Saturday, August 31, 2019

Environmental Risk Perception Paper Psy 460 Essay

Environmental Risk Perception Paper The following paper will base on my chosen articles on our climate. I will provide a summary of each article. I will also compare and contrast the risk perceptions that are presented in each article I will identify any environmental stressors that are related to the environmental risk. It will be concluded with a discussion of my own risk perception of the issue. By the end of the paper you will be familiar with different affects that the environment has on us and risks that we take every day just breathing. Environmental Risk Factors Climate Change Climate change is it dangerous? This is a question many have been asking for years. As we know global warming has become a major concern for our environment for the past few years and it seems that is getting worse. In America the study of climate change have become very high risk for at least some reasons. We may not know this but these reason being that the United States plays a big role in the world’s population stated by the (U.S. Census Bureau, 2005), it is said that we use the most intake of carbon dioxide, as we know this is considered to be the heat-trapping gas, alone accounting for nearly a certain amount of the globe . Humans breath a certain amount of tons of carbon each year. (Marland et al., 2003). We have also reason to believe that in Washington D.C. the President and Congress have been fighting against each other with much of the world regarding the reality of all these of all the testing, seriousness, and as to how all of these climate change have come about within these years. During studies public risk has been very high, there is a fear that in the future global climate change on human health may cause serious illnesses even deaths for example skin cancer; this climate change will indeed change the way people live which would mean our drinking water would lessen, this will cause serious disease; possibility of losing human nature and this will cause to world to be affected drastically. Article Two Climate Change The second article is about another issue that is causing our climate to change that can be of higher risk that would be the ozone layer. Our ozone layer seems to be dimensioning it’s been said that pollution gases. Scientist have found evidence that increased pollutants in the air this study shows this comes from cars factories and these are some examples. Some of the sicknesses that occur because of this and our ozone layer not being protected could be bronchial asthma as we know this is a syndrome which can cause shortness of breath and make it difficult for one to breath, the air pollutants on health have been the focus of attention on this factor. During the years they have conducted many experimental studies these studies have shown that even the gas from diesel exhaust have been causing the upper respiratory disease and is able to control the immune system response by increasing bad side effects with animals and humans. There have been studies and during these studies that have been done they have found evidence that air pollutants can work with in the atmosphere or on human airways, this is a very strong effect on the human body. In fact, if the airways start the inflammation some pollutants start to overcome the chest making it hard to breath which would lead to allergen-induced responses. But, air pollution and with the changes in the climate would cause a human to have an effect this would be an allergic response by influencing the percentage rate of the pollen production by allergenic plants. Even though this has been proven many individuals in 2009 still didn’t believe that climate change was the cause of all these illnesses and still did not believe all the facts such as global warming, when carbon dioxide is released in the air which is the combustion of fossil fuels. Environmental Stressors The environmental stressor of climate change have two primary components of this would include (1) temperature elevation with concomitant weather instability and extremes and (2) rising sea-level. These changes may result in the increase of heat waves starting and damaging air pollution, soil moisture would become less, higher weather events for example tornados and hurricans, and coastal inundation (IPCC 1992). More people will have health effects this can include heat related strokes; (2) infectious diseases, this means being beaten by an insect; (3) people will become ill because if food shortage; and (4) because of weather disasters there will be no where for people to live so people will live in streets and public places and this will cause sicknesses to rise because of unhealthy conditions. It seems that the ozone layer is depleting and this is causing many health issues to humans. The direct health impacts from ozone depletion, which leads to increased UV radiation, include ca ncer, asthma many health hazards. Conclusion In conclusion I must say my own perception on environmental risk perception to climate change is very dangerous. It makes me think that some day we will not be able to walk out of the house because the sun would have no protection since everything in the air is not healthy it just keeps eating at it. During my own studies and years of watching the news I have even heard that hairspray is killing our ozone layer. Living in New York City I believe that our pollution plays a big part in the air quality especially with warm weather the pollution is so bad you cannot even breath when its 90 degrees outside. What I have learned during this study is that nothing will keep us safe I know people recycle and everyone is trying to go green but will this save the earth for real I don’t think so we will be walking with masks one day just breath clean fresh air. References: Anthony A. Leiserowitz Risk Analysis, Vol. 25, No. 6, 2005 Risk Analysis: An International Journal December 1, 2005 Risk Analysis: An Official Publication Of The Society For Risk Analysis Date: October 1, 2010 Travis William Reynolds, Ann Bostrom, Daniel Read, and M. Granger Morgan3 Risk Analysis, Vol. 30, No. 10, 2010 U.S. Census Bureau, 2005 Citations: Emerging Health Threats Journal 2011. # 2011 Rodney R. Dietert

Friday, August 30, 2019

A Newly Proposed Taxation Policy: The Fair Tax Act of 2007

Americans For Fair Taxation is a private, non-profit research and advocacy group that assembled a group of American economists to work on a federal tax code that would be â€Å"simpler,† â€Å"fairer,† and â€Å"more progressive† than before.The objective of the team was to design a new tax system that would be â€Å"revenue-neutral† and capable of truly unleashing the potential of the economy.   The new tax system was also meant to help in the â€Å"â€Å"new wealth creation for every working American.†Ã‚   The result was the H.R. 25: The Fair Tax Act of 2007 (â€Å"Executive Summary,† 2007).The Fair Tax Act of 2007 is today a proposal with the Congress.   As of the last day of the year 2008, the Act is meant to repeal both income taxes as well as payroll taxes.   According to the proposal, no individual’s income will be taxed after the implementation of the new Act.   â€Å"Capital gains taxes† in addition to the â₠¬Å"alternative minimum tax† would also be repealed.The Act includes payroll taxes of individuals as well as employers.   Medicare, federal unemployment taxes, and Social Security, would similarly be repealed when they are a part of the payroll taxes.The Fair Tax Act of 2007 further mentions corporate income taxes, gift and estate taxes, and the self-employment taxes to be repealed, thereby making it easier for Americans to enjoy their earnings and their wealth without paying the price of prosperity in taxes (â€Å"The Fair Tax,† 2007).The Fair Tax has been proposed as a replacement for the above mentioned taxes as of January 1, 2009.   The new tax is actually explained as a â€Å"national retail sales tax on all goods and services sold at retail.†The fact that it is still a tax for the government to generate revenues through, the new tax is meant to be â€Å"revenue-neutral,† which suggests that the new tax would have to be set at a level that is neces sary to generate government revenues the present sources of which would have to be replaced through it (â€Å"The Fair Tax†).The new tax would act as a 23 percent sales tax on all goods and services bought through retailers for personal consumption.   The exports of the United States will not be taxed on the principles of the Fair Tax.Similarly, business purchases of inputs are not to be taxed under the newly proposed taxation policy.   Other items exempted include used or old goods, investments, savings, plus education expenses including tuition fees (â€Å"The Fair Tax†).

Thursday, August 29, 2019

CBA Leads Bank Share Price Correction

The article is entitled â€Å"CBA leads bank share price correction† is analysed in this report. The article primarily discuss how share price has plunged deeper in the major banks into correction territory following a weak trading update arising from Commonwealth Bank disclosing increasing costs, narrowing margin of profit and escalating loan losses. It indicates that CBA has agonized its sharpest day-to-day share price plunged ever since global financial crisis. CBA’s shared price plummeted 5.9% to 82.98 dollars culminating to a further worsened investor sentiments. This followed a third-quarter unchanged profit report by CBA remain constant at $2.2 billon. This plunged has adversely affected CBA’s competitors including Westpac, NAB, and ANZ Banking Group. The article concludes that the next immediate teething problem for the sector is profit result for NAB merged with 3 big 4 trading ex-dividend over the following week. The accounting theory used in this analysis is Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH)-semi strong form (SSF). EMH describes an investment theory that posits it is not possible to ‘beat the market† due to stock market efficiency that makes available share prices to incorporate as well as reflect every relevant information. Stock trade always at their fair value on stock exchanges which make it an impossibility for investors to buy undervalued stocks and sell stocks for exaggerated prices (Chi, Tripe & Young, 2014). Hence, it remains an impossibility to outperform the entire market via expert stock selection and market timing. The investor can solely likely to acquire higher returns through the purchase of riskier investments. SSF implies every public information is computed into current share price of stock implying neither fundamental nor technical examinations can be utilized to accomplish superior returns. Hence, solely information hidden from the public is suggested to benefit the investors looking to earn abnormal ROI as every other information remains accounted. There is a direct relationship between the share price plunge and the information availed to the public by the Commonwealth Bank (CB) which is what SSF posited above. The plunge in shares in leading banks plunged deeper into correction territory only following a weak trading update given by the CB. This indicates that the public had the information that costs were rising, profit margins were narrowing and the loans losses were rising. According to SSF, every information available to the public is accounted for in the stock prices and no amount of technical or fundamental analysis gives superior returns. This describes why the investors used CB’s update to punish the shares in CBA thereby plunging 5.9%. Indeed, CLSA Brian Johnson confirmed this hypothesis by stating that investors had already seized on the bad news of CBA relating to margins, bad loans and costs. Moreover, the David Ellis confirmed the SSF hypothesis by stating that the investors used the information thereby flocking to banks to exploit their huge dividends as bank shares were being sold off due to increasing yields hence ‘yield trade’. It is also believed that investors could be starting to question whether the fundamentals could justify the hideously expensive valuation, anchored on measures like price-to-earnings as well as price-to-book ratios. This means that the investors are aware of the SSF hypothesis that takes into calculation all public information into present stock share price and hence fundamental analysis cannot be applied to achieve gains by banks (Leuthold & Hartmann, 2013). Due to EMH, the investors behaved in the manner above because they believed that the market remains ubiquitous and, therefore, no quantity of analysis could assist them achieve alpha returns (Groenewold, 2012). Thus, because market is a reflection of its participants, the market is, therefore, all knowing, and becomes unbeatable. It knows the right value to assign to a given stock as stated by EMH. This explains the above plunges in bank share prices (Aitken, Almeida & McInish, 2013).   Ã‚  Ã‚   From the above information, it has been demonstrated that the share prices have extremely plunged due to the update by the Commonwealth Bank. This supports the EMH-semi strong form which posit that all publicly available information is accounted for and hence no degree of technical or fundamental analysis can help investors acquire alpha returns (Schenone, 2014). Aitken, M., Almeida, N., & McInish, T. H. (2013). Financial analysts and price discovery. Accounting & Finance, 48(1), 1-24. Chi, J., Tripe, D. W., & Young, M. R. (2014). Do exchange rates affect the stock performance of Australian Banks?. Available at SSRN 965599. Groenewold, N. (2012). Share market efficiency: tests using daily data for Australia and New Zealand. Applied Financial Economics, 7(6), 645-657. Leuthold, R. M., & Hartmann, P. A. (2013). A semi-strong form evaluation of the efficiency of the hog futures market. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 61(3), 482-489. Schenone, C. (2014). The effect of banking relationships on the firm's IPO underpricing. The Journal of Finance, 59(6), 2903-2958.

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Sexually transmitted diseases in teens Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Sexually transmitted diseases in teens - Essay Example More than 30 new cases of STDs are diagnosis each day in Florida. Accordingly, 66 percent of the diagnosed cases involve peopled aged between 15 to 24 years. The County has a high sexual activity among teens and more than 50 percent of the high schools teens are sexually active. 16 percent of the teenagers have multiple sex partners while 30 percent do not use condom during condoms during sexual intercourse (National Coalition of STD Directors, 2013). Surprisingly, 93 percent of the teenagers surveyed did not use any birth control methods while about 20 percent did not receive any formal education related to prevention of sexually transmitted diseases (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2013). Sexual activity among teens has increased the vulnerability to STDs, emotional distress and unwanted pregnancies. Miami-Dade STDs prevention efforts entail clinical services, surveillance, diagnosis and treatment of the reportable cases and community relations. The health department has gone further to implement awareness, events and research initiatives in curtailing new infections. There is also testing outside the public clinics, referrals and partners services for the infected persons (National Coalition of STD Directors, 2013). ... rch and other partner organizations in promoting regular HIV testing among the population, improving the public awareness on HIV and reducing the new of new infections (Heath, 2013). This initiative has enabled unique populations access HIV testing and reduce the stigma and discrimination against the HIV-positive individuals. Antiretroviral access training and peer education programs have enhanced the positive response towards testing and prevention of STDs (Heath, 2013). Target approach and nursing interventions Miami-Dade Sexually transmitted diseases (STD) control and prevention aims at reducing the incidence of STDs through screening, testing and diagnosis. The program also ensures prophylactic treatment and offers counseling to sexual partners. Surveillance efforts are conducted in order to ensure reportable STDs to either private or public health care providers. The private and public laboratories, health care providers and physicians are expected by the law to report positive STDs such as HIV and Syphilis to the MDCHD on daily basis (Heath, 2013). These cases are supposed to be reported to the State Health Office and Centers of Diseases Control and Prevention. In 2008, Miami-Dade County improved youth access to prevention and treatment services through providing school-based STD screening in public high schools (Heath, 2013). The nursing interventions have ensured that HIV-positive men especially White, Black and Hispanic men who have sex with other men are informed and screened for rectal gonorrhea and Chlamydia by the health care providers. This nursing intervention is common in areas such as Little Haiti, South Beach and Liberty City (Heath, 2013). Accordingly, HIV-positive pregnant women living in areas such as South Beach and Overtown are provided with

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Psychologist's Reasons to Know Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Psychologist's Reasons to Know - Essay Example To surmount the past, you must know the past." Since one is determined to become a psychologist, I agree with Rothko’s statement and identify the need to know two specialized endeavors, such as Philosophy and Anthropology, by presenting the contentions within the discourse to someone who aspires to be in the same profession. A Psychologist’s Reasons to Know â€Å"You have to learn, young man. Philosophy. Theology. Literature. Poetry. Drama. History. Archeology. Anthropology. Mythology. Music. These are your tools as much as brush and pigment. You cannot be an artist until you are civilized. You cannot be civilized until you learn. To be civilized is to know where you belong in the continuum of your art and your world. To surmount the past, you must know the past." – Mark Rothko. One is determined to become a psychologist. After having remunerated on the professed statements of Rothko, I agree that it is important to be civilized, and to be civilized one must lea rn about a variety of disciplines and from the great works and ideas that shaped our history. To become an effective psychologist, one deems it of crucial relevance to know two specialized endeavors such as Philosophy and Anthropology. ... In every conceivable setting from scientific research centers to mental health care services, "the understanding of behavior" is the enterprise of psychologists† (Amercan Psychological Association, 2012, p. 1). Likewise, anthropology is clearly defined as â€Å"the study of humanity. It has its origins in the natural sciences, humanities and social sciences† (Define Anthropology, 2011, p. 1). Philosophy, on the other hand, was revealed to be fairly difficult to define, given the expansive scope of the endeavor. Pardi (2011) wittingly noted that when his graduate professor asked what philosophy is, one of the most favorite answers was â€Å"â€Å"psychology misspelled.† Accordingly, it was noted that â€Å"the more philosophy I study, the more affinity I see between it and psychology. Both are generally focused on the mind and what it does, both worry about how the mind relates to the world around it, both are interested in behavior. But philosophy focuses less o n how to live in the world as a thinking thing and spends more energy on what it means to be a mind. Philosophy also studies the mind’s contents--ideas or concepts. Psychology helps humans to understand why things go wrong and how to make them right again (and what that means) while philosophy is concerned with understanding the structure of things like beliefs, a moral behavior, and sense experience† (Pardi, 2011, par. 6). Having established the theoretical frameworks of the mentioned disciplines, one is more determined that in pursuing a degree in psychology, there is eminent need to immerse oneself in both anthropology and philosophy to enhance expertise and awareness on the various disciplines that influence and impact human experience.

Monday, August 26, 2019

Ethical Issues and Tactics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Ethical Issues and Tactics - Essay Example Each part has its own desires, and a person’s behavior will be dictated by the degree to which each of those elements influences behavior. Some belief in this hypothesis, while others broadly discredit it. One thing that is clear, however, is that psychological modification is possible. One form of doing this is called â€Å"conditioning.† In an experiment run by the current author, a group of animals was taught that ringing bells were a precursor to food: a bell would ring, followed by them being given food every time. What this author found is that eventually, if one took away the food and only rang the bell, the animals in question would salivate anyways: it had been fundamentally programmed into their brain that these things were interconnected. This behavior was modified from the outside for a particular purpose. The ethical problem with this essay is the fact that it did not attribute ideas or programs to the people who they belonged to. For instance, I did not give Freud credit for id, ego, and super-ego theory, and failed to mention Pavlov at all in classical conditioning. Furthermore, it seems that I took credit for an experiment run by Pavlov and not by myself (though I suppose it is possible that I ran this experiment again). I think that this would cause the reader to either not believes in the integrity of my work (if they were familiar with the ideas involved) or else they would walk away with the mistaken impression that I originated those ideas. There are many different psychological theories that help to explain why people behave the way they do, and what can be done to influence behavior. In this essay, I will explain some of them in order to foster a better understanding. One theory is that people behave as they do because of a complex interaction between different parts of themselves, of which the conscious mind is one, and the subconscious is the other.  

Medical Billing Specialist Personal Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Medical Billing Specialist - Personal Statement Example Certain life experiences also have inspired and motivated me towards this aspiration and goal. Significant among which is the event of my father falling seriously ill. Seeing him suffer and groan in pain and the kindness and timely action and intelligent decisions of the doctors, nurses and other health care professionals who battled for life made me realize the importance of professionals in the medical field. I decided that I will spend the rest of my life in the health care field serving the sick people and taking cognisance of my qualifications I knew where I was heading. It was towards a career of Medical Billing and Coding. Having the requisite patience and ability to focus on details and having the needed problem solving skills paramount in professionals in the medical field I realised that it was a Medical Billing and Coding professional that I was going to be. These factors have prompted me to evolve this decision and I am thereby requesting you to please appoint me as a med ical billing specialist in your reputed company. Dear Miriam I see you as the ideal Medical Billing and Coding Specialist. I have learnt that you are applying for a sales position. But I have a better alternative for you. I seriously think you should apply for the position of Medical Billing and Coding Specialist. You are wrong in thinking that you are not suited for the job. Actually you have all the requisite skills. Let me first tell you the job specifics. 2 When the patient has a disease the coder gives the diagnosis a number i.e. alphanumeric codes to specific illnesses, injuries, and medical procedures, under a system of coding that is used across the health care system, from doctor's offices and hospitals to insurance companies, federal agencies and international organizations. The codes are used by hospitals and doctors for internal data collection and planning, 3"while insurance companies and public agencies require the codes to reimburse health care providers. The codes are even used by international health organizations to track patterns of disease and the costs of health care." Coming to think of it you are also well remunerated and what's more you have all the requisite personality traits and skills. What is essential to this profession are computer skills and you work with computers all day using different programs. You also keep yourself updated regularly and learn new programs which is just the ideal position you are in. What is more you even have the personality for the job. Being detail oriented, making independent decisions on your own and refraining from a lot of interaction with people is the kind of personality that is required for this position and you are a perfect package. Hence I really think you should apply for this post as it really suits you and would give you a lot of job satisfaction and you will never regret your choice. Name: 028004 End Notes: 1All Allied Health Schools. "Your Guide to Allied Health Education." "A

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Business Statistics Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Business Statistics - Term Paper Example It is imperative to note that there might be extra variables which cause movement in the observed variables and these are not taken into account when analyzing the correlation between the two variables.It is imperative to note that there might be extra variables which cause movement in the observed variables and these are not taken into account when analyzing the correlation between the two variables.Correlation establishes the association between two variables, whereas regression is to establish a numerical connection between the two variables. In other words, correlation answers the questions if two variables X and Y are related whereas regression gives the numerical connection between them.a) Straight Line Regression: The regression line is of the form: Y = a + b X, where Y is the dependent variable X is the independent variable a represents the y- intercept, i.e., the value of Y when X is equal to zero b represents the slope of the regression line indicating the sensitivity of Y to changes in Xb) Least Squares Method: The regression line can be estimated based on the Least Squares Method. The method is based on the concept that the best regression line is the line which is at a minimum distance possible from all the data points) The regression line gives the relationship between the two variables in the form of an equation.d) The least squares method gives us the equation of the line of best fit. It is, however, essential to estimate the reliability or ‘goodness of fit’ of this regression equation) The coefficient of determination is the square of the value of R (R2). The coefficient of determination is expressed as a percentage. In case R is +1 or -1, the R2 value is 1 indicating a perfect fit or a 100 % fit.  

Saturday, August 24, 2019

LAB one Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

One - Lab Report Example Upon a thorough analysis of the lab, the following is what was found out (Sanders 2007). It is vital to note that, I firstly noticed that, the number of packets captured was dependent on the size of a particular URL. That is, the smaller the URL the lower the number of packets and the bigger the URL, the higher the number of packets. Additionally, I perceived that the first two packets in the beginning of trace are in most cases made up of equal size while the third one is of the smallest value compared to the other two. Furthermore, I noted that when the value (200 OK) appears in a trace result, then, it means that the fetch operation of a particular URL or website site must has been successfully executed (Sanders 2007). Lastly but certainly not the least, regarding the lengths of the network packets, the following is what was captured. The first one is of the length 76 units. The second one was of the same size at the first one, which is 76 units. The third one is of the length, 64 units (Sanders

Friday, August 23, 2019

Living Together Before Marriage. A Good Idea Research Paper

Living Together Before Marriage. A Good Idea - Research Paper Example The paper explains why staying together before marriage is a good compatibility test. It   goes a bit further to explain it’s importance of testing the commitment level of couples before marriage. Short explanations are also stated in regards clarify beliefs of couples who during ttheir younger years their parents went through horrific divorce and left a negative dent pertaining to marriage. the paper will also explain the importance of staying together before marriage as a means of helping couples whose former relationships have been horrible and try and baby step them to overcome this past experience by staying together first. As the discussion highlights staying together before marriage is beneficial to love birds because it will help them   know if they are compatible. Compatibility saves couples from messy and brutal divorce that they have to go through if their marriage is not working. Staying together acts as a litmus test to deduce if the two lovers can stay together. Their commitment will be evident if they manage to solve   problems within a period of time, if not then its best for them to call it quits since this will save them litigation money, embarrassment and despair   that divorcing couples usually go through. Bill Maier, PH.D states â€Å" Living together is a good way to find out if couples are compatible-a sort of test drive that will determine your chances of marital success.†

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Different Views on Affirmative Action Essay Example for Free

Different Views on Affirmative Action Essay This paper will discuss the different views on affirmative action. I will go over both views of this issue, and will explain which side my personal views fall on. I will also discuss the pros and cons of affirmative actions, and the effects it has on the workplace. â€Å"In its tumultuous 45-year history, affirmative action has been both praised and pilloried as an answer to racial inequality. The â€Å"affirmative action† was first introduced by President Kennedy in 1961 as a method of redressing discrimination that had persisted in spite of civil rights laws and constitutional guarantees† (Brunner, 2008). Affirmative action is a highly controversial policy that is designed to help minorities gain access to jobs and schools, etc. that they normally would not be able to enter into. â€Å"Affirmative action generally means giving preferential treatment to minorities in admission to universities or employment in government and businesses. The policies were originally developed to correct decades of discrimination and to give disadvantaged minorities a boost. The diversity of our current society as opposed to that of 50 years ago seem to indicate the programs have been a success. But now, many think the policies are no longer needed and that they lead to more problems than they solve† (Messerh, 2008). The benefits were very great for minorities at one time. There was a time when minorities and women faced an uphill battle for equality in the workplace and in education. The majority of people believed that the better paying jobs should not only go to white men; but that they were the better qualified candidates. â€Å"Keep in mind that all people have more shared than different characteristics, and no group is biologically superior to another. Nevertheless, racism, the belief that some racial groups are inherently inferior to others, has been common and is used to justify discrimination and equality† (Lauer Lauer, 2006, p. 225). This belief was spurred on by racism and sexism in the past. â€Å"Focusing in particular on education and jobs, affirmative action policies required that measures be taken to ensure that blacks and other minorities enjoyed the same opportunities for promotions, salary increases, career advancement, school admissions, scholarships, and financial aid that had been the nearly xclusive province of whites. From the outset, affirmative action was envisioned as a temporary remedy that would end once there was a â€Å"level playing field† for all Americans† (Brunner, 2008). I think that this policy was a good idea to begin with. There were many people back in the 50’s who would go out of their way to make sure that blacks were not able to raise above their â€Å"born into roles†. At the time, a law like this was needed very bad. It was very important at that time in our history to include every one of all races and sexes. I believe that we have now reached a time in our history, where inclusion is at an all time high nationwide. This brings us to the problems that affirmative action has caused in our society. The biggest problem is reverse discrimination. â€Å"Affirmative action leads to reverse discrimination. Affirmative action is designed to end discrimination and unfair treatment of employees/students based on color, but it in effect does the opposite. Whites who work harder and/or more qualified can be passed over strictly because they are white. Contrary to many stereotypes, many minorities fall into the middle or upper class, and many whites live in poverty. Unfortunately, the way things are set up now, a poverty-stricken white student who uses discipline and hard work to become the best he can be can be passed over by a rich minority student who doesn’t put in much effort at all† (Messerh, 2008). Many people do not want to admit to this problem; however, affirmative action has created discrimination of the majority. If a person is a white male, they may actually be looked over for the simple fact that a university or company does not have enough minority employees. This is a discriminatory practice in the process. â€Å"By the late 70’s, however flaws in the policy began to show up amid its good intentions. Reverse discrimination became an issue, epitomized by the famous Blakke case in 1978. Allan Blakke, a white male, had been rejected two years by a medical school that had accepted less qualified applicants – the school had a separate admissions policy for minorities and reserved 16 out of 100 places for minority students. The Supreme Court outlawed inflexible quota systems in affirmative action programs, which in this case had unfairly discriminated against a white applicant. In the same ruling, however, the Court upheld the legality of affirmative action per se† (Brunner, 2008). I personally feel like affirmative action has also lowered the quality within the universities and in the workplace. â€Å"Affirmative action lowers standards of accountability needed to push students or employees to perform better. If a minority student can get into Harvard with a 3. 2 grade-point average, why should she push herself to get a 4. 0? Although some students or employees are self-motivated, most people need an extra push or incentive to do their best, by setting lower standards for admission or hiring, we are lowering the level of accountability. We should reward hard work, discipline and achievement, we shouldn’t reward a student simply because he or she is a certain race, nor punished because he or she isn’t† (Messerh, 2008). All positions regardless of what it is, is better filled by filling it with the best and most qualified applicant. The best tool against discrimination and unfair hiring practices, would be to make sure all of our lower, middle, and high schools are up to par in order to create the best applicants overall.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Education On Health Promotion Essay Example for Free

Education On Health Promotion Essay Q. 1 Validity is said to be the power to convince about the conclusions that have been found. It is the strength that the conclusion has to convince others on the facts that have been outlined. There are said to be four types of validity namely external, conclusion, construct and internal validity (http://www. brainyquote. com). The external validity is about the ability to generalize the findings to other settings, the conclusion looks for a relationship between the outcomes and the program, the construct validity determines the presence of a relationship between concepts in a study and an actual casual relationship and finally the internal validity looks for the relationship between the study object and the outcomes of the study. On the other hand, reliability is said to be the ability to get the same results over and over again when performing the same test at different times (http://www. asiamarketresearch. com). It is said to estimate how consistent your measurements are. For a tool of measurement to be reliable, it has to give the same results when used at different times by different people to measure the same thing. It can be tested through using different questions that measure the same thing to see if the answers are consistent while the test/retest method means getting the same findings for the same test done at different times but under the same conditions. Validity and reliability will be used in the dissertation to test the conclusion. First checking on the reliability of the tools of measurements does this. This ensures that the data provided for the study is to be trusted as being correct. It also helps eliminate the data that contains some inconsistencies. Once all the reliable data has been compiled, it can then be used to arrive at some conclusion. This conclusion will be valid if all the measurements that have been done have involved the data that was supposed to be measured. If one has been using the correct data using reliable tools then the conclusion will be a valid one. The correct questions have to be asked in relation to the topic and the measurement tools have to be reliable for the conclusion to be valid. Q. 2 When starting a project one begins with choosing a topic on which to research on (http://www. ri. net/schools/East_Greenwich/research. html). This topic should not be too general as to include subjects that are not relevant to the researcher instead it should be very specific on what is to be research on. When choosing a topic, one uses the tool of research called the â€Å"human mind†. This is because a topic is chosen according to how the researcher perceives the surroundings and thus requires reasoning and analyzing which uses the brain. Next is gathering the relevant background information concerning the topic. This can be done through the use of the computer and its software. It is done to get the most basic information on the chosen topic. This information can be supplemented by the use of the library where one can find encyclopedias among other sources. This information is used to refine the chosen topic (http://www. ri. net/schools/East_Greenwich/research. html). If there is need to change the research topic it is done now. After revisiting your topic, you now need to gather the information needed. This is done by the use of the computer and the library. This information is then supplemented by fieldwork, which uses different methods of gathering information. This is done to confirm or challenge the statistics gotten from the library and computer software. While conducting the field research, one has to estimate the reality of the tools of measurement so as to ensure the information gotten is correct and in the process eliminate those, which contain errors after this is done, the information is coded and analyzed. The information is now ready for use to get the conclusion and then organize it to be able to write it in a way that the reader will understand. When it comes to the writing part, the language to be used has to be chosen carefully. It has to be a language accessible to all the presumed readers. The research is then written and is used to justify the problem statement and why the project should be undertaken. The conducting of a research and writing of a dissertation are the actual start of a project. This is because they justify the reason why the project can now start. All the six tools of research are used to ensure that the information provided in the research is reliable and valid. One can only gain experience in the use of these tools by conducting many researches. By writing dissertations and research papers, one ahs to use these tools and in so doing gets a lot of experience in their use. Over time one gets to learn how to use the various tools. When it comes to computers, one has to solicit the help of computer experts an also using the help icon in the computer. For a researcher, it is very useful to join research projects as an assistant researcher. This ensures that one gains a lot of experience and by working with an expert researcher one is able to pick up quite a number of tricks in the research field. Also as a research assistant, one does a lot of work and so is able to come up with new and more effective ways of using the tools of research. On top of this, one is able to choose which tools they can use best and which ones they need to work on to understand how they are used. To learn to be an expert researcher, one can only go through the above mentioned process of first becoming a research assistant. The expert researcher has to be able to use the six tools of research namely the human mind, the computer and its software, the statistics, the traditional library, tools of measurement and the language facility. It one has gone through the process of becoming a research assistant, there is knowledge gained from constant use of the tools and one can then be able to decide which tools they are most comfortable using. All the tools are important and necessary to any researcher but the order of importance assigned to each tool is what differs from researcher to researcher. It is only through experience of having worked on many research projects does one become competent in the use of all the tools and so that is what any novice researcher concentrates more on. Q. 3 The dissertation topic is education on health promotion.  From the interview with the researcher, I have learned how to use the six tools of research in the dissertation topic. By using the human mind, the topic, which is education on health promotion, was chosen. Using the computer and its software, the topic will be researched on and the basic knowledge gathered. Since the topic has enough materials to be used, it will not be changed. The information is then supplemented with that from the traditional library. After the topic has been re-affirmed, the field information will be collected and this will be done by using tools of measurement that are reliable (http://www. ih. gov/news/researchtools/). Once the information has been collected, it is then analyzed, cleaned and coded. The findings will now be used in writing the paper. When writing the paper the language to be used has to be that which the targeted readers can understand. When writing one has to avoid plagiarism and ensuring that any information from other sources is cited will do this. The paper must be in the proper format and should include all the parts of a project paper. The conclusion will have to support the topic and reason for the research. It will therefore have to support education on health promotion

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Russian Foreign Policy Towards The Post Soviet Sphere Politics Essay

Russian Foreign Policy Towards The Post Soviet Sphere Politics Essay The relations with Russia and the fragmented post-Soviet space have been rather popular topic for some years now. But after the cyber crises, April anxiety and the attack to South Ossetia, the topic has gathered even more increasing attention. The Russian foreign policy therefore has been changed a lot and has undergone different strategies. Nowadays Russian foreign policy creation probably reminds to lot of people like building the road to the heaven. The process consists of continuous alternating compromises as well as provoking actions or signs towards the West. Sometimes the decisions of Russian foreign policy are even against its own national interest and therefore from time to time it could raise a question if Russia has even stepped out from its baby-shoes or not. During the Russian Empire times the Russian foreign policy symbolized the Orthodox Christian world and the centre of gravity for pan-Slavic movements. It was greatly based on the imperialist world order that was trying to find quick development in economic and social means. The main objective was to increase Russian living standards so it could compete with other more developed countries. But after the collapse of Soviet Union, what was according to Putin the biggest catastrophe during the 20th century, the Russian foreign policy has changed. It became more pragmatic and looked after the realization of sophisticated world. This was also visible from the Russian relations with other countries, as Russia started to communicate more closely with the more refined world. The characteristics of the different relations with different countries varied a lot- at one time Russia was acting like a full-partner while on the other times Russia took only minor roles or even opposition in cooperati ng. The changing Russian foreign policy was established on different aspects. The main objective was to formulate Russian national interests, so the foreign policy could correspond to the ones that are especially necessary and which ones are applying to the other countries on the world political field. Another objective was to tempt other countries to the agreements on subjects where its interests are not the same as Russia has. The reactions to the Russian foreign policy changes have not been easy to adapt neither for Russia nor to the post-soviet countries. The ending of the Cold War was unexpected to the both sides and the idea to totally change the ideologies of the countries policies after that, has not yet been accomplished by neither of the sides. The changes of Russian foreign policy are influenced by different features. The main influencer is probably the situation on the oil market, as Russia is one of the biggest oil providers in the region. This also affects the trade of other goods. For example after the collapse on Soviet Union the Baltic States were still a part of post-Soviet geopolitical and economic development. The party that is ruling the political decisions in Russia has also a big role to play in the influence process of Russian foreign policy. The clear difference was visible with Boriss Jeltsin and Vladimir Putin, whose tactics were different. The third aspect that influences the Russ ian foreign policy rather highly is the current Russian relations with Eurasia and Caucasus as well as with Central Asia and the situations on those countries. But to a country like Russia probably the biggest foreign policy driver is the embrace of the power and its sphere of influence- either it is local or more like global. The presentation of the change from rather Russia-centered and regional power emerged during the Putin administration. At that time Russia raised to being one of the global energy power suppliers and demanded the local currency recognition equal to the US dollar. Russian foreign policy and market economy The importance of the economics and businesses in Russian foreign policy today is considerably high. It has also been seen as a source of the state power. With the Putin presidency major changes on Russian business market were made. During the Putin administration the big oligarchs were destroyed. Putin deputized its authorities to sit on the boards of key companies so he could have a control over the businesses. He also continued to support the integration of Russia to the world economy. While during the Soviet Union times Russia was the biggest supplier on its markets, but now after the collapse of Soviet Union the markets where Russia is the biggest player are decreasing and the foreign trade is taking over. This can be considered as one of the biggest threats to Russian economy. Also as we had financial crises in the world, the unemployment rate in Russia rose significally. Russian foreign policy today When to follow the Russian foreign policy, it can actually be said that it is rather continuous and has hidden aggressiveness. The current Russia has a tendency to demonstrate new conceptual documents in foreign policy as well as in security policy. These are always welcomed with high level of attention because according to these documents the world is trying to predict the coming Russian policy  [1]  . If to be very careful and to observe closely, it can be seen that actually the changes of Russian foreign policy has built up on tactical regrouping. The biggest change between the previous and current Russian foreign policy concept is that now the foreign policy goals has to be in balance with Russian economic, intellectual and technological possibilities. Regardless to the world image of Russia according to its recent actions, Russia still seems to think of itself as the super-power. In different ways and by different actions Russia still threats the post-soviet countries and in a way Russia still treats them as a part of its colony. But there is a difference between the former soviet countries. For example the threat to Estonia is unlike and smaller than to Georgia, as Estonia is a member of the European Union. Therefore the actions or procedures how Russia can endanger Estonia is different because of the western powers, but in case of Georgia, as it was seen, there is not such a strong backup. For Russians the fact that Estonia joined the western block was a big disappointment and according to the surveys, it became apparent that Estonia is the second country that the Russians trust the less. The Russian foreign policy that we know today is a product of former superpower, which desperately tries to hold on to its power. Some histori ans even say that, now when different countries are allies, the war will begin sooner or later. The orange revolution in Ukraine during the 2004, reminded greatly the situation in Estonia after the singing revolution. After the orange revolution Ukraine seemed to be able to see the freedom, as it happened in Estonia in 1987-1988. Then in year 2007 Vladimir Putin wrote a letter to Ukraine president Viktor JuÃ…Â ¡tÃ…Â ¡enko with what Putin clearly and directly intervened to Ukraine domestic problems and policy. But the actual aim of this letter was basically to control Ukraine, as Putin saw that things are getting out of his hands. This can be considered as a clear sign of Russian wish to take over the control and basically to reunite the former Soviet Union countries in order to form a Russian Empire again. It seemed that the tactic was to take over the control at first from the inside of the country by trying to attract the people, who can be manipulated to support Russia and its ideas and plans. If that has been accomplished then it is easy to take over the country tim e by time. In year 2008 Russian president Medvedev claimed that Russian foreign policy is neither liberal nor conservative but it is driven from Russian national interests. He also said that the freedom, democracy and the protection of human rights matters a lot to Russia and in its foreign international relations. These are also the aspects that are protected the most  [2]  . Few months after that Russia took military actions against Georgia. The Russian- Georgian war was a clear sign to the West and to the rest of the world that Russia has had enough of its post-Soviet foreign policy and that some things have to be changed. Also it gave a warning to the world that Russia is not that pushed down as it may have seemed and is actually capable to amend enormous damage. The new face that Russia is showing now by demanding pragmatic relations with the west, internal country liberalization and the high turn of economical high technology is only the change of the layer, not the inside. Also if the Russia we know today does not liberalize the market economy, it may bring with it, that European Union has to use the sanctions. Meaning that basically in the end, both of the sides will lose tremendously. When in year 2009 Russia changed the foreign policy in a way so it will be more pragmatic, balanced and that it is not based on the opposition. During the same year Dmitri Medvedev said that, it is about the time when Russia should stop being so ignorant and egoistic. By this saying the world got rather surprised, as before Russia has wanted to play leading roles on different fields. Russia even wanted that its currency would be equal to dollar, meaning that it would be recognized all over the world. This thought was led by the oil prices and the fact that Russia is a considerably big supplier of the oil in the world. But this behavior that Russia admits that they should back down a little does not happen that often. Usually it is driven from the current situation on the world oil market and of how strong is Russian power at the time. The American analyzing centre Stratfor  [3]  predicts in it analyses that in coming year the Russian activities in its neighborhood will most probably increase. According to that it has been predicted that Russia will start to fight back the former Soviet Union countries and that Estonia is the country that interests Russia the most. The reason for that is argued to be easy- Estonian politics are easy to manipulate with. In addition to Estonia the other Baltic States countries Latvia and Lithuaina are probably facing the same. Such an increased attention and interest to Russia has been ever since the Baltic States joined the European Union and NATO. But the Baltic States are not the only countries to whom Russia will concentrate on year 2010. According to the forecasts the year 2010 Russia strives to weaken the influence of the West from Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Armenia. The goal of this is the recreation of the political union on the territory of the former Soviet Union. The analysts are predicting that the influence of Russia will be more successful in Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan. When talking about Ukraine, this prediction can be derived from the fact that the new Ukraine president Viktor JuÃ…Â ¡tÃ…Â ¡enko has a pro-Russia thinking. But interesting fact with this is the promise that Juņºtņºenko gave- to unite the badly managed Ukraine with big economic potential with the West- and Centre- Europe. This of course is causing troubles with Russia, as Ukraine will then leave the traditional influence-sphere. Now in year 2010 basically all the former post-soviet countries are on a risk, meaning that all the countries are afraid that Russia will attack sooner or later. Especially after the launch of Stratfors report as with previous forecasts 90% of Stratfor reports have been right. Other facts that are backing up the Russia potential interest towards post-soviet countries and West, is the fact that during the autumn 2009 Russia was practicing the attack to Poland, that ended with penetration to Poland with 900 tanks. The same actions were made to Latvia. It is hard to say for sure if it was only a practice against a terror attack or was it a real exercising of the infiltration. Russia today After the launch of the analyses of Russian Foreign policy and its impact to the former Soviet Union countries by American forecast agency Stratfor, many of the post-soviet countries have started to worry and fear Russia even more than before. According to the Stratfor analyses Russia is trying to form its influence sphere from its neighboring countries. With a big possibility the first countries will be Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan. It has been predicted that most probably those countries will not show that much resistance, then all the other post-soviet countries will be forced to either accept the conditions that are suitable to Moscow or to search independently the help from the foreign countries, such as USA. Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan will probably choose the first opportunity whereas Georgia and Baltics will look for the other ways. The probability that Georgia will fail to do so is rather high, as actually it was also seen in August 2008. The probability of Baltic States search for help to succeed is little higher. In case Russia should try to capture Baltic States, the chance that Russia will ruin its relations with Europe and United States is rather possible. On the other hand if Russia is going to act as predicted and target Ukraine and Georgia first, then the Baltic States could win approximately 3 years to figure out how to protect themselves. At the same time it is very important to be updated of the actions and information what is happening in Latvia as by now it is one of the weakest countries in the Baltics. The situation in Latvia is rather bad and the economy needs to be stabilized. But exactly by that reason Latvia is very sensitive to the external influences and therefore it could turn to a really good playground to the Russia. The current situation in Ukraine is still unclear as the presidentary elections are coming. That also raises the question if Ukraine has already been sold to Russia or not. It is still unclear who will win the elections and who will be appointed to be the new president. At the same time all the candidates are in a way pro-Russia, meaning that the new president of Ukraine may start to cooperate with Russia in a long-run, as Ukraine is known as a rather corrupted country and then the predicted Russian control over Ukraine will still be established. The elections still will not decide on the Ukraine final destiny, but the fact that on the current elections all the candidates are pro-Russia may send a clear signal to Russia. Once Russia recaptures Ukraine, all the other post-Soviet states will probably face the same intentions. Besides the elections and controlling the Ukraine foreign policy, Russia has one more plan with Ukraine- Russia is strongly against the Ukraine alliance with NATO and European Union. In a way Estonia is in the same situation as Ukraine, but the fact that the crossing-point of world interests is south and near-east due to the oil and heavy fuel, it leaves the Baltic Sates on the background. The near-east and the territories next to the Black Sea are with high importance to Russia. Conclusion After the recent incidents that Russia has had with different countries over the past few years, the overall image of Russia has changed a lot. In addition to that the Russian foreign policy has made through major changes after the breakdown of Soviet Union. The biggest change has been that the role of Orthodox Church that used to play a big role in the Russian foreign policy has lost its importance. Another change was the Russian- Georgian war with what Russia sent a clear sign to the world that they are tired of their current foreign policy, but they also showed how they feel about the NATO enlargement. With that step lot of the other post-Soviet countries started to fear for their independence. Besides all kind of different changes one of the mentionable is also the fact that Russia started to use its role as one of the important energy providers as a political weapon. Russia understood that they can use the energy export to improve the countrys economical and political position in the world. When looking from the post-Soviet countries viewpoint and considering the recent Stratfor analyses that predicted the high Russian attention to its neighboring states has created rather anxious feelings in post-Soviet countries. If the predictions are going to come true, it is going to cause huge changes in Russian foreign policy.

Monday, August 19, 2019

Essay --

Having focused on E.M Forster’s ‘A Passage to India’ and Paul Scott’s ‘The Jewel in the Crown’ it is evident that both novels share the central theme of contrasting views of Indian culture to reflect society from the time periods of which their novels are set. The form of ‘A Passage to India’ is a retrospective diary account dictated by an omniscient third person narrator who has multiple viewpoints which endeavours into the psychological mind set of the characters. The form allows the reader to experience a first-hand account and a view on the forefront of the minds of the characters’ experiences. ‘The roads, named after victorious generals and intersecting at right angles, were symbolic of the net Great Britain had thrown over India. He felt caught in their meshes.’ From this, the main protagonist Aziz is claiming that the ‘right angles’ which are marked out by the colonial roads, connotes the British illustration on how they organise their colony. By being ‘caught in their meshes’, Aziz is affected greatly by the ordeal at a psychological level as he is feeling individually trapped. This epitomises the society’s reaction during the British ruling as the readers are able to see how it affects Aziz on a personal level, but this is a common theme through the novel – the analysis of the minds of the characters. By using an omniscient narrator, Forster can exploit the character’s f laws, especially when we learn that ‘suspicion in the Oriental is a sort of malignant tumour, a mental malady, that makes him self-conscious and unfriendly suddenly’ which claims that Aziz is naturally dubious just because he is Indian. Equally, the form of Scott’s ‘The Jewel in the Crown’ is written in a third person narrative with multiple narrations ... ...ogan of Oceania from the novel. The party’s power of the psychological control is equally contradictory to that of their testimony of power. By stating that ‘war is peace’ it is arguable that Orwell writes this to show that having an enemy within your nation will bring the nation (in this case Oceania) united together just like India becomes united with the acts of Gandhi to fight for independence. In sum, through their dichotomies of the British and Indian relationship during the emergence of India to independence, Forster and Scott allow the reader to free themselves of their prejudices and open up to their views on historical culture. Forster ‘attaches to India through extravagant metaphorical meanings and anthropomorphisms’ whilst Orwell stated that he ‘didn’t do prophecy’ and that he would not ‘put anything into it that human societies have not already done.’

The Religious Amalgamation Dubbed The Matrix :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Throughout the history of motion pictures, stories have impacted society through various means, but up until recently, these influences were usually limited to hobbies and interests. With the emergence of a deep psychological thriller dubbed The Matrix, cinematic influence on religion has become quite evident. The Matrix combines allegories of religious figures such as Jesus Christ and Buddha with a quasi-enlightenment concept that appears in many of the mystical Eastern religions. This amalgamation of religious ideas creates an amazing foundation for what many members of religious communities—online communities stand out as the most prominent example—have come to refine their core religions into over the last few years. Many of these communities consider their new faiths to be simple denominations of their core beliefs, finding that their refined religion fits not only theologically but logically and scholarly with their paternal religion. I consid er myself one of these philosophical persons pushing provocatively within the religious community of Christianity towards the beliefs which I find so intriguing and bold.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It is unfair to religionize a movie which was meant to be totally secular, but the screenwriters of The Matrix openly profess the movie’s ties with religion. Purposely having imbued the screenplay with parallel upon parallel, the Wakowski Brothers have rendered the obvious and the obscure into an image of humanity’s perfection. At first glance, this idealization may seem to be a plethora of praise for a simple blockbuster science-fiction movie, but there is more in The Matrix than meets the eye. The Matrix was set forth not as an action-thriller for the simple pleasure of seeing bullet casings strike the ground after falling out of a hot sub-machine gun, but as a philosophical religious allegory.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Neo, although called â€Å"The Oneâ€Å" throughout most of the movie, is symbolic of not one, but three persons: Jesus Christ, Buddha, and Doubting Thomas, an Apostle of Christ. As Neo represents three distinctly different ideals—Christianity, Enlightenment, and Chaos, respectively—it is easy to see why many people were confused by the proposition. But, when I began to ponder the question of why they put the three together, it began to make sense. Humanity should, according to the allusions in The Matrix and in my own personal theologies, be a blend of the three ideals, forming a balanced life and thus a life pleasing to God.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

education in society :: essays research papers fc

With so many problems surrounding public schooling, it is difficult to understand where public school is headed. In the article â€Å"Taking Sides,† William J. Bennett and Forrest J. Troy tackle the problem from two opposing views. Both sides present a compelling case, while at the same time helping readers to understand the difficulty of creating a program that functions the fullest potential. The article examines one major topic; â€Å"Have Public Schools Failed Society?† I hope to answer this question while taking a look at both sides of the coin. As the former secretary of education, William J. Bennet has a good understanding of what could possibly be right and wrong with public schooling. After placing â€Å"goals† schools the United States realized, years later, that they have fallen into a lull. In other words, Bennet believes that the United States has reached a point where the schooling system cannot improve based on the goals they put in place fifteen years ago. This makes perfect sense. Why would a nation as powerful as the United States place â€Å"limitations,† on what schools can and cannot do? Learning is constantly growing. With this being said, I believe that the direction that the United States public schools are heading is failure. Teachers and students understand this more than anyone. Each student is completely different, in their own right. To make a blanket statement for the every school and setting the same goals is ridiculous. There are many critics to this status quo idea. They believe that â€Å"young Americans are not learning enough for their own or their nation’s good, that international comparisons rank the U.S. academic performance from the middle to the bottom year after year, and that many employers say that they cannot find people who have the necessary skills, knowledge, attitudes, and habits to do the work.† (Noll 173) If education is supposed to aid in the development of an entire nation, then why do so many people disagree with the system the United States have in place at the moment? If the country continues on this path there will never be room for improvement. I think what Bennet is trying to say is that the world is ever changing, so in the same regard so should education. Chester E. Finn takes the criticism of education in another direction. Instead of focusing on the downfalls of the education system he believe that the problems stem from society. education in society :: essays research papers fc With so many problems surrounding public schooling, it is difficult to understand where public school is headed. In the article â€Å"Taking Sides,† William J. Bennett and Forrest J. Troy tackle the problem from two opposing views. Both sides present a compelling case, while at the same time helping readers to understand the difficulty of creating a program that functions the fullest potential. The article examines one major topic; â€Å"Have Public Schools Failed Society?† I hope to answer this question while taking a look at both sides of the coin. As the former secretary of education, William J. Bennet has a good understanding of what could possibly be right and wrong with public schooling. After placing â€Å"goals† schools the United States realized, years later, that they have fallen into a lull. In other words, Bennet believes that the United States has reached a point where the schooling system cannot improve based on the goals they put in place fifteen years ago. This makes perfect sense. Why would a nation as powerful as the United States place â€Å"limitations,† on what schools can and cannot do? Learning is constantly growing. With this being said, I believe that the direction that the United States public schools are heading is failure. Teachers and students understand this more than anyone. Each student is completely different, in their own right. To make a blanket statement for the every school and setting the same goals is ridiculous. There are many critics to this status quo idea. They believe that â€Å"young Americans are not learning enough for their own or their nation’s good, that international comparisons rank the U.S. academic performance from the middle to the bottom year after year, and that many employers say that they cannot find people who have the necessary skills, knowledge, attitudes, and habits to do the work.† (Noll 173) If education is supposed to aid in the development of an entire nation, then why do so many people disagree with the system the United States have in place at the moment? If the country continues on this path there will never be room for improvement. I think what Bennet is trying to say is that the world is ever changing, so in the same regard so should education. Chester E. Finn takes the criticism of education in another direction. Instead of focusing on the downfalls of the education system he believe that the problems stem from society.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Gross Domestic Product and the United States Essay

Gross domestic product, or GDP as it is commonly referred to as, is a popular economic means for measuring how large a country or area’s economy is. Though coming up the an actual calculation for the full breadth of a country’s economic prowess is difficult and quite involved, this is one way of determining that for the basis of comparison with other countries. In general, this is a system that takes the total amount of all of the goods and services that are rendered in a country during a given time frame and combines them to create the final number. Though the actual calculation is much more complicated than that rudimentary explanation, the basic premise behind gross domestic product can be explained in that elementary fashion. There are many different calculations that go into determining the gross domestic product of the United States in 2006. According to statistics provided by the United States Central Intelligence Agency, the number that was calculated for the U. S. GDP in 2006 was estimated at $13. 06 trillion (CIA). That number was calculated based on a number of factors, all of which will be discussed below. One aspect that goes into helping create the gross domestic product figure is the consumption function. To be succinct, this is the number that indicates widespread consumer spending in the United States. According to information produced by the economics department at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, the consumption function is, â€Å"The relationship between the level of income in an economy and the amount households plan to spend on consumption, other things constant† (Baylor). It is calculated as a part of the GDP listed above. According to statistics put out by the Bureau of Economic Analysis in the United States, the total consumer consumption during 2006 was $9. 2 trillion (BEA). Another aspect of gross domestic product that is calculated is the government function. This is the amount of consumption that the government accounts for in accordance to the GDP statistics. According to the 2006 GDP report put out by the BEA, the government function was $2. 2 trillion during 2006 (BEA). That amount is ultimately added in with the rest of the expenditures of the nation in order to come up with the final gross domestic product number. The investment function is another thing that goes into the calculation of gross domestic product. According to the same information put forth by Baylor University, the investment function is, â€Å"The relationship between the amount businesses plan to invest and the level of income in the economy, other things constant† (Baylor). The United States economy has seen this number fluctuate quite a bit during the last few years. In 2007, it has been down in compared to previous years. It contributed to the 2006 gross domestic product statistic with a number of $2. 2 trillion, according to the BEA (BEA). That number is a strong one when compared to other years for the U. S. economy. Gross domestic product also takes into account how much the U. S. economy exports during the year. Though there are lots of different calculations that go into coming up with the net export function, one final calculation is given by the BEA report for 2006. Net exports during 2006 totaled negative $762 billion (BEA). The current economic trend has this number heading further down, as it was lower than the previous three years. This number means that the U. S. is importing far more goods than it is exporting, a signal that manufacturing in the United States is heading the way of the dinosaur. That number should continue to sink, as the U. S. makes more trade relationships with countries and imports more and more goods in the near future. On the whole, the U. S. economy is producing a fair amount of products and services. The balance that exists between the payments and the level of commerce seem to be steady. As such, the economy has grown to a huge size that looks to only be getting bigger as more and more American companies expand their capabilities both in the U. S. and abroad. The economy has some problems, but size is not one of them. The production of services and products in America is strong when compared to the amount of expenditures, although consumer debt is threatening to eat up the surplus. When it comes to gross domestic product growth, there are a number of different factors that can power a move forward. Depending upon the nation and the time in which GDP is being measured, quite a few variables could force the growth of the economy. For example, the third quarter 2007 numbers for the American economy showed very strong economic growth. In fact, the gross domestic product grew by an annual rate of 4. 9% during that third quarter, up substantially over both the first and second quarter time periods. According to a news release from the BEA entitled, Gross Domestic Product: Third Quarter 2007 (Preliminary), â€Å"he increase in real GDP in the third quarter primarily reflected positive contributions from exports, personal consumption expenditures (PCE), private inventory investment, equipment and software, federal government spending, nonresidential structures, and state and local government spending that were partly offset by a negative contribution from residential fixed investment† (BEA). The report went on to say that the growth in GDP during the quarter was somewhat stifled by an increase in imports, which obviously account for a negative calculation in the GDP equation. On a more personal level, there are quite a few things that individuals can do to both help themselves out and help the American economy continue its growth. These things are outlined below. The first and foremost thing that Americans can do in order to help grow the U. S. GDP is to be more productive. Since the economy grows on the basis of how much of services and products are produced, any bump in productivity on an individual level will lead to further production for big businesses and small businesses alike. This is true for people who work for a large corporation, as well as those who might own their own business. Individuals can only do so much in improving the GDP, so it takes a collective effort in increased productivity to raise the number a substantial amount. In addition to that, people being smarter with their money will help the gross domestic product rise. Consumer expenditures hurt the gross domestic product and people that waste their money paying credit finance fees are not doing anything to help themselves. Smarter saving plans and investment planning can help individuals grow their money and help businesses produce more on a national level. At the root of those things is an increase in work ethic for individual workers. If people begin to take work and their financial future more seriously, then they can better produce. Since an increase in work ethic has a direct correlation to the increase in production, gross domestic product is benefited by an increase in the American work ethic. Education is helping to boost the GDP, as well. The American people are a highly educated group, when compared to other areas around the world. Education gives a person the power to operate in a business setting and help his or her company grow their production. Since a focus has been put on education in the Untied States, the gross domestic product has seen significant growth. A byproduct of education is most certainly entrepreneurialism. With more and more individuals getting higher education and learning the necessary skills to start their own business, there exists a larger number of Americans who are willing to work for themselves. If they apply a strong work ethic to go along with their education and their new found entrepreneurial nature, they can single handedly improve the American gross domestic product. Aside from what individuals can do to help improve the gross domestic product, the federal government has a lot of control over what happens with the GDP. A single decision on a monetary policy can change the way that the U. S. economy operates during the coming year and can help stimulate the economy into more production. Likewise, a fault economic policy can serve to impede the progress of economic growth. A 2000 article in AllBusiness worries about this. In his article, Tao Zha writes, â€Å"When the federal open market committee (FOMC) began raising interest rates in June 1999 to forestall inflationary pressures, concern mounted that monetary policy moves might slow the pace of economic growth, undoing the employment gains minorities and other disadvantaged groups made during the 1990s† (Zha). As such, the federal government has to protect its own interests in how it decides to shape economic policies for the future. International policy can also influence GDP growth. Because so much of the economy’s growth depends on how much it can produce and export, the government has to be careful not to break any ties with international governments. In addition, the U. S. government must always take great care not to disrupt any relationships that the nation has with countries that provide things that the American people have to have. One example of this is with oil, as American policy is shaped to not disrupt any working relationships with countries that provide oil. Other economic decisions can have similar impacts on the gross domestic product and its subsequent growth. In order to continue the positive growth that the GDP has seen in recent years, Americans simply need to keep doing what they have been doing. Strong trends in education and an upswing in work ethic are good signs for economic growth. In addition, more measures have to be taken to keep unemployment rates low, as the more people that are working, the more production companies can have. In addition to boosting education on a basic level, the federal government should do more to promote financial education among all of its citizens. A general public that makes better decisions with its money is one that will help promote economic growth for the future. In closing, the gross domestic product of the United States is growing at a rate that one might expect at this point in time. With more and more businesses popping up because more people are going to college than ever before, the federal government just has to insure that they do not do anything to screw up the progress. Americans are people that like to work and they strive for productivity. Those factors alone will lead to continued growth of the GDP in the United States. Works Cited Baylor University. Chapter 9: Components of Aggregate Expenditure. http://business. baylor. edu/Tom_Kelly/2307ch9. htm Bureau of Economic Analysis. Gross Domestic Product: Third Quarter (Preliminary). 29 November 2007. http://www. bea. gov/newsreleases/national/gdp/gdpnewsrelease. htm Bureau of Economic Analysis. Gross Domestic Product Report: 2002-2006.

Friday, August 16, 2019

Romanticism Resource Page

After reviewing the Romanticism resource page, list three characteristics of Romanticism. Also, identify three authors of the Romantic period. Using the Transcendentalism resource page, list three characteristics of Transcendentalism. How did Transcendentalists feel about nature? What did Transcendentalists feel about the inherent nature of human beings (were humans inherently good or evil)? Transcendentalists believe that individuals â€Å"transcend† by learning from and living in harmony with nature.Thoreau put this philosophy into practice by living alone in a cabin he built himself at Walden Pond for two years (1845 -1847). Thoreau's experiences during this period provided him with the material for his masterwork Walden (1854). The quote below is from Walden. Describe two specific things Thoreau learned about life by translating the lines below in your own words: â€Å"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, an d see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived†¦.I wanted to live deeply and suck out all the marrow of life. † (Walden) Which two great passive resistance leaders were influenced by the premise of Transcendentalism through the works of Thoreau and Emerson? Click on the following link to read Edgar Allan Poe's â€Å"Annabel Lee† Annabel Lee by Edgar Allan Poe After reviewing the Romanticism resource page and the poem, identify two characteristics of Romanticism found in this poem. Identify specific examples (lines) in the poem that represent each of the characteristics you have chosen.After identifying the lines, explain (in your own words) how the lines represent the characteristics of Romanticism. For example: line 3 â€Å"my love was a love† is an example of idealism because†¦ Using the links below, find one quote from Emerson and one from Thoreau that best exemplifies your definition of Tr anscendentalism. Be sure to include your explanation of why each of these quotes relates to your perception of Transcendentalism†¦

Thursday, August 15, 2019

Martin Luther

THEMES IN U. S. & WORLD HISTORY Task 2 Roberta Gauvin Two of the most significant social and/ political changes that occurred as a result of the actions of one individual was Nelson Mandela. Mandela represented an example of a powerful leader who inspired millions of people around the world. First of all Mandela won the first multi-racial elections in South Africa thus creating a significant change in perception and building of a color blind society in Africa and around the world. Prior to becoming a president, people knew him for his anti-apartheid violent actions, his actions attracted attention to the existing problem. His actions made him well known around the world. Martin Luther King was well known around the world for his significant movements for the society. Martin Luther King became an iconic figure, whose courage inspired countless people. First, Martin Luther King advocated for civil rights by means of the peaceful method and never encouraged using violence for achieving the goals. His speech â€Å"I Have a Dream† encouraged the creation of a colorblind society and society based on equality among all people. â€Å"When he was notified of winning a Nobel Peace Prize, he stated that all the funds were to go to further the civil rights movement (King, M 1964). He actively addressed issues of poverty and contributed to the end of the War in Vietnam. References I Have a Dream: The Story of Martin Luther King in Text and Pictures. , New York, Time Life Books, 1968. â€Å"Martin Luther King, Biography†, Nobel prize (1964), Retrieved 14 September 2011 from http://www. nobelprize. or g/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1964/king-bio. html Themes in History, Individuals and Institutions (2006), retrieved 14 September 2011, from http://history. webtexts. com/courses/4573-history/toc/chapters/389802-individuals-and-institutions-as-mechanisms-of-social-change/assignments/342712-7-nelson-mandela

Wednesday, August 14, 2019

The Refugee

The Refugee by Pearl S. Buck Genre: social problem Theme: the aftermath of a natural disaster Setting: city in China; flood Characters: old man, noodle vendor, passer-by Summary: Please put the paragraphs into the correct order: An old man, too old for the heavy burden he is carrying, is the last of the procession. He can hardly keep up with the others. When he can no longer go on he sits down near a stand selling hot noodles. A man passing by takes pity on him and offers him some coins, although he himself does not know where his next meal is to come from.The old man is reluctant to take the money. He does not want to be thought a beggar and so explains the situation. He says that his people had good land, but that the river rose and they had no food left. In desperation they even ate the seed which had been bought for planting the land. He takes pains to defend his people, saying that they were too hungry and too inexperienced to think of the future, although he warned them not to eat the seed. The passer-by drops a silver coin and a copper penny into the old man's apron and goes on his way.To the noodle vendor's surprise the old man does not spend all the money on food, but only the copper coin. He gives the noodles to his small grandson, whom he is carrying in one of his baskets. The boy's mother and father had died in the floods and the old man is now looking after the child. He himself only eats the few scraps left by the boy. Then he hands the bowl back to the astonished vendor, who cannot understand why a starving man with a silver coin does not buy more food for himself.The old man explains that the rest of the money is for seed. He says that the best thing he can do for his grandson is to buy seed to ensure against more starvation the following year. The flooding of the river has forced the farmers of an unnamed country to leave their homelands and look for food and shelter in the capital a few hundred miles away. The city is full of ragged and starvi ng refugees and nobody really knows how to cope with the problem. They have to live in great camps outside the city wall trying to find work and food.The situation is causing a lot of bitterness among the local inhabitants. One day some new refugees arrive. They are different from the others in that they are not â€Å"riff-raff from some community always poor and easily starving in a flood time†. They are all from the same region and are well-built, neatly and cleanly dressed and obviously take pride in themselves, despite their hopeless situation. There are, however, no young girls and no infants, which suggests that they must have perished during the floods while still working in the fields.All of them carry bedding and cauldrons, though there is no trace of food in any of them. The lack of food shows in their faces and in their apathy towards the things around them. Unit I The Situation in the City 1. The situation in the city Why did the refugees have to leave their land? How do the refugees feel about the new place? Which words tell the reader that the place where they come from is very different from where they are now? How does the time of year make the situation of the refugees even worse?How do the local inhabitants feel about all the refugees in their city? The crowd of refugees is described as a â€Å"horde† (25 5). This term expresses dislike. Which other word in the same paragraph describes the refugees in a way which shows how much the inhabitants dislike them being in the city? Look the word up in a dictionary. What does it compare the refugees with? What ideas come to mind when you hear the word â€Å"horde†? Unit II The Refugees 1. The new refugees Despite the differences which exist between the new refugees and the others what do they have in common? common features: | |Feeling of alienation and estrangement | |They are as in a dream: apathy, lack of interest, no curiosity, indifference, despair, loss of hope, no confide nce | | | |differences: | |common refugees |new refugees | |they beg at doors | | |they have no belongings | | |tend to be poor wherever they are | | |†clothed somehow† (24 14-15) | | |they are â€Å"ragged† (24 16) | | |riff-raff no-one is proud of | | Unit III The significance of the title What makes the old man different from all the other refugees? Unit IV Unanswered Questions; The Message Topics for further discussion: What natural catastrophes threaten us? The message What can the reader learn from the story? Suggestion for written work: a) Imagine you are a citizen of the capital, a shopkeeper. You have had enough of all these refugees and do not want any more to come. You saw the new ones arrive yesterday.Write a letter to the editor of your local paper, explaining your point of view and demanding that something should be done about the situation. Words from the story will help you. b) Imagine you are the person who gave the money to the old man. Write a letter to the editor of your local paper, explaining how you feel: say that you want the city to do more to help the refugees both in their present situation and in the future. Suggest some ways of preventing a second catastrophe. Explain what will happen if there is no long-term help. Start both letters with ‘Dear sir' and end them with ‘Yours faithfully'. Read the letters out in class and discuss them.

Cambrian Explosion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Cambrian Explosion - Essay Example New York State has already gained the significant results of teaching about evolution presently. David Campbell, a teacher in Florida, says that it is for the first time that the Department of Education has modified the standards of teaching evolution in public schools. And calls it, "the organizing principle of life science." But it has been noted that the science teachers all over America are finding it difficult to turn a "culture war into a lesson plan." As per the education experts, even as recently as three years ago, the American public schools have been giving very short shrift to evolution. The poor treatment of evolution can be seen reflected in the creationist beliefs of students. Recently in 2000, Thomas B, Fordham Foundation evaluated the evolution education standards in public schools in all 50 states which was really disappointing. Florida among 12 states receives F grade. But with time it can be seen that now the students have an idea related to evidence of evolutionary change which is an achievement in itself. In 2006 the bills changed and attempted to alter public school science curricula introduced in New York, Alabama, South California, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Indiana and several others. And "only seven states including New York and California got A, with 12 receiving a B, and 8 plus the District of Columbia receiving a C. Seven states got a D, and 15 got an F. Iowa was not included in the report because it does not set standards for any subject." So, New York undoubtedly ranks high on the grounds of teaching of evolution in public schools. Campbell lastly concludes that, "if he forced them look at themselves in the evolutionary mirror, he risked alienating then entirely." 2. What is the difference between science & belief Theory & story David Campbell remarks that in a nation with evangelical Protestantism and various other religious traditions that stress on biblical readings and believe in God as supreme creator of every species, it is obvious that students will fear evolution and even science. They might consider science as a belief which is hostile to their faith. The subject of evolutionary science is considered fraught by the students who are taught right from their tender years to believe that God has created man uniquely in His own form. And when Florida's science standards came out Campbell saw that the students studied science in disbelief. He also mentioned that "Faith is not based in science" and "science is not based on faith". He also stated that he doesn't expect that the students should believe the scientific explanation of evolution but to start forming a base he concluded that he expects then "to understand it". The basic confusion of the word "science" being related to "theory" and "belief" arises from the everyday changing meaning of the word and their usage in science. One of the misconceptions is that, "Theories become facts when they are well supported and/or proven." It is so because with time if any contradictory evidence turns up, the theory might be reevaluated or even abandoned. And then it is not science but only a story which is not believed any more. ................. supported and/or

Tuesday, August 13, 2019

Compile an Annotated Bibligoraphy for Pro and Con Stances Research Paper

Compile an Annotated Bibligoraphy for Pro and Con Stances - Research Paper Example They argue that a proper implementation of policies may be the solution to reduce gun crime. Benady, D. (2007, November 29). Selling an anti-gun culture. Marketing Week, 24-25. A discussion of gun trade from the perspective of those in the market. Several laws on regulating gun trade is built from the premise of leniency of control, and is tantamount to increase in gun-related hostilities. There is less or a deficiency of considerations made to the effects of the control of legal trade of guns, which brings in millions of dollars in a year. Coalition to Stop Gun Violence & Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence. (2008). America’s gun shows: open markets for criminals. PEAR’s 6th Annual Leadership Conference. Cambridge, MA: Program in Education, Afterschool & Resiliency. This is a report regarding the increasing prevalence and access of guns, along with the discussion on the perspective that the more prevalent these guns are before the eyes of the public, the greater the degree of control on gun trade. In this line of argumentation, policies in gun control are proposed to lead to a decrease in crime rate. Coleman, K., Jansson, K., Kaiza, P., & Reed, R. (2007). Homicides, firearm offences and intimate violence 2005/2006: Supplementary volume 1 to crime in England and Wales 2005/2006. London, UK: Home Office Statistical Bulletin. This report focuses on statistical evaluations of various trends of crime such as homicide, and other more â€Å"intimate† crimes, such as suicide and parricide. These trends are evaluated in comparison to the data gathered from the police in England and Whales. According to statistics, gun crime victims showed a slight decrease from 75 to 50 from year 2004 to year 2006. Congressional Research Service, Report RS22458. (2008, February 1). Gun control: statutory disclosure limitations on ATF firearms trace data and multiple handgun sales reports. Retrieved from http://assets.opencrs.com/rpts/RS22458_20080201.pdf This rep ort is an assessment of the implementation of the policy on gun control througout the history of the United States. It aims to show that such a policy has brought about substantial effects to variables such as the increase in gun-related crime, violence, firearm sales, the formation of gangs, and even as far as the increase in the rate of school drop-outs. Cukier, W. and Sidel, V. W. (2006). The global gun epidemic: from Saturday night specials to AK-47s. Westport, CT: Praeger Security International. This report is an assessment of gun trade from a global perspective. It seeks to establish the connection between gun trade and crime. The business of firearms and other weapons is most noteworthy in countries that engage in hostilities such crimes against civilians and other international war crimes. The author argues for the implementation of a policy for gun control. Egley, A., Jr., and Ritz, C. E. (2006). Highlights of the 2004 national youth gang survey (fact sheet). Washington, DC : U. S. Department of Justice. This report shows an attempt to strengthen the connection between violence and the ease of accessibility of guns to that of the youth. It was emphasized that the rise of firearm related violence and the incidence of crimes such as robbery, theft, and physical injuries have been the major concern of many. Thus, a proper implementation of

Monday, August 12, 2019

Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points - Essay Example He is particularly renowned for his fourteen points that developed a basis to the end of the war and the post World War I era. This paper explores the success Woodrow’s fourteen points and the points’ achievements. Overview of Woodrow’s fourteen points Woodrow’s fourteen points was a proclamation towards the end of the First World War. Having come just a few months away from the ultimate end of the war and their provisions that aimed at attaining a peaceful world indicate significance of the points in the consequently achieved peace. The fourteen points’ principles can be explored in three categories. The first category, consisting of initial five points, was general and concerned â€Å"international liberalism and free trade† (Rossini and Shugaar, p. 63). The points included a public approach to agreements towards international peace as opposed to private treaties, provision for freedom of navigation across international waters, elimination of trade barriers and equality in international trade, and appeal for disarmament. He also called for fair distribution of colonies (Yale, p. 1). Points that called for resolution of disputes over some territories followed these.

Sunday, August 11, 2019

The Trafficking of Illicit Drugs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

The Trafficking of Illicit Drugs - Essay Example In order to halt the burgeoning economic, safety, and health issues related to these illicit substances, policymakers must address many issues including creating community-based prevention programs for youth and allocating funds for better access to drug rehabilitation programs (National Drug Control Strategy, 2011). Background In Alaska, drug use, and distribution is a massive problem and burden that affects the individual, communities, and the entire state. Illicit drug use is higher among Alaska natives than any other ethnic group (Young & Joe, 2009). In addition, Alaska natives have the greatest rates of use for marijuana, cocaine, inhalants, hallucinogens, and nonmedical use of psychotherapeutics (Young & Joe, 2009). According to the National Drug Control Strategy (2011) budget summary for the last fiscal year, the hindrance of drug use and its consequences contributes approximately $32 billion dollars in medical costs per year. Social Factors The entire United States is affecte d by illicit substance abuse. The impact of losing a loved one due to an overdose of illegal drug use is a paramount issue that cannot be qualified by any outside source. The youth of our nation is affected as well as their families. The National Youth Behavior Risk Survey (2011) for the years of 2009 – 2011 indicates that students in high school grades nine through twelve reported either an increase in incidence or no change for marijuana, cocaine, inhalants, heroin, and/or methamphetamine use (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2011). Citizens of the entire nation are also affected by the crime that is created by means to obtain illicit substances; an average of 71% of males arrested in 10 metropolitan areas in 2011 tested positive for an illegal substance at the time they were taken into custody (Tombak, 2012). Economic Factors The problem of the use of illicit drugs in the United States and the trafficking of illegal drugs cost the nation billions of dollar s each year. Densely (2010) notes that the United States losses as much as $110bn on illicit drugs alone for each year. This loss comes about through a lot of avenues. In the first place, millions of dollars are spent on control and prevention programs that aim at ensuring that people in the country do not fall prey to a very dangerous act of dealing with or using illicit drugs. The control and prevention programs take several forms including strategic campaigns and law enforcement programs. Because there are specially designated agencies who are supposed to be responsible for the control and prevention of illicit drug use, special allocations are made for them in each year’s budget and this is the source of the huge cost involved (Weiler, 2004). Apart from the cost of control and prevention programs, huge liability is incurred by the nation through the cost of managing affected persons who have suffered the consequences of illicit drug use (Davis-Floyd, 2001). This is becaus e special budgetary allocation is provided for people in rehabilitation homes and other healthcare facilities who receive treatment for various forms of illicit drug use side effects. What is most disturbing is that because such people are often neglected by their families, the government is always forced to bear all the cost and this possesses a serious economic challenge for the nation.