Deviant Behavior in the Light of Conflict Theory

Conflict theory is based on the idea that the main causes of crime and deviance are the economic and social differences among members of a society, prompting the have-nots to act out, if not to rob the haves. According to this theory, criminal law and the entire criminal justice system tend to be favorable toward the wealthy and the powerful elites, while the governmental policies are aimed at controlling only the needy and poor members of society.Moreover, the theory assumes that the entire criminal justice structure is aimed at compelling all members of society to accept the standards of good behavior and morality that are created by the rich and the powerful. There is a focus on separation between the haves and the have-nots, so as to protect the haves from physical attacks by the have-nots, and also to protect them from being robbed. In the process, however, the rights of the poor and needy people could be ignored. The middle class, on the other hand, enjoys the legal rights of t he elites by siding with them.These people believe that they might be able to rise in rank by backing up the status quo (â€Å"Conflict,† 2005). The simplistic conflict theory has been explained further thus: †¦[S]treet crimes, even minor monetary ones are routinely punished quite severely, while large scale financial and business crimes are treated much more leniently. Theft of a television might receive a longer sentence than stealing millions through illegal business practices. William Chambliss, in a classic essay â€Å"The Saints and the Roughnecks,† compared the outcomes for two groups of adolescent misbehavers. The first, a lower class group ofboys, was hounded by the local police and labeled by teachers as delinquents and future criminals, while the upper-middle class boys were equally deviant, but their actions were Deviant Behavior in the Light of Conflict Theory 2 written off as youthful indiscretions and learning experiences (â€Å"Conflict†). A lthough there is truth to the conflict theory, it is only partial. Of a certainty, there are countless people counted among the rich and the powerful who have engaged in deviant behaviors. What is more, they have not found the law to be lax toward them. As an example, both of President George W.Bush’s daughters have been in trouble with the law (Montgomery, 2001). The daughter of the President’s brother, Florida Governor Jeb Bush, has also been arrested for deviant behavior (â€Å"Jeb,† 2002). The conflict theory does not apply in their cases. Nor does it apply in the case of Enron and Worldcom – rich businesses that should have been untouched by the laws of the land if the conflict theory were entirely true. Although there may be instances where the conflict theory correctly explains deviant behavior, it is obvious that this theory cannot be applied to all places in the world at all times.There are many nations in the world where corruption is the law of the land, and unfairness is the norm. In the developing regions of the world, in particular, the have-nots may rob the haves or simply act out because they are disturbed by the unfairness that is mete out to them. However, it is not correct to understand deviant behavior only in the light of the conflict theory. If we are to believe that it is conflict theory alone that explains deviant behavior in human beings, we would not have examples of the Bush daughters and Enron to consider. There are many theories to explain deviant behavior.The cultural transmission or the differential associations theory, for example, may compete with the conflict theory in explaining deviance. According to the cultural transmission theory, all kinds of behaviors, including deviant behavior, are learned. Furthermore, the young and therefore more impressionable Deviant Behavior in the Light of Conflict Theory 3 learners of deviance may have developed close relationships with their deviant teachers. With i ncreasing contacts with deviant teachers, the young learners of deviance engage in increasingly deviant behaviors (â€Å"Sociological Theories†).The cultural transmission theory does not rule out the possibility that the children of the rich and the powerful may engage in deviant behaviors because they may have had deviant teachers. The conflict theory rules out this possibility entirely with its assumption that the societal norms are established by the rich and the powerful, so therefore they cannot possibly go against their own rules. As explained previously, this assumption of the conflict theory is not true, seeing that the rich and the powerful are also known to go against the societal norms, which they should have established for themselves and by themselves.The conflict theory is also not true one hundred percent in places where laws are created on the basis of unfairness and corruption. Even in such places, it is known that there are always people that try to work har d and honestly, despite the unfairness that is dealt out to them. In short, all people in ‘deviant’ places may not engage in deviant behaviors, even if the rich and the powerful have corrupted the government with bribes, etc. Yet another theory that conflicts with the conflict theory is the social control theory that explains why people may not engage in deviant behaviors.According to this theory, individuals may follow the societal norms because of their connecting social bonds (â€Å"Sociological Theories†). In other words, they may refuse to engage in deviant behaviors for the following reasons: (1) attachment — a measure of the connectedness between individuals; Deviant Behavior in the Light of Conflict Theory 4 (2) commitment — a measure of the stake a person has in the community; (3) involvement — a measure of the time/energy a person is spending on activities that are helpful to the community;(4) belief — a measure of the person 's support for the morals and beliefs of the community (â€Å"Sociological Theories†). If all poor and needy folks in an unfair society were to follow the societal norms because of their social contacts, the conflict theory would once again be rendered meaningless. It may be that some underprivileged folks with weak social bonds would engage in deviant behaviors in a corrupt society. In that case, however, the conflict theory would only apply to that small group of people. In actuality, such a group may be existent.Theoretically, however, it is possible for that group never to exist. Thus, the conflict theory may actually apply only in the cases of disgruntled, underprivileged folks who truly believe in righting the wrongs with wrongs. It would not apply in a corrupt society where underprivileged folks would like to work hard and honestly. And, neither would it apply in societies where the rich and the powerful are not exempt from the law. Therefore, the conflict theory is a naive theory, which, like most theories, does not explain reality in its entirety. References Conflict. (2005, Nov. 22). Florida State University. Retrieved Sep. 20, 2007, from http://www.criminology.fsu.edu/crimtheory/conflict.htm. Jeb Bush’s Daughter Charged with Prescription Fraud. (2002, Jan. 29). CNN. Retrieved Sep. 20, 2007, from http://archives.cnn.com/2002/US/01/29/jeb.bush.daughter.drugs/. Montgomery, A. (2001, Jun. 4). Jenna Bush may face jail on booze charge. Chicago Sun-Times. Sociological Theories to Explain Deviance. Retrieved Sep. 20, 2007, from http://www.valdosta.edu/~klowney/devtheories.htm.

Analyzing the effectiveness and drawbacks of current Land

Most of the prevailing laws or bills regarding land acquisition, resettlement, compensation, ululation seem inadequate and sources of lot of discordance. This research proposal seeks to analyze the impact of such acts and the reasons of protest and agitations by the affected people. It also aims to find out alternative solutions for such critical issues. In this research study the stakeholders are identified along with their stakes and various literature are analyzed to suggest a methodology for further research and to propose a common ground for amicable discussion and understanding of individual interests.Keywords Land acquisition, rehabilitation, resettlement, consent, compensation, voluntary acquisition, eminent domain, replacement value, public purpose, land valuation, market pricing 4 page Problem Description The 2011 Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill , though well- intentioned, was seriously flawed. It attached an arbitrary mark-up to the historical mar ket price to determine compensation amounts.This will guarantee neither social justice nor the efficient use of resources. The Bill also place d unnecessary & strict conditions on land acquisition, like restrictions on the use of multi-cropped land and insistence on public purpose, all of which would hinder the pace of development thou promoting the interests of farmers. Many such flaws are tried to be addressed in ?The right to fair compensation and transparency in land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement act, 20131.While the process of industrialization is facing many problems that en De to be solved, the problem of land for industry and urban development is the most critical one. The fact is that people depend on land not only as title holders but also as landless laborers and share croppers, for natural resources and cultural inputs, for preservation of artisans and age old technologies, for community and family congregation. Often land is taken away without adequate co mpensation or without adequate opportunities for affected people to grow and resettle with dignity.This is inhuman and leads to all kind of contentious issues that have surfaced within the people move into cities, a trend that cannot be stopped, there has to be proper town planning and proper growth of our urban centre?a process that will increase the importance of land. 5 Page Problem Structuring Definitional Issues The experts felt that the bill does not clearly define what constitutes ‘rural' and ‘ urban' areas. This omission is bound to lead to litigation. It is essential to plug this loophole. The law still does not define or elaborate ?public purposes and again gives the State a free hand on this.Without defining the term ?urgency it makes special provisions for compensation if land is acquired under the ?urgency† provision. Also terms like ?eminent domain] (vests sovereign ownership of all land and natural resources embodied in the state, felicitating compul sory takings), ?replacement value], ?willing/unwilling seller] are ambiguous. Consent Consent' to sell?both in government and private and public-partnership projects APP)?is among the most contentious issues in land acquisition. What percentage of landowners consent is required?Should it be required from all land users (e. G. Those dependent on land like agricultural workers, wage laborers, artisans and landless peasants) or only from the land losers? Compensation The current scheme of compensation that the bill has laid down is two times the market price for urban areas and four times the market price for rural areas. These figures were arrived at without any rationale, from a ?top down approach. Affected people have no say on any aspect of the transaction?whether they want to give up he land or what would be a fair price.Institutional Support To understand the position of stakeholders and their needs in order to device a fair solutions, a three-tier institutional structure was moo ted: one for suggesting proposals, one for dialogue and another for decision-making. First one would include think-tanks or academic research organizations which use data, analyses it and make recommendations. Second one would bring 6 Page stakeholders together to deliberate on their respective positions. Finally, the last institution would be given the authority, constitutionally or organizationally, to take final decisions.Transparency would facilitate better evaluation, selection and determination of the market price for land as well as sharing of incremental gain from land development with affected people. Process efficiency implies clarity in legislation which would result in less litigation and realistic deadlines for all parties involved. On viability, there is a need to reach a common ground between the acquirer's right to profit and compensation rights. The experts held that companies acquiring land for public- private partnerships should be given limited control rights. St akeholder map Farmers / Residents Politicians MediaShare croppers Fisherman/ boatman Agricultural laborers Land acquisition for industrial/ developmental/ mining projects Tribal Environmental activists Industrialists Local population Citizens Government 71 page Specific stakeholder and Stake identification Stakeholders Farmers, Residents Stakes Lose the most, as they gives away their land, and don't get future benefits; farmers lose their basic earning activity With not enough land on their own, they need others' land for cultivation Termed as unskilled labor, their livelihood is at stake with decreased agricultural land, more so as they are mainly landless laborsTheir whole livelihood and culture exist around the region they live, as they are mostly dependent on the natural resources; more ever they normally do not have title to land, thus losing out all the benefits Without land, they can't build new plant, also without mining they have to depend upon foreign industrialists Respon sible for both growth & development with restrained inflation and preservation of environmental balance, ecology & citizens' rights Face maximum brunt of degraded environment, inflation, land scarcity Local population/ Directly impacted by industrial waste and effluence, restricted movement wrought land, absence of grazing ground/water body, increased land price Environment Worried with increased industrial waste & pollution and adverse effect on activist nature & biodiversity due to mass land acquisition for mining/industry Main source of information dissipation since internal and local information is seldom spread by industry or Gobo. Cross the county A major influence in creating public opinion on this issue, plus their vote banks can be determined by how they handle such cases 8 | Page Displaced people BOOT graph Pollution Amount Land price Industrial growth Biodiversity Job for agricultural labor Time Literature review Maturities Ghats and Apparatchiks Gosh, in an article (Octo ber, 2011) have analyzed the land laws and current situations and in their opinion the use of market price for voluntary transactions as a proxy for owners' value in forced acquisitions is measured by experts but rather a subjective quantity – it is whatever the owner deems it to be. They proposed an alternative approach allowing farmers to determine their land price, chose compensation in either cash or land and reallocate the remaining land in most efficient manner. It involves a land auction covering not only the project site but also the surrounding agricultural land.The advantages they put forward is that it is less coercive, it gives strong incentive to bid truthfully, it allows farmers to incorporate their own estimates of future land price inflation into their bids, thereby minimizing the chance of losing out compared to the neighborhood farmers. It also provides an option to leave the land remain as agricultural one incase acquisition effort fails. 9 | Page Vanish Ku mar in his June, 2011 article in PEP, has highlighted the violence in land acquisition by the government and UP government policy on this matter. According to him all episodes of agitation and demands are politicized and farmers find homeless entrapped in a situation where leaders encourage and support their agitations but do very little to tackle the problems. He considered State's role as a ?venture capitalist].He cited the UP policy as best among existing in the country. It introduced a process of negotiations in Greater Oneida with the local farmers leading to signing of a deed. The new policy makes land acquisition more profitable for the farmer defining the State as a mere facilitator. He provided scope for improvement, especially as small farmers and agricultural laborers have very little to gain in this hole procedure, but mentioned the fact that political parties have no intention to make consensus effort on this issue. Ashcan Inhaling and Edit Was (August, 2011)) mentioned the fact that often land-titles are unclear and identifying parties eligible for compensation is rendered difficult.All across the world, the state is gifted with the power to acquire land for public purpose by providing compensation to the landholders. This power directly vested in the constitution (in US, Australia and China) or, is specified in enacted legislation (in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore). However the terms like _ public repose' are ambiguous. Countries like France, Japan, China, Mexico and India explicitly enumerate situations and projects under which land can be acquired or appropriated by the state for public use, whereas Malaysia, Brazil, US, UK and Singapore provide a more generic definition. Also the valuation and acquisition methods differ across the nations. In valuation, net income from land, original use, market value all such aspects are taken into consideration.Countries like Philippines where legal systems are not robust, land market is not well develo ped, or active reliable information in unavailable, 101 page ?replacement value (amount it would cost to replace the asset with a similar asset) technique. It is not easy to discern a set of international best practices with respect frameworks and philosophies laid down in the statutes should be treated as guidelines, incorporating flexibility into the land acquisition processes. Also they mentioned about the delaying in payment of the solarium to affected parties, which leads to dissatisfaction and consequent protests. They proposed negotiation in valuation, compensation, partnering, pool together (land pooling though farmers) many such methods.They cited the Pun example where 123 farmers pooled gather 400 acres of farmland along with a private limited company to build Magistrate city. Here the farmers continue to own the land, own shares in the company and collect dividends on these shares as well as rents from the tenants in the city (Magma, 2008). In an Editorial ? , Economic & Political Weekly] (PEP, August, 2011), the editor cited farmer agitation and state atrocities regarding land acquisition in Maharajah's. Farmers here had given land for Pun-Iambi express highway and similar projects in past, but they have grown steadily distrustful of the government's intentions due to unfulfilled promises.The state government's mishandling of the Naval farmers' agitation and the subsequent police firing causing death of three farmers was exceptionally inept. In Naval, they fear that they will no longer get water from the Pain dam which irrigates their land. Greater the fear about water meant for agriculture being diverted to industry or urban areas is also root-cause of their protests against the Sophia power project in Martial, which requires large amount of water from the Upper Ward dam. Going by the past record of most governments, people have a reason to be distrustful. Voluntarily surrender land for rejects provide no tangible benefits to them. A credible alte rnative to protect their livelihood and a proper compensation plan must be at place. 1 Page Augusta Marti (December, 2010) attempted to solve a key economic problem regarding land acquisition deals using some mathematical models incorporating the logic of an ?annuity or a ?royalty]. It has to do with the claim of the landowner over the future value of land once it is sold and put to alternative use. It also addressed to the adaptation of the so-called â€Å"Harlan† model that relies on predetermined annual payments to the farmers. His argument is that the government will tax a portion of the increased value from the buyer and redistribute it to the landowner acting as a legal taxing authority and not as a negotiator. In this case though the seller will forfeit his property right to the buyer, but will have a rightful claim on the capital gain tax.He also proposed to make this _claim paper' as traceable in market. He suggested for using a part of the taxation infrastructure at the central level for evaluating capital-gains on land and creating accounts exclusively for this purpose taking the buyer, the seller, the government and the option trader into confederacy to ensure that funds raised do not go towards other kinds of fiscal replenishments. Also one can track the transactions between the seller and the option trader. This option as a traceable instrument can satisfy the poor farmers without binding the buyers of land. Stowage Karakas (October, 2011) has seen the market exchange process acting as the main domain of mediating social relationships.He deciphered three interrelated problems with this political/policy position: absence of market for a particular land, non-availability of quantitative standard or reference to measure against Just and fair imposition, consent is not always a natural will as it has political significance beyond liberalism. According to him state must stay away from creating political condition to receive individual consent, rather it should accept the limitations of law and policy in resolving certain contentious issues, and remain open to contingency, by conferring priority to the democratic values of disagreement, dissent and 121 page plurality of modes of existence, only then it will learn to withdraw from prior commitment to any particular rationality and ideology. Ram Sings (May, 2012) has focused on laws that govern the acquisition and transfer f agricultural land for other purposes.He cited the history of eminent domain in India as unmitigated abuses of the law, which remains archaic and ambiguous. Also the callous approach taken by land acquisition collectors (LAG) to determine compensation is a point of discordant. In current situation lot of institutional hurdles like change-in-land-use (CLUB) clearance from the state government, other regulatory clearances from local authorities are there that thwart voluntary transactions. He argued that this is the reason the project developers are better- off bribing the powers that get them to acquire the needed land. He also mentioned poor land records and high transaction cost of individual land transfer.He suggested collective bargaining with the owners or their representatives, cost of compensation be paid by the entity benefiting from the acquisition, initial compensation itself should be determined in light of all of the relevant information, such as type of land, its future value, records of the sale deeds etc. He also argued for the reduction of compulsory acquisition. Colic Gonzales (August, 2010) has indicated the states' prerogative in becoming an estate agent of the companies for acquiring land for them. He analyzed land acts and the outcomes in chronological phases. According to him the Judiciary appears to have misread the mood in the country, providing _ public interest' the widest possible scope. Instead of mass protest, superior Judiciary remained unmoved, stuck to their notions of development unresponsive to the di stress of farmers, tenants and agricultural laborers.According to him, the way forward for Judiciary is to hold that irrespective of the contribution by government, all acquisitions for companies must follow Part VII of the Land Acquisition Act (ALA), which is 131 page acquisition for a company. This is understandable since State governments have come under total corporate control that their first priority is to spend large sums of state funds to assist corporations in the acquisition of lands using the Act. Cantata Lair-Duty, Radii Krishna, Ensnare Mad (February, 2012) in an article in owned companies for resource extraction in Shorthand and sighted that cosmetic changes in mineral governance laws are inadequate to protect the interests of the poor.Granting of mining blocks to private companies for ?captive] coal mining has thoroughly neglected the rights of the tribal. The state equates coal with national placement, energy security and hence strategic sovereignty to avoid the mora l quandary. By virtue of Coal Bearing Areas (Acquisition and Development) Act (CUBA), coal mining generally supersedes the community rights. Thus states change to ?broker states from the old developmental state. Coercion by both company representatives and state agencies is a characteristic of land acquisition in Shorthand. Apart from changes in land-use pattern and the creation of wastelands, mining causes large number of physical and occupational displacement, a fact that state seldom document correctly or address.Environment impact assessment (EIA) remains a toothless safeguard, not documenting possible impacts on local water availability nor assessing the ground-level impact of air pollution on surrounding communities and vegetation. The procedure never takes into account the tribal history, identity and livelihood entwined with the land. It has pushed many tribes into the verge of extinction. According to the authors, only a convoluted logic can equate coal mining by private co mpanies with public purpose or national interest. They asked for a new mineral extractive paradigm, one that does not inflict deep mounds on nature and people. They also asked for the consultation with gram Kasbah and consent of tribal communities for any mining project, 141 Page with the view of optimizing the level of royalties and consequent benefits to impacted communities.OSHA Rampant (November, 2011) has observed that by beginning with the premise that acquisition is inevitable and priority for industrialization, arbitration and infrastructure development, the LARK Bill 2011 has neglected the interest of the land losers. She raised question about state's legitimacy in facilitating the land rangers the way it does. She questions state's relationship with the land, whether it is a landlord, an owner, a trustee, a holder of land, a manager or what? She argued for the _affected families' who are dependent on forests or water bodies and which includes gatherers of forest produce, h unters, fisheries and boatmen and (those whose) livelihood is affected due to acquisition of land. Infant families who got land under any government scheme are also included.She also cited the effect of diluting ‘The Forest Rights Act 2006†² which helps in land acquisition through change of public repose -where acquisition is based on one purpose but it is used for another purpose. Another bill, _ The Land Titling Bill 2011' shifts the onus of keeping the records updated, even loss of acknowledgement of title to the land or interest in the land from the state to the individual. According to the author this bill is an attempt at communications of land, making it traceable in the land market. Michael Levine (March, 2011) has highlighted the controversies over Sees and large private mining projects in eastern India. According to him, the proposed amendments to the Land

Learning Style and Brain Dominance

When analyzing the three mentioned ways of learning patterns, they portrayed auditory learners as the best listeners, and usually reads out loud which help them recall what they read. People with a â€Å"Kinesthetic† learning pattern are usually hands on, they are described as the people who will take things apart and put them back together in order to recall what they learned. They are also very fond of using body gestures when they talk. â€Å"Visual† was also mentioned as one of the main learning patterns, people who fall under this category usually recall what they learn by recollecting visual images, and they tend to be very detail oriented.As all our fingers are not equal, neither is our personality. Everyone has their own comfort zone when it comes to learning. When taking the brain dominance test, I felt I have a combination of both. My final score said something different; it put me more on the right side. I guess we can say the brain is who we are; it controls your being and portrays your personality. I guess that is why we have choices because if we all use the same part of the brain we would understand each other and get along, I am not sure if that would be a fun world, we need the pros and cons of life that is why we cannot think and do things equally.Left brainers are said to be very logical and detailed oriented, while right brainers always views and analyze things with the bigger picture, they are auditory and sometimes detail oriented. My knowledge of brain dominance and learning style will affect my professional life by directing me toward the professions and roles which would make best use of analytical ability and attention to detail. The one thing I have not done is try to figure out my comfort zone when it comes to learning, but with this study I am going to be able to assess myself better to see where I fall short when it comes to learning.I am going to start making a better judgment call; I think it is very important to un derstand how to be able to help another. I am going to make it a point to use this new knowledge to access my personal and professional life to make it better and less stressful. This assessment will enable me to enhance my personal life by bringing to level of conscious realization not all people view things in the same way that I do and so it will help me ngage them to understand them for better team effort in both personal and career perspective. I believe knowing that everyone thinks and do things differently, as a manager; it will help me control any emotion that gets in the way of my management. As we are all human and have feelings, when it comes to the professional life, emotions are to be set aside which is very hard to do sometimes. Assessing yourself and knowing who you are will help control emotions when it comes to managing employees at the work placeTo conclude, whether â€Å"Visual, Auditory or Kinesthetic†, we are all unique in a way so we just need to find wh o we are and what best works for us and approach life as we learn about ourselves the best way possible. I will utilize this new found knowledge to effectively engage others in an attempt to build better relationships and enhance communication; I will use this knowledge to foster acceptance and understanding of those who view the world from a perspective other than my own Learning Style and Brain Dominance When analyzing the three mentioned ways of learning patterns, they portrayed auditory learners as the best listeners, and usually reads out loud which help them recall what they read. People with a â€Å"Kinesthetic† learning pattern are usually hands on, they are described as the people who will take things apart and put them back together in order to recall what they learned. They are also very fond of using body gestures when they talk. â€Å"Visual† was also mentioned as one of the main learning patterns, people who fall under this category usually recall what they learn by recollecting visual images, and they tend to be very detail oriented.As all our fingers are not equal, neither is our personality. Everyone has their own comfort zone when it comes to learning. When taking the brain dominance test, I felt I have a combination of both. My final score said something different; it put me more on the right side. I guess we can say the brain is who we are; it controls your being and portrays your personality. I guess that is why we have choices because if we all use the same part of the brain we would understand each other and get along, I am not sure if that would be a fun world, we need the pros and cons of life that is why we cannot think and do things equally.Left brainers are said to be very logical and detailed oriented, while right brainers always views and analyze things with the bigger picture, they are auditory and sometimes detail oriented. My knowledge of brain dominance and learning style will affect my professional life by directing me toward the professions and roles which would make best use of analytical ability and attention to detail. The one thing I have not done is try to figure out my comfort zone when it comes to learning, but with this study I am going to be able to assess myself better to see where I fall short when it comes to learning.I am going to start making a better judgment call; I think it is very important to un derstand how to be able to help another. I am going to make it a point to use this new knowledge to access my personal and professional life to make it better and less stressful. This assessment will enable me to enhance my personal life by bringing to level of conscious realization not all people view things in the same way that I do and so it will help me ngage them to understand them for better team effort in both personal and career perspective. I believe knowing that everyone thinks and do things differently, as a manager; it will help me control any emotion that gets in the way of my management. As we are all human and have feelings, when it comes to the professional life, emotions are to be set aside which is very hard to do sometimes. Assessing yourself and knowing who you are will help control emotions when it comes to managing employees at the work placeTo conclude, whether â€Å"Visual, Auditory or Kinesthetic†, we are all unique in a way so we just need to find wh o we are and what best works for us and approach life as we learn about ourselves the best way possible. I will utilize this new found knowledge to effectively engage others in an attempt to build better relationships and enhance communication; I will use this knowledge to foster acceptance and understanding of those who view the world from a perspective other than my own

Environmental Studies - Global Warming Research Paper

Environmental Studies - Global Warming - Research Paper Example However, the aspect that cannot be disputed is that these human induced advancements, inventions and discoveries are happening at the cost of earth’s environment. Yes, technological advancements and industrial revolution, initiated by the men, have led to an increase in emission of greenhouse gases, burning of fossil fuels and that eventually led to global warming. Global Warming refers to rise in earth’s temperature due to the emission of green house gases, deforestation and burning of fossil fuels. It is no doubt that Earth is warming faster than ever before in history. The increasing temperature is, however, thought to come about because of the various human activities. However, at the same time, there is a view that global warming is a naturally occurring phenomenon, and the human activities in quest of development and comfort do not contribute to it. Thus, this paper even while discussing whether global warming is due to human actions or whether they do not contrib ute maximally to it, will take a concluding stance that it is human-induced. Background Earth’s temperatures depend on the balance between input of the sun and terrestrial radiation or its loss back into the atmosphere. There are gases that are critical when it comes to the balance of that temperature. This group of gases has a common name: greenhouse gases. Energy from the sun is in the form of shortwave radiation. Approximately, a third of the solar radiation that hits earth’s surface gets reflected back into the atmosphere. The remaining radiation is absorbed mainly by land and oceans. This, therefore, results into an increase in the warming of the earth’s surface. The surface subsequently emits long-wave radiation. At this point, if there are greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the radiation is trapped, thereby, warming the atmosphere. The gases form a blanket on earth thus increasing the temperatures by 35 degrees (Theodore, 2004). Role of human induced Gre enhouse gases in global warming Scientists believe that human activities have a direct impact on the increased levels of greenhouse gases on the earth surface. Global warming occurs because of the massive greenhouse gases, for instance, carbon dioxide and methane. Human activities are the main cause of the increase in green house gases. Global warming is characterized by rise in sea levels, melting of glaciers and ice caps, change in climatic conditions and rainfall patterns, etc. For the last 20 million years, research has it that burning of fuels has tremendously given rise to high carbon dioxide level in the atmosphere. A recent report by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change shows that there is a vivid evidence for 0.6 degrees Celsius increase in global temperatures and about 20cm rise in the general sea level. In addition, sea ice thickness in Arctic Ocean has gone down by approximately 40% (Theodore, 2004). Mountains, on the other hand, are also recording the fastest ever experienced glacier melting rate. In North Atlantic region, there has been a constant rise in storm activities, drought, and floods. Prediction made by IPCC suggests that by 2100, there shall be arise in global temperatures by 5.4 degrees Celsius (Theodore, 2004). Generation of Greenhouse Gases has increased due to Human activities A simple way to prove Global Warming is happening and real is to refer to the earth’s temperature database of the previous years and compare the same with the current

Job Analysis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Job Analysis - Research Paper Example Quirin (1991) defines job analysis as a systematic approach for the collection of information regarding a job including roles, responsibilities and the skills required to perform those tasks. It is an important part of planning in human resource enabling the manager to determine job necessities, needed tools and skills, supervision of the employees and their interaction with the management. This paper focuses on all the elements of job analysis, based on the statement that job analysis is the backbone of an organization’s efforts to meet its vision, mission and objectives. Based on the contingency theory of organizational behavior, a job analysis of my immediate former position will be made in a bid to ensure that it is filled and operated satisfactorily. Organizational Behavior Theory Guiding this Job Analysis: Contingency Theory This is a radical shift from both the classical and neoclassical theories of organizational behavior in terms of its view on conflict at the workpla ce. While the two are focused on avoiding conflict since it interferes with equilibrium in the organization, contingency theory recognizes the fact that conflict is virtually inescapable, but manageable at the same time. Thus, organizations naturally evolve and adapt to meet their strategic needs through actions that are rational and sequential. Effectiveness is a key component in dealing with changes in the environment (Walonick, 1993; Chandler, 1962; Lawrence & Lorsch, 1969). This is the most applicable theory in job analysis since it provides for adaptability and variation in all aspects of a job, especially considering the fact that a job description should be able to accommodate uniqueness. Creating a job description that meets the specific objectives of the organization is preferable than copying what is already being used in other firms. Aspects to be analyzed for the Job Job analysis is aimed at collection of information about the job. To begin with information will be gathe red concerning the specific duties and tasks required by the job. A review of any possible physical requirements according to the environment of the job will then be done since the working conditions may not be accommodative to all people. The tools and equipment used will then be explored in detail, followed by establishing the inter-relationships of the position with superior, equal and junior staff. Finally, the requirements of the job from a prospective recruit will then be analyzed in terms of knowledge, skills and abilities (Branick and Edward, 2002). Job Description Several methods can be used to collect information for a job description including interviewing the incumbents and supervisors, observation, structured or open questionnaires and exploration of work logs among others (McNamara, 2010). A lot of these methods will not be applicable in this case since I am the incumbent. I will utilize the knowledge I have from my previous position to create a job description. Import antly, I will utilize Gibb’s Reflective Cycle that will enable me to reflect on my entire service for that position, coming up with an evaluation of the things I did well, where I went wrong and finally the best course of action I would undertake if I was to find myself in similar position (Jasper, 2003). The other method is to interview my former

Wetlands Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Wetlands - Research Proposal Example Other reptiles, mammals and birds have not only made wetlands their habitats but also a breeding site (Russo, 2008). The wetlands act as a sponge in trapping runoff water during a rainy storm and as the water is released slowly it is filtered thus removing toxic substances. Water will move through the plants and the small spaces in the soil allowing nutrients to be absorbed while pollutants will be trapped. Although seventy five percent of the earth surface is covered by water, there is only three percent of fresh water. Therefore, it is important to seek alternative ways of purifying water for the six billion people in this planet to consume. This research will test the hypothesis that water at the end of the river will be cleaner than at the beginning. I will evaluate if the ecological environment around the river will clean the water as it flows downstream. The study will test if wetlands can reduce the amount of toxins carried away in water runoff by using its plants and other micro-organisms in the purification process. The Passaic river has several swamps and meanders thus making it appropriate for the research study. The research will seek to identify which types of plants or organisms will be crucial in minimizing pollutants. Different plants will have varying results in the amounts of reduced chemicals; therefore the study will establish the type of plants in the wetlands that removed the chemicals more efficiently. Likewise, it is important to establish the effect of the toxins on habitats of the wetlands and the harm caused by continuous drainage of metals into saturated ground water. Wetlands can be classified differently using the system developed by Cowardin that divides wetlands according to the aquatic environment they are connected to. They are categorizes as: Marine wetlands that are found in seawaters, Estuarines that

A Hospitality Operator Might Face Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

A Hospitality Operator Might Face - Assignment Example 4.) Factors that contribute to the bleakness and roughness of hospitality laws especially in the past were the small number of inns in which the innkeeper took the advantage of controlling the hospitality business. The hospitality law is considered as the foremost protector of the entire guests in this business (Cournoyer, et al., 2008). At present, there are already several establishments within the industry, and the presence of stiff competition is one determining factor for this occurrence (Cournoyer, et al., 2008). The nature of the hospitality management comprises the inclusion of the provision of services accommodation in the food and beverages business within a wide range of service establishments (Pizam, 2005, p. 53).These establishments include hotels, motels, clubs, casinos, restaurants, fast food outlets, and bars, to name a few. Hospitality management has also started growing inside shipping companies, rails, schools, hospitals, and so on (Pizam, 2005). Tourists are consi dered as the main factor why the hospitality business continues to develop and grow. It must be noted that the hospitality business provides the wider range of employment among people in both the rural and urban areas. 2. Worker Violence as a Legal Problem that a Hospitality Operator Might Face The hospitality operator is never exempted from encountering legal problems in hospitality management. ... Worker violence is identified in this paper as a legal problem that might be faced by the hospitality operator. Homicide appears to be one of the most extreme forms of violence manifested in the hospitality workplace (O’Fallon and Rutherford, 2011). According to US Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration (1998), homicide is the second cause of death of Americans working in the hospitality management. In 1996, data revealed that 912 workers account to the total work injuries in the US alone, indicating the seriousness of the homicide cases in the hospitality sector. A survey made by the National Crime Victimization of the Department of Justice indicates that there are about one million victims of violent crime at work, spanning from 1987 to 1992. Four categories are included in these data, specifically simple assault (615,160 victims); aggravated assault (264,174 victims); robbery (79,109 victims); and rape (13,068 victims). It appears that 159,000 cas es of victimization are reported annually in the hospitality business (US Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 1998). In 2002, 52 per cent of the service sector in 347 workplaces in the United States hospitality management has been a victim of homicide, according to the department of labor (O’Fallon and Rutherford, 2011, p. 229). Violence in the hospitality workplace is identified in two categories. Explicit violence, in which such violence directly involves the employees of a particular establishment, and implicit violence, in which the violence is specifically directed to the establishment (O’Fallon and Rutherford, 2011). The hospitality operator indeed faces a serious problem with the possibility of workplace violence occurring within his or her

World of Work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

World of Work - Essay Example According to Ashenfelter (1999), computer technology has resulted to change in relative demand for skills. Change in workplace caused by introduction of computer has required individual workers to enhance their skills. However, the change has made work to be much easier and enjoyable than it used to be before. This has actually made individual workers to be more efficient on their roles thus becoming more productive. Currently, an employee who used to type one page using the typewriter can write ten pages using a computer in a much easier and enjoyable manner. The change in workplace resulting from introduction of computers has also resulted to great impact to the society. Through internet technology, computers enhance searching of record as well as the displaying of results (CSA, 2010). This has reduced the level of fatigue for individual workers. As a result, their interaction during work and after work has been greatly enhanced. Moreover, the technology has improved communication between individuals. This has greatly enhanced the relationships of individuals in the society thus resulting to societal

The Turkish invasion in Cyprus at 1974 Research Paper

The Turkish invasion in Cyprus at 1974 - Research Paper Example All these were taking place in the knowledge of three guarantor powers which reacted three days after the Turkish invasion in Cyprus. The guarantor powers that included the United Kingdom, Greece and Turkey decided to agree upon the fate of the invaded island. Seemingly, Turkish had a lot of interest in having the most of the island, and, in fact, it ended up acquiring more than a third of the island illegally (Freedman 402). This came as a result of their Attila II pre-planned physical attack which saw them through their acquisition of the island disregarding opinions of other guarantor powers. The above actions were devastative in nature as many things were destroyed ranging from property in the island to individual lives that were claimed in the process of the attack. As a consequence of their brutality, more than 5000 individuals lost their lives. In addition, there resulted a fate unknown, and nobody could account for 1,614 missing Cypriots as well as 4 citizens from the US duri ng the invasion period, Congregation Record (18108). Before the attack on Cyprus by the Turkey, Greece had come up and led a coup whose intention was made known all. As Freedman (402) noted in his book, the Greek-led coup was to unite Cyprus Island with Greece. This is the sole reason why the Turkish military launched an operation to invade the same island to respond and resist the Greek dominion over the same island (Freedman 402). It is a clear fact that Greece was involved in the fight with Turkey over the Cyprus Island which led to atrocious consequences as the one that had previously mentioned. They tried various means of acquisition of the island including military approaches just to win it over Turkey, but it did not succeed as its expectation was. This fight between Greece, and Turkey over Cyprus made them differ over the Aegean territories. As a result, Greece itself tried to apply a diplomacy involvement in solving the issue at hand by then. This included their withdrawal from active participation in the NATO military command from the year that they experienced the fight between them and the Turkey (Freedman 402). This was s due to their partly protest over the issue regarding Cyprus Island that dominated largely by the Turkey. Huth, (136) brings an important aspect of Greek operations which are regarded to be full of diplomacy. For instance, the Greece itself was not willing to confront Turkey by counter attacking them using their available military to continue fighting over Cyprus Island. They avoided this kind of confrontation but rather withdrew and stayed calm over the issue. According to Huth (136), there have been three main crises that rank nationally between Turkey and Greece over Cyprus. The earlier ones, which happened before the 1974 Turkish attack like the 1964 and the 1967 ones, the government of Greece gave in to diplomatic intervention and resolutions. These diplomatic settlements were as a result of threats of using military for inte rvention posed by the Turkish government. Indeed, the 1974 confrontation did not see Greece use any military confrontation to contest against the Turkish invasion and domination upon Cyprus Island. There was a great challenge to international democratic peace in 1974when Turkey and Greece had the conflict over Cyprus Island, as Diez (169) has realized. It is important to note that, before this confrontation, Greece

Human Resource Interview Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Human Resource Interview - Essay Example We are supported by the state government and our staff strength comprise of 440 full time and about 200 part time faculty/employees. While leading a non-profit organization my role is to supervise the smooth running of the institution and objective try to achieve the goals set by the vision and mission statement. I am responsible for managing the Human Resources and to arrange and organize funding, training and administration of this division. I report to the Principal. The mission statement: We identify and meet the educational needs, primarily of adults, in our principal geographic service area of northeast Dallas, Richardson, and Harland. We offer courses, programs, and services to enable students to achieve their educational goals, and become lifelong leaders, community builders, and global citizens. We enable employees to model excellence in their service to students, colleagues, and community. A2: We own several properties that have been converted into campuses. Richmond is located in Dallas and is the largest amongst them. It comprises of ten buildings surrounded by lakes and parks. Being environment friendly is one great challenge. The other is dealing with a great number of nationalities that constitute our students. Managing cultural diversities harmoniously is another great challenge. All this requires that the faculty and staff be very considerate and this is a great HRM challenge to ensure an amicable atmosphere all around. But this human capital needs monetary capital for training and compensation and that too poses a great challenge for me. A3: Of course there are other challenges that one faces in such a diverse and large organization. All problems relate to people in the end. However I see to it that I restrict my activities to my department only without bringing personal feelings or value judgments into actions or decisions. A4: My job requires for me to be

Balanced Scorecard Assignment Research Proposal

Balanced Scorecard Assignment - Research Proposal Example The objectives of the business can be classified under four different heads such as financial objectives, customer value objectives, internal operations objectives, learning and growth (employee) objectives. c) Customer value: The objective is to add value to customer through supply of quality products at reduced rate. It also aims to keep up the value and business ethics by following business strategy helpful to appealing the customers. a) Measure of process performance: The objective is to attain higher performance efficiency. The process should be capable of producing the product at minimum cost and time requirements while ensuring higher quality of product. c) Operations: The objective is to attain maximum return on investment by reducing the cost of production and improving the production efficiency. Advanced production technology will be adopted for the production process for ensuring lower production cost with higher quality. Presentation of the strategic objectives of the business along with its metrics and targets by using balanced score card provides insights into the performance targets of the business. It helps to inform the organizational personnel about their role in improving the business performance. Discussion of the strategic objectives by segmenting it under each different heads makes clear the role of each department of the organization towards the business performance

Social Historical Bacground Essay Example for Free

Social Historical Bacground Essay A Dolls House was first published in Copenhagen, Denmark in December 1879. The first edition of the play flew of the shelves with 8000 copies sold within the first month. The play was then staged at Copenhagens Royal Theatre on the 21st of December of the same year. This allowed people who had read the manuscript (men), as well as those people who could not read (women), the chance to see Ibsens visual representation of his play. Women were less likely to read as they were less likely to attend school. Therefore, when men and women attended theatres a difference of opinion arose. Women were for the independence of Nora whilst men found it scandalous. However, both genders found elements of the play scandalous such as the lack of a happy ending, a sign of naturalistic drama of which Ibsen was a master. Most other playwrights of the time were still writing plays which adhered to the conventions laid out by Ancient Greek tragedy: the play must be in verse and about people of high social status. A Dolls House featured simple prose and was about people of different statutory. The Royal Theatre was frequented by both people of high status and low status. This only scandalised audiences even more as the higher status audiences were disgusted whilst lower status audience members applauded Ibsen. A Dolls House was the centre of conversations in Copenhagen and soon news of the scandalous play travelled across Denmark and beyond. By the following year the play had reached audiences in Europe whilst by 1990 the play had appeared in most continents of the world. The shocking nature of the play meant that not all conversations related to A Dolls House were good. This can be seen in the array of critical commentary the play has received. Such commentary was fuelled by Ibsen when in 1898 he denounced that he wrote the play with the womens rights movement in mind: To me it has seemed a problem of mankind in general. Others believed this too, such as Zelda Fichandler working for the Washington Post who wrote: Womens rightsis too limited a subject to be the stuff of art. With the freedom of women now dismissed as Ibsens goal, critics began to draw up their own conclusions as to what the play was about. Michael Meyer wrote: Its theme is the need of every individual to find out the kind of person he or she really is and to strive to become that person. This comment is regarded in todays world as quite valid. Modern audiences can accept that Ibsens focus was not just on women, but that the play could be applied to both sexes. Meanwhile, audiences of the past could not accept this which lead to some alteration of the text and its production. The play was altered by directors and producers for two main reasons: either the producers were disturbed by its content or they were trying to stage the play in a new way. The ending of the play was changed in Germany when the actress cast as Nora said that she could never leave her children. Ibsen saw the changes as a barbaric outrage on the play but could not do anything due to the lack of copyright. The changing of the end brought about public outcry and the ending was reverted to its original. Another person to change the script because of children was Eleonora Duse but she changed the script as she found it difficult to bring child actors on tour from Italy. The play was also staged in several different ways. Meyerholds set of the play was changed from comfortable to cramped. He included rickety furniture with a long red drape hanging over the window to express his idea that everything was collapsing going to the devil. This view is, in my opinion, very true. It is not only Nora who is collapsing under the strain of her lies; the relationships and trust is collapsing too. The play was again staged differently by director Peter Ashmore who placed rooms mentioned in the stage directions and areas beside the living room and master bedroom in his production. Not everything associated with the play was altered; some characters were representations of real life people. Nora is actually based upon a friend of Ibsen called Laura Kieler. Lauras husband, like Torvald, became ill forcing the couple abroad. Nora arranged a loan with the help of a friend so that her husband did not know anything. Once her husband got better she wrote about her ordeal and tried to sell the story in the form of a novel to pay for the debt. She asked Ibsen for his assistance with this but he wrote back to Laura and advised her to take up the matter with her husband. Ibsen believed that Laura was hiding something from the husband and believed that the husband should take responsibility for her troubles. Laura had not told her husband anything about the loan as she was too scared. When she received the letter from Ibsen saying he would not publish the novel she forged a check to pay back the loan. However, the forgery was discovered and Laura was forced to tell her husband everything. Lauras husband was enraged and filed for separation. As a result, Nora suffered a mental breakdown and had to go to a mental hospital. When she was released from the institution she begged her husband to take her back. I believe that there are obvious parallels here between Nora and Laura

Standing order by the chief mate

Standing order by the chief mate GENERAL: Handing over / Taking over of watches and conduct during watches in port to be in strict compliance with relevant Checklist. The duty officer is to ensure that the vessel is complying with International and Port regulations and company guidelines as laid down in the SMS Manuals and Circulars.Should the duty officer have any doubts regarding any aspect, he is to bring same to the notice of Chief Officer/ Master immediately. Duty officers should note drafts fwd, aft and midships along with density of dock water prior commencement of loading or discharging,and same to be reflected in the port and deck log book and brought to the notice of the relieving officer. Frequent draft checks to be made also during loading / discharging to cross check loading / discharging sequence and final trimming prior sailing. Hand lead soundings around the ship to be taken as soon as practicable after berthing, if deemed necessary due to low UKC expected during any stage of loading / discharging.The duty officer to be aware of the air draft limitations and available and minimum required UKC at all times. In case of berths where vessels pass by causing the vessel to surge forward and aft, the duty officer and the duty AB to be standby at moorings and gangway, and if required ask for additional help.Further moorings to be ensured tight at all times. Method of contacting shore authorities for emergency / assistance, such as telephone numbers, VHF channels on which continuous watch maintained is to be obtained from Agents/Stevedores and posted in Deck Office. VHF should always be on low power when loading /discharging. The weather report to be read from the Sat-C, and any adverse weather predictions for the Port area to be brought to the notice of Master/Chief Officer immdediately. Extra Moorings to be put out as deemed necessary. Weather readings to be logged at two hourly intervals during adverse weather. The Sat-C and SAT B to be checked/monitored regularly for incoming messages. Any messages received to be brought to the notice of Master/Chief Officer immediately. SECURITY / GANGWAY AND MOORINGS : Gangway to be rigged in compliance with SSP, international and port regulations, with safety net , well illuminated and watch present at all times. A lifebuoy with SI light shall at all times be placed near the gangway. Moorings to be tight and correctly attended to ensure that vessel lies securely alongside at all times.Any difficulty experienced in same to be brought to the notice of Chief Officer/Master immediately.Check if winches on auto-tension. Rat guards to be in place, one for every mooring rope and fulfilling the purpose that they are meant for. Access to accomodation to be controlled through one door only acc. to SSP, namely Main deck door on the side the vessel is alongside.All other doors to be locked from inside including wheelhouse/chartroom and full anti-theft and stowaway precautions in force, as required at the particular berth. Whenever appropriate and under instructions from Master/Chief Officer, extensive Drug and Stowaway search to be carried as per relevant Checklist prior departure. CARGO OPERATION : Full details of cargo operations to be onpassed by the officer being relieved, including any special requirements, any hazardous cargo to be loaded / discharged or any other limitations. Loading/ discharging plan should be strictly adhered to , instruction on loading/discharging plan to be followed. Chief Officer/Master to be notified immediately in event of any stoppage in cargo work due any reason. In event of stoppage due to failure of shipboard equipment, rectification of situation to be initiated immediately. Loading master or person in charge of cargo operations during every shift to be identified. BALLAST: Ballasting programme discussed and passed by relieved officer.Full details of ballasting/deballasting operations and status of bilges to be passed on by relieved officer including any special instructions from the Chief Officer. At no occasion the ballast should be allowed to overflow due to strict port regulations at several places. Considering the fact that there are no readout gauges in the CCR constant monitoring of the soundings during ballasting deballasting to be carried out and same to be logged in the port log book. POLLUTION : In the event oil/oily sheen is sighted around vessel, make checks to ensure same not from own vessel and bring same to the notice of Chief Officer/Master immediately. Duty officer to ensure that Garbage drums on poop deck are properly covered. Garbage is not to be landed ashore without prior approval from Chief Officer/Master. LOG BOOKS: Port and Deck Log Book entries to be made from time to time during watch and completed in every respect at end of watch. ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FROM MASTER: 50% crew to be on board at all times the vessel is in port. Record of crew members going ashore should be maintained in the gangway log and the duty officer shall remain informed of the same. Any discrepancy in the matter shall be brought to the notice of the chief officer immediately. Gangway shall be manned at all times when the vessel is in port. If the gangway is placed close to the manifold and both can scrutinized at the same time then one crew member is sufficient, but if the gangway is placed far apart then both to be manned separately and if same cannot be carried out due to shortage of manpower due to increase in operations then same to be brought to the notice of Master immediately. Port watchkeeping timings shall be adhered to at all times. Watchkeepers shall be sufficiently rested prior taking over watch. As a standing instruction shore leave expires 3 hours before completion of cargo operations . The following timings shall be relaxed if the vessel is scheduled to be alongside even after completion of cargo operations to meet tide/daylight sailing restrictions . Ships staff to be accounted for at the time of expiry of shore leave and same shall be brought to the notice of the master if any member is found having not returned . Shore leave shall be restricted in view of any impending surveys, inspections , receiving of stores or any other special operations. Duty officers and the deck hands on duty shall strictly adhere to the companys alcohol policy. Gangway/Visitors log shall be signed by the officer on watch at the end of his watch. Relieving officer shall take rounds on deck prior taking over watch. He shall personally check gangway/moorings and make sure that only one door to the accommodation is open at all times. Any difficulty in dealing with shore personnel,loading master,surveyor,agent or shore security personnel shall be brought to the notice of master immedtaely. Any letter of protest from terminal, port, surveyor or the agent shall be only signed by the master after making the necessary remarks. Shore leave passes/any remaining telephone cards with money shall be collected and kept ready when signing cargo documents to be given to the agent/immigration authorities.

Properties of Phagraphene via Hydrogenation and Fluorination

Properties of Phagraphene via Hydrogenation and Fluorination Modulation of electronic and mechanical properties of phagraphene via hydrogenation and fluorination Donghai Wu ab, Shuaiwei Wang ab, Jinyun Yuanab* Baocheng Yang ab, Houyang Chenc* a Institute of Nanostructured Functional Materials, Huanghe Science and Technology College, Zhengzhou, Henan 450006, China b Henan provincial key laboratory of nanocomposite and application, Zhengzhou, Henan 450006, China c Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260-4200, USA ________________ Abstract: Recently, a new carbon sheet, phagraphene, was proposed by theoretical calculations [Nano Lett. 2015, 15, 6182]. In this paper, the hydrogenated and fluorinated phagraphene (denoted as H-PHA and F-PHA) sheets have been systematically studied using first-principles calculations. The results of formation energy, ab initio molecular dynamics, phonon dispersion and elastic constants confirm that the modified phagraphene sheets are thermodynamically and dynamically as well as mechanically stable. We find that hydrogenation or fluorination is an effective way to modulate the bandgap, and we also find that adsorption-induced semimetal-semiconductor transition and adsorption-induced semimetal-insulator transition occur. Configuration-dependent bandgap for partially H-PHA and configuration-independent bandgap for fully H-PHA are determined. Adsorption-ratio-dependent bandgaps of H-PHA and F-PHA are also identified. Calculated bandgaps from HSE06 and PBE functionals of fully H-PHA ar e larger than those of F-PHA, and they are comparable to thehydrogenated/fluorinated penta-graphene while they are larger than their corresponding graphene. Dependence of bandgaps of fully H-PHA and F-PHA on the tensile strain is investigated, and our calculations show that an insulator-semiconductor transition occurs upon increasing the tensile strain. Our results also determined that the mechanical properties are controllable by using hydrogenation and fluorination. The calculations of Youngs modulus and Poissons ratio reveal the functionalized phagraphene sheets possess suitable stiffness and resistance to volume deformation, and both are smaller than the pristine phagraphene. 1. Introduction Two-dimensional (2D) carbon-based materials have been attracting great attention due to their fascinating mechanical, thermal, electronic, optical and magnetic properties.1-11 In particular, graphene is the most representative example. Since synthetized by Novoselov et al.6 in 2004, graphene has been extensively studied for its robust stability,12 high crystal quality,13 captivating mechanical and electronic as well as thermal properties.14-18 The covalently bonded honeycomb lattice with perfect hexagonal symmetry of graphene plays a crucial role in forming Dirac cones,19 which gives graphene massless fermions, resulting in the anomalous quantum Hall effects,20 ultrahigh carrier mobility21 and other properties.22, 23 Recently, a new carbon sheet, phagraphene,19 composed of rings containing five, six, and seven carbon atoms, was proposed by theoretical calculations. It can be considered as a defective graphene.24 This planar carbon allotrope is slightly more unstable than pristine graphene while energetically more favorable than other carbon allotropes.19 The notable stability benefits from its sp2-hybridization and dense atomic packing structure.25 Zhang et al.19 have proven that the electronic structure of phagraphene has direction-dependent Dirac cones, which are robust against external strain with tunable Fermi velocities. This unique performance makes the phagraphene an advanced material for numerous applications in photoelectric technology. However, like graphene, the phagraphene suffers a major drawback of zero bandgap and rather robust gapless state, limiting its potential applications. In order to overcome this disadvantage, we use hydrogenation and fluorination to modulate its bandgap in this paper. Thanks to the surface unsaturated C-C dangling bond,26 the chemical modification by adsorbing non-carbon atoms on the surface is an effective way to create a bandgap and tune the electronic, magnetic and mechanical properties of graphene.14, 24, 26-32 Hydrogenation is not only the simplest and manageable adsorption but also the generating hydrides are promising hydrogen storage materials in energy field.33, 34 The fluorine atoms with ultrahigh electronegativity are adsorbed on the graphene surface forming fluorinated graphene, which have been investigated experimentally and theoretically.14, 35, 36 After adsorbing such atoms, the forming C-H and C-F bonds could give rise to the carbon atoms transforming their hybridizati on state from sp2 to sp3, 33 correspondingly, the structural and electronic properties would undergo dramatic alterations. In this work, by employing first-principles calculations, the effect of hydrogenation and fluorination on the bandgap opening of phagraphene sheet is examined. After hydrogenation or fluorination, the bandgap of phagraphene could be opened sizably, changing its electro-conductivity from Dirac semimetal to semiconductor or from Dirac semimetal to insulator. The structural stability and mechanical properties of the modified phagraphene sheet are also investigated. 2. Computational details All the first-principles calculations and abinitio molecular dynamics (AIMD) were carried out by density functional theory (DFT) with the projector augmented wave (PAW) method and performed by the Vienna abinitio simulation package (VASP)37 . The 2D periodic boundary condition was adopted and a vacuum space of 20 Ã… along the perpendicular direction of the phagraphene sheet was included in order to avoid the interactions between adjacent layers. The generalized gradient approximation (GGA) of Perdew, Burke, and Ernzerhof (PBE)38 was applied as the exchange-correlation functional in most of the calculations. Meanwhile, to accurately calculate the band structures, the hybrid Heyd-Scuseria-Ernzerhof (HSE06)39 was introduced. The Brillouin zone (BZ) was sampled using 2à Ã¢â€š ¬ ÃÆ'- 0.01 Ã…Ã ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢1 Monkhorst-Pack40 k-point mesh density, and the plane-wave basis set with cutoff energy of 600 eV was adopted. The total energy difference of 10à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢5 eV and forc e tolerance of 10à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢2 eVà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢Ãƒâ€¦Ãƒ ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢1 were used for the convergence criteria of geometric optimization and self-consistent field. The phonon properties were calculated by the Phonopy package41 with force constants obtained by the finite displacement method.42 3. Results and discussion 3.1 Structural properties Figure 1 displays the structure of phagraphene19 together with its hydride and fluoride. The hydrogenated or fluorinated phagraphene (denoted as H-PHA or F-PHA) sheet is obtained by adsorbing hydrogen or fluorine atoms on both sides of the plane. For fully H-PHA and F-PHA, the ratio of C : H/F is 1 : 1. After optimization, the structures of both fully H-PHA (Figure 1c) and fully F-PHA (Figure 1d) are greatly distorted compared to pristine phagraphene (Figure 1a), resulting in low symmetry with a space group of P21/m (No. 11). The 5-6-7 carbon rings no longer remain in the same plane and become crumpled. The buckling height hb (i.e. the height between the bottom and top carbon layers) of fully H-PHA (0.856 Ã…, see Table 1) is larger than that of F-PHA (0.704 Ã…), and they are much larger than those of hydrogenated/fluorinated penta-graphene (0.42/0.40 Ã…) and graphene (0.46/0.49 Ã…).12 The calculated C-C bond distances of pristine phagraphene in Table 1 are in agreement wi th previous calculations,19 indicating the computational method is valid. All the C-C bond distances in fully H-PHA and fully F-PHA are enlarged compared to the pristine phagraphene, and are close to that of 1.546 Ã… in diamond43 while larger than that of 1.42 Ã… in graphene.1 These facts indicate the C-C bonds of phagraphene transform from the sp2-hybridization double bond to the sp3 single bond by hydrogenation or fluorination. The C-C bonds of fully F-PHA are longer than those of fully H-PHA, which can be explained by the depopulation of bonding orbitals between carbon atoms.27 The depopulation of these bonding orbitals stems from the electron transfer between carbon and hydrogen/fluorine atoms. The C-C bonds (C4-C4 in Figure 1) connecting the adjacent 5- and 7-carbon rings are enlarged to a greater extent than others, which is because of the repulsive interactions and steric effects between the adjacent two H/F atoms in the same side of phagraphene. The C-H and C-F bond di stances are approximately 1.11 and 1.38 Ã… (Table S1), approaching to the typical hydrocarbon and fluorocarbons compounds.44 Similar structure distortions and C-C bond elongation are found in hydrogenated/fluorinated penta-graphene and graphene.12, 26, 44 3.2 Stability analysis To investigate the stability of H-PHA and F-PHA, the binding energy Eb and formation energyEf are calculated (definitions of Eb and Ef are given at Section S1 of Supporting Information). The values of Eb are -2.540 and -2.977 eV/atom for fully H-PHA and fully F-PHA (see Table 1), respectively, implying strong interactions between C and H/F. A possible explanation of the strong attractive interactions between C atoms (of phagraphene) and H/F atoms is that, by adsorbing H/F atoms, the C-H/C-F bonds are formed, and the C-C bonds of phagraphene elongate greatly, which could partially release the stress imposed by the 5-6-7 carbon rings.12 Another important factor for synthesis is the formation energy, which applies to measure the stability against molecular desorption from the surface.44 The negative Ef (-0.276 eV/atom for fully H-PHA and -1.615 eV/atom for fully F-PHA) means that the surface modification is exothermic process and the H-PHA (or F-PHA) has lower energy than that of pristi ne phagraphene and H2 (or F2) molecules. The Eb and Ef of hydride are larger than those of fluoride, which are in accordance with similar systems of hydrogenated/fluorinated graphene (-2.48 eV > -2.86 eV)27 and penta-graphene (-3.65 eV > -4.22 eV).12 It is noticed that the Eb of fully H-PHA and fully F-PHA are close, whereas the Ef of fully H-PHA and fully F-PHA have huge difference. This is because of large difference in the dissociation energy of H2 and F2 molecules.27 The thermal stability is also important for H-PHA and F-PHA and is evaluated using the AIMD simulations with a 2 ÃÆ'- 2 ÃÆ'- 1 supercell and a time step of 1 fs for 5000 steps at room temperature (300 K) and 1000 K. Temperature (T) and total energy (Et) as functions of simulation time are plotted in Figures 2 and S1. T and Et converge to constants and the fully H-PHA and F-PHA keep their integrated structures during the AIMD simulations at the setting temperature. These facts demonstrate that hydrogenated or fluorinated phagraphene not only possesses robust thermal stability at room temperature, but also is resistant to high temperature such as 1000 K. In order to examine the dynamic stability, the phonon dispersion curves along the high symmetry points in the BZ and the corresponding phonon density of states (PDOS) are calculated  (Figure 3). No imaginary frequencies are found for both fully H-PHA and fully F-PHA, demonstrating that they are dynamically stable. There are three obvious acoustic modes in the bottom of the phonon spectra for the two structures, and the double degenerates arise along the XZ path of the BZ. These features are similar to the pristine phagraphene,19 graphene45 and its derivatives.12 From the PDOS, one can see that the H-PHA has a tremendous phonon gap of approximately 40 THz, while it is small for F-PHA (about 3 THz). The vibration frequency is inversely proportional to the effective atomic mass,12 thus the larger phonon gap of H-PHA than F-PHA may be attributed to the much lighter atomic mass of hydrogen than fluorine atom. Meanwhile, the narrow high frequency zone around 87 THz in Figure 3a is c orresponding to the C-H bond vibration modes of H-PHA, in accordance with the case of hydrocarbon.46 These C-H stretching modes are infrared active and useful in characterizing this compound.44 The low frequency range from 5 to 10 THz in Figure 3b mainly consists of the phonon modes of C-F bonds. The middle frequency range is dominated by the motion of C atoms. The C=C double bonds were broken by hydrogenation/fluorination, resulting in the disappearance of C-C vibration modes in the region of 40-50 THz for pristine phagraphene.19 3.3 Electronic structures In order to explore the electronic properties and bonding features, the band structures and density of states (DOS) of partially and fully hydrogenated/fluorinated phagraphene are calculated using both PBE and HSE06 functionals. As an example for partially H-PHA, 60% hydrogenation of phagraphene is chosen and four stable configurations (see Figure S2) are designed. The band structures of these configurations are shown in Figures 4 and S3. One can see that the band structures disperse greatly to single band, leading to the sharp peak appearing in the DOS at the EF. Meanwhile, a sub-bandgap located below or above the primary bandgap was observed. From calculations with PBE functional (Figure S3), the bandgaps of the four configurations vary from 2.65 eV (Figure S3a) to 1.72 eV (Figure S3b) to 0.93 eV (Figure S3c) to 0 (Figure S3d). The PBE functional usually underestimates the bandgap of materials.12 To obtain a more accurate Egap, the hybrid functional HSE06 is adopted. The calculated bandgaps with HSE functional in Figure 4 are 3.70 eV, 2.46 eV, 1.56 eV and 0.54 eV for the four configurations. Thus, one can conclude that the bandgap of partially hydrogenated phagraphene depends on configuration and adsorptio n-induced semimetal-semiconductor transition occurs. Such a functionalized 2D material with a proper bandgap has promising applications in optoelectronics and microelectronics.29, 47 The band structures and DOS of fully H-PHA and fully F-PHA are shown in Figures 5 and S4. From calculations with PBE functional (Figure S4), fully H-PHA and F-PHA have direct bandgaps of 4.29 eV and 3.23 eV, respectively. To examine the influence of configuration on the electronic properties, another four configurations of fully hydrogenated phagraphene (see Figure S5) are taken into account. The calculated band structures of the five configurations (Figures S4a and S6) are almost the same and the bandgaps are approximately 4.29 eV, indicating that the Egap of fully hydrogenated phagraphene is independent of the configuration. Similar behavior was found for fully hydrogenated graphene.27 We also calculated the band structures and DOS with HSE06 functional (Figure 5), and obtained that Egap for fully H-PHA and fully F-PHA are 5.37 and 4.98 eV, respectively. These values are comparable to the Egap of hydrogenated/fluorinated penta-graphene (5.35 eV and 4.78 eV) while they are larger th an those of corresponding graphene (4.97 eV and 4.74 eV).12 Obviously, the Egap of F-PHA is smaller than that of H-PHA. Similar results are found in cases of hydrogenated/fluorinated graphene26, 27 and penta-graphene.12Compared to the pristine phagraphene with zero bandgap, the surface modification via hydrogenation or fluorination can effectively tune its electronic structure from semimetal to insulator. Analysis of the partial DOS (Figure 5) reveals that, for H-PHA, the electronic states near the Fermi level (EF) are primarily originated from the C atoms, while they are dominated by both C and F atoms for F-PHA. Additional, from Figures 4 and 5, one can conclude that the bandgaps of H-PHA and F-PHA depend on the adsorption ratio of H and F atoms. We also examine the effect of strain on the band structures. The obtained stress-strain curves of fully H-PHA and F-PHA under biaxial loading (Figure S7) show that their fracture strains are 0.17 and 0.13, respectively. By changing the biaxial tensile strain, the bandgaps of fully H-PHA and F-PHA remain the direct gaps (Figures S8 and S9). Furthermore, upon increasing the biaxial tensile strain, the bandgap of fully H-PHA increases first and then decreases (Figure 6a), whereas the bandgap of fully F-PHA decreases monotonically (Figure 6b). These behaviors indicate that bandgaps depend on the strain. Strain-dependent bandgaps of other 2D materials were also determined previously.48-52 More interestingly, our calculations show that the bandgap of H-PHA reduces from 5.62 eV (ÃŽÂ µ = 0.10) to 4.42 eV (ÃŽÂ µ = 0.17) and the bandgap of F-PHA decreases from 4.98 eV (ÃŽÂ µ = 0) to 3.01 eV (ÃŽÂ µ = 0.13), indicating that an insulator-semiconductor transition occurs with the tensil e strain changes. To visually describe the electronic structure of fully H-PHA and F-PHA, we calculate the charge density. As shown in Figure 7, the charges are redistributed after hydrogenation or fluorination. Compared to the charge densities of C=C bonds in pristine phagraphene (see Figure S10), the charge densities of C-C bonds in H-PHA and F-PHA are reduced. For H-PHA, the shared charges donated by hydrogen are mainly located between the carbon and hydrogen atoms. For F-PHA, a large number of charges are focused on the fluorine atoms. This difference is a consequence of the different electronegativity of hydrogen and fluorine. For a selected element, its attraction of electrons becomes stronger with higher electronegativity.53, 54 The electronegativity increases gradually from hydrogen to carbon to fluorine.53 Thus the charge transfer is from hydrogen to carbon atoms in H-PHA while it is from carbon to fluorine atoms in F-PHA, which is consistent with other hydrocarbons and fluorocarbons.12, 55-5 7 Moreover, the charge density between H and C is lower than that between F and C, implying the weaker C-H interaction than C-F. The Mulliken population analysis58 shows that the transfer charge amounts are approximately 0.22 and 0.33 electrons for H-PHA and F-PHA, respectively, manifesting the weaker bond strength of C-H than that of C-F. 3.4 Mechanical properties Since the ultrathin 2D phagraphene as well as its derivatives is susceptible to external influences, including mechanical deformation,24 it is necessary to develop an in-depth understanding of their mechanical properties for practical application. The elastic constants are calculated (definitions are given at Section S2 of Supporting Information) and the obtained results are tabulated in Table 2, together with the existing reference data24 for comparison. All the elastic constants of fully H-PHA and fully F-PHA satisfy the mechanical stability criteria of C11C22 à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ C122 > 0 and C66 > 0 for 2D sheets,3, 59 indicating that they are mechanically stable. The in-plane Youngs modulus (E) and Poissons ratio (ÃŽÂ ½) can be derived from the elastic constants using the formulas of E = (C112 à ¢Ã‹â€ Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ C122) / C11 and ÃŽÂ ½ = C12 / C11.24 The E of fully H-PHA and F-PHA are 151.3 and 176.3 N/m (see Table 2), respectively, which are consistent with the results from the stress-strain curves (149.2 and 178.5 N/m for fully H-PHA and F-PHA, respectively). The Poissons ratio ÃŽÂ ½ of fully H-PHA and F-PHA are 0.078 and 0.152, respectively. Because the larger E implies the stronger stiffness and the larger Poissons ratio signifies the stronger incompressibility,24 the F-PHA has better stiffness and resistance to volume compression than the H-PHA, which may ascribe to the stronger C-F bonds than C-H bonds. Compared to pristine phagraphene, the E and ÃŽÂ ½ of H-PHA and F-PHA are significantly reduced. Such reduction may be related to their different charge density distribution and bond nature.12, 24 4. Conclusions In summary, we systematically study the structure, stability, electronic and mechanical properties of hydrogenated and fluorinated phagraphene sheets. Our results show that H-PHA and F-PHA are thermodynamically and dynamically as well as mechanically stable. The binding energy and formation energy of fully F-PHA are smaller than those of fully H-PHA, implying the stronger stability of F-PHA than H-PHA. After hydrogenation or fluorination, the bandgap of phagraphene is opened properly, resulting in an adsorption-induced semimetal-semiconductor transition or adsorption-induced semimetal-insulator transition. Strain-induced insulator-semiconductor transition is also identified. Our band structures demonstrate that bandgap of fully H-PHA is insensitive to the configuration whereas the bandgap of partially H-PHA is sensitive to the configuration. Adsorption-ratio-dependent of H-PHA and F-PHA is also determined. The obtained bandgaps from both PBE and HSE06 functionals of fully F-PHA are s maller than fully H-PHA. The charges are transferred from hydrogen to carbon atoms in the fully H-PHA while it is from carbon to fluorine atoms in the fully F-PHA. The positive Poissons ratios of fully H-PHA and F-PHA manifest that they can well resist the volume deformation.Both the Youngs moduli and Poissons ratios of the two phagraphene derivatives are significantly smaller than the pristine phagraphene. This investigation suggests that hydrogenation or fluorination is an effective strategy to modulate the electronic and mechanical properties of phagraphene for its possible applications in nanoelectronics. Acknowledgements The authors acknowledge the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21401064, 21206049 and 51472102), the Natural Science Foundation of the Education Department of Henan Province (15A150060), the National Natural Science and Henan Province United Foundation of China (U1204601), Special Program for Applied Research on Super Computation of the NSFC-Guangdong Joint Fund (the second phase), and Leading Talents for Zhengzhou Science and Technology Bureau (Grant No. 131PLJRC649) for supports. We thank the National Supercomputer Center in Guangzhou and the High performance Computing Center of Huanghe Science and Technology College for the computer time provided. References 1.A. H. Castro Neto, F. Guinea, N. M. R. Peres, K. S. Novoselov and A. K. Geim, Rev. Mod. Phys., 2009, 81, 109-162. 2.D. Malko, C. Neiss, F. Vià ±es and A. Gà ¶rling, Phys. Rev. Lett., 2012, 108, 086804. 3.S. Zhang, J. Zhou, Q. Wang, X. Chen, Y. Kawazoe and P. Jena, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., 2015, 112, 2372-2377. 4.Y. Liu, G. Wang, Q. Huang, L. Guo and X. Chen, Phys. Rev. Lett., 2012, 108, 225505. 5.L. Xu, R. Wang, M. Miao, X. Wei, Y. Chen, H. Yan, W. Lau, L. Liu and Y. Ma, Nanoscale, 2014, 6, 1113-1118. 6.K. S. Novoselov, A. K.

English Coursework: Frankenstein doesn’t have any heroes or villains, E

English Coursework: Frankenstein doesn’t have any heroes or villains, only victims. Do you agree with this statement? Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, started being written in 1814 and was finally completed in the summer of 1816, at a time when gothic genre was extremely popular. It was then released in 1818, but Shelley decided to release it anonymously. It is a gothic horror novel that concentrates on isolation and ambition. The idea for the novel was supposedly first invented when Shelley was at a friend’s house when a competition was created as to whom could create the best â€Å"tale of terror† story. It is about a man, Victor Frankenstein, who tries to â€Å"play god† and creates a living â€Å"creature† that is then ostracised and consequently commits a series of murders throughout the novel. The characters involved can be viewed as heroes, or as villains, depending on the different perspectives of the reader. Frankenstein’s creation of the creature can be viewed as heroic, as he is seen to push the boundaries of science further than ever before: â€Å"A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their beings to me.† Frankenstein also sacrificed the safety of those he loved to prevent the risk of the creatures killing others when he destroyed the female creature, which angered the male creature. He was also very ambitious in the way that he chased the creature to the North Pole to put a stop to his reckless behaviour, where he met the explorer Walton, who is a hero as far as leadership and ambition are concerned, by trying to travel as far North as possible. Walton’s ambitious attitude is made clear when he says â€Å"My life might have been passed in ease and luxury, ... ...rought on himself. The novel shows the shallowness of people in society by showing what the monster had to endure because of his appearance, as well as the moral irresponsibility of Frankenstein as a scientist. Frankenstein was always the villain deep down as he attempted to play God, which I don’t think should be attempted by any human being. He was obsessed with the fact that he could create life, but never once to considered if it was the right thing to do. I think Shelley is basing the whole novel on, not what Frankenstein actually did, but what he fails to do. The way the creature is portrayed in 3rd person narrative allows us to see the creature as a hero, villain and a victim. I believe that the creature viewed Frankenstein as a father figure and was mentally tortured when his own creator neglected him. He had nothing to live for, except revenge.

African American Women in Early Film Essay -- Hollywood Movies Film Bl

African American Women in Early Film   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In early film many African American actresses portrayed roles as mammies, slaves, seductresses, and maids. These roles suppressed them not allowing them to show their true talents. Although they had to take on these degrading roles, they still performed with dignity, elegance, grace and style. They paved the way for many actresses to follow both blacks and whites. These women showed the film industry that they were more than slaves, mammies, and maids. These beautiful actresses showed the film industry that they are able to hold lead parts and even carry the whole cast if need be. Phenomenal actresses such as Hattie McDaniels, Pearl Bailey, Ethel Waters, Nina Mae McKinney, and Dorothy Dandridge, to name a few, are African-American stars who paved the way for so many African-American actresses today despite the hardships that they were faced with. These women displayed beauty, intellect and talent, which allowed the stars that followed that they do not have to just settle for stereoty pical roles. In early film there was much propaganda and even today, which lead to these demeaning roles that they had to betray, Professor Carol Penney of Yale-New Haven writes, â€Å"Film is one of the most influential means of communication and a powerful medium of propaganda. Race and representation is central to the study of the black film actor, since the major studios reflected and reinforced the racism of their times. The depiction of blacks in Hollywood movies reinforced many of the prejudices of the white majority rather than objective reality, limiting black actors to stereotypical roles† (1).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Hattie McDaniels, a trailblazer amongst African-American film, acquired many firsts for African-American actors. McDaniels was the first African-American to sing on the radio, first to receive an Oscar for best supporting actress in Gone with the Wind. She was also the first African-American to star in a sitcom in 1951 that featured an African-American actress in the title role (Pax 1). â€Å"McDaniels appeared in more than three hundred films during the twenties and thirties. Her career was built on the ‘Mammy’ image, a role she played with dignity† (Smith 7). She received much flack from the blacks because of the roles she played in film and on radio. Blacks felt that she was degrading the race but her reply was to these views were... ...reen and feel that they are beautiful too. Work Cited The African-American Almanac, 1997. Detroit: Gale Research, 1997. Encyclopedia of World Biography. Vol. 10. Detroit: Gale Research, 1987. â€Å"Ethel Waters.† Online. 10 March 2005. Available: www.http://www.redhot   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   jazz.com/waters.html. â€Å"Honoring Black History Month.† Pax Stars. Online. 10 March 2005.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Available: www.http://www.pax.tv/bios/one-bio.cfm/hattie-mcdaniel. â€Å"Nina Mae McKinney.† South Carolina African American History Online. Online.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   11 March 2005. Available: www.http://www.scafam-hist.org/aahc/. â€Å"Pearl Bailey.† Black History: Virginia Profiles. Online. 13 March 2005. Available: www.http://www.gatewayva.com/pages/bhistory/1996/bailey.shtml. Penney, Carol. â€Å"Black Actors inamerican Cinema.† Yale-New Haven Teachers  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Institute. Online. 12 March 2000. Available:  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   www.http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/cirriculm/units. â€Å"Pioneer black actress Dorothy Dandridge has a famous cast of modern-day  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   admirers.† Online. 12 March 2005. Available:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   www.http://ohio.com/bj/fun/tv/0299/002827htm.

Challenges of Ecotourism in Antarctica Essay

Antarctica is one of the largest and most fragile environments on earth. It is rare and unique, and few people get the opportunity to visit such an extraordinary place. Antarctica’s unique environment and climate sets it apart from other tourist destinations. However, the hostile wilderness creates many challenges for ecotourism. There is a concern regarding the high concentration of tourists and their environmental impact at the few landing sites available. The real debate is whether tourism can benefit, or threaten the conservation of Antarctica. Ecotourism, in its early historical origins has been closely linked to nature – oriented tourism. For example, Laarman and Durst, in reference to ecotourism, defined it as a nature tourism where a traveler is interested and drawn to a destination because of its features and natural history. The visit combines education, recreation, and often adventure’ (Laarman and Durst 1987:5). Defining ecotourism is not easily done, difficulties defining it are mainly due to the multidimensional nature of the definitions, and the fact that each dimension involved represents a continuum of possibilities (Blamey 1997). The Ecotourism Society defines ecotourism as ‘responsible travel to natural areas, which conserves the environment and improves the welfare of local people’ (Western 1993:8). Ceballos-Lascurain (1987: 14) defines ecotourism as ‘traveling to relatively undisturbed or uncontaminated natural areas with the specific objective of studying, admiring, and enjoying the scenery and its wild plants and animals, as well as any existing cultural manifestations (both past and present) found in these areas’. The tourism industry of Antarctica is often overlooked as a factor of environmental degradation. It is important that more attention is drawn to assessing the current state of this large continent. Beck (1994) states that, tourists, scientists, and other visitors to Antarctica have tremendous environmental impacts. Tourist shipping can pose an environmental risk, and there is good reason for concern. There have been several marine accidents in recent years. There was the case of an Argentinean supply vessel Bahia Paraiso, which ran a ground on January 28, 1989, spilling 600 metric tones of fuel into Antarctica’s pristine waters (Culver 1991). Other environmental impacts include engine emissions that contribute to air pollution. The noise generated from outboard motors on inflatable zodiacs, turbulence created from tourist ships and the â€Å"grey water† sewage they emit also creates harmful effects. More responsibility is being demanded out of eco tourists visiting Antarctica. For example Salen Lindblad’s 164-passenger ship the Frontier Spirit has been reinforced, and also contains a sewage treatment plant, refrigerated waste storage area, and a special storage area for non-biodegradable waste (Cebellos-Lascurain 1996). Another main concern is in the peninsula region of Antarctica where there are several highly concentrated, high profile sites. The concentration of tourism activities leads to the potential for over visitation in these areas. A present study of Magellanic penguins demonstrates that human impact puts a great amount of stress on the species. Simple human presence can be physiologically stressful for breeding at nest sites (Fowler 1999). The Antarctic environment is very fragile and not used to human activities. However the study also found that birds exposed to high levels of tourists are not effected over time and concludes that as a result tourism should be concentrated to certain areas while others are kept off limits to human presence. People have been going to Antarctica for over 100 years. Prior to 1950, nearly all trips to Antarctica were either exploratory or scientific expeditions (Cessford 1997). As a result of human activity in the area there has been a connection with industrial, national and scientific programs. Human activity has also caused the development of alien microbes, fungi, plants, and animals. These â€Å"alien† species that are mostly European in origin exist on most of the sub – Antarctic islands and some even occur on the continent itself. These species in turn can have both a direct and indirect impact on the Antarctic ecosystem (Fenot 2004). It has only been recently that biologists have conducted any research into diseases of Antarctic wildlife to note the effects of human activity. These studies look at marine mammals and penguins for bacteria flora and pathogens (disease causing organisms). Blood tests for antibodies of a variety of species have also been taken to check for viral, bacterial, fungal and parasitic disease. A study conducted in the summer season of 2000/2001, Dr. Todhunter and Dr. Terris took swab collections of specimens from passengers’ boots aboard the Kapitan Khlebnikov, which led to tentative findings of a wide range of potential pathogens. In another study 233 fecal samples from 8 bird species were taken from 6 different penguin colonies, which are regularly visited by tourists. The samples were investigated for pathogens of potential human origin. No human related bacteria were found, which suggests that the tourism industry in the Antarctic region has achieved its goal of not introducing any pathogens so far. While the tourist season only ranges from October to April, currently tourism in Antarctica involves over 30 agencies, and 40,000 tourists per annum (Lambert 2005). Antarctica is the ultimate destination for anyone interested in natural history, but it also challenges the same people that visit to think about our responsibilities to all life on earth† (Lambert 2005). Tourists to Antarctica are most likely to fall in to the category of eco tourist, as there are no restaurants, theaters or art galleries, and the experience is about learning about and viewing one of the earth’s last untouched continent s. Boo (1990) states that for conservation management to succeed, tourism must be a tool to educate thus creating real benefits for a geological location. Although tourism and human contact on Antarctica is showing some negative impacts, it has also encouraged conservation efforts in the region. Another step towards the recognition of potential environmental impact is the creation of the IATTO (International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators). In 1991 seven tour operators active in Antarctica formed IATTO. It was created to act as a single organization. The goal of IATTO is to promote and practice safe environmentally responsible private-sector travel to the Antarctic. Currently there are 80 member organizations representing 14 countries. IATTO 2008) This environmental protocol designates Antarctica as a natural reserve devoted to peace and science and seeks to ensure human activities, such as tourism, have no adverse effects on the Antarctic environment, or on its scientific and aesthetic values. With a recent increase in the number of members in the IAATO it shows that companies are becoming more aware of the environmentally se nsitive concerns related to Antarctica and the importance of such an organization. The increase in membership does not necessarily mean that there has been a drastic increase in the number of tourists visiting Antarctica. All current Antarctica tour operators file yearly environmental impact assessments to their national authorities. There are few places on earth that have never been to war, where the environment is fully protected and scientific research has priority over anything else. (IAATO 2008) The Antarctic treaty can be accredited with the successful protection of Antarctica. Formed on June 23, 1961 the treaty covers the area south of 60 degrees latitude and consists of 46 countries. Its objectives are simple and unique, demilitarize Antarctica and make it a zone free of nuclear tests, and disposal of radioactive waste. As well as be used for peaceful purposes only (IAATO 2008). To promote international cooperation in the Antarctic and set aside disputes over territorial sovereignty. The treaty parties meet each year and have adopted over 300 recommendations and negotiated separate international agreements, of which 3 are still in use. These include: 1. The convention for the conservation of Antarctic seals which was established in 1972. 2. The convention for conservation of Antarctica marine living resources established in 1980. 3. The protocol on Environmental protection to the Atlantic Treaty established in 1991. These agreements and the original treaty provide the rules to govern all activities in relation to Antarctica. Collectively known as the Antarctica Treaty System (ATS). In conclusion it is apparent that Antarctica is a very fragile environment, and any kind of human involvement can pose great risks if the correct precautions are not taken. It is clear to me that eco tourism can benefit the great continent of Antarctica, those visiting become ambassadors as they learn about the importance of preservation. Boo (1990) explains that tourists become emotionally attached to an area and will contribute funds to preserve it. It is important for organizations like the IAATO to continue their promotion of safe and environmentally responsible travel to the Antarctic. Continued research is necessary to make sure that tourists as well as scientists leave as little of a human footprint as possible. Antarctica is a beautiful place on earth, and I believe that when people are educated about their impact on such a vulnerable area and regulations are put in place to protect the area that everyone should be able to experience the Antarctic continent in all of its magnificence.