Critically examine the problem of corruption in the practice of Essay

Critically examine the problem of corruption in the practice of mediation and arbitration of international disputes - Essay Example onsequences for â€Å"stakeholders and society more broadly†.4While corruption is most often associated with bribery, corruption can occur by other means such as fraud, procurement of a specific outcome, conflicts of interests, improper enrichment and other dishonest mechanisms.5 Most states acknowledge that it is possible for an arbitral award to be obtained by virtue of corruption. At international law, the limited grounds upon which an arbitral award can be reviewed include the â€Å"procurement of the award by corruption† or corruption on the part of an arbitrator or arbitrators.6 Since mediators do not make binding decisions and merely help the parties arrive at their own resolution, the problems of corruption among mediators and parties in international disputes are not as problematic as corruption in binding arbitration.7 In either case, arbitrators and mediators are at risk of corruption charges in instances where the parties are denied equal treatment.8 Safegua rding against corruption in international mediation and arbitration is particularly important because it provides an alternative dispute resolution for parties suspicious of corruption among local judiciaries.9 For the most part, any business sector which might be entrusted with power is typically subjected to a code of conduct which is designed to engender trust in those sectors and thereby reduce perceptions of corruption. Some such codes are the European Code of Conduct for Mediators and the Code of Ethics for Arbitrators in Commercial Disputes. These codes define what amounts to tolerable standards of conduct, the role of the mediator/arbitrator and their duties and responsibilities.10 Setting standards of conduct however, does not by itself ensure that international arbitration and mediation are free of corrupt practices. In this regard, international conventions have established laws that indirectly identify corrupt practices and provide for enforcement techniques for corrupti on. For instance by virtue of Articles 34 and 36 of the UNCITRAL Model Law 1985 an arbitral award is subject to challenge and may not be enforced if the award is inconsistent with public policy.11 Article V(2) of the New York Convention 1958 makes a vastly similar provision.12 An award which is procured by or given under the auspices of corruption is typically perceived as inconsistent with public policy.13 As early as 1963 the ICC set a standard of conduct for dealing with cases in which corruption was obvious. The case was ICC Case No. 1110 in which arbitrator Lagergren did not determine the merits of a case when he found that there had been corruption. The case related to a contract in which an English company had agreed with an Argentine entity acting as intermediary for the acquisition of a utilities’ contract in Argentina. The agreement called for the Argentine entity to receive a commission of 10 per cent of the contract’s value. When the English company did not make good on the agreement, Lagergren ruled that he did not have jurisdiction since: Parties who ally themselves in an enterprise of the present nature must realize that they have forfeited any right to ask for assistance of the machinery of justice (national courts or arbitral tribunals) in settling their disputes.14 Developments since ICC Case No. 1110 indicate that arbitrators would rule on the merits of

The Similarities and Differences of Two Early Civilizations Essay

The Similarities and Differences of Two Early Civilizations - Essay Example There are various characteristics of civilizations, including the type of subsistence, form of government, economic system, education, social stratification, and human settlement patterns. Moreover, civilizations are characterized by religious beliefs, art, and architecture among other aspects (Trigger, 2007, pp. 57-65). This paper is a critical examination of the Nile valley and Mesopotamia ancient civilizations. Discusion The Nile valley civilization existed back in the 3000 BC and it consisted of three major civilizations, namely Nubia, Egypt, and Kush (Ikram, 2009). Geographically, the Nile valley civilization was located in the Lower Egypt in the river Nile’s delta and in the Upper Egypt along the river in Africa’s interior. The rich alluvial and silt deposits of River Nile provided the Nile valley civilization with rich agricultural land for farming along the banks and the delta. The inhabitants dug complex channels to irrigate their crops from the waters of the r iver. The government of the Nile valley civilization became theocratic after the unification of the Upper and Lower Kingdoms in 3100 BCE (Ikram, 2009). Pharaoh became the ruler of the unified Egyptian kingdom after establishment of the first dynasty in the civilization. Theocratic government implies that pharaohs were regarded as gods, and they served as political and religious leaders (Scarre & Fagan, 2007). Egyptians believed that pharaohs were omnipresent and continued ruling after death. Consequently, their bodies were mummified, preserved, and buried in special tombs enclosed in huge pyramids. The Nile valley civilization was polytheistic and believed in life after death. The society of ancient Nile civilization was stratified and consisted of four classes, namely the royal family (Pharaoh), upper, middle, and lower classes. The upper class consisted of priests, government officials, landowners, and military leaders while the middle class consisted of traders and other skilled people. The peasant farmers and other unskilled people belonged to the lowest class (Trigger, 2007). Nile valley civilization provided social mobility – people from the lower class could rise to middle and upper classes through hard work or marriage. Men and women had almost equal rights, sharing privileges such as education, seeking divorce, and property ownership (Ikram, 2009). According to Scarre and Fagan (2007), Mesopotamia was located between Tigris and Euphrates rivers in the Persian Gulf and it is the oldest recorded civilization. The rivers provided water for irrigation and fertile silt, which formed rich agricultural land for the Mesopotamians. These favorable conditions amidst the harsh desert climate in the region attracted the settlement of Sumerians. Sumerians are credited for the creation of the earliest civilization in Mesopotamia and for introducing city-states, education, and better technology in addition to foundation of organized institutions. Though city- states shared the same culture, they were autonomous. Each city-state had its own government that was led by its own leaders (Trigger, 2007). Temple priests led early Sumerian governments. In an economy that relied heavily on agriculture, farmers believed in appeasing the gods to enhance agricultural production. Therefore, the priests were regarded as the appropriate leaders to mediate between the farmers and the gods. However, military rulers later took over the leadership of Mesopotamia civilization

Understanding Violent The Breakup Of Yugoslavia Politics Essay

Understanding Violent The Breakup Of Yugoslavia Politics Essay The numerous ethnic groups that comprised Yugoslavia held historical animosities towards each other stretching back in some cases hundreds of years. Yet these animosities were put aside after World War Two and under Titos grip the nation achieved internal peace. They were not however forgotten and when nationalist politicians needed to create a power base, they merely had to promote nationalist symbols and myths, and encourage the discussion and exaggeration of past atrocities. This created a deadly snowball affect that proved unstoppable. Yugoslavia has long been an ethnic melting point where great civilizations and religions have met. The Paris Peace Conference at the end of World War One created the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes out of territory from the Austrian and Turkish empires. The allies hoped the Kingdoms people would forge a new common identity based on their shared status as Southern Slavs. They were however divided in various other ways. Croats and Slovenes were Roman Catholic, used the Latin alphabet and orientated towards western and central Europe. In contrast Serbs, Macedonians and Montenegrins were under the repressive autocratic control of the Ottoman Turks, Eastern Orthodox in religion, used the Cyrillic alphabet and were less economically developed. Bosnians, though much like the Serbs had practiced Bogomilism and converted to Islam only in exchange for autonomy and protection by the Turks. The Serbs regularly rose against the Turks and were subsequently heavily repressed, thus considered the Bosnian Muslims Slavs that had sold out. During World War Two these antagonisms flared into outright slaughter as the Nazi controlled ethnically Croat Ustashe puppet regime murdered innocent Serbs, Jews and others. The regime never had majority Croatian support but this was irrelevant to Serbs in the conflicts of the 1990s even though they themselves did not have clean hands. Josip Tito and his communists suppressed discussion on the wartime genocide and earlier nationalist outrages in the process creating a powerful reservoir of suppressed memories and hatred. Tito re-established Yugoslavia through the skilful use of fear and the credibility of communist ideology. Yugoslavs feared many things including a return to the carnage of wartime massacres, the power of the Soviet Union and some a great Serbian restoration. The League of Communists of Yugoslavia (LCY) as the only substantial pan-Yugoslavian institution was thus the only force capable of allaying these fears. Fear and force did in time give way to compromise that was eventually enshrined in the 1974 Yugoslav constitution. This constitution established a collective presidency, rotating chair and dissolved a great deal of power to the republics thus weakening federal institutions. Tito himself often kept this system going by ordering republics to follow federal laws. Titos death in 1980 combined with the end of Cold War rivalry and the decline of communist ideology in the rest of Europe in the 1980s lead to the severe weakening of Yugoslavias crucial unifying factors. In addition, Yugoslavia in the 1980s increasingly suffered from an unprecedented economic crisis. This crisis was triggered by the oil shocks of the 1970s, the global recession of the 1980s and a $US20 billion foreign debt. This caused Slovenia and other relatively economically prosperous regions to push for economic and political change. Slovenia had significant economic weight as while it comprised only eight percent of the nations population it produced 20 percent of the national GNP. Without a powerful central figure, differences between reformers and conservatives produced a deadlock at the centre during the early and mid 1980s. The economy thus continued its decline allowing conservative groups time to mobilize support. Long significant to the Serb nation, Kosovo became the catalyst for the revival of Serbian nationalism. After a 1981 demonstration in favor of Kosovo gaining republic status the death toll of Albanian youths killed by Serb police varied widely from nine anywhere up to 1000. The Serbs balked at this demand believing they were the oppressed side in this situation. Thirty thousand Serbs and Montenegrins did flee Kosovo in the 1980s though many for economic reasons. The higher Albanian birth rate also contributed to the decline in the relative number of Serbs in Kosovo from 23 percent of the population in 1971 to 10 percent in 1989. Led by the Serbian Academy for Sciences and Arts from 1986 prominent Serbs claimed they had been the victim of consistent discrimination in Yugoslavia. Kosovo was thus raised to the position of most important problem in Serbia and frustration in the League of Communists of Serbia over the issue reached unprecedented levels. Slobodan Milosevic promise of quick and decisive action against Albanian separatists in Kosovo won him widespread support in Serbia. Milosevic moved quickly to promote Serbs to important economic and political roles in Kosovo and by 1989-1990 Serbian control over Kosovo was complete. In his first six months of power, he also purged Serbia of rivals and moderates. Journalists, writers and editors were fired and Milosevic supporters soon controlled almost all public life in Serbia. In order to bully and overthrow the Kosovo and Vojvodina political leaderships Milosevic whipped up pro-Serb demonstrations in the previously autonomous regions. The Montenegrin leadership was also overthrown with all three being replaced by Milosevic loyalists. This gave the Serb nationalists control of four of the eight votes in the Yugoslavian federation. Serbian hardliners used the cloak of nationalism to revoke the autonomy of Kosovo and Vojvodina thus altering the Serbian constitution and the delicate balance of power in Yugoslavia. Slovenia and Croatia reacted angrily to this series of events. Public disagreement was not permitted between communist party members therefore it was intellectuals and the media that articulated this anger. Slovenian intellectuals protested publicly at the treatment given to the Kosovo Albanians. They did so because they feared the consequences of the Serb action had upset Slovenias political and economic role in Yugoslavia, and would prevent movement towards its goals of democratising Yugoslavia and integrating it economically with the west. The last LCY congress in January 1990 confirmed that neither democratic nor hard-line reform could occur at the national level. The Croatian and Slovenian communist parties quickly responded by giving up their power and holding multi-party elections. The multi-party political system that resulted from the 1990 elections was seriously flawed. Political parties of which there were a large number lacked time and resources to develop a wide range of policies. Voters were thus denied the information they needed to make informed decisions. Additionally there was no chance to vote to maintain Yugoslavia even though 62 percent of Yugoslavs claimed Yugoslavian affiliation was very, or quite, important to them in a 1990 survey of 4,232 people. Nationalists claims that other groups would block vote successfully turned it into a self-fulfilling prophecy. Every town experienced the founding of political parties and the divisive nationalist discourse that went with them. Peer pressure to support ones ethnic group in these towns was intense. The nationalist parties did not win majorities in these elections. Because the way the elections were designed they received majorities in their republics. Franjo Tudjmans Croatian Democratic Union and Milo sevics Socialist Party of Serbia won only 41.5% and 47% of the votes respectively but gained 56% and 78% of the seats. These parties purged, often violently, their political opponents from power and made it dangerous to be seen as or in the company of known moderates. The politicians elected in 1990 were far more nationalist than their citizens. Understanding Violent The Breakup Of Yugoslavia The continuing stalemate and increasing tension over Yugoslavias economic and political direction convinced Slovenia and Croatia their futures lay elsewhere, and both declared independence in June 1991. The victory by Slovenian in the resulting war against the Yugoslav Peoples Army (JPA) forced the Serbs to give up their hopes for a centralized Yugoslav state under Serb control. Serb nationalists instead set themselves the goal of creating a greater Serbian state. The result was war in Croatia. The other significant result of the Slovenian and Croatian declarations of independence was that they forced the Bosnian Muslims to do likewise. Bosnian President Alija Izetberovic and many of his people realized all too clearly they would have little protection in a rump Yugoslavia dominated by Milosevic and Serb nationalists. Leaders on all sides constantly exploited the fear of becoming vulnerable to other ethnic groups through inaction during the break up of Yugoslavia. Both Tudjman and Milosevic consciously revived nationalist ideologies tainted by the Second World War. Once a leader of a republic broke the pattern of compromise and instead choose to increase interregional tensions the writing, Yugoslavia was on the wall. The slanting of news coverage by Milosevic appointees forced media in other republics to follow suit least their ethnic group become disadvantaged. Exaggeration became common as Serb and Croat intellectuals successfully transferred their nationalist ideologies to the common people. The Ustasu concentration camp at Jasenovac where 60,000 to 80,000 inmates were slaughtered, not all of them Serbs was inflated into the murder of 700,000 Serbs alone by Serb nationalists and Serbian media. The numbers game was however played by all sides. Repetition is considered the single most important e lement in the changing of opinions. Tudjman and Croat nationalistsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ excessive use of Second World War symbols especially the Ustasu flag frightened many Serbs into believing history would repeat itself. Collectively this created a security dilemma where no side could trust the other. Like their Croat neighbors the Bosnian leaders were also guilty of not paying enough attention to the complexity and fears of Serbian societies within their boundaries. By failing to recognize the difference between passive and adaptable urban Serbs and more extremist rural Serbs Tudjman missed an opportunity to build a multi-ethnic coalition. The behavior of political elites was a major source of ethnic hatred in Yugoslavia. Additional causes contributed to the sheer scale of the violence that followed the collapse of Yugoslavia. The JPA took a political role as its officers believed only a federal and socialist Yugoslavia could support their existing corporate and individual privileges. Up to 70 percent of the officer core were Serbian and Montenegrin and it was also a bedrock of Marxism-Leninism. The credibility of the army came from the days of communist resistance in the Second World War and as the communist party fell from favor so to0 did the army. With this loss of credibility, the JPA became in effect the army of the Serbian state. This is important because the scale of violence and acts of destruction such as the shelling of Sarajevo would have been impossible without a powerful military force. The inheritance by Serb forces of the majority of Yugoslavias weapons and especially its heavy weapons gave the Serbs the military power required to carry out their plans. Backed by the JPA Serbian civilian, militias were able to terrorize minorities in Serb controlled areas. The militias were organized from soccer clubs notably the infamous Arkan Tigers, prisons and from volunteers. Merged with the peer pressure, lack of accountability and promised economic gain these militia committed acts of ethnic violence out of all proportion to what could have been deemed acceptable under normal conditions. Croats and to a lesser extent Muslims also formed militias and violently attacked ethnic opponents. These were never on the same scale nor had the same level of organization as the Serbian militias and were largely formed as response to the formation of the Serbian militias. The west intervened in the break up of Yugoslavia relatively early and regularly but never with enough collective will or military force to prevent large-scale warfare. The period of the early Yugoslav wars was a dramatic time internationally with the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union and the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait distracting Western powers. A global recession further reduced the wests desire to intervene in a country some saw as a quagmire without strategic significance whilst others considered the area vital due to Yugoslavias geopolitical significance. By January 1992 fifteen ceasefires had been arranged and broken by all sides. Numerous internationally brokered peace plans followed. Serbian and Croatian leaders who consistently acted in ways to that continued the violence certainly did not help western efforts. However, the more pressing problem was Americas and Europes weak and timid initial responses which did nothing to persuade Milosevic and Tudj man to suspend their use of violence. Whether an overwhelming display of western resolve through the commitment of significant combat troops would have altered the course of events is unknown. It is however hard to see how such a display of force could have made things worse. The political will to impose a solution on Yugoslavia was simply not present at the time. Yugoslavia was a nation with suppressed and potentially explosive historical memories. By the 1980s the majority of Yugoslavs lived in peace often side by side with other ethnic groups. It took a culmination of economic decline, a changing international system and most importantly leaders willing and able to exploit these memories and their resulting fears to rip Yugoslavia apart. Political elites insistence on nationalist ideologies, Serbian military superiority and a lack of Western will ensured this break up was both brutal and extremely violent

Drop The Bomb? Essay -- essays research papers

U.S. History - Grech Atomic Bombs Dropped on Japan, Justified?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  On August 6th and 9th of 1945 U.S. bombers dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, causing utter destruction and many deaths. These bombs were dropped as the Pacific battles of World War II were coming to an end. Soon after Japan surrendered, ending the war. But, was the use of atomic warfare necessary? Was it too harsh and cruel to the Japanese? The first question was whether or not to drop a bomb. The effects of atomic warfare had not been known and studied, but it was apparent that it would be a good tool in ending the war. The first bomb did appear necessary to ending the war. It would put Japan in check to bring a quick finish to the fighting, saving many lives, as well as prevent the Russians from joining the Pacific War. The second on Nagasaki, however was obviously not. It was handled foolishly, in that the Japanese were not allowed enough time to surrender and it seemed like a big sick experiment. The United States of America was justified in dropping the atomic bomb on the island of Hiroshima, but not justified in doing the same to Nagasaki.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Throughout the war scientists had been involved in the notorious Manhattan Project, the production of the atomic bomb. In three years the U.S. was ready to test the first atomic bomb, and did in Alamogordo, New M...

Traditions Aren’t Always Worth Keeping

On the morning of June 27th, a tiny town of about 300 people, meet in the town square for a tradition they call â€Å"the lottery. † The kids come first to the square, straight from school, then come the fathers, and then the mothers after they finish the housework. They all stand waiting as they call the names of all the fathers in the families to the front to pull a wood chip from a black box, and the family with the black dot on their wood chip will participate in â€Å"the lottery. † Each member of that family will draw a piece of paper hoping is doesn’t contain a black dot.Whoever gets that specific piece of paper will be stoned to death by the whole town. This intense story comes to life in Shirley Jackson’s â€Å"The Lottery,† written in 1948. This is a very trying story that has a huge impact on the town, and ends with a stoning. This small town has become accustomed to this tradition that will not be let go. After studying the story, Shirle y Jackson presents the theme that, People are reluctant to reject outdated traditions, ideas, and/or practices. According to dictionary. com, Traditions are beliefs or customs taught by one generation to the next, often orally.These traditions are maintained usually by societies and government’s, and share history, customs, culture, the teaching of language, and sometimes education. Traditions are a part of our society today, and some traditions date back to past generations. Us as individuals may have our own traditions in our own family, usually being annual traditions. Government and city traditions are different that family traditions, in the way that, throughout the years traditions may need to be altered or changed depending on the times, as generation change. However, this doesn’t always happen. The lottery,† is a tradition in this town that is not even a thought when it comes to change. Some people in the town feel that there was a reason this tradition w as started, and it should be continued. It has caused a lot of tension and a lot of ideas on whether or not this tradition should be kept. Many people in the town feel this is a harsh way of exiling someone from the town, and feel it is very unnecessary. Traditions become a big part in this story and present the theme throughout the story. â€Å"The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny. . . . . The people of the village began to gather in the square, between the post office and the bank around ten o’clock,† (Jackson 586).This passage that opens the short story presents the setting, but also shows the audience that the setting is a part of the tradition of â€Å"the lottery. † Every year in June this routine of coming to the square to participate in â€Å"the lottery† becomes second nature to the town, and they soon realize that this is a tradition that will continue. Jackson not only discusses that the setting is a tradition, but also presents that ev en the materials that they use are traditions as well. The black box now resting on the stool had been put into use before Old Man Warner, the oldest ma in town, was born,† (587). The box is the item that is used for the drawing, which by this point, as old as it is, needs to be remade. â€Å"Mr. Summers spoke frequently to the villagers about making a new box, but no one like to upset even as much tradition as was represented by the black box,† (587). Traditions in this town will not be easily let go. This box does need some serious work, but Jackson goes on to say that they just tape it up and it’s ready to go for the next year.Cummings Study presents â€Å"This box is used as a symbol to present that this town is stubborn and doesn’t want to give up their traditions, even a simple item is something they can’t get rid of. Everything needs to be the original. † Traditions are even kept in the process of performing the lottery. Mr. Summers, o n of the main characters in the story and presides over the lottery states, â€Å"Now I’ll read the names- heads of the families first- and the men come up and take a paper out of the box.Keep the paper folded in your hand without looking at it until everyone has had a turn,† (589). This is the process of the lottery and it shows that even this hasn’t changed. Jackson goes on to say that the people of this town had heard this speech so much that they half listened. She also says that most of them were quiet and frustrated with what was about to happen. â€Å"The lottery has become very frustrating to these people, and after so many years participating in the lottery is enough,† states Brothers Judd, a review of the story.So how many years has this been going on? Old Man Warner, a character in the story, says â€Å"Seventy-seventh year I been in the lottery. Seventy Seventh time,† (590) which shows the audience that this tradition has gone on a long time. At the event there was even talk between two of the characters Old Man Warner and Mr. Adams on the fact that over in the North Village are talking about giving up the lottery, and Old Man Warner comes back and says â€Å"Pack of crazy fools. Listening to the young folks, nothing’s good enough for them.Next thing you know they’ll want to go back to living in caves, nobody work anymore, live that way for a while. Used to be a saying ‘lottery in June, corn be heavy soon’. . . . . There’s always been a lottery,† (590). With strong feelings Old Man Warner shows that the lottery is here to stay and it always will be. It is the town history and is part of their culture. The stubborn attitudes of some people in this story have caused a problem in this town when deciding on whether or not to keep the lottery. Jackson is trying to get across that even though this is an old tradition it needs to be kept around.Keeping these traditions are not alw ays the best thing to do. Looking at America’s history, we had several traditions that we have had, that have had negative impacts such as, slavery, Salem Witch Trials, and Voting, that had they not been changed our country would not be where it is today. Some of the characters in the story realize that change is good and the traditions should be looked at more to see if this is actually worth keeping, while other characters don’t care what others think and are strict to following the tradition.Jackson shows the audience of the story that traditions are there for a reason, but also shows that change is always good. People are reluctant to reject outdated traditions, ideas, and/or practices. We need to be open to new ideas. America has in its history and following the same traditions isn’t always right. Overall this was a great story and would defiantly recommend it. Jackson presents many more ideas than what I have mentioned and I think every reader should exper ience it themselves.

Review Questions Essay

Answer the following questions (you may use MS Project Help): 1) What are the three base calendars included in MS Project and what are the default values of each? Standard – Default base calendar, Monday to Friday, 8 to 5, lunch noon to 1. This is the default base calendar used for the project, for tasks and for resources. Night Shift – Usually for graveyard shift, 11 PM to 8 AM, five days a week, lunch 3 AM to 4AM. 24 Hours – Work never stops here. Typically used for projects in a manufacturing situation, midnight until midnight 7 days a week. 2) What is the difference between a base calendar and a resource calendar? Resource Calendars apply to only specific resources. 3) Why schedule one project meeting after completion of the last task, Test System? We should – as a final meeting to discuss how the project went as a whole. 4) Give an example of when you would assign a 24-hour calendar to a resource. 24-Hour calendars would be used in situations where a consultant is being used to complete a fixed-cost task 5) If you were doing a senior project, what would be the base calendar you would use for students working on the project and what adjustments would you make to it? The base calendar I would use would probably be the 24-hour calendar because there would not be a set time each task will be worked on. Turn in this sheet with your MS Project file to the Weekly iLab Dropbox.

Cuál es el costo de sacar o renovar pasaporte americano

Cul es el costo de sacar o renovar pasaporte americano Lo que cuesta el pasaporte americano depende de una serie de factores, entre los que se encuentra la edad del solicitante, la urgencia de la peticià ³n, si se trata de una renovacià ³n o de sacarlo por primera vez o, incluso, de si se pide conjuntamente con una tarjeta de pasaporte.. Este documento solo lo pueden solicitar los ciudadanos de los Estados Unidos, incluidas las personas nacidas en los territorios de la Commonwealth, como por ejemplo, el Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico. Asimismo, se puede solicitar dentro de Estados Unidos o tambià ©n desde el exterior, a travà ©s de una Embajada o consulado. Es importante resaltar que el  pasaporte americano no se compra ni se vende, es necesario previo a solicitarlo haber adquirido la condicià ³n de estadounidense por nacimiento, naturalizacià ³n, derecho de sangre u otra forma derivada a travà ©s de los padres o adopcià ³n. Por el contrario,  sà ­ es posible comprar la residencia en Estados Unidos, es decir, la tarjeta de residencia a partir de una inversià ³n de ms de medio millà ³n de dà ³lares. Este es un modelo similar pero diferente al que siguen  estos 20 paà ­ses que tiene programas de adquisicià ³n ciudadanà ­a (pasaporte) y/o residencia a cambio de inversià ³n. Algunos son realmente interesantes. A continuacià ³n, un desglose del costo del pasaporte americano, segà ºn cada uno de los diferentes casos.. Costo del pasaporte americano para los ciudadanos de 16 aà ±os o ms Tanto en el caso en el que se solicita por primera vez como tambià ©n cuando se renueva la cuota a pagar $110. Adems, cuando  se trata de sacarlo por primera vez a esa cantidad deben aà ±adir separadamente $25 ms, en concepto de gastos de gestià ³n. Es lo que se conoce en inglà ©s como acceptance agent fee. Se tiene que pagar porque un funcionario federal da fe de la firma que se estampa en el pasaporte. Tanto en un caso como en otro si el solicitante quiere, a mayores del pasaporte, obtener una tarjeta de pasaporte deber pagar $30 ms. Estos precios arriba mencionados aplican tanto cuando se solicita el pasaporte en Estados Unidos o en el exterior en la embajada o consulado que corresponda. Todos esos costos son para el caso en los que no hay urgencia para solicitar ese documento y se puede esperar entre 4 y 6 semanas, que es lo que se viene demorando la tramitacià ³n regular. Adems, sà ³lo para los casos en los que el solicitante se encuentre en Estados Unidos podr pedir que la gestià ³n se tramite urgentemente.   Costo del pasaporte americano para los nià ±os menores de16 aà ±os Tanto en los casos en los que se saca por primera vez como en los de renovacià ³n hay que pagar $80 a los que hay que sumar siempre $25 en concepto de gastos de gestià ³n que solo hay que pagar cuando se aplica por primera vez, no al renovar. Si adems se solicitase una tarjeta de pasaporte, aà ±adir $15 al precio. Costo para acelerar los trmites para el pasaporte Si se solicita una gestià ³n de urgencia, pagar otros $60.  Esto aplica tanto en los casos en los que se solicita el pasaporte por primera vez o se renueva. Y no hay distincià ³n de precio segà ºn la edad del solicitante, es decir, pagan igual nià ±os que adultos. Y, adems $12.85 por servicio de mensajerà ­a urgente, si bien este servicio es opcional aunque recomendable. Costo de otros servicios relacionados con el pasaporte Pueden darse las siguientes circunstancias: Cuando el solicitante no encuentra documentos que prueben su ciudadanà ­a: $150 para que el gobierno investigue sobre posibles Reportes Consulares de Nacimientos en el Exterior o posibles pasaportes anteriores.Pasaporte robado o extraviado: $80 si se trata de un menor de 16 aà ±os y $110 para los que han cumplido los 16 o tienen ms edad. No hay que pagar si el solicitante se encuentra en otro paà ­s y su pasaporte ha sido robado o lo han extraviado.Correccià ³n de un error administrativo como equivocacià ³n en nombre o fecha de nacimiento: no hay que pagar.Cambio de nombre: no hay que pagar si el pasaporte actual vigente tiene menos de un aà ±o y se puede documentar legalmente el cambio de nombre (por ejemplo, por acta de matrimonio). Si se solicita un trmite de urgencia, à ©se servicio sà ­ que hay que abonarlo.Segundo pasaporte: $110. Los costos del pasaporte americano siempre se pueden verificar en la pgina del Departamento de Estado. Consejos para el paso de control migratorio y de aduanas Estos son los documentos que pueden utilizar los ciudadanos americanos para ingresar a su paà ­s, es importante estar informado porque aunque el pasaporte siempre se admite en algunos casos es posible que un ciudadano regrese a los Estados Unidos sin necesidad de mostrar el pasaporte. Y recordar que es posible acelerar el paso por el control migratorio cuando se regresa a los Estados Unidos por medio de la participacià ³n en ciertos programas, cada uno con sus propios requisitos. Por ejemplo: Nexus, entre Canad y Estados UnidosSENTRI, paso terrestre o marà ­timo entre Mà ©xico y Estados UnidosY Global Entry y APC para aeropuertos. Doble nacionalidad: quà © pasaporte utilizar en la frontera de Estados Unidos Por à ºltimo, destacar que si un ciudadano americano tiene doble nacionalidad y, por lo tanto, 2 pasaportes, debe tener siempre en cuenta que la ley requiere que el ingreso a Estados Unidos siempre se realice utilizando el pasaporte americano. Este es un artà ­culo informativo. No es asesorà ­a legal.

Pepsin Experiment

Pepsin Experiment Aim: To see how effectively the enzyme (pepsin) will work in different concentrates of acid. Also to determine if the enzyme becomes denatured.Prediction: Enzymes are proteins. The functions of an enzyme is determined by the shape of the protein. The arrangement of molecules on the enzyme produce an area known as the active site in which the specific substrate(s) will "fit". It recognises, confines and orients the substrates in a particular direction.Enzymes allow many chemical reactions to occur within the homeostasis constraints of a living system. Enzymes function as an organic catalysts. A catalyst is chemical involved in, but not changed by, a chemical reaction. Many enzymes function by lowering the activation energy in reactions. By bringing the reactants closer together, chemical bonds may be weaken and reactions will proceed faster than without a catalysts.Enzymes can act rapidly, as in the case of carbonic anhydrase, which causes the chemicals to react 107 times faster than without the enzymes present.English: Chemical reaction catalyzed by the lactas...Carbonic anhydrase speeds up the transfer of carbon dioxide from cells to the blood. There are over 2000 known enzymes, each of which are involved with one specific chemical reaction. Enzymes are substrate specific. The enzyme peptidase (which breaks peptide bonds in proteins) will not work on starch (which is broke down by human-produced amylase in the mouth).Increase in temperature will speed up the rate of non-enzyme mediated reactions, and so temperature increase speeds up the enzyme mediated reaction, but only to a certain point. When heated too much, enzymes become denatured, because they are proteins dependant on the shape. When/if the temperature drops, the enzyme regains its original shape. Concentration of substrate and product also controls the rate of the reaction, providing biofeedback mechanism.Changes in pH will also denature the enzyme, by changing the shape...

Bluebells of Scotland

Compelled by society’s negative opinion of the trombone, Pryor composed â€Å"Bluebells of Scotland† in order to display the capabilities of the trombone and to emphasize that it could play very difficult pieces. This piece is a little more upbeat and physical than other pieces of the same time period, but what makes this piece particularly unique is that it is the only piece with a high level of difficulty for trombone that was composed in the time of its conception. The piece is intended to be accompanied by an orchestra but can be played with piano accompaniment as well. The characteristics of this piece are very dynamic and free. The expressivity of the piece is left up to the interpretation of the performer which allows for a large amount of freedom and creativity. There are quite a few cadences that allow the performer to take control of tempo and dynamics. â€Å"Bluebells of Scotland† includes both very slow and lyrical passages as well as many very quick and difficult runs, double-tonguing, octave jumps, lips slurs, and a vast amount of high register notes. The introduction of the piece begins with a triumphant cadence peaking at a high register C, which slowly decays into a very lyrical melodic sequence that takes the shape of the original lyrics, which read: â€Å"Oh where, tell me where, is your highland laddie gone? Oh where, tell me where, is your highland laddie gone? He’s gone with streaming banners where noble deeds are done. And it’s oh! in my heart I wish him safe at home. † The piece then moves into a much more difficult technical variation of the original melody and progressively builds in speed until the also very triumphant ending. Around the time the then eighteen or nineteen year old Arthur Pryor composed â€Å"Blue Bells of Scotland†, he had only been playing the slide trombone for three to four years. Pryor was given the slide trombone as a payment to a debt and taught himself to play it fairly quickly. Amazingly, Pryor wrote the piece with the knowledge of only a few slide positions and would use false tones and alternate positions for notes in the fifth, sixth, and seventh positions. Despite this, â€Å"Blue Bells of Scotland† is still one of Pryor’s most memorable pieces and is still widely known today. A few years after composing â€Å"Bluebells of Scotland† he arrived in New York by invitation of John Philip Sousa. After arriving to be in Sousa’s new concert band, Pryor was offered by Frank Holton the position of principle chair trombonist. When Holton left the position, Pryor became the featured soloist of over 10,000 solos as principle trombonist for Sousa’s band. â€Å"Blue Bells of Scotland† serves as a constant reminder of the trombone’s capabilities as a very lyrical instrument and its ability for technical prowess as well. Arthur Pryor inspired interest in the trombone with his virtuoso playing, and â€Å"Bluebells of Scotland† in particular has been a standard of trombone literature for decades and a favorite challenge for advanced players†(Kleiner). The piece will always have a special place in the hearts of all trombonists, both past and future. Works Cited http://www. celticscores. com/sheet-music/628_Blue_Bells_of_Scotland http://bluebellstrilogy. com/blog/2010/05/arthur-pryor-blue-bells-and-trombone/

Talisker Insurance Agency Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Talisker Insurance Agency - Essay Example Query handling, making of proposals, and presentations are shoddy and leave much to be desired. Talisker Insurance Agency has to move from a disorganized to a systemized work environment. The Agency suffers from serious administrative drawbacks both in operational methods and data storage and retrieval techniques. The consolidated office is in urgent need of modernization. Consolidation of office has given Bill Smith an opportunity to bring about much-needed changes in the work environment of the Agency. Â  As part of immediate modernization, we have to purchase 13 PCs with latest available configuration. Two laptops will be used to do work at the clients’ end. A Local Area Network (LAN) has to be established. A leased line will be used for Internet connectivity. The website of Talisker Insurance Agency called the Taliskerinsurance.com has to be developed. The website besides enhancing the reach of Talisker Insurance Agency will also aid in bolstering its marketing and administrative functions. Mr. Smith has to be convinced on the development of a website on counts enumerated below. First, no forward-looking company with a vast client base can afford to not to have a web presence in the present times. Second, the cost of web development, maintenance, and hosting has reduced drastically over the past years. Third, with a state-of-the-art networking environment in the office premises, we are just a step short of a website. Fourth, the prospective clients in remote locations can access the website and see the policies on offer. Thus there will be an increase in the generation of marketing leading resulting in more business. Due to the low cost of developing and maintaining a website, Mr. Smith needn’t worry about its financial viability. The investments into development of IT tools will soon result in an increase in revenue by curtailing unnecessary costs and streamlining of business operations.

Rehabilitation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Rehabilitation - Essay Example e can have various effects.   I note that during the earlier stages of my disease that I had mild and uncontrollable muscular movements, stumbling, clumsiness, decreased concentration, decreased short-term memory, depression, and changes in mood (NHS, 2012).   During this time, I often felt confused and could not understand what was happening to me and why.   The diagnosis of my disease later helped me understand what I was going through (NHS, 2012).   As the disease advanced, I found it more difficult to walk, and sometimes had trouble sitting and standing on my own.   I also manifested involuntary movements at times.   I had trouble speaking clearly, and sometimes had difficulties in swallowing (NHS, 2012).   I also lost weight.   I also manifested emotional changes including mood changes, depression, and frustration.   My mood changes also caused a loss of motivation and drive, often causing me to withdraw from normal activities (NHS, 2012).   This disease has caused strain with my family members.   For my family, my disease caused much strain and stress.   Financial burden was one of these issues caused by my disease on my family.   It also made them embarrassed to have a family member suffering from the disease (Knowles, 2006).   My children felt misunderstood and did not socialize well with other children because of the embarrassment they felt.   My children also felt that they were constantly in a stressed household and often had to deal with arguments with my wife and with each other (Knowles, 2006).   My children’s studies were also affected due to the stress they had to deal with.   At times, they also had to deal with abuse, mostly emotional abuse from me (Knowles, 2006).   I would sometimes lash out at them and utter angry and hurting words which caused them much pain and frustration. My family also has a history of this disease, with my father and grandfather having died both in the early 40s due to the ravages of this disease. The fact that they

Hypertension (high blood pressure) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Hypertension (high blood pressure) - Essay Example Blood pressure below 120/80 mm Hg is considered as a normal blood pressure. But, some medical experts claim 115/75 mm Hg as a more stable blood pressure level (Luehr et al., 2012, p. 15). Prehypertension, stage 1 hypertension, and stage 2 hypertension are three major hypertension stages. Prehypertension consists of a systolic pressure in the range of 120 to 139 mm Hg or a diastolic pressure in the range of 80 to 89 mm Hg. Stage 1 hypertension and stage 2 hypertension have a systolic pressure in the range of 140 to 159 mm Hg and 160 mm Hg or greater respectively or a diastolic pressure in the range of 90 to 99 mm Hg and 100 mm Hg or greater respectively (Luehr et al., 2012, p. 15). It is not possible to diagnose hypertension on the basis of one blood pressure reading as blood pressure varies several times in a day depending on activities, surroundings, age, and gender. Hence, doctors keep the patient on an observation and check the blood pressure at intervals for several times to diagnose it. Patients are required to avoid smoking, physical exercise, or drinking energetic beverages (especially with caffeine) for at least 30-40 minutes before the blood pressure readings (Simon & Zieve, 2013). As often during the clinical testing, patients are in stress, doctors ask the patients to measure their blood pressure at home too. Usually, doctors recommend the use of specific ambulatory monitoring equipment that measures blood pressure about every 20-30 minutes during the 24-hours period and gives appropriate readings to help the doctors to diagnose the hypertension in patients (Simon & Zieve, 2013). Based on the clinical and home readings of blood pressure at several times a day for period of time and medical history of patient, doctors diagnose the hypertension condition in the patient (Simon & Zieve, 2013). In order to formally diagnose the hypertension, there are various tests which are required to perform.

Banned Condom Ads Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Banned Condom Ads - Coursework Example Though this advert is obviously humorous, the interested parties banned it from the television for the obvious, serious message it is passing across (ZaZoo condoms). The message the commercial seems to be wear condoms to prevent these kinds of tantrums. The message also seems to be advising parents to wear condoms if they do not want these kinds of kids (Allyn & Westheimer, & Lopater, 2002). It is likely that the commercial was banned for this message. Instead of the ad passing the right message, for example, condoms are ways of preventing unnecessary pregnancies and STDs, the commercial seems to be threatening customers to buy their products or end up like this frustrated parent (Banned commercials). The other commercial in question is the one by Durex, which has a mass of sperms following their owner as he goes to talk to his girl. Her boyfriend’s sperms, which have been personified, rush the girl and a giant condom later rescues her (Banned commercials- Durex). The message the commercial seems to be passing is that the Durex condom can eat up sperm/ men and prevent pregnancy (Miracle, Miracle & Baumeister, 2003). The commercial is obviously funny and does not use explicit message or pictures, and that is the reason that leads one to wonder why it was banned. It is possible that the commercial was banned for its utilization of man/ sperm eating condom, and the utilization of man- looking sperm (Andersen,

The Social Impacts of Tourism in Singapore Essay

The Social Impacts of Tourism in Singapore - Essay Example By thoroughly addressing and discussing all of these issues as well as any and all other key and related matters, we will be able to come to a much more informed and knowledgeable understanding on the subject matter at hand overall. This is what will be dissertated in the following. The history of Singapore in fact goes back as far as the 3rd Century, when a Chinese account was known to have described the island at the tip of the Malay Peninsula. Singapore is an incredibly cosmopolitan society in which people live harmoniously and where interaction among the different races is commonly seen. As well in Singapore, food is constantly readily and available, and there are many different cuisines that are available to the general population. There is "Chinese, Indian, Malay, Indonesian and Western, Italian, Peranakan, Spanish, French, Thai and even Fusion. It is very common to savor other culture's food and some of the food can be very intriguing" (Singapore, 2007). The cuisine of Singapore is often times viewed as a prime example of the ethnic diversity of the culture of Singapore overall, and for example, "traditionally Malay hawker stalls selling halal food may serve halal versions of traditionally Tamil or Chinese food. Chinese stalls may introduce Malay or Indi an ingredients, cooking techniques or entire dishes into their range of catering. Some dishes introduce elements from all three cultures, while others incorporate influences from the rest of Asia and the West" (Wikipedia, 2007). Overall then, food in itself has really been quite heavily promoted as a major attraction for tourists, and as well it is usually promoted by that of various different initiatives undertaken by the Singapore Tourism Board or the other associations that it deals with, for that matter. Overall, "The multiculturalism of local food, the ready availability of international cuisine, and their wide range in prices to fit all budgets at all times of the day and year helps create a 'food paradise' to rival other contenders claiming the same moniker" (Wikipedia, 2007). Religion is also an incredibly integral part of Singapore, and for the most part, Singaporeans celebrate all of the major festivals that are associated with their retrospective religions. Religious tolerance is also incredibly essential in Singapore, and because of the racial tolerance that is considered normal and natural throughout the area of Singapore, there are few to no racial disputes, or disputes of any other kind for that matter, as the violence rate in Singapore is incredibly low. All of these factors add up to a very high tourism rate in Singapore, and although tourism is good for any location, as it increases revenue and status for the locale, there are still potential and viable implications that can occur from an overflow of tourism. One of the most important factors of all here as well is that of the residents' responses, and whether they are negative or positive, they are still equally as crucial to the overall impacts that tourism causes. Tourism in Singapore is an incredibly major industry, and millions of

The role of the rule of law in the criminal justice process in UK Essay

The role of the rule of law in the criminal justice process in UK - Essay Example In the British Criminal Justice System, divisions like the Crown Prosecution Sector, the police, the law courts and the prisons operate together to bring about criminal justice. In general, the three departments are mutually responsible for the Criminal Justice System (CJS) and its subdivisions. These three consist of (i) The Ministry of Justice, which is concerned with the magistrates' law courts, the Appeals Courts, the Crown Court, the National Offender Management Service, and the Legal Services Commission (ii) The Home Office under whose jurisdiction are the police (iii) The Attorney General's Office which is in charge of the Serious Fraud Department, the Crown Prosecution Service, and the Customs and Revenue Prosecutions Division In ordinary circumstances, it is the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice to oversee the entire justice procedure (Roberson, Wallace and Stuckey, 2009). It is responsible for justice being meted out from the time when a suspect is apprehended, to t he time they are charged with a crime and incarcerated (if this is the result) (Schmalleger, 2009). The Ministry of Justice also plays a role in a felon’s probation process. The ministry is also expected to provide legal aid, and seek to decrease the chances of re-offending. The Home Office, on the other hand, is responsible for safeguarding the public from instances of crime, terror and other anti-social behaviours. The home office ensures people’s safety in order to facilitate investment and peaceful coexistence. It also promotes the acceptable level of tolerance that allows people to live with others from different backgrounds without there being unnecessary problems that come about through misunderstandings. This division is responsible for counter terrorism initiatives, safe policing and overall crime reduction strategies.  The Attorney General, who is usually assisted in handling these responsibilities by the Solicitor General, is the key legal counsel to the B ritish Government (McLeod, 2010). Both the Solicitor General and the Attorney General are responsible for making sure that all citizens uphold the rule of law.   The Attorney General also has additional public interest responsibilities such as committing to objecting to extremely lenient sentences that are given to serious criminals, as well as initiating proceedings in courts concerning the Contempt of Court Act (Zander, 2007). The function of the Criminal Justice System (CJS) is to bring all to justice by convicting and imprisoning the felons while defending the public. It is also in charge of investigating crimes and making sure that the perpetrators are held accountable for their crimes (Packer, 1968). The CJS also carries out other functions such as executing court orders, collecting fines and overseeing custodial as well as community punishment.   The main objectives for the CJS are:   Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To enhance their efficiency in bringing crimes and their p erpetrators to justice.   Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To boost public confidence in the way the CJS conducts its operations   Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To make crime victims feel that their grievances have been satisfactorily addressed by the Police unit as well as the CJS.   Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To constantly gather, evaluate, and make use of statistics concerning different ethnicities so as to identify irregularities in the distribution of responsibilities in the CJS.   Ã¢â‚¬ ¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To increase the finding of criminal factors so that the public is made aware that criminals will not go unpunished (Sanders and Young, 2000). While not all the members of society are predisposed to crime, such a step will help in discouraging potential criminals. The Basic Concept Underlying the Rule of Law In the 19th and 18th British society, many individuals who belonged to the upper classes were not treated in the same way as the rest of the British citizens. If they committed any crimes, they had special government laws that would be used to judge their cases

The Social Impacts of Tourism in Singapore Essay

The Social Impacts of Tourism in Singapore - Essay Example By thoroughly addressing and discussing all of these issues as well as any and all other key and related matters, we will be able to come to a much more informed and knowledgeable understanding on the subject matter at hand overall. This is what will be dissertated in the following. The history of Singapore in fact goes back as far as the 3rd Century, when a Chinese account was known to have described the island at the tip of the Malay Peninsula. Singapore is an incredibly cosmopolitan society in which people live harmoniously and where interaction among the different races is commonly seen. As well in Singapore, food is constantly readily and available, and there are many different cuisines that are available to the general population. There is "Chinese, Indian, Malay, Indonesian and Western, Italian, Peranakan, Spanish, French, Thai and even Fusion. It is very common to savor other culture's food and some of the food can be very intriguing" (Singapore, 2007). The cuisine of Singapore is often times viewed as a prime example of the ethnic diversity of the culture of Singapore overall, and for example, "traditionally Malay hawker stalls selling halal food may serve halal versions of traditionally Tamil or Chinese food. Chinese stalls may introduce Malay or Indi an ingredients, cooking techniques or entire dishes into their range of catering. Some dishes introduce elements from all three cultures, while others incorporate influences from the rest of Asia and the West" (Wikipedia, 2007). Overall then, food in itself has really been quite heavily promoted as a major attraction for tourists, and as well it is usually promoted by that of various different initiatives undertaken by the Singapore Tourism Board or the other associations that it deals with, for that matter. Overall, "The multiculturalism of local food, the ready availability of international cuisine, and their wide range in prices to fit all budgets at all times of the day and year helps create a 'food paradise' to rival other contenders claiming the same moniker" (Wikipedia, 2007). Religion is also an incredibly integral part of Singapore, and for the most part, Singaporeans celebrate all of the major festivals that are associated with their retrospective religions. Religious tolerance is also incredibly essential in Singapore, and because of the racial tolerance that is considered normal and natural throughout the area of Singapore, there are few to no racial disputes, or disputes of any other kind for that matter, as the violence rate in Singapore is incredibly low. All of these factors add up to a very high tourism rate in Singapore, and although tourism is good for any location, as it increases revenue and status for the locale, there are still potential and viable implications that can occur from an overflow of tourism. One of the most important factors of all here as well is that of the residents' responses, and whether they are negative or positive, they are still equally as crucial to the overall impacts that tourism causes. Tourism in Singapore is an incredibly major industry, and millions of

Role Model Essay Example for Free

Role Model Essay Dr King is my role model because he fought to change my history. Dr King didn’t only want to see a change happen for his self and others but also for his family. He had a wife Coretta and four children; these were the people who he wanted to see change happen for the most. After King’s death is family wanted to keep his legacy alive because they knew he stood for a good cause. According to the article A king family tribute â€Å"Family and friends remember Dr. King as a role model and dedicate themselves to his mission. Watkins, Dr. Kings niece, has assembled their writings and excerpts from their speeches. All pay tribute to his spirit, abiding faith and dedication to the cause of civil rights, and they affirm their own commitment to following the path he walked, as his nephew, Derek B. King, states. Kings fathers remarks are excerpted from his autobiography. Dr King is my personal role model because is stood for what he believed in. Dr king helped shape my worldview because through his hard work he’s shown me that nothing worth fighting for comes easy. I think a lot of people look over the fact that Dr King wasn’t just trying to change the race problem it stood of many different social issues. In the article Martin Luther King Jr conception of freedom and radical democracy the author states that â€Å"king came to believe that the civil rights struggle needed to expand beyond just racial desegregation in this country, He began to raise his voice against racism militarism, and economic exploitation around the world†. This is another reason why I look up to him because he didn’t only focus on one hing that needed to be changed so saw the importance of these issues and wanted to change them. Dr. king had a career as a pastor which is why I feel he never gave up believing in what he thought was right. The article Martin Luther King cover story gives background on his life â€Å"King was a preacher who spoke in biblical cadences ideally suited to leading a stride toward freedom that found its inspiration in the Old Testament story of the Israelites and the New Testament gospel of Jesus Christ. Being a minister not only put King in touch with the spirit of the black masses but also gave him a base within the black church, then and now the strongest and most independent of black institutions†. Like Dr King I believe that everyone should have the right to freedom and equal rights ; However, I don’t know if I could have endured the things that Dr king had to. Once Dr King was thrown in jail because of his protest, I think if I knew I could go to jail because I was protesting I wouldn’t protest. On the other Dr King who have pathed the way for me to be able to use my freedom of speech. I would want to be brave and stand for what I believe in for myself and my family just as King did. Reference MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. A King Family Tribute. (2012). Kirkus Reviews, 80(24), 222. Orosco, J. M. (2001). Martin Luther King, Jr. ’s Conception of Freedom and Radical Democracy. Journal Of Social Philosophy, 32(4), 386-401. White, J. E. (1998). Martin Luther King. (Cover story). Time, 151(14), 160.

Financial Ratio Analysis of Sainsburys

Financial Ratio Analysis of Sainsburys A sustainable company needs effective planning and financial management. Ratio analysis is a useful tool to get the financial results and the companys development tendency. It can be divided into four parts. They are profitability, liquidity, efficiency and gearing. This report discusses the analysis of two companies, one is Sainsbury, and the other is Tesco. It is necessary to compare these companies from the data and information in 2011 and 2012, so that demonstrates the use of an appropriate range of ratios. Sainsbury is engaged in grocery and related retailing. It is separated three segments: Retailing (Supermarkets and Convenience); Financial services (Sainsburys Bank joint venture), and Property investments (The British Land Company PLC joint venture and Land Securities PLC joint venture). In 2012, this company has operated over 1000 stores comprising 572 supermarkets and 440 convenience stores (Sainsbury company information, 2013). In the current competitive food retail market Sainsbury has focused on its clear strength: providing shoppers with an easy alternative to the larger out-of-town supermarkets whilst maintaining a commitment to fresh quality foods (Sainsbury, 2012). Tesco has the biggest supermarket chain in the UK. It has over 280, 000 employees working with them (Tesco, 2012). It can maintain their market share and profit in the UK, they also use social network to maintain the relationship with the customer. It is the biggest and most profitable supermarket chain in Britain; it has 30 per cent of grocery market. Tesco has over 2200 stores in the whole United Kingdom (Tesco, 2012). It is a superb development of Tesco, it is from a smaller store to be a superstores. Sales of non-food is one of the key parts of their strategy, it contributes to the growth picture in the UK. Tesco is launching a low price strategy; they offer the lower price for the similar product compare to others competitors. By comparing Sainsbury and Tesco, it is easy to use financial ratio analysis to pinpoint the strengths and weaknesses. This report provides an analysis based on ratio calculation and then compares these companies data to help grasp the current performance of the companies and thus showing a financial snapshot of the companies position. Financial Analysis The following part will analysis the two companies performance in the criteria of profitability, efficiency, liquidity and gearing ratios. Ratios are important when companies need to compare the financial health of various businesses in order to understand the performance and position in the industry. Although some companies are relatively larger than the others such as comparing Tesco with Sainsburys, different scale of operations can be eliminated using the ratios for the same market (Atrill McLaney, 2008). Profitability The purpose of profitability ratio is to measure the degree of success towards business objectives in terms of profit (Atrill McLaney, 2008). It express the generated profit such as expenses, labour cost and sales revenue in relation to a companys business resource. Gross profit margin measures differences between cost of sales and sales revenue, in other words a measure of profitability in purchasing and selling before any other expenses are taken into account. The data shows that gross profit margin had a slight decrease from 5.50% (2011) to 5.43% (2012), although both gross profit and Revenue increased, it could mean that sales prices were lower or an increased on purchasing. Operating profit margin is the comparison of both outputs of businesses: operating profit and sales revenue. It is used to measure the profit from trading operations before interest payable expenses are calculated. The operating profit margin has also decreased from 4.03% (2011) to 3.92% (2012) indicating a change in 2 %. ROCE describes the relationship between operating profit and non-current liability. It has decreased from 10.06% (2011) to 9.50% (2012) by 6%. The results indicate that Sainsburys profitability has decreased by a small amount. Liquidity Liquidity ratios represent the ability of business to meet its short-term financial liabilities in one year time (Atrill McLaney, 2008). The purpose of using current ratio is to compare the assets of the company that will be turned into cash with current liabilities. Different businesses have different rate of ratios, supermarket such as Sainsburys and Tesco usually have relatively lower ratio than 1:1 since the companies are to sell FMCG and all sales are converted into cash immediately. The calculation shows that current ratio of Sainsburys increased by 12.07% from 0.58 (2011) to 0.65 (2012). This suggests that the company is more efficient at converting its assets into cash in comparisons with current liabilities. Acid ratio is similar to current ratio but is calculated excluding inventories therefore the changes from both ratio changes should reasonably be similar. Therefore the result also shows an increase of 12.9% from 0.31 (2011) to 0.35 (2012), it suggests that the business of Sainsburys became more liquid throughout 2011. Efficiency Efficiency ratio is use for assessing the extent to how well assets are being managed (Atrill McLaney, 2008). Inventories turnover period represents the average period of inventories are being held. Since maintaining inventories require higher cost, therefore it is advisable for businesses to have shorter inventories turnover period. The data suggests that Sainsburys inventory turnover period increased by about 1 day from 15 (2011) to 16 (2012), meaning it took longer for the company to sell its goods. The data may also suggest that an increased number of inventories take longer to sell. Moreover, competitor Tesco had inventory three times more than Sainsburys and it took them even longer to clear their goods. Gearing Gearing ratio is a measurement of contribution of long-term lenders to the companys long-term capital structure (Atrill McLaney, 2008). The higher gearing ratio the higher risk for businesses because a small increase in operation profit tends to increase greater amount of returns to shareholders, but small decline also result in greater decline. The gearing ratio of Sainsburys increased by 8.31% from 35.86 (2011) to 38.84 (2012). It indicates a higher risk than the previous year. Interest cover ratio measures the quantity of available operating profit to cover interest payable (Atrill McLaney, 2008). Calculation shows a decrease on interest cover of -1 time from 7.34 (2011) to 6.33 (2012). It indicates greater risk for lenders where interest payments might not be met. However, Tesco has a higher rate of interest cover; the reason may be due to their higher operating profit with less interest payable comparing with Sainsburys. Comparative Financial Analysis In the context of financial report, it is essential to compare ratios internally and externally. In terms of internal, the objective is to criticise whether Sainsburys performance has an improvement or deterioration and it is usually being measured over time such as one, five or ten years. Such comparison helps the company to detect trends for example the ways of how Sainsburys should control the flow of its stock or the amount of dividends which affect its stakeholders action. Comparing financial performance with other competitors within the same industry is also essential, because having comparable levels of performance is one of the major ways to survive in the market (Atrill McLaney, 2008). Analysing from both annual report of Sainsburys and Tesco, the profitability section indicates that Sainsburys had a decrease on both gross profit and operating profit margin while Tesco had an increase performance on profitability for gross profit margin by 4.05% ((8.48 8.15) / 8.15) and operating profit margin by 5.02% ((6.48 6.17) / 6.17). In other words it means Tesco is more capable at generating profit in 2011 / 2012, the reason is probably due to Tesco is a larger company than Sainsburys in terms of the number of stores at about 6 times more than Sainsburys and higher market share at 26.9% while Sainsburys had 14% during 2011 (Mintel, 2012). The previous annual report of 2010 / 2011 shows that the online checkout system helped increase Sainsburys sales by 20% (130,000 weekly orders) which was the strength of the company (Sainsburys, 2011a). However the sales decreased in 2012 which was also partially caused by online shopping. The financial damage was due to sales cannibalisation and charging delivery at low rate. The reason to that is because the trend towards online grocery shopping where more and more customers are shopping online (Guardian, 2013). Another weakness of Sainsburys causing it to lose shares to its competitor Tesco was because of lack in investment internationally, particularly in China (The Independent, 2012). Currently Tesco already has over 100 stores in China. Sainsburys did not fully understand the trends and operating environment comparing to its home competitors. In addition, Current Ratios are also needed to make comparisons between two companies because the current ratios provide us with the first slight of the financial strength of a company, but the current ratio analysis of different companies can be misleading in some case so that investors must be careful while evaluating a company on the bases of its current ratio (Atrill McLaney, 2008). The Liquidity section demonstrates that Sainsburys had a modest increase on current ratio by 12.07% ((0.65-0.58) / 0.58) while the current ratio of Tesco had remained intact. In spite of this, it can be seen from comparison that Tesco is the winner in the current ratio contest as it has more current ratios that is 0.67 in 2012 compared to Sainsbury where the result is 0.65. Consequently, Tesco has more money to afford the liabilities and deal with its bills better than Sainsbury. The reason of this is probably due to the number of operating profit for Tesco at about 4 times more than Sainsburys in 20 12, which was 3,985Â £m and 874Â £m respectively. In order to make an exact measure of financial leverage, demonstrate the degree to which a firms activities are funded by owners funds versus creditors funds, the gearing ratios are needed to be compared also (Atrill McLaney, 2008). According to the annual report of Sainsburys and Tesco, it can be shown that in this section, Sainsbury is doing better because its lower proportion of debts. The calculations demonstrate that the liability of Tesco shows more than approximately 73% of its debt is from borrowings while the loans of Sainsbury is lower than about 73% comparing with Sainsbury. Limitation Ratios provide an efficient and straight forward method to analyse the performance and position of businesses, however there are limitations companies should take into account. Firstly, all numbers are taken and are used from the financial statements; therefore the results of all ratios can only be based on the quality of the information. It indicates that intangible non-current assets such as the value of brand names and goodwill cannot be included into the balance sheet. Moreover, no businesses are identical therefore companies should be aware of differences in accounting policies, financial year ends between businesses and financing methods when carrying out ratio analysis especially during benchmarks. Secondly, inflation can affect the values of ratio analysis. Since balance sheet is made for the previous financial year, therefore the values of assets held could change in a period of time which results little relation to current values. Inflation can also affect the measurement of profit, it may show that the current prices does not reflect to previous expense, in that case profit may be overstated leading to inaccuracy. Thirdly, companies should only use ratios as an insight but not fully rely on it. The reason is due to the fact ratio cannot measure information such as differences in scale between businesses and capital employer, profit / sales used for measuring changes of company size over time. As ratio can only measure relative position and performance of a business. Conclusion Recommendations This report reveals the financial analysis techniques used to evaluate the financial performance of Sainsburys, and the evaluation of the companys position and performance. The result shows that Sainsburys overall performance in 2012 was similar to 2011 but with minor decrease which may affect shareholders / investors decision on whether or not to continue investing on the company. It is advisable for Sainsburys to increase dividends in order to keep its investors at a satisfy level. As the company is also the initiative to the Click Collect service, it should focus investment on improving its quality and differentiation from the competitors. In terms of pricing issue leading to decrease on profitability, there are two choices for Sainsburys. First is to keep the pricing at the same level because its market share has been increasing, or secondly to increase price to gain profit where the decision is depending on Sainsburys objectives.

Metaphysical Poetry :: essays papers

Metaphysical Poetry Discuss the uses of metaphors of colonization in metaphysical poetry and/or Milton. "Movement across or through space becomes a process of colonization of that space." During the period of Milton's Paradise Lost as well as myriad of poets construction of an epoque submerged in metaphysical literature, a number of significant events both socio-political, entwined with a systematic religious metamorphism of the sixteenth and seventeenth century led to a time of unrest and discovery. The creators and author's of work of this periods placed their emphasis not specifically on a level of morality or self understanding but rather a rediscovery of the body and soul, almost a form of existensionalism or physical cosmos with a geography. 'All things are subject to the Mind... It measures in one thought the whole circumference of heaven and by the same line it takes the geography of the earth. The seas, the air, the fire all things of either, are within the comprehension of the mind. It has an influence on them all, whence it lakes all that may be useful, all that may be helpful in government. No limitation is prescribed to it, no restriction is upon it, but in a free scope it has a liberty upon all. And in this liberty is the excellence of the mind; in this power and composition of the mind is perfection of a man... Man is an absolute master of himself; his own safety, and tranquillity by God... are made dependent on himself.'1 In this short example of Puritanism text as it stands, alone contains a number of various references to the process of colonization, of expanding, perceiving all geographically and manipulating, making man or perhaps more specifically the colonisers omniscient and God-like. The crusader self-reliant and independent with the knowledge that God is his guardian of safety and tranquillity. In this particular the growing number of Puritans played a significant role both in the cultivation and transformation of the Christian religion and foreign territories. The Puritans themselves comprised of those in the Church of England unhappy with limitations of the Elizabethan Settlement; some were Presbyterians, and all were to some extent or other Calvinists (though not all Calvinists were Puritans). They were a people of scrupulous moral rigour and favoured plain styles of dress, detesting any form of luxury or decadence. The name Puritan later became a catch-all label for the disparate groups who led much of the New World colonization and won the English Civil Wars. New World colonization began as early as 1480 by English seamen performing spectacular feats of exploration

Culture and Influence of the South in Petrified Man by Eudora Welty Ess

Culture and Influence of the South in Petrified Man by Eudora Welty When I think of the south, I think of southern hospitality. I picture people always talking to each other, whether it?s just small talk or gossip, which is the case in The Petrified Man. The dialogue itself appears to be pretty accurate (from what I can imagine anyway, since I?ve never been down south). The south definitely has a certain way of talking and Eudora Welty does a great job showing us, not just telling us, this dialect. From the very first sentence of the story, you know where you are, and the type of people involved in the story. ?Reach in my purse and git me a cigarette without no powder in it if you kin, Mrs. Fletcher, honey ? I don?t like no perfumed cigarettes.? As for the events themselves, they appear to be reasonably honest. If you allow yourself to just listen to the story as it?s being told, instead of trying to analyze it?s validity (it is fiction after all) you will believe you?re sitting in Leota?s beauty parlor with Mrs. Fletcher and Leota talking about anything or anybody. I...

Cellular Basis of Life

What is Life? This perennial question the answer to which has somehow eluded the most brilliant minds. For while scientists have identified many years ago the right mix of the atoms and molecules that constitute cellular material, they have not succeeded in ‘switching it on’ to make it alive, or ‘breathing life’ into it (Rabago et. al,2006) In this module you will: a. Explain the concepts of the cell theory b. Identify the parts of a cell c. Describe the function of each cell part d. Differentiate prokaryotic from eukaryotic cells e. Compare plant and animal cells A. The Cell Theory – tructurally made up of 1. What are living things made of? cells. – 2. What can cells do? 3. Where do cells come from? All living things are The cell is the fundamental unit of life. – Cells come from the division of pre-existing cells. B. Cell Structure and Composition CELL MEMBRANE -Serves as the outer boundary of the cell. It is a selective permeable memb rane which permits the entrance of substances throughout the cell. CYTOPLASM -Serves as the reservoir of the organelles as it contain all the lifesustaining components. It is a jellylike structure. NUCLEUS -Usually located at the center and nown as the control center of the cell. It regulates and coordinates all the activities of the cell. C. Organelles in the Cytoplasm ORGANELLES STRUCTURE Membrane Components Module 8 A. 1. smooth endoplasmic reticulum – usually the site for fat metabolism; forms vesicles for transporting large molecules to other cell parts 2. mitochondria – sites of cellular respiration 3. Golgi apparatus – involved in modifying, sorting and packaging macromolecules for secretion or for delivery to other organelles 4. nuclear membrane – a double membrane which separates the nucleoplasm from the cytoplasm . nucleolus – the site where subunits of ribosomes are formed 6. nuclear pore – serves as pathway for the exchange of materials between the nucleus and the cytoplasm 7. rough endoplasmic reticulum – studded on its outer surface with ribosomes for the synthesis of protein FUNCTION D. Variations in Cell Structure and Function d. 1 Prokaryotic Cell vs. Eukaryotic Cell A typical Prokaryotic Cell A typical Eukaryotic Cell Prokaryotic Cells Eukaryotic Cells Pro = â€Å"before†, karyon = â€Å"nucleus† Eu = â€Å"true†, karyon = â€Å"nucleus† Prokaryotes are evolutionarily ancient. They were here first and for illions of years were the only form of life. And even with the evolution of more complex eukaryotic cells, prokaryotes are supremely successful. All bacteria and bacterialike Archaea are prokaryotic organisms. Eukaryotic cells are more complex, evolving from a prokaryote-like predecessor. Most of the living things that we are typically familiar with are composed of eukaryotic cells; animals, plants, fungi and protists. Eukaryotic organisms can either be single-celled or multi-celled. PROKAYOTIC EUKARYOTIC Nucleus: Present Number of chromosomes: More than one Cell Type: True Membrane bound Nucleus:Example: Multicellular Absent Oneâ €“but not true chromosome: Plasmids Unicellular Present Absent Animals and Plants Telomeres: Present (Linear DNA) Genetic Recombination: Mitosis and fusion of gametes Lysosomes and peroxisomes: Microtubules: Endoplasmic reticulum: Mitochondria: Cytoskeleton: DNA wrapping on proteins. : Ribosomes: Vesicles: Golgi apparatus: Mitosis: Present Present Present Present Present Yes larger Present Present Yes Chloroplasts: Present (in plants) Bacteria and Archaea Circular DNA doesn't need telemeres Partial, undirectional transfers DNA Absent Absent or rare Absent AbsentMay be absent No smaller Present Absent No—but has binary fission Absent; chlorophyll scattered in the cytoplasm Flagella: Microscopic in size; membrane bound; usually arranged as nine doublets surrounding two singlets Submicroscopic in size, composed of only one fiber Selective not present Yes Usually no Permeability of Nuclear Membrane: Plasma membrane with steriod: Cell wall: Vacuoles: Cell size: Only in plant c ells (chemically simpler) Present 10-100um Usually chemically complexed Present 1-10um d. 2 Plant Cell vs. Animal Cell Plant Cell Animal Cell Characteristics Plant Cell Cell SizeLarge Cell Shape Rectangular Vacuoles A single centrally located vacuole. It takes up almost 90% of the cell volume. The vacuole stores water and maintains turgidity of the cell. Cell Wall Chloroplasts Cell Division A rigid cell wall (made of cellulose) is present around a plant cell that helps it maintain its shape. Present. Chlorophyll is the pigment that traps sun's energy which is utilized by plants to make food through the process of photosynthesis. This pigment is present in the chloroplasts. Cell division takes place by the formation of cell plate in the center of the dividing cell.This becomes the cell wall between the two daughter cells. Centrioles Present only in lower forms. Plants instead have microtubule organizing centers (MTOC) that produce the microtubules. Centrosome Absent. Instead two smal l clear areas called polar caps are present. Absent Lysosomes Golgi Bodies In place of golgi bodies, its sub units known as dictyosomes are present. Animal Cell Smaller than plant cells Circular If any, there are a number of small vacuoles spread throughout the cytoplasm that store water, ions and waste materials. Cell wall is absent. This allows animal cells to adopt different hapes. Absent. As animals lack this pigment, they cannot make their own food. Animal cells divide with the formation of a cleavage furrow. This is formed as the chromosomes move to the ends of the microtubule spindle formed by the centrioles. Present. Centrioles help in division of animal cells by creating microtubule spindles that pull the chromosomes to opposite ends for cell division to occur. Present Present. Lysosomes are vesicles that contain enzymes that destroy dead cell organelles and other cells debis. Complex golgi bodies are present close to the nucleus. E. Articles about CellBBC NEWS-Last Updated : Tuesday, 20 November 2007, 16:42 GMT Stem cells are thought to hold huge potential for treating a wide range of disease and disability. Scientists around the world are working on techniques to Refine stem cell therapy. The latest technique, nuclear reprogramming, promises to solve some of the trickiest practical and ethical issues. What are stem cells? Most adult cells in the body have a particular purpose which cannot be changed. For instance, a liver cell is developed to perform specific functions, and cannot be transformed to suddenly take on the role of a heart cell.Stem cells are different. They are still at an early stage of development, and retain the potential to turn into many different types of cell. Why are they so useful? When a stem cell divides, each new cell has the potential to either remain a stem cell or become another type of cell with a more specialized function. Scientists believe it should be possible to harness this ability to turn stem cells into a super â €Å"repair kit† for the body. Theoretically, it should be possible to use stem cells to generate healthy tissue to replace that either damaged by trauma, or compromised by disease.Among the conditions which scientists believe may eventually be treated by stem cell therapy are Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, stroke, arthritis, diabetes, burns and spinal cord damage. Stem cells may also provide a useful way to test the effects of experimental drugs. It is also hoped that studying stem cells will provide vital clues about how the tissues of the body develop, and how disease takes hold. Are there different types of stem cell? Yes. Scientists believe the most useful stem cells come from the tissue of embryos.This is because they are pluripotent – they have the ability to become virtually any type of cell within the body. Stem cells are also found within adult organs. They have not taken on a fina l role, and have the potential to become any of the m ajor specialized cell types within that organ. Their role is to maintain the organ in a healthy state by repairing any damage it suffers. It is thought their potential to become other types of cell is mo re limited than that of embryonic stem cells. But there is evidence that they are still relatively â€Å"plastic†. Can they be easily grown in the lab?Large numbers of embryonic stem cells can be relatively easily grown in culture. However, adult stem cells are rare in mature tissues and science is still working on ways to grow them in the lab in sufficient numbers. This is an important distinction, as large numbers of cells are needed for stem cell replacement therapies. Is the use of stem cells controversial? Very. Campaigners are vehemently opposed to the use of embryonic stem cells. These cells are typically taken from lab-created embryos that are just four or five days old, and are little more than a microscopic ball of cells.However, opponents argue that all embryos, wh ether created in the lab or not, have the potential to go on to become a fully-fledged human, and as such it is morally wrong to experiment on them. They strongly advocate the use of stem cells from adult tissue. What is nuclear reprogramming? A new technique, in which cells isolated from skin tissue called fibroblasts are modified by inserting gene-controlling proteins. This chemical cocktail causes the cells to be â€Å"reprogrammed† to take on the plastic quality of embryonic stem cells. Why is the nuclear reprogramming an advance?There are two big potential benefits. The current methods derive stem cells from from existing lab lines, but these cells are foreign to the body, and run the risk of rejection if used to repair or replace damaged or diseased tissue. Nuclear reprogramming can potentially produce a supply of stem cells derived from a patient's own tissue – avoiding the issue of rejection of the cells. Secondly, the technique does not require the creation of , or destruction of an embr yo, and so is not ethically contentious. Are there safety concerns? Yes.Some researchers fear that it is possible that stem cell therapy could unwittingly pass viruses and other disease causing agents to people who receive cell transplants. Some research has also raised the possibility that stem cells may turn cancerous. Work also still needs to be done to refine the new technique. Similar results were achieved by two teams using a different combination of gene-controlling proteins. In both cases the success rate in producing new stem cells was also low. Last Updated: Monday, 8 January 2007, 08:58 GMT ‘New stem cell source' discoveredUS scientists say they have discovered a new source of stem cells that could one day repair damaged human organs. Researchers successfully extracted the cells from the fluid that fills the womb in pregnancy and then grew them in lab experiments. The types of stem cell with potentially the most use have so far been deriv ed from specially grown human embryos. But this has created ethical concerns because the embryos are destroyed in the process. Opponents say this is tantamount to cannibalism. Supporters say stem cells offer real hope in treating illnesses like diabetes, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.Implanted in mice Writing in Nature Biotechnology, the scientists said it should be possible to harness the cells' ability to grow into different tissue to treat disease. â€Å" It shouldn't be seen as a race between embryonic stem cells and other sources † Prof Colin McGuckin Newcastle University However, UK experts had doubts about the feasibility of the technique. They said gathering amniotic fluid from large numbers of women might be difficult. Amniotic fluid contains a large number of cells, many of which come from the developing foetus.The team from Wake Forest University School of Medicine, in North Carolina, extracted these from fluid samples taken as part of unrelated diagnostic tests duri ng pregnancy, then encouraged them to grow in the laboratory. They found that they had the potential to turn into a wide variety of different cells – the hallmark of potentially useful stem cells. They then transplanted them into mice, and carried out further tests to look at how they performed in a living creature. Again, the results were encouraging, with the stem cells spreading and starting to produce key body chemicals in both brain and liver.Bone stem cells introduced onto an artificial ‘scaffold' then implanted into mice also appeared to behave in a similar way to normal bone cells, forming bone even months later. Great interest The conclusion of the researchers was that the amniotic cells were ‘pluripotent' – capable of becoming many different cell types, and that they held the potential for treatment – particularly on the child from whose mother they were taken, for whom they are an exact tissue match. Dr Paolo De Coppi, now of Great Ormond Street Hospital, who worked on the study, said the amniotic stem cells were similar to, but not identical to, embryonic stem cells.He said: â€Å"Our research suggests that for some clinical applications they may work better than embryonic stem cells. â€Å"For example, embryonic stem cells injected into muscle can form teratomas – amniotic stem cells do not do this. â€Å"However, the range of applications for these stem cells may be more narrow than for embryonic stem cells. † Dr De Coppi it might be possible to take amniotic stem cells from a child diagnosed before birth with a problem, and use them to grow new tissue in the laboratory, which would be ready to use to treat the child when it was born.In theory, it might also be possible to genetically modify a foetus' own stem cells and inject them back into the amnioitc fluid to correct gene disorders. Possible limitations Professor Colin McGuckin, from Newcastle University, is researching the use of similar cells taken from the umbilical cord at birth. He welcomed the report, saying that it was ‘thorough' and demonstrated the potential of amniotic stem cells. â€Å"The best thing is to have a variety of stem cell sources to provide the best stem cell for patients. Unless researchers do work to demonstrate there are alternatives to embryonic stem cells, the wider public won't understand that. It shouldn't be seen as a race between embryonic stem cells and other sources. † However, he said that harvesting amniotic fluid presented particular difficulties in many cases. â€Å"If it is a natural birth, the waters break and they are all over the floor, and you've lost them. In this country, the majority of women give birth naturally, which means that fluid could not be collected. â€Å"You could conceivably gather amniotic fluid during a caesarean section, but that process could interfere with the experience of giving birth. † Wednesday, 15 November 2006, 18:00 GMT Stem cells ‘treat muscle disease'A stem cell breakthrough could lead to a treatment For muscular dystrophy (MD), research has revealed. An Italian-French team found transplanting stem cells into dogs with a version of the disease markedly improved their symptoms. Writing in the journal Nature, the team said the work paved the way for future trials in humans. Scientists said it was a major step forward and bolstered the idea that stem cells could be used to treat MD. â€Å" This is the first piece of research that has convinced me that stem cell therapy could play a role in treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy † Professor Dominic WellsMuscular dystrophy is a group of genetic disorders that cause the muscles in the body to gradually weaken over time and mobility to be lost. It shortens life span and there is currently no cure. The researchers, led by a team at San Raffaele Scientific Institute, in Milan, Italy, looked at the most common form of the disease, Duchenne muscular d ystrophy. This condition, which usually only affects boys, appears in about one in every 3,500 male births and is caused by mutations in a particular gene that lead to a lack of dystrophin, a protein involved in maintaining the integrity of muscle.The team had previously seen promising results when they injected stem cells into mice with a version of this disease, but turned to dogs for their next trial because they replicate the musclewasting disease more accurately. Mobility returned The researchers used a form of stem cells, gathered from blood vessels, called mesoangioblasts, which are â€Å"programmed† to turn into muscle cells. They isolated the stem cells from both healthy dogs and also from MD dogs, with the latter's stem cells then being modified to â€Å"correct† the mutated gene. The scientists proceeded to inject these different types of stem cells into dogs with MD.They found that transferring the stem cells five times at monthly intervals produced the bes t results. Overall, injections of stem cells taken from healthy dogs showed the most improvement. Four out of the six dogs who received these stem cells saw the return of dystrophin and regained muscle strength. One dog that was injected at an early-stage of the disease retained the ability to walk, and two dogs injected at a late-stage of the disease had their mobility returned. Of the remaining two, one died early and the other, the scientists believe, did not receive enough cells.The experiment to inject MD dogs with their own â€Å"corrected† stem cells proved less successful, although the dytrophin protein returned. This approach was investigated because, should stem cell treatment move into humans, it would mean patients could be injected with their own cells, minimising the chances of rejection and avoiding the need to take immunosuppressant drugs. The researchers wrote: â€Å"The work reported here sets the logical premise for the start of clinical experimentation th at may lead to an efficacious therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy. ‘Excellent work' Dr Marita Pohlschmidt, director of research at the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign, UK, said: â€Å"We feel encouraged by the work because the results provide initial evidence that we might be one step closer to a stem cell treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy. † Dr Stephen Minger, a stem cell researcher at Kings College London, said: â€Å"This is an excellent piece of work demonstrating significant functional improvement in a naturally occurring disease in dogs that is very similar to that in humans. Although it will likely to be some time before this work can move to humans, it is nevertheless an important study in developing therapies for muscular dystrophies. † Professor Dominic Wells, of the gene targeting group at Imperial College, London, said: â€Å"This is yet another example of the vital contribution animal research makes to the development of treatments for human disease. â€Å"This is the first piece of research that has convinced me that stem cell therapy could play a role in treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy. â€Å"Kay Davies of the MRC Functional Genetics Unit, University of Oxford, said: â€Å"The use of stem cells to treat human disease holds great promise, but the actual delivery of such therapy is thought to be many years away. † The data, she said, changed this view. However, she added that the researchers needed to find out why not all dogs responded positively. Wednesday, 8 November 2006, 16:48 GMT Cell transplants ‘restore sight' Cell transplants have successfully restored vision to mice which had lost their sight, leading to hopes people could enefit in the same way. UK scientists treated animals which had eye damage similar to that seen in many human eye diseases. They were able to help them see again by transplanting immature retinal stem cells into their eyes. UK experts welcomed the study, published i n the magazine Nature, saying it was â€Å"stunning† research. â€Å" This is a stunning piece of research that may in the distant future may lead to transplants in humans to relieve blindness † Professor Andrew Dick University of BristolIf the results can be translated into a treatment for human eye disease, it could help the millions of people with conditions ranging from age-related macular degeneration to diabetes. Once the cone and rod photoreceptors in a retina are lost, they cannot be replaced. While treatments are being developed which might prevent or delay the loss of these cells, scientists are also seeking to help those already affected. It is thought the retina is one of the best places to try out cell transplant therapy because photoreceptor loss initially leaves the rest of the wiring to the brain intact.But previous attempts to transplant stem cells, which can turn into any kind of cell in the body, in the hope that they will become photoreceptors have failed because the cells were not developed enough. Harvest In this study, funded by the Medical Research Council, scientists from the University College London Institutes of Ophthalmology and Child Health and Moorfields Eye Hospital transplanted cells which were more advanced, and already programmed to develop into photoreceptors. ? 1 – Early stage retinal cells are taken from a newborn mouse ? 2 – They are transplanted into the retina of a mouse which has lost its sight ? – The cells implant and connect with existing cells in the eye, restoring some sight to the mouse. The team took cells from three to five-day-old mice, a stage when the retina is about to be formed. The cells were then transplanted into animals which had been genetically designed to have conditions which meant they would gradually lose their sight – either mimicking the human disease retinitis pigmentosa or age-related macular degeneration. The transplants were successful; the photorec eptors implanted and made electrical connections to the animals' existing retinal nerve cells – key to allowing them to see again.Tests showed that the mice's pupils responded to light and that there was activity in the optical nerve, showing signals were being sent to the brain. Dr Jane Sowden, one of the study's leaders, said: â€Å"Remarkably, we found that the mature retina, previously believed to have no capacity for repair, is in fact able to support the development of n ew functional photoreceptors. † ‘Not false hope' To get human retinal cells at the same stage of development, however, would involve taking stem cells from a foetus during the second trimester of pregnancy.But Dr Robert MacLaren, a specialist at Moorfields Eye Hospital who worked on the research, said they did not want to go down that route. He said the aim now would be to look at adult stem cells to see if they could be genetically altered to behave like the mouse retinal cells. There are some cells on the margin of adult retinas that have been identified as having stem cell -like properties, which the team says could be suitable. Dr MacLaren stressed it would be some time before patients could benefit from such a treatment, but he said that at least it was now a possibility. Every day, I sit in my clinic and have to tell patients that there's nothing I can do. â€Å"I don't want to give patients false hope. But at least now, if I see a young patient, I can say that there might be something within your lifetime. † Dr Stephen Minger, a stem cell expert at King's College London, said: â€Å"I think this is important, superb research – it clearly shows that the host environment is important in directing the integration of transplanted cells. † But Andrew Dick, professor of ophthalmology at the University of Bristol, added: â€Å"As with any basic research we have to be careful not to overhype.Remove the Jello from the plastic cup onto the paper pla te. We had some problem with this. The students may need to run the knife around the very outside edge of the Jello to loosen it. There are some suggestions that you might spray the cup with Pam or some other non -stick material. We did not get a chance to try this yet. Running warm water over the cup may also loosen the Jello. 3. Cut the Jello/Knox in half and remove the top half. Turn over the top and set it on the plate beside the bottom half 4. Use the spoon to dig out a hole in the bottom half of the Jello/Knox cytoplasm . Just pushing the food pieces into the Jello causes it to crack and come apart, making for a very messy cell.Place the gumball in this hole to represent the nucleus of the cell. 5. Using the spoon to make spaces and your diagram as a guide, place the other cell parts into the cell. Parts can be put into both the top and bottom half of the Jello/Knox cell 6. Take the top part of the cell and carefully place it on the top. If the cell feels soft, you can put the parts back into the plastic cup, then turn it over onto the paper plate. Then carefully remove the plastic cup. 7. After reviewing the parts one final time, those students who wish to can feast on their cell. Please use clean spoons in case the spoon you were working with fell on the floor or the table. It's Alive, Alive.Background: You will be in groups of three, each with your own job. The jobs to choose from are Contractor, Architect, and Surveyor. Your job, as a group, is to build the most realistic life-like plant cell the world has ever seen. Problem: What does a 3-dimensional cell look like? What are the various parts of plant cells? Materials: Play-doe, food coloring or tempera paints (red, purple, green, blue, white), 1 pair of gloves, yarn or undercooked spaghetti, pepper, plastic-bubble packing, aluminum foil, plastic wrap, pencil shavings, scissors, 1 large knife, glue. Procedure: 1.Before we start be aware that on the final day you must present your cell to the class. 2. After you have decided upon your jobs, the Contractor and Architect will collaborate to design the plant cell. The design should be drawn up on a piece of paper that explains what materials will be used for each organelle. It should be colored the same color it will appear when it is built. Take your time and make a good drawing. This should be completed early on day two. Throughout this entire process the Surveyor should be writing down the order in which each organelle was designed and the order in which it will be built. Along with this the Surveyor must make a copy of the design that the group can use when building it.The Surveyor's job is to basically take notes all the way through, so if the final product doesn't come out as planned the Surveyor can look back at their notes and answer why. 3. After you have finished your design, hand it in and your teacher will approve it. If it is approved, you can start to build your cell. 4. Building should be the role of the contractor. Architect's watch the bui lders to make sure they are doing it exactly as planned. Surveyors should take notes on how it is built and also can assist the Architects to make sure it is being built as planned. It's Just a Phase They're Going Through! Problem: What phases do cells undergo during mitosis? What happens at each phase?Materials: Unlined paper (1 sheet), colored pencils, pencil, crayons, light microscope, slides, cover slips, onion (fresh), toothpicks, knife (used by teacher only), iodine stain. Procedure: Procedure Part A: Slide Preparation Onion Skin a. First take a piece of onion skin off the onion. b. Put it flat on a slide. c. Bring the slide to the leader for a drop of iodine stain. Data Sheet d. Carefully put on a cover slip remembering to angle it. e. Examine the cell under low then medium power. 1. Front f. Adjust your microscope to a higher power. 2. Procedure Part B: Data Preparation 3. Back 1. You will take your paper fold and it in half, label each ox created (front + back) numbers 1 – 4 as shown on the right. 4. 2. Create a large box within numbered box, as shown. 3. Within the large area you will draw the stages of mitosis, make them colorful. 4. Within the smaller box you will write the name of each stage shown, and give a full description of what you see happening.Cells Vocabulary Quiz Directions: Match the vocabulary words on the left with the definitions on the right. 1. tissue the central, essential, or highly concentrated part around which other parts are grouped. 2. vacuole a musical instrument consisting of a keyboard attached to a device that forces air through a number of pipes to produce a wide range of sounds; pipe organ. 3. chromosome storage areas of the cell known for storing mostly water and/or food. 4. chlorophyll (chlorophyl) the ground protoplasm of cells that is outside the nucleus. 5. cell membrane Shaped like a bean, this cell organelle helps take food and manuf acture energy from it. 6. chloroplastA struct ure inside the nucleus where RNA is transcribed. 7. cell wall the mass of like cells in an animal or plant body, esp. as they form a specific organ: 8. nucleolus Thin, intertwined pieces of DNA found in the cell's nucleus. 9. organ the green (in color) pigment found in chloroplasts where photosynthesis takes place. 10. cytoplasm Mostly made of cellulose, this is the tough and rigid outer layer of plant cells. 11. nucleus an egg shaped body that appears green from all the chlorophyll they contain. This organelle is where photosynthesis takes place. 12. mitochondrion The enclosure of the cell that provides the body for all the organelles.Cells Word Chop Worksheet Directions: The table below contains words that have been chopped in half. Find the pieces that fit together and write them in the answer area below. osome vac sues chrom tis cell chlor org leus embrane ophyll eolus ans ondria cell m oplast nucl nuc chlor plasm cyto mitoch uole wall.