Rain Forest Essays - Habitats, Forest Ecology, Biodiversity

Rain Forest Long ago, the Earth had a green belt of rain forests around its middle that covered almost twelve percent of the earth's land surface.(Miller we can no longer use the excuse of ignorance.(Hammond 2) People need to try harder to stop rain forest depletion. There are two major areas on earth where rain forests are located. One of these areas is called The Old World Tropics, which includes Africa and Asia. In Africa, the rain forests are primarily located around the Zaire river. The other area in which rain forests are located is called The New World Tropics, which contains Central and South America. The New World tropics are in lower altitudes as opposed to the Old World tropics, which are at higher altitudes. Rain forests are located around the equator. This location of the rain forests makes them warm and humid all year round. There are never cold winters in the rain forests. During winter in the rain forests, people comfortably are able to wear T-shirts and shorts. The rain forest has a rainy season which usually lasts most of the year. The rain forests of the world are home to more than half of the animal species that live on earth.(CSIRO 1) Many of these creatures are some of the most beautiful and odd creatures in the world, Such as the large rodent Capybara, the Anteater, and many different colorful exotic birds. There are many beautiful creatures living in our Earth's rain forests. Many people are ignorant to the effects of rain forest depletion on our environment, and this ignorance is a major cause in the beginning of the destruction of the rain forests. European settlers exploited the rain forests for timber and cleared them for agricultural purposes.(Parish 4) The name scrub, which was originally applied to the rain forest by European settlers, became a term for land seen as useless until subject to ax, fire, and plough.(Parish 4) People did not think of the affects on the environment because the little knowledge that was known about the affects was not very widespread. Another cause in the destruction of the rain forest is people's values. Many people value species according to their worth to human beings.(Miller & Berry 3) People often ignore the problems with the environment simply because they do not want to deal with it. Natural checks against over exploitation have been ignored because those who are now consuming the products of the rain forest are not those who experience the immediate effects of its degredation.(Hammond 2) Many people believe that they will not live long enough to face the consequences of the destruction but they do not realize how fast the rain forests are depleting. Recently in Borneo's Sarawak rain forest, 24 cavers and scientists are braving the rain forests elements and creatures to save the regions natural riches. The cavers and scientists are trying to find plant and animal life diverse enough to protect it from mining and to declare it a national park. Whether the government sets aside the area this year, in five years or never depends on what's discovered out there.(Webster 5) This is a case that often occurs in rain forests. Many governments see no reason to protect the rainforest unless there is an important plant or creature that lives in it. With chain saws, bulldozers, and other powerful equipment, we can bring the giant trees of the rain forest, the very symbol of strength and majesty, crashing to the ground from their lofty heights in just a few hours.(Miller & Berry 3) All of this destruction and havoc is leading our world straight into events that will threaten life on earth itself. Some of the possible results in the future if the depletion does not stop immediately are global warming and increasing ultra violet radiation as

5 Great Short Story Tips for Writers - Proofeds Writing Tips

5 Great Short Story Tips for Writers - Proofeds Writing Tips 5 Great Short Story Tips for Writers Short stories are a great way to hone your writing skills before setting to work on your long-planned novel. They’re also an art form in themselves. Whatever your motivation for writing, though, we have some great short story tips for authors. Read on to find out more! 1. Some Stories Are Shorter than Others A short story will typically be between 1,500 and 7,500 words long. However, some are longer and others are as short as a single sentence. It is up to you! You can see how different short stories are sometimes classified, as well as how these compare to a novel, below: Fiction Format Average Length Microfiction Under 100 words Flash fiction 100 to 1,000 words Short story 1,000 to 7,500 words Novelette 7,500 to 17,500 words Novella 17,500 to 50,000 words Novel 50,000 words or more Before you start writing, think about which format to use and set yourself a word limit. This can work as a guideline when planning your story. 2. Work with Limitations To make sure your short story doesn’t accidentally grow into a novella, set some limitations on the plot as well as the word count. These could be physical (e.g., a story that takes place in a single room) or time based (e.g., a story that takes place in a single day). You could even set a limitation on the number of characters or â€Å"scenes† that your short story will involve. Whatever limitation you choose, working with a narrower scope will help you focus on the core of your story. 3. Think About the World of the Story The best short stories feel like they belong to a larger, lived-in world. You won’t have space to explain this world fully, but you can think about how it would shape the tale you are telling. Make notes about the history of your characters and the world they belong to before you begin writing. This can give you a better sense of what they are like and how they would interact with one another. You can even hint at this by alluding to your characters’ pasts in your writing. 4. Edit Ruthlessly! Thanks to the limitations of a short story, you will almost certainly write too much on your first draft. This is completely fine. The key is to take what you’ve written and then refine it. Think about cutting anything that isn’t essential to the story you’re telling. And remember the old advice about showing, not telling: i.e., that it is better to use action to show how a character feels than telling the reader directly. In a short story, this can also help cut down on unnecessary narration. 5. Look for a Publisher If you are proud of your short story, you might want to share it with the world! Check out some of the many magazines and blogs that feature short stories. Once you find one that carries the same type or genre of writing as your own, look up their rules for submitting stories and follow these closely.

How to Become President of the United States

How to Become President of the United States With the primary election coming to an end, only two candidates (if you’re not counting the independent candidates) will remain. While that seems simple enough, the path to becoming the President of the United States can be rather confusing and difficult to understand. After all, our system involves us voting for who we want as our leader, but we technically vote for representatives who then vote for the person we want as our leader, in which the representatives don’t always abide by the wishes of the voter. Make sense? No? Yeah, it’s pretty  convoluted but to make things easier to digest, we’ve compiled a very short and basic infographic on what it takes to become the President of the United States.

Comparison between 17th & 18th centuries in France,England and America Term Paper

Comparison between 17th & 18th centuries in France,England and America - Term Paper Example The first concept that can be seen with the different pieces of architecture is the characteristics that are from each region. The first comparison which can be made is within England, specifically between the 17th and 18th centuries. In the 17th century, the style was based on the Baroque influences, which consisted of finding balance within each type of work. This was combined with the styles which were influenced by the political and cultural associations, inclusive of the Tudor monarch changing to a different political structure. The main concepts which were associated with the Baroque style began to change by the 18th century, specifically because of social and cultural associations. The political realms moved through revolutionary changes, specifically with an altered regime and order. This was combined with the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution, both which altered the materials used for architecture as well as the expectations of what should be included in the archit ectural styles. Many of the pieces of architecture began to change into experimentation with new materials, influences of structures that were romantic in style and which rebelled against the balance and form of the 17th century (Glennie, p 17). The examples of these changes show in the variety of architecture which was produced in England during the 17th and 18th century. The earlier work of the Hatfield House (1607) shows the Elizabethan style as well as how this related to the metaphor of the political and cultural structure, as seen in Figure 1. Figure 1: Hatfield House (1607) The architecture is one which is representative of the Elizabethan architecture first because of the distinct form of east and west wings as well as the central arches which remain even on both sides. The towers and the association with simplistic and ornate figures are also seen. The main concept was to keep an open region while offering a spacious area that represents the power of the political structure of the time. This was representative of the English time frame and the components which were associated with the 17th century balance and structure (Archer, 29). The changes in England can be seen with the progression of architecture, such as through the Chiswick House, (1725) seen in figure 2. Figure 2: Chiswick House (1725) The same references of balance are used with this, specifically with the association of columns and structure that was used. This is not only representative of the ideologies of the new political system and the thriving of the current status. Instead, there is a movement back to the ancient Greek structures for balance, seen through the columns and the dome that is used. The concept of architecture is one which combines several influences and uses experimentation of combining structures while keeping the balance as seen in the 17th century. The representation then shows the change in style with integration of different methods, specifically which is representa tive of the characteristics of the Industrial Revolution while keeping the same concept of balance and form as the central component of the time, which is specific to Neo – Classicism (Archer, 37). The movement from balance and into a sense of Romanticism was also seen in other regions, including France and Colonial America. The French had a similar alteration into the Enlightenment and Romanticism in the 18th century, specifically because

Proposal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Proposal - Essay Example Like the students, educators also want to feel safe, secured, respected, and well - supported. Rooney (2003) suggests that â€Å"the wisdom of the good school must be worked out by those who live within its walls† yet there are so many issues in education which varies from highly qualified staff to unsafe school buildings and all areas in between. According to Weissbourd (2003), "schools can best support students moral development by helping teachers manage the stresses of their profession by increasing teachers capacity for reflection and empathy.† Another concern addressed by disenfranchised educators is the lack of state and federal funding to secure an adequate education. â€Å"School districts in poor rural communities have suffered funding issues for generations† (Borman, 2003); however, under public interest, the concern for teachers’ satisfaction oftentimes goes unnoticed. A qualitative random sample will be drawn from 20 K-12 public school teachers representing Dillon County School District Two. Survey and interview questions will be distributed to each educator. The researcher will then analyze the data using the appropriate statistical method. A. Problem under study: Lack of safety and salary as well as unsatisfactory administrative and parental support are the causative factors in the decline of the teachers entering the classroom. The problem addressed by this study is the significance teacher job satisfaction on student academic achievement. F. Data Collection Procedures: Survey forms and questionnaires comprising 10 questions will be distributed to 20 K - 12 educators from 6 schools in Dillon County District Two. This one week study consists of surveys and interview questions that will highlight on teachers’ satisfaction and students’ achievement. Problem Statement: The lack of teachers’ safety, salaries, and unsatisfactory administrative and parental support are the causative factors for teachers’

Famous Creative Thinkers Presentation Essay Example for Free

Famous Creative Thinkers Presentation Essay Famous Creative Thinkers Presentation I choose Carl Sagan as one of the people that I felt has given a great contribution to the world. Carl Sagan was born in Brooklyn, New York the son of an immigrant worker from the Russian Empire. Name after his mother’s mother. Carl had a sister and his mother was very protective of him. Carl’s mother was not up to par to fit in the social life, so she was restricted. When his parents took him to the New York World Fair, Carl was so excited when he saw the burial of a time capsule, stars and other exhibits that would lead to his inquisitiveness about the world. Later in life Carl and others would build time capsules, but these would be sent out into space for other life forms to find and they would contain Carl’s memories form the world fair. Carl’s parents helped his growing interest for science by buying him books about science and chemistry sets. He loved to read the books about science fiction stories, by writers such as H. G. Wells and Edgar Rice Burroughs, they made his imagination even wilder his about whether there was life on other planets such as Mars, Jupiter and Venus. Carl attended the University of Chicago and received his bachelors and was a part of the Ryerson Astronomical Society. He got received his Bachelors of Science in Physics, a Master of Science in physics and a PhD In astrophysics and astronomy. Carl was denied tenure at Harvard, because of his scientific advocacy, being widely publicized. Carl Sagan was a great astronomer, cosmologist, author, astrophysicist, science communicator, and science popularizer. Because of his great inquiries as to what did what and how come Carl thought about if there was truly life outside of the earth. He was the first to actually make the first messages that were sent into space. He studied the earth, stars, planets, he made messages that he thought could be understood by the extraterrestrials. He had over 600 articles published that  were scientific and authored or co-authored more than 20 books. The award winning series named Cosmos was also by Carl Sagan. He was a professor in astronomy at the Unive rsity of Cornell; he was part of the NASA as an advisor. Because of the Cosmos people were able to better relate and understand Carl’s ideas about the worthiness of the human race. Carl did his thinking the best way that he knew and that was to do it his way. Because of Carl they were able to learn the high surface temperature on the planet Venus, was due to the dryness. He was also the first to think about Saturn’s moon Titan may have contains liquids on the surface and that the Jupiter’s moon Europa might have oceans. Carl did organized research on such projects as Near Earth Objects, he composed the Deflection Dilemma, which would be deflecting an asteroid away from the Earth, and then it could be possible to deflect it back to the earth. During his career Sagan would be very much criticized as to his soundness, when it came to extraterrestrial life. Carl loved to urge people to listen using radio telescopes to see if they could hear signals from outer space that could help him prove that there were other life forms. Due to the lack of belief call stated a petition and was able to get 70 scientists to sign it advocating the SETI that was also p ublished in his journal of Science. Carl would later go on to explain his theories and use science to reveal them to the world. His life force was dedicated to science. Under President Regan rained there was to be a Strategic Defense Initiative, that would cost billions of dollars but it would develop a defense against nuclear missile attacks, an Carl was against this because he felt that there was no real way to do this and by doing so would unbalance the Soviet Union and United States making progress in the arms agreement. There was an experiment called : The Nevada Desert Experience† is where Carl would later be arrested twice for climbing a fence at the protest at the Nevada Test Site in order to protest against the government for using test sites that were experimenting in the Nuclear weapons and they where they were conducting the detonations. Carl was also noted as a free spirit and free thinker. References Whitehouse, David (October 15, 1999). Carl Sagan: A life in the cosmos. BBC News (BBC). Retrieved August 30, American National Biography Online, Carl Sagan. Wikipedia, The free encyclopedia Bansky is the second person that I choose to write on. Bansky is a very creative artist that did street and wall graffiti, painter, film director and political activist. No one really knew is real name or when he was born. He was the son of a technician, was born in Bristol England. Originally he was trained to be a butcher. Some say that his work is similar to that of Blek le Rat. Bansky was impressed by an artist known as 3D who was a member of a group called Massive Attack. Bansky displays his art to the public but he does not sell photo graphics are reproductions of his work. His first movie was called Exit through the Gift Shop was a disaster. His art is part of the Bristol Underground Scene. He like the way that stencils would help to use less time to complete a project. Bansky hid from the police while using stencils as a cover while he created his work. There was a statement to be made in each one of Bansky’s art works. Bansky works are usually all anti something. He d id not approve of the way that people considered art on surfaces as graffiti. He wanted to show that it was real art and start to do mural and other such art on public building and public places. Bansky, did his first exhibit in Los Angeles at the 33 1/3 Gallery and the exhibit called Existentialism, later he would produce such exhibits like Turf Wars, Monet’s Water Lily Pond, Barely Legal, and Bansky effect. The Bansky effect is a way of not just tagging but using art to express things and making areas brighter and pleasant to look at. There is not a particular technique Bansky used whatever he thought to be use full at the time. Bansky art has been known to be thought as a way of revenge for the underclass. To tag a mother persons art is disrespectful, and represents them taking away power or territory and not upholding the rules. Bansky’s works can be so different but beautiful when he does his art although it is considered graffiti it is beautiful. He developed a quantity of spoof British money notes, where the head was not the Queens but the Princess Diana’s and text was changed from the Bank of England to Bansky of England. Although they were not re al notes today they are of great value. Bansky also was responsible for nine portraits on a bank wall in Palestine on the Israeli’s  West Bank. Bansky has a flare to make a mockery of centralized power, too state that power can work against you. When it came to politics, Bansky was thought to be anti-fascism, anti-imperialism, anti-capitalism, anti-authoritarianism, nihilism, existentialism and anarchism. Bansky used images and visual as a means to create his art work. I felt that h could have made his work more realistic by not adding things to make the true scene a joke. But when there is an artist they can only put what they feel is their style of art. Bansky was also responsible for Money Bart of the Simpsons. I did not see any academic references. Bansky’s art was deprived from art and musicians. References Creative ThinkersBanksy creates new Simpsons title sequence. BBC Banksy, Street Art Cult Hero, International Man of Mystery. The Village Voice./ Wikipedia, The free encyclopedia

The Differences Between A Club And A Gang :: essays research papers

The differences between a club and a gang, are quite distinct, but it is the connotational differences between these two words which distinguishes one from the other. The New Lexicon Webster's Dictionary of the English Language defines a club as; "...an association of people with some common interest who meet periodically..." It defines a gang as "...a number of men or boys banding together, esp. lawlessly..." This definition is traditionally slanted toward applying to male youth, and stereotypical gangsters, from the Mafia to street criminals. Persons who often have a negative attitude toward youth see gangs. Often individuals form gangs out of fear and for the protection of their members whether they are the Bloods and Crips of Los Angeles or the Sharks and the Jets of "West Side Story." Gangs may not possess a set of formal written rules, but all of them have their own sets of customs or conditions. Gangs may or may not be facilitated in a branch of higher and lower members, mimicking a military model. Gangs often have a loosely defined set of goals, and are often involved in delinquent activities. A socially approved form of a gang is a club. Americans generally view clubs as character building leadership opportunities; whereas, individuals typecast into gangs are persecuted as criminals. Clubs are formed with constructive goals in mind, such as making it easier for its members to find parts for a particular brand of automobile. Socioeconomic class, academic achievement, or perceived roles in society for its members all play a part in the preferential treatment given to a group which a society deems a club rather than a gang. For instance, parts of the public anticipated that motorcycle riders would cause a massive rise in crime within the Hollister area during the motorcycle rally.

Religious Ideas of Dr. Jose Rizal Essay

Dr. Jose P. Rizal (June 19, 1861 – December 30, 1896) was executed by the Spanish colonial authorities for having rebelled and incited rebellion against the Church and against Spain. He was charged of â€Å"sedition,† and â€Å"insurrection† against the â€Å"mother country.† The evidence brought against him would not have stood in contemporary courts of law.What the authorities classified as rebellious activities were mainly writings critical of the regime, membership in â€Å"subversive† organizations like Masonic lodges, and forming an association of citizens desirous of seeking social and political reforms, La Liga Filipina. Never mind if La Liga Filipina sought to obtain citizenship rights similar to those enjoyed by Spaniards in Spain. For having repeatedly questioned the authority of the Church and the temerity to organize citizens outside Church control, Rizal was charged with â€Å"separatism,† committing a terrible heresy, the greatest crime in colonial Philippines. The authorities prodded by the friar orders meted out the death sentence. At that time, the Church conceived of itself as the sole representative of Divine Order on earth. The friar orders believed that they were the guardians of public order and morals and the source of all knowledge. They claimed that unlike the civilian government who was indecisive, remote and weak, they were the only effective instruments that kept the people of the Philippine archipelago devoted Catholics and therefore loyal and obedient subjects of the colonial government. By equating the Church and the friar orders with Spanish civil  authority, any criticism, any attempt to disparage the friars was ipso facto insurrection. Today in 2011, narration of these events deserve repetition for up till the late 1930’s, in 1950’s and to the 1970’s during the height of the Cold War accusations in the same vein were marshaled against the native folk religious associations (colorums),6 against the labor, peasants movements and their sympathizers among the intelligentsia. Dr. Rizal did not write an entire treatise on religion. Neither did he write exclusively on religion. Rizal was no theologian. His thoughts on religion are articulated alongside his ideas about what is a just and humane social order for our country and the rest of the world. His religious ideas were formulated as the result of his experiences, his education and vast readings, and as a consequence of his attempts to wrestle with the social, political and economic problems of his times. In this sense his religious perspective is humanistic and existential. He was not concerned with the subtle points of scholastic theological debate. Religion to Rizal is intimately connected with daily life, in the way our institutions work, and the unfolding of historical processes. Above all as he matured, religion to him should serve to inspire humans to strive for self-improvement, for a peaceful and tranquil life on this earth and not on the next. He had no quarrel with Christianity per se, or with the clergy. He opposed the Church and the friar orders for obstructing all peaceful means to uplift the Filipino people from servitude, from denying their God-given rights of freedom to think, analyze and uproot the sources of ignorance and injustice. His religious ideas are be drawn from his two novels, the Noli me Tangere and El Filibustrismo. He expounded them in his numerous articles published in La Solidaridad, his essays, letters to his family, colleagues, friends, and his exchange of letters with Ferdinand Blumentritt, and with his former Jesuit mentor, Fr. Pablo Pastells. The latter using the pseudonym Manuel Garcia Barzanallana wrote extensive polemics regarding Rizal’s so-called retraction and justified the hero’s execution as the means for him to repent his â€Å"sins of arrogance† and thereby allowed him to attain â€Å"eternal salvation.† Like Marcelo H. Del Pilar, Graciano Lopez Jaena, and his other colleagues in the Propaganda movement who studied and worked in Europe and Spain, Rizal imbibed the ideas and sentiments of the European Enlightenment and witnessed the revolutionary changes that were transforming the entire social and political structures in Spain and Europe. As a medical student at the University of Madrid and in Heidelberg, Germany, his wide-ranging studies in ethnography, anthropology, linguistics and history, Rizal absorbed the methods of scientific inquiry, experimentation, objective valuation of facts and information, and reliance on human reasoning rather than authority be it the Church or the state. Of special significance were his contacts with the thinkers and leaders of the progressive and libertarian movements in Spain and with other scholars, scientists and philosophers in Europe. Among them was the Austrian Ferdinand Blumentritt who was one of the first European specialists on the Philippines. He also read a great deal of radical theological writings such as those by Felicite R. de Lamennais (17882-1854) who advocated that Christianity must serve the poor and disadvantaged in this earth and fight injustice including that perpetuated by the Church. Men like Miguel Morayta Sagrario, Rafael Labra, Manuel Luis Zorilla, Francisco Pi y Margall (1824-1901) President of the First Republic of 1873, who struggled to transform Spain’s antiquated feudal system and the moribund clergy were close friends of Rizal. Pi y Magall tried to stop Rizal’s execution but the ultra conservative Spanish forces bent on keeping the colony prevailed.7 Rizal also avidly studied the wrings of French philosophers like Francois Marie Arouet de Voltaire, novelist Victor Hugo and British and other European progressives.8 Was Rizal a heretic? Did he commit apostasy as claimed by his murderers? Was he a traitor to Spain? Rizal did not denounce Catholic Christianity per se but its moribund institutions and the corruption and abuses of its representatives in the country. He remained a Catholic until his death. 9 He did not oppose religion but the perversions, abuses and hypocrisy of the representatives of the Church and the colonial government, which he portrayed vividly in his two novels. He intended not to destroy the Church but make its practices more consistent with the fundamental tenets of  Christianity. Similarly, before 1888 he did not espouse complete separation from Spain. He wanted affiliation with the progressive side of Spain that stood for equality, justice and brotherhood of all men. Compared to the anti-clerical Spaniards, who assaulted friars, seized their properties, expelled them, torched churches and convents, Rizal’s attack on the Church by comparison was infinitely milder. 10 What made the friars hysterical with vindictive anger was that Rizal, a Catholic espoused Christianity but rejected the Church dogma about the divinity of Christ, his resurrection, and salvation through faith. Moreover, Rizal defied Church authoritarian methods that stifled freedom to think and express grievances. He wrote vehemently against corruption and abuses of the clergy that were widely disseminated in Spain and in the Philippines. His Christianity did not rely on the intercession of friar orders, nor their institutions and organizations. Neither did he follow mandatory performance of religious rituals, sacraments and ceremonies. He said, â€Å"God does not require candles, He has more candles than the light of the sun.† Instead, Christians should spend their time in the cultivation of reason and virtue. He taught that true Christians are those who practice love and charity among all humans. He believed that humans are essentially moral, and that all human beings possess the God-given capacity to think and reason for one’s self. Ability to reason gives man the free will that makes him responsible for his decisions and actions. From this assumption follows that all human beings regardless of race, social status and sex are equal. He emphasized this view in his letters to the women of Malolos and to his Bulacan compatriots. In his letter to his mother on Christmas, 1886 Rizal explained that Christ was the first to proclaim the equality of all men. He admired the early Christians who although poor and persecuted were steadfast in their faith. They remained faithful to the original teachings of Christ. â€Å"The poor gave Christianity its power because it was their friend, their religion. The rich did not accept it until much later. They mastered it, making it their instrument to subjugate the people.† And as his criticism of the state of the Church in the Philippines and Europe, he asked -: â€Å"Why then is Christianity no longer the religion of the poor, of the unfortunate? Has it placed itself on the side of those who rule and dominate?† Rizal agreed with Pi y Margall in condemning Spanish use of Christianity in the conquest of the Americas. Rizal argued that the conquest of the Philippines was waged in the name of Christianizing the â€Å"pagan Indios.† Thus, Christianity became the legitimizing philosophy of imperialism, not the liberating religion of Christ. Sensitive to the developments in neighboring Asian countries, Rizal in his article published in La Solidaridad, wrote how Ternate was conquered in 1601 by Spanish soldiers â€Å"enslaving and killing the native people while singing Salve Regina. He asked, â€Å" Is this the way to make Filipinos love this God, making them slaves and toys they should be, while their hearts and conscience cry out in protest?† In dealing with the conditions of early Christians and of the changes in Christian beliefs and practices, Rizal said that Christianity was part of history. Its institutions and people’s conceptions of God also change and develop as history evolves. In fact he reversed the usual adage that â€Å"Man is made in the image of God;† to â€Å"Man creates God according to man’s image.† Every country develops its own image and concept of God in accordance with its culture and historical circumstances. God’s intervention in social life is manifested in the collective decisions and actions of humans. To the extent that humans apply their God-given reason for moral and ethical ends, exercise their free will for the social good; there is where God is found. In this sense, Rizal believes that God is a God of history. However, God to Rizal does not appear like a shower of manna or a thunderbolt not even as a venerable –looking judge to reward or punish good and bad deeds. As a scientist, and a keen observer of nature and social processes God to Rizal is not manifested in a single person or in a single revelation as narrated in the Bible, but revealed in the vastness and wonders of nature. This position made Rizal close to denying the divinity of Jesus Christ, the central doctrine of Christianity. Rizal maintained that there is no direct divine intervention in history except through human will, the sincere exercise of reason and conscience, these three concepts run like a continuous thread in his writings. In much the same way he rejected divine  right of kings, divine succession of the apostles through the ecclesiastical hierarchy, and the infallibility of the Pope and that of the Papal representatives in the Philippines. He counseled the youth of Malolos not to follow blindly whatever the friars said but to understand their own experiences, and sieve them through their own reason and conscience. Friars he said â€Å"are also humans made of flesh and bones and posses the same frailties like us.† Rizal endeavored to counteract the indoctrination propagated by the friars that molded people into submissive, obedient, humble and mindless flock of sheep prone to passivity. Indoctrinated only to believe the friars, they are credulous of â€Å"miraculous† events and superstitions for they have lost self-confidence and ability to question, reason and take responsible actions. This was an abomination to Rizal for Christianity was supposed to elevate the human spirit, and endow it with the spark of intelligence and energy so that they strive for the same dignity as other human beings in the world. The inspiration to raise the human spirit is Jesus Christ. Christ. To Rizal, Jesus Christ was both divine and human stressing the more human aspects of Jesus Christ. It is Christ’s humanity that makes him more accessible to the common tao and serves as the exemplary hero. 12 Rizal scorned adoration of the idols of Christ and the saints. He believed that time and energy spent in prolonged prayers, novenas, processions, veladas and other elaborate rituals ought to be used for more productive economic and social activities. 13 Instead, he said that the best way to express one’s devotion was to emulate Christ through good deeds. Do good towards your fellow men is central core of Rizal’s understanding of the Christian ethos. In his hymn to labor â€Å"Man’s Road to Progress and Perfection† he advocated the improvement of the poor and giving labor a fair share of the profits of production. He wanted to change the attitudes, habits and beliefs of his countrymen and women who tended to believe and rely on magic and the supernatural. Rizal narrated in his two novels the proclivity of the people to believe in and rely on magic, anting-anting, agimat, scapulars, rosaries, ghosts, and the like rather than their own native capabilities, in honest persistent labor. In the Noli, Elias spoke these scathing words against superstitious practices: â€Å"Do you call these external practices faith? Or that business in cords and scapulars, religion? Or the stories of miracles and other fairy tales that we hear everyday, truth? Is this the law of Jesus Christ? A God did not have Himself be crucified for this, nor we assume the obligation of eternal gratitude. Superstition existed long before this; all that was needed was to perfect it and to raise the price of the merchandise.† He showed that there is no causal relationship between the state of our morality or piety on one hand and natural disasters and misfortunes on the other. Natural calamities like typhoons, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions and epidemics are unavoidable – they are beyond human control. On the other hand, humans must take responsibility for social aberrations, cruelties, abuses and injustice. They are the consequences of human lassitude, indifference, arrogance, greed and error. Since God endowed humans with reason and dignity, hence, to fight for one’s honor, for one’s rights and freedom is tantamount to religious devotion. â€Å"There are no tyrants where there are no slaves.† Following his reasoning, to rebel against tyranny, oppression and injustice is a Christian duty. It is a duty that one must pursue even at the cost of one’s life. While he exhorted people to strive and use their native reason as the best means to reach God, he did not ridicule nor condemn church going and all religious rituals and liturgies. Rizal appreciated sincere acts of piety and devotion having observed these practices in his mother and sisters. While studying in Spain and even during his exile in Dapitan, Rizal attended mass and celebrated Christian holidays. What he criticized was sanctimonious performance of novenas, processions and ceremonials that distract and waylay people from deeper understanding of God and in examining the meaning of human existence. During his time, the prevailing frailocracy prohibited all civic associations and organizations except those related to the Church and those initiated and supervised by the friars. So stifling was the social climate that civic associations and other similar activities were forced underground. Even the  association of Masons whose membership was mainly professionals and intellectuals were denounced and charged as subversives by the Church. Some of the best and finest Filipino citizens and leaders were Masons; among them were Emilio Aguinaldo, Apolinario Mabini, and Rizal himself. Manuel Garcia-Barzanallana, nom de plume of Fr. Jose Pastells vehemently opposed and denounced the Masons since their ideology of equality and freedom of all persons irrespective of race, religion and social status and political activities challenged absolute authority of the Church. What made the religious orders in the Philippines harbor intense fear and hatred of such moderate organizations like the Masons and La Liga Filipina? Violent political upheavals in Europe and Spain provoked their paranoia. The friar orders having been expelled from Spain found refuge in the Philippines, the colonial outpost, where they thought, they would escape the political and religious upheavals in Spain. Bent on holding on to their properties and privileges that they could no longer maintain in their homeland, Friar orders became overly suspicious, defensive and paranoid. They persecuted Masons and all those they suspected as their enemies that only exacerbated opposition of their victims. Hundreds of Filipinos were killed, tortured, banished and hounded for the mere suspicion that they belonged to this fraternity of Masons or possession of â€Å"heretical and subversive† materials. Rizal was attracted to Masonry precisely because the organization accepted all persons of good will and character as members. Masonry propagated equality of all humans around the world; they stood for individual liberties, the pursuit of justice, and combat tyranny. The practices of Masonry were more democratic which was the opposite of the organization of friar orders that were closed to most Filipinos who were called disparagingly as â€Å"Indios†. Friar orders were strictly hierarchical, and served mainly the interests of their organization Regardless of Rizal’s scathing criticism of the Church, Rizal was profoundly spiritual. Much as he gave the greatest importance to human capacity to reason, to human capacity for self- improvement, he believed in God. He expounded his belief in God in his letters to Fr. Pablo Pastells, the head  of the Society of Jesus the one who sent him to his death in order that he may â€Å"find salvation.† During the period of exile in Dapitan, and up to the last hours before Rizal’s execution, Fr. Pastells strove to bring him back to the Catholic fold by sending religious books and Rizal’s former teacher Fr. Sanchez to counsel him. Fr. Pastells was adamant in his stand that only the Catholic faith was the true religion and that all others were erroneous. He attacked the Rationalists, Deists, Socialists, and Communists as evil teachings. He further argued that Spain was the rightful country where true Christianity reigned and its best defender stating in effect that the best form of government was a theocracy based on Catholicism. He insisted that true faith rested on total submission to the mystery and supernatural revelation in Jesus Christ as propounded by the Church fathers who inherited divine authority from Jesus Christ, that was passed on to St. Peter and then to the Papacy. On the other hand, Rizal was open-minded and sincerely wanted to be instructed on the intricacies of Catholic faith. He read the books by defenders of the Catholic faith diligently and expressed his admiration of some of the books. However Fr. Pastells could not match. Rizal’s logical reasoning, his earnest search for empirical and historical evidence needed to validate religious doctrines. His arguments in defense of the primary importance of human reason in analyzing religious teachings showed his consistency and intellectual integrity. Father Pastells did not think that evidence was necessary. Instead he appealed to the mystery, the supernatural and transcendental. He argued that the ultimate purpose of human reason was to have faith. Moreover, he added that the Catholic Church alone possessed the capacity and authority to judge what was immutable Truth. He went to the extent that he would use preventive and even repressive measures to ensure the perpetuation of this Catholic doctrine. Clearly Fr. Pastells and Rizal could not have any common grounds for mutual understanding since they argued from two diametrically opposed epistemology. Father Pastells’ framework was based on religious supernatural knowledge that was immutable and divinely ordained and interpreted exclusively by the religious hierarchy. Rizal thought that all knowledge including that of God was accessible to human reason and understanding and thereby varied according to each individual’s  personal capabilities, time and place. In other words, man creates God according to his own â€Å"image† or to his own understanding. In the exchange of letters Rizal replied to the charge by Fr, Pastells that in relying only in one’s reason, he forgot God and committed the sin of arrogance and self-pride; that his concern was limited merely to the mundane. Rizal the poet replied eloquently and with more humility than what Fr. Pastells credited him for. â€Å"How cannot I not believe in God? To do so would be to deny my own existence.† â€Å"I believe firmly in the existence of God the Creator†¦ I firmly believe in His wisdom, His infinite power (my idea of the infinite is so limited), His goodness manifested in the marvelous creation of the universe; in the order that reigns in His creation; His magnificence that overwhelms my understanding; His greatness that enlightens and nourishes all. His wisdom is so great that it humiliates human reason and makes me dizzy with vertigo for my own reasoning is imperfect and confused. Many times my reasoning leads me to raise my eyes to Him. I believe Him to be in the immense system of planets, in all the aggregation of nebulae, that bewilders and stretches my imagination beyond my comprehension that I am filled with dread, awe and bewilderment and leaves me dumb with wonder.† Fr. Pastell charged Rizal that by asserting reliance on human reason he misunderstood the true nature of faith and thus ignored divine mystery that was inseparable to faith. â€Å"†Faith cannot be called the result of a reasoning process; it is a supernatural gift from God our Lord, inasmuch as it is the beginning and source of justification, it cannot be equated by our natural powers without the necessary assistance of divine grace. Faith is a voluntary act of homage by which men freely submit his reason to the authority of the revealing God.† (April 28, 1893) To this accusation of self-pride, his lack of understanding of the mystery  of faith as a divine grace, Rizal countered perhaps with more prescience than his former mentor: â€Å"†Foolish is the epithet that you apply to the pride of the rationalists. If I may be permitted to ask, if I am still far from being one of them who is more proud – the man who is satisfied with following his own reason without imposing his views on others, or the man who tries to impose on others not what his reason dictates, but what appears to him to be the truth? What is rational has never seemed foolish to me, and pride has always shown its head in the attitude of superiority.† Rizal decided to end the exchange of letters with Fr. Pastells for the latter refused to concede even an iota to Rizal’s way of thinking, that the humane values of justice, equality, the search for truth based on God-given reason and conscience are fundamentally spiritual and are manifestations of the Divine. In his usual polite and conciliatory style, Rizal wrote. â€Å"Your Reverence says that I ought to hope that God will restore the faith that I lack. Let us then hope that he will do so, for this matter seems to me to be beyond our natural capabilities. Msgr. Bougarrd no longer convinces me. I am no longer able to comprehend your arguments and appreciate their merits. And I would be doing wrong in the eye of society, if I were to continue robbing you of your time, which the many people who live under your direction need so much and can use to their great advantage. †¦ let us leave to God the things that are God’s and to men the things that are men’s. As Your Reverence says the return to the faith is God’s work. Rizal’s murderers succeeded only in eliminating him physically. They failed in killing his ideas and what he stood for – freedom of thought, expression, and assembly and of the press. Rizal taught us that we must fight for the dignity and equality of all human beings not on our knees but in the arena of life. That to him is the best expression of devotion to God. By his self -sacrifice, he demonstrated that uncompromising courage is the greater weapon in the face of overpowering tyranny. True, Rizal fought the Church institutions and its clergy. And yet it was Christian morality that formed  the very heart of his social and political ideas for reforms and justice. Rizal did not weaken nor threaten Christianity in the Philippines. What he fought against was corruption, greed, superstition, ignorance and paranoia of the forces of counter-revolution. Conclusion – What then is the relevance of the discussion of Rizal’s ideas on religion to the state of and direction of Philippine Studies? The study is also a way of re-assessing the historical framework of the way we study and approach our history. Christianization and Westernization tend to view historical developments from the vantage point of the Catholic religion, of Spain and their institutions. It looks at the Filipino people as passive wards of the energetic missionary and â€Å"civilizing† efforts of the colonizers. Rizal’s life and works showed that however much he imbibed Catholicism and Spanish culture, he retained a great deal of his native, indigenous culture and values – language, social norms and practices that he invoked and defended against Spanish prejudices. He and his colleagues from ilustrados who studied in Europe and his stay-at-home countrymen and women shared basic cultural values and attitudes that enabled them to resist the worst Western de mands and exactions. In the process, like Rizal, our predecessors formulated a unique resilient Filipino culture that eventually evolved into what is called â€Å"national Consciousness.† True, Rizal like his educated colleagues studied and learned from the European Enlightenment about the rights of man, about individual liberty, the use of reason and science. Still, the Filipino historian must not ignore the Filipino folk who toiled relentlessly to survive the oppressive colonial regime and re-formulated and accommodated to the onerous colonial rule. Rizal was not bound by the strict divisions in the field of knowledge. He was less concerned with the formulation of the so-called â€Å"universal theories and methodologies† in the Humanities and Social Sciences since his goal was to seek evidence and the means of how humans can fight injustice, tyranny, oppression, and social iniquities. Most of all he wanted to elevate the Indio into a dignified, confident human being equipped with critical thinking and able to solve social ills. Therefore, Philippine Studies should be inter-disciplinal by tackling history, philology, geography, geology, biology, and other related  disciplines all to serve as the means for self-understanding, formulation of Filipino identity and contribute to the formation of a sovereign, united and prosperous nation. Another important ramification of this study is how Rizal viewed history. Contrary to the static, rigid, immutable Catholic position of Fr. Pastells, Rizal thought of history as a dynamic continuous process of change. Events, circumstances, people, their ideas and the environment are inter-connected and are in constant motion. The direction of change may not be always be in neat successive stages but its direction is towards more knowledge, the expansion of human consciousness and awareness, towards greater human aspirations for freedom and equality. Far from being a pessimist like Pr. Pastells who was fearful of losing Spanish power and prestige of the Church, Rizal was optimistic and looked courageously toward to a better world when the decaying, repressive structures of the old that was surely going to be dismantled to bring forth a better order. Bibliography Bonoan, Raul J., S.J, The Rizal – Pastells Correspondence, the hitherto unpublished letters of Jose Rizal and portions of Fr. Pablo Pastells’ fourth letter and translation of the correspondence, together with a historical background and theological Critique, Ateneo de Manila Univ. Press, 1994. Carr, Raymond, Spain, 1808-1039, Oxford Univ. Press, 1966. Carr, Raymond, editor, Spain, a History, Oxford Univ. Press, 2000. Comision Nacional del centanario de Jose Rizal, Cartas entre Rizal y sus colegas dela propaganda 1889-1896; Cartas entre Rizal y los miembros dela familia 1876-1887, Manila, 1961. Corpuz, O.D., The Roots of the Filipino Nation, 2 vols. Aklahi Foundation, Inc., 1989, Quezon City, 1989. Craig, Austin, Lineage, Life, and Labors of Jose Rizal, Philippine Patriot, Phil.Education Co. 1913. Dela Costa, Horacio, The Jesuits in the Philippines, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Cambridge, 1967. Dela Costa, Horacio, translator & editor, The Trial of Rizal: W. E. Retana’s transcription of the official Spanish documents, Ateneo de Manila Univ. Press, 1961. Esdaile, Charles J., Spain in the Liberal Age, from Constitution to Civil War, 1808-1939, Oxford Univ. Press, 2000. Fores-Ganzon, Guadalupe, editor and translator, La Solidaridad, Univ. of the Philippines Press, Quezon City, 1980. Garcia-Barzanallana, Manuel, La masonizacion de las Filipinas, Rizal y su obra, Barcelona, 1897. Guerrero, Leon Ma., The First Filipino: a Biography of Jose Rizal, National Historical Commission, Manila, 1969. Hessel, Eugene A., The Religious Thought of Jose Rizal, its Content and Significance, Phil. Education Co., Manila, 1961. Lopez, Rafael and Alfonso Felix, Jr., eds., The Christianization of the Philippines, Historical Conservation Society, Manila, 1965. One Hundred Letters of Jose Rizal to his Brother, Sisters, and Relatives, Phil. National Historical Institute, Manila, 1959. Phelan, John Leddy, The Hisoanization of the Philippines, Spanish Aims and Filipino Responses: 1565 – 1700, the Univ. of Wisconsin Press, 1959. Rizal, Jose, Noli me Tangere, Berlin, 1887; translated into English by Leon Ma. Guerrero, Hong Kong, Longman, 1961. Rizal, Jose, El Filibusterismo, E. Meyer van Loo, Belgium, 1891; translated into English by Leon Ma. Guerrero, Hong Kong, Longman, 1965. Rizal, Jose, Political and Historical Writings, National Historical Inst., Manila, 1989. Rizal, Jose, Annotations to Antonio Morga’s Sucesos delas Islas Flipinas published in Mexico, 1609, published in Paris, 1890. Roxas-Lim, Aurora, †Radical Spain and its Impact on Filipino Revolutionary Movement,† paper presented at the National Conference Encuentro – Philippine-Spanish Relations, Univ. of the Philippines, held at Balay Kalinaw, Diliman, January 25-27, 2003. , Sarkisyanz, Manuel, Rizal and Republican Spain and other Rizalist Essays, National Historical Inst., Manila, 1995. Schumacher, John, S.J., The Propaganda Movement: 1880-18995, the Creators of Filipino Consciousness,, Manila, nod., Sturtevant, David R., Popular Uprising in the Philippines: 1840-1940, Cornell Univ. Press, NY & London, 1976. Villaroel, Fidel, Rizal and the University of Sto. Tomas, Manila, 1984.

Has Bluewater shopping centre been a benefit to the surrounding communities?

Retail services (shopping) are so important in people's lives because it means that people can purchase luxury goods it can also be a socialising meeting point for people. Retail services sell useful products that the community needs and would benefit from. Some retail services provide conveniences goods. This is important to people because they have the opportunity to get their daily needs. Other retail services provide people with clothing, entertainments, and home furniture's etc. heses are all important in people's lives without clothes people will be cold during the winter. Not all shopping centres provide the same goods and services. Smaller shopping centres provide everyday essential goods for people. They also supply their goods in smaller quantities. Whereas, larger shopping centres provide a wider range of products and in bigger quantities. Shopping centres located in a smaller settlement supply their customers with fewer goods. Villages are a good example of small shopping centres. This can be because there are fewer people to provide products for as not a lot of people live in the villages. However, most large settlements are located in cities, in the central business district. ‘Out-of-town' shopping centres are being built because it makes money for the business that owns it. There are also larger areas that are cheaper to buy or rent for business use. There is more space for development for a bigger shopping centre. The advantages of and ‘out-of-town' shopping centre is that it provides costumers with a free parking space, which is more convenient for people. Land on the edge of cities is being used to build houses, schools, roads and car parks for the shopping centres. It is also being used to build other useful facilities such as parks and leisure centres. There is a conflict about how such areas of lands called `development sites` are used because some developments cause harm to the land such as cars and factories pollution. When deciding how land should be developed, the factors that planner has to take into account are the residents living nearby also whether the development would effect the environment and all its inhabitants. They also have to put into account the advantages and disadvantages it would bring to the public. When a new shopping centre is proposed, many different groups of people might be affected by this development. The elderly, teenagers, middle class, lower class and working class might be affected but the way each group is affected is different. The elderly would find living next to a shopping centre difficult this is because many people would visit the shopping centre that means a lot of noise would be made disturbing the elderly. However, for some elderly it could be a chance for them to keep themselves busy by strolling down to the shopping centre. Teenagers would see it has a opportunity to go shopping regularly which would make the retail services more money also the teenagers would go the shopping centre as a place where they could go and talk to friend and keep themselves warm in the winter. The shopping centre would also give some teenagers an opportunity to earn money as they could work there. It would keep teenagers entertained. Aims I will begin my investigation by showing the location of Bluewater by including maps and descriptions of where Bluewater is also which other places it is linked to. Then my investigation is going to include what range of services, and types of services are provided at Bluewater. I am also going to write about who uses Bluewater and where they come from. Then my investigation is going to question how successful has the Bluewater development been. I am going to explore the benefits and the costs of the development and find out which sections of the community have been benefited and who has lost out. My investigation will then be followed by the question whether the development of shopping facilities at Bluewater has been more desirable than any other uses that they could have used for this site/ land, for example housing or industry. Then I will be giving my opinion as to whether I think that the local planning authority was right to allow the shopping centre to be developed. The investigation would then consider future developments in the area and finally I will reflect on how I could do things differently if I was to do this investigation again. Data used I needed information to carry out my investigation as to whether Bluewater shopping centre has been a benefit to the surrounding communities. I obtained some of data's from my fieldtrip to Bluewater. I needed to interview people at Bluewater to find out how often people come shopping to Bluewater, how long their journey was and what is the most important reason why they people come to shop at Bluewater. I used the information collected from the interview to help me answer the question of has Bluewater shopping centre been a benefit to the surrounding communities. I also did a visitor profile sheet to help me investigate the age and gender of Bluewater's visitors. I collected images of maps and pictures of Bluewater to help me locate where Bluewater is and the surrounding areas. Some of the evidence that I used was from the Bluewater downloaded student pack. Using this helped me answer questions and get extra information about Bluewater that I needed. The student pack also provided the number figures and percentages that e couldn't get from other sources. I gathered extra information about Bluewater from the Internet e. g. he Bluewater official website. Presentation This information was from the Bluewater student pack. â€Å"Bluewater is a shopping centre containing about 360 shops, which is built in a 50 meters high chalk quarry. It is located in Greenhithe in the borough of Dartford. † The development of Bluewater has enabled the local communities surrounding Bluewater to get jobs and earn money. It has also provided shops for businesses to use. (see next section about jobs. ) Local retailers have also benefit from the development of Bluewater because they use the open spaces at Bluewater to sell products. at Christmas) According to the Bluewater student pack, the site of Bluewater provides an easy access route, as it is just a mile away from M25 junction 2, between Dartford and Gravesend on the A2 London to Canterbury road. Travellers from the south can get to Bluewater using the A2 or from the north using the new south Thames development route or STDR. This indicates that people from local communities can reach Bluewater easily. Bluewater is approximately 4 kilometres from the planned Ebbsfleet station on the new high-speed rail link between the channel tunnel and London. This is an advantage for people that live further away but it does not benefit the local communities. The location of Bluewater gives it a large catchments area. The fast motorway links attracts almost 10 million shoppers within an hour's drive and 4. 8 million people in the principal catchments. Going back to my introduction, retail services sell useful products that the community needs and would benefit from. Bluewater as a retail services provides useful products that the community needs and would benefit from. It also supplies different range of shops and services. From the Bluewater student pack, Over 14 hectares are for retail space and nearly 1. 5 hectares are for indoor leisure use and the rest of the site is occupied by parkland, lakes and car parking. Approximately 330 shops unit are located at Bluewater including large flagship stores. Bluewater offers the finest products from top shops like John Lewis, Marks & Spencer and House of Fraser. These anchor shops sell wide range of goods that people will need in their lives. This benefits the local communities because they have the opportunity to purchase the luxuries goods from Bluewater without having to travel very far. Bluewater is a shopping centre that is developed to cater for everyone's need because this means selling some products at more affordable prices for other people. While I was at the shopping centre I could see that Bluewater has Variety of products. These include clothes, accessories, electronics, home wares, games, media and many more. From my trip to Bluewater I could see that there were many catering services that provide shoppers and staffs with quality cafes, restaurants, fast foods and bars. Bluewater is a benefit for people because it contains many shops that sell all kinds of different goods under one roof. This is an advantage for shoppers because they don't have to travel far to get what they need. Bluewater also contains mini convince stores to get daily goods at reasonable prices for everyone. The local communities benefits from this because they could do their shopping all in one go at Bluewater saving valuable time. While on the field trip to Bluewater I could see that they provide shoppers and the local communities with entertainment services such as leisure centre, cinema, and ice rink for use in winter etc. As well as making sure that shoppers have the best range in products. In my opinion I think that Bluewater focuses on services that would help make shopping at Bluewater easier and convenient for people. These services includes a valet parking which would make life easier for shoppers as they don't have to worry about where to put their car because it is being done for them already. Bluewater also provides disabled people with toilets just for them and convenient parking spaces for them to use. The shopping centre includes elevators that will make life easier for disabled people and mothers using prams. Toilets are put inside the centre for people to use. Baby changing have also been placed in the store to make it stress free for parents. Banks and CCTV are in the site and these are useful towards the shoppers and staff. A good thing about ‘out- of-town' shopping centre from my introduction such as Bluewater is that they provide free parking space for visitors. From my survey, shoppers travel from different locations and distances to get to Bluewater. Some travel further than others while people that live near Bluewater do not travel very far. To help me figure out how long the journey to Bluewater was I interviewed shoppers and workers. This would help me with my investigation because with the results I would be able to see clearly who benefits most from the development of Bluewater. It would help me to see roughly how many of the local people visit Bluewater. From the chart below, I could see that people that come from areas such as Tunbridge, Bexley, Bromley, Dartford and Medway are the people that live locally. It would take them less time to travel to Bluewater. While I was at Bluewater I could see that most of the shoppers were adults this could be because they were off work and decided to start buying Christmas present as it was getting close to Christmas. It could also be that they were on break and they wanted to get lunch from the food court provided. While I was at Bluewater I interviewed a elderly woman who said the reason why she comes to Bluewater is because of the leisure centre which, her and her husband attend she also did not live very far from the shopping centre which means that she does not have to travel far. Bluewater has attracted many people for different reasons. Not everyone at Bluewater go there to shop some people go there for the entertainments while others go there to work. I think that Bluewater would attract mostly adults because they would have money and they would feel like buying things that they need. It would also attract teenagers because they would want to go there for window-shopping and for the entertainments available. Bluewater would attract less elderly people because they would not have enough money or energy to go and shop at Bluewater. I believe that the Bluewater development has been successful for the following reasons. Firstly, according to â€Å"wikipedia† it shows that around 30 million people visit Bluewater every year. I also think that the development of Bluewater has been successful because the developers spent around 30 million on making roads better for visitors. For Bluewater to spend so much money on roads it shows that it might earn lots of money. Bluewater has been designed to cater for all sections of the community. This includes the structure of the building, facilities, prices, shops etc. all of these were made to make shopping easier, affordable and enjoyable for everyone. The shopping centre placed elevators in the shop to make it easier for disabled people to get around the shop and also for the fit able people to make them not get stressed. It also provides lockers for shoppers to use while shopping at Bluewater; this enables visitors and staff to put their belongings in it without losing it or carrying it around. There are comfortable sofa's placed in the shop for people to sit and feel relaxed. Bluewater has 13,000 parking space including separate spaces for disabled people and elderly to use. This will make life easier and safer for them. As well as catering for the elderly, Bluewater also caters for young people that visit the site. There are fun activities for them to take part in while staying at Bluewater, these activities includes boating, ice-skating and cycling. As shown in the Bluewater mall guide, there is also a criche room that allows up to 250 children to play in. this is to keep them entertain while shopping. Source used to obtain this information is the downloaded student pack. The site also caters for both genders visiting Bluewater. Female and male stores are provided to ensure that both genders get what they need to keep up with fashion. Even though Bluewater has some expensive stores in the centre. It also has some affordable stores for the majority of the people that do not own a lot of money. These shops also sell quality products but just at more reasonable price. In my opinion Bluewater is a development that has helped most of the local economy. According to the Bluewater's student pack. Bluewater has provided thousands of jobs for the local community both during and after construction. While Bluewater was being developed it brought approximately 6,500 jobs for constructing it only. When Bluewater opened in March 1999, it created about 7,000 permanent jobs on site. About 4,000 of these are in retail trades. These jobs include sale staff and store management. Around 40% of these jobs are full time and 60% part time. The remaining of the workers is involved in non-retail jobs. This includes occupations such as cleaning, catering, Security, warehouse staff, ground staff and administration. Bluewater has been a benefit to services and the local communities. A reason for this is that it has invested lots of money in proving roads and transportations. This has made road safer and transportations better. Local communities have benefited from this. To help me with investigation of do other services and local businesses benefit from Bluewater. I used the downloaded student pack, which says that Bluewater is designed to help local businesses win contracts at Bluewater. So Bluewater has been a benefit to local businesses. However, many local businesses near Bluewater have not really benefit from Bluewater. The reason for this is that Bluewater is a large shopping centre designed to provide many services for people and make their visits enjoyable all under one roof. Local businesses do not provide enough ranges as Bluewater does. This means that many people will rather go to Bluewater for the shopping's. The local businesses will therefore, loose out on money due to the lack of customers that shop in their shops. They might also end up going bankrupt. Though local shops lose out on money, Bluewater will provide more money for hotels. This is due the amount of tourists and people that will visit Bluewater and need a place to stay. Jobs in Bluewater have helped the local community. It has given them the opportunity to earn money. It has also helped them to work, undergo training and obtain formal qualifications, which can help them in the future. Jobs in Bluewater have reduced the mount of unemployed in the local community. From my interview with a worker at Bluewater, I have some knowledge as to whether people that work there like it. The person that I interview said she liked working there and the salary is good. Workers at Bluewater can also take the advantages of the food court and services provided at Bluewater. The development of Bluewater has affected the environment in many ways. It has benefited the environment as well as harming the environment. I will start off by explaining the problems Bluewater causes for the environment. Firstly, Bluewater increases the amount of carbon monoxide in the air. This done by cars and Bluewater is a place that attracts many visitors with cars. The number of cars that visit Bluewater gives off carbon monoxide, which is bad for the environment, but if fewer cars visit Bluewater each day, there will be less poisonous gas in the air. Secondly, Bluewater causes noise pollution for the surrounding environment. Noise pollution is caused by the number of people that visit Bluewater this could make the place really loud and also cars that drive by make lots of noises. This affects the peace and quietness of the environment and also it disturbs the local people. Thirdly, the development of Bluewater has brought more attention to its local environment. This is because people from all over the place visit Bluewater and this can be very disturbing for the neighbourhood and very dangerous for children that play outside because they don't know who might harm them. However, even though Bluewater causes many problems for the environment. It also benefits the environment. Bluewater is located in a stunning location. It is situated among cliffs. Bluewater is surrounded by landscape of lakes, parkland and trees. This shows the more nature side of the environment and makes the environment calming and attractive. Bluewater also brightens up the environment at night with its bright lights. Conclusion In my opinion I think that the local planning authority was right to allow the shopping centre to be developed because firstly it provided many jobs for people, something that would benefit everyone rather than living it as a chalk quarry, which would not benefit people. It also makes life easier for the local community as they do not have to travel far to get what they need. The development of Bluewater was also better for the community because it earns more money for business people, which they could use to make more businesses and offer more jobs to people. Furthermore, the local planning authority was right to allow the development because it means the majority of the people can go and shop in Bluewater rather than high streets where it would be too crowded and stocks would go quicker due to the amount of people. â€Å"Has Bluewater shopping centre been a benefit to the surrounding communities? Looking at all the information I have investigated and written. I believe that Bluewater has been a benefit to the surrounding communities. My reasons for this are that it has provided jobs for people that live there. It has also improved the roads, which the surrounding communities have benefited from. Although some people might disagree with my answer because of the environmental issues that Bluewater the shopping centre causes. I believe it has been a benefit because looking at all the different aspect; Bluewater has brought more advantages than disadvantages. Personally I think that there are lessons to be learned about future developments in the area nearby. Firstly, there should be more traffic lights and zebra crossing surrounding the developments. This is for the local community and other people to be safer and for drivers to drive with care. Secondly, it should be developed in a place where it will benefit the community without disturbing them or causing trouble for them. Finally, it should not be built near a school or places that contain many children. This is to prevent children wandering off and being safe. If I were to repeat this investigation again, I would have the courage to go up to people in the shops for interview. This is because I feel like I did not interview enough people therefore; I did not get as much information as I needed. I should have also paid more attention in filling in the visitor profile sheet because this would have helped me to make a rough judgement has to what gender attended Bluewater more on the day I visited. It would also have helped me to see what majority of age group visits Bluewater. In addition, I could have interviewed more than one worker at Bluewater and I should have asked more logical questions that would have helped me with my coursework. Finally, while on the road to Bluewater I should have paid more attention on to the amount of cars that were passing by. This would have increased my knowledge of how many people visit Bluewater and I should have been more aware of the houses and shops that were near Bluewater. This is to help me figure out exactly what advantages and disadvantages Bluewater cause for the local community.

Free Essays on An Intellectual Biography Of George Lamming

Intellectual Biography: George Lamming. George Lamming, born in Carrington Village, Barbados, was of mixed English and Black African heritage, and grew up in his native township of Carrington Village and also in St David's Village, which was the workplace of his adopted father. Unlike many his age, Lamming had the opportunity of an education and with encouragement and particular influence from a teacher, Frank Collymore, Lamming became entangled into the world of literature, and the experiences books had to offer. Before long he began his own early writings before moving, and working from 1946 to 1950 as a teacher at ‘El Colegio de Venezuela’, which was a private boarding school for boys in Port of Spain, Trinidad. Lamming was then to once more move, this time across the ocean to England where Lamming worked briefly in a factory of London whilst working independently as a freelance writer, having already published some of his works in the Barbadian magazine ‘Bim’. Lammings’ time spent in England was of great benefit in terms of his writing aspirations and Lamming had the opportunity to meet fellow Commonwealth citizens, Africans and Asians, and become aware of the problems and issues of ‘identity’ for the African Diaspora’s. George Lamming is one of the pre-eminent writers and novelists of the early generation West Indian writers, and it can be argued that his first piece of work, the novel ‘In the Castle of My Skin’, is the most widely read ‘Black’ novel to date. It was also this novel, wrote in 1953 that many believe to be the catalyst that allowed Lamming his rise to prominence. It was described as an ‘autobiographical novel of childhood and adolescence written against the anonymity and alienation from self and community that the author experienced in London at the age of twenty-three’. Lammings’ works were largely an expression of awareness and enlightenment of sorts, and he used them directly i... Free Essays on An Intellectual Biography Of George Lamming Free Essays on An Intellectual Biography Of George Lamming Intellectual Biography: George Lamming. George Lamming, born in Carrington Village, Barbados, was of mixed English and Black African heritage, and grew up in his native township of Carrington Village and also in St David's Village, which was the workplace of his adopted father. Unlike many his age, Lamming had the opportunity of an education and with encouragement and particular influence from a teacher, Frank Collymore, Lamming became entangled into the world of literature, and the experiences books had to offer. Before long he began his own early writings before moving, and working from 1946 to 1950 as a teacher at ‘El Colegio de Venezuela’, which was a private boarding school for boys in Port of Spain, Trinidad. Lamming was then to once more move, this time across the ocean to England where Lamming worked briefly in a factory of London whilst working independently as a freelance writer, having already published some of his works in the Barbadian magazine ‘Bim’. Lammings’ time spent in England was of great benefit in terms of his writing aspirations and Lamming had the opportunity to meet fellow Commonwealth citizens, Africans and Asians, and become aware of the problems and issues of ‘identity’ for the African Diaspora’s. George Lamming is one of the pre-eminent writers and novelists of the early generation West Indian writers, and it can be argued that his first piece of work, the novel ‘In the Castle of My Skin’, is the most widely read ‘Black’ novel to date. It was also this novel, wrote in 1953 that many believe to be the catalyst that allowed Lamming his rise to prominence. It was described as an ‘autobiographical novel of childhood and adolescence written against the anonymity and alienation from self and community that the author experienced in London at the age of twenty-three’. Lammings’ works were largely an expression of awareness and enlightenment of sorts, and he used them directly i...

The Easy Guide to the 30-60-90 Triangle

The Easy Guide to the 30-60-90 Triangle SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Acute, obtuse, isosceles, equilateral†¦.When it comes to triangles, there are many different varieties, but only a choice few that are â€Å"special.† These special triangles have sides and angles which are consistent and predictable and can be used to shortcut your way through your geometry or trigonometry problems. And a 30-60-90 triangle- pronounced â€Å"thirty sixty ninety†- happens to be a very special type of triangle indeed. In this guide, we’ll walk you through what a 30-60-90 triangle is, why it works, and when (and how) to use your knowledge of it. So let’s get to it! What Is a 30-60-90 Triangle? A 30-60-90 triangle is a special right triangle (a right triangle being any triangle that contains a 90 degree angle) that always has degree angles of 30 degrees, 60 degrees, and 90 degrees. Because it is a special triangle, it also has side length values which are always in a consistent relationship with one another. The basic 30-60-90 triangle ratiois: Side opposite the 30 ° angle: x Side opposite the 60 ° angle: x * √3 Side opposite the 90 ° angle: 2x For example, a 30-60-90 degree triangle could have side lengths of: 2, 2√3, 4 7, 7√3, 14 √3,3, 2√3 (Why is the longer leg 3?In this triangle, the shortest leg (x) is √3, so for the longerleg, x√3 = √3 *√3 = √9 = 3. And the hypotenuse is 2 times the shortestleg, or 2√3) And so on. The side opposite the 30 ° angle is always the smallest, because 30 degrees is the smallest angle. The side opposite the 60 ° angle will be the middle length, because 60 degrees is the mid-sized degree angle in this triangle. And, finally, the side opposite the 90 ° angle will always be the largest side (the hypotenuse) because 90 degrees is the largest angle. Want to get better grades and test scores? We can help. PrepScholar Tutors is the world's best tutoring service. We combine world-class expert tutors with our proprietary teaching techniques. Our students have gotten A's on thousands of classes, perfect 5's on AP tests, and ludicrously high SAT Subject Test scores. Whether you need help with science, math, English, social science, or more, we've got you covered. Get better grades today with PrepScholar Tutors. Though it may look similar to other types of right triangles, the reason a 30-60-90 triangle is so special is that you only need three pieces of informationin order to find every othermeasurement. So long as you know the value oftwo angle measures and one side length (doesn’t matter which side), you know everything you need to know about your triangle. For example, we can use the30-60-90 triangle formula tofill in all the remaining information blanks of the triangles below. Example 1 We can see that this is a right triangle in which the hypotenuse is twice the length of one of the legs. This means this must be a 30-60-90 triangle and the smaller given sideis opposite the 30 °. The longer leg must, therefore, be opposite the 60 ° angle and measure 6 *√3, or 6√3. Example 2 We can see that this must be a 30-60-90 triangle because we can seethat this is a right triangle with one given measurement, 30 °. The unmarked angle must then be 60 °. Since 18 is the measure opposite the 60 ° angle, it must be equal to x√3. The shortest leg must then measure $18/√3$. (Note that the leg lengthwill actually be $18/{√3} *{√3}/{√3} = {18√3}/3 = 6√3$ because adenominator cannot contain a radical/square root). And the hypotenuse will be $2(18/√3)$ (Note that, again, you cannot have a radical in the denominator, so the final answer will really be 2 times the leg length of 6√3= 12√3). Example 3 Again, we are given two angle measurements (90 ° and 60 °), so the third measure will be 30 °. Because this is a 30-60-90 triangle and the hypotenuse is 30, the shortest leg will equal 15 and the longer leg will equal 15√3. No need to consult the magic eight ball- these rules always work. Why It Works: 30-60-90 Triangle Theorem Proof But why does this special triangle work the way it does? How do we know these rules are legit? Let’s walk through exactly how the 30-60-90 triangle theorem works and prove why these side lengths will always be consistent. First, let’s forget about right triangles for a second and look at an equilateral triangle. An equilateral triangle is a triangle that has all equal sides and all equal angles. Because a triangle’s interior angles always add up to 180 ° and $180/3 = 60$, an equilateral triangle will always have three 60 ° angles. Now let's drop down a height from the topmost angle to the base of the triangle. We've now created two right angles and two congruent (equal) triangles. How do we know they’re equal triangles? Because we dropped a height from an equilateral triangle, we’ve split the base exactly in half. The new triangles also share one side length (the height), and they each have the same hypotenuse length. Because they share three side lengths in common (SSS), this means the triangles are congruent. Note: not only are the two triangles congruent based on the principles of side-side-side lengths, or SSS, but also based on side-angle-side measures (SAS), angle-angle-side (AAS), and angle-side-angle (ASA). Basically? They're most definitely congruent. Now that we’ve proven the congruencies of the two new triangles, we can see that the top angles must each be equal to 30 degrees (because each triangle already has angles of 90 ° and 60 ° and must add up to 180 °). This means we have made two 30-60-90 triangles. And because we know that we cutthe base of the equilateral triangle in half, we can see that the side opposite the 30 ° angle (the shortest side) of each of our 30-60-90 triangles is exactly half the length of the hypotenuse. So let us call our original side length x and our bisected length $x/2$. Now all that leaves us to do is to find our mid-side length that the two triangles share. To do this, we can simply use the pythagorean theorem. $a^2 + b^2 = c^2$ $(x/2)^2 + b^2 = x^2$ $b^2 = x^2 - ({x^2}/4)$ $b^2 = {4x^2}/4 - {x^2}/4$ $b^2 = {3x^2}/4$ $b = {√3x}/2$ So we're left with: $x/2, {x√3}/2, x$ Now let's multiply each measure by 2, just to make life easier and avoid all the fractions. That way, we're left with: x, x√3, 2x We can see, therefore, that a 30-60-90 triangle will always have consistent side lengths of x, x√3, and 2x (or $x/2$, ${√3x}/2$, and x). Luckily for us, we can prove 30-60-90 triangle rules true without all of...this. When to Use30-60-90 Triangle Rules Knowing the30-60-90 triangle rules will be able to save you time and energy on a multitude of different math problems, namely a wide variety of geometry and trigonometry problems. Geometry Proper understanding of the 30-60-90 triangles will allow you to solve geometry questions that would either be impossible to solve without knowing these ratio rules, or at the very least, would take considerable time and effort to solve the "long way." With thespecial triangle ratios, you can figure out missing triangle heights or leg lengths (without having to use the pythagorean theorem), find the area of a triangle by using missing height or base length information, and quickly calculate perimeters. Any time you need speed to answer a question, remembering shortcuts like your 30-60-90 rules will come in handy. Trigonometry Memorizing and understanding the 30-60-90 triangle ratio will also allow you to solve many trigonometry problems without either the need for a calculator or the needto approximate your answers in decimal form. A 30-60-90 triangle has fairly simple sines, cosines, and tangents for each angle (and these measurements will always be consistent). Sine of 30 ° will always be $1/2$. Cosine of 60 ° will always be $1/2$. Though the other sines, cosines, and tangents are fairly simple, these are the two that are the easiest to memorize and are likely to show up on tests. So knowing these rules will allowyou to find these trigonometry measurements as quickly as possible. Tips for Remembering the30-60-90 Rules You know these30-60-90 ratio rules are useful, but how do you keep the information in your head? Remembering the30-60-90 triangle rules is a matter of remembering the ratio of 1: √3: 2, and knowing that the shortest side length is always opposite the shortest angle (30 °) and the longest side length is always opposite the largest angle (90 °). Some people memorize the ratio by thinking,â€Å"x, 2x, x√3,† because the â€Å"1, 2, 3† succession is typically easy to remember. The one precaution to using this technique is to remember that the longest side is actually the 2x, not the x times √3. Another way to remember your ratios is to use a mnemonic wordplay on the 1: root 3: 2 ratio in their proper order. For example, â€Å"Jackie Mitchell struck out Lou Gehrig and ‘won Ruthy too,’†: one, root three, two. (And it's a true baseball history fact to boot!) Play around with your own mnemonic devices if these don’t appeal to you- sing the ratio to a song, find your own â€Å"one, root three, two† phrases, or come up with a ratio poem. You can even just remember that a 30-60-90 triangle is half an equilateral and figure out the measurements from there if you don't like memorizing them. However it makes sense to you to rememberthese 30-60-90 rules, keep those ratios your head for your future geometry and trigonometry questions. Memorization is your friend, however you can make it happen. Want to get better grades and test scores? We can help. PrepScholar Tutors is the world's best tutoring service. We combine world-class expert tutors with our proprietary teaching techniques. Our students have gotten A's on thousands of classes, perfect 5's on AP tests, and ludicrously high SAT Subject Test scores. Whether you need help with science, math, English, social science, or more, we've got you covered. Get better grades today with PrepScholar Tutors. Example 30-60-90 Questions Now that we've looked at the hows and whys of 30-60-90 triangles, let's work throughsome practice problems. Geometry A construction worker leans a 40-foot ladder up against the side of a building at an angle of 30 degrees off the ground. The ground is level and the side of the building is perpendicular to the ground. How far up the building does the ladder reach, to the nearest foot? Without knowing our 30-60-90 special triangle rules, we would have to use trigonometry and a calculator to find the solution to this problem, since we only have one side measurement of a triangle. But because we know that this is a special triangle, we can find the answer in just seconds. If the building and the ground are perpendicular to one another, that must mean the building and the ground form a right (90 °) angle. It’s also a given that the ladder meets the ground at a 30 ° angle. We can therefore see that the remaining angle must be 60 °, which makes this a 30-60-90 triangle. Now we know that the hypotenuse (longest side) of this 30-60-90 is 40 feet, which means that the shortest side will be half that length. (Remember that the longest side is always twice- 2x- as long as the shortest side.) Because the shortest side is opposite the 30 ° angle, and that angle is the degree measure of the ladder from the ground, that means that the top of the ladder hits the building 20 feet off the ground. Our final answer is 20 feet. Trigonometry If, in a right triangle, sinÃŽËœ = $1/2$ and the shortest leg lengthis 8. What is the length of the missing side that is NOT the hypotenuse? Because you know your 30-60-90 rules, you can solve this problem without the need for either the pythagorean theorem or a calculator. We were told that this is a right triangle, and we know from our special right triangle rules that sine 30 ° = $1/2$. The missing angle must, therefore, be 60 degrees, which makes this a 30-60-90 triangle. And because this is a 30-60-90 triangle, and we were told that the shortest side is 8, the hypotenuse must be 16 and the missing side must be 8 * √3, or 8√3. Our final answer is 8√3. The Take-Aways Remembering the rules for 30-60-90 triangles will help you to shortcut your way through a variety of math problems. But do keep in mind that, while knowing these rules isa handy tool to keep in your belt, you can still solve mostproblems without them. Keep track of the rules of x, x√3, 2x and 30-60-90 in whatever way makes sense to you and try to keep them straight if you can, but don't panic if your mind blanks out when it's crunch time. Either way, you've got this. And, if you need more practice, go ahead and check out this 30-60-90 triangle quiz. Happy test-taking!

Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Finance - Essay Example Overview The term liquidity refers to the ability of the firm to cover its debt obligations through its liquid assets, without incurring a large loss. For example, if a firm wants to repay its outstanding commercial paper obligation of one month, then it might issue new commercial papers instead of selling its assets (The Economist 2001). Thus, liquidity risk involves the inability of the firm to meet its current and its future collateral needs and cash flows, without affecting the overall financial operations of the firm (FRBSF 2010, 1). The financial firms are generally sensitive regarding funding the liquidity risks, as transforming debt maturity such as purchasing assets with the short-term deposits, funding the long-term loans or debt obligations, are the major business areas. As a response to the liquidity risk, the financial firms generally maintain and establish a system for liquidity management. This system helps in assessing the prospective requirements of funds and also en sures that the funds are accessible during the appropriate time. Before moving on to discuss the solutions firms prepare to meet out the liquidity risks, we will discuss the types of liquidity risk that prevails (Nikolaou 2009, 10-11). Figure 1 Source: (Fiedler 2002). There are two types of liquidity risks that would be discussed in this study, namely: a) Market Liquidity Risk, and b) Funding Liquidity Risk. The Market Liquidity Risk means that the assets cannot be sold in the market due to constraints in liquidity in the market. It can be due to widening of the offer spread, expansion of holding period, or making unambiguous liquidity reserves. The Funding Liability Risk means having risk when the liabilities cannot be met, when they are due, can be met when the price is uneconomic, or is systematic. There are different situations or causes due to when liquidity risk can be assessed. The situation when not a single buyer is available in the market to trade for an asset or assets, l eads to liquidity risks. Liquidity risk can be denoted as a financial risk which occurs due to uncertain liquidity. Liquidity risks might arise when the credit ratings of the firm falls, or when it experiences a sudden outflow of cash (Drehmann, and Nikolaou 2009, 4-5). The recent disintegration of several huge financial institutions reveals the critical nature of the liquidity risks and also depicts the critical role that it plays for the regulators, globally. The Bank of International Settlements (BIS) was among the first to adopt the comprehensive regime of testing liquidity risk and protecting the institutional stakeholders. The Financial Service Authorities (FSA) has also issued policy statement PS09/16, for strengthening the liquidity standards. Liquidity risk can be regarded as both eccentric as well as systematic. It plays a crucial role for the banking entities and the other industries too. Liquidity risks may vary between assets, liability and time. It includes the institu tional stakeholders like the creditors, debtors, owners, etc (Oracle Financial Services 2009, 2-4). Risk Measurement The recent fluctuations in the financial market included the payment system and several banking processes which are directly related to short-term forecasting. The control system should be such so that it can measure the liquidity risks and the performance with relation to the models utilized for market and credit risks.