Affirmative Action Essays (2259 words) - , Term Papers

Affirmative Action As Nick Catoggio went to his mailbox, he knew that his acceptance letter from Harvard University had arrived. Although Nick was nervous, he knew that his hard work in high school had gained him admission into one of the world's most prestigious institutions of higher learning. Because of his grade point average of 4.0 in high school, his numerous extracurricular activities, and a combined score of 1440 on his SATs, Nick believed that he would almost be guaranteed admission to Harvard. When he opened the letter however, he was shattered when he read the words, "We regret to inform you ..." He immediately called his friend Richard Sahk, who had also applied, to tell him his news and to see if Richard had received his letter from Harvard. Richard said, "Yeah Nick, I got in!" Nick was astonished. Richard's GPA was only 3.7, and he receive a combined score of 1100 on his SATs. After a long pause he replied, "It's because I'm black, Nick," Richard felt bad for his friend. Both he and Nick had realized that he was accepted by Harvard because of his race. Nick was mad because he was qualified and didn't get in; Richard felt upset because he wasn't as qualified as Nick but was admitted because of his race. This is an anecdotal example of one of the many criticisms of affirmative action. In fact, the whole controversy over preferences based on race and gender has been debated ever since the Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964. I believe that Affirmative action should be discontinued, this program is a new kind of discrimination to counter the past discrimination and this defeats the whole idea of the program. Affirmative action is defined, as a program ensuring that a predetermined proportion of jobs or college admissions go to African Americans and presumably, other minorities and women as well (Woods 102). Also, James Q. Wilson in the winter 1996 issue of The New Republic takes affirmative action to mean the selecting of persons based on their group membership (23). Nicholas Lehman writes that affirmative action today refers to " stuff that helps black people." By this, he says that affirmative action today has come to mean everything from "preferential college admissions to the way news is covered to what's hung in museums to corporate promotional practices" (84). According to Nicholas Lehman, affirmative action started out as Executive Order 10925. Lyndon Johnson, the incoming vice President asked Hobart Taylor Jr., the lawyer son of one of his friends, to work on a draft of an executive order that would ban discriminatory hiring by Federal contractors. Taylor later said that he "was searching for something that would give a sense of positiveness to performance under executive order, and I was torn between the words 'positive action' and the words 'affirmative action.' . . . And I took 'affirmative action' because it was alliterative" (40). Even during Johnson's proposal of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the issue of racial quotas was controversial. Said then-Senator James Eastland of Mississippi, "... I know what will happen if the bill is passed. I know what will happen if there is a choice between hiring a white man or hiring a Negro both having equal qualifications. I know who will get the job. It will not be the white man" (Lehman 40). The people who seek to abolish affirmative action claim that more qualified students are being displaced by less-qualified students. But there are no more or less qualified students, only students who can benefit from attending a university such as Michigan get a chance, and no one knows in advance who they are. The opinions that accompany the various Supreme Court cases concerning affirmative action have been perplexing, and, at times, contradictory. Woods Geraldine referred to the opinions of the justices as pieces of a puzzle that no one, including the court itself, knows how to solve completely (65). This confusion is probably the result of disagreement among the justices. Many of the cases involving affirmative action have been decided by very close votes. Even when the justices vote the same way, their separate opinions often explain what they agreed for entirely different reasons. Let's take the example of the case, "The Regents of the University of California v. Bakke." On October 12, 1977, the Supreme Court was scheduled to hear case no.76-811. Both proponents and opponents of affirmative action waited to hear arguments about whether a white male, Allan Bakke, should be admitted to medical school at U.C.

A Brief Biography of Gregor Mendel, Father of Genetics

A Brief Biography of Gregor Mendel, Father of Genetics Gregor Mendel, known as the Father of Genetics, is most well-known for his work with breeding and cultivating pea plants, using them to gather data about dominant and recessive genes. Dates: Born July 20, 1822 - Died January 6, 1884 Early Life and Education Johann Mendel was born in 1822 in the Austrian Empire to Anton Mendel and Rosine Schwirtlich. He was the only boy in the family and worked on the family farm with his older sister Veronica and his younger sister Theresia. Mendel took an interest in gardening and beekeeping as he grew up. As a young boy, Mendel attended school in Opava. He went on to the University of Olomouc after graduating, where he studied many disciplines, including physics and philosophy. He attended the University from 1840 to 1843 and was forced to take a year off due to illness. In 1843, he followed his calling into the priesthood and entered the Augustinian Abbey of St. Thomas in Brno. Personal Life Upon entering the Abbey, Johann took the first name Gregor as a symbol of his religious life. He was sent to study at the University of Vienna in 1851 and returned to the abbey as a teacher of physics. Gregor also cared for the garden and had a set of bees on the abbey grounds. In 1867, Mendel was made an abbot of the abbey. Genetics Gregor Mendel is best known for his work with his pea plants in the abbey gardens. He spent about seven years planting, breeding and cultivating pea plants in an experimental part of the abbey garden that was started by the previous abbot. Through meticulous record keeping, Mendels experiments with pea plants became the basis for modern genetics. Mendel chose pea plants as his experimental plant for many reasons. First of all, pea plants take very little outside care and grow quickly. They also have both male and female reproductive parts, so they can either cross-pollinate or self-pollinate. Perhaps most importantly, pea plants seem to show one of only two variations of many characteristics. This made the data much more clear-cut and easier to work with. Mendels first experiments focused on one trait at a time, and on gathering data on the variations present for several generations. These were called monohybrid experiments. He studied a total of seven characteristics. His findings showed that there were some variations that were more likely to show up over the other variations. When he bred purebred peas of differing variations, he found that in the next generation of pea plants one of the variations disappeared. When that generation was left to self-pollinate, the next generation showed a 3 to 1 ratio of the variations. He called the one that seemed to be missing from the first filial generation recessive and the other dominant, since it seemed to hide the other characteristic. These observations led Mendel to the law of segregation. He proposed that each characteristic was controlled by two alleles, one from the mother and one from the father plant. The offspring would show the variation it is coded for by the dominance of the alleles. If there is no dominant allele present, then the offspring shows the characteristic of the recessive allele. These alleles are passed down randomly during fertilization. Link to Evolution Mendels work wasnt truly appreciated until the 1900s, long after his death. Mendel had unknowingly provided the Theory of Evolution with a mechanism for the passing down of traits during natural selection. As a man of strong religious conviction, Mendel did not believe in evolution during his life. However, his work has been added together with that of Charles Darwins to make up the modern synthesis of the Theory of Evolution. Much of Mendels early work in genetics has paved the way for modern scientists working in the field of microevolution.

Individual learning portfoli Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Individual learning portfoli - Essay Example I might not have thought of value judgments so seriously before. PUL has been designed to provide a holistic learning experience to the student at the university. It presupposes the all too important participation on the part of the student in this once-in-lifetime experience. However, it still reminds the student of the endless opportunities available to students for learning. Thus learning is a full lifetime experience. Individual students’ perception of university learning is determined by a number of factors such as cultural influences, socio-economic influences and personal attitudes. My own attitudinal perspectives on PUL are coloured by such factors as my own perception of individual liberty and economic status. The whole process of education at the university has been exceedingly rewarding and primarily reorienting. PUL has afforded me a vantage point in understanding the process of education. I might have deliberately avoided examining my inner feelings towards university education at the outset for the fear of exposing myself to prejudices of fellow students. PUL plays a pivotal role in awakening in students a desire for self-learning that promises a paradigmatic shift in attitude and individual experience. Despite a host of much hyped liberties in non-institutional environments of learning, the experience of such learning has little or no rewards. Thus, PUL as a subject provides the student with a much wider scope to embark on a pursuit of self-interest. There are some implications of such a program of study though. For instance, at times I happen to entertain qualms about the so called futuristic dimension of a subject that has more to do with university culture and environment. Personal predilections and positive or/and negative marginal propensities all play a major role in this sensitive issue. My own senses and sensibilities very rarely find a medium for expression. But PUL has provided me with that

Teenage pregnancy in the uk and possible strategies to prevent it Research Proposal

Teenage pregnancy in the uk and possible strategies to prevent it - Research Proposal Example It is for these reasons a policy was evolved in early 1990s to reduce the rate of teenage pregnancies progressively and to reduce it by at least half by the year 2010. The brief literature review shows teenage pregnancies do not show any signs of abating and the problem is exacerbated by the tendencies of the teenagers giving a second birth before they reach 20 years. There are also fears that babies born to teenage mothers will themselves become teenage mothers due to built-in culture developed over generations. Systematic literature review is the sole research methodology adopted for the dissertation. The above results of literature review conducted justify a detailed secondary research further on the issue of teenage pregnancies in the U.K. This proposal is for a dissertation as part of the researcher’s B.Sc. Health field curriculum at the University of East London at the end of the degree in level III. The chosen topic is â€Å"Teenage Pregnancy In The UK And Possible Strategies To Prevent It† on which the researcher is required to make a systematic literature review as a secondary research. Teenage pregnancy worldwide is causing concern as it is associated with girls’ health mostly as unwed mothers susceptible to mortality as child bearers at the adolescent age without full grown body and HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) Half the world population comprises of people, less than 25 years of age. People between the ages 10-19 are adolescents. The adolescents in their second decade of life contract STIs, HIV/AIDS more than any other age group. This target population is the hope for governments to substantially reduce the incidence of the said diseases. Only a very few countries have achieved limited incidences of STIs and HIV mainly by teaching their adolescents safe sexual practices. Among U.S., Canada, France and the U.K., the U.K. has

A report on application of technology in Operations Management Essay

A report on application of technology in Operations Management - Essay Example This forms the revenue-generating function of any business and thus based on five critical strategies such as speed, flexibility, dependability, quality and cost. All operations activities are carried out based on these strategies. In order to continuously enhance effectiveness of these strategies, various technology services are employed in operations management through advanced information technology and information service (IT/IS) systems. This report evaluates application of IT/IS in various operations activities and their impact on its core strategies. 2. Operations management and strategic objectives: The entire operations/production process is accomplished using resources such as money, raw material, equipment, manpower and finance. These inputs are processed in specific manner through a sequence of preplanned activities in order to produce desired outputs, which can be in the form of completed parts, products, chemicals, service to customers, completed paperwork etc. Operatio ns strategy controls the strategic position of the firm, and is aligned to the overall corporate strategy. This alignment is to ensure all policies and plans reinforce organizational effectiveness and aid in optimum production of goods and services. For example, Toyota’s operations strategy includes designing, assembling and marketing the finished products, but procures the rest from other suppliers (Feist et al, 1999). This strategy is aligned to its corporate strategy of producing defect-free products, in less time and occupy largest market share. In general, operations strategy involves decisions related to design of the process of production or service providing as well as facilities and/or infrastructure needed to support the process. To achieve such tough and complicated objectives, organizations make optimum usage of advanced information and technological services. The IT services form a part of their tactical planning approaches, which also include capital, human reso urces, technology, facilities; staffing and scheduling methodologies to achieve target productions; sales and service operations; inventory management of supplies and delivered goods etc. In addition, short-term operations planning activities such as capacity, quality control, inventory, manpower etc also require IT services for effective operations. 3. Practical applications of IT for objective achievement: The three major components of corporate strategy in any business include operations effectiveness, customer management and production process and innovation (Chase 2006). Information Technology (IT) provides strong platform to convert, store, protect, process, transfer and recover information related to operations, customer and production processes. IT and its systems are used in all operations management processes such as capacity planning, inventory control and management, quality control, human resources management, etc. All business processes such as taking orders from custo mers, handling returns, manufacturing, marketing, delivery of end products also require IT systems. IT finds effective application in all customer management activities such as evaluation of customer feedback, customer satisfaction, customer expectations etc. Application of IT for innovation in operations and production management is mainly through research and development activities. According to Slack et al. (2004) the main objectives of operations manage

Bangladesh Liberation War: Conflict Analysis

Bangladesh Liberation War: Conflict Analysis Conflict Analysis Case Study –Bangladesh Liberation War Background and Internal Factors West Pakistan had four provinces: â€Å"Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, and the North-West Frontier.† Province number 5 was East Pakistan, and it was the largest province out of all. West Pakistan had control over all the provinces, and used up most of the resources. â€Å"Between 1948 and 1960, East Pakistan made 70% of all of Pakistans exports, while it only received 25% of imported money. In 1948, East Pakistan had 11 fabric mills while the West had nine. In 1971, the number of fabric mills in the West grew to 150 while the number in the East went down to 26. About 2.6 billion dollars of resources were also shifted over time from East Pakistan to West Pakistan. Although East Pakistan had the largest population among all the provinces, it had much less political power than West Pakistan. Although the economy was an issue, there was also the issue of language that caused East Pakistan and West Pakistan to have dispute for several years.† (bdallinone) In 1948, Mohammad Ali Jinnah announced that Urdu was the official language for Pakistan. However, this was not fair because only the people in the West and the Bihari’s in the East spoke Urdu. Majority of the West Pakistanis spoke Punjabi and Sindhi, while East Pakistanis spoke Bangali. Therefore, East Pakistan was against the movement of Urdu being the official language for Pakistan. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the leader of the Awami League (top political party in support of East Pakistan), wanted more economic and political power, all of these political changes resulted in the war of independence. The war involved two parts of Pakistan: East Pakistan VS West Pakistan in a war for liberation and freedom from West Pakistan. The war lasted throughout March 26th – December 16th 1971. The Pakistan Army began a genocide called â€Å"Operation Searchlight† by attacking the innocent Bangaladeshi’s of Dhaka city (Dhaka is the capital city of the province Bengal). The Pakistani army massacred 40,000 Bengali people, whether they be poets, teachers, police officers, etc and ignited a brutal war against the Bengalis of East Pakistan to stop them from being independent. They also invaded homes and held families on gun point, burned down schools, destroyed sacred architecture and purposely ruined 80% of agriculture lands, which caused Bangladesh to be in a famine. They killed sons and daughters and raped women and the West Pakistani army got away with ALL these crimes, and nothing was accounted for until at least 30 years ago, when activists convinced the police department to open up old cases. East Pakistan didn’t have an army since it was not yet officially a country, so they were just a group of freedom fighters. Eventually, India joined in to support East Pakistan’s Freedom Fighters, and then they formed the Mukhti Bahini, which translates to The Liberation Army. They used the guerrilla method and just basic armed forces, which they got from the support of the Indian Army, and through a lot of gruesome war, they eventually fought until they gained their liberation, and Bangladesh was declared an independent nation. The West Pakistani government was not willing to make peace with the East Pakistani government due to political differences such as political power due to economic, language and racial issues, since West Pakistan was considered one large province, the politicians that were on the West Side did not allow East Side of Pakistan to develop their own stable government since the East Side always got outweighed. External Factors Throughout the war, there was involvement from several other countries such as India. India played an active role. Indira Gandhi (Prime minister of India) wanted to protect Bangladesh. Since India had a lot of protection (bombs, nuclear weapons, great military), they â€Å"mounted a three-pronged movement on Dhaka from the Indian province West Bengal, Assam, and Tripura. The Indian soldiers, Air Force, and Navy defeated the Pakistani army, while the Bangladeshi Navy helped India. On the ground, three groups of Mukti Bahini and Indian forces fought the Pakistanis. The Pakistanis attempted to fight back and they did not give up, but failed to resist them and ended up surrendering† (Murtala Sadeh) This surrender was the largest surrender from an army since World War 2. This was not a proxy war because the East Pakistan and West Pakistan communicated directly with each other, and did not use any other source to have the war fought for them; they fought on each other’s land. International Response: United Nations Pakistan’s plan to invade and bomb India’s land got the United Nations involved, and they stepped in and tried to force India to agree to a cease-fire. The â€Å"UN Security Council† came together on December 4 1981 to talk about the situation and find any possible way of making peace. After much convincing and long discussions, on 7 December, the United States came up with the idea for an immediate ceasefire and withdrawal of troops. Stalinist Russia rejected the resolution twice. In light of the Pakistani atrocities, Britain and France restrained and kept their distance from the situation. The Indian army quickly overran the country. Pakistani forces were unable to effectively fight the brutal attacks, since â€Å"they had been deployed in small units around the border to counter guerrilla attacks by the Muhkti Bahini. Unable to defend Dhaka, the Pakistanis surrendered on 16 December 1971, the largest surrender since the Second World War. Bangladesh gained adm ission to the UN with most voting in its favour, but China rejected this as Pakistan was its key ally, as was the United States, which was one of the last nations to accord Bangladesh recognition. United States of America â€Å"The US administration feared that an Indian invasion of West Pakistan would mean the domination of the region by Stalinist Russia. That, in turn, would seriously undermine the global position of the US and the regional position of America’s new tacit ally, China. In order to demonstrate to China the reliability of the US as an ally, and in direct violation of the US Congress-imposed sanctions on Pakistan, Nixon sent military supplies to Pakistan, shipping them through Jordan and Iran. China was encouraged to increase arms supplies to Pakistan†. (Wikipedia) The Nixon government completely uncared for the reports it received of the genocidal and brutal activities that the Pakistani Army was getting involved in (to dominant the Bengalis), including all the deaths of innocent Bangali’s and all of the rapes. However, Russia supported the Indian army and Mukti Bahini during the war because they knew that the independence of Bangladesh would make their rivals weaker. It also assured India that if the US or China tried invading India, Russia would have their back. Therefore, the Indo-Soviet friendship treaty was signed in August 1971 during the Bangladesh Liberation War. When Pakistan’s defeat was obvious, â€Å"Nixon sent the aircraft carrier, USS Enterprise, to the Bay of Bengal, a move which ratcheted up nuclear tensions in the region. USS Enterprise arrived on station on 11 December 1971. On 6 and 13 December, the Russian navy sent out two groups of ships, armed with nuclear missiles, from Vladivostok. They trailed the US task force in the Indian Ocean from 18 December until 7 January 1972. At the end of the war, the Warsaw Pact countries of Central and Eastern Europe were the first to recognise Bangladesh as an independent country.† (Wikepedia) Stalinist Russia gave credit to Bangladesh on 25 January 1972. The United States also eventually gave them credit in April. â€Å"On 2 July 1972, the Simla Accord was signed between India and Pakistan, which stated the goal to normalise relations between India and Pakistan, including the return of Pakistani prisoners of war. Pakistan officially recognised Bangladesh in 1974†. (Wikiped ia) China Since China is an ally of Pakistan, the Peoples Republic of China reacted with productively towards situation in East Pakistan and the prospect of India invading West Pakistan. They know that an Indian attack was about to happen, so Richard Nixon (President of U.S.A) encouraged China to gather together its armed forces along India’s border. The Indian Army was prepared and had deployed eight mountain divisions to the â€Å"Sino-Indian border to guard against such an eventuality.China instead threw its weight behind demands for an immediate ceasefire.† (Wikipedia) When Bangladesh wanted a place to get involved in the United Nations in 1972, China rejected their application because of two United Nations resolutions regarding the repatriation of Pakistani prisoners of war and civilians had not yet been implemented.† (Wikipedia) China was one of the last countries to recognise the liberation of Bangladesh and denied to until 31 August 1975. Effect of Temperature on Plant Physiology | Experiment Effect of Temperature on Plant Physiology | Experiment Abstract The physiological processes of many organisms are sensitive to temperature. In order to see this effect of temperature, we examined the heart rate of a Daphnia magna over a range of different temperatures. Being an ectothermic animal, the Daphnias body temperature is dependent on water temperature. It was hypothesized that since most physiological processes are faster at higher temperatures, the Daphnias heart rate will be faster at higher temperatures and slower at low temperatures. This was, in fact, true and a pattern was evident which showed that heart rate increased as temperature increased. The Q10 was high at higher temperatures which show elevated sensitivity at higher temperatures. Clearly, Daphnia have an optimal temperature range outside which they do not function to their full potential. A Daphnias heart rate, then, was proved to be dependent on temperature. Introduction Daphnia magna is a widespread freshwater zooplankton. Since Daphnia are ectothermic animals, their body temperature fluctuates with environmental temperature. Hence, these animals are ideal to study the effects of temperature. Most such animals function well at certain specific temperatures. They have an optimal temperature range, outside which they are unable to perform physiological processes effectively (Lamkemeyer et al. 2003). It is believed that most physiological processes take place more rapidly at higher temperatures and that changes in temperature can influence physiological rates (Ziarek et al. 2010). In order to investigate this, we questioned whether the heart rate of a Daphnia is different at different temperatures. Q10, which is the temperature sensitivity of a reaction, was a useful tool. We hypothesized that the Daphnia will have different heart rates at different temperatures and hence that temperature will affect heart rate. It was also hypothesized that Q10 will d iffer at different temperatures. This hypothesis was tested by exposing the Daphnia to different water temperatures, letting it equilibrate to the water temperature and counting its heart beat in a systematic way. Since most physiological processes increase at higher temperatures, we predicted that if the temperature is higher (close to 35 °C) then the heart rate of the Daphnia will be faster and if the temperature is low (close to 5 °C) then it would be slower. In addition, we predicted that Q10 will be higher at low temperatures and lower at high temperatures. In view of the fact that Daphnia had an optimal temperature range, it would be understandable if the Daphnia was more sensitive to temperatures outside this range and consequently reacted by altering its heart rate. Methods A Daphnia was placed on a small smear of Vaseline on the bottom of a culture dish (Olaveson and Rush 2011). Aged water at room temperature was added to the dish. Five minutes were allowed for the Daphnia to adjust to the water temperature and the temperature of the water was measured and recorded. Under a dissecting microscope, the Daphnia was placed and the 4X lens were used to locate the heart and count the heartbeats. The number of beats was counted over a 10 second period which was followed by a 10 second pause in counting and then 10 seconds of counting again. In order to get 9 measurements of the heart rate, this pattern was repeated for 3 minutes. Then, ice and water were mixed in a beaker to make a water mixture between 5 °C to 10 °C. To replace the tap water in the culture dish with chilled water, a Pasteur pipette was used. Five minutes were allowed for the Daphnia to reach equilibrium and then the heart beat was counted to obtain 9 measures of heart rate (heartbeats/ 1 0 seconds). The values were recorded. The temperature was then increased in 5 °C increments till 35 °C and heart rate was measured at each point. Small amounts of the colder water were replaced with the warmer water (obtained from a water bath) till the desired temperature had been reached. Five minutes were always allowed for equilibration and using the same method, 9 measures of heart rate were recorded. The 9 estimates of heart rate taken at each temperature were used to find the average heart rate at each temperature. These values were entered into an excel document by all students and later used for analysis. Results Statistical analysis and data processing shed light upon the effect of temperature on the heart rate of a Daphnia. The Statistical t test analysis proved that the Ho could be rejected for all the three tests proving that temperature does have a significant effect on the heart rate of a Daphnia. The Q10 as well as the average heart rates at different temperatures provided evidence that supported the hypothesis that temperature would affect Daphnia heart rate too. At the temperature interval of 4 °C to 14 °C, the Q10 was found to be 1.31 (Table 1). Although this was not the highest Q10 value and hence not the most sensitive temperature interval, a decrease in heart rate was evident at the lower temperature of 4 °C compared to other higher temperatures (figure 1). The heart rate at 4 °C was found to be 106.74 beats per minute where as the heart rate at 14 °C was 140.10 beats per minute. The significant decrease in heart rate at 4 °C compared to heart rate at the ambient temperature (24 °C) was supported by the t test analysis (sample t statistic: 14.3938; critical t statistic:1.978; df:136; p = 0.05). The temperature interval from 14 °C to 24 °C showed increased sensitivity (Q10:1.40). This indicated the increase in heart rate at 24 °C compared to lower temperatures (figure 1) and was supported by the t test analysis as the Ho (hypothesis that no change in heart rate would be evident) was rejected (t statistic: 8.6519; criti cal t statistic:1.978; df:136; p = 0.05). During the temperature interval from 24 °C to 34 °C, the highest Q10 was noted (table 1). This sensitivity to high temperatures was obvious when heart rates at the two temperatures were compared (heart rate at 24 °C: 196.32 beats/min; at 34 °C: 277.92 beats/ min). The H0 was hence rejected (t statistic: 9.7792; critical t statistic: 1.978; df: 136; p = 0.05). All the three tests provided evidence that suggested that temperature had an effect on the Daphnias heart rate. At higher temperatures, the heart rate was faster and at lower temperatures, it was slower. Generally, as temperature increased so did the Daphnias heart rate (figure 1). Discussion All organisms have an optimum temperature range over which they function best. Consequently, at certain temperatures, the physiological processes of a Daphnia magna are at its utmost potential. Some hypothesized that Daphnia optimize their fitness by allocating the time spent in the different habitats depending on the temperature gradient (Kessler Lampert, 2004). Hence, evidently temperature has an effect on the performance of a Daphnia. Specifically, as hypothesized, temperature affected the heart rate of Daphnia. It was noticed that the Daphnias heart rate increased at higher temperatures (close to 34 °C) and decreased at lower temperatures (close to 5 °C). Since Daphnia are ectothermic, their body temperature varies with environmental temperature. Since Daphnia cannot thermoregulate, their body temperature experiences variance following à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡uctuations in the environment (Ziarek et al. 2010). Hence as the temperature of the water increased, so did the Daphnias heart rate. The data supported this prediction. This is simply because most physiological processes take place more rapidly at higher temperatures. In addition, research has shown that increases of heart rate by significant values were measured in D. Magna as a function of temperature (Paul et al. 2004). One reason why the heart rate of Daphnia increases with temperature would be because less oxygen is present in the warmer water. Consequently, lack of oxygen could result in insufficient amount of oxygenated blood and hence the heart would have to work harder to pump blood around the body. For this purpose, it makes sense that the heart rate would increase. Very little research has been done about oxygen levels at different temperatures and Daphnia heart rates and perhaps more such research will provide more clarity on this topic. The little research that has been done, though, suggests that a reduced aerobic scope allows only time-limited survival at temperatures outside the optimal ran ge (Lamkemeyer et al. 2003) in organism such as Daphnias. Other research has also shown that high temperatures increase a Daphnias metabolic rates by increasing their heartbeat rates (MacArthur Baittie, 1929), and consequently their oxygen demands (Ziarek et al. 2010). It is also important to note that although it was predicted that Q10 would be higher at low temperatures and lower at high temperatures, the data did not support this prediction. The opposite, in fact, was evident. At higher temperatures the Q10 was higher and at lower temperatures it was lower. This could be possible merely because the Daphnia was more sensitive to changes in temperature at higher temperatures. It could also be possible that Q10 was higher at higher temperatures because of other errors. For instance, when the ice was added to the water in order to obtain low water temperatures (5 °C), it was difficult to obtain the exact temperatures. Although the temperature obtained (about 8 °C) was lower than room temperature (or ambient temperature), it is possible that it wasnt low enough to trigger major physiological changes. A significant fact to keep in mind is that since temperatures are increasing due to global warming, water temperatures are going to increase as well . This could lead to problems for organisms such as Daphnia which cannot function well outside of their optimal temperature range. It has been suggested that rising temperatures associated with global warming present a challenge to the fate of many aquatic organisms (Doorslaer et al. 2009) In conclusion, Daphnia heart rate is affected by temperature and tends to increase at high temperatures and decrease at low temperatures.

The Insanity Of Hamlet :: essays research papers

In William Shakespeare?s Hamlet, Hamlet leads an antic disposition that causes his downfall and leads him to insanity. His antic disposition affects his judgment, destroys relationships and creates a belief that he is truly mad. Throughout the play, Hamlet is consumed with anger which causes him to act through emotion and without reason. Hamlet?s main goal is to avenge the death of his father but, his actions to do so are hindered because of the irrational decisions he has made through the antic disposition he has put on. Hamlet?s antic disposition began with the death of his father. Hamlet returns to his home, Denmark, to find King Hamlet, his father, dead. As any normal human being would be allowed to grieve, Hamlet was not. Hamlet was expected to accept the death of his father and move on. (Do not forever with thy vailà ¨d lids/Seek for thy noble father in the dust./Thou know'st 'tis common. All that lives must die,/Passing through nature to eternity.)(1.2.68-73). Without the ti me to grieve, Hamlet was left with the echo of his mother?s and Claudius?s hurtful and unsympathetic words of advice. While Hamlet was forbidden to ?useless mourning? (We pray you, throw to earth/This unprevailing woe, and think of us/As of a father.)(1.2.106-108), his mother quickly marries to his uncle Claudius and undoubtedly moves on with her life. In T.S. Eliot?s The Sacred Wood, Hamlet?s ?disgust envelops and exceeds her. It is thus a feeling which he cannot understand, he cannot objectify it, and it therefore remains to poison life and obstruct action.? With little time to grieve and a mother that seems to care less about her deceased husband, Hamlet?s mind was given the perfect recipe for insanity. In mid night, a mysterious ghost appears to Prince Hamlet in the shape of his 2father, King Hamlet. The strange and mystifying ghost guides Hamlet away from Horatio and Marcellus, as if wanting privacy. Hamlet becomes defensive and mad and believes his fate is to follow the ghos t, ?My fate cries out/And makes each petty artery in this body/As hardy as the Nemean lion's nerve./Still am I called.?Unhand me, gentlemen.?(1.4.86-89). Hamlet is determined to hear the words of the ghost and threatens Horatio and Marcellus to death if they do not let him go. Horatio and Marcellus follow him for his safety but believe ?He waxes desperate with imagination.?(1.4.92). The ghost is the first obvious sign that Hamlet?

Plastics Bags: A Devil To Be Banned

Plastics Bags- A Devil To Be Banned Plastic bags are normally given to customers by vendors when buying. It is a very convenient method for transporting goods. Moreover, it is highly popular to the customers and retailers because of its light weight. But, ultimately this much usage of the plastic bags leads to the many serious problems. Plastic bags should be banned in Canada because it have a critical environment problems, health problems and also because of its cost of production and recycling. Plastic bags should be banned because it creates very harmful environment problems.Throwing plastic bags could make the soil pollution. It also creates marine pollution. As per the research â€Å"over 13 billion plastic bags are handed to consumers each year, representing a substantial proportion of all floating marine litter (http://www. guardian. co. uk/ environment/2007/nov/13/plasticbags. pollution). Plastic bags wastes block the drainage and also it is dangerous to marine life. Every y ear thousands of seals and whales are dying because of eating plastic bags. For making a plastic bags earth’s precious natural resources are being used.Burning plastics produce much polluted gases which cause air pollution (http://debatewise. org/debates/ 1011-should-plastic-bags-be-banned/#yes9). All of this pollution in combine produces a Green House Effect. Moreover, during the production of the plastics many harmful waste chemical is produce which also contribute in the pollution and ultimately environment problems. So, plastic bags should be banned in Canada as it has dangerous environmental issues. Another, reason for banning of the plastic bags is because of its effect on the health.Air produce after burning of plastics can lead to an asthma or can worse the asthma. When a plastics break down it release many harmful chemicals and by drinking this type of water it enter into a human body and can produce a disease like diabetes, heart problems, cancer (Copperkitten). The se all health problems are serious and they cost much for treatment also. â€Å"Toxic emission produces daring an extraction of plastic bags, their manufacturing, and their transportation contribute to acid rain and smog† (Environmental Literacy Council).Moreover, some people put their foods in plastic bags for a long time and during that many toxic chemicals enter into a food and that may degrade food and also have an adverse effect on a health. Sometimes animals eat plastics bags with other food and in the body plastics not get metabolized and cause the serious problems. Many times it happen like birds eat a part of plastic bags and that stick to their neck and because of that they are unable to take a breath, and die. That’s why the usage of plastic bags should be banned in Canada due to its health risk.Production as well as recycling of plastic bags is very costly. During a production many natural sources of energy are used and that increase the production cost. Mo reover, this will leads to a decrease of these types of an energy sources. The price of oil used to produce petrochemicals for making recycled plastics is so high (Miller, 2005). One could drive their car for a few meters in production cost of one plastic bag. Also, the plastics are non-biodegradable so recycling is very complicated and it will cost too much money.After the recycling another big problems is of removal of the waste. Overall, production and recycling of plastics bags affect the economy of the country. For recycling there are a separate bins required to put in each street and also special vehicles are required for collection of that bins, and these all ultimately increase a cost of recycling. For a disposal of non-biodegradable plastic bags separate farmyard is required and day by day more and more space required storing plastic wastes. Therefore, it is better to ban a usage of plastic bags and it must be banned.Some people give a counter argument that plastic bags sho uld not be banned in Canada. They give a reason like plastic bags are convenient, cheaper and also not harm the environment too much. Some says, it is better to add a tax on production and usage of plastic bags than banning it. But it is not necessary that all convenient things are good for environment and economy. Moreover, the plastics are never degraded into a harmless ingredient, it always produce a toxic substances. Another way to reduce the environmental problems is to use a bio degradable plastics bags.But, the production cost is too high for making bio degradable plastics bags. Some says to reduce the use of plastics bags rather than banning it. But, nobody can control the usage of plastics if it is not banned. And it is proven that the plastic leads to critical environmental problems. It also reduces the other sources of energy and that will affects lot in future. And there is no need to use plastic bags as paper bags already available at the same cost in a market. Also, su ch types of paper bags are bio degradable as well as safe for a environment.So, plastic bags must be banned in Canada. In a nut shell, due to the high risk associated with the usage of plastic bags, it should be banned in Canada. Nobody have a right to damage a environment of a earth. So for a environment and for other living creatures usage of plastic bags must be stop and that is only possible by banning of a usage as well as production. In such types of issues awareness is not much useful. Government must have to take a firm steps for it. And, banning of plastic bags is only a solution.Work cited Copperkitten: Sustainable Living, June 2010 http://copperkitten. wordpress. com/2010/06/22/the-health-hazards-of-plastic-bags/ Environmental Literacy Council. 2005. â€Å"Paper or Plastic? † November 20, 2005. http://www. enviroliteracy. org/article. php/1268. html Miller, G. T. 2005. Sustaining the Earth: An Integrated Approach. Pacific Grove, CA: Thomson Brooks/Cole. http://www. guardian. co. uk/ environment/2007/nov/13/plasticbags. pollution http://debatewise. org/debates/ 1011-should-plastic-bags-be-banned/#yes9

Andromeda Strain essays

Andromeda Strain essays Michael Crichton uses three common devices with ease in his novel, Sphere. The devices being: rhetoric, semantics, and style. Crichton uses these devices to incorporate a sense of unity in the writing. It is not difficult to incorporate this unity into a novel when the devices are properly used. When doing so, they flow together to create a more visual experience for the reader. These devices of writing are what create the environment for an understandable, yet interesting storyline. Rhetoric is the art of using language effectively and persuasively. In doing so, the use of rhetoric fits in with how the writer of the story thinks and speaks. Crichton is an intellectual, yet he does not write in a sense where the reader cannot understand. He chooses to discuss many intellectual concepts, but in the process, Crichton makes them easy to understand by explaining them simply. The wasnt geometric. And it wasnt amorphous or organic, either. It was hard to say what it was. (Crichton, 117) In this excerpt, Crichton makes reference to a pattern. He describes it enough to leave the feeling of not knowing what it is besides just a simple pattern. Therefore, creating the feeling in which the characters feel. Semantics refer to the study of language forms. In Sphere, the language is not too different. Every character in the novel is in fact an intellectual in one form or another. They speak correct grammar, and communicate well with each other. The social environment, which is formed, makes for smooth transitions of communication. The linguistics Crichton chose to use made the novel more appealing to the average reader. Style can be defined as the way the author chooses to portray the characters and setting in his story. Crichton picks a parallel in his novel. The plot of Sphere deals with space exploration and alien existence. Yet Crichton does not put the setting in outer space, but in the dee...

Calculations With the Gamma Function

Calculations With the Gamma Function The gamma function is defined by the following complicated looking formula: Γ ( z ) ∠«0∞e - ttz-1dt One question that people have when they first encounter this confusing equation is, â€Å"How do you use this formula to calculate values of the gamma function?†Ã‚   This is an important question as it is difficult to know what this function even means and what all of the symbols stand for. One way to answer this question is by looking at several sample calculations with the gamma function.   Before we do this, there are a few things from calculus that we must know, such as how to integrate a type I improper integral, and that e is a mathematical constant.   Motivation Before doing any calculations, we examine the motivation behind these calculations.   Many times the gamma functions show up behind the scenes.   Several probability density functions  are stated in terms of the gamma function. Examples of these include the gamma distribution and students t-distribution,   The importance of the gamma function cannot be overstated.   Γ ( 1 ) The first example calculation that we will study is finding the value of the gamma function for Γ ( 1 ). This is found by setting z 1 in the above formula: ∠«0∞e - tdt We calculate the above integral in two steps: The indefinite integral ∠«e - tdt -e - t CThis is an improper integral, so we have ∠«0∞e - tdt limb → ∞ -e - b e 0 1 Γ ( 2 ) The next example calculation that we will consider is similar to the last example, but we increase the value of z by 1.   We now calculate the value of the gamma function for Γ ( 2 ) by setting z 2 in the above formula. The steps are the same as above: Γ ( 2 ) ∠«0∞e - tt dt The indefinite integral ∠«te - tdt- te - t -e - t C.   Although we have only increased the value of z by 1, it takes more work to calculate this integral.   In order to find this integral, we must use a technique from calculus known as integration by parts. We now use the limits of integration just as above and need to calculate: limb → ∞ - be - b -e - b -0e 0 e 0. A result from calculus known as L’Hospital’s rule allows us to calculate the limit limb → ∞ - be - b 0. This means that the value of our integral above is 1. Γ (z 1 ) zΓ (z ) Another feature of the gamma function and one which connects it to the factorial is the formula Γ (z 1 ) zΓ (z ) for z any complex number with a positive real part. The reason why this is true is a direct result of the formula for the gamma function. By using integration by parts we can establish this property of the gamma function.

Qualitative VS Quantitative Research Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Qualitative VS Quantitative Research - Essay Example When we think about research, things that come to our mind are e.g. facts & figures, science, observation, logic, evaluation, etc. etc. Adopting the scientific approach and adhering to a focused approach to come-up with certain findings do not contain values, passions, politics and ideology of the researcher. Using this kind of research methodology is called a â€Å"positivistic† approach and it is the most commonly used approach in general public. In short, the qualitative research refers to the existence of reality which is analyzed and understood with less rigorous methods and procedures while the quantitative research is aimed to reach to an objective (quantified) solution on the basis of cause & effect and examining theoretical relationship into a practical scenario. However, the emerging social changes and globalization are posing ineffectiveness of traditional deductive approach and forcing social researchers to opt for the inductive approach. Assessing qualitative research through a social constructionist lens, however, is premised upon the belief that research findings are always already partial and situated; that they actively construct the social world which is itself an interpretation and in need of interpretation. If we reject the very notion of an empirical world untouched by the social and the political, how are we to assess the research claims we make? If we concede that â€Å"truth† and â€Å"objective knowledge† cannot be invoked unproblematically, upon what grounds are we to say one research claim is better (i.e., valid) than another?. It is a kind of cold war between the old and new generation qualitative researchers. The latter reject the quantitative, positivist methods and assumptions. Having poststructural and/or postmodern sensibilities, they argue that positivist methods are nothing but all about telling stories about societies. Many new qualitative researchers are of the opinion that these methods do

Wal-Mart Capital Structure and Financial Analysis Essay

Wal-Mart Capital Structure and Financial Analysis - Essay Example Total Assets (Fixed + Current) = $27,638_ x 100 $120,223 = 22.9% Debt to Equity Ratio The debt to equity ratio measures the relationship between a company's debt capital and equity capital. It shows the percentage of a company's equity that has been financed by external debts. The debt-to-equity ratio for Wal-Mart has been calculated as: Debt-to-Equity Ratio = Total Debt Capital x 100 Total Equity Capital = $27,638 x 100 $49,396 = 55.95% CALCULATION OF WEIGHTED AVERAGE COST OF CAPITAL In the Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) involves the calculation of separate items in the capital employed and then weighting the cost of each element by its proportion of the total capital employed. There are following factors in the Wal-Mart's total capital: Equity (Common Stock) Debt (Long-term Debts) $ % Of Total 4,311 Common Stock of $0.10 (par) 423m 1.75% Long-term Debt 23,669m 98.24% Total Capital Employed 24,092m 100% Cost of Equity The cost of equity estimates the cost of common and preferred stock. But for Wal-Mart, this calculation will not include preference stock because the company has not issued any preference shares. The analysis of Wal-Mart's annual report reveals that the company is expecting to pay $0.150 dividend per share to its common shareholders. For dividend growth, we assume it to be 10% annually. The cost of common share capital has been estimated with the help of following formula: Cost of Common Share Capital = (Next annual dividend / current market price) + annual dividend growth = ($0.150 per share / $50.49 per share) + 10% = 10.29% per annum. Cost of Debt The calculation of cost of debt will encompass all the interest bearing long-term debts of the company. According to the Wal-Mart's...There are following factors in the Wal-Mart's total capital: The cost of equity estimates the cost of common and preferred stock. But for Wal-Mart, this calculation will not include preference stock because the company has not issued any preference shares. The analysis of Wal-Mart's annual report reveals that the company is expecting to pay $0.150 dividend per share to its common shareholders. For dividend growth, we assume it to be 10% annually. The cost of common share capital has been estimated with the help of following formula: The calculation of cost of debt will encompass all the interest bearing long-term debts of the company. According to the Wal-Mart's annual report, the company's weighted average effective interest rate on long-term debt is 4.08% in 2005. The tax rate applicable to the company for the year is 34.7%. The cost of long-term debt has been estimated as: As analysed from the company's financial statements and the calculation of financial ratios, the capital structure of Wal-Mart has become evident. Wal-Mart has structured its capital funding in a way its external debts or borrowings do not exceed its total equity to a greater extent.