What is IMF Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

What is IMF - Essay Example Good governance is a set of principles that have been adopted by both the World Bank and the IMF to guide them and help them to achieve their objectives and goals in their member countries. The current scenario is that these organizations now are in the process of applying similar standards as the, good governance techniques to various other aspects of the institution, such as transparency and accountability. Other facets include fairness, impartiality, efficiency and ownership (Woods 2000). Though IMF itself is a vast topic, I would like to target solely the governance aspect of the organization. Only good and sound governance of an organization can result in the complete and adequate implementation of its policies. According to Beke (2002) the underlying rationale for governance in IMF is to eliminate corruption and to encourage transparency as well as accountability in all economic policies and issues of any given country. Since, 1997 the IMF has introduced methods to look after the resources of the organization so as to prevent laundering of monetary funds. In addition, means are also taken to track all sorts of expenditures specifically those on poverty related issues. Therefore, governance is required in all phases. Be it the way the money is lent or discharged to a country, in the implementation of certain economy related policies, or be it in within the IMF itself. Therefore, I would like to research all three of these aspects of governance in my study. There are practical reasons behind the adoption of the good governance criteria by the IMF. One of the foremost according to Woods (2000) is ownership and participation. The reason behind them is that these two means will increase the efficiency and effectiveness of IMF. It has also been stated that in the past any unpopular or unjust act of a country's government was blamed on IMF. Therefore, these policies also enhance the image of the government by stating that there is no imposition by the IMF upon any country to adopt its policy. Any country that does to take the advice of the IMF and follow its policies and guidelines does so of it's own accord. In the past, the IMF consisted of an enclosed group of policy makers, however, in recent years due to its good governance criteria the organization has opened-up. This induces the concept of transparency. The reason behind this is that when an organization in enclosed (in the form of financial institutions and governments only), transparency is difficult; thus, corruption prevails. In such a scenario bribery takes place and the government can easily deceive its citizens by putting the blame for economic upheaval on an institution such as the IMF. In order to prevent such dire situations from arising it is imperative that good governance policies (especially those that include transparency procedures and processes) are included. Research Methodology The research methodology will such that the background and scope of the paper will be given. The basic scope of this paper is that it will help future policy makers as well as researchers to further their studies. In the practical sense this

Poem Explication Essay Example for Free

Poem Explication Essay The first two lines show the king’s envy of other people in his court who unlike him can sleep soundly. Subsequently, he blames his not being able to sleep upon nature and questions why it has not made him sleepy yet. Line five seems particularly important because there King Henry hints that what he really wants is not sleep itself but the forgetfulness that comes with it. This line somewhat shows why the king is not able to sleep. King Henry wants nature to steep his sense of forgetfulness and let him rest but it does not, and so the king further questions nature as to why those that he considers below him are granted what he is not. He contrasts the common sleeping area with that of his grand chambers in lines six to eleven and asks nature why it would choose the former over the latter. In this part of the poem, the king describes the first sleeping place as shabby and poor while describing his own bed chambers as â€Å"perfumed† with sheets that are very expensive. This shows that the king thinks highly of his status as being superior to others as first expressed in the poem’s first two lines. The king further establishes this in the next lines of the poem, comparing himself to a lowly cabin boy who is probably somewhere sleeping while the monstrous winds rocked the ship floor where he slept. The king again contrasts it to his own situation, peacefully lying down without the disturbance of a heavy storm and again questions why he is denied of sleep. The last line supports the inference made in the fifth line. The words â€Å"uneasy lies the head that wears this crown† denotes that the king cannot sleep because there was something that was really bothering him. Reference The Second part of King Henry the Fourth. Retrieved March 27, 2008 from: http://shakespeare.mit.edu/2henryiv/2henryiv.3.1.html

RU-486 - The Debate Continues :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

RU-486 - The Debate Continues Professor’s comment: I am excited to submit this research paper to 123HelpMe. It will provide an excellent model for other students. This student wisely sidesteps the emotional â€Å"Abortion: Pro or Con?† element, focusing narrowly on RU-486, the so-called abortion pill. She draws our attention primarily to scientific and medical controversy, with forays into history, politics, and economics, drawing attention to facts instead of emotional or personal appeals. Her research and careful approach challenge the assumption that pro-choice must favor legalization and antiabortion must oppose it. She helps us to see RU-486 as a separate issue with specific benefits and drawbacks, making her own nicely balanced contribution to the controversy. Picture yourself as a sixteen-year-old girl. Your friends and family used to describe you as happy, vivacious, and carefree. But as you have been awaiting your period, now two weeks overdue, you have become sullen and agitated with worry. Two more weeks go by and you buy a home pregnancy test. You perform the test only to find out what you already know. It doesn’t really matter how you got pregnant—the condom tore, your boyfriend lied about pulling out, you forgot to take your birth control pills—it just matters that you are and you don’t want to be. To complicate matters, let’s say that you are from a strict Catholic family with very devout parents, and you cannot possibly bring yourself to talk to them about it. After a few weeks of seemingly endless painful deliberation that you thought you would never have to endure, you have your best friend take you to an abortion clinic. Picketers block the front door to the clinic carrying signs that read â €Å"Abortion = Murder.† Before you can even begin to process the words on the signs, your best friend grabs you by the arm and pulls you past the crowd and into the small lobby of the clinic. Expecting an ordinary doctor’s office waiting room, you are unsettled by the unfamiliarity of the stark dà ©cor. The lobby is nothing but an entryway with a front desk encapsulated by bulletproof glass. While checking in you speak to the receptionist through a hole in the glass, as though you are paying for gasoline at a station after midnight. Now more than ever you feel scared and alone. Since the legalization of surgical abortions in 1973, this has become a common scenario for women seeking to terminate a pregnancy.

Regression Analysis and Marks

BRUNEL UNIVERSITY Master of Science Degree examination Specimen Exam Paper 2005-2006 EC5002: Modelling Financial Decisions and Markets EC5030: Introduction to Quantitative Methods Time allowed: 1. 5 hours Answer all of question 1 and at least two other questions 1. COMPULSORY Provide brief answers to all the following: (a) A sample of 20 observations corresponding to the model: Y = + X + u, gave the P P P following data: (X X)2 = 215:4, (Y Y )2 = 86:9, and (X X)(Y Y ) = 106:04. Estimate . 5 marks) (b) Prove that r2 = byx bxy , where byx is the least-squares (LS) slope in the regression of Y on X , bxy is the LS slope in the regression of X on Y , and r is the coe? cient of correlation between X and Y . (5 marks) (c) Present four alternative in†¡ ation/unemployment regressions. (5 marks) (d) Give one reason for autocorrelated disturbances. (5 marks) (e) Explain how we might use the Breusch-Godfrey statistic to test estimated residuals for serial correlation. (5 marks) (f) The fol lowing regression equation is estimated as a production function for Q: lnQ = 1:37 + 0:632 lnK + 0:452 lnL, cov(bk ; bl ) = 0:055; 0:257) (0:219) where the standard errors are given in parentheses. Test the hypothesis that capital (K ) and labor (L) elasticities of output are identical. (5 marks) Continued (Turn over) 1 ANSWER TWO QUESTIONS FROM THE FOLLOWING: 2. (a) Economic theory supplies the economic interpretation for the predicted relationships between nominal (in†¡ ation) uncertainty, real (output growth) uncertainty, output growth, and in†¡ ation. Discuss †¦ve testable hypotheses regarding bidirectional causality among these four variables. (25 marks) + yt b) An investigator estimates a linear relation for German output growth (yt ): yt = 1 + ut , t = 1850; : : : ; 1999. The values of †¦ve test statistics are shown in Table 1: Discuss the results. Is the above equation correctly speci†¦ed? (10 marks) 3. (a) i) Show how various examples of typical hyp otheses †¦t into a general linear framework: Rb = r, where R is a (q k) matrix of known constants, with q < k, b is the (k 1) least-squares vector, and r is a q -vector of known constants. ii) Show how the least-squares estimator (b) of about . an be used to test various hypotheses iii) â€Å"The test procedure is then to reject the hypothesis Rb = r if the computed F value exceeds a preselected critical value† Discuss. (20 marks) (b) The results of least-squares estimation (based on 30 quarterly observations) of the regression of the actual on predicted interest rates (three-month U. S. Treasury Bills) were as follows: rt = 0:24 + 0:94 rt + et ; RSS = 28:56; (0:86) (0:14) where rt is the observed interest rate, and rt is the average expectation of rt held at the end of the preceding quarter.FiguresX parentheses are estimated standard errors. in X (rt r )2 = 52. The sample data on r give rt =30 = 10, According to the rational expectations hypothesis expectations are unbi ased, that is, the average prediction is equal to the observed realization of the variable under investigation. Test this claim by reference to announced predictions and to actual values of the rate of interest on three-month U. S. Treasury Bills. (Note: In the above equation all the assumptions of the classical linear regression model are satis†¦ed). 15 marks) Continued (Turn over) 2 4. (a) What are the assumptions of the classical linear regression model? (10 marks) (b) Prove that the variance-covariance matrix of the (k 1) least-squares vector b is: var(b) = 2 (X 0 X) 1 , where 2 is the variance of the disturbances and X is the (n k) matrix of the regressors. (15 marks) b (c) In the two-variable equation: Yi = a+bXi , i = 1; : : : ; n show that cov(a; b) = 2 X= X)2 . (10 marks) X (X 5. (a) Explain how we might use White statistic to test for the presence of heteroscedasticity in the estimated residuals. 10 marks) (b) A speci†¦ed equation is Y = X +u, with E(u) = 0 and E (uu0 ) = ; where =diagf 2 ; : : : ; 1 Derive White’ correct estimates of the standard errors of the OLS coe? cients. s (15 marks) (c) Explain how we might test for ARCH e ¤ects? (10 marks) 2 2g . 3 Table 1. Test statistic Value of the test p-value White heteroscedasticity test 50. 72 0. 00 Box-Pierce Statistic on 82. 263 0. 00 Squared Residuals Jarque-Bera statistic 341. 754 0. 00 ARCH test 65. 42 0. 00 Ramsey test statistic 39. 74 0. 00 4

McDonald’s Fast-Food Restaurants

McDonald’s corporation is undoubtedly the largest fast food chain in the world with its primary sales being in French fries, cheeseburgers, and breakfasts and soft drinks. In the recent times, McDonalds has introduced fruits, carrots sticks and salads to its menu. The company is currently in operations in 120 countries worldwide serving 54 million clients and employing over 400,000 worldwide, a sharp contrast to 1940 when Mac & Dic McDonald started it.With such expansions, McDonald’s is often associated with the globalization symbol and a spreader of the American ways. The company also has several restaurants such as Boston market, Piles cafes and has stakes in Pret a manger and has had stakes in Chipotle Mexican Grill and Donatos Pizza. The chain usually offers counter and drive through services, McDrive popular on highways and low-density cities. Some play facilities such as the McDonalds Play place and McDonald’s play land with special attention to the differe nt children age groups.The ‘Forever Young’ concept was introduced in 2006 in an attempt to redesign the restaurants. This included a change of its colors to warmer shades red and yellow and an addition of sage green and olive. The plan also included the use of more wood and brick, in place of plastic. The new look would also include several zones such as the flexible, grab and go linger all with specific music. (Wikipedia 2007). MacDonald’s has been suggested to be the largest private establishment in the US with one of eight Americans having been a McDonald’s employee at some point of their life. It has also been said to be the single largest buyer of potatoes, pork, beef and apples. (Schlosser 2001). In Australia, over 66,000 people are employed in the 441 outlets (Goliath Business News 2005)The international expansion process of McDonald began in the late 1960, in Canada then later to Japan, Germany, Australia, France and England in that order. There si x countries rack in over 80% of the international sales income, warranting the title of â€Å"The Big Six†. In most cases, the expansion into international market was met with enthusiasm and made global headlines. In 1990, McDonald’s entered Russia and was met by more than 30,000 people who braved a cold winter day. To date, the Russian crew serves over 50,000 people daily. In 1992, a 40,000-person crowd and a similar situation also transpired in Poland welcomed McDonald’s to China.The international expansion led to the improvement of service delivery standards of those markets. For example, the 1975 entry of McDonald into East Asia led to the demand for high restroom hygiene standards in other food establishments as McDonald had demonstrated to them. However, Klein’s book â€Å"No Logo† has been in the forefront of the antiglobalization campaign, citing that globalization has led to the crowding out of the smaller local players.Klein further says that the globalization process has been perfected by the kinds of McDonald’s through franchising and the operation of gas station mini-outlets. This lead to the creation of a synonymous air of McDonald’s and hamburgers. McDonald like other Brand Bullies, phase out the local enterprises by offering the lowest prices, which they can afford due to the bulk purchase of raw materials and the voluminous sales (Klein 1999).The McLibel case of the early 1990’s in which two Britons, Helen Steel and David Morris were directly involved in a protest title ‘what’s wrong with McDonald’s?’ lead to the emergence of a seven-year-old battle. When steel and Morris began the protest, McDonald’s protested and used them for illegal defamation. The two-year-old trial that ensured put McDonald’s in the spotlight, as the High Court of Justice in London scrutinized the company’s advertising strategies. As expected, the press had a field day covering the classic Goliath verses David battle. However, after an appeal to the high court by the Steel and Morris team, McDonald was awarded    £40 000 instead of  £60 000.The amount was lowered due to the fact that the court proved some of the allegations of Morris and Steel to be true. One of the established claims was that McDonald’s was exploiting children during its advertising. This was through the creation of lucrative cartoon characters and use of mascots, which lead to the association of these characters with McDonald’s by the children.Children would nag and disturb their parents so as to go to McDonald’s. McDonalds was also accused of being anti-union and was not keen on doing so because of he fact that it had several franchised units which were after treated as owned by individuals. McDonald’s was also accused of being cruel to animals.Due to the several links made to McDonald’s menu and obesity McDonalds’s has cut off s upersized meals from its menus and included healthier options such as salads and fruits. Two overweight girls’ case was brought up, with the girls claiming that their overweight states was as a result of eating regularly at McDonalds. The â€Å"Supersize me† documentary film of 2004 by Morgan Spurlock demonstrated how foods that was exclusively McDonald’s contributed to the obesity problem.This film also demonstrated the psychological and physical well being status as being compromised.   Spurlock consumed a total of 5000 calorie’s each for the one-month experiment period. After this period, Spurlock gained a total of 11.1kg, a total 13% body mass increase.   Other than that, he became moody and lost interest in sex. This film was aired at the Sundance Film festival, leading to the removal of the supersized meals from its menu. The company also started putting nutritional information in small print.In 2002, McDonald’s declared the reduction of trans fat cooking fat content by early 2003. However, when the fat was not changed McDonald’s was used for not making the information about its failure to change the oil public. This lead to a court order that demand McDonald’s to spend $1.5million in the publishing of its notices on the trans fat initiative status. It also led to the donation of $7million to the Public Education on trans fat by the American Heart Association (Wikipedia 2007). In 2002, McDonald’s was sued by vegetarian groups for misrepresenting of its French fries. This was because the French fries were fried in beef tallow despite the fact that McDonalds had discontinued this practice in 1996. However, to date the French fries in circulation in the US contain beef flavoring.McDonald’s has been in the forefront in making sure that it retains its market share despite the tirades of criticism. The most fundaments policy is that McDonald has McDonald has ensured that quality standards of it s food and beverages are not compromised. This has been coupled with an involvement with only the most reputable supplies with the same objective. To ensure this is adhered to regular monitoring and testing of the ingredients is conducted while using only the must stringent of standards. It has been noted that several agencies of the government has many a time used the McDonald’s standards as models of their regulatory procedures.McDonald has also deliberately supported food safety procedures and systems that are entirely science based. The food safety measures include microbiological control, high sanitation standards and effective pest control. The worldwide recognized Hard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan as an effective preventive measure against food borne diseases. McDonald’s is also in the forefront in ensuring that its suppliers adhere to the highest food safety standards such as temperature levels and a demonstration that all likely hazards have be en addressed through point of control critical management (McDonald’s Corporation, 2006). McDonald has made liaisons with independent experts of the international scientific Advisory Council so as to be in the know about latest development in the beef and chicken industries.At the grassroots level, the restaurant, productive measures have been taken. Stuff are oriented and trained on the expected standards of work from the first day of employment. There is also deliberate preparation of stuff for promotions making them motivated and committed to their work. Before a shift manager is entrusted with the management of an entire shift, they are ensure enrolled in an entire course on food safety and safety standards which included training from the stage of supply, delivery through to handling during preparation. These food safety processes are closely monitored by consultants specialized in operations of staff. The need for expert intervention of the training programs is identifi ed through regular onsite evaluations.Reference:Goliath Business News (2005). Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Management.Klein, N. (1999) No Logo. NY: St. Martin PressMcDonald’s Corporation (2006) Food Safety. Retrieved on October 23, 2007 from the World Wide Web on: http://www.mcdonalds.com/corp/values/purchasing/food_safety.html.Schlosser, E., (2001).   Fast Food Nation. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Books.Wikipedia (2007). McDonald’s. Retrieved on October 23, 2007 from the World Wide Web

Canadian Politics essays

Canadian Politics essays Are there true freedoms in Democracy? No, there is not true freedoms in democracy for the following reasons; true freedoms in a democratic society give us the right and freedoms to make our own decisions a free society. In our present society today, literally everything has a rule or law. From smoking in a restaurant, to speed limits, to soliciting, spanking your children, being nude on public property and the list continues forever...with no joke. Not to say that these laws are not needed, but there should be a limit on them. It is unfortunate to note that laws and rules in placed by the government not always represent the people (constituents) (indirect democracy) but the governing power makes the decisions for you which is the absolute opposite of true freedoms in democracy. The unbelievably large amounts of laws in our society make it very difficult to have freedoms in a democratic society because effectively the people are not ruling but the governing power (Government) rules and creates the laws for the people to live with. When a leader or/ and government create laws, it sets an agenda for the people, and if there really is true freedom in democracy, then the people should have the choice to set the agenda (some what anarchist mentality). Democracy by definition means; a government by the people: rule of the majority. A form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly. This definition means that the people rule (all), instead in today s society the government rules, and becomes a dictatorship. A example of present day dictatorship in Canada is our federal government, (the Liberals) our PM is creating a majority of todays domestic and foreign policy with our advising his executive council (Ministers and caucus). We as a society have so many laws and rules to follow that there isnt any ...

Contributions to Ancient India Essay Example

Contributions to Ancient India Essay Example Contributions to Ancient India Essay Contributions to Ancient India Essay Contributions from Ancient India Ancient India contributed many things in our modern culture. The Ancient Indians showed their intelligence in the many ideas that they had. We need to credit them for their advancements in many things. The concept of zero and the numeral system we use in our culture are examples of the Ancient Indian advancements in mathematics. They also deepened the knowledge and accuracy of astronomy. In addition the cotton developments sparked the Indian textile world. One of the major things that the Ancient Indians contributed to the world was astronomy. The Ancient Indians knew that the accuracy of some instruments could be improved by the size. Their theory†the bigger, the more accurate. The largest sundials in the world were created by the Ancient Indians. One in particular is known as the Samrat Yantra. The name translates to the supreme instrument. The sundial stands 27 meters tall. Its shadow moves visibly at 1 mm per second. This is more accurate than anything else from that time period. The Ancient Indians were many of the greatest minds behind mathematics. Some concepts that they came up with were the decimal number system, zero, negative umbers, arithmetic, algebra, and further advancements in trigonometry. The number system that we use today was derived from the Ancient Indians. But there is much emphasis on the concept of zero. Before the Ancient Indians, there was no symbol or way of representing nothing. Zero was the changing point, the missing puzzle piece, to mathematics. The fashion industry has been inspired by the Ancient Indians also. India was the first location to domesticate cotton. The Ancient Indians invented a machine to pick out the cotton seeds. They also made the spinning wheel which is a way to make the otton balls into billions of threads. These threads are weaved to make a beautiful breathable fabric. The cotton industry is a very important industry today. After analyzing the ways that the Ancient Indian culture has influenced the world, the United States contributions to the world are a Just a pittance in comparison. The preciseness of the astronomical instruments, the logic in the mathematical advancements, and the innovativeness of the textile industry show how intelligent the Ancient Indians were. They set a foundation of knowledge for the rest of the world to build upon. contributions to ancient india By partay001

How to Conjugate Prêter (to Loan) in French

How to Conjugate Prà ªter (to Loan) in French The French verb  prà ªter  means to loan. When you want to change it to loaned or will loan, a verb conjugation is required. The good news is that this is a regular verb, so conjugating it is relatively easy compared to others. A quick lesson will introduce you to the essential forms of  prà ªter  youll need. The Basic Conjugations of  Prà ªter Prà ªter is a regular -er verb, so it falls into the largest category of verbs found in the French language. If youve already committed words like rester (to remain) or utiliser (to use) to memory, you can apply the same rules to this verb. With any conjugation, start by finding the verb stem (or radical). For  prà ªter, this is  prà ªt-. To this, a variety of endings are added to match both the tense of the sentence as well as the subject pronoun. For example, in the indicative mood,  je prà ªte  means I am loaning and  nous prà ªtions  means we loaned. Present Future Imperfect je prte prterai prtais tu prtes prteras prtais il prte prtera prtait nous prtons prterons prtions vous prtez prterez prtiez ils prtent prteront prtaient The Present Participle of  Prà ªter The  present participle  is easy to form as well. An -ant  ending is added to the stem of  prà ªter  to create the word  prà ªtant. Prà ªter  in the Compound Past Tense For the past tense, you can use the imperfect or the  passà © composà ©. The latter is a compound and requires you to use the  past participle  prà ªtà ©. First, however, you must conjugate the auxiliary verb  avoir  into the present tense. Its actually quite easy. I loaned is  jai prà ªtà ©Ã‚  and we loaned is  nous avons prà ªtà ©. More Simple Conjugations of  Prà ªter The forms of  prà ªter  above should be your top priority, but there may be times when youll need to use the verb in more subjective terms. For instance,  the subjunctive  calls the act of loaning into question while  the conditional  implies that its dependent on something else. The passà © simple  and  the imperfect subjunctive  are used less frequently. Youll likely only encounter them in formal French writing as they are both literary tenses. Subjunctive Conditional Pass Simple Imperfect Subjunctive je prte prterais prtai prtasse tu prtes prterais prtas prtasses il prte prterait prta prtt nous prtions prterions prtmes prtassions vous prtiez prteriez prttes prtassiez ils prtent prteraient prtrent prtassent The French imperative  may not be as useful for a word like  prà ªter, but its good to know anyway. The important rule here is that you dont need the subject pronoun: use  prà ªte  rather than  tu prà ªte. Imperative (tu) prte (nous) prtons (vous) prtez

The attitude of American public towards GM food Research Paper

The attitude of American public towards GM food - Research Paper Example GMO food production has identified seven main areas which concern the human safety test in the consumption of the foods and include the study of the DNA and the nutritional contents which are introduced in the new food product and the analysis of the chemical composition of the plant parts as well as the allergens. The human safety test also includes the estimate of the toxicological or nutritional problems which may be encountered by the consumer and the risk of transferring microorganisms in the gene transfer process (Weise, 44). The use of genetically modified (GM) ingredients in food production has attracted a lot of controversy. Public attitude towards these products has being highly negative in most of the developing countries especially Japan and some European countries. The consumer negative attitude in these countries has being attributed to the skepticism on the unknown health and environmental effects of the GMO foods (Tait 4). The negative attributes of the GMO foods has being identified as the spre4ad of the pest resistance herbicide, body allergic responses and the herbicide tolerance on the wildlife plants and the consequent toxicity of the wildlife. However, the full benefits of biotechnology will only be realized when the producers consider the GMO foods to be safe to their health and beneficial. Although many public attitudes towards the GMO foods have been done in the recent past, the public attitudes towards biotechnology seem to be sharply different between countries and the time of the study (Knowledge 5). The consumer attitudes towards biotechnology have been surveyed in Europe and USA over the past decades. From the global perspective, GMO foods have been one of the contentious issues in the society due to economical and technical benefits which are offset by the human health and the environmental impact (Nikki 34). The increase in multinational corporations and economic power of the GMO manufacturing companies has impacted the quality o f the GMO foods and threatened the traditional farming in rural societies in most of the rural developed countries. This paper will review the attitudes of the American public towards the GMO foods over the recent years. Studies in US have indicated that consumers have positive attitude towards the GMO foods compared with consumers in Europe and Japan. For instance, a study carried out by Daniel and Mark in 2001 indicated that 70 percent of the respondents were willing to pay a higher price for GMO foods (Heslop 214). In the US, the consumer makes the decision to purchase the GMO foods based on the uncertainties and the probabilities which are assigned to the consumer risk of the consumption of the GMO foods. The consumption of the foods results to certain payoff utilities which the consumers perceive to receive from the consumption (Macilwain 54). The perceived risks from the consumption of the GMO foods are derived from the future costs which the consumer expects to incur from the decision to consume GMO foods and carry probabilities which are different from one consumer to the other. The perceived risk stems from one of the following sources with the first one being the influence of the media in the

Portfolio Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Portfolio - Essay Example The observation class had 24 learners, all from different community background; 3 support teachers and the class teacher. The children fall between 3 and 4 years, and during the start of the class, they were all sited on the floor, as the teacher took the class register. Due to their varied community backgrounds, approximately 80 percent of the learners are bilingual: they are of language and national backgrounds foreign to the U.K. The observation reports for observation 1 and 2 are included in this report as Appendix 1 and 2, respectively. Qualitative observation was the primary qualitative tools of inquiry used for this particular observation study, towards ensuring that the study gave as much information as possible, through the two observation cases. The narrative method of reporting is used in presenting the information and the inferences drawn form the two observations: narrative reporting was an effective evaluation and reporting model for this observation. The principle of à ¢â‚¬Ëœemergent literacy’ is used to describe the wider conception of learning, for the learners between the ages 0 to 5. Under this conception, emphasis is placed on informal learning strategies and learning settings, using a variety of activities and exercises, for example the activity of fighting dinosaurs, which looks very informal, but offered an effective learning experience for the children (Yarden et al., 1999). Critical evaluation and analysis of the resources and the strategies used during the exercise As explained by Maria Montessori (1870-1952), young learners, during their initial years of schooling, require a systematic and orderly way of training and education – so they can master different skill-sets, one after another. This is in line with Whitehead (2010), who advocates that learners, during early years of learning should be taught using activities like writing and reading exercises, incorporated into plays. For example, during the second activity, the teachers required the learners to write or draw names of things they were familiar with, for example dog and cat, as a way to improve their comprehension of the letters of the alphabet. The activities helped them to explore the surroundings around them, so they can create sense from their perceived experiences. The two activities for the class are developed according to the standards of the EYFS syllabus, which incorporates learning in fun to do activities, and plays or games. For example, through the activity of the fighting dinosaurs, the social and communication skills of the children were greatly fostered (DCSF, 2008). According to Lev Vygotsky (1896-1934), instructors are obligated to carefully observe, design and plan study activities in a way that will challenge the young learners’, next level of conception and learning. From the current case, it is evident that the teachers had designed the activities in a careful manner – so as to enhance and simulate the int erest of the learners in the learning incorporated into play. For example, through the first activity, where different children were supposed to act-out different roles, the creativity of the children was fostered – for example, they were supposed to make dinosaur sounds. The group that was supposed to protect the baby dinosaur was to build a wall to shield it, which greatly improves the motor skills of children within their age range. According to Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778), special emphasis should be placed on ensuring that children are not taught concepts or ideas that they may not be ready to take-in. For example, in the second observation, the teacher only required the children to draw words of common things

Safe Injecting Facilities Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Safe Injecting Facilities - Term Paper Example These Safe injections sites also known as drug consumption rooms (DCRs), safe injection rooms, and supervised injection sites/facilities/centers, began in Europe in the 1980s. They now exist in cities in Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Australia. The first safe injection site in North America, Insite, began operating as a pilot project in Vancouver, BC in 2003, and was recently given the go-ahead to remain open after a Supreme Court battle with the federal government (Keen, 2003). Injection drug use continues to be associated with an array of significant health and social consequences throughout North America. These consequences are tied directly to the consumption of illicit drugs of unknown potency and composition, and the sharing of contaminated injection equipment; and indirectly, through unprotected sex with drug injectors, and through injectors’ immersion in black-market pursuits that result frequently in violent exchanges with criminals and the police. Keen (2003) states that in the United States, injection drug use accounts for approximately 25% of all cumulative AIDS cases nationwide, but closer to 50% of all cases in several northeastern States. The number of new HIV infections reported nationwide among injectors increased 300% in the 1990s, from 6,474 new infections in 1993, to 13,969 in 1995, 17,344 in 1998 and 18,882 in 1999. Disease Injectors also suffer from very high rates of hepatitis C infection – 90% of people who have injected for 5 years or more are infected - and from endocarditis, an acute infection of the heart valves that is not commonly seen among young adults. Fatal and nonfatal drug overdose (OD) is also a prevalent medical problem among injectors, and hospital emergency rooms throughout the country attend to ODs virtually everyday. Emergency room (ER) visits involving heroin alone doubled from 33,900 in 1990 to 70,500 in 1996. Some medical experts have recently declared that the United States is in the midst of another heroin epidemic. On the other hand, injectors are known to use primary care services erratically and only after they are very sick, which drives up health care costs (Drug Policy expert Committee, 2000). The argument for safe injection sites Several research studies have shown that safe injection sites have advantages for drug injectors and for the community including reduction in many of the harmful aspects of drug use on the individual (spread of infections, risk of overdose) and to society (drug-related crime, public exposure to drug injecting paraphernalia), as well as positive benefits (increase in education about safety among injectors, more drug users accessing treatment and other services). Extensive research has been conducted at Insite in Vancouver, with positive results. The argument against safe injection sites Critics have argued against the introduction of safe injection sites largely based on the principle that drug addiction is wrong, and should not be condoned in any way. The political focus on reducing harm to drug users deflects the focus from where it belongs, which is on the prevention and treatment of drug abuse. Introducing safe injection sites is seen as a step towards drug legalization, and undermines law enforcement principles and practices. Researchers conclude that police surveillance may end up scaring away the very people North America's first sanctioned safer injecting facility is intended to help. While there have been methodological criticisms of the evaluation studies supporting safe injection sites, and Insite in particular, critics on the other side argue that there is no substantial basis for these criticisms. Ultimately, the strong views on both sides

The Lisbon Treaty and the Development of the European Union Essay

The Lisbon Treaty and the Development of the European Union - Essay Example As the discussion highlights the principal objective of the Lisbon Treaty is to make the EU a single legal entity. The other objectives of the Treaty are aimed at the protection of the environment and enhancing security to the energy sector. Under the principles laid down by the Lisbon Treaty, the Member States can leave the EU voluntarily. The Lisbon Treaty suggests an amendment procedure to the EU Treaties of the future; without having to convene a meeting of the Member States for that specific purpose. Moreover, it brings about new changes to the EU system. At the proposal stage itself, there was intense debate between the drafters of the Treaty. It makes the fundamental rights charter of the year 2000 legally binding. The Member States treated this charter as a political declaration in order to formulate the rights of EU citizens and to pronounce them with greater emphasis. The Lisbon Treaty renders this charter binding on all the Member States; and this charter consists of 54 ci vil, political, economic and social rights. All these rights are applicable to the citizens of Europe. In addition, residents in the EU are provided with the right to life, the right to marry, the right to strike and the right to conduct business within the EU.

Cells, Tissues, Movement of Molecules & Action Potential Physiology Essay

Cells, Tissues, Movement of Molecules & Action Potential Physiology - Essay Example There is a hormonal link between the rise of blood sugar levels before and after meals. These hormones that regulate the blood sugar levels interact with other hormones within the human body such as the liver, pancreas and skeletal muscles in order to convert these sugars as fuel for the human body (Sinacore & Gulve, 1993). Exercise or activity speeds up glucose absorption by the body by burning these sugars into muscle. This is why exercise or activity is recommended for non-insulin diabetic patients. With physical activity the hormones that produce and absorb insulin in the liver are more active (Yamanouchi, et al., 1995). Two hormones mainly regulate blood sugar levels in the body. These are insulin and glucagon which if not utilized and processed may result in abnormal sugar levels resulting in obesity and diabetes. In the homeostatic regulation of blood sugar levels, these peptide hormones become synthesized by the pancreas and are released into the bloodstream. Upon the release of these synthesized hormones into other organs such as the liver and adipose tissues, there will be another reaction that can be triggered by the activity or inactivity of a human being (Lee & Park, 2004) 2.You are exercising at maximal capacity (i.e. maximum heart rate and therefore oxygen carrying capacity has been reached) and the workload you are subjected to continues to increase. Which metabolic pathway would supplement the production of ATP in this setting? What metabolites (i.e. products of metabolism) would you expect to see increased in both skeletal muscle and blood, when using this metabolic pathway? There is a correlation between the increase of hormones from blood sugar metabolism and skeletal utilization of blood glucose as a fuel for energy. Glucose homeostasis is greatly affected by insulin dependent skeletal muscle glucose transport (Sinacore &

HRM And SHRM Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

HRM And SHRM - Essay Example Virgin very early realized that simple management of employees is not good enough to achieve greater success in the global market. It took the idea that investment in human element with respect to all aspects of the organization is essential for the success of the company. It integrated management of human resources into organizational strategy and has reaped tangible benefits as a result of this. Virgin took the HRM approach of designing systems, policies, and procedures to manage employees and integrated it with SHRM approach wherein human resources were seen as the key asset, extensive interest was shown and investment was made in order to meet key objectives. The approach of the group towards SHRM can be best understood by their group motto: "Our people come first†. Virgin has adopted various initiatives to ensure that their employees are managed effectively. Safe working environments are created, training is undertaken to ensure that employees are updated with the skills n eeded to handle their work, employment contracts for all staffs, and many more HRM initiatives have employed. There are other HRM systems in place such as bonuses, stock options, profit sharing, etc. Along with this Virgin have come up with numerous SHRM strategies such as recruitment criteria were in the company looks for values and character among the prospective employees that can uphold the company's brand value. Only those are selected who possess values that fit with the company's brand culture (Verma, 2006).

Cells, Tissues, Movement of Molecules & Action Potential Physiology Essay

Cells, Tissues, Movement of Molecules & Action Potential Physiology - Essay Example There is a hormonal link between the rise of blood sugar levels before and after meals. These hormones that regulate the blood sugar levels interact with other hormones within the human body such as the liver, pancreas and skeletal muscles in order to convert these sugars as fuel for the human body (Sinacore & Gulve, 1993). Exercise or activity speeds up glucose absorption by the body by burning these sugars into muscle. This is why exercise or activity is recommended for non-insulin diabetic patients. With physical activity the hormones that produce and absorb insulin in the liver are more active (Yamanouchi, et al., 1995). Two hormones mainly regulate blood sugar levels in the body. These are insulin and glucagon which if not utilized and processed may result in abnormal sugar levels resulting in obesity and diabetes. In the homeostatic regulation of blood sugar levels, these peptide hormones become synthesized by the pancreas and are released into the bloodstream. Upon the release of these synthesized hormones into other organs such as the liver and adipose tissues, there will be another reaction that can be triggered by the activity or inactivity of a human being (Lee & Park, 2004) 2.You are exercising at maximal capacity (i.e. maximum heart rate and therefore oxygen carrying capacity has been reached) and the workload you are subjected to continues to increase. Which metabolic pathway would supplement the production of ATP in this setting? What metabolites (i.e. products of metabolism) would you expect to see increased in both skeletal muscle and blood, when using this metabolic pathway? There is a correlation between the increase of hormones from blood sugar metabolism and skeletal utilization of blood glucose as a fuel for energy. Glucose homeostasis is greatly affected by insulin dependent skeletal muscle glucose transport (Sinacore &

Q8 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Q8 - Essay Example ast that everyone has difficulty keeping up with them and developing conclusive interpretations about their effects on organizations (Weitz and Shenhav 2000). The balanced-scorecard measures would help to identify advances in technology, especially computer, information, and communications technology, have presented organizations and managers with dramatic new challenges and opportunities, and researchers have been pressing to develop the theoretical and research grounding needed to understand and manage these developments. The rapid advent of computer applications, the Internet, and other forms of information and communication technology have major implications for organizations and their management, but people have trouble saying exactly what effects they have and why. As for effects on public organizations, especially until recently, research has been scarce. The rational for the balanced-scorecard is to investigate and analyze new trends in information systems application and the ir impact on communication, effects on corporate design, structure and productivity. The framework helps to explain why even very similar technological initiatives can have very different outcomes, because of different organizational and institutional influences on their implementation. Fountain also describes how such influences raise formidable challenges for successful utilization in government, given the strong, often entrenched organizational and institutional influences. These components of the framework combine to influence the way technological initiatives play out (Castellano and Young, 2006). 2. The main criteria I will use to assess the information technology are desirability and efficiency test. The objectives of the analysis are to (1) identify the main applications of information technology in a given organization; (2) analyze their impact on a corporate organization, (3) identify the main trends and factors which influence implementation of information technology and (4)

Ang Katay Essay Example for Free

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The Concept Of Balance Of Power Politics Essay

The Concept Of Balance Of Power Politics Essay When one state or alliance increases its power or apply it more aggressively, the balance of power theory is maintained. By forming a counter-balancing coalition, threatened states will increase their own power in response. The central concept in neorealist theory is Balance of power. Since Martin Wright said, the notion is notoriously full of chaos and confusion, it is difficult to provide exact definition to balance of power. The main difficulty prevails with the balance of power is that there are too many meanings associated with it. Nevertheless, the indispensable idea is very simple but when the principle is applied to the international relations, the concept of power means that with the help of shifting alliances and countervailing pressures, not a single power or mixture of powers will be allowed to become strong enough to threaten the security of the rest of the world according to Perkins and Palmer. In order to be more effective, identification and sensing of threats from th e neighboring countries and rebels is an essential need for applying the balance of power effectively. A balance of power can be formed by multiple states when alliances are fluid, for instance when they are formed easily or broken on the basis of practicality by not taking into consideration form of government, history, religion or values. Shifting its support to oppose whichever alliance or state is strongest, a single state occasionally plays the role of a balancer. In the 18th and 19th centuries, specifically in its relations with Germany, Russia and France, this role was played by Britain in Europe (Williams, Andrew 2004). By matching their increases in military capability, two states can balance against each other. Both the United States and the Soviet Union expanded their nuclear arsenals to balance against each other in the cold war. The complexity of measuring power is one weak point of the balance of power. From the size of its land mass, level of technology and population, the states power ultimately derives its power. Nevertheless, this potential power translates into mili tary capability in a flawed manner. There is a dependence on such elements of luck, geography, morale and leadership with the effective use of military force. Throughout history in various regions of the world, there are found some historical examples of power balancing. For instance, through a constantly shifting network of alliances, these Chinese states pursued power (China Superpower, 2010). (2) Evaluate how effective power balancing is, in practice, toward preserving peace. Without the Soviet threat, the United States, as the dominant world power, would face difficulties in its relations with such states as the European powers and china and the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the worlds sole superpower (The Globalist: June 2, 2010). The ever changing nature of power, in the present-day international system further complicated the operation of the global balance of power. For the smaller states, the internet, Globalization, weapons of mass destruction and other developments of technology have made them acquire power in a significant manner. Even though, the balance of power is less applicable to conflicts involving other non state groups and terrorists, the balance of power may continue to operate among other states which are engaged in prolonged disputes in the future. In the present study of international relations for the past five hundred years, the balance of power played a prime role in achieving power and peace and for the past five hundred years, the balance of power has been a central concept and practice of international relations. Liberalism also plays an important part here and it carries a legacy of international imprudence (Hume, David. 1752). The purpose of the balance of power is to put in place to explain the situation where states will ally themselves to prevent the domination of one state upon others and peace will obviously be preserved by effective balancing of power and by matching their increase in military capability, two states can balance against each other. (Shubhya pandey, 16th March, 2009). Early intervention will often be more cheaper and effective than late intervention, if security is now better procured than defended. Before they have the time to gain momentum and focus, the threats to security should be addressed. References: 1. Williams, Andrew (2004). D-Day to Berlin. Hodder Stoughton. ISBNÂ  0340833971 2. . China Superpower (PDF). http://www.casaasia.es/pdf/9200595422AM1127202862621.pdf. Retrieved 2010-08-27 3. The Globalist June 2, 2010 cite: An Insecure Foothold for the United States; Russia is certainly still a superpower comparable only to the United States 4. Hume, David. 1752/1963. Of the Balance of Power, Essays: Moral, Political, and Literary. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 346-347. 5.Shubhya pandey (16th March, 2009) Balance of Power in International Relations, article Student Semester IV, Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur 7. List and describe some of the major multilateral attempts at arms control and disarmament. How effective have these attempts been in the past? How effective are they likely to be in the future? Do you believe that agreements of this kind will play a significant role in stemming nuclear proliferation to rogue states and terrorists? Why or why not? Arms control and disarmament are not the same. The objective of arms control is to limit weapons in certain selective and agreed methods with regard to certain aspects like transparency, lethality, range and quantity while the latter aims at the destruction of certain types of weapons capable of wreaking mass destruction. The entire globe sought to eliminate all types of weapons of mass destruction which are chemical arms, biological and nuclear and the use of multiple types of conventional weapons apart from their production and sale are sought to be controlled by the world after their bitter experience post the two world wars (Conventional weapons, 2004, p.36). The term general and complete disarmament means the elimination of all weapons of mass destruction or WMD along with the balanced reduction of conventional armaments and balanced reduction of armed forces which is based on the principle of undiminished security of the parties along with a purpose of promoting or improving st ability at a lower military level after taking into account the requirement of all States to protect their security and achieve peace and stability (Speech, 2002). Besides being supported by an implementing institution, a regime is a multilateral arrangement governing either the elimination or control of certain weapons. On the prohibition of bacteriological weapons and poisonous gas to which Canada became a signatory on 6th May 1930, the inter-war period was also witness to the Geneva Protocol, 1925 (Canadian Reference Guide to the United Nations. Ottawa, 1994). Until April 1975, the protocol introduced by the United States was not endorsed by the Senate of United States. The General assembly of the United Nations called for the total elimination of atomic weapons and use the atomic energy for peaceful purposes and it was the foremost resolution passed by the General assembly of the United nations (World Military Expenditures and Arms Transfers 1996). But all these attempts were not full effective as some countries of the world are still continuing to produce weapons of mass destruction under the pretext of security reasons and have not been fully cooperative in destroying weapons of mass destruction completely. Treaties were signed seeking to eliminate and prevent the production of weapons of mass destruction which include the treaty of Non-proliferation of Nuclear weapons and the Biological weapons convention and the Chemical Weapons Convention. In order to promote their WMD non proliferation goals which include the Nuclear Suppliers Group and the Zangger committee, Wassenaar Arrangement (for dual-use goods and conventional arms), the Missile Technology Control Regime and the Hague Code of Conduct (for missiles) and the Australia Group (for chemical and biological weapons), some countries of the world have decided to establish various non-binding suppliers regimes. How effective are they likely to be in the future? In the future, these measures are not going to be effective unless universal application of multilateral disarmament treaties are promoted and its awareness is created for both the Government and its citizens, improving compliance with the commitments of treaty, improving transparency (Some countries fear that reporting of possessions of WMD might compromise on their diplomatic goals or security, strengthening verification by effectively implementing intrusive inspections, vigorous accounting methods and physical security and at the same time not compromising legitimate defence secrets. The development of a politically binding code of conduct was proposed by Netherlands in 2002 when it chaired the Missile Technology control Regime. For this purpose, several international meetings were organized by the European Union (The Netherlands, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,ICOC Background information, 2002). In spite of all these attempts, the lack of public understanding of the contribution of treaties to international security makes non-proliferation education and disarmament a compelling priority. There is a concentration of specialized knowledge only in a very few ministries or in some governments lack the knowledge altogether. Preoccupations with other pressing issues and conflicting priorities faced by many developing countries in areas like internal conflicts, environmental challenges, economic development, health needs and poverty have reduced the effectiveness of these treaties and control and still a long way is to go in order to implement the measures effectively. Do you believe that agreements of this kind will play a significant role in stemming nuclear proliferation to rogue states and terrorists? Why or why not? I do believe that Agreements and treaties arms control and disarmament will play a significant role in stemming nuclear proliferation to rogue states and terrorists only if cooperation prevails among the nations of the world and by maintaining good relations and key contributions are made by the parliaments which has the prime major responsibilities for enacting implementing legislation under the relevant disarmament and arms control treaties apart from the effective role played by the United Nations as they face multiple challenges with regard to the promotion of is armament . Unless collective efforts are put forth by all the nations of the world, any treaty or measures of arms control will not work and remain a challenge and problem forever to be faced by all the countries over the globe. References: 1. Conventional weapons are weapons that are not WMD; see UNIDIR 2004, p. 36. 2. The Netherlands, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ICOC Background information, http://www.minbuza.nl, 2002. 3. Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. Canadian Reference Guide to the United Nations. Ottawa, 1994. 4. U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency. World Military Expenditures and Arms Transfers 1996. Washington, 1997. 8. International relations theorists disagree about the propensity for states to balance versus bandwagon. On the one hand, some theorists claim that states form counter-alliances against the powerful to prevent any one state from achieving hegemony over everyone else. On the other hand, a second group of theorists claim that states tend to gravitate toward the powerful, joining the strongest rather than participating in a blocking coalition. Which claim do you believe is best supported by the historical evidence? Explain your answer. Striking an alliance with powerful nations to fulfill the concerns of security was followed by many countries since the North Atlantic Treaty Organization or NATO which is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on 4th April 1949((The official Emblem of NATO,2008). A system of collective defence whereby its member states agree to mutual defence to an attack by any external party is constituted by the organization. Even though some theorists claim that states form counter alliances against the powerful to prevent any one state from achieving control over everyone else, the story has always been on the other side. The countries of the world normal strike alliances with the powerful countries for their own security reasons. For example, Israel always lean on the United States for its support instead of maintaining cordial relations with its neighbours. Even during the gulf war many European nations like the United Kingdom, France and Italy joined hands with the United states in waging war in the Persian gulf against Iraq which did not get any support even from its own neighboring countries. The second group of theorists who claim that states have a tendency to gravitate towards the powerful joining the stronger rather than participating in a blocking coalition and this claim is valid as a lot of historical data is available to support this kind of theory. For instance even during the post world war time, in 1954, South Korea formed an alliance with the United States of America and South Korea signed the ROK/U.S Mutual Security Agreement in which they agreed to defend each other in the event of aggression by outside nations (Manwoo Lee,1988,pp. 35-36). Even during the war waged in Afghanistan after the September 11 terrorist attacks on United States, Pakistan supported United States because of security concerns. The major reason why most of the nations of the world depend on the United States is that in recent years it has been the most formidable military power in recent years and its spending levels is the principle determinant of world military spending and recent increases are connected to the so-called war on Terror and the Afghanistan and the Iraq invasions. Japan struck an alliance with the United States of America because it feels that its presence in the western pacific is very much important to the regions peace and stability (Jusuf Wanandi, 1997). Rather than adopting leniency and initiating collective efforts to prevent the disaster of war in the gulf, numerous countries were on the side of the United States in its war against Iraq including Saudi Arabia. Many countries like the United Kingdom and France even went to the extent of spending huge sums of money for the military operations in the gulf. Many countries in the Southeast Asia feel that the transformation of Southeast Asia as a region of stability could not have been achieved in such a quick manner without the help of the United States (Straits Times,1997). Therefore the second claim of the theorists who stated that the states tend to gravitate toward the powerful, joining the strongest rather than participating in a blocking coalition were right in their perspective. Reference: 1. The official Emblem of NATO. NATO. http://www.nato.int/multi/natologo.htm. Retrieved 20 February 2008 2. Manwoo Lee, et.al. Alliance under Tension: the Evolution of South Korean-U.S. Relations (Boulder, Co.: West view Press, 1988), pp. 35-36. 3. Jusuf Wanandi, Time for Japan to rethink its regional and global role, Straits Times, 27 August 1997 4. Straits Times, 20 November 1997. 9. Assess the concepts of direct opposition and competition as described in the textbook. Do you believe that instances of either competition (which seems to approximate the situation leading up to both World Wars I and II) or direct opposition (which the textbook applies to the Cold War) are more preferable in terms of ensuring international stability? Are they equally useful (or useless) toward achieving this end? Do you believe that the future of world politics will be characterized more by competition of some kind (as suggested in the textbook) or by a renewed form of direct opposition (potentially between the United States and China)? Given your earlier arguments, what ramifications might this have for international stability? Support your arguments with evidence. Assess the concepts of direct opposition and competition as described in the textbook. Do you believe that instances of either competition (which seems to approximate the situation leading up to both World Wars I and II) or direct opposition (which the textbook applies to the Cold War) are more preferable in terms of ensuring international stability? The relationship that developed first and foremost between the United States of America (USA) and the Union of Soviet socialist Republic (USSR) was given the name cold war because the two was always at loggerheads with regard to the domination of international affairs (The origins of the Cold War, 2004). The term was used to describe their relationship from 1945 to 1980. They fought for their beliefs using client states who were fighting for their beliefs on their behalf because these two superpowers did not trust each other. Since times immemorial, the competitive rivalry among nations is largely attributed to the uneven distribution of resources across the world to a great extent. Nations have been working hard to control resources and not merely to develop their geographical extent of colonialism from the age of exploration to the two world wars and from the Middle East to the west. For the purpose of determining a nations strategic direction apart from helping the nation outperform its rival through gaining the competitive, geopolitics highlights about the spatial analysis in terms of social sciences, politics and geography. Due to healthy competition among the nations of the world, the importance of world resources have been highlighted by Mackinders Heartland Theory in the year 1904 (The Geographical Journal, 2004). Huge concentration is made on the co-existence of nations through their mutual economic interdependence by the modern geopolitics even though it does not necessarily talk about power shi fts. Healthy competitions therefore make the nations to realize their potential and awareness about their resources and this in one way can be utilized to maintain cordial relationship with other countries by helping the other countries by mutual exchange of resources. Are they equally useful (or useless) toward achieving this end? The outcomes or effects of competition of some kind will be favorable for international stability. This is supported by the fact that a favorable environment has been created for export diversification and competitiveness in sub-Saharan Africa and many African countries concentrated on getting the essentials economic management in the right way (Borner, S., Brunetti, A. and Weder, B., 1995). In order to reduce their debt and controlling inflation and putting in place sustainable fiscal policies, they worked together. All these happened due to the healthy competition which prevailed among these nations and fostered a good relationship between them (Sachs, J. and Warner, A., 1996). Do you believe that the future of world politics will be characterized more by competition of some kind (as suggested in the textbook) or by a renewed form of direct opposition (potentially between the United States and China)? I do therefore believe that the world of future politics will be characterized more by competition of some kind in comparison to a renewed form of direct opposition because in a direct opposition healthy competition can never take place. For instance when it comes to China and the United States of America, China always opposed the United States power politics, hegemonism and unipolar strategy and vice versa even though both of them have relatively mature ideas, tactics, policies and strategies on the global configuration of international order and power (Peter Grier and James N. Thurnman, 1999). On the other hand, if these two countries nurture a healthy competition and foster good relationship, it will be beneficial for them apart from the rest of the world. Majority of the other countries of the world also favour this. Given your earlier arguments, what ramifications might this have for international stability? Support your arguments with evidence. Right from the historical periods, economic inequalities have existed in a wide range of societies and the negative phenomenon arising out of economic inequality can be removed only with a healthy competition between the nations of the world. Healthy competition may also pave the way for the trade liberalization which will shift economic inequality from a global to a domestic scale where low skilled workers in poorer countries will see higher wages. Therefore international stability can be achieved globally by healthy competitions among the nations. International trade is promoted and significant benefits arise out of this. In concurrence with comparative advantage, it allows numerous countries to specialize. Considerable gains of efficiency may arise out of this. Severe competition takes place only out of trade which breaks down institutional impediments to change and promotes innovation. The advantages of the utilization of increased returns to scale is further provided by trade. A ll these facts were realized by many countries of the world after the post war era. Under the sponsorship of the GATT (General Agreements on Tariffs and Trade), numerous tariffs relating to international trade was introduced after several rounds of negotiations and it lead to successful trade liberalization in the developed nations (Jacob Kol and L.B.M. Mennes, 1990).

Tolstoys Three Hermits Essay -- essays research papers fc

Between 1875 and 1877, Leo Tolstoy, nobility by birth, wrote installments of Anna Karenina. While writing Anna Karenina,† he became obsessed with the meaning and purpose of life. This led Tolstoy to compose the essay, My Confession, detailing his agonizing religious and moral self-examination, published in 1882. He devoted another three years to the discovery of the meaning and purpose of life. At the close of the seven years of only non-fiction essays, Tolstoy resumed writing and publishing fictional works. However, he did write two more essays devoted to the meaning of life, What Then Must We Do (1886) and The Kingdom of God is Within You (1892). Tolstoy, in 1886 wrote a particularly intriguing tale of a bishop and three old men, The Three Hermits,† which reflects Tolstoy’s search for purpose and the meaning of life. The Three Hermits is a journey, both physical and spiritual, similar to Tolstoy’s faith journey. â€Å"A bishop was sailing from Archangel to the Solovetsk Monastery, and on the same vessel were a number of pilgrims on their way to visit the shrine at that place†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Tolstoy, p. 1). The story goes on to say that a fisherman on board relayed the tale of the three hermits who live on an island near where they currently were sailing. The Bishop becomes very curious, and insists upon meeting the hermits. The other pilgrims protest at the idea of stopping. The captain also objects and informs the bishop, â€Å"The old men are not worth your pains. I have heard said that they are foolish old fellows, who understand nothing, and never speak a word, any more than the fish in the sea† (Tolstoy, p.3). This passage makes an ironic point. The pilgrims travel to Solovetsk, home of a monastery considered one of the holy places in Russia, to pay homage and receive Godâ€⠄¢s favor, yet they are unwilling to learn from people close to God, much like the people of Tolstoy’s time, too wrapped up in the church’s doctrine to see the way to God. Tolstoy wrote in Repent ye, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at Hand, a chapter of The Kingdom of God is Within You that Christians must aspire to the Kingdom of God, not the kingdoms of the world, meaning that the idols and relics of the church are worthless, people should instead visit God through meaningful prayer, good deeds, and work. The tale continues on to say, â€Å"the cable was quickly let out, the anchor cast and the sails furled†¦ Then... ...rought to life in a fable. The Three Hermits span time in understanding the journey to the meaning of life. To this day, the puzzle never has been solved and may never be solved. In the immortal words of Tolstoy, â€Å"If you are content with the old world, try to preserve it, it is very sick and cannot hold out much longer. But if you cannot bear to live in everlasting dissonance between your beliefs and your life, thinking one thing and doing another, get out of the medieval witted sepulchers, and face your fears. I know very well it is not easy† (The Anarchist Library, p.1). Works Cited Tolstoy, Leo. The Three Hermits. Democritus University of Thrace. 8 January 2000 . Leo Tolstoy. The Anarchist Library. 12 January 2000 . Forster, Stephen. The Gulag's Archipelago. 12 January 2000 . Crosswalk.com: Bible Study Tools. Crosswalk.com Network. 14 January 2000 . â€Å"Tolstoy, Leo.† World Book. Chicago: World Book Inc., 1998.

Organization “in the News” Analysis Paper Essay

Company Overview Research in Motion, (RIM), is â€Å"a global leader in wireless innovation, (which) revolutionized the mobile industry with the introduction of the BlackBerry solution in 1999† [ (Research In Motion, 2011) ]. While RIM has no publically available mission statement [ (missionstudy, 2009) ], we can deduct the following: 1) From the aforementioned description, they are committed to innovation. 2) From the article we will discuss later on, they are seeking to strengthen relationships with developers 3) From past history, reputation, and numerous achieved certification; they wish to provide a highly secure means of communication through mobile devices While it is not possibly to quantify most of RIM’s operational goals we can try to establish what they may entail. A recent interview with new CEO Thorsten Heins points towards having their operative goals built around having an innovative culture that involves employees and develops them and having a top 3 market share globall y in the mobile market [ (BlackBerry, 2012) ]. Furthermore, they are also very focused on reducing their costs which is demonstrated by their announcement of a core optimization program and CORE on June 16, 2011. These programs were meant to analyze the companies’ procedures and cut out overhead and redundancy [ (Research In Motion, 2011) ]. RIM’s competitors have been highly publicized and are listed by Yahoo Finance to be Nokia, Google, and Apple [ (Yahoo! Inc., 2012) ]. With RIM being in the mobile market, their consumer base is very broad selling to the general market. With such an advanced device the list of suppliers is vast as they need to provide all the parts from glass to processing chips and these suppliers are located around the world. Lastly, their key partners  are mobile companies large and small such as Verizon, Sprint, Vodafone, and Orange. Having previously worked at RIM for a year I know these statements to be fact. Article Importance and Recap RIM is currently going through relatively tough times exemplified by, â€Å"collapsing market share† [ (Isaac, 2012) ] and their declining stock value. RIM’s shares were being traded mostly between the $14 and $17 range per share in the month of February to date compared to $144 a share in the summer of 2008 [ (Google, 2012) ]. As recently as 2009, RIM accounted for half of the US smartphone market share [ (Gardner, 2009) ], but latest reports have them only accounting for 6.5% of the US market [ (Miller, 2011) ]. This fall from grace from the once dominant organization of the mobile space creates interest from a wide range of stakeholders. Consumers are interested as many have used RIM products in the past and investors are interested as they have gained and lost many dollars from the organization. As the mobile space is a very broad market it means that there is going to be many opinionated individuals for very different reasons. Because of RIM’s high profile and past and present penetration in the general population, a new business strategy is very newsworthy and is something people will talk about. Mike Isaac’s article, â€Å"RIM Claws Back Against Apple and Google With Free Tablets,† covers RIM’s decision to give android app developers free playbook tablets so long as they make their app available on the Playbook ecosystem [ (Isaac, 2012) ]. The article starts with a quote from Nokia CEO Stephen Elop who describes the importance of a platform’s ecosystem or in layman’s terms the amount of apps built for a platform. It further describes the relative lack of apps RIM has compared to Android, the Google platform, and iOS, the Apple platform. After stating the previously mentioned new strategy being employed by RIM, the article describes the reason for such aggressive tactics. The article lists the sales of RIM’s Blackberry playbook tablet being very disappointing, calling it a flop, as the main reason. The article lastly lists the other strategies that RIM has been employing to encourage app development citing extreme price cuts and Playbook’s virtual android environment which allows android apps to be easily transferred over to the Playbook. This is only possible due to the Android platform being an open OS meaning anyone can develop on it including  competitors. With an organizational theory perspective, this article best articulates a manifestation of 2 important concepts in the mobile market: 1) A resource based approach of assessing organizational effectives with apps and app developers being the scarce resource of note 2) A description of the organizational ecosystem being that of ‘population ecology’. This is demonstrated by the possible compatibility of Android and RIM platforms and the selection process of the market that is still happening most notably with the abandonment of HP’s webOS Resource Based Approach of Organizational Effectiveness The resource based approach to measuring organizational effectiveness focuses solely on an organizations ability to obtain scarce or key resources. The key measures of this approach are: * Ability to perceive and interpret the external environment * Ability to respond to environmental change * Bargaining position While RIM’s ability to obtain manufacturing resources is not being questioned, its ability to lure app developers and garner app creation is being put to the test. The tablet market itself is still maturing only having 19% penetration rate in the US and it is growing rapidly [ (Kopp, 2012) ]. RIM entered the market much later then their competitors with apple having released 2 iterations of their iPad before playbook had their initial launch. Currently, the iPad accounts for 57% of the market much due to the early release dates it had over competitors [ (Warner, 2012) ]. The rather quick emergence of the market may have exploited RIM to have a relatively slow response rate to changes in the environment as even when they did launch, the common perception of the playbook was that it was an unfinished product [ (Stevens, 2011) ]. Such offers as cutting their prices dramatically, and giving away playbooks to developers also proves that RIM currently has very little bargaining posi tion with those developers and they have to go to extremes in order to get traction on their development. By all definitions, this means that RIM is proving to be an ineffective organization by a resource based approach of assessments. If these aggressive measures are effective, the need for them will shrink as time goes on. The tactics are geared towards both increasing consumer bases to  create higher earning potential for developers and to encourage more app development with one time offers. More app development will mean higher adoption rates for consumers and the cycle goes on like this. This is in essence what RIM is trying to create; a snowball to roll down a mountain hoping momentum will take over at one point to create an avalanche. Although RIM currently stands as ineffective at collecting these resources, it is clear that they are trying hard to overcome their current shortcoming in assembling an ecosystem. Although a resource based approach still has the weakness of assuming a stable environment, which is far from the truth in the technological markets, it is actually a much more relevant measure to this situation then it would be to others. Usually a resource based approach lacks the consideration of consumer needs; in this case the scarce resource is created because of consumer needs. The ecosystem of the device became as important as the device itself in the tablet market. As an ecosystem doesn’t directly reflect internal processes or goal oriented approaches of assessment, a resource based approach is very effective in evaluating the creation of a value proposition to consumers in the tablet market. As the article stated, â€Å"a tablet is only as good as the apps it runs† [ (Isaac, 2012) ]. The Organizational Ecosystem An organizational ecosystem can be described by the nature of the interactions between organizations with the environment and each other [ (Daft & Armstrong, 2009) ]. The ecosystem can be described by its interorganizational framework which is defined by how similar the organizations are to each other and whether they act competitively or cooperatively with each other [ (Daft & Armstrong, 2009) ]. Analyzing the current mobile market, it is apparent that the functions each of the platforms have are very similar some apps being available across all platforms and each having very similar functions. The only differentiation there is within the market is the platform they are on, and the form factor of the tablets. Because of the similarity in the tablets across the platforms, it can safely be assumed that the organizations are similar to each other. However, since the differentiation involves different platforms, it also means that they are acting competitively towards each other. While some platforms are very proprietary like iOS and Blackberry, Android is open  source allowing for anyone to develop on it. Certain apps are only available on one device or another and they do not generally share their apps with each other. This is much different if everyone was on one platform and they were being differentiated solely on the tablet hardware. In this circumstance they are pooling their scarce resources of app development and creation in the effort to create a much greater app library and stronger ecosystem. Currently they are each trying to produce their own ecosystems. Since this is the case, it can also be concluded that the companies are competitive towards each other. With both factors being determined, we can refer to the organizational framework know that the current tablet market is that of ‘population ecology’. ‘Population ecology’ market is defined by: * The emergence of new models to meet consumer needs * The process of ecological change including variation, the appearance of a new population of organization; selection, whether an organization can survive in the environment; and retention, the preservation and institutionalization of organizational forms * The choice of pursuing the general market or a niche within that market meaning being a generalist or specialist respectively The iPad was the first mainstream tablet to have emerged with a market launch date of April 3, 2010 [ (Apple, 2010) ]. This was the first emergence of a tablet business model which was very much an extension of the mobile model but with a new class of product. The tablet is a device that is small in design but has similar functionalities then a laptop. This more portable form factor was the identification of consumer needs. However, since this launch almost 2 years ago, 4 new OS’s of note have emerged being that of Blackberry OS, Android, WebOS and Windows OS. The key question to ask is how many OS’s can survive in the tablet market. If it is anything like the smartphone market, it is closer to 3 or 4 as demonstrated by market share [ (Smith, 2012) ]. With the emergence of 4 new OS’s and the original iOS this means that eventually one of these would have to default. On August 18th 2011 it was confirmed that WebOS would be the ill fated platform [ (Kumparak, 2011) ]. As WebOS was selected out by the market, it provided a little breathing room for RIM with the quickly expanding market and less competition. To avoid the same fate as WebOS, RIM is actively trying to work on creating their ecosystem as described in the  last section. The emergence of an open OS platform as Android also provided it opportunity to adapt their platform to try and include Android apps as well. Both of these tactics are described in the article. What’s Missing? While the article extensively covers a resource based approach of assessing an organizational effectiveness and describes the organizational ecosystem, it fails to well define the environmental uncertainty. It doesn’t consider the broader picture of the market and it could be made more in depth with the addition of an analysis of the environmental framework. Furthermore, it has a very micro approach focusing only on the struggles of RIM with app developers. The environment is a huge factor in technological companies and it could illustrate how important the right decisions are to future success and the wrong decisions to complete failure. To analyze the environmental framework we have to see two key factors: * The stability of the environment meaning the speed of change * The complexity of the environment As previously described, the tablet market is rapidly expanding and it is only 2 years old. Combine this with RIM’s dramatic change in market share over the past 3 years it strongly indicated that the environment is quick changing. The complexity of the environment can also be defined as complex one. This can be proven by RIM having to worry about not only manufacturing resources, and app development, but also the extensive testing they must complete in order for their devices to be compliant with regulations. With many different radio bands, Bluetooth compatibilities, wifi bands, java compliance, throughput testing, and active pursuit in both hardware and software, RIM has to deal with an endless amount of variables. The hardware alone would contain a list of suppliers that are wide but then they must further ensure that all the radio frequencies are properly calibrated and the software works seamlessly amidst the global demands of their products. The article called them a flop even though they had shipped in the hundreds of thousands of devices in 2011 [ (Isaac, 2012) ]. What this means to RIM is that even though they may be down on market share, the market can easily turn in their favor. However, this also means that the market can select them out. The high uncertainty described of the environment is the sword  that decides whether RIM will prosper or die. The article does briefly describe the release of BB10, which is RIM’s new OS to be released later this year. However, it doesn’t emphasize that it would be the newest OS on the market and it was able to create the OS in a year and a half years [ (BlackBerry, 2012) ]. With the unstable environment, this means that it could very well be the basis for which their future will be decided upon. The article has a gloomy outlook on RIM’s future but also concludes with â€Å"perhaps it can find its way back to a seat at the mobile ecosystem table.† Thi s last statement would be better reinforced with an environmental analysis. Bibliography Apple. (2010, March 5). iPad Available in US on April 3. Retrieved from Apple Press Info: http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2010/03/05iPad-Available-in-US-on-April-3.html BlackBerry. (2012, January 22). Meet Thorsten Heins the New President and CEO of Research In Motion. Retrieved from Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUFwhpcrCTw Daft, R. L., & Armstrong, A. (2009). Organization Theory & Design. Toronto: Nelson Education Ltd. Gardner, W. D. (2009, August 19). RIM Owns Half Of U.S. Smartphone Market. Retrieved from InformationWeek: http://www.informationweek.com/news/personal-tech/smart-phones/219400707 Google. (2012, February 14). Research In Motion Limited (USA). Retrieved from Google Finance: https://www.google.com/finance?client=ob&q=NASDAQ:RIMM Isaac, M. (2012, February 3). RIM Claws Back Against Apple and Google With Free Tablets. Retrieved from Wired: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/02/rim-ecosystems-blackberry-playbook/ Kopp, C. (2012, January 24). Tablets, E-Readers Double Market Penetration, Says Report. Retrieved from minyanville: http://www.minyanville.com/businessmarkets/articles/megaupload-anonymous-kim-dotcom-filesonic-tablets/1/24/2012/id/38996 Kumparak, G. (2011, August 18). It’s Official: HP Kills Off w

Why I Teach

Why Teach? Alisha Anderson Grand Canyon University: EDU 576 March 6, 2013 Why teach? I believe that it was meant for me to become a teacher. I have a passion for learning, and I will make my classroom an adventure of learning. A teacher of the year also from Mississippi, Wynona Herchenhahn (2009) indicated that she was a product of good teachers, and I also think that I had many influences coming from great parents and teachers. I love teaching students, they bring out my best values.I like how teachers have the power to change students’ lives to guide them in the right educational path, and that is what I want to do. The person that has inspired me to become a teacher is my mother, Mrs. Jessie Mae Ayers. She has been teaching at the same private school since 1983. She has taught pre-k (3 year olds), 5th -8th graders, and now she has been a librarian since 2004. I would like to be a kindergarten teacher it is the foundation of a student education, and I will like to be the eff ective teacher that starts that journey.I have worked three years as a kindergarten assistant and five years as a pre-k (four year olds) assistant at a public school. I have a love and respect for students; that I can use to build a solid learning community. Christine Gleason and Cynthia Cole Rigsbee (2009), implies that the greatest award is knowing that they made a difference in their student’s life, and that is what I hope to accomplish. References The Council of Chief State School Officers 2009 Teachers of the Year. (2009). Retrieved from http://pearsonfoundation. org/ccsso-toy/2009/index. html

Did the Global Capital Markets Fail Mexico?

If the Mexican economy had not been overly dependent on investments from the United States, it might have saved itself from crashing when the U. S. economy went through dramatic changes. Then again, Mexico was not adept at marketing its investments in any case. Perfect markets rely on perfect information while imperfect information is a form of market failure. Of course, Mexico had not provided sufficient information about long-term investment to American investors. As the example of the United States’ current account deficit reveals, Mexico was not hurt by its current account deficit alone.Rather, the country should have worked to perfect its market for long-term investments to save itself from the crash. In fact, Mexico is entitled to long-term investments from countries besides the United States, too, if it seeks to provide perfect information to foreign investors. With the advent of the Internet, this has become relatively simple. It was not the global capital markets that failed Mexico. Rather, Mexico failed itself. One of the reasons for investors pulling out their capital from Mexico was political upheaval in the country.Mexico did not only need to provide perfect information about long-term investments to foreign investors, but also knowledge about managing the political risks faced by investors at the time. Hedging is a way to manage such political risks. As an example, a foreign investor may obtain insurance from the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency of the World Bank. The insurance may provide covers against civil disturbance, war, expropriation, in addition to currency transfers.National insurance companies – run by the government – may similarly be approached by a foreign investor to obtain cover for risks that arise from non-payment (Frenkel, Karmann, & Scholtens, 2004, p. 20). The Mexican government should have promoted such insurance companies at the time. In fact, information about hedging as a political risk managem ent tool should have been considered a part of perfect information for a perfect market of investments. What is more, perfecting a market thus should have been considered a major step toward further development of Mexico.

How diversity and multiculturalism affects my daily life Essay

How diversity and multiculturalism affects my daily life - Essay Example ing unique experiences and characteristics to the work force thus resulting in a diverse work force that is able to accomplish all the tasks effectively (Barni & Extra, 2008). Diversity and multiculturalism affects different facets of my life in the work place. First, it affects my communication ability. Due to a diverse work force, I have to advocate equal respect to the various cultures within the workplace. I have to handle each case differently so as to appear neutral and fair. Sometimes, I am forced to practice correct pronunciation of each of the colleague’s full name for each of them to feel included and not discriminated against. I have to enforce effective communication because different cultures receive information in messages through different ways and lack of effective communication can lead to great challenges (Steinberg, 2009). Diversity and multiculturalism makes me enquire more cultural information about the communities we serve so at to better our interactions with them. My knowledge of the cultural differences as well as my ability to demonstrate respect for those differences has resulted in increased rapport. Secondly, diversity and multiculturalism makes advocate teamwork within the task force. I often encourage fellow Sheriffs to work together for a common cause. It enables me to make a conscious effort in my mind in each situation to treat all people and segment of society fairly and objectively. I usually incorporate elements of inclusion and diversity and strict stance on harassment s well as intolerance for any form of discrimination. I daily advocate a policy of encouraging the maintenance of cultural diversity within the work force. Thirdly, it affects how I treat people. I often direct my effort towards building coalitions with people of different race, class, gender, home language, sexual orientation, and so on. This has helped in providing valuable relationships for collaborative problem-solving as well as feedback. Fourthly, it

Education and Social Mobility Aspects in Dickens's Nicholas Nickelby Essay

Education and Social Mobility Aspects in Dickens's Nicholas Nickelby - Essay Example Dickens obviously was happy that his attack on the kind of schoolmasters of the time typified by Squeers had hit its mark, and here we have an instance of an author who has found social authority. After the success of Pickwick Papers, Dickens was secure in the knowledge that he could become an established writer, but that he wanted to become a novelist was decided at the time of Nicholas Nickleby, as Chesterton so eloquently points out: 'It must be remembered that before this issue of Nicholas Nickleby his work, successful as it was, had not been such as to dedicate him seriously or irrevocably to the writing of novels. He had already written three books; and at least two of them are classed among the novels under his name..... the Sketches by Boz, The Pickwick Papers, and Oliver Twist......Had he continued along this line all his books might very well have been note-books......We might have lost all Dickens's novels; we might have lost altogether Dickens the novelist....All his books might have been Sketches by Boz. But he did turn away from this, and the turning-point is Nicholas Nickleby'. (Chesterton, 1911) Thus, Nicholas Nickleby became the ... struggle he had to make to reach eminence as a writer, his work also became a voice that decried all that was ill with education and the issues involving social mobility during his time, and from his public activities in both these areas, we can see that he realises that power and authority, and wields it consciously in his writing. As Cairns says of Dickens and his contemporaries in his work Figures of Finance Capitalism: Writing, Class, and Capital in the Age of Dickens : 'Professional novelists became not only providers of relatively lucrative cultural products, but also voices of great social authority, and representatives of that middle-class wisdom and success ..... The novel became a locus of middle-class symbolic power....'(Cain, 2003) 2.1 Personal Background To understand Dickens's treatment of the issues involving education and social mobility in Victorian society, one needs to understand the influences on him at various periods of his life, and the environment which made him what he was. Born to a genteel family lineage, Dickens had an early encounter with poverty, and simultaneous fall in social status. In 1824, when barely twelve, he was taken away from school, separated from his family and packed off to labour in a North London shoe-dye factory as a consequence of his father's financial incompetence. Even though he could escape the squalor within a year owing to a windfall inheritance, the experience he went through during this time was to become a life-defining moment for him. The trials he went through at this factory had a profoundly psychological effect on him: 'In the entire district there was not a single boy whom the sensitive Charles could have accepted as a playmate. His own room was a miserable garret overlooking a damp, malodorous court.