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

Final project - Essay Example Food products have a natural taste because they are manufactured from natural plants. The products will be made available in two major hotels including Tiran Island Hotel and Sharm el Sheikh. They will also be made available in shopping malls like City Stars Mall located in Cairo City. Hotel services include accommodation and dishes for the ordinary family. AS noted earlier on, the two hotels include Tiran Island Hotel and Sharm el Sheikh. A family has an option of selecting hotel services of their choice especially families that are on a holiday. Hotel charges are based on the duration and packages selected by a family. For instance, a family may select to spend a night or have a meal only. The tour service component in the perfect package will aim at taking families on a visit to tourist attraction sites like the Nile River in Cairo, Giza Pyramids, Sphinx, Memphis, Sakkara and Tiran Island. Families will enjoy services such as dinner cruises and private visits to the mentioned places in Egypt. In most cases, the tours will involve the use of cars in the cars of land tours and boats in the case of marine tours. The perfect package also includes video games where children will be involved in playing their favorite computer games. Children are allowed to rent video games at a charge and are also allowed to carry their own games but on a restricted basis. Below are their pricing levels for the different services and products: Some components of the perfect package such as food products are available in retail stores. Customers can also place their orders online for products and book services such as hotel and transport services. The family market segment is one of the most attractive segments in the global market for products. Research studies indicate that most of the businesses ranging from retail to wholesale at least consider the family as one of their target markets. This is because such a market segment entails different

Slackness and more slackness Essay Example for Free

Slackness and more slackness Essay Bob Marleys One Love is heralded as the song of the 20th century. Jamaicans are jubilant about this. We boast of the impact of such songs as Redemption Song in encouraging the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa. Millions across the world identify with the message in Bob Marleys songs. We agree that music has tremendous power and effect. Isnt this evident in how Jamaica has become known worldwide because of Bob Marleys music? How is it then that the same voices that acknowledge the powerful effect of Marleys music now seek to deny the effect of dancehall artistes such as Vybz Kartels lyrics on the minds and subsequent behaviour of those who listen to them? Dancehall has moved from the space that reggae occupies, in its promotion of social and political consciousness, to the elevation and advancement of slackness. This affects our youth in a negative fashion. Dancehall is not just the music, but it is a culture which impacts dress, fashion and body language; it influences attitude. Dancehall dress leaves little of the womens bodies to the imagination. It is this mindset that is now affecting so many of our young people in school. They are following the dancehall culture of badmanism, hottie girls, nuff girls, nuff skin and body parts exposed, nuff slackness, public wining and grinding, bling and more bling, and every thing else that the culture promotes. PARENTS ALSO MORE DULGING There are parents who are indulging in this dancehall lifestyle and who, therefore, cannot guide their children to lead moral, self-disciplined lives. The children and the parents are now both indulging in the dancehall slackness. We see the effect of this in our schools. We see it when little children are taken to Passa Passa and adults delight in watching them wining and grinding their undeveloped hips in imitation of their slackness. Before these children can begin to know what innocence is, they have lost it. Their innocence has been aborted. This exposure to unbridled slackness from an early age has ensured that we produce a generation whose morality has been warped from the beginning. They will now believe that this slack and loose behaviour is the norm. WOMEN AS SEX OBJECTS We add slackness to slackness when the songs played on the sound systems and the images portrayed in the music videos all promote women as sex machines. These women represent themselves merely as objects of sex as is made clear by how they dress and by the sex-simulating gyrations they indulge in, which are termed dancing, with bottoms bouncing and going round like gigs and pelvic thrusts emphasising their genital areas. With such a constant diet being fed to the senses of the young, how can their consciousness develop in an innocent, childlike way? Add to these stimuli, the images of upstanding Jamaicans wining and grinding on the roads during carnival; women sandwiched by men from behind and before; women and men of all shapes and sizes, some totally unknown to each other, wearing the barest of coverings, indulging in unrestrained sexual conduct on the streets with the media promoting and covering it, with hordes of police (including high-ranking police officers) guiding the train. What are we saying to our young? We are saying that slackness is acceptable, that sexual behaviour is not a private matter; that sex can be practised publicly with societys approval. Why, then, are we shocked when our schoolchildren display this same type of behaviour on the streets, at the transportation hubs, on the buses, on the school grounds? Why are we shocked when they want their sex acts to be video-taped and published? Children live what they learn. They have simply taken a step further what they have been taught by the big people, the adults, around them. We are simply reaping what we have sown. This is what some young teenagers say about the impact of dancehall on their behaviour: It makes me break out of my little shell. I am an innocent girl and dancehall music breaks that barrier. It makes you feel all gangsterish and cool. And the music teaches you how to dress. The lyrics are influential. They tell you to walk roun, smoke weed and buss gun. Many people, children in particular, look up to some of the artistes who feature these lyrics in their songs and they actually do some of these things because they feel that if their favourite artiste is doing it and they are hip and admired, then why not do it too. Hence, dancehall music is influential, not only to me, but to the wider society. I have stopped listening to dancehall music now and thats good because it had such a negative influence on me. At one point, I found myself acting in the way that the songs portray a hot girl should be.

Lumbar fusion Essay -- Health, Diseases, Back Pain

In 1993, Will, a 49-year-old pipeline welder started experiencing back pain. At first he believed the pain was due to normal muscle strain after working hard on the job, but many years later the pain still hadn't subsided, and had become increasingly worse. In 2002, Will was experiencing higher levels of pain in his lower back, and pain traveling down the back of his left leg. Over the course of a year this pain grew into a stabbing sensation in his thigh, that would come and go in electric shock like bursts. Will was having a difficut time working with sudden onsets of debilitating pain so he decided to take some time off from work and consult his doctor. Will's first examination by his primary care physician consisted of testing his flexibility and checking his back muscles for stiffness and spasms after performing load bearing exercises. Will's doctor found signs of a muscle strain, so he sent him home with a prescription of ibuprofen, and advised Will to take some time off work to rest. Taking things easy after two weeks off from work hadn't improved Will's condition, so he returned to see his doctor. X-rays were taken and the doctor discovered signs of arthritis in Will's spine. The doctor wasn't sure of his diagnosis, so he reffered Will to a spine therapy specialist to undergo physical therapy in hopes that the pain might be alleviated after strengthening the back muscles. If the back pain still didn't improve after taking these measures, an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) of the lumbar area would be considered. Low back pain is the fifth most common reason for all physician visits in the United States, [1] so when doctors see patients with cases of chronic lower back pain like Will's, they typically suggest medicati... ...her important consideration is that artificial disc replacement surgery requires an anterior approach through the stomach, and can cause major damage to important blood vessels, intestines, and urinary system components. Will's herniated discs are located in the lower lumbar region, and these vertabae have a low degree of flexation compared to vertabrae higher up in the spine. This means that replacement discs won't aid that much in retaining mobility, and lumbar fusion won't reduce flexation by that high of a degree. The experience of the surgeon should also be taken into consideration, and few surgeons have adequate experience with total disc replacement at this time. These reasons lead me to believe that a lumbar fusion would be the safest surgery for Will, providing adequate pain relief, and wouldn't limit his range of motion enough to warrant replacement discs.

A Critical Response to Lady Chatterleys Lover Essay -- chatterley

A Critical Response to Lady Chatterley's Lover      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Lady Chatterley's Lover by D. H. Lawrence examines the human condition in the modern era.   Through the experiences of the novel's characters, Lady Chatterley's Lover advances techniques for coping with the modern world:   retreating from society and engaging in phallic sex.   However, the application of these techniques is problematic as phallic sex necessitates the abandonment of social convention, while retreating from society conflicts with phallic sex.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Lawrence's tactics of retreating from society and engaging in phallic sex are a response to conditions that he perceived in England.   A problem that afflicts the English people in Lawrence's novel is the pressure of social convention causing individuals to lead unhappy lives.   For example, Lawrence examines the lives of colliers:   "The iron and the coal had eaten deep into the bodies and souls of the men" (159).   Iron and coal are also a reference to the capitalist-industrialist complex that drives the colliery, making it clear that it is capitalist values which are eating away at the men.   The village of Tevershall reflects the state of its builders:   "The utter negation of natural beauty, the utter negation of the gladness of life, the utter absence of the instinct for shapely beauty which every bird and beast has, the utter death of the human intuitive faculty was appalling" (152).   Both the people and their dwellings have been warped by m odernity.   The narrator sums up the consequences of modern society for the colliers and the English people:   "...a new race of mankind, over-conscious in the money and social and political side, on the spontaneous intuitive side dead, but dead.   Half-corpses, all of t... ...f phallic sex.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Two strategies that D. H. Lawrence's novel Lady Chatterley's Lover offers for coping with the modern world are phallic sex and a retreat from society.   Unfortunately, the ideal of phallic sex is difficult to achieve due to the necessity of abandoning social convention, while retreating from society conflicts with having phallic sex.   Lawrence's ideas offer unconventional methods for coping with modern life.   However, a reader who wishes to apply these ideas must bear in mind that no amount of sex or isolation is likely to resolve the problems which plague modern society. Works Cited Lawrence, D. H..   Lady Chatterley's Lover.   Ed. Michael Squires.   New York:   Penguin Books, 1994. Lawrence, D. H..   "A Propos of 'Lady Chatterley's Lover'". Lady Chatterley's Lover.   Ed. Michael Squires.   New York:   Penguin Books, 1994. A Critical Response to Lady Chatterley's Lover Essay -- chatterley A Critical Response to Lady Chatterley's Lover      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Lady Chatterley's Lover by D. H. Lawrence examines the human condition in the modern era.   Through the experiences of the novel's characters, Lady Chatterley's Lover advances techniques for coping with the modern world:   retreating from society and engaging in phallic sex.   However, the application of these techniques is problematic as phallic sex necessitates the abandonment of social convention, while retreating from society conflicts with phallic sex.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Lawrence's tactics of retreating from society and engaging in phallic sex are a response to conditions that he perceived in England.   A problem that afflicts the English people in Lawrence's novel is the pressure of social convention causing individuals to lead unhappy lives.   For example, Lawrence examines the lives of colliers:   "The iron and the coal had eaten deep into the bodies and souls of the men" (159).   Iron and coal are also a reference to the capitalist-industrialist complex that drives the colliery, making it clear that it is capitalist values which are eating away at the men.   The village of Tevershall reflects the state of its builders:   "The utter negation of natural beauty, the utter negation of the gladness of life, the utter absence of the instinct for shapely beauty which every bird and beast has, the utter death of the human intuitive faculty was appalling" (152).   Both the people and their dwellings have been warped by m odernity.   The narrator sums up the consequences of modern society for the colliers and the English people:   "...a new race of mankind, over-conscious in the money and social and political side, on the spontaneous intuitive side dead, but dead.   Half-corpses, all of t... ...f phallic sex.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Two strategies that D. H. Lawrence's novel Lady Chatterley's Lover offers for coping with the modern world are phallic sex and a retreat from society.   Unfortunately, the ideal of phallic sex is difficult to achieve due to the necessity of abandoning social convention, while retreating from society conflicts with having phallic sex.   Lawrence's ideas offer unconventional methods for coping with modern life.   However, a reader who wishes to apply these ideas must bear in mind that no amount of sex or isolation is likely to resolve the problems which plague modern society. Works Cited Lawrence, D. H..   Lady Chatterley's Lover.   Ed. Michael Squires.   New York:   Penguin Books, 1994. Lawrence, D. H..   "A Propos of 'Lady Chatterley's Lover'". Lady Chatterley's Lover.   Ed. Michael Squires.   New York:   Penguin Books, 1994.

Diana Eck

â€Å"We† Multiculturalism through globalization has challenged our society to adapt with the times by thinking of world religions as more of a brotherhood of faith rather than a threat. In the last chapter of the book Encountering God, the author Diana Eek puts an emphasis on the interdependent world we live in and how we, as human beings will need to approach today's problems as a whole if we wish to overcome life's various hurdles.Evidence of the interdependent world we live can be seen by observing the statistics of the relatedness of population growth and the growth of poverty and illiteracy to the growth of carbon dioxide emissions and the pollution of the seas, striping of forests, extinction of plant and animal species (Eek, Peg. 200, 2003). Eek states that in this interdependent world, there will always be a consequence for every action made and the world as a whole will inevitably have to deal with the repercussions one way or another.Interdependency does not Just st op with nations and the environment or economy; it also describes people, religious traditions and cultures. (Eek, Peg. 202, 2003). Since everything is mutually dependent n each other weather it being religion, the economy or the environment, society needs to consciously act on each physical or mental dilemma with everyone's best interest in mind. The first step into transforming the world religions into a brotherhood of faith, is taking care of the major issue that all religions face today which is the perceived â€Å"we† language of each religion that seems to divide our society rather than unite them.Eek describes that the â€Å"we† language that's evident in every religion as a sociological matter as well as a theological issue that seems to reflect our â€Å"deepest† religious values. Eek, Peg. 203, 2003). She challenges the reader to ask themselves if there use of the word we links people or divides people. According to Eek, in every tradition there seems to be at least some attempts (some more than others) to steer toward a much wider understanding of â€Å"we†.For example, Hindus believe that the whole world is a single family-Visualize Katmandu, Buddhists speak of the sang and the four directions, Christians with the language of Kiosks (derived from the word autoimmune, translates to the household of the whole inhabited Earth), and the Muslims attempt to find different ways to interpret the Mama (Eek, Peg. 203, 2003). Even though this sort of open minded thinking we're talking about clearly exists in each religion, it's clear we're not where we'd like to be considering the frequent airing of violence involving religious disputes on places like the internet and T.V. People are taking religious sides and are missing the big picture and which will only result in more bad press and casualties. In my eyes this can be attributed to ignorance formed by lack of interrelations dialogue. In order for religious dialogue to be effectiv e, Eek leads me to believe that one must first recreate he â€Å"we†. Eek often referenced one of the most open minded and enlightening religious figures in history to convey the importance of recreating the â€Å"we† and its impact on transforming society. According to Eek, Gandhi redefined the inclusive we in theory but more importantly in practice.Gandhi started at the household level to extend the care, ethics and common sense of the household to the whole of humankind (Eek, Peg. 206, 2003). Eek states that he believed that the â€Å"personal† was the â€Å"political†, meaning he saw no point in speaking of things like oppression of the or if one continued to support the status quo through ones daily decisions in life. Instead of speaking of the social injustices that were going on around him (political), he personally made an impact by volunteering to clean the latrines, help out at the hospital, and empty bedpans (Eek, Peg. 07, 2003). Sandhog's life style was greatly impacted by all the social injustice going on in the world. Sandhog's â€Å"we† not only included the poor and the oppressed but his enemies as well. He felt that a transformed community would never be reached if conflict is cast in terms of winning ND losing (Eek, Peg. 206, 2003). This kind of humility and consciousness should be implemented in the approach to interrelations dialogue in order to bind all religions as a brotherhood of faith.But until we recreate the â€Å"we† in society, interrelations dialogue will never reach its potential of mutual transformation. Diana Eek provides the reader with a refreshing option for encountering plurality of religions by remaining Christian, yet holding a deep respect for all religions. As Gandhi was inspired by some aspects of religion, Diana Eek was inspired by Sandhog's attempt to recreate the â€Å"we†. She too felt that in order for society to solve today's toughest problems, we must approach thes e problems as a whole. Eek explains how our daily decisions can cause a ripple effect.She conveys to the reader that â€Å"we†, as human beings, can make a change for the better by recreating the â€Å"we† in our language to link rather than divide. After successfully recreating the â€Å"we†, one can break the ignorance and fear and gain a mutual understanding of different religions through mutual understanding. As Eek states, with mutual understanding comes mutual transformation. Mutual transformation will only lead society to adapt with the times y thinking of world religions as more of a brotherhood of faith rather than a threat.

Pigs - The Domestication History of Sus Scrofa

Pigs - The Domestication History of Sus Scrofa The domestication history of pigs (Sus scrofa) is a bit of an archaeological puzzle, in part because of the nature of the wild boar that our modern pigs are descended from. Many species of wild hog exist in the world today, such as the warthog (Phacochoreus africanus), the pygmy hog (Porcula salvania), and the pig-deer (Babyrousa babyrussa); but of all the suid forms, only Sus scrofa (wild boar) has been domesticated. That process took place independently about 9,000-10,000 years ago in two locations: eastern Anatolia and central China. After that initial domestication, pigs accompanied early farmers as they spread out of Anatolia to Europe, and out of central China to the hinterlands. All of the modern swine breeds today - there are hundreds of breeds around the globe - are considered forms of Sus scrofa domestica, and there is evidence that the genetic diversity is decreasing as cross-breeding of commercial lines threatens indigenous breeds. Some countries have recognized the issue and are beginning to support the continued maintenance of the non-commercial breeds as a genetic resource for the future. Distinguishing Domestic and Wild Pigs It must be said that it is not easy to distinguish between wild and domestic animals in the archaeological record. Since the early 20th century, researchers have segregated pigs based on the size of their tusks (lower third molar): wild boars typically have broader and longer tusks than domestic pigs. Overall body size (in particular, measures of knucklebones [astralagi], front leg bones [humeri] and shoulder bones [scapulae]) has been commonly used to differentiate between domestic and wild pigs since the mid-twentieth century. But wild boar body size alters with climate: hotter, drier climates mean smaller pigs, not necessarily less wild ones. And there are notable variations in body size and tusk size, among both wild and domestic pig populations even today. Other methods used by researchers to identify domesticated pigs include population demography  - the theory is that pigs kept in captivity would have been slaughtered at younger ages as a management strategy, and that can be reflected in the ages of the pigs in an archaeological assemblage. The study of Linear Enamel Hypoplasia (LEH) measures the growth rings in tooth enamel: domestic animals are more likely to experience stress episodes in diet and those stresses are reflected in those growth rings. Stable isotope analysis and tooth wear can also give clues to the diet of a particular set of animals because domestic animals are more likely to have had grain in their diets. The most conclusive evidence is genetic data, which can give indications of ancient lineages. See Rowley-Conwy and colleagues (2012) for a detailed description of the benefits and pitfalls of each of these methods. In the end, all a researcher can do is look at all of these available characteristics and make her best judgment. Independent Domestication Events Despite the difficulties, most scholars are agreed that there were two separate domestication events from geographically separated versions of the wild boar (Sus scrofa). Evidence for both locations suggest that the process began with local hunter-gatherers hunting wild boars, then over a period of time began managing them, and then purposefully or unconsciously keeping those animals with smaller brains and bodies and sweeter dispositions. In southwest Asia, pigs were part of a suite of plants and animals that were developed in the upper reaches of the Euphrates river about 10,000 years ago. The earliest domestic pigs in Anatolia are found in the same sites as domestic cattle, in what is today southwestern Turkey, about 7500 calendar years BC (cal BC), during the late Early Pre-Pottery Neolithic B period. Sus Scrofa in China In China, the earliest domesticated pigs date to 6600 cal BC, at the Neolithic Jiahu  site. Jiahu is in east-central China between the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers; domestic pigs were found associated with the Cishan/Peiligang culture (6600-6200 cal BC): in Jiahus earlier layers, only wild boars are in evidence. Beginning with the first domestication, pigs became the main domestic animal in China. Pig sacrifice and pig-human interments are in evidence by the mid-6th millennium BC. The modern Mandarin character for home or family consists of a pig in a house; the earliest representation of this character was found inscribed on a bronze pot dated to the Shang period (1600-1100 BC). Pig domestication in China was a steady progress of animal refinement lasting a period of some 5,000 years. The earliest domesticated pigs were primarily herded and fed millet and protein; by the Han dynasty, most pigs were raised in small pens by households and fed millet and household scraps. Genetic studies of Chinese pigs suggest an interruption of this long progress occurred during the Longshan period (3000-1900 BC) when pig burials and sacrifices ceased, and previously more or less uniform pig herds became infused with small, idiosyncratic (wild) pigs. Cucchi and colleagues (2016) suggest this may have been the result of a social-political change during the Longshan, although they recommended additional studies. The early enclosures used by Chinese farmers made the process of pig domestication much faster in China compared to the process used on western Asian pigs, which were allowed to roam freely in European forests up through the late Middle Ages. Pigs Into Europe Beginning about 7,000 years ago, central Asian people moved into Europe, bringing their suite of domestic animals and plants with them, following at least two main paths. The people who brought the animals and plants into Europe are known collectively as the Linearbandkeramik (or LBK) culture. For decades, scholars researched and debated whether Mesolithic hunters in Europe had developed domestic pigs prior to the LBK migration. Today, scholars mostly agree that European pig domestication was a mixed and complex process, with Mesolithic hunter-gatherers and LBK farmers interacting at different levels. Soon after the arrival of LBK pigs in Europe, they interbred with the local wild boar. This process, known as retrogression (meaning successful interbreeding of domesticated and wild animals), produced the European domestic pig, which then spread out from Europe, and, in many places replaced the domesticated Near Eastern swine. Sources Arbuckle BS. 2013. The late adoption of cattle and pig husbandry in Neolithic Central Turkey. Journal of Archaeological Science 40(4):1805-1815.Cucchi T, Hulme-Beaman A, Yuan J, and Dobney K. 2011. Early Neolithic pig domestication at Jiahu, Henan Province, China: clues from molar shape analyses using geometric morphometric approaches. Journal of Archaeological Science 38(1):11-22.Cucchi T, Dai L, Balasse M, Zhao C, Gao J, Hu Y, Yuan J, and Vigne J-D. 2016. Social complexification and pig (Sus scrofa) Husbandry in ancient China: A combined geometric morphometric andiIsotopic approach. PLOS ONE 11(7):e0158523.Evin A, Cucchi T, Cardini A, Strand Vidarsdottir U, Larson G, and Dobney K. 2013. The long and winding road: identifying pig domestication through molar size and shape. Journal of Archaeological Science 40(1):735-743.Groenen MAM. 2016. A decade of pig genome sequencing: a window on pig domestication and evolution. Genetics Selection Evolution 48(1):1-9.Krause-Kyora B, Makarewicz C, Evin A, Girdland Flink L, Dobney K, Larson G, Hartz S, Schreiber S, Von Carnap-Bornheim C, Von Wurmb-Schwark N et al. 2013. Use of domestic pigs by Mesolithic hunter-gatherers in northwestern Europe. Nature Communications 4(2348). Larson G, Liu R, Zhao X, Yuan J, Fuller D, Barton L, Dobney K, Fan Q, Gu Z, Liu X-H et al. 2010. Patterns of East Asian pig domestication, migration, and turnover revealed by modern and ancient DNA. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 107(17):7686-7691.Lega C, Raia P, Rook L, and Fulgione D. 2016. Size matters: A comparative analysis of pig domestication. The Holocene 26(2):327-332.Rowley-Conwy P, Albarella U, and Dobney K. 2012. Distinguishing Wild Boar from Domestic Pigs in Prehistory: A Review of Approaches and Recent Results. Journal of World Prehistory 25:1-44.Wang H, Martin L, Hu S, and Wang W. 2012. Pig domestication and husbandry practices in the middle Neolithic of the Wei River Valley, northwest China: evidence from linear enamel hypoplasia. Journal of Archaeological Science 39(12):3662-3670.Zhang J, Jiao T, and Zhao S. 2016. Genetic diversity in the mitochondrial DNA D-loop region of global swine (Sus scrofa) populations. Biochemical and Biophysical Research Co mmunications 473(4):814-820.

How to Make a Sparkler - Easy Homemade Firework

How to Make a Sparkler - Easy Homemade Firework Sparklers are a handheld fireworks that dont explode (pyrotechnic devices). They are easy to make, plus you can use your knowledge of chemistry to make colored sparks. Difficulty: Average Time Required: minutes to make, several hours drying time What You Need to Make a Sparkler Iron wires or wooden sticks300 parts potassium chlorate  60 parts aluminum fines, flitter, or granules2 parts charcoal10% dextrin in water solution500 parts strontium nitrate (optional, for red color)60 parts barium nitrate (optional, for green color) How to Make the Homemade Sparkler Mix the dry ingredients with enough dextrin solution to make a moist slurry. Include the strontium nitrate if you want a red sparkler or the barium nitrate if you want a green sparkler.Dip the wires or sticks in the sparkler mixture. Be sure to leave enough uncoated space at one end to safely grasp the finished sparkler.Allow the mixture to dry completely before igniting the sparkler.Store sparklers away from heat or flame, and protected from high humidity. Tips Parts are by weight.Be certain the sparkler is out and cooled before discarding it. This is easily accomplished by dipping the stick in a bucket of water.Firework use is restricted or prohibited in some areas. Please check your local laws before igniting homemade or purchased sparklers. Source  is L.P. Edel, Mengen en Roeren, 2nd edition (1936), p.22, as cited from Wouters Practical Pyrotechnics Disclaimer: Please be advised that the content provided by our website is for EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. Fireworks and the chemicals contained within them are dangerous and should always be handled with care and used with common sense. By using this website you acknowledge that ThoughtCo., its parent About, Inc. (a/k/a Dotdash), and IAC/InterActive Corp. shall have no liability for any damages, injuries, or other legal matters caused by your use of fireworks or the knowledge or application of the information on this website. The providers of this content specifically do not condone using fireworks for disruptive, unsafe, illegal, or destructive purposes. You are responsible for following all applicable laws before using or applying the information provided on this website.

Effects of and Solutions for Human Overpopulation

Effects of and Solutions for Human Overpopulation Human overpopulation is an animal rights issue as well as an environmental issue and a human rights issue. Human activities, including mining, transportation, pollution, agriculture, development, and logging, take habitat away from wild animals as well as kill animals directly. These activities also contribute to climate change, which threatens even the most remote wild habitats on this planet and our own survival. According to a survey of the faculty at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in April of 2009, overpopulation is the worlds worst environmental problem. Dr. Charles A. Hall went so far as to say, â€Å"Overpopulation is the only problem.† Definition Overpopulation occurs when a population has exceeded its carrying capacity. Carrying capacity is the maximum number of individuals of a species that can exist in a habitat indefinitely without threatening other species in that habitat. It would be difficult to argue that humans are not threatening other species. Current Estimates and Projections According to the U.S. Census, there were six billion people in the world in 1999. On October 31, 2011, we hit seven billion. Although growth is slowing, our population continues to grow and will reach nine billion by 2048. Paul Ehrlich and Anne Ehrlich, authors of â€Å"The Population Explosion,† explain: The entire planet and virtually every nation is already vastly overpopulated. Africa is overpopulated now because, among other indications, its soils and forests are rapidly being depleted- and that implies that its carrying capacity for human beings will be lower in the future than it is now. The United States is overpopulated because it is depleting its soil and water resources and contributing mightily to the destruction of global environmental systems. Europe, Japan, the Soviet Union, and other rich nations are overpopulated because of their massive contributions to the carbon dioxide buildup in the atmosphere, among many other reasons. More than 80% of the world’s old growth forests have been destroyed, wetlands are being drained for real estate development, and demands for biofuels take much-needed arable land away from crop production. Life on earth is currently experiencing its sixth major extinction, and we are losing an estimated 30,000 species per year. The most famous major extinction was the fifth one, which occurred about 65 million years ago and wiped out the dinosaurs. The major extinction that we are now facing is the first that is caused not by an asteroid collision or other natural causes, but by a single species- humans. Effects of Conservation Consuming less may be a way for us to live within the carrying capacity of the planet, but as Paul Ehrlich and Anne Ehrlich explain, â€Å"Overpopulation is defined by the animals that occupy the turf, behaving as they naturally behave, not by a hypothetical group that might be substituted for them.† We should not use the hope or the plan to reduce our consumption as an argument that humans are not overpopulated. While reducing our consumption is important, worldwide, per capita energy consumption increased from 1990 to 2005, so the trend does not look good. Lesson from Easter Island The effects of human overpopulation have been documented in the history of Easter Island, where a human population with finite resources was nearly wiped out when their consumption increased beyond what the island could sustain. An island once lush with diverse plant and animal species and fertile volcanic soil became nearly uninhabitable 1,300 years later. The population peak on the island has been estimated between 7,000 and 20,000 people. Trees were cut down for firewood, canoes, and wooden sleds for transporting the carved stone heads for which the island is known. Because of deforestation, the islanders lacked the resources necessary to make ropes and seaworthy canoes. Fishing from shore was not as effective as fishing out on the ocean. Also, without canoes, the Islanders had nowhere to go. They wiped out sea birds, land birds, lizards, and snails. Deforestation also led to erosion, which made it difficult to grow crops. Without adequate food, the population crashed. A rich and complex society that erected now-iconic stone monuments was reduced to living in caves and resorted to cannibalism. How did they let this happen? Author Jared Diamond speculates The forest the islanders depended on for rollers and rope didnt simply disappear one day-it vanished slowly, over decades... In the meantime, any islander who tried to warn about the dangers of progressive deforestation would have been overridden by vested interests of carvers, bureaucrats, and chiefs, whose jobs depended on continued deforestation. Our Pacific Northwest loggers are only the latest in a long line of loggers to cry, Jobs over trees! Potential Solutions The situation is urgent. Lester Brown, President of Worldwatch,  stated in 1998, The question is not whether population growth will slow in the developing countries, but whether it will slow because societies quickly shift to smaller families or because ecological collapse and social disintegration caused death rates to rise. The most important thing we as individuals can do is choose to have fewer children. While cutting back on your personal consumption of resources is laudable and may reduce your environmental footprint by 5%, 25%, or maybe even 50%, having a child will double your footprint, and having two children will triple your footprint. It is virtually impossible to compensate for reproducing by consuming less yourself. Although most of the population growth over the next few decades  will take place in Asia and Africa, global overpopulation is as much a problem for â€Å"developed† countries as it is for third world countries. Americans constitute only five percent of the world’s population, but consume 26% of the world’s energy. Because we consume so much more than most people around the world, we can have the most impact when we choose to have fewer children or no children. Internationally, the United Nations Population Fund works for gender equality, access to birth control, and the education of women. According to the  UNFPA, â€Å"Some 200 million women who would like to use contraceptives lack access to them.† Women should be educated not only about family  planning but also generally. World Watch has found, â€Å"In every society where data are available, the more education women have the fewer children they bear.† Similarly, the Center for Biological  Diversity  campaigns for the empowerment of women, education of all people, universal access to birth control and a societal commitment to ensuring that all species are given a chance to live and thrive. Additionally, raising public awareness is essential. While many environmental organizations focus on small steps with which few can disagree, the topic of human overpopulation is much more controversial. Some claim that there is no problem, while others might see it as solely a third world problem. As with any other animal rights issue, raising public awareness will empower individuals to make informed choices. Potential Human Rights Violations The solution to human overpopulation cannot include human rights violations.  China’s  one-child  policy, though arguably successful in curbing population growth, has led to  human rights violations  ranging from forced sterilizations to forced abortions and infanticide. Some population control proponents advocate offering financial incentives for people not to reproduce, but this incentive would target the poorest segment of society, resulting in racially and economically disproportionate population control. These unjust results cannot be part of a viable solution to human overpopulation.

Scientific misconduct Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Scientific misconduct - Essay Example Several journals publish their own ethical guidelines (Coats, 2008). However, it is surprising that many journals say little or nothing in their â€Å"Instructions to Authors† about which types of data manipulations and data presentation conducts are acceptable and which are not. A particularly delicate issue is that of digital image manipulation. In the days before imaging software became so widely available, making adjustments to image data in the darkroom required considerable effort and/or expertise. It is now very simple, and thus tempting, to adjust or modify digital image files. Many such manipulations have been recently discussed and stigmatized in biology top journals (Rossner, 2004). For what concerns handling of scientific misconduct, several institutions have issued guidelines, even though determining appropriate sanctions is often very difficult and may vary in any specific case. As remarked in the NIH guidelines, sanctions imposed on a particular individual may h ave consequences that are much broader, i.e. members of the laboratory may be indirectly or directly affected as well. There should be a logical correspondence between the nature and severity of the proven allegations and the sanctions imposed. (NIH Committee on Scientific Conduct and Ethics, 2004). The sanctions may include, but are not limited to, the following: removal from a particular project; letter of reprimand to be included in the individual's NIH personnel file; special monitoring of work; decrease in laboratory support probation; suspension with or without pay; denial of a raise in salary or a salary/rank reduction; termination of employment (NIH Committee on Scientific Conduct and Ethics, 2004). Questions and answers CASE ONE a) Do you agree with the committee’s finding? Why or why not? I do agree, since the student behavior in case report clearly corresponds to the current definition(s) of scientific misconduct issued by several independent institutions and commi ttees (see Introduction for such a definition). b) Dr. Potter was a co-author of the submitted manuscript. Should he also be found guilty of scientific misconduct? He should not be directly guilty of scientific misconduct. Nonetheless, he is likely the last author of the paper since he is the mentor of the student. Last authors, and corresponding authors, have several clearly stated responsibilities, such as controlling that the co-authors of their work are mentioned and agree to terms and conditions of publications etc. Last authors and corresponding authors have also implicit responsibilities, such as mentoring and controlling students' behavior and skills. As a part of the education program underlying a laboratory experience, there is teaching scientific behavior. The latter consists of not only making experiments following the scientific method but it also includes ethical behavior, since science is based on the assumption that experiments are true and reliable. Dr. Potter will likely have severe consequences from his lack of attention; for instance, he will need to publish a corrigendum or to retreat his paper from the journal. This act negatively affects one's credibility with negative fallout on future publications. c) Should the university revoke George’s degree? Revoking a student's degree is one of the sanctions hypothesized by several american universities in the case of scientific misconducts. For instance, Case western Reserve University, in his Graduate School guidelines on handling scientific misconducts states: â€Å" In the event that a suspected violation of academic integrity standards is

Wsj article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Wsj - Article Example The Realty Advisory Board on Labor relations therefore, has planned for negotiations with the local 32BJ to deal with the striking workers and to re-adjust their business strategy to end the strike. This is because strategy is meant to fill in the need of organizations for a sense of dynamic direction, focus and cohesiveness. Members of the union and other New York City building workers rallied for a wage increase and voted for authorization of strike if the negotiations broke down. A security guard Michael Dawson stated â€Å"we should not be struggling in the richest city.† This means New York is a competitive market place hence for the union to operate successfully they should learn on how to adapt to a continuously changing business environment. In addition the business policies should be dynamic, continuous and goal oriented. For instance in the article the striking workers demanded for increased wages to protect health and pension benefits which is also a goal the union tends to achieve. A change in any one of the major components in the strategic management model can necessitate a change in the others

The Recent Surge in Counterfeit Bills Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

The Recent Surge in Counterfeit Bills - Essay Example Motivated by these facts, there have been concerns to come up with adequate and effective measures that help in combating counterfeiting activities in a bid to protect the economy, government, and consumers. Some of the ways identified in the following report that employed majorly the aspect of reassessing previous studies include use of international policing agencies, anti-counterfeiting associations, and applications of technology. Examples of technological applications used in fighting counterfeiting as identified in the following report include use of smart cards, biotechnology, chemical technologically developed inks, and use of optical technologies such as holograms. From the research, it is obvious that such actions and strategies have been fruitful in reducing the level of counterfeiting within American and other nations that have been adversely affected by the same criminal offences. In order to create an understanding of the aforementioned, the report has been divided into introduction, background information, purpose, scope, and methodology of the report. These sections have been very useful in providing a general overview of the topic as well as the method and scope use in carrying out the research. On the other hand, the problem and solution sections form the core basis of the study identifying impacts of counterfeiting and their possible solutions. ... No one can deny that the problem of counterfeiting is an extraordinarily well defined one. Other than causing serious negative impacts on the economy of a nation, counterfeits reduce consumer confidence in respect to the products and money that they handle (August & Hwang, 2009). According to the studies conducted by Alcock, Chen, Hui, and Hodson (2003), rise in counterfeits provides Americans with adequate reasons to come up with effective measures of dealing with the problem. One such measure is the introduction of the Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property Act (PRO IP Act), anti-counterfeiting agencies, and employment of technologies that help in combating the same (Haie-Fayle & Wolfgang, 2007; August & Hwang, 2009). In addition, there are other technological measures and practices capable of assisting America and other global nations in combating the counterfeit crimes. Motivated by these facts, the following formal report outlines the ways through whic h existing/inexpensive technologies and practices can be employed in an effort to reduce the loss in consumer confidence that counterfeiting oftentimes induces. Even though the presented formal report will not have the effect of slowing or stopping counterfeiting, if implemented, it will have the effect of weakening the previously mentioned negative effects that counterfeiting wreaks on local businesses, individuals, and consumer confidence. In a bid to attain this objective, the following report provides background, purposes, scope, methodology, problem, solution, conclusions, and recommendations based on previous or secondary sources. Background Rise in counterfeiting

Fianancial reporting and analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Fianancial reporting and analysis - Essay Example In 2011, the international accounting standard board revised the existing financial standards, and issued a new set of standard for purposes of reflecting the changes in global business practices, economies of the world, and markets. The new rules are, consolidated financial statement (IFRS 10), joint arrangements (IFRS 11), disclosure of interests other entities (IFRS 12), separate financial statements (IAS 27), and revised associates and joint ventures (IAS 28). The consolidated financial statement (IFRS 10) was created for purposes of outlining the presentations of a consolidated financial statement. This rule requires business organizations to consolidate the entities that are under their control, and this includes giving them the rights of variable returns, and the capability of affecting the returns acquired over an investee (ACCA, 2012). On this basis therefore, the rule was created to institute the values that will guide the preparation of consolidated financial statements wh en one business organization controls one or more business organizations (ACCA study text, 2011). This rule was created for purposes of defining the concept of control of a business entity, and as a basis of consolidation. It establishes the principles of identifying whether an investor has some level of control over an investee, and therefore consolidating the investee (ACCA, 2012). This standard has the following key requirements; 1. It requires business organizations that have an interest in other business organizations to conduct an assessment in order to determine whether control exists or not. 2. In order for a business organization to control another business organization, the following characteristics must be present, rights to the benefits of variable returns because of the involvement of the business entity with the investee, authority over the investee, the ability to influence the investee for purposes of benefiting the investor. 3. An investor must have substantive righ ts for purposes of giving him control of an investee and legitimacy to control some affairs of the organization. Joint arrangements on the other hand outline the accounting procedures that business organization that jointly control an entity ought to follow. There must be a contractual agreement that denotes the control of an entity by the business organizations in question. Media (2011) denotes that joint arrangements are of two types, namely joint operations, and ventures. In a joint venture, net assets and equity are accounted for, while in a joint operation, accountant’s factor in the obligation of liability, and right to access the assets by the business organization under collaboration (ACCA study text, 2011). On this basis therefore, the International Accounting Board established this standards for purposes of determining the nature of a joint arrangement business organizations engage in. This is to enable stakeholders gain the capability of analyzing the rights and ob ligations of these business entities under the joint arrangement. For a joint arrangement to exist, the following are the main requirements (Gray and Manson, 2012); 1. There must be prove of control of the organization by the business entity involved. 2. The concept of unanimous consent must be present, and this

Nationalism and Political Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nationalism and Political Economy - Essay Example Corporations that were led by large financial companies. Lenin’s theory shows that the two developments are intrinsically linked since the concentration of capital created inequality where the general population could not absorb the commodities achieve by the high level of productive capacity. From this premise, capitalist class controls the nation politically since Lenin theorized that Finance capital, which is the dominant form of capital, is useful to state machinery in colonizing the surrounding. Though he showed that this strategy could function in the short-term, Lenin showed that in the long-term it would weaken imperialism as well as capitalism. In an inquiry of imperialism, the engagements of capitalist nations play an indispensable role and are practically an axiom of Marxist theory that nations act to defend welfares of the governing people. There are many statements to this effect in Marx’s writing even though he offered little-detailed analysis in support, however; he managed to show that states act to preserve the broad outlines of the social system since the ruling class is well organized in defending its interests. Moreover, high-level personnel of the nation like politicians has â€Å"clear interest in preserving the existing state organization† (Hobson 153); however, this dominant mode can only result in â€Å"chaos and economic regression† (Marx & Friedrich 15) in the absence of an affirmative alternative (Lenin 96; Schumpeter 105-110). Scholars of political economy regardless of whether they are liberals, Marxists or institutionalists mostly assume questions of national identity to be marginal in the understanding of changing economic structures. Therefore, the neglect between of the relationship between national identity and political economy, which is unfortunate since it, leaves central features of transformation unexamined. Economic nationalism can be comprehended in terms of relationships that links national identity to political economy; thus, this approach focuses on nation and understanding of the national identity as being rooted in the nation’s political economy (Polanyi 28). Thus, I believe there is need to examine economic nationalism as a form of local political struggle since it links an understanding of national identity to certain economic prescriptions. Friedrich in his national system of political economy he considers that political economy in international commerce has drawn lessons from experiences where the measures taken have to be appropriate for the people. Loyalties in nations arise since there is no monopoly because internal competition comes in place of foreign competition ad each individual in the country has the privilege of obtaining a share of the advantages a nation offers to its citizens moreover, loyalties for nations arise from good systems of protection.  

Fianancial reporting and analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Fianancial reporting and analysis - Essay Example In 2011, the international accounting standard board revised the existing financial standards, and issued a new set of standard for purposes of reflecting the changes in global business practices, economies of the world, and markets. The new rules are, consolidated financial statement (IFRS 10), joint arrangements (IFRS 11), disclosure of interests other entities (IFRS 12), separate financial statements (IAS 27), and revised associates and joint ventures (IAS 28). The consolidated financial statement (IFRS 10) was created for purposes of outlining the presentations of a consolidated financial statement. This rule requires business organizations to consolidate the entities that are under their control, and this includes giving them the rights of variable returns, and the capability of affecting the returns acquired over an investee (ACCA, 2012). On this basis therefore, the rule was created to institute the values that will guide the preparation of consolidated financial statements wh en one business organization controls one or more business organizations (ACCA study text, 2011). This rule was created for purposes of defining the concept of control of a business entity, and as a basis of consolidation. It establishes the principles of identifying whether an investor has some level of control over an investee, and therefore consolidating the investee (ACCA, 2012). This standard has the following key requirements; 1. It requires business organizations that have an interest in other business organizations to conduct an assessment in order to determine whether control exists or not. 2. In order for a business organization to control another business organization, the following characteristics must be present, rights to the benefits of variable returns because of the involvement of the business entity with the investee, authority over the investee, the ability to influence the investee for purposes of benefiting the investor. 3. An investor must have substantive righ ts for purposes of giving him control of an investee and legitimacy to control some affairs of the organization. Joint arrangements on the other hand outline the accounting procedures that business organization that jointly control an entity ought to follow. There must be a contractual agreement that denotes the control of an entity by the business organizations in question. Media (2011) denotes that joint arrangements are of two types, namely joint operations, and ventures. In a joint venture, net assets and equity are accounted for, while in a joint operation, accountant’s factor in the obligation of liability, and right to access the assets by the business organization under collaboration (ACCA study text, 2011). On this basis therefore, the International Accounting Board established this standards for purposes of determining the nature of a joint arrangement business organizations engage in. This is to enable stakeholders gain the capability of analyzing the rights and ob ligations of these business entities under the joint arrangement. For a joint arrangement to exist, the following are the main requirements (Gray and Manson, 2012); 1. There must be prove of control of the organization by the business entity involved. 2. The concept of unanimous consent must be present, and this

Business Ethics Current Event Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Business Ethics Current Event - Article Example ng the extent and nature of wrongdoing, anonymous incident reporting, assessment of social media reputation, employee surveys, group discussion, tone of management communication, exit interviews, facility interviews, customer complaints, and interviews and focus groups. Tone at the top creates the basis for a culture that motivates confidence and trust among all the key stakeholders of the company (Epps, 2012). The information from the event is related to what was discussed in the class. Strategic management of individuals at the top is crucial for the success of the company. When measuring performance, the top management should be able to distinguish between the different divisions of a company. It is important to note that managers usually perform well despite the poor performance of a business unit due to factors that beyond the control of the manager (Maher, Stickney, and Weil, 2012). Legal and ethical compliance is crucial in developing the social responsibility image of the company. Legal compliance entails the extent to which the company conforms to a number of laws such as the state, federal, local, and international laws. On the other hand, ethical compliance relates to the level to which the members of the company follow the general legal and ethical standards of behavior (Griffin, 2011). In conclusion, the tone of the top management is important in determining company’s success. It also determines how the company complies with various programs. Thus, it is important to develop ways through the tone at the top can be assessed. As stated before, the compliance professionals can assist each other in evaluating the tone at the top through various methods. For instance, methods such as anonymous incident reporting, assessment of social media reputation, employee surveys, group discussion, tone of management communication, and exit interviews. Thus, the information from the event is related to some of the topics discussed in the class such as strategic top

Evangelism Paper Essay Example for Free

Evangelism Paper Essay Over the last few months one has to mention an undeniable fact: the church of tomorrow must be reached different than the church of yesterday. Through readings, lectures, and field trips, it has become evident that something different must begin to take place if the church is going to be able to reach the present and future generations. We must become creative in our evangelism if we wish to reach this culture. It is essential to be up to date technologically and even socially. A pastor who falls behind in the social atmosphere around him will lose touch with his or her people. If we are to reach these people as individuals, the pastor cannot be expected to â€Å"do all the work.† â€Å"A clerical ministry will not penetrate this age, but the priesthood of all believers can† (Maddix). That is, we must teach the laity of the church to reach out spiritually and socially to their neighbors, friends, and especially each other. According to Bonhoeffer, the meaning of the statement â€Å"Christianity means community through Jesus Christ and in Jesus Christ. No Christian community is more or less than this†¦we belong to one another only through and in Jesus Christ† is threefold: â€Å"first, that a Christian needs others because of Jesus Christ†¦second, that a Christian comes to others only through Jesus Christ†¦third, that in Jesus Christ we have been chosen from eternity, accepted in time, and united for eternity† (21). The transformation of members into ministers will spark great growth within the church. In the midst of this, it is essential to remain biblical. The Scripture must always be taken seriously, never downplayed, in an effort to reach someone. We must recognize that we are a body of believers and that, according to Wesley, there is no such thing as solitary religion. Whether Christ is the first thing out of our mouth or not, we must be passionate about Christ before we will be able to reach these generations. We can become passionate by focusing on Christ and focusing on those who are not yet followers of Christ. A passion for the lost is essential in evangelism. Two of my closest friends had not been saved, and my heart felt great pain and anguish knowing that if everything ended right then, I would be without them for eternity, and more importantly, they without God. We must also focus on sin, not avoiding it so as to attract people. A seeker sensitive church will die if sin in not recognized. Evangelistic decisions are the most powerful catalyst for change and growth in a church and pastor. As such, we should know our purpose as a church and embrace it. I will focus on st pauls lutheran church. In tandem with many other churches, St. Pauls indeed has an official membership list that includes many people who have left the congregation. However, around 75 adults have attended or made a contribution to some extent to St. Pauls over the past year, along with 12 children and 3 teenagers. Pastor Nadines yearly salary is $15,500. If we are to create a church, we must begin with a strong foundation. According to Rick Warren, â€Å"If you want to build a healthy, strong, and growing church you must spend time laying a solid foundation. This done by clarifying in the minds of everyone involved exactly why the church exists and what it is supposed to do† (86). First, a clear purpose builds moral. The moral of a church will be much higher if they know why they exist. Second, a clear purpose reduces much frustration. We are helped to put aside the petty things and recognize what we are not seeking to do. A clear purpose within a church allows for concentration. The more focus a church has, the higher impact it will have on the people around it. If focus is lost, therefore, the impact of the church will be negligible. It is also vital not to flood the church calendar. The goal of the church is not to overwhelm its people, but to quench them. Tradition should never stand above excellence within the church. If an event or tradition is now failing, it should probably be removed. Chances are that new traditions could be started that could have a much great impact on both the church and the people in the neighboring areas. Programs should never be started if they do not run in line with the purpose of the church. So, just because a program may seem to be well-intentioned and may even have well affects on the church, that doesn’t mean those affects are furthering the purpose of the church. Serious setbacks could occur in this manner. When beginning new ministries within the church, the pastor or initiator of the idea must not stand alone in developing it. At this point delegations need to be made to people who are trustworthy and effective. They must know their duties or the ministry will fail. A clear purpose also attracts cooperation. We must make sure members understand the purpose of the church so they can be comfortable with what is being taught and what ministries are taking place. Someone who is out of touch with the purpose of the church may begin to feel excluded and angry that things are not going as they â€Å"should.† Some people may transfer to a church with a set purpose and have their own ideas about ways things should be done based on their past experiences. These people must not be part of the decision making processes of the church in terms of its purpose. As the rest of the congregation has already committed to the purpose, changing it now would be quite unhealthy for the church. Finally, having a clear purpose for the church makes it easier to evaluate the growth and success of the church. With clear goals having been set, it is easy to look and see what has and has not been accomplished (Maddix,). Once these purposes are established, it is important to organize around them. In doing so, there are five basic purpose-driven church types as outlined in lecture. First is the Soul Winning Church. The pastor is the evangelist and the primary goal is reaching the lost. Second is the Experiencing God Church. This church focuses on experiencing the presence and power of God in worship. The third type is the Family Reunion Church. The primary focus here is fellowship. The pastor is usually very relational, loving and spending time with his people. The next type is the Classroom Church. Here the pastor is primarily a teacher. The sermons will almost always include taking notes. I would place most of the Nazarene churches I have attended in this category primarily. The final type is the Social Conscience Church. The pastor is seen as a prophet or reformer. The church is primarily concerned with changing society- â€Å"doers of the Word.† With all of these available, it becomes essential to produce a good balance. These purposes must still be applied further. We should work to constantly be working to assimilate newcomers if we wish to keep them as a part of the church. To do this the church must be prepared for newcomers with its Greeter/Usher ministry as well as its care ministries team. A follow-up on newcomers almost always lets them know that they were noticed and are cared about. At least a few contacts should be made in the first week whether from the pastor directly or from care team members. The programs within the church must be relevant to the purpose of the church, as stated before. Programs should be servants to the purpose. Also reiterated, is that the people must be educated as to the purpose of the church. If people know the purpose, they will begin to live according to the purpose as evangelists, worshipers, disciples and ministers. Small groups have become on the most successful ways of reaching out to the present generations. These groups can be seeker groups which meet away from the church in a home or for an activity. The purpose of seeker groups is develop relationship with the lost. Disciple/Growth groups are great for Christians of all maturity levels, but especially for the new Christian. Support groups such as prison ministries, divorce, alcohol and drug recovery groups are widely accepted and appreciated by the community, helping others and their families. If at all possible, staff should be built around people from within the church. Anyone brought in must be extremely likable and hold a similar missional view for the church. There should be mission teams, music teams, membership teams, maturity team, and ministry teams as part of the church. With each owning a specific purpose within the church, no single one is being emphasize, and no one is being left out. The pastor should preach according to the purpose of the church. This should be how the church grows to accept and believe in its purpose. The priorities of a church are easily seen through its budget and calendar. The budget should be scheduled wisely and in ways that directly impact the purposes of the church. The purposes of the church must also show up on the calendar. If they are not there, they will not succeed. Finally we should evaluate our church purposefully. Our standards should be set on how well we achieve our purposes. It is also quite important to recognize the significance of vision for the church. Vision is defined as â€Å"my understanding of what God wants done in the place where he has placed me.† If the vision of the pastor is not accepted by the majority of the congregation, it should probably be reevaluated. In some cases the church itself may be quite ill and not really understand what it needs. A slow movement in the direction is the only way to help such churches turn themselves around. Without a vision, the church has nothing to aspire to. As Proverbs 29:18 says, â€Å"Where there is no vision the people perish.† A can be worn down over time if it lacks vision. Specific goals set for the church keep members active in their faith and daily activities. Vision, like purpose, must be passed on to the congregation through passionate messages from the pastor. Such vision must also inspire the pastor to live accordingly as an example for his congregation. If the people don’t know or understand the vision of the church and the pastor, then the pastor isn’t doing a well enough job communicating it. Vision must not attempt to go beyond the reasonable means of the church. The gifts and talents of the pastor and the congregation limit the vision of a church. This factor of vision is just the first of nine factors that are nearly always present in growing churches. The second factor is evangelism. Because God intends his church to grow, all members of the church body are to be evangelists. Congregation must acknowledge that they have to go outside to evangelize, not sit comfortably within the walls of the church. Thirdly is the maturation factor. The church must develop leaders through the maturing of their faith. Fourth is the worship factor. People must know that worship is key to our faith, for we were created to worship God. Sjogren’s Power Principle #7 states that your style is not the key to success, so although your church will be identified by your worship style, God comes into your midst, not because of worship style, but because hearts are hungry for the presence of God. Fifth is the preaching factor. Preaching must be done in a way that leads the congregation to understand the faith of the pastor. Television and computers have changed the way people expect to be informed at church. According to Rainer, the unchurched want a pastor who is â€Å"real† and is a person of conviction; they want a good communicator and a good leader. Furthermore, they want to hear preaching that teaches the Bible and applies to their own individual lives.† Leadership, giving, mission, and the birthing of new ideas finish of the list of factors for church growth. Leaders must be strong and confident, giving must be done sacrificially, and people must have a world view of missions. Turning attendees in members into ministers is the encompassing purpose in a church’s discipleship program. If members can be made who possess a serious passion for the lost, then a church is well-on its way to long-term success. In our recent trip to the Seattle area, we experienced several churches which had great outreach success. Mars Hill church was by far the most successful. It was obvious because of the size of the church (running c.500), as well as the specific focus and outreach. With hundreds of small groups and a target audience of 16-35, Mars Hill represents a successful outreaching church. Other churches showed their weaknesses within pastoral staff and mixed traditions as compared to the vision and purpose of the church. Bibliography Hunter, George G. III. The Celtic Way of Evagelism. 2000, Abington Press, Nashville, Maddix, Mark. Class Lectures, Spring 2005. Northwest Nazarene University, Nampa, McLaren, Brian D. More Ready Than You Realize. 2002, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, . Warren, Rick. Purpose Driven Church. 1995, Nelson Books, Nashville, TN.

Effect of Mutant EDA-A1 Gene on Huvecs

Effect of Mutant EDA-A1 Gene on Huvecs Effect of EDA-A1 gene mutant on proliferation and cell cycle distribution of cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cell Running title: The effect of mutant EDA-A1 gene on HUVECs. Ke Lei, MM; Lunchang Wang, MD; Bing Ma, MM; Ping Shi, MD; Longjiang Li, MD; Tuanjie Che, MD; Xiangyi He, MD Highlights: EDA-A1 gene mutant significantly decreased proliferation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). HUVECs of mutant group were blocked at G0/G1 and S phase. HUVECs of wild group accumulated in S phase and decreased in G2/M phase. Abstract Background: To investigate the effect of ectodysplasin A gene (EDA-A1) on proliferation and cell cycle of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) and explore the possible mechanism underlying this process. Methods: Recombinant eukaryotic expression vectors pcDNA3.1(-)-EDA-A1-M/W (mutant, M; wild, W) containing the coding sequence of EDA-A1-M/W were transfected into HUVECs. EDA-A1-M/W genes were amplified by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and the proteins were detected by western blot. Then MTT assay for cell proliferation of HUVECs in each group was performed and cell cycle was detected using flow cytometry. Results: The EDA-A1 gene and protein were detected respectively by RT-PCR and western blot in HUVECs transfected with pcDNA3.1(-)-EDA-A1-M/W, but not in HUVECs transfected with empty plasmid pcDNA3.1(-) (control group) and cells without transfection. Compared with control group, EDA-A1 gene mutant significantly decreased proliferation of HUVECs and the inhibition rate was 45.70% (PEDA-A1 gene did not cause such growth inhibition (P>0.05). A significant increase of the G0/G1 and S fraction was seen in the HUVECs of mutant group, compared with wild group with an accumulation in S phase and a concomitant decrease in G2/M phase population (P Conclusion: Compared with the wide-type, the mutant EDA-A1 gene could inhibit the proliferation and cell cycle of the HUVEC. Key words: EDA-A1 gene; Mutant; Human umbilical vein endothelial cell; Cell cycle; Proliferation Introduction Hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia (HED), also called anhidrotic ectodermal dysplasia (AED) or Christ-Siemens-Touraine Syndrome, is a kind of X-linked recessive genetic disease (XLHED) (1). HED is a rare congenital genetic disorder with a birth incidence of 1/100,000-1/10,000 (2, 3). It is characterized by the diminution or absence of eccrine sweat glands, oligodontia and peg shaped teeth and sparse hair (1, 4). Previous study indicates that XLHED is caused by the ectodysplasin A gene (EDA-A1) mutant (5). EDA-A1, a major causative gene of HED, locates in Xq12-13.1 and encodes a novel tumor necrosis factor (TNF) ligand family protein ectodysplasin A (EDA-A1) and this protein is associated with the nuclear factor-ÃŽ ºB (NF-ÃŽ ºB) signaling mechanisms (5-9). Bayes M et al. (10) indicates that the full-length of EDA-A1 is 5296bp (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/, AH007059, Gene ID 4007891), the open reading frame (ORF) of EDA-A1 is 1176bp, and it encoding the protein with 391 amino acids (EDA-A1, GeneID1896). Studies showed the combination of EDA-A1 and ectodysplasin receptor (EDAR) could promote programmed cell death and active the signaling of NF-ÃŽ ºB (8, 11). Recently, the related research on HED are mostly for mutation analysis of EDA-A1, and more than 100 mutations in the EDA gene have been reported to cause XLHED up to now (12, 13). However, there have few reports relating to the function of mutant EDA-A1, and the exact pathological mechanism of mutant EDA-A1 on HED is still unclear. In the present study, EDA-A1 mutant (pcDNA3.1 (-)-EDA-A1-M) and wild type (pcDNA3.1(-)-EDA-A1-W) eukaryotic expression vector that we used were constructed in our previous study (14). Then the function of transfected EDA-A1 and its mutant for cell proliferation and cell cycle of HUVECs were analyzed. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of EDA-A1 on proliferation and cell cycle of HUVECs and explore the possible mechanism underlying this process. Material and Method Cell culture HUVECs were kindly provided by professor Wang chunming (Lanzhou University, China). HUVECs were cultured in RPMI-1640 (Huamei Company, Shanghai, China) Medium. The medium were consisted of 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS) (Evergreen Company, Hangzhou) and 100U/ml penicillin/streptomycin. All these cells were maintained in humidified incubator of 5% CO2 at 37à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ (0.25% trypsin digestion overnight). Inverted microscope was used for the cell morphology investigation. All the experiments were performed at least in triplicate and repeated at least twice. Plasmid extraction EDA-A1 mutant (pcDNA3.1(-)-EDA-A1-M) and wild type (pcDNA3.1 (-)-EDA-A1-W) eukaryotic expression vector that we used were constructed in our previous study (14). Totally 3ÃŽ ¼l mutant (M) and Wild-type (W) plasmid DNA was extracted respectively from transfected HUVECs, followed by the sterile deionized water diluted to 1ml. The values of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬ ¹A260nm and A280nm were measured by UV spectrophotometer. Plasmid DNA concentration (ÃŽ ¼g / ÃŽ ¼l) = A260 Ãâ€" dilution factor Ãâ€" 50/1000. The plasmid DNA (positive recombinants and empty control) was precipitated by ethanol. Then the DNA pellet was resuspended in sterile deionized water. Cell transfection Cell transfection was carried out according to the instructions of QIAGEN-Effectene Transfection Reagent Kit (QIAGEN). Transfection was carried out when the cell density was up to 70% after 24 hour-cell passaging. Cells were transferred into a complete medium (CM) 2 hours before transfection. Totally 2.5 µg mutant (M) and Wild-type (W) plasmid DNA was slowly added to the 2 M CaCl2 solution (stand for 10 minutes). DNA-CaCl2 solution was slowly added dropwise to the 2 Ãâ€" HeBS (stand for 30 minutes) until the precipitation of tiny particles. The precipitate was uniformly dropwise added to the culture flasks. After a 12 hours growth under standard conditions, cells were washed 2 times with HeBS, followed by the cultured in CM. HUVECs transfected with empty vector were used as the control group. Semi-quantitative real-time PCR To identify the expression levels of EDA-A1 in HUVECs, semi-quantitative real-time PCR (SqRT-PCR) analysis was performed. Total RNA was extracted from cultured cells in each group (cultured for 48 hours) by using reverse transcription (RT) kit (Fermentas Company), followed by the EDA-A1 primers designation (Primer Premier 5.0 software) and synthesis (Shanghai Biological Engineering Company ). The primers used were as follows, EDA-A1 (408bp): 5’- CGC AGG ATC CAT GGG CTA CCC GGA GGT -3’ (forward) and 5’- ATT AAG CTT GCC AAG CGG GCA CCA GGG AGA C -3’ (reverse), ÃŽ ²-actin (230bp): 5’- ACG CAT TTG GTC GTA TTG GG-3’ (forward) and 5’- TGA TTT TGG AGG GAT CTC GC-3’ (reverse). The 50ÃŽ ¼l PCR reaction system were: cDNA template (2ÃŽ ¼l), 10 Ãâ€" PCR Buffer (5ÃŽ ¼l), dNTP (1ÃŽ ¼l), primer (up and downstream, 1ÃŽ ¼l), Taq DNA polymerase (1ÃŽ ¼l), ddH2O (39ÃŽ ¼l). Products were subjected to electrophoresis (1.5% agarose gel, 120V, 90mA). Western blot analysis For Western blot analysis, proteins were extracted from HUVECs in each group. Proteins were collected after cell lysis. Protein concentration was determined using the Bradford dye-binding method (15). The proteins were separated by SDS-PAGE and transferred to the 0.45ÃŽ ¼m pore size nitrocellulose (NC) membrane (RPN303E, Amersham Company). NC membranes were blocked with TBS buffer (5% milk and 0.5%-Tween) for 1 hour (37 °C). Then, the membrane was incubated overnight at 4à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™ with the rabbit antibodies EDA-A1 and ÃŽ ²-actin (1:200 dilution with TBST solution), followed by incubation at room temperature for 1h with an anti-rabbit secondary antibody (Sigma). Finally, the expression levels of the target proteins were visualized withchromogenic substrate. MTT assay for cell proliferation detection To determine the proliferation of HUVECs in each group, the 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-Diphenyltetrazolium Bromide (MTT) assay was performed. The 24 hours-transfected and untransfected cells were seeded into 96-well plate with inculation density of 5000 cells/well and incubated at 37à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™. After 12 hours, 100 ÃŽ ¼l serum-free DMEM was added in each well. After 72 hours, 20 ÃŽ ¼l MTT was added into each well to continue incubation at 37à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™(4 hours). Then, the medium was removed and the precipitation was dissolved in DMSO. The absorbance at 560 nm was measured by SpectraMax 190 microplate reader (Moteular Devices Company) for colorimetric analysis. Inhibition rate of cell growth was calculated (n=10) based on the experimentally measured absorbance value (OD value). Cell cycle analysis Flow cytometry was used to detect the cell cycle.After incubation for 48 h, the cells were collected and washed with cold PBS. The washed cells were fixed in 70% cold ethanol with incubation overnight at 4à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã†â€™. To stain the cells, prodium iodide (PI) solution was added. Flow cytometer (Coulter Epics XL, Beckman Coulter Company) was used to analyze the samples. Cell Quest software was used to analyze the cell percentage of G0 / G1 phase, S phase, and G2 / M phase. Statistical analysis All assays were performed in triplicate and datawere expressed as mean values  ±s.d. The SPSS 13.0 software employing ANOVA was used to analyze all data which expressed as mean ±SD. P values less than 0.05 was considered as significantly different. Results EDA-A1 expression pattern in HUVECs influenced by plasmid-mediated transfection To identify the expression level of ED1-A1 in HUVECs transfected with vector pcDNA3.1(-)-EDA-A1-M or pcDNA3.1(-)-EDA-A1-W, the RNA samples with an OD260/OD280 ration of 1.8-2.0 were chosen for RT-PCR. The HUVECs with pcDNA3.1(-)-EDA-A1-M or pcDNA3.1(-)-EDA-A1-W transfection showed a band nearly 400 bp compared with control using semi-quantitative PCR and primers specific to EDA-A1 (Figure 1). Additionally, ÃŽ ²-actin band between 200 bp and 300 bp have been seen in all the groups. Then, EDA-A1 protein expression in HUVECs were detected by western blot. Figure 1 shows that the EDA-A1 protein was expressed in the transfected cells with pcDNA3.1(-)-EDA-A1-M or pcDNA3.1(-)-EDA-A1-W vector, however, it could not be achieved in control group. In conclusion, the EDA-A1 was expressed in HUVECs after exogenous delivered of EDA-A1, but not in the un-treated control cells. Overexpression of EDA-A1 affects HUVECs proliferation To elucidate the effect of EDA-A1 on HUVECs proliferation, the MTT assays were performed. As shown in Figure 2, the HUVECs viability at 96 h transfection was decreased significantly in the mutant group by comparison with wild type and control. The proliferation of mutant group cells was suppressed by 45.7% compaired to control, while the wild type group was suppressed by 16.0% (Table 1, Figure 3). EDA-A1 overexpression regulates the cell cycle of HUVECs To determine the role of plasmid-mediated EDA-A1 transfection in cell cycle of HUVECs, the flow cytometry was used (Figure 4). We observed that 25.45  ± 1.89 % cells were arrested at G0/G1 phase of cell cycle in the mutant group compared with 20.37  ± 0.6% and 20.30  ± 0.68% cells in wild type and control groups, respectively (Table 2). During S phase, both mutant and wild type groups showed significantly higher cell percentages (14.80  ± 1.45% and 12.4 0  ± 1.75%) than that of control (8.55  ± 0.57%). However, both transfection groups had lower cell percentages than control in G2/M phase. The lowest cell percentage with 62.15  ± 1.94% was showed in the mutant group during S phase. We could conclude that the cell cycle distribution in G0/G1, S, and G2/M of HUVECs were regulated by EDA-A1 overexpression. Discussion HED characterized by impaired development of hair, eccrine sweat glands and teeth is caused by mutations in the EDA-A1 gene (3, 16). Recently, the related research on HED are focused on the mutation analysis of EDA-A1, however, the exact pathological mechanism of HED caused by mutant EDA-A1 is still unclear (17). In this study, we investigated the effect of HED related gene EDA-A1 on proliferation and cell cycle of HUVECs. The results showed that mutant EDA-A1 gene significantly decreased proliferation of HUVECs (P EDA-A1 protein, a type à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã‚ ¡ transmembrane protein, is one of the TNF ligand family members involved in ectodermal development (18). EDA-A1 contains a TNF-like domain (aa: 245–391), a collagen domain, and a furin protease recognition sequence (7, 8, 19-21). The TNF-like domain is necessary and sufficient for receptor molecule EDAR binding (22, 23). Furthermore, EDA-A1 has been shown to specifically bind to EDAR, which could promote programmed cell death and active the signaling of NF-ÃŽ ºB (8, 11). In our study, the reason why EDA-A1 mutant could inhibit the proliferation and block the cell cycle progression in G0/G1 phase and S phase of HUVECs might be the change of protein spatial configuration and biological activity that caused by the EDA-A1 gene mutation and the changed protein could not combined with EDAR and thus inhibit the signaling of NF-ÃŽ ºB. Maria et al. found that HED was related with the blocked signaling pathway of NF-ÃŽ ºB (9). Pascal et al. found th at point mutations in the TNF-like domain of EDA-A1 strongly decreased EDAR binding to EDA-A1 by altering the folding of EDA (21). Moreover, the substitution of Gln306 with Pro in our study was found to be located in the TNF-like domain of EDA-A1 and may influence the epithelial signaling pathway required for the normal ectodermal development through altering the topology of EDA, which is consistent with previous study. HUVECs are cells derived from the endothelium of veins from the umbilical cord, and they are often used as a laboratory model system for the study of the function and pathology of endothelial cells (24). Some studies showed that during vascular development and pathological angiogenesis, the maintenance of blood vessel homeostasis and its functional execution depend on the integrity of vascular endothelium, which is affected by proliferation, migration and apoptosis of endothelial cells (25, 26). Furthermore, Jie et al. showed that recovery of injured endothelial cells through regulated endothelial cell proliferation plays significant roles in thrombosis disease (27). In our study, mutant EDA-A1 decreased the proliferation of HUVECs, therefore, we suspected that pathological mechanism underlying HED caused by EDA-A1 may be the growth inhibit of endothelial cells which could lead to the defection of eccrine sweat glandsis. Despite of all results mentioned above, there were still some l imitations in the present study, whether the EDA-A1 mutant blocked the combination of EDA-A1 with EDAR required further experiment. In conclusion, our study revealed EDA-A1 gene mutant could inhibit the proliferation and cell cycle of HUVECs. We explored the mechanism of HED caused by mutant EDA-A1. The substitution of Gln306 with Pro may influence the epithelial signaling pathway required for the normal ectodermal development through altering the topology of EDA, which could impair the binding of EDA-A1 to EDAR and further inhibit the signaling of NF-ÃŽ ºB. Our finding broadens the spectrum of EDA-A1 mutations and may help to understand the molecular basis of XLHED and aid genetic counseling. Acknowledgements We wish to express our warm thanks to Fenghe(Shanghai) Information Technology Co., Ltd. Their ideas and help gave a valuable added dimension to our research. Conflict of interest The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. Authors’ contributions KL and LW participated in the design of this study, and they both performed the statistical analysis. BM and TC carried out the study, together with PS, collected important background information, and drafted the manuscript. LL and XH conceived of this study, and participated in the design and helped to draft the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Figure legends: Figure 1 Detection of mRNA expression of EDA-A1gene in ECV304 cells by RT-PCR: M: mutant group; W: wild group; C: control group. Figure 2 Expression of ECV304 cells transfected with EDA-A1 gene and mutant: M: mutant group; W: wild group; C: control group. Figure 3 OD560 value of ECV304 cells transfected with EDA-A1 gene after cultured for 96h: M: mutant group; W: wild group; C: control group; a: compared with the control group, P Figure 4 The effect of EDA-A1 gene mutant on cell cycle in ECV304 cells. Table 1 OD560 value of ECV cells transfected with EDA-A1 gene after cultured for 96h Note: a: compared with control group, P Table 2 Effect of EDA-A1 gene mutant on cell cycle in ECV304 cells Note: a: compared with control group, P

Essay --

In the case against the topic statement, the first area we are going to be looking at is regards to the â€Å"White Hats†. White Hat is a term that was originally used to describe some on sound moral character. Today it used to describe a special kind of hacker, that uses their skill set in order to expose weakness in a system with intent of having them fixed. ggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg gggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggggg...

Walmart Essay -- GCSE Business Marketing Coursework

Walmart History: Beginning to Today Wal-Mart is a general merchandise discount retailer, which was incorporated in 1962. Wal-Mart’s history is based on one man, Sam Walton, who changed the course of retailing forever. Sam Walton first entered retailing when he was a management trainee at J.C. Penny Co. in 1940 in Des Moines, Iowa. After serving in the Army in World War II, Walton acquired a Ben Franklin variety store franchise with his brother James Walton in Newport Arkansas, until they lost the lease to the store in 1950. By 1962, when the first Wal-Mart Discount City was opened in Rogers Arkansas, both Walton’s were operating fifteen stores under the â€Å"Walton 5 & 10† name, and were the largest Ben Franklin franchisee in the country. Limited pricing, low gross margins, and high inventory turnover characterized these stores. Walton phased out the stores in 1976 in order to focus on the emerging Wal-Mart stores. In 1978, the first distribution center was built, followed by the first Wal-Ma rt Supercenter in 1983 and a Sam’s Club in 1988. Important to Walton, and ultimately Wal-Mart, are certain philosophies that were amounted over time. Walton held these values tightly, and engrained them in the Wal-Mart cultures. From his experience at J.C. Penny Co. he was impressed with the philosophies they used (e.g. â€Å"The Penny Idea†) and used them to mold Wal-Mart. This included referring to employees as â€Å"associates†, serving the public to their complete satisfaction, and receiving a fair profit from services rendered. Walton’s theory on what Wal-Mart should be is â€Å"a conveniently located one-stop shopping unit where customers could buy a wide variety of quality merchandise at discount prices.† And as Wal-Mart grew, management sought a firm that was a â€Å"discount department store chain offering a wide variety of general merchandise to the customer.† It was on these values and philosophies that Wal-Mart expanded. Wal-Mart has grown above and beyond the Arkansas store that opened thirty-nine years ago. It serves more than 100 million customers weekly in all of the 50 states, plus Puerto Rico, Canada, China, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, United Kingdom, Argentina, and South Korea. Wal-Mart’s current operating numbers are: Wal-Mart Stores 1,736 SuperCenters 888 SAM’s Clubs 475 Wal-Mart Neighbo... ...mount of inconvenience, Wal-Mart should implement more entrances and exits into different departments, such as the Garden department and the Grocery department, with signage that easily identifies what part of the store the entrances are leading too. Moving from the retail level to business relationships, Wal-Mart has extensive opportunities to expand on its distinctive competency of its distribution system. The company has strategically placed distribution centers all over the US close to its stores. This not only makes for an excellent venue to supply Wal-Marts, but other companies’ stores as well. Wal-Mart Inc. can be a competitive distributor that would service companies not in direct competition with Wal-Mart. A study should be conducted to find out which industry should be targeted for this type of venture. This is a low risk high return venture because Wal-Mart would be using facilities that the company already owns, and expansion of these facilities is already in the making. In addition, Wal-Mart has already been successful in distribution with its offspring grocery store distributor â€Å"McLean†. McLean services not only Wal-Marts, but convenience stores as well. Walmart Essay -- GCSE Business Marketing Coursework Walmart History: Beginning to Today Wal-Mart is a general merchandise discount retailer, which was incorporated in 1962. Wal-Mart’s history is based on one man, Sam Walton, who changed the course of retailing forever. Sam Walton first entered retailing when he was a management trainee at J.C. Penny Co. in 1940 in Des Moines, Iowa. After serving in the Army in World War II, Walton acquired a Ben Franklin variety store franchise with his brother James Walton in Newport Arkansas, until they lost the lease to the store in 1950. By 1962, when the first Wal-Mart Discount City was opened in Rogers Arkansas, both Walton’s were operating fifteen stores under the â€Å"Walton 5 & 10† name, and were the largest Ben Franklin franchisee in the country. Limited pricing, low gross margins, and high inventory turnover characterized these stores. Walton phased out the stores in 1976 in order to focus on the emerging Wal-Mart stores. In 1978, the first distribution center was built, followed by the first Wal-Ma rt Supercenter in 1983 and a Sam’s Club in 1988. Important to Walton, and ultimately Wal-Mart, are certain philosophies that were amounted over time. Walton held these values tightly, and engrained them in the Wal-Mart cultures. From his experience at J.C. Penny Co. he was impressed with the philosophies they used (e.g. â€Å"The Penny Idea†) and used them to mold Wal-Mart. This included referring to employees as â€Å"associates†, serving the public to their complete satisfaction, and receiving a fair profit from services rendered. Walton’s theory on what Wal-Mart should be is â€Å"a conveniently located one-stop shopping unit where customers could buy a wide variety of quality merchandise at discount prices.† And as Wal-Mart grew, management sought a firm that was a â€Å"discount department store chain offering a wide variety of general merchandise to the customer.† It was on these values and philosophies that Wal-Mart expanded. Wal-Mart has grown above and beyond the Arkansas store that opened thirty-nine years ago. It serves more than 100 million customers weekly in all of the 50 states, plus Puerto Rico, Canada, China, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, United Kingdom, Argentina, and South Korea. Wal-Mart’s current operating numbers are: Wal-Mart Stores 1,736 SuperCenters 888 SAM’s Clubs 475 Wal-Mart Neighbo... ...mount of inconvenience, Wal-Mart should implement more entrances and exits into different departments, such as the Garden department and the Grocery department, with signage that easily identifies what part of the store the entrances are leading too. Moving from the retail level to business relationships, Wal-Mart has extensive opportunities to expand on its distinctive competency of its distribution system. The company has strategically placed distribution centers all over the US close to its stores. This not only makes for an excellent venue to supply Wal-Marts, but other companies’ stores as well. Wal-Mart Inc. can be a competitive distributor that would service companies not in direct competition with Wal-Mart. A study should be conducted to find out which industry should be targeted for this type of venture. This is a low risk high return venture because Wal-Mart would be using facilities that the company already owns, and expansion of these facilities is already in the making. In addition, Wal-Mart has already been successful in distribution with its offspring grocery store distributor â€Å"McLean†. McLean services not only Wal-Marts, but convenience stores as well.

Poverty Alleviation Strategy Essay

Poverty anywhere is a threat to prosperity everywhere. It is a scrooge and one of the worst curses and miseries that a human can face. According to Homer. â€Å"This , this is misery! The last, the worst that man can feel†. Poverty can be measured either in absolute terms, for example, the number of those who cannot afford more than two pairs of shoes, or in relative terms, for example, the number of the poorest ten percent of house holds. In either sense it is a concept, which is defined arbitrarily . Poverty exists not only because incomes are low, but also because the needs of ertain low income households are high. Poverty has many dimensions, which include economic, political, social, environmental and human dimensions. In economic terms a county, a region or a household is poor when the per capita income of purchasing power of a poor country or household is below a certain minimum standard, there are low medical care and health facilities, productivity is very low and there is illiteracy. In political terms a country, a regionor a group of people are poor when they do not have a voice in the community or dependent on other more powerful groups or individuals in order to express their own rights and hoices. In social terms poverty in a country a region o a household breeds all types of socially unacceptable behaviors like drug addiction, crime, position, violence ad terrorism in a family or in a community, These factors degrade human self respect, moral and social values of the society as a whole and as a result more and more people in the community become intolerantand rude towards each other in their day to day life. In environmental dimension, poverty destroys the living environment not only of those who live in poverty but of all other human beings as well as non-human iving things that depend on the same resources and ecosystem on which those living in poverty depend and survive. People living in poverty cannot change their behaviors easily because of lack of resources, knolwledge about their own surroundings and education. Thus by destroying their own living environment, the poor in reality are destroying their own resources on which they survive in the long run. Poverty in its human dimension is the most important of all, because poor people live in conditions that are miserable, conditions in which some members of their family die of hunger, disease of famine. Poverty in tis human dimension exists, when a child is down with a curable disease and the parents have to take a decision whether to take the child to a doctor and buy expensive medicines or purchase other essentials of daily use. It exists when parents of a child sell their child into slavery or prostitutionbecause of lack of resources to feed or care for that child and when government institutes fail to protect the rights of the poor. Poverty has emerged as the most important issue for Pakistan. Poverty redressal requires economic growth accompanied by an improvement in access to social services. The reason that economic growth has failed to trickle down to the poor in Pakistan is the slow improvement in social indicators Economic growth and social sector development are interdependent as one reinforces the other. In fact economic growth is necessary for poverty reduction but poverty reduction itself is necessary for sustained growth. The estimates ot poverty are not consistent in Pakistan. According to caloric based calories per person), the incidence of poverty declined sharply from 46. 5 percent in 1969-70 to 17. 3percent in 1987-88. However , poverty increased significantly in 1990’s ising from 17. 3 percent in 1987-88 to 22. 4 percent in 1992-93 and further to 31 percent in 1996-97. The recent estimates suggest that poverty ahs further increased from 32. percent in 1998-99 to 33. 50 percent in 1999-2000. This shows that the incidence of poverty has increased in 19990’s. similar trends have been observed in the case of urban and rural poverty. The main reasons for increase in poverty during 1990’s can be attributed to the relatively lower rate of economic growth, rising unemployment, stagnant real wages, declining flow of worker’s remittances and bad overnance. In addition to the factors mentioned above the high population growth also puts pressure on the merge social services thereby causing social distress. Painting a broad picture of third world poverty is not enough. Before anyone can formulate effective policies and programmes to attack poverty at its source, one needs some specific knowledge of poverty groupsand their economic characteristics, It is not sufficient simply to focus on raising growth rates of Gross National Product in the expectation or hope that this national income growth will â€Å"trickle down† to mprove levels of living for the very poor. On the contrary many observers argue that direct attack on poverty by means of poverty focused policies and plans can be more effective and one cannot attack poverty directly without detailed knowledge of its location, extent and characteristics. National Economic development is central to success in poverty alleviation. But poverty is an outcome of more than economic processes. It is an outcome of economic, social and political processes. To attack poverty requires action at local , national and global levels. The following actions are equired to be taken y poor people, government, private sector and civil society organizations. Growth is essential for expanding economic opportunities for the poor. The question is how to achieve rapid, sustainable and pro-poor growth. A business environmental conducive to private investment and technological innovation is necessary, as is political and social stabilityto invite public and private investments. The poor should be empowered in the true sense. Empowerment means enhancing the capacity of the poor to influence the states institutions that affects their lives by trengthening their participation in political process, and local decision-making. It also means removing the barriers political, legal and social that work against particular groups and building the assets of poor people to enable them to engageeffectively in markets. Enhancing security for poor people which means reducing their vulnerability to such risks as ill health, economic shocks and natural disasters and helping them cope with adverse shocks when they occur. The ultimate cause of the unequal distribution of personal incomes in most third world countries s the unequal and highly concentrated patterns of asset ownership (wealth). The principal reason why less than 20 percent of their population receives over 50 percent of the national income is that this 20 percent probably owns ad controls over 90 percent of the productive and financial resources, especially physical capital and land but also financial capital (stock and bonds) and human capital in the form of better education. It follows that perhaps more important line of policy to reduce povertyand inequality is to focus directly on reducing the concentrated control of ssets , the unequal distribution ot power, unequal access to education and income earning opportunities. Policies to enforce progressive rates of direct taxation on income especially at the highest levels are, what are most needed in this area of redistribution activity. Unfortunately, in many developing countries the rich do not show a larger part of their income and assets. Further , they often also have the power and ability to avoid paying taxes without the fear of government. Pakistan is facing twin challenges of reviving growth and reducing poverty. This requires rapid conomic growth keeping in view the factors responsible for slow growth and rising poverty, the government has formulated a comprehensive economic revival programmed aimed at reviving economic growth and social development. The government has adopted a multi-pronged approach to promote pro-poor economic growth and reduce poverty. Engendering growth by correcting macroeconomic imbalances and stabilizing the economy has been made the central pillar of the government’s economic revival program. The government has adopted a sound macroeconomic framework aimed at both stabilizing the economy and stimulating growth. It comprises five building blocks namely tax reforms, expenditure management, prudent monetary policy, external adjustment and debt management. Implementing broad based governance reforms are essential ingredients of he government’s poverty alleviation strategy. Without governance reforms thee enormous tasks of reviving growth and reducing poverty cannot be addressed. Sagging growth and rising poverty are in partresults of the poor performance of the government institutions in Pakistan. In fact, poverty in Pakistan is not merely an outcome of economic ills but also a result of mis-governance over the past years. The main element of reforms are devolution of power at grass roots level, civil services reforms, access to Justice and financial transparency. The care principle of Pakistan’ poverty alleviation strategy is to empower the people and to create greater opportunities for increasing real income by improving access to productive assets mainly housing, land an credit. Access to credit is the surest way of empowering thepoor and improving their income generating opportunities. In addition to the already existing financial intuition, thegovernment has now established the Khushhali Bank† or â€Å"Micro Finance Bank† for the provision of micro credit to poor communities. The effects of sluggish economic growth are clearly reflected in Pakistan’s performance in the social sectors, Human development is essential for attracting investment and generating the capacity for future sustainable growth. pakistan’s progress on almost every social indictor e. g. education, health and nutrition is poor as compared with that of other developing countries. In order to address this situation, the government has prepared comprehensive human development strategies aimed at the effective utilization of the available resource s hrough improved institutional mechanisms.