My ecological footprint

My ecological footmark per centum is 70.82 % . We would necessitate 4.51 Earths if everyone had the life style that I lead. The consequences made me experience concerned because my footmark is below norm by about 20 per centum, which seems like a batch to me. I was surprised that my consequences were so hapless because I think of myself as person who is environmentally witting. I do non litter by throwing refuse on the street. If a refuse can is non handily located by me, I carry the refuse with me until I can happen a refuse can. Because of small things like this, I was surprised that my ecological footmark is so low. That is why I think this was a worthwhile assignment because it educated me about how environmentally friendly I am. I would realistically cut down my footmark by about 25 % by utilizing cleaner conveyance. Normally I drive whenever I need to travel someplace, but I think from now on whenever possible, I will take the Metro Transit coach alternatively. I think that resource depletion is likely to increase as Developing Countries effort to increase their criterion of life. The state where I am from, a underdeveloped state, Yemen, does non hold as big an ecological footmark as Canada does. In our metropoliss, autos are used a batch but in the countryside, people uses Equus caballuss and camels as their chief manner of transporting themselves. Yemen is seeking to go more developed like the West, but so far it has non worked out that good. Originally, because Yemen started out as a land, merely the King had a auto but over clip, as it became a democracy, autos became more common as mundane people began driving them in the metropoliss. I think that as Yemen seeks to go more like the Western universe, particularly the United States, resource depletion will go more marked. Developing States should non hold the right to consume resources merely to go more like the West, because that will do merely the state of affairs with the environment worse as clip goes on. If every state has a big ecological footmark, so we will progressively necessitate more Earths to fulfill everyone ‘s energy ingestion. The article, found onhypertext transfer protocol: //www.edie.net/news/news_story.asp? id=16168. says that people in Europe are trusting excessively much on groundwater. If this continues, so the H2O supply could go a job. If that happens, the monetary value of H2O will travel up, and this will be bad for the universe economic system because everyone needs H2O. If people who need it can non afford to pay for it, so that could be an economic, every bit good as environmental, catastrophe. The root cause of this job is that people are trusting excessively much on groundwater. We can cut down our footmark as states by doing certain that some people do non acquire excess H2O, while others go without.MentionsRetrieved online on May 18, 2009 at hypertext transfer protocol: //www.edie.net/news/news_story.asp? id=16168

Saudi Arabian Airlines

MARMARKETING AND SALES STRATEGY There are very good prospects for Foreign companies who want to export their products to the Saudi Arabian market. However, there are certain marketing procedures and sales techniques which have to be observed in order to develop and sustain business relationships over a long period of time. †¢The Saudi market should be constantly reviewed for product adaptation and change. Exporters should ensure regular supplies as per specifications, at the specified time and place already agreed upon and at the stipulated prices. †¢Any subsequent and sudden price changes, even pertaining to after-sales services, should be avoided. †¢Exporters' contacts with importers in Saudi Arabia should be direct and regular. †¢Complete product lines, rather than single products, should be introduced into the Saudi market whenever possible in order to benefit from greater demand stimulation and cost reductions. Exporters are required to check with Saudi impor ters or directly with the Saudi Arabian Standards Organization, on the precise implementation of Saudi Arabian Standards pertaining to their exported products to the Kingdom. Saudi Standards can be purchased from SASO or the American National Standards Institute, ANSI (11 West 42nd Street, New York City, NY 10036, telephone number (212)642-4900 or fax number (212)302-1286). †¢Exporters to Saudi Arabia should display their products regularly in the major commercial urban centers of the Kingdom. Necessary permission is obtained by writing or contacting directly the Director, Exhibitions Department, Ministry of Commerce. †¢Efforts should be made to improve the appearance of exported commodities by means of attractive packaging. †¢Products to be exported should be properly branded and labeled both in English and Arabic. †¢In the case of machinery and equipment; after-sales service, including warranties, maintenance and the provision of spare parts, should be prompt and efficient.

Looking the Part: What to Wear to Your College Interview

There are myriad circumstances in your life where you may have to dress for a certain role. You might be on a sports team, in which you wear your jersey the day of an important game. Maybe you’re having dinner with your grandparents so you put on some clean, ironed pants and a nice shirt. Or maybe you’re all dolled up and headed to the prom. Different circumstances call for different attire, and when you near the end of your high school career, you’ll enter new territory in this regard. There will be special events, graduation and graduation parties, and of course, college interviews. Preparing for interviews can be stressful. You are probably busy thinking about how to answer possible interview questions, planning how you’ll frame your unique experiences and communicate who you really are. You might be so busy thinking about what you’ll say and talk about during the interview that you don’t spend much time anticipating what you’ll wear to the actual interview. It can be hard to decide what to wear to a college interview, especially if you’ve never interviewed for something similar. In this post, we’ll outline how you can play the part so that you make a positive first impression and show that you are serious about your college ambitions. Because many students spend time stressing about how to dress for interviews, some colleges now specify the appropriate attire. If you interview confirmation specifically states that you may dress casually, you should do so, assuming that you aren’t wearing any ripped clothing or inappropriate logos. But if your interview confirmation specifics business casual or doesn’t offer any insight at all, keep reading. With our top tips for how to dress and prepare yourself outwardly for the college interview, you’ll be able to let your mouth do the talking, not any flaws or missteps in your appearance.   You will need to choose clothes that look business appropriate. These are the kinds of things you would wear to a formal class presentation if you wanted to make a really positive impression. Your clothing should be modest and simple, but clean and crisp. A good general rules of thumb is, if you wouldn’t wear it to a family dinner with your grandfather, don’t wear it to an interview. What does this entail exactly? You don’t need a full suit or anything, but you should at least look clean and put-together. Try to avoid any large brand logos on your clothing and certainly avoid jeans or t-shirts. If you’re a boy, you should consider wearing dress pants or khaki pants paired with a collared shirt. Be sure to tuck your shirt in and wear a belt so that your pants fit snugly and no undergarments are visible. If you’re a girl, you should consider wearing dress pants or a knee-length skirt or dress. Pair these with a simple blouse or business appropriate sweater. Be sure that none of your undergarments are visible through your clothes.   Your shoes should be appropriate and polished. You should not wear any sneakers, platforms, or high heels over 3†. Make sure that your shoes are not exceptionally scuffed or worn. If you don’t already have a pair of nice, professional shoes, now is the time to invest in a pair. You will need them beyond the interview for jobs and other events in college.   Be sure to leave most of your fashion accessories at home or in the car. You should not wear or bring any sunglasses or hats to the interview. These types of accessories are more likely to distract attention from what you have to say. The same is true of piercings. If possible you should remove all visible piercings except for earrings. If you do wear earrings, or any other jewelry, it should be modest and not distracting. Hopefully this goes without saying, but you don’t want to show up for the interview with last night’s pizza on your chin or the stench of yesterday’s workout lingering under your arms. Be mindful of arriving for the interview having recently showered, brushed your teeth, and used deodorant. This shows that you have planned ahead and taken it seriously. Beyond that, be careful not to apply too much perfume or cologne before your interview. For people who are not used to the smell, it can be overpowering and/or unpleasant. Some people are even allergic to strong perfumes. If you do choose to wear perfume or cologne, just a small amount will suffice. Again, your outward appearance should convey that you are taking the interview seriously and are respectful of the process. You should look composed, but not over-the-top. For girls, makeup should be natural and light. Don’t wear bright lipsticks, eyeshadows, or anything else that might distract from what you have to say.   For boys, make sure to shave or trim your facial hair. Having a beard or a mustache is of course fine, but it should be well-kept. Remember that your facial hair is an indication of your care and preparation. Even if you normally wear it ungroomed, you should trim and groom for this occasion. Estimating your chance of getting into a college is not easy in today’s competitive environment. Thankfully, with our state-of-the-art software and data, we can analyze your academic and extracurricular profile and estimate your chances. Make sure to iron your clothes before the interview. Even completely appropriate attire will appear unprofessional if you arrive with it wrinkled. If you are traveling from afar and won’t have the opportunity to change into your interview clothes after you arrive, be sure to bring a wrinkle release spray. Practice using it at home. Mist your clothes from a distance, smooth out wrinkles with your hands, and allow the spray to dry. Also think about small impressions, such as the watch or the socks that you’re wearing. If they don’t fit the part, leave them at home. Top it all off with a conservative hairstyle. There’s no need for mohawks or wild colors for this event. Remember, again, that you want the focus to be on you and what you have to say, not on what you’re wearing or how you’ve done your hair. Despite wearing clothes that are outside of your normal wardrobe, try to feel comfortable in what you choose for the interview. Make sure that everything fits comfortably so that you won’t be adjusting your clothing or distracted by it during the interview. Also, try to stay true to yourself even if you’re wearing something out of the ordinary. There are plenty of methods to incorporate your own sense of style in subtle ways that won’t overpower the rest of your image. A small piece of jewelry, a scarf, or cufflinks are some ideas.   Remember, this is a college interview and your interviewers expect a high school student to walk in the door. They are not looking for a lawyer or a CEO. There is no need for a complete three-piece suit unless that’s what makes you feel most comfortable. Similarly, if you don’t normally wear high heels, today is not the day to try them out for the first time. Your interview attire should be something that makes you feel comfortable and composed while conveying that you take the process seriously and are respectful of the institution and the interviewers. There’s no need to spend lots of money on expensive clothing. A few polished staples that you can reuse for other events will do just fine. Finally, don’t forget that no matter what you choose to wear, it won’t have any impact if you can’t complete the image by backing it up through your own actions. Your body language is just as important a part of your outward appearance as anything you’re wearing. When you walk into the interview, even if you are feeling nervous, put a smile on your face, make eye contact, and shake hands with a firm grip. As you do so, introduce yourself and thank your interviewer(s) for having with you. At the end of the interview, do the same and thank the interviewer(s) for their time. Tell them that you’ve enjoyed speaking with them and look forward to exploring your options at their institution. This advice might seem overwhelming if you feel like you don’t look the part of the aspiring college student. Maybe you have some visible tattoos or piercings that can’t be removed. Maybe your wild hairstyle or color can’t be changed, or perhaps you just can’t get through the interview without your fluorescent pink plaid lucky socks. If this is the case for you, don’t worry; this isn’t the end of the world. If there is a glaringly obvious component to your appearance that seems unusual or even out of place, relax. You won’t be the first interviewee to present an unusual image. Rather than allowing it to be the elephant in the room, bring it up during the interview as a talking point. The interview is meant to get to know you better as a candidate and what better way than discussing how your appearance reflects who you are? Be confident in yourself and offer some insight so that the interview committee isn’t left wondering.       College interviews can be a stressful time, especially if you’re about to have your first one. Remember that if you prepare ahead, remain true to yourself, and go into the interview with confidence, you will put your best foot forward. There are few opportunities in life where you get to talk so much about yourself, and it can feel awkward at first, but with some practice and a little reminder to be yourself, the interview process can be comfortable and even fun. If you are nearing college interview time and you need some more help preparing, whether it’s choosing your attire or preparing your talking points, consider our ’s Mentorship Program , which provides practical advice on topics from high school activities and college applications to career aspirations, all from successful college students who have been in your shoes.

Employment laws differ in a global environment Essay

Employment laws differ in a global environment - Essay Example Employment laws differ in a global environment in a number of ways. These differences are usually evident in terms of employment, severance policies, consideration for employment, employment litigation, human rights, compensation, discharge, and statutory protection among others (Honeyball, 2008). A good example of a country whose employment laws are different from those of the US is Canada. For example, in Canada, employers must provide employees with at least pay in lieu or a statutory notice of termination, whereas, in the US, employment is ‘at will’ and a notice of termination to an employee is only required if a contract was signed. Another difference in employment laws in US and Canada is seen in the human rights perspective. Both Canada and USA prohibit discrimination in employment on grounds such as religion, ethnic origin, gender, and color among others. When it comes to disability, discrimination is also prohibited in both countries, and employers are required to make necessary accommodations for workers with disabilities. However, in Canada, employers face tougher conditions than in the US since they are required to accommodate drug addicts and alcoholics. These two conditions are recognized as disabilities by Canadian employment laws, and they require accommodation (Honeyball, 2008). There is no valid reason for these differences. All employees and employers should be equally protected by the law; regardless of the region they are located. It does not make sense to protect employers or employees in one area against something, and totally disregard the same thing in another area. Therefore, I do not agree with these differences. The main reason for this is because these differences create an unnecessary rift. For example, why would employers in Canada be required to accommodate drug addicts and alcoholics? It simply does not make sense because such people have made decisions to

Marketing in real world Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Marketing in real world - Research Paper Example Marketing is all about achieving company’s objectives and becoming more effective than competitors in an industry through various means such as communicating customer value. Target market, marketers and what is being marketed are the most important elements that comprise marketing. It can also be said that marketing is a social process that ensures persons and groups satisfaction via creation and exchange of goods and value with others (Burrow & Bosiljevac, 2009). There are several activities that re involved in marketing that can make customer buy a particular product or service. For instance, a company may decide to design their products in a way that it looks desirable to a client through market research and pricing. Also a company may lower price of their products and let their customers learn about the price change as well as making the product available to the potential customers (Silk, 2006). Additionally, it should be noted that marketing finds, anticipates and satisfi es buyers competently and gainfully. Marketing entails clear understanding, creation as well as delivery of profitable value to the target market in a way that is superior to competitors’ style. ... However, these business organizations can also adapt other short-term marketing strategies, which are focused to cope with the level of competition in the market. These types of marketing strategies are of great importance as the prime goal of any business is to maximize profit and ensure survival in any business environment. Marketing just like any other business function has really improved due to technological changes (Sheth & Sisodia, 2006). The internet has been the greatest revolution in the modern era for many business owners. It has contributed tremendously for most changes in the way business is done in the global market. Most businesses are using the internet as an effective and efficient way to reach out to many customers. Most businesses are now using the internet to not only advertise, but also to communicate with customers thus boosting their sales. An area that has experienced great change due to internet revolution is advertising (Burrow & Bosiljevac, 2009). The inter net is able to provide specific advertisements to target internet users through advertising such as through AdSence managed by Google. Companies have also changed from subscription service advertising to free content advertising in a move aimed at achieving huge numbers of targeted audiences. In addition, sales and marketing through the internet has promoted transparency in the way businesses conduct their activities. Transparency has now been adopted as a new selling and marketing strategy (Silk, 2006). Furthermore social media marketing is gaining website interchange or awareness via twitter, face book, and blogging. Social media marketing programs more often than not strive to

Gender Equality Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Gender Equality - Research Paper Example The progression of women’s rights has been to open up their lives so that instead of being legally dependant, they could live a public life, own both land and their own person, and to have equal opportunities within the work place and the corporate world in order to be able to provide sufficiently for that autonomy. With the passing of this initiative, the opportunities for women will be addressed and assessed, furthering the goals of women’s rights to equality in society. Until very recently society has had a very distinct view on the roles of men and women, creating separate spheres in which their worlds evolved. Labor was divided by what was deemed appropriate for men and what was appropriate for women. The behaviors within society that were defined by these roles were thought of as normal, while deviating from these roles was considered abnormal behavior (Smith and Kornblum, 2008, p. 336). Roles for men and women were divided according to the sociological need that was present. However, as the nineteenth century came to a close, and the twentieth century was born, great and unique historical changes were occurring that would begin the transition towards equality for women. At the turn of the 19th century to the 20th century, women’s suffrage was a hot topic, creating a movement that revolutionized the political landscape of the United States. However, it was not within the search for the right to vote that women first applied their influences and power in order to create social change in the United States. During the abolitionist movements of the mid 19th century, it was the actions of a great many women that supported the freedom of slaves (Adams, 2003, p.12). By the end of the century, the power of women to move sociological considerations was well established and the new cause took form of political voice. For most of history, the roles that were applied to the genders were suspected to be defined biologically. Therefore, the way

The United Nations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The United Nations - Essay Example The UN peace troops only observed from the ground and neutrally reported on obedience to the cessation of hostilities, personnel pullout or other elements of peace treaties. The United Nations Principle of peacekeeping had commenced during the height of the Cold War as a probable solution to the growing tensions between states by fielding military personnel who are either unarmed or lightly armed. These personnel are from various countries who could be called anytime by the UN Security Council when the observing of peacekeeping or ceasefires are being observed to uphold peace and security for all citizens, "as projected by the United Nations Charter." (UN Meeting New Challenges 2007). The end of the Cold War had profoundly affected the role of world peacekeeping of the UN. The demise of bipolarization triggered the Security Council to establish a larger and more expanded peacekeeping missions, more often than not to persuade states to pursue peace agreements. Moreover, UN peacekeeping after the Cold War integrated into a non-military element form to guarantee sustainability.

Financial Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Financial Report - Essay Example Arsenal is a renowned football club and it has received widespread popularity among the football supporters. In the recent decades, football clubs have gained enormous publicity because of the commercialization of the sports. According to Morrow (1996), football clubs are generally involved in three major activities. Firstly, they involve themselves in commercializing by selling tickets and receiving broadcasting fees from media. Secondly, they involve themselves in active trading and disposal of players. Finally, they develop in-house talent through mentoring and training from the beginning. Arsenal is listed as a commercial organization which derives its revenues from football fixtures, broadcasting and real estate development. In fiscal year 2010, football accounted for 59% of the revenues while real estate development proportion accounted for 41% of the revenues. The Arsenal group reported a profit before tax figure of ?55.96 million in 2010 which was very impressive for the shar eholders (Arsenal Holdings Plc, 2010). The organization is committed to a long term strategic plan by carefully investing in talented players and developing them. At the heart of Arsenal lies its Emirates stadium where it aims to continue investing so that it stays best-in-class and has a clear identity as Arsenal’s home. ... However, they do not include any current value for their players or any value at all for ‘home grown’ players. Although it may sound ridiculous to include human as assets but they can be accounted as intangible assets if they fulfill the definitions put forth by financial reporting frameworks. A salaried person is generally expensed in the income statement whereas professional sports players are treated in a different manner in the accounting statements. Wagner (2007) in his publication mentioned that human resources are one of the most critical factors which investors look for while evaluating a company. Thus, we can metaphorically consider every human as vital for the organization and he may be regarded as an asset for the organization but it is not done practically since it differs from the definition formulated by the financial reporting frameworks. We will be analyzing and interpreting this aspect from International Financial Reporting Standards. As per the definiti on of an asset, it is anything that can be controlled by an organization or entity and it expects future benefits will be flowing to the organization from that asset. An asset is controlled if the organization is entitled to certain rights over that asset particularly restricting others from utilizing that asset for their own advantage. The definition of asset is applied in the case of Arsenal as it holds right over its players for a certain period due to the legal agreement arranged between the player and the club. The players are supposed to provide their services to the club according to the terms of contract. Arsenal expects that future benefits will flow from these players as they will be playing for Arsenal, and Arsenal will be deriving its revenues through fixtures and

Aviation Exploratory Essay Where is really the Safest Place to Sit and

Aviation Exploratory Where is really the Safest Place to Sit and Why - Essay Example Inevitably, I believe that in the event I am on a plane that crashes, I guess it really won't matter where I'm sitting. So why does the thought always come to my mind I have to admit I have never really set out to research the topic. It seems I fly, arrive and return safely, and like probably the majority of the population, do not consider it at any other time. We all, I believe, assume that safety is present and take for granted that the likelihood that it 'will happen to me'. I know I am not alone in this question. We have all heard friends and family talk about it. The front is safest or the back or over the wings. How do people really know And for that matter is there really any place on a plane that is safe. If you are 40,000 feet in the air and the plane loses power will sitting in the front seat or the last seat really make a difference I would assume probably not. We have all heard about the terrible plane crashes with no survivors. I think that is what probably scares us the most - the sheer number of people that are killed as a result of a single accident. When reading one of those stories, inevitably, it is mentioned that flying is safer than driving. That statistically is easy enough to determine, but it still does not answer my question. The question that has baffled me though is where on the plane to sit. I allow all of the possible scenarios of what could happen to run through my mind. I have just about convinced myself that in the case of a plane at cruising altitude crashing, there is really not much hope of anyone being able to survive. However, all these theories make it apparent that people do survive crashes and the events leading up to the crash must play a part in whether one survives or not. Take offs and landings, in thinking about the question, probably would be the two main situations where your seat placement would be most critical in the event of a crash. Logic is telling me that being in the front in a crash landing is probably the most dangerous place to be, but again that most likely depends on each individual event. However, if speaking in generalities, the back sounds like the safest place to be sitting. Take-offs have me more baffled although if the plane makes it off the ground, again, the fro nt would probably be the most dangerous place to be sitting If I really intend to find the answer to the question sitting here and debating with myself is going to get me no closer to finding the answer to my question. So where do I begin The first place that comes to my mind is the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The government agency that investigates all the plane crashes seems the logical place to start. I have never been to their website, and, truthfully, do not think they will have the answer to my question posted there, but reading through the pages will hopefully, give me ideas on where to look next. I have already considered the possibility of doing a general search online for airplane safety, and that is what I will do if I do not find useful information or links at the FAA site. However, the thought of such a broad search will probably leave me with millions of sites to sift through. Starting at a known, credible source makes more sense to me, and, if nothing else may shed some light on ways, at least, I can limit a general search. With that I am off to the FAA website. Hopefully, searching FAA will give me their link; and twenty seconds later it did. The first thing I did when I arrived at the FAA home page was to look at how it was set up. Several of the main pages look promising - Data and

Banana Cake Essay Example for Free

Banana Cake Essay Greetings, my fellow visitors, today, I would like to recommend a few local dishes which you might want to indulge yourself while you are here. Firstly, I would like to recommend you an intercontinental dish known as†¦ Chilli Crab Chilli Crab, also known as Singapore’s unofficial â€Å"national dish† is cooked in various ways. The most common style is done with chilli and sweet-sour sauce ribboned with beaten egg. My favourite way and probably the most common, is to eat it with French bread or Chinese buns called Mantou to help you soak every last drop of delicious sauce. I strongly recommend all of you to try this dish as it is by far the best seafood dish in Singapore. Secondly, I would like to recommend to you the famous Chinese dish†¦ Fried Hokkien Mee You can easily imagine, from this description, how good this dish tastes! Egg noodles and rice vermicelli otherwise known locally as bee hoon, stir-fried with pork, prawn, squid, bean sprouts and loads of garlic, and then braised in a rich pork and prawn stock. The dish is served steaming hot and garnished with fresh lime and a dollop of spicy chilli sambal. Alive with the pungencies of both China and Southeast Asia, Fried Hokkien Mee is one of the favourite Singapore dishes. Now, I would like to recommend a unique dish eaten by all races. This dish is none other than†¦ Mee Rebus Translated into English, this dish means simply ‘boiled noodles’ — but the dish is anything but simple. It is yellow egg noodles in thick, spicy, slightly sweet gravy, garnished with boiled eggs, sliced green chilies, fried cubes of beancurd, and fresh lime. Some people add a dash of dark soy sauce as a finishing touch†¦. Just like our multiracial society, Mee rebus is a fine example of a fusion cuisine. The egg noodles, beancurd and dark soy sauce are Chinese touches, while the gravy speaks of combined influences from Indian and Malay cuisine, with its curry-like flavour and use of dried shrimp and tamarind. Last but not least, I would like to recommend the traditional Indian dish†¦ ? Roti Prata A dough-based flat pancake that is cooked by heating over a flat grill plate. Roti prata is commonly served with either vegetable or fish curries, but it is not unusual to see it being eaten plain with white large-grain sugar. Prata-making has been refined to such an art that if youre lucky, youll sometimes see cooks get theatrical with the flipping and turning of the prata as its being cooked over the plate.

Corrosion Resistance of Electrodeposited Coating

Corrosion Resistance of Electrodeposited Coating Qiongyu Zhoua,b, Yadong Zhanga, Xiaofen Wanga, Hebing Wanga, Ping Oua* aSchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, PR China bInstitute of Applied Physics, Jiangxi Academy of Sciences, Shangfang Road 108, Nanchang, Jiangxi Province 330029, PR China Keywords: Ni-W alloy; Composite coating; Cr2O3nano-particles; Microhardness; Corrosion resistance 1. Introduction Mild steel is a most widely-used metal materials in engineering and industrial applications due to its low price and acceptable properties [1]. However, mild steel could not be suitable served in the harsh environment because of its highly susceptible to corrosion and mediocre mechanical strengths [2]. Failures (such as corrosion or wear) often occur on the surfaces of mild steel devices [3]. Therefore, preparation of an protective coating is one of the best known methods for broadening the application fields of mild steel [4, 5]. In recent years, electrodeposition technology has been widely used because it is really a convenient, practical and inexpensive method for engineering application [6]. Numbers of metal or alloy (such as Ni [7], Zn [8], Cr [9], Ni-W [10, 11], Ni-Co [12], Zn-Ni [13] et al.) have been  electrodeposited as the protective coating on the surface of mild steel. Among these coatings, Ni-W alloy coating has drawn lots of interests as a candidate to replace hard ch romium, because of its low toxicity for aquatic species [10]. In general, the purpose of researches on electroplated Ni-W alloy coating is how to enhance their hardness and corrosion resistance. Particularly, incorporation a second ceramic particles into the growing metal or alloy matrix during the electroplating process is a effective method. The composite coatings always exhibited enhanced mechanical and corrosion properties [14-17]. For this reason, a large amount of researches have been drawn on Ni-W nanocomposite coatings (Ni-W-Al2O3[18], Ni-W-SiO2 [19],Ni-W-TiO2[20], Ni-W-diamond [21] and Ni-W-SiC[22], et. al). The ceramic particles used as the second-phase in the composite coatings, more or less, would promote the corrosion resistance, hardness or wear-resistance [23-25]. Although nano-Cr2O3 particles  have been certified as a favorable and considerable incorporated ceramic particles in Ni or Co coating [26, 27], there is no report about nano Cr2O3 particles employed in electrodeposition of Ni-W nanocomposite coatings so far. In this p aper, in order to improve the performance of Ni-W alloy coating which is know as a environment friendly protective coating with excellent for mild steel, Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coating was electrodepositied in the sulfate-citric bath containing various of Cr2O3 nanoparticles for improving both its hardness and corrosion resistance. Mild steel (1-1 cm2, Q235, Baosteel Co., Ltd. in Shanghai, China) was used as cathode and a platinum plate (1-1 cm2, Xianren instrument Co., Ltd. in Shanghai, China) was employed as the anode. The mild steel was mechanically polished by 800, 1200 and 2000 grit emery-paper and then ultrasonically cleaned in acetone for 600 s. The cleaned mild steel was activated in 10% (w/v) HCl solution for 30 s and then washed with distilled water. The base consist of electrolyte solution is as follows: 26.3 g/L NiSO4 ·6H2O, 98.95 g/L Na2WO4 ·2H2O, 147.05 g/L Na3C6H5O7 ·2H2O, 26.75 g/L NH4Cl, 0.3 g/L NaBr. Before electrodeposition, nano-Cr2O3 particles was added into the electrodeposition bath and then dispersed by ultrasonic concussion (3600 s) to break up agglomerates. The electroplating current density and time were 4 A/dm2 and 1800 s. 2.2. Coatings characterization The surface morphology was studied using a scanning electron microscope (SEM, JEOL JSM-6700F), supplied with an EDS spectrometer (Oxford Instruments, UK) for determining the chemical compositions of the coatings. The phase compositions of electrodeposited coatings were characterised by X-ray diffraction (XRD, D/max-2200) with Cu KÃŽ ± radiation, operating at 40 kV and 40 mA, scanning from 20 ° to 100 ° with the step of 0.02 °. The surface microhardness ofNi-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coatings were measured using a microhardness tester (VH-3) at an applied load of 9.8 N for 15 s, each sample was tesetd five times for averaging. The corrosion behavior of the obtained coating was evaluated in 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution by using an electrochemical workstation (CHI660E). All experiments were conducted in a conventional three-electrode cell (consisting of the electro-deposied coating as a working electrode, Pt sheet as a counter electrode and SCE as a reference electrode). The potentiodynamic polarization test (Tafel) of electro-deposied coating was tested from -800 mV to -400 mV with a scan rate of 1 mV, while mild steel was tested from -900 mV to -600 mV. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was conducted at Ecorr, with voltage perturbation amplitude of 10 mV in the frequency range from 105 Hz to 10-2Hz. All electrochemical tests are carried out at room temperature (25 oC). 3.1 Characterization of nano-Cr2O3particles The characterization of nano-Cr2O3particles was carried out by using TEM and XRD analysis, the results are displayed in Fig. 1. It is showed that the particles are free of secondary phases except Cr2O3, which is consists of polyhedral structure with the mean diameter of about 40 nm. Inevitably, there are  some degree of agglomeration between the nano-particles. The composition of electroplated W alloy coatings can be analysed by EDS as the previous studies [28]. The W content and Cr2O3 in the electroplated coatings as a function of Cr2O3 addition in the electroplating bath are displayed in Fig. 2. The Cr2O3 content is corresponding to detected Cr element ratio in Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coatings. As shown in Fig. 2, with the increase of Cr2O3 concentration in electroplating bath, the Cr2O3 particles incorporated in the coating increase rapidly when the Cr2O3 concentration is low (≠¤5 g/L). While it increases gradually when the Cr2O3 concentration is in range of 10-20 g/L. A deviation from the Langmuir adsorption behavior in the high Cr2O3 concentration solution is observed, which is caused by some particles would sedimentate by gravity in hydrodynamic conditions of without agitated. In addition, the results reveal that W content corresponding decreases with the increase of Cr2O3 addition in electroplating bath. This is because that th e sufficiently high overpotentials is in favour of deposition of W atom[29]. Once the Cr2O3 nano-particles adsorbed on cathode surface, it could form as nucleation sites and accordingly reduce the overpotentials. As a result, the deposition of W atom is inhibited, while Ni itself can also be deposited from its complex with citrate[30]. Fig. 3 shows the XRD patterns of the coatings electrodeposited in the bath with and without Cr2O3 nano-particles. In the bath without Cr2O3 nano-particles (shown in Fig.3a), the pattern of obtained coating consists of a broad peak from 41 ° to 47 °, indicating the amorphous nature of the Ni-W alloy coating. The amorphous structure should be electrodeposited under the pretense of the deposition rate is high compared to the exchange rate, which implies that all metal atoms are immediately discharged once they get to cathode surface. Thus, high content of W in the alloy must be observed, which is confirmed by the EDS result (45.8 wt.%, shown in Fig 2). What more, the amorphous characteristic also can be demonstrated by the SEM micrograph of Ni-W alloy coating (Fig.4a). As the results reported in the literatures by O. Younes [30] and T. Yamasaki [31], the electrodeposited Ni-W alloy coatings presented as an amorphous state when tungsten composition ranged from 20 to 40 at.%. While th e structure of deposited would transform once the Cr2O3 nano-particles existed in the bath, Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coatings exhibit crystalline fcc structure of Ni-W alloy and Cr2O3 phases. The reason for this phenomenon is that the reduced overpotentials caused by the adsorbed Cr2O3 nano-particles on cathode surface would lead to deposition of crystalline phase, which is thermodynamically more stable than the amorphous phase [30]. Simultaneously, an unidentified peak at 2ÃŽ ¸Ã¢â€°Ë†41.4 is presented in the patterns of the Ni-W-Cr2O3 composite coatings. Similar peak have been observed by I. Mizushima et. al [32] and R. JuÃ… ¡k-nas et. al [33]. The former proposed that it is the codeposition of nanocrystalline Ni(-W) and Ni-W-C phases [32]. While R. JuÃ… ¡k-nas et. al claimed this peak corresponded to NiWO4[33]. However, so far this anomalous peak remains unidentified. As the increasing of Cr2O3 nano-particles addition in solution, the intensity for diffraction peak of Ni-W (111) i ncreases and unidentified line profile decreases, indicating that grain sizes of the Ni-W crystallites increase and the unidentified phase in the composite coatings gradual reduce. Fig. 4 shows the surface morphology of the coatings electrodeposited in baths containing different amount of Cr2O3 nano-particles. In all cases, the coatings are compact, uniform and crack-free, which can provide a barrier to protect substrate material. In comparison of Ni-W coating which shows a typical amorphous characteristic which is absence of grain boundaries, Ni-W-Cr2O3 composite coatings is consisted of irregular crystal structures, uniform distributed ultrafine Cr2O3 particles and some arresting big nodules, which is caused by Cr2O3 agglomerates codeposited with Ni-W as metal electrocrystallized. With the increase of Cr2O3addition in the solution, the Cr2O3 particles corresponding increase and the nodules trend to be unobvious. The reason may be that Cr2O3agglomerates become much more serious in the high concentration solution and then precipitate by settlement. Thus, the possibility for agglomerates absorbed on the vertically cathode surface and formation of nodules reduce during the electrodeposition process. Generally, homogeneous distribution of incorporated ceramic particles in composite coating would be benefit to enhance its properties [18]. 3.3. Microhardness The microhardnesses of Ni-W and Ni-W-Cr2O3 composite coatings are showed in Fig. 5. Compared with Ni-W coating (687 HV0.1), Ni-W-Cr2O3 composite coatings exhibite a considerable increase in microhardness (717~764 HV0.1). And the harness increase with the increase of Cr2O3concentration in the bath. Similar trend is usual observed in previous publication [18, 19]. The nano-particles incorporated in alloy coatings would positively contribute on the hardness by impeding the fast dislocation movement the grain boundary sliding of the matrix [19]. As a result, the hardness is direct relate to the incorporated Cr2O3particles in the coating, which increased with the Cr2O3 concentration in the bath ( as shown in Fig. 1). It is noted that the increase in hardness of the Ni-W-Cr2O3 composite coating are limited when the Cr2O3 concentration in the bath increase from 10 g/L to 20 g/L. As the research published previously, both W content and incorporated nano-particles would contribute to the hard ness of W alloy coating [11, 20]. With the increase of Cr2O3 concentration in bath, the increase of Cr2O3 in electrodeposited coating would result in increased hardness, However, the promotion of hardness performance would be limited by the contrary effects of decrease of W content in electrodeposited coating. 3.4 Corrosion resistance properties The corrosion resistance of electrodeposited coating was evaluated by polarization curves and EIS, the result displayed in Fig. 6 and Fig. 7, respectively. The corrosion parameters (Ecorr , icorr) extracted form polarization curves in Fig. 6 are listed in Table 1. It is revealed that both amorphous Ni-W coating and crystalline Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coatings show noble Ecorrcombine with low icorr compared with mild steel substrate. This means, the compact electrodeposited coatings can provide an effective protection for mild steel substrate. A passivation region (-0.55V~-0.45V) is observed in the anode area of polarization curves for Ni-W coating. Passive layer is often formed on the surface of amorphous alloy and provide protective effect for prevent further corrosion [34]. Meanwhile, the Ni-W coating show a lowest icorr in all electroplated coatings, indicating a most excellent corrosion resistance. In addition, with the increase of Cr2O3 concentration in electroplating bath, the corrosion resistance of obtainedNi-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coating became better in view of a gradual increase of icorr. When the Cr2O3 concentration in the bath increased to 20 g/L, Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coating show a fairly approximate icorr compare with that of Ni-W coating. The corrosion reaction and products at the electrode/electrolyte interface can be analysed by EIS measurements in conjunction with impedance fitting. Fig. 7 show Nyquist plots of mild steel and electrodeposited coatings obtained in baths with different amount of Cr2O3 nano-particles. The plots for electrodeposited coating and mild steel substrate are consist of a continuous circle arcs, meaning that aggressive ions (Cl) can not across the compact coating and only one primary interfacial reactions occured between the coating surface (or mild steel sample) and electrolyte. To model this corrosion behavior, suitable equivalent circuits showed in Fig. 8 was employed [35]. In this equivalent circuit, Rs is solution resistance, Cdl is double-layer capacitance formed in the substrate/electrolyte interface, CPE is a constant phase element for revealing the non-ideal dielectric properties of the coatings, and Rct is the charge transfer resistance of the coating (or substrate) interface, which relate to the intrinsic corrosion reaction of materials. The fitted values are listed in Table 2. As shown, Rct value of Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coating electrodeposited in the bath containing 2 g/L Cr2O3is much smaller than that of Ni-W coating. This is because passive layer formed on Ni-W coating surface would prevent corrosion reaction, while no passive behavior have been observed for the crystalline Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coating. What more, the Rct values of Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coating increase with the increase of Cr2O3concentration in the bath, and the Rct value of Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coating electrodeposited in the bath containing 2 g/L Cr2O3is quite close to the Rct value of the Ni-W coating, meaning that this Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coating have an excellent corrosion resistance as amorphous Ni-W coating. Compact Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coatings were electrodeposited on mild steel from sulfate-citrate bath containing Cr2O3nano-particles. Compared with Ni-W coating (687 HV0.1), Ni-W-Cr2O3 composite coatings exhibite a considerable increase in microhardness value (717~764 HV0.1). In addition, incorporation of little Cr2O3nano-particles into amorphous Ni-W coating would transform its structure to crystalline, which resulted in no passive behavior occurred on the coating surface and decrease of corrosion resistance. However, the corrosion resistance of Ni-W-Cr2O3 coating could be improved with the increase of Cr2O3concentration in the bath. Finally, a excellent Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coating with approximate corrosion resistance and much higher hardness compared with Ni-W coating can be obtained in the bath containing 20 g/L Cr2O3nano-particles. This Ni-W-Cr2O3 nanocomposite coating can be considered as an ideal protective coating to broaden the application of mild steel.

Transplants and Diabetes :: essays research papers

Three Toronto scientists have developed an organ transplant procedure that could, among its many benefits, reverse diabetes. The procedure was developed by Bernard Leibel, Julio Martin and Walter Zingg at the University of Toronto and the Hospital for Sick Children. The story of their work began in 1978, when they delved into research which had never before been tried. They wanted to determine if the success rate of organ transplants would increase if the recipient was injected with minute amounts of organ tissue prior to the transplant. The intention was to adapt the recipient to the transplanted tissue and thereby raise the threshold of rejection. In the case of the diabetes experiment, this meant injecting rats with pancreatic tissue before transplanting islets of Langerhans, small clusters of cells scattered throughout the pancreas which produce insulin, glucagon, and somatostatin. In their first experiment, outbred Wistar rats were injected with increasing amounts of minced pancreas from unrelated donor rats for one year while a control group was left untreated. Then both the treated and control groups received injections of approximately 500-800 islets of Langerhans from unrelated donors. Of the five treated animals, two became clinically and biochemically permanently normal. Six months later, Martin examined the cured rats and found intact, functioning islets secreting all of their hormones, including insulin. None of the controls were cured. Encouraged by their first results, Leibel, Martin, and Zingg decided to repeat the experiment with rats with much stronger immune barriers (higher levels of rejection). Seven rats out of nine were cured. "We set up a protocol and worked patiently with small numbers," says Leibel, "but the results are indisputable." In addition to reversing diabetes, there are two other benefits to the pre-treatment procedure, according to the scientists. The first is that the pancreas produces all the other hormones of a normal pancreas, not just insulin. The second benefit is that the transplant recipient doesn't have to take immunosuppressive drugs, which are so toxic for diabetics. At present, diabetics who receive a transplanted pancreas must take such

autism Essay example -- essays research papers

Autism Isolated in their own worlds, people with autism appear indifferent and remote. They are normally unable to form emotional bonds with others. Although people with this brain disorder can display a wide range of symptoms and disabilities, many are incapable of understanding other people's thoughts, feelings, and needs. Often, their language and intelligence do not fully develop. This makes communication and social relationships difficult. Many people with autism engage in repetitive activities, like rocking or banging their heads, or rigidly following familiar routines. Some of those with autism are painfully sensitive to sound, touch, sight, or smell. Children with autism do not follow the typical patterns of child development. In some children, future problems can often be seen at birth. In most cases, the problems become more noticeable as the child falls further behind other children the same age. Between 18 and 36 months old, they suddenly reject people, act strangely, and lose language and social skills they had already learned. During the 1950’s and 1960’s, people with autism were isolated and some were sent away to institutions. Today, many of those with autism can attend school with other children. Methods are available to help improve their social, language, and academic skills. Even though more than 60 percent of adults with autism continue to need care throughout their lives, some programs are beginning to demonstrate that with appropriate support, they can be trained to do meaningful work and participate in the life of the community. Autism is found in every country and region of the world, and in families of all racial, ethnic, religious, and economic backgrounds. Autism affects about 1 or 2 people in every thousand and is three to four times more common in boys than girls. Girls with the disorder, however, tend to have more severe symptoms and lower intelligence. Some people with autism display remarkable abilities. A few demonstrate skills far out of the ordinary. At a young age, when other children are drawing straight lines and scribbling, some children with autism are able to draw detailed, realistic pictures in three-dimensional perspective. Some toddlers who are autistic are so visually skilled that they can put together complex jigsaw puzzles. Many begin to read exceptionally early - sometimes even before they begin to speak.... ... of the central nervous system. 3. The individual and/or his family does the program of developmental activities at home or at a training center every day, triggering reflex responses that stimulate the development of absent or impaired neurological functions. 4. Another functional neurological evaluation is taken every two to three months and the program is modified to the individual to reflect any changes or growth in neurological functions. Hopefully, the patient’s profile will begin to look the same as the normal developmental process. While it is natural for parents to hope that their child will "become normal," they should take pride in whatever strides their child does make. Many parents, looking back over the years, find their child has progressed far beyond their initial expectations. Although neurological reconstruction is effective in most cases, there is not enough evidence to support it fully. It is still in the development stage; therefore, not many of those with autism have had the opportunity to try it. It seems to be a very promising treatment, but it will not work for all autism patients since everyone’s case is different.

Emer’s Ghost :: Essays Papers

Emer’s Ghost For this month’s book report I read a book called ‘Emer’s Ghost’ by Catherine Sefton. This book was about a girl named Emer who lives in Northern Ireland. She knows a man named Mr.Bannon who has a hidey-hole where he keeps things, and it is a very secret place. Emer finds a wooden doll that is old and worn, and noticed that there was something strange about the doll when she picked it up. That night when she went to sleep, she awoke only to find a ghost of a young girl. Emer was frightened but she wanted to help the girl. The girl disappeared and when Emer tried to tell her sister, Breige, she only laughed and made fun of Emer. The same thing happened a few days later. Emer’s other sister, Kathleen, wanted to go to the fortune teller, so Emer went along with her. When they arrived the fortune teller first told Kathleen’s future. Then when she got to tell Emer’s, all the fortune teller did was to look into Emer’s eyes f or a very long time. Then the fortune teller gave Emer a drawing and asked her if it looked familiar. At this time Emer had never seen it before, so the fortune teller told her to keep it. Later on in the book, Emer sees the drawing on the window and wonders what it means. Kathleen’s friend was digging around a church that had been burned down a long time ago by the Vikings when they were looking for a chalice. Finally Emer sees the ghost again and sees the drawing. She finally knew what the drawing meant; it was a map of the hidey-hole! Emer and Breige go into the hidey hole and discover that the wall was where the roof of the hidey-hole had caved in. Emer and Breige frantically dug through the stones and crawled through to the other side, and then the wall collapsed. Emer was choking and thought she was going to die, but she was able to crawl out of the hole. She then realized that Breige was still in there, so she went and dug Breige out, but Breige wasn’t breathing! Finally Breige started breathing and Emer found the chalice. All of the town was happy and the ghost never bothered Emer again.

“Complete, trusting surrender to God” Essay

Although the Qur’an, its sacred text, was only revealed to their Prophet Muhammad more than five centuries after the death of Christ, Muslims trace the beginnings of Islam to the time of Abraham. According to them, the series of revelations of the Qur’an which started in 610 CE in a cave in Mount Hira, Mecca, Saudi Arabia, marked only the renaissance of a religion which sank into insignificance when the people of Mecca rejected the monotheism preached by Abraham. The Islamic claim further states that being the original religion, it provided the foundations for the development of Judaism and Christianity. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Since the time of the first revelation in Mount Hira, Islam has rapidly grown to become the second-largest religious denomination in the world, next only to Christianity, claiming a following of almost twenty percent of the world’s population. However, its growth has been temporarily slowed down, particularly in the United States, by the effects of the American war against terrorism which is evidently directed against Muslims. This U. S. -orchestrated anti-terrorism war, coupled with the dearth of knowledge about Islam, has severely alienated the Muslims from the rest of the non-Muslim world. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Yusuf (n. d. ) said that majority of the Muslims are convinced that while the U. S. government has been blaming terrorism on Islam for years, it was the 9/11 incident which dealt the most telling blow on the credibility and reputation of their religion. This was because the international media was able to depict that many Muslims around the world rejoiced after that incident. The truth is, however, that majority of the Muslim world was saddened by that incident and the repercussions it caused. They would like to tell the world that terrorism is not an official policy of Islam and that, in fact, Muslims also consider terrorists as enemies of their religion. He laments the fact that When a crazy Christian does something terrible, everyone in the West knows it is the actions of a mad man because they have some knowledge of the core beliefs and ethics of Christianity. When a mad Muslim does something evil or foolish they assume it is from the religion of Islam, not because they hate us but because they have never been told by a Muslim what the teachings of Islam are all about. Muslims are also complaining about the way non-Muslims always confuse them with Arabs. According to them, while most Arabs are Muslims, less than 20% of Muslims have Arab blood. (Almuslimin. org) Allah is the only authority of this religion. Muhammad was only the messenger and prophet with whom he entrusted the sacred texts called the Qur’an in a series of revelations and who, three years after the first revelation occurred, preached them to the people according to his instruction and his will. However, Muhammad was the role model for all Muslims. His life story and his sayings were saved in the Hadith for every Muslim to learn from and emulate. The central teachings of Islam are oneness of God and of humanity; prophethood and the compass of Islam; human relationship to the divine; belief in the unseen life; and belief in the Last Judgment. (Fisher, 2005. Islam) Islam teaches that there is only one God. This is why the first words spoken to a Muslim infant are the words of the Shahadah – â€Å"la ilaha ill-Allah Muhammad-un Rasulu-llah† (â€Å"There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God†). God may be called by many names, but all the attributes assigned to those different names make up the totality of the One God. They contend that there must be absolute unity among all men of all races because they are all brothers under the one God, and no one race should consider itself the chosen race. Islam teaches that the individual should be one with God, therefore his or her thoughts and deeds should always be inspired by God. This oneness of God and of humanity was very emphatically expressed by Abu Hashim Madami, an Indian Sufi sage, when he said that â€Å"There is only one thing to be gained in life, and that is to remember God with each breath; and there is only one loss in life, and that is the breath drawn without the remembrance of God. † (Fisher. 2005. Islam, p. 373) All the prophets from Abraham to Jesus Christ are honored, but they maintain that Muhammad was the last prophet sent by God with the final message. This means, therefore, that the Qur’an sums up all the messages from God so Islam should include all religions, including Christianity and Judaism which also trace their roots to Abraham. They believe that God created the universe for a purpose and set down laws to govern everything. For this reason, man could live in peace only if he recognizes these laws and abide by them. They accept the existence of the angels, especially Gabriel, whom they credit with bringing the messages of God. They believe that Satan exists just as they believe that there are saints. For them, the Last Judgment means that dead Muslims are allowed some rest before being raised from the grave for the final reckoning, after which the sinners and the unbelievers are sent to hell. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Their basic practices consist of what they call the Five Pillars of Islam, namely: Beliefs and witness; Daily prayers; Zakat; Fasting; and Hajj. Every Muslim, without resorting to the use of force or intimidation, are obliged to spread the words of Islam so that other people may know about it, understand it, and use the knowledge to guide them in choosing their faith. Prayers should be recited five times a day while facing the direction of Mecca. It is believed that requiring every Muslim to face Mecca symbolizes unity among the devotees of Islam around the world, while the daily prayer emphasizes Islam’s teaching that every Muslim should remember God everyday of his or her life. Zakat, the third pillar, means â€Å"spiritual tithing and almsgiving. † Muslims are enjoined to help the poor by donating part of their annual income to charities of their choice. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for example, channels its contribution through the Islamic Relief Organization which aids people around the world regardless of their religion. Every year, the first Qur’anic revelation is celebrated with a month-long fasting called Ramadan. All able Muslims are required to abstain from â€Å"food, drink, sexual intercourse, and smoking† from dawn to dusk. Although fasting during Ramadan is an obligation, fasting, per se, is advised from time to time because it provides an individual with â€Å"a Transparent Soul to Transcend, a Clear Mind to think and a Light Body to move and act. † The last Pillar – the hajj – is a pilgrimage which is expected of every Muslim who is financially and physically capable even only once during their lifetime. Their pilgrimage destination is Mecca, where their holiest sanctuary, the Ka’bah, is located. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) Muhammad, whose name was taken from the Arabic word hamada which means â€Å"to praise, to glorify,† was born in Mecca, Western Arabia, in 570 CE to Abd bin Al-Muttalib and Amina bint Wahb. (Kikim Media. n. d. ) His parents were believed to be descendants of Abraham and Hagar, the Egyptian slave who mothered Abraham’s son, Ishmael. The story goes that Abraham fled to Mecca with Hagar and Ishmael after his wife, Sarah, also gave birth to a baby boy (Isaac) and became extremely jealous of Hagar and Ishmael. Abraham later built the Ka’bah, Islam’s holiest sanctuary and now the destination of pilgrims during the hajj, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, with the assistance of his son, Ishmael. (Fisher. 2005. Islam) The birth, life, and death of Muhammad impacted the world of Islam differently. His birth in 570 CE also signaled the rebirth of Islam which sank into obscurity for centuries when the people of Mecca rejected Abraham’s monotheistic Qur’an religion. His life as a preacher which began three years after the start of the revelations resulted to a rejuvenated Muslim world. The flight of the Muslims to Medina (or the hijrah) which he orchestrated in order for them to escape persecution from the hands of the Qurayshites of Mecca was what strengthened Islam as soon as they had settled in Medina. This later enabled them to raise a strong army to capture Mecca from the Qurayshites. However, while he re-established Mecca as the holy sanctuary of Islam, Muhammad himself chose to live in Medina. While his birth signaled the rebirth of Islam and his life rejuvenated their religion, his death in 632 CE in Medina caused a split in the Muslim world between what we now call the Shi’a and Sunni Muslims because of the issue of succession. Most of the surviving Muslims believed that although Muhammad was able to tell his followers what to do after his death, he failed to appoint his successor. Thus, the majority decided to settle the issue of succession by election. However, there was a minority group who insisted that it was not true that Muhammad did not name his successor because of a report that some weeks before he died, Muhammad held his son-in-law ‘Ali’s hand and uttered the following words: â€Å"Whoever I protect, ‘Ali is also his protector. O God, be a friend to whoever is his friend and an enemy to whoever is his enemy. † (Fisher. 2005. Islam, p. 380) The issue of succession was ultimately decided according to the wishes of the majority – by election – but the two factions have never reconciled up to this day. The Shi’a Muslims now form the majority faction in Iran, while the Sunnis are the majority in â€Å"Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, northern African countries, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Central Asian countries of the former Soviet Union, and Indonesia. † (page 378) Their place of worship is called a mosque. When I interviewed Bonsan Go, a student from Indonesia, he described a basic mosque as A square building with a small box-type space in front which serves as an extension. It has a dome on the center-top of the main building and a turret or a small ornamented tower or a tower-shaped projection on another building. Inside, you will fine a division (usually a length of fabric) which separates men from the women. There are no tables, chairs, or figurines inside the mosque. I thought, maybe, Mr. Go described a traditional mosque which used to be an Islamic architecture with a dome and one or two minarets. However, the more recent ones especially those constructed in the United States have chosen to go without the dome and the minarets. The more modern mosques have also done away with the curtain-like division which separates the men from the women. I have located one such mosque in Urbana, Illinois. A photo of this mosque is shown below: This is the Central Illinois Mosque and Islamic Center at 106 S. Lincoln, Urbana, Illinois. It is unmistakably an Islamic architecture with the arches found in front, but without the dome and minarets of olden mosques. Their website (http://www. prairienet. org/cimic/) announces that the mosque holds congregational prayers five times during the day, the first session being at 5:45 in the morning and the last at 7:30 in the evening. The center also offers Arabic classes and is open to visitors any day. CIMIC Newsletter is published bimonthly. In my interview with Bonsan Go, I was able to gain some insights on how a lay Muslim understands and practices Islam. About the hajj, Mr. Go describes it as the â€Å"symbol of unity between the Muslim Ummah and the Oneness of Mankind. † According to him, this has to be done at least once in a lifetime and is very important because it is one of the five pillars of Islam. He said that the hajj is obligatory for all Muslims who can afford it financially and physically. It is also important that the money spent for the hajj comes from hard work and not from corruption. He also talked about the Sunnis and Shi’ites. He described the Sunnis as following the teachings of Muhammad, imitating his every actions and words while the Shi’ites believe that Hadhrat Ali was the real successor to Muhammad because he belonged to the family of Muhammad. He further said that the Shi’ites call their leader an imam while the Sunnis call their leader a caliph, just like they do in Indonesia where the great majority of the Muslims are Sunnis. On the question of marriage, he said that a Muslim is not obliged to have several wives. However, once a man decides to do so, he can only marry as much as four times and he is required to treat all of them equally and see to it that all his wives maintain harmonious relationships all around. The Muslims, according Mr. Go, have never worshipped Muhammad. It is Allah that they give praise to. He considers it very disturbing that most people tend to equate the position of Muhammad with the one who created him. He said that to worship Muhammad instead of Allah is considered a great sin in Islam. On jihad, this was what he said: â€Å"Jihad is not a declaration of war against the enemies of Islam but a striving and a struggle in the path of God. Commitment to God involves commitment to sacrifice one’s time, energy and wealth to promote the right cause. It may be necessary at times to give one’s life in order to preserve TRUTH. † Before we parted ways, he told me that he is deeply saddened by the war on terror being waged by the United States and is targeted at Muslims. He said that the U. S. government has categorized all Muslims as terrorists and as such, must not be trusted. He said that the claim that Islam, as a religion, supports the activities of terrorists is definitely not true because even a Muslim like him hates terrorists. In the study of the beliefs and teachings of Islam and Christianity, Fisher (2005) has shown us the similarities between the two religions. They are both monotheistic, they have their own prophets (Jesus and Muhammad), and both religions trace their roots to Abraham. Islam and Christianity teach their followers to treat their fellowmen with fairness and both religions profess anti-violence sentiments. The Muslims are making this especially clear at every opportunity, enough reason for them to feel very badly towards the U. S. -led anti-terror war. The central beliefs of Islam are also very identical to the central beliefs of Christianity: they both believe in the brotherhood of men, in the angels, saints, even in Satan, and in the Last Judgment. If a split occurred between the Shi’a and Sunni Muslims after the death of Muhammad, a great schism likewise rocked the Christian world when the Roman Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox Church parted ways in 1054. Sadly, however, Fisher has also shown us that both Islam and Christianity have chosen the options of wars of aggression and occupations during the early days for the purpose of spreading their doctrines and widen their spheres of influence. (Fisher. 2005. Christianity; Islam) However, if Fisher (2005) has shown that Islam and Christianity have many similarities, they also differ in some aspects. The first difference is rather basic. While Islam revolves around Allah as its God and only authority, Christianity, as a faith, is based â€Å"on the life, teachings, death, and resurrection of Jesus. † Muslims disagree with Christians in this regard. They do not believe that Jesus is a son of God. To them, Jesus, like Muhammad, was only a prophet and messenger of God. Another glaring difference between the two religions occurred in connection with the death of Jesus and Muhammad. While Muhammad died peacefully in his bed because of some illness, his death divided the Muslim world into the Shi’a and the Sunni Muslims. Jesus, on the other hand, died a violent death (he was tortured and crucified), but his death strengthened and unified his people. (Fisher. 2005. Christianity; Islam). References Almuslimin. org. (n. d. ). Who Is Muhammad? (Retrieved March 9, 2007 from:http://drupalmalaysia. org/Islam/Muhammad) CIMIC. (n. d. ). Central Illinois Mosque and Islamic Center. (Retrieved March 5, 2007 from: http://www. prairienet. org/cimic/) Fisher, M. P. (2005). Christianity. Living Religions, Sixth Edition (pp. 284-361). Prentice-Hall. Fisher, M. P. (2005). Islam. Living Religions, Sixth Edition (pp, 362-416). Prentice-Hall. Kikim Media. (n. d. ). The Life of Muhammad. (Retrieved March 5, 2007 from: http://www. pbs. org/muhammad/timeline. html. shtml) Yusuf, S. H. (n. d. ). A Time for Introspection. (Retrieved March 9, 2007 from: http://www. masud. co. uk/ISLAM/misc/shhamza_sep11. htm) .

Balanced Scorecard: Traditional Performance Measurement

Balanced Scorecard Traditional Performance Measurement Historically, the measurement system for business has been financial. Activities of companies were measured and monitored through the traditional financial accounting model. However, the extensive, even exclusive use of financial measurements in business has been criticized primarily because an overemphasis on achieving and maintaining short-term financial results can cause companies to overinvest in short-term fixes and to underinvest in long-term value creation, particularly in the intangible and intellectual assets that generate future growth. Indeed, the Harvard Business School Council on Competitiveness project in 1992 identified the following systematic differences between investments made by U. S. corporations and those made in Japan and Germany: The U. S. system is less supportive of long-term corporate investment because of the overemphasis on improving short-term returns to influence current share prices. The U. S. ystem favors those forms of investment for which returns are most readily measurable; this leads to underinvestment in intangible assets – product and process innovation, employee skills, customer satisfaction – whose short-term returns are more difficult to measure. Inevitably, as managers are pressured to deliverconsistent and excellent short-term financial performance, trade-offs are made that limit the search for investments in growth opportunities. Even worse, the pressure for short-term financial performance can cause companies to reduce spending on new product development, process improvements, human resource development, information technology, data bases, and systems as well as customer and market development. In the short run, the financial accounting model reports these spending cutbacks as increases in reported income, even when reductions have cannibalized a company’s stock of assetsand its capabilities for creating future economic value. Alternatively, a company could maximize short-term financial results by exploiting customers through high prices or lower service. In the short run, these actions enhance reported profitability, but the lack of customer loyalty and satisfaction will leave the company highly vulnerable to competitive inroads. The concern with the overemphasis on financial performance measures has also permeated the U. S. rofessional association of public accountants as a high-level special committee on financial reporting of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants reinforced concerns with exclusive reliance on financial reporting for measuring business performance: â€Å"Users focus on the future while today’s business reporting focuses on the past. Although information about the past is a useful indicator of future performance, users also need forward-looking information. The committee acknowledged the importance of reporting on how well companies are creating value for the fut ure, and recommended linking business performance reporting to management’s strategic vision: â€Å"Many users want to see a company through the eyes of management to help them understand management’s perspective and predict where management will lead the company. † It went on to say that nonfinancial measurement must play a key role: â€Å"Management should disclose the financial and nonfinancial measurements it uses in managing the business that quantify the effects of key activities and events. The committee concluded by recommending that companies adopt a more â€Å"balanced† and forward-looking approach: To meet users’ changing needs, business reporting must: Provide more information about plans, opportunities, risks and uncertainties Focus more on the factors that create longer-term value, including nonfinancial measures indicating how key business processes are performing Origins of the Balanced Scorecard By the mid-1990s other organization al theorists had taken up Kaplan and Norton’s work and modified the design method of balanced scorecards, ironing out early flaws. Kaplan and Norton published their ideas in full in The Balanced Scorecard: Translating Strategy into Action in 1996 and it became a business bestseller. The Balanced Scorecard Each perspective of the Balanced Scorecard includes objectives, measures of those objectives, target values of those measures, and initiatives, defined as follows: Measures – the observable parameters that will be used to measure progress toward reaching the objective. For example, the objective of profitable growth might be measured by growth in net margin. Targets – the specific target values sought for each of the measures, for example, +2% growth in net margin. Initiatives – action programs to be initiated in order to meet the objective and reach the target. The framework for the balanced scorecard is illustrated below: Figure 1: Balanced Scorecard Framework {draw:frame} As can be seen from the diagram, the objectives and measures of the scorecard are derived from an organization’s vision and strategy. The balanced scorecard should translate a business unit’s mission and strategy into tangible objectives and measures. The measures represent a balancebetween external measures for shareholders and customers, and internal measures if critical business processes, innovation, and learning and growth. The measures are also balancedbetween the outcome measures – the results from past efforts – and the measures that drive future performance. Lastly, the scorecard is balancedbetween objectives, easily quantified outcome measures and subjective, somewhat judgmental, performance drivers of the outcome measures. Every measure selected should be part of a link of cause-and-effect relationships that culminate in improving financial performance. The scorecard should tell the story of the strategy, starting with the long-run financial objectives, and then linking them to the sequence of actions that must be taken with financial processes, customers, internal processes, and finally employees and system to deliver the desired long-run economic performance. Financial Perspective Table 1: Stages of a Business’s Life Cycle Table 2: Measuring Strategic Financial Themes Revenue growth and mix refer to expanding product and service offerings, reaching new customers and markets, changing the product and service mix toward higher-value-added offerings, and repricing products and services. The cost reduction and productivity objective refers to efforts to lower the direct costs of products and services, reduce indirect costs, and share common resources with other business units. For the asset utilization theme, managers attempt to reduce the working capital levels required to support a given volume and mix of business. They also strive to obtain greater utilization of their fixed asset base, by directing new business to resources currently not used to capacity, using scarce resources more efficiently, and disposing of assets that provide inadequate returns on their market value. All these actions enable the business unit to increase the returns earned on its financial and physical assets. Customer Perspective The customer perspective addresses the question of how the firm is viewed by its customers and how well the firm is serving its targeted customers in order to meet the financial objectives. In the customer perspective of the balanced scorecard, managers identify the customer and market segments in which the business unit will compete and the measures of the business unit’s performance in these targeted segments. These segments represent the sources that will deliver the revenue component of the company’s financial objectives. The customer perspective enables companies to align their core or generic outcome measures to targeted customers and market segments. This core measurement group of outcomes is generic across all kinds of organizations, and is illustrated in the following diagram: Figure 2: The Customer Perspective – Core Measures {draw:frame} These outcome measures represent the targets for companies’ marketing, operational, logistics, and product and service development processes. However, these outcome measures have some of the defects of traditional financial measures in that they are lagging measures – employees will not know how well they are doing with customer satisfaction or customer retention until it is too late to affect the outcome. Also, the measures do not communicate what employees should be doing in their day-to-day activities to achieve the desired outcomes. Because of these, managers must also identify what customers in targeted segments value and choose the value proposition they will deliver to these customers. The segment-specific drivers of core customer outcomes represent those factors that are critical for customers to switch to or remain loyal to their suppliers. These attributes are illustrated in the Figure 3 below: Figure 3: The Customer Value Proposition {draw:g} {draw:frame} The customer perspective enables business unit managers to articulate the customer and market-based strategy that will deliver superior future financial returns. Thus, the customer perspective of the scorecard translates an organization’s mission and strategy into specific objectives about targeted customers and market segments that can be communicated throughout the organization. Internal Business Process Perspective Internal business process objectives address the question of which processes are most critical for satisfying customers and shareholders. These are the processes in which the firm must concentrate its efforts to excel. Objectives and measures for this perspective are typically developed after formulating objectives and measures for the financial and customer perspectives to enable companies to focus their internal business process metrics on those processes that will deliver the objectives established for customers and shareholders. The process of deriving objectives and measures for the internal business process perspective represents one of the sharpest distinctions between the balanced scorecard and traditional performance measurement systems. While traditional approaches attempt to monitor and improve existing business processes, the scorecard approach usually identifies entirely new processes at which an organization must excel to meet customer and financial objectives. The balanced scorecard internal business process objectives highlight the processes, several of which may not be currently performing at all, that are most critical for an organization’s strategy to succeed. Additionally, while the traditional performance measurement systems focus on the processes of delivering today’s products and services to today’s customers (short wave of value creation), the balanced scorecard approach is to incorporate innovation processes into the internalbusiness process perspective as illustrated in Figure 3. Figure 3: The Internal Business Process Perspective – The Generic Value Chain Model {draw:frame} {draw:frame} {draw:frame} {draw:frame} The innovation process highlights the importance of, first, identifying the characteristics of market segments that the organization wishes to satisfy with its future products and services, and, then, designing and developing the products and services that will satisfy those targeted segments. This approach enables the organization to put considerable weight on research, design, and development processes that yield new products, services, and markets. Among the measures that can be used in the innovation process are percentage of sales from new products, percentage of sale from proprietary products, new product introduction versus competitors or versus plan, manufacturing process capabilities, and time to develop next generation of products. The operations process represents the short wave of value creation in organizations. It starts with receipt of customer order and finishes with delivery of the product or service to the customer. This process stresses efficient, consistent, and timely delivery of existing products and services to existing customers. It remains important and organizations should identify the cost, quality, time, and performance characteristics that will enable it to deliver superior products and services to its targeted current customers. The influence of the total quality management and time-based competition practices of leading Japanese manufacturers has led many companies to supplement their traditional cost and financial measurements with measurements of operating processes’ quality, cycle time, and cost. Finally, the postsale service process enables companies to feature, when appropriate, important aspects of service that occur after the purchased product or service has been delivered to the customer such as warranty and repair activities, treatment of defects and returns, and the processing of payments. Measures of performance in the operating processes can also be applied to postsale service process (i. e. time, quality, and cost metrics). Thus, cycle times can measure the speed of response to failures and cost metrics can evaluate the efficiency for postsale service processes while first-pass yields can measure what percentage of customer requests are handled with a single service call, rather than requiring multiple calls to resolve the problem. Companies that deal with hazardous or environmentally sensitive chemicals and materials may also introduce critical performance measures associated with the safe disposal of waste and by-products from the production process. Learning and Growth Perspective The fourth perspective of the balanced scorecard, learning and growth, addresses the question of how the firm must learn, improve, and innovate in order to meet its objectives. It identifies the infrastructure that the organization must build to create long-term growth and improvement. The enablers for learning and growth come primarily from three sources: people or employees, systems, and organizational procedures. The financial, customer, and internal business process objectives on the balanced scorecard will typically reveal large gaps between the existing capabilities of people, systems, and procedures and what will be required to achieve breakthrough performance. To close these gaps, businesses will have to invest in reskilling employees, enhancing information technology and systems, and aligning organizational procedures and routines. Figure 4: The Learning and Growth Measurement Framework {draw:frame} Within this core, the employee satisfaction objective is generally considered the driver of the other two measures, employee retention and employee productivity. It recognizes that employee morale and overall job satisfaction are preconditions for increasing productivity, responsiveness, quality, and customer service. Companies typically measure employee satisfaction with an annual survey, or a rolling survey in which a specified percentage of randomly chosen employees is surveyed each month. Employee retention captures an objective to retain those employees in whom the organization has a long-term interest. The theory underlying this measure is that the organization is making long-term investments in its employees so that any unwanted departures represent a loss in the intellectual capital of the business. Long-term, loyal employees carry the values of the organization, knowledge of organizational processes, and sensitivity to the needs of customers. Employee retention is generally measured by percentage of key staff turnover. Employee productivity is an outcome measure of the aggregated impact from enhancing employee skills and morale, innovation, improving internal processes, and satisfying customers. The goal is to relate the output produced by employees to the number of employees used to produce that output. The simplest productivity measure is revenue per employee, which represents how much output can be generated per employee. As employees and the organization become more effective in selling a higher volume and a higher value-added set of products and services, revenue per employee should increase. Linking the Balanced Scorecard Measures to Strategy Uses of the Balanced Scorecard The Balanced Scorecard originally was conceived as an improved performance measurement system. However, it soon became evident that it could be used as a management system to implement strategy at all levels of the organization by facilitating the following functions: Clarifying strategy – the translation of strategic objectives into quantifiable measures clarifies the management team's understanding of the strategy and helps to develop a coherent consensus. Communicating strategic objectives – the Balanced Scorecard can serve to translate high level objectives into operational objectives and communicate the strategy effectively throughout the organization. Planning, setting targets, and aligning strategic initiatives ambitious but achievable targets are set for each perspective and initiatives are developed to align efforts to reach the targets. Strategic feedback and learning – executives receive feedback on whether the strategy implementation is proceeding according to plan and on whether the strategy itself is successful (â€Å"double-loop learning†). These functions have made the Balanced Scorecard an effective management system for the implementation of strategy. The Balanced Scorecard has been applied successfully to private sector companies, non-profit organizations, and government agencies as discussed in the succeeding sections. Potential Pitfalls The following are potential pitfalls that should be avoided when implementing the Balanced Scorecard: Lack of a well-defined strategy: The Balanced Scorecard relies on a well-defined strategy and an understanding of the linkages between strategic objectives and the metrics. Without this foundation, the implementation of the Balanced Scorecard is unlikely to be successful. Using only lagging measures: Many managers believe that they will reap the benefits of the Balanced Scorecard by using a wide range of non-financial measures. However, care should be taken to identify not only lagging measures that describe past performance, but also leading measures that can be used to plan for future performance. Use of generic metrics: It usually is not sufficient simply to adopt the metrics used by other successful firms. Each firm should put forth the effort to identify the measures that are appropriate for its own strategy and competitive position. Effectiveness of the Balanced Scorecard (Success Stories) Mobil North America Marketing and Refining CIGNA Property and Casualty Insurance Brown & Root Energy Services’ Rockwater Division Chemical (Chase) Retail Bank AT Canada, Inc. Zeneca Ag Products North America Southern Gardens Citrus University of California, San Diego Duke Children’s Hospital United Parcel Service Building and Implementing a Balance Scorecard Balanced Scorecard Components Figure 5: The Logic of Balanced Scorecard Strategic Planning {draw:frame} Process of Building a Balanced Scorecard Kaplan and Norton defined a four-step process that has been used across a wide range of organizations. Define the measurement architecture – When a company initially introduces the Balanced Scorecard, it is more manageable to apply it on the strategic business unit level rather than the corporate level. However, interactions must be considered in order to avoid optimizing the results of one business unit at the expense of others. Build consensus around strategic objectives – The top three or four objectives for each perspective are agreed upon. Potential measures are identified for each objective. Select and design measures – Measures that are closely related to the actual performance drivers are selected for evaluating the progress made toward achieving the objectives. Develop the implementation plan – Target values are assigned to the measures. An information system is developed to link the top level metrics to lower-level operational measures. The scorecard is integrated into the management system.

Torture: Morality and Terrorist

In the article â€Å"The Truth about Torture†, Charles Krauthammer considers the ticking time bomb problem and argues that torture is sometimes not only morally permissible, but morally necessary. Krauthammer uses the example of terrorists in his example, what if we captured a terrorist with knowledge of an attack and the knowledge of future attacks; do we torture him for his information? Or simply just have him locked up? (Krauthammer 2). Utilitarian considerations are sufficient to justify using cruel actions against terrorists to extract confessions.Even though is cruel to torture one to extract information, it is our duty as citizens to maintain the happiness as a whole and do what is necessary to save lives. Utilitarianism is a consequential normative moral theory, which state the moral value of an action is determined by the most happiness or utility it creates (Mill 461). If we use this definition to analyze the case, then yes it is sufficient to use cruel actions such as waterboarding and sodium pentathol injections on terrorists to extract information.Waterboarding is a terrifying and deeply shocking torture technique in which the prisoner has his face exposed to water in a way that gives the feeling of drowning (Krauthammer 3). Sodium pentathol injection is a sedative drug; its purpose is to disinhibit the higher brain centres to make someone more likely to share their information (Krauthammer 3). In parts of Asia, torture is embedded in the criminal justice system (Wong 1). So there is no concern as to why torture can’t be used in the example of the terrorist. By torturing the terrorist, we are able to extract information from him, thus doing what is morally right and save lives.Maintaining and creating happiness among the whole is more important just the happiness of a person. If that is the case then wouldn’t torturing the terrorist be the right thing to do? Torturing him would make the world a more peaceful place and also lett ing terrorists know that we are not scared of them and we’ll do whatever it takes to spoil their well-thought-out plans. Utilitarianism allows for violations of justice. This is one of those violations because we’re torturing for the good of humankind and fighting off evil at the same time.Some might argue torturing someone is morally wrong, even though is for a good cause. The example of waterboarding and sodium pentathol injection is cruel and non-humane. This is because both these examples violate basic human rights. Injecting sodium pentathol into another human is usually against their own will, let alone extracting information from them without their consent. Utilitarianism holds that actions tend to help promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce unhappiness (Mill 462). In this case, wouldn’t we create unhappiness for the terrorist because he is suffering?Saving lives is one thing, but there must be better ways of extracting information than to tortu re another human. With regards to torture on the terrorist, is important to note that utilitarian maintain that each person’s happiness is to be weighted equally and that happiness is pleasure and the absence of pain (Mill 469). Torturing then would be the right thing to do because happiness out-weight unhappiness. More people will be upset and devastated if a terrorist attack did happen and we choose not to torture the terrorist to extract information. If the terrorist attack did not go as planned, so what?The terrorist wouldn’t be devastated and be sad as much as we would have to deal with the death of innocent people. The terrorist will probably just think of a better plan and hope it’ll execute to perfection the next time. Is necessary to be cruel and torture a terrorist to get information, but on one condition, if happiness out-weight unhappiness. This is the case when we know lives can be saved by means of torture. Torture is cruel, with examples such as i njections of sodium pentathol and waterboarding, but sometimes is needed to help do what’s best for humankind.Bibliography -Wong Kai-shing. â€Å"The Problem of Torture in China's Criminal Justice System† http://www. hrsolidarity. net/mainfile. php/2005vol15no05/2451/ – Krauthammer, Charles. â€Å"The Truth about Torture† http://www. weeklystandard. com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/006/400rhqav. asp? page=3 -Mill, John Stuart. Utilitarianism. In Introduction to Philosophy: Classical and Contemporary Readings, Fifth Edition. Eds JohnPerry, Michael Bratman and John Martin Fischer. New York, NY: Oxford University press, 2010. Pp. 457-476.

Patrick Suskind- Perfume Essay

Reflective Statement: Perfume Perfume by Patrick Sà ¼skind, exposed me to a series of literary texts, themes and ideas. It also opened me to a variety of cultural developments that happened throughout the book.  Through the interactive oral I gained a better understanding of the historical context and Parisian lifestyle. When reading I had superficial knowledge and I never really analyzed the periodical moment that the book was set in. The presentation helped me broaden my understanding of the French lifestyle by explaining the streets of Paris and the lack of sanitation. I now understand the importance of where Grenouille was born and the significance it holds; but then I also found myself astonished of the extreme conditions humans could endure and call everyday life. The fact that the author chose to set the book in that time period, where Paris was at its filthiest, and decided that the main character shall be born with the gift of scent. This fact gave me an interpretation of the author’s choice in location. It was also through this interactive oral that I got a stronger grasp of the connections between Grenouille and the other gifted abominables that were mentioned in the beginning of the novel. When initially reading the book, I lost the real connections of the characters. It was through the interactive  oral that I made the vital connections between Grenouille and Marquis de Sade and the others that were mention as well. These historical figures were also known for their terrible acts against humanity. As the group described each of them, I was thoroughly interested because I was surprised by some of the horrific things some of them had done. I was most engrossed by the Marquis de Sade; he’s personality and lifestyle as repulsive as it was, interested me a lot and I realized I got the same reaction from him, as I did from Grenouille. I became aware of Sà ¼skind’s directive with such connections. It further strengthens my opinion on how Sà ¼skind antagonized Grenouille from the beginning; because of the comparisons to the horrific figures from history. This interactive oral gave me a simple but direct understanding of the cultural context, by explaining 18th century Paris. I appreciate Sà ¼skind choice of location and including those historical figures, as foreshadowing. Overall I reached an improved understanding of Perfume. [Word Count: 400] Stolen Innocence: The Exploration of the elements of innocence from the fallen victims of Grenouille as he begins and ends his quest for the ultimate scent in Perfume: The story of a murder The roles of minor characters are gravely important to the development of a story. Their character, their actions and what they symbolize lead the protagonist to different points of the beginning or to the conclusion of their journeys. This is clearly shown in Perfume by Patrick Sà ¼skind, as the protagonist Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is led on killing spree in search for a certain element for his ultimate scent; the minor characters aid him as the catalyst and conclusion of his quest. The plum girl of the dark Parisian streets unknowingly awakened Grenouille’s desire for what he perceived to be the ultimate scent. Her role as a minor character was to be the catalyst of Grenouille’s journey, her scent captured him and led him to the discovery that a scent like that was conceivable. She was a fleeting character, barely in the book but her presence and representation brought on the whole premise to Grenouille’s voyage. Sà ¼skind never gives the reader a direct characterization of the plum girl but it is  through her scent that he creates a personality that the reader is supposed to unravel; when he describes her scent we get an indirect form of characterization of her character â€Å"Her sweat smelled as fresh as the sea breeze, the tallow of her hair as sweet as nut oil, her genitals were as fragrant as the bouquet of water lilies, her skin as apricot blossoms†¦ and the harmony of all these components yielded a perfume so rich, so balan ced, so magical†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (pg. 41). Linking her scent to her personality we are obliged to believe she was a girl of adoration, because of the description of her scent. The comparisons of her fragrance are all things that one would find beautiful. â€Å"†¦ the scent was not much stronger. It was only purer, and in its augmented purity, it took on an even greater power of attraction. Grenouille walked with no will of his own.† (pg. 40). Everybody admires beauty and it’s through this that Sà ¼skind admits that even Grenouille is unable to resist beauty; fore this beauty was in the scent. Sà ¼skind’s diction further allows the reader to entwine the beauty and associate the plum girl with innocence; despite the little context the readers are given. â€Å"†¦ like a piece of thin, shimmering silk†¦ and yet again not like silk, but like pastry soaked in honey-sweet milk- and try as he would he couldn’t fit those two together: milk and silk!† (pg. 40). The comparison of her scent with milk brings back Jeanne Bussie’s thoughts of the smells of a baby, the link between their milky scent and their innocence. The author’s choice to link the plum girl with those simple forms of innocence shows how she is one of the representations of purity. The plum girl was the catalyst to Grenouille’s quest as it was through her that he gained the incentive to further his knowledge and vision to capture scent. During this time, the enlightenment was at its stronghold, as new scientific experiments took place, and as it took on the form of individuality; where man was fighting for their rights. The people of the enlightenment began to drift apart from the social norms of that time and began to associate themselves as their own being. This was something Grenouille soon realized he lacked as he came to terms that he had no essence to call his own. The thing that in his perspective made everyone who they were, was what was absent from him. As Grenouille is led on his journey to capture his intrinsic scent, as he embarks on his killing spree; Sà ¼skind leads the  reader to believe that Grenouille is seeking a certain element for his perfume. After his first kill every girl that followed next was in one way or another, a form of innocence. From the girl of the rose fields who was â€Å"young, so very young†, to the young Italian girls of the migrants, the Sardinian washer-woman, and th e carpenter’s daughter; they all shared something apart from their youth. â€Å"†¦the college of medicine examine the bodies of the shorn beauties to determine the state of their virginity. It was found that they had all remained untouched† (pg.197). All the girls were virgins. Virgins are a universal symbol for purity and innocence, the point that Grenouille was attracted to their scents further incites the feeling that he in fact was trying to extract what they had and that was their sense of purity. It strongly suggests that Grenouille was seeking the element of innocence for his perfume. Sà ¼skind shows the reader that Grenouille has an exact plan and process; ones that correspond to the enlightenment. As he journeys we discover different aspects to Grenouille’s nature that resemble aspects of the enlightenment. We see this through his methods and his overall perspective throughout the novel; as the enlightenment was entirely about experimentation, the individual rights of man and finding oneself. Sà ¼skind perhaps proposes that through the quest as he seeks the ingredients for his ultimate perfume Grenouille is also creating a recipe for himself. Grenouille’s whole being responds to the views of the enlightenment as he is searches for self-awareness through science and experimentation. Where the plum girl represents the beginning of his quest, it is only through Laure that he concludes the journey. Her role as a minor character was to be a physical representation of Grenouille’s end goal, to conclude his quest. She was the depiction of the ultimate innocence and it was shown all about her, through her appearance, her age and her scent; â€Å"She barely had the rudimentary start of breasts†¦ In a word: the girl was still a child† (pg. 170-171). Sà ¼skind clearly illustrates that Laure was a girl of admiration and beauty; this allows us to make the connections of Grenouille’s craving with one associated with himself. Grenouille’s goal was to be someone that overwhelmed people, someone who could bewitch people; just like he predicted Laure would. She too like the other girls had something that Grenouille wanted, that element of innocence he required for his perfume. As she was the end goal, the others girls were different components to his depiction of  innocence, and Laure was the absolute scent. She was his epiphany, and she completed his composition. â€Å"In a year or two this scent will be ripened and take on a gravity that no one, man or woman, will be able to escape. People will be overwhelmed, disarmed, helpless before the magic of this girl†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (pg. 171). Only through Laure would he be able to achieve what she could achieve by just being, and only through her and collecting her scent did Grenouille finally come to self-realization, it’s only after he had completed his quest did he come to gather the â€Å"worthlessness† to this earth. He had completed what he wanted and only then did he come to terms that there was nothing else in this world that he would want. He had overwhelmed people, disarmed them, and bewitched them. It simply was not enough. Her character was the physical embodiment for his masterpiece that he would call his scent. The minor characters are the basis structures that aid the main character in any journey he or she sets of to accomplish; they symbolize different aspects of the theme that the book tries to convey. All the girls were symbols of innocence in one form or another, different ingredients for the ultimate scent. The roles of these girls were to create the hunt for Grenouille, as the plum girl began his quest and Laure brought it to an end. It was only through the quest and these minor characters did he create his recipe for himself and came to self-realization. It was through the quest that Sà ¼skind allows the reader to believe that Grenouille was the epic depiction of the enlightenment as a whole. [Word Count: 1316] Work Cited Sà ¼skind, Patrick. Perfume: The Story of a Murderer. Trans. John E. Woods. New York: Vintage, 1986. Print. ere different components to his depiction of innocence and the end goal, the others were merely components to the overall