Battle of the Bismarck Sea in World War II

Battle of the Bismarck Sea in World War II Battle of the Bismarck Sea -Conflict Dates: The Battle of the Bismarck Sea was fought March 2-4, 1943, during World War II (1939-1945). Forces Commanders Allies Major General George KenneyAir Commodore Joe Hewitt39 heavy bombers, 41 medium bombers, 34 light bombers, 54 fighters Japanese Rear Admiral Masatomi KimuraVice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa8 destroyers, 8 transports, approx. 100 aircraft Battle of the Bismarck Sea -Background: With defeat looming in the Battle of Guadalcanal, the Japanese high command began making efforts in December 1942 to reinforce their position in New Guinea. Seeking to shift around 105,000 men from China and Japan, the first convoys reached Wewak, New Guinea in January and February delivering men from the 20th and 41st Infantry Divisions. This successful movement was an embarrassment to Major General George Kenney, commander of the Fifth Air Force and Allied Air Forces in the Southwest Pacific Area, who had vowed to cut off the island from re-supply. Assessing the failures of his command during the first two months of 1943, Kenney revised tactics and embarked on a rapid training program to ensure better success against maritime targets. As the Allies set to work, Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa began making plans to shift the 51st Infantry Division from Rabaul, New Britain to Lae, New Guinea. On February 28, the convoy, consisting of eight transports and eight destroyers assembled at Rabaul. For additional protection, 100 fighters were to provide cover. To lead the convoy, Mikawa selected Rear Admiral Masatomi Kimura. Battle of the Bismarck Sea - Striking the Japanese: Due to Allied signals intelligence, Kenney was aware that a large Japanese convoy would be sailing for Lae in early March. Departing Rabaul, Kimura originally intended to pass south of New Britain but changed his mind at the last minute to take advantage a storm front that was moving along the north side of the island. This front provided cover through the day on March 1 and Allied reconnaissance planes were unable to locate the Japanese force. Around 4:00 PM, an American B-24 Liberator briefly spotted the convoy, but the weather and time of day precluded an attack (Map). The next morning, another B-24 spotted the Kimuras ships. Due to the range, several flights of B-17 Flying Fortresses were dispatched to the area. To help reduce the Japanese air cover, Royal Australian Air Force A-20s from Port Moresby attacked the airfield at Lae. Arriving over the convoy, the B-17s began their attack and succeeded in sinking the transport Kyokusei Maru with the loss of 700 of the 1,500 men on board. B-17 strikes continued through the afternoon with marginal success as the weather frequently obscured the target area. Tracked through the night by Australian PBY Catalinas, they came within range of the Royal Australian Air Force base at Milne Bay around around 3:25 AM. Though launching flight of Bristol Beaufort torpedo bombers, only two of the RAAF aircraft located the convoy and neither scored a hit. Later in the morning the convoy came into range of the bulk of Kenneys aircraft. While 90 aircraft were assigned to striking Kimura, 22 RAAF Douglas Bostons were ordered attack Lae through the day to reduce the Japanese air threat. Around 10:00 AM the first in series of closely coordinated aerial attacks began. Bombing from around 7,000 feet, B-17s succeeded in breaking up Kimuras formation, reducing the effectiveness of the Japanese anti-aircraft fire. These were followed by B-25 Mitchells bombing from between 3,000 and 6,000 feet. These attacks drew the bulk of the Japanese fire leaving an opening for low-altitude strikes. Approaching the Japanese ships, the Bristol Beaufighters of No. 30 Squadron RAAF were mistaken by the Japanese for Bristol Beauforts. Believing the aircraft to be torpedo planes, the Japanese turned towards them to present a smaller profile. This maneuver allowed the Australians to inflict maximum damage as the Beaufighters strafed the ships with their 20 mm cannons. Stunned by this attack, the Japanese were next hit by modified B-25s flying at low-altitude. Strafing the Japanese ships, they also made skip bombing attacks in which bombs were bounced along the surface of the water into the sides of enemy vessels. With the convoy in flames, a final attack was made by a flight of American A-20 Havocs. In short order, Kimuras ships had been reduced to burning hulks. Attacks continued through the afternoon to ensure their final destruction. While the battle raged around the convoy, P-38 Lightnings provided cover from Japanese fighters and claimed 20 kills against three losses. The next day, the Japanese mounted a retaliatory raid against the Allied base at Buna, New Guinea, but inflicted little damage. For several days after the battle, Allied aircraft returned to the scene and attacked survivors in the water. Such attacks were viewed as necessary and were partially in retribution for the Japanese practice of strafing Allied airmen while they descended in their parachutes. Battle of the Bismarck Sea - Aftermath: In the fighting at Bismarck Sea, the Japanese lost eight transports, four destroyers, and 20 aircraft. In addition, between 3,000 and 7,000 men were killed. Allied losses totaled four aircraft and 13 airmen. A complete victory for the Allies, the Battle of the Bismarck Sea led Mikawa to comment a short time later, It is certain that the success obtained by the American air force in this battle dealt a fatal blow to the South Pacific. The success of Allied air power convinced the Japanese that even strongly escorted convoys could not operate without air superiority. Unable to reinforce and re-supply troops in the region, the Japanese were permanently put on the defensive, opening the way for successful Allied campaigns. Selected Sources HistoryNet: Battle of the Bismarck SeaLong Lancers: Battle of the Bismarck SeaPacific Wrecks: Battle of the Bismarck Sea

Dramatic Irony in the Pardoners Tale Essay Example

Dramatic Irony in the Pardoners Tale Essay Example Dramatic Irony in the Pardoners Tale Paper Dramatic Irony in the Pardoners Tale Paper Essay Topic: Dr Faustus Literature Both Dr Faustus and The Pardoners Tale seek to offer comprehensive views on both Christianity and its moral values. A particular emphasis in both texts is placed upon sin, and both the two eponymous characters, as well as the societies in which they live, seem to be incapable of halting their sins, or indeed redeeming them. Both Chaucer and Marlowe explore the theme of sin through several passages, one of which they have in common being their title characters. In The Pardoners Tale, the Pardoner is shown immediately to be a dishonest character with very few moral values whatsoever. Chaucers use of somewhat grotesque simile in his mere description makes us feel uneasy, with his hair as yellow as wax hanging down like flax. Later, when we are introduced to the principal aspects of his character, we find that he is dishonest, scheming and self-obsessed to the core. Moreover, he commits what the medieval world thought the greatest sin of all in that he is so proud of it. He tells us quite openly that his intentions are nought but to win [money], and nothing for correction of sin, and delights in recounting to the pilgrims how he is able to dupe his congregations into buying his pardons. The Pardoners sin is presented very effectively to us as readers, in exactly the same way that the Pardoner goes about his sinful acts, through his powerful oratory, and given that when The Canterbury Tales was written, poetry was designed to be read aloud and heard, this presentation of sin becomes even more appropriate. Marlowe makes use of a similar technique in Dr Faustus to show off his characters greatest sin, which also happens to be pride. The medium of drama lends itself probably best of all to exposing a characters shortcomings through their own words and actions, and this is exactly the image Marlowe gives us of Faustus. We first see Faustus arrogance in the opening scene, when he tells us that his common talk are sound aphorisms, and his self-important nature soon leads him to succumb to the chance to become a mighty god by the conclusion of the play. However, unlike Chaucer, Marlowe does not present Faustus as being a character wholly drenched in sin. Faustus is far more wavering, and indeed has many occasions in the play where he is unsure about what he is doing. This leads the audience to develop a somewhat sympathetic relationship with Faustus, which is totally different from our condemnation of the Pardoner. Faustus seems totally unsure in his own head what to do: I do repent, and yet I do despair, but his pride eventually becomes his downfall, as even after Mephistopheles warned him of his frivolous demands, Faustus pours scorn over him, telling him to learn of Faustus manly fortitude. The cruel irony that Marlowe gives us here is that though Faustus many be all-knowing in mortal terms, unlike Mephistopheles he has seen neither heaven nor hell, and therefore knows nothing of the latters true torment. The characters of the Seven Deadly Sins are physically portrayed in Dr Faustus. Mephistopheles conjures devils masquerading as each of the sins to present to Faustus. This is generally accepted by critics as Marlowes shorthand way of introducing the Deadly Sins into the play without adding numerous extra scenes detailing the incorporation of all the sins into Marlowes deeds. They are typical of a device often used in Elizabethan theatre, and would have been dressed grotesquely in such a way to extract laughter from the audience. This is somewhat contradictory, as making the sins into a joke may serve to lessen their potential to be a warning to Faustus to change his ways. However, considering firstly that Faustus sees them as a joke also (in any case he has no true belief that Hell actually exists at all), and secondly the words of the sins, they become a very useful symbolic device in the play. Through their self-description, we can link many of the sins traits to similar ones of Faustus. Pride, for example, has an arrogance that leads him to reject the place into which he has been born, having disdain for any parents. This is very similar to Faustus desire to escape the world of mortal knowledge. Covetousness tells us of its sweet gold: Faustus too tells us of his desire to heap up gold in the opening scene of the play. Thus, there are many warning signs for Faustus in the pageant, but whilst the audience may pick up on them, Marlowe makes sure the dramatic irony is effected by making Faustus oblivious to any of them. The Pardoner, on the other hand, is far from oblivious of his sin, but sin itself is portrayed in a rather different way by Chaucer. Rather than have the sins parade to him, the Pardoner details personally what he considers to be the worldly sins to the pilgrims. This creates the additional irony when the audience discovers that the Pardoner himself is guilty of all of them. Were The Pardoners Tale simply a sermon, an audience would perhaps not take it seriously, given that the Pardoners hypocrisy makes his words lack any true conviction or seriousness. However, the part-Parabolic nature of the tale itself brings a new element of meaning into the sins of The Pardoners Tale. The characters in the tale are described simply as three rioters, and the tale is clearly one of morality: The Pardoner does not focus on their deaths at the end of the tale, simply skating over the fact that they had him slain, and that anon, not getting drawn into the violent details but keeping the overall message of morality going. We know the Pardoner is only doing this in an attempt to make the pilgrims meekly receive his pardon and bag him a profit, but nonetheless the tale can be taken a lot more seriously than the Pardoners sermon given its uncanny resemblance to one of Jesus Parables. Both authors also seek to further the point that sin comes about by the devil taking advantage of ones personal weaknesses. In The Pardoners Tale, the Pardoner tells us that the fiend, our enemy put the idea of poisoning his fellows into the mind of the third reveller, which goes someway to absolving the third reveller of his sins because it was not his fault, but the devils. One possible reading of the character of the Old Man is that he is the devil in disguise, sat at the stile; the crossroads ready to lead the three men down the wrong path. This too would lessen the blame of the revellers for pursuing their sinful cause, although their treatment of the man and their desire for the gold are still both faults of their own. This idea of lessening the blame is also used by Marlowe in Doctor Faustus. All through the play, it is clear at points when Faustus starts to doubt the path he has chosen, Mephistopheles will conjure up a cheap trick to distract his interest. In addition, Mephistopheles explains to us when we first meet him that the reason he has come to Faustus is that when we hear one rack the name of God, Abjure the Scriptures and his Saviour Christ, we fly in hope to get his glorious soul. This element of alleviating blame is crucial in Doctor Faustus, and pivotal to its success as a play, because shifting an element of the responsibility for Faustus sins onto Lucifer allows us to empathise with Faustus, an emotion that would be otherwise impossible to justify. Similarly, we are able to empathise with Mephistopheles as he tells us that he is tormented with ten thousand hells and asks Faustus to leave his demands. It is clear from the language Mephistopheles uses in this passage in Act I, Scene III, that he still has an element of human nature about him. He conveys a sense of emotion and pain that we are able to relate to, in a way that we cannot with, say, Lucifer, as we never get to hear such intimate thoughts of his. Mephistopheles sin is also mitigated by the fact that he lives in hell due to conspiring against our God with Lucifer. The fact that it was Lucifer who committed the mortal sin, and Mephistopheles just a fringe party to it, again allows us to blame Lucifer for part of Mephistopheles fate. Despite some contemporaries and critics believing Marlowe to be an atheist, he nonetheless, along with Chaucer, presents a view typical of contemporary English belief that the devil is responsible for the sins of man. However, both authors go beyond this and suggest that the religious system itself is inwardly sinful, or at least not concerned with the plight of wider society. In Dr Faustus, the Papacy is displayed as greedy and gluttonous, concerned only with dainty dishes and who took the meat. The stupidity of the dirge also highlights the incompetence of the Church, and seeks to mock the general state of Catholicism. In fact, given the era in which the play was written, this may merely be an innocent satire, government-pleasing anti-Catholic propaganda, but even so within the context of the play it raises an important point: are the forces of good on the side of God really any better than Faustus and his path of evil? In most of the play, good and evil are kept very distinct, with Faustus Good Angel and Bad Angel consciences. However here, they become merged, and therefore it becomes more difficult to measure Faustus sins. In The Pardoners Tale, we do not suffer this problem. The Pardoners hypocrisy actually clarifies good and evil all the more because he is so outrageous that we can spot the irony that the good path of life he forwards is not the one he takes. Chaucer also attempts a satire at the Church system, because the Pope and cardinals are in on the Pardoners game. The Pardoner has come from the Court of Rome and he later tells us that he has been given pardons by the Popes hand. This gives us the impression that the Church, as well as the Pardoner, is using peoples fear of their own sins and retribution to make money. Human sin is a key strand of thought throughout both texts, and both authors present it in ways that invoke entirely different emotional responses from their audiences: Marlowes invitation of empathy and sorrow is entirely contrasted by Chaucers effect of comedy and farce. However, both in their own ways still leave a message of morality, and their different presentations of sin both contribute heavily to the audiences need for self-reflection after seeing or hearing the text.

Discussion 4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 6

Discussion 4 - Essay Example Hence, it might be stated that the introduction of cloud computing came into limelight mainly to fulfil the requirements or utilities of the individual in this advanced age. As a result of which, the process of attainment of varied essential information became extremely faster and quicker than before (Jamsa, 2011). However, it also includes varied types of issues such as control or managing problems, performance or reliability trouble, security, cost of bandwidth, vendor lock-In, transparency, reliability and final thoughts. But among all these above mentioned issues, the most note-worthy challenges are security and performance among others (Furht & Escalante, 2010). After reading the paragraph and watching the video, I totally agree that, utility is the main driving force that fascinated the customers towards the concept of cloud computing or advanced technology. This is surely a revolutionary move that fuelled the utilities of the customers or business enterprises. As a result of this technological change, the business entrepreneurs may very easily cope-up with the changing requirements of the customers that might enhance the reputation and reliability of the brand to a certain extent. Not only this, cloud computing also enabled the facility of accessing various information or facts at any time from their office locations thereby reducing their work-load. Therefore, due to all these facilities, the concept of cloud computing became extremely popular and eminent in this rapidly changing market among other techniques. In spite of various advantages, cloud computing also comprises of numerous pitfalls or issues such as control problem, performance or reliability issue, security, cost of bandwidth, vendor lock-In issue, transparency and reliability problems. However, among all these issues, the most challenging one is the trouble of security. This is because, in case the valuable data or information about the total sale of the

The Features And Problems Of The Educational Process Essay

The Features And Problems Of The Educational Process - Essay Example He insists that education is on the level of psychological and sociological, these two are combined to mold an individual in the society to be their own person in the civilized society that is and continues to be, it trains them to have use of all their capabilities. He purposes school as a social institution that should be used to simplify life for the young minds so that they do not become confused or have their capabilities develop prematurely (Dewey 463). It expounds and forms the social life that is installed at home, the information imparted in schools and lessons learned is a preparation for the future. The teachers in the school should not control or command the kids rather see influences that will positively affect the child’s future and examinations that test the child’s fitness for social life. The social life of a child is based on their social activities, thus the subject matter of the education taught in schools should progress civilization (Dewey 464). It should not be objective but help interpret past experiences and develop new attitudes and interests. The author tries to inform us that when a child is involved in a passive and absorbing attitude rather than active and experimental the result is waste and friction (Dewey 465). Laws and regulations should not be imposed because education is the moral duty of any society in order to shape itself in its own direction. John Dewey uses repetition and examples in his essay My Pedagogic Creed to convince his audience that is mainly the educators, parents of young students, and the community that instant education reform is of utmost importance for the proper social and psychological growth of children. He uses strong emotion and opinions on how the subject matter of the education should be and what he thinks is the duty of the teachers and the society in instilling education in a  child.

Disscus the challenges that global warming presents to both Essay

Disscus the challenges that global warming presents to both governments and business - Essay Example The purpose of this paper is to describe the challenges that global warming represents to both businesses and governmental institution around the world. Global warming is a problem that concerns the entire society across the world including the public and private sectors. Some of the dangers and consequences associated with global warming include ocean circulation disruptions, desertification, flooding of low-lands due to higher sea levels, hurricanes, extinction of species, mass disruptions of agriculture, and mass movement of people away from coastal cities (Bionomicfuel, 2011). Global warming is hurting the earth’s ecosystem and is putting at danger the well-being of our future generations. The gas that is responsible for the majority of global warming is carbon dioxide (CO2) (Nationalgeographic, 2011). Based on the fact the CO2 is the primary reason for global warming corporations and governments have to implement solutions to limit the release of CO2 into the atmosphere. There are five others gases which are considered by the Kyoto Protocol of 1997 as contributors to global warming. The six greenhouse gases that are targeted by Kyoto are CO2, N2 O, HFC, PFC, and SF6 (Sudgen, 2011). The Kyoto Protocol was created in 1997 with the purpose of establishing standards in order to reduce air pollution. The treaty set environmental standards in industrialized nations. Developing countries were not included in the Kyoto protocol. The fact that developing countries were not included in Kyoto made this international regulation a bit ineffective in the battle against global warming. The treaty forced countries to meet their national targets through their own initiatives. There are three mechanisms that help countries achieve their environmental goals. The three mechanisms included in the Kyoto protocol were emission trading also known as carbon trading, development mechanism, and joint implementation. Emission trading limits and trading rules in each country va ries which makes every emission trading market operation different (Sudgen, 2011). The way emission trading works is that companies that fall below the set environment standard receive credits. These credits can be sold to companies that exceed their limits so that the buying company can comply with Kyoto. One of the most active and effective carbon trading systems in the world is the European Emission Trading Scheme (EU ETS). Since the scheme includes the participation of many countries the EU ETS is the largest trading system in the world. The capacity of the EU ETS is 2 billion tonnes of CO2. The clean developing mechanism is the second mechanism provided by the Kyoto protocol. The developing mechanism allows companies with subsidiaries in developing countries to implement emission reduction projects in a developing nation such as Argentina. The reduction in emissions of these projects gives the companies carbon credits that can be used in their operations in industrialized count ries. The joint implementation system allows companies that have subsidiaries in other industrialized countries to interchange the carbon reduction credits earn in either country. A problem with the Kyoto Protocol was that the most powerful nation in the world, the United States, never acceded to it. A new governmental

Fossil Fuels: Contribution and Impact

Fossil Fuels: Contribution and Impact Discuss the contribution of fossil fuel to modern human society and the environmental impact The importance of Fossil Fuels to human society cannot be overemphasized. Public services such as buses, train system, general heating system and electricity are being powered with fossil fuels. Due to the high global demand of fossil fuels, they form the major part of the economy of producing countries and the world in general. However the impact of fossil fuel to the environment has been an issue of great concern. Considering the visible contributions of fossil fuels to modern human society, the environmental implications pose a dilemma to the world leaders. It is crucial that the hazards posed by fossil fuels to the environment be tactfully minimized while taking into account its positive contributions to civilization. The first section of this essay will discuss in a general context the different contributions that fossil fuel had made to the modern human world. It will further discuss the contributions and environmental implications of coal, oil and natural gas. The final sectio n in the form of conclusion will summarize in a general term the contributions and environmental implications fossil fuels on modern human society. Comparing the trends in the rate at which each type of fossil fuel is being consumed in a global scenario will show the impact of the continuous increase in the rate of fossil fuels consumption will have on future environment. The environmental implication of fossil fuels as discussed in this essay is with respect to pollution and climate change. Energy is fundamental to the quality of our lives. In fact most human activities depend on the regular and uninterrupted supply of energy. This makes fossil fuels essential to modern human society, (Baker, 2008).The issues concerning the facts of the global energy consumption can be related to fossil fuels because; they serve as primary source of energy globally. According to Chow, et al. (2003),  the global energy use exceeds 370 (EJ) and fossil fuels contribute about 80% of this quantity of energy. This implies that fossil fuels contribute two third of global energy. Fossil fuels are made up of namely: coal, oil and natural gas. They were formed in the outer layer of the earth from the remains of plants and animals over hundreds of millions of years age (Encarta World English Dictionary, 2005). This implies that fossil fuels are almost non-renewable because its formation process takes a long period and this period is long enough for the world to run out of fossil fuel reserv es. Fossil fuels contribution is noticeable considering how the quantity of energy in a country affects both their economy and social life. In the world today the industrial, transportation, public service and residential sectors are been powered mainly by fossil fuel. Therefore, these different sectors where fossil fuels are majorly consumed underscore their important contributions to modern human society. One of the key uses of fossil fuels is to generate electricity. Coal is one of the major fuel sources for electricity generation. The relative low cost of coal and its abundance  added to the fact that it does not  require the upkeep of pipelines and security issues while transporting coal is an advantage over other sources of fossil fuels for generating electricity. Coal fuels the economy of countries, for example: China has about 30% of the worlds coal reserves and uses coal as their major energy supply, (OECD, 1998). Chinas industrial power which allow for economic growth depends virtually on coal (IEA, 2005). However Chinas dependence on coal has led to the countrys emitting about 39% of the total global CO2  emission. Burning coal produce useful by-product that are been used in the industrial sector mainly in steel plants and cement works, (Rohde, 1998). However, the environmental issues being raised by the global consumption of coal is of major concern. The toxins emitted from the combustion of coal and the waste from it mining process result in climate change and making the soil unproductive for agriculture, (OECD, 1983). Coal in comparison with the two other types of fossil fuels has more environmental impacts. According to the OECDS publication on coal and environmental protection states during exploration of coal to its end use coal has environmental implications: â€Å"During mining, treatment, transport and storage the sources of environmental concern can be summarized as subsidence, land use, liquid and solid waste, dust, noise, vibration and deterioration of surface and subsurface natural water systems. The major sources of pollution during combustion are air emissions of SOx, NOx  and particulates, and solid waste materials.†Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  (OECD, 1998) Source: BP coal consumption table, 2008. From:http://www.bp.com/liveassets/bp_internet/globalbp/globalbp_uk_english/reports_and_publications/statistical_energy_review_2008/STAGING/local_assets/downloads/pdf/coal_table_of_coal_consumption_2008.pdf Figure 1 above shows the increase in the rate of consumption of coal. There was a slight decrease in 1998 and 1999. This might be as a result of a reduction in consumption of coal in different countries. However, generally the rate of increase between years is not very much but if this increase rate is consistent over a period of time the quantity of coal consumed will be astronomical which implies that the environmental issues posed by coal will likewise be on the increase. In recent times, technological development and with some regulatory organizations that manages mining activities, the environmental issues are minimized. A careful comparison of the contributions of coal to the human society and its environmental implications makes the issue of coal controversial, (IEA, 1998). While the environmental implications posed by coal mining and usage are of concern, its contribution to modern human society requires that the action to be taken should be balanced with regards to its economical, energy and environmental impact. Oil like coal has contributed to modern human society in quite a number of ways. Unlike coal, it is easier and cleaner to burn and have a wider range of application. It is consumed the most among coal and natural gas. In fact the increase in demand of oil results in a lucrative international oil market. Therefore this lucrative oil market is an advantage to the oil producing countries because when either the rate of global demand, price or both increases these countries economy will be benefited. The major contribution of oil to modern human society is evident in the industrial and transportation sector. Most machines used in the industries make use of refined oil product. In the transportation sector aircraft and automobiles are examples of machines that make use of refined oil product. In addition, plastic and detergent are byproducts of oil. However, just like the other types of fossil fuels, the processes of exploration, refining, transporting and consumption of oil have an envir onmental implication. Firstly during exploration of oil, loss of drilling mud will result in escape of oil, (OECD, 1973). In an event where oil escapes, the case will be that the soil and/or the sea will be polluted. This will lead to loss of productive land for agriculture and possibly, extinction of the aquatic habitants in the surrounding sea. In addition to loss of drilling mud is the seismic technique for exploration. As a result of the loud and low frequency output, this technique endangers marine lives during offshore exploration, (Kennesaw State University, 2009). Another environmental issues associated with the process of refining oil is the methods which the refinery chooses to dispose oil waste. These wastes are sometime after being treated with a supposedly less harmful chemical is emptied into the sea. This chemically treated waste with time get to the point it becomes poisonous to aquatic life, (OECD, 1971). Also some gases are being emitted during refining and this leads to air pollution which harmful to both humans and animals. These gases can cause cancer and other diseases to humans if inhaled. Oil spill is the major issue with oil transportation. According to the article: Environmental science activities for the 21st  century published by Kennesaw State University: â€Å"Oil spill during transportation of oil account for an estimated 44 million gallons being dumped into the worlds water system, with 29 million gallons of this coming in the form of oil tanker spills†. Natural gas is an important source of energy for reducing pollution and maintaining a clean and healthier environment compared to coal and oil. In addition to being a domestically abundant and secure source of energy, the use of natural gas also offers a number of environmental benefits over other sources of energy, mainly other types of fossil fuels, (BP, 2006). The different uses of natural gas in modern human society make it an essential part of human life. Natural gas domestic uses are part of the many social impact it has on human society. Natural gas is convenient and it is being piped straight to the consumers facility which in contrast, oil must be trucked to the customers location, and truck deliveries are to liable to weather conditions. Natural gas is reliable, (BP, 2006). Natural gas is the cleanest burning fossil fuel. Because the combustion process for natural gas is almost perfect, very few byproducts are emitted into the atmosphere as pollutants. The blue flame seen w hen natural gas is ignited is a sign of perfect combustion. Natural gas is mainly used for domestic, commercial, industrial and power generation purposes. Firstly, the residential applications of natural gas are the most commonly known use of natural gas. It can be used for cooking, washing and drying, water warming, heating and air conditioning. Domestic appliances are increasingly improved in order to use natural gas more economically and safely. Operating costs of natural gas equipment are generally lower than those of oil and coal. It is mainly used commercially by food service providers, hotels, healthcare facilities and in office buildings. Also natural gas commercial applications include cooling (space conditioning and refrigeration), cooking or heating. Secondly, Natural gas is used as an input to manufacture pulp and paper, metals, chemicals, stone, clay, glass, and to process certain foods. Gas is also used to treat waste materials, for incineration, drying, dehumidification, heating and cooling, and cogeneration. In addition electric utilities and independent power producers are increasingly using natural gas to provide  energy for their power plants. In general, natural gas fuelled power plants have lower capital  costs, are built faster, work more efficiently and emit less pollution than other fossil fuel power plants, (IEA, 1998). Technological improvements in design, efficiency and operation of combined cycle gas turbines and co-generation processes are favoring the use of natural gas in power generation. Natural gas in a joint- electricity generation produces power and heat that is useful for industries as well as commercial users. This cogeneration reduces pollution emission considerably. Although the combustion of natural gas produces very little NOx, this chemical is however a toxic agents that results to acidic compounds and when combined with water and result in acid rain. Also, the length of the complex and extensive systems of pipelines in which natural gas are being transported through are in thousands of kilometers. Considering that natural gas in the pipe is in a condensate state, in the case of material defects and pipe corrosion to ground erosion natural gas will be exposed to the environment and in effect will pollute the air. Also, the technique of extracting natural gas is one of its disadvantages which are because of the creation of cavities in the ground during extraction. If natural gas is been inhaled in large amounts is harmful to humans. The gas is extracted from a natural gas field. The pressure exerted by the gas helps support the layers of soil above the gas field. When the gas is extracted, the soil pressure increases and cavities are created in the ground. These cavities can sometimes cause the ground to sink and the productive land for agriculture might be lost. Another environmental implication of natural gas is that the gas is toxic and can be poisonous. If the fields from which it was extracted were not treated, it can be toxic. The principle greenhouse gases include water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrogen oxides. Methane being the principle component of natural gas makes it a matter of concern with regards to greenhouse emission that results to climate change. Methane is a very strong greenhouse gas. In fact, it has an ability to trap heat almost 21 times more effectively than carbon dioxide, (naturalgas.org, 2004). Source: Chow, J. et al (2003). Energy resources and global development. Sciencemag.org, vol.: 302. In conclusion the different contributions of fossil fuels to the modern human society are very noticeable. The chart above shows the global fossil fuels consumption by sectorial end use. The contributions of fossil fuels are made evident in the different sectors mentioned above. Form this essay, it can be suggested that the global fossil fuels consumption be reduced and more regulation that will effectively minimize the environmental implications of fossil fuels. it will be helpful if manufacturers consider environmental factors when producing machines and appliances that is being powered by fossil fuels. Moreover, resolving the global dilemma presented by fossil fuels will require a collective effort of every human. Private Finance Initiatives: Advantages and Disadvantages Private Finance Initiatives: Advantages and Disadvantages PFI Principles The PFI, known as Private Finance Initiative, is a type of Public Private Partnership procurement method implemented in UK construction industry in 1992. (Chinyio and Gameson, 2009) As an important part of Governments strategy for delivering high quality public services, Private Finance Initiative requires the private financers to put its own capital at risk to deliver clear defined public projects for a long term period, ensuring the quality of the work delivered within the time and budget. (HM Treasury, 2009) OGC (2007, p.6) defined PFI as Where the public sector contracts to purchase quality services, with defined outputs from the private sector on long term basis, and including maintaining or constructing the necessary infrastructure so as to take advantage of private management skills incentivised by having private finance at risk. PFI has now covered most of public services such as health, education, defence, prisons and transportations. Typically, PFI procurement involves contracting the entire project package including design, construction, finance, operation and maintenance, to a group of private companies which consists of a reasonably skilled construction firm and a facility management firm, for a long period of 20 30 years. The government also provides specifications indicating the services and standards it requests, and leave the control right of design and construction and operation solely to the private group for the contract period. (Bennett and Iossa, 2006) It is only recommended for projects to take PFI route when the capital cost is likely to exceed  £20m. (OGC, 2007) Bennett and Iossa (2009) say that its more likely to use PFI procurement if the externality is positive and the innovation on residual value is large. Advantages Long-Term Relationship PFI is not only focusing on the value for money, it also stressed the development of long term relationship between public sector and private sector. Robinson and Scott (2009) indicates that long-term relationships in PFI projects can provide a powerful incentive in order to learn from each other, share the knowledge, innovate and continuously improve the performance between private sector and public sector in project delivery. Partnering is a crucial key of PFI procurement, the good performance of which will lead to the success of the project. Spackman (2002, pp.283-301) addresses Success can be achieved only if the public authority and the contractor approach the project in a spirit of partnership, wit understanding of each others business and a common vision of how best they can work together. Public Saving PFI/PPP procurement has the potential to reduce the cost, and deliver better quality work with the same cost in other procurements. (Bing and Akintoye, 2003) Research shows that the governments investment using PFI procurement in the UK is now about 10-14% in its total investment. (Grimsey and Lewis, 2005) Local authorities are keen to use PFI to deliver a project via partnership as they do not need to borrow money from the banks. Spackman (2002) finds the government constrains its borrowing because it concerns about future taxation, economic demand, costs of the borrowing, and flexibility responding to future economy shocks. The interest cost of public debit in UK is at 2-2.5 percent, however for the cost of private one is only about 1 percent. (Spackman, 2002) Anon (2009, p.3) declares that In the UK, lack of cash is forcing the government to look at using PPPs for more broadly. The saving for the government is not only from the borrowing tax aspect, but also in total value of the projects compared with traditional procurement. Parker and Hartley, 2003 (in Grimsey and Lewis, 2005) claim that PPP contracts for UK defence services save cost range from 5-40 percent compared traditional public procurement. Private Profit One of the benefits for private sectors to take PFI is that under the long term ownership, they can gain incomes and profits under their management and operation, or exchange benefits with the local authorities. Carrillo at el. (2008) indentifies that one of the key drivers for the motivation of the PFI is the steady and long term income stream and higher returns and profitability. Spackman (2002, pp.283-301) also mentions its easier to increase charges to meet a contract with a private operator than by voting in local or national government, and private financiers might regard income from users as a less risky source of revenue. Better Management Skills As private financers are more capable for management in business in various fields, the government believes that the private sector has a better role to offer project management skills, innovative design and facility and risk management. (Carrillo at el., 2008) Spackman (2002) stresses that the monitoring pressures on contractors from private sectors may be stronger than those from the public sector which is leading to a quality work. Long Term Contract In PFI, contractors are tied into a long-term commitment, so that it reduces that a contractor can walk away during the project if no sufficient funding is in place. Even though contracts might restrict this from happening, but it is difficult to design and impose broad articles and clauses in the contract for a long contractual period. (Spackman, 2002) Risk Transfer Risk transfer is also an important element for delivering a good PFI project. Carrillo at el. (2008) claim that PFI will reduce the risk level carried by the government and transfer it to the contractors. Grimsey and Lewis (2005, pp.345-378) concludes that The transferred risk is often a key determinant of value for money in PPPs, and one that may need to be updated as negotiations processed, to allow for variations in risk allocation. Apart from public procurement cost risk, there are also other risks such as site use, site operation and access, building standards, operations and management, financial conditions, maintenances and services, residual value and revenue etc. (Grimsey and Lewis, 2005) Those risks can all be considered and transferred to private side. In UK, there is a long list of samples for public funded projects being delayed or finished with over budget. Such risks being transferred from public sector to private sector through a PPP route is considered to be adding v alue for money for public project, as private sector will solely manage the project cost, time and quality. (Grimsey and Lewis, 2005) Less Construction Time PFI is considered to be one of the procurements which can deliver project under or on time. MacDonald, 2002 (in Grimsey and Lewis, 2005) reviewed 50 large UK public procurement projects in the past 20 years, and found 11 were using PFI/PPP, average of which were completed under-time. HM Treasury, 2003b (in Grimsey and Lewis, 2005) reviewed 61 PFI projects, 89 percent of which were completed under or on time. Compared with traditional procured projects, 30 percent of which delivered on time, PFI projects could be completed on time with a 76 percent. (UK National Audit Office, 2003, in Grimsey and Lewis, 2005) Delivery against Budget PFI is also considered to be one of the procurements which can deliver project under or on budget. HM Treasury, 2003b (in Grimsey and Lewis, 2005) reviewed 61 PFI projects, all of which were all finished within the budget. Compared with traditional procured projects finished with 27 percent on budget, PFI projects completed on budget with a 78 percent. (UK National Audit Office, 2003, in Grimsey and Lewis, 2005) Innovation Approach PFI schemes allow the private bidders to explore their appetite to develop creational and unique projects which can also meet the required standards from the government. (Bing and Akintoye, 2003) When the project is under the ownership of public sector, renegotiation between the private financiers and the public clients must be carried out before the innovation is applied. However, when the project is the ownership of private sector, following governments specifications, private financiers has own power and freedom to implement an innovative approach to meet its own requirements. (Bennett and Iossa, 2006) Disadvantages Time Taking Research shows that most suppliers complain that during the procurement, the PFI process takes too long for management decisions. (Spackman, 2002) Li (in Bing et al., 2005a, pp.25-35) claims that the most negative factor associated with PFI/PPP procurement is a lot of management time spent in the contract transaction, length delays in negotiation and high participation cost. Furthermore, Carrillo at el. (2008, pp.138-145) state that PFI projects are complex than traditional procurement taking longer lead-in time before the start of the construction. It also adds It is unsustainable for a private company to have staff involved on a project for a 5 years period without a positive outcome. Risk Allocation It is an advantage for public sector that their risks during PFI have been allocated away to private sections. However, it would be a shortcoming for private bidders to carry the risks somehow. OGC (2007, p.10) indicates that: construction projects are undertaken by the private sector, which are incentivised by having private finance at risk. High Cost According to research from Bing et al. (2005b), PPP/PFI procurement has problems such as high tender cost, complicated negotiation, innovation cost restrains and conflicting in objectives between stakeholders. Carrillo at el. (2008) also find complain from both of client and contractors that the costs for the bidding, design and construction are higher than the traditional procurements. Lack of Expertise There are still many public professionals not experienced with PFI as it is so complex to cope with. Carrillo at el. (2008) indicates that lack of expertise in public sector in terms of experience is one of the issues for PFI process. It adds further that the lack of expertise has negative impacts on the PFI projects, and the local authorities who are limited with the experience are also struggling to keep up the private partners, which influences the partnering development. Government Influence The government is somehow bombarded that it is trying to show positive sides of PFI as much as it can in order to encourage implementation of PFI. The research and studies carried out so far by the government have been using a limited amount of projects with certain focus. It is recommended to call for more independent and third party studies for a wide range of project research and collect feedback from the clients in all types of projects to analysis the PFI performance. (Carrillo at el., 2008) Procurement Comparison In order to procure the project of residential development for Wulfruna University in UK, PFI and Design and Build are taken into account for the project procurement. Comparison and analysis are carried out as following. Design Build Design Build is one of the popular procurement methods implemented in the construction industry. Since April 2000, DB has been nominated as one of the procurement recommendations along with PFI and Prime Contracting by the government body. (OGC, 2007) The basic principle of DB procurement is, as fig.1 shown, the client sets up the requirements and standards, and then forwards them to the DB contractor for the delivery of the work. There is always possible option for client to consult other design professionals for initial innovations and design concepts. Once, the client is contracted with the DB contractor, its responsibility of design involvement is totally reduced. Risks shifts to the DB project team, consisting of designers, suppliers and subcontractors, who will take full responsibility to carry out the design and construction of the projects. (OGC, 2007) Brief Analysis With the intention of analysis the brief, following key points have been indentified: Existing 12,500 students with 800 hall of residence and 450 on proposal Existing 65% males and 60% full timers Proposed 450 bed hall of residence Proposed building with comprised different types of accommodation Proposed building with a modern standard Proposed building to hire out to tourists or public members during holidays Analysis: The current student number is 12, 500, and full time student is about 7,500. But the number of the halls is only 1,250 (including the one on proposal). This figure is only about 16.7% of the current full time student number, if 1,2500 rooms are all counted as single units. There is a possibility of future development of more student halls of residence. If current full time student number is about 7,500 who need student accommodation, there could be about 4,875 male students. It is common that the maintenance and cleaning for the rooms rented out for male students are more likely harder and difficult than the ones for female students. So that the proposed building should be quality ensured with good maintenance scheme in place. 450 bed hall of residence with modern standard and mixed types of rooms could increase the project cost, and it is likely to over the  £20m limit. Such a number of students accommodation also needs a good management and administration. The requirement of different types of accommodation might involve variation during design stage of the project. A modern standard might involve client into the design for its appetite of innovation approach and standard. Renting out tourists and other public members could increase extra income for the owner. Good management and operation are required from experience management firms to provide professional services. PFI versus Design Build Project Time It is clearly indentified in the previous section that the majority of PFI project delivered under or on time. DB comes with 2 options for competing projects normally. One is fixed price project; therefore, the project will be delivered definitely within the budget or no extra costs for the clients if its over. But the time of the project is uncertain. The other option is fixed time project, which can guarantee the project time, but the cost of the work could be more than what clients expects. Therefore, in terms of project time, both PFI and DB are all suitable for the project. Project Cost PFI is considered to be cost efficient delivery, and it always meets the budget or even under the budget. But it may cost more for the bidding cost for the contractors. DB can apply fixed price option so that both procurement methods can meet the requirement of cost even though the cost requirement is not clear in this brief. However, and again, the time will not be guaranteed. Project Quality Due to PFI is involved a long term contract for the contractor and private financiers, it guarantee the quality and maintenance of the project. However, DB is somehow has more chance to deliver a less quality work depending on the morale and motivation of the contractor, contractor might reduce the quality of the work in terms of material or skilled labour etc to save a profit for its own. According to the analysis b, PFI is more favourable for the quality work in this project. Clients Involvement When the private financier claims the ownership, involvement of design is more likely to happen in order to input innovation approach to achieve the appetite of financiers own. Therefore variation is allowed to occur within the PFI. However, DB contractor process the project from design to construction, there is not involvement for the client. Any variation for the project will lead an extra fee to be implemented by the contractor. According to the brief analysis d and e, PFI is definitely better for DB in this case. Risk Allocation In PFI, risks will be transferred to the private financier for the development. In DB, client only have a single contractual link with the contractor, shown as in fig. 1. The risk the client carried is little and passes most of it to the contractor. Project Nature PFI procurement is suitable for complex project, in which the project cost is more than  £20m according to the introduction from OGC. DB, however, is also suitable for the complex project. As in the brief analysis c, it indicates complex types of accommodation requirement, both PFI and DB can procure this project. Partnering Approach It is no doubt that PFI is the only one procurement which required partnering for project compared with DB. Good partnering can lead to exchange of learning, knowledge sharing and improvement of delivery. In the brief analysis a, there is a potential development of student halls in the future if the number of students keeps increasing. Good partnering and relationship are the keys for quality delivery. PFI is then better than DB to be selected. Management Operation Maintenance PFI is a long term contractual practice which involves design, construction, management, operation and maintenance for a period of 20 to 30 years. Private sector sometimes has better management skills than public sector. Analysis f stresses the need of good Management and Operation, and also analysis b again claims the importance of maintenance. PFI, therefore, is once again the only option for this requirement contrasted with DB Selection Recommendation According to HM Treasurys Central Unit on Purchasing, 1992 (in Masterman, J.W.E., 2002), selection of an appropriate procurement method can be achieved following the following steps: Review of contract strategy Analysis Options Selection of best strategy Implementation The document suggests clients or project managers to score how each procurement method meet the requirement of the objectives in various aspects, in which way the evaluation of the procurement is carried out. (Masterman, J.W.E., 2002) As fig. 2 shown, each standard criterion has its own requirements relative weighting range from 1 to 4. A satisfaction score range from 1 to10 should then be given to the procurement matching with the standard criteria. After the scoring, a calculation should be done by using the procurement score on one of the criteria multiplied by the weighing for the matched criteria. Then add up all the results to get a total score. For instance, in fig. 2, the underlined figures show the timing weighing for the project and traditional procurements score on this aspect for the project, so it should be calculated as: 4 X 4 = 16, and 16 is the total score for the traditional procurements performance on timing. Then add the rest scores for variation, project nature et c. The more the score is, the more suitable the procurement will be. It is recommended that the client, the Wulfruna University, should firstly analysis and identify the importance of each objective for the entire project, and provide the scale weighing on the object criteria according to the importance level. Then follow the sample shown above to list common procurement methods and give a score to each one. In the end, to choose the most scored procurement for the student hall of residence project. However, there are also other types of selection, but the main principles are all similar to each other. Conclusion In this report, it has reviewed PFI procurement. The review has recognized PFI can provide quality project within the time and budget scale, freedom of innovation, long term relationship, risk transfer from public sector to private sector etc, but has also underlined some drawbacks such as long decision making, high bid cost and lack of experience for both side etc. Meanwhile, it has compared two chosen procurement types PFI and Design Build, both of which are recommended by the government body. According to the brief analysis, it has listed some key points and requirements for the projects and comparison against each requirement between PFI and DB are carried out. It is clearly that PFI can provide more to meet the requirement of the project brief. Furthermore, a recommendation for procurement selection is also provided with an example of how the procurement is selected is also presented. The recommendation stressed the importance of the analysis and identification of important req uirement of the objectives and standards for the project. References Anon (2009) The big hiccup.Public Private Finance[online]. February 2009:3. P.3 [accessed on 25th November 2009] Available from: Business Source Premier, EBSChost. ISSN 17420334. Bennett, J. and Iossa, E. (2006) Building and managing facilities for public services. Journal of Public Economics, 90(10-11), pp.2143-2160. Bing, L. and Akintoye, A. (2003) An Overview of Public-Private Partnership. in Akintoye, A., Beck, M. and Hardcastel, C. (eds.) Public-Private Partnership Managing Risks and Opportunities. Oxford: Blackwell Science Ltd. pp.3-24. Bing, L., Akintoye, A., Edwards, P. J. and Hardcastle, C. (2005a) The allocation of risk in PPP/PFI construction projects in the UK. International Journal of Project Management, 23(1), pp.25-35. Bing, L., Akintoye, A., Edwards, P. J. and Hardcastle, C. (2005b) Critical success factors for PPP/PFI projects in the UK construction industry. Construction Management and Economics, 23(5), pp.459-471. Carrillo, P., Robinson, H., Foale, P., Anumba, C. and Bouchlaghem, D. (2008) Participation, Barriers, and Opportunities in PFI: The United Kingdom Experience. Journal of Management in Engineering, 24(3), pp.138-145. Cartlidge, D. (2006) Public Private Partnerships in Construction. Abingdon: Taylor Francis Group. Chinyio, E. and Gameson, Rod. (2009) Private Finance Initiative in Use. in Akintoye, A. and Beck, M. (eds.) Policy, Finance Management for Public- Private Partnerships. Chichester: Blackwell Publishing Ltd, pp.3-26. Grimsey, D. and Lewis, M. K. (2005) Are Public Private Partnerships value for money?: Evaluating alternative approaches and comparing academic and practitioner views. Accounting Forum, 29(4), pp.345-378. HM Treasury (2009) Public Private Partnerships [online]. [accessed on 24th November 2009]. Available at: Masterman, J.W.E. (2002) An example of contract strategy (procurement system) selection. Introduction to Building Procurement Systems. 2nd ed., New York: Jack W E Masterman. P.175 Masterman, J.W.E. (2002) Introduction to Building Procurement Systems. 2nd ed., New York: Jack W E Masterman. Morledge, R., Smith, A. and Kashiwagi, D.T. (2006) Building Procurement. 1st ed., Oxford: Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Morledge, R., Smith, A. and Kashiwagi, D.T. (2006) Design and Build. Building Procurement. 1st ed., Oxford: Blackwell Publishing Ltd. p. 118. OGC (2007) 06 Procurement and Contract Strategies [online]. [accessed on 24th November 2009]. Available at: Robinson, H. S. and Scott, J. (2009) Service delivery and performance monitoring in PFI/PPP projects. Construction Management and Economics, 27(2), pp.181-197. Spackman, M. (2002) Public-private partnerships: lessons from the British approach. Economic Systems, 26(3), pp.283-301.

Living with Feng Shui :: essays research papers

â€Å"Your home is your sanctuary,† but, when entered, does the home create feelings of stress and chaos, instead of calming and providing refuge? No matter how much a person cleans, a home can still feel as if it is in constant disarray. The Chinese commonly remedy these complaints by using the art of feng shui. Simple placement of certain objects in mapped areas of a home can bring great respite to an otherwise chaotic environment. American society classifies feng shui as just another idea based on superstitions, for example, black cats and broken mirrors. Actually, feng shui, pronounced â€Å"fung shway,† is the ancient craft of interpreting and manipulating energy in the environment to create harmonious space by stimulating good chi’, or energy, and staunching the negative flow. Feng shui, meaning wind and water, was created based on the ancient Taoist metaphysical outlook on nature. The Taoist’s examined their surrounding environment and saw the unity in the different elements of the universe. By identifying the energy in the land around them, the Taoist’s were able to point out the areas that would protect, flourish, or ‘be at one’ with the earth. In the book, â€Å"Taoist Feng Shui†, Susan Levitt explains: â€Å"In nature they sensed ‘chi’ energy, the breath of life in all things. Taoist observation of nature concluded that curved, flowing lines slow chi’ and bring abundance. Harmonious chi moves in a curved, graceful line, as if following the natural course of a river. Sharp, straight lines bring ‘sha’ chi, or bad chi (2).†   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Taoists believe that all energy is aligned. This alliance, called Tao, is represented by the figure of the yin and yang. Customarily, the yin is dark, female, and welcoming; the yang is light, male, and aggressive. Yin and yang are believed to be connected to one another and always fluctuating, each complimenting the opposing other. Examples of this relationship can be seen everywhere: midnight and noon, mountains and valleys, hot and cold, sweet and sour. Without one, there is no other (Levitt 6).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In order to chart the chi in a certain area or home, a feng shui compass must be used. This compass, the ba-gua, is composed of eight trigrams, or lines stacked three high, arranged to create an octagonal center ring. The ba-gua map is divided into eight separate sections and the center, with each section representing a different life area. These areas are fame, wealth, family, knowledge, career, helpful people, children, relationships, and, in the center, health (The Ba-Gua, par.

Best/Worst Experience in Modern Communication Essay

l rather than physical presence or written/printed channel. The best experience I’ve had communicating electronically was via e-mail. Last year in March, I went back to Israel to visit my family for a few weeks. Doing so each year is very hard on the family I leave behind, taking care of the everyday life without me around. My husband and I got to talk on the phone once or twice a day, but never too long due to the facts of the surrounding aspects (such as: noise, people that came to see me, and so on). Our landlord decided to sell his house and gave us one month notice as was written in the contract. We only had one month to find another place to live with 3 kids, while I was in Israel for the next 2 weeks. This was a very positive experience for my husband and I. It enabled us to communicate with each other and our realtor via the e-mail. If not for the e-mail options, I couldn’t have done what I succeed to do. I e-mailed each day to our realtor, knowing I can’t communicate with him with the 10 hours difference between us. He sent me houses to look for in the e-mails, and I e-mailed him what I liked and what not. The e-mail availability gave us the option to manage the issue from a distance, without being scared and cancel the visit with my extended family. Channels are the mediums that carry messages between communicators. (Dobkin-Pace, 2006). Worst experience I have had communicating in an electronic/computer communication channel rather than physical presence or written/printed channel. It happened in Canada 5 years ago. I was working in the Jewish community center as an event planner for the center. I was doing my daily tasks when suddenly I looked at my inbox and saw that I have an e-mail from the CEO. I looked at the e-mail and saw that she decided to cancel an event that I worked so hard on, with no reason. To me it felt so wrong and with no feelings. I felt so upset and thought to myself that this should have been done face to face and not through e-mail. She might have had her own reasons to why she did it, and she might have done the right decision.

In What Ways May the Lieutenant and the Priest be Compared and Differentiated in Part One of the Novel Essays

In What Ways May the Lieutenant and the Priest be Compared and Differentiated in Part One of the Novel Essays In What Ways May the Lieutenant and the Priest be Compared and Differentiated in Part One of the Novel Essay In What Ways May the Lieutenant and the Priest be Compared and Differentiated in Part One of the Novel Essay Greene has created two fascinating and complex characters. The first part of the novel revolves, most of the time, around these two characters. The whisky priest and the lieutenant may seem to be opposite characters but they share many characteristics which makes the relationship between these two main figures an uncommon and complicated one. In this essay I shall explore the differences and the contrasts between these two characters. The main factor which unites the characters of the whisky priest and the lieutenant is that both characters are dominated by their ideals, that is, both characters not only are willing to die for their ideals, but they are also willing to live solely to fulfill them. The lieutenant believes that he must eliminate the church in order to create a better world. He has very strong motives, these have undoubtedly emerged from his past: he rememberedthe churches of his boyhooddemands made from the altar steps by men who didnt know the meaning of sacrifice. He believes that suffering is the path towards a better world, future. The lieutenants ideals live on with the essential objective of creating a better world for the future and for the people who have been humiliated and cheated by the church. The lieutenants ideals are clear in the following fragment: All they want is your money. What has God ever done for you?. One factor which differentiates the priest and the lieutenant is the origin of their idealistic-dominated lives; the lieutenant pursues his objective because of hate and moral obligation: The new children would have new memoriesIt infuriated him to think that there were still people in the state who believed in a loving and merciful God. Whilst the ideals which the priest represents were born out of ambition and continued to live on inside him with the same forces: power and money: he had ambitionHe talked for a long while, enjoying the sound of his own voice Although later on the priest follows his ideals because just by living on he represents the opposite and necessary pole of the lieutenant. The priest is obliged to keep living on for his religion dictates that he must never take his own life and it seems to the reader that if it were the priests decision he would definitely have committed suicide. The lieutenant on the other hand has not the obligation to keep on living nor is he compelled to go further with the persecution. This is one of the most definite contrasts between the two characters. The fact that the priest is obliged to keep on living in suffering and in the opposite way of how he lived not only adds to the constant irony of the book but it also helps to undermine the faulty and sinful life which the priest use to have: He thought with envy of the men who had died: it was over so soon. The priests suffering redeems his shameful life and helps the reader become more sympathetic with this character. Greene makes the characters ironically similar and different. He does this in some ways to alter our perceptions of what can be judged or how we can judge. Ironically the lieutenant lives like the priest should live according to catholic teachings whilst the priest lives in the opposite way in which he should. Definite proof of the priest-like life of the lieutenant can be found in the following passage: there was something of a priest in his intent observant walkHe was a mystic toohe felt no need of women. The priest on the other hand has many sins, he does have a weakness for flesh, he is an alcoholic and he was initially, in the past, interested in money above religion. It is very difficult to judge in terms of who is nobler, it is clear that the lieutenant has more control over his actions and person and that although he is essentially looking for power, he has adopted a cause which he is convinced will make the world better. The priest stands up against violence and murder but h e began as a priest looking for power and money and he was not convinced by the catholic cause, he was simply searching for a better life for himself. Who is nobler, he who lives according to his ideals because he believes? Or he who lives according to his ideals because it is the simplest choice in life? The answer seems evident in this novel, but it is not. Greene manages to create an atmosphere were one is forced in the end to become sympathetic to one character even though the sins are always present. Even though the priest lives on without being a firm believer since the begging of his priesthood, we do feel more sympathetic with him. A possible answer is the obvious difference amongst the two characters: ideology. And the other which I believe is much more important is the methods through which they pursue their objectives. Although it is very probable that the reader is more sympathetic to the priests religious ideals I feel that the readers will be much more compelled by the obliged pilgrimage which not only puts his life in danger but which also lights the scattered candles of hope throughout the book. A significant contrast between the characters is the fact that one of the two seems to be much more human than the other, subsequently we feel more identified with this character. The lieutenant has no sympathy at all with the weakness of the flesh, he kills indiscriminately and much less of his past is revealed, as if he had been born just as the persecutions had began, he embodies the persecutions. The priest on the contrary has weaknesses, he fears, he suffers, he has had temptations and above all he has compassion for the half-hearted and the corrupt. The priests compassion and weaknesses make him more human, and thus make us share more sympathy for him even though he does not suit our idea of a good priest. The most primitive comparison between these two characters is that the lieutenant is willing to kill the priest out of hatred whilst the priest feels compassion for the type of person the lieutenant is. This is the most definite difference amongst these two entwining characte rs. In conclusion, these two dark question marks remain being a mystery individually at the end of the first part, but if seen as a whole one may discover that the two characters need each other to exist as they do. The priest needs the persecution to become a real priest worthy of our sincere sympathy whilst the lieutenant needs of his prey to have a vehicle to save the future generations. And though completely opposite in many aspects, one cannot draw a line across either of them without inevitably understanding the fundamental ways in which they exist and thus in which they are similar.

Populations in freshwater Ecosystems Essay Example

  Populations in freshwater Ecosystems Essay Example   Populations in freshwater Ecosystems Essay Populations in freshwater Ecosystems Essay Essay Topic: Ecosystems Aim: To compare two or more fresh water ecosysterms at the wetlands center. In this study I will want to compare two ecosystems. I predict that pollution in the water will be quite minimal because the freshwater habitats are under conservation . Also the other reason being that the people working on the habitats will try to keep it a healthy habitat with a good balance at each trophic level so that the animals will live. Ipredict that the nitrate levels to be quite high in a habitat with other animals such as ducks. The reason being that the excrement will cause the process of eurification and make the levels higher. I also predict that the Oxygen levels will be quite high (about 8 parts per million), because the conservationists may clean out the excrement .For a healthy habitat the abiotic factors are: * The light level must be good so that- plants can photosynthesize and dont decompose and cause the microbes to use the oxygen. * Temperature is important so that- if the water is too cold the anmals will die and decay and the same if it is too warm. * Flow rate of the water is important so that- the habitat isnt destroyed by the fast water flow. * Nitrate level is essencial- Too much nitrogen is a problem caused by the polluton of algae which restricts the light, this kills the organisms underneeth causing defecation and making organic remains. Then the nitrifying bacteria make nitrates out of the ammonium compuonds. * Oxygen levels- could be a problem if there is the pollution of algae (see nitrate levels), or if there ifs something decomposing then microbes will use up the oxygen. For my investigation I will find the nitrate level by using testing strips and oxyen level by winklers method find the parts per million (ppm). The biotic factors are: * Types of plans- blanket weed and duck weed are both indications of a habitat with low ligh or in the danger of losing light. Mill foil is a good plants as it oxygenates the water. * Features and adaptations of animals- this is something that I will show later on in my investigation. * The number and types of animals- This table shows what species are in high, low or intermediate pollution.(next page) I will look at all three of these biotic factors in my investigation. I predict the more animals there are the less polluted it is because there Is enough oxygen, light, for the organisms to live. I will use various techniqus to examin the different organisms. I will take a sample fron the top, middle and bottom layer of the habitat to get a clearer view. Farmyard freshwater habitat This habitat was shared with some gese aswell as all the animals in the water. This ment that there was a lot of excrement. I was surprised to find out that eventhough there was a lot of excrement, the nitrate level was 0 and the phosphate level was high. The reason being that the water was filterd and removed the nitrates. The oxygen level was also high 9.1 parts per million, due to the water being filtered. The animals that I found ment that habitat was ok, although there was a leech there were not enough to indicate that the habitat was very polluted. The duck weed and algae also indicated the same thing. In the habitat I found: Plants- duck weed and algae Animals- Daphnia, cyclops, leeches and spring tails. Animal What depth found in Number pr sample (A4 paper size tray) estimate Daphnia Top(T), middle(M) and Bottom(B) T= 3500 M= 7000 B= 3000 Cyclops T,M,B T= 100 M= 80 B= 40 Spring tails M M= 2 Leeches B B= 1 Small freshwater habitat This habitat was smaller but deeper thatn the other habitat. It also did not share the habitat with any other animals. This ment that the water would be cleaner thatn the other habitat. This showed in the type of animals and the oxygen level being 9.2ppm. The nitrogen level was 0 again due to the water being filtered. He indications of this habitat being clean was the growth of mill foil and water mites. Plants- mill foil and algae Animals- flat worm, water mite, cyclops, water snail and water flea. Animal What depth found in Number pr sample (A4 paper size tray) estimate Flat worm T 1 Water mite T 1 Cyclops T,B T= 50 B=40 Water snail M M= 1 Water flea M,B M= 20 B= 10 Here is a food web for fresh water habitats: Daphnia flat worm Planarians have extraordinary powers of regeneration and they normally reproduce by pulling in two. The fragments then regenerate their missing parts. water mite Water Mites have a globular, sack-like body and are related to spiders. They have eight legs and a line that separates their thorax from their abdomen. Some water mites are parasitic and suck off the gills of fresh water clams and mussels. Some water mites have special hairs on their legs that help them swim. Cyclops is a genus of copepods named for the animals single eyespot, reminiscent of the one-eyed monster in Greek mythology. Although most species of Cyclops are marine, many are commonly found in quiet freshwater habitats. Common Name: Fresh Water Snail or Planorbis Scientific Name: Planorbis leavis Taxonomy: Animalia Mollusca Gastropoda Pulmonata aquatica Planorbidae Physical Description: This snail appears like a smaller and darker colored version of the garden snail. They have a spiral shell that is almost spherical and a body that is the same color as raw liver. Their shells are a lighter dark brown than the bodies. Behavior: This snail spends its life under the water in calm pools. They stick to rocks and feed on the algae and bacteria that grow on them. Breeding takes place in the spring, and the snails are often hermaphroditic, but still require another mate for fertilization. Prey and Predators: Crayfish, skunks, opossums, and amphibians will eat these small gastropods. The planorbis is hardly an aggressive predator, but they eat the microscopic organisms with less intelligence than themselves. Signs of Existence: These snails can be found on any hard surfaces in the calm parts of the water. They share the same pools as many crayfish, but are more easily spotted because of their large numbers. water flea Water fleas belong to the Crustacea, a large group of jointed limbed animals, most of which live in water. Water fleas are placed in the order Cladocera and are probably called fleas because they move through the water by a sort of hopping. Water fleas are very common in fresh water, in Britain you can find about 80 different species, in The Netherlands about a 100 species. Many of them are rare. The chief characteristic of the water fleas is that the main part of the body is enclosed in a kind of shell, with the appearance of two lids, but made of one piece. Because you can see through them, you can study for instance the beating of the heart and follow the course of the blood cells round part of the body. Their sizes differ from several hundred microns to more than five millimeter for the larger species. The common water flea, Daphnia pulex can be found in almost all sorts of eutrophic (rich in nutrients) waters. They reproduce in summer mostly parthenogenetic, that is, the eggs develop without undergoing fertilization. At the end of the summer, some of the eggs develop into the smaller males, capable of fertilizing the eggs in females, which then develop into the so called winter eggs; mostly only one or two are present in the females. These eggs can also be found in populations under stress, such as during the drying up of a pond. leeches Leeches are classified as annelids, or segmented worms. They are related to earthworms and share many traits. They are found in shallow ponds, lakes, and marshes. Some leeches have even been found to live in small desert water holes as well as in antarctic waters. Most leeches live in water; however, some leeches are amphibious. Other leeches are called land leeches and live in moist regions around the world. Leeches can be found nearly every place there is water. Shallow ponds, lakes, and marshes are popular leech collecting sites. The best time for leech collecting is during the spring and summer. Most leeches are nocturnal and avoid light. Leeches can often be found in shady areas of ponds or in dark places under rocks, logs, and debris of the bottom of lakes. spring tails Springtails sometimes cause alarm to homeowners when seen outdoors in enormous numbers, appearing as piles of soot in driveways, backyards, on mud puddle surfaces, etc. Occasionally, they enter the home where dampness occurs such as in basements, cellars, bathrooms, and kitchens, especially near drains, leaking water pipes, sinks, and in the soil of over-watered house plants. They usually appear in the spring and early summer but can be found all year round. Some are known as snow fleas, appearing on the top of snow during late winter and early spring. These very small, leaping insects do not bite humans, spread disease, nor damage household furnishings. They are usually a nuisance by their presence. Springtails are minute, wingless insects about 1/16 to 1/8 inch (1 to 2 mm) long. Colors vary from white, gray, yellow, orange, metallic green, lavender to red with some being patterned or mottled. They get their name from the ability to catapult themselves (leap) through the air three to four inches by means of a taillike mechanism (furcula) tucked under the abdomen. When disturbed, this appendage functions as a spring, propelling them into the air away from the danger source. Young resemble adults except for size and color. Eggs are spherical. Because both habitats are in conservaton and filtered the nitrate level is 0. The health of the pond is not normally that good in the city due to the pollution given off by cars and so on. For more accurate readings of the animals I could have calculated the sizes more accuraltely. This could have an effect on my results.

Refliction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

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Identification of the Two Missing Romanov Children Essay

Identification of the Two Missing Romanov Children - Essay Example ethods used to determine the identity of the skeletal remains, and whether they were in fact the lost Romanov family, including Tsarevich Alexei (the royal heir) and one of his sisters. ‘We report forensic DNA testing on the remains discovered in 2007 using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), autosomal STR, and Y-STR testing.’ This line from the examining officers’ report shows the tests used. (PubMed, 2009) A brief description of each will show how the team came to their conclusion. A person’s mother-line ancestry can be determined with mitochondrial DNA testing. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is a type of DNA that is carried by both men and women but is only inherited from their mother. It is passed by a mother down to all her children. An exact match might mean the tested person is very likely to share a common maternal ancestor within the last 500 years. Exact matches are rare, but slight differences (one or two) can also lead to decisions about common relatives on the mother’s side.(Sorensen, 2009) The testing is done by sequencing nucleotides. The Romanov gravesite skeletons were tested in this way. Autosomal STR testing examines Short Tandem Repeats, using the knowledge that most humans share about 99 percent of their DNA, while the rest is very different. This small portion is examined because, although its function in the body is not completely understood yet, it provides a high degree of variation that can be measured and compared. (Orchid Cellmark 2009) These sequences repeat a number of times - between six and 40 - in a particular location on the DNA. For example, ACGTACGTACGTACGTACGTACGT. Each person can have a different number of repeats in the same place. Many STRs occur on each chromosome. One subset has been developed for identity testing purposes. (Orchid Cellmark Ibid). This was used in the Romanov case, and helped the scientists decide the relationship between the skeletons and that they belonged to one family. Y-STR testing is done on the