Pre-Columbian History of the Caribbean Indigenous People Essay Example for Free

Pre-Columbian History of the Caribbean Indigenous People Essay Both indigenous groups, Tainos and Siboneys migrated to the Caribbean region. The first indigenous group to migrate to the Caribbean was the Siboneys. Although their origin has been debated, the common perception is that they came from either the southern top of modern day Florida or Mexico. It is estimated that around 500 B. C. they settled in the Greater Antilles region of the Caribbean. This region includes the Bahamas, Cuba and Jamaica. The Taino migration occurred approximately around the same time as the Siboneys. Their migration started from the South American mainland, most notably the area between Venezuela and Colombia to the area known as the Lesser Antilles of the Caribbean. This area included islands such as Trinidad and the Virgin Islands. The Taino utilized canoes to travel between each island during their migration. The canoes were made out of tree trunks and measured approximately 25 meters in length. Each canoe had a travel capacity of approximately 50 people. The main reason for the Taino migration was increased agitation and threats from the Carib indigenous people from the same region in South America. The Caribs were fierce in the their pursuit of the Taino and followed them up into the Lesser Antilles. Culturally, both the Taino and Siboney differed greatly. The Siboneys communed in small societies. Some would argue that they were culturally unsophisticated. They did not make any complex tools, just wood, stone and shells. The Siboney’s also settled by the riverside since they did not practice any form of agriculture. Their diet consisted of easily attainable animals such as fish and reptiles. They also ate wild fruits that were native to the islands. Conversely, the Taino were more advanced than their northern neighbor the Siboneys. The Taino had a complex society that consisted of settlements of as much as 500 inhabitants. They also contained a social structure for each settlement that consisted of a chief known as a cacique, a tier of elders who represented various families of each settlement, women and children. The Taino designated tasks to its members according to their position. Men cleared uninhabited areas of land and fished. Women were in charge of crop cultivation and child rearing. Unlike the Siboneys, the Taino mastered the art of farming. They farmed various crops such as yucca, guava and sweet potatoes. They also hunted various small game around the islands. The Taino also mastered clay pottery. Lastly, the Taino exercised their religious beliefs regularly. They believed in Gods that they called Zemis. The Caicique’s job was to carry out religious ceremonies by nasally ingesting a hallucinogenic mixture of tobacco and crushed sea shells through a long pipe called a cohoba. This snuff allowed the caciques to communicate with their Gods. Unlike the Siboneys, the Taino were a highly advanced society. They played a sophisticated team game called â€Å"Batey†. This game can be considered as the precursor to modern day soccer. Specially designed ball courts were created for Batey. In addition, The Taino also created jewelry and ornaments in which both men and women wore to Festivals and other celebratory events. In conclusion, the Taino and Siboney indigenous people both migrated to the Caribbean region. They both make up the genealogical and cultural starting point for all individuals who hail from the Caribbean region.

What determinants affect remittance trends and patterns in Ethiopia

What determinants affect remittance trends and patterns in Ethiopia Migration by its nature has negative impacts to the emigrant countries through brain drain especially to the developing one. (HDR, 2009) states that mobility of skilled human power harms the economy of the origin country especially for small states and poor countries. Apart from the economic point, there are also other associated problems that cant be measured in terms monetary aspects. People move within their country or cross their borders with the hope of getting better opportunities benefiting the people migrating, their families as well as their areas of origin and destination (HDR, 2009). Though it is not an easy task to come through different challenges, there are many people who combine their efforts and talents to expand their opportunities by moving into other better areas. Successful immigrants keep connected with their home country and send what is usually expected from them. The benefits could be direct remittance sent to family or for other purposes and could also be in other multidimensional effects such as technology transfers, brain gain and help strengthen diplomatic efforts in their destination and international stages. (HDR, 2009) argued that moving generally brings benefits most directly in the form of remittance sent to immediate family members, thereby generating jobs for local workers as multiplier effect and behavioural changes in response to ideas from abroad. The benefits even go beyond this by increasing investment level of their origin. Further, the same report states that at the place of origin, impacts can be seen in income and consumption, education, health and broader cultural and social process. Moreover, the macro impact can be visibly seen in the countries foreign currency reserves. This is because foreign currency reserve is one of the most important components for economic growth of developing countries. Murinde, 1993 ac cited in Elsakka and Mcnabb (1999) argued that remittances are major sources of foreign exchange for man y developing countries where its limited availability acts as a major constraint on economic development programmes and stabilization policy. For countries like Ethiopia which witnessed shortage of foreign reserves for the last three years, it is so crucial to think about how national policy can be made favourable for remittance flow. The increase in remittance not only helps in solving the foreign reserve crunch but also contributes to poverty reduction programmes through the increase of consumption at household level, encouraging investment, creating additional savings to the economy and through other multiplier effects. However, too much remittance could make the economy dependent on it which will affect the diversification of the economy for export and production. McCormick and Wahba (2000) argued that one of the drawbacks of remittance for the receiving country could beDutch Diseaseas the economy of the home country can weaken as a result of receiving remittance. Further, the d ependency on remittance could make the economy susceptible to external shocks that could decline the flow of remittance as happened in 2009 global economic downturn. But still remittance has been less volatile to external shocks than other sources of capital such as export, FDI and foreign aid in the same period when there was decline in capital flows to developing countries in the global financial crises. Remittance could be more stable than private capital flows, and that they might even provide a stabilizing element during periods of financial instability (Buch and Kuckulenz, 2004). In anyway, for countries like Ethiopia which badly needs capital inflows, this shouldnt be a concern as the country is suffering from shortage of foreign currency reserve for importing basic and capital goods. Further, dependency on remittance wouldnt be a threat as the country is progressing economically by diversifying its exports and attracting more FDI ever. Recipients however should also consider the availability of these funds could develop a continuing trend of migration of working age population (ibid: 2004). Remittance therefore could be incentives for the working age population and for the educated ones to migrate which in turn affects the overall growth of the economy in the long run. The main focus of this study will be on matters associated with remittance and its determinants. International remittances refer to the money and goods that are transmitted to households by migrant workers outside their origin countries (World Bank). The Remittance industry is one of the multi-billion industries in the world which helps countries get foreign currency from different sources abroad. The volume of remittance flow is increasing in many folds from year to year especially starting from the 1990s. The amount has shown an increase of ____fold from __ in _____to 316 billion USD in 2009 (WB, 2009). Globalization, decreasing cost of transfers and the increase in technology usage in the business could contribute for the faster increase in the flow. Remittances have been identified as the third pillar of development as their volume is second to foreign direct investment and higher than overseas development assistance.  [1]  Remittance enables income redistribution between persons and across sectors, increases consumption in excess of locally generated income and is used as source of additional capital fund (Lucas and Stark, 1985). It is for this big reason that governments have been taking different initiatives for increasing the proportion of capital flows to their account and actually the business has increased tremendously for the last few years. Its importance is inevitable especially for those developing countries which often suffer due to short of hard currency. Since 2008, developing countries have experienced foreign currency crises which in some of them resulted in shutting down businesses, high inflation, increasing the poverty level which in turn led to clashes between government and ordinary people. The World Banks official data shows that remittance flows to developing countries reached $316 billion in 2009, down 6% from $336 billion in 2008 but is expected to increase by 6.2% to $335 billion in 2010 (World Bank, 2010). Unofficial remittances are believed to be large enough to underestimate the figure of the total remittance flow. Howe ver, Official Development Assistance was three times less than the above figure at the same period. This is not to underestimate the volume of ODA given to developing countries, but to show how much attention is given to ODA than to remittances as sources of capital flows. The same data sources (WB and ODA figures) reveal similar trends for Africa. Some studies on this issue show that remittances have direct implications for the development of developing countries both in household and national level. However, some countries are not giving that much emphasis for changing and increasing remittance flow to their country; if taken, the initiatives are not enough to bring change. Ethiopia like any other developing country needs remittance flow to its account so as to help the countrys overall development. It is one of the countries which passed critical times since 2008 due to hard currency crunch. Still there is no guarantee for this problem. For passing these hard times, the country has been dependent on foreign aid from the IMF to stabilize its economy.  [2]  Further the country has also been one of the main recipients of foreign aid from other sources. Ethiopia stands third next to Iraq and Afghanistan on the list of ODA recipient by taking 3% of the total Official Development Assistance given to developing countries in 2008 (ODA, 2010). This doesnt include the capital flow from China and India which they are becoming another source of capital for Ethiopia and other African countries. However, capital flows to Ethiopia through remittances is very low when compared with the ODA and other unofficial foreign assistance. Official data from the WB shows th at remittance flow was 387 and 383 million USD in 2008 and 2009 respectively. And this flow accounts 1.5% of the GDP as of 2008.  [3]  Even with simple comparison, the remittance flow is four times as low as the amount Kenya receives from the same business. The flow of remittance to Kenya was 1692 and 1572 billion USD in 2008 and 2009 respectively.  [4]  This comparison only shows the gross flow of remittance to Ethiopia and Kenya as my main intention is to look how low the flow to Ethiopia is. To the contrary, in 2005, Ethiopian stock of emigrants was 445,926 and that of Kenya was 427, 324 (WB factbook, 2008) which makes Ethiopia advantageous over the number of people living abroad. There can be other factors that determine remittance flow; however, Ethiopia at least should have benefited more from the gross remittance flow than Kenya depending on the stock of emigrants which the actual trend is the reverse. Even without comparison with any country, the remittance flow to E thiopia is very small. What triggered me to deal with this issue is that; first, the flow of remittance to Ethiopia is much lower than from what I expected. Second, as can be seen from the above comparison with Kenya which they lay in the same geographical, social, economical and political standard in many aspects, Kenya suppressed its East African competitor by four fold in the gross remittance flow and actually Ethiopia should have been benefited more. Third, what is the reason behind this? Where the difference does lays, from the Ethiopian Diaspora or from the national policy? My aim in this study is to look into what are the determinants that made remittance to Ethiopia so low by mainly focusing on the Ethiopian Diasporas patterns of remitting. Research questions: The research problem is already explained above. To deal with the research problem, this study will focuses on the following research questions: What are the determinants that affect remittance trends and patterns of the Ethiopian immigrants in Sweden? What are the factors that affect remittance flows to Ethiopia? What makes remittance flows to Ethiopia very small? Is it in the national policy related to remittance and capital flows or it is in Ethiopian immigrants? How can this business work better for Ethiopia as source of hard currency? Methodology: The study will apply qualitative method for investigating the research questions. This method is selected based on the appropriateness to the research issues considering the effectiveness of the method to investigate research questions in depth and suitability to the phenomenon. Controversies have raged over the appropriateness of research methods in the social science as whether to use qualitative or other methods (Mikkelsen, 2004:141). Flick, (2009:15) discussed that in scientific discipline; methods become the point of reference for checking the suitability of ideas and issues for empirical investigation and should be appropriately selected and applied. Moreover, the method helps in exploring the actual explanation of facts behind the research problem. However, making generalization based on the findings is difficult as the samples taken for the study are limited in proportion for the intended generalization. (Flick, 2009: 122) asserted that generalization is not in every case the goal of qualitative study. Qualitative study typically focuses on compiling a selection of micro-level case studies which are investigated using a combination of informal interviews, participant observation (Dessai and Potter, 2006:118). It could also include exploring policy documents and other material for complementary purposes. In order to facilitate these all, a case study will be used. This is because case study helps the study to be more specific on the key aspects and focus on the issue. Thus, the research will use Ethiopian immigrants in Stockholm, Sweden as a case study. The target group will be Ethiopians living in Sweden as the writer is also living in Sweden and at the same time Sweden is one of the top favorable destinations of Ethiopian immigrants (Sweden is within top 10 as a stock to Ethiopian immigrants). Interview with selected Ethiopian immigrants in Stockholm will be used for collecting data along with other secondary materials. Semi-structured and open ended q uestions will be prepared for the interviews so as to use the advantage of high degree of flexibility during the interview. Different themes will be created while preparing the interviews so as to structure the different issues and aspects on the remittance trends of the specific interviewee. Sampling Different sampling methods are combined depending on the particular dimension of the issue being considered: different purposive sampling techniques, identification of key informants who possess the particular knowledge sought and also random encounters to cross-check information or highlight yet more differing perspectives on the same problem (Dessai and Potter, 2006:118). By doing so, the researcher will select the appropriate people or target group which will enable the study in getting reliable information. The study will use purposive sampling and key informant selection for interview. The sample will include both male and female interviewees; it will also consider taking those who have investment in Ethiopia and those who dont have, this is because investment is one factor that could affect money flow. In addition to this, the sample will consist people of different backgrounds. Apart from these interviewees, one interview will be held with the head of the economic affairs of E thiopian embassy official if the embassy allows. This will give another perspective to the study. Theoretical framework Theory increases our awareness of interconnections and of the broader significance of data. Without making theory explicit, it is easy to fall into the trap of hazy thinking, faulty logic, and imprecise concepts (Mikkelsen, 2004:156). Indeed, theory helps us to have better understanding of the study prior to the start of the project and connect the findings of the research with the existing knowledge of the issue. It is also sound to link the theory with the empirics of the study throughout the research process. For this big reason the research will use a theoretical framework which suits with the study. The literature available on the subject, determinants of remittance flows from emigrants has almost developed into two thoughts viz. the micro-economic and the macro-economic factors which it meant that most studies have been made on micro-level and macro-level. (Lucas and Stark, 1985; Lucas and Stark, 1988 ; Agarwal and Horowitz, 2002; Adams, 2008; Dustmann and Mestres, 2008; Gupta and Hedge, 2009) could be studies that support the micro-economic thought and (El-sakka and Mcnabb, 1999; Buch and Kuckulenz 2004; Higgins et al, 2004 and Ratha, 2003 ) could be in support of the macro-economic factors. These two theories give their own explanations on what affects the migrants behavior in remitting. For instance, (Lucas and Stark, 1985) in giving the initial model for the micro-economic theory of remittance argued that emigrants are motivated for remitting due to many reasons ranging from pure altruism to self interest including mutual agreements between migrants and family. Moreover, th e models did show that migrants are said to be altruistic if the flow of remittance increased with a decline in family income back home; whilst, if remittance flows are directly related with the family income back home, then they are said to be self-motivated (ibid, 1985). Beyond these two pure factors of altruism and self-interest, (Lucas and Stark, 1985) have also discussed tempered altruism and enlightened self-interest to refer to the remittance motivated by a combination of altruism and self-interest. The combination is meant to show the possibility of remitting based on contractual agreements made between the migrant and the family back home so as to get mutual benefits. Independently after almost two decades of the above theory of Lucas and Stark, (Agarwal and Horowitz, 2002) pointed out that the two primary incentives explored in the remittance literature are altruism and risk sharing (some sort of self interest according to Lucas and Stark, 1985) which is similar concepts t o other literatures but slightly different. In the same theoretical explanation, however, (Quinn, 2005 as cited in Niimi et al, 2009) in contrast, suggested another model of remittance behavior whereby remittance are treated as both consumption transfer to households and as alternative saving mechanism for migrants. Many immigrants use the alternative saving mechanism when they think that they will be back to their country of origin some day in the future. Under such circumstances, immigrants want to own fixed assets that will help them live without any problem upon return. Though it is not usual to see immigrants returning to their country of origin; this increases the flow of remittance. (Dustmann and Mestres, 2008) contended that immigrants return policy increases the probability of remitting more motivated by holding assets and savings in home country for future purposes. Similarly, remittances are also attached with household consumption especially in the altruism concept so as to take care of family in origin country. Depending on these theoretical arguments, it can be said that income of both the household back home and the migrant determines how the remittance flow could be. Income of the migrants has many factors that could affect which otherwise would contribute the lion share in determining how to remit. Buch and Kuckulenz (2004) claimed that microeconomic factors such as education and income level of the migrant and his family are the main determinants of remittance. Briere et al (2002) and Agarwal, Buch and Kuckulenz (2004) also found that migrants destination, gender and household composition are the other factors that affect the flow of remittances. Adams, Guptaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. On the other hand, at the macro-level, factors operating in both the host and the country of origin will affect the flow of remittance (El-sakka and Mcnabb, 1999). However, for countries who would like to maximize the capital inflow it looks difficult to frame policies based on the different factors of the host country as it is out of their control. Indeed, the factors in the host country are important components behind the motivation of the remitter as these factors affect the remitters income status. These are related with economics nature of the host country which have direct impact upon wages earned by the migrants and this in turn will determine their won consumption and saving behavior and thus the potential amount to be remitted. This type of experience can be easily found from the 2009 global financial crises which affected the income of migrants and eventually decreased the capital inflow to developing countries. The decrease in remittance to developing countries in this per iod has bitterly affected those countries which depend on remittance for their national foreign currency reserve. This gave these countries a message to review their remittance related policies and diversify their source of capital funds. El-sakka and Mcnabb, (1999) suggested that macro-economic factors such as interest rates, exchange rates and political instability of the country of origin affects the behavior of remitters. Accordingly, they argue that macro-economic factors should be suitable enough so as to encourage remittance flows to the country of origin. For these reasons countries would like to make exchange rates competitive by depreciating their own currencies with the intention of attracting more capital inflows, but sometimes it is associated with risk of bringing high inflation rate for the country. El-sakka and Mcnabb, (1999) on their part argued that higher inflation could discourage the flow of remittance as higher inflation rate could be a sign of economic and pol itical instability. To curb such associated problems, therefore, different variables should be taken into consideration while framing remittance related policy. On the other hand, empirical analysis using data from Egypt shows that remittance flows are responsive to interest rate and exchange rate differentials (ibid, 1985). Attractive interest and exchange rates would eventually lead immigrants to think of investing their money in their home country. Ratha (2003) also suggested that macroeconomic policies of the country of origin matter a lot whether remittances are to be invested or not. If remittances are encouraged to be invested, there is better chance for the economy to get more than two benefits from the same source. Interest rate differential between country of origin and host country, government domestic policies, wages, political risk factors and the rate of inflation determines remittance flows (Buch and Kuckulenz 2004). Since the aim of the study is to find out the factors that determine the patterns and trends of remittance flow; the two approaches can contribute some from different perspectives in framing the better solution for the research question. Off course, both the micro and macro level factors focus on the individual behavior of the remitter from personal experience and from national policy perspective. The personal experiences are those factors that affect at the micro-level: whilst, the national policy factors are those at macro-level factors that contribute in determining the individuals behavior in remitting. However, in most literatures the advocates of each approach neither discussed nor ruled out the counter ideas. For instance, the micro-economic theorists didnt discuss the possibility of macro-economic factors and the same goes for the macro-level theorists. This makes difficult to uncover the exact relationship of each theory and what they actually think of each other. For instan ce, Buch and Kuckulenz (200) argued that the main problem of microeconomic case studies is that they tend to undervalue the macroeconomic impact of remittance by focusing on isolated communities. (reference for combined studies). Thus, this study will have the chance to investigate this problem by looking into both approaches at the same time and adding up other perspectives beyond the economic theorization. The two theories focuses on the economic determinants of remittance, however, this study will go beyond this and touches other aspects that affects the patterns and trends of remittance flow. The study will also add another perspective to the remittance literature by going deep using qualitative method of studies. This is because most studies on this business have been made using quantitative method. This means, this theoretical framework adds other variables such as cultural, social and political factors that affect the flow of remittance. In a different perspective, Elbadawi and Rocha (1992) discussed concerning motivations to remit as two broad approaches viz. the endogenous which is based on the social and human aspects that cause remittance and the exogenous which is based on only the economic aspects.

How Does The Media Influence Young Girls Media Essay

How Does The Media Influence Young Girls Media Essay There are many programs and magazines, such as Americas next top model and Seventeen magazine, that are watched and read by many teenage girls. These girls are insecure and want to be popular, handsome and well-liked. The young women are therefore easily influenced by the information they receive from the media. An average teenage girl hides herself using tons of make-up and beautiful clothes, because she is insecure about her outer appearance. Every morning she has to get herself prepared for the day. She decides to skip her breakfast, an extra hour of sleep, or even her first lesson. She takes a shower, puts on enough make-up and dresses herself well. These girls are influenced by the beautiful and perfect women, whose pictures are showed in advertisements and on TV. A variety of programs show us public images of how you should dress, look and act. The young girls wish that they are also perfect, with the perfect dress and with the perfect make-up; so that they are attractive to boys and that they look like the girls and women on TV. Well known make-up artists such as Rimmel London and Max Factor present their make-up with skinny girls, who have the perfect skin and the perfect look. So the question is, are they selling the product, the make-up, or are they selling the beautiful woman? The advertisements are indeed selling the product, but they are also selling the image of the ideal woman. They emphasize thinness as part of the females beauty. These women, who are on the covers of the magazines, serve as an example for the teenage girls. They also want to be thin, have big boobs, and a beautiful skin. These images affect the girls own self-image. Not only the models have a great influence on the girls, also the articles written in the popular teenage magazines have a great influence on the young women. The articles explain the girls about the ideal appearance. Articles like How to look attractive to boys and How to achieve the perfect look, hair and face are extremely normal. An article on the website of Seventeen magazine gives you the perfect example of such an article, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¾New Makeup Promise to Boost Your Mood!  [1]  This article is about a new make-up that promises to make you happy. It explains about the ingredients, such as Euphoryl, Murumuru Seed Butter and Theobroma Grandiflorum, whatever they are, and I am sure that girls, who read this article, think about buying this make-up, without realising if these ingredients really work! Outer appearance has become very important throughout the years for everyone, because of the media. They emphasize the importance of the physical appearance and that is the way advertisers sell beauty products such as day and night creams and make-up. Women and teenage girls therefore strive to achieve the ideal outer appearance presented by the media. They are not satisfied with their own body and are doing anything to become beautiful. Do you recognize these young women? I bet that almost two third of the teenage girls could be compared to the average teenage girl who has been influenced by the media. These girls are boring and not outstanding. Thus, the media should stop offering false information to young women about the perfect body. The media encourages the girls to have a negative self-image. In fact, a person who is fat and walks like a duck has probably a more beautiful personality than the other girls. Although these girls are not to blame, the media is. (617 words) By writing an opinion column, I wanted to express my opinion about how the media influences young women, because advertisements, commercials, TV programs and magazines are all influencing the teenage girls by giving them false information. An opinion column should not be written in a particular style. As a columnist you are free to write in your own style, although it still has to be worth reading. So my first objective was to write a convincing opinion column that would be easy to read for most people. Therefore I didnt use many difficult words and tried to be convincing by giving the reader important information about the influence of the media. My second objective was to inform the people about the influence of the media on teenage girls. I explained the average, insecure teenage girl who can be easily influenced by beautiful models printed on the cover of the popular teenage magazines. As an example I described a daily morning of an average teenage girl. Every morning she has to get herself prepared for the day (paragraph 2). The girls strive for having the perfect face; therefore they skip their breakfast to prepare for school. To support my opinion about the influence of media I used another example. On the website of Seventeen magazine, an American magazine for teenagers, I found an article that was called: New Makeup Promise to Boost Your Mood! (see stimulus material). This article is about a special make-up that would make the girls happier. Young teenage girls are easily influenced by this text and by the convincing title, because the title makes a certain promise to you. My third objective was to explain what image the advertisements and commercials are selling. I explained the ideal outer appearance and why it has become more popular over the years. They emphasize thinness as part of the females beauty. (paragraph 3) My last objective was to imitate the layout of a newspaper, using columns and an appropriate title. To accomplish this objective I looked at other opinion columns, and imitated the layout of the page. Stimulus material: article New Makeup Promises to Boost Your Mood! January 4, 2011 at 2:58:00 PM by Seventeen Magazine Its no surprise that when youre happy or excited you ace a test, your boyfriend sends over flowers for no reason, your face has a gorgeous glow. (Feeling beautiful = looking beautiful!) But what about a makeup product that produces the same effect? The Happy Booster Glow Mood Boosting Blush and Face Powder by Physicians Formula promises to lift your spirits. Its the first-ever makeup line developed to stimulate happy thoughts through mood-enhancing ingredients, color therapy, aroma therapy, and texture therapy. Basically, it copies the effect of endorphins, aka happy molecules, which produce a sense of well-being. (Your body releases endorphins during exercise, which is what makes you feel great afterward.) Other ingredients include Euphoryl, which is an anti-depressant packed with Omega-3, as well as Murumuru Seed Butter and Theobroma Grandiflorum Seed Butter, which make skin feel silky-smooth and appear luminous. Finally, its blend of floral scents refreshes your mood. And how cute is this packaging?! All this happiness is contained in a heart-shaped plastic compact with a pink metallic base. It comes in a face powder (see above), blush, and bronzer, and each is a variety of overlapping different-colored hearts. So, the big question: can you buy happiness? For $11.95-13.95 at select drugstores, you just might come close!

The Effects of Secondary Soil Salinization :: Agriculture Agricultural Essays

Introduction: Irrigation has been used as tool by humans for over 8000 years. Irrigation started in the Nile valley where humans attempted to modify the way that the river seasonally flooded their fields in order to make cropland more productive (van Schilfgaarde, 1994). From 1940 to 1989 the amount of land being irrigated around the world has increased at a rate of 2.7% per year. In 1940 there were 95 M ha in irrigation while by 1989 there were over 280 M ha (van Schilfgaarde, 1994). This large increase in land under irrigation occurred at the same time as an exponential jump in human population, and increases in both are greatest in the arid and sub-arid regions of the Earth. Our population has therefore become reliant on irrigation to fend off large scale hunger (Abrol et al., 1988). As rain falls it carries no dissolved salts. Once this water strikes the earth and travels as surface runoff or in ground water it will come into contact with and carry dissolved salts. Any water used for irrigation carries ions in solution and by depositing this water on our fields in the form of irrigation we can effect the concentration of salts in our croplands. If these salts become too concentrated it can lead to salinization. Salinization can reduce yields in it's earliest stages and eventually lead to the destruction of fertility in the soil. Currently the Earth is losing 3 ha of arable land a minute to the effects of salinization (Abrol et al., 1988). Can we stop this loss? Will we be able continue using arid lands to meet our food needs? The Secondary Salinization Process Salinization has a direct effect on both plant growth and the structure of the soil. If the soil is saline a plant will have to expend energy bringing water into it's cells because it is forced to work against osmotic potential. The cation exchange complex (CEC) effects the stability of colloid size particles in the soil. The cation's positive charge will be attracted to the negative charge found on clay particles which make up most of the colloid fraction. Di-valiant cations(Ca, Mg) will allow the colloidal particle to get close enough together that Van Dehr Wahls forces will cause the clays to flocculate, or form stable aggregates. Sodic soils, whose CEC is dominated by mono-valiant sodium cations, will tend to be dispersed and not form stable aggregates.

Macbeth: Contrasts of Nature :: Macbeth essays

Macbeth: Contrasts of Nature In the play, Macbeth, Shakespeare uses contrasts of nature in various ways. He consistently shows us that Macbeth and his wife's actions go against nature. The first lines of the play are a condensed version of the unnaturalness of things to come. "In thunder, lightning or in rain?" ( I, i, 2). In nature, thunder, lightening and rain occur together, but Shakespeare's use of the word "or" infers the unnatural occurrence of one without the others. "When battles lost and won" ( I, i, 4), is also not a natural occurrence. Battles are either lost or won. Shakespeare is implying the future opposites of nature in the forthcoming play. "Fair is foul, and foul is fair" (I, i, 11), further shows the use of inversions and paradoxs in nature that Shakespeare will use throughout the play. One of the main controversies of nature for the reader is that in spite of Macbeth's evil deeds, we still find him likeable. We see him in the same way that the King does when he welcomes him by saying, "O valiant cousin! Worthy gentleman" (I, ii, 24). We perceive him as valiant, because he is afraid of sacrificing his humanity. "My thought, whose murder yet is but fantasticle. / Shakes so my single state of man that function / Is smothered in surmise and nothing is / But what is not" (I, iii, 139-41). Macbeth has doubts about the predictions of the witches. He knows that it could be a trick and his misgivings make him seem to be a better person. Another thing that makes Macbeth likeable to the reader is the contrast with his wife. It is clear from her beginning that she is evil. She has reservations about Macbeth not being evil enough. "Yet do I fear thy nature" (I, V, 14). She fears he is too good to do the kind of evil deeds that she is planning. After Macbeth murders the King, he realizes the extent of evil that he has committed, but also realizes that the deed is done and there is nothing that he can do to rectify it. "As they had seen me with these hangman's hands / List'ning their fear. I could not say ‘Amen!' / When they did say ‘God bless us!'" (II, ii, 27-29). The fact that Macbeth is very troubled, and continues his tirade, "Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood / Clean from my hand? No, this my hand will rather / the multitudinous seas incarnadine, / Making the green one red" (II, ii, 59-62), evokes compassion for him from the

New System Proposal Essay

I feel that a business requirement would drive the projects creation and use because this will help the company, business, or organization deliver to provide value. There are many ways such has products, systems, software, and processes are the ways how to deliver or meet the business requirement. First you would need to set some goals for the business, company, or organization these needs need to be visualiable to the eye. So everyone can see them. Secondly you would need to come up with some proposals on how the company, business, or organization will meet the goal that they have set. You and the team should set an agenda to work on so you and the team can have the proper documentation for the goals that you have made for the business, company, or organization. Always notify the proper people about the goals that you set , that way no one can say that they did not know about the goals.Always leave room for feedback from others in your requirements and a flowchart that will be good to have to present along with the requirements, People get a better understanding of what is being said if they have something to look at, this will show what is expected and what have been achieve. But always keep in mind that different projects requirement call for different requirements example small projects are usually simple and easy to create, large projects may need extra care and mastery to be able to present a quality requirement.There are four prerequisites the first is the project charter and second is the current environment assessment which should include a start and end point, level two and three process functions, define areas of rework and non value added steps, cycle time capacity and rework information for each process step as available and baseline for each CTO for the current environment. Third is the measure phrase the the current measures that includes a definition of how the product services characteric is to be quantified target/nominal is the aim of the ser vices specification limits is what the customer will allow in the delivery of services or product of service. Allowable defect rate is how often a service or product will be produce for a business, company, or organazation. Fourth is the target environment assessment that has the following categories people, systems, systems/people and fishbone. The business requirement can be a success or a failure for your business, company, or organization that depends on how work to succeed with the goals that you made in order for your business, company, or organization . Who makes goals and not strive for success. Reference en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Business-requirement. docs.oracle.com/cd/E19199-01/817-5759/bus-analysis.html.

Discuss the value requirements" needed to gain the Diploma of Social Work

In my essay I will discuss the â€Å"value requirements† needed to gain the Diploma of Social Work and give 6 examples from my own work experience that I think are relevant from a legal perspective. Within the essay I shall begin by defining the term ‘values'. Values are based on the belief that something is good and desirable, the acceptable standard of a person, group or society within. It defines what is important, worthwhile and worth striving for. Values are very much influenced by the views that people have about how society should be organised and how social relationships should be regulated. Values are distinguished from knowledge. Traditionally Social Work values for examples are user or client self-determination, acceptance, non-judgemental attitudes and confidentiality these can also be a guide of conduct and actions of social workers. Ref. : Dictionary of Social Work I'm working in a direct access hostel that accommodates homeless men. These men are suffering from either alcohol or drug addiction and also from mental health problems. One of my values is not to drink alcohol or at least only in a considered amount. Also using drugs is something, which I for myself consider is against my value-belief. The implication towards one part of my client group, those men who are dependent on alcohol, could be that I preach them you should not drink so much and to do this and that . I could treat them in a disadvantage way because I disagree with their lifestyle. Putting them down and may make them feel there are â€Å"low† or even worse, not worth my time. They might be all alcoholics, drug-addicts etc. but I still have to treat everyone as an individual and according to his or her needs. They may have all different reasons while they depend on alcohol and drugs (i. e. loss of partner, marriage breakdown, repossession of house or flat, bankruptcy). I look at one persons life and look what happen in their life, the problems they had and if there are pattern and solutions to help that particular person to do one thing or another. I can put my own life experience into account if it is relevant and may help. Each individual is also unique in their way. Every human being is different like a fingerprint is, so is every ones values and diversity's (i. . sexual orientation, religion, culture, nationality, skin colour, class and age). Every one likes to be respected but this in turn should be a value for each one to respect anyone else. To recognise all the differences in each individual in each different case and use these differences and to help to help themselves and that promotes the people's right to choose. People who are dependent on alcohol and drugs can not be treated all in the same way. They are all individuals and unique and got to be treated as such. I have to use their backgrounds or beliefs and can not apply the same remedy for everybody to cure them. In the hostel we also have Muslim residents, who do not eat pork because of their religious beliefs. We have to advise the canteen staff accordingly to this to prepare different meals for them that do not came in conflict with their religion. Also to share a room with somebody who keeps an animal is out of question for a Muslim, because in their religion it is seen as â€Å"dirty†, not clean. So I have to make sure to put him with somebody else or in a single room to respect and value his needs. A client or resident comes to have a word with me in private. But he wants that what is said in private does not to go any further than between the two of us. I have to tell him that in my position I can not guarantee this. Than I have to take what he says to me on board and consider if this kind of information can really be kept away form other members of staff. In my working environment I have the duty to share â€Å"information† with my other colleges, team-leader, counsellor and management. If for example he tells me that while he is drinking heavily he also becomes aggressive and might sometimes â€Å"blow his fuse† if anybody annoys him, but does not anybody to know because people may start to treat him differently. This is a matter where I have to pass this information on. Even if he has a right to privacy but in these kind of circumstances the staff and other residents are put in danger. Information has to be revealed to staff only and some sort of precocious measures have to be taken. But if there is only minor disclosures than it will be kept confidential. If one of the residents has HIV/Aids this is a matter of strict confidentiality and will not disclosed to anyone else within or outside the organisation, or recorded in the resident's file, without the person's permission. The only exception in that case is if life-threatening injury or illness occurs. Disclosure to medical personnel is essential to treatment. Also if major blood loss takes place and there is a risk of transmission to other residents or staff. The way we assist people to improve there lives simply starts with befriending, providing material and recreational resources. Also activities like scrabble, pool, table-tennis, chess groups, darts and competitions, video and bingo nights, photography, football, craft. Registering with GP's and also at occasions go for day trips to the seaside and visiting theatres. Organising IT courses and helping with finding a job and resettlement. Health care and counselling is also provided. I speak to residents about any kind of problems or help they may want and advise them about referrals to other hostels, benefits and personnel matters. I come a lot of times in contact with people addicted to drugs and assist them in the counselling process to try to get them of drugs By trying them to get off drugs it helps them to take control of their life and their life takes a different direction. I have to speak to a resident on a one to one basis that if he is taking drugs on the premises he will lose his right to stay at the hostel and as a consequence be evicted. This will hopefully protect himself from using drugs and also protect other drug dependent residents who want to become clean with their addiction, to falling back into old habits. We also help in a way that we give medical advice and medicaments to residents in collusion with medical staff. One incident happen not a long time ago where a white resident went into the lift and just as the lift doors were closing another four black residents jumped in. He then got out of the lift and soon as the lift went up he complained to me that he could not go with â€Å"these† residents in the same lift. I asked why, and he responded â€Å"you know what these black are alike†. I said no and asked him the same question but he refused to explain to me â€Å"why†. It was in my view a certain racist behaviour. But he was not racist verbally (he has not spoken out what he really meant by this), so there was nothing I could do except speak to him and let him know that the black residents may see this as racist act and it might be hurting them. Another incident involved myself with one of the residents making Nazi-salutes at one day and on the next giving head butting signs. At this occasion an incident report was made and the resident being giving immediately notice to leave within 24 hours. When I encounter any racism, discrimination or disadvantage I pull the resident by side or take him to the interview room and have a word with him. Depending how severe the incident was I have to write an incident report and this goes than to the team-leader or manager who than decides what action are be taken. Our hostel policy states no person will be treated less favourably than any other person because of their race, colour, ethnic or national origin, appearance, gender, sexuality, marital status, physical disability, health status, age, religious, spiritual or political beliefs or offending history (Ref. Bridge Housing Association, Equal Opportunities Policy). A lot of people say HIV/Aids is a homosexual disease. If I have a homosexual resident at the hostel and can not stigmatise them by saying all homosexuals must have aids and treat him in a totally different manner then anyone else. Also a lot of people assume that alcoholics talk a lot of rubbish, is not very coherent, falls all over the place and looks shabby. If I deal now with an alcoholic who have these appearance I could automatically assume there is no point for me really to try to deal with this person because he do not know what I'm talking about anyway. The drink has got to him and because of the problems I may associate with alcoholism I could treat them all in the same way. With this attitude and thinking he is not worth my time because he would not remember anyway what I'm talking about I would just do enough (paperwork) without giving him the help he might really need. When a resident is totally drunk I give a cup of coffee or support him to his bedroom where he can sleep for a while to get sober. When he is in a state where I can talk to him I will do so he in private with no other residents present. Just because the person does have an alcohol dependency I do not treat him as that. I treat him as a normal individual and treat him in a way that if I would be an alcoholic, the way I would like to be treated. To have values is a good thing because at enables you to set goals for yourself and to achieve objectives. But there is also a down side where other people values can come into conflict with my own.