Culture of Armenia †history, people, women, beliefs, food, customs Essay

(I am trying to make art that relates to the deepest and most mythic concerns of humankind and I believe that, at this moment of history, feminism is humanism. Judy Chicago, 1990) Armenian traditions and culture made an Armenian woman unable to work outside of their homes for several decades. As women were supposed to marry at very young ages there was no need for personal and professional growth except being excellent households. In the first stage (0-19 years) of their lives, they were dependent financially on their families, especially fathers, after that they were depended on their husbands. As lives of many of Armenian girls were already decided before they were born, there was no room for education and career. However, even in that kind of situation, there were several motives for pushing women to education and workforce. Industrialization and technology development were some of those reasons. So, we may think that women were not utilized entirely by the society, that’s way with the development the role of women in the family decreased hence increased in the society. And as women started to enter the workforce and get out of their â€Å"home† comfort zone, the need for secure rights and respect increased by them. So, why it was not important to have rights within the family? Here come tradition and culture. Armenian women were always thought from their young ages, that family is the most valuable thing that can happen in their lives and family wife, the mother must always sacrifice their happiness, dreams and overall lives to build a strong and â€Å"child-friendly† environment within their families. As families were big (6 – 10 members) there was no time left for the women to think about their long-term goals and dreams. They were entirely taken by day-to-day household activities and child’s upbringing, however, I personally think that if girls were taught about other values from younger ages, the society would change itself even with very little steps. It is a cyclical system and all starts from the childhood. There is another argument, that we may also consider: women were accepted as the â€Å"tool† of continuing the nation with next generation. Women were blamed when they were not married because they will not be able to give a birth to a child, especially a boy. And those women who decided not to marry were forced to wear old, black clothes and they needed to cover their faces. There is another crucial fact, as many towns and villages couldn’t provide a primary education mothers were supposed to teach their children as well. So, the way that child’s brain and imagination will be shaped was in the hand of their mothers. At the first glance, we may think that women in poverty or girls who were married by force were the main engine of driving the society into feminist ideas. Because they were the ones who had no voice in the family and society, most of their husbands migrated to other towns to make money. In villages especially, women were publicly harassed for their speech in front of another man. However, the history showed us that feminists were from the elite class of the society, we can see lots of cases both in Armenia and worldwide. So, why were feminists from the highest social class, if they could have anything that they needed? There are several reasons for that, but in this paper, I will consider just two of them: being able to afford higher education; free time. A good education has always been an expansive experience. Even now, when almost every city has its own school and at least one university, for graduating you need to have money. What about 19th centuries? When people started to value the education and wealthy families were seeking to give their children the best education, both for their status and for their next generation’s welfare. Graduates from all institutions that provided higher education were from wealthy families. And only the most wealthy families will spend money for their daughter’s education. From that institutions, girls got only knowledge but a dream of getting more than just having husbands and children. They wanted to use their talents and knowledge to change something in this world. Education â€Å"educate† people to move forward and always take into account one’s individual ways of thinking, sometimes feelings and even just intuition when making decisions. However, all these cannot be i ntegrated into typical Armenian Family’s daily routine. Most of the decision was made by the man and sometimes never advised with the women. Even if the issue is really crucial and important for family’s future. So, the women are a subordinate, just an active resource that can be used based on man’s decision. Some people argue that while the feminist movement certainly opened up jobs and opportunities available to women, it ultimately harmed women, children, and family because it devalued motherhood. I would agree with some part of this statement, however, I will change a word in it: As the feminist movement certainly opened up jobs and opportunities available to women, it ultimately changed women, children, and family because it devalued patriarchal families. With the increase of women in the workforce the birth rate decreased. And women got less time to provide to their personal lives and more importantly number of children born by a single woman decrease.When women Ð °cquired greÐ °ter clÐ °ss stÐ °tus and power without conducting themselves differently from mÐ °les, feminist politics were undermined. Middle- Ð °nd lower-middle clÐ °ss women who were suddenly compelled by the ethos of feminism to enter the workforce did not feel liberated once they fÐ °ced the hard truth that working outside the home did not mean work in the home would be equally shÐ °red with mÐ °le partners. So, what is the reason? Is there any solution that could combine a working mother and more children in one family? Yes, in my point of view, there is one. If the life of a woman changes during decades, a routine of man was stable. They haven’t met any crucial changes in their daily routines and plans with this development. And here is the problem. If the father took some of the women’s activities and concerns within the family, everything would be balanced. Because the woman changes entirely after having a child, and in the workplaces, it is not always guaranteed that women could get her job back after maternity leave. Some countries found the solution: paternity leave. Fathers have equal rights to get leave for the newborn baby, and the problem is somehow solved. So, how is this connected to social status? Women from higher social classes have the opportunity of choosing. It can be just an ability to choose a dress or choose a life partner. Along with this, they have more time available (they have servants) for their own interests, so instead of doing household activities they are building their personalities and constructing their own lives. There are lots of examples of wealthy feminists from the history both worldwide and in Armenia. One of the most famous Armenian feminists was Serbouhi Dussab. She was a good example of well-educated, self-confident Armenian women. She was well-known in her time because she had a social status, and it made her voice to be heard. In the traditional Armenian society, it was not always easy to express your opinion as an individual, especially in novels. In her second novel (Siranush, published in 1884) she talked about family life, marriage and women’s right in Armenian families. She stepped into the sphere that was never touched deeply by women. Every question, especially regarding genders, have at least two viewpoints, and it is not always to be in the â€Å"middle†. Women should look into the question of gender equality with a cold heart and sharp mind, or else feelings will make a decision instead of them. This is what we can see in writings of Ms. Srbouhie Dussab. However, in Armenian society women were not only making a difference in literature but also found several charitable funds and organizations, which changed the society’s way of thinking step by step. Some of those organizations were: The School-Loving Ladies Society, founded in 1979 by Ms. Nurik Simanian, Ms. Taguhie Paltazarian, and Mrs. Armaveni Minassian. The goal of the society to promote education of Armenian girls and train teacher for provinces, set private free schools for Armenian girls ; â€Å"Education-loving Ladies†, founded in 1880 and society’s goal was to take care of poo rs, orphans, widows ; â€Å"Union of girls and young men† founded in 1919, an example of joint man and woman organization and â€Å"Armenian Women’s Association† founded in 1919, aimed to contribute to Armenian women’s moral intellectual, material and physical development, establish cooperation between all Armenian women, use Armenian potential to promote the Armenian Cause. The Armenian women’s charitable society of Tiflis Was the largest and long-lived women’s organization. On 4th of December, 1879 114 ladies gathered in the conference hall of the Mariamian-Hovnanian girls’ school, organized fundraising, raised 407 rubles for sending to Constantinople. On 31st of December, 1881 Society’s Charter was adopted. According to the Charter, the goal of the Society was to promote the education of women: a. by opening and maintaining a private school for females at its own cost b. by supporting parochial schools for females with its own funds as well as by assisting those women that wish to become teachers in parochial schools’. The society also granted scholarships for unmarried women to study education or medicine. Within first 10 years, Society organized 11 balls, 6 performances, 3 concerts, 2 public lectures, all of which proved quite successful as fund-raisers. One of the most memorable organizations was Armenian Society â€Å"Meghu† in Tiflis â€Å"Meghu† decided to stop poverty by waging war against women’s unemployment. First, there was the issue of cheap labor. The number of job-seekers is constantly on the rise and fear of starvation forces workers to accept lower wages. Second, there was a danger of the flaw of living at the expense of someone else’s labor. The founders of the Society divided those living at someone else’s labor into two groups, evil-doers or robbers, and beggars. †A beggar with his rags and nakedness does the same thing as a robber: beggary, too, is a trade and a mask, which can be used to peacefully rob someone without running any risk.† A power was needed that would help them at the time of despair and would encourage them. The class came to the conclusion that the existing charities were powerless to fight against a huge force of economic crisis. Those women came up with an idea of establishing a purely democratic association that would be able without hurting people’s self-respect to provide the unfortunate victims of our materialistic age, especially women. Armenian female workers are the most oppressed, ill-used and exploited social class because, on the one hand, of their shyness and, on the other hand, of the overall economic situation. Women earned their living with home-craft (ex. sewing, and they would make kopecks).The Society set a goal of establishing the †House of Work† (workshops) and of assisting in promoting the cause of eliminating illiteracy of poor women. Workshops, such as dress-making, dry-cleaning, cardboard, artificial flowers, basketry, cooking. For 13-17 years old-sold girls society opened a school. The final decision was that only girls that have a level of knowledge equal to the graduates of the parochial elementary school shall be admitted to the school at the Meghu House of Work. As mentioned before, a good education and self-confidence can have a cyclical effect and attract more women to take their lives in their hands. Maybe the engines of feminism revolution were a wealthy woman, but they helped the society to understand the importance of equality in every sphere of life. They changed the world by writing novels, founding organizations, societies, and schools. Importance of a good education is rising day-by-day and feminists have a huge role in it by their activities. They brought the problems of women from top to the lives of people and made middle- and low- social class women to think about their futures by themselves.

Positivism: Strict Scientific Method

Positivism is a philosophy that stated that the only authentic knowledge is scientific knowledge, and that such knowledge can only come from positive affirmation of theories through strict scientific method. The main thrust of the positivist research tends to follow certain scientific and measurable methods to conduct a research. A positivist approach is one that is considered objective, detached and if I may put that way, structured by the researcher's views who test a hypothesis.It is usually associated with quantitative data collection methods and statistical analysis. The positivist researcher try to be at a value free, unbiased and neutral in all respect while conducting the researcher under the assumptions positivism. â€Å"Using scientific method and language to investigate and write about human experience is supposed to keep the research free of the values, passions, politics and ideology of the researcher. This approach to research is called positivist, or positivist-empiri cist and it is the dominant one among the general public. (Anne B Ryan) Positivism sees social science as an organized method for combining deductive logic with precise empirical observations of individual behavior in order to discover and confirm a set of probabilistic causal laws that can be used to predict general patterns of human activity.On the same time positivism approach found to be inefficient when we include social structure of society, life complexity and other problem which can’t be covered when we try to use the quantitative methods to conduct the research. This scientific approach which positivism espouses is rightly thought to be inadequate when it comes to learning about how people live, how they view the world, how they cope with it, how they change it, and so on. †(Anne B Ryan) In the positivism only those topics has been selected those having a public sphere and with the blend of mathematical and technical advantage because research characterized by these norms considered to be efficient and reliable in the positivism playground. Marxism, relies on experiments and verification, objective experience, history, scientific logic and reasoning for acquiring knowledge.Marxism is wholly science oriented because truth based on experiments and verification is its basis — its entire structure rests on scientific experiments, and scientific truth. Marxism holds that on the question of knowing truth science is far more powerful than the power of an individual. Under Marxian approach it is only rational to depend upon science rather than on the belief Orientalism is a form of cultural studies in which the concept of orientalism or the difference between east and west is base of the theory.With the start of European colonization the Europeans came in contact with the lesser developed countries of the east. They found their civilization and culture very exotic, and established the science of orientalism, which was the study of the orie ntals or the people from these exotic civilization. In this process Europeans divided the world into two parts; the east and the west or the occident and the orient or the civilized and the uncivilized. This was totally an artificial boundary; and it was laid on the basis of the concept of them and us or theirs and ours. The Europeans used orientalism to define themselves.Some particular attributes were associated with the orientals, and whatever the orientals weren’t the occidents were. The Europeans defined themselves as the superior race compared to the orientals; and they justified their colonization by this concept. They said that it was their duty towards the world to civilize the uncivilized world. The main problem, however, arose when the Europeans started generalizing the attributes they associated with orientals, and started portraying these artificial characteristics associated with orientals in their western world through their scientific reports, literary work, a nd other media sources.What happened was that it created a certain image about the orientals in the European mind and in doing that infused a bias in the European attitude towards the orientals. This prejudice was also found in the orientalists and all their scientific research and reports were under the influence of this. The generalized attributes associated with the orientals can be seen even today, for example, the Arabs are defined as uncivilized people; and Islam is seen as religion of the terrorist. Another feature of orientalism was that the culture of the orientals was explained to the European audience by linking them to the western culture.

Effect of Colors on the Brain and on Emotions Essay

Colors are an intimate facet of our everyday lives and exist in everything that we see. Colors and emotions have a strong relationship between them. It is widely recognized that colors have also a strong impact on our emotions and feelings (Hemphill, 1996; Lang, 1993; Mahnke, 1996). The color red has been associated with excitement, strength, sex, passion, speed, and danger. White has been associated with pure, virginal, clean, youthful, and mild. Blue that is most popular color has been associated with trust, reliability, belonging, and coolness. Black is allied with sophistication, elegant, seductive, mystery, and sexual. And Pink is allied with soft, sweet, nurture, and security. Colors are linked with many different emotions. All colors have positive and negative impression connected with it. It has been tested and proven that colors have different alpha rate associated with it. The purpose of the study was to see if the brain responses differently while looking at different colors and to see if there were any connections between color and emotions. Methods Participants The data for this study was gathered by a total of 11 participants from Cognitive Neuroscience Lab class (4 male and 7 female) at the University Center, Lake County Campus. Among those participants included one professor and the other ten consisted of undergraduate students from psychology department at Northeastern Illinois University. All the participants tested had no sort of color deficiency. Stimuli Series of six questions were prepared for the experiment consisting of two parts: the first part included power-point with the five different colors playing each for 20 seconds followed by the questionnaire. The series of questions asked the participants about their emotional stage while looking at the colors. Five random colors were chosen based on cultural reference for America. The colors consisted of red, white, blue, black and pink. The color samples were prepared using Microsoft PowerPoint 2010 software. Procedure For this study, participants were tested individually in a classroom designed as a computer lab. Each participant was seated front of a desktop computer. The monitor displayed each color illustration full screened one at a time which lasted 20 seconds each. Participants were told to look for a smiley face while looking at colors to keep them focused on the screen. Each participant was observed under the NeuroSky Mindset EEG while viewing the colors to record their brain activity. The order of color illustration was same for all the participants. After each participant was done looking at the colors; they were asked a series of questions related to emotions. Participants were asked, â€Å"What emotional response do you associate with (name of color)? and What color attracted you more? These questions were modified from Boyatizis and Varghese (1994) and Hemphill (1996). Only one response was permitted for each question. The answers were recorded on an observation sheet. Each observation lasted about 5 minutes each. Results Data for this study was analyzed using Microsoft Excel. The median and mean was conducted to get the different alpha amplitude. There were a total of seven different responses for answers to choose from for the emotion section of the questionnaire and five different colors to choose from for the response to what color attracted the participant more. Some of the questions had the same meaning (e. g. , calm, angry) and some had different meaning such as (honest, stable). Based on the results; red had the highest amplitude which means that participants were calm while watching the color red. Pink had the lowest amplitude which means that participants were excited or stressed while watching the color pink. The average mean ranged from 29. 3 – 11. 6. Even though red is considered an excited color; the EEG showed that participants were more calm or relaxed while observing red. Pink is considered a soft and sweet color but the EEG showed that participants were stressed and excited while observing pink. One-tailed t-test was used to analyze the data for significance. There was significance between all colors except when we compared red vs. white and white vs. black. The p-value for red and white was 0. 1, for white and blue p-value was 0. 02, between blue and black p-value was . 14, and p-value between black and pink was 0. 03. These results show that there was significance difference in alpha. The different amplitude showed the different alpha rate. Nine out of eleven participants chose pink as most excited color and six out of eleven chose pink as their favorite color. This shows a correlation between brain activity and emotions. The EEG showed pink as the most stressed or excited color and the participants chose pink as more excited as the answer to one of the question for experiment. Discussion The main aim for this study was to examine color-brain activity allied with emotions among random sample from undergraduate students and professor. The present study consisted of five different colors including red, white, blue, black and pink. A headset from NeuroSky Mindset, desktop computer and a questionnaire. Overall, 54. 4% participants said that pink was their favorite color and 81. 8% of participants said that they felt excited when they say the color pink. 18% of participants said they were attracted to the color red and the rest of 27% was distributed equally among the color white, blue and black. The results concluded that there was a significant different among all the colors except for red vs. white and black vs. hite. A total of six participants said that they felt danger when they saw red but the EEG results showed the opposite concluding that they were more relaxed. A total of six participants said they felt calm while looking at white and seven said they were calm while looking at blue color. Almost all for except one said they felt serious while seeing the color black. For future studies, I would have the participants write their emotional response right after they see the color and have them decide what response they feel instead of having them to choose one of the answers given.

Wind power for water desalination including a comparison with solar Dissertation

Wind power for water desalination including a comparison with solar power desalination - Dissertation Example Sew water desalination through the renewable energy resources can solve the problem. Wind energy has the most potential in the coastal regions of the world due to high availability of wind. Wind desalination utilized the RO, MVC and ED techniques to desalinate the sea water. RO method of desalination is considered the most efficient method of desalination. Wind desalination has many advantages over solar desalination, particularly at coastal regions. The advanced wind turbines have more efficiencies than that of the previous designs. On the other hand the desalination methods involving coupling of solar and wind energy are much efficient. TVC desalination method can couple solar and wind energy. Greece is facing the water scarcity and desalination is the most effective and efficient method to provide fresh water for the economic and social growth of the country. Some Greece islands are facing droughts and desalination is the economic solution. Greece islands have major coastal region s, which can be considered suitable to harness the wind energy for the desalination. However, solar and wind energy both can be coupled to enhance the gain and efficiency of the desalination plants. RO desalination technique is considered best to be coupled with the wind energy. Some disadvantages of the wind desalination are the noise, disposal of concentrated brine and disposal of chemicals. However, the advantages are more than disadvantages and thus wind desalination has a promising future. Wind power for water desalination including a comparison with solar power desalination Chapter 1- Literature Review Among the many problems, the human race is facing, the two major problems are the worst of all. The two problems are the environmental pollution and climate change and the second is the water scarcity. As the population is increasing the problems of fresh water scarcity and climate change is increasing are becoming more severe. In fact, the fresh water resources in the world rem ained lesser than what is demanded by the population, thus billions of people will have to suffer and have to drink contaminated or low quality water (Sen, 2008). There is a need to establish such systems that equally encounter the climate change as well as water scarcity. The system, thus, have to utilize the alternate resources of energy like the solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy, hydropower, etc (Kalogirou, 2005). Earth has plenty of saline water; in fact, the major portion of the earth is covered with saline water in form of oceans and seas. In order to encounter the water scarcity, there is a need to treat the saline water to make it in the purely drinkable. On the major process is the water distillation that converts the dirty or saline water into steam by utilizing the heat from different sources and the then converting it back into the liquid state. All the impurities remain at the bottom of the container in which the water is heated. The other methods are the uti lizing the different layers of filters to file the impurities and adding chemical additives. The major process that has the potential of providing the necessary amount of water without worrying about heating the water is the RO process, in which dirty water or saline water is forcefully passed through different layers of filters. The layers provides a passage for the only water molecules, as the width of the pores in the filter is about in the range of nanometres allowing only the water molecules to pass through the filter. In nature such type of layers can in found in eggs and layer of ash. However, the process of RO consumes much energy having a purification plant of a grand scale, thus a large amount of energy is required

Risk Isolation Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Risk Isolation - Assignment Example According to the five-factor model for personality traits, an individual may either be an extrovert or introvert. Psychologists have identified introversion as a significant cause of social isolation. The affected person may find social interaction as daunting; hence prefer spending time alone. Such a characteristic poses a risk towards the ability to interact with people; hence isolating oneself from members of the society. On the other hand, an individual’s personality may be ‘ruined’ due to inferiority complex. Such an individual may find it necessary to withdraw oneself from the public. Inferiority complex entails shame and feelings of low self-worth. The cause-and-effect relationship resulting from social isolation is that it may lead to depression and mental illnesses in the long-run. Hawthorne, (2008) attributes social isolation to feeling of superiority. Individuals who consider themselves superior and more important than others end up losing their friends. Such individuals are self-centered and have little concern for others. At first, such people get along with other people, but eventually the friendship is lost due to their perception of being superior. Such individuals end up being alone and start wondering what the problem might be. At this stage, they are already victims of social isolation. Isolation in itself is not therapy. Hawthorne, (2008) explains that victims of social isolation require therapy because prolonged cases of social isolation result in emotional isolation. It is better to seek help from experts rather than trying to tackle life stressors that may result in psychological and mental strain. Hawthorne, G., PhD. (2008). Perceived social isolation in a community sample: Its prevalence and correlates with aspects of peoples lives.  Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology,  43(2), 140-50.

The Lost Television Series Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Lost Television Series - Essay Example The pilot excels in the introduction of characters, addressing the genre of the show, which is mysterious to the audience, and in using exciting storyline and great visual effects in making the viewers amazed (Roberts 41). The Lost writers made no fault in naming the first episode of Lost as the pilot. The naming was not through accident. As illustrated in the show, the naming was not done for the sake of doing it. It was named purposefully. This can be illustrated by the fact that as one goes through the show, he or she will discover that every little information that the writers give to lost fans has a particular meaning connected to the storyline earlier or later on in the Lost’s mysterious plot. In this case, it is wise getting the meaning of name the Pilot. The episode is about the search for the cockpit of the oceanic 815 airliners. The pilot of the airliner is in the cockpit. Therefore, the Lost writers chose the name the Pilot intentionally to create a play on words since the pilot was in the cockpit, which was being searched. This name choice was a subtle hint given to the audience by the writers. In other words, they were revealing to the audience the sign of what to expect. It should be, however, noted that nothing has been put straightforward in the Lost show (Douglas 27). The introduction of the main character in the Pilot has been done quite nicely in the first season of the show. Consequently, it is Matthew Fox, Doctor Jack Shephard who has been introduced as the first character in the show’s first scene. A golden lab sprinting through the jungle awakes him. On waking up Jack there is a very exciting overhead shot of his eyes. Among most of the characters found throughout the season, we find many shots. The shots are meant to perhaps bring a reflection of the notion the eyes constitute the windows for accessing the soul.  Ã‚  

Gala Dinner and the Media Launch Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Gala Dinner and the Media Launch - Case Study Example The planning should include all the aspects of the conference or event. The organizations also need to establish the SWOT analysis to overcome the threats that they may suffer during the event and to maximize on the opportunities that arise. Success of event and festival occasions lies under the marketing research section of a company. Events and festival activities will continue to be a major selling tool of organizations in future. The purpose statement is that the Gala Dinner and the Media Launch concerns the Australian Olympic Committee and they would like to organize the Gala Dinner and the Media Launch through our company. One of the general tasks that we have include; Organizing the Gala Dinner for the whole group and later conduct the media launch, allocation of portfolios to committee members including the entertainers, hotel mangers, chairman, the treasurer and the secretary. To also making a decision on whether a coordinator for the conference is necessary or not. The management of the Gala Dinner and the Media Launch will specifically be left to the organizers starting with the chief executive of this company. Although duties will be dedicated to every individual at the two events, more work will be done by the conference management committee in order to ensure that everything goes as planned. The management committee will also be responsible for the budgeting considerations for the company and that all work will handled by the Gala Dinner and the Media Launch committee. Major stakeholders The major stakeholders here will be; Executive members of the Australian Olympic Committee Members of the Australian sports council Ten members of the athletics team Gala Dinner and th

Census research Koreans in LA Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Census Koreans in LA - Research Proposal Example This population continues to enlarge since the historic immigration into Bunker Hill two decades in the wake of the 20th century (Theme 98). Bunker Hill is in present-day Los Angeles. Then, this region was designated for non-whites and ethnic minorities were allowed to reside during the first two decades of the century. Earliest Korean immigrants into the US had domestic and casual jobs, which involved hard labor in manufacturing and other operating plants. The Korean community migrated into geographical territory covering the region from Vermont Streets and Normandie. This area is the present-day Korea Town, California. By the 1950s, Los Angeles received the second wave of ethnic Korean immigrants from the Korean War. This population combined with the descendants of the first-wave immigration influx of the 1900s and the demographics began to soar amid rising birth rates and continued intermarriage interaction with other races. Most of the Korean population worked as truck drivers, waiters, and domestic workers for most of the 20th century (Gives 87). Present demographic statistics indicates that Korean Americans living in California account for 18.5 % of the entire ethnic Korean demographic in the United States (Min 67). Los Angeles County is home to over half a million ethnic Korean – demographic includes intermarried and those of interracial

Mergers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Mergers - Essay Example Ravenschaft and Scherer (1987) state that firms will merge because they think that this will result into an increase in efficiency in the new firm formed after merging. Efficiency is expected to rise after the increase in capital, sharing of expertise, elimination of duplicate processes in production and the realization of economies of scale. All these advantages associated with mergers will influence firms to merge, however according to Hughes (1989) mergers may not lead to the realization of efficiency and they may lead to even increased inefficiencies in the firm. Firms will merge in order to gain market power, market power increases where firms that merge are in the same industry and produce the same products in the market and when they merge they form a monopolistic firm which controls the prices and the quantity produced. The firms will also merge as a way to increase their competitive advantages over their rivals and this makes the new firm a market leader, however this may not be the case where government policies may restrict firms to form monopolistic market forms where the firms controls the prices and quantity produced. Firms have different levels of market share in the market, when the firms merge they form one big firm those market share is equal to the sum of both firms market share, as a result the market share increases and this acts as a motivating factor for firms to merge. The reason why a larger market share is preferred is because a firm will realize economies of scale, increase sales volume, increase sales revenue and therefore increase profits earned. Tax advantages: Firms will also merge in order to gain a tax advantage, all firms will pay tax to the government depending on the level of profits they have acquired, and firms will therefore merge with loss making firms as a way of reducing their tax burden. However in most countries this has been discouraged where policies have been put in place to limit the act of profit making firms shopping for loss making firms to gain tax advantages. Diversification: According to Henry (2000) firms will also merge as a way to smooth earnings, smooth earning results into a smooth stock price over time and therefore investors are attracted to invest in the companies stocks. When two firms merge their earnings and stock prices are more stable and this increases investor confidence and therefore realize increased capital base from investors equity. Increasing geographical coverage: Firms will merge as a way of increasing their geographical coverage, example two law firms namely the Battle and Booth company and the Mack and McLean company merged in order to increase their geographical coverage and therefore offer their services to a larger population, this is because when firms merge they form a larger com-any and the large company is able to invest more and diversify than a small company. Sharing of expertise and technological integration: Firms will gain expertise and gain from mergers, managers and other experts share ideas and this helps in improving the efficiency and also the productivity of a firm, this sharing is made possible when firms merge but this would not have been possible when the

Elementary School Literature Class Essay Example for Free

Elementary School Literature Class Essay The biography genre allows the reader to learn about the events in the life of a non-fictional character. An example would be the book Rocks in His Head by Carol Hurst. After reading the text, the students may then be required to complete a character biography which would outline personal information about the character, interesting information about him, important dates mentioned in the text, his name, where he lived, and such. a)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Fable The fable genre introduces things which are given human qualities as characters. Fables often contain moral lessons. An example of a fable would be Aesop’s fable of The Boy Who Cried Wolf. Students may then be asked to fill out a dissection chart wherein they will have to describe scenes corresponding to the different parts of the story, such as conflict, resolution, moral, etc. b)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Fairy Tale Fairy tales are fictional stories which often have magical elements integrated into the story. An example would be Hans Christian Andersen’s Thumbelina. A story map would be one applicable graphic organizer which would require the students to map out the beginning, purpose, conflict, most important moment, and conclusion of the story. c)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Folktales Folktales are stories which are grounded on the cultural tradition of a particular place. The story of Johnny Appleseed is one popular American folktale. A venn diagram may be used to graphically organize the information learned from the story. d)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Historical Fiction Historical fiction is a sub-genre of fiction. It portrays fictional stories of historical figures or events. An example would be the book The Mary Celeste written by Jane Yolen and Heidi Stemple. A time line may be used as a graphic organizer in the case of historical fiction stories. e)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Informational Text or Nonfiction Informational texts are non-fiction texts which give the reader current and accurate information regarding a particular topic. Secrets of a Civil War Submarine by Sally M. Walker talks about the disappearance of the first submarine to sink an enemy ship in the Civil War and is a leading example of an informational text. For this purpose, a map may be accomplished by the student plotting out the problem and solution found in the informational text. KWLs are also popular organizers for informational texts. f)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Mystery Mystery texts involve the solving of puzzles or crimes by the characters in the text. There are several series which involve mystery plots such as Nancy Drew and Babysitter’s Club. With this genre, charts may be used after the reading of the text requiring students to fill out information regarding the characterization of the hero, the villain, the victim, the crime or problem and the solution. g)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Picture books Picture books provides verbal and visual narratives of the plot and story. Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are is a good example of a picture book. The text is quite simple and sparse but the blend with the visual narrative makes for better communication of the author’s intention. A character analysis or a plot diagram may be accomplished by the student after reading a picture book. h)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Poetry Poetry depicts a concept or story through a particular form. A famous children’s literature poet is Shel Silverstein. Some of his more popular works are The Missing Piece Meets the Big O and The Giving Tree. Since poems are more complex than story-telling texts, a plot diagram would be a good graphic organizer for students to accomplish. i)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Realistic Fiction Realistic fiction presents fictional characters, plot and settings but depict them in such a way that they could be found in real life. There are many examples of this genre such as Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret by Judy Blume. The challenge is for the author to create a story addressing a concern or issue of the target reader audience. Given the purpose of realistic fiction, a character analysis may be completed by the student along with an analogy for what the student would do if they were in the same situation. 7. Design a literature lesson plan to include the following categories: grade, 2 behavioral objectives (Sunshine State Standards), 2 activities, 1 assessment instrument, and 1 follow-up homework assignment. Include the title of the book and its genre. This is a literature lesson plan for a second grade class. One picture book will be used as class reading material, in this case Maurice Sendak’s Where The Wild Things Are, and several wordless picture books will be provided for the students’ activities. One objective of the lesson is to teach students the various character perspectives that may be employed in telling a story and to have the students apply this learning in the activities. Another objective is to have the students exercise and display their creative talents, particularly their writing skills through the creation of their own story. At the beginning of the lesson the picture book will be read to the students. After the reading of the text, the students will be asked to complete a character diagram for each of the main characters involved in the text. They will be asked to map out the descriptions of the characters as well as the activities which the character actually engaged in throughout the story. This will not only allow the instructor to assess the students’ understanding of the story but it will allow for a better platform for discussing how character perspectives can be used in telling a story. The students will thus be asked to engage in an activity of shifting the character perspectives in the book so that the narrative is told from a first, second or third person perspective. This will be done by focusing on particular scenes in the picture book used for storytelling. Having in mind their description of the characters, the students will be asked to change the text corresponding to the scene pinpointed so that it would be in first, second or third person perspective. Further application of the lesson will be engaged in by having the students break off into groups. Each group is to take a wordless picture book. They will then be asked to draw a piece of paper from a hat. The strip of paper will indicate in what perspective the text of the narrative should be told. The students will then be asked to write a simple narrative for the wordless picture book. One line narrations for each picture would be deemed sufficient. The students would be informed that although creativity in formulating the text would be incentivized, what is more important is the proper use of the perspective as well as the grammatical correctness of the work. At the end of the class the students will submit the completed story. Before dismissal, the instructor will make copies of the students’ stories. The stories of the different groups will be switched so that each student is left with a copy of a story completed by another group. As an assignment, the students will be asked to shift the perspective of the story assigned to them. They are informed that they may vary the manner in which the story was told as long as they maintain the same framework for the narrative and as long as they are able to use a perspective other than that which was used.

The Influence Of Internet And New Media Media Essay

The Influence Of Internet And New Media Media Essay This study aims to give insight into the meaning young educated people in Syria give to the Internet and new media as a means to gain social, political and religious agency, and the influence this has on existing social structures in a traditional and authoritarian state like Syria. Background The Internet has enabled entirely new forms of social interaction, activities, and organizing. Especially social networking websites such as Facebook, Twitter and Blogger have opened new ways of communication over the last couple of years. As global Internet access is growing, the effects of the Internet have also spread to the Middle East, and its influence on restrictive socio-political entities is often mentioned in the press. One may think of news headlines like Iran Protests: Twitter, the Medium of the Movement (Time Magazine  [1]  ), In Egypt, Pushing Revolution by Internetà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ½ (Newsweek  [2]  ) or the frequently mentioned influence of Internet on changing social and religious patterns (e.g. Ambrust 2000). Unfortunately, academic knowledge to back up these claims is very limited. In a country like Syria, Internet was virtually non-existent less than ten years ago. Today however, a fast growing group  [3]  of people has access to the global network and many shops, mosques and political movements have created a space on-line. All these developments seem to have a big impact in a traditional and authoritarian society. But how can Internet and new media influence the agency of people? Why Syria ? Syria is a traditional society with an authoritarian government where gaining agency is highly channeled through religious and social traditions or membership of the ruling Baath party. However, as the countrys age demographic is changing (the majority of the people is under the age of thirty  [4]  ) and globalization has brought new ideas inside its borders, the younger generation seems to search for more direct ways to gain agency. At the same time, Internet usage is on the rise and recent figures  [5]  indicate that social networking sites are attracting an increasing community of (young) Syrians who use these media to interact with friends, exchange ideas and form digital communities. There are also examples of young Syrians using the Internet to gain agency. Syrian Facebook users recently organized a successful campaign to boycott mobile telephone providers in protest against high tariffs (Sharif 2009) and a simple search brings up a plethora of on-line Syrian communities, ranging from religious discussion groups to calls for educational reform. Nevertheless, recent initiatives calling for mass protests against the government were less successful  [6]  . Despite these developments, Reporters Without Borders ranked Syria among the thirteen enemies of the Internet  [7]  , a conclusion based on the persistent monitoring of Internet dissidents by the state and the blocking of websites. However, in the wake of the popular uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt, the Syrian government recently (February 2011) made a remarkable step by opening up the Internet and dismantling blockades on websites like Facebook, Twitter and Youtube  [8]  . With an ever growing Internet community and the legalization of access to social networking websites, it seems likely that the role of the Internet and new media as a means to gain agency will increase over the next couple of years. Research questions (preliminary) The main question I would like to pose in this study is:What meaning do young, educated people in Syria give to the Internet and new media as a means to gain agency and change existing structures? To answer the main research question, it is important to first answer a couple of sub-questions. By tackling these questions, I will increase my insight into the subject as the research progresses. How do young, educated people in Syria use the Internet and new media? How do young, educated people in Syria believe that their use of the Internet and new media influences their social values, societal participation and world view? What is the position of the Internet and new media in current social, political and religious structures in relation to young, educated people in Syria? How are existing structural forces in Syria (e.g. religious, political, traditional entities) acting and adapting to the use of Internet and New Media use? Methodology (preliminary) This study will have a social-anthropological focus. While using statistical data where possible, the research methods that will be used will mainly be qualitative: individual interviews, participant observation and focus group discussions. By investigating the (perception of) influence as experienced by people themselves, it will be possible to draw a picture of the way Internet and new-media influence their agency and the existing structures. I will also conduct research through on-line participant observation on Syrian social-network sites and by following the activities of other new media. Furthermore, I will investigate how (religious, social and governmental) structural forces (re)act towards the use of Internet and new Media by investigating policies, publications and activities. Before the start of my fieldwork period (1 year), I will start with an extensive literature research on the subject. During the fieldwork period, I will gain access to the target group through my personal network of people, which I have built-up over the last couple of years (see also: personal information). Theories and concepts (preliminary) Central to this study are the concepts of structure and agency. Agency refers to the ability of people to act independently, have control over their life and make free choices. Structure, by contrast, refers to the pattern or framework of relationships between social institutions such as political systems, religion, class, customs and moral norms, which influence or limit the choices and opportunities that individuals possess. In applying these concepts, I will follow Anthony Giddens Structuration theory (1986). The Structuration theory holds that all human action happens within the framework of an existing social structure which is controlled by a set of norms and laws. Therefore, human actions are at least partly predetermined based on the contextual rules under which they occur. However, structures are not definite and external, but sustained and modified by human actions. Therefore, in and through their activities (agency), people reproduce and transform the conditions (structures) that make these activities possible. Besides Giddens, this study will also build on publications by some of his contemporaries who have published on the subject, like Bourdieu (1977) , Berger Luckman (1966) and Orilowski (1992, 2000), who have published on the duality of structure to technology. Furthermore, I will also use sources from the realm of (new) media studies for the conceptual and theoretical framework of this study. Manual Castells has been one of the most significant social theorist of new media in the last two decades. In his Information Age trilogy (1996, 1998, 2000), Castells argues that the development of communication network structures and architectures is a core feature of the contemporary social condition. These networks are not controlled by anyone but extend outward from computing and information communication technologies to all forms of social, economic and cultural relations. In Critique of Information (2002) the sociologist and critical theorist Scott Lash, builds forth on Castells and argues that the rise of the global information order is marked by a fundamental blurring of the distinction between culture and technology. This means that in order to influence relations of power, inequality and domination within a technological and informational c ulture, one must become part of the networks and flows of this informational culture. In their work on Internet use in Trinidad, Miller and Slater (2001) come to a rejection of Internet research that focuses on the way in which new media seems to constitute spaces or places apart from the rest of social life (real life or offline life). Internet (and new-media) are rather spaces within social life in which new forms of sociality and new identities are emerging. Internet and new media should thus be seen as extensions of the social space rather than tools within the social space. Poster (2001) summarizes this as follows, the Internet is more like a social space than a thing, so that its effects are more like those of Germany than those of hammers. In conjunction with Miller and Slater, Jenkins (2006) argues that the frame of reference for individuals who are connected, is not the same as for those who are not. Connected people judge their social environment according to different standards, sourcing from norms, values and beliefs that not always match with the social p ractices they are subject to in real life. In relation to the research topic, we can say that instead of being an instrument to gain agency, Internet and new media may function as a place, within social space, that is out of reach for the structures that normally define it. That is, unless these structural forces will also embrace new media and the Internet. This place within social space creates a new social reference frame and a platform for sharing thoughts, beliefs and ideas which may contribute to the increase of an individuals agency in society.

Devaluation and Economic Recovery During the 1930s.

Devaluation and Economic Recovery During the 1930s. a) Evaluate the evidence of the relationship between devaluation and economic recovery during the 1930s. b) Evaluate the mechanisms by which devaluation had an impact on economic recovery during the 1930s. Although a wide range of uncoordinated policies were implemented in the 1930s, including devaluation, it is possible to classify the major trading nations into different trade policy regimes (Kitson and Solomou, 1990): the sterling bloc that devalued with or soon after Britain and linked their currencies to sterling; other countries which also devalued either early (before 1932) or later (1932 and after); the exchange control group, that was reluctant to devalue for fear of inflation; and the gold bloc countries which remained, at least in the short term, committed to the system. During the 1929-32 depression, world output declined by more than 6% per annum. The sterling bloc exhibited the mildest contraction, with GDP falling by an annual rate of less than 2% per annum, and just 0.5% if Canada is excluded from the sample (Canada was particularly adversely affected by its large agricultural sector and its links with the United States). This suggests that devaluation policies may have helped to mitigate the adverse effects of the depression. Leaving gold provided less help for the other devaluers group although there is evidence that those who devalued early experienced a milder depression than those who delayed and devalued late. Thus, the timing of the policy response was important. The positive relationship between devaluation and the economic recovery in the 1930s is depicted in specific countries and some groups of countries. Eichengreen and Sachs (1985), claim that devaluation benefitted initiating countries, and Bernanke and James (1991) demonstrate a strong link between deflation, depression and adherence to gold in their analysis of 24 countries. Shibamoto and Shizume (2014) find that exchange rate shocks independently had strong influences on the real economy in Japan. Their historical decomposition demonstrates that the exchange rate contributed to production growth after Japan left Gold in December 1931. However, a limitation is that their results may contain measurement error because their effective exchange rate is constructed using 1917 weights. On the other hand, Reinhart and Reinhart (2009) argue against the hypothesis of a positive relationship between devaluation and the economic recovery in the 1930s. They find that their timing variable is insignificant and the date of exit from gold does not help to explain the depth or duration of the downturn when examining 37 countries. However, a limitation is that their results posits having a large number of countries does not necessarily improve the reliability of results. Other literature argues that national heterogeneity played an imperative role in determining the relationship between devaluation and recovery. Later when Reinhart and Reinhart repeated Eichengreens 14 country 1929-37 analysis but using real GDP per capita rather than Industrial production as a proxy for growth, they found significant results supporting a positive relationship between devaluation and the economic recovery during the 1930s. It can be affirmed that devaluation was a beggar-thy-neighbour policy, in which one country attempts to remedy its economic problems by means that tend to worsen the economic problems of other countries, and thus explains why we see the relationship between devaluation and recovery vary for different groups of countries. For the period of recovery, from 1932-37, most countries exhibited reasonable cyclical growth. The exception was the gold bloc countries. Constrained by their commitment to their exchange rate parities they had to adopt tight monetary and fiscal policies to maintain internal and external balance. Thus although output was depressed, the French government in the early 1930s adopted contractionary fiscal policies to prevent destabilising exchange rate speculation. Reinhart and Reinhart (2009) states that the benefits of competitive devaluation went to the first movers and for those that devalued later it merely allowed for catch-up for lost competitiveness. It can be seen that US monetary policy was hampered by beggar-thy-neighbour problems as almost all devaluations relative to gold produced an appreciation relative to the dollar. A simple comparison of growth performance during recovery can be misleading, as it will include both a cyclical component (the automatic recovery from a deep depression) and policy induced effects. An alternative is to examine inter-period, peak to peak growth performance. Looking at the change in the annual rate of growth of GDP during 1929-37 relative to 1924-29, the results for the world economy indicate a retardation of the growth path. This is consistent with other findings that the shock of the Great Depression had persistent effects on the level of output. The performance of the different policy regimes, however, provides important contrasts. The countries that devalued, particularly those that devalued early, experienced only a small (or zero) fall in trend growth. Those countries that had the limited benefits of exchange controls experienced a deterioration in annual growth of 3.3%. The poorest performing group was the gold bloc, which had little flexibility to initiate poli cies for domestic recovery. Further evidence of the striking contrasts in performance of different policy regimes is shown in figures for annual growth of industrial production. These indicate that those countries which devalued, and to a lesser extent those that introduced exchange controls, had a milder industrial depression, faster recovery and a better inter-period growth performance. Evidence on the unemployment performance of the different policy regimes shows that the high unemployment that developed during the depression persisted throughout the period of recovery. Only for the sterling bloc was there any fall in the unemployment rate; for the other regimes unemployment increased during 1933-37. In part this reflects employment lagging output, plus changing activity rates and demographic shifts. But it is also evidence of the persistent effects of the Great Depression, the long-term unemployed having difficulty re-entering the labour market. As always, there are some authors (Beenstock et al, 1984) who argue that it was wage movements that accounted for the cyclical fluctuations in output, both for the Great Depression and subsequent recovery. It is true that real wages (adjusted for price changes) did move counter-cyclically over the 1929-37 cycle in Britain rising relative to trend during the recovery but the causes of the output fluctuations lay elsewhere, and the timing of the wage fluctuations do not actually fit the claim that recession was caused by wage rises and recovery caused by wage cuts. We have shown elsewhere (Michie, 1987) that this wage-output correlation itself does not, in any case, hold outside those particular years a finding which reinforces the argument that the output and wage series are independently generated, with output influenced crucially by the level of demand for output and wages by factors such as productivity levels and bargaining strength. Growth and improved economic performance during the 1930s was dependent on countries untying themselves from strictures of the gold standard and adopting independent policies, with different exchange rate regimes created and with some countries also reaping the advantages of increased protectionism and fiscal expansion. What is apparent, however, is that the cooperative regime failed and uncoordinated policies were a vast improvement. Almunia et al (2010) finds large defence spending multipliers of 2.5 on impact and 1.2 after the initial year. These demonstrate the large potential impact fiscal spending could have on the economy. Moreover, in Japan real gross national expenditure rose by 45% 1931-36 alongside which the economy approached full employment. However, Almunias findings have limitations as multipliers reduce to 0.43 on impact and 0.13 when total government spending is used instead of defence spending. The absolute size of fiscal expenditure in countries was actually relati vely small and thus despite potentially large multipliers, was unable to drive the economic recovery in the 1930s. The use of uncoordinated policies may have led to some resource misallocation effects. The overriding impact, however, was positive as independent policies overcame the deflationary bias of the gold standard and led to increased resource mobilisation. Despite these economic gains some commentators persist in identifying the 1930s as a period of economic nationalism which helped to usher in totalitarian and fiscal political regimes. This is a complete misreading of history. The rise of racism and fascism in the 1920s and 1930s was fuelled by mass unemployment and the destructive economic policies imposed on Germany at Versailles and on the rest of the world by the gold standard. Keynes had warned as much in The Economic Consequences of the Peace (1919) and The Economic Consequences of Mr Churchill (1925), but to no avail. Currency stability was of greatest importance. Devaluation can have beneficial impacts through a number of mechanisms. First, it can directly alleviate the balance of payments constraint on growth. Shifts in relative prices and improved competitiveness can raise exports and depress imports. The conventional account of this process is that it is a beggar-my-neighbour policy (Healey and Levine, 1992), as the improvement in trade performance is reflected in an improving trade balance for the initiating country and a deteriorating trade balance for trading partners. This account, however, ignores the effects of an independently pursued trade policy on the level of economic activity. Increasing exports and reducing the propensity to import will raise the level of demand in the domestic economy. With unemployment and excess capacity, such a policy initiative will raise output and employment as well as leading to an income-induced increase in imports, so that there need be no change in the actual trade balance. Indeed, this is precisely the reason why, although Britain devalued and adopted widespread protectionism in 1931, the current account deficits persisted throughout the 1930s. If countries get locked into a pattern of trade which constrains domestic expansion, an active and independent trade policy provides one means of overcoming the problem without necessarily affecting adversely other trading partners. Empirical support for this mechanism is found in Eichengreen and Sachs (1985) where they found that countries who devalued were successful in raising their Tobins Q. However, there is a limitation, Tobins Q represents the incentive to invest as opposed to actual investment, hence this does not actually tell us if investment had a real effect on the economic recovery. Nevertheless, increased investment demand which resulted from devaluation is likely to have had significant effects on economic recovery. The second benefit of devaluation is that it removes the exchange rate constraint on domestic policy, encouraging expansionist policies. In particular, monetary policy can be relaxed and therefore interest rates can be determined by domestic economic conditions rather than by the need to maintain the exchange rate or by the need to prevent excessive loss of reserves. For instance, Britains suspension of the gold standard allowed the government to pursue a more expansionist policy after 1932. This cheap money policy has been identified as a permissive policy for economic revival, especially important in stimulating a housing boom. Conversely, the reason that the British Governments claims on September 16, 1992 (that it would remain in the ERM by raising interest rates as far as was necessary) lacked credibility was that raising interest rates by 5% in one day in the midst of the longest economic recession for 60 years was not believed to be a feasible policy option. Eichengreen and Sa chs (1985) explore a more general model and depict that devaluation might give rise to interest rate differentials among countries, creating not only the expenditure-increasing effect but also an expenditure-switching effect. Due to data limitations in the 1930s it is hard to draw strong inferences regarding the impact of devaluation on interest rates. Eichengreen and Sachs (1985) do however find a positive relationship between exchange rates of countries and changes in the CB discount rate. Support for this is provided by Almunia (2010) who finds that countries abandoning Gold were quicker to cut interest rates in response to the slump. However, Eichengreen and Sachs (1985) find that the CB discount rate does not reflect market conditions. Therefore, devaluation is likely to have reduced interest rates in devaluing countries boosting investment and spending. The positive effect of devaluation on export growth is likely to have given a positive short term gain effect to economic recovery. Bernanke and James (1991) find large and statistically significant results on output growth for real export growth. Shibamoto et al (2014) argue that anticipated devaluation generated expansionary expectational effects in Japan. However, their use of railway traffic is a very poor proxy for GDP and thus their results are unreliable given that they are generated from poor quality data. Instead, we support the thesis that expectational effects were seen with a lag of 1 to 2 year as it took time for people to learn the effects of devaluation. Hence, in the US we can explain the lack of a lag in expectational effects as US agents had learnt from the European experience of devaluation. Thus, there is support for an expectational mechanism through which devaluation impacted on economic recovery but with a 1 to 2 year lag. Devaluation and the accompanying intro duction of other expansionist policies also led to a third, less mechanistic, benefit. Under the prevailing world conditions of uncertainty and monetary and financial turbulence, the reorientation of policy towards the domestic economy improved business confidence. The prospect of a stable and growing economy encourages home producers to increase, or at least bring forward, investment and expand production.

Death Of A Salesman: Symbols :: essays research papers

Death of a Salesman: Symbols Many symbols are incorporated into the play "Death of a Sales man" and they in turn relate to both character and theme. The hose, tape recorder and the seeds are some of these symbols. The hose in Miller's drama directly relates to the theme of d eath. The hose is a line attached to the gas main in Willy's house which allows him to snif f the gas. This action can be seen as Willy's suicide wish, and escape from the realities of life. As seen in the loss of his job and his failure to succeed. The hose also represents grief and deception. For when Linda, Willy's wife, finds the hose, she is distraught over its in tended purpose. The deceptive nature of the hose is apparent when Willy is confronted about it by Biff his son and Willy denies its existence. A similar denial is also evident when Willy is confronted with the tape recorder in Howard's office. The tape recorder signifies the change in Willy's life throug h the advancement of technology. It also represents the end of Willy's career. This is brought about when Howard, Willy's boss and godson, shows the tape recorder to Willy and appe ars to be more interested in the sound and technology of the machine instead of Willy, who i s fighting for his job. Howard no longer need s Willy's services and without concern fires him. This , to Willy, was like, "eating the orange and throwing away the peel". However, Willy is partly to blame, as he does not accept change and wants to remain in the pas t. This is foreshadowed in the scene where Willy is left alone with the tape recorder and is unable to shut it off. Willy believes in using his old techniques and style to succeed. Nevertheless, in his job, it is not what you know, but it is who you know. Willy is not up to date with the business nor technology. Yet, Willy still has hope, and wishes to leave some fo rm of support behind for his family as illustrated in his planting of the seeds. Willy feels that he must leave something behind something for Biff. In Willy's imaginary world he wants Biff to be magnificent and he symbolically plants seeds in his garden. In spite of such an action he is doomed to fail. Willy sta rts planting the seeds at night, but at night there is no sun shining and this seems

Artificial Intelligence and Investing Essay -- Technology, Stock Exch

Artificial Intelligence and Investing INTRODUCTION Artificial intelligence can be defined as the ability of a computer to perform activities normally considered to require human intelligence. The techniques of this intelligence include knowledge-based, machine learning, and natural language processing techniques. Investing can be defined as the act of committing money to an endeavour with the exception of obtaining profit. Investing activities require data identification, asset valuation (the process of determining the worth of something), and risk management (the process of managing the uncertainty in investment decision-making). Artificial intelligence techniques can be applied to financial investing, especially in the areas of credit risk assessment and stock valuation. In the future, we can expect that the techniques of artificial intelligence will be integrated into systems that simultaneously address investing activities. WHAT IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE? Technology is an important factor in investing activities. For example, stock trading is computer-based and can automatically execute the trading of large volumes of shares. This has become an extremely frequent activity on stock exchanges in our advanced world. Artificial intelligence is allowing humans to have a â€Å"cutting edge† by using computers when investing. Years ago, a usual activity for a computer program was a simple, or even a complex, numerical calculation. An example of this could be a forensic officer’s ability to compute the path and pattern of a bullet. Today, computers are more advanced. It is no problem for a computer program to assist humans in their decision making processes. Humans have access to huge databases across the world over the interne... ...ollection, asset valuation, and portfolio management). These systems will interact with humans and humans will be able to specify their preferences and make difficult decisions. SUMMARIZER’S CRITIQUE In general, the article â€Å"Artificial Intelligence and Investing† offered a lot of valuable information regarding the both the current, and future, paths of artificial intelligence systems. The article was broken down into simple sections that helped the article come together. The author’s intent of relating artificial intelligence to investing was successful in explaining that artificial intelligence is of great assistance to investors across the globe. On the other hand, I believe the article contained some examples and terms which were not really explained in enough detail to the average user. Basically, some terms were not presented at an average reader’s level.

Effect of Spina Bifida on Different Age Groups

EFFECTS OF SPINA BIGIDA ON DIFFERENT AGE GROUPS Individuals who are affected with spina bifida are faced with many difficult challenges. The social factors are different in each age group (newborns to infants, toddlers and preschoolers, school aged children, adolescences, teenagers, and adulthood). Nevertheless, finding resources in your community, knowing what to expect, and planning for the future can help increase confidence in managing spina bifida, enhance quality of life, and assist in meeting the needs of all family. Spina bifida affects the entire family.People who are affected by spina bifida get around in many different ways. This may include walking without any aids or assistance; walking with braces, crutches or walkers; and using wheelchairs. Some people with spina bifida have difficulty picking up the verbal and non-verbal cues necessary for social skills. Some of the areas that might be difficulty for them are talking over differences without getting angry, persistence when facing frustration, taking turns while talking, understanding social rules, demanding immediate attention, and waiting when necessary.However, finding resources, knowing what to expect, and planning for the future can help. No two children with spina bifida are exactly alike. Children’s health issues will be different for each child. Some will have issues that are more severe than other children. With the right care, children born with spina bifida will grow up to reach their full potential. NEWBORNS AND INFANTS In many cases, infants and children with spina bifida require early and frequent hospitalization. This can interrupt normal social development.The challenge is to balance medical needs with the need to let a child develop into a confident, self-sufficient and independent adult. Regular and physical activity is important for all babies, especially for those with conditions that affect movement. There are numerous ways for babies with spina bifida to be active. Ne wborns and infants can be active by: * playing with toys, such as activity mats; * enjoy parks and recreation areas; * participating in community programs, such as the Early Intervention Program for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities, which is a free program n many communities; and * do exercise with physical therapist. TODDLERS AND PRESCHOOLERS Life with a toddler or preschooler is both fun and challenging. These young children experience huge mental, social, and emotional changes. They have a lot of energy and enthusiasm for exploring and learning about their world and becoming independent. Since developing independence can be particularly trying for children with spina bifida, parents should begin helping their child develop independence early in childhood.The achievements can be measured one by one; building blocks are an effective way to think of them. In the early years, moving about and exploring things with the eyes, mouth and hands are the elements of independence for t he toddler. Parents and other caregivers can help them become more active and independent by: * educating the child about his or her body and about spina bifida; * encouraging the child to make choices, for example, have them choose between two items of clothing; * asking the child to assist with daily tasks, such as putting away toys.Children with spina bifida might require extra help at times. It is very critical that children be given the opportunity to fulfill a task before help is given. It is also important that parents give only the help that is needed rather than helping with the entire task. Parents must become skilled at learning the difficult balance between giving the right amount of help to increase their child’s independence and confidence, while simultaneously not giving the child tasks that cannot reasonably be completed? which might decrease their child’s confidence. School agedSchool connects children regularly with the larger world. Friendships becom e important and physical, social, and mental skills develop quickly during this time. Children who feel good about themselves are more able to resist negative peer pressure and make better choices. Many children with spina bifida do well in school but some can experience difficulties at school. There are children with learning disabilities (water on the brain), struggle with paying attention, work slowly, be restless, or lose things. They also might have difficulty making decisions. There are activities that children an do both at home and at school to help with these problems. These children might struggle with activities which lacks opportunity to socialize with peers. Children with spina bifida have fewer friends and spend less time with peers than typical developing children. Many social difficulties tend to be stable into adulthood. Fortunately, with the proper medical care, children with spina bifida can lead active and productive lives. Many children with spina bifida are suc cessful in school and many are actively involved in modified sports activities despite their physical challenges.With recent progress in care for these children, their outlook continues to improve. This is a significant time for children to become more responsible and independent. This is also a good time to start exploring potential lifetime interests such as hobbies, music, or sports. Acquiring independence can be challenging for people affected by spina bifida. It is important to begin working on this process early in childhood. Physical activity again is important for children of all ages, but especially for those with conditions that affect movement.For example, they can: * engage in active play with friends; * roll or walk in the neighborhood; * enjoy parks and recreation areas with playgrounds that are accessible for those with disabilities; * attend summer camps and recreational facilities that are accessible for those with disabilities; and * participate in sports activitie s and teams for people with or those without disabilities. Children with spina bifida often cannot control when they go to the bathroom (incontinence).They also can develop urinary tract infections. It is important to develop a plan for going to the bathroom that works and is as simple as possible. This can lead to increased health, participation, and independence at school and in the home, and avoid embarrassment for children with spina bifida. ADOLESCENTS AND TEENS Many physical, mental, emotional, and social changes are associated with the adolescent and teen years. Teens and adolescents develop their own personalities and interests and want to become more independent.It is important for the parents and caregivers of adolescents and teens with spina bifida to take effective steps toward making them independent starting in childhood, so that by the time they are older they can develop the necessary skills to help them reach their full potential. Physical activity is important for all teens and adolescents. There are several ways for teens and adolescents with spina bifida to be active. For example, they can: * engage in physical activities with friends; * roll or walk in the neighborhood; * lift weights; participate in sports activities and on teams for people with and those without disabilities; and * attend summer camps and recreational facilities that are accessible for those with disabilities. YOUNG ADULT The transition from adolescence to adulthood can be a time of progression and success, as well as difficulty. For people with spina bifida, it is specifically vital to begin planning for transitions in childhood so they are able to lead independent lives as adults. Young adults affected by spina bifida can face challenges, such as: * learning to take care of their own health needs; working or continuing their education; * volunteering; * finding and using transportation; * living outside their parents’ home; and * obtaining healthy relationships. Young adults can provide or manage much of their own care. Some instances include: * finding new doctors that care for adults affected by spina bifida; * obtaining medical insurance if they are no longer covered under their parents’ health plan; * talking to health care professionals about their condition; * making doctor appointments; * ordering or reordering medications and supplies; * seeking immediate medical help when needed; and managing their own bathroom plan. There are many ways for people with spina bifida to be active. Such as: * roll or walk in the neighborhood; * lift weights; and * participate in sports activities and teams for people with or those without disabilities. Transportation is important, young adults need to be able to find and use transportation safely. Many adults with spina bifida have problems that can affect safe driving. They may need a driver rehabilitation evaluation specialist in order to identify if special changes are needed to a car to ma ke it accessible for driving by someone with spina bifida.Adults also can learn to find and use other transportation safely, such as buses and cabs. Being safely mobile in their homes and communities will help adults become more independent. As adults plan for employment, college, or vocational training, they need to find and use transportation safely. Many young adults are still getting used to their new independence. They may have started working, volunteering, going to college or other training, or living on their own. Nonetheless, continuing to plan for the future is very important.This involves setting goals and how to achieve them. At times, unexpected problems can make life difficult. It is important for them not give up and to keep moving towards their goals, even if their goals sometimes need to be modified, or take longer than planned. Planning now will help adults continue to grow and succeed as they get older. In summary, people with spina bifida will face lifelong medic al challenges associated with this disorder, and the emotional and financial effects that the family will endure are overwhelming.In the United States, children born with spina bifida often live long and productive lives, even though they face many challenges. Though individuals reported having a high quality of life, they also described facing challenges and barriers that affect their ability to fully engage in life experiences. Individuals of all ages from birth through young adulthood reported experiencing common physical challenges such as pain, skin break-down, pressure sores, mobility limitations, latex allergy, and difficulties with endurance and balance.Some individuals between the ages of 6 and 18 years reported having scoliosis and breathing difficulties, during a time of rapid growth. As youth reach the teen years through young adulthood, many also reported difficulties with weight gain and concern about sexuality. Although individuals with spina bifida may experience sec ondary conditions, the role of support has shown to be a large factor that minimizes these challenges. Family support has been reported as a critical component as well as support given to families from outside sources such as friends, relatives, churches and other community groups.These supports have shown to help reduce secondary complications for individuals with spina bifida as well as ensure that they can participate fully in life activities and experiences. While individuals with spina bifida face many challenges growing up -whether they are social, physical, or academic -remember that the person with spina bifida is first and foremost a person with similar desires, likes, talents, frustrations, and concerns as all people. They will experience the same developmental milestones as all individuals -from saying â€Å"NO! in the toddler years, to becoming more independent and social in the teen years, to thinking about relationships and employment in the adult years. We are privil eged to live in a time of positive change and opportunities for people with disabilities. Expectations are changing for the positive to include individuals with disabilities in all facets of community living. Regrettably, change is usually a slow process and many of the physical and attitudinal barriers of society have not kept speed with the new positive expectations.

Nike Responses Corporate Social Responsibility Essay

Background: Nike is the leading company in sports and fitness fields and located near Beaverton, Oregon (CSRwire, 2012). In 1998, The New York Times exposed that Nike paid workers in China and Vietnam less than two American dollars a day. The aim of this report is to search how Nike response Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Theory: There are five dimensions of corporate social responsibility: physical environment, social (community), consumer, supply chain, and employee relation. ‘Corporate social responsibility is encompasses not only what company do with their profits but also how they make them. It goes beyond philanthropy and compliance and addresses how companies manage their economic, social, and environmental impacts, as well as their relationships in all key spheres of influence: the workplace, the marketplace, the supply chain, the community, and the public policy realm. ’(HARVARD Kennedy School, 2008) Corporate social responsibility Physical environment The chart from Nike Corporate Responsibility Report in 2012 showed the total emission volume of CO2 (Million Tonnes), which is the major element that causes the global warming. As can be seen from this table, the emission of CO2 from 2003 to 2009 is significantly lower than it of year 1997-98. To create a sustainable market, Nike’ fabric suppliers produce jerseys based on used plastic bottles from landfill sites in Japan and Taiwan and a design tool which cost Nike seven years and six million dollars to help designers to reduce the impact on environment. In 2011, Nike doubled its use on recycled plastic bottles, which were 82 million bottles. (CSRwire, 2012) Community The table shows that total community investment increased dramatically from 2004 to 2009 and in 2007, Nike estimated that it would support 315million dollar to the community (Nike corporate responsibility report, 2009). In 2007, Nike awarded 1million dollar to help schools, which were in finance problem and a Jordan Fundamental Program was set up to give finance support to the educators who have a significant achievement (CSRwire, 2012). In 1999, Jordan Fundamental Program aid more than eight million dollars on lunch program in public secondary school for teachers. (CSRwire, 2012). In 2007, Nike joined the United Nation Refugee Agency and raised 2 million dollar in the first year to support refugee youth education and sports. Nike also sold T-shirt associated with refugee to raise global awareness and capital. (CSRwire, 2012). Nike also had a Partnership with the Lance Armstrong Foundation that aim to encourage people who suffered cancer. (CSRwire, 2012) Consumer Nike issued the Privacy Policy, which include how they collect and use information through different kind of digital devices and what kind of information they will gather. For instance, If a person use a computer and access the Nike website to purchase Nike product or register personal information, the Privacy Policy will protect this customer. And it also help parent to supervise their children, such as parental control tools. (Privacy Policy) According to the news on FOX 59 WXIN, Nike delayed the release of Foamposite Galaxy shoes because of the safety problem of this pair of new shoes. Supply chain ‘The contractor does not use forced labor, including prison labor†¦Employees are age16 or older†¦Contractor’s employees are not subject to discrimination in employment†¦Contractor’s employees are timely paid at least minimum wage required by country law. Working hours are not excessive. Working place is healthy and safe†¦ the Code is fully implemented’ In 2005, Nike was the first company that listed the location of more than 800 contractors publicly, and the location can be seen from the Manufacturing Map on Nike official website. Employee relation In terms of sexual discrimination, the table indicates that 40-percent female and 60-percent male administrators are in Nike in 2009. From 2007 to 2009, the difference between male and female declined steadily. In 2009, Nike hired more women than men in Europe, the Middle East, and in the U.S. (Nike corporate responsibility report, 2009). According to the survey done by CNNMoney, paid vacation, onsite childcare, job sharing program and telecommuting are provided to employees by Nike. Conclusion Nike reduce the emission of greenhouse gas and use recycled plastic to produce products, support community to help schools and refugees, issue Privacy Policy and Code of Conduct to protect consumers and set standard to its supply chain and decline gender discrimination and promote working condition for employees.

The Social Responsibility of Business Is to Increase Profits

Milton Friedman, â€Å"The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase Profits† In the article, â€Å"The Social Responsibility of Business Is to Increase Profits,† Friedman states that â€Å"businessmen believe that they are defending free enterprise when they proclaim that business is not concerned merely with profit but also with promoting desirable social ends. † This social responsibility is defined as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), which is the belief that â€Å"corporations owe a greater duty to their communities and stakeholders† by having a â€Å"social conscience. This, among other things, includes being environmentally responsible, contributing to non-profit organizations, and eliminating discrimination. Friedman argues that â€Å"only people can have responsibilities† but that â€Å"businesses as a whole† cannot, as they are not persons. Since the corporate executive is an employee of the shareholders, and therefore only â€Å"responsible to his employers. † The corporate executive has primary responsibility to his employers to conduct business as they see fit, and manage the business to create the most profit while following the â€Å"basic rules of the society†.It is then seen that the corporate executive is acting as a â€Å"public employee,† while serving shareholders and should be directed by those shareholders how to spend their money. However, Friedman acknowledges that managers of corporations, while serving shareholders, are also people in their own right and may have their own social responsibilities that do not always follow those of the owners of the corporation. In that case, if the manager chooses to act based on his own beliefs instead of the direction of the shareholders, he is not performing in the best interests of the shareholders and is â€Å"spending the customers' money. This has a direct financial impact to both customer and employees. This can lead to the managers’ termination as he has not performed as directed by the shareholders by not making as much money as possible. It is also discussed that because â€Å"society is a collection of individuals,† there are individuals that can coerce others to conform to certain social norms and while others may not agree, they can be overruled and then must conform. This then leads to a â€Å"political mechanism† which can regulate how corporations operate and dictate their â€Å"social responsibility,† which, in theory, would extend the cope of the political mechanism. Friedman believes that a political mechanism is not necessary to achieve social responsibility because in a free society, â€Å"there is one and only one social responsibility of business—to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits so long as it stays within the rules of the game, which is to say, engage in open and free competition without deception o r fraud. † One question that can be posed from Friedman’s article is whether shareholders should prioritize the responsibilities that managers have as their agents.While we can acknowledge that shareholders invest in a corporation to make a profit and that managers are hired to maximize those profits, it is the responsibility of the shareholders to provide guidelines to those managers and prioritize his/her responsibilities. While we can assume that the first priority of the shareholders would be to maximize profits for the corporation, subsequent priorities could fall within the guidelines of community outreach, exceeding legal obligations or being environmentally sensitive.If we presume that corporations elect to be â€Å"socially responsible,† we should expect shareholders to provide policies and procedures to their managers. Without these, what responsibility does the manager have outside of maximizing profits? As Friedman suggests, the manager could be compe lled to act on his own beliefs and moral obligations to his community, church or charitable organization. But, since these would be at his discretion, what check and balances would he have with the shareholders? Would he be using money otherwise returned back to the shareholders and supporting organizations that are opposed by the shareholders?Because corporations are established to profit and shareholders invest money with expectations of a greater return, managers cannot be given a directive to be â€Å"socially responsible† without providing specific criteria of checks and balances to which needs to adhere. Therefore, it is imperative to the success of a corporation for managers to not act solely but rather to act within the policies of the shareholders. What Friedman implies is that shareholders should only be concerned with maximizing profits and not be obligated to be â€Å"socially responsible. In that case, the manager would only have one priority, to maximize profit s. However, what if that manager determined that social endeavors is the best option to maximize profits? This would make the corporation socially responsible while still maintaining maximum profits. The argument presented by Friedman in this case is that while the manager is performing as expected by maximizing profits, this type of â€Å"social responsibility is frequently a cloak for actions that are justified on other grounds rather than a reason for those actions. This â€Å"cloak† refers to corporations acting socially responsible but for the sole purpose of making profits rather than performing such endeavors for the sole purpose of benefiting society. An example would be a solar company providing â€Å"free† electricity to a campus in exchange for use land to promote their environmentally aware product. However, what they don’t tell you is that the electricity is being sold back to the power company for a profit. The perception is that the company has a social conscience when in reality it is being done for profits.While I agree with Friedman’s assessment that managers, as employees of shareholders, are responsible for maximizing profits, I disagree that corporations should only comply with governmental policies and should not adopt policies to be socially responsible. At the time Friedman wrote this article, western democracies and communist countries of Europe were in the middle of the Cold War and the idea of a global economy was not as prevalent in society as it is today.Consumers in those countries leaned towards buying locally over buying foreign products. Since the end of the Cold War, consumers have changed purchased habits to buy products from companies, regardless of their country of origin if it were the best product. However, this led to the matter of public opinion towards corporations playing a larger role in how well they integrate themselves into a community or help preserve the environment is a factor in ho w consumers choose to purchase products.For instance, if a company is considered â€Å"green,† it is determined to the environmentally friendly. This would lead consumers who support environmental protection to lead towards purchasing products from that company. Therefore, I believe that corporations take into account public opinion when deciding on whether to enact â€Å"social responsible† measures and that these measures are above and beyond the minimum requirements established by governing agencies.I am also convinced that shareholders, more today than ever, budget funds to contribute to socially acceptable contributions and directing managers how to spend these. It is my opinion that due to public opinion and a global influence on corporations, that a successful free market cannot be judged solely by the financial gain of a corporation, but in conjunction with how these corporations influence positive changes in society.

Banana Sap As Natural Ink Essay

Banana (Musa Ãâ€" Paradisiaca) is a very common plant in Malaysia and in the Philippines. Often the banana trunk is thrown away after harvesting the fruit. The waste material is biodegradable. Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the Genus Musa, and is also the name given to the fruit of these plants. It is a native plant found in the tropical region of Southeast Asia, the Malay Archipelago, and Australia. Today, it is cultivated throughout the Tropics. The banana was mentioned for the first time in written history in Buddhist texts in 600 BC. The stalk is the stem of the banana plant. The banana stalk produces one huge flower cluster and then dies. The stalk is usually cut off the plant when the bananas are plump and ready to ripen. Before it dies, there are a number of things the banana stalk can be used for. The use of banana sap, as a medium for artwork has never been explored in Malaysia. Banana sap is used in other countries such as Indonesia as textile dying and Latin America as Medicinal uses. Banana sap from some parts of the tree contains pigment and dyes, thus not aware of this potential medium is a waste. This material is biodegradable and this research is conducted to test the potential of banana sap as a pigment and dye to be used as an alternative natural ink. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The researchers wish to extend their most sincere appreciation to the following people who helped make this research. They are the people who helped and contributed for the success of this endeavor. To God, for his gift of wisdom and understanding, and for answering our prayers in their times of need. To their Science teacher, Ms. Avrylle Corpuz for teaching the researchers the fundamental of research and investigatory writing and for showing a great deal of patience though at times the researchers tends to be naughty and wild. To their parents and family members, for the unending love and support that they gave. To the observer/respondents, for their integrity and cooperation. And lastly, to all those who were a part of this work, they thanked themselves for being cooperative and hardworking throughout the investigatory project. INTRODUCTION Background of the Study A banana is an edible fruit produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants of the genus Musa. (In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called plantains.) The fruit is variable in size, color and firmness, but is usually elongated and curved, with soft flesh rich in starch covered with a rind which may be green, yellow, red, purple, or brown when ripe. The fruits grow in clusters hanging from the top of the plant. Along with this edible fruit is saps: extremely sticky and can be used as a practical adhesive. Sap can be obtained from either the pseudostem, the fruit peelings, or from the flesh. Ink is a liquid or paste that contains pigments or dyes and is used to color a surface to produce an image, text, or design. Ink nowadays, are used by many people around the world. Nowadays, ink is getting much more expensive. An average of 22$ (880pesos) per quarter ounce. Ink is mostly made out of comprising solvents, pigments, dyes, resins, lubricants, solubilizers, surfactants,  particulate matter, and fluorescers. Thus the experiment is all about recycling banana saps and making ink more affordable. There have been many experiments ahead of this. Others have tried using berries beet juice, orange, and many other more. But, these fruits that are used, needs the juice, skin, and the likes. The researchers chose banana because they are using not the fruit itself but the saps. Also, most fruits that are used for the making of the ink. The researchers think that this will help them attain a better quality of life because it will cut down the prices of ink. All these set aside the question on everyone’s mind is: Will this natural ink be as effective as the ink people are using today? Statement of the Problem This study determines the effect and practicality of banana sap in making a natural ink. The banana stalk, where the researchers got the banana sap, was biodegradable. It specifically seeks to answer the following question: 1. Will the product really work as an alternative natural ink? 2. Is the natural ink from the banana sap better than the commercial inks? 3. Does the natural ink from the banana sap require a preservative? Significance of the Study Nature can provide for everyday needs such as writing ink. Traditional ink sources include flower petals and tree bark, and though fruit sources are less traditional, they also make for useful ink. Berries and cherries, with their high juice content, are ideal for ink making. Unlike other juicy fruits such as watermelons, citrus fruits or peaches, berry and cherry juice are dark enough to show on writing paper. On this study, the researchers chose a banana sap as an alternative natural ink so that they will be able to know and discover other natural alternative inks aside from berries, which is commonly used. Scope and Limitation The study of comparing banana sap as a natural ink to a commercial ink is limited only on the use of banana sap, dye and commercial ink. For the  study, the researchers just emptied the unused pens or pens that won’t function well. The researchers were also careful in doing this because ink might be harmful if swallowed and it may irritate the eyes. The group will only use banana sap with powdered dye (diluted with water) and an empty invisible pen to perform the study. The researchers will not use any other substance or chemicals as enhancer to the natural ink. REVIEW OF THE RELATED LITERATURE Musa Ãâ€" Paradisiaca and Its Pseudostems Bananas (Musa Ãâ€" Paradisiaca) are native to tropical Southeast Asia, but have long been cultivated in many countries from Asia to Europe for its fruit and to a lesser extent for its fiber. Banana is commonly mistaken as a tree but it is actually a large perennial flowering herb with leaf sheaths that form trunk-like pseudostems that grows from a corm. Banana can grow up to 7 meters in height that has about 8 – 12 spirally arranged leaves that are up to 2.7 meters long and 0.6 meter wide. Banana sap is among the most sticky and stubborn substances on earth. You will never get it off your clothes, some people say. Banana sap is extremely sticky and can be used as a practical adhesive. Sap can be obtained from the pseudostem, from the fruit peelings, or from the fruit flesh. Banana Sap as Dye for Fabrics Banana sap is used as a medium to dye fabrics in Indonesia and Philippines. The color of banana sap is brownish and it’s substance on the fabrics well. Dried banana peel contains 30 to 40% tannin content; it’s used to blacken leather. The ash from the dried peel of bananas and plantains is rich in potash and used for making soap. While that of the burned peel of unripe fruits of certain varieties is used for dyeing. In the Philippines, the Pinatubo Negritos cut off a banana plant close to the ground, make a hollow in the top of the stump, which then fills with watery sap is drank as an emergency thirst quencher. Central Americans obtain the sap of the red banana in the same manner and take it as an aphrodisiac. Making Berry Inks (Huckleberry, Raspberry, Blackberry and Pokeberry) Ink  making is a wonderful way to use up some of the berries that you can forage for outdoors or grow in your garden. With a berry ink, you can do wonderful water washes, use a dip pen and write great letters, or use it for various drawings and sketches. You can also use your ink for spiritual journaling or magical work. Having an ink you’ve made yourself allows you to be creative while making use of sustainable materials that are locally harvestable. Berries should be ripe (never under-ripe) or slightly over-ripe. Berries that have a nice dark stain when you cut it open are effective. Berry inks are going to be a little more watery and lighter than a traditional synthetic or processed ink. Banana Sap in Medicine All parts of the banana plant have medicinal applications because banana sap has the properties of antifungal and antibiotic. Found in the peel and pulp of fully ripe bananas, the antibiotic acts against Mycobacteria .The inside of the peel has anti-septic properties as it can be wrapped directly around wounds or cuts in an emergency. The flowers of banana can be used for treatment in bronchitis and dysentery and on ulcers; cooked flowers are given to diabetics; the astringent plant sap in cases of hysteria, epilepsy, leprosy, fevers, hemorrhages and acute dysentery, however it is also applied on hemorrhoids insect and other stings and bites; young leaves are placed as poultices on burns and other skin afflictions; the astringent ashes of the unripe peel and leaves are taken in dysentery and diarrhea and used for treating malignant ulcers. The roots are administered in digestive dysentery and other ailments; banana seed mucilage is given in cases of catarrh and diarrhea in India. Banana sap is also used to reduce high blood pressure; serotonin inhibits gastric secretion and stimulates the smooth muscle of the intestines. Alleged hallucinogenic effects of the smoke of burning banana peel have been investigated scientifically and have not been confirmed. Charcoal Briquettes from Banana Peels These days there is increased pressure on forests as people cut trees for firewood and other purposes in the last 30 years, for example, Uganda has lost half of her forest cover. Local people are being encouraged to adopt energy saving technologies that put less pressure on natural resources. One  example is the use of banana peelings, commonly referred to as banachakol (banana charcoal), to A woman from a group of community workers known as Bakyala Tweyune (â€Å"Women in self-help†), responsible to make the banachakol, and the production process for the briquettes. The technology that will save many trees is started in Lungujja near Kampala, where a woman named Namusoke Immaculate, the founder of Bakyala Tweyune women’s group, has innovated a new method of alternative fuel by turning banana peelings into charcoal briquettes. They just used one-half basin full of fresh banana peelings, a quarter basin of charcoal dust, and a quarter basin of fine sand. They chop the fresh banana peelings into small pieces. Once the banana peelings are chopped, and then mix the three ingredients together – the banana peelings, the charcoal dust and the sand. The demand of the banana briquettes will make people sort banana peelings from garbage in areas where they are thrown. Conceptual Framework This study primarily focused on the banana sap as an effective natural ink and to be able to compare the natural ink from commercial ink. The dependent variable is the banana sap while the independent variable is the powdered dye (diluted with water). In this study, the dependent variable is the banana sap (extract) because the researchers extracted it with their materials. The independent variable is the powdered dye because it is pre-manufactured. Hypothesis Banana sap is extremely sticky and it stains your clothes hideously and immediately. The natural ink from the banana sap will be effective but it will be a little more watery than a processed (commercial) ink and it won’t last long. The product is also natural so it will be removed easily. Definition of Terms Musa Ãâ€" paradisiaca – Banana; It is the common name for a fruit and also the herbaceous plants of the genus Musa which produce the commonly eaten fruit Pseudostem- It is a false stem made of the rolled bases of leaves. Mycobacteria- It is a bacterium of a group which includes the causative agents of leprosy and tuberculosis. Banachakol- It is a banana charcoal. Banana Sap- It is among the most sticky and stubborn substances on earth. You will never get it off your clothes. Tannin- It is a yellowish or brownish bitter-tasting organic substance present in some galls, barks, and other plant tissues, consisting of derivatives of gallic acid. Commercial Ink- Ink that has been used by people these days. Cloth Thread- It is a kind of thin yarn, thin fibers spun together, for textiles and sewing. Musa- It is one of three genera in the family Musaceae; it includes bananas and plantains. Ink- It is a colored fluid or paste used for writing, drawing, printing, or duplicating. Invisible pen- It features invisible ink that can only be revealed using the UV black light in the cap. Rinsable- Capable of being rinsed. METHODOLOGY Materials The materials that were used in this study were the banana sap from the banana stalk, container, cloth thread, a casserole, wooden stick that will be used for pounding, powdered dye, water and an empty invisible pen. Collection A medium sized banana stalk was collected from one of the researcher’s backyard. The empty invisible pen was collected from one of the researchers’ house. The container, cloth thread, casserole and the wooden stick were collected from one of the researchers’ kitchen. Procedure A. Measurement of the Materials Needed Four (4) table spoons of powdered dye (diluted with water), one (1) invisible pen, and the extract of a medium sized banana stalk. B. Preparation of the set-up Four (4) set ups were prepared; set-up one (1) was made up of the preparation and production for the banana sap, set-up (2) was made up for the preparation of the powdered dye, set-up three (3) was made up of the preparation of the empty invisible pen and set-up four (4) was made up of the mixture of the banana sap and the diluted powdered dye. C. Preparation of the Mixture The banana sap and the diluted powdered dye were mixed in container, boiled and put inside the invisible pen. D. Disposal The non- biodegradable and biodegradable materials that were used were segregated. Methodology Flow Chart Preparation of the Materials Needed Getting the Banana Sap (extract) from the Banana Stalk Preparation of the Dye (Diluted with Water) Mixture of the Banana Sap and Dye Observation of the Finished Product Disposal of Used Materials Evaluation and Comparison from a Commercial Ink The table shows the inks’ effect when used to write on paper. For the natural ink, the researchers chose a black dye (diluted with water) then, mixed with the banana sap extract. From the researchers’ observations and comparisons, the natural ink is more pale in color compared to the commercial ink. From the data above, it clearly states the effectiveness of the natural ink. The researchers chose the banana sap as a mixture with the dye because the its extract is sticky and it stains clothing. Lastly, there are no significant effect to the skin of the researchers who mixed and the banana sap and dye which may be interpreted as allergy or irritation. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Conclusions Based from the results gathered in the experiments, the researchers conclude that using Banana sap (Musa Ãâ€" Paradisiaca), in the form of a decoction, is an effective alternative natural ink. Banana saps are free and the other materials needed in making the decoction can be easily found in any household. Furthermore, the researchers conclude that the banana sap is environment friendly because it is organic and safe to use for humans because there are no side effects in using it aside from the stickiness of it and it might stain their clothing. Compared to the commercial ink, the natural ink is a little watery and it’s easier to wash off your hands. Recommendations Based from the drawn conclusions, the researchers further recommend the following: a. Conduct more experiment using varied conditions and method of preparation. b. Use different sub-specie of banana tree. c. Use applications on different types of paper as ink. d. Use or add other sticky substances. e. Conduct an experiment on a longer span of time. Bibliography Mimosa Pudica and Its Pseudostems Landmeier, P., Plants of Eastern Guatemala, December 16, 2012 www.medicalhealthguide.com, What Is Banana, 2011 Banana Sap as Dye for Fabric Ahmad, H., ALTERNATIVE MEDIUM FOR ARTWORKS, October 2007 Making Berry Inks Willowcrow, Making Berry Inks (Huckleberry, Raspberry, Blackberry, Pokeberry, Etc.), August 29, 2012