Saturday, December 28, 2019

Use Of Ceramics In Filtration - 1014 Words

Highly porous ceramics (foams, honeycombs, fibres , mats, etc.) find numerous applications in various engineering fields, including filtration (molten metals, particulate from diesel exhaust gases), radiant burners, catalyst supports, biomedical devices, kiln furniture, reinforcement for metal matrix composites, bioreactors, thermal protection systems, supports for space mirrors, components in solid oxide fuel cells, lightweight sandwich structures, heat exchangers (graphite foams), etc. Talking about the interest of this report i.e. use of Ceramics in Filtration. During many industrial processes, a filtering step may be required to remove impurities and improve quality of the final product. Depending on the process, the filter may be†¦show more content†¦These inclusions can be removed by placing ceramic filters in the gating system leading to the mold. Such filters must resist attack at high temperature by a variety of molten metals. These metals can contain such reactive elements as aluminium, titanium, hafnium, and carbon. Using these filters can reduce scrap rates by 40% and increase yields by 10% for manufacturing a wide range of parts made out of iron alloys, stainless steel, super alloys, aluminium, or other nonferrous alloys. Molten metal filters generally come in two forms: a porous foam-like structure with interconnected pores that vary in direction or cross section, or an extruded porous cellular or honeycomb structure with cells of various shapes (square or triangular) and constant cross section. Though globally the most popular type of filter is foam, cellular filters are used in 75% of applications in North America. Filters can have either open cells or closed cells. Open cell (reticulate) filters consist of a network of interconnected voids surrounded by a web of ceramic and are widely used for molten metal filtration. Closed cell filters (foams) consist of a similar network but the beams are bridged by thin faces which isolate the individual cell. The open porosity in an open cell structure is critical in filter applications. The properties of a filter depend on both the cellular geometry (density, cell size) and the properties of the material.Show MoreRelatedChemical Mixture, Using Filtration And Evaporation1630 Words   |  7 Pagesthis lab will be to proficiently separate a mixture, using filtration and evaporation. In this lab, a homogeneous mixture will be created, along with a heterogeneous mixture.The two mixtures will be mixed together, yet separated. Common substances will be mixed and then separated using two of the techniques already listed; filtration and evaporation. Theory If the salt, sand, and water mixture is separated successfully through filtration and evaporation, then the percent recovery of the salt andRead MoreAn Extension Of The Proposed Sand And Activated Charcoal Water Filtration System For Engineers Without Borders Essay1072 Words   |  5 PagesIntroduction This report is an extension of the proposed sand and activated charcoal water filtration system for Engineers without Borders to adapt in Mayukwayukwa. The household-based, point of use system, is advantageous for its usability, cost efficiency, and lack of ongoing energy requirements however specific measures relating to economic, social and environmental sustainability have been identified to increase beneficial outcomes. Similarly, measures have been examined to adapt to the growingRead MoreDiatomite1292 Words   |  6 Pagesskeletons of one-celled algae-like plants called diatoms. It is accumulated in marine areas. The Honeycomb sillia structure is useful because of its high absorptive capacity and surface area. It is also very chemically stable. Its principal use is filtration. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;This substance of diatomite is extracted from many countries around the world. Out of 30 world countries the largest suppliers are the United States, China, Denmark, and Japan. China supplies about 350 thousandRead MoreEssay about Separation of Mixtures Lab Report694 Words   |  3 Pagesback to the solid phase is called deposition. 2. Extraction. This uses a solvent to selectively dissolve one component of the solid mixture. With this technique, a soluble solid can be separated from an insoluble solid. 3. Decantation. This separates a liquid from an insoluble solid by carefully pouring the liquid from the solid without disturbing the solid. 4. Filtration. This separates a solid from a liquid through the use of a porous material as a filter. Paper is a good filter. FiltersRead MoreProcessing And Disposal Of Produced Water3072 Words   |  13 Pagesmanagement practises depend on the cost of the hydrocarbon resources. Considering that water is the waste by-product to the oil and gas industry, historically, the most commonly practiced management practices are aimed at disposal rather than beneficial use. The most common methods for produced water disposal are comprised of land application or discharge, subsurface injection, and offsite trucking. †¢ Land application and discharge is very expensive method of disposing of produced water. However this isRead MoreBiological Engineering : Access For Clean Water1254 Words   |  6 Pagespathogens. At point of use methods like chlorination with safe storage, water filled transparent PET bottles exposed to sunlight, ceramic filters, and biosand filters are being used(Sobsey et al.2008). Whereas methods developed at community level are multi-stage filtration and ultraviolet light disinfection(Gibson 2013). In the past decade, alternative disinfectants (combined chlorine, ozone, UV radiation) and membrane filtration (low-pressure microfiltration and ultra-filtration) technologies cameRead MoreEssay about Josiah Doncaster Ltd1745 Words   |  7 Pagesare clearly lower than theirs. We estimate them at  £21.20 per unit. On any kind of volume the total cost of our ceramic core is down to 50p each; their sintered bronze core costs them  £6 to buy in. We have a patented technolog ical edge over Western in the ceramic core. They can only filter down to 64 microns with the sintered bronze; whereas we can tailor ours down to any desired filtration level. Finally, we have a name which is known and respected. Everyone has heard of Doncaster. We have a 200-yearRead MoreReview Of Heinz Hankammer s Company Essay2149 Words   |  9 PagesPart 1: Overview/Background Brita was founded in 1966 by Heinz Hankammer. A German company that specializes in water filtration products. The Clorox Company here in the United States entered into a licensing-and-distribution agreement with Brita in 1988 and soon after acquired the sole rights to the brand in North America but in 2008, Brita returned to the North American market under the brand Mavea. Brita’s products include water jugs, tap attachments and kettles. Brita’s main headquarters areRead MoreIntroduction: Have You Ever Wondered What Is The One Thing1163 Words   |  5 Pagesof the leading causes of death in the world. B. What is clean water needed for? Domestic use: drinking, washing, cleaning, cooking. Ecosystems: domestic and wild animals. Agricultural use: irrigation. Industrial use: electricity, manufacturing, technology. Today, United States remains the largest water consumer in the world. An average American wastes 400 gallons of water per day on domestic use. That same day 14, 000 people worldwide will die from the contaminated water. C. Anatomy: HumanRead MoreCommon Health Problems Caused By Acidic Water816 Words   |  4 PagesUse pH Balanced Water to Treat Common Ailments By now, I m sure you know that drinking ten 8-ounce glasses of water a day is good for your health, and drinking less can cause dehydration and lead to common ailments such as: Dry, cracked skin Bowel problems Muscle pain Headaches Heartburn Anxiety Hot flashes Increased arthritic inflammation What you may not know, however, is that the type of water you drink is just as, if not more important as the amount. Is your water safe to drink

Thursday, December 19, 2019

An Analysis of Anne Bradstreets Poem, To My Dear and...

The poem â€Å"To my Dear and Loving Husband† by Anne Bradstreet, is not just an exceedingly felt expression of a wife’s marital love and commitment to her husband, as it is about a puritan women who is supposed to be reserved but she makes it her obligation to enlighten her husband of her devotion. A thorough analysis of the poem’s paradox, hyperbole, imagery and repetition reveals how she conveys her message. The opening lines of the poem show how strong her feelings are for her husband. Bradstreet shows this by the use of a great example of a paradox, â€Å"if two were one, then surely we.† This shows that the magnitude of her love and affection is so deep that she’s comparing two beings as one. She praises her love for her husband so much†¦show more content†¦Im really surprised to learn that this was not common back for puritan women back then. In my opinion, the author is very open about how she feels about her husband. You can tell that throughout the poem she is repeating herself and stressing on the same idea over and over again. She praises, adores, and loves her husband and is taking an initiative to show it by writing this letter to him. Its interesting how she began the poem by using the word ever in the first two lines and how she ended it with the same word on line 12. Then while we live, in love lets so persevere That when we live no more, we may live ever. I would like to end my analysis of this poem by stating a paradox that can be found at the end of the poem in lines 11-12. Her love for her husband is on such a level that she wants to preserve it while they live and even after they die. Its amazing to me how much love one can have for a person. The poems main idea is not just centralized on how much Bradstreet loves her husband, but also on a Puritan woman who takes the initiative to show her love to her husband which was very uncommon backShow MoreRelatedEssay on Analysis of Anne Bradstreets T o My Dear and Loving Husband470 Words   |  2 PagesAnalysis of Anne Bradstreets To My Dear and Loving Husband Anne Bradstreets poem, To My Dear and Loving Husband, shows her profound love and undying affection for her husband. For a Puritan woman who is supposed to be reserved, Bradstreet makes it her obligation to enlighten her husband of her devotion. She conveys this message through her figurative language and declarative tone by using imagery, repetition, and paradoxes. Over and over again she expresses her adoration for him withRead More Analysis of To My Dear and Loving Husband by Anne Bradstreet752 Words   |  4 PagesAnalysis of To My Dear and Loving Husband by Anne Bradstreet Anne Bradstreet, the author of â€Å"To My Dear and Loving Husband† was a Puritan. This had great influence on the meaning and theme of her poem. This poem was actually not published until almost 40 years after she died. She lived in a harsh religious world where it was looked down upon for women to be courageous and smart. She lived a life that where she was unspoken and obedient to because of her religious belief. She had many concernsRead MoreLiterary Analysis Of Anne Bradstreet s The Prologue Essay2567 Words   |  11 Pagesâ€Å"who says my hand a needle better fits†: A Literary Analysis Reading of Anne Bradstreet’s â€Å" The Prologue Does gender explain the importance of a poet? Gender is just the state of being male or female. When it comes to gender no gender is superior than the other. Some individuals would imagine a poet becoming important by them excelling intellectually, being able to write about the things one could relate to, and sometimes being that voice for those who cannot be heard. Anne Bradstreet, an earlyRead MoreIn Memory Of Anne Bradstreet Analysis1777 Words   |  8 Pages Bradstreet 1. The voice of Anne Bradstreet is likely to appear in those poems whose titles refer to her immediate family, â€Å"To My Dear and Loving Husband†, â€Å"In Reference to Her Children, 23 June 1659†, â€Å"In Memory of Mt Dear Grandchild Elizabeth Bradstreet, Who Deceased August , 665, Being a Year and a Half Old†, and â€Å"To My Dear Children†. The other readings reflect the voice of the Mistress Bradstreet. In poems that reflect the voice of Anne, Bradstreet was full of emotion, and as a mother she

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

President John F. Kennedy Essay Example For Students

President John F. Kennedy Essay There is something about John F. Kennedy. Could it be his charisma and charm that still entrances America? Maybe it is his elevated status as a pop culture icon that bedazzles most American citizens. It might be the martyr status he attained through his tragic assassination that makes American culture revere him as a President. Whatever the reason is that defines John F. Kennedy as probably one of the most beloved Presidents in American History; one assumption by many is that it has nothing to do with his political legacy. Many respected historians will tell you that he has an insubstantial political legacy. Using the body of legislation that was passed during his short time in office as evidence, historians say that significant legislation was lacking. More than likely they will remark about his emphasis on rhetoric and his deficient action. On the other hand, many historians and writers contend his political legacy reverberates to this very day. They claim that through his mastery of that novel medium of his day, Television, his inclusion of culture into the office of President, and most of all his idealism, echoes in todays political atmosphere. In total, the latter argument is actually tronger. Although JFK does lack substantial legislation that would bolster a claim to a significant political legacy, in other ways John F. Kennedy has such an intense political legacy that to this very day the Presidency of the United States cannot escape it. In respect to truly monumental legislation, John F. Kennedy does lack and therefore the people who say he does not have a true political legacy have a point. These critics believe a true political legacy is in what the President has accomplished legislatively in the White House. With Kennedy, they state he was more talk than action. They do concede it was not truly do to his lack of initiative. He did have many proposals, but because he was dealing with a Congress that was very strong and composed of a Southern Democrats/Republican majority, he had a hard time. (Kilpatrick, 51) So proposals like federal aid to education, the creation of a Department of Urban Affairs, and Medicare were shot down. (Kilpatrick, 53). To drum up support for them, Kennedy had to convince the public and gain their support. Thats where Kennedys famous rhetoric comes in. The talk may have later led the American public to support the mentioned roposals in the Johnson years, but in JFKs years they did nothing but make his critics say he was a lot of talk and no action. Yet John F. Kennedy did have some significant legislation passed through Congress, and even got accomplishments done around Congress back. One achievement is when John F. Kennedy formed the Peace Corps. (Sorensen, 256) Another was the giving of federal support to the arts, which was done through executive orders. (Kilpatrick, 54) Economically, his tax cut resonates in the policy of former President Reagan. In fact, when tallying the recommendations Kennedy sent to the 87th Congress, of the 107 he sent 73 were enacted into law, with measures dealing with water pollution, mental health care, hospital construction, mental retardation, drug safety and medical schools. (Manchester, 227) In total, his biggest achievement was not in what was accomplished, but what was proposed. The critics might believe that passed legislation is the only indicator of political legacy, but in reality what is proposed can have profound effects. His proposals on Medicare and programs like it might have lead to nothing in his term, but they did come to fruition in later Presidencies. .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057 , .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057 .postImageUrl , .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057 , .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057:hover , .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057:visited , .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057:active { border:0!important; } .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057:active , .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057 .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u10a88d5e0143dc836f0347827e4c6057:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Succeed EssayTruthfully, one cannot say a man does not have a political legacy if he had proposed ideas, but they had not been passed, since those proposals can deeply influence later Congresses and Presidents through their ideas and insight into problems. One way President Kennedy has a true political legacy is in his use of Television in his campaign for in the Presidential Election of 1960. Back when Kennedy ran, it was an underutilized tool. Kennedy brought out its potential. Through television, he was able to present himself to vast audiences that he could never have reached. Kennedy exploited the television ebate, first used in that election. Kennedy had poise, while also looking tanned and well rested, while his opponent, Richard Nixon, was sick and looked dreadful. Afterwards, during his presidency Kennedy effectively utilized the new medium to his advantage. He was the contemporary man, as he was called by Adlai Stevenson after Kennedys death. This was portrayed through TV in his vitality and youth. (Schlesinger, 12) It was said by William Manchester, Newspapermen and television commentators reported the progress of the new administration almost breathlessly. The televised news conferences were immensely popular. Remembering his first debate with Nixon, Jack became the first President to recognize and exploit the possibilities of TV. (Manchester, 135) His family became a center of public interest. Everyone wanted to know the name of his daughters horse or his sons latest escapade. The television turned the presidential family into a mini soap opera, changing the way the Presidency would be looked at after it. (Manchester, 250) This usage of television is seen today, from round the clock coverage of the president on television, to the media firestorm that surrounded President Clinton during the Lewinsky scandal. President Clinton is a byproduct of this usage of TV. He is a telegenic person who has used his mastery of the medium effectively to convince voters to vote for him. He also says that his idol President is John F. Kennedy. Throughout most of Americas history, the President had to appeal to the commoner to be elected. That usually meant appearing commoner then the ordinary person. However, John. F. Kennedy did not hide his love of the high-life. He broke the mold and invited the crà ¨me de la crà ¨me to the White House, and entertained them with artists, poets, scientists, musicians, and scholars. The guests would eat gourmet ood, and then maybe see a ballet troupe perform, or perhaps they saw a Shakespeare company stage a play. Whatever it was, JFK broke new political ground, changing the perception of a President from a commoner to an intellectual. (Manchester, 156). John F. Kennedy was a man of idealism, and his idealism changed the political landscape. He held that problems are man-made, and can be therefore solved by man. (Kennedy, 2) He was man who believed things of excellence could be achieved, no matter how hard they are to attain. (Sorenson, 256) Kennedy believed that it was the role of the President to gnite hope for decency, equality, reason and peace. (Sorenson, 257) In a speech at American University in 1963, President Kennedy said: What kind a peace do we seek? Not a Pax Americana enforced on he world by American weapons of war. Not the peace of the grave or the security of a slave. I am talking about genuine peace, the kind of peace that makes life on earth worth living, the kind that enables men and nations to grow and to hope and to build a better life for their children not merely peace for Americans but peace for all men and women not merely peace in our time but peace for all time. Kennedy, 1) This kind of idealistic world visi on that Kennedy was known for inspired millions, with him growing a loyal following of the younger generation of the time. He told his fellow Americans to reexamine their attitudes towards peace and freedom. (Kennedy, 6) .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc , .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc .postImageUrl , .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc , .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc:hover , .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc:visited , .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc:active { border:0!important; } .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc:active , .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ub34c3233451b971d6ab1f9cbb6ffbebc:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Alcohol And Domestic Violence EssayIn fact, he was the one who inspired the youth of the 1960s to actually participate in the government and the world. He gave them an outlet, the Peace Corps, and gave them inspiration to change the world for the better, and therefore gained their votes. As Arthur Schlesinger Jr. said, He voiced the disquietude of the postwar generation . . (Schlesinger, 13). By using the youth to his political advantage, he ignited a chain of events that reverberates to this day. It was the first generation that had grown up in an age when American innocence had died. (Schlesinger, 12) This volatile mixture of loss of innocence, youth and idealism lead to the SDS, Black Panthers, The Weatherman, Flower Power and other organizations or beliefs that had idealistic views. This is a true political legacy, because by him inciting the youth of the 60s to do better and . . . Ask what you can do for your country. Led this country down the path of the urbulent 60s, changing the dynamics of the countrys youth culture irreparably. However valid the point of JFKs critics in reference to Kennedys flimsy legislation record, Kennedy does have a political legacy that is irrefutable. The idealism he gave to the youth of America, his mastery of the media, and his infusion of culture into the White House have left its mark politically in such a way that Presidents, Senators and congressmen can in no way escape it. John F. Kennedy does have a political legacy, and it is one that politicians must embrace or they will not be taken seriously by Americans. WORKS CITED Kennedy, John F. American University Speech. Http://users. southeast. net/~cheryl/auspeech. html, June 10, 1963. Kilpatrick, Caroll. The Kennedy Style and Congress. John F. Kennedy and The New Frontier. Ed. Aà ¯da DiPace Donald. New York:Hill and Wang, 1966. Manchester, William. One Brief Shining Moment: Remembering Kennedy. Boston:Little, Brown and Company, 1983. Schlesinger Jr. , Arthur M. Kennedy on the Eve. John F. Kennedy and The New Frontier. Ed. Aà ¯da DiPace Donald. New York:Hill and Wang, 1966. Sorensen, Theodore C. Epilogue. John F. Kennedy and The New Frontier. Ed. Aà ¯da DiPace Donald. New York:Hill and Wang, 1966.

Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Accounting for Strategic Management and Control

Question: Discuss the accounting for strategic management and control, evaluation of Kanymoon Universitys benchmarked position. Answer: Introduction A management accountant stands a better chance in an organization at taking an overview of the organization they work and provide the best response and advice that the organization should take (Vaivio, 2008). In this case where the administrator requests for a report from the management accountant on how to complete the benchmarking process as well as give valid recommendations. Such a case will help the Kanymoon University (KU) take the rights steps in reducing the costs that it accrues within a financial year after comparing with other major stakeholders in the same industry who provide the schooling services. This will help the management of Ku make the necessary changes as they learn the few secrets that the other universities use in saving a few funds even as they provide the best services to their students. Benchmarking is a process that does not happen once. It is an ongoing process (Ward, 2012).This is because the management has to compare all the processes and the performance of the school with that of the others from the administrative costs to all other costs like the maintenance costs. It will then pick the best practices and apply them in their school that will help reduce the costs they incur after the government has stopped its funding; performance is the major indicator which reveals a metric performance allowing comparisons with others. Such is the measure of the cost per unit of measure in this case the students versus the amount in cash they pay. This process helps in the strategic management options and application of the best practice that will allow the management moves their organization in the next level (Scapens, 2006). They can then make plans from the assessment and analysis and make the necessary changes they need to hence reducing the costs incurred and increasing the aspect of performance. Main Body This is the part of the management report that carries all the important analysis that the management accountant found as they compared the activities amongst the three universities and drawing conclusions about the reports they presented. Evaluation of Kanymoon Universitys benchmarked position A look at the administrative costs that the management accrues for most of their academic year reveals that KU has the least of the costs of the accrued funds within the academic year. The facilities management in terms of the research money set aside takes up the highest percentage in the funds as they spend more than twenty six million serving a number of about seven thousand staff members and more than twenty eight thousand students. These on comparison to the amount of money spent by the BU is almost the same range serving over twenty nine thousand students and more than eight thousand staff members. If KU would choose to reduce the amount spent in the research and more so in the facilities management and the laboratory management, they would save a large amount of funds. On the other hand, the research contract value of KU is higher than the other two universities, AU and BU that it uses as their foundation to do the benchmarking. This is a clear indication that they award their contracts and takes the highest bidder to provide them with the services they need in the learning institution. A look at the other two universities shows a difference margin of more than twenty million and thirty million respectively from the AU and BU. This is a higher amount of money they spend depending on the high number of students that BU has in their school and it emerges as the lowest spender in the research contracts. KU will benefit more from the established gaps and identification of the reason that there are huge differences in the spending. Such will help the management take the corrective measures to improve the future performance a while reducing the costs incurred. The position that the management of Kanymoons University should take is a corrective actions that will help in improving the services they offer as they accommodate more students in the future. They will reduce the costs they incur in each category while they do not compromise on the contractors they award to perform the research on their behalf. Working with the government is the first indicator that their services are of high quality (Ma Tayles, 2009). The tools they will use in application of the benchmarking options they choose will also be another determining factor as they determine how fast the changes are implemented in the organization. The right tools applied in the school will allow the management and other members of staff the smooth transition of the changes as they accommodate the new recommendations. Such will help every member align with the new changes as they make sure they are in line with the requirements on their part in reducing the costs. Strategic management accounting Kaplan Atkinson, (2015) defines strategic management accounting as the analysis of the data used in the management on a business in comparison to the competitors. Such information is important in the development and the monitoring if the strategies that the business applies to its line of business. Lord, (2007) on the other hand defines the strategic accounting techniques as the backbone of support of the organization. This happened through the use of the advanced technology where more sophisticated products and services are developed to curb the competition. Langfield-Smith, (2008) further suggests that the literature review on the matter of strategic management accounting gives ideas from different scholars who have made an attempt to define the matter. They all agree that the analysis if the information in the products and services of the firm and the competitors costs that they charge are the major areas of compassion and of interest. Recent developments in the subject of strategic management accounting reveal that it provides the information that help in supporting the strategic decisions that organizations make on a daily basis. Such decisions affect the long-term and hence their effect on the organization is significant. Recommendation Kanymoon University management could also contact the management accountant and specify that they would want another method considered as one of the strategic management accounting (SMA) that will work instead of the benchmarking technique. One of the major suggestions that the management accountant would recommend to the management is the use of Activity-Based Management (Lessmann et al, 2008). This method if applied by the management in their day to day activities may help in identifying the activities that the school does using the activity based costing method as they carry out their value chain analyses. Such will also benefit the organization in evaluation of their performance while they take the corrective measures that will benefit the school while at the same time improving the strategic and the operational decisions that take place within the authority of the administrative. Costs in all sectors in the school will reduce significantly with the adoption of the technique. Adopting this accounting principle will help the university track down the relationship between the overheads costs to their activities such that the overhead costs could be specifically allocated to the services or the products that they are used. The management will have a better grasp in managing their activities hence reducing then costs while at the same time improving they student value. In order to have a better view at the Activity-Based Management (ABM), the management will divide its activities in either operational or the strategic (Khataie et al, 2010). In the strategic ABM, the staff will have the responsibility of doing the right thing and choosing the right option using the activity based costing information where they will decide the products they can develop and which activities they can use while at the same time focusing on the student who are the major interest of the university. On the other hand, the operational ABM will be focus on improving the efficiency in t hat the management will do away with activities that no longer add value to the university nor to the student activities as they need to cut the costs down that will not affect the value that the students get at the end of the day. The technique will benefit KU through the tracking down of costs that affect the daily activities of the school within an academic year. All the management and staff having the same goals and objectives and working towards the common goal will help the school attain the goals that they set. All activities irrelevant to the costs and those that no longer matter will be reduced as that management ensures that every cost that the school pays for are traceable (Garrison et al, 2010). Any amount that the school spends and appears to stem from a source that the school cannot identify with is cut down improving the efficiency of the method used. Conclusion Major changes that the KU management will take will also depend on their future goals as well as the level of competition they would want to maintain in the market. They will make the necessary changes in their costs in reducing them making sure that they do not affect the quality of the services they provide to their students. Such will be the measure of the right actions after the benchmarking exercise as they embark in balancing the costs in the administrative costs in regards to their future in terms of increased staff members or the increased number of students. KU should implement the best practices only that are, pick the best in the first university and the best in the second university and find channels through which they can implement the practices. Such will take the new format in reduction of costs and the improvement of service delivery. After some time, they should take periodic reviews to ensure that the best practices they implemented blend well with their organization reducing the possibility that there will be areas that fail. In any case, where there are chances that one of the best practice chosen does not work for their organization, they should take the necessary steps to remove it from their school. What works for one university might not work for another (Zimmerman Yahya, 2011). This is an external benchmarking hence the need to take precautionary measures to adopt the best practices that will benefit the organization. The most important aspect that the organization wants to achieve is reduced costs without affecting the quality of the services they give their students. That will be the solution through the benchmarking process and the advantages accrued for the university. This may necessitate the need to take care of its costs even after the economy recovers from the recession and do away with the government support. References Albright, T. L., Gerber, C. A., Juras, P. (2014). How naval aviation uses the balanced scorecard.Strategic Finance,96(4), 21-29. Benson, A. M., Henderson, S. (2011). A strategic analysis of volunteer tourism organisations.The Service Industries Journal,31(3), 405-424. Bhimani, A., Langfield-Smith, K. (2007). Structure, formality and the importance of financial and non-financial information in strategy development and implementation.Management Accounting Research,18(1), 3-31. Cadez, S., Guilding, C. (2008). An exploratory investigation of an integrated contingency model of strategic management accounting.Accounting, organizations and society,33(7), 836-863. Garrison, R. H., Noreen, E. W., Brewer, P. C., McGowan, A. (2010). Managerial accounting.Issues in Accounting Education,25(4), 792-793. Kaplan, R. S., Atkinson, A. A. (2015).Advanced management accounting. PHI Learning. Khataie, A., Defersha, F. M., Bulgak, A. A. (2010). A multi-objective optimisation approach for order management: incorporating activity-based costing in supply chains.International Journal of Production Research,48(17), 5007-5020. Kneevi, S. P., Rako evi, S. B.,  uri, D. (2011). Management Accounting in Achieving Competitive Advantage and Bank Controlling.Management (1820-0222), (59). Langfield-Smith, K. (2008). Strategic management accounting: how far have we come in 25 years?.Accounting, Auditing Accountability Journal,21(2), 204-228. Lessmann, S., Baesens, B., Mues, C., Pietsch, S. (2008). Benchmarking classification models for software defect prediction: A proposed framework and novel findings.Software Engineering, IEEE Transactions on,34(4), 485-496. Lord, B. R. (2007). Strategic management accounting.Issues in Management Accounting,3, 135-154. Ma, Y., Tayles, M. (2009). On the emergence of strategic management accounting: an institutional perspective.Accounting and Business Research,39(5), 473-495. Rezaie, K., Ostadi, B., Torabi, S. A. (2008). Activity-based costing in flexible manufacturing systems with a case study in a forging industry.International Journal of Production Research,46(4), 1047-1069. Scapens, R. W. (2006). Understanding management accounting practices: A personal journey.The British Accounting Review,38(1), 1-30. Vaivio, J. (2008). Qualitative management accounting research: rationale, pitfalls and potential.Qualitative Research in Accounting Management,5(1), 64-86. Ward, K. (2012).Strategic management accounting. Routledge. Zimmerman, J. L., Yahya-Zadeh, M. (2011). Accounting for decision making and control.Issues in Accounting Education,26(1), 258-259.

Thursday, November 28, 2019

Swot Analysis of Bank of America Essay Example

Swot Analysis of Bank of America Paper Bank of America: SWOT Analysis The Bank of America abides by a corporate philosophy that values diversity and aims to implement it on a large scale within the organization. On its websites, the bank proclaims that â€Å"work environment draws on the strength of every associate to build an atmosphere of personal and professional growth† (Bank of America Corporation 2006). To implement the goals of increasing diversity and including different types of employees in corporate environments, the Bank of America has created a number of organizations and groups. One of them is the Diversity Advisory Council, including employees from different levels who can make a difference at the organizational level. Diversity Business Councils are found in many BoA divisions, exploring issues pertaining to diversity and producing recommendations for the improvement in this area. The bank has also organized the Diversity Network that aims â€Å"to encourage and capitalize on the diversity of our associates and promote personal and professional development† (Bank of America Corporation 2006). Diversity is also promoted by various affinity groups acknowledged and supported by the bank’s management, including various racial groups, people with disabilities, gays and lesbians, bisexuals, and women. We will write a custom essay sample on Swot Analysis of Bank of America specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Swot Analysis of Bank of America specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Swot Analysis of Bank of America specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The efforts of the Bank of America to implement diversity did not go unnoticed by business publications and analytical agencies. Over the course of years, the bank has accumulated a number of rewards for its commitment to diversity practices. Among those are a Best Company for Working Mothers from Working Mother magazine, a Best Company for Diversity from DiversityInc., one out of top 100 Companies for Hispanics from Hispanic Magazine, Best Company for Latinas from LATINA Style magazine, and others. 2. Corporate Social Responsibility The Bank of America demonstrates a consistent commitment to community development. One of the examples is the Neighbourhood Excellence initiative in which the bank invests in the development of local nonprofits in different locations. The bank reports to â€Å"fund $200,000 in operating support to 2 nonprofits in each of 40 markets† (Bank of America Corporation 2006). In addition, it provides funds to leaders with significant accomplishments and student leaders. The bank partners with a number of charity and non-profit organizations to assist them in noble causes. For example, it claims to be committed to participation in disaster relief efforts nation-wide. Cooperating with HomeAid America, the Bank of America participates in the construction of homes for the poor. The organization is involved in building houses for the temporary homeless in 11 states. On January 14, 2005, the Bank of America provided â€Å"a $100,000 grant and $50,000 sponsorship† for this organization to help it forward its goals (Bank of America Corporation 2006). Another example of how the Bank of America applies the notion of Corporate Social Responsibility is the MBNA Foundation supported by the bank. It strives to support financially â€Å"education, human services, health services, and the arts† (Bank of America Corporation 2006). These community donations are distributed as grants for which any local organization can apply. The financial institution in 2004 announced the goal of $1.5 billion annual donation to corporate philanthropy over 10 years. This signifies a serious commitment to CSR, even against the background of the company’s revenues. 3. Rewards and Team Incentives The Bank of America has an extensive award program designed to inspire people to achieve company goals. Since the bank is committed to the image of a responsible company, it chose to reward employees who lead an environmentally conscious lifestyle. Each employee who lives at a distance of 90 miles or less from Boston, Charlotte, NC, and Los Angeles, will receive the amount matching a $3,000 federal tax credit for replacing one’s car with a hybrid vehicle. Anne Finucane, the bank’s Global Marketing Corporate Affairs associate, says: â€Å"†Given the size of our commuting associate base, the hybrid program expands our commitment to the environment and helps our associates to participate in making a difference while cutsting down on their commuting costs† (Drosjack 2006). Outlining the basics of its corporate compensation, the bank states that a large part of the compensation comes in incentives and bonuses, although it does not disclose exactly what proportion and the details of the bonus system. The program called Rewarding Success will provide incentives to employees receiving less than $100,000 annually. They will get a cash bonus or defer it to their retirement account if the company â€Å"meets or exceeds annual business targets† (Bank of America Corporation 2006). As to team incentives, the Bank of America does not seem to be really committed to them. The only evidence of teamwork is the existence of the Team Bank of America, but this system includes a number of teams that promote the company’s CSR goals such as environment protection, community development, and volunteer services. This network gives employees opportunities for self-expression, but there is no mention of any financial incentives included in its framework. Bibliography Bank of America Corporation. 2006. 27 Aug. 06 . Drosjack, Melissa. â€Å"Private Sector, States Promote Rewards for Hybrid Drivers.† Fox News 5 July 2006. 27 Aug. 06 .

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Miracle on St Davids Day by Gillian Clarke Essay Example

Miracle on St Davids Day by Gillian Clarke Essay Example Miracle on St Davids Day by Gillian Clarke Essay Miracle on St Davids Day by Gillian Clarke Essay Essay Topic: Poetry Miracle on St Davids Day is an enchanting, and ultimately optimistic poem relating to the theme of identity by Gillian Clarke. The poem tells the story of a man in a mental institution, who exceeds the expectation of both the nurses and his fellow patients when he regains the ability to talk. In the first stanza of the poem, Gillian Clarke describes the country house in what seems to be an idyllic setting, The sun treads the path among cedars and enormous oaks, it might be a country house, guests strolling. However despite the seemingly pleasant tone, implied by the use of her making it seem informal, through the relaxed wondering of what the House may have been, might be a country house, guests strolling, suggesting normality her use of the word might alerts the reader that this idyllic setting may be an illusion and not what it first seems. The illusion of normality is swiftly extracted by the opening line of the second stanza, I am reading poetry to the insane. This line ends with a certain finality, that is so abrupt that it disturbs the so far, flowing effect to the poem, also implying informality and normality, to the effects that it shocks the reader, not only in the disrupted rhythm of the poem but also in the disturbingly blunt reality of what she is saying. Furthermore this is shocking because it is not commonplace for people to be reading poetry to the insane. Gillian Clarke does this numerous times during the poem in order to stop the reader, so that the poem does not ramble, and make it more interesting, A beautiful chestnut-haired boy listens entirely absorbed. A schizophrenic. This use of contrast between the descriptive lines of the opening stanza and the flat, and remarkably blunt, tones of this line introduce the reader to the contrast between the setting and the guests. As we can observe from the line following, I am reading poetry to the insane, which instantly restores the mood of the poem to informal with the humor, of the old woman who is constantly offering the narrator coal, when it is March and she would have no means of getting coal. By the use of having the woman saying humorous things, Gillian Clarke is also contrasting her with the other patients at the home, as she is the only one who is talking. The poem also uses poetic devises such as personification, An afternoon yellow and open mouthed. It uses metaphors, In a cage of first march sun, and similes such as, Outside the daffodils are still as wax, to make the poem more interesting to read, and also without these techniques the imagery of the poem, that the people in the home are daffodils would not be portrayed and the final message of the poem would not be presented to the reader. Thus the poem would be pointless. Gillian Clarke also uses enjambment in the poem, which disturbs the flow of the poem, and I think is also relating to the disturbed personalities of the patients in the home. Enjambment is effectively used in the third to fourth stanzas, as this is a rambling scene of the immense man struggling to get to his chair, and so Clarke reflects this in the appropriate use of enjambment between the stanzas. The first March sun is described as a cage in the third verse as it is saying that for these people who have no freedom, even their enjoyment of the sun is trapping them, and they have no choice but to be out absorbed in it. These poetic devices are also used to build up the character of the man in the poem. In the third stanza where the man is introduced, he is described as a big, mild man, and a laborer, who is being tenderly led. This use of contrasting language informs the reader that even though the man is large in size he has to be tenderly led like a child, continuing to imply to the reader that there is something wrong with him. This is confirmed in the forth verse where he is described as rocking, a common action by insane people as it comforts them. His description is also emphasized by the repetition of the words big, mild and dumb. These words make him seem even more immense, which is odd when they are combined with mild. When the huge laboring man speaks he is in beautiful surroundings reciting a poem about daffodils, which is not only being ironic but is breaking the stereotype of laborers being very masculine and rather insensitive, whereas here he is being portrayed as almost feminine and extremely sensitive. What strikes me most prominently when reading the poem is the amount of imagery used to bring emphasis to the overall meaning of Clarkes poem and to make it more interesting. She has chosen the Daffodils, by W. Wordsworth, as the music that the mute man chooses to speak after forty years of silence. I believe that she has also chosen to describe the man who cannot speak as mute as it is also a musical term, and so therefore is not just emphasizing that there is no speech in his life, but also that there is no music, relating with happiness and merriment, and therefore is saying that without speech there is no joy in the laborers life. However when the rhythm of the poetry he is read awakens him, it appears to turn apparent life into reality. The poem is a possible way to show his waking from a world of misery to a reality of natures beauty and rhythm, Since the dumbness of misery fell he has remembered there was a music of speech and that once he had something to say. This is also playing on the word dumbness, as dumbness aside from meaning stupidity also is relating to the man who cannot speak as a person who is mute can also be described as, dumb. Informing us that the poem is saying that music is good, as when he cannot speak, and there is no music, it is described as, misery and when this, falls, and he has remembered that there is something to say a thrush sings, representing happiness, and the once, wax still daffodils are flame, representing excitement, life and activity. Therefore Gillian Clarke is saying that the man was not properly alive until the music in his life was restored. He is reciting poetry because what he has heard from the nurses in the institution has restored his memory and he has remembered a poem that he had learnt as a child at school. We know this because Clarke informs us in verse thirty-one, Forty years ago, in a Valleys school, the class recited poetry by rote. I believe that Gillian Clarkes poem is also relating to music through this imagery. Since the dumbness of misery fell he has remembered there was a music of speech and that once he had something to say. When he speaks there is an immediate exchange of characteristics, the once lifeless patients are alert and the nurses are frozen as the patients once were. I also notice that in Clarkes poem the daffodils seem to represent the people at the home. At the start of the poem the daffodils are open mouthed showing the way that the patients dont react to the poetry, as this is the face that people use when they are bored and not listening. Their open mouths show how unreceptive the patients are, once again removing any sense of normality as Gillian Clarke alienates them from ordinary sane people. When the miracle of the man speaking occurs the flowers are silent and still, showing that far from the boredom and lack of interest displayed before, everyone is amazed. We can deduct that the daffodils are not merely flowers, by the use of lines such as, their syllables unspoken, as obviously, flowers can speak no syllables. I think that the use of the candle related words throughout the poem are deliberate, when the flowers are as still as, wax, the man is not speaking and when he does they are a flame, which is representing that the mans hope, which has always been there, the wax, but when he speaks it is a flame. It is alive. I think that the, first bird of the year in the breaking darkness is symbolic as the first bird of the year, is representing the first speech in the mans life for many years, and the darkness which is now breaking is the bad times of when he could not speak. His first words in many years are described as a bird, as this also relates to the theme of music. Gillian Clarke effectively alienates the patients in the home and portrays the fact that although they are physically there, they mentally are not by the constant use of word absent, I read to their presences, their absences. St Davids Day by Gillian Clarke illustrates the theme of identity through the use of including people in a mental institution, as they have no identity. Yet after forty years a mans identity breaks through. I believe that this poem is trying to communicate the fact that everyone has an identity; no matter how masked it is from the rest of the world, and by the use of describing them with flowers that cannot speak (which have inner beauty, she is saying that everyone has some kind of identity and beauty. Emotion plays an important part in the poem humor, misery and shock are shown to us and this makes the poems more realistic. Ultimately I feel the reason this is a very effective poem is that the use of daffodils and Wordsworth is subtle but carries a significant meaning that is backed up by the tone of the rest of the poem. I find that the poem is truly touching and although the main message of the poem is quite discrete, the way that it is portrayed makes it seem that you, the reader are really experiencing the miracle.

Thursday, November 21, 2019

How Enterprise Application Integration Competes with ERPs Research Paper

How Enterprise Application Integration Competes with ERPs - Research Paper Example As a result, the competition among businesses has augmented and organizations are putting their attention on supply chain synchronization and management to improve their corporate performance. On the other hand, for many years, ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems have been used for managing supply chain operations. In addition, the boundaries of ERP systems on integrated systems have directed organizations to look for innovative business management techniques to put together their systems as well as supply chains (Themistocleous, Irani, & Love, 2002). This paper presents a detailed analysis of enterprise application integration. The basic aim of this research is to show how EAI competes with Enterprise Resource Planning. Enterprise Application Integration (EAI) EAI (Enterprise application integration) is the way of integrating two or more tools or systems in order to allow them to work as one. In this scenario, EAI includes hardware, software and services. However, enterprise application integration systems are utilized to put together contrary systems, like that an older technology based system in which a huge investment has previously been made (it is usually known as legacy system) and a latest business application, like that customer resource management (CRM) system; in a particular business. Moreover, the enterprise application integration systems are implemented with growing rate to put together the corporate systems of a variety of businesses to allow business dealings among companies to take place electronically (Themistocleous, Irani, & Love, 2002; HostIP, 2012). EAIs and ERPs The need for implementing EAI arose in the 1980s when a lot of business organizations that had until that time implemented information technology (IT) to computerize a variety of company procedures began to assume that the incorporation of these business management applications could, along with other things, augment competence and build accuracy inside company procedures. In this scenario, many IT managers tried to redesign previously implemented business management systems and applications in order to build them as if they were integrated. Instances of these endeavors comprise attempting to carry out operational transaction processing (linked with enterprise resource planning system working and operations) on systems for informational data handling and processing. On the other hand, the enterprise resource planning systems, which included the functions of human resource management, accounting, manufacturing, distribution and other back-end operations or business dealings that do not openly engage clients, grew in reputation all through 1990s when the majority of large size corporations began modernizing their mainframe systems with the latest client/server based ERP systems such as People-Soft Inc., SAP AG, and J.D. Edwards & Co. However, to make these business management systems well-matched with their legacy systems, businesses turned to enterpri se application integration vendors for integration solutions (Themistocleous, Irani, & Love, 2002; HostIP, 2012; PeterIndia, 2012; MuleSoft Inc., 2012). Insufficient Nature of ERP Systems Managing supply chains and organization’s requirements to incorporate their applications on enterprise and cross-enterprise level is one of the complex jobs. However, for the incorporation of external and internal business tasks, companies are carrying-on

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Confucius and Gautama Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Confucius and Gautama - Essay Example First of all, Confucian philosophy is based on the principles of decent way of life in order to create a strong and functioning state where people happily live together and respect each other. Thats why Confucian philosophy is engaged with obedience and mutual respectful treatment of citizens of a state. While Gautamas principles mostly talk about some abstract enlightenment people should try to attend throughout their lives and the process of ascension above everything material and temporal. Still those who say that these philosophies are similar also right, because the ways that Confucius and Buddha propose to become good and descent are concerning obedience and respect, tranquility and personal growth. Even though Confucius and Gautama can frequently be considered as quite similar, still their philosophies are about different things. Confucius considers state as the highest priority for every citizen and human, when Buddha says that people should strive to the personal enlightenment and mental

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Sustainability And Energy Efficiency In Housing Essay

Sustainability And Energy Efficiency In Housing - Essay Example ceiling insulation; area of north-facing windows; floor insulation; amount of thermal mass; wall insulation, etc. (Healy, 2004) Traditional and current practice in relation to health and safety issues in energy efficient and sustainable housing Housing and health outcomes have been related for many years, but only recently this interrelation has acquired sufficient support through changing construction techniques. 'Housing sustains and supports human life and thus housing environments directly and indirectly impact on health, social support, absence of disease, quality of life and well-being'. (Givoni, 1976) This is why housing and energy-efficient sustainable housing should be looked at as one of the fundamental parts of the society as a whole. There has been conducted serious research as for the practices in housing and health outcomes. Promoting construction worker and home occupant health is a strong component of sustainable design. Sustaining the health of construction site workers involves choosing less-toxic material alternatives and providing worker training in specialized installation procedures. There are several strategies that are important for addressing the health of home occupants over the long term. These i nclude designs that provide for foundation radon venting in areas where radon is a concern. (Sunnikka, 2000) Energy-sufficient sustainable housing is the notion which includes the role of health of the future residents; for example, in the energy-efficient housing indoor temperatures are stabilized through the use of the adequate thermal mass (Williamson & Bennets, 2002), which ultimately leads to the decrease of the diseases which are directly connected with the rapid changes of temperatures (it is especially relevant... This essay stresses that the interrelation of housing, energy efficneicy, sustainability and health outocomes have acquired additional meaning in the recent years through understanding that the threats of energy and ecological crises should be reduced in every area possible. Housing has become the means of teaching people how to save finances through building and adjusting houses to energy-saving technologies, thus making the environment suitable for living. This paper makes a conclusion that many European and other countries have developed a number of policies in relation to energy efficiency in housing; making it state program and priority for the aims of general health improvements as well as with understanding that energy efficiency should be promoted at the state level to make it work effectively. Such policies include basic requirements to each type of construction and housing stage, starting with the siting of the house, finishing with the position of windows and level of wall and ceiling insulation. Design of sustainable houses is acquiring more popularity; despite stating that new houses are becoming less affordable, and energy saving technologies are too expensive to be implemented across all layers of society, it is understandable, that with the help of various state policies the realization of these aims will become real and will lead to the improved design of houses in general, as well as to higher energy efficiency which is achieved through following basic housing and construction requirements.

Friday, November 15, 2019

Implications of Chinese Capital Account Liberalisation

Implications of Chinese Capital Account Liberalisation If China does liberalise, few other events over the next decade are likely to have more impact on the shape of the global financial system. This also sets out a conceptual framework, identifying three separate factors which help explain why the scale of the subsequent movements in capital flows — both into and out of China — could be very large relative to the size of the world economy: (i) ‘Closing the openness gap’- There is a large gap between China’s current level of openness and that of advanced economies. Liberalisation will lead this gap to close, generating large flows in the process. (ii) ‘Catch-up growth’- China’s economic growth is expected to be relatively high over the next decade. So even if China’s capital flows do not increase relative to its own economy, they will relative to the world economy. (iii)‘Declining home bias’- Prior to the recent crisis, the global financial system became increasingly integrated. A resumption of these trends over coming decades would lead capital flows to increase both in China and globally. Summary chart Potential impact of capital account liberalisation on China’s international investment position Based on these three factors and some simple but plausible assumptions, the summary chart shows a hypothetical scenario for China’s global financial integration in 2025. It shows that China’s gross international investment position could increase from around 5% to over 30% of world GDP. The global financial integration of China has the potential to be a force for economic growth and financial stability not just in China but also globally. Global implications of Chinese capital account liberalisation The potential changes in both the magnitude and composition of capital flows outlined in the previous section would dramatically alter the financial landscape both in China and globally. In principle, capital account liberalisation in China could be a powerful force that enables the Chinese and global Implications for China For China, there are several potential benefits of liberalisation which can all be viewed through the broader lens of contributing to economic rebalancing. The Chinese economy is now starting to transition to a new model of growth, away from reliance on exports and investment as the key sources of demand. The new model of growth will therefore place a greater emphasis on consumption as a source of demand and an increase in the production of services relative to exportable manufactures. This is a challenging task and will require an ambitious agenda of structural reforms. Among these reforms, capital account liberalisation will play a key role. A removal of restrictions on outflows, for example, will allow Chinese companies and households to diversify their large pools of savings by investing in overseas assets. This should help to spread risk, reducing the need for precautionary saving and hence free up income for current spending. And it may also boost household income if returns earned on overseas assets are higher than on domestic assets (which is likely given that real deposit rates in China are currently negative due to  regulatory caps). China has the biggest banking system in the world by total assets but it is very domestically focused. If China’s banks were to diversify their balance sheets by expanding abroad — either directly through cross-border bank lending, or indirectly through lending to foreign affiliates — they may become more resilient to an adverse shock in their home market and so be better able to maintain lending to domestic companies and households in China. Allowing more channels for inflows, on the other hand, will help to deepen and diversify China’s financial system, providing alternative sources of capital for Chinese borrowers. Should liberalisation also lead to lower reserve accumulation, it could lead to an improvement in China’s fiscal balance since the return on its FX reserves is lower than the cost of sterilising those purchases. And if it were accompanied by a more flexible exchange rate regime (as was suggested by the Third Plenum), it could allow China to operate a more effective monetary policy, increasing its ability to respond to domestic shocks. All of these factors should promote China’s rebalancing and its transition towards a new model of growth. But there are also risks. There are several notable examples where capital account liberalisation has resulted in instability. The most recent, perhaps, was the Eastern European countries where large capital inflows contributed to unsustainably rapid cr edit growth that ultimately culminated in economic and financial crisis in 2008 (Bakker and Gulde (2010)). Chinese policymakers will need to ensure they have sufficient scope to set policy to offset shocks that could pose risks to economic and financial stability. It will be particularly important to sequence carefully external liberalisation with appropriate domestic macroprudential and microprudential policies to mitigate risks from excessive credit growth and asset price volatility. One concern is that by opening the financial gates, some banks and, ultimately, borrowers in the Chinese real economy may find themselves faced with a shortage of liquidity. China’s banking system is heavily reliant on domestic deposits for its funding, which account for around two thirds of total liabilities. A reallocation overseas of even a small share of these deposits could therefore cause funding difficulties. By  enabling higher real returns for Chinese domestic savers, however, domest ic interest rate liberalisation could help to reduce these risks. Another set of risks are related to inflows. In the short run, there could be indigestion in China’s asset markets, which are still small relative to potentially large inflows of capital. And over a longer time period, inflows could lead to an unsustainable build-up of maturity and currency mismatches in national balance sheets (for example, long-term domestic investment funded by short-term overseas FX-denominated borrowing). Large mismatches are susceptible to unwind in a disorderly way, as was the case for some Asian economies in 1997–98. Finally, the risks arising from a more flexible — and potentially more volatile — exchange rate would need to be effectively managed. Which of these outcomes — more sustainable growth or a rise in instability — would dominate will depend on the accompanying policy framework. The empirical evidence on the costs and benefits of financial openness tends to suggest that countries benefit most when certain threshold conditions — such as a well-developed and supervised financial sector and sound institutions and macroeconomic policies — are in place before opening up to large-scale flows of capital (Kose et al (2006)). This underscores the importance in China of careful sequencing of capital account liberalisation alongside other domestic reforms such as domestic interest rate liberalisation, development of effective hedging instruments and enhancing the microprudential and macroprudential regimes. Implications for the rest of the world From the perspective of policymakers outside of China, it is important to understand how capital account liberalisation might ‘spill over’ to affect other economies. Four such channels are discussed below, although there are undoubtedly others. Greater exposure to the Chinese financial system If liberalisation has a large impact on the Chinese economy or financial system, it is also likely to have a significant impact in other countries as well. Although China’s economy is already considered able to generate material spillovers onto other economies (International Monetary Fund (2011b)), the process of capital account liberalisation will likely increase its systemic importance even further, by magnifying existing transmission channels, while also creating new ones. Foreign households, businesses and financial institutions will increase the amount and the number of their claims on China, while those in China will do the same with respect to the outside world, thereb y deepening the complex web of financial interconnectedness. If China does hard-wire itself into the global financial system, it will bring important benefits in terms of risk-sharing. Households that purchase Chinese assets whose returns are not perfectly correlated with their own income would be better able to smooth consumption. And foreign banks that  expand in China would diversify their earnings base and potentially enhance their resilience. The flipside of increased interconnectedness, however, is that the global financial system will be more sensitive to shocks originating in China. Increased holdings of Chinese assets, for example, would imply greater exposure to fluctuations in their price. Greater reliance of global banks on Chinese banks for  funding, in turn, would bring about the possibility of a liquidity shortage if those banks were to repatriate funds in response to balance sheet pressures back home.(1) Increase in global liquidity If China’s financial walls are lifted, some of its vast pool of domestic savings will migrate into global capital markets, providing a significant boost to liquidity. The illustrative scenario in Chart 5 suggests that these flows could amount to a substantial share of world GDP. A new source of global liquidity from China could lead to several beneficial effects, particularly during a period where the world’s financial system is becoming increasingly fragmented and retreating into national borders (Carney (2013b)). As well as providing a new source of finance for borrowers, it could lead to a more diversified and more stable global investor base. At the same time, however, a rapid increase in liquidity from China could lead to absorption pressures in some asset markets in the short run, which could lead to a mispricing of risk with adverse consequences for financial stability. Increased global role of the renminbi Greater international use of the renminbi would add another dimension to the global impact of capital account liberalisation. Potential benefits include lower transaction costs and a reduced risk of currency mismatches. But it may also amplify the international transmission of Chinese policy and domestic shocks, of which policymakers around the world will need to take into account. Take the following hypothetical case: a country purchases a large proportion of its imports from China and its currency depreciates against the renminbi. If the prices of those imports are set and invoiced in the domestic currency of that country, the depreciation would not automatically lead to an increase in their price and hence no response in domestic monetary and fiscal policy would be needed.(2) If, however, the imports were invoiced in RMB, then their price would increase in line with the exchange rate depreciation, leading to domestic inflation. Moreover, a country that had no trade with China but whose imports were set and invoiced in RMB — such that the RMB would be a ‘vehicle currency’ — would need to respond to macroeconomic or policy fluctuations in China that affect the exchange rate and feed through into domestic prices of that country. There is a body of literature which finds evidence of these invoicing effects for the US dollar, as the world’s most international currency. Goldberg (2010) finds that for non-US economies, large use of the US dollar in reserves and in international transactions is typically associated with greater sensitivity of trade, inflation and asset values to movements in the value of the dollar relative to the domestic currency. However, as discussed above, it would likely take much longer than a decade for the renminbi to take on a similar role to that of the US dollar today. Global imbalances The literature on the causes and consequences of global imbalances is as vast as it is inconclusive. According to one influential perspective, the large imbalances in current account positions that accumulated over the past decade partly originated in high net saving rates in developing Asian countries (Bernanke (2005). If true, capital account liberalisation in China could potentially help to alleviate these imbalances to the extent that it leads to a reduction in China’s net savings and correspondingly its current account surplus (although clearly the impact of this on overall imbalances would depend on the corresponding adjustment in other countries). This may occur either because liberalisation lowers the incentives for precautionary saving or because it leads to a more flexible and higher exchange rate. But even if Chinese capital account liberalisation were to lead to no reduction in global imbalances, it could still help to lessen some of the adverse consequences relating to these imbalances. There is evidence that reserve accumulation by foreign governments can materially depress the risk-free interest rate in the United States (Warnock and Warnock (2009)) which, in turn, may encourage excessive risk-taking behaviour globally. So to the extent that Chinese capital account liberalisation were to result in a switch in the composition of outflows, away from reserve accumulation by the central bank and towards overseas investment in riskier assets by other Chinese residents, this may reduce some of the downward pressure on government bond yields and related rates i n the United States and globally. Of course, this would bring other challenges. But in the longer term, it could be beneficial for the stability of the international monetary and financial system as a whole. Conclusion If China continues to liberalize its capital account over the next decade or so, it is likely to be a force for development and constancy not just in China but also for the international monetary and financial system. While this process will be companied by new and important risks, it falls to international bodies and national authorities to monitor and take appropriate policy actions to mitigate such risks. This will not be a petty task. As we already know Chinese capital account liberalisation could lead to striking changes in the global financial landscape, policymakers will be facing uncharted territory. In order to succeed, policy cooperation between national authorities is necessary, both to increase understanding of the risks and to develop common policy approaches. Currently the Bank of England is working intimately with the People’s Bank of China regarding the development of offshore renminbi activity in the United Kingdom and will continue to seek other ways to suppo rt a successful integration of China into the global financial system.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Solitude and Isolation in One Hundred Years of Solitude :: One Hundred Years of Solitude

Solitude and Isolation in One Hundred Years of Solitude   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   "†¦Races condemned to 100 years of solitude did not have a second opportunity on earth."   These powerful last words of the novel One Hundred Years of Solitude ring true.   The book demonstrates through many examples that human beings cannot exist in isolation.   People must be interdependent in order for the race to survive.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Solitude.   Examples are found of this idea throughout the one-hundred-year life of Macondo and the Buendia family.   It is both an emotional and physical solitude.   It is shown geographically, romantically, and individually. It always seems to be the intent of the characters to remain alone, but they have no control over it.   To be alone, and forgotten, is their destiny.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The novel begins with geographic isolation.   Jose Arcadio Buendia shouts, "God damn it!   Macondo is surrounded by water on all sides!"   Whether it is, in truth, an island is irrelevant.   The town believed itself to be cut off from the rest of the world.  Ã‚   In addition, Jose Arcadio Buendia and Ursula are looking for solitude.   The founding of Macondo was a result of escaping Jose Arcadio Buendia's murder of Prudencio Aguilar.   Aguilar's ghost haunted them, eventually forcing them to retreat.     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The family seems to remain very involved within itself.   Much of this is Spanish culture.   In Spanish-speaking countries, it is not uncommon to find many generations of the same family living in one house.   The Buendia house always has various relatives within it.   Yet, this is not the only explanation.   The incest of the family is a theme throughout the novel, and is a significant factor in the solitude of this family.   If a family rarely turns to others to branch out, it eventually becomes completely turned in upon itself: isolated and detached.     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Occasionally, the family poisoned with the fate of solitude does reach out.   Those who interact with this family share in its unfortunate fate.   First to Pilar Ternera, the sexual companion of two of the Buendia boys.   Following this sexual interaction, Pilar spends the rest of her life alone.   The same pattern is seen with Petra Cotes, simply with another generation.   Another example is demonstrated by Remedios Moscote.   She is another outsider, paired with Aureliano Buendia.   Soon after their marriage she dies unexpectedly and violently. Solitude and Isolation in One Hundred Years of Solitude :: One Hundred Years of Solitude Solitude and Isolation in One Hundred Years of Solitude   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   "†¦Races condemned to 100 years of solitude did not have a second opportunity on earth."   These powerful last words of the novel One Hundred Years of Solitude ring true.   The book demonstrates through many examples that human beings cannot exist in isolation.   People must be interdependent in order for the race to survive.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Solitude.   Examples are found of this idea throughout the one-hundred-year life of Macondo and the Buendia family.   It is both an emotional and physical solitude.   It is shown geographically, romantically, and individually. It always seems to be the intent of the characters to remain alone, but they have no control over it.   To be alone, and forgotten, is their destiny.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The novel begins with geographic isolation.   Jose Arcadio Buendia shouts, "God damn it!   Macondo is surrounded by water on all sides!"   Whether it is, in truth, an island is irrelevant.   The town believed itself to be cut off from the rest of the world.  Ã‚   In addition, Jose Arcadio Buendia and Ursula are looking for solitude.   The founding of Macondo was a result of escaping Jose Arcadio Buendia's murder of Prudencio Aguilar.   Aguilar's ghost haunted them, eventually forcing them to retreat.     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The family seems to remain very involved within itself.   Much of this is Spanish culture.   In Spanish-speaking countries, it is not uncommon to find many generations of the same family living in one house.   The Buendia house always has various relatives within it.   Yet, this is not the only explanation.   The incest of the family is a theme throughout the novel, and is a significant factor in the solitude of this family.   If a family rarely turns to others to branch out, it eventually becomes completely turned in upon itself: isolated and detached.     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Occasionally, the family poisoned with the fate of solitude does reach out.   Those who interact with this family share in its unfortunate fate.   First to Pilar Ternera, the sexual companion of two of the Buendia boys.   Following this sexual interaction, Pilar spends the rest of her life alone.   The same pattern is seen with Petra Cotes, simply with another generation.   Another example is demonstrated by Remedios Moscote.   She is another outsider, paired with Aureliano Buendia.   Soon after their marriage she dies unexpectedly and violently.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Emerson concepts in ‘Kite Runner’ and ‘Giovanni’s Room’ Essay

â€Å"Society everywhere is in conspiracy against the manhood of every one of its members. † (Emerson. 2) Thus we live in a world, where in order to fit we must ‘conform’ but Emerson believes that â€Å"whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist,† (2) and that â€Å"nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind. † (2) Self reliance and independence of thought, which are fundamental to Emerson’s perspective, are integral to the understanding and analysis of the characters in ‘The Kite Runner’ (Hosseini, 2003) and ‘Giovanni’s Room’ (Baldwin, 1956). ‘The Kite Runner,’ is a tale of two boys in 1970’s Kabul; growing up amidst discrimination, bigotry and class structure in society – in this case Afghan society – Hassan, a Hazara – a minority group of Afghanis who follow Islamic beliefs called Shi’a – although a friend and half-brother, is a lower-class servant to Amir. Amir, a Pushtun – the majority, who believe they are a better class than the Hazara and who follow the Sunn sect of Islam – although raised in the same household and sharing the same wet nurse as Hassan, lives in a different sphere of existence. Amir is the legitimate son of Baba, a prominent and wealthy man, whereas Hassan is the illegitimate one and raised by Baba’s servant. Both lost their mothers – Amir at birth and Hassan a week after birth, when she ran â€Å"off with a clan of singers and dancers. † (Hosseini 4) â€Å"For nonconformity the world whips you with its displeasure,† (Emerson 4) and thus Baba, rather than be subjected to the displeasures of his society, opts to conform to its rules and customs that â€Å"loves not realities and creators, but names and customs,† (Emerson 2) and not reveal that Hassan is his son by a Hazara woman. His justice, or what Emerson characterizes as ‘compensation’ (The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy) is the loss of Hassan and his love. This same class difference between Amir and Hassan, largely dictates and limits their relationship. â€Å"It is easy enough for a firm man who knows the world to brook the rage of the cultivated classes,† (Emerson 4) and Hassan, the victim of such discrimination and class structure, remains completely devoted and loyal to Amir, both as his servant and as his friend. He shows his loyalty when he and Amir are terrorized by Assef, â€Å" a word for the creature that Assef was †¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢sociopath’ (Hosseini 25-26) who admires Hitler for eliminating the Jews and with whom he aims to emulate by destroying the Hazaras. Hassan stands up to Assef and his friends. Although frightened, he holds â€Å"the slingshot pointed directly at Assef’s face† (Hosseini 28) and shouts â€Å"if you move, they’ll have to change your nickname from Assef the ‘Ear Eater’ to ‘One-Eyed Assef. † (Hosseini 29) Assef, never forgetting a slight, plots revenge. Just as Hassan makes Amir’s breakfast, folds his clothes, and cleans his room, so does he cater to Amir in kite tournaments. Even though Hassan shares in the excitement of kite fighting, he does not actually have control over the kite. Hassan may help the kite â€Å"lift-and-dive,† but Amir is the one who claims a victory. Hassan may catch a cherished rival kite and hold it in his arms, but always to bring it back to Amir, to whom it then belongs. His joy is explicit, special, and secondary just like his experience of wealth and privilege while living in Baba’s household. So it is that Hassan is subjected to rape because of his nonconformity to his position as a Hazara and he relies on himself to â€Å"go alone; to refuse the good models. † (Emerson 5) Assef and his friends attack Hassan after he runs for the ‘blue kite’ but although terrified of what is going to happen to him he claims â€Å"Amir agha won the tournament and I ran this kite for him. I ran it fairly, this is his kite. † â€Å"Amir agha and I are friends. † (Hosseini 50) Hassan is brutely raped by Assef but never gives up the kite and brings it back for Amir. Later, when the Taliban came to â€Å"investigate and interrogated Hassan† (Hosseini 149) and ordered him to leave the house – Amir’s father’s house – he again shows his loyalty to Amir by protesting. The Taliban â€Å"ordered him to kneel †¦ and shot him in the back of the head. † (Hosseini 150) Hassan dies because he â€Å"accepted the divine place that providence had† found for him; (Emerson 1) he had violated the social expectations of conformity by favouring â€Å"self reliance †¦ its aversion† (Emerson 2) by standing up to his aggressors in loyalty to Amir. Amir, contrary to Hassan, lacks self trust and conforms totally to society, and although enjoying time spent with Hassan, never really calls him his friend. When confronted with Assef the first time he shows his cowardice by wanting to tell Assef that Hassan is â€Å"not my friend,† â€Å"he’s my servant. † (Hosseini 28) It is ironic that when Hassan stands up for Amir against Assef, and calls him ‘Agha,’ Amir â€Å"wondered briefly what it might be like to live with such an ingrained sense of one’s place in a hierarchy. † (Hosseini 28) Yet he himself lives in such a way as to lose himself – his self worth and reliance by conforming to society and its customs. For many years, Amir feels as though he and Hassan are adversaries for Baba’s love and he is envious of this, together with Hassan’s abilities: â€Å"Hassan made his stone skip eight times. The most I managed was five†¦ Baba †¦patted Hassan on the back. Even put his arm around his shoulder. † (Hosseini 8-9) Amir greatly desires his father’s acceptance and approval and very seldom receives it. He overhears his father say that â€Å"there’s something missing in that boy† and that he believes â€Å"a boy who won’t stand up for himself becomes a man who can’t stand up to anything. † (Hosseini 15) Amir decides â€Å"there was no other viable option† than to â€Å"win that winter’s tournament,† and ‘run that last kite. † (Hosseini 38) He believes that his â€Å"life as a ghost in this house would finally be over† and that he would show Baba â€Å"once and for all that his son was worthy. † (Hosseini 38) On winning the race, he experiences the â€Å"greatest moment of [his] twelve years of life, seeing Baba on that roof, proud of [him] at last. † (Hosseini 45) Following Hassan, who has gone running for the kite, Amir wants â€Å"to make a grand entrance, a hero, prized trophy in [his] bloodied hands. †(Hosseini 46) He finds Hassan â€Å"standing at the end of a blind alley† (Hosseini 49) blocked by Assef and his two friends. But rather than help Hassan, even after seeing the â€Å"look of the lamb† (Hosseini 53) on Hassan’s face Amir runs, telling himself that â€Å"I was a coward† â€Å"afraid of Assef and what he would do† â€Å"afraid of getting hurt† (Hosseini 53) but in reality it is â€Å"the price [he] had to pay, the lamb [he] had to slay, to win Baba. His reasoning â€Å"He was just a Hazara, wasn’t he? † (Hosseini 54) After the rape, Hassan’s very existence infuriates and irritates Amir because it reminds him of his cowardice – his guilt. He tries to forget what he has done to Hassan and treats him like a servant instead of a friend; he lies about him being ill â€Å"he’s got a cold or something,† (Hosseini 56) he hits him with ripe pomegranates, he asks his father â€Å"have you ever thought about getting new servants? ’ (Hosseini 61) Finally he frames Hassan for theft and Hassan again takes the blame rather than reveal Amir for what he is. Nothing works however, because he cannot discard his guilt as easily as he can discard Hassan himself. Even after later leaving Afghanistan for America with his father, he is never really able to forget and later he realizes you can bury the past but that it â€Å"claws its way out. † He realizes that he has been â€Å"peeking into that deserted alley† where Hassan was raped â€Å"for the last twenty six years. † (Hosseini 2) After returning to Afghanistan and learning of Hassan’s death and his orphaned son Sohrab, Amir endeavours to right his wrongs – â€Å"there is a way to be good again† (Hosseini 2) by locating Sohrab, who is in fact his nephew. He finds Sohrab in the hands of Assef, now a Talib, and being used as a sexual plaything. This illustration of man’s inhumanity to man, gives evidence to Emerson’s belief, that â€Å"the differences among the members of a race are greater than the differences between races. † (The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy) Amir must fight and defeat Assef if he is to redeem himself and his past; thus Amir finds his strength of character, the inner strength that he had all along, but believed was somehow missing – Emerson’s ‘self reliance’ and ‘trust in himself. ’ Ironically however, it is Sohrab who saves Amir in just the same way as his father Hassan had saved him before – with his slingshot. Amir’s lack of self-acceptance, his desire to win his father’s heart and his envy of Hassan causes him to live his life conforming to an unjust and class conscious society. He places blame on Hassan for the lack of his father’s love and blame on himself for his conformity and the terrible injustice he has caused on Hassan. According to Emerson, one must be able to find a â€Å"blameless living† if they are to be a â€Å"whole man,† (The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy) and Amir clearly illustrates his lack of living blamelessly. Just as Hassan was socially alienated, so to is David, in ‘Giovanni’s Room,’ wherein he is faced with a choice between his American fiancee (value set) and his European boyfriend, so ultimately he must grapple with being alienated by the culture that produced him. In other words, does he conform or does he not? Does he be honest with his true self and be reliant on himself? David, unlike Hassan, takes the easy way out and marries Hella. David has been running from himself since his first sexual encounter as a teenager, with Joey, and although he has a profound connection with Joey, he deserts him and spurns his friendship afterwards. In other words, like Amir he conforms rather than live with â€Å"the integrity of his own mind. † (Emerson 2). He becomes what Emerson terms as an ‘imitator’ and lives a life of deceit and denial. Although mixing with the gay crowd, he proclaims his heterosexuality. Later he meets Giovanni and they fall in love. Afraid to commit to Giovanni he has a one night stand with Sue, another American lost in Paris. As with Joey, David deserts Giovanni, whereupon Giovanni goes into a downward spiral and because of lies, false promises, abuse and humiliation he eventually kills and is sentence to death by the guillotine. Giovanni dies because of the people around him; they are envious of his beauty, openness and inward freedom; they pretend to be what they are not ‘imitators’. David remains forever trapped in his own ‘room’, closet, or hell of his irreconcilable identity. (Zaborowska, M. J. 1) He fails in his journey of self-discovery within a society where gender, race and sexuality impacts on national identity. David remains loyal to America, the land of the free but never finds happiness, becoming emotionally dead and hollow, unable to love others, but mostly himself. In summary, we can recognize the lack of Emerson’s concept of self-reliance in the pivotal characters of Amir and Baba in ‘The Kite Runner’ and David in â€Å"Giovanni’s Room,† while at the same time we see evidence of nonconformity to social standards by Hassan and Giovanni. â€Å"High be his heart, faithful his will, clear his sight, that he may in good earnest be doctrine, society, law, to himself. † (Emerson 10) References Baldwin, J. Giovanni’s Room. Dell Publishing, NY. 1956 Emerson, R. W. Essay II Self Reliance 1841 As published on http://www. emersoncentral. com/selfreliance. htm Hosseini, Khaled The Kite Runner courtesy of Shahid Riaz, 2003 http://esnips. com/UserProfileAction. ns? id+ebdaae62-b650-4f30-99a4-376c0a084226 The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy Ralhp Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) http://www. iep. utm. edu/e/emerson. htm December 6, 2008 Zaborowska, Magdalena J. University of Michigan. 2003 http://www. litencyc. com/php/sworks. php? rec=true&UID=4964

Friday, November 8, 2019

Biography of Eduardo Quisumbing, Filipino Botanist

Biography of Eduardo Quisumbing, Filipino Botanist Eduardo Quisumbing (November 24, 1895–August 23, 1986) was a Filipino botanist and a noted expert in the medicinal plants of the Philippines. He was an author of more than 129 scientific articles, many on orchids. Quisumbing served as the director of the National Museum of the Philippines, where he oversaw the rebuilding of the herbarium, which was completely destroyed during World War II. The plant Saccolabium quisumbingii is named for him. Fast Facts: Eduardo Quisumbing Known For: Quisumbing was a Filipino botanist and a noted expert in the medicinal plants of the Philippines. The plant Saccolabium quisumbingii is named for him.Born:  November 24, 1895 in Santa Cruz, Laguna, PhilippinesParents: Honorato de los R. Quisumbing, Ciriaca F. Arguelles-QuisumbingDied: August 23, 1986 in Quezon City, PhilippinesEducation: University of the Philippines Los Baà ±os (BSA, 1918), University of the Philippines Los Baà ±os (MS, 1921), University of Chicago (Ph.D., 1923)Published Works: Teratology of Philippine Orchids, The identity of Anota Violacea and Rhynchostylis Retus, New or Noteworthy Philippine Orchids,  Philippine Piperaceae, Medicinal plants in the PhilippinesAwards and Honors: Distinguished Service Star for Outstanding Contribution to the Field of Systematic Botany, Diploma of Merit on Orchidology, Fellow Gold Medal from the Malaysian Orchid Society, PhilAAS Most Outstanding Award, National Scientist of the PhilippinesSpouse: Basilisa Lim-Quisumb ingChildren: Honorato Lim Quisumbing, Lourdes L. Quisumbing-Roxas, Eduardo L. Quisumbing, Jr. Early Years and Education Quisumbing was born on November 24, 1895, in Santa Cruz, Laguna, Philippines. His parents were Honorato de los R. Quisumbing and Ciriaca F. Arguelles-Quisumbing. Quisumbing earned his BSA in biology from the University of the Philippines Los Baà ±os in 1918 and his Master of Science in botany at the same university in 1921. He also earned a Ph.D. at the University of Chicago (in Plant Taxonomy, Systematics and Morphology) in 1923. Career From 1920 to 1926, Quisumbing was attached to the College of Agriculture at the University of the Philippines and from 1926 to 1928 at the University of California. He was appointed systematic botanist in 1928. Beginning in February 1934, he served as acting chief of the Natural Museum Division of the Bureau of Science in Manila. He was later named director of the National Museum, a position he held until retiring in 1961. Quisumbing was the author of numerous taxonomic and morphological papers, many of which deal with orchids, such as Medicinal plants in the Philippines. Some of his other published works include â€Å"Teratology of Philippine Orchids,† â€Å"The identity of Anota Violacea and Rhynchostylis Retus,† â€Å"New or Noteworthy Philippine Orchids,†Ã‚  and â€Å"Philippine Piperaceae.† He was the recipient of the Distinguished Service Star (1954) for outstanding contribution to the field of systematic botany, Diploma of Merit on Orchidology and Fellow Gold Medal from the Malaysian Orchid Society (1966), the Gold Medal from American Orchid Society, and the 1975 PhilAAS Most Outstanding Award. Death and Legacy Quisumbing died on August 23, 1986, in Quezon City, Philippines. He may be the most famous botanist from the Philippines, particularly with regard to his study on orchids. His publications and papers are still sold on sites such as Amazon. And his writings on orchids of the Philippines are still available at college libraries throughout the U.S. The orchid named after Quisumbing, Saccolabium quisumbingii- also known as Tuberolabium quisumbingii- is a beautiful plant that is widely available in the United States. Like other orchids in the genus Tuberolabium kotoense, this orchid produces small but plentiful bright purplish/pink-and-white flowers and grows in the mountains of the Phillippines. Quisumbings legacy also lives on in the other beautiful orchids and flowers of the Philippines that he spent his life cultivating, protecting, and describing for the world to learn about and enjoy. Sources â€Å"Eduardo A. Quisumbing, Sr.†Ã‚  geni_family_tree, 24 May 2018.Revolvy, LLC. â€Å"‘Eduardo Quisumbing’ on Revolvy.com.†Ã‚  Trivia Quizzes.â€Å"Tuberolabium (Saccolabium) Quisumbingii - 2017.†Ã‚  Orchids Forum.â€Å"Tuberolabium.†Ã‚  The American Orchid Society, 20 Mar. 2016.