Effective Environmental Impact Management through Ecotourism

The world has seen the growth of tourism increase dramatically in the past fifty years and with this growth comes a concern for the cultural and environmental impacts associated with it. Ecotourism is the new breed of tourism based around the concept of nature and cultural appreciation, espoused by many to bring significant economic benefits to the host countries as well as being a sustainable alternative to mass tourism. The aim of this paper is to review the literature that focuses on the environmental impacts of ecotourism. This will be achieved through the discussion of five key areas. First, the multitude of definitions surrounding ecotourism will be examined with a view to identifying the core concepts. Second, the key players involved in the ecotourism industry will be identified. Third, the positive and negative impacts associated with ecotourism will be discussed. Fourth, the contributing factors that determine the level of environmental impact. Fifth, the future of ecotourism and how it can be managed. Finally, conclusions and recommendations for future research. World tourism is growing in terms of number of travellers as well as in economic expansion (World Tourism Organisation (W. T. O), 1997) and as the worlds largest industry (Nelson, 1993) it earns approximately $US 2. 5 trillion annually (Dearden, 1993). Tourism takes on many different guises and nature-tourism is one of these, which, in it's most sustainable form has been labelled ecotourism. Within the worldwide tourism industry ecotourism is one of the fastest growing sectors (Eagles, 1995) and according to a 2001 W. T. O and United Nations Environment Programme study ecotourism may represent between two and four percent of global tourism (W. T. O, 1997). Although this is a relatively small percentage share it is not the volume that is significant but the fact that it is a type of tourism that attempts to minimise the negative effects of traditional mass tourism, be these economic, social or environmental (Doan, 2000). There has been a proliferation of ecotourism-related articles in professional journals since the late 1980s (Sirakaya, 1999) and due to the expansive nature of ecotourism the literature covers a multitude of topics. It is for this reason that for the purpose of this paper I have focused on the journals that are concerned particularly with the environmental impacts of ecotourism. These journals take the form of definition articles (Edwards, 1998; Sirakaya, 1999; Fennel, 2000), articles on particular case studies (Burton, 1998; Doan, 2000; Thomlinson, 1996; Obua, 1997; Nianyong, 2001; Chin, 2000), and articles on impact related aspects from more of a resource point of view (Beaumont, 2001; Tyler, 1999; Acott, 1998). Section 1: Defining the Concept of Ecotourism Before even beginning to identify what environmental impacts ecotourism is having on the environment it is important to clarify the concept of what it is. The problems of defining ecotourism have been debated at length (Blamey, 1997), and there is a tremendous amount of literature exploring the definitions of ecotourism. It can be observed that Ceballos-Lascurain (1983) was one of the first people to provide a working definition (Sirakaya, 1999; Thomlinson, 1996; Edwards, 1998; Fennel, 2001). His definition was normative and he suggested that ecotourism incorporates the notions of travelling to relatively untouched natural areas with the objective of enjoying and admiring the area's natural and cultural manifestations. From that period on the definitions came to include the notion of ecological sustainability and that ecotourism should provide economic benefits for local people, as well as provide funds for conservation of the visited areas (Boo, 1990; Lindberg and Hawkins, 1993; Tyler, 1996). Researchers from the field of biological research tend to focus mainly on the environmental aspects of the definition (Tyler, 1999; Nianyong, 2001; Acott et al. , 1998) when using the term ecotourism in their research papers. While others have not included a definition of what they consider ecotourism to stand for (Obua, 1997; Burton, 1998), suggesting that people reading articles in the tourism journals are assumed to have a comprehensive understanding of what the term ecotourism means. In the recent years research focusing on the definitions of ecotourism have been performed through content analysis of pre-existing definitions, one such being by Sirakaya (1999) who looked at it from a supply side view and identified whether tour-operators in the America's viewed themselves in fit with their own ecotourism definitions and policies. These definitions took a normative and positive viewpoint that can also be seen in Fennels (2001) article. He also used a content analysis method and incorporated the concept of definition alterations over time as well as differentiating between definitions provided by government and individuals (researchers) mainly in the Americas. Perhaps the most exhaustive study of definitions was undertaken by Edwards et al (1998), who conducted a content analysis of the ecotourism policies employed by the government agencies of all the countries in the America's. All these content analyses provide a fresh insight into the definition of ecotourism although they are biased due to the fact that they use very few definitions provided by researchers and governments outside of the America's. A commonly cited definition that I think encapsulates the main findings of the three content analysis studies previously described (Sirakaya, 1999; Fennels, 2001; Edwards et al. , 1998) is one that originated from the Ecotourism Society (1993), and for the purpose of this review is the definition I shall be using. It is:- Purposeful travel to natural areas to understand the cultural and natural history of the environment, taking care not to alter the integrity of the ecosystem, while producing opportunities that make the conservation of natural resources beneficial to local citizens. Section 2: Identification of the Key Players in the Ecotourism Industry In this section I will identify four different groups who have key roles to play in the ecotourism industry; the communities residing in the host ecotourism country/area, the tourists, the tour operators, and the government agencies. All of the above groups are interconnected and affect each other and in turn effect the environmental impact on ecotourism destinations, this will be discussed further in section four. The literature only provides very fleeting references into the nature of the communities that are affected by ecotourism. The main way that local communities would appear to get involved in the ecotourism industry is through being employed in the local tourist activities. Be it through building accommodation (Obua, 1997), guiding (Chin et al. , 2000), or by being involved in local conservation projects (Nianyong, 2001). Yet even descriptions of these activities are very minimal and so will not be addressed further in this review. On a general level of description about the tourist group the authors tend to refer to them as eco-tourists (Beumont, 2001; Acott, 1998), and they are observed to be mainly westerners (Chin et al. , 2000). It is agreed that all eco-tourists have the underlying wish to travel to natural areas with a view to appreciating the unspoilt environment (Tyler, 1999; Beumont, 2001; Acott, 1998) and within this concept is the discussion in the literature concerning the ‘spectrum' of nature based tourists (Burton, 1998). Beumont (2001) identified a range of different types of nature based travellers by suggesting that each eco-tourist is unique in terms of their knowledge of the nature and attitude towards it. This idea can be seen in a slightly different guise in Acott's (1998) research which takes a much more phenomenological approach and segments eco-tourists into ‘shallow' and ‘deep' groups. Shallow eco-tourists are of an anthropocentric frame of mind in that they view humans as separate from nature and that nature is an instrument that serves human ends. ‘Deep' eco-tourists adopt a much more holistic view of the world and view humans to be intrinsically linked with the environment. Burton (1998) identifies these differing types as ‘casual' and ‘dedicated' eco-tourists with ‘dedicated' ones having higher expectations in terms of the quality of the ecotourism experience. Eco-tourism as a product is delivered by the ecotour operators and companies (Thomlinson, 1996). They characteristically have the parent business located in the base country (predominantly western) who prepare nature tour packages and then co-ordinate with the other half of their business in the destination country (Higgins, 1996). The majority are small-scale operations (Blamey, 1995; McArthur, 1994). This enables the operators to practice environmentally responsible practices and to ensure high quality experiences for the tourists (Burton 1998; Thomlinson, 1996). In compliance with the definition of ecotourism ecotour operators ideally should act in an environmentally responsible manner yet many researchers suggest that they are masquerading as ecotour companies and use the term ecotourism as a marketing tool (Nianyong, 2001; Thomlinson, 1996; Beaumont, 2001; Burton, 1998). With respect to government agencies involvement and attitudes towards ecotourism the content analysis study conducted by Edwards et al. 1998) provides the most comprehensive insight into their agenda's. As well as this empirical study the literature identifies them as playing an important role in the management of the ecotourism industry with them being the creators of the policies which control the exploitation of natural areas (Nianyong, 2001; Chin et al. , 2000; Beaumont, 2001; Burton, 1998). This is especially true when the ecotourism activities take place in national parks as designated by governments (Obua, 1997; Nianyong, 2001; Woodward, 1996). The influence they have on environmental impact management will be discussed further in section 4. Section 3: The Positive and Negative Environmental Impacts. The positive environmental impacts are essentially indirect benefits that are derived from educating tourists on environmental issues, and providing economic benefits for the destination country/area to aid in conservation of their natural resources. With respect to issue of education Beumont (1998) cites the writings of Boo (1991) and Goudberg et al. 1991) who argue that ecotourism provides environmental education or interpretation for participants which in turn creates awareness and understanding of the natural environment therefore creating support for conservation. This idea is supported by Chin et al. (2000: 31) whose qualitative study based around a questionnaire completed by 210 eco-tourists who visited Bako national park in Borneo. It showed that â€Å"90% of respondents indicated the importance of learning about nature as part of their experience, suggesting that visitors to Bako would be highly receptive to educational strategies. It is the ecotour operators who are essentially the main providers of the environmental education and Blamey (1995) notes that ecotour operators in Australia primarily set up their businesses because of their personal interest in the environment. Economic benefits derived from ecotourism and that positively impact the environment take a number of forms. Boo (1990) argues that ecotourism can stimulate the economy and in turn generate direct funding for conservation. An example of this is where Doan (2000) cites Wells (1993) who talks about mountaineering fees that are being used for the cleanup of Sagmarth National Park in Nepal, and has led to increased ecological quality. An indirect environmental benefit derived from ecotourism is that it provides an alternative to more damaging types of industry (Thomlinson, 1996). This can be seen in a case study (Obua, 1997) where forest ecotourism was introduced in the Kibale National Park as a sustainable industry instead of ruining the environment through logging. The definition provided by the Ecotourism Society suggests that ecotourism should not alter the integrity of the ecosystem, yet as Tyler and Dangerfield (1999) argue almost any level of human exploitation has impacts on an ecosystem. His qualitative research took the viewpoint of resource management, the resource being the ecosystems that are exploited by ecotourism, and points out that most of the ecosytems that are visited have developed independently of human interaction and have to adapt rapidly to deal with the human incursion, depending on the level of human disturbance. Tyler (1999) does point out that marine environments are particularly susceptible to the development of ecotourism, a topic researched at length by Mason (1998) who, through the use of a qualitative research tool assessed the potential effects on two marine environments and found that predominantly negative biophysical effects occurred due to development of ecotourism. A study on forest degradation due to ecotourism (Obua, 1997) was the only quantitative research on the subject of environmental impact that was found in the literature. Perhaps an area for future research? Other environmental impacts of ecotourism outlined in the literature take the form of general comments about how animal behaviour is disrupted with particular reference to altered eating habits (Burger, 1998; Tyler, 1999; Thomlinson, 1996). Pollution created in the forms of rubbish as well as water and vehicle pollution which is also mentioned in the literature (Mason, 1998; Chin et al. , 2000; Nianyong, 2001) as well as damage done to vegetation due to trampling. An indirect environmental impact that is discussed in some depth by Burton (1998) and to a lesser extent Beaumont (2001) is the fact that most eco-tourists have the expectation of appreciating the natural environment without the presence of large numbers of people. This has led to the exploitation of previously untouched area in an attempt to provide ecotourists with quality experiences. Section 4: Determining the level of Environmental Impact In the literature one of the biggest debates is whether eco-tourism leads to mass-tourism and it's associated environmental problems (Beaumont, 2001; Doan, 2000; Mason, 1998; Obua, 1997). Even if it does not lead to fully-fledged mass-tourism it agreed throughout the literature that an increase in visitors to sensitive natural environments causes an increase in associated environmental impacts. Discussion on at what point the number of tourists is too much for a destination focuses on the concept of carrying capacity (Doan, 2000; Thomlinson, 1996). This is the theoretical limit to the number of tourists that an area can sustain without deleterious effects (Boo, 1990). They also refer to Butler's life cycle model and Burton (1998) cites Thomlinson's (1996) empirical evidence, and argues that once the number of tourists reach a certain level then ecotourism turns into mass-tourism. So as described, the number of tourists converging on a destination is a key factor on the level of environmental impact, yet what factors contribute to the differing numbers of ecotourists? A common idea in the literature is the attitudes of the governing bodies towards the development of ecotourism sites (Thomlinson, 1996; Obua, 1997; Chin et al. 2000; Nianyong, 2001). A common theme is that governments have been tempted by the prospect of making a ‘quick buck', and therefore do not put in place policies limiting exploitation of their countries natural resources, and policies limiting numbers of tourists. Although one country that has minimised environmental impacts through limiting the number of western tourists is Bhutan (Brunet, 2001), yet not totally as they s till allow an unlimited number of Indians to cross their borders, a policy controlled by the government! Nianyong (2001) also illustrates that governments should be instrumental in helping to develop environmentally responsible policies within their country as well as providing funds for research. Yet in the case of Nianyongs' research which was a survey conducted in China, he points out that a lot of ecotourism destinations are in the third world, this is can be seen in the way that most of the case studies on ecotourism are based in the third world. These host countries can't afford to provide funds for appropriate ecotourism development, a point corroborated by Chin et al. 2000) whose study was based in Malaysia. Yet paradoxically authorities were responsible for increasing the number of eco-tourists to the Bako national park in 1988 through tourism promotion. Chin et al. (2000) suggests that this was driven by economic interests. The next area of discussion focuses on how eco-tour operators affect the level of environmental impact that ecotourism destinations experience. As previous ly mentioned it is suggested that eco-tour operators are simply exploiting the concept of ecotourism by using it as a marketing tool. Burton (1998) cites a number of researchers who suggest that surveys indicate that a large number of eco-tour operators cannot be considered to act in an environmentally responsible manner (Botrill and Pearce, 1995; Weiler, 1992; Holden & Kealy, 1996; Jones, 1993). This obviously has serious implications for the level of environmental impact and in Belize supposedly ecotourism companies have destroyed large swaths of mangrove swamps in order to develop luxury bungalows (Thomlinson, 1996). Also although most eco-tour operators are small businesses there are so many of them they can negatively impact the environment through a cumulative effect (Thomlinson, 1996; Beaumont, 2001). As illustrated the number of ecotourists descending upon an area is one of the main factors determining the level of environmental impact Yet there are references in the literature that point out that it is the innate attitude of the actual eco-tourist towards pro-environmental causes that plays an important part in the level of environmental impact that ecotourism destinations experience (Acott, 1998; Chin et al. 2000; Beaumont, 2001). Acott (1998) who discusses ecotourism in terms of ‘shallow' and ‘deep' differentiates different types of eco-tourists in terms of the level to what extent they pursue environmentally sustainable lifestyles. He uses the example of a low impact eco-traveller who stays in very basic accommodation and pursues a minimal impact experience compared to a larg e group of bird watchers staying in a luxury hotel with the expectation of a westernised ecotourism experience. Section 5: The Future of Ecotourism The focus of this section is to identify the numerous variables correlated with the success of ecotourism as a sustainable option for the future, and the recommendations documented in the literature to ensure the long-term success of ecotourism. As it is recognised that large numbers of tourists have detrimental affects on the environment, many of the researchers talk about limiting visitor numbers (Burton, 1998; Thomlinson, 1996; Nianyong, 2001; Chin et al. 2000). Yet how many is too many? Tyler (1999) and to a lesser extent Doan (2000) suggest that the resource base (the ecotourism destination) as an ecosystem needs to be considered primarily, and to define saleable products that will have an absorbable impact. In relation to actually controlling the number of visitors it is generally agreed that government tourism agencies are ones who have the power to implement these controls. Thomlinson (1996) suggests that infrastructure should be limited thus discouraging large scale tours, this was actually achieved in Bako National Park Malaysia, whereby the authorities decided not to build a main road into the park and only allow tourists access to the park via river boats. Nianyong (2001) also suggests that operators wishing to establish ecotourism businesses in national parks should have to obtain licenses thereby maintaining the integrity of the industry. There are also suggestions that as ecotourism is after all a business, causing smaller eco-tour operators (who have less of an impact on the evironment) being forced out of the market by larger operators. These larger operators are seen to be the leading edge of mass tourism and achieve greater profits through economies of scale (Burton, 1998, Thomlinson, 1996). Therefore they argue that government agencies need to promote and perhaps subsidise the smaller operatives and restrict the growth of larger operators. Yet the tension that exists with governments, especially in third world countries, is that they lack funds and by limiting the number tourists they are limiting the economic benefits provided by the ecotourism industry. These government agencies have to realise that although increase in visitor numbers means greater profits, eco-tourists want to experience nature without being crowded by other humans (Burton, 1998). Boo (1990: 96) noted in reference to the environmental effects of ecotourism ‘that tourism, if not managed properly, can destroy tourism'. The issue of educating eco-tourists is the other fundamental tool that can be used in maintaining the sustainability of ecotourism. By creating positive attitudes towards environmental preservation amongst tourists it fosters awareness about the future implications of ecotourism amongst the very people who are the consumers of the product, and who directly impact the environment they are visiting. Fortunately according to Sirakaya's (1999) research ‘according to tour operators, ecotourism also includes involvement in after travel to inspire personal responsibility'. The raises the point addressed at length by Beaumont (2001) that it is the responsibility of the eco-tour operators to provide quality education to the tourists. Nianyong (2001) also points out that local communities in the host destination need to be educated and involved and encouraged to participate in environmental conservation. A point only briefly touched upon in other articles. Section 6: Conlusion Five lines of enquiry were discussed, each focusing on different aspects. However, these aspects are highly interconnected. The first section outlined how research into the definitions of ecotourism had mainly been qualitative. Recently however the research has tended to be functionalist in nature with quantitative studies employing content analysis techniques as a means to attempt to settle the definition debate. I observed definite core themes in the research yet felt as did the most recent researchers did that pinpointing an exact definition was act of futility, due to the global nature of ecotourism. Yet the definition I used at the bottom of section 1 provided the basis of reference for the duration of the review. In the second and third section the research findings illustrated the interconnectedness of the key players in the ecotourism industry and the effects they are having as a whole on the environment. The articles that were found to provide the best insight into the detailed effects of what environmental impacts ecotourism has on host countries were found in Case Study articles, where various regions were examined in depth. Although a problem with these case studies was that they were slightly limited in that they all examined ecotourism activities in national parks. I would suggest future research that focuses on areas that are not national parks, but which do accommodate ecotourism, one such place being Kodaikanal in southern India, a place where as an ecotourist myself, inspired this review. There was also a distinct lack of detailed quantitative research of a geographical nature into environmental impacts, yet research of this nature is inherently difficult due to the complex nature of ecosystems. Section four and five viewed ecotourism and it's capacity to minimise environmental damage in the context of ‘the bigger picture' by pulling together the previous sections. The literature acknowledged that ecotourism is a business after all and that market forces as with nearly everything in this world are driving factors behind whether ecotourism is a success or not in the future. Yet it can be seen just through observing the recent initiation of new journals such as the Journal of Sustainable Tourism that there is concern for the well-being the environment, especially with the dramatic annual growth of tourism. Therefore research into the ecotourism industry will almost certainly continue apace. This is fortunate as Tyler (1999) points out there are a multitude of dimensions and paradigms associated with ecotourism research, ranging from philosophy to ecological economics. To conclude, the future of ecotourism is an uncertain one. Negative environmental impacts have definitely been observed, although in other areas where effective policies have been implemented the environment has apparently not suffered and the sustainability of the industry is assured. There is evidence that supports the theory that ecotourism leads to mass tourism and it's associated problems. Yet, I would observe that the commonality amongst all these issues is that geographical location causes the differing variables associated with ecotourism development and is the deciding factor as to whether ecotourism can be implemented successfully to protect the environment. This is where further research should be directed enabling future ecotourism planners to have a reference point according to their global location.

Amazon: the Brink of Bankruptcy

Since its incorporation in 1994, Amazon’s business model had expanded from offering a simple internet marketplace for books to providing web services to online retailers, storage solutions and a dramatically expanded product line. Nevertheless, despite massive sales the company failed to produce a profit for shareholders and Amazon was on the brink of bankruptcy at the beginning of 2001. If I were a shareholder who received the company’s 2000 annual report, I would have strongly agreed with CEO Jeff Bezos that the company must achieve profitability by year-end 2001. I would recommend that the company accomplish this by cutting costs related to fulfillment and inventory and by increasing revenue by capitalizing on the previous year’s investments in infrastructure. While many expenditures in 2000 were related to Amazon’s efforts to implement its strategy for growth, operating costs had also increased. Amazon’s fulfillment costs were 11 percent of sales in 1997 and 1998, ballooned to 14 percent in 1999, and further increased to 15 percent in 2000. Because e-Commerce was still new and just beginning to establish customer trust, it’s critical that these costs be reduced without negatively impacting quality, speed of delivery or customer service. Because of Amazon’s large scale and repeatable processes, I would recommend a continuous improvement strategy such as lean Six Sigma. Another area of operational cash drain is inventory. After adding multiple new product lines and distribution centers in 2000, inventory management became a challenge for Amazon. In 1999, inventory turnover was 20% that of competitor Barnes and Noble and contributed to negative cash flow in 2000. Amazon would be well advised to use IT technology such as an advanced ERP to better estimate the inventory needed to meet demand without overstocking. In addition to cutting costs, Amazon must increase revenue. While it may be tempting to suggest the company completely abandon some of its less profitable products and international endeavors, I think this would be poor advice. Many of these areas have just been developed and hold potential for future profits in the wake of the past year’s investment. Instead, I propose Amazon focus on their efforts to leverage existing infrastructure. For less profitable verticals such as consumer electronics and home and garden, the company should reproduce the Toys r Us model and partner with established, brick and mortar organizations that can benefit by exploiting Amazon’s ability to handle high volumes while reducing their risks of taking operations online. In return, these companies offer Amazon a stability that other online retailers of the dot-com era lack. It would be critical that Amazon implement these recommendations immediately in order to become profitable in 2001. Amazon. om must prove to Wall Street and investors that it is capable of generating a profit. Through 2000, much of Amazon’s growth was funded by investors and the debt market. The environment generated by the dot-com crash and Amazon’s plummeting credit rating will significantly limit access to new capital. Since the company will almost certainly have to dip into existing cash reserves in the first quarter of 2001 to pay suppliers for 2000 Q4 inventory among other obligations, Amazon must begin replenishing cash reserves through its operations in the next four quarters.

Were respectable Victorians any more concerned about sex than their great grandparents had been?

Before one can answer the question above, two key terms need to be explained: ‘respectable' and ‘sex'. The Victorian climate was such that the term respectable is usually applied only to those members of society with sufficient status to be marked out as noticeable in a rural/urban setting. To this extent, it is perhaps more correct to realise that the question is aiming towards those Victorians of middle to high status than those of the middle and upper classes. More to the point, respectable may mean either those people of status, or those men of high status. Sex' is a term that carries two main connotations, intercourse and gender. Gender itself is a pretty wide ranging issue, covering the role of women in both social life and in the home, as well as increasing political activity from females. In effect, the question is somewhat multi-faceted, and requires a three-sided response: how far were men more aware of women's need and rights in the nineteenth century than in the eighteenth; how did the role of the female change between the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries; and, how did general attitudes towards intercourse and women change in a broader sense? This final question invites a response on how sex was taught, or indeed practised, in the Victorian period. One can see a change in the nineteenth century towards a society that was more concerned with some aspects of sex, especially those carnal. As Michael Mason puts it, the sexual practices of the early nineteenth century experienced a ‘crisis of confidence'. Yet by mid-century, trends of concubinage and commitment meant that traditional (male) practices of prostitution were considerably displaced. As the attitudes of men changed towards a family environment, so did the role of women. Women became not only homemakers but also socially active people, rather than their traditional role of sitting in the background and looking pretty. Trends in literature towards such feminist authors as the Bronte sisters and Jane Austen, as well as strong feminist trends in some of Dickens' literature, were representative of a society considering the roles of women and bringing their rights to the fore. Trends also changed from the passive acceptance of wife beating towards an admittedly passive non-acceptance of such practices. In effect, there were many significant changes towards a society that accepted sex in all its forms far more than a century before, albeit in a more austere fashion. Firstly the question of the awareness of women needs to be addressed more fully. As trends of marriage changed towards a more family based atmosphere, so did the attitudes towards the Victorian woman. A female Queen, for whom the country held a significant respect, precipitated an almost passive acceptance of the female import in society. The Victorian man was, unlike his great grandparents, frowned upon for un- gentlemanly behaviour in the home. A change toward this acceptance of the female role was precursor to the increased role of the male in family life. As L Davidoff has claimed, men spent much more time at work but were also ‘in and out of the house place†¦ helping with the children†¦ taking part in the endless rounds of tea drinking and dropping in of relatives' By the 50s, men were leaving active business to spend more time with family and to allow younger family members to take over the day to day running of affairs, often women being allowed to do this. Men were effectively becoming absorbed into what was previously, and exclusively, the female way of life. Alongside this change was the acceptance of women into such societies as the Rainbow Circle, with some such as the Primrose League being set up for women alone. Thus women were not only allowed a political voice, but were actively taking one also. The ideas of station in the family may not have changed, but they were certainly evened out. As urbanisation increased, so did the acceptance of female by men. In eighteenth century rural England, the middle classes were small, and the sense of community amongst them sparse, with urbanisation came middle class community, which had the effect of introducing a social code by which everyone was socially obligated to abide. Certain trends towards females did not change however, domestics and governesses were still female, yet the number of affairs between the head of the household and his servants decreased rapidly, yet this may be representative more of the austere privacy of the Victorian household which would be reluctant to admit such activities than an actual fall in such indiscretions. In effect, the attitudes towards women changed. They changed in both the way women were treated, and in the assumption of traditional female roles in the household of men. Yet the Victorian woman was equally different from her eighteenth century counterpart. The Victorian woman was a changing force in society. Such occurrences as the Custody of Infants Act of 1839, and the later trend for educating girls at schools (both precipitated women) give evidence to the changing female character. The Custody of Infants Act in particular is representative of the power able to be exercised by Victorian women over their husbands. This Act, which crystallised after the legal battle fought by Caroline Norton to keep her children after separation from a violent husband. This not only shows that the female had a right to her children in equal capacity to her husband, but also that there was an ability for a woman to challenge a man in a court- a legal power not previously seen. It also is indicative of the new emphasis on motherhood, or more to the point, its importance over and above the importance of the male figure. F M L Thompson, maybe over enthusiastically, terms this change in early Victorian female culture a precursor to ‘female rebellion'. He doses have a point however, at the time many thinkers both on the left and right such as Peter Gaskell and Richard Oastler felt that the family and consequently the moral fabric of society was about to collapse due to an increased female role. Changing the emergence of the politically interested female of all classes and statuses complemented this emancipation. Organisations such as the Primrose League were representative of not only a new working/middle class political voice, but also of a female voice. In addition to the having a voice in the political world, and in society, as well as legal rights, the right to divorce was also important. The Divorce Act of 1857 allowed wives for the first time to divorce their violent husbands, which was an important factor in the beginning of women's rights, which became codified legally over the ensuing century. It also had the effect of reducing the number of ambiguous separations, which were against the fabric of the Victorian family life. In effect, the change in the role of women was not huge, but it was significant. Rights within the family increased, as did station in society. Changing attitudes towards intercourse are also important. Marriage is important in this sphere also, as well as family life. One of the most striking features of Victorian England was the relative decline in prostitution compared with the increase of towns and cities. This may be attributed to the transformation towards a family atmosphere, and the importance of sexual relations in the home. This may be attributed towards the Victorian culture of evangelicalism and nonconformity both of which preached ideas of temperance, and the consequent decline in alcohol consumption amongst respectable people. Alongside this came a new awareness of sexual diseases, with many people feeling sufficiently more comfortable with themselves to request treatment. Sex as an act was more considered in the medical sphere also. Books were written detailing every aspect of sexuality, from academic books on ‘the orgasmic theory of ovulation' to Dr Becklard's self-help book ‘Becklard's physiology'. It is true however, that by the end of the Victorian period, bipolar attitudes towards sex, meant that women were portrayed in nature as either frigid or insatiable, and men absolved from blame as servants to their katabolic needs. In effect, although women experienced a change in their roles and their perception, as sexual objects, their portrayal was quite regressive. To this extent sex in terms of the portrayal of men and women was both progressive in terms of thinking and theory (although most often mistaken) yet also regressive in its portrayals of each sex and its consequent categorisations of the sexes, which not until Freud were reversed. In addition to this, for the first time, sex education was taught on a very primitive level at school, and carnal sex was mentioned at a very understated level at home. In effect, trends of sex education were just breaking through, but nonetheless they were there. In conclusion, the Victorians were more aware of sex, both categorical and carnal. Trends towards traditional sexual roles were changed as men frequently took over roles at home, and women often took over their husbands businesses after death. Family trends revolutionised the position of the male at home, along with a willingness to consider women's rights by allowing the Custody and Divorce Acts to be passed through parliament. Moreover, the Victorian female was able to push for such reform as she found a new social and political voice not before experience. This is not to say that suddenly the female was the central character in society, far from it. Husband continued to beat wives, and the Divorce Act didn't precipitate a mass rush for every abused female to divorce their husbands. The female role was still very much subordinate to the male, but it was significantly improved on the position of the eighteenth century female. Trends towards intercourse complemented this as trends in marriage changed the way Victorian men sought sex. Prostitution declined and the social/medical considerations of sex changed in a way not seen in the eighteenth century. Although the austere male dominated society still excused the male from any blame of carnal desire, as compared with the female who was pushed to extremes of frigidity or insatiability. In effect, awareness of sex was increased, or at least more openly discussed.

To what extent did Allied strategic bombing have significant strategic Essay

To what extent did Allied strategic bombing have significant strategic effects on the successful outcome of the war (WWII) Did this Allied employment of air p - Essay Example nge of strategy in the later stages of the war was also responsible for the attainment of the political objectives of the war - to cripple Germany and destroy her continued occupation of territories in Europe, including her attacks on Britain. What Britain was unable to achieve on the political front in arresting German occupation of Europe, was however achieved through the change in the strategic bombing policy of the allied forces. Strategic bombing by allied air power was the decisive factor that led to victory for the allies in World War II. The change in the British war policies and the bombing effort was the direct effort of political pressures. One of these was the growing tide of British public opinion in favor of bombing of German cities, in the aftermath of 1940, when France fell to Germany. Another significant reason for the shift in policy to direct bombing of German cities was the pressure exerted by Stalin on the British, to open up a second front to allow for some relief on the German-Soviet frontlines. However, Clausewitz’s abstract theory of war is based upon the premise that war commanders must decide at the outset â€Å"the kind of war on which they are embarking†2 and politics and war cannot be mingled with each other; policy should not be the guiding force that influences military operations. If one looks at the political objectives of strategic bombing as the twin destruction of a country’s will to fight as well as its ability to produce materiel, the Allied missions between 1942 a nd 1944 were the hammer blows on German industry and morale. Had the Allies not developed their long-range fighters, or had they not decided to move their targets to large cities instead of small, industrial targets, the outcome might have been much different, even with the addition of the Eastern Front. This entailed a change in war policy that was directly the result of political pressures, disproving the notion that politics and war cannot be mingled with

Fire and Building Codes Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Fire and Building Codes - Essay Example It was the National Board of Fire Underwriters which published in 1905 the first model building code. Seeing the blatant unhealthy housing conditions, charitable organizations were established and many of them formed the National Housing Association in the 1900 which pressed for housing reforms. This movement also provided the stimulus for passing the New York Tenement House Act of 1901 which was used as a model for other cities. In 1939, the American Public Health Association (APHA) developed housing codes which served as a prototype as it specifies health and sanitation requirements including room dimensions and arrangements. The Engineering Profession provided the technical expertise for specifying applicable structural design thru the American Society of Civil Engineers, mechanical codes by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and plumbing codes and standards (American Society of Plumbing Engineers (ASPE).

Chicano Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Chicano Study - Essay Example occurs after the Falklands war had ended in favour of the British and the military, dictatorial regime in Argentina had been replaced by a so-called civilian Government, but the political background of this films is also one of oppression. Using women as protagonists, both film portray political events as witnessed through the eyes of a relative outsider, to heighten the impact of the political background on individuals and the power those events had to disrupt and change the life of those individuals. Argentina’s dictatorial regime is portrayed through a woman’s perspective, to gradually reveal the oppression of the regime, as the protagonists move from ignorance to full blown awareness of the horrors lying below the surface. The perspective used by both filmmakers to present the repressive political background of both films is that of individual women who are relatively innocent; they are not directly involved in any of the atrocities taking place by the Government, yet each one becomes the victim/target of the Government’s policies. Since Argentina is largely a state where feminism has not taken such a strong hold as the Western countries, men are the prime movers and shakers of political events and women are restricted and confined to certain occupations and are thus relatively immature and unaware in a political sense. From this perspective, they may actually represent the average ordinary citizen who is relatively ignorant in terms of political acumen and is a victim of political events rather than being one of the perpetrators. Political events form the backdrop rather than the major theme of both the films; but by using these innocent female protagonists, both film makers are able to introduce these events to the audiences as if viewed through the eyes of those protagonists – a gradual dawning of knowledge about the events which are transpiring in the background and the gathering horror as they become involved in the fallout of these

Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Research Paper Example One of the spiders, which have recently become a primary concern of those living in Salt Lake City is the Hobo spider. The scientific classification for the Hobo spider is Tegenaria agrestis. It is in the family Aglenidae. It is not originally native to North America, but was brought over when Western Europeans began to colonize North America. The species was originally discovered in Europe by C.A. Walkenaer in 1802 and then was rediscovered in the United States in 1936 by Harriet Exline. The appearance of the Hobo Spider varies greatly, however there are a few core characteristics, which make it easier to identify. The abdomen has v-shaped patterns on its abdomen which aim down toward the head of the spider. They also have a light stripe, which runs down the middle of the sternum. Considering the size of typical spiders, the Hobo Spider is of a larger variation, usually ranging from twelve to eighteen millimeters in body length. Compared to other spiders, they have very poor eyesigh t and lack the normal climbing ability that many other spiders share. There are also sexual differences, which allow for further identification. The male Hobo Spider has two pedipalps in front of its two front legs, which is homologous to the male gentials in humans. The female Hobo Spiders have a much larger abdomen than the male Hobo Spider and lack the pedipalps (Ethan 4-12). ... After the new spiders hatch, they spend a majority of the first part of their life underground feeding and growing. After they have reached maturity, they begin searching for a mate. The females remain stationary and build their webs. The males come to the females. After mating, the males die first and then are followed by the females. The cycle then repeats itself over again. In the predator-prey relationship, the Hobo Spider does not fall at the top of the food chain. The Hobo Spider has three natural enemies that control the population: the preying mantis, wasps, and other spiders. Hobo Spiders especially have the disadvantage compared to other types of spiders. The first is that they lack the climbing ability and ability to escape from other spiders’ webs, which leaves them extremely vulnerable. The Hobo Spider tends to feed on smaller insects that it can catch, due to the type of web that it spins. It is known as a funnel web spinner. They are typically long in shape and have an empty hole in the middle in which the spider sits waiting for prey. Compared to other types of webs, they are not as thick (Vest). The venom of the Hobo Spider is potent. One important fact regarding bites made by the Hobo Spider is that those made in defense typically do not carry venom, compared to if it was the result of the spider hunting. This is because venom requires energy for the spider to make, so the spider tries to conserve this. The severity of the bite is often dependent on where the bite is located and how old the spider is. Another sexual difference between these spiders is that the male’s venom is more potent than that of the female. The venom is similar to the brown recluse in that it is a necrotic

Life science Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Life science - Essay Example Keeping this technology in view we can assume that moving ahead with such green and environment friendly technologies we will be able to see better, sound and environmentally effective environment in the future. More and more emphasis is given to the environmental effects of every technology and process, this further leads to an expectation that the upcoming 25 years might bring a lesser harmful environment for the living beings. Use of Fossil fuels within the next 25 years will be reduced to minimal (Environment911). Tynan and Print (2008) suggest that in the next 25 years it is expected that technology will be extremely integrated in the devices that â€Å"deliver information and entertainment to our homes and our hip pockets, in sensors that monitor our environment from within the walls and floors of our homes, and in chips that deliver medicine and augment reality inside our bodies.† With such advancements in the technological field, living without technologies would become more and more impossible. People will become highly reliant on the inventions made and lesser physical exertion will be noticed. The physical activities will either diminish or become less popular than they are today. Health problems like diabetes, cardiac diseases and obesity related issues will be more common affecting the overall health of people around the world. However, the vaccines are supposed to eliminate the risk of the most serious disease like AIDS and others (The observer 2011). Modern military environment is already making use of unmanned vehicles and equipment. A considerable improvement can be made by using the BCI technology in the military field. Army and security forces may employ BCI by using it with the unmanned vehicles. The most crucial matter regarding the unmanned vehicles and equipment is the lack of situational awareness and critical thinking about the incident or conditions prevailing at the

Computer Generated Imagery in Movie Production Essay - 8

Computer Generated Imagery in Movie Production - Essay Example These new techniques include the use of motion capture or motion tracking. Avatar used this extensively especially in the development of some scenes which required the performance of the actor to be well captured. The use of motion or performance capture is done with a set of equipment. The first set includes sensors which are placed in the strategic locations where they can sense the motions of the individual. These sensors are then connected to a computer or a colony of computers which analyze the data collected by the sensors and they use this data to apply it to the animated objects. In Avatar, this method was used to capture the facial performance of the actors such as the movement of the lips, the eyes and the cheeks and the data was then used to animate the non-human characters. Motion-capture suits were also used to capture the motion of the whole body. The director of the movie thought it would be necessary to use this technology rather than completely depending on onscreen animation. The actors would wear special suits such as the leotard with sensors attached all over it (Johnson para 4). Each sensor has a computing capability making it possible for it to collect data and send it to a computer which would then analyze the data and create motion data for the computer graphics. In the making of Avatar, unlike in the making of Jurassic Park, the technology was developed specifically for the development of the movie. So, unlike in Jurassic Age where CGI was used as a way to complement the other techniques used to create reality, such as animatronics, CGI in Avatar was developed specially to the development of the movie. James Cameron, the director of Avatar spent over a decade developing this technology. This included special stereoscopic cameras which were able to capture the actions of the actions and effectively transfer this to the computer models such as the Navi  monkey-like beings.  

EU Subsisdies Order Essay Example for Free

EU Subsisdies Order Essay 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Introduction The European Union introduced the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in the 1950s, which was aimed at encouraging better productivity in the food chain to ensure that consumers had a stable supply of affordable food and that the EU had a viable agricultural sector. This was essential in post WW2 Western Europe, where societies had been damaged by years of war and the agricultural sector crippled. The CAP in the pre 1990s period offered subsidies and guaranteed prices to farmers by having the EU buy agricultural products whenever the prices fell below specified support levels, in order to provide a production incentive for food products. This policy was backed by tariffs which offset the difference between European and world agricultural prices in order to prevent the CAP from drawing in large quantities of imports. Furthermore, financial assistance for farming investment was provided to facilitate the restructuring of farming, ensuring that farms developed in size, management and technology, improving efficiency and productivity. (Leguen de Lacroix, 2004) Krugman writes that since the 1970s, the support prices set by the European Union was so high that Europe which would have been an importer of most agricultural products under free trade, was producing more agricultural products than consumers were willing to buy. This resulted in the EU being obligated to buy and store huge quantities of food, and at the 1985, European nations had stored 780,000 tons of beef, 1.2 million tons of butter and 12 million tons of wheat. This forced the EU to adopt a policy of subsidizing agricultural imports to dispose of this surplus stock and production, in order to avoid unlimited growth in stockpiles. (Krugman and Obstfeld, 2006) He further records the CAP as costing European taxpayers a staggering $50 billion in 2002, which does not include the indirect costs to food consumers as a result of higher prices. Government subsidies to European farmers were also equal to about 36 percent of the value of farm output, twice the U.S figure. The EU (European Trade) Commission announced that it would be phasing-out all export subsidies currently granted to exporters in the European Union in 18 December 2005. In this paper, the possible effects of this phasing out of export subsidies will be discussed and analyzed, together with the policy implications and appropriate policy changes that should be made along with the phasing out of export subsidies. A Theory of Export Subsidies Here a theory of export subsidies will be discussed within the field of international economics, in order to analyze the effects of export subsidies in theory on trade and economies, as well as to construct a framework from which the phasing out of the EU export subsidies can be discussed. The application of an export subsidy is just like any other subsidy – the exporters receive a higher price (by the amount of the subsidy) than what is actually paid by the foreign purchaser. Given this price obtainable for the exported good, producer of the export good in question will not sell in the domestic market at any lower price, so, assuming that consumers are prevented from buying from foreign suppliers at lower world prices, the domestic price facing both producers and consumers is driven up by the subsidy. This tells us that the prices faced by the consumer of agricultural products within the European Union are artificially inflated through the use of export subsidies. The application of export subsidies to large and small countries is different in theory. We consider the EU to be a â€Å"large country† with the power to influence world prices (of the export good). In this case, the increase brought about by the subsidy results in a fall in the world price of the export good – which results in a deterioration in the EU’s terms of trade. In the exporting country, consumers are hurt due to the raise in prices, producers gain, and the government loses because it must expend money on the subsidy. Hence an export subsidy must always reduce economic welfare, and will do so to a larger extent the larger is the country since this will result in a greater adverse terms of trade effect. Removal of the EU Export Subsidy One of the main criticisms of the EU CAP is the charge of â€Å"dumping†, or the exporting of goods at prices far below the cost of production, which Oxfarm claims depresses and destabilizes markets for non-subsiding exporters, especially those in the developing world. It suggests that the EU export subsidies should be removed so that such practices would not be so prevalent. However, the EU export subsidies cannot be eliminated without changing agricultural policies which encourage and boost production. Removal of export subsidies without agricultural policy reform would cause a build up of unmanageable stocks of beef, coarse grains and dairy products, which is costly to the Government. The Government would also incur huge losses if these stocks had to be disposed of on the domestic market. Therefore the removal of export subsidies would have to be accompanied by agricultural reform, which could take many forms. An example would be the implementation of production control through strict production quotas to eliminate surplus production due to the export subsidy, stricter than those that already exist through the CAP. Another policy option would be to reduce support prices. The effects of this would be to increase domestic consumption due to the reduced prices consumer have to pay in the domestic market, as well as a reduction in domestic agricultural production due to the lower price producers receive. Hence the need for export subsidies would diminish, as the potential for a build up of agricultural stock would be reduced. According to a study by Stout, Leetmaa and Normile, the elimination of EU support prices, with tariffs to protect agricultural products against import competition remaining in place, the largest impact within the EU would take place in the diary, coarse grain and beef markets. This is expected since these sectors are where the highest levels of price support are found, and for these agricultural products, as domestic prices fall, production and hence exports decline subsequently. This reduction in EU exports would have the effect of driving up world prices, increasing convergence between previously-distorted EU prices and world prices. The same study referenced above also studied the scenario in which the tariffs which protects the agricultural markets from import competition are eliminated. Such a policy initiative would allow the EU to import agricultural commodities at the world prices, in turn driving down the domestic EU prices of commodities, which are currently protected by heavy tariffs. The impact of tariff elimination would be felt the hardest in the markets where import tariffs are the highest, for example, the sugar, dairy, beef, corn and rice markets. According to another study by the OECD, the elimination of export subsidies has major consequences for much of the EU dairy and livestock product markets. As analyzed previously, the removal of export subsidies would lead to falling domestic prices, production and hence exports, as well as higher domestic consumption of these commodities. The study by OECD also documents that unsubsidized exports rise to replace the subsidized exports, as EU domestic price falls and the world price increases. The OECD writes that the consequence of export subsidy elimination for a commodity is an increase in the world price of the same commodity, as pointed out earlier. Here the OECD carries out a more exhaustive study into this effect, concluding that the magnitude of this effect on world prices depends on the importance of subsidized exports relative to the total volume of trade, and might be offset by cross-commodity effects. There effects are illustrated in the diagram below: The OECD also notes that EU meat exports are small relative to world totals and that not all of its export are subsidized. However the EU dairy product export market is a different story, compromising a much larger share of world markets, with most exports being subsidized. Hence the largest impacts would be felt in the diary markets, with world dairy prices increasing as subsidized exports are eliminated. Finally, the OECD recommends that the appropriate policy response together with an export subsidy elimination, which has the fewest market distorting consequences, is to completely abandon price supports, making use of export subsidy eliminations as an opportunity to accomplish such an aim. This is in agreement with the findings by Stout, Leetmaa and Normile. References Leguen de Lacroix, Eugene, ‘The Common Agricultural Policy Explained’, European Communities, October 2004 OECD, ‘A Forward-Looking Analysis of Export Subsidies in Agriculture’, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Oxfarm Briefing Paper, ‘Stop the Dumping : How EU agricultural subsidies are damaging livelihoods in the developing world.’, Oxfarm International Stout, Jim., Leetmaa, Susan. And Normile, Mary Anne. ‘Evaluating EU Agricultural Policy Reform Using the EU WTO Model’, Economic Research Service, USDA, Washington, DC

Effects Of Eating Too Much Fast Food

Effects Of Eating Too Much Fast Food Would you like some fries with that, sir? This is what you hear at any McDonalds restaurant you can come by. You order a burger, and they offer you their crispy, yummy, juicy, famous French fries. Your brain is telling you to take it, but your heart is telling you to stop because it can hardly breathe anymore. People, with their busy schedules, go to fast food restaurants everyday without thinking if it is a good idea to eat there or not. It is cheaper and faster than other restaurants but the food is not good for their health. Despite its convenience, fast food can be very dangerous to us in the long run, which is why we should be aware of the risks and effects that it can give us so we can live a healthy lifestyle. One problem with fast food restaurants is that it is very addictive. Once we eat there, we want more of it because it is so cheap, yummy and filling. Living near by a fast food restaurant doesnt help either because we will want to eat there more. It will be the first place well think about when we get hungry. It will be a good hangout place also with the wireless internet routers added to the place. Another problem is their growing number of restaurants and their advertisements. We find them everywhere; on the road, on taxis and buses, on billboards, on buildings and other places. Also, we dont have to go to their restaurants to get their food because they now have their delivery hotlines. It increases the number of people eating fast food because most people like it better when their food comes to them instead of the harder, traditional way of sitting and eating at a restaurant. Lastly, fast food restaurants provide us food with food content that gives us very little nutritious content. They use very cheap ingredients which make fast food contain high amounts of sodium, cholesterol, fat and calories which can cause certain diseases like obesity, high blood pressure, and other heart diseases. Fast Food Addiction Bringing young children to fast food restaurants for breakfast is a bad decision to make because the child can get addicted to the flavour and taste of the food. Once the child gets addicted to it, he or she will not stop asking for more. The idea that fast food is better than other food will be implanted into their heads and they will get addicted even until adulthood. It is better to make children practice eating more nutritious food such as vegetables and fruits. Fast Food Restaurants and Advertisements We dont have time to prepare a meal with the busy schedules were given now, we think its better to eat at a fast food restaurant instead and we forget about eating healthy. Fast food is getting more in demand as we know it, resulting to the growth of the fast food industry. As they get bigger, more people will come to eat at their restaurants. Now with their delivery hotline, people can just make an effort to call their numbers and the food will be delivered to their doorstep after half an hour. With a quick drive-thru, you get your food in less than 15 minutes or less! They make everything easier and faster for us because they know that thats what we want. We also see so many advertisements around us, whether we are at home or on the road. The advertisements are on the radio, on billboards, on the internet, in newspapers, and in magazines. Its as if theyre calling out to us and putting the idea in our heads to eat their food at their nearest restaurant as soon as possible. They give us easy to remember numbers so that we can call them anytime and anywhere without having to look at the directory book. Most fast food restaurants are now open 24/7 so we can stop by or call them anytime we want. Because its so easy, we get so used to eating at fast food restaurants that we dont need to look at their menus to know what we want. This just shows us that eating there is more of a routine for us now. At about three in the afternoon, we get hungry and the first thing that pops up in our heads is Im craving for McDonalds Chicken McNuggets right now, with fries and an Apple pie! What most people dont realize is that eating too much of it is very dangerous for us because we are not aware of the content. Food Content Fast food can make us very full even at a cheap price. The reason for this is because fast food restaurants use cheap ingredients for their food which contain high amounts of sodium, cholesterol, calories and fat (Childrens Hospital Boston). There are a lot of uses for sodium. It can be used to preserve food, enhance its flavour, and to prevent the growth of pathogens. But sodium can cause very dangerous effects if one consumes too much of it. It can give us an increase in blood pressure and a high risk of heart diseases. According to the American Heart Association, it is best if one limits their sodium intake to less than 1,500 mg of sodium per day(American Heart Association, Inc.). The food on the McDonalds menu with the highest sodium content is the McDonalds Spanish Omelet Bagel with a sodium content of 1570 mg (Fast Food.com). Thats more than the sodium intake one must consume per day in a single bagel. Fats, with the right amount, are good because it keeps us warm and cushions our organs inside our body. Some fatty acids are essential to our body because they are used up for energy and become part of our body chemicals, such as hormones. Fats are classified into two types: saturated fats and unsaturated fats. Unsaturated fats are found only in plant products while saturated fats are found in animal products. Another name for saturated fat is cholesterol. Cholesterol helps the body to absorb what we need, although too much cholesterol is also bad for our body. It can cause heart diseases and osteoporosis because it can thin the bones (Berkoff 124). Calories are released in the digestion and absorption of food. Some food and drinks contain calories. We should not worry about if there are calories in food or not, but how much calories food has. The recommended calorie intake per day for us is 2000 calories. Fast food is packed with very high amounts of calories that one breakfast meal can have up to 1000 calories. Thats half the calories you can take up in a day. Obesity Fast food can cause us a lot of bad diseases like obesity and high blood pressure. Being obese does not only lower our self-esteem, it can also increase risks of hypertension, heart disease, stroke, arthritis, diabetes and some types of cancer. Statistics show that more than 190 million in the American population are obese and the diseases that are related with obesity costs 147 billion dollars every year (Doane). Clearly, something has to be done about this, and not only in America. We should be very aware of the food we eat and the things we do. One way is to not make eating fast food a routine for us by thinking of the possible consequences it can give us. A good idea to prevent obesity is to maintain a healthy lifestyle and exercise daily to use up the energy that we consume. One child struggling with obesity stated that she started gaining weight when her family started buying cheaper foods (Doane). She observed that she became obese when they started to budget their food and to get cheaper food instead, namely, food from fast food restaurants.

Antigone :: essays research papers

Antigone Antigone and Ismene are sisters.   They have two brothers who just killed each other and both died.   Creon, whos very powerful, honored one and dishonored the other.   The dishonored brother being left outside, unburied, and prohibited anyone to cry or sympathetic on the dead body.   Antigone who came from a loyal family could not stand to see her brother died unburied, so she asked her sister to go with her to steal and bury   the brother-body. Unwillingly, Ismene affrighted of the law and did not agree with her sister.   So Antigone steal and bury the body by herself.   When Creon know this, he was very upset and order the army to get the one stole the body.   They catch Antigone and take her to Creon.   Antigone has not affraid of the execution which Creon would give.   Ismene, her sister came and said that she had a share in this matter. But Antigon claims to her own motivation.   Haemon is the only son of Creon.   He has not agree with what his father commands.   They argue about who is right to give commands.   Because Haemon had fallen in love with Antigone so he ran a way when his father gave order to kill Antigone.   But then, Creon orders to take Anigone to a locked-tomb.   A blind prophet named Teiresias go with a boy visit Creon and told him what he did was wrong.   At first Creon did not agree, but then after Teiresias gone.   He realized what he did was wrong so he called his servants to release Antigone.   But it was too late, a messenger came with the bad news that Creons son had killed himself.   The story did not stop there, another terrible news came to Creon that the queen is dead.   When Creons wife heard the news of her own son killed himself, she put violence upon herself and died.   Now Creon opens his eyes and see who is right to judge. He had learn a lesson of wisdom in a hard way. The Antigone has many arguments and it is hard to fingure out which one is the main one.   In the beginning   is the argument between Antigone and her sister. And then the argument between Creon and Sentry.   When Antigone was catch, she argue with Creon.   After that Creon argue with his only son.   After Antigone gone, the phopphet came and argue with Creon. In my own opinion, the main argument was about who has the right to judge people.   Creon said he is the highest and he has the right to tell people what

Love is Blind :: Essays Papers

Love is Blind Do you remember your first kiss? If you’re like most people, you would describe it as a magical occasion. Were you so certain you loved that person that you wouldn’t listen to anyone who said that you didn’t know the true feeling of love? This is what happened to Edie, the main character and narrator of Alice Munro’s â€Å"How I Met My Husband†. [."] After her first kiss, her eyes were so filled with love they didn’t see the pitfalls, twists, and turns ahead. The theme of the story is because love is blind, it can take you on a journey full of unexpected turns. Like Edie, Alice Kelling, Chris Watter’s fiancee, doesn’t recognize that her love life is falling apart. Her characterization seems of a high society type because of her nice clothes- â€Å"a pair of brown of brown [Ouch] and white checked slacks and a yellow top† (775). However, Alice is also described as being â€Å"Nothing in the least pretty or even young-looking about her†(775). Blinded by her feelings for Chris, Alice is quick to judge before she knows all the facts. For instance when she gets upset at Edie for being intimate with Chris Watters. [Frag -1] (Edie of course doesn’t realize what being intimate includes.) â€Å"Girls like you are just nothing, they’re just public conveniences, just filthy little rags† (779). To any objective observer, the lack of love would be clear when after a night out, â€Å" Chris got out of the car on one side and she got on the other and they walked off separately†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (777). Obvi ously though, Alice’s judgement was also clouded over with love’s blindness. Even though Edie and Alice were two very different people, they both succumbed to love’s blindness. Since the story is a recollection of Edie’s life, it only makes sense that she is telling the story from her point-of view as a major character. The audience learns of the narrator’s identity in the following conversation: â€Å"Would you Edie?, Heather said. I said I didn’t know† (770). [They don't know this from the title?] Because Edie is telling the story, the audience is able to gather important subjective emotions and thoughts such as how she felt when she received her first kiss â€Å"†¦those little kisses, so soft†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (778) and when the letter from Chris Watters didn’t come.

Role of Female Characters in Fidelmans Epiphany in Naked Nude :: Naked Nude Bernard Malamud

Role of Female Characters in Fidelman's Epiphany in Naked Nude Word Count Includes Outline  Ã‚  Ã‚   Thesis:   In his picturesque short story, "The Naked Nude", Bernard Malamud uses the female characters to develop, enact, and resolve Fidelman's epiphany and to bring about the protagonist's final, artistic self-understanding. Bernard Malamud, a leading contemporary Jewish author, skirts between fantasy and reality in his almost allegorical short fiction, teaching the reader a lesson through coinciding elements of beauty and comedy.   Venturing away from his usual, inner-city Jewish element, Malamud tackles new challenges of subject and setting in his novelistic collection of short stories, Pictures of Fidelman   Ã‚  Malamud develops his protagonist through a series of six, interrelated short works, each of which may function entirely independent from the others.   In "The Naked Nude," for instance, Fidelman comes to a new, artistic maturity through his attempt to copy the famous painting "Venus of Urbino" by Titian Tiziano.   Malamud's recurring theme of self-knowledge through suffering permeates this short work.   Scarpio and Angelo, as primary antagonists, provide the bulk of this suffering for Fidelman.   It is his own mental captivity concerning the female nude, however, that gives cause for Fidelman's eventual epiphany as an artist and as an individual.   His relationship to the women in the work shapes his ability to capture the form   of the "Venus" and to come to grips with his own self-worth.   In "The Naked Nude," Bernard Malamud uses the female characters to develop, enact, and resolve Fidelman's epiphany and to bring about the protagonist's final, artistic self understanding.     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   At the story's outset, Fidelman is forced to act as janitor and manservant to a group of ill mannered prostitutes under the employment of the padrone, Angelo.   These offensive characters establish the first of a series of mental obstacles in the imprisoned protagonist's attempt to copy Titian's nude.   They   torment Fidelman with cynical laughter and exploit his demeaning position.   His sexual insecurity is established at the beginning of the story when he ponders his violent guillotine sketch, asking "A man's head or his sex?...either case a terrible wound" (Malamud 318).   The limited omniscient narrator, revealing Fidelman's thoughts and feelings, also suggests that he could gain "no inspiration from whores,"   and that "maybe too many naked women around made it impossible to draw a nude" (Malamud   325).   This illustrates Fidelman's early accreditation of his artistic impotency to desensitization.   He soon recogn izes, however, that the way in which he views the "Venus" also interrupts his progress.

Police History

Teresa Kohl Ever wondered where policing came from? In this paper we are going to explore the history of policing and how it developed in America from the beginning. At the same time we are going to explore the deferent policing styles used In America through out history. After we will then look at the role of police In modern times In America. Historical Development of Policing and Styles Most know that America adopted its original policing styles from Great Britain, engendering our ancestors all came from their before colonizing over here.When the first Europeans landed on the shores they had to protect themselves and others from the people that did not want them here. All men and able bodied young boys were in charge of policing up the area. Once everything settled down and everything started to get more situated Into more organized towns. The Justice of the Peace was created to protect the colonies and keep order. Criminals were usually put in stocks in the middle of town to pay their sentence to society. Eventually towns were growing to much and turning into cities where Justice of the peace would Just not work anymore. In 1636 the city of Boston established Night Watch, which idea worked reasonably well as long as the area remained a rural and agrarian one† (Sabbath, n. D. ). You could say that the night watch was a communal and Informal way of policing, Volunteers were In charge of walking the streets and watching for fires or any crimes being committed. When a fire or crime was committed the night watchmen would shout out odd to where the locals would wake up and hopefully take care of the â€Å"problem†.Since the night watch was mostly made of volunteers it usually would have men that sleep or drink while on watch, which would obviously make it to where it would not work. The cities would also use night watch as a punishment for people trying to avoid the military or as a sentence for a crime. Not until 1833 was a day watch implemented whi ch carried out the same tasks as the night watch except â€Å"Augmenting the watch system was a system of constables, official law enforcement officers, usually paid by the fee system for warrants they served.Constables had a variety of non-law enforcement functions to perform as well, including serving as land surveyors and verifying the accuracy of weights and measures. In many cities constables were given the responsibility of supervising the satellites of the night force†¦ † (Potter, 2013). These first police forces were made up of full time employees rather than volunteers or people voluntary to watch the streets. By having a set police force cities were then able to set up rules and enforce them.Each established police force was also able to establish and implement its own standard operating systems rather than have everyone do their own thing. The departments also had to answer to higher government agencies rather than Just them selves. Police in Modern Society Po lice today have a lot more responsibilities than most people realize. Police are not only in charge of keeping order and serving and protecting the people. They are now in charge of protecting against terrorism, and extremists. Police History History of Police John C. Dale CJA214 10-06-2012 James Ward History of Police If one were to ask, anybody in today’s society there would be an overwhelming consensus that police are necessary and a very valuable to keeping individuals and property safe from the criminal element. The earliest known police forces were in ancient China. The persons assigned to this duty were known as prefects and carried out their duty from 771-476 B. C†¦ The prefecture system developed in both the Chu and Jin kingdoms of the Spring and Autumn period.In Jin, dozens of prefects were dispersed and traveled across the state, with each individual having limited authority and employment period. There were different levels of prefects with different levels of authority. In Ancient China, prefects worked for the government as officials appointed by local judges. The judges who appointed prefects reported to higher authorities such as governors, the emperor of the dynasty then appointed the governor s. The prefects oversaw the civil administration of their â€Å"prefecture†, or jurisdiction.Another earliest form of police forces were in the Roman Empire’s military. In most of the Empire, the Army, rather than a dedicated police organization, provided security. Local watchmen were hired by cities to provide some extra security around 63 B. C. -1480 A. D.. Local judges known as procurators fiscal and quaestors were called in to investigate crimes. The Emperor Augustus created 14 â€Å"wards† the wards were protected by seven squads of 1,000 men called vigiles, whose main duty was to act as firemen and night watchmen. Other duties were apprehend thieves, robbers and runaway slaves (http://en. ikipedia. org/wiki/Police). The first formal police agency has English roots and was started in Britain around 1200. From this earliest known formal police agency a term known as â€Å"comes stabuli† derived the first constable and sheriff. It was the constableâ₠¬â„¢s job to hold a particular office, most commonly in the law enforcement division. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions, with each jurisdiction giving a different rank and limitation of power. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police.Within this new formal police agency the roles of bailiff, a person who watches over the prisoners, and watchmen, a person who watches over and protects property, assets, or people were established. The Statute of Winchester in 1285 brought about the British codification of police practices; this helped greatly to form a unified police society. In the 1736 a high tax on Gin was enacted which led to extreme rioting in the streets known today as the Gin Riots. Due to this extreme outcry from the public the 18th and 19th century saw the modern police forces as we most commonly recognize them today created.In 1829, Sir Robert Peel formed what is known as London’s new police, the worldâ⠂¬â„¢s first modern police. Bobbies were metropolitan police member’s and the belief of this agency was to discourage crimes, and preventative patrolling of the streets specifically looking for crimes that were in the act or getting criminals off the street. These new police were known to walk a â€Å"beat† a specific area under their watch that they were in charge of maintaining order and reducing crimes through prevention.Under Sir Robert Peel, the first total uniformed police forces were established wish highly resembled a military organization. As the immigrates transitioned over to America, this type of patrolling was adopted thus leading us to the colonial period of policing. In colonial America during the 1630’s early colonists followed the English style of policing. Watch and Ward systems were established that required the duties of everyone who wanted to act as a law enforcer but offered no pay or training.Everyone looked out for each other and monitore d the behaviors of others. The focus of the watches and wards was more centered around moral and civil obligations, not criminal. In colonial America when a rich person did not want to do their fair share of the duties, they would simply pay someone to do it for them. Philadelphia was the first large city to pay offers starting in 1658, the officers of each city were expected to solve their own crimes, and the Federal Bureau of Investigations was a long time away.In frontier America, the new lawmen had left their cultures behind and had to deal with new and unusual cultures in the West, including unknown and inhospitable Indian territories. U. S. Marshals enforced federal law only. These men had no training or pay and they were strictly volunteer. Due to the new cultures, the inhospitable landscapes and Indian tribes these volunteer marshals faced many adversities. During the gold rush of the 1840’s the earliest mining camps were extremely dangerous places, order and law was needed to the Vigilante Committee became the first organized justice system in these towns.Police in contemporary society are known as COPPS (community oriented policing and problem solving). These men and women are primarily employed to reduce crime; secondly, the other goal of COPPS is to identify community needs such as individuals in distress etc. Talking to citizens on the streets and participating in programs such as D. A. R. E (drug abuse resistance and education). With modern day law enforcement being regulated by two different entities, the U. S. Federal government and the local or state agencies there can be a conflict of interests.The main duties of the local and state police forces are to respond to calls, provide backup, help local and federal detectives to secure a crime scene, aid individuals who are in distress and are expected to be the first responders. The role of the government law enforcement is to oversee the larger picture of securing the nation as a whole. Th is includes the Federal Bureau of Investigation who investigate broad national crimes and will come to the aid of major cases involving local state authorities.This relationship affects modern police practices by helping to share information between two agencies that can learn valuable aspects of policing from each other. Conflict may arise by some of the different practices being rejected by a particular law enforcement force but in my opinion, the role between the two entities is more beneficial than detrimental and helps us to live in a modern society that has effective police forces. References 1. http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Police Reference Wikipedia. (2012). Police. Retrieved from http://http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Police Police History Teresa Kohl Ever wondered where policing came from? In this paper we are going to explore the history of policing and how it developed in America from the beginning. At the same time we are going to explore the deferent policing styles used In America through out history. After we will then look at the role of police In modern times In America. Historical Development of Policing and Styles Most know that America adopted its original policing styles from Great Britain, engendering our ancestors all came from their before colonizing over here.When the first Europeans landed on the shores they had to protect themselves and others from the people that did not want them here. All men and able bodied young boys were in charge of policing up the area. Once everything settled down and everything started to get more situated Into more organized towns. The Justice of the Peace was created to protect the colonies and keep order. Criminals were usually put in stocks in the middle of town to pay their sentence to society. Eventually towns were growing to much and turning into cities where Justice of the peace would Just not work anymore. In 1636 the city of Boston established Night Watch, which idea worked reasonably well as long as the area remained a rural and agrarian one† (Sabbath, n. D. ). You could say that the night watch was a communal and Informal way of policing, Volunteers were In charge of walking the streets and watching for fires or any crimes being committed. When a fire or crime was committed the night watchmen would shout out odd to where the locals would wake up and hopefully take care of the â€Å"problem†.Since the night watch was mostly made of volunteers it usually would have men that sleep or drink while on watch, which would obviously make it to where it would not work. The cities would also use night watch as a punishment for people trying to avoid the military or as a sentence for a crime. Not until 1833 was a day watch implemented whi ch carried out the same tasks as the night watch except â€Å"Augmenting the watch system was a system of constables, official law enforcement officers, usually paid by the fee system for warrants they served.Constables had a variety of non-law enforcement functions to perform as well, including serving as land surveyors and verifying the accuracy of weights and measures. In many cities constables were given the responsibility of supervising the satellites of the night force†¦ † (Potter, 2013). These first police forces were made up of full time employees rather than volunteers or people voluntary to watch the streets. By having a set police force cities were then able to set up rules and enforce them.Each established police force was also able to establish and implement its own standard operating systems rather than have everyone do their own thing. The departments also had to answer to higher government agencies rather than Just them selves. Police in Modern Society Po lice today have a lot more responsibilities than most people realize. Police are not only in charge of keeping order and serving and protecting the people. They are now in charge of protecting against terrorism, and extremists.

Retrospective Essay Essay

Part of growing as a writer is looking back at what you’ve done and seeing how far you’ve come. In order to grow, you need to be able recognize where you started and where you are now. You need to be able to see what areas you’re strong at; as well as, the areas you need to continue to improve upon. Starting out this semester, I didn’t know where I stood or where I could go next as a writer. Until now. I feel like I have grown as a writer even in the short amount of time spent in W131. I have been able to graze the surface of a few of the course goals, but I am well aware there is still a massive amount of room to grow and learn. One of the course goals is to explore and analyze ideas in order to write with a strong sense of ownership. I think that there is a difference between writing a paper and slapping your name on it and constructing a piece you can be proud of and want to put your name on it, so everyone knows that this was your work. With my first paper, I feel as if just completed the assignment and slapped my name at the top. I didn’t dive into the topic and really think about how this topic pertains to me. With the second paper, I sat down and reviewed my double sided entries, reread some of my highlighted points in Alone Together, and tried to really think about how the topic, technology, effected me and what my views were on it. I explored different routes I could take my paper. Analyzed what it would read like if I said I agreed with Turkle verses if I said Turkle’s ideas were silly and shouldn’t be taken seriously. I had to decide what my stance was and own it. I had to own up to my ideas and opinions in order to write the assignment. I think that was an improvement from the start of the course. I was confident when I turned in the second major writing assignment. I felt accomplished as a writer for turning in a complete piece opposed to just accomplishing an assignment. A goal that I didn’t even know I needed improvement on, is writing a thesis  and providing sufficient evidence to support it. Coming into the course, I thought I was proficient in this area. I thought my ideas were coming off as clear, concise, and colorful. After reading the reviews from my first paper, I realized my audience wanted more detail and description. My thesis is available and clear, but my audience was unsure of how I came to it. With my second paper, I tried to elaborate on different aspects to try to fulfill their requests. After my first peer review, I found out that I still had missed the mark. In class, I discussed my concerns with my peer reviewer to see what she thought I could further explain to make my paper stronger. She highlighted of few areas of concern and gave a few suggestions as to how I should go about fixing it. I think that I took her ideas into consideration and improved my paper. I think that although I did improve a little with this paper, that this is an area I struggle with and need to continue to work on. The area that I think I need the most work on is reflecting on my writing practices to improve them. While writing both papers for this course, I have had several different things going on simultaneously. Whether it was the T.V. on in the background, the dogs playing next to me, or even me just trying to eat some dinner, I could never fully devote my complete attention to just writing. This time around, I tried something different. I sat down with no interruptions and focused on my paper. I reread the outline, the course goals, and the fully attempted the planning guide. I tried to utilize the assistance given by the course and really tried to write on the topic truthfully. I had no distractions or what I had previously thought to just be helpful background noise. I think that although it might not drastically change my writing abilities right away, over time this will help me improve upon the entire course goals because I will be fully devoted to accomplishing each and every one of them. The final course goal that I feel I have really improved upon and will continue to improve upon is to shape, revise, and edit my writing in order to meet the purpose and needs of my audience. Starting out, I wasn’t very good at revising or changing my paper. I wasn’t open to others critiques and didn’t want to take them into consideration. But through different class  activities like peer review, cutting drafts, and discussions on free writes, I became more comfortable with the idea of revising. Like I said previously, with my first paper I thought I had revised enough and added enough detail to satisfy my readers. When I found out I hadn’t accomplished that, I had to take that into consideration for the next assignment. After reading my peer review for the second assignment, I really tried to soak in what my peer was saying needed to be fixed. My peer said that, like my first paper, this paper also lacked details. I went home and reread and reread my pa per trying to pinpoint where I needed to add or subtract. In the end, I feel like I add more detail effectively and made other revisions to improve my paper that strengthened it. Growing is a vital part of life, as well as, a vital part of writing. The world around is ever changing and growing. As a writer I need to also be constantly changing and finding ways to improve myself and my abilities. Throughout the rest of the W131 course, I hope to continue to grow as a writer. I hope to continue to work on my weakness and transform them into one of my strengths, but also to continue of making my strengths even stronger.

The Importance of Comprehensive Classroom Management

The teacher is a manger. The organization he or she manages is a group of students from diverse backgrounds and with differing skills and abilities. Some are already eager learners, while others have to be awakened to the joys and satisfactions of learning. Still others have special problems that must be dealt with effectively in order for them to learn and in order to maintain an environment conducive to learning for the whole group. It's important, first, to provide students with opportunities to learn about things that interest them and then, to find ways to introduce the learning that peaks the student's interest. If the teacher can find ways to relate the topic to the student's present experience, and provide interactive learning activities that the student can actively participate in, then the student will gain motivation. The physical environment plays a role in learning too. Some students learn better in different lighting (softer or brighter), sitting at a desk or lying on the floor, with music on or in perfect silence, in a warmer or cooler place, etc. The teacher can establish areas in the room that meet these different needs and styles of learning. Students who learn better lying down, for example, could bring mats to school that can be unrolled for study time. A small tent in the corner could provide the dimmer light some students need. A radio or CD player with earphones could be allowed during study time provided it truly helps the student to learn. The importance of reasonable rules that everyone understands can hardly be overestimated. On the first or second day of school the teacher could initiate an interactive discussion with the students about why rules are needed in the classroom. Let students share a few experiences that happened when there were no rules. Then, ask them to come up with no more than five rules for classroom behavior. They could each write down a rule or two they think is important on an index card, and the teacher could then let each person read what he/she wrote down. A list could be generated on the board. Or, they could start by brainstorming a list of every rule they can think of, then evaluate, eliminate, combine (just the word respect, for example, includes many rules), and whittle them down into three to five good rules. A student with good handwriting or an artistic bent could be chosen to make a large poster with the rules, or a bulletin board for classroom display where everybody can see it. Once the students have set their classroom rules, they are invested in them. I have tried this with grades 4-7 students, and it worked very well to establish an orderly learning environment. The students took the rules more seriously because they had had a say in setting them. It teaches democracy, too. If the students do not think of something the teacher considers important, the teacher can add it to their list and explain why. However, this is unlikely. In my experience, the student's rules tend to be very good-actually, the same rules I would have made myself, only they mean more to the students since they have developed them as a group and the rules are in their own words. Lane and Wehby (2005) report that 1% of school age children have been labeled emotionally disturbed and are receiving special education services because of it. They estimate an additional 2% to 16% of U. S. students who demonstrate anti-social behavior patterns such as defiance disorders or conduct disorders. When a student is oppositional or defiant, the teacher must be careful not to respond angrily and get into a confrontation. Teachers should be aware of their own triggers so that they can control their own behavior. This will help them to avoid a confrontation. It is best to remain calm and to diffuse the student's anger before it escalates into a crisis and/or violence. If a student refuses to do a certain task, offering an alternative choice may help, and it would be a good idea for the teacher always to have alternative tasks ready just in case-alternative activities that are still learning activities. A sense of humor may be a teacher's best defense when students are uncooperative. It is better to prevent escalation than to deal with a crisis later. One way to do this is to reinforce good behavior with praise, a smile, gesture, touch, â€Å"or a pleasant comment when they display unprompted, socially appropriate behavior† (Albin, 2003). Don't wait until students are disruptive to pay attention to them! Teachers should make the effort to notice and praise good behavior and reward it. Punishment is a negative way of dealing with problematic behavior. It may provide reinforcement for bad behavior if the reason the student is misbehaving is because he/she wants attention. If a student misbehaves because he doesn't want to do his work, and then gets sent out in the hall or to the office, then he gets what he wanted, and the bad behavior is reinforced. Rewards for positive behavior, such as time to do an activity the students loves, a toy or candy, or one-on-one time with the teacher (just to talk and visit for a few minutes) makes students happy to learn and to be in school. Punishment often produces resentment, and may make the student hate school. A student who hates school is not an eager learner, so punishment can be anti-productive (Peck & Scarpati (2005). Teachers commonly deal with difficult students by restricting them-the more intense the student's needs are, the more restriction–such as placing a child's desk toward the wall (Duhaney, 2003). However, a needs-based approach is more positive and effective and suggests recourse to greater resources. Perhaps the child needs to learn appropriate ways to handle anger and aggression, more problem-solving skills, or receive feedback for appropriate behaviors. If the child has trouble with self-control, instructional strategies could include modeling, role-play, and feedback to help him stay out of fights, solve problems, express anger appropriately, and deal with frustration. Without intervention students with or at risk for behavioral disorders are liable to experience many negative outcomes both in school and outside such as impaired social relationships, academic underachievement, and discipline problems (Lane, Wehby, & Barton-Arwood, 2005). Social skills interventions have been used and evaluated for more than 25 years, but their efficacy continues to be questioned. Researchers suggest that social skills training makes only a modest impact; however, most educators agree that not doing anything is worse. The ability to adapt and modify instruction is crucial to effectively educating these children. Before starting an intervention, it would be wise to gather information about the student, such as why, where and when he uses the particular behavior. Identify what social, affective, cultural, or contextual elements might be at work, and analyze the information. List the specific behaviors and describe where when and with whom the behavior is likely to occur. What consequences are usually administered? Keep anecdotal records so you can look for patterns and what triggers the behavior. Then figure out what strategies might be effective to avoid the behavior; for example, teach self-talk to students who are impulsive and organize the classroom environment to help hyperactive students. Consider making a contract with the student. Develop personal schedules for students who have difficulty making good use of their time. Consider implementing a token economy in which the teacher systematically awards or withdraws tokens or points for appropriate or inappropriate behavior. The student can redeem the tokens for something he wants such as privileges, desired activities, or food. Conflict resolution is a way to help students express their feelings and communicate better with others. We tend to see conflict as negative because of the disruption it causes in the classroom; however, conflict is neither good nor bad but simply a fact of life. According to Vollmer, Drook and Harned (1999) â€Å"Learning through social conflict is important to all human development† (p. 122). As children develop cognitive reasoning skills, they begin to see that others have perspectives, needs, and desires too. Early training with role plays and simulations will help them develop the social skills they need to maintain relationships. Students can be taught a process for resolution of conflict. One way is to use a large visual of a traffic light which shows the steps to conflict resolution and includes the words Cool down and Ground Rules (RED), Tell your side and Listen (YELLOW), and Brainstorm and Ideas (GREEN). A turn arrow at the bottom has the words Choose solution, and do it and Shake hands. Teachers report that students take more responsibility and often initiate conflict-resolution strategies on their own after learning and practicing this system (Vollmer, Drook & Harned, 1999, p. 124). The teacher should provide a quiet place in the room where students can work things out when they have a conflict. Once they have mastered a structured routine for conflict management, it will be unnecessary for the teacher to get involved. Classroom management is a challenge that requires the teacher to put his or her heart into it. An ancient Chinese proverb states that a student only learns from a teacher who loves home. In other words, a child needs to feel accepted and that the teacher cares about him or her. All children have basic needs–physical needs, safety needs, and social needs–that must be met before they can feel free to learn and develop to their true potential. If their needs are met and a positive learning environment is created, they will learn and be eager to participate. Therefore, the teacher's goal should be, not to fill their heads with specific information, but to make learning possible in a calm, structured, safe, and flexible environment and help them gain the skills to go after knowledge. The Importance of Comprehensive Classroom Management The teacher is a manger. The organization he or she manages is a group of students from diverse backgrounds and with differing skills and abilities. Some are already eager learners, while others have to be awakened to the joys and satisfactions of learning. Still others have special problems that must be dealt with effectively in order for them to learn and in order to maintain an environment conducive to learning for the whole group. It's important, first, to provide students with opportunities to learn about things that interest them and then, to find ways to introduce the learning that peaks the student's interest. If the teacher can find ways to relate the topic to the student's present experience, and provide interactive learning activities that the student can actively participate in, then the student will gain motivation. The physical environment plays a role in learning too. Some students learn better in different lighting (softer or brighter), sitting at a desk or lying on the floor, with music on or in perfect silence, in a warmer or cooler place, etc. The teacher can establish areas in the room that meet these different needs and styles of learning. Students who learn better lying down, for example, could bring mats to school that can be unrolled for study time. A small tent in the corner could provide the dimmer light some students need. A radio or CD player with earphones could be allowed during study time provided it truly helps the student to learn. The importance of reasonable rules that everyone understands can hardly be overestimated. On the first or second day of school the teacher could initiate an interactive discussion with the students about why rules are needed in the classroom. Let students share a few experiences that happened when there were no rules. Then, ask them to come up with no more than five rules for classroom behavior. They could each write down a rule or two they think is important on an index card, and the teacher could then let each person read what he/she wrote down. A list could be generated on the board. Or, they could start by brainstorming a list of every rule they can think of, then evaluate, eliminate, combine (just the word respect, for example, includes many rules), and whittle them down into three to five good rules. A student with good handwriting or an artistic bent could be chosen to make a large poster with the rules, or a bulletin board for classroom display where everybody can see it. Once the students have set their classroom rules, they are invested in them. I have tried this with grades 4-7 students, and it worked very well to establish an orderly learning environment. The students took the rules more seriously because they had had a say in setting them. It teaches democracy, too. If the students do not think of something the teacher considers important, the teacher can add it to their list and explain why. However, this is unlikely. In my experience, the student's rules tend to be very good-actually, the same rules I would have made myself, only they mean more to the students since they have developed them as a group and the rules are in their own words. Lane and Wehby (2005) report that 1% of school age children have been labeled emotionally disturbed and are receiving special education services because of it. They estimate an additional 2% to 16% of U. S. students who demonstrate anti-social behavior patterns such as defiance disorders or conduct disorders. When a student is oppositional or defiant, the teacher must be careful not to respond angrily and get into a confrontation. Teachers should be aware of their own triggers so that they can control their own behavior. This will help them to avoid a confrontation. It is best to remain calm and to diffuse the student's anger before it escalates into a crisis and/or violence. If a student refuses to do a certain task, offering an alternative choice may help, and it would be a good idea for the teacher always to have alternative tasks ready just in case-alternative activities that are still learning activities. A sense of humor may be a teacher's best defense when students are uncooperative. It is better to prevent escalation than to deal with a crisis later. One way to do this is to reinforce good behavior with praise, a smile, gesture, touch, â€Å"or a pleasant comment when they display unprompted, socially appropriate behavior† (Albin, 2003). Don't wait until students are disruptive to pay attention to them! Teachers should make the effort to notice and praise good behavior and reward it. Punishment is a negative way of dealing with problematic behavior. It may provide reinforcement for bad behavior if the reason the student is misbehaving is because he/she wants attention. If a student misbehaves because he doesn't want to do his work, and then gets sent out in the hall or to the office, then he gets what he wanted, and the bad behavior is reinforced. Rewards for positive behavior, such as time to do an activity the students loves, a toy or candy, or one-on-one time with the teacher (just to talk and visit for a few minutes) makes students happy to learn and to be in school. Punishment often produces resentment, and may make the student hate school. A student who hates school is not an eager learner, so punishment can be anti-productive (Peck & Scarpati (2005). Teachers commonly deal with difficult students by restricting them-the more intense the student's needs are, the more restriction–such as placing a child's desk toward the wall (Duhaney, 2003). However, a needs-based approach is more positive and effective and suggests recourse to greater resources. Perhaps the child needs to learn appropriate ways to handle anger and aggression, more problem-solving skills, or receive feedback for appropriate behaviors. If the child has trouble with self-control, instructional strategies could include modeling, role-play, and feedback to help him stay out of fights, solve problems, express anger appropriately, and deal with frustration. Without intervention students with or at risk for behavioral disorders are liable to experience many negative outcomes both in school and outside such as impaired social relationships, academic underachievement, and discipline problems (Lane, Wehby, & Barton-Arwood, 2005). Social skills interventions have been used and evaluated for more than 25 years, but their efficacy continues to be questioned. Researchers suggest that social skills training makes only a modest impact; however, most educators agree that not doing anything is worse. The ability to adapt and modify instruction is crucial to effectively educating these children. Before starting an intervention, it would be wise to gather information about the student, such as why, where and when he uses the particular behavior. Identify what social, affective, cultural, or contextual elements might be at work, and analyze the information. List the specific behaviors and describe where when and with whom the behavior is likely to occur. What consequences are usually administered? Keep anecdotal records so you can look for patterns and what triggers the behavior. Then figure out what strategies might be effective to avoid the behavior; for example, teach self-talk to students who are impulsive and organize the classroom environment to help hyperactive students. Consider making a contract with the student. Develop personal schedules for students who have difficulty making good use of their time. Consider implementing a token economy in which the teacher systematically awards or withdraws tokens or points for appropriate or inappropriate behavior. The student can redeem the tokens for something he wants such as privileges, desired activities, or food. Conflict resolution is a way to help students express their feelings and communicate better with others. We tend to see conflict as negative because of the disruption it causes in the classroom; however, conflict is neither good nor bad but simply a fact of life. According to Vollmer, Drook and Harned (1999) â€Å"Learning through social conflict is important to all human development† (p. 122). As children develop cognitive reasoning skills, they begin to see that others have perspectives, needs, and desires too. Early training with role plays and simulations will help them develop the social skills they need to maintain relationships. Students can be taught a process for resolution of conflict. One way is to use a large visual of a traffic light which shows the steps to conflict resolution and includes the words Cool down and Ground Rules (RED), Tell your side and Listen (YELLOW), and Brainstorm and Ideas (GREEN). A turn arrow at the bottom has the words Choose solution, and do it and Shake hands. Teachers report that students take more responsibility and often initiate conflict-resolution strategies on their own after learning and practicing this system (Vollmer, Drook & Harned, 1999, p. 124). The teacher should provide a quiet place in the room where students can work things out when they have a conflict. Once they have mastered a structured routine for conflict management, it will be unnecessary for the teacher to get involved. Classroom management is a challenge that requires the teacher to put his or her heart into it. An ancient Chinese proverb states that a student only learns from a teacher who loves home. In other words, a child needs to feel accepted and that the teacher cares about him or her. All children have basic needs–physical needs, safety needs, and social needs–that must be met before they can feel free to learn and develop to their true potential. If their needs are met and a positive learning environment is created, they will learn and be eager to participate. Therefore, the teacher's goal should be, not to fill their heads with specific information, but to make learning possible in a calm, structured, safe, and flexible environment and help them gain the skills to go after knowledge.