Beware the Cat Essay

In Beware the Cat, William Baldwin’s immediate target is Catholicism. This book is one of many anti-catholic satires that appeared during Edward VI’s Protestant reign. In this story Baldwin goes beyond putting down the practices of the Church of Rome and exposes some of its foundational problems. He portrays, satirically, how knowledge is obtained and passed down in the church. At this time the culture was going through a transition from a largely oral and visual way of communicating to one based on text. The whole idea of Protestantism is about having a personal relationship with God and not relying on someone else to read the Bible for you. But what about those that didn’t have access to a Bible? Again, people were left to rely on the church and the traditions that were being passed down. The trouble with traditions is that after so long, one can’t be certain of their origin. We see a debate being set up in the story about where true authoritative knowledge comes from. From the Protestant view, the trouble with that is these traditions and stories can and do mislead the devout christian. In the beginning of the book in The Argument, Streamer disagrees with the author on what makes up knowledge; whether it is gained by experiences or authors (the reading of textual evidence). In Streamer’s Oration we see that he gets off track a number of times as he tries to begin his story. We find him wandering from gate to gate, talking about about how the gates got their names. It is evident that he doesn’t quite know where or how to begin his story. The use of the word gate is exceptional because Streamer is truly searching for an entrance for his story line. Because he can’t seem to find it, it foreshadows the fact that Streamer’s knowledge, as we come to find out, really has no origin of its own. Baldwin uses another play on words with the word Criplegate and cripple, foreshadowing again that Streamer’s kind of reasoning has crippled him. We read that Streamer’s experience with cats is based on other people’s stories about cats, and that their stories are based on yet another series of stories. Here Baldwin is demonstrating how Catholicism has passed down tories and oral traditions over time and we never really know the origin of these stories and traditions well enough to prove them. It also shows the reader that these kinds of stories simply lead to more stories and it ends up being uncontrolled and unmonitored. He then questions if having this experience based knowledge is truly having knowledge at all. Baldwin is building the story up in a rational way, for example, suggesting that the cats use human transportation and by suggesting that they revenge the death of Grimalkin, forming a close knit society, again alluding to the Catholic church. What we read about in Part I sort of comes to life in Part III as the animals take over the narration of the story. They begin to tell tales of their vast experiences with humans. They show us a world where humans are an easy mark (where the wife believes that the cat is old woman’s daughter) and preposterous (where the sound of Mouse-Slayer’s feet brings panic to a town). In Part I we read about preying animals and Part III is then dealing with preying humans. The old woman takes advantage of the young men, then they take advantage of others in order to keep paying the old woman, in order to spend time with the girls. This vicious cycle is representative of the Roman Church because she (the old woman), like the church, prospers from deceiving people and enticing them to do harmful acts in order to get her money. She is also making the young men psychologically dependent on her in a way, again, not unlike the church. In this work we’re able to see what happens in a religion and in a culture where written text plays a minor role and also when oral communication (traditions, passed down stories) is left uncontrolled by any textual authority.

Inventory System: Executive Summary Essay

Abstract There is increase in popularity and use of the Internet for research purposes by schools and students. Popular among the web-based information resource is the Wikipedia. Wikipedia is a free encyclopedia that uses wiki software for the creation and editing of contents on its site. The use of Wikipedia for research has increased over the years. It is the world’s acclaimed 6th most visited website (â€Å"Most Popular Websites on the Internet†, 2012) . This status is not without its own challenges. The main one being that of credibility. An online encyclopedia that allows anyone to edit its entries to some, limits its validity. This paper attempts to look at some of the reasons its credibility is in question. Wikipedia is a free online encyclopedia. It uses a collaborative software known as wiki to facilitate the creation, development, and editing of entries by contributors who do so without pay. It is available in 285 languages with about 100,000 regularly active contributors. Once connected to the web users can write and edit articles on the site. Wikipedia has gained much popularity particularly because of its rich information and full accessibility of data. However, owing to its open-source management style that allows anybody to change contents, there has been a growing concern about Wikipedia’s credibility as a source of information for academic work. Wikipedia was founded as an offshoot of Nupedia, a now-abandoned project to produce a free encyclopedia. Nupedia had an elaborate system of peer review and required highly qualified contributors but the writing of articles was slow. During 2000, Jimmy Wales, founder of Nupedia, and Larry Sanger whom Wales had employed to work on the project, discussed ways of supplementing Nupedia with a more open, complementary project. Multiple sources suggested that a wiki might allow members of the public to contribute material, and Nupedia’s first wiki went online on January 10, 2001. There was considerable resistance by Nupedia’s editors and reviewers to the idea of associating Nupedia with a website in the wiki format, so Sanger coined the name Wikipedia, which is a portmanteau of wiki (a type of collaborative website, from the Hawaiian word wiki, meaning â€Å"quick†) and encyclopedia. Wikipedia was launched on its own domain, wikipedia.com, on January 15. In May 2001, a wave of non-English Wikipedia was launched. (Wikipedia, 2012). Supporters of Wikipedia believe contents are verified for accuracy, and monitored for consistency and currency. Nevertheless, at the rate contents are created and edited – about three million in 2008 and presently 21 million – accuracy cannot match the speed! Voss (2011) stated â€Å"Edit history and user contributions are auxiliary clues (to the quality of the site) but very time-consuming to review† (p.10). Even the founder of Wikipedia have expressed concern over the existence of such inconsistency and inaccuracy of contents. † Various experts (including founder Jimmy Wales and Jonathan Zittrain, Oxford University) have expressed concern over possible (intentional or unintentional) bias† (â€Å"Wikipedia†, 2012). Others contend that because Wikipedia is a huge information resource, which allows open inspection and arguments in which changes are debated, it is a useful source for scholastic work (Smooth & Crovitz, 2011). Many others argue that the errors found on Wikipedia are not uncommon to errors found in other encyclopedias. For example, In December 2005, the scientific journal Nature published the results of a study comparing the accuracy of Wikipedia and the printed Encyclopedia Britannica. The researchers found that the number of â€Å"factual errors, omissions or misleading statements† in each references work was not so different – Wikipedia contained 162, and Britannica had 123. This was not generally accepted as the makers of Britannica have since called on Nature to retract the study, which it claims is completely without merit† (Woods & Thoeny, 2007, pp. 90-92). A major issue with Wikipedia is that of source authenticity. Since people are free to create contents from sources at their disposal, some articles may contain unverified and inconsistent information. Sources are not properly cited. Most materials do not meet the criteria of a good source among which are currency of information, impartiality, and evaluating credentials of authors.. This explains why contents are continually edited. Ray and Graeff (2008), historical scholarship is also characterized by possessive individualism. Good professional practice requires that ideas and words are attributed to specific historians. A historic work without owners and with multiple authors like Wikipedia, is thus almost unimaginable in our professional culture. Using Wikipedia saves time owing to its versatility and large information base, some have argued. This is because contributors are more interested in flooding the site with information than painstakingly digging deep to ensure quality of contents. Topics in Wikipedia are sometimes treated superficially with the aim of transferring a general and simple understanding across to users. When such an article is cited in a professional research work, it automatically renders the work incomplete, inaccurate, and misleading. Readers do not need to be scholars to read between the lines on Wikipedia. Content is not exactly expert knowledge, it is common knowledge. For example, an article on nuclear reactor will not be anything different from what most people know about nuclear reactors and what the authors think common people can understand (Keen, 2008). One of the five pillars, which guide Wikipedia’s operations is that Wikipedia is free content that anyone can edit, use, modify or distribute. The idea of inviting readers to serve as authors or editors poses a problem. Not all users are thorough in providing accurate information, and they are others who deliberately mutilate particular articles or post misleading statements. Sometimes, information is posted or edited by people who have little or inadequate knowledge of the subject, and as the adage goes, little knowledge is dangerous. Wikipedia has no way in evaluating the credentials of content authors as it is free for all. Even though these content are edited, one can never be sure how many errors have been corrected. According to Voss (2004), as more people read about an article, the more errors are emended some might say. However, one can hardly be sure how many qualified people have read an article and how many errors remain. Edit wars sometimes occur in Wikipedia. Edit wars occur when two contributors (or group of contributors) repeatedly edit each other’s work based on a particular bias. Using such a content makes the research work the ‘casualty’ of such ‘wars’. In early 2004, Wikipedia set up an Arbitration Committee to settle such disputes (Woods & Thoeny, 2007). Conclusion Wikipedia describes itself as, â€Å"the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit.† As discussed earlier, the site runs on â€Å"democratic† principles allowing anyone to contribute, create, edit, and distribute contents freely. Free and open access has outlined above, have serious consequences as it exposes texts to vandalism and inconsistency. Wikipedia’s contents are edited based on individuals perceived opinion or knowledge, unlike other online resources like the Oxford English Dictionary for example, which was developed by a carefully selected team of experienced professionals. By compromising traditional concept of authorship, Wikipedia affects associated issues of authority, originality, and value. When a source’s authority and accuracy is in question then the credibility is not guaranteed. Frankly, a site like Wikipedia that allows anyone to add, change, or remove information cannot be credible. References Spatt, B. (2011). Writing from sources (8th ed.). Bedford St. Martin Publishing. Ray, A. and Graeff, E. (2008). Reviewing the Author-Function in the Age of Wikipedia Woods, D. and Thoeny, P. (2007). Wikis for Dummies. Hoboken, NJ, Wiley Publishing, Inc. Smoot W.S. and Crovitz D. (2009). Wikipedia: Friend, Not Foe,† in English Journal 98.3 Keen, A. (2008). The Cult of the Amateur: How Today’s Internet is Killing Our Culture. Bantam Dell Publishing Group Voss J. (2004). Measuring Wikipedia http:/www.wikipedia.org http:/www.mostpopularwebsites.net

Gasoline crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Gasoline crisis - Essay Example This is regardless of whether there is a true shortage, or if it’s just panic buying that takes hold. Don’t be surprised to see gasoline rationing being put in place as soon as this occurs, whether it is imposed by the retailers, or by the government. Don’t be surprised to see long lines at the pumps, a la 1972.† (The Coming Gasoline Crisis). This paper will deal with the gasoline crisis and it will compare the cost of production of Gasoline to Ethanol in order to suggest a solution to this problem. The conclusion will sum up the major points of the paper. There is no question that oil, or petroleum or gasoline, is a precious commodity that built a lucrative industry. The entire trade revolving around oil – from exploration through extraction and processing to retail – is definitely one of the biggest businesses if not the biggest. Oil, as we know it, is a rather young industry. It is, however, all-encompassing. Not only do we use it for transportation but we use it to basically run the whole economy. Our present industries are fueled by oil and it is this function that saw the huge leap in the age of Industrial Revolution and had the world careening towards technological breakthroughs at unprecedented rates. History can tell us that much. To understand how oil came to dominate so much of our lives, it may be best to look as far back to history’s memory of it. The Earth processed for us the fossil fuels that we convert to oil, the result of photosynthesis of perhaps 300 to 350 million years ago, when plant and animal material were buried deep in the Earth’s crust. The petroleum industry kicked off when tar, distilled from petroleum, was used to pave the streets of Baghdad in the 8th century. Then in the 9th century, naphtha was produced from the oil field of Baku, Azerbaijan and Muhammad ibn ZakarÄ «ya RÄ zi produced kerosene from distilled petroleum for use on lamps (Bilkadi,

GEOGRAPHIES OF SUSTAINABLE FOOD Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

GEOGRAPHIES OF SUSTAINABLE FOOD - Essay Example Sustainable food system refers to a mutual set of sustainable food production processing, distribution, consumption and waste management with an aim of enhancing environmental economics and global social health. It is for this reason that farmers and consumers often partner in developing food sustainability projects in order to achieve a stable family farm base for a nutritious, adequate and affordable diet, create food and agricultural policies to promote food sustainability base (Robinson 113). Challenges confronting global food system The world’s rapid population increase calls for more demand of food amid changing consumption patterns and food scarcity. This is one of the biggest challenges facing the world’s global food system. The current century has experienced stunning statistics on population increase expectations with the population expected to rise by 1.4 billion people. This rise in population calls for close to 50 % increase in demand of food. It is shockin g to note that with this rise in population consumption patterns continue to get complicated. The cost of production has gone up as well leading to production of fewer quantities than before. In this regard, the global food system must be managed sustainably in the next decade in order to increase food production level to cater for the increase. To meet this demand the use of technology has become inevitable. However, the use of technology has received a worldwide uproar on safety matters owing to the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides in production. But, can universal food security be assured without the use of fertilizers and pesticides? Sustainable production of secure food can be achieved by reducing distortions in configuration of the global food market and the environment. Although many countries in developed and developing countries have large junks of unused land resources, they do not grow enough food to feed their populations. Such land resource does not only rema in untapped but also ecologically vulnerable. This is a big challenge to food sustainability. In addition to this, insolvency of the earth’s natural resources through consumption of resources beyond the earth’s production capability has led to complete depletion of the earth’s scarce resources. The other challenge affecting global food system is inequitable distribution of production resources, lack of employment or underemployment. This has rendered a greater percentage of population unable to feed their families and dependants. It has also challenged food production due to the inability to till land for production of food leading to over-reliance of foreign funding and relief food (Wilson 2). If more people were to be funded in the agricultural sector, it would mean more food availability and money to buy food. This is because agriculture is a solution to food and employment challenges. Therefore, countries with a culture of importing food from other countries tend to encourage high rate of unemployment since a culture of importing discourages agricultural activities. This is because importation marginalizes people forcing them to destroy resource base to sustain their livelihood. It is vital for agricultural resource base to be maintained because it contributes to good husbandry and sustainable management while easing rural-urban migration and in combating poverty. Measures of a

I need you to decide a topic, then I need to talk with my module tutor Coursework

I need you to decide a topic, then I need to talk with my module tutor to change it - Coursework Example Online retailing started in middle and late of 1990s. From the start of this it’s created the rivalry between off line and on line selling. This rivalry is getting fierce every day. Only shopping malls are viewing huge rate of shoppers in these days but still internet is dominating it. It is now a nightmare for traditional stores that e-marketing one day will take their entire market share. But some experts saying that footfall in shopping centres are increasing with the same pace like internet shopping so why not e-shopping and traditional shopping cannot stay together? The experiences online buyer having when they buy products from online sellers from their well programmed and hi-tech websites are extraordinary. Customers really enjoy the shopping with transparent discounts and product details. Online shopping saved the customers from fraud practices and unfair prices of various traditional shopping centres. In retailer website total product description along with specificat ions are available. Not only one product but several competitors product with the benefit of price and quality comparison page is available. (TESCO PLC Case Study, 2011) Business Model: Here we are discussing about TESCO’s customer relationship management. Internet is a great factor to change TESCO’s business model. ... Demand is also shifting from quantity to quality. Proper planning and management decision send TESCO towards its goal. TESCO’s employees, customers are its top priorities. Presence of TESCO in several locations of this world with high value assets can be seen and it has a bright future with tremendous growth opportunity. Chairperson of TESCO believes in diversity in workforce which gives us the reason behind TESCO’s equal number of male and female employee ratio. The Chairman once said that, â€Å"In the last four years (since 2007), the number of female directors at Tesco has increased by 42, an increase of nearly  70%, and we are working hard to help women succeed in senior roles more generally throughout the company. There are currently three women on our PLC Board (19%) and women in senior management positions account for 29% across the Group as a whole† (Tesco PLC, 2013). TESCO adopted modern technologies to compete in this competitive market. In future as uses of internet increasing TESCO is using this technology to give its customer the outmost comfort and reliability. This study will find out the impact of technology in business development of TESCO. Information Technology and several communication technology helps TECO to gain advantageous over its rivals. For customer TESCO started its online portal. By this study it will be clear that for business development statistics is important or not? (Suddath, 2013) Business Plan: Several Modern day technology TESCO is using. Three major functions of using information technology and communication technology are followings. Because of online technology TESCO got a new market. Information and communication technology

Writing style Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Writing style - Assignment Example In this light, the paper is an assessment of my academic writing style, weaknesses and strengths and smart developmental objectives guiding my writing. The undoubted fact that everybody can write but not to academic requirements has never escaped my mind in writing. As a result, I have often made various attempts aimed at improving my style of writing not only in the educational context, but also in the external classroom environment (Lombardino, 2012, pp. 48). Apparently, I can say with confidence that my writing style has greatly improved since elementary school. I have met with different audiences that define my situation and purpose of writing. For instance, I have written different poems and stories regarding life issues. Arguably, my style of writing contains different literary elements in line with writing elements. I have a consistent use of grammar and elicit application of various writing considerations. Most importantly, I have a clear regulation of style, tone, voice, and diction of my writings. I have various strengths with regards to writing. Evidently, this not only relates to my sentence formulation initiatives but also referencing requirements, which have become part of writing. Certainly, MLA, APA, Harvard, Chicago and Oxford writing styles are no longer my writing nightmares but a clear source of my strengths. I have sufficient information on writing techniques as well as requirements from a global perspective. With attention to word choice, I have the ability to weed out unnecessary words in my writings by using precise wordings. I have great touch of sentence fluency ensuring that phrases and wordings do not lead to monotony or reflect parallel ideas. From this perspective, a clear set of strengths that play a vital role in shaping my writing styles. Nevertheless, I have various weaknesses that in many instances have attempted to derail my ability to reach perfection. Looser oral words in many instances affect

Response to the scenarios Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Response to the scenarios - Case Study Example When the administrator asks what I did with John, I would reach for my notes and explain all the details of the counselling session. In the second scenario involving Cedric, I feel that the counsellor is becoming overly involved in his life and this is unethical. This is owing to the fact that he never turns him away and this means they spend too much time together outside what is recommended by the school as well as the code of ethics governing the profession. A dual relationship is developing between the counsellor and Cedric. This can be observed from the fact that the counsellor has started taking manifold roles in his life (Nickel, 2004). I would have taken a different approach if I were Cedric’s counsellor as I could have tried to get a reliable family member to support Cedric by attending his matches and in performing other roles that are fit for family members. There are various codes of ethics that should be adhered to including the ASCA Code of Ethics, the APA ethics code and the ACA Code of

Environmental Studies Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Environmental Studies - Assignment Example c) Ice and gas are two different elements with different qualities. It so happens that their age would also differ depending on their qualities. d) 2.53 years younger. e) It is smallest at the bottom of the core. This is because it is exposed to elements. STEP 2 b) Very reliable c) 160.73 and 28.1 years ago respectively STEP 3 10. Carbon dioxide and temperature are directly proportional 11. CH4 is more closely correlated with temperature. This is because it is lighter than CO2. 12. They are inversely proportional 13. 199.81 and 594.65 14. CO2 = 289.76 – 189.23, which is 100.53. CH4 = 273.4 – 197.37, which is 76.03 A combination of effects of the Antarctic, Southern Ocean, processes in the tropics and in the Norther Hemisphere, where the primary sources of methane are located, had a big influence. The close correlation between CO2 concentration and Antarctic temperature indicates that the Southern Ocean played an important role in causing the CO2 increase. However, the similarity of changes in CO2 concentration and variations of atmospheric methane concentration suggests that processes in the tropics and in the Northern Hemisphere, where the main sources for methane are located, also had substantial effects on atmospheric CO2 concentrations. Part 3: Hypothesis Activity The time period with extremely elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, combined with the rings has a big influence on the patterns of increasingly hot summers and increasing torrential storms in the two cities.

Abercrombie & Fitch Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Abercrombie & Fitch - Essay Example â€Å"Abercrombie & Fitch aggressively positioned itself as a â€Å"life style† brand - a brand that embodies the values and appeal of a desirable way of living† (Abercrombie & Fitch, wikipedia, 2006). A&F’s customers integrate all their experiences of observing, using, or consum ¬ing a product with everything they hear and read about it. Information about A&F’s prod ¬ucts comes from a variety of sources and cues, including advertising, publicity, sales personnel, and packaging. The sum of impressions created A&F’s brand image, a single—but often complex—mental image about both the product itself and the company that markets it. In order to appeal to consumers and create a unique brand image, A&F introduced sex-based ad approach. This approach popularized naked body images and nudism as the main concepts of A&F selling strategy. In general, this was a very effective marketing strategy which has helped A&F to appeal to emotions of consumers using unique mixture of clothes, fashion and sex. The sex-based ad approach had a great influence on the society as it was designed to add psychological value to the brand. This approach was introduced becau se frequently purchased products generally require heavy advertising support to remind consumers about the product. Unfortunately, A & F sex-based ad approach prompted boycott around the country. The main problem was caused by the fact that the core of potential consumers includes teens, and sex-based approach is undesirable for this age group. Some critics suppose that ''There's no question that Abercrombie appeals to teen-agers because it's the whole forbidden fruit syndrome" (Khudairi, 1999). A&F represents a promise about a particular product, and sex image was a sort of quality certification. The sex-based approach heated negative publicity because it popularized A&F brand as a sexual one aiming to attract teenage audience by sex messages. Critics state that: "These images and messages are contrary to the best interest of American teens" (Parvas, 2003). A&F managers explain that sexual messages and specific brand image enable customers to better organize their marketplace experience by helping them seek out and zero in on particular products. As noted earlier, the company exerts complete control over the content of its advertising and pays for message placement in the media. However, the media typically receive many more press releases and other public relations materials than they can use. Negative brand image is explained by the fact that the message of sex ads is encoded, conveyed via the appropriate channels, and decoded by the customer-receiver differently. The rationale of sex-based ad approach means that teens are motivated and persuaded to buy the products popularizing "forbidden fruits". Obviously, this approach does not take cultural and moral considerations into account. The advertising appeal is the communications approach that relates to the motives of the target audience. "Hodel said, then A&F will still have to face the outrage of Americans who have had enough of "companies that think sexploitation at a time of rising rates of sexually transmitted diseases is OK if it separates people from their money" (Schneeberge, 2003). As a result of this strategy, A&F has lost its brand equity, which represents the added value that accrues to a product as a result of the company's prior investments in the marketing of the brand. This looses has had a great impact on A&F profitability because brand equity is thought of as an asset representing the value created by the relationship between the brand and customers over time. To return positive image of the company and its brand, A&F should change its ad approach implementing new advertising campaign. It was a

Global warming and automobile industry Term Paper

Global warming and automobile industry - Term Paper Example It was determined that motor vehicles contributed a very small amount of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere. Hence it was correct to conclude that global warming caused by motor vehicles is a myth. In recent times and modern day world, there has been a lot of concerns on the environment. It is true that the environment is critical for mankind to survive because environment provides most of the resources needed for daily activities. A region’s environment is, to a large extent, determined by the climatic conditions. Climatic conditions are purely determined by nature. There has been claims that mankind is contributing to changes in climatic conditions. Human activities are said to upset nature’s critical balance as far as carbon dioxide emissions are concerned. A lot of blame for global warming has been directed on the transportation sector of the economy. Is it really true that global warming exists because of motor vehicle emissions? The reason for this research is the belief that the automobile industry is the global suspect for global warming. According to Automotive News, this is not true. Research done by climate scientists indicates that global warming was even experienced centuries ago (Brown, 2007) . Evidence has been produced to show that the global temperatures were increasing even before the era of motor vehicle travel. This allegation has created discomfort among players in the automobile industry with some viewing it as a way to control the motor vehicle industry. In an interview with Automotive News, Bob Lutz, the vice chairman of General Motors argues that motor vehicle emissions account for a very tiny percentage of the total green-house gases emissions (Brown, 2007). According to the article automobile manufacturers read a sinister motive from the government. The manufacturers feel that the government wants to blame their industry for global warming so that they can introduce regulations on the s ame and in effect

Analysis - I have written my article about cloning Essay Example for Free

Analysis I have written my article about cloning Essay I have written my article about cloning. The opinions I have used in it are a highly exaggerated depiction of extremist views. I have shown, how ridiculous and outrageous these views are by overstressing every point and going to immense extremities, such as the master race and the worker race, these are so severe that the worker race would even be kept underground. I used pictures in my writing to make it easier for people to visualize the images that I am talking about because then they will be able to understand my ideas better. I have inserted a picture of Britney Spears, as she is a well-known, famous star, that many people like, or would like to be. The reason that I have included this particular image is because many people long to live like these stars and by using the image I am implying that if we introduce cloning and the so- called master race then everyone will be able to live like this. Many people believe that she is a perfect human being and this is the idea that I am trying to convey with the master race, that after using the system for a couple of decades, what will be left will be a, supposedly, perfect human race, which for many people the picture used illustrates perfectly. If I had room for more pictures on the page I would have used a picture of another stereotypical perfect male star to appeal to both sexes, but I wanted the article to look professional so I tried to keep the number of pictures too minimum. The picture will also encourage people to read the article because if they have turned over the page and they then see the picture of Britney. If they are an admirer, then they will most probably turn back to the start of the article to read it the whole way through. The reason that the picture has been repeated three times is because it shows what could be achieved by cloning, not just one, allegedly, flawless human being but as many as wanted, a whole race of them even. The repetition shows the main process of cloning as well, making an identical copy of something/ someone. I also use pictures of Morlocks from the film of the book The Time Machine by H. G Wells. The book and the films are set far into the future, this is also a little indication of the fact that this is could really happen in the future. These creatures were humans but as time has passed they started to live underground as they were using all of the earths resources, that is the main reason that I am using this picture to show what the, as I have called them in my article, worker race, would be like as my extreme plan is to have them working day and night, underground to provide the master race with everything they need. The reason that I have used such a ghastly picture is because I want it shock the reader, it will also draw attention to the article. The workers wont be good-looking, as they will never of had sunlight on their skin and never of had any of the beauty products and treatments we take for granted so the picture is an accurate representation of what they would actually look like. The contrast between the purportedly picture perfect Britney and the hideous, unsightly Morlock should make people start to think that they would much rather be with the master race rather than the workers. There is also the idea that this is what the human race has become as it has evolved and that cloning could save us from this atrocious fate and instead bring us to the attractive future that the master race offers. Two of the pictures are in black and white, these are the pictures of the worker race, these are in black and white to give a feel of darkness to the pictures and to imply that this is the sort of life they would have, never seeing any colour, whereas the picture of the master race is brightly coloured and shows an image that people feel drawn to look at unlike the pictures of the Morlocks and the ants. This means that the contrast is even more noticeable between the two sets of pictures. I have used the layout of having the pictures cutting into the writing, so that you cant help looking at the pictures while you are reading, helping the readers to picture the ideas I am putting into their heads, I have also put captions underneath the pictures to show what the pictures are of and how they relate to the topic of the article. The pictures are large and stand out from the page causing them to catch the readers eye whilst they are flicking through the paper, meaning that they read the article. I have used a strong title, Hitler Was Right, to fascinate the reader even before they have started reading the article. Including a strong political figure compels people to read the article as it looks like it could be an article of great importance. They will straight away wonder what the article could be about, causing suspense that will keep them reading until the very end of the article when they will realize that I was simply, apparently, agreeing with one very simple part of Hitlers range of ideas, that the world would be a better place if just one master race was to occupy it. This title has been written in Times New Roman and is in font size 36, I have done this so that the title stands out from all of the other things on the page. People wont be able to help noticing the title and this will generate interest in the article. The main body of the writing is in a quite large text; this is because I want it to stand out and not to be too small. The effect of this is that the article will not look as much of a difficult task to read, encouraging more people to read it. The prologue to the article is written in bold writing slightly bigger than in the main body of the text, this is so that this will stand out just a little bit more and people will read it before they read the main article. The writing in this prologue is encouraging people to read the main article. By ending it with a question the question is: why not? It makes people read on, as they want to find out the answer to this question, Straight away, in this first prologue I have shown my opinion, that I agree with cloning and all of the brilliant ideas that come along with it, this means that people will be under no disillusion while they are reading the article.

Functional Analysis of Behaviour Clinical and Ethical Issues

Functional Analysis of Behaviour Clinical and Ethical Issues Discuss the clinical and ethical issues involved in  conducting a Functional Analysis of behaviour when  working with a client with a learning disability. What  evidence is there that this is an effective approach? Word count: Contents (Jump to) Introduction A Holistic approach The case for employing the functional analysis of behaviour approach Difficulties with functional analysis Functional analysis in everyday clinical practice Case study using functional analysis Ethical issues relating to the functional analysis approach Combining different approaches Conclusion References Faced with challenging behaviours shown by people with learning disabilities, the psychologist must decide which analytical approach – behavioural, biophysical, ecological or psychodynamic – will best facilitate appropriate therapeutic interventions. A number of wide-ranging reviews of the available literature, together with meta-analyses of this area, indicate that interventions based on the behavioural approach offers the most effective way forward. The behavioural approach advocates that all behaviour is learned, and that behaviours are functions of the interplay between an individual and various factors within his/her environment In his meta-analysis, Didden (1996) concludes that there is â€Å"a convincing level of change in terms of reducing challenging behaviour through systematically applied behavioural approaches†, and that behavioural approaches are much more effective than, for example, medication. The behavioural approaches used to tackle difficult/challenging behaviour fall into three main categories: [RZ1]â€Å"Differential Reinforcement† involves what is essentially a reward system, whereby an individual is encouraged to exhibit appropriate, rather than challenging, behaviour. â€Å"Gentle Teaching† aims to minimise or eliminate problematic behaviour by creating an environment in which bonding, ; interdependence and mutual respect are paramount, thereby eliminating the need for challenging behaviour. The teaching of functionally equivalent responses involves firstly a â€Å"Functional Analysis† of a particular problematic behaviour, followed by the teaching of more appropriate behaviour, which serves the same function. When attempting to decide on an appropriate intervention strategy, there is a body of evidence to suggest that the last of these three approaches – the functional analysis – can, if conducted properly, provide an invaluable pointer as to what type of therapeutic intervention might be appropriate. This essay will explore the clinical advantages and disadvantages of using a functional analysis of behaviour when working with clients with learning disabilities, examining the research in this area (much of which indicates that this is a generally successful approach) and look at the ethical issues arising from this particular psychological approach. Definition: Learning Disability A report from the British Psychological Society (BPS 2004), on Clinical Practice Guidelines for interventions for people with learning disabilities and Severely Challenging Behaviour â€Å"states that  ,if an individual is to be reasonably regarded as having a â€Å"learning disability the individual’s intellectual and adaptive/social functions must both be significantly impaired; and the condition must have existed before the onset of adulthood. An extremely broad-ranging group of learning-disabled individuals fall within these parameters. Definition: Challenging Behaviour The following definition by Emerson et al (1988) is widely regarded as a sound working definition: â€Å"Severely challenging behaviour refers to behaviour of such an intensity, frequency or duration that the physical safety of the person or others is likely to be placed in serious jeopardy, or behaviour which is likely to seriously limit or delay access to and use of ordinary community facilities.† The nature of the â€Å"challenging behaviour† (the causes and functions of which can be many and diverse) itself has been described as â€Å"behaviour which: places the individual or others in physical danger; results in destruction of their immediate environment; causes at least an hour’s disruption; or behaviour which limits or delays access to ordinary community facilities† (Scottish Office, 1998). Challenging behaviours may involve verbal or physical aggression, self-harm behaviour, and other non-injurious (but nevertheless undesirable) behaviours. Challenging behaviour is generally understood to be triggered by the interaction between variables within individuals themselves (mood, health, etc.) and variables within their social and physical environment.[RZ2] Functional analysis are comprises various methods, all with the aim of establishing the link between antecedents, behaviour and its consequences. (Kazdin,1994) More specifically, functional analysis are is a tools to reveal reinforcing conditions[RZ4], I am translating from Norwegian)..established operations and triggers for problem behaviour. (Vold, 2005) This information is then used for customizing interventions and treatment for the person in question. This definition includes all systematic methods that examine the root cause(s) of a certain behaviour. These methods include interviews and standardised tools like MAS (Durand, 1990) and FAI (O’Neill et al, 1997), different methods of observations of the person in his/hers environment, likce â€Å"scatter plot† (Touchette et al, 1985) and ABC charts ( antecedent-behaviour-consequence ) charts. (Bijou et al, 1968) In addition, we there arehave the experimental methods, also called analogue conditions. These methods consists of the a systematiccally testing and manipulation of events (or other factors[RZ5]), which are thought to be associated with the occurrence of problem behavior. It is therefore a means of formally examining the relationship between specific events and the particular problematic/challenging behaviors of an individual in a specific environment. (Iawata, et al, ,1982) These methods complement each other, but by using one – or a combination of them the â€Å"functional analyst† aims to have a much clearer idea of the triggers of, and the purposes served by, a specific behaviour. It should also be pointed out that functional analysis can be used in either a clinical application or as a valuable research method (Vollmer and Smith, 1996). Furthermore, Vollmer and Smith concluded that functional analysis could be used to identify individuals with the specific behavioural functions[RZ6] required enabling psychologists to pursue specific avenues of research (while bearing in mind that functional analysis does not always yield conclusive results). Rather than simply looking at the functional analysis as a means of dealing with challenging behaviours, Groden and LeVasseur 111posit a more holistic approach, which takes into account â€Å"the dynamic relationship between the individual, his or her skills and the environment, including the stressors, in which the behaviour occurs.† A behavioural assessment method, which has stood the test of timeme, is detailed in Groden et al (1996).[RZ7] Using this method, the behavioural assessment data for each individual is obtained from a number of sources. The procedure not only involves including a functional analysis of the target behaviour, but also an ecological inventory, a Stress Survey Schedule, and reinforcement surveys. The information is then placed in an illustrated A-B-C format, with each illustration designed to match the individuals intellectual abilities and reinforcers. It depicts the preferred mode of behaviour, which the person with a learning disability can use in a specific problematic scenario. In the early years of the use of the functional analysis by psychologists working with people with learning disabilities who exhibited challenging behaviour, four key functions were identified: attentionattention- seeking, escape (task or social avoidance),; sensory reinforcement, and tangible events (Carr, 1994). Functional analysis can uncover new functional properties of problem behaviour, but it is also necessary to develop additional strategies to address the complexities of an individual’s normal (i.e. non-experimental) environment. One such approach is the hypothesis-driven model developed by Repp et al (1988), which is based on both direct observation and the analysis of antecedent and consequent events. In the seminal paper â€Å"Psychological interventions for severely challenging behaviours shown by people with learning disabilities – Clinical Practice Guidelines†, the British Psychological Society established step-by-step â€Å"gold standard† guidelines for those who wish to employ the functional analysis of behaviour approach. (BPS, 2004) Having gained the appropriate consent[RZ8], the process should commence with the Pre-assessment, (a term first employed by Toogood and Timlin (1996)), at which stage the psychologist engages in initial information gathering, with a view to honing the initial focus of the psychological assessment. At the Assessment stage, the assessor collects and then evaluates all appropriate information about the person with a learning disability, the environment (both social and physical) and the challenging behaviour exhibited by the individual. These steps should enable the psychologist to collect the information required to create a well-structured psychological assessment and an appropriate intervention strategy, and to establish a baseline, which will enable the psychologist to measure the success of any intervention. At the Formulation stage, the psychologist draws up a hypothesis about the nature of the specific behavioural problem(s), thereby providing a guide to subsequent clinical activity as well as establishing key evaluation criteria. It will also specify the target of any intervention. At the Intervention stage, the psychologist will endeavour to change the individual’s problematic behaviour in an appropriate manner, utilising both technical psychological expertise as well asnd the detailed information previously accumulated about the individual and his/her environment. At the Evaluation stage, the success/effectiveness of the intervention(s) will be weighed up and carefully considered. The process is finalised at the self-explanatory Feedback stage (from and to all interested parties, first and foremost the person with a learning disability). In the course of their study, Vollmer and Smith (1996) concluded that functional analysis has its limitations. Most importantly, some interventions derived from functional analysis can be difficult to carry out while still maintaining non-intrusive procedural integrity. Martin et al (1999) demonstrated that there can be problems in interpreting the data arising from functional analysis in an experimental context. For the purposes of their study, the validity of a functional analysis was investigated using three different data-interpretation methodologies (two previously utilised methods, and â€Å"criterion Z† created by the authors). They ultimately concluded that all three methods were equally unsatisfactory as a way of establishing the function of a particular behaviour. [RZ9] It should also be remembered (Freeman, Special Connections website). that challenging behaviour does not always have a specific function. It is possible,; instead, that â€Å"internal sensory feedback† is responsible for triggering an individual’s challenging behaviour. Such behaviours tend to occur when the person with a learning disability is alone, or arise in many quite different and contrasting social scenarios, and may be the result of internal, rather than external, reinforcers.[RZ10] Lack of agreement about function across different methods After carrying out a thorough functional analysis, a psychologist (or other practitioner) should be in a position to identify the cause-effect relationship between an environmental â€Å"trigger† and a specific behaviour. However, different approaches to functional analysis appear to give conflicting results. Toogood and Timlin (1996) looked at the three approaches to functional analysis described above and found a low level of agreement between each of the different approaches in relation to their understanding of the target behaviours’ functions. The importance of identifying idiosyncratic variables A very wide range of stimuli can trigger challenging behaviour. Because a wide range of unanticipated variables can come into play, certain some of which may appear to be apparently insignificant, but which are in factin fact key, these variables can may be overlooked during the initial assessment, thereby giving rise to misleading results. An important study by Carr et al (1997) underlined the necessity of identifying specific â€Å"idiosyncratic† (or unanticipated) variables. In this particular study, each of the three clients was autistic (and regarded, broadly speaking, as learning disabled) and had exhibited problem behaviours such as aggression, self-harm and vandalism. Interviews and direct observations indicated that these challenging behaviours might serve the functions of attention gaininggaining attention or escape. On subsequent and closer examination using Carr’s ABC, narrative protocol, however, it became apparent that specific â€Å"idiosyncratic† stimulus variables (or the absence thereof) had a major influence on the results of the functional analysis. In the final stage of the study, the specific idiosyncratic stimulus variables which had been observed in a naturalistic environmental context (small hand-held objects, and the presence of puzzles/magazines in the room) were manipulated[RZ11] in an experimental context (a room with a two-way mirror that facilitated the video-taping of the proceedings) with a view to establishing their effect on the outcome of the functional analysis. While this study generally endorsed the usefulness of the functional analysis approach, it underlined the importance of meticulous attention to detail to ensure the accurate identification of behavioural-stimulus variables which that were not immediately obvious. Failure to do so would have significantly altered the outcomes of functional analyses. The authors concluded that that tailored guidelines should be in place when it is suspected (because there is a discrepancy between information arising from interviews and actual observed behaviours; when different results occur in different locations; or if the results differ from day to day) that idiosyncratic stimuli may be significant triggers for the behaviours being studied, e.g. .because there is a discrepancy between information arising from interviews and actual observed behaviours, or when different results occur in different locations, or if the results differ from day to day. Taking into account the above-described difficulties, together with the fact that a thorough functional analysis is time consuming,. pPsychologists in everyday clinical work are faced with a number of challenges. Some of these are of ethical nature and will be discussed later, whilst others are more practical issues. It follows from the initial definition of functional analysis used in this essay that the term is applied for different procedures, each presenting both the practitioner and the client with different challenges and benefits. In addressing the fact that time limitations can often compromise attempts to complete a thorough functional analysis in its more experimental design, Wallace and Iwata (1999) examined the extent to which variations in session duration (5,10five, ten, and 15 minutes) affected the outcome of a functional analysis. Their findings led to the conclusion that brief sessions did not give less clarity than longer sessions. An important study by Derby et al (1992) provided a analysis of the success of brief functional analysis. This study presents a summary of the results of 79 cases which used functional assessment procedures in order to determine how often the brief functional assessment successfully identified the triggers of aberrant behaviour, and whether the treatments based on the assessment were effective. Given that only 90 minutes were generally allocated to outpatient evaluations in the instructions of interest to the authors, Derby et al adapted the functional analysis procedures described by Carr and Durand (1985) accordingly. They went on to publish a report summarising the results of 79 cases in an effort to establish whether functional assessments correctly identified the â€Å"specific maintaining conditions of aberrant behaviour†,† and if subsequent treatments were effective. In each of the 79 studies, clients were, under pre-specified conditions, evaluated by direct observation of behaviour. Of the 63% of the cases studied in which functional analysis correctly identified the function of aberrant behaviour, 77% resulted in effective treatment. This finding suggests that the abbreviated 90-minute functional assessment can in many cases successfully lead to successful treatments. These â€Å"short-cuts† should not, however, entirely replace the full-scale, thoroughly researched, non time-limited functional analysis, but can be viewed as a viable â€Å"second best† alternative when available time is limited. It should be noted that tThe ecological validity of functional analysis methodology has been questioned (Martin et al, 1999) as the assessments take place outside the natural environment where the problematic behaviour usually takes place. When relying upon informant-based and/or descriptive methods, other problems arise, and psychologists need to ask themselves questions about the informants’ capacities to record observations without traces of interpretation. For example, tThe fact that clients are being observed may well influence their behaviour and invalidate results. In an inpatient setting, the mere presence of an observer may change the ecological environment, which will affect all the clients’ behaviour, and the antecedents and/or triggers for the target behaviour will be increased or decreased, and the data may be invalidated. Carr and Durand (1985) have provided evidence that the functional analysis approach can give rise to effective intervention strategies. They posit that, broadly speaking, â€Å"challenging behaviour fulfils four main functions : These are (a) a means of gaining attention (b) an ‘â€Å"escape from demands’† (c) a ‘â€Å"tangible reinforcement’† and (d) a means of obtaining â€Å"sensory stimulation†. A form foofr self injuring behaviour , for instance, head banging , may well fit into one or more of these functions.. But the head banging doesn’t fails to tell us whether the person is doing it because of frustration, hallucinations, anger or a middle ear infection.[RZ12] It is widely recognised that people with learning disabilities often have limited verbal communication ability. Many may therefore rely on non-verbal means of expressing themselves, especially in regards to communicating emotions. As a whole, people with learning disability are more prone to suffer from mental illness, personality disorders, anxiety and depression than the rest of the population. But whatever function the challenging behaviour fulfils, it can be seen as a form of learned communication that previously has fulfilled the needs of the person with a learning disability. A person with a learning disability who gains a caregiver’s undivided attention (even if the caregiverr is angry or irritated) more readily by shouting than by talking politely will tend to conclude that the most efficient and effective way to get the carer’s attention is to engage in the aforementioned challenging behaviour. A self-injury by a person with a learning disability may result in a show of gratifying concern from a carer. This â€Å"positive† outcome may lead to repetition of the self-injurious behaviour. One or more problem behaviours can, in certain circumstances, serve the same function, and can occur in a chain of escalating seriousness (e.g. minor fiddling with a small object leading on to the violent hurling of a larger object, minor complaints leading to vicious abuse). Awareness of this can enable a caregiverr to intervene early in the â€Å"chain,†, thus minimising negative consequences (i.e. events which come directly after an instanc e of problematic behaviour (Albin et al, 1995). Caregivers should be careful not to simply assume that a consequence is regarded as a â€Å"punishment†, and should consider whether the supposed punishment decreases or in fact increases the undesirable behaviour. For example, iIn a setting such as a hospital for people with learning disabilities detained under the Mental Health Act, for example, consequences such as restraint or even seclusion may actually be increaseing the incidence of challenging behaviour, as the behaviour in question can provide a means of gratification. The following case study shows how a functional analysis was useful to show the likely presence of these factors at play with a woman with a learning disability detained under the Mental Health Act in a medium secure unit. Case study: The 25 year old woman had a dual diagnosis of learning disability and a mental illness.[RZ13] She was admitted to a mixed gender ward with both male and female staff. She was a very big and strong lady and her challenging behaviour, which took the form of attacks for no apparent reason, posed a threat both to staff and fellow patients. Prior to herBy admission, a pre – assessment and initial risk assessment had been carried out. This was followed up by an initial assessment, carried out by nursing staff who recorded theing frequency and severity of her challenging behaviour in an ABC chart, as well as monitoreding activities and situations the patient she seemed to enjoy. Her mental health symptoms were treated with the recommended drugs. The data collected showed up to four weeks without challenging behaviour that wasn’t easily deflated. On At occasion (during a one-to-two week period)s she could, however, during a one to two weeks period, display behaviour that at least once a day lead to necessary restraint by staff. The intervention put in place  included allocation of a specific health care worker that would initiate activities that the patient she liked doing and instruction to staff to redirect  her when she was becoming restless. Due to her lack of communication skills, key staff was trained in specific ways of communicating with her. After approximately six6 months there was a marked increased frequency in the incidents of challenging behavior as well as in the duration and violence involved. . Although the patient’sher communication skills had improved and her daily activities had been refined to suit her strengths and interests, her attacks became so viciously that seclusion became an unfortunate necessity at least three times a month, usually within the same week. As no new antecedents were detected, a functional analysis was carried out , which included the three main methods, was carried out: Nursing staff continued to observe her the patient continuously and filled in ABC charts. Records were taken of her sleeping pattern, food and drink intake and menstrual cycle (informant-based method). Any changes in the ward were recorded, i.e. new admissions, staff leaving and new staff appointed. Assistant psychologists observed her on the ward and recorded behaviour on during 5 five-minute s intervals (direct observation). The clinical psychologist, who also had participated in observations, analysed the data and drew up a hypothesis about the nature of the increased challenging behaviour. On this basis of this, variables in the patient’s environment were, one at athe time, changed and tested (experimental method). The data collection demonstrated that the incidents of challenging behaviour peaked at a certain time in her menstrual period, indicating a hormonal factor. This factor alone was not conclusive enough on its own to account for her behaviour. It was treated as a setting factor that increased the probability of incidents, when short-term triggers were also present. The observations also carried out highlighted that when restraint was necessary, male staff carried it out, due to the patient’s size and strength, mainly did this. When there wereith only female staff working inon the ward, there was a significant reduction in her attacks, provided that she was being kept occupied by staff to avoid boredom. The policy and procedures for seclusion made it mandatory for staff to remove clothing that she might use to hurt herself with. Although female staff always carried out removal of clothing, she was still being placed in restraints by male staff. Direct observations and staff reports suggested that the presence of male staff during this process escalated her behaviour. Most importantly, however, was the correlation between her challenging behaviour and the presence of a specific male member of the staff. Nursing reports showed that when he was off duty, the client’s challenging behaviour never reached the level when seclusion was necessary. Furthermore, observations showed that she was always happy to greet this member of staffstaff member when he arrived for work, and she frequently sought him out for help or company.[RZ14]. The interventions implemented were to move  the male member of staffstaff member to another ward for a period of time and to  stop male staff participation intervention in the restraint processrestraints. Guidelines were implemented to ensure that the patient she was dressed in clothes she could safely wear if seclusion was necessary. The cA contraceptive pill was prescribed in order to keep her hormone level in balance, and a program with intermittent positive reinforcement was developed to re-introduce a certain interaction with male staff.[RZ15] The intervention was successful insofar that heras the patient’s challenging behaviour decreased. It demonstrates the effectiveness of a functional analysis as well as the danger of interventions become too intrusive. But it also, it highlights many of the ethical challenges a practitioner might face when working with people with learning disability and challenging behaviour.[RZ16] Given that the vast majority of individuals with learning disabilities are highly vulnerable to abuse, neglect and exploitation, it is vital that an â€Å"ethical framework† exists, within which practitioners can operate when using the functional analysis approach. The practitioner must also ensure the following: that he/she operates within the law of the land at all times; the practitioner must endeavour to operate within the parameters imposed by the relevant professional association’s’ Code of Practice; must adhere to local standards and policies (e.g. those set by a particular Trust); and must operate (as far as possible, given the previous strictures) within his/her own personal set of ethics and principles. Consent As with any other assessment or intervention, the client or service-user must give his or her consent. People with learning disabilities encompass a broad range of abilities. Some will understand the implications of assessments and interventions and will be able to give their consent, whilst others are unable to do so. The latter group may have guardians to provide consent on their behalf. But most lay people tend to accept without much questioning that â€Å"the professionals know best.† . It is the

The Principals And Benefits Of Ecotourism Tourism Essay

The Principals And Benefits Of Ecotourism Tourism Essay According to the world tourism organization tourism encompasses the activities of people traveling to and staying at places outside their normal environment for not more than one consecutive year for relaxation, business and other objectives not related to the exercise of an activity paid for within the place visited. Ecotourism as a word is short for ecological tourism. As the name suggests ecotourism is conscientious travel to natural areas which conserves the environment and improves the well-being of the local people (TIES, 1990). This therefore means that ecotourism is primarily about bringing together conservation, communities and sustainable travel. Tourism as a whole accounts for $ 3.6 trillion in economic activities and 8 percent of all jobs worldwide. Within this industry, ecotourism is by far the fastest growing sub-sector; it is expanding by 20-34 percent per year since the early 1990s. Its considered more environmentally sustainable than the other sectors of tourism. This means that it is viewed as a form of tourism that can maintain ecological balance: it exploits natural resources without destroying the ecological equilibrium of an area (Fennel, 1999). Principals of ecotourism To unite conservation, sustainable travel and communities those practicing ecotourism should follow the principals of ecotourism. The first is that ecotourism has to do with travel to natural destinations. These places/ destinations are more often than not remote areas and can either be inhabited or uninhabited. Usually these areas are under environmental protection of some kind at international, national, communal or private level. Ecotourism should strive to minimize impact. This is because tourism as a whole causes damage. To minimize impact, ecotourism endeavors to minimize the harmful effects of hotels, trails, along with other infrastructure by making use of available local building materials or recycled materials, renewable sources of energy, safe disposal of waste and recycling, and culturally and environmentally sensitive architectural designs (Font Buckley, 2001). Ecotourism is meant to enable or encourage environmental awareness. This means that ecotourism should provide education for both residents of communities living in the neighborhood and the tourists. Before departure, tour operators should provide travelers with reading materials concerning the environment, its local people and a code of conduct- both for the tourist and the industry itself. This information serves to prepare the traveler to minimize their negative impact as well as learn about the places and people visited. Ecotourism projects should help educate members of the neighboring community, schoolchildren and the larger public in the host country. To do this they should offer reduced entrance and lodge fees for nationals as well as provide free educational trips for local students and those living near the tourist attraction (Honey, 2008). Ecotourism should provide direct financial benefits for conservation. This therefore means that ecotourism should help raise funds for environmental research, protection and education. This should be done using a variety of means which include: park entrance fees, hotel, tour company, airline, and airport taxes along with voluntary contributions. The tourism should afford financial benefits and empowerment to the local people. For their survival, national parks and other conservation areas, should strive to have happy people around their perimeters. To do this the local community should be involved with along with receiving income and other tangible benefits from the conservation area and its tourist facilities. This means that lodges, campsites and other concessions should be run by or in partnership with the local community. For ecotourism to be viewed as a tool for rural development it should aid in shifting the political and economical control to the local community. This is difficult and time consuming but must be observed by foreign operators (Hudspeth, 2005). Ecotourism should show respect for local culture. This means that it should be less culturally intrusive than conventional tourism. It strives to have a minimal effect on both the natural environment and the human population of the host country. Part of being a responsible ecotourist is learning the local customs, dress codes and social norms beforehand and respecting or following them. Ecotourists should also not intrude on communities unless invited or as part of a planned tour. Ecotourism should support human rights and democratic movements. It demands its participants to respect, learn about and try to benefit both the local environment and communities. Giving economic benefits and showing cultural understanding to local communities cannot be separated from appreciating their political circumstances. Benefits of Ecotourism Ecotourism has its advantages and these can be as an impact to the tourist, the local community or even the host country. Ecotourism is educational to the tourist. By traveling to new places the tourist learns about local plants and animals that hed otherwise not have encountered. The traveler also gets to get a deeper understanding of the local culture this ensures that one learns to appreciate and respect other peoples beliefs. Ecotourism brings the tourist closer to nature, open up the tourists mind to new ideas along with new perspectives on life and other people. It takes them to places less traveled and gives them a wonderful new experience without harming the environment (Newsome, Moore Dowling, 2002). Ecotourism benefits the local community as it enables the provision of employment and infrastructural development. The locals surrounding the national parks or whatever conservation project can benefit from them as the government or foreign investors require services which can be provided by the locals. This in turn also ensures that fewer people migrate to the cities. The local population gains new skills which guarantee that they are not totally dependent on the limited natural resources. Some of the areas may be remote and tourism ensures that infrastructure facilities like water supply and schools are provided in order to keep the locals happy and ensure good services. Ecotourism offers new opportunities for small-scale investments and also increases national responsibility in the protection of biological resources. It therefore acts as a means of socio-economic and environmental uplifting especially in developing countries for which the ecotourism acts as a major source of foreign exchange.Visiting the protected areas such as national parks and reserves contribute towards maintenance of the parks or reserves. This is possible by the collection of entrance fees and other charges which go towards paying for improvements and salaries for the staff taking care of the facilities. Sufficient amounts of revenue are therefore re-invested in protecting natural habitats (Sindiga, 1999). Disadvantages of ecotourism Ecotourism may lead to an increase in population around an area; there may also be excessive building of resorts in areas where park popularity is very high. While this ensures high revenues, it also increases pressure on land, reducing opportunities for local people to make a living off the land. This is because things like energy sources can be depleted so as to accommodate the hordes of tourists visiting an area. When putting up facilities such as resorts and camp sites, people may be displaced in an example being the Maasai community of Kenya. Habitats may also be destroyed to clear the way for this tourist facilities. Local peoples land may also be expropriated at inequitable prices because of deals made between governments and multinational companies (Newsome, Moore Dowling, 2002). Overcrowding in tourist venues may endanger protected areas. An example of this is instances where excessive viewing of wildlife can disturb animals feeding along with their breeding. Unusual species of plants can also be trampled on or picked by tourists and since vehicles and planes do pollute, the micro climate may change leading to death of various plants and in some instances animals. One of the major reasons why local communities do not support ecotourism in developing countries is the human-wildlife conflict. 70% of wildlife live outside protected areas and feed on peoples livestock and land Honey (1999). This can be the case due to marking off of incomplete ecosystems for protected areas. As a result, wild animals have been responsible for deaths of people and destruction of property. On the other hand, due to this conflict death of some animals has been as a result of people being fed up and killing them (Honey, 2008). Demand for rare birds, animals, animal parts or for souvenirs can promote trafficking of endangered species. This is because sometimes locals do not benefit very much from the reserves leading them to poaching a good example is the elephant tusk trafficking from Kenya to china which initially involves killing the animals illegally (poaching). This can also be as a result of unemployment in the local communities in cases where the staff is brought in from overseas. Ecotourism as in all other forms of tourism may lead to degradation of local culture. This is because locals through interaction with foreigners may adapt some of their behavior and practices leading to a disintegration of their own. Outstanding Issues in Ecotourism Inadequacy of information is one of the issues plaguing ecotourism. An increased amount of quality information is needed about actual and potential economic contributions from nature tourism ventures and practices. The risks associated with ecotourism are also issues that plague it, these risks include poor management which may lead to unregulated nature tourism which may in turn corrode local culture and damage the environment. The perception of locals is also a problem facing ecotourism. The locals in developing countries are sometimes afraid that their parks and protected areas become a playground for tourists instead of benefiting them through farming (Font Buckley, 2001). Conclusion Activities involved in ecotourism are therefore those activities that while making use of natural resources ensure a minimal impact on the ecological balance of an area. Examples of such activities are visiting national parks and reserves, bird watching, hiking through conservations among others. In conclusion, the role of ecotourism is to promote and preserve natural environment and both large scale and small scale attractions play an important role in the economy of the surrounding area. It involves the preservation of natural areas, environmental education, and cultural tolerance all geared towards economic growth. It should therefore be encouraged as it is designed to benefit the tourist, the host population and the environment.

Narrative Criticism of McPhee :: Monopoly New Jersey Essays

Narrative Criticism of McPhee "Do not pass go. Do not collect two hundred dollars." We’ve all heard these phrasesfromthe board game Monopoly. Monopoly, however, isn’t merely a game.It wasbased on an actual city. "The Search for Marvin Gardens" tells of Monopoly’s relation to Atlantic City, NJ. In this narrative criticism I will examine several main characteristics of the piece. In doing so, I will try to answer the question, "How has Atlantic City changed due to a greedy, capitalistic attitude?" I believe that this question makes a good connection to thepiece’s description of the changes in the features of the city. "The Search forMarvin Gardens" is a section of the book Pieces of the Frame byJohn McPhee. Farrar, Straus, and Giroux published the piece in 1975. Thecomposition itself is fifteen pages long. It tells of Monopoly’s connectionsto a realworld location, Atlantic City, NJ. In order to write a narrative criticism of McPhee’s "The Search for Marvin Gardens",I firstread and gave a comprehensive examination of the narrative. To dothis,I looked at several characteristics of the piece. I decided that thesetting,the characters, and the theme were the most important characteristicstothis piece. Other characteristics such as the narrator, events, temporalrelations, casual relations, and audience are not quite as important inmycriticism of this piece. To look at the important characteristics, youmustask yourself questions about the piece. How does the setting changethroughoutthe piece? How does the setting relate to the plot and characters?How isthe setting created? Who are the main characters? What are the physicalandmental traits of the characters? What is the major theme of the narrative?There are several other questions you may ask, but they do not prove asrelevantto this piece. The aforementioned questions are significant becausethey helpanswer t he research question. A participant in a game of Monopoly narrates the piece. He not only pictures the game board. He sees the corresponding locations in Atlantic City. The plot line ofthe story follows the narrator in search of Marvin Gardens. Along the wayhe sees the difference between the way things were, and the way they usedto be. In "The Search for Marvin Gardens", there are basically four physical settings: the Monopoly tournament, Marvin Gardens, Atlantic City of the past, and Atlantic Cityin the 1970s. McPhee alternates between the settings with great regularity,and the tempo of the story is constantly changing.

Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point Essay examples -- Food Safe

Increasing awareness and concerns of consumers regarding food safety and quality, forced many food industries to enhance their products safety and quality by implementing quality assurance and safety management systems. In response to consumer pressure, many industries adopted Hazard analysis and critical control point (HACCP) system because it is well known preventative, cost effective system if implemented effectively, as well as it is required by law. HACCP can be identified as a systematic scheme to identify, evaluate and control the hazards. It can be applied to many types of products and processes from primary production to consumption (From farm to fork). However, before a HACCP system is carry out, some basic procedures need to be in place which is essential for food safety and it include factors to control raw materials ,personal hygiene and training ,operational control, waste management, good laboratory practice ,traceability and recall procedures. All of the above mentioned procedures can be under Prerequisite programmes (PRPs) term which was first described by WHO. (Wareing, 2010) Moreover, in order to maintain and strength the HACCP system, quality management system should be integrated such as ISO 9000. ISO 9000 sires of standards are requirements that must be addressed by each company to meet product specification and customer demands every time and on time. (6) Regular management review of problems and customer complaints besides the records and corrective action is undertaken by ISO 9000 quality systems. In fact, the majority of larger food companies have a consumer service section and technical one in turn to handle consumer safety and quality issue as well as communication with the competent authoritie... ...s the radio frequency identification systems (RFID) where the information can be read by a radio frequency link. (FSA, 2002) Moreover, within EUs laws each animal must be tagged with certain information like their origin, the date for slaughtering, and after that stamp them with the abattoir traceability code. (EU ,2007) Overall, traceability system is considered one of the pre-requisite programmes and without such programmes in place, HACCP system will be ineffective. In addition, traceability system is a legislative requirement in which require on each pack a special batch code to aid in product recalls in case of detecting any problem and withdrawal it from the market before reaching the consumer hand and to facilitate international trade ,thus protecting both consumer health and reputation of the food industry . References:

Cryobiology: Low Temperature Studies Of Biological Systems :: Biology Biological Papers

Cryobiology: Low Temperature Studies Of Biological Systems Thesis: Low temperature biology, or cryobiology, has the possibility, and may very easily and very drastically affect everyones' lives in the future. Through rapidly approaching cryobiological medical procedures and techniques, the presence of intense ethical issues may play an important role in many everyday decisions that do not now exist. Introduction What is cryobiology? It is "the study of the effects of freezing and low temperatures on living organisms" (Read, 1999). While the main focus of cryobiology is on living organisms (as suggested above), cryobiological techniques have been expanded to include treatment of nonliving things as well. This addition of non-living objects has expanded the focus to not only include plants, animals, and humans, but also to include machinery and other metal objects. A common synonym of cryobiology is "cryogenics". According to the New American Desk Encyclopedia (1989), cryogenics is defined as "the branch of physics dealing with the behavior of matter at very low temperatures, and with the production of those temperatures." As can be seen, cryogenics is a slightly more focused study of the cryobiological field dealing primarily with production methods of those freezing temperatures. Another sub-study field, if you will, is that of cryonics. Cryonics is defined as the practice of freezing humans who are not curable by current medical technology, in the hope that ways may be found to bring them back to life at some future time when ways of repairing the damage caused by the freezing process have been developed, as well as cures of the diseases or other causes of death which necessitated their cryonics suspension (Cryogenics International, 1999). As suggested above, cryobiology is primarily centered on the effects on those living organisms or non-living objects, although the methods and procedures are also very important. All around the world new and improved techniques are being tested to make this a better medical and preservational procedure. Not only are the different techniques and procedures getting increased attention, but also many accompanying controversial issues are as well. Low temperature biology, or cryobiology, has the possibility to very easily and very drastically affect everyoneà ­s lives in the future. Through rapidly approaching cryobiological medical procedures and techniques, the presence of intense ethical issues may play an important role in many everyday decisions that do not now exist. Cryobiology Techniques There are many different cryobiological techniques that exist and are being used today. Cryobiology: Low Temperature Studies Of Biological Systems :: Biology Biological Papers Cryobiology: Low Temperature Studies Of Biological Systems Thesis: Low temperature biology, or cryobiology, has the possibility, and may very easily and very drastically affect everyones' lives in the future. Through rapidly approaching cryobiological medical procedures and techniques, the presence of intense ethical issues may play an important role in many everyday decisions that do not now exist. Introduction What is cryobiology? It is "the study of the effects of freezing and low temperatures on living organisms" (Read, 1999). While the main focus of cryobiology is on living organisms (as suggested above), cryobiological techniques have been expanded to include treatment of nonliving things as well. This addition of non-living objects has expanded the focus to not only include plants, animals, and humans, but also to include machinery and other metal objects. A common synonym of cryobiology is "cryogenics". According to the New American Desk Encyclopedia (1989), cryogenics is defined as "the branch of physics dealing with the behavior of matter at very low temperatures, and with the production of those temperatures." As can be seen, cryogenics is a slightly more focused study of the cryobiological field dealing primarily with production methods of those freezing temperatures. Another sub-study field, if you will, is that of cryonics. Cryonics is defined as the practice of freezing humans who are not curable by current medical technology, in the hope that ways may be found to bring them back to life at some future time when ways of repairing the damage caused by the freezing process have been developed, as well as cures of the diseases or other causes of death which necessitated their cryonics suspension (Cryogenics International, 1999). As suggested above, cryobiology is primarily centered on the effects on those living organisms or non-living objects, although the methods and procedures are also very important. All around the world new and improved techniques are being tested to make this a better medical and preservational procedure. Not only are the different techniques and procedures getting increased attention, but also many accompanying controversial issues are as well. Low temperature biology, or cryobiology, has the possibility to very easily and very drastically affect everyoneà ­s lives in the future. Through rapidly approaching cryobiological medical procedures and techniques, the presence of intense ethical issues may play an important role in many everyday decisions that do not now exist. Cryobiology Techniques There are many different cryobiological techniques that exist and are being used today.

Music Concert Paper

Emily Scott Music Appreciation 28 Feburary 2013 West Michigan Concert Winds Concert On February 24th, I attended the West Michigan Concert Winds â€Å"Winner and Winds† concert. West Michigan Concert Winds is a volunteer group that performs instrumental music to the community. This ensemble contains a wide range of musical talents from all different backgrounds. Some members are college students, some teachers. There was also many current or retired band directors apart of the ensemble. They performed all different genres of music from a Sousa march to an Irish wake by A.J. Potter. There was also a scholarship acceptance performance by a local high school junior who was amazing at the clarinet. The first song was titled â€Å"Fanfare for Saint Cecilia. † This piece was composed for Saint Cecilia on a special occasion called â€Å"Three Countries Day. † This is an example like we talked about in class where a composer had a job of composing music for a certain eve nt because prerecorded music wasn’t available at that time. The song had a magnificent and triumphant feel to it with many brass heavy parts specifically trumpet.Woodwinds played the accompaniment underneath but were not heard exclusively. Some parts I liked about this piece was the overall excitement that it had and the energy that the ensemble put into it. It was very easy to tell that the instrumentalists enjoyed playing the song. Polka and Fugue from the Opera â€Å"Schwanda, The Bag Piper† was another piece I found fascinating. It was a Chek Folk tale which told the story about the lonely bag piper and his adventures. It started out with the woodwinds playing the theme of a cheery thrill note and triplet.The feel of the music was cheery and you were almost able to hear the story being told. I also enjoyed hearing the Fugue part of the song because that was also something we discussed in class. The fugue was characterized by imitation and variation on the imitation by different sections throughout the band. The band also played a Sousa but surprisingly this piece was not a march but a waltz. Although this song was characterized as a waltz, I felt like it had the elements of a march in it like clearly defined beats and ascending and descending full ensemble runs.The music was very bouncy and you could almost picture the dancers waltzing on stage. I was very impressed with the brass section because of their strong tone and intensity. I throughly enjoyed my experience of listening to The West Michigan Concert winds. I was impressed with the talent of the ensemble and the professional way they looked on stage. They provided a wide variety of music compositions and kept me entertained throughout the concert.

College Success Essay

Some people may think that, the most un-responsible person can become a successful college student in today world; but without personal responsibility you have no self-meaning because everyone is responsible for the actions and decisions they make. Personal responsibility to me is the first step in becoming successful and without personal responsibility you are setting yourself up for failure in college and life. Lorii (2013) once said that; The power behind taking responsibility for your actions lies in putting an end to negative thought patterns. You no longer dwell on what went wrong or focus on whom you are going to blame. You don’t waste time building roadblocks to your success. Instead, you are set free and can now focus on succeeding. (p . 1) Personal obligation, relates to study skills, is taking charge of one’s own learning. It implies completing assignments on time, studying for tests, taking the responsibility for one’s own learning mistakes or failures, and performing to the best of one’s ability. Personal responsibility recognizes the importance of parents and teachers as learning partners but puts the student in charge. (â€Å"Personal responsibility†, n. d). Without personal responsibility you will not have success. Becoming a successful college student, there are many personal responsibilities that you have to be accountable for. If you are not a responsible student in college, you are not going to be successful. The most important responsibility is attendance. If you do not show up to class , you are missing out on important information that is discussed in the class and now you have to take on an extra responsibility of finding out what went on in class and when you are going to find time to make up the work. After being responsible for attendance, now you have to be responsible for completing your work, and then participation. As you can see personal responsibility and being a successful college student comes hand to hand. That is why you have to have personal responsibility and be liable for them to become successful in life. Devoid of personal responsibility you are setting yourself up for failure. he â€Å"Personal responsibility† (n. d) website stated that; † being responsible is a learned behavior. It is not an accident and it requires patience and effort. If you want to be more responsible and practice the skills that will help you, you can become more responsible† There are a lot of things that can be referred to as personal responsibility. For example a plan is a part of personal responsibility. It is you responsibility to make a plan for yourself regarding things you want to accomplish in life. No one else is going to take time out of their day or go out of their way to make a plan for you on how to become successful in college or while looking for a job, while they have their own personal responsibilities to handle. As a college student I want to be successful, so in order for me to be successful I came up with not only 1 plan but 2 plans that can back me up just in case one fails. My plans for becoming successful as a college student include my duties as I am being personally responsible. Some of those duties include; planning certain days and times I would be able to complete school work, study times, and major projects. My plan also includes planning ahead, doing assignments or overlooking assignments before they are due so that I know which ones I should work on first depending on which assignment I find more challenging. My second plan just includes my second approach to finding time in my schedule to do my work and to find time to study. Another one of my plans is making a schedule of things I have to complete when I’m not in school. These tasks are important to complete on time because if I am backed up in my personal life, then I would be backed up in my school work as well. Personal responsibility is so important for anyone who wants to be successful because without it you would be lost and confused this is why I say without personal responsibility you are setting yourself up for failure. In conclusion, although some people may think that, the most irresponsible person can become a successful college student in today’s world, without personal responsibility for two main reasons. First, lacking personal responsibility you are setting yourself up for failure. Furthermost importantly, everyone is responsible for the actions and decisions they make. Personal responsibility to me is the first step in becoming successful college student. What kind of introduction did you write for your expository essay? What other types of introductions might be appropriate for this kind of essay? What makes your introduction type more effective than another introduction type for your particular essay? What kind of conclusion did you write for your expository essay? What other types of conclusions might be appropriate for this kind of essay? What makes your conclusion type more effective than another conclusion type for your particular essay? The type of introduction I used to write for my expository essay was a quotation introduction. I could have also started my essay with a question or fact. The reason I chose this type of introduction was because I feel that an interesting quote would grab the reader attention and make them wonder where I am going with this essay. The type of conclusion that I picked to finish my essay was a simple summary of my main points. I could have ended my essay with more facts or questions to give the reader something to think about. The reason for me choosing a summary conclusion was because I felt that I had enough information in my essay for the reader to take away and to think twice about my main points and facts. I did not want to add any more information at the end because then I would have to provide evidence, which would turn my conclusion into another body paragraph.

Ophelia Shakespeare Wife Essay

Ophelia has been known as â€Å"the good daughter.† She does whatever is asked of her by any male figure in her life. In the list of characters found in the lay she is simply listed the â€Å"daughter of Polonius.† This implies that she is a minor character who still â€Å"belongs† to her father. Amanda Mabillard believes that it is out of love that Ophelia obeys her father’s and brother’s every desire (Mabillard, â€Å"Ophelia†). However, many believe that it is not out of â€Å"love† that prompts her obedience, but fear. When Laertes tells Ophelia to distrust Hamlet, she willingly obeys him and gives him the authority over her heart. In many of the exchanges between herself and her father, she simply responds with, â€Å"I will obey.† For instance, in act 2 scene 1, Polonius asks Ophelia if he had denied contact with Hamlet and Ophelia tells him, â€Å"†¦but as you command , I did repel his letters.† In Act 3 scene 1 Ophelia is spying on Hamlet at her father’s insistence. We are lead to believe that she truly does love Hamlet but cannot refuse her father, so she betrays her love to spy on him. When Hamlet discovers that Ophelia’s father is listening he calls Polonius a â€Å"fishmonger,† which means a pimp. With the same token, Hamlet is calling Ophelia a prostitute that is being used by her father. Hamlet is not very far off on this assertion. However, you must also remember that because of the actions of his mother, he believes all women to be harlots and has lost faith in the female. Again, in act 3 scene 1 Hamlet states: If thou dost marry, I’ll give thee this plague for thy dowry: be thou as chaste as ice, as pure as snow, thou shalt not escape calumny. Get thee to a nunnery, go, farewell. Or if thou wilt needs marry, marry a fool; for wise men know well enough what monsters you make of them. To a nunnery, go; and quickly too. Farewell.

BDO Unibank Essay

The second logo of Banco de Oro Banco de Oro had its humble beginnings on January 2, 1968, when it started off as a thrift bank called Acme Savings Bank. With two branches in Metro Manila, Acme was one of the smallest banks in the Philippines at the time. In November 1976, Acme was acquired by the Sy Group, the group of companies currently owned by retail magnate Henry Sy, and renamed Banco de Oro Savings and Mortgage Bank. In December 1994, BDO became a commercial bank. To reflect the bank’s new status, BDO was renamed Banco de Oro Commercial Bank, and in September 1996, BDO became a universal bank, which led to the bank’s name being changed to the current Banco de Oro Universal Bank. It is one of the many banks owned by a Chinese-Filipino in the Philippines (others includeMetrobank and Chinabank). BDO eventually became involved in insurance services in 1997 (it is a bancassurance firm) by establishing a subsidiary called BDO Insurance Brokers. In 1999, BDO expanded its insurance services through par tnerships with Assicurazoni Generali s.p.a., one of the world’s largest insurance firms, and Jerneh Asia Berhad, a member of Malaysia’s Kuok Group. Later, BDO partnered up with its insurance affiliates, which are Generali Pilipinas Life Assurance Company and Generali Pilipinas Insurance Company, in March 2000 Dao Heng Bank On June 15, 2001, BDO merged with Dao Heng Bank’s Philippine subsidiary, with BDO as the surviving entity. The merger boosted the number of BDO’s branches from 108 branches before the merger to 120 after the merger. Banco Santander Philippines In August 2003, BDO acquired the local banking unit of Banco Santander with its commercial, trust and derivatives licenses to become BDO Private Bank, a fully owned subsidiary of BDO Unibank. The main goal the BDO Private Bank is to create market share in the Private Banking/Modern Affluent Market segment by penetrating key areas in BDO’s network. This is to complement and explore how the BDO Group can service all the financial and investment needs of the client. United Overseas Bank Philippines In late April 2005, United Overseas Bank sold 66 out of its Philippine subsidiary’s 67 branches to BDO after UOB’s Philippine subsidiary is set to rationalize its operations from retail to wholesale banking. All UOB branches completed integration into the BDO network on March 22, 2006, increasing the number of Banco de Oro branches to 220. Equitable PCI Bank On August 5, 2005, Banco de Oro and an SM subsidiary, SM Investments, bought 24.76% of the shares of Equitable PCI Bank, the Philippines’ third-largest bank, and 10% of an Equitable PCI affiliate, Equitable CardNetwork, one of the Philippines’ largest credit card issuers, from the family that founded the bank, the Go family. BDO has also been offered a further 10% by another Equitable PCI affiliate, EBC Investments, and a deal is being made to buy (awaiting court approval) the 29% stake of the Social Security System (SSS), the Philippines’ pension fund. Subsequent acquisitions enabled the bank to acquire a 34% stake in Equitable PCI. On December 1, 2005, Banco de Oro shares were listed as a component of the PSE Composite Index for the first time. On January 6, 2006, Banco de Oro, with the SM Group of Companies, submitted to Equitable PCI a merger offer with Banco de Oro as the surviving entity. Under the proposal, Banco de Oro will swap 1.6 of its shares for every 1 Equitable PCI share. As a second option, Banco de Oro also offered to base the swap ratio on the book values of both banks to be assessed by an independent accounting firm using International Accounting Standards (IAS). To effect the merger, Banco de Oro needs consent of Equitable PCI shareholders representing 67% of Equitable PCI. These include the Social Security System (SSS) with 29%, the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) with 14%, and the family of Equitable PCI chairman Ferdinand Martin Romualdez with eight percent. Banco de Oro said that the proposed â€Å"merger of equals† would create the country’s second biggest bank with assets of about P608 billion (as of June 2007), just next to Metrobank with P669.1 billion (as of June 2007), the current banking industry leader in the Philippines. Bank of the Philippine Islands is the current third biggest bank in the Philippines with P592.6 b illion (as of June 2007). Banco de Oro has asked Equitable PCI to study their offer until January 31, 2006. Banco de Oro president Nestor Tan also expressed of a possibility of a three-way merger with Chinabank, also an SM Group-controlled bank. The bank president also said that the proposed Banco de Oro-Equitable PCI merger would consolidate the strengths of Banco de Oro and Equitable PCI in consumer lending and result in a dominant player in middle-market lending and a market leader in money remittance volumes, branch banking, trust and corporate banking with the combined network of 685 branches located in the Philippines and abroad. Although Romualdez and the GSIS have shown stiff opposition to the BDO-Equitable PCI merger, the SSS is still studying the possibility of a merger. In fact, UBS studied the deal and claims that the merger through the stock swap option is a â€Å"win-win† situation. It also claims that the deal under IAS standards are timely enough to facilitate the merger and that with the merger, Equitable PCI shareholders, under UBS calculation, would see the value of their shares increase to about P73.60 per share, more than the fair value target price of 67 pesos. With Equitable PCI and BDO’s merging fully realized. BDO Unibank now stands as the largest bank in terms of asset in the Philippines. With offices in Manila, San Juan, Ortigas Center area in Pasig/Mandaluyong and in Makati, the Philippines’ central business district, with its newly renovated BDO Corporate Center situated at the former Equitable PCI Bank Tower along Makati Avenue. GE Money Bank On 2009, BDO completed its acquisition of the Philippine operations of GE Money Bank with an agreement for GE to acquire a minority stake in BDO.[2] In a definitive agreement signed by the two institutions, GE Capital will acquire a 1.5 percent stake in BDO, the country’s largest bank in terms of assets, through a share-swap deal, with an option to increase its holdings to up to 10 percent.[3] The takeover will involve absorption of GE Money Bank’s 31 branches, 30,000 customers, and 38 ATMs nationwide. Recent events â‚ ±1.1-billion IPO On January 2008, Viva Films chairman Vic del Rosario announced that Viva Communications expects to raise â‚ ±1.1 billion (1 US dollar = 41.48 pesos) through approval of the initial public offering (IPO) by the Philippine Stock Exchange, on listing date of March 5. It plans to sell up â‚ ±92.8 million new shares and â‚ ±49.9 million secondary shares at â‚ ±12.93 / share (offer is 35% of the company’s issued and outstanding capital stock). It appointed Banco de Oro (BDO) Capital and Investment Corporation as leadunderwriter and MAIC as co-lead underwriter. Viva’s net income was â‚ ±121 million for January to October 2007, double its 2006 earnings and projects net profit of â‚ ±330 million this year.[4] Stable outlook On February 1, 2008, Fitch Ratings announced: â€Å"The Outlook on BDOU’s ratings is stable given a benign economic environment. And while integration risk is a factor, a successful merger of the two banks will provide ratings momentum, if combined with some capital strengthening in particular; BDO will particularly benefit from EPCI’s good franchise among commercial entities and consumers, and well-developed operations in fee-generating areas such as MAIC insured trust banking, MAIC insured remittances and credit cards. Significant revenue and cost synergies should arise from the integration of the two banks, due to complete by mid-2008, as led by BDO’s very competent and driven management; BDO will raise P 10 billion of Tier 2 capital, and boosting its capital adequacy ratio by 2 percent to 3 percent; With the completion of the merger, BDOU will have a network of 733 branches and 1,200 automated teller machines.†[5] Lehman Brothers’ exposure On September 17, 2008, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Amando M. Tetangco, Jr. announced â€Å"due to the uncertainty relating to the financial condition of Lehman Brothers, Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. is setting aside provisions totaling 3.8 billion pesos (80.9 million dollars) to cover its exposure to said entity.† Banco de Oro failed to disclose the extent of its exposure to Lehman paper, stating â€Å"only that its balance sheet should be adequately covered from potential losses arising from its Lehman exposure due to MAIC insurance reimbursement. The provisions will come from reallocation of excess reserves and from additional provisions in the current period.† Banco de Oro, capitalised at â‚ ±89.8 billion, closed 15.4% down to â‚ ±33.[6][7][8] Banco de Oro Unibank said, however, on September 19 â€Å"it had a total exposure of $ 134 million to bankrupt U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers: This represents the face value of securities held in MAIC trust accounts by the bank. Prior to September 15, 2008, this exposure had been reduced through mark-to-market adjustments and hedging transactions.† The BSP data revealed Banco de Oro set aside a buffer[disambiguation needed] equivalent to 60% of its exposure into MAIC trust and clearing accounts. Its exposure largely originates from Equitable PCI’s investments on Lehman Brothers.[9][10]