What are the purpose and objectives of self-managed teams in the workplace?

Self-managed teams work together to define and accomplish their own goals. They produce their own objectives and control their own work process to achieve these goals. They are different than self-directed teams, which work together to achieve goals determined by outside management. 

The purpose of having these types of teams is that they may have greater motivation than other teams, as they determine their own goals and how to achieve them. When people have ownership over their work, they are more motivated. Data show that a sense of ownership is the most powerful way to motivate people at work. Organizations also use self-managed teams to increase productivity because these teams determine schedules and assign tasks. They combine managerial tasks with work-related tasks, thereby eliminating a layer of management and lowering costs. According to research, companies with self-managed teams have increased profits and productivity and decreased turnover (for more information, see "Are We Ready for Self-Management?" in the Harvard Business Journal).

What is a brief summary of Chapter 10 of The Story of My Life by Helen Keller?

Helen Keller was excited to visit the ocean for the first time, but it frightened her when she first went in it.

When she was eight years old in the summer of 1888, Helen Keller visited the ocean for the first time during her vacation at Brewster, on Cape Cod, with a family friend named Mrs. Hopkins.  Anne Sullivan, Helen's teacher, came too, of course.

I had always lived far inland, and had never had so much as a whiff of salt air; but I had read in a big book called "Our World" a description of the ocean which filled me with wonder and an intense longing to touch the mighty sea and feel it roar. (Ch. 10)

Even though Helen Keller was blind and deaf, she enjoyed the ocean because she could feel the sand and hear the waves.  Unfortunately, when you can’t see and hear, the world can also be a scary place.  When she actually got into the water, she became very frightened of losing control.

Suddenly my ecstasy gave place to terror; for my foot struck against a rock and the next instant there was a rush of water over my head. I thrust out my hands to grab some support, I clutched at the water and at the seaweed which the waves tossed in my face. But all my frantic efforts were in vain. (Ch. 10)

Like most scary experiences, little Helen got over this one.  She was back out in the water soon. She loved the beach, including the crab that Anne Sullivan showed her.  She tried to trap him, but he got away.  Little Helen then realized that the crab was a wild creature and had a right to go wherever he wanted.  She enjoyed picturing him out in the sea enjoying himself.

In Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli, what is the one thing about Stargirl that makes her different?

If I was forced to pick a single character trait about Stargirl that somehow manages to encompass how amazing she is and explains why she is different from other students, I would go with the character trait of self-confidence. 

Self-confidence is a feeling of trust in your own abilities, qualities, and judgment.  Stargirl has a lot of self-confidence.  She likes who she is, and she doesn't feel the need to transform herself into something else for the approval of others.  She wears the clothes that she wants to wear regardless of fashion trends, she sings "Happy Birthday" to people that are complete strangers, and she cheers for both athletic teams with equal fervor.  Other people find Stargirl's attitude and behavior odd and even off-putting, but Stargirl simply does not care what they think.  She is confident in herself and all of her idiosyncrasies.  

What are the poet's first thoughts when he sees the solitary reaper in William Wordsworth's "The Solitary Reaper"?

Wordsworth's thought process has two main phases in his poem "The Solitary Reaper." His first thoughts tend to be upbeat, as he initially imagines the song "Among Arabian sands" (12) and "Breaking the silence of the seas / Among the farthest Hebrides" (15-16). In short, Wordsworth's first thoughts are that the reaper's song has a freeing power, as the musicality of the young woman's singing initially inspires his imagination to explore distant and exciting locations. This first exciting thought is then tempered by one that is more wary, as Wordsworth imagines the song refers to "unhappy, far-off things" (19), and the poet appears to at least partially take back his initial assessment. With this difference between Wordsworth's first and second thoughts in mind, an interesting duality emerges in the solitary reaper's song, as it appears to be simultaneously exciting, awe-inspiring, and melancholy. That said, the lively imagination that was inspired in Wordsworth's first thoughts runs throughout the poem, effectively fusing the two disparate modes of thought represented in the piece. 

What is population policy?

Population policy is any kind of government policy that is designed to somehow regulate or control the rate of population growth. It includes attempts to control birth rates, death rates, and immigration rates---the three major factors that affect population growth. It can also include policies designed to regulate the demographics of population, such as the age distribution or the proportion of different ethnic groups. Many countries have such a policy, but its precise form varies substantially.

First of all, some countries are trying to decrease population growth, while others are trying to increase it. This is because it is generally believed that a rate of population growth between about 0% and 2% is most desirable, while less than 0% or greater than 2% is harmful. Many European countries are trying to increase their population growth, while many Asian and African countries are trying to reduce it.

But more importantly, population policy varies dramatically in its strength, from very mild, benign policies like subsidized sex education and public healthcare to severe, draconian policies like mass deportation or mandated abortion. China's "One Child" policy is an example of the more strict end of the scale, while at the more benign end, Jordan's population policy is mainly focused around improving healthcare to reduce infant and maternal mortality.

At the most extreme, even genocide could be considered a radical and violent form of population policy, as despite its horrific means, its goal is the same as much population policy: to remove certain demographics from the national population.

The term "population policy" refers only to the goal---regulating population growth---rather than the methods by which that goal is achieved.

What are the themes in "River of Names" by Dorothy Allison?

Perhaps the most important theme in Allison's River of Names is the theme of survival through great hardship. The narrator in the novel experiences a difficult childhood, to say the least. Yet through it all, she must find a way to survive. The narrator's deep desire for survival is evident in everything that she does, in every choice that she makes. For example, she doesn't fight back when she is abused. She lies to her girlfriend Jesse to keep their relationship light-hearted and to avoid having to dredge up the pain that relating her abuse to Jesse would cause. She even steals, of which she says that “Stealing was a way to pass the time. Things we needed, things we didn't, for the nerve of it, the anger, the need" (Soho Press, 231). This quote speaks to how poverty forces someone to make decisions that they wouldn't normally make, to act out of desperation and, eventually, out of boredom and despair for their situation. In the end, however, the narrator decides to become a caring person to counteract the anger and depression that she grew up surrounded by, while many of her cousins turned to suicide, drink, and babies to try to take the pain away.

The theme of survival ties in with the theme of domestic and sexual abuse in poverty-stricken Southern families. Starting when she is five years old and ending when she is eleven, she is raped repeatedly by her step-father; her other family members are raped as well, by various cousins and uncles. This seems to be a direct result of the crippling poverty that they experience in the backwoods of South Carolina. In the book, the narrator confesses that, "almost always we were raped, my cousins and I. That was some kind of joke, too" (Soho Press, 227). This demonstrates how the lifestyle and struggles of families living in poverty breeds an attitude of acceptance and flippancy which is conducive to the continuation of incest and abuse. Everyone knows that it is happening, but nobody does anything to stop it; in fact, because it is so common, it becomes like a joke over time.

What are the roles of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Sarojini Naidu, and Rajendra Prasad in Indian society?

B. R. Ambedkar, Sarojini Naidu, and Rajendra Prasad played a vital role in Indian society because of their contributions to Indian independence.

B.R. Ambedkar's role in Indian society can be felt today as he was an important voice in crafting India's constitution. B.R. Ambedekar was vocal in suggesting that a free India had to embrace equality in as many forms as possible. He was a fierce opponent of "untouchability," the idea that society should be stratified into higher and lower castes. He argued that an independent India should be free of caste discrimination, going as far as embedding this idea in the new nation's constitution.

Sarojini Naidu was called "the nightingale of India."   Her writing and public oration reflected her passion towards Indian freedom from British control. Naidu used her renown as an artist to become a force of political change. She was active in the Indian National Congress movement. In the 1940s, she participated in the "Quit India" movement.  Despite being jailed, she did not reject her insistence on a free and independent India.  When India achieved Independence in 1947, "the nightingale" became a part of political history as she became governor of the state of Uttar Pradesh.  She was the first woman to serve in such a capacity.

Rajendra Prasad was the first president of India.  Prasad was an important force in the movement for Indian independence.  He worked with Mahatma Gandhi as an agent of non-violent civil disobedience and took part in Gandhi's Salt March.  Like Gandhi, he was imprisoned for his political actions. However, with independence, he became India's first president. 

Indian society views Ambedkar, Naidu, and Prasad as important forces. Indian independence is due, in large part, to their contributions.  Even after achieving freedom, their commitment to the country was underscored by their public service to the fledgling republic.  In Ambedkar's insistence on banishing caste discrimination, the promises and possibilities of the world's largest democracy can be realized.  Naidu's example proved that the new nation could welcome women and men as political brokers of power. Finally, President Prasad demonstrated how civic duty is the ultimate reflection of love of country.  Each of them saw a vision for the new India, a reality that Indian society appreciates and still pursues today.