The Theory of the Invisible Hand Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

The Theory of the Invisible Hand - Essay Example The above theory is further explained as a condition by which an individual in a society will toil enough to put his capital in the domestic industry so as to encourage its produce for getting a better value, and by doing this, the individual is trying to put in his labor, unknowingly or indirectly, towards bringing in a larger revenue to the society as a whole. In this sort of constructive endeavors the individual actually does not intend to promote the public interest at all, and also does not know to what extent he is promoting it. This unintended promotion bestowed on the society will naturally be more than the actual worth if the individual has really intended it. The theory of the Invisible Hand affirms that if a consumer is given the chance to select freely, that is, at his own will without any external coercion or persuasion, from the several options or products before him, then each producer responsible for the options or products will get the total freedom to choose what to sell or what to produce and how to produce it. This will allow the intended market to settle upon a very convenient product distribution and pricing system so that it will benefit all the members of the society. The reason for deriving such an outcome is vested in the truth that the greed and self interest of an individual will force the attributes to transform into a state of collective and gainful qualities benefiting the society. In economics related to industrial organizations, this theory is applied in the viable and effective production methods in order to maximize the profits. Pricing of products will be fixed to the minimum to compete with the rivals. For getting the required profits the investors will put more money in industries which are considered to be the neediest to people or the target group instead of investing in less profitable industries. According to Adam Smith, "It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer or the baker, that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own self interest. We address ourselves, not to their humanity but to their self-love, and never talk to them of our own necessities but of their advantages." (Smith, Adam. Wealth of Nations, http://www.econlib.org/LIBRARY/ Smith/smWN1.html#B.I%2C%20Ch. 2%2C%20Of%20the%20Principle%20which%20gives%20Occasion%20to%20the%20Division%20of%20Labour%2C%20benevolence. Retrieved on 25th April, 2009) Thus, the Invisible Hand theory acts as a balancing mechanism in its entirety in the field of customer oriented production and its strategic marketing and in the matter of building customer relationships so as to increase the gains of the entrepreneurs. In this respect it cannot be construed that these entrepreneur's actions are fully motivated to benefit the interests of the society, but it is focused on himself and his kith and kin, and in reality, the net result of its application is nothing but the exploitation of the common people who are in dire wants of necessities and amenities in their struggle to survive in this world. Explanations of "Invisible Hand" in Society by different authors: Every individual...generally, indeed, neither intends to promote the public interest, nor knows how much he is promoting it. By preferring the support of domestic to that of foreign industry he intends only his own security; and by directing that industry in such a manner as its produce may be of the greatest value, he intends only h

Summarize five articles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Summarize five articles - Essay Example The author is entitled to royalties to compensate for his/her work. Patent is the right to sell and control an invention. Patents are issued by the federal government and are valid for several years after which it becomes void. Patents are given to inventions, industrial designs and model, and know how. Patent can only be registered by the inventor of the product. The holder of the patent has the right to prevent others from disclosing or using the know-how. If someone infringes these rights, the owner may seek court directions for compensation. A trademark is a unique mark, logo, slogan, brand name, motto, symbol, device, design or word applied by a manufacturer to distinguish its products from those manufactured by other companies. Trademarks in the UAE are registered so that they can be protected. The period of registration is ten years after which it has to be registered again. The owner of the trademark can give the rights to third party to use the trademark through a notarized contract. Under article 37 p.1, the act of infringing a trademark or passing off is the same and is liable for

Role of Zinc in Physical Growth and Cognitive Development

Role of Zinc in Physical Growth and Cognitive Development Summary The study covered 2 to 3 year old children in Laguna, Philippines. The study was conducted for the following purposes: to determine the zinc status and its relationship to physical growth and cognitive development; to describe the socio-economic and demographic characteristics, water and sanitation practices, health services, and child care and feeding practices of mothers; to evaluate the food intake and nutrient adequacy; to assess the nutritional status, zinc status and iron status; to determine the level of cognitive development; and to examine the association of zinc status with water and sanitation practices, health services, child care and feeding practices, nutritional status, iron status, and cognitive development. Socio-economic and demographic characteristics revealed that more than half of the households were located in lowland areas. Majority were living in single houses. Some owned the house and inherited the lot from parent. In terms of house materials, most roofs and external walls were made from galvanized iron and concrete/brick/stone. More than one-third of the households have floorings cemented with tiles/linoleum. The main source of electricity was MERALCO in which more than half have their own electric meter. LPG was their major source of fuel for cooking. Further, few households have small holding with agricultural animals like cattle, chicken, ducks, horses and milk cows. Of the households, 69% have 3 to 5 members in the family and 38.5% have children 12 years old and below. In terms of household income, the monthly income ranges from Php1, 000.00 to Php67, 200.00 with a mean monthly income of Php7, 762.00. In general, 57.7% of households were below poverty threshold. The age of mothers ranged from 19 to 58 years old. With a mean age of 29.9 years, more than one-third of the mother-respondents were between 25 to 29 years old. Nearly 3% and 25% were below 20 years and beyond 35 years of age, respectively. In terms of education attainment, majority of mother-respondents either reached high school or graduated from high school. Probably because of lack of education, majority of them have no occupation. Majority of the mothers were married. With regards to religion, most mothers were Roman Catholic. There were more children in district 2 who participated in the study probably because of higher number of children in the area. More than half were 31 to 35 months of age and were female. Some of them belong as the second child in the family. Moreover, 30.2% of the mothers remembered the birth weight of their children based from recall and as recorded in the child’s birth certificate. Only 4% of children were born with low weight. More than one-third of the households have main source of and access to drinking water from the community water system. More than half of the mothers stockpiled water in plastic containers with cover for less than 5 days which can reduce the risk of water storage from being contaminated. Perhaps having an access to sufficient quality and quantity of safe water for consumption, nearly one-third of the mothers do not to store water for drinking. Majority of the mothers spent amount of time obtaining water from water sites that could have been dedicated to other activities like child care. In terms of toilet facilities, almost all households have their own water-sealed latrines however 30.9% of them shared their toilets with other households. In relation to garbage disposal and segregation, most of the households have their garbage collected and carried out proper waste segregation possibly because of the garbage collection system being implemented in the province. In terms of health conditions, almost 70% of the children have been sick for the last 30 days. The most common type of illness experienced was Upper Respiratory Tract Infection such as cough, cold and pneumonia. Parasitism was one of the existing health illnesses among children but majority of them were not yet dewormed. Among children who had suffered from illnesses, 85.9% of the mothers sought for medical help probably because of better access to health centers. In terms of infection, only 12.1% of children were tested positive with infection. Male children were more at risk to infection than female counterparts. With regards to health services, 48.3% of children were not fully immunized, 20.1% received iron syrups and 79.2% received Vitamin A supplementation. More than half of the mothers brought their children to health centers when suffering from diarrhea and nearly 30% of children were provided with Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS). In terms of participation in nutrition educati on classes, only 32.2% of the mothers were attending. In addition, 65.1% of the households were involved in different government nutrition programs food fortification, food assistance, community food production and livelihood programs. Relative to child care and feeding practices, most of the mothers were the main source of physical and emotional care of the children. In her absence, 31.6% of grandmothers took responsibility by feeding the child, bathing the child and baby-sitting. All mothers claimed that they frequently talk, praise, kiss/hug/show affection, play, and tell stories with their children. During meals, majority of the mothers help, encourage and motivate the children to eat as well as they maintain eye to eye contact and minimize distractions if children lose interest easily. Similarly, most of the mothers put their children to sleep and take care of them when they wake up at night. In terms of the children’s personal hygiene, more than half of them have their own utensils. Majority of children’s hands and face were being washed before eating and after toileting. Of the mothers, almost all wash their hands after toileting the child. In relation to the cleanliness of environment, most of the mothers made sure that their children do not eat food picked up from the ground, do not eat food touched by animals and keep their children away from animal excrement. Moreover, most of the mothers exclusively breastfed their children; initiated breastfeeding within the first hour of life; and gave colostrum during infancy. Nearly half of the children were introduced with solid foods at six months. Most of the children were continued being breastfed by mothers even when they have been given solid food. As children grow old, almost all mothers said they increase their children’s quantity of food, frequency of feeding, consistency of food, and number of food given to them. Moreover, nearly all mothers experiment food combinations, tastes and textures for their children. Similarly, majority of the mothers feed their children during illnesses and recovery. In reference from the scoring system developed for the study, results show that child care and feeding practices of the mothers were excellent which may be attributed to participation in health and nutrition education activities conducted in every barangay. Feeding problems were being encountered among children. Majority of the children accept very limited number of food and reject other food thus they eat food of the same nutrients. Most of them tend to linger with their food during mealtime. More than half eat more than what they need. Conversely, a few of them felt like vomiting especially when fed with coarse foods and some asserted independence in choosing the taste of food. The mean 2-day total food intake of children weighed 1126.2 grams. The two food items considered as the most important in children’s diet were rice and rice products, and whole milk. Overall, majority of the children had energy intake of 100% or more and protein intake of 80% or more. More than 80% of children were able to meet the EAR for Fe and 79.2% for Zn. Thus, no elevated risk of zinc deficiency was found among children based on zinc intake. In terms of supplementation, results show that 47% of children were given with vitamin supplements. Based from the three anthropometric indices, weight-for-age showed that 81.2% of the children had normal weight-for-age while 18.8% suffered from acute malnutrition. Disaggregating by gender, females were more at-risk to acute malnutrition than males. Height-for-age revealed that 33.5% of children were stunted while 66.4% of children had normal height-for-age. The distribution of height-for-age by gender revealed that males had higher prevalence at 19.5% than females. Weight-for-height presented that 3.4% of children had low weight-for-height. Majority had normal weight-for-height while 1.3% was overweight-for-height. Considering the weight-for-height distribution by gender, the current nutritional status of children revealed that 45.6% and 49.7% males and females, respectively, had normal weight-for-height. In terms of biochemical indices, the overall zinc deficiency prevalence was 2%, which considered as low public health significance. The mean serum zinc level in children was 123. 13Â µg/dL. Both gender had the same mean serum zinc, but female children were found at risk to zinc deficiency. The overall anemia prevalence rate was 12.1% and considered as moderate public health significance. The mean hemoglobin level of children was 11.95 g/dL. Mean hemoglobin level and prevalence was higher among female children than male. Only 12.1% of children were tested positive with infection. Male children were at risk to infection than female counterparts. Assessment of cognitive development showed that the average cognitive scaled score was 9.72 points. Disaggregated by age in months, 31 to 35 month old children had the highest average cognitive scaled scores. In general, 27.5% of children were delayed in overall development, from which 12.1% had significant delay while 26.2% were advanced in their overall development from which 1.3% was significantly advanced. Correlation analysis revealed that significant associations were found in water and sanitation practices, health services, infection, food intake, nutritional status and cognitive development. No association was found between child care practices and nutritional status. Using the regression model, the study showed contributory factors that zinc status were energy intake, iron intake, zinc intake, height-for-age, cognitive development and infection. Conclusions The study imparted some knowledge and understanding on the association of zinc status, physical growth, other biochemical indices and cognitive development. It provided evidences on the association of zinc status with water and sanitation practices, infection and health services, child care and feeding practices, food intake, physical growth, iron status and cognitive development. The study found factors that were associated with nutritional status of children. Water and sanitation practices of the households and the mothers like sources of water, storage of water, garbage disposal and waste segregation as well as health services extended to children were associated with nutritional status. In the same manner, infection, food intake and cognitive development were associated with nutritional status. Similarly, weight-for-age, height-for-age and weight-for-height were associated with zinc status, iron status and cognitive development. Associations were found in zinc status, iron status and cognitive development and between iron status and cognitive development, as well. Regression model showed the contributory factors that may affect zinc deficiency. Children with adequate intake of energy, zinc and iron were less likely to become zinc deficient. Similarly, zinc deficiency was less likely to occur among children with normal height for their age and who have an average cognitive development. Conversely, zinc deficiency was higher in children with infection. Recommendations With the assessment of zinc status and its relationship with physical growth and cognitive development, it is recommended that in the achievement of optimum nutritional status of 2 to 3 year old children, food intake should be improved early in life. Nutrition counselling among mothers on Infant and Young Child Feeding should be implemented to promote breastfeeding; the importance of early initiation of breastfeeding and timely introduction of complementary feeding; and its effect on infant growth and survival. Considering the new child growth standards, promotion of breastfeeding and improvement of appropriate complementary feeding are important due to its effects on morbidity, feeding patterns and growth outcomes beyond infancy. Similarly, exclusively breastfed infants of mothers with adequate zinc nutriture can provide their zinc requirements up to 5 to 6 months in life. However, after 6 months of age, breastmilk alone cannot supply sufficient zinc to meet infant’s needs. S o, delayed introduction of complementary foods until after 6 months of age, or inadequate amounts of absorbable zinc in complementary foods increased the risk of zinc deficiency. Therefore, ensure messages on zinc that presented to have associations with stunting and cognitive development. These nutritional outcomes are important in the overall growth and development of children. Because stunting is irreversible after 36 months of age, interventions on pregnant women and young children, particularly those under 24 months of age, should be given attention. Supplementary feeding interventions beyond 36 months of age would not reduce stunting, as rapid weight gain in later childhood is associated with adverse long-term outcomes. A preventive strategy of behavioural change communication for mothers and food supplementation for all 6 to 23 month old children should be targeted in conjunction with the content and timing of present nutrition interventions. In the Philippines, zinc supplementation is provided for the treatment of diarrhea. The study had recognized that zinc delivery intervention such as supplementation improves zinc status, physical growth and cognitive development, as well as documented in the Lancet Series 2013. Health service providers should examine the existing policies on micronutrient supplementation and consider if zinc supplementation could be integrated in the program. Mothers’ participation in health and nutrition services and programs improved the nutritional status of children. Thus, the local health units and health service providers should encourage the participation of the mothers in all health services such as immunization, deworming and micronutrient supplementation. The implementation of micronutrient supplementation should be properly strategized and improved. Health service providers should be more competent and more responsive. Supplies should be continuously available. Health information system should be more efficient and client care should be organized. Government programs should be intensified as these contribute to the improvement of nutritional status. Proper targeting of households and individuals should be designed especially when resources are inadequate. Moreover, nutrition programs should be periodically monitored to review the information, implementation and coverage and use for comparison with the implementation plans. Similarly, programs should be systematically and objectively evaluated to measure the relevance, efficiency and cost-effectiveness; to determine if needs and results have been or are being achieved, and to analyze the details for any discrepancy.

On the Quantum Mechanics of the Human Intellect and the Stories It Crea

On the Quantum Mechanics of the Human Intellect and the Stories It Creates If human beings are to explore those distant and wished for lands, we must first come to grips with some of the perplexing conceptual issues that have dogged quantum physics since its inception. These riddles dance around the enigma of quantum observership. Its contemplation brings us back from the realm of the multiverse to the intimate confines of our own skin, where we ask what it means to say that â€Å"we† â€Å"observe† â€Å"nature.† - Timothy Ferris, The Whole Shebang: A State-of-the-Universe(s) Report During the crisis of modern science in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the postulates of early scientific discoveries had been refuted. In one of science’s most defining moments, an undisturbed photon of light was found to exhibit both wave-like and particulate qualities. The relationship between these two qualities would later be termed complementarity by Niels Bohr, one of the scientists at the forefront of this discovery. As Thomas S. Kuhn notes in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, â€Å"Before [the theory of quantum mechanics] was developed by Plank, Einstein, and others early in [the twentieth] century, physics texts taught that light was transverse wave motion† (12). So staggering was this discovery that in his autobiography, Albert Einstein recounts, â€Å"All my attempts to adapt the theoretical foundations of physics [to the new quantum knowns] failed completely. It was as if the ground had been pulled out from under one, with no firm foundation to be seen anywhere upon which one could have been built.† Not surprisingly, this arrest of the fundamental postulates of classical physics sparked a reevaluation of the â€Å"world view† by the ... ...e and the nature of things to help us to connect ourselves to stories of the past and present while trying to do exactly what Petrus Camper and the scholars of the eighteenth-century were so capable of—the same privilege the wave-particle theory gave to the pioneers of quantum mechanics: to understand the multiverse of intellectual disciplines together. Works Cited Ehrlich, Gretel. Islands, the Universe, Home.New York: Penguin, 1991. Ferris, Timothy. The Whole Shebang: A State-of-the-Universe(s) Report. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1997. Gould, Stephen Jay. Bully for Brontosaurus.New York: W.W. Norton, 1991. I Have Landed: The End of a Beginning in Natural History.New York: Harmony, 2002. Kuhn, Thomas S. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions.Chicago:Chicago U, 1996. Tarnas, Richard. The Passion of the Western Mind.New York: Ballantine, 1991.

Cyber crime Essay

The proliferation of the use of internet technology for some time now has seen the growth of crimes that are committed over the net which is also referred to as the cyberspace. These crimes are referred to as cyber-crime. Basically cyber-crime is part of electronic crime and it is a criminal activity that is executed through computer network (Balkin, 2007). Traditionally the term espouses such crimes as fraud, theft, forgery, blackmail, and other illicit activities that are done over the network. However as the use of computer networks have increased and more types of computer crimes have come up and the definition of the crimes has also become expounded. The web is a worldwide thing in which materials are posted and accessed from all corners of the world. This worldwide coverage of the net gives rise to a diversity of information that is found in the net and it follows that cyber-crimes are a worldwide crimes. The nature of the differences in cultures in the world for example give rise to a need make sure the net is an objective platform of information dissemination, be it religious, social, or political material. The growth of business over the internet; e-business has also brought in another type of cyber crime whereby people may defraud potential customers of their money by advertising goods, services or even jobs that are non existent. Other types of cyber crimes exist, and they shall be looked at in the following discussion. According to the USA’s Department of Justice, there have been very many cases of cyber-crime that are reported annually. This made the US government to join hands with the European council’s Convention against Cyber crime in 2006. Look more:Â  the issues concerning identity theft essay Types of cyber-crimes The crimes that are common in the cyber are fraud. Fraud is a dishonest misrepresentation of facts that is intended to cause loss for somebody else and benefit the fraud doer. This includes changing inputs in internet in unauthorized manner, altering or deleting data that is already stored in the net, altering existing system tools, manipulating bank systems so as to make unauthorized access to bank ATM’s (Shinder, 2002). Offensive content is another form of cyber crime. Harmful contents of websites are considered as cases of cyber crime. Also distasteful or offensive the information carried in a cyber sites is not allowed. All materials that have the potential of inciting hate crimes in societies, materials that encourage political rebellion, or blasphemous material are not allowed also as they are basically offensive in significant manner. If these kinds of materials are found posted on the web their owners are accused of cyber crime. The reason for the restriction of these materials is that they lead to hostilities based on faith, race, etc that the modern world does not have a place for. Harassment is another type of crime that occurs over the net. It includes the circulation of derogatory comments, and obscenities that are directed at certain individuals that are based on their aspects of gender, religion, race, sexual orientation or national identity. This is mainly done through news groups, e mails with hate messages, and chat rooms. Another crime that is supported by the net is drug trafficking. Drug trafficking is done through the net in that the illegal substance sellers use encrypted e-mail and other available internet technologies. The substances themselves are delivered to the buyer after they make payments. This crime leads to more sales for the drug sellers since the trade is restricted in most countries and the intimidated users of the drugs resort to this option as a save haven. Cyber terrorism is another kind of cyber crime. This crime is the coercion or intimidation of organizations or the government to advance a certain persons political or social goals. This is done by launching attacks on their computer networks, and the information stored there using computer. This vice can be defined as an act of terrorism that is committed via the use of computer resources or cyberspace. It ranges from simple propaganda to the use of the internet to commit a serious terrorist attack (Blane, 2003). Hacking activities are classified as acts of cyber terrorism. This activity is the attacking of websites of families, individuals, and groups within a network, in order to collect information that is useful for criminal activities such as blackmailing, robberies, or ruining the activities of the web owners. A Canada case in 2000, which involved a Mafia boy who had committed 54 counts of illegal access to computers, is a classical case of cyber crime. The defendant also faced ten counts for mischievous data attacks on dell computer, yahoo, among other companies’ websites. There are many let downs in the fight against cyber crime. Many countries around the world lack systems and laws that are aimed at combating the crime. In extreme cases there are nations that condone or encourage some cyber crimes. In many of the countries the burden of fighting cyber-crime is left to corporations that are affected in one way or the other by the vice. Some of the countries have laws against the crime but the law is not implemented while others have proposals for the law but they have not made the law. Nigeria here serves as an example of such a country which has a good plan for fighting the crime only that the proposals have not been made into law. The bill addressing the crime is in the national assembly waiting to be discussed. If the bill were passed, cyber criminals would be prosecuted and duly punished. This go slow attitude is seen in many countries that don’t seem to realize the danger that cyber-crimes pose to the victims. In any case government agencies like the police force, and crime investigation departments are among the leading victims of cyber crimes. Also politicians get lots of cyberspace blackmail and hence they should be in the forefront of finding a solution to the problem. Again cyberspace crimes are an image destroying affair. For instance a cyber-criminal operating from a country A to injure a victim in country B destroys the overall image of their country and this may translate to less trust for his country in the eyes of other countries. The result of this may be economical loss of for the country that hosts the cyber-criminals as web based companies refrain from investing in the country (Yar, 2006). Protections against cyber-crimes The enactment of laws against cyber crime by the governments has been a move in the right direction. In US there are such laws as; Computer Abuse and Fraud Act that address issues of fraud that is related to computers, SPAM act that is intended to at controlling assaults of non solicited pornography. Other laws address extortion threats, identity theft, wire fraud, electronic communications privacy, and secrets of trade (Thomas, 2000). Legal frameworks that address each emergent form of cyber-crime should be made. The laws that are made should be implemented and avoid the situations from the past where some of the laws have not been put into practice. There should be cooperation with among the stakeholders concerned in the cyber-crime inclusive of all operators and technical solution providers in the sector. Such cooperation is a fast way to eliminating cyber criminals as their life in the community will be made difficult. The operators of cybercafes should not involve themselves with people who abuse the internet and commit the crimes. Public awareness on the crimes should be instituted. This campaign should inform the public about the dangers involved in the crimes. Awareness about cyber-crime should be created among members of the society so as to cut the number of cases that are likely to occur if the people are not aware. The structure of the Europe’s convention against cyber-crime is that nations who become signatories of it harmonize their national laws, improve their investigative capacity on the matter and cooperate with other nations in the fight against the crimes. If this convention is adopted internationally it is able to stop the problem to a great extent. This is due to the trans-border nature of the problem. Since the net is used and violated worldwide then a workable solution to the problem should be worldwide. If the convention is not adopted in all countries, and cyber-criminals continue to operate freely there still will be effects on those countries that have ratified the convention (Shinder, 2002). On top of all this, victims of cyber-crimes should report the cases to the authorities for actions to be taken. Cyber criminals should be named and shamed so that they may cease from the practice. Conclusion Cyber crimes are very prevalent in today’s world and all actions that is required should be done to curb them. The current actions taken against the crimes are not enough and more should be done to address the problem as it posses a grave danger to the entire population of the world as it has the potential to influence political, social and economical wellbeing of communities, individuals and institutions. Protection of the self’s interest can only be guaranteed through the concerted efforts of all stakeholders and nations in fighting the crime. References Balkin, J. (2007). Cybercrime: Digital Cops in a Networked Environment NYU Press Blane, J. (2003). Cybercrime and Cyberterrorism. Nova Publishers Shinder, D. (2002). Scene of the Cybercrime: Computer Forensics Handbook. Syngress Thomas, D. (2000). Cybercrime: Law Enforcement, Security and Surveillance in the Information Age. Routledge Yar, M. (2006). Cybercrime and Society: Crime and Punishment in the Information Age. SAGE http://www. usdoj. gov/criminal/cybercrime/ http://computerworld. co. ke/articles/2008/11/10/nigerian-govt-rated-low-curbing-cybercrime

Uses of ICT

This section will discuss the background of the study, the statement of the problems, the objectives of the study and the method and limitations of. BACKGROUND. The integration of Information and communication technologies (ICT) into the curriculum is one of the most challenging tasks facing schools. It raises fundamental questions regarding the purposes of schooling and the nature of the curriculum. Information and communication technologies (ICT)—which include radio and television, as well as newer digital technologies such as computers and the Internet—have been touted as potentially powerful enabling tools for educational change and reform. When used appropriately, different ICTs are said to help expand access to education, strengthen the relevance of education to the increasingly digital workplace, and raise educational quality by, among others, helping make teaching and learning into an engaging, active process connected to real life.. The effective integration of ICT into the educational system is a complex, multifaceted process that involves not just technology—indeed, given enough initial capital, getting the technology is the easiest part! —but also curriculum and pedagogy, institutional readiness, teacher competencies, and long-term financing, among others. The positive influence of ICT in schools continues to rise and can no longer be denied. Although, as yet, ICT is by no means at the heart of our education system, it is now widely recognised as an essential tool for learning in the twenty-first century. Indeed, it is vital that today’s children are enabled to take advantage of lifelong learning if they are to survive the constant pattern of change that is likely to mark their working lives. This means not only being comfortable with ICT as a medium, but also being able to exploit its potential to the full and understanding the ways in which ICT can make learning more effective.