Wednesday, October 30, 2019
Leisure and Tourism Maqnagement Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words
Leisure and Tourism Maqnagement Project - Essay Example Knowledge of how customers of events industry use social media is necessary so that effective use of the channel of social media can be made possible. The research is based on identifying these patterns and impacts so that the social media can be used as an effective promotional tool. The paper is developed with exploratory research design based on analysis of information and facts. The combination of the survey questionnaire and literature review is used to explore the qualitative perspective of the research. The paper finds out that the social media has huge impact on how the events industry of UK conducts the marketing and promotion of the media. However, blind following of the trend to use social media does not lead to effective results. It is necessary to have a two way communication and understand the nature of the customer relevant to the particular industry. Contents Abstract 2 Research Question 5 Significance of the research 5 Aims and objectives 5 Structure of the report 6 Literature review 6 Research Methodology 10 Research Methods 10 Sampling 11 Data analysis approach 11 Findings and Data Analysis 11 Discussion in relation to literature review 17 Evaluation of the outcome 18 Conclusion and recommendations 19 References 21 Introduction Social media has become an important part of the day-to-day life of people. People especially youngsters spend a significant amount of time exploring social media and its applications. Due to the increasing importance of social media in lives of people, the corporate field also understands the potential of this media in terms of utilizing it as the form of marketing tool in advertising (Smith and Zook 2011). Today, many companies are promoting their products and services through presence on social media websites such as Facebook, Twitter, etc. It is rivalling the traditional forms of media and consumes a large portion of the time of people. The reach of this form of media has even extended to the social rituals that mo st people cherish. In general, it has implications for the events industry as well. The industry ought to capitalize on the trends of social media so as to remain relevant. The social media trends also present new opportunities for the events industry so as to thrive well in the competitive environment and move forward (Smith and Zook 2011). The UK events industry is worth 36 billion pounds and it presents an opportunity for the country to be the business destination of choice at the global level. Due to the rise in the growth of the events industry of UK with the recent example of conducting the event of Olympic and Paralympics games event in 2012, it is evident that the industry requires much more marketing tools that have vast reach to people and attract them. The rapid growth of the industry demands equally effective marketing tool for giving the push to the growth and the success (Thorley 2010). Research Question The research question for the study is as follows: How social med ia impacts the UK events industry? What are the implications of the explosion in social media use on the events industry in the UK, as they pertain specifically to the way the industry markets itself and provides services to its customers? Significance of the research The growth of the events industry of UK has compelled the professionals in the industry to make use of such marketing tools for advertising that can attract a large number of audiences and has a vast reach. The rising use of social media and its strong existence in the routine life of people has
Monday, October 28, 2019
United States History Essay Example for Free
United States History Essay 1. Compare and contrast the U.S. experiences in World War I and World War II. War have become an inevitable part of the United States History. So far, the U.S. have engaged in numerous wars dating back to the civil war to the present Iraq war. However, it was in the First and Second World Wars that the U.S. had a major participation that resulted in the restoration of peace and order all over the globe. During World War I, the U. S. held a neutral stand for quite a long period during the early 1900s. At first, World War I was perceived by many Americans as a European conflict but when they realized that their economy and even the lives of some Americans were being adversely affected, they gradually shifted to a warring mode. At that time, U.S. economy was largely dependent on overseas trading but when the war broke out, it dramatically halted economic trading because they were no longer able to sell goods to other countries particularly to Britain and Germany. This event negatively influenced the economy of the United States. More so, the Americans became more agitated when the Germans attacked passenger ships that led to the death of numerous prominent Americans. However, it was the alliance between Mexico and Germany that triggered U.S. to be directly involved in the war because it imposed an imminent threat since Mexico was geographically close to American soil (Hardgrove United States Involvement in WWI). On the other hand, the U.S. participation to World War II had some similarities with their involvement during First World War. In both wars, U.S. started with a neutral stance but the intensity of their involvement in World War II was heightened because of the direct attack at Pearl Harbor. The entire period of WWI, U.S. was only at the sidelines that was carried on to the early part of WWII. At first, Americans aid was mostly confined at providing supplies to the allied forces through the Lend-Lease Act. But when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor and Germany and Italy declared war against the Americans, U.S. launched a massive offensive alongside with the British and Russians in Europe and Asia (Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia War comes to the United States). Clearly, U.S. involvement during World War II was more prevalent than in the First World War. Americans exhausted all their human and material resources during WWII to the point that it resulted to millions of casualties and thousands of deaths (Digital History Learn About World War II). 2. Explain how the Great Depression seemed to bring the U.S. to the brink of revolution and why you believe a revolution did or did not occur. The Great Depression was the time when the economy had an ââ¬Å"immense disparity between U.S. productive capacity and the ability of Americans to consume.â⬠At that time, the stock values at the New York Stock Exchange was at an all time low, many businesses have closed, several factories and banks have shut down. Also, there was a meager disposable income for an average American and the unemployment rate have catapulted ( Modern American Poetry The Depression in the United States). These were the economic consequences brought by the participation of the U.S. in WWI who became a ââ¬Å"major creditor and financier of of postwar Europe.â⬠Aside from the economic distress, depression also brought significant implications in the American political system. The presidential reign of Franklin Roosevelt allowed several modifications in the economy by increasing government regulation and massive public-works projects to facilitate rapid recovery. In spite of these initiatives, â⠬Å"mass unemployment and economic stagnationâ⬠persisted.( Modern American Poetry About the Great Depression) It seemed at this point that the Americans were already tired of waiting for the government to take bold actions in order for them to be instantaneously removed from the sinking hole of economic downfall. But the realization of the New Deal policies which focused on mitigating the effects of the depression and the outbreak of World War II haveà hindered the possibility of having a revolt against the American government (Modern American Poetry The Depression in the United States). 3. How did World War II led to the Cold War and how was actual warfare between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. avoided while the two powers competed? Prior to the WWII, the U.S. had illustrated the Soviet Union asà an evil nation but during the war, the two became allies because of their common enemy which were the Germans. However, their alliance was filled with doubts and distrusts that became very apparent at the end of the war. Actually, Gen. Patton, an American General, expressed his desire to lead the Allied army against the Soviet Red Army. More so, many were agitated particularly Americans and British when Gen. Eisenhower, Supreme head of the Allied Command, conceded to the demand of Stalin that the Red Army would be the first to invade Berlin. America was threatened of Stalins vast and powerful Red Army, while the Russians were very cautious of U.S. advance weapons capabilities. This relationship facilitated the emergence of the Cold War (Trueman What was the Cold War). Because of the Cold War, the world was divided into three main groups. The West which isà comprised of democratic countries while the East was spearheaded by the Union which is composed of communist countries (GlobaSecurity.org Cold War). Since both nations acknowledged each others competencies in the field of war, they opted to have a cold war to prevent a massive catastrophe from happening. They were both afraid of each others nuclear weapons in which if used, it could destroy the whole human population. So instead of directly fighting, Russia and the U.S. agitated each other through other means such as by supporting ââ¬Å"conflicts in various parts of the globeâ⬠and by setting up a propaganda war against each other (GlobaSecurity.org Cold War). Both the U.S. and the Soviet Union used client states to forward their indirect war against each other. These client states are countries who fought for the the Americans and Russians on their behalf. Such as in the case of North and South Vietnam and Afghanistan. Americans supplied the anti-communist South Vietnam with weapons when they were at war with Communist North Vietnam who was on the other hand used weapons from the Soviet Union. Also,Afghan rebels were helpe d by the Americans when the Russian invaded their country in 1979 (Trueman What was the Cold War). 4. Explain how motion pictures are documents of American culture and society. Films are useful tools in understanding a particular culture. More so, Hollywood have dominated the global industry of movie-making. It is because of their status as the most powerful country in the world that projected them to be the front runners in this field. Furthermore, since many admire the American way of life, American filmmakers used this opportunity to showcase the American culture through movies. From then on, numerous filmsà were made that had an American-theme. An example would be the movie Reality Bites. This film is about the dilemmas that most college graduates experience such as looking for work or determining their purpose in life. Also, it depicted the American modern yuppie life in an urban setting. Another example is the movie Titanic. It showed the economic disparity between the rich and the poor of the American society. Though the setting was multicultural, it focused mainly on two American characters who were separated in love because of their different social status. These are just few samples that depict the American culture and society. Some of the themes adapted showed the typical suburban family life, the X generation lifestyle which is defined by technological gadgets and invention of new colloquial terms and others. Also, it seems that movie goers are entertained and at the same time educated by these American-oriented films. Most of the motion pictures produced by Hollywood utilizes American culture, society and history to impart to audiences from within and outside the U.S. the richness and distinctness of their knowledge,à customs and civilization. More so, it is a subtle way of reinforcing their socio-economic and political status as a powerhouse nation.
Saturday, October 26, 2019
The Causes And Effects Of Divorce Essay -- Family Psychology
For thousands of years until present day, the best way to officially be the partner of someone is marriage. People have been practicing marriage for a long time. It is the best act to celebrate the love of one couple until death tears them apart. However, people do not manage to keep the marriage promise forever. This situation leads to the phenomenon called divorce, which unfortunately is becoming more common than ever before, and it is drastically bringing new effects in the lives of those individuals involved. Some causes for divorce vary from couple to couple, but the most frequent ones tend to be, change of womenââ¬â¢s role in society, lack of communication, and lack of trust in the relationship. One significant cause that leads to divorce is the change in womenââ¬â¢s roles. In the past, women depended only on their husbandsââ¬â¢ earnings. Meanwhile, they had to do most of the housework. In other words, men took care of providing financially while the women would take care of the family. Nowadays, equality between women and men is less of an issue. Women can have jobs, they can earn their own money, and are able to finance their living costs. Meanwhile, men can do the same household jobs that women used to focus on, such as caring for children, washing, cleaning and cooking. Furthermore, another major cause contributing to divorce is the lack of communication. Communication is very important, especially in relationships such as marriage. Imagine a football or baseball game; it is important for the players of the team to have effective communication between each other if they want to successfully run their plays. If they communicate properly they can win the games, the same way we can solve our problems in our relationships. Som... ...b. 22 Oct. 2014. Lore Van Praag, et al. "Divorce, divorce rates, and professional care seeking for mental health problems in Europe: a cross-sectional population-based study." BMC Public Health 10.(2010): 224-235. Academic Search Elite. EBSCO. Web. 31 Oct. 2014. Woody, Robert Henley. "A Review Of ââ¬Å"Divorce: Causes And Consequencesâ⬠." American Journal Of Family Therapy 37.5 (2009): 444-446. Academic Search Elite. Web. 1 Nov. 2014. Amato, Paul R., and Jacob E. Cheadle. "Parental Divorce, Marital Conflict And Children's Behavior Problems: A Comparison Of Adopted And Biological Children." Social Forces 86.3 (2008): 1139-1161. Academic Search Elite. Web. 1 Nov. 2014. Gohn, Sandra, and Eileen D. O'brien. "Trusts in the Context of Divorce (Part II: Looking Back)." American Journal of Family Law 25.2 (2011): 34-41. Academic Search Elite. EBSCO. Web. 31 Oct. 2014.
Thursday, October 24, 2019
Brian Skyrms? Evolution of the Social Contract Essay -- essays researc
à à à à à Skyrmsââ¬â¢ book, Evolution of the Social Contract, offers a compelling explanation as to why individuals, when placed with one-shot prisonerââ¬â¢s dilemmas, will often cooperate, or choose the equilibrium that will benefit both parties equally. He uses examples to outline how individuals of certain environments frequently engage in activities that benefit the group at their own personal expense. Using both game theory and decision theory, Skyrms explores problems with the social contract when it is applied to evolutionary dynamics. In the chapters of the book, he offers new insights into concepts such as sex and justice, commitment, and mutual aid. à à à à à Skyrmsââ¬â¢ writing goes beyond traditional game theory, and exposes some weaknesses in its application. He rejects the theoryââ¬â¢s traditional interpretation of rational actors and actions by discovering some glaring inconsistencies. Skyrms conducted a number of experiments using one-shot prisonersââ¬â¢ dilemmas. The ultimatum the author introduces in the first chapter serves as a simple example of a one-shot prisonersââ¬â¢ dilemma. In the initial form of the example, Skyrms proposes there is a cake that must be divided between two individuals. Each individual is looking to maximize his or her utility, and therefore, wants as much of the cake as possible. However, there is a third party, or what Skryms labels a ââ¬Å"referee.â⬠The two individuals must determine the percentage or portion of the cake they want and summit these requests to the referee. The percentages must not exceed 100%, or the referee will consume all the cake. It is therefore not in either partiesââ¬â¢ best interest to request a significantly large portion. Additionally, if the total of the two requests is below 100% of the cake, the referee will take the left-over portion. The two parties will then aim to maximize their portion, however the best claim that an individual submits is dependent upon the other partyââ¬â¢s claim. There are two interacting optimization problems (Skyrms 3, 4). à à à à à An answer to the puzzle will be found in solutions that are in equilibrium. An equilibrium in informed rational self-interest, or a Nash equilibrium, is any solution to the problem whereby neither party could do better by altering its position. However, this is a general and broad definition. Further stipu... ...as formed certain signals and understandings that are critical to our prospects for cooperation and negotiation today (Skyrms 80-104). à à à à à Skyrmsââ¬â¢ explorations in Evolution of the Social Contract are based on the premise that human beings are, in fact, inclined to behave justly. His writings do not aim to prove that individuals act justly all the time; however they assert that the disposition exists in societies. Many would take issue with Skyrmsââ¬â¢ assertion. Firstly, justice has many interpretations. According to some, equal division of a resource is not always what justice requires. Skyrms fails to address situations where an individual may have worked harder than another for a resource, and invested more time in it. Perhaps one individual would obtain more utility from a given amount of a resource than another would. Libertarians would demand property rights, and argue that one individual might better utilize the resource than the other, creating more benefit for society. Skyrms also fails to give specific interpretations of justice and does not offer any thoughts on what ideas of jus tice, if any, are cultural universals. à à à à Ã
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
Module 7 â⬠Reflective Practice and Professional Development
Certificate in Education Module 7 ââ¬â Reflective Practice and Professional Development Report to compare teaching roles In any organisation there must be some structure and it is this that leads to a selection of teaching and management roles within education. All roles are focused on the quality of service provided to not only the learners but to the community, our stakeholders, awarding bodies, funders and parents. The 3 roles I have chosen for comparison are Team Manager, which is my role at NN, a Trainer on the foundation learning programme at NN and the role of Learning Support Assistant.I have collected the information by talking to and observing, the trainer on foundation learning. I have researched the post of LSA as this is a role that I need to employ in the New Year for the new programme I will be running. I have 12 learners on programme at any given time, the course is entry 3 and the maximum I have in a group is 6. The courses are a mixture of practical and theory f or example the driving theory course as the name suggests is mainly theory however the nail technicians course is mainly practical.The trainer on foundation learning has a maximum of 16 learners and the level ranges between entry 3 and level 1. He does 75% practical and 25% theory as he gets the learners to take a lot of responsibility for their own learning. The LSA that I will be employing will be working on a 1:1 or 1:2 basis. We all work with 16-18 year olds that have not fitted into mainstream education. . I have split the responsibilities into sections of common themes to compare the roles. My role as Team Manager is to plan and direct the activities of the team.Through Team meetings and one to one support & supervision sessions we discuss the needs of current and potential learners, with this information in mind, I then need to create Schemes of Work which not only meet the individual needs of the learner and the targets, but also the standards and outcomes set by senior mana gement, funders and regulatory bodies. The session plans are then created by either myself or the trainers for the appropriate programme. The LSAââ¬â¢s, trainers and myself are all responsible for working from the session plans and ensuring that outcomes and targets are met and standards adhered to.As a group we would also discuss what additional resources and materials would be necessary for the course and create an essential list and a wish list. It would then be my responsibility to check what was available within the budget and authorise any additional spending. I am responsible for risk assessing and ensuring the health & Safety of the staff and learners. The trainers are responsible for the health and safety of themselves and learners during sessions and have a responsibility to bring to the attention of the team manager anything that arises during their sessions.The LSA has a responsibility to report any health and safety issue to their line manager. We all have a responsi bility to ensure that our areas are clean, tidy and secure at the end of each session. I am responsible for learner registrations, arranging internal and external verification and attending standardisation meetings. The trainers are responsible for providing me or their team manager with the necessary information for us to do the registrations and to ensure that learnerââ¬â¢s portfolios are completed to an acceptable standard.The LSAââ¬â¢s can complete learner progress reports and are responsible for completing the tasks with the learners that have been set by the trainer. All of the roles are responsible for discipline and classroom management, the trainer is responsible for the discipline and management of the whole class, the LSA, alongside the trainer is responsible for the learners they are working with and I am responsible overall for making any final decisions about discipline and behavioural issues. On my project specifically, I allow the learners quite a lot more lati tude initially as my focus is on engagement following a long period of no education.The trainer on FL would expect a far greater standard of behaviour as he is preparing the learners for further training or employment. Ideally we would see a journey of improving behaviour from when they start on my course to when they finish on FL. The LSAââ¬â¢s are responsible for setting up equipment and resources whilst the trainer is responsible for deciding which equipment to use, designing any handouts/resources and ensure that resources are used effectively and efficiently. I need to ensure that there are adequate resources for the trainers including purchasing and designing my own resources whilst remaining inside the allocated budget.I am responsible for securing adequate funding to provide appropriate resources. We are all responsible for the learning journey of the learner; the LSA must be impartial when assisting the learners and ensure that their practice is professional and inclusiv e. The trainer is responsible for ensuring the practice with the group is inclusive and that they can challenge any discriminatory behaviour and attitudes. They design individualised learning plans with the learners and the LSAââ¬â¢s work towards goals set with the learners on these plans.I need to ensure that any new paperwork is designed within our, and other regulatory bodies, codes of practice. The trainer is responsible for completing initial assessments with the learner and I am responsible for ensuring that initial assessments take place and that all relevant paperwork is completed. The LSA would not be expected to do initial assessments however would be expected to contribute to learning reviews. I am responsible for ensuring that practice and assessments are standardised. All staff are required to attend standardisation meetings for the various awarding bodies that we use.This ensures that our assessments are fair, reliable, sufficient and valid. The Trainer on FL would be expected to work with external bodies to find and maintain suitable work placements however on my course this is not as relevant. The Team manager along with the health and Safety manager would be responsible for carrying out a risk assessment on the placement. The trainer is responsible for communicating with colleagues and attending meetings to ensure that training is standardised. They are responsible for collecting information that could be needed by others and passing it to their line manager.I am responsible for collating performance data to present to senior management, external agencies and regulatory bodies. In addition I am responsible for leading, managing, developing and motivating staff, including support & supervision and arranging adequate cover. I control and monitor expenditure against a set budget and contribute to the budget setting process. I am responsible for maintaining the viability of my project and work with my team manager colleagues to ensure that we m aximise, and identify any potential use of any shared resources.I am responsible for developing relationships with referral agencies, stakeholders and partnership agencies and where required work collaboratively in a multi agency setting, whilst maintaining confidentiality of information. The conclusion is that there are a lot of similarities between the roles as they are all predominantly based on supporting the learning journey of young people. All roles are vital for the success of the young people. The differences are based around the levels of responsibility and accountability.
Tuesday, October 22, 2019
Facts About Pygmy Seahorses
Facts About Pygmy Seahorses The common pygmy seahorse or Bargibants seahorse is one of the tiniest known vertebrates. This seahorse was named after the scuba diver who discovered the species in 1969 while collecting specimens for the Noumea Aquarium in New Caledonia. This tiny, expert camouflage artist thrives among gorgonian corals in the genus Muricella, which they hang on to using their longà prehensile tail. Gorgonian corals are more commonly known as a sea fan or sea whip.à Description Bargibants seahorses have a maximum length of 2.4 cm, which is less than 1 inch. They have a short snout and fleshy body, with many tubercles that help them blend into the knobby setting of the coral. On their head, they have a spine above each eye and on each cheek. There are two known color morphs of the species: pale grey or purple with pink or red tubercles, which are found on gorgonian coral Muricella plectana, and yellow with orange tubercles, which are found on gorgonian coral Muricella paraplectana. The color and shape of this seahorse nearly perfectly matches the corals on which it lives. Check out aà videoà of these tiny seahorses to experience their incredible ability to blend in with their surroundings. Classification Kingdom: AnimaliaPhylum: ChordataClass: ActinopterygiiOrder: GasterosteiformesFamily: SyngnathidaeGenus: HippocampusSpecies: bargibanti This pygmy seahorse is one of 9 known species of pygmy seahorse. Due to their amazing camouflage ability and tiny size, many pygmy seahorse species have only been discovered over the past 10 years, and more may be discovered. In addition, many species have different color morphs, making identification even more difficult. Feeding Not much is known about this species, but they are thought to feed on tiny crustaceans, zooplankton and possibly the tissue of the corals on which they live. Like larger seahorses, food moves through their digestive system quickly so they need to eat nearly constantly. Food also needs to be located close by, as seahorses cant swim very far. Reproduction It is thought that these seahorses may be monogamous. During courting, males change color and get a females attention by shaking his head and flapping its dorsal fin. Pygmy seahorses are ovoviviparous, but unlike most animals, the male carries the eggs, which are contained in an on his underside. When mating occurs, the female transfers her eggs into the males pouch, where he fertilizes the eggs. About 10-20 eggs are carried at one time. The gestation periodà is about 2 weeks. The young hatch looking like even tinier, mini seahorses. Habitat and Distribution Pygmy seahorses live on gorgonianà corals off Australia, New Caledonia, Indonesia, Japan, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines, in water depths of about 52-131 feet. Conservation Pygmy seahorses are listed as data deficient on the IUCN Red Listà due to lack of published data on population sizes or trends for the species.à Sources Feng, A. 2009. Pygmy Seahorses. Fusedjaw.com. Accessed January 30, 2016.Lourie, S.A., A.C.J. Vincent and H.J. Hall, 1999. Seahorses: an identification guide to the worlds species and their conservation. Project Seahorse, London. 214 p. In Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2015.FishBase(10/2015) .à Accessed January 30, 2016.McGrouther, M. Pygmy Seahorse, . Australian Museum. Accessed January 30, 2016.bargibantiHippocampus Whitley, 1970Project Seahorse. 2003.à Hippocampus bargibanti. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2003: e.T10060A3158205. Accessed January 30, 2016.Stockton, N. 2014. Baby Pygmy Seahorses Are Even Cuter Than You Think. Wired. Accessed January 30, 2016.
Monday, October 21, 2019
Violence & Peace essays
Violence & Peace essays In most peoples opinion non- violence is the best way to solve a problem. The strange thing is that when the time comes to solve a certain problem, violence is used. Violence is not the best way to solve a problem. In this reflection the main topics are problems where violence is commonly present such as wars and in school, and for those problems there are nonviolent solutions such as using the method of A.R.C. (alternative resolution of conflicts), which includes negotiating. Sarajevo instead of finding other ways to solve their problems they chose violence. Many civilians got hurt because of the shelling and also because the military wanted to make the government regret whatever decision they took. As a consequence of war, shelling, killing, darkness, and hunger continued in Sarajevo therefore civilians suffered. Schindlers List clearly shows the effects of World War IIs Holocaust. It also shows how people wouldnt care to negotiate with people who were different from them and how they recurred to violence to solve their problems. For thirty years families were separated because of the political conflicts between Russia and the Allies. As a result of this political conflict Russia built the Berlin Wall, which separated itself from the other three powers for thirty long years. The Berlin Wall finally fell in 1989 and no longer were these families disunited again but this occurred because the other countries protested non-violently against Russia asking and persisting for the fall of this wall. During the time that this wall was standing, people would get shot when they tried to cross to the eastern side. As a country that was loosing its people, violent actions were taken to solve the problem of immigrations such as building a wall and shooting those who would try to cross the wall. Not only can violence be present in wars and among adults, but also violence is present among us. Every day there are ...
Sunday, October 20, 2019
Samarium Facts - Sm or Element 62
Samarium Facts - Sm or Element 62 Samarium or Sm is a rare earth element or lanthanide with atomic number 62. Like other elements in the group, it is a shiny metal under ordinary conditions. Here is a collection of interesting samarium facts, including its uses and properties: Samarium Properties, History, and Uses Samarium was the first element to be named in honor of a person (an element eponym). It was discovered in 1879 byà French chemist Paul Ãâ°mile Lecoq de Boisbaudran after he addedà ammonium hydroxide to the preparation made from the mineral samarskite. Samarskite gets its name from its discoverer and the man who loaned Boisbaudran the mineral samples for his study Russian mining engineerà V.E. Samarsky-Bukjovets.Ingesting the right dose of samarium chloride will allow it to bind with alcohol and prevent you from getting intoxicated.Its unknown exactly how toxic samarium is. Its insoluble compounds are considered non-toxic, while the soluble salts may be mildly poisonous. There is some evidence samarium helps stimulate metabolism. It is not an essential element for human nutrition. When salts of samarium are ingested, only about 0.05% of the element is absorbed, while the rest is immediately excreted. Of the absorbed metal, about 45% goes to the liver and 45% is deposited onto bone surfaces. The remainder of the absorbed metal is eventually excreted. The samarium on bones remains in the body for around 10 years. Samarium is a yellowish silver-colored metal. It is the hardest and the most brittle of the rare earth elements. It tarnishes in air and will ignite in airà at about 150 à °C.Under ordinary conditions, the metal has rhombohedral crystals. Heating changes the crystal structure to hexagonal close-packed (hcp). Further heating leads to a transition to a body-centered cubic (bcc) phase.Natural samarium consists of a mixture of 7 isotopes. Threeà of these isotopes are unstable but have long half-lives. A total of 30 isotopes have been discovered or prepared, with atomic masses ranging fromà 131 to 160.There are numerous uses for this element. It is used to makeà samarium-cobalt permanent magnets,à samarium X-ray lasers, glass that absorbsà infrared light, a catalyst for ethanol production, in the manufacture of carbon lights, and as part of a pain treatment regimen for bone cancer. Samarium may be used as an absorber in nuclear reactors. Nanocrystallineà BaFCl:Sm3 is a high ly sensitive x-ray storage phosphor, which may have applications in dosimetry and medical imaging. Samarium hexaboride, SmB6, is a topological insulator that may find use in quantum computers. The samarium 3 ion may be useful to make warm-white light-emitting diodes, although low quantum efficiency is an issue. In 1979, Sony introduced the first portable cassette player, the Sony Walkman, made using samarium cobalt magnets.Samarium is never found free in nature. It occurs in minerals with other rare earths. Sources of the element include theà minerals monazite and bastnasite. It is also found in samarskite, orthite, cerite, fluorspar, and ytterbite. Samarium is recovered from monazite and bastnasite using ion exchange and solvent extraction. Electrolysis may be used to produce pure samarium metal from its molten chloride with sodium chloride.Samarium is the 40th most abundant element on Earth. The average concentration of samarium in the Earths crust is 6 parts per million and about 1 part per billion by weight in the solar system. The elements concentration in seawater varies, ranging from 0.5 to 0.8 parts per trillion. Samarium is not homogeneously distributed in soil. For example, sandy soil may have a samarium concentration 200 times higher at the surface as compared with deeper, damp layers. In clay soil, there may be over a thousand times more samarium at the surface than further down. The most common oxidation state of samarium is 3 (trivalent). Most samarium salts are pale yellow in color.An approximate cost of pure samarium is about $360 per 100 grams of metal. Samarium Atomic Data Element Name:à SamariumAtomic Number:à 62Symbol:à SmAtomic Weight:à 150.36Discovery:à Boisbaudran 1879 or Jean Charles Galissard de Marignac 1853 (both of France)Electron Configuration:à [Xe] 4f6à 6s2Element Classification:à Rare earth (lanthanide series)Name Origin:à Named for the mineral samarskite.Density (g/cc):à 7.520Melting Point (à °K):à 1350Boiling Point (à °K):à 2064Appearance:à Silvery metalAtomic Radius (pm):à 181Atomic Volume (cc/mol):à 19.9Covalent Radius (pm):à 162Ionic Radius:à 96.4 (3e)Specific Heat (20à °C J/g mol):à 0.180Fusion Heat (kJ/mol):à 8.9Evaporation Heat (kJ/mol):à 165Debye Temperature (à °K):à 166.00Pauling Negativity Number:à 1.17First Ionizing Energy (kJ/mol):à 540.1Oxidation States:à 4, 3, 2, 1 (usually 3)Lattice Structure:à RhombohedralLattice Constant (Ãâ¦):à 9.000Uses:à Alloys, magnets in headphonesSource:à Monazite (phosphate), bastnesite References and Historical Papers Emsley, John (2001). Samarium. Natures Building Blocks: An Aââ¬âZ Guide to the Elements. Oxford, England, UK: Oxford University Press. pp. 371ââ¬â374. ISBN 0-19-850340-7.Weast, Robert (1984).à CRC, Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. Boca Raton, Florida: Chemical Rubber Company Publishing. pp.à E110.à ISBN 0-8493-0464-4.De Laeter, J. R.; Bà ¶hlke, J. K.; De Bià ¨vre, P.; et al. (2003). Atomic weights of the elements. Review 2000 (IUPAC Technical Report).à Pure and Applied Chemistry. IUPAC.à 75à (6): 683ââ¬â800.Boisbaudran, Lecoq de (1879).à Recherches sur le samarium, radical dune terre nouvelle extraite de la samarskite. Comptes rendus hebdomadaires des sà ©ances de lAcadà ©mie des sciences.à 89: 212ââ¬â214.
Saturday, October 19, 2019
Islam in the Malay world Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words
Islam in the Malay world - Essay Example The laws of the shariah are present in all aspects of their lives and are heavily relied on within the 33 local governments found in Indonesia. In Ache particularly, Islam is has taken a greater hold on the people since the shariah laws have been emphasized much in books and the reintroduction of these laws within special Shariah courts. They are strictly followed to ensure they have a firm hold on the strictest aspect of the way of life led by an individual. This also includes the women who at all angles viewed take a heavier toll of the requirements of the shariah laws that have been known to discriminate against women. Shariah can be defined as the all encircling and in-transmutable system of Islamic jurisprudence found within the Koran and the Sunnah. A characteristic of the shariah is that it covers all aspects of life including how to observe hygiene, the roles performed by different members of the family, relationships between man and God, daily living, social order and behavi or, how to relate to other Muslims, religious obligations and directions on how to live with the non Muslims among other things related to ways of living. In the light of the significance of the shariah to the lives of the Muslims, we find that the shariah makes a big part of their lives influencing the way the people behave, relate with each other as Muslims or with non-Muslims, take up their daily roles etc. women in Indonesia also keep their way of behavior in line with the requirements of the Shariah. Apparently, the shariah have been quite discriminatory on the side of the women. The women on the other hand are feeling the pinch and are reacting to the oppressive laws in different ways. The following essay will lie in the limelight the effect shariah law have on the women who live in Ache Indonesia. It will also show how the women here negotiate their political
Friday, October 18, 2019
Critique in rehabilitation model of nursing Essay
Critique in rehabilitation model of nursing - Essay Example According to Oremââ¬â¢s theory, in order to maintain optimal health and wellness, each person not only has need for self-care, but also has ability and responsibility to care for themselves and dependants. This theory encompasses three concepts, self care, self care deficits, and the role of nursing system in this. Self care, therefore, is the ability to perform activities and meet personal needs. These personal needs will have a goal to maintain health and wellness of physique, psyche, and spirit. Self care can, hence, be visualised as a product of person, environment, health, and above all, nursing. It again has three components universal self-care needs, developmental self-care needs, and deviation from normal health. Universal self-care consists of essential minimal activities for health and vitality. The elements known to influence the conditions of self-care are air, water, food, elimination, activity and rest, solitude and social interactions, prevention of harm, and normal ity promotion (Moore, J.B. and Pichler, V.H., 2000). The developmental self-care need include interventions and educations designed to help a person to return to the optimal state of health and maintain it so that the person is able to sustain health and wellbeing. The part that can be directly applicable to rehabilitative care is health deviation self-care. This consists of variations or deviations in self-care as a result of disability, illness, or injury. In this situation, nursing plays a major role in planning and implementing an individualised care to maintain health and wellness (Taylor, S.G., 1998). This gives rise to the concept of self-care deficits since every matured individual has ability to meet self-care needs. When a person experiences inability or disability due to any limitation, may it be physical or mental, there arises a situation of deficit that demands nursing care to supplement the individualââ¬â¢s self-care scheme. When
How can I write the essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words
How can I write the - Essay Example Read all the materials at hand and reread them to have a good grasp of topic, analyzing the information along the process. Once one is sure that the subject is clearly understood and that enough pertinent information have been gathered, take time to meditate on the readings. Ask questions about the subject and try to find answers, writing the questions and answers down for easy access when the writing process is ongoing. Afterwards, state the thesis you would like to present in the essay and make an outline on how this is to be elaborated. The writer may make a numbered outline or a diagram that he could follow in sequencing his ideas to form a clear presentation of the essay, whatever suits him. What is important in making the outline or diagram is that a topic should be chosen with subtopics below each. Working on the outline could also take much time and effort however this will be much appreciated in making the essay because it keeps the writer on tract, focusing on the topics and subtopics without straying to what has already been discussed or jumping to what will be discussed on a later part. After the outline is made, you can now start writing the essay beginning with the introduction. The fist sentence should be eye-catching, able to get the attention of the reader. This is a very important part of the essay because it is here that the writer makes a first impression that would either hold the readerââ¬â¢s attention to the last sentence or have him drop the paper on the second sentence. One could start with a question, a quotation or a statement to introduce the essay, followed by at least four sentences to complete the first paragraph. The last sentence should be a statement that would link the introduction to the next paragraph, making a transition of ideas run smoothly. The second paragraph will start the body
Thursday, October 17, 2019
Fixing the immigration system (international student and tourism) Essay
Fixing the immigration system (international student and tourism) - Essay Example In essence, it is an eye opener to the kind of losses that the American government would face in the event that they continue to lose such students to other countries by imposing stringent restrictions on acquisition of visas. This is actually a very critical source since it fits well in the research on fixing the immigration system by providing information on the fiscal relevance of international students. "Nolo.com."Ã Students and Tourists Affected by New Visa Rules and Procedures - Legal Updates - Nolo.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2014. . Nolo.com gives an insight on how tourists and students have been affected by the recent fresh visa procedures and rules. This website claims that if one is a tourist or an international student in need of a visa to study in America, chances are that one will have to undergo through intense questioning and scrutiny, as part of a security measure that the American government has taken to ensure that its airline operations remain secure. Furthermore, it explores on the SEVIS system which is a database which schools normally enter the student information. Through this, the USCIS can access information on a student without the knowledge of the student. This puts a lot of pressure on foreign students. Such stringent measures and delaying tactics of issuing visas to tourists and international students tend to discourage most foreigners from opting to go to the U.S. Thus, the website gives useful information to the research on fixing the immigration system by giving details on how such rest rictions discourage most people from considering going to America to visit the country or conduct their studies. Bedard, Paul. "U.S. Tourisms Lost Decade Cost Some 500,000 Jobs."Ã US News.U.S.News& World Report, 10 Nov. 2011. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.
TRAINING MANUAL Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words
TRAINING MANUAL - Coursework Example This training manual indicates some important aspects that our organization should emulate in order to improve its performance. As indicated by the CEO, the workforce in her organization is under strife. One of the causes of this conflict is lack of diversity. As she notes, the front-line supervisors are white males. This implies that there is diversification since the organization does not allow introduction of new ideas from other races. Another notable issue is age discrimination. The age of stream-line managers makes innovation difficult. This is based on the fact that young employees are productive in nature and have the ability to come up with new ways of doing things. By hiring managers and supervisors from one religion background, it is an indication that the organization is discriminative on the ground of religion Currently, the US population stands at approximately 319 million people. Being the third most populous country in the world, US population is made up of various races which includes white, Hispanic, black and Asians. The white race forms the major part of the population standing at 224 million people which is equivalent to 73% of the whole population. Latino and Hispanic Americans takes 48% of the population. Asian Americans take approximately 5.3% of the population while multiracial Americans are approximately 2.6%. The current trend indicates that the US population will increase at a very high rate based not only in the increase on food production but also due to quality health services that have reduced the rate of child mortality. Notably, the US Asian population has indicated an increasing trend as compared to Asians. For example, in 2013, US Hispanic stood at 54 million people a 2.1% increment from 2012. Despite the reduction in the number of immigrants between 2007 and 2009, the number of foreigners arriving
Wednesday, October 16, 2019
Fixing the immigration system (international student and tourism) Essay
Fixing the immigration system (international student and tourism) - Essay Example In essence, it is an eye opener to the kind of losses that the American government would face in the event that they continue to lose such students to other countries by imposing stringent restrictions on acquisition of visas. This is actually a very critical source since it fits well in the research on fixing the immigration system by providing information on the fiscal relevance of international students. "Nolo.com."Ã Students and Tourists Affected by New Visa Rules and Procedures - Legal Updates - Nolo.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2014. . Nolo.com gives an insight on how tourists and students have been affected by the recent fresh visa procedures and rules. This website claims that if one is a tourist or an international student in need of a visa to study in America, chances are that one will have to undergo through intense questioning and scrutiny, as part of a security measure that the American government has taken to ensure that its airline operations remain secure. Furthermore, it explores on the SEVIS system which is a database which schools normally enter the student information. Through this, the USCIS can access information on a student without the knowledge of the student. This puts a lot of pressure on foreign students. Such stringent measures and delaying tactics of issuing visas to tourists and international students tend to discourage most foreigners from opting to go to the U.S. Thus, the website gives useful information to the research on fixing the immigration system by giving details on how such rest rictions discourage most people from considering going to America to visit the country or conduct their studies. Bedard, Paul. "U.S. Tourisms Lost Decade Cost Some 500,000 Jobs."Ã US News.U.S.News& World Report, 10 Nov. 2011. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
Organizational Development Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words
Organizational Development - Research Paper Example In the last section, the study has recommended OD intervention strategies for the organization in order to improve its performance. The research paper has also suggested evaluation technique which can monitor the efficacy of recommended OD interventions for the organization. Table of Contents Table of Contents 3 1.0 Introduction 4 2.0 Literature Review 5 2.1 Organizational Context 5 2.2 Theories of OD 6 8 3.0 Organizational Needs 10 4.0 Impact of Environmental and Internal Issues on OD 10 4.1 Labor Pool Diversity 10 4.2 Technological Advancements 11 4.3 Global Expansion 13 4.4 Ethical Standards 14 5.0 Recommended Intervention 14 5.1 Human process based intervention strategies 16 5.2 Techno-structural intervention 17 5.3 Socio-technical intervention 17 5.4 Organizational transformation (OT) 18 6.0 Success Factor for Recommended Intervention 19 7.0 Evaluation of Recommended Intervention 20 8.0 Conclusion 21 Reference 22 1.0 Introduction Gone are the days when organizations can stay at top of both organic and inorganic growth by banking on first moverââ¬â¢s advantage in sustainable manner, in hypercompetitive modern business environment, a particular organization need to be flexible and ready to change in order to keep going. The concept of organizational development (OD) was postulated by research scholars almost 50 years ago. According to supporters of OD, the concept can be used solving pertinent issues of change management for a modern organization as like other neo-classical concepts like business process improvement, business process re-engineering, organizational life-cycles and total quality management (TQM). According to Holland and Salama (2010), OD can be described as sustainable and one way improvement of activities for an organization. The scholarsââ¬â¢ duos have also pointed out that, implementing OD process is a challenging task for an organization due to reasons like, First- the organization needs to breakdown its structure in partial or comp lete manner in order create room for newly implemented system, Second- the organization needs to adopt resource hungry intervention strategies in order to ensure efficacy of the change management process and last- the organization needs to influence its internal and external stakeholders to align their interest with common mission and vision statement of the change process. Holland and Salama (2010) have found that interaction of organization with the external environment decides the dynamics of OD process. Interesting fact is that, academic scholars state that OD is an initiative of top management to develop mid level and lower level organizational members but there are examples where employees develop themselves without seeking intervention from top management (Mulili & Wong, 2011). The concept of job security has changed after the recession during 2007-2009 and sovereign debt crisis and organizational members are enrolling themselves to flexible and lifelong learning process in o rder to remain employable in changing and harsh economic environment. Therefore it has been observed that employees are embracing various facets of OD process such as, off-the- job education, on-the-job training and many others. Now the question is can an organization improve its performance by using the theoretical framework of OD. Well, answer of this crucial question is the key essence of this research paper. Contextual analysis of OD process
Organic Food and Wild Oats Essay Example for Free
Organic Food and Wild Oats Essay Strong revenue growth Focused growth strategy Wide product portfolioWeak international operations Conservative international policy Increasing rental expenses OpportunitiesThreats Higher demand for organic products Expansion in the UK Growth in private label productsIncreasing competition Labeling and other regulations Slowdown in the US economy StrengthsWeaknesses Strong revenue growth Focused growth strategy Wide product portfolioWeak international operations Conservative international policy Increasing rental expenses OpportunitiesThreats Higher demand for organic products. Expansion in the UK Growth in private label productsIncreasing competition Labeling and other regulations Slowdown in the US economy AI Global Management. 8-26-14. INSTRUCTOR: Who wasnt here last week? Im looking at Michelle. So you are the only one that wasnt here last week? Mrs. Johnson were you here last week. Im going to pass out the assignments for next week for you. STUDENT: The PowerPoint one. INSTRUCTOR: Whole foods. So what you had to do just to remind everybody you have to take a look at those two companies, and do some research, did find out strategically what really happened? STUDENT: Do you have extra copies? I wasnt here last week. INSTRUCTOR: I thought I asked who wasnt here last week? Okay. We have to strategically do some research on both of these companies. You have your case study in front of you very thorough. You have to find out what kind of decision was made that created really an issue for Wild Oats because initially when this company was put together, they were killing Whole Foods. They were Whole Foods before Whole Foods existed. They were doing wonderful. Growing, expanding in the same type of market. I know both cases, so I know a lot of answers, but all of a sudden some decision was made in their minds relatively strategic, but it turned out to be some pretty bad decisions. How many of you has heard of Wild Oats. All of us have heard of Whole Foods because they are in existence. So you have to run this as if you are the CEO of both take both sides. Compare and contrast and take a look at Wild Oats, and what happened to them. Take a look at the great decision, and then things started going south relatively quickly for them. Yet Whole Foods was the underdog. Now Whole Foods is doing. Well, I guess. Manufacture moving forward.
Monday, October 14, 2019
Environmental Pollution In Malaysia
Environmental Pollution In Malaysia Malaysia is rapidly developing towards being an industrial country. Many industries such as heavy and light industries, small and medium industries and backyard industries have been growing in the last ten years. The increase in industrial and agricultural activities has created a new demand in housing, urbanization, transportation and medication as the population increase. All these will contribute to environmental problems especially pollution due to the accumulation of hazardous chemicals such as heavy metals in environment. Environmental pollution has become a major issue that requires immediate action as it may effects human health. Pollution can take many forms such as water and air that we breathe. Urbanization in developed and development country, civilization and industrialization make the situation of the environment worsened as such that there is no more safe place to live. From the chemistry dictionary, pollution can be define as an undesirable change in the physical, chemical, or biological characteristics of the natural environment, brought about by mans activities. It may be harmful to human or non living things. Basically there are two main classes of pollutants which are biodegradable which means it can be rendered harmless by natural processes and need therefore cause no permanent harm if adequately dispersed or treated such as sewage. Another type is nonbiodegradable which cannot be decomposing by microbial activity. For example heavy metals such as lead, DDT and other chlorinated hydroca rbons used as pesticides, which eventually accumulate in the environment and may be concentrated in food chains. Pollution also can be describes as the introduction of foreign substances into the biosphere. It may affect the soil, rivers, seas, or the atmosphere. The pollutants that are released from the anthropogenic activities such as agricultural industries, open burning, solid waste disposal, sewage treatment plants and transportation produce hazardous and poisonous pollutants such as SO2, NOx, heavy metals and hydrocarbon compounds that effects not only human but also both plants and animals that can cause death. Some of these hazardous pollutants find their way into the human system through the food web. They may undergo biotransformation, metabolism and excreted without the risk of toxicity depending on the chemical characteristics of the compound and the dose in human body. However, some of the pollutants resist chemical and biological transformation and accumulate in the tissues, including the nerves, to cause toxicity. The adverse effects of these pollutants on the nerves system give rise to neurotoxicity. Rana et al.,(2004); Katranitsas et al., (2003) found that there is evidence that increasing exposure to toxic elements in marine and terrestrial organisms is having adverse toxicological consequences. Therefore heavy metals pollution become serious issues that must been concerned. Unlike other pollutants such as petroleum hydrocarbons and domestic and municipal litter which may visibly build up in the environment, trace metals in the environment may accumulate unnoticed to toxic levels. Generally, human health problems associated with trace metal contamination have been well-highlighted in the literature. In spite of the relatively low level of industrial activity in less developed regions there is nevertheless a high potential of toxic heavy metal pollution. The distribution of metals in the environment is a result of natural processes (volcanoes, erosion, spring water, bacterial activity) and anthropogenic activities (fossil fuel combustion, industrial and agricultural processes) (Florea and Busselberg, 2006). Heavy metals such as arsenic lead, copper, cadmium, or zinc are released from the earthà ¢Ã¢â ¬Ã¢â ¢s crust into the environment through anthropogenic sources such as non-ferrous metal industry or non-renewable energy consumption. These substances can cause major damage to human health or to ecosystem stability even at low concentrations in soils. To overcome this issue, many countries have taken numerous initiatives especially the developed country. For example, in 2001 the European Union council signed the 1979 Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution on Heavy Metals (Europa, 2007). Therefore there are many methods to evaluate and assess the presence of these substances. One of them is biological used. The application of biological forms as the indicators is the best ways to evaluate the environmental condition. According to (Szczepaniak and Biziuk, 2003; Bargagli, 1998), in order to detect, evaluate and minimize the effects, there has been an emphasis in the use of natural bioindicators to monitor atmospheric quality in both urban and rural environments. Examples of bioindicators are lichens, fish, and mosses. One of the bioindicators that can be used is lichens. Lichens are widely known as an excellent indicator to assess our environment. Lichens play importance roles to forest communities. Lichens represent a rare source of readily digestible food at all times of year and in diverse environments due to their ability to survive in extreme climate condition. More generally, lichens act as pioneer species in barren or disturbed environments; their growth on rock surfaces is one of the primary stages of soil formation in such environments (BrÃÆ'à ¥kenhielm, 1998; Cooper, 1953 in Dawson, 2008). Lichens are small, non-vascular plants consisting of a fungus and an alga growing together in one tissue. Normally lichens are found on the bark of trees, or the reindeer lichens growing on the ground, but many other species grow on rocks, fences, roofs, tombstones, and other objects. The characteristic of lichen that sensitive to the changes of the surrounding makes them as an excellent bioindicator s and biomonitors for air pollution, especially sulfur dioxide pollution, since they derive their water and essential nutrients mainly from the atmosphere rather than from the soil. A lot of studies towards lichens had been done related to pollution especially air pollution in most Europen countries and North America Asia. During the period 1973-1988, approximately 1500 papers were published on the effects of air pollution on lichens Richardson (1988) cited in Ahmadjian (1993), and many general reviews of lichens and air pollution have been compiled (Ahmadjian, 1993). The legislation about air quality that they made has been passes through out the countries especially in developing countries where air pollution is bad. In Malaysia, several studies has been conducted (Mokhtar et al., 2006) to determine the heavy metals pollution level using lichen at difference places. From the research, they found out that the sensitivity of lichens towards heavy metals vary from each species. Most of species of lichen have a wide geographical distribution, which allows for a study of pollution covering wide areas and its high capacity to accumulate metals (Burton, 1986). Hutchi nson et al., (1996) stated that lichens do not have seasonal variations and therefore accumulation of pollutants can occur all year-round. Lichens and mosses usually have considerable longevity, which led to their use as long-term integrators of atmospheric deposition (Sloof, 1993). The benefits of using lichens as quantitative biological monitors of air metal deposition compare to conventional air sampling techniques rise from that lichens are present in most terrestrial habitats, are perennial, inexpensive and easy reproduced (Baffi et al., 2002). Problem statement Nowadays the level of heavy metals in the environment increasing day by day as the world becomes much more developed. This is because the uncontrolled released of heavy metals leads to the pollution due to the excessive anthropogenic activities. The continuous loading of heavy metals into inland and coastal water make the situation worsens. Anthropogenic activities such as mining, smelting and agriculture have locally increased the levels of heavy metals such as cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), chromium (Cr), lead (Pb), arsenic (As) and nickel (Ni) in soil up to dangerous levels for plants, animals and human beings. Although with the forest around us, the status of heavy metals level quite crucial as the result of human daily activities, dense population area near the forest and also an increasing of the transportation. These activities give adverse effect to the life being as they enter into the environment. Other than that the regulations provided by Malaysian government which is the Env ironmental Quality Act 1974 by Department of Environment, still not fully been forced due to the involvement other parties such as local authority to take action when the level of pollutants exceed the standard given especially in coastal area. This is due to the different department have different responsibilities. Nevertheless these parties can be work together to create a better life. Meanwhile due to the lack of studies towards the lichens in our country, the data obtained can help the local authority in decision making process thus maintained the quality. Besides that, it would help to make an assessment about the environmental condition and perhaps to improve environmental quality status. Objective This study was carried out in order to achieve as the followings: To quantify the heavy metals present in lichens. To evaluate the level of heavy metals in lichens. To establish the correlation of heavy metals pollutants in lichens with the surrounding environment. Significant of study By knowing that different species has different sensitivity towards heavy metals, it allow bettering understanding about the sensitivity of lichens towards heavy metals at surrounding environment. The presence or absences of species in areas can give better understanding about the sensitivity of lichens towards the pollutants. The data obtained also can be used to assess the toxicology effects not only to the lichens but also on human. Heavy metals can very toxic if the level of the pollutants higher than the limited given. The data also can create the distribution patterns of lichens at that place. The pollution level and status place also can be determined. This study provides a reference record for conducting further biomonitoring studies. Thesis organization The determination of heavy metals in lichens as bioindicators is a thesis based on previous research in different sampling location. Overall, this thesis consists of five chapters which are to assist in understanding and ease to organize through writing process. The chapters in this thesis have been organizing as follows: Chapter 2 generally discuss about the used on lichens as bioindicators. In this chapter, it also has detailed explanation on the morphology of lichens that play important role in accumulate heavy metals. It also include the history on the scientific research on lichens, the significant role on absorb the heavy metals and the effects of air pollution and metal pollution towards lichens. Chapter 3 is more focusing on research methodology. In this part, it is divided into three parts which are the description on area of study, sampling collection and lastly laboratory analysis which is the procedure to determine heavy metals using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS). Chapter 4 is focusing on the results obtained and discussion. In this chapter, it discuss about the data obtained after analyze by ICP-MS. It also include the statistical tools to analyze the precision of the data obtain in order to have a good data. It also states the results and the data interpretation between the samples. Chapter 5 is the last chapter which is the conclusion. In this part, it concludes for the whole chapter in the thesis. It related on the objective of the study including the recommendation to improve the research on lichens.
Sunday, October 13, 2019
Economic Policy Essay -- essays research papers fc
Economic Policy The new economic policy of the united states should include cutting taxes, reducing governmental waste, and balance the budget by having a smaller more efficient federal government. It should include equal opportunity for financial security but not through a government sponsored redistribution of wealth program. Cutting taxes across the board including income tax rates, capital gains and estate taxes among others should provide a growth spurt for the economy. Allowing people and businesses to keep more of their hard earned money would enable them to spend more money. People would be able to buy more cars, refrigerators, homes etc. The businesses would be able to build new factories with better more efficient high tech equipment. These new factories and expanded businesses would employee more highly paid workers which would expand the tax base and allow us to be more competitive in the world marketplace. Reducing the taxes would also motivate people to work harder and save more. The way things are now people can not seem to get ahead no matter how hard they work. The harder they work the more the government takes while others who choose not to work hard or have not developed the skills to earn a decent wage reap the same and in many cases more benefits. For example student loans and grants for college board and tuition fees are largely unavailable to lower middle class families let alone middle and upper middle class people. Reducing taxes on businesses would also allow them to invert more on new product development and research which in many instances the federal government now subsidizes which requires management. This government management bureaucracy cost tax payers money and is unnecessary because free market demands and the extra money they would save from tax cuts would motivate businesses to fund these programs themselves. This is just an example of what a smaller more efficient federal government. "Citizens in the united states today pay 38.2 percent of there income in taxes every year" (RNC Talking Points). This is way to much money for Americans to be paying. "Cutting everyone's taxes by 15 percent and giving them a 500 dollar per child tax credit would cut a typical families tax bill in half, a... ...Review and Outlook Dole and Taxes." The Wall Street Journal 29 July 1996: A12 Sepp, Peter J. "Are Republicans Serious About Cutting Fat?" New York Times 30 Aug. 1995: A17 "Dole Hopes Tax-Cut Move Will Energize His Campaign, but Which taxes to Cut?" The Wall Street Journal 15 may 1996: A16 "A Vote for a Sensible Center." Business Week 18 Nov. 1996: 194 "The National Debt. It's Eating Us Alive!" Internet http://www.europa.com/~blugene/deficit/debt.html "The Balance Sheet -- August 11, 1995." Internet http://www.rnc.ogr/news/balance/bal-950815.html "RNC Talking Points Cutting Taxes and Balancing the Budget Bill Clinton's Dirty Little Secret: A $64 Billion Tax Increase" Internet http://www.rnc.org/news/talking/tp-960913.html
Friday, October 11, 2019
frank sinatra :: essays research papers
Sinatra, Frank (1915-1998), American singer and motion-picture actor, one of the most famous American singers of his generation. Born Francis Albert Sinatra in Hoboken, New Jersey, he sang with the big bands of Harry James and Tommy Dorsey in the 1930s.Influenced by American singers Bing Crosby and Billie Holiday, Sinatra anticipated the decline of big-band instrumental jazz music and helped establish an enthusiastic climate for popular singers. In the 1940s Sinatra embarked on a solo career and became the idol of so-called bobby-soxers, teenage girls who swooned over his crooning, soft-voiced singing. He appeared in such film musicals as Anchors Aweigh (1945), Till the Clouds Roll By (1947), and On the Town (1949). In 1953 he won an Academy Award for his nonsinging performance in From Here to Eternity. His performances in The Manchurian Candidate (1962) and The Detective (1968) were also highly regarded. During the 1950s and 1960s Sinatra teamed with a number of talented jazz arrangers, including Nelson Riddle, Neal Hefti, Quincy Jones, and Billy May, and produced a number of albums, now regarded as classic recordings, including Swing Easy (1955), In the Wee Small Hours (1955), Songs for Swingin' Lovers (1956), Come Fly with Me (1958), Frank Sinatra Sings for Only the Lonely (1958), Nice 'N' Easy (1960), and Strangers in the Night (1966). In the 1960s he also recorded with the big bands of American jazz musicians Count Basie and Duke Ellington. After a brief retirement from 1971 to 1973, Sinatra resumed his singing career. In 1993 he released the album Frank Sinatra Duets, on which many of his standard songs were engineered as duets with other famous singers. Contributors to the album included American singers Barbra Streisand and Aretha Franklin, Latin American recording star Julio Iglesias, and Bono, lead singer of the Irish rock group U2. The album sequel Duets II (1994), which won Sinatra his ninth Grammy Award in 1996, includes collaborations with country-and-western star Willie Nelson, jazz singer Lena Horne, and popular singer and songwriter Neil Diamond. frank sinatra :: essays research papers Sinatra, Frank (1915-1998), American singer and motion-picture actor, one of the most famous American singers of his generation. Born Francis Albert Sinatra in Hoboken, New Jersey, he sang with the big bands of Harry James and Tommy Dorsey in the 1930s.Influenced by American singers Bing Crosby and Billie Holiday, Sinatra anticipated the decline of big-band instrumental jazz music and helped establish an enthusiastic climate for popular singers. In the 1940s Sinatra embarked on a solo career and became the idol of so-called bobby-soxers, teenage girls who swooned over his crooning, soft-voiced singing. He appeared in such film musicals as Anchors Aweigh (1945), Till the Clouds Roll By (1947), and On the Town (1949). In 1953 he won an Academy Award for his nonsinging performance in From Here to Eternity. His performances in The Manchurian Candidate (1962) and The Detective (1968) were also highly regarded. During the 1950s and 1960s Sinatra teamed with a number of talented jazz arrangers, including Nelson Riddle, Neal Hefti, Quincy Jones, and Billy May, and produced a number of albums, now regarded as classic recordings, including Swing Easy (1955), In the Wee Small Hours (1955), Songs for Swingin' Lovers (1956), Come Fly with Me (1958), Frank Sinatra Sings for Only the Lonely (1958), Nice 'N' Easy (1960), and Strangers in the Night (1966). In the 1960s he also recorded with the big bands of American jazz musicians Count Basie and Duke Ellington. After a brief retirement from 1971 to 1973, Sinatra resumed his singing career. In 1993 he released the album Frank Sinatra Duets, on which many of his standard songs were engineered as duets with other famous singers. Contributors to the album included American singers Barbra Streisand and Aretha Franklin, Latin American recording star Julio Iglesias, and Bono, lead singer of the Irish rock group U2. The album sequel Duets II (1994), which won Sinatra his ninth Grammy Award in 1996, includes collaborations with country-and-western star Willie Nelson, jazz singer Lena Horne, and popular singer and songwriter Neil Diamond.
Microsoft Corporation
Microsoft Corporation is a leading software company in the world. Its core businesses include Platform Products and Services Division, Business Division and the Entertainment and Devices Division. It is committed to the long term mission of helping its customers realize their full potential. It constantly updates and improves its products and continuously accelerate new technologies as they emerge serve its customers better. The web site of Microsoft is one of the best developed websites providing a wealth of online information to its visitor. The information includes that of the company, its social initiatives, news, contact details, careers at Microsoft etc. The company provides a number of sites for its products. These sites provide online information about the company products and their features, product upgrades, product downloads and all the assistance required by the customers to use their products. There is a great amount of valuable information on the products site of Microsoft Corporation. The first useful information is the links to Microsoftââ¬â¢s product families including windows, Windows Server Systems, Business Solutions, Office, Developer Tools, Games and Xbox, MSN and Windows Mobile. This information will enable me to easily identify the product of my interest. The next useful information is about the product categories including Home and entertainment, Finance, Hardware and Books and training. There is also valuable information about the more popular products of Microsoft and its key technologies. I can also find valuable information in the link to trial software. The link helps me to get online information about the different trial software of Microsoft that are available in different product families. From each trial software link we can get the overview about the benefits of each product, its main features and support and security features. It provides details about the system requirements. Once we are able to evaluate and decide on the product to be ordered for trial then the site helps is in the procedures that are involved in buying a trial compact disc or downloading the trial software along with the necessary system requirements for the trail download. The site provides information as to how the product of our choice can be ordered online and the retailer through whom we can place the order for our product. If we plan to purchase five or more licenses, information of the volume licensing can be got based on whether our organization is a business or an educational institution. Information of the license agreement is also displayed. Once order has been placed information about how to track the status of the order is also provided. The site also provides the information about how I can use the product information center better using online chat and telephone. 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Thursday, October 10, 2019
American International Competitiveness
Since the beginning of the 1970s, the United States has experienced a virtual trade revolution. Trade has increased much faster than the economy as a whole. Both imports and exports expanded during the past 15 years. In the late 1970s, imports started outstripping exports by historically large margins. A merchandise trade deficit has been present every year since 1976. Moreover, this deficit has increased dramatically in the 1980s. What economic changes underlie the shift in U. S. competitiveness evidenced by the recent trade deficits?While economists who have addressed this question have employed different approaches, most have examined changes in macroeconomic variables to see if they generated the economic pressures that led to the recent trade deficits. Economists who have employed this approach have generally concluded that macroeconomic changes probably are the cause of the recent deficits. Although macroeconomic theory suggests that trade deficits may be associated with a wide variety of factors, two events in the late 1970s and early 1980s have received particular attention: the rise in U. S.aggregate demand relative to foreign aggregate demand and the increase in U. S. interest rates relative to foreign interest rates. Both may have been spurred by the U. S. government's budget deficit. The excess of spending over income provided a powerful expansionary fiscal policy while higher interest rates had to be used to attract foreign and domestic investors to finance the growth in debt. A relative increase in aggregate demand, whatever its source, is expected to lead to a trade deficit because a country's demand for imports is positively associated with the level of its aggregate demand.In this instance, the theory predicts that U. S. demand for imports will rise relative to foreign demand for U. S. exports as U. S. aggregate demand grows relative to foreign aggregate demand. A relative increase in U. S. interest rates can also lead to trade deficits by incr easing foreign demand for U. S. financial assets. The link between financial flows that respond to interest rate changes and trade deficits is evident in standard balance of payments accounting relationships.The accounting relationships used in defining trade deficits require that a nation's current account (comprised of the merchandise trade balance, the balance of trade on services, and net unilateral transfers) equals in size, but with opposite sign, the capital account. In other words, if there are capital inflows, then there must be a trade deficit. Given this accounting relationship, the inflow of foreign capital that is attracted by relatively high U. S. interest rates must lead to a trade deficit to satisfy the fundamental accounting identities that underlie balance of payments accounting (McCulloch, 1978).While explanations of recent trade deficits that are based on fundamental macroeconomic relationships are attractive to economists, many commentators have advanced alterna tive explanations that are rooted in microeconomic relationships. These commentators believe that the microeconomic characteristics have changed in ways that explain the relatively sudden substantial increases in imports and net imports. In addition, public opinion, for one reason or another, has not fully accepted the power of the macroeconomic explanations for the trade deficits.We shall therefore investigate these explanations that have been offered by various sources. The logical connections between these microeconomic changes and trade deficits have not been clearly drawn. In particular, supporters of these microeconomic-based hypotheses have ignored the fact that (absent macroeconomic adjustments) changes in the exchange rate could compensate for shifts in microeconomic relationships, leaving trade flows in balance (Tarr, 1985). While the link between alleged microeconomic changes and trade deficits is unclear, empirical analysis of the microeconomic explanations can still be very useful.Specifically, if we find that the alleged microeconomic changes in the structure of trade have not occurred, then we will be in a position to reject the microeconomic explanations directly. For advocates of the microeconomic explanations, this approach may be more convincing than one that evaluates the microeconomic explanations indirectly through the use of general equilibrium or macroeconomic models. The microeconomic explanations have focused on identifying three types of microeconomic changes. First, there may be technological changes that alter trade flows.For example, changes in an industry's technology may alter factor intensities so that particular inputs are less important to successful international competition. Second, policy changes may alter trade flows through their effect on the openness of U. S. or other economies or through their effect on the relative cost structure of U. S. manufacturers. Changes in tariff, quotas, or government subsidies clearly can h ave this effect, but other government policies may also be important. Third, the availability of needed inputs may change so that the competitive position of U.S. firms is altered. For example, when abundant mineral resources continue to be key for production, the U. S. position will change as the United States exhausts its relative supply of these needed resources. According to some commentators, any or all of these types of microeconomic changes might lead to growth in the manufacturing trade deficit. As a result, they have received substantial public attention. If changes in microeconomic factors are the source of recent trade deficits, we should observe a recent and major shift in the pattern of U. S.trade, since some industries will be more sensitive to changes in particular microeconomic factors than other industries or experience bigger changes in these factors. For instance, if relative U. S. wage rates have become more important in international competition, we should obser ve a particularly large rise in net imports in industries that employ relatively large amounts of high-cost labor or have experienced particularly large increases in labor costs. In contrast, if macroeconomic variables underlie the recent deficits, this type of structural shift in trade flows is less likely to be present (Drucker, 1985).As a result, we can reject many of the microeconomic explanations of recent trade deficits that have been advanced if we observe that economic relationships that traditionally have advantaged some industries over others in international trade have been stable and that key industry characteristics, such as labor intensity, have also been stable. In the case of U. S. wage rates, if the relationship between wage rates and imports has not changed over time, and U. S. wage rates relative to those in other countries have not changed significantly, then wage rates are unlikely to have contributed to the increased trade deficit.Of course, if we do find that the alleged microeconomic changes have occurred, the growth in the trade deficit can not be attributed to them unless logical causal relationships can be identified that are consistent with international trade accounting identities. Factors associated with U. S. competitiveness in trade appear to have been relatively stable throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. Manufacturing operations located in the States retain their traditional competitive advantage in production that requires sophisticated know-how and continue to experience a competitive disadvantage in production that uses unskilled labour intensively.Moreover, it appears that, to the extent change has occurred, these relationships have strengthened over time (Marston 1986). Yet, as others have pointed out, the competitive performance of many U. S. industries appears to have declined (Landau and Rosenberg, 1986). Can these two observations be consistent? The competitive performance of U. S. industries can decline because of c hanges that do not affect the relationships between trade flows and the industry characteristics. First, the characteristics of particular industries, such as their factor intensities, may have changed so that net imports increased.The higher unionization is associated with more imports, thus if unionization increased and this relationship remained stable, then unionization could be one cause of increased imports. Shifts in the relative competitiveness of an individual industry may reflect adjustments in the characteristics of the industry, within the context of stable comparative advantage relationships. For example, if strong R&D efforts are associated with strong exports, but industries reduce their R&D expenditures, export performance would be expected to decline even though the relationship between exports and R&D was stable.Put slightly differently, when relative factor abundancies are stable, changes in industrial input requirements will be reflected in shifts in the trade ba lance of particular U. S. industries. The rankings of industries with respect to their trade flows have been quite stable. While there have been some shifts in position during the last decade, statistical tests indicate that the shifting has not been substantial. The rank order of manufacturing industries by the level of net imports in 1975 is highly correlated with the rank order that existed in 1984.Industry characteristics available in time series have also been quite stable. The values for industry characteristics in 1975 are highly correlated with their values in 1981. Moreover, the changes in mean values for these variables are relatively small, especially for the variables that are most directly related to the seven proposed explanations of the trade deficits that we analyze. The variables available in time series include the primary variables used in traditional trade models. Simple macroeconomic relationships suggest that the rise in the trade deficit is likely to be associ ated with changes in macroeconomic variables.If this is true, then one would expect that many industries experienced a rise in their trade deficits (Benvignati, 1985). Consistent with this prediction, nearly all U. S. industries experienced declining international competitiveness to some degree between 1981 and 1984. In addition to this general confirmation of the macroeconomic explanations for trade deficits, there is direct support for the view that recent inflows of foreign capital, attracted by relatively high U. S. interest rates, and increases in U. S.aggregate demand relative to foreign aggregate demand are responsible for recent trade deficits. Specifically, exchange rates rose during the period studied and this led to an increase in net imports, as the macroeconomic theory of international financial flows predicts. Also there appears to be a positive association between recent increases in relative U. S. aggregate demand and net imports, as the aggregate demand theory sugge sts. According to the macroeconomic theory of international financial flows, higher U. S. interest rates will attract foreign capital. Since U. S.financial assets are denominated in dollars, this will lead to an increase in the demand for dollars. Because increases in the value of the dollar make U. S. goods more expensive relative to foreign goods, there will be a reduction in the international competitiveness of U. S. manufacturers. This decrease in competitiveness is expected to be reflected in higher net imports, causing the trade deficit to equal the surplus on the capital account. There is empirical support for this argument. U. S. industries appear to have been under severe competitive pressure because of the relatively high value of the dollar.For example, in the automobile industry, it has been argued that about $700 of the roughly $2,000 cost disadvantage of U. S. automobile manufacturers in 1983 was due to the unusually high exchange rate (Detroit Battle, 1983). Similarly , in steel, machine tools, textiles, and many other industries, analysts have pointed to exchange rates as an important source of the U. S. competitive disadvantage. As a result, it is not too surprising that the increase in the value of the dollar between 1980 and 1985 was associated with a decline in the U. S. trade balance.While the adverse effect of the increased value of the dollar on the competitive position of U. S. industries seems to have been quite widespread, the effect has been larger in some industries than others. In particular, it appears likely that the effect will be largest for products where the demand for U. S. exports and imports was quite elastic, since these products are most sensitive to changes in relative prices. For example, estimates of price elasticities by Baldwin (1976) indicate that these elasticities are particularly large (between 3. 20 and 4.4) in the case of metal working machinery and office/computing machines. According to macroeconomic theory, imports are likely to vary positively with the level of aggregate demand, other things being equal. Specifically, as U. S. incomes rise, the U. S. demand for imports is likely to rise. Moreover, if U. S. incomes rise relative to foreign incomes, the U. S. demand for imports should rise relative to the foreign demand for U. S. exports. As a result, macroeconomic theory predicts that, during these periods, U. S. demand for imports will rise relative to foreign demand for U. S.exports and growing trade deficits are more likely. At the end of 1982, the U. S. balance of payments deficit appears to have been reduced by aggregate demand effects, since the U. S. demand was falling relative to foreign demand. However, in 1983 and 1984 the U. S. economy grew relative to the economies of its trading partners (Economic Report of the President 1986). The relatively strong U. S. recovery and the general worldwide recession were associated with a sharp rise in the U. S. trade deficit (Economic Rep ort of the President 1985). There is no conflict between the observation that U.S. trade deficits have risen and the finding that U. S. comparative advantage relationships have been relatively stable over the last decade. Evidently, there have been shifts in macroeconomic variables that have increased the level of imports in most industries, without shifting trade patterns across industries significantly. While other types of changes, such as shifts in omitted microeconomic variables or changes in the magnitudes of included variables, would also make the two observations consistent, these alternative explanations are not nearly as important.Moreover, simple macroeconomic theories and available empirical evidence suggest strongly that macroeconomic forces underlie the growth of recent trade deficits. Changes in most microeconomic variables have either been gradual or narrowly focused. As a result, they are unlikely to generate the large trade deficits that are observed. Only the chan ges in international capital flows (with associated changes in exchange rates) and, for part of the period, changes in the relative levels of aggregate demand, have been large enough and sharp enough to explain the sudden rise in net imports. The growth of direct foreign investment by U.S. firms during the last decade reflects, in part, the exploitation of their advanced technological and organizational know-how. This stability in the fundamental comparative advantage relationships is inconsistent with widely held views linking microeconomic changes to the growth in the trade deficit during the 1980s. Macroeconomic models provide explanations that are much more consistent with empirical observations. We conclude, as have macroeconomists, that changes in macroeconomic factors, rather than any of the many microeconomic explanations that have been advanced, underlie recent U.S. trade deficits. The comparative advantage structure that determines a country's trade patterns changes only s lowly. For the United States, comparative advantage forces have meant, and still mean, that the country is a net importer of commodities that are efficiently produced with relatively large amounts of unskilled labour and a net exporter of commodities that require the relatively intensive use of skilled labour. These basic relationships have not changed significantly during the 1970s or early 1980s.Similarly, the United States continues to be disadvantaged in industries that are energy-intensive, use depleting natural resources, or are heavily unionized. Higher minimum efficient scale requirements and higher R&D intensity continue to be associated with both higher imports and higher exports. Only weak relationships exist between capital intensity or industry concentration and the strength of the U. S. trade position. The relationships between industry characteristics and trade flows are evident despite the presence of tariff and nontariff barriers and other government trade policies. Moreover, the effects of trade policies appear to be weak relative to the economic forces that result from differences in comparative advantage. Nonetheless, trade policies do have identifiable effects. As one would expect, U. S. tariff and nontariff barriers are associated with lower net import levels. However, the statistical findings for foreign trade barriers are less clear. We attribute this to the fact that U. S. exporters face different trade barriers in different countries. It may be the case that strong U. S.exports continue in many countries although these exports face substantial barriers in other countries. In addition, foreign trade barriers and industrial targeting efforts may arise as a reaction to U. S. export successes, yet not be strong enough to make a substantial reduction in U. S. exports in foreign markets generally. Analyses of U. S. imports and exports test the competitiveness of the States as a geographical unit. However, these analyses do not capture fully the competitiveness of U. S. -controlled firms, since many U. S.firms are multinationals. To measure the competitiveness of U. S. -controlled firms, output manufactured abroad using U. S. know-how must be considered (Marston, 1986). Similarly, U. S. output must be adjusted for output produced by foreign-controlled multinationals in the United States. To a large extent, the additional perspective offered by the analysis of the adjusted trade flow data simply confirms the findings based on the unadjusted data. The United States remains relatively strong in the same industries where it was strong in the previous decade.However, when the trade flow data are adjusted to reflect the presence of multinational corporations, some structural changes in trade patterns become evident. Basically, these changes evidence a strengthening of the relationships that have traditionally shaped U. S. trade flows. Apparently U. S. firms have increasingly exploited their more mobile competitive strengths b y investing abroad. There is some evidence that this effort has been undertaken to overcome historical comparative disadvantages associated with producing in the States.Most notably, there is some evidence that this foreign investment is increasingly prominent in industries that are heavily unionized. Together, the analyses of adjusted and unadjusted trade flow data indicate that U. S. firms are not losing their relative competitive strengths. The adjusted data suggest that some changes are occurring in international direct investment, but these changes have not been echoed in changes in the composition of U. S. net imports. The gradual nature of any changes that are occurring highlights the basic stability of the structure of U. S. trade flows.The structural stability that we observe is consistent with the view that shifts in microeconomic relationships are not an important source of recent trade deficits. Absent evidence of changes, there is no reason to believe that these potenti al microeconomic issues contend with macroeconomic factors as the real explanations for the large observed increases in the U. S. trade deficit. Turning to the first two microeconomic explanations (high labor cost explanation and union work rule explanation), traditional relationships between labor market variables and trade patterns still hold.The United States continues to be at a comparative disadvantage in labor-intensive industries. To the extent there has been change, it has been gradual and statistically insignificant. Moreover, the United States appears to be doing well, and has slightly improved its performance, in high-wage industries. Evidently, the advantage continues in industries where human capital is important. While union activities have affected the structure of U. S. manufacturing industries, this impact has been different from that suggested in the second explanation.No change in the relationship between unionization and U. S. trade flows has taken place. However , various studies do suggest that multinational corporations in unionized industries have shifted larger and larger shares of their output overseas. Apparently, this direct investment has added to U. S. -controlled output, rather than entirely substituting for exports from unionized industries located in the States. The third and fourth explanations (foreign government trade practices explanation and OPEC cartel explanation) involve actions taken by foreign governments.Foreign governments do not appear to have uniformly targeted ââ¬Å"U. S. industriesâ⬠ââ¬âthat is, industries where the United States has had a competitive advantage. While foreign government interventions are evident, these efforts vary from country to country and do not appear to have a significant effect on overall U. S. trade patterns. This does not mean that particular foreign tariffs, nontariff barriers, or targeting subsidies could not disrupt natural trade flows. However, it does mean that currently t hese effects are limited among our major trading partners (Maskus 1981).Actions by foreign governments that may have supported OPEC's efforts to raise energy prices did not significantly alter the structure of U. S. manufacturing trade, as the fourth proposition contends. The increases in world energy prices during the 1970s were dramatic and clearly had a significant effect on the overall balance of payments. However, only when trade flows are adjusted to recognize the presence of multinationals is there a significant change in the comparative advantage structure across manufacturing industries. Turning to the fifth microeconomic explanation (declining R&D explanation), U. S.firms have not lost their comparative advantage in R&D-intensive products. While U. S. imports of high-technology products have increased over time, so have exports. Moreover, the overall structural relationships that determine U. S. comparative advantages with respect to R&D do not appear to have changed signi ficantly. To the extent change is evident; it appears that the growth of U. S. multinational firms has allowed them to exploit their comparative advantages in high technology through their foreign affiliates. The remaining explanations (inadequate investment explanation and antitrust explanation) involve policies of the U.S. government. According to these two explanations, high taxes on capital formation and overly aggressive antitrust enforcement efforts have undermined the competitiveness of U. S. firms. The notion that relatively high taxes on capital, and resulting lower U. S. investment rates, have led to a growing U. S. disadvantage in capital-intensive industries is not confirmed by the statistical tests. While some earlier studies using 1958 to 1976 data found that the United States had a growing comparative disadvantage in capital-intensive industries, this trend did not continue in the late 1970s and early 1980s (Maskus 1981).The United States was a strong exporter in indu stries where economies of scale (MES) are important. Moreover, we did not find substantial advantages of concentration beyond the levels associated with these plant- level scale economies. There also was no sign of significant changes in the comparative advantage relationships with respect to scalerelated or concentration-related variables. Conclusion Given the stability of U. S. comparative advantage relationships over time, why has the U. S. trade deficit increased by so much?For some industries, the rise in net imports may simply reflect the fact that the characteristics of the industry have changed, so U. S. firms no longer have a comparative advantage. In particular, when the know-how needed to produce a commodity becomes standardized and cheap labour becomes a relatively more important input, we should expect that U. S. manufacturers will lose share to foreign manufacturers. As is suggested by simple macroeconomic models, much of the rise in net imports appears to be attributa ble to macroeconomic forces that have more than offset the advantages that U.S. firms have traditionally had in some industries. In fact, most industries have experienced increased levels of imports, suggesting that economy-wide changes underlie the problem. Examination of macroeconomic variables that could produce this type of shift in trade flows confirms that the rise in interest rates with the associated increase in the value of the dollar and, during some recent periods, the relatively rapid growth of U. S. aggregate demand appear to have stimulated net imports generally.Generally, there has been relatively little shifting in either comparative advantage relationships or in industry characteristics that affect imports and exports. Indeed, the growth in direct foreign investment, which appears to support the most dramatic changes that have occurred, has been associated with the exploitation of traditional U. S. advantages. Moreover, the shift in the overall position of the Unite d States relative to its trading partners has been fairly general, which is consistent with the argument that individual microeconomic explanations are unlikely to explain much of the recent rise in U.S. trade deficits. Given this finding, it is probable that the U. S. recent loss in competitive position is largely attributable to macroeconomic forces. In particular, it appears likely that changes in relative interest rates and levels of aggregate demand best explain most of the recent increases in the U. S. trade deficit. Both of these may be related to large increases in the government's budget deficit. The rise in trade deficits during the 1970s and 1980s led to substantial concern about the competitiveness of U. S. firms.Many of the microeconomic explanations that have been advanced to explain the recent deficits do not appear to be supported by available empirical evidence. Because these microeconomic explanations do not explain the recent trade deficits, policy prescriptions b ased on shifting microeconomic variables are a poor bet to change trade flows fundamentally. In particular, wage restrictions, trade restrictions, subsidization programs, and policies that promote market concentration are unlikely to alter the trade deficit substantially. Indeed, efforts to implement these policies are likely to hurt U. S.competitiveness, as interest groups attach riders to legislation that promotes their special interests at the expense of the broader economy. Focusing the public debate on microeconomic factors rather than macroeconomic factors seems to be, at best, ill-advised. It tends to distract the public from the real, difficult issues of government deficits, international investment, and economic growth. More likely, it provides a convenient cloak in which to wrap the costly protections so fervently sought by special interest groups that ultimately increase costs, retard productivity growth, and harm consumers.Since the strategic use of trade policies can di sadvantage one country at the expense of another, it is better to view findings as indicating that care must be taken in responding to recent trade deficits. Specifically, policy makers must be careful that they are not so caught up in the dramatic deficits that they accede to special interest groups that have inappropriately linked their troubles to those of the economy as a whole (Krugman, 1986). History provides very little reason to believe that such objectivity is possible in trade policy. Failure to exercise caution has its risks.Not only can the improper protectionist policies cause sizeable immediate losses, but they may also lead to longer term losses as well. For example, it may be short-sighted to impose import restraints on products that are key inputs into subsequent production activities, since this can have adverse effects on domestic producers that use these inputs. Indeed, protectionist policies of this type may have long-run adverse effects on the protected industr y, since potential customers may choose to locate abroad and, as a result, not be well-positioned to purchase the input from U. S.suppliers even after protection is no longer necessary. In addition, poorly designed protectionist efforts can trigger trade wars, as foreign governments retaliate to unjustifiable U. S. trade restraints. Indeed, the threat of spiraling beggar-thy-neighbor policies continues to be a key reason for supporting free trade, even in a world that offers strategic opportunities. Reference: ââ¬Å"Detroit Battle: The Cost Gap,â⬠New York Times, May 28, 1983, pp. 35, 37. Baldwin R. , U. S. Tariff Policy: Formation and Effects,â⬠study prepared for the Bureau of International Labor Affairs, U. S.Department of Labor, June 1976. Benvignati A. , ââ¬Å"The Commodity Composition of U. S. Intra-firm Exports,â⬠FTC, unpublished, 1985. Drucker P. , ââ¬Å"Where Union Flexibility's Now a Must,â⬠Wall Street Journal, September 23, 1985, p. 30. Economic R eport of the President, U. S. Council of Economic Advisers. Washington, D. C. : U. S. Government Printing Office, annual editions from 1972 to 1987. Landau R. , and N. Rosenberg (eds. ), The Positive Sum Strategy, Washington, D. C. : National Academy Press, 1986. Landau R. , and N. Rosenberg (eds. ), The Positive Sum Strategy, Washington, D.C. : National Academy Press, 1986. Marston R. , ââ¬Å"Assessing Japanese Competitiveness,â⬠NBER Reporter, Winter 1986/ 1987, pp. 12-16. Maskus K. , The Changing Structure of Comparative Advantage in American Manufacturing, Ann Arbor, Mich. : UMI Research Press, 1981. McCulloch R. , ââ¬Å"Research and Development as a Determinant of U. S. International Competitiveness,â⬠Harvard Economic Research Discussion Paper 609, March 1978. Tarr D. , ââ¬Å"Trade Deficits, Trade Policy and the Value of the Dollar,â⬠paper for conference, Trade Policy: Free or Fair? , November 19, 1985.
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