Monday, September 30, 2019

Should the United States Adopt the Metric System

Should the United States Adopt the Metric System? Donielle Allen NCSU Maths 103 Ms. Blackman June 29, 2010 Abstract This paper is to inform my readers on the question â€Å"Should the United States Adopt the Metric System? † In this paper you will see the difference between the US and the Metric System. You will also see how easier it is the go with the Metric System instead of the US System. The Metric System makes life easier for everyone.I think the United States should adopt the Metric System, because nearly every other major country in the world uses it as their primary system of measurements of distance, volume, temperature, energy and so forth. It is comparatively simple to make conversion in the Metric System as the system was designed for making conversions. It will greatly simplify life for us students when we have only to learn that a kilometer is 1000 meters instead of learning that a mile is 5280 feet.The Metric System would not only simplify life for us students, it will also simplify life for Scientist and engineers, making their computations less error prone and consequently, the products better and cheaper. The question is always been asked, why not use the US System instead of switching to the Metric System. But it is always known that the Metric System is better. To compare both systems here, I will list all English Imperial units in use, and all SI units describing the same range of the same physical quantities. These are: Length, area, volume, mass, force, pressure, energy, power and temperature.For a fair comparison, we omit those SI units which are commonly used in both systems, like second, ampere, volt, ohm etc. To measure the above mentioned quantities in the English Imperial system, all the following units can occur: * Length: inch, foot, yard, mile, fathom, rod, furlong, league, mil, pole, perch, hand, link, chain * Area: square inch, square foot, square yard, acre, square mile, township, square fathom, square rod, square furl ong, square league, square mil, square pole, square perch, square hand, square link, square chain. Volume: gallon, liquid quart, dry quart, liquid pint, dry pint, fluid ounce, teaspoon, tablespoon, minim, fluid dram, gill, peck, bushel, cubic inch, cubic foot, cubic yard, cubic fathom, cubic rod, cubic furlong, cubic mile, cubic league, cubic mil, cubic pole, cubic perch, cubic hand, cubic link, cubic chain.* Mass: pound, apoth. pound, ounce, apoth. ounce, dram, apoth. dram, grain, spoth. scruple, pennyweight, short hundredweight, long hundredweight, short ton, long ton. * Force: pound, ton. Pressure: pounds per square inch, pounds per square foot, pounds per square yard, pounds per acre, pounds per square mile, pounds per township, pounds per square fathom, pounds per square rod, pounds per square furlong, pounds per square league, pounds per square mil, pounds per square pole, pounds per square perch, pounds per square hand, pounds per square link, pounds per square chain, tons pe r square inch, tons per square foot, tons per square yard, tons per acre, tons per square mile, tons per township, tons per square fathom, tons per square rod, tons per square furlong, tons per square league, tons per square mil, tons per square pole, tons per square perch, tons per square hand, tons per square link, tons per square chain. Energy: calorie, inch-pound, foot-pound, yard-pound, mile-pound, fathom-pound, rod-pound, furlong-pound, league-pound, mil-pound, pole-pound, perch-pound, hand-pound, link-pound, chain-pound, inch-ton, foot-ton, yard-ton, mile-ton, fathom-ton, rod-ton, furlong-ton, league-ton, mil-ton, pole-ton, perch-ton, hand-ton, link-ton, chain-ton.* Power: horsepower, inch-pound per second, foot-pound per second, yard-pound per second, mile-pound per second, fathom-pound per second, rod-pound per second, furlong-pound per second, league-pound per second, mil-pound per second, pole-pound per second, perch-pound per second, hand-pound per second, link-pound per second, chain-pound per second, inch-ton per second, foot-ton per second, yard-ton per second, mile-ton per second, fathom-ton per second, rod-ton per second, furlong-ton per second, league-ton per second, mil-ton er second, pole-ton per second, perch-ton per second, hand-ton per second, link-ton per second, chain-ton per second. * Temperature: degrees Fahrenheit. To measure the same range of the same quantities in the metric system, only the following units can occur: * Length: meter * Area: square meter (are) * Volume: cubic meter (liter) * Mass: gram (metric ton) * Force: newton * Pressure: pascal * Energy: joule * Power: watt * Temperature: kelvin (degrees Celsius) Now, by looking at the list above we can all come to an agreement that the Metric System is way easier than the US System, and that the United States should adopt it. The best thing about the metric system is that it is easily divisible and convertible.Instead of having to remember that there are 12 inches in a foot, three feet in a yard, and 5280 feet to a mile, you just have to remember that there are 10 millimeters to a centimeter, 10 centimeters to a decimeter, and 10 decimeters to a meter. It is much easier to remember and much easier to convert.Reference Stans, M. (1971). Should The U. S. Approve Pending Recommendations To Adopt Officially The International Metric System? PRO. Congressional Digest, 50(12), 298. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database. The Historian, Initials. (2007, December 26). Metric system. Retrieved from http://scienceray. com/mathematics/mathematical-theory/reasons-why-the-united-states-should-adopt-the-metric-system/

Sunday, September 29, 2019

Ict Procurement Trends in the Uk Essay

This report presents the findings from a survey of 136 UK enterprises regarding their approach to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) procurement. The survey investigates the way that UK enterprises like to purchase technology, as well as the major IT and business objectives influencing their IT investment strategies. Introduction and Landscape Why was the report written? To highlight the criteria on which UK enterprises select their IT providers as well as the roles which have influence while making IT purchasing decisions. What is the current market landscape and what is changing? UK enterprises are set to increase their IT spending in 2013. Kable’s survey shows that ICT spending in the UK is being driven by investments in core technology areas such as security, enterprise applications, IT systems management, and content management. What are the key drivers behind recent market changes? With enterprises being continuously exposed to malicious attacks on their business critical information, the demand for security solutions is growing. What makes this report unique and essential to read? Kable Global ICT Intelligence has invested significant resources in order to interview CIOs and IT managers about their IT Procurement. Very few IT analyst houses will have interviewed 130+ ICT decision makers in the UK market in H2 2012. Key Features and Benefits Provides insights into UK enterprises’ preferred buying approaches. Comprehend the business objectives that UK enterprises are looking to achieve through their IT investment strategy. Appreciate the IT objectives that UK enterprises are looking to achieve through their IT investment strategy. Understand the factors that are influencing UK enterprises’ decision to select an ICT provider. Understand which organisational roles influence IT purchasing decisions and signing off budgets. Key Market Issues Despite the uncertain economic conditions across Europe and the UK government’s large scale austerity measures which have impacted public sector ICT spend, the vast majority of respondents from Kable’s survey indicate that their IT budgets will remain at the same level or will increase in 2013. With regards to the authority over signing off budgets, UK enterprises surprisingly give an equal rating to CEOs, CFOs, and CIOs. UK enterprises rate ‘Improve supplier relationships’ with an average rating of X, indicating that enterprises’ focus is weighted more to their own operations, followed by their customers, amidst the difficult global economic outlook. Investments in cloud computing are expected to grow with the penetration of this technology increasing from the current level of X% to Y% in the next twenty-four months, driven by factors such as lowering cost and complexity, and ease of use. According to Kable’s survey, X% of enterprises have a somewhat complex ICT infrastructure with several hardware manufacturers, operating systems, databases, applications, and other elements. Key Highlights Although on-premise deployment is favoured, the demand for hosted applications is also gaining traction, as enterprises are continuously focused on reducing costs in the current economic climate. Raising efficiency is a primary business objective influencing IT investment strategy amongst UK enterprises with the highest rating of X on a scale of 1 to 4. The recent survey reveals X% of enterprises have rated the objective of meeting internal service level agreements as a highest priority. With an average rating of X on a scale of 1 to 4, UK enterprises consider ‘Financial stability’ and ‘Price’ to be the most important criteria in choosing an IT solutions provider. UK enterprises rate the CIO/IT department as the most influential authority when making IT purchasing decisions, with the highest average rating of X on a scale of 1 to 4.

Saturday, September 28, 2019

British Petroleum

Takeover refers to the purchase of one company by the other and technically deals with acquisition of a listed company by one or more companies which are at better financial and economic position than the company being acquired. BP is on verge of a takeover and the following paper presents analysis of the company. The company is British owned and it has branches in various countries around the globe.The institution is found in energy industry and its one of the biggest and most valued energy supply and distribution institution in the world. Theoretically the history of the company is very complicated as it’s very rich, varied and unique status. The following paper gives complete analysis of problems facing the company especially the one involved before and after the drastic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and consists of references to various journals, business literature, and scholarly literature materials.This paper describes the activities and discusses the conventional rea sons for a takeover, their advantages and disadvantages, and strategic considerations that can be made to prevent a possible takeover. Introduction British petroleum (BP) company is an international energy production and supply company with its head quarters London, United Kingdom. By margin BP is the 3rd largest energy company and the 4th biggest company in the world (Datamonitor , 2009, p, 45).The company has operated in the energy sector for many years and it has gained reputation of being trustworthy thus it has instilled consumer loyalty across the spectrum. This company has experienced rapid changes and advancements in science and technology and presents numerous challenges to the company in relation to personal safety and quality management and also it entails issues like production costs, intellectual ownership of properties and products, competition and monopolies.The company is public held and its shares are traded in major stock exchanges globally including the London sto ck exchange, New York Stock Exchange and other stock exchanges in major cities all over the world with the trading symbol BP (Coffee, et al, 2000, p 98). The organizational original mission was to provide consumers with the right assortment of products, at the right quantities and price, and to provide excellent customer service through trained representatives.The organization current mission is guided by key core values: excellent customer service, care for people, entrepreneurial spirit, respect for all, building strong relationships, doing the right thing, giving back to communities, and creating shareholder value (Weston,2000 ,p ,87). BP success is based on mutually beneficial partnerships with diverse and competitive suppliers, allowing the company to deliver a wide assortment of superior, yet low-cost products and services, combined with superb customer service, and focused towards increasing shareholder value.The company employs over 210,000 employees and tends to serve more than a 300 million customers worldwide (Van & Schroeder, 1984, p 29). With the current problems facing British Petroleum in the Gulf of Mexico following the deepwater rig explosion which was caused by what has been described as the worst US ecological disaster ever, the Company's share price has fallen steeply and according to some commentators this could trigger a takeover of the business by one of its big competitors such as EXXON MOBIL, SHELL or even PETROCHINA (FINANCIAL TIMES, 2010, p 34).The catastrophe has plunged the company’s stock price as well as its reputation, and public image following the catastrophe have led to speculation regarding the company takeover due to the fact that the company is experiencing financial problems, huge losses as a result of oil spill and poor handling and management of the oil spill (Armstrong, 2003, p, 23). The above mentioned issues have been viewed by many to have been caused by poor leadership and decision making techniques in regar d to the way the management handled the oil spill.With the current troubles facing British Petroleum (BP) in the Gulf of Mexico, there is possibility of acquisition or takeover and hence a research paper which tries to come up with the relevant information in trying to establish some of the major factors that have been influencing the anticipated takeover (Ansell & Park, 2003, p 47), Identification of Industry and possible takeover Competitors The company is found in the energy industry and mainly concentrates in oil exploration, supply, and distribution.The industry deals with all assortments of energy products including oil, wind, solar, hydro power and other related energy products and services. This industry is one of the most contended ones with many rivals who produce similar products and services . The top competitors of BP include EXXON MOBIL . SHELL and PETROCHINA; with SHELL being the strongest rival of BP (Maxwell , 2002, p, 29). The company has a global presence and has assets in most areas of Africa especially central and western Africa, China and South American states like Venezuela and Uruguay, but the United States and Russia are its largest market.As mentioned earlier, BP is the third largest energy company in the world and the fourth largest company in the world (Kwon, 2008, p, 87). The possible competitor for the takeover has been indentified to be Exxon Mobil for the reason that the company is American owned and its operations and performance over the years have been above par compared to other rivals. Companies like Shell and Petro china though internationally recognized, their operations are not augmented like those of Exxon Mobil (Johnson, 2010, p 19). Description of the Organizational ProblemsDifferent organizations experience different problems depending on the nature of the organization, the economic situations, the political interruptions, and the human interference. Once these problems occur within a corporation, it tends to affects the organization core responsibility to extent of being unable to provide adequate and quality services to its clients and individuals relying on it. The occurrence of these problems can be a very damaging issue if they are hard to evaluate and solve (Kesler, 2008, p 49).With the British Petroleum (BP) company, there a number of issues and problems that has been constantly hounding it. Most of the organizations problems and causative agent for the possible takeover have possibly resulted from the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and lack of teamwork and capacity building in relation to the employees during the fixing of the oil cap to reduce massive leakage. Due to this, there have been reduced prices of the company’s stocks all over the world due to market fears of possible losses and public loss of confidence in the company.The increased failed management in the corporation resulting from the management poor skills in handling crisis has sometimes been leading its operation s to the wrong direction. The poor handling of the oil spill by the company executives is one good example of the management laxity and the probable cause of the proposed takeover . It must be agreed that BP has been faced with lack of skilled and effective managers offering effective managerial services thus leading it into poor leadership and decision making processes (Lochhead, 2009, p 67).As we have noted, most of the problems faced in this organization have been caused by the oil spill and ongoing economic recession, and others are related to inability of workers to work together. Since there was poor handling of the oil spill, the company has been in bad relationship with the neighboring community and it has not been able to fulfill its social responsibility function due to constant bickering and interference from the American government (Snell & Dean, 1992, p 50).In conclusion, the major issues contributing to the proposed takeover of BP is the matter of financial problems re lating from the management of the oil spill, whereby the company has spent billions of shillings in controlling the spill and eventually the company has been forced to sell some of its assets in Russia to cover the costs, and this has not been going well with majority of shareholders due to fact Russia is one of its biggest market. Lack of trust from consumers and American government is another factor that has led the company to opt selling its assets to its competitors (Maxwell, 2002, p 98).BP Proposed Takeover Definitively, takeover refers to purchase of one company by the other and technically deals with acquisition of listed company by one or more companies which are at better financial and economic position than the company being acquired. Takeover occurs in situations where a company wants to save itself from financial problems and also happens in situations where the company wants to secure limited market, channels of distribution, consumers and supplies.In any kind of organi zation, takeover or acquisition are quite significant since they play a major role towards the overall achievement of the given business or organization. This has to be done in a delicate manner that ensures all areas and aspects of the organization have been greatly considered. When the issue of takeover is being discussed about in a given business or any other kind of organization, it is very important to think of the manner in which the operation will be coordinated and thus employ the necessary personnel and practices which shall promote the performance of the organization .It is important to note that, without managing the human aspect and all other resources being utilized in the business, it may not be possible to achieve the goals and missions of the organization (Stern & Chew, 2003, p 90). One of the major reasons for British petroleum proposed takeover is as a result of the financial and social problems resulting from the oil spill in the gulf Mexico. From â€Å"NEWSWEEK Journal of 04. 06.2010, the spill has costed the company sums of money to the tune of over 19 billion dollars covering both the cost of cleanup and compensation to individuals affected and penalties to the American government. The performance of the company has dwindled in the recent days and in the first quarter of the year; the company has made losses amounting to over 20 billion dollars. Since corporate takeover entails two key types that include hostile and friendly takeover, BP takeover assumes that of hostile nature for the reason that the company is unwilling to engage in any dialogue relating to acquisition of its major assets.Hostile takeovers generally occur in situations where the board of directors is unwilling to relinquish its position and the company, while the company is performing way below par in terms of operations and financial management. This is the case with BP since the company CEO Tony Hayward has not viewed it has a possibility and has publicly stated that on a number of media outlets. A takeover in ensuring there is such form of safety can basically include a number of one or more different components within the totality of the institutionalized system.Such safety provisions include change in an organization and necessary management, safety policies, organizational procedures, and other emergency procedures and responses which have been put in place (Liu, 2006, p, 65). Advantages of BP takeover 1. One major advantage of BP proposed takeover is that once realized, the firm which was poorly managed prior to the acquisition will undergo valuable management and performance rectification due to changes that will occur in its management structure .The changes in corporate structure including modification and replacements of executives and senior staff will guarantee and repair the organization dented reputation. For the reason that the organization acquisition will involve a moderate debt to equity ratio, the company will also negotiate th e acquisition deal since it poses a controlling stake in the global market (Van & Schroeder, 2008, p, 20).The company goodwill in the world is very highly rated and possible acquisition of the company assets will entail the purchase of this valuable non- tangible asset hence provide opportunities for making more funds from the sale. 2. The company shareholders will also benefit from the returns emerging from the acquisition due to fact the company has a positive capital value attributed from large shareholder base ,assets and properties it owns in the world.With immense global presence, the BP buyout will promote employees and shareholder interests as maintaining the company effectiveness, efficiency and loyalty (Fox, et al, 2008, p, 87). The company benefits from strong market share and sound economic position hence even after the buyout, the company products will still remain favorable in the global market due to the consumer confidence established before the oil spill. 3. The BP issue will only involve acquisition of the company shares and assets, and this will entail the concept referred to as strategic takeover.This concept is advantageous to the company and the company acquiring it since the firm will select and buy assets that are favorable to them and they will be able to negotiate the right price for the products without full approval of the shareholder and other regulatory bodies. When it comes to the takeover process, the approach is mainly aimed in ensuring that any forms of weaknesses and strengths have been disclosed, and especially the ones which might have diverse impacts on the process and operations being carried out.For the reason that the company has huge amount of liabilities and increased level of debt, takeover by its competitors will reduce its taxable income hence leading to reduced tax payments. The company taking over BP will acquire both its assets and liabilities, thus the company will be saved the burden of paying and compensating the victims of the accidents and penalties to the American government.BP take over will promote efficiency gains since it will be able to eliminate corporate value destroying effects that emerge from excessive diversification hence it will be able to reduce the organization debt ratio and increase its equity portion (Dunning, J 2004, and p. 97). Disadvantages of the Takeover There are a number of problems which have to be noted with the BP proposed takeover. To begin with, the acquisition tests to be administered in establishing whether the company is profitable will be very inaccurate.This might end up resulting in cases where a very strong company is bought using false benchmarks or current situations without the evaluating the overall organizational position and performance (Mok & Tillaart, 1990, 76). If implemented as proposed, the organization corporate restructuring will greatly affect employees and its shareholders. The company will be forced to downsize its operations and c urrent workforce hence this will result to increased levels unemployment due to possibilities of employees being laid off.Large number of unemployed individuals will impact on the overall community hence hindering its economic development and opulence (Liu, 2006, p 58). BP has a global presence and sudden acquisition of its assets in some African and Asian countries will not be taken well since majority of people have an intimate touch with its products and trademark hence transfer of its assets to other organizations will affect its social standard and responsibility to the community (Roger, 2008, p ,36). Another issue is that many companies won’t agree the bid for BP takeover due to the fear of huge liabilities owned by the company from the oil spill.Most of BP shareholders are large multinational institutions in Britain like insurance and pension funds and the takeover of the company will critically affect the United Kingdom economy thus affecting lives of many Britons and other shareholders all over the world. Proposed bid from its rivals especially Exxon which is an American company will cause diplomatic problems between the US and Britain. Coming from bitter criticism from president obama, the cold ties will eventually increase if there is a takeover of BP by an American company (Peter & Paulson, 2009, p ,56).Another problem that is likely to happen if the event of the takeover the UK political establishment will lose public confidence for the reason that it does not support operations of the company and form this their would be a likelihood of political problems in Britain, this is because majority of Britons are shareholders . With controversial handling of the case by American leadership, possible takeover of the company by an American company will be seen as a planned agenda since in many occasions the politicians have said the company could have performed better if it was owned by Americans.Many critics of the proposed takeover argue that tra nsactions between BP and its competitors will harm and dent the long term competitiveness of the company (Kwon, 2008, p, 56). British Petroleum (BP): Strategic Plans BP as one of the most reputable companies in the world ,though affected with the oil spill ,it has been conducting a number of business as well as marketing strategies which come up with strategic plans aimed at future performances so that they can prevent future events from happening (Ransom, 2000,p ,76).With the recent oil spill crisis, the organization strategic plans involves restructuring of the management ,employment of competent staff and instilling of concepts of teamwork and working together to both employees and the management. The company productivity and performance have been drastically affected and the institution sales have reduced significantly leading to a drop in its share prices by more than 40 % (NEWSWEEK, 2010, p, 23) . The crisis has reduced its current customer base and at the same time it has red uced the company sales by more 35% .With this issue of underperformance in mind, the company so far is aimed at increasing the its social reputation and sales and at the very time being in a position of formulating major marketing strategies which are applicable and can help it reach all the customers around the world in which the corporation has been delivering its services (Sapienza & Grimm, 1997. p 87). The marketing strategy for the corporation that entails use of economies of scale and wide distribution networks, and the company is anticipating offering some of the lowest prices in the industry.Moreover, the company is promising to offer a low-price guarantee which will ultimately beat any competitor’s price or match their retail value (Dennet, 2009, p, 154). BP is trying to enlarge their customer base through various marketing venues that include Television advertisements which are aimed to increase brand awareness. Radio advertisements, Digital media (for example e-mai l subscriptions and the Internet) which will provide efficient ways to disseminate information, coupons, and free expert advice and product demonstrationsWithin the business, the strategic plan will be done by incorporating all stakeholders and engaging in appropriate decisions which will promote performance (Johnnson, 2010, p, 46). This proposed strategic marketing plan will entail analysis of the company’s strengths, their weaknesses, and measure the amounts of resources at disposal, and then come up with adequate strategic missions which ensure better performance (Madura, 2008, p, 45).When effected, such strategies will have long term effects and will make the company realize its goals within the stipulated time period. Effective leadership and decision making skills, and communication have also been emphasized as a key element towards realization from the oil spill catastrophe. Basically to avoid the proposed idea of takeover, it should be noted that, it is through proper coordination and employment of such long term strategic plans that the corporation will be able to emerge on top of its business operations (Armstrong, 2003, p 29).Recommended alternatives to avoid possible takeover The current oil spill crisis calls for innovative product and development especially in light of the growing negative publicity that is associated with environmental pollution and loss of jobs (Robbins, 2008, p, 76). Therefore, the option that should be pursued by BP is for them to implement and initiate strategic development and management strategies that will make them remain viable in the energy market.As BP proceeds into the future, they must be vigilant to avoid poor decision making processes which will hinder them in handling major crisis since catastrophes are some times inevitable (Laura & Torrington, 2005, p ,98). BP’s biggest risk exposure includes: unpredictable economic and political conditions, increased prices in fuel and other supplies, customer re tention, and relations with foreign countries. In order to be prepared and least effected, BP must develop strategies that will allow them to remain profitable in an unsteady market.Suggestions would be for BP to remain current on the risks of oil spill and aware of the current and future relations with foreign countries. Another suggestion would be for BP to try and negotiate compensations and government penalties. (Brodie, 2010, p 78). BP has been one of today’s most respected corporations in the history of the world because it has the highest degree of business culture as well as ethics. Generally, this organization has been able to create highly rated performance when it comes to organizational effectiveness.The creation of more and more new management groups can be a good approach which can enable handling of the key problems which have been faced within the company and its eventual operations (Sorrow, 2009, p, 89). Also, there should be the presence of a dynamic and div erse workforce which can effectively ensure that this company is able to perform better within all its key operations because different ideas shall end up being brought together from people with development experience backgrounds thus improving its performance drastically.Another important thing that can lead to a great deal effectiveness at the BP shall be in the use of newer forms of technology thus being able to come up with better and intelligent products and services which can enhance all means product and social development thus increasing the customer base for the company (Robbins, 2008. p 56). If they are able to do so, they will be able to avoid risks resulting from takeovers.BP must devise strategies to offset problems resulting from ineffective management and lack of teamwork in part of employees to avoid occurrence of similar problems which have been recorded to be detrimental in its history of existence (Jeffrey & Bratton, 2001, p, 59). The rapid advancement of technolo gy along with the growth of robotics provides many opportunities for BP.If the company continues to focus on and improve their performance management, they have every bit of potential to gain a competitive edge in the industry . Social trends are moving towards a holistic and humble approach in all areas of life, BP does not want to get caught playing catch-up to its competitors. By following this strategy, BP will have the opportunity to gain revenue and increase market share regardless of the recent crisis (Auerbach & Alan, 1991, p 36). ConclusionTakeover is a very important approach which has to be keenly considered by BP so as to improve their performance by engaging all the individuals in the organization in acting and working in a manner which shall guarantee better performance with the organization This process is what holds the key towards the future performance of the business or organization and making it possible for it to achieve its goals within the stated time period. In that case, while adopting these patterns, managers should be aware of the functions and the tasks which have to done and achieved during the management process (Fox & Marcus.2008, p, 34). Generally after takeover, there are no winners or losers. In this kind environment, people normally appreciate and accept as true that thinking and decisions making are better when done cooperatively and individuals are able to show professionalism and discipline in workplaces ,and provide essential considerations that can help the work environment run efficiently. Also if a problem emerge or arise in the workplaces, employees should not hesitate to talk up on the issue. Individuals and organizations should understand what takeover means so that they can be guided by it and function diligently.Similarly workers and employers should be turned on by the strategy so that they can tap resources and establish a successful business entity. In conclusion we can say that takeover is a very important con cept in business and it encourages competition in the global market and promote common respect for each market leaders opinions and capabilities, Promoting takeovers in a firm is creating a good work culture that values collaboration (Brodie, 2010, p ,98). Bibliography Auerbach, Alan J. 1991. Corporate Takeovers: Causes and Consequences. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Ansell, S. , & Park, J. 2003. ‘BP Tech Trends.’ Education Week, 22(35), 43. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Macro & Micro economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Macro & Micro economics - Essay Example In the last quarter of 2012, growth rate in the economy was estimated to be 7.9% (BBC, 2013). However, immediately in the first three months of the current year (2013) the growth rate dropped notably. The government of China noticed this fluctuation early in 2013 and decided to take expansionary policies to pull up the growth rate. This paper aims at studying an article titled â€Å"China to continue ‘proactive fiscal, prudent monetary’ policy† written by Siwu and Zhi and published in Xinhuanet on March 5 2013. The article presents a report on the present growth rate of China and discusses the government’s policy prescription with regard to this growth situation in the country. At present annual growth rate of the country is 7.7% and the central bank has taken expansionary monetary policy to boost up economic activities in the country (BBC, 2013). The fiscal policies adopted by the government have also been discussed in the article. The discussion presented in this paper identifies the major causes that have affected the growth rate of the Chinese economy and comments on the policy adaptations of the government as discussed in the news article. The impact faced by the Chinese society on account of this economic slowdown has also received light in the scope of this discussion, alongside the discussion on the aggregate demand and supply in the economy. Aggregate demand in the Chinese economy has declined as a result of this declining growth rate. The government has focused on improving domestic demand conditions in order to boost up the economy. Discussion on the economic problem The growth momentum in the country has been showing a lack of vigour since the beginning of 2013. The measures of various economic variables in the country are indicative of a low performance level in the economy, which implies that there is no strong point of evidence that might show that the economy has any prospect for recovering soon. In 2013, estimate of t he growth rate of the economy has been 7.7% from January to March, while economists had forecasted that growth rates would reach 8%. In response to this economic situation the government of China has declared that it would sustain the â€Å"proactive fiscal policy and a prudent monetary policy† (Siwu and Zhi, 2013) throughout the year in 2013. Proactive monetary policies have been maintained by the Chinese government since the 2011, with the aim of bringing stability in the economy, to make the economic structure flexible for future improvements and more forward-looking and target-oriented. This would ensure steady economic growth. While bringing economic growth the government aims at keeping the price level in the economy stable and guard against the occurrence of any regional or systemic financial risk. The government has vowed to guide the financial institutions, to make them operate prudently, oversee the financial activities of the institutions and take account of the ri sks associated with off-balance sheet activities, so as to make the financial sector's more sustainable and capable of supporting long term economic development. Causes of the problem The article by Siwu and Zhi (2013) reflects that the government of China has been actively making policy prescriptions that are aimed at improving the economic conditions of the country. Further research on this issue reveals that growth of the Chinese economy has been highly dependent on its export sector. The major markets for Chinese exports are the USA and the European countries. The country mainly exports, garments, toys, accessories, other plastic products, machinery, transport equipments, rubber, metallurgical products, textile materials, chemical products, refined oil and crude oil, as well as food items (Peopledaily, 2001). China follows

Thursday, September 26, 2019

BRIEF RESPONSES TO CLASSMATES POSTS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

BRIEF RESPONSES TO CLASSMATES POSTS - Essay Example Unlike litigation, arbitration allows parties to agree on who would hear the case. In formal litigation, the court assigns the case to the next available adjudicator. In civil courts, the issues become a matter of public interest whereas, in arbitration/mediation, cases remain confidential. Uncertainty of litigation processes increases once the case is appealed in higher courts. In contrast, arbitration leaves fewer chances for appeal. As Dimino specified, this happens as negotiation takes place ‘without having a forced agreement’. As everyone knows, an arbitral tribunal is not bound by the regulations of civil procedures, and hence, the parties can, by their mutual agreement, vary the terms of arbitrators’ authority, fire the arbitrators, and fix the procedure if they want.   In other words, the total mechanism of arbitration is more convenient and less stressful to the parties. At this juncture it is reasonable to point out some of the disadvantages of choosin g arbitration as settlement option. Among them, lack of transiency is often pointed out by critics as the major drawback. In case the arbitration becomes biased due to the so called confidentiality, the situation can become worse as courts are less likely to review the arbitration decisions anymore. Evidently, as many of the posts here indicate, arbitration has several advantages over formal dispute resolution methods. However, an important thing to remember is that the feasibility and popularity of arbitration does not reduce the significance of litigation. Instead, arbitration is only a limb of civil system that can reduce the burden of formal courts and thus facilitate easy access to justice. Like others, Barcena also has emphasized the higher cost that can incur during litigation. Although this claim has been true so far, recent studies indicate a considerable rise in arbitration cost also, sometimes that exceeded the cost of formal litigation processes. For instance, Public Cit izen, a consumer watchdog group conducted a study which identified that â€Å"the cost of initiating an arbitration is significantly higher than the cost of filing a lawsuit: $6,650 to $11,625 to initiate a claim to arbitrate a consumer claim worth $80,000 versus $221 to file that action in a particular county court† (as cited in Nolo). Admittedly, the other view regarding the parties’ perceptions on winning the case in court reflects right observation. As the litigation processes become more extensive and complex, the scope for mediation normally increases. Jimenez’s choices of dispute resolution clause are ‘bargaining and mediation’ as they are found ‘cost-effective’. However, it seems applicable only to certain situations like in a dispute between employer and employee on salary or promotion. As Yolauri Barcena opines, â€Å"mediation could be a good possibility for non-critical disputes within co-workers†. However, there are some essential negotiation skills that managers require for aligning their workforce to achieve the organizational goals in a viable manner. Every sphere of human life is vulnerable to conflict and therefore requires ceaseless haggle and negotiation. When it is in business affairs, the negotiation process goes rather formal, and it demands outstanding skills from an individual to win the bargain. However, the parties involved must be aware of the fact that they bargain not to win but to resolve an issue. This

The role of captive insurers in the insurance and risk financing Essay

The role of captive insurers in the insurance and risk financing market - Essay Example The paper tells that captive insurance has been in practice since the mid-19th century. Not satisfied with the insurance and costs involved, companies in the mid-19th started operating their own insurance resources. To cite some examples, there were the American ship owners, not content from the insurance services of the Lloyd’s of London and created Atlantic Mutual in the 1840s. Later in the 1960s, there came a boom period for captive insurance when a number of American corporations jumped into insurance business by creating their individual insurers. By 1990s and 2000s the captive insurance business thrived with the hardening of insurance market, reporting innumerable malpractices in medial and professional responsibility area. Growth in the captive insurance business has been unprecedented, fuelling their demand need globally. Taking it from the Swiss Re reporting of 2003, in 2001 the insurance premium paid by 2,500 of the major world corporations represented 13% business o f the global commercial insurance but the share of captive insurance in that was 80%. Presently, captive insurance is not just reserved to private entities; even government organisations like the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have entered into forming their own captives. Business of captive insurance grows rapidly in such domesticates worldwide where there are lenient regulatory controls in comparison to fully grown developed market economies. There are special legislations for such captives in lenient jurisdictions, not asking for initial high capital injection and also offering tax benefits along with making available developed infrastructure in the form of fully functional capital markets and human resources (Skipper and Kwon, 2008). Impact of captives on the commercial insurance market is huge, as they carry on a worldwide shift by commercial entities that desire a more effective and logical tool of financing the risks. Kloman and Rosenbaum (1982)) pointed out that the growth in captive businesses even in the 1980s was because of the unending pressure from the ever-increasing line of sophisticated risk managers to differentiate and verify each and every aspect of routine insurance transactions. It was also said that many big global companies have just outgrown their risk financing capabilities of the routine insurance market, thus strengthening the deficiency of insurance supply through captive and other options of financing arrangements (Skipper and Kwon, 2008). What is Risk Financing? Risk financing is a process to find the most effective way to finance a known risk. In case insurance is easily available through the traditional marketplace at suitable costs, it is preferable but in case of non-availability of insurance at desired costs, risk financing is the right way of insuring risks. It may include researching alternate ways like self insurance by creating a captive insurer (Capstone Associated Services, 2011). What is a Captive Insu rance Company? A Captive Insurer company fulfils primarily the insurance needs of its owners or their associate entities. The parent pools in the growth of the captive that can offer both underwriting profit and investment return. The Captive Insurer not only provides conventional insurance coverage but at the same time covers risks normally not insured in the traditional market. The risk-financing programme of a captive provides flexibility, stability and control (Hodgins, 2012). Companies not in the insurance business get their loss exposures financed by captive insurance entities, the past and most practised type of ART. In captive insurance, the risk gets shifted from the company to the affiliated insurance firm of the company. Such captives are small firms, controlled by specialist captive managers. Captive firms may be simple in structure but their offerings are critically crucial for the interests of their

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Where Am I Now Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Where Am I Now - Essay Example Although college was challenging, I graduated from the University of Peru with a degree in Communication. Using my degree, I published a 400-page book of nonfiction about preserving nature: I called it The Dream of the Dolphins. After this, I found a job with IBM selling large, mainframe computers to banks. In 1999, I met and later married my husband who I met at an IBM advertising conference. We married six months after the conference and we moved to the United States. Currently, we live in a small, friendly, community in Norwich, Vermont. Our home is on a farm, and we have four horses, four dogs and four children. I am currently working full-time as a graphic designer at a very successful advertising agency in Woodstock, Vermont. In addition, during my free time, I enjoy reading a good book and working out in the gym. Some of my hobbies include skydiving, hiking and horseback riding. One challenging issue for me is the fact that English is my second language. This means that I ofte n have to use an editor in order to make sure that I am writing the words correctly. What many people do not realize is that students with English as their second language have to use other ways of learning English that natural English speakers. According to Yau-hau Tse (2011) â€Å"students used six dimensions of language learning strategies: cognitive, social, association, compensation, assistance and constructive strategies† (p. 33). ... I notice that I basically ask many questions in class to make sure that I understand what is going on. I learn best through hands on learning, face to face and lectures. These methods suggest that I am a visual, kinesthetic and auditory learner (Fleming, 2011). This means that I need to hear and see what I am learning on one level and if the course adds some type of hands on ability, it allows me to totally engage in the learning of that subject. I find that if I have more than one way to approach a subject I have a better understanding of what I need to do to be successful with that subject. Luu Trong (2011) states that understanding the learning styles is important in order to engage students into specific learning. He calls learning styles â€Å"a consistent way of functioning which reflects cultural behavior patterns †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (p. 291) which means that because learning styles are based within cultures, they also can be stretched to accommodate more styles as they are develo ped. I am not sure that I am developing new learning styles yet, but perhaps this will happen later. Barnes, Marateo and Ferris (2007) suggest that there are many different styles to consider when working with learners and students today are part of a generation that they call The Net Generation. They say that this generation is very interested in education and that they are brought up in education from a very young age. I see myself as part of this particular generation and I do believe that my education is very important to my future goals. As they state, I have been involved with the Internet for a very long time and have and I understand my learning style very well. As a teacher/counselor/mentor/leader, I

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Alternative Forms In Theatre Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Alternative Forms In Theatre - Case Study Example The theatre provides an exciting opportunity to watch stories and situations as if they were real life, showing us the truth of our nature. For as long as humankind exists, theatre will always take on an important function within its cultures (Frazier 89). Through theatre, a culture expresses itself, reflects its society, and displays its individuality. It invites people to experience other cultures (Brown 192). Nevertheless, the question at hand is whether theatre will have a role in the society of the future, where cinema, digital television, and computers will continue to expand and grow. The answer to this question is yes. Theatre will only be a fraction in a solid media industry. Theatre on the other hand, and its contents may take on a larger dimension, but we receive it directly in flesh and blood - one to one. The magical atmosphere between an actor and spectator who are constantly aware of each other and the theatre's level of engagement is fundamentally more human and far more intimate. Theatre will survive because of its greatness, it is not just a performance. It is the mixture of the courage of its creators and the hopes and expectations of the audience. Theatre draws its reason for existence from its strength and diversion, its human contact, its passion, its energy and its excitement. This "flesh and blood" experience of the theatre contributes to the concept of "performed id entities" within the actual theoretical performance (Flannery 86). In A Streetcar Named Desire the audience experiences the performed identities of males and females in the culture of the time. In The Emperor Jones, the audience is brought into the performed identity of the emperor as a man who is corrupted by power, and thus corrupts himself. By taking a close look at the theatrical performances, we can see how the personal identities are demonstrated in each of the main characters; Blanche and the emperor.Good drama is built on conflict of some kind -- an opposition of forces or desires that must be resolved by the end of the story. When developing "performed identities" this is certainly true. A Streetcar Named Desire employs exactly that. An opposition of forces, and desire, all of which must come to some sort of resolution or conclusion at the end spurns on the performed identies of the characters. The way the theatre presents this drama enlightens the audience regarding the pe rformed identities of the main character, Blanche. The recent production of this play did a fantastic job of introducing the audience to the conflicts and performed identities at the start of the play. The first scene had the actors presenting, with very realistic emotion, elements of which add to the drama of the play through the performed identities of the characters. The acting helped to enforce the concepts of the performed identities through the theatrical presentation of things as Stella being pregnant, Blanche moving in with Stanley & Stella, and Stanley's distrust for Blanche.The performed identities are further presented through the production and presentation of the actors as the items in the play continually progress. The actors and actresses do a fantastic job of enforcing the emotional concepts behind the play, and focusing the performed identity concept mostly on Blanche as the struggling female. The emotional presentation of

Monday, September 23, 2019

EMR Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

EMR - Essay Example With this in mind, it can be said that organizational change is an ongoing process that goes hand in hand with the introduction of new technologies to the market (Chemuturi, 2010). Choosing to ignore the onset of these new software products will only serve to hold an organization back with regard to its self improvement and as a result halt the growth of such a company leaving it to be overtaken by its competitors (Apostolou et al, 2010). This is an issue that any establishment has to consider be profit or non profit as being left behind in a world that is changing on a daily basis will more than likely lead to the relevance of that particular organization rapidly decreasing resulting in its extinction form existence in the end. The Organizational Change As mentioned earlier, the health sector has not been left behind in the technological revolution and the change product that has been nominated for implementation in this project are the patients records that are kept in storage. The implementation constitutes of changing the nature of the records from paper form to a more up to date soft copy format that will be stored within an electronic computer data base (Apostolou et al, 2010). This will mean that the records will no longer be stored in physical form consisting of files archived in a particular part of the building but instead will be retrievable from a computer by any individual who has been given authorized access (Chemuturi, 2010). It should be noted that the information on the patients records will remain the same and the only change involved will be the manner in which it is stored and can be retrieved. In technical terms, it can be said that the records will be transformed from a hard copy version (that is, physical files and documents containing the patients’ information) to a soft copy format (that is, electronic files that are stored and accessed from a computer hard drive) thus the only difference coming about is where the files can be re trieved from (Chemuturi, 2010). This organizational change can be described as a technological advancement due to the nature of the processes that will be involved. The health facility will be taking a step forward moving from the traditional methods of storing information to more advanced ways that have entered the market thanks to the introduction of technology to the information sector. The files that will be stored in this new format can be referred to as e records (electronic records) and serve as the new wave of data storage that has taken over the more traditional means. Switching from physical storage of the patients records to a soft copy format will ensure that any needed information will be accessible to the doctor or whoever it may concern will be accessible from any location provided that an individual has a computer or any other electronic device with access to the internet such as an I pad or smart phone. The switch will also prove to be a good way of storing large am ounts of data/information in an easier manner as the issue of physical space does not arise with this type of record keeping (Chemuturi, 2010).

Sunday, September 22, 2019

American Pluralism Essay Example for Free

American Pluralism Essay Throughout history the United States has had immigrants flock to the united states in hopes of better opportunity. In the eyes of many ,the United States was land of prosperity and opportunity. This dream of becoming successful from nothing was known as the American dream . It built this nation into what it is today, which unfortunately is tainted with many negative aspects. President Clinton once said â€Å" The American Dream that we were all raised on is a simple but powerful one – if you work hard and play by the rules you should be given a chance to go as far your God-given ability will take you. † This coming from a man who was the president . However Clinton has neither â€Å"played by the rules† nor did he work hard. Clinton has made 80 million just off speaking , as well as his breaking the rules, which he is so famous for. Then how was this man, not hardworking and adulterous, become the American dream? Solely because the American dream is a myth, a fixed calculated lie. The American dream is just a notion to distract the less fortunate people that race, gender, and class control how much money you are going to make. A huge factor hinder people from acting out this dream is race. Race is socially constructed concept where groups of people of similar features and cultures are labeled . However races in our country still to this day are not treated as equals. For example, the average salary of a white person is above 45 according to the office personally management while ,a Hispanic is at 36 , black is at 37, and Asian is at 42, all for the similar jobs. However this is for the minorities who make it through the other hardships. For example one of these other hardships is â€Å" the school –to prison pipeline†. It is a foreign idea to most people because of how abstract it sounds. However the difference of funding in students directly affect attitude , dropout rates, and criminals. These students lack resources, qualified teaching, and rigorous advanced classes. Minorities are also punished worse, black children are suspended at least 2. 6 times to whites, thus leading to their 6 times more than whites rates of going to juveniles. In the eyes of an minority, school is a joke or a dream. Consequently there are few legal jobs that pay enough for a living without a high school diploma. This example is perfection under the school –to prison pipeline, giving the wealthy white leverage over minorities. Adding insult to injuries these injustices are replied with white advantages. as detailed in White privilege †White privilege is like an invisible knapsack of special provisions, maps, passports†(McIntosh. 45) In a just and perfect society we would all be equal, however the world we live in is very unequal. Not only is our world not economically equal , but racial either. Throughout America’s history there were an inequality among races. For example as a white person , you can be assured that the color of your skin wont effect the type of college you will be accepted to, as a minority that guarantee doesn’t exist. Thus how is a person of color supposed to make a proper and wealthy life for themselves if that door of education was never opened? This control of education keeps whites as the wealthiest race, and as such becomes a privilege only for them. How can such laws be kept in play if they hinder other races? The answer lies in politics. Due to white privilege, white people can expect to have people of their color to be accurately represented. This gives an huge hand in any legislature that can possibly effect minorities. Even in all these privileges, there’s an negative aspect that becomes paramount in our modern day society. These privileges cause a strenuous tension between races , because of the fabricated superiority that it gives whites over minorities. Hence, this so called â€Å"invisible knapsack† is only invisible to the user , and is in perfect sight of the oppressed. This just adds to the ocean of oppression felt by minorities proving race hinders the completion of the American dream. Male or female, seems like a simple question. However there is a world of connotations that come with such labels. Men and women have these values that are pushed upon them by society, confusing them to who they truly are. This Severely effects people who are confused on who they are ,because these â€Å"transgender† might just people who are just different personality wise. Furthermore it affects you more than mentally but also affects you economically. â€Å" The more economic resources such as education and job opportunities , are available to a group, the more they tend to be monopolized by men†(Lorber 246). The author is stating that women in general are qualified yet underpaid. This is entirely true , through every field of work you see women being paid less for the same or less work. Lorber believes socially that gender is a process of assigning rights and responsibilities. Men and woman see what is â€Å"expected† of them and assume the role is theirs, whether it be fair or not. This contradicts the American dream, because it preaches economic prosperity for all who work for it, and statistically women cannot reach that level. Hence, they hardly attempt to reach that high. How did they get to this point what defined these roles to one another , the answer lies among media. Advertisements, commercials, magazines. We are constantly bombarded with these pictures, voices, and idols . Anyone who looks normal or acts different is assumed to be a joke or outcast. Through these images we show our children how to act and to assign themselves personalities because of what their genetic makeup is. † It is this link with violence that makes the objectification of women more serious issue than with men. † (Kilbourne.263) This violence factor directly correlates with dominance. If you look through photos or magazines you can pick up a specific trend of nudity and pornography. Even more so , there is a constant jab at women , making them â€Å"inferior† With this sort of image growing up why would there be any motivation to be more than in those pictures? What is better than becoming rich? Being born rich is the most logical answer and this is how this 1 percent lives. The majority of this money, the . 1 % is old money. This money has been accumulated for hundreds of years and will be for hundreds more. The correlation of class and achievement of the American dream has been time and time proven. â€Å"Reality 6:All Americans do not have an equal opportunity to succeed. Inheritance laws ensure a greater likelihood of success for the offspring of the wealthy. †(Mantsios. 320) Yet another prime example of what class does for your chances at the American dream. The converse can also be enforced, without class it is a abnormality to live â€Å"the American dream†. The â€Å"American dream† is just something we can strive for but not truly reach. The American dream was known for our idea of Manifest destiny so we killed thousands of Indians because we thought of them as second class citizens. We have supposedly progressed ,transcending racism and sexism into an extinct ideas. However they just exist socially and economically now, just changing its brutality. These issues can’t be stopped through intellectual movements or programs, laws need to be enacted to change these process. These political figures need to stop thinking with their wallets and speak from their people. Without our changing of the law how are we supposed to become a more equal society. We live under a living document called the Constitution, if it promises our pursuit of property, now happiness , why can’t it assist us in the American dream. MLA Work cited page McIntosh, Peggy . White privilege: Unpacking the invisible knapsack. IndependentSchool. 1990 Mantsios, Gregory media magic :making class invisible. Rothenberg P. S. , ed. Race, Class and Gender in the US 3d ed. New York: Martins, 1995. Lorber, Judith. â€Å"Night to His Day: The Social Construction of Gender. † Yale University press. Yale college. 1994.

Saturday, September 21, 2019

A Study Of Rivers In Malaysia Environmental Sciences Essay

A Study Of Rivers In Malaysia Environmental Sciences Essay Heavy metals are most abundant forms of pollution in Malaysia either in the forms of solid or liquid. With the vast industrialization and economic development in coastal region, heavy metals are continuing to be introduced to the estuarine and coastal environment which eventually end up into the river, runoffs and land based area (Yu et al., 2007). Metals diffuses into the aquatic environment will settle down and be incorporated into sediments together with organic matters, Fe/Mn oxides, sulfides, and clay (Wang and Chen, 2000). However, heavy metal mobility or availability in contaminated materials depends to large extent upon the different chemical and mineralogical forms that occurred (Song et al., 1999). Therefore, sediments seem to be an excellent medium in the assessment of the metals bound to the particulates. Nonetheless, sediments are known to act as a sink for heavy metals to be introduced into waters either from both natural and anthropogenic sources thus providing an exce llent proof of mans impact (Pempkowiase et al., 1999; Guevara et al., 2005). In addition, they may also act as traps for various types of pollutants including heavy metals (Poh and Mun, 1994). Indeed, changes in environmental conditions such as pH and redox potential should be monitored since it may results in remobilization of heavy metals. Unfortunately, due to the scarcity of information available to establish the heavy metal concentration in sediment using sequential extraction, no data is presented concerning the heavy metal pollution in the rivers except for one author Shazili et al., 2008 on Langat River Basin. Heavy metals element is particularly crucial because any slight changes in availability may cause these elements to become either toxic or deficient to plant (Krishnamurti et al., 1995). In fact, sequential extraction analysis is a technique which is used to investigate the geochemical partitioning of heavy metals amongst solid mineral and organic phases in sediment or other earth minerals (Howard and Vandenbrink, 1999). Sequential fractionation also frequently used in approaches to evaluate metals distribution into different chemical forms present in solid phases. Although direct methods provide an unambiguous identification of the heavy metal forms and ways why they occur, they might not be sufficiently sensitive where heavy metals occur at relatively low levels and they do not provide quantitative information on heavy metal mobility and availability (Song et al., 1999). However, sequential extraction approach is undoubtedly useful since few attempts have completed and few modification have been made based on Tessier et al., (1979); such as Silviera et al., (2006); Krishnamurti et al., (1995); Song et al., (1999); Forghani et al., (2009), Poh and Mun, (1994). 2.0 Problem Statement Langat river, Bernam River and Klang River basin is located in the state of Selangor in which known to be the most developing states in Malaysia other than Kuala Lumpur. All of these rivers are primarily important as water source not only limited to supplying water to consumer but also for other purposes such as aquaculture and agriculture activity, fishing, effluent discharge, irrigation and even sand mining. With the vast industrialization held in the river such as sand mining it generate the release of metal bound in sediment into the water promoting metals diffussion into the aquatic organisms and eventually ends up into humans body. Moreover, each metals poses their own threat to human, particularly Cadmium (Cd) are known for causing adverse health effects, once ingest into our body it will cause lung cancer moreover it seldom important as a cause of phytotoxicity in paddy field (Chaney, 2010). On the other hand, Zinc (Zn) is a deficient and phytotoxic element in sediment which causes abdominal pain to humans, the latter due to industrial contamination (Chaney, 2010). Copper (Cu) in sediments strongly adsorbs to clay minerals, iron and manganese oxides and organic material. In addition, it tends to remain in horizons that have a greater organic content whereas sandy sediment with low pH poses the greatest potential for Cu leaching. On contrary, lead (Pb) is considered to be one of the major environmental pollutants and has been incriminated as a cause of accidental poisoning in domestic animals more than any other substance. In a nutshell, these metals are emboldened to be analyses since this metal endured high toxicity in the environment thus poses high potential threat and risk to humans and living organisms. 3.0 Significance of Study This study is prominent since in Malaysia there is only few attempted study using sequential extraction as medium in determining the fate of metals in environment. Particularly, this study will be useful as a baseline data for goverment bodies to be more sensitive on the issues related to heavy metals. On the other hand, this study will provide a delineation on the sources of metals which contribute the most anthropogenically or naturally to the environment since the major contributor on the environment deteroriation is a non point source. Therefore, identifying the potential sources is crucial in maintaining the environment. Nonetheless, by conducting this study it ables to generate a profound understanding on the sources and parent materials of which heavy metals are highly introduce to the estuary. Thus, contribute to the discovery of metals strength and percentage of binding to organic or inorganic pollutants. Hence, providing an illustration on the status of pollution in the sel ected rivers based on screening of the forms of metals associated in the river. In addition, the attempted method will utter a method development in assesing the metal in the environment. This study is beneficiary especially by the Department of Irrigation on the overview of the river status thus able to mitigate a scheme on reducing the metal accumulation into the river by identifying the source of pollution. 4.0 Research Objective To ascertain the chemical and mineralogical forms of Pb, Cu, Cd and Zn in selected polluted river. To profile the metal speciation (Pb, Cd, Cu, Zn) in the sediment at selected polluted river in Selangor. To determine the heavy metals affinity for specific geochemical phases in the recently deposited sediments in the river. To identify the pollution sources and active component of heavy metals accumulate into the surficial sediment and its chemical behavior in the aquatic environment. 5.0 Literature Review A river is component of water cycle. Mostly rainfall on land will passes through a river on its way to the ocean and smaller side streams will joins the river forming a tributaries (DID, 2010). In Malaysia, the water within a river generally originates from precipitation through surface runoff, groundwater recharge (as seen at base flow conditions / during periods of lack of precipitation) and release of stored water in natural or man-made reservoirs, such as wetlands, ponds or lakes (DID, 2010). Therefore, the rainfall will generate the surface runoff and flows into the river. While the runoff will collect all the suspended particulates on the land surface into the river. This is why source of metal is very hard to trace since it is a non point sources elements which diffuse into the river Basin. Therefore, in this case sediments play an important role in identication of the metals since it acts as transport and storage of potentially hazardous metals (Yu et al., 2008). Bernam River is approximately about 3335 km2 and it forms a boundary between States of Perak in the north and Selangor in the south. The undulating hills of Bernam River merge into an undeveloped peat swamp area where the downstream of the peat swamp is a densely populated coastal strip along the Bernam River. Rice is cultivated in the lower areas ad- jacent to peat swamps and rubber, oil palm, coconuts and cocoa are cultivated in estates and smallholder schemes. Agrochemicals (fertilizers and herbicides) used on agricultural lands suggest a potential non-point source of pollution and toxicity affecting the aquatic ecosystems (Yap and Ong, 1990). Logging generates pollution through soil erosion, siltation and sedimentation in the streams. On the other hand, Langat River basin covered an area of 1300 km2 in the south of Kuala Lumpur and the length of Langat River is approximately about 120 km long (Sarmani, 1989). Langat river known as an important water source not only limited to sup plying water to consumer but also for other purposes such as recreation, fishing, effluent discharge, irrigation and even sand mining (Juahir, 2009). Whereas, Klang River is notable as a highly polluted river in Selangor which flows through Kuala Lumpur and suburban area of the densely populated and highly industrialized Klang Valley (Tan, 1995). The upper reaches of the Klang River serve as an important source of water supply to an estimated population of two million people in this region, together with its growing industrial activities (Tan, 1995). According to the Environmental Quality Report (Department of Environment, 2007), the Klang River is regarded as one of the rivers which have been seriously affected by pollution. Discharges of wastewater from industrial activities in the Klang River basin have also contributed to increasing levels of organic chemical pollutants in the waterways. However, metals in sediment comes in various forms of elements. Therefore, each metals may give beneficiary and may also cause a potential threat to human. Once consumable in our body it might cause a significant imbalance thus causing deformities and poor health (Birungi et al., 2008). Sediment are an important features in the river any activities occured related to sediment such deepen or mining may cause the release of heavy metals into the river. This is because heavy metals may enter into natural water and become a part of the water sediment system and their distribution processes are controlled by a dynamic set of physical-chemical interactions and equilibrium (Jain, 2003). Therefore, the metals may bind to the aquatic organisms. Since these river is an essential water source in the state of Selangor, any aquaculture activity held in the river may have a significant potential of heavy metals accumulate into the fish or prawns. On the other hand, the deposition of metals in sedi ments usually occurs through an interaction between sediment and water (Piron et al., 1990), whereby changes of metal contents of sediments and water depend on changes of water chemistry, such as, temperature, pH and solute concentration. That is why such study is prominent since metals interactions between bed sediment and water in aquatic environment play an important role on water quality and the fate and transport of metals. There are series of modification of sequential extraction technique have been made upon the suitability of the study. The recent modification are introduce by Silviera et al., 2006 which proposed to the studies specifically on the tropical soil. This method listed out seven fractionation steps which each illustrates the metal bound particulate in the sediments. The first three fractionation steps explains the geochemical condition of the sediment whereas the fourth to the seventh steps refers to the anthropogenic conditions. This method is an alternative way to determine the source of metals, because the anthropogenically sourced metals preferentially partition to the non-residual phase of the sediment while the residual phase generally reflects background geochemical conditions (Forghani et al., 2009). Moreover, this method were chosen since it selectively extracts metal bound by specific sediment fractions with minimal effect on the other sediment components (Silviera et al., 2006) . In addition, this method are an important tool for predicting the potential effects of environmental changes and land application of metals on the redistribution of chemical forms in tropical sediments (Silviera et al., 2006). 6.0 Research Methodology Sediment Sampling Thirty representative surficial sediments (0-20cm depth) will be taken from selected polluted river in Selangor from upstream to downstream of the river. Surface sediments samples will be collected in triplicates and homogenised in a zip lock polyethylene bags. The sampling will be conducted during low tide to enable the source of pollution from the mainland to be determined without the influence of input from seawater compared to sampling during high tide. Sediment samples will be collected using plastic scoops, Eckman Grab or core sampler and place into acid-washed double zip-lock polyethylene bag. All samples will be stored in cool box at 4 °C during transportation to the laboratory prior to analysis. Sampling preparation The laboratory apparatus are also acid washed and rinsed thoroughly first with distilled water to ensure any contaminants and traces of cleaning reagent were removed before the analysis. Pre-clean polycarbonate centrifuge tube with soaked overnight in 5 % (v/v) nitric acid rinsed with distilled water after 24 hours prior to analysis. It is performed in clean laboratory to minimize the potential risk of contamination. Laboratory Analysis Physicochemical parameters such as pH, redox potential, salinity and conductivity will be measured using the 1:2 ratio of sediment and double deionized water (DDW). In addition, cations exchange capacity (CEC) and loss on ignition (LOI) will also be determined in the study. Physicochemical Parameters The sediment physicochemical analyses will be determined by mixing 10 g of air dried sample ( Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) Sediment samples for CEC determination will be prepare in two 10 g portions, one for treatment with a 1 M NaCl solution and other with a 1 M NH4Cl solution. Approximately about 10 ml of 95% ethanol will be carefully poured on sediment sample and drawn through the sediment by suction. The ethanol remaining in the sediment will later be removed by overnight evaporation. Then, the sediment will be transferred to small 50 ml Polycarbonate centrifuge tubes. Hence, about 30 ml of 1M NaCl was applied to one set of sub samples and 1 M NH4Cl solution was added to other set. The centrifuge tubes contains with the sediment pre-treated with NaCl and NH4Cl then will be shaken end over end for about 10-20 minutes and subsequently centrifuged at 3000 rpm for 30 minutes in order to settle the fines. After the samples are centrifuged, the supernatant will be removed with syringe and filter through a 0.45  µm filter. About 15 ml of sample will be used for the analysis of Ca, Mg, and K from the NaCl supernatant solution and preserved with 1% 7M HNO3. Meanwhile, the solution from NH4Cl supernatant will be used for determination of Na and also preserved with 1% 7M HNO3. Sample analysis for Ca, Mg, Na and K adopted similar procedure as in the case of major cations determination. The exchangeable cation concentration are converted from meq/100g to equivalent fractions (ÃŽÂ ²T) as (Apello Postma, 2005) ÃŽÂ ²T = meqI-Xz_____ à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬ËœI, Jà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. meqI-Xz Where I, J,à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. are exchangeable cations, meqI-Xi is normally given in meq/100 g dry sediment and à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ meqI-Xz is essential equal to CEC, ignoring minor amounts of Fe, Mn, etc. Loss of Ignition (LOI) Dry a sample in an oven at 105 °C to constant weight. Accurately weigh 1g of this dried sample and pour into a preweighed dry crucible. Optionally, a few drops of H2O2 may be added at this stage to promote oxidation. The samples will be transfered into muffle furnace and gradually increase the temperature to 500 °C. Leave inside the oven at this temperature for at least 4h or overnight if convenient. Cool, transfer to a dessicator and allow it to cool to room temperature. Weigh and calculate loss on ignition in % as: LOI (%) = 100 x (M1 M2) M1 Where M1 is the initial weight (g) and M2 is the weight after ignition (g). Sequential Extraction Procedure The methods that will be used in this study are based on modification methods from (Silviera et al., 2006). The fractionation of heavy metals in sediments will be carried out in triplicate, using 1 g of air-dried sediment. Then, sediment samples will be placed in 50 ml polycarbonate centrifuge tubes, mixed in a stepwise fashion with various reagents as shown in figure 1, and the suspensions equilibrated. By following equilibration, the solution and solid phases will then be separated by centrifugation at 1225 g for 10 min. In between each successive extraction, the solid residues are suspended in 5 ml of 0.1 M NaCl, shaken by hand, and centrifuged to displace extracting solution remaining from the previous step. The supernatant will be added to the former extractant. The steps are intended to reduce sample dispersion and to minimize read sorption of the metal. The supernatants will be filtered through a 0.45  µm membrane, and the solid residues are preserved for the subsequent extr actions. The concentrations of Cu, Zn, Pb and Cd in the various extracts will be determined by Inductive Couple Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). Mass balances, calculated by summing individual Pb, Cd, Cu and Zn masses recovered from fractions, were compared with the independently determined total metal masses. Data Analysis Further data analysis will be conducted using the raw data obtained from the sample analysis. Descriptive analysis, cluster analysis, factor Analysis will be conducted using few softwares such as SPSS version 17 and Multivariate Statistical Package (MVSP) and AQUACHEM. Enrichment factors (EF) will be calculated to determine the level of trace metal contamination of the sediments. 7.0 Project Benefit Research Publications 2 research journal with impact factor Output expected from the project It is expected that several publication can be produced from the data obtained in this study which useful as a reference for future research. It will provide the latest information on the level of metal pollution in Selangor which useable for relevant authority to make the future planning and management purposes. Economic contribution of the project By using the information gathered in this research, the relevant government bodies can make better planning and take preventive measures to avoid further contamination of the river as it is crucial source for the nation fisheries and aquaculture activity. Moreover, important because a lot of the population which resides near the mangrove area depend on it for their livelihood. Since, the destruction or contamination of this area will affect their source of income. The reduction in fisheries produce from the mangrove area due to metal pollution will results in higher imports of fish products which in turn increase the outflow of money from the country. 8.0 References Apello, C.A.J Postma, D. 2005. Geochemistry, groundwater and pollution. 2nd edition. Roterdam: Balkema. Birungi, Z., Masola, B., Zaranyika, M. F., Naigaga, I. and Marshall, B. (2008). Active biomonitoring of trace heavy metals using fish (Oreochromis niloticus) as bioindicator species:the case of Nakivubo wetland along lake victoria. Chaney, R. L., 2010. Cadmium and Zinc. Trace Element in Soils. Wiley Publication. United Kingdom. Department of Environment, 2007. DOE Annual Report 2007. Retrieved from http://www.doe.gov.my/files/multimedia141/AR_JAS.pdf on 10 October 2010. DID, 2010. Department of Irrigation. River Management-Activities. Retrieved on 5 October 2010 at http://www.water.gov.my/index.php?option=com_contenttask= Forghani et al., 2009. Geochemistry and speciation of metals in sediments of the Maharlu Saline Lake, Shiraz, SW Iran. Environment Earth Science (2009) 59:173-184 Guevara et al., 2005. In Yu, R., Yuan, X., Zhao, Y., Hu, G., Tu, X., 2008. Heavy metal pollution in intertidal sediments from Quanzhou Bay, China. Journal of Environment Science 20, 664-669. Howard J. L., Vandenbrink W. J., 1999. Sequential extraction analysis of heavy metals in sediments of variable composition using nitrilotriacetic acid to counteract resorption. Jain, C. K., 2003. Metal fractionation study on bed sediments of River Yamuna, India. Water Research 38 (2004) 569-578 Juahir, H., Zain, S., Yusoff, M., Hanidza, T., Armi, A., Toriman, M. and Mokhtar, M., 2010. Spatial water quality assessment of Langat River Basin (Malaysia) using environmetric techniques. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment. Krishnamurti, G. S. R., Huang, P. M., Van Rees, K. C. J., Kozak, L. M. and Rostad, H. P. W., 1995. Speciation of particulate-bound Cadmium of Soils and its bioavailability. Analyst, 120.851. Pempkowiase J., Sikora A., Biernacka E., 1999. Speciation of heavy metals in marine sediments vs their accumulation by mussels. Chemosphere 1999:39(2):313-21. Piron, M., Pineau, A. and Mabele, R.M., 1990. Sediment, parameters and distribution of metals in fine sediments of the loire estuary. Water, Air, Amp; Soil Pollution 50(3), 267-277. Poh E. L., Mun Y. K., 1994. Determination and speciation of heavy metals in sediments of the Juru river, Penang, Malaysia. Environmental Monitoring Assessment 35:85-95, 1995. Sarmani, S., 1989. The determination of heavy metals in water, suspended materials and Sediments from Langat River, Malaysia. Hydrobiologia 176/177 : 233-238, 1989 . Shazili, N.A.M., Yunus, K., Ahmad, A.S., Abdullah, N. and Rashid, M.K.A., 2006. Heavy metal pollution status in the Malaysian aquatic environment. Aquatic Ecosystem Health Management 9(2), 137-145. Silviera, M. L., Alleoni, L. R. F., OConnor, G. A., Chang, A. C., 2006. Heavy metal sequential extraction methods A modification for tropical soils. Chemosphere 64 (2006) 1929-1938. Song, Y., Wilson, M.J., Moon, H.S., Bacon, J.R. and Bain, D.C., 1999. Chemical and mineralogical forms of lead, zinc and cadmium in particle size fractions of some wastes, sediments and soils in Korea. Applied Geochemistry 14(5), 621-633. Tan, G. H., (1995). Residue Levels of Phthalate Esters in Water and Sediment Samples from the Klang River Basin. Environment Contamination and Toxicology 54:171-1769 1995 Springer-Verlag New York Inc. Tessier, A., Campbell, P. G. C., Bisson, M., 1979. Sequential Extraction Procedure for the Speciation of Particulate Trace Metals. Analytical Chamistry, Vol 51, No 7, June 1979. US EPA, 1996. Method 3050B. Acid digestion of sediments, sludges and soils. Available from http://www.epa.gov/osw/hazard/testmethods/sw846/pdfs/3050b.pdf viewid=16Itemid=395 Yap, S.Y. and Ong, H.T. (1990) The effects of agrochemicals on an aquatic ecosystem: a case study from the Krian River basin, Malaysia. The Environmentalist 10(3), 189 ±202. Yu, R., Yuan, X., Zhao, Y., Hu, G., Tu, X., 2008. Heavy metal pollution in intertidal sediments from Quanzhou Bay, China. Journal of Environment Science 20, 664-669.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Social Work :: Graduate College Admissions Essays

Social Work    It was the shrill ringing of my pager that jarred me out of the deep sleep I had been enjoying. The clock beside my bed read 3:30 as I fumbled around in the dark, reaching for the insistent pager. As I saw the code that flashed on its tiny screen, my heart sank. I thought of the sleet that had been falling as I had fallen asleep a few hours before, and of the warmth of my cozy bed. The very last thing I wanted to do at that moment was to get up and go out in the cold. Unfortunately, there was little choice; I was the only Crisis Companion available during the week between Christmas and New Year. Within a few minutes, I was dressed and en route to the hospital to pick up a woman and her small children, on the run from an abusive husband, and take them to our shelter several miles out of town. As both a hotline operator and Crisis Companion for a community organization called Avalon, I had been trained to be an active listener, crisis counselor, and advocate for survivors of domestic v iolence and sexual assault. I thought of all the training I had received, as well as the passion which had driven and encouraged my work with Avalon, as I neared the emergency room of the hospital and prepared to meet my newest clients.    Every 15 seconds a woman is battered. 1 in 3 women and 1 in 10 men will be sexually assaulted during their lifetimes. 4 women in the United States are killed every day by their husbands or male partners. When I first heard these statistics in a Women's Studies course my Freshman year, I was astounded and thoroughly incensed. The more I read, the more committed I became to doing something which would bring about a positive change for survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence. It was then that I learned about and began working with Avalon, which was active on campus and in the community. Through its outreach programs, Avalon is dedicated to educating the community about the issues of sexual assault and domestic violence. It also offers a shelter, as well as advocacy and education, to survivors and their families.    As a volunteer for Avalon I have answered a crisis hotline, acted as a court advocate, helped clients apply for food stamps, and been on call in the hospital to work with women and children.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

The Longest Memory :: essays research papers

Whitechapel is the focal character of D'Aguiar's novel, The Longest Memory however, the author has used a great many other characters whose stories also stand-alone. Why has D'Aguiar structured his novel in this way and how does it lead the reader to an understanding of the impacts of slavery? D'Aguiar's central purpose is to make us reflect upon American society during the slavery era and to acknowledge its realities so that we understand the capability for evil that exists in society. D'Aguair has used Whitechapel and his memories to encapsulate the brutality and inhumanity of slavery. The succeeding narratives further our understanding of the society and these are presented in a manner that forces the reader to accept D'Aguiar's judgements. The characters represent all of the voices of the society including people from different races, social status's and both genders so that the reader can see the position society imposed upon all citizens. The forms of the individual narratives help us to understand the reality of society because they allow the characters to emerge as individuals, telling their own stories with undisguised honesty. The Longest Memory is told from the oldest to the youngest character showing how society instilled its ideals on each generation in an unc ompromising manner and so the stories overlap and intertwine, to illustrate this D'Aguiar has used an overwhelming tone of sadness and despair to emphasise the negative feelings that society created. Whitechapel's narrative focuses on the symbolism of seeing; the reason for this is to give the reader a sense of the extent to which society enforced its beliefs upon people and how much it effected them. Whitechapel has lived a very long time and has finally realized the truth about his enslavement and the extent to which he is dehumanized; this is emphasized by his regretful tone and demonstrates his disgust. The dehumanisation that has occurred is over his philosophies that as a slave he could earn respect through hard work and loyalty; this is rejected when his son is killed. The repetition of the phrase, 'I am nobody'; acknowledges that as a slave the society could not reward his loyalty or hard work because he had no status. Various narratives have been put after each other so that the reader can compare two characters to see the different impacts that society had on them. This Juxtaposition is used to confront the reader with the inhumanity of the views of some characters such as Sanders Senior, the placement of Cook straight after shows that contrary to Sanders seniors disgusting beliefs she is quite human and is dramatically effected by his beliefs, the societies beliefs.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Realtor - Adding Value During the Purchase of a Home :: Free Essay Writer

Realtor - Adding Value During the Purchase of a Home Convenient. It’s the word that consumers want to come before anything they do. Make it easy. Make it simple. This comes into play more so than ever when the consumer is buying a house. Real Estate companies are beginning to offer their customers convenience. Buying a house can be considered one of the most time consuming and difficult purchases a person may ever make in a lifetime. To ease the strain and possibly keep a home buyer or seller as a customer for life, services are being offered where the utilities will be hooked up before moving in, phone turned on, cable ready to watch, boxes of trash from moving can be picked up without missing a scheduled day, and there might even be mail waiting in the box when the moving truck pulls up. Realtors are getting more involved in simplifying the process. Another aspect for Prudential is contractor referral services. Move in, don’t like the carpet this time, the realtors will sup-ply you with lists of names. DOES THE REALTOR GET A PERCENTAGE OF THE CONTRAC-TORS PAYMENT. DO THE CONTRACTORS PAY TO BE ON THE LIST. According to Prudential, the process to get started is simple and will boil down multiple calls to the different utilities to one 20-minute phone call to a Homessentials’ representative. According to Jerry Y. Speer, current president of the Pennsylvania Association of realtors, the "package services" have been around for 10-12 years. He said over the years a lot of com-panies have offered incentives for their clientele but he "hasn’t seen these becom any big success." Some by using coupon books that give new homeowners discounts at local stores. Although Speer can’t see these "incentives" as a reason why a person would choose a particu-lar Realtor or buy a certain house.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Statement of Intention

STATEMENT OF INTENTION. Danny Cronyn. The following persuasive piece will be written in the form of a speech to be presented at a school assembly. Addressing the prompt – we conform to stereotypes and expectations far more than we think – this speech will investigate the colossal impact that societal expectations and stereotypical norms have on a person’s identity and show the true extent to which we subconsciously conform to them. My speech contends that we simply accept what the majority and masses do as ‘the norm’ and conform to said norm without even thinking twice about it and that in doing this, we limit our ability to be individuals.The purpose of my speech is to illustrate how conforming to stereotypes and societal expectations can have a homogenising effect on identity and restrict our capacity to be individuals. I wish to show to my audience how the innate human need to belong is so strong that we subconsciously conform in order to feel a s ense of connection and how external factors such as societal norms, stereotypes, rituals and traditions can be defining factors of our identities, even if we do not realise just how much.This will be done through using examples of these factors to which we intuitively conform, such as being clothed, getting presents on Christmas, girls shaving their legs and not picking our nose or farting in public. These examples of things to which we conform to without questioning will display to the audience the magnitude of influence that stereotypes and expectations have on our identity.Writing in the form of a persuasive speech was the best method of communicating my purpose and contention (that we simply accept what the majority and masses do as ‘the norm’ and conform to said norm without even thinking twice about it and that in doing this, we limit our ability to be individuals) to the audience as I am able to use expressive skills such as voice and facial gesture to strengthen and support my arguments and am also able to physically see the audience’s reaction to my piece.The use of a questioning tone and concerned and confused facial gestures will act as visual and physical representations of the tone of my piece and through this, I will push the audience to question their way of life and drive them to see the conformity and error of their homogonised identities. By performing my speech to a live audience, I will be able to play off of audience reaction and cater my tone and intensity according to their mood and response to the issue.My concerned, questioning and confused tone will reflect the way I feel about conformist lifestyle and my strong-worded and assuring language (must, indubitably, alarmed) will push the audience to believe that I have a well developed and highly thought out contention and assure them that being a non-conformist individual is the best way to live their lives.Through contrasting the benefits of uniqueness and individuali ty with the restricting aspects of conformist living, and along with my strong-worded arguments, I anticipate that the audience will side with me in believing that we simply accept what the majority and masses do as ‘the norm’ and conform to said norm without even thinking twice about it and that in doing this, we limit our ability to be individuals.I have aimed my speech at the ‘common man’ because the everyday person – bland, boring, conformist and easily persuaded – is the perfect candidate for my speech, which will hopefully push them to question their conformity and to embrace their individual identities. It is aimed at them because I believe that these people are blissfully unaware of how their standardised and ‘by-the-book’ lifestyles are negatively impacting on their lives. I wish to show them how embracing individuality could greatly improve the way they feel about themselves and the way in which they live their day-to-da y lives.Meaning and my central idea will be conveyed through these contrasting lifestyles and through highlighting the homogenising effect that conforming to stereotypes and expectations has on our individuality and identity. My central idea and contention that we simply accept what the majority and masses do as ‘the norm’ and conform to said norm without even thinking twice about it and that in doing this, we limit our ability to be individuals was inspired by the collection of poems Sometimes Gladness by Bruce Dawe, in hich it is proposed that belonging to society shapes our identity, but in doing so, also has a homogenising effect and that the rituals and traditions of the society of which we are a part, also shape us. I agree with this idea and believe that being conformist and homogenised beings is a negative thing, that we don’t question societal norms, expectations and stereotypes nearly enough, we merely accept them without even considering the possibilit y that they could be wrong and that rituals and traditions of our culture shape us more than we notice.These key ideas (‘belonging to society shapes our identity, but in doing so, also has a homogenising effect’ and ‘the rituals and traditions of the society of which we are a part shape us’), which are presented in the poems â€Å"Enter Without So Much As Knocking† and â€Å"Condolences of the Season† are the concepts which influences my central idea that we simply accept what the majority and masses do as ‘the norm’ and conform to said norm without even thinking twice about it and that in doing this, we limit our ability to be individuals.In the poem â€Å"Enter Without So Much AS Knocking† the idea that belonging to society shapes our identity, but also has a homogenising effect is explored through showing the life cycle of a person from birth to death and how he conformed to societal norms his entire life. Through showin g how we conform to day-to-day commands and norms such as â€Å"WALK. DON’T WALK. TURN LEFT†¦NO BREATHING EXCEPT BY ORDER. BEWARE OF THIS.WATCH OUT FOR THAT†, Dawe shows the homogenising effect that conformist lifestyle has on people and the ways in which they conform to stereotypes and expectations far more than we realise. In â€Å"Condolences of the Season† Bruce Dawe shows how our identity is like a kit, a puzzle to be put together. He shows the ways in which rituals, family and other external factors shape our identity through showing generations of a family pointing our similarities in a small child at a family gathering.These features will be reflected in my speech when I talk about how external factors such as family traditions and rituals (presents on Christmas) and societal expectations (wearing clothing) influence our identity greatly, sometimes without us even realising. The structural element of beginning and ending a piece with a near identica l statement which is shown in â€Å"Enter Without So Much AS Knocking† and Soliloquy For One Dead† will be reflected in my piece by beginning and ending my speech with my contention (we simply accept what the majority and masses do as ‘the norm’ and conform to said norm without even thinking twice about it and that in doing this, we limit our ability to be individuals) to show a distinct beginning and ending to my piece and also to reinforce the contention. I want my contention to be the first thing that the audience hears when they come in and the last thing they hear when they leave so that it stick in their mind and is something they are forever considering.Another structural element from Dawe’s poems that I will include is metaphor. Metaphor is shown in â€Å"The Tackle Box† through the use of a hook to be symbolic of/a metaphor for the pain that a father inflicted on his family. I will use the metaphor of sheep in my speech to represent h ow people flock together much like sheep and simply follow what the majority are doing without question. This metaphoric comparison between human beings and sheep (an animal) will push the audience to look unfavourably upon their conformist actions and sway them to make individual choices.My speech supports the prompt (we conform to stereotypes and expectations far more than we think) by showing the ways in which we conform to societal expectations with no questioning as to why, we simply just do it. My speech takes the prompt and presents the idea that social norms, stereotypes and expectations have a immense impact on identity formation and shows the ways in which we simply accept what the majority and masses do as ‘the norm’ and conform to said norm without even thinking twice about it and that in doing this, we limit our ability to be individuals.