Essay about The Dome of the Rock - 2341 Words

Essentially unchanged for more than thirteen centuries, the Dome of the Rock remains one of the worlds most beautiful and enduring architectural treasures. Adorned with its magnificent gold dome and elaborate quranic inscriptions, the structure intimately represents the worlds second largest religion in a city historically associated with the three Semitic faiths. Representation, however, is not the only effect of this site. Despite its intended purpose, the Dome of the Rock inherently stands as the focal center of a millennium-old religious controversy. Located on what is essentially the worlds holiest site (obviously a speculative assertion) and inscribed with proclamations of Islamic religious superiority, the Dome symbolizes far†¦show more content†¦Cyril Glasse discusses such in her work: In the case of the Dome of the Rock, the symbolism of its Quranic forms echoes the significance of the Temple Mount as the site of the Temple of Solomon. It is the culmination of the revelations of Moses and Jesus in the restoration of the primordial Abrahamic unity which is IslamÂ…the calligraphic inscriptions recall the relationship between Jerusalem and Jesus, and the apocalypse to come. In addition to the structures architectural composition, elaborate Quranic inscriptions further elaborate this message of religious superiority. Carole Hillenbrand alludes to such: The Dome of the Rock, which had been built in 72/691 as a triumphant statement of the superiority of Islam over other faiths, especially Christianity, displays a careful selection of Quranic inscriptions which tilt at the Trinity and the Incarnation. Islams uncompromising monotheism is emphasized in a long band of inscriptions measuring around 240 metres in length: the message is unambiguous: ‘There is no god but the One God and He has no partner. Artfully constructed and etched in Quranic verse, the Dome sits upon its ominous perch and serves as the center of Jerusalem. Regardless of ones religious or political slant, the sheer magnificence of the building cannot be ignored Ââ€" nor can its intrinsic message. From an uninfluenced perspective, one cannot help but observe the Dome as an attempt toShow MoreRelatedThe Dome Of The Rock1999 Words   |  8 Pages The Dome of the Rock (688-92) is a building project which demonstrates a particular way of achieving uniqueness in architecture. Architectural uniqueness can be established by introducing the same building form and materials in a slightly different way, complimenting its surrounding. Again, this uniqueness can be achieved by having a completely different building vocabulary, contrasting with its surroundings. In this context, this essay will investigate what type of architectural uniqueness theRead MoreThe Dome Of The Rock1278 Words   |  6 Pagesbeautiful gilt dome decorating the skyline of Jerusalem, the Dome of the Rock is the oldest and most famous Islamic building on the Temple Mount. As a religious space with kinetic and interrelated characteristics, it not only functions as a Muslim shrine, but also exhibits significance based on its history and relative location to the Jewish Temple and Christian churches. Built on the site of Solomon’s Temple and decorated with mosa ics symbolizing the Paradise and Jewish royalty, the Dome reveals theRead MoreThe Dome Of The Rock1685 Words   |  7 Pagesthe Prophet Muhammad to Heaven started from Jerusalem, from al-Sakhra known now as Qubbat al-Sakhra (the Dome of the Rock)† (El-Khatib 2001:34). The Dome of the Rock is still present and can be visited today on the Temple Mount within Jerusalem. Similar to the ascension of Prophet Muhammad, the Christians believe that Jerusalem is the location of Jesus’ resurrection from death. The Dome of the Rock bears great significance to the Islamic people, but the question remains: Why exactly was it built onRead MoreThe Dome Of The Rock2572 Words   |  11 Pages the Dome of the Rock has received the honor of being recognized as â€Å"Jerusalem’s most recognizable landmark†, with its octagonal structure and the conspicuous gold-plated roof. Also seen as one of the oldest extant Islamic architectural work, the Dome was originally built to show the Christians that Islam could also have a great monument to rival the Dome of the Anastasis and thus the Muslims would not be dazzled by Christian churches and dome. (Armstrong 1997: 237). If we examine the Dome separatelyRead MoreThe Dome Of The Rock1959 Words   |  8 PagesThe Dome of the Rock Jerusalem is the holy city that hosts an array of religious artifacts and buildings that are rooted in different religions that span centuries. From the Wailing Wall to the Second Temple, Jerusalem exists as a testament to ancient religions and their cultures. But one particular architectural masterpiece rises above all of them. The Dome of the Rock or Qubbat as-Sakhrah rises above Jerusalem, its golden peak reflecting the desert sun, a beacon of ancient history. It can be seenRead MoreThe Dome Of The Rock And Alhambra Essay1378 Words   |  6 Pages The two Islamic structures are the Dome of the rock and alhambra. It is likely that both structures were built for the same purpose. The Dome of the Rock has no distinct known purpose that modern investigators have discovered but it was likely to have been built with the purpose of impressing the region with the power and the emergence of Islamic control. alhambra was built as a palace complex to house the leaders of Granada and into likely establish the dynasty of the Nasrid. Although built toRead MoreDome of the Rock and Santa Costanza950 Words   |  4 Pagespeople of that time and they have faced great resistance. Early Islamic art and early Christian art both are historically important as both are similar in some ways. The most earliest architecture and first such structure from the Muslims is the Dome of the Rock located in Jerusalem. When the Muslims conquered the city of Jerusalem in they needed a place (Mosque) to worship and offer their prayers in congregation. At the s ame time they also wanted to build a monument that would show the success of MuslimsRead MoreReligious Significance The Pantheon And The Dome Of The Rock1652 Words   |  7 PagesThe Religious Significance the Pantheon and the Dome of the Rock Convey Architecture comes with many significant meanings, including religious significance. The Pantheon, built from 118 to 125 CE in Rome, Italy, was a temple made to worship the Roman gods and goddesses. This temple is one of the most important buildings both in history and architecture, influencing many other monuments with its form, such as The Dome of the Rock. The Dome of the Rock, built from 687 to 692 CE, was the first greatRead MoreHagia Sophia vs Dome of the Rock984 Words   |  4 Pagesa bridge between the real world and the divine world, and mirror religious views of people and the major beliefs of the society. Hagia Sophia and the Dome of the Rock are two of the greatest and the most important architectural monuments in the world. Even though two of the most historical mosques, Hagia Sophia and the Dome of the Rock, are built for different religions, but due to a sharing purpose, which being praying to God, the difference can barely be noticed. By sharing a purposeRead MoreCompare and Contrast St. Sernin to Dome of the Rock754 Words   |  4 Pagessites, the Dome of the Rock. I will be comparing what similarities and what differences these two great buildings have to one another. Let’s start with the differences, since these two buildings will probably have a lot. With the Basilica of St. Sernin we find that the floor plan is made to resemble a cross, where the Dome of the Rock has an octagon shaped outer wall. The entrance of the Basilica of St. Sernin has two arched entrances which are sunken in where in the Dome of the Rock the entrances

The Legacy Of The Sierra Club Adams - 1297 Words

As Adams pursued his work in both art and conservation the various lines of his life were beginning to converge revealing both the unity and the disjunction of his ideas. 137 His impact was felt on both spheres of influence. Using modern techniques of mass communications, Adams brought a vision of idealized wilderness to a broad audience and linked the environmental movement with nationalism and a romantic view of nature. The sustained popularity of his photographs illuminates a continuing public fascination with the wilderness landscape as both a place of beauty and a symbol of national identity and ideals. (Pacific 42) Most leaders within the conservation movement continued to share his ideal assuming that economic growth and wilderness†¦show more content†¦During these years the club sought to establish the Kings River region, to the south of Yosemite in th e board of the Sierra Club asked him to lobby in Washington on behalf of the park(pacific 31-32) with total naivetà ƒ © he wrote I ventured into the strange wilderness of out nations capitol with a portfolio of photographs under my arm visiting congressmen and senators in their lairs. I boldly proclaim the glories of the high sierra and showed my pictures with unabashed confidence that they would prove our contention132Two years later, in 1938, Adams sent a copy of his recently published book of photographs, The Sierra Nevada and the John Muir Trail, to Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes. Impressed with the volume, Ickes showed it to President Roosevelt, who asked to keep it for the White House. Whether or not their actions can be directly credited to the influence of Adams s photographs, Roosevelt and Ickes both worked for the passage of the park bill which had stalled in Congress, and in 1940 the park was created.(pacific 31-32)in 1941 adams was appointed by sec of interior Harold ickes as a photographic

Argue On Hostile Takeovers Free Essays

Lisa Newton argues against hostile takeovers and has many rational reasons backing her point. Takeovers in the past overall have not proven effective nor have they been monetarily beneficial to either the company or the society involved. Corporations are ruined and people, even families, are hurt. We will write a custom essay sample on Argue On Hostile Takeovers or any similar topic only for you Order Now In this paper, I will argue against hostile takeovers for these reasons from the standpoint of a utilitarian. Utilitarianism is the â€Å"moral doctrine that we should always act to produce the greatest possible balance of good over bad for everyone affected by our action.† (Shaw Barry, 59) Actions are evaluated according to their consequences and look to maximize happiness. The view is long-term not just immediately. A hostile corporate takeover is not a positive thing through the eyes of a utilitarian for several reasons. To begin with, the idea of a possible takeover has degenerating effects on a company. â€Å"At the first level there is disruption and millions of dollars† worth of unproductive expense.† (Newton, 189) Effectiveness and productive activity at the upper levels of management comes to a stop and systematical planning disappears. Employees become apprehensive about the security of their jobs and end up spending a majority of their time speculating or searching for another job. It takes a toll on everyone involved in that they feel dishonored or belittled. Utilitarians would argue this is not a moral action since it harms the majority of the people. It is not the greatest good for the greatest number. It may immediately (short-term) benefit those who have done the takeover and those in higher up positions. However, in the long run it may not benefit even anyone. The early results of hostile takeover activity are combined with unnecessary and unwise business practices. The takeover has two destructive effects on corporate†s management. Equity is transformed into debt, leaving the company without protection. Being desperate, management may begin to look for short-term profits and impose by force aggressive actions not previously acted upon. This is deceiving to stockholders since they see high returns and stock prices even though the company does not have a good level of steadiness or security. It also harms the overall society since they usually depend on these large corporations for income and employment. Companies are willing to pay high takeover prices that they engage in severe cost-cutting at every level and at any cost. This sometimes even includes eliminating those who are important in maintaining operations, which is never a good move for the company as a whole. These people will probably have a problem finding other jobs since higher level positions are usually held by people who have been at the company for an extended length of time and are therefore older than others would want a new employee to be at a starting position. The basis of this issue revolves around money and does not consider those individuals involved. The corporate economy is at the mercy of the American dollar. People have become engrossed with making money that they sometimes forget they are dealing with other human beings. The takeover of a corporation may benefit those who are now in charge but not many others involved. Society winds up helping those newly unemployed and sometimes even the company itself. There are no laws to protect or help those who may one day be involved in a hostile takeover. These people have rights since they have contributed a lot of time, effort and even money towards the growth of the company. A corporation is nothing by itself; it is made up of the people with whom it employs. Human needs are not noticed by business practice and they hardly receive the justice deserved. Hostile takeovers are â€Å"harmful to corporate stakeholders, the economy, and the general public.† (Newton, 188) The law should restrict or even prohibit them, which is currently does not. There usually is no protection or justice for those involved. There are laws for anything and everything else to supposedly protect individuals, so why not this? Most often the result is not positive. Individuals are hurt and the corporation is usually killed in the end. More people must argue that the corporation is a moral individual just like others. The reality is that people frequently expect more from takeover defenses than they can deliver. It is rare that any defenses are backed by common sense and critical business strategy, which could help resist a pursuer and help control the terms of the deal. â€Å"As a matter of right, and as a matter of utility, the takeover game should be ended.† (Newton, 194) How to cite Argue On Hostile Takeovers, Essay examples

Business Skills

Question: 1. Comparison of the two styles of given newspaper articles.2. Essay on Myth: Global warming, environmental racism. Answer: 1. Comparison of the two styles of given newspaper articles: The objective of this task is to take into account two separate newspaper articles and evaluate the approach assumed by the writers. The motivation for such articles and examine which of these articles have been successful in providing a more balanced and fairer view of the Calais Jungle situation. Taking into perspective the Article 1 titled The most shocking thing about Calais is that its not even too big to solve by Yvette Cooper, it is visible that the author is personally involved to resolve the current situation, as it exists in Calais Jungle. The narrative approach followed by the author vividly describes the existing condition of the refugees currently camped in the area (Alaux, 2015). Furthermore, since the writer is involved in some form or other, to help bring focus to the issues. The article is focused more on highlighting the issues and underlines a demanding tone to seek resolution and actions from the French and British Governments. Diverting attention to Article 2 ti tled How Calais' 'jungle' migrant camp has now become a mini city - complete with restaurants, a theatre, book shops and free wifi by Josh White, the approach and the underpinning objective of the writer is contrary to that observed in the Article 1. While article 1 was vivid, graphic and seemed very personal, Article 2 is articulate, distant and analytical. Article 1 focused on the issues due to lack of action and often the writer would demand affirmative action from the Governments or a course of action that would indicate intent on the Governments behalf. If the writing style of the writers are compared it is evident that while article 1 is informal, emotive and simplistic in nature, article 2 is more formal. It is reportive and identifies the complex nature of human beings, instead of assigning black and white colours to the sides involved. The writer in article 1 would seem content by citing the various prior incidents in which British and French Government had successfully collaborated together to solve immigration issues (Hanappe, 2015). Even though, the writer acknowledges, that there might be elements that are different in previous occasions and the current situation. The writer fails to bring such consideration into perspective while reporting on Calais Jungle. The intent of the first article seems to drive action from both the Governments - though primarily the British Government is targeted, involved as well as the United Nations. However, it should also be acknowledged that the writer does consider in latter parts of the art icle. Solving immigration issues might not be as simplistic as made out to be since, Calais is situated in France and British interjection might only lead migrants to gather there in greater numbers. In the second article, the writer focuses on narrating the incidents in particular journalistic manner, depicting the existential situation, without making way for sentiments. Another contradictory aspect of the second article, is that instead of focusing on the issues as a resultant outcome due to lack of Government action, it proposes and highlights the legal and humanitarian issues. This issues caused by people that have migrated and gathered in Calais from various countries. The writer, in this case, has chosen to delve in the existing lifestyle, culture, routine and residential styles adopted by the refugees camped in Calais Jungle. Contrary to the writer in Article 1, in article 2, the writer is motivated by the increase in illegal immigration issues which is found abundant in the Calais Jungle settlement. The writer highlights the schedule and the method of operations for the trafficking gangs that look to insert refugees into Britain. Since Calais is situated near the English Channel, it has been a practice in the past to make way to Britain by crossing the English Channel (www.dailymail.co.uk, 2016). Though previously, strategies and actions undertaken by the British and French Government had been successful in drastically reducing illegal immigration, current refugee crisis has averted those actions. The writer intends to create an awareness regarding the existent situation and reports on every aspect of the daily lives and how they have come to be. In the opinion of Duffin (2015), upon detailed inspection of the information presented by writers, the narrative style and the intent that comes across it has been identified that the writer of the second article provides a more balanced and fair view of the current situation. Such conclusion can be drawn due the balanced arguments and facts that the writer of the second article has stated wherein the human spirit of survival as well as the negative aspects of immigration has also been succinctly identified (www.theguardian.com, 2016). 2. Essay on Myth: Global warming, environmental racism Introduction: According to recent figures by the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, USA, there are about 17.7 million adults who suffer from asthma, while about 6.3 million children, below the age of 18 suffer from this disease (www.cdc.gov, 2016). Keeping in perspective the information detailed in the article Myth: Global warming, environmental racism, environment activists are of the opinion that the ozone pollution is one of the important factors for asthma. Taking a look at the definition put forth by the Mayo Clinic, asthma has been symptomized by narrowing of the trachea, swelling, and shortness of breath. There are various levels of asthma suffering, where one can be affected only by rare and select allergens, with easily handled symptoms, while in other cases, it can be life-threatening. The main factors that have been scientifically identified by the Mayo Clinic for asthma range from heredity, tobacco smoking, obesity and exposure to industrial chemicals. According to Budzianowsk i (2011), has been identified by historical analysis that cases of asthma is on the rise in US. However, when the levels of ozone pollution is taken into consideration, it has been observed that through strict policing of environmental and manufacturing norms, harmful emissions and ozone pollution is on a downward trend. In consideration of such facts, the depiction of environmentalists claim that ozone pollution causes asthma is found to be without bias and hence cannot be supported. This essay will argue that ozone pollutions do not have any incremental effect on asthma conditions or occurrence and that global warming has been hoisted as a flagship issue with US being the focus of environmental racism. Body: While activists are continuously targeting businesses in the US to reduce manufacturing, cease production of certain goods and creating delays with rallies and legal suits. The various initiatives that have been undertaken since the inception of the Environment Protection Agency during the Nixon Administration have been forgotten. The current practices undertaken by businesses involve the E3 policy (Economy, Energy and Environment), Lean Manufacturing and Superfund and Green Remediation among many more (www.epa.gov, 2016). As a result, there has been a significant drop in the ozone pollution, environment groups continue to pose problems for the economic growth in the country. Despite of the reduced emissions from factories, electronics appliances and cars, environmental activists seem to think there has been inadequate response to reducing the carbon footprint. According to Smith (2014), continued blockage of business practices, which leads to less employment opportunities and decrea sed GDP growth of the economy. Environment activists argue that the impact of air pollution and ozone pollution are creating a more conducive atmosphere for asthma. On the contrary, the relationship between decreasing levels of ozone pollution and increasing levels of asthma patients seem to indicate otherwise. Furthermore, as indicated by Sarkany et al. (2016), asthma is majorly caused by exposure to allergens, chemical fumes, and can also be hereditary in nature. As such, such factors are hardly caused by the increase in environmental pollution or increase in ozone pollution (Weaver, 2011). Extended restraint on businesses over use of materials, specific manufacturing processes and production of specific goods, as a cause for environmental protection can only succeed in weakening the economy and the ability to ensure stability in the country and surrounding regions. In comparison, other countries like China, India and Russia, continue to be greatest contributor to global pollution (Naik, 2007). While there are significantly less practices in such countries despite their major contribution to ozone pollutants, environmental activists have overlooked such issues and continue to target US. Such practice has given birth to what is now being described as environmental racism, where greater focus and restraint is being practiced on selective economies. In stark contrast, activists, and even Senator Kelly has asked to exhibit control over the carbon footprint in African countries, where production value and size are significantly less as compared to production value of China, India or Russia (Chung et al. 2012). Conclusion: In conclusion, it has been established that ozone pollution is not as significantly linked to asthma occurrence as has been suggested by environmental groups. As a result, the hue and cry strategy practiced by these groups has only led to selectively focussing restraining efforts on the US businesses, which makes case for environmental racism. In support of the views expressed by the writer in the article, it is best to focus holistically on all economic participants to exercise green practices to reduce environmental pollution, instead of focussing on one economy. References: Alaux, J.-P.(2015) Calais vautbienquelques requiem, Pleindroit, 104(1), pp. 3-8.Budzianowski, W.M. (2011) Time delay of global warming, International Journal of Global Warming, 3(3), pp. 289295.CDC (2016)Asthma. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/asthma.htm [Accessed: 18 March 2016].Chung, M.C., Rudd, H. and Wall, N. (2012) Posttraumatic stress disorder following asthma attack (post-asthma attack PTSD) and psychiatric co-morbidity: The impact of alexithymia and coping, Psychiatry Research, 197(3), pp. 246252. Cooper, Y., 2016. The most shocking thing about Calais is that its not even too big to solve. [Online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jan/07/calais-french-migrant-camps-refugee-crisis [Accessed 7 January 2016]. Duffin, C. (2015) Calais migrant camp conditions are desperate, says nurse volunteer, Nursing Standard, 29(50), pp. 99. EPA, U. and OSEM (2015)Sustainable practices innovation. Available at: https://www.epa.gov/innovation/sustainable-practices-innovation [Accessed: 18 March 2016]. Hanappe, C. (2015) Calais, un autredevenirville, Multitudes, 61(4), pp. 15-20 Naik, G., (2007) Global Warming May Be Spurring Allergy, Asthma; Dr.Ziska's Ragweed Loves Carbon Dioxide; Toxic Pollen in Cities? Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition[New York, N.Y]. p.A.1 Sarkany, Z., Sarkany, K. and Horvath, A. (2016) Investigating the possibility to Individualize asthma attack therapy based on attack severity and patient characteristics, ActaMedicaMarisiensis, 62(1), pp. 4448. Schmid, L. (2014) Position. Leons de Calais, Esprit, Decmbr 26(12), pp. 9-15 Smith, H.J. (2014) Deep-sea warming slows down global warming, Science, 345(6199), pp. 886887. Weaver, A., (2011), Generation Us The Challenge ofGlobalWarming,Victoria : Orca Book Publishers 2011 White, J., 2015. How Calais' 'jungle' migrant camp has now become a mini city - complete with restaurants, a theatre, book shops and free wifi. [Online] Available at: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3348594/Restaurants-theatre-free-wifi-Calais-Jungle-migrant-camp-mini-city.html [Accessed 7 January 2015].

An Example of Dividend Policy Irrelevance Essay Example

An Example of Dividend Policy Irrelevance Essay AN EXAMPLE OF DIVIDEND POLICY IRRELEVANCE An example provides insight into the dividend irrelevance proposition. Suppose that now is time 0, and one year from now is time 1. Carter Company just paid its time 0 dividend (assume dividends are paid once per year), and plans to publicly announce its dividend policy for the next year. It is considering the following two policies (all dollar amounts in $millions). Policy I: At time 1, dividends = $110, new share sales = 0, treasury stock purchases = 0 Policy II: At time 1, dividends = $121, new share sales = $11, treasury stock purchases = 0 The time 1 total equity value (the $2,200 in column (3) of the exhibit below) is the time 1 market value of all shares (shares that were outstanding at time 0 and new shares issued at time 1. It is the ex-dividend (post time 1 dividend) value of the firm’s equity at time 1. This amount ($2,200) is the same under policies I and II because the firm’s assets and financial structure are exactly the same under I and II (implying the same time 1 total value of all the equity outstanding at time 1). We assume that the buyers of the new time 1 stock pay a fair price for the stock. Dividend policy (1) Time 1 dividend (2) Time 1 total equity value (time 0 shares + new time 1 shares) (3) Time 1 value of new time 1 shares (4)Time 1 value of old time 0 shares [= (3) ? (4)] (5) I$110$2,2000$2,200 II$121$2,200$11$2,189 Now let’s compute the time 0 value of the Carter stock if Carter announces policy I, and if it announces policy II. Assume an equity discount rate (k) of 10%. = = = $2,100 (1) = = = $2,100 (2) We will write a custom essay sample on An Example of Dividend Policy Irrelevance specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on An Example of Dividend Policy Irrelevance specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on An Example of Dividend Policy Irrelevance specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer In the numerator of (2), ($2,200 ? $11) is the time 1 value of the time 0 shares (the shares that were outstanding at time 0, which equals the value of all the shares at time 1 minus the value of the new shares issued at time 1). The time 0 value of those shares is independent of dividend policy. At time 1, under policy II, the time 0 shareholders give up an $11 ownership interest in the firm’s shares in exchange for an $11 dividend payments; the transaction is a wash. This wash effect holds for any dividend policy change if there are no personal taxes.

Every IB History Past Paper Available Free and Official

Every IB History Past Paper Available Free and Official SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Taking a practice IB History exam before the actual exam will help you familiarize yourself with the length, style and format of the test. In this guide, we explain the IB History test format and link to the best past papers available. At the end, I’ll explain how best to use these IB History past papers for your studying. Disclaimer: these free exams should be used at your own risk. The exams are not authorized by the IBO and were most likely put up online without the IBO’s consent. IB History Exam Format The IB History course was completely revamped in 2017. Now, there are five prescribed subjects: Military leaders Conquest and its impact The move to global war Rights and protest Conflict and intervention Your teacher will choose one that you'll cover, and you'll be tested on this for paper 1 (one hour in length). There is also a list of twelve world history topics. For paper 2 (1.5 hours), you'll cover two of these: Society and economy (750-1400) Causes and effects of medieval wars (750-1500) Dynasties and rulers (750-1500) Societies in transition (1400-1700) Early Modern states (1450-1789) Causes and effects of Early Modern wars (1500-1750) Origins, development and impact of industrialization (1750-2005) Independence movements (1800-2000) Evolution and development of democratic states (1848-2000) Authoritarian states (20th century) Causes and effects of 20th-century wars The Cold War: superpower tensions and rivalries (20th century) For students taking IB History HL, they'll have a final paper (paper 3) that is 2.5 hours and will cover one of the four Depth Studies: History of Africa and the Middle East History of the Americas History of Asia and Oceania History of Europe Current IB History Papers The best source for up-to-date IB History past papers is the IBO store. Each paper and each markscheme is $3, so a full test's worth will cost you $12 for SL or $18 for HL. (While the IBO site has a sample SL/HL paper 2 available for free, it's from November 2005, predating the most recent syllabus updates.) Currently, the IB store has papers from 20 through 2018, but we recommend only purchasing papers from May 2017 tests or later, as those are the exams that match the new syllabus. Be sure to check not just the test date but also the depth-study area for each exam paper and markscheme you purchase to make sure they match up- you wouldn't want to purchase a History of Asia and Oceania exam paper but a History of Europe markscheme! Additionally, we've found these IB History past papers available for you to study from. They are from 2017 and follow the same format as current IB History exams, so you can be sure they'll be close to what you actually see for your own paper. Because they're not on the official IB site, however, we urge you to use these with caution. Paper 1 prompts and grading Paper 2 prompts Alan O'Rourke / Flickr Old IB History Papers These papers are before the IB History course was revamped in 2017, so the topics the papers cover won't be exactly what you see for your course. However, these can still be a useful way to get a better sense of the kinds of papers you'll see for IB History and the types of information you'll be expected to know. 2003 Paper 1Paper 1 Source BookletPaper 2Paper 3 2004 Paper 1Paper 1 Source BookletPaper 2Paper 3 2005 Paper 1Paper 1 Source BookletPaper 2Paper 3 2006 Paper 1Paper 1 Source BookletPaper 2Paper 3 Paper 3 Topics Chart of paper 3 topics from 2000 through 2012 How to Use IB History Past Papers Each full IB History practice exam will take you 2.5 hours for SL or 5 hours for HL, so you need to get the most out of each test. Below are some pointers for your practice. Tip 1: Take Papers 1 and 2 Consecutively (If Possible) For both IB History SL and HL, papers 1 and 2 are administered one after the other, requiring you to maintain your concentration and testing stamina for 2.5 hours. Part of practicing for the test means building up your testing endurance so that you're not making careless errors or losing focus towards the end of the tests. IB History HL includes a third, 2.5-hour paper administered on a second day of testing, which you should also try to match in your practice schedule. Having a test spread out over multiple days means that you can't just cram and then immediately forget everything after you've finished papers 1 and 2; you'll need to practice retaining information even after the 2.5-hour slog of the first day's papers 1 and 2. If you don't have time in your schedule for a full 2.5-hour session (or for two 2.5-hour sessions two days in a row for HL), then splitting papers 1 and 2 up over multiple days is OK. Just make sure that in your studying you follow this next tip: Tip 2: Time Yourself on Each Paper You must get used to the timing pressures of this exam. The time allowed per paper is: IB History SL Paper 1- 1 hour Paper 2- 1 hour 30 minutes IB History HL Paper 1- 1 hour Paper 2- 1 hour 30 minutes Paper 3- 2 hour 30 minutes Don't give yourself extra time. If you do, you will not figure out your pacing for the real exam and will likely score higher than you actually will the day of the test. I want these practice exams to give you an accurate picture of your actual test score. Stephan Baum/Wikimedia Tip 3: Review Your Mistakes! When you complete your exam (end of Paper 2 for SL or end of Paper 3 for HL), check every mistake. If you skip this step, you will not learn from your errors, and you'll keep making them. You need to take at least an hour reviewing your exam. I know this may seem like a lot of time, but you want quality practice. If you only end up taking two practice tests with detailed review, you will be better prepared than if you took six tests with no review. What’s Next? Taking IB History right now? Round out your studying with our complete IB History notes and study guide. Ready to jump into some US History topics? Learn about the Platt Amendment and Ida Lewis. If you're more interested in political history, be sure to also check out our articles on checks and balances in the US government and how the executive branch can check the judicial branch. Or perhaps you're interested in learning something that might not come up in history class? Find out more about David Ghantt and the Loomis Fargo heist, the complete history of hip hop, and the competing claims for invention of the 3-hole punch. Learn more about the IB course offerings: The Complete List of IB Courses and Classes Which IB Courses Can I Take Online? Can I Get an Online IB Diploma? 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Interview Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 7

Interview - Assignment Example of education cannot be compared between my Saudi Arabia and Canada, as there are more facilities and an improved sense of order in the educational program. This is in that there is not much to worry about in terms of relevance as I get to choose the subjects that fit into my schedule and future aspirations. This flexibility is not found in my country, as there are certain common courses that we all have to take at school indiscriminate of majors and minors, as they are considered important to the building of the nation. This should not be taken as being unpatriotic to my country because I do not perceive it as wrong to want the fine or best things in life such as education. Some of the challenges as a foreign student in Canada are that there is a different culture here than the one found back home, which would be apparently obvious. This poses a big challenge in that I have had to fit in with the locals and see to it that I do not cross other people’s paths by exercising my way of life, especially in religion. In addition, most things are done in a different manner than the way we do it back home, especially in gender roles, where men and women seem to work in harmony and not in complementary terms. I find this as a challenge treating all people as equals and not as I do it back home here there is segregation, but the challenge is welcome. Integration in gender roles is welcome as it allows me to interact with other people from all occupations, as it is part of their culture to have all persons equal. I, therefore take this as a positive aspect of the challenges I have had to face and that I am coping with well. Language is also a problem as I s peak with a heavy Arabic accent, which makes it difficult for other people to comprehend my speech. As a result, I have had to come up with new ways of communicating and even devising a system with my friends, through which I can exercise my language and communication skills. I have had to use gestures at shops to

Globalization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Globalization - Essay Example Of the two opposing arguments Moore’s although more optimistic is only partially convincing. Chossudovsky’s argument on the other hand, although pessimistic appears to be more realistic and appreciative of the world’s general state of affairs. Michel Moore is optimistic in his general outlook and draws on the difficulties of the past and how the world has grown in a positive direction as a result. He takes the position that as a result of world wars and the great depression a ‘new system of global structures’ (Moore. P. 1) such as the United Nations, the World Bank, the international Monetary Fund and the International Trade Organization help is available to those third world countries that cannot help themselves. It is true that world conflicts have resulted in the creation of global structures. But in the grand scheme of things they are powerless to eradicate poverty and the resulting health crisis. As Chossudovsky points out in his publication Globalization of Poverty ‘In the 1990s, famines at the local level have erupted in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia and parts of Latin America; health clinics and schools have been closed down; hundreds of millions of children have been denied the right to primary education. In the Third World, Eastern Europe and the Balkans, there has been a resurgence of infectious diseases including tuberculosis, malaria and cholera.’ (Chossudovsky. P1) Moore argues that international solidarity is the key to lending aide to those less fortunate than ourselves and extols the virtue of trading with the lesser developed countries. He suggests buying coffee from Uganda and perhaps T-shirts from Bangladesh and goes on to say ‘embrace the outside world, not shun it.† (Moore. P.2) When societies are open to one another, they share their ideas and their culture. Moore offer the European Economics Community as an example of the results of opening

Strategic Marketing Managment Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Strategic Marketing Managment - Case Study Example One of the major competitors of Reebok that is Adidas was already offering technologically superior footwear, while the other competitor that is Nike was offering shoes that guaranteed superior athletic performance (Hines & Bruce, 2007, p. 307). So long, Reebok had been struggling hard to carve out a space for itself amidst these two arch rivals. Besides, it also desired to increase its market share. Prior to this positioning strategy, the competitive strategy of Reebok was mainly focused on offering the lowest prices (Hines & Bruce, 2007, p. 308). It offered significant discounts to the retailers opting to sell Reebok products. However, the flip side of this strategy was that it not only curtailed the revenues at Reebok, but also made Reebok seem a cheaper brand as compared to Adidas and Nike (Hines & Bruce, 2007, p. 308). However, the new positioning offered to the consumers, something that they could relate to. Besides, it is utterly difficult for Nike and Adidas to venture into t his new position affiliated to lifestyle branding, without compromising their stakes in the market segments they already specialize in. Finally, Reebok has found a place for itself in the footwear market, in which it can dare to be the best. This strategy allows Reebok to consolidate its stakes in the lifestyle shoe discipline, while retaining adequate share in the athletic shoe segment (Kotler, 2003). It also allows Reebok the first entrant advantage, thus enabling it to keep on improving its superiority in the lifestyle shoe market, before Nike and Adidas chose to foray into this segment (Kotler, 2003). It also adds to the profitability of Reebok, thereby enabling it to further strengthen its position in the athletic and performance shoe segment (Kotler, 2003). 2: The success of Reebok was assured by its acumen in understanding well in time that the professional athletes comprised only a very small segment of the customers opting to buy sport shoes (Encyclopedia of Major Marketing Campaigns, 2007: Online). The major bulk of the sportswear customers comprised of the young men and women who preferred athletic shoes as street wear and demanded comfort and style from the sports shoes they purchased. These casual wearers comprised the largest customer segment in the sports shoes market, responsible for more than 80 percent of the sales (Encyclopedia of Major Marketing Campaigns, 2007: Online). While Nike and Adidas worked hard at being perceived by the propitious customers as being the sellers of cutting edge sports shoes, Reebok knew well that technological superiority was certainly not its forte. In the current scenario, Reebok is targeting young, sports minded males, who perceive their casual wear to be a projection of their young and sporty persona. This segment is not only the largest customer segment in the market under consideration, but also tends to be more loyal and relatively easier to approach through advertising campaigns and event sponsorship. Right now, Reebok is emphatically focusing on targeting and converting the young people having a taste for sports and desirous of reflecting their athletic temperament in their casual wear. Not to say, Reebok has accrued immense success in this endeavor. 3: Reebok’s strategy of creating new brands to target new markets and launching special collections under new brand names is a sound brand strategy considering the fact that Reebok primarily associates itself

Feminist Critique Of Post War Social Policies Sociology Essay

Feminist Critique Of Post War Social Policies Sociology Essay This essay will explore the post war social policies and provide a critique of these. It will include the discussion about the different types of feminism and how the notion of feminism has changed over the years. The essay will end with a conclusion summarising the key concepts and arguments presented around feminism. The feminist movement has over the last century or so undergone many interesting twists and turns. Most significantly, there have been a number of strands which have been responsible for key developments in the post war period. Feminism is a diverse, competing, and often opposing collection of social theories, political movements, and moral philosophies, largely motivated by or concerning the experiences of women, especially in terms of their social, political and economical inequalities. (Report: Feminism theory, A. Mahmoudi, York University 2006) this is the broad and general definition of feminism. Main body There are many types of feminism ranging from liberal feminism social feminism, radical feminism and post-modern feminism. Liberal feminism does not seek any special provisions for women and simply requests equal rights for women without any form of discrimination based on the sex of the individual. Socialists feminism is quite different from this and is based on the belief that technology and the social shaping of technology has been monopolised or hijacked by the men in society. This has meant that women have deliberately been excluded from this arena. Radical feminism is based on the notion that the oppression of women is the worst form of oppression within society. It is for this reasons that radical feminist have very little respect for most scientific theories, analysis and data. The reason is that such research and deliberations exclude the women prospective and are definitely not women centre. Post-modern feminism is rooted in the idea that any universal research or gender associated with it or technological resource will be appropriate and women will have different experiences and reactions to technology depending on their particular circumstance in society including their class sexuality, country of residence and other such factors. It has to be understood that there is no behaviour or meaning which can be considered either feminine or masculine in a common or all surrounding manner. Over the last few hundred years there have been many examples in different aspects of society which clearly indicate that there is a prejudice favouring males. For example, the work of the women activist Emmeline Pankhurst with her supporters led to the right of women to vote in Britain. This was not easily achieved and saw many conflicts and struggles before it became accepted as a norm. In many ways, it seem astonishing that women should have to fight for such a fundamental right and that it was not automatically conferred to women as they became eligible at a certain age in their lives. Thus, the role of men in the construction of sociological thought and ideologies has been an obvious obstacle which has prevented the female perspective to be brought into performance in the sociological and social field generally. One of the most unfair examples of womens rights is that entitlement to property is limited and males usually have a greater and unfair advantage over females. This is a major issue when entitlement to estates is contested by females relatives of departed males. The amount of procedures makes it almost not worth fighting for ownership. The feminist argument against male stream sociology which was concerned with research on the male experiences and extended this to the whole population for example around youth work and factory work. The other issue which is quite negative is that there have been many pieces of research which have been done on males within the context of sociological topics. However, despite the fact that female experiences were not researched in such pieces of work, the teams involved took the liberty of concluding the results to include females as if they had. Clearly, this is unethical even if there may be some weak justifications provided in the way of explanation. References: A woman can insist she would never choose to have an abortion while affirming her support of the right of women to choose and still be an advocate of feminist politics. She cannot be anti-abortion and advocate of feminism. (Bell Hooks, Feminism is for everybody Pg. 6) So a woman has rights which she can choose to use them. The element of choice in various matters has to be given to women and it is when this is taken away that the rights of women are also eroded. The other issue is that the right of Black people and their struggle against racism is similar to the prejudice and its destruction within society that is faced by women. Given the reality of racism, it makes sense that white men were more willing to consider womens rights when the granting of those rights could serve the interests of maintaining white supremacy. (Bell Hooks, Feminism is for everybody Pg. 4) So this is a sign of the complex issues which makes it more pleasant when white men feel that allowing womens rights will confer an advantage for them and allow them, in turn to keep their own status higher than of Black people. Rawls identifies society as a fair system of social cooperation and looks for principals specifying the basic rights and liberties and the forms of equality most appropriate to those cooperating, once they are regarded as citizens, as a free and equal persons ( Rawls 1993. 27) from the Book (P. DiQuinzio and I. Young, Feminist ethnics and social policy) So the issue of equality of the individual was one for debate and discussion following WW2 as well as the latter end of the nineties. This does provide an indication that the need for equal rights for men and women is still a matter being contested within society. Other research: Second wave feminism began after the Second World War with a critique of middle class suburban feminism (Betty Friedan Germaine Greer). The issue which needed to be addressed were employment, education, status within society and the roles that women wanted to play rather the ones they were forced to play. One of the most fundamental issues that feminism has had to deal with over the last 50 years or so is that many of the sociological pieces of work and research have been based upon what may be called malestream sociology. Basically, this means that the research has been based upon the male perspective and participation Sociology was soon at the forefront of developing feminist perspectives on various social problems. The feminist critique of malestream sociology argued that sociology had been mainly concerned with research on men. As such it did not present such a major threat to the female perspective. What did was that the males superimposed their own ideas and theories or extended these to include females. This gave an invalid set of results or conclusions to the whole research. The female experience was, thus an add-on rather than a real and tangible response to the experiences that women had. In particular there were a number of pieces of research which related to youth sub-cultures which were attributed to the male and female experience when in fact it only related to the male experience. So, as the new wave feminism came into being there were two strands of concerns that feminism activists faced. Firstly, there was the need to correct the errors of the past and second, there was the need to ensure that there was real inclusion in new projects and research in order to give full validity to the sociological concepts and ideologies being developed or refined. This is not to say that men cannot carry out research in the field of the female experience but rather that there need to be a number of sensitivities anc consideration give to a fair and equitable representation of females in the sampling methods used in research and that appropriate methods need to be used when dealing with issues relating to females. Basically, the use of common sense should be used and not female issues should not be glossed over or remain unrepresented. Even in relation to the whole area of employment and the deliberations and issues within it, there were numerous concepts explored around the male perspective but there was a stark absence of the female experience. This naturally meant that the planning of employment strategies by the government was attuned to the needs of men rather than women. This in turn meant that many women capable of undertaking white collar jobs or management jobs could not aspire to do so since the initiatives and analysis is biased towards males within society. As a result of this women have been subtly forced or coerced into undertaking roles which are more domestic or home-based. It is not surprising then that there is a lack of representation of women within middle/higher management within large multinational companies as a norm. One of the main concerns that women have had for a considerable time has been the fact that issues that affect them on a day to basis seem to get no mention or practical support and guidance within the general fabric of life. This includes issues such as domestic violence, domestic labour and so on. Exclusion from the planning and decision making process has been a crucial and important issue as far as women are concerned. In addition where women did have some form of representation the quality of the representation was not very good or was rather limited. This was more driven by encouraging a stereotype of women or to pay lip service to the whole notion of representation. Some argued that this was just another of introducing another independent variable without being taken seriously. There has been much discussion about the unequal playing field over the last few decades. Whilst males may profess that women have had equal rights and that they are not treated in any way different from men, the fact of the matter is that the representation of women in the structural machinery of decision making is still nominal when compared to men. The situation still smells of lip service and tokenism. In many ways this is comparable to many countries making attempts to allow minority ethnic people equal rights in employment, training, education and other sectors of life but never really achieving the targets or quotas set as part of some action plan. One of the things that can arise out of asking such questions is that the underlying feminist theories allow us or assist us to analyse what we observe within society and give us a chance to make valued judgments about the scientific ideas and concepts that are applicable to social life. Conclusion There have been many developments in different aspects of feminism over the last half a century or so. A host of strategies and legislation has been introduced to balance the inequalities associated with gender and has led to many issues being raised by feminists. The unequal playing field and the male stream perspective has and continues to provoke feminists. Granted that some of the errors of the past have been useful in forging developments and feminism of various forms has been associated with the driving the wheels of change. However, many issues still need to be addressed and society needs to ensure that the barrier to the rights of women are destroyed and there is equality of opportunity for women in society without any special treatment or bias being give to them. Many feminists have demanded equal treatment and not special treatment which makes them appear like delicate and sensitive creatures whose place is in the home, bearing and rearing children and having the meals prep ared for the males when they come home after a hard days work. (expand)

Humorous Best Man Speech - The Groom’s Life Story :: Wedding Toasts Roasts Speeches

Humorous Best Man Speech - The Groom’s Life Story Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. It’s surprising just how far some people are prepared to travel for a free lunch. It’s a good job the groom didn't choose the menu, otherwise we would have had penut-butter sandwiches washed down with beer. Firstly, I have a feet messages to read out.(read telegrams etc.) As Bill Clinton said to each of his girlfriends, I wont keep you long. I’d like to begin by thanking the groom for asking me to be best man. I would also like to thank the bride for allowing him to ask me. The groom has a splendid set of friends, and to be nominated from such esteemed company is without doubt a great honor. Thanks also to the ushers, friends, and family who have all helped to make this day so special. (To the bride) You make a fine bride and look beautiful and radiant. I couldn't help but notice the groom swell with pride when he saw you walking clown the aisle in that dress. (To the groom) You are indeed a lucky man, you have married someone who is attractive, warm, loving and caring. A wife who will be all you could ever wish for and more. (To the bride) You have married someone who is: handsome, witty, intelligent, charming, good looking... (To the groom) Sorry, I'm having trouble reading your writing. When the groom asked me to be his best man, I consulted the Internet for help. I discovered that the job is essentially comprised of four main tasks: 1. Organize the stag party (bachelor party) - perhaps you could tell us again how you burst the inflatable sheep. 2. Help the groom dress (at last I found out where the G-string from Dublin went.) 3. See that all ex-girlfriends are kept at bay (quite a task as most of them have been released under care in the community.) 4. Make a speech. I thought it was going to be tough following a speech by the groom and I was right, I couldn't understand a single word he said. I did find a lot of other interesting things on the Internet but I wont go into that now. I met the groom over ten years ago, and I often wonder what it would be like if I didn't have him as a friend. Sometimes the smile lasts for days.

Is War Inevitable?

1 Is War Inevitable? The modern human mind has sought to present findings and evidence that would lead to some form of an indication or conclusion regarding the inevitability of war through the multifarious fields of science and technology; anthropology; political science; economics; psychology (both humanist and evolutionary); and cultural studies.The general perception for most people – gauged through academic surveys and Social Networking websites – is that the innate biological tuning, socio-cultural infrastructure, geo-political systems, economic scarcity, and the massive amounts of arsenal possessed by mankind will never allow humans to transcend the atrocities of brutality, violence and aggressive bloodshed. Unfortunately, those general perceptions are not unsubstantiated: latest scientific research in the field of genealogy has blamed the Y-Chromosome for man’s propensity to wage war.Further anthropological studies have reiterated and reinforced the fear that clearly lays down the innateness of a tendency towards war, which, subsequently, implies that war is inevitable. However, that is not the complete picture. â€Å"Statistically, it is more common for humans to be cooperative and to attempt to get along than it is for them to be uncooperative and aggressive towards one another,† says anthropologist Robert Sussman from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.With a growing number of experts now arguing that the urge to wage war is not innate, and that humanity is already moving in a direction that could make war a thing of the past, this essay will, based on further research done in the above stated fields, argue against the inevitability of war based on the following grounds: biologically, new research combined with cross-cultural findings and a deeper insight into the evolutionary development of human beings will show how the â€Å"innateness† of war is a myth; socially, we will take a look at the development of a new society in the modern era that compels a change in social ideology that will inevitably lead to more peaceful times wherein war will not be inevitable. Anthropological and ethnic studies have shown that, long before the emergence of modern nation-states, human beings waged war in the tribal setting, basing these conclusions on archeological findings. Furthermore, observance of the behavior of our closest evolutionary cousins, the chimpanzees, has encouraged the perception that just the way chimpanzee troops tend to wage war on other chimpanzees – sometimes even beating them to death – similarly, we too are biologically programmed and naturally hardwired for aggression. In â€Å"Are Humans Hardwired to Behave Aggressively? Margie Wylie says that a new and upcoming field of genealogy suggests that the Y-Chromosome in human beings causes us to be, at least in part, â€Å"hardwired for aggression and troublesome behavior†. The question is posed to any logi cal mind: can we allow ourselves to conveniently use this as an excuse for war and crime? No. We can not. Yale’s â€Å"Human Relations Area Files† (Ember), a database of around 360 cultures around the world from the past and present, shows that nearly nine-tenths of these cultures have engaged in warfare. However, the frequency, intensity, and time spans of these wars varies vastly from one culture to the next. â€Å"There is variation in the frequency of warfare when you look around the world at any given time,† says Melvin Ember. â€Å"That suggests to me that we are not dealing with genes or a biological propensity. Even if we do consider the biological propensity and the arguments based on genetic findings, further studies with regards to these have painted a clearer picture that war is not, in fact, inevitable. Harvard anthropologist, Richard Wrangham, argues that humans have made evolutionary steps towards being less aggressive. In comparison to our ances tors, our brains are ten percent smaller than they used to be, following a trend similar to the Bonbonos: domesticated animals, bred for docility. Our ability to live in big cities without attacking each other all the time shows that we are learning to control our violent behavior, at least inside groups (Wylie, 2003). This coming from a propagator of the school of thought that believes in the innate tendency for war, it shows that in current times we can safely say that war is not inevitable.The â€Å"Us versus Them† syndrome that has plagued the human mind, thus naturally developing a propensity to wage war, is not quite as strong anymore. Bigger groups, with stronger and more complex bonds for internal cohesion have proven to be victors of war throughout history. They tend to become more inclusive, history is proof of that. The population explosion, increasingly obvious environmental challenges, and the threat of nuclear war leading to mutual annihilation are all modern wo rld indicators of the inevitability of war, however, like our ancestors ten thousand years ago, we are being forced by the results of our own actions and successes to mutate into a new kind of society based on a new organizing principle.The implications of globalization, the internet, the new concept of universal human rights, the political incorrectness of ethnic humor, the growth of transnational economic institutions and regional political ones, new thinking about gender relations: it all is part of a massive change in the way people live and think. It is only inevitable now that a new progression based on competition between ideas; schools of thoughts and philosophies will take over and will not need to enter armed conflict. (Coon, 2000) To conclude, we can easily say that given the biological developments concerning evolution, combined with changes in the psychological arena and in socio-cultural norms, war is not inevitable.The inevitability of war, in fact, was overestimated even before, as findings in this essay prove. The future progression of humankind may be slow and difficult, as it has always been, for change is not something engineered in design and geared in direction. But the future holds that war is not inevitable. Works Cited Coon, C. (2000). Is War Inevitable. Retrieved from Progressive Humanism: A New Approach to the Humanist Philosophy : http://www. progressivehumanism. com/war. html Ember, C. a. (n. d. ). Human Relations Area Files. Retrieved from Yale University: http://www. yale. edu/hraf Wylie, M. (2003). Are Humans Hard-Wired to Behave Aggressively? Toronto Star (Canada) .

Road Workouts for Truck Drivers Part 1

Road Workouts for Truck Drivers Part 1 A sedentary lifestyle (even when your seat is covering miles of road each day) is  bad for your health. Combining regular exercise with healthy eating habits can help make up for the amount of time you spend sitting. The driving experts at RoadMaster have some great tips to get you up and running–or at least stretching often and walking briskly.Take Proper PrecautionsFirst, check with your doctor to make sure you don’t have any underlying health problems that could affect a new workout regimen. Whenever you’re trying something new, be especially aware of your form to maximize your workout’s effectiveness and safety.If your company has a training program or there’s a gym near home, see if you can set up a few meetings with a trainer who can observe your routine and make suggestions to improve it. Don’t forget to rest between workouts! Recovery is when your muscles rebuild after all that exertion.One of the great things about being on the roa d is that you don’t need a lot of gear to workout- you can push or pull on the giant immobile object that gets you from point A to point B!- just make sure you test the stability and functionality of any equipment before you put your weight on it.And Accessories like stretch bands, dumbbells, jump ropes, and even a yoga mat can fit easily in your cab.CardioCardiovascular workouts cover all manner of moving and shaking, from walking to jumping rope, running to a spin class. Target your legs, shoulders, back, core, and arms- and you’re strengthening your lungs and stamina too. If you’re out of shape, go easy as you gear up for a cardio workout. And remember, 30 minutes of steady walking will do you more good than a series of springs. Keep moving at a regular pace to raise your heart rate, and be sure rehydrate afterwards. You can find stretching and beginner yoga videos online to help you cool down and keep your muscles from stiffening right back up.Check out part 2 for mosre exercises you can take with you on your route!

Free Essays on Forty Miles a Day on Beans and Hay

Forty Miles a Day on Beans and Hay: The Enlisted Soldier Fighting the Indian Wars is a book written by Don Rickey. It provides a detailed account of the US Army after the Civil War. The American Army was active and in force after the Civil War clearing the West of Native Americans. It was a hard life, but one was hunted not only by people without hope, but also by educated people and sometimes the rich looking for adventure. The book is broken down into logical chapters, from a description of the Western troubles to the typical routines of the soldiers’ discharges. Readers are treated to what might be some of the last comprehensive interviews with Indian War veterans and, as has been pointed out, begin to get a feel of the frontier soldier’s daily life as 99 percent tedium and physical labor and 1 percent terror. The attention has been turned on the enlisted man of the regular army during Indian Wars in the West from 1865 to the 1890s. In addition to examining manuscript and printed diaries, government records, and newspapers, the author was able to consult over 300 living veterans of the Indian Wars, and to obtain information from them by questionnaires and personal interviews. These unique sources have contributed to the compound view of the regular enlisted man who by securing the West during this frenzied period of expansion made a significant contribution to the development of the nation. The life of an average Army recruit has been very well studied and then portrayed in this book. The common soldier emerges as an individual and not a stereotype. As a reader, I enjoyed this book for the wealth and detail of information it conveyed. However, the author’s writing style made this book very difficult to read and decipher. It was something of a labor to wade though the pages of extraordinarily excruciating details. An abridged version can be a better option. It picks up from the end of the Civil War and leads you straight i... Free Essays on Forty Miles a Day on Beans and Hay Free Essays on Forty Miles a Day on Beans and Hay Forty Miles a Day on Beans and Hay: The Enlisted Soldier Fighting the Indian Wars is a book written by Don Rickey. It provides a detailed account of the US Army after the Civil War. The American Army was active and in force after the Civil War clearing the West of Native Americans. It was a hard life, but one was hunted not only by people without hope, but also by educated people and sometimes the rich looking for adventure. The book is broken down into logical chapters, from a description of the Western troubles to the typical routines of the soldiers’ discharges. Readers are treated to what might be some of the last comprehensive interviews with Indian War veterans and, as has been pointed out, begin to get a feel of the frontier soldier’s daily life as 99 percent tedium and physical labor and 1 percent terror. The attention has been turned on the enlisted man of the regular army during Indian Wars in the West from 1865 to the 1890s. In addition to examining manuscript and printed diaries, government records, and newspapers, the author was able to consult over 300 living veterans of the Indian Wars, and to obtain information from them by questionnaires and personal interviews. These unique sources have contributed to the compound view of the regular enlisted man who by securing the West during this frenzied period of expansion made a significant contribution to the development of the nation. The life of an average Army recruit has been very well studied and then portrayed in this book. The common soldier emerges as an individual and not a stereotype. As a reader, I enjoyed this book for the wealth and detail of information it conveyed. However, the author’s writing style made this book very difficult to read and decipher. It was something of a labor to wade though the pages of extraordinarily excruciating details. An abridged version can be a better option. It picks up from the end of the Civil War and leads you straight i...

DB 217 Jak 5 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

DB 217 Jak 5 - Essay Example However, the candidates maintain that withdraw of the conditional job offer violates the ADA. What should the court decide? There are various issues and questions to be answered in this case. Firstly, the court may evaluate the legality of the post-job offer medical test. According to the ADA, an employer should not request for a medical test as a condition of the offer; however, such tests may be required after the job offer (Colker 9). Although the Act recognizes a medical test post the job offer, it specifies the regulations governing such post-offer medical test. For instance, post-offer medical exams must be job-related and should be a requirement for all applicants for a similar position. Further, the employer should not withdraw the job offer based on any form of disability realized at this stage, unless in circumstances where the disability poses a threat in the workplace. Also, the employer must prove that there are no adjustments that can be instituted to accommodate the candidate. In the airline case, however, the accused does not show that the HIV status of the candidate can, in any way, impe de their performance or pose a health risk in the workplace. The other issue that the court ought to evaluate is whether the candidates needed to disclose their HIV status while declaring their medical history. Firstly, the ADA states that the employer may not ask the candidates of the existence of any disability before the job offer (Colker 7). Rather, the employer should only ask of the applicants ability to discharge the roles of the job. For these reasons, the airlines argument that the candidates ought to have disclosed their HIV status ahead of the job offer is not justified. Based on the above, therefore, the court may find that the ADA was violated. The airline should not have asked about the candidates disability before the job offer. Additionally, the

Critical Analysis of a Film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Critical Analysis of a Film - Essay Example ted nuclear warfare against Russia through a fleet of B-52 bombers each carrying 40 megatons of nuclear warheads directed strategically to Russia’s centers of military activity. The plot thickens as Russian Ambassador Alexi de Sadesky informs U.S. President Merkin Muffley that his country has the Doomsday Device that when triggered would produce a set of nuclear explosions that will eventually lead to the annihilation of all living creatures on earth. Even more alarming is the fact that the device, once triggered, cannot be recalled. The intense subject of the film, especially at a time right after the Cold War, was treated in a different light by its director. No one would have probably expected a political about this topic but this was exactly what Kubrick did. The film shows, in all its legitimate comedic value, the political and social stereotypes that would prevail as a matter of human nature and despite surrounding circumstances. The juxtaposition in the film is an important element to consider in its overall theme. The catchphrase â€Å"Peace is our Profession† is a re-appearing visual that comes out a number of times. In the opening scenes, the audience sees Gen. Ripper on the phone with Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake giving the instructions to implement Plan R and that his order is not a drill. We see him serious on the phone and smoking a cigar intently. On his back is a poster with the phrase and an illustration inside a plaque shape with a clenched fist holding thunderbolts and leaves together with clouds on the background. The same words were not seen immediately on Capt. Mandrake’s background. But as soon as Gen. Ripper can be heard signaling Plan R, the camera changes angles and one can see on his side the same phrase but on a different poster. Instead of the clenched fist, the phrase is unassumingly placed on top of a map with different coordinates around it. This is shown to create the contrast between upholding of peace and starting a war. In

Spanish-American War 1898 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Spanish-American War 1898 - Essay Example President McKinley finally had no choices in the matter as a result of the sinking of the USS Maine. Foreign policy changed dramatically as a result of the consequences of this very short, very significant war that is often forgotten in view of the Civil War. The Spanish-American War, one where Theodore Roosevelt and his Rough Riders earned their place in history, brought about a great deal of change to the perception of the United States by others in the world. This war would cause major changes in the realm of American foreign policy in its wake. The war was brought on by these many factors and soon after the declaration for war was made, soldiers were headed for Havana and Santiago. The Yellow Journalism that began with Hearst and Pulitzer caused a great deal of grief as is relayed in several pieces. One very significant accounting would be an eyewitness description by H. H. Kolsaat as he held in his hand a telegram from the forces in Manila Bay when the USS Maine had been lost. Eyewitness to History's website states that H. H. Kolsaat's recollection of the meeting with President McKinley included a conversation that ended with McKinley in tears saying, "Congress is trying to drive us into war with Spain. The Spanish fleet is in Cuban waters, and we haven't enough ammunition on the Atlantic seacoast to fire a salute." (1) H. H. Kolsaat continues on to say that he spent nearly half the night speaking with the President after the evening's activities. Only the first of many agonizing conversations that the President suffered through in the declaration of war, one he was quite reluctant to consider until there appeared to be no choices in the matter. The deciding factor for President McKinley came in a private letter written by Enrique Dupuy de Lme, the Spanish Minister in Washington, to a Spanish editor then traveling in the United States. It was this letter, described as part of the text from American Military History: Army Historical Series; Chapter 15 Emergence to World Power 1898-1902 and stating the following as the letter "expressed de Lme's adverse personal reaction to McKinley's message to Congress in December 1897. The President was, he thought, "weak and a bidder for admiration of the crowd . . . a would-be politician who tries to leave a door open behind himself while keeping on good terms with the jingoes in his party."" (2) This outraged most Americans when it was published after a man stole it from the office where it had been sent. The outraged outcry from the United States caused what President McKinley considered to be the hardest decision of his career. This decision was to go to war with inadequate forces, in adequate supplies and terrible conditions to work within. All of this had been sparked in the fervor of what has been termed Yellow Journalism, created by Joseph Pulitzer and John Hearst in their work to take the country to war using public opinion as the impetus of the action. Their tactics, no matter how underhanded, managed the objective. The results were felt worldwide. The Spanish-American War of 1898 was one of the shortest wars America ever fought. Four months into the war, it was over. But, the consequences of that war were broad spectrum and felt worldwide. The Spanish-American War of 1898 did the one thing nothing else had managed. It proved that the

Time and Memories Essay Example for Free

Time and Memories Essay Gwen Harwood’s poetry has provided me and hopefully you with some great wisdom and insight into our lives. Today I will be making meaning from the texts â€Å"At Mornington† and â€Å"The Violets† by Gwen Harwood. I am here, as a seventeen year old student, giving my own response through the analysis of the themes â€Å"Memory† and â€Å"Childhood to Adulthood†, the techniques which support them and through the application of psychoanalytical readings to her poetry. What we will see is that there are links present in what the composer is trying to say and in the critical interpretations of her poetry. Memories make the individual understand who they are, wouldn’t you agree? Without them we would just be robots. For example, just this morning I remembered a childhood memory of India. I remembered that everyday I would try and reach the light switch which always seemed so far away. Before I knew it, I could turn the light on and off with ease. It was only this memory that allowed me to reflect that from as young as a child I had been trying to reach things much higher than me. Who here could imagine not having any memories of their childhood? In the poem â€Å"At Mornington† by Gwen Harwood the fragility and nature of memories is questioned while it is concluded that it is through memories that one can accept death. The composer often uses the structure of her poetry to create meaning. For example, â€Å"At Mornington† is completely written in free verse, which means the composer’s thought process is allowed to be flexible supporting how memories suddenly come about. Let’s face it; memories do not exactly follow a rule†¦ They just come, sometimes with or without a trigger. This is exactly the case in â€Å"At Mornington† where the composer is left with an unexpected spark of memory while she stands with her friend on the parents’ grave. The composer describes this spark through a simile comparing this behaviour of memories with ‘light in a sea-wet shell’. The ‘light’ in the ‘sea-wet shell’ refers to the numerous colours produced when the light is focused on a common sea-shell. This to me means the childhood memories that we suddenly come across are diverse and in a way colour our lives. The most important message in this poem is the finality of death, and the role memories play in accepting it. The composer thinks of death ‘no more’ when she thinks of her father and more so the time spent with her friend. I can see the time with her friend metaphorically meaning the ‘peace’ of this day. This is the ultimate ‘peace’ for the composer as she approaches that inevitable death. I know you do not want to think of death right now but it is inevitable, and it is always assuring if memories are on our side. When I am older and nearing death, I can cling onto that nostalgic memory of reaching higher to reach the switch, and I can even tell my kids about it. There are many ways poems can be interpreted, there is my personal view but there are also other macro views. There is the Christian viewpoint that would argue that the memories of her father refer to God, and it is the memories of him that allow the composer to confront death because fathers as we know are a source of comfort, and in this case the fathers represent the ultimate father: God. However I do not have a strong Christian background, and I would rather see things through a psychoanalytical approach. In addition, I believe a psychoanalytical perspective applies better to the themes of Harwood’s poetry as the psych and its effect on the persona is explored. A psychoanalytical perspective would argue that memories are used to come to terms with the present psychological state. For example, the memories of her friend and of her father impact her to think of death ‘no more’. More so, light imagery is recurringly used to represent memories. For example the light refracting on the shell can be seen as a representation of the vivid and enthralling memories the persona experiences. This theme of â€Å"Memory† is similarly explored in the â€Å"The Violets† where a past memory helps support the present action which is of picking violets. Just like in â€Å"At Mornington† structure is used to create meaning. Memories are separated from present experience through indentation. This allows me to clearly distinguish between the persona’s present and the persona’s memories which actively support the present. There are some truly great memories that will influence us forever. For example, as I do my HSC I keep referring back to the memories of us in India and how hard my parents worked to get us to Australia. This is the sort of memory experienced by the persona, and she also explores how these memories or ‘lamplit presences’ will never die, even as time passes. These ‘lamplit presences’ are listed to the responder through the use of punctuation, notably the colon. The colon creates pause for the responder and this pause prepares us for the final comforting memories. Furthermore ‘years cannot move’ these final memories. If you stop and think about it aren’t those important memories everlasting? In the poem violet flowers are repeatedly mentioned from the title to the end where a ‘faint scent of violets drifts in the air’. What meaning can be made from this? Well, these violet flowers symbolise remembrance and the past, which is what the whole poem is about. As she thinks about the present, where the mood is somewhat ‘melancholy’ she nostalgically remembers a past event that ultimately contrasts the present joyless mood leaving a scent of violets which are associated with memories in the air. Enough of my view of things lets explore what how this can be seen psychoanalytically! The most important aspect to be mentioned is the use of memory to support the present. This is similar to â€Å"At Mornington† where memories of the past can be seen to impact the present but the only difference is that in â€Å"The Violets† it is more that memories have helped her deal with the present issue of time. In addition, light is used again as a symbol to represent memories. In this case it is the image of the lamp in ‘lamplit’ just like the refracted light referenced to memories in â€Å"At Mornington†. Remember when we were playful children? It was the free time of our lives, not chained down by assignments or by the commitments at work. But as we age we somewhat lose that playful phase and enter one of maturity where careers, education and most importantly future of life comes into light. The composer talks about â€Å"At Mornington† how as a child there is the notion of invincibility and naivety but as an adult there is the realisation of death. ‘I could walk on water’ is what the child persona thinks, and I knew we thought like that too. I remember thinking as a child that I could be like Superman. The use of personal pronoun ‘I’ is used to create meaning. How might you ask? Well, I think it creates a personal voice in the poem and illustrates to the responder that is her experience of childhood she is talking about. The persona reflects this childhood memory when she is an adult ‘while we [they] stand, two friends of middle age’. I can see that structure is used here significantly as the use of first person ‘we’ draws all of the audience in to think about growing up, to middle age. Can you image what we will be like when we are at middle age? I think we will have changed dramatically. This is the case here as the composer juxtaposes the childhood notions of life with the present notion where they are beginning to age. What I can say here is that as children we would think of many things, for example I would think I could fly, but as we change from children to adults we begin to see things differently and sometimes notice the change. Now I have gravity and aerodynamics as a young adult in my head, sharply changing my ideas about my aspirations of superman. The persona in â€Å"At Mornington† feels invincible as a child but this is changed when she is reflecting as a middle aged adult. Again a Christian reading could be applied to this poem where the child walking on water is an allusion to Jesus further highlighting the composer’s faith. But that is as far I can go; my personal context limits me from exploring any further. Therefore we could see it psychoanalytically where childhood to adulthood demands for the psyche to change. For example as a child she sees herself as invincible but as an adult she is made to adjust her psyche so death is accepted. A psychoanalytic reading would also see the child walking on water as a move from childhood to adulthood because as she walks on water her life and psyche of naivety progresses to maturity and of self realisation. The theme of â€Å"Childhood to Adulthood† is also explored in â€Å"The Violets†. It is an autobiographical poem, which deals with the persona’s view of various aspects as a child and as an adult. This is very similar to â€Å"At Mornington† where the persona reflects how childhood notions have changed as she has matured into an adult. However, in â€Å"The Violets† it is more a contrast of how she used to see things such as the flowers as a child and how she sees them later as an adult. It is probably the toughest transitions in life, from a child to an adult don’t you think? Understanding of the world is refined and childlike views of the world are replaced with the truth. The truth is often complex, and sometimes I wish I could just think like a kid again. This is demonstrated in a paradox used by Harwood. As an adult ‘melancholy’ flowers grow in ‘ashes and loam’. ‘Ashes’ refers to dead or the bad soil, infertile whereas ‘loam’ is the soil full of life. How can this flower grow in both? It tells me that as an adult things are much more complex and an essential way of looking at things has been lost. This is contrasted when the composer introduces us to a memory of childhood. The violets are in their ‘loamy’ bed, and it suggests that as a child they could be seen as simply flowers of spring and a source of comfort. Furthermore as an adult the word ‘melancholy’ is used to describe the atmosphere and it is again different to the mood created as a child of happiness. The mother laughs at the child persona as she questions about breakfast in the afternoon. ‘Laughing’ connotes a positive mood, reiterating the fact that childhood was a much happier time than adulthood. Who wouldn’t want to go back to their childhood days and play all day and live the simple life? Punctuation is structurally left out in ‘Ambiguous light. Ambiguous sky’ which to me emphasises the uncertainty in adulthood. Without the full stop the sentence is not complete and demonstrates that as an adult not even the night and day cannot be distinguished. A psychoanalytical reading would see this melancholy experience of the adult as longing for the experiences of a child. As a child the experience is the complete opposite, it is of happiness, and it is that experience that the composer finally gets, when remembering her childhood. Also the adult gains understanding about some uncertainty through a childhood experience. The positive memory of the mother laughing in the composer’s childhood also allows acceptance to occur. That laughing supported the uncertainty she had as a child and even the present uncertainty about adulthood. I think children’s thoughts are the most flawless in the world no matter how wise one gets Just by making meaning from two of Gwen Harwood’s poems â€Å"At Mornington† and â€Å"The Violets† I have received immense personal knowledge that I will never forget. I came see that â€Å"Memory† is a wonderful thing, and without it we would be nothing but some senseless dummies. I and hopefully you see that â€Å"Memory† in both the poems has the power to influence, impact and appease the present. This is the same with the discussion of â€Å"Childhood to Adulthood† where I was certainly reminded of my childhood days when I read the poem. Childhood gives us great views, but they are taken as we grow older such as I faced that I cannot be superman. Memories and our Childhood will always stay with us, and I thank Gwen Harwood for making me realise that. We must remember what she told us about life – it is‘only a matter of balance’.

Factors that Caused the Financial Crisis

Factors that Caused the Financial Crisis The world had faced two major financial disasters during 20th century. The first crisis happened during 1920-30, which mainly affected the developed countries like Europe and America. Second crisis started in 1997 and stayed till 1999, mainly affected developing economies of Asia pacific. The recent financial crisis which has awakened the whole world mainly resulted from unregulated financial market. It has created serious anxiety because it falls outwards from U.S, the starting point. Alan Greenspan recently called it a once-in-a-century credit tsunami, born of a collapse deep inside the US housing sector. In order to avoid complete meltdown, governments and central banks worked day and night. Trillions of dollars have been allocated to financial institutions by the governments to recover from the crisis in the United States alone Who were the culprits of financial crisis? It is impossible to held just single factor responsible for such a big mass in the absence of other factors. In my research i want to analyse the contribution of each factor but the questions arise in my mind is How did Lehman Brother, the fourth largest investment bank in USA failed? Why majority of financial institutions failed in compare to other institutions? This surly point towards irresponsible activities by financial institutions in their main business LENDING. So focus of my research is to find out the dominant role of easy lending in present crisis along with other factors. The effect of financial crisis 2008 was such sever that even allocating huge amount to address the issues proven insufficient to resolve it. Congress approved $700 billion in response to the problem. Federal reserve spend $1.3 trillion to bail out markets and institution that includes investments in risky assets, loans to bankrupt institutions, sharing such debt which were defaulting at faster rates (Morris, 2008). A further $900 billion were allocated as lending to large corporations (Aversa, 2008), reaching the total of nearly $3 trillion as bailout package so far, without even adding the big amount of corporate debt promised by the U.S government year before the crisis An understanding of the root causes of this colossal failure that has put the entire financial systemà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ at risk (Woellert and Kopecki, 2008) is necessary to avoid such failures in the future. Number of factors can be held responsible for financial crisis which emerged over number of years. Causes propos ed include the following sub-prime mortgages/ easy lending Poor credit rating Failure of regulators Shadow banking Securitization Credit default swap Mortgage backed securities Assets backed commercial paper etc Aims and Objective Aim of this research is to understand the root causes of financial crisis particularly lending practises as a major factor. Objectives To explore the history of financial crisis To evaluate who were the victims and culprits of financial crisis Impact of financial crisis on other countries (UK, USA, India, Japan) What steps are being taken by government to overcome crisis What could be done to prevent repetition of crisis in future? Literature Review: How did we get to this point? Surprisingly it all started from residential mortgages in the U.S. It had become apparent from 2004 that mortgages issued to majority of consumers did not make any rational sense. Situation was more worsted by so called mortgage brokers who issued mortgages to many insolvent consumers in order to generate outsized fees. On other hand new financial vehicles called mortgage-backed securities (MBS) rated by well know credit rating agencies were introduced by Wall Street. These high yielding mortgage-backed securities were bought by investors from all over the world which increased funding for new mortgages. Appraiser ignored all rules to meet the increasing demand of mortgage applications. Federal Reserve board appointed by congress in 1994 to regulate mortgage lenders decided to watch the game from pavilion. Finally as the bubble accelerates, there is necessary reckoning à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" house prices collapsed. This is how greediness and irresponsibility resulted into a biggest financial crisis (Schmudde, 2008). Sub-prime mortgages which are always blamed for financial crisis is only a component of the deeper problem. The value of credit default swaps, which was originally estimated to be $55 trillion by the securities and exchange ( 4 times higher then the actual figure) are totally unregulated and majority of them were contracted over the phone without any verification, is the root cause from which all the problems of crisis started (Simon, 2008). Regulators had forecasted the problem of present crisis years in advance were not taken seriously because of the successful business by the same financial institutions which are either bankrupt or funded by the government (Associated Press, 2008). According to Bernanke (2009) and Portes (2009) global imbalances are the fundamental cause of the crisis and it is not possible to fully understand present crisis without considering the issue of global imbalances. As per Jagannathan, Kapoor, and Schaumberg (2009) imbalances in labour supply can assist to understand the present crisis. Acharya and Richardson(2009), and Acharya and Schnabl (2009) argue that banks were suppose to transfer the risks to end investors while securitising, particularly in the case of asset-backed commercial paper and purchase of AAA-rated tranches but they never did which led them to huge pool of credit risks. Schmudde (2009) documents that no verification of consumers income were done while issuing sub-prime mortgages. Many of them were issued for or close to 100% of the house price. Even borrowers with bad credit history easily managed to get mortgages. This is one of the reasons for huge growth in subprime mortgages which increased from $35 billion to $8 07 billion between1995 to 2005. According to Bartlett (2008) decline of US subprime mortgage triggered the crisis, the impact of the down fall was tremendous; Mark-to-market losses on mortgage backed securities, collateralized debt obligations, and related assets through March 2008 were approximate $945 billion. He further said that it is The largest financial loss in history, in compared to $780 billion of 1990 Japans banking crisis, lost accrued from Asian crisis of 1997-98 about $420 billion. . While explaining the reason how did this crisis turn into a global crisis, Khatiwada and McGirr (2008) stated Many of these Sub-prime mortgages actually never made it on the balance sheets of the lending Institutions that originated them; and such mortgages by rating them high were made attractive to world investors, when sub-prime borrowers failed to repay their mortgages, the originating institution needed to finance the foreclosure with their own money, bringing the asset back on its balance sheet. This left many banks in a financially unviable situation, in a rather short, unmanageable timeframe. According to Mian and Sufi (2008) increased demand for mortgage backed securities led to lending boom which is the root cause of present crisis. Whalen (2008) argues that three main factors are at the root of the problem. First, many companies, banks, and government agencies were encouraged to increase the viability of affordable housing by introducing creative financing techniques. Second, big number of over-the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å"counter derivatives and securities were issued by majority of financial institutions due to huge support by the regulators, led to a breakdown in safety and soundness at banks and securities lenders. And the last factor is fir value accounting an ill-advised by Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the financial accounting standards board (FASB) to all public company to change the reporting standards. The nations biggest subprime lender, Ameriquest Mortgage co., gave more then US$20 million as a political donation. Other financial institutions like citigroup inc., wells Fargo co., donated huge amount on political side and on lobbying. This donation helped these institutions to persuade legislators to pass predatory-lending laws which might have contributed to present crisis to some extent (Simpson, 2007). According to Shiller (2008) the following factors played very big role in present crisis: Strategy of home ownership which encourage even those who could not afford one. The link between mortgage originator and receiver of payments broke due to mortgage securitization. Because of this there was no reason for mortgage originator to verify the solvency of borrowers. Many loans were issued at low interest rate or even at zero rates with the use of new financial techniques but afterwards rate were increased too high. Research Methodology Methodology plays a very crucial role in how research will be carried out. Methodology is an explanation of why you collected certain data, what data you collected, from where you collected it, when you collected it, how you collected it and how you analysed it (Collins, 2003). The researcher requires an interviewer or observer skills to gather data in the qualitative methods. This method requires collecting and analysing the data and applying the statistical tests (Riley, 2004). Qualitative research interprets opinion of the people in the sample, their way of looking at the subject, what they feel about subject and the dynamic interpret feeling on the subjects (Guari, 2005). The quantitative method mainly uses research instruments to gather, analyse and measure the data. Quantitative approach is more subjective approach. Quantitative approach includes analysing and reflecting on perception to understand social and human activities (Collins, 2003). The main purpose of this chapter is to explain and justify the primary research method which I have chosen to carry out my research. This chapter will also explain the significance of secondary data and state what sources of secondary data i will be using. Source of Acquisition of data Primary data Primary data collection means to collect new data of subjects for specific purpose. The different methods of collecting primary data are questionnaire, interview and sampling (Saunders, 2003). For my research it is very important to get some primary data to understand the topic in practical sense. By taking interview of the head of financial institution, will add extra value to my research and will broaden my understanding of topic as a whole. I will be collecting my primary data through interview with Mr Mitesh Sheth, Deputy Head of Henderson Global Investors. The main focus of interview will be to get their opinion about how did this crisis started, what was there response etc. I am also trying to contact few other key people but too early to mention anything about them yet. Secondary Data Secondary data means data collected previously for some purpose. The main sources of such data are library, internet, articles, business journals, research organization (Saunders, 2003). Methods of data analysis After collecting primary and secondary data the next stage is to evaluate or analyse the collected data. To convert data into graphs will be the easiest way to analyse the data. Hypothesis I will be analysing total amount of lending by US banks to solvent and insolvent borrowers and comparing their rate of default to conclude my research. Work Plan   Proposal submit 21st June literate review 31st July Preparation for interview 5th August Interview of selected person 10th August Analysis of data 20th August Start writing reports 15th September Draft report 10th October Final report October end On successfully completion of my dissertation I hope to come to a positive conclusion. I will utilise all the recourses available to me in order to draw out conclusion. Such as charts, graphs, historical data, interview, questionnaires etc.