due to the varied nature of the outcome measures used in these studies, it is unlikely that every intervention group demonstrated significant gains over the controls due to a placebo effect alone. Furthermore, control group members never appeared to show any improvement and often showed higher rates of functional and cognitive decline.Enhanced neuroplasticity might be underlying the improvements seen. Colcombe and colleagues demonstrated that older adults without dementia who performed aerobic exercises had greater grey and white matter volumes compared to adults who engaged in stretching and toning exercises [38]. Exercise has also been associated with functional connectivity between brain networks often affected by age, such as the default mode, frontal parietal, and frontal executive networks, in older adults without dementia [39].While randomized controlled trial s in AD patients examining the relationship between neuroplasticity and exercise are underway, correlational studies examining brain volumes and cardiorespiratory fitness have been done. In AD patients, cardiorespiratory fitness has been associated with brain volume. VO2peak, peak oxygen consumption, has been positively correlated with greater whole brain volume and white matter volume [40], notably in the inferior parietal lobule, hippocampal, and parahippocampal regions [41].Future results of randomized controlled trials will improve our knowledge in this field of research. Overall, physical activity offers promising outcomes for cognition and physical health in the elderly population and AD patients. Engagement in intellectually stimulating activities has been linked with reduced risk of developing AD and intellectual stimulation has been widely explored as a nonpharmacological treatment option for dementia [42]. Among cognitively ormal older persons, randomized control trials em ploying intellectual training concluded that cognitive interventions produce protective and potentially long lasting positive effects in various cognitive domains as well as activities of daily living [43]. There is also evidence that frequent engagement in hobbies, including reading, puzzles, and games, for at least six hours per week reduces the risk of incident dementia [44]. The concept of intellectual stimulation as a preventative measure for dementia in healthy older adults can be parallel to the notion of building a â€Å"compensatory mechanism† or â€Å"cognitive reserve† [45–48].Cognitive reserve refers to the hypothesis that individual differences shaped by inherent characteristics and external sources including intelligence, years of education, occupation, and intellectual activities, may provide neural protective support against dementia [45–47]. It has been argued that these collective life experiences may contribute to building cognitive res erve and, thus, provide skills to compensate for AD pathology [45–47].In other words, a greater cognitive reserve might delay the appearance of dementia despite the presence of neuropathology, after which a rapid progression of cognitive decline may ensue once pathology is significant enough to result in AD diagnosis. Thus, AD patients with higher education and occupation accomplishments suffer more rapid decline in cognitive abilities when compared to AD patients with less education and occupational attainment following diagnosis [49]. Another study by Helzner and colleagues [50] investigated the relationship between premorbid leisure activity and rate of cognitive decline in AD patients.Leisure activities were classified into four categories: intellectual, social, physical, and other. Higher-frequency participation in intellectual leisure activities prior to AD diagnosis was associated with delayed AD onset followed by faster cognitive decline. The study by Helzner and coll eagues [50] provides evidence for the benefits of intellectual stimulation on slowing down AD development. Besides reducing the risk of dementia, cognitive interventions later in life may affect functional decline in AD.Treiber and colleagues [51] explored the association between engaging in cognitively stimulating activities in late life and the rate of cognitive decline in incident AD. This study included a wide range of intellectual activities that required varying levels of cognitive demand, for example, completing puzzles, reading, watching television, listening to music, and cooking. The results suggested that higher-frequency participation in stimulating activities in early stages of dementia resulted in slower cognitive decline.However, as time progressed there was an overall decrease in participation in activities, which might reflect the nature of AD in terms of functional abilities. Intellectual stimulation can be divided into several categories including cognitive stimul ation, cognitive t