Views on Marriage Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Views on Marriage - Essay Example Both of these pieces present marriage in a similar fashion. In â€Å"The Story of an Hour,† the main character is, at first, experiencing sorrow over the death of her husband. After a brief time; however, the character starts to feel joyful about the situation. At one point Mrs. Mallard reveals why it is she is experiencing this joy: â€Å"She said it over and over under her breath: "free, free, free!"†(Chopin). She realizes at this moment that the death of her husband has released her from the bonds of marriage. â€Å"There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself. There would be no powerful will bending hers†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Chopin). Due to the fact that she was experiencing so much happiness at the thought of being free and getting to do what she wanted to do with the remainder of her life, it is a terrible shock when she soon finds her very much alive husband downstairs. Earlier in the story, it is made known that Mrs. Mallard is in poor health and when she sees her husband, she dies. The doctors claim that she died of joy, but the audience is left to consider the fact that she more likely died of disappointment or heartbreak at the sudden loss of her newfound freedom. In this particular story, marriage is portrayed as oppressive and all consuming. Similarly, in the play â€Å"Trifles,† Mrs.

Robert Frost A Road Not Taken Essay Example for Free

Robert Frost A Road Not Taken Essay Robert Frost ever timeless poem â€Å"The Road Not Taken† has spanned all time because of its ability to appeal to the basic and inevitable necessities of adulthood –making tough decisions and living with the consequences of said choices in the quest for happiness. Robert Frost used the symbol of two roads to show a young man’s need to make a very difficult decision. In breaking the poem down in terms of reading and re-reading the poem in its entirety, one can’t help but be immediately placed in the shoes of the speaker in terms of one’s own life choices. The poem begins with th speaker standing in the middle of two roads. The imagery used in the poem â€Å"diverged in a yellow wood† (Frost, 1916), leads the reader to believe the poem takes place in the fall probably when the leaves are turning yellow. He then proceeds to say that he wishes that he could travel both roads, but of course that is physically impossible. He stands for a long time trying to decide which road to take. He looks down the path in attempt to see where it leads. This is so symbolic of one’s own â€Å"paths†. No one of course can see the outcome of the impending choices that we make or are about to make. In the next stanza, he chooses a path that he wishes to take. â€Å"Then I took the other, as just as fair, Because it was grassy and wanted wear,† (Frost, 1916). Breaking down the story, both the author and thereby the speaker would have the reader believe that the two roads, in terms of their appearance, are both equally pleasing to the eye. But in the line, â€Å"as just as fair† (Frost, 1916), he wants the reader to believe that the two roads and thereby the two choices are different, but could be equally just as good. The speaker is still unsure as to which path he really wants to take. He describes the path as being â€Å"perhaps† better. Nevertheless, it looks as though it hasn’t been used as often as the other. Frost used the alliteration, â€Å"wanted wear†. This actually meant that it lacked used. The speaker becomes incredibly indecisive. Just when the reader thinks that the speaker has made a decision, he says again how the roads are almost the same. The phrase â€Å"the passing there† (Frost, 1916) meaning traffic, could mean people who are walking like him. We then get a glimpse into the time of day in which this decision making is taking place in the line â€Å"And both that morning equally lay, In leaves no step had trodden black† (Frost ,1916), and also that in the area in which he stood, the leaves that have fallen, have not been stepped on and thereby had not changed color on the ground. The speaker seems to poke fun at his need to make this decision with the line â€Å"Oh! I kept the first for another day† (Frost ,1916) He says that he will go back to the road that he is seemingly choosing not to take, another day. Here is another example of how this poem has transcended time. One always thinks or hopes that the choices that we make can somehow be undone. The notion that once we get to a certain point, if we for some reason do not like the way that things are going, the road that we are taking if you will, that we can always turn around and go back if our initial decision has failed. Then he seems to say just that in the line† Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back†(Frost, 1916). He realizes that the idea of coming back to this initial spot, is ridiculous. One never knows how one decision can lead to another and another and yet another leading us so far away from the first decision, that we would not be able to s ee from whence we began and essentially not being able to go back. The speaker moves forward in time; many years from the primary decision. This allows the reader to infer that the choice that the speaker is making or has already made, is one of great import, one that could possibly impact him so much that he will be talking about it for years to come. When the speaker says â€Å" I shall be telling this with a sigh, Eleanor Sickels is quoted to say that â€Å"the poem is about the human tendency to wobble illogically in decision and later to assume that the decision was, after all, logical and enormously important, but forever to tell of it with a sigh as depriving the speaker of who-knows-what interesting experience. (www.wikipedia.org. October 2011) As we reach the conclusion of the poem, the speaker repeats the first line of the poem, and now we know which path he chose â€Å"and I—Took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.† (Frost, 1916). The speaker has made the decision to take the road that few others have taken, one that could either positively or negatively impact his life forever. The conclusion of the poem does not however tell us whether or not the speaker was a failure or a success. It could possibly depend on whether the reader is a pessimist or an optimist. The theme of this story is choices. Frost uses symbolism and imagery to paint a perfect picture of how one generally makes decisions. In the beginning of the poem we are placed in a glowing yellow wooded area in the early morning along with a young man, forced to make a decision that will change him forever. Wow! The power of the pen! The power to automatically be beamed into a situation that is so reminiscent of our own struggle, is one that has been mastered time and time again, yet this poem probably has more meaning today than it did in 1916 when it was written. So many in the U.S., due to lack of money, experience, or drive, have been forced to make decisions that have left many only one paycheck away from homelessness. Did Mr Frost know at the time how much of an impact this poem would have on the world? Did he know that after almost one-hundred (100) years that he would be written about in terms of great literature? One can only hope that, with all of his many works, Mr. Frost knew that his poems and short stories would solidify his place in English literature forever. References: â€Å"The Road Not Taken† Robert Frost 1916 Bridgepoint Education 2010 Journey Into Literature R. Wayne Clugston www.wikipedia.org

Math Is The Language Of The Un Essay -- essays research papers

Mathematics, the language of the universe, is one of the largest fields of study in the world today. With the roots of the math tree beginning in simple mathematics such as, one digit plus one digit, and one digit minus one digit, the tree of mathematics comes together in the more complex field of algebra to form the true base of calculations as the trunk. As we get higher, branches begin to form creating more specialized forms of numerical comprehension and schools of mathematical thought. Some examples of these are the applications into chemistry, economics and computers. Further up the tree we see the crown beginning to form with the introduction of calculus based organization. Calculus, a theoretical school of mathematical thought, had its creation in the middle ages with Newton. The main use of calculus is its application in advanced physics. Mathematics is everywhere because that is where we put them, everywhere. We, humans, represent everything with numbers, which therefore me ans that we impose mathematics on to the universe.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Starting at childhood, education begins with the forced mind track of comparison. Parents teach their offspring to be fair or equal, and that they should share to make it fair. This is the beginning of the mathematical state of mind which stays with the child for the rest of his/her life, the summing up of what they themselves have and comparing it to what the other person has, so that both sides can be equal. This lesson is considered essential in the raising of children and since everyone is supposed to understand, people assume that everyone does. This assumption is a flaw that begins early. An example of how this can have a not so positive effect on people is if the â€Å"spoiled brat† wants to have more toys than the other children, and thus becomes, mathematically superior.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When one plus one is taught to be two, two plus two to be four and so on, the idea of a pattern emerges. Patterns are another rudimentary concept taught early to assist in the comprehension of numbers. When a child sees a cat being chased by a dog that is followed by his unhappy owner, the child subconchisly devises the pattern, cat-dog-owner, or a-b-c, a link to the alphabet. Such as in the film ?, where the main character believes that there are patterns in nature, the child begins to seek out o... ...thematical systems or ideas were created with the formation of the universe in the Big Bang, they were thought up by mortal men with mortal minds. With this fact in mind, there is no way to totally understand the universe or for example, predict what will occur when a material is cooled to absolute zero on earth. The human race devised the language of mathematics and numerals and digits in the same fashion we developed the exorbitante amount of spoken languages which litter the planet. To state that the universe imposed mathematics upon humanity is upsurd, nearly to the extreme of lunicy. The point of mathematics is to be able to represent the universe in numbers, which are the most rudimentary language in the know world, and organize everything to the point of universal enlightenment. Humans begin their knowledge of the world in a comparison view, two is greater than one, and mom does not equal dad, but how can we compare our world to anything else? We cannot, there is nothing t o compare our world to. With this perspective, people are submerged into a universe of mathematics where everything is represented with numbers and units infused upon the surrounding environment by humans.

Hesses Siddhartha as it Parallels Maslows Hierarchy of Needs Essay

Hesse's Siddhartha as it Parallels Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs    Several parallels can be drawn between the psychologist Abraham Maslow's theoretical hierarchy of needs and the spiritual journey of Siddhartha, the eponymous main character in Herman Hesse's novel.   Maslow's hierarchy of needs is somewhat of a pyramid that is divided into eight stages of need through which one progresses throughout one's entire life. During the course of his lifetime, Siddhartha's personality develops in a manner congruent with the stages of Maslow's hierarchy.   Siddhartha's progress from each of the major sections of the hierarchy is marked by a sharp change in his life or behavior. Siddhartha is the story of a young man's journey in search of truth. Early in life, Siddhartha and his friend Govinda hear the teachings of the Buddha.   Govinda is convinced of the validity of the Buddha's teachings and becomes one of his followers.   Siddhartha, on the other hand, was not satisfied with the Buddha's teachings because he believed that it was not possible to obtain true enlightenment through the words of others but that it must be experienced empirically.   Siddhartha therefore rejects the life of a Brahmin to become a Samana (a wandering person who gives up material possessions for his faith).   After he tires of this life, he moves on to learn the art of love from a woman named Kamala and the art of business from a man named Kamaswami.   He lives his new life for many years but then begins to feel that his mind has become stagnant and that he needs something new in his life.   He abandons the surroundings he now finds decadent and becomes frie nds and lives with a ferry-man who he met years before.   He spends the rest of his life with ... ...e of material wants and was truly happy just to exist.   He realized his potential and found wonder in the world around him. At some time during life, everyone must face Siddhartha's challenge. Everyone spends their life trying to attain self fulfillment and true contentment.   And during that time, one must remember the importance of the journey itself, not only the actual achievement.   Although not everyone reaches that goal, it is that goal which motivates people to strive to be their very best, knowing that lasting happiness sits shining atop the pyramid.    Works Cited Hesse, Herman. Siddhartha. New York: New Directions Publishing Company, 1951. Glenn, Jerry. Monarch Notes. The Major Works of Herman Hesse. New York: Monarch Press, 1973. Schultz, Duane . Theories of Personality. Monterey, California: Brooks/Cole Publishing Company, 1976.

Auditing theory

The chairman should have been or presently a senior practitioner in public accountancy. 14. The following sectors represented by the PICA to the membership of AAAS have one representative, except a. Government c. Commerce and industry b. Public practice d. Academe 15. Statements on financial accounting standards constituting GAP are issued by the a.Philippine Institute of Spas. C. Audit Standards and Practices Council. B. Securities and Exchange Commission. D. Accounting Standards Council. 16. Indicate whether the following functions would be performed by: P S – Senior M – Manager AS – Audit Assistant (1) Supervises two or more concurrent audit engagements Performs detailed audit procedures Overall responsibility for audit Signs audit report s d. 17. The amount of audit fees depend largely on the – Partner a. Size and capitalization of the company under audit. B. Amount of profit for the year. C. Availability of cash. . Volume of audit work and degree of c ompetence and responsibilities involved. Page 3 of 7 18. In determining audit fees, an auditor may take into account each of the following except a. Volume and intricacy of work involved. C. Number and cost of manors needed. B. Degree of responsibility assumed. D. Size and amount of capital of client. 19. Under this method of billing a client, the external auditors charges on the basis of time spent by principals/partners, supervisors, seniors and Juniors at predetermined rates agreed upon with the client Maximum fee basis c.Flat sum basis Retainer basis d. Per diem basis RA No. 9298 – Philippine Accountancy Act of 2004 and its AIR 1 . Which of the following is not one of the specified objectives of the Accountancy Act of 2004? A. Examination for registration of Spas. B. Supervision, control, and regulation of accounting practice. C. Standardization and regulation of accounting education. D. Promulgation of accounting and auditing standards. In all of the following situations except one, a person is deemed to be engaged in professional accounting practice.Which of them is the exception? A. Performing audits or verification of financial transactions and records for more than one client. B. Employed as the department chairman that supervises the BAS program of an educational institution. C. Employment as controller of a private business enterprise and such employment squires that the holder thereof should be a CPA. D. Appointment in the government where first grade civil service eligibility is a prerequisite. A person is not deemed to be engaged in professional accounting practice if a.Her merely holds himself out as skilled in the science and practice of accounting and qualified to render services as a CPA. B. He merely offers to render services as a CPA to the public, but does not actually render such services. C. He offers or renders bookkeeping services to more than one client. D. He installs and revises accounting systems for more than one client. Pr actice in Public Accountancy shall constitute in a person a. Involved in decision making requiring professional knowledge in the science of accounting, or when such employment or position requires that the holder thereof must be a certified public accountant. . In an educational institution which involve teaching of accounting, auditing, management advisory services, finance, business law, taxation, and other technically related subjects. C. Who holds, or is appointed to, a position in an accounting professional group in government or in a government owned and/or controlled reparation, including those performing proprietary functions, where decision making requires professional knowledge in the science of accounting, d.Holding out himself/herself as one skilled in the knowledge, science and practice of accounting, and as a qualified person to render professional services as a certified public accountant; or offering or rendering, or both, to more than one client on a fee basis or ot herwise. Any position in any business or company in the private sector which requires supervising the recording of financial transactions, preparation of financial tenements, coordinating with the external auditors for the audit of such financial statements and other related functions shall be occupied only by a duly registered CPA.Provided (choose the incorrect one) a. That the business or company where the above position exists has a paid-up capital of at least and/or an annual revenue of at least b. The above provision shall apply only to persons to be employed after the effectively of the Implementing Rules and Regulations of RA 9298. C. The above provision shall not result to deprivation of the employment of incumbents to the position. D. None of the above.

The Failures Of Affirmative Action Essays - Social Inequality

The Failures Of Affirmative Action Essays - Social Inequality The Failures of Affirmative Action Audience: US Congress Once upon a time, there were two people who went to an interview for only one job position at the same company. The first person attended a prestigious and highly academic university, had years of work experience in the field and, in the mind of the employer, had the potential to make a positive impact on the companies performance. The second person was just starting out in the field and seemed to lack the ambition that was visible in his opponent. Who was chosen for the job?, you ask. Well, if the story took place before the mid-sixties, the answer would be obvious. However, with the adoption of the social policy known as affirmative action, the answer becomes unclear. After the United States passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, it became apparent that certain business traditions, such as seniority status and aptitude tests, prevented total equality in employment. Therefore, president Lyndon Johnson decided to do something to remedy these flaws. In 1965 he issued an ex! ecutive order that required federal contractors to take "affirmative action" to ensure that applicants are employed?without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin. When LBJ signed that order, he enacted one of the most discriminating pieces of legislature in the history of the United States. Affirmative action was created in an effort to help minorities leap the discriminative barriers that were prevalent when the bill was first enacted, in 1965. At this time the country was in the wake of nation wide civil-rights demonstrations, and racial tensions was at its peak. White males, who controlled the hiring and firing of employees, occupied most of the corporate and managerial positions. The US government believed that these employers were discriminating against minorities and believed that there was no better time than the present to bring about change. When the civil rights law passed, minorities, especially African-Americans believed they should receive retribution for the years of discrimination they had endured. The government responded by passing laws to aid them in attaining better employment as reprieve for the previous two-hundred years of suffering their race endured at the hands of the white man. To many, this made sense. Supporters of affirmative action asked, "Why not let the government help them get better jobs, after all the white man was responsible for their suffering". While all this may be true, there is another question to be asked. Are we truly responsible for the years of persecution that African-Americans were submitted to? The answer is yes and no. It is true that the white man is partly responsible for the suppression of the African-American race. However, the individual white male is not. It is just as unfair and suppressive to hold many white males responsible for past persecution now as it was to discriminate against many African-Americans in the generations before. Why should an honest, hard working, open minded, white male be suppressed, today, for past injustice? Affirmative action accepts the idea of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Do two wrongs make a right? Affirmative action supporters make one large assumption when defending the policy. They assume that minority groups want help. This, however, may not always be the case. It is my belief that they fought to attain equality, not special treatment. To them, the acceptance of special treatment is an admittance of inferiority. They ask," Why can't I become successful on my own? Why do I need laws to help me get a job?" African-Americans want to be treated as equals, not incompetents. Thousands of white males, who do not discriminate, are being punished because of those who do. The Northern Natural Gas Company of Omaha, Nebraska was forced by the government to release sixty-five white male workers to make room for minority employees in 1977. Five major Omaha corporations reported that the number of white managers fell 25% in 1969 due to restrictions put on them when affirmative action was adopted. You ask," What did these white males do to bring about their termination?" The only crime that they were guilty of was being white. It hardly seems fair to punish so many innocent men for the crimes

Loss Accounts and Balance sheet Essays

Loss Accounts and Balance sheet Essays Loss Accounts and Balance sheet Essay Loss Accounts and Balance sheet Essay The results that are shown above are accurately calculated. The figures are taken from Mr. Hans profit ; Loss Accounts and Balance sheet 2007. The table signifies that Mr. Hans business for the year ending 2007. Return on Capital Employed: Return on capital employed in the year 2005 was only 41%, it then went up in the following year by 4% and again in the year 2007 it went up to 50%. This signifies that the ratio has been improved. This ratio is improved because the business has increased investment. Return on Capital Employed can be improved in such way as Mr. Kong has to increase the net profit for next year. This current figure is far greater than the industry average which shows the business is working much efficient than the average business would. Gross Profit: Gross Profit in the year 2005 was only 44% but it have been improved only by 1% in the following year but again the following year (2007) it decreases by 2%. This signifies the ratio is worse. The ratio is worsened because Mr. Kong Hans Gross Profit Percentage of sales was 45% at the end of year 2006 while it has been changed from 45% to 43% in the year 2007. The possible reason for this is because increase in the price of goods they produce. This would give them less profit because of these factors. Mr. Kong Han should take immediate action upon this ratio because Gross profit helps a company to see what percentage of its earning after costs (for products and/or services) is profit. A possible suggestion would be that Mr. Kong Han could decrease the purchase cost possibly by acquiring materials or goods from cheaper suppliers. Another thing that business could do is to increase sales as well perhaps by increasing price of products or more marketing techniques into their products. Net Profit: Net Profit in the year 2005 was only 28% but it has been decreased by 1% in the following year (2006) and again the following year (2007) it decreases by 9.2%. This means that the ratio is getting worse. This is worse because the business is not making any revenue to convert it into profit means that business is not selling the product or services that it produce. The worst cause for this would be that prices of services are increased as well as the business is also paying for mortgages. It is very critical and immediate action should be taken on this because net profit is very important to every business and all business is stable on net profit. Mr. Kong Han business can be improved if business could do to reduce their overall expenses. The business can look for another supplier who is cheaper and can provide a better deal for raw material goods. The business can try to decrease their overheads figures and try to maximise their profit each and every year. Stock Turnover: Stock Turnover in the year 2005 was only 44 days but it has been increased in the following year (2006) to 56 days but again in the following year it has increased by 20 days and went up to 76 days. It has been worsened because the lower days shows that the business has quickly convert stock into revenues. This is worse because the business has high prices on the products as well as the business has no proper strategy to sell the products. The possible action would be that the quicker the business sells its products the better it is. There are several methods that business could be improved. The first thing they could is to lower the products prices; this will hugely promote sales as customers will feel they are getting a bargain. And an additional thing they can do is to try and sell the products to another company for a low price. The price might be low but they will receive some sort of income instead of the product just staying in the shop. It will bring in some extra cash that the business will need. Furthermore the business can try to slow down production if there is too much stock available or they can possibly re-asses the value of the product. Debtor Payment Period: Debtors payment period in the year 2005 was only 0.89 days but it has been decreased only by 0.1 in the following year 2006 to 0.88 days and again in the following year (2007) it has decreased by 0.2 days to 0.86 days. It has been improved over in the following 2 years which means that the business has good control over the capital because the business not letting more capital to the customers and perhaps thats why the business Debtors Payment period is decreased. The improvement that are required for this debtors payment period is that they can do are to try to maintain this number or try to reduce it by next year. This way they can reduce this is to re-asses their credit options with customer and try to decrease the time. Creditor Payment Period: Creditor Payment Period in the year 2005 was only 5.7 days but it has been increased to 13 days in the following year (2006) and again it decreased down from 13 days to 9.2 days in the year 2007. It has been worsened because payment days have been increased. This is because the customers who own capital to business are taking long to return the capital. Mr. Kong Han should take immediate action and encourage customers to pay on time because this will lead a poor relationship with suppliers. The suggestion would be that business should maintain this period or possibly try to increase it in the next year but the main thing they should do is to keep it constant with debtor payment period. Current Ratio: Current Ratio in the year 2005 was only 4:8:1 but it has been increased to 4:9:1 in the year 2006 and again in following year (2007) it has increased to 5.1:1. This indicates that the business is in liquidation. It has been worsened because it has gone up because it shows that they have a lot of stock to sell. These changes happened because they have a lot of stock. Mr. Kong Han should take immediate action on the business because the ideal ratio was between 2:1 and 3:1. The business could achieve this by reducing the ratio. This can be done by selling more of its stock or try to reduce the amount of cash they have available on the business because of the high amount of stock the business should produce few amounts of products. Acid Test: Acid Test in the year 2005 was only 1:1:1 but it has been decreased to 0:89:1 in 2006 and again in the following year (2007) it has decreased to 0:6:1. This signifies that the business is in very poor condition as the Acid Test was worse. The steps the business can try and increase their current assets but not stock as stock can be very hard to sell immediate. They could offer more customers a credit system or the business can try to and hold more cash within the business. Another option is to produce less stock and when there is an opportunity to pay off creditors they should take it.

Alice in Wonderland Differences essays

Alice in Wonderland Differences essays At the mention of the name Alice, one tends to usually think of the childrens stories by Lewis Carroll. Namely, Alices Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass are two classic works of childrens literature that for over a century have been read by children and adults alike. These two stories tell the tale of a young girl named Alice who finds herself in peculiar surroundings, where she encounters many different and unusual characters. Although Alice is at the center both stories, each tale is uniquely different in its purpose, characters and style. Carroll first published Alice Adventures in Wonderland in 1865, three years after he had first told the story to the young girl Alice Liddell and her sisters, following for a story. The creation of this story began on a river picnic as Carroll began telling the tale of Alice in Wonderland to entertain the girls. Through the Looking Glass was published six years after the first, when Alice was a teenager. This story was more logical than the first and clearly differed from it in both its style and direction. The introduction of Alice and how she finds herself in the other world is very different in each of the stories. In Alices Adventures in Wonderland, Alices curiosity and boredom leads her to follow the White Rabbit as he rushes passed her. She ends up falling down the rabbit hole which takes both her and the reader into a world of magic and disorder. Carrolls Wonderland is a place where Alice finds many of the characters difficult and odd. She encounters various characters along her journey, many of whom likely represented real people known to the real Alice Liddell. Throughout the first story, Alice also finds herself growing and shrinking at various stages, something that Carroll does not repeat in Through the Looking Glass. Alices curiosity also leads her into the other world in Throug ...

Emotional Intelligence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Emotional Intelligence - Essay Example This conclusion was based on the skills of different clinical officers. In addition, it is not only the mental intelligences of a person which can assist in making the difference, but there has to be other forms of relations such as emotional response. This means that an emotional intelligent person will be able to know his emotions and those of others that will make him or her relate well with them. From the definition of emotional intelligence, it is clear that its needs are vital in any working environment. With this, I value emotional intelligence in management. I support emotional intelligence based on the number of its ideas. For example, emotional intelligence is vital in an individual life, and people have different ways of controlling, understanding and recognizing emotions, and the variety in understanding and controlling emotions makes individuals in their everyday life to adapt in divers manners especially at the work place. From the above concepts, emotional intelligence is important in management because the management team know how to handle different workers and situations so as to achieve the best outcomes. This characteristic would show that managers should have self-control so that this translates to the subordinates and a cohesive work team is created. Concerning this, the management team should encourage cohesiveness and skills that will result to positive work outcomes (Cherniss 114). Effect of Emotional Intelligence on Management Performance Good emotional intelligence affects management performance. This is evident from the traits that the management team have if they practice emotional intelligence. One of the traits is self-awareness, which means that the manager or management team is capable of knowing his or her strength and weaknesses because he or she understands emotions and its effects. The management would be affected in positive manner if the managers would use their strengths to promote good working relations and also recogniz e their weaknesses to assist in finding solutions that could shape management for high-end production. Management could also be affected in positive manner because an emotional intelligent management team or managers possess social awareness trait, which means that they recognize emotions of other individuals like employees in the firm, and they also know their wants and are able to interact with them socially. From this, it is evident that emotional intelligence affects management in a positive way because good relationships and communications are established hence management performance is improved. Furthermore, emotional intelligence affects management performance, as the it will easily develop solutions in cases of conflict, as it is aware of how to handle different situations and this is a form of inspiration to the employees as they will learn from their seniors and this creates a productive workforce (Lazovic 798). Importance of Emotional Intelligence in the Work Place There is clear view that emotional intelligence is important based on the following mechanisms; first, an emotionally intelligent person has capability of differentiating emotions, and they can use emotions to reason, recognize and can take control of emotions which is seen as a way of stress management. Emotional intelligence will be paramount in the workforce as people will be able to relate with each other and learn how to resolve conflicts in the event that they arise. Emotionally

Criminal Justice Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 13

Criminal Justice - Essay Example In an example, the Muslims living in United States feel that the government has failed to protect them from the aggression emanating from the local population. Initially, the society has been instrumental in ensuring that young generation is guided according to the rules and regulations set by the community. The old people were acting as a guide to the young people in the society. However, with some communities being marginalized, the young people have become an easy target by terrorists groups which recruit them with promises of making money. These are groups that train the youth on how to shoot and bomb people. They convince the youth that they will be rewarded or they are doing according to the teaching of their religion. The young people are learning how to shoot from violent video games. Currently, they are spending a lot of their time watching simulations of how to shoot and bomb. This is making them to look for guns and bombs in order to have a firsthand experience. Religious programs can be used by religious leaders to train the young people on how to resolve conflicts. In addition, conflict resolution programs, e.g. through encouraging the youth to work in diverse groups can be initiated in the society in order to train the young people on how to resolve conflicts without using violent

Problem Resolution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Problem Resolution - Essay Example he first important issue to be answered is whether the position of an administrator has indeed the authority to approve any cancellation of privileges and credentials of a medical staff including that of physicians and the authority to approve their termination from employment. On a side issue which must also be determined but however must be answered primarily by Dr. Clark, is whether a chief of the medical staff has the authority to cancel privileges and credentials of a medical staff and to terminate them from employment of the hospital. These issues are important since the Dr. Clark’s proposed action is premised on his claim that he has the power to cancel Dr. Kirk’s privileges and credentials and also the power to terminate him. Dr. Clark also claims that this proposed action could be done if there is approval from the administrator which is given such great weight. Hence, an examination of applicable laws, rules and regulations including an examination of the hosp ital handbook or policy is important to answer this issue. The second issue is on the validity of the employment contracts which serve the basis for any physician’s employment. In the cited scenario, physicians are employed by means of employment contracts. Its validity serves as a basis for either party in defending a discharge or termination of a medical staff or the basis for a claim on the part of the medical staff claimant (Shepard, 2007). Hence, it must be determined whether the employment contract is in accordance with the Constitution, applicable laws, statutes, policies, rules and regulations governing employment in healthcare organization, to be considered as a valid contract. Otherwise, the contract may be declared void for being against the Constitution or against the applicable law, rule, regulation or hospital policy, and may not be used by either parties for their respective claims and defenses. Other relevant laws, rules and regulations would then apply. If there is a valid

Blue Velvet Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Blue Velvet - Research Paper Example Films like this are important to examine not only because of the elements which create a hybrid piece, but also because it shows the realities of categorization. This makes the ideal of categorization one which only limits the essence and expression of films. Categorization of Blue Velvet The categorization of â€Å"Blue Velvet† into Coming of Age Noir, also known as a hybrid and experimental form, is based on the mixture of styles which are used. The traditional concept of film noir is one which grew out of the rebellion of the popular styles of movies and the need to create a sense of experimentation with the film. The concept of film noir is one which became recognizable because of the various elements both with the aesthetics and experimentation of plot. However, since the classic films have been produced, is the same spirit of film noir which is based on the idea of experimentation and using a variety of elements to create a specific story line. The ideal is one which is based on moving outside of experimentation and definition of cinematic presentation. ... coming of age noir fits with â€Å"Blue Velvet† specifically because it carries through with the traditional elements, combines and fuses together various elements and works toward new experimentation that redefines the cinema into a coming of age noir. The hybrid elements of â€Å"Blue Velvet† are not only from the characteristics of traditional film noir with the newer ideals. This is furthered by the different aspects which create the story and show the intertwining of several ideals. The story structure is the first component which shows this. The twist in genres is one which is based on a mystery of finding who took off the ear of a man. This is combined with the dramatic features, specifically as Dorothy reveals the truth of her psychotic lover, Frank. The drama is furthered with surrealist elements and the aesthetics that further the plot line. The intertwining of the individuals lives as well as the characteristics of each are able to create the overall thematic material which was known to film noir, specifically as one moves beyond the basic mystery and into the elements of each of the characters lives and the levels of dementia which surround each of the character desires (Dimendberg, 5). Another aspect which relates to the Coming of Age Noir and the intertwining of types of movies is through the character types. The character types traditionally known in Film Noir were based on the concept of having the madness of a character which moves into evil and which is attracted to the darkness of the story. This is combined with the characters who fall victim to this or which begin as good and move over to the dark side. The characters of Dorothy and Frank reveal this, specifically with Frank and his addiction to drugs and his ability to move into the darker sides of

Ddp week2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ddp week2 - Essay Example This is exactly what this essay seeks to do. Rentschler (2003) opines that â€Å"emotions are the result of a logical appraisal of the probability that a situation will effect a positive or negative change to our physical or psychological well being.† Emotion therefore refers to the reaction that our minds give to an occurrence or event around us. Emotion is a personal feeling that may vary from person to person – thus two people will feel differently towards the same occurrence. Emergence can be said to represent how complex systems result out of relatively simple systems or interactions. To this effect, (Lewes 1875, p. 412) has it that â€Å"every resultant is either a sum or a difference of the co-operant forces; their sum, when their directions are the same -- their difference, when their directions are contrary† (Blitz 1992). Research can simply be said to be the search of knowledge. Research also involves re-learning about a thing or a phenomenon. Research has been made to appear quite complicated and formal because there are a lot of academic theories and conventions surrounding it. To conduct a research therefore, one has to follow some laid down procedure. Keegan (2009) views emergence from an angle where it impacts on the conduct of research rather than emergence having a role in the results or analysis of data. This is indeed unlike he did for emotion, which shall be discussed later. Keegan (2009) posits that â€Å"web communications, crowd behaviour and brand evolution can all be thought of in terms of emergence.† This means that Keegan relates emergence to the point of view where researchers take issues. By this, emergence makes the conduct and manipulation of concepts in research work more complex and complicated. This is because as seen in the definition of term, emergence is characterized complexity out of simple phenomenon. There could however be a

Blue Velvet Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Blue Velvet - Research Paper Example Films like this are important to examine not only because of the elements which create a hybrid piece, but also because it shows the realities of categorization. This makes the ideal of categorization one which only limits the essence and expression of films. Categorization of Blue Velvet The categorization of â€Å"Blue Velvet† into Coming of Age Noir, also known as a hybrid and experimental form, is based on the mixture of styles which are used. The traditional concept of film noir is one which grew out of the rebellion of the popular styles of movies and the need to create a sense of experimentation with the film. The concept of film noir is one which became recognizable because of the various elements both with the aesthetics and experimentation of plot. However, since the classic films have been produced, is the same spirit of film noir which is based on the idea of experimentation and using a variety of elements to create a specific story line. The ideal is one which is based on moving outside of experimentation and definition of cinematic presentation. ... coming of age noir fits with â€Å"Blue Velvet† specifically because it carries through with the traditional elements, combines and fuses together various elements and works toward new experimentation that redefines the cinema into a coming of age noir. The hybrid elements of â€Å"Blue Velvet† are not only from the characteristics of traditional film noir with the newer ideals. This is furthered by the different aspects which create the story and show the intertwining of several ideals. The story structure is the first component which shows this. The twist in genres is one which is based on a mystery of finding who took off the ear of a man. This is combined with the dramatic features, specifically as Dorothy reveals the truth of her psychotic lover, Frank. The drama is furthered with surrealist elements and the aesthetics that further the plot line. The intertwining of the individuals lives as well as the characteristics of each are able to create the overall thematic material which was known to film noir, specifically as one moves beyond the basic mystery and into the elements of each of the characters lives and the levels of dementia which surround each of the character desires (Dimendberg, 5). Another aspect which relates to the Coming of Age Noir and the intertwining of types of movies is through the character types. The character types traditionally known in Film Noir were based on the concept of having the madness of a character which moves into evil and which is attracted to the darkness of the story. This is combined with the characters who fall victim to this or which begin as good and move over to the dark side. The characters of Dorothy and Frank reveal this, specifically with Frank and his addiction to drugs and his ability to move into the darker sides of

Answer brief questions about hinduism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Answer brief questions about hinduism - Essay Example However, despite this, people spend the daily life in a normal way, and this belief makes little to no difference in their day to day living. However, the extent to which an individual gains influence of this belief depends upon his/her religiosity. A highly religious person is too concerned about the world hereafter and thus, lives in this world as a passenger. He/she really considers the other world more important than this world. On the other hand, there are people who run after money and power in this world and commit sins despite their knowledge of and belief in the world hereafter. To them, this world is more important than the other one. Thus, it varies from individual to individual, though a vast majority of people value this world more than the other one. 3. Shiva is an interesting character in Hinduism. What does it mean? Hindus hold the belief that all motion that takes place in the universe starts from God and terminates in Him. Since the start of time, the universe has r emained engaged in a continuous whirl of activity and change. Sun rises and sets. Moon undergoes a continuous cycle of appearing and disappearing. Likewise, atom that every matter is made up of keeps swirling. This is what Hindus refer to as the dance of Shiva.

Stereotypes prejudice Essay Example for Free

Stereotypes prejudice Essay Please complete the following exercises, remembering that you are in an academic setting and should remain unbiased, considerate, and professional when completing this worksheet. Part I Select three of the identity categories below and name or describe at least 3 related stereotypes for each: ?Race ?Ethnicity ?Religion ?Gender ?Sexual orientation ?Age ?Disability Category Stereotype 1 Stereotype 2 Stereotype 3 Disability People think disability is a sickness People think they are a mence to others and society Disabled people are different and are not fully human. Gender Female role of taking care of the kids Male role of being the breadwinner androgyny, which is the blending of feminine and masculine attributes in the same individual. Age Ageism Senile or Demented Unproductive and uncreative Part II Answer each question in 50 to 100 words related to those stereotypes. Provide citations for all the sources you use. ?What are the positive aspects of stereotypes, if any? Some aspects of stereotyping can be GOOD, BUT I HAVE YET TO SEE ANY THAT I WOULD CONSIDER GOOD. STEREOTYPING IS A WAY FOR US TO. CATERGORIZE A PERSON OR GROUP INTO SOMETHING WE CAN NOT FEEL BAD FOR NOT LIKING. ?What are the negative aspects of stereotypes? Negative aspects of stereotyping play a big Copyright  © 2012 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. Stereotypes and Prejudice Worksheet ETH/125 Version 8 2 ROLE ON A PERSON. STEROTYPING PEOPLE IN A NEGATIVE MANNER HAS A LASTING DETRIMENTAL IMPACT ON THOSE WHO EXPERIENCE THE PREJUDICE. PEOPLE PERFORM POORLY IN SITUATIONS WHERE THEY FEEL THEY ARE BEING STEREOTYPED. Part III Answer each question in 50 to 150 words related to those stereotypes. Provide citations for all the sources you use. ?Define stereotypes and prejudice. What is the difference between stereotyping and prejudice? Use examples to illustrate the differences. ?A stereotype is a belief about a certain group of people. Prejudice is a feeling about a person based on their membership in a group. Both stereotypes and prejudice can be either positive or negative. Discrimination is an action that denies the rights of a person due to their membership in a group. ?What is the relationship between stereotyping and prejudice? Prejudice- ignorantly judging based on[stereotypes] pre conceptions. Pre- Judging someone before having the knowledge of who they are. Ex. I have a prejudice towards all teenaged mothers, because I assume they all slept around to get pregnant, because thats what my sister did. ( which doesnt make every ones situation the same. stereotypes- classifying groups of people based on race, gender, religion, creed, ethnicity, etc. Then believing all people who belong to that group are the same Ex: All homeless people arent educated. Iggnorance is what is the realtionship between the two of them. People being ignorant and making assumptions is found in both prejudice and sterotypes. ?What can be done to prevent prejudice from occurring? Here are some examples that I think would help with preventing prejudice. It may not stop it all together, but it would help the situations from being uncomfortable. . Celebrate holidays with extended family. Use such opportunities to encourage storytelling and share personal experiences across generations. Invite friends from backgrounds different from your own to experience the joy of your traditions and customs. Be mindful of your language; avoid stereotypical remarks and challenge those made by others. Speak out against jokes and slurs that target people or groups. Silence sends a message that you are in agreement. It is not enough to refuse to laugh. Copyright  © 2012 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. Stereotypes and Prejudice Worksheet ETH/125 Version 8 3 Copyright  © 2012 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved.

Feeding the World: A Challenge for the Twenty- First Century

Feeding the World: A Challenge for the Twenty- First Century Is human originality enough to produce adequate amount of food to provide for the 10 billion people that are expected to live on Earth by 2050 without causing excessive damage to the environment? Vaclav Smil attempts to answer this question in this book; Feeding the World: A Challenge for the Twenty- First Century Vaclav Smil is a ‘Distinguished Professor Emeritus’ at the University of Manitoba, a member of the Order of Canada and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. Additionally, in 2010, he was recorded amongst the top 100 global thinkers. Vaclav Smil is regarded by many as an incredibly productive and resourceful author whose publications span over a plethora of related fields. Smil’s publications predominately reign over the areas of agriculture, food processing and production and human population. As well as being known for his knowledge pertaining to China, Smil work in the areas of crops, the general biosphere and fertilizers is acknowledged by several experts in their respective fields. Moreover, Smil is widely regarded as an informative author whose work focuses on informing its readers through the use of technical data combined with comprehensive reasoning and his own opinions. There have been a significant number of evaluations pertaining to food production and its consumption in the face of today’s rapidly growing society. These evaluations tend to vary in their respective approaches depending on the field of study that their writers stem from. In this regard, biological and physical scientists normally attempt to base their arguments around the ‘carrying capacity’ system which is applied to yearly populations. These scientists can then tap into inquiries such as how many individuals can the Earth’s resources provide for. Economists, however, investigate the growth in the production of food over the course of several alongside recognizing policies and trends that have served as a basis for this growth and using this combined knowledge to make predictions of future food production. Vaclav Smil, being a geographer, utilizes the same concepts biological and physical scientists use in his book. Smil, through his book, presents a case in which he advocates for future food demands to be met through the increase of efficiency rather than the increase of supply through additional inputs. Increasing efficiency, he argues, can not only be done through the more effective and efficient use of crop inputs, such as water and fertilizer but also by reducing the post- harvest losses suffered globally. Moreover, he reasons that these methods of increasing efficiency in the near future should be led by a desire to reduce the environmental impact of high- input agriculture and in doing so, will reduce strains on the environment. Smil’s investigation allows him to arrive at a somewhat warily optimistic conclusion where he believes that a world population of ten billion as predicted by the UN to be the stabilizing human population can in fact be sufficiently fed without excessive damage to the biosphere through the means of a more efficient food system. This optimistic conclusion is predominately cemented by the concept of ‘economic slack’ existing in the present-day production structures and that the chance that this slack can be reduced is quite good. However, this reduction of ‘economic slack’ standpoint needs the challenging task of creating plant breeding and associated research capabilities in order to supply deliver original and effective equipment to deprived farmers Smil wrote this book not only to inform readers but also to counter some of the arguments made by other authors who have also written to express their views on the problem of feeding the world in the near future. Smil, as is made evident through the arguments he presents in his book, does not share catastrophist or techno- optimist views, the latter of which advocate technology as the key for solving the dilemma. Smil argues that in an effort to gain public fear of the current state of agriculture and of the global food stock, catastrophists tend to emphasize and exacerbate relatively short and temporary periods of decline or stasis in order to express their concerns but these concerns, as Smil explains are often misplaced and that ‘perfectly non-catastrophic explanations such as weather and changing policies for fertilizer subsidies, support prices or diets’ can serve to counter most arguments catastrophists present. Smil does agree with catastrophists in the sense that population needs to be stabilized but this stability, according to Smil will happen eventually and the world will in fact be able to feed the individuals at this stable point with negligible impacts on the environment. Smil does not make an effort to find a middle ground between the ‘catastrophes’ as he terms Lester Brown and Paul Ehrlich and ‘ebullient cornucopian’ as he calls Julian Simon like many expected but rather attempts a serious evaluation utilizing the best science applicable to the inquiries being dealt with. First Chapter – ‘Reasons for concern’ Looks at the growing population.Even though its slowing dramatically, the UN predicts the world populatin wll reach 9.9 billion by 2050 in the medium – variant scenario, an increase of 48% from 1999. ‘Dietary transitions’, Smil argues will add to food demands. This phenomenon is where rising incomes created by economic growth in poor countries produce dramatic changes in diet.There is a decrease in staple grain consumption and a substantial increase in meat and other animal products consumed, accompanied by a rise in total fat consumption. In other words, even with the slowing of population growth, in addition to the continuing demand for staple commodities, the increased demand for foods such as milk, eggs, meat, vegetables, and so on will require continued growth in output. Second Chapter Appraises the biophysical basis of agriculture and stresses the importance of microbial ecology of the soil. Smil acknowledges the use and importance of synthetic fertilizers by stating that only food for 2-3 billion people could have been produced without them, depending on the diets of the general populations. Alternative or organic agriculture on a wide scale basis could help?This might be a solution but can argue against their respective uses and whether they will really help or not. C4 crops which include corn are more photosynthetically efficient than C3 crops that include wheat and rice. This is a solution – should we plant more corn? Availability of land, water and nutrients will be adequate on a global basis. However, regional disparities/ scarcities will be made much worse by anthropogenic climate change. Can link to the point of climate change impact on agriculture difficult to access Third Chapter Focuses on the environmental impacts of agriculture. Soil erosion and its effects on yield. Loss of topsoil is often cited as having a major negative impact on food- growing capacity, but how robust is the evidence that degradation- induced productivity losses are rising? The problem may be real and urgent in many regions; for example in large parts of Africa the annual soil degradation equates to millions of metric tons of grains and tubers lost per year. But from a global perspective, the losses may not be significant. The view that emerges from Smil’s account is that the inputs and assumptions underlying calculations of global resources are in many cases debatable. The variations in estimates give comfort that the world as a whole probably has the resources to adapt to demand and produce sufficient food. ‘Fortunately there is nothing inevitable about excessive erosion’ (p. 78). Qualitative soil degradation and how best to maintain soil productivity. Solution Modern high yielding crop varieties are somewhat less sensitive to soil and climate conditions than the farmer- selected varieties- take advantage of this and plant more modern crop varieties. However, these modern crop varieties have not fully escaped the ‘Darwinian’ features associated with natural selection. This means that improved varieties suited to one region in India are not suited to another region. Environmental pollution from pesticides and fertilizer. Even though Smil hyped it up, it can lead to negatives when used in excess. Nitrate concentrations are quite high in the Rhine and other major rivers in Europe. Smil points this out but fails to mention that the heavy fertilizer applications in Europe are encouraged by the subsidies of the Common Agriculture Policy. This failure to mention this fact stems from his reluctance to thread upon political waters. It is difficult to predict the effect of global warming on agriculture due to its complexity and the dynamic nature of its impact.A solution – the yield loss due to heat and moisture stress maybe, at least, partly, offset by the enhancement of photosynthesis and higher water use efficiency. Usually, books on world food prospects are influenced not only by their sources of information but also by then innate optimism/ pessimism of the author, often most apparent in chapters on the environmental changes wrought by agriculture. However, from this chapter, Smil emerges not only as a stern judge but as a long term optimist. For example, ‘there is no shortage of preventive measures for dealing with nearly all of these concerns’ (p 66) Fourth Chapter Here, Smil expresses the core of his vision that agricultural output can be increased through improved efficiency without additional inputs, except for knowledge and genetic enhancement. His ideas are similar in many regards to those of precision agriculture. Smil states that the primary task for agricultural research is not ‘to make every plant transgenic, but rather to come up with more precise solutions for farming’ (pp. 138-39). Precision farming is information- intensive and involves optimizing the timing and amount of inputs. He focuses on the better use of fertilizer and water. Fertilizer can be used more efficiently with better timing and placement, recycling of crop residues and better crop rotation.It is estimated that around 15% of the potassium, 30% of the nitrogen and 40% of the phosphorous is replaced by fertilizers. However, there is a critical need to increase fertilizer use in sub- Saharan Africa. Soil fertilizer is declining there and crop yields falling because of insufficient use of fertilizer. African soil and rainfall make much of the continent subpar for growing food. Despite this, the price of fertilizer in Africa is often two to four times that of the world price. In other words, the region that probably needs fertilizer the most has to pay the most for it. This input problem cannot be fixed through Smil’s ideology, which is heavily against the increase of inputs to solve the dile mma of feeding the world. In order to lower the high prices of fertilizer which results in large because of poor infrastructure and trade networks that are not developed enough to create a low- cost and competitive market, one must invest in them. There are enormous opportunities to improve the efficiency of water use. Possibilities include growing more water- efficient crops and water conservation practises such as reduced tillage. Unlike energy, water once used, can be reused after its quality is restore by appropriate treatment. There is a need to increase water supplies especially in some arid areas, but water harvesting and the use of saline water should be used extensively. Water is generally wasted because it is underpriced. In India, payments for electricity for pump irrigation are by pump size at very low rates and there are many illegal hook-ups that make it free. On the other hand, in Israel, about 60% of irrigation was by drip systems by 1990, with very high rates of efficiency. Which is a major reason water use could drop 30% and crop yields per unit of water application doubled. Reasons against drip irrigation More, generally, what Smil is advocating is the substitution of increasingly plentiful capital and knowledge for increasingly scarce natural resources. Fifth Chapter Explores ways to improve animal efficiency of animal food production. Although consuming animal products is fundamentally inefficient compared to vegetarianism, in a fascinating examination of human evolution, Smil sees a case for 10- 20 kg of meat in the average annual diet of humans, a level which is far exceeded in affluent countries. Close to half of all cereal grains produced globally are now fed to animals. Smil calculates the feed efficiency of different animals per unit of edible product.The most efficient is milk, followed by herbivorous fish, eggs, and chicken, with beef being least efficient Eat and produce less beef? Aquaculture – advocates. Fish yields on continental shelves is, on average two orders of magnitude higher, and that of ponds is ten times higher still. However, narrow genetic basis is a challenge to aquaculture: the practise is dominated by a handful of freshwater herbivores and the contribution from marine species rests on even fewer carnivores. Smil believes that transgenic fishes may offer many advantages by growing faster and by tolerating cooler or warmer waters. For example salman with an anti- freeze protein gene from the winter flounder is already available which allows them to survive is very cold environments Sixth Chapter Opportunities to reduce post- harvest losses, which may be as high as 40% and more for some African crops. Smil notes how little attention has been given to post- harvest losses and that there is not a single national or international organization that focuses exclusively on the topic. Insect pests and plant pathogens, which account for huge losses in some conditions should be a target. China for example, suffers heavily from post- harvest losses resulting from improper storage of crops (roughly one- seventh of its cereal harvest every year), low efficiency of animal feeding Seventh Chapter Discusses human nutrition needs and how our understanding of them has evolved. Global average per capita energy requirements are about 2000-2100 calories daily, much less than the estimated supply of 2800. So malnutrition is the result of unequal assess Eighth Chapter Examines the dietary transition in detail and considers what the available evidence suggests would be an optimum diet. Smil agrees with others who have concluded that traditional Mediterranean diets, with lots of complex carbohydrates, fruits and vegetables and moderate amounts of meat, are the healthiest. Ninth Chapter Deals with the question of ‘Who will feed China’ asked by Lester Brown by saying that ‘the Chinese will’. Smil makes it clear that China clearly has the potential to feed its future population. ‘A combination of well-proven economic and technical fixes, environmental protection measures, and dietary adjustments can extract enough food from Chinas agroeconomic systems to provide decent nutrition during the next generation s without weakening the countrys environmental foundations.’ (p. 315) China provides an excellent country to examine in detail because of the constraints faced, the widespread opportunities for improved efficiencies and the implications for the rest of the world leading to the idea of if China can do it, so can the rest of the world Water shortage is becoming an increasing problem in Northern China and there are vast plans to move water from the South to the North. However, water in China is substrantially underpriced like in India and thus used wastefully. Smil has a wonderful example of water in Beijing costing only a fifth as much as in Winnipeg, which is his home and has plentiful water supplies. Smil also provides ample evidence that the amount of farmland in China has been substantially undercounted, and hence the yields are lower than what they could be and the room for yield improvement is considerably greater Smil appeals to the experience with the energy price increases in the 1970s to show that producers and consumers did reduce inefficiencies in energy production and use when price incentives were provided to them Sexual Trauma Intervention: A Case Study Sexual Trauma Intervention: A Case Study Responding to Sexual Trauma: Sandra’s Case Effects of sexual trauma Sexual assaults have severe immediate and also long-lasting effects which can be devastating on the emotional, on the physical and also the relational health of the sexual assault victims (Gilliland James, 2013). The overwhelming stress of sexual assault normally alters personal adjustment, the psychobiology and the systems of the victims. A traumatic experience usually impacts the entire person; how we learn, how we think, our way of remembering things and the feelings about ourselves, how we feel about others and our ability to make sense in the world. All the above factors are rooted in our psychobiological development and also in our experience of human evolutionary (Gilliland James, 2013). Sexual assault trauma can affect person’s adjustment in all levels, posttraumatic stress disorder is a very disabling and chronic condition and the magnitude of PTSD is extremely high after rape. Just like Sandra, rape victims are likely to suffer from a severe depression, become substance abusers and make suicidal attempts. In the case of Sandra, she seeks counselling because she was depressed, after several sessions she discloses that she was raped by her uncle from an age of 4 to 9 and she also experienced two other rape cases while in high school and these trauma experiences made her to be completely depressed. Sandra had also developed substance problems. As she discloses, she spend most of her time drunk from the age of 18-22. As a result of PTSD she ended up sleeping with several men because she was traumatized and depressed after undergoing several rape experiences. Sandra also discloses several suicide attempts; she had one suicidal attempt but fortunately the car tire blew out before she reached her target. This is one of the effects of sexual assault to Sandra. She is a survivor of child sexual abuse and this makes her vulnerable to re-victimization. Victims of sexual assaults tend to be powerless, helpless and hopeless (Walker, 1994). This explains why Sandra slept with more than 70 men; in order to avoid feeling powerless and helpless. Thus, Sandra’s behaviour is an outcome of sexual assaults. Intervention strategies Psychoeducational Effective treatment for Sandra’s case includes psycho-educational intervention strategy. Although this approach alone does not fully eliminate the symptoms in the long term, it has proved to be the most effective when combined with anxiety management strategy. Rape victims usually feel more relieved when they realise that they are not crazy, but are experiencing PTSD manifestations, which is a reaction experienced by most raped women. I advocate for the use of this intervention strategy in the treatment of Sandra since she needs to accept understand that her symptoms as response to trauma but not pathology (Hunter, 2009). This will enable her strengthen self-esteem and also boost her sense of self-worth. As Sandra needs to raise her daughter the use of this method will help her identify inner strengths which were not disrupted by the trauma, including perseverance, the coping skills and intellect (Kress, Trippany, Nolan, 2003). Cognitive Therapy Intervention Strategy This intervention strategy is most appropriate when addressing symptoms such as shame, loss of interest in specific activities, detachment, numbing and guilty (Hunter, 2009). While using this method the victims are trained on how to identify the beliefs and particular thoughts which they experience during the state of negative emotions. In this intervention strategy, the victim is assisted in evaluating challenges and validity of various ideas and hence replaces most irrational beliefs with the more rational as well as with beneficial thoughts. I would use this intervention strategy in the treatment of Sandra as it will help her stop maladaptive beliefs that all her familymembers are abusers and hence replace it with positive thought. This method will also help her to challenge self-blame and the blame which is perpetuated by her mother and the significant others (Kress, Trippany, Nolan, 2003). Cognitive therapy treatment is normally designed in a manner that it assists victims to restore their personal power disrupted during the assault (Walker, 1994). Since all the perpetrators use violence and power, women tend to view all power related issues as negative. This refrains victim from gaining personal power. Cognitive therapy on Sandra will enable her replace the negative views of power and control with positive beliefs of adequate power. As a result, Sandra will gain courage to so stop using substances and hence use her power to control her life as well as that of her daughter. Cultural, legal and ethical issues Women reaction to sexual assault should be considered within sociocultural context. To some extent, rape is not just a crime of sex and should be further conceptualized as part of crime of power. Sandra’s rape case is one of the patriarchal system tools which demonstrate gender inequality as well as devaluation of women in the society (Vonk, 1999). Sandra’s rape experience restricts her freedom and ability to use power. Although most feminists examine rape on the lines of power and gender, various cultural variables such as class and ethnicity are keys factors in women’s response as well as the trauma recovery. Factors to consider include her cultural differences while accessing the services, the feelings she have while reporting the crime, and how her community receives rapes disclosures (Vonk, 1999). Perpetrators of rape should be given heavy penalties including life term sentences. If Sandra was a male victim The effects of sexual trauma are more severe on female than in men. However, in some instances some men find it challenging to recover from the sexual assault trauma. Men become more powerless and hopeless when sexually assaulted than women, a man will do anything just to avoid feeling powerless and if Sandra was a man he could possibly turn away from the victim’s role and assume the victimizer’s role. This is one of main effects of sexual trauma in male as they try to identify themselves with the power of their victimizers (Hunter, 2009). Notably, men becomes more addicted and attracted to substance abuse than women. In that regard, if Sandra was a male, it could be difficult for her to stop substance abuse. Male victims are also likely to seek ravage on their perpetrators more than the female victims (Kress, Trippany, Nolan, 2003). Thus, in addition to psychoeducational and cognitive therapy intervention strategies, exposure therapy has proved to be more appropriate. This strategy assist victims to overcome the painful memories encountered during the assault. It is done by confronting the victim with specific emotions, situation and thoughts which are related to the incidence of rape (Walker, 1994). Male victims are more likely to recount feelings, thoughts as well as the memories and hence, a well-structured approach will be more appropriate in helping male victims face these realities. References Gilliland, B. E., James, R. K. (2013). Crisis intervention strategies. Page 194 Hunter, S. V. (2009). Beyond Surviving Gender Differences in Response to Early Sexual Experiences With Adults. Journal of family issues, 30(3), 391-412. Kress, V. E. W., Trippany, R. L., Nolan, J. M. (2003). Responding to sexual assault victims: Considerations for college counsellors. Journal of College Counselling, 6(2), 124–133. Vonk, M. E. (1999). An ethic of care: A framework for ethical decision making with survivors of sexual assault. Social Thought, 19(1), 49-62. Walker, L. E. (1994). Abused women and survivor therapy: A practical guide for the psychotherapist. American Psychological Association.

Beowulf :: Epic of Beowulf Essays

Beowulf is a well-known Anglo-Saxon poem that has been in English classes around the United States for almost as long as there have been schools around. Beowulf is not an actual picture of historic Denmark, Geatland, or Sweden around 500 A.D., yet it is on a general view, a self-consistent picture, a construction bearing clearly the marks of design and thought. Beowulf to us can only truly be enjoyed if one reads it in the old English version. The effects of the poem are not the same, although the sense of the heroic beast is very true. The story of Beowulf is still relevant to today’s society and relates to problems faced in current everyday life. In our society we face simple problems and difficult problems and all problems have a good and bad about them. It all depends on the person’s outlook for the course of action that they will take.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Beowulf strikes peculiar reactions among scholars, historians, and professors. The increase in the amount of confusion is caused by new twists to old theories and by new theories. Beowulf was composed for an audience that would take into account the struggles that the main character took, and the audience would see the poem in its own way. Though few can clearly understand the value of the poem, we must realize that judging the poem from a twentieth century point of view would be unjust to the author or authors of Beowulf.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the most pleasing trends in recent old English studies has been the increasing awareness of the truth and importance of this simple observation. It is one which often has been overlooked by scholars and the ever growing critics. These people prefer to regard Beowulf as a source book for historians. Some people tend to overlook the meanings of Beowulf and perceive them in a wrong manner. In a profound lecture given by J.R.R.Tolkien in 1963, he tried to do what many people were trying to do, make sense of Beowulf. He gave an amusing and persuasive summary of the variety of theories of Beowulf’s poet’s ideas and aims.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Tolkien said, â€Å"Beowulf is a half baked native epic which was killed by Latin learning, it is feeble and incompetent as a narrative.†(Crossley.9-17). Tolkien also said much more on behalf of Beowulf’s poet. It is not the fault of the poet but the result of our ignorance of the conventions in which Anglo-Saxon poems were written.

My Hardest English Teacher Essay -- narrative, descriptive

I always thought that I was a talented writer. By writing, I mean conveying my thoughts or ideas in ways that people found interesting and fun. Writing came easy to me, and I could write pages of original ideas and thoughts in a matter of minutes. It was fun and easy - not something I had to work hard at. That was until I entered into the tenth grade. That year in Honors AP English, my whole writing style was turned upside down. We were no longer writing the "In my opinion." or "I think." papers. We were writing critical and analytical essays. We actually had to prove and support our ideas - something totally new to me. Of course, with my writing "expertise," I thought this would be no problem at all. That year, everything changed, and six years later, I still use the techniques that I learned in that class. In classes prior to this, teachers had always stressed the ideas of pre-writing, drafts, and editing. But because writing always came so easy to me and I excelled at it, these were just practices I completed to humor the teacher. I had no use for them. They didn't seem to have any effect on my writing at all. However, that changed when I entered the tenth grade class. The teacher of the class was the department head, Mrs. K. We called her "the K'ster." She was a fairly short, roly-poly woman - the kind that are supposed to be so nice and call you "sweetie" and "dear." But she didn't. She wasn't mean, but she didn't take excuses, and that was made very clear to us early on. If we didn't work in her Honors AP class, we could kiss our seat goodbye. According to her, there was a list of people just waiting to get into the class. The K'ster always carried around a water bottle. Every time she spoke, she would get two words ou... ...writing assignment." This feeling has stuck with me for years. However, now I can whip off a theoretical paper in no time flat! In fact, I have fine-tuned my system so well that, depending on the assignment, I can sometimes skip writing down my brainstorming, and just think about the ideas for a couple of days until they blossom. As much as I didn't like the K'ster, she forced me to deal with a new type of writing with which I had a very difficult time. Because of her, I now have a system of writing that works for me, and can be applied to almost any type of analytical assignment that can be given. However, I have the opposite problem now. I can write analytical and theoretical essays very easily, but writing creatively is difficult. I'm out of practice. I don't know where to start.I don't feel good about the ideas.The same excuses I had when I started tenth grade.

Effects of Equality in “Harrison Bergeron”

Kyle Chandler Professor T. Payne English 1102 4 February 2013 Effects of equality in â€Å"Harrison Bergeron† â€Å"Harrison Bergeron,† written by Kurt Vonnegut focuses on the idea of physical and mental equality, which is controlled by the government in the year 2081; the strong are forced to wear handicaps which hinder their abilities, the intellectual are forced to be unintelligent due to a radio transmitter that won’t allow the individual to think. Vonnegut uses satirical tone and places this story in the future, to show how total equality would not work.Not only does total equality sound absurd it removes the ability for individuals to be different. Individuality means having a quality that separates one individual from another. This means that by having total equality, there is a loss of individuality. In Kurt Vonnegut’s story â€Å"Harrison Bergeron†, Vonnegut’s satirical, dystopian society in which everyone is average, presents the id ea that handicaps that constitute equality also eliminates individuality, along with self-worth. Throughout â€Å"Harrison Bergeron† every member of society is equal. With the use of handicaps no person can be above average intellect, strength or even appeal.Vonnegut uses word choice that promotes this society is a satire creation early in the story. â€Å"The Year Was 2081, and everybody was finally equal† (Vonnegut 7). By throwing in the adjective ‘finally’, Vonnegut claims that it should have happened sooner, yet as the story goes on it becomes obvious that nothing is attractive about total equality. He opens the second paragraph by introducing the two main characters, George and Hazel. Vonnegut also promotes his satire when the main characters keep losing train of thought due to the fact that George has a handicap that keeps him from thinking too much and Hazel is of average intelligence. There were tears on Hazel’s cheeks, but she’d forg otten for the moment what they were about† (Vonnegut 7). Having the ability to cry and then no longer remembering the reasoning for it is not only below average intelligence, but also inhumane. By showing that the Hazel does not even have the intelligence to remember something that brings enough emotion to produce tears, Vonnegut presents how these handicaps could not possibly be an improvement to the future because to be truly equal you have to be the same as the least intelligent, least strong, and least attractive.He also uses a mocking tone when referring to George’s son Harrison. In the story George starts to think â€Å"about his abnormal son who [is] in jail† but cannot think about it long due to the mental handicap (9). The author uses the word ‘abnormal’ satirically because Harrison â€Å"is a genius and an athlete† and way above average in every manner(10). The use of satire in Vonnegut’s story promotes that handicaps eliminat e individuality by making each character the same. By creating total equality in this society, it abolishes the self-worth of the individuals.People gain self-worth by having a quality about them that makes them superior to others, whether it is their intelligence, a hobby they are good at, or a skill they have acquired. In â€Å"Harrison Bergeron† it is no longer possible to have superior qualities and Vonnegut shows this when the main characters are watching a dance recital on television. Hazel states that the dance was â€Å"nice† yet in reality â€Å"they weren’t really very good – no better than anyone else would have been, anyway† (8). This shows that even if the dancers were talented they could not be proud of their talents or display it due to the handicaps.With no reason for individuals to be proud of themselves there is no longer a need for humans to grow. This normality not only ruins dancing as an art but also ruins all other forms of a rt too. When the musicians play in â€Å"Harrison Bergeron† it is average until the protagonist Harrison, comes in and â€Å"strip[s] them of their handicaps† for a short amount of time (12). The ability to be expressive and different is one of the sole reasons behind art when it comes to musicians and dancers. Artists lose all self-worth that comes with their talent when they can no longer express it.What is the point in developing a skill, if the handicap on it is just going to be increased? Similarly the individual’s absence of self-worth is mainly due to the vacancy of individuality. Handicaps controlling peoples mental and physical ability removes individuality for every human being. With individuality being a character quality that distinguishes them from others, people no longer have the any qualities that separate them from others. Vonnegut shows this with the main character George, even though â€Å"his intelligence [is] way above normal,† George has â€Å"a little mental handicap in his ear† (7).Instead of having his intelligence which sets him apart from the normal members of society, the oppressive society that yearns for equality has diminished his individuality. Throughout the whole story there is only one hopeful scene in which individuality is achieved. Harrison Bergeron, the outcast who breaks the law by not using handicaps when he is incredibly intelligent, strong, and good looking, breaks out of jail and gives the audience a small glimpse of hope. He goes on public television and exclaims that he is â€Å"the new emperor† and that he is â€Å"a greater ruler than any man who ever lived† (12).Even though Harrison is a bad guy towards other characters, he stands for good in the story because he is the only character with individuality and the ability to remove equality. This glimpse of hope does not last long though because the Handicapper General, the head of the police force, comes in and kill s George. The satirical tone in Kurt Vonnegut’s story â€Å"Harrison Bergeron† demonstrates that handicaps throughout the story are not actually an improvement, because they remove the individual’s ability to distinguish themselves from others.The restrictions that are placed on people hinder their intellect, strength, and appeal, keeping everyone equal but at the same time, displaying a lack of freedom, self-worth, and individuality. Vonnegut’s satire tone also exaggerates the idea of equality being a good thing, showing that total equality violates human rights. By setting â€Å"Harrison Bergeron† in the future, Vonnegut shows how total equality would be undesirable to the audience. Works Cited Vonnegut, Kurt, Jr. â€Å"Harrison Bergeron† 1961. Welcome to the Monkey House. New York: Dial Trade Paper Backs, 2010. 7-14. Print.

Odyssey Compare/Contrast Essay

When Everett sees his daughters again for the first time since he’s escaped, they recognized him and their dad at first, but then remembered that their mom told them that he had been hit by a train and died. After hearing that, Everett goes to find Penny to which he discovers that not only has she changed the girls’ last names to her maiden name, Wharvey, but Penny got engaged while he was gone and is in line to get married the next day to her modern-day suitor, William T. Walldrip. Penelope did the complete opposite. Many suitors came to â€Å"woo† her after believing that Odysseus had died. She put them off with a trick, telling them that she would marry one of them once she finished the funeral shroud for Odysseus’ father, which she wove by day and secretly unravelled by night. She managed to deceive them for three years by doing this. After the three years, she was caught and the suitors demanded a decision. She cleverly came up with another scheme, an archery contest; a challenge that is nearly impossible for all but Odysseus. She did whatever she could to hold them off because she had hope that Odysseus would come home. On the other hand, these women have very different stories with many similarities. They were both confident in their decisions throughout the entire story. After Everett goes to jail, Penny is seeking out a new husband with better qualities than he has, one whom she says has to be â€Å"bona-fide† and can provide for her and the girls. Penny knows what she thinks is best, so she finds herself a â€Å"suitor†, Walldrip, that meets her standards. Penelope is left with a baby boy while her husband, Odysseus, is trying to find his way back home for 20 years after the Trojan war, and on top of that, her house is invaded by at least 100 suitors that are all trying to convince her to marry one of them. Penelope sees the suitors as nothing more than a bunch of greedy pigs and wants them out. These ladies know what they want and will do strive to accomplish it. They’re both fit for their husbands in their own ways. Odysseus and Penelope are both cunning, clever, and always thinking of a plan. Everett and Penny, though not sharing the same characteristics as Odysseus and Penelope, are quick-tongued, know-it-alls, and think in a selfish manner. The story of the loom symbolizes the queen’s, Penelope’s, clever and cunning tactics. The contest of the bow and axes is another example of her craftiness. In O Brother, Where Art Thou, Penny is known for saying: â€Å"I’ve spoken my piece and counted to three. † every time something doesn’t go her way, and if it doesn’t get fixed, she walks away; an example of her â€Å"know-it-all† attitude. Everett is always telling Delmar and Pete things like, â€Å"You two are just dumber than a bag of hammers! † They, Everett and Penny, are both always looking out for themselves. Everett tricked the boys into breaking out of jail, which lengthened their sentences, just because he heard that Penny was getting remarried. Penny found herself a new man, â€Å"a suitor† who met her standards and could help support her family. Finally, both Penelope and Penny put their husbands to the test before trusting them. Penelope tells the maids to move the marriage bed and once Odysseus sees this he quickly fills with anger because that bed was made special, made from a firmly planted tree trunk. She automatically knows it’s Odysseus. Penny had forgotten about Everett as if he had really been hit by a train and died. Once Everett proves that he’s just as â€Å"bona-fide†, she plans to marry him as soon as he finds her original wedding band. They both take their husbands back, but there was a catch in order for them to trust the men. These stories are completely different, yet alike in some situations. They were both single mothers while their husbands were gone. Penelope was loyal to Odysseus, but Penny couldn’t care less about Everett. They were both fit for their husbands in different ways, and were the reason their husbands wanted to come home. Overall, these women were both self-confident and strong-willed throughout either story, whether they were wives from the late 1930’s or Ancient Greece

Gioacchino Rossini Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Gioacchino Rossini - Essay Example In the following year, 1823, he was contracted to write Semiramide, which was a serious opera for La Fenice in Venice, before moving to Paris via London in 1824. In London, he worked as a music director at the Theatre of Italien from 1824 to 1826 (Walton 98-102). However, it was not until the death of Isabella and his marriage to Olympe, when he decided to move with his new bride back to Passy a leafy suburb in Paris where he died. While still of tender age, Rossini was taught and encouraged to do music at home before being enrolled to Liceo Musicale in Bologna by his parents. After his graduation from the school, he began his career at the Venetian Teatro San Moise School to compose a single act comedy called La Cambiale di matrimonio. He owes the success of his career to the efforts and encouragement of his parents who insisted on him to study music. In school, Rossini received training in playing the piano and the cello, taking a few days to learn the latter (Walton 8). His style of writing was on the reflections of the issues that affected people at that particular time. La gazzetta for example, was a piece about how newspapers affected people’s lives, while after his retirement, he composed sacred pieces that he called â€Å"Sins on my Old Age.† Although he mostly wrote his pieces from the head, at times, he composed his sacred pieces and delectable miniatures â€Å"The Sins of my Old Age† using both piano and voice. During his time, Rossini was a good cook and he loved the job a lot. He even invented a meal named after him, the tournedos Rossini. Most of pieces became so popular that to date, they receive audience in theatres when performed, many years after his death. There are some interesting facts about Rossini that are of interest to people studying about his life and his music career. He retired from music a very wealthy

The population of china Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The population of china - Essay Example But, one would be surprised to know that if every person on this world stood alongside each other, we would just need an area equal to the city of Los Angeles. So then, why is this information so surprising? It is because we do not need space but balance. The resources dependent on us are few. Five out of a hundred of the world inhabitant’s uses 23% of the world’s energy, 13% do not have water to drink and 38% lack proper hygiene facilities. Humans live on 17% of the Earth’s surface, which is land, out of which only 4% can be used for farming. These problems of today have inspired me to take up the topic of population distribution. The specific case chosen is of the most populous country in the world – China. Population Distribution can be defined as the arrangement or the spread of people in a given area. It could also mean how the population of an area is arranged according to things such as age, race or sex. Population Distribution is influenced by fact ors such as climate, natural resources, work opportunities, social services, density and culture. A city or town having a pleasant climate, adequate food and water resources, and good employment opportunities is likely to have high density. China, officially known as the People’s Republic of China (PRC), has a population of over 1.3 billion with a population density of about 140 persons per square kilometre. Therefore, this makes China’s population distribution a good topic to talk about as it is the most populous country in the world. In this annotated bibliography, we are going to describe the sources that talk about the distribution patterns of the Chinese population, whereby we will also look at the factors that contributed to the particular patterns of distribution. This text talks about the spreading patterns of the Chinese population in terms of education, religion and ethnicity. According to the author, the population distribution of China can also be

Public Relations - Media coverage of a crisis Research Paper

Public Relations - Media coverage of a crisis - Research Paper Example This gave the crisis a wide reach due to the variety of media used. The internet was one of the most widely used mediums in reporting the crisis. Most media outlets have websites that display news and the use of instant messaging may have also played a great role in covering the oil spill. Most websites have subscription plans which they use to send news to members in their databases. The internet, judging from its accessibility and cost of access, was the preferred medium of coverage of the crisis. The numbers of avenues that are available for the information to be passed on the internet are vast. Ranging from blogs to email subscriptions, the coverage of the oil spill was widespread. The company, BP, also employed internet services in dispensing information with regard to the oil spill (BP). Coverage of the crisis on the televisions was also widespread. The exact duration of coverage of the crisis cannot be ascertained given that new information became available to media houses by the day. However, some television stations had live coverage of the events for several days since the start of the crisis. The number of stakeholders involved in the oil spill increased the time of coverage of the crisis. Environmentalists still get media coverage today with regard to the oil spill. This is because the impact of the crisis could not be ascertained immediately. Since it took a long time for the crisis to be brought under control, media coverage of the event continued with an analysis of the cause of the spill following the arrest of the crisis (Jennings 365). The event has been revisited several times by the media houses due to emerging details. After the crisis erupted, there was widespread coverage of the events in the Gulf of Mexico. After the situation was brought under control, its coverage also subsided. However, a report about the cause of the oil spill was later released, generating media

Earthquake Impacts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Earthquake Impacts - Essay Example Although more times than not earthquakes are tectonic, they can also occur in volcanic regions. Although many people seem to think that the only earthquakes that take place are those which can be felt, that belief is completely false. Instead, large numbers of earthquakes take place daily across the world, but the majority of these can only be felt by seismometers and cannot be felt by the person and cause no structural damage of any sort. The strength and damage caused by an earthquake can vary dramatically, depending on the strength of the earthquake. Smaller earthquakes may go completely unnoticed, while larger earthquakes can cause serious destruction and massive loss of life. In fact, most of the larger earthquakes are then followed by smaller ones - these are otherwise known as foreshocks or aftershocks; foreshocks being smaller earthquakes which precede the larger earthquake, and aftershocks being those which procede it. The first method of recording earthquakes was through of certain scales called intensity scales. The United States, Japan, and Europe each have their own form of scales. However the problem with all of these scales is that they are often a poor measure for the relative size of different events in different places. Seismologists now favor a measure called the seismic movement, which relates to the concept of moment in physics, to measure the size of a seismic source. The 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake - which is commonly referred to as the Kobe earthquake due to the fact that it took place near Kobe, one of Japan's largest and most populated cities - was one of the most devastating earthquakes to ever hit Japan. Although over ten years have passed now since this earthquake hit, it is still considered to be one of the most disastrous ever to hit Japan since the Great Kanto earthquake of 1923, and will not soon be forgotten. In due to this earthquake, more than 5,500 people were killed, with more than 26,000 left injured. The total economic loss was estimated as being approximately $200 billion USD. During this earthquake, it was recorded that the ground moved 7 inches in horizontal shaking, and 4 inches in the vertical direction, and the earthquake itself is actually still active, with 716 aftershocks recorded by 10 AM as of January 18, 1996, 74 of these could be felt by the human body, and 14 of these occurred on the 18th. The epicenter of the earthquake was 20km underneath the island of Awaji, across a strait from Kobe. With a magnitude of 6.9 (Mw) and a duration of roughly 20 seconds, in regards to the structural damage caused by the earthquake, there were: 144,032 buildings destroyed by ground shaking, 7,456 buildings destroyed by fire, 82,091 collapsed buildings, and 86,043 severely damaged buildings. All Kobe ports were shut down to international shipping, there was substantial damage to containing loader piers, and all access to Kobe via highway and railway were blocked. The Kobe earthquake struck early in the morning without any warning, taking the city completely by surprise. It was due to the city of Kobe's high population density and linear layout, that there was such substantial damage and trauma caused; infrastructure networks were made much less redundant because of this, and this was a key factor in the significant structural