Rhetorical analysis of first writing since Essay

Rhetorical analysis of first writing since - Essay Example Such is an acknowledgement of how people should consider the problems in all other nations instead of America alone. Hence, her response is towards the terrorist attacks, which occurred in September 11, 2011. The poem by Hammad is beautiful and it provides a clear illustration of the feelings and belief she has towards terrorism. The message calls for unification of the entire world irrespective of the cultural background and taking each society as important as the other for the purpose of fighting terrorism and addressing common social issues in different nations. Analyzing the poem through Aristotle’s rhetorical appeals, pathos, ethos and logos, it is clear that Hammad had the ability of creating an appeal to the audience through the pathos. As such, the poem is directed to different cultural backgrounds (American Booksellers Association 18). The entire audience is affected by the theme of the poem since one gets a picture of the September 11, 2011 events â€Å"†¦. Sky where once was steal†¦.†. Hence, the audience makes a connection of the state of the nation and the environment before the attacks and after the attacks. She ensures that the audience has the ability of developing mental images of the people inside the towers before the attacks and after the attacks. Further, she uses Logos and Ethos in an effective manner. â€Å"My hand went to my head†¦dead Iraqi Children, the dead in Nicaragua and Rwanda†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . This is a vivid illustration that Hammad comprehends the current issue, which is facing the American people. However, she needs people to minimize their focus towards the issue and pay attention to the social problems, which are occurring in the other countries. This is also illustrated by â€Å"One more person ask me if I know the hijackers†¦.† (Hammad 1). Her point in this case is that she is fixed in a situation because of her ethnic background, which would indicate that she is

Contemporary Middle East History (US INVOLVEMENT IN IRAQ) Essay

Contemporary Middle East History (US INVOLVEMENT IN IRAQ) - Essay Example The incidents of September 11, 2001 drawn the attention of the public, legislators, and analysts on identifying, under disastrously altered conditions, the political and policy purpose of the U.N. charter’s declaration in Article 2(1), which designates the â€Å"sovereign equality of its Members† (Weis et al. 2004, 232). This was specifically true provided that the attacks were at that point bound for at the global solitary superpower, whose instinctive comeback was to bring its bear its armed forces, also its economic and political powers, and to formally oblige itself to a permanent war against any act of terrorism. As anyone would have thought, the early tendency of the United States, involving the bulk of its population, was to take in response directly and without using up time on widespread multilateral discussions. However, the body of states at the United Nations articulated advocacy for self-defense procedures in the Security Council and General Assembly in September 2001. And the moment the instigators of the attack were named, the U.S. labored significantly through multilateral channels in chasing Al Qaeda in their temporary defensive fortification in Afghanistan, and the Taliban administration that harbored them. Since the collapsing of the latter, legislators have been looking for reasonable next move in the war on terrorism (Crane & Terrill, 2003). It is at this point in time that matters of rightful response to September 11 become more difficult. The war on Iraq apparently became section of the war on terrorism through evasion, and U.S. decision and action took in a focal point in the debate regarding the use and applicability of multilateral channels, including the U.N. The resulting disagreement over self-autonomy, human rights and war at times appeared to neglect the development of the previous five decades (ibid, 105). There are still questions regarding the factors that persuaded

Write a mission, vision, and values Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Write a mission, vision, and values - Article Example Marketing manager in Stratsim company should bear in mind that core values are important in the growth of the company and that he should establish a good personal relationship with the various stakeholders .For instance, the customers being served on time, tax returns are remitted on time and in full amount, maximizing shareholders return and finally the company should be able to meet their financial obligation such as paying creditors and suppliers. These will help the company develop a good personal relationship since it’s the core issue in business. Mission simply illustrates why companies exist, why the various stakeholders wake up in the morning and do what they do. It also outlines what function the company performs. It distinguishes one company’s activity from the other. A good mission is that which represents truth and reality about the company.Management should know that mission statement serve to inform various stakeholders such as management, shareholder, suppliers, government and employees of the company. The statement guides these stakeholders towards strategic and operational decision. Mission statement for Stratsim Company will be, â€Å"To manufacture high quality vehicles that satisfy consumers need at an affordable price†. This statement provides the consumer with two sets of information that is; vehicles being manufacture are of high quality and the price at which Strasim sell the vehicle is affordable allowing one to easily purcahse. This is a statement showing how Stratsim Company will do things, In other words it outlines a picture into the future. Without a vision statement an organization will never know where they are headed. Vision statement guides us, it gives us purpose and it is a powerful motivation tool for an organization. An example of a vision statement for Stratsim will be, â€Å"By the year 2020, Stratsim Company will be the leading

Pilgrimage Analysis Essay Example for Free

Pilgrimage Analysis Essay Pilgrimage is the name given to a spiritual journey. There is more depth to a physical journey. It is about what it means spiritually to the individual. It is an emotional and spiritual journey. It is a journey from the heart showing love for God. The definition of true is loyal so a true pilgrimage is a journey you take to show loyalty to God. To become a pilgrim, the person must leave their home and undertake a sacred journey, which may confirm and strengthen their personal beliefs in their religion. People can go on this journey alone or in a community. Many places in the world are very exceptional for Christians. Some are places where Jesus lived, such as Nazareth. Other places are special because a holy person is buried there. Many Christians go on their pilgrimages to Lourdes and Rome. People go on journeys to these special, religious places to order their lives in terms of what is good, beautiful and true. Christianity is a journey into Christ a journey that mirrors every Christian mystery through life. As a Christian grows and changes, so he or she tries to move nearer to Christ. A believers ultimate hope is to be completely at one with him in eternity, when on the journey, Christians may use the physical act of pilgrimage to help them to focus on the need for spiritual nourishment. People go to these places of worship as here they believe they can fulfil their beliefs, and show their devotion to their religion. They are making a holy journey. We call those who go on these special journeys pilgrims. They do not have to do this, there is nothing in the Bible which tells Christians that they must make pilgrimages. It is their decision made freely. Many people regard Lourdes, as a place of miracles and of wonderful and unexplainable events. A young girl called Bernadette had a vision of the Virgin Mary countless times and in these visions, Bernadette, was told how to find a natural spring. Many Christians go as they are ill and hope to be cured. But others go for the same reasons that they go to church. Another reason to go on a pilgrimage is to feel some of the holiness of the place and become closer to God. By becoming closer to God, we can feel like better Christians and this should help us to become better Christians and do as God intended us. People also go on pilgrimage to seek Gods forgiveness for the sins that they have committed. Some people go to ask and receive Gods help, like people who have an illness or are disabled in some way, may ask for a cure to heal them. People can also ask to be healed spiritually, as coming to their pilgrimage centre may make them realise that they have not been leading a good Christian life and it may make them change into good Christians. Rome is another main pilgrimage centres for millions of Catholics. In Rome, there are 7 pilgrim churches founded when the Roman Empire became Christian. People have been coming to Rome on a pilgrimage for the past 1600 years. The Church of St. Peter was built on top of the tomb of St. Peter who was the leader of the 12 apostles and the first ever Pope. St Pauls church was built on top of the tomb of St. Paul, the great Christian missionary, who wrote most of the epistles in the New Testament. Rome is the home of the Pope and the Vatican is the headquarters of the Catholic Church. A pilgrimage to Rome is very special as it is the home of the Roman Catholic Church. Lourdes is a Pilgrimage centre which is much more recent, but it still receives over 2 million pilgrims a year. Water is a very special part of Lourdes a here there are the baths where you are fully immersed in Holy Water. You feel as if you are being cleansed of your sins, like a believers baptism as you are fully immersed in water like Jesus was fully immersed in the water of the river in Jordan when he was baptised by John the Baptist. Question 2 Many Christians believe that it is very important to go on a pilgrimage as it helps them develop into better Christians. As they go to the special, religious centres they become closer to God and begin to understand the religion more. By praying to God they become much closer, and their beliefs about the religion are greatly strengthened. The pilgrimage centres really have a great affect on the person spiritually. By getting away from their normal lives Christians who go on pilgrimages to Lourdes or Rome are filled with a special feeling of belonging when they go to a pilgrimage centre. At these special places Christians feel much closer to God as they are at special places where religious events have occurred in the past. Some people go on pilgrimages as groups, where they can help others who are less fortunate than themselves. Certain groups take children who arent so fortunate on pilgrimages to places like Lourdes and let them become closer to God. By doing this they are helping Jesus, as Jesus said anything you do to your neighbour you do unto me. People who may have turned away from the religion could also have their spirits renewed and change as a person to being a good Christian. Some people also feel that they can see their vocation when they come to a pilgrimage centre, which shows the huge affect that pilgrimage centres have on people. When people come on pilgrimages they leave homes behind and decide to forget all comforts and put God first. They are showing by going to these pilgrimage centres, their devotion to God and that their main aim in life is to be a good Christian rather than make money and have fun. They show that their main aim is on God and making God happy. Christians also come to Lourdes and Rome to ask questions, to ask questions about Christianity and how they can become a better Christian and make God happy. Christians also enjoy coming together and going on pilgrimages as then they are surrounded by many people who are like them, all on a journey to strengthen their religious beliefs and become better Christians. Christians also come to pilgrimage centres as they wish to ask God for his forgiveness for all there sins, and by coming on a long journey to a pilgrimage centre they can show to God that they truly are sorry for their sins and that they want to be better Christians. They can also show that God is most important to them as they are coming on a journey to show their devotion to him. The spring St. Bernadette had found was holy and had great healing powers. Now many people visit Lourdes and drink or bathe in the holy water. Many people have miraculously been cured of illness after visiting Lourdes. In Lourdes there have been many specialised things made to accommodate people suffering illness or those who have disability. The people who a go there to pray for themselves and to pray for others. Some pilgrims, who go there, volunteer their time when they are not praying to people who are less able than them. I have been to Lourdes myself and when I was there the feeling of Holiness was unbelievable. Just being there made me feel as If I was cleansed of all my sins, and I truly felt closer to God and being their strengthened my passion towards my religious beliefs. Question 3 After being to Lourdes myself I feel that the pilgrimage centre has become too commercialised. So many people are trying to make money out of the religiously spectacular area it has taken some of the special feeling away from visiting Lourdes. The point of going on a pilgrimage is to get away from our normal lives where all we think about is work and money and spend time concentrating on God and putting our religion first. By setting up shops around the area we are tempted to purchase items, which takes away the precious feelings of visiting Lourdes. The area around Lourdes is meant to be tranquil and peaceful and reflect the image of Christianity, but having loads of shops around the area provokes the town to turn into a busy, messy area where crime can increase and there is a lot of disrespect for the holiness of the pilgrimage centre. However, if a person does visit such a spiritually healing place like Lourdes naturally they would like to be able to take home with them a souvenir to remind them of their time in the area which changed them so much into a better Christian. Many people purchase items which are very special and can be used as aids to prayer, which makes them better Christians as this would bring them closer to God. If these special items do bring them closer to God then they are sacred items and are very precious. When I went to Lourdes I did purchase special items from shops in the area which I have used as aids to prayer and have in my house looking over me, protecting me. But I still feel that the area around Lourdes has become to commercialised as there are so many shops and some of the items sold in the shops are not very sacred and can bring down the preciousness of Mary and Jesus as they are not very respectful.

Electric Bus as an Environmentally Friendly Form of Public Transport

Electric Bus as an Environmentally Friendly Form of Public Transport Use of Electric buses to improve Environmental performance of bus travel by Sagar Shah Introduction In recent years there is a ton of hype around electrification of cars and which is right for a reason that they contribute a lot to congestion and there is huge amount of emission of major pollutants which has made the urban air quality a big concern. But here’s a less considered fact: Personal vehicles are probably the most challenging to electrify cost-effectively as they just traverse at maximum 4 people over a small distance in a 2-ton vehicle which consumes a lot of energy. The case for electrification or introduction of an alternate fuel is strong for other vehicles & Public Urban Buses top the list. In this paper I will be exploring the implementation of electric buses to improve the environmental performance of Urban bus travel as well I will discuss various considerable points such as cost effectiveness of the electric bus as well as legislations, modifications in the regulations concerning the application of electric bus to the various markets of the world. The paper deals with Battery electric buses which will be referred to as BEBs for the rest of paper. Why Battery electric buses? Buses are the most important mode of transport all over the world when public transport is considered. Buses for long have been used as a main mode of transport for medium to short distance travel and have been the most effective as they go through various routes. In March 2017, there were an estimated 4.93 billion bus passenger journeys in Great Britain which is around 60% of all public transport journeys  (DfT, n.d.)[1]. When talking about greener transport public bus transport are one of the worst contributors to two main contributors to air pollution namely CO2 and NO2. The emission of oxides is a result of fossil fuels used to run the conventional buses. Most of the conventional buses run of diesel. It is found that public transport buses use 40,000 litres a year which is 100 times more than a normal car. They run for 16-18 hr continuously as compared to a car which has a usual use of 2 hrs. For this reason, it is important buses are electrified as soon as possible. Past development and Current scenario For the last two decades there has been large developments in making the electric vehicles a reality. It’s a tough task to design a bus which can continuously work for 16-18 hrs and carrying passengers as much as the conventional bus does. It is a known fact that all over the globe initiatives have been undertaken to introduce electric buses. The first uses of were mostly small, mini or midi-buses. The improvements of battery technology from around 2010 led to the emergence of the battery bus, including heavier units such as twelve-meter standard buses & articulated wagons. Let’s have a look at the history of battery electric bus developments throughout the years. In 2009, Shanghai catenary bus lines began to use battery buses.In September 2010, BYD Auto began manufacturing BYD K9.In 2013, battery buses introduced in Netherlands.In Germany in 2013 battery buses undergoing tests in Bremen and Bonn.The largest bus fleet in Dallan, China included 600 BYD buses.In 2015 BYD launch the first double decker battery buses.Botosani, Romania planned for public transport to operate fully electrically at a conversion cost of 20 million Euros Figure 1: BYD Double decker bus In October 2015, the double decker buses were converted to BYD electrics with a range of 250km. London’s centre city access toll waived off for battery buses[2]  (Wikipedia, 2017). It has been some very successful past years for developers and there is a huge move towards electric bus seen all around the globe. The quality of urban air is deteriorating and with cities growing and urbanisation on the peak it becomes very important to have a clean fleet of buses which can be cost effective and non- polluting at the same time. Transportation Policies London the capital city of the England has for long been the economic hub and has been an example for the world in terms of providing good public transport. The city is very well known for its one of the best public bus services provided to its citizen. In the past few years the air quality levels have been one of the most significant worries for the policy makers. A study by Kings College shows that there are almost 9500 people who die because of the air pollution. The NOx and the PM(2.5) have been the biggest contributors to the air pollution and they are highly emitted by the burning of fossil fuels by vehicles. COx is the biggest contributor to greenhouse effects and they are the largest heat absorbents and have caused a heavy increase in the global temperatures with more and more emission of GHGs. With all these in mind considering the London bus network there has been drastic steps taken to curb down the emissions and go forward towards Zero Emission. Because of which following policies are undertaken The Mayor of London announced a new  £86.1m programme to cut harmful emission from London’s existing bus fleet.Around 5000 buses more than half set to be upgrading to meet the Ultra-Low Euro VI Emissions standards, cutting pollution by up to 95%.The Mayor has also set out in his draft Transport strategy that by 2037 at the latest, all 9200 buses across London will be zero emission.The electric routes are part of major transformation the Mayor has asked TfL to deliver to reduce emissions from London’s bus fleet.One other important policy to clean up the Capital’s bus fleet include the phasing out of diesel only buses& a commitment to purchase only hybrid or zero emission double decker buses from 2018.The introduction of 12 new low emission bus zones, operational by 2020, this will see NOx emissions along routes fall by more than 80%.In March 2017 TfL has introduced the first of 12 low emission zones, where only buses meeting the toughest standards are permitted to run.Using more Electric buses can dissolve the problem of greener transport & congestion. To take a view of what the polices are doing on ground and what people think about the current air quality situation in the city a poll was conducted & designed by YouGov for a sample of 1000 Londoners. (YouGov, 2017). The results of the poll are discussed here: 88% think air pollution is a big problem, with 66% citing air quality as bad and 72% wanted more stringent actions to curb air pollutions.[3] This shows that even after the polices being so hard people are still concerned more about the quality of air they breathe in when on streets of London. As from all of this it is quite evident that the best bus network in the world has outlined large number of policies & taken giant strides towards making buses run by electric batteries. A lot of potential is seen in the much anticipated zero emission buses to take over and make the city a place to breathe freely in near future. Key benefits of Battery electric Buses(BEB’s): Electric battery buses bring with them lots of benefits. Most important of them are the environmental benefits which will be talked more about later in this paper. Following can be listed down as the major benefits: Air quality improvement   This will happen largely because of the zero tailpipe emissions from the BEB’s. The levels of COx and NOx in the air are quite worrying in certain cities which is predominantly around the city centre. BEB’s work on the principle of zero tail pipe emission this should create a better ambient air quality for citizens. Noise Pollution reduction   Electric buses are very quiet in operation and can be a big advantage in urban areas to reduce noise pollution when compared to highly noisy diesel engine buses. If we consider a peak hour rush in a urban street with lots of vehicles, electric buses would contribute zero to noise levels as they can be near to perfect quite when in operation. Journey Comfort   Electric buses have been told to be very comfortable while on the move with passengers as it reduces the jerks due to braking as it uses regenerative braking. The buses have a lot more space when compared to diesel bus as they don’t have to be equipped with heavy engines and other mechanical parts. The buses are much lower to the ground and can also be a aid to disable people as it is very easy to get on and off the bus Maintenance cost Savings   Due to very low mechanical instruments needed for the propagation the wear and tear is heavily reduced which can save a lot of money over the lifetime of the bus when compared to conventional diesel buses. Drawbacks Range For a large period, there has been a great enthusiasm towards making public buses run on battery electric buses, but the hindrance is that buses need to run 16-18 hrs continuously & there need to be enough power in them to run all day long, but the range of the buses is limited &0 can only run on smaller routes & not many double decker buses are operational till date. Most of the buses are charged overnight and take almost 3-5 hrs to charge fully and run for the whole day. Heavy weight To power a large vehicle like the bus there needs to be a large battery pack inside the bus. The most famous BYD auto designed K9 with a huge 345 kwh battery. The energy density is just near 100wh/Kg which means the battery pack itself will be 3.5 tons. (Independent, 2016) High initial costs The cost of Conventional diesel buses is almost the half of the BEB’s. This factor for a big span of time made BEB’s not feasible. But with high research and development and a great downfall in the price of the batteries for buses has somewhat narrowed the gap between the ownership costs of the BEB’s and Conventional diesel buses. In future with more and more investment in the research we can expect to see more drop in the price for electric buses and it can be said that they will be more affordable by more markets. Battery replacement costs Batteries are the most important component of the BEB’s. Cost of the replacement of batteries can be a very daunting factor when economic viability is considered for the electric buses. As the costs of battery pack are very high and the size needed for the bus is a huge one so can almost result in somewhere around  £20k after a span of 6-7year depending on the manufacturers. But recently many companies have claimed to make this cost diminished as the give a 12-year warranty of battery packs included in the bus and which can be considered as the average life span of a bus. Infrastructure Re-Development A shift from one technology to another can prove to be a very hard process. Electric buses would need charging docks for the buses to charge overnight. This will need significant amount of money and it will add up to the city’s electric demand. Research in Battery Success or failure of zero emission buses largely depend on the success of the batteries used for electric buses. The reports on the highly hyped London electric double decker bus which is manufactured by the ALD & BYD as a joint venture which has the technological input form BYD, which is world’s pioneer in BEB’s.  (TFl, 2017) This BEB’s uses as 345kwh battery pack. BYD for long has specialised in a type of Lithium battery called Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4). It is reported to have an energy density of just around 100wh/Kg. So, this battery pack will weigh a tremendous 3.5 tons before any packaging, interconnects, cabling or BMS are considered so a weight of 4 tons is more likely. The other drawback of LFP type batteries is its abilities to take & release charge. Now, to make the battery much more light and efficient developments can be made in the direction of changing the materials used in the batteries. For example, Tesla using lithium Nickel Cobalt Aluminium(NCA) the P90D model S has a 90 Kwh battery pack which has an energy density of 140wh/kg. Definitely this was for a car, but such developments must be made, and a lot can be achieved in the electric drive technology of the electric buses. Economically Feasible The idea of battery electric bus is viable or nor largely depends on its economic feasibility. Any new technology at its advent is expensive & is not affordable by all. For example, when smartphones started to roll out they were priced highly when compared to the conventional mobile phones. But with heavy investment in research & development & also large competition around the globe to consumer markets the prices have come down & the market has reached to a new pinnacle every year. Figure 2 Drop in Battery Prices over the last decade and future projections Battery electric buses can also be considered more as an electronic entity rather than an automobile with more and more research & the urge to go green on immediate basis will see a large variation in the current buses & the buses to roll out in next 10 years. Figure 3 Citi research Li batteries price drop. As shown is the figure it is quite evident that due to heavy turnaround towards electric vehicles there has been a drop of 80% in the price of the main component of BEB’s battery packs. Prices have dropped yet the initial cost is very high to own a battery electric bus having a range of 250 miles. With the change in technology there will be a need to improve the infrastructure. This can add to the overall cost in bringing more BEB’s to the roads pertaining the charging technology adopted, and the nature of change needed. Going forward it becomes necessary to study the feasibility of BEB’s to make the electric buses accepted very firmly. Transportation economy vary quite too much in every part of the world largely because of the different application of bus transport in every urban city. Table 1 Diesel V/s Hybrid V/s BEB’s Table1 shows the cost benefit analysis which compares the Diesel Conventional Buses V/s Hybrid diesel buses and BEB’s. The data has been collected from TfL statistics for bus and other articles related to bus transport in London. There is a fleet of 9549 buses in London[4]  (TFl, 2017) which comprises of all the three variants included in the analysis. The assumption here made is use of entire fleet as each type. From TfL report on Bus performance 16/17 it is found that on average bus travels 35600 miles a year. This data has been made a standard and remains the same for each variant throughout the analysis. The BEB considered here is the BYD double decker bus currently deployed on the route 98. The bus packs a 100Kwh/hr battery pack which uses slow charging to charge overnights at the Willesden bus depot and takes about 3-4 hrs to charge fully.[5]  (Metroline, n.d.) The main aim was to find out the Overall operating cost of all the vehicles and compare them. As shown in the table the cost for the off-peak charging has been assumed as 0.10p/kw, this charge can vary according to various boroughs and different factors. On average bus travels 100 miles per day and price for operation on each day is calculated as  £4/day so which breaks down to 0.4p /mile. Now we also know that the BEB’s usually have replacement battery due every 6-7 years. But for this case the Buses provided by BYD has a warranty of 12years which is almost the lifetime for a bus. So, no maintenance cost is considered in the analysis of costs for BEB’s. For BEB’s it can be considered that there will be a need for new infrastructure development which may cause a rise in the overall cost for the BEB’s. As we don’t have any figure for the development of charging docks it is also not considered for the analysis. The charging dock once developed can be used by many buses at the same time and would last for several years without any maintenance need. Figure 4 Cost comparison of all vehicles. Figure 5 Cost over Life span Following are the outcomes of the analysis: Ownership cost is almost double for BEB’s when compared to Conventional diesel buses but when compared to hybrid diesel vehicle there is a very skew difference in their ownership costs. This is largely attributed to high price rate of battery packs used in BEB.Operating costs of the vehicles show large variations as the cost for electricity is much low as compared to the cost of diesel. A single BEB can save up to approx.  £42,000 which is almost the annual operating cost of a diesel hybrid bus. This means if the whole fleet is converted to BEB there can be tremendous savings on operational cost of public transport buses. Diesel and hybrid diesel buses also show a considerable difference but nowhere near BEB.Maintenance cost as shown in the table for BEBs are almost negligible as due to absence of mechanical spare parts the wear and tear would not happen. When talking about maintenance battery replacement cost if any should be considered but in the considered case it is zero as the manufacturer has provide a warranty of 12 years for the battery pack provide in the double decker bus.  Total cost per annum is the addition of ownership cost + operational costs which in the initial years is high for the BEB. This due to large investment needed at the time of procurement.The fig 5 shows the overall cost of operation over 12 years of life time, which shows that BEBs are highly efficient over the long term. Even if the battery is to be changed it could be adjusted in the same budget as for the hybrid diesel buses. The graph clearly suggest that it is extremely efficient to use BEB and can save around 350k over a life time when compared to a conventional diesel or hybrid diesel bus. For a whole fleet to be changed is somewhat hypothetical in near future but in his vision for buses Mayor of London suggested to only uses BEB by latest 2037. This means there can be billions in savings overtime if the project is successfully completed.Apart from this the most important benefit would be Zero-tailpipe emission from BEBs which can effectively and immediately improve the urban air quality and in turn save millions of pounds spent on health care and other projects to eliminate the effect of greenhouse gases. More about this will be discussed in Environmental impacts of BEB’s. Thus, it can be said that currently the BEB’s are more profitable if they provide the needed range of usage and the cost benefit analysis proves and supports the implementation of electric battery buses immediately. Legislation and Regulations With advent of new technologies arrives the need to amend the legislations already present or design new legislations and regulations. It is very important that legislations for BEB’s are shaped at every level of governance and implemented. Following are the policies that can be made at different levels to incorporate and encourage the use of battery electric batteries. International Organisations Greenhouse effect is a global problem and pollution caused anywhere would affect people everywhere, this should be kept in mind by each organisation. Emission of GHGs is a serious problem in big cities of every countries. Now to reduce it most of the countries in UN should stay committed to save our planet earth from getting destroyed and there should be steps which are mandatory for any member in a big organisation such as UN or EU. Any violations must be severely dealt with and provisions of sanctions or penalties must be made, this is because air pollution is not only causing deaths to humans who breathe toxic pollutants, but it also is posing a severe threat if the situations like now persists. Following are some important measures or directives which global organisation must lay out: Maximum permissible emission levels must be set out for each country and no discriminations should be made between developing and a developed country. China accounts for 23% of global greenhouse emissions[6]  (Worldatlas, 2015) all over the world. Paris agreement COP 21 was signed by most of the world’s biggest countries. US opted out of it as they would not be able to meet the levels set which should not be the case. Bigger economies must stand as an example and cut down of GHGs. More and more deals must be made out on global level and the progress on it must be reviewed time by time to ensure its successful implementation. National level Once the global agendas are set the countries on a national level should segregate different policies for different sectors which can be used by regulatory bodies and other industries and institutions to comply with the goals set to meet the global agendas. For BEB’s England has been very proactive in the Europe and recently became the world’s first to use a double decker BEB. China on the other hand has the largest market for BEB’s and has successfully managed to incorporate them in public transport in various cities. These countries policies can be set as an example for other countries. Following legislations can be drawn from their policies: London has decided to only procure Hybrid buses or zero emission from 2018 and to only have zero emission buses by 2037.  (TFl, 2017)Application of Ultra low Emission Zone(ULEZ) is done with dense traffic and higher Volume of COx and particulate matter in the air PM(2.5).  (TFl, 2017)Buses that comply to the most stringent norms of Euro VI are only allowed on the streets.  (TFl, 2017)For china the have provided bus manufactures with attractive subsidies which has in turn made them the pioneer in these industries.Infrastructure development for BEB’s must be supported by government programmes.Efforts must be made, and more funds should be allocated for research in the technology of BEB’s. New ideas such as Solar charging docks which makes use of renewable energy sources must be encouraged so that BEB’s leave minimum carbon footprint. Industrial It is important that the manufacturers keep in mind the emission levels and design the vehicles as per the norms. More Bus operators should try and incorporate BEB’s and fulfil their social responsibility. Consumer perception BEB’s have zero tailpipe emissions so they would not be throwing black smoke right into urbanites faces. Diesel smoke is a big contributor to 6.5 million deaths a year due to air pollution. This should notably mean that use of BEB’s virtually means no emission of greenhouse gases or air pollutants. The electricity from power plants generated may still emit those pollutants, but even if it is powered by coal plants, a BEB would average far less pollution per-mile than a diesel bus. Electric buses are much, much nicer experience- lower to the ground, much more space (diesel engines take a lot of space), no diesel burning smell & no noise. If the battery costs are brought down & with already low operational costs the total cost of running a bus can be brought to half that of a diesel bus. These advantages when passed to community would mean less money to travel on bus. BEBs can have positive social impacts as far as its application is considered in urban areas. Air pollution and noise pollution in urban areas have been associated in a lot of studies across the globe. BEBs can also end up reducing stress levels. Environmental Impacts Air quality As we know currently most of the fleet of buses run on conventional diesel ICE engine. ICE engine is most popular but by burning fossil fuels this are the several side effects of diesel buses. Apart from this use of fossil fuels is at a peak & its price are also increasing day by day with increase in demand. Figure 6 Oil demands   The figure shows that we will shortly be running out of fossil fuels. The use of vehicles is increasing every year around the globe and the demand is set to overcast the supply within next few years. BEBs will help ensure we have an alternative to run our buses. Air quality around the world has been in a grave condition for the past few years. BEBs are technology which will help us provide freedom from the emission which is caused by burning of fossil fuels. Diesel conventional buses use up to 100 times more diesel annually when compared to a diesel car. Currently the situation is so bad that a reputed daily guardian published an article which headlined- ‘Revealed- Every Londoner breathing dangerous level of toxic air particle.’  (Taylor, 2017) The article highlighted the seriousness of air quality problem that we are facing. The article stated that almost 95% of the capital’s population live in the rea that are exposed to high level of particulate matter in the air. [7] Figure 7 Particulate matter levels (Guardian) As the chart suggest the annual levels of PM2.5 are severely high in and around the city of London. The situation is much worse when we the levels are examined for central London. It is almost double the acceptable limits suggested by WHO. BEBs when come into action will run through the streets of the London but with zero tailpipe emission it is certain that this level will drop certainly and suddenly. This particulate matter can be described as something as toxic a drop of tar which will go down directly to the lungs and then to bloodstreams. This very fine particulate matter can be a reason for strokes and heart attacks.  (Taylor, 2017) The other major pollutant is Nitrogen oxides which is also produced in our ambience, a pollutant which inflames the lungs, stunting their growth & increasing the risk of respiratory diseases like asthma & lung cancer. London has one of the most acute problem across the world.[8] Figure 8 NO2 Levels London The figure shows how worse is the condition about nitrogen dioxide in central London. It was reported that Putney High street managed to break its annual emission limits in just eight days in 2016. The areas of Knightsbridge, Oxford street, Earl’s court & Brixton following the suit before the end of the first month. Government estimates 23000 people to die pre-maturely from nitrogen oxide pollution. (Taylor, 2017) Policies Several policies are designed to maximize the use of BEBs in London. Some policies have had a great impact in reducing the pollution from the city while some have not shown any effects. One such policy was to declare Ultra low emission zones in the city where the vehicles meeting the highest standards are only allowed to enter. But if we consider the scale of the policy it only secures about 300,000 citizens while ignoring the overall of 3 million which are affected by the atrocities of air pollution. The auto industry has for long tried and developed the vehicles which emit lowest NOx but have always failed. They have by lobbying tried to have their bread and butter secure by keeping on doing the wrong things to the environment. The norms have been manipulated and it is best said that power is in money. The recently published EU limits have been an example of this, Netherlands being the only country to oppose the limits. The limits are set such that it allows manufactures could design for up to double the acceptable limits by the WHO.[9] (nelson, 2015)The powerful should understand that the need is not to run from the problem but face it head on and take bolder steps. Technology of BEB must be accepted by European manufactures. 60 years ago, there was a ban on coal a similar ban is needed for diesel at least for urban vehicles and specially for public transport. Dark side The BEBs run on electric and are zero-tailpipe emitting vehicles but are they greenest option available for transport in urban areas? Answer can be maybe no as the electricity used to charge the batteries of BEBs come from the burning of coal ion a thermal power plant. It can be made the greenest if options are found to make it run on renewable sources of energy. Most of the electricity in UK comes from coal which is also a fuel which also produces lots of carbon oxides and nitrogen oxides when combusted. Unless the electricity coming to our grid is not by burning hydrocarbons there will be a huge carbon footprint for any fully electric vehicle. But when a comparison is to be done burning a fuel in industry would be much more efficient that burning it on streets in different engines. Other hazard can be of battery disposal after its use. BEBs posses a large battery pack. Technology to recycle them must be developed so that they don’t cause any hazard to environment. Most of the batteries are thrown away & are used as landfill in various areas, these will eventually degrade the soil & cause damage to vegetation also.   It is important that BEB should be developed in such a way that they should be 100% green and environment friendly from well to wheel. This technology is developed as we developed ICEs without assessing its impact on the environment. Cost might be a barrier but compromising now could mean serious consequences. BEBs can incorporate Other technologies Buses in cities run over a fixed route and have a dedicated lane in certain cities. A lot of research is put in developing an autonomous car, the same technology can be used in buses with much lesser hindrance as it would not have any other traffic on its way. Autonomous electric bus can take out one of the largest cost that bus operators incur and that is labour cost. This can make bus travel highly safe and cheaper in future with much more accuracy to run on schedules. Apart from autonomous drive use of renewable sources can be done to produce electricity for the charging of BEB at the charging docks. Use of solar energy to generate electricity and can be stored in storage cells and then used to charge the batteries of the buses. This can cut down carbon footprint to a very low level.   Such technologies could make BEBs much more efficient and prove to be a game changer in the public transport sector. Conclusion The idea of BEB has a clear future. It can prove to be the game-changer to save the depleting air qualities in the cities and provide a boost towards achieving a greener environment by cutting down the wasted fuel in congestion, providing more greener space & by removing the deadliest diesel ICE in our cities. Implementing BEBs can not only be economically providing a country with savings of hundreds of thousands of pounds on each bus but also serve good to its citizens health by saving them from life-threatening diseases which could be rampant because of air pollution. There ought to be a lot of challenges along the path of revolution, but such has been the case with all technological revolutions, and they’ve been dealt with before and I am sure BEBs in near future will take over the market as the first choice for public transport buses all over the globe. References Anon., n.d. Bus travel statistics, London: Department of transport. Bloomberg, n.d. s.l.: s.n. Independent, 2016. New double decker bus launch in london. march. Metroline, n.d. First Zero emission Double decker, London: s.n. nelson, A., 2015. EU caves in to auto industry pressure for weak emissions limits. Guardian. Taylor, M., 2017. Revealed: every Londoner breathing dangerous levels of toxic air particle. Guardian. tfl.gov.uk/corporate/publications-and-reports/bus-fleet-data-and-audits, n.d. Bus fleet data and audits, s.l.: s.n. TFl, L., 2017. TfL and the Mayor announce more fully electric buses, London: TfL. Wikipedia, 2017. Battery electric buses, s.l.: Wikipedia. Worldatlas, 2015. Biggest Contributors to Air pollution, s.l.: s.n. YouGov, 2017. YouGov Air quality survey Results, London: s.n. [1] Data from Department of transport for bus travel. Source for history: Wikipedia Electric battery buses. [3] https://files.datapress.com/london/dataset/gla-poll-results/2017-01-26T18:50:00/YouGov%20Poll%20Air%20Quality%20Feb%202017.pdf [4] https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/publications-and-reports/bus-fleet-data-and-audits [5] https://www.metroline.co.uk/blog/progress/world%E2%80%99s-first-zero-emission-electric-double-decker [6] https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/biggest-contributors-to-global-warming-in-the-world.html [7] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/oct/04/revealed-every-londoner-breathing-dangerous-levels-of-toxic-air-particle [8] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/feb/05/the-truth-about-londons-air-pollution [9] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/oct/28/eu-emissions-limits-nox-car-manufacturers

The Maturation of Bayard in Faulkner’s The Unvanquished Essay -- Faulk

The Maturation of Bayard in Faulkner’s The Unvanquished William Faulkner tells his novel The Unvanquished through the eyes and ears of Bayard, the son of Confederate Colonel John Sartoris. The author’s use of a young boy during such a turbulent time in American history allows him to relate events from a unique perspective. Bayard holds dual functions within the novel, as both a character and a narrator. The character of Bayard matures into a young adult within the work, while narrator Bayard relays the events of the story many years later. Several details within the work clue the reader to Bayard’s actual maturity. Diction from the opening chapter provides immediate clues. Although only twelve, the descriptions of Bayard’s mock-battlefield contain vocabulary far beyond his years (recalcitrance, topography, recapitulant) (p. 3-4), and Bayard admits his earlier shortcoming with words: â€Å"I was just twelve then; I didn’t know triumph; I didn’t even know the word† (p. 5). If the young boy did not know triumph, he most likely had not learned multi-syllabic words with etymological roo...

Libertarianism Essays -- essays research papers

For centuries philosophers have debated over the presence of free will. As a result of these often-heated arguments, many factions have evolved, the two most prominent being the schools of Libertarianism and of Determinism. Within these two schools of thought lies another debate, that of compatibilism, or whether or not the two believes can co-exist. In his essay, Has the Self â€Å"Free Will†?, C.A. Campbell, a staunch non-compatiblist and libertarian, attempts to explain the Libertarian argument.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To achieve this, Campbell first sets out the two pre-suppositions necessary to the Libertarian argument. Firstly, he defines which kind of freedom he is discussing when he speaks of free will. Campbell characterizes â€Å"the freedom at issue† as one that predominantly concerns a person’s inner acts and decisions (377). A person’s observable acts are important only as they show an inner â€Å"life of choice†(377). Therefore the moral freedom assumed is that freedom which concerns inner acts. The second, and more complicated, of Campbell’s requirements is to define what constitutes a â€Å"free act.† There are two parts to this definition. The first necessitates â€Å"that the act must be one of which the person judged can be regarded as the sole author† (378). This point raises the question of how one can determine authorship. For certainly â€Å"the raw material of impulses and capacities that constitute [one’s] hereditary endowment† cannot be determined by the individual and surely have an impact on his inner acts (378). Further, the individual cannot control â€Å"the material and social environment in which he is destined to live† and these factors must influence his inner acts as well (378). Campbell allows that, while these aspects do have an impact on one’s inner acts, people in general â€Å"make allowances† for them, and still feel morally responsible for one’s self (378). In other words, one recogni zes the effects of hereditary and environment on his inner acts, but acknowledges that his self can and should still be held morally responsible, as it can overcome these factors. Thus, Campbell claims, sole authorship of an act is possible. The second part of this definition of a â€Å"free act† requires that one could have acted otherwise because one could have chosen otherwise (380). With this final presupposition, Campbell states that an act is a free act if and only if... ...† in that it is a â€Å"creative act of moral decision† and is only significant from the inner standpoint (387/389)). With these criticisms dispelled, Campbell can finally claim Libertarianism as the leading philosophical viewpoint. With Campbell’s argument entirely laid out, the final question remains: is it sound? Based on the premises of his arguments as I see them, I believe I am safe in saying that yes, his argument is sound. Campbell has explained his premises clearly enough to persuade me into his manner of thinking. The only threat to his argument that I see lies in the his rebuttal of the meaninglessness criticism. I feel that he did not respond to this critique head on. Campbell claims that only the person making the moral choice can be aware of the reasons he made that choice. He, also, claimed that even a Determinist placed in a position of moral choice, has to be aware of his freedom of decision, but, if that is true, how do the advocates of meaninglessness fail to see the reason behind the choices they have made? This is the only point I am aware of that can jeopardize the soundness of Campbell’s argument. If he can explain this, he will have made a libertarian out of me.

Principles of Management (Wal-Mart)

The strengths of Wal-Mart are many. First, it is its sales volume. 200 million people visit 10,800 stores weekly worldwide. Its business model of increasing sales by lowering prices works very well for them. Wal-Mart deals directly with producers from local farmers to major product manufactures. This strategy allows them to secure the lowest prices possible for their customers. Wal-Mart’s supply chain is second to none. They are constantly exploring more efficient ways to transport products to customers in order to lower prices.Wal-Mart defiantly has one of the worlds most advanced global supply networks. Variety is key to Wal-Mart. If there is profit in selling a product, Wal-Mart does it. With four hundred and sixty six billion in sales for 2012, Wal-Mart is the world’s leading retailer and generates a huge cash flow. This allows them to expand internationally as well as geographically. The grocery section has grown to account for 51% of sales. Wal-Mart is now the big gest grocer in the country. The pharmacy has grown as well. With four dollar prescriptions, they have changed the prescription drug industry.Wal-Mart is the largest private employer in the world with 2. 2 million associates worldwide. Wal-Mart tends to promote from within. Not only does this strategy help retain knowledgeable associates and managers who know Wal-Mart from top to bottom. Even with such strong growth, Wal-Mart still delivers to stock holders. First quarter dividends for 2013 were one dollar and nine cents per share, returning more than 200 million dollars to shareholders. Wal-Mart is a key component in most mutual funds. Wal-Mart’s size allows it to buy in volumes that no one else can.In general, the higher the volume the lower the price per Unit. By sticking to Sam Walton’s original business model of lower prices to create higher sales volume, Wal-Mart is a world leader in sustainability and the biggest retailer in the world. W – Weaknesses: The weaknesses of Wal-Mart include negative press coverage, which is always a weakness in retail. With a company the size of Wal-Mart, small miscues are big news. Wal-Mart needs their customers to have a positive opinion of them so they will keep coming back. With overhead the size of Wal-Mart, customers must visit regularly.Wal-Mart operates on a low profit margin. When economic conditions are poor, sales go down and affect Wal-Mart quickly. Wal-Mart buys 40% of the products it sells from foreign sources. Government instability can disrupt, or even dissolve supply to stores. Wal-Mart cannot control how well governments maintain road and ports. Poor infrastructure maintenance slows delivery and can result in lower sales. Instability can also have negative effects on currency exchange rates. These weaknesses may not have slowed Wal-Mart’s growth to date, but they will not be going away.†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ O – Opportunities Wal-Mart has many opportunities in the current economy a nd is in a great position within its industry being very committed to finding opportunities to market new products and finding new ways to market old products in new ways. Wal-Mart online is constantly updated to take advantage of the growing internet market. Wal-Mart has recognized the global growth opportunity and is aggressively expanding globally in twenty eight different countries. Wal-Mart sees opportunity in its employees. Wal-Mart is a leader in internal promotion.This ensures that Wal-Mart managers are stable and knowledgeable of Wal-Mart as a whole. It is not effective in poor economies. The weather is also a constant threat. Inclement weather can close manufacturing plants, roads and stores. Heavy snows in one part of the country can close transportation routes. Destructive storms such as a hurricane can close and even destroy plants and stores. Weather related expenses and sale loss are unpredictable and always a threat. Wal-Mart is the biggest retailer in the world, mak ing it chief target for all competition.Large, existing companies need to cut into Wal-Mart’s customer base in order to grow. Wal-Mart’s customers are also being courted by new companies, especially in the internet market place. Social pressure and negative comments is also emerging as an internet threat, and Wal-Mart will have to combat it. With volume the key to success, Wal-Mart must keep a constant visual on the threats to its customer base. Conclusion The outlook for Wal-Mart, based on an analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats is great. With 466 billion dollars in sales for 2012, Wal-Mart’s business model must work for them.

Life Is What You Make It Essay

It When thinking about my view of the world, there is a jumble of different philosophies, beliefs, and ideas going on in my head. There is so much to take into consideration, and it seems that everything is connected but also scattered in a way that it is hard to really be able to dig deep and explain on paper what my worldview is. After many headaches and deep thoughts, I boiled it down to the things that I could not get out of my head. No matter how hard I tried, I could not get rid of these thoughts when thinking about what to say. These key parts of my worldview are that I believe in the theory of evolution and the big bang theory, not that God created Earth. I believe there is not a higher figure that determines where you go when you die. I also believe in a person’s right to make choices regarding their own life. Although my values and beliefs may have been shaped from the people around me, I feel that I have values and beliefs that are truly my own and are not what other’s want me to value and believe in. One of the first things that comes to my mind when hearing the word worldview, is my view on whether or not there is a god and an afterlife. When I was a baby, I was baptised in the Catholic church,but I do not attend church on a weekly basis, and never have. Because of never going to church, I have very little knowledge of the Bible, and the beliefs of Catholicism. Having this little knowledge about religion versus the facts that I have learned in science class makes it very easy for me to believe in the scientific theory of evolution. I have a hard time believing that God created Earth and all its creatures, and even that there is a God. Which leads me into my view on afterlife and how you get there. I believe that there is somewhere you go when you die. I do not believe that you just rot in the ground. However, I do not necessarily think that it is heaven and hell, but I’m not quite sure what it is yet. As far as getting to the afterlife, I do not believe that there is one figure deciding where you go when you die based on the way you lived your life. Since my values were not based on religion, I believe in the freedom for a person’s right to choose regarding their life and death. Abortion, assisted suicide, homo and heterosexuality are all examples of the freedom of choices that I believe in. I think people have the right to make their own choices regarding their personal life, without the judgement from God or even other people. Another very strong value that I have is that I think it is wrong to judge someone based on their skin color, religion, body type, sexuality and even the opinions they have. I think that it is right to abide by rules and laws. If the majority of our society did not follow the laws that we have, America would be in chaos. I like the idea of a democracy, that everyone who wants a say gets one, but yet there is a group of people who keep society organized. In my opinion, my values, beliefs and what I think is right and wrong have been shaped from different influences. Obviously, the first influence came from my parents. Growing up in their household has definitely shaped my beliefs. For example, my parents taught me to abide by the rules given to you. But there are also some things that I do not agree with my parents on. For example, my father thinks being gay is wrong, I strongly disagree with that. Another factor influencing my values and beliefs is my peers. My values resemble my closest friends’ values and beliefs and because we have common views and that is why we are so connected. I grew accustomed to their values and beliefs because of being around my friends so often. In conclusion, my worldview is that there is no higher figure that determines your fate during life and when you die. Each individual personally has the right to make choices regarding his or her own destiny in life. I believe that my knowledge from science classes taught me that the Earth was created because of a big bang in the universe which is more powerful than my knowledge of how God created Earth and it’s species. My values and beliefs are truly my own, yet they would not be the same if I did not have the guidance and knowledge from my parents and peers.

Intro to “Animal Farm” Essay

Animal Farm is a story that cannot be understood and appreciated without a basic understanding of 20th-century European history. While author George Orwell may have featured talking, thinking animals and labeled the story a fairy tale, it very clearly references events in Europe in the time period leading up to and during World War II. Animal Farm is openly critical of all of the major players in the European theater of that time, and each is referenced by an animal at the farm. This should come as no surprise, given that Orwell lived in Europe and was politically active during that time period. Like many Europeans who were tired of the confines of rigid class-based systems, Orwell could have been considered sympathetic to Communist or Socialist ideals, but was seemingly disappointed by Stalin’s subversion of those ideals for personal gain. In fact, this disappointment is what helps characterize Animal Farm as anti-utopian literature. There are dueling traditions in literature in which authors either describe a utopia, or a seemingly perfect world, or else they take an anti-utopian standpoint in explaining how there is no way to maintain such a perfect world. Animal Farm, which describes the descent of Old Major’s proposed ideal world of animal equality into a totalitarian state run by Napoleon, is decidedly anti-utopian. One of the interesting characteristics of Animal Farm is that, while it is critical of Communism in practice, it is not critical of Communism as an ideal. Nothing in the novel suggests that Old Major’s ideas about ending the exploitation of animals were somehow wrong. In fact, Orwell describes the animals as being mistreated while under the farmer’s control. This leads one to believe that Orwell believed, theoretically, in the ideal of Communism or Socialism, and was critiquing not the ideal, but the possibility of the ideal. This is an interesting perspective, given Orwell’s own background, which would have placed him in the petty bourgeoisie social class.George Orwell was born Edward Arthur Blair on June 25, 1903, in India. His father was an English civil servant in India. At age eight, Orwell returned to England, where he was sent to boarding school. In 1917, Orwell went to Eton on scholarship, where he was first exposed to the political ideas that would eventually form the foundation of Animal Farm. Upon graduating in 1921, Orwell followed in his father’s footsteps and went to Burma, India, as a member of the Civil Service, where he served from 1922 to 1927. After that time, Orwell seemed to abandon the privilege that came with being a member of the upper class, even if he was a poorer member of that group. He spent a year living among the lower class in Paris and in England, even spending some of that time with homeless people. It was around that time that he began writing seriously and adopted the pen name George Orwell. While he was gaining respect as a writer, he also had â€Å"day jobs,† first as a teacher, and then as the proprietor of a pub and a general store.Orwell became a Socialist in the 1930s, and when asked to report upon the Spanish Civil War, actually fought in defense of his political beliefs and in favor of a Socialist Spain. However, he was adamant about the differences in the Communist and Socialist philosophies and believed that Communism was a threat to Socialism. He joined in the battle, fighting on the side of the Republicans as a member of a Marxist political party, and he was injured during this service. While the Republicans were successful in the war, the Marxists were not; pro-Stalin factions took over the Republicans. This historical part of Orwell’s life undoubtedly helped contribute to his criticism of Stalin and helped serve as a foundation for Animal Farm, though he would not write the novel for several years.

Why More People Eat Fast Food

Fast Food In our American society today where waking up early each morning to get ready for work has becoming a very huge part of our daily life, we realize that people are becoming more busy even to the point of becoming lazy since they barely have any time to cook for themselves or for their families and therefore, this has lead to the increasing number of fast food restaurants everywhere we go.Pick McDonalds, Subways and Wendy’s for example; there is no corner you will step that you wouldn't end up seeing their sign because all this fast food are very cheap, very convenient and they taste really good and therefore explains why more people eat fast food this days. In a society where money has become a very big financial problem to many people especially family, eating fast food majority of the time will help them save some money because it is very cheap.Many people will prefer eating at fast food restaurant much cheaper than eating at other restaurant because at a fast food restaurant, a person can get a full meal with less than ten dollars but at a fancy restaurants, ten dollars can only get you a beverage and nothing more people to eat fast food without even thinking about the health problems. Even though eating fast foods are very unhealthy, most people will prefer that over going to buy groceries for cooking because it is very cheap and saves a person more money but it can sometimes be healthy just eating a home cooked food depending on what you prefer to eat.More people today tend to eat more fast food rather than home cooked food because it is very convenient. We no longer live in a society where we wake up early in the morning to make breakfast for ourselves because we do not have enough time due to our busy schedule so therefore, making a quick stop at a local fast food restaurant will help us get our day started. The time limit we have when it comes to taking a break at work or at school these days has become very short that, you do not even h ave enough time to at least make the bowl of noodles or sandwich you wish to have for lunch.In the case of having short breaks at work or school, our only options we have to getting something to eat in the few minutes is to run, drive fast or even walk fast for not more than a minutes and we will be able to get something to eat because the fast food restaurant isn't far from us. The convenience of fast food restaurants today has become very helpful to us especially to those who drive because it helps save gas, driving distance and it is very quick and this reason tends to explain why more people are eating fast food.More people are eating fast food this days because our taste buds have become more important to us than the content in the food we eat, whether it being healthy or not. Satisfying our cravings with some large fries and a cheeseburger from McDonalds or a long foot cheese steak from subway will make us feel better of ourselves even though it is unhealthy than eating some r ice with vegetables made at home even though . People wouldn't care about the percentage of fat in a McDonald’s burger because no one really thinks about what they are eating while they are eating it until they are done with it.As we all know, eating fast foods can bring about so many different types of sickness such as high cholesterol level, diabetes and obesity upon us but we still care because we just want to satisfy our cravings and our taste buds. Even though there are some fast food restaurants such as Subway that provide a nutritious and healthy meal but we will still prefer the other unhealthy fast foods over the healthy ones because they taste good and they satisfy our cravings.As our society keeps growing bigger and developing on a very fast pace, we realize that more people are eating more fast foods because they are very cheap, very convenient and they taste very good to satisfy our taste buds. People are getting so busy this days that, spending just some few min utes out of their business schedule to actually make something to eat has become a problem and therefore has also lead to the growing number of fast food restaurants and the increasing number of people who eat there.We realize the cost of buying groceries in order to put a meal on the table has increased to about two times the money you will spend to eat fast food and this explains why more people are eating fast food today. With money being a big problem in our economy today, people have learned to make tight budgets in order to keep them financially stable and spending more money on food needs to be the very last decision any one will make so therefore, eating fast foods will be the best way for people to save some money and also satisfy their taste buds. Even though we all know how unhealthy fast food, everyone eats them for their own reasons.

Free Essays on Han Dynasty

Tiffany Tran Han Dynasty 4/10/02 Pages 281-287 Read 281-282  · There is a seismograph in Ancient China called Han dragon-and-toad seismograph.  · Confucianism is popular once again.  · The first Han emperor, Han Gaozu was uneducated Yin and Yang are two opposing forces Yin Yang Yin means â€Å"the dark side of the hill.† Yang means â€Å"the bright side of the hill.† Darkness, calm, weakness, earth, Yang is active and strong. Heaven, summer, winter, sorrow, and death are examples joy, and life are examples of Yang and qualities of Yin. Country Life City Life Most of China’s people were farmers. By the time of the Han dynasty, perhaps They lived in mud houses that one in ten Chinese people lived in a city. stood on earthen platforms. The cities were laid out neatly according Farmers had one-story or two story to compass directions. houses. Some of the stone and earthen walls were Barns and other buildings surrounded so strong that they still stand today! the houses. The cities were centers of government, Farm families often live together in education, and trade. small villages to work the fields. Then, as now rich and poor shared city A wealthy farmer could afford strong life. oxen to pull his carts. He used The poor lived in house packed together machines to carry water to the field. as tightly as teeth of a comb. A poor farmer worked with wooden Some youngsters joined street gangs hand tools to water his fields. where they roam the city, terrorizing its Chinese farmers dressed in shirts people. They also wore special clothes and and pants made of scratchy cloth, armor. and sandals made of straw. Padded ... Free Essays on Han Dynasty Free Essays on Han Dynasty Tiffany Tran Han Dynasty 4/10/02 Pages 281-287 Read 281-282  · There is a seismograph in Ancient China called Han dragon-and-toad seismograph.  · Confucianism is popular once again.  · The first Han emperor, Han Gaozu was uneducated Yin and Yang are two opposing forces Yin Yang Yin means â€Å"the dark side of the hill.† Yang means â€Å"the bright side of the hill.† Darkness, calm, weakness, earth, Yang is active and strong. Heaven, summer, winter, sorrow, and death are examples joy, and life are examples of Yang and qualities of Yin. Country Life City Life Most of China’s people were farmers. By the time of the Han dynasty, perhaps They lived in mud houses that one in ten Chinese people lived in a city. stood on earthen platforms. The cities were laid out neatly according Farmers had one-story or two story to compass directions. houses. Some of the stone and earthen walls were Barns and other buildings surrounded so strong that they still stand today! the houses. The cities were centers of government, Farm families often live together in education, and trade. small villages to work the fields. Then, as now rich and poor shared city A wealthy farmer could afford strong life. oxen to pull his carts. He used The poor lived in house packed together machines to carry water to the field. as tightly as teeth of a comb. A poor farmer worked with wooden Some youngsters joined street gangs hand tools to water his fields. where they roam the city, terrorizing its Chinese farmers dressed in shirts people. They also wore special clothes and and pants made of scratchy cloth, armor. and sandals made of straw. Padded ...

Predator Drones and Other Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Predator Drones and Other Unmanned Aerial Vehicles The Predator is a nickname given to one in a series of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or pilotless drones, operated by the Pentagon, the CIA and, increasingly, other agencies of the U.S. federal government such as the border patrol. Combat-ready UAVs are used mostly in the Middle East. The UAVs are equipped with sensitive camera and spying equipment that provides real-time reconnaissance or intelligence. It can be equipped with laser-guided missiles and bombs. The drones are used with increasing frequency in Afghanistan, Pakistans tribal areas and in Iraq. The Predator, officially identified as the Predator MQ-1, was the firstand remains the most commonly usedpilotless drone in combat operations in the Balkans, Southwest Asia, and the Middle East since its first flight in 1995. By 2003, the Pentagon had about 90 UAVs in its arsenal. Its unclear how many UAVs were in the CIAs possession. Many were and still are. The fleets are growing. The Predator itself has already entered the gallery of American lore. Advantages of UAVs Unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, are smaller than jet aircraft, less expensive, and dont put pilots at risk when they crash. At about $22 million apiece for next-generation UAVs (the so-called Reaper and Sky Warrior), the drones are increasingly a weapon of choice for military planners. The Obama administrations 2010 military budget includes approximately $3.5 billion for UAVs. In comparison, the Pentagon is paying more than $100 million apiece for its next-generation fighter jets, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (the Pentagon plans to buy 2,443 for $300 billion. While UAVs require considerable ground-based logistical support, they can be piloted by individuals specifically trained to fly UAVs rather than by pilots. Training for UAVs is less expensive and exacting than for jets. Disadvantages of UAVs The Predator has been publicly praised by the Pentagon as a versatile and low-risk means of gathering intelligence and striking targets. But an internal Pentagon report completed in October 2001 concluded that tests conducted in 2000 found that the Predator performed well only in daylight and in clear weather, according to the New York Times. It broke down too often, could not stay over targets as long as expected, often lost communication links in the rain and was hard to operate, the report said. According to the Project on Government Oversight, the Predator cannot be launched in adverse weather, including any visible moisture such as rain, snow, ice, frost or fog; nor can it take off or land in crosswinds of greater than 17 knots. By 2002, more than 40% of the Pentagons original fleet of Predators had crashed or been lost, in more than half those cases due to mechanical failure. The drones cameras are unreliable. Further, PGO concluded, Because it cannot evade radar detection, flies slow, is noisy, and must often hover at relatively low altitudes, the Predator is vulnerable to being shot down by enemy fire. In fact, an estimated 11 of the 25 Predators destroyed in crashes reportedly were caused by enemy ground fire or missiles. The drones do put people on the ground at risk when the planes malfunction and crash, which they do, and when they fire their missiles, often at the wrong targets). UAVs Uses In 2009, Federal Customs and Border Protection launched UAVs from an Air Force base in Fargo, N.D., to patrol the border between the United States and Canada. The first flight of the Predator in Afghanistan took place on Sept. 7, 2000. Several times it had Osama bin Laden in its sights, its weapons ready to fire. Then-CIA Director George Tenet refused to authorize the strikes either for fear of killing civilians or of the political fallout from a missile that didnt hit its target. Various Types of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles The Predator B, or MQ-9 Reaper, for example, a turboprop drone built by General Dynamics subsidiary General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc., can fly at 50,000 feet for up to 30 hours on a single fueling (its fuel tanks have a 4,000-lb. capacity). It can cruise at a maximum speed of 240 miles per hour and carry almost 4,000 pounds of laser-guided bombs, missiles, and other ordnance. The Sky Warrior is smaller, with a weapons payload of four Hellfire missiles. It can fly at a maximum of 29,000 feet and at 150 miles per hour, for 30 hours on a single fuel tank. Northrop Grumman is developing the RQ-4 Global Hawk UAV. The plane, which completed its first flight in March 2007, has a wingspan of 116 feet (about half that of a Boeing 747), a payload of 2,000 pounds and can fly at a maximum altitude of 65,000 feet and at more than 300 miles per hour. It can cruise between 24 and 35 hours on one tank of fuel. An earlier version of the Global Hawk was approved for use in Afghanistan as far back as 2001. Insitu Inc., a Boeing subsidiary, also builds UAVs. Its ScanEagle is an extremely small flying machine noted for its stealthiness. It has a wingspan of 10.2 feet and is 4.5 feet long, with a maximum weight of 44 pounds. It can fly at an altitude of up to 19,000 feet for more than 24 hours. Chang Industry, Inc., of La Verne, Calif., markets a five-pound aircraft with a four-foot wing and a unit cost of $5,000.

Calculate Solubility of AgCl From Solubility Product

Calculate Solubility of AgCl From Solubility Product This example problem demonstrates how to determine the solubility of an ionic solid in water from a substances solubility product. Problem The solubility product of silver chloride (AgCl) is 1.6 x 10-10 at 25  °C.The solubility product of barium fluoride (BaF2) is 2 x 10-6 at 25  °C. Calculate the solubility of both compounds. Solutions The key to solving solubility problems is to properly set up your dissociation reactions and define solubility. Solubility is the amount of reagent that will be consumed to saturate the solution  or reach the equilibrium of the dissociation reaction. AgCl The dissociation reaction of AgCl in water is: AgCl (s) ↔ Ag (aq) Cl- (aq) For this reaction, each mole of AgCl that dissolves produces 1 mole of both Ag and Cl-. The solubility would then equal the concentration of either the Ag or Cl ions. solubility [Ag] [Cl-] To find these concentrations, remember this formula for solubility product: Ksp [A]c[B]d So, for the reaction AB ↔ cA dB: Ksp [Ag][Cl-] Since [Ag] [Cl-]: Ksp [Ag]2 1.6 x 10-10 [Ag] (1.6 x 10-10) ½ [Ag] 1.26 x 10-5 M solubility of AgCl [Ag] solubility of AgCl 1.26 x 10-5 M BaF2 The dissociation reaction of BaF2 in water is: BaF2 (s) ↔ Ba (aq) 2 F- (aq) The solubility is equal to the concentration of the Ba ions in solution. For every mole of Ba ions formed, 2 moles of F- ions are produced, therefore: [F-] 2 [Ba] Ksp [Ba][F-]2 Ksp [Ba](2[Ba])2 Ksp 4[Ba]3 2 x 10-6 4[Ba]3 [Ba]3  ¼(2 x 10-6) [Ba]3 5 x 10-7 [Ba] (5 x 10-7)1/3 [Ba] 7.94 x 10-3 M solubility of BaF2 [Ba] solubility of BaF2 7.94 x 10-3 M Answers The solubility of silver chloride, AgCl, is 1.26 x 10-5 M at 25  °C.The solubility of barium fluoride, BaF2, is 3.14 x 10-3 M at 25  °C.

xml and java essays

xml and java essays Most web developers are intimately familiar with HTML, which is a language for presenting information on-screen so that it can be read by a human. A new markup language is rapidly gaining attention, however. XML allows for the presentation of information which can be read by a computer program. It is likely that the future of web development includes the creation of increasing numbers of programs, which make intelligent use of the data on XML-based web pages. And Java is a very good language for creating those programs. There has been a close relationship between Java and XML since the earliest mention of XML. John Bosak of Sun Microsystems, Chair of the XML Working Group has said that "XML gives Java something to do" (Web Techniques, pg. 43). Since there has been a decision to provide a standard Java API for manipulating XML (WT Pg. 43), the use of Java to manipulate XML documents is likely to continue, and increase over time. XML stands for eXtensible Markup Language. It looks a lot like HTML. In fact, both HTML and XML are commonly viewed as a subset of SGML (Standard Generalized Markup Language). SGML is very complicated, a fact that has lead to its failure to gain widespread usage. HTML, its greatly simplified descendant, has been a resounding success, but it is beginning to demonstrate some significant limitations. XML is in between these markup languages in terms of complexity. It is more complex than HTML, but still significantly less complex than SGML. (Dynamic Web Publishing Unleashed - Pg. 744-745). It is essentially an attempt to define a common ground between HTML and SGML. Like SGML, XML is a metalanguage for defining markup languages. XML allows you to define your own markup language consisting of new tags which you can use to encode the information in your web documents far more precisely than can be done with HTML. XML is not a replacement for HTML. It is, instead, a supplement to HTML. Whil...

Defining the Meissner Effect in Quantum Physics

Defining the Meissner Effect in Quantum Physics The Meissner effect is a phenomenon in quantum physics in which a superconductor negates all magnetic fields inside of the superconducting material. It does this by creating small currents along the surface of the superconductor, which has the effect of canceling out all magnetic fields that would come in contact with the material. One of the most intriguing aspects of the Meissner effect is that it allows for a process that has come to be called quantum levitation. Origin The Meissner effect was discovered in 1933 by German physicists Walther Meissner and Robert Ochsenfeld. They were measuring the magnetic field intensity surrounding certain materials and found that, when the materials were cooled to the point that they became superconducting, the magnetic field intensity dropped to nearly zero. The reason for this is that in a superconductor, electrons are able to flow with virtually no resistance. This makes it very easy for small currents to form on the surface of the material. When the magnetic field comes near to the surface, it causes the electrons to begin flowing. Small currents are then created on the surface of the material, and these currents have the effect of canceling out the magnetic field.

How Dysons Supersonic Hair Dryer Works

How Dyson's Supersonic Hair Dryer Works Regarding the hairdryer, renowned inventor Sir James Dyson had this to say: Hairdryers can be heavy, inefficient and make a racket. By looking at them further we realized that they can also cause extreme heat damage to hair. With this in mind, he would go on to challenge his team of engineers, designers and creative minds to come up with a solution. The Dyson Supersonic hairdryer, unveiled at press event in Tokyo, was a culmination of four years, $71 million, 600 prototypes, over 100 patents pending and rigorous testing on so much hair that if laid out as a single strand would stretch 1,010 miles. The result, though, was vintage Dyson: a compact, sleek design that quietly packs several finely-tuned high tech advancements meant to address some of the major flaws with most hair dryers currently on the market. Easy and Well-Designed Like many of his inventions, Dysons first foray into the beauty industry combines his signature cutting-edge sensibilities with a pleasingly minimalist aesthetic. Instead of vents and other clunky segmented parts its comprised of a smooth handle that simply extends toward a circular ring that sits on top. When directly facing the blower end, the dryer resembles another signature Dyson product called the Bladeless Fan. That’s not by coincidence, of course. Dyson’s modernist take on hair drying is powered by a smaller version of the hidden motor used inside the companys line of uber quiet cooling machines. The V9, the company’s smallest and lightest motor to date, can run at a speed of over 110,000 rotations per minute, fast enough to produce ultrasonic sound waves that register as inaudible to the human ear. Miniaturizing the technology to the point where its roughly the diameter of a quarter also allows the designers to fit it inside the handle to ensure proper weight balance. That way the user doesnt feel the strain of having to hold and maneuver a top heavy object.   Fixing Common Problems Besides enhanced comfort and ease of use, the Supersonic Dryer was designed from the ground up to eliminate some of the most vexing issues people have with hair drying. For instance,  blown air from hair dryers tends to be uneven and the turbulence can cause strands of hair to tangle, which is more often the case with those who have less than straight hair. Dysons Air Multiplier technology, found in both the Supersonic dryer and Bladeless fan, creates a high-velocity air stream by sucking air upward toward the rim where its joined with air brought in through the back and then channeled outward in a horizontal direction. The result is a smooth, even flow of air.   Another common problem is that overly hot air can ruin the surface texture and resiliency of natural hair to the point where shampoo and conditioning treatments can’t undo. To prevent heat damage, Dyson engineers added heat sensors that gauge and help regulate the airflow temperature by continuously relaying readings at a rate of 20 times a second to the main microprocessor. The data is used to adjust the motor speed automatically so that temperatures are kept within a safe range. The Price of Excellence Rounding out the list of notable enhancements, the dryer also includes a removable filter at the bottom of the handle to catch lost strands of hair (think lint trap) and three attachments that connect magnetically to the blower head. There’s the smoothing nozzle, which spreads a wide air stream across the surface to avoid messy, displaced the strands as you gently dry your hair. The concentrator nozzle creates more of a focused stream of air that’s ideal for shaping different parts while the diffuser nozzle is for reducing the frizz of curly hair by distributing air softly without disturbing the curls. The bottom line, though, is whether any of us  really needs a fancy, futuristic hair dryer and if ultimately such benefits are little more than a luxury. I’d say that for now Dysons hair dryer seems to be something that might appeal to higher-end salons with high-end clientele who will have their own reasons to justify the exorbitant $400 asking price.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of opening labour markets on Essay - 1

What are the advantages and disadvantages of opening labour markets on a global scale - Essay Example Significantly, leaders of any state dictate its position on global scale, both in politics and in the economy, relative to their knowledge and skills in exploiting opportunities and having the ability to identify threats (Weihrich 1999). Typically, these two aspects can either boost a state’s strategy or completely act as the main hindrance to its success based on how the political and economic leaders approach the strengths and weaknesses of the matter. Globalization has many facets that any country must address once they decide on participating on an international level; moreover, among the most complex areas are the labor market and employment. These areas require a certain level of understanding and experience for a state to engage or flourish. In the past, there have been more complaints than compliments from people and heads of state that have had the chance to participate in the globalization of labor due to the multiple threats and situations of disempowerment because of the harsh working conditions, poor pay and job insecurity (Edward 2014). Decisively, history and experience clearly depicts that opening labor markets on a global scale has its ups and downs with most developing states and transnational companies arguing that without vast knowledge and skills, it mostly disadvantageous. Appreciably, the possibility of setting up markets on global scale has technology advancements among others as its core facilitators; however, keeping up with these advancements is a challenge itself for most companies and states so most of them focus on global patterns of migration. Obviously, focusing on only one does not guarantee full results but most of the flourishing parties agree that the best approach is mobilizing or the necessary resources and knowledge of the global market to counter the adverse challenges and eventually exercise greater power.

The Confucian Business Ethics Equal importance to Profit, Process and Essay

The Confucian Business Ethics Equal importance to Profit, Process and Principles - Essay Example Li gives importance to etiquette and defined process in any business. Any simpleton will not buy a diamond from a beggar. Each business has its own set of etiquette to be followed without which it cannot prosper. A merchant dealing with diamonds should look and act refined manner matching his customer’s status to sell his products to them. Each of this quality is important to do business ethically and properly. Practical Difficulties in Implementing Ethics Several business gurus and universities teach the young executives only about gaining more profits and winning over others. They do not teach them about the ways to do it ethically. As a result the business industry has grown into a massive barbaric ground where each one tries to swallow the other. Taking ethical decisions in everyday life is neither easy nor practical. Even if one person inclines to act in an ethical way, the company principles and the other fellow workers cease to co-operate with them. It is near impossibl e for any business executive or a business as a whole to stay very ethical in their business process. How Confucianism Connects Business with Principles These arguments might sound quite convincing for any normal man. But, there are still a thousand ways any person can stay ethical, if they choose to follow the Confucian principles in day to day life. O.C. Ferrell lists a few practices which result out of declining ethical standards. They are 1. Misuse of company resources 2. Abusing the fellow employees 3. Stealing from the company by altering accounts 4. Producing defective products 5. Bribing the government officials to market them Half of these non-ethical practices are directly related to individuals and others as a... The researcher f this essay focuses on the analysis of the Confucian philosophy on business management, that is giving equal importance to profit, process and principles and is refered as the right way to manage modern day trade and commerce. The Chinese philosopher Confucius (551-479 B.C.) laid down clear rules on how to do business and live life generally. He believed business could be done in harmony with others without exploiting anyone, with collective interest in mind. The Confucian theory of business concentrates on four main principles, such as Ren – the quality of compassion towards fellow human beings, Xin – honesty and trustworthiness, Yi – giving importance to collective goodness more than personal profits and Li – following a etiquette and uniform process. Today, the western world views the business Confucianism only through the way the Chinese immigrants work. They interpret their sacrifices and hard work as hard and violent most of the time. The researcher mentiones that though most of the businesses in China struggle with the western influence, there are some like the example cited in this essay which have its strong ethical roots. It is such businesses that are transforming China into the next economical superpower, capable of lending millions of dollars to the US government. In conclusion, the researcher suggests that the Confucianism business ethics should be followed not only for the sake of ethics and profits, but to gain sheer peace of mind and happiness.

Welfare Benefits Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Welfare Benefits - Research Paper Example Although it was meant to help members of the American society deal with the crisis, which was affecting them at the time, many of its opponents believed that what it proposed was socialism; something that they believed was not in line with the American way of life. During this period, the greater part of women and people from minority groups in American society were excluded from getting any remuneration from the unemployment insurance and pensions for the elderly. In recent times, however, there have been reforms to the program and each state has its own welfare system according to the needs of its people. Since its inception, the provisions of welfare have been changing often due to the worries brought about by the situations of the economy as well as the changing roles of gender and the integration of minority groups into the American mainstream. During the 1950s, there were debates that focused more on how adequate coverage could be provided, moving away from the focus on which g roups of occupation could be included, as had been done before. Since then all the changes in Social Security have been attempts to bring about a balance between the provision of adequate protection as well as the promotion of equality while providing this security (Beland, 2008). When the original Social Security Act is compared to those of European countries during the same period, one will find that it does not include the range of programs that had been developed in these countries. This is because when this Act was formulated, it was done with the anticipation that any additional programs of social insurance and income support would be put in place later. Examples of such expected extensions are the providing of benefits for spouses and children, which was passed in 1939 and the passing of programs of assistance and insurance for the disabled people in the 1950s. The development of programs in other areas took more of a problem-solving and incremental approach. Hence, the Medic are and Medicaid programs were endorsed in 1965 as a response to specific medical care needs of the elderly in society and the professed insufficiency of medical care under public support (Social Security Bulletin, 2006). The introduction of the Food Stamp program in 1964 and its later extensive growth came as a response to the evidence that there was persistent hunger and malnutrition in some groups within the population despite the fact that the society was generally affluent. The Supplemental Security Income program was introduced in 1974 as a national minimum income guarantee for those people who were aged, blind, and disabled in society and this was to counteract the differences in the advantage levels and eligibility values appropriate to these people under the assistance programs. The Food Stamp program is available to individuals and families who are eligible for payments under the Supplemental Security Income Program and to those deprived persons and families who are not su itable for the latter program. Another characteristic of the development of social welfare policy in the United States is the considerable degree of decentralization that is displayed and a mechanism for this is the federal system of government, which divides responsibility among the federal, state, and local governments. Some of these programs are funded and administered by the federal government alone; others involve only the state, with or without the involvement of local governments; and finally, others involve all three levels of government. This federal structure serves three main purposes in this welfare policy and these are the dispersal of

Reflective Portfolio Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Reflective Portfolio - Essay Example This reflection has been drawn from my experiences from working in a group with fellow classmates who have different character traits, seeing how I fit in and respond to various situations and consequently the end result of our working together. My ability to form judgments on these various areas has been drawn from reading scholarly work by Kolb on learning styles; along with Belbin’s Self-Perception Inventory. Ultimately, the learning process will have been improved as I will able to consider what I have learnt and relate it to my personality as I endeavor to get into the job market and this knowledge will help me better myself as a student with my career in mind; thus achieve professional development. Section I: Intrapersonal Effectiveness In establishing my effectiveness in an organizational setting, I have sought out reference for such knowledge from Kolb’s work on learning styles. Kolb explores the theory of experiential learning to determine how this knowledge im proves learning in higher education. He establishes that this theory is based on six propositions that are shared by the scholars who have previously researched the issue. The first is that learning is best actualized as a process not in terms of outcomes, where students should be engaged so as to get feedback and examine effectiveness of their learning efforts. Education should then be looked at as having the same goal and process of reconstructing experiences continuously. Looking into my personal learning experiences through this unit, I have come to see that I am a visual learner where illustrations such as charts and diagrams help me understand a concept better and remember it later on. Effective learning is achieved through repeating the process whilst adding new ideas, knowledge that are then examined, tested and combined to previous material. All this should be done with the student’s beliefs and ideas on a topic being explored. This second proposition is essential as it allows for refinement of the entire learning process to ensure it is beneficial to each student (Kolb& Kolb 2005, p.194). Personally, this became clear in the course of this unit where I discovered that developing a relation to every new topic with a previous one allows for integration in my mind. This means that I can create a mental picture of the whole unit with each topic in perspective. The usefulness of this proposition is that allows a student to be adaptable and embracing to new topics that may be challenging, which is a crucial intrapersonal skill. Practiced over time, this relearning process will enable me to always be willing to discover and seek out new information and work-related skills that will in turn help me excel in my career. The third proposition involves getting equipped with conflict-resolving skills as learning involves interacting with opposing modes of adaptation to the world that result in differences, disagreements and conflicts. One should thus be pr epared to engage in fruitful contentions in styles of reflection, thinking and feeling. Through this course, I have realized that even though business shares several universal principles every entrepreneur will have a different viewpoint on which principle surpasses the rest. For instance, I believe that when I decide to