What Went Wrong? Lessons in Leadership from Solomon, the Bible’s Wisest and Worst Ruler

This paper attempts to demonstrate the many insights about successful and unsuccessful leadership that may be derived from the life of King Solomon, who, according to Scripture, was the wisest man who ever lived. Solomon may have been very wise but made some very serious blunders as a leader that led to the breakup of his empire after his son took over. This paper answers the obvious question as to which mistake/character flaw transformed Solomon from a great leader to an unsuccessful leader. This paper will also examine the Book of Proverbs attributed to Solomon and see what leadership lessons can be gleaned from it. One question that the paper will attempt to answer is whether or not Solomon followed the path of wisdom discussed in Proverbs

What Went Wrong? Lessons in Leadership from Solomon, the Bible’s Wisest and Worst Ruler

This paper attempts to demonstrate the many insights about successful and unsuccessful leadership that may be derived from the life of King Solomon, who, according to Scripture, was the wisest man who ever lived. Solomon may have been very wise but made some very serious blunders as a leader that led to the breakup of his empire after his son took over. This paper answers the obvious question as to which mistake/character flaw transformed Solomon from a great leader to an unsuccessful leader. This paper will also examine the Book of Proverbs attributed to Solomon and see what leadership lessons can be gleaned from it. One question that the paper will attempt to answer is whether or not Solomon followed the path of wisdom discussed in Proverbs

Encounters with God: Rabbinic Stories and What We Can Learn from Them

Storytelling skills are an indispensable way of teaching people lessons. Unlike case histories that are limited to facts, stories can stir emotions and arouse the audience\u27s passion. This may be why stories, even fiction, have been used to teach ethics/Mussar. The sages of the Talmud were not historians; they told stories—fascinating ones. The Rabbinic stories involving God are a clever device to teach various lessons about the Divine. Several of the above narratives demonstrate conclusively how the legal system based on the Torah is supposed to work. The stories are also designed to show that God cares about people and even spends His time as a matchmaker. God is very close to humanity in Talmudic stories and even laughs when they best Him; he is also a bit of a joker. He has incredible warmth for His creations and sometimes seeks advice and blessings from mortals. He appreciates a good discussion and allows angels and people to argue with him. The authors provide a Table to illustrate the characteristics, lessons, and ideas contained in each of the examined stories

Welcome to New York City, COVID-19 Capital of the World

[Excerpt] We write to you from the epicenter of the United States coronavirus pandemic, New York City, more specifically from the deadliest zip code in Brooklyn, where we are “sheltering in place” Times Square, New York City, New York April 22, 2020, Courtesy Pearl Weisel although, being New Yorkers, we prefer to call it “lockdown.” New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo likes to say we are on PAUSE, an acronym for Policies Assure Uniform Safety for Everyone. Thank goodness, an acronym. We’re in good hands

How We Got Here: Connectivity, Creativity, Confluence and Internet Culture

There are more innovations today than at any time in human history. The companies that value creativity and diversity of ideas in their hires are the ones most likely to thrive. Indeed, the key asset of a corporation is the abilities, innovativeness, and creativity of its employees. The authors construct a timeline of critical events leading up to today’s highly networked and interconnected world with its ubiquitous social media technologies. The current state has been influenced by advances in media, technology, military defense, and commerce. One trend that stands out in this timeline is the increasing rate of change. It also becomes apparent that the companies that will survive are the ones that are nimble, sensitive to changes in the competitive environment, and can quickly adapt

What’s so Funny about Arguing with God? A Case for Playful Argumentation from Jewish Literature.

In this paper, we show that God is portrayed in the Hebrew Bible and in the Rabbinic literature—some of the very Hebrew texts that have influenced the three major world religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—as One who can be argued with and even changes his mind. Contrary to fundamentalist positions, in the Hebrew Bible and other Jewish texts God is omniscient but enjoys good, playful argumentation, broadening the possibilities for reasoning and reasonability. Arguing with God has also had a profound influence upon Jewish humor, demonstrating that humans can joke with God. More specifically, we find in Jewish literature that humor’s capacity to bisociate between different domains of human experience can share a symbiotic relationship with argumentation’s emphasis on producing multiple, contested perspectives. Overall, once mortals realize that figures such as God can accept many perspectives through humor, teasing, arguing, criticism, and in at least one case, even lawsuits, a critical point emerges: citizens should learn to live, laugh, and reason with others with whom they disagree

The Role of Information Technology in Fulfilling the Promise of Corporate Social Responsibility

Young people today want to work at a meaningful job and make a difference in the world. Information technology (IT) is an effective enabler for all sorts of business strategies, so it comes as no surprise that IT is useful for implementing a firm\u27s corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative as well. The computer professional of the twenty-first century has the tools, training, and talent to be involved in strategic decision making that will have a lasting impact on society. Computer technology can be used to increase profits; but it can also be used to enhance the workplace, create adaptations for disabled employees, create educational opportunities that bridge the digital divide, improve business ethics, and help society

Managing diabetes in preschool children

This article is a new chapter in the ISPAD Clinical Practice Consensus Guidelines Compendium. The complete set of guidelines can be found for free download at www.ispad.org. The evidence grading system used in the ISPAD Guidelines is the same as that used by the American Diabetes Association

Phenotypic characteristics of early Wolfram syndrome

BACKGROUND: Wolfram Syndrome (WFS:OMIM 222300) is an autosomal recessive, progressive, neurologic and endocrinologic degenerative disorder caused by mutations in the WFS1 gene, encoding the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) protein wolframin, thought to be involved in the regulation of ER stress. This paper reports a cross section of data from the Washington University WFS Research Clinic, a longitudinal study to collect detailed phenotypic data on a group of young subjects in preparation for studies of therapeutic interventions. METHODS: Eighteen subjects (ages 5.9–25.8, mean 14.2 years) with genetically confirmed WFS were identified through the Washington University International Wolfram Registry. Examinations included: general medical, neurologic, ophthalmologic, audiologic, vestibular, and urologic exams, cognitive testing and neuroimaging. RESULTS: Seventeen (94%) had diabetes mellitus with the average age of diabetes onset of 6.3 ± 3.5 years. Diabetes insipidus was diagnosed in 13 (72%) at an average age of 10.6 ± 3.3 years. Seventeen (94%) had optic disc pallor and defects in color vision, 14 (78%) had hearing loss and 13 (72%) had olfactory defects, eight (44%) had impaired vibration sensation. Enuresis was reported by four (22%) and nocturia by three (17%). Of the 11 tested for bladder emptying, five (45%) had elevated post-void residual bladder volume. CONCLUSIONS: WFS causes multiple endocrine and neurologic deficits detectable on exam, even early in the course of the disease. Defects in olfaction have been underappreciated. The proposed mechanism of these deficits in WFS is ER stress-induced damage to neuronal and hormone-producing cells. This group of subjects with detailed clinical phenotyping provides a pool for testing proposed treatments for ER stress. Longitudinal follow-up is necessary for establishing the natural history and identifying potential biomarkers of progression