The history and development of television Essay

The history and development of television - Essay Example The word television was coined by a Russian scientist Constantin Perskyi in a paper he presented at the International Electricity Congress at the International World Fair in Paris on August 25, 1900. Even before that, Paul Gottlieb Nipkow, a German student, had patented the first television in 1884. It was a electromechanical device based on the photoconductivity of the element Selenium and Nipkow’s spinning disk with a series of holes of equal diameter drilled into it at equal distances. In the camera unit, as the disk spun in front of the object, each hole produced a scan line which was captured by a light detecting device behind it. The scan line was transmitted by radio wave to the reproducer or receiving unit. This basic television and other refinements that came after it were however restricted to transmission of still images and silhouettes. It was only on October 2, 1925 that the Scottish scientist John Logie Baird, who took the lead in development of the electromechan ical television, achieved live transmission of moving half-tone images in his laboratory. Baird’s endeavour took the electromechanical television through a continuous phase of technical development ranging from the first transatlantic transmission between London and New York by his company in 1928, the first transmission between shore to ship, demonstratin of the first electromechanical colour, infrared and stereoscopic television to the first live transmission, of the Epson Derby in 1931 and demonstration of the ultra short-wave television in 1932.

Monarch Butterfly Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Monarch Butterfly - Research Paper Example Butterflies and moths belong to the order, Lepidoptera (Capinera, 628). The special characteristics of this order are the presence of a â€Å"complete, holometabolous life cycle, with separate egg, larva, pupa, and adult stages† (Capinera, 631). And this is why butterflies are classified under this order. A Monarch butterfly has also a similar wing span which comes to â€Å"3.5 to 4 inches† (Garber, 76). Another common feature of the members of Lepidoptera order is that all of them have â€Å"four wings and also scales covering at leats some body parts (Capinera, 631). In Monarch butterflies, the scales are seen â€Å"as a patch near the central veins of the hindwings† (Capinera, 631). There are two subspecies in Monarch butterfly (Oberhauser and Solensky, 1). The species, Danaus plexippus plexippus, is found in â€Å"Southern Canada, the USA, Mexico, most Caribbean Islands, Central America and northern South America† (Oberhauser and Solensky, 1). The sec ond subspecies, Danaus plexippus erippus is seen in â€Å"Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Eastern Brazil† (Oberhauser and Solensky, 1). Monarch butterflies are cold-blooded insects (Learner.org). So they are comfortable in cool climates as in such an atmosphere, they do not need to spend much energy (Learner.org). It can be seen that â€Å"the body of the caterpillar will be covered with nine brown rings aside from black head and it features three pairs of ‘true’ legs with claws attached and five pairs of prolegs that extend backwards† (Monarch-Butterfly.com). To differentiate a female monarch butterfly from a male, one has to look for a simple identification mark -â€Å"the male monarchs have a black spot on each of the hind wings over a vein. The female monarch butterfly does not have this spot† (Monarch-Butterfly.com). In one year, four generations of monarch butterflies complete their life cycle (Monarch-Butterfly.com). Th e life cycle of a monarch butterfly on the other hand includes four stages, namely, the egg, the larvae, the pupa and the butterfly (Monarch-Butterfly.com). The annual life cycle of this majestic insect can be considered to begin in the months of February and March when they mate (Monarch-Butterfly.com). After mating, the butterflies migrate to the Northern and Eastern parts of North America and lay their eggs there in the months of March and April (Monarch-Butterfly.com). It is on the milkweed plant that the Monarch butterflies lay their white eggs (Monarch-Butterfly.com). The eggs will be seen on the undersides of milkweed leaves, usually near the top of the plant. Each female butterfly lay â€Å"several hundred eggs† and the eggs hatch in four days (Monarch-Butterfly.com). There are many invertebrate predators that feed on Monarch eggs and larvae like, red velvet spider mite (Oberhauser and Solensky, 6). The caterpillar is herbivore and feeds only on milkweed leaves for tw o weeks and then attach to a small stem or a leaf of the plant and starts metamorphosing into the pupa stage (Monarch-Butterfly.com). Because of the insistence of the caterpillars on eating only the milkweeds, Monarch butterflies gained another name, the â€Å"milkweed butterfly† (Monarch-Butterfly.com). The caterpillars are only â€Å"about 0.1 inches long† weighing 0.55 grams (Monarch-Butterfly.com). Caterpillars have alternating bands of yellow, white, and black, on their body with a black stripe between pairs of

The Abuse of Freedom of Speech

The Abuse of Freedom of Speech Freedom of Speech, one of Americas downfalls. One of the biggest misconceptions now a days is that many of todays generation has exercised their freedom of speech inappropriately. They have cruelly misused and abused it by using it as an excuse to be discriminative, unpleasant, and barbarous.42% of teenagers with tech access report being cyber bullied over the past year, this is because technology has created a generation that have gained the wrong kind of confidence from behind a computer or cell phone screen. Social media outlets and many other sources have become a crutch for allowing this corruption of what we call one our Constitutional Rights. Yes America has the right to express its freedom, but does that mean we have to cruel and malicious when we become upset? When it come to expressing opinions, people now have no problem with doing so. Whether that be over a cellphone, computer, through mail, or in person, America never fails to get it their point across. This comes with many downfalls, these methods may be effective, but sometimes people can get caught in the crossfire. For example in 2007, Katherine Evans a senior at Pembroke Pines Charter High School exerted her freedom of speech. Evans disliked one particular teacher that she decided to create a facebook page trashing her. Yes, Evans did create the page off campus, and it didnt involve any threatening or vulgar words, but it isnt ethically right. Did this teacher really deserve this hurtful defamation? Also many websites are aiding and protecting these freedom of Speech abusers in certain cases, with their terms of use and policies leaving various ways to hurt people. The faster, easier, and cheaper it becomes to communicate and connect with people, the more effortlessly we will abuse our freedom of speech and expression. For instance spreading vile rumors that could ruin someones reputation can now be done within a matter off seconds. 2.8% of students report that they have had harmful information spread about them. This kind of quick-fire approach to spilling our opinions has created a culture of criticism. Today seven-in-ten Americans use social media to connect with one another Thats a large portion of America taking part in a society thats rapped up in judging others and crossing boundaries of our constitutional rights. Social media sites have received lash back for allowing users to post offensive post about other people onto their sites. Also social media is now creating more ways to attack people, ANONYMOUSLY! More and more apps are being created to use anonymously. This only encourages the abuse of freedom of speech. To top it all off, its all public and there for everyone to see. Freedom of speech is scaling heights everyday with disregard of the consequences of misusing it. Posting pictures without someones permission has gotten out of control. Some are not meant maliciously, but theres some that can destroy opportunities for a person. This is a result of one of many ways we misuse our right to freedom of speech. We have engulfed ourselves into our virtual lives that we forget there are consequences to our actions, when we post something about someone. Once its uploaded, its now forever in the World Wide Web. There are many instances of teenagers that have posted pictures of others and that other person has suffered severe repercussions because of it. Our perceptions of right and wrong have been swayed because too many people abuse the right to express their opinions, by attacking innocent people, and those undeserving of others criticism. There are many consequences to misusing freedom of speech, such as people who have committed suicide, or attempted suicide. Every year 864,950 people attempt suicide. This mean one person tries to commit suicide every thirty-eight seconds because people have the liberty to express their opinion whether that be good or bad. Of the 69% of teens that own technology, 80% are active on social media. This is a large portion of our youth and future leaders. Celebrities, politicians, authors, normal everyday people, are exposed to cruel and perverted individuals who believe that they can say whatever they want. Various mainstream issues such as racism, feminism, and equal pay are being fueled by people who are ignorant to culture, because they feel the need to express what they believe despite being politically incorrect. Yes Freedom of speech gives us the right to verbally express how we feel, but not to degrade, humiliate, curse, and abuse people. Four-in-ten Millennials say the government should be able to prevent people from publicly making statements that are offensive to minority groups. Many people may disagree with government censoring, but consider all the suicides, attempted suicides, riots, that all could be avoided. The integrity of Americas freedom of speech has been compromised. Freedom of speech has been misused, abused, and thrown around, like trash. For the sake of Americas youth and future generations there needs to be change. America cannot continue to allow such verbal attacks to ensue on undeserving people or on social media. Society should start respecting freedom of speech. People think before speaking or typing, show empathy, see past what you disagree. Make a change in the nation for the better.

Macbeth: A Noble and Highly Respected Figure In Ducans Reign :: Macbeth essays

Macbeth: A Noble and Highly Respected Figure In Ducan's Reign Macbeth was a noble and highly respected figure in King Duncan's reign. He lived a brave and honest life, serving the King and his country against evil. The Tragedy of Macbeth occurred when the weird sisters met Macbeth for the first time. An evil mind took over Macbeth, and he was doomed to the witches prophesies until his death. Macbeth was a General of the King's army, and served the King with honor and dignity. After success in the battle against the Thane of Cawdor, which was Macbeth's final serving for King Duncan, Banquo and he met with the King. Banquo was commended, and "To make thee full of growing. - Noble Banquo" (Act 1 Scene 4); but Macbeth was given all the credit, and titled "My worthy Cawdor!" (Act 1 Scene 4), Thane of Cawdor for his service. It was during this scene, where Duncan announced Malcom as his future successor, that Macbeth's thoughts became evil obsessions. A power was taking over him, his own flaw from evil, brought about by the weird sisters. "Stars, hide your fires, Let not the light see my black and deep desires." (Act 1 Scene 4). Macbeth's flaw is highly influenced by his wife, Lady Macbeth, who has wicked thoughts, and persuades Macbeth into many actions he would not normally do. "Only look up clear: To alter favour ever is to fear. Leave all the rest to me" (Act 1 Scene 5) shows her strength over Macbeth. As Macbeth prepares to kill Duncan, he hallucinates, and many thoughts cross his mind, but when the bell sounds, "Hear it not, Duncan, for it is a knell That summons thee to heaven or to hell." (Act 2 Scene 2) and Macbeth acts promptly. After the murder Macbeth regrets his actions, but again Lady Macbeth is influential toward him, reminding his that "These deeds must not be thought After these ways; so, it will make us mad." (Act 2 Scene 2). Macbeth's true self again break through when he has false thoughts about his actions. "Had I but died an hour before this chance I had lived a blessed time; for, from this instant, There's nothing serious in mortality. All is but toys; renown and grace is dead, The wine of life is drawn, and the mere lees Is left this vault to brag of." (Act 2 Scene 4). All the confusion surrounding Macbeth has prompted him to make some errors. He did not place the daggers on the guards after the murders, and then before anybody was able to talk to the

Chobani Case Study Essay

1) From the information about Chobani in the case at the start of the chapter, (a) whom did Hamdi Ulukaya identify as the target for his first cups of Greek yogurt and (b) what was his initial â€Å"4Ps† marketing strategy? a. Hamdi Ulukaya first targeted young and fit Americans with his first cup. b. Hamdi Ulukayas initial â€Å"4Ps† marketing strategy involved product, price, place, and promotion. For product, he focused on the packaging. Made the cup with bright colors so people would be attracted to it. For price, he went straight to the retailers instead of going through distributers. He decided to sell this at every conventional yogurt aisle of traditional supermarkets in America. The last â€Å"P† is promotion and at first the only advertisement they had was word of mouth. Eventually they got money and used traditional advertisement, social media, and direct communication with the customer. 2) (a) What marketing actions would you expect the companies selling Yoplait, Dannon, and PepsiCo yogurts to take in response to Chobani’s appearance and (b) how might Chobani respond? a. What I would expect from these three yogurts is for them to rethink the â€Å"4Ps†. I believe they will focus on how they are promoting their product and also how the product looks. b. I think Chobani will respond with something better in both promoting and how the product looks due to Chobani setting the new standard of the product. 3) What are (a) the advantages and (b) the disadvantages of Chobani’s Customer Loyalty Team that handles communication with customers-from phone calls and emails to Facebook and Twitter messages? a. Advantages Keeps the company updated with new product ideas The communication is faster with having this specific team b. Disadvatages Could be too slow to read and respond to every email and message 4) As Chobani seeks to build its brand, it opened a unique retail store in New York City: Chobani SoHo. Why did Chobani do this? Chobani did this to explore what type of new markets and products they could find in the U.S. They are trying to find the people that like flavors that are very unique. For example, pistachios and chocolate yogurt. 5) (a) What criteria might Chobani use when it seeks markets in new countries and (b) what three or  four countries meet these criteria? a. The Criteria Chobani might use when seeking new markets is flavor, price, and cultural differences. I believe the flavor can’t to be too crazy, it has to be somewhat a little similar to American. The price has to be affordable to the average man. What I mean about the cultural differences is similar to what I said about the flavor, it can’t be something completely different to what Americans are used to here in the U.S. b. I believe this criterion fits Canada, Ireland, and Mexico.

Advanced Electrolyte System Essay

BENEFITS 1.Replenish fluid losses 2.It helps in sustaining mental and physical performance PROMISE â€Å"complete sports drinks† REASON TO BELIEVE 1.It has 15 g of Carbohydrates which is the body’s main source of energy. It is also primary fuel source for muscles which are working at a moderate to high intensity and prolonged endurance. 2.It has sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium which replenish the electrolytes commonly lost through sweat. Electrolytes regulate body’s water and blood pH level. UNIQUE SELLING PROPOSITION To male and female that are active in sports. It is designed to balance the body fluids to give fast hydration and energy. It has Electrolytes (sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium) and Carbohydrates which is effective and ideal in maintaining performance in sports. Go for the Complete Sports Drink. They are designed to effectively replace the fluids and minerals that are lost by sweating. They also provide a boost of carbohydrates (fuel) and help to sustain physical performance. New POWERADE ION4 ® helps replenish fluid losses and the four key electrolytes in the same ratio typically lost in sweat: sodium, potassium, calcium andmagnesium. It also contains carbohydrates at 15 calories per 100mL. POWERADE ION4 ® encourages the body to absorb fluid and maintain fluid balance. Carbohydrates are replaced as well, supplying your working muscles with fuel, helping you sustain mental and physical performance as you exercise. To help you fight off dehydration, POWERADE ION4 ®doesn’t switch your thirst receptors off prematurely. It keeps you feeling thirsty until you’re properly rehydrated. When sweating, the body loses more than just water. It loses these electrolytes which are important in exercise. The importance of each was reviewed by The American College of Sports Medicine, American Dietetic Association and Dietitians of Canada and it was learned that: Sodium is a critical electrolyte, which helps you sweat effectively and aids in muscle contraction; Potassium, on the other hand, is important in the overall energy metabolism; Third of the four key ions is calcium, which essential for overall bone metabolism; Lastly, magnesium plays a vital role in regulating cardiovascular and neuromuscular functions to sustain your performance. Drinking Powerade Ion4, completely packed with these four vital ions, is the most effective way to replace fluid and fuel losses. mountain Blast, Orange Burst and Silver Charge.

Ochre - The Oldest Known Natural Pigment in the World

Ochre - The Oldest Known Natural Pigment in the World Ochre (rarely spelled ocher and often referred to as yellow ochre) is one of a variety of forms of iron oxide which are described as earth-based pigments. These pigments, used by ancient and modern artists, are made of iron oxyhydroxide, which is to say they are natural minerals and compounds composed of varying proportions of iron (Fe3 or Fe2), oxygen (O) and hydrogen (H). Other natural forms of earth pigments related to ochre include sienna, which is similar to yellow ochre but warmer in color and more translucent; and umber, which has goethite as its primary component and incorporates various levels of manganese. Red oxides or red ochres are hematite-rich forms of yellow ochres, commonly formed from aerobic natural weathering of iron-bearing minerals. Prehistoric and Historic Uses Natural iron-rich oxides provided red-yellow-brown paints and dyes for a wide range of prehistoric uses, including but in no way limited to rock art paintings, pottery, wall paintings and cave art, and human tattoos. Ochre is the earliest known pigment used by humans to paint our worldperhaps as long ago as 300,000 years. Other documented or implied uses are as medicines, as a preservative agent for animal hide preparation, and as a ​loading agent for adhesives (called  mastics). Ochre is often associated with human burials: for example, the Upper Paleolithic cave site of Arene Candide has an early use of ochre at a burial of a young man 23,500 years ago. The site of Paviland Cave in the UK, dated to about the same time, had a burial so soaked in red ochre he was (somewhat mistakenly) called the Red Lady. Natural Earth Pigments Before the 18th and 19th century, most pigments used by artists were of natural origin, made up of mixtures of organic dyes, resins, waxes, and minerals. Natural earth pigments like ochres consist of three parts: the principle color-producing component (hydrous or anhydrous iron oxide), the secondary or modifying color component (manganese oxides within umbers or carbonaceous material within brown or black pigments) and the base or carrier of the color (almost always clay, the weathered product of silicate rocks). Ochre is thought generally to be red, but in fact is a naturally-occurring yellow mineral pigment, consisting of clay, siliceous materials and the hydrated form of iron oxide known as limonite. Limonite is a general term referring to all forms of hydrated iron oxide, including goethite, which is the fundamental component of the ochre earths. Getting Red from Yellow Ochre contains a minimum of 12% iron oxyhydroxide, but the amount can range up to 30% or more, giving rise to the wide range of colors from light yellow to red and brown. The intensity of color depends on the degree of oxidation and hydration of the iron oxides, and the color becomes browner depending on the percentage of manganese dioxide, and redder based on the percentage of hematite. Since ochre is sensitive to oxidation and hydration, the yellow can be turned red by heating goethite (FeOOH) bearing pigments in yellow earth and converting some of it to hematite. Exposing yellow goethite to temperatures above 300 degrees Celcius will gradually dehydrate the mineral, converting it first to orange-yellow and then red as hematite is produced. Evidence of heat-treatment of ochre dates at least as early as the Middle Stone Age deposits in Blombos cave, South Africa. How Old Is Ochre Use? Ochre is very common on archaeological sites worldwide. Certainly, Upper Paleolithic cave art in Europe and Australia contain the generous use of the mineral: but ochre use is much older. The earliest possible use of ochre discovered so far is from a Homo erectus site about 285,000 years old. At the site called GnJh-03 in the Kapthurin formation of Kenya, a total of five kilograms (11 pounds) of ochre in more than 70 pieces was discovered. By 250,000-200,000 years ago, Neanderthals were using ochre, at the Maastricht Belvà ©dà ¨re site in The Netherlands (Roebroeks) and the Benzu rock shelter in Spain. Ochre and Human Evolution Ochre was part of the first art of the Middle Stone Age (MSA) phase in Africa called Howiesons Poort. The early modern human assemblages of 100,000-year-old MSA sites including Blombos Cave and Klein Kliphuis in South Africa have been found to include examples of engraved ochre, slabs of ochre with carved patterns deliberately cut into the surface. Spanish paleontologist Carlos Duarte (2014) has even suggested that using red ochre as a pigment in tattoos (and otherwise ingested) may have had a role in human evolution, as it would have been a source of iron directly to the human brain, perhaps making us smarter. The presence of ochre mixed with milk proteins on an artifact from a 49,000-year-old MSA level at Sibudu cave in South Africa is suggested to have been used to make the ochre liquid, probably by killing a lactating bovid (Villa 2015). Identifying the Sources The yellow-red-brown ochre pigments used in paintings and dyes are often a mixture of mineral elements, both in their natural state and as a result of deliberate mixing by the artist. Much of recent research on ochre and its natural earth relatives has been focused on identifying the specific elements of a pigment used in a particular paint or dye. Determining what a pigment is made up of allows the archaeologist to find out the source where the paint was mined or collected, which could provide information about long-distance trade. Mineral analysis helps in conservation and restoration practices; and in modern art studies, assists in the technical examination for authentication, identification of a specific artist, or the objective description of an artists techniques. Such analyses have been difficult in the past because older techniques required the destruction of some of the paint fragments. More recently, studies that use microscopic amounts of paint or even completely non-invasive studies such as various types of spectrometry, digital microscopy, x-ray fluorescence, spectral reflectance, and x-ray diffraction have been used successfully to split out the minerals used, and determine the type and treatment of the pigment. Sources Bu K, Cizdziel JV, and Russ J. 2013. The Source of Iron-Oxide Pigments Used in Pecos River Style Rock Paints. Archaeometry 55(6):1088-1100.Buti D, Domenici D, Miliani C, Garcà ­a Siz C, Gà ³mez Espinoza T, Jà ­menez Villalba F, Verde Casanova A, Sabà ­a de la Mata A, Romani A, Presciutti F et al. 2014. Non-invasive investigation of a pre-Hispanic Maya screenfold book: the Madrid Codex. Journal of Archaeological Science 42(0):166-178.Cloutis E, MacKay A, Norman L, and Goltz D. 2016. Identification of historic artists pigments using spectral reflectance and X-ray diffraction properties I. Iron oxide and oxy-hydroxide-rich pigments. Journal of Near Infrared Spectroscopy 24(1):27-45.Dayet L, Le Bourdonnec FX, Daniel F, Porraz G, and Texier PJ. 2015. Ochre Provenance and Procurement Strategies During The Middle Stone Age at Diepkloof Rock Shelter, South Africa. Archaeometry:n/a-n/a.Dayet L, Texier PJ, Daniel F, and Porraz G. 2013. Ochre resources from the Middle Stone Age sequence of Diepkloof Rock Shelter, Western Cape, South Africa. Journal of Archaeological Science 40(9):3492-3505. Duarte CM. 2014. Red ochre and shells: clues to human evolution. Trends in Ecology Evolution 29(10):560-565.Eiselt BS, Popelka-Filcoff RS, Darling JA, and Glascock MD. 2011. Hematite sources and archaeological ochres from Hohokam and O’odham sites in central Arizona: an experiment in type identification and characterization. Journal of Archaeological Science 38(11):3019-3028.Erdogu B, and Ulubey A. 2011. Colour symbolism in the prehistoric architecture of central Anatolia and Raman Spectroscopic Investigation of red ochre in Chalcolithic Çatalhà ¶yà ¼k. Oxford Journal Of Archaeology 30(1):1-11.Henshilwood C, DErrico F, Van Niekerk K, Coquinot Y, Jacobs Z, Lauritzen S-E, Menu M, and Garcia-Moreno R. 2011. A 100,000-Year-Old Ochre-Processing Workshop at Blombos Cave, South Africa. Science 334:219-222.Moyo S, Mphuthi D, Cukrowska E, Henshilwood CS, van Niekerk K, and Chimuka L. 2016. Blombos Cave: Middle Stone Age ochre differentiation through FTIR, ICP OES, ED XRF and XRD . Quaternary International 404, Part B:20-29. Rifkin RF. 2012. Processing ochre in the Middle Stone Age: Testing the inference of prehistoric behaviours from actualistically derived experimental data. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 31(2):174-195.Roebroeks W, Sier MJ, Kellberg Nielsen T, De Loecker D, Pares JM, Arps CES, and Mucher HJ. 2012. Use of red ochre by early Neandertals. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 109(6):1889-1894.Villa P, Pollarolo L, Degano I, Birolo L, Pasero M, Biagioni C, Douka K, Vinciguerra R, Lucejko JJ, and Wadley L. 2015. A Milk and Ochre Paint Mixture Used 49,000 Years Ago at Sibudu, South Africa. PLoS ONE 10(6):e0131273.

Word Choice Half vs. Halve

Word Choice Half vs. Halve Word Choice: Half vs. Halve Sometimes, seemingly simple words can cause problems. Take â€Å"half,† for example. It is a common term than any native English speaker should know. But wait! Are you sure you know the difference between the words â€Å"half† and â€Å"halve†? If not, read on to find out more. Half (50% of Something) We’ll start out with the more common word. â€Å"Half† is typically a noun that means â€Å"fifty percent† (or a similar amount). For instance: 750 is half of 1,500. Do you want the other half of this pizza? The plural of this noun form of â€Å"half† is â€Å"halves† with a â€Å"v.† This is because some words like  Ã¢â‚¬Å"half† that end in an â€Å"f† or â€Å"-fe† change their spelling in plural form (e.g., knife → knives or calf → calves). We can also use the word â€Å"half† to modify other words in a sentence. For example, we could use it in either of the following: The cake was only half baked. It should have been in the oven for another half hour. In the first sentence above, â€Å"half† is an adverb that modifies the verb â€Å"baked† (i.e., the cake was only partially cooked). In the second sentence, â€Å"half† is an adjective that modifies the noun â€Å"hour† (i.e., we’re discussing 50% of an hour). But regardless of how it is used, the word â€Å"half† is always related to the idea of being divided, incomplete, or half of something whole. Halve (Divide Something in Two) â€Å"Halve,† meanwhile, is a verb. It means â€Å"divide into two (roughly) equal parts†: I will halve the cake and give one part to my sister. A similar use is to mean â€Å"reduce by 50%,† such as in the following: The new road halves the time it takes to get home. All verb forms of this term are spelled with a â€Å"v† (i.e., halve, halves, halved, halving). As such, no verb form will be spelled with an â€Å"f.† Should I Use Half or Halve? â€Å"Half† and â€Å"halve† are related terms, but these words also have different uses: Half can be a noun, adjective, or adverb. As a noun, it means â€Å"fifty percent of something† (or a similar amount). As an adjective or adverb, it shows that something is divided, half of a whole, or half complete. Halve is a verb and means â€Å"divide into two equal or roughly equal parts.† One point of confusion is that the plural of â€Å"half† is â€Å"halves,† which is also how we spell the third-person present tense form of the verb â€Å"halve.† But as long as you remember that the singular noun â€Å"half† is always spelled with an â€Å"f,† it should be easy to avoid errors in your writing.

Audience Misdirection in Magic Acts

Audience Misdirection in Magic Acts For hundreds of years, magicians have performed acts which are perceived to be impossible, causing the viewer to question how the act was performed. The viewer would generally know that act performed by the magician will use some sort of trickery or illusion, but still viewers are usually unable to detect the change when it occurs, even when the trick is in full view of the audience. Sometimes when a magician performs a magic trick, he uses misdirection to trick the audience. The magician would usually draw your attention elsewhere while the trick is being performed to stop the audience seeing how it is done (Kuhn, Amlani lasting only 15 seconds, where the magician was to drop a lighter and cigarette into his lap without the audience seeing, causing the audience to think the items had magically disappeared. First the magician removes the cigarette from the packet and deliberately puts it in his mouth the wrong way round. He then pretends to light the cigarette, which enhances the a udience’s interest in the mouth/cigarette region. Both magician and the audience then realise the mistake, and the magician turns the cigarette around with his left hand while keeping his gaze fixed on his hand and cigarette. During this time the magician drops the lighter into his lap, which is in his right hand. He then causes attention to go to the disappearance of the lighter by attempting to light the cigarette. When he is unable to light the cigarette, he looks to his right hand, snaps his fingers and waves his hand; pulling the audiences’ attention to his right hand. While the audience are looking at the disappearance of the lighter in the right hand, the magician drops the cigarette from a height of around 15cm. He then turns his gaze to his left hand, and opens it to show that the cigarette is also disappeared. The magician uses gaze direction to disguise his actions while performing the trick (Tatler however the dropping of the cigarette was done in full vie w of the audience, from about 15cm above the table top, but this action is also not usually detected, usually due to gaze misdirection. This shows that the magician successfully misdirected the audience’s overt and covert attention at the correct time during the trick, right when the disappearance occurs.

Homework 5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Homework 5 - Essay Example The main aim of getting enlightened is to gain confidence in extricating themselves from minority, a public should enlighten itself hence have its freedom since in each society there is always a few independent thinkers, who are beyond the yoke of minority and embraced a spirit of rational valuing of one’s own worth which summons everyone to think of their own. Individual who by themselves are unable to be enlightened cannot be able to redeem the society from the yoke of minority which only deals with being dependent. For enlightenment to take place, freedom to make public use of one’s reason in all matters, this implies that one can argue as much as possible but obey due to the limits that exist with freedom. a person should obey the laid down procedures and process but also should be allowed to make remarks about the errors and also putting them before his public for appraisal. Though slowly, the society is becoming enlightened due to emergence of many scholars. Teachers and clergymen in schools and religious institutions who encourage people to be rationale thinkers, we cannot comfortably say that we are in an enlightenment age but we can conclude that wee are in an age of enlightenment. Kant states that were are in the genuine age of criticism where he explains that the power of judgment should no longer be put off with illusory knowledge and demands that reasons to be taken on a new difficult task which is called self-knowledge which shall be a way of instituting a court of justice, where the reason may secure its rightful claims while dismissing all its own eternal and unchangeable laws. In addition, the decision about the possibility or impossibility of a metaphysics in general and the determination of its sources which is mainly determined by the principles. for a critique to be complete it should have comprehensive system which should require derivative concepts to be present, however it cannot be pre-estimated in a

Internaional Accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Internaional Accounting - Essay Example Russia borders on the Arctic Ocean, the North Pacific Ocean, and Europe. The neighbouring countries are China, North Korea, Finland, Georgia, etc. (Russia: Introduction n.pag.). It is an independent economy having a budget expenditure of around $372 billion and the unemployment rate being 6.6% (Russia: Statistics n.pag.). In the year of 1990, the economy changed itself from being a centrally planned to that of a free market economy (Russia: Economy n.pag.). FINANCIAL ENVIRONMENT IN RUSSIA\ According to Vladimir Putin, the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Russia has been ranked among the top five economies for alluring foreign direct investment (FDI) (Doing Business in Russia n.pag.). The country has shown a good figure in terms of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) in 2011 where the Government debt was around 10% of GDP and the inflation rate being 6%. The Government is also planning to invest around $1.5 trillion for developing the country’s economy for the upcoming three years. However, the figure of FDI has not grown substantially as it is just accounting to an amount nearly $40 billion coming to the third year. And that means there are not many multinationals or foreign companies investing in the country (Doing Business in Russia n.pag.). BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT For doing business in Russia, there are certain accounting principles that one needs to follow. Each and every registered company or firm is required to prepare individual RAS financial statements for each financial year ending on the 31st of December. The framing of the financial statements are prescribed by the Ministry of Finance, and it includes a two-year’ comparative balance sheet, profit and loss accounts, a statement for equity changes, and a one-year’s comparative cash-flow statement. Supplementary notes are also required (Financial Reporting Framework in Russia n.pag.). Various international organizations like the World Bank and IMF are giving their supporting hand to the Russian Federation in order to improve the GDP rate. According to a study by the World Bank, the following data has been figured out (World Bank n.pag.). Figure one. Graph showing the growth of GDP over the years in comparison with Europe & Central Asia: Source: World Bank Here we can see that in Russia, the growth of GDP was very low in 2003 and gradually became somewhat consistent over the years of 2006 and 2007. There were no production in 2009, but it came to a considerable position in 2010 and 2011. According to IMF, this has also been found that Russia has been the largest borrower. Hence IMF is examining what Russia, in return, has produced or improved before sanctioning any more funds (Russia: The IMF’s biggest failure n.pag.). LEGAL ENVIRONMENT Taking the legal environment into consideration, if a person gets engaged into a tax or commercials dispute in Russia, according to the Court of Law, he/she will have to approach the arbitrazh courts. The procedure starts with filling in a form, and the whole procedure, in original, takes around 9 to 12 months to get completed. There are also some business regulations that are practiced in Russia which are the competition policy and the policy of price controlling (Business Environment in Russia n.pag.). Russia adopted the Civil Law for its jurisdiction in order to compete with the Western-European nation states by strengthening political and economic power (The Common Law and Civil Law Traditions n.pag.). Investor protection and

Working budget of $ 2 billion Methods research Coursework

Working budget of $ 2 billion Methods research - Coursework Example Using the three electronic resources, compile the required data for the 48 countries in an Excel spreadsheet (each row should represent a country and each column should contain the data for one variable). Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is very important in the calculation of the national income of any country. The GDP is calculated by adding the market value of all the final goods or services produced within a country in a given financial year. to be more specific no intermediate goods but only the final products or services because if intermediate goods are also taken into consideration then there would be the error of double calculation in the national income of the country. The GDP of a country is arrived at by adding the sum involved in the consumption activities, the investment activities, the spending by the government of the country and also the net exports (which is derived by deducting the gross imports from the gross exports). GDP = Cn + It + Gs + E(e-i) Where Cn = consumptio n, It = investment, Gs= Government spending, E= net exports, i= imports, e= exports. The exogenous model is also called as the most suitable model which is needed to understand and frame the long term economic growth of a country. Excel sheet attached. 2. Read the compiled data into Stata, and estimate the empirical model. Test the following null and alternative hypotheses: gen Lypc 2005 =log( ypc2005) gen Lypc1990 =log( ypc1990) gen diferrence lypc=log(ypc2005)-log(ypc1990) gen lseced = log(seced) gen infl= log( cpi1990)-log( cpi1985) inflation regress dlypc Lypc1990 lseced govgdp open infl credit (i) H0:?2=?3=?4=?5=?6=?7=0 against H1:?j?0 for at least one j?(2...7), using a significance level of 0.05. = = = 1.81 The Decision rule is that we can : Accept H0 if F0.05 Reject H0 if ?>F0.05 where F0.05 is the 5% critical value from F(k–1, n–k): in this case F(7–1,48–7), or F(6,41). F0.05 = 2.34 Decision is accept H0: F plays a significant role as F is the de termining factor of arriving at conclusions. The use of the independent variables has not assisted in predicting the dependent variable (dlypc). (ii) H0:?2=0 against H0:?2?0 using a significance level of 0.05. ii) H0:?2=0 against H1:?2?0 at a significance level of 0.05 ? = = = -2.68 Decision rule: Accept H0 if -t0.025 ? ? ? t0.025 Reject H0 if ? t0.025 ?t0.025 from t(41) is ?2.04 Decision is reject H0.: it means the variable (lypc90) has a significance impact in the depended variable (dlypc). We can see that there is a contradiction between the test in (i) and (ii). In (i) we accept that: ?2=?3=?4=?5=?6=?7=0 where in (ii) we reject that :?2=0 . Also, we can check by compare the p-value of the coefficient (0.011)

U05a1 Case Analysis Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

U05a1 Analysis - Case Study Example As early as in 1985, the possibility of a great disaster in case of an explosion inside the tunnel was pointed out by ‘The Baltimore Sun’. However, nothing was done to ensure safety in case of such a disaster. The city’s 440 page emergency plan contained no provision to meet such an eventuality. The event On 18 July 2001, a freight train of CSX that was carrying various items from paper, plywood, soy oil, and many chemicals derailed inside the tunnel. As a result of derailing, there was fire and smoke. The crew of the train could not contact authorities and hence, they uncoupled the first three locomotives and drove out of the tunnel. Soon, thick smoke started covering the city. The fire department was getting calls from different parts of the city reporting smoke. The waybill from the train crew revealed that the train carried hazardous materials like hydrochloric acid, flurocilicic acid, tripopylene, glacial acetic acid, ethyl hexyl phthalate, and propylene glyc ol. While some of these were combustible, others could create breathing problems and skin burns. A possibility of ‘boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion (BLEVE) could not be ruled out, which could mean total destruction of the city. In addition, the fire officials were not at all familiar with handling those chemicals. As it is rightly said in Penuel, Statler, and Golson (2011, p.89), decisions during a crisis are to be taken in an environment where issues are wrongly defined and data is erroneous. The management of the situation It seems that the fire department proceeded well in accordance with the stipulated procedures. As the city’s emergency plan did not provide any guidelines, it was for the first responder- the fire department- to take the lead. As per the stipulated incident command procedure, the senior officer of the first unit on the scene is responsible to assess the situation, and, depending on the seriousness of the situation, to report upwards. Exactly in the same way, the matter was reported to Chief Heinbuch, and soon he started the command post near the north end of the tunnel. This step too seems well in accordance with the suggested procedures in case of an emergency. Soon, Heinbuch took charge of the situation, and set up the command post near the north end of the tunnel. At this juncture, it is worth remembering that this step too is well in accordance with the stipulation that an incident command post will be established within close proximity to incident response operations. (Penuel et al., 2011, p. 89). The next positive point to note from the case is the cooperation between the fire department and the Maryland Department of Environment (MDE). According to the reports, both the departments worked and trained together, and hence, communication and cooperation were instantaneous. It seems that there was an averagely effective management of the situation. It seems that the team was able to establish link with a number of o ther groups ranging from MDE, public health, public works department, and the department of transportation, US Coast Guard, the EPA, and the National Transportation Safety Board. Still, there was serious lack of communication among groups that could lead to loss of lives. An example is the effort by DPW crews on 19 July to excavate the water

THE APPLICATION OF THEORETICAL MODELS RELATING TO TEAM BUILDING AND Essay

THE APPLICATION OF THEORETICAL MODELS RELATING TO TEAM BUILDING AND MOTIVATIONAL FACTORS TO THE PROCESS OF EVENT MANAGEMENT - Essay Example In the study, effectiveness measures include team performance by multiple evaluations of key stakeholders. Team effectiveness is found to be a result of the interactions among design, process, and contextual support factors. It was suggested that as teams work under interdependent conditions, the positive relationship between team job motivation and team autonomy was reduced (Janz et al. 2006). It is also stressed that teams that have developmental maturity have a more positive demonstration of the relationship between job motivation and team process behaviors such as sharing and innovating, than those that do not. There is a positive relationship between process behaviours and effectiveness, a more positive relationship is recorded in the presence of certain contextual factors such as high-quality goals and efficient information transmission. The presence of other contextual factors, such as feedback and time pressure allows process behaviours and effectiveness for a less positive r esult (Janz et al. 2006). In order for an organisation to achieve maximum returns on investment, teams and leaders need to achieve peak performances - team process skills, leadership, and management development, mind mapping techniques, stress management, and personal and team coaching. Teamwork is important in carrying out a task and spells the difference between group efficiency and lack of it. Teamwork is enhanced in team building activities as it pertains to people working together cooperatively as a tam in pursuit for accomplishing the same goals/objectives. A team building-based approach is fundamental to many organisations, which is proved by reliance upon project teams in driving change and innovation. A so-called 'teamship skills' that are on par with employees' and workers' functional and technical skill sets is what is required of people in order to work in a team dimension. Upon achieving the fundamental outcomes of team building, the team's journey will be accelerated by the second phase of team development toward peak performance. A team development program provided by the organisation will give way for teamship skills and operational framework in order for teams and individuals achieve their full potential (Bowdin et al. 2001). The first step in achieving teamwork and high performance team building is by building strong interpersonal relationships and alignment to team goals, which must be undertaken in the initial building of the team. Trust and rapport can be easily established by a shared experience that involves working together on tasks that are unfamiliar and require a high degree of interdependence. Improved and measurable team building outcomes are sought by modern organisations, in which a team-based approach is fundamental. A clear example of this is the reliance upon project teams in order to drive change and innovation. There is now a necessity for people to possess teamship skills, which are aligned to their functional and technical skills sets. There is also a growing trend of using project teams to drive organisational improvement, which is one consideration in the fast-paced dimension of business. An employee

Youtility Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Youtility - Essay Example This discussion declares that the biggest catastrophe that a business would cast upon itself is to assume that Youtility is a one-off project when it is in truth a process. The reason behind this assertion is that customers have a continued need for change in ideas over time. The fact that technology is growing and developing every now and then means that companies have to keep changing and improving their products at all times. Companies and businesses must adjust to, and keep up with, the changing preferences among their customer base if they harbor any dreams of success. Therefore, Youtility is an infinite process driven by customers’ desire for new and improved ways of making their lifestyles better.From this study it is clear that the measurement of Youtility can start with the number of users of the Youtility process within its application scope. Next, the frequency of forwarding the information is measured so that the needs of the customers can be met. Thirdly, a measur e of the number of people that are willing to buy the product and that of how many are willing to learn more is calculated. Lastly, the actual impact of Youtility on the revenue is then ascertained. The reason for these measurements is primarily to gauge and ascertain the effectiveness of the Youtility process. By so doing, the company is able to make adjustments where weaknesses arise.  Youtility is a primary driver of success within companies and businesses because of its ability to attract customers even where they seemed not to exist.

THE APPLICATION OF THEORETICAL MODELS RELATING TO TEAM BUILDING AND Essay

THE APPLICATION OF THEORETICAL MODELS RELATING TO TEAM BUILDING AND MOTIVATIONAL FACTORS TO THE PROCESS OF EVENT MANAGEMENT - Essay Example In the study, effectiveness measures include team performance by multiple evaluations of key stakeholders. Team effectiveness is found to be a result of the interactions among design, process, and contextual support factors. It was suggested that as teams work under interdependent conditions, the positive relationship between team job motivation and team autonomy was reduced (Janz et al. 2006). It is also stressed that teams that have developmental maturity have a more positive demonstration of the relationship between job motivation and team process behaviors such as sharing and innovating, than those that do not. There is a positive relationship between process behaviours and effectiveness, a more positive relationship is recorded in the presence of certain contextual factors such as high-quality goals and efficient information transmission. The presence of other contextual factors, such as feedback and time pressure allows process behaviours and effectiveness for a less positive r esult (Janz et al. 2006). In order for an organisation to achieve maximum returns on investment, teams and leaders need to achieve peak performances - team process skills, leadership, and management development, mind mapping techniques, stress management, and personal and team coaching. Teamwork is important in carrying out a task and spells the difference between group efficiency and lack of it. Teamwork is enhanced in team building activities as it pertains to people working together cooperatively as a tam in pursuit for accomplishing the same goals/objectives. A team building-based approach is fundamental to many organisations, which is proved by reliance upon project teams in driving change and innovation. A so-called 'teamship skills' that are on par with employees' and workers' functional and technical skill sets is what is required of people in order to work in a team dimension. Upon achieving the fundamental outcomes of team building, the team's journey will be accelerated by the second phase of team development toward peak performance. A team development program provided by the organisation will give way for teamship skills and operational framework in order for teams and individuals achieve their full potential (Bowdin et al. 2001). The first step in achieving teamwork and high performance team building is by building strong interpersonal relationships and alignment to team goals, which must be undertaken in the initial building of the team. Trust and rapport can be easily established by a shared experience that involves working together on tasks that are unfamiliar and require a high degree of interdependence. Improved and measurable team building outcomes are sought by modern organisations, in which a team-based approach is fundamental. A clear example of this is the reliance upon project teams in order to drive change and innovation. There is now a necessity for people to possess teamship skills, which are aligned to their functional and technical skills sets. There is also a growing trend of using project teams to drive organisational improvement, which is one consideration in the fast-paced dimension of business. An employee

The Aztecs simplistic crop-enhancing Essay Example for Free

The Aztecs simplistic crop-enhancing Essay The main supply for food for the Aztecs were agriculture and farming. They rely mainly on the crops for every season; they grow, produce and consume food and this is how they get their daily food. Terracing Indicating the societal complexity of the Aztecs, the farming technique known as terracing is complicated and elaborate. They used terracing in the hilly areas and built walls, forming terraces into the sides of the hills. These stone walls ran parallel to the contour of the slope and rainfall washed compost vegetation and nutrients from the hills above. Terracing opened up previously unusable land for farming. Irrigation Because the Aztecs built extensive canal and water-diverting systems, irrigation farming became popular and productive. With water readily available, the Aztecs could enhance the growing season by irrigating the fields prior to planting, strengthen their crops by augmenting the rainfall with additional watering, and lengthen the farming season by irrigating long after the rains had stopped. Chinampas Also know to the Aztecs as floating gardens, chinampas were pieces of land created by piling up alternating layers of compost vegetation and mud from the lake bottom, in the shallow marshy parts of the lakes. Initially the 30 feet by 330 feet chinampas were held in place by man-made posts, but eventually these fertile farming patches stayed secured by the roots of nearby willow trees. Once the mud and vegetation piled up higher than the water level, the plot was ready for cultivation. The crop yield from chinampas was so prolific and expedient, farmers began growing, not only for themselves, but for marketing out to others. Rainfall Cultivation The Aztecs most basic and simplistic crop-enhancing technique, called rainfall cultivation, involved fallowing the fields. They left farming plots empty to collect itself and become nutritionally enhanced by rainfall. This process is the least labor intensive form of farming, but the Aztecs eventually cast it aside following the population boom and the need for larger, more productive crops.

Defining And Evaluating Methods Of Measuring Performance Accounting Essay

Defining And Evaluating Methods Of Measuring Performance Accounting Essay Performance measurement is the performance-based management process which is flowing from the organizational mission and the strategic planning process. Performance measurement are includes the objective and subjective assessments of the performance of both individuals and subunits of an organization such as divisions or departments. Performance measurement are effective in ensure that a strategy of organisation is successfully implemented by monitor an organisations effectiveness in satisfying its own predetermined goals or stakeholder desires. Performance measures may be based on non-financial as well as on financial information. The Return on Investment (ROI) Two measures of divisional performance are commonly used is ROI and RI. ROI is the most common profitability ratio. Nowadays, most of companies concentrate on the return on investment (ROI) of a division that is profit as a percentage in direct relation to investment of division which instead of focusing on the size of a divisions profits. ROI addressed divisional profit as a percentage of the assets employed in the division. Assets employed can be defined as total divisional assets, assets controllable by the divisional manager, or net assets. The main advantage of using ROI is provides a valuable information about the overall approximation on the success of a firms past investment policy by providing a abstract of the ex post return on capital invested. According to Kaplan and Atkinson, they state that however, lack of some form of measurement of the ex post returns on capital, there is still useful for accurate estimates of future cash flows during the capital budgeting process. When ROI is used as a managerial performance measure, Measuring returns on invested capital also focuses managers attention on the impact of levels of working capital (in particular, stocks and debtors) on the ROI. It can lead to decisions making that are optimal for individual divisions but sub-optimal for the company. ROI focuses on short-term profitability, looking only at the last quarter or last year for performance evaluation. This time horizon may not be long enough for many projects to be evaluated. According to Daiva BurkÃ…Â ¡aitienÄ-, a further attraction of ROI is that it can compare the return of different businesses field for example division within the company or competitors by adopting it as a common denominator. Therefore, corporate managers want their divisional managers to focus on ROI so that their performance measure is congruent with outsiders measure of the companys overall economic performance. However, the used of ROI for evaluating the economic performance of a division is more appropriate than evaluating the managerial performance, since controllable profit and assets are not exposed in external published financial statements. For comparing the economic performance of a division, net income is likely to be the preferred profit measure to be used as the numerator to compute ROI in order to ensure consistency with the measures that are derived from the financial reports of similar companies outside of the group. ROI has been most widely used financial mea sure for many years in all types of companies. ROI is also a useful medium to communicate the ROI to those who have varying degrees of financial knowledge. The ROI concept allows managers to speak the same language when handle project goals in financial terms across several departments in a corporation as well Information Technology (IT) vendors use ROI as a sales tool to easily convey the economic value of their products. The residual income (RI) Residual income overcomes the dysfunctional aspect of ROI. It is because the use of ROI as a performance measurement can lead to under-investment. For example a manager currently achieving a high rate of return( say 30 percen) may not wish to pursue a project yielding a lower rate of return ( say 20 percen) even thought such as a project may be desirable to a company which can raise capital at an even lower rate ( say 15 percent) (David Otley, n.d). Thus, used RI is better than ROI. The purpose of evaluating the performance of divisional managers, RI is defined as controllable contribution less a cost of capital charge on the investment controllable by the divisional manager. For evaluating the economic performance of the division RI can be defined as divisional contribution less a cost of capital charge on the total investment in assets employed by the division. Besides, RI is favour than ROI and it more flexible because different cost of capital percentage rates can be applied to investments that have different levels of risk. There is not only will the cost of capital of divisions that have different levels of risk differ so may the risk and cost of capital of assets within the same division. The RI measure enables to calculate the different risk-adjusted in capital cost while ROI cannot incorporate these differences. The economic value added ROI and RI cannot stand alone as a financial measure of divisional performance. One of the factors contribute to a companys long-run objectives is short-run profit ability. ROI and RI are short-run concepts that deal only with the current reporting period whereas managerial performance measures should focus on future results that can be expected because of present actions. RI has been refined and re-named as economic value added (EVA) by the Stern Stewart Co. EVA is a financial performance measure based on operating income after taxes, the investment in assets required to generate that income and the cost of the investment in assets (or, weighted average cost of capital). The objective of EVA is to develop a performance measure that find the ways in which company value can be added or lost. The EVA concept extends the traditional residual income measure by incorporating adjustments to the divisional financial performance measure for distortions introduced by GAAP. Thus, by linking divisional performance to EVA, managers are motivated to focus on increasing shareholder value. The objective of developed EVA is producing an overall financial measure that encourages senior managers to focus on the delivery of shareholder value. According to Stern Stewart Co. the aim of companies managers whose shares are traded in the stock market should be to maximize shareholder value. Therefore, financial measurement is an important key used to measure divisional or company performance should be congruent with shareholder value. They claim that compared with other financial measures, EVA is more likely to meet this requirement and also to reduce dysfunctional behaviour. EVA is not just a performance measure but can be the major part of an integrated financial management system leading to decentralised decision making. . It leads the each different department managers to make the best decision lies to the companys goals. Thus adoption of EVA should indirectly bring changes in management which in turn can enhance company value (Stern, Stewart and Chew, 1991). It can be proved by an article in an issue of Fortune magazine (1993) described the apparent success that many companies had derived from using EVA to motivate and evaluate corporate and divisional managers. In fact, companies which have adopted EVA as the basis of management performance measurement have experienced a significant increase in their shareholders wealth. Limitations of financial performance measures Financial performance measures are generally based on short-term measurement periods and this can encourage managers to become short-term oriented. For example, relying on short-term measurement periods may encourage managers to reject positive NPV investments that have an initial adverse impact on the divisional performance measure but have high payoffs in later periods. Financial performance measures are as lagging indicators (Eccles and Pyburn, 1992) by time lag between actions and results. They state the outcomes of managements actions after a period of time, produce too late to influence current decisions. Therefore, its hard to understand or know what the manager did caused what to happen. Hard to know, what the manager did that makes the thing going well or bad as well. Financial performance measures are limited to current reporting period only and it needs to be supplemented by non financial information such as customer satisfaction and quality while Managerial performance measures focus and expect what will be the future result. The major problem is obtaining profit measures are based on the historical cost concept and thus tend to be poor estimates of economic performance. Companies tend to rely on financial accounting-based information for internal performance measurement (Johnson and Kaplan, 1987). This information may be appropriate for external reporting but it is doubtful for internal performance measurement and evaluation. In particular, using GAAP requires that discretionary expenses are treated as period costs, resulting in managers having to bear the full cost in the period in which they are incurred. Many traditional measurement and evaluation methods such as ROI, EVA, ROCE and so on have failed to yield an appropriate estimate of the pay back from these complex systems (Barua et al., 1996). Some claim these performance indicators have a high reliance on financial perspectives and thus portrait only one facet of the organisation. Balance scorecard (BSC) BSC was introduced by Kaplan and Norton (1992) to overcome the shortcomings of traditional management accounting and control which fails to signal changes in the companys economic value as an organization makes substantial investments or depletes past investments in intangible assets. The scorecard contains four different perspective which is financial performance, customers, internal business processes, and learning and growth. These perspectives reflect the interests of the key stakeholders of companies involving shareholders, customers and employees (Mooraj et al., 1999). There are several benefits of adoption the balanced scorecard highlight by Kaplan and Norton 1992. One of the benefits is focusing the entire company on the few key things needed to create breakthrough performance. A balanced scorecard might show that an organisation is only weak in a couple of areas but that these areas are impeding its overall success. By focusing everyone in the organisation on improving those areas, overall performance gets better. Next, it assists to integrate different company activities such as quality and customer service. By looking at different organisational programmes or units from different perspectives can be a way of getting everyone singing from the same song sheet. If the balanced scorecard shows customer service to be weak, focusing on everybodys customer service performance behaviours will lead to small improvements in each department or unit; the overall effect will be a bigger improvement in the organisations customer service performance across the board. Lastly, managers and employees both know what is required to achieve excellent overall performance by breaking down strategic measures to lower levels of the organisation. For example, an organisation might have overall goals to increase productivity by 5 per cent. By breaking down its productivity measures to granular levels of the organisation as part of a balanced scorecard, every member of the organisation will have clear targets that achieve their overall goals. Performance Prism The Performance Prism was developed by (Andy Neely and Adams, 2000) takes a drastically different look at performance measurement and sets out clearly to recognize how managers can use measurement data to improve business performance. It has a much more comprehensive view of different stakeholders for example investors, customers, employees, regulators and suppliers than other frameworks. It must be considering the wants and needs of stakeholders first before the strategies can be formulated (Neely et al., 2001). Thus, the stakeholders and their needs have been clearly identified, if not, it is impossible to form a proper strategy for company. According to Andy Neely, now lots of measurement frameworks for example like the balanced scorecard tends to take a fairly narrow view of stakeholders which refer to shareholders and customers. However, it ignores employees, suppliers, regulators and in todays society organisations cant afford to ignore those different pressure groups. Those di fferent groups of stakeholders that might be interested in the business. The strength of this conceptual framework is that it first questions the companys existing strategy before the process of selecting measures is started. In this way, the framework ensures that the performance measures have a strong foundation. The performance prism also considers new stakeholders (such as employees, suppliers, alliance partners or intermediaries) who are usually neglected when forming performance measures. It is structured to throw light on the complexity of an organisations relationships with its multiple stakeholders within the context of its particular operating environment. It provides an innovative and holistic framework that directs management attention to what is important for long term success and viability and helps organisations to design, build, operate and refresh their performance measurement systems in a way that is relevant to the specific conditions of their operating environment. (Andy Neely, Chris Adams, Mike Kennerley, 2002). Lastly, the performance Prism has considered the stakeholder satisfaction and stakeholder contribution compare to other performance measurement dont consider it. Now a way of thinking about this is that as a stakeholder in an organisation as a customer of an organisation, there are certain things I want from the organisation. Conclusion Divisional performance measurement should be based on a combination of financial and non-financial measures. Financial performance measures cannot stand alone as a measure of divisional performance. Profitability is only one of the factors contributing to a companys objectives. An incorporation of non-financial measures, such as competitiveness, product leadership, productivity, quality, innovation and flexibility in responding to changes in demand, creates the need to link financial and non-financial measures of performance.

Deriving Awe :: Philosophy Philosophical Papers

Deriving Awe Having become deeply compelled by the ability of evolutionary theory to tell a story that consumes or subsumes all others, I have followed the story of change back beyond the origin of life, beyond the formation of the solar system, back to a point where the first something came into existence. Though it may not do so for everyone, the story even allows me one more step along this rewinding trajectory, a step toward rejecting the need for any intention or plan by upholding the power of random change to produce order. I have found it very useful to tell a story in which the absolute truth is randomness. This is not to ignore the phenomenally intricate, ordered and interdependent systems that organize matter in our universe, but rather to understand creation in terms of an infinite dimension of possibility through which navigation occurs fueled by random change. My story, then, becomes one in which the Beginning is really just the beginning of one path through the infinite dimensions o f possibility, or what Daniel Dennett calls design space (Dennett 1995). Order or design does not rely on the Word or intention but is produced as changes accumulate and become directed by one another, restricting and refining a particular branching journey among the possibilities. Thus, reaching backwards along the story of evolution I grasp randomness and a Wordless beginning. Reaching forward into new designs and increasing complexity I suddenly encounter human agency and imagination and I am catapulted into the possibility of transcending design space. "If a brain were truly capable of non-algorithmic activity, and if we have such brains, and if our brains are themselves the products of an algorithmic process...an algorithmic process (natural selection in its various levels and incarnations) creates a non-algorithmic subprocess of subroutine, turning the whole process (evolution up to and including...brains) into a non-algorithmic process after all. This would be a cascade of cranes creating, eventually, a real skyhook" (Dennett 1995)! This argument suggests that natural selection of random change (AKA cranes) has created a skyhook- something that exists independently of and has the power to manipulate evolutionary processes. It defends the refusal to believe that human agency, free will, meaning, responsibility, etc. are all reducible and ultimately adaptive illusions. Yet, however desirous we are of such a defense, the very ability to know and interpret that we seek to uphold as a human transcendence of evolution must also cause us to recognize the flaws in this attempt to secure a degree of evolutionary removal.

Shakespeares View On Love Essay example -- William Shakespeare

Shakespeare’s View on Love Shakespeare’s plays are very drastic with how he ties love into them. Shakespeare always adds comedy or tragedy to any romance that might be taking place. For example in Twelfth Night, As You like It and Romeo and Juliet there is romance but he also puts comedy in there so love is not that easy. In the play Othello he makes it into a tragedy which makes the love even harder to take place. Shakespeare has always found a way to make love as complicated as he can which leads me to believe that he feels that you must work for love and it should not be handed to you. Love is already complicated, but when Shakespeare is involved he makes sure at least two things come around that can make it harder for those who are in love to actually stay in love. Twelfth Night is a romantic comedy which leads to romantic love being the main focus of the play. In this play, Shakespeare shows that love can cause pain. He does this by causing a love triangle which includes; †¢ Viola likes Duke but †¢ Duke likes Olivia and †¢ Olivia like Cesario who is actually Viola disguised as her twin brother. Because of this confusing love triangle, some of the characters seem to view love as a curse. They also claim to suffer painfully from being in love or from the â€Å"pangs† of unrequited love. In Act 1 scene 5, Olivia describes love as a â€Å"plague† from which she suffers terribly. In Act 1 scene 1, Orsino depicts love dolefully as an â€Å"appetite† that he wants to satisfy and cannot. Another example of the characters not â€Å"liking† love is in Act 2 scene 2 when Viola says â€Å"My state is desperate for my master’s love.† This quote relates to the violence in Act 5 scene 1 when Orsino threatens to kill Cesario because he thin... ...and they will go together. Clubs cannot part them.† Act 5 scene 2 †¢ â€Å"This bud of love by summer’s ripening breath may prove a beauteous flower when next we meet.† Romeo and Juliet Act 2 scene 1 †¢ â€Å"She loved me for the dangers I had passed, and I loved her that she did pity them.† Othello Act 1 scene 3 †¢ Give me my Romeo; and, when he shall die, take him and cut him out in little stars, and he will make the face of heaven so fine that all the world will be in love with night and pay no worship to the garish sun. ~Romeo and Juliet †¢ What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other word would smell as sweet. ~Romeo and Juliet †¢ But, soft! what light through yonder window breaks? it is the east, and Juliet is the sun. ~Romeo and Juliet †¢ Good night, good night, parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow. ~Romeo and Juliet

Fight against Oppression on Women Essay

Today’s sexism—from widespread violence and degrading ideas to inequality at the workplace and unpaid labor at home—reaches into every corner of our lives. Women’s oppression stems from the nature of our deeply unequal society, and a system that needs to divide and conquer in order to survive. People of all genders are fighting back! Grassroots mobilizations against sexual assault, victim-blaming and attacks on our reproductive rights are providing a glimpse of the potential to build a new movement for women’s rights. From Egypt to Yemen to Madrid, women are demanding a place at the forefront of struggles for democracy and economic justice. Sexism in our society leads to multiple negative outcomes for women. Although traditional therapeutic approaches as well as preventive interventions address the specific negative outcomes of sexism, they rarely utilize a social justice approach. The deleterious effects of sexism occur complexly; sexist interpersonal events often occur within family systems that may endorse traditional gender roles, which exist within a societal and cultural context that contains formalized sexist policies. These multifaceted, ingrained circumstances delineate the need for preventive social justice to address sexism on multiple levels. As our society continues to evolve, with the advancements in technology, so does sexism and discrimination. It is just molded differently to accommodate our modern day society. Women do two-thirds of the world’s work for only five percent of the income, according to Unifem, the United Nations Development Fund for women. Today young women across the world grow up to expect less educational, economic and political power than their male counterparts. Half the world’s citizens, women in the 21st century still only represent a tiny minority in democratic assemblies. Domestic violence, civil wars and international conflicts continue to destroy women’s freedom, power and security in particular. And yet women find themselves systematically excluded from international diplomacy and peace discussions. Women’s rights may be enshrined in human rights declarations and egalitarian constitutions around the world, but in global terms of power and independence they are sec ond class citizens.

Environmental Justice In Central America Region: A Critical Perspective Essay

This paper aims to talk a about the realities of life in the Central America region without withholding any truth about the situation in the country. The things that will be dealt with in this paper is very relevant in giving inquiries about how the economic and political intervention of superior countries affect the whole lives of the people in the Central America region. Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Human needs do not only include the necessity to eat meals everyday. It also includes the right to live with dignity and self-reliance without the oppressive intervention of other countries. Life in the Central America region is just as simple as that of other third world countries, that are known to be developing in their status. People there are also hoping for a peaceful, harmonious and progressive existence on earth. That is why people are trying hard to cope up with the changes in the environment brought out by the decisions made by man.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The decisions that I am talking about has something to do with the ability to commit to the preservation of natural resources in the region. Without the will to choose preservation of natural resources, the next generation of the said region will suffer after the prior generation will harvest what nature has to give back. It is not debatable that the people in the region are suffering through the years due to lack of giving importance of natural resources. There may be different factors outside the will of the people, that has been considered as the causes of this event, but at some extent, it is still the fight of the people that will stop the environmental abuse in the region. The environment is no longer working in line with man’s needs but rather going against it. The said situation is very alarming that many scholars and authors like Roberts and Thanos who gave a very comprehensive and relevant criticism and analysis of the situation in Central American region. This paper then, would be guided by the way how the two authors attacked the environmental injustice that occurred in the region under study.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Basically, the needs of an individual alone will include food, shelter and clothing. These needs must be provided to the person because it will serve as one factor on how he would live his life. The moment these needs are not achieved, the individual will suffer physically, as he would get sick due to lack of food, shelter and clothing. The individual will also suffer psychologically and emotionally as he would be disturbed on the difficulty of his situation. Therefore, human needs must be met in all circumstances in life.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In connection with that, it is humbly and respectfully submitted that, the necessity of the development of long-term and sustainable alternative production mechanisms and the promotion that human needs must determine the distribution of food are the solutions to stop environmental crises and poverty in Central America region. Thus, politics and economics must not be the determinant factors or basis in the distribution of food in the region, but human needs in general. What has been the root cause of this submission? The authors of the book â€Å"Trouble In Paradise†, which are Roberts and Thanos perfectly pointed out the environmental problems in the Central America region which greatly affected the lives of the people and will surely affect the next generation. The book talks about Green Revolutions, Deforestation, and New Ideas, that are very much related with each other. Basically, it was pointed out in the article that the widespread adoption of pesticides and fertilizers as well as the rapid growth of biotechnology and genetic seed manipulations altered the human conditions in the region. With that, there is a need to work hard in  order to solve the problem.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The purpose of the said changes and innovation in the said region is the attainment of modernization and economic progress at the expense of the environmental or ecological balance. It must be stated that without the preservation of the environment, the economic progress that has been achieved will become useless by the time floods, storms and other calamities will occur due to abuse in nature.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Deforestation has been done to be able to supply logging needs of other countries with the hope of gaining profits with the said import transaction without thinking that eventually, it will cause greater problems aside from poor economic condition. The problems of overpopulation, unequal distribution of wealth and land, as well as natural hazards occurred in the region affecting the lives of the people. If nothing will be done at the moment, the problem will become worse and worse as the time continue to roll. Environmental Justice in Central America Region   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Roberts and Thanos practically stated that, the purposes of the modernization of agriculture are to develop the third world through United States aid projects, address poverty and economic stagnation as well as to create markets for United States products. Actually, there is something questionable on these purposes, as these has been the reason why many people are suffering in the Central America region. In the guise of United States aid projects, the countries in the region are affected by the results of widespread modernization of agriculture.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The main reason why it should be done is to augment the food supply system in the region and to sell the agricultural products surplus to other countries. But, the ends does not justifies the means, as the purpose was defeated in the long run. It is true that poverty is addressed in those ways, but there was no valid and diligent consideration on how the processes will affect ecological balance in the region.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   What is more shocking is the very purpose of finding dumping grounds for the products produced by the Americans. The country tried to look for markets for their products by means of establishing connection with other countries, particularly third world countries through giving them numerous aid projects in return. The said underground purpose of the American nation is so oppressive and destructive that it should be stopped. Third world countries must be given their chance to govern their own economic and political development under environmental justice considerations.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There were so many problems that occurred in the region due to the Green Revolution, that is the modernization of agriculture. First, the said modernization of agriculture was not introduced into a social vacuum. The modern techniques for agricultural production was mainly confined on the rich and affluent families that are connected with political leaders that they are closely associated with. The poor and working tenants or the masses were not informed of the said modern techniques. This is because the modern techniques of agricultural production is the vehicle for producing export commodities. The local inhabitants were not taken into consideration as there will be no profits that can be taken from them. Their role in the situation is to become the working class as farmers and not to share with the fruits of their labor.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Second, the situation reinforced and worsened the economic and social divisions in the Central America region. The truth is, few of the elite landowners as well as wealthier peasant farmers and the poor are greatly divided as there was a great disparity of their income and social standing. The poor and working class, who were the people who caused the tremendous production of agricultural products were downgraded to wage laborer status instead of getting an appropriate share of the profits.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Third, there was a terrible states of erosion and contamination. This happened because there was a serious and heavy reliance on agrochemicals that created ecological damages. Merriam- Webster On line Dictionary simply defined agrochemicals as those belonging to fields or soil (â€Å"Agrochemicals†). Practically, agrochemicals were used to control the presence of pests in the agricultural fields worldwide to be able to prevent it from destroying the crops.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, this solution to the problem was not really effective and there was no difference on the results when agrochemicals are used compared to its lack of use. Roberts and Thanos declared in their work that, pests continue to destruct around 37% of the world’s agricultural products and compared to the time before the modernization of agriculture, pests also caused the loss of 34-40% of all the global agricultural production (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 70). Thus, due to the ineffectiveness of the use of agrochemicals, the environment was affected and the ecology with all its living things suffered imbalance. Now, what are other effects of this destructive practice in farming? What about the share of political agenda on this matter? Was it fair for the people in general?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Unfortunately, the answers of these questions were vague and we need to seriously deal with this. Roberts and Thanos correctly commented that, in the political arena, what happened was that, agricultural inputs such as seeds and machinery that are exported from wealthy countries are very  expensive but agricultural products are sold cheap (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 70). This means that aside from the environmental injustice that was brought by the use of agrochemicals, there was also an economic unfairness that was experience by those farmers who worked hard to till the land that may be owned by them or by rich large landowners.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   What is worse is the fact that, there was a finding that pesticide poisonings known as nemoticide caused sterility in male laborers. This product was actually banned in the United States but was dumped or sold in the Central America region (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 70). The product was obviously banned due to its negative effects in the health of the person. The farm workers who will be affected in the said pesticide will surely suffer.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Besides, regulatory agencies and United States manufacturers were aware of the danger of pesticide use but there was no care on the matter as long as profits can be taken from the export of pesticide activities (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 70). The dumping ground of this product are the third world countries of which are trying hard to improve their agricultural production for economic advancement. Then, the third world countries are easy prey to the deception that was done in terms of exporting dangerous nemoticide chemical. In order to facilitate the export of these restricted pesticide products, the same were illegally shipped to third world countries without warning labels of its negative effect in their consumption pertaining to agricultural production (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 70).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In addition to that, Roberts and Thanos also pointed out that, the said dangerous chemical can also affect women and children (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 70).Going back to the scenario wherein the other poor and working peasants became the workers of the large lands to produce  export commodities, there were many negative effects it would bring to them in particular. The owners of these farms only raked profits of the production but little did they know that the farmers who worked in the farm experienced health problems in the process.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Women and children can be seen in the farm helping in the production process. The children, young as they were, would help in harvesting the export commodities produced in the fields. Women also work, in addition to the activities they are confined with in their homes. In line with these, Pan International said that, short term economic interests greatly affects policy-making (â€Å"Dangerous Pesticide Use In Central America-Wanted A New Approach†, 2001, p. 1). The said interests of producers of those export commodities and the pesticide industry have prevailed over concerns of public health (â€Å"Dangerous Pesticide Use In Central America-Wanted A New Approach†, 2001, p.1). This was really a sad report and very unfair for that matter.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another thing is that, theres was a directive to use pesticides safely but by all means use pesticides in the agricultural production (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 70). Yet, the assurance was repeated by pesticide producers and backed up by scientific studies which was paid for and done by pesticide companies themselves (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 70).That was also a case of utter deception. It was pointed out by Pan International that, pesticides are hazardous technology when used under conditions that cannot give a minimum of safety, and they have negative effects in the worker’s health (â€Å"Dangerous Pesticide Use In Central America-Wanted A New Approach†, 2001, p.1).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The truth is, this is incompatible with principles of sustainable development. Global community defined sustainable development as the sound balance among the interactions designed to make a healthy economic growth, preserve environmental quality, make a wise decision on our resources and enhance social benefits (â€Å"Definition of Sustainable Development†). Another thing that was done by companies to produce export commodities was the biotechnology industry. Roberts and Thanos explained that, â€Å"many seed and biotechnology companies was bought by chemical producers who made species resistant to their own herbicides, so that other plants will die while only the modified species continues to grow after application of weed killers†(Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 70). This process will also destroy ecological balance as it will eventually make other living things extinct.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Moreover, the University of Texas Press also pointed out that, economic reform or liberalization in Latin America generally included the eradication of protectionist rules, the availability of international markets by decreasing tariffs and quotas, the privatization and or disbanding of government corporations for rural credit, infrastructure, commercialization and technical assistance, the end or even reversal of land reform rules and regulations and the radicalization or reorientation of food policies pointed on the internal market toward an export-based agricultural economy (â€Å"Food For The Few: Neoliberal Globalism and Biotechnology in Latin America†, 2008, p. 1). The effects on this pattern was directed to the constituents of the third world countries, particularly the Central America region. Aside from that, the University Press presented the fact that, â€Å"many people are excluded as producers by the new agricultural policies and technologies† (â€Å"Food For The Few: Neoliberal Globalism and Biotechnology in Latin America†, 2008, p. 1).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Furthermore, the ranks of the unemployed was increased due to this phenomenon and peasant farmers were made as wage workers (â€Å"Food For The Few: Neoliberal Globalism and Biotechnology in Latin America†, 2008, p. 1). The sad thing is that, third world counties possess the largest plant biological diversity on earth, as well as the largest problems of soil depletion and environmental problems (â€Å"Food For The Few: Neoliberal Globalism and Biotechnology in Latin America†, 2008, p. 1). The injustice that we knew through this fact is very evident and degrading on the part of developing countries that for so long, they were deceived and used by oppressive rules and polices.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     This time, we will be informed of the effects of deforestation due to the efforts of agricultural modernization of countries. But before that, it is wise to define first the term modernization. Global Change defined deforestation, as â€Å"the conversion of forest to another use or the long- term decrease of the tree canopy to include below a 10% threshold† (â€Å"Deforestation†). It also implies the long-term or permanent loss of forest cover and its transformation into another land use (â€Å"Deforestation†). Some of the activities that are very much related to deforestation are forest clearing, degradation and fragmentation by means of timber harvest, conversion to agricultural road building and human-caused fire (â€Å"Deforestation†). Merriam-Webster also simply defined deforestation, as the action or process of clearing of forests, the state of having been cleared of forests (â€Å"Deforestation†).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Roberts and Thanos mentioned that, rich countries are considered consumers of forest timber and they contribute to deforestation in a large capacity (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 77). The regular harvest of timber products without replacing them was exported to wealthy nations for their use. The Central America region is rich in its timber products resources and it follows that many of its forests were victims of rampant deforestation.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Aside from that, each generational increase in human numbers places additional demands on land and natural resources (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 77). The people will cut more and more trees and clear the forest fro them to have additional place to live and land to till for survival. Those who are poor and cannot afford a land for their own, will be forced to go to the countryside to live. They would develop the forest area on their own way and live there with their extending families. As a result, in the Central America region, the forest was in the edge of disaster due to deforestation (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 77). The living things that can be found in the area will loose its place to live. As a result, they would become extinct in the long run. Extinction of living things in the ecosystem will cause ecological imbalance affecting the entire place. Ecological imbalance will affect farming activities that will cause shortage in the production of food resources.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There are examples of forest in the Central America region that is known for its rich biodiversity features and natural resources. In Mexico, for instance, the forest named as Lacondona Forest was known for its rich natural resources and wide area (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 78). Also, in Costa Rica their forests was famous for being full of bird species larger in numbers compared to other countries with the same land area. This fact is good to know but was disrupted by the fact that these forests has been used to produce timber products for export purposes without doubling its reforestation activities. It is alarming to note that trees were cut in these areas without giving much effort in replacing those trees that had been cut. The soil erosion is common in areas were tress are always cut and were forest were cleared. That would cause flood and storms that will affect the people living in the area. If there will be more floods in these areas, the lives of the people will be displaced. Many will die and get sick for that matter.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In line with that, Roberts and Thanos practically mentioned that, there were some research pertaining to this matter speaking that, when there is environmental degradation, social inequality increases (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 78). As the natural resources become depleted, the rich nations will find more places to exploit almost destroying all forests, while the poor ones will eventually loose its home. More people will loose their jobs and others will continue working with timber companies having a low wage. Children will suffer from too much hunger and their development as a child will be affected. The women in the families will live within their means that is already too small for their families to survive. Their families will suffer diseases brought by famine and natural disasters while the rich ones continue to live comfortably. This social inequality had exists in the region for so many years and will continue to happen if the environmental problems will not be given priority for solutions. While the rich countries are the most benefited by the natural resources production of developing countries, they should be aware that if they will continue to do this practice, they would also be eventually affected because we are just living in the same planet.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   With that, Roberts and Thanos pointed out that, transnational groups such as the World Wide life Fund, Conservation International and Nature Conservancy intended to give assistance and funding to countries that were politically â€Å"open† and where there were already active local conservation groups (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 78). Now, what is the rationale for this one?Why is it necessary for the wealthy countries to select only those politically open nations to extend aid projects? That was very alarming and it means injustice. Admittedly, it could be logically said that wealthy countries would give help in the guise of financial aid for reforestation projects to get something in return. They like those nations who could give them favor while they extend funding to them. As such, the developing countries will believe with them because of the hope that they could use the extended or sponsored reforestation to rehabilitate their already destroyed forests. Yet, these purpose actually cause so many problems involving the same people who live in the areas where forests are rehabilitated to some extent by foreign aid projects.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In line with that, Roberts and Thanos were aware that, forest-dwelling individuals were relocated out of the protected areas and treated as poaches if they continued to harvest fuel wood, wildlife, medicines or other forest resources that had sustained them for generations Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 79). It would be unfair for this people who are the most holder of rights to live in the area knowing that they can no longer survive to live in the cities. Their only resort is to live in the forest and depend on the natural resources that they could get there. These natural resources are the only things that they could afford because they do not have the money to afford things that are sold in the city like medicines, foods and even clothing.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   For so long, they were so dependent on the produce of the forest for food for their families to survive. Thus, any attempt to deprive them of the right to take resources in the forest and to live there give them no choice but to rebel. It is ironic that the people who occupied and called the lands their owned were not allowed to use the same for their benefits. Then, it was absurd to rehabilitate forests when the supposed to be recipients are driven away.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   While it is true that there was a peasant- administered conservation reforestation projects, the same was not reasonable and fair. Roberts and Thanos confided with this respect that, large landowners were reportedly paid up seven times more than small landholders and squatters were paid less Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 79). The said disparity in payment is not acceptable in a society that loves freedom and self-reliance. That was an example of economic and environmental injustice to the prejudice of the people in the Central America region.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   However, no matter how unfair the situation may be, as long as it can contribute to the rehabilitation of the forests, then it would be okay. The best thing that should be done is fight for the rights that is accorded to an individual so that injustice will not prevail. Yet, how said it is to say this, that if we succeed in saving an ecosystem but lose the people that are a part of it, what have we really won? No matter how we try to save the environment when the people are no longer surviving, it will be useless.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   One solution to the problem is the introduction of ecotourism. This term was simply defined by the American Heritage Dictionary of the American Language as, a tourism involving travel to places of natural or ecological interest, typically under the guidance of a naturalist, for the purpose of observing wildlife and learning about the environment (â€Å"Definition of Ecotourism†). This means that, there were groups of people who are holding projects in this purpose for governmental profits or purposes and sometimes aided by foreign funding.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Tourists are the frequent visitors of places that are placed as ecotourism business and only few of the domestic people who availed of the said services. These people who avail services under ecotourism pay an indigenous community, government agency, or even private establishment to let them â€Å"experience nature† (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 80). They would really enjoy the adventure as the forests in the Central America region are beautiful places to visit with and that it was known for its rich biodiversity and ecological resources.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Actually, the visitors will also be informed of the importance of ecological imbalance. However, environmentally benign projects, like observing or feeding wildlife, can be incredibly disruptive when repeated by flocks of ecotourists everyday, or even several times a day (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 80). That means the living things that are preserved in ecological preservation projects are â€Å"preserved to death† as pointed out by Roberts and Thanos (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 80). For instance, if there were many birds in the area for ecotourists, these species of birds will be disrupted by the constant presence of people who will sometimes feed them improperly. Besides, due to the increase of the number of tourists in the area, it could be possible that building other infrastructure within the area for commercial purposes could happen. The aim of preserving the ecology would become useless if this thing would occur.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   At this juncture, it is expected that we will be informed of the contentious globalization touching the topic of international law, treaties, green labeling and human rights. This is a very important topic since it talks about the dynamics of the environmental problems in the Central America region. According to Roberts and Thanos, Justice Lloyd Doggett’s decision to allow the suit in a Texas court was a pivotal step in the international struggle to make transnational corporations more accountable to their employees (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 81). This a practical solution to end utter oppression in the region leaving the indigenous inhabitants nothing in their hands as if their lives depends upon the whims and caprices of these transnational corporations.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In connection with that,this was considered an international struggle because the problem is not only existent in the Central America region but also in other third world countries. The said case proposed that, the principal determinants in the case were political, economic and social factors-not technical or procedural factors as claimed by Dow and Shell (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 80). If the principal determinants of the case would be technical and procedural factors, the rationale that was built within the law used as the basis for rendering decision will be put to nothing.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There was a very strong argument that is connected of the case given as an example on how international law would come to the rescue concerning international struggle for environmental injustice. If we could remember the cases of laborers who are victims of sterility due to the dangerous chemical nemoticide produced by Dow and Shell Companies, thousands of farmers filed cases against them asking for damages (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 71). In line with that, the dominance of profit interests as well as control over information and technology by the manufacturers who concealed early toxicological research evidence of the reproductive hazards and by the managers of the banana producer-companies influenced and ultimately determined the case (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 81). Profit-oriented companies do not care with the health of the people and instead refuse to disclose the danger of said chemicals early on so that the peasants could prepare and be warned of its ill effects.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There were so many people who fought to solve these problems in the region. Many people also fall as victims of human rights violations as they magnified their struggles. Some died for that matter. With that, Roberts and Thanos wrote that, the deaths of these people gives us an idea that we must turn our focus to the social and political underpinnings of violence. It was so sad that individuals needed to shed blood in order to defend their own lands. For example, Sign On San Diego pointed out that, a leading human rights group said that, it had lost its faith in Mexico’s legal system and would take is efforts to clear the names of two celebrated anti-logging activists to an international tribunal (â€Å"Mexican Rights Groups Says It Will Take Environmentalists Case To International Court†, 2002, p. 1).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Finally, alternative production mechanisms should be done by the people in their own efforts with the assistance of their governments in the region. The organic food production was tried wherein the use of pesticides was lessened to some extent. However, Roberts and Thanos reported that only a few profit will go to the contract farmer and the rest of the fruit of his labor will go to the seeds producer, fertilizer companies and others (Roberts and Thanos, 2003, p. 81). Fair trade efforts was also done wherein farmers were paid a fair amount or living wage on their exported products. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The destruction of the environment will result to the suffering of the people. It will create a dilemma that will haunt them as pervasive as to the next generation. That is why it is necessary to take good care of the ecological balance of nature. Deforestation must be stopped and reforestation must be done double time. This is because according to the Rotarian Fellowship for Population and Development, deforestation contributes to soil erosion, scarcity of water, and climate changes (â€Å"Population and Deforestation in Central America†). Aside from that, three fourths of Central America is hilly or mountainous and that when it would be stripped with cover and the trees would be cut, it would unable to hold water and soil (â€Å"Population and Deforestation in Central America†). As a result, the destruction from Hurricane Mitch was seriously caused by the deforestation because of overpopulation in the region.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is also concluded that, the environmental preservation projects that was made in the forests of the Central America region was not sustainable because it could disrupt the existence of living things in places made and intended for ecotourism. The purpose of preserving the wild animals and plants will be defeated of the constant presence of visitors and adventurers in the area. Thus, environmentally-benign projects are indeed not sustainable.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Finally, we should learn lessons from this paper since it has something to do with our survival and the future of the next generation. We must admit that all things are interconnected that any destruction done in the other side of the globe would affect us in one way or another. The realization that the environment is the common factor that would help us solve poverty is evident and we should not discard the idea. It may be true that wealthy nations will live comfortably because of the wealth that was taken from deforestation and inappropriate farming methods, but time will come that they would experience calamities as a result of the ecological abuse. Therefore, all of us must unite in preserving the fragile planet in which all of us are housed. References Global Change. (2008). Global Deforestation. Retrieved March 23, 2008,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   from   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.globalchange.umich.edu/global/change2/current/lectures/deforest/deforest.html. Global Community. (2008). Definition of Sustainable Development. 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