In James Joyce's The Dead discuss the themes of loss and involuntary Research Paper

In James Joyce's The Dead discuss the themes of loss and involuntary memory in relation to Freud's Mourning and Melancholia - Research Paper Example The moment of epiphany at Gretta’s revelation has a serious effect on Gabriel’s mind and he, in a state of mourning, loses interest in his life and develops a feeling a disregard for his own â€Å"self†. The hero of the story â€Å"The Dead† apparently seems to be a star of the show at his aunts’ party. He has been given the honor of delivering after-dinner speech. But when we see this man in the company of people we find that this man lacks self confidence and is not sure what impact his speech would make on the people. Perhaps he is aware of the hollowness of his words. The bubble of his self confidence bursts when he comes to know that his wife compares him with her past lover who is dead. Gabriel felt ashamed that he was being compared with a dead person and in this comparison the dead person was regarded superior to him. The consciousness about his diminutive self made him melancholic and â€Å"he saw himself as a ludicrous figure, acting as a penny-boy for his aunts, a nervous, well-meaning sentimentalist, orating to vulgarians and idealizing his own clownish lusts, the pitiable fatuous fellow he had caught a glimpse of in the mirror† (Joyce 150). This feeling of disillusionment and loss experienced by Gabriel is not the expression of individual rather it is going to be an elegy of a country or a nation. Joyce himself was writing his collection Dubliners in a broader context. Explaining his authorial intent for writing Dubliners, he states, â€Å"My intention was to write a chapter of the moral history of my country and I chose Dublin for the scene because that city seemed to me the centre of paralysis† ( qtd. in Friedrich 421). The story â€Å" The sisters† acted as the prologue of this elegiac epic while â€Å" The dead† was its inevitable â€Å"coda†(421). Gabriel seems to be a mouthpiece of Joyce and Noon traces some autobiographical implications of Joyce’s personality in the character of Gabriel and finds that it is difficult for the reader to â€Å" separate the ‘moral history’ of the city from the self-portrait of the artist†(254). Gabriel here is mourning the loss of the city (Dublin) which is the center of paralysis and like his writer shows anger and sorrow towards Ireland (Noon 255). Gabriel is reminded by Miss Ivors that he has lost his link with Irish identity and he has become a â€Å" West Briton†. She suggests that he should feel ashamed of himself for that. He also likes to spend vacations in Europe instead of Ireland. His talk about Ireland offends nationalist in Miss Ivor and she leaves of party early in an indignant mood. Gabriel in his speech Gabriel’s constant resort to his past through his memory is actually the cause of his emotional distrust and his neurotic cynicism with his present situation. We try to recollect our past through an attempt to access our sub-conscious memory. This we do voluntarily . But sometimes our unconscious invades our consciousness through recurring bouts of involuntary memory. Joyce’s technique of â€Å" stream of consciousness† works in this paradigm of voluntary and involuntary memory. Gabriel’s sense of loss is strengthened by these sudden infiltrations of involuntary memory which make him compare his present with his past. This comparison ultimately leads him to a situation where he develops a feeling of disillusionment with his present. This stylistic technique is the hallmark of James Joyce through which his characters come to recollect their past. This activity

Halpern's View Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Halpern's View - Essay Example Through her article â€Å"Sex, Brains & Hands: Gender Differences in Cognitive Abilities,† she has explained how the sex differences in cognitive abilities are not just because of ‘sex,’ but are also due to the role of ‘preferred hand’ and socio-cultural factors in development of cognitive abilities. With the help of in depth look at different research studies in psychology, sociology, biology and culture, Halpern has done an excellent job in convincing the reader that the sex differences in cognitive abilities are more a part of social and cultural influence than the ‘sex’. The article is an eye opener as it gives an insight on the truth related to the gender studies and also makes the reader realize that accepting the differences as sex related can prove disastrous for healthy development and progress of females. Hence, it sends a strong message that one should keep away from conclusions based on half true stories in media, and should r emember that females can be trained to develop equal abilities as males if they are given equal support and opportunities as males are given in the society. Weaknesses of research studies In her article â€Å"Sex, Brains & Hands: Gender Differences in Cognitive Abilities,† Halpern has aimed to make the readers aware about the weaknesses in gender related research studies which try to send a wrong message that females are inferior to men in cognitive abilities. She has used different research studies, its results and its drawbacks, as evidence to explain her point of view. Different aspects of the gender studies which Halpern has used to prove her point are discussed below. Unreliability of tests Halpern has referred to the fact that even though there are various studies showing cognitive differences in males and females, there are also various studies which show no differences. According to Halpern, there are various â€Å"tests of verbal, visual-spatial and quantitative abi lities that show consistent sex differences† (Halpern 5). However, she also draws the reader’s attention to the fact that there are various other tests that fail to show these differences (Halpern 5). This proves that the sex differences in cognitive abilities are not a consistent. Unfortunately, only those studies which have shown sex differences in cognitive abilities are highlighted by the media for public attention. The studies which have proved that there is no difference were not given any space in media. This created a wrong notion that males are superior to females when it comes to cognitive abilities. Halpern later discusses the similar scenario observed in the field of mathematics. Differences in mathematical abilities To explain the sex differences found in mathematical abilities, Halpern has referred to study by Benbow and her colleagues. While referring to the results of this study, which showed great sex difference in ratios in high mathematics scores, she has highlighted the fact that it was not that â€Å"there were no girls in the group† who scored high (Halpern 5). It is just that girls were less in number than boys (Halpern 5). This proves that even girls can attain high scores in mathematics (Halpern 5). Sadly, as it happens always, even this study was highlighted in the media in wrong way. All kinds of media sent a wrong message that only boys are good at mathematics. However, Halpern has

Examining The Concept Of Green Economy Environmental Sciences Essay

Examining The Concept Of Green Economy Environmental Sciences Essay Nature is important and valuable for us and it is our responsible to keep maintain it. By this, green economy is an economy when we are concerned on the environment, not only on the monetary. Supporters of this branch of economics are concerned with the environment and believe that actions should be taken to protect nature and encourage the positive co-existence of both humans and nature. Green economy is when human needs, earth materials and world of work have the harmonious interaction with each other. Green economists assert that the basis of all economic decisions should be in some way tied to the ecosystem. The economic growth and the environmental friendly are the trade-off between each other. The only economy that can eliminate the trade-off between this trade-off is green economy. The effort to eliminate this trade-off needs human creativity, tremendous of knowledge and a good participation from all people and not only from our government. Green economic emphasize the creation of positive alternatives in all areas of life and every sector of the economy. This effort needs a great support from private and public sector. Green economy also can be defined based on triple bottom line which is the environment sustainable, social just and stable economic activities. Environment sustainable is mention about the scarcity of raw material. The scarce material should be used wisely and the environment should be protected. Thus, tremendous knowledge and creativity of the human being is needed. The supporting systems also must be considered. Socially just is about considering our social life will affect our economic and it will directly affect our environment. Social, economy and environment is a strong connection in order to achieve a great and harmony life. It is the human being responsibilities to gain a good standard of living without damaging our environment. Our economics is generated by the human being, so it is our responsi bility to concern from every aspect. Figure 2: Triple bottom line Principles of the Green Economy The world already comes out with ten principles on the Green Economy. The principles touch on every aspect that takes into account in economy. The first principle is the primacy of use value, intrinsic value and quality. This principle is the main of the green economy and this principle see the green economy as the service economy. It takes into account on the final customer who receives the product. In the result, the customer gets the product correctly and it did not affect the environment. Human needs and the environment condition is the major aspect that green economy must achieve. The main purpose is to satisfy the human needs. What you get, that is how much you must pay, that is the suitable to describe about this principle. Equal pay is to reflect on the exchange that we already get, for example if we make some product, we must not consider it cost but also on the cost of environment. The second principle is the following natural flow. This principle tells us that the economy process is not only walk alone. It comes with the environment as the complement. The economy must build the boundaries in order to be fair to the environment. A firm can maximize their profit, but they also must minimize the pollution. The third principle is the waste must equal to the food. We must minimize our waste in order to stabilize our environment. We can produce non-toxic product in order to minimize the impact to our environment. Appropriate scale is considering on the activity of the economy. It is not mean that we must takes into account on the only the large firm. We must also see the small firm which there also gives large impacts to our environment. Green economy also needs the participant and direct democracy. In order to build flexibility and sustainability, participation from all people is important. The definition of participation is the creativity and the efforts in build the healthy economics process to achieve a high development and clean environment. Besides that, human creativity and development is also needed to achieve the green economy standard. Of course the machine and technology in green economy is expensive, but is human have the creativity in manipulate and think on the way to achieve green economy, the world can easily practice green economy. The next principles are the diversity which tells us that there are variety factor that affect the ecosystems. So, we must analysis all the factor in order to get the best result to take care of our environment. All the factors are connected each other, so we must master all the aspects. Self-Reliance, Self-Organization, Self-Design is the complex systems necessarily rely on nested hierarchies of intelligence which coordinate among themselves in a kind of resonant dance. These hierarchies are built from the bottom up, and in contrast to civilizations social hierarchies although these local and regional domains must be attuned to larger processes. Self-reliance is not self-sufficiency, but facilitates a more flexible and holistic interdependence. The strategic role of built-environment, the landscape and spatial design is the last principle that we are going to touch. We can achieve the perfect result if we can arrange the right steps to achieve the green economy. Our government must also play role in order to minimize the pollution in our production. The quality and the effectiveness is important to recover all the effects in our economy. Benefits from green economy Eradicate poverty Poverty remains a major global concern, despite impressive reductions especially in East Asia. A transition to a green economy can contribute to eradicating poverty by across a range of key sectors. These potential green economic sectors are including agriculture, forestry, fishery, and water management. These sectors especially the agriculture sectors are particularly important for the poor in developing countries because they are depending on these sectors as major sources of income. This is especially critical for subsistence farming because almost1.3 billion people depend upon it for their livelihoods (UNEP et al. 2008). Investing in greening agriculture benefits the poor in terms of secure livelihoods. The investment in the natural capital and ecosystem services will increase the poors income opportunities through increased yields and creation of new green jobs especially in rural areas. They will also gain other social and environmental benefits from the direct use of ecosystems. The Bill Melinda Gates Foundation have awarded $15 million for the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa to work on the effort to the farming techniques that are both environmentally responsible and highly productive, focusing primarily on small-scale farming in sub-Saharan Africa (Garthwaite, 2009). According to the recently launched UNEP Green Economy Report, for every 10 per cent increase in farm yields, there has been a 7 per cent reduction in poverty in Africa; and more than 5 per cent in Asia. Evidence suggests that the application of green farming practices has increased yields, especially on small farms, between 54 and 179 per cent. (Herren, 2011) Furthermore, a green economy can alleviating poverty and improving overall quality of life by increase access to basic services and infrastructure. For example, Renewable energy technologies like solar and wind power, and supportive energy policies promise to make a significant contribution to improving living standards and health in low income areas, particularly to those that currently lack access to energy. Create green job A global transition to green economy will create large numbers of green jobs in many economic sectors that includes renewable energy, buildings and construction, transportation, basic industry, agriculture, and forestry and indeed can become an engine of development. Current green job creation has so far occurred mostly in developed countries and in some of the rapidly developing countries such as Brazil and China. Green Jobs are also beginning to be seen in other developing economies.(Institute, 2008) Bangladesh has a project to train local youth and women as certified solar technicians and as repair and maintenance specialists. This is aims to create some 100,000 jobs. At the same time, in India, an initiative to replace inefficient biomass cooking stoves in nine million households with more advanced ones could create 150,000 jobs. It now appears that a green economy can generate more and better jobs everywhere and that these can be decent jobs. (Institute, 2008) Pew (2009) state that the number of jobs in Americas emerging clean energy jobs in the clean energy economy grew at a national rate of 9.1 percent while traditional jobs grew by only 3.7 percent between 1998 and 2007.  This report has count across all 50 states of the actual jobs, companies and venture capital investments that supply the growing market demand for environmentally friendly products and services. Climate change has damage the livelihoods of millions, mostly poor people in developing countries. Sectors consuming large amounts of energy and natural resources are likely to see a decline in jobs. So, transitions to new opportunities and sustainable jobs and incomes are urgently needed for those impacts. In some countries, especially in the developing countries, new jobs being created in the food, agriculture and recycling sectors as a result of climate change and environment leave are the desired and considered new decent. (Institute, 2008) Environmentally-friendly Green economy describes sustainable growth that is environmentally-friendly, sensitive to the need to conserve natural resources, and minimal emissions during the production process, and promotes environmentally-friendly lifestyles and consumption patterns while growing the economy. While meeting the industrial needs of one state to produce their service and commodities not only local environmental disturbances are created but the environment of the other states is also affected. This is mostly happen in Developed Countries (DCs) and much more due to the greed rather than the need factor dominant in less developed countries (LDCs).The environmental crisis need for deep reform of production and consumption patterns especially the DCs that are rich in resources and able to transform into green economy. The green economy can help in reduce the pollution by the green waste, green building, and green transportation and so on. For instant, by green waste that turning waste into a resource and encouraging the reduction, reuse and recycling of waste, significant gains can be achieved in decoupling waste production from economic growth. Besides that, investment in green transport that means to use more public transport than use own car and car pool with others to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gas emissions by more than a quarter and deforestation in developing countries, is one of the biggest drivers of climate change and a major threat to sustainable development. Thus, wind, solar and other sustainable renewable energy could provide almost a third of all global power needs and this energy could reduce those greenhouse gases and could be almost fully halted. Generate healthful society The green economy as a means to raise living standards and emphasize environmental friendly will also improve health and well-being for all segments of society. This will generate a healthier future generation. By shifting toward greening economy, the future of technology is most definitely green. With the rising energy costs and the threat of global warming, many businesses are now recognizing the benefits of using technology to reduce carbon footprint and also to minimize waste, while giving a positive outcome to their business. (SME Corporation Malaysia, 2011) The field of green technology is continuously evolving various methods, materials from technique for generating energy to non-toxic cleaning products (SME Corporation Malaysia, 2011). One of the example of greening product is Natura paint from Benjamin Moore is an odorless interior paint. This paint has zero VOC colorants which is the organic chemicals that will affect the environment and human health. The other example is the poly Whey wood finish from Vermont Natural coatings uses recycled whey protein which is a by-product of the dairy industry a binder. This helps produce this low-odor coating that has no toxic heavy metals and low VOCs. This innovation will change the daily of society gradually. (Automattic , 2008) Reduce waste and inefficiency Going to green economy will lead to resources efficient. Much of the problem with conventional agricultural, manufacturing and other industrial practices are stems from inefficiency and waste. For example, the inefficiency of energy, the waste of the paper and material, usage of the expensive chemicals though natural methods are more practical and unsustainability of conventional farming methods over the long-term. Eliminate waste and increasing efficiency are critical parts of a green economy. Green solutions can save much for the cost. There are a few examples of economic and cost-efficient changes. (Cosmato, 2010) Hemp fibers are more sustainable and less expensive to grow than cotton. Hemp paper is more eco-friendly, sustainable, and longer lasting than paper made from wood pulp. Save on paper and packaging by sending documents online. Use more eco-friendly packaging, and less of it. Wood from sustainable forests should be used to replace the unsustainable forest over the long-term keeps the price of lumber under control because resources not be depleted. Using less water in textile production will save on water and energy costs. The manufacturing sector can saves money and reduces greenhouse gas emissions and pollution by using fewer chemicals. Using natural soaps for cleaning, natural dyes, or looking for natural instead of chemical solutions to problems also helps. Making workspaces green such as energy-efficient light bulbs, solar lighting and heating options, using recycled office supplies and recycling office supplies, can help in reduce costs and waste. The enormous opportunities of separating waste generation from GDP growth also can be highlight, including what is recovered in recycling. For examples, the Republic of Korea has enforced regulations on products as batteries and tyres to packaging like glass and paper, through a policy of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). This has triggered 14 per cent increase in recycling rates and an economic benefit of $1.6 billion. Besides that, Brazils recycling already generates returns of $2 billion a year. At the same time, this country has avoiding 10 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions. (Nazareth, 2011) Opening up of new export markets A shift to a green economy will also generate economic benefits. One of the obvious potential benefits to a green economy is the opening up of new export markets. Export opportunities exist in all sectors of the green economy. The significant new markets are biofuels, and for renewable energy technologies such as solar panels and wind turbines. ( Ocampo, 2010) Opportunities in these markets are driven by demand in export markets, a combination of foreign demand and domestic capacity development in response to stringent domestic environmental standards. Germany is currently the top exporter of green products with a 16 percent share of the international trade volume, followed by the US which is 15 percent and Japan which is 9 percent. Denmark is the largest exporter of clean energy technology, specifically wind turbines. (Globe Foundation, 2010) Malaysia Services Exhibition (MSE) 2010 recognized Malaysia has an excellence, reputation and capability in the rapidly growing green technology sector. In conjunction with this exhibition, Publication called Malaysia Excellence and Capabilities in Green Technology was also launched. Embarking on green renewable energy provides the opportunities to Malaysia export new market. (MEEC Unit, 2011) Perspective of others countries toward green economy In the first preparatory meeting for 2010 conference, there is the debate and interactive exchange between developed countries and developing countries on their perspective about green economy in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication. In the views of Spain on behalf of the European Union, green economy is a relevant, timely and politically challenging theme. It emphasizes the private sector role, the right price setting and the right of social policies. It stresses on the cooperation between countries and the support to green economy strategies such as promotes the renewable energy, use and management of sustainable resource. In the perspective of Mexico, green economy is a new model. However, it should not cause the change in the agenda, approaches and options respond to the challenges that has not solved by community in terms of sustainable development. Mexico said that it is critical for developed countries transfer technology that can moderate the degradation of environment and support the implementation in developing countries. On the other hand, the United States recognize that transition to a green economy was the only way forward. It also recognizes that the means of green economy and the methods implemented will vary from different countries. According to United State, countries should embrace green economy as a new awakening instead of resist it and introduce various initiatives for green economy. Japan has touted its Hatoyama Initiative and outlines some of its action related to green economy. The Hatoyama Initiative is a national carbon-regulation scheme that announced at the Copenhagen Summit in December 2009 by Japans former Prime Minister, Yukio Hatoyama. This initiative targets a 25 percent cut in global warming emmisions below 1990 levels by 2020. Korean also shared its experiences with green strategies. It said it has invested 2 percent of its GDP on green development to move towards low carbon growth. It said that green growth is about solving climate change problem aggressively and making green technologies and industries to drive to national economic growth. In the perspective of Indonesia, green economy is a vehicle towards a sustainable development. According to Indonesia, the global economic crisis occurred recently has shown that some problems in the method their current and past economic development. This provides them an opportunity to redesign national and global economic policies and strategies toward the implementation of green economy. Besides, according to China, the green economy has recently become a critical trend. It stress that countries must conduct policy measurement for green development. The operational mechanisms are also needed to achieve development virtuously which characterized by economic and social development in harmony with resources and the environment. Then, the harmony interaction between man and nature, conservation and creation of ethical value for environment in social and economic value is also important to change the mode of production and life style. Furthermore, the international community also play role to create an enabling environment to achieve green development. (Ling Iyer, 2010) From the countries perspectives, it is obvious that majority agree with the transition to green economy. Malaysia perspective and policy toward green economy Ministry that has responsibility and concern about issues of green economy in Malaysia is under Ministry of energy, Green technology and water. Malaysia needs face these phenomena because of climate change has become one of the biggest international challenges in the 21st century. Malaysia also face increasing total of carbon dioxides emissions this will lead to increasing in temperature and Malaysia become hotter than before. Below showing total carbon dioxide emissions at Malaysia: Table 1: Total C0 2 emissions Malaysia at years 1971 until 2008 Year CO 2 emissions (million tonnes of CO 2) 1971 12.7 1975 16.1 1980 24.2 1985 33.4 1990 48.9 1995 78.5 2000 111.1 2005 152.8 2006 158.1 2007 169.9 2008 180.9 Source: International Energy Agency Table 1 showing the increasing total carbon dioxides gas emissions in Malaysia at years 1971 until 2008, this all because of Malaysia now day more focus on manufacturing sector. As we know manufacturing sector will contribute on increasing of carbon dioxides such as smoke from factories. An addition, overcrowded of transportation in urban area also will contribute to increasing of total carbon dioxides gas. That why interventions of government are important to protect our environment form damaged and conservation our environment. Figure 3: Total energy production in Malaysia at 1972 until 2008 Coal/peat oil Gas Hydro Comb.renew.wast Source: IEA Energy Statistics Figure 3 showing the total of energy production in Malaysia at year 1972 until 2008 which it increases usage of all energy resource. This all because of increasing of populations in Malaysia where demand for energy is increase and Malaysia now day focus on Manufacturing were it use more energy to support this sector to success. Useful of this all energy actually will give positive and negative impact, especially use of enough energy is good for our production sector and meet the demand of citizen, but the negative impact is toward our environment and will lead to scarcity of resources. That why, Malaysia government concern about this issues and try to find a way to minimize and resolve this problem. To overcome of these challenges government turns out with three Policies on Environmental Protection and Conservation introduced over the years such as below: On 2002, government approved National Policy on Environment which integrates the three elements of sustainable development they are economic, social and cultural development and environmental conservation. The Policy aims at continued economic, social and cultural progress and enhancement of the quality of life of Malaysians through environmentally sound and sustainable development. Then on July 24, 2009 government has launched the National Green Technology Policy with objective: I. To minimize growth of energy consumption while enhancing economic development. II. To facilitate the growth of the Green Technology industry and enhance its contribution to the national economy. III. To increase national capability and capacity for innovation in Green Technology development and enhance Malaysias competitiveness in Green Technology in the global arena. IV. To ensure sustainable development and conserve the environment for future generations. V. To enhance public education and awareness on Green Technology and encourage its widespread use. Four Pillars of Green Technology Policy: I. Energy Seek to attain energy independence and promote efficient utilization. II. Environment Conserve and minimize the impact on the environment. III Economy Enhance the national economic development through the use of technology. IV. Social Improve the quality of life for all. (Malaysian Country Water Partnership, 2011) Lastly is on 2009 government also launched National Climate Change Policy. The aim of this policy is to ensure climate resilient development to fulfill national aspirations for sustainability. Rational of these policies such as below: I. Changes of climate overtime directly will affect human activity as well as natural systems and processes. II. To give people information, education and awareness about green economy, changes of climate and its effect. III. Initiative of government interventions and government effort to take care of people within country. Several initiative undertaken Ministry of energy, Green technology and water to address the challenges of climate change and to pushing for a low-carbon: Energy efficiency The Malaysian Industrial Energy Efficiency Improvement Programme represents one of the main efforts undertaken to improve energy efficiency in the industrial sector. This programme showsthat ministry concern about useful of energy especially on productions and environment. This programme focuses on reducing impacts of the energy sector on the environment and also to improve competitiveness of products and services in the global market. Renewable energy April 2010, renewable energy policy and action plan was given appoved by government. This policy is aimed at promoting long-term sustainability by reducing our dependence on fossil fuels for electricity generation and at the same time stimulates a new growth industry for the country. An additions this policy also important to conserve the environment for future generation and to enhance awareness of role and important of renewable energy, example renewable energy is such as biomass, biogas, mini-hydro and system solar. Green buildings Ministry was carried out with the Green Building Index (GBI). GBI is assessment or rating tool to grade environment-friendly buildings and the Government is providing fiscal incentives to buildings which are GBI-certified. Owners of GBI-certified buildings are entitled to income tax exemptions, equivalent to the additional capital expenditure, to green their building. Buyers of green buildings from developers will also be exempted from stamp duty equivalent to the additional cost incurred to green their building. (Ministry of energy, Green technology and water, 2010) Environmental Performance Index (EPI) Score in 2008 Rank Source: 2008 EPI report Figure 4: The top ten greenest countries ranks and rating in EPI The figure above shows the environmental performance index in 2008. This index takes not only the pollution index of the country, but it also considered the industry, populations, size as well as the demographic of the country. It considered the issues of environment health such as the burden of disease, air and water pollution and ecosystem vitality such as the climate change, water and air pollution effect from ecosystem. Figure four shows that nine out of top ten countries is developed countries and only Columbia is the only developing country. The other developed countries such as Japan and U.S have respectively ranked in 21th and 39th. The relatively wealthy countries have high score in the Environment Health result. In contrast, the developing countries include Malaysia that ranked at 27th score lower than the developed countries. The success of the wealthy country is due to the policy effort and deep commitment to environmental values through their public and business communities. The developing countries are less in pollution stress and less in access to financial resources when they need it such as nutrition and disease, this lead to the air pollution, climate and change and biodiversity. Recently, the score of EPI in 2010 has also released. But owing to changes in methodologies and underlying data, the EPI score in 2010 and rank cannot be directly compared to 2008 scores and ranks. Environmental Performance Index (EPI)score in 2010 Source: 2010 EPI report Figure 5: The top ten greenest countries ranks and rating in EPI The Environmental Performance Index (EPI) 2010 report is the result from a research done by Environment Law and Policy at University and The Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) of Colombia University in collaboration with World Economic Forum. It is rating ranks 163 different countries according to ecosystem vitality and environment health. The ecosystem vitality include issues such as the climate change, agriculture, fisheries, forestry, biodiversity and habitat, water and air pollution while the environment health take account the environment burden of disease, air pollution and water. Overall, there are six over ten of the top greenest countries are developed countries. They are Iceland, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, France and Austria. The developing countries ranks in the top ten are Costa Rica, Mauritius, Cuba, and Colombia. Other developed countries like Japan and U.S. rank in 20th and 61th respectively while Malaysia rank in 54th. Iceland is the top greenest country where it is the only countries that score more than 90 points which is 93.5 points. Although it is a developed country, it has high score on environmental public health, controlling greenhouse gas emissions, and reforestation as well as plentiful hydropower and geothermal energy. This shows that it is effective in the pollution control and natural resources management. According to the Kyoto Protocol, Icelands has obligations concerning greenhouse emission. It must not increase their greenhouse gas emissions by more than 10 percent and above 1990 levels during the period 2008 to 2012 (European Environment Agency , 2010). Costa Rica is the developing countries that ranked in the third place of Environmental Performance Index with 86.4 points. According to some author who surprise with its rank, Costa Rica is a very rough and vastly unsafe country and has a few tourist trap. However, actually Costa Rica has some efforts in green. It is one of the first countries in the world that recognize the economic and social benefits from the environmentally sensitive forestry. There are 26 percent of the Costa Ricas land area are protected forests and more than 50 percent out of bounds for human living settlement. (United Nations Environment Programme, 2010) The United States has very low score at 63.5 points with 61th rank. Increase of greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution are vastly contributed to its low ranks. But U.S maintains the nations forest sustainability and provision of safe drinking water, this assist it from fall to more low rank. The Japan ranked 20th and score 72.5 points. This is due to Japan put many efforts in the renewable energy because they aware that their big city, Tokyo, emit carbon dioxide has causes the global warming especially. Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) has set a goal which is to increase the proportion of renewable energy used from the total energy used in Tokyo around 20 percent by the year of 2020. (Tokyo Metropolitan Government, 2006) Besides that, Japan is a world leader in PV manufacturing. Malaysia is ranked 54th and scores 65 points in EPI. It placed behind Japan but in front of the U.S. Malaysias environmental health is 81.31 points over 100 points while the ecosystem vitality is 48.7 point over 100 points. Thus the average is 65 points. The Greenhouse gas emissions, CO2 Emissions per electricity generation, and industrial greenhouse gas emission intensity are the major contribution to the low score in ecosystem vitality and so EPI score. Since Malaysia has ranked 54th over 163 countries. This is a good starting point for Malaysia. By this EPI, Malaysia will aware of its position and encourage more

We Need Stricter Laws for Drunk Driving (DUI) :: Argumentative, Persuasive Essays

Drunk driving is when an individual drives a vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level over the legaly permited limit. Driving under the influence of alcohol is a major health problem in the United States as it accounts for a high number of road fatalities; hence, there is a need for stricter drunk driving rules in the United States in order to reduce drunken driving fatalities. There is a need for the introduction and implementation of new drunk driving laws by the legislature, because presently the united States drunk driving laws are too lenient. The continuous rate of drunken driving fatalities makes a case that the united States drunk driving laws are too lenient and makes a call for stricter laws. According to Valenti â€Å"countries with strict drunk driving penalties have a far lower incidence of accidents than the United States (1). The United States being a first world country is weak in enforcing strict punishment for drunk drivers. Valenti is emphasizing on the fact that the united States need to improve their present laws and be firm in enforcing these new laws. There is a need for the United States to improve on their severity of its drunk driving penalties just the way the other part of the world have done and this is giving them a reduced rate of drunk driving fatalities. The claim of the leniency of the United States drunk driv ing laws is further stated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), this is a prominent body when it comes to the issue of drunken driving fatalities. It claims that the drunken driving laws are severe enough. â€Å"Despite great strides in awareness, education and enforcement in the last two decades the United States still has one of the most lenient drunken driving standards in the world†. (NHTSA of existing laws. There is a need for stricter laws to be introduced as the United States ranks behind the world when it comes to effort to combat drunk driving and more efforts need to be put in place by the implementation of harsher laws so as to reduce the high rate of repeat offenders and first time offenders. The rate of repeat offenders is rising and the need to suppress this rate should be attended to immediately. Statistics supports the implementation of stricter rules, as the continual rate of the repeat offenders increases.

Marketing Management: Why Some Companies

The growing demand for large businesses’ success in the market is now challenged by stiff competition. This particular competition then drives large organizations to find alternatives of testing the society whether they are going to accept the newly launched products or not. One particular type of such process is market testing. What is market testing? Market testing refers to the way by which the organizations try to find out if their products that is to be launched in the market be accepted and be well patronized or not. Of course, launching a product without actually knowing at least an overview of the results is much risky especially for newly established production companies. For several years, market testing has been treated by business organizations as a large disadvantage for large companies. Â   However, through years of observation, market testing has also been noted to have some certain flaws that reduce its advantage for producing companies. This particular information shall be given deeper discussion within the paragraphs that would follow. The Disadvantages There are at least three major disadvantages of market testing that makes it less-appealing to producing companies of the modern economy: Hints of product characteristics to the competitors in the industry: it could not be denied that among the people who are to be given samples of the product for the sake of testing may come from other companies who are competing with the organization. Once they get hold of the product, it is not impossible that the knowledge that they gain about it shall be used against the organization itself. Thus, the hints of the product’s strengths and weaknesses may be used by other companies to sabotage its formal launching to the market. Excess of production expenses spent for the samples: Most often than not, this is considered to be part of the production budget. As part of marketing, creating samples for the public indeed costs the company certain percentage of expenses. This is supposed to be eliminated to control the production excess. Certainly, this particular aspect of expense could be reduced if market testing is not utilized by the organization. Unsure Results from the Test: Usually, those who respond to the promotional period are not a hundred percent interested in the product. Moreover, they intend to appreciate the product at the time because of its being free. Hence, the statistical reports done after the testing is not anymore that assuring to the company. Conclusion Since there are major disadvantages in the usage of market testing methods, survey analysis are more effective at the present system of industrial and commercial advancement of business organizations. From this particular method, they are not only able to protect the entities of their new products but they are also able to take good care of their reputation and trademark as they keep it secret from their competitors in their own field of business. It is the aim of market analysis procedures to lessen the expenses of the organization from promotional activities and at the same time increase the possibility of their production success in the market. Hence, to do so, several organizations try to do away with the utilization of Market Testing and shift to its alternative of market survey analysis which is gained from ample research. BIBLIOGRAPHY Bert Vermeulen. SIMPLE MARKET TESTING. (2003).

Importance of Strategic Planning Essay

The small business I would like to start would be a candy store. This paper will define strategic management, planning and explain why a strategic plan is important to the success of this business, and explain the four functions of management relative to creating and implementing a strategic plan. Strategic Management is the groundwork for a company’s vision and allows a company to be ready to capitalize on opportunities. Strategic management is a process of evaluating a company’s mission, establishing the company’s design, developing the company’s organization and relationships, and guiding the company’s plan to execution to ensure that the management is consistent with the company’s strategy. Strategic management also enhances or protects the company’s interests and defines the way a company wants to expand or focus. Strategic management if often overlooked and should be the first step in defining a company’s core values, mission, and product focus (Fazzini, 2008). Strategic planning is so important to the success of my business. Its size is what makes strategic planning so important because it means growth from small to a thriving international corporation. This is basically a growth plan. Meaning where wells it be 3 years from now or 5 years or 7 years from now. First he or she must focus on gathering data about the internal and external environment of their company. He or she must also consider outside socio-cultural factors and inside factors, including management style and workforce (Strategic Planning, 2007). One of the most important factors is having goals for your company. Make sure your goals are attainable and reasonable; follow the SMART rule – specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-bound. By following this rule, it makes goals attainable. By being the owner, I have the yeah or nay when it comes to decisions. However, in order to have a successful business, your employees should have a say in some decision-making. This ensures that the company works together to obtain set goals. Finally devise an action plan. List possible and specific courses of action then choose what all you deem as most suitable. Define a schedule for everything but also give leeway for unexpected delays. During this time also set a budget. PlanningPlanning is a function where managers work together with others in the organization towards a common goal. Whether the goal is to increase profits or retaining employees is not the point. Working together and coming up with a plan to achieve that goal is. To be competitive in a local or global economy you need to begin by coming up with goals and create a plan on how to achieve them. Sometimes change is needed in leadership. Goals may need to be changed and updated from time to time. The planning stage will help in laying out these goals and the steps the organization will need to follow. OrganizingOrganizing an organization’s resources is the next step toward success for any management team. What can a business offer to attract employees, how can they acquire the financing they need, or what are the proper materials needed to get the project off the ground? These are but a few of the questions that need to be answered during the organizing phase. All the resources need to be organized so they can be used to the companies highest potential. If a company has strong financial backing but fails to offer incentives to retain their employees will fail in the end. The employees are who keep a company running. It is such a waste to spend the time and money to train an employee, then turn around, and offer nothing else but a pay check. Employee benefits and regular training are a few beginning incentives to keep employees interested in staying with your company. If the employees are not happy they will eventually go somewhere else and the company will have to spend more money to hire and train more employees to replace the ones that left. LeadingLeading people towards doing their best is a skill greatly needed in management positions. Helping coworkers to achieve the goals and programs of the company through two-way communication can help employees feel like their contributions have meaning and will be considered. Management that leads the  employees to contribute will have a better chance of success than a company that â€Å"tells† and expects the employees to blindly â€Å"follow.† The employees see the daily function of the organization. Many times he or she sees what does and does not work before management does. Management needs to take this information and use it to lead the company. ControllingEven with planning, organizing, and leading, you still need to exert some control to keep things on track. Managers need to know what it going on in the organization and be able to make changes when needed. A manager can also exert too much control over a situation by not helping the employees to think and work through a problem that may have arisen. A company that encourages its people to think is a company that will be able to succeed in the long run. As important as planning, organization, leadership and control are in a company, you need all these functions for the company to succeed in the business world. You cannot have planning and leadership with a small amount of organization and no control and expect things to work out well. Each function depends on the others to support and carry the organization. A successful company implements all four functions and uses the managers and employees to the best of their abilities. References Fazzini, D. (2008). How to Define Strategic Management. Retrieved July 6, 2008, from http://www.ehow.com/how_2364537_define-strategic-management.html?ref=fuel&utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=ssp&utm_campaign=yssp_artStrategic Planning, (2007, March 15). Why Strategic Planning is Important Even for Small Businesses. Retrieved July 7, 2008, from http://smbconsulting.wordpress.com/?s=Why+Strategic+Planning+is+Important+Even+for+Small+Businesses&submit=

Definition and Examples of Determiners in English

Definition and Examples of Determiners in English In English  grammar, a determiner is a word or a group of words that specifies, identifies, or quantifies the noun  or noun phrase  that follows it. It is also known as a  prenominal modifier. Basically, determiners come at the start of a noun phrase and tell more about what comes after it (or them, in the case of a phrase that has more than one determiner before the noun). Determiners include articles  (a, an, the),  cardinal numbers (one, two, three...) and ordinal numbers (first, second, third...), demonstratives  (this, that, these, those),  partitives  (some of, piece of, and others),  quantifiers  (most, all, and others), difference words (other, another), and possessive determiners  (my, your, his, her, its, our,  their). Authors Martha Kolln and Robert Funk describe them this way: Determiners signal nouns in a variety of ways: They may define the relationship of the noun to the speaker or listener (or reader); they may identify the noun as  specific  or  general; they may  quantify  it specifically or refer to quantity in general. (Understanding English Grammar,  5th ed. Allyn and Bacon, 1998) A Slippery Grammatical Label Determiners are functional elements of structure and not formal  word classes, because the group of words contains some items that are nouns, some that are pronouns, and some that are adjectives. Authors Sylvia Chalker and Edmund Weiner explain: Determiners  are sometimes called  limiting adjectives  in  traditional grammar. However, they not only differ from the class of  adjectives  by  meaning,  but also must normally precede ordinary adjectives in  noun phrase  structure. Further, among determiners  themselves  there are co-occurrence restrictions and fairly strict rules of  word order. (Oxford Dictionary of English Grammar. Oxford University Press, 1994) Rules on Multiple Determiners English has rules on word order, such as when there are multiple adjectives in a row modifying the same noun (quantity before age, before color, for example). The same goes for when you use multiple determiners in a row.   When there is more than one determiner, follow these useful rules:a) Place all and both in front of other determiners.E.g. We ate all the food. Both my sons are at college.b) Place what and such in front of a and an in exclamations.E.g. What an awful day! Ive never seen such a crowd!c) Place many, much, more, most, few, little after other determiners.E.g. His many successes made him famous. They have no more food. What little money I have is yours.​   (Geoffrey N. Leech, Benita Cruickshank, and Roz IvaniÄ , An A-Z of English Grammar Usage, 2nd ed. Longman, 2001) Count and Noncount Nouns Some determiners work with count nouns, and some dont. For example,  many  attaches  to count nouns, such as The child had  many  marbles. In contrast, you would not use  much  to attach to count nouns such as  marbles  but noncount nouns such as  work,  for example in, The college student had  much  work to finish before finals week. Other determiners work with either one, such as all: The child had  all  the marbles and The college student had  all the  work to finish before finals week.

The eNotes Blog The Truth About Youth andBooks

The Truth About Youth andBooks Young people today just dont read enough, right? If youre under the age of 30, youve probably been accused of this at some point in your life. In fact, it seems that every upcoming generation is stereotyped as lazier than the one that came before it. Weve all overheard the same complaints: always up to no good with their fancy devices, always at their computers or watching too much TV. Why, back in my day You know the drill. In the end both sides come to believe that kids in the old days were both more capable of entertaining themselves and  walked uphill both ways while they did it. But what if the public perception of youth culture is just a little bit wrong? What if young people actually turned out to be the age group that reads the most, and frequents the library the most? Could that be? A survey conducted by Pew Research Center aimed to find out the truth about youth and books. Their results show that not only do 18-24 year-olds read more than any other age group, but that many are more open to it because of the availability of e-readers and e-books. So before you curse the decline of print publishing, think of how it might serve the next generation of iPad, Kindle, and Nook readers, and read on to find out more about the Pew Centers findings.

Aboriginal People in the Canadian Military

According to records, more than 4,000 Indians were enlisted during the First World War, and about 35% of Indian soldiers were in the same age. This number does not include people other than Indians, Metis, other local people such as Inuit. In addition, many indigenous inhabitants witnessed more than average admission. 47% of indigenous soldiers in Prince Edward Island State and 53% of New Brunswick's volunteers volunteered. Amazingly, 100% of adult men in the Miku Mak Reserve in Sydney Nova Scotia have volunteered. In most cases, indigenous peoples and non-Earth soldiers shared similar experiences during the war. Some indigenous people initially had difficulty moving to military life. The reason is that many people came from remote areas of the country and followed their own cultural traditions. They have little contact with Canadians outside the area, and they often speak English and French. Most people believe indigenous men quickly adapt to new lives as soldiers and often become p recious members of their company. Like most Canadians, many indigenous peoples serve Canadian Corps of Canadian Expedition (CEF). The military role of indigenous peoples is influenced by traditional hunting and military skills, plus racial stereotypes of recruitment staff and executives. Many indigenous peoples play the most dangerous role in sniper, reconnaissance soldiers, military. The First National Army encountered a double cultural barrier in military: racial prejudice marked the modern non - native world, and the army class was almost completely moved in English. Records and memoirs indicate that most units finally accepted indigenous soldiers and even provided a welcome or progressive environment than other areas of modern society. The first national army left an amazing record of the wartime achievement. Some were appointed to officers, and many served as intensive platoon leaders and battle instructors. At least 50 people are decorated for bravery on the battlefield. Many people have gained a position close to legends as scouts and sniper soldiers, using pre-war hunting techniques and wilderness experience. Ten years ago, the armed conflict between indigenous peoples and the Oka Quebec Oka police and military pushed the relationship between indigenous peoples and non-indigenous Canadians to the forefront. At that time, the committee announced a federal indigenous policy statement named New Commitments. This statement calls for cooperation in redesigning the relationship between Indigenous peoples and Canada and finding new ways to solve essential problems for our coexistence. Although progress has been seen in the past decade, it is now clear that progress was too late and too late.

A World of Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

A World of Art - Essay Example Renowned artist, scientist and philosopher Leonardo is particularly famous for rendering exemplary services in the fields of paintings and sculptures. The paper has analyzed the famous works of both these creative giants in order to bring to lime-light their gifted talent and command over their work. Subtractive and Additive Processes Subtractive process refers to the creation of sculpture by removing the extra mass from the material to be applied in the entire process. In simple words, subtractive method creates sculpture by taking away the material from the wood or stone while shaping the sculptures. According to Abraham Lincoln Art Gallery, subtractive sculpture is by far the most technically difficult and due to the nature of the medium is the most restrictive in expression. Thus, removing of the material in bulk made of either wood or stone is called subtractive process. Carving is the best example of subtractive process. Carving is typically a subtractive process, in which the material, such as wood or plaster or clay is chipped or carved away until the desired sculptural form emerges. (galenaparkisd.com) Subtractive sculpture On the other hand, in additive process of sculpture creating, the material is added on the piece to be constructed in order to give its proper shape. Hence, joining a smaller piece of clay to a larger piece is called additive process. (galenaparkisd.com) For example, in assemblage the sculptor adds the material for shaping the statue. Both subtractive and additive processes maintain great significance in the development of sculptures. The former carves the already existing material and excludes the surplus matter from it; while the latter observes addition of the material to be applied while building the sculpture. Both these terms are also applied in paintings, where the mixing and combining various colors and oils help in making a refined piece of art. Crafts and Fine Arts: Crafts simply stand for the skill and dexterity over crea ting one thing or the other. In crude sense, it is related to a person’s skill to create, form and shape something. Though handy-work and creating different objects comes in the definition of crafts, yet trade, commerce and business activities also come under its definition. However, designing and forming jewelry, vases, pottery, statues and other objects is called crafting. On the contrary, fine arts contain broadness in its nature and scope, where all forms of arts including drama, poetry, dance, music, sculpture, paintings, photography, calligraphy, assemblage, installation and others come under the term fine arts. Fine arts include the objects such as paintings and sculptures that are created to be looked at because they are beautiful or interesting. Fine art is different to crafts or art that has a practical use. In simple words, the artist does not require practice to have command over creating fine art; rather, it is just gifted talent applied to create various forms o f art. (macmillandictionary.com) Major developments in the camera arts: The invention and inclusion of camera in fine arts brought tremendous revolution in the creative activities, where preservation of the most accurate images of humans, fauna, flora and other material objects became very fast, easy and long lasting. Before the invention of camera, the pencil work, oil paintings, canvas painting and sculptures had been in vogue as the sources to preserve the images.

Abortion Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 2

Abortion - Research Paper Example Abortion is such an issue that carries two viewpoints encompassing choice and life. Life is present in the fetus right from the moment of conception, a fetus, or human embryo is considered to be a living individual. Due to the act of abortion, the individual is divested from the survival and hence abortion is considered to an act of murder. The view is supported by the Catholic Church, considering the responsibility to prevent every individual (Web. "Ethics of Abortion: Is it Moral or Immoral to Have an Abortion"). On the contrary, decision to give birth to the young one is the right of mother and there should not be any interventions, she has the responsibility of upbringing of the child. History reveals that abortion has always been a contemporary issue; the issue was prevalent even before the birth of Christ. Some traditional methods were prevalent to kill the unwanted fetus; it was a legal as well as political concern. Plato (428- 347 BC) and Aristotle (384-322 BC) maintained the outlook of abortion (Roos). Abortion has been debated over the years on the political grounds to make a law in order to regard it as a murder or it should be left as a permissible issue leaving on the choice of the women. However, it cannot be denied that law must not legislate transience, the laws must be made for good and should be in the favor of women (Web. "Fetus, Humanity, Personhood: When Does a Fetus Become a Human Person with Rights"). Debates related to abortion encompass the lawful eminence related to the fetus. Considering fetus as an individual, abortion is equivalent to the murder and therefore abortion is an illegitimate act. On the other hand, needful to understand that fetus is the part of womens body and any state cannot compel a woman to continue with the pregnancy if the woman is not willing to maintain it to the complete term. Thus, it should be an ethical choice and

Econometric Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Econometric Project - Essay Example will use in-depth statistical analysis processes to create models relating the different observations, particularly that between gross weekly earnings (grmain1) and other observations such as age, sex, race, years of education and number of years in employment, among others. Correlation analysis will also be used to investigate the strength of the relationship observed between the dependent variable (gross weekly earnings) and other independent variables. A residual plot will be used to confirm the presence or absence of outliers, the plot will also indicate whether there were any particular areas where the model greatly under or over-predicted the relationship between unemployed persons and persons seeking employment. From the results, it is observed that othe sample consists of 7227 respondents. The mean income is obtained as 10.3 and this corresponds to an income category of  £300-350 per week. The standard deviation is obtained as 4.5 and this corresponds to an income category of  £100-125 per week. This implies that on average, the respondents’ salaries differ from the average earning by this amount. The STATA output shown indicates that the greatest proportion of respondents (20.23%) earn over  £600 per week followed by those that earn  £300 - 350 and  £250-300 with 9.5% and 9.2% respectively. Apart from persosn that do not earn anything, the income category of  £50-75 has the least number of respondents. It is observed that out of the 7227 respondents, 47% were male while the remaining 53% were female. These percentages correspond to 3398 and 3829 persons respectively. Observing these percentages, it is seen that both sexes made up approximately 50% of the sample. Further analysis of the data on sex in later sections of the paper will give further findings. The greatest proportion of respondents have â€Å"white british† ethnicity followed by â€Å"any other white background†. The two ethnicities account for almost 95% of all persons surveyed. This

Innovation and Risk Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Innovation and Risk - Essay Example Innovation is making a new idea valuable. It is improving on the existing new design it is not something that has never been there before. An inventor frequently makes a change. Innovation interrupts the status quo but dies not translate into entrepreneurship. On the other hand, Entrepreneurship is coming up with something very new. Its not like the innovation whereby they are improving the existing ideas. Coming up with ideas without implanting them is worthless. Change is challenged in terms of financial management aspects while entrepreneurship pride in culture and financial management (Entrepreneurial risk, investment, and innovation, 2013). Keeping up with the market is a major challenge to the managers since the market is continuous and unpredictable. A manager is required to do an ongoing market research in order not to make outdated decisions. Being the market leader is the aim of every entrepreneur; how to get there is the effort, the entrepreneur puts (Caggese, n.d.). Planning is another challenge since the managers have to make different decisions from time to time. The decision made today will be different from the decisions made tomorrow depending on the circumstances. As the business grows, the strategies need to evolve to meet the changing demands (Entrepreneurial risk, investment, and innovation, 2013). Financial management is another challenge to the managers. Managing the cash flow is crucial especially in a growing business. Planning in terms of funds to be used in future is crucial so that you can know where to get i.e. external sources. Competition is a challenge to every business, finding the strategies to cope with the competition is crucial. The loyal customers might find an alternative product hence you must have a way to win them back. Winning back the customers is not easy since you need to do research no why the customers had to shift. Technology is a problem with many businesses. The

Leadership in Organisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Leadership in Organisation - Essay Example There is a growing presence of women in almost all aspects of employment, and particularly in top management positions, in recent years. The contribution of women, in executive level in organizational success over the years, is unprecedented, thus indicating their strong leadership skills and professionalism at the workplace. There is also a change in their social expectations, and their advocacy by various groups, to ensure equal opportunities at the workplace has further ensured honing of such skills. It is on account of these reasons, that the performance of women managers and leaders, that the case for a strong ethical leadership, irrespective of the gender, has gained momentum. Furthermore, the rise in complexity and composition of the global markets has expanded the scope of businesses as never before, thus leading to more pressure on the top level management to perform and excel in their respective fields. Such external factors have led to retention and promotion of skilled wo men in managerial positions, across all levels in the organizational hierarchy. Such an increase in female corporate leaders in recent times can be attributed to the changing dynamics of the industry, as well as the change in conventional definitions and practices of the concept of leadership in general. Contrary to the conventional definition of the concept, leadership in the post-industrialized era refers to the ability of individuals to motivate, empower and engage the employees and subordinates, and team members as well as empathize with them. (Hammer & Champy, 1994; Senge, 1994). Research suggests that there is still a vast difference between the leadership and management styles followed by male and female leaders. It is on account of this reason that the proverbial ‘glass ceiling’ still exists in terms of appointment of women in top management positions particularly in fields such as finance and technology. According to Schein (2001) the ‘think manager, think male’ approach to appointing individuals in top leadership positions, ex ists in various countries across the globe, despite the change in socio-cultural environment, and the advancement of policies advocating equal opportunities to women. It has also been observed that in the developed

Econometric Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Econometric Project - Essay Example will use in-depth statistical analysis processes to create models relating the different observations, particularly that between gross weekly earnings (grmain1) and other observations such as age, sex, race, years of education and number of years in employment, among others. Correlation analysis will also be used to investigate the strength of the relationship observed between the dependent variable (gross weekly earnings) and other independent variables. A residual plot will be used to confirm the presence or absence of outliers, the plot will also indicate whether there were any particular areas where the model greatly under or over-predicted the relationship between unemployed persons and persons seeking employment. From the results, it is observed that othe sample consists of 7227 respondents. The mean income is obtained as 10.3 and this corresponds to an income category of  £300-350 per week. The standard deviation is obtained as 4.5 and this corresponds to an income category of  £100-125 per week. This implies that on average, the respondents’ salaries differ from the average earning by this amount. The STATA output shown indicates that the greatest proportion of respondents (20.23%) earn over  £600 per week followed by those that earn  £300 - 350 and  £250-300 with 9.5% and 9.2% respectively. Apart from persosn that do not earn anything, the income category of  £50-75 has the least number of respondents. It is observed that out of the 7227 respondents, 47% were male while the remaining 53% were female. These percentages correspond to 3398 and 3829 persons respectively. Observing these percentages, it is seen that both sexes made up approximately 50% of the sample. Further analysis of the data on sex in later sections of the paper will give further findings. The greatest proportion of respondents have â€Å"white british† ethnicity followed by â€Å"any other white background†. The two ethnicities account for almost 95% of all persons surveyed. This

Leadership in Organisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Leadership in Organisation - Essay Example There is a growing presence of women in almost all aspects of employment, and particularly in top management positions, in recent years. The contribution of women, in executive level in organizational success over the years, is unprecedented, thus indicating their strong leadership skills and professionalism at the workplace. There is also a change in their social expectations, and their advocacy by various groups, to ensure equal opportunities at the workplace has further ensured honing of such skills. It is on account of these reasons, that the performance of women managers and leaders, that the case for a strong ethical leadership, irrespective of the gender, has gained momentum. Furthermore, the rise in complexity and composition of the global markets has expanded the scope of businesses as never before, thus leading to more pressure on the top level management to perform and excel in their respective fields. Such external factors have led to retention and promotion of skilled wo men in managerial positions, across all levels in the organizational hierarchy. Such an increase in female corporate leaders in recent times can be attributed to the changing dynamics of the industry, as well as the change in conventional definitions and practices of the concept of leadership in general. Contrary to the conventional definition of the concept, leadership in the post-industrialized era refers to the ability of individuals to motivate, empower and engage the employees and subordinates, and team members as well as empathize with them. (Hammer & Champy, 1994; Senge, 1994). Research suggests that there is still a vast difference between the leadership and management styles followed by male and female leaders. It is on account of this reason that the proverbial ‘glass ceiling’ still exists in terms of appointment of women in top management positions particularly in fields such as finance and technology. According to Schein (2001) the ‘think manager, think male’ approach to appointing individuals in top leadership positions, ex ists in various countries across the globe, despite the change in socio-cultural environment, and the advancement of policies advocating equal opportunities to women. It has also been observed that in the developed

English poetry Essay Example for Free

English poetry Essay The second decade of the twentieth century, a change-over period in the history of English poetry, was not a very inspirational one for poets. The existing group of poets, the Neo-Romantics attempted in vain to keep the Romantic spirit alive by writing about nature and harmony but with the arrival of industrialization and the beginnings of the modern world, it became painfully clear that the lilting, peaceful Romantic style was in no way a reflection of the present state of affairs. The mechanized world of machines, factories and similarly regimented human societies, long ignored by the Neo-Romantics was finally examined and put into verse by T. S. Eliot. Of the numerous works that capture the nascent modern world, one that stands out in particular is ‘The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock’. Eliot dives into the heart of urban decay in the first stanza itself, when he compares the evening to an etherized patient lying comatose on the operating table. The metaphor that symbolizes the numb, unquestioning society that inhabits the deserted streets, cheap hotels and sawdust restaurants captures a theme that is constantly revisited in this poem. The women who talk about Michelangelo do so as a ritual of fashion, without understanding anything about the art itself. Eliot goes on to compare the fog that spreads across the city to a cat that skulks on the rooftops before going to sleep. The fog that slips insidiously into every home represents the clouded judgment of the people that inherit the modern world. The protagonist in the poem echoes Marvell and the preacher in Ecclesiastes with the phrase, ‘there will be time, turning Marvell’s call to seize the moment and the preacher’s teaching- to everything there is a season- upside down to suit his indecisiveness. 2 The comparisons to Hamlet in the poem once again parallel the lack of resolve that characterizes the protagonist. He longs to be the rogue element in a society that picks up on the trivial things like one’s thinning hair, or depleted weight but fails to pay heed to life’s more important aspects. The protagonists envisions himself breaking the cycle and speaking life’s messages to the gossiping crowd only to falter at the moment of action. He finds himself pinned like an insect and unable to begin speaking his mind. He wonders if it is worth the trouble and anticipates that even if he were to speak, his message would be dismissed by as not being pertinent to the gossip that the society indulges in. His inability to make a change breeds some amount of self-loathing that surfaces in parches across the poem. Death- the eternal Footman- snickers at him for being afraid. He admits that he is neither a prophet nor Prince Hamlet; that he is merely an attendant lord whose capacity to act stops at staring a scene or two. The poem ends with the ageing protagonist taking a walk on the beach and slipping into another world where the mermaids are riding the waves and singing to each other. But even here, he believes that they will not sing to him. He lingers there for as long as he can, before he is awoken by the lifeless hand of human interaction and condemned for his lack of action, to drown in its throes. The themes that Eliot discusses through this poem and others like ‘The Burial of the Dead’ and ‘A Game of Chess’ explore and hit out against the soulless modern existence which moves along in a regimented stupor and parallels the oncoming wave of industrialization.

Women In Medieval Europe

Women In Medieval Europe I chose the topic of Women in Medieval Europe to write my essay about. I will attempt to provide some basic knowledge about how the lives of women were very difficult during this time. Some things that will be discussed are the submissions women had to give to men. To start this essay I ask a number of questions, the first one is as follows: What type of work did women do during this period? Women that were from poverty stricken homes would have to go out and work with their husbands to bring in more income because his alone was not enough to support their household due to women having multiple children. Women would help their husbands haul hay or plow fields. Poor women did not have shoes to wear so they walked around barefooted and during the winter they would not have any winter clothes to keep them warm so they would wrap themselves in sheets to protect them from the cold. They also took their children to work with them because they could not afford nannies like the wealthy class could. How was life different for wealthy women during this time? As with any culture having money always gives you more advantages. Although wealthy women had to obey the same things, such as not speaking unless you were spoken to or only if it was approved by a man first and obey the men. Women of higher classes had jobs to do as well some would have to help run their businesses and if their multiple businesses or properties that the family owned then she would have to help her husband over see them too. Of course they could afford to hire workers but there were somethings that had to be handled by them personally. If the womens husband passed away, then everything was left entirely up to her to take care of. Wealthy women had more advantages even when it came to caring for their children. They had the luxury of hiring nannies for this job. The nannies would even breast-feed their babies for them. Why would women in this time become a Nun? Women became nuns in this time because this was a way they could get an education and gain some rights. This was especially popular for the lower class women because this was their only hope of getting a proper education. Becoming a nun meant that she would have to be celibate and the chance of having children would be lost. By becoming a nun women grew their own crops and had their own house. With the education that was provided, they were also able to pursue careers. Many of the poor families that had multiple daughters would make their daughter become a nun because they could not afford to raise them and to ensure that they would get an education. The bad side of this was that once you became a nun it was forbidden for you to leave or have children. Back in this time it was said that a woman that could not or would not bear a mans child was of no use at all. What happened to unwed women during this time? Unmarried women that owned land or multiple properties were considered to have the same rights as men. But if and or when she did get married, then she was forced to give her husband all of her properties and she gave up her rights. Women that were not married could wear their hair down but the women that were married had to wear their hair in a linen wimple to cover her hair up because this showed sign of modesty. Women were not able to pick their husbands. Men were able to pick their wives at times. Marriages were very carefully arranged by family members. Marriages were not based on love or emotions. Families would try and arrange marriages between their daughters and sons based on economic factors. These factors would be if they had their own land, if they owned their business or if they come from a wealthy family. So once again money had a great deal to do with influences with other people. It was really a marriage of property and money that the church unified and the families would have a very large crowd of well known people to witness this occasion. This was commonly between the wealthy people but what about marriages between the poor women? The poverty stricken women and men normally married who they pleased because they had nothing to gain or lose. The legal age to get married in the medieval days was 12 for girls and 14 for boys. This was a common age to be married back then because of the expected life span. Due to lack of medical care and medicine, people died at a much younger age than they do today. There were very few reasons that the couple could get divorced. Some of the reasons they could get divorced were if they were not Christians, they were not of legal age, if they had previous promises to another person or the woman could not perform sexual relations. Women had to submit to their husbands whenever he desired for her to. Were there any powerful women during this time? One person could sum this question up and that is Joan of Arc. Joan of Arc was considered a heroic figure in France. She disguised herself as a boy to join the army and became one of the most famous leaders. Women were not allowed to join the army and that is the reason she disguised herself as a boy. Joan had said that she had visions from God and he was calling her to be a warrior. There were other famous women such as Hildegard of Bingen who was considered to be a very famous writer of sacred music in the middle ages, Christine de Pizan was a famous writer and feminist one of her more popular books were The Book of the City of Ladies and last but not least there was Lady Godiva, she was the woman famous for riding nude on a horse through the town of Coventry. She wanted to prove that the towns people were honorable and would not look at her being naked. There were a number of much respected Queens during this time, as well as a number of princesses. Final question that runs through my mind is was it really that bad for women? My answer would be yes it was extremely bad for women. Women had absolutely no rights at all. Any man in the family could tell her to do something and she had to do it. If she did not do what she was asked to do then she was badly beaten. It was said that a woman that did not obey was disobeying God. A woman had to give up her land and rights to the man she married. Also women were not even allowed to pick the person they were to marry. Imagine if it was the same way today! So many women are so outspoken and very independent that we couldnt even think about a man running our entire lives. Not only not being able to speak or do what we want to do but to be badly beaten just because we choose not to. Women were also very often accused of doing very awful things. Some of the accusations were practicing witchery; women would be burn at the stake for this. Conclusion: The conclusion for my essay is that with all of the research that I have done to see what the lives were like for women during the Medieval Period, I have found that their lives did seem extremely hard and unfair. To justify why this may have been, many would say Christianity. Eve was perceived as the trouble maker and then there was the impurity that many men thought women had because of menstrual cycles. While Christianity might have played a role as to why men thought they could treat women this way, it also provided protection for women as well. It did not allow divorce for any given reason (as it is today). It also did not allow the men to kill their wives. Sure they were able to beat them within an inch of their life but at least they did get to keep their life. There were some kings that treated women fairly and had a great deal of respect for them but there were not a lot of them. But this was well over a thousand years ago and a lot of things have changed since that time. I am personally, very grateful that they have changed!

The Beneficial Relationship of Music and Mathematics for Young Children

Many educators would agree that music has the ability to unlock doors for young children to learn the various aspects of mathematics. The relationship of the two subjects can be traced back to the early stages of ancient history where they were taught together, unlike a majority of America’s public schools. Fortunately, there are public schools beginning to recognize this close relationship once again and have developed lesson plans that teach mathematics, science and music in a much more conjunctive nature. Studies have proven time and time again that this is an excellent learning system to develop because children introduced to music at an early age have a higher rate of mathematical comprehension. The National Association for Music Education (MENC) has compiled statistical information proving how well students have done when applying musical overtones to mathematical studies. A study of 237 second grade children used piano keyboard training and newly designed math software to demonstrate improvement in math skills. The group scored 27% higher on proportional math and fractions tests than children that used only the math software (http://www.menc.org, 2005). These numbers hold true as students progress through school without regard to the students background. MENC continues to back their argument with the following: In an analysis of U.S. Department of Education data on more than 25,000 secondary school students (NELS:88, National Education Longitudinal Survey), researchers found that students who report consistent high levels of involvement in instrumental music over the middle and high school years show â€Å"significantly higher levels of mathematics proficiency by grade 12.† This observation holds regardless of students’ socio-economic status, and differences in those who are involved with instrumental music vs. those who are not is more significant over time (2005). Being able to understand mathematics, regardless of the instruments used to teach it, is futile unless the student is able to follow through with their new found knowledge and achieve the grades they are capable of. MENC follows through with their research by stating that data from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 showed that music participants received more academic honors and awards than non-music students, and that the percentage of music participants receiving As and Bs w... ...omplexities of Ancient Greek philosophy is far more complex than what young children are learning in school. However, Plato and Aristotle considered music to be something more than the warm and fuzzy romantic expressions we hear on the radio today; to them, music was math (http://www.jhu.edu, 1998). Research has clearly shown the potential for students to excel when an emphasis is placed on the integration of music in to their education. Studies paint a promising picture for the relationship of mathematics and music, and teachers have found real life ways to implement this powerful unity in their classrooms. When examples such as the curriculum from Bear Creek Elementary are available, there is no excuse for denying children such a promising opportunity to expand their chance for success. References Argabright, R (Winter, 2005). Connecting with music. General Music Today, 18(2)5. Retrieved May 15, 2005, from EBSCO research database. Bear Creek Elementary School Website. Retrieved May 15, 2005 from http:www.bvsd.k12.co.us/schools/bearcreek/focus.shtml Cavanaugh, J. (February, 1998). Arithmetic of the soul. Retrieved May 15, 2005 from http://www.jhu.edu/~jhumag/0298web/math.html

Managers, Programming, Web Source and Technology :: essays research papers

Why should managers become better acquainted with programming issues, web source and technology? Abstract Summary Now more than ever, the marketplace has created a strong connection between information technology and managers due to the markets in depth involvement with technology. This is the reason why there’s been a recent requirement for managers to have somewhat of understanding of information technology, basic programming knowledge, and familiarity with source codes. The abstract clearly explicates how due to alterations in the dynamic market, it is essential for a multi talented manager to deal with updates and modifications. In return, they increment their skills and add programming and web technology to their skills. Programming argument The overall concept of this argument is that programming skills will eventually improve project management team analysis’s and enhance the management decision-making which results in better management. According to statistics, approximately one out of five people in the U.S. population have to deal with programming issues and program writing. In the long run, everyone will eventually need to learn some type of programming regardless the field their affiliated with. Programming Simplicity and Programming and language problems This Section explains how the basis of programming hasn’t really changed for nearly fifty years; perhaps a few words here and there have been changed, but in essence programming has been kept pretty simple. For example, a program is a set of instructions telling the computer what to do. Programming consists of three foundations, Sequence, decision-making, and repetition. These steps are known as the control flow. A waterfall can be used as an example to have a better understanding of what programming really is. A waterfall that starts at the top and flows directly to the bottom is the sequential control flow, where there is only one path. If the water reaches a point where it will change its direction, this point is referred to as decision. When the flow returns to the top, Software engineering Focuses on how an overabundance in programming resulted in web chaos and anarchy. This eventually led to software engineering paradigms. This was in essence a software crisis. Y2k Compliance Managers who had insufficient knowledge of programming and other technological aspects had caused a drawback in the authority of managers. Not only did programmers instruct managers on what to do, but programmers with no managerial training were running the show. WEB CHAOS, SPAM, SPIM SPIT Refocuses on how you can regulate and prevent web disasters from occurring.

Managing Pibrex Russia Essay

Pibrex, a European leader in the production and development of polymers, faces the loss of its three Russian subsidiaries. This threat stems from issues encountered after entering the region in 1992 and then being hit with the Russian financial crisis of August 1998. As result, a steering committee comprised of three senior managers from Pibrex Region Europe North (PREN) exercised many anti-crisis initiatives including assigning newly appointed financial controller Elena Michailova with the task of auditing all three Pibrex Russian subsidiaries. Upon completion of Michailova’s audit, she has discovered that it is the combination of remaining issues from the reduction period and the Russian financial crisis that threaten the existence of Pibrex’s existence in Russia. The steering committee’s ultimate goal is to resolve these issues to ensure survival of the Russian subsidiaries and breaking financially even in the near future. Issues Short term 1. Lack of an integrated operating system and task redundancy across departments 2. Large differences in wages between managers, sales, marketing, and production workers 3. Very little communication between management and subordinates 4. Poor working conditions Long term 1. In the plant there is a lack of order and financial control 2. Contention between staff and management 3. Bad management and employee relations 4. Outdated facilities Analysis Let us use the five why’s method of analysis to find the root cause: 1. Why is Pibrex in danger of losing its Russian subsidiaries? Pibrex is in danger of losing its Russian subsidiaries because of unresolved issues lingering after the reduction period and the Russian financial crisis. 2. Why were these issues left unresolved? The issues were never resolved by previous management. 3. Why were these issues never resolved by previous management? Managers were distant and many times unaware of issues within the organization. 4. Why were managers distant and unaware? There was a lack of communication and operational control for the management of Pibrex Russia. 5. Why was there was a lack of communication and operational control for the management of Pibrex Russia? Pibrex used a decentralized structure worldwide. This structure was complicated and Russians did not easily adapt to it. Pibrex Region Europe North had many other subsidiaries besides Russia therefore issues in the Russian subsidiaries were often over looked. This limited progress and denied proper management of Pibrex Russia. The root cause of Pibrex being in danger of losing is Russian subsidiaries is the use of a decentralized structure. Alternatives 1. Go to a much more centralized structure that the Russians are more accustomed to 2. Restructure management my replacing all managers 3. PREN would focus more on the Russian subsidiaries 4. Drop all Russian subsidiaries and disperse production duties among other subsidiaries in PREN Criteria 1. Financial losses from the Russian subsidiaries must stop 2. Management should be more accessible and properly trained 3. Communication between managers and subordinates is key 4. Improve workforce morale 5. Increase efficiency Decision Pibrex needs Elena Michailova to take the job of financial and managing director of Pibrex KZ. I believe that her taking on both positions is the only scenario where Pibrex can keep the Russian subsidiaries and eventually make them profitable again. Michailova has seen the issues and identified them through her audit. There is no one else more qualified than her to take on these two positions. She also happens to be Russian a unlike her predecessor. This should help greatly in resolving the tense relationship with the workers and management. With her experience and a well thought out restructuring plan, I have the up most confidence that the Russian  subsidiaries can be saved. Programming the Decision Elena Michailova as the experience, all she needs is a solid restructuring plan. The short term issues should be addressed immediately. Finances will be tight at first so she might have to think outside of the box to be able resolve some of these issues. For instance, if the budget will not allow for a new integrated operating system she might have to find a better way of communication to cut down on task redundancy and revenue loss due to missed deliveries. Michailova will also have to decide if she can make the decentralized management work in Russia. If she can get the Russians to adapt to the concept it might be beneficial. Decentralized management makes access to excellent expertise but if the Russians cannot adapt then it might be more productive to have a more centralized form of management for them. She will also have to deal with the financial crisis. This might mean more layoffs to cut costs. It will definitely mean making production more effective. The subsidiaries will no t survive in this financial climate if it cannot find ways to save money and make a profit.

Meaning of Life Essay

Here’s what a recent survey found: †¢ 25% of people say it is to seek truth and create meaning for yourself †¢ 22% think the meaning of life is to lovingly help others and make the world better †¢ 18% say there is no meaning †¢ 8% think it is to reproduce and continue your genes and the human race †¢ 8% say it is to find happiness †¢ 6% believe it is to learn how to serve and worship God, while †¢ 8% don’t know While it seems there are several purposes to life, science is beginning to reveal there is one fundamental purpose to all life. Every moment of your existence your body works to keep energy flowing. Every second you breathe air, you add food and water to replace the energy you use. Everything you sense or do is connected to the flow of energy in one form or another. You are so used to this energy flow that you hardly notice it. It is the ultimate process of your life. If your energy stops flowing you die: flowing energy differentiates living creatures from dead ones. While the purpose of all life might be to help energy flow, the same laws of energy indicate that a meaning of your own life is to find how your energy flows best. Is this science echoing those scriptures that suggest you have your own unique ‘gift’ that you should use? What does your energy enable you to do best? This can be as simple as determining what you are truly passionate about or what you do better than anyone else. Unfortunately, many of us are not aware of what this is. As such, the individual meaning of your life is for you to discover what makes your energy flow best and then how to do that. How you use energy best varies for everyone – therefore, everyone has a slightly different meaning to someone else. Ignoring this means your energy will be all mixed up and your life will be chaotic. This is what most scriptures and spiritual writings are trying to tell us, but just didn’t understand energy well enough. If you look at ancient scriptures and spiritual writings in terms of energy you start to realise that they, and modern science, are all saying something similar. In short, while the purpose of all life is about helping energy flow, spread and balance, your individual meaning is about determining how you do this best, what you do that helps your energies flow best.

Capacity to be bound to the contract

Capacity to be bound to the contract Disclaimer: This work has been submitted by a student. This is not an example of the work produced by our Law Essay Writing Service . You can view samples of our professional work here . Capacity to be bound to the contract In the aspect of law, a contract is a legally binding agreement between two or more parties which contain elements of a valid legal agreement which is enforceable by law. An agreement is said to be reached when an offer offered by the offeree has been accept by the acceptor as an acceptance. These parties must have the capacity to be bound to the contract and the contract must not be insignificant, vague, unfeasible, or against the law. In daily life, most contracts can be and are made orally, such as purchasing a can drink or stationeries. Any oral agreement between two parties can form a legal binding contract as long as the good or service provided is legal. However, some contracts require material evidence, written documents for example purchasing a house as sometimes written contracts are required by either the parties, or by statutory law within various jurisdictions. When disputes arise among parties of the contract, the courts will have t o decide the judgment based on wheatear to place emphasis on intention of parties to the contract or other policy of considerations. 2.0 Intention to Create Legal Relations 2.1 Definition The Law recognizes that often the parties do not intend to create a legally binding contract. The law therefore says that there must be an intention to create legal relations and make a distinction between social and domestic agreement (where the assumption is that there is no intention to create legal relations) and commercial and business agreements (where the law assumes that the parties intend the agreement to be legally binding). 2.2 Social and Domestic Agreements 2.2.1 Agreements treated as not legally binding The cases suggest that agreements within families will generally be treated as not legally binding. For example, in Jones V Padavattan (1969), Mrs. Jones offered a monthly allowance to her daughter if she would give up her job in the USA and come to England and study to become a barrist er. Because of accommodation problems, Mrs. Jones bought a house in London, where the daughter lived and received rents from other tenants. They later quarreled and the mother sought repossession of the house. The courts decided that there was no intention to create legal relations and that all the arrangements were just part of ordinary family life. Therefore, the mother was not liable on the maintenance agreement and could also claim the house. In Balfour V Balfour (1919), the issue was the promise made by a husband to pay his wife allowance while he was abroad. He failed to keep up the payments when the marriage broke down. The wife sued but it was held that arrangements between husband and wives are not contracts because the parties do not intend them to be legally binding. The court also decided that she had given no consideration for the husband’s promise. 2.2.2 Agreements treated as legally binding In the case of Merritt V Merritt (1970), the husband had already left h is wife and they met to make arrangements for the future. The husband agreed to pay 40 pounds per month maintenance, out of which the wife would pay the mortgage. When the mortgage was paid off he would transfer the house from joint names to the wife’s name. He wrote this down and signed the paper, but later refused to transfer the house. The court was held that when the agreement was made, the husband and wife were no longer living together; therefore they must have intended the agreement to be binging and their intention to base their future actions on the agreement was evidenced by the writing. The husband had to transfer the house to the wife.