Investigating how much the 5 pence minimum charge on local calls increases the cost of making local calls Essays

Researching how much the 5 pence least charge on neighborhood considers builds the expense of making nearby calls Essays Examining how much the 5 pence least charge on neighborhood considers expands the expense of making nearby calls Essay Examining how much the 5 pence least charge on neighborhood considers expands the expense of making nearby calls Essay The point of this coursework is to find how much the 5 pence least charge (to cite BT: the base charge for each call stays at 5p comprehensive of VAT) on nearby considers expands the expense of making neighborhood calls. This data would then be utilized to find out in the case of moving to a phone administrator without a base charge would be a smart thought. In the event that moving would set aside cash, at that point it would merit doing. Positively, investigating the current charge, it appears as though there are numerous calls under 5 minutes (as nearby rates are 1 pence every moment during the night and end of the week and the telephone is constantly turned off during the daytime). Information Collection The populace is the aggregate of neighborhood calls made during 3-month time frame. This populace is shaped on account of the parade of just one separated bill, which happens to be from first of November to the first of February. The current phone administrator is BT. This bill (for example the populace) records 886 calls, with an all out term of 30 hours, 38 minutes and 57 seconds. The total expense for this period is à ¯Ã¢ ¿Ã¢ ½50.30 (to the closest 2 d.p., before VAT). The populace is ceaseless on the grounds that time can be given to any number of decimal spots. The information is sullen as exact as it is conceivable to be just untraceable PC bugs could clarify mistakes. As PC issues are improbable for an enormous global firm, for example, BT, we can believe the information inside the populace to be dependable and acceptable quality. An example strategy fitting here could be irregular inspecting. A case of this may be marking 886 bits of paper, tossing them into a cap and choosing 50. Likewise, a PC could be utilized to choose 50 irregular whole number numbers in the scope of 0 and 887. Such an arbitrary strategy would anyway give no sign of whether the term of brings stayed steady after some time. Arbitrary examining may permit a specific bunch of calls to overwhelm the general pattern. Separated inspecting would not be suitable for the examination since we need to discover the quantity of 5-minute calls, not simply select a specific number of them. This testing strategy would be helpful for a sub-examination, for instance to perceive how much impact the more than 5-minute calls make to the charging by just choosing the more than 5-minute calls and evaluating their greatness. Another method of testing is select each x call, where x is the consequence of 886/50 adjusted down to the closest entire whole number. This would mean account the call term for each seventeenth call (in light of the fact that 886/50 = 17.72). This will create more that 50 examples, in any case, 50 is a base not a most extreme. As the information is most likely exact, there can't be any outliners. If it's not too much trouble note: a PC maths or spreadsheet bundle has not been utilized in the planning of this report. Subsequently, the information gathered is given roar (and afterward arranged by hand): Call length in a moment or two Cell length like a flash (arranged) 53 10 50 11 10 20 120 31 413 33 45 33 274 34 99 35 48 35 50 35 100 35 53 35 54 36 42 36 44 37 11 38 108 38 36 38 38 39 54 41 47 41 41 42 54 42 35 42 47 44 50 45 269 45 42 47 35 47 55 48 35 50 227 50 35 50 33 53 36 53 39 54 170 54 35 54 1077 55 38 57 31 99 33 100 45 107 1266 108 34 120 107 170 20 227 57 269 38 274 37 413 42 1077 41 1266 Table 1 crude information and crude information arranged Investigation Mean A mean gives some thought of focal inclination (the normal call span). It will be that as it may, be influenced by the extraordinary qualities 413, 1077 and 1266. In this way, it appears to be suitable to gauge the mean with and without the 3 qualities. With the 3 qualities (done utilizing a number cruncher, to 2 d.p.): ==112.56 seconds or 1 moment 52.56 seconds Obviously, this answer is higher than the vast majority of the occasions, so not especially agent. With out the 3 qualities (done utilizing an adding machine, to 2 d.p. ): ==63.2 seconds or 1 moment 3.2 seconds. The subsequent answer appears to be progressively delegate, yet doesn't assess most of the occasions. Mode The mode is another proportion of focal inclination that gives the most successive call span. The mode is plainly 35 seconds (since this call term is the most incessant, being rehashed multiple times). From a visual assessment, this time appears to give a significant decent sign of focal inclination as more often than not appear to fall inside the 9 t (seconds) 61 territory. Middle Another proportion of focal propensity is the middle, which might be numerically determined or perused off a calmative recurrence chart. As the later isn't important precise in light of the fact that hand drawn, the numerical technique will be utilized. The middle gives the center number, and as such isn't influenced by the outrageous numbers. It doesn't be that as it may, assess the real estimations of the call lengths. Ideally, it should give some thought with regards to the normal of the information. To compute the middle, the numbers should each be doled out a position. The middle is the mean of the length allocated to the 26th and 27th position (in light of the fact that 52/2 =26 and (52/2)+1=27 and n is even). The positions, which were allocated physically to the information, are given in the table underneath: Positions Cell span in a moment or two (arranged) 1 10 2 11 3 20 4 31 5 33 6 33 7 34 8 35 9 35 10 35 11 35 12 35 13 36 14 36 15 37 16 38 17 38 18 38 19 39 20 41 21 41 22 42 23 42 24 42 25 44 26 45 27 45 28 47 29 47 30 48 31 50 32 50 33 50 34 53 35 53 36 54 37 54 38 54 39 55 40 57 41 99 42 100 43 107 44 108 45 120 46 170 47 227 48 269 49 274 50 413 51 1077 52 1266 Table 2 crude information arranged and positioned (by hand) The 26th and 27th qualities are both 45 seconds. In this manner, the middle is 45 seconds ((45+45)/2=45). From visual investigation, this appears to speak to everything except the outrageous qualities, be that as it may, the mode appears to give the best proportion of focal propensity. Reaches The range is 10 1266 (=1256). In the event that the finial 3 qualities were expelled, the range would be 10 284. This shows the 3 qualities do have an outrageous effect upon the computations that consider. The between quartile range would give a superior proportion of spread, as it would evade the outrageous qualities. The middle of the middle of the entire informational index and the lower bound is the lower quartile, while the middle of the middle of the entire information and the upper bound is the upper quartile. Lower quartile The thirteenth worth is 36, just like the fourteenth. In this way, the lower quartile is 36 seconds. Upper quartile The 39th worth is 55, and the 40th is 57. the upper quartile is 56 seconds. Along these lines, the between quartile run is 56-36 or 20 seconds. This discloses to us that the center portion of the example is with a 20 second range. Since half of 52 is 26, we realize that the 26 of the example falls inside the 20 seconds of one another. Along these lines, we can derive that the middle is a decent proportion of focal inclination. Ascertaining the midrange would not be appropriate, as the extraordinary qualities would have too huge an effect on the outcome. Standard deviation The standard deviation estimates normal (not precise as a result of squaring and square-establishing, purported standard) deviation from the mean. As 2/3s of the information exist in the standard deviation, maybe it will be a decent proportion of spread and focal inclination. The standard deviation will help disclose to us whether 2/third of the information is inside 5 minutes, and if so it might merit changing the administrator. The equation utilized is: . The squared call lengths are given roar (these squares were determined by utilizing an adding machine). Call term like a flash Cell length in a moment or two (squared) 10 100 11 121 20 400 31 961 33 1089 33 1089 34 1156 35 1225 35 1225 35 1225 35 1225 35 1225 36 1296 36 1296 37 1369 38 1444 38 1444 38 1444 39 1521 41 1681 41 1681 42 1764 42 1764 42 1764 44 1936 45 2025 45 2025 47 2209 47 2209 48 2304 50 2500 50 2500 50 2500 53 2809 53 2809 54 2916 54 2916 54 2916 55 3025 57 3249 99 9801 100 10000 107 11449 108 11664 120 14400 170 28900 227 51529 269 72361 274 75076 413 170569 1077 1159929 1266 1602756 Table 3 call lengths arranged and squared (utilizing a number cruncher) (determined utilizing un-adjusted qualities, and checked utilizing the measurable capacity of the number cruncher.) In this manner, 2/third of the call lengths exist in 224.89 seconds. 224.89 seconds is 3 minutes 44.89 seconds, indicating that 2/3rds of the call terms exist in a short time of the mean. This emphatically demonstrates changing administrator would be advantageous. Number of call spans under 5 minutes Another valuable count is ascertain what number of the call spans fall underneath 5 minutes (300 seconds). On the off chance that we think about the example sensibly delegate, at that point we can say that the proportion of under 5 moment to more than brief calls is 49:3. In the event that the example is delegate, at that point this implies there is a high number of calls roar 5 minutes. Presentations Box and stubble outline A decent was of summing up a portion of the counts above would be a case and hair chart. This is figure 1. Recurrence polygon A recurrence polygon is a fitting technique for finding the state of the conveyance (see figure 2 and sheet F2). It would be ideal if you note that the last 3 call lengths were excluded, as this would have antagonistically influenced the scale and not given an important presentation. Figure 2 shows a slight positive slant. There is a tight dissemination around 20-60 seconds. Following 60 seconds, there are incidental calls lengths. Aggregate recurrence outline Suspecting a tight dispersion, an aggregate f

International Business and Trade Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Universal Business and Trade - Essay Example The initial segment of the article uncovered the weak exhibition of Carphone's broadband image TalkTalk. Carphone stocks plunged as news demonstrated the administration execution issues of TalkTalk endorsers. The terrible showing, as indicated by Carphone is halfway because of British Telecom's (BT) Openreach division. The retail monster accepted that BT's advancement in moving of clients from the last to the previous was moderate. However this issue was dominated by the way that Vodafone, UK's driving portable specialist co-op, marked a select agreement with Phones 4u, Carphone's fundamental rival. Carphone is UK's pioneer in cell phones retail. On account of the creative personalities of Charles Dunstone and David Ross, the versatile retailer, which was at first a little store along Marylebone Road in London, turned into a 4 billion mammoth industry. Vodafone, the pioneer in versatile administrations, had been a nearby accomplice in Britain's portable correspondences industry development. Dunstone's forceful dream to make Carphone a genuine portable pioneer guided him to coordinate TalkTalk broadband help. The business visionary likewise banded together with Sir Richard Branson in propelling Virgin Mobile in France. Another strong move, the 320 million looming securing of AOL UK would make Carphone a main impetus in broadband and web industry. Carphone's driven moves make it both a portable retail an... To all the more likely handle this, let us take a gander at the historical backdrop of UK's versatile industry. UK's portable industry has changed definitely from first experience with the market. True to form, both cell phone retailers and portable specialist co-ops had an exceptionally amicable shared relationship in serving energetic purchasers of the as of late provided, advanced contraptions known as cell phones. However, as pretty much every British individual has his own cell phone, the principles of the portable business changed. At present, to improve execution, portable specialist organizations focus on the most proficient method to charm endorsers of agreement benefits from contenders, organizing on lucrative agreement clients more than the more transient pre pay clients. Then again, versatile retailers benefit on the redesigns of gadgets, switches for a superior arrangement and administration for their clients, and different exercises that require their administration. With its wellspring of benefit originating from commission and administration incomes, retailers are concerned more on the exercises of their clients: the more noteworthy number of exercises, the more prominent the benefit. Proposed Marketing Strategies Given a short foundation on milieu inside which Carphone is associated with, the author proposes that, to improve its general execution in the portable business, it should first focus on settling the issues in quite a while bread and butter administration: versatile retail. Repositioning its versatile retail business will open an approach to fix the issues it has with its broadband business. Carphone needs to fix its center business first before it should proceed onward to his later undertakings. Repositioning Carphone's retail administration The initial step that Carphone should take in boosting its debilitating exhibition according to its

A Story About Muti

A Story About Muti Writing after going to Ethiopia has always been impossible. When I was seven years old I took my first trip to Ethiopia with my family. My teacher asked me to keep a journal as my assignment for missing school for an entire month, because we went in the winter during the dry season, so I missed a good deal before and after winter break. I wrote and doodled in my journal everyday, and when I came back to our second grade classroom, all my writing involved my cousins or the farm or playing outside in Kaffa. Yet, I never was able to tie it all together. But that was when I was seven, and at the time that I would one day be determined to write a book, dash out ten pages of nonsense fantasy fiction, and promptly forget about it the next day. When I was 12 years old I didn’t write while in Ethiopia, but I came home and still tried, in my own, hand-written journal. When I was 16 years old, I wrote daily “diary” entries on my phone during our short, two-week trip in the winter (you simply can’t miss one whole month of high school as easily as middle or elementary) and returned to scribble here and there on my tumblr blog. But again, it was only scenes, people, and placesnothing that encompassed the whole time period that I was there. When I was 18 years old, I went by myself and recorded our entire family tree. I went home and wanted to write the stories of our family history, which is still sitting in my Google Drive somewhere. It is impossible to abstract out all of my emotions, my experiences, and my day to day thoughts while in Ethiopia into a single, coherent piece, although that’s what I’m trying to do today. It’s not that a blog post is too shortrather, even if I were told to sit down and write a novel about my last trip to Ethiopia, it would still be an incoherent collection of ramblings and loose ends that don’t deserve the term “novel”, don’t deserve any term, really. I wrote three iterations of this draft that were much less coherent, and it has taken me three weeks to write this blog post. This time, I have a story. The story is not about me (well, not entirely), and it’s not about Ethiopia, and it is not about my family, or being called foreign in a place I consider home, or about the differences between Addis Ababa and the countryside, or about what “being Ethiopian” means. The other three iterations of this draft touched on all those things, but finally, I decided to cut them away, for the sake of telling this story, rather than any other one. This story is about Muti. Muti is a village in Kaffa, SNNPR, Ethiopia. I went there several times, during the trips of my childhood, and many of my relatives live there. Muti is a large place, with a middle school and secondary school. A market is held there on Sundays. The surrounding villages have none of these. It is also the last village before paved roads, and so its important to those who live in villages on the other side of it. They walk or ride horses, so they cannot travel much further very easily. Many come from as far away as 2-4 hours walking for the market. Still more people, children, come to Muti for school. Many will live with relatives or rent housing there during the week and return to their homes only on the weekends. Muti also has a water problem. All the water in Muti is delivered through spring protections. A spring protection is made where there’s a source of running water (such as a river or spring). You can clean up the site (often by digging drainage trenches and the like) and cover it in a concrete structure. The water produced is very clean, because the sediments of the earth itself can act as good filters, and the protected water source becomes self-cleaning. Afterward, you only need to maintain it by regular cleanings every month. The spring protections in Muti have stopped working, emptying or drying up every 5-10 years. Currently, all but one of the spring protections has stopped working. Many more than just the inhabitants of Muti depend on Muti’s waterand Muti itself has a population of over 2000. The only clean water source that remains is the one next to the secondary school, too far for many of the people in Muti to walk to for water. One day, far away from Muti in Boston, I called my father. I told him about my lifeschool was hard, sleep was not happening, UROP-ing at the Media Lab was awesome, etc.and my father told me about his. He always allotted part of our conversations to telling me about “back home”our family in Ethiopia, and how they were doing, who was doing what. My cousins passed the national matric examnot too different from the tests I talked about. Someone’s horse was eaten by a lion; that sentence would not make any sense if I said it to someone at MIT. He also told me the story of Muti, a village that lost its water supplydoesn’t that also sound like nonsense? Just as it’s nonsensical to think of someone at MIT losing their horse to a lion, is it not also nonsensical to think of someone at MIT not having water? I remember putting down the phone and thinking about how striking this difference was, the differences between the problems I told my father about and the problems he described to me. Another day, also in Boston, I was psetting at a library. My friend Alberto H. ‘17 turned to me and said, “Hey, let’s go to Ethiopia over IAP!!” He was taking an Amharic class at Harvard, and had become interested in Ethiopian culture. I thought he was jokingand, well, he was, in that I said “ok sounds good” and we both went back to working. But then, Alberto heard about a grant, and so he set up a couple meetings, inviting me to them. We heard about other grants and went to more meetings; we wrote proposals, found faculty advisors, talked to anyone who would listen. I told Alberto the story of Muti, and together, we told the story to everyone else we talked to. We talked to Malte A. ‘17, a junior at MIT and an intern at the World Bank. He was flying to Mongolia for a STEM education project the week after our brief meeting with him. He gave us our initial energy and excitement, urging us to pursue anything we could and telling us, in detail, many of the methods that worked or did not work in his own past international development projects. Most of all, he told us never to get discouraged or give up. Talking to Malte was particularly crucial in ensuring we took our project seriouslyhe was an example that, even as an undergrad, you could pursue international projects on your own initiative and time. You could even be successful. We talked to Dr. Ken Strzepek at an MIT-Africa Interest Group (MAIG) meeting, which we attended in order to find people who could help us conduct our project. It was midterms and we did not look ready for an evening of networking with research scientists and graduate students. Alberto was wearing sweatpants, and I had a hat over my incredibly messy hair. Even as we mumbled “excuse our appearances, midterms [something something]”, Dr. Strzepek surprised us by saying, “Wow! Undergrads!”. Out of the 30-40 people at the MAIG meeting, only three undergraduates attended. Dr. Strzepek gave us his card, calling out as he left, Were partners now! Let me know if you need to know people in Addis Ababa!, the edge of his blazer whipping around the doorway. That day, wearing a beanie, next to my sweatpants-clad teammate, amidst graduate students and research scientists all sporting business casual or better, was the day I learned that something is always better than nothing, and became muc h less of a perfectionist. We also talked to Professor Hazel Sive at the MAIG meeting, one of my favorite professors on MIT’s campus. She taught me 7.013 (General Biology), a class with at least 300 people in it, where I would not have expected to grow to personally admire a professor. Though teaching 300 students, she still managed to show that she genuinely cared about all of us. Professor Sive told us to talk to Shalom A. ‘16, another Ethiopian undergraduate student she had worked with who had conducted projects in or involving Ethiopia before. I talked to Shalom, who then told me about a company called xHub, a startup incubator in Addis Ababa that helped him with one of his projects: teaching a sort of compressed IAP version of 6.006 to tech professionals and university students in Addis Ababa. He said he would be in Ethiopia during IAP as well in case we needed any help on-site. Somewhere in the midst of all this, Alberto and I actually won one of the many grants we applied to, the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Service Fellowship. We were awarded $3,000 to travel to Ethiopia and conduct research there, with the aim of solving Muti’s water problem. We were actually going to go. Now, I tell this story very linearly, but what actually happened was much different than that. Winning the grant meant that what had started out as a phone call, a thought, and a random conversation in a library was going to become real. Our contacts we met through many meetings and emails, where the people we met with and emailed would then refer us to other people to meet with and email. We received one grant out of the many that we applied to or looked for. What seems linear came from something more like a spiderweba lead here, a lead there, until finally, we had at least one, straight, path. I arrived in Ethiopia January 1st, 2016 (yes, I spent New Year’s Eve on a plane). After settling in, I called Shalom and set up a meeting at the xHub offices in Bole, Addis Ababa’s most rapidly developing district. Through xHub, I met Leul Dereje, the co-president of a nonprofit called Drop of Water. Drop of Water was formed at Ethiopia’s Mekele University. It started when Matt Damon came to Ethiopia working on his own water initiatives and some students went to take a picture with him. After listening to his talk, they decided that they, too, as Ethiopian citizens, should be involved in developing water projects. So they fundraised by selling small things at their schoolT-Shirts, pensand raised enough money to build a well. Then they built another one, and another one, and another. Pretty soon it was the largest volunteer club at Mekele. The president, Hermella Wondimu, left her career to become the president of what Drop of Water is now, a fully recognized NGO. I admire Drop of Water and the group behind it so much because it involves Ethiopians helping other Ethiopians, young people volunteering for their communities the same way young people in the US volunteer for theirs. It removes the often problematic situation of exclusively foreign nonprofits having control over projects they may not as thoroughly comprehend. Drop of Water (and xHub), to me, serve as proof that Ethiopia has talented, bright young people, great thinkiers and ambitious innovators amidst its population. As the nation develops, these talented people and groups are revealed again and again, refuting shallow ideas about Africa and African people as a whole. Ethiopians have always had a lot of prideit is the only African country that was never colonizedand now, that pride and energy seems only to be blossoming more. The conversation I had with Leul was an exciting, transformative momentso much so that Ill need a separate blog post to describe it. Drop of Water told us that in order to help us implement a well, they needed a contact at a local university. They wanted to have a sort of base, similar to Mekele University, where they could recruit student volunteers and also give them some work experience, helping the community two-fold. For example, they recruited a Mekele student to do a geographical survey for one of their wells, and the student gained some practical experience to help with their resume (we also have volunteer work like this in the United States). So, we looked for universities near Muti that could cooperate with Drop of Water. We were then put in touch with the president of Mizan-Tepi University, where some of my own cousins had attended college. We’re still working, now, on finalizing their relationship with Drop of Water and ourselves in order to implement the wells. In our search for more technical information, we met with a connection of Dr. Strzepek’s, Yohannes Gebretseadik. Yohannes did his postdoctoral fellowship at MIT, and now works for the UN Nile Basin Project in Entebbe, Uganda. Yohannes gave us a lot of valuable advice on what sort of water data to look for, how to design our solution, and what might work best. After consulting with him, we tentatively decided to perform a hand-dug well project in Muti, a design we’re still working on. Muti is far from the capital city. It takes a 9-hour bus ride to get to a town, Wush Wush, where we stayed with my aunt. Then, we hiked/rode horses for four hours to get to my father’s village in the countryside, and Muti was two hours walking from there. When we arrived in Muti, we talked to Abba Kiflea local priest. “Abba” means “Father” in AmharicFather Kifle. Abba Kifle gave us much more insight into what the community of Muti really needed, what people were struggling with, and what they wanted out of a water source. He showed us all the spring protection sites, the ones that had stopped working and failed and a couple that seemed to only work sporadically, on their way out. He also showed us potential spots for other spring protections or water projects. Abba Kifle was excited about our project, and impressed upon us how dire the current situation was. “The people are really suffering,” he said. It was clear to me he was someone who’s always eager to help anyone who needs him, especially in his community. When we left, he drove us from Muti to the next town, Chiri. Along the way, he collected hitchhikers, who would climb into the back of the pickup truck as he continued pressing on the bumpy road. He jokingly complained”I am Muti’s taxi, eh?”but did not refuse anyone. All this way that Alberto and I had been traveling to get to Muti, I asked people, especially in Kaffa, about the water situation. Little kids, especially. I asked my six year old cousin Ermias, “Muti aacho beeti?” Is there water in Muti? He simply responded, “Aalle.” No, there is not. My older cousins wanted to know why I had come back so soonI’d told them before many times that I could not come back before I graduated college. I had to explain simply, since my Amharic and Kafa No’No aren’t too great. I always explained by asking, is there water in Muti? And when they responded, no, I told them, I came here to fix Muti’s water problem. There was no way for me to provide caveats or qualificationsI just wasn’t good enough at the language, and it would take too long. I simply had to tell them, I came here to fix Muti’s water. So, it became a promise. After returning to the capital in Addis Ababa, we met with the Secretary General of Ethiopia, Negus Lemma, who we were introduced to through Alberto’s Amharic professor. He agreed to help us with any administrative tasks we might have to go throughsuch as acquiring construction licensesand agreed that our relationship could form a basis of support for any future MIT initiatives we might want to pursue (which, after this exciting trip, I was definitely planning on pursuing). We met with Drop of Water again and set everything up for implementation as soon as we were able to acquire more funding from MIT. That is where we are now. Muti still has no well, unfortunately, but we owe them one, and we hope it’s coming soon. The story isn’t finished yetand truthfully, real stories never do. I could have started this story about water in Muti much farther back then when I began, back to the spring protection implemented at the school by an organization from Colorado, or back to when one of our family friends visited and saw the school children drinking water that had worms, or back to when Abba Kifle was first placed in Muti and witnessed earlier projects. I could end this story right now, too, waiting for a solutionbut I choose to say this one hasn’t ended yet. The week that I returned to MIT, I had a phone call with the president of Mizan-Tepi University, and clarified some points of our project and Drop of Water. After that, I had a phone call with Dr. Strzepek, who helped me find some precipitation data in Kaffa. I exchanged many emails with Tau Beta Pi, the provider of our grant, figuring out logistics. I thought after this IAP I would be “done” with this project, hand it off to someone elsebut actually, I’m very much still in the thick of it, and glad to be there. I still can’t believe it started with a phone call, a thought, and a random conversation in the library. My friend and current president of Chinese Students Club, Jessica W. 16, once asked me the question, what motivates you?”. She was referring to the current trend that some engineers (especially in software) were worried increased specialization of tasks and the tech bubble were fueling only first-world solutions to first-world problems. She told me she once watched a talk by a Facebook engineer who worked on the Internet.org project, and urged budding software developers to think about the meaning in their work, who their contributions would impact and how. My response to Jessica’s question was something along the lines of my family in Ethiopia and aiming to fix the problems they facethat’s what motivates me. Yet, I also said that at the moment I was just pursuing whatever was interesting. I thought of helping my region of Ethiopia as a goal for after I graduate, or after I had been working for some time. A lot of people preface the goals they have to better their communities or the world by the phrases “once I’ve got money” or “once I have time”. I can assure you that I had neither of these. I discovered that in truth, you do not have to wait. You can impact someone, somewhere, nowas long as you are passionate about it. Post Tagged #Muti Water Project

The Horrors of Colonialism and Imperialism in Conrads...

From the onset of the novella Heart of Darkness, the narrator Marlow compares his subsequent tale of colonialism with that of the Roman colonization of Northern Europe and the fascination associated with such an endeavor. However, throughout his narration, Marlow challenges this viewpoint by painting a heinous picture of the horrors of colonialist ventures. In the opening of his tale, Conrad, through Marlow, establishes his thoughts on colonialism. He says that conquerors only use brute force, nothing to boast of because it arises, by accident, from anothers weakness. Marlow sees colonization as; Robbery with violence, aggravated murder on a great scale, and men going at it blind - as it is very proper for those who†¦show more content†¦Throughout the tale, Marlow is disgusted with what he sees during his employment in the ivory company. He is shocked and angered at the horrible treatment of the black workers. By the end of his tale, Marlow has turned from the brutality of the whites to the truth and reality he sees in the black jungle natives. In this way, through his realization of his kinship with the blacks, Marlow emerges as the light half: what Kurtz may have been if he had not had to suffer the hardship he did. Like Marlow, Kurtz began his employment with the ivory company with noble intentions: he wants to create a better way of life for the natives. However, because of extreme hardships placed upon him by the manager, Kurtz becomes the dark half of the soul: he symbolizes what Marlow may have become if placed in Kurtz position. A stark reminder of what can happen if fate takes its course. As the treacherous villain of the tale, the manager signifies total darkness and blackness of the soul. He is in charge of the company and its appalling activities that take place within it. The manager humanizes the severely unbalanced priorities of the company through the extreme importance given to the obtaining of ivory and the deficiency of importance given to human lives. In the beginning of the book, Marlow comes upon a grove of death in the jungle where black workers are merely discarded like rusty machinery, no longer able to function satisfactorily in the eyes of the company. MarlowShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Joseph Conrad s Heart Of Darkness1250 Words   |  5 Pages Written in 1902, Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness follows the character Marlow in his journey up the Congo River to find the mysterious Kurtz, an ivory trader. In the story, Conrad explores the issues of colonialism and imperialism. The Company has enslaved native Congolese to help them mine for ivor y and rubber in the area. The Congolese experience brutal working conditions as the company profits off their free labor. Racism is evident throughout the story with Marlow calling the blacks â€Å"savages†Read MoreEssay about Heart of Darkness1745 Words   |  7 Pagesdepth review of Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, a classical novella that illustrates without bias the motives behind human intentions and the extremes individuals can go to achieve wealth and profits at the expense of others with the aim of shedding insight into the rise of European imperialism, the imperial history, its politics and evil activities in the colonized African tribes along the river Congo during the eighteenth and nineteenth century. The Heart of Darkness is an exceptionally figurativeRead More The Evil of Colonialism and Imperialism in Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad1559 Words   |  7 PagesEvil of Colonialism in Heart of Darkness   Ã‚  Ã‚   A masterpiece of twentieth-century writing, Heart of Darkness exposes the tenuous fabric that holds civilization together and the brutal horror at the center of European colonialism. Joseph Conrads novella, Heart of Darkness, describes a life-altering journey that the protagonist, Marlow, experiences in the African Congo.   The story explores the historical period of colonialism in Africa to exemplify Marlows struggles. Joseph Conrads Heart of DarknessRead MoreHeart of Darkness on the Flaws of Imperial Authority1024 Words   |  4 Pages â€Å"Heart of Darkness† on the Flaws of Imperial Authority Throughout Joseph Conrad’s â€Å"Heart of Darkness† despite the many conditions of the described Africa most if not all the characters agree that these conditions indeed differ from the conditions found in Europe. In working through conversations with Chinua Achebe’s Colonialist Criticism and An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrads Heart of Darkness it can be brought to light that not only is Conrad’s â€Å"Heart of Darkness† a novel that criticizesRead More Theme of Colonialism and Imperialism in Conrads Heart of Darkness1008 Words   |  5 PagesThe Theme of Imperialism in Heart of Darkness       Of the themes in Conrads Heart of Darkness, imperialism and colonialism are probably the most important. While Heart of Darkness is actually set on the Thames River, the events Marlow describes are set on the Congo River. The Congo is the river that brought about the partition of Africa that occurred from 1880 to 1890 (McLynn 13). This event marked the beginning of the colonization of Africa. In 1884, European nations held a conference andRead MoreHeart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad1329 Words   |  5 Pages Heart of Darkness is a novel written by Joseph Conrad. The setting of the book is in Belgian Congo, which was the most infamous European colony in Africa. This is a story about the protagonist Marlow’s journey to self discovery, and his experiences in Congo. Conrad’s story explores the colonialism period in Africa to demonstrate Marlow’s struggles. Along the way, he faces insanity, death, his fear of failure, and cultural contamination as he makes his was to the inner station. Conrad through theRead MoreThe Darkness of Imperialism in In Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad567 Words   |  3 Pages In Heart of Darkness, by Joseph Conrad, the interpretation of pre-colonial times is interesting in a way that supersedes other books I’ve read because it’s very honest with how the world worked it that era. The central aim which the shipmates in Heart of Darkness are pursuing is the expansion of their home countries’ empires. Yet many peopl e are hurt in this enterprise, and it’s not only the colonized territories that are impacted negatively by imperialist Europe. Europe’s explorers thatRead MoreHeart Of Darkness Critical Analysis1980 Words   |  8 PagesThe legacy of Heart of Darkness is credited more to Joseph Conrad’s ensnaring form than his message. Readers enamored with the first few pages of â€Å" still and exquisite brilliance† as an unnamed Narrator drifts down the Thames at the helm of a yacht are unceremoniously thrust into a framed narrative of a man who ventures in and out of the heart of the Congo (Conrad 4). Marlow begins his tale by suggesting that England too, was once a dark place to be conquered. â€Å"The conquest of the earth is notRead MoreThe Importance Of Imperialism In Joseph Conrads Heart Of Darkness1174 Words   |  5 PagesOn the surface, Conrad’s work seems to simply stress, â€Å"Humanity is important; fidelity is the highest virtue† (Moser, 1966, pg 11) but is both more subtle and complex. Even in the title of the book, Heart of Darkness, has significance. Africa’s Victorian era nickname was the ‘dark continent’, which â€Å"referred to the fact that little was known in the West about the interior of the continent† (yourdictionary.com, 2017). Therefore, Congo is the interior or ‘heart’ of Africa. This title also alludes toRead MoreComparative Essay1096 Words   |  5 Pagesanalysis: â€Å"Heart of Darkness† â€Å"Apocalypse Now† Student: Mora Vandenbroele Teacher: Azucena Estigarribia Year: 11th â€Å"A† â€Å"Heart of Darkness† vs. â€Å"Apocalypse Now† It is very interesting how humans are so intrigued about the evilness in the world, and the dedication of some men to compare Hell with the Earthly horror. Joseph Conrad, a genius writer, took his time to show this with his masterpiece â€Å"Heart of Darkness† that was

Biography of Mary Read, English Pirate

Mary Read (1685–buried April 28, 1721) was an English pirate who sailed with Calico Jack Rackham and Anne Bonny. Though little is known for certain about her former life, she was well-known as a pirate from 1718 to 1720. After being captured, she was spared hanging because she was pregnant but died shortly after due to an illness. Fast Facts: Mary Read Known For: One of the most famous female pirates of all time, Read sailed with Calico Jack Rackham during the early 1700s.Also Known As: Mark ReadBorn: 1685 in EnglandDied: 1721 (buried April 28, 1721) in Port Royal, Jamaica Early Life Most of the limited information about Mary Reads life comes from Captain Charles Johnson (believed by many, but not all, pirate historians to be a pseudonym for Daniel Defoe, the author of Robinson Crusoe). Johnson was descriptive, but never mentioned his sources, so most of Reads alleged background is in doubt. Read was supposedly born sometime around 1690 to the widow of a sea captain. Mary’s mother dressed her up as a boy to pass her off as her older brother, who had died, to get money out of Mary’s paternal grandmother. Mary found she liked dressing as a boy, and as a young â€Å"man† she found work as a soldier and sailor. Marriage Read was fighting for the British in Holland when she met and fell in love with a Flemish soldier. She revealed her secret to him and they married. For a time, they operated an inn called The Three Horseshoes not far from the castle at the town of Breda in the Netherlands. After her husband died, Read could not operate the inn alone, so she went back to war, dressing once again as a man. Peace was soon signed, however, and she was out of work. Read took a ship to the West Indies in hopes of finding new opportunities. Joining the Pirates While en route to the West Indies, Read’s ship was attacked and she was captured by pirates. Read decided to join them and for a while, she lived the life of a pirate in the Caribbean before accepting the king’s pardon in 1718. Like many former pirates, she signed on board a privateer commissioned to hunt down those buccaneers who had not accepted the pardon. The mission didn’t last long, however, as the whole crew soon mutinied and took over the ship. By 1720, she had found her way on board the pirate ship of â€Å"Calico Jack† Rackham. Anne Bonny Calico Jack already had a woman on board: his lover Anne Bonny, who had left her husband for a life of piracy. According to legend, Bonny developed an attraction to Mary, not knowing that she was a woman. When Bonny tried to seduce her, Read revealed herself. According to some accounts, they became lovers anyway, with Rackham’s blessing (or participation). In any event, Bonny and Read were two of Rackham’s most bloodthirsty pirates, each carrying—according to one report—a machete and a pistol. Read was a good fighter. According to legend, she developed an attraction to a man who had been forced to join the pirate crew. The object of her affection managed to irritate a certain cutthroat on board, who challenged him to a duel. Read, fearing that her would-be lover might get killed, challenged the brute to a duel of her own, scheduling it a couple of hours before the other duel was supposed to take place. She promptly killed the pirate, in the process saving the object of her affection. Capture and Trial By late 1720, Rackham and his crew were well known as dangerous pirates, and bounty hunters were sent out to capture or kill them. Captain Jonathan Barnet cornered Rackhams ship in late October 1720. According to some accounts, Bonny and Read fought valiantly while the men hid below deck. Rackham and the other male pirates were quickly tried and hanged in Port Royal, Jamaica, on November 18, 1720. Bonny and Read declared at their trial that they were pregnant, which was soon determined to be true. They would be spared the gallows until they had given birth. Death Mary Read never got to taste freedom again. She developed a fever and died in prison not long after her trial, probably sometime in early April 1721. Records from St. Catherine Parish in Jamaica show that Read was buried on April 28, 1721. Legacy Most of the information about Read comes from Captain Johnson, who most likely embellished at least some of it. It is impossible to say how much of what is commonly known about Read is true. It is certainly true that a woman by that name served with Rackham, and evidence is strong that both women on his ship were able, skilled pirates who were every bit as tough and ruthless as their male counterparts. As a pirate, Read didnt leave much of a mark. Rackham is famous for having female pirates on board (and for having an impressive pirate flag), but he was strictly a small-time operator, never getting close to the levels of infamy of someone like Blackbeard or the success of someone like Edward Low or Black Bart Roberts. Nevertheless, Read and Bonny have captured the public imagination as being the only two well-documented female pirates in the so-called Golden Age of Piracy. In an age and society where the freedom of women was greatly restricted, Read and Bonny lived a life at sea as full members of a pirate crew. As subsequent generations increasingly romanticize piracy and the likes of Rackham, Bonny, and Read, their stature has grown even further. Sources Cordingly, David. Under the Black Flag:  The Romance and the Reality of Life Among the Pirates. New York: Random House Trade Paperbacks, 1996.Defoe, Daniel. A General History of the Pyrates. Mineola: Dover Publications, 1972/1999.Johnson, Charles, and Margarette Lincoln. A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the Most Notorious Pirates. The Folio Society, 2018.Konstam, Angus. The World Atlas of Pirates. Guilford: The Lyons Press, 2009.Woodard, Colin. The Republic of Pirates: Being the True and Surprising Story of the Caribbean Pirates and the Man Who Brought Them Down. Mariner Books, 2008.

Market Segmentation Product Concepts Free Essays

ZULQARNAIN BIN ABU HASSAN SCM 022431 REVIEW OF SEPTEMBER ISSUE When talking about mix and match and color blocking it is normally related to the fashion world. It is also involves modeling, in terms of clothes, accessories, gadgets, men and women, and trending. There are various ways for customer to get reference in fashion. We will write a custom essay sample on Market Segmentation: Product Concepts or any similar topic only for you Order Now Some will refer to the while other may use word of mouth. However most will use fashion magazine as their main reference. So just what fashion do you prefer? Mix and match? Color Blocking? Trending? There are many answers and you can make a long list if you want. Here we will focus on a September Issue documentary film about the construction of a prominent magazine in New York City, â€Å"Vogue†. Vogue magazine led by its editor Anna Wintour a strong influential and is supported by fashion designers all over Europe. A bit of background of the Editor. She was an ex model and is a hardcore follower of Vogue magazine since her teens. Her father Charles Wintour, former editor of a newspaper, persuade join the Vogue magazine. In this documentary film it will highlight how a fashion magazine is being published. Publishing a magazine will involved planning the content of the magazine for each month, what message to be conveyed to the reader and followers of Vogue, and try to anticipate future fashion or trending today. The production of the magazine should always be able to communicate to the readers. It also should express its views despite the bitter outlook. This is done through pre-production. The publication of a magazine will have to looked in terms of quality and not just profit alone. In the pre-production, editor has to play a big role in ensuring that choices and decisions are made clearly. She has to understand the desires of the readers and followers of the Vogue. For September 2007 Issue, the goals is to make history by producing over 100 pages. Other factors such as fashion related activities, advertising and cover page by endorsed celebrity also plays an important role in a magazine. All the hard work is done during the pre-production. Post mortem is then conducted before they proceed to real production. As editor of Vogue magazine said in 2007 ‘fashion is not about looking back but is about looking forward â€Å". How to cite Market Segmentation: Product Concepts, Essay examples

Music has no Language Barrier Essay Example For Students

Music has no Language Barrier Essay Music has no Language Barrier We all now know that Korean pop music is dominating the music industry these days. Many haters says that international fans cant even understand what they are saying, for all they know, they night be cursing the fans without them knowing it. Believe me, I have met many people, in reality or online, who hates Korean Music. But is it wrong to love them without knowing their mother tongue? I think there are only 1/3 people who are open minded and the other 2/3 are all close minded people. I mean, male call the male idols gays. Dont they Just feel insecure because the male idols are too Andromeda and not to mention talented? And when a male like Korean Music people would Judge him as gays, well I think bonbons are the ones who have lots of courage because they dont care what other people thinks, its what they like so no one has the right to Judge them. Sure, I will admit that their are Korean Fans would go crazy and chase their idols around the town of Seoul but it only shows that they love them deeply that they want to make their idols notice them. Just like in one of the anises I have watched. The protagonist would go around saying Sensei, please notice me! I think its like that. From what I have seen people who love Korean music tends to be more picky in picking the people who they want to have a relationship with. Because they want that specific person to have the criteria to be Just like their idol. Music has no language barrier. If you like the music then listen to it. If you want to understand what they are saying learn the language. Idols do learn other language so that they communicate with their fans. So Just like that learn the language and you can communicate with your idol online or in reality. By AsdfghJk1142

Tropical Africa Food Production and the Inquiry Model Essay Example For Students

Tropical Africa: Food Production and the Inquiry Model Essay Tropical Africa: Food Production and the Inquiry Model Essay Hunger is the result of disasters such as drought, floods, the changing of the jet stream patterns and other natural disasters. They are beyond our control. It has been estimated that one third of the land in Tropical Africa is potentially cultivable, though only about 6% of it is currently cultivated. However, to change farming from a low-input low-yield pattern to a high-input, high-yield pattern necessitates the use of more fertilizer and the planting of high-yielding varieties of crops We will write a custom essay on Tropical Africa: Food Production and the Inquiry Model specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now There are a number of environmental factors, related mostly to climate, soils and health, resisting easy developmental solutions. Rainfall reliability is closely connected to rainfall quantity The rainfall in the equatorial heart is very plentiful and reliable. However, there is much less rainfall towards the outer edges of the rain belt. Periodic and unpredictable droughts are a characteristic feature of these border zones. There are three climatic zones in Tropical Africa: 1.a region of persistent rain at and near the Equator 2.a region on each side of this of summer rain and winter drought, and 3.a region at the northern and southern edges afflicted by drought. All the climates listed in the previous paragraph are modified in the eastern parts of Tropical Africa by the mountains and monsoons. The soils of Tropical Africa pose another problem. They are unlike the soils of temperate areas. Soils are largely products of their climates, and tropical soils are different from temperate soils because the climate is different. Because of the great heat of the tropics tends to bake the soils, while on the other hand, the rainfall leaches them. The combined heat and moisture tend to produce very deep soils because the surface rock is rapidly broken down by chemical weathering. All this causes the foods rate of growth to slow down or maybe even stop and as a result food production wont even come close in catching up to the rate of population increase; therefore starvation and hunger is present. In the process of a flood and drought, the roots of trees are shallow and virtually no nutrients are obtained from the soil. The vegetation survives on its own humus waste, which is plentiful. If the vegetation is cleared, then the source of humus is removed and the natural infertility of the soils becomes obvious. As being another factor, this will cause the soil to produce wasteful and useless products which in turn will decrease the production. To conclude this essay, the climates in Tropical Africa take a big role as being factors that could endanger or destroy the process of plantation. On the other hand, it could also bring good fortune if climatic regions are fairly good. .

Example Sentences of the Verb Fly for ESL Learners

Example Sentences of the Verb Fly for ESL Learners Time flies when youre having fun, but memorizing irregular verb forms isnt always fun. This page provides example sentences of the verb fly in all tenses including active and passive forms, as well as conditional and modal forms. Once youve flown through the examples, test your knowledge with the quiz at the end. Examples of "Fly" for All Tenses Base Form fly / Past Simple flew / Past Participle flown / Gerund flying Present Simple I usually fly by Aeroflot. Present Simple Passive Aeroflot is flown by thousands of customers. Present Continuous We are flying to San Diego next week. Present Continuous Passive A 747 is being flown to New York. Present Perfect She has flown many times in her life. Present Perfect Passive A 777 has recently been flown to Chicago. Present Perfect Continuous We have been flying for more than five hours. Past Simple George flew to Miami last week. Past Simple Passive A small airplane was flown to the village. Past Continuous He was flying to Chicago when he telephoned his boss. Past Continuous Passive A small airplane was being flown to the village when I checked. Past Perfect They had just flown to London when they decided to return home immediately. Past Perfect Passive The new jet had been flown many times by the test pilot before it was approved. Past Perfect Continuous They had been flying for four hours when they landed. Future (will) Jack will fly to the meeting. Future (will) passive A small jet will be flown to the meeting. Future (going to) He is going to fly to Houston next week. Future (going to) passive A 777 is going to be flown to Chicago. Future Continuous This time next week we will be flying to Mexico. Future Perfect They will have flown to Toronto by the end of the day. Future Possibility She might fly to Rome. Real Conditional If she flies to Rome, she will stay at the Cosmo. Unreal Conditional If she flew to Rome, she would stay at the Cosmo. Past Unreal Conditional If she had flown to Rome, she would have stayed at the Cosmo. Present Modal Mark should fly to the meeting. Past Modal He must have flown to the meeting. Quiz: Conjugate with Fly Use the verb to fly to conjugate the following sentences. Quiz answers are below. In some cases, more than one answer may be correct. A small airplane _____ to the village last week.We _____ to San Diego next week.We _____ for more than five hours.The new jet _____ many times by the test pilot before it was approved.A small jet _____ to the meeting.They _____ to Toronto by the end of the day.If she _____ to Rome, she will stay at the Cosmo.Jack _____ to the meeting.He _____ to Chicago when he telephoned his boss.George _____ to Miami last week. Quiz Answers fleware going to flyhave been flyingwill have been flownwill flywill have flownfliesis going to flywas flyingflew

Summery of Globalization, Politics, and Financial Turmoil economic Essay

Summery of Globalization, Politics, and Financial Turmoil economic - Essay Example experience such crises mainly because there is a breakdown in communication between the chief executive of the monetary authority and financial officers in such times, leading to insufficient banking regulations and eventually flight of capital out of the country, which then has a snowballing effect. For the purpose, Satyanath elaborates on three bodies of literature – 1) globalization of capital and the political scenario in which there are possibilities of miscommunication 2) the presence of ill-informed chief executive and 3) the existence of veto players, that is, those whose consent is necessary for any policy change. Prior to the 1980s, all developing countries had relatively stringent regulations on capital inflows and outflows. All foreign exchange transactions were strictly monitored and banks had limits on overseas borrowings. From the 1980s, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) began to put pressures on the developing countries to liberalize the financial sectors, justifying that the access to foreign capital would allow these countries to invest more than the domestic savings allowed them to. Besides, short-term cyclical recessions could be balanced with countercyclical capital inflows from overseas. Also, free mobility of capital would also allow domestic investors to invest abroad thus neutralizing domestic shocks while also allowing them to earn higher risk-adjusted returns. Lastly, the dismantling of the bureaucratic shackles would allow the financial sectors of the developing countries become more professional, the IMF argued. Consequently, many Asian countries liberalized the capita l accounts as they did the trade accounts in the 1980s and 1990s, and the result was higher growth rates in Gross Domestic Product in the immediately succeeding years. However, by 1996, many of these same economies began to show signs of slower growth. Simultaneously, what disturbed the analysts were the growing current account deficits and increase in foreign

The Raj Rajaratnam's Conspiracy And Securities Fraud Essay - 19

The Raj Rajaratnam's Conspiracy And Securities Fraud - Essay Example Rajaratnam had a continuous pattern of using insider trading to make millions of dollars in profits. Typically insider trading occurs as one time tips that a person exploits. A smart insider trader will not abuse his knowledge to earn money to stay off the radar of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Greed was the primary factor that led to the demise of Raj Rajaratnam. Information asymmetry in the financial market is a posing great risk. This risk is characteristic of insider trading activities. These activities and underground operations are tailored towards benefiting a few in the society. Considering the Galleon insider trading saga, the parties that were set to benefit from illegal activities are few. Investors and more especially the hedgers should have common information regarding market share movements of companies (Jones, 1996, pg. 143). However, a few individuals through cooperation and collaboration sought to take advantage of crucial information only available to them. Of course, an inside job is a context upon which the participants to these fraudulent activities thrived and thereby succeeded in their quest to reap huge profits by taking advantage of company performance in the financial market (Girgenti, 2010, pg. 88). Kamal Ahmed among other senior employees of companies listed in the investigations offered crucial information on payment. Such an activity is risky for the financial markets because information symmetry is expected to influence the decisions of investors. Acts of corruption and bribery are therefore integrated into the insider trading activity allowing for the few involved to take advantage of the entire shareholding and investing community. The losses of many are the profits of a few. Due to the high secrecy that insider trading activities require, it seems obvious that successful businessmen and prominent people may be the major participants in such activities.

Professional Ethics in Construction Industry | Proposal

Professional Ethics in Construction Industry | Proposal Background In the complex and hectic world of work, it is becoming harder to live and work by values and behaviors based on integrity and principles. Pressures are placed upon professionals of the construction industry, where they do not always act the way they should, and matters are seldom black and white. Even though professionals are trying to the right thing most of the time, grey areas do exist. With ongoing ethical misconducts blasted daily in the media, especially within construction industry, construction players must acknowledge that the need for professional ethics is increasingly obvious. Negligence, conflict of interest, fraud, unfair conduct, confidentiality, bribery, and violation of environmental ethics are among the commonly unethical conducts in the construction industry. The practice of profession poses challenging ethical questions for which a working knowledge of ethics and professionalism is critical to the construction players. Professionals have the fundamental right to perform with responsibility and accountability in their line of work. Professional ethics should be driven by personal ethics, where a balance of both the requirements of the client and the impact on the society should be maintained by the professionals when making decisions. It has been suggested, however, that professionals in general tend to believe that their obligations to their client far outweigh their responsibility to others, such as the public (Johnson, 1991, p. 28). Problem Statement Construction players may refer to standards such as the professional code of ethics; however, the cases are not intended to provide absolute answers nor are they resolution, standard operating procedure, or policy for ethical problems. The purpose of a code of ethics or set of ethical principles is to define a standard of conduct that reflects the values of the organization or profession. They are designed to guide about ones personal reaction to ethical dilemmas. But when it comes to ethical dilemmas, construction players may not have the skills or competencies. Individual implicit ethical knowledge and practice need to be amplified into the profession, turning implicit ethical knowledge into explicit that leads towards the development of ethical professional ethics. However, it seems doubtful that professionals can always rely on own personal ethics as they find themselves working with diverse cultures, values and expectations. Professionals are often left to make tough decisions in the face of extremely chaotic and complicated ethical dilemmas. Scholarly publications have offered little help in terms of offering solutions to ethical dilemmas whereas practitioner publication have been ineffective for helping professionals reinforce their moral character. There will always be cases when professionals struggle between what they assume the profession expects and what the moral character tells. Even though majority of organization have their own ethical codes of conduct, the curbing of unethical conduct is difficult. Despite having professional code of ethics in the organization, professionals of the construction industry had directly or indirectly experiences some degree of unethical conduct. Aim Dignify and elevate the professional ethics among professionals in construction industry. Objectives To determine the factors affecting participants behaviours in professional ethics To identify the impacts of unethical behaviours on the project cost, safety and quality of work To evaluate the awareness on the importance of professional ethics in construction industry. Research Question What are the significant barriers that limit professional and ethical behavior? Why ethical issues occur in the construction industry practice? What should be done differently to improve professional and ethical behavior? How do ethical principles apply to the current construction industry? Scope of Research The scope of the research will be focus on assessing the professional ethics in construction industry. Prime attention is taken on the consultant firms at Klang Valley area only due to time and cost factor. The targeted respondents for this research will concentrate on the consultant quantity surveyors as observed from the working title, within the areas selected for the study. Research Methodology A literature review was undertaken to study the current issues of professional ethics in the construction industry, types of ethical misconducts and impacts of unethical conducts to the consultant quantity surveyors. Questionnaire survey will be directed towards consultant quantity surveyors concerning their views and experiences on a range of ethical issues surrounding construction industry activities. The survey will be conducted through postal mail and personal interviews. Case study of ethical issues in the construction industry will be set up. Significance of Implications of Study The outcomes of adhering to the professional ethics among professionals are highlighted in this research. These outcomes will be cornerstone for encouraging the professionals to comply with the principles of ethics, so that their works meet the clients expectations and that their obligations will be carried out in professional manner in the future. It is important for professionals to practice the knowledge of ethics using applicable codes or standards. The more the professionals practice their responses to ethical dilemmas, the more likely it is to make the right decision when the pressure is on. What is more, implementing the ethical conducts gain professionals significant credibility and respect from the clients and these professionals will win further in the long run. This study also suggests that professionals better understand why professional ethics is critical to be successful in the field. Corporate Social Responsibility: Marketing Strategy Corporate Social Responsibility: Marketing Strategy 1. INTRODUCTION Companies and their managers find themselves in an uncertain environment. This happens of the ever changing conditions that occur on the global economic market. Due to the changes and improvements of the new information and communication technologies, the companies and their managers find it harder and harder to reach an convince their clients or consumers. It is mandatory that these managers use all the potential promoting techniques in order to attract the consumers. It is no longer just about the usage of standard advertising techniques, the marketing specialists must take into account several other methods of advertising like online social networks, viral marketing, corporate social responsibility etc. In our paper we are underlining the importance of the Corporate Social Responsibility from the marketing point of view and especially of using this tool as a brand notoriety increasing factor. We live a world of continuous change, were mankinds influence on the environment is large r and larger. But Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is not just about the environment like many people think. The organizations of the entire world become more and more preoccupied by the necessity and the benefits of a responsible approach to society. 2. THE CONCEPT OF CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY The concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has first appeared in business for the first time in the second part of the 18th Century in the USA as a form of philanthropy, or donating to organizations / individuals in need (Sethi, 1977, in Bronn and Vrioni, 2001). From a historical point of view, the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility has become an important field of study, associated with management, in the 1950s. One important aspect to this development of CSR, was presented by Frank Adams in 1951, when he wrote in a Harvard Business Review about the importance of good citizens that should become professionals of the top management level (Banerjee, 2007, p. 5). Other authors state that CSR is concerned with treating the stakeholders of the firm ethically or in a socially responsible manner. Stakeholders exist both within a firm and outside. Consequently, behaving socially responsibly will increase the human development of stakeholders both within and outside the corporation. (Hopkins M. 1998) The performance of each organization, no matter its type (private, public, economical or NGO), is linked to the degree of development of their communities and in their social environment. Also the impact of such organizations on the environment has become an vital aspect which reflects the human interest for preserving the natural ecosystems and the pollution. This first aspect is joined by other elements of interests like: social equality and good governance. In 2001, the European Commission has defined CSR as: a concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and in their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis (EU Commission, 2001) Over the years, the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility has become more present in the everyday life of corporations and even public administration institutions. There were numerous efforts to define this concept, but often no clear definition is given, making theoretical development and measurement difficult. Mallen Baker (2004) states that CSR is about how companies manage the business processes to produce an overall positive impact on society. According to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development considers corporate Social Responsibility as the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as of the local community and society at large (Baker, 2004). Also in 2001 (McWilliams and Siege, 2006), CSR is defined as: situations where the firm goes beyond compliance and engages in actions that appear to further some social good, beyond the interests of the firm and that which is required by law. The concept of Corporate Social Responsibility usually refers to a couple of important elements like: (1) a collection of policies and practices linked to relationship with key stakeholders, values, compliance with legal requirements, and respect for people, communities and the environment; (2) the commitment of business to contribute to sustainable development, commonly understood as sustainable development is the ability of the current generation to meet its needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs objectives. (ECRC, accessed in October 2012). Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is the way a corporation achieves a balance among its economic, social, and environmental responsibilities in its operations so as to address shareholder and other stakeholder expectations. It is known by many names, including corporate responsibility, corporate accountability, corporate ethics, corporate citizenship, sustainability, stewardship, and triple-E bottom line (economical, ethical, and environmental;) (. After a careful analysis of the above mentioned concepts we can underline several important aspects of the CSR concept: Companies and organizations in general must act responsibly with regard to their environment; The concept of corporate social responsibility must integrate social, environmental and education aspects in their day to day activities; The usage of corporate social responsibility in ones company must have a positive impact on the organization and on society; All the activities integrated in the CSR scope must have an ethical aspect which must not by crossed. Following the 2001, EU Commission definition, the European Commission has defined the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility as the responsibility of enterprises for their impacts on society (EU Commission, 2011). The same paper underline that enterprises should have in place a process to integrate social, environmental, ethical, human rights and consumer concerns into their business operations and core strategy in close collaboration with their stakeholders, with the aim of: (1) Maximizing the creation of shared value for their owners/shareholders and for their other stakeholders and society at large; (2) Identifying, preventing and mitigating their possible adverse impacts. 3. PRINCIPLES OF IMPLENETING A CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY STRATEGY FOR MARKETING PURPOSES In order to create a proper Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy, and to use this important tool in the marketing aspect of the organization, companies must adhere to several important principles that we consider to be of great importance of the companies (ISQ, 2012): Ethics and transparency accordance to the principles of ethics, honesty, mutual respect, trust between the parties, integrity and transparency in business, combat the traffic of influence, offering or receiving bribes and corruption in the public and private stakeholders and influence in this fight, as well how to promote fair trade practices. Fundamental Human Rights fully respect the protection of fundamental human rights based on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and incorporating into their practices, the principles of fundamental United Nations and International Labor Organization Conventions. Recognize the right of all workers to form trade unions and representative bodies of workers and to comply with these organizations and respect the effective right to collective bargaining. Good governance Organizational commitment to the practices integrated into the social, environmental and economic leadership to the organization, seeking to reduce exposure to risks of economic, environmental and social activities, implementing requirements, standards and documents, to ensure its continuity. Dialogue with stakeholders Rely on dialogue as the only legitimate means of achieving persuasion, resolving disagreements and conflict resolution. Ensure an open, transparent and trust relation with the various stakeholders, establish channels of consultation with stakeholders and incorporate their concerns, and report a credible and objective performance in its economic, environmental and social. Value Creation Promote management of high quality products/services and processes by integrating environmental and social aspects in planning and decision making. Promote investment in research and development and incorporating innovation in your products/services and processes. Diversity and equality Respect and value differences as a fundamental condition for the existence of an ethical development of humanity and seek to encourage the promotion of cultural diversity, social and ethnic difference as a positive development of the organizations mission, not tolerating discrimination under any pretext. Environmental Protection and Management Promote projects, initiatives and good practices that contribute to the preservation of the environment. Investing in sustainable technologies and products and enhance the ecological dimension and eco-efficiency. Development of local communities Support initiatives to promote social, economic and cultural, based on transparent criteria for evaluation of relevance to the community. Promote the participation and involvement in volunteer work. Responsible Marketing Lead the marketing and communication policy of respect for truth, transparency, consistency and integrity of assertions, reflecting the organizations values. Encourage ethical and responsible behavior from the public to environmental, social and citizenship. 4. USING CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IN MARKETING The concept of Corporate Social Responsibility as we can see it has a great impact on many of the organizations departments and functions. We can not discuss the concept of CSR without taking into consideration the environment, the ethical aspects of consumer communication, the implication in local community and many others. One of the most important aspects and activities that the Corporate Social Responsibility, is the promotion and advertising activities, that the companies undertake when developing CSR strategies and activities. Even when the company undertakes, environmental protection activities, charitable activities, the assurance of diversity and equality and the development of local communities the organizations use them as marketing and brand notoriety increasing agent. Corporate responsibility policies have been gaining increasing attention from senior executives as questions of sustainability and green agendas have come to permeate business the world over. The business and marketing environment have evolved greatly in the last 20 to 30 years. If we look back at the evolution of the economic world in the last century, we can clearly observe a clear development of this environment. Before we can start to understand the development of the corporate social responsibility as a marketing tool, we have to understand the evolution of the marketing concept in the last century. Philip Kotler has made a short presentation of the marketing concept evolution in his book Marketing 3.0 (2010): Evolution Marketing 1.0 product orientation Marketing 2.0 consumer orientation Marketing 3.0 value orientation Objective To sale goods To satisfy and keep clients To make the world a better place Potentiating factors Industrial revolution Information technology New technology wave The manner in which companies see the market Mass consumers with physical needs A smarter consumer A human being with heart and soul The marketing fundamental concept Product development Differentiation Values Marketing general directions for the company Product specification Company and product positioning The companies mission, vision and values Proposal value Functional Functional and emotional Functional, emotional and spiritual Interaction with the consumers Transaction between a company and several consumers An individualized relationship Cooperation between more companies and consumers Source: Kotler, P., Kartajaya, H., Setiawan, I., Marketing 3.0 de la produs la consumator Ã…Å ¸i spiritul uman, Publica Publishing House, Bucharest, 2010, p. 20 As we can see for the above presented table, we find ourselves in the 3.0 marketing period which is considered to be the orientation of the entire marketing activity as an actor that create value for the consumer, the company and the society. So from what we can observe we can state that the two concepts have similar interests. Bur right now we find ourselves in the middle of an financial and economic crisis, this position has forced the companies to present themselves as trustworthy and responsible. The companies and their managers have pursued easy-win strategies or activities with direct commercial benefits, such as measuring and reducing their corporate carbon footprints. Such activities undoubtedly bring some value to businesses and society, but they fall far short of the mark (Bhattacharya, 2011). What we are slowly starting to see is a second wave of corporate responsibility behavior marked by a clearer focus on the total business value such policies can bring. To fully benefit from corporate responsibility, businesses must wake up to the fact that they need to take a more indirect route to creating value with it. They must start by seeing where and how key stakeholders react to a firms corporate responsibility initiatives. In order to have a successful marketing campaign using CSR strategies and activities there are several steps that have to be taken into consideration (Yohannan, 2012): Start Inside: Internal education and engagement is essential for the success of any CSR commitment and campaign. Defining CSR must work for the internal stakeholders based on the reality of business practices, their propensity for risk and desire for leadership. Brand or Bust: Branding provides a way to tie disparate assets together and provides a framework for key audiences such as employees to contribute and share the companys story. Industry Matters: Understanding the material issues of the company are critical. While many companies focus on environment, philanthropy and diversity and inclusion, they may be missing compliance issues or areas that may lead to brand differentiation or leadership. Efficiently Influence: Focusing on a handful of sustainability or key opinion leaders in the social space can elevate your companys profile dramatically. Gaining CSR notoriety can provide a halo for an improved reputation and drive core business objectives such as license to operate and sales. Measure Relentlessly: Know the end game. While CSR is a journey, it must deliver a spectrum of results every step of the way. Understand the urgency in the business and customize your marketing by audience and channel. Of course there are several advantages for using corporate social responsibility as a marketing tool. Among the most important ones we must consider the following ones (Corporate Social Responsibility, 2007): (1) Enhanced reputation and brand image Reputation is an important sustainable competitive advantage, because it is very hard to build and cannot be easily mimicked by competitors. A organisations reputation results from trust by its stakeholders. A strong reputation in ethical environmental and social responsibility can help a organisation build this trust; (2) Increased profit and customer loyalty Research has shown that there is a growing desire by consumers not only to buy good and safe products, but they also want to know that what they buy was produced in a socially and environmentally responsible way such as sweatshop-free and child-labor-free clothing, smaller environmental impact; (3) Creating new business opportunities Experience gained through addressing CSR challe nges also provides opportunities for organizations to create new business opportunities. (4) Increased ability to attract and retain employees A organizations dedication to CSR can be an important aid to recruitment and retention compared with competitors. People want to work for a organization that is in accordance with their own values and beliefs; (5) Increased productivity and morale Committing CSR internally to improve working conditions, lessen environmental impacts can lead to increased productivity and staff morale where the workforce are more reliable, enthusiastic and efficient. (5) Innovation in market through cooperation with local communities CSR requires cooperation with the local communities and relationships can be improved. This can help organisations in tailoring products and services as well as more rapid acceptance to local markets. 5. CONCLUSIONS The concept of Corporate Social Responsibility is in the same time a new and a old one. As we were able to see, CSR has developed in practice since the late 1800 as philanthropic activities. But today, this concept has evolved to take into account several other aspects like: (1) environmental protection; (2) implication in local communities; (3) involvement in social, educational activities and (4) internal and external business environment. In order for the managers and their companies to bee successful in their marketing campaigns they must use CSR as a marketing tool following and being aware of several important principles: Ethics and transparency; Fundamental Human Rights; Good governance; Dialogue with stakeholders; Value Creation; Environmental Protection and Management; Development of local communities; Responsible Marketing. Using all these principles and a responsible CSR activity towards society, the consumer and ethics in general, the companies will have successful market ing and profitable activities. Carbon and Nitrogen Cycles: Model of Chemical Cycling Carbon and Nitrogen Cycles: Model of Chemical Cycling The general model of nutrient cycling shows the main reservoirs relating to both the carbon and nitrogen cycles. Most nutrients accumulate in four reservoirs, each of which is defined by two attributes: whether it contains organic or inorganic matter and whether or not the matter is directly accessible for use by organisms. One section of organic materials is comprised of the living organisms themselves and detritus; these nutrients are available to other organisms when consumers feed and when detritivores (decomposers) consume non-living organic matter. The second organic section includes fossilised deposits of once-living organisms (i.e. fossil fuels, e.g. coal, oil, natural gas and peat), from which nutrients cannot be assimilated directly. Material moved from the living organic section to the fossilised organic compartment long ago, when organisms died and were buried by sedimentation over millions of years to become coal, oil, natural gas or peat. The Carbon Cycle. Biologically the transfer of carbon between living organisms and the non-living environment is The Carbon Cycle. In the atmosphere, carbon is covalently bonded to oxygen to form a gas; carbon dioxide (CO2). As a result of the process of photosynthesis (powered by light energy, usually from the Sun), CO2 is extracted from the atmosphere to make plant food from carbon. The process is called fixation; the integration of CO2 into the molecules of organisms. The majority of CO2 fixation is accomplished by photosynthesis, in which photosynthetic organisms form carbohydrates from CO2 and water (H2O), using light energy to drive the biochemical reactions involved. Photosynthetic organisms make use of carbohydrates to manufacture other organic molecules that make up their cells, e.g. cellulose, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids. Inorganic CO2 in the atmosphere is converted by photosynthetic organisms via the process of photosynthesis into simple carbohydrates. Carbon dioxide+water(+ light energy)glucose+oxygen 6CO2+6H2O(+ light energy)C6H12O6+6O2 Herbivores and omnivores obtain carbohydrates and other more complex substances by consuming photosynthetic organisms and metabolise (chemically break down) the carbohydrates and complex substances into useful constituents for their own bodies/cells/molecules. Carnivores obtain these useful substances by eating herbivores/omnivores. Carbon dioxide is released back into the atmosphere when organisms undergo the process of cellular respiration; small amounts of CO2 are released into the air by the decomposition of dead organisms by the action of certain bacteria and fungi (detritivores): the majority of this CO2 returns to the atmosphere to be available for re-use in further photosynthesis. Carbon-containing substances from photosynthetic organisms are required by animals and some microorganisms in order to produce energy and as a source of materials to drive many of their own biochemical reactions; this is essential to such organisms. Glucose+oxygenCarbon dioxide+water+ Energy (ATP + heat) C6H12O6+6O26CO2+6H2O+ Energy (ATP + heat) The reciprocal processes of photosynthesis and cellular respiration are responsible for the major transformations and movements of carbon. On a global scale, the return of CO2 to the atmosphere by respiration is closely balanced by its removal by photosynthesis. However, the burning of wood and fossil fuels adds more CO2 to the atmosphere; as a result, the amount of atmospheric CO2 is steadily increasing. Humans have an impact on the amount of CO2 released into the atmosphere with the use and burning of fossil fuels; these actions also release CO2 into the atmosphere. Not all carbon-based matter is immediately decomposed. Under certain conditions dead organic matter accumulates more rapidly than it is decomposed within an ecosystem. The remnants are locked away in subterranean deposits. Fossil fuels will be formed when deposits of sediment compress this matter; this process takes many millennia. Continuing geological processes may expose the carbon in these fuels to the environment after an extensive period of time, but mostly the carbon within the fossil fuels is liberated during human activities, e.g. use of fossil fuels for combustion. Carbon, in the form of CO2, is the major greenhouse gas released to the environment/atmosphere as a consequence of human activities. The continuing discharge of greenhouse gases (CO2 is just one greenhouse gas) is causing the temperature of the earth to rise, disrupting the climate and affecting sea-levels. Sometime around the middle of the 18th century the industrial revolution began. Since then the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere has increased by approximately 40% and will carry on increasing unless society reduces or eliminates the consumption of fossil fuels. The exploitation of fossil fuels for energy has resulted in the rise in atmospheric CO2 concentrations. Additionally over 30% of the CO2 rise over the last 150 years came from transformations in land use. These include deforestation and the cultivation of land for food production. The primary source of carbon/CO2 emissions from the Earth is as a result of tectonic or volcanic activity. Much of the CO2 released as a result of tectonic or volcanic activity is derived from the subduction of rocks including carbonate rocks. Much of the overall released CO2 was trapped when the Earth formed. Some discharged carbon remains as CO2 in the atmosphere; some is dissolved in the oceans; some is incorporated into organic molecules in living or dead/decomposing organisms, and some is trapped in carbonate rocks. Carbon is removed into long-term storage by burial of sedimentary strata (e.g. coal), that store organic carbon from un-decayed biomass and carbonate rocks e.g. limestone (calcium carbonate). The processes of tectonic movement and subduction release some of the CO2 through vents such as volcanoes (above and below ocean surfaces). The Nitrogen Cycle Although Earth’s atmosphere is almost 80% nitrogen, it is mostly in the form of nitrogen gas (N2), which is unavailable to plants and hence to consumers of plants. Green plants absorb nitrogen in the form of nitrates dissolved in the soil water. They use these nitrates to make proteins or nucleic acids; these proteins or nucleic acids are passed along the food chain as herbivores eat plants and are then themselves eaten by carnivores. In this way the nitrogen taken from the soil becomes incorporated into the bodies of all types of living organisms. The nitrates are returned to the soil in a number of ways. Urine contains urea, a breakdown product of proteins, and proteins are also passed out in the faeces, so the waste passed out of animals bodies contains many nitrogen-rich compounds. Similarly, when animals and plants die their bodies contain a large proportion of protein. Some of the detritivores that break down the waste products from animals and the bodies of animals and plants specifically digest the proteins. As detritivores break down the protein they excrete ammonium compounds. These ammonium compounds are then digested by nitrifying bacteria which excrete nitrates, which are returned to the soil to be absorbed by plants again. By the time the microbes and other animals that feed on decaying organic material (detritus feeders) have decomposed the waste products and the dead bodies of organisms in ecosystems, all the energy originally captured by the green plants in photosynthesis has been transferred to other organisms or back into the environment itself as heat or mineral compounds. A natural pathway for nitrogen to enter ecosystems is via nitrogen fixation. Only certain organisms (prokaryotes) can fix nitrogen, i.e. convert N2 to molecules that can be used to synthesise nitrogenous organic compounds e.g. amino acids. Prokaryotes are vital links at several points in the nitrogen cycle (see picture on next page). In terrestrial ecosystems nitrogen is fixed by free-living (non-symbiotic) soil bacteria as well as by symbiotic bacteria (Rhizobium) in the root nodules (also called nitrogen nodules) of legumes and certain other plants. Some cyanobacteria fix nitrogen in aquatic ecosystems. Organisms that fix nitrogen are fulfilling their own metabolic requirements, but the excess ammonia (NH3) they release becomes available to other organisms. A major contribution in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems to the pool of nitrogenous minerals is the industrial fixation of nitrogen for fertiliser: this is in addition to the natural sources of usable nitrogen. The direct result of nitrogen fixation is ammonia (NH3). Since NH3 is a gas, it can evaporate back to the atmosphere. This local recycling of nitrogen by atmospheric deposition can be especially pronounced in agricultural areas where both nitrogen fertilisers and lime (a base that decreases soil acidity) are used extensively. Although plants can use ammonium (NH4+) directly, most of the ammonium in soil is utilised by particular aerobic bacteria as a source of energy; their activity oxidises ammonium to nitrite (NO2) and then to nitrate (NO3); the nitrification process. Nitrate released from these bacteria can then be assimilated by plants and converted to organic molecules e.g. amino acids and proteins. Animals can assimilate only organic nitrogen, and they do this by eating plants or other animals. Some bacteria utilise nitrates, under anaerobic conditions, to obtain the oxygen they need for metabolism from rather than from O2. As a consequence of the denitrification process, some nitrate is converted back to N2, returning to the atmosphere. The process called ammonification, mainly carried out by bacterial and fungal decomposers, is the decomposition of organic nitrogen back to ammonium: this process recycles large amounts of nitrogen to the soil. Overall, most of the nitrogen cycling in natural systems involves the nitrogenous compounds in soil and water, not atmospheric N2. Although nitrogen fixation is important in the build-up of a pool of available nitrogen, it contributes only a tiny fraction of the nitrogen assimilated annually by total vegetation. Nevertheless, many common species of plants depend on their association with nitrogen-fixing bacteria to provide this essential nutrient in a form they can assimilate. The amount of N2 returned to the atmosphere by denitrification is also relatively small. The important point is that although nitrogen exchanges between soil and atmosphere are significant over the long term, in most ecosystems the majority of nitrogen is recycled locally by decomposition and re-assimilation.

Economic Impact of Natural Disasters Essay

Natural disasters are catastrophes hauled by the nature on man. They may bring about large scale destruction depending on the type of natural disaster. Natural disasters include a range of hazards which may cause widespread devastation and human and animal casualties. They range from floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, cyclones, tornadoes, tsunamis, avalanches, volcanic eruptions, famine, heat wave and droughts etc. Natural disasters in the past were mostly unpredictable however, with the advancement of science and technology numerous authentic ways of previously detecting the possibility of natural disasters have developed. Nevertheless, even with the invention of modern scientific ways and pre-disaster preparations, human societies are not completely safe from the terrible outcomes of the disasters. The calamities bring with them huge destructions to land, property, human lives and the economy of region concerned. Natural Disasters are not only destructive for the land, people and buildings; they are also at times economically crippling. â€Å"Natural disasters affect people and their livelihoods or their ability to earn a living and support their families. Ultimately, then, severe natural disasters not only destroy people and property, they also affect the economy of the affected region. † (Stoltman, Lidstone and Dichano p. 297) Disasters heavy burden on the economy of the government since it has to make huge monetary expenditures on the recovery of the catastrophe-stricken area and rehabilitation of the victimized population. â€Å"These actions may lead to the postponement of or abandonment of planned investments, reductions in the provisions of public services and deferment of wage and salary increases and of staff appointments. † (Benson and Clay p. 29) This may mean huge losses will be incurred to the economy from this aspect as well in the long run. It is also believed that since in modern times the possible occurrence of a disaster can be predicted, the government has to take safety steps which also incur huge costs; though these safety measures may not even be able to fully protect the area from destruction, which is true in most cases. Hence the cost spent of safety measures is also nearly lost. In the United States natural disasters have been quite frequent and the governments during different times have been able to cope with the economic stress brought about by the calamities. However, sometimes exceptions did exist especially in the past when the technology was not as developed as it is today and the pace with which the rehabilitation should occur was not as fast as in today’s advanced society. America has faced all kinds of disasters from floods, hurricanes, cyclones, volcanic eruptions to heat waves, blizzards and tsunami. Hurricanes and cyclones have been more frequent in some areas prone to such type of disasters. North America especially the United States has generally been successful in holding down the death tolls even in very destructive incidents. (Stoltman, Lidstone and Dechano p. 323) Some natural disasters which occurred in the United States are being discussed from the point of view of the economic destruction they brought. Super Outbreak The largest and the worst known and recorded outbreak of a series of tornadoes over a period of 24 hour in nearly thirteen states of USA took place on 3rd and 4th of April, 1974 and are known as the super outbreak. It is believed by some to the â€Å"worst out break of the 20th century†. (Super Outbreak NOAA) 148 confirmed tornadoes caused widespread damage and destruction in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, and New York. It extensively damaged approximately 900 square miles (1,440 square kilometers) along a total combined path length of 2,600 miles (4,160 km). (Super Outbreak Wikipedia). Reported to have begun around the afternoon and continued for a huge duration of 18 hours, the super outbreak lead to large number of casualties, injured and great loss to the buildings and revenue. According to the statistics caused 315 to 330 people’s deaths altogether in all the affected states, 5,484 victims were injured and 27, 590 families suffered the losses of the disaster. Overall estimated damage ranges from $3. 5 billion to $6. 0 billion according to varying sources. (Statistics taken from â€Å"Super Outbreak† Wikipedia and NOAA). Most of the losses incurred were due to the property damage, damage to basic facilities of life like roads, rail tracks which form the means of communication to other areas were severely affected. Tornadoes incurred maximum damage in areas where their intensity was at their peak. â€Å"Hanover was 90% damaged and destroyed. † (Super Outbreak Wikipedia)The task of rehabilitating the areas was not a small one; in fact it spread over 13 US states and a heavy burden was on the government. The estimated cost of the damage to the Hanover College alone was about $10 million. (Super Outbreak Wikipedia) Estimated damage to about 11 schools amounted to $7, 705, 000 in total with some schools not being included in the list. (Super Outbreak NOAA) Rebuilding huge structures is a humungous task. The recovery of all the basic facilities of life like availability of food, water and shelter and means of communication along with the availability of electricity; all had to be provided efficiently and effectively to all the victims of the disaster. In addition the medical costs of those injured had to be met by the government. Measures had to be taken to prevent disease epidemics from erupting in areas facing sanitation problems. These costs were those which had to be used in investments and on other progressive developmental projects, however, due to the disaster a huge amount was now spent on rehabilitation and recovery of victims of the super outbreak. This did not put a temporary burden on the government’s economy but actually affected all those possible ways of economic progress which were being sought through future investment plans. Louisiana Flood 8th May, 1995 â€Å"The United States has a long history of attempting to deal with hazards beginning with floods and focus has been on mitigation. † After experimenting with dams, levees also became discredited after the expenditure of $200 million in 1927. â€Å"That year a massive flood left 250 dead and 700,000 temporarily homeless. † (Stoltman, Lidstone and Dechano p. 326) This proved that no matter what preventive measures may be taken, the losses incurred by the natural disasters (may they be losses of life or economic losses) cannot be fully prevented. Another huge disaster experienced in the history of natural disasters in the USA was the Louisiana flood of 1995. The flooding was actually on set by excessive continued raining from 7th till 8th of May, 1995. Cities like Jefferson Parish and Orleans Parish, including the cities of New Orleans, Metairie, Kenner, River Ridge, Harahan, Slidell, and Covington etc. All these areas were severely affected and experienced huge losses due to the flood. Six people died as a result of the flooding. The city of New Orleans suffered $360 million in damages, and the damage of the surrounding areas put that total above $1 billion. Some 56,000 homes were damaged in 12 Parishes. Thousands of cars were flooded. 14,600 homes and apartments were flooded in Jefferson Parish. The cause of the massive rain fall totals was a stalled out frontal system from the northwest. It produced a train effect, in which rain and/or thunderstorms continued to form over the same area. Pumping stations were overwhelmed and could not pump out the water into Lake Pontchartrain. The pumping stations are only rated to pump one inch per hour maximum. (May 8th 1995 Louisiana Flood Wikipedia) In addition to meeting the huge costs of restoration of normal living standards, the government was also concerned to take steps to prevent such disastrous conditions as much as possible in the future. The countries economy was once again weighed down by the responsibility of taking prospective and effective safety measures. Such catastrophic rainfall floods were planned to be prevented by building high costing much more effective pumps to remove the rain water before build up develops. 1994 Northridge Earthquake The Northridge earthquake occurring on the January 17th 1994 caused large scale devastation and a lot of economic damage as compared to its relatively low intensity of 6. 7 on the Richter scale and low duration. â€Å"Yet in terms of financial losses Northridge is one of the worst disasters in US history. 57 people were killed and 72 deaths were attributed to the earthquake. 11,800 people received hospital treatment for injuries and 22,000 people were left homeless. † (Petak and Elahi Northridge earthquake USA) Direct losses, like damages to residential and commercial buildings, roads and bridges, means of telecommunication, agriculture and lifelines (like water supply and sewerage lines were damaged) etc altogether amounted to $41. 8 billion. Infrastructural losses like water, gas and power demanded immediate action just as the rescue and recovery of those trapped. Basic necessities of life had to be provided without delay just as immediate medical treatment was essential for the injured. â€Å"Life line damage was estimated $ 2 billion but later was found to have exceeded. † (Petak and Elahi Northridge earthquake USA) Damage to schools was also costly and the cost was approximately $100 million. (Petak and Elahi Northridge earthquake USA) It was a sorry state of affairs that the hospitals were also damaged nearly 31 in number and 9 were forced to evacuate. (Petak and Elahi Northridge earthquake USA) This caused serious problems since the injured had to be dealt with in the hospitals and the transportation systems were damaged to take them to nearby safer areas for the purpose of treatment. However the airports were relatively less damaged or almost not damaged at all. The earthquake wreaked havoc on numerous massive buildings including centers of trade and commerce and shopping plazas, bridges and roads. The destruction of roads and bridges lead to serious complications and further economic loss. Lack of transportation caused various business dealings to be delayed, the damage to office buildings also acted as an aggravating factor in this situation and incurring indirect financial loss. â€Å"The area’s largest shopping center, the Northridge Fashion Center was virtually destroyed and did not open for more than a year and a half. † (Petak and Elahi Northridge earthquake USA) Business loss literally affected the country’s economy which was already dealing with the blow the earthquake had given to it. The overall business losses were estimated to be $15. 2 billion. However, the situations were quickly dealt with which meant that supply was meeting the demand. The area took some time before it was fully restored despite the fact that the recovery process and the aid being provided were both quick and effective. Hurricane Katrina In terms of material as well as economic destruction, Hurricane Katrina, occurring on the 23rd of August, 2005, was one of the worst natural disasters to have affected the US in most recent times. Failure of levee system in New Orleans and Louisiana lead to great loss of life and property. This was greatly criticized since modern day technology demands much more effective measures to be taken by the government in preventing huge catastrophes like hurricane Katrina. Hurricane Katrina has managed to shatter the economy for good. It has caused huge damages to the oil and gas production causing major damage to many oil platforms and leading to the shut down of refineries. â€Å"The total shut-in oil production from the Gulf of Mexico in the six-month period following Katrina was approximately 24% of the annual production and the shut-in gas production for the same period was about 18%. † (Hurricane Katrina Wikipedia)This is a sorry state of affairs since the damage to done to other business market, business dealings and buildings, is apart from this damage to the oil and gas industry. Along with the destruction of various job opportunities the forest industry was also affected. People were not only left homeless but also unemployed and the country’s constant gain through income tax from these previously employed also halted because of the loss of their jobs. Families were left without a means of livelihood and problems of poverty were becoming increasingly significant. â€Å"It is estimated that the total economic impact in Louisiana and Mississippi may exceed $150 billion† (Hurricane Katrina Wikipedia) It is a natural phenomenon that loss of employment opportunities and unavailability of basic needs of the people causes them to move places in search of better opportunities in all fields of life. This has a negative effect not only on the areas which are left, because their chances of future progress become dim, but also of those areas which are over burdened by the influx of people. These areas come under economic pressure because now they have to provide jobs, residential areas and food for more people on the same available resources. This holds very true especially in the case of victims and survivors of Hurricane Katrina. The economic lows in their region forced them to migrate to other regions or states which also suffered a set back when burdened by an extra population to be supported. Conclusion Analysis of the US attitude towards natural disasters has shown that US governments have been active and keen on preventing as well as providing immediate remedies to the disaster stricken people. However, the preventive measures like levee system have not been cost effective. They have not proved to be good in preventing huge damages. Amount spent on these preventive measures is wasted once the disaster strikes. On the other hand, effective and efficient help is provided for the recovery of the victims and the destructed area but the economic blow is very strong. In many areas the fast rehabilitation system is not enough though and migration of people to other states causes burden on those states. The economic damage due post-disaster era is caused due to direct and indirect causes. The direct causes include destruction of buildings especially corporate and residential ones and providence of basic facilities of life to the victims and injured and indirect damage is incurred by mainly destructed transportations, repair, rehabilitation and rechecking of newly built structures for safety. â€Å"Disasters can cause government revenues to fall since lower levels of economic activity including possible net declines in imports and exports imply reduced direct and indirect tax revenues. † (Benson and Clay p. 29) Hence, modern day technology demands our government to take better and more reliable preventive measures to avoid huge damages from disasters which can prove to be long term economic set backs. Works Cited Benson, Charlotte and Clay, Edward J. Understanding the Economic and Financial Impacts of Natural Disasters. 2004. World Bank Publications â€Å"Hurricane Katrina. † Wikipedia. 26 April 2008. Petak, William J and Elahi, Shirin. â€Å"The Northridge Earthquake USA and its Economic and Social Impacts. † 26 April 2008 Stoltman, Joseph P. Lidstone, John and Dechano Lisa M. International Perspectives on Natural Disasters. 2005. Springer Publishers. â€Å"Super Outbreak†. NOAA’S National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office. Northern Indiana. 26 April 2008. â€Å"Super Outbreak† Wikipedia. 26 April 2008.