Saturday, August 31, 2019

“Figures of Speech Are Sometimes Used to Effectively Convey a Sense of Place.”

â€Å"Figures of speech are sometimes used to effectively convey a sense of place. † Explain and evaluate how this is achieved in text 22 and one other text of your choice. Text 22 and text 23 both use figures of speech to effectively convey a sense of place. Text 22 is a private diary in second person singular, this is a positive view on travel, the writer’s attitudes and personality emerges with exuberance, energy and enthusiasm for the people she meets and the landscape she sees. The audience of this text are middle-aged writers particularly women. The primary purpose is to describe and the secondary purpose is to entertain. In contrast, text 23 is a third person narrative travel article from a magazine, the audience of this text is educated travellers and people interested in travel. The purpose of this text is primarily to inform, and secondarily to entertain (similarly to text 22). A negative and positive view of travel is expressed by the writer in text 23. Text 22 uses figures of speech like personification and metaphors to convey a sense of place. Personification is used to describe the Helm Crag, â€Å"Helm Crag rose very bold and craggy, a being by itself† It is becoming a part of the beautiful surroundings described by the writer of the diary or maybe a monster as the adjectives bold and craggy are not blissful. The metaphor, â€Å"the river came galloping past the church† brings the river to life describing it like a horse, a horse is quite a pleasant spirited animal meaning the view of the writer was that of positivism towards horses maybe she rode horses regularly or even owned one, this shows the personality of the writer and her positive view on the nature and her surroundings. Also the metaphor, â€Å"the ashes glittering spears with their upright stems† this extra information in a long complex sentence brings life and personality to the trees, the writer obviously sees the nature of her landscape more alive and closer to her than her friends, as she describes the nature surrounding her more positively than her friends mentioned for example, â€Å"Mr and Mrs Olliff drank tea and supped with us† Whereas, text 23 uses a variety of figures of speech like metaphors, hyperbole, similes and imagery to convey a sense of place. The metaphor, â€Å"unparalleled network of virtually maintenance free highways† describes the comparison between the rivers of Africa and the British motorways. But the Zaire River is different to British motorways in shape; the rivers of Africa are curved and winding. In addition, unbelievable descriptive imagery is used, â€Å"revenge glistening in its green eyes† this negative imagery describes the crocodiles as evil and avenging. Hyperbole is used, â€Å"screaming traders jammed the other† the over-exaggerated verb â€Å"screaming† is used to show the extent of the vocal chords used by the traders, and the attitudes and desperate feelings of the traders which the writer emphasises through this quotation. The simile, â€Å"toted like furry purses† is used to describe the misfortune of the monkeys and the cruelty the animals mentioned had suffered. Comparing the white-nosed monkeys to purses emphasises the attitudes of the capitalist traders just looking for profit.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Truck Driving: How to Do It

How many of us can drive a truck? Most people wouldn’t know where to start. All they see is a huge chunk of metal with wheels and can’t fathom driving it. Using this guide will give a crash course (no pun intended) in truck driving and what it’s like on the road with these monsters. It also may help one understand the world of the truck driver and give them a new found respect for them. One of the first steps every truck driver must do before setting out on a trip is the pre-trip inspection. On some tractor-trailers there are as much as one hundred items that need to be checked or replaced. Some of these items include wheels and tires, brakes, lights, and fuel containers. All of which can be a major hazard to other drivers if they are not fixed or properly secured. Another equally important step for a truck driver is making sure the cargo is properly stowed or locked down. Depending on the trailer type there are various ways to properly secure the cargo, such as straps, chains, and wedge blocks. If the cargo isn’t properly secured it can shift and cause the truck to be overweight in a certain area. Being overweight on a certain side or on a certain axel can have a devastating effect on the road or on the truck itself. Federal dictates the no tractor-trailer can exceed 80,000 lbs without proper paperwork. Another area that needs to be checked thoroughly is the inside of the cab and the dash instruments. Most trucks have three times as many gauges as a pedestrian vehicle. Some that you would not find in a car is the air (psi), exhaust temp. , turbo pressure, and oil temperature. It is very important that we keep a check on all the various fluids the truck needs as well. Most trucks will not crank if a fluid level is to low such as the water. Once out on the road a truck driver has to be extremely cautious and aware of what is happening on the road. One of the most overlooked and easiest things to do is watching the mirrors very often. The mirrors are there to help you drive safely and efficiently. It is a very important step to master for the safety of ourselves and the other drivers. There are many more steps and regulations to go along with truck driving. Each state has its own rules and regulations as well as certain cities. Most of which can be viewed on the state DMV website. I hope this essay helps anyone looking to become a truck driver, and remember, keep an eye on those mirrors.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

A Historz of the Study of Classical Conditioning and Its use

A Historz of the Study of Classical Conditioning and Its use Classical Conditioning Each day, people are conditioned without even realizing it. This may include being productive at work to avoid losing a job or associating a gas station with anger because it is right next to that one light that never turns green. Whatever it may be, what people have been conditioned to think and do affect them everyday. One form of conditioning is known as classical conditioning. This form of conditioning includes an unconditioned stimulus combined with an conditioned stimulus to create a conditioned response. Through classical conditioning, people find themselves automatically responding in ways that are not natural to them due to stimuli that they have been conditioned to respond to. Classical conditioning began in the early nineteen hundreds when Ivan Pavlov observed that dogs salivate when they see food. This was an unconditioned response. He decided to experiment with this by ringing a bell, a conditioned stimulus, every time he brought food, an unconditioned stimulus, to the dogs. At first, when he rang the bell without food, the dogs had no reaction. However, after sometime of ringing the bell before giving the dogs food, the dogs began to associate the bell with food. As a result, the dogs had been conditioned to respond to the bell with salivation, even if food did not come afterwards (Myers, 2013, p. 269). Within classical conditioning there are two types of learning: signal and evaluative. In signal learning, there is an â€Å"if-then† relationship between the unconditioned stimulus and the conditioned stimulus. In classical conditioning where evaluative learning is used, the subject is unaware of the unconditioned and conditioned stimulus, and th e subject subconsciously connotes positive and negative feelings with the stimuli (Pornpitakpan, 2012, p. 282). Classical conditioning is seen in practice nearly every day. For example, at my grandfather’s funeral we sang the hymn â€Å"Nearer, My God, to Thee†. While before his funeral, this hymn was just another song from church, now whenever I hear the song I get sad as it reminds me of my grandpa’s absence. The unconditioned stimulus was that my grandpa died, and this created the unconditioned response of sadness. The neutral stimulus, the song, when matched with the unconditioned stimulus created the same unconditioned response. Soon, the neutral stimulus of the hymn became a conditioned stimulus and created the conditioned response of sadness. This situation is an example of evaluative learning. I was not aware of the conditioning that was happening, instead I was feeling a response to a related stimulus. Another example of classical conditioning in my life is my from my junior year in high school. I had a concussion that year and had a tutor coming to my house everyday to help me manage my school work. After I recovered, whenever I saw that tutor around town or in school I began to experience a headache much like I did when I had a concussion. The unconditioned stimulus, my concussion, created the unconditioned response of my headache. A neutral stimulus, my tutor, become associated with the unconditioned stimulus of my concussion, and I soon became conditioned to respond with a headache whenever I saw my tutor, or the conditioned stimulus. This is an example of signal learning as it resulted into the situation where if I saw my tutor then I would get a headache. Without anyone’s knowledge, classical conditioning occurs all the time. Sometimes it happens in a lab, like with Pavlov and his dogs, but most the time it appears naturally as seen in my life. With a true grasp of classical conditioning, a person can come to understand their life and the reasons they do certain things and react in certain ways to certain stimuli.

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

To what extent do leaders shape their movements, and to what extent Essay

To what extent do leaders shape their movements, and to what extent are they shaped by them Illustrate your answer with reference to leaders from more than one - Essay Example This particular essay will be conducted in a manner such that briefly some theories of the leadership and the behaviors of the leaders are discussed. The conclusions related to the theories will be supported by one of the leader who is selected for the discussion here. The leader is selected on the basis of the major revolutionary changes that have been made because of his and his movements’ contributions. Kirk (2005) argues that according to the 1trait theory which is designed in the context of the leadership, the leaders have the personalities as well as the behavioral tendencies that make the leaders the way they are. The theory says that there will be certain traits and characteristics in the person that will make him behave in the leading manner. In addition to this the contingency theory suggests that in addition to the behavioral tendencies that the person has, the leadership qualities of the person are shaped more by the surrounding situation that the person belongs to. Many of the historical authors have written the leadership qualities what seemed appropriate to them. In the case of Sanskrit, there are ten main qualities in the leader that have been defined. According to the aristocratic thinkers, the leadership quality of the person comes from the familial traits or the genes of the person. If the leadership runs in the family than the person would be possessing the leadership qualities. But this in my point of view still depends on the situation that the person is in. Sunnemark (2004) discusses that in these historical times, we have seen many leaders who may be related to the political movements which have worked for the changes in the social society as well. 2Therefore the leaders are always important to the social movements that ever occurred in the history. The scholars have tried hard to learn as to what

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Duchennes Muscular Dystrophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Duchennes Muscular Dystrophy - Essay Example Duchenne muscular dystrophy or Pseudohypertrophic muscular dystrophy or Muscular dystrophy- Duchenne type is an X-linked neuromuscular disorder of muscle caused by an absence of the protein dystrophin. DMD was named in recognition of Dr. G. Duchenne de Boulogne from France around 150 years ago. He was the first person to attribute the signs and symptoms to a distinct familial disease entity. The gene responsible for it is DMD gene which is known to be the largest gene encoding the muscle protein, dystrophin the discovery of this gene was made around 20 years ago. Dystrophin provides structural stability to the dystroglycan complex (DGC) present on the cell membrane as it attaches with the inner surface of the muscle fiber membrane. A mutation in the DMD gene residing in Xp21 region of the X-chromosome, hampers the production of dystrophin protein causing progressive loss of muscle function and weakness (Partridge, 2007). It starts with the lower limbs and gradually covers the entire musculature. DMD is rapidly progressing form of muscular dystrophy affecting male with a frequency of 1 in 3500 infants (Chamberlain, 2006). It is observed that the affected boys start manifesting symptoms of disease early in life usually before 5 years of age. They become powerless and are unable to walk and are restricted to wheel chair during their late childhood or early teen years. Patients usually develop various complications related with respiratory insufficiency and/ or cardiomyopathy as the disease progresses. Death occurs at by late teen age or in the early twenties (Chamberlin, 2006). It is essential to provide appropriate treatment to overcome the basic genetic defect, either through medical, surgical, and rehabilitative approaches to make the patient comfortable (Sussman, 2002). Symptoms Before the age of 6 years symptoms start becoming obvious, although they are visible in early infancy. There are three clinical stages: an ambulatory stage, an early nonambulatory stage, and a late nonambulatory stage. Ambulatory Stage- This is between two and four years of age, at this stage, symptoms start appearing. Symptoms show weakness of forward head flexion and a inadequate capability to sit up persist beyond infancy leading to poor motor development, deficient memory skills and they gradually reduce their ability to cope with their peers both physically and mentally. Heel cord and elbow flexion contractures are also apparent. In rare cases, obstructive sleep apnea also develops along with facial soiling. The ECG readings show- Q waves leads in the lateral precordial while tall R and deep S waves leads in early precordial (Chamberlain, 2006). If glucocorticoids are not given then by the age of nine years, the child starts lacking ability to rise from supine to standing position and to climb stairs or arise from a chair and are able to ambulate with braces. Early Nonambulatory Stage- This stage is between 10 and 12 years, the patient becomes dependent on wheel chair and flexion contractures at the ankle and elbow becomes more obvious. In this stage aquatic therapy may slow the progression. The dependency on wheel chair develops scoliosis and the patient needs orthopedic consultation along with radiological evaluation. The average strength of the patient starts declining at the age of 9 years. Late Nonambulatory Sta

Monday, August 26, 2019

Performance Management in Organisations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Performance Management in Organisations - Essay Example The paper offers a thorough analysis of the performance management system (PMS). It provides the information about vital components of the PMS, namely, its objectives, stages of development, setting of company goals and standards, working on performance appraisal, communication, and training. The author proves that an effective performance management system enables an organisation to set targets, monitor implementation, and evaluate the performance of its employees. It provides a platform to the management for communicating with employees in order to evolve ways and means to increase productivity and efficiency of the organization as a whole. The research shows that a successful PMS facilitates an effective dialogue between employee and supervisor to enhance individual performance. In particular, it gives managers and supervisors opportunities for giving positive reinforcement to employees. In order to be effective and acceptable, performance appraisals should be fair, open, and posi tive with developmental objectives. The unique part of the work is that the notion of the PMS is studied not only theoretically, but also through the comparison of the PMSs of two institutions,a state secondary school and a haulage firm. The author creates performance appraisal sheets for measuring teachers' and managerial work. Appraisal parameters of teachers' performance are academic knowledge and communication skills, ability to prepare lesson plans and to deliver them. Appraisal parameters of managerial work are managerial, operational, administrative, and decision-making skills.

Sunday, August 25, 2019

HW 1 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

HW 1 - Essay Example In addition, globalization contributes to unfair employment practices and working conditions, which are mostly perpetrated by large organizations. Thirdly, globalization makes large organizations to exercise little accountability in the conduct of business (Norberg, 2011). I disagree with the statement about sweatshops because I believe that, rather than enhancing progress, they tend to derail it. The working conditions brought about by the idea of sweatshops are not impressive and they often lead to the victimization of employees. Sweatshops should not be tolerated since they demean humans and are an insult to human dignity. This idea subjects employees to poor wages; the work they do is not worth the income they are paid. From an economic point of view, sweatshops tend to perpetrate poverty rather than alleviate it. Modern technology has had a huge impact on globalization. The developments and advancements in technology have driven globalization and led to the spread of trade among nations. Most of the globalization processes have been facilitated by technology. For example, modern technology has enhanced the mass production of goods and services. In addition, communication technology has led to the exchange of information about business activities between nations (Norberg,

Forumlaw3 Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Forumlaw3 - Article Example These seriously required services vary from housekeeping and friend mind to help with individual care such as bathing, tie up, toileting, and consumption. I selected this agency because it plays a definitely immense task filling gaps in residence concern services not sheltered below expert concern. Inexperienced house care services like individual care help or additional works such as catering and cleaning help is frequently what may be required by majority for them to stay in their homes (Davis, 1975). The type of disputes presented to the body includes denial of shelter or housing, and personal care such as provision of clean drinking water and garbage collection. The administrative dispute resolution process begins with the compliant presenting a written request to the department for it to evaluate the decision. The official demand must be faxed or emailed within thirty days after the no-medical house department had completed its inquiry. It is essential that the process of appeal begins only after a complaint makes an official request to the department to evaluate its decision or choice. Further, the resolution dispute process of the agency involves the use of trial-type hearing to decide facts in disputes between parties and it also uses formal adjudication in dispute resolution. This is what many in our society consider as the only or paramount way to resolve dispute (Davis, 1975). Matters can be brought to court instead of the agency when the topic is jurisdiction and there are only two kinds of suitcases thus cases that occur under a national law. Federal region judges have issue of authority if your case is based on any federal law or an issue of mixture citizenship. The matter can be brought to the court in case the parties involved are not willing to agree on a common stand. I agree with the sentiment that the administrative dispute resolution process starts with the compliant presenting a formal request to the department for it to

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Tort of law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Tort of law - Essay Example Section 1 of Compensation Act reaffirms the present common law, and it should be noted that it was not meant to transform the law but to only to transform the perception among the public mind. (Lunney & Oliphant2008:178). Under English common law, an action for infringement of statutory duty can be initiated if an individual has suffered damage due to a breach of a statute and can initiate an action in tort as regards to such damages. In such cases, the claimant has to establish that the defendant had failed to carry out his legal duty in this regard. Thus, there is no necessity to prove whether such breach of duty was either negligent or intentional. It is to be noted that in Couch v Steel1, it was held that whenever there is an infringement of a law provision which resulted in damage to an individual interest, a right of action can be initiated under tort. However in Groves v Lord Winborne 2 and in Atkinson v New Castle and Gateshead Waterworks Co 3 which were the leading nineteent h century cases which strikingly barred the ambit of the tort, and demanded that any individual claim for infringement of statutory obligation must first prove that the legislature had an intent that an infringement of such individual’s interest or right should be tortuous. Lord Denning MR in Ex p Island Records Ltd held that if a private right is being hindered with by a criminal act, thereby resulting in a special damage over and above the generality of the public, then, under such scenarios, such individual can approach the court as a private individual and prey that his private rights should be safeguarded. (Murphy & Street 2007: 492). In establishing the standard of care, the courts will also look into any pertinent social utility linked with the defendant’s conduct. This includes fortitude of the general public interest so that issues other than just in dispute between the defendant and the claimant may be taken into account in evaluating the standard of care nee d of the defendant. (Murphy & Street 2007: 101). However, now, the English courts are giving due importance to the social utility of would be respondent activities, which have been now given statutory force. The section 1 of the Compensation Act 2006 now provides that where a court is judging a claim of negligence, it will, in establishing the needed standard care, â€Å"have a conscience to whether there is a need to take those actions which are required to meet that standard might be a) bar a proposed activity from being perused at all, to a specific magnitude or in a specific way, or b) dissuade such individuals from perusing such activities in relation to such desirable activity.† (Murphy & Street 2007: 102). In Anns v. Merton London Borough Council4, the plaintiffs were the lessees of a group of flats owned by the defendant. The lessees subsequently discovered that the flats were constructed with inadequate foundations. In this case , the House of Lords confirmed the fin dings of the Court of Appeals that plaintiffs could initiate an action against the defendants for the cost of repairing the foundations.( Christie 2000:123). In Stovin v Wise5 , it was held that even where the administrators have entered into some type of action to prevent the third party, and if they carelessly skip some probable â€Å"

Friday, August 23, 2019

Ratings In Schools And Accountability Systems Research Paper

Ratings In Schools And Accountability Systems - Research Paper Example Administrators also feel pressure when accountability systems are adopted. They report that they must spend additional hours defending their schools' competitive standing with parents, teachers, and the media--hours that they once spent more productively. In response to these worries and pressures, educators also begin to adjust the focus of their efforts. Their curricula and teaching efforts become more standardized and superficial. Moreover, since they want their schools to look well on competitive tests, they tend to restrict instruction to the topics assessed by those tests. A sad example of how this process works was recently described by sociologists Jere Gilles, Simon Geletta, and Cortney Daniels. In 1993 the State of Missouri created an accountability program designed around a new assessment instrument, the Missouri Mastery Achievement Test. This test was tied to a new curriculum that had been developed by the state's department of education, and all schools were required to administer it so that it could be used as a "report card"--letting the public know how well their own schools were doing compared with others in the state. As Gilles and his colleagues describe the outcome, results of this. Quality programs and textbooks were scrapped in order to replace them with materials that directly taught the test, and an unholy competition emerged between districts and communities over test scores. In some districts a week or more of instructional time each year was devoted to this test.... scrapped in order to replace them with materials that directly taught the test, and an unholy competition emerged between districts and communities over test scores. In some districts a week or more of instructional time each year was devoted to [preparing for] this test (Gabbard 67). Moreover, this was not an isolated incident. As testing specialist George Madaus has suggested, when you have high-stakes tests, the tests eventually become the curriculum. It happened with the Regents exams in New York. Items that are not emphasized in the testare not emphasized in school. That's a fundamental lesson that cuts across countries and across time. Teaching has not changed that much; it's an art form. Given basically the same set of circumstances, teachers will behave in much the same way. . . . But if you go to Europe, to the British Isles, or to Australia and look at comparable literature, [worries about] the external achievement exams . . . appear often. And they write about cramming, about how they prepared for the exams. They write about how, after taking the exams, they purged their minds of the answers that they had learned (Gabbard 59). Somehow, we doubt that most Americans are interested in promoting school learning that is narrow, test-specific, standardized superficial, and easily forgotten--but that is exactly what accountability programs promote. It also takes a great deal of time and money to conduct accountability programs. According to a leading scholar, Arthur Wirth, citing the National Commission on Testing and Public Policy, mandatory testing in America now "consumes annually some 20 million school days and the equivalent of $700 and $900 million in direct and indirect expenditures." What this means, of course, is that schools regularly shortchange

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Solar Energy Essay Example for Free

Solar Energy Essay |The increasing cost of energy and the reality of almost-depleted oil resources have driven man to discover alternative sources. And now, the human race has turned to the basic elements of nature by harnessing energy from wind, water, and the sun. Solar energy is a renewable form of energy and has been a major focus as an alternative source.   It offers promising potentials as a clean renewable form of energy but it also has its limitations. Sun, as our closest star, is practically an indirect and direct source of available energy here on Earth.    But it was only until recently that the potentials of solar energy appealed to society as it has been greatly improved through research and study. The sun’s energy originates from the nuclear reactions at its core where temperature reaches 15 millions  °C.   It reaches the Earth’s surface in form of light and heat and can be gained at 1Kw/ m2 under optimal conditions.   In order to use solar radiation there has to be a way to capture the energy.   Solar panels are invented to collect the sun’s energy and can de converted directly or indirectly  ¦to other forms of energy, such as heat and electricity.   Applications of solar energy can be for heating/cooling, electricity production, and chemical processes such as in solar detoxification technologies for cleaning water and air. There are many advantages of solar energy over other conventional forms.     As a renewable form of energy, the primary benefit of this is that it will never run out.   The sun provides unlimited supply of solar energy, and is virtually free after the user recovers the initial cost of installation.   The use of solar panels in homes does not need fuels and produces no waste or pollution.   The Clean Energy Ideas website further presented on the advantages of solar power that the only pollution that could be associated with this is may be during the production of the cell and transportation to ones home.   But by the time that it is installed, this solar power system has the total lack of pollution given off. Solar energy also has the ability to harness power in remote locations.   It has an advantage to bring electricity in the remote places on earth as long as the sun contains enough energy in that location. Mountain communities, for example, could benefit a lot from the electricity powered by solar energy as constructing conventional power lines in these places will be very difficult or near impossible due to expensive cost it would incur. Solar energy power system can be stand alone structures that do not require connection to power or natural gas grid. A major limitation of solar energy is its ability to collect and store energy so there is a constant power supply.   Since it cannot function at night when the sun’s power is not available or in places where the sun is not able to provide enough energy for the amount of energy needed for use, there are times that back up energy source is needed.   The irregular and variable manner that solar energy arrives on earth limits the use of this form of energy.   Large areas are also needed to collect it at a useful rate. In the United Kingdom, for example, where the country experiences not a very sunny climate, solar power is use only for low power application.   Jesse Ausebel of the of the Rockefeller University in New York in his article for the Indersciences International Journal of Nuclear Governance, Economy and Ecology, claims that renewable energy is not always green (Inderscience, 2007). He criticized solar power since a â€Å"photovoltaic solar cell plant would require painting black about than 150 square kilometers plus land for storage and retrieval to equal a 1000 MWe nuclear plant†. Since this form of   renewable energy involves vast infrastructure, such as concrete, steel, and access roads, Ausebel further added that As a Green, one of my credos is no new structures but renewables all involve ten times or more stuff per kilowatt as natural gas or nuclear, (Inderscience, 2007). The initial cost of installation of solar panels or building solar power stations can be very expensive, discouraging some of the could-be users of solar energy.   It has appealed mostly to the affluent members of society and environment advocates because buying and installing solar power equipment can cost $15,000 for an average-size home before any current starts to flow a John Greenwald wrote in his article for Time magazine (Greenwald, 1993). Advance studies and research, however, are trying to lower the cost of installation so that this could be accessible to more people.   The technology in harnessing the potentials of solar energy is getting better and cheaper with the passing years.   The price of photovoltaic cells that convert sunlight to electricity has fallen from $500 a watt in the 1960s to about $4 in the 1990s and companies are still finding ways to reduce the cost for residential use (Greenwald, 1993). As the technology is getting better, support from the federal government are also coming in.   Jimmy Carter earlier created tax breaks to spur solar development but this was later scrapped by Ronald Reagan who viewed this as meddling in the energy business, which impeded the development of renewable energy for about 10 years (Greenwald, 1993). With the current situation of our environment, however, the government and the society in general recognizes the need and benefit from developing and improving solar energy. The use of solar energy for electricity is not a farfetched idea as the technology has gone through vast improvements.   Researchers believe that solar energy is soon going to play a major role in electricity generation for the masses.   Production of this on a larger scale are being studied and improved. Budget allocations for these research and studies are being increased in countries around the world signifying that people are finally recognizing the advantages of this renewable form of energy. Energy is needed to spur human activities.   Solar energy indeed poses promising potentials in a society where conventional sources of energy are near depletion.   Undeniably, the solar energy has its limitations, but these are slowly and surely overcome with technological advances and it will not be for long when this energy form will be produced in a larger scale and cheaper rate accessible for homes around the globe. WORKS CITED:    Clean Energy Ideas. http://www.clean-energy-ideas.com/solar_panels.html Greenwald, John. Here Comes the Sun. 18 October 1993. Time magazine. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,979413-3,00.html A Brief Introduction to Solar Energy. My Solar Power at Home. http://www.mysolarenergyathome.com/ Natural Resources Canada. Renewable Energy. http://canren.gc.ca/tech_appl/index.asp?CaId=5PgId=121 Renewable Energy Wrecks Environment, According To Researcher. Inderscience Publishers. 25 July 2007 http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070724160209.htm

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Self-Reflection and Self SWOT Analysis

Self-Reflection and Self SWOT Analysis Self analysis is nothing but calculation of ones opinions and activities. That is costing of ones emotions, personality and behavior. From this people can easily recognize their individual strength and weakness. Moreover self analysis is a process or it is a test to judge the abilities, talents and expertise. Self awareness is one of the way to yourself in which to discover our separable personalities, rate structures, politics, usual feelings and tendencies. Because for some stuffs, manufacture facts and learns we are all dissimilar to react. And this is very useful to sometimes pass time in self reflection to increase a superior vision into ourselves. SELF AWARENESS: Self awareness is a main thing for us, because when we know the healthier thoughtful of ourselves then we are the authorized to create a ups and downs and also to figure our parts of strengths. Moreover in our level of recognize areas we would like to make developments over and over again. That is so self awareness is the stage of aim setting. Self awareness is a skill for education. Education here is nothing but knowing ourselves. If a person know about ourselves, then only the person modify the stuffs they want to adjustment himself. Each person have a aim to their life like to became leadership man, playful life, relaxation life and so on. And the person will try and makes works relevant to his aim. But this everything is possible only by the investigating his emotions, reactions, trusts and qualities. Thus it is the self awareness performance. That is, a person will know about their own personalities like skills, thoughts, beliefs, inspiration and sensations. This kind person will only able to say the word i am self aware . That is, if i want to say i am self aware then i had a strong observation about myself and i had studied myself. Determining the exact path that ranges the aim can be probable simply by self-analysis. Self-awareness is one thing chooses whether you are the correct one to become a head or not. I must recognize the powers and weaknesses to become familiar for every circumstance. In the progression of these gatherings i am not forceful a person what to accept as true, how they should consider or what they should to do. I am mainly focused with persons tests in levitation their self awareness. When you grow into more self aware you automatically bring in to being to see phases of your behavior and the character that you did not warning earlier. Some authors give quotes about self-awareness they are, Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child In the last decade or so, science has discovered a tremendous amount about the role emotions play in our lives. Researchers have found that even more than IQ, your emotional awareness and abilities to handle feelings will determine your success and happiness in all walks of life, including family relationships. John Gottman. Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you arent. Thanks to Maria Marquis Thoreau There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root, and it may be that he who bestows the largest amount of time and money on the needy is doing the most by his mode of life to produce that misery which he strives in vain to relieve. -Margaret Thatcher. We wait all these years to find someone who understands us, I thought, someone who accepts us as we are someone with a wizards power to melt stone to sunlight, which can bring us happiness in spite of trials, which can face our dragons in the night, who can transform us into the soul we choose to be. Just yesterday I found that magical someone is the face we see in the mirror: Its us and our homemade masks. -Richard Bach. Self-Analysis: Self-analysis involves understanding ones own  preconscious and insensible materials like ideas, Para praxes, memories, fleeting thoughts, and powerful emotions. By self analysis a person can simply find the weakness and by rectifying their weakness that person can capable to see the places and positions they have to adjust. Best of all, all persons has incorrect opinions and personal faults committed by them, But by the self analysis the person can simply able to avoid the problems and reach the requirements with no chunks. Self-analysis creates several profits that is it produces a extraordinary level of control that is to improve the person such as helpful talents, capacities and powers can leading easily and they can have a capacity to the true tracks. Self analysis process is very helpful and act as great end in idea making process which is suits for business surroundings. Career choice is almost whether they happy by gettings, assignment, place of work, organizational core, situation, challenges, superior for improvement, connection and the support from the age group. The chief dissimilarity between the self analysis and self awareness is that identifying a persons actions by approaches and talents. WELFARE IN SELF ANALYSIS AND SELF AWARENESS: By performing the self analysis a person can absorb their weakness. By this identification a person can know the real requirements to face the carrier. And they can easily increase the skills and talents by their positive skills. Moreover about decision-making and clear vision, self awareness shows positive and negative ways. CONCLUSION: Thus the method of learning own personality said to be a self analysis and ability of perform the process is called self awareness. We have to increase the strength and weakness by improving the skills. Thus the self analysis and self awareness is much important for career development. PRESENTATION OF RESULTS BASED ON ONLINE TEST: INTRODUCTION: For self analysis there are many number of tests are available and here I am going to discuss about some analysis test report. CAREER PATH TEST: The career path test is like a quiz type, which have two things they are, the activities which makes interests and gives joy and the another thing is about what kind of behaviour i have for my goal. This career path test shows result as yellow for interest and green for style and as I to accepted with this result. As in the result I am very much interested in supervision and administration management. Yes that is the reason iam doing administration course now. And also about my relaxations is like home duties and roaming is very much true. I am spending more time on managing and at all times deliberate the whole thing before starting it. So that the result of career planner quiz said as gathering report and evaluating are also suitable. Always I think of complexity in doing any jobs. I continuously use to say hard work is not the big one, only doing and finishing the thing is great. Various people can do the difficult job by hard work, but some people can do the same job by finding the easiest way. I need to be one of them always. My career planner quiz also said that I am creating the sophisticated processes for doing complex work. My results are ever reasonable because nothing I choose carelessly and without any reason. Before making decision I use to study the points for accepting and rejecting. Then only I will choose to decide if the qualities and income are high otherwise not. Next in the social equality point of view, I never took the others chances and I use give the chances for others when I am in group. This concept is very much believed by me. This concept is very much believed by me. So I agree with the points about my style such as reasonable decision maker and independent. Thus in the career test I can understand my interest and styles and I can agree with this results about my behaviour. So I accepted this self analysis test about me is true. JOHARI WINDOW: Consider the adjective list of me and my friends to map the character awareness by means of overlap and difference between them. It is called the johari window. The johari windows results accepted by me about 100%. In this window the test results grouped into four categories. First one is arena which means the characters known to both self and others? It gives me the result bold, energetic and friendly. It is accepted because I am so friendly to the people with me. Second thing is facade which means the traits known to self but not to others. It says I am happy and nervous. I accepted I am happiest person; I can make any time happy and also make nervous situation on mingle with people without mind the country, language. I am confident about what I am doing. Before start anything I use to search merits and demerits. After decide to do, I dont want to confuse myself. I am always friendly thats why I can make happy all. This is the thing I feel my strength. Ever I responsive because eve ry action there is a reaction. Pre-planning is possible only when I am sensible. Third thing in the johari test is blind spot. It is about the characteristic which is known to others but not to self. By this my friend can expose me and I can understand him that how much he understands me. I can realize my blind spots including knowledgeable and mature. About my culture surroundings i am mature. Thus this result says 100% to my mature. I am little bit nervous and little bit relaxed. Most of the time I am relaxed, nervous comes while lack of confidence in doing complex things. But I always show the relaxed face to others. In debate, I felt nervous sometimes and this results to degrade my performance. The johari windows results accepted by me about 100%.. Final category is about new who is new to both self and others. I need to concentrate these characters and analyse those characters about me. The unknown characters such as my braveness, intelligence, calmness, brave, giving, modest, able, accepting and others are under research. I need to analyse myself to become self aware. PSYCHOMETRIC TEST: In order to change my activities and a number of development tips based on my personal results for suggestions, The psychometric test is use full. There are two parts in the psychometric test that is shapes and views. That is the aim of the report is to give u ideas for your professional and personal development. Based on our personal reports of shapes we will find a few suggestions in this report in order to change our behaviour by trying certain activities. As a result of psychometric shapes test says as, I am a happy to snatch the leadership in team and make every effort to clearly regulate the individual roles and responsibilities. I am normally succeed in effective coordinating the work every day jobs and that everyone concentrates on the upcoming tasks and objectives. And my work manner like highly target motivated and for my mind think i keep in the mind the relationship between cost and benefits. I like to question usual approaches and prefer to creatively and flexibly tackle problems and tasks. I am open to new things, and occasionally contribute innovative ideas and suggestions yourself. yes i agree with this result in organizational behaviour. And this test shows that i need to aware of significance of useful contacts and relationships, and need to develop contacts quickly on the informal level and sometimes incorporate these relationship for your own purpose. And i need to recognize the core of a problem and take hold of the f undamental effects of actions. In these report i not accept with the last sentence that is i need to recognize the core of problem and take necessary effects. I know my decision is correct for current situation . Thus i agree with the aware need for me. And the test shows to try something like make list of all teams and groups in which you work together with others it helps how we describes our own role in these groups. yes so that going to try these types and even i am happy with this results i am limited with organizational development and this results reports i want to aware of here, yes it is true. Thus the progress tip given to me is great idea that can easily workout and result giving tip. The second part of the psychometric test is about view. This results summarizes the results of questionnaire views which i have completed. It indicates my personal values, professional intrests and motives. Is described under which circumstances and in which professional context i can use and develop my maximum potential. The result from the views shows that, When selecting a workplace, i should pay attention to environment of helpfulness. i want to offer my help freely and real generously and expect in return that i will also be offered the same level of support when i need it. In comparison to other professional aspects it is absolutely importance to me that i can become enthusiastic about my work and that i have the feeling that my work has a real meaning to it. And one more thing i need to feel particularly good when i often driven to perform at my intellectual peak. In comparison to my other aspects it is noticeable that it is very important for as, that company in which i was work conveys a feeling of safety and security to me. In comparison to others my attitude in this connection is absolutely typical. Thus i accepted this views results about me and try to pay attention for the above. HUMAN METRICS: The next test result is human metrics has given me result as Extravert(33%),  Ã‚  Sensing(12%),  Ã‚  Feeling(112%),  Ã‚  Judging(22%). Already I discuss my adjustment in many situations and I accept the point extraversion because I can mix together with people. This said I am important. I agreed with this. Always I take care of needs and assigning jobs to fellows. I use to give more importance to projects than life. This is 50% true. Because I use to find simple way to solve the big project not the difficult and excessive demand. And also i have moderate preference of extraversion over introversion as 33% and then i have slight preference of sensing over intuition as 12% and also i have slight preference of feeling over thinking as 12% and to i have slight preference of judging over perceiving as 22% Sensing which means physically touch. I actually aware of sensing. I always use to equip Thinking with a new, full of life sense of how the things work.. I think this I really accept I am sensing I always forecast the things in future. So I am innovative, that I always think of future. Many times before I do any activity, which really helps me that I am pre planned. Then judging result shows that I judge based on the people behaviour and attitude, which is helpful in taking right decisions. So that the result of Human metrics help me to provide for my part in doing best development. CONCLUSION: Thus the four types of test is very useful to identify our behavior and performance in organizations. The Johari windows said the behaviour I have and those behaviour are grouped four based on who knows it. The human metrics said the results by percentage and psychometric said by two parts as shapes and views. One having strength and weakness other having the things to be take care of when choosing work place. Career planning question said my interest and way. Thus the self-analysis tests results having in the region of 80% true. Hence I am accepted the test results. SWOT ANALYSIS: INTRODUCTION: The analysis is about identifying self concept that is strength, weakness, opportunities and threats is called SWOT analysis. Identifying the self concept provides development in own life. So that the analysis is to be take out and grouped as follows. (S)TRENGTHS: The positive behaviour I have is said to be strength of mine is that Problem Solving, Teamwork, Decision Making. I am very much superior to have other main strengths even as being with my team is decision-making, free and innovative idea. My friends are for all time prizing me for those things. Before me deciding anything I statistically study the qualities and demerits of doing such thing and decides if it is acceptable. In team, I ever representation only my points and I give chance to others for expose them also. This are the capability of management. I can manage any kind of people and any kind of situation. And also My strength is my adjustment. I am very much adjustable with the people without considering the country and language. I can combine with the different kind of people. The people, who yet know me, identify me as friend finder. My means of administrating fellows and making friends are my great strengths I feel. This is the thing motivate my friends to prize my brains equality. I am always welcome the changes and challenges. Then I give the imaginative and new idea to replace usual things and making the simple way for doing multifaceted thing because I prefer the stylish information. (W)EAKNESSES: Nervous Dependency Inflexible These are my weakness. Nervous even as speaking in some get-together is my very poor weakness. Still I can combine with any kind of people, I have this problem in proper and specialized meetings. one more great weakness I felt is still I cannot analyse this trouble. I am trying to beat this thing now. Dependency make me another one weakness and I feel it be able to make difficulty in my way but till it is not so. Inflexible to others stress so that I am trying to avoid this kind of weakness from me. (O)PPORTUNITIES Taking advantage from current market analyzing the current marketing strategy .For me the greater opportunity for hearing from other people who are in parallel role or same path to me. One more great thing is that attractive my open skill by means of finding the skills I have and shape the open skills in the correct way. And also to take on others in providing feedback about their experience of me. (T)HREATS The work needs excessive demand, a person being hidden by too much stress. That is the reason I wish easily reachable work. That is the large number of daily stress, which conspires against self-reflection CONCLUSION Thus from the SWOT analysis, i know my strengths, weakness, opportunities and treats. Based on my strengths and weakness i am going to improve my active skills and simultaneously beat my problems. And from opportunities and threats i going get feedbacks from experienced persons and at the same time to impose my attractive skill in correct way of manner

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Impact and Solutions to the Global Elderly Workforce

Impact and Solutions to the Global Elderly Workforce Summary With today’s advanced medical technology, the life expectancy rate is higher than ever. Life expectancy would increase if the retirement age is fixed at the current age. In effect, there will be more people living on pension while there will be less workforce to offset the difference in income tax which increases the dependency ratio. Increased government spending on pensions and healthcare will result into debt. Higher tax rates will lose potential investors and discourage workforce productivity which leads to the decline in economic growth. Also, the shortage of workers will increase wages which will cause wage inflation. However, businesses linked to elderly such as retirement homes will see an increase of profits. On the other hand, one solution could be the increase of retirement age. Also, incentives such as lower tax rates on late retirement could be implemented. Discussion Higher income tax rates are required due to the increasing elderly population and shrinking workforce. If income tax rates don’t rise, the government will result in debt due to increased spending on pensions and healthcare. This means the dependency ratio is raised. However, high tax rates will discourage international investors and decrease workforce productivity which will decline economic growth. The shirking workforce will drive wages up which will lead to wage inflation. This will affect the country’s GDP. On the other hand, industries related to the elderly such as retirement homes and healthcare will see an increase in business. The proposed increase in retirement age could lead to lower life expectancy and higher workforce. However, this will contribute to skilled Summary Japan is suffering from the problem with an aging population due to low fertility rate and good healthcare. Low fertility rate is due to late marriages as more people are focusing on their careers. It is projected by 2060, 60% of Japan’s population will be elderly people. Also, the demand for health care and pension are expected to increase which means that tax rates must also be increased. According to a demographic expert, the current pension and social security programs in Japan are not designed to meet ends with an aging population. The government has combated this situation by allowing more immigrants to work in Japan for jobs required for the aging population such as in healthcare. Japan’s consumer spending GDP has also been stagnant for the past few months. Discussion I believe the reason for the stagnant consumer spending is because of the elderly as they don’t often shop. As a result, decreased spending will affect’s Japan’s GDP. This will also contribute to long term recessions as most of the money is stagnant in retirement funds. Also, the increased demand for healthcare and pension will cause Japan to increase in spending which will lower Japan’s GDP. To combat Japan’s flawed retirement funds, local 3rd party investment funds such as mutual and bonds should enter the market. These funds could be used to establish better healthcare facilities that are in need by the rising elderly population. The increase of skilled immigrants will keep the aging population down and maintain needs but it could also mean that Japan’s money is going out of the country. This could contribute to a deficit in Japan’s workforce trade. However, Japan could set up trade agreements such as workforce exchange for technolo gy with other countries to maintain a healthy GDP. Summary As a result of increasing elderly population, Japan is set to decline from the world’s 2nd largest economy in place for China. Since 2010, Japan’s workforce will decline 1% for the next 30years. The national debt in Japan is already 200% of GDP as of 2004 and is projected to rise. European countries such as Italy (1.1birthrate), Bulgaria (1.2birthrate), Russia and Germany (1.35birthrate) are suffering from low fertility rates. It’s predicted that the economic will shift from elder countries to emerging countries such as India and China. Discussion As a result of Japan’s declining workforce, the GDP is set to drop and the country’s debt will increase. The increasing debt will even worse in the future because of the decreased workforce income tax. This will cause long term recessions. The problem of the elderly is also suffered by developed countries typically in Europe. This is due to the well-established healthcare and economic systems. This problem will contribute to the shrinkage of their economies. This will result in the economic growth shift to developing countries such as India and China. Unlike Japan and Europe, China is overpopulated. To combat the future elderly problem, China has acted by controlling birth rates in order to prevent overpopulation. Summary Canada’s healthcare expenditure has been substantially increasing. By 2020, it’s projected to cost CAD147billion which is an 83% increase from year 2000. As a result, Canada is one of the top spenders for healthcare on GDP. The majority of the spenders are the elderly. Due to the high demand of healthcare, Canada is currently facing a shortage of medical workers. It is also expected that Canada will have a shortage in other skilled workers. By 2050, it is predicted that the dependency ratio will increase to 4.4 workers for every 10 workers. Canadians are also investing more in risky investments such as stocks and mutual funds compared to 20 years ago. On the other hand, when baby boomers withdraw their pension funds, tax will be generated in the progress. Discussion The increasing dependency ratio will be a complete burden to Canada’s workforce, debt and GDP. To decrease the ratio, healthcare benefits should be reduced. This could allow the privatization of healthcare services which will generate income tax. However, there will be serious negative social outcomes. Canada’s tax rates should be revised to compensate for the increased demand to prevent debt. In addition, the retirement fund programs should also be reviewed. To combat the lack of skilled workforce, Canada could loosen immigration laws or restrict early retirement age. On the other hand, the predicted tax generated from pension funds withdrawal could partially compensate for the increased expenditures. The decrease of younger population will be beneficial as expenditures on education will be reduced. Furthermore, the increase spending in retirement associated items such as retirement homes could generate more tax. In the long run, Canada could increase funding on medica l advances to allow for cheaper and more sustainable healthcare alternatives. Also, the public should also be continually encouraged to invest in privately owned funds. Summary Europe and other developing countries are suffering for unanticipated changes in fertility rates and aging issues. As a result, the workforce has been decreased and is burdened with higher age dependency ratios. In effect, higher tax rates are required to sustain the increased demand. Predictions suggest living standards per capita in Japan, US and Europe will be on a decline over the next 50 years. Europe would suffer a 20% increase GDP debt in the next 50 years while Japan and US would suffer from 21.5% and 10%. It is also expected that workforce productivity rates will decline. Discussion Generally, developed countries have higher elderly population as their healthcare systems have been established. Also, the lower fertility rates could be blamed on education as people are putting off marriages to a later age due to further studies. Another reason is the increased youth dependency ratio. Compared with 3rd world and certain developing countries, it is not sensible to reproduce as children are a liability instead of an asset. For example, children can be used as labor in farms while in developed countries, sending them to school requires cost and time. Also, many couples put off having children because of their demanding career. However, because of this short term microeconomics demands, the long term microeconomics will suffer. Developed countries debt rate are projected to rise, and workforce and productivity rates are set to decrease due to the decrease of income tax. To combat the low workforce rates, countries should invest in technology to increase work efficiency . This will also control wage inflation. Also, countries could encourage immigration to balance out the elderly. Summary To combat the issue of rising elderly population and low fertility rates, France has acted by increasing children incentives. This policy was launched in the 70s and also aims to keep more women in work. As a result, France has succeeded to be Europe’s 2nd highest fertility rate with 1.9children per woman compared to Ireland’s 1.4. Also, France has Europe’s highest female employment rate. Incentives include 3 year paid parental leave, free full time preschool, subsidized day care, fixed wage for nannies, and monthly childcare allowances. In addition, middle class mothers could receive up to 1000 Euros for having a third child. That’s almost like the minimum wage of 1200 Euros. This incentive policy is also seen in other European countries such as Germany cand UK but it’s not as beneficial as France’s. In the future, France plans to increase the grants to keep the birth and women employment rates healthy. Discussion Due to France’s low population rate, an incentive policy to keep fertility rates up is worth the high cost of expenditures. The costly benefits offered to women who work and reproduce is worth it as it keeps the workforce healthy and growing. As a result of increased income, the country’s GDP growth rate would increase as more people are spending their money. That will lead to decreased country debt which means tax rates could be lower. Once the tax rates are lower, local and international investments will bloom which increases a country’s GDP. Also, the extra money could be used to invest that will potentially improve a country’s production cost and productivity efficiency. However, this is only sensible as a long term investment as if it is short termed, the country’s GDP would be greatly affected. France’s plan should be replicated in other underpopulated developing countries to prevent the grey problem. Summary Projection data says that ageing population in Australia is set to double in 40 years. Average work force age is expected to decline. The problems are blamed on low birth rates that unable to sustain the replacement rate. It is also blamed on longer life expectancy. Australia has addressed this issue by creating a program for young skilled immigrants to enter the country. This will relive with the growth of the workforce and the workforce’s skill and productivity levels. However, this is not a viable solution as the immigrants will also age in the future which will force Australia to allow more immigrants in yearly to balance the deficit. Discussion This inevitable issue of the grey population is affecting most industrialized countries. Apart from the decrease in workforce members and productivity and skill levels, low birth rates are unable to sustain the replacement rate. This would result into the drop of Australia’s economy and wage inflation which could drive off potential global investors. Even worse, the wage in Australia is already higher than other countries. The effects of wage inflation are already seen with major automobile companies such as Ford moving away from local manufacturing to other developing countries such as Thailand. Again, the solution of young skilled immigration workforce would not be viable as it’s a short term solution. To truly solve this unprecedented issue, Australia should follow France’s footsteps of providing with children benefits. Summary The rising rate of the greying population in emerging countries are posing a problem as they are getting old before they get rich. It has created problems such as pension plans that are turning non-sustainable. In addition, developing countries tend to suffer more due to the majority in informal labour sector that salaries do not contribute to the country’s pension plans. In a life cycle’s perspective, the economic needs and income making vary over the course of life. Due to the increasing greying population, the elderly consumes more savings than generated during youth. This is critical as the country will result in slower growth compared to a country with more working youth people. This will also result into debt. Discussion Again, increasing woman’s participation in workforce by providing flexible working hours or government funded day care could increase workforce participation. Also, the government can reduce citizen’s benefits or increase the tax to save costs. In contrast, a country without debt will likely experience reduced tax and more growth as it encourages business to invest. Thus, investments in technology will increase efficiency on the country’s production possibilities frontier. Also, it will increase competition which is beneficial for the GDP growth. However, problems related to less income generated from the youth than used by the elderly could pose a serious problem. This will directly result in debt and could possibly start a long and painful recession. To only solution is to generate increased revenue. However, I believe developing countries that do not have established pension plans might not suffer as much as developed countries with high return pensions. Altho ugh we cannot learn about this problem from the past, we still can make long term decisions that will save us from unexpected economy situations in the future.

Monday, August 19, 2019

Important Elements of a Written Loan Policy :: essays research papers

Assignment # 4 1)  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the most important ways a bank can make sure its loans meet regulatory standards and are profitable is by establishing a written loan policy. A loan policy gives loan officers and the bank’s management specific guidelines in making some loan decisions and in shaping the over all portfolios of the bank. The following are the most important elements of a Written Loan Policy;   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Statements of Lending: A statement that defines the type of loan, its maturities, quality and the size of loans.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Establish a Lending Authority: It should clearly define who is authorized to a loan   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Establish Lines of Responsibility: It is making sure that all the information is reported to its department.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Operating Procedure: There should be appropriate operating procedures for soliciting, reviewing, evaluating, and making decisions on customer loan application.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Required Documents: All the required documents should be obtained for every loan application and must be filed properly.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  6.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Lines of Authority: Responsibility for maintaining and reviewing the bank’s credit files should be well defined.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  7.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Guidelines: Proper guidelines must be given as to how you can take a loan, evaluate it and perfect a loan.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  8.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Policies’ & Procedures: Policies’ & Procedures for establishing interest rates, payments, fees and repayments must be present.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  9.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Establish Quality Standards: A statement of quality standards applicable to all loans. That is, if a person does not meet the standards then the loan should be denied.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  10.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Establishing Upper Limit to Loans: A statement defining the upper limit to a loan beyond which a loan cannot be allowed   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  11.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Define its Community: A description of the bank’s principal trade area, which most loans should come from.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  12.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Trouble Loan: A discussion of the preferred procedures for detecting, analyzing, and working out problem loan situations.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  For loan to be good three conditions should be fulfilled, ie. First that the borrower should be creditworthy. Which could be known by a detailed study of the following six aspects:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Character: The loan officer must know the purpose of the loan and make sure that the customer will be able to make the repayment of the loan. He should also determine that the borrower has a responsible attitude towards using borrowed funds, is truthful in answering the bank’s questions and willing to make every effort to repay what is owned.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Capacity: The loan officer must make sure the borrower has the authority to request a loan and the legal standing to sign a loan agreement.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Cash: The loan officer should make sure that the borrower has a stable stream of income and the ability to repay the loan.

Movie Essays - Filming the Epic of Gilgamesh :: Movie Film comparison compare contrast

Filming the Epic of Gilgamesh In order to undertake a project of this epic magnitude, one must first consider the many differing ways the film could take hold. The Epic of Gilgamesh is an age old story whose main attractions will be it's originality and antiquity. To cash in properly on Gilgamesh we must focus on bringing out the idea of Gilgamesh predating similar stories, casting actors who will capture the characters' mannerisms while still being easy to relate to, and using optimal special effects to combat the preconceived notions an audience may have about movies of this kind (thanks to the likes of Kevin Sorbo and Steve Reeves). Primarily the idea is to keep Gilgamesh pure. Naturally, after seeing my Hamlet, moviegoers will have ideas about what to expect from the introduction of a pre-classical work into main stream theater. Likely viewers and critics alike will be expecting an updating, or out and out displacement of the sequence of events in time. However, while we certainly cannot go line for line with the text, we must keep Gilgamesh loyal to the original tablets, and as close to Sumerian dress, language, and culture as we can simulate. To preserve the storytelling style of the epic's author(s), I plan to employ a narrator to guide the action. A recognizable, intelligent, regal, and yet not overpowering voice should be chosen. This voice should give an air of importance to the narration without being so enthralling that the action is missed. I plan to seek out such Englishmen as Patrick Stewart, Sir Ian Mckellan, Sir Anthony Hopkins, and John Geilgud, and to offer them the opportunity of auditioning for this essential role. The selected actor's voice will begin and end the film, while covering breaks in the action and explaining confusing sections of the story. The casting of the actual blocking actors is a bit more problematic. Gilgamesh himself is the most challenging character to play in this work. Gilgamesh should be strong (without evoking images of Kull the Conqueror, or Conan the Barbarian), and youngish, but with a weathered look to imply warriors traits. The actor must present the narcissistic nihilism of the early Gilgamesh and, later on, display the more humbled, post-anagnorosis Gilgamesh. For this range of whimsical egotism, to brooding, driven force, we should rely on the talents of Mel Gibson. Gibson gives a full range of acting abilities while looking weathered, and charming at the same time.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

The Symbol of Blood in William Shakespeares Macbeth Essay -- William

The Symbol of Blood in William Shakespeare's Macbeth Blood represents life, death and often injury. It is an essential part of life, and without blood, we could not live. In Macbeth, Shakespeare uses the symbol of blood to represent treachery, murder and death. The word "blood", or different forms of it, appear numerous times throughout the play. Interestingly, the symbol of blood changes throughout the play, corresponding to the atmosphere and mood changes in the characters and the play. First, blood is a reference of honor, and this occurs when Duncan sees the injured sergeant and says, "What bloody man is that?"(1.2.1). This is symbolic of the brave fighter who been injured in a valiant battle for Scotland. The sergeant goes on to describe the courageous actions of Macbeth and says, "With his brandished steel, which smoked with bloody execution . . . [Macbeth] unseamed [Macdonwald] from the nave to th? chops"(1.2.20&23). This refers to Macbeth?s braveness in confronting and executing Macdonwald in battle, using his sword that is covered in the blood of the enemy. ...

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Akron Children’s Hospital Essay

1. Akron Children’s Hospital Marketing Director Aaron Powell felt it was important to conduct this study because Akron Children’s Hospital’s marketing director Aaron Powell thought that it was important to conduct this study, because other competitive hospitals in the area had hired marketing directors similar to himself, and were consequently intensifying their marketing campaigns in the area, which created an urgency for Akron Children’s Hospital to intensify its marketing efforts in order to remain competitive. 2. The main purpose of Akron Children’s Hospital study was? The main purpose of the Akron Children’s Hospital study was to ascertain the best positioning for this hospital for the upcoming communications campaign, which was intended to increase the number of patients for the hospital by approximately 10% in the next fiscal year. By properly positioning this hospital for the upcoming communications campaign, the marketing director would exponentially increase the probability of this hospital increasing its patient cases by at least the 10% desired. 3. The key questions the Akron Children’s Hospital employees is the case are â€Å"What paths can they pursue?† The key questions that Akron Hospital employees addressed in this case are whether to proceed with plan A,B,C, or D, and would this effort be a worthwhile investment of financial resources? 4. The methods used by Powell and his team to answer the marketing research problem were? The methods used by Powell and his research team to answer the marketing research questions,  were to conduct four focus groups in which participants would discuss their experiences with the hospital, conducting a field survey in order to follow up on the issues that were identified in the focus groups, to ascertain the positioning preference of the focus group respondents, to statistically determine that preference among the positioning alternatives, or to conduct no research and brainstorm if found feasible. 5. The most important understanding about Arkon Children’s Hospital as an organization that led the firm to consider the research about its positioning was The most important understanding about Akron Children’s Hospital as an organization that led the firm to consider the research about its positioning was that this hospital was basically about the kids, and that everything about this hospital should emphasize the kids. In addition, there were rival hospitals that were engaging in aggressive marketing campaigns that threatened the economic and financial security of this hospital as a business institution. An increase in the marketing campaigns in these hospitals could reduce the number of patient cases at Akron Children’s Hospital. 6. The research design decision can be put into context by The research design can be put into context as qualitative focus group centered research, that also contained elements of quantitative research methodologies, due to the inclusion of statistical subject matter. 7. The main inferences/conclusions in this case are The main conclusions of this case are that the effective positioning of an institution will require a number of planning options, with focus group research being among those options. There must be a concerted effort by all team members to focus on the primary objective to be achieved, the cost-benefit analysis is absolutely essential in advising staff members of the efficacy of an investment, and effective marketing is absolutely essential. 8. If we take this line of reasoning seriously, the implications for many other firms are If this reasoning is applied to other firms, those firms would probably be highly successful in improving their positioning within a given industry, and the application of the marketing strategies that were used in this scenario would also be highly beneficial. The development of a list of alternative plans, as well as a methodology by which to analyze the results of those plans and focus group research, would be viable for any firm to use.

Friday, August 16, 2019

Into Thin Air

The Tragedy On Everest The preventable mistakes caused by several guides caused several climbers to perish. As a group of climbers get closer and closer to the top of the world, a freak storm arrives and mistakes are made, transforming what should have been the greatest days of the climbers’ lives into a battle for survival and for some, their last moments on Earth. The guides on Mount Everest made several mistakes. There were multiple teams which tried to summit on one day, not taking into consideration the possibly fatal results of the bottleneck effect on the climb.On the summit climb, a number of different mishaps confronted them causing the climbers to fall behind schedule. This caused most of the climbers and guides to be in a poor position on the mountain when the storm arrived (Krakauer 11). This storm trapped and killed several guides and climbers. Time delays were a huge contributing cause of this tragedy and the majority of time issues were caused by the guides. Bef ore they summited, they had a set schedule which would allow the climbers to return to base camp safely in a reasonable time (Krakauer 7). Bottlenecks caused a significant delay in ascent (Storm Over Everest).Too much time reaching and celebrating on the summit caused delays. Rob Hall ( guide) did not abide by the rules of the turn-around time (Krakauer 11). This was a vital element in the outcome of whether he and his clients would live or die. Hubris was a major problem for the guides that led to the demise of many climbers. In this case, some guides did not use oxygen masks (Storm Over Everest). This increased the risk of the climb and made it more likely that they could be incapacitated and unable to perform the duties of a guide as necessary and endangering the customers (Krakauer 9).Regardless of their climbing experience, the safety of the customer should have been put first. Hubris was also relevant when the guides got behind schedule and thought that they could disregard th eir own safety rules without quickening the descent down the mountain. The final error the guides committed was with their decision-making and priorities on the climb. Their intent was to get as many climbers to the summit as possible for their business and reputation interests( Krakauer 4).They did not consider fully the safety of the climber’s summiting. Another issue was Anatoli Boukreev’s decision to descend ahead of his customers indicating more self-interest than interest in the safety of the group (Boukreev et al. 3). In many instances, the guides placed a greater importance on reputation, money, and business and in one case personal safety over the safety of the climbers. Although there might be other causes of the disaster, if the guides put the climbers safety first, then there would have been much less chance of a bad outcome.The tragedy cannot be blamed on the sherpas because if the guides had properly reacted to the mistakes that the sherpas made and sent the climbers back to camp, then every one would have been safe. I do not feel like you can blame this on the physical condition of a few individuals because the guides had the responsibility of making sure that all climbers were cleared for health conditions that would have hampered their ability to climb. Due to the decisions the guides made during the tragedy, some people who perished may still be alive.In general, the guides put money, pride and reaching the summit ahead of the safety of the climbers. This ultimately was the deciding and most influential cause for the 1996 Mount Everest tragedy. Works Cited Boukreev, Anatoli, Jon Krakauer, and Lopsang Jangbu Sherpa. â€Å"What Really Happened In The Thin Air†. MountainZone. Demand Media Sports, 29 August 1996. Web. 27 October 2011. Krakauer, Jon. â€Å"Into Thin Air. † Outside. Mariah Media Network, September 1996. Web. O5 October 2011. Storm Over Everest. Dir. David Breashears. Perf. Neil Beidleman, David Breashear s, and Guy Cotter. Frontline. 2008. Film.

Thursday, August 15, 2019

Does the Media Control the Public?

Media, it is the main means of communication, as radio and television, newspapers, and magazines that reach or influence people widely. Anyone who controls any form of media has vast amounts of power over the public. A simple news story can change society’s opinion over a certain topic. However, without the media, we would not get an insight into controversies that are happening half way around the world. If it weren’t for the media, dictators would not be brought to their knees, and answer to the crimes that they have committed. Whether we know it on a conscious level or not, we are being influenced by the media, whether you think you are not being affected, you are at some level. It is not only about the way we look, but also the food we eat, the things we buy and our concept of happiness, love, and sadness. Everywhere one goes they see magazines, billboards, television shows, commercials etc. , and these are the things that we want in life. This is similar to the social cognitive learning theory, essentially monkey see monkey do. Trends and fashion statements are shown in the media and then society often follows them up. Children are vulnerable and susceptible to this influence from the media, especially with the amount of exposure to the level of communication, and technology that is available to them in this day and age. Companies spend millions of pounds each year on TV advertisements, so that they can sell and in return gain millions of pounds profit. This is a form of communication used to encourage or persuade an audience to perform a certain action. Advertising messages are usually viewed via various traditional media; including mass media such as newspaper, magazines, television commercial, radio advertisement, outdoor advertising or direct mail. We are accustomed to see people with rich people with skinny bodies and faces due to airbrushing and surgery, and that is what we strive for. Skinny is often seen as a luxury, a sign someone can afford the gym, and healthy foods, when many years ago being heavy was a sign of luxury, that one could afford to eat. The reason why think this way, is because of media advertising, whereas before, being ‘big’ would demonstrate your wealth as you could buy a lot of food, now being skinny is what considers you to be rich. However, it is not only the companies that use this technique to make eople buy their products, governments also use this technique to make the public commit to their ideas. During World War 2, Nazi’s used the media to justify their course, and so did a multitude of other countries. Media manipulation has been going on for many years, and especially with today’s media it is very easy to spread propaganda and even easier to make people believe it. F or example, every year, a state-owned publishing house releases several cartoons called geurim-chaek in North Korea. The plots mostly feature scheming capitalists from the United States and Japan who create dilemmas for naive North Korean characters. Governments find this very easy to make the public do what they want, without them actually knowing it consciously. As opposed to providing certain information to showcase, propaganda, in its most basic sense, presents information primarily to influence an audience. Propaganda is often dispersed over a wide variety of media in order to create a chosen influence upon the public, making sure it will be imprinted into the minds of the public. Governments would usually take the current situation, and try and manipulate them in a way that would make the opposition seem at wrong. They would also sometimes hide information from the public from the country or the world. The media can be easily changed and manipulated to suit a government’s need, just like how it can be changed to only represent one side of the argument, persuading the reader to believe what a certain media company wants them to believe in. Media bias is the perceived biasness of a certain piece of news that has been produced by journalists and news producers that are intending to persuade a certain category of people. There are three types of newspapers; right winged newspapers and left winged newspapers. Right winged news paper companies will usually be against any immigration topics and are usually very patriotic, whereas left winged newspaper companies are quite liberal and diplomatic. However there may be multiple motives for this act, and they quite discreet about which side they are on, as a common lay man would think that the newspaper is telling the truth. Many political parties have influence over a certain newspaper company that will spread their news and propaganda, trying to influence the reader to vote or to support that particular party. For example ‘The Guardian’ is a left winged newspaper that is the ‘voice’ of the Labour party at the present moment, and ‘The Sun’ is more of a right winged party, and they mainly support the conservative party. It is common practice for newspapers to declare an explicit affiliation with a political party, and affiliated newspapers were explicit in representing their party’s point of view, for example, on the 19th of April 1989, the Sun disgraced the Liverpool fans who had died in the Hillsborough disaster, by stating that many Liverpool fans had pick-pocketed the dead and had urinated upon the dead police officers at the scene. The Sun was supposed to have recited the very words that a Conservative MP had said in a speech. This sparked many arguments across the globe, and this can show how much damage any media company can do. Smaller newspaper companies also do the same, as they would most likely support the county that they are in, rather than supporting some other county. For example if you were to compare a football review between the two teams’ local newspapers, both of them would tell a different story, as they are biased towards the side that they support. However, without the media we would not be informed about what is happening across the globe, and we would almost be ignorant to the events that are happening outside of our local area. By having media, we would be able to gather the voices of a nation, and voice our concerns about a topic. Without the media we would not be able to have any liberty to do anything we want and we would be able to fight back against multinational companies, monarchies, and governments. For example, in Libya, Muammar Gaddafi was using his own private military and army to rule over the country with fear, to dictating the country. It helps us learn more about the world as well as interacting with each other. Without the force of the country upon him voiced by the media, he was being pressured to step down; he could have still been in power today if it weren’t for the media. We are in an age whereby we have such amazing technology that allows us to access pretty much any point of the globe without stepping out of our house. The media helps us understand both sides of the argument, and not all of the news companies are biased. If it weren’t for the media, we would have been a single-minded society, only thinking a certain way. We would be able to be equal, with certain groups thinking that one group is better than another, and eventually it will end up in a fight, and then leading onto wars, for example in World War 2 (1939-1945), Adolf Hitler had discriminated the view that all Jews were ‘parasites’ and that they were stealing all of the jobs available, and that they are the reason for the bad economy. The media give us a common ground where we can all talk about, reflect and form opinions about the world at large; environmentally, politically, socially, and culturally. Without using media, politicians would not be able to convey their message across. The media also helps suffering countries in a time of despair, and warns us about casualties that have happened in an accident or disaster. The media will inform us and it could make a difference to the people in need, as it will provoke us to raise money via charities hence helping the people in need. If it weren’t for the media, it would be difficult for the charities to communicate their messages. However, in the end it’s all about our choices and what concepts we choose to subscribe to and adopt as ours. But I personally believe that media does have a big involvement in the everyday lives of the public, and we are very much influenced by that. Governments today still use the media to convey their messages. I am not stating that we don’t need the media; we need to have media in our lives, as it will give us a chance to interact and have knowledge about what is going on around the world. So in conclusion, I believe that although we will need the media in the future, we should not believe all of it, and we should act upon our own opinion-not something that someone else is telling us.

Wednesday, August 14, 2019

Synthesis of Salicylic Acid and Potentiometric Determination of Its Purity and Dissociation Constant

Synthesis of Salicylic Acid and Potentiometric Determination of its Purity and Dissociation Constant ————————————————- Abstract The purpose of the study is to synthesize salicylic acid from the ester, methyl salicylate, and determine the acid’s dissociation constant and purity. The ester was converted to salicylic acid by base hydrolysis. The products were refluxed and recrystallized, to ensure maximum purity, and filtered, dried, and weighed. The melting point of the product was determined using a Fischer-Johns melting point apparatus. The acid then dissolved in separate beakers with 95% ethanol and water and titrated with 0. 050 M NaOH, previously standardized with potassium hydrogen phthalate, through potentiometric titration. The pH after addition of base was measured and plotted against the volume of titrant added using three different plots. Results show a 61. 0% yield and the melting point differed from the theoretical by a range of 3. 11-6. 83%. The pKa calculated was 2. 865, differing from the literature value of 2. 98, by 3. 86%. The theoretical purity of the sample was 100. 0%, which differed with the experimental one by 1. %; the experimental purity is 101. 7%. Potentiometric titration proves to be adequate in the determination of the acid dissociation constant and purity of a sample. Aside from that, the synthesis proved adequate given the high purity of the product. ————————————————- Keywords : acid dissociation constant purity melting point ester INTRODUCTION Potentiometric methods of analysis are based on measuring the potential of electrochemical cells without drawing much, appreciable current. For centuries, potentiometry has been used to locate the endpoint in most titration set-ups. Skoog, et al. , 2004). Potentiometric methods offer a myriad of advantages, its main advantage being its low operational costs. Voltmeters and electrodes are, generally, far cheaper than most modern scientific instruments. Models suitable for direct potentiometry in field work, away from the laboratory, are inexpensive, compact, and easy to use. Essentially nondestructive of the sample, i. e. , insertion of the electrode does not drastically change the composition of the test solution (except for the slight leakage of electrolytes from the reference electrode), electrodes are relatively free from interferences. Stable potential readings are attained fairly rapidly and voltages are easily recorded as functions of time. Finally, the wide range of analyte activities, over which some of the available indicator electrodes exhibit stable, nearly Nernstian responses, represents an important advantage (Day and Underwood, 1991). Potentiometric titrations involve measurement of the potential of a suitable indicator electrode as a function of titrant volume. This indicator electrode is speecific to the hydronium ion, H3O+. It offers adavantages over direct potentiometry in that it is not dependent on measuring absolute values of Ecell. This is due to having the measurement based on the titrant volume that causes a rapid change in potential near the equivalence point. This makes the process relatively free from the juction potential uncertainties as this potential remains approximately constant during the titration process. Instead, the titration results depend heavily on having a titrant with accurately known concentration. The instrument merely signals the endpoint and behaves like a regular chemical indicator. Aside from that, the reference electrode potential need not be known. Most importantly, ionic strength effects are not important in the titration procedure because the result is analyte concentration, even if the electrode responds to activities. The dissociation of a weak monoprotic acid is given by the equation HA – H+ + A– (1) [H+][A–] [HA] where HA is the monoprotic acid, and A– is its conjugate base. The corresponding equilibrium constant for this acid dissociation is defined as Ka = (2) Ka[HA] [A–] which, when seeking to find [H+], rearranges to [H+] = (3) Prior to the equivalence point, before any titrant was added and the analyte is the only species present in solution, the pH of the system is calculated from the concentration of that analyte and its dissociation constant. In the case where a weak monoprotic acid is being titrated with a strong base, subsequent addition of the titrant will cause a reaction to occur between the acid and the base. HA + OH– > H2O + A– (4) The presence of the acid and its conjugate base in solution will cause the formation of a buffer solution, which are solutions that resist a drastic change in pH, should a strong acid or base be added to the system. At these points, the slope of a constructed titration curve is at its minimum. This is the pre-equivalence point. There is a point during the pre-equivalence point region wherein both the acid and its conjugate base are present in equal amounts. This occurs when half of the acid has been neutralized, or when the titration is at the half-equivalence point. At this point, the buffering capacity of the system is at its maximum. Aside from that, simplifying Eq. 3 at this point by inspection, the [H+] is equal to that of the Ka. Taking the negative of the logarithm of both sides, one will be able to get the relation pH = pKa (Skoog, et al. , 2004). Thus, the dissociation constant may be computed through determining the pH at half-equivalence point. This experiment will use salicylic acid as the analyte. Salicylic acid, Fig. 1. Salicylic acid is a weak monoprotic acid, capable of releasing the acidic hydrogen connected to the –COOH group. The hydrogen of the phenol group is hard to release because the oxygen is stabilized by resonance. Salicylic acid is a naturally occuring substance, usually produced by plants. It is found mainly in the willow's leaves and bark. The pure acid possesses several useful medicinal properties. It is an antipyretic (fever reducer), analgesic (pain reliever) and anti-inflammatory (swelling reducer). However, pure salicylic acid makes for an extremely unpleasant medicine. Salicylic acid contains two acidic functional groups, the phenolic (C6H5OH) and the carboxylic acid (RCOOH) groups. These groups cause the acid to be an irritating substance that burns the delicate lining of the mouth, throat, and stomach, hence its esterification to acetylsalicylic acid or aspirin, before ingestion as analgesic (Reed College, 2009). Esterificaton is the process by which a carboxylic acid is transformed to an ester. Esters are organic compounds that are derived usually by reacting a carboxylic acid and an alcohol. The general formula for esters is with the RC=O group derived from the parent carboxylic acid, and the –OR’ group from the parent alcohol. The mechanism for the reaction of the alcohol and carboxylic acid to form the ester is as follows: Fig. 2. Mechanism of Esterification from a Carboxylic acid RCOOH and alcohol R’OH Esters may also be synthesized by reacting the carboxylic acid with other reagents such as SOCl2 to form the acyl chloride, which will then be treated with an alcohol in pyridine, to esterify it. Esters are among the most widespread of all naturally occuring compounds. Many esters are pleasant-smelling liquids that are responsible for the fragrant odor of fruits and flowers. For example, methyl butanoate is found n pineapple oil and isopentyl acetate is a constituent of banana oil. The ester linkage is also present in animal fats and other biologically important molecules. The chemical industry also uses esters for a variety of purposes. Ethyl acetate, for example, is commonly used as a solvent while many dialkyl phthalates are used as plasticizers to keep polymers from being brittle (McMurry, 2004) . Methyl salicylate is produced by many plants. It was first isolated from wintergreen leaves, Gaulthea procumbens, and is commonly known as oil of wintergreen. Fig. 3. Methyl salicylate An ester of salicylic acid and methanol, it masks one of the acidic hydrogens in salicylic acid by replacing it with a methyl (CH3–) group. Hence, it is a relatively unreactive compound that does not release salicylic acid efficiently into the body. It is, therefore, not an effective analgesic, or pain-killer. However, it is added to many products, notably for its fragrance, especially root beer and liniments. In order for it to be activated, methyl salicylate must be converted to salicylic acid by organic synthesis, specifically through saponification, a process not unlike that undergone by animal fats to become soaps (McMurry, 2004). In this experiment, salicylic acid will be synthesized from methyl salicylate by base hydrolysis. Its dissociation constant will also be measured through potentiometric titration. Likewise, the percentage of purity the salicylic acid used in the reaction will be likewise determined. METHODOLOGY In synthesizing salicylic acid, 1. 2 g of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) were dissolved in 7 mL water in a round bottom flask.. Half of a milliliter (0. 5 mL) of methyl salicylate was added to this mixture. The mixture was then efluxed for 15 minutes and cooled to room temperature. One-milliliter increments of 3 M sulfuric acid (H2SO4) were added until the formation of a white precipitate, salicylic acid. Half of a milliliter (0. 5 mL) of the acid was added to ensure complete precipitation of the product. The mixture was then cooled in an ice water bath with a temperature of at most 5 °C for the reaction to subside. The product was then filtered and rinsed with cold water, and recrystallized in wat er. The solids were then filtered on a pre-weighed filter paper and air-dried in the locker. When dried, the solids, along with the filter paper, were weighed and the melting point determined. Two hundred and fifty milliliters (250 mL) of 0. 50 M stock sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution was then prepared. From this solution, 250 mL of 0. 050 M standard solution was prepared for the titration. This solution was then standardized with 0. 2000 g 99. 95% potassium hydrogen phthalate (KHP) and phenolphthalein as indicator to the pale pink endpoint. Two more trials were done. Three samples of pure salicylic acid were weighed at approximately 0. 000 g and placed in three separate 250-mL beakers. A minimum amount of 95% ethanol was then added to dissolve the acid, and was diluted with 50. 00 mL distilled water. The electrode was first calibrated such that it would relate the developed potential to the pH. At this point, the potential would be measured as pH when increments of the titrant are successively added. The base burette, pH meter, and magnetic stirrer were set up according to Fig. 6. Fig. 6. Potentiometric titration set-up A spin bar was place inside the beaker with the sample solution. The electrode was also positioned such that it would not get hit with the spin bar. The pH of the set-up was first measured prior to addition of base. For the first trial, 1. 00 mL of the titrant was added to the analyte and the pH recorded. This was done until the pH was 11. 50. From there, the equivalence point was approximated based on the volume of the titrant that caused a large change in pH. For the two succeeding trials, 1. 00 mL of the titrant was added to the analyte. At  ±5. 00 mL of the equivalence point, the volume of titrant added was reduced to 0. 0 mL increments. At  ±3. 00 mL and  ±2. 00 mL of the equivalence point, it was further reduced to 0. 20 mL and 0. 10 mL, respectively. The titration contnued beyond 5. 00 mL of the equivalence point using 0. 50 mL of titrant until the pH registered was 11. 00. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Methyl salicylate reacts with a strong base in the following manner: Fig. 4. Base hydrolysis of methyl salicylate The methoxy group of the e ster is substituted by the hydroxide ion through nucleophilic acyl substitution. The hydroxide attaches itself to the carboxylic carbon. A fast proton transfer from the hydroxide to the methoxy group occurs such that the methoxy gets protonated and leaves the substrate. The sodium ions stabilize the negative charge of the salicylate ion predominantly found near the two oxygens of the ion. The solution was then refluxed to prevent loss of material and to prevent the inclusion of impurities in the product. After cooling to room temperature, 1. 00 mL of 3M sulfuric acid (H2SO4) until salicylic acid starts precipitating as a white solid. To complete the precipitation, 0. 50 mL of the strong acid was added to the mixture. At this point, the salicylate ion is protonated and the final product, salicylic acid, forms through the reaction: Fig. 5. Protonation of the phenolate and carboxylate groups of the salicylate ion The flask containing the precipitate was then doused in cold water to stop the reaction. Cold water was used in rinsing the solid after filtration to wash out impurities that were insoluble in the solvent. The solid was recrystallized in hot water. Dissolving the solids in hot water generally increases the solubility of the substances, hence the solids dissolve along with the soluble impurities. The mixture was then allowed to cool slowly. As the solution cools, the solubility of the compound (and of the soluble impurities) decreases, the solution becomes saturated with the desired compound, and the compound begins to crystallize. Because formation of crystals is a highly selective process that usually excludes foreign molecules, only crystals of the desired compound form. Because the soluble impurities are present in smaller amounts, the solution never becomes saturated with the impurities, so the impurities remain in solution even after the solution has cooled. Removing the solution from the crystals thus removes the solvent and the soluble impurities from the desired crystals. A final rinse of minimum ice water ensures the displacement of the impurities still clinging on the surface of the product (â€Å"Recrystallization,† accessed 6 Sept 2010). After it was recystallized, the solid was filtered again in a pre-weighed filter paper. The filter paper used in filtering the solid weighed 1. 0349  ± 0. 0002 g. The mass of the dried product and the filter paper was 1. 3610  ± 0. 0002 g; this means that 0. 3261  ± 0. 0003 g was synthesized. Theoretically, with methyl salicylate as the limiting reagent, the mass of salicylic acid should be 0. 5400 g. Computing for the %yield, would give 61. 0%. In the determination of the melting point, the observed range of the melting point was 150-156 °C. Comparing with the theoretical value, 161 °C, the relative error lies within the range 3. 11-6. 83%. Therefore, the synthesized salicylic acid has a high purity as exhibited by the magnitude of the relative error. This could justify the %yield given that recrystallization might have caused a loss of material due to the increase of the number of steps involved. It should be noted that in organic synthesis, steps leading to the target molecule do not give 100% yield, hence, increasing the number of steps would decrease the %yield. Aside from that, the low yield could be attributed to the accidental rapid cooling that occurred during the recrystallization process. In a titration curve, there are three important regions: pre-equivalence point, equivalence point, and post-equivalence point. For the titration of salicylic acid with NaOH, the pre-equivalence point is characterized by the dependence of pH on the concentration of salicylic acid. Let salicylic acid be HA; prior to addition of the base, the pH can be calculated by the concentration of HA and its acid dissociation constant, Ka. When the base is added, HA reacts with the hydroxide ion (OH– ) according to the Eq. 4 stated above. Therefore, one has a buffer solution comprised of salicylic acid and salicylate. At equivalence point, all of the acid has been converted into its conjugate base. This base will hydrolyze with water through the reaction A– + H2O > HA + OH– (6) reforming a small portion of the acid. At the equivalence point, the slope of the titration curve is at its steepest. The pH at this point is dependent upon the conjugate base formed and its base dissociation constant, Kb. Beyond the equivalence point, the post-equivalence point, the pH is dependent on the concentration of the excess titrant added. This is because the contribution of the conjugate base is very small and, therefore, negligible compared to that of sodium hydroxide. However, salicylate is still the dominant species of salicylic acid present in solution. A distinction between equivalence point and endpoint should be established when titrating. Skoog, (2004), states that the equivalence point is the point in titration where the amount of titrant added is chemically equivalent to that of the analyte in solution. The endpoint is a point during titration wherein an observable change signals that the amount of titrant added is chemically equivalent with that of the analyte. The endpoint may not necessarily coincide with the equivalence point, especially in neutralization titrations. It may come earlier or later than the equivalence point, depending on the indicator used. This difference pf volume at equivalent and endpoint is known as titration error. In potentiometric titration, no chemical indicator is required. Instead, the endpoint is characterized by the drastic change in pX, measured by the electrode. X may be H3O+, OH–, a cation or anion, or any substance participating in the titrimetric reaction (Day and Underwood, 1991). In this case, the volume of titrant that contributes to the greatest change in pH is the volume required to completely titrate the salicylic acid in solution. Thus, the increments of addition of titrant are narrowed down as the equivalence point is reached because that way, the equivalence point will not be missed. Aside from that, the exact volume of titrant required for complete reaction of the analyte would be detected. Prior to titration and dilution with water, the salicylic acid was dissolved with a minimal amount of 95% ethanol. Salicylic acid is sparingly soluble in water, a polar solvent that can hydrogen-bond with solutes that can hydrogen-bond with its molecules. This is due to the acid having more than 6 carbons increasing its non-polarity, although it has oxygen that can form hydrogen bonds with water (McMurry, 2004). Adding ethanol reduces the polarity of the solvent, facilitating dissolution of the acid. It was noted that some of the acid reprecipitated upon addition of water. Thus, a minimum amount of 95% ethanol was again added to dissolve the acid. In the experiment, the electrode was also not lowered while the bar was spinning as air bubbles would adhere on its surface causing an error in the measurement of pH. Constant stirring is important in potentiometric titrations, as in other types of titrimetric analyses. Stirring is done because it will cause the titrant to react not just with the surface of the analyte where it dropped but with the entirety of the analyte solution. This way, the reaction will go to completion and minimal error will be observed. The volumes used for standardization of NaOH with KHP as primary standard are tabulated in Table 2 in the Appendix. Standardization of sodium hydroxide gave 0. 04633 M NaOH. This value was used in the determination of the percentage of purity (%purity) of the salicylic acid sample. For the determination of the equivalence point volume, three plots were done for each trial. The first plot is the graph between pH vs. volume of titrant. The second is the first derivative plot with which ? pH/? V was plotted against V’, where ? pH and ? V are the change in pH and the volume added between two consecutive readings, respectively, and V’ is the average volume between two consecutive readings. The third plot is the second derivative plot between ? 2pH/? V2 and V†. The ordinate of the graph, ? 2pH/? V2, was obtained by taking the quotient of the difference between two consecutive readings of ? pH/? V, and ? V, whereas V† is the average of the two consecutive readings of V’. Only two trials were done because of the inadequacy of the time. The graphs for the first trial are: a) (b) (c) Fig. 7. Titration Curves for the First Trial. (a) pH vs Vtitrant; (b) ? pH/? V vs V’; (c) ? 2pH/? V2 vs V† MNaOHVNaOH at eq ptFWsalicylic acid Gsample The graph for the second trial may be found at the Appendix. Either of the three graphs of Figs. 7 and 8 may be used in the determination of %purity for each trial. The equation used for determining the %pu rity, specifically for this experiment is %purity = x 100 (7) Thus, the volume of titrant used at equivalence point is required for the calculation. The interpolated values of the volume at equivalence point are tabulated in Table 3 in the Appendix. Calculation of the mean %purity is 101. 7%, having an error of 1. 7%, as the theoretical value is 100. 0%. The pKa is based on the pH at half-equivalence point by virtue of the derivation of Eq. 3. Onle Figs. 7a and 8a may be used for the determination of pKa as the other four do not directly give the pH at each point. The interpolated values for the pH at half-equivalence point is tabulated at Table 3 in the Appendix. The experimental pKa is 2. 865. Therefore, the Ka of the acid, given Ka = –log[Ka] (7) or Ka = 10–pKa (8) is 1. 3646 x 10–3. The theoretical pKa is equal to 2. 98. Thus, the pKa value gave rise to a 3. 86% error. Statistical analysis of the results shows the following results: Table 1. Statistical Analysis of the Results | Range| Standard Deviation| %purity| 15. 7%| 11. 1%| pKa| 0. 21| 0. 148| | Relative Standard Deviation (RSD), ppt| Confidence Int ervals (95% confidence)| %purity| 109. 1| 101. 7  ± 99. 7 %| pKa| 51. 8| 2. 865  ± 1. 334| The RSD of %purity is relatively large such that the values have low precision. Aside from that, the confidence intervals for the mean is also large such that it almost has the same order of magnitude as that of the mean. This means that the mean exhibits very low accuracy. With regards to the pKa, the RSD showed a low value, only 51. 8 ppt, implying high precision amongst the values. On the other hand, the mean value shows low accuracy because of the magnitude of the confidence intervals. These errors could be attributed to the number of trials. Due to inadequate time, the group was only able to do 2 trials, one less than the prescribed number of trials. CONCLUSIONS The experiment aimed at synthesizing salicylic acid from methyl salicylate and determining the acid dissociation constant Ka of the acid along with its purity. Organic synthesis provided a 61% yield of the acid, a relatively low yield. However, the purity of the acid can be classified as high due to the observed melting point range’s precision with the theoretical one; the %differenceis only 3. 11-6. 38%. The results of the potentiometric titration show that the salicylic acid used was 101. 7% pure, a value greater than the purity, which is 100%. The Ka, expressed as pKa, obtained was 2. 865, 0. 035 units less than the theoretical value, which is 2. 98. Though the %differences are low, the accuracy of the computed values is questionable given that the confidence intervals for the %purity and pKa are  ± 99. 7 and  ± 1. 334, respectively. These errors can be attributed to the number of trials done, which is two, due to the slow stabilization of the pH meter readings that resulted in a long period of titration. Thus, it can be concluded that potentiometric titration is an effective way of determining the acid dissociation constant of a sample. It is recommended that a better pH meter be used in the measurement of the pH and that solutions used be titrated immediately. REFERENCES [1] Day, R. A. and A. L. Underwood. (1991). Quantitative Analysis. Sixth Edition. Prentice Hall, Inc. , USA. [2] â€Å"Experiment 3: Synthesis of Salicylic Acid from Oil of Wintergreen (Methyl Salicylate). † Laboratory Reference Manual Chemistry 201/202. Reed College. Accessed 6 September 2010 ;http://academic. reed. edu/chemistry/alan/ 201_202/lab_manual/Expt_salicylic_acid/background. html; [3] McMurry, J. (2004). Organic Chemistry. Sixth Edition. Brooks/Cole – Thomson Learning, CA, USA. [4] †Recrystallization. † University of Massachussetts. Accessed 6 September 2010 ;http:// www. chem. umass. edu/~samal/269/ cryst1. pdf; [5] Skoog, D. A. , D. M. West, F. J. Holler, S. R. Crouch. (2004). Fundamentals of Analytical Chemistry. Eighth Edition. Brooks/Cole – Thomson Learning, CA, USA. APPENDIX Gfilter paper = 1. 0349  ± 0. 0002 g Gfilter paper and dried product = 1. 3610  ± 0. 0002 g Gdried product = 0. 3261  ± 0. 0003 g %yield = 61. 0% Observed melting point range: 150-156 °C %difference = 3. 11-6. 83% 1 ° standard used;: potassium hydrogen phthalate (KHP) purity = 99. 95% Table 2. Standardization of NaOH Trial| Mass of KHP, g| Vtitrant, mL| Molarity, M| 1| 0. 2030| 21. 30| 0. 04664| 2| 0. 2175| 23. 00| 0. 04628| 3| 0. 2043| 21. 70| 0. 04608| Average Molarity, M| 0. 04633| Table 3. Sample Analysis Trial| Gsalicylic acid, g| Vtitrant at eq. pt. , mL| % purity| pH at half-eq. pt. (pKa)| 1| 0. 11 25| 16. 50| 93. 86| 2. 76| 2| 0. 1031| 17. 65| 109. 6| 2. 97| 3| -| -| -| -| Average pKa = 2. 865 Average %purity = 101. 7% Plot of the Second Trial: (a) (b) (c) Fig. 8. Titration Curves for the Second Trial. (a) pH vs Vtitrant; (b) ? pH/? V vs V’; (c) ? 2pH/? V2 vs V†