Saturday, August 31, 2019

Mass Tourism Essay

HOW DOES TOURISM IMPACT THE ENVIRONMENT The effect of tourism on the environment can be both positive and negative. Each person or group of people will impact the area they visit in a different way. Whether it is in a negative or positive manner is entirely up to the visitor. Let’s consider the NEGATIVE impacts first: POLLUTION – This is probably the biggest negative factor concerning tourism. People have to travel to their destination. It doesn’t matter if it’s by plane to another country or by car to the local national park, traveling puts emissions into the air. WASTE – People typically use disposable items when they pack for a trip, after all, it’s a holiday and who wants to be bothered with washing dishes or saving scraps for the compost? Landfill here it comes! PHYSICAL DAMAGE – especially to the local fauna and animal habitat. Tromping carelessly through the forest, smashing down delicate flowers and grasses or burning deadfall and destroying habitat for local ground dwelling animals. We may not even notice what we are doing but the local area does. NOISE – may not seem like a big deal, but loud noises can scare animals out of the area and possibly even disrupt the local ecosystem. There are some POSITIVE impacts too: AWARENESS – when people visit an area, they notice things a local person may not. A tourist is more likely to notice a problem like pollution or habitat encroachment and bring it to the attention of local authorities or even the world! EDUCATION – tourists provide an endless supply of people from around the world that can be targeted and educated on everything from forest stewardship to local history and plans for the future. FUNDRAISING – a tourist provides an easy target for fundraising. Tourists pay fees for everything from camping sites and park entry fees, to licenses for fishing and hunting. The more tourists in a controlled area, means the more money that can be collected for things like education, policing and maintenance of national wilderness areas. ACTION – tourists visiting an area do so for many reasons. Maybe they are looking for someplace quiet where they can commune with nature or perhaps they want to see a piece of history. Whatever the reason, when that tourist returns home, s/he will remember the experience and may feel compelled to do something positive for the environment to help save that area. These are only a few ways that a tourist can impact the environment. Your personal impact as a tourist is entirely up to you Case Studies In this unit you have studied how tourism impacts on a range of environments and how the impact of tourism can be managed. In the examination you will be asked about one or more of these environments. The question will be worth five marks on the Foundation paper and eight on the Higher, so you need to revise carefully for these. In this unit you have completed a case study for: 1. A UK National Park or a coastal area e.g. Lake District or Blackpool 2. A tropical destination e.g. Jamaica or Maldives 3. An extreme environment e.g. Mount Everest base camp, Nepal or Antarctica 4. An example of eco- tourism e.g. The Galapagos Islands On the following pages you will find some brief notes about each of the destinations above and some practice case study questions. A UK National Park: Lake District National Park Where is the Lake District and why do people visit? The Lake District National Park is in the North West of England and attracts 14 million visitors every year because it has spectacular scenery – mountains and lakes. There are also lots of opportunities for outdoor activities – hill walking, sailing, mountain climbing and cycling. People also visit the picturesque towns – Ambleside and Keswick to visit major tourist attractions such as Beatrix Potter museum and the pencil museum. What is the impact of tourism? Footpath erosion from the millions of walkers Conflicts between farmers and visitors because they leave litter, gates open, cause fires, create traffic congestion which affects their business and livelihood Traffic congestion as many visitors drive to the Lake District and the narrow country roads are not designed to cope Changes the character of quiet villages if tourists come in large numbers. Visitors can be noisy and might not respect the rural way of life Increased house prices as city folk buy second homes in the country, which make the more expensive for the poorer paid country people. How is tourism managed in National Parks? The National Park Authority is responsible for developing strategies to cope with large numbers of visitors to protect the residents, local economy, businesses and the rural way of life for the future. It does this in a number of ways: Development of tourism has been concentrated on specific sites e.g. Lake Windermere and Keswick in order to protect other areas. These developed areas are known as ‘honeypots’ Countryside footpaths have been reinforced to prevent erosion from the huge numbers of walkers Number of car parks has been increased to take traffic off narrow country roads and to prevent inconsiderate parking Employment opportunities increased for the local population when traditional farming industries are in decline through the development of ‘honeypots’ A tropical destination: Jamaica Where is Jamaica and why do people visit? Jamaica is a tropical island in the Caribbean Sea and is part of a group of islands known as the West Indies. The island receives over a million international visitors each year because it has wide, sandy beaches and attractions in the cities and towns such as bars, museums and theme parks. 8% of the population are employed in tourism and it’s a very important industry to the country because each tourist spends on average US$931 which is a 20% contribution to GDP. What is the impact of tourism? Jamaica is a destination that both benefits and suffers from ‘mass tourism’ Mass tourism is tourism on a large scale to a particular country or area. The destination will be at the development or consolidation stage on the Butler’s life cycle model. Negative impacts include: ï‚•ï€  Using up the little water the country has on swimming pools

Friday, August 30, 2019

All About Blood Essay

1.) What is the significance of lower-than-normal hematocrit? Lower-than-normal hematocrit indicates anemia. People with anemia do not have enough hemoglobin, which is the oxygen-carrying protein in red blood cells. Iron, B12, and folic acid deficiencies, some medications, and pregnancy can cause anemia. There are also more serious causes such as problems with the immune system that cause destruction of red blood cells earlier than normal, chronic diseases including kidney disease and cancer, and problems with bone marrow found in leukemia and lymphoma (MedlinePlus:Anemia, 2012). What is the effect of a bacterial infection on the hematocrit? A bacterial infection, which raises white blood cell counts, may affect the hematocrit by lowering it. 2.) Compare the development of lymphocytes with the development of the other formed elements. Lymphocytes and the other formed elements are developed from pluripotent stem cells. The pluripotent stem cells generate myeloid stem cells and lymphoid stem cells. Myeloid stem cells start and complete their development in red bone marrow and give rise to red blood cells, platelets, eosinophils, basophils, neutrophils, and monocytes. Lymphoid stem cells begin development in the red bone marrow, but some are completed in the lymphatic tissues, where they give rise to lymphocytes. The B cell lymphocytes are began and completed in the red bone marrow and the T cell lymphocytes begin in the red bone marrow, but they mature in the thymus (Jenkins, Kemnitz, & Tortora, 2010). 3.) What is erythropoiesis? Erythropoiesis is the production of red blood cells or erythrocytes. It starts in the red bone marrow with a proerythroblast. The proerythroblast divides many times and produces cells that begin to make hemoglobin. A cell near the end of the development cycle ejects its nucleus and then becomes a reticulocyte. Reticulocytes pass from red bone marrow into the bloodstream. Reticulocytes develop into erythrocytes with 1 to 2 days after they are released from the bone marrow (Jenkins, Kemnitz, & Tortora, 2010). Which factors speed up and slow down erythropoiesis? Oxygen deficiency (hypoxia) detected by the kidneys increases erythropoiesis. This stimulates the kidneys to release more erythropoietin. It circulates through the blood to the bone marrow and speeds up the production of proerythroblasts into reticulocytes. Erythropoiesis slows down when there is sufficient oxygen delivery to the kidneys and tissues (Jenkins, Kemnitz, & Tortora, 2010). 4.) Explain what would happen if a person with type B blood were given a transfusion of type O blood. Type O blood carries neither antigen A nor antigen B and is known as the â€Å"universal donor† because of this. Therefore, there would be no negative reaction if a person with type B blood were transfused with type O blood (Jenkins, Kemnitz, & Tortora, 2010). 5.) During an anatomy and physiology exam you are asked to view white blood cells in prepared slides of standard human blood smears. Based on the observations below, what is the name and function of each WBC? a.) WBC has a round nucleus surrounded by a blue halo of cytoplasm with no visible granules. These are lymphocytes (T cells, B cells, and natural killer cells). Lymphocytes mediate immune responses, such as antigen-antibody reactions. B cells develop into plasma cells, which then secrete antibodies. T cells attack viruses, cancer cells, and transplanted tissue cells. Natural killer cells attack a variety of infectious microbes and certain tumor cells. b.) WBC contains dense blue-purple granules that hide the nucleus. This WBC is a basophil and makes up 0.5-1% of the total WBCs. Where there is inflammation, basophils leave the capillaries. They enter tissues, and release histamine and heparin. These substances make inflammatory reactions greater and are involved in allergic reactions. c.) WBC has a U-shaped nucleus and a bluish, foamy cytoplasm with no visible granules. These are monocytes, making up 3-8% of WBCs. They migrate from the blood into tissues, enlarge, and then become macrophages. Some become fixed macrophages and live in a particular tissue, such as the lungs and spleen. Others become wandering macrophages and gather at infection and inflammation sites. They gather at infection sites in large numbers and phagocytize microbes. They also clean up cellular debris after an infection. d.) WBC contains small, pale lilac granules and a four-lobed nucleus. This type is a neutrophil and makes up 60-70% of WBCs. Neutrophils arrive at an infection site the quickest of all WBCs. After they ingest a pathogen, neutrophils release chemicals to destroy that pathogen. These chemicals include lysozyme, hydrogen peroxide, and hypochlorite. Neutrophils also contain defensins, which are a protein that poke holes in the membrane of the microbe and kills it. e.) WBC contains red-orange granules and a two-lobed nucleus. This is a sample of an eosinophil and they represent 2-4% of all WBCs. Eosinophils leave the capillaries and enter the tissue fluid where they release enzymes that combat allergic reactions. They also phagocytize antigen-antibody complexes and fight parasitic worms. A high eosinophil count would most likely indicate an allergy or a parasitic infection (Jenkins, Kemnitz, & Tortora, 2010). 6.) Why would the level of leukocytes be higher in an individual who has been infected with a parasitic disease? A parasitic disease is a stressor in the body. It is a normal, protective response for the number of leukocytes to increase in this situation because the blood is producing more leukocytes to fight the parasite. 7.) In regions where malaria is endemic, some people build up immune resistance to the malaria pathogen. Which WBCs are responsible for the immune system response against pathogens? How do they function? Eosinophils are the WBC responsible for immune system response against pathogens. Eosinophils leave the capillaries and enter tissue fluid where they release enzymes. They phagocytize antigen-antibody complexes and fight parasitic infections (Jenkins, Kemnitz, & Tortora, 2010). 8.) What is the function of prothrombinase and thrombin in clotting? Explain how the extrinsic and intrinsic pathways of blood clotting differ. The extrinsic pathway of blood clotting occurs rapidly, within a matter of seconds. A tissue protein called tissue factor enters into the blood from damaged tissue cells outside (extrinsic) blood vessels. Tissue factor then begins a series of reactions that lead to the formation of prothrombinase. The intrinsic pathway occurs more slowly, over the course of several minutes. The activators of this pathway are in direct contact with blood or contained within (intrinsic) the blood. Again, after a series of reactions, prothrombinase is formed. Once the prothrombinase is formed it converts prothrombin (a plasma protein formed by the liver) into the enzyme thrombin. Thrombin, together with calcium ions, converts fibrinogen to fibrin threads and activates a clotting factor that strengthens the fibrin threads into a clot. A positive feedback cycle begins with the formation of thrombin. Thrombin activates more platelets, which increases the release of platelet phospholipids, which then increases the formation of prothrombinase. Thrombin also directly accelerates the formation of prothrombinase. The additional amount of prothrombinase accelerates the production of thrombin. The positive feedback loop continues and the fibrin clot grows (Jenkins, Kemnitz, & Tortora, 2010).

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Assessing the Marks and Spencers retail chain

Assessing the Marks and Spencers retail chain Marks and Spencer is a British retail chain with over 800 stores in around 30 countries (600 in the UK). Food and clothing retail play a large part in the Marks and Spencer corporate strategy. The Marks & Spencer business model has had to adapt to change and consumer trends over the years to maintain the company’s position as one of the largest retailers in the world. Marks and Spencer (M&S) is a heritage of the British retail and has been present for nearly 130 years. Throughout the years, several individuals have led the organisation and distinct patterns of leadership style can be observed. The impact of leadership style at M&S will be compared to the organisation’s performance and critically evaluated against published leadership models. Covey, S.R. (1990) Historical leadership (1880-1990) (Mathieu) Until the middle of the 20th century, the customers and employees were divided in two classes: middle class and working class separating people who had money and the wo rking class who hadn’t. Additionally, women during this period seemed to have predominantly a reproducing role and did not have direct political power. Gender and classes have shaped the evolution of M&S dominated by strong powerful males from its early days [Rippin A. (2005)]. The leadership of M&S has been and still is dominated by men. Michael Marks founder of M&S had the traits of an entrepreneur. As the leadership was passed on through the family, increased competition within the heirs led to emergence of stronger characters. Michael’s son, Simon Marks and later Simon’s brother in law Israel Sieff changed the leadership style towards a stronger dictatorial influence. Both Marks and Sieff families had been victims of violence especially during the war and controversially established an organisation with ‘systematic symbolic violence’ and bullying [Rippin A. (2005)]. M&S managed to blur the gaps between the social classes, at least on the fashion aspect by the type of clothes provided by the company. Working class women could at last afford and wear elegant and aspiring clothing deemed to a superior class. Derek Raynor took over in 1983 which was a major transition from a family business to a plc. In 1988, Sir Richard Greenbury concentrated on the operational and financial of the organisation. In the following year however, M&S failed to transform significantly and became reactive [Stockport G.J. (2000)]. As the environment became more dynamic, customers’ expectation changed, competition became fiercer but M&S failed to keep up and adapt to the market. The family business became victim of their past success and lacking of a person with exceptional calibre to lead change through its professional debut. 2.0 Leadership transition Changes outside and inside M&S In 1997 M&S made over 1 Billion pounds of profit and accounted for over 16% of UK’s clothing market. The company was then valued at 19 Billion pounds. (199 7 Annual Report). 1998-1999 marked the start of an under performing period and share price plummeted by 40% [Cape Times Business Report (1999)]. As competitors such as Zara and Next took market share from the top end of the market while the same time value offerings were attacked by the supermarkets who were increasingly entering the same market. Peter Salisbury became CEO in 1999 and started to question the M&S ways of working. He placed an emphasis on empowerment by reducing the number of hierarchical layer from eight to seven, and promoting a sense of ownership and decision-making in local stores [Stockport G.J. (2000)].

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Positive benefits from cloning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Positive benefits from cloning - Essay Example Reproductive cloning means the creation of a newborn human or other animal that is an exact duplication of an existing person or animal. This involves removing the DNA from an embryo and replacing it with the DNA from a cell removed from an individual. Then the embryo would be implanted in the uterus of a woman with the intent of it developing into a fetus and eventually a newborn whose DNA is identical to that of the original individual. This method has been used to clone a sheep. This method is also known as adult DNA cloning. Therapeutic cloning is also called biomedical cloning, research cloning or somatic cell nuclear transfer. It means the creation of pre-embryos in order to extract their stem cells and create a human organ. It involves the process of somatic cell nuclear transfer in which the nucleus of a cell from a human patient's body is injected into a human ovum which has had its nucleus removed. The goal of therapeutic cloning is to obtain stem cells which can be developed into organs for transplant that have an identical DNA structure to the organ recipient. It does not involve the attempt to create a newborn. (Terminology. First two Paras). As the two terms are causing confusion among the general public, some people have been suggesting that the term 'therapeutic cloning' should be addressed as somatic cell nuclear transfer. The positive benefits Though the issue of stem cell research and cloning are highly controversial, present and further research will only benefit the humanity. Protagonists of cloning argue that there is a great scope for the social, physical and economical progress of the humanity through research in therapeutic cloning. Organ cloning can terminate deadly illnesses and save precious human lives. Its utilities in medical field are immense and innumerable. Some of them are as follows. 1. Progress in this field can help infertile couples have children through cloning. With treatment the infertile couples can develop the ability to conceive. 2. Cloning research in the field can be utilized for replicating skin and nerve cells to repair damaged ones or replace non-existent ones. 3 3. If therapeutic cloning using embryos is successful, then perfectly matched replacement organs could become freely available to sick and dying people. (What are its possible benefits First Para). And that would save countless numbers of lives, and increase the quality of life of countless others. Three possible medical examples of therapeutic cloning are: 1.The use of insulin-secreting cells for diabetes.2. The use of nerve cells in stroke or Parkinson's disease.3. The use of liver cells to repair a damaged organ. Organ development and plantation through therapeutic cloning would have some more benefits when compared to regular organ transplant donated by someone. For any organ transplantation, no other person would have to lose his/her organ. Patients would not have to wait for long for some organ to arrive but at the same time they would have the advantage of having a new

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Ace Electricals Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Ace Electricals - Essay Example nt is the cause of general decline in employee moral, decline in employees’ productivity which ultimately has affected the profit margin of Ace Electricals over the past six years. The workers were doing something else like reading in the rest rooms when they were suppose to work because the incentives to motivate them is either low or non-existent. This unproductive attitude of employees is very contagious. It will not only affect productivity but affects the moral of the whole work place. And this is exactly what is happening at Ace Electricals. To solve this problem, the management of the company needs to sit down and take a look again at their compensation system. They need to address the issue of low moral and low productivity collectively and on individual basis. This is to find out what each employee’s problem is and what can be done collectively to rectify the situation. This will also make the employees feel that the organization cares about them as persons and not just as workers. This will also help develop the loyalty of the employees to the organization and give them a sense of belonging. A system must be created where an employee can develop himself in pursuance of company growth and development.When people or in our case here workers feel they are been watched closely, i.e. "bird dogging" or "slave driving", it tends to create a lot of tension at the work place, it breeds distrust between management and workers and tends to reinforce the "I am the boss, so you should be subservient attitude". It does not give the employee the opportunity to think on his own and to bring out the potential in him. The employee tends to think that management does not trust him any way so why should he/she bother. It creates a system where employees can't share ideas with management so they can make things work better. Because people work under a much tensed atmosphere, productivity will be low and as an act of protest or rebellion won't try to achieve production target as is the case of Ace Electricals.The management needs to create and nurture a kind of relationship between workers and supervisors that will and ensure cooperation and compliance. And to effect this, the key is communication. Effective communication between employees and management will bridge the gap between the two sides, address grievances and promote Idea sharing which can totally revolutionarize the organization. But then again, it's all about creating a reward system where the organization can take the worker to task if he is not performing to expectation. Al Abrams needs to take a total look of his organizations management system ie from administrative through to production and delivery and make complete but relevant management changes. I think the problem here is that the technique he uses in the assembly line is obsolete. He needs to look at modern systems where the assembling could be done with fewer hands if possible. And then if it can be done, what will be the delivery rate per specified time How will it reduce costs How will workers be rewarded Is it by the number of sets you assemble within a specific timeSupervision is a key problem at Ace Electricals. If there are supervisors at the assembling department, who supervises top management staff and how is it

Monday, August 26, 2019

The Social Contract Theory Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Social Contract Theory - Research Paper Example Locke theory of social contract challenged some conventional forms of government like churches and monarchs because they give little importance and power to the individuals. He proposes his major views about the social contract theory and political system in his writing Two Treatises on Government. In these writings he explained are detail about his views about the liberty and power of the individuals within the state. He believes that the State of Nature is a perfect state because it gives due liberty to the people for their actions and decision. At the same time, it also gives power to the state regarding dealing with the people and their actions that are not in the overall good of the people (Barker, 1980). The social contract theory is believed to be one of the foundation stone of the American political system and it is widely believed that the main features of the US Bill of rights, criminal justice system are also highly influenced from the social contract theory. As explained by the social contract theory, the US bill of right also attempts to create a balance between freedom, rights, and obligations to direct the actions of the individuals towards the overall good of the society. The theory presented by Locke also clarify that all the people are equal and they have equal freedom and rights in the society without any discrimination and biases. Since the law of nature is the base of all the morality, the people are also supposed to follow the principles of morality within their actions and political decisions.... When they realize that the government is not fulfilling the desired role they also have the power to abolish the government that do not work for their benefits (Leonard, 1988). Locke theory of social contract challenged some conventional forms of government like churches and monarchs because they give little importance and power to the individuals. He proposes his major views about the social contract theory and political system in his writing Two Treatises on Government. In these writings he explained are detail about his views about the liberty and power of the individuals within the state. He believes that the State of Nature is perfect state because it gives due liberty to the people for their actions and decision. At the same time, it also gives power to the state regarding dealing with the people and their actions that are not in overall good of the people (Barker, 1980). The social contract theory is believed to be one of the foundation stone of the American political system a nd it is widely believed that the main features of the US Bill of rights, criminal justice system are also highly influenced from the social contract theory. As explained by the social contract theory, the US bill of right also attempts to create balance between freedom, rights and obligations to direct the actions of the individuals towards the overall good of the society. The theory presented by Locke also clarify that all the people are equal and they have equal freedom and rights in the society without any discrimination and biasness. Since the law of nature is the base of all the morality, the people are also supposed to follow the principles of

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Nuernberg Augsburg Maschinenwerke Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 13

Nuernberg Augsburg Maschinenwerke - Case Study Example The routes that give optimum services will be the one to settle on. As a matter of fact, it would be important to note that the initial shipment is of significance. Thus, the best or preferred alternative would be for rail transport to be used from Prague to Hamburg and an Ocean vessel to be used from Hamburg to Santos. The rationale behind this alternative is that the given transit times with Hamburg are fixed, that is, three days by rail and eighteen days by the water. Compared to Rotterdam, the rail transit time is four or five days though water transportation s seventeen days. However, the case does not offer insight on how the port congestion and the issues concerning it could affect the time in which shipments would be loaded. Additionally, the case does not give information concerning the port's performance in terms of the damage and loss metrics. Moreover, though the case shows that the rail’s transit period is either four or five days, information on what percentage o f shipments could be completed in four days could have been of significance. From the case study, different constituencies are involved in the initial shipment, for instance, dockworkers, railroads and ocean carriers. However, particular customers more so the public transit authorities buy products from Nuernberg Augsburg Maschinenwerke (N.A.M.). Consequently, N.A.M should, therefore, be the responsible party that should offer direction on customer service support since the customers buy products from this company. Accordingly, many different kinds of customer service support are available. In effect, Real-Time shipment tracking company should indeed be the best option for customer service support since the firm is in a position to let the customers the location of the shipment at any given time.

Drama paper- August Wilson's Fences Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Drama paper- August Wilson's Fences - Essay Example For instance, the Big Bang Theory that was developed by theoretical physicists, and which is still studied up until today, argues that the Earth came about as a result of a gigantic collision of two monumental celestial bodies. There have been rather convincing evidences to this claim. In fact, science has successfully documented many proofs of the theory’s parallel notion to the basic principles of physics. So, in considering spirituality, faith or religion, as against science, evolution, and the old-Earth creation, which way should you go? Personally, I have been through a lot of stern confrontations in the past in so far as my faith, my spirituality is concerned. Due to the fact that religion and Christianity have been made known to man for so many years, there is a sense of inevitability in the way people conceive God. For me, I would not say that I do not personally believe in God, but in the same manner, I have my own questions about life, my existence, and the Creation. The doubts could come from various facets. Firstly, the question about whether the Bible is indeed written by God, or by the prophet who He [God] has provided vision to. Logically, there could be no answer to these questions because before the Bible has been introduced to humanity, there was no pre-existing concept about God. Everything was purely a sight of nature, and even if we go back to the times of the prophets, we could not discern whether these prophets really did exist because the only account we have that tells of their pre-historical existence is the Bible. Hence, the Bible indeed requires faith, a strong faith. Following this argument, sometimes I tried to reconcile science and faith by transporting the findings of science to the accounts found in the Bible. But this is just entirely futile in that science and faith are two contradictory entities: Faith is in the light of faith; science is in the light of evidence. But I believe in both; hence, it places me in a crossro ad where a very difficult decision should be made. If only I intended to be partial at my discernment over this particular matter, it would have been a stumbling upshot for me. No belief needs to be discarded; both can co-exist but they, faith and science, should not be related in all essence. ` Sometimes, since I somehow consider myself a believer, God is rather real to me. In my walk with God, I would not say that everything was a walk-in-the-park or a bed of roses; there were also some stumbling encounters that really shook my little faith and question God’s promises mentioned in the Bible. For instance, God said in John 3:16, â€Å"For God so loved the word that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.† (New International Version, John 3:16). At times, this verse could be very doubtful. Problem has been and will always be part of a person’s life. So, normally for a believer such as I, there is a insti nctive resort to God; but despite all of the confessions and sacrifices that you do, still you do not receive what you asked for. But it is not all sadness and confusion though. I have been through a lot of joyous moments in my walk with God. I know I am not the perfect believer but through time, I have learned to value God’s love to humanity and His unending provision to His people. Sometimes, I also reach lofty heights of faith. In those instances, I have realized that belief in God and His promises are not merely determined by how much logic you have in your

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Assignment 10 Chapter 9 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

10 Chapter 9 - Assignment Example Resource loading gives a project planner a rough estimate of the resources that are required for a given project. Resource loading is determined to a large extent by the time to be taken by each project activity. Resource loading differs from resource leveling in that resource leveling aims at appropriate resource allocation such that the activity is not over-allocated any resource. It also reduces any chances of under-allocation of resources. Resource leveling can be done by delaying or splitting an activity until when the required resource is available. Critical chain concept was developed to solve the problem of time wastage in project implementation. Critical chain is explained as the longest chain of project tasks that are logically dependent. Since the planner cannot be sure of the critical chain timeline, buffers are used manage and control any variations that might occur. Buffers ensure that the project finish date is not

Friday, August 23, 2019

Individual Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Individual - Assignment Example In these scene the actions are done in order. The cat turns to see the mouse which in turn moves away from the cat. The method ti turn the cats head to face the mouse is this.cat gethead, turn ToFace this.mouse, the animation style used is Begin_And_End_Gently with a duration of 1.0 seconds. The method used in moving the mouse away is this.mouse gethead, turn ToFace this.cat, the animation style used is Begin_And_End_Gently with a duration of 1.0 seconds. the mouse then takes one step forward by lifting its right knee as shown above. The method involved is this.mouse getRightHip turn Right with a distance of 0.25. the hip is then dropped down and the next lifted.The cat on the other hand lifts its back left hip and back right hip at the same time. In this way the mouse is always one step ahead of the cat. This is are the final method and they are looped throughout the game. Farooq, M. (2012, October 5). Creating a Scene by Adding and Positioning Objects. Retrieved March 4, 2015, from Slideshare:

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Reincarnation and Past Lives Essay Example for Free

Reincarnation and Past Lives Essay Reincarnation is the belief that when one dies, ones body decomposes but something of oneself is reborn in another body. It is the belief that one has lived before and will live again in another body after death. The bodies one passes in and out of need not be human. One may have been a Doberman in a past life, and one may be a mite or a carrot in a future life. Some tribes avoid eating certain animals because they believe that the souls of their ancestors dwell in those animals. A man could even become his own daughter by dying before she is born and then entering her body at birth. The belief in past lives used to be mainly a belief found in Eastern religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism, but now is a central tenet of much woo-woo like dianetics and channeling. In those ancient Eastern religions, reincarnation was not considered a good thing, but a bad thing. To achieve the state of ultimate bliss (nirvana) is to escape from the wheel of rebirth. In most, if not all, ancient religions with a belief in reincarnation, the soul entering a body is seen as a metaphysical demotion, a sullying and impure rite of passage. In New Age religions, however, being born again seems to be a kind of perverse goal. Prepare yourself in this life for who or what you want to come back as in the next life. Belief in past lives also opens the door for New Age therapies such as past life regression therapy, which seeks the causes of todays psychological problems in the experiences of previous lives. L. Ron Hubbard, author of Dianetics and the founder of Scientology, introduced his own version of reincarnation into his new religion. According to Hubbard, past lives need auditing to get at the root of ones troubles. He also claims that Dianetics gave impetus to Bridey Murphy and that some scientologists have been dogs and other animals in previous lives (A Note on Past Lives in The Rediscovery of the Human Soul). According to Hubbard, It has only been in Scientology that the mechanics of death have been thoroughly understood. What happens in death is this: the Thetan (spirit) finds itself without a body (which has died) and then it goes looking for a new body. Thetans will hang around people. They will see a woman who is pregnant and follow her down the street. Then, the Thetan will slip into the newborn usually two or three minutes after the delivery of a child from the mother. A Thetan usually picks it up about the time the baby takes its first gasp. How Hubbard knows this is never revealed. Channeling, like past life regression, is distinct from reincarnation, even though it is based on the same essential concept: death does not put an end to the entirety of ones being. In classical reincarnation, something of the consciousness of the deceased somehow enters a new body but as that body grows only one unified consciousness persists through time. Channeling might be called temporary intermittent past life invasion because there is a coming and going of the past life entity, which always remains distinct from the present self-conscious being. For example, JZ Knight claims that in 1977 the spirit of a Cro-Magnon warrior who once lived in Atlantis took over her body in order to pass on bits of wisdom hed picked up over the centuries. Knight seems to be carrying on the work of Jane Roberts and Robert Butts, who in 1972 hit the market with Seth Speaks. Knight, Roberts, and Butts are indebted to Edgar Cayce, who claimed to be in touch with many of his past lives. One would think that channeling might muck things up a bit. After all, if various spirits from the past can enter any body at any time without destroying the present person, it is possible that when one remembers a past life it is actually someone elses life one is remembering. From a philosophical point of view, reincarnation poses some interesting problems. What is it that is reincarnated? Presumably, it is the soul that is reincarnated, but what is the soul? A disembodied consciousness? Reincarnation does seem to offer an explanation for some strange phenomena such as the ability of some people to regress to a past life under hypnosis. Also, we might explain child prodigies by claiming that unlike most cases of reincarnation where the soul has to more or less start from scratch, the child prodigy somehow gets a soul with great carryover from a previous life, giving it a decided advantage over the rest of us. Reincarnation could explain why bad things happen to good people and why good things happen to bad people: they are being rewarded or punished for actions in past lives (karma). One could explain deja vu experiences by claiming that they are memories of past lives. Dreams could be interpreted as a kind of soul travel and soul memory. However, past life regression and deja vu experiences are best explained as the recalling of events from this life, not some past life. Dreams and child prodigies are best explained in terms of brain structures and genetically inheritable traits and processes. And since bad things also happen to bad people and good things also happen to good people, the most reasonable belief is that there is no design to the distribution of good and bad happening to people. Stories, especially stories from children, that claim knowledge of a past life, abound. One collector of such stories was the psychiatrist Ian Stevenson, who made a weak case that the stories offered scientific evidence for reincarnation. Finally, since there is no way to tell the difference between a baby with a soul that will go to heaven or hell, a baby with a soul that has been around before in other bodies, and a baby with no soul at all, it follows that the idea of a soul adds nothing to our concept of a human being. Applying Occams razor, both the idea of reincarnation and the idea of an immortal soul that will go to heaven or hell are equally unnecessary. Reference http://www.skepdic.com/reincarn.html

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Labor Market in Gulf Countries

Labor Market in Gulf Countries India Steps Up Pressure for Minimum Wage for Its Workers in the Gulf The Labor Market in Gulf Countries This section of the report is about the labor market in the Gulf countries and how it is affected with changes in the labor policies by the governments of GCC countries. The GCC consists of six Arab countries including all Arab states of the Persian Gulf, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The labor market is growing with the rapid growth of the economies of GCC countries. The governments of GCC countries prefer their national to be part of their organizations because of their higher education, and the nationals are also attracted towards the government sector of GCC countries because of the higher wages and generous benefits, job security, early retirement with pension and many other benefits associated with the government jobs. However, the labor market of GCC countries also contains a significant portion of expatriate workers, therefore the private sector heavily rely on the working on expatriate workers and the expatriate labor work also att racted towards the private sector because of the jobs that are available on fixed terms, the contracts of the jobs are specific and they are under the sponsorship of nationals. The labor migration to Gulf countries is considered to be of vast importance. The factors related to its importance are the relatively larger size of the Gulf countries and better economic conditions prevailing there. According to the recent reports, foreign workers especially from South Asia and Philippines make up around 90 percent or more of the private sector in all GCC countries except Saudi Arabia. Moreover, the rate of increasing population and the birth rate of foreign citizens in the Gulf countries also among other factors of increasing labor migration in Gulf countries. An individual labor law for every country in GCC is designed in accordance with international labor laws and standards, conventions and recommendations of International Labor Organization that aim to eliminate unfair labor practices and equal treatment of laborers regarding to the nationality, social status or religious belief. This is also because of the Global Economic Crises which cause the working class of South Asian countries to be affected badly, as a result many of the workers were not paid and most of the foreigner laborers had to leave the country and they put Gulf countries on the priority because of the high economic level and better wages rates than the European countries. Gulf countries recent policies and regulations on the protection of rights emphasize on the regulation on the labor market and boost national man power in private sector, by keeping the balance in working relationships at work place, increasing the labor protection and safeguarding the employeesâ€℠¢ interests at all. The above figure shows the supply and demand of labor market in the Gulf countries. It has shown that the labor market of the Gulf countries is effecting accordingly to the number of workers or workforce present there. If the supply of the workforce is increasing in Gulf countries because of the rising migration workers in Gulf countries, the demand is also increasing because of the increasing effect of the economies of Gulf countries, and the demand is also increasing because of their high expertise and high education in their relevant fields. According to the reports issued by the World Bank, there is various numbers of factors that have been contributed to the situation of youth employment situation in the Gulf countries. If considering the supply side, a demographic wave has increased the share of young people in the population because of the migration youth individuals to the Gulf countries has resulted the labor supply pressures. And if the demand size of the labor market is considered, young people in the labor markets of Gulf countries widespread with structural distortions. And the fact is that the public and private sector of GCC continues to attract young people towards themselves, with higher wage and benefit packages and better job security. Labor Market in India This section of the report considers the level of labor force and labor market in the economy of India. The India is considered to be the second largest country in the population growth after china and according to the reports of 2012, the labor workers who were working in India were 487 million, and 90 % of these workers were working in unorganized and unincorporated companies, while only 10 % of them are working in the organized private, state owned enterprises and government sectors. In local terms, the organized sector or formal sector are described as the sectors in India related to licensed organizations that are registered and pay income tax, and sales tax etc. These organizations of India include the publicly traded companies, corporations, factories, incorporated or formally registered entities, shopping malls, hotels, and large businesses. Unorganized sector, also known as informal sector or own account enterprises, refers to all unlicensed, self-employed or unregistered ec onomic activity such as owner manned general stores, handicrafts and handloom workers, rural traders, farmers, etc. If the labor market of India is to be seen, the matter of the fact is that there are two broad groups of migrant laborers working in India one group of migrant laborers is that who migrates to Gulf countries and overseas in order to work temporarily, and another group is that one who migrates on a seasonal and work available basis. According to the latest reports, the migrant workers who are Indian-origin laborers are about 4 million in number who are migrant workers in the Middle East and Gulf countries alone. They are accredited to been a part of Gulf countries and the majority of workers are those and are proud themselves who built many of Dubai, Qatar, Bahrain, and Persian Gulf modern architecture, and major of their architecture is the Burj Khalifa, which is considered to be the tallest building in worlds history which has started its operation in 2010. It is the common factor that no one wants to leave his country and the reason of leaving home country and to go abroad is that of financial surplus. These migrant workers are also attracted towards the Gulf countries because of better salaries, and getting the opportunity of even better jobs in order to remit funds and financials to support their families in India. In 2009, the reports by Middle East analysts show that the Middle East-based migrant workers from India remitted about US$20 billion. In many cases they also have to face the challenges and problems in dong jobs that is labor abuses and problems such as unpaid salaries, poor living conditions and unsafe work conditions have been claimed by the Indian migrant workers. Moreover, it has also been seen that national migrant workers in India have been assessed to be about 4.2 million. These migrant workers work according to their capacity and abilities and they have shown the range from full-time to part-time workers, permanent and temporary workers. They are typically employed for remuneration in cash or kind, in any household through any agency or directly, to do the household work, but do not include any member of the family of an employer. While talking to the India workforce in GCC countries, the reports suggests that India is the principal and major country of South Asia origin for the 17 million migrants in GCC countries. The Indian states are also sending their individuals also to GCC countries in order to get better employment and better remunerations. In 2004, the Indian state of Kerala only consists of the 26 percent of all households that had at least one temporary international migrant. And 89 percent of these were found to be in GCC countries (Zachariah and Rajan 2009, pp. 35, 162). According to the Philippines reports, that there were about 1.5 million temporary Overseas Filipino Workers (POEA 2011), in 2011 represented themselves while working abroad through the act of Philippine Overseas Employment Administration and according to the entire national labor force (BLES 2012) there were about 4 percent of the GCC migrants are Philippines who were working there. The figure below shows that the financial flow comes to the India because of the remittances from abroad and it has been seen that in the period of 2009-2011, 31.4% has been received by India only from the remittances of FDI from all over the world, and in 2012, only 30 of the total remittances came from GCC countries only. The above figure shows that India receives about as much in remittances from the GCC countries as it receives in FDI from the whole world The demand and supply of the labor market of India is not elastic and that the supply of the labor market is high and that the demand is ot that much high because of the economic conditions of the country and that the wages rates as well not according to the demands of the workers as well. Moreover, the high rate of population and unavailability of employment caused the migrants o move towards the GCC countries and overseas. According to the latest reports, the Indian migrates are not getting paid according to their demands and that the wages rate is quite minimum in Gulf countries for them. References Grm.grc.net,. (2014). The Gulf Research Meeting 2014: Workshop Details. Retrieved 29 August 2014, from http://grm.grc.net/index.php?pgid=Njk=wid=Mjg= Labor Market Challenges and the policies in Gulf Corporation Council union. (2014) (1st ed.). Retrieved from https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/FT/gcc/GCC3.pdf Ilo.org,. (2008). The Indian labour market: An overview. Retrieved 29 August 2014, from http://www.ilo.org/asia/whatwedo/publications/WCMS_098851/langen/index.htm

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

China Fertilizer Industry Overview Economics Essay

China Fertilizer Industry Overview Economics Essay The worldwide fertilizer demand has rebounded in 2010 after witnessing a slowdown in FY09 and FY08 and the recovery is expected to sustain till 2014 based on the International fertilizer industry Association (IFA) estimates. The overall fertilizer demand in FY09/10 rose 3.7% to 162.5Mt as compared to 156.7Mt in FY08/09. The demand for N (nitrogen), P (Phosphorus) and K (Potassium) fertilizers in FY09 surged 1.9%, 4.5% and 18% respectively mainly driven by the Asian followed by the American markets. The overall fertilizer demand in FY10/11 is expected to increase 4.8% to 170 Mt and reach 188.3 Mt in 2014/15 driven by the economic recovery and positive agricultural market conditions. The demand for the N, P and K fertilizers are expected to increase 1.9%, 4.5% and 18%, respectively In FY10/11. Source: IFA, RODM research China fertilizer industry overview China is the largest consumer and producer of fertilizers in the world, contributing 31.4% and 29.1% of the global consumption and production respectively in FY07 based on the International fertilizer association statistics. According to china statistical year book, the country s fertilizer consumption in FY08 rose 2.6% to 52.4Mt as compared to 51.1mt in 2007 and grew at a CAGR of 3% for the period 2000-2008. This was mainly due to population increase in china, growth in compound fertilizers and increasing production of organic agriculture. Henan is the major consumer for fertilizers that accounts 11.5% of total consumption of fertilizer in china followed by the Shandong, Jiangsu and Hubei which contributed 9.1%, 6.5% and 6.3% of overall fertilizer consumption in FY08. Source: China statistical yearbook, RODM research Compound fertilizer industry in china Compound fertilizer comprises of at least two nutrients among nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium and includes both organic and inorganic fertilizers. Based on the china statistical year book, the consumption of compound fertilizer industry have grown at a CAGR of 6.9% as compared to the 0.3%, 1.3% and 4.7% of Nitrogenous, Phosphate and potassium fertilizers respectively over a period of 1998-2008, indicating the increasing adoption of compound fertilizers by farmers as compared to the straight fertilizers. Based on PRlog.org, the Chinese compound market scale reached CNY 200 billion in FY09 and has around 4,500 compound fertilizer producers mainly situated in Shandong, Jiangsu, Hubei and Sichuan etc. The production of Chinese compound fertilizers reached around 50 million tons in FY09. The compound fertilizer manufacture industry increased 39% to CNY 23.60 billion in FY09 as compared to FY08.However, compound fertilizer consumption still accounts for less than 30% of the total consum ption, which is far below the 50-80% average in developed countries. This is due to the fact that compound fertilizers are relatively new in the Chinese market and farmers are only gradually adopting these over the more conventional varieties. The current fertilizer formulations has conformity degree of less than 3% and most of the producers make their formulations based on the economy and raw material prices rather than soil and crop demands. However with the rising environmental concerns, developing Chinese agricultural specialization and growing demand for high end cash crops and organic foods, the farmers are imposing higher requirements on compound fertilizers. Hence the demand for high end compound fertilizers, especially Chinese ternary compound (3 nutrients) fertilizers is expected to drive the overall compound fertilizers growth in the coming years. Source: China statistical yearbook, RODM research Organic Fertilizer industry With the rising environmental concerns, declining arable land, cultivation of high end crops, government thrust for organic production and demand for green foods, the adoption of organic fertilizer industry in China have been gaining momentum and is expected to witness rapid growth for the upcoming years. But the organic agriculture industry in china is very low as compared to the developed countries. In 2006, organic compound fertilizer in China accounted for 27% of the total fertilizer consumption, which about half of the 50% is registered in developed countries. However, organic fertilizer consumption in the country is expected to grow at a CAGR of more than 30%, according to industry sources. Also, the government has identified the enhanced performance given by these fertilizers which would help them to reach their goals of increasing rural farm production and income while decreasing water pollution. According to the industry sources, the Chinese green fertilizer industry is highly fragmented with around 2,000 manufacturers with no distinguished players in the industry. The small and large regional players contribute 80% of the market share followed by the large regional and International players contributing 9% and 8% of the market share respectively. The small and large regional manufacturers have an edge of competitive prices and knowledge of local markets as compared to the International markets. On the flip side, the international manufacturers produce high quality products, good research and development capabilities and players with good financials can acquire regional players in a bid to sustain growth and increase their market share. The large national manufacturers have a competitive edge over the small and large regional manufacturers as well as international players in terms of their brand presence and wide distribution network along with providing quality products at competitive prices and having good understanding over the markets. To keep in line with the growth and economic conditions, the green fertilizer industry in china is expected to witness consolidation in the near future. Growth drivers for Organic fertilizer industry Rising environmental concerns Chinese agriculture has been growing rapidly on a limited area with heavy inputs of fertilizers since 1980s. The rates of fertilizers adopted in some regions of china are extremely high as compared to the developed countries like North America and Europe. The worldwide average fertilizer consumption per hectare in 1997 was 94 kilograms while US average was 111 kg per hectare. But china exceeded both world average and US average and used 271 kg of fertilizer per hectare of cultivated land, based on the industry sources (hafengevergreen.com).According to the industry sources, the pH levels of the soil in 2000-2008 as against 1980s have declined 0.13 while the pH for cash crops declined on an average 0.3. Since china feeds around 22% of the world s population with just 10% of arable land, protecting china s polluted and artificially fertilized soil remains a major concern to the government. Moreover, the population in china is expected to increase to 800 900 million by 2020, based on t he Beijing International Institute for City Development which would decrease the arable area for cultivation. Hence decreasing china s arable land and the need to increase the crop yield for domestic consumption have led the farmers to adopt high quality fertilizer products. Also with increasing environmental concerns, the government has been encouraging the production of organic agriculture for export and domestic consumption. Accordingly, the demand for the organic fertilizers have been growing as they increase organic matter content in the soil along with the major and minor organic nutrients. Growth in greening of china s food During the last few years, the demand for the green foods have been increasing on the back of growing concerns of environment and rising disposable income in china. Based on the industry sources, the cultivation of green food has increased from 2.14 million hectares to 10 million hectares while the output surged from 6.3 to 72 million tons over a period of 1997 to 2007.Also based on the Ministry of Agriculture 90% of China s agricultural exports are eco-food, i.e. either Hazard Free, Green or Organic foods. The export value increased to US~$2 Billion in 2006 from ~$70 Million in 1997. But china s exports have accounted less than 1% of the global organic market and .08% of the locally sold organic market. Although high production costs and prices has been limiting the usage of organic fertilizers in the domestic market, we believe that the government initiatives in the form of subsidies, recent food safety scandals, growing demand for reliable and healthy food in the domestic and inte rnational market, pollution concerns and rising disposable income would strongly drive the green fertilizer industry in the near future. The government has been encouraging both exports and imports of organic products and expects to achieve 10% of the organic crop production by 2010. Growth in green food over a decade Source: John Paull, Australian National University, RODM research Decreasing arable area for cultivation China is the largest agriculture producer in the world with only 15% of the cultivated area. China need to support 20% of the world s population and has just 10% of the total arable land in the world. Moreover the arable land has declined at a CAGR of .4% from 133mha to 121.7mha, over the period 1988-2008. To prevent further decline, the government have set the critical mark of arable land to be maintained at 120mha by 2020. According to the industry sources, the population in china is expected to increase from 47% to 75% over the next three decades which mounts the pressure of producing increased yield per area to feed the growing population. Thus the demand for the organic fertilizers is expected to witness rapid growth in the compound fertilizer segment. Source: China statistical yearbook, RODM research China policies/initiatives Subsidy The fertilizers market play a key input for the Chinese agricultural sector and hence is one of the main sectors to be addressed by the government to achieve its food sufficiency objective. The fertilizer subsidies in China are mainly for supporting the development of China s agriculture and food security. Hence we believe that most of the subsidy policies might be continued for the short term. The comprehensive subsidy on fuel and fertilizer for grain farmers in 2007 surged 120 % to $3.6 billion (RMB 27.6 billion) as compared to the last year. This program was started to partially compensate farmers for price increases in fuel, fertilizer, and other agricultural inputs in 2006. Based on the Ministry of Finance (MOF), the comprehensive subsidy reached at an average of about U.S. $14.5 per farm household in 2007 and the fuel and fertilizer subsidies are estimated to reach RMB 72.01 billion by 2009. The Chinese government gave bank loan interests subsidy from 2004 to those qualified fertilizers distributors who hold the fertilizer storage during the winter season wherein the total volume is about 5-8million mt and the interests subsidy is about RMB300million to RMB500million($43.9 million to $73.3 million )every year. Also the government gave a direct subsidy of RMB100/mt to both domestic and imported DAP which was around 6.7million mt and about RMB670million subsidy in 2004.The government gave an electricity subsidy for small and large nitrogen fertilizer producers in December 2003 which is around RMB6.3 billion every year. Also the transportation of fertilizer has been subsidized by RMB5.0 billion every year. Tariffs The MOF and NDRC (National Development and Reform Commission) have jointly announced the Notification of Fertilizer Price Formation Mechanism Reform on January 24, 2009. The main purpose of this notification is: Removal of current tariff restriction on domestic fertilizer prices Removal of fertilizer price restrictions Implementing preferential policies for fertilizer production Applying measures through import and export regulation, reserve control and transportation parameters to maintain the fertilizer market To improve agricultural subsidies for the industry Increase monitoring, supervision, and inspection on market pricing To make efforts on program organization and implementation The State Council Tariff Committee had imposed a 100 % special export duty on fertilizer and related material exports during April 20 and September 30, 2008 which affected 32 tariff lines including phosphoric acid, ammonia, nitrogen, phosphate, potash, and compound fertilizer. Based on MOF, the runaway in exports were due to strain in domestic supply which lead to surge in price as demand began to decrease due to spring planting. Hence the tariff was increased so as to control the rising prices along with providing plentiful grain harvest for the year. China has evolved from being a net importer of phosphate fertilizer to being a net exporter over the last decade and has been directly affected the US phosphate fertilizer industry as it used to supply 95% of China s phosphate imports. Pricing trend in china Chinese fertilizer prices have witnessed heavy volatility over the last decade mainly due to uneven production levels in fertilizers, the government s need to keep sufficient production to meet domestic market demand and rising international fertilizer prices. According to USDA, the market price for nitrogen fertilizer surged from $280 to $405/MT during 2007 and reached a high of $452 during April 2008. This was mainly due to imbalance between low supply and rising demand on the world market. Also the tariff restrictions imposed on Chinese fertilizer producers and the demand for fertilizers to produce biofuels in the United States, Brazil, and Europe has led to the increase in price. However due to the slowdown in the world economy and reluctance of Chinese farmers to pay high prices which were two to three times higher than the prices of early 2007, the price for fertilizer fell drastically to $247 at the end of 2008. VAT policies The NPK compound fertilizers, MAP, Urea and DAP have been on a VAT holiday from 1994; January 1, 1998; July 01, 2005; and January 1, 2008 respectively. China had stopped importing urea from 1997 and the government has given 50%-100% VAT refund to the urea exporters before March, 2004. The government stopped the tax refund policy and began to impose export tax to urea and DAP from March 16, 2004. Prior to 2002, the government has given VAT holiday policy to imported phosphoric acid for supporting the players like Sino-Arab Chemical Fertilizer Co. Ltd who were consuming imported PA for phosphate compound fertilizers production. The government gave VAT holiday policy for imported sulfur from May 20, 2008 and most of the imported fertilizers and related raw materials were given very low import custom taxes which are all below 4%. Export/Import initiatives for fertilizers Chinese government set new policies on the exported fertilizers during Nov. 14, 2008. To set export base price for the off-season and to reduce the export tariff from 125%~185% to 10%~110% till December 31, 2009; The export tariff for Urea, MAP and DAP would be 110% (35% basic+75% special) during mid-season and 10% during off-season since December 1, 2008 The base prices for DAP, MAP and Urea are RMB4000/mt; RMB3700/mt and RMB2300/mt respectively During the off-season, if Urea, DAP and MAP prices are lower than the base prices, the export tariff would be 10%, otherwise the export tariff would be calculated by the formula: [(1.1-base price/export price) 100)] Source: IFA, RODM research The customs tariff committee of China have cancelled the special export tariffs (50-75%) in Jun-09 on 27 products, that include phosphate rock (apatite), yellow phosphorus, synthetic ammonia, phosphoric acid, ammonium chloride, triple superphosphate (TSP), sodium nitrate and double nutrients to help local fertilizer manufacturers clear excess inventory build-up. Import Tariff Rate Quota Products Quota level (000 metric tons) In-quota imports (000 metric tons) State-trading share (%) In-quota MFN tariff rate (%) Out-of-quota MFN tariff rate (%) Urea 3,300 90 4 50 NPK 3,450 65 4 50 Diammonium phosphate 6,900 65 4 50 Source: USTR, RODM Research The Chinese government controls exports of major raw material inputs for fertilizers like coking coal which provides competitive edge to Chinese manufacturers and exporters over the foreign manufacturers and exporters in the chemical fertilizer industries. The price of coke in China was around $472/mt, while the global price of coke was $740/mt. Although China produces 336mmt of coke, contributing 60% of the global production, it has an export quota of only 12mmt and an export duty of 40%.

Monday, August 19, 2019

Dorothea Dix Essay -- Biography Biographies Bio

Dorothea Dix – One of the Great Women of the 1800s Once in a while a truly exceptional person has made a mark on the growth of mankind. Dorothea Dix was an exceptional woman. She wrote children’s books, she was a school teacher, and she helped reform in prisons. Some of her most notable work was in the field of making mental health institutions a better place for the patients that lived in them. Dorothea Dix gave a great deal to humanity and her achievements are still being felt today, especially in the treatment of those with mental disabilities. Dix started out though with very humble beginnings. Dorothea Dix was born in Hampden, Maine in 1802. Her mother was not very mentally stable and her dad was an abusive alcoholic. The Dix moved from Maine to Vermont just before the British War of 1812. Then, after the war they moved to Worcester, MA. While in Worcester, the Dix had two more children, both boys. The family would eventually break apart because of the mother’s mental state and the father’s drinking.1 Dorothea Dix and her two brothers ended up moving to Boston to live with their grandmother on their father’s side Dorothea Lynde, who was the wife of Dr Elijah Dix.2 Dix helped with the rearing of her brothers as she had done in her parents’ home. The grandmother tried to instill her Puritan ways of Boston’s wealthy into Dix’s mind. Grandmother Dix tried to turn young Dorothea into a nice proper girl from Boston, but that wasn’t in the cards for young Dix. The grandmother had given her dancing lessons and even her own private seamstress. Dix was not into this style of life and she would give some of her clothes away, and food to the poor; which had infuriated her grandmother. This angered the grandmother enough to send youn... ... Patterson Smith, 1967 Gollaher, David. Voice for the Mad: The Life of Dorothea Dix, New York. Free Press. 1995 Marshall, H.E. . Dorothea Dix, forgotten Samaritan. Chapel Hill. University of North Carolina Press. 1937

Free Essays - Immorality and Corruption in the Great Gatsby :: Grapes Wrath essays

Immorality and Corruption in the Great Gatsby In the novel, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald many of the characters could not be classified as a truly moral, a person who exhibits goodness or correctness in their character and behavior. Nick Carraway is not moral by any means; he is responsible for an affair between two major characters, Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan. Jay Gatsby does show some moral qualities when he attempts to go back and rescue Myrtle after she had been hit by Daisy. Overall Gatsby is unquestionably an immoral person. Nick Carraway and Gatsby share many immoral characteristics, but a big choice separates the two. Daisy Buchanan is an extremely immoral person; she even went to the lengths of taking someone's life. Jay and Daisy are similar but Daisy is borderline corrupt. The entire story is told through Nick Carraway's point of view and by his carelessness it is obvious the narrator possesses poor values. Throughout the entire novel it is clearly portrayed that Nick Carraway is not a moral character by any stretch of the imagination. Nick Carraway may seem to have some good values, but he is in fact immoral for many reasons. First, Nick uses Jordan Baker; he never actually became interested in a serious relationship with the golf star. Miss Baker is basically just a fling to him. Secondly, Nick Carraway always seems to be the middleman in all the trouble that is going on in the novel. The narrator knows about all the lying, deceiving, two-faced things that are going on throughout the story, and he is completely ok with it. Also Nick defends Gatsby even though he very well knows of all Gatsby's criminal activity and liquor smuggling. Finally, Nick is the character who sets up two of the main characters, Daisy Buchanan and Jay Gatsby, to have an affair. It never crosses Nick's mind that it is an immoral thing to set up an affair. During the novel there is a discussion betwee n Gatsby and Nick about when to set up the secret meeting with Daisy. During this exchange Nick actually says, "I'm going to call up Daisy tomorrow and invite her over here to tea.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Assimilation in the United States :: Melting Pot integration immigration

Assimilation Our country is acclaimed for its endless ability to integrate. Whether it occurred in the early 1900s when desegregation occurred in Topeka middle school, or how we have integrated every nationality to every ethnicity and have been renown as the melting pot. In every aspect of how our country has come to what we know as United States, there is a simple integration that occurred to create what we are today. Assimilation is a positive force when it is necessary, it is needed in our companies, to our marriages, and we alongside the media are the causes of these types of assimilation; Americans tendency for assimilation will remain a beneficiary factor so long as we do not loose our individuality in the process. Assimilation is a force that is unstoppable. Americans do it on a daily basis without the time to contemplate whether to assimilate or not. Assimilation also keeps our world turning; it is the basis of agreement and understanding. As we assimilate we understand that through conforming this will create a strong unit. When working with a company, conformation is needed. To move as a unit, and to be displayed as a unit is any company's desire. Why would any prestigious company want to be displayed as disorganized? Or have employees that cannot work or agree with one another? It is a characteristic that is needed in every person, the ability to work as a unit, and become a team player. Through assimilation, teamwork is established and is learned. Teamwork is the basis of any company, and through teamwork the company will thrive as one unit. Teamwork is the foundation of many different areas in our lives. Not only is it necessary in the workforce, but more than ever necessary in our marriages. Marriages should be based on assimilation through compromise and understanding. Through this compromise and understanding for one another, this leads to the peace that is needed in every household. To assimilate in marriage is to converge two different opinions and come to a midpoint agreement. This is a positive force, the force where both is letting go of their strong beliefs through their vows of love for one another, to come to the understanding that conforming as one unit will help them succeed through strenuous times. If the result of assimilation in a marriage is peace, then this is one characteristic that marriages today need more than ever.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Meaning of life †Phrase Essay

Origin: A person seeing a table piled high with sumptuous food has a tendency to get too many and/or too large a portion. Since the problem is brought on by the eyes and a lack of reason, the person is portrayed a one whose eyes are bigger than their stomach. Elephant in the room Meaning: An important and obvious topic, which everyone present is aware of, but which isn’t discussed, as such discussion is considered to be uncomfortable. Origin: The theme of the exhibition was global poverty. By painting the elephant in the same bold pattern as the room’s wallpaper, Banksy emphasized the phrase’s meaning, by both making the elephant even more obvious and by giving those who chose to ignore it (like the woman in the tableau) an opportunity to pretend that it had blended into the wallpaper background. Even at the turning of the tide Meaning: The phrase is used to denote some change from a previously stable course of events. Origin: The phrase comes from Shakespeare’s Henry V where he use turning of the tide in a letter. Ear candy Meaning: Music with an instant appeal but with little lasting significance. Origin: The term may have been in use before 1977, although I can find no references to it in print that predate Reddy’s album title. The term did get picked up though and soon became a generic term for music that was initially attractive but with little lasting substance. Candy is of course what the US calls the confectionery that many parts of the English-speaking world call sweets. The sugary, insubstantial imagery is well suited to these phrases. Excuse my French Meaning: Please forgive my swearing. Origin: A coy phrase used when someone who has used a swear-word attempts to pass it off as French. The coyness comes from the fact the both the speaker and listener are of course both well aware the swear-word is indeed English. F Fair and square Meaning: Honest and straightforward, especially of business dealings. Origin: In the 16th century ‘square’ meant ‘fair and honest’ so ‘fair and square’ is tautological. George Puttenham used that meaning of square in The arte of English poesie, 1589:†[Aristotle] termeth a constant minded man – a square man. â€Å"Francis Bacon’s essay Of Prophecies, 1604 is the first known use of ‘fair and square’: Fast asleep Meaning: soundly asleep. Origin: The ‘fast’ in ‘fast asleep’ derives from the Old German ‘fest’, meaning ‘stuck firmly’; ‘not easily moveable’ – as in ‘stuck fast’. ‘Asleep’ derives from ‘sleep’ in the same way that nautical adverbs like ‘aground’ and ‘astern’ derive from ‘ground’ and ‘stern’. To be ‘fast asleep’ was to be stuck firmly in sleep, analogous to a beached ship being ‘fast aground’. Filthy rich Meaning: Very rich, possibly having become so by unfair means. Origin: The phrase comes from the word â€Å"filthy lucre† means money from dishonorable gain. This was first used as a noun phrase meaning â€Å"rich people; who have become so by dishonorable means† like gambling. Face the music Meaning: Face the truth Origin: Comes from the British military. When someone was court marshaled, there would be a military drum squad playing, hence face the music. The term â€Å"drummed out of the military† came from this practice†¦. From stem to stern Meaning: Thorough, complete. Origin: The very front of a ship is called the stem, the rear is called the stern. From stem to stern includes the entire ship. G Get a leg up Meaning: To get a boost or advantage. Origin: This phrase may incorrectly invoke images of a dog raising its leg. In fact â€Å"Getting a leg up† is from the act of an equestrian receiving help in mounting a horse. The helper would create a foothold by cupping the hands to heft the rider upward, throwing a leg up and over the steed. Get of the wrong foot Meaning: Make a bad start to a project or relationship. Origin: The phrase comes from the idiom â€Å"put your best foot forward. † This means to make a best impression. Despite the implication we only have two choices, so if there’s a wrong foot there has to be a right one too and get off on the right foot is also in common use. Graveyard shift Meaning: A late-night/early-morning work shift. Origin: So they would dig up coffins and would take the bones to a â€Å"bone-house† and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, one out of 25 coffins was found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been burying people alive. So they thought they would tie a string on the wrist of the corpse, lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night (the â€Å"graveyard shift†) to listen for the bell; thus, someone could be â€Å"saved by the bell† or was considered a â€Å"dead ringer. † Grinning like a Cheshire cat Meaning: Grin broadly. Origin: The phrase comes from the novel â€Å"Alice in Wonderland† where she asked the duchess why the cat grinned. The duchess answered â€Å"Because it’s a Cheshire cat! † ‘I didn’t know that Cheshire cats always grinned; in fact, I didn’t know that cats COULD grin. ‘ ‘They all can,’ say the Duchess; ‘and most of them do. ‘ Good as gold Meaning: Well – behaved and obedient. Origin: When banknotes (known as bills in the USA and some other countries) were first introduced they weren’t considered to be money in the sense we now think of them. They were promissory notes or IOUs. Gold or silver was real money as it had intrinsic value. Notes were just promises to pay in coin. UK banknotes, like those of many other countries, still include messages like this, signed by the Chief Cashier of the Bank of England: ‘I promise to pay the bearer on demand the sum of ten pounds’. So, ‘as good as gold’ ought really to be ‘as genuine as gold’, but the more usual meaning of ‘good’ has taken precedence over the years and left us with the usual meaning of the phrase. H High on the hog Meaning: Extravagantly. Origin: The best meat is on the upper portion of the pig. Rich people have always been afforded this luxury while the servants, slaves and poor have always had to eat pig’s feet, chitterlings, cracklings, etc. – low on the hog. Horse of a different color Meaning: Unlike the subject at hand. Origin: Horses are registered at birth and the registration includes a record of their color. When a horse trades hands due to sale, the registration is also transferred. Sometimes the color recorded on the registration may not match the actual color of the horse leading one to suspect the horse is not the one in the registration. Horses sometimes change color as they age, just as some people’s hair changes color. More likely the horse is not the one represented on the registration but is actually an entirely different horse. Hold your feet to the fire Meaning: To hold one accountable for a commitment, make good on a promise. Origin: Pertains to torture used during the Crusade’s. As a method for extracting confession for heresy, non-believers were positioned in a manner that allowed the inquisitor to apply flames to the feet of the accused. This was done until the accused confessed or died. Head over heels Meaning: Excited, and/or turning cartwheels to demonstrate one’s excitement. Origin: Head over heels’ is now most often used as part of ‘head over heels in love’. When first coined it wasn’t used that way though and referred exclusively to being temporarily the wrong way up. It is one of many similar phrases that we use to describe things that are not in their usual state – ‘upside-down’, ‘topsy-turvy’, ‘topple up tail’, ‘arse over tea-kettle’, ‘bass-backwards’ etc. Hard lines Meaning: Bad luck Origin: Clearly the derivation of ‘hard lines’ is entirely dependent on which line was being referred to when the phrase was coined. There is a reference to lines in the King James Version of the Bible, 1611, and that is the basis of several early citations of ‘hard lines’:Psalms 16:6 The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.

Friday, August 16, 2019

Gender difference Essay

The article I read is â€Å"‘Health is not a man’s domain’: lay accounts of gender difference in life-expectancy in Russia†. The authors, Ilkka Pietila and Marja Rytkonen, examined the meaning of health to Russian lay people, conducting interview with 29 people aged 15-81. They concluded that the role of the individual in healthy responsibility is very weak, with a stronger emphasis on societal and governmental influence. They also found that in relation to gender, gender roles and relations are static with few alternatives despite social changes. This study was prompted by the large gender gap in life-expectancy in Russia. In 2006, the average life expectancy was 59 years for Russian men but 72 years for Russian women. Pietila and Rytkonen wanted to see if this gap was caused by gender perceptions of health and/or each other or by something else. The theoretical basis for this research is a process Frankel and Davison call ‘lay epidemiology’, which states that â€Å"individuals interpret health risks through the routine observation and discussion of cases of illness and death in personal networks and the public arena, as well as from formal and informal evidence arising from other sources, such as television and magazines (p. 071). The researchers discerned â€Å"four types of explanations: essential/naturalist explanations (biological and psychological differences), explanations related to social roles, explanations related to social change and explanations related to health behavior† (p. 1075). They also found that these explanations often centered around one health behavior: heavy drinking. This article is a great because of its discussion the masculinity behind drinking, as well as the cultural aspects yet how the women tended to see drinking as more of a health hazard then the men who participate in it. The phenomenon of the gender gap and the cultural aspects of drinking add unique curveballs to solving the health crisis in Russia today. An article like this one is very important because it illustrates factors that need to be considered when coming up with a public health policy for Russia. For example, this findings of this research would support the argument that prohibition would not work in reducing alcoholism in Russia; alcohol’s cultural significance is too strong for such a policy to have any ‘lay’ support. The article also noted its limitations. The authors only interviewed subjects in St. Petersburg, which is one of the more Westernized cities in Russia and is more likely to have an higher educated and socioeconomic population compared with the majority of Russia. The authors conceded that this population dynamic may have skewed the results. They also admit that their research sample was small (only 29 people interviewed), although they did their best to have a variety of ages and occupations within these people. One excellent point in the researcher’s methodology is the use of native-Russian speakers to conduct the interviews, and having men interview men and women interview women. The use of native speakers would allow for the nuances of language and communication to be picked up. The gender separation also nullifies the possibility that gender biases would have taken place during the interviews.

Thursday, August 15, 2019

Surah Al Fatina Guide

INTRODUCTION OF SURAH AL FATIHAThe word â€Å"Fatiha† comes from the verb â€Å"Fataha†, which means in this text â€Å"to open†. â€Å"Al† is a defined article and Fatiha means the opening Surah, which opens the Quran. Some Muslims interpret it as this surah has ability to open a person's faith in Allah. It is the Mecci Surah of the Holy Quran, which means that it was discovered on the Prophet of God while He was in Makah, It also has the honor of being the very first Surah that is made known completely. Although it consists of 7 Ayahsonly, but it still explains the Veneration of the Almighty in a very comprehensive fashion and also is a great means of supplication of asking Allah for keeping one on the right path. It is also named Umm al-Qur'an, the Mother of the Qur'an, and Umm al-Kitab, the Mother of the Book because it summarizes the meaning of whole Quran. It is also named Sab'ul-Mathani, (the Seven Often Repeated Verses), Al-Hamd, (the Praise), Al-Shifa (The Cure) and Ar-Ruqya, the Spiritual Cure. Its recitation is a condition for the effectiveness of the prayer.VIRTUES OF SURAH FATIHASurah Al Fatiha has many virtues. Some of them are briefly defined here:It is cure of diseases such as Snake sting, Epilepsy or any otherillness. A companion once recited Al-Fatihah over a scorpion bite, to which the Prophet commanded him saying:†How did you know it was a Ruqyah (cure)?†(Sahih Al Bukhari)It is the greatest chapter of Quran.It is pillar of the prayer as Hazrat Muhammad (SAW) said: â€Å"Whoever does not recite SurahAl Fatihah in his prayer, his prayer is invalid†.†(Sahih Al Bukhari)It is the seven oft-repeated verses because it is repeated in everyunit of prayer.It is mother of Quran.It was sent from Heaven as a light. An Angel addressed the Prophet(SAW) saying:â€Å"Rejoice in two lights brought to you which have not been brought to any prophet before you, Al-Fatihah and the last verses of Al- Baqarah†It is cure for heart as it protects heart from offensive motives.THEME OF SURAH FATIHAIt declares that God alone is the maintainer of all the known and the unknown worlds, ultimate source of mercy, justice and guidance for mankind. Only He can guide man to the way of life acceptable to him though he doesn't compel anyone to follow that way. Instead, in the words of the Quran, it is man's duty to beg before Him for guidance: Allah said in Quran that: call on Me,I shall answer your supplication† (40:60). He also tells man the consequences of following this code of conduct or going astray. Therefore, man needs to praise and worship him and resort to him alone. AsHe is the supreme justice and everybody will have to answer Him on the day of Judgement for his worldly deeds.TAFSEER OF SURAH ALFATIHA1. In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.This statement is also known as the basmala.Baa means In the name of Allah or seeking help or blessing with the name of ALLAH.As in Arabic language it has three different meanings.The Meaning of al-Rahman and al-Raheem:Both these names are derived from the same root letters: raa, haa, meem; which means to have mercy. They are thus similar in meaning and both are connected to Allah's (SWT) Mercy. Allah has started the first surah with his names of mercy rather than might and power that shows that how important this characteristic is.And there also exist a difference between Al Rahman and AL Raheem. Al-RahmanIt is Allah's mercy to all the creation as in one of hadith it is mentioned that Allah has divided his mercy into 100 parts and only one part is sent down to this dunia.It is from this one part of His Mercy that animals show mercy to their offspring (Sahih Muslim)Allah says in QURAN: My Mercy encompasses all things. (Al-A'raf: 156) Al-RaheemAl-Raheem indicated the Mercy of Allah which is specific for the believers. It indicated the doing of action that only those people have mercy who believes in Allah.Allah says in Quran: He is full of mercy to the believers (Al-Ahzab:43)2. [All] praise is [due] to Allah, Lord of the worldsAccording to scholarsHamd and shukar has same meaning i.e.Thankfulness or gratitude. But in actual they have some difference i.e.Hamd is something which must be done with love and reverence, but shukr does not need this. Shukr is done in response to a favour which is done to a person but hamd is done simply because the one being praised and thanked is wor thy of that.Rabb:Rabb comes from the root letter Raa; Baa, Baa means one having control over something. SoRaab means one who controls or cherishes everything and is the king and master of everything. In case of ALLAH; He is alone the master whole universe and cherishes it.Aa'lameen means everything that exists other than ALLAH TALA which includes those things which have an intellect, and they are four i.e. mankind, Jins, angels and devils. It also includes those things which have souls. But it is believed that the view about everything that exists other than Allah is best because of proofs being ayah 23 and 24 of Surah Shu'ara.Said Pharaoh, â€Å"And what is the Lord of the worlds?† (23)[Moses] said, â€Å"The Lord of the heavens and earth and that between them, if you should be convinced.†(24)3. The Entirely Merciful, and beneficial Here these two names are repeated to again emphasis on two important attributes of Allah that is mercy. When something is repeated in Quran pak we see ayah before it and after it to see how they are related. Here the previous ayah told the power of Allah that He has the control over everything yet again here Allah defined Himself as the most merciful as well and tells that His taking of and sustaining and providing for us is all part of his mercy towards us. 4. Master of the Day of Judgment The first word of this ayah can be recited in two ways: either as â€Å"Maalik† (with a madd after the meem) or as â€Å"Malik† (without the madd). Maalik means master, and it refers to â€Å"milk† – the ownership of something. Malik means king, and it refers to â€Å"mulk† – the dominion of a person. It is the Day of Recompense for deeds. Everyone will be gathered on this day. Some will be rewarded through His Mercy while others punished through His Justice. Allah specifically mentions His sovereignty alone on the Day of Judgment in this verse because no one will claim anything on that day and no one will be allowed to speak except by His permission. For some scholars it is the most alarming ayah of Quran whereas some scholars says it's the most calmest ayah of Quran which gives ry of hope to people that there would be day of justice. 5. It is You we worship and You we ask for help.At this point, there is a shift in the Surah from informing us about Allah (SWT) and praising Him, to addressing Him.â€Å"We worship† means we obey. Worship is obedience and self-abasement. It means to humble yourself before Allah (SWT) and to submit to His Will. Outwardly it is self-abasement, but in reality, it is glory and beautification. The ayah affirms the Lordship of Allah and affirms that worship is due to Him.â€Å"Iyyaakanasta'een† means we seek help, support and success.It also refers the status of the slave and his worship which is lower so it will come after mentioning the Lord, Allah (SWT).This verse is a proof that the slave is not allowed to divert any type of worship to other than Allah. The verse also contains remedy for the hearts from the illness of being attached to other than Allah. There is also a cure in it against spiritual diseases of showing off, self-admiration, and arrogance. 6. Guide us to the straight pathThis part of Surah Al-Fatiha is dua in which we asks ALLAH to show us right path so that we do good deeds to get closer to Allah. We need to struggle towards Allah (SWT) by doing good deeds and by staying away from all bad deeds which will distance us from Him.The word â€Å"siraat† in ayah means path. But it is not any other ordinary path rather it has certain conditions which has to be fullfilled.Theseconditions are that it must be straight path. It must reach the goal and it must be shortest route to achieve the goal. Otherwise it would be called something else such as tareeq or sabeel.The word â€Å"Mustaqeem† in ayah is derived from istaqaama, which means to be straight, upright, and correct. We already said that for a road to be a sirat it must be straight, so this adjective of mustaqeem again emphasis the straightness of this Path. Another meaning of mustaqeem is to remain firm or to stand firm without tilting. For example, a tree that is firmly grounded when the wind blows it is not affected by it. So, the Straight Path is a path on which people are firmly grounded.7. The path of those upon whom You have bestowed favor, not of those who have evoked [Your] anger or of those who are astray. Who are the people who have been blessed by Allah (SWT) and whose Path we ask to guide to? This is explained by Allah (SWT) in another ayah where He says: † Whosoever obeys Allah, and the Messenger, they are with those whom Allah has favored, the Prophets, the sincere, the martyrs and the righteous, and these are the best company. â€Å"(Al-Nisa': 69) So, the favored and blessed people are the Prophets, the righteous, the martyrs and the pious. And who are the people with anger on them and those who are astray? This is explained by the Prophet. ‘AdiibnHatim (RA) asked him about those with anger on them and he replied that it refers to the Jews. He then asked him about those who are astray and he replied that it refers to the Christians. This is reported by al-Tirmidhi and is authentic.IMPACT OF SURAH AL FATIHA ON MUSLIMSSurah Fatiha has great impact on Muslims. According to some scholars this surah opens the faith of people. And repeatedly recitation of Surah Fatiha brin gs one closer to Allah. It drive us to ensure that we are sincere to the meaning of words that You alone we worship and to You alone we ask for help. This Surah gives Muslims ray of hope that they will have justice on the day of judgment as ALLAH has said He is the Master of the day ofjudgement.And this Surah helps us to seek guidance from Allah and thank Allah always when we have something from all. Muslims have great belief that by reciting Surah Fatiha they can cure diseases. Apart of that, This Surah always remind us through reciting that all praises belongs to ALLAH and He is the only one who worth worshiping. And it reminds Muslims that they have to return back to Allah one day and He will ask about their worldly deeds so they try not to commit bad deeds and act upon the commands of Allah.

Wednesday, August 14, 2019

Danone Governance Structure Essay

Board of Directors terdiri dari 14 anggota, dengan delapan diantaranya merupakan anggota independen yang dipilih melalui rekomendasi dari Nomination and Compensation Committee. Di dalam Board of Directors termasuk diantaranya Audit Committee, Social Responsibility Committee, dan Nomination and Compensation Committee. Anggota dari Board of Directors per Mei 2012, adalah: †¢Franck Riboud Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Danone †¢Emmanuel Faber Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors and Deputy General Manager †¢Bernard Hours Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors and Deputy General Manager of Danone †¢Bruno Bonnell Chairman of Sorobot SAS †¢Richard Goblet d’Alviella Executive Chairman of Sofina SA †¢Yoshihiro Kawabata Senior Managing Director and Head of International Business Division of Yakult Honsha Co. , Ltd. †¢Jean Laurent Chairman of the Board of Directors of Fonciere des Regions †¢Benoit Potier Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of L’Air Liquide SA †¢Isabelle Seillier Chairman of J. P. Morgan for France †¢Jean-Michel Severino Managing Partner, â€Å"Investisseur and Partenaire Conseil† †¢Jacques Vincent Chairman of Compassionart †¢Jacques-Antoine Granjon Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of vente-privee. com †¢Mouna Sepehri Member of the Executive Committee, Executive Vice-President of RENAULT SAS †¢Virginia A. Stallings Professor of Pediatrics at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Secara umum, kami berpendapat bahwa Struktur Corporate Governance dari Danone adalah di bawah rata-rata. Posisi chairman dan CEO telah dijabat oleh Franck Riboud sejak 1996, dan struktur tersebut memberikan kekuatan yang terlalu besar bagi seorang individu. Lima director telah menjabat di Board of Directors selama kurang lebih 12 tahun. Menurut kami, posisi yang hampir permanen dari CEO dan beberapa director dapat menyebabkan hubungan yang nyaman antara mereka dan dapat berakibat pada hilangnya fungsi professional dari board. Misalnya, pada penentuan besaran kompensasi bagi para director sebesar 30% dari nilai saham. Hal tersebut dapat menjadi salah satu pertimbangan dari potential shareholders untuk mengurungkan niatnya menginvestasikan dananya ke Danone.