Supporting Children Essay Example for Free

Supporting Children Essay The Children Act 1989 has influenced setting by bringing together several sets of guidance and provided the foundation for many of the standards practitioners adhere to and maintain when working with children. The Act requires that settings work together in the best interests of the child and that they form partnerships with parents and carers. It requires settings to have an appropriate adult: child ratios and policies and procedures on child protection. This Act has an influence in all areas of practice within setting. For example; planning. United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child 1989 – UNCRC is a human rights treaty which sets out the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of children. The Convention defines a child as any human being under the age of eighteen, unless the age of majority is attained earlier under a state’s own domestic legislation. Children Act 2004 This Act was introduced as a result of the death of Victoria Climbie and was the introduction of Every Child Matters which ensures the wellbeing of children through its five outcomes. The Every Child Matters framework has influenced settings by giving them and other childcare settings a duty to find new ways of working together by sharing information and working co-operatively to protect children from harm. Human Rights Act 1998 This Act has had a huge impact in current legislation in the UK. Under the Act it was agreed that children would have the same rights as adults which means children have the right to dignity, respect and fairness in the way that they are treated, meaning that settings looking after children should be treating children with respect, dignity and fairness, meaning all children should be treated the same. The Act makes available in UK courts a remedy for breach of a Convention right, without the need to go to the European Court of Human Rights. Childcare Act 2006 The Act defines new duties for Local Authorities with respect to improving the Every Child Matters outcomes for pre-school  children, childcare for working parents and parental information services. E3 All the legislations and guidance in recent decades, including the Children Act 2004, make it clear that the child’s interests must come first. All professionals must work together to promote the child’s welfare before all else. All early years settings and schools must nominate a member of staff to oversee safeguarding and child protection. This person should be specifically trained to undertake this role. The whole team, including volunteers and students must work together to promote children’s welfare and keep them safe. â€Å"For some children, universal services such as early year’s education and health visiting are not enough to ensure their healthy, safe and happy development. They may experience emotional difficulties, fall behind in their development or learning, or suffer the adverse effects of poverty, poor housing or ill health. There are also children in need, who are judged to be unlikely to reach or maintain a satisfactory level of health or development unless they are offered additional services.† (Bruce, 2010:448) This group includes children with disabilities. Infection control and stopping cross-contamination is essential when safeguarding children, as cross-contaminating food could be vital if children have allergies or intolerances. All members of staff in the setting should be aware of the allergies and intolerances of the children incase they have to prepare a meal. The members of staff should be aware and be in knowledge of the children who need to have an epi-Pen incase of an anaphylaxis shock. It is essential that practitioners are able to recognise possible signs and indicators of abuse. Sometimes you might notice physical signs that a child or young person is being abused. Babies and toddlers may for example, not have the language skills required, while older children may not always rec ognise that what the adult has been doing is wrong. Children and young people can also be living in fear as their abuser is likely to have a great deal of control over them. Most children have falls and minor accidents that result in bruising, cuts and bumps. The difference between genuine accidents and deliberate injuries to the child is often the location of the injuries and the frequency with which they occur. Children who have been physically abused may show through their behaviour and play that they are being abused. It is good practice to ask a child about an injury as most children who have  had genuine accidents are happy to talk about what has happened to them. Children who have been physically abused might have been told by the abuser not to talk about what has happened and to say that they fell or bumped into something if they are asked about bruising or cuts. If a child seems upset or nervous when talking about an injury, you should always pass on this information to your supervisor. You may be asked to keep a note of the date and type of injury that you have seen, as well as a record of what the child said. Sexual abuse can be hard to detect as the child may not outwardly seem injured. Some physical signs may be apparent but behavioural indicators can be a more obvious clue. There are a few physical indicators of emotional abuse, although some older children may show self-destructive behaviour such as cutting themselves or drastic dieting. The main indicator of emotional abuse is the child’s need for attention and low self-esteem. Parents who neglect their children may have significant personal and other problems of their own. The children might be loved but parents find it hard to provide the basic care that the children need. Children who are being neglected are at risk of having accidents through being left unsupervised, either at home or while out playing. They are also vulnerable to attack from strangers. Children who are being abused may show behaviour that is not part of their normal pattern or is out of character. If the change of behaviour is long term then the practitioner should consider the possibility of abuse, meaning the child will be observed more closely for other signs. E4 The term inclusive is often used to describe the concept of making sure that everyone feels welcome and part of a setting. This applies to parents as well as children. In order to achieve this, settings should constantly be looking at what they are doing and how they are doing it, and think about whether they are really meeting children’s and their families’ needs. Settings that are fair, just and inclusive recognise that anti-discriminatory practice means that individual needs. Settings that are fair, just and inclusive recognise that anti-discriminatory practice means that individual needs are taken into account and that children and their families are not expected to all be the same. Settings that are proactive use many sources of information to reflect on their policies and activities. They may ask parents and children to provide feedback, suggestions and  comments about a whole range of issues, for example, what activities the children have enjoyed, session op ening hours and requests for information. Settings also seek information from organisations locally and nationally who support children and families with particular needs. Practitioners should work in a fair, just and inclusive way, taking into account both the statutory legal framework in the United Kingdom and the policies and procedures in the setting. You need to value, and show respect to all those you encounter in your setting as individuals. Definitions of inclusion have developed from being primarily focused on integrating children with special educational needs into a much broader concept concerning social justice and equality for all. Inclusion is the process by which early years settings develop their ethos, policies and practices to include all learners with the aim of meeting their individual needs. E5 and D2 Daily routine is a strategy which most settings have in use to empower children. The daily routine â€Å"provides a consistent, predictable sequence of events that gives children a sense of control over what happens in their day†. Different settings develop different routine depend how long children stay in the premises and their age, but most of the daily routine contain basic components such as: outside routine, large group time, small group time, register time, art/craft time, tidy up time and snack/meal time. During the daily routine the child learns to make choices and discovers their consequences. This creates sort of secure environment, because children know what to expect and this allows them to be more involve in the tasks and more co-operative with the practitioner. The second strategy is planning and providing different activities and experiences for children. This strategy is suggested by the EYFS because allows for adventure, exploration and gaining new experiences. Different activities, which the setting provide develop range of skills and abilities. Taking part in activities, free-flow or structured, allows children learn social interactions and behaviours such as sharing equipment, taking turns. Providing activities allows children to use their language to communicate wiliness to participation in it, raising their confidence to communicate and self reliance to complete it. Providing different activities stimulate children`s imagination, cognitive, language, personal, social and emotional  as well as physical development and allow to fulfil children`s potential. Encouraging children’s self-reliance is an important part of helping them to develop the independence and resilience which will enable them to face life’s demands and challenges in preparation for their adult lives. Encouraging self-reliance involves helping children to develop: independence, dependence, competence in looking after themselves, trust in their own judgement and actions and confidence in their own abilities. â€Å"Be patient and provide time for children to do things for themselves. For example, let younger children dress themselves; although it takes longer, it is an essential self-help skill. Children with physical disabilities may need sensitive support in this area.† (Meggitt, C 2012:296) Settings may use the skill of developing a positive self-image to empower children. A way of doing this is to allow the children to realise who they are; by realising they have their own identity. Children deal with things differently to adults and feel things more deeply than adults do, meaning they need a great deal of support to understand, express and deal with all their emotions that are going on. Children need to learn to be recognised by their name, developing their self-esteem which can be boosted by their key worker within a setting. By developing their self-esteem it begins to help them understand how to seek support from key workers or parents/carers to keep them safe and well, hel ping them to developing holistically. By allowing a child to develop his or her feelings it brings them the confidence that it is okay to show their emotions. By their key person being supportive of this it makes the child likely to tell them how he or she is feeling. Independence is another strategy. By a child learning to wash and dry their hands after going to the toilet, messy activities, playing outside, before and after bed, after blowing their nose, etc, it helps them understand the concept of their own and others hygiene. It is also very important for children of any age to understand how to care for their own teeth and understand how important it is to have good dental hygiene. Also becoming independent when going to the potty or toilet is vital when it comes to their lifestyle later on in life. E6 and D1 One example of how a setting may prepare young children is by using a teddy or a role-play to act out the situations that may occur during a  transition. Using a teddy may indirectly allow the child to express their concerns and fears about what their new setting may be like. Role-play is an effective tool for young children to engage in, so that they can act out what may happen in their new setting and how best to confront any problems they may encounter. Tassoni noted that â€Å"with older children and young people it is good to talk to them about the transition.† (2007:147) Talking regularly to older children is imperative so as to perceive an idea of the child’s fear or expectations for the transitions. As they will likely not remember everything that they may want to ask at once, therefore continued discussions are helpful for them so that they can settle any uneasiness. Having communication between the two settings is also imperative, as well as making sure that parents are involved, to help make the children more comfortable. The practitioners should meet in order for them to discuss the needs and preferences of the children in order to maintain some kind of continuity for them. Taking the children to visit their new settings in order to familiarise themselves with it is beneficial for them. On the other hand key workers or the new teacher for the younger children could visit the children so that they can start to bond with them. Some children deal with transitions with more difficulty than others do. Some children can find it difficult when moving from a nursery to a primary school. As children become older, they start to cope better with being separated from their parents, but it all depends on how well they coped with settling into new settings during transitions. Having stable relationships around the children can help them feel safe and secure during certain transitions in their life. Children need practitioners and caring adults who are able to recognise the importance of attachment and emotional wellbeing during periods of transitions. A way in which practitioners can help children settle during transitions is by bringing all the children (new and old) together at circle time. Activities like circle time allow children to learn new things, about themselves and each other, whether that is singing their favourite song, or telling the group what they did at the weekend – this links into discussion and display. Discussing children’s work and displaying it on boards or posters helps them recognise that they are part of the team and that they feel welcome. E7 and B1 Discrimination can occur even when individual workers have positive attitudes. If the organisations or institution does not consider and meet the needs of everyone involved in it, and makes assumptions based on one set of values/stereotyped views, institutional discrimination can occur. This can happen when, for example, children with disabilities are not given access to the full curriculum, the meals service does not meet the dietary requirements of certain religious groups, a uniform code does not consider the cultural traditions of certain groups concerning dress. Childcare workers are often not aware of how powerful the culture and institutionalised practices of their organisations are in discriminating against certain groups of children or their families. Institutional discrimination is not necessarily a conscious policy on the part of organisation; more often it occurs because of a failure to consider the diversity of the community. Whether conscious or unconscious, i nstitutional discrimination is a powerful and damaging force. Children may suffer the effects of stereotyping and discrimination in a number of ways, for example, Research by Milner (1983) shows that children as young as three attach value to skin colour, with both black and white children perceiving white skin as ‘better’ than black. This indicates that children absorb messages about racial stereotyping from a very early age. These messages are very demanding to self-esteem of black children and may result in a failure to achieve their potential. Harm is done to white children too, and to society in general, unless this perception of racial superiority is confronted and challenged effectively. These findings underline the need for all settings, including those in all-white areas, to provide a positive approach that challenges stereotyping. Even very young children can hold fixed ideas about what boys can do and what girls can do. Observation of children’s play shows that some activities are avoided because of perceptions of what is appropriate for girls and boys. This can result in boys and girls having a very limited view of the choices available to males and females in our society. This is particularly significant when, despite advances in recent years, many women still underachieve. Children with disabilities and their families are subject to many forms of discrimination. Even a caring environment may neglect the ordinary needs of the disabled child out of concern to meet their special needs. This may mean that the disability is  seen first, rather than the child, and that the child’s development is affected because of limited opportunities and limited expectations. Children may find it difficult to form relationships with others, meaning that practitioners need to provide activities that show inclusive practice. The adult’s role is to promote interactions between children, giving them group activities to do, making sure they are bonding with each other. By the adult’s giving the children activities it makes them interact with children they wouldn’t necessarily interact with outside of the setting. Direct discrimination is when discrimination occurs when a child is treated less favourably than another child in similar circumstances. Indirect discrimination is when discrimination occurs when a condition is applied that will affect a group of children unfairly when compared to others – this includes religions like Sikhs. Discrimination of any kind prevents children and young people from developing a feeling of self-esteem. The effects of being discriminated against can last the whole of a child’s life. C1 Jerome Bruner’s theory on scaffolding is about encouraging children to learn something new by supporting and helping them when they need help, and then letting the child do it on their own when the adult feels they are confident enough. Bruner believes that humans have the ability to learn and grow with no limit; therefore, practitioners should have confidence in the children to learn something new. Although Bruner’s theory is adult-initiated, it still empowers children. When the scaffolding takes place, practitioners must be enthusiastic and encourage children to learn; practitioners must make it enjoyable and exciting to make sure children do not get bored and distracted. This empowers children as when the practitioner slowly moves away, and allows the child to do it on their own, the child’s confidence and self-reliance increases: they believe that they are able to do things on their own. This obviously increases their independence; they will be happy with themselves and will want to do things on their own more often. If a child has a lot of difficulty, and can’t manage to do what they have learnt on their own, the practitioner can still support them until they can manage to do it on their own. As long as the practitioner does not do the work for them, and the child is still learning, the practitioner can give the child as much support as they need, until they  can do it on their own. Another thing which is also good about Bruner’s theory is that once children will be able to do certain things on their own, for example, writing certain letters without help or without reminders on how to write them, those children will be able to help other children who have difficulty with writing letters. This will develop social interaction, and both children will be happy with themselves. A1 The Children Act 1989 allocated duties to the local authorities, courts, parents and other child-based agencies in the UK, ensuring that the children are safeguarded and their welfare is promoted. Centered on the idea that children are best cared for within their own families; however, it also makes provisions for instances when parents and families do not co-operate with child-based agencies and statutory bodies, like OFSTED. The act states that children’s welfare should be the paramount concern to the courts. Specifying that any delays in the system processes will have a detrimental impact on a child’s welfare. The court needs to take into account the child’s wishes; physical, emotional and educational needs, age, sex, background circumstances, the likely effect of change on the child, the harm the child has suffered or is likely to suffer, parents ability to meet the child’s needs and the powers available to the court. This influences working practice as the practitioners need to make sure what is going on at home, and follow the correct procedures to make sure that the child’s welfare is main priority. Children Act 2004 is the amended version of the Children Act 1989. This act was amended in 2004 largely in consequence of the Victoria Climbie inquiry. The Act’s ultimate purpose is to make the UK better and safer for children of all ages. The idea behind the act is to promote co-ordination between multiple official entities to improve the overall well-being of children. The 2004 act also specifically provided for including and affecting disabled children. The sections 39-48 in the Childcare Act 2006 introduce the EYFS which supports the delivery of high quality education and care for children from birth to age 5. The UNCRC involves a Children’s Commissioner. England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland, each have their own Children’s Commissioners. The Childrens Commissioner for England promotes and protects childrens  rights in England. She does this by listening to what children and young people say about what matters to them and making sure adults in charge take their views and interests into account. In article 6 of the UNCRC it states that â€Å"all children have the right to life. Governments should ensure that children survive and develop healthily†. The UNCRC supports children in their rights, including from abuse or help to safeguard. Section 3 of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is all about safeguarding and welfare requirements within early years settings that practitioners must abide by. Section 3.42 is all about medicines, meaning that practitioners must keep a record of all medicines in the setting and the dosage allowances to the children. Illness and injuries is 3.48 in the EYFS meaning that all accidents, injuries and illnesses should be reported in an accident book. 3.45 – food – all allergies and intolerances should be kept on file for all those members of staff whom are preparing or serving food. Section 3 is all about safeguarding the children making sure that the children within settings should be protected as ‘Every Child Matters’. â€Å"Governments must do everything to protect children and young people from all form of violence, abuse, neglect and mistreatment.† (Meggitt, 2012:243) Bibliography Beaver, M, Brewster, J, Green, S, Neaum, S, Sheppard, H, Tallack, J, Walker, M (2008) CACHE Level 3 Childcare and Education, Cheltenham, Nelson Thornes Bruce, T, Meggitt, C, Grenier, J (2010) Childcare and Education, 5th Edition, London, Hodder Education Daly, M, Byers, E, Taylor, W (2006) Understanding Early Years Theory in Practice, Oxford, Heinemann Department for Education (2012) Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage, London, Early Education Meggitt, C, Bruce, T, Grenier, J (2012) CACHE Level 3 Childcare and Education, 2nd Edition, London, Hodder Education Tassoni, P, Beith, K, Bulman, K, Griffin, S (2010) Level 3 Diploma Children and Young Peoples Workforce, London, Heinemann http://www.hse.gov.uk/disability/law.htm 27/05/2014

Assemblers And Disassembler Softwares Computer Science Essay

Assemblers And Disassembler Softwares Computer Science Essay A disassembler is a computer program that translates machine language into assembly language the inverse operation to that of an assembler . A disassembler differs from a decompiler which targets a high-level language rather than an assembly language. The output of a disassembler is often formatted for human-readability rather than suitability for input to an assembler, making it principally a reverse-engineering tool. Assembly language source code generally permits the use of constants and programmer comments . These are usually removed from the assembled machine code by the assembler . A disassembler operating on the machine code would produce disassembly lacking these constants and comments. The disassembled output becomes more difficult for a human to interpret than the original annotated source code. Some disassemblers make use of the symbolic debugging information present in object files such as ELF. The Interactive Disassemblerallow the human user to make up mnemonic symbols for values or regions of code in an interactive session: human insight applied to the disassembly process often parallels human creativity in the code writing process. Disassembly is not an exact science: On CISC platforms with variable-width instructions, or in the presence of self-modifying code, it is possible for a single program to have two or more reasonable disassemblies. Determining which instructions would actually be encountered during a run of the program reduces to the proven-unsolvable halting problem. Examples of disassemblers Any interactive debugger will include some way of viewing the disassembly of the program being debugged. Often, the same disassembly tool will be packaged as a standalone disassembler distributed along with the debugger. For example, objdump, part of GNU Binutils, is related to the interactive debugger gdb . The some ofexample of dissembler are IDA ILDASM is a tool contained in the .NET Framework SDK. It can be used to disassemble PE files containing Common Intermediate Language code. OllyDbg is a 32-bit assembler level analysing debugger PVDasm is a Free, Interactive, Multi-CPU disassembler. SIMON a test/ debugger/ animator with integrated dis-assembler for Assembler, COBOL and PL/1 Texe is a Free, 32bit disassembler and windows PE file analyzer. unPIC is a disassembler for PIC microcontrollers Interactive Disassembler Interactive Disassembler The Interactive Disassembler, more commonly known as simply IDA, is a disassembler used for reverse engineering. It supports a variety of executable formats for different processors and operating systems. It also can be used as a debugger for Windows PE, Mac OS XMach-O, and LinuxELF executables. A decompiler plugin for programs compiled with a C/C++compiler is available at extra cost. The latest full version of Ida Pro is commercial.IDA performs much automatic code analysis, using cross-references between code sections knowledge of parameters of API calls, and other information. However the nature of disassembly precludes total accuracy, and a great deal of human intervention is necessarily required. IDA has interactive functionality to aid in improving the disassembly. A typical IDA user will begin with an automatically generated disassembly listing and then convert sections from code to data and viceversa. Scripting IDC scripts make it possible to extend the operation of the disassembler. Some helpful scripts are provided, which can serve as the basis for user written scripts. Most frequently scripts are used for extra modification of the generated code. For example, external symbol tables can be loaded thereby using the function names of the original source code. There are websites devoted to IDA scripts and offer assistance for frequently arising problems. Users have created plugins that allow other common scripting languages to be used instead of, or in addition to, IDC. IdaRUB supports Ruby and IDAPython adds support for Python Supported systems/processors/compilers Operating systems x86WindowsGUI x86 Windows console x86 Linux console x86 Mac OS X ARM Windows CE Executable file formats PE (Windows) ELF (Linux, most *BSD) Mach-O (Mac OS X) Netware .exe OS/2 .exe Geos .exe Dos/Watcom LE executable (without embedded dos extender) raw binary, such as a ROM image Processors Intel 8086 family ARM, including thumb code Motorola 68xxx/h8 ZilogZ80 MOS Technology 6502 Intel i860 DEC Alpha Analog Devices ADSP218x Angstrem KR1878 Atmel AVR series DEC series PDP11 Fujitsu F2MC16L/F2MC16LX Fujitsu FR 32-bit Family Hitachi SH3/SH3B/SH4/SH4B Hitachi H8: h8300/h8300a/h8s300/h8500 Intel 196 series: 80196/80196NP Intel 51 series: 8051/80251b/80251s/80930b/80930s Intel i960 series Intel Itanium (ia64) series Java virtual machine MIPS: mipsb/mipsl/mipsr/mipsrl/r5900b/r5900l Microchip PIC: PIC12Cxx/PIC16Cxx/PIC18Cxx MSIL Mitsubishi 7700 Family: m7700/m7750 Mitsubishi m32/m32rx Mitsubishi m740 Mitsubishi m7900 Motorola DSP 5600x Family: dsp561xx/dsp5663xx/dsp566xx/dsp56k Motorola ColdFire Motorola HCS12 NEC 78K0/78K0S PA-RISC PowerPC SGS-Thomson ST20/ST20c4/ST7 SPARC Family Samsung SAM8 Siemens C166 series TMS320Cxxx series Compiler/libraries (for automatic library function recognition)[3] Borland C++ 5.x for DOS/Windows Borland C++ 3.1 Borland C Builder v4 for DOS/Windows GNU C++ for Cygwin Microsoft C Microsoft QuickC Microsoft Visual C++ Watcom C++ (16/32 bit) for DOS/OS2 ARM C v1.2 GNU C++ for Unix/common SIMON (Batch Interactive test/debug) SIMON (Batch interactive test/debug) was a proprietary test/debugging toolkit for interactively testing Batch programs designed to run on IBMs System 360/370/390 architecture. It operated in two modes, one of which was full instruction set simulator mode and provided Instruction step, conditional Program Breakpoint (Pause) and storage alteration features for Assembler, COBOL and PL/1 programs. High level language (HLL) users were also able to see and modify variables directly at a breakpoint by their symbolic names and set conditional breakpoints by data content. Many of the features were also available in partial monitor mode which relied on deliberately interrupting the program at pre-defined points or when a program check occurred.In this mode, processing was not significantly different from normal processing speed without monitoring. It additionally provided features to prevent application program errors such as Program Check, Wild branch , and Program loop. It was possible to correct many errors and interactively alter the control flow of the executing application program. This permitted more errors to be detected for each compilation which, at the time, were often scheduled batch jobs with printed output, often requiring several hours turnaround before the next test run. Operating Systems Simon could be executed on IBMMVS, MVS/XA, ESA or DOS/VSE operating systems and required IBM 3270 terminals for interaction with the application program. LIDA lida is basically a disassembler and code analysis tool. It uses the bastards libdisasm for single opcode It allows interactive control over the generated deadlisting via commands and builtin tools. features It trace execution flow of binary It work with symbolic names: interactive naming of functions, labels, commenting of code. It scan for known anti-debugging, anti-disassembling techniques It scan for user defined code sequences It integrated patcher It also integrated cryptoanalyzer Many disassemblers out there use the output of objdump à ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ lida that tries a more serious approach. The several limitations of objdump are broken by using libdisasm and by tracing the execution flow of the program. Further by having the control over the disassembly more features can be included. Everybody who has already worked on some deadlisting will immediate feel a need to work interactive with the code and be able to change it. Therefore lida will have an integrated patcher resolves symbolic names, provides the ability to comment the code, serves efficient browsing methods. The more exotic features of lida should be on the analysis side. The code can be scanned for custom sequences known antidebugging techniques known encryption algorithms also you will be able to directly work with the programs data and for example pass it to several customizable en-/decryption routines. This of course only makes limited sense as it is not a debugger. Tough often I really missed this functionality. Limitations of objdump based disassemblers Usual programs one would like to disassemble are either coded directly in assembly, or use some tricks to avoid beeing disassembled. I will here give a short overview of the most objdump features objdump relies on section headers It is an ELF executable that contains correct section headers. Tough for the OS-loader to run an ELF binary, section headers are not necessary at all. The important thing to get a process loaded into memory are the program headers . So the first common anti disassembling trick is to either drop or manipulate the ELF section headers By doing so, objdump refuses to perform the disassembly: [emailprotected]> file tiny-crackme tiny-crackme: ELF 32-bit LSB executable, Intel 80386, version 1, statically linked, corrupted section header size [emailprotected]> objdump -D tiny-crackme objdump: tiny-crackme: File format not recognized The binary I took as example to verify is yanistos tiny-crackme objdump does not trace the execution flow I By not tracing the execution flow objdump can easily be fooled to just disassemble a few lines and stop there. This means it does not recognize any functions, does not see the code which is stored in data sections. objdump does not trace the execution flow Additionally another common trick is to insert garbage opcodes and overjump them to disalign the disassembly from the execution flow. Example: When an instruction jumps into the middle of the next instruction, objdump does not disassemble from this exact location. It will continue with the next instruction and consequently dissasemble garbage from here on. As a result you will mainly see totally usesless instructions in the whole disassembly. . Implementation Details lida uses libdasm of the bastard for single opcode decoding. It does not use the whole environment including the typhoon database. The main program is coded in perl/TK which uses a C backend for the most timeconsuming parts (disassembly, analysis, scanning for strings). Generally lida is designed to be as fast as possible (the disassembly) by trying not to waste all your RAM 🙂 lida is designed to be also efficient in usability. Therefore all important functions are accessible via single keystrokes, or short commands. This means no clicking around is necessary, you can enter your tasks directly into the commandline. The disassembling engine The disassembling is done in currently 4 (or 6) passes, default is all 6: 1st pass is the main control flow disassembly Here the disassembly is started from the executables entrypoint, and recursively disassembles the binary by following each branch, and stepping into each sub- routine. This leads in also disassembling code blocks in data sections, if existent :), so the disassembly is not limited to a .text section. Also, if indirect jumps/calls are used, the final destination is looked up in the binaries data of course 2nd pass for glibc binaries: A heuristic scan scans for the main() function and starts pass1 there (so also re- cursive disassembling) 3rd pass all other code sections This pass repeats pass1 for all found executable sections, and starts at section start. If the binary does not contain section headers, the disassembly starts at the first loaded executable address. 4th pass functions This pass scans for typical function prologues and starts pass1 at each found address. This is for discovering code regions which are not explicitly called, and where their entrypoints are evaluated at runtime. 5th pass disassembling caves All passes build up a map of the binary. If until now there are code regions which were not yet disassembled, they can be now. 6th pass remainders If pass 5 was executed, and there are still caves, they are displayed as DB xx, Definitely for pass 4 and 5 there are enhancements to come, as well as for the recursive disassembly function itself. Also to mention whenever a jump into the middle of a previous instruction is beeing found, currently those addresses are beeing marked. To follow is a representation of instructions within instructions (compare 3.1), as of course by intelligent placing of opcodes both instructions can be valid and used during the execution flow. Signature Scanning Basically it is done by a signature scanning. I quote it because it is not a simple pattern matching. For understanding that, one needs a little understanding of typical hash-encryption algorythms. Lets take for example a MD5 hash. How can we find the code that does an MD5 hash? On a very high level generating a hash is usually done in 3 steps: the init function, the update function and the finalize function. The init function usually sets up an array of some numeric values, which are then modified in a loop using the input data (plain data) during the algorythm, until the hash is calculated. The finalize function creates the representation in a common format (easily spoken; it pads the digest and is appending the size). Hoewever, it does not matter to know actually how the algorythm works to find it 🙂 Due to the common fact, that the initialization functions use fixed numeric initialization values, which are the same in every implementation, as they are part of the algorythm these are the values we are searching for. For MD5 those are: 0x67452301 0xefcdab89 0x98badcfe 0x10325476 So to find an MD5 implementation, it is necessary to scan for those dword values, of course they can appear in any order (strange enough nearly always they are used in the listed order above). Now as those dwords can exist also in just any binary by accident (oltough seldom) some smarter scanning is done: the values need to appear in a limited size of a code block. The values can be in any order, and also some fuzzyness has been added to scan for a little bit altered init values. Heuristic Scanning Heuristic scanning is not yet implemented. It is intended to find custom crypto code. Basically it is beeing looked for a sequence of suspicious opcode sequences, which look like an encryption routine. OllyDbg is an x86debugger that emphasizes binary code analysis, which is useful when source code is not available. It traces registers, recognizes procedures, API calls, switches, tables, constants and strings, as well as locates routines from object files and libraries. According to the programs help file, version 1.10 is the final 1.x release. Version 2.0 is in development and is being written from the ground up. The software is free of cost, but the shareware license requires users to register with the author. The current version of OllyDbg cannot disassemble binaries compiled for 64-bit processors.

Adaptation Model Theory Analysis

Adaptation Model Theory Analysis Vangilene Shore The theorist I selected is named Lorraine Callista Roy who was born on October 14, 1939, in Los Angeles, California. She was brought up to be raised in a family with solid Catholic bonds. Roy’s father was a truck driver, and her mother was a licensed vocational nurse. Her mother educated her on the significance of caring for people and swayed her choice of career; the one she has chosen permanently. When Roy was fourteen, she started working in the kitchen at a hospital nearby and then came to be a nursing assistant. Description of Roy’s background starts with receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Nursing (BAN) from Mount St. Marys College in Los Angeles, California. Roy then worked as a bedside nurse at St. Marys Hospital in Tucson, Arizona. She then soon began her education to obtain her master’s degree at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in pediatric nursing in 1966. After she earned her degree, she soon returned to Mount St. Marys Hospital as an associate of the faculty, teaching both pediatric and maternity nursing. Roy developed encephalomyelitis and was forced to have to stay in bed soon after she became a part of the faculty at Mount St. Mary’s Hospital. Since she was bedridden, she was required to take a leave of absence. Once things were better, she returned to work in 1968 unaware that years in the future, she would then have an acoustic neuroma taken out. During those early years at Mount St. Marys, Roy began to develop the adaptive theory in which her sickness was crucial because that was the start of her model thinking. With the theory in mind, she organized her course work to involve the persons and families as adaptive systems and developed an integrated nursing curriculum. When Roy was developing her adaptive theory, she used deductive logic. Roy credits the work of Von Bertanlanffys general system theory and Helsons adaptation theory when developing the original root of the scientific assumptions underlying the adaptive model (Parker Smith, 2010). Helsons principles about adaptation helped Roy develop the principle for her theory of the person as an adaptive system and her adaptation model (Parker Smith, 2010). St. Marys College implemented her model as part of the teaching curriculum in 1970. Soon after that, she was chosen as chair of the nursing department in 1971 and stayed in that position until 1982. During her time there, she was continuing to earn a second masters degree from UCLA in sociology and in 1977, a Ph.D. in sociology, also from UCLA. She took postdoctoral studies in neuroscience nursing at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). Her interest in this field was provoked by her own involvements with neurological diseases, and she sought to increase her knowledge of the holistic person as an adaptive system. By the time 1981 came around, the adaptive model of nursing practice was known to many. Dr. Roy and her associates turned to thirty other schools in order to show them how to use the model in their associate to doctoral level nursing program. Dr. Roy has also helped to develop a masters of science program in nursing at the University of Portland in Oregon. At B oston College, she was then asked to help develop a Ph.D. program in nursing in 1987. The latest research she is doing focuses on nursing interventions for those who have suffered mild head injuries with the adaptive model. Roy studied with Dr. Dorothy Johnson while at UCLA. Dr. Johnson had developed the Behavior System Model of Nursing. She insisted Sister Roy to develop her concept of adaptation and refine what she has into a theory to define the goal of nursing. Introduction to Nursing: An Adaptation Model, was published in 1976 and has been updated many times during the course of the years. Theory Description Adaptation model addresses the focus of nursing care, the target of nursing care, and the need for nursing care. Dr. Roys perspective of the patient is holistic. According to Parker Smith (2010), Dr. Roy states, â€Å"patients are constantly adapting, and the goal of nursing is to promote that adaptation in both sickness and health.† The four key perceptions and assumptions of the adaptive model in humans are adaptive systems in both individuals and groups, in the environment, health, and also in the goal of nursing. Roy defines the four concepts of the paradigm of nursing as follows: 1. Nursing – The science and practice that expands adaptive abilities and enhances person and environmental transformation. 2. Environment – all conditions, circumstances, and influences that surround and affect the development and behavior of humans as adaptive systems, with particular consideration of person and earth resources. 3. Person – the main focus of nursing, the recipient of nursing care, a living, complex, adaptive system with internal processes acting to maintain adaptation in the four adaptive modes which are physiological, self-concept, role function, and interdependence. 4. Health – a state and a process of being and becoming an integrated and whole human being. According to Parker Smith (2010), assumptions of the theory are as follows: Explicit Assumptions: People are holistic beings. People are continually interacting with their altering environment. People cope with changes by using inborn and learned coping skills that are biological, psychological, and social. Health and illness are a part of everyones life. To adapt, people must have positive responses to changes in their environment. Adaptation depends on a person’s adaptation levels and the stimuli to which they are exposed. Adaptation levels refer to the amount of stimulation that lead to positive responses. The four forms of adaptation are biologic, concept of self, role development, and interaction with others. Nursing values other peoples opinions and points of view. Interaction with others is an essential part of nursing. The ultimate goal of existence is to reach dignity and wholeness. Implied Assumptions: People can be separated into parts for care and study. Nursing is based on cause and effect. Nursing needs to consider and respect a persons opinions and values. When a person adapts, he or she is free to respond to additional stimuli. Nursing Process: Assessment of a patients behavior Assessment of a patients stimuli Nursing diagnosis Goal setting Nursing interventions to meet goals Evaluation Some early critiques point out to the fact that Roy’s theory was only fixated on the holistic aspects of the person and ignored other aspects (Parker Smith, 2010). Dr. Roy reviewed her theory and revised it for the 21st century in the late 1990’s. She depicted her knowledge of philosophy, spirituality, and scientific on the research that she had done. She was seeing individuals as defined by their physical and social environments. She cited nursing scholars who developed a discipline that served to enhance the well-being of people and the earth. Dr. Roy used the phrase â€Å"cosmic unity† to show that people and the earth have common characteristics. Dr. Roys nursing theory is continuously progressing with the findings she has added to the broad base of nursing knowledge and outcomes of nursing practice. Evaluation Roy’s adaption model does a pronounced job in clarifying the role of adaptation in illness and nursing. Dr. Roy included the different types of stimuli, different modes of coping and adapting, and nursing’s role in assisting a patient to adapt (Parker Smith, 2010). The Adaptation model is commonly known by the nursing community. In fact, â€Å"it is one of the most frequently used models to guide nursing research, education, and practice,† claims (Alligood Tomey 2010, p.354). This model is still being taught in several universities in the United States and abroad. Adaption model authenticates considerably in many different nursing disciplines. The model has stimulated the advancement of many middle-range nursing theories. It contains a lot of many major concepts, sub-concepts, and relational statements, which makes the model to be considered as a complex model. The complexity of the adaption model supports the growth of its empirical precision. The adaption model is extensive in the scope and can be used to shape or experiment with nursing theories. This helps to make the model generalizable to all approaches existed in nursing practice. Adaption model is a model that can be researched various ways and can be useful on as a conceptual framework in countless nursing research field ideas. It is beneficial, valid, and essential for nursing practice, nursing education, and development. It is responsible for respected information about individuals adaptation to different environmental stimuli (1). The metaparadigm concepts implanted contained by the adaption model include person, environment, nursing, and health. This is a continuous collaboration on many levels, permitting individuals and groups including families, communities, etc. flexibility and change for better health decisions. Developing the nursing process, nurses can assess to see if there is any maladaptive behaviors and would be able to develop care plans with appropriate interventions that enhance adaptation positively for enhanced conclusions (Kenney, 2013, p.368). An example and evaluation of the adaption model applied is as follows. Mianna, who is a 21 year old female, is seen in the emergency room for a problem of extremely severe lower abdominal pain that also goes along with fever, nausea, and vomiting. Mianna is first escorted by her father, who left as soon as she was taken back to her room. She has a high WBC count and nothing on the ultrasound. The x-ray was negative. Intravenous antibiotics are ordered as treatment for likely pelvic inflammatory disease. Medication for pain helped Mianna to be more at ease regardless of the fever and nausea. Initial calculation of the application of the adaption model will address Mianna’s behavior in four key parts. The physiological state of her adaptation level has been compromised by her health position that includes lower abdominal pain and nausea with fever. Mianna has been having to manage these symptoms of infection, which unfortunately were caused by partaking in unprotected sex. The self-concept group identity in adaption model can determine that the patient has made the decision to come to the hospital for treatment. This is indicating good judgment on behalf of Mianna. Since she reached out to health care when sickness has bestowed upon her indicates that Mianna has some meaning or connection to the world. Recognizing role, meaning Mianna is a twenty one year old who has been in a sexual relationship with multiple partners. She has approximately some relationship with her father, taking in consideration that he is the one that brought her to the hospital. When bearing in mind interdependence mode, we can see that Mianna is a twenty one year old in which her father came with her to the hospital, but he then left, which now leaves Mianna alone looking for treatment of the illness that is compromising her life. The adaption model is pertinent to Mianna and her family, since it shows that her father does know something is wrong with Mianna but does not stay to find out what. Next, the assessment requires collecting further information and linking it to internal and external factors recognized as focal, contextual, and residual that manage adaptive behaviors in persons. Concepts will look at the links between the person and their environment and see how the environment affects adaptive behaviors and level of functioning (Roy’s adaptation model, 2012). The adaptation model supports the nursing process and nursing practice related to holistic and human adaptation (Lee, Tsand, Wong, Lee 2011). Merging the evidence from the two assessments, the nurse can create a care plan founded on the impression that the individual has two coping factors to deal with eventful situations (McEwen Wills, 2011, p. 171-172). Nursing care would be focused on helping patients make modifications to their behavior as a way to cope when illness arises. Preferred patient care conclusions for Mianna’s case study can be based on the same ideologies. Identifying Miannaâ €™s internal and external factors can help start to comprehend how Mianna copes with stress. The interventions that can be utilized would be to educate Mianna on the illness that has affected her and to explain about health promotion and preventing behaviors that can cause this illness. Mianna can validate that she comprehends the instructions by reeducating the nurse on the topic at hand. Referring Mianna to the college clinic or a community based health program will help to make available additional knowledge and management. Mianna, if wanted, can benefit from these referrals. â€Å"In terms of dealing with a chronic illness or disease or even acute conditions, Roy concludes that the goal of nursing care is to provide ways for patient to adapt to their environment.† (need a site) Application I feel the adaption model characterizes the concept of care in my hospital setting. It helps by showing the mind and body are connected and are treated holistically. Working in the emergency room as a nurse who sees death and dying on a daily basis makes it easier to deal with when knowing that the spirituality or the metaphysical certainly come into play when one is dying. When I have patients that are actively dying, they will sometimes request a chaplain, even if he or she was not formerly religious. This makes me believe even more in the adaption model. These individuals are looking for a purposeful and gracious death, which is relating to the self-concept mode, concentrating on the sense of unity, meaning, purposefulness in the universe (McEwen Willis, 2011). Nurses are to maintain our patients’ quality of life and warrant that they have a dignified and peaceful passing, even if it is in the emergency room. Again, Roy’s goal of nursing is promoting adaptation to c ontribute to a person’s health, quality of life, and dying with dignity (McEwen Ellis, 2011). That is why I feel that this model fits perfectly in the hospital that I work at. I am anticipating that I can enhance to better serve my patients, having a better awareness of the adaptation processes and thus a better understanding of the interventions I deliver. In closing, this adaptation model has been established as a guide for nursing practice in a world with developing needs that change daily. When the model is applied, the model delivers a plan for knowledge improvement for the patients. Roy’s theory adds great value to, not only the discipline of nursing practice, but also nursing science, education, research, and administration. This is why I have decided to indulge in Dr. Roy’s adaption model. References Parker, M. E., Smith, M. C. (2010). Nursing Theories and Nursing Practice (3 ed.). Philadelphia, PA: F. A. Davis. Retrieved from http://www.ebrary.com

management :: essays research papers

1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Donna is a successful leader because she has the vision to inspire people to follow her and achieve the goals that benefit the Zoo . Donna had a vision or shared dream to make the buffalo Zoo regain its world class in 10-25 years, a strategy of gaining employees respect by empowering them to make decisions, encouraging them and supporting their efforts, Donna is a self confidence person, she has the business knowledge because of her high education (master,ph.D) and her extensive experience in zoology , Ballmer’s actions and behaviors demonstrate a task orientation approach by setting performance goals, coordinating activities, providing resources, supervising workers and setting standards. By thinking about the business in the future, holding people accountable for their responsibilities, working together, forming a business strategy, improving technology development, building trust with customers, improving quality of products and services, and showing honesty and respect to competitors. All theise great quality that Donna holds made her successful as president and CEO. 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ballmer expresses a position power. This includes a legitimate power that indicates a formal authority. One of Ballmer’s goals is to achieve a greater business is to push authority down. Indicating that Ballmer wants all the authority. Coercive power is also expressed by Ballmer, a power to punish, discipline and withhold rewards. He is going to hold employee responsible for their actions. 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There is evidence of a personalized power orientation which focuses on an impulsive power. Ballmer seems like he wants controlled and centralized decision making. He doesn’t ask for advice or feedback from the managers or other employees. 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Yes, there is evidence of delegation. Delegation is defined as a leader providing employees with several tasks. Ballmer made a list of new tasks that needed to be accomplished in order for Microsoft to become a better company. If these task aren’t being accomplished then employees are going held accountable. 5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Yes, Ballmer demonstrates the 3Cs Model of Leadership. He has competence by being knowledge about how Microsoft operates.

Developmental Assessment Essay -- Child Assessment Essay

The child I chose to write about for this assignment is two year old Danjuma from Wayne, Ohio. He is the youngest of three children and attends an Early Head Start Program two days a week. The child’s parents have jobs; when the mother is working her sister takes care of Danjuma. The family has financial problems but don’t qualify for any type of public assistance. Danjuma is twenty-four inches tall and twenty-eight pounds. He walks well and has good coordination; he can be seen running, jumping, creeping, crawling, and rolling. He can kick a small ball forward as well as catch a ball using is full body; he can also throw a ball overhand. At home he can turn doorknobs, get himself undressed, and can feed himself using eating utensils. At the Early Head Start Program Danjuma enjoys completing simple puzzles, scribbling, shaking rhythm instruments, manipulating clay, and different finger play activities. He loves washing his hands on his own but requires help at home due to the fact that he can’t yet reach the sink. Like any child, Danjuma loves using his senses and motor skills to explore his world; he can be seen looking intently at his toys and food as if curious about them; he also still puts objects in his mouth to further explore what they are. When taken to a new place, Danjuma shows curiosity; his mother recently took him to the library for the first time. The child ran immediately to the children’s section, touching and looking at everything with enthusiasm. Danjuma did all of this again the next time he went to the library as if he was remembering about what he did the last time he was there. This child recently got a shape sorter toy; he has been seen struggling to get the correct shapes in each hole. Wh... ...nts and teachers. The socioculture theory talks about how â€Å"†¦parents, caregivers, peers and the culture at large are responsible for the development of higher order functions.† Basically, the child in question is influenced by what goes on around him. He is read to a lot at home, so he has started trying to read familiar books on his own. He sees new opportunities every day to do something new that his friends are trying, so of course he has to try it too. He has also learned that the way he talks with his family is okay because they ‘translate’ everything he says to others that don’t understand him. Works Cited http://psychology.about.com/od/developmentecourse/f/sociocultural-theory.htm http://www.sparknotes.com/psychology/psych101/personality/section3.rhtml http://www.education.com/reference/article/arnold-gesell-child-learning-development-theory/ Developmental Assessment Essay -- Child Assessment Essay The child I chose to write about for this assignment is two year old Danjuma from Wayne, Ohio. He is the youngest of three children and attends an Early Head Start Program two days a week. The child’s parents have jobs; when the mother is working her sister takes care of Danjuma. The family has financial problems but don’t qualify for any type of public assistance. Danjuma is twenty-four inches tall and twenty-eight pounds. He walks well and has good coordination; he can be seen running, jumping, creeping, crawling, and rolling. He can kick a small ball forward as well as catch a ball using is full body; he can also throw a ball overhand. At home he can turn doorknobs, get himself undressed, and can feed himself using eating utensils. At the Early Head Start Program Danjuma enjoys completing simple puzzles, scribbling, shaking rhythm instruments, manipulating clay, and different finger play activities. He loves washing his hands on his own but requires help at home due to the fact that he can’t yet reach the sink. Like any child, Danjuma loves using his senses and motor skills to explore his world; he can be seen looking intently at his toys and food as if curious about them; he also still puts objects in his mouth to further explore what they are. When taken to a new place, Danjuma shows curiosity; his mother recently took him to the library for the first time. The child ran immediately to the children’s section, touching and looking at everything with enthusiasm. Danjuma did all of this again the next time he went to the library as if he was remembering about what he did the last time he was there. This child recently got a shape sorter toy; he has been seen struggling to get the correct shapes in each hole. Wh... ...nts and teachers. The socioculture theory talks about how â€Å"†¦parents, caregivers, peers and the culture at large are responsible for the development of higher order functions.† Basically, the child in question is influenced by what goes on around him. He is read to a lot at home, so he has started trying to read familiar books on his own. He sees new opportunities every day to do something new that his friends are trying, so of course he has to try it too. He has also learned that the way he talks with his family is okay because they ‘translate’ everything he says to others that don’t understand him. Works Cited http://psychology.about.com/od/developmentecourse/f/sociocultural-theory.htm http://www.sparknotes.com/psychology/psych101/personality/section3.rhtml http://www.education.com/reference/article/arnold-gesell-child-learning-development-theory/

Everyday Use Analysis Essay

â€Å"Everyday Use† is a short story by â€Å"Alice Walker†, it is a disdainful short story. A story about two sisters and a mom, that the two girls are totally different. Also teaching to stand up for what you want. This story is about a mom and a girl called Maggie that they live alone because the older sibling moved out. In the story Maggie and the mother have not seen how much Dee has changed in over six years. Dee in the short story sees that her sister Maggie and her mother have not change throughout these six years not a bit. In the story Dee and Maggie are examples of foil characters. Maggie is the very shy and polite one out of her and Dee. Maggie was the character that lived with mama, during the story it says that Maggie was burned in a house fire. This character is a character that would just blend into the background because of how shy she was, she wouldn’t talk to much; so she would rather just blend in with the surroundings. Maggie was a foil character because her and mama didn’t change nothing throughout the six years that passed, while Dee did change a lot; throughout those six years. Maggie is a good hearted kid, she would rather let Dee have the quilts that were promised to her, instead of fighting over them. Dee is sisters with Maggie in this story, she is the character who is very impolite, or that does things her way. Dee is the only educated character; it says in the short story that she left so that she could be educated. Dee is noticed as a character that does whatever she wants, and have it go her way. One example is that, Dee wears a brightly colored, yellow-and-orange, ankle-length dress that is inappropriate for the warm weather. This shows that she would wear anything she wants even if its inappropriate in any way. In the story mama wouldn’t let Dee have the quilts, and she became furious. This another example that she is very stubborn, because in the end she keeps the quilts. In this story i learned that being generous and polite will get you farther in life, but if you’re stubborn, and impolite you won’t get as far in life.

Genetic Engineering in Food Production Essay

Genetic Engineering in Food Production: Is it Safe, Wise, and Moral? Over the past couple of decades, the genetic engineering has been found and is regarded as the improvement of advanced technology in the field of biology. Ever since the first gene was cloned in 1973, genetic engineers have been pursuing at break-neck speed the unlimited possibilities promised by biotechnology . Their excitement, which has generated billions of investment dollars for the industry, is understandable. Bioengineering allows scientists to identify specific gene sequences responsible for particular characteristics and then to transfer the genes — and the specific trait — into entirely different species. One of the more current and controversial issue in the field of biotechnology is the use of bioengineering in food production. Scientists are experimenting with many different plants, but the genetic engineering of the tomato, dubbed Flavr Savr has been the most highly publicized project by far. The new tomato is supposed to boast more red and be tastier due to its longer staying time on the vine, thereby giving it more time to accumulate sweetness; yet, it will not rot or spoil because of its new genetic makeup. (Davidson 1993). With this advanced technology scientists argue that it could offer the greatest hope in the aid to stop hunger in Third World countries. This new technology could be used to make bulk levels of food production more efficient and less costly. However, despite all of its advantages in creating better crops, many people are very skeptical about its safe and possible long-term health effects. Moreover, the social issue lies deep in the realm of ethical and moral concerns. Do people really want to eat meat that is leaner and tastier but contains genes from humans? Or, would individuals (like vegetarians) be able to eat certain vegetables that may contain genes from animals? Personally, I would not support the use of genetic engineering in food production based on moral and ethical reasons: I do not think that scientists should be able to use their knowledge and social prestige in society to be able to play the role of God in creating new or better living things even if their justification is for the purpose of serving mankind. Although we still have much to learn about genes, recently developed techniques have already given rise to a new technology of molecular genetics. Genetic engineering, also known as gene splicing/manipulation and recombinant DNA technology is a set of techniques for reconstructing, or deliberately manipulating, the genetic material of an organism. Operating at the molecular level, this process involves the addition, deletion, or reorganization of pieces of an organism’s DNA (known as genes) in order to alter that organism’s protein production (Arms et al. 1994). The use and applications of genetic engineering range from medical and pharmaceutical to industrial crops and food products. Its applications, today or in the future, include†¦creating improved strains of crops and farm animals (Arms et al. 1994). All of these applications rely on the ability to transplant genes into a cell’s makeup, or genome. The new gene may come from another organism, of the same species, or it may contain DNA produced in the laboratory. One example, the new Flavr Savr tomato, developed by Calgene, a biotechnology company based in Davis, California, was subjected to years of scrutiny before the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) agreed that it was safe to eat. They found, copied, and rebuilt a gene that lets these tomatoes stay on the vine without softening and spoiling. That means that the fruit can develop more of the sugars and acids that make a home-grown tomato taste so sweet and rich. Conventional tomatoes sold in the stores are often hard and flavorless because they are picked while green and firm enough to transport, then ‘ripened’ by spraying with ethylene (Wood 1995). This turns the tomato red but does nothing to develop a riper flavor. Ethylene, a colorless, odorless gas that once kicks in, so do all the problems of perishability (Wood 1995). Since tomatoes have a softening gene, it produces RNA (Ribonucleic Acid) to help manufacture a protein that causes rotting. To stop the tomatoes going soft too soon, the researchers devised a way to block production of the enzyme polygalacturonase, which breaks down cell walls and eventually causes the fruit to rot (Miller 1994). The Calgene scientists inserted a mirror image of the softening gene that produces a reverse copy of the RNA. This reverse RNA blocks the action of the regular RNA and helps to preserve the fruit. All in all, Calgene seems to have produced a good but hardly outstanding tomato using antisense technology, given all the propaganda and advertisements. A couple of the reasons for why the tomato failed were because: (a) the manipulation of the ripening gene had unintended consequences (soft skin, weird taste, compositional changes); and (b) the high price — they tried selling it at first for$2. 99 a pound (as expensive as organic tomatoes), then later dropped the price to $2. 49, then $1. 99, then . 99. Furthermore, the general public does not seem persuaded or have caught up with this trend yet. For one, people are greatly concerned about the safety of the product since the FDA does not insist that genetically engineered foods carry a special label, even though the FDA assured consumers that they can be confident in knowing that foods produced by genetic engineering are as safe as food in our grocery stores today, stated FDA Commissioner David A. Kessler, MD (Miller 1994). However, critics have cited a case in which at least 31 people died and 1500 contracted a fatal blood disease after ingesting a genetically engineered batch of L-trytophan, a dietary supplement (Davidson 1993). Without proper labeling it will be impossible for consumers to exercise their right to choose what kind of foods they eat. Another issue among consumers and environmental activist groups is that of moral and ethical concerns. Many people feel that scientists might have gone too far in terms of experimentation. We have now come to the end of the familiar pathway of leaving everything to the creation of Mother Nature. With the rise of advanced technology in genetics, scientists now possess the ability to manipulate genes, and redirect the course of evolution. They can reassemble old genes and devise new ones. They can plan, and with computer simulation, anticipate the future forms and paths of life. Hence, the old ways of evolution will be dwarfed by the role of purposeful human intelligence. However, just as nature stumbled upon life billions of years ago and began the process of evolution, so too would the new creators of life find that living organisms all have a destiny of their own. To evaluate the validity of the benefits of this technology, we need to answer three simple questions: Is it safe, is it wise, is it moral? Sinsheimer 1987). To answer the first question about whether it is safe, if the technological developments are kept open to public knowledge and scrutiny, I think in the short term it could be. This way the general public can monitor the hazards of any new product introduced into the biosphere, and can probably cope with any immediate problems or consequences. In answering the second question of whether it is wise, I would say that it is not. Through decades of research, scientists have learned of the different pathogens that prey on humans, animals, and major crops. But I believe that their knowledge is still very limited in trying to understand what led to these organisms’ existence and modes of adaptation. Thus scientists cannot really predict whether all their new discoveries and creations might somehow lead to a new and unexpected group of harmful species since potential organisms that could be converted by one or more mutations be transformed from harmless bugs to serious risks. Finally, to answer the question of the advantages of genetic engineering in terms of morality and ethics, I can only say that the more we create, the more problems we will have in the long run in trying to solve them. Life has evolved on this planet into a delicately balanced and fragile network of selfsustaining interactions and equilibrium. If we try to change or replace the creatures and vegetation of this earth with human-designed forms to conform to human will, I believe we will forget our origins and inadvertently collapse the ecological system in which we were found. Moreover, do we really want to assume the full responsibility for the structure and make-up of our world? I think that we seriously need to intervene between the scientists and engineers to consider a solution that will help slow down all of these experiments so that we could step back and look at what we are doing. If not, I think that these practicing scientists and researchers should be more broadly educated in our humanistic values and traditions. They need to understand the implications of what they are doing in order to be able to balance the concerns of the natural environment and that of society’s humanistic needs; to bear in mind that technology exists only to serve and not create. Human beings, are of course, sprung from the same DNA and built of the same molecules as all other livings things. But if we begin to regard ourselves as just another group of subjects to test our experiments on by altering or tampering with the foods we eat, just like another crop to be engineered or another breed to be perfected, we will surely lose our awe of humanity and undermine all sense of human dignity.