Warwick Castle

Warwick Castle Robert Craven and Stuart Chambers ‘Warwick Castle – the finest mediaeval castle in England. ‘ INTRODUCTION The Stratford-on-Avon and District Hotels and Caterers Association (SCATA) publishes a brochure which has described the Castle as follows; â€Å"This magnificent ancient Castle, situated at the very centre of England, is a treasure house of great beauty and splendid, rare quality collections of pictures, furniture, furnishings and an outstanding collection of arms and armour which bear witness to the power and influence of the Earls of Warwick down through the centuries.The beautiful grounds landscaped by Capability Brown, where peacocks roam freely, are a delight in all seasons. . . Excellent catering facilities are available all year round to suit every pocket and disposition, as well as several gift shops† Warwick Castle is less than two hours by road from London with easy access from all major cities by motorway, road and rail. This e xcellent infrastructure allows the area to be part of the itinerary of any visitor to the UK.The County of Warwickshire is lyrically described in the SCATA brochure: â€Å"Stratford-an-Avon and Shakespeare's Country. When you think of England, and the very best of England, you are probably thinking about this fascinating region. Here in this most English of English landscapes, the broad rolling sweep of the Cotswolds, the classic half-timbered villages of the Vale of Evesham and leafy Warwickshire, there is an unparalleled variety of attractions.The birthplace of the world's greatest dramatist, William Shakespeare; the finest mediaeval Castle and most-visited stately home at Warwick; England's most magnificent palace at Blenheim; and the world's most famous theatre in Stratford† THE CASTLE The Castle is part of the Tussauds Group, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pearson plc, which also owns the Financial Times Group and Royal Doulton among other varied interests.The Tussauds Gro up runs entertainment centres that include: Madame Tussauds, the famous waxworks in Baker Street, London; the London Planetarium and Laserium; the Royalty and Empire Exhibition at Windsor; Alton Towers, the UK's only world-rated leisure park; and Chessington World of Adventures and Zoo. The Castle's General Manager, Martin Westwood, works in the stately home, from a majestic suite of offices overlooking the grounds.He is enthusiastic about the Castle both as a building steeped in history and as a business. In the relaxed atmosphere of his office, where he is surrounded by portraits and old paintings of the Castle, he refers to it as ‘a brand leader' in stately homes for it is in the top five most visited historic sites that charge entry fees (see Table 1).Table 1 Historic sites attracting more than 300,000 paid admissions 1 Tower of London 2 Roman Baths and Pump Room, Bath 3 State Apartments, Windsor 4 Stonehenge, Wiltshire 5 Warwick Castle 6 Shakespeare's Birthplace, Stratfor d 7 Leeds Castle, Kent 8 Hampton Court Palace, near London 9 Tower Bridge, London 10 Blenheim Palace, Wood stock, Oxford 11 Beaulieu, Hampshire 12 Cutty Sark, Greenwich, London 13 St George's Chapel, Windsor 14 Anne Hathaway's Cottage, Stratford 15 HMS Victory, Portsmouth 16 Mary Rose, Portsmouth 17 Royal Pavilion, Brighton 18 Chatsworth House, Derbyshire 19 Hever Castle, Kent 20 Fountains Abbey, North Yorks.Paid admissions (000s) 2298 950 855 703 685 604 540 525 528 517 493 411 372 365 340 333 314 306 303 300 As you pass through the ticket office from the large car park you catch your first view of the Castle. The view truly takes your breath away and fully warrants the description given by Sir Walter Scott in 1828: ‘the most noble sight in England'. MARKETING Marketing Manager, Sarah Montgomery, is another enthusiast of the outstanding beauty of the Castle.Discussing the marketing of the business she considers that the Castle's unique selling point must be that carried on al l the promotional material: ‘Warwick Castle – the finest mediaeval castle in England. ‘ But she does not discount the Castle's unique state of preservation, the breadth of attractions it offers, its location on the banks of the River Avon or its thousand-year span of history. In the year 1068 the first castle was built at Warwick and since that time it slowly developed into a mighty stronghold and later a grand mansion befitting the station of a high ranking nobleman. . In November 1978 the present Earl sold Warwick Castle and its contents to Madame Tussauds of London. The Castle's marketing team recognised that the Castle attracted a diverse audience, each segment of which wanted different things from a visit. So in targeting audiences the team had to decide whether it was trying to sell the Castle aspect, the stately home aspect or the gardens. It was felt that all three areas attracted different audiences and conjured up different expectations.Research had esta blished that from the public's point of view ‘castles' were not associated with grounds and formal gardens, and neither were they associated with the notion of being someone's home. On the other hand, stately homes were associated with grounds and gardens but were felt to be formal and museum-like, with ropes keeping the public away from the interesting areas. So, was the ‘most visited Stately Home in Britain' really a castle, or was the Castle also a stately home? This conundrum had to be solved.The Castle management has a deliberate policy of charging one overall admission charge for all areas of the Castle and Grounds open to visitors. In the past they had considered charging separate admission prices for the Castle and the Grounds but this, it was felt, would confuse the customer. (See Figure 1 for price and attraction details. ) The Castle regularly has detailed market research questionnaires compiled by an outside company. Sarah said that market research is taken v ery seriously by the team: â€Å"On average, overseas visitors represent 42 per cent of the total.Twenty-five per cent of our customers seem to come in groups of greater than 20 and these groups are predominantly from overseas. On the other hand, 58 per cent of visitors come from the UK, of which roughly half come from within a 100 km radius of the site. Another interesting point is that 25 per cent of all customers are repeat visitors which we feel reflects the popularity of the Castle. With UK visitors 33 per cent are repeats. Of the nonlocals, that is UK residents from outside the 100 km radius, 78 per cent stay overnight in the area and the remainder have travelled over 100 km to visit the area for the day.With the recent opening of the M 40 motorway into London (approximately180 km} it is felt that travel time may be a more important factor to consider than distance travelled in kilometres† Figure 1 Admission Rates and attractions at Warwick Castle The data are collected over a period of days, and the market research reports sent to Sarah include not only the profile of visitors but what parts of the Castle they visit. The popularity of various parts of the complex varies according to how busy the site is. For instance, on a quiet day 87 per cent might visit the Private Apartments, but on a busy day this igure drops to 68 per cent. Likewise, during one such busy period, the visitors to the Woodland Gardens increased from 17 per cent to 20 per cent, to the Mound from 46 per cent to 52 per cent, and to the River Island from 34 per cent to 40 per cent. On average, visitors stayed on the site for three hours. Coach parties tended to visit for three hours, probably because the Castle was part of a full-day, tightly scheduled excursion that included other nearby tourist attractions. Competition for the paying tourists' disposable cash was quite fierce in the area, it was felt.Other sites competing for the ‘leisure pound' were the Black Country Muse um, Drayton Manor (Adventure) Park, West Midlands Safari Park, Cadbury World, Blenheim Palace, Alton Towers Theme Park, Ironbridge, Stratford’s Shakespeare and Chatsworth House in Derbyshire. In the Undercroft Restaurant marketing researchers overheard an elderly professor in conversation with a friend he had encountered in the Castle grounds: â€Å"I came early in the morning to avoid the rush. Any major historic tourist site is going to be heaving by midday in the summer and personally I hate all the queuing and tourists with cameras and all that.I got here at about 10 a. m. when the place opened this morning. I was able to enjoy the pure magic of the building with relatively few other people around. By lunch-time the queues were what I felt to be unreasonably long, but it is August and this must surely be their peak time here. I do wonder, for instance, should they not encourage more visitors out of season and what about allowing people to visit early morning or in the ev ening to avoid the lunch-time crush? † MANAGING DEMAND Warwick Castle brochures show a wide variety of activities that supplement turnover outside the peak season.According to Sarah, this literature was intended ‘to push up the shoulders of demand': Every Friday and Saturday evening the Undercroft provides the setting for splendid five-course mediaeval banquets recreating the eve of the Battle of Agincourt. . A special events calendar has been published (see Figure 2). The Warwick Arts Festival uses the Castle as a venue in the evenings for a week in July. Exclusive tours of the Castle, and separately of the Gardens, are run by experts for pre-booked groups.These are available during the periods October to March, and March to November respectively, except during school half-term holidays and bank holidays. †¢ †¢ As a profit centre for the Pearson Group, the Castle is given targets that increase at a rate exceeding inflation. From these, prices are derived based on product developments, the prices that competitors are charging and known external factors that may affect demand (such as exchange rates and elections! ). The Castle expected between 700,000 and 800,000 visitors in the next year and profit projections were made based on these estimates.All catering facilities are run by the Castle, recognising franchising to another company would result in lost control and reduce potential to participate in profitable activities. Martin Westwood commented on fluctuations in demand: â€Å"Staffing varies relatively little with demand. It is felt that once the basic positions around the Castle are attended by staff, there is little that an additional staff member can provide. Winter weekends attract more visitors than winter weekdays, such that Saturday and Sunday combined turnover is the same as the other five days of the week put together.In summer things are more even, a Saturday or a Sunday being equivalent to two weekdays, although Sunday is usually busier than Saturday† Figure 2 Warwick castle Special Events Calendar BUSINESS OBJECTIVES Martin is clear that the Castle's prime objective is ‘to achieve growth in earnings per share for its shareholders'. At the same time he emphasizes the sense of responsibility the management feels ‘as custodians of this precious monument' to work within it and use integrity and sensitivity at all times. Hence all signs, directions and facilities take a very low profile. Flashing neon lights are not the order of the day!Sarah Montgomery commented on the need to underplay the commercial side of the organisation: â€Å"Coca-Cola have offered us a sponsorship deal. They will give us money for a particular project which will increase our revenue and also the number of visitors we are getting. The problem is that Coke is the epitome of youth and fizz while the Castle's target market is adults ABC 1, average age somewhere around 45! So how do we pull this deal together? â⠂¬  It is the ‘integrity' of the business in which the management take pride. It is not any business site but a very special building that is loved and cherished by the staff.Their constant concern is how to run a business from the Castle without destroying the charm and romance of the buildings, and without covering it with obtrusive signs and facilities. All staff are very polite and courteous and, though they are available to the public, tend not to interfere with the customers' visit. In fact they blend in with visitors as they wear little that suggests they are actually staff. And when the Castle is relatively empty of visitors it has a really enchanting atmosphere. PERFORMANCE Evaluation of the performance of the business has difficulties.On the one hand, queues are an obvious problem (see Table 2) but then the customers do not seem to mind too much! Above all, the business is going from strength to strength, and achieving healthy profit performance. So, while the criti cisms have to be noted, management has been achieving the high returns and growth that the shareholders require. Table 2 Observations of queuing and flow, Tuesday afternoon Queue to Private Apartments (number of people) 1. 00pm 130 1. 20 147 1. 40 128 2. 00 153 2. 20 132 2. 40 119 3. 00 137 Flow through doors to Private Apartments (number of people) 1. 00-1. 20 104 1. 20-1. 40 113 1. 40-2. 0 107 Flow from Private Apartments and State Rooms (number of people) 1. 00-1. 20 127 1. 20-1. 40 117 1. 40-2. 00 121 Queue to Rampart Walk 0-20 people at anyone time Number of people entering Rampart Walk 1. 40-1. 50 174 Queue at top of ramparts to get down (number of people) 6 minutes 63 Martin Westwood was defensive on the question of queues: â€Å"What popular tourist attraction doesn't have queues, and in any case, the queues here move pretty quickly. If we get queues for one part of the Castle we simply put out a sign suggesting people move on to the next attraction, although, to be frank, that doesn't really work.You see, the trouble is, that once people see a queue they don't want to miss out so they still join on the end of it. Our marketing questionnaires (see Appendix 1) suggest that we've got the operation about right, but there's always room for some improvement† The Professor in the Undercroft Restaurant had raised several issues connected with this: â€Å"The Castle really is in a unique condition of preservation. It's truly marvellous but I wouldn't seriously consider visiting it in the peak season. I just happen to be in the area because we're going over to Stratford tonight to see Twelfth Night at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre.I'm really looking forward to it! I wonder why they don't have off-peak rates for those not visiting around midday and maybe open earlier and close later. I would be more than happy to spend more time on the site if it weren't for all the other tourists everywhere. And another thing, couldn't they do a package deal with the th eatre at Stratford? I'm sure a lot of visitors here also go there. In fact, I would pay a premium price to have the Castle almost to myself. For instance, I'd find it simply delightful to sip a Pimms or a gin and tonic in the grounds as the sun went down.I know that I am rambling but I am sure there's a way to re-jig the prices so that the site basically generates more income throughout the year. And even if you say they do things out of season I've not heard about them, so what's the use of publicity if it doesn't reach the people that want to spend money? † Sarah Montgomery, mindful of the need to keep a close eye on customers' diverse requirements, often talked to individuals at the exit. A transcript of one such encounter is reproduced in Appendix 2.APPENDIX 1 MARKETING QUESTIONNAIRE OF RANDOM SAMPLE OF PEOPLE LEAVING WARWICK CASTLE Age range 0-5 6-15 16-25 26-35 36-45 46-55 56-65 66+ 7 37 27 25 34 17 20 33 Area of origination Local (within 100 km) UK (outside 100 km) Euro pe (excl. UK) USA/Canada S. America Australia Africa Asia Other/unspecified Length of stay in area Day trip 1-3 days 4-7 days 8+ days Method of transport Coach trip Own transport Hire car Public transport Other (bicycles etc. ) 37 27 25 47 3 11 5 14 2 96 50 13 5 96 74 31 20 12 Did you find that you had to queue very much? Yes 186 No 12 No comment 2 Did you feel that the queues were the same as other large tourist sites?Same 190 Better 4 Worse 6 Did you visit†¦? State Rooms and Great Hall The Private Apartments The Watergate (Ghost) Tower The Armory The Dungeon The Torture Chamber The Gatehouse and Barbican 191 190 31 104 193 183 87 Guy's Tower, the Rampart Walk and Clarence Tower The Victorian Rose Garden The Peacock Gardens The Conservatory The River Island Foxes Study and Cedar Walk Pageant Field The Mound Refreshment Stall Stables Restaurant and Tearoom Undercroft Restaurant The Bookshop Did you.. .? Bring your own picnic Did you see the Red Knight Did you buy a brochure How long have you spent at the Castle? hours Is this your first visit? Yes No Would you visit again? Yes No Maybe Don't know 186 103 117 102 57 31 101 54 118 52 71 62 32 81 99 5 67 75 37 16 148 52 144 31 23 2 APPENDIX 2 TRANSCRIPT OF A CONVERSATION WITH A VISITOR Christabelle Trymko, Oldbury-on-Severn, Gloucester ‘We got here at about midday. We came up for the day from Gloucestershire. It was quite a good trip and the kids behaved themselves in the car. We had heard a lot about the Castle from some friends who have just moved up to Stratford, which is just down the road from Warwick. ‘The Castle's in superb condition!You don't know what it's going to be like until you get past the ticket office and it really is amazing. It has been kept in impeccable condition, and the gardens are beautiful as well as being far less crowded than the Castle. ‘There were too many people in and around the Castle. The queues were an irritation but I parked my husband in the queue and too k the kids elsewhere until he was near the front and then we joined him. I think a few people got upset because we seemed to be pushing in, but I'm not prepared to wait with three children in long queues in the sun.Mind you, it's nothing like the queues at Madame Tussauds in London, they really are crazy. ‘I didn't realise quite how big the grounds were. If I had known I think we would have spent longer at Warwick Castle and made a full day of it. We should have come here at about ten and then spent the whole day here. That way the queues inside the Castle would have been shorter for us. The grounds are lovely and they've got special picnic areas which I thought was a nice idea. (I wish we'd brought a picnic. ) Mind you, it does seem to be more than a bit light on entertainment for the kids. Nicky loved the man with the wonderful moustache dressed up in full Crusader uniform on the horse. He was very good with the kids. Nicky also liked the waxworks in the Private Apartments p lace. The queue wound its way up, down and around the place but apart from mild feelings of claustrophobia (that's my problem, I suppose) it went at about the right speed and I guess it lasted a bit under an hour. Oh yes, the Rampart Walk, they ought to warn you about just how many stairs you have to climb. I mean, I know there is a sign but you don't take it seriously, do you!You go up and up and then there's that great spiral staircase up the inside of that tower, I won't do that again in a rush! But it was worth it for the view. ‘All in all it was a good day. More interesting than the average castle and not full of the usual touristoriented rubbish associated with tourist attractions. The commercial side is very much underplayed and I like that. You don't feel obliged to buy ice creams and tee-shirts and pencils and tea towels. Maybe some of the signs were a bit too discreet – we had to ask where the toilets were – but it makes a pleasant change. Also I like t he one price for everything. At other places, I object to paying an admission charge and then paying on top of that for particular attractions. You always feel mean if you don't pay up, and then you also feel that you might be missing something. No, I'd recommend the place and it's so much less hassle than the tourist places in London which you almost feel obliged to visit every so often. ‘ This case is from: Cases in Operations Management (Second edition) Johnston, Chambers, Harland, Harrison, Slack, FT Prentice Hall 1997

Evaluating Poetry Essay

The poem â€Å"Gods Will for You and Me† is the good poem and â€Å"Pied Beauty† is the bad poem according to Perrine standards.  The central purpose of both these poems is to encourage the readers’ individual feelings about God. The poem â€Å"Pied Beauty† is extremely didactic. The writer of this poem is preaching God on the reader. They are trying to get the reader to see all of the things that God has created on the earth and how amazing each one is. The whole poem seems to be a continuous praise on God. The poem even ends with a very clear cut statement, â€Å"Praise him.† This may leave a reader feeling uncomfortable or uneasy. Some of the phrases used in â€Å"Pied Beauty† do not seem to be the best choices for the writing. The phrase â€Å"brinded cow† does not sound as nice as other phrases and does not make me want to love the cow like the writer is suggesting. The phrase â€Å"with swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim;† breaks the flow of the poem and could have been left out or worded in a different way. The poem â€Å"Gods Will for You and Me† is getting the point across to be â€Å"loyal to God† in a much simpler and easy going manner. The poem is more realistic and although it has a childlike rhyme to it, it is still fresh and original. It makes me feel, as a reader, that following Gods plan is easy and simple, such as the poem itself. While it is sweet and sentimental it is not over the top or over stimulating to the readers emotions. When it comes to evaluating poetry according to Perrine’s standards, I don’t agree that rating a poem good or bad should be based on certain rules. As a reader, if what you are reading is making you feel good inside then it should be considered a good poem, even if it is sentimental, rhetorical, or didactic. For me, when I read poetry, if I can make sense of what the writer is saying and makes me feel any emotion from the writing, then I declare it a good poem. Didactic poetry should be considered good also, due to the fact that even though it is praising, it is still a strong emotional reading that is getting a point across, whether the reader chooses to follow or agree is  up to them to decide.

A View of How Elizabeth Cady Stanton Was Instrumental In Pushing Forward the Right for Women to Vote

A View of How Elizabeth Cady Stanton Was Instrumental In Pushing Forward the Right for Women to Vote Women’s rights movement is the most important event that happens a long time ago since the day all men take over in every area such as decisions, jobs, the stands in society, etc. Many activists have stood up for their own rights such as the women’s rightssuch as Susan B. Anthony, Alice Paul, Lucy Stone, and Ida B. Wells. Elizabeth Cady Stanton is one of those who stand up for the war of women’s rights. Shewrites a draft, â€Å"Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions, Seneca Falls Convention, 1848,† to providethe limitations women face during that time; she feels women deserve those rights. Afterwards, the women’s rights have been approved, but many wrongs have yet to be addressed since the 19th Century such as denying women the right to vote, denying women the right to work in profitable employment by monopolizing jobs and banning women from working in theology, medicine, and law, and creating and perpetuatinga system of dependency that causes wo men to lose self-respect and confidence different moral codes for both men and women in her arguments. Elizabeth Cady Stanton points out how men and society reject women to vote. She writes a list of many wrongs to women in the Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions, Seneca Falls Convention, 1848, which takes place in New York, on Nolo website with the article, â€Å"He has never permitted her to exercise her inalienable right to the elective franchise.†Elizabeth Cady Stanton is one of the very first activists for the women’s rights. She involves in the women’s rights movement from 1815 to 1902. She writes the Declaration of Sentiment and Resolutions, Seneca Falls Convention, 1848, as a draft to the Government seeking approval to amend the United States of America Constitution. No one sees anything wrong with a female stands up and speaks out loud about her thoughts or vote and elect whomever they want for any of the elections. Denying women the right to work in profitable employment by monopolizing jobs and banning women from working in theology, medicine and law is the second point in the abuse lists that Elizabeth Cady Stanton throws out for proving the most significant defections such as this following statement in her Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions, Seneca Falls Convention, 1848, â€Å"He has monopolized nearly all the profitable employments, and from those she is permitted to follow, she receives but a scanty remuneration. He closes against her all the avenues to wealth and distinction, which he considers most honorable to himself. As a teacher of theology, medicine, or law, she is not known.†Historically, women’s roles include maintaining the entire household, but in modern day times, women deserve the right to work as men because they born equally and work with their strongest power as men. Women find the right rights to earn or receive and gain back everything as men in wor k places. Base on an article of Victor Tembo in Linked in website, he says: â€Å"The EU has attempted to provide leadership on issues of Gender by making gender equality as a primary objective in the various projects. Sadly, in 2012, only 28 percent of new EU project proposals had gender as a primary or significant objective, far below the target of 80 percent for 2015. Luckily however, consensus is growing around the need to demonstrate more sturdy leadership to ensure that gender equality and women’s empowerment stay visible and high on the agenda.† He also states out: â€Å"I have a vision that one day, the world especially in the developing countries, will look at women as significant contributors to the GDP of a country and to the well being of not just their families but society as a whole. I have a vision that within 5 years from today, there shall be a significant improvement in the numbers of women leaders at various levels (a situation which can be guarante ed if the rights of women are properly institutionalized within policies of organizations). My belief is that the attitudes and expectations surrounding gender roles are typically based not on any inherent or natural gender differences, but on stereotypes, or overgeneralizing about the attitudes, traits, or behavior patterns of women or men. Its admirable how the western countries have developed in all fields of life. Their education system, their health care system, information technology etc., are in the highest rankings. In western countries men and women are working shoulder to shoulder in the same pace and both are contributing and playing their parts equally in the developmental processes. They are given basic education as well as fundamental and higher education without any restrictions from the society. Early pregnancies or early marriages that are prevalent in Africa and have stopped many African girls becoming relevant in society are unheard of. That is why the West is tha t much developed. They are educating and encouraging both the sexes equally without discriminating or neglect of the girl child. In this way,there is competition and where there is competition there is invention and invention leads to massive development in one way or another.† The last point that Elizabeth Cady Stanton mentions is about creating and perpetuatinga system of dependency that causes women to lose self-respect and confidence different moral codes for both men and women in her Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions, Seneca Falls Convention, 1848. Therefore, these next following statements speak up the full meanings of how the society and men treat women back in the days in every area: â€Å"He has created a false public sentiment by giving to the world a different code of morals for men and women, by which moral delinquencies which exclude women from society are not only tolerated but deemed of little account in man.† And, â€Å"He has endeavored, in every way that he could, to destroy her confidence in her own powers, to lessen her self-respect, and to make her willing to lead a dependent and abject life.† If men can do it, then women can do it, too. He, or no one needs to calculate or spend time to do any separations or compar isons in every situation between men and women. According to the Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions, Seneca Falls Conventions, 1848 of Elizabeth Cady Stanton writes as a draft in New York for fighting for the women’s right movement to get the approval from the United States of America Constitution for being one of the amendments. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony are the founders of the Women’s Loyal National League in 1863 and they initiate the American Equal Rights Association in 1866, which campaign the rights for women and African Americans. They post the newspapers about the Women Suffrage and fight for them in years after that. Elizabeth Cady Stanton talks about how women get treated by men and society as non-human with no voices and choices since 1800s to the 19th Century. It seems women do not deserve anything like that. Why does the society make women live in no voices, choices and stay under men’s? Women are born equally as men. So, they deserve everything as men do. That means, they deserve the rights to vote, to speak, to work, to do anything they want as men, even for awhile much has changed for women since the 19th Century, many wrongs have yet to be addressed such as such asdenying women the right to vote, denying women the right to work in profitable employment by monopolizing jobs and banning women from working in theology, medicine, and law, and creating and perpetuatinga system of dependency that causes women to lose self-respect and confidence different moral codes for both men and women in her Sentiments to the Government and the world out there to stay on the right side.

Exercises Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Exercises - Research Paper Example This gives the appearance that I am not in my room. I love my colleagues, but they often distract me with gossip and stories about their personal lives. I do not want to visit during my planning period. Each day I try to make concrete lesson plans for the next several days. I then review these plans and make adjustments at the end of each day. I never take lesson planning home with me. There is something about being in my classroom that actually helps me to visualize what will happen (or what is supposed to happen) with each lesson. Conversely, I never grade at school. Grading is kept for the end of the day. I actually find it relaxing in some ways. I will often put on soft background music and pour myself something refreshing to drink. Scoring writing does take more of my concentration. I usually will sit in my kitchen in silence to do this sort of grading. Everything else is done at a lap desk curled-up on the couch. Grading is usually the last chore I do before going to bed. I same all of my documents directly to the hard drive of my computer. I rarely back them up because my computer is synchronized with the servers at school each day. I probably should have my own personal back up on a thumb drive of some sort. This would be a good practice because the tech personnel at my school are not really all that good a retrieving lost information. I know some teachers that have lost hundreds of documents and have never gotten them back because a server malfunctioned. I think I’ll start using a thumb drive tomorrow. After viewing the video and reading the documents, I can see that I have good time management skills but there is room for improvement. I have a very good schedule for accomplishing all of the tasks required of a teacher, but I sometimes lack focus on those tasks. I do not group like tasks together very well. For example, I answer e-mails as they arrive in my mailbox all day long. This is not a good

Oil in Venezuela Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Oil in Venezuela - Research Paper Example Despite the knowledge of oil for ages the, the first oil wells were not drilled up until 1910s. According to McBeth (2005) asserts that when Juan .V. Gomez took the reigns of power in 1908, he granted several concessions to explore, produce and refine oil. Most of these concessions were actually given to his closest allies, and they in turn passed them over to foreign oil companies that could develop them. From 1914 to 1917, more oil fields were discovered across the nation. By the end of 1918, petroleum had appeared for the very first time in Venezuelan export’s statistics at 21,194 metric tonnes (Martinez, 1979). After 20 years, Venezuela became the largest oil exporter in the whole world and second largest oil producer after the United States of America. This led to an influx of foreign investors. By 1929, with the nation being the second largest oil producer in the world. Currently, Venezuela is the fifth largest oil exporting nation in the world, with the largest reserves of both conventional oil in the western hemisphere and non-conventional oil. This fact is very immense importance to the understanding of Venezuela because it has shaped the country’s political, economical, cultural, and historical scenes (Wilpart, 2003). Venezuela has 77.2 billion barrels of proven conventional oil reserves, the largest in any state in the Western Hemisphere. Approximately 267 barr els of this might be producible at current prices utilising the current technology. Venezuela was the first country to make a move towards the establishment of the Oil Producing and Exporting Countries (OPEC). It approached Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iran, Gabon, and Libya in 1949, but OPEC was not set up until 1960. This was when the United States forced import quotas on the Persian and Venezuelan Gulf oil so as to support the Canadian and Mexican oil industries (Martinez, 1979). In 1973, OPEC wielded its first power with the 1973 oil embargo against Western Europe and the United States. Discussion Economy In Venezuela, there was dramatic development of the oil industry, and the oil sector commenced to dominate all other economic sectors in the country. On the other hand, agricultural production began to decline slowly. Agriculture accounted for about one third of the economic production in 1920. According to Yergin (1999) argues that this sudden change increases attention on oil and ne glecting the agricultural sector causing the Venezuelan economy to suffer from a phenomenon referred by economists as the â€Å"Dutch disease†. The occurrence of this disease is manifested when a commodity brings substantial increase in income in one sector, resulting in strengthening of the currency which in turn harms exports of the other manufacturing sectors. This increased sectoral income has caused a distorted growth in services and other non-tradables, which can not be imported whilst discouraging the production of tradables, which are actually imported. The reason for this disparity is that, greater income dramatically raises the demand for imports because the domestic market production can not meet the production quickly enough. This raises the demand for services of which the domestic market has to supply because the services can not be easily imported as the tradables. When one looks at the extent to which there has been increased oil production and income, which w as followed by a corresponding steady decrease in agricultural production, one can clearly observe the symptoms of Dutch disease in the Venezuelan economy. This resulted in a delay in industrialization. The other Dutch disease symptoms are evident in the constant

12 Steps meetings for Narcotic Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

12 Steps meetings for Narcotic - Assignment Example Narcotics Anonymous is a society or association of recovering addicts who possess the desire to stay clean. At the meeting, DSM IV diagnoses for Axis I included persons recovering from an exacerbation of schizophrenia, a major depressive episode or a flare-up of panic disorder. The meeting was held in a tent behind a church. The attendees included three women and eight men, all of whom were recovering addicts. Individually, I felt a little anxious given this was my first meeting and I was not sure of was to expect, except for the information I had gathered from my friends about the program. At the venue, there were people seated: some in groups talking while some seated quietly alone. I decided to take a seat close to the door just in case I wanted to quickly leave the room. The attendees sat in a circle of chairs and one woman, who I later learn was the chairperson of the meeting for the day, sat at the center of the circle. The chairperson asked everyone to join in reciting the ser enity prayer, and then inquired whether there were any first timers or newcomers, in attendance who were willing to introduce themselves. Handfuls raised their hands, and were each offered an opportunity to say their names. 12-step meetings are founded on the principle confidentiality; the group has the word â€Å"anonymous† in the title. ... During the meeting, the chairperson repeated a common 12 step saying to remind everyone of the significance of anonymity and confidentiality. The chairperson declared the step that was to be discussed, after which she read the step chapter from the book, "Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions,†. She then asked whether anybody had any experience, hope and strength with regard to the step, which they felt like sharing. This particular section was to me the most interesting part of the meeting. It was amazing to see people share their experiences with narcotics and relating it to the step as some appeared to follow my own personal experiences. As the meeting continued, attendees started talking, each beginning by introducing themselves as "Hello, I am (first name) and I'm an addict". At the end of their talks, everybody in the room would thank them then the next person would begin speaking. After everyone had shared, the chairperson asked whether there was any announcements and then announced that it was time to say the serenity prayer. The defense mechanisms used by some of the member at the meeting included denial and reluctance to admit addiction Everyone in the meeting put their arms around one another and recited the Serenity Prayer. This marked the end of the meeting. Sharing at the meeting benefits the individuals as it gives them a chance to release tension and unburden themselves. Other participants are able to give a different viewpoint on what has been shared, making them feel more of important contributors to the meeting. The law provides for involuntary commitment for substance abusers if (1) he is dangerous to himself, herself, or others when under the influence or (2) seriously disabled. The form used to appeal that a substance

Literature Review on Food Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Literature Review on Food Studies - Essay Example However, there is enough evidence that males also more likely to consume food rich in fiber and mineral nutrients that males students despite their unconsciousness to healthy eating patterns. On the other hand, ladies are keener on the need for healthy feeding and are less likely to consume high intake of fats and carbohydrates. The general conclusion of the research is that both males and female students in tertiary schools consumer nutrients in a much lower rate as compared to any other population. On the other hand, the research by Story, et al., (2002) on the influence of the environment on the feeding habits among adolescents is more reasonable in defining the problem of eating habits within the public. This group of research identifies that the social and physical environments influence the consumption patterns of the teenagers. The physical environment includes the existence of fast foods and the most available foods within the market. Notably, there is a rise in the fast food restaurant industry hence attracting the youths to eat junk foods that often contribute to obesity and other related diseases. Secondly, the social environment influences the preferences of groups of teenagers hence affecting their food intake. For instance, peer networks influence from what the youths drink to what they eat during the day. Apart from this, Story et al., (2002) identify that the adolescent is surrounded by complex changes that may influence individual tastes and preferences and henc e the eating behaviors.

Diverse Statemnt Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Diverse Statemnt - Essay Example More so, vocabulary can be taught in different ways such as asking learners to state words beginning with given alphabetical letters, reading comprehension passages and identify new words and look up for their meanings from their context of use in relation to their dictionary meanings (Taber 13). In addition, grammar and spelling are other areas that should be adhered in teaching of English. Students with learning difficulties or special needs learners have to be accorded with special care and methodologies if educational objectives have to be achieved. These learners can be assisted through the provision of special and differentiated instructions, encouraging group or peer learning, repeating the taught content several times, encourage learners in the areas where they are good at and present them only relevant content and leave out less important content (Taber 9). These learners exhibit extra abilities as compared to the average learners. They are sometimes referred to as high achievers, talented or great thinkers. They are exhibited by their performance of task, high achievement in school, and are highly placed compared to the grade level learner. They are helped and taught using special methodologies, theories and procedures just like the slow learners since their pace of learning is not comparable to that of the average learners. There is an identified way of teaching these learners known as Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) or Talented and Gifted (TAG, or G/T). Learners are allowed to learn new things for themselves since they are able to digest new ideas and keep high level of motivation. They learn best through self-discovery and when experimental method of learning is applied (Taber

Health Promotion throughout the Human Lifespan Essay

Health Promotion throughout the Human Lifespan - Essay Example Despite this claims, Canadians have time and again misused alcohol, thus leading to health risks. This paper will examine strategies of promoting health throughout the lifespan of alcohol abusers. Alcohol Related Health Problems Abuse of alcohol result major health risks such cancer among other societal problems such as drunken driver accidents, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, criminal activities, and even family problems. Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder describes a wide range of health concerns that come because of prenatal abuse and misuse of alcohol. Disabilities resulting from Fetal Alcohol Spectrum disorder include alcohol related Neurodevelopment Disorder. Health problems such as cancer have come up as a result of alcohol consumptions. Consumption of alcohol in risky amounts has been proved to increase risks for individuals developing cancers such as those of the, liver, gastrointestinal tract, breast, pharynx, mouth, larynx, and the esophagus. However, alcohol consumption in moderate amounts is proved to reduce the risk of developing cancer. Alcohol consumers, who take meals alongside alcohol, have a lower risk of developing cancer of the throat, mouth and the digestive system. ... Generally, adolescents and young adults are the most vulnerable to misuse of alcohol and heavy drinking. Many accidents caused by adolescent and young adult drunken drivers have been a major cause of deaths in many countries (Galanter, American Medical Society on Alcoholism, Research Society on Alcoholism (U.S.) and National Council on Alcoholism, 2005, P.2). In addition, alcohol consumption is said to cause impairment, thus making drivers more prone to accidents and injuries that come out to be severe in most cases. Accident risk potential as a result of impairment caused by alcohol varies between women and men. In addition to accidents, misuse of alcohol also causes high blood pressure, weakening of the immune system, osteoporosis, obesity, and even neurological disorders. Risks of high blood pressure are substantially increased by more and more consumption of alcohol. Moreover, heavy consumption of alcohol weakens the immune system and thus individuals have a higher potential of b eing infected, falling sick, and recovering from illness slowly. Studies claim that alcohol is a major health issue when misused, as it results in individual health problems, societal issues, cognitive and physical impairment. Alcohol Neurological disorders resulting from alcohol consumption include dementia and Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome, which results in memory loss, and cognitive impairment. In most cases, alcohol affects physical performance of an individual, as it adversely inhibits span of attention, coordination of activities, and the time with which an individual reacts to stimulus. Alcohol also causes poor judgment, and in many circumstances, results in destruction of social relationships and communicative behavior

Eternal Love Through Death in John Keats Bright Star Essay Example for Free

Eternal Love Through Death in John Keats Bright Star Essay Love, being one of the most debated topics in literature, often serves as a source of inspirations for many of writers and poets, including John Keats. Throughout his life, he wrote countless love poems and letters, addressing his lover – Fanny Brawne. The star, apart from being the symbol of steadfastness and constancy, it is also a metaphor representing Keats himself. Through Keats’ idea of â€Å"Mansion of life†, the poem is consisted of two floors where the first floor displays his passionate love for Brawne while the second floor talks about his inner desire for death. Keats first expresses his ideal, however paradoxical love. There are two essential yet conflicting qualities in this poem – the reality verses the ideal and the immortal verses the mortal. On one hand, he would like to be like a star, steadfast and unchanging. On the other, he dislikes the solitude of the star as it has to watch â€Å"the moving waters† and â€Å"the new soft-fallen mask/Of snow† from afar like a â€Å"sleepless Eremite†. He continues to state that if he â€Å"has to live ever†, he would rather â€Å"pillow’d upon my fair love’s ripening breast†. The ideas to be eternal and to love simultaneously do not go hand in hand. To love, one has to be human and therefore not an immortal, steadfast star. In the last line of the poem, Keats acknowledges that he would like to â€Å"live ever† in love, but he has to be human in order to experience love, which hints that the love between Keats and Brawne will not last and will eventually fade away as time goes by. The other possible alternative to immortalize their love is â€Å"swoon to death†. One of Keats’ letters from 3 May 1818 to Fanny Brawne echoes the idea of â€Å"swooning† and it says â€Å"†¦I love you; all I can bring you is a swooning admiration of your Beauty.†(Poet.org) This can be interpreted that he wants to die while experiencing intense, ecstatic love or according to the letter, overwhelmed by her beauty. While I was reading Bright Star, I could not help but catch the similarity between Keats and Shakespeare’s idea of love. In the opening of Shakespeare’s sonnet 116, â€Å"Let me not to the marriage of true minds Admit impediments. Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove: O no! it is an ever-fixed mark That looks on tempests and is never shaken; It is the star to every wandering bark, Whose worth’s unknown, although his height be taken.† (Shakespeare) Shakespeare talks about his ideal love and marriage. Keats, being a reader of Shakespeare, is in some way affected or inspired by him. Shakespeare describes love as an â€Å"ever-fixed marks† that â€Å"is never shaken† even in the wildest storms. Keats transformed Shakespeare’s â€Å"ever-fixed† into steadfastness. Keats then moves on to talk about a more sexual and sensuous love. With more explicit descriptions of â€Å"my [his] fair love’s† body parts, those descriptions hint the idea of sex and orgasm. He imagines himself â€Å"pilliow’d upon my fair love’s ripening breast†. The word â€Å"ripening† gives a notion of youth, implicating that the lady is young and energetic. Keats also describes the rising and falling of her chest when she takes her â€Å"tender-taken breath†. If he could, he would â€Å"so live ever†. However, it is impossible to live forever and the only solution would be â€Å"swoon to death†. Keats did not explicitly tell the readers what it means to be â€Å"swoon to death† and leave us a lot of room for imaginations. The word â€Å"swoon† and other erotic images of the lady’s body parts bring us to the subtext of the poem – sex. La petite mort is a French idiom or euphemism for org asm, meaning little death. According to Oxford Dictionaries, â€Å"swoon† means â€Å"to enter a state of ecstasy or rapture†. Whether he intended to talk about sex at the end of the poem is still indefinable as we have no idea of what Keats was thinking when he wrote the poem. Though Keats did not write any overly sexual poetry, there is always a strong erotic indication in many of his works. If the sexual subtext is intended in the poem, I believe that it creates a nice denouement to the poem. Keats’ obsession with death and his love for Fanny are intertwined seamlessly throughout the poem. In one of his letters, he states â€Å"I have two luxuries to brood over in my walks, your loveliness and the hour of my death† (Poet.org). Not only is Keats intimidated by death, to some extent he is also intrigued by it. Even though he is worried about the approaching death, to him the promise of death is comforting and soothing. The only resolution to achieve the paradoxical ideal of being eternal as well as experiencing love is death. Through death, immutability and steadfastness can be achieved. Keats has seen many people died in his lifetime. His father died when he was eight; his mother died from tuberculosis when he was 14; his brother Tom died also from tuberculosis when he was 19. Along with his family’s deaths, he has also seen a lot of patients died as he was also a medical student. Therefore, constantly seeing people die in a way reminds him of the tran sience and the mutability of life. There are some religious references in the second quatrain of the poem. All these references, other than conveying the loneliness and the solitude of the star, also illustrate his longing for the promising death. The poem was written in 1819, the same year when Keats contracted with tuberculosis. The word â€Å"ablution† is heavily loaded with connotations, both religion and about death. From the Oxford Dictionary, â€Å"ablution† refers to the washing or cleansing of the body†. In Christianity, there are different forms of ablution and one of them is the preparation before the burial of a dead person. Here Keats is hinting that his death is near and the priest will cleans his body after his death with â€Å"the moving waters†. Further Keats also mentions the â€Å"soft-fallen mask/Of snow† in the following two lines. Seasons always act as symbols of different stages of human life in literature. Spring refers to birth or new beginning; summer means m aturity; autumn represents old age while winter symbolizes death. In line 7-8, with â€Å"the mountains and moors† covered in snow, such explicit image suggests that death is approaching. Though death is coming, Keats is not browbeaten. Yet, he is fascinated with death as it helps him to accomplish the co-existence of eternity and love. Bright Star is a poem that can be read on many different levels. To me, the poem is not merely a declaration of his ardent love for Fanny Brawne. It is also an expressive lyric poem addressing his awe as well as obsession with death. The main themes of the poem are smoothly woven together and this showcases Keats’ expressiveness and his wit. Works Cited Keats, John. Bright Star. n.d. Oxford Dictionaies. Oxford Dictionaries. http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/. Poet.org. Selected Love Letters to Fanny Brawne by John Keats. 17 October 2013 http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/21012.

Role Of Industrialization In Economic Development Economics Essay

Role Of Industrialization In Economic Development Economics Essay INTRODUCTION Industrialization is regarded essential for rapid development of the country since industrial revolution. The countries which merely rely on agriculture have remained under developed, whereas nations which developed industries achieved high rates of development. The advanced countries encourage industrialization on large scale and transferred advantages to agriculture. They achieved balance of growth in various sectors of economy. Pakistan at the time of partition in 1947 has negligible industrial base. The government has been utilizing all available resources for rapid development of the manufacturing sector.  We examine the industrial performance as follows: From 1947 to 1950 In 1947, in the West Pakistan the major product was cotton but there was no big factory to process and manufacture the cotton whereas East Pakistan was the main producer and supplier of jute. Out of 921 Pakistan only got 34 industries. Government of Pakistan being aware of the importance of industrialization called an industrial conference in dec. 1947. The conference recommended the establishment of industries which used locally produced raw material like jute, cotton and skin. The private sector was encouraged to establish industries. For the implementation of above a development board and Pakistan industrial and Credit Corporation were established in 1948. The contribution of industrial sector to GDP was 6.9% in 1950. From 1950 to 1960 The private sector did not invest in heavy industries due to lack of capital, technical knowhow and absence of entrepreneurship. The government took initiative and established PIDC in 1952. The major investment of PIDC was in paper and paperboard, cement, fertilizer, jute mills and suigas pipelines. The contribution of industrial sector to GDP rose from 9.7% to 11.9%. From 1960 to 1970 This year covers 2nd five and 3rd five year plan. In 2nd five year plan 22.2% of the total outlay was for the growth of industrial sector. The country achieved self sufficiency in essential consumer goods. The contribution of industrial sector to GNP went up to 11.8% from 1960-65. The 3rd five year plan could achieve a partial success due to war with India in 1965. The growth rate was 7.8% against the target plan of 10%. Growth in 1970s The industrial performance of production, growth and exports was disappointing from 1971 to 1977. The main reason were separation of east Pakistan, suspension of foreign aid, fall in exports due to loss of market ( east Pakistan), devaluation of rupee up to 131%, nationalization of industries, labor unrest, recession in world markets and reduction in investment incentives. The annual growth rate fell up to 2.8%. Growth from 1977 onward The government took number of initiatives to revise the economy. Some industries were denationalized and private sector was encouraged to invest. The growth rate was 5.7% in 1989-90. Current Growth According to the economic survey of Pakistan, 2009-2010, manufacturing accounts 18.5% 0f GDP and 13% of total employment. Large scale manufacturing and small scale manufacturing accounts 12.2% and 4.9% of total GDP respectively. Manufacturing Sector in Regional Countries Role of industrialization in economic development The role of industrial sector is summarized as follows: In industrialization there is optimum utilization of scarce resources. The quality and quantity of manufacturing sector increase. It increases the national income of the country. It increases the production of goods and services. The labor receives higher wages. The income of workers increase and there living standard also improves When industrial production increase that increase exports and revenues of the government. It generates new employment opportunities. Industrialization provides machinery like tractors, threshers, harvesters and spray machines to increase the production of agriculture sector. As the industrial sector expands, its production increases and cost of production decreases. The quality of products improved due to technology Industrialization increases the supply of goods for internal and external markets. The government receives revenue in the form of custom and excise duties, sales and income taxes from the industrialists due to which government revenue increases. Causes of industrial backwardness in Pakistan The main causes of industrial backwardness are divided as follows: Historical Causes The British collected raw material for their industries from subcontinent on the one hand, on the oilier; they captured this area for final products. So no industry in this area. The areas with Muslim majority were kept backward to favor Hindus. The few industries, which were setup in India, were in coastal cities of Calcutta, madras and Bombay. Raw material and skilled labor were not available in the area that is now in Pakistan. Economic Causes The infrastructure required for the growth of industries is inadequate. For the foster mobility of labor, capital, transport and communication facilities are in sufficient. It is obstructing expansion of industries in Pakistan. The amount if capital required in the capital intensive industries like steel, iron, chemical and automobiles quite high. Huge capital is also required to establish and expand industries like textile, carpet, sugar and paper etc. Most of exports are comprised of raw material, while our main imports are machinery, petrol which requires heavy foreign exchange. Due to shortage of foreign exchange, less imports of machinery, this leads to less development of industries. Now days due to inflation people have low level of income thats why they demand less industrial goods, it obstructs industrial development. There is also shortage of power like electricity and gas due to which many industries are shutting down. There is less foreign investment in the country due to terrorism which is also the main hurdle in industrial development. Due to recent flood, the economy of the country is going worst. Therefore people do not take risk to invest in Pakistan. Political Causes There have been frequent changes in government since 1947 in Pakistan due to which local and foreign investors hesitate to invest in long term projects. Kashmir issue has been a bone of contention between Pakistan and India since independence. People remain frightened about the war between both countries. This situation leads low investment. The government of Pakistan nationalized industrial sector in 1970s. People still fear that the government may once again nationalize the economy. Therefore they invest less. Social and Geographical Causes On the one hand there is less awareness to invest in large scale industries due to lack of education and information. On the other hand the capital intensive industries require highly qualified professionals which are in lack of Pakistan. So low industrial development. Pakistan has extreme climate. Sometimes we have drought and other time heavy rain and flood. Moreover most of the land is covered with mountains and deserts. PRINCIPAL INDUSTREIS OF PAKISTAN The principal industries of Pakistan are as follows: Textile Industry It is the most important and largest industry of the economy of Pakistan. Pakistan received 17 textile units in 1947. The industry is facing problem like shortage of raw material, tough competition in international market due to domestic high prices. Sugar Industry In 1947, Pakistan received two sugar mills. Now we have 78 sugar industries across the country. The industry is producing 2.4mn tones of sugar against 2.9mn tines of demand. Pakistan is importing sugar since last few years. The production of sugar can be increased by giving incentives to farmers. Chemical Industry There was hardly any chemical industry in 1947. Now Pakistan has 12 units but this industry is not meeting domestic requirement of chemicals. Fertilizers Industry Fertilizer plays an important role in increasing agriculture production. At present 10 units are producing different types of fertilizers which meets 70% of the domestic requirement. 30% is imported from Germany, UK, USA and Norway. Cement Industry There are 25 cement plants in Pakistan. The installed capacity of these plants is 13mn tones per annum. This industry is based on local raw material. Jute Industry At the time of independence there was not a single unit of jute in Pakistan. At present 12 units are working in Pakistan but they are not meeting domestic requirements. Large quantity is imported from china and Bangladesh. Engineering Goods Industry This industry got importance in 3rd five year plan. Now there are four industries like HMC Taxila, Heavy Foundry Taxila, Pakistan Machine Tool Factory Landhi, and Pakistan Steel Mills Karachi. Pakistan Steel Mills Corporation The mill was set with the total cost of 25.550mn with the help of Russia. Its productive capacity is 1.1mn tones of raw steel per annum. Now a day it is going down due to corruption and mismanagement. Cigarette Industry At present Pakistan has 22 factories producing cigarette at Jhelum, Akora Khattak. The raw tobacco used in manufacturing is produced domestically. PERFORMANCE OF PUBLIC INDUSTRIAL SECTOR The performance of public industrial sector is the role of PIDC, so we review the role of PIDC. Role of PIDC: Pakistan industrial development corporation (PIDC) was established in 1952. It was the only public sector involved in manufacturing. It established industries in backward areas, created employment opportunities and reduced regional disparities. By June 1972, it had established 60 industrial projects. The nationalization of industries under the economic reforms order affected the performance of PIDC. A number of important and profit yielding projects were transferred to other corporations under the Presidential Ordinance No. v of 1974. PIDC was left with only 8 projects out of 60, which were not profit making. NATIONALIZATION OF INDUSTRIES The government of Pakistan under the economic reforms order, 1972 nationalized 32 private industries. The 52 projects already under taken by PIDC and the 32 nationalized units were regrouped on functional basis and laced under 12 corporations. The corporations were: Federal chemical and ceramic corporation (FCCP) Federal light engineering corporation (FLEC) National design and industrial services corporation (NDISC) State heavy engineering and machine tools corporation (SHEMTC) Pak tractor corporation (PTC) Pak automobile corporation (PAC) National fertilizer corporation of Pakistan (NFCP) State electrical corporation (SEC) Pakistan industrial development corporation (PIDC) Pak steel mills corporation (PSMC) State cement corporation of Pakistan (SCCP) State petroleum refinery and petrochemical corporation (SPRPC) In 1974, PTC and SEC were merged in PACO and the number of corporations was decreased from 12 to 10. Later on FLEC, NDISC and SHEMTC were merged into state engineering corporation (SEC). The number of corporation was decreased from 10 to 8. Reasons of Nationalization failure The public manufacturing sector was burdened with a number of conflicting tasks and objectives which reduced its efficiency. The corporations were over staffed and were mostly managed by non-professionals persons. The labor unrest reduced performance. The skilled personnel migrated to Gulf States and caused shortage of skilled persons. The prices of raw material increased due to decline in production of the corporations on account of flood and untimely rains. The price of petroleum products increased and raised the cost of production. PRIVATIZATION OF SOEs IN PAKISTAN In the first four decades the government policy about the private and public sector has not clear. In 1988, the government issued disinvestment ordinance to adopt the policy of privatization. The governments privatization policy is to off-load the public sector; the process would e carried out in three phases. Different institutions will be sold to private sector and the revenue generated will generally be used for debt retirement. Meaning of Privatization A process of transferring state owned enterprises to the private sector. Objectives of Privatization Minimizing budgetary support/deficit Sale of shares of enterprises to fill budgetary gap Incentives for the workers for efficient work Developing share market Provision of share ownership to workers or employees Insulating the economy from political interference Achieving rapid industrialization Methodology of Privatization The privatization can be undertaken in the following ways: Sale of individual SOEs by inviting bids from the private sector Sale of shares of SOEs through stock exchange Encouraging employees to make management groups and purchase enterprises Encouraging prospective investors to form modaraba companies to purchase the shares of SOEs Entering into lease management contracts with employees for a specific period to enable them to buy out units Privatization of SOEs in Pakistan The government of Gen. Zia-Ul-Haq on 16th July 1988 issued Disinvestment Ordinance and a National Disinvestment Authority was created under the chairmanship of Aziz Zulfiqar. A privatization commission was formed on July 22, 1991 to formulate recommendations for privatization and deregulation. In the initial phase MCB, ABL had been privatized. IMPORTANCE OF FOREIGN INVESTMENT IN INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT The policy of privatization, deregulation and liberalization has greatly widened the foreign investment in the country. The government has taken several measures to increase the flow of foreign private investment. The foreigners can now avail monetary and fiscal concessions equally with the local investors. They can invest in the fields of their choice like power generation, petro-chemical petroleum gas fertilizers, hi tech industries, agro based industries and export oriented industries. Incentives to Foreign Investors Foreign exchange controls have been relaxed for foreign investors. Foreign investors can participate in local projects on equality basis. Ceiling on payment of royalties abolished. No requirement of obtaining NOC from provincial government or locating the projects anywhere in the country except notified negative areas. SOURCES OF INDUSTRIAL FINANCE The main sources of industrial finance are: Industrial Development Bank of Pakistan Investment Corporation of Pakistan National Investment Trust Equity Participation Fund Bankers Equity Fund Modarabas, Leasing Companies COTTAGE AND SMALL SCALE INDUSTRY The cottage and small scale industry has a great significance for a developing country. It forms as important part of the manufacturing sector. It contributes 5% to GDP and employees 80% of the labor force. Its share in manufacturing sector export is about 30% in Pakistan. Cottage Industry The industry which is carried on in the home of the artisan is known as cottage industry. He is usually assisted in his work by the members of his family and the job may be whole time or part time. E.g. wood work, handmade carpets, toys etc. Small Scale Industry The firms employing less than 10 persons are classified as small scale industries in the national accounts and its fixed assets do not exceed Rs. 2mn in Pakistan. CONCLUSION We can conclude that manufacturing is the third sector of our economy and it is the backbone of any country. It plays a very important role in the economic development of a country. Pakistan has been a backward country in industrial sector due to different historic, political and economic causes. For the revival and growth of the industrial sector, these problems should be solved. The law and order situation must be improved. The security of capital must be assured and the degree of bureaucratic control to be minimized. A clear cut policy should be chalked out for the local and foreign investors. The industrial growth can further be accelerated by ring sick industrial units into operation, installing new factories and providing maximum incentives to the working community.

roman myth :: essays research papers

* Stars *   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A long time ago in the deep dark forest of Astrum lived two brothers named Josephus and Tomas. These two brothers were always getting in trouble, trying to outdo each other. The two were always in competition against one another. When one jumped, the other had to jump twice as high.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One day their competitiveness had gone too far. As usual they could be found in the field romping and playing. This day was like no other though. The two brothers were playing with rocks and were seeing who could throw theirs the furthest. Josephus went first and threw his rock high and far. It landed on the other side of the field. Next was Tomas. He got ready to throw the rock and launched it across the sky. It went further and further into the deep forest, when all of a sudden they heard the sound of glass breaking. The two ran through the forest to see where the glass shattered. When they saw what had broken they were extremely scared. The window to their house had a big hole from the rock. Afraid what there parents would say; they tried to think of ways to fix it. To their dismay they could not think of anything.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Later that day when the boy’s parents saw what happened, they called them in to have a talk. The two parents were at wit’s end about what to do with the boys. They were always very mischievous which only led to more trouble. When the parents could not think of any solutions to their problem they decided to talk to someone else.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The parents went to Zeus in search of help. When they described their conundrum to him he thought he should have a talk with the two. When he went down to their house the boys were intimidated when they saw him. He told them to sit down and after his command they sat right down. He talked to them telling them that if they don’t behave like proper boys soon, there would be big repercussions.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The boys took heed to his warning and started to behave better. After awhile the parents were amazed at how well the boys were doing. Zeus checked up on the boys, and was also very pleased that the boys listened to his warning. Zeus was so happy that he sent the two boys gifts to show them he was proud.

Humorous Wedding Speech for a Sister of the Groom -- Wedding Toasts Ro

Humorous Wedding Speech for a Sister of the Groom Ladies and Gentlemen you'll be pleased to know I am only going to speak for a couple of minutes because of my throat..... if I go on too long Angie has threatened to cut it. However, before I begin, on behalf of John and Angie I would like to thank everyone who has helped to make this the special day that it is - and I think we can all agree it has been splendid so far. Well, I knew it would be difficult to follow a speech made by John and I was right .... I couldn't follow a bloomin word of it. When John asked me to be his Best woman I felt very privileged at first, but then as the big day approached I thought why did he ask me? what had I done that was so wrong? I then remembered a good definition of being asked to be the Bestman, is like being asked to make love to the Queen Mother - its a great honour, but nobody wants to do it. But even so, I still agreed to be John's Best woman and here I am today. So, before I commence to slander John's character as is traditional, I'd just like to thank him for lending me a book entitled "The Bestman's Checklist". I must confess I was mystified by some of the things I was expected to do. (1) Get the Groom to the Church sober and on time - well ladies and gentlemen I think you could all agree I have completed by first duty splendidly. (2) Bring a Chequebook for payments the groom may have forgotten - well kn... ... Example : To John and Angie, If you need some wedding tips, call 0800 and ask for hot lips... From Anonymous. Finally, on behalf of the bride and groom I would like to thank everyone for sharing their special day, it is a true millstone - sorry milestone in their lives. On behalf of myself I wish you'd all stayed at home - as things would have been a lot easier on me. I started planning this speech about 5 months ago and I expect you all feel like I've been delivering it equally as long. But now it gives me immense pleasure (not to mention relief) to invite you to all stand and raise your glasses in a toast to John and Angie. To love, laughter and happily ever after. To John and Angie CONGRATULATIONS Humorous Wedding Speech for a Sister of the Groom -- Wedding Toasts Ro Humorous Wedding Speech for a Sister of the Groom Ladies and Gentlemen you'll be pleased to know I am only going to speak for a couple of minutes because of my throat..... if I go on too long Angie has threatened to cut it. However, before I begin, on behalf of John and Angie I would like to thank everyone who has helped to make this the special day that it is - and I think we can all agree it has been splendid so far. Well, I knew it would be difficult to follow a speech made by John and I was right .... I couldn't follow a bloomin word of it. When John asked me to be his Best woman I felt very privileged at first, but then as the big day approached I thought why did he ask me? what had I done that was so wrong? I then remembered a good definition of being asked to be the Bestman, is like being asked to make love to the Queen Mother - its a great honour, but nobody wants to do it. But even so, I still agreed to be John's Best woman and here I am today. So, before I commence to slander John's character as is traditional, I'd just like to thank him for lending me a book entitled "The Bestman's Checklist". I must confess I was mystified by some of the things I was expected to do. (1) Get the Groom to the Church sober and on time - well ladies and gentlemen I think you could all agree I have completed by first duty splendidly. (2) Bring a Chequebook for payments the groom may have forgotten - well kn... ... Example : To John and Angie, If you need some wedding tips, call 0800 and ask for hot lips... From Anonymous. Finally, on behalf of the bride and groom I would like to thank everyone for sharing their special day, it is a true millstone - sorry milestone in their lives. On behalf of myself I wish you'd all stayed at home - as things would have been a lot easier on me. I started planning this speech about 5 months ago and I expect you all feel like I've been delivering it equally as long. But now it gives me immense pleasure (not to mention relief) to invite you to all stand and raise your glasses in a toast to John and Angie. To love, laughter and happily ever after. To John and Angie CONGRATULATIONS

Prospero and Caliban of William Shakespeares The Tempest Essay

Prospero and Caliban of William Shakespeare's The Tempest  Ã‚   Within The Tempest, characters such as Prospero and Caliban share an intimate connection. Without some kind of malevolent force motivating the action of the play, none of the major characters would come into contact with each other. A violent storm, formed by Prospero's magic, subjects the foreign characters to the might of his mysterious power. Issues of control become a central part of The Tempest. One way in which this is highlighted is through the relationship between Prospero and Caliban, his bestial servant. Their relationship does not utilize the conventional imagery of those who hold power versus those who do not. Rather, Caliban comes to symbolize a physical manifestation of a darker part of Prospero's personality. Early in the play, Caliban is described as a beast-like figure who lived on the island before any foreign intrusion. Prospero and Miranda found Caliban and his mother living on the island when they themselves became shipwrecked there. The first words introducing Caliban describe him as the son of the witch Sycorax who was banished to the island. Caliban is described as someone who is,"not honored with/A human shape....[a] Dull thing..." (I. ii. 283-6) Though Caliban is referenced here as a figure of disgust and contempt, Prospero chooses to use the word "dull" in his description of this creature. Even before he is introduced, Caliban becomes labeled with imagery of darkness, or at the least, lessened brightness. This labeling comes from Prospero, who has shown the power to control clouds and can cause storms to cover up the sky if he so chooses. Prospero has the power to decide when the sun will shine, and when there is to be darkness, and rai... .... Her imminent marriage at the end of the play causes Prospero to open his eyes to the world once again, and readies himself to rejoin society. This realization of the need for darkness as well as light allows Caliban the chance of forgiveness at the closing of the play. Caliban says,"    Ay, that I will; and I'll be wise hereafter And seek for grace. What a thrice-double ass Was I, to take this drunkard for a god And worship this dull fool! (V. I. 295-8) Shedding off his "dullness" in favor of a chance at redemption, Caliban takes a few steps closer to understanding the way Prospero views the world. It is Prospero?s acceptance of Caliban?s darkness that finally allows Caliban to have something in common with the world of light, and desire to seek grace. Works Cited: Shakespeare, William. The Tempest. New York: Penguin, 1970 [1623].   

Parkinsons Disease

PD normally affects people over the age of 50. It becomes more common with increasing age. ‘About 5 in 1,000 people in their 60s and about 40 in 1,000 people in their 80s have PD'1. It affects both men and women but is a little more common in men. PD is not usually inherited, and can affect anyone. However, genetic factors may be important in the small number of people who develop the disease before the age of 50. PD therefore affects a lot of people in the UK and I have chosen this topic so I have a greater understanding of what they go through and how we can help those affected. Background: Biology of Parkinson's disease? Parkinson's disease is a chronic disorder of part of the brain called the substantia nigra. It mainly affects the way the brain co-ordinates the movements of the muscles in various parts of the body. This area of the brain sends messages down nerves in the spinal cord to help control the muscles of the body. Messages are passed between brain cells, nerves and muscles by chemicals called neurotransmitters. Dopamine is the main neurotransmitter that is made by the brain cells in the substantia nigra1.Muscular System: Muscle Metabolism In PD, cells in the substantia nigra are damaged and die. The cause is unknown. Over time, more and more cells become damaged and die. The more cells that are damaged the less dopamine is produced. The reduction of cells and the low level of dopamine in the cells in this part of the brain causes nerve messages to the muscles to become slowed and abnormal1. In the long term PD will ultimately lead to death. Causes We are still unsure of the causes of PD but here are the most likely and most talked about suggestions: 1. The hereditary form of PD occurs in fifteen per cent of cases2. The genes affected help clear nerve cells of excess proteins. Scientists are not sure but it is thought that when the ‘production process for protein manufacture breaks down, little clumps of ill-formed proteins begin to accumulate in cell' 17, causing cell death. Tests carried out on rats using rotenone imply that pesticides and toxins may lead to PD. The rats experienced shaking and a loss of muscle control as well as developing Lewy bodies (spherical lumps found in dying brain cells), which are commonly associated with Parkinson's disease. However, researchers are yet to find evidence for any definitive link to a particular toxin or drug in humans. 2. There seems to be a link between variants of the mitochondrial genes and PD. The Parkinson's Disease Research Agenda states that â€Å"mitochondrial dysfunction has numerous consequences, including energetic failure, generation of reactive oxygen species, disregulation of calcium homeostasis and induction of apoptosis, each of which may be important in Parkinson's disease†3. 3. High concentrations of free-radicals in the body and a lack of antioxidants. Free radicals damage cells and if too many dopamine-producing cells were damaged then this could lead to PD. Antioxidants prevent the production of free radicals and repair damage done by them. Symptoms and effects There is no easy test to diagnose PD, so it is diagnosed by ruling out other diseases and looking for the classic symptoms: * Slowness of movement (bradykinesia)1. It will become more of an effort to walk or get out bed. People may just think they are getting old and it is not till other symptoms develop that you may think about PD. * Stiffness of muscles (rigidity) and muscles may feel tenser. Also, your arms do not tend to swing as much when you walk. * Shaking (tremor) is common, but does not always occur. It normally affects the fingers, thumbs, hands, and arms, but can affect other parts of the body. It is most noticeable when you are resting and may become worse when you are anxious or emotional. It's generally less obvious when you use your hand to do something such as picking up an object or writing. Symptoms will tend to get worse and worse and as the disease develops. Some other symptoms may develop due to problems with the way affected brain cells and nerves control the muscles. These include: * Fewer facial expressions such as smiling or frowning. Less blinking. * Difficulty with fine movements such as tying shoe laces or buttoning shirts. * Difficulty with writing (handwriting tends to become smaller), balance and posture and swallowing. * Speech may become slow and monotonous. * Tiredness aches and pains. As PD gets really bad, symptoms such as the following might develop, dependant on the individual: * Constipation- †PD prevents the proper transmission of the neurological messages that tell the rectal sphincter muscles to open†7 * Hallucinations (seeing, hearing or smelling things that are not real) * Sweating- PD can affect the autonomic nervous system8 that controls the autonomic functions (functions done automatically by the brain and body without conscious thought) such as sweating, breathing etc. * Difficulties with sleeping * Weight loss- there is a generally decreased appetite associated with PD. This may largely be due to swallowing difficulties and other gastrointestinal disturbances8 * Pain * Depression & Anxiety- anxiety disorders occur in up to 40% of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD)9. The article states †Current evidence suggests that anxiety may not be a psychological reaction to the illness but rather may be linked to specific neurobiological processes accompanying PD.† * Problems with controlling impulses (for example compulsive eating, shopping or gambling) Most people will only suffer form a few of these symptoms and which ones will get worse and the speed at which they get worse varies hugely from person to person. Some rare brain diseases can have very similar symptoms in which case a specialist brain scan can often be used to distinguish between them. The Treatments At the moment there is no cure for PD and most treatments simply have the job of relieving symptoms. 1. Drugs Intro: there are two main types of drug used in PD treatment. Firstly, drugs that target the neurotransmitter systems (e.g. dopamine) or secondly drugs that are designed to interfere with steps in the neurodegenerative processes (they may aim to sustain nerve cells or tackle the issue of free radicals). Drugs are cheap and effective, especially in relieving symptoms but show little potential as a full cure to the disease. Most also need to be taken daily for the remainder of a patients lifetime. Many drugs may have minor side affects. Some side affects have social impacts such as mood swings or may not allow the user to fly or travel to certain places. Dopaminergic Agents- use to activate the production or use of Dopamine. Levodopa- is an amino acid that is converted in the brain into dopamine. According to the WE MOVE website10 ‘Levodopa was introduced as a PD therapy in the 1960s, and remains the most effective therapy for motor symptoms' although there are many drugs that do a similar job such as Rasagiline. It reduces the effect of and helps control the symptoms of PD. Like most amino acids levodopa is absorbed into the blood stream through the wall of the intestines. Amino acids require a ‘transporter' to transfer them across the membrane of the intestines and into the blood stream. These transporters can only work at a certain rate and so diet is important. To much dietary protein can slow the transport of levodopa into the blood stream meaning the dose may be ineffective. Alternatively to avoid the competition with other amino acids, doses should be taken between meals. Levodopa has to cross from the blood stream into the brain using the same transport system again, making diet and timing doubly important. MAO-B Inhibitors- slow the breakdown of dopamine in the brain and aim to prevent or slow the death of neurons. ‘MAO is responsible for the mitochondrial metabolism of monoamine neurotransmitters, including dopamine and serotonin.'11 Ethical implications Some of the many ethical issues revolve around the decision to move from testing on artificial tissue (often grown from stem cells, which may in the future replace animal testing altogether. Stem cells, however create there own ethical issues) to animals, and further on the line, of animal testing to trails on human patients. The graph below shows the stages involved in developing a new drug and is taken from the MSD website (21/3/10): (http://www.msd.com.hk/health_info/drug_education/e_ddp_introduction.html) Animal testing is very closely regulated in the UK however many, often false, accusations of animal abuse have lead to darkened perceptions of animal testing in the public eye. Animal abuse is definitely a reality but ‘improved transparency, accountability and regulations'12 should reduce it happening and make sure those responsible are prosecuted. Unlike humans, animals are unable to consent to testing. It is forced upon them and often involves a certain amount of pain, stress, suffering and discomfort. Researchers will try to reduce this, possibly using anaesthetics although this can often interfere with the drug being tested so the animal may have to suffer the full amount of pain. Unfortunately, in PD, a number of animals are tested on normally starting with mice or rats before moving on to monkeys and finally human trails. Some people believe that animals like monkeys and most primates shouldn't be experimented upon as they aren't in the same plentiful supply that rats and mice are in, nor are they considered pests. However, for potentially dangerous drugs it is essential animals with a similar genetic make up (primates) are tested on to greatly reduce the risks in human clinical trails. Economics of drugs in PD As shown in figure 1.2 drug development requires a huge amount of research and testing and can take more than 10 years before a useable drug is created. This obviously requires a huge amount of investment and general drug development costs vary between 500 and 2,000 million dollars. R;D is often done by independent companies or government organizations. Most companies or organizations will link with universities to share information and facilities and hopefully quicken to process of discovering a new drug. ‘After approval, pharmaceutical companies have a short period of exclusivity before patents expire and other companies can market the same drugs as generics. This time is used to recoup the massive investment required to develop and launch a new drug. However, the companies must also continue to test their drugs and monitor the feedback from healthcare professionals in order to identify undiscovered side effects, risk factors and interactions.'13 Drug companies are some of the most profitable industries in the world and although a large amount of money is needed in research and development (R;D) only 1 in 5 dollars made is then invested in further research. Many companies spent nearly twice as much money on advertising and marketing than R;D and demand is so much higher than it needs to be that companies can afford to boost prices to maximise profit. Luckily with PD this becomes less of a problem as people are unlikely take and therefore buy drugs that are meant for PD when they don't actually need it. This is because the symptoms tend to be quite clear and drugs like levodopa are not readily available unless prescribed. Benefits to humans Drugs can have a massive impact on people suffering from PD and they aim to do a number of things: 1) Improve standards of living- by reducing the affects of PD and slowing the process of neurodegeneration it should allow the person suffering to do basic things (such as tying shoelaces, writing etc) more easily and for longer before they require full time medical care. This allows them to be more independent. 2) The use of drugs such as levodopa, in the long term, will reduce the affects of symptoms such as tiredness, aches and pains. Painkillers like amantadine will also be used for more short term relieve along side drugs like levodopa. This will simply make life less painful for a PD patient. 3) Drugs are the most well know and reliable of PD treatments. This reduces the risks of any unknowns or mistakes and far fewer mistakes will be made than in using other treatments. Risks to humans 1) Unfortunately Nausea and vomiting are common side effects of using levodopa that are due to the building up of dopamine in the bloodstream. The most serious and severe effect of this treatment is dyskinesias. ‘Dyskinesias are uncontrolled movements, including writhing, twitching, and shaking. Dyskinesias result from the combination of long-term levodopa use and continued neurodegeneration. They typically begin to develop in milder forms after 3 to 5 years of treatment, but are more severe after 5 to 10 years of treatment.'10 2) There is always risk of allergies when using drugs and for some unfortunate people drugs may do more damage than good. 3) Side affects of drugs vary from person to person and it is impossible to know beforehand how a certain drug will affect an individual. For some, side affects may be far worse than for others. 4) Dosages need to be got right and it is a common problem that people take to little and don't get the full benefit of the drug or take to much and suffer more/worse side affects. A massive overdose will likely lead to death. Alternative Cures? 2. Gene therapy- is still in early research stages and it is likely to be a while before this technique is actually used on humans. Like stem cells it has exciting potential to provide a future cure and avoid the ethical issues associated with stem cells. How it works? Gene therapy aims to introduce new and functioning genetic material into cells that have abnormal genes that are causing proteins (in the case of PD, dopamine) not to be created or created faulty. The genetic material can normally be inserted into the cells using viruses. ‘Some types of virus, such as retroviruses, integrate their genetic material (including the new gene) into a chromosome in the human cell. Other viruses, such as adenoviruses, introduce their DNA into the nucleus of the cell, but the DNA is not integrated into a chromosome.'13There is still much development needed as scientists are still unable to target specific cells and there is the potential threat of virus mutation which may cause even further problems. There is also major worry about the potential for gene therapy to be used to improve basic human traits such as height, intelligence etc. People could simply choice characteristics and this in many people's eyes could be used for the wrong reason. For example, this may be used to give some athletes a major advantage over others or possibly creating super humans. 3. Stem Cells I think stem cells have shown exciting potential and will hopefully provide a full time future cure for the disease. How they work? Stem cells are unspecialised cells that have the ability to develop into highly specialised cells like nerve cells. They can also self-renew, which means they are capable of replenishing themselves for long periods of time by dividing4. For Parkinson's disease it is hoped that large numbers of the brain cells that produce dopamine can be produced and inserted, through transplantation, into a patient's brain. Therefore, nerve messages to all parts of the body will be normal again. However, stem cells not been successfully used to cure PD yet and there are many problems facing researchers. Therefore stem cells are relatively useless for PD at the moment but may be able to provide an easy and affective cure in the future. Problems with the types of Stem cells There are three main types of stem cells: 1. Adult stem cells can come from Skin, Bone marrow, Brain, Blood vessels, Liver and Skeletal muscle. However, adult stem cells are found in such small quantities it is difficult to identify and isolate them in viable numbers. Because adult stem cells aren't as ‘young' as embryonic stem cells, they contain more DNA abnormalities acquired with age4. These can be caused by the environment, toxins or errors in DNA replication. Adult stem cells have limited potential because unlike embryonic stem cells they can not differentiate into any specialised cell in the body. 2. Cord blood cells are normally found in the umbilical cord and placenta after the cord is cut. One problem is the lack of cells obtained and these may not be enough relative to a patient's size. Cord blood cells generally take longer to grow, therefore completion of therapy will take longer. It obviously requires a pregnant woman to donate the cells. 3. Embryonic stem cells are found in human embryos and have a seemingly unlimited potential to develop into any cell in the human body. However they are surrounded by a number of ethical issues. Many people and especially religious group condemn the use of embryonic stem cells as they believe it is destroying a life. They believe it is immoral to save a life at the expense of another. However new developments in stem cells research means that Totipotent* stem cells can now be collected without the loss of embryo life: Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) – nucleus is removed from a somatic cell and is then implanted into a donor egg that has had its nucleus removed6. It divides just as normal before forming an embryo. Cells from the inner cell mass are extracted and cultured to provide embryonic stem cells but the technique destroys the embryo. Although the embryo is destroyed it is a created clone and so may not be considered the loss of new, individual life. Altered nuclear transfer (ANT), however, prevents an embryo from actually being created. The nucleus of the somatic cell is altered, or genetically reprogrammed, before being transferred into the egg. The alteration consequence is that the somatic cell DNA still produces stem cells but does not generate an embryo. Blastomere Extraction is performed on a two-day old embryo, following the division of the fertilized egg into eight blastomeres (cells). One blastomere is removed and can be triggered to divide and the resulting stem cells could still be used for research and disease treatment. The embryo, ‘now with only seven blastomeres can still be implanted into the mother and assuming no defect has been found these embryos will still grow into healthy babies'4. 1. Name of article: Parkinson's Disease Url: http://www.patient.co.uk/health/Parkinson's-Disease.htm Date accessed: 15/2/10 Evaluation: The article is certified as a reliable source of health and social care information. It certificate states- ‘The authors and editors of this article are employed to create accurate and up to date content reflecting reliable research evidence, guidance and best clinical practice. They are free from any commercial conflicts of interest.' The article states that Parkinson's disease affects the part of the brain know as the substantia nigra. WE MOVE (Worldwide Education and Awareness for Movement Disorders- http://www.wemove.org/par/par_subn.html) states: ‘In PD, cells of the SN (substantia nigra) degenerate, and therefore can no longer produce adequate dopamine.' This information is further backed up on the Parkinson's Disease Research Agenda that states ‘cells that produce the neurotransmitter dopamine die in a small brain area called the substantia nigra.' As the information provided is backed by what I consider to be reliable resources I think that the i nformation on the website is also therefore reliable, but should be checked with other sources before being used. 2. Name of article: Possible Causes of Parkinson's Disease (PD) Url: http://www.healthtree.com/articles/parkinsons-disease/causes.php Date accessed: 20/2/10 3. Name: Parkinson's Disease Research Agenda URL: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/about_ninds/plans/nihparkinsons_agenda.htm#Parkinson Date accessed: 20/2/10 Evaluation: Parkinson's disease Research Agenda is written by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). It primary aim is to †reduce the burden of neurological disease – a burden borne by every age group, by every segment of society, by people all over the world.† It is funded by the government so should provide no bias and the site aims to educate people about various neurological disorders including Parkinson's disease. It states â€Å"mitochondrial dysfunction has numerous consequences†¦ each of which may be important in Parkinson's disease.† This is also backed by an article: http://www.nature.com/nrneurol/journal/v6/n2/full/nrneurol.2009.221.html that states † dysfunctional energy metabolism might be a central element of the pathological process underlying the development of PD.† The site was last updated on the 25th of July 2008. As the site is run and updated by the government with no other purpose but to inform I think it can be used a very reliable source of information.