The Virgin Suicides by Jeffery Eugenides Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Virgin Suicides by Jeffery Eugenides - Thesis Example A handsome young teenager named Trip Fontaine manages to charm Lux and also impress Ronald (the girl’s father). He gets the parent’s permission to take Lux along with other three girls (Bonnie, Mary and Therese) to a homecoming dance. That day on a football ground Trip and Lux have sex. This makes Lux miss the curfew and hence starts a torturous time for all of the sisters. They are taken out of the school and restricted to their house and their liberty is curtailed. In one incident the mother even orders Lux to destroy all the music records she has. After some resistance Lux submits to the demands. From here the lives of the sisters takes a downturn. Smoking and sex on rooftop become common features. A strange smell comes from the house and permeates the neighborhood. All these spectacles create a big interest of the neighborhood in the lives of these girls. It is during this time that the neighborhood boys, who are infatuated by the Lisbon girls, communicate with them by using various methods. For example, they play music records over the phone. All these activities don’t continue for a long time as in the end all the girls kill themselves. When invited by the girls to the house, the boys enter it and find all of them dead. Bonnie is found hanging in the house, Theresa takes overdose of sleeping pills and Lux dies of Carbon Monoxide poisoning. Although Mary doesn’t die immediately she takes overdose of sleeping pills and dies one month after putting her head in the oven. The girl’s parents sell the house and leave the neighborhood. For the senior thesis I would like to explore the relationship between parents and their teenage girls. In the novel parents tried to make their daughters happy by being more lenient in terms of permitting interaction with the opposite sex. But probably what the girls needed was more displays of love and affection. The theme of difference between perception and expectation of parents and teenage

Global Perspective Individual Research

Global Perspective Individual Research Water the most important and basic necessity required for life to exist on this planet. From microscopic organisms to giant mammals, from algae to angiosperms, every living thing needs water to survive. It is universally known that clean, potable water is extremely essential for a healthy living but its also very scarce in todays polluted world. Statistically, dirty water is one of the deadliest killers. UNO has estimated that 10 people die every minute from contaminated water. The WHO estimates that 80% of all sickness and disease in developing countries is due to unsafe water. I believe water pollution is one of the most widespread problems and it has deadly effects which could be mitigated if the right actions are taken in a timely fashion. Thus, I think this is a relevant topic to tackle. Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies such as lakes, rivers, oceans and groundwater. Water pollution occurs when pollutants are discharged directly into water bodies without removing harmful compounds. By this project I will know more about what are the different perspectives regarding this issue. GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE Water pollution is prevalent all over the world. Several countries are suffering from intense pollution. The irony is that the highly industrialized, developed countries suffer from the highest margin of pollution. Many factors are held responsible for these problems- industrialization, population and poor water treatment plants. The top five polluting countries are China, USA, Russia, India and Japan. Globally, the water and sanitation crisis claims most lives. Some 6,000 children die daily due to lack of safe drinking water. The death tolls are equal to those who die due to 20 aircraft crashes. UN statistics show 2 million tons of human waste is disposed in water bodies daily. Developed countries dump 70% of industrial wastes untreated leading to contamination. The following are the sources of water pollution: Fertilizers: Synthetic fertilizers leech into rivers through rainwater or improper irrigation. Drained fertilizers give enrichment of nutrients which gives rise to algae; causing Eutrophication. This disrupts the life cycle of marine animals by using up oxygen. If continued it will lead to 15% global increase in nitrogen flow into rivers in 30 years. Chemical industries: Untreated chemical when released affects marine life, as sewage contains a high amount of pathogens which spread disease. Oil Spills: While huge oil tankers leak during transit, massive quantities of oil are spilled into oceans resulting in deaths of marine life. They die of hypothermia as oil sticks to their scales/feathers and they are not able to breathe and fly. As the water temperature fluctuates aquatic animals die. Oil spills have greater effects because of the fact that they are difficult to clean up. Continentally, Africa has highest amount of polluted water, having its greatest impact on South-Africa. African government has taken action by implementing laws and measures but they are not just enough. Africa being a developing continent, cannot afford the cost of treating all the waste. Some industries dispose the waste directly in water bodies. Even if a country is developed it can suffer from water pollution. Lithuania and Estonia (Europe) have 70% of all surface water polluted due to industrial activities. Due to Polands water polluted it is in shortage for water for industrial use. Baltic Sea is the most polluted sea in the world. In Asia most polluted waters are to be found in China, having 80% of its water polluted due to industrial waste. Japans majority populace is affected by Mina-Mata disease caused by methyl-mercury from the industrial wastewater of the Chisso Corporations chemical factory. This is a highly toxic chemical that can kill fishes. The fishes when eaten by the local people result in mercury poisoning. The possible outcomes are insanity, paralysis, coma and eventually death. Clean tap water is not available across USA, mostly up north, while other states receive contaminated water. The Senate and the Congress in America passed The Water Act in 1974 that could set national limits on certain contaminants in tap water. Australia has a comparatively low rate of water pollution. Many water projects are underway in Australia and people are enthusiastically helping to solve the problem of unsafe drinking water. Main source of pollution at Sydneys beach is affluent discharge from Bodi and Malabar waste water treatment plants. Waste water treatment plants collect waste water and remove solids and then treat waste water before realizing it into the environment. Water treatment can lead to greater life expectancy and deaths caused by contaminated water can be reduced. NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE Im privileged to live in a country which has adequate water. By adequate, I mean there is enough for need, but unfortunately not enough for greed. Regrettably, India is amongst the top water polluters in the world. Since several decades, industrial wastes like chemicals, oils, carcinogens (cancer causing chemicals) and other poisonous substances are discharged into the rivers in large quantities. Its a fact the water shortage will be the worlds most serious issue in the coming years. Fights have already begun for water. Indian states are involved in legal battles over the rivers which they consider a part of their state. Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry and Karnataka are fighting over the river Kaveri, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka are fighting over river Krishna. In India, rivers have a great religious importance as well as are holy. People travel miles to bathe in sacred rivers. Due to water pollution, the water which was considered Amrita (Elixir) has now become poisonous. To some extent, bathing in the river does cause water pollution. Imagine thousands of people diving into rivers for a holy and spiritual bath. This does contaminate water and gives way to spread of infection. River water is used for hygienic purposes such as washing clothes, bathing etc. It has been found that expired medicines and used injections are thrown into the rivers. Out of the 1400 km of the river Yamuna, 600 km from Panipat to Etawa has been officially declared to be dead (this means this stretch of the river has 0% dissolved oxygen meaning that neither can water support any type of life nor is it suitable for any kind of use. Experts have found out that the level of coliform (harmful bacteria) in water is dangerous if its 50/100ml of drinking water. For bathing water, it is an approximate of 500 per 100ml is considered harmful. More than 500 means that the water is not even fit for bathing. It has been found that Delhis level of coliform is between 9,000,000 and 10,000,000. If this is the condition of the capital city; it can be assumed that in other parts of the country the conditions are worse. Even though the Indian government has introduced many Acts outlawing water pollution, it is unable to enforce it strongly. Industrial wastes are dumped into the ground by injecting them deep inside. This practice pollutes the underground freshwater. In India, water pollution is impacting on the health of the people. The industrially polluted water is treated by ordinary techniques, which still are not able to filter out the heavy metals such as lead and cadmium. This water is used in agricultural practices, and the produced crops like the fruits and vegetables contain these poisonous substances. This water can cause diseases after consumption like: 1. Bacterial Infections Typhoid, Cholera, Bacillary-Dysentery 2. Viral Infections Infectious Hepatitis (Jaundice), Poliomyelitis 3. Protozoan Infections Amoebic Dysentery Aji River flows nearby Rajkot and a dam is built on it to sustain it. An analysis of different water bodies in downstream of Aji dam indicates the most of water bodies within city limits are contaminated. Pollution of underground water due to electro-plating industries and sari-printing industries is also observed. These small- scale industries are proliferating but are also causing severe damage to underground, potable water which is becoming increasingly scarce. PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE Perspective the word itself means the way one looks at things. I believe perspectives, opinions, ideas and viewpoints change when we are encountered with something new. I have started believing that a day will come when we will be left with no fresh water. But I also feel that we can start with something small. My town, Rajkot has consistently good rainfall since the past years therefore we should collect and harvest the rainwater. This water can then be utilized in several ways. India celebrates Festival of colors called DHULETI. It used to be celebrated with only colours traditionally but now colored water and colored sprays have also been a part of the celebration. People in Rajkot including me waste gallons and gallons of water within 3 hours of celebration. There is high amount of water shortage in the city. I personally have had water problems that day. Personally I accept that statistics already show devastating effects but they can be lowered if all of us develop a different thinking. POSSIBLE SCENARIOS Today, water has become a major world issue which is predicted to rise even further due to industries, agriculture and many other contributing factors. Peoples health is already affected badly. There is massive outbreak of diseases and infections. I agree that there are vaccinations present for almost all of these diseases but the saddest part is that not all of the affected population can afford to get vaccinated. And worse, some people are not even aware. If this continues many diseases will spread even quicker via water. Clean water wont be available for drinking. If states today will fight for water, tomorrow individual people might fight for water and a small issue about water may start a fight that might be difficult to contain or halt. If not acted upon now, the future of the world is going to be very dry. POSSIBLE COURSES OF ACTION Water pollution needs to immediately be reduced. By taking simple measures, we can alleviate the levels of contamination and with constant and consistent effort, probably remove contamination altogether. The following are some ways in which that could be done: Wise usage of water and a sense of responsibility while using it. Spreading awareness to industrial firms and trying to make them relocate their sewage plants if they are depositing it untreated into water. Stricter laws about minimum usage of pesticide, fertilizer and herbicide per annum which will reduce surface run off. Passing Government Laws and Water Acts about treatment of drinking and sewage water. These are some primary steps which can at least help jump start the conservation process. Soon, if this is kept on-going, my may well be living in a contamination-free world. Thus, I believe to change some of this big and major issues, all we have to do is accumulate the courage to take the first step. PERSONAL RESPONSE After realizing the need for judicious use of water, I have reduced the use of water in cleaning my bicycle and bathing. The household help had been instructed to use less of water in washing utensils and clothes. She has been advised to not keep the tap running I think the use washing machines and dishwashers would be beneficial in saving a good amount of water. My father owns a chemical industry and he ensures that his industry does not deposit waste directly in the water body before sufficient treatment. I have decided and also gave notice of no water availability during Dhuleti celebration time in my apartment with the help of management committee To spread awareness in the society I have stuck poster on my societys notice board. I believe these small steps, if taken by everybody will make a drastic change in the overall picture of this nation. And for that, I do talk to my friends about saving water and its importance. I am convinced that spreading awareness is the ONLY way to tackle is increasingly prevalent problem. [Word count: 1971 Words]

Changes in Child Socialization Essay -- Sociology Sociological Essays

Changes in Child Socialization The socialization of children has changed during the past century. According to Shepard 2001, child socialization is defined as a close interaction with a small number of people-none of whom the child has selected-where the child learned to think and speak, internalizes norms, beliefs, and values; forms some basic attitudes; develops a capacity (or incapacity) for intimate and personal relationships; and acquires a self-image. In the past, a child may have learned to be social through relationships at home, at school and at church. Today, a child learns socialization through relationships in many different situations. In 1900, twenty percent of women in the United States had full-time jobs outside the home. In 1997, this figure tripled to sixty percent of all women holding full-time jobs. The percentage of men in the workforce has remained fairly steady, with the average holding full-time jobs being eighty percent. Stay-at-home mothers are becoming a rarity, as households feel the need to increase income. With both parents working, children have become used to spending more time at daycare and school. Parents may be more likely to send their children to school at an earlier age when daycare costs are prohibitive. Children now participate in an array of extra-curricular activities, spending their time outside of school away from home. Some parents may feel this is a way to spend time with their child, if they are involved in coaching or being a spectator. For other parents, the activity gives them some free time while their child participates. Children learn to work in groups or as part of a team, while learning from adults and peers alike. Parents may or may not have a part in this type of... ...a/releases/98legacy/html. Moore, Kristen Anderson, Sharon Vandivere, Jennifer Thrle. "Turbulence and Child Well-Being." Urban Institute. (November 2001) http://www.newfederalism.urban.org/html/series_b/bl6/bl6.html. Parents, Are you Listening? "Do Listening Skills Affect Learning?" (November 2001) http://www.lauds.k12.ca.us/Haskell_El/parent%20information/listeningz.htm. Shepard, Jon M. Sociology. "Child Socialization." (2001) Wadsworth Group. Belmont, CA. Eighth Edition. Ch. 4: pp. 103-108. Trinity University San Antonio, Texas. "Exploring Americans' Attitudes Toward Socializers and Childrearing Recipes." (2001) http://www.trinity.edu/~mkearl.obeys.html. Waters, Steve, M.A. Focus on the Family. "Protection and Socialization-Two Keys on The Family Internet Use." (1998) http://www.family.org/cforum/research/papers/60002553.html.

Interpretation and discussion of results Essay

A. The Correlation Matrices: A. 1. The Pearson Correlation Matrix for the Combined Sample Data: Leadership, as defined and measured in the Baldrige Criteria (Peacock, 2006) is related to the other items which could be interpreted as priorities or concerns of the respondents surveyed. In other words, the sub-items defining Leadership such as Organizational Leadership and Social Responsibility were significantly correlated with the sub-categories (Peacock, 2006) under the other items including Strategic Planning (questions 11 to 16), Customer and Market Focus (questions 17 to 21), Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management (questions 22 to 28), Human Resource Focus (questions 29 to 39), Process Management (questions 40 to 50), and Business Results (questions 51 to 63). Those questions are contained in Appendix A. Under the Baldrige Criteria (Peacock, 2006), there are 10 indicators defining Leadership including visible involvement in managerial activities such as goal setting, directing and performance audit; communicating values and customer focus; behavior modeling and motivating and empowering personnel; which fall under the sub-item Organizational Leadership. Governance concerns such as accountability, transparency, disclosure and stakeholders’ interests; appropriateness and effectiveness of leadership system; addressing adverse social impacts of products, services and operations; monitoring ethical behavior throughout the organization and community involvement; meanwhile fall under the sub-item social responsibility. These indicators serve as basis for measuring the leadership scores in the Baldrige Criteria (Peacock, 2006). Despite the significant correlation of Leadership with the other major items in the Baldrige Criteria (Peacock, 2006); however, the data set evaluated was combined for both the Others Group and the Leaders Group. There were thirty-seven (37) samples from the Others Group and seven (7) samples from the Leaders Group. The correlation tests conducted tended to support the hypothesis that individuals who scored high in Leadership, Item 1, also score high in the other items, from Item 2 to Item 7. The results suggested that Leadership, as defined and measured in the Baldrige Criteria (Peacock, 2006) is related to the other items which could be interpreted as priorities or concerns of the respondents surveyed as shown by Table 1. Table 1. The Pearson Correlation Matrix for the Combined Data Leader-ship Strategic Planning Customer And Market Focus Measure-ment, Analysis, and Know- ledge Manage-ment Human Resource Focus Process Manage- ment Item 1 Item 2 Item 3 Item 4 Item 5 Item 6. Strategic Planning, Item 2 0. 510 0. 000 Customer And Market Focus, Item 3 0. 341 0. 023 0. 237 0. 121 Measure-ment, Analysis, and Knowledge Manage-ment, Item 4 0. 656 0. 000 0. 575 0. 000 0. 291 0. 056 Human Resource Focus, Item 5 0. 718 0. 000 0. 449 0. 002 0. 259 0. 090 0. 590 0. 000 Process Manage-ment, Item 6 0. 518 0. 000 0. 730 0. 000 0. 334 0. 027 0. 738 0. 000 0. 536 0. 000 Business Results, Item 7 0. 387 0. 009 0. 409 0. 006 0. 413 0. 005 0. 196 0. 202 0. 271 0. 075 0. 353 0. 019 Cell Contents: Pearson correlation p-value Although the Pearson correlation test conducted tends to support the hypothesis of correlation of Leadership with the other items for the combined data set of the Others Group and the Leaders Group; however this does not tell us if there is any difference between the Others Group and the Leaders Group. Hence, Pearson correlation test was then conducted separately; one, for the Others Group and another, for the Leaders Group. A. 2. The Pearson Correlation Matrix for the Others Group: For the Others Group, the statistical test showed that Leadership, Item 1, had significant correlations with all the items from Strategic Planning, Item 2 to Business Results, Item 7 except for Customer and Market Focus, Item 3. Leadership, Item 1, had the highest correlations with Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management, Item 4 (r = 0. 705) and Human Resource Focus, Item 5, (r = 0. 725), Table 2. Table 2. Excerpt from the Pearson Correlation Matrix for the Others Group Leadership Item 1 Item Strategic Planning, Item 2 0. 508 0. 001 Customer And Market Focus, Item 3 0. 316 0. 057 Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management, Item 4 0. 705 0. 000 Human Resource Focus, Item 5 0. 725 0. 000 Process Management, Item 6 0. 562 0. 000 Business Results, Item 7 0. 333 0. 044 Cell Contents: Pearson correlation p-Value.

The Advantage and Disadvantage of Using Social Media Essay

The advantages: Based on my own experiences, there are several advantages for marketers to use social media as part of their marketing communications strategies. Social media represent a revolutionary new trend in communication. More and more people begin to use social media to communicate. It is freer, more convenient, faster and cheaper than the old ways, people also can get more information what they want, what is more, people can get in touch with their friend easier. For the company, it can face to their target market precisely. Social media hold a great deal of customers’ information, through the information that people share, company can easily know customers’ hobbits and the goods they like. Social media also increase the communication between customers and marketers. Company can get lots of users’ feedback information and use that information to improve their product. It also help the organization leave a good impression in customers’ minds. One of the most important things is that social media not only can help companies advertising well but also nearly have no costs. What social media bring for the company cannot be measured but the cost of it is really low. It lowers the company’s advertisement costs. Read more:  Essay on advantages and disadvantages of social media Disadvantages: Based on my own experience, the disadvantages or risks for marketers in using social media as part of their marketing communications strategy are as follows. Company’s web page can be attacked by hackers and viruses; it may lose company’s important information, company may lose their competitive advantages. Customers can be deceived by the false information online and the extra information may let them get annoyed. The negative comments may damage companies’ image. The use of the internet may cause the reduction of production efficiency, because employees may busy use the internet to solve the problem online or update their software so that waste times. Company should learn how to handle a social media and that may waste company’s time. Because the social media is not a â€Å"face to face† communication, so it can have many incredible situations, the information may be not real, the likelihood of people been fooled are greatly increased.

Barn Burning essays

Barn Burning essays Colonel Sartoris Snopes, who is called Sarty by his family, is a major character in William Faulkners Barn Burning. This young boy of about ten finds himself in the position of being expected to lie to protect his father from punishment for burning the neighbors barn. Sartys character in Barn Burning is a study of the physical and spiritual relationships between a father and son that are born out in the reality of truth versus lies as evidenced in Sartys Personal integrity. In Barn Burning Faulkner writes about the relationship between a father and his son in both the hereditary and the spiritual sense. Sarty early in the story respects his father because of his fathers service in the military and the clannish code found in southern families without regard to social status. The young boy was not really aware of his fathers good or bad qualities or of the complexities of his fathers behavior. He was aware that his father was facing a court. He was not yet openly aware of the way he really felt about his fathers activities and the fact that he might have to dispute his fathers word in effect overthrow customary behavior, hereditary codes, and family ties. Sarty felt an innate loyalty to the clan (family) and at the same time realizes that his father aims for him to lie and that he would have to do it to maintain the familial bond. Sarty had hoped that the series of family moves from farm to farm and new beginnings would change his father only to realize that the cycle would continue to repeat itself. His father relied on complicity of the entire Snopes clan for support and security. He depended on the clan for protection from society at large. In reality Sarty had a sense of right and wrong and having to lie for his father places him in great conflict. He was far too young to understand his father and the complexities ...

Bones of the Buddha - Excavating the Piprahwa Stupa

Bones of the Buddha - Excavating the Piprahwa Stupa 2013. Secrets of the Dead: Bones of the Buddha. Directed and written by Steven Clarke. Executive producers Steve Burns and Harry Marshall. Produced by Icon Films for Thirteen and WNET. Featuring Charles Allen, Neil Peppe, Harry Falk, Bhante Piyapala Chakmar, and Mridula Srivastava. Special thanks to the Archaeological Survey of India, the Indian Museum of Kolkata, the Mahabodhi Temple committee, Dr. S. K. Mittra, the Srivastava Family and Ram Singh Ji. 54 minutes; DVD and BluRay The Bones of the Buddha is an historical entry in the PBS series Secrets of the Dead, published in 2013 and touching on the politically dicey discussion of religion and history in India. Centered around the ongoing research of historian Charles Allen, Bones of the Buddha tells the story of the stupa at Piprahwa, a Buddhist sacred structure in the Basti district of Uttar Pradesh in India. Piprahwa is believed by some scholars to be near the site of Kapilavastu, the capital of the Shakyan state, and the Shakyas were the family of the man who would become the historical Buddha [Siddhartha Gautama or Shakyamuni, 500-410 BC], the center of the Buddhist religion. But more than that: Piprahwa is, or rather was, the family burial place of some of the Buddhas ashes. Historical and Archaeological Investigations Bones of the Buddha details the investigations by amateur archaeologist William Claxton Peppe, professional archaeologist Dr. K.M. Srivastava, and historian Charles Allen to identify one of the most important of the several burial places of the ashes of the Buddha: that belonging to the Buddhas family. After his death, so the legend goes, the Buddhas ashes were divided into eight parts, one part of which was given to the Buddhas clan. Evidence of the Shakya family burial place of the Buddhas ashes was ignored for nearly 100 years due to the damage inflicted by a corrupt archaeologist: Dr. Alois Anton FÃ ¼hrer. FÃ ¼hrer was the head of the British colonial archaeological center for northern India, a German archaeologist who was at the center of a scandal concerning faked and looted artifacts, attributed falsely to the Buddha. But when the excavations at Piprahwa were being undertaken by W.C. Peppe in the late 19th century, the scandal was yet a few months away: but near enough in time to cast doubt on the authenticity of the finds. The Buddhas Cache What Peppe found buried deeply within the enormous stupa was a stone reliquary, within which were five small jars. In the jars were hundreds of tiny jewels in the shapes of flowers. More were scattered within the reliquary, intermingled with burned bone fragments of the Buddha himself: this burial is believed to have been placed here by Buddhas disciple, King Ashoka, 250 years after the Buddhas death. In the 1970s, archaeologist K. M. Srivastava reexcavated at Piprahwa and found, beneath Ashokas elaborate burial, a simpler burial place, believed to have been the original site where the Buddhas family placed the remains. Indian History The story brought forward by Bones of the Buddha is a fascinating one: one of the British Raj in India, when the amateur archaeologist W.C. Peppe plowed a trench through an enormous stupa and found the 4th century BC burial remains. The story continues in the 1970s, with K. M. Srivastava, a young Indian archaeologist who was convinced that Piprahwa was Kapilavastu, the capital of the Sakyan state. And finally it concludes with modern historian Charles Allen, who wanders suburban England and northern India in search of the artifacts, the language and the history behind the stupa at Piprahwa. Most of the all, the video (and the sites investigations for that matter) is excellent as an introduction to the archaeology and history of Buddhism. The Buddhas life, where he was born, how he came to become enlightened, where he died and what happened to his cremated remains are addressed. Also involved in the story is the leader Ashoka, Buddhas disciple, who 250 years after Buddhas death promulgated the religious teachings of the holy man. Ashoka was responsible, say the scholars, for the placing the Buddhas ashes here in a stupa fit for royalty. And finally, Bones of the Buddha provides the viewer with an introduction to the broadening of Buddhism, how it came to be that 2,500 years after the Buddha died, 400 million people world wide are following his teachings. Bottom Line I very much enjoyed this video, and I learned a lot. I dont know much at all about Buddhist archaeology or history, and it was good to have a bit of a starting point. I was surprised to see, or rather not see, any Indian archaeologists interviewed during the filming: although S. K. Mittra and the Archaeological Survey of India are credited at the end, and Allen visits the sites and museums where the relics are deposited. That circumstance led me to do a bit more investigation on my own; more of that later. We cant really ask more of a video: to pique the viewers interest into the past. Bones of the Buddha is a fascinating video, and well worth added to your viewing choices. Disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.

5 Sentences Saved by Em Dashes

5 Sentences Saved by Em Dashes 5 Sentences Saved by Em Dashes 5 Sentences Saved by Em Dashes By Mark Nichol Sentential adverbs (words such as indeed or namely and phrases like â€Å"that is† and â€Å"of course†), and their close cousins the conjunctive adverbs, or adverbial conjunctions (however, â€Å"on the other hand,† and the like), indicate an interruption of thought, and should themselves appear as interruptions. Because they are parenthetical remarks (the framing sentence would be complete without them), they should be set off by commas: â€Å"You must, after all, admit that it was a good effort.† If they are employed to indicate a new thought, stronger punctuation is called for: â€Å"They are highly skilled; however, they do not possess the level of knowledge you do.† (In each case, the adverb could also appear at the end of the sentence after a comma.) Often, though, the interruption in sentence structure is somewhere between comma country and semicolon stature: The phrase that begins with the adverb is something more than a dependent clause but not quite an independent clause. In these cases, the linking function of an em dash is appropriate: 1. â€Å"I thank them for putting up with this project with such good sportsmanship, indeed with such exuberance.† The phrase beginning with indeed is tacked on to the basic sentence to provide an additional, loosely related thought. Note the shift with an em dash, and follow the adverb with a comma to mark elision of a repetition of the phrase â€Å"for putting up with†: â€Å"I thank them for putting up with this project with such good sportsmanship indeed, with such exuberance.† 2. â€Å"There is a job to be done, namely educating educators how to effectively teach that wildlife conservation addresses quality of life for everyone.† The phrase that follows â€Å"There is a job to be done† is an explanation of what is meant by that phrase. The traditional marker for explanation is a colon, but an em dash does just as well. Again, set the adverb off with a comma: â€Å"There is a job to be done namely, educating educators how to effectively teach that wildlife conservation addresses quality of life for everyone.† (Without the comma, the sentence seems to refer to â€Å"namely educating educators,† but how do you do something in a namely manner?) 3. â€Å"They may also be judicially voided for being unreasonable, that is, unsupported by the evidence claimed to justify them.† A colon is often employed to set off a sentence from a subsequent clarification, but the adverb and the fact that the clarification is an incomplete sentence justifies use of an em dash here: â€Å"They may also be judicially voided for being unreasonable that is, unsupported by the evidence claimed to justify them.† 4. â€Å"Furthermore, a scientific conclusion is based on the past, i.e. previous studies that lead to present conclusions.† The initials i.e. (an abbreviation for id est, Latin for â€Å"that is†) gives you a clue that this sentence can be treated identically to the previous example. Note, however, that just as you follow â€Å"that is† with a comma, set i.e. (and the similar e.g., which means â€Å"for example†) off from the following phrase: â€Å"Furthermore, a scientific conclusion is based on the past i.e., previous studies that lead to present conclusions.† 5. â€Å"Ethics, on the other hand, is future oriented, that is to say a present choice is based on a future desire, intent, or consequence.† This sentence contains two adverbial phrases: â€Å"on the other hand,† and â€Å"that is to say.† The first one, a simple parenthetical phrase, need not concern us, but the latter is an expanded version of â€Å"that is† and needs the same treatment as the short form: â€Å"Ethics, on the other hand, is future oriented that is to say, a present choice is based on a future desire, intent, or consequence.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Punctuation category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:70 Idioms with HeartTry to vs. Try andStarting a Business Letter with Dear Mr.

Industry, Ideology, and their Global Impact, 1700-1912 Assignment

Industry, Ideology, and their Global Impact, 1700-1912 - Assignment Example Thirdly, the period also experienced the development of new working tools and equipment. Lastly, there was the development of new energy sources as well as innovation of production processes that maintained efficient use of power. During the Industrial Revolution, the textile industry was adversely affected in terms of capital invested, employment and the value of output obtained. Most scholars believe that the industrial revolution began in the Great Britain. In this regard, the revolution was initiated by agricultural transformations (in form of changes in the methods of stockbreeding and farming) resulting in increased agricultural output. The British government was able to feed its citizens by providing food at lower price while using less labor (Hatch, 1998). Eventually, there was fast increase in population that provided surplus labor. Ultimately, the British government introduced new industries, such as cottage industries that provided employment to rural workers. Additionally, Britain also had excessive capital for investment in new machinery. The capital accumulation also included profits obtained from the cottage industry. In addition, the well-developed British Central Bank provided flexible credit facilities that provided essential capital to prospective investors. The bank facilitated capital transactions through paper instrument, a service that was novel and was not offered elsewhere in Europe. Additionally, Britain had developed a culture where individuals were solely interested in making profits, business expansion and accumulation of wealth, individually or as a group (Hatch, 1998) . In this regard, most business organizations were often risky, open (hardly considered experience and skills) and were very profitable. Britain was highly endowed with essential minerals such as iron ore and coal. These minerals provided raw materials for the established manufacturing industries. Britain was a small country

Intercultural Communication paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Intercultural Communication paper - Essay Example When Bill uses the term "dear", he is not consciously being condescending, yet Margaret interprets it to have that meaning. Helen, older and more familiar with Bill's style easily accepts the term as a term of gender endearment. This example illustrates how communication changes over time and through generations because of the way we view our culture. In the case study, Helen was an effective communicator. As the receiver of Bill's messages she was able to interpret them and act on them accordingly. She was acting within her cultural context. Margaret was also effective in her communication. Though she misunderstood Bill's intentions, she was able to place the communication in the current cultural context and was direct about her feelings in reference to it. Bill was the least effective communicator. He has assumed the role of dominance and not accounted for cultural change. When he requests a cup of coffee, he is transmitting a message and an image. To Margaret, this was the image of a waitress or a servant. His true intentions, to get a cup of coffee, were masked by his inability to communicate across the culture and understand the differences. The message he transmitted was not a request for coffee, but a statement of "I'm in charge". Men's dominant position in the workplace has been challenged in recent decades. The recent Time magazine article that listed only males as the ten most powerful people in America has been challenged (Samovar, Porter, and Stefani, 51). The request for a cup of coffee and the use of the word "secretary" carry cultural meaning and have been altered in recent years. Asking an administrative assistant to do your shopping places the female in a subservient, or traditional wife, role. This has encountered resistance in the last decade as women have struggled for equality in pay and position. This equality will also have to extend to our understanding on communication. Intercultural Communication is About Change and Challenge The world is a rapidly changing landscape due to globalization, communication, and transportation (Samovar, Porter, and Stefani, 3). The words we use and the images we project will be interpreted based on current cultural trends. World views on pollution will affect the ways in which other cultures view industrial expansion. Within our own culture, the rise in political power of ethnic and minority populations has made many words obsolete or derogatory. It requires constant learning to assure that our speech and the images we project will be received with the message we intended to send. Problems of Being an Effective Intercultural Communicator Communicating with a different culture requires a depth of understanding of the culture that goes beyond the simple history of the people. It requires an understanding of our, "... social relations, concepts of the universe, and views of suffering..." (Samovar, Porter, and Stefani, 16). To communicate effectively we need to understand the cultural values that the people are made of. It also requires an understanding and tolerance for the individual. These requirements mean that there will be no absolute method of communication. It is forever shifting and is tailored to each individual person and event. These make the task ever changing and challenging. Works Cited Samovar,

DNA Barcoding Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

DNA Barcoding - Lab Report Example The protocol utilizes short sequences of organisms to characterize them. These oligonucleotides fall in positions in the genome which are agreed upon and its standard for a particular genome of interest. The DNA barcode sequences are also rather short in comparison to the entire genome and can be extracted with relative ease utilizing cheap methods. For instance, the cytochrome C oxidase subunit 1 mitochondria region (COI) has in the recent times being the standard barcode region for higher animals. One define characteristic of the DNA barcode is its commonality within a species (within species) and variations among species (without species). ie for a selected DNA barcode of a particular species there exists ranging differences and these differences are minor in individuals of the same species to gurantee the sequence segment to be used as a barcode. In obtaining the DNA for branding, the mayfly should be killed in a ‘DNA friendly fashion’ by avoiding the use of preservation agents such formalin which may degrade DNA. Genomic DNA is isolated via the fast DNA extraction method from fresh or frozen specimens. Combination of Chelex protocol with Proteinase K may rule out the need for tissue disruption while guaranteeing the release of DNA leaving chitinous material left intact. PCR amplification is done with an optimal primer specific for the barcode region. The barcode products obtained from the PCR are in most instances sequences bidirectional and later deposited in the barcode reference library.  

In Defense of Prejudice by Jonathan Rauch Essay

In Defense of Prejudice by Jonathan Rauch - Essay Example The essay "In Defense of Prejudice by Jonathan Rauch" discusses the article, written by Jonathan Rauch. He was born 1960 in Phoenix, Arizona. After his graduation from Yale University, Rauch started work at the Winston-Salem Journal in North Carolina, for the National Journal magazine, and ultimately as a self-employed writer.A criticizer of U.S. government civic policy in general, Rauch has followed homosexual-related subjects as an explicitly homosexual author since 1991, and is a keen supporter of same-sex matrimony. The author, being a Jew and a homosexual has clearly been exposed to bias in the past, which makes his writing-piece all the more influential. The article is not coming from a disgruntled individual on the top of the social ladder, it is written by the kind of individual who believes that hate-crime regulations are meant to safeguard. Rauch initiates by asserting that bias is an inevitable aspect of humankind, that "Homosapiens is a tribal species for whom "us versus them" comes naturally and must be continually pushed back." This intolerant nature he says is accountable for small factions being battered, as what is inexplicable is naturally dreaded, he senses that this nature is an inherent component of civilization, "for as thickheaded and wayward an animal as us, the realistic question is how to make the best of prejudice, not how to eradicate it." So how to make the better and the most of prejudice? Rauch proposes that to disapprove prejudice only makes it stronger., and lashes out against those "crusaders for sweetness and light" whom he tags as "purists." He asserts that in the purist’s effort to eliminate cruel words from general use they have lent a type of "shamanistic" supremacy to them, as however the words could now cause corporal destruction. He quotes a sample of the use of the word "nigger" by Charles Lawrence in 1990; "The experience of being called 'nigger,' 'spic,' 'Jap,' or 'kike' is like receiving a slap in the face," In their benevolent effort to defend the purists have become authoritarian in substance, like the church in its effort to terminate McCarthyites and heretics trying to abolish communalism the purists have gone way too far. The philology used by the purists takes on a terrifyingly acquainted attitude. In his assessment it is not only for ease and parity that prejudice must be demolished, it is for the very protection of the individuals. It advances a whole new logic of earnestness to the purist’

Article critique Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Article critique - Assignment Example The paper lacks a step by step flow of research write-up. It has also left out certain critical elements found in an abstract such as relevance of the study as well as research methodology and conclusion. However, its inclusion of keywords is remarkable as those words are relevant to the study. The study is inspired by the observations made concerning the emotional turmoil that the working members of the society go through whenever certain change that would require a transition from one regular habit to another is introduced. The economic sectors have witnessed a lot of psychological problems caused when upheavals are experienced in the society. Transformative learning has been therefore identified to be one of the ways that can best go about this problem. It is this problem that the research seeks to explore. The paper begins by exploring the status quo of the problem at hand. It describes several studies have been done in trying to understand the essence and relationship between critical transformative learning and the welfare of workers. This is explored in reference to previous studies that had been conducted to understand the same. From this discussion, a knowledge gap is created which demonstrates that not so much has been done to determine exactly the effectiveness of transformative learning as opposed to together modes/forms of learning in shielding the workers from the shock of rapid social changes. This revelation renders the research relevant for that particular study as there is a wide lacuna that needs to be studied. However, it becomes ambiguous when it states that it seeks to broaden the knowledge and understanding of transformative learning ‘through describing restorative leaning’. This purpose is not easily understood as one may be left wondering what variables influences what or how does the variables correlate in case they actually are. A precise and clear purpose of the study

Concept of Operations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Concept of Operations - Essay Example System Goals 3. Operational Description 4. Operational Needs 4.1 Operational Needs – Retail User Viewpoint 4.2 Operational Needs – Client Organisation Viewpoint 4.3 Operational Needs – CRMS viewpoint 5. System Overview 5.1 Description of the System Proposed Content / Functionality Proposed Locations Software Implications Communication Requirements 5.2 Project Architecture Stakeholder / Element Descriptions Interconnect Diagram(s) Information Flow Diagram(s) 6. Operational and Support Environment 6.1 Facilities 6.2 Equipment 6.3 Hardware 6.4 Software 6.5 Personnel 6.6 Changes to Operational Procedures 7. ... Major benefits that can be achieved by the software are the efficiency, ease of accessibility, less chances of error and low wastage of time and effort. Besides, goals, the functionality of the software have been studied, thus claiming benefits that can be achieved by the software’s are ease of maintaining customer records, managing inventory, managing supply chain and thus it assists in forecasting client’s future deals. Additionally, various operational needs relating to different stakeholders have been coined in the document to gather better viewpoint from everyone. 1.3 Definitions, Acronyms and Abbreviation Inventory Management: It includes the management of stock on shelves and also the stock in storage (inventory). Supply Chain: It is basically the interconnection of organization’s various business processes starting from storage of raw material and leading to production of finished goods, in short starting from point of origin and ending up to point of con sumption. CRMS: Customer Relationship Management Systems Pty Ltd is a company that specializes in providing the customer management software to companies that provide rental services of equipment direct to the public. The company’s primary business is to provide softwares to companies for managing on-line bookings and reservations for hire companies. 2) SYSTEM GOALS Customer management software’s will help company in managing relations with customer, consumers, clients and also in forecasting sales. As the company is involved in providing software’s for companies dealing with equipment rentals thus the software will help the organization in maintaining online booking and reservations.

Article critique Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Article critique - Assignment Example The paper lacks a step by step flow of research write-up. It has also left out certain critical elements found in an abstract such as relevance of the study as well as research methodology and conclusion. However, its inclusion of keywords is remarkable as those words are relevant to the study. The study is inspired by the observations made concerning the emotional turmoil that the working members of the society go through whenever certain change that would require a transition from one regular habit to another is introduced. The economic sectors have witnessed a lot of psychological problems caused when upheavals are experienced in the society. Transformative learning has been therefore identified to be one of the ways that can best go about this problem. It is this problem that the research seeks to explore. The paper begins by exploring the status quo of the problem at hand. It describes several studies have been done in trying to understand the essence and relationship between critical transformative learning and the welfare of workers. This is explored in reference to previous studies that had been conducted to understand the same. From this discussion, a knowledge gap is created which demonstrates that not so much has been done to determine exactly the effectiveness of transformative learning as opposed to together modes/forms of learning in shielding the workers from the shock of rapid social changes. This revelation renders the research relevant for that particular study as there is a wide lacuna that needs to be studied. However, it becomes ambiguous when it states that it seeks to broaden the knowledge and understanding of transformative learning ‘through describing restorative leaning’. This purpose is not easily understood as one may be left wondering what variables influences what or how does the variables correlate in case they actually are. A precise and clear purpose of the study

Animation Movie Music Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Animation Movie Music - Essay Example Animation music plays a significant role in today’s modern world, but its roots date back to the silent film era which was the birth of its original conception. According to the Goldmark, a few of the cartoons might have had â€Å"specials scores† which were given to the theaters. In a 1923 periodical titled ‘Motion Picture News’ there was a suggestion from the Pathe home Office who issued in a printed statement that, "Jazz music goes well with Aesop's Fables. That's the conclusion reached after a number of tests, and consequently hereafter Pathe, the distributor of these subjects, will furnish musical effects sheets to each distributor booking one of these cartoons." In the 1930s, animation music was not very highly appreciated and derogatory remarks such as â€Å"Mickey mousing† a term that was used in a derogatory manner by David O. Seiznick when he compared a score by Max Steiner to that of a Mickey mouse cartoon which implied that the score was extremely simplistic and the happenings in the scene could be easily guessed. However, it was Carl Stalling who made the greatest impact in the arena of animation music. He made use of contemporary songs as film music. Stalling got hooked to movies after watching â€Å"The Great Train Robbery.† By 1904, in Lexington, Missouri, he started playing the piano during the changing of the reel at the local movie theatre.

Standard And Non Standard Dialect English Language Essay

Standard And Non Standard Dialect English Language Essay INTRODUCTION Linguists would define language as a system of arbitrary vocal symbols used for human communication which may consist of several dialects. Here, dialect is a variety of a certain language, spoken in one part of a country (regional dialect), whose difference can be encountered in some words, and/or pronunciation from other forms of the same language. Dialects and their uniqueness in the application have been the sole point of discussion in sociolinguistics, attracting many linguists to learn about them deeply. Indonesia, as the parameter in this paper, consists of many ethnics and cultures with their own unique languages, thus it is likely that Indonesia possesses many local languages. Nonetheless, Bahasa Indonesia is claimed to be a national language that is expected to be a means to unite all citizens despite their different cultural background. In this case, although each region has its own local language, which is distinct and not just a dialect, virtually everyone now speaks Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian Language). In order to unify such a diverse nation, a common language is clearly needed. The phenomenon of dialects along with its variants is the main concern in this paper. THEORITICAL VIEW According to Francis (1992) and Romaine (1994) dialects are the variants or varieties of a language used by different speakers who are separated by geographic or social boundaries. Furthermore, Einer Haugen, as quoted in Hudson (1996) states that English made no distinction between language and dialect, but when the Renaissance period, the term dialect was borrowed from Greek, and it refers to the distinct varieties used in classical Greek in relation to different area and kind of literature. If we look further into a smaller scope of language in Indonesia, every local language will have its own regional dialects. Even within a geographical area which is not very wide, still there is probability that a local language varies. As a consequence, each regional dialect will also have their standard dialect used by the members of that particular regional area. Furthermore, Chambers and Trudgill (1998), quoted in Hudson (2000) stated that a dialect is popularly considered to be à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"a sub-standard, low status, often rustic form of a language, lacking in prestige.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ Meanwhile standard dialect is used within the area and might not be understood by people coming from outside of the area. A standard language (also standard dialect, standardized dialect) is a particular variety of a language that is considered to be prestigious within a speech community. The standard will usually be institutionalized, often by being given legal status, and then used as the norm in mass media, education, and other social institutions. DISCUSSION The explanation above grants us view that standard dialect is different with non-standard dialect which is called regional dialect. We can see the differences between them in terms of their function as well as the area where they are applied. Related with its function, standard dialect will be used universally and usually known by the whole user of the regional dialects of the same language. In regard to the area, the standard dialect is known and widely used by every person in a particularly wide area where that language being used meanwhile the non-standard dialects or regional dialects is the dialect that is used in a relatively smaller area. Here, commonly, local language shows from which province/area we come from and regional dialects shows from which area in certain province we come from. It means that standard dialect has a wider range than non-standard dialects. As one of the local language in Indonesia, Balinese language can be a good example in describing the varieties of dialects in certain area in Indonesia. Balinese language is the official language for Balinese community which is used at any formal situation in the Balinese society such as community meeting, wedding ceremony, priest speech at the temple etc. There are some dialects of Balinese language in Bali, usually based on the regency where it is spoken, so commonly there is Gianyar dialect, Bangli dialect, Tabanan dialect, Negara dialect and so on. However, no matter what dialect it is, the language,in this case Balinese Language basically is the same both in terms of grammar and syntax. They are just slightly different in the tone/rhythm, pronunciation, and few vocabularies. Most importantly, Balinese people speaking different dialects can still understand each other at the very least. Compared some Balinese words such as : Tuba = poison, Bubu = basket fish trap, Pedau = boat, Layar = sail, Talas = Taro, Ubi = Yam, Tebu = sugar cane, Nyuh = coconut, Lemo = citrus, Pandan = pandanus, Buah = areca. Among those smaller groups of languages further variations or dialect can be still found especially the level of morphemic construction and phonemes. It is interesting to find that beside various dialects that exist in Balinese language, there is also the difference in intonation. The group of intonation does not necessarily bring into one as a unit of dialect. In the future with the presence of modern communication means as an interface of human being, this intonation and dialects will move toward homogenous elements. So, the dialects among Balinese people are mostly similar in grammatical aspect but are different in term of intonation, vocabularies and accent. The nature of the existence of cultural dialect is not aimed to give limitation to the freedom of expression, apparently it is to give view that expressions may differ across cultural groups. The standardized expressions served as a control for the perceiver effects discussed above such as greater motivation or preference for oneà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s own perceived ethnic group, stereotypes about the likely emotions experienced by different groups, and decoding rules which should all be equal when judging these two sets of expressions. For these reasons, we argue that regional dialects may vary in their impact across emotions. However, although there are several aspects that differentiate those regional dialects in certain local language, we cannot absolutely determine exactly which dialect belong to certain area, or which vocabularies or intonation belong to certain dialect, etc. The line between them is not clear and the most critical standards of differentiating them rely on the social facts as well as the linguistic facts itself. As what is explained above, sometimes when the people with different dialect (although with the same standard language) meet each other, they can feel strange, funny or the worst they cannot understand the meaning of certain statement used by their partner. This is how dialects are being evaluated within the social community. There is no such term better or best dialect, there is only the feeling of being accustomed and not accustomed to a certain dialcet. For example, Balinese language. When Tabanan people with Tabanan dialect talk each other, they can understand each other and the conversation goes well as usual. But when Tabanan people meet Singaraja people that also have their own dialect, there will be something unusual. Tabanan people may feel strange or even funny because the different with their own dialect, but the same thing will happen with Singaraja people, too. So, these dialects which are different from one area to another area in Bali, can be such a characteristic of t hat area that can help the people from another area identify where they come from. The point here is that every people have to respect each other in terms of dialect use. They can have different dialect but, to make the conversation safe, they can use the standard dialect. So, everything about dialect itself is evaluated by the community in which, there is no absolute decision about this evaluation because everyone can have their own evaluation about these dialects. The people who use dialect itself are the social community where that dialect exists. As a matter of fact, any dialect will not last unless the community uses it. Here, the language will be formed based on the culture in that area and becomes tradition from one generation to the next. These dialects usually can be learnt by the community through the daily conversation. For those, who become native speaker of that dialect, it can be formed and acquired naturally because their environment. Furthermore, for those who are not native speakers of that dialect, this dialect also can be learnt through a frequent use of dialect itself. For example the one who firstly used Gianyar dialect, but because he/she lives in Singaraja for a long time and usually make interactions and conversations with Singarajaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s people, he/she can use Singaraja dialect also. He/she will automatically follow the dominating dialect because that is the dialect in his/her new environment. CONCLUSION In conclusion, language as a means of communication might be found varied. The variation is known as dialects, whose differences comprise intonation, pronunciation, as well as vocabulary. The dialects within the society exist in two forms namely the standard and non standard dialect. Both of the variants share one thing in common, that is they are of the same language. However, the differences between them are that standardized dialect is considered to be more prestigious, and is applied in wider area compared with the non standard dialect. Dialects are acquired through the daily conversation, through other people who are involved in a talk. Thus, any dialect that has ever been created should be kept in use in order for the dialect itself not to be perished.

White collar and corporate crime Essay -- essays research papers

Why does white collar and corporate crime tend to go undetected, Or if detected not prosecuted White collar and corporate crimes are crimes that many people do not associate with criminal activity. Yet the cost to the country due to corporate and white collar crime far exceeds that of â€Å"street† crime and benefit fraud. White collar and corporate crimes refer to crimes that take place within a business or institution and include everything from Tax fraud to health and safety breaches. Corporate crime is extremely difficult to detect for many reasons. One major reason is that many people do not realise a crime is being committed as corporate crime is often seen as a victimless crime. At face value this may seem to be the case but if you look deeper you will see that this is not true. Every year the FBI estimates that 19,000 Americans are murdered every year compared with the 56,000 Americans who die every year from occupational disease such as black lung and asbestosis (Russell Mokhiber 2000). Deaths Caused by corporate crime are also very indirect so it can be very difficult to trace the problem to the corporation. Another reason it can be difficult to detect corporate crime is that directors within a corporation are unlikely to report the criminal activity of their colleges for the fear that it will hinder their own career success and could even lead to them losing their jobs. Within a company illegal practices could be seen by many as the â€Å"in thing† and the people work...

Urban Legend of Cry Baby Bridge :: Urban Legends Ghost Stories

Cry Baby Bridge In April I sat down with a friend at my house and asked about any urban legends or ghost stories he had encountered. After a couple legends he had seen in movies, he mentioned a haunted bridge about ten minutes away from downtown. He is a twenty-one year-old White male; his father owns an appliance store and his mother helps out with the books. He first heard this story in the ninth grade from a couple of friends. Supposedly, they had heard from kids who had actually been to the bridge and heard strange things at night. The bridge is located off of Uniontown road, between a couple old farms. He has not encountered the bridge first hand but still remembers the story surrounding it: About thirty years ago there was a young girl in love with her boyfriend. One day, he convinced her to take their relationship to the next level, telling her how deeply he cared. A couple weeks later, she found out that she had become pregnant, and decided it was best to hide it from him. They kept in close contact over the next few months, and he told her that they would be together forever. When her father realized that she was having a baby without marriage, he made her leave the house until she came back with a husband. When the baby girl was born, she decided to tell the boyfriend about the child, by bringing her to his house. He lived on a small farm right outside town and you had to pass over a small river on a bridge to get back to his house. As she opened the door, she walked in on him with another girl. Filled with anger, (pause) she gets in her car and speeds off. Now she could not return home unmarried and had lost her only love because of this one child. As she looked over at the baby, she is only reminded of her boyfriend and the image of him with the other girl. (tone increases) Finally, she reached the bridge, then slammed on the breaks. She got out and in a moment of rage threw the baby over the bridge to rid her of the baby girl’s troubles. Later that night, the police were tipped off about a murder at the bridge and came to find the girl hanging from the bridge. Urban Legend of Cry Baby Bridge :: Urban Legends Ghost Stories Cry Baby Bridge In April I sat down with a friend at my house and asked about any urban legends or ghost stories he had encountered. After a couple legends he had seen in movies, he mentioned a haunted bridge about ten minutes away from downtown. He is a twenty-one year-old White male; his father owns an appliance store and his mother helps out with the books. He first heard this story in the ninth grade from a couple of friends. Supposedly, they had heard from kids who had actually been to the bridge and heard strange things at night. The bridge is located off of Uniontown road, between a couple old farms. He has not encountered the bridge first hand but still remembers the story surrounding it: About thirty years ago there was a young girl in love with her boyfriend. One day, he convinced her to take their relationship to the next level, telling her how deeply he cared. A couple weeks later, she found out that she had become pregnant, and decided it was best to hide it from him. They kept in close contact over the next few months, and he told her that they would be together forever. When her father realized that she was having a baby without marriage, he made her leave the house until she came back with a husband. When the baby girl was born, she decided to tell the boyfriend about the child, by bringing her to his house. He lived on a small farm right outside town and you had to pass over a small river on a bridge to get back to his house. As she opened the door, she walked in on him with another girl. Filled with anger, (pause) she gets in her car and speeds off. Now she could not return home unmarried and had lost her only love because of this one child. As she looked over at the baby, she is only reminded of her boyfriend and the image of him with the other girl. (tone increases) Finally, she reached the bridge, then slammed on the breaks. She got out and in a moment of rage threw the baby over the bridge to rid her of the baby girl’s troubles. Later that night, the police were tipped off about a murder at the bridge and came to find the girl hanging from the bridge.

Martin Luther King Jr Essay

Many find it interesting to glimpse inside the lives of famous thinkers in an effort to understand where such thought and intelligence is rooted. Famous thinkers have little in common with what makes them reach their level of achievement (Goodman & Fritchie, 2011). In that tone, here is a peek into the routines and rituals of Martin Luther King Jr. and Cornel West that writers, philosophers, and statesmen have depended on to keep their work on track and their thoughts flowing. Whether you need inspiration to make it through the next college semester of your bachelor’s degree, finishing up your master’s degree program, or are working on a future best-selling novel, explore the contributions to society these men have created, how their personal, social, and political environments helped with their creativity, how they solve their ideas and problems, how their ideas were implemented, as well as what they could have done differently along with comparing their creative process. Martin Luther King made many contributions to society at the most difficult time. He helped African American’s gain civil rights and equality in America. He completed these contributions through actions like the bus boycott that he led in Montgomery, Alabama. The boycott fought against city buses that refused to allow African Americans to sit in the front seats of the buses. This boycott led to a citywide boycott of the bus system until the rules were changed. He also led the march from Selma to Montgomery along with other protestors as they voiced their right to vote. Dr. King not only led marches but he also gave what is now famous speeches like â€Å"Give Us a Ballot† â€Å"I Have a Dream† â€Å"I’ve Been to the Mountaintop† that also helped with his movement. Through the speeches Dr. King had the ability to reach many in delivering his thoughts and creativity toward his movement. Dr. King also published many books like Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story, Strength to Love, Why We Can’t Wait, and Where Do We Go From Here? These books also helped with Dr. King’s movement to reach people all over the United States to see his vision. Dr. Cornel West has a passion to communicate to a vast variety of publics in order to keep alive the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.; telling the truth and bearing witness to love and justice. Dr. West stated, â€Å"You can’t lead the people if you don’t love the people. You can’t save the people if you don’t serve the people.† Cornel West contributions to society has been monumental, he is a motivational speaker in politics, education, talk radio and even major motion pictures.

Soron Case

1. In this case, it is estimated that there are 9 million residential pools in the U. S. The average length of pool usage is 5 months, from May to September, with less people swimming in cold weather from October to April. The majority of chemicals are used during these warm months, but only 25% of these people use chemicals and clarifiers regularly. That being said there are only around 2,250,000 pools that use clarifiers regularly (9,000,000*. 25). From this number, it can be concluded that the maximum reasonable marketing revenue for residential pools is roughly $52,309,152 (39. 06*2,250,000*. 25*14. 8/25) based on the manufacturer price of Coracle. Coracle's main competitors, Keystone Chemical, Jackson Laboratories, and Kymera each possess 15%-20% of the market share, leaving 40%-55% of the market share to Coracle and other smaller competitors. If you factor in Coracle's three main competitors along with the many other smaller-scale suppliers, it can be suggested that roughly 15% of the market share is what Coracle needs to address. It can then be concluded that the addressable market size for Coracle is around $7,846,373 (. 15*52,309,152). I would conclude from the above analysis that the first year goal of $1. million in sales is reasonable for Coracle. If you divide the addressable market size of $7,846,373 by 5 (5 months of average pool usage), it comes to around $1. 57 million, only slightly higher than the target $1. 5 million. 2. One of the reasons Soren Chemical is struggling to sell Coracle is because it is new to developing a brand and relatively inexperienced with marketing to wholesalers, retailers, pool services and consumers. This inexperience has led to miscommunication in its marketing channels, causing only 30% of consumers who inquired about Coracle to actually receive the information regarding the product.Also 70% of consumers stated that Coracle was not even offered by their distributers. These issues clearly point to the fact that Soren Chemical's inexperience is affecting sales and preventing it from communicating the benefits of Coracle to the consumer. Also the distribution channel structure Soren has to go through might also have a negative effect on sales. The distributor and retailer demand a 30% and 15% gross margin, increasing Soren's price from $14. 88 per unit to $25 per unit. Consumers find this inconvenient and expensive. 3.In order to determine the highest price Soren can set for Coracle along with how Coracle can be priced relative to consumers, the actual worth to end-users must be considered. One way to estimate the worth to end-users would be to calculate the annual EVC of Coracle. This can be done by using the annual cost of a substitute as the reference value and adding it to the differentiation value of the two products. One substitute, ClearBlu, has an annual cost of $56. 25, the reference value. Coracle reduces the need for chlorine, treatments, and enzymes, and for pool owners and reduces th eir annual chemical cost by 20%-30%, for an average of 25%.ClearBlu reduces the annual cost of chemicals for pool owners by 15%, making the increase in savings by using Coracle 10%. The annual chemical cost excluding clarifiers is $300. Thus the annual EVC of Coracle is $56. 25+. 1*300=$86. 25. 4. Coracle should initially adopt a push strategy because it is a new brand and possesses low brand loyalty and awareness. A push strategy would create awareness among consumers and expose the product to them. A push strategy would also encourage distributors to stock their shelves with the product.According to the study, only 25% of consumers use clarifiers regularly and understand their benefits. This displays a low involvement in the purchasing decision of consumers and further proves that push strategy would be more beneficial for Coracle. Conversely, Coracle could also adopt a pull strategy and focus more time and money on communicating the value of the product to the consumer. This woul d be done through advertisements and raising brand awareness. However, such an expenditure would be costly and time consuming, making a push strategy appear to be more efficient.

Research: Decision Theory and Pilot Testing

Chapter 4 Terms in Review 1. Some questions are answerable by research and others are not. Using some management problems of your choosing, distinguish between them. When management wants to find out which method of a production process is the most efficient in terms of operational productivity we can use research to provide usable results. When management wants to know if now is a good time to take on debt for equipment upgrades is, research may not be able to provide usable results.Due to the extensive number of variables affecting financing decisions research will likely not be able to assist in this decision. The current market conditions, economy, interest rates, industry competition, and many other items require a type of analysis that research can not provide. 2. Discuss the problems of trading off exploration and pilot testing under tight budgetary constraints. What are the immediate and long-term effects? The text discussed that often pilot testing is not done to both reduce costs and also to reduce the total research time.Not conducting pilot testing can then immediately progress the research process or reduce the total cost of the research but it can possibly have negative long-term effects. By not conducting pilot testing your research results may suffer because the proper information is not being gathered. A pilot test often provides indication of problems with the data gathering process. There may also be an overall increased cost with no additional benefit when no pilot testing has been completed.The pilot test can not only indicate incorrect information be gathered but can also provide some indication as to whether the proper research questions have been asked. When the research questions being asked do not answer the true management questions then the conducted research will be useless. Useless research is a wasted expense. Pilot testing can indicate whether more in-depth research is required thus providing a possible cost reduction or a better justification for proceeding with a higher cost project. 3.A company is experiencing a poor inventory management situation and receives alternative research proposals. Proposal 1 is to use an audit of last year’s transactions as a basis for recommendations. Proposal 2 is to study and recommend changes to the procedures and system used by the materials department. Discuss issues of evaluation in terms of (a) Ex post facto versus prior evaluation, and (b) Evaluation using option analysis and decision theory. Both of these proposals are going to be quite difficult to evaluate.The need of the research will determine which method will be followed. Ex post factor or after-the-fact evaluation will determine the total cost of each proposal after the research studies are completed. This makes it quite difficult to determine whether the research is providing enough benefit to make it worthwhile until after the cost has been incurred. Thus for either of these systems it may be a better decision to proceed with a prior or interim evaluation method.Under this method the research is designed in stages and an ex post facto evaluation is performed at the end of each stage. Then a determination is made deciding if enough benefit has been generated to proceed to the next stage thus allowing management to get results while also controlling cost. Option analysis may also be used to evaluate the two proposed studies. With option analysis the studies are designed in a very explicit manner thus allowing an organization to compare estimated costs (based on prior research approximations) versus an expected benefit.Management will then select one proposal over another depending on the cost benefit ratio and current need. Decision theory allows management to make decisions based on defined criteria. Each criterion consists of a decision rule and a decision variable. The selection process then consists of analysis determining which proposal either increases the decision variable or which follows the decision rule. This information is considered with a choice being determined by the rules and current management need.

The Payback Period as a Tool in Capital Budgeting Decisions Essay

The Payback Period as a Tool in Capital Budgeting Decisions - Essay Example In order to aid managers in making decisions with regards to capital budgeting, tools and techniques have been devised. One of these methods is called the payback method. The payback method is one of the most popular tools in conducting capital budgeting decision. The payback period tells the company the length of time required to recoup the original investment through investment cash flows. This is essentially the time when the company breaks even-the initial capital outlay is equal to the cash flows. For example, if a company invests $100,000 for the introduction of a new product line, then, the payback period reveals when the company will be generating cash flow of $100,000. Considering that the business organization invests in a project which generates the same level of cash flow annually, the payback period is computed as the follows: However, if the investment generates unequal annual cash flows, then the individual annual cash flows are subtracted from the initial investment until a difference of zero is reached. The year when cash flow equals investment is the payback period. Other things being equal, the investment with a low payback period is chosen as it implies less risk for the company. ... As the investment is recouped in a shorter period of time, it also indicates that the investment is less likely to fail. In the payback method, the profitability of the investment is often tied on how fast the investment generates cash inflow for the business organization. If the business organization is eyeing two or more projects to invest into, using the payback as sole decision criterion will make the company choose the project which has the lowest payback. However, if there is only one project to be evaluated, the firm often sets a specific span of time when the initial investment should be recouped. Generally, managers favor projects which have a payback period of less than three years. If the payback period is one year, the project is considered essential. In order to assess really understand how the payback period can be used in decision making, we will use it to evaluate two projects-one which has a fixed annual cash flow and one which generates unequal stream of cash flow. Suppose, XYZ Company is choosing between replacing its old machine used for production or embarking on a new product line. Each of the projects is estimated to require an initial investment of $100,000. Since the company is constrained with only $100,000 budget, the company must pursue only the more profitable option. The primary decision criterion used to evaluate investment decisions is the payback method. The estimated net cash flows are as follows: Year Replace Old Machine Introduce Product Line 1 $25,000 $10,000 2 $25,000 $20,000 3 $25,000 $70,000 4 $25,000 $50,000 5 $25,000 $50,000 A. Constant Annual Cash Flow The replacement of the old machine with the new one is forecasted to yield

Automotive Production Levels Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Automotive Production Levels - Research Paper Example It is price which either actually exists in market or market is moving towards it assuming no market impediments or government policies exist to prevent equilibrium to be reached. At equilibrium price, both forces do not have any tendency to change, provided all other things remain same (Abel and Bernanke, 2005). If all the conditions of free market are met, then GM should have been able fetch sales of 2478001 units of vehicles in second quarter. If compared this figure with its last two quarter units sold, there exits a gap of 87000 vehicles in all. Price elasticity of demand is a quantitative measure (coefficient) showing percentage change in the quantity demanded with respect to percentage change in price (Leamer, 2009). Price elasticity for second quarter of 2012 for GM motor is – 0.95. Negative coefficient of price elasticity shows negative relation of price and demand. Categorization is made based on where the elasticity coefficient lies from 0 to 1. Price elasticity of GM being -0.95 refers to inelastic demand. It refers; only large proportionate change in price can bring small proportionate change in demand which results in steeper demand curve. This kind of elasticity is usually for products that are considered necessities and importance of vehicle has no question in every aspect from business to personal lives. Since it has inelastic demand and there lies a gap between equilibrium price and average unit price of about $ 4000.00 i.e. 19,558 - 15,527 respectively, management can increase profitability by increasing it price that will finally benefit its total revenue which is going negative. If calculated elasticity is considered to be of another brand say A than comparison would guide the future strategy. For instance, if competitor’s brand A increases prices by the differential discussed in previous question, then there is little chance that its customers would switch to ours due to inelastic demand.

Clinical Teaching Strategies Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Clinical Teaching Strategies - Assignment Example The clinical faculty even needs to know about the set method that the faculty member needs to follow in case of an emergency and they need to be informed about the technological requirements associated with their position. 2. In order to pursue the position of nursing clinical faculty an incumbent needs to be a licensed registered nurse of the state in which they are practicing and they even need to have a minimum two years of practicing experience as a clinical (Duke School of Nursing, 2011). Other than a license to practice the incumbent should at the minimum have a Bachelors’ of Science in nursing which is four year long program and is very essential as it helps students in preparing for a career in the field of nursing and even assist them in gaining further education in the same field. Higher preference is given by nursing educational institutes to those incumbents who have attained Masters’ of Science in

Statistical models and probabilities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Statistical models and probabilities - Essay Example For every project, a schedule is prepared prior to the commencement of the execution of the work. In order for the schedule to be rational, it is imperative that the time taken by similar activities in the past is reviewed. The activities are assigned durations based on that. However, owing to the emphasis on creativity and innovation in the present age, civil engineers are trying new ways and methods of executing the projects, so past record of duration of a certain activity may not always be there. PERT is a technique of assessing the duration of an activity that has never been executed in the past. Like all other areas, civil engineering has also evolved through research. The conventional techniques for the quantitative and/or qualitative analysis of the data make use of statistical models and probabilities. The data is checked for normality through the measures of kurtosis and skewness. If the data passes the normality test, then parametric tests are applied to evaluate the data further. If the data does not pass the normality test, then nonparametric tests are applied for the further evaluation of the data. Risk management is a very important area of civil engineering. Civil engineers identify the risks at every stage of project starting from the project feasibility studies to the completion and handing over stage. Risk is any uncertain even that has a certain probability of occurrence and an impact. Assessment of risk at the right time not only allows the civil engineers to escape the threat posed by that risk, but also change that into an opportunity. Numerous techniques are employed for the risk assessment including the Monte Carlo simulation. Height of a bridge in a certain area is selected on the basis of the maximum water level seen in the history of floods and precipitation in that area. Different levels of water are assigned different probabilities depending upon the frequency of their

Sustainable Business Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Sustainable Business Development - Essay Example , burning of coal and extraction of oil require abundant energy sources as well it places very high demands on water resources adding up to a huge and costly impact towards the production process (Nehring 2009, 3074). Pollution results as a by-product of the process and is considered as a negative externality. The production of fossil fuels resulting in air and water pollution is through oil spills, dumping of the waste materials into water sources  and emission of toxic gases into the environment. The more fossil fuel is produced, the more environmental pollution results (Levitan et al. 2014, 122). The company’s producing the fuels may bear some of the associated costs of pollution, but not all  and the remaining costs are borne by the society. Air pollution is associated with the production of greenhouse gases that are associated with climate change resulting in the occurrence of floods, droughts and loss of coastal land. It is important to have property rights imposed by the government to control pollution emission. The government should also be involved in introducing regulation rules, taxation and legislation in an effort of pollution control. This entails passing legislation such as clean air act to address the situation (Aydin et al. 2011, 201). The community should also be involved in reporting pollution matters to the authority to prevent negative externalities of pollution. The cost of fossil fuel production is very high. This entails the cost of labor of mining coal and drilling the oil, the cost involved in building the energy generating plants, cost of transportation of the oil into plants for processing and the cost involved in the manufacturing of the final products. As a result, the fuel prices become expensive to the consumer. Fossil fuel is a non-renewable source of energy, and the reserves are finite (Mohr & Evans 2010, par 1). According to the rate of extraction that takes place it will not take too long before the supply is exhausted. As a

No to same-sex marriage Essay Example for Free

No to same-sex marriage Essay Everything is permissible, but not everything is helpful. Everything is permissible, but not everything builds up. I Corinthians 10:23 Against Same Sex Marriage The Six Point Case Each of these six points against same sex marriage will be explained in detail in the following articles. Click on each link for more explanation. Natural marriage is the foundation of a civilized society. Homosexual behavior is inherently destructive. The law is a great teacher, and it encourages or discourages behavior. Government-backed same-sex marriage would encourage and normalize homosexual behavior, and it would harm natural marriage, children, adults, and homosexuals themselves. The law should promote behaviors that are beneficial and prohibit (or at least not endorse) those that are destructive. Therefore, the law should promote natural marriage, and it should provide no option for government-backed same-sex marriage or civil unions. Against Same Sex Marriage The Executive Summary Same-sex marriage is a very emotional issue for many people. However, when one separates emotions from facts, it is clear that the state has compelling reasons to endorse natural marriage and not same-sex marriage or civil unions. Natural marriage is the immune system of civilization. When our marriages are strong, our civilization is strong; when they are weak, individuals and communities suffer. Legal endorsement of same-sex marriage would destroy the institution of marriage, resulting in negative effects on children, crime rates, health and health-care costs, tax rates, and religious freedom. Same-sex marriage activists want to redefine marriage as simply a personal relationship between two committed parties, but marriage is much larger than the two parties involved in a marriage. Marriage is a social institution of long-established rules (based on the natural design of the human body) that provides society with the very foundation of civilization—the procreating family unit. That is, marriage is fundamentally about children and the civilization of society both now and for the future. Only natural marriage can procreate and consistently provide a nurturing and stable environment for the growth and maturation of children. In this sense, the most basic and effective â€Å"form of government† is the natural two-parent family. Statistically, children and adults inside of natural marriage are much better off socially, physically, financially, mentally, and emotionally than those outside of natural marriage. Those outside of natural marriage are not only worse off personally by those measures, but they cost society billions of dollars in social welfare and law-enforcement expenses. The law is a great teacher—it encourages or discourages behavior. Since the law is a great teacher, government-backed same-sex marriage or civil unions would put society’s stamp of approval on same-sex relationships and behavior. This endorsement would fundamentally change the institution of marriage to our detriment. It would do the following: Equate same-sex marriage with natural marriage, thereby teaching citizens the socially disastrous ideas that natural marriage is no better than any other relationship and that marriage is not a prerequisite for children. Disconnect marriage from childbearing by making marriage just about coupling. This will result in soaring cohabitation and illegitimacy and painful costs to children and society. Encourage more homosexual behavior, which is medically destructive to those who engage in it and financially burdensome to the public in general. Result in higher medical, health insurance, and tax costs to the general public. Provide legal grounds to  restrict or prohibit religious freedom and free speech. Much of this is already happening in countries that have government-backed same-sex marriage. Natural marriage is weakest and illegitimacy strongest where same-sex marriage is legal. Most homosexuals are not interested in marriage—approximately 96 percent of homosexuals in countries with same-sex marriage do not get married. They want government-backed same-sex marriage because it would validate and normalize homosexuality throughout society. (Homosexuals can already marry privately and many of them do—what they want is government endorsement.) Some homosexual activists admit that they would like to destroy natural marriage by legalizing same-sex marriage. Since they refuse to live by society’s standards, they will only feel validated if they beat down those standards to the level of their own behavior. If they succeed, everyone in our country will be harmed in some way. This House Bill may seem to be very good in its outward appearance but it will simply gave way to the Promotion and Acceptance of Homosexual Lifestyle in the Philippines. If this bill will be approve in Congress who knows whats next. Lets Fight Against this Bill to protect the Divine and Natural Institution that God himself Pre-ordained ever since the beginning of time. Lets make sure that the Philippines will be secure from any danger of accepting a Culture that will go against the Balance of Nature and propagate a lifestyle that will be harmful both today and the Generation to come. A Culture that will be a potential Treat to the Divine Institution of Marriage and the Family. Lets be vigilant and make sure this Bill will not be approved by participating in this Signature Campaign.

Grass Silage Quality In Malaysia

Grass Silage Quality In Malaysia There were different management systems been practiced in the livestock industry in Malaysia. The intensive system was widely practiced, particularly in the pig and poultry sector and as for the ruminant industry; it varies from extensive to intensive system. The majority of feedstuffs used in rations for pig and poultry were imported (Anon, 2002), although to some extent locally produced ingredients were also included in the ration. The imported ingredients range from cereal grains, vegetable and animal proteins such as soybean meal, corn gluten meal, fish meal and meat and bone meal, mineral sources and various micro-ingredients like vitamins, minerals and other additives used to improve feed efficiency and growth. Maize and soybean meal were the major imported ingredients. Locally available raw materials make up about 30 percent of the total feed ingredients in Malaysia (Anon, 2002). However, the use of locally produced ingredient depends on supply, cost and also quality. The locally produced ingredients were tapioca and fishmeal. However, the amount produced was not sufficient to meet the requirements of the local feed industry (Anon, 2002). The milling factories and the by-products of oil extraction that produce soybean meal, wheat bran, pollard, and rice bran were always available and usually included in poultry and pigs feed. The ruminant industry depends primarily on locally available feedstuffs, for example palm kernel cake, oil palm frond, palm oil sludge, and soy waste, with only some supplementation provided by imported ingredients. The major  local materials used were crop residues and other agro-industrial by-products such as rice bran, copra cake, palm kernel cake, oil palm frond, sago, tapioca and broken rice (Anon, 2002). 2.2 Source of Fodder and Forages for Ruminants 2.2.1 Oil palm frond (OPF) Oil palm was one of the commercial plantation crops other than rubber, oil palm, cocoa and pineapple in Malaysia. Since the 1970s, Malaysia had been the largest producer and exporter of palm oil products in the world. Oil palm produces the most abundant biomass with oil palm fronds have been shown to be a very promising source of roughage for ruminants. The average crude protein value of OPF was about 7% (Asada et al., 1991; Wong and Zahari, 1992; Dahlan, 1992a). However, the average crude protein (CP) composition of 11.0% in the leaflets suggests its potential value for livestock feeding as its CP contents was far above the critical 6.25% CP level required to maintain normal intake by ruminants (Playne, 1972). OPF leaflets had a higher CP value and crude fat content than petiols (Oshio et al., 1990). However, Akmar et al. (1996) reported that OPF contained a considerable amount of lignin and silica which could reduce its nutritive value when fed to ruminants. Cellulose levels were usually lower than hemicellulose in both petioles and leaflets. Although OPF was available throughout the year, it must be collected and pilled up and also used readily or even chopped immediately within two days after pruning. Collection of OPF incurs high costs in which accounted the costs of pelleting and transport. OPF tends to become mouldy during storage due to high water contents of more than 55% (Dahlan, 2000). In order to prevent mould, drying was essential in which also incurred high processing costs. In addition, OPF contains very low protein (5.0-7.0%) and OPF becomes mouldy if not processed (Dahlan, 2000). Mouldy feedstuffs may contain fungal toxicins and were less palatable and have low nutritive value. Low protein content and unbalanced mineral content resulted in low digestibility and low absorption or availability of nutrients for maintenance and production (Dahlan, 2000). Consideration also have to be given to the high silica content in OPF and the slow rate of fermentation of fibre, which reduce VFA and the role of end products of fibre digestion in relation to the over all efficiency of energy utilization. These limitations can be overcome by physical or mechanical processing such as immediate chopping, grinding and drying, pre-digestion of fibre through chemical and biological treatment and stimulation of rumen microbes by supplementation with energy and protein rich ingredients or with urea and molasses and supplementation with essential minerals like Ca, P and S to balance up the nutrient content of OPF (Dahlan, 2000). 2.2.2 Rice Straw as a Feed for Ruminants Traditionally, rice straw was fed during the periods of feed shortage, but the nutrients for maintenance does not provided adequately. Studies had been shown that buffaloes (Wanapat et al., 1984; Wongsrikeao and Wanapat, 1985), cattle (McLennan et al., 1981; Wanapat et al., 1982, 1984; Suriyajantratong and Wilaipon, 1985) and sheep (Vijchulata and Sanpote, 1982) that were with fed straw alone lose body weight. The straw was usually fed in the long form, but in some parts of Asia, notably India, it may be chopped for limiting selection and wastage of the feeds given (Doyle et al., 1986). There were times in which the amount of straw collected and stored does not enable farmers to feed their animals ad libitum. In these feeding systems, salt was sometimes provided, but other mineral supplements were not given. Other forages offered with rice straw to stall-fed ruminants were practiced by many Asian farmers. The quantitative information about how much of these forages were fed and how frequently they were given was of little information. The most common feeds available with rice straw were the roadside native grasses, while other important forages were cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz), gliricidia (Gliricidia maculata), leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala) and sesbania (Sesbania grandiflora) (Doyle et al., 1986). Also in specific areas forages from many other trees, crops and water weeds, including acacia (Acacia arabica), banana (Musa spp.), jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus), pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan), and water hyacinth (Eichornia crassipes), were utilized (Doyle et al., 1986). 2.3 Grass Production in Malaysia Over the last 20 years, the pasture research team in Malaysian Agriculture Research Development Institute (MARDI) had introduced several hundreds of improved tropical pasture accessions, and promising species and genera have been identified (Wong et al. l982, Wong and Mohd Najib, 1988). The Digitaria genus, Brachiaria humidicola and B. dictyoneura were adapted to the bris soils; B. humidicola and Tripsacum andersonii (Guatemala grass) were important on acid sulphate soil and in areas with a high water table; while on peat, Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) was outstanding. Other promising grasses including Guinea grass (Panicum maximum) and Signal grass (Brachiaria decumbens) were able to perform in any of the sedentary and alluvial soils and in all agroclimatic zones. In the highlands, Napier, Guinea, Signal, Guatemala and Kikuyu grass (Pennisetum clandestinum) and Nandi setaria (Setaria sphacelata cv Nandi) had good production records. They had shown vigorous growth and seed sett ing. In the mid 1970s, improved pastures were established as part of the establishment of eight commercial ranch operations (9,682 ha); six farms in Peninsular Malaysia, and one each in Sabah and Sarawak, developed by the National Livestock Authority (Majuternak), with the aim of increasing commercial livestock production (Wong and Chen, 1998). Current total areas of ranch pastures were approximately 25,000 ha in Peninsular Malaysia, 5,000 ha in Sabah and 20,000 ha in Sarawak (Wong and Chen, 1998). These pastures faced some problems of persistence (Chen, 1985) in which they were mainly correlated with the requirement of improvement of the poor tropical soils. The soils had high saturation of aluminium (60-80%) and low soil pH 4.0-5.5 (Wong and Chen, 1998). Break-even on the investment for ranching of animals on tropical pastures in Malaysias circumstances takes about 10-12 years due to the intense initial capital input and high interest rate of bank loans (Clayton, 1983). Unfavourable cli mate in Malaysia is also a problem that hinders the development of tropical pastures for seed production in the poor seed setting of most of the promising pasture species (Wong and Chen, 1998). However, there were a few had been identified for small scale production of seed for local needs and such species were the Ruzi grass (Brachiaria ruziziensis) and Guinea grass (Wong and Chen, 1998). 2.4 Napier Grass (Pennisetum Purpureum ) Napier grass or scientifically called as Pennisetum purpureum was a species of grass native to the tropical grasslands of Africa. It was a tall perennial plant that may reach a height of six meter, with razor-sharp leaves 30-90 cm long and up to three centimetre broad (Duke, 1983) and producing 15 tillers at maturity. Its natural habitat was in riverbed areas, and able to grow up to 10 m high (Eilittà ¤ et al., 2004) but it was also a drought-tolerant (Bassam, 2010) and where it grew well in drier areas with a drier periods not more than four months. It had a very high productivity, both as a high protein forage grass for livestock and as a biofuel crop which might be 50-55 t/ha/year DM (Bassam, 2010). It can be grown along with fodder trees along field boundaries or along contour lines or terrace risers to help control erosion. It can be intercropped with crops such as legumes and fodder trees, or as a pure stand. The advantage of Napier grass was that it propagates easily. This fo dder is very important for smallholder farm (Goldson, 1977) which greatly contributed to dairy cattle feeding in Kenya and CP content of 7.6% produced by 10-40t ha-1 DM (Wouters, 1987). In the highlands, napier, guinea, signal, Guatemala and kikuyu grass (Pennisetum clandestinum) and Nandi setaria (Setaria sphacelata cv Nandi) were the promising forages with good production record. Napier grass was best suited to high rainfall areas, but as drought-tolerant grass it can also grow well in drier areas in which are suitable for Malaysias climate. Napier grass can propagates easily and has high growth and yield potentials. Its soft stem makes it easy to cut, the young leaves and stems are tender which makes very palatable for livestock, and the Napier grass is suitable for feeding ruminant as cut and carry system. 2.4.1 Production, characterization, and nutritional quality of Napier grass The general fodder grass species used in the S.E. Asian region was mainly the tall-growing types such as Pennisetum purpureum (Napier or Elephant grass), Panicum maximum (Guinea) and Tripsacum laxum (Guatemala grass). Napier had a yield record of up to 84800 kg DM/year when fertilized with 897 kg N/ha per year and cut practices were done every 90 days with annual rainfall of 2000 mm (Vicente-Chandler et al., 1959). The highest yielding fodder and most promising fodder was Napier grass (Anindo Potter, 1994) which had a dry matter yields surpassing many of tropical grasses (Humphreys, 1994; Skerman Riveros, 1990). Napier grass had tender, young leaves and stems, which was very palatable for livestock and grew very fast. The young and immature Napier grass was highly digestible but as maturity increased, yield also increased, but quality decreased. The digestibility increased as lignifications of the plant material increased with grass height and maturity. Attempts have been made to make hay out of Napier grass (Brown Chavulimu, 1985; Manyuchi et al., 1996) but the succulent stems limit the rate of drying (Snijders et al., 1992a) and with excess drying the stems may become hard and brittle and less palatable to livestock. The cell wall, composed primarily of the structural carbohydrates cellulose and hemicellulose, was the most important factor affecting forage utilization (Van Soest, 1994) as it comprises the major fraction of forage DM and its extent of degradation by the microflora had important implications on forage digestibility and intake (Paterson et al., 1994). The structural polysaccharides composed primarily of cellulose and hemicelluloses were primary restrictive determinants of nutrient intake. The digestibility of forage in the rumen was related to the proportion and extent of lignification (Van Soest, 1994). Chemical composition and digestible DM may be poor indicators of the nutritive value of Napier grass because it d oes not provide the profile of absorbed nutrients. 2.4.2 Effect of cutting interval on nutritive value of grass During the wet season, the tropical forage species grow very fast, with forage yields often exceeding animal requirements. If not cut and fed, it will continue to grow, producing very long and fibrous material, low in energy and protein (Moran, 1945). If this forage was harvested and successfully stored as silage at the same stage as it is cut for producing milk, then it could be fed back during the following dry season. Although the quality of the forage will be slightly lower than its fresh state (10-15% lower in good ensiling conditions), it will still be better quality than many of the forages only available for dry season feeding. Conversely, in some locations, the silage can supplement other good quality but very slow-growing forages. Forage harvested for silage should be at the same age of maturity (its optimum), as if feeding fresh (Moran, 1945). Napier grass should be harvested following 30 to 40 days re-growth in the wet season, at about 75 to 150 cm in height, or optimum quality and for ease of transporting to livestock in smallholdings. At this stage, the Napier grass will have about two to three nodes showing on the stem. The Napier grass was harvested every 45 days during the wet season and contained 12% dry matter (DM), 7.5% crude protein (CP) and 62.2% NDF (Moran, 1945). 2.5 Grass Silage The usage of silage was very essential in ruminant nutrition (Akyildiz, 1986). Silage, which produced by ensiling method, enables feed conservation in tropical countries such as Malaysia. Grass silage was extremely variable in terms of feeding value and preservation quality. OMara et al., (1998) indicated that supplementing grass silage with other forages improves dairy cow performance. Feed sources such as molasses, cereal grains and salt are usually added to silage for ensiling practices and to increase those forges in respect of increasing microbial fermentation and eliminating microbial toxins (Akyildiz, 1986; Jacobs et al., 1995; Kaya et al., 2009). There are four identifiable roles played by ensilaging the roughage (Cowan, 1999). Primarily, these were to build up reserve of feeds for utilisation during periods of feed deficiency; to have regular supply of feed to increase productivity of animals; to utilise surplus fodder for better management and utilisation and lastly to conserve for use during feed scarcity and additional demand for feed (Cowan, 1999). Silage was also routinely fed to increased productivity of beef and dairy cattle by providing nutrients necessary to nutritionally balance existing diets. Silage usages were pictured to increase in the S.E. Asian region. There were several reasons for this optimism. Stable supply of forage throughout the year was recognised as the key constraint for further development in cattle production in northeast Thailand (Shinoda et al., 1999), and this was generally true for other developing parts of the region. It had been noted that the economic boom of the 1980s and early 1990s have changed the dairy livestock perspective of S. E. Asian farmers and they have become more progressive and farms move from being subsistence to commercialised units (Wong, 1999). Silage making was less dependent on weather especially in areas where the cutting practice of the forage was constrained by the seasonal condition. Usually, there were five steps involves in silage making, harvest forage or collect material; materials transport to the silo; filling of silo; packing and compacting the materials for the exclusion of air to favour anaerobic fermentation; and sealing of silo. The types of silo for ensilaging process and for storing silage were horizontal silo, small vertical cylindrical silos, plastic bags, plastic drums and plastic film wrapping of baled fodder (Chin and Idris 1999). There were also some additional steps in order to make good silage, wilting to reduce moisture (many of silage making in Malaysia do not involve wilting); chopping for easy compaction; use of additives to increase soluble charbohydrate and protein; and use of enzymes to aid fermentation. The main usage of silage is for fodder conservation and to make feed available during t he scarcity of feed supply (Mohd Najib et al. 1993). 2.5.1 Evaluation of Silage Quality Organoleptic criteria were used to assess the silage quality, which employed silage colour, smell and texture. They were practical and do not required references of a laboratory. However, evaluation made using these criteria was subjective and proned to misinterpretation due to a trend toward the use of the larger rather than a smaller number of silage quality categories which results in differences of opinion (Woolford, 1984). Chemical assessments of the principal fermentation products give a straightforward basis to assess the quality of silage. Flieg (1938; 1952), suggests that silage quality was better evaluated according to the relative amounts of lactic, acetic and butyric acids in silage: The higher the proportions of lactic and acetic acids to butyric acid, the higher the score and the better the quality. Carpintero et al. (1969) established a good positive correlation between pH value and ammonia expressed as g kg-1 of the total nitrogen in direct cut-grass and clover silages. According to his study, it was considered critical for the anaerobic stability of silage and the ammonia content would be 111 g kg-1 of the total nitrogen at pH 4.2. Langson et al. (1960) proposed that the classification of grass silage as good, intermediate or poor was according to the levels of pH, lactic acid, ammonia, butyric acid and spore count. The pH level, dry matter (DM) and nutrient contents of grass silage were varies; depending on the kind, vegetation period and additives given (Haigh et al., 1985; More et al., 1986; Rinnie et al., 2002; Cone et al., 1999; Baytol and Muruz, 2003). A study done by Moore et al. (1986), using three different silage sampled of mixed grasses, the DM contents were 34.3, 29.9 and 38.8% respectively, crude protein (CP) contents were 8.12, 9.37, 11.87% respectively and the pH level was 4.6, 4.6, and 4.4 respectively. Another study was done from silage samples made of grass from late vegetation period the CP content and the pH level were 11.3% and 4.10, respectively. Numerous investigators have stressed the importance in the ensiling process of the percentage of dry matter in the green crop. Wilson and Webb (1937) recognized the importance of the sugar content of plants for making silage, and reported values for a number of different species. Some values for sugar have been reported by Archibald (1953), but they were for chopped green crops with added preservatives. Watson and Ferguson (1937) and Allen et al. (1937) have compared composition and digestibility of the green crop and the resulting silage. Peterson et al. (1935) made a study of dry matter, the several forms of nitrogen, and carotene contents in the crop and in the silage. Earlier studies have shown the criteria which indicated the quality (good or poor) in grass silage from the standpoint of organoleptic and laboratory tests were: pH, and content of volatile bases, butyric acid, and lactic acid (Archibald et al., 1954). High values for lactic acid indicate good quality silage; high values for the other three criteria were an indication of poor quality silage, as odour, texture and dry matter losses was concerned. Values for these have been statistically correlated with the following constituents in the green, un-ensiled crop: water, protein, fiber, N-free extract, and total sugar. Effluent flowing out of the storage for no longer than 2 to 4 weeks was an indicative that the silage was slowly deteriorating due to entry of air (Moran, 1945). Wilted silage produced little or no effluent unless the stack was poorly sealed. Un-wilted silage will produce some effluent, which may leak out of drums and stacks into the soil. Only small amount of silage effluent will leaked from well-sealed drums and plastic bags, and may even leak slowly from upturned drums. It was important not to remove drum lids, untie bag tops or hole their bottoms to let moisture out, or to see how they are going. This will allow far too much air to enter, leading to very poorly fermented silages, and even just compost. Characteristics of silages that had undergone an unsatisfactory fermentation: had a strong, pungent, very unpleasant smell; had a strong ammonia smell; contained excess moisture when squeezed or continually oozes from the base; mouldy or slimy; had undergone much deterioration (>20% DM loss); slightly damp and dark brown; the plastic sheet or lid has not stopped air entry for many days (Moran, 1945). Chemical composition of the raw material had a dominating influence on the fermentation in conventional silage. In the forage crops, chemical composition were influenced by the weather, growth conditions, the level of fertilizer applied, and the maturity of the material at harvest (Woolford, 1984). These factors in turn influence those components of prime importance to fermentation such as fermentable substrate together with organic acids and their salts. Weather could have a significant effect on silage fermentation by its effect on water soluble carbohydrates in grass (Stirling, 1954). The sugar content of a crop harvested in the early morning after several days of dull wet weather with no sunshine was low compared with similar material cut from the same plot one week earlier following brighter weather. Temperature and light intensity were more important influences on sugar content of a crop than its maturity (Wieringa, 1961). 2.5.2 Improving the Quality of Silage Ensiling generally produces better quality roughage than hay because less time is required to wilt the feed, when the forage loses nutrients, causing a reduction in feed quality. The principles of silage making were the same regardless of size of operation, the major difference being in the type of storage used (Mickan, 2003). Unfortunately tropical forages and legumes were not well suited to ensiling due to their inherent low concentrations of water soluble carbohydrates, compared to temperate species (Moran, 1945). However, rapidly wilting the forage or adding a fermentable substrate, such as molasses before ensiling, will usually result in well-fermented silages. Tropical species were difficult to ensile because of their high buffering ability i.e. their resistance to changes in pH. To enable them to undergo a more satisfactory fermentation, two techniques were available to small holders; wilting the forage prior to ensiling and adding a fermentable substrate at ensiling (Moran, 1945). Napier grass will be about 12-15% DM at harvest and should, if possible, be wilted to at least 30% DM. when harvested in the morning, wilting may only require the heat of the afternoon of that day, but when cut later in the day or on cloudy days, it may need wilting till midday of the following day. The layer of the material to be wilted should be no thicker than 10cm and should be turned over two to three times to encourage wilting. If too thick, the forage will heat and begin to decompose and encourage the wrong types of bacteria to grow. Forage quality and dry matter will be lost. Since leaves dry more quickly than stems, smashing or conditioning the nodes on the stems and the stems themselves will increase the wilting rate. If the fresh forage cannot be wilted, the fermentation of the silage will be improved by mixing the chopped material with 3% to 5% molasses (on a fresh weight basis) just prior to ensiling. Adding water to the molasses is not recommended as the forage is already too moist and extra water will just reduce the fermentation quality. Rather than mixing it thoroughly, the molasses can be spread as layers in the forage, say every 10 to 15 cm. where the molasses was applied, the silage ferments better and was sweeter smelling, but the overall silage quality was still good. Other suitable fermentable substrates include rice bran or formulated concentrates (mixed at 10%) in layers with molasses (5%) poured on top of the rice bran. We found the silage surrounding the rice bran was drier and more acidic (pH 4.1) compared to silage with no additive (Moran, 1945). The shorter the chop length, the better the compaction, hence less air was trapped in the forage, resulting in better silage quality. Chopped lengths should be from 1 to 3 cm. if chopped lengths were longer, additional molasses (5-6% on a fresh forage basis) may improve the fermentation. However, the stems should be chopped to small lengths because they were harder to compact. Leaves can be left at 3 to 8 cm length. Where the forage had become too long but was still in the vegetative state, only chop and ensile the leaves and the top end of the stems to produce higher quality silage. Regardless of the system of the silage storage, the forage must be compacted as densely as possible, so compact it until it was difficult to insert your finger into the stack. The shorter the material was chopped, the more dense it can be packed and the less air that will be trapped inside the stack. The entire silage storage should be filled and sealed in one day, and at a maximum, two days. Silages in well-sealed storages that prevent the entry of air or water will maintain their quality for much longer than will silage in poorly sealed storage. 2.5.3 The Effects of Certain Additives on the Grass Silage Quality The main concern with the ensilage of tropical forages was the low dry matter and water-soluble carbohydrate (WSC) content. Wilting can overcome this problem but it may not be preferred or always possible during adverse climatic conditions. Suitable additives become an alternative to wilting. Even where wilting was carried out, additives were recommended to improve the fermentation and nutritive value of conventional as well as round bale silages (Bates et al. 1989; Staples 1995). The additives were used to improved silage preservation by ensuring that lactic acid bacteria dominate the fermentation phase in the ensiling process (Titterton and Bareeba, 1999) and they were divided into three general categories; the fermentation stimulants, e.g. bacterial inoculants and enzymes; fermentation inhibitors such as propionic, formic and sulphuric acids; and substrate or nutrient source, such as maize grains, molasses, urea or anhydrous ammonia (Woolford 1984; Henderson, 1993; Bolsen et al. 1995). The use of molasses was not only improves the energy content of silage but also ensures low pH and prevents proteolysis (Rasool et al. 1999). Four percent molasses added to the ensiled material generally improved silage quality derived from grasses in terms of increased lactic acid content (Aminah et al. 1999). Molasses, ground maize and palm kernel cake have been utilised locally as additives. Ensiled poultry litter was successfully included in the feed of ruminants as a protein supplement (Kayouli and Lee 1999) and, locally, poultry litter had been ensiled together with pineapple waste. However, the inclusion of additives, although encouraged, was not often carried out due to additional costs and the availability problem. It should be noted that silages have been successfully produced with neither wilting nor use of additives. Maize and forage sorghum crops were made into excellent silage and S. sphacelata var. splendida and P. purpureum were converted into acceptable silage without additives (Aminah et al. 1999). Inoculation. Since most forage crops intended for the silo are well seeded with lactic acid organisms, it is not to be expected that lactic acid cultures applied to forage to be ensiled will be of very much benefit. This with certain exceptions has been the finding abroad (6) and what similar work has been done in this country has been relatively ineffective. Inoculation of forage in the silo seems particularly absurd when the inoculum is tobe applied, as is the case with one commercial product, on layers of silage at the 1-filled level, the 2-filled level, the 3-filled level, and at the top of the filled silo. Whey. Soured cheese factory whey is an inoculum which at the same time has a certain amount of lactose for further fermentation. But since several hundred pounds of whey are required to supply the necessary sugar for proper acidity, to avoid excessive amounts of moisture the forage will in most cases need to wilt for several hours in the sun before ensiling. Condensed soured whey is a more logical preservative, as also is powdered whey. The cost of the latter two products and the bother of a very thin liquid, like ordinary whey, may not make whey in its svarious forms very attractive. 2.6 Production and Characterization of EM Professor Dr Teruo Higa developed the technology of EM in the 1970s at the University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan. The first solutions contained over 80 species from 10 genera isolated from Okinawa and other environments in Japan. With time, the technology was refined to include only the four important species cited earlier, namely Lactic Acid Bacteria, Photosynthetic Bacteria, Actinomyces and Yeast. Lactic acid bacteria: produces lactic acid from sugars. Food and drinks such as yogurt and pickles have been made by using lactic acid bacteria. However, lactic acid is a strong sterilizer. It suppresses harmful microorganisms and increases rapid decomposition of organic matter. Moreover Lactic acid bacteria enhances the breakdown of organic matter such as lignin and cellulose, and ferment these materials which normally take plenty of time. Lactic acid bacteria have the ability to suppress Fusarium propagation which is a harmful microorganism that causes disease problem in continuous cropping. Under Fusarium conditions promotes the increase of harmful nematodes. The occurrence of nematodes disappears gradually, as lactic acid bacteria suppress the propagation and function of Fusarium. Yeasts: synthesize antimicrobial and useful substances for plant growth from amino acids and sugars secreted by photosynthetic bacteria, organic matter and plant roots. Bioactive substances such as hormones and enzymes produced by yeasts promote active cell and root division. Their secretions are useful substrates for eff ective microorganisms such as lactic acid bacteria and actinomycetes. Actinomycetes: are the structure of which is intermediate to that of bacteria and fungi, produces antimicrobial substances from amino acids secreted by photosynthetic bacteria and organic matter. These antimicrobial substances suppress harmful fungi and bacteria. Actinomycetes can coexist with photosynthetic bacteria. Thus, both species enhance the quality of the soil environment, by increasing the antimicrobial activity of the soil. EMAS ® (EM Activated Solution) is a fermented product derived from EM-1 ® product mixed with sugarcane molasses and water. EM-1 ® is made up from three groups of bacteria: Photosynthetic bacteria, Lactic Acid bacteria, and yeast. EM-1 ® when mixed with molasses and then non-chlorinated water mixed with the later mixture and then the solution is fermented for seven days and produced as a product called EMAS ®. EMAS ® have the special ability to preserve, restore and revive and it is expected to have a better. 2.6.1 Effective Microorganisms (EM) as Silage Additives The effects of the use of EM-silage in corn silage are less prominent than as to the use in grass silage (Wikselaar, 2000). However, in general the same trends at the use of EM-silage in grass and corn silage are percept