The Evil of Animal Rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Evil of Animal Rights - Essay Example Animal rights activists harboring agendas known to themselves are doing everything to scuttle this noble initiative that can go a long way in improving the health of people if scientists are given the green light to continue carrying out experiments that are meant to discover new medicines. The authors argue that these activists are comprised of a group of terrorists called Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC) and it targets individuals associations or any organization with links to Huntington which is responsible for carrying scientific experiments on animals for medicinal purposes. These terrorists instead use violence and their actions are evil than what they purport to represent. The animal rights activists claim that the animals have rights that are equal to men hence they should not be killed for any purpose. However, the widely accepted argument is that man has control over animals and can use them for his benefit. The authors use rhetorical tools such as pathos where they try to appeal to the emotions of people by highlighting that pure hatred of people drives the actions of the animal rights activists to destroy property in the guise of safeguarding the interests of animals. The authors also use ethos when they state that: â€Å"There is no question that animal testing is absolutely necessary for the development of life-saving drugs and medical procedures.† They want to appeal to people’s logic by reminding them â€Å"that millions of people will die unnecessarily if it is not permitted,† a fact known by the same animal rights activists. In conclusion, it can be seen that the above-mentioned article is presented in a convincing way and the authors have carefully selected the rhetorical tools that are meant to convince the targeted readers to share their ideas.

Quality management (Shell company) Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Quality management (Shell company) - Assignment Example 321). It is necessary for managers to think of an integrated management system which encompasses the elements of quality management (QMS), environmental management (EMS), and health and safety management (OHSMS). Since an integrated management system can involve different facets of corporate management, it is vital to identify the different aspects associated with it. In order to implement an IMS in the Shell oil company, it is better adopt a five-phase implementation process which includes phases such as preparation, planning, implementation, monitoring, review and certification. During the initial phases, an effective, quality policy and environment policy must be developed to give the implementation process a clear direction. This paper will specifically outline an implementation plan for a new IMS in the Shell Oil Company. Integrated management system Integrated management system can be simply defined as a management system that integrates all systems and operations of an organis ation into an extensive framework, assisting the organisation to operate as a single entity with shared goals and objectives. The integrated management system greatly aids an organisation to become a unified entity and link each function to a single common goal (Pardy & Andrews, 2009, p.107). Evidently, such a centralised system would assist the organisation to improve its overall performance. â€Å"An integrated management system is the most effective way to discharge an organisation’s obligations to its employees, customers, and the wider community†. (Freiberger Forschungshefte, Issue 526. 2008, p.39). In simple words, this system gives stakeholder a clear idea on what the organisation expects from them. Another major feature of integrated management system is that it provides the organisation with a genuinely co-ordinated system instead of mere ‘silos’ (Emea.bsi-global.com). Experts suggest that this management system is greatly helpful for the organisa tion to obtain a clear and comprehensive picture of its all aspects, the way they affect each other, and the associated risk factors. As there is less duplication in an integrated management system, it is easy to implement the new system in the future. Through this technique, the management team is provided with a single structure which would enable them to deliver the organisation’s objectives efficiently and effectively. The potentiality of an integrated management system ranges from managing employee needs to monitoring market competition and maximising resources. The most fascinating feature of this system is that it is relevant to all types of organisations regardless of their nature and size (Driving.myfoxcharlotte.com). Under this approach, two or more management systems are integrated into one cohesive system with a common set of policies, procedures, processes, and documentation. Shell Oil Company Shell Oil Company is the Royal Dutch Shell’s US based subsidiar y, and it is one of the largest oil companies in the world. The US head office is located at Huston in Texas, and nearly 22,000 employees are from the United States. The Shell Oil Company together with its consolidated companies and its share in equity firms is one of the largest oil and natural gas producers, gasoline distributers, natural gas suppliers, and

Teens in Therapy Essay Example for Free

Teens in Therapy Essay Richard Bromfield, PH. D, is a psychologist, he is also a faculty member at the Harvard Medical School, and he specializes in therapy with children and adolescents. He is a writer and wrote several best sellers about children, adolescents and psychotherapy. This book is one of Bromfield’s many award winning writings. Introduction The book I chose to review for this assignment is entitled: Teens in Therapy: Making It on their own: Engaging Adolescents in Successful Therapy for Responsible Lives, by author Richard Bromfield. This book offers therapeutic advice and key insights into overcoming difficult clinical terrain. I selected this book based on my passion and fervor for working with adolescents. It is my belief that working with adolescents and being quite young myself would be a challenge. This book’s key focus is to help clinicians engage adolescents in therapy as most individuals are coerced into the activity, and are reluctant at giving their all during therapy sessions. The backbone of the book consists of clinical case material, which explores real stories, and events that take place in most therapeutic sessions. Bromfield uses adolescents and their stories as authors of the book, as their experiences shape the stories making them vivid and noteworthy. The books content is highly comprehensible, realistic, intellectual, and honest. It caters to an audience of beginner therapist, as it explores the essentials of adolescent therapy without jargon or over reliance of theory. Critique â€Å" Only when people realize what is in their lives can they make decisions to continue their old ways or choose active paths towards change. † (Pg. ) this was one of the many quotes that stood out for me during the course of readings as it is one of the first concepts that all therapist need to accept and acknowledge. The author emphasizes that adolescents, like all people, do not change until they want to, and only after they see and accept their challenges can the therapy begin to progress. Each chapter mirrors the therapeutic process, from treatment planning, confrontation, opposition, motivational ass essment, to crisis management, boundary setting, and enduring failed therapy sessions. Each chapter is well laid out with the order and content that it covers, as it explores various different scenarios in a step-by-step process. The first three (3) chapters echo the first stages of therapy, such as creating the correct settings, going through the initial greeting and meeting phases and addressing the preliminary difficulties that may occur during therapeutic sessions. Just as it is difficult for us to trust people and let them into our lives so to he says is the case with adolescents. Building trust has been described as one of the earliest developmental task and the foundation on which all others are built (Erikson, 1980). Establishing a trusting relationship is fundamental to the development and the progress of any therapeutic relationship. The therapist is portrayed in this book as someone who enables the adolescent client to take control of their life, by recognizing and regarding them with all their weaknesses and the challenging systems it may take, setting parameters, and meeting these adolescents wherever they are, sympathizing and interacting with them on their level using their jargon. A major technique that Bromfield describes in his book as he speaks about interacting with adolescents is creating a shared language. He depicts this by using a case study of a boy named Karl. â€Å"Bitch Alert, Headache no 25 and pretending to strangle his own neck were like minded key words used by my teenage patients to speed dial how they felt†( pg. 116) . Bromfield adds, â€Å" Whether embodied in a word, catch phrase, play scenario, secret world or entire world of metaphor, languages and world that therapist and their adolescent patients mutually create can become their own. These shared meanings become the powerful routes through which the therapist and teenager communicate best† (pg. 117). This suggestion has allowed me to broaden my style and approach to creating a more comfortable space for adolescents to open up and share. This he adds would serve as a shortcut for difficult events and the way they express those events verbally, allowing a more unique and connected space for the teenager and myself. Empathy is a central theme that runs through the entire book. Dr.  Bromfield highlights the importance and significance of empathy, understanding adolescents while balancing the need to challenge and push them. Empathy is an emotion, I value highly as a future humanistic counselor as I believe it can be a very potent tool in therapy. â€Å" As to this day I am awed at empathic understanding’s near miraculous power to soften children’s and adults’ defensive resolve† (p48), he describes the miraculous power of empathy and how it can allow persons in therapy to uncover those other emotions that they may have suppressed quite well. In chapter six (6), Bromfield points out several small gestures that therapist may do to create a more comfortable and secure environment for adolescents. I concur with this belief, as feeling a sense of security and importance in therapy are key in its progression. He claims that simple gesture such as; offering a shawl, opening a window or simply adjusting the heater can assure these teenagers that their needs are important and valuable to you. Bromfield’s passion for helping adolescents are mirrored in every case study that he describes, where he goes the extra mile to ensure that the engagement in therapy is successful. His patience, fervor and persistence are what ensure most therapeutic sessions are successful. Those characteristics are the ones that should be heeded and exhibited by each new counselor. Bromfield uses a whole chapter to discuss a key subject in therapy, honesty. His chapter entitled, â€Å" Truth or Consequences: Assessing and Promoting Honesty in Therapy†, assesses one significant moral characteristics for me as; I believe honesty is a key moral characteristic that is needed in therapeutic sessions. Bromfield points out that honesty in therapy should be a two-way communication, and that both the therapist and the adolescent need to adhere to this trait. The importance of respecting someone’s honesty is also highlighted in the books as to not be judgmental or disappointed when the truth is revealed in sessions. He reveals that being genuine and real with adolescents aids the therapy, as they are quite keen on detecting when therapists are being fake or unreal with them. The aspect of sincerity have always been a hurdle for me, as I often ponder of what may occur if I demonstrate negative facial reactions to any information that a client may reveal to me during a session. The author gives insightful and detailed suggestions as to how to avoid or rather prepare oneself to hear the most outrageous and absurd stories, in so doing, avoiding the element of surprise. Reading some of the stories that the author portrays has helped me overcome that hurdle as he offers other suggestions and avenues for avoiding judgmental comments or expressions. The author cautions â€Å" Therapist do not take the fact that a teenager has opened the door a crack, as an invitation to kick it down with critical and probing questions†, instead he gives alternative responses that may show adolescents recognition for their bravery of telling the truth. The subject of balancing between clients and their parents is also discussed whereby he examines the importance of confidentiality. This being another main battle that I see myself having a struggle with as being pressured for results from some parents, and then balancing the confidentially and trusting relationship the child and I may have developed. Sending parents out the room is never an easy task; Bromfield fails to elaborate on this key aspect of therapy and the mechanisms one may use in order to address such an issue. The issue of clients ‘falling in love’ with the therapist is an important issues that Bromfield doesn’t take into account in his book. The age of adolescence is quite a complicated stage, during this time hormones begin to release and new feelings and motions are experienced. Therefore, having an adolescent ‘fall in love’ during sessions is quite a prevalent phenomenon. One of the most engaging chapters —â€Å"Failures, Missteps and Lost Causes† — it sets a tone of consolation, as it highlights that having failures is normal and that not every therapeutic session will always be a success. â€Å" Do your best and forgive yourself when you fall short†, Bromfield argues that therapists, can only do as much as they can and not always their attempts in fixing a situation is successful but each failure should be looked at a lesson and a chance for growth as a therapist. Bromfield claims â€Å" When I began doing psychotherapy with teenagers and children I was naive, I saw myself as a purist† (pg. 29). An increased sense of comfort came when he added that he found himself being taught by his young patients and he needed to find other methods of helping them. He learnt a little, by little after each session where he added new skills and tools to his repertoire, in an attempt to help adolescents engage in successful therapy. This assertion challenged my misconception that therapist had to know it all and helped to realize that everyone has to start somewhere and not always would we have all the answers r solutions for the problems that are presented to us, but as time goes along we would add to our knowledge and experience. However this chapter fails to address the topic of recognizing professional limitation, where a counselor must recognize their inability to work with a specific client or deal with specific problems. When a client’s personal dilemma, begins to cause a counselor personal difficulties to a stage at which their own effectiveness is compromised, then a referral should be considered. This issue of â€Å"burnout† is also deficient in this chapter. Burnout may affect many counselors and can compress their effectiveness of their professional life Grosh and Olser (1994) The book does contains a few grammatical errors which occasionally requires the reader to re-read a sentence to work out its meaning. However, this book is a well-written, pragmatic guide for beginning therapist or students pursing courses in therapy, psychology or counseling. It can also be a beneficial guide for parents of adolescents as it offers advise on coping with many difficult situations. It teaches and addresses minor situations to extreme situations, from introvert issues to violence. However, I disagree with the author’s recommendation for it being suitable for seasoned professions, as I believe they would have already had the knowledge and experience into most of these scenarios that he has revealed in his book and the information maybe monotonous to them. The book also lacks theoretical framework, as it is highly reliant on simply clients that Dr. Bromfield interacted with. It is a highly subjective book and as it is based purely on his perspective and experience as a counselor. I would highly recommend this book to students and beginner therapist, as it is easy reading. Bromfield is a humorous writer, his use of witticisms, vignettes and unfiltered language would entice and hold a readers attention. This book led me to find myself taking every free opportunity to engage in further reading; at no point did I ever feel confused or unable to comprehend the messages that were being illustrated. The use of real life situation deepened my understanding, as I tend to be a visual learner. I have already ordered another of Bromfield’s books, as I believe his writing has a lot to offer me as a future child and adolescent counselor as it has made me feel more confident and prepared.

Inventions That Affected the World Essay Example for Free

Inventions That Affected the World Essay Our world has experienced many changes within the last century. New inventions are made every month, and one of the most influential changes is the invention of the cellphone. The cellphone has completely changed the way we communicate, as well as the speed, convenience, and quality of our communication. Technology has made such an impact on society that most people won’t leave home without their cellphones. Also computers became human’s best friend. This is why one of the most life changing pieces of technology for many people has been the smartphone, an all-in-one, portable device that combines the functions of a cell phone with the functions of a computer. But how was life before this technology even existed? Back in the past, communicating with people was hard, especially with long distance. Letters were the only option to let someone know about something. But after the phone was invented, contacting people got much easier than before, even though, not everyone owned a phone. Computers were the other device that was invented, it was and still used in almost every concern. Then Internet invention had to step in and make life much easier. With Internet, people made electronic mails, which was another way to communicate with others. But to own all these things was very pricey back then, and to have them with you anywhere you go was not possible. So to do a specific thing, you had to use a specific device. To reach someone immediately, you had to use the phone that was wired-up and the recipient had to be close to his wired-up phone as well. To go to a specific location, you had to ask people that are familiar with the area you are going to. To send an email, you had to do it through the Internet from a computer. To remind yourself of a meeting something, you had to keep sticking little notes on your fridge door. To take a picture, you obviously needed a camera, and to send it to somebody, you had to use the mail and that would take couple days for the receiver to see it. To calculate an amount, you needed a calculator or you had to be good at math. To check next day’s weather you had wait till after the news on TV. To listen to your favorite music you had to buy a cassette or a CD and then go play it in your home stereo†¦ But after the smartphone was invented couple years ago, the race of human beings found everything to be easy. We can literally do anything with it, and with all the applications available we can even do more than we ever thought in just couple seconds. From calling someone to buying an airline ticket, it’s all available with a portable device that stays in your pocket. However, in my opinion the smartphone is the one of the best inventions ever made. I would highly recommend this gadget to anyone in this planet, because with it, we are never lost, never bored or wasting time, and always with an answer.

Mart :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The largest and most successful company in the world is now being ridiculed for the way in which it has risen to the top. Wal-Mart is accused of setting a bad example for American companies by squeezing producers for low prices, outsourcing manufacturing jobs, discriminating in the workplace and for the inhumane treatment of employees. What these critics don’t understand is that there are positive aspects to what Wal-Mart is doing. Wal-Mart is good for America because it embodies capitalism. It constantly improves the productivity of American retailing, encourages competition and outsourcing, provides quality items at a low cost, is a stepping stone for retail workers, and creates business opportunities for other companies. Voted â€Å"America’s Largest Corporate Cash Giver† by Forbes magazine in 2003, Wal-Mart is also very generous to charities around the world. Wal-Mart is not detrimental to our economy or our country. It is a fundamental puzzle piece that is merely a strong player in today’s neoliberal game of capitalism. Lets face it, the good old days when producers dictated what appeared on the shelves of stores is now over, and in place is a buyer-driven chain where the consumer dominates. Now you have the choice of what to buy, where to buy it, and for the price you want. That is the great thing about global capitalism, it sparks competition.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Competition in the market is a good thing for consumers and helps achieve the lowest prices one can possibly find anywhere in the world. Wal-Mart is driving prices down through its competitive bargaining strategy for its manufacturing costs. By holding prices at a low level, inflationary pressures are relieved and the economy is a lot steadier.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  By selling items for less than average, Wal-Mart allows its customers to acquire more than normal when shopping in the store. Lower prices also mean more money is left in the pockets of consumers. This allows opportunities for businesses of all types. If the consumer doesn’t spend all their money at Wal-Mart, they will most likely go out and spend it somewhere else. That means more money spread across the economy.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The low prices we enjoy at Wal-Mart indirectly come from the outsourcing of American manufacturing jobs. By sending low skilled jobs overseas, the overall prices of items decline tremendously. Some Americans will be left without a job for a short period, but it is through outsourcing that the global economy becomes most efficient.

Comparing Dulce et Decorem Est with Charge of the Light Brigade Essay

Comparing Dulce et Decorem Est with Charge of the Light Brigade Although both 'Dulce et Decorum Est ´ and 'The Charge of the Light Brigade ´ are about battle and the death of soldiers, they portray the experience of war in different ways. The main difference between the poems is the message they express. They seem to be writing about completely different wars. Wilfred Owens poem ‘Dulce et Decorum Est,’ was written from his point of view as a soldier in the war. It is much more personal and emotive than ‘Charge of the Light Brigade.’ Tennyson’s poem, on the other hand was written as one of his duties as the Poet Laureate at the time. It lacks the detail and also the personal experience that Owens’s poem has, and gives the impression that Tennyson does not actually care about the war very much and does not know much about it. ‘Charge of the Light Brigade’ was written to memorialise a suicidal charge by light cavalry over open terrain by British forces in the Battle of Balaclava in the Crimean War. 247 men of the 637 in the charge were killed or wounded. Tennyson wrote 'Light Brigade ´ in a few minutes after reading the description in The Times of the Battle of Balaclava in 1854. His poem increased the morale of the British soldiers fighting in the Crimean War and of the people at home, but Tennyson had not been an eyewitness to the battle he describes. I think Tennyson’s motive for writing this poem was to glorify the act of war, I feel he wanted to celebrate the bravery of the six hundred British troops who went to battle knowing that they were going to die. I think this because from my own knowledge I know Lord Tennyson was the poet Laureate at the time of the Crimean war, but did not witness any fight... ...atin is used. This contrasts with the rest of the poem and makes it more dramatic. The reader lingers on the last phrase to work out what it means and it makes more of an impact on them in Latin than it would in English. The last line of ‘Charge of the Light Brigade’ is also very dramatic. As I have already mentioned, it refers to the soldiers all the way through the poem as ‘the six hundred’ and then at the end refers to them as ‘the noble six hundred’ as if the war is over and the soldiers are victorious at the end of the poem. Overall I prefer ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’ as it much more powerful to read. It is well structures and uses a lot of alliteration, assonance, such as ‘white eyes writhing’ and repetition all the way through. It makes the reader feel guilty, angry and understand the pain and suffering that the soldiers went through in a subtle way.

Langston Hughes Essay examples -- essays research papers

Langston Hughes James Langston Hughes was born on February 1, 1902, in Joplin, Missouri. He was named after his father, but it was later shortened to just Langston Hughes. He was the only child of James and Carrie Hughes. His family was never happy so he was a lonely youth. The reasons for their unhappiness had as much to do with the color of their skin and the society into which they had been born as they did with their opposite personalities. They were victims of white attitudes and discriminatory laws. They moved to Oklahoma in the late 1890s. Although the institution of slavery was officially abolished racial discrimination and segregation persisted. Langston Hughes parents then separated. Since his mother moved from city to city in search of work he lived in Lawrence, Kansas, with his grandmother named Mary Hughes. She fiercely opposed to racial discrimination. While growing up, Langston also stayed with friends of the family, James and Mary Reed. Living with his grandmother and the Reeds in all-white neighborhoods, he felt even more isolated. When Langston was ready to start school in 1908, his mother was told that because her son was black, he could not attend a nearby, mostly white school in Topeka, Kansas. Carrie, his mother, fought with the school over their decision. She won her fight and Langston was finally admitted to the school. He dealed with his loneliness by writing poetry. After Langston’s grandmother died in 1915, he went to live with his mother, her second husband, Homer Clark, and Clark’s two-year-old son, Gwyn. They went from Lawrence, Kansas to Kansas City, Missouri to Lincoln, Illinois. They moved to Cleveland, Ohio in 1916. Clark moved to Chicago, Illinois. Langston’s mother followed him and Langston was left alone in Cleveland. He devoted himself to his class work and other interests. He was on the editorial staff, on the student council, one the track team, an officer in the drill corps, and acted in school plays. When Langston Hughes attended Central High, the student body was very ethnically diverse. Langston’s Jewish friends were the ones who first opened his eyes to the ideals of socialism. Socialism is the doctrine that all property in a society is public property. Claude McKay, a black writer whose articles and poems appeared in the Liberator, became a favorite of Langston’s. Langston started to use Negro (African-American... ...es spent the early part of the 1940’s working on his autobiography, The Big Sea, which tells in brilliantly clear language the story of his life up to the year 1931.He explored the expressing validity of black vernacular in urban and rural black lifestyles. He graduated from Lincoln University in 1930. He wrote playwrights and created major Broadway successes as Scottsboro Limited (1932) and Mulatto (1935). In first collections of short stories, The Ways Of White Folks, published in 1934.He was recognized as Simple a humorist through the creation of a character named Jessie B. Semple who, Simple States A Claim (1957), makes commentary on social issues confronting the black community in a vernacular style which strikes a common chord in its simplicity. In 1957, Semple was brought to Broadway in the musical Simply Heavenly. In May 22, 1967 Langston Hughes in died in New York City. The reason why I picked Langston Hughes as my famous African American was because his poems are my favorites. The other reason is that he was always trying to improve the life of African Americans. So, as in conclusion, I would like to say Langston Hughes is an American hero.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

University Students Should Wear Uniforms

Recently, we know that the global warming had become big crises that occur not only in our country but it also occurs at other country for example Australia, Japan, and England. Physically, if we look what happened around us, due to the development of buildings, forest deforestation and open burning. This shows that we are not very concern about how important taking care of our earth as we want the best to protect it from any pollution especially global warming.Besides, if there is a lot of process of development that occurs, maybe it will destroy our ecosystem. Besides that, as we know, global warming can be defined as the earth’s average temperature increases. The average temperature in our earth is increasing due to human activities that occurs a long time ago until now it gives negative effects to our environment for example droughts, melting of polar ice and glaciers causing a rise in sea level, change in wind directions and weather patterns.We can handle it by contributi ng an awareness campaign, which if global warming do not occur, maybe a lot of people know how to take care of our earth , but in reality they are still do not realize what they are doing whether it is good or bad. Among the awareness campaign which can handle the global warming from human and globalization are the celebration of Earth’s Day that was held in year of 2011 every 22 April. This celebration was held to aware everyone how important protects or conserves our earth.A lot of people do not realize the existence of this earth’s day, but some of them who are really love nature or the association of a love nature will involved themselves in giving awareness to the others so that they will not too greedy to destroy our earth. A part of that, the Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty signed by countries was held 11 December 1997 as they are committed to the reduction of release in greenhouse effect such as carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous dioxide (N2 O) and chlorofluorocarbon (CFCS), besides they want to ensure that the reduction of release in gases by the rate of 5. percent in 2010 rather than in year of 1992. The negative effects can be reduced if every individual plays an important role in limiting the release of greenhouse gases. In addition, since year of 1992, the Unity of national countries of environment and development (UNCED) or now it is known as the Council of Rio Culmination had organized an awareness campaign about the global warming. This campaign had reached to the highest level. Among the matter that is approved, rich countries are needed to reduce the pollution in their countries; help a development country manage the energy generator efficiently.Besides, they also want to reduce the poverty, increase the quality of water, use more clean energy, a better administration, and use product that nature friendly. Nevertheless, their result were not achieved due to some of the countries try to make their own action Fu rthermore, Earth Hour is another of the awareness campaign that is organized by World Wildlife Fund (WWF) starting from the year of 2004 by WWF Australia. This celebration was held every year on 26 March which it will celebrate by switch off all the lights starting from 8. 30pm until 9. 30pm.Why this campaign was held? This is because a lot of countries had through a badly changing temperature such as Myanmar, Honduras, Vietnam, Nicaragua, India, Haiti, Republic Dominica, Filipina and China. These are the list of the top 10 of the countries that undergo the phenomenon of global warming. A part of that, Bangladesh also through a badly changing temperature which based on the statistic between 1990 and 2008 which the average of their residents died out there are 8240 people every year. A rise in sea level every year also gives harm to them who live near the beach.The Earth Hour is one of the awareness campaigns that achieved reducing 10% of the effect of the global warming. Why? This i s because a lot of countries besides Malaysia also show their concern in saving the earth. Many people around the world do not realized; if we keep reducing the use of energy or reduce the burning of fossil fuels maybe we can avoid from the global warming from occur. So that’s why even only 10%, if we make it every year, maybe we can reduce the effects of the global warming until 50% to 80% in a decade.

Directing Richard III

Shakespeare's King Richard the Third deals with the theme of corruption by ambition. The play is designed to depict the tragic and rapid downfall of an evil manipulator who murders, lies, and deceives in order to further his lust for power. Due to the fact that Elizabethan drama moves at a decidedly slower place than most modern stories, any modern director of King Richard the Third, who wanted to hold the interest of contemporary audiences might choose to trim or even eliminate some of the long monologues that are a part of the original play.A good example of where a monologue might be cut is the opening monologue of the play, which is both rhetorically sublime and deservedly famous. In the opening monologue, Richard, who is still the Duke of Gloster, and not yet King, delivers a haunting, expository soliloquy to the audience where he reveals the deep-seated motives for the terrible crimes he will soon commit. After lamenting peace and proclaiming that he is not a lover, Richard say s â€Å"†And therefore, since I cannot prove a lover/ To entertain these fair well-spoken days/ I am determined to prove a villain/ And hate the idle pleasures of these days.† (Richard III, 1-1)However, for a modern audience, this exposition is completely unnecessary and, in fact, the suspense of the play would seem to build in an even more starling fashion if Richard did not so overtly express his motives and the audience was made to determine the motives as best they could for themselves as the play develops. The following scene between Richard and Anne, one of the most intense and moving scenes in all of literature, in my opinion, forwards enough of Richard's essentially sociopathic personality and delivers enough information concerning his motives to power as the opening scene.Due to the erotic element of the Richard and Anne scene, the deletion of the opening monologue would foster a very powerful sense of acceleration and suspense. Another scene which might be ben eficial to cut would be the scene between Richard and Queen Elizabeth here Richard admits to having killed her sons. This scene mirrors the earlier scene between Richard and Anne and is meant to reveal Richard as being as manipulative and persuasive as the devil himself.However, I feel that the scene is somewhat redundant and, again, the information about Richard and aspects of his character development which are integral to this scene are expressed elsewhere, most clearly in those scenes which seem to intimate that Richard is — if not the devil — literally in league with the devil. To further accelerate the plot and to further heighten suspense, these subtle references to black-magic, devils, and the black arts could be magnified.These elements are part of Shakespeare's original play, but they were originally created with a feeling for the sensibilities of an Elizabethan audience. For a modern audience the elements of deviltry and black magic would have to be exaggera ted. One way to do this would be to literally include obvious elements of the supernatural: ghosts, demons, and perhaps even succubi and phantoms who haunt Richard and who inhabit his macabre England.Such a portrayal would also forward the play's theme of raging, damning ambition by demonstrating how a single person's dark-vision could unleash terrible, in fact, supernatural power over an entire nation. In cases of the cult-of-personality, such a dynamic is present even if it is not literally based in the supernatural. The supernatural, however, offers a great way to symbolize the power of demagogues and ambitious leaders that make stark and dramatic statements possible. All in all, if I were directing King Richard the Third I would change very little from Shakespeare's original play.The reason that I would choose to keep the play as close to the original as possible is because I feel the play is already a single, harmonious whole which can be rightly considered one of the greatest tragedies in the English language. I am willing to concede that modern audiences may need a swifter-moving plot and a few embellishments like obvious black magic and devils, but in the long run, Shakespeare's original vision and his original language would still probably prove to be very compelling, memorable, and cathartic for any audience.

Postmodernity and Hyper-Reality in Architecture

IntroductionThis essay will turn to architecture’s place in a consumer society. Consumer society can be described as the result of modernism where devouring stuff goods is the overriding characteristic of its balance and values. It is the consequence of the escalation in fabrication and rapid industrial developments. It is besides the result of the huge gait of variegation and growing of civilization, creativeness, engineering and urbanism as a manner of life. I will utilize the constructs of semiotic philosopher Jean Baudrillard’s as a footing in understanding the deductions of this civilization on the built environment, urban design and engineering. I will besides analyze the desire for phantasy kingdoms that mirror world by analyzing Baudrillard’s three orders of simulacra and the â€Å"hyperreal† . To understand the look of this phenomenon in our consumerist civilization I have chosen to analyze its manifestation in the urban context of Montecasiono an d besides practical environment of Second Life. My purpose is to better understand the architects’ place in this current civilization and what it could intend for the hereafter of architecture.Postmodernity and Hyper-realityThe postmodern status does non merely replace modernness but it instead opens up a new and complex bed of significance of the modern by stressing its self-contradictory facets. Modernity has become profoundly rooted in modern-day societies and therefore it is about impossible to happen a status where it has had no influence. Post-modernity by default can non be separated from modernness as emancipation and release are built-in to the modern. In the post-modern epoch the electronic image is the prevailing force specifying its nonliteral character. It is saturated with images in the grade which was non observed in history. ( Asanowicz, 2014 ) To understand some of the complexnesss of our image goaded civilization I will foremost be researching the Hagiograph as of Jean Baudrillard. Harmonizing to â€Å"Simulacra and Simulation† ( Baudrillard, 1994 ) in our post-modern society, â€Å"It is no longer a inquiry of imitation, nor duplicate, nor even lampoon. It is a inquiry of replacing the marks of the existent for the real† . Baudrillard suggests that postmodern civilization is non simply unreal, because the impression of artificiality still involves some sense of world against which to place it. What he conveys is that we can non acknowledge the differentiation between ruse and nature. Baudrillard so argues that there are three â€Å" orders of simulacra † . Simulacra ( Simulacres in Gallic agencies: stereotype, a pseudo-thing, an empty signifier, a clean signifier ) is one of the cardinal constructs of postmodern aesthetics. ( Asanowicz, 2014 ) . The first order of simulacra is related to the pre-modern period where the image is a clear imitation of the existent. Baudrillard associates the 2nd order of simulacra with the industrial revoluti on of the 19th century where mass production and the addition of transcripts break down the differences between the representation and the image. The 3rd order of simulacra is specifically associated with the postmodern age. It suggests that the representation precedes and determines the existent. The differentiation between world and its representation is has disappeared and there is merely the simulacrum. Baudrillard defined this deformation of the lines between the original and its transcript as the ‘hyperreal’ ( Baudrillard, 1994 ) . Not merely does the simulacrum imitate the original but the simulacrum of truth is truer than true and therefore the hyperreal is realer than existent. ( Horrocks & A ; Jevtic, 1999 ) This sort of fake image is all around us, nature militias are constructed to mask the absence the natural environment in urban countries. Reallity Television plans are edited to romanticise the mundane. Baudrillard uses the illustration of Disneyland, â€Å"Disneyland is presented as fanciful in order to do us believe that the remainder is existent, whereas all of Los Angeles and the America that surrounds it are no longer existent, but belong to the hyperreal order and to the order of simulation. It is no longer a inquiry of a false representation of world ( political orientation ) but of hiding the fact that the existent is no longer existent, and therefore of salvaging the world principle.† ( Baudrillard, 1994 ) . To associate this theory to a South African context I will utilize the illustration of Montesasino. While the fake environment is obviously false, invitees at Montecasino buy into the â€Å"reality† of phantasy because society will continually absorb simula cra and its penchant for it over world. Offering a excess of services and amusement options in a Tuscan themed environment, Montecasino disorientates and mesmerises its invitees in a universe of phantasy where disbursement money enhances engagement in, and enjoyment of the retail and leisure experience. Baudrillard remarks on the bleary differentiations between civilization, consumerism and individuality: â€Å"Work, leisure, nature and civilization, all antecedently dispersed, separate, and all more or less irreducible activities that produced anxiousness and complexness in our existent life, and in our ‘anarchic and archaic’ metropoliss, have eventually become assorted, massaged, clime controlled and domesticated into the simple activity of ageless shopping. All these activities have eventually become desexed into a individual hermaphroditic atmosphere of style† ( Baudrillard, 2001 ) . Another illustration of hyperreality is that of Multiaˆ?User Virtual Environments. This has fascinated me since I engaged my first multi-player role-playing computing machine game and recognized the habit-forming qualities it stirred. Today these practical environments are much more sophisticated with practical universes like World of Warcraft and Second Life imitating non merely of our physical universe but besides of our societal, political and economic status. Second Life has an active socialist party, an opposing Marxist party and even an nihilist group. Prostitution, chancing and consumerism are cardinal to the simulation. Users of these environments create embodiments which they define as the most accurate contemplation of theirrealself. Aside from hyperreality, many of the constructs Baudrillard postulates in Simulacra and Simulation are present. It is a semiological perfect universe, where the users are deprived of the ability to travel, eat and drink. The embodiments hav e nil else to devour but â€Å"signs† of the existent. Embodiments can lease cocottes to hold sex which is devoid of human contact or experience accordingly devouring the â€Å"sign† of holding sex. The embodiments buy expensive practical apparels to show the differentiation against the embodiments have oning free apparels. No existent apparels have changed custodies, but people spend existent that they have really earned to devour â€Å"signs† of goods. From a modernist this would look irrational but Baudrillards states that, â€Å"Nothing resembles itself, and holographic reproduction, like all phantasies of the exact synthesis or Resurrection of the existent ( this besides goes for scientific experimentation ) , is already no longer existent, is already hyperreal† ( Baudrillard, 1994 ) , therefore it could be argued that there is no difference in devouring something â€Å"real† or a â€Å"sign of the real† . The newest stage of consumer society is consequently concerned with the consequence of digital ingestion. This is intensified by globalization, new information engineerings and real-time communicating. In the following subdivision I will discourse the deductions of society’s preoccupation with ingestion and hyperreality on Architecture.Post-Modern Architecture in a consumer societyFrederic Jameson suggests that Postmodernism replicates or reproduces and reinforces the logic of consumer capitalist economy. Therefore when we study a consumer society we should concentrate on the seductive and tempting as this is inherit to the consumer life style. In architecture footings such as image, atmosphere and captivation of visual aspect are more of import than modern impressions of individuality, rationalism, naturalism and functionalism ( Jameson, 2002 ) . Few modern-day designers have consciously thought of their plants with consideration to our image goaded civilization. In â€Å"Visions’ Unfolding: Architecture in the Age of Electronical Media† , Peter Eisenman postulates that by utilizing computing machine plans which randomly fold surfaces and link the edifice and landscape into one uninterrupted whole, the architecture does non give up to any peculiar account, but continuously disrupts what is defined as architecture ( Eisenman, 1999 ) . This does turn to the thought of surface being the most of import facet of design but the job is that the plants is perchance non seductive plenty, instead the work is simply absorbing. On the other manus the work of Jean Nouvel is shrouded in the captivation of visual aspect. In Jean Nouvel in Conversation: Tomorrow Can Take Care of Itself, he says that â€Å"image is the affair of architecture and therefore the hereafter of architecture is non architectural in the tectonic senseâ€Å" . Nouvel emphasises that his architecture is non composed of infinite but of communicative surfaces, which he calls interfaces. He is non interested in inside informations but merely in images. Koolhaas and Tschumi are two other designers that have based their plants on a witting survey of atmosphere instead than maps or significances in architecture. Last one can non bury to advert Bernard Tshumi. After the perpendicular, modern, in La Villette we have the horizontal, minimum, conceptual and postmodern hyperrealism. The â€Å"cinematic† versions in the architecture enable â€Å"events† and are said to supply new freedom for the visitant when taking paths and point of views. Last the celebrated â€Å"congestion† in Koolhaas’ plants can be recognised as an atmospheric consequence created by â€Å"programming† . Koolhaas tries to make architecture congested with the multitudes in diverse actions. These actions have typically non been assigned a specific topographic point. Rational individuality must be abandoned when construing mass society.DecisionIn its most recent signifiers, architecture is already going transparent, Mobile, flexible and synergistic. It about tries to vanish in order to allow a conjectural mass creativeness show through. It replaces the immaterial with drifting regulations of the game, a screen of deconstruction which leaves the topics rather free to contrive their ain game regulations. Besides, architecture is non the lone thing to give manner to this synergistic Utopia of exchange and playful diversion: all art, political relations and practical engineering is traveling in this way. These inclinations manifest themselves in modern-day architecture in the new possibilities for pluralism, â€Å"open† architecture, the flexible interrelatedness between manufacturers and consumers, interactivity, and â€Å"the advanced consumers† . Moralism against consumer society and commercial architecture does non work because it is characteristic of consumer society itself that it spreads moralities refering how people should populate and which sort of edifices they should hold. These moralities refering consumers are disguised in the signifier of â€Å"choices† . Neither edifice without designers nor pragmatist architecture can do the place of designers better in society, because these phenomena are already included in the mythologies of consumer society. As concerns the relevancy of Baudrillard’s theory in architecture, it has become evident through my theoretical work that this makes impossible such traditional architectural constructs in general as creativeness, the fulfilling of demands and functionality. Architects can merely rush up or decelerate down interpersonal socio-economic procedures and in this manner increase societal reciprocality and coherence. Harmonizing to Baudrillard’s analysis of the present socio-economic forms in society, it has become about impossible to do genuinely seductive and mutual architecture. Baudrillard’s theory does non go forth really much for designers to tilt on, up to the inquiry of inquiring whether architecture can at all be designed under Baudrillard’s footings, nevertheless credible he is in indicating out the important problematics of civilization in consumer society. Beginning List HILDE HEYNEN, 2000, Architecture and Modernity: A Critique, Massachusetts, MIT Press, 8-24 JEAN BAUDRILLARD, 1994. The precession of simulacra, Ann Arbor, University of Michigan Press, 1-42. JEAN BAUDRILLARD, 1982, Modernite , † in La modernite ou l’esprit du temps, Biennale de Paris, Section Architecture, Paris, L’Equerre, 27-28. PETER EISENMAN, 1994, Visions’ Unfolding: Architecture in the Age of Electronical Media, Michigan, A+U Publishers, 2-5. REM KOOLHAAS & A ; SANFORD KWINTER, 1996, Conversations with Students, New York, Princeton Architect ural Press, p 5-6. 1

Aberdeen Maritime Museum Essay Example

Aberdeen Maritime Museum Essay Example Aberdeen Maritime Museum Essay Aberdeen Maritime Museum Essay The purpose of this report is to provide a critical analysis of the existing communications strategy at Aberdeen Maritime Museum, and recommend future promotional activity. This will be done through an investigation of the museums target market, the current communications strategy used, a possible future communication strategy and ways to evaluate it. Conclusions will then be drawn. The Information needed for this report was gathered from textbooks, journals, the Internet and an interview with John Edwards, Aberdeen Maritime Museums Keeper of Science and Maritime History which took place on Monday 4th November. Museum Background Aberdeen Maritime Museum has been part of the citys heritage for numerous years. Prior to 1984 it was situated in a basement room of Cowdray Hall before it moved to Provost Ross House. 1998 saw the opening of a  £4million extension to the museum in its own purposely built building, (a converted church and empty plot next to Provost Ross House) making the museum five times its previous size. Today the museum is a very popular attraction within the city with 81,460 visitors last year (Evening Express, 14 March 2002). The museum has been ranked 24th out of 360 museums in Scotland. (www.scottishmuseums.org.uk). The museum has also won a five star award from Scottish Tourist Board. This is awarded to establishments who are exceptional. Target Market Segmentation is The division of the market into customer subsets, one or more of which becomes the target market, each with a distinct marketing mix (Turnbull, 2002). Therefore, target marketing is the process whereby specific segments are selected and marketing plans are developed to satisfy the needs of the potential buyers in the chosen segment (Fill, 2002) The museum targets local people as it contains local history. (90% of the objects inside the museum have been donated by local people (Edwards, 2002)) Segmenting people by this method is called geographic segmentation as the target market is in a specific area. School children and 16-24 year olds are the museums main audiences. The main reason for this is due to the large number of educational visits. Segmenting by age is known as demographics. Demographics can be defined as dividing the market into groups based upon demographic variables such as age, gender, occupation, education, religion, race and nationality. (Kother and Armstrong, 2001) Therefore the museums main target market (school children and 16-24 year olds in the Aberdeen area) is segmented by geo-demographics (a combination of geographic and demographic segmentation) Business tourism is also a fast growing market, with an increase in conference and exhibitions. The Maritime Museum offers conference facilities that are growing in popularity. This could be because its classed as an unusual venue. Previous users of the conference facilities have included Grampian Police and major oil and computer companies. This market could be segmented on the basis of demographics the museum is targeting professionals looking for a venue to hold their conference. The museum also has customers who visit the museum to use the shop and the cafe facilities. This group of visitors would be segmented and targeted based on their behaviour traits. Overseas visitors to the city are not specifically targeted. Most visitors knowledgeable about the museum find out information via the Visit Scotland. The Maritime Museums target market of local people could be broken down into more specific segments such as schoolchildren, 16 24 year olds and professionals looking for conference facilities. Other segments such as retired people and families could also be considered. Current Communication Strategy Marketing communication is a management process through which an organisation enters into a dialogue with its various audiences (Fill, 2002). The main communication methods used to achieve communication are advertising, direct marketing, sales promotion, exhibitions, packaging/design, personal selling, sponsorship, merchandising/point of sale, corporate identity, public relations and word of mouth. Advertising Advertising can be defined as any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods or services. (Kotler and Armstrong, 2001) With an advertising budget of  £10,000 per year, the museum can not afford any large-scale advertising activity. Currently the museum advertises locally through a leaflet produced by Aberdeen Art Gallery and Museums called the Diary. The leaflet highlights exhibitions and whats going on in the Art Gallery, Provost Skene House and the Maritime Museum. (Appendix 1.) The Diary could be described as an arts marketing consortia a regular forum for joint marketing (Freeman 1997) The benefits of this include reduced advertising costs, and reaching people who are unaware of the museum. The museum produces its own leaflet, but it is unavailable outside the museum. This is because it is primarily used for orientation around the museum. The museum also invests in advertising in a leaflet called North-East Scotlands Coastal Trail. (Appendix 2) There are over 200,000 leaflets produced, so it reaches a large number of people at a relatively low cost. (Edwards 2002) The small marketing budget means that the museum can not afford to have regular adverts in the local press. However, they are considering advertising in either the Press and Journal or the Evening Express each week in the same space to that people will become aware of the advert, then visit the museum. The only form of outdoor advertising that the museum partakes in is a banner outside the museum. Another form of advertising is through the Maritime Museums web page (www.aagm.co.uk), this is known as interactive advertising. Significant investment into Visit Scotland (www.visitscotland.com) is also made. In doing this the museum a reach a world-wide audience. Direct Marketing Kotler and Armstrong (2001) define direct marketing as a direct communication with carefully targeted individual consumers to obtain an immediate response and cultivate lasting customer relationships. The Friends of Aberdeen Art Gallery and Museums could be described as direct marketing. As well as providing funds to the AAGM, members receive invitations to functions and exhibition openings, mailings of information, and discount on selected items from the shops. (Appendix 3) Sales Promotion Sales promotion seeks to offer buyers additional value as an inducement to generate an immediate sale. (Fill, 2002) As the Maritime Museum offers a free service, sales promotion is not used. However, in 1998 until 2000, the museum introduced entry charges. Consequently, the number of visitors dropped by 75% (Edwards, 2002), so were therefore abolished. Sales promotion could have been used during this period, for example a family of four could have paid entry fees for two adults and the children got in free. Packaging/Design Packaging and design is concerned with the designing and producing the container or wrapper for a product. (Kotler and Armstrong, 2001) This communication method does not play apart in the museums strategy as they offer a service. Personal Selling Personal selling is a form of marketing communication that involves a face-to-face dialogue between two persons or by one person and a group. (Fill, 2002). Again this method does not play a part in the museums communication strategy. Sponsorship Fill (2002) defines sponsorship as a commercial activity whereby one party permits another an opportunity to exploit an association with a target audience in return for funds, services or resources. The museum does not sponsor anything it does however hold Techfest and activity weekends during the summer holidays for children (their target audience). Benefits of doing this include increased visitor numbers and increased awareness of the museum.. Merchandising/Point of Sale Merchandising is done at the museums shop, which sells goods such as pens, pencils and stickers that all contain the museums name Corporate Identity Corporate identity is simply the awareness, perception and attitudes held by an organisations various stakeholders (Fill, 2002) The museum finds out about its image by survey sheets which they have had for the last four years, and also by notes left in the visitor books which are placed throughout the museum. The museum is also conscious that the average shopper is not aware of the museum, but to find out exact figures, they would need to carry out expensive market research done by experts. Public Relations / Publicity In the March 1997 edition of the Museum Journal, Sarah Freeman stated during this time of cutbacks, aggressive political manoeuvres and market saturation, museums have started looking for allies to help them reach out to the public and convince audiences that are vital and worthwhile. The best way for museums to do this is through public relations. Public relations (PR) is about building up good relations with the companys various publics by obtaining favourable publicity (Kotler and Armstrong, 2001) Whenever a new exhibition is introduced into the Maritime Museum, a press release is sent to the local newspapers, which will then possibly run an editorial on it. This benefits the museum as it costs nothing but will also increase visitor numbers, raise support, influence people, establish a professional reputation and target audiences that are hard to reach (Freeman 1997) PR also has its downfalls. Main stories may only make it to newspapers and TV (local, regional or national) if there has been a disaster, a visit from a famous person, or a wacky or topical story. If there is important news on the same day as the museums editorial, the museum story is likely to be dropped, so it is very vulnerable. (Freeman 1997)

Impact of Monetary Policy on Companies Profitability and Its Valuation Essays

Impact of Monetary Policy on Companies Profitability and Its Valuation Essays Impact of Monetary Policy on Companies Profitability and Its Valuation Essay Impact of Monetary Policy on Companies Profitability and Its Valuation Essay Meaning of monetary policy Monetary policy is the management of money supply and interest rates by central banks to influence prices and employment. Monetarypolicy works through expansion or contraction of investment and consumption expenditure. Monetary policy is the process by which the government, central bank (RBI in India), or monetary authority of a country controls : (i) The supply of money (ii) Availability of money (iii) Cost of money or rate of interest In order to attain a set of objectives oriented towards the growth and stability of the economy. Monetary theory provides insight into how to craft optimal monetary policy. Monetary policy is referred to as either being an expansionary policy, or a contractionary policy, where an expansionary policy increases the total supply of money in the economy, and a contractionary policy decreases the total money supply. Expansionary policy is traditionally used to combat unemployment in a recession by lowering interest rates, while contractionary policy involves raising interest rates in order to combat inflation. Monetary policy is contrasted with fiscal policy, which refers to government borrowing, spending and taxation. Credit policy is not only a policy concerned with changes in the supply of credit but it can be and is much more than this. Credit is not merely a matter of aggregate supply, but becomes more important factor since there is also issue of its allocation among competing users. There are various sources of credit and other aspects of credit that need to be looked into are its cost and other terms and conditions, duration, renewal, risk of default etc. Thus the potential domain of credit policy is very wide. Where currency is under a monopoly of issuance, or where there is a regulated system of issuing currency through banks which are tied to a central bank, the monetary authority has the ability to alter the money supply and thus influence the interest rate in order to achieve policy goals. Monetary policy, also described as money and credit policy, concerns itself with the supply of money as so of credit to the economy. Objective of monetary policy The objectives are to maintain price stability and ensure adequateflow of credit to the productive sectors of the economy. Stability ofthe national currency (after looking at prevailing economicconditions), growth in employment and income are also looked into. The monetary policy affects the real sector through long and variable periods while the financial markets are also impacted through shorttermimplications. Major objectives can be summarized as under: i) To promote and encourage economic growth in the economy amp; ensure the economic stability at full employment or potential level of output. It aims to achieve the twin objectives of meeting in full the needs of production and trade, and at the same time moderating the growth of money supply to contain the inflationary pressures in the economy. ii) Sectorial deployment of Funds. Depending upon the priorities laid down in the plans, the RBI has determined the allocation of funds, as also the interest rates among the different sectors. There are four main channels which the RBI looks at: * Quantum channel: money supply and credit (affects real outputand price level through changes in reserves money, moneysupply and credit aggregates). * Interest rate channel. Exchange rate channel (linked to the currency). * Asset price. Price stability has evolved as the dominant objective of monetary policy for sustaining economic growth and ensuring orderly conditions in the financial markets with increasing openness of the Indian economy The fundamentalidea is that it is only in a low and stable inflation environment that economic growt h can be continued. Monetary policy also aims to be directly supportive of growth by ensuring that the credit requirements of various segments are met adequately through an appropriate credit delivery and credit pricing mechanism and a conducive credit culture. Monetary decisions today take into account a wider range of factors, such as: * short term interest rates; * long term interest rates; * velocity of money through the economy; * exchange rate * credit quality * bonds and equities (corporate ownership and debt) * government versus private sector spending/savings * international capital flow of money on large scales * financial derivatives such as options, swaps and future contracted. Monetary policy tools The monetary authority uses various instruments of monetary control in order to influence the goal variables in desired directions and degrees. The target variables are variables which the monetary authority tries to control or influence so as to influence the goal variables in the desired manner. To serve the target function well, a chosen target variable should possess the following four qualifications: a) It should be closely related to goal variables and this relation should be well understood and reliably estimable, b) It should be rapidly affected by policy instruments, c) Non-policy influences on it should be relatively small,i. , small relative to policy influences, and d) It should be readily observable (a measurable) with little or no time lag. Traditionally three variables have served as candidates for monetary-policy targets. They are: money supply, bank credit, and interest rates in securities market. Various Monetary policy tools are: i. Monetary base Monetary policy can be implemented by changing the size of the monetary base. This directly changes the total amount of money circulating in the economy. A centra l bank can use open market operations to change the monetary base. The central bank would buy/sell bonds in exchange for hard currency. When the central bank disburses/collects this hard currency payment, it alters the amount of currency in the economy, thus altering the monetary base. ii. Reserve requirements The monetary authority exerts regulatory control over banks. Monetary policy can be implemented by changing the proportion of total assets that banks must hold in reserve with the central bank. Banks only maintain a small portion of their assets as cash available for immediate withdrawal; the rest is invested in illiquid assets like mortgages and loans. By changing the proportion of total assets to be held as liquid cash, the Federal Reserve changes the availability of loanable funds. This acts as a change in the money supply. Central banks typically do not change the reserve requirements often because it creates very volatile changes in the money supply due to the lending multiplier. iii. Discount window lending Many central banks or finance ministries have the authority to lend funds to financial institutions within their country. By calling in existing loans or extending new loans, the monetary authority can directly change the size of the money supply. v. Interest rates The contraction of the monetary supply can be achieved indirectly by increasing the nominal interest rates. Monetary authorities in different nations have differing levels of control of economy-wide interest rates. The Federal Reserve can set the discount rate, as well as achieve the desired Federal funds rate by open market operations. This rate has significant effect on other market interest rates, but there is no perfect relationship. In the United States open market operations are a relatively small part of the total volume in the bond market. One cannot set independent targets for both the monetary base and the interest rate because they are both modified by a single tool - open market operations; one must choose which one to control. In other nations, the monetary authority may be able to mandate specific interest rates on loans, savings accounts or other financial assets. By raising the interest rate(s) under its control, a monetary authority can contract the money supply, because higher interest rates encourage savings and discourage borrowing. Both of these effects reduce the size of the money supply. v. Currency board A currency board is a monetary arrangement which pegs the monetary base of a country to that of an anchor nation. As such, it essentially operates as a hard fixed exchange rate, whereby local currency in circulation is backed by foreign currency from the anchor nation at a fixed rate. Thus, to grow the local monetary base an equivalent amount of foreign currency must be held in reserves with the currency board. This limits the possibility for the local monetary authority to inflate or pursue other objectives. 1. Instruments of monetary policy in India The monetary policy is nothing but controlling the supply of Money. The RBI takes a look at the present levels and also takes a call on what should be the desired level to promote growth, bring stability of price (low inflation) and foreign exchange. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) as a designated monetary authority has no control over the deficit financing of the central government and only limited control over its foreign exchange assets, we discuss below in detail the instruments of control used by the RBI: : A. Quantitative measures: 1. Open Market operations: It means the purchase and sale of securities by central bank of the country. The sale of security by the central bank leads to contraction of credit and purchase thereof to credit expansion. It is useful for the developed countries. In India, the RBI enters into sale and purchase of government securities and treasury bills. So the RBIcan pump money into circulation by buying back the securities and vice versa. In absence of an independent security market (all Banks are state owned); this is not really effective in India. The major Limitations are that * When the central bank purchases the securities the cash reserve of member bank will be increased and vice versa. The bank will expand and contract credit according to prevailing economic and political circumstances and not merely with reference to their cash reserves. * When the commercial bank cash balance increase the demand for loan and advance should increase. This may not happen due to economic and political uncertainty. * The circulation of bank credit should have a constant velocity. 2. Bank rate policy :Popularly known as repo rate and reverse repo rate, it is the rate at which the RBI and the Banks buy or exchange money. This results into the flow of bank credit and thusaffects the money supply. Bank rate- It is the minimum rate at which the central bank of a country provides loan to the commercial bank of the country. Bank rate is also called discount rate because bank provides finance to the commercial bank by rediscounting the bills of exchange. When general bank raises the bank rate, the commercial bank raises their lending rates;it results in fewer borrowings and reduces money supply in the economy. Reverse repo rate– It is the rate that RBI offers the banks for parking their funds with it. Reverse repo operations suck out liquidity from the system. Major limitation is that : * Well organized money market should exist in the economy. Repo rate * It is introduced through which RBI can add to liquidity in the banking system. Through repo system RBI buys securities from the bank and there by provide funds to them. * Repo refers to agreement for a transaction between RBI and banks through which RBI supplies funds immediately against government securities and simultaneously agree to repurchase the same or similar securities after a specified time which may be one day to 14 days. A repurchase agreement or ready forward deal is a secured short-term (usually 15 days) loan by one bank to another against government securities. * Legally, the borrower sells the securities to the lending bank for cash, with the stipulation that at the end of the borrowing term, it will buy back the securities at a slightly higher price, the difference in price representing the interest. 3. Cash Reserve ratio (CRR): This is the percentage of total deposits that the banks have to keep with RBI. And this instrument can change the money supply overnight. Changing cash reserve ratio is an excellent instrument of control. The bank has to keep certain amount of bank money with themselves as reserves against deposits. * The increase in the cash rate leads to the contraction of credit only when the banks excess reserves. * The decrease in the cash rate leads to the expansion of credit and banks tends to make more available to borrowers. . 4. Statutory Liquidity Requirement (SLR)amp;liquidity adjustment facility ( LAF )-this is the proportion of deposits which Banks have to keep liquid in addition to CRR. This also has a bearing on money supply. * LAF is the instrument of monetary policy from June 2000 to adjust on daily basis liquidity in the banking system. * Through LAF, RBI regulates short-term interest rates while its bank rate policy serves as a signaling device for its interest rate policy in the intermediate period. RRBs are required t o maintain SLR at 25 per cent of their NDTL in cash or gold or in unencumbered government and other approved securities. Unlike in the case of scheduled commercial banks, balances maintained in call or fixed deposits by RRBs with their sponsor banks are treated as â€Å"cash† and hence, reckoned towards their maintenance of SLR. As a prudential measure, it is desirable on the part of all RRBs to maintain their entire SLR portfolio in government and other approved securities, which many of them are already doing. All RRBs may maintain their entire SLR holdings in government and other approved securities. B. Qualitative measures: 1. Credit rationing: Imposing limits and charging higher/lower rates of interests in selective sectors are what you see is being done byRBI. 2. Moral suasion: We hear of RBIs directive of priority lending in Agriculture sector. Seems more of a directive rather than persuasion. It implies the central bank exerting pressure on banks by using oral and written appeals to expand or restrict credit in line with its credit policy. It is a combination of persuasion and pressure which RBI is always in a position to use on banks in general and errant banks in particular. This is exercised through discussions, letters, speeches, and hints thrown to banks. This can be used by the RBI to urge banks to keep a large proportion of their assets in the form of government securities, lend their helping hand to develop a broad and active market in treasury bills and government securities, and not borrow excessively from the bank when it is engaged in fighting the forces of inflation. The main interst sensitive sectors are banking sector,automobile sectorand real estate sector Let me examine how the monetary policy impact on the major interast sensitive sectors ie banking sector and automobile sector. oth sectors are linked with the policy measurs of the RBI. the change in interst rate casues a big impact on the profit earning capacity of the two sector companies Firstly the banking sector . This  analysis  takes  a look at  Indian monetary  policy  and  how it  will  impact:   Ã‚  Ã‚   a. Banks   Profitability b. Availability   of  Ã‚   funds  Ã‚   to   trade   and  Ã‚   industry   Ã‚  Ã‚   c. Other   factor Interest on loans are the main income of the banks. when the reserve bank take an action which effect interest rate it will affect the banks income and profitability. It may be positive or negative. Cost of fund will increase and it will reduce banks net interest margin to keep the net interest margin all banks raises lending rates When RBI hikes CRR it will directly affect by the profitability of banking companies. When RBI increase the CRR it will cause reducing the deposits available with the banks to make loans . Banks charge a very high interest rate on the loans they give. Banks take this measurer to retain the profit rate which earned during former CRR rate.. when the lending rate are high, general public and corporate postpone heir work to future period. so this cause to reduse the lending from banks,then the profit will decrease If the RBI reduce the CRR and SLR rate ,the banks can give more loans at lower interest rate. the low interst rate attract more companies and people to take loan. so this cause to increase the profit of the banks Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR)| 6. 00% (w. e. f. 24/04/2010)| Increased from 5. 00% to 5. 50% wef 13/02/2010; and then again to 5. 75% wef 2 7/02/2010; and now to 6. 00% wef 24/04/2010| Now the CRR is 6. 00%. it from 24-4-2010. RBI increased CRR from 5. 00% to 6. 00% during the 4th quarter of 2009-2010 and 1st quarter of 2010-11. this change also change the net interest margin of the banks. 1% increase caused a negative impact of the profitability of the banks. Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR)| 24%(w. e. f. 18/12/2010)| Decreased from 25% which was continuing since 07/11/2009| No more change in the SLR rate after 7-11-2009 have made an impact on the profit earning capacity of the banks Bank rate impact It is the minimum rate at which central bank provides loan to commercial banks. It is also called discounting rate because bank provides finance to the commercial banks by rediscounting the bill of exchange. When central banks raises bank rate commercial banks raises lending rate and vice-versa When RBI rises the bank rate ,the commercial banks rasies rasies its lending rates, it will adversely impact on the profitability of banks. Bank’s net interest margin will reduce. Repo rate impact When ever there is deficient of the fund with the banks then the banks barrow money from RBI, Repo rate is the rate at which all banks barrow rupees from RBI. When RBI increase repo rate ,no banks ready to take loan from RBI. IF the RBI decrease the repo rate, bank will go to RBI to take loan at lower interest rate. If the RBI increase the rate it will reduce the profit margin. Reverse repo effect If the RBI increase the reverse repo rate banks get high interest by putting money to safe hands. but it reduce the money supply in the economy . bank not have money to give loans to public and get interest on loan. so interest earned on loans will decrease and the net interest margin reduced. Reverse Repo Rate| 6. 25% (w. e. f. 03/05/2011)| Increased from 5. 75% which was continuing since 17/03/2011 [Till 03/05/2011, reverse repo rate was an independent rate and announced by RBI. However, in the monetary policy announced on 03/05/2011, RBI has decided that now the reverse repo rate will not be announced separately, but will be linked to Repo rate. Reverse Repo rate will be 100 bps below the repo rate] | How monetary policy affect on the returns of auto sector The automotive industry remains one of the highest revenue-earning industries in India and contributed over 5% to India’s GDP in 2009, providing direct and indirect employment to more than 13 million people. The market outlook for the industry remains promising, especially in the small car segment. The Indian automobile market is currently dominated by the two-wheeler segment but with an expanding middle class population, growing earning power and industrial development, the demand for passenger cars and commercial vehicles will increase exponentially. Also, the low vehicle presence (with passenger car stock of only around 11 per 1,000 population in 2008) indicates a very low base with significant growth potential. As per ‘Just-Auto’ analyst reports, sales of passenger cars in 2008-2016 are expected to grow at a CAGR of around 10%. In addition to increased domestic demand, there is also likely to be increased investment by global auto manufacturers to India due to its strong technological capability and availability of trained manpower at competitive prices. Currently, the foreign auto companies with assembly plants in India include, General Motors, Ford, Hyundai, Honda, Suzuki, Nissan Motors, Toyota, Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda, BMW, Fiat and Mercedes Benz. With the introduction of the Tata Nano, the cheapest car in the world at USD 2200, and FDI from Suzuki Motor Corp, Hyundai Motor Co, and Nissan Motor Co to make India their manufacturing hub for small cars, India has made huge inroads in the compact car segment. In fact, in 2009, India overtook China in the global auto exports of compact cars for the first time. Increase or decrease in interest rate will directly affect the automobile industry because a majority of people are depending on  car loans  or two wheeler  loans for  buying vehicle. So if the interest rates are increasing, people won’t be able to afford this and normally the demand for automobiles will come down this will have a very bad impact on the industry TATA MOTORS: TATA MOTORS Tata Motors is India’s largest automobile company It is the leader in commercial vehicles and among the top three in passenger vehicles. The company is the worlds fourth largest truck manufacturer, the worlds second largest bus manufacturer. Tata Motors has auto manufacturing and assembly plants in Jamshedpur , Pantnagar , Lucknow , Ahmedabad , Sanand and Pune in India, as well as in Argentina, South Africa and Thailand. Products : Passenger cars and utility vehicles Concept vehicles Commercial vehicles Military vehicles Financial results of tata motors 2009-10 2008-09 2007-08 ) Gross revenue38,364. 1028568. 2133093. 93 2) Net revenue(excluding excise duty)35593. 0525629. 7328739. 41 3) Total expenditure31414. 7723877. 2925807. 82 4) Operating profit4178. 281752. 442931. 59 5) Other income1853. 45925. 97483. 18 6) Profit before interest and depreciation6031. 732678. 413414. 77 7) Interest and discounting charges(net)1103. 84673. 68282. 37 8) Cash profit4927. 892004. 734057. 84 Rising interest rates  had a negative impact on company because when interest rates was raised, the cost of borrowing money rosed. Ultimately, the company profitability and ability to grow was reduced. When a company profits (or earnings) dropped, its stock became less desirable, and its stock price falled . A company success comes when it sells its products . But increased interest rates negatively impact its customers. The financial health of its customers directly affected the company ability to grow sales and earnings. When interest rates rise, investors start to rethink their investment strategies i. e Investors sell shares in interest-sensitive stocks that they hold. Interest-sensitive industries include electric utilities, real estate, and the financial sector. Interest rates rises –sales effects profitability is affected dividend payments too effected. The price of a stock depends on the earnings of the company. If the earnings slow down (because of higher interest rate payments), the prices of the stocks will dip and overall, the stock market will be hit. A rise in interest rates also cools down the economy . demand for goods and services rise. If the supply is not immediately forthcoming, the price of those goods and services rise. That leads to inflation. Low interest rates are good for business, it makes it cheaper to borrow funds, invest in new projects, expand supply, etc. Low interest rates also increases consumption as  debt finance becomes cheaper and people’s disposable income rises as existing interest payments are reduced. A decrease in interest rates therefore increases revenue expectations for most businesses. car sales down as compared to the previous year. reducing costs wherever possible, consolidating brands and dropping model lines and deferring Ramp;D projects to conserve funds.

Uniform High essays

Uniform High essays One thing that high-schoolers are common for is being very open and opinionated about the clothes that they were on an everyday basis. High-schoolers have often stated the cliche about how their clothing expresses their individuality and personality. However, many private high schools have a very strict policy on the issue of expressing personality through clothing. The benefits of that policy include higher self-esteem for students, an overall cleaner appearance in the student body, and a solution to the everlasting problem of teenagers: finding something to wear every morning. Students, not just the ones attending private schools, but at all schools, should be required to wear a moderate form of a uniform. A well-known issue of todays society is that many teenagers suffer from lack of self-esteem. Often at times, the taunting and mockery of fellow peers cause this decline in self-worth. The ridicules of students can form from any part of an individual that does not meet the standards of the idealistic teenager that young people often refer to. For example, a student may wear an article of clothing that may appear attractive to him/herself, but to his/her fellow students, the clothing is not what they call cool. Therefore, the student is picked on and shunned by the rest of his/her peers and his/her self-esteem is deflated. The solution to this specific problem is to create a regulatory uniform system for all students. This solution will help to solve many self-worth issues by making each student wear the same clothing and not be made fun of for his or her choice of clothes. Students wearing uniforms tend to look clean, orderly, and sharp. The clothing of today may be called by some as trashy or dirty, but with uniforms, students will look more appropriate for the classroom and look much more adult-like. Also, many of the articles of clothing of today have foul messages or pictures on ...

Free Essays on Evolution of Telephones

After the invention of the telephone instrument itself, the second greatest technological advance in the industry may have been the invention of automatic switching called Strowger switches, after Almon Brown Strowger, who invented the system because he didn’t trust his town’s human operators were connecting correct calls. Long-distance telephony was established in small steps. Â · The first step was the introduction of the long-distance telephone, originally a special highly efficient instrument permanently installed in a telephone company building and used for calling between cities. Â · The invention at the end of the 19th century of the loading coil (a coil of copper wire wound on an iron core and connected to the cable every mile or so) increased the speaking range to approximately 1,000 miles. Â · Until the 1910s the long-distance service used repeaters overcome with the invention of the triode vacuum tube, which amplified electrical signals. And until Direct Distance Dialing became available, all long-distance calls still required the assistance of an operator to complete. By adding a three-digit area code and developing more sophisticated switching machines, it became possible for subscribers to complete their own long-distance calls. The introduction of radio into the telephone set has been the most important recent development in telephone technology, allowing first the cordless phone and now the cellular phone. In addition to regular telephone service, modern cellular phones also provide wireless Internet connections, enabling users to send and receive electronic mail and search the World Wide Web. Answering machines and phones with dials that remember several stored numbers (repertory dials) have been available for decades, but because of their expense and unreliability were never as popular as they are today. Multifunctional telephones include automatic answering and message-recording capability. Videophone... Free Essays on Evolution of Telephones Free Essays on Evolution of Telephones After the invention of the telephone instrument itself, the second greatest technological advance in the industry may have been the invention of automatic switching called Strowger switches, after Almon Brown Strowger, who invented the system because he didn’t trust his town’s human operators were connecting correct calls. Long-distance telephony was established in small steps. Â · The first step was the introduction of the long-distance telephone, originally a special highly efficient instrument permanently installed in a telephone company building and used for calling between cities. Â · The invention at the end of the 19th century of the loading coil (a coil of copper wire wound on an iron core and connected to the cable every mile or so) increased the speaking range to approximately 1,000 miles. Â · Until the 1910s the long-distance service used repeaters overcome with the invention of the triode vacuum tube, which amplified electrical signals. And until Direct Distance Dialing became available, all long-distance calls still required the assistance of an operator to complete. By adding a three-digit area code and developing more sophisticated switching machines, it became possible for subscribers to complete their own long-distance calls. The introduction of radio into the telephone set has been the most important recent development in telephone technology, allowing first the cordless phone and now the cellular phone. In addition to regular telephone service, modern cellular phones also provide wireless Internet connections, enabling users to send and receive electronic mail and search the World Wide Web. Answering machines and phones with dials that remember several stored numbers (repertory dials) have been available for decades, but because of their expense and unreliability were never as popular as they are today. Multifunctional telephones include automatic answering and message-recording capability. Videophone...

Official Listing of Countries by Region of the World

Official Listing of Countries by Region of the World The 196 countries of the world can be logically divided into eight regions based on their geography, mostly aligning with the continent on which they are located. That said, some groupings dont strictly adhere to divisions by continent. For example, the Middle East and North Africa are separated from sub-Saharan Africa along cultural lines. Likewise, the Caribbean and Central America are grouped separately from North and South America due to similarities based on latitudes.   Asia Asia stretches from former stans of the  USSR  to the  Pacific Ocean.  There are 27 countries in Asia and it is the worlds largest and most populous region, with about 60 percent of the worlds population living there. The region boasts five of the 10 most populous countries in the world, with India and China taking the top two spots. BangladeshBhutanBruneiCambodiaChinaIndiaIndonesiaJapanKazakhstanNorth KoreaSouth KoreaKyrgyzstanLaosMalaysiaMaldivesMongoliaMyanmarNepalPhilippinesSingaporeSri LankaTaiwanTajikistanThailandTurkmenistanUzbekistanVietnam Middle East, North Africa, and Greater Arabia The 23 countries of the Middle East, North Africa, and Greater Arabia include some countries not traditionally considered as part of the Middle East (such as Pakistan). Their inclusion is based on culture. Turkey is also sometimes placed in lists of Asian and Europan countries since geographically, it straddles them both. In the last 50 years of the 20th century, due to a decline in mortality rates and a high rate of the fertility rate, this region grew faster than any other in the world. As a result, demographics there skew young, while in many more developed regions, such as in Asia, Europe, and North America, population bubbles skew older. AfghanistanAlgeriaAzerbaijan (The former republics of the Soviet Union are typically lumped into one region, nearly 30 years after independence. In this listing, theyve been placed where most appropriate.)BahrainEgyptIranIraqIsrael (Israel may be located in the Middle East, but it is certainly an outsider culturally and perhaps better belongs attached to Europe, like its seaward neighbor and European Union member state, Cyprus.)JordanKuwaitLebanonLibyaMoroccoOmanPakistanQatarSaudi ArabiaSomaliaSyriaTunisiaTurkeyThe United Arab EmiratesYemen Europe The European continent and its local region contain 48 countries and stretches from North America and back to North America as it encompasses Iceland and all of Russia. As of 2018, data shows that about three-quarters of its population live in urban areas. Having so many peninsulas, and the region itself being a peninsula of Eurasia, means a wealth of coastline on its mainland- more than 24,000 miles (38,000 kilometers) of it, in fact. AlbaniaAndorraArmeniaAustriaBelarusBelgiumBosnia and HerzegovinaBulgariaCroatiaCyprusCzech RepublicDenmarkEstoniaFinlandFranceGeorgiaGermanyGreeceHungaryIceland (Iceland straddles the Eurasian plate and the North American plate, so geographically it is halfway between Europe and North America. However, its culture and settlement are clearly European in nature.)IrelandItalyKosovoLatviaLiechtensteinLithuaniaLuxembourgMacedoniaMaltaMoldovaMonacoMontenegroNetherlandsNorwayPolandPortugalRomaniaRussiaSan MarinoSerbiaSlovakiaSloveniaSpainSwedenSwitzerlandUkraineUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (The United Kingdom is the country composed of the constituent entities known as England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.)Vatican City North America Economic powerhouse North America includes  only three countries but it takes up most of a continent and is thus a region onto itself. Since it stretches from the Arctic to the tropics, North Americ includes almost all the major climate biomes. In the farthest reaches north, the region stretches halfway around the world- from Greenland to Alaska- but at its farthest point south, Panama has a narrow point thats only 31 miles (50 kilometers) wide. CanadaGreenland (Greenland is an autonomous territory of Denmark, not an independent country.)MexicoThe United States of America Central America and the Caribbean Among the 20 countries of Central America and the Caribbean, none are landlocked, and half are islands. In fact, there is no location in Central America that is more than 125 miles (200 kilometers)  from the sea. Volcanoes and earthquakes go hand in hand in this region, as many of the islands in the Caribbean are volcanic in origin and not dormant.   Antigua and BarbudaThe BahamasBarbadosBelizeCosta RicaCubaDominicaDominican RepublicEl SalvadorGrenadaGuatemalaHaitiHondurasJamaicaNicaraguaPanamaSaint Kitts and NevisSaint LuciaSaint Vincent and the GrenadinesTrinidad and Tobago South America Twelve countries occupy South America, which stretches from the equator to nearly the Antarctic Circle. Its separated from Antarctica by the Drake Passage which is 600 miles wide (1,000 kilometers). Mount Aconcagua, located in the Andes Mountains in Argentina near Chile is the highest point in the Western Hemisphere. At 131 feet (40 meters)  below sea level, the  Valdà ©s Peninsula, located in southeastern Argentina is the hemispheres lowest point.   Many Latin American countries are experiencing a financial contraction (such as unfunded pensions for an aging populace, deficit government spending, or the inability to spend on public services) and also have some of the most closed economies in the world. ArgentinaBoliviaBrazilChileColombiaEcuadorGuyanaParaguayPeruSurinameUruguayVenezuela Sub-Saharan Africa There are 48 countries in sub-Saharan Africa. (Some of these countries are actually intra-Saharan or within the Sahara Desert.) Nigeria is one of the fastest-growing countries in the world, and by the year 2050, will overtake the United States as the worlds third most populous nation. As a whole, Africa is the second largest and second most populous continent. Most countries in sub-Saharan Africa achieved independence between the 1960s and 1980s, so their economies and infrastructure are still developing. This is is proving most difficult for countries that are landlocked due to the extra hurdles in transportation and right of way they must overcome to get their goods to and from port. AngolaBeninBotswanaBurkina FasoBurundiCameroonCape VerdeThe Central African RepublicChadComorosRepublic of the CongoThe Democratic Republic of the CongoCote dIvoireDjiboutiEquatorial GuineaEritreaEthiopiaGabonThe GambiaGhanaGuineaGuinea-BissauKenyaLesothoLiberiaMadagascarMalawiMaliMauritaniaMauritiusMozambiqueNamibiaNigerNigeriaRwandaSao Tome and PrincipeSenegalSeychellesSierra LeoneSouth AfricaSouth SudanSudanSwazilandTanzaniaTogoUgandaZambiaZimbabwe Australia and Oceania The 15 countries of Australia and Oceania vary widely by culture and occupy a large swath of the world ocean. With the exception of continent/country Australia, the region does not occupy a great deal of land. Islands have been known- since Charles Darwin pointed it out- for their endemic species and nowhere is this more apparent than in Australia and Oceania. For instance, about 80 percent of the species in Australia are unique to that country. Endangered species in the region range from those in the ocean to those in the sky. Challenges to conservation include the remote location and fact that much of the areas oceans are outside the direct jurisdiction of the countries there. AustraliaEast Timor (While East Timor lies on an Indonesian [Asian] island, its eastern location requires that it be located in the Oceania nations of the world.)FijiKiribatiMarshall IslandsThe Federated States of MicronesiaNauruNew ZealandPalauPapua New GuineaSamoaSolomon IslandsTongaTuvaluVanuatu

The Fault in Our Stars - Book Club Discussion

'The Fault in Our Stars' - Book Club Discussion The Fault in Our Stars by John Green has characters who ask big questions. Use this guide to help your book club think about some of the themes Green raises. Spoiler Warning: These book club discussion questions contain important details about the story. Finish the book before reading on. Do you like the first person style of the novel?Even though The Fault in Our Stars deals with timeless questions, it has many markers of the year it was written from facebook pages to text messages and TV show references. Do you think these things will affect its ability to endure over the years or do the concrete references enhance its appeal?Did you guess that Augustus was sick?On page 212, Hazel discusses Maslows Heirarchy of Needs: According to Maslow, I was stuck on the second level of the pyramid, unable to feel secure in my health and therefore unable to reach for love and respect and art and whatever else, which is, of course, utter horseshit: The urge to make art or contemplate philosophy does not go away when you are sick. Those urges just become transfigured by illness. Discuss this statement, and whether you agree with Maslow or Hazel.In support group, Hazel says, There will come a time when all of us are dead. All of us. There will come a time when there are no human be ings remaining to remember that anyone ever existed or that or species ever did anything...maybe that time is coming soon and maybe it is millions of years away, but even if we survive the collapse of our sun, we will not survive forever...And if the inevitability of human oblivion worries you, I encourage you to ignore it. God knows thats what everyone else does (13). Do you worry about oblivion? Do you ignore it? Different characters in the novel have different views and coping mechanisms to deal with life an death. How do you? Reread Augustus letter that Hazel gets via Van Houten at the end of the novel. Do you agree with Augustus? Is is a good way for the novel to end?What affect does the mingling of normal teenage problems (break ups, coming of age) with a terminal diagnosis create in the novel? For instance, do you think it is realistic that Isaac would care more about his break up with Monica than his blindness?Rate The Fault in Our Stars 1 to 5.