Financial Reporting and Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 3

Monetary Reporting and Analysis - Essay Example This standard can likewise be named as gathering premise bookkeeping. c) Purchase for store gear or office hardware for under $25 are entered in random costs. The coordinating guideline is followed here. Costs and incomes must be coordinated in the event that it gets sensible to do as such. Costs ought to be perceived when a specific work or item adds to income. It isn't the point at which the work is done or when the item is delivered. Salary is perceived a similar path with the costs whether it is earned, caused and gotten or spent. Consistency is upgraded through this rule. f) Land bought 15 years back for $40500 and now worth $346 000 is still conveyed in the books at $40500 based on the recorded cost guideline. Land is a drawn out resource and ought to be accounted for to be decided sheet at its buy cost instead of its present market esteem. This standard is put together It ought to be based with respect to the expense of acqusation. The data gave by this guideline is solid in spite of the fact that needs pertinence and that the motivation behind why Debts and Securities are currently being accounted for at their reasonable valuations. g) Zero organization reports the conceivable loss of $1 million after it was sued for penetrate of agreement as per the rule of total honesty. This rule guarantees that all the significant money related data is completely remembered for budget summaries. This standard is significant since it guarantees that an organization reflects even negative data and furthermore featuring positive effects (Gibson, 2008). At the point when the fiscal reports are evaluated, an assessment is communicated, the assessment of the examiner ought to be communicated on the conclusion that proper accounting rules are followed and applied based on consistency as they were applied in the previous year (Ramos, 2006). Unfit assessment â€this kind of a supposition has no fiscal reports

Buddhism Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 2

Buddhism - Research Paper Example This paper investigates the Buddhism. The featuring point was not to ask however to have control at the forefront of one's thoughts. In such manner, it was more viewed as world way of thinking as opposed to as religion. Be that as it may, with breathing easy, it got the character of a religion comprehensive of ceremonies and doctrines. (Keown, p. 23 ) The existence history of Gautama Buddha was loaded with occasions. The best organization that Lord Buddha perceived during his life expectancy was the religious request called Sangha into which all men were allowed to go in independent of their social request. The individuals from this ascetic request, Sangha, were called as Bhikkus which implied homeless people, who needed to have an intense life, without having any sort of wants. The day by day needs of the Bhikkus were extremely constrained, they get just that much which is vital for one to endure truly. Their lone possessions were a beseeching bowl, undergarment of yellow shading, one strolling stick, when and any place if vital and one sets of sea shore shoes for the ones who need the most. They needed to keep up themselves by the aid they got however were disallowed from unequivocally arguing for donations. In the event that the aid were given readily, at that point they have to get acknowledged and if not given energetically t he Bhikkus need to move their center onto the following location. Accordingly it ended up being a little ministry, yet which was not at all like its Hindu coordinating part which did not depend on social gathering and was tilted towards the exercises of the teacher as opposed to concentrating on the introduction and upkeep of ceremonies. (Smith and Novak, pp. 40-45; Keown, pp. 23 ) During the lifetime of Lord Buddha, the start of Buddhism from different sorts of dedication which made up Hinduism was pretty much complete. This took the framework of non-affirmation of any typified Gods or Goddesses, spirits or shrewdness spirits and the close to absence of customs and ceremonies, refusal of the class framework and the ground-breaking supporter demonstration of priests which comprised portrayal of cultural assistance with the point of relief of human torment. Another significant element was that in beginning stages, all supporters of Lord Buddha were selected as the individuals from Sa ngha and hence it was completely a religion of the pupils. (Smith and Novak, pp. 40-45; Keown, pp. 25-30 ) From its start, Buddhism has recognized imperial donation. In the whole lifetime of Lord Buddha, Ajatashatru was the leader of one of the most remarkable realm of North India called Magadha where Buddhism was belittled and following not many years where Lord Buddha achieved Nirvana (the Salvation), the premier strict council of Buddhists was being held at Rajagriha, which was, by then, the capital of Magadha, managed by Ajatashatru. Such gatherings were the point to plan and overhaul Buddhist strict arrangement which was

Word Trivia for English Language Lovers

Word Trivia for English Language Lovers (1) Calling all you wonderful word nerds! In a celebration of one of the most popular lingua franca on the planet, we have gathered a few little-known English facts that may shock, surprise and delight. There are thousands of words in the English language. Make sure your work uses those words correctly with an EasyBib Plus grammar check free for up to 5 grammar suggestions. World champion All of those old papers saved on your computer are actually contributing to a greater cause. More than 80% of information saved on all computers in the world is in English making it the clear hardware dominance winner. It’s the climb Climbing halfway up a mountain is better than staying on flat ground but it can’t compete with reaching the summit. So it is no surprise that the direct translation of the adjective mediocre is halfway up a mountain. No small parts Where would the English language be without the little dot above the “i”? It’s called a tittle. Go ahead and blush, no one is looking. Unusual dream Unique and beautiful like a being from another dimension, the past tense version of the verb dreamt holds the distinct honor of being the only word in English that ends in “mt”. The classic Some things are too good to ever go out of style. The noun town is the oldest word still used in the English language, but it never looks out of place.   A sound plan The “zip” in zip code actually means something. Zoning improvement plan is the acronym spelled out and we bet you’ll never forget it. Lone wolves The words silver, purple, orange and month do not rhyme with any other words, but that’s ok because they are awesome on their own. Looking sleepy Take a closer peek at the word bed and what do you see? If “b” is the headboard and “d” is the foot, “bed” may just be the coziest looking word of all. Word of all trades Set has 464 definitions in the Oxford dictionary making it the word with the most. Now that is what we call versatility. Travel safely We say it over the phone, on the street and so many other places, but you’ll never guess what it actually means. Goodbye is derived from an old English phrase that meant “god be with you” Create references like the ones below using the EasyBib MLA format generator or APA citation maker. Works Cited “30 Fun Facts about the English Language.” Lingoda, 10 Apr. 2018, www.lingoda.com/en/blog/fun-facts-english-language. By. “20 Titbits Of Word Trivia.” Every Word Counts, 28 Dec. 2017, www.everywordcounts.co.uk/20-titbits-word-trivia/. “Interesting English Language Facts And Trivia.” English Express, 14 Dec. 2016, www.englishexpress.com.sg/articles/interesting-english-language-facts-trivia/. Jones, Paul Anthony. “100 Random Facts About The English Language.” The Huffington Post, TheHuffingtonPost.com, 8 Feb. 2015, www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-anthony-jones/100-random-language-facts_b_6272224.html. For additional information related to a Works Cited MLA, how to do an annotated bibliography MLA, or an example of MLA format, explore our guides at www.!

The Letter Apology Of The Stolen Generations By Kevin Rudd

The 2008 apology to the Stolen Generations by Kevin Rudd is historically significant for a number of reasons (Creative Spirits, 2014). Some felt it provided closure to a painful and traumatic part of Indigenous history while others fail to see how the apology has in the years after proven to change the circumstances of Indigenous peoples. Impacts in areas such as health, education, economic opportunity and involvement in child protection and/or the criminal justice system are all areas which should have been impacted by the Apology (Creative Spitis, 2014). However; as this essay will explore very little impact has been made in any of these areas in actual fact in some ways the gap has been made wider or perpetuated by acts of government. The Apology was a significant historical event but it is important to explain why it happened before examining the affects it has had on the Indigenous community and wider Australia (Creative Spirits, 2014). The Apology was more then just simply an apology, it acted as a statement of acknowledgement by the Australian Government that previous governments had committed wrongdoings by removing thousands of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their homes and families to be placed with White families and missions (religious camps which taught children white values essentially removing them from all their cultural roots) (Creative Spirits, 2014). This practice had incredibly adverse affects on families, the children removed asShow MoreRelatedThe Assimilation Policy and Its Impact on the Indigenous Australian Society1071 Words   |  5 PagesAboriginal people’s rights, citizenships and general protection. The Australian government policy that has had the most signifi cant impact on indigenous Australians is the assimilation policy. The reasons behind this include the influences that the stolen generation has had on the indigenous Australians, their relegated rights and their entitlement to vote and the impact that the policy has had on the indigenous people of Australia. The assimilation policy was a policy that existed between the 1940’s and

When I Have Fears, by John Keats and Holy Sonnet 1, by...

Mortality is a moving and compelling subject. This end is a confirmation of one’s humanity and the end of one’s substance. Perhaps that is why so many writers and poets muse about their own death in their writings. Keats and John Donne are two such examples of musing poets who share the human condition experience in When I Have Fears and Holy Sonnet 1. Keats begins each quatrain of the Shakespearean sonnet with a modifier, and each modifier indexes the subject of that quatrain. The modifier therefore gives his sonnet a three part structure. The first quatrain is what he fears; the second quatrain is what he beholds; the third quatrain is what he feels; and the ending couplet sums up all of the quatrains. However, the structure could†¦show more content†¦He also calls the addressed â€Å"fair creature of the hour,† and recognizes the constraint of time on love, for an hour is fleeting. He also recognizes the fickleness of it – who is to say someone else will be his addressed the next hour? He continues to suggest that the addressed has some sort of deceptive and illusory â€Å"faery power† that creates an â€Å"unreflecting love.† Deception and illusion typically are detrimental for those who experience it. Keats does not reflect on losing the chance for love as something terribly unhappy, f or he has a pre-existing negative perception of love. Love is also â€Å"unreflecting,† so love won’t be reciprocated. Keats then ends the segment about love half a line earlier in this quatrain than all other quatrains. Keats introduces the summation of the poem early, in the second part of the last line in quatrain four. This choice reflects how great his impending death weighs on his mind. In the final couplet, Keats’s dark views of love leave him to â€Å"stand alone† and not experience the love mentioned in the previous quatrain. Of course, â€Å"alone† might not necessarily mean devoid of love; he could mean that he’s alone because of his hopeless thoughts on the subject. Or he could mean he is alone because he does not have the emblems â€Å"Love† and â€Å"Fame.† â€Å"Wide world† dwarfs him, making it even sadder that in spite of all the vast opportunities he has had with different cultures,

ICT and Business Development Free Essays

ICT and Business Development In line with the main priorities set by the URBACT Information Society Network, this theme focuses on business development and the role of ICT as a means of tackling economic restructuring and promoting employment and in doing so fostering social cohesion and economic inclusion. The purpose of this brief document is to act as a guide for colleagues when preparing material or presentations on this topic and to provoke discussion on the issues raised in it. Business Development and its relationship to ICT? Business Development is the process of improvement that enables a business to become more efficient, profitable, and thereby creating or safeguarding jobs. We will write a custom essay sample on ICT and Business Development or any similar topic only for you Order Now Business development therefore does not only concern marketing and sales departments, but all parts of a business which constitute its value chain and requires effective communication and co-operation within a company. Over the last 20 years ICT has increasingly been identified as a major contributor to the process of business development and improvement and it has been identified that â€Å"ICT †¦. is responsible for around half of productivity growth in modern economies. It drives improved efficiency and better services and products across the entirety of the private and the public sectors. † (Viviane Reding, Member of the European Commission responsible for Information Society). What has been the impact of ICT on Business? The use of ICT and technology has affected every aspect of business, transforming not only the way that business is conducted but also creating new business sectors and jobs. The creation of companies like Google and e-Bay which did not exist 10 years ago, was only made possible by advances in technology and the changes that this has created in the way that people ehave (currently Google is valued at ?44billion – Source BBC 5th June 05). Some examples of the nature of this change include: Marketing: The use of websites has allowed companies to develop new and cheaper ways of reaching new markets, offering customers the opportunity of buying goods and services whenever they want and often at reduced cost, whilst also e nhancing the level of customer service. This has been coupled with the expansion and use of e-mails which again has been used by business to market their goods and services directly to potential customers, as well as communicating with existing customers and suppliers. Increasingly the marketing campaigns of businesses include the use of technologies such as Contact Management Systems that allows them to co-ordinate, monitor and report on various aspects of their marketing campaigns in new ways making these campaigns more targeted and effective. Finance: Practically all companies now use software programs e. g. Sage or Excel to manage their accounts. This has allowed them to look at financial information when required, monitor and respond to their customers purchasing patterns by e. g. offering discounts and overall improve the management of their finances. The result of this has been for many companies a reduction in their accountancy fees. Out of office working: For many businesses the need for staff to be away from the office attending meetings etc. or to be based in another geographical location has grown alongside employee demands for more flexible working patterns. However effective communication and ability to access information etc. remains critical to the productivity of these staff members. Therefore through the use of technology many companies now use a range of technologies to enable this. These include mobile phones, e-mail, broadband, laptops, etc. Thus ensuring that companies are able to be flexible and adaptive depending on their business needs. Networks: Virtually all businesses now have or have access to a computer. The existence of two or more computers in an office almost always leads to the creation of a network. The main advantage of doing so is that resources can be shared e. g. printers, internet access, files/information can be managed and shared amongst workstations and the security of information can be better managed through a network. Increasingly networks are not just confined to the office but are being adopted so that they allow home/remote working that supports changing business needs. This transformation has really taken place over the last 20 years and continues to transform the way business is done. No business today can ignore the use of technology as its effective use helps businesses to remain competitive and profitable, thereby creating or safeguarding jobs. The role of the Public Sector? What is the case for Public Sector intervention if this is already happening? Talking specifically about SME’s, the final report (Feb. 2004) of the European Go Digital Awareness campaign 2001-2003 shows that â€Å"to help SME’s to â€Å"Go Digital† is still a policy challenge† as SME’s remain sceptical about ICT and e-business. This is mainly the result of: †¢Their experience of procuring technology has often left an impression that the wrong decision was made as the expected benefits from using new technology have not materialised. This then affects businesses willingness to further invest in technology and therefore threatens their further competitiveness. The creation of new businesses especially in new industries requires that the right support and business environment are present. For example the presence of Science Park’s, Universities, and Research Centres etc. can help the spread of an innovative culture amongst businesses. In the absence of proper support and the right environment areas/regions risk losing the jobs and prosperity brought by the creation of new businesses. †¢Procuring technology in itself is not a route to successful business development but requires that staff have the right skills to implement and use it effectively. Many of the new technologies and emerging or existing businesses are increasing dependant on the presence of a relevant technological infrastructure to support business development e. g. Broadband access. The lack of this infrastructure can undermine business development, therefore damaging competitiveness and jobs. The issues above although not exhaustive are indications of market failure and therefore a challenge to the public sector in defining a role and developing projects/iniatives to address them. Without effective action areas/regions risk falling behind and therefore losing out in terms of: †¢Developing new businesses in new business sectors made possible by advances in technology; †¢Ensuring that businesses by effectively using technology are competitive both locally and globally; †¢Ensuring that businesses have the necessary information and support to develop into new markets; †¢Enabling businesses to become more flexible and responsive to the demands of their customers and their staff; †¢Developing a workforce with the necessary skills that are demanded in the present and future labour market. How did you develop your project? Once you have identified a problem or issue then the next stage is to plan actions to overcome or redress these issues. This starts with the planning stage which is a critical component to the success of any project, starting with identifying the need for the project, and includes project time scales, project design, project finance, project partners and resources, project organisation and management etc. What were the key factors in achieving this and what barriers did you have to overcome to do so? Main outcomes of the project to businesses? Over the course of any project measuring its success is a necessary part of project management, reporting and measuring impact or change. What therefore were the main outcomes of the project and how were they measured? ?Increased or improved use of ICT helped to expand business activities? ?Increased or improved use of ICT resulted in the development of new services and/or products? ?ICT usage has helped to create new networks – inside and outside the company? The adoption of ICT solutions has lead to the restructuring of working and communication methods in the enterprise? ?New models of working and/new jobs emerged? ?The implementation of e-work helped to integrate people who have been excluded from â€Å"traditional† jobs in the company before? ?The business now understands better the need for staff training? ?Additional jobs and/or the maintenance of exiting ones as a result of the projects work? Lessons learnt? During the course of any project the experience of delivery often throw’s up many unforeseen issues, especially when you are dealing with technology, which are a result of internal and external factors. This then leads to lesson’s learnt which can range from better ways to manage a project through to innovative approaches to providing support etc. These lessons learnt are not only of value to the project staff but also for others interested in developing or currently running similar projects. How to cite ICT and Business Development, Papers

Pablo Picassos Bequest Of Gertrude Essays - Pablo Picasso

Pablo Picasso's Bequest Of Gertrude Pablo Picasso was a very famous artist in his time. I have always found his work very interesting and unique. He has a style all his own and, I believe that this was what made him so famous and at the same time controversial. The painting I have chosen is called Gertrude. Pablo Picasso was born in Spain to Jose Ruiz and Maria Picasso. He later adopted his mothers more distinguished maiden name Picasso. Picasso was a child prodigy who was recognized as such by his art-teacher father who ably led him along. Picasso was taught for a few years and after he attended the Academy of fine art in Curna Spain where his father taught. Picassos early drawings such as, Study of A Torso, After A Plaster Cast (1894-1895 Musee Picasso, Paris, France) demonstrates the high level of technical proficiency he had accomplished by the age of 14 years old. (Encarta 2000) Picassos artwork is classified as modern art witch started in the early 1880s to the mid 1970s. In 1885 his family moved to Barcelona, Spain after his father obtained a teaching post at that citys academy of fine Arts. Picasso was admitted to advanced classes in the academy after he completed in a single day the entrance examination that applicants were traditionally given a month to complete. In 1897 Picasso left Barcelona to further his study at the San Fernando academy in Madrid witch was located in the Spanish capital. His academic studies did not last long in Madrid. He was unhappy with the training he was receiving and he left and returned back to his home in Barcelona Spain. Picasso visited Paris some time around the early 1900s. After that visit he decided that he would move back and fourth between Spain and Paris. He did this until 1904 when he finally settled down in the French capital. At this time Picasso started to explore and experiment with different art styles that were modern. This portion of his life is called the blue period. This was because of the blue tones Picassos paintings had. During the year of 1905 to 1906 a radical change took place in Picassos style of painting once again. His choice of colors and mood were evident in this period of his life. He used subtle pinks and grays that were often highlighted by brighter tones. This was tone as his rose period. (Rodenbeck, Compton's, Joseph) Along with her brother Leo, Gertrude Stein was among the first Americans to respond with enthusiasm to the artistic revolution in Europe in the early years of the twentieth century. The weekly salons she held in her Paris apartment became a magnet for European and American artists and writers alike, and her support of Matisse, Braque, Girls, and Picasso was evident in her many acquisitions of their work. For Picasso, this early patronage and friendship was of major importance. Picasso's portrait of the expatriate writer was begun in 1905, at the end of his Harlequin period and before he took up Cubism. Stein is shown seated in a large armchair, wearing her favorite brown velvet coat and skirt. Her impressive demeanor and massive body are aptly suggested by the monumental depiction. In her book The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas (1932), Stein described the making of this picture: Picasso had never had anybody pose for him since he was sixteen years old. He was then twenty-four and G ertrude had never thought of having her portrait painted, and they do not know either of them how it came about. In any case, it did, and she posed for this portrait ninety times. There was a large broken armchair where Gertrude Stein posed. There was also a couch where everybody sat and slept. There was a little kitchen chair where Picasso sat to paint. There was a large easel and there were many canvases. She took her pose, Picasso sat very tight in his chair and very close to his canvas and on a very small palette, which was of a brown gray color, mixed some more brown gray and the painting began, and he created the rich earth tones that we see in the

The Debate Over Reparations for Slavery

The Debate Over Reparations for Slavery The effects of both the transatlantic slave trade and colonialism continue to reverberate today, leading activists, human rights groups and the descendants of victims to demand reparations. The debate over reparations for slavery in the United States dates back  generations, in fact, all the way to the Civil War. Then, Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman recommended that all freedmen should receive 40 acres and a mule. The idea came after talks with African American themselves. However, President Andrew Johnson and the U.S. Congress did not approve of the plan. In the 21st century, not much has changed. The U.S. government and other nations where slavery thrived have yet to compensate the descendants of people in bondage. Still, the call for governments to take action has recently grown louder. In September 2016, a United Nations panel wrote a report that concluded African Americans deserve reparations for enduring centuries of â€Å"racial terrorism.† Made up of human rights lawyers and other experts, the U.N.’s Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent shared its findings with the U.N. Human Rights Council. â€Å"In particular, the legacy of colonial history, enslavement, racial subordination and segregation, racial terrorism and racial inequality in the United States remains a serious challenge, as there has been no real commitment to reparations and to truth and reconciliation for people of African descent,† the report determined. â€Å"Contemporary police killings and the trauma that they create are reminiscent of the past racial terror of lynching.† The panel does not have authority to legislate its findings, but its conclusions certainly give weight to the reparations movement. With this review, get a better idea of what reparations are, why supporters believe they’re needed  and why opponents object to them. Learn how private institutions, such as colleges and corporations, are owning up to their role in slavery, even as the federal government remains silent on the issue. What Are Reparations? When some people hear the term â€Å"reparations,† they think it means that descendants of slaves will receive a large cash payout. While reparations can be distributed in the form of cash, that’s hardly the only form in which they come. The U.N. panel said that reparations can amount to â€Å"a formal apology, health initiatives, educational opportunities ... psychological rehabilitation, technology transfer and financial support, and debt cancellation.† The human rights organization Redress defines reparations as a centuries-long principle of international law â€Å"referring to the obligation of a wrongdoing party to redress the damage caused to the injured party.† In other words, the guilty party must work to eradicate the effects of the wrongdoing as much as possible. In doing so, the party aims to restore a situation to how it likely would have played out had no wrongdoing occurred. Germany has provided restitution to Holocaust victims, but there’s simply no way to compensate for the lives of the six million Jews slaughtering during the genocide. Redress points out that in 2005, the U.N. General Assembly adopted the Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Remedy and Reparation for Victims of Violations of International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law. These principles serve as a guideline for how reparations can be distributed.  One can also look to history for  examples. Although the descendants of enslaved African Americans have not received reparations, Japanese Americans forced into internment camps by the federal government during World War II have. The Civil Liberties Act of 1988 allowed the U.S. government to pay former internees $20,000. More than 82,000 survivors received restitution. President Ronald Reagan formally apologized to the internees as well. People who oppose reparations for slave descendants argue that African Americans and Japanese American internees differ. While actual survivors of internment were still alive to receive restitution, enslaved blacks are not.    Proponents and Opponents of Reparations The African American community includes both opponents and proponents of reparations. Ta-Nehisi Coates, a journalist for The Atlantic, has surfaced as one of the leading advocates for redress for African Americans. In 2014, he wrote a compelling argument in favor of reparations that catapulted him to international stardom. Walter Williams, an economic professor at George Mason University, is one of the leading foes of reparations. Both men are black. Williams argues that reparations are unnecessary because he contends that African Americans actually benefitted from slavery. Almost every black American’s income is higher as a result of being born in the United States than any country in Africa, Williams told ABC News. Most black Americans are middle-class. But this statement overlooks the fact that African Americans have higher poverty, unemployment and health disparities than other groups. It also overlooks that blacks have far less wealth on average than whites, a disparity that has continued over generations. Moreover, Williams ignores the psychological scars left by slavery and racism, which researchers have linked to higher rates of hypertension and infant mortality for blacks than whites. Reparations advocates argue that redress goes beyond a check. The government can compensate African Americans by investing in their schooling, training and economic empowerment. But Williams asserts that the federal government has already invested trillions to fight poverty. â€Å"We’ve had all kinds of programs trying to address the problems of discrimination,† he said. â€Å"America has gone a long way.† Coates, in contrast, argues that reparations are needed because after the Civil War, African Americans endured a second slavery due to debt peonage, predatory housing practices, Jim Crow and state-sanctioned violence. He also cited an Associated Press investigation about how racism resulted in blacks systematically losing their land since the antebellum period. â€Å"The series documented some 406 victims and 24,000 acres of land valued at tens of millions of dollars,† Coates explained of the investigation. â€Å"The land was taken through means ranging from legal chicanery to terrorism. ‘Some of the land taken from black families has become a country club in Virginia,’ the AP reported, as well as ‘oil fields in Mississippi’ and ‘a baseball spring training facility in Florida.’† Coates also pointed out how those who owned the land black tenant farmers worked often proved unscrupulous and refused to give sharecroppers the money owed to them. To boot, the federal government deprived African Americans of a chance to build up wealth by homeownership due to racist practices.    â€Å"Redlining went beyond FHA-backed loans and spread to the entire mortgage industry, which was already rife with racism, excluding black people from most legitimate means of obtaining a mortgage,† Coates wrote. Most compellingly, Coates notes how enslaved blacks and slavers themselves thought reparations necessary. He describes how in 1783, freedwoman Belinda Royall successfully petitioned the commonwealth of Massachusetts for reparations. In addition, Quakers demanded new converts to make reparations to slaves, and Thomas Jefferson protà ©gà © Edward Coles granted his slaves a plot of land after inheriting them. Similarly, Jefferson’s cousin John Randolph wrote in his will that his older slaves be freed and given 10 acres of land. The reparations blacks received then paled in comparison to how much the South, and by extension  the United States, profited from human trafficking. According to Coates, a third of all white income in the seven cotton states stemmed from slavery. Cotton became one of the country’s top exports, and by 1860, more millionaires per capita called the Mississippi Valley home than any other region in the nation. While Coates is the American most associated with the reparations movement today, he certainly did not start it. In the 20th century, a hodgepodge of Americans backed reparations. They include veteran Walter R. Vaughan, black-nationalist Audley Moore, civil rights activist James Forman and black activist Callie House. In 1987, the group National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America formed. And since 1989, Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) has repeatedly introduced a bill, HR 40, known as the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act. But the bill has never cleared the House, just as Harvard Law School Professor Charles J. Ogletree Jr. has not won any of the reparations claims he’s pursued in court. Aetna, Lehman Brothers, J.P. Morgan Chase, FleetBoston Financial and Brown Williamson Tobacco are among the companies that have been sued for their ties to slavery. But Walter Williams said that corporations aren’t culpable. â€Å"Do corporations have social responsibility?† Williams asked in an opinion column. â€Å"Yes. Nobel laureate professor Milton Friedman put it best in 1970 when he said that in a free society ‘there is one and only one social responsibility of business- to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits so long as it stays within the rules of the game, which is to say, engages in open and free competition without deception or fraud.’† Some corporations have a different take. How Institutions Have Addressed Slavery Ties Companies such as Aetna have acknowledged profiting from slavery. In 2000, the company apologized for reimbursing slaveholders for the financial losses incurred when their chattel, enslaved men and women, died. Aetna has long acknowledged that for several years shortly after its founding in 1853 that the company may have insured the lives of slaves, the company said in a statement. We express our deep regret over any participation at all in this deplorable practice. Aetna admitted to writing up to a dozen policies insuring the lives of the enslaved. But it said it would not offer reparations. The insurance industry and slavery were extensively entangled. After Aetna apologized for its role in the institution, the California State Legislature required all insurance companies doing business there to search their archives for policies that reimbursed slaveholders. Not long afterward, eight companies provided such records, with three submitting records of having insured slave ships. In 1781, slavers on the ship Zong  threw more than  130 sick slaves overboard to collect insurance money. But Tom Baker, then director of the Insurance Law Center at the University of Connecticut School of Law, told the New York Times in 2002 that he disagreed that insurance companies should be sued for their slavery ties. â€Å"I just have a sense that it’s unfair that a few companies have been singled out when the slave economy was something that the whole society bears some responsibility for,† he said. â€Å"My concern is more that to the extent that there is some moral responsibility, it should not be targeted to just a few people.† Some institutions with ties to the slave trade have tried to make amends for their past. A number of the nation’s oldest universities, among them Princeton, Brown, Harvard, Columbia, Yale, Dartmouth, the University of Pennsylvania and the College of William and Mary, had ties to slavery. Brown University’s Committee on Slavery and Justice found that the school’s founders, the Brown family, owned slaves and participated in the slave trade. Additionally, 30 members of Brown’s governing board owned slaves or helmed slave ships. In response to this finding, Brown said it would expand its Africana studies program, continue to provide technical assistance to historically black colleges and universities, support local public schools and more. Georgetown University is also taking action. The university owned slaves and announced plans to offer reparations. In 1838, the university sold 272 enslaved blacks to eliminate its debt. As a result, it is offering admissions preference to the descendants of those it sold. â€Å"Having this opportunity would be amazing but I also feel as if it’s owed to me and to my family and to others that want that opportunity,† Elizabeth Thomas, a slave descendant, told NPR in 2017. Her mother, Sandra Thomas, said she didn’t think Georgetown’s reparations plan goes far enough, as not every descendant is in a position to attend university. â€Å"What about me?† she asked. â€Å"I dont want to go to school. Im an old lady. What if you don’t have the capacity? You have one student lucky enough to have decent family support system, got the foundation. He can go to Georgetown and he can thrive. He has that ambition. You’ve got this kid over here. He’ll never go to Georgetown or any other school on this planet beyond a certain level. Now, what you going to do for him? Did his ancestors suffer any less? No.† Thomas raises a point on which  both supporters and foes of reparations can agree. No amount of restitution can make up for the injustices suffered.

Differences Between Mass, Spree and Serial Killers

Differences Between Mass, Spree and Serial Killers Multiple murderers are people who have killed more than one victim. Based on the patterns of their murders, multiple killers are classified into three basic categories- mass murderers, spree killers, and serial killers.  Rampage killers is a relatively new name given to both mass murderers and spree killers. Mass Murderers   A mass murderer kills four or more people at one location during one continuous period of time, whether it is done within a few minutes or over a period of days. Mass murderers usually commit murder at one location. Mass murders can be committed by a single individual or a group of people. Killers who murder several members of their family also fall into the mass murderer category. An example of a mass murderer would be Richard Speck. On  July 14, 1966, Speck systematically tortured, raped and killed eight student nurses from South Chicago Community Hospital. All of the murders were committed in a single night in the nurses south Chicago townhouse, which had been converted to a student dormitory. Terry Lynn Nichols is a mass murderer convicted of conspiring with Timothy McVeigh to blow up the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building  in Oklahoma City on  April 19, 1995. The bombing resulted in the deaths of 168 people, including children. Nichols was given a life sentence after the jury deadlocked on the death penalty. He then received 162 consecutive life terms on federal charges of murder. McVeigh was executed on June 11, 2001, after being found guilty of detonating a bomb hidden in a truck parked in front of the building. Spree Killers Spree killers (sometimes referred to as rampage killers) murder two or more victims, but at more than one location. Although their murders occur in separate locations, their spree is considered a single event because there is no cooling-off period between the murders. Differentiating  between mass murderers, spree  killers, and serial killers is the source for ongoing debates among  criminologists. While many experts agree with the general description of a spree killer, the term is often dropped and mass or serial murder is used in its place. Robert Polin is an example of a spree killer. In October 1975 he killed one student and wounded five others at an Ottawa high school after earlier raping and stabbing a 17-year-old friend to death. Charles Starkweather  was a spree killer. Between December 1957 and January 1958, Starkweather, with his 14-year-old girlfriend by his side, killed 11 people in Nebraska and Wyoming. Starkweather was executed by  electrocution  17 months after his conviction. Serial Killers Serial killers murder three or more victims, but each victim is killed on separate occasions. Unlike mass murderers and spree killers, serial killers usually select their victims, have cooling-off periods between murders, and plan their crimes carefully. Some serial killers travel widely to find their victims, such as Ted Bundy, but others remain in the same general geographic area. Serial killers often demonstrate specific patterns that can be easily identified by police investigators. What motivates serial killers  remains a mystery; however, their behavior often fits into specific sub-types. In 1988, Ronald Holmes, a criminologist at the University of Louisville who specializes in the study of serial killers, identified four subtypes of serial killers. The Visionary - Usually psychotic, the visionary is compelled to murder because they hear voices or sees visions ordering them to kill certain kinds of people.Mission-Oriented - Targets a specific group of people who they believe are unworthy to live and without whom the world would be a better place.Hedonistic Killer - Kills for the thrill of it because they enjoy the act of killing and sometimes becomes sexually aroused during the act of murder.Power-Oriented - Kills to exert ultimate control over their victims. These murderers are not psychotic, but they are obsessed with capturing and controlling their victims and forcing them to obey their every command. According to a report issued by the F.B.I., there is no single identifiable cause or factor that leads to the development of a serial killer. Rather, there is a multitude of factors that contribute to their development. The most significant factor is the serial killer’s personal decision in choosing to pursue their crimes.

UK financial services Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

UK financial services - Essay Example This in turn led to a sequential inductive effect on other countries’ economies, which eventually caused a global financial crisis. This shows the power that that the United Kingdom’s financial services sector wields. This paper will discuss various aspects of the financial services sector in the UK, including the main financial services product types and their functions; financial advice; UK taxation and social security systems; and inflation, interest rate volatility and other relevant socio-economic factors. By the end of this paper, I hope to have examined, evaluated, and discussed the United Kingdom’s financial services sector with regards to these aspects. Key words Financial services; interest rate volatility; inflation; social security systems i) The Main Financial Services product types and their Functions Banking UK banks are generally public limited companies (plcs) that are owned by shareholders.The banking sector in the UK has the second largest asse ts in the world ($11 trillion). It offers borrowing and lending services, corporate financing, financial advice, and other financial services. The Bank of England regulates lending and borrowing rates by setting interest rates. By doing this, it also regulates foreign exchange services, cost of goods and services, the money market, and the cost of doing business. When it comes to international banking, the UK is the largest individual market for bank borrowing and lending. Approximately 20% of cross-border trading and 22% of borrowing is organized in the UK. The county also has a long tradition of well-developed systems for processing complex transactions, as well as a strong regard for corporate activity. The UK banking industry is very diverse, and this is shown by the presence of over 551 international banks in London alone in 2007. By comparison, New York has 250, Paris 271, and Frankfurt 280 (British Invisibles 2009, pg. 22). The UK also has very dynamic money markets which cat er for institutional/corporate customer activity in forward and spot markets as well as the proprietary trading activities of banks. In April 2009, the United Kingdom estimated to have a 36% share of the total worldwide foreign exchange turnover with around $1.7bn daily. Local retail banking is entrenched in the UK, with 5 big banks leading the way. These are Lloyds Banking Group, Barclays, HSBC, Santander, and RBS Group. Together, these banks control around 65% or more of the total retail banking market in the UK (Copperfield 2010, pg. 27). There are about 52 building societies which complement banks. The largest of these are Yorkshire, Skipton, Coventry, and Nationwide. There are also a couple of retail groups (Marks & Spencer, Tesco and Sainsbury’s) which provide a variety of financial services products ranging from current accounts to credit cards and insurance (Copperfield 2010, pg. 33). Capital Markets Securities trading and issuance (including trading of commodities an d derivatives) is done by more than 170 firms headquartered London, and is dominated by international banks like Barclays Capital, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, and JP Morgan. It is a sub-sector that is also consolidated since 60% is controlled by the top seven entities. The UK accounts for about 25% of the total banking fee revenues in the Europe, while London

Distance Learning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Distance Learning - Essay Example The online enrollment estimations made in the late 1990s have been exceeded and continues to grow at amazingly high rates. Thus, the number of online students reached 2.6 million in the fall of 2004 (Allen, and Seaman, 2004). Despite the tremendous success of distance technology-mediated learning (this term covers not only fully online courses, but also various blended approaches that integrate online components into traditional classes), experts suggests that it still remains at an early stage of development (Smart, and Cappel, 2006). The conventional concepts and theories of education were reported to retain their suitability in the web-based learning environment. Numerous research studies demonstrated that cognitive factors such as performance, learning, and achievement in distance education classes are comparable to those observed in traditional classes (Russell, 1999). ... s enrolled in an introductory psychology course performed better in distance education courses, although the level of their satisfaction with them was lower. Students in the web based course consistently scored an average of five percentage points higher on the final exam than did those in the lecture course, but they consistently reported less satisfaction than the students in the lecture course (Hagel, and Shaw, 2003). Student satisfaction is currently believed to be one of the major indicators of student development in conventional higher education. The mission of higher education is not only to impart knowledge but also to enhance the student's total development (Astin, 1993). One of the ways higher education institutions accomplish this mission is by continuously collecting information on student satisfaction, defined by various authors as an "everpresent campus variable" (Betz, Menne, Starr, and Klingensmith, 1971: 99), the key outcome of higher education (Astin, 1993), and the 'quality enhancement tool designed to improve the quality of the student experience' (Harvey, Plimmer, Moon, and Geall, 1997: 3). Traditionally, the institutions of higher education have used the data on student satisfaction to improve understanding of the educational environments. This understanding, it its turn, allowed to create settings more conducive for student development. Student satisfaction is an indicator of higher education institutions' responsiveness to the needs of students. Also it is a measure of institutional effectiveness, success, and vitality. Measuring student satisfaction is also important for maintaining and increasing enrollment, managing attrition and retention problems, and making better-informed decisions in the area of student affairs (Beltyukova, 2002).

Terrorism: Definition, History and Solutions

Terrorism: Definition, History and Solutions TERRORISM:  AN EXPLORATION OF ITS DEFINITION, HISTORY, AND POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS â€Å"Terrorism upsets people. It does so deliberately. That is its point, and that is why it has engrossed so much of our attention in the early years of the 21st century.† Townshend [1] Ask any ten individuals on the streets of London, Paris, Moscow, or New York for the top three issues facing the world today and one common response is likely to be terrorism. Inquire further about how the same people would define terrorism, when terrorism began, and how terrorism can be stopped and you will probably be faced with a myriad of answers, or maybe just looks of puzzlement. The range of responses (or lack thereof) from the public should not be surprising. Not even experts agree on responses to these seemingly fundamental questions on an issue of such importance to worldwide security, an issue that Thackrah suggests is â€Å"one of the most intractable global problems at the start of the twenty-first century†.[2] This essay begins by surveying the vast array of definitions for the term terrorism, providing some insight into the reasons that terrorism is so difficult for experts to define, and adopting a working definition for the term. The historical roots of terrorism will then be explored and results of a review of selected literature on possible solutions for dealing with terrorism will be introduced. Finally, a conclusion discussing the results of the literature review will be presented. Terrorism Defined What is terrorism? The definition assigned to the term very much depends on who you ask, although, as Hoffman writes, â€Å"few words have so insidiously worked their way in to our everyday vocabulary†.[3] Oots writes that terrorism has been defined in different ways by various scholars.[4] Hoffman suggests that most individuals have vague notions of what the term means, but cannot offer precise, explanatory definitions. The Terrorism Research Center claims that â€Å"[t]errorism by nature is difficult to define†.[5] Townshend writes that both politicians and scholars have been â€Å"hung up† in attempting to define terrorism in a way that distinguishes it from other criminal violence and even military action.[6] Complicating attempts to define terrorism, the meaning and usage of the term have changed over the years.[7] Complications aside, most people would agree that terrorism is a subjective term with negative connotations, a pejorative term, used to describe the acts of enemies or opponents. The term has moral connotations and can be used to persuade others to adopt a particular viewpoint. For instance, if an individual sympathises with the victims of terrorism, then the perpetrator is considered to be a terrorist, but if an individual sympathises with the perpetrator, then the perpetrator is considered to be a freedom fighter or is referred to by equally positive characterisations.[8] About this, the Terrorism Research Center writes: â€Å"One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter.†[9] Whittaker distinguishes between terrorists, guerrillas, and freedom fighters in writing: â€Å"the terrorist targets civilians†; â€Å"the guerrilla goes for military personnel and facilities†; and â€Å"the freedom fighter conducts a campaign to liberate his people from dictatorial oppression, gross disarmament, or the grip of an occupying power†.[10] One author included over one hundred definitions for the term terrorism.[11] Another quoted over ninety definitions and descriptions.[12] The definitions range from those that are quite simplistic to those that are equally comprehensive. The following definitions are illustrative of the broad range of thought: Terrorism is â€Å"violence for purposes of creating fear†.[13] Terrorism is â€Å"politically and socially motivated violence†.[14] â€Å"Terrorism is political violence in or against true democracies.†[15] â€Å"Terrorism may be described as a strategy of violence designed to inspire terror within a particular segment of a given society.†[16] â€Å"Terrorism is the most amoral of organised violence†.[17] Terrorism is â€Å"a form of warfare†¦used when full-scale military action is not possible†.[18] â€Å"Terrorism is a method of action by which an agent tends to produce terror in order to impose his domination.†[19] â€Å"Terrorism is the systematic use of coercive intimidation, usually to service political ends. It is used to create a climate of fear.[20] Terrorism is â€Å"the threat or use of violence, often against the civilian population, to achieve political or social ends, to intimidate opponents, or to publicise grievances†.[21] â€Å"Terrorism is the use of coercive means aimed at populations in an effort to achieve political, religious, or other aims.†[22] Terrorism is â€Å"politically motivated violence perpetrated against non-combatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience†.[23] Whittaker explores the complexity of defining terrorism by furnishing a comprehensive list of terrorism criteria:[24] The violence or threat of violence inherent in terrorism is premeditated and politically motivated for the purpose of intimidating or coercing a government or the public in general. The strategy of terrorism is to instil fear and insecurity. Sustained campaigns or sporadic incidents are applied by terrorists in conducting their unlawful activities. Calculated use of violence is applied against civilian, non-combatant targets. Acquiring, manipulating, and employing power is at the root of terrorism. Revolutionary terrorism attempts to completely change the political system within a state; sub-revolutionary terrorism attempts to effect change without totally replacing the existing political system. Terrorism consists of carefully planned goals, means, targets, and access conducted in a clandestine manner. The goals of terrorism focus on political, social, ideological, or religious ends. This distinguishes terrorism from other criminal activity. Terrorism is conducted occasionally by individuals, but most often by sub-national groups. An important objective of terrorism is to obtain maximum publicity. Increasingly, terrorist â€Å"zones of action† are extending beyond national borders, becoming transnational in effect. The vast number of definitions proposed for the term terrorism might make one wonder if there could ever be agreement around a common definition. For without a common understanding about what terrorism is, how can it be challenged and ultimately removed as a threat to modern civilisation? Despite the many definitions for terrorism, there does seem to be an emerging consensus on the definition of the term, according to Jenkins.[25] For instance, Enders and Sandler offer the following comprehensive definition of terrorism: â€Å"Terrorism is the premeditated use or threat of use of extranormal violence or brutality by subnational groups to obtain a political, religious, or ideological objective through intimidation of a huge audience, usually not directly involved with the policy making that terrorists seek to influence.†[26] Enders and Sandler’s definition will be used for the purpose of this essay not only because it is an example of a current consensus description, but also because it contains criteria suggested by other definitions surveyed in the literature review – violence or threats of violence; intimidation of large civilian audiences; desire to influence; subnational terrorist groupings; and political, religious, or ideological objectives. Historical Roots of Terrorism Colin Gray writes that terrorism â€Å"is as old as strategic history†.[27] The roots of terrorism can be traced back in time to ancient Greece, and terrorist acts have occurred throughout history since that time. The term terrorism, however, originated in the French Revolution’s Reign of Terror [28] and was popularised at that time.[29] Terrorism in this era carried a very positive connotation as it was undertaken in an effort to establish order during the anarchy that followed uprisings in France in 1789. It was considered to be an instrument of governance instituted to intimidate counter-revolutionaries, dissidents and subversives and was associated with the ideals of democracy and virtue. In fact, according to Hoffman, the revolutionary leader Maximillien Robespierre claimed that â€Å"virtue, without which terror is evil; terror, without which virtue is helpless† and that â€Å"[t]error is nothing but justice, prompt, severe and inflexible; it is therefore an emanation of virtue†.[30] Terrorism at the start of the twentieth century retained the revolutionary connotations it had acquired during the French Revolution as it took aim on the Ottoman and Habsburg Empires. In the 1930s, the meaning of terrorism mutated to describe activities of totalitarian governments and their leaders against their citizenry in Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and Stalinist Russia. For instance, in Germany and Italy, gangs of â€Å"brown shirts† or â€Å"black shirts† harassed and intimidated opponents, although leaders of these nations denied that this occurred. After World War II, the meaning of terrorism changed once again, returning to its revolutionary connotations where it remains today. Terrorist activities in the 1940s and 1950s primarily focused on revolts by indigenous nationalist groups opposing colonial rule in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, resulting in independence for many countries. Although terrorism retained its revolutionary connotation in the 1960s and 1970s, the focus shifted from anti-colonialist to separatist goals. Today, terrorism involves broader, less distinct goals.[31] The right-wing and left-wing terrorism that became widespread in recent times included acts by diverse groups such as the Italian Red Brigades; the Irish Republican Army; the Palestine Liberation Organisation; the Shining Path in Peru; the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in Sri Lanka; the Weatherman in the United States; various â€Å"militia† organisations, also in the United States; radical Muslims through Hamas and Al Quaeda; radical Sikhs in India; and the Aum Shinrikyo in Japan.[32] Some governments, such as those in Iran, Iraq, Libya, and Syria, are also considered to be involved in terrorism as sponsors of terrorist activities.[33] Some people, such as American dissident Noam Chomsky, contend that the government of the United States is engaged in terrorism, as exemplified by the title of Chomsky’s 2001 article entitled â€Å"U.S.â₠¬â€A Leading Terrorist State†, which appeared in the Monthly Review[34]. Terrorism associated with the French Revolution had two important characteristics in common with terrorism today. Firstly, terrorism was, and is today, organised, deliberate, and systematic. Secondly, the goals of terrorism then and now were and are to create a new, better society.[35] But, terrorism today has changed in some very fundamental ways: (1) terrorist organisations have evolved into network forms and are less often organised in hierarchies; (2) the identities of transnational terrorist organisations are harder to identify because they claim responsibility for specific acts less often; (3) today’s terrorist groups do not make demands as often as in the past and their goals appear to be more hazy and vague; (4) motives have generally shifted from those that are more politically-oriented to those that are more religiously-oriented; (5) targets of terrorists are more dispersed around the globe; and (6) terrorist violence, today, is more indiscriminate, involving signifi cant collateral damage to the public.[36] With this historical foundation, particularly the description of the evolution of terrorism into its current form, the focus now shifts to possible solutions to dealing with the issue today. Possible Solutions to Terrorism To effectively meet the challenges of terrorism, one should consider the history of terrorism, but must also look to the future. Kress and colleagues contend that terrorism is increasing in â€Å"geographical scope, numerical frequency, and intensity† as well as in â€Å"ingenuity and subtlety†. They suggest that these trends could well translate into more varied threats and more powerful tools and weapons, adding that â€Å"bombs will get smaller and more powerful, poisons and mind-blowing drugs more insidious, psychological techniques for converting or brainwashing the victims more effective, and psychological tortures more agonizing.†[37] Ian Lesser offers a comprehensive approach for meeting the challenges of terrorism. His approach consists of a core strategy and supporting strategies aimed at targeting security threats posed by terrorists within a context of global security threats from all sources. Lesser’s core strategy consists of four components: (1) reducing systemic causes of terrorism, (2) deterring terrorists and their sponsors, (3) reducing risks associated with â€Å"superterrorism†, and (4) retaliating in instances where deterrence fails. In reducing system causes of terrorism, Lesser is referring to the long-term goal of addressing issues that give rise to terrorism such as social and economic problems, unresolved ethnic and nationalist conflicts, frustrated political ambitions, and personal experiences of individuals who may become future terrorists. In deterring terrorists and their sponsors, Lesser suggests taking â€Å"massive and personal† actions against terrorist leadership, although he concedes that this is becoming more and more difficult as terrorists and their sponsors become more diverse and diffuse. In reducing risks associated with â€Å"superterrorism†, Lesser calls for eliminating weapons of mass destruction that terrorists could use in inflicting destruction and suffering. And, finally, in retaliating when deterrence fails, Lesser suggests developing the means to retaliate quickly and specifically to terrorist activities.[38] One of Lesser’s strategies supporting his core strategy is â€Å"environmental shaping†, which involves exposing sponsors of terrorism to global scrutiny and isolation; shrinking the â€Å"zones of chaos and terrorist sanctuary; including counterterrorism as an integral component of strategic alliances; limiting global exposure; and targeting terrorist networks and funding. His â€Å"hedging strategy† involves hardening key policies and strategies to limit risks of terrorism, increasing ground and space-based surveillance of terrorist resources, and preparing to mitigate the effects of terrorism to limit negative effects.[39] Kress and associates reiterate the first component of Lesser’s core strategy in offering their proactive approach to dealing with terrorism; specifically, addressing â€Å"genuine political injustice† and resolving â€Å"supposed injustices†.[40] Chalk contends that a state response to terrorism must be â€Å"limited, well-defined and controlled† to avoid compromising â€Å"the political and civil traditions that are central to the liberal democratic way of life†. He suggests that â€Å"any liberal democratic response to terrorism has to rest on one overriding maxim: a commitment to uphold and maintain constitutional principles of law and order†.[41] Conclusion The long history of terrorism, dating as far back as ancient Greece, suggests that this phenomenon may never be eliminated as a tactic by those people or groups without sufficient formal legal power to achieve their goals. However, this does not imply that terrorism cannot be engaged proactively and reactively. Logically, it seems that the first step should be to agree on a universally-accepted definition for terrorism because, without a consensus on the meaning of the term, effectively addressing its causes and its effects may be difficult at best and impossible at worst. With a consensus definition in hand, the comprehensive strategy for dealing with terrorism proposed by Lesser – reduction in systemic causes, deterrence, â€Å"superterrorism† risk reduction, and retaliation – would appear to offer the most balanced, effective approach. Today’s leaders should realise that offensive and defensive military action, so typical of traditional warfare, is quite ineffective as a sole method for dealing with modern forms of terrorism as demonstrated by failures experienced by Israel in dealing with the Palestinian terrorist problem and the greater-than-expected difficulties experienced by the United States, the United Kingdom, and others in ridding the world of radical Islamic terrorists. These efforts may not only fail to ultimately deal effectively with preventing terrorist activities, but may also produce more terrorists who are offended by military actions. Alternatively, a holistic approach – one which includes proacti ve prevention and reactive punishment measures such as the approach advocated by Lesser – should be employed. In any solution to the global problem of terrorism, the cautionary advice offered by Peter Chalk should be considered; that is, political and civil liberties should not be sacrificed in responding to the terrorist threat. For the very way of life the governments of free societies are trying to protect in their attempts to combat terrorism could be compromised by actions that are not limited, well-defined and controlled. Interestingly, this thought was eloquently proffered more than two centuries ago by American inventor, journalist, printer, and statesman Benjamin Franklin in warning that â€Å"[t]hose who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.† The recommendation, then, is to deal with terrorism in a holistic, balanced manner stressing proactive and reactive measures whilst preserving political and civil liberties. References Bassiouni, M. â€Å"Terrorism, Law Enforcement and the Mass Media: Perspectives, Problems, Proposals†, The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology 72:1 (1981). Cited in Thackrah (2004). Bergesen, Albert J., and Han, Yi. â€Å"New Directions for Terrorism Research†. International Journal of Comparative Sociology 46:1-2 (2005). Bite, V. â€Å"International Terrorism†. Foreign Affairs Division, Library of Congress, Appendix of U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1975. Cited in Thackrah (2004). Chalk, Peter. â€Å"The Response to Terrorism as a Threat to Liberal Democracy†. The Australian Journal of Politics and History 44:3 (1998). Chomsky, N. â€Å"U.S. – A Leading Terrorist State†. Monthly Review 53 (2001): 10-19. Cited in Bergesen and Han (2005). Enders, W., and Sandler, T. â€Å"Patterns of Transnational Terrorism, 1970 1999: Alternative Time-Series Estimates†. International Studies Quarterly 46 (2002): 145-65. Cited in Bergesen and Han (2005). Fromkin, David. â€Å"The Strategy of Terrorism†. In Contemporary Terrorism: Selected Readings, John D. Elliot and Leslie K. Gibson, eds. Gaithersburg, Maryland: International Association of Chiefs of Police, 1978. Gray, Colin S. Modern Strategy. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999. Heyman, P. B. Terrorism and America: A Commonsense Strategy for a Democratic Society. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1998. Cited in Thackrah (2004). Hoffman, Bruce. Inside Terrorism. New York: Columbia University Press, 1998. Jenkins, B. M. â€Å"Terrorism and Beyond: A 21st Century Perspective†. Studies in Conflict and Terrorism 24 (2001): 321-27. Cited in Bergesen and Han. â€Å"New Directions for Terrorism Research†. International Journal of Comparative Sociology 46:1-2 (2005). Kress, Bruce, Livingston, Marius H., and Wanek, Marie G. International Terrorism in the Contemporary World. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1978. Lesser, Ian. â€Å"Countering the New Terrorism: Implications for Strategy†. In Countering the New Terrorism, Hoffman et al., eds. Santa Monica, California: Rand, 1999. Mallin, Jay. â€Å"Terrorism as a Military Weapon†. In Contemporary Terrorism: Selected Readings, John D. Elliot and Leslie K. Gibson, eds. Gaithersburg, Maryland: International Association of Chiefs of Police, 1978. Cited in Oots (1986). Oots, Kent Layne. Political Organization Approach to Transnational Terrorism. New York: Greenwood Press, 1986. Ruby, C. L. â€Å"The Definition of Terrorism†. Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy 2(1) (2002): 9-14. Cited in Bergesen and Han (2005). Terrorism Research Center, What is the Definition of Terrorism? (n.d.) Available from: http://www.terrorism.com. Accessed: 29 November 2005. Thackrah, John Richard. Dictionary of Terrorism. New York: Routledge, 2004. The Columbia Encyclopaedia. â€Å"Terrorism† (2004). Townshend, Charles. Terrorism: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002. Waciorsky, J. La Terrorisme Politique. Paris: A Pedone, 1939. Cited in Thackrah (2004). Whittaker, David J. Terrorists and Terrorism in the Contemporary World. New York: Routledge, 2004. Wilkinson, P. Terrorism versus Democracy: The Liberal State Response. London: Frank Cass, 2000. Cited in Thackrah (2004). Wilkinson, P. â€Å"Three Questions on Terrorism†, Government and Opposition 8:3 (1973). Cited in Thackrah (2004). 1 Footnotes [1] Charles Townshend, Terrorism: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002). [2] John Richard Thackrah, Dictionary of Terrorism (New York: Routledge, 2004). [3] Bruce Hoffman, Inside Terrorism (New York: Columbia University Press, 1998), 14. [4] Kent Layne Oots, Political Organization Approach to Transnational Terrorism (New York: Greenwood Press, 1986). [5] Terrorism Research Center, â€Å"What is the Definition of Terrorism?† (n.d.), Available from: http://www.terrorism.com, Accessed: 29 November 2005. [6] Townshend (2002). [7] Hoffman (1998). [8] Hoffman (1998). [9] Terrorism Research Center (n.d.). [10] David J. Whittaker, Terrorists and Terrorism in the Contemporary World (New York: Routledge, 2004). [11] Townshend (2002). [12] Thackrah (2004). [13] David Fromkin, â€Å"The Strategy of Terrorism†, in Contemporary Terrorism: Selected Readings, John D. Elliot and Leslie K. Gibson, eds. (Gaithersburg, Maryland: International Association of Chiefs of Police, 1978), cited in Oots (1986). [14] V. Bite, â€Å"International Terrorism†, Foreign Affairs Division, Library of Congress, Appendix of U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on the Judiciary (Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1975), cited in Thackrah (2004). [15] P. B. Heyman, Terrorism and America: A Commonsense Strategy for a Democratic Society (Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 1998), cited in Thackrah (2004). [16] M. Bassiouni, â€Å"Terrorism, Law Enforcement and the Mass Media: Perspectives, Problems, Proposals†, The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology 72:1 (1981), cited in Thackrah (2004). [17] P. Wilkinson, â€Å"Three Questions on Terrorism†, Government and Opposition 8:3 (1973), cited in Thackrah (2004). [18] Jay Mallin, â€Å"Terrorism as a Military Weapon†, in Contemporary Terrorism: Selected Readings, John D. Elliot and Leslie K. Gibson, eds. (Gaithersburg, Maryland: International Association of Chiefs of Police, 1978), cited in Oots (1986). [19] J. Waciorsky, La Terrorisme Politique, (Paris: A Pedone, 1939), cited in Thackrah (2004). [20] P. Wilkinson, Terrorism versus Democracy: The Liberal State Response (London: Frank Cass, 2000), cited in Thackrah (2004). [21] The Columbia Encyclopaedia, â€Å"Terrorism† (2004). [22] N. Chomsky, â€Å"U.S.A Leading Terrorist State†, Monthly Review 53 (2001): 10-19, cited in Bergesen and Han (2005). [23] C. L. Ruby, â€Å"The Definition of Terrorism†, Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy 2(1) (2002): 9-14, cited in Bergesen and Han (2005). [24] Whittaker (2004). [25] B. M. Jenkins, â€Å"Terrorism and Beyond: A 21st Century Perspective†, Studies in Conflict and Terrorism 24 (2001): 321-27, cited in Bergesen and Han, â€Å"New Directions for Terrorism Research†, International Journal of Comparative Sociology 46:1-2 (2005). [26] W. Enders and T. Sandler, â€Å"Patterns of Transnational Terrorism, 1970 1999: Alternative Time-Series Estimates†, International Studies Quarterly 46 (2002): 145-65, cited in Bergesen and Han (2005). [27] Colin S. Gray, Modern Strategy (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999). [28] The Columbia Encyclopaedia (2004). [29] Hoffman (1998). [30] Hoffman (1998). [31] Hoffman (1998). [32] The Columbia Encyclopaedia (2004). [33] Hoffman (1998). [34] N. Chomsky, â€Å"U.S.A Leading Terrorist State†, Monthly Review 53 (2001), cited in Bergesen and Han (2005). [35] Hoffman (1998). [36] Albert J. Bergesen and Yi Han, â€Å"New Directions for Terrorism Research†, International Journal of Comparative Sociology 46:1-2 (2005). [37] Bruce Kress, Marius H. Livingston, and Marie G. Wanek, International Terrorism in the Contemporary World (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1978). [38] Ian Lesser, â€Å"Countering the New Terrorism: Implications for Strategy†, in Hoffman et al., Countering the New Terrorism (Santa Monica, California: Rand, 1999). [39] Lesser (1999). [40] Kress, Livingston, and Wanek (1978). [41] Peter Chalk, â€Å"The Response to Terrorism as a Threat to Liberal Democracy†, The Australian Journal of Politics and History 44:3 (1998).

Impact of Turks and Mongols on the Islamic world Essay

The Turks and Mongols are two races that are an integral part in shaping the Islamic World as we know it today. Their roles in Islamic History are still visible when looking at the Islamic world in the present. The roots of Islam could be traced after the death of The Prophet, Muhammad. The early Islam world was dominated by the Umayyad from Damascus. The Umayyad was in turn succeeded by the Abbasids, which made Baghdad their capital. It was during the two caliphates that a majority of Muslim culture, government and society was established. The years of the Caliphates was known as the Golden Age of Islam. (Wilkinson and Salazar). The Abbasid Caliphate was ended by the Invasion of the Mongols. The Mongols were a nomadic tribe coming from the grasslands of Mongolia, their ruler then, The Great Khan Mongke, ordered his brother to attack the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate. (Chaliand and Berrett) Baghdad, the capital of the Islamic world then was captured by Hulagu in 1258. (Bingham) This effectively destroyed most Islamic influence and put an end to the advances of the Golden Age. It became a region known as the Il-Khanate. The early years of the Il Khanate was characterized by persecution of the Muslims in the hands of the Buddhists and Christians in the area. However, when Ghazan, a Buddhist, became Khan, he converted to Islam and the whole region followed suit. Islam made a return as the dominant religion, driving out the Christians and Buddhists. (Halm) Schools and mosques were reestablished and peace again was at hand. (Wilkinson and Salazar) The Mongol Invasion effectively put an end to the Golden age. The various advancements in science, literature, medicine and the arts were in majority obliterated when the invasion occurred. The destruction of libraries, the killing of Muslim scholars and scientists all contributed to the rapid decline of Islamic learning. This was the major factor in the crippling of Muslim advancement in those fields by which at that time they were much more ahead than the West. Almost five hundred years worth of knowledge was obliterated upon the invasion of the Mongols. (Halm) The might and barbarity of the Mongol Hordes checked the advances of a larger empire, albeit one whose priority was not military, but religion and learning. The Ottomans were a group of Turkish tribes which united after being driven south by Mongol invaders. (Stefoff) They derive their name from Osman, who united the clans into a major force. They came into contact and embraced Islam as their faith. They were the frontier soldiers of the Islamic world, guarding against the Mongol Hordes. The invasion of Tamerlane weakened the Ottomans, but they recovered and began to take control of most of the Islam World. (Marozzi) It was under the Ottomans that the Muslims finally entered Constantinople, Turkey, effectively re breaching the barrier between east and west which was ended with the fall of Spain. (Halm) The ottomans were very effective in uniting the diverse people under their thrall. They developed an administrative system whereas religious autonomy was recognized under the sultanates, which greatly facilitated tax collecting. This millet system made the unification of ethically diverse people under a government of Islam not only feasible, but effective. (Stefoff) The Ottoman Empire became a bastion of the Islamic world against the west. At the same time, it was instrumental in allowing western advances in science and technology to reach the Muslim world. The military and economic strength of the empire prevented western influence from entering thru turkey and thus effectively ensured the maintaining of Islamic way of life in Southwest Asia. (Gardner et al. ; Kennedy) It was the ottoman Turks who nearly regained the lost glory of the Muslim Empire. Their management practice of dividing the Islamic world into sultanates, with each sultan acting as autonomous ruler greatly enhanced the stability of the empire. Their military strength secured Islam way of life up until the 1900s. The peak of the Ottoman Empire, under Suleiman, greatly enhanced Islamic way of life, introducing resurgence in Muslim culture and learning. (Meri and Bacharach) The strategic location of the Ottoman Empire gave them control of the land routes between Europe and Asia, thus making them economic powers. The two groups, the Mongols and the Turks, show how an outside force can impact a civilization. In the case on the Mongol Hordes, their impact upon the Islam world effectively retarded its growth, letting the West catch up to its advancement. The invasion brought an end to the Golden Age of Islam; however, it was also Mongols, those that converted, which started the revitalization of the Islamic World. (Gardner et al. ; Kennedy). The Turks also started as a separate ethnic group. However, with their conversion, the Islamic world gained leaders which spearheaded its strengthening, expansion and development. The role of these two groups in Islamic history is both significant, the Mongols in ending the Golden age, and the Turks, in revitalizing the Islamic way of life. References Bingham, Marjorie. â€Å"An Age of Empires, 1200-1750. † (2005): 157 p. Chaliand, Gerard, and A. M. Berrett. â€Å"Nomadic Empires : From Mongolia to the Danube. † (2004): xii, 135 p. Gardner, Robert, et al. Cities of Light the Rise and Fall of Islamic Spain. [videorecording] :. Unity Productions Foundation,, [Potomac Falls, VA? ] :, 2007. Halm, Heinz. â€Å"The Arabs : A Short History. † (2007): vi, 186 p. Kennedy, Hugh. â€Å"The Great Arab Conquests : How the Spread of Islam Changed the World We Live In. † (2007): viii, 421 p. , [16] p. of plates. Marozzi, Justin. â€Å"Tamerlane : Sword of Islam, Conqueror of the World. † (2006): xxiv, 449 p. , [16] p. of plates. Meri, Josef W. , and Jere L. Bacharach. â€Å"Medieval Islamic Civilization : An Encyclopedia. † (2006). Stefoff, Rebecca. â€Å"The Medieval World. † (2005): 48 p. Wilkinson, Philip, and Batul Salazar. â€Å"Islam. † Dorling Kindersley eyewitness books. (2005): 72 p.

A Short Story - 952 Words

Festivities filled the Chamkar Mohn quarter of Phnom Penh; fragrant arrangements of jasmine and chrysanthemum, piles of wild fruits, and vermillion decorations filled every corner of the neighborhood. Petite candles and spherical paper lanterns pushed the glimmer of the stars and moon out of sight and lit the streets as men inside of large tiger costumes performed dances. A roaring of drums and the melody of Chinese-imported instruments filled the air and thundered in my chest. Inside of my house, well-dressed men and women presented themselves to my father with gifts wrapped in silk ribbon, Ang Pao envelopes, fine artwork, and many handcrafted items. The country’s finest bakers and chefs offered golden and sterling silver platters†¦show more content†¦The gentle glistening of the sun fell gracefully on my mother, who looked distressed and dispirited. Putting aside what she was doing, my mother locked her arms around me in a tight embrace. â€Å"Did you pack your old pictures and Taekwondo trophies, son?† my mother asked caringly. â€Å"No, mother. I left them organized in my drawer, so they’ll be here when I return.† I answered. It was almost time for me to leave to the airport with my father, so I said my farewells to my brothers and sisters. My youngest sister, always beaming with energy asked, â€Å"Bong Proh, will you come back? Will you make sure to visit us?† â€Å"Yes, of course I will, Oun. And the next time I see, you will be all grown.† I replied in reassurement. Months had passed, and my father had returned to Cambodia already. I was now living in what felt like a disparate world, brimming with many men and women with pale complexions, who spoke a brash language, lacking in rhythm. California was alien to me--America was alien to me. 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Varied Potentials of Aspergillus Species in Synthesis of...

Conclusions To conclude, though use of Aspergillus species is common in synthesis of metal nanoparticles, these five species are not well studied. Among them, A. fischeri confirms a good quality production of AgNPs at an incredibly low concentration of salt solution used but with more number of bigger sized particles. However, efforts are underway to optimize the conditions in the process to obtain a good size and shape morphology. Also, understanding the protein–nanoparticle interactions during the synthesis mechanism shall guide us to the possibility of utilizing the present system as future ‘‘nano-factories’’. We aim to purify and characterize the proteins to comprehend their mode of action and possible interactions with silver†¦show more content†¦Characterization Change in color was visually observed in the silver nitrate solution incubated with all five Aspergillus species. The bio reduction of Ag+ in the aqueous solutions was screened by sampling of aliquots at different time intervals. Absorption measurements were carried out on Thermo-scientific UV-Visible Spectrophotometer from 200-800nm, at a resolution of 1 nm. A part of the dried powdered sample was analysed by X-ray diffractometer as a preliminary confirmative method of the presence of silver nanoparticles. The X-ray diffractometer (Rigaku Miniflex-11) was operated at a voltage of 30 kV and a current of 15mA with CuKÃŽ ± radiation (ÃŽ »=1.5406 Ã…) and at 2 theta angles, intensities were recorded from 6 °to 60 °. To know the size of synthesized silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), size distribution analysis was performed using dynamic light scattering in aqueous solution. The hydrodynamic size of the silver nanoparticles was obtained using a Zeta-sizer (Malvern) instrument applying a 660 nm laser. The software was optimized to report summary statistics based upon the intensity of light scattered. Two milliliter sample volumes from each nanosilver dispersion were loaded into glass cuvettes and summary statistics were obtained using triplicate 2 minutes analyses (total analysis time=6minutes). For Fourier transform