India on its way to become manufacturing hub

India as WorldS Manufacturing Hub For long, Taiwan and China have been at the outsourcing manufacturing boom in Asia. So much so, that 80% of toys sold in the US are made in China. But things are slowly working in favor of India. India is on its way to become a major contract manufacturing hub. There is a huge opportunity In manufacturing waiting to be tapped. A new India Is transiting from a third world country status to a league of developed nations. It Is the world's third-largest repository for foreign direct investment (FDA), after China and America. Goldman Sash's Report (Brazil, Russia,India, and China – BRICE major players), projects India as a potential winner ahead of China and would overtake U. S. A. And China by 2025 in terms of Real GAP. India- Past & Present The ass's, ass's and ear ass's: There was dominance of Public Sector across industry. The market was mainly governed by sellers with limited competition. There existed closed Economy with negligible presence of multinationals. GAP growth was below 4% (Hindu rate of growth) and primarily agriculture based. India post 1991 and counting: 100% FDA in most sectors has seen Pepsi, Coke, Shell, Ford, GM.Suzuki.. Toyota, Ames, Citibank, GE, Microsoft, Pfizer, Innovation, ASK, Merck operation in India (availability of world class products). A new India is transiting from a third world country status too league of developed nations. Current Scenario: Indian's manufacturing sector Is gaining momentum and has been ranked fourth In terms of textiles, tenth in leather and leather products etc. Government of India, to promote exports and make India a manufacturing hub, has taken various initiatives including the development of Special Economic Zones.Major global companies have already invested in India to name a few like Samsung, LAG, Suzuki, Soda Auto, Philips re among the some who have already invested and most of the global giants have stated the process to enter In India STRENGTH: The country has become a manufacturing outsourcing destination because of cheap labor, talented and knowledgeable workforce, supportive governmental policies, improved quality control measures, world-class technology and consistent economic growth. The most promising sectors for India are auto components, pharmaceuticals, electronic hardware, apparel, foot ware, toys and specially chemicals.Cost of employing engineers – essential to manufacturing services – is en-third to one-fifth lower in India than in industrialized nations such as the UK and the US There is adequate availability of manpower and skills. WEAKNESS: India is growing by leaps and bounds but there is a major problem of unemployment. There is an immediate need to generate 10 million Jobs per year. And above all, due to multi party rule, India need to accommodate political ideology with economic reality (reservation, labor law reforms). Growth has been urban centric.Rigidity in labor laws is also contributing to higher ca pital intensive. Population increase of about 100 million in last 5 years, which has seen about 50 lion new Jobs, is largely in the unrecognized sector. Transaction costs are high due to capacity constraints at ports resulting in delays. Opportunities: India has become a growth destination for several global companies. Organizations are becoming increasingly competitive on the efficiency and flexibility of their supply chains and not merely on their product features and quality.They have realized that being technology driven and updated is the key to compete in the global market. Fastest growing sectors: Automotive: The Indian automobile sector currently generates revenues of $34 billion a year; Auto sector could grow to $145 billion by 2016. India has gradually become a sourcing hub for auto companies worldwide. Among the companies outsourcing from India are General Motors, Ford, Daimler Chrysler, Handy, Fiat, Toyota, Delphi, Invariants, Visited, Cummins and Caterpillar.Healthcare & Pharmacy: Indian's Pharmacy market ranks 4th in the world in volume and 13th in domestic consumption value. Indian pharmacy market estimated at US$ 3. 8 billion ranks 12th in value terms and accounts for around 1% of the global market. Expected to grow at 12-14% p. A. , as against the global average of 6-8%. At the current pace of growth, IIS$ 2 billion industry by 2012. Construction: The Indian construction industry grew by 5. 5 % to reach a value of $35 billion in 2006. The sector will continue to grow at a CARR of 6. 5% to reach $38 billion by 20011 representing an increase of 35. % since 2004. India accounts for 4. 7% of the Asia- Pacific construction and engineering market. Retail: Indian retail industry ranked second most attractive retail destination by AT Carney. The total domestic retail market is currently estimated to be over IIS$ 330 billion and is growing at a rate of 4-6 % in real terms. Organized sector accounts for Just 2 % of he market (I. E. IIS$ 4 billion)- expe cted to grow four-fold to IIS$ 15 billion by 2012. There are 12 million retail outlets in India out of which 9 lack are in the organized sector.Computer hardware: The rapid growth of software exports has attracted thousands of people into the industry and has stimulated the demand for computers. Sales of personal computers rose by 20% in 2004-05, to MN. Import liberation's and the entry of foreign manufacturers has transformed this industry, which, until five years ago, was tiny and dominated by a few Indian manufacturers. The ease of importing components as nurtured hundreds of unbranded assemblers, which command 62% of the market. Biotechnology: Huge potential from large base of skilled technical personal and the lower costs.Number of biotechnology firms in India has increased exponentially over the years. Developing biotech based therapeutic products takes 10-15 years and costs $ 500 million to $1 billion. Similar product development cost in India is $ 250 million or even lower. Opportunity for new investments is estimated to be in the $ 1. 5 to $ 2 billion range. Food processing: India – One of the largest food producers of the world. Output of the organized segment – IIS$ 34,827 million. Marine and Spices together contribute more than 70% of export earnings. Investment requirement is around IIS$ 15 billion.The Indian scientific and research talent – a knowledge source that can be tapped for advantage. Steel: India produced 31. Mm tones of crude steel in 2004-05, making it one of the ten largest steel producers in the world. Landscapes demand from China as well as strong domestic demand, particularly by consumer -durables and automotive manufacturers and the construction sector are the key drivers of production growth. Around 40% of output is produced in integrated steel plants; the remaining comes from mint-plants, of which over 180 exist, almost all in the private sector.Light Engineering: The size of Indian Light Engineering industr y is estimated at US $ 7 billion. In India, the light engineering industry has a diverse industrial base with significant unrecognized market. The exports from the light engineering industry in India mainly consists of structured steel products; motorcycles, cycles and auto components; machine tools; fans, filters and pumps; and metal machine tool parts. The products veered under the engineering industry are largely used as input to the capital goods industry. Textiles: Textiles account for around one -fifth of total export earnings.Because the government discriminated for decades against integrated textile mills, with the aim of helping cottage handloom, most mills closed down. Production in the textile industry is based on a decentralized system with continuing small-scale reservation for many items. The industry has a natural competitive advantage in terms of a strong and large multi-fiber base, abundant cheap skilled labor and presence cross the entire value chain of the industr y ranging from spinning and weaving to the final manufacture of garments. Threat: India faces competition from other developing countries, especially China.Continuous Quality Improvement is need of the hour as there are different demand patterns all over the world. Presence of Quota system leads to rigidity in Export Demand. International labor and Environmental Laws do not strike trade-off between demand and supply. Power crises and the virtuous growth cycling manufacturing sector needs immediate attention. Large informal sector, poor irking condition and low wages pose equal threat to the growth of economy in India. Inclusion of social (Labor) issues in trade dialogues generally found in exports (e. G. Child labor). High corruption and inadequate environmental safety norms affect sustainability. INDIAN'S PROSPECTS: The nations who are competitive with India are facing some or the other predicaments. Brazil is uncomfortable with force inflows and so has given its manufacturing base . Its reluctance was evident in the imposition of a 2 per cent transaction tax on capital flows. Russia is a basket case and unless oil recovers to tuning heights, internal demand is unlikely to resurface any time soon; hence, it has very little potential to attract firms to set up shop.China is not a trusted partner; investors have learnt that China makes it easy to get in but difficult to operate. The lack of protection of hard-earned PR is a major issue in China. Restrictions on borrowing from local banks for working capital can also work as a disadvantage. Reason for optimism of the world towards Indian market: Large intellectual capital base Annual additions to the stock of science and engineering graduates Demand side – Expanding domestic market Total number of households to increase from 188. 2 million in 2001-02 to 221. Million by 2009-10 Benefits to Indian people due to the changing industrial scenario: Enterprises In Wealth Creation Government In Revenue And Employm ent Employees In Development And Increase In Standard Of Living Customers – Value For Money (Choice, Affordability And Speed) From an Indian industry perspective, the emerging situation may drive three trends. Within the next year or two, India should witness growth in demand and hence capacity in manufacturing. The driver will be higher internal demand and, in a short while, the needs of customers overseas.In three or five years, India will have to develop contract manufacturing skills. A supplier must be able to make the components he or she is good at, source components and parts, assemble and test to deliver directly to the manufacturer. This cannot happen in China as the reliability of many firms, except those that have moved with their partners form Singapore or Malaysia, is suspect. In the long term, Indian manufacturers will have to develop and build, design and development partnerships. Many entrepreneurs are considering investments in small power plants to beat the lack of electricity.

Organizational Behaviour Challenges Essay

Organizational Behaviour is academic study of organizations by examining them using the methods of economics, sociology, political science, anthropology, and psychology. Being of a multidisciplinary nature, organizational behaviour is all the more complicated to study as well. It is primarily the study of individual and group dynamics in an organizational setting, as well as the nature of the organizations themselves (culture, subcultures, psyche etc. ). Whenever people interact in organizations, many factors come into play. Organizational studies attempt to understand and model these factors and seek to control, predict, and explain them. There is some controversy over the ethical ramifications of focusing on controlling workers’ behaviour. As such, organizational behaviour has at times been accused of being the scientific tool of the powerful. Those accusations notwithstanding, OB can play a major role in organizational development and success. My six month long experience of setting up a design room in Romania was an eye opener into the aspects of organisational behaviour and how important it is for a manager to be able to deal with these aspects in the work arena. The project was fairly new to the manufacturing industry. Look more:Â  starbucks problem essay My job primarily consisted of setting up the design room and training people to run it. There were several problems that I faced and some of them are as follows: Problems at individual level Individuals make up a team. If there are problems among them, the whole team and its dynamics are affected by it. At Romania this was exactly the case which resulted in difficulty in making them work as a team, ask advise from one another, respect each other and in general increase job efficiency in order to meet targets. That is partly because the workforce in Romania is protected so there is not much that can be done by managers. Although the fact has been recognised by surveys etc. , nothing is done in the workplace officially in order to change things. The opposite is true for private companies however where management is very controlling and demanding. The human element I observed in such situations that the contingency approach to organisational behaviour in small teams only makes things difficult. Managers not only in my company but other companies that I had discussions with take it for granted that they will have to treat people in a different way in order to have their work done. Variations were stark due t the personal psyches of each individual in the team. This was however managed by trying to bring them at a standard level of thought and training. The above two problems can also be seen as a result of the fact that Romanians tend to keep their personal lives separate from the workplace (Steven 2003). I believe that managers should use Development Administration and Management techniques (Cooke 2004) to develop the workforce in places like Romania and other third world countries. Lack of responsibility Romanians, being used to the previous communist workplace, did not have to wrry about their work ethics much. They knew that they would have a job whether they did it well or not. This was something that didn’t change throughout the whole time I was there. It is clear that the reason for this failure was due to the fact that the external environment (communist culture) was at work here and an intrinsic part of their life conditioning. This ultimately meant that they did not learn from their mistakes and didn’t now show a commitment to improvement. Secondly I believe that the design room concept being new, it had to be implemented using change management techniques (Hay & Hartel 2003).

A Tree, A Rock, A Cloud by Carson McCuller

A Tree, A Rock, A Cloud by Carson McCuller Philosophy of the modernism and postmodernism period takes twists and turns at every chance it can. As the world begins to change at a speed previously unseen, people all over the world are confused and scared of what might come next. Though today writers have taken to the internet to show the world their ideas, writers during these periods expressed the emotions human beings felt through many different genres of literature. First a man must help those around him but then the philosophy shifts to a man must help himself to gain meaning in this life. As each man struggles to find a place for himself in the world, each man is also subject to the actions of others. So each man is a master of his own destiny but yet he is also a slave to the whims of others. This knowledge scares men, women and children all over the world. Yet human beings continue to find themselves among the fear. We all find meaning for ourselves yet sometimes questions arise after we find the meaning which defines o ur life. Some questions being: Is this the meaning I wasted my time on? Is this worth all the time I spent alone? In â€Å"A Tree, A Rock, A Cloud† by Carson McCullers these questions pop out to me after reading the tramp’s so called â€Å"science of love†. The tramp in the story had his heart broken by a woman so severely he believed he could never love again. While the philosophy of love today would suggest otherwise, the tramp wandered the country in isolation, searching for his lost love and searching for love itself. He believes he has discovered the science of love, his own personal philosophy he uses to define his life in the world. He never finds the woman he held to be so dear nor does he find another woman he loves as much as her even after he develops his â€Å"science of love†. The disillusionment the tramp faces after losing his first love tears down the natural beauty of what love really is. Natural not scientific I should say. Science can t ell many things and uncover many truths but one thing science has no power over is the ability we have to love freely. This I believe the tramp fails to understand. The tramp tried to fragment love. That’s like trying to tear Mount Everest apart with a rubber mallet. It can’t be done. Nor can you apply logic to love. You cannot apply logic to something that contradicts itself as much as love does. Yet the tramp did not realize this as he tried to break down love. The tramp tells the boy he speaks to â€Å"I meditated on love and reasoned it out†. All he reasoned out was how to believe he loved something or someone. He believed love was only one love. According to his â€Å"science† you could love a rock as easily and as deeply as you loved a woman or your child. This is not the case as most would agree. I myself have never loved my iPod or my car as much as I have loved my girlfriends or my family. The tramp failed to realize many things but chief among t hem was that love comes not from what others can give you to make you happy but rather love exists when your desire to make another happy match’s your own desire to make yourself happy. An inanimate object could never return the love that men chase, so this science of love is base on false beliefs.

History exam Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

History exam - Assignment Example The Soviets would dominate Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania; Britain would control Greece; Yugoslavia would be shared by both countries. The country which was NOT mentioned at all in the bargain was _____Poland__________, of vital importance to Stalin. (3pts) 6. By early November, 1944, the Red Army, after victories in Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, reached the gates of ___Budapest______________, Hungary. Hungarian and German troops mounted a savage defense of the city; capitulation came in February 1945. (3pts). 7. __d______ Select the letter which represents the accurate chronology? (3pts) a. Failed coup against Hitler, Soviet recognition of the Polish â€Å"Lublin† or communist government, Allied capture of Cherbourg, Allied capture of Rome, Operation Overlord b. Allied Capture of Cherbourg, Allied Capture of Rome, Operation Overlord, Failed coup against Hitler, Soviet recognition of the Polish â€Å"Lublin† or communist government c. Operation Overlord, Allied Capture of Cherbourg, Failed coup against Hitler, Soviet recognition of Polish â€Å"Lublin† or communist government d. Allied capture of Rome, Operation Overlord, Allied Capture of Cherbourg, Failed coup against Hitler, Soviet recognition of the Polish â€Å"Lublin† or communist government’ 7. Reagan was re-elected in 1984 by an overwhelming majority; he lost only his opponent’s home state. Who was the Democratic opponent ______Walter Mondale____________________ and from which state did he come _Minnesota____________________________? 8. __d____During Reagan’s second term, the following was true except a. declining wealth for the middle class b. increasing poverty c. increasing racial and economic polarization d. vigorous efforts by the Reagan administration to deal with AIDS and â€Å"crack† epidemics 14. False_____ During Reagan’s presidency, the standard of living of divorced women declined while that of divorced men increased; in

Short answers Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Short answers - Coursework Example So under such situation the seller will pass the entire tax burden on the consumer and will remain unaffected himself. If the price elasticity of demand (PED) of a product is 0.75, then it means that the product has an inelastic demand. This means a percentage change in price is not followed by a significant change in quantity demanded. If the firm decides to increase the price by 20 % then quantity demand will be negligibly affected and the total revenue will increase. Total revenue increases if either price increases or QD increases. Here price is increasing by a greater proportion then the decrease in QD, therefore the overall total revenue for the firm will also increase. The above shows that after the price change, the marginal utility per dollar spent on pretzels is higher than the marginal utility per dollar spent on beer. Under such circumstances the consumer should spend more on pretzels and less on beer. He should continue to do so until the marginal utility per dollar spent on both the goods become equal. If by hiring additional labor the total output increases with the decreasing rate, then the labor can said to have diminishing returns e.g if a firm hires 4th unit of labor, then the total output increases by 10 units. However when the firm hires 5th unit of labor, then the total output increases by 8 units only. So under such situation the total output is increasing but with a decreasing rate, this is known as diminishing returns. Similarly if a firm currently has 4 labors and they were producing 300 units per day. Now if the firm hires 5th unit of labor, but they manage to produce only 270 units per day, then this is known as negative returns, as the total output decreases with additional labor. The good produced under perfect competition are homogenous i.e goods of an individual firm is exactly identical to the goods of the other firm, they are perfect substitutes. So if an individual firm tries to charge a higher price on the

Rene Descartes The Method Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Rene Descartes The Method - Essay Example Four years earlier, before Descartes wrote and tried to publish The Method, Galileo was tried (persecuted) by the so-called Inquisition of the Catholic Church for his treatise on the solar system and the planetary movement, and was forced to retract all of his assumptions and theories. Galileo was teaching Copernicanism, and Descartes' book was Copernican in nature. It was one of the reasons why Descartes tried not to publish this treatise on reasoning, so as not to suffer the same fate as Galileo's. Nevertheless, the controversy and the many interpretations forced Descartes to make the move - let the world know of what should reason be all about. Descartes explains reason or reasoning as an application of what one thinks, or that which comes of his intellect or mind. It is not only important that you have a "rigorous" mind, Descartes argues, but that you know how to apply it in everyday life. Most thinking of today is influenced by Descartes' way of reasoning. Descartes deals on metaphysics, but also on the scientific way. The Method is divided into six parts, as follows: first touching the topic on the Sciences; in the second, the rules of the Method; the third, certain of the rules of Morals which he has deduced from this Method; in the fourth, the reasonings by which he establishes the existence of God and of the Human Soul; in the fifth, the order of the Physical questions which he has investigated, and in the last what Descartes believes to be required in order to have greater advancement in the investigation of Nature, or the experiments. Each of the chapters in The Method, relies on the reasonings, and so explained by the Author with logic and proofs prevalent in his times of reasoned thinking. Philosophers and thinkers dominated this era of world history. They wanted to dominate the world through reason, so that almost every aspect of man's endeavor at that time was influenced by it. The time is known as the age of enlightenment which refers to the enlightenment of the eighteenth century, down to 17th century, in European and American philosophy. It advocates reason as a means to establishing an authoritative system of aesthetics, ethics, government, and logic. Thinkers argued that some kind of systematic thinking as the Newtonian kinematics could be applied to all forms of human activity. This influenced almost every major activity or movement all throughout Europe and other areas of the world including the United States. It was during this time when the solar system was truly discovered. Descartes' theory or conce pt on skepticism and inquiry into the nature of "knowledge" was a 'product' of the enlightenment. Main target of the thinkers of the movement was religion, particularly the Catholic Church. In turn they were regarded as radicals. There were opposing thinkers however, and one of them was Edmund Burke who is known as the father of modern conservatism. Burke opposed the implementation of governing based on abstract ideas. He espoused liberal conservatism, supported organic reform, and openly attacked metaphysics. Descartes published a short work which was metaphysical rather than scientific. The Discourse on Method is best known as the source of the famous quotation "cogito ergo sum", "I think, therefore I am." In the first chapter, Descartes says: "For to

Ethical Systems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ethical Systems - Essay Example In the movie Sophie’s Choice, Sophie has to make a painful decision wherein she has to choose one of her two children to be sent to the gas chambers in order to save the other. The other option is to let go both the children with the guard to a certain death. Ethical formalism as brought out by Kant (Jensen, 1934), states that ‘Act only on that maxim through which you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law.’ In other words, an action irrespective of other circumstances and environment, is either right or wrong and can be applied universally at all points of time. Going by ethical formalism, in choosing for one of her children over the other, it is felt that Sophie has exercised her feelings and emotions rather than the universal law. The right choice for Sophie would have been to fight for the lives of both children even if it finally lead to the death of both the children. By deciding to send the girl away, she has wrecked havoc in the mi nds of both her children and herself. That she commits suicide at the end of it brings out this emotional struggle that she goes through. However, viewing Sophie’s Choice from an utilitarian perspective (Harpham, 1999), choosing rather than not choosing was the right thing to do. By choosing, irrespective of which child, she has potentially saved the life of at least one child. If she refused to choose and opted to struggle to keep both her children with her, the guard would have taken both of them away, presumably to the gas chambers. Therefore, from the utilitarian point of view, the lesser harm was in choosing one child over the other and Sophie did the right thing by doing so. The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki resulted in the deaths of more than 100,000 civilians and an even greater number of casualties, cannot be easily justified regardless of the attack’s outcome (Alperovitch, 1995). As a result, controversy surrounds the use of atomic bombs against the Japanese cities of

The Changes in the Way the Company Produces and Market Products and ho Case Study - 101

The Changes in the Way the Company Produces and Market Products and how they Address Customer Issues - Case Study Example The new approach proposed by the company will improve its competitive advantage over the Chinese rival firms due to the LWT’s proximity to the U.S. market. LWT is close to its consumers hence they will enjoy low transport cost than its competitors (Case study, N.d). The operation cost will decrease when they start dealing with customers directly instead of selling their products through decorating centers. The cost of holding inventory will also reduce and since they will use the internet and catalog to reach the customers that will result in the reduction of marketing expenses (McCormick &  Duff,  2011). Furthermore, the company will obtain a quick response from the clients and be able to offer a quick solution and increase customer satisfaction than its rivals in China (Case study, N.d). The effects of the proposed decision will result to the reduced price of products due to a reduction in inventory and marketing expenditure hence increased customer satisfaction.

Research report on the casual dining Sector in KSA ( Saudi Arabia) Paper

Report on the casual dining Sector in KSA ( Saudi Arabia) - Research Paper Example The considerable market size as per the targeted population includes Riyadh and Jeddah as the main hub of the business. Other locations contributing in the overall market size of casual dining of KSA takes toll of Eastern province (Oxford Business Group, 2010). Other cities have also attracted the investors as the culture of dining out at causal stores has become a speculated fact. The number of franchise of one chain has about 50 stores currently as an average. The total of brand franchises has marked the rate of about more than 15000 stores. This will is expected to increase by 6% in the coming year (Soufi, 2012). Exposure to international way of living and increasing number of shopping malls based upon western standards. It should be noted that western civilization is considered to be involved in making use of their income for disposable purpose i.e. dining out as a form entertainment (Soufi, 2012). Dining out has become a trend of getting together with social groups. This has allowed people to come closer and becoming socially active as dining allow them to take time out of their routine and get engaged (Zawya.com, 2012). The market competition has relatively become zealous because the international chains have marked a strong grip of the market. The fact remains that the international chains are expected to get slowed in the competition because of the similarity in taste and store outlook. However, it has been noted that the Saudi chains have applied for license of their business in the sector. The planning of these stores is underway making it competitive for the international chains (Soufi, 2012). The threat that the present chains might have with the Saudi chain is the tradition and the typical predictable taste that the targeted market demand. Most of the chains have changed their menus and appointed ingredients in the meals which give it a Middle Eastern food touch. The

Together Movie Review Essay Example for Free

Together Movie Review Essay Like some Chinese movies Ive seen, I was expecting to see the uglier side of China in this film.   I was prepared for coarseness and bad cinematography.   I was expecting a movie that is like a badly-made independent film.   But Im glad to be wrong about my preconceived notions.   I was impressed by the charming sites shown, the beautiful music, and the good acting.   I was impressed by the symmetry, the colors, and the overall picture. Together is a movie that is difficult to resist.    The plot about a young, struggling artist, who goes to the city to find fame and fortune, is nothing new.   To add more spice, it turned out that Liu Xiaochun is not after all the true son of Liu Cheng.   Many movies made before Together had more or less the same plot, and some of them turned out to be cheesy.   Although Togethers plot was simple and quite common, there was a disarming quality in the way the events unfolded and portrayed.   Many of us could relate to the young boys need to develop as an artist and become known for his craft.   As a student, I am in a way similar to the boy.   I study because I want to be somebody in the future.   But unlike the boy, my way is straighter, but not necessarily easier.   The father, like most parents, only wanted the best for his child.   He gave up the familiarity of his town and embarked on a journey whose outcome is uncertain.   Most Asian families are like that.   The parents would often make a lot of sacrifices, even if it meant giving up their own dreams, in order to see their children enjoy better fortunes.   I felt the disappointment of father and son after Xiaochun failed to get a scholarship. The movie remained true to the title.   The boy and his father, through thick and thin, remained on each others side.   Xiaochun could have the fame he wanted by joining an international competition, yet he let it go.   He let go of a dream because in the end his ties with his foster parent were stronger than any ambition.   The boy let go of the promise of a beautiful world in order to be with his father in their old, backward town.

Effects of Nuclear Radiation on the Environment

Effects of Nuclear Radiation on the Environment Nuclear power is generated through the use of nuclear fission. This process produces a large amount of heat and electricity. The nuclear waste and radiation that nuclear fission produces are harmful to living organisms; however, the benefits of nuclear power are too tempting to refuse. As a testament to that fact, there are currently 437 nuclear power plants worldwide, generating a total of 372,210 megawatts worth of electricity. A further 68 nuclear power plants are under construction with an expected net output of 65,406 megawatts.  [1]   This report will outline the effects of nuclear radiation on the environment, including all biological organisms and the abiotic environment as well as both benefits and drawbacks. Effects on Organisms Using humans as an example, nuclear radiation have very detrimental and adverse effects on human beings. Being exposed to high amounts of radiation for an extended period of time will cause humans to experience radiation sickness. Symptoms of radiation sickness can include headaches, nausea, fevers as well as the possibility of obtaining cancer or causing severe damage to ones DNA.  [2]   Nuclear radiation consists of ionizing particles, which are particles that individually have enough energy to displace electrons in an atom or molecule. By forcibly removing an electron and taking its place, the particle forms an ion-pair that are immensely reactive. This reactivity can cause major damage to cells and DNA.  [3]   The Diagram shows how an Ionizing particle displaces an electron. As seen in the previous diagram, the ionizing particle, represented in yellow, will have enough energy to knock off the electron of an atom, represented in green. The resulting ion-pair is very reactive and the reactions that follow can damage human DNA and tissue. Radiation Chart: Relation between Dosage and Symptoms Sieverts, or Sv, is the international standard for measuring radiation dosage. It is meant to measure the biological effects of ionizing particles. Below is a chart provided by environmental journalist Ben Jervey that shows the dosage as well as consequences of exposure to nuclear radiation.  [4]   The Effects of Nuclear Radiation on Plants and Soil Similarly to humans and animals, plants and soil are also affected negatively from high amounts of nuclear radiation. Just like in humans, radioactive material can damage plant tissue as well as inhibit plant growth. Mutations are also possible due to the damage caused to the DNA. Radioactive material in soil can prevent nutrient from being taken in by plants, causing it to be infertile. The effects of nuclear radiation can sometimes change the biodiversity of an area completely. Taking the Red Forest in Chernobyl, Russia as an example, the area is filled with radioactive material such as Iodine-131 and Cesium-137 due to the nuclear power plant disaster.  [5]  Many plants and organisms died within days of the disaster and the soil of the forest could not support life. However, after many years, as the radioactive material began to reach their half-life, sturdier plants and animals began to inhabit the contaminated zone. Although the Red Forest is still too radioactive for humans to settle in, it has been proven that the biodiversity of life within the forest is currently higher than it was before the nuclear disaster. The forest is now currently a wildlife refuge where all kinds of animal and plant species thrive.  [6]   Another example of nuclear radiations effects on soil is the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in Japan. The explosion at the nuclear reactor released clouds of radiation over much of Japans agricultural land. This caused crops to become irradiated and unsafe for consumption. The irradiated soil also bore irradiated plants or became infertile. Over 81,000 hectares of land were affected by the radiation.  [7]  Unlike Chernobyl, where European soil is good at absorbing radiation, and thus limits the amount of radiation absorbed by plants, Japanese soil is sandy, offering less resistance to radiation. Due to the lack of crops and food, many of Japans consumers have to rely on aid from other countries or imports. This has put considerable stress on Japans economy, not including the $13 billion that will cost Japan to completely decontaminate the affected area.  [8]  http://gdb.rferl.org/65D2A05D-CADB-40BA-92D2-533441CAE636_w640_r1_s.jpg A Journalist checking radiation levels at Fukushima Daiichi power plant. Radiation Therapy Ironically, while radiation in high, uncontrolled doses can be detrimental and even fatal to a persons wellbeing, it also has been proven that radiation can be used to treat certain health problems. The most significant of which are tumours and cancer cells. Radiation therapy is the use of x-ray, gamma rays or charged particles to kill cancer cells and reduce tumour growth. The treatment works by using the radiation to selectively damage the cancer cells DNA impeding or stopping its ability to replicate and grow. As the cancer cells slowly degrade, the human bodys natural defenses are able to naturally destroy the cancer cells. Radiation therapy is not without risks. The radiation used is also very harmful to every other type of cell within the human body. This is why the radiation used is mostly in the form of a pin-point laser directed at an angle so as to not affect other tissue other than the cancer cells and tumours.  [9]  Radiation Therapy Food Irradiation Another benefit of nuclear radiation can be found in our everyday lives in the form of food irradiation. As explained in the Fukushima case study previously, irradiation of food will make it unsafe for consumption, however, small amounts of nuclear radiation are able to kill bacteria and sterilize food, preventing spoilage. The amount of radiation needed for the process is so minute that it is safe for human consumption. To emphasize the safety of the food irradiation process, only gamma rays are used, which means that no neutrons are present to cause radioactivity in the food. Furthermore, the source of the gamma radiation never makes contact with the actual foodstuff. The extension of shelf life due to killing bacteria and other organisms can result in the lesser use of pesticide and preservatives in food. This also means that there is a lower risk of invasive species being exported to another country through the food. The increased spoilage time also allows for easier exporting over long distances.  [10]   Conclusion Based on the information and case studies presented in this report, we can conclude that nuclear power and radiation can be both beneficial and harmful to humans and the environment. Nuclear energy is dangerous and unstable and may result in great damage to the environment if something goes wrong. However, if used properly, it can provide large amounts of energy for in place of fossil fuels and other non-renewable resources. Nuclear radiation has also proven to be effective in certain medical treatment and food processing that benefit humanity. On the other hand, many are skeptical about the use of radiation in everyday life due to the volatile and dangerous nature of radiation.

An Overview of Bilingual Education Essay -- Teaching Education

Overview of Bilingual Education Is a second language a necessity in our world today? Should parents push for their child to learn two languages in elementary school? If we live in multicultural neighborhoods, trade with the global marketplace, and want to use all technology resources available, it is necessary to know two languages. Multilingual people and communities seem to have an edge over monolingual competition. This provides people of all ages an incentive to learn a second language (Genesee, 1998). In this research paper English and Spanish will be the languages referred to for bilingual education, although others are offered. The purpose of this paper is to compare the benefits and pitfalls of language immersion programs to the traditional classroom setting and the outcomes they produce. Bilingual education originating in Canada Language immersion programs now offered in the United States originated in Canada; they wanted English-speaking citizens to know French. Canadians realized English-speaking students were not acquiring enough French to attain satisfactory grades in school and to find jobs in French speaking parts of Canada. Around 1975 Canada’s first French immersion programs arose, and by the 1980’s such programs began in the United States (Martineau, 2002). Canadian programs are now facing problems with increased amounts of children with backgrounds other than English, which means they need to develop more specialty programs. Language immersion programs have grown in popularity since developing thirty years ago in Canada, but in the past 25 years they have increased rapidly in the United States. This development is due mainly to the melting pot effect in the United States; people from many dif... ...cial education degrees as well. Their main goal is to find the best and most efficient way to teach children with these problems. The instructions for these students were given in English and reinforced in Spanish until the child totally understood it in English. 31. Zehr, M. (2002). Bilingual Education Critic’s Research Sparking Debate. Education Week, 21(25), pp. 5. Retrieved March 12, 2002 from Internet. http://edweek.com/ew/ew_printstory.cfm?slug=25biling.h21 32. This article is about a political science professor named Christine H. Rossel who strongly apposes bilingual education. She debates that immigrant children should only be in English immersion programs for one year and students should leave bilingual education programs after two years. Apparently right now, this is an ongoing debate, and some states have already voted against bilingual education. An Overview of Bilingual Education Essay -- Teaching Education Overview of Bilingual Education Is a second language a necessity in our world today? Should parents push for their child to learn two languages in elementary school? If we live in multicultural neighborhoods, trade with the global marketplace, and want to use all technology resources available, it is necessary to know two languages. Multilingual people and communities seem to have an edge over monolingual competition. This provides people of all ages an incentive to learn a second language (Genesee, 1998). In this research paper English and Spanish will be the languages referred to for bilingual education, although others are offered. The purpose of this paper is to compare the benefits and pitfalls of language immersion programs to the traditional classroom setting and the outcomes they produce. Bilingual education originating in Canada Language immersion programs now offered in the United States originated in Canada; they wanted English-speaking citizens to know French. Canadians realized English-speaking students were not acquiring enough French to attain satisfactory grades in school and to find jobs in French speaking parts of Canada. Around 1975 Canada’s first French immersion programs arose, and by the 1980’s such programs began in the United States (Martineau, 2002). Canadian programs are now facing problems with increased amounts of children with backgrounds other than English, which means they need to develop more specialty programs. Language immersion programs have grown in popularity since developing thirty years ago in Canada, but in the past 25 years they have increased rapidly in the United States. This development is due mainly to the melting pot effect in the United States; people from many dif... ...cial education degrees as well. Their main goal is to find the best and most efficient way to teach children with these problems. The instructions for these students were given in English and reinforced in Spanish until the child totally understood it in English. 31. Zehr, M. (2002). Bilingual Education Critic’s Research Sparking Debate. Education Week, 21(25), pp. 5. Retrieved March 12, 2002 from Internet. http://edweek.com/ew/ew_printstory.cfm?slug=25biling.h21 32. This article is about a political science professor named Christine H. Rossel who strongly apposes bilingual education. She debates that immigrant children should only be in English immersion programs for one year and students should leave bilingual education programs after two years. Apparently right now, this is an ongoing debate, and some states have already voted against bilingual education.

The Political Community in Guatemala Essay -- essays research papers

The Political Community The â€Å"social apartheid† that exist in Guatemala separates Guatemala into two places and does not allow the country to be united, both democratically socially. The indigenous population is separated from opportunities. Without the minimal conditions, necessary for citizens to exercise their rights in practice there is not citizenship and therefore no â€Å"true† democracy. New democratic institutions must both address the anxiety existing among Ladinos and prove to be responsive to a sizeable segment of the national community that has previously been excluded based on language and ethnicity. Authoritarian regimes which retain considerable power and the democratic transition is never fully consolidated, stable, or lasting. Dealing not only with the elimination of military control, but also addressing the country’s historical problems, including massive social inequalities. More than half of Guatemalans are descendants of indigenous Mayan peoples. Westernized Mayans and mestizos (mixed European and indigenous ancestry) are known as Ladinos. Most of Guatemala's population is rural, though urbanization is accelerating. Although the official language is Spanish, it is not universally understood among the indigenous population. According to the World Bank, Guatemala is the country with the second-greatest income disparity between rich and poor in Latin America, behind Brazil. On which sides of that divide Guatemalans sit depends largely on whether they are Indian...

black lung disease :: essays research papers

Black Lung Disease   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Every year, almost 1,500 people who have worked in the nation’s coalmines die from black lung disease. That’s equivalent to the Titanic sinking every year, with no ships coming to the rescue. While that disaster which took place so long ago continues to fascinate the nation, black lung victims die an agonizing death in isolated rural communities, away from the spotlight of publicity.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Black lung is the legal term for a man-made, occupational lung disease that is contracted by prolonged breathing of coalmine dust. Some call it miner’s asthma, silicosis, pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis, coal workers' pneumoconiosis, or black lung. However, they are all dust diseases with the same symptoms.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Only the smallest particles of the coal dust make it past the nose, mouth, and throat into the alveoli found deep in the lungs. The alveoli, or air sacs, are responsible for exchanging gases with the blood, and are located at the end of each bronchiole. Microphages, a type of blood cell, gather foreign particles and carry them to where they can either be swallowed or coughed out. If too much dust is inhaled over a long period of time, some dust-laden microphages and particles collect permanently in the lungs causing black lung disease.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The main symptom of the disease is shortness of breath, which gets worse as the disease progresses. In severe cases, the patient may develop cor pulmonale, which is an enlargement and strain on the right side of the heart caused by chronic lung disease. Eventually, this may cause right-sided heart failure. Some patients develop emphysema as a complication of black lung disease. Others develop a severe type of black lung disease in which damage continues to the upper part of the lungs even after exposure to the dust has ended called progressive massive fibrosis.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Black lung disease can be diagnosed by checking a patient’s history for exposure to the coal dust, followed by a chest x-ray to see if the characteristic spots on the lungs are present. A pulmonary function test may help in the diagnosis. However, all coalminer’s should have chest x-rays every four years so the disease can be detected early.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Congress placed strict limits on airborne dust and ordered operators to take periodic air tests inside coalmines in 1969.

Alfred Marshall

Alfred Marshall became one of the most influential economists of his time. His book, Principles of Political Economy (1890) brought together the theories of supply and demand, of marginal utility and of the costs of production into a coherent whole. It became the dominant economic textbook in England for a long period . Born in London, and educated at St John’s College, Cambridge, Marshall took the mathematics tripos.By 1868 he was college lecturer in moral sciences at St John’s College, with particular responsibility for teaching political economy. In 1885 he became professor at Cambridge University, retiring in 1908. Marshall was regarded as one of the founders of the neoclassical school in economics and the most influential figure in the marginalist tradition of British economics. He dominated economics at Cambridge University almost to his death with many disciples, including A. C. Pigou, the young J. M. Keynes, and D. H. Robertson.His major contributions related to the economics of the stationary state, welfare economics, and partial equilibrium analysis; although claims could be made on his behalf for much that became part of economics textbooks over generations, including innovations relating to utility theory, economies of scale, and supply curves. Marshall saw economics as concerned with those aspects of human behavior open to pecuniary influences and sufficiently regular and ubiquitous to permit statements of broad scope and some persistence.While maintaining that some heeded moral imperatives might be impervious to pecuniary considerations, he conceded that most behaviors lay within the ambit of the measuring rod of money. On the other hand, he emphasized that motivation was not merely a matter of pursuing pecuniary self interest, even broadly conceived to include interests of family and friends. He stressed the human desire for social approbation or distinction, and the pleasures of skilful activity. Marshall developed a number of econ omic theories that main of which are the following:Demand Theory Marshall’s treatment of the theory of demand is sketchy, concentrating on the demand for a single commodity, or commodity group, against a loosely defined background. One of the outcomes of his Demand Theory is that demand price and consumer surplus are proportional to the marginal utility and the utility benefit, respectively, the proportionality factor being the reciprocal of the individual's marginal utility of money. This result is fundamental for Marshall’s welfare analysis.The now-familiar concept of demand elasticity – propor ¬tional quantity change divided by proportional price change -was first defined by Marshall. Production and Long-Period Competitive Supply In deriving the long-period supply curve of a commodity, Marshall envisages production as organized by firms, typically family businesses. Each firm strives to minimize its production costs, substituting one productive factor or pr oduction method for another according to the Principle of Substitution.In its simpler forms this involves marginalist adjustment to bring relative marginal value products into line with relative marginal costs. But more generally, the Principle of Substitution is akin to a natural selection process, being â€Å"a special and limited application of the law of survival of the fittest† . Marshall’s firms do not have costless access to a common production function, but must grope and experiment their way to cost-reducing modifications. The long period supply curve is defined for a given state of general scientific and technical knowledge. But each firm must explore this to some extent anew.The conception of competition in Marshall’s manufacturing case is much closer to later ideas of imperfect or monopolistic competition than to modern notions of perfect competition. Products are differentiated and firms are not price takers. Even if the difficulties of rapidly buil ding up a firm’s internal organization can be overcome, the resulting enlarged output can not be sold at a price covering cost – even granted substantial scale economies in production – without going through the slow process of building up a clientele and shifting the firm's particular demand curve.The time this takes is assumed to be considerable relative to the duration of the firm's initial vitality. But in some cases the difficulties of rapid expansion may be overcome. They may not have been very severe, as when different firms' products are highly substitut ¬able, or the firm's founder may have unusual genius. In such cases the industry will pass into a monopoly or be dominated by a few, strategically-interacting firms, or ‘conditional monopolies’ as Marshall termed them . Price Determination and Period AnalysisThe long-period supply curve for any good indicates for each market quantity the least price at which that quantity will continue ind efinitely to be supplied. The equilibrium price and quantity (long period) are determined by the intersection of this supply curve with the negatively sloped market demand curve, indicating the highest uniform price at which any total quantity can be sold. In an agricultural case, equilibrium will be unique as the supply curve slopes positively. But in a manufacturing case, the supply curve, as well as the demand curve, will have negative slope, so that multiple equilibrium can occur.Equilibrium is adjudged locally stable if demand price is above (below) supply price at a quantity just below (above) the equilibrium quantity. The intuitive justification for this is that the actual price of any available quantity is determined by the demand price, while quantity produced tends to increase whenever an excess of market price over supply price promises high profits, while it tends to decrease in the opposite case. Period analysis is Marshall’s most explicit and self-conscious appl ication of the comparative-static, partial-equilibrium method with which his name will always be associated.As he observed, the most important among the many uses of this method is to classify forces with reference to the time which they require for their work; and to impound in Ceteris Paribus those forces which are of minor importance relatively to the particular time we have in view Normal Value and Normal Profit Normal value is defined as the value which would result â€Å"if the economic conditions under view had time to work out undisturbed their full effect† . It is contrasted with market value, which is â€Å"the actual value at any time† .Normal value is hypothetical, its role being to indicate underlying tendencies. The normal value of a commodity may approximate its average value over periods sufficiently long for the â€Å"fitful and irregular causes† , which dominate market value to cancel out, but this should not be presupposed automatically outsid e a hypothetical stationary state. Profit was viewed by Marshall as the residual income accruing to a firm’s owner, a return to the investment of his own capital and to the pains he suffers in exercising his â€Å"business power† in planning, supervision and control.Normal profit is essentially an opportunity cost, the minimum return necessary to secure the owner’s inputs to their current use, or rather to accomplish this for an owner of normal ability. Marshall presumes that there is a large and elastic supply of versatile actual or potential owner managers of normal ability. In long-period equilibrium each of these must just receive the same normal rates of return on his investment and exercise of business power whatever his line of business. The brief survey of economic theories constructed by Alfred Marshall provides the grounds to maintain that the main field of his activity was macroeconomics.His theories include most of Ten Principles of Economics. Specif ically such principles as ‘People face tradeoffs’ and ‘The cost of something is what you give up to get it’ and ‘Rational people think at the margin’ are considered in his Demand Theory, while principles ‘Markets are usually a good way to organize economic activity’ and ‘Governments can sometimes improve market outcomes’ are considered in interrelated markets and distribution theory; and finally the principle ‘Prices rise when the government prints too much money’ is included in his monetary theory.BibliographyMarshall, A. (1893) On Rent. In C. W. Guillebaud, A. Marshall (1961), Principles of Economics. Vol. II , 492 -512.Marshall, A. (1890) The Principles of Economics, Retrieved on Feb. 19, 2007 from http://www. ecn. bris. ac. uk/het/marshall/prin/.Medema, Steven G. , Samuels, Warren J. (Eds. ). (2003) The History of Economic Thought: A Reader. New York: Routledge.O’Brien, D. P. (1981) A. Marshall. In D. P. O’Brien and J. R. Presley (Eds. ), Pioneers of Modern Economics in Britain (36-71). London: Macmillan.Robertson, H. M. (1970) Alfred Marshall’s aims and methods illus ¬trated from his treatment of distribution. History of Political Economy, 2 (1), 1-65.Whitaker, J. K. (1986) The continuing relevance of Alfred Marshall. In R. D. C. Black (Ed. ) Ideas in Economies, London: Macmillan.

Mental health programs Essay

Community health programs based in churches have been highly successful, although occasionally confusing and stressful for pastors to administer. However, it is not only physical health programs which have thrived; mental health and chemical dependency programs are an important supplement to church ministry and community service. Thompson and McRae argue that the Black church itself offers a positive therapeutic effect to its congregation, even without a formal mental health ministry in place. They discuss the historical basis for the Black church’s creation of community; the creation of the â€Å"we† group rather than the individual â€Å"I† and the need for belonging with a group, rather than to a group (41). They state â€Å"Embedded within the individual were past experiences, traditions, values, and norms for emotions, cognitions, and behaviors conducive to relatedness and â€Å"interpersonalness† that reflected a collective sense of belonging with rather than to, caring, similar others (Thompson & McRae, 41). † The Black church, in Thompson and McRae’s view, has created a bridge for the gap between the historic slave experience and the modern Black experience which helps ease the mental transition between worlds, and created a framework for dealing with hostility. They state â€Å"The Black church nurtures the survival of its members through providing a supportive, caring environment to facilitate an ever-widening upward spiral of positive cognitive, affective and behavioral outcomes for growth and change (Thompson & McRae, 46). † While the mere fact of church fellowship has a positive effect on its members, Black church involvement in formal mental health ministry programs has a significant impact on its members as well. Blank discussed the importance of mental health care within the church setting. They state that there are four areas of community care considered most effective in the church setting. These are primary care delivery, mental health, health promotion and disease promotion and health policy. Their review of studies underscored the importance of natural helpers (friends and extended family), lay helpers and most especially church leaders in the delivery of mental health care through an informal care system. Blank discussed the state of mental health care in the rural South in the 1970s; the population was discovered by researchers studying psychiatric utilization and morbidity in the area to be underserved, despite the general view that rural life was superior to urban. The problems contributing to low psychiatric utilization are complex; problems with service delivery, low quality of care (especially among minority patients) and lack of providers are entangled with social stigma surrounding psychiatric care, economic and social factors, geographic distance from providers, poverty, race and class issues to create a morass of issues a patient must slog through to acquire psychiatric care. Blank notes that at the time of the study, most counties lacked a single doctoral-level mental health professional; only 3% of licensed psychiatrists practice in the rural South, a number which has not changed significantly since the 1970s. In addition to the socioeconomic issues with receiving psychiatric care in the rural South, there are further problems relating to doctor-patient relations. Some theorists state that white mental health care providers cannot provide optimal care to Black patients because of their lack of knowledge and understanding of Black history and culture, as well as a lack of understanding of the difficulty of being Black in a white world; furthermore Black patients are less likely to trust white care providers due to racial tensions and differences in worldview (Blank , 1668). Instead, Black patients are considered to have a preference for Black care providers. While some studies have shown that Black patients do prefer Black care providers, stated reasons for this preference are a perception of greater professional competence and attitude, as well as racial and cultural compatibility (Blank , 1668). Blank emphasize the importance of sensitivity and cultural competence; it can lead to a greater understanding of non-normative minority behavior as well as an increase in trust levels between provider and patient which increase the possibility of a successful outcome. Blank discusses the cultural responsiveness hypothesis, which states that the effectiveness of psychotherapy is directly related to the therapist’s ability to communicate an understanding of the patient’s cultural background. Lack of this cultural responsiveness might account for some of the racial divide in diagnosis, treatment and premature termination of treatment observed between Black and white psychiatric patients (Blank, 1669). Blank hypothesized that rural churches provide fewer social and mental health services than urban churches, and that they have fewer links with the formal care system; furthermore, because of the importance of the church in the Black community and the historic exclusion of Black from formal care systems (schools, mental health services, etc), Black churches would provide more social and mental health services than white churches, but with fewer links to the formal care system (1669). Blank tested their theory using a phone survey of Black and white church leaders in both rural and urban areas in the South (defined in their study as Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Missisippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia (Blank, 1670)). A total of 2,867 churches were targeted, with a total of 269 completed interviews, or an overall participation rate of just under 10% (Blank, 1670). Rural Black churches, the targeted demographic, were actually least likely to participate in the study, with only a one in fourteen survey completion rate; the researchers cited lack of full-time staff creating difficulties reaching church leaders and a high rate of church leader refusal as factors in this low completion rate (Blank, 1670). The researchers discussed topics such as church demographics, including size and racial composition of the congregation, number of services held and attendance at the services, the church budget and founding date; problems the church’s congregants faced that the church leader considered to be most important; specific questions about mental health services provided by the church or church leader, including such issues as depression, paranoia, nervous breakdown, dementia and Alzheimer’s disease and attempted suicide; What type of support services were offered formally by the church to deal with these types of issues; and what links to the formal care system, including hospitals, care providers and support services like Alcoholics Anonymous existed, and if links existed to what level church leaders provided referrals to the formal care system (Blank, 1669). The researchers then constructed four different scales on which to rank the churches: Problems, which quantified the degree to which responding churches dealt with mental health problems over the previous two years; Programs for Adults, which quantified the number of mental health programs offered by the church, including those dealing with alcohol and substance abuse, marital counseling, sex education and counseling, domestic violence and sexual assault; Programs for Children, which quantified programs specifically aimed at support for children, including individual and family support services; and finally Programs for Teenagers, which quantified programs specifically aimed at support for teens. Referrals, both in and out, were also quantified (Blank, 1670). Statistical analysis using factorial analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to determine the correlation between the varying factors. The researchers found some surprising differences in funding – when adjusted for congregation size, rural white churches had substantially larger budgets than rural Black churches, and urban Black churches also had significantly larger budgets than the rural Black churches (Blank, 1670). However, both urban and rural Black churches were shown to offer significantly higher numbers of mental health programs overall than their white counterparts. There were no statistically significant variables in the study of links between referrals, but the modal response among churches overall was 0, indicating that all churches tend to lack links with the formal care system (Blank, 1671). Blank extrapolate concerning the possible reasons for lack of links between the formal care system and the informal care system provided by churches. They note that one of the difficulties may be historical in nature; because churches are often divided among racial and ethnic lines, there may be barriers to connection between the formal care system and churches precipitated by racial and ethnic tensions. Additionally, because churches have played a role as a political entity in the past, there may be lingering social tensions between churches and formal care systems which prevent these roles. (Blank, 1671). Another barrier may be the different paradigms of the formal care system and the church regarding the nature, causes and treatment of mental health problems.

People are not free to make moral decisions Essay

Is it right to say that our actions are determined, or are they free? Hard determinists argue that when we make a moral decision, we have no free will. This is significant because if we do not choose our actions we cannot be held morally responsible. Given our experience of decision making this determinist position is hard to accept and perhaps the compatabilist approach of soft determinism is more valid. Soft Determinists recognise that we can make a decision freely that is coerced but the choices in themselves may be determined themselves. This contrasts with libertarianism, which states that we freely choose our actions and rejects determinism. To fully examine whether we are in fact free or not to make moral decisions, we must first analyse what particular factors affect our decision making. When we debate over a decision we consider/ weigh up our options, we know that we have a choice and only we can make that choice, this is known as a libertarian view. Libertarians believe that we have full responsibility of our actions and nothing else affects our decision, however genes, environment, lifestyle and our upbringing affect or sometimes might determine our choices. Determinism objects libertarianism and believes that our choices are influenced by factors other than the will of the individual, events and actions are predetermined by other events therefore freedom of choice is an illusion. Free will is the term made up of ‘autos’ meaning self and ‘nomos’ meaning rule. Many philosophers such as Kant say that you can only be responsible for actions that you undertake of your own will, this is opposed to Determinism. Libertarianism is the belief that humans are free to make moral choices and therefore morally responsible. â€Å"By liberty we can only mean a power of acting of not acting according to the determinations of the will†. David Hume. In the definition of libertarianism a distinction between the persons character or personality and his/or her moral self. It is this moral self or will that is free. â€Å"Your destiny is allotted to you, but you shall choose it for yourselves†. Plato. There are many arguments that support libertarianism, the most predominant of these being the argument from experience, this states that we all experience making choices, such as the very fact that I am sat here writing this essay is the result of a choice, I did have another option so I could’ve chose otherwise. We are also aware of going through a decision making process, we can weigh up our options and act upon this. Libertarians also believe in the necessary cause stating that for Y to happen X must have caused it, without X Y will not happen. This is a determinist understanding, However Libertarians recognise that causes are contingent and not necessary, they may or may not cause Y, this is a libertarian view. However opposed to this Determinists would argue that if free will exists then what actually causes our actions, surely our actions are caused by something, for example what about our past experiences and emotions? Also a determinist would argue is it part of human nature to assume that we are free and what exactly is moral responsibility, and how is this separate from our personality. If it comes from the soul then what causes the soul. Hard determinism states that people do not have free will to act in moral situations. It also states that everything has a prior cause which precedes it; everything is a product of the cause which is unchangeable and fixed. Therefore we cannot be held morally responsible or blameworthy for their actions because their actions are determined. When we think that we are making a moral decision, hard determinists believe that this is an illusion that we are free but in fact we are not and the decision that we made was already determined. John Locke’s example of the man in the locked room shows that we believe that we are free but we are actually not. However libertarians would argue that we had the choice whether or not to go into the locked room. Psychological determinism is another form of Hard Determinism. This suggests that our characters are determined by our upbringing and experiences. There are many influencing factors on human behaviour such as hereditary, society, culture and environment. Freud taught that our early years have impact on our actions in the future, there is also much evidence to support this view such as Pavlov’s dogs which operant conditioning demonstrates that we can mould our behaviour through rewards and sanctions, it also demonstrates how our behaviour is determined. However a libertarian would argue that just because you can condition one element of decision making doesn’t mean that all behaviour is determined, we always have a choice. Theological determinism is also another form of hard determinism. This is the view that the causal chain can be traced back to an uncaused causer, as shown in Aquinas’ Cosmological argument, and this uncaused causer is God. If God is, as suggested by Calvin through his predestination view which suggests that God has already determined a plan for us so we are either damned (going to hell) or elect (going to heaven) , an omnipotent and omniscient God then we cannot have free will as our actions must be predetermined because of this. There are many criticisms for this view that Libertarians would address as it conflicts with biblical teachings as in Genesis it states that God gave us free will and also for theological determinism to be accepted, libertarians would also argue that there is no proof of this God, so in their view we still have a choice. A form of Hard Determinism that contrasts and argues this view is scientific determinism; this approach states that science tells us that for every physical event there is a physical cause. If we consider the mind to be material activity in the brain, so then our thoughts are also pre determined. Another form of hard determinism is Biological determinism which states that our characters are determined by our genes, this is partly true as genes do give us our characteristics such as what we look like, even our IQ, all this can determine our behaviour for example the violent gene as evidence can be traced back to the genome (e. g. a violent gene recognised by the Italian supreme court). However libertarians would argue that because there is only 0. 2% variation in our DNA, so this doesn’t seem efficient enough to explain all the variations in human behaviour, it’s not just our genetic makeup that influences our behaviour, and they would argue that we always have a choice. Soft determinism states that we are morally responsible for our actions; this approach allows libertarianism and hard determinism to be compatible. It states that as long as no one forces you to make a decision then you are free, this can be described as internal freedom. However soft determinists make a distinction between internal and external causes, these explain why freedom and Jeremy moral responsibility are not only compatible with determinism but actually require it. Soft Determinism, unlike hard determinism, allows for moral responsibility, for example if person A does not save a drowning child because person A cannot swim, he is not morally responsible. However, if he chooses not to because of his personality, a combination of his conditioning, an upbringing and so forth, then he is to be held responsible. Soft determinists believe that all human actions are caused and when we say that a person acted freely we are not saying that there was no cause but rather they were not forced to do it, here they act as free agents even though their actions are still caused. A main philosopher associated with soft determinism is Hume whom was a soft-determinist. He stated that all things are necessary and believed that some things are uncaused or happen as the result of chance. Hume also believed that we are free, he goes on to say that we don’t blame people for things they do ignorantly, and blame them less for things that are not premeditated, and any sense of moral blame can only come if something we do is the result of our character. Hume believed that free will, and moral responsibility, require determinism. Soft determinists are criticised by hard determinists for failing to realise the extent to which human freedom is limited and also by libertarians for failing to recognise the true extent of freedom. Whilst Soft determinism offers a ‘middle ground’ between hard determinism and libertinism an agreeable account of moral freedom, a line still has to be drawn between that which is determined and that which is open to choice. The major fault with soft determinism is that they have to try and agree on what is a determining factor and what is not and the complexities of genetics, psychology makes such a line difficult for them to draw. So In conclusion, through the arguments expressed in this essay, I believe that perhaps a Soft Determinist approach is more susceptible towards moral decision making, as although it allows us to make our own decisions, they are to an extent determined due to numerous factors such as our upbringing, environment and culture, however it also allows us to accept responsibility for our actions whatever they may be.

Homo sapiens’ Origin is Not Africa: Looking into Evidences of Man’s True Origin

There is a common notion that man’s birthplace is Africa. Dr. Chuchward, a known anthropologist, confirmed earlier findings of anthropologists (through examination of fossil remains) found out that the oldest ancestors of the human race originated in Africa. One of the anthropologists who ventured into Africa to study human fossil is Dr. Leakey (Origin of Man: Human Beginnings 1). In 1963, Leakey found human fossils dating back to 1. 2 million years ago in East Africa (Rift Valley Region), the oldest known fossils of hominids (Origin of Man: Human Beginnings 1).The theory was emphasized in many documentaries, usually sponsored by the National Geographic or the American Anthropological Society. Much of the content of these documentaries pointed man’s origin in the Rift Valley region in East Africa. On January 11, 1988, the Newsweek Magazine published an article entitled â€Å"The Search for Adam and Eve. † DNA tracing proved that the origin of man can be found to a single woman who lived in Sub-Saharan Africa between 80 000 and 200 000 years ago (Origin of Man: Human Beginnings 1).Her descendants migrated first to the Arabian Peninsula, then to India and Europe and to the rest of the world. This was confirmed by another scientist, Dr. Eric Higgs of Cambridge University. By studying the ancient migration of men, he theorized that the first man of Europe was from central and east Africa. It was about 200 00 years ago (prior to the Ice Age). Professor Chester Chard of the University of Wisconsin noted was able to prove that there existed in the remote past migration routes. Much of the routes’ origin is in Africa. Dr.Leakey once said that â€Å"it is inconceivable that man, the most curious and mobile of all animals, would not have come to America when the elephants, the tapirs and the deer came from Asia †¦ man spread out from Africa to Asia to Europe†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Origin of Man: Human Beginnings 1). This view of man’s ori gin had been confirmed and reconfirmed by the succeeding generation of anthropologists. For example, in 19888, Christopher Stringer and Peter Andrews pointed out that Homo sapiens had evolved from a Homo erectus group some 200 000 years ago (Bakalar1). This Homo erectus group later became extinct and replaced by their descendants, the Homo sapiens.Homo sapiens later migrated to Asia, Europe, and to the rest of the world. A known geologist, John Martyn was able to recover human fossils in the Great Rift Valley (in Kenya). Using a new method of dating fossils, he found out that the human skulls were 2. 4 million years old. Recently, some scientists are challenging the assumption that man’s origin is Africa. Professor Robin Dennell of the University of Sheffield in England and Wil Roebroeks of Leiden University in the Netherlands believed that early human fossils discovered over the past ten years indicate that humanlike or subhuman species had its origin in Asia (Bakalar 1).The y pointed to two significant finds of the century. A 1. 75 million year old small brained human fossils was found in Dmanisi, Georgia indicating that it was the descendant of Homo erectus living in the Asian continent in the past 2 million years. Another 18 000 year old hobbit fossils was found in the island of Flores in Indonesia (Bakalar 1). The two scientists theorized that because of the relatively small brains of the recent finds, large-scale migration is not possible. Professor Dennell said, â€Å"What seems reasonably clear now is that the earliest hominins in Asia did not need large brains or bodies† (prerequisite for migration).The two argued that there were no fossil or archeological proofs to support the claim that early humans moved from southern Africa to the Nile Valley in thee early Pleistocene period about 1. 8 million years ago to 11 500 years ago (Bakalar 1). They also argued that though the earliest evidence of a human ancestor in Asia appeared about 1. 8 m illion years ago (based from a human cranium found in Mojokerto, Indonesia), it cannot be said that no older specimens can be found in Asia.To support this claim, Stringer said â€Å"Evidence of humans in the Caucasus [region of Asia], China, and Java more than 1.6 million years ago implies either a very rapid spread from Africa after 1. 8 million years ago, or that such populations were established outside Africa earlier than present evidence suggests† (Bakalar 2). He added that rapid migration â€Å"out of Africa† was not possible owing to the fact that early climate prevented homo species from migrating out of Africa. The two said that most interpretations of early and recent findings pointed that the earliest â€Å"human† tools found in the Asian continent are usually attributed to Homo erectus (species usually thought of having its origin from Africa).H. ergaster is an African species assumed by many scientists as both the progenitor of Homo erectus and the only primate capable of migrating out of Africa (Bakalar 2). The body form of H. ergaster is the final proof that it is the remote ancestors of the Homo sapiens. Its body has humanlike proportions; its brain is capable of learning 9e. g. how to hunt game animals). There is though one flaw in this argument. Australopithecines (which is an older form of humanlike primates had virtually colonized the African region by 3. 5 million years ago.â€Å"Similar grasslands extended across Asia at the time, suggesting that Australopithecines could have survived quite well in the region,† the authors said. Added to that, fossil evidence for H. ergaster in the early Pleistocene period is generally unknown. This suggests that H. ergaster was not able to migrate â€Å"out of Africa† by the time Asia was teeming with early men (Bakalar 2). This interpretation was supported by the discovery of human fossils in Flores, Indonesia. The discovered fossils were named as H. floresiensis (Asi an origin). Two facts were really staggering for many scientists.The age of the fossils was relatively the same with that of the fossils found in Africa. And, H. floresiensis was capable of making primitive tools: tools which were used in hunting (Bakalar 2). The implication of the first fact is: distribution of early human populations across both the African and Asian continents was generally uniform (by 2. 6 million years ago). The two authors hypothesized that it is possible for either a multiple point origin (found in different parts of the world) or a single-point Asian origin of the human species.The two authors noted â€Å"The unresolved status of intriguing Flores finds attributed to H.floresiensis leaves open the possibility that this species is the end result and last survivor of an ancient migration of very primitive humans, or even prehumans that formerly existed more widely across Asia† (Bakalar 2). The implication of the second fact is: stone tools used by early men across Asia did not point to an African origin nor did represent an advanced state of development. Added to that, the two authors concluded that â€Å"the Dmanisi [Georgia] hominins are an extremely primitive version of H. erectus that is the ancestor of the H.erectus populations in both Java and those in East Asia† (Bakalar 2).Thus, there is a high probability that the origin of early men rests on the continent of Asia. The theory of Multiregional Evolution was examined in the article of Wolpoff and Caspari entitled â€Å"No, Homo Sapiens Did Not Originate in Africa† (in the book Taking Sides, World History, V. 1). The theory assumed that there are multiple points of man’s evolution in the remote past. Specifically, this theory adhered to the concept of polytypism. Polytypism is the existence of observable average differences between populations.Since different populations of early men differed significantly on certain measurements, multiregionalists argue d that patterns of migration varied across potential routes. Some populations would become isolated, and hence, might show significant differences over the course of time. Some populations might become almost identical in terms of physiological characteristics because of cultural or biological proximity. Thus, multiregionalists argued that the single-point origin of the human species cannot explain the differences found across early human populations.The two suggested that local evolutionary events took place across the world after the appearance of Homo sapiens. According to the two, populations of Homo evolved from a single species. Thus, the propensity of speciation between Pleistocene human populations was not possible (speciation is the splitting of one species into two) (Mitchell and Mitchell, 12-13). This hypothesis became a point of challenge to the prevailing Out of Africa Model which states that Homo sapiens evolved recently as a new species in Africa, and then dispersed t hroughout the world (by routes).The Out of Africa Model also claimed that Homo sapiens were responsible for replacing the existing human populations of those regions without biologically mixing with them. The two pointed out that evidences of an earlier revolution took place in a small group isolated from australopithecine species. Thus, Homo sapiens remained significantly different from australopithecines in both anatomy and physiology (Mitchell and Mitchell, 13-15).

Personal statement for Ucas Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Personal statement for Ucas - Essay Example My capability of handling this course can be traced back to my childhood. I have always enjoyed such subjects as, mathematics, and physics. More to this, I am a good team player, who corporate maximally with other members to promote the intended objective. Given that this field requires a lot of cooperation to enhance effectiveness, I believe that I shall find it easy to work with my fellow students and colleagues after graduation. In addition, I am a very curious person. I ask several questions, and analyze situations in detail, which I believe will help me achieve success in the course, and in my future career. Having worked as an intern in Balfour Beatty plc for three months, I am further convinced that mechanical engineering adds meaning to my life. During the period of the internship, I developed my analysis, and design skills, which encouraged me to pursue this course. My inspiration to undertake this course is intrinsic. First, I am a hardworking individual, as evidenced by my high grades. I purpose to be the best in what I do, and will ensure that I do my assignments well. Secondly, I enjoy engaging in challenging activities as they promote my problem solving skills. Taking this course will expose me to technical issues that will engage my mind, thus giving me a great time in school. In addition, famous mechanical engineers, such as, Leighton Sissom inspires my life. I admire his dedication into the field, and get encouraged that I can also make it in this field. His renowned leadership in engineering makes me realize that this course offers more than just course work. Additionally, he has published various works that contribute to the advancement of engineering (Ficarra, 2010, pp.696-697). Being in the company of professional engineers also encourages me to pursue the subject. My mentor, for example, is an engineer by profession. I admire what he does, and he encourages me to pursue the subject. He

E-commerce Web site evaluation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

E-commerce Web site evaluation - Essay Example The words car and audio do not figure independently within the meta tags for keywords. This site would hardly be picked up by search engines if someone is looking for something as specific as ‘car audio systems in Lancashire’. Google did not. At least not in the first three pages of the search results. The basic point is that the homepage fails to convey instantaneously what it is all about, a major lapse in presentation. Not a good first impression. But let us take things one at a time, and try to evaluate the website from the perspective of the most important features that any worthwhile e-Commerce website should possess. The concept of usability, which is concerned with making software systems easy to learn and easy to use, has recently gained increased attention with the development and wide diffusion of end-user interactive software applications (Dray 1995, p. 18). Navigation, hyperlink positioning, clear demarcation of advertisement area from content area, use of colour codes and continuity in design are some of aspects on which the usability of a website depends. The website under evaluation does not distinguish in anyway between hypertext and ordinary text. Though underlining of the hyperlinks is not necessary as they are placed in the conventional left hand navigation bar, the font and colour of the hyperlinks are exactly the same as other text used in the site resulting in the impression that the address of the firm are also hyperlinks. There is also no difference between visited and unvisited links. This goes against the basics of website navigability: The way the website displays its products looks very much like the advertisements or company logo that it carries. Advertisement area and content areas are not demarcated. The danger in this case lies in how users tend to scan web pages: ‘Most famously, users exhibit incredibly powerful "banner blindness." Eye-tracking studies have recorded microseconds-long

In Depth Divorse Law Case Study Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

In Depth Divorse Law Case Study - Assignment Example Fixed resource bargaining or simply â€Å"Zero-Sum† is sometimes referred to as win-lose or distributive bargaining. It is a negotiation strategy in bargaining that is usually employed in the distribution of fixed resources like money hence the name Fixed resource bargaining. Each party in the negotiations usually feel that their objectives or interests are in a balance and therefore the major goal is the trying to and securing concession from the party that is unwilling. Hence one of the parties will lose and thus the name win-lose bargaining.It is a bargaining type that is significant since it aids in solving disputes that would otherwise no have been resolved by employing any other method. In the event that the stakes involved are very high, the resistance to decree is oftenly heightened. It is very difficult to announce as to how the matter that is being negotiated will be dealt with.The captious layout in the â€Å"Zero-Sum† bargaining method is analyzed by a †Å"bargaining some model of negotiations†. There are three vital negotiation points in the model in the book. The first is the offer point in which one side opens an offer to the opposite side. By doing this, expectations from both groups are stipulated as a beginning point. Nevertheless this is done with the supposition that stipulating the desired point in which they contain their rational and final agreement. Of course the other party will rebut this favoring the target they contain.

Water and Environment science Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Water and Environment science - Research Paper Example the inhabitants of the Portland city since it supplies them with sufficient amounts of fish like the Chinook, Sockeye and the Chun Salmon, wild animals as well as natural sceneries. The bird species are found on the river banks and they include the bald eagles and the great blue herons (Sethajintanin, et al., 114). Willamette River has undergone a tremendous change in the last two hundred years which is characterized by various human activities like the building of dams, dykes, and dredging. There are various sources of pollution in the Willamette River which include the sanitary discharge from the cities of Corvallis and Portland whose combined storm as well as the sanitary sewer release untreated sewage in to the river during the rainy season. Oil and fuel spills are common in the river because of the boating activity common in the river. Sediment erosion is common in the area where flood carries pollutants from upstream areas in to the river thus causing pollution of the river. Household wastes like solvents soaps as well as the household chemicals that are washed down from the roofs and eventually drain into the river (Poor & Jeffrey, 772). The Willamette River is now considered cleaner than it was in the late 1920’s and in the 1930’s when the river was in a much polluted state that a fish placed in it could die immediately. An authority known as the State Sanitary Authority which was later changed into the Department of Environment Quality. This Authority was responsible for overseeing the cleaning up of the River. In 1968, a major clean up was done which involved the identification of all major waste discharges were controlled thus making the river much safer (Rojas-Burke, 134). From the results of the data collected from the river it is clear that the temperatures were high during the three testing scenarios because of the times in which the samples were taken. High temperatures affect the functioning of the aquatic life since their bodies function

Context paper English 105 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Context paper English 105 - Essay Example Ryves Hall has proved to be a second home for children of all ages in the Terre Haute locality, regardless of race or money. They serve children from ages three to seventeen and all their programs are age related, appropriately designed to benefit the children. Ryves Hall has been offering service to any children who walk in. All the activities provided by the institutions are free for the children. Their primary mission is to assist children and families in Terra haute, which is one of the most impoverished areas in the locality. They serve children who lack educational facilities, unemployment, hunger and poverty. It is the beacon of hope for many young Americans who are deprived of basic necessities in life. Most of the children who attended Ryves can be put under â€Å"at- risk youth â€Å"as they come from single parent, below poverty line and children who do not have anyone to turn to. â€Å"Students from lower socio-economic status are often denied the same luxuries that other students take for granted. These individuals often live in a single parent homes where the mother is the sole financial provider, disciplinarian and caregiver and may face issues such as hunger, live infestations, lack of hot water and inadequate attention† (Miller). Ryves Hall takes care of these children who lack the normal home upbringing. The children who are under their wings are between three and seventeen. Half of them come from minority population. Their main aim is to give them a second chance in life and to bring them up in the best possible way. Living in a home where basic needs as well as guidance are not available can have a negative impact on the children. Ryes Hall acts as their mentor and guides them to be respectable citizens in the society. Most of the children in Ryes Hall display problems associated with having to grow up too early due to lack of proper guidance at home. Many of them have experienced substance abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse and low

Whitness - White trash, white people Assignment

Whitness - White trash, white people - Assignment Example modern structure and reconstitutions of the white identity and its implications to various regional and national contexts where the white privilege is in effect and what this entails. The essay also attempts to understand the multiplicity of whiteness and its connections with other social structures more so for the social classes (Dwyer and Jones 209). Pay attention to the intertwining connection of racial categories and the power granting certain privileges to certain social categories and how it eventually affects attitudes towards certain racial classes (McCann 2). According to Ignatiev, â€Å"Whiteness is not a culture...Whiteness has nothing to do with culture and everything to do with social position. It is nothing but a reflection of privilege, and exists for no reason other than to defend it† (par. 3). For many years whiteness has generally gone under the radar remaining untouched and deactivated, mainly taken for granted in the social and popular discussions involving race. Many studies and works have shown on occasion that white is always an available and open choice when talking about race and more often than not whites have had the opportunity to glance at world through a sieve of racial responsiveness (Ramos-Zayas 76) but as such remains to be an invisible race. In films it is sometimes difficult to see whiteness depicted in the film as an ethnic class as it is difficult to perceive it in a sense that white power is secure in its hold on its position of authority (Dryer 126). Although upon closer inspection it comes up as empty, absent even dead or at the point of death, but one might realize that it is important to try to make some development in seeing whiteness as a cultural or ethnic category. Studies have often portrayed various groups as oppressed, marginal or subordinate including women, the working class, ethnic and other minorities like gay and lesbians, the disabled and the elderly. The urge to do such lies in the logic on how these social

The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leardeship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leardeship - Essay Example This has made me to spend my time studying and reading motivational books that has really expanded my horizon and changed my perspective about life. The Law of Process has been enacted in my life as I have learnt that life is a transformational phase as I have developed over time. Just like the world is not stagnant, my life has evolved over time and now I believe in the Law of Process. The first law, which is the Law of the Lid is the one that I have found out that I am relatively weak in. The Law of the Lid as postulated by John Maxwell states that, one’s leadership ability is the lid that decides how effective one would be in the position of leadership (Maxwell). I have never been a leader before and this makes me feel that I don’t have any leadership quality. The Law of the Lid also postulates that, talented people would make effective leaders and I feel that I am not talented enough for the position of leadership. This is actually a feeling and I would have to work on this weakness in order to increase my effectiveness in this regard. I would believe more in myself and I would have the I CAN attitude. I believe by doing this, I would have worked on my weakness and increase my level of effectiveness as a