Why Michael Jackson is the greatest musical artist

Do you know of a person who has won more awards than any other person in the music industry? What about a person who has inspired other performers to see the world from a different perspective? Or a man who is also ‘there’ for those in need of shelter, food, and water? Only one man in this world, who has distinguished himself through these great accomplishments, is the answer to these questions, and he is Michael Jackson. Indeed, he is perhaps the greatest musical artist of all time because of his success as an artist, whose list of achievements is endless; because of how his music changed the way people look at the world, and also because of how his kind-hearted, caring personality affected others. Firstly, Michael Jackson is the greatest musical artist of all time because of his success. He has released 13 different singles that have reached No. on the charts – definitely more than any other male artist in our history! In addition, he has been officially set as the Most Successful Entertainer of All Time for selling an approximate 750 million records worldwide. Also, he has 13 Grammy awards together with several Guinness World Records. His â€Å"Thriller† album is known as the Biggest Selling Album of All Time while his other records such as â€Å"Off the Wall†, â€Å"Bad†, and â€Å"Dangerous† are the top-sellers as well. So with these, Michael Jackson indeed is the greatest musical artist of all time for being very successful. Secondly, Michael Jackson’s kind-hearted personality also makes him the greatest musical artist. He is a humanitarian who has helped over 40 charities and foundations that include the American Cancer Society, AIDS Project Los Angeles, Make-A-Wish Foundation, End Hunger Network, Childhelp USA, and Great Ormond Street Hospital. In addition, he has spent at least 350 million dollars in funding these purposes. His charitable activities are countless and their effects are enduring. For example, when he established the Heal the World Foundation, it donated 6 tons of supplies as well as supporting treatment for drug and alcohol abuse in Sarajevo. Generally, the fact that Michael Jackson ‘healed the world’ really makes him the greatest musical artist. Lastly, the way Michael Jackson’s music changed the way people look at the world makes him the greatest musical artist of all time. His songs such has â€Å"Man in the Mirror†, â€Å"Black or White†, â€Å"Heal the World†, and â€Å"We are the World† have sent out messages to people to promote positive causes and impacts; whether it is about racism, war, or unity. In addition, his musical style paved way for many artists to develop their skills or invent new styles of music. Moreover, he also influenced many dancers through his music videos such as â€Å"Thriller†, â€Å"Billie Jean†, â€Å"Smooth Criminal†, and more. Hence, his label as the greatest musical artist can be truly defined through his influence in the way people look at the world. Unlike many artists, this man has made major impacts to people of all races around the world. Even 2 years after his death, people still mourn over him because of how important he is to our lives. Whether is it because of his success as an artist, because of a man with a kind-hearted personality, or because of how a man’s music has changed people’s point of views, Michael Jackson is truly the greatest musical artist of all time.

Economic constraints Essay

As part of my applied business GCSE, I have been asked to compare two different companies. The two companies I am going to compare are Nike and McDonald’s. Nike is an LTD, while McDonald’s is a franchise. At the end of this course I aim to get a better understanding of how businesses run.  The business location (McDonalds)  Most of McDonald’s earliest restaurants were opened in the UK during the 1970s, many customers were willing to travel miles to visit them. This specific McDoands is located in archway (N19) McDonald’s believe that their customer convience & research are the things that drive force behind McDonald’s restaurants and locations. Such development has led to new McDonald’s in sites as varied as cross-channel ferries, a bowling alley and London’s former County Hall. The Company is committed to responsible growth, and works closely with local planning officers and community groups when developing a new restaurant. When McDonalds decide to open a new restaurant, it is considered as a long-term proposition. For McDonalds, local knowledge is a key factor to choosing new locations. McDonald’s relies on discussions with local managers who are involved at the grass roots level with their local communities.  Key customers & competitors. (McDonalds)  McDonald’s are one of the leading providers of quick service food globally. In the UK, the company has 1,250 restaurants – around 500 of which are franchised operations. Seen as how McDonalds are a very big and successful franchise, they are bound to have competitors such as:McDonald’s are one of the only franchises to have a goal of no more than two complaints per restaurant per month. Using Business Objects to spot problems early, such as staffing levels, some 500 stores have achieved zero complaints for more than two months. In McDonalds, customer service is improved by information from the three â€Å"Mystery Shopper† visits to each restaurant monthly. This information includes, amongst other criteria, whether or not there was a friendly greeting, whether the server was wearing a name badge, as well as the overall cleanliness of the restaurant.  Some of McDonald’s external influences may affect the way that the business is managed and run. For example, if there were complaints being made about the level of pay for its workers then McDonald’s might have to respond to this. Even though it could be argued that the workers demands are not an external influence the company would still face pressure to make judgments about the nature of its decision-making.  The business location (Nike) Nike are known worldwide and have many stores throughout different countries, these include of:  Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russian federation, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, UK and Ireland.  In Nike’s case, it is very important that all of their locations suit to their liking because Nike aims to get out of their store locations including, profit and popularity. Before building a new store, Nike may need to take into account the following factor.

Porter Five Forces Analysis Essay

The entrenched position of the Indian market leaders in IT industry like TCS, Infosys, Wipro, CTS, Tech Mahindra; The changing environment demands fresh thinking to gain the cutting edge advantage. This paper attempts to look at the various macro and micro environmental factors operating in the industry using. The model of strategic analysis by Michael Porter, i. e. to analyse the bargaining power of buyers and suppliers, the threat of new entrants, threat of substitutes, intensity of rivalry, impact of technological changes, growth and volatility of the market and the influence of government and regulatory interventions. These variables affecting the industry have been categorised as favourable or adverse depending on the influence on the profitability of the industry. Some strategic initiatives, which can be adopted, to leverage the favorable forces and prevent the adverse ones have been identified. This paper attempts to analyse the various macro and micro environmental factors operating in the industry to provide a basis for devising strategy. IT INDUSTRY OVERVIEW INTRODUCTION India IT industry is one of the world’s successful information technology industries. Measured by the age of many industries, the IT industry in India is still in its infancy. Yet its growth and development has caught the attention of the world so much so that India is now being identified as the major powerhouse for incremental development of computer software. The reason for this attention is not the actual size of the industry but its rapid growth rate over the nineties and subsequent decade. It has grown from US $ 150million (source: NASSCOM) in 1991-92 to US $ 64 billion in year 2008. The industry’s contribution to India’s GDP has grown significantly from 1. % in 1999-2000 to around 5% in FY06, and has been estimated to cross 5. 5% in FY2010. The sector has been growing at an annual rate of 28% per annum since FY01. The Indian IT industry can be mainly categorised into following sectors IT services, IT enabled services and BPO, Research & Development, Software Product and Hardware. IT INDUSTRY PERFORMANCE The size of the Indian IT industry, accordin g to NASSCOM, is US$ 64 billion as of year 2008. It has been growing with an annual rate of 28% since 2001. The Indian IT industry can be broadly divided into two markets: domestic market and exports market. The elements of each of the above forces and the extent and /or effect of each element in the context of the IT industry have been analysed and enumerated below. Porter’s framework, however, does not address three important variables variables-Government and Regulatory Interventions, Technological Changes, and Growth and Volatility of Market Demand. These variables have been included in the model proposed by George Day (Day, 1990), which evolved from Porter’s model and have been analysed in this study study. Aparna Parthasarathy –PGXPM 05-Term5 Page 5 Strategic Management – Industry Analysis Assignment 2009 Â  Degree of rivalry denotes the intensity of competition within the industry. As the industry is still in its growth stage, there is enough room for expansion for existing players and new entrants. With the entry of many multinational companies (MNC) are opening their operations in India to leverage the low cost advantage provided by India, has increased the completion ratio (CR) of the industry. Also as there is no huge capital investment required to start a new company, the industry see a very large numbers of small and medium-size companies operating in a niche market. Presence of such large number of players has made the industry as one of the most competitive industry in the market. : High Commoditized Offerings low-cost, little differentiation high industry growth Strong Competitors Few number of large companies Numerous or equally balanced competitors Lack of differentiation or switching costs Capacity augmented in large increments High strategic stakes EXHIBIT: Â  Aparna Parthasarathy –PGXPM 05-Term5 Page 6 Strategic Management – Industry Analysis Assignment 2009 Â  We choose the top 3 IT companies from above pie chart for the analysis. Predicting what will come in an industry that evolves on an almost daily basis is a thankless and almost futile task. Things change at such a rapid rate, and many of the technologies are so fluid, that a shift in direction can occur in weeks rather than months. If we think that today’s Internet and e-commerce opportunities are technically advanced, we have not seen anything yet. Not only will the existing uses of the Internet get more and more advanced, but new ways will be found to exploit the opportunities it provides. The delivery of these services will not just be dependant on new formats and programming, but also on the mediums that deliver them. For this to happen, certain changes will need to take place, not just technological, but legal as well. Protection of consumers needs to be examined, as well as

English Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 33

English - Essay Example However we enjoyed the whole trip endlessly and I particularly have been longing to go back to this village ever since I have come back. It was a Thursday night that my father planned with our family that we should go to a nearby village. Since we had never seen that village, it turned out to be an interesting experience all the same. My father told us to get things ready and be on time come early morning the next day. My mother prepared food while I and my siblings arranged the necessary utensils that we would need for the trip. Since we were supposed to be away for 3 days, we told our neighbors in advance that we would be leaving the next morning and that they should take care of our place when we are not there. When we arrived at the village, it started to rain. We took shelter in the guest house in which we were supposed to stay. When it stopped raining, we saw a rainbow. I and my siblings saw a rainbow for the first time in our lives. My father described the whole procedure behind a rainbow and told us how it came into being. We were excited that such a thing existed in essence. The second day was filled with hiking rides over the mountain and we even went for chairlift rides. It was such an enjoyable experience that I do not have the right words to explain. I enjoyed the whole journey immensely and it made me feel very good. My father acted as a guide during our trip and he basically guided us through thick and thin, explaining things which were completely new to us. He also told us how to do trekking over the mountain and how to come back downhill. We took about 3 hours to go to the hilltop but came back in just 30 minutes. This thing amazed me endlessly and explained quite a lot of th e laws of physics which I read in my physics course at school. I took guidance from my father whenever I experienced any anomaly in understanding the different nuances of the trekking trip. The third day saw us packing our bags in the

Capital Budgeting Analysis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Capital Budgeting Analysis - Research Paper Example This shows that the company has improved on the efficiency of the usage of the assets of the company. This is also depicted by an improving asset turnover over the three year period. In 2003, the company generated $1.25 of revenue for every $1 invested in the assets of the company. Moreover, the company is also maintaining a strong control on its administrative and selling expenses; this is depicted by an improving net profit margin. This signifies that the company has strong growth prospects in future and could pave it way to become the market leader in its line of products. Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Since the company has strong future prospects, the company can use the IPO to its advantage. It will provide Superior Living Inc with the much needed capital money for expansion of its product lines including the production facility. The ‘going public’ stance will also boost the awareness of the company products in the market and develop a whole new batch of potential cust omers. This can eventually lead to an increase in the market share of the company. However, once Superior Living Inc goes public, she will have to face a number of challenges as well. The company will require fulfilling all the necessary obligations of the Securities and Exchange Commission as well as Sarbanes-Oxley Act which will lead to additional costs. Similarly, the management will come under immense scrutiny and pressure from different stakeholders which can lead to somewhat questionable practices for boosting earnings. This is because investors look at short term growth instead of the long term stability in the company. Debt is another option to the company to fulfill the capital requirements for the necessary expansion. the debt option will provide the company with the total control of the business with no scrutiny and pressures from the investors and other stakeholders. Similarly, the interest on the debt will provide a beneficial shield to the company as it will lower the future tax liabilities. However, the debt financing option will increase the leverage of the company; thereby increasing the chance of bankruptcy. Superior Living Inc has a moderate debt to total assets and debt to equity ratio. As shown in figure 4, the company finances only 28.3 percent of its total assets through the short term and long term debt. If the company funds the new production facility through debt, the ratio will still stay below 30 percent. Figure 5 depicts the debt to equity position of the company. The company has maintained an excellent interest coverage ratio over the three year period. It does not face any chance of interest payment crisis in near future; therefore, can easily use this option as well. Figure 4 Figure 5 The company has huge growth potential and a chance to explore new markets and product ranges. The new production facility is the need of the time; and therefore must be carried be carefully analyzed and carried forward. The new production facilityà ¢â‚¬â„¢s cash flows were analyzed at different hurdle rates. Since the Net Present Value of the project is positive at all three possible hurdle rates, the project must be carried forward. Similarly, the Internal Rate of Return is greater as compared to each hurdle rate; therefore the project is acceptable. The project has a simple payback period of 3 years. However, the discounted payback period 4 years at a

Conclusion Chapter Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Conclusion Chapter - Dissertation Example Meanwhile, gender and grade level were found to have a significant relationship with reading achievement, while gender and VARK7G learning styles in turn correlated with the dependent variables. RAAF and FT scores were also found to differ greatly based on gender. Grade and gender were found to be significant factors, especially with respect to reading achievement. Meanwhile, gender and multi-single learning styles were likewise found to have a significant relationship. Gender was also found to affect FT and RAAF scores. While males were found to be affected greatly by grades and VARK7G categories, the same could not be said for their female counterparts. Their learning styles in RAAF were also less error-prone, and particular learning styles were said to be more or less effective for males than females. All in all, learning styles are said to differ not only based on one’s gender, but also on age and grade level – which is why teachers need to vary their lesson plans a ccording to these considerations. Research Question 3 aimed to determine if there are significant differences between males and females in terms of learning style. The study found that at least 1.6% of the variance in learning styles is due to gender, and it has also been observed that males and females alike tend to prefer multi-learning style. All in all, the gender-based differences in learning style preference are marginal at best, with both genders choosing the quad and aural styles as their most and least preferred learning styles, respectively. Research Question 4 asks the following: In Arabic reading classes, do teaching strategies significantly affect reading achievement among students? The TRSQ is divided into subscales referring to reading instruction (RI), reading resources and types of text (RR), reading activities and behaviour (RA), development of

W3 Disc Innovation Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

W3 Disc Innovation Strategy - Essay Example 1). Concurrently, the mission and military objectives are also expressly stated. These are openly communicated to all stakeholders, as evident from its being published online. The leadership checklist also indicates that the U.S. Army, through its leaders are committed to continuous thrusts for encouraging the development of innovative strategy. As emphasized, through leadership training courses, particularly the Noncommissioned Officer Education System (NCOES), soldiers are trained â€Å"how to lead at varying levels from Sergeant to Command Sergeant Major. Each course is specifically designed for each level of increased responsibility and accountability† (U.S. Army, n.d., p. 1). Likewise, processes and resources in the U.S. Army support and complement leadership, as well as the mission and vision statements. As noted, the command policy and programs contain all the crucial information that governs effective conduct and behavior of all soldiers (U.S. Army, 2007). In addition, the resources encourage solicitation of new ideas through leaders’ initiative and effective communication strategies. Overall, using the checklist for innovation strat egy, one could deduce that the U.S. Army assumes a proactive stance and is always ready to implement an innovation

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

Drinking Alcohol - Essay Example one’s drinking on any given occasion; physical dependence: Withdrawal symptoms, such as nausea, sweating, shakiness, and anxiety, occur when alcohol use is stopped after a period of heavy drinking; and tolerance: The need to drink greater amounts of alcohol in order to â€Å"get high.† (2001, 1) In this regard, the objective of the essay is to design an experiment to test whether drinking alcohol influences peoples tendency to become socially aggressive. An experimental hypothesis would be specified and both dependent and independent variables would be identified. Likewise, experimental and control conditions would also be stated. Finally, any experimental procedures that would help to ensure the reliability of your research would be proffered. Experimental hypothesis: Increased consumption of alcohol would give greater courage for shy and timid teenagers to express their love and even lose timidity to possibly take aggressive moves towards their object of desire. Experimental Process: Three separate samples indicated above would be asked to drink (or not drink) alcohol depending on the amounts indicated above. Then, samples would be asked to approach girls they have feelings for to express their feelings. The kind of expression of feelings (words, actions, behavior) would be measured, noted, and identified depending on the amount of alcohol

Project on Financial Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Project on Financial Management - Essay Example The balance sheet of my family reveals that we have just enough assets to cover our liabilities. We keep liabilities to a minimum because we have three growing children and our money goes to support their daily expenses. Aside from paying for the mortgage, there are just the monthly utilities and the telephone and cable to pay for. But as can be reflected, the liabilities already consume about 77% of our resources. The asset to debt ratio of 1.29 shows that our financial liquidity, or our ability to cover our liabilities. As shown, our assets are still more than our debt which enables us to pay for our obligations by keeping them to a minimum – only that which we can afford. The only investment asset we have is our life insurance which has a cash value of $3000. Since we are still paying for our house, it is still not considered as an asset since the title to the property is not yet in our name until it is fully paid. The $5000 in our checking account is composed of the $300 per month I struggle to save for emergency purposes plus other savings made in the process.

Fast Food Nation Essay Example for Free

Fast Food Nation Essay In his essay, â€Å"Fast Food Nation† Eric Schlosser condemns the impact of fast food on human health and American economy. Schlosser detests the fast food chain because it causes thousands of independent business to come to an end. As a result, unemployment plays a major role among these small scale businessmen. In addition it creates social differences among the people due to food market being captured by fast food chain. In order to attain a monopoly and dominate the fast food industry, they employ low paid and unskilled work force which is a threat to the public and migrant farm workers. Every citizen has the right to know the ingredients being used in the food so they can avoid the deleterious effects of the fast food on their health. His assertion, â€Å"introduction of deadly pathogens† states the risk encountered by small children who are the future generation of the modern world ( 392). Addition of harmful chemicals to increase the taste and aroma of food leads to chronic diseases like cancer, stroke and heart diseases. Furthermore Schlosser’s fear about the fast food being a social problem and turning out to be a threat to the American economy is the pinnacle of this essay. Small scale farms and full-time farmers are in the risk of losing their livelihood with the emergence of the fast food industry. He also points out the inability of the Government to eliminate the lethal meat which paves its way into the fast food industry and pose health problems. Then he moves onto the consumers and asserts that, â€Å"Even the anticipation of consumer anger has prompted McDonald’s to demand changes from its suppliers,† – this reveals that the consumers should be provoked and created an awareness about the ins and outs of the food they are eating (396). The insight of the author about the fast food industry builds up in a gradual process and finally reiterates the need for the public to take immediate action and cease the use of fast food as their regular food and search for other healthy options like simple and healthy cooking which would help them retain a hale and a healthy life. Saying no to the fast food makes the fast food industry to rethink their formula of safe food and saves our precious life as well as the future generation. Let’s think about it.

All Roads lead to China and its economy

All Roads lead to China and its economy The article â€Å"All Roads lead to China† dated 5th December 2009 in The Star Bizweek focuses on Chinas rise as an economic powerhouse, with the stage set to become the largest economy of the world. Continuous rapid economic development till date has placed China right at the heels of United States and Japan. After a market-orientated reform programme in 1970s, China turned into the centre of attraction for foreign investments from all over the world. The nations importance in the global economy is evident with its government policies and local companies actions being closely monitored. The staggering population in China of 1.3 billion provides an attractive customer base besides serving as a cheap labour force. In line with a boom in the manufacturing sector, Chinas demand for raw materials also propels correspondingly. This has not only transformed the way in which commodities are traded, but also led China to indulge in the acquisition of foreign assets and the formation of alliances with resource-rich countries. Despite of downbeats ranging from the low quality of goods produced to the accusation and allegation aimed towards China, the China economy is still going strong with corporations envisioning to compete against other established international players. The introduction of the market-orientated reform programme in 1970s do clearly seems to be a masterful move which has resulted in China enjoying rapid yet encouraging economic developments over the years. In addition, with a much improved and predictable legal system in practice, the republic seems to have strummed the right note in the global economy game, with investments pouring in from different parts of the world. It is indeed amazing to think how the China economy has managed to emerge as one of the dominant force in such short time span. With such thriving potential and capacity of the China economy, no wonder it is by no boast to claim that any business considering itself to be a global player has to enter the China market, as stated in the article. The major advantage that China enjoys and has successfully utilized over the years is the huge population which provides a cheap, appealing labour force for industries, particularly the manufacturing sector. Though China is not able to match with tech-savvy nations such Japan, they have understood the population advantage which they gain over other countries and thus embark on a labour-intensive-centered economy development. On top of that, a competitive surrounding too serves as a catalyst in Chinas economic development. Low wage may seem to be a fair reason to explain Chinas competitiveness, but Kwan (2002) pointed out that the productivity of Chinese workers also has to be taken into account as a factor in Chinas competitiveness. He explains that though China pays low wage for their workers like how Bangladesh and Somalia pay their respective workers, the relatively high productivity of Chinese workers has placed their competitiveness on par with United States. This indicates why till date, there has yet to be any countries able to match up with the cost advantage of companies based or branched in China. Amidst of the advantage discussed above, there are several setbacks occurring concurrently with Chinas economic progress. The first revolves around Chinas very own legal system. Though Chinas legal system has been more consistent and predictable with businesses enjoying a smoother entrance into the republics market, it still has its flaws and could still prove to be an obstacle for companies venturing into China. Recently, BBC (2010) reported a conflict between Google and the Chinese government with the former threatening to pull out of the nation due to cyber attacks and tight surveillance by the Chinese government to limit freedom of speech in the internet. With China continuously imposing tight regulatory and censorship rules over the internet while Google holding firm to its stand of prioritizing moral concerns ahead of businesses, the conflict has demonstrated that Chinas restricted openness will to certain extent hold back the republics potential to expand its economy. Additionally, there is also the factor of quality that China has to seriously look into. The recent years have saw Chinas exports raising safety concerns all around the world. The people worldwide are basically getting cheap goods at the expense of their health and safety. At the same time, the reliability and durability of China-made products have also raised concerns and dissatisfactions from the outside world. From toothpaste to pet food to toys recalled over the years, the quality control in China seemingly to have deteriorated from bad to worse. Of all the quality flops, the most serious case saw tens of thousands hospitalized due to melamine-contaminated dairy products. The scandal not only tarnished the nations image, but it has also puts Chinas credibility and ethical responsibility into question. Moving on, Chinas domination in the global economy will soon be severely tested with the issue of inflation surfacing in line with the prosperous developments. According to Peoples Daily Online (2010), experts have been predicting inflation in 2010 and the challenge lies ahead for Chinas economy to ‘prevent inflation and to control the inflationary expectations. With increased demand for commodities due to rising consumption power, inflation do seem inevitable for China and it would be interesting to see how the Chinese government will deal with this upcoming obstacle. Although Chinas economy has progressed immensely for the past 30 years, there are certain areas that still can be further improved to allow further expansion of the promising market. In the legal matters prospect, China could have given its legal system a thorough review to widen its doors to companies such as Google to encourage more potential investments. On the other hand, China can address to the problem of low quality goods by tightening the quality control regulation to regain consumers confidence towards China-made products. If the relevant problems have been attended and rectified accordingly, it is only a matter of time before China replaces United States at the top of the rankings. References BBC (2010) Google ‘may pull out of China after Gmail cyber attack [Online], Available: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8455712.stm [accessed 11 January 2010] Kwan, C.H. (2002) The Myth of China Competitiveness, [Online], Available: http://www.rieti.go.jp/en/miyakodayori/047.html [accessed 11 January 2010] Peoples Daily Online (2010) Experts: Preventing inflation is the biggest challenges for Chinas economy in 2010 [Online], Available: http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90778/90862/6871595.html [accessed 11 January 2010] Bibliography ICIS.com (2007) China product quality under spotlight [Online], Available: http://www.icis.com/Articles/2007/08/06/9049799/china-product-quality-under-spotlight.html [accessed 11 January 2010]

Impact Of Social Networking On Tertiary Students

Impact Of Social Networking On Tertiary Students This paper examines the impacts of social networking through a multi-layered study of the benefits, positive and negative effects they have on people more especially tertiary students in Botswana. It states what social networking is, as well as explaining what tertiary students are. It goes on to define the analysis of social networking trend as well as assessing the impacts of it towards the productivity of tertiary students. Data has been collected from interviews, questionnaires and published reports from the internet. This paper challenges the argument that social networks dont impact the lives and productivity of tertiary students in Botswana. 1.0 INTRODUCTION The rapid growth of social networking that has been observed over the last two to three years is indicative of its entry into mainstream culture and its integration into the daily lives of many people, Ofcomm (2008). In parallel with this, there has also been considerable media coverage of the growth of social networking in tertiary institutions, its potential positive outcomes and concerns about the way that some students engage with it. Social networking sites offer people new and varied ways to communicate via the internet, whether through their PC or their mobile phone. They allow people to easily and simply create their own online pages or profile and to construct and display an online network of contacts. Users of these sites can communicate via their profile both with their friends and with people outside their list of contacts. This can be on a one-to-one basis, or in a more public way such as a comment post for all to see Social networking has a major impact on universities and colleges in Botswana as a lot of students are now using sites like myspace, twitter and facebook to communicate search and share data and even to socialise through them. These sites are attracting a huge number of people as they use them to establish links between friends even publishing and maintaining their profiles, (Subrahmanyam K 2008). The impact of social networks on productivity of tertiary students is an important issue that has caught both educators and practitioners attention in recent years. Social networking also has great effect to the industry since sites like facebook are of importance to students as they are able to express themselves but the main problem is that students stop working and spend much time to navigate through it. The measurement of student productivity is certainly open to many definitions. So to address the issue of learning effectiveness, it is better to design a field experiment comparing stud ent performance when they combine social networking with school work. Questions raised in this study are: Is an individuals position in a social network related to his or her performance in school? What kind of social relations are linked with students academic performance? The main purpose of this study is to explore the impact of interpersonal relationship networks on students academic performance online and offline and to find out the key human relationship determinants for students performance. 2.0 ANALYSIS OF SOCIAL NETWORKS 2.1 What is social networking? Social network can be said to be a group of socially related nodes linked by means of one or more relationships. A set of connections (members), are those nodes connected by the relations whose patterns can be studied. The units are commonly known as organizations or persons, thus the connected units can be studied as the principle says, (Marin A. and Wellman B. 2009). At the most basic level social networking sites allow users to set up online profiles or personal homepages, and develop an online social network. The profile page functions as the users own webpage and includes profile information ranging from their date of birth, gender, religion, politics and hometown etc. In addition to profile information, users can design the appearance of their page, and add content such as photos, video clips and music files. In addition to this, users can also build a network connection that they can build as friends. It is important to note that the term friend in this context does not refer to the traditional friend. Therefore it means anyone who has been invited or been invited by the other user. 2.2 History of social networking History of networking sites started first by the launch of SixDegrees.com in 1997. Users were permitted to list friends after making profiles. By 1998, they were able to view friends lists and profiles existed on community and dating sites. Classmates.com permitted persons to connect with friends from different institutions and search the network for any other person they would have known before even though they were not able create profiles even listing their friends. The combination of these features was then made through SixDegrees couple of years later on, (Boyd et al 2007). This clearly indicates that the first social networking site to be used was Six Degrees. It emerged in 1997 and users were allowed to register and edit their profiles in 1998. Everything in life has start time and the end time therefore SixDegrees did not do well as may be people were not able to access this site or they did not know the usage of it. Even though SixDegrees attracted a lot of people as users, it was unsuccessful to become a sustained business and this made the business to close its operations in the year 2000, (Boyd et al 2007). The downfall of this business was that, large number of people was taking the use of Internet seriously but most did not have the potential to connect with their friends who were online. After the close of this networking site, some other networking sites emerged. 2.3 Engaging in social networking sites and reasons why students engage in social networking Research by Boyd (2008) showed that tertiary students were more likely to access social networking sites on the internet at their schools than anywhere else. Media reports have suggested that some tertiary schools in Botswana have banned access to these sites. If these reports reflect widespread practice, it is likely that access to the internet at home will become an increasingly important factor in use of social networking sites. There are a number of ways why tertiary students use social networking sites. At the point when fears and anxieties diminish, tertiary leaders may start to appreciate that social networking tool and technologies can be utilized to: Find and meet new friends. One can find people of every kind from all over the world. Or you can just focus on meeting certain types of new friends Help one find old friends which were last seen many years ago. enable speedier location, access and sharing of information; enable more efficient leverage of contacts and knowledge; help retain key employees by improving satisfaction in the workplace; break down time and geographical boundaries to improve communication between widely dispersed personnel; reduce expenses because one can chat with a friend very far for free 2.4.0 How people use social networking sites The building blocks of social networking sites are the individual members profiles. No two profiles are identical, but they typically contain basic information about the user such as name, sex, home town/country and contact details as well as other information such as race, religion and politics. Alongside this basic information, most social networking sites also allow users to write potted biographies about themselves and to go into great detail about their likes and dislikes. For example, on MySpace these are termed blurbs. An important feature of social networking sites for most tertiary students in Botswana is the ability to contact others in a playful way, using pokes or similar gestures. These gestures are a feature of most social networking sites and, depending on the site are called names like Pokes, Fives, Love or something similar. They are a way of gesturing to other users and getting their attention. These gestures, or symbolic cues, are fun for many users and provide a level of excitement as people log on to see what messages they have. They can also provide social status or reassurance, depending on the number received and who they were received from. Students can post photos and videos on their social networking sites, in addition to their profile photo. Photos are important both for constructing and revealing ones identity, and for sharing important events and moments with a wide group of people (especially family and friends). Some students and less confident ones reported that the virtual nature of the communication they had through these sites had allowed them to express themselves more confidently. These students also reported using MSN and texting in a similar way. Social networking sites appeared to allow less confident individuals, particularly teenage boys and girls and older single women, to express themselves in new ways and to talk confidently to people they knew, and also to contact people they didnt know. Some teenagers and adults in their early twenties reported feeling addicted to social networking sites and were aware that their use was squeezing their study time. Many students had experienced this drawback, although to differing degrees. Some students described how they might go onto their site just to check for messages and then emerge a few hours later having been drawn into commenting, searching and generally having fun. 2.4.1 Case 1 Kabo Magowe (22) is a young man who schools in Botswana Accountancy College and while I was on the internet doing my online research I asked him if he knows anyone who has a problem with Fece Book. He said to me, yes I do. I know this other guy who had to re-take three courses after he failed them because he used to spend much time on Face Book. 2.4.2Case 2 Alice is a Humanities student at the University of Botswana, aged 23, living in a rented apartment in an urban/suburban area. She depends mainly on her allowance and she doesnt receive extra money from parents. She spends much of her time in the evening at school chatting to people she has met in chat rooms in Face Book. She has had an affair with one guy she met online which lasted eight months. They would talk to each other daily and their avatars would go and get a room at Planet Lodge. After eight months they met in public and she learnt that he was married, so she finished the online relationship, although she really felt they had something special. Despite her experience, she still feels that social networking sites are a much easier way for single women to meet people, especially as they are not able to go out very much and it gives them a chance to talk to lots of people and feel less isolated. 2.5 Positive impacts of social networking on students There are a number of ways in which social networks impact the lives of students and people. Some of the positive ways are: They help in education by allowing teachers and coaches to post club meeting times, school projects, and even homework on these sites. Social networking Web sites are helping businesses advertise, thus social networking Web sites are benefiting businesses therefore the U.S. economically. They help them meet others who share the same interest Social networking can be used by individuals as a way of looking for a job or job hunting Social networking can be used as a positive cause/awareness, i.e, money raising benefits for someone who was in a car crash, house burnt down, or also raise funds for the people involved in natural catastrophes like the Haiti earth quake etc (these are actual events) They help people to stay in touch with friends long distance They can be used to renewed friendships high school/college friends Keep track of community service 2.5 Negative impacts of social networking on students Social networks also have negative impacts on the lives of students or people in general. Some of them are: Students are waste precious time that could be spent doing homework, thus social networking websites are encouraging the creation of a lazy generation. Users of social networking websites are extremely vulnerable to fraud, and can have money stolen from their bank accounts just because of signing up for these sites. Users of social networking websites are extremely vulnerable to sexual abuse or harassment. In the case of computer labs, social networks use up most of the bandwidth in them. They are so interesting that one will want to open a lot of web pages at the same time and imagine if 50 students do that at the same time. 3.0 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 3.0.1 Social networking: qualitative research into attitudes, behaviours users and how tertiary students in Botswana use social networking sites Methodology- questionnaires were issued to different students from different tertiary institutions in Botswana. Questionnaires were used because they are easy to analyze and also written questionnaires become even more cost effective as the number of research questions increases. Questionnaires are familiar to most people (Berdie, Anderson, and Niebuhr, 1986). Nearly everyone has had some experience completing questionnaires and they generally do not make people apprehensive. They are less intrusive than telephone or face-to-face surveys. When respondents receive a questionnaire in the mail, they are free to complete it on their own time-table (Cahalan, 1951; Jahoda, et al., 1962). Unlike other research methods, the respondent is not interrupted by the research instrument. Core Objectives- To identify, explore and understand the behaviours, attitudes and barriers to tertiary students use of social networking sites Sample Size- 25 students Field Work Period- 8 March to 12 March 2010 (5 days) Sample Definition- Social networking student users aged 19+. The sample included 5 students from University of Limkokwing, 5 from the University of Botswana, 5 from Botswana Accountancy College, 5 from Gaborone Institute of Professional Studies and the last batch of 5 from NIIT. The sample also comprised of students who have internet connection from their homes and those who used the one at school. 4.0 FINDINGS Question 1 Name of tertiary institution Botswana Accountancy College 5 University of Botswana 5 University of Limkokwing 5 Gaborone Institute of Professional Studies 5 NIIT 5 Total 25 students Question 2 Do you have a social network you are involved in? Yes 23 No 2 Total 25 students Question 3 If your answer is yes on the above question, which social networks are you part of? Face Book 22 MySpace Tagged Hi5 1 Other Total 23 students Question 4 When do you usually surf your social network sites? During class hours 14 Lunch time 6 After hours 1 weekends 2 Total 23 students Question 5 How many friends do you have on your friend list that you dont know or talk to? 10% 30% 11 40% 60% 2 70%+ 10 Total 23 students Question 6 When do you find it necessary for you to log onto your favorite social network chosen at number three above? Anytime I get access to an Internet connection, whether its during a lesson or not. Sometimes, I would go out and find an Internet connection and if it means going to the internet cafà © I would do it. 16 When Im bored and have nothing else to do 2 Sometimes, when I want to catch up with friends 5 Total 23 students Question 7 How long do you take surfing your social network? 1hr 2hrs 6 2hrs 3hrs 12 4hrs+ 5 Total 23 students Question 8 Has social networking negatively affected your studies? Yes 20 No 3 Total 23 students Question 9 Give reasons for the answer provided above Relevant to decline in school work 20 Nothing to do with school 3 Total 23 students Question 10 Which internet connection do you use? Home 5 School 18 Total 23 students 5.0 RESULTS The questionnaires handed out to students in different institutions were all returned fully and accurately answered with no faults or damages what so ever. The results are as follows: From the 25 sampled students, 92% of students have a social network account from different web sites and only 8% of students dont have any. The 8% is the 2 students school at Gaborone Institute of Professional Studies. This result leaves us with only 23 questionnaires to analyze. From the 23 students with social network accounts 91% of students have Face Book accounts and 8% of students are not on face book but rather on Hi5. When it comes to the times at which the students surf their social web sites, 61% students have stated that they do it during class hours, while 26% students surf during lunch time, 4% surf during after hours and 2 students do it during weekends. Again, when it comes to a portion of friends that particular student has, but never talks to or dont know, 11 students say they dont know or talk to 10 30% of their total friends, while 2 student doesnt know or talk to 40 60% of his total friends. 10 students dont talk or even know 70%+ of their total friends. 16 students say they surf the social network sites anytime they get access to an Internet connection, whether its during lessons or not. They say sometimes, they would go out and find an Internet connection even if it means going to an internet cafà ©. 2 students surf the web sites only when they are bored and 5 students surf when they want to catch up with their friends 6 students say that they spend an hour to 2 hours on their particular web sites, 12 students spend 2hours to 3 hours on their particular sites and 5 students spend 4 hours+ on their particular web sites. From the overall 23 students, 87% say social network sites have impacted them negatively on their academic work and this has caused them to fall gradually from their high marks to low marks. 13% students say they are still doing well in school and social networking hasnt impacted them negatively on their school work because they dont mix school with pleasure. 78% of the 23 students have got no internet connection at their homes which means they use the connection at school and 22% students have got internet connection at home 6.0 DISCUSSION The results above have made it clear that social networking is common among many tertiary students in Botswana. The results also show that it (social networking) impacts the way students perform in school negatively. From the sample of students selected from different tertiary institutions in Botswana, one would say in every 5 students, 4 students have accounts on different social networking sites. The most common social web site used or visited from the sample is Face Book which of cause was developed by a tertiary student. With Face Book being common this means that the majority of the world population is on Face Book therefore there are many people to stay in touch with. Even though there is a big dish full of friends to socialize with, there are people who request friends and yet they dont know them and they and dont even talk to them or chat with them. Friends are just added to increase the list of friends; its like a competition among tertiary students. More friends mean more profiles to check out. For example if a student has 200 friends on face book and yet he/she does not have internet connection at home but rather uses the connection at school, this means that he/she will have to spend more hours at school being unproductive viewing friends profiles. The results have highlighted 16 students from a total of 23 students who visit social networking sites during class hours and mostly during lab sessions. This is very bad because there is lack of concentration during classes and therefore students fail. Lastly, from the 23 students sampled, 87% of them have shown that social networking has affected the way they perform academically. 7.0 CONCLUSION In a few years time the chances are that social networking will be part of almost everyones life are very high. Most people will take advantage of the fact that they have accounts on social network web sites and erasing or deactivating them will be impossible because of the fact that they have many friends around the world and losing touch with them will be a disadvantage. With the majority of tertiary institutions in Botswana having social networking sites blocked from their computer labs, most households will have internet connections in the near future, many of which will be high speed. Accessing the Net wherever and whenever one chooses will be commonplace thanks to both the small wireless devices most people carry and the variety of alternate points of access. All of these modern upgrades mentioned above will make social networking for tertiary institution students to even surf them more and frequently. I have a great believe that the number of students without internet connecti ons at their households will gradually reduce in great numbers. Social network web sites have negative impacts on the lives of tertiary students in Botswana. They affect the way they perform at their different institutions. Social networking has become a habit on tertiary students, they cannot live without them. Even when they are disabled from their schools, one will go to thee extend of finding an internet connection in order to go online. 8.0 RECOMMENDATIONS Since social networking is a habit among tertiary students in Botswana, I would recommend that they should balance them, use them equally. They should give their school work more priority because school is the key to success and not Face Book friends. 10.0 REFERENCES What is social networking (2010), what is social networking, http://www.whatissocialnetworking.com/ [accessed 19 Feb 2010] Wikipedia (2010), social network service, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/social_network_service/ [accessed 21 Feb 2010] About.com (2010), reasons to join a social network, http://personalweb.about.com/od/easyblogsandwebpages/a/whatsocialnetwo.htm [accessed 21 Feb 2010] Yahoo (2010) social networking websites have positive impact? http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?/ Boyd, D and Ellison, N, Social Network Sites, Definition, History and Scholarship, Journal of Computer Mediated Communication (October, 2007), http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol13/issue1/boyd.ellison.html. K. Subrahmanyam Online and offline social networks: Use of social networking sites by emerging adults, Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 200811/12. D.M. Boyd and N.B (2007) Ellison Social Network Sites: Definition, History, and Scholarship (2007). Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 13(1), article 11. [Online] [21 September 2009).

Personal Success Essay -- American Dream Essays Papers

Success   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Everyone’s vision of success differs. Wealth, happiness, and fame are all the stereotypical aspirations of the common person’s so-called â€Å"American Dream.† My American dream encompasses more of the first two aspects than anything else. Happiness is the most important; without happiness, wealth and fame are useless. Without happiness, success cannot exist; it is your own personal gauge of accomplishment. If you cannot look at yourself in the mirror and evaluate your own life a success, then why should anyone else consider you successful? Wealth can attribute to happiness. No matter what anyone says, having more material goods makes your standard of living better, which normally is a direct correlate of happiness. It helps you experience the luxurious joys in life that, otherwise, you couldn’t carry out. Fame, to me, isn’t needed but rather acquired through the life of the successful person. A legacy is more honorable than a na tional fame, because after death fame is a more humble characteristic. Changing others lives, after they examined your life in retrospect, makes fame an irreplaceable cog in the machine of success.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Admiration and aspirations of a person can help determine how successful they will be. Role models help blaze a path of success in the minds of their protà ©gà ©. If someone looks up to a person who themselves are successful, they have better odds of being successful themselves. On the other hand, looking up to a failure of a human being, t...

A Clean, Well-Lighted Place Essay -- Literary Analysis, Ernest Hemingw

Ernest Hemingway captures the essence and origins of nihilistic thought in â€Å"A Clean, Well-Lighted Place†, written in a time of religious and moral confusion shortly after The Great War. The ideas expressed in this short story represent the post World War 1 thinking of Hemingway, and the notoriously nihilistic Lost Generation in Paris, which was greatly influenced by the many traumas of war. Learning from his unnerving experiences in battle, Hemingway enforces the idea that all humans will inevitably fade into eternal nothingness and everything valued by humans is worthless. He develops this idea by creating a brilliant mockery of two coveted religious documents, revealing authority figures as typical, despicable, human beings, and reducing life into the most raw, simplistic, and frightening reality imaginable. He states that all humans will naturally die alone and literally be â€Å"in despair† about â€Å"nothing† (494), and that people will either seek a â€Å"calm and pleasant cafe† (496), or a self-inflicted death simply to escape despair. Undoubtedly, Hemingway destroys any existence of a higher meaning because, in reality â€Å"[life is] all a nothing, and a man [is] nothing too† (496). By viewing the actions of three different generations, Hemingway’s â€Å"A Clean, Well-Lighted Place† elaborates on the idea that life is not continual enlightenment and growth, but gradual despair, and an inevitable death into â€Å"nada† (497). The youthful and confident waiter, representing the youngest of the three male generations, is the only apparent spec of existentialist thought in the story. However, this young man is simply an unconcerned person due to his age; he is not in despair because the end of his existence is not breathing down his neck at thi... ..., Well-Lighted Place†, represent the opinions and views of one typical person, in one ordinary life. The theme of a world of nothingness is overwhelming to the human brain, and almost inconceivable, and everything we do in this life is simply designed to help us take our mind off of death; suicide is the ultimate escape from â€Å"despair† over â€Å"nothing† (494). Hemingway’s brilliant transitions in time explain how life eventually grows worse with age, and humans will succumb to suicide, drunkenness, or something comforting and safe, much like a clean, well-lighted cafe. Further, Hemingway has shown the world that man has created many bogus ways to cope with the insurmountable fear of nothingness, namely religion. People can try to kid their selves into feeling soulful, genuine, or meaningful, but there is no need to â€Å"fear for [the human] soul†, as it is non-existent.

Why does the price of gas fluctuate so greatly?

I believe we’re in a recovery stage of the business cycle. All the index calculations suggest this. The GDP and CPI indexes have increased over the last year and few months but unemployment index has remained unchanged over the last few months. The economy has stabilized and there is slow growth. GDP index shows a . 4 percent increase in the fourth quarter of 2012 and a 1. 8 percent increase in the first quarter of 2013. This increase suggests recovery. CPI index shows has increase 1. percent for all of 2012 and shows a steady increase every month in 2013. There’s also has been a steady increase every year since 2009. This increase also shows recovery. Unemployment index has remained unchanged in June 2013 at 7. 6 percent from May 2013. It has remain constant for the last 5 months at around 7. 6 percent. It has decreased slightly from June 2013 when it was 8. 2 percent. If the unemployment decreases, it’s possible that would set us up for an economic boom. Why does the price of gas fluctuate so greatly? There are many factors that create price of gas fluctuation; war in the Middle East creating a shortage and production problems creating a shortage. When there’s a shortage, prices go up. What will happen as more and more people in China and India decide to buy automobiles? As more and more people in China and India buy automobiles, the demand for gas will increase. The increased demand for gas will exceed the supply and will cause a shortage. The shortage of gas will increase the price of gas. What would happen if most US consumers decided to drive electric cars? If most US consumers decided to drive electric cars the demand of gas would significantly decrease. The US is ranked the number 1 consumer of petroleum. If the demand of gas significantly decreased in the US, the supply of gas would most likely exceed the demand and make lower gas prices.

Three Types of African Marriages (Informative Speech Plan)

Informative Speech Plan: Speech Topic: Three types of African marriages General Purpose: To inform. Specific Purpose: To inform my audience of the advantages and disadvantages of three different types of marriages. Thesis Statement/Central Idea: Marriage is a social union or legal contract between two different people that exchange vows but in some countries, such as Africa they have different types of marriages. Organizational Strategy: Topical Main Points: African marriage types go back for centuries and are carried out even today because it is a very important part of their society.Some marriages are a result of two parties while the others are forced upon whether it is a family obligation or life circumstances. Three types of traditional African are arranged marriages, polyandrous marriages, and polygamous. All three may have some advantages in disadvantages in the African society. I. Some parts of Africa have arranged marriage. A) An arranged marriage is one that parents play an important role in match-making by finding, evaluating, and approving the right type of spouse for their children, who maybe young as 13 years of age, which will allow them to have long-term happiness. Similar essay: Informative Speech Topics About AfricaSometimes the girls’ hand in marriage are exchanged for a dowry, such as money or farm animals, between the new husband and family. B) There are many reasons why arranged marriages play an important role in Africa. These are few common reasons for arranged marriages: mutual compatibility, religious and culture, financial needs, and the political alliances. C) There are a few advantages that arranged marriages have. The biggest advantage is that Africans who have arranged marriages have lower divorce rates.Another advantage is that African fathers gain sons from their daughters which may increase the families’ wealth. D) The part of Africa that carries out arranged marriages are North Africa II. In some parts of Africa they have polyandrous and polygamy marriages. A) Polyandrous marriages, also known as plural marriages, are women having many husbands all at the same time in which they perform all the duties in the vil lage, such as farming, shepherding, and other chores. A typical polyandrous marriage has less to do with â€Å"female power† and is practiced more in African societies.Polygamy marriages are men having many wives at all the same time with no marriage bonds between the wives. It is still common today. B) There are a few good reasons for polyandrous. The main reason is to not split the brothers up. The brothers also help each other to raise their children which mark a socio-biological justification while the women who live in polygamy marriages produces the males many children. Another reason is that tending to the work on the farm requires a lot of physical strengths.African women take on many husbands in order to help tend to the lands. C) Polyandrous and polygamy don’t really have any types of advantages. One disadvantage of both is it causes population problems while increasing the divorce rates. Another reason is that if both of these types of marriages were allowed at the same time then there would be a big confusion in many different social cultures. D) Polyandrous and polygamous are popular in regions of Central Africa, West Africa, East Africa, and South Africa.

Helen Oyeyemi’s The Icarus Girl: Review Essay

An exotic country, magical beings, and a girl’s journey to find friendship is just a short insight into what The Icarus Girl by Helen Oyeyemi has to offer. As I read the story I discovered that there is a much deeper meaning than what is on the surface. My goal is to inform the reader about how I interpreted the story line and why I did so. I found that this novel presented a strong insight into other cultures, great character depth and an overall engaging story. Jessamy Harrison is a one of the most intriguing characters that I have ever confronted in a book. On the first day of my read Jessamy seemed like any other 8 year old. She was one of the types that is always curious but aren’t all 8 year olds curious. Jessamy or Jess for short would always be the one to ask questions. Jess could never pronounce a word right and was any average little kid. Jess being an eight year old made the story very relatable to me because I have at least three cousins at that age. While reading the book I did question why Helen Oyeyemi decided to put Jess at such a young age. The conclusion that I came to make about that question is that she wanted to keep Jess innocent. Through the entire book Jess does not completely understand what is happening around her. She shows her innocence in many occasions throughout this book. Jess does not like it when there is not a happy ending so she likes to change books. When her mother asked why she changes books Jess replied â€Å"Well it’s not a proper story if everyone is miserable.† (62). When she was asked what she wanted to be when she grows up she said she wanted to fly. She did not want to fly planes she just wanted to fly. Jess is a young girl but she is very troubled. When ever she gets into a tight situation she just screams. She always seems to be in the principal’s office. Jess really does not have any friends until she travels to Nigeria. While taking time off in Nigeria Jess meets a girl named Titiola. Jess at the age of eight it is difficult for her pronounce Titiola’s name. Eventually Jess gives up on trying to say her name and decides to call her TillyTilly. By chance the one girl Jess makes friends with has special powers. Jess cant explain it and does not ask questions. TillyTilly is very mysterious and we do not learn much about her until later into the story. I started to question why Jess never really questions how TillyTilly can do these magical acts. If magic were going on around me I would really wonder how it is happening. Later into the story Jess has to travel make to her home in England. Jess has to settle back into the groove of school. She said her goodbyes to TillyTilly but does not want to leave without her one friend. One day after school Jess turns around and there is TillyTilly. This is where I was extremely confused in this book. This girl was just in Nigeria and then just shows up in England. Jess does not even question how or why TillyTilly an eight-year-old girl travels 4200 miles. That sounded a little peculiar to me. That scene I have come to conclude was the reason for Helen Oyeyemi making Jess eight years old. A lonely eight year old does not question where a friend came from. All Jess knows is she was lonely and wanted a friend. Jess wants to bring TillyTilly to school to show her off but Tilly says no one can know about her. The next day Jess proceeds to school and gets into even more trouble than usual. Her parents tell her she has to attend therapy. TillyTilly was very hesitant of letting Jess go. She had to make sure no one found out about her. TillyTilly said, â€Å"He won’t help you, Jessy. There’ll only be trouble.† (127). When Jess goes to meet the doctor she meets his daughter Siobhan. Jess and her have much in common and they become real friends. This is Jess’ first friend other than TillyTilly. One day Jess became very ill and was stuck in bed. TillyTilly came to visit. This visit was not any other visit. Jess learned a very sad truth. TillyTilly told Jess that she had a twin sister named Fern that died at birth. Jess becomes very upset with her parents for not telling her. When she told her parents they were just wondering how she came to find out. She declines to tell them. Her parents know of TillyTilly but they have never actual met her. This was the climax of the whole story. Jess finds out a hidden past that she had no idea of until now. By now Jess has found out that TillyTilly is not a normal eight-year-old girl. TillyTilly always tries to have Jess’ back like a sister. She always says, â€Å"We should get her† (98). She means hurt that person because they have wronged Tilly or Jess. She shattered Jess’ mom’s computer and a mirror in the bathroom. She also pushed Jess’ friend down the stairs. That was when Jess finally figured out that TillyTilly was not as nice as she thought. TillyTilly would always get Jess into trouble. Earlier in the story the broke into an amusement park and they broke into Jess’ enemy’s house. Jess also has to take the blame for all of Tilly’s faults. Jess can never get smart and learn that TillyTilly is bad news. At the end of the book the whole family travels back to Nigeria to celebrate Jessamy’s ninth birthday. While she is there she starts to lose her faith in TillyTilly. Jess does not know if she can trust her. The next day, Jess starts to learn Yoruba the native language of her family. Everyone is excited for her and her grandfather wants to speak to her in Yoruba. For some odd reason Jess told him to leave her alone. He became very upset with her and her father and grandpa started a huge fight. The next day there was a huge tragedy. Jessamy was riding in the back seat of a car with no seat belt. They had a head on collision and she was knocked out. The story ends with Jess standing up to TillyTilly and Jess finally took control. In all honesty this was not a book I would have picked up on my own and started to read. It ended up being a real page-turner and I really enjoyed it. This book had some great insight into different cultures and how the cultures interacted. This book told a great story about how a girl even a little one at that can eventually overcome trouble. That is a lesson everyone can learn from. No one likes having his or her life run by someone else. It is best to live life with a positive outlook and hope for the best.

UK Soil Types And The Farming System Environmental Sciences Essay

To understand how of import the dirt is in finding the agriculture system, this study is based in the county of Shropshire, United Kingdom and will place the chief dirt types and the agriculture system and how it plays an of import function in British agribusiness. It will besides place the patterns which contribute to being a sustainable system of production. The country ‘s sustainability will besides be reported and how it compares to the remainder of the UK. Soil types will besides be reviewed and the relationships between the dirt type and the agriculture patterns will be described. Agribusiness in Shropshire is an of import function as it is the prevailing usage of land in the chosen country. The study will oppugn why Shropshire plays an of import portion in agribusiness in the UK, how it does this, and whether its sustainability is efficient in comparing to other countries in the UK. 2 County of survey 2.1 location Shropshire is located in the West Midlands of England and boundary lines Wales to the West. The county of Shropshire is one of England ‘s most rural counties and has an estimated population of 291, 800 in 2009 and an country of 319,736 hectares. ( Shropshire Council, 2010 ) Shropshire Figure 1: Location of Shropshire ( Mole Be Gone, non dated )2.1 History of Shropshire ‘s AgribusinessSince the eighteenth century, Shropshire has chiefly been an agricultural county. The first pattern of agribusiness was in Neotholic times and of all time since, the population had been preponderantly rural. British agribusiness was promoted by consecutive authoritiess after the Second World War. After 1973, the United Kingdom became a member of the European Economic Community ( EEC ) , doing husbandmans supported and pushed to maximize their end products. Quotas were introduced by the EEC which set bounds on milk production in 1984, ensuing in 11 million liters less milk being sold in Shropshire in 1 twelvemonth. Winter Wheat became a dependable and profitable harvest de to the high outputs of the new strain of wheat. In 1988, the ‘Set-a-Side ‘ Scheme was introduces to cut down cultivable harvest excesss. This gave husbandmans a fee of up to ?200 per hectare if they took at least 20 % of their cultivable land into production. These fees were turn outing to be excessively low as husbandmans were non taking their land out of production. In the mid 80 ‘s, agricultural land value fell and husbandmans had increased force per unit area as environmental policies began such as harvest spraying holding tight ordinances as chemicals caused concern. At present times, agribusiness in Shropshire Idaho flourishing and come oning greatly. ( Cox et al, 1989 )2.1.1 Farming Facts-Agriculture in Shropshireâ€Å" 2.2 % of work force is straight employed in agribusiness † Agribusiness supports 22.5 % of the county ‘s work force † â€Å" In 2001, there was 5,330 actively farmed agricultural retentions † â€Å" Average farm size in Shropshire is 54 hectares † â€Å" It utilises 82 per cent of the county ‘s land country † â€Å" The portion of little farms has increased while medium sized farms have decreased † Beginning: Shropshire Farming Study, ( 2002 ) Figure 2: The autumn in agricultural Employment. P.7 ( Shropshire Farming Study, 2002 ) Figure 2 shows that the figure of agricultural employment has fallen from 14,295 to 12,205 doing a lessening of 2090. This could be due to there being better farming engineering so less agricultural workers are needed. Figure 3: The Change in Farm size Structure. P.6 ( Shropshire Farming Study, 2002 ) Figure 3 shows that the figure of little farms from 1981 to 2001 has rose 20 % and the figure of medium sized farms has decreased by 17 % .Location Landscape, Geology and LandscapeShropshire ‘s geology is really diverse with big sums of lead, coal and Fe. Figure 4 shows the different types of stone around Shropshire. The North of Shropshire has a more level land which is really fertile. This portion of Shropshire is more mostly populated. The North ‘s agriculture is chiefly cultivable. The South of Shropshire is a more rural country with fewer colonies. Its landscape is full of hills, rivers and forests. Farming in this portion of Shropshire is chiefly pastoral. Shropshire ‘s clime is moderate and gets really cold in the hilly countries when in the winter season. ( Wikipedia, 2010 ) Figure 5 shows the clime norms. Figure 4: Shropshire Geology ( Wikipedia, 2000 ) Figure 5: Shawbury Climate Averages ( Met Office, 2007 )2.2 Soil Type ( Main )In Shropshire, illustrations of all types of dirt can be found from sandy to loamy dirts. This is due to glaciation taking topographic point around the country. Shropshire ‘s prevailing dirt type is flaxen dirts such as the underlying ruddy sandstone stone which is found in North Shropshire. This is the most widely distributed dirt type and is chocolate-brown in coloring material and to red in dirt deepness. This type of dirt is formed from weather-beaten stones such as limestone, vitreous silica, granite, and shale. In Shropshire it is chiefly harsh sand. This can ensue in murphies holding a hapless skin coating impacting the agriculture system. It is besides prone to over-draining and summer desiccation, and in moisture weather it can hold jobs retaining wet and foods. ( EAIS, 2010 ) This dirt is of course acidic and needs regular liming. It is besides low in potassium hydroxide and Mg. ( Jefferson, 2010 ) Manganese lacks are incurring here. This can impact the agriculture system as it caused slow works growing so husbandmans will be less productive. Littorals are prone to weave eroding, H2O eroding and leaching. Its harvest suitableness is chiefly for barley, murphies and malting. Coarse sand has a atom size of 0.2-2mm and has a really farinaceous texture. It can be similar to builder ‘s sand. The single atoms can be seen easy. ( Jefferson, 2010b ) With flaxen dirts the malleability is low and is non cohesive doing low stableness. Due to seedbeds being loose, deep boring can happen doing unneeded works loss. Excessive cultivations under wet conditions can do dirt sums to prostration. This consequences in a compacted bed when dried out doing harvest growing difficult. Due to there being quite a batch of infinite between atoms, the sandy dirts can be really free run outing intending it does non keep H2O and indispensable foods good. As the dirt moves down the H2O table easy it can make a high H2O tabular array doing a groundwater drainage job due to the dirt being permeable. The flaxen dirts dry out really easy so a batch of irrigation is needed. The alimentary position of sandy dirts is of course low particularly in potassium hydroxide. Due to the dirt being chiefly acidic it has a low PH. The organic affair of sand dirts is of course low besides of approximately 1-2 % . The organic affair is of import to keep as iy aid adhere dirt atoms together to keep foods. It besides helps dirt to keep wet, which can be a job for sandy dirts. The organic affair can assist supply birthrate to the dirt as a beginning of N assisting the agriculture system. Dirts with better organic affairs and alimentary positions will bring forth a better harvest. ( Jefferson, 2010c )Farming Enterprisesâ€Å" Sustainable agribusiness can be defined as the production of alimentary and wholesome nutrient with well-being and wellness of future coevalss in head due respect to environmental impact preservation of agricultural resources † ( Jefferson, 2010 ) The current agricultural policy can specify sustainable agribusiness through its point of policy including: â€Å" Guaranting the go oning handiness to the consumer of equal supplies of, wholesome, varied and moderately priced nutrient, produced within conformity with by and large accepted environmental and societal criterions † â€Å" Keeping a flexible and competitory industry which contributes to an economically feasible rural society † â€Å" Ensuring effectual protection of the environment and prudent usage of natural resources † â€Å" Conserving and heightening the landscape, wildlife, cultural and archeological value of agricultural land † â€Å" Respecting a high degree of animate being public assistance † Beginning: ECIFM ( non dated ) A agriculture system is a system made up of inputs, procedures and end products. It is the different types of agriculture and methods used in agribusiness such as cultivable or grassland farming which can include dairy agriculture or the raising of farm animal. Due to the dirt type being sandy the harvests that are grown in the country are barley, murphies and malting. The 2001 nose count informations showed that 5 % of the national dairy herd are in Shropshire and that Shropshire grows 5 % of all murphies grown in England doing it a chief agriculture system for the country. ( Shropshire Farming Study. P5. 2002 ) Crop rotary motion is used to assist the sustainability of the agriculture. â€Å" A well-arranged rotary motion enables the work of the farm to be good distributed over the twelvemonth, and provides steady employment for a whole-time staff. † ( White, 1937 ) The advantages of harvest rotary motions: aˆ? Provides care of good dirt construction and organic affair aˆ? Crontrols certain dirt and straw residue borne plague and diseases aˆ? Ensures the agriculture pattern is sustainable aˆ? Gives the best profitable border Beginning: Jefferson ( 2010 )ArableWinter wheatShropshire grows root and combinational harvests with a high value giving. An illustration of this is Winter Wheat which is traditionally grown after a interruption harvest foremost. 2nd Winter Wheat is at hazard of trash borne dieseases. An illustration of a root disease found is Take-all. This is common in 2nd wheats as the fungus builds up in the roots and dirt. Compaction of harvests which can diminish the growing of root will increase wil increase the degrees of Take-All. This causes high hazard of output loss. ( Jefferson, 2010 ) â€Å" Take-all is arguably the most of import disease of wheat in the UK, partially because it is non easy controlled chemically or by varietal opposition and relies on rotational schemes for control. † ( Cereal Disease Encyclopaedia, non dated ) By obtaining a good harvest rotary motion the disease can normally be treated and prevented. Having 50 % of more land in cereals with a twelvemonth interruption on occasion can diminish the jobs and may handle it. ( Jefferson, 2010 )Oil Seed RapeOil Seed Rape is a valuable hard currency harvest and has helped to replace sugar Beta vulgaris in Shropshire which two old ages ago was dropped due to the mill shutting. Oil Seed Rape that has been grown intensively is under menace from club root. Club Root causes roots to swell and hence harvests will non turn successfully. To obtain sustainability Oil Seed Rape should non be grown more than on in four or five old ages. As the harvest has good competitory ability it therefore enables it ‘s agriculturists to utilize less weedkiller in the rotary motion. An illustration of harvest rotary motion for sustainable production is Winter Oil Seed Rape, Winter Wheat, Winter Oats, Winter Beans, Winter Wheat and Winter Barley.PotatosPotatos are valuable in Shropshire and are grown mostly. They are nevertheless at hazard of dirt borne plagues such as Potato Cyst Nematode. This is the most of import plague of murphies in the UK. This can do weak workss with dull looking leaf with inclination to wilt. It besides causes little cysts attached to roots. ( Potato Council, 2008 ) A good harvest rotary motion is used to supply a sustainable harvest. An illustration of good pattern that is used is Potatoes, Winter Wheat, Winter Barley, Sugar Beet, Spring Wheat and Winter Barley. Some husbandmans use the bare minimal good practicing which is 1 in 4. E.g. Sugar Beet, Winter Wheat, Potatoes and Winter Wheat.GrasslandIn Shropshire, there are big sum of dairy agriculture and is good known for its good beginning of milk production as they have a batch of pastoral agriculture. This is why there are many dairy mills located around Shropshire. ( Shropshire Farming Study. P5. 2002 ) Dairy farming relies on high quality grass or other eatages such as corn to guarantee of the best quality milk. An illustration of high quality grass is Perennial Rye Grass. This is the chief type of grass used. Farmer mix this with trefoil which fixes N significance they have to utilize less N in farming assisting the sustainability of the agriculture and assisting the environment. This is an illustration of renewing agriculture. Within corn there are beginnings of energy which is utilised by organic manure therefore doing the farm animal direction of import besides to assist obtain good grass quality. ( Jefferson, 2010 ) To assist maintain the grassland sustainable, when the grass has dried up some husbandmans grow other harvests such as adding a wheat to the land which can4.0 Environmental Practices

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