Chinease theory of discovery of America Essay

There are many theories or ideas on who discovered America first. Many people believe it was Christopher Columbus, the Vikings, or in my case some believe that the Chinese arrived here before Columbus. It is believed by some people that Chinese sailors beat Columbus to America by more than 70 years. Anthropologists, archaeologists, historians and linguists have debunked or out ruled much of the evidence that has been gathered over the years to support this theory. It has been named the 1421 Theory. It is said that sometime 10,000 years ago, the people from China are believed to have crossed over the Bering land bridge from Siberia to what is now Alaska. From there, they are believed to have spread out over the course of millennia. Once they got here they started diverging genetically and populating North and South America. The problem is that the only real evidence they have is maps and some artifacts, which from carbon dating trace back to 2200 B. C. These generally have been found on the coasts of Florida, South Carolina, New York and Canada. Many people believe this theory due to evidence found, like artifacts and maps. Also many people were convinced by books written by scientists, archeologists, and historians. One of these books is 1421: The Year China Discovered America, by Gavin Menzies. It is said that he tells and describes the theory so well. I do believe that it could be possible that China arrived here before Columbus but there are many holes in the theory according to some historians. But over all I do not believe that they beat columbus to the Americas. There just isn’t enough proof and any kind of written or physical evidence to show or prove to me in any way that they were for sure here about 70 years before Christopher Columbus. So I would have to turn down this theory due to the lack of proof given. Citations â€Å"Chinese cartography: China beat Columbus to it, perhaps | The Economist. † The Economist – World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Sept. 2013. . Clark, Josh. â€Å"HowStuffWorks â€Å"Did the Chinese beat Columbus to America? â€Å". † HowStuffWorks â€Å"History†. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Sept. 2013. . Kolesnikov-Jessop, Sonia. â€Å"Did Chinese beat out Columbus? – The New York Times. † The New York Times – Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Sept. 2013. .

Johannes Vermeer’s “Woman Holding a Balance” Essay

The nationalgalleryofart.gov website features an artist by the name of Johannes Vermeer. Johannes Vermeer’s â€Å"Woman Holding a Balance† exhibit consists of that single art piece, which was created in 1664 with oil on canvas. This realistic piece of art shows a woman holding a balance, seemingly lost in her thoughts. In the background is a painting of â€Å"The Last Judgment†. Vermeer made it hard to perceive what the woman may be balancing, whether it is the gold chains and the strings of pearls that are lying on the table in front of her, or if it’s her thoughts that she is trying to balance out. That idea is up to the audience to decipher and debate. Looking at the basic characteristics determines the artist’s style. Vermeer distinctly places background lines that fade into the vanishing which happens to be the woman’s finger, which helps in balancing the painting. In another attempt to balance the painting, Vermeer placed the balance point precisely in the middle of the painting. He also makes the woman a positive shape, meaning she is at the for-front of the painting, while the work of art and jewelry are perceived as negative shapes, meaning they are in the background. Vermeer also uses light to enhance this painting. The light seems to aggrandize the woman, making her the focal point of this work. He uses different types of paints to create wool like texture of the woman’s orange dress. He understood the concepts of different colors; for example, using the lighter color orange dress under the dark blue shawl, gave him a chance to lighten the painting. The size of the painting behind the woman suggests that the woman is small, actually making everything in the work smaller than it. Implied motion is shown in the painting also, by the woman holding the balance, in the process of waiting for it to reach equality. By combining these characteristics, one can determine the style Johannes Vermeer uses in this painting. Realism is the style of this work. Because everything in this painting could have really happened in his time of the 17th century, concludes the fact that the style is realism. In this work of art, I see a pregnant woman holding a balance contemplating something. I can be certain she is holding a balance, but it is what she is balancing could be up for debate. I think she is balancing her thoughts about the future of being a new mom vs. just a wife, or maybe the thought her religion and what is to come of it. The painting of â€Å"The Last Judgment† inquires this thought process. These symbols that Vermeer uses serve to support the message being conceived as the balancing of life-what religion holds for her, and what the real world holds for her. Vermeer’s biography explains that he grew up, settled, and died in Delft. He was raised as a Protestant, but before marrying he converted to Catholicism. In the 1600’s religion was a big part of life, which supports the logic about the symbolism, and their meaning of the painting. His culture is relayed in the painting, by the clothing the woman is wearing, and the artifact she is holding. His style seemed to be realistic historical or realistic religious. This fact is also supports the idea of this painting being about religion. The art of the 17th century was â€Å"Baroque† which communicated religious themes. The Catholic Church was a big influence at this time, and seemed to encourage art relating to religion. I found that minute details in a painting can help one understand it better. The biography of the artist can help a lot also. When looking at a piece of art , one has to literally pick it apart, and then look at it all together because the smallest thing could change the meaning being portrayed. The most important information I embarked on was everyone has a different opinion of what a painting is implying, and no one is wrong. Works Cited Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a Balance, c. 1664, National Gallery of Art, Widener Collection

A Look at Vengeance as Illustrated in Edgar Allan Poe’s Story, The Cask of Amontillado

A Look at Vengeance as Illustrated in Edgar Allan Poe’s Story, The Cask of Amontillado â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado† by Edgar Allan Poe is the twisted story of Montresors revenge against Fortunato, a â€Å"friend† who insulted his family name. After luring Fortunato into his family’s catacombs with the promise of enjoying a drink of Amontillado, Montresor chains him to wall and leaves him there to die. Different aspects of Poe’s life, including his psychological tendencies and Freemasonry, influenced him to incorporate social status into â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado†. It is evident that both characteristics of Poe’s personality and values are reflected in this short story. Poe resented his social status, was full of pride, and took criticism harshly. Like Poe, Montresor also did not take jokes and criticism lightly. Fortunato’s continuous remarks about the Montresors is what ultimately lead Montresor to kill him. Fortunato made remarks about the Montresors because of their recent fall in wealth. Poe resented his more successful coworkers who had more money than him, and he made this known; he â€Å"quickly became upset by jokes made at his expense† (Giammarco). Montresor resents Fortunato’s wealth and happiness because he has fallen in social status. Montresor wants what he used to have and what Fortunato recently gained. Montresor and Fortunato both have a high sense of pride and reputation. Thus, Montresor’s fall in social status severely affects him and makes him envious of Fortunato. This envy and jealousy, caused by the differing social positions of Montresor and Fortunato, is what ultimately drives Montresor to kill Fortunato (Poe). Poe’s own personality characteristic of resenting his social status can be seen here in Montresor’s character. As the story unfolds, the audience learns that Montresor has fallen in social class, and that Fortunato is now wealthier and therefore more powerful than he. After Fortunato has a coughing fit, Montresor says â€Å"You are rich, respected, admired, beloved; you are happy, as I once was. You are a man to be missed† (Poe 327). This shows that Montresor was once wealthy and happy, like Fortunato currently is, but his fall in social status has caused him unhappiness. One of the influences on Poe plays a role Montresor still has his pride despite the fact that he has fallen in social status. He is still confident that he can trick Fortunato with the promise of Amontillado and play upon his weaknesses. This weakness, stemming from his high social status, leads to his ultimate demise. Fortunato is left to die in the catacombs, and Montresor has to live with the guilt of killing him for his reputation (Poe). Poe’s strong sense of pride is seen here in Montresor’s character. Three aspects of Poe’s character, including resenting his social status, taking criticism harshly, and having a strong sense of pride, all made their way into Montresor’s character in this short story. These characteristics of Montresor demonstrate the social status element that Poe incorporated in â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado†. Not only was Poe’s influenced by his own personal experience, he was also influenced by the heavy Freemason presence of his time period. The audience sees another aspect of social status embedded in Poe’s short story, and this is the reference to the Freemasons. In Poe’s â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado† a conversation between Montresor and Fortunato occurs over the Freemasons. ‘â€Å"You do not comprehend?† he said. â€Å"Not I,† I replied. â€Å"Then you are not of the brotherhood.† â€Å"How?† â€Å"You are not of the masons.† â€Å"Yes, yes,† I said; â€Å"yes, yes.† â€Å"You? Impossible! A mason?† (Poe 328). Fortunato, once again, insults Montresor by telling him that it is impossible that he is a Freemason. The issue of social status is evident again here, as the audience sees how Fortunato regards himself as a higher social status. This dialogue between Montresor and Fortunato held cultural significance for Poe because of the large presence of Freemasons during this time period. The dialogue that contains the reference to the Freemasons is a â€Å"contemporary Masonic political conflict† (Davis-Undiano). According to Davis-Undiano, contemporary analysis of the Freemasons in this short story is often incorrect; their cultural impact and significance vastly varied at the time the short story was written compared to present day. At the time this short story was written, there were two different kinds of Freemasons, and an ongoing conflict was occurring between them (Davis-Undiano). Since the Freemasons were an exclusive club, the idea of social status is seen further here. Fortunato considers himself of higher social status than Montresor, so when he references the Freemasons, he is insulting Montresor yet again, accusing him of being a â€Å"lesser† Freemason. The time period in which Poe wrote this story was the period in which the rift was deepening between the â€Å"elite† and â€Å"working class† Freemasons. Poe could have been demonstrating this rift in â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado† with the reference to the Freemasons between Montresor and Fortunato. The reader can see the similarities between Poe’s personality characteristics and morals in the characters in the story. These characteristics Montresor, including resenting his social status, taking criticism harshly, and having a strong sense of pride, all demonstrate Poe’s psychological tendencies in relation to social class. The Freemasons are also an integral part of the story, as they also influenced Poe and further show social status. Fortunato’s incredulous remarks about Montresor being a Freemason demonstrate their differing social statuses and the importance of the Freemasons to the story. Social status is a significant theme in Poe’s â€Å"The Cask of Amontillado† and many of his other great works.

Pragmatism 2 questions, very urgent Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Pragmatism 2 questions, very urgent - Essay Example Rorty refers to the traditional identifications of truth as â€Å"only descriptions of the world† (Fukuyama). Rorty suggests that language should not be a sign of representation. By suggesting so, Rorty essentially wants to say that people should abandon the religion, and not worship God. Instead, human conscience, language and community should be understood as a joint outcome of luck and time according to Rorty. To put it in simple words, Rorty means to negate the existence of truth altogether. By doing so, Rorty tends to evaluate a belief on the basis of its effects instead of its causes. Rorty places more emphasis upon the association of the statements’ truth with their applicability in practical terms. In this way, Rorty’s suggestion is necessarily a restoration of pragmatism. Rorty’s truth is more of a metaphor which provides solutions for troubles, resolves the issues and eases the tension. In reality, this may not be always so. In fact, in a vast ma jority of cases, people lie in order to escape temporal damage. To them, truth is devastating and demeaning. Nonetheless, the importance of truth can not be denied in any case as the ultimate effects of truth are always better than those of lie. Truth does exist and is not just an outcome of certain events. I totally disapprove of Rorty’s atheism. Explain Rorty's view of education and discuss (in detail) at least one possible objection to Rorty's view.

International Business Law Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

International Business Law - Assignment Example The overall importance of WTO is critical regarding establishing a link between trade and environment because it is the single most important document which governs the international trade. The growing debate therefore is focused upon the potential role of WTO in clearly establishing a link between global trade and environment. Prescription of different standards as well as the framework therefore is one of the key tasks which WTO has to perform in order to comprehensively establish the link between the two. This paper will discuss the linkages between trade and environment and how it has remained on of the important challenges for international business law. This paper will also discuss as to what steps by WTO during last decade to properly address this issue within the perspective of international trade. Environment and international trade Trade is considered as beneficial for the society and the economy and its liberalization can actually help any society to achieve greater econom ic resources. It is critical to understand however that with increased trade and production processes, the overall pace of economic degeneration can expedite and the results can be both negative as well as positive. Environment can be protected if cleaner technologies are implemented which involve less energy consumption besides relying more on labor intensive techniques. The environment can also be damaged because growth in production process requires more energy and raw materials and hence more environmental de-gradation can take place. There is therefore a nexus between environment and international trade and how expansion of international trade can actually result into both the protection as well as degradation of environment. (Charnovitz, 2007.) Serious efforts to actually integrate concerns for environment and international trade started during 1970s and as a result of this growing debate, an international conference in Stockholm took place to debate on the future course of de fining how international trade agreements can actually affect the businesses with significant potential to damage environment. Prior to this conference, GATT undertook a study on its own behalf to determine and explore the impact of environmental protection policies on international trade. In same year, Environmental Measures and International Trade Group was established however, it remained inactive for more than two decades and it was only in during 1992 that this group was convened by members. (Charnovitz, 2007.) Subsequent legislative efforts include Tokyo round and Uruguay round went on to establish different standards and kick started the process of integrating international trade with that of the environment protection. There was also growing concerns among developing countries regarding the export of those products which were considered as environmentally damaging with serious safety and health related issues. The overall debate was therefore based upon the argument that fre e trade has an impact on the environment and that higher levels of free trade can further result into damage to the environment. (Charnovitz, 2007.) The recent efforts however by WTO clearly outline the way the nexus between free trade and environment. Though WTO

Business Policy (Case Study) Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Business Policy ( ) - Case Study Example It is observed that the most powerful feature of the Ford is its flexibility to assimilate with various market situations. This extreme feature has assisted the company to vie with many competitive aspects of the market. It also seems that the Ford possesses an efficient management team whothat effectively forecasts the market and changing consumer tastes and thereby designs innovative car models. This case study gives a detailed view of the automobile industry evolution and its progress over different eras. This paper evaluates the features of Ford Motor Company and also analyzes impact of 2008-09 economic crises on the company. Context of the case The first internal-combustion powered vehicles were notably produced by Gottlieb Daimler and Karl Benz in Germany. This was an epoch-making innovation in the history of automobile industry. By the end of nineteenth century, hundreds of manufacturers were producing automobiles both in Europe and in America. The twentieth century witnessed the rapid growth of automobile industry and thus the upward trends in sales volume were clearly visible after the Second World War. From the figure 4.1, it is precise that trucks and buses were less produced in US at the beginning of the 19th century as compared to other passenger vehicles (p.49). However, this trend gradually changed after 1990s and it can be clearly attributed to the effects of globalization and industrialization. Uncertainty over the design and technology of the motorcar was the major issue that impeded the early years of automobile industrial growth. The figure 4.3 indicates that US motor vehicle production as percentage of world’s production gradually declines from 1965 to 2008 (p.50). During the earlier periods of motor vehicles production, the internal-combustion engines faced tough competition from steam as well as electric motors. However, ranges of fascinating features of internal combustion engines could dominate the market. Over this period, compa nies brought different designs and technologies among which many one-promising designs were relegated to the scrapheap of history. As we discussed earlier, the Ford Model T was one of the designs that became the focus of attraction of automobile market in this period. Different countries adopted different sized market segments so as to capture the market opportunities. It is necessary to note that â€Å"Fordism† was the first major revolution in process technology although Toyota’s â€Å"clean production† got world wide acceptance during the 1980’s and 1990’s. The case reflects that the cost of creating a new mass-production passenger car from drawing board to production line was in excess of $1.5 billion. This huge cost associated with product development blocked faster economic growth of car manufacturers. This situation persuaded the companies to think about the concept of mergers and acquisitions. These integration processes and thereby combine d operating costs have assisted the companies to take advantages of lower product development costs economies. The figure 4.4 shows that Ford had made alliances with numbers of other automakers like Tata and Toyota. The Ford’s trend of the past 30 years shows that the firm moves toward increasing outsourcing of materials, components, and services with intent to achieve lower

Law of Criminal Evidence Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Law of Criminal Evidence - Case Study Example This includes any informal chat with police officers and contradictory to popular belief, right to silence has not been abolished.7 In recent years it has been endangered so that a magistrate can draw adverse inference from the silence. Adrian, taken to Police Station on the suspicion of murdering wife Sandra, had informed his solicitor that he had been drinking heavily. According to solicitor's advice, Adrian keeps silent during interrogation. During trial, he testifies that he kept silent on solicitor's instructions as he was under influence of alcohol and could have accused himself8. Again his testimony that he killed Sandra under provocation of her having an affair creates a controversy. If he was going to testify so, in what way he could have accused himself more than that One wonders at the necessity of remaining silent during interrogation. No doubt it provided him time to frame his evidence; but his confession to crime contradicts the relief provided by being silent9 and it is not his role to assist the police to build up a case against him and it is always better to say nothing if in doubt and it does not prove Adrian's guilt. Right exists to avoid self-incrimination and it extends from the moment free movement is terminated either by arrest or by being in police station, till the end of trial. It cannot be said that is very practical in Adrian's case10 although the background of the case is very important and throw further light. "Whether advice to remain silent is the result of a case specific evaluation or whether it is a strategy applied to classes of case or classes of suspect, or whether it is a general strategy applied by certain types of staff utilised for police station advice by some firm of solicitors11" Terrorism laws have undermined the significance of this right. As it stands, while accused is entitled to remain silent, he is also cautioned that during trial adverse inference could be drawn from such a silence, as being silent due to guilt, or planning to fabricate fiction. In Adrian's case, as what he told the court could have as well been told the police as even dislodging of alibi do not exist here. It could also be argued that he deliberately kept silent to misguide the interrogating officers and prosecution. According to research, protecting others too could be a reason for silence. "Although it is often assumed that guilt is the only significantly occurring motive for silence, the present findings suggest that protecting others is a motive in a small but significant proportion of silence cases12." In May, 2000, a couple convicted on drug charges won legal action in European Court of Human Rights over comments of the trial judge on their silence13. ECHR ruled that their fair trial rights were violated by judge's comments on their silence during interrogation14. As they were suffering from heroin withdrawal symptoms, they were asked by solicitor to remain silent15. Judge had given the option of drawing an 'adverse inference' from their silence. Court also ruled that silence is not an absolute right in all cases even though it is accepted as the most fundamental right of the suspects; but was curtailed by Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994. Failure to mention fact can be allowed to draw inference. QUESTION 2: Robert who had

The Nature and Importance of Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

The Nature and Importance of Leadership - Essay Example Ms. Rodgers served as an Assistant Manager of a local state bank for more than 10 years before assuming the position of a Unit Manager for the health institution. She had been the Unit Manager for five years now. Through her educational background, having graduated with a master’s degree in business administration from a reputable university; in conjunction with years of experience in a managerial position, makes her the perfect candidate for the current project. Leadership was deemed to be crucial in the organization Ms. Rodgers serve due to the relevance of according high quality in patient care. As such, she asserted that the subordinates who she governs should be regularly motivated, monitored, and evaluated to perform according to explicitly defined roles, responsibilities, and goals. Likewise, she believes that learning to lead is important for students like me so that we would imbibe the pertinent theories and discern how these should be applied in current and future se ttings. As a coach and motivator: She was asked to design strategies to motivate the followers into achieving identified goals; while taking into account the needs, drives, and professional growth of her followers. As a technical problem solver: As a manager, she has addressed various problems in the work-setting which required evaluating various alternative courses of action and selecting the option which maximized the benefits and minimized costs. As an entrepreneur: She makes decisions after taking the perspectives of senior management, or the real entrepreneurs; and assumes a proactive role in capturing opportunities, as well as addressing threats in the external environment. As a strategic planner: Ms. Rodgers noted that she is consistently a strategic planner through acknowledgment of goals as her standards and designing strategies that facilitate the attainment of these goals.

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

Explain - Essay Example The definition of the self using Sartre’s existentialist views is that the self is a manifestation of the person’s consciousness, which connects the past, present, and the future of a human being (Sartre 31). However, the self of today is not the self of the past, nor the self of the future, but rather as an existing self that is only alive now, and would grow to be a different one after the present has passed. Existence is necessarily viewed from a first person’s viewpoint, based on the person’s grasp of reality, and what kind of existing being a person is would be based on how he or she sees the self and connects it with the concept of reality (Gardner 3). The essence is what makes a person a human being, and because of this human essence always precedes human existence due to the freedom that man inherently has, and this kind of freedom gives humanity its essence, regardless of how time flows through their lives (Sartre 25). Not only did Sartre define the human being as both essence and existence, but also the bad faith that could possibly ruin a person’s human essence. Bad faith, negative attitudes, or self-deception is what corrupts the perception of humans in the significance of their existence, which could lead to self-doubt, anguish, pity, guilt among other negative emotions, which in turn would not affirm the person’s existence and essence, but the nothingness (Sartre 44). The prohibition or the prevention of realizing a dream, as well as the creation of limits in an infinite universe are examples of forgetting transcendence, which counters the limitless potential that Sartre defines in his existentialist views (Sartre 47). On the other hand, the rejection of a person’s existence in the present time, failing to grasp the reality, as well as realizing the negativities of a person’s transcendence are defined as forgetting facticity, which undermines the

The Most Useful (or Important) Scientific Invention Essay Example for Free

The Most Useful (or Important) Scientific Invention Essay The microscope is considered one of the most useful and important scientific inventions known to man. The microscope was invented by Anton van Leeuwenhoek during the seventeenth century. Leeuwenhoek was not a scientist by profession. Initally he made a living selling clothes and buttons, but spent his spare time grinding lenses and constructing microscopes of remarkable quality, such as the light microscope. The light microscope could magnify cells, for instance in plants so you could see a clearer and bigger picture of what they are made of. Over the years, scientists improved on Anton van Leeuwenhoeks microscope by creating microscopes with higher magnifications and far better resolutions, so specimens examined had a sharper image. The latest improvement was the electron microscope, which uses electron beams instead of lamps or mirrors reflecting light like the light microscope. As a result, microscopes have made science today, appear to have more substance, inviting the interest of many young and even old minds. Microscopes also provide the opportunity to identify unknown objects, judging from the various characteristics they may have, so they can be grouped or classed along with others. For instance, microscopes can differentiate between two cells, due to the presence or absence of contents they are supposed to contain. The electron microscope is usually used in such cases as it can magnify the internal structures of a cell where as the light microscope would just give an idea of how the structures are spaced in the cell and not necessarily their characteristics. As simple as this may seem, this differentiation can lead to the diagnosis of a disease that a person may have. This is the main reason why microscopes are so important and useful not only in medical research, but in survival of life as well. The identification of many viruses, fungi, plants, animals and bacteria are owed to the invention of the microscope. Without the microscope, people would not be aware of diseases they may have, which could be life-long, fatal, or contagious, resulting in many deaths and illnesses around the world as there is no way diseases can be cured without being identified. Therefore, the invention of the microscope has proven itself to be very useful from the day of its invention to today, leaving room for even more improvement for years to come.

Composition of Minerals in Soil Related with Date Fruits

Composition of Minerals in Soil Related with Date Fruits Research Proposal Topic Study the Composition of Minerals in Soil Related with Date Fruits using AAS. Introduction Generally, plants require optimum mineral nutrients from the soil other than water, sunlight and carbon dioxide. Mineral is a crystalline solid of inorganic element. It has their own characteristic on physical properties such as crystalline structure, hardness, density, flammability, and color with certain chemical composition that form by natural processes. Mineral nutrients can be classified into two types of nutrients which are micronutrients and macronutrients. Essential mineral composition with sufficient quantity is important in a plant as it affect the plant productivity or fruit quality. Plants also not grow well if one or more elements are present in too large quantity which can be toxicity to the plant. This shows that the levels of elements must in balance with other nutrients. These nutrients perform a variety of functions in plants especially in the structural components of cell. Date palm or Phoenix dactylifera will involve in this research for the study of the minerals in soils and date fruits. Date palms need the specific composition of minerals in soils in order to produce fruits. Soil of plant analysis is useful for estimating trace element availability and determining the specific type of mineral presence in the soil which can prevent the deficiencies of fruit production. Determination of the minerals in fruit is important in order to study the correlation between the minerals in soils from date palm with date fruits using atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS). Literature Review Minerals A mineral is a natural inorganic solid with a definite chemical composition such as K, Ca, Mg and Na. It is inorganic crystalline solid that has the crystal structure of long ranged order of atomic arrangement. Minerals are divided into groups based on their chemical composition with different chemical features of each groups. Characteristics and Properties Minerals can be known by their characteristics such as crystalline structure, inorganic elements, form by natural process, has particular chemical composition and specific physical properties. Minerals are crystalline solids that the atoms are arranged in repeating pattern. Mineral also comes from the organic substances which involved proteins, carbohydrates, and oils.Besides, minerals also commonly come from the inorganic compound (Geoscience News and Information, 11 November 2014). Minerals form by natural processes occurs in or on Earth. A diamond is a example of mineral that created in Earth’s crust. About 98.5% of Earth’s crust is made up of only eight elements which are oxygen, silicon, aluminum, iron, calcium, sodium, potassium, and magnesium. These are the elements that can form different types of chemical compounds of minerals and each mineral has a specific chemical composition and chemical formula. For example, quartz is the combination of two oxygen atoms bonded to a silicon atom, SiO2 (Geoscience News and Information, 11 November 2014). Minerals also presence in hard type of mineral like a diamond as it is from by strong covalent bond of carbon. Then, softer mineral also exist which contains calcium and oxygen along with carbon which is calcite. The structure of calcite shows the relationship of calcium (Ca), carbon (C) and oxygen (O).In other aspect, the physical properties of minerals include the differentiation in the mineral’s color, the color of the powder of mineral (streak), the light reflection of mineral’s surface (luster), the specific gravity, tendency to break the flat surfaces (cleavage), the mineral breaks pattern (fracture) and the hardness (Geoscience News and Information, 11 November 2014). 2.1.2Mineral Groups Minerals can be classified into groups depend on their chemical composition. Silicates are the largest mineral group exists on Earth. Silicate minerals are the first group which has silica tetrahedron compound as the basic structure. Silica tetrahedron is the combination of one silicon atom bonds to four oxygen atoms. The common examples of silicate minerals are feldspar and quartz. Both of them are rock-forming minerals. The variety of silicate minerals can be form pyramid-shaped structure is bound to other elements, such as calcium, iron, and magnesium. Silica tetrahedrons also can combine together in six different ways to produce different types of silicates (Scientific Classifications of Mineral Groups, 11 November 2014). Native elements contain atoms of one type of element. Only a few types of minerals are found in this group. The minerals in native elements group are rarely to have and very valuable. Gold, silver, sulfur, and diamond are examples of minerals in native elements group. Next is carbonates mineral group. The carbonate structure form from one carbon atom bonded to three oxygen atoms. Carbonates also include other additional elements such as calcium, iron, and copper. For example, calcite (CaCO3) which is the most common carbonate mineral (Scientific Classifications of Mineral Groups, 11 November 2014). Halide minerals are salts that form when salt water evaporates which is involving a halogen bonded with a metallic atom. Halite is an example of halide mineral. The chemical elements in halogen group are fluorine, chlorine, bromine and iodine. While fluorite is a halide containing calcium and fluorine. Next, oxides contain one or two metal elements combined with oxygen. Most metals are found as oxides. For example, hematite (Fe2O3) which is form by two iron atoms combined with three oxygen atoms and magnetite (Fe3O4) is produced when three iron atoms combined with four oxygen atoms. Magnetite is one of the magnetic mineral and attraction of magnets can be made by this magnetite minerals. Both are the examples of iron oxides. (Scientific Classifications of Mineral Groups, 11 November 2014). Phosphate minerals are same in pattern of structure of atom in the silicate minerals. Phosphorus, arsenic or vanadium bond to oxygen to form tetrahedral in this type of phosphate minerals. There are many different minerals exist in the phosphate group but they very rarely to meet. Turquoise is an example of a phosphate mineral which consist of copper, aluminum, and phosphorus. Next, sulfate minerals contain sulfur atoms bonded to oxygen atoms. The sulfate group also may consist of many different minerals but it is not commonly known. Then, sulfides are formed when metallic elements combine with sulfur. Sulfides are slightly different from sulfate as it do not contain oxygen. Pyrite, or iron sulfide is a common example of sulfide mineral (Scientific Classifications of Mineral Groups, 11 November 2014). Minerals in the Soils of Date Palm Phoenix dactylifera has the long productivity period and did multiple purpose qualities. It is one of the old types of fruit tree and the first country of the top ten producers is Egypt. Date fruits production are commonly depend on pollination, fertilization, and water relations (Iqbal et al., 2004). Most of the date palms produced in Egypt are grown in sandy, loam and sandy loam soils. The presence of certain types of element such as N, P, K, Mg and B may cause the soils become deficient. It has also been recorded that large amounts of macro and microelements are produce high amount of date fruita for every single year. It shows that the best source of organic matter comes from the macro and micro-minerals especially in producing fruit. Application of organic fertilizers was found to enhance as well as to increase the structural stability and lowered bulk density of the soil. It improved moisture retention, water infiltration rate and the hydraulic conductivity of soil. In Egypt, the total amount of garbage collected from cities and villages reaches nearly 15 million tons per year and the proportion of domestic refuse is estimated to be about 68% (Hassanein Kandil, 2007). This could be a source of organic fertilization, after suitable composting in fruit orchards. Furthermore, few studies have evaluated the effects of organic and mineral fertilizers on the quality characteristics of date fruits and the amount of prduction(Shahein et al., 2003Al-Kharusi et al., 2009). Minerals in the Date Fruits Phosphorus was determined in date fruits by ascorbic acid method. While flame photometer used in determining potassium content in date fruits. Element such as Pb, Cd, Ca, Mg, Fe, Zn, Mn and Cu contents were measured using an atomic absorption spectrophotometer (Model 305B). The concentrations of N, P, K, Ca and Mg were expressed as percentages, while Pb, Cd, Fe, Mn, Zn, and Cu were expressed as parts per million (ppm) on dry weight basis in the previous researches. Fruit nitrate (NO3) and nitrite (NO2) contents were also been measured in that particular conducted research(Marzouk Kassem, 2010). Phoenix dactylifera Phoenix dactylifera is one of the oldest cultivated fruit crops. The date palm has long been harvested for its fleshy fruit which is a common food for many people at the residential of country such as North Africa and Arabia. There are a lof of different types of this species which each of them are grown for commercial purposes and perhaps making the date palm the second most familiar palm species after the coconut palm (Cocosnucifera). It grows with an imposing tall, slender, straight trunk with spiralling pattern on the bark, and long feather-like leaves. The common names of date palm are Palma dactylifera, Palma major, Phoenix atlantica var. maroccana, Phoenix chevalieri, Phoenix excelsior, Phoenix iberica and Phoenix major (Marzouk Kassem, 2010). Physiological Disorder of Date Palm Blacknose is the abnormally shriveled and darkened tip of date. The conditions that must be avoid too high humidity, excessive soil moisture especially at the stage of fruit development. Next is crosscut. It is a physiological disorder of fruit stalks. Crosscut or V-cuts are clean break in tissues of the fruit stalk bases and on fronds. Crop losses may be avoided by using non-susceptible varieties, or by reducing the number of fruit stalks in susceptible varieties. After that is whitenose. It is commonly occur in dry and prolonged wind. It causes rapid maturation of the fruit. The affected fruit becomes very dry, hard and has greater sugar content. Hydration may correct this condition in harvested fruits. Next, barhee disorder is unusual bending. The cause and the way to control of this disorder are unknown(Agriculture and Consumer Protection, 11 November 2014). Black scald is different from blacknose where it is a minor disorder. It consists of a blackened and sunken area with a definite line of demarcation. The disease usually appears on the tip or the sides of the fruit, and affected tissues have a bitter taste. The appearance of the disorder suggests exposure to high temperature, but the exact cause is not definitely known (Nixon, 1951). Then, bastard offshoot which is a deformed growth of date palm vegetative buds especially of offshoots fronds. It may be occur due to reduction in growth caused by an inequilibrium of growth regulators. After that is leaf apical drying that absolutely not a disease but a physiological reaction to transplantation of adult palms (injury of their root system). All palms with these symptoms recover within two to three years after their transplanting (Agriculture and Consumer Protection, 11 November 2014). Physiological disorders of date palm also include the fertilization injury. This type of injury is involving only with young tissue culture-derived palm plants (first two years after field planting) and when fertilizers (N, P, K) are applied too close to the palms stipe. The nature of fertilizers is not the cause, but rather how close to the stipe the fertilizer was applied. If the damage is severe, it could cause the death of the young palm (Agriculture and Consumer Protection, 11 November 2014). Lack or excess of water can cause the date palm having a physiological disorder. The growth of the date palm is highly affected by variations in water availability and the water content of the soil. A decrease in yield or complete failure in fruit production could result from these water variations. Although date palms are resistant to flooding, healthy growth of palms requires a well-drained soil, and it is clear that irrigation must always go hand in hand with drainage. Serious losses, sometimes irreversible may occur in neglected date plantations. In such cases signs of decline appear on palms favored by root penetration of numerous saprophytes and parasites that could lead to the death of palms (Agriculture and Consumer Protection, 11 November 2014). 3.6AAS Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy in analytical chemistry is a technique for determining the concentration of a particular metal element within a sample. This spectroscopic instrument involving atomic emission which is the flame test. When a small amount of a solution of a metal ion is placed in the flame of a Bunsen burner, the flame turns a color that is characteristic of the metal ion. A sodium solution gives a yellow color, a potassium solution results in a violet color and a copper solution gives a green color. Hollow Cathode Lamp is one of the instrument components in AAS. It is the light source and the exactly light required for analysis although no monochromator is used. The reason for this is that atoms of the metal to be tested are present within the lamp, and when the lamp is on, these atoms are supplied with energy, which causes them to elevate to the excited states. Upon returning to the ground state, exactly the same wavelengths that are useful in the analysis are emitted, since it is the analyzed metal with exactly the same energy levels that undergoes excitation. The AAS instrument is as follows. Figure 1: Schematic diagram of AAS instrumentation. 4.0Problem Statement Mineral composition in soil important for plants which affect the production of fruits. Thus, it is needed to determine the types of mineral that suitable for fruits, for example the date fruits. There are cases where the date palm from the same area can produce fruit while some of the plants have no fruit. It could be happened because the soils are from different sources during plantation process and it also has different composition of minerals. Since the date fruits production might be related to the composition of minerals in soil, the determination of minerals in soils and date fruits have to be conducted in order to study the correlation between them. Objective The objectives in conducting this research are: To determine the minerals contain in the soil from date palm. To determine the minerals contain in date fruits. To find the correlation between the minerals in the soil and the minerals in date fruits.

To Kill A Mockingbird Essay :: Kill Mockingbird essays

Modes of Communication in To Kill a Mockingbird      Effective communication is a result of the utilization of different techniques to convey a particular idea or perspective. Different methods used to express a person's feelings are found throughout society and aid in creating a learned individual, family, and community. In the novel To Kill a Mocking Bird, Harper Lee uses several modes of communication to display her feelings on moral, political, and social issues. Lee's tactics parallel those used by one character in her novel, Atticus Finch. In order to express his feelings to his children, Atticus uses three simple teaching devices; the use of examples, verbal statements, and learning through experience. Although Atticus uses these techniques to develop his children into positive members of society, Lee uses them to create an image for the reader that will ultimately constitute a general understanding of growing up in the south in the mid-nineteen thirties.    One of the methods of communication that Atticus Finch uses is that of an example. By providing his children with a realistic and visual model, Atticus establishes an exemplary learning environment. The most prevalent display of Atticus' utilization of examples is the one he sets himself. He makes it a common practice to live his life as he would like his children to live theirs, and thus displays the attributes of an honest, respectable, and kind man. Atticus demonstrates his character by defending Tom Robinson, a black man on trial for the rape of a white woman. Throughout the trial process, Atticus shows Jem and Scout that true courage is standing up for what you believe in and that all worthy human beings, despite their race, deserve respect. Atticus also tries to be a perfect southern gentleman, teaching Jem and Scout to have grace and compassion for all people. His treatment of Mrs. Dubose proves this characteristic. Even though Mrs. Dubose makes vicious comments and criticisms of Atticus and his children, he still manages to treat her in the kindest manner; complimenting her appearance and helping her into her chair. Atticus sets examples to teach Jem and Scout some values a good person should have. Harper Lee, however, uses examples of life in her novel to give a broader view of humankind.    In order to depict the values, attitudes, and class structures of a small southern town in the mid-nineteen thirties, Harper Lee created various examples.

Mangy Parrot Essay -- Analysis, Fernández de Lizardi

Parrots are beautiful intelligent birds. Mange is a festering disease caused by parasitic mites that dig into the body and results in unsightly sores and unremitting irritation. Who or what does The Mangy Parrot refer to? Is Mangy Parrot simply Periquillo’s nickname or is it intended to be a metaphor for New Spain? If the parrot is symbolic of the lands and people of New Spain: the colonial caste system and government is the disease infesting the land. Unable to publish his views directly due to censorship, de Lizardi wrote his apparently humorous, entertaining tale as a cover for his ideas. Throughout the story Fernà ¡ndez de Lizardi cleverly interweaves his true objective which is to increase opposition to the colonial societal and governmental practices and encourage support for the coming revolution. Lizardi begins his tale with the story of binding babies’ hands. The old women bind infants’ hands simply because it had been done to them and therefore this made it the best policy and the old ways should be followed even when there is no evidence to support them. (de Lizardi, p. 2) When Lizardi began his serialized novel the Spanish had been exercising colonial control for three hundred years. During that time the Enlightenment and both the American and French Revolutions had taken place. The rights of man philosophies that fostered those revolutions made many of the aspects of Spanish colonial rule outdated and corrupt. The author is informing the reader from the outset that he is done with the old ways and that they no longer deserve to be supported. As the novel progresses, de Lizardi’s use of satire grow until his characters make such outlandish or unqualified statements that they cannot be taken for anything othe... ...bers and Indians to achieve parity in the system is to overthrow the system and demand equal treatment and opportunities. The use of humor and satire is only effective when the reader identifies with the kernel of truth at the core of the joke. The entertaining story of Periquillo’s misadventures was not just a funny story but also contained a bitter commentary on the state of colonial rule. Serialized publication in the native language allowed for the story to reach the masses and kept the issues in the public eye by spoon feeding weekly accounts that built up public awareness and increased discontent with the status quo. De Lizardi’s unapologetic fictionalized first person account of life in New Spain exposed the corruption, injustice, prejudice and inequities in society caused by the colonial caste system and encouraged public support for a revolution.

Math Coursework - The Fencing Problem :: Math Coursework Mathematics

The Fencing Problem A farmer has 1000m of fencing and wants to fence off a plot of level land. She is not concerned about the shape of plot, but it must have a perimeter of 1000m. So it could be: [IMAGE] Or anything else with a perimeter (or circumference) of 1000m. She wishes to fence of the plot of land with the polygon with the biggest area. To find this I will find whether irregular shapes are larger than regular ones or visa versa. To do this I will find the area of irregular triangles and a regular triangle, irregular quadrilaterals and a regular square, this will prove whether irregular polygons are larger that regular polygons. Area of an isosceles irregular triangle: ======================================== (Note: I found there is not a right angle triangle with the perimeter of exactly 1000m, the closest I got to it is on the results table below.) To find the area of an isosceles triangle I will need to use the formula 1/2base*height. But I will first need to find the height. To do this I will use Pythagoras theorem which is a2 + b2 = h2. [IMAGE] [IMAGE] First I will half the triangle so I get a right angle triangle with the base as 100m and the hypotenuse as 400m. Now I will find the height: a2 + b2= h2 a2 + 1002 = 4002 a2 = 4002 - 1002 a2 = 160000 - 10000 a2 = 150000 a = 387.298m Now I will find the area: 100*387.298 = 3872.983m2 My table shows the areas of other irregular triangles, but to prove that regular shapes have a larger area I will show the area of a regular triangle: Area of a regular triangle: Tan30= 166.6666667/x X= 166.666667/Tan30 X= 288.675m 288.675*166.6666667 = 48112.5224m2 This shows clearly that the regular triangle's area is larger than the

Goal Write Up

Alex used the concept of â€Å"theory of constraints (TCO)† and new set of measurements and goals with the help of his mentor, Joana, to find constraints or bottlenecks in his plant. Joana defined bottleneck as any resource whose capacity is equal to or less then the demand placed upon it. This paper analyzes Argon's actions in The Goal with respect to the changes and tools that are available today and how the availability of newer tools in the manufacturing area might have affected the choices and priorities on which Ergo is focused.An integrated framework with TCO, Lean, and Six Sigma can maximize Argon's goals after evaluation of his goals, challenges, and application of the present day tools. New Tools Technological and operations management theory developments over the sat three decades provided new tools to Ergo if he faces his choices and priorities today. The most prominent of these are Lean operations, Six-sigma, internet, and various other software tools for operatio ns management effectiveness. ) Lean Operations: Lean operations theory focuses on smooth flow by removing the mud, a Japanese term for waste in the operations processes. Sources of waste are (GAG, 2009): over production, waiting, transportation, inventory, motion, over-processing defects, and not leveraging creativity of the employees. The five principles of Lean thin king are Woman & Jones, 1 996): Specify value from customer point of view, identify steps in the value stream, create smooth flow, customer pulls value, and pursue perfection.Thorough understanding and identification of the various wastes in the operations process can help Ergo to target improvement initiatives. B) Six-sigma: The main objective of Six-sigma DYNAMIC (Define- Measure-Analyze-lampooner-Control) methodology is improving processes and quality through reduction of defects to the extent of 3. 4 defects per million, reduce cycle time, increase throughput, and increase customer satisfaction by educing variation in products and processes, thus giving an organization a competitive advantage (GAG, 2009).Jack Welch emphasizes by calling variation as â€Å"evil† (III, 2014). â€Å"The methodology looks at a statistical number to determine whether or not to make a change in a company manufacturing process† (Stephen, 2009). Availability of Six-sigma methodologies would have helped Alex increase throughput while improving the quality and reducing variation in the products and processes. C) Internet and Software: Internet provided many tools for the operations manager over the past two decades.These tools increased efficiencies of the production processes by finding the information in minutes, tracking people, and running complex operations management software on the internet. They range from communications and search engine tools, to the more recent cloud based hosted MM applications on the internet such as customer relationship management SW such as Salesrooms etc. Sophisticated so ftware packages and simulation tools also include enterprise resource planning (ERP) which is an evolved version Of the material resource planning (MR.) that include other departments such as insane and order management packages.These tools would have helped Ergo to find Joana quickly, communicate with him on Keep, and conduct net meetings with divisional headquarters, track inventory and customer orders with ERP rather than the archaic homegrown information system. D) New MM Techniques: There are several new operations management techniques such as just-in-time (KIT) partnership with suppliers, Toyota production system (T AS), total quality management (TXT), supply chain management (SCM), and total productive maintenance (TAMP). . KIT focuses on continuous improvement through continuous and forced problem solving via focus on increasing through put and red icing inventory. KIT partnership between suppliers and purchasers reduce waste and drive down costs by removing unnecessary act ivities, in-plant and in-transit inventory, improve quality and reliability (Hazier & Render, 201 1). Ii. T AS three core components are continuous improvement, respect for people, and standard work practice (Hazier & Render, 201 1). Iii.Although KIT and Six-sigma are key components of the TXT, TXT provides other concepts and tools such as continuous improvement, employee empowerment, bench marking, Attaching concepts, and TXT tools to generate ideas (check sheets, scatter diagram, and cause- and-effect diagram), organizing data (Parent chart and flow chart), and identifying problems (histograms and statistical process control charts) (Hazier & Render, 201 1). Iv. The objective of SCM is to build a sequence of suppliers that focuses on maximizing value to the end customer (Hazier and Render, 2011).SCM process technique takes an integrated approach to procuring, producing, and delivering products and services to customers, veering the management of material, information and financial flows (Venerates, Hachure, & Caulker, 2007). V. TAMP is a manufacturing program designed primarily to maximize equipment life effectiveness through the participation and motivation of the entire work force (Ca, McKeon & Schroeder, 2001 Alex could make good use of these new MM techniques to increase effectiveness of his operations. Argon's Goals and New Tools The goal of any organization in general is to make money.Joana asks Ergo to change his plant measurements to the following measurements that express the goal of making money in a different way. These measurements are throughput, inventory, and operational expense. According to The Goal, definition of throughput is the rate at which the system generates money through sales. Inventory is all the money that the system has invested in purchasing things which the organization intends to sell, and operational expense is all the money the system spends in order to turn inventory into throughput.Then that the real goal of an organizati on is to increase throughput while simultaneously reducing both inventory and operating expense. Joana introduces Ergo to the TCO to help him achieve his goals and loving problems in his plant in terms of the measurements that express the goal of making money. TCO approach includes the following five steps to improve the plant performance: C] Step 1. Identify the system's constraint(s) C] Step 2. Decide how to exploit the system's constraint(s) C] Step 3. Subordinate everything else to exploit the constraint(s) CLC Step 4. Elevate the system's constraint(s) 0 Step 5.If in the previous steps, a constraint has been broken, go back to step 1, but do not allow inertia to cause a system's constraint. TCO primarily focuses on increasing throughput. When the current system constraint or bottleneck is resolved, a new system constraint is then identified creating a continuous cycle, which drives performance improvement forever. Because of this continuous improvement and focus on throughput, Argon's goal will remain the same in light Of the availability of the new tools. Several Of the new tools from these modern concepts can be applied to solve or improve the challenges faced by Ergo in the 1 ass's.New Tools Application to Ale's Challenges Ergo can bring several of the new tools to the challenges he faced at Unaware in the 1 9805. Some of these tools to improve the goals are: a) Lean production ass checklist: sort/segregate, simplify/straighten, shine/sweep, standardize, and sustain/self-discipline. This will help to address waste. B) pull system: This is a standard tool in KIT system to increase throughput and it is used with both suppliers and within the immediate production process (Hazier & Render, 201 1).Pulling the needed materials through the system in very small lots eliminates waste and inventory. C) Continuous Improvement: As a core component of T AS, continuous improvement builds an organization ultra that processes can be improved and that improvement is pa rt of every employee's responsibility (Hazier & Render, 201 1 Kamikaze is the formal process for this component believing that perfection is achieved through many incremental changes. Operations manager plays a key role in building kamikaze culture. ) Respecting and empowering people: TIPS empowers employees to stop process or machines when quality problems surface. TIPS respects employees by empowering them to enrich their jobs and lives. E) Scheduling: KIT scheduling tactics include communicate schedules to appliers, eliminate waste, produce in small lots, use Kansas, and make each operation produce perfect part. F) Inventory Management Systems: Ergo can establish these systems using BBC classification of all types of inventory and maintaining accurate records of the inventory. G) Forecasting: Forecasting demand has been a challenge for Ergo.He can make use of qualitative methods such as Delphi method as well as qualitative methods such as time- series forecasting to predict the d emand. Demand forecasts impacts plant capacity, human resources, and SCM (Hazier & Render, 201 1). Integrated Framework of TCO, Lean, and Six-Sigma Ergo and his team had to work with long established archaic management processes in the sass's setting. If The Goal were set in 2014, Ergo and his team would likely find management more willing to embark on a process of ongoing improvement including the new methodologies such as Lean and Six-sigma.However, these methodologies are not competing strategies, as each has significant value and applied differently with an integrated framework comprising of TCO, Lean, and Six-sigma. Ergo can make use of this integrated framework to maximize his goals. The integrated framework uses the synergy of TCO, Lean, and Six-Sigma to consistently achieve a concentrated system improvement beyond what might be accomplished by applying each method individually with a traditional continuous process improvement approach. The most efficient way to integrate TCO , Lean, and Six-Sigma starts with strategy as a first step (GAG, 2009).The strategy provides the strategic roadman to improve business performance. The strategic roadman provides the direction for the areas of the organization that maximizes benefit for the total system by applying improvements first. This continuous business success framework has two major parts: the constraint based system architecture and the TCO-Lean-Six-Sigma based continuous improvement architecture. A) Strategy- the output of a good strategy is a clear, agreed upon, roadman to improve business results.The focus is on optimizing the performance of the total system versus improving the individual functions in isolation. B) Design: This step determines the correct alignment of the business processes including changing any policies, measurements, roles and responsibilities, and information systems. C) Activate: During this step, the newly defined business processes are implemented. D) Improve: Improvements are ev aluated based on their ability to increase throughput, and to reduce inventory and operating expense and improve overall system performance. Jacob, Berglund & Cox 2009). Key performance indicators (Kepi's) are used to identify gaps between present and desired performance levels. Some useful improve techniques include AS system, TAMP, point of use storage (POLIS), Mistake proofing (Poke yoke), SSP, Capability Studies, Design of Experiments, etc. E) Sustain: As for the last step, Ergo should continuously review key measurement results to assess, address and institutionalize the policies, measurements and behaviors to guarantee that the results are sustained and do not degrade.Ergo can utilize the full integration of TCO, Lean and Six Sigma in order to obtain focused system improvement that achieves real, sustainable breakthrough performance. Although internet and internet based tools and sophisticated software packages certainly improve Argon's operations, they will not have direct im pact on the choices and priorities that Ergo has focused. With respect to the other lolls to help Ergo, the principles and techniques of KIT can be shifted to an entire SCM to strengthen Argon's SCM strategy in pursuit of improved organizational performance.

Alexander the Great Essay 9

Alexander the Great Alexander the Great was a king and conqueror. He is commonly referred to as â€Å"the most powerful leader of all time. † What is it that makes him such a powerful leader? What has he accomplished that has made him so significant? Were his accomplishments positive or negative? These are all questions that when combined as one create a debate that has been going on for decades. There are those who admire Alexander’s military achievements and ability to carve out the largest empire the world has seen. Then there are those who perceive him as a selfish, cruel madman with drinking problems. This paper will outline the different sides taken on Alexander and the question as to what his significance/influence was and whether it was good or bad. Alexander the Great was the son of Phillip II, king of Macedonia. Phillip had always done much to prepare him for a military and political future (Lewis 48). Alexander served as a regent for his father at the young age of 16 for the start of his military career. After the assassination of his father he obtained the throne in 336 B. C. E. and leader of the League of Corinth. In 335 B. C. E he crushed Macedonia’s borders and destroyed the city of Thebes. This caused Athens to join the league with no fight. 334 B. C. E. was the year of his first great victory, which opened Asia Minor to conquest. He then, in 333, met the Persian King for the first time and caused him to flee by charging even though Alexander was outnumbered. This was the beginning of the end for Persia. Alexander went on and in his 13 year reign was conquering the Mediterranean, forming new cities, and producing an empire touching on 3 continents and encompassing 2 million sq miles (O’Brien 44). Such work is something one should be proud of and many agree that conquering all of Persia in such a short amount of time is Alexander the Greats biggest accomplishment. Balcer obviously agrees with that stating that Alexander succeeded in forming the largest western empire of the ancient world and removing Persian intervention in Greek affairs (Balcer 121-122). Sacks obviously agrees as well saying that his â€Å"principal achievement was the conquest of the empire of Persia,†(14). The perspective of many scholars is that Alexander really was â€Å"the greatest leader† and through the conquering he undertook he achieved many great things. This is the side of the debate in which scholars find Alexander’s significance to be a positive thing. It is argued he was a â€Å"military genius with iron will and boundless ambition,† (O’Brien 45). Scholar Edmund Burke clearly supports this idea in saying that in his accession to the Macedonian throne his foundation of Alexandria, conquest of the Persian Empire and his strategic and tactical genius makes him a â€Å"legend† (Burke 67). He was not the only scholar to refer to him as a legend for a professor at Boise State notes that Alexander exhibited tremendous bravery, didn’t let a wound stop him, never lost a battle, had those around him believe he was invincible, and knew and loved his men. Combining all these factors created an army that could not be stopped and its accomplishments outdid anything that had been seen yet. Alexander and his troops had become a â€Å"legend,† (Knox). Alexander had also been seen as the reason for successfully spreading Greek culture that still exists today. Oriental and Greek cultures blended and flourished as a result of the Empire, making Greek culture his true legacy (Balcer 124). The Hellenistic Era took place right after Alexander’s death and he is said to be the one who ushered this fascinating era. (O’Brien 46). The scholars are right, Alexander truly is a legend for he was the finest battlefield commander of the ancient world and remade the map of the ancient world (Sacks 14). Not just anyone can achieve such success, there seems to be something extraordinary about this man. Yet, not everyone agrees that he was so extraordinary. Yes, he did carve out the largest empire and at an amazingly rapid pace but his aims and ambitions were different than spreading Hellenism throughout the western Mediterranean and near the east. He was a self-confident man who only wanted to conquer for self-pleasure. Alexander is the reason that corruption and peculation were treated with casualness during this time. His pleasure was when his peoples were loyal to him and that was all that was necessary for his approval. It was because of him that Macedonia lost its manpower through the strenuous battles he continuously fought. He left it as a weakened kingdom. His empire is given so much credit but it was only based on rapid military conquest and died right after his death (Stoneman 92-94). It is believed that Alexander conquered to rule, not to blend cultures. Heavy drinking led to disastrous incidents and hastened his death. An example of such a disaster was the burning down of Persepolis in a drunken revel. This is not an attribute of a good leader. He also lacked long-range planning and neglected his kingdoms future by exhausting himself in warfare while he delayed fathering a royal successor. His selfishness is proved by his act of casually killing any threats to the throne at the beginning of his reign (Sacks 15). Those who see Alexander in a negative manner obviously have quite strong opinions about it. They see him as more of a madman than the most powerful leader. It is easy to see where they get their assumptions from for they look at the bloodshed part of Alexander’s reign. Instead of focusing on the rare ability he had to conquer so successfully the use the old journals and other texts used to learn about Alexander and don’t see past the drunken stories and jump to the negative side of his actions to make them cruel. Those who make assumptions about him being the greatest military leader of all time look at the historical records we have of them and analyze his tactics realizing they really are extraordinary. No other person has conquered so much, so fast and left such a legacy. I agree with those who see him as a significantly positive influence so its easier to see where they are coming from. I look at the whole picture; his achievements were unlike anyone else’s in history and as a King he was only trying to do the better for his country. He deserves the credit he has received for spreading Greek culture; there is no other way it would have happened. Scholar Burke put it perfectly when in his article he states, â€Å"when mention is made of a man of action and genius, there is perhaps no one of the ancients who so quickly comes to mind as Alexander the Great† (Burke 67).

Marketing Orientation Essay

There have been many studies of the term ‘marketing orientation’, and its presence within organisations. Marketing orientation is an approach that companies take which centres its activities towards achieving customer satisfaction through effective marketing. It is where customers form the basis of an organisations performance and overall success. In order to achieve successful marketing orientation, a company must organise an effective structure through planning its activities, products and services successfully. This will help the company on focusing its aims and objectives on the needs and requirements of its customers, in order to establish a relationship that will increase performance and success. ‘Market orientation is the organisation wide development of market intelligence pertaining to customer needs. ’ (Kohli and Jaworski, 1990. p12) Two approaches to marketing Orientation have been suggested by Avlonitis and Gounaris (1999), focusing on the practices and culture that the company adopts. It has been interpreted by Avlonitis and Gounaris (1999) that marketing orientation is either ‘a company attitude or company behaviour. This is whether a company is customer orientated or focuses on a competitive advantage through marketing orientation. Other authors have similiar thoughts upon these approaches to marketing orientation. Drucker (1954) believes that customers perceive marketing as an ‘activity involving the entire organisation’, rather than being a spec ific company process. The author’s view coincides with the work of Avlonitis and Gounaris (1999), as he focuses on the attitude organisations have in satisfying customer needs. The other side to this approach is the significance of a company’s culture towards marketing orientated activities. Felton (1959) states; ‘It is the attitudes and beliefs of a workforce that control the level of orientated activities a company strives to achieve,’ implying the focus is on themselves competing rather than putting the customer first. Trout and Ries (1985) perceive marketing orientation as an effort by companies to increase competitor advantage, rather than satisfy customer needs. Therefore the company’s culture is focusing its strategy on competitor orientation in order to achieve success. An organisations performance is a very important aspect of successful marketing orientation. Narver and Slater (1990) state that marketing orientation is based on 3 performance measures, which include ‘customer and competitor orientation, and inter-functional coordination. ’ Introducing effective performance measures can have positive influences on companies, as it helps the company’s culture set aims and objectives for a successful approach to marketing orientation. Jobber (2007) also describes the importance of these measures, stating; ‘A marketing concept culture that manifests in corporate activities to create superior value for customers. However, specific marketing activities relating to the behaviour of a company have ‘emphasis on managerial control rather than the natural culture of the organisation’ (Ellis, 2004), which relates to the work of Trout and Ries (1985) and their beliefs of company’s influencing the importance of competitor orientation over the satisfaction of their customers. Sharp (1991) argues the approach to marketing orientation as described by Drucker (1954), saying that it’s more than just about customer focus; Market orientation has a principle element of focusing on available markets and customer needs. Sharp criticises this view of orientation, as costs of maintaining customer focus will incur in unstable markets, affecting a companies orientation plan. In order to balance this procedure, a company needs equal focus in its approach to marketing orientation, which will help achieve success and efficiency. The link between organisational strategic thinking (Sharp, 1991) and managerial control (Ellis, 2004) helps towards a successful company through competitor orientation. Ellis states that effective performances increase through analysing competitor actions, in order to create a competitor advantage. However, company’s still need to be responsive to customer needs due to volatile markets. Overall increases of a company’s orientation, resulting from effective customer satisfaction, will then lead to greater performances (Kohli and Jaworski, 1990). The relationship between performance and marketing orientation is analysed negatively to strategic marketing. Sin (2005) considers the ‘external environmental aspects’ of marketing orientation, emphasising the importance of linking performance and marketing orientation in order to meet the needs of customers. Sin believes that if companies developed their approaches towards linking these two factors, a more in depth examination of customers needs could be undertaken, which would lead to higher performances within the company. Sin agrees with Sharp’s views, by describing the inclusion of customer needs as well as company aims and objectives. A strategic way of thinking is described by Sharp, where marketing orientation is described as being the most relevant, as it focuses on company, and not just market characteristics. The analyses of various journal articles relating to marketing orientation has led me to understand the different issues relating to marketing orientation. I agree with Kohli and Jaworski (1990) that a company should balance its orientation between customer focus and its aims and objectives, for effective performances. The authors were very clear and focused on what strategies were effective in approaching marketing orientation. I felt that this analysis helped me understand the best method of adopting marketing orientation and how to effectively respond to customer demands, as well as creating a competitive advantage. Limitations to the analysis were discussions from Felton (1959) and Trout and Ries (1995). The views of these authors concentrated on companies who adopted marketing orientation to create a competitive advantage as its main priority. The context of this article focused totally on businesses success and shadowed the importance of customer orientation, something which I feel is crucial for overall success.

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Stereotypes can be created from past experiences, reading books, watching movies, or through talking with friends and family. â€Å"In many cases, these stereotypical generalizations are reasonable (believed to be) accurate. † Current Stereotypes Even in this day and age, people of different cultures, religions, appearance, education, sexuality, and history are Judged based upon stereotypes that often have no connection to the person standing in front of them. An example of a culture that is limited within society based upon stereotypes within the Spanish culture, usually are only given T.V. And movie rolls as thugs, gangsters, maids, gardeners, or the sarcastic over drinker, in the film industry illustrating character traits of dishonesty, undereducated backgrounds, and very traditional appearances and customs. For a long time African-Americans were described as lazy, violent, and unintelligent which have limited chances of advanced employment and have been shown negatively i n the media. Blonds have been portrayed as limited both physically and mentally, which can be heard in stereotyped Jokes, in film, and in literature.Christians are seen s uptight and Judgmental of others without any connection to their actual belief. Recently with world affairs, Americans of Middle Eastern descent are being treated poorly based upon culture, appearance, or religious views because of terrorist attacks. Those without a high school diploma are seen as uneducated and shamed as they struggle through life with limited Job opportunities. Even people from the same country living in different areas such as mountains, rural, suburbia, and cities are Judged differently without any other facts about who they are.Comments such s connected to the earth or backwards based on living in the county and cultured and non-caring or rude living in the city. Historically In the sass's Native American were forced into slavery or forced to assimilate to European cultural norms because of li ving very differently from the colonists. Forced to assimilate the way they lived, dressed, and religious beliefs and many were forced into slavery. Similar stereotypes defining this cultural group such as lack of intelligence, dependency, and misunderstood cultural acceptance continue to affect Native Americans today thousands of years later.Through the sass's and sass's, hundreds of thousands of Irish citizens, from northern and western Europe, fled from their homeland to find a better future in America. Most of these immigrants were skilled workers with a high rate of literacy, who were easily incorporated into American society. Near the end of the century, many Jewish, Catholics, and Greek Orthodox immigrated from southern and eastern European countries. A high percentage of them were illiterate and poverty-stricken. These particular immigrants mostly settled in major cities along the coast, maintaining their language and customs.In the early 20th century, groups were formed to segregate the first wave of immigrants from the second. The purpose of these groups were meant to prove that the immigrants from the south and east were racially inferior to those from the north and west. The activities of such groups led to laws such as the Quota Act of 1921 which was the first law in effect that would restrict the number of immigrants allowed to migrate to the United States. A prejudice in America today is that all people of Mexican descent are Roman Catholic.While Roman Catholicism is the nominating religion amongst the Mexican population, that statistic clearly does not mean they all follow that religion. Catholicism first became an important aspect of Mexico culture when the Spanish invaded as conquerors and embarked on an aggressive push to convert indigenous populations. Since Catholicism shares similar beliefs with the with the indigenous religions- such as the Aztec, Catholics both believe in pilgrimages, fasting, and the idea of a divine mother figure- mis sionaries were able to capitalize on these similarities when converting the population.The influence of Catholicism was furthered when the Federal Constitution of the Mexican States of 1824 was enacted on October 4th, 1824, which made it illegal for any Mexican citizen to practice any religion besides Catholicism. As a result, you can find in many horror films (Paranormal Activity, Devil) Mexican maids or priests having the ability to perform religious exorcisms, repeating catholic beliefs and shunning those who never â€Å"believed. † Examples of stereotypes effecting people day to day in their social, emotional, and educational lives are to many to name.To dismantle stereotypes the key is to understand that, â€Å"There are many biological and genetic differences between the races. † But there are no 100% facial statements that can define a group of people either by social, intellectual, topographical, appearance, religion, or histories. We must first stop believing such outlandish statements. Dig deep and really think, â€Å"Could one blank statement really apply too whole group of people? † We must stand together and stop all stereotypical Jokes, comments, and misinformation and lead the next generation of people into a world hat Judges each individual by their actions and their actions alone.Don't partake, encourage, or enable others in spreading stereotypes. In the work place we must work against what we've been told and our prior experiences and give people a chance to stand up as the person they are. Not be Judged by others actions that could of happened thousands of years ago or thousand of miles away. We need to think about why we have the feelings we do and where they are coming from. Ask ourselves if we are allowing stereotypes to influence our decisions. The more we think through our actions and disprove the stereotypes that surround us the more e will influence change.When others speak about stereotypes we need to speak up ag ainst such actions and encourage a change in the culture we live in. The last step is to fully understand that everyone lives with stereotypes. Some people may be more aware then others but we all carry the effects of stereotypes with us. By connecting with others, the negative effects that stereotypes have played in our, lives we are better able to battle against this invisible enemy. Take a stand and fight against stereotypes, no longer be silent and allow such ignorance to hurt another person again. Works Cited Gary M.

A Survey of Advances in Biometric Security Research Paper

A Survey of Advances in Biometric Security - Research Paper Example The research paper primarily emphasizes upon the analysis of the advancement that has been seen in the field of biometrics over the years, which has widened its implementation and popularity in the recent time. It has been learnt that biometric solutions have become quite popular amid various sectors of the society with regard to its importance as a security control measures. The technology works for analyzing and evaluating the identification of any individual through examining their physical and biological elements. It is believed that the technology assure utmost accuracy while executing the process of data accumulation and data analysis further ensuring the proper identification of any individuals. This aspect further aids in assuring protection of any secured areas or confidential networks. There are several forms of biometric security solutions, such DNA identification, fingerprint analysis, face recognition and etc. However, it is believed that there are certain errors that ca n take place in the process of executing security measures through the use of biometric solutions. This particular aspect, impact the social acceptance of the system. It is known that use of biometric solutions has its origination since the early civilization where many of the approaches currently used by biometric solutions were used for various purposes. It can be concluded that biometric security solutions has developed rapidly over the years and recently has gained widespread acceptance as one of the most reliable security measures.

Traditional way of teaching Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Traditional way of teaching - Essay Example Knowledge is what we gain from experience. People often end up believing something else which may or not be true just for satisfaction. He stresses upon the need to gain knowledge through physiological reasoning. His theory compromises of several factors which support each other to outline his theory. He started with a cave, in which there were prisoners. The prisoners were fixed to some rocks. All they are allowed to look at it a wall. People outside the cave walk along carrying stuff on their head which might be animal or a person. All they are left to see are shadows. Then follows the guessing game of which shadow would appear next. If any of the prisoners guessed correctly, the others would end up praising him. Then Plato writes that if one of the prisoners had escaped the cave he would have realized that all that they have been thinking was wrong. He would be stunned at the world he discovers outside the cave and does not believe it. That is where he finds out that his former point of view of the world was false. He discovers the sun and the benefit of the sun and the outside gist of nature. Then Plato writes then again had that prisoner returned to the cave his old fellow prisoners would have offended by the truth he told them. The way Plato has designed this example emphasizes the importance of knowledge. It also shed light on the fact that we take wrong meaning of things due to lack of knowledge. Paulo stresses for the need of personal experience and psychological thinking to quest the thirst of knowledge. He says that people believe what they are showed without even questioning. With knowledge comes goodness because that’s what knowledge engraves in us. To be a better person and to do the right thing at the right time is a responsibility we all should accept. Ethics has two ways. They may be called the good and the right. The right has to do

Global Interdependence Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Global Interdependence - Article Example Davis shows how, the fearfulness of the calamity was accelerated by the callous colonizers that led to the death of thousands of poor men, women and children and livestock. In the article by Odd Arne Westad, hails the USA as an interventionist power whose sole aim and purpose has been territorial expansion. The USA has not been fair in treatment to its own citizens, as we know from the terrible plight of the Black Americans. One of the ideals that worked behind motivating the elites of the United States was liberty, which was accessible to those who had private property and education. Thus, the authors in their respective articles condemn vehemently the destructive force of ruling a supposedly inferior race by a self-proclaimed superior race. Domination is the key theme in all the three writings. All these three writers have criticized domination in terms of rule and interference, thereby weakening a country to the considerable extent and robbing its citizens of their natural wealth and environment. Aime describes colonial invasions as ‘hideous’ and is very justified in calling so since the act of taking over another nation completely destroys it and its people. Only force is the base of the relation between the colonizer and the colonized. Davis’ article only reinstates this theory by citing the example of the infamous famine that crippled India during the British Rule. While India produced enough crops to feed its people, most of it was hoarded and the rest exported to different parts of the world. While millions of people died, the colonizers maintained a policy of non-interference. In the article by Westad is a further reinstatement of the evils of forceful acquisition of others land. Colonizers ge nerally cite the example of the colonized’s ignorance, brutality, superstition etc. as was written by Jefferson to Lafayette in 1813.  

EXEGESIS on ACTS chapter six verses one through six Research Paper

EXEGESIS on ACTS chapter six verses one through six - Research Paper Example What they said pleased the whole community, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, together with Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch.  6. They had these men stand before the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them. (NRSV) Acts 6:1-6 touches on two important issues on the development of the early Church: the beginning of the creation of a church hierarchy and bureaucracy (regardless of whether this text can be related to the appearance of deacons in the second century) and the various social roles of the early Church as both a religious community centered on ritual and as an alternative social network. It also touches on the earliest sectarian division in the Church, between "Hellenists" and "Hebrews." Finally, it introduces the character of Stephen, soon to become the focus of the next two chapters of Acts and the first martyr. Acts 6:1-6 was taken by the Patristic tradition as the establishment of the deaconate (suggested by Chrysostom, Homilies on the Acts of the Apostles, 14, and overtly stated by Bede, Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles, 6.3, both quoted at Martin 70). However unreflective of the Church organization of the mid-first century date that interpretation is likely to be, this pericope does establish the laying on of hands as an element of the ritual of ordination. The passage, however, is more likely to reveal traces of two other historical events is considerable importance. The first is the split between "Hellenists" and "Hebrew" that lies just under the surface layer of the text, in its record of the establishment of separate Church leaders for the "Hellenist" community. This is the first clear indication of division entering into the originally unitary Jesus movement as geographical, sociological, and perhaps even doctrinal differences led to the development of separate communities. I t is also the first instance of

Attitude Theories Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Attitude Theories - Essay Example An example of the identification theory would be someone simply liking or disliking something because someone that they wish to establish a close relationship with feels like same way. The positive aspect of identification is that it can bring people together when they find they they have the same attitudes in regard to something specific. Many people may like the individuality of having their own behaviors and attitudes, while others may appreciate having someone to share it with. The negative aspect about this theory is that it disables some people from being able to make their own decisions and draw their own conclusions in concern of a specific topic. Even if they previously did not like something, they may change their attitude because the person they want to be close with feels differently. Another negative aspect to this theory is that if the person they are trying to get close to is no longer around, then there is no reason for that person to hold onto the attitude of someone else and they need to reform their own attitude. Unlike identification, cognitive dissonance is when a person is at odds with how they feel about something; there is an inconsistency in their beliefs, causing one idea to become the opposite of another idea (Festinger, 1957). The person becomes uncomfortable by holding two contradictory ideas simultaneously and attempt to change their attitudes to balance their ideas out. For example, if a person really wants something but is unable to obtain it, they criticize it, often with a lie or an assumption, because they are unable to get it. The components of cognitive dissonance include the person realizing that they have two contradicting beliefs; understanding and thus feeling uncomfortable that these two beliefs exist simultaneously; the person finds a means to rid themselves of one of the offending beliefs, so that they are left with only one. The positive aspect of cognitive dissonance is that the person understands that they

Asian Commercial Dominance Annotated Bibliography

Asian Commercial Dominance - Annotated Bibliography Example This is politically, socially and economically. Its dominance economically is represented by countries in this continent. Singapore, Indonesia, Japan, China, India and South Korea are some of the countries that contribute to its economic stability. It is the annual GDP from these countries that has enabled the continent to compete actively with Europe. Other countries like Mongolia, Pakistan, Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand have also grown tremendously in the economic sector. All this coupled with the minerals in some of the Asian countries ensures that it expands economically. Minerals are found in abundance in Bahrain, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia amongst others. This has enabled the economic exchange between this continent and many others (Levinson, p 34). The European continent has over the years held the helm in economic stability. It is ranked the highest in relation to current GDP. This position is threatened by the continued dominance of the Asian continent. Th e above mentioned countries have contributed in their own way to overall Asia’s economic dominance. China has grown steadily over the years to ensure that it is the second largest economic powerhouse in the world. It strongly competes with the nation of Japan. This is in relation to many manufacturing plants. Japan is a powerhouse for very many industrial companies all over the world. It is famous for worldwide brands that include Samsung, Toshiba, Sharp, Phillips, and LG amongst many others (Higham, p 45).

Research methods on financial management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Research methods on financial management - Essay Example This paper analysis the Fishers hypothesis using data for the UK over the last 20 years, the main aim of this paper is to analyze the relationship between interest rate and inflation, the main aim of this analysis is to show that real interest rate is equal to expected inflation rate plus nominal interest rates, the paper also analysis the underlying theories that depict the relationship between the variables. Interest rates and inflation are important economic variables, high levels inflation in an economy shows that there is something wrong in the economy and policy makers will try and reduce the high inflation rate. However the Fishers model may not hold in the short run given that the policy makers may alter interest rates in the short run, a study by Yuhn (1996) showed that the relationship between interest rate and inflation was stronger over the long run than in the short run. The Fishers hypothesis depicts that nominal interest rates do not depend on monetary policy measures and that there is a positive relationship between nominal interest rate and the expected inflation rate. The Fisher hypothesis model states that real interest rate is equal to nominal interest rate plus expected inflation rate stated as R = I + ÃŽ  e where R is real interest rate, ÃŽ  e is the expected inflation rate and I is nominal interest rate. The Fishers hypothesis model is also stated as I =ÃŽ ± + ÃŽ ²ÃŽ  et where I is nominal interest rate and ÃŽ  et is expected inflation. The value of ÃŽ ² is expected to be positive and a value of ÃŽ ² = 1 shows the strong version of the Fishers hypothesis. The paper analysis the correlation between the variables and help identify whether there is a strong positive relationship between inflation and nominal interest rate, however the correlation coefficient value only shows how two variables move together and this means that there is need to run a regression model that states the

Disadvantages of the Present Jury System Research Paper

Disadvantages of the Present Jury System - Research Paper Example The present jury system has also been found to have the limitation in that; some defendants during trail go for the jury so as to delay to the system (Simon, 1995). Delaying the whole process exert pressure on the Crown Prosecution Service so as to cut down the charge with respect to the defendant persuading guilty. It has also been found that, delaying the process because the defendant choosing jury during trial makes the prosecution witness not to attend the trial. This weakens their follow-ups if they do not appear during the trial, thus increasing chances of acquittal (Simon, 1995). Under the present jury system, if the defendants are taken to remand, they enjoy extra time that the convicted prisoners are not given. For this reason, the time the defendants spend on remand is subtracted from any final sentence in prison. This has the implication that the trial will be put off as much as possible so as to maximize the amount of sentence while living under better conditions. This is the long last ends up wasting a lot of time and money (Simon, 1995).   The power that the present jury system has is also a source of several disadvantages that affect the system. Since any power can be abused, makes it easy for juries coming to court to have individual prejudices and biases thus not guaranteeing fair verdict (Abramson, 2008). Moreover, the fact that the present jury system is composed of laypersons; this brings in the issue of effectiveness during the trial process. When jurors are faced with murder cases, there is a likelihood that they are experiencing such a situation for the first time. There might also be no adequate frame of reference thus affecting the final decision (Abramson, 2008).