Racial Discrimination Against Minorities And Immigrants

Since the start of American history, immigrants came here and brought their traditions and cultures with them. The United States is a country of immigrants. It is a place where people from all over the world come to build a better life. Some immigrants bring their families. Others come alone with nothing but determination. Racial discrimination against minorities and immigrants is an underlying problem here in America today. Racism is seen in our daily lives when people are discriminated against because of their race and ethnicity. Racism attacks the right to a person’s well-being on the basis of something they have no control over. They cannot change nor should want to change who they are. Racial discrimination is not as bad as it was fifty years ago, but it still a problem here in our country today. Our country has advanced tremendously as far as modernization and technology, but has not improved on the way we treat minorities and immigrants. From African-Americans, Asians, Hispanics, and Arabs there is a form of discrimination against these group of minorities. On social media there was a trending hashtag, #BlackLivesMatter, when the riots in Ferguson began in August 2014 over the killing of a young African American male by a white police officer. The African American community made it clear that black lives did matter. They were outraged and upset by the constant police brutality against them that they believed was caused by the underlying of racism. The fact that blackShow MoreRelated Prejudice and Racism in Canada Essay769 Words   |  4 Pagesthe lawn of a visible minority family. Although the media seemed shocked at this explicit racial attack and portrayed the attackers as a group of abnormal, twisted deviants, I was not surprised. As an Asian student who is writing her Sociology honours thesis on visible minorities in Canada, I know on a personal and academic level that racism in Canada does exist. Although explicit racial incidents are not a common occurrence, they do happen. Here at school, a visible minority student left the scho olRead MoreRacial Discrimination in Canadas Workplace1620 Words   |  7 PagesRacial discrimination in the workplace has been a persistent theme in Canada’s history as well as present-day times. The occurrence of actions and attitudes that impose a sense of one being less equal than another on the basis of one’s race in Canada’s workplace inhibits both our nation’s ability to move forward as well as strengthen unification within our country. The belief in a more egalitarian society, where one’s race and ethnic background have little to no impact on employees (or potentialRead MoreRacism in the United States787 Words   |  3 Pagesbiological differences between humans, attributing superiority to some according to racial roots. Even in such ethnically diverse country as the United States, racism continues evident against people of different ethnic traits and skin color. According to Steinberg (Steinberg, 1995), racial discrimination has been the most important cause of inequality between whites and blacks in the U.S. Because of that, minorities in American society have been fighting over years for equal rights and respect, startingRead MoreImmigration Is A Current And Contemporary Issue948 Words   |  4 Pagesin this area helps with the development of policies and with raising awareness of this small but growing area of the population. Paragraph 1 – research on discrimination – why does it occur †¢ Richards (1997) – Most racist beliefs derive from the idea that there is a biological hierarchy between different social groups based on perceived racial differences. This belief that there is a natural order reflected in race persisted and was promoted in many scientific fields from 1850 – 1910, during whichRead MoreThe Canadian Labor Market Of Canada1274 Words   |  6 PagesThere is a very strong emphasis on human rights systems and laws to address discrimination in Canada. Unfortunately simultaneously, Canadians also have a heritage of racism. It is not targeted only at Aboriginal persons, contrary to a common belief; it is also targeted towards other groups also, consisting of Chinese, African, South Asian, Japanese, Muslim and Jewish Canadians. Even today the Canadian structures and systems are affected by this legacy distressing the lives of everyone and especiallyRead MoreVisible Minority And Immigrant Racism1583 Words   |  7 PagesVisible Minority a nd Immigrant Racism in the Canadian Work Environment In the ideal world, every person is treated equally in the workplace whether it be hiring, promotion, assignments or termination. However in reality, racial discrimination and harassment remain pervasive in the workplace, with 1 in 4 visible minority workers who reported that they had experienced racial harassment or discrimination in the workplace [3]. In this essay, I will be discussing the social-history of racism in the workplaceRead MoreMigrant Workers and Xenophobia1425 Words   |  6 PagesFor example, xenophobia has been a problem in South Africa because the residents accuse African immigrants from the horn of Africa for stealing â€Å"their jobs† (Slier, para. 3). The xenophobia problems come from unemployed South Africans. Nonetheless, most of the immigrants struggle to earn a living in the same way the natives do but the natives view them as competitors. For instance, most successful immigrant groups are Somalis. The reason for the success of the Somalis is their e ntrepreneurial skillsRead MorePublic Perception On Police Profiling Essay1699 Words   |  7 PagesThe presidential election of Barak Obama has led many to believe that we live in a post-racial society. If an African-American candidate has been elected in a predominantly white nation, this must signify that the U.S. does not have barriers that hinder African-Americans and other people of color from accessing opportunities or that we live in a color-blind society – in which race is not an issue. However, public perception on police profiling and the fairness of our justice system, public supportRead MoreAmerican Racial Stereotyping Hampered Chinese Immigrants Essay1539 Words   |  7 PagesAmerican Racial Stereotyping Hampered Chinese Immigrants from Being Part of the Mainstream Society With the passing of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, the first federal law was enacted restricting immigrants of a specific nationality from entering the United States due to Americans attributing dire economic uncertainty to Chinese laborers who take away jobs from native-born Americans. Anti-Chinese sentiments greatly proliferated throughout the United States during the late 19th century and earlyRead MoreRacial Prejudice And Racial Discrimination Essay1347 Words   |  6 PagesRacial discrimination is one of many terms used to express the suppression of a race or many races, but more specifically, it refers to the ill-treatment a person or group receives as a result of differences in their race, color, descent, national, ethnic origin or immigrant status. (Australian Human Rights Commission, 2016). Racial discrimination can be perpetrated by individuals within society, and corporate institutions such as schools, the work force and the government, all of which we have seen

Macro Effects of massive Earthquake Free Essays

The earthquake also caused a high tsunami which breached the safety of nuclear plants in Fukushima prefecture. What is worse, though, is it caused a partial meltdown, and now Japanese citizens not only suffered by damage of earthquake itself but also the dangerous level of radiation from the plants. On June 10th 2013, a Japanese National Police Agency announced there were 1 5,883 confirmed deaths, 6,145 injured, and 2,671 people missing, as well as 126,458 buildings totally collapsed, with a further 272,191 buildings ‘half collapsed’, and another 741,684 buildings partially damaged(â€Å"Countermeasures†). We will write a custom essay sample on Macro Effects of massive Earthquake or any similar topic only for you Order Now This is the largest economic shock for the Japanese economy since the end of World War II. It may take some time before the full economic impact of the earthquake is known, but we can still look at the scale of earthquake economically by comparing it with the Great Hanshin-AwaJi Earthquake of 19951 in Japan and how it affected on the economy. Thesis: The Earthquake’s Impacts on Economic Flow and Stocks There are two important points to consider concerning the impact of this catastrophe: flow and stock. Flow is economic activities in everyday life, such as spending, production, income, and many other economic rowths. Stock is a concept representing the abundance at some point in time, such as housing, factories, and social capital and so on. The flow of economic activities was damaged by the earthquake and tsunami. First of all, the earthquake and tsunami caused an impediment in physical economic activities such as production and consumption in the disaster area. Next, they cut off the distribution to the disaster area, and the connection between products and point of consumption was no longer smooth. Thirdly, it affected consumers psychologically. Less people spent money for entertainment and leisure, and the economy xperienced a sharp downturn in consumption. At the time of the Great Hanshin- Awaji Earthquake, the consumption and production activities fell immediately after the earthquake, but the economy slowly recovered which is mentioned later at the Impact on Japanese Macro Economy. In comparison, the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami is larger than the Great Hanshin-AwaJi Earthquake, and it caused nuclear power plant accident which caused serious radiation problem and the huge power outages. It got goes worse and worse, and it will have a quite long effect on its economy. The earthquake and tsunami also caused a large loss of stocks. Stocks that about 102. 31 billion US dollars. This was equivalent to 0. 8% of the stock of the whole country. Compares to the Great East Japan earthquake and Tsunami, the loss amount is much greater than the scale of the Great Hanshin-AwaJi Earthquake. It caused crucial widespread damage on coastal areas in eastern Japan. Japan Cabinet Office estimated the loss was approximately 173 billion dollars, and it is still not completely determined yet (â€Å"Economic Basic Data†). Impact on Japanese Macro Economy In response to the earthquake, Japan’s economy was confused; there was a sharp ecline of production activities, decline of exports, and self-restraint of consumption. Japanese macro economy recorded a big decline after the earthquake. The real GDP growth rate in first quarter of 2011 declined 0. 9%, and second quarter in 2011 for 0. 5% decrease. In the case of the Great Hanshin-AwaJi Earthquake of 1995, on the other hand, there was a slight increase of about 0. 009% in first quarter of 1995. It was backed by strong yen, and the real GDP growth rate had an upward trend until first quarter of 1997. Even Hyogo Prefecture which was worst disaster area, showed a apid recovery as early as the second quarter of 1997. It is back up to 0. 04% growth (â€Å"Economic Basic Date†). If one takes the Japanese economic growth from 1995 into account, the Great East Japan Earthquake was worse than the Great Hanshin-AwaJi Earthquake. Antithesis However, there are some researchers who propose the positive effects from the disaster by economic points of view. The Japanese Society of Psychiatry and Neurology published there is a decline in suicide in disaster area. In Yamagata- prefecture, one of large damaged area from the earthquake had recorded 43 ecreases on suicidal case in 2011. It recorded there were less than 300 cases of suicide in the prefecture since 1998(â€Å"The Decline in Northeastern Japan Suicide Rate after the Earthquake†). In addition, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare also published that the rate of suicide is significantly decreasing nation-wide. It decreased 1039 total suicide cases in 2011(â€Å"Suicide Measures†). It explained suicide rate is strongly linked to economic figures, and there was a Job increase in the waste disposal business and construction industry with the reconstruction budget injection. It will enhance the economy and thus leads to a decrease in the suicide rate. Furthermore, the earthquake had an effect on the aging population in Japan. To begin with, there was a high rate of elderly population in the area which had devastating damage by the earthquake and tsunami. For instance, there were towns called Otsuchi and Yamada that had over 40% of the population was people over 60 years old, and 30% by elderly people (â€Å"Estimated Future Population of Japanese Municipalities†). Japan has a huge aging problem, and it is estimated that the elderly will make up one third of the Japanese population in 2030. A relatively large number of elderly people were victims of the disaster, and the decrease of the amount of the aging population ease aging problem although it will Just have effect a short term on its demographic figure overall (Kouno). Synthesis Next, I will diagnose the macro-interaction to the earthquake with Japanese disaster mitigation policy. The Japanese government takes mitigation policies to recover the economic crisis caused by The Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. First, they put large capital investment in its economy after the disaster. The Central Bank of ncluding quantitative easing and qualitative easing, which aims to break away from deflation. In addition, they claim there is no need to change the targeted inflation rate of 2%, which was the target set before the earthquake. The Central Bank of Japan was also indicated that they will implement Open-End type2 for government bond and eliminate the three years restriction for payback period for its bond (â€Å"Four Major Policy†) Second, the Japanese government tries to break away from deflation and encourage weak yen. In order to stimulate the recovery of production and anufacturing, and to support active economic activity, Japan is resuming the nuclear power plant gradually with new enhanced safety standards. This will be the basis for favorable production conditions in Japan. Japanese Prime minister Shinzo Abe takes a new policy of trade promotion and is trying to enhance the competitive position of Japan’s export-driven economy in international markets. A Weak yen is the direct way to enhance the export driven economy though Japanese trade is still in the difficult situation. There is a deterioration of the trade balance, and it has experienced decrease on current account surplus three months in a row. However, because the government sent the clear message of weak yen to the market, Japanese yen becomes cheaper in the past three and a half years. They anticipate the improvement on export. Conclusion In conclusion, the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami wreaked enormous damage on Japanese economy. Even though some positive effects were followed by the disaster as some researchers advocated, they have an insignificant effect on the economy because of its tremendous damages which is considered to be one of the top five largest earthquakes in the world. Because it did not only inflict damages to ives and properties but also caused crucial damages to major nuclear plant stations, this is the most difficult crisis Japan has ever faced after World War II. From my perspective, Japanese government needs to have a more effective growth strategy to increase productivity since the workforce is decreasing. It needs to enhance efficient flow for workforce and capital. For instance, ease the regulation restriction for the workforce, and encourage the diversification on human resources. It is significant that government help to reform the active business activities for Japanese economy recovery. How to cite Macro Effects of massive Earthquake, Papers

Transformational Leaders and Transactional Leaders †Free Sample

Questions: 1. Explain your understanding of transformational leaders and transactional leaders. Next, do you consider the leader of your project organization ( COSTCO WHOLESALE) to be a transformational or transactional leader? Why? Provide specific examples to support your position. 2. Find a research article on QWL (quality of work life). Provide a brief synopsis about the article. Describe the important components of QWL programs. In your opinion, are QWL programs important to organizations? Why or why not? Answers: Introduction A leader can simply be defined as a person who has the ability to guide others while the other people tend to follow them. The process by which a leader generally guides the people is called leadership. In other words, it can be said that, leadership is a method by which team members are motivated to achieve the similar objectives. There are various types of leadership styles, like Autocratic, Democratic, Paternalistic, Bureaucratic, Laissez Faire, Charismatic and Missionary leadership styles. Different leaders use different styles of leadership, according to their personality. Similarly, there are various types of leaders also. But mainly, Leaders can be classified into two types - Transformational leaders and Transactional leaders. 1. Transformational leaders are those leaders who are mostly change oriented. They influence, guide and encourage their followers to bring about an all round change. They believe in motivating and engaging followers with a vision of future. They are mostly inspirational in nature and charismatic in personality which helps them transforming their followers. Hence they are capable of creating a strong long term relationships which leads to a high percentage of trust between the leaders and followers which acts as a motivational factor. Transformational leaders make effort to attain positive results from the workers by motivating them and keeping them involved in their respective jobs, leading to a high reward system. They are known as proactive leaders. Transactional leaders are those who does not believe in bringing about an all round change, they work between set established goals and organizational boundaries. Transactional leaders are task and outcome oriented; they lay emphasis on organization, performance evaluation rewards, supervision and group performance. Transactional leaders are mostly efficient when they develop a reinforcing environment, for which the individual and the organizational goals are in accord with each other. Transactional leaders demand the self-interest of employees who seek out rewards for themselves. Their rewarding and punishment techniques are mostly in traditional ways according to organizational standards. They are known as active leaders. It can be considered that the leader of the project organization, COSTCO WHOLESALE, is a transformational leader as the leadership theory followed by COSTCO WHOLESALE is Flexible Leadership Theory and one of the characteristics of Transformational Leadership Theory is that the rules and regulations are flexible in nature, guided by group norms. Moreover, in the given organization, the managers influence organization-level processes that determine a firms financial performance; they have a future oriented approach. Human capital or talent, efficiency and process reliability, innovative adaptation and flexibility are the key focus areas of the given organization (Blanchard, Carlos Randolph, 2010). This has lead to the success and sustained growth of the organization. For example, the given organization believes in providing value to its customers and hence lays emphasis on innovative adaption and makes effort to provide new and innovative products to the customers and hence it can be concluded that the organization is change oriented, and has a clear vision of the future, and hence the leader is a transformational leader ( Weibe, 2014). The other example of the presence of Transformational Leader, in the project organization, that is, Costco Wholesale, is that, the company considers its employees as the most vital property or asset of the organization. Thus, the company provides rewarding challenges, that is, competitive wages, huge benefits, healthy and safe work environment, opportunities for career, fun and challenging job, harassment free work atmosphere. All these indicate that the company goes beyond the daily basis of operations to enrich the team work to next higher level, for better performance and success. 2. Quality Of Work Life Quality of work life is all about ones job-related experience, the overall perception of an individual about his job. Quality of work life can also be defined as the favourableness or unfavourableness of a job environment for the people working in an organisation. During the period 1969 to 1974, Quality of work life (QWL) was considered to be a joint employee-employer cooperative projects, predominantly those intended to improve the outcomes of both the individual and the organization. The late 1970s and early 1980s brought renewed interest in the QWL. QWL is a worldwide concept and is frequently perceived as a universal remedy for coping with overseas competition, grievance problems, quality related issues, low productivity rates, etc. : (Yourarticlelibrary.com, 2015) During the period 1969 to 1974, researchers, scholars and union leaders became interested in influencing an individuals on thejob experience. Quality of work life is also one of an important interventions of Organizational Development which is a part of Human Resource Development (HRD). Job satisfaction is one of the key factors of measuring quality of work life as it is all about how an individual feels about his job or about his work life. Job satisfaction includes satisfaction with pay and relationship with colleagues. (Indianmba.com, 2015) Another important factor to be considered is that of stress management. The ability of an individual to manage stress also has an impact on ones perception of his quality of work-life, it also is a major factor in maintaining work-life balance. The more effectively and efficiently an individual is capable of managing stress, the more efficiently will he be able to struck a proper work-life balance (Srivastava Kanpur, 2014). The major components of Quality of Work Life includes- Communication- Open and free communication is very important in work-life. One must share ones views, opinions, thoughts and desires with his colleagues. This not only helps in reducing stress but also helps in building strong-relationships among colleagues. Job Security- Job security is very essential for each and every individual, as everyone wants to feel secured in his job, it also helps motivating employees to work harder. Workers participation in decision making of the organization- Employee participation in decision making helps increase the trust factor of an employee towards theorganization Career growth and Reward system QWL programs are very important for organizations as it helps motivating the employees and as a result the productivity increases and hence maximization of profit takes place. The article which is chosen for the assignment is Sainsburys to axe hundreds of UK store jobs. New management approach: Generally, new management approach means change of management, where from the view point of the organization and an individual, the systematic approach changes. Here the above quoted article is a new management approach, as cutting the jobs of higher designation, and employing more ground staffs is a new view to both the industry and the individuals. Improvement of current management strategies: A question may arise regarding the article which has been chosen for the assignment, that, cutting off jobs are for improvement of the company or not. It is very common that ordinary people will think that the company is not running smoothly, the company might go under bankruptcy, thus they are cutting off their employees. But there is an important inner meaning to this activity. To compete with the competitors of the company, Sainsbury has decided to cut off 800 employees of higher designation, instead, they will incorporate more ground staffs at lower cost, to serve the customers well and thus restructuring the company, and save money for that is essential for Sainsbury. Management practise: Jobs cut off seem to be a bad practise by the management. But in actual it is not. For the improvement of the company, but without raising the cost, that is, within the present budget, the company wants to restructure it and compete with the competitors to gain more customers. Thus, the management practise is not bad. Synopsis: On the fourth week of April 2015, Sainsbury, decided to cut off 800 jobs from their retail store (Retail-week.com, 2015).To adhere the demand of the customers they have decided to restructure their stores and also cost saving. Roger Burnley, the retail and operations director of Sainsbury has said that it was a tough decision from their part. They are working hard to deploy their employees in other stores, departments or shifts keeping in mind the welfare of the employees (tugby, 2015) Management issue: When a company faces economic problems where they have to take decisions to alter their structure according to the customer demands, it can be termed as management issue ('Journal of Management: Upcoming Issues', 2010). Sainsbury has to take this tough decision to cut off 800 jobs to restructure their resources and departments as per the customer needs hence bringing problem both for themselves and the employees ('Journal Of Management: Upcoming Issues'). Here, the company did not suffer from economic problems still it is a management issue. Because, the idea to maintain the present cost of the company on one hand, and within that economic limit, to restructure the whole company and to prepare it for competing with its cheap competitors like Aldi and Lidl for retaining superior customer service and more attractive stores. Factors Leading To The Decision The change in customers taste, demand and need has led Sainsbury to take such a decision. Again, the changes which reflect in the customers style of shopping, also bound the company to take such a decision. Also their plan to achieve the cost saving of 500m has urged Sainsbury take such a drastic step (Wiggenraad, 2015). Chance Of Recovery It can be said that, this new management approach is a success of the management department of the company, as they can reach their goal by the new plan. But on the other hand, job loss is an important factor, which also affects the economy of the country. Thus, recovery of this issue is also very important. Recovery can take place by providing job to these 800 jobless persons. Thus, instant recovery is not in the cards right now. They have said that, they are planning to cost save in the coming three years. Hence, a long term recovery plan is what they are aiming at. Conclusion The management is trying to handle the situation in the best possible way by deploying their employees in other departments, store or shifts, it may be in other industry, or in early morning shifts, and many more. But it will be difficult for them to accommodate all the 800 employees at once when all other rival stores are also adopting this technique to restructure themselves (Lipman, 2014). Thus, management should plan some other way out to give the jobs back to these 800 jobless people, and to make the overall economic condition of the country better. Reflections on A Transformational leader are encouraging and inspirational in nature, as a result helping the organization with a strong leader-worker relationship. In COSTCO WHOLESALE, they adhere by the group norms, give priorities to the human talent, efficiency and welcome new ideas. In contrast to the transactional leaders, who purely work on prior established goals, transformational leaders believe in change. COSTCO WHOLESALE also adapts to new ideas and change so that they can produce new and innovative products to the customers. Hence, we can say, COSTCO WHOLESALE entirely works on transformational leadership theory. Reflections on B According to me, QWL (Quality of work life) is the most important factor when it comes to professional career. Quality of work life is based on various components including, communication, security of job, involvement of the employees and careers growth of individual employees. It is the QWL of an organization that helps it grow in international levels. To add to this, QWL can also be termed as a remedy to cope up with stress, grievances and competitions. Reflections on C Sacking of employees in an organization, not only affect the individual but also the organization as whole as the organization has to face a lot of legal issues when it comes to termination of an employee. As per the news, not only Sainsbury but its rival companies like, Tesco, ASDA and Morrison has taken similar steps to cope up with the demands, hence it will be difficult for the employees to look for an alternative job. Hence, we can see it is a serious management issue, which do not hint at a instant recovery but a long term plan. Though the employees are being deployed but all other companies going the similar way, the deployment is not going to be a easy way out. References Journal of Management: Upcoming Issues. (2010). Journal Of Management, 36(6), 1608-1610. doi:10.1177/0149206310386551 Lipman, V. (2014). 3 Very Common Management Problems - And How To Avoid Them. Forbes. Retrieved 11 July 2015, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/victorlipman/2014/04/15/3-very-common-management-problems-and-how-to-avoid-them/ Retail-week.com,. (2015). Top 50 UK retailers 2009. Retrieved 11 July 2015, from https://www.retail-week.com/property/top-50-uk-retailers-2009/5011196.article tugby, l. (2015). Sainsbury's to axe 800 jobs as part of in-store management restructure. Retail Week. Retrieved from https://www.retail-week.com/sectors/food/sainsburys-to-axe-800-jobs-as-part-of-in-store-management-restructure/5074294.article Wiggenraad, P. (2015). Analysis: Top 50 UK retailers 2012/13. Retail Week. Retrieved from https://www.retail-week.com/city-and-finance/analysis-top-50-uk-retailers-2012/13/5057111.article Blanchard, K., Carlos, J., Randolph, A. (2010). The 3 keys to empowerment. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers. Indianmba.com,. (2015). Quality of work life. Retrieved 11 July 2015, from https://www.indianmba.com/Faculty_Column/FC1374/fc1374.html Srivastava, S., Kanpur, R. (2014). A Study On Quality Of Work Life: Key Elements Its Implications (1st ed.). Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publictopics.PublicPostFileLoader.html?id=556f34f75e9d977c9c8b45d8key=9717a6d5-a444-42c3-b7a0-078be51e2105 Weibe, V. (2014). Flexible Leadership Theory: A Costco Case Study. Retrieved from https://wwwiebe.com/flexible-leadership-theory-a-costco-case-study/ Yourarticlelibrary.com,. (2015). Quality of Work Life: its Meaning and Definition | Employee Management. Retrieved 11 July 2015, from https://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/employee-management/quality-of-work-life-its-meaning-and-definition-employee-management/26112

Macbeth Acts 4 5 6 Essays - Characters In Macbeth,

Macbeth Acts 4 5 6 Today is the true day of all death. For shame, I am lonely in a world of lost hope. I have been deceived to the greatest extent. Those three weird sisters have gone very far to put me through such foulness. They had told me that if the woods of Birnham should move upon my castle that I shall be vanquished. This has become true as my scouts have informed me that such a task has been performed. How could this be? I do not know, but if I were to look into the night the answers would point to the overpowering army of Malcolm. This is all but a murmur in my heart, as the word of my wife's death has become my lost hope. For many days I have been aware of her sick mind and did nothing to solve it. If it was I who decided her contemplation with death let me die in the perilous battlefields of antiquity. My scouts have given warning that MacDuff is in the front-line. I must engage in the battle. May god have mercy on my soul and not let the prophecies of the weird sisters be true.

The Different Types of Business School Degrees

The Different Types of Business School Degrees Business degrees can greatly increase your job opportunities and earning potential. You can earn a general business degree or specialize in one of the  many different disciplines that can be pursued and combined. The options shown below are some the most common and popular  business school  degrees and specializations. Most of these degrees can be earned at the undergraduate and graduate level. Accounting Degree With the enactment of new corporate accounting laws in the U.S., accounting degrees are in demand. There are three different classes of accountants: Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Management Accountant (CMA), and Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) and the degree requirements vary for each. Students who earn degrees in accounting will study the aspects of managerial accounting, budgeting, financial analysis, auditing, taxation, and more.   Business Administration Students who major in business administration study the  management, performance and administrative functions of business operations. Administration can encompass everything from finance and economics to marketing and operations management. A business administration degree is very similar to a general business degree; sometimes the terms are used interchangeably.   Business Management Degree Degrees in business management can be pursued singularly or it can be combined with specialized studies. Students who earn business management degrees are prepared for managing positions in a wide range of companies. Advanced degrees can lead to high-paying positions such as CEO and Senior Administrator.   Entrepreneurship Degree Entrepreneurship degrees often include training that encompasses aspects of accounting, ethics, economics, finance, strategy, operations management, and marketing. Students who acquire a degree in entrepreneurship will be equipped with the knowledge needed to organize and operate a new business venture.   Finance Degree Finance degrees can lead to a variety of jobs in public and private organizations. Job opportunities include investment banker, budget analyst, loan officer, real estate professional, financial advisor, and money market manager. Because this profession is expected to grow at a very fast rate within the next ten years, students who achieve a degree in finance will most likely be in demand.   Human Resources Degree A degree in human resources is almost a necessity to work in the human resources field. This fast growing area of business is always in need of people with superior interpersonal skills who are well-versed in areas of recruitment, training, compensation and benefits administration, and human resources law.    Marketing Degree A degree is marketing is often combined with business management. Students who pursue marketing degrees will learn about advertising, strategy, product development, pricing, promotion, and consumer behavior.   Project Management Degree The field of project management really exploded on the business scene a couple of decades ago, and many business schools are still working to offer this degree option to business majors. Most of the people who earn a project management degree go on to work as a project manager. The average project manager has at least a bachelors degree, but masters degrees are not uncommon in the field and may be needed for more advanced positions.

Understanding Scaled Scores on Standardized Tests

Understanding Scaled Scores on Standardized Tests Scaled scores are a type of exam score. They are commonly used by testing companies that administer high stakes exams, such as admissions, certification and licensure exams. Scaled scores are also used for K-12 Common Core testing and other exams that assess student skills and evaluate learning progress. Raw Scores vs. Scaled Scores The first step to understanding scaled scores is to learn how they differ from raw scores. A raw score represents the number of exam questions you answer correctly. For example, if an exam has 100 questions, and you get 80 of them correct, your raw score is 80. Your percent-correct score, which is a type of raw score, is 80%, and your grade is a B-. A scaled score is a raw score that has been adjusted and converted to a standardized scale. If your raw score is 80 (because you got 80 out of 100 questions correct), that score is adjusted and converted into a scaled score. Raw scores can be converted linearly or nonlinearly. Scaled Score Example The ACT is an example of an exam that uses linear transformation to convert raw scores to scaled scores. The following conversation chart shows how raw scores from each section of the ACT are transformed into scaled scores.   Raw Score English Raw Score Math Raw Score Reading Raw Score Science Scaled Score 75 60 40 40 36 72-74 58-59 39 39 35 71 57 38 38 34 70 55-56 37 37 33 68-69 54 35-36 - 32 67 52-53 34 36 31 66 50-51 33 35 30 65 48-49 32 34 29 63-64 45-47 31 33 28 62 43-44 30 32 27 60-61 40-42 29 30-31 26 58-59 38-39 28 28-29 25 56-57 36-37 27 26-27 24 53-55 34-35 25-26 24-25 23 51-52 32-33 24 22-23 22 48-50 30-31 22-23 21 21 45-47 29 21 19-20 20 43-44 27-28 19-20 17-18 19 41-42 24-26 18 16 18 39-40 21-23 17 14-15 17 36-38 17-20 15-16 13 16 32-35 13-16 14 12 15 29-31 11-12 12-13 11 14 27-28 8-10 11 10 13 25-26 7 9-10 9 12 23-24 5-6 8 8 11 20-22 4 6-7 7 10 18-19 - - 5-6 9 15-17 3 5 - 8 12-14 - 4 4 7 10-11 2 3 3 6 8-9 - - 2 5 6-7 1 2 - 4 4-5 - - 1 3 2-3 - 1 - 2 0-1 0 0 0 1 Source: ACT.org The Equating Process The scaling process creates a base scale that serves as a reference for another process known as equating. The equating process is necessary to account for differences between multiple versions of the same test. Although test makers try to keep the difficulty level of a test the same from one version to the next, differences are inevitable. Equating allows the test maker to statistically adjust scores so that the average performance on version one of the test is equal to average performance on version two of the test, version three of the test and so on. After undergoing both scaling and equating, scaled scores should be interchangeable and easily comparable no matter which version of the test was taken.   Equating Example Lets look at an example to see how the equating process can impact scaled scores on standardized tests.  Imagine that say you and a friend are taking the SAT. You will both be taking the exam at the same test center, but you will be taking the test in January, and your friend will be taking the test in February. You have different testing dates, and there is no guarantee that you will both take the same version of the SAT. You may see one form of the test, while your friend sees another. Although both tests have similar content, the questions are not exactly the same. After taking the SAT, you and your friend get together and compare your results. You both got a raw score of 50 on the math section, but your scaled score is 710 and your friends scaled score is 700. Your pal wonders what happened since both of you got the same number of questions correct. But the explanation is pretty simple; you each took a different version of the test, and your version was more difficult than his. To get the same scaled score on the SAT, he would have needed to answer more questions correctly than you. Test makers that use an equating process use a different formula to create a unique scale for each version of the exam. This means that there is no one raw-to-scale-score conversion chart that can be used for every version of the exam. That is why, in our previous example, a raw score of 50 was converted into 710 on one day and 700 on another day. Keep this in mind as you are taking practice tests and using conversion charts to transform your raw score into a scaled score. Purpose of Scaled Scores Raw scores are definitely easier to calculate than scaled scores. But testing companies want to make sure that test scores can be fairly and accurately compared even if test takers take different versions, or forms, of the test on different dates. Scaled scores allow for accurate comparisons and ensure that people who took a more difficult test are not penalized, and people who took a less difficult test are not given an unfair advantage.

Social Science Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Social Science Studies - Essay Example This has been one of the most profound scientific investigations of man kind. The search for the answers to life have eluded man for decades, although in recent years many evolutionists, researchers, religious leaders, and other renowned historians claim that they are closer than ever to gaining the answers to the questions that have been sought after for centuries. Much of this is based on the phenomenon of religion and what it means to people in society. If anything, religion gives people something steadfast to believe in, and brings a source of inspiration to many lives. Without this specific icon of belief there are many that claim life would be blank and meaningless because religion is a part of the natural history of man. It is also claimed that the concept of religion was developed to exert social control over various groups in society. This is stated because it is known that the body of religion leads to many human emotions and activities. Some of these being very profound emotional states such as fear, wonder, reverence, gratitude, love, prayer, worship, and ultimate sacrifice (Swatos 2006). There is no doubt that those who follow a religious faith turned towards their religion as a guidance to help them in their lives. Also, whether people are going through good times or bad, they are found to worship what they believe in and it dictates many aspects of their life to them, basically in a sense of understanding what is right and wrong. Furthermore, as has been mentioned, many moral decisions are based around the essence of religion. For Christians, they realize that committing an act such as murder might condemn them to hell so by following the structure of their religious teachings they would ref rain themselves from such an act regardless of what might have lead to the contemplation of it to begin with. So it can be seen that another possibility for the science of religion lies in the concept of morals in human kind (Cline 2006). To delve a little deeper into the meaning in behind religion it is found that a great deal of people who are religious turn to their beliefs for many answers. They do believe that what they worship will provide them with the answers that they seek. At times this is very true and others it is not, but it gives purpose to many peoples lives. As it has been stated, those who follow a religious stature would not fully grasp their purpose in life or feel as whole without its presence. In this regard many could claim that it developed to bring a sense of peace to the human race so that they would feel more at ease in times of troubles and strife. It is feasible to see how the scientific context for religion has developed through the ages. The search for how human kind developed lead to the strong need of faith to try and interpret and understand for many, many people throughout the world. Though many religious ideas differ they all hold certain similarities as well. For whatever the reason it has become a very profound state of being in the world for many different ethnicities and cultural groups. Education Education in society has a variety of reasons for developing and playing a big part in the social life of all people. Without the educational system societies all

Gold Marilyn Monroe and Self-Portrait with Cropped Hair Essay

Gold Marilyn Monroe and Self-Portrait with Cropped Hair - Essay Example The essay "Gold Marilyn Monroe and Self-Portrait with Cropped Hair" analyzes wo paintings, Self-Portrait with Cropped Hair by Frida Kahlo and Gold Marilyn Monroe by Andy Warhol. Self-Portrait with Cropped Hair, by Frida Kahlo hangs at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, currently on show among other masterpieces of the time. Kahlo painted this medium-sized canvas in 1940, shortly after her divorce from Diego Rivera. Theirs was a tempestuous relationship, shown by their remarriage the following year and the content of this picture, which shows Kahlo after she sheared off most of her long hair . Many art critics have opinions about why she painted herself in such a masculine way: short hair, man’s suit, unladylike posture. It is perhaps to state that after her husband’s infidelity with her own sister Cristina, she was making herself unattractive, unfeminine and unapproachable. Others say she always had masculine tendencies, shown by her relationships with women. The tru th lies somewhere between, more related to grief and mourning than to statements of gender. Kahlo was part Jewish. She was very close to her German-Jewish father Wilhelm Kahlo , and was probably expressing the Jewish way of grieving something lost, something dead: her love. The verse from Jeremiah (Ch 7, v 29), in the Old Testament: ‘Shave your head in mourning, and weep alone on the mountains.’ And in Micah Ch 1:1, ‘Weep, you people of Judah! Shave your heads in sorrow...’ are well known. It is almost certain Kahlo would have known.

Mercedes M class Essay Example for Free

Mercedes M class Essay This year Mercedes-Benz Company announcing the new M Class SUVs for their middle aged costumers. The M Class offers a stylish alternative to box-on-box SUVs, and can be equipped with as much off-road capability as most drivers would ever need. It doesn’t go light on luxury or amenities, either, and its cabin feels more like a Mercedes sedan than a premium sport-use. In fact, Mercedes has made an effort to step up its materials, fit and finish game on the inside of third-generation M Class models, and its efforts show. Market segmentation strategy The purpose for segmenting a market is to allow your marketing/sales program to focus on the subset of prospects that are most likely to purchase your offering. There are four different dimensions used to describe a product’s market segmentation. These four things are demographic, behavioral, psychographic, and geographic. The most popular marketing segmentation used by researchers is the demographic segmentation. Demographic segmentation: Mercedes Benz M class demographic includes adults, both male and female, mostly middle-aged people. They are not very popular with youngsters since the brand is very expensive. Yes there is college kids and in some cases even high school kids with Mercedes Benz cars, but they were still purchased by their parents. Due to their relative expense, * 2013 Mercedes-Benz M class /http://www.caranddriver.com/news/2013-mercedes-benz-gl-class-photos-and-info-news The M class is targeted to people of middle to high incomes. Unlike Chrysler or GMC, for instance, Mercedes doesn’t offer prices ranging from high to low so the products don’t resemble consumers with a low income. Behavioral segmentation: is the most powerful approach because it uses actual consumer behavior or product usage to make distinctions among market segments. When referring to the M class behavioral segmentation, it is purchased among heavy users, it’s a car you can use on a day-to-day basis, whether going to work or to the grocery store. Most of the people that purchase the M class do it for different reasons; quality, beauty, speed, etc. Psychographic segmentation: the M class is commonly purchased among  people who have a family, since it’s a SUV. Some of the reasons its customers prefer the M class is for its safety, and by being a luxury car it gives you a certain status among society. When referring to the geographic segmentation of the M class, it is mainly targeted toward somewhat wealthy countries. The M class is sold worldwide m even though its biggest market is in the United States. Other target markets for the M class may include single males, females, single parents with or without children or teenagers, married couples, and males and females who are divorced. There are many different target markets for the M class and the ones mentioned before are its main target markets. Positioning: Mercedes Benz has always been known for delivering quality, reliability and its safety. Delivering Mercedes-brand qualities and features at a more moderate price is a luxury marketing strategy conceived with a long range vision. Their goal is to build lifetime brand loyalty by meeting the automobile consumer at nearly every price point throughout their progress through different life stages. In line with the Mercedes-Benz brand philosophy, the new Mercedes-Benz M-Class represents the embodiment of the Mercedes-Benz holistic safety concept of Real Life Safety, which is derived from what happens in a real accident situation. In combination with the front and rear deformation zones, the high-strength passenger cell of the M-Class provides a highly effective foundation for the occupant protection systems. Both active safety and driver-fitness safety in the new M-Class are further improved by assistance systems that will already be familiar, primarily from the S-Class and E-Class. Reference: 1. Benz says its like a three-row S-class, but theres also a heck of a lot of M-class. / http://www.leftlanenews.com/new-car-buying/mercedes-benz/m-class/review/ 2. Mercedes Benz M class /http://www.caranddriver.com/news/2013-mercedes-benz-gl-class-photos-and-info-news/ 3. On Mercedes Benz’ luxury /http://www.smallbusinessadvocate.com/small-business-articles/on-mercedes-benz-luxury-1111/

Their Eyes Were Watching God Essays - Janies Life and the Pear Tree :: Their Eyes Were Watching God Essays

Their Eyes Were Watching God - Janie's Life and the Pear Tree          Their Eyes Were Watching God is a story centered on the idea of life cycles.   The experiences that Janie faces and struggles through in her life represent the many cycles that she has been present for.   Each cycle seem to take place with the start of each new relation ship that she faces.   Each relationship that Janie is involved in not just marriages, blooms and withers away like the symbol of Janie's life the pear tree from her childhood.           Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Janie's Grandmother is the first bud on her tree.   She raised Janie since she was a little girl.   Her grandmother is in some respects a gardener pruning and shaping the future for her granddaughter.   She tries to instill a strong belief in marriage.   To her marriage is the only way that Janie will survive in life.   What Nanny does not realize is that Janie has the potential to make her own path in the walk of life.   This blinds nanny, because she is a victim of the horrible effects of slavery.   She really tries to convey to Janie that she has her own voice but she forces her into a position where that voice is silenced and there for condemning all hopes of her Granddaughter become the woman that she is capable of being.           Ã‚  Ã‚   The affect of Nanny is the marriage to her first of three husbands, Logan.   He is a man that sees no wife in his relationship with Janie he sees a worker.   The intelligence of Janie to realize this is a prime example of the capabilities that Janie possesses as an independent woman.   Logan is the pollution to Janie's tree of life.   He is good for one thing and that is delaying the inevitable; delaying Janie from realizing that she can be a woman with an inelegant thought not just a good house worker.   He prevents the self-sufficient woman in Janie from reaching its potential.         Ã‚  Ã‚   The next cycle is that of Joe Starks.   The role of this marriage is of a different nature.   Janie no longer is a house slave.   She chooses to take the role of a trophy wife in the times that this takes place in.

Jury Advantages Disadvantages And Reforms Essay

In 1956 Lord Devlin professed that juries are ‘the lamp that shows that freedom lives’. Evaluate the accuracy of this statement with regard to the advantages and disadvantages of trial by jury, the alternatives available and any reforms that have been introduced or recommended. You are to produce an essay as follows Critically evaluate pros and cons the arguments for and against trial by jury Discuss any reforms that have been proposed or introduced and evaluate these reforms pros and cons This essay will evaluate the argument for and against the jury system, discuss and evaluate proposed or recent reforms to the jury system in England and Wales. Finally, it will consider the alternatives to the current jury system. For over one thousand years the jury system has been in place in the legal system, which to some can seem bizarre to ask twelves random people with no training or experience in this field to decide someone else’s fate . At first the use of the jury was providing local knowledge and acting more like witnesses rather than the decision makers that they are seen as today. They are now independent assessors of deciding fact. One advantage of trial by jury is public confidence. A jury is considered by most as one of the fundamentals of a democratic society and the right to be tried by our peers has been supported by many renowned judges. There are also new qualifications for jury service enabling almost everyone a chance to serve on a jury and creating a c ross section of society. The use of a jury is very old and still takes place in society today showing that it must be a fair way to judge the accused and that society must have confidence in the jury system. Another significant factor in the advantages of having a jury is jury equity. The vast majority of people who are selected for jury service are not legal experts and have no previous case knowledge, they do not have to follow previous cases or acts of parliament when deciding whether or not a person is guilty. A further advantage of jury equity is not having to give a reason for the verdict that they have reached. This was put into place when Edward Bushell appealed against his treatment as a juror and he won the right for the jury to be able to come to their own decision even if the  judge does not agree (Bushell’s case 1670). Thirdly, the jury system is seen to be an open system of justice, meaning that a jury makes the legal system more open. This is because members of society are taking part in a vital role which makes the process public. A positive result of having lay people in court is that the law will be kept much clearer because the majority of things said will have to be clearly explained to the jury and it also gives the defendant a chance to understand the case too. Conversely, the jury deliberate in private and do not have to give any reasons as to why they have come to their decision, suggesting that the legal system is not fully open, unlike judges who have to explain their reasoning for a judgement they have made and if they make any mistakes it is then known by others and can be appealed against. A final point of advantages of juries is impartiality. A jury should always be impartial due to the way that they are selected. The process of the jury being selected is random and should create a cross section of society where the people all have different backgrounds and views resulting in any biases being cancel led out. Having discussed the advantages of having a jury, it is important to also discuss the limitations too. A disadvantage of a jury would be perverse decisions. Earlier in the essay when discussing the advantages of a jury, jury equity was spoke about. However, this can also be seen as a disadvantage because to some it is unjustified and perverse. An example of this would be the case R v Randle and Pottle (1991). Where the defendants were charged with helping a spy escape from prison however this did not come about until it had been wrote about in a book twenty five years later. The jury acquitted the defendants and it was thought that they did that because of the length of time it had been since the offence and the time of the prosecution. Although secrecy can be seen as an advantage to safeguard jurors from stresses of others, it can be considered a disadvantage too. The reason for this is because all of the deliberating is completed privately there is no way of anybody knowing if the jury did in fact fully understand the case. There is also no way of knowing if the jury have come to th e verdict that they have chosen for all of the correct reasons. Bias is also another disadvantage although some people might think that a jury cannot be biased because there are twelve people however there can still be prejudice which can then affect the verdict. An example would be that some people are biased  towards the police which is why people with specific criminal convictions are disqualified from sitting on a jury. Another example would be Sander v United Kingdom (2000) one juror had written a letter to the judge explaining that some of the other jurors had been making racist remarks. The judge then asked the jury to ‘search their consciences’ and the next day he received two letters, one signed by all of the jurors stating that there had been no racist remarks and the second letter from only one juror explaining that he had been the person making the racist jokes. Despite all of the letters and the case was allowed to continue with the same jury. However, the European Court of Human Rights held that under those circumstan ces the judge should have discharged the jury because there was a potential risk of racial bias. Each of the advantages and disadvantages make an important contribution to our understanding of our jury system and whether or not they are the best way to try defendants but despite all of the disadvantages with the jury system it is still used today which suggests that they must be an advantage rather than a disadvantage. Despite the criticisms of having a jury the popularity of them remains largely undiminished and the best process available. Nevertheless, there could be some other alternatives to having a jury. One would be trial by a single judge, this method is mainly used in civil court cases it is also known for being a fairer, more predictable result. Even so, there is not much public confidence in the use of a trial by single judge to decide serious criminal cases. This is because judges can become case hardened and prosecution minded. They are also known to be from very elite backgrounds and would not have much understanding of defendants and their backgrounds. Another option would be a panel of judges just like in other European countries where three to five judges sit on a panel together. It seems like a better idea having a panel of judges rather than a single judge as the different views would balance out but the fact still remains that they can be case hardened, prosecution minded and come from an elite background. Having a panel of judges would be very expensive compared to a jury where they are not paid. In Scandinavian countries they have a system where a judge sits with two lay people. This does seem like it would be a good idea as the judge could provide legal expertise and the lay people offer a better view of society than the judge as it has already been established that judges are not a cross section of society, they are much  more elite. There have been many reforms and proposals of reforms within the jury system. Some of the reforms are being drawn up to try and cut the costs of court cases as it could save around thirty million pounds per year. ‘Juries in minor theft cases, assaults, burglaries, some drug offences, criminal damage cases and some driving cases will be scrapped under the reforms, The Times reported’. It seems there is a need for some reforms to be made on the current system for it to cope with modern crimes by keeping justice updated. Overall, having trial by jury for a numerous amount of years suggests that it is successful and must be sensible to keep it. Granting there are other alternatives that have been recommended to the jury system there have not been any better options as of yet to decide the fate of defendants. It seems likely that trial by jury is more of an advantage to the public than a disadvantage as explained earlier that the public would rather be tried by regular people rather than those of an elite background, so does this suggest that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages? It seems that trial by jury will still continue for many years and will remain to be an asset to society. Bibliography Martin J. (2011) ‘OCR Law for AS’ Second Ed Famous cases: Bushel’s case in 1670 — Brightside. 2015. Famous cases: Bushel’s case in 1670 — Brightside. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.brightknowledge.org/knowledge-bank/law-and-politics/features-and-resources/independent-juries-bushel2019s-case-1670. [Accessed 29 January 2015]. Trial by jury faces axe in thousands of cases as courts try to cut costs | Daily Mail Online. 2015. Trial by jury faces axe in thousands of cases as courts try to cut costs | Daily Mail Online. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2087212/Trial-jury-faces-axe-thousands-cases-courts-try-cut-costs.html#ixzz3QFUAxgyj. [Accessed 29 January 2015].

The change in marriage and divorce figures over a 20 year period

In this essay I will look at the change in marriage and divorce figures over a 20 year period. I will look mainly at the area of divorce and how this may have affected the relationships within marriage, within my chosen time scale, to explore how a changing society may have resulted in the breakdown (or choice to not undertake) marriage. I have looked at data from 1978 and then at 1998 from the official statistics for these two areas. I will look at data from two separate years, only twenty years apart to show what changes if any can be seen in such a small time scale. The data I will use is taken from the ‘Office of Population Censuses Surveys'. Marriage and divorce Statistics (1980 &1998). I have converted them to percentages, to make them easer to understand and rounded them to the nearest 0. 01%. I have not included the widowed figures in this essay! As this is not a choice like divorce or marriage. Looking back over the divorce rates and how they have changed, showed that from as far back as 1901 to the late 1960's with only a small increase from the 60's to the late 1970's. Divorce rates were quite consistent from 1. 4% to 2%. Then between the late 1970's to today a huge leap. Between 1978 and 1980, there was a vast amount of movement in the rights of women in respect of work and benefits rights. As well as social changes in respect of how divorce and signal mothers were viewed. Was there a shift from a patriarchy society? Women became able to function in society without a man or marriage. So what do the stats show? In 1978 Looking across all (adult) age groups, 50. 5% were marred, 40. % were single. With those divorced showing only 2. 1%, the figures for 1998 show that 43. 7% were single, with only 42. 8% marred. This shows one area of change, less people getting marred, although the figures do not indicate those living together unmarried (which raises the question of value placed on the position or marriage in today's society). When we look at the figures for divorce in 1978 then at 1998, the change is easy to see. In 1978 only 2. 1% of adults were divorced, only 20 years later it was 6. % an increase of 4. 7% more. The years after the war up to 1978 showed only a small difference form the 1945 to 1978, only 0. 5%. Yet in this 20 year section there is a rapid increase, the figures also shows an increase of remarriages. If we take away those remarried, the divorce rate is 10%. The age people marry today has also changed, 26. 8 % in 1978 were marred by 25 years old. By 1998 this had dropped to only 10. 3%. And later in life, age 65 to 70 years of age. Over 51% marred in 1998 as apposed to 29. 3% in 1978. The figures show in 1978 marriage lasted longer with less ending in divorce, by 1998 marriage was ‘later in life', with more chance of divorce, and this also raised the amount of 2nd marriages. NOTE:[Divorce rates did jump between 1972 and 1972 but this is could be argued was a result of the Divorce Reform Act of 1969] The way we record ‘what is' a family unit has been forced to change with less people marrying; a family in the 70's was; â€Å"a social unit consisting of a wife, husband and dependent children† (Huges & Fergusson 2000, P49) Whereas today; â€Å"a family is defined as a marred or cohabiting couple, with or with out their never married children (who have no children of their own), or a loan parent with such children. People living alone are not considered to form a family† (social trends, 1999, P43) In 1997 there were only 310,000 marriages altogether, this was the lowest recorded figures of the 20th century, and more divorces were brought by women on the grounds of ‘unreasonable behavior' some 70% (ONS, 2000, p. 9) This is could be argued marks a change with women now making sociality move away from a patriarchal ideology, some commentators in the 70's talked of marriage moving towards one of symmetry; Michael Young and peter Willmott argued that women no longer needed the ‘male bread winner', and with more legal support and better rights in/access to employment, the relationships within marriage hade to change, Young and Willmott said; this symmetry could be seen in division of labor in the home, with the old distinction between men's and women's jobs becoming increasingly blurred, a shift to joint decision making, and increasing sheared social life† Young and Willmott 1973 p. 343) So not only the way the family unit is seen in society has changed, it could be argued, but the relationships within marriage undergone change. In this small gap of 20 years, women it could be argued have more control, no longer has the man got more power then the woman in the home relationship. Of course this is not true of the ‘older generation', although with social change each generation brings its own values to the front. We can see today with marriage declining, more ending in divorce, modern society places less value on marriage than there parents did. Old moral values are been eroded away, for a faster consumer orientated society. Things are for today and out of fashion next week. It would seam that if current trends continue as they have from 1978 to 1998; will anybody both to get married in 30 years time. Will relationships become more of a casual affair? Will women gain more control than men with in relationships. Women with the emergence of things such as ‘the pill', sperm banks for single [potential mothers] women. The position of men within society us under more pressure and question the more we move into the ‘new' modern equal society.

the tunnel of samos Essays

the tunnel of samos Essays the tunnel of samos Essay the tunnel of samos Essay One of the greatest engineering achievements of ancient times is a water tunnel, 1,036 meters (4,000 feet) long, excavated through a mountain on the Greek island of Samos in the sixth century B. C. It was dug through solid limestone by two separate teams advancing in a straight line from both ends, using only picks, hammers, and chisels. This was a prodigious feat of manual labor. The intellectual feat of determining the direction of tunneling was equally impressive. How did they do this? No one knows for sure, because no written records exist. When the tunnel was dug, the Greeks had no magnetic compass, no surveying nstruments, no topographic maps, nor even much written mathematics at their disposal. Euclids Elements, the first major compendium of ancient mathematics, was written some 200 years later. There are, however, some convincing explana-tions, the oldest of which is based on a theoretical method devised by Hero of Alexandria five centuries after the tunnel was completed. It calls for a series of right-angled traverses around the mountain beginning at one entrance of the proposed tunnel and ending at the other, main-taining a constant elevation, as suggested by the diagram below left. By measuring the net istance traveled in each of two perpendicular directions, the lengths of two legs of a right triangle are determined, and the hypotenuse of the triangle is the proposed line of the tunnel. By laying out smaller similar right triangles at each entrance, markers can be used by each crew to determine the direction for tunneling. Later in this article I will apply Heros method to the terrain on Samos. Heros plan was widely accepted for nearly 2,000 years as the method used on Samos until two British historians of science visited the site in 1958, saw that the terrain would have made this method unfeasible, and suggested an alternative f their own. In 1993, I visited Samos myself to investigate the pros and cons of these two methods for a Project MATHEMATICS! ideo program, and realized that the engineering problem actually to be determined at the same elevation above sea level; and second, the direction for tunneling between these points must be established. I will describe possible solutions for each part; but first, some historical background. Samos, Just off the coast of Turkey in the Aegean Sea, is the eighth largest Greek island, with an area of less than 200 square miles. Separated from Asia Minor by the narrow Strait f Mycale, it is a colorful island with lush vegeta-tion, beautiful bays and beaches, an d an abun-dance of good spring water. Samos flourished in the sixth century B. C. during the reign of the tyrant Polycrates (570-522 B. C. ), whose court attracted poets, artists, musicians, philosophers, and mathematicians from all over the Greek world. His capital city, also named Samos, was situated on the slopes of a mountain, later called Mount Castro, dominating a natural harbor and the narrow strip of sea between Samos and Asia Minor. The historian Herodotus, who lived in Samos in 457 B. C. , described it as the most famous city of its time.

6th Grade Science Fair Projects

6th Grade Science Fair Projects Ideas for 6th-grade science fair projects can be a challenge to conceive. Projects need to be sophisticated and elaborate enough to show complex thinking but not so complex that they would be impossible for a sixth-grader to execute. These are topics and experiments suitable for upper-grade school or entry-level middle school. General Project Ideas The ideas in this section and the following one are phrased as questions because that is generally how schools require sixth-grade students to announce their projects, as a question, or hypothesis, to be tested and answered. What types of fruits or vegetables are suitable for making a battery?Which apps run down a cell phone battery most quickly or use up a lot of data. This is a good project for making attractive graphs.How much paper is required to register for school? Can you propose a way to streamline the process to make it more environmentally friendly? Would this process save time or money?What exactly does a vacuum cleaner pick up? Use a magnifying glass or microscope to look at the contents of a bag or canister. What types of material are not picked up?Does coloring carbonated water change how its taste is perceived?How long does it take for milk to go bad refrigerated and unrefrigerated? What about juice?Do all crayons have the same melting points? Why or why not?Do different types of carbonated sodas have different pH? Do you think this can affect tooth decay?What types of fruits, vegetables, and flowers can be used to make a pH indicator? Make some indicator solution, write up a protocol, and test home chemicals to explore the color range of your solution. Can you tell different brands of soda pop apart based on taste?Do some plants grow better inside than outside? More Complex Projects The projects in this section tend to be slightly more complex than those suggested in the previous section. They are still appropriate for sixth-grade science fair projects but may take more steps and/or time to execute. What type of air freshener makes a school bus smell best to the greatest number of students?Which type of water contains the lowest amount of chlorine?What type of insulation holds in heat the best?Do different types of knots affect the breaking strength of a rope?Does wiping a doorknob with an antibacterial wipe really reduce the numbers of bacteria? Does using hand sanitizer really reduce the amount of bacteria on your hands?How do different flame retardants affect the flammability and burning rate of cotton?Which cooking method results in the least loss of vitamin C?Does temperature affect the maximum size you can inflate a balloon?Does the color of a crayon affect how long of a line it will write?Does changing the temperature affect how long a pen will last?Do all types of bread mold at the same rate? Tips and Hints By the sixth grade, students should have a good understanding of the steps of the scientific method. The best science fair project ideas will be ones with a hypothesis that is tested by an experiment. Then, the student decides whether to accept or reject the hypothesis and draws a conclusion. This is also a good grade level for presenting data in graphs and charts. Parents and teachers need to understand that sixth-graders still need help with ideas, especially finding ideas that use materials that are readily available and that can be completed within the allotted time frame. One way to come up with a good idea is to look around the house and find topics a sixth-grader may have questions about. Brainstorm these questions and find ones that can be written as a testable hypothesis.

Determination of Nitrous oxide in gases Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Determination of Nitrous oxide in gases - Essay Example The paper is a comparative review of a few of the methods used in determination of nitrous oxide in gases. It has been concluded after a time, quality and cost-benefit analysis, that the use of passive diffusion sampling methods followed by thermal desorption and analysis with an EC-GC may be the optimal choice. Ambient air bag sampling- Personnel are fitted with air bags that passively collect fumes of nitrous oxide. The gas is absorbed in an appropriate sorbant material. An active sampling involves filling a sampling bag by means of a personal pump provided with a driving device or another equivalent method. The major disadvantage of the method being that the bags can get punctured and cannot be airlifted unless they are stored in pressurized cabins. Besides the potential for leakage is higher and leak checks using the soap bubble technique have to be performed. (US Govt. NIOSH documents-http://www.cdc.gov/niosh ) Passive dosimeter badges- Workers exposed to Nitrous oxide wear the badges and these absorb the vapour by diffusion principles. The minimum time for exposure is one hour and the maximum is 40 hours (one work day). Sampling capacity 560ppm-hrs, detection limit- 2ppm-hrs, sampling rate- 0.75ml/min, functions between 10%-80% relative humidity, accuracy (Max. Total Error) 25%, functional temperature limits are between 0C-50C (affect result by 5%). The major advantages are that, "no sampling pump is required... The major disadvantage is that badges have to be analysed within one week after the sample period for accuracy. Badges must be used before the expiration date and are usually more expensive than diffusion tubes (http://www.assaytech.com; http://www.labsafety.com) Passive diffusion tubes- Steel tubes packed with molecular sieves and caped with diffusive caps. It has been found that the method is valid for detecting Nitrous oxide between 25 and 1000ppm. The quantitative detection limit is at 2 g. Passive monitors work accurate between 60-90% RH at 25C and can measure concentrations as high as 500ppm for 8 hours. The NIOSH declares the method as, "adequate," for measuring Nitrous Oxide in air as the method is not bulky, does not involve liquids and does not require pre and post calibration. Some types of tubes can be stored in temperatures between 20C-25C for a period of 30 days. Sample recoveries in 30 days were found to be 10% compared to results in day 2. Recovery rates were found to be 98%-100% is varying concentrations. The one disadvantage is because of reliance on samples being tested at the vendor site (http://www.cdc.gov/niosh) Active diffusion tubes- The sample is collected filling a sampling bag by means of a personal pump provided with a driving device or another equivalent method. They consist of a pump that pulls a constant amount of air (usually in l/min), the molecular sieve and a clip for attaching the device onto the breathing zone. No change in results were noted under a Relative Humidity (RH) of 90% under 25 C. Recovery rates were found to be between 99%-100% in varying concentration. The advantage of the method is that it is usually more

FDI Albania Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5500 words

FDI Albania - Dissertation Example The goal of this study is to identify the external opportunities, threats, trends and strategic uncertainties that may be present in Albania, the country chosen for investment. Albania is a country that has recently joined the open economy system. It is encouraging foreign investments thru different government policy measures. However, before foreign investments get in place, there is a need to make an environment analysis on whether or not the country is an appropriate place for investment. Thru available methods of analysis, development of performance is provided as background information, the economic growth of Albania is reviewed, weaknesses of the country system are discovered, and threats for the operations of an investor are found. Conclusion provides benchmark information that could be used by the government in making the country feasible for foreign investment. The overall assessment is explained as a business cycle experienced by the Albanian government. A business cycle is perceived to be a general experience present in all economies, but its length and depth differs in each country experience. Albania is lucky to have a short lived period of recession as it shows signs of recovery already although it is still far into getting back to its former shape. Environment analysis of Albania Introduction Globalization has led to the interests of foreign investors in investing to emerging economies and to the developing countries. Logically, these foreign investors conduct an environment analysis to find out the most efficient economy among various options available. Among the most favoured places for investment are the big emerging markets; i.e. Brazil, China, Egypt, Indonesia, Mexico, Philippines, Poland, Russia, South Africa, South Korea and Turkey. Albania, which is the subject of this analysis, is unfortunately not included among the lists classified by analysts of FSTSE, Dow Jones, and The Economists. Purpose of this research The motivation in conductin g this research is to find out whether the economic environment of Albania provides an impetus of interest to foreign investors. Findings will be relevant to policy makers in order to adapt measures that will encourage foreign investors to become players in various investments opened by the government. In this context a country report analysis will be provided to analyze whether the political and economic trends in Albania will have an effect in the short to medium term prospects of investments of foreign companies. The report will constitute the issues shaping Albania, the political scene, economic policy, domestic economy, sector trends, foreign trade and payments. Background – the development performance of Albania Albania is a South Eastern European Country situated on the Adriatic and Ionian Coast with a population of 3.2 million ( CIA Factbook, 2011) After World War II Albania became a Stalinist state under Enver Hoxha, and remained staunchly isolationist until its tran sition to democracy after 1990. The 1992 elections ended 47 years of communist rule, but the latter half of the decade saw a quick turnover of presidents and prime ministers. Many Albanians left the country in search of work; the money they

Historical Influence of Soccer in Africa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Historical Influence of Soccer in Africa - Essay Example Football in Africa today is a game of skill, violence and ebullient spontaneity. The richness of the talent has not been watched by the administrative expertise to bring it to full fruition. Africa has to overcome poverty of natural resources but instead of falling into despair the young African children of Africa turn to soccer as their way out in some cases. will establish an instant connection. Soccer in Africa is followed passionately all over. One could easily establish when football is being played. This is through a country becoming into a standstill when soccer is being played. The development of soccer in Africa has been enhanced in the recent past. Boys and young girls no longer stay idle in their leisure time. Everywhere you go in Africa be it Morocco, South Africa, Nigeria, Congo, Kenya e.t.c. you will find young boys and girls kicking around a football.2 Sometimes the ball will be made of plastic bags with strings wrapped around it. Sometimes it will be made of crumpled up paper. As long as it can be kicked, there will be a game.3 After 1960's soccer in Africa has developed greatly. However, it is yet to reach the level of the game in Europe and Latin America. To speed up its development, Confederation of African Football (CAF) was formed to spearhead and manage soccer in Africa. Under CAF, Africa Cup of nations was started. This is a league that brings together all African countries in finals for African Cup of Nations qualifiers. This league was started in 1957 and it has gone through various stages to be where it is today. Confederation of African football CAF) was founded in 1956 and immediately began making plans for a continental championship tournament. Four teams were expected to play in the first tournament, hosted by Sudan in February of 1957. However, South ______________________ 2. Ibid 3. www.cafonline.com. Africa which was expected to play was excluded because of its apartheid government wouldn't send a multi-racial team, so it came down to just three, that is Egypt, Ethiopia and the host Sudan. Since then, the field for the African Cup of nations has gradually increased to four. Six, eight, twelve and presently fifteen teams. Originally the tournament was to be played in odd numbered years. However, the 1961 event was postponed to 1962, resulting in championships in consecutive years, and the 1967 also had moved back a year. Since 1968, the tournament has been played biennially, in even-numbered years. Besides the African Cup of nations, there are other leagues which are played under the confederation of African Football. These tournaments are as follows:- The African Youth Championship: this is the main international football competition for confederation of African football. This football competition is played by under 20 years old players. The competition is played with the top four teams qualifying for the FIFA World Youth championship. Until 1989 the African representatives were determined purely on a qualifying basis with no African title on the line. Since 1991, there has been qualifying stage followed by a final

Neo Realism In Italian Cinema

Neo Realism In Italian Cinema In complete contrast to the Fascist cinema it superseded, Neo-Realism was committed to representing life as it is lived. With this in mind, analyse the reasons why Neo-Realism as a movement lasted only ten years. Please refer to at least two films. In contrast to the Fascist cinema that it superseded, Neo-Realism was committed to representing life as it is lived; its films are therefore characterised by narratives set amongst Italys poorest, examining the difficult economic and moral conditions experienced during World War Two and in the post-war years. The movement has therefore been labelled a moral and aesthetic cinema (lecture, Heath-Williams, A., 2009). This essay will discuss and examine the reasons why Italian Neo-Realism lasted just ten years, between 1942 and 1952 (Cook, P., 2007: 233). It will focus briefly on Fascist cinema and then examine Neo-Realism and some of its key films, notably those by Rossellini, De Sica and Visconti, and the subsequent moves by these directors away from Neo-Realism to more individual projects. It will then assess the variety of state and Church constraints imposed on Neo-Realism during its ten years, and will discuss changes in the tastes of contemporary audiences, to determine whether it was these changes that ultimately sounded the death-knell for the movement. Italian film production was virtually non-existent after World War One and cinemas were forced to show only foreign films, which was intolerable for the Fascist regime (filmreference.com, 2010). Following intervention by Mussolinis government the industry slowly revived throughout the 1930s, creating an Italian, rather than a specifically Fascist cinema (Cook, P., 2007: 233). Fascist filmmakers did make some films that have been rightly dismissed as propaganda, such as the short newsreels that were made to educate not entertain the public. However, of the seven hundred or so films produced by them, most were not actually propaganda films, but rather were entertaining, patriotic epics, such as Red Passport (dir. Brignone, 1935), which highlights an Italian peasants love for his country, as he returned home from abroad and fought and died for Italy in The Great War (Bondanella, P., 2009: 49). In complete contrast, the same film industry also produced White Telephone films a derogatory name coined by the Italian public (allmovie.com, 2010). These films are big-budget melodramatic productions frequently set in grand hotels, fancy nightclubs or on luxurious ocean-liners, with each film featuring a distinctive white telephone, which was viewed as a symbol of middle-class bourgeois wealth. They portray a false view of Italian life, as the existence led by most Italians was the exact opposite of that being shown onscreen. Indeed, within these films, the simple protagonists always found a simplistic resolution to their equally simplistic and insipid dilemmas (greencine.com, 2010), which was wholly unreflective of Italys reality. These films were intended to distract the Italian public from that reality and to recreate the box office success of the popular Hollywood narratives of the 1930s. Mussolini also encouraged the filming of grand, historical epics that were intended to ma ke Italians proud of their Roman history (greencine.com, 2010) again, another distraction from contemporary problems. Whilst Fascist cinema tended to produce decadent white telephone films, there were calls for filmmakers to develop a film realism that was authentically Italian (filmreference.com, 2010). With the outbreak of war in 1939 and the increasing breakdown of Italian society, a number of screenwriters also began to call for a cinema that resembled the Verismo or reality of 19th century Italian literature (Bordwell, D., Thompson, K., 2008: 459). Italian directors and writers were also influenced by French films of the 1930s and by Calligraphist films of the early 1940s, which were heavily reliant on the finest of detail (Bondanella, P., 2009: 52, 53). This use of fine detail and mise-en-scene would become a major aspect of the Neo-Realist movement. Although philosophical ideas formed the basis of the Neo-Realist movement, the main aim and true goal of the movement was to express societys issues in an entirely new and innovative way. Accordingly, Neo-Realist films may be seen as something o f a reaction against the white telephone dramas and superficial Hollywood imports of the 1930s (cinema-scope.com, 2010). Neo-Realism was therefore a rejection of Fascism and fantasy (criterion.com, 2007) but its realism was also born from absolute necessity. Indeed, the reasons for shooting on location and over-dubbing dialogue were purely practical, as Romes Cinecitta studios were heavily bombed by Allied forces and could not be utilised and sound equipment was of poor quality and in short supply (Bordwell, D., Thompson, K., 2008: 459). However, the use of exterior locations rather than studio sets lends the films a great deal of authenticity, because they show the actual physical destruction of the Italian landscape. This destruction as shown in various scenes of bombed-out shells of buildings throughout Rome, Open City (dir. Rossellini, 1945), and Germany, Year Zero (dir. Rossellini, 1947) could not easily be recreated in the studio. Similarly, in Obsession (dir. Visconti, 1943) the director uses the natural degradation of a typical farming community to set his film, and this too is difficult to re create in the studio. Filmmakers were also allowed much more freedom on location with sound and dialogue because everything could be carefully re-recorded later in the studio (Bordwell, D., Thompson, K., 2008: 459). This is evident in the scene from Obsession where the characters are walking back from a singing contest and are filmed chatting together from some distance away; their conversation is obviously over-dubbed, as it could not be recorded naturally during filming with the poor sound equipment available. The use of conversational speech and non-literary dialogue also lends Neo-Realist films an authentic air because it makes characters more realistic, to which audiences can relate. Neo-Realist filmmakers also use many non-professional actors for supporting roles, which adds realism and depth to their characters. Professional actors usually portray the principle characters but sometimes non-professionals are also utilised. The reason for the use of amateurs is because many professional actors perished during the Allied bombings or were exterminated by the Nazis (lecture, Heath-Williams, A., 2009). The use of non-professionals in principle roles gives the films added realism, especially in critical scenes. For example, when Vittorio De Sica was casting actors to play the main character in his iconic film Bicycle Thieves (dir. De Sica, 1948) he chose an ordinary factory worker to play him because, according to De Sica, everything about him was perfect (Bordwell, D., Thompson, K., 2008: 460) for the working class character he had envisioned. A professional actor would simply not have had the life experiences to draw upon to accurately portray him. Neo-Realist films are divided into two distinct categories, that is, Ideology and Style (facstaff.gpc.edu, 2010). Ideologically, Neo-Realist films portray Italy with a new, revitalised democratic spirit, strongly emphasising the value of ordinary, working class people. The films also show a compassionate viewpoint and refused to make superficial moral judgements (lecture, Heath-Williams, A., 2009). Many films are pre-occupied with Italys Fascist past and others deal with the difficult economic and moral conditions faced by Italians throughout the war and during its aftermath. There is one particular scene in Rome, Open City where a mob raids a bakery, stealing everything, including the weighing scales, which perfectly portrays the fear and desperation prevalent in contemporary Rome. Neo-Realist films also have a tendency to emphasise strong emotions rather than abstract ideas to convey their ideas, thereby inviting audiences to empathise with the plots and characters, whose experienc es mirror their own. Stylistically, Neo-Realist films avoid neatly plotted stories in favour of a loose and episodic structure, whilst mixing in a documentary-like visual style (facstaff.gpc.edu, 2010). Obsession is a prime example of the use of this loose structure, with the plot revealing itself like the chapters of a book. Its documentary-like style is shown through its use of real-time long shots, which convey the natural coming-and-goings of the characters, capturing life as it happens. This is perfectly illustrated by the infamous scene in Obsession where Giovanna eats a bowl of pasta and falls asleep at the table in her ramshackle kitchen, which confirms her exhaustion and carefully matches film-time with real-time. It is this style that gives Neo-Realist films their unique perspective, because real life is loose and episodic, it is not neatly plotted or clearly defined, sometimes literally nothing happens as in the pasta eating scene and it often ends unhappily or uncertainly. One of the first directors to focus the attention of international film critics onto Neo-Realism was Roberto Rossellini, a close friend of Mussolinis son, Vittorio. Despite his Fascist background, one of the most notable examples of Neo-Realism can be found in Rossellinis highly acclaimed film, Rome, Open City (lecture, Heath-Williams, A., 2009). The film is centred on the unlikely collaboration between Catholics and Communists fighting the Nazi occupation of Rome, shortly before the Americans liberated the city. Some footage was allegedly shot during the Nazi occupation and subsequent retreat out of Rome because of its accurate portrayal of society at the time. Indeed, Rossellini wanted to convey the cruel atmosphere that existed during the Nazi occupation, and the scene wherein Romes socio-political reality is vividly demonstrated, is when Pina is mercilessly gunned down by German soldiers as she chases the vehicle that takes her lover, Francesco, away. Perhaps, more importantly, f or a director with links to Mussolinis regime, the film with Romes resistance movement at its core has a very real anti-Fascist message. The box-office success of Rome, Open City hinted that a film revolution (ccat.sas.upenn.edu, 1996) was underway, and Rossellini remains true to Neo-Realism in his next two films, Paisan (dir. Rossellini, 1946) and Germany, Year Zero. Paisan is another example of Neo-Realisms use of an episodic structure, as its six sections loosely capturing the Allied defeat of Italy are edited together by authentic newsreel footage. The film further revolutionised filmmaking when Rossellini chose much of his cast from people who simply gathered around when his film crew set up in a town square (ccat.sas.upenn.edu, 1996). His next film, Germany, Year Zero, is set in the ruins of Berlin and shows a German viewpoint of the war and its aftermath. This film, however, was criticised by some Marxist Neo-Realists, who sensed something of a moralistic, less objective tone in this work and a distinct change of direction from Rome, Open City (archive.sensesofcinema.com). Indeed, Rossellini establishes his m oral perspective at the outset of the film when a brief written quotation and accompanying voice-over, appears to suggest that a society that strays from a decent, moral and religious path will undoubtedly plunge into chaos (Bondanella, P., 2009: 80). This is a damning indictment of Germany and its recent experiences under Hitler, but it strays a long way from Neo-Realism and its supposed reluctance to make moral judgements of this nature. Rossellini seems to suggest that German society may have broken down irretrievably because of Hitler, as Germany, Year Zero is full of relentless, bleak imagery, which illustrates its downfall, such as in the scene where desperate Berliners are reduced to eating a horse that has died in the street because they are starving (Bondanella, P., 2009: 81). In contrast, Rome, Open City differs in that Rossellini shows some vestige of hope for Italy, most notably in the scene where a group of young children even though they witness the execution of Don Pietro still find the courage to return to Rome and continue their resistance efforts. However, Rossellinis change of direction is more apparent in his films of the late 1940s and early 1950s as he moves from attempts to capture social realism to the investigation of more complex issues, such as marriage, emotional alienation, and personal despair (Bondanella, P., 2009: 130). Indeed, Rossellinis exploration of these subjects requires the exp ertise of professional actors rather than the gritty amateurs who worked on his Neo-Realist films, which is perhaps his most blatant change of style. Whilst Rossellini brought Neo-Realism to international attention, it was Vittorio De Sica who maintained its impetus (facstaff.gpc.edu, 2010). De Sica was an established film and theatre actor when he turned to filmmaking in 1939, but his films lacked any renown until he began to examine the harsh realities faced by Italians during the war (starpulse.com, 2010). Elements of Neo-Realism can therefore be found in The Children Are Watching Us (dir. De Sica, 1942) with its simple plot, social problems and use of children in key roles. However, it was during the post-war era that De Sica became one of the key figures of Neo-Realism with such classics as Shoeshine (dir. De Sica, 1946) a tragic account of the lives of two children during Americas occupation of Italy and Bicycle Thieves (biography.com, 2010). The latter is undoubtedly his greatest film and, in true Neo-Realist style, is acted mostly by non-professionals, is shot on location and deals with various social issues, including t he impact of long-term unemployment and familial relationships, in this case, between father and son. Shot on the streets of Rome, the films protagonist is Antonio, who finally secures work putting up film posters, but to keep the job he has to have his own bicycle; Antonio and his wife are therefore forced to pawn their bed sheets to secure one. The scene in the pawnshop is poignant, as the shop is overflowing with household goods that have been exchanged for money or alternative goods, which highlights Italys desperate poverty. However, the bike is stolen and the film deals with Antonio and his sons attempts to recover it (facstaff.gpc.edu, 2010). Antonio ultimately steals someone elses bicycle and is apprehended by angry locals, becoming the very person that drove him to where he is now a bicycle thief! There are clearly depths to which even desperate Italians must not descend. Bicycle Thieves successfully highlights Italys bleak situation during the post-war years, and it is this accurate, heartbreaking portrayal that makes it such an achievement. The film is not, however, witho ut controversy, as it exposes societys problems but does not offer solutions to them. Certainly Bicycle Thieves does not have a satisfying happy ending, so perhaps De Sica simply intends that society find its own solutions to the problems he reveals in Bicycle Thieves. His next Neo-Realist production was Miracle In Milan (dir. De Sica, 1951) a comic parable about the clash between Milans rich and poor followed a year later by Umberto D. (dir. De Sica, 1952), which is now accepted as a film masterpiece. However, Umberto D. was a contemporary box-office disaster (starpulse.com), as Italian audiences appeared to prefer Hollywood escapism to De Sicas themes of loneliness, poverty, suffering and the plight of the elderly in society. De Sica was therefore forced to return to more lightweight and commercial films, such as It Happened In The Park (dir. De Sica, 1953). When subsequent films also failed commercially, De Sicas career as a director stalled and, struggling to secure funding for further projects, he returned to acting and did not direct again until 1960 (starpulse.com). Neo-Realists struggled to find funding because the Italian film industry was effectively under state control by the early 1950s (Bordwell, D., Thompson, K., 2008: 460). Indeed, Giulio Andreotti, the Under-secretary of Public Entertainment, introduced a law that limited foreign imports and provided loans for domestic film production, as long as these films were not overtly critical of post-war Italy (Bondanella, P., 2009: 112). Unfortunately, Neo-Realist films clearly fell outside this strict funding criterion. A government committee was actually established to read prospective film scripts and to deny finance to openly political productions (matthewhunt.com). The Catholic Church also began to censor films according to their suitability for screening in its parish cinemas, which had been opened to combat the supposed menace of immorality and Communism as portrayed in Cinema Paradiso (dir. Tornatore, 1989) many years later. And, in 1949, the Vatican actually excommunicated Communist v oters, sympathizers, and their allies (Bondanella, P., 2009: 112), which made producing and watching Neo-Realism films extremely risky in an era when any form of social criticism seemingly equalled Communism. Similarly, as economic prosperity returned to post-war Italy, Neo-Realist films no longer felt as relevant and they started to become obsolete. Italians had recently lived through a very dark time in their history and did not appear to want it continually replayed on the big screen. Perhaps the realism of these films was just a little too accurate and a reminder of times sooner forgotten. Consequently, many Italians turned to the glamorous escapism of imported Hollywood productions and whilst Rome, Open City was the highest grossing domestic film of 1945 (cinema-scope.com, 2010) by 1952 Umberto D. was the aforementioned disaster at the Italian box-office. Indeed, historians date the end of the Neo-Realist movement with the public attacks onà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Umberto D. (Bordwell, D., Thompson, K., 2008: 461). The Neo-Realist movement therefore had to adapt and a modicum of escapist comedy was introduced to dilute the realism and make the films more socially acceptable. The resulting new film style is known as Pink Neo-Realism (matthewhunt.com) that eventually gave way to the distinctive Comedia AllItaliana (matthewhunt.com). The Neo-Realism movement was therefore effectively at an end. During the occupation years the message of the Neo-Realist movement led to a social revolution amongst Italys people and government. However, as Italys post-war resurgence gained strength this message faded, as audiences preferred to forget issues like mass unemployment, extreme poverty, social decay and politics. Realism therefore became the antithesis of social change and filmmakers and audiences ironically gravitated towards the types of films made by the Fascist cinema popular taste had come full circle. With hindsight, however, it is apparent that no other film movement has achieved such an accurate portrayal of real life and won such recognition as the Italian Neo-Realist movement. Its impact on contemporary filmmaking was enormous, establishing the reputations of its key directors and offering audiences some of the outstanding films of the post-war era. And while Italian Neo-Realism lasted just ten brief years, its influence was felt immediately amongst filmmakers of the 1950 s (Bordwell, D., Thompson, K., 2008: 461), and it is still felt amongst filmmakers of today. Bibliography Bondanella, P., 2009, A HeatHistory of Italian Cinema, New York: The Continuum International Publishing Group Ltd. Bondanella, P., 2007, Italian Cinema: From Neorealism To The Present, 3rd edition, New York: The Continuum International Publishing Group Ltd. Bordwell, D., Thompson, K., 2008, Film Art: An Introduction, 8th edition, New York: McGraw-Hill. Cook, P., 2007, The Cinema Book, 3rd edition, London: Palgrave Macmillan. Heath-Williams, A. (2009) Introduction to Italian Neorealism, FV2S13 [Lecture] Italian Cinema, Bridgend College, School of Creative Arts, Seminar Room, Queens Road Campus, 24th September. Heath-Williams, A. (2009) Neorealism: Wartime Resistance, FV2S13 [Lecture] Italian Cinema, Bridgend College, School of Creative Arts, Seminar Room, Queens Road Campus, 8th October. 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