Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in 2010 Term Paper

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in 2010 - Term Paper Example The last fifty years saw seen the enactment of serious health reforms including Medicare and Medicaid. The two have improved access to healthcare for the entire country’s citizens. The success of these reform policies serves as a benchmark for all future health reforms. However, as mentioned earlier not all reform policies have succeeded to this date despite the tireless self-dedication of many people. The (NHI) National Health Insurance is one of these policies. Discussions by historians help to point out why some policies have proven to be successful whereas others have not (Harry, 2010). The policy formulation stage is the first stage in the public policy making process. Analysis of problems and solutions occurs during this stage in the agenda setting process (Mark, 2012). Also, discussed are the reasons that could have led to the dire need for a reform to be implemented (Copeland, 2011). In this case, successful Medicare and Medicaid reforms; the need arose from the increa sed suffering of many citizens who had limited success to healthcare. Access to proper medical care is extremely expensive and not most low income earners can afford it. The responsibility of provision of adequate healthcare to the citizens lies with the government. One of the defining aspects of a successful government is its ability to cater for its people especially in the health department. This is because a healthy population directly translates into a healthy workforce. The economic success of the entire nation depends on its citizens (Harry, 2010). There also existed an international outcry from the international community. Organizations like (WHO) World Health Organization and the (UN) United Nations have a list of expectations for all its member states. Provision of adequate healthcare is one of these requirements. USA, just like all other countries had to ensure their policies were in line with these expectations (Lambert, 2010). The need for NHI arose from the countryâ₠¬â„¢s need to equip all its citizens with health insurance. This meant that even the poor could afford such a service. The American constitution considers all men equal and from this perspective all citizens are rightful owners of the country’s resources. NHI is more complex than the other two successful reform policies making it hard to implement. Trials for its implementation have failed time and again because of these problems. Ideological differences are one of the key milestones yet to be conquered (House, 2008). Karl Marx, a prominent sociologist, explained such behaviors in his conflict theory. He advanced in it that conflict when people of the ruled or subordinate class seek to improve their economic status and move up to the ruling class (Foster, 2010). Naturally those in the ruling class would view this as a threat and conflict would ensue. In the case of the NHI, the two groups would have opposed ideologies. The affluent would advocate for the national resources to be directed to other ventures that would benefit them. On the other hand, the under privileged would demand for the resources to be directed towards ventures that would ease their economic hardships (Lambert, 2010). Bureaucracy comes with increased levels of development within a country. The strength of interest groups has to be solicited (Vivar, 2011). These groups prove most influential especially in the enactment phase of the reform policy. They can

Use Of Intelligent Agents In E Commerce Information Technology Essay

Use Of Intelligent Agents In E Commerce Information Technology Essay Software agents can be defined as semi-autonomous software entities which support individuals cope with the complexities when working in a distributed information environment. This paper describes how these intelligent agents involved in e-commerce transactions. 1. Introduction In recent years the World Wide Web has become largest market place due to its exponential growth enabled extensive progress in new information society functions such as electronic commerce. Electronic commerce, known as e-commerce, is a type of industry where buying and selling of product or service over electronic systems such as the Internet and other computer networks.[1] Simply e-commerce is buying and selling over the internet medium. Electronic commerce involves business to business (B2B), business to customer (B2C) and customer to customer (C2C) transactions. It covers a wide variety of issues including security, trust, reputation, law, payment mechanisms, advertising, ontologies, electronic product catalogs, intermediaries, multimedia shopping experiences, and back office management. Agent technologies can be applied to any of these areas in e- commerce.[2] 2. Intelligent Agents According to IDMs definition intelligent agents are software programs that carry out some set of tasks on behalf of a user or another program with some degree of independence. So doing, gain some knowledge or representation of the users desires. According to Meas definition software agents are computer programs that run in the background and perform tasks autonomously. Software agents are becoming an important part of these Modern information systems because they diminish the complexity, and they achieve this technically and psychologically. Technically, each agent provides a locus of intelligence for managing a subset of the information in the system, either on its own initiative or under the direction of a user. Each intelligent agent can be readily replicated and then distributed as needed. This agent-based approach to information management is both scalable and cost-effective. Psychologically, people need abstractions by which they can understand, manage, and use complex systems effectively. A natural and convenient abstraction appears to be one based on humanizing the information system components that is, treating the components as animate. In this abstraction, software components are like human agents. The abstraction is effective, because people have a lot of experience in dealing with other people, and they can apply their experience to understanding and dealing with complex software. [3] Software agents were first used few years ago to filter information, match individuals with similar interests, and automate repetitive activities. More lately, agents have been applied to e-commerce, encouraging a revolution in the way people conduct transactions in e-commerce. Intelligent agents in e-commerce web sites can carry out many decision making and problem-solving tasks that usually require human intelligence, such as diagnosis, data sorting, planning, or negotiation. They can answer email messages, search the Internet for valuable information, carry out comparisons, or even become electronic pets. O. Etzioni and D.S. Weld [5] defined a software agent as a software entity which functions continuously and independently in a specific environment often occupied by other agents and processes. The requirement for endurance and independence derives from human desire that an agent should be able to do activities in a flexible and intelligent manner reactive to changes in the environment without constant human observation. An agent that functions over a long period of time should be able to implement from its experience. Also, an agent should be able to occupy an environment with other agents and processes, and to be able to communicate and collaborate with them. 2.1 Types of Software Agents Hendler [4] distinguishes four types of agents by function. Problem-solving agents -They do many traditional planning expert systems did, namely collect data, analyze a situation, and make a conforming decision for how to act on the users behalf. Purchasing agents is an example for this category. User-centric agents- These type of agents enable interaction with the user. Also they provide a better user interface by getting knowledge about the users system use preferences and tailoring the interface to the user preferences. Control agents They control the operation of some agents in a multi agent environment. In this context one needs to remember that agents are not only mobile, but also small in size, each with a very specialized capability. Hence, the interaction of several agents might be required to provide sufficient intelligence and capability. These are very progressive agents used in research experimentations. Transaction agents- These agents translate information between different data standards within a unrelated database or file environment. Between these four types, the ones that create contention are problem solving agents specializing in data gathering. They may be aided by transaction agents to access data from numerous data sources and may be controlled by control agents. However, the most important functionality is the ability to collect and analyze information from remote sites. 2.1.1 Characteristics of Software Agents Dependable with the requirements of a specific problem, each intelligent agent might possess to a greater or lesser degree the attributes stating below [5, 6, and 7] Reactivity: the capability of selectively sense and act. Autonomy: goal-directedness, and self-starting behavior. Collaborative behavior: can work in collaboration with other agent to attain a mutual goal. Knowledge-level communication ability: their ability to communicate with human and other agents with language more approaching human-like speech than symbol-level protocols. Inferential capability: can perform on abstract task specification using previous knowledge of general goals and chosen methods to achieve flexibility. Temporal continuity: persistence of uniqueness and state over long time periods. Personality: the ability of exhibiting the attributes of a believable character such as emotion. Adaptively: being able to learn and progress with experience. Mobility: ability to transfer in a self-directed way from one host platform to another. 3. Intelligent Agents in e-Commerce Artificial intelligence (AI) started to play a important role in many leading information systems. In the past, its use of AI has been limited due to its complexity, huge designs and lack of expertise in system developers. AI involvement is now essential in nondeterministic systems such as workflow, data mining, production planning, supply chain logistics, and most lately, e-commerce. Intelligent agent technology is the next logical step in overcoming some shortcomings in e-commerce. Namely, successful computer systems underlying e-commerce require judgment and the knowledge of experts such as buyers, contract negotiators and marketing specialists [8] Also e-commerce covers a broad range of issues; some of them are away from the scope of consumer buying behavior model. There are a variation of theories and models that describes buying behavior, such as the Nicosia model, the Howard- Sheth model, the Engel-Blackwell model, the Bettman information-processing model, and the Andreasen model [9].Acoording to Aleksander Pivk and MatjaÃ…Â ¾ Gams these models all have a comparable list of six fundamental stages of the buying process, which also relevent where agent technologies apply to the shopping experience[8] Identification: In that stage characterizes the buyer becoming aware of particular unmet need by inspiring through product information. Agents can play an significant role for those purchases that are repetitive (supplies) or predictable (habits). One of the oldest and simplest There are many examples in abundant use, one very aware of is a notification agent called Eyes by Amazon.com, which observers the catalog of books for sale and notifies the customer when certain events occur that may be of interest to the customer Brokering: There are two types of brokering namely product brokering and merchant brokering. In product brokering once a buyer has recognized a requirement to make a purchase the buyer has to determine what to buy through a critical evaluation of retrieved product information. There are several agents systems that lower consumers search cost when deciding which products best meets their needs. The result of this stage is a get attention to set of goods. In merchant brokering stage combines the consideration set from the previous stage with merchant-specific alternatives to help determine who to buy from. Negotiation: in this stage of buying behavior, price and other terms of the transaction are settled between merchants and buyers. Real-world scenarios negotiation increases transaction costs that may be too high for either consumers or merchants.. The most of business-to-business(B2B) transactions contain negotiation. Payment and Delivery: this stage can either indicate the end of the negotiation stage or cause to place another order. In some cases, the presented payment or delivery options can affect product and merchant brokering. â‚ ¬Ã‚  Product Service and Evaluation: this post- purchase stage contains of product service, customer service, and an â‚ ¬Ã‚  evaluation of the satisfaction of theâ‚ ¬Ã‚  Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  total buying experience and decision. Considering above five stages, It can be recognized the roles of agents as mediators in e-commerce. The nature of agents makes them suitable for mediating those consumer behaviors involving information filtering and retrieval, personalized evaluations, complex coordination, and time-based interactions. Those roles correspond most especially to the need identification, product and merchant brokering, and negotiation stages of the buying behavior model. 4. Benefits of intelligent agents in e commerce 5. Limitations of Intelligent Agents A major limitation intelligent agent technology using most e-commerce activities is that agents can pose a security risk to remote hosts as well as their original host). A broad discussion of these risks and possible countermeasures is provided to International Journal of Electronic Commerce by T. Mandry ,G.Pernul and A. Rà ¶hm the following possible risks were identified.[9] Stealing data and Illegal access Web agents may try to get access to databases they are not permitted to access or for which there is an access charge. Free use of resources Agents always tries to steal resources from remote hosts. As long as this is in line with accepted protocols, it is an acceptable practice. However, if agents cover-up as alternate processes, they may use insupportable levels of resource. Unauthorized program execution This also known as Trojan horse. Agents can be masquerade and then execute programs that are eventually harmful to the remote hosts. Such Trojan horses attacks have now been used frequently on the Internet.. Data stripping or alteration (by server). Technically it is possible to strip Web agents of their data. This is mostly a concern for a site that sends out agents to remote hosts, but also it could potentially affect other sites. For instance, suppose Buyer has a trusted relationship with both Seller 1 and Seller 2. However, there exists a competitive relationship between the two sellers. An intelligent agent that originates from Buyer and travels to Seller 1 and then to Seller 2 could be stripped by Seller 2 to obtain competitive data about Seller 1. Resource exhaustion resulting in denial-of service -. Web agents can exhaust remote host properties to the point where the remote host can no longer function correctly. Deceitful agent behavior. Agents can mislead other agents or hosts about their intent and can lie about transactions. 5. Discussion This paper describes how intelligent software agent can automate and add value to e-commerce transactions and negotiations. By using intelligent agent based e-commerce techniques, businesses can more effectively and efficiently make decisions since they have more accurate and reliable information and recognize consumers perceptions and behaviors. Benefits and limitations of using intelligent agents in e-commerce are also discussed through this paper.

Bullying and LGBT Youth Essay -- equality, homosexuals, LGBT Teens

When is it considered okay to take away someone's rights? A person cannot be defined by one word. Homosexual is only one word. Television and movies have not perfectly portrayed all of Americans since it started. Having two moms or two dads isn't the worst thing that could happen. A child growing up with two dads or two moms will believe that it is normal. According to many cultures and religions, being a homosexual is wrong and it does not really exist. Homosexuals are being shunned by followers of these faiths. LGBT teens are more likely to think about or attempt suicide because they encounter bullies at school, work, and in other public areas. The issue of gay rights was similar to women's rights in the 1920s. Homosexuals do not look any different from heterosexuals. Marriage is a topic of many young girls and even some boys daydreams. Russia recently passed laws that make gay rights nonexistent. Nothing can change an LGBT male or female. When describing a person's personality, more than a word or phrase comes to mind. That is because the human mind and personality is more complex than a single word or even a single phrase. Of course, one word may stick out in one's mind more than others, but that does not mean that it is the only word that describes that person. An LGBT man or woman is more than his or her sexuality. Only a series of several words or phrases can be used to partially describe a person. â€Å"Homosexual† is only word that can be applied to a person. Gay rights should not be an issue because taking away gay rights is like taking away human rights. If he or she cannot list several good and bad things that describe another person's personality, he or she does not know enough about the other person to judge hi... ...Cited Bauder, David. â€Å"'The Fosters' Is Grateful For Negative Attention† The Huffington Post, 25 January 2014 1. pag. . Black, Phil. and Eshchenko, Alla. CNN, 14 Febuary 2014. Web. 8 Apr 2014. . â€Å"Gay Bullying Statistics†. Bullying Statistics Web. 29 Mar 2014. "Hallmark nixes 'gay' from Christmas carol lyric on ornament†. n.d. 31 October 2013 McDonald, Natalie Hope. "Queer, Young and Bullied - G Philly." Philadelphia Magazine. N.p., 3 Apr. 2013. Web. . .

Brighton Rock and Sherlock Holmes: A Comparison Essay

In this assignment I will be looking at the differences in writing style between Graham Greene’s Brighton Rock and Arthur Conan-Doyle’s The Man With The Twisted Lip. The style of writing is the main difference that I see between the stories of Greene and Conan Doyle, and not in the plot; partly this is due to the half a century or so time difference between the pieces, Conan Doyle’s, I guess in around 1890 (due to the date given at the start of The Man With The Twisted Lip, â€Å"it was in June ’89†) and Greene’s written in 1938, although partly it is due to the different intentions of the authors. The works of Conan Doyle were mainly popular, short stories written for a Victorian middle-class monthly periodical, â€Å"The Strand† written between 1887 and 1927, although most were written by 1903. Because of this, the structures on all levels, from plot to sentence, are simple, chronological and in the first person. Examples of this are â€Å"Isa Whitney, brother of the late Elias Whitney, D. D. , Principal of the Theological College of St. George’s, was much addicted to opium. † This is a simple statement to open the story with. It introduces a character, actually two, gives a little background information and tells us the point of the sentence, and the story (or so the reader thinks) at the end of the sentence in â€Å"was much addicted to opium†. The plot generally gives no depth to the characters and is a one-track plot due to the story being written in the first person and following the activities of one man. All of this is in striking contrast to Brighton Rock. In the first part of the novel there are three chapters. Greene’s work is not in the first person but the third. This enables Greene to follow a multi-track plot, taking in the actions of three characters; chapter one begins with ‘Hale knew, before he had been in Brighton three hours, that they meant to murder him. ‘ This shows Hale as the focus of the first chapter. Chapter two begins with, ‘The boy paid his threepence and went through the turnstile. ‘ Focussing attention on to ‘the boy’ or Pinkie. And chapter three begins with, ‘Ida Arnold broke her way across the Strand’. Furthermore, where Conan Doyle is very sparing on his description, Greene lavishes in it: ‘trams rocking down to the aquarium, they surged like some natural and irrational migration of insects up and down the front. ‘ Whereas Conan Doyle, writing as Dr. Watson, keeps it to the respectability of the place and its genteelness, much more important to a middle class Victorian than a clever simile, for example, ‘Upper Swandam Lane is a vile alley†¦ ‘ the effect of this is to give the reader an impression of what the alley looks like in their minds, instead of the precise detail Greene employs, it is often cinematic. He did not have to produce a script for the film version, as Brighton Rock reads more like one. One would not expect to find an author looking to join the ranks of world literature simply writing ‘potboiler’ short stories for bourgeoisie light entertainment magazines. In contrast, Brighton Rock is much more complex. It is classed as a modern classic, and therefore does not follow the simple lines of popular, mass produced fiction. Instead, its chapters are presented as from each of the character’s points of view making the plot non-chronological, as some events happen simultaneously but at different pages of the book. For example, the death of Hale and Ida searching for him occur at the same time but at different stages of the book. This adds a more complex level to the narrative. Brighton Rock is written nominally in the third person, as it still only follows each character’s movements in turn but the Sherlock Holmes stories are always in the first person, as Dr. Watson, which gives the reader a definite sense of place in the story but has its limitations. For example, all events must take place while Dr. Watson is present, or they must be recounted to him by another character. In contrast, Greene can make the reader everywhere at once and it allows him to use the cinematic detail in his description that gives his locations the depth and quality that Conan Doyle’s does not due to his use of the first person. This is because if Conan Doyle were to use such complex description and metaphor in his description as Dr. Watson or in the speech of another character, it would make them sound like they had verbal diarrhoea. Greene’s talent, I feel, lies in his ability to use such gushing torrents of description and manage not to bore or alienate his reader, rather he involves them further in the scene. Conan Doyle, as I have said, achieves this in a different way, not through lengthening his description but by the simple act of using the first person to write his stories: he makes the reader Dr. Watson. Another dimension to the description in Brighton Rock is that Greene is biased against more or less everything. The squalor of the Steyne in, ‘The shabby secret behind the bright corsage, the deformed breast. ‘ Words such as ‘shabby’ and ‘deformed’ give the impression to the reader of poverty and mutation, the two going hand in hand. These are things, especially mutation, which society abhors. By using these adjectives, Greene tries to make the reader hate the place as well. Also, in that passage, ‘deformed breast’ is an interesting contrast of words. The breast is usually regarded as being an artistic, beautiful and motherly object of adoration, but by making it deformed, in the reader’s eye Greene is defiling a beautiful object, making the impact greater. In The Man With the Twisted Lip Conan Doyle, by contrast, uses only simple atmospheric description and practical description (the naming of routes street by street, obviously made using a map of London, an unusual feature). An example of this simple description is found at ‘I seated myself in his armchair and warmed my hands before his crackling fire, for a sharp frost had set in, and the windows were thick with ice crystals. ‘ In this quotation two things are explored: the fire and the window. The description is atmospheric because it uses the contrasting words ‘frost’ and ‘warmed’, one being cold, the other hot. The effect on the reader is that they immediately imagine the atmosphere of warmness inside but bitterly cold outside that we all know. The simple description has therefore set up an atmosphere; it is atmospheric. In The Man With The Twisted Lip Conan Doyle does use one unusual device to add depth to his writing: a ruse in the plot at the very beginning to throw the reader off what the true plot is. That ruse is the disappearance of Isa Whitney. Conan Doyle does this to open the story in a mundane way, but surprise the reader with the eventual outcome: the disappearance of Neville St. Clair. Or perhaps Conan Doyle just got sick of the Whitney plot half way through writing. Who knows!? Other than this Conan Doyle sticks to the usual crime story plot: the missing/dead person or thing, the impossible clue, the amazing detective and the twist in the solving of it all. Greene does the same in his plot structure, although with much more focus on the characters in turn, especially on mentality of the criminal Pinkie. Greene tries almost to explain why Pinkie is so evil with the recounting of his scarred childhood (the ‘weekly exercise’), resulting in his misogyny (? ), Catholic godfearing and sadism. Also, Ida Arnold is the ‘detective’ in Brighton Rock, although she is not intelligent or brilliant, just a whore sentimental to Hale’s memory as Greene portrays her. In fact, Greene grudgingly makes Ida the heroine and the force of good, even though the traditional good of Godliness is the real enemy in the book. Ida is a weird choice for a heroine. She personifies every human sin. She is a puritan’s nightmare, as shown in, ‘Death shocked her, life was more important. She wasn’t religious. She didn’t believe in heaven and hell, only in ghosts†¦ ‘ and her ultimate anti-religious statement, ‘to her death was the end of everything. At one with the One – it didn’t mean a thing besides a glass of Guinness on a sunny day. ‘ In all, Greene’s story is one of ‘good’ as the here and now, however demonic and hedonistic, triumphing over evil the eternal whereas Conan Doyle has no such moral depth to his story, just an impossible clue. Brighton Rock is unusual in this way. Greene is writing a crime story, usually the realm of light entertainment (popular fiction) but here, he transforms the whole novel with the psychoanalysis of Pinkie and the subtext of religion, damnation and salvation. Greene sums this up in the phrase that Pinkie comforts himself with, ‘between the stirrup and the ground he mercy sought and mercy found’. Through this quotation Greene explores the hypocrisy of religion and the way the all-forgiving belief enables people to sin and expect God to forgive. The psychosis of Pinkie is explored hand in hand with his love/hate relationship with the idea of Christianity, best shown in Pinkie’s treatment of the doll; ‘holding the Mother of God by the hair’ and ‘His fingers pulled absent mindedly at the doll’s hair’. The simile of the Mother of God being held by the hair reveals Pinkie as the ultimate misogynist; the one woman, as a Catholic and a Christian, he should revere he is holding by the hair.

Case Study Analysis Ppaer Essay

Introduction A number of problems were made during the recent hiring process. This case Study is an attempt to identify and recommend ways to improve this process. From the information that has been obtained, I believe that a lack of employee experience and a lack of prior planning and follow up resulted in a failure to accomplish all the task necessary to hire the new employees in a timely fashion. ?Background Carol Robins, a new campus recruiter for ABC, Inc. , in early April he was able to hire 15 new trainees who were destined to work for Monica Carrolls,  the operations supervisor. From the interviews that were conducted, it appears that Carl was unable to accomplish all of the tasks necessary so that the new hires could begin work. These tasks included documentation, drug testing, material preparation for the orientation, and facility scheduling. Monica Carrolls did contact Carl on May 15 concerning his process with the hiring process. Other employees had failed to keep the paper copy of the master orientation manual current so that it can be quickly copied. Another factor appears the rapid expansion of the company. Alternatives With more than one problem a major focus on a number of different Solutions, such as, Prior planning by Carl could have eliminated some of the issues; however, Carl’s in experience would probably still have resulted in there being some problems. The company has failed to provide relatively inexperienced employees, like Carl, with comprehensive procedures and job practices. Under the topic of supervision, Monica Carrolls could have made contact more often with Carl. But her job, as operations manager, does not include his supervision. Another solution to the supervision problem could be to increase the staff in the human resources department. However, on examination this does not appear to be the most efficient solution due to the increased costs. Another solution would be to maintain the master â€Å"New Employee Orientation† manual in electronic format. Having the manual in electronic form allows for easy updating of the policy and procedures, and prevents inadvertent loss or damage to that document. This method is cost effective and easily implemented. ?Proposed Solutions. A â€Å"New Employee Checklist† will be created with all pre-employed tasks listed on it. ?The â€Å"Employee Orientation† manual will be maintained in an electronic format. ?Some of the pre-employment tasks will become the responsibility of the potential employees to accomplish. Potential employees will report when the tasks have been completed. A member of the human resource staff will confirm that the task has been completed correctly. ?Employees like, Carl Robins, will be required to submit weekly reports detailing the current status of all potential employees. ?Recommendations New employees are the only way the work of this organization gets accomplished. Everyone efforts to sustain the continued growth and profits of this company cannot be ignored. With the continued growth of the company the proposed solutions that the employee will make on that day may need to be modified as the company becomes larger. I would recommend that a periodic review of the hiring process; looking for ways to improve it. And also a review should be done on an annual basis.

The Role of Ipcc in Climate Change Essay Example

The Role of Ipcc in Climate Change Essay Example The Role of Ipcc in Climate Change Essay The Role of Ipcc in Climate Change Essay The Project The Role of IPCC in Setting Climate Change Policy This essay will critically evaluate the role of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in setting climate change policy. In order to do this, its latest assessment report (IPCC 2007) will be highlighted. The physical science basis of climate change that IPCC relies on in influencing policy on climate change will be reviewed. IPCCs view of climate change will be shown to be the main stream view of climate change. The essay will also review alternative argument on climate change by other scientists such as Svenmark and Calder (2006). The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is an organization that was established in 1988 by two organizations namely the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) UPI)(IPCC 2008). Its mandate included the assessment of scientific information related to climate change, evaluation of the environmental and socio-economic consequences of climate change and the formulation of realistic response strategies (IPCC, 2007). Based on its mandate, it can be seen that IPCC was to act as the scientific powerhouse to generate evidence based information on climate change that United Nations and other countries and regional bodies will rely on to formulate their climate change policies. Since its formation, IPCC has produced assessment reports (AR) of the scientific evidence related to climate change and formulated response strategies on actions the international community need to take in order to minimize the impact of climate change. It produced the first assessment report (AR 1) in 1990, AR 2 in 1995, AR 3 in 2001 and the latest one AR 4 in 2007. The 2007 report (AR 4) was the most comprehensive of its reports. It was produced in four different volumes and each volume was launched separately at different times throughout 2007 at different locations under the banner ‘Climate Change 2007. AR 4 confirms most of the conclusions in its earlier documents including : climate change is due mainly to greenhouse gases notable carbon dioxide which is released into the atmosphere by human activities and responsible for global warming; addressed issues of concern to policy makers in national , regional and multinational agencies; the impact of global warming is real and will continue into the foreseeable future; there is the need for societies to adapt to reduce vulnerability and an analysis of the costs, policies and technology required to minimize the impact of climate change. It claimed that its AR 4 report was produced by 500 lead authors and reviewed by 2000 expert reviewers. There is no doubt that IPCC in its publications since 1990 has profoundly affected climate change policies at all the different levels of government. Smith and Stern (2010) have argued that IPCC provide the science of climate change and the causes and in the process highlights the risks of the phenomenon. It is the information about the risks that enables national governments to formulate policies to manage the risks either unilaterally or multilaterally. There is an international consensus that the challenges posed by climate change is best handled through multilateral agreement because climate change will affect all the countries of the world irrespective of whether or not they contributed to the problem. Hence the United Nation has played a pivotal role in bringing the nations of the world together for discussions on appropriate strategies based on reports by the IPCC. The Kyoto Protocol and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change UNFCCC can all be traced to the version of the science of climate change by IPCC. In fact the contributions of IPCC have been recognised as highly significant by the Nobel Prize Committee which named it as joint recipient of the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize in 2007. It was a seal of approval for its vital role in influencing the world climate change agenda. One of main highlights of The Kyoto protocol is the requirement for industrialised nations to reduce their greenhouse gas emission as way to mitigate the impact of climate change. This requirement can be traced to IPCC because mitigation strategy is a major strategy advocated by its Working Group 111 (mitigation of climate change). Although many of the nations of the world have signed the protocol, some industrialised nations notably the United States under President George Bush Jnr refused to sign the protocol on the grounds that the protocol did not commit significant polluters such as China and India to compulsory emission limits (Singer 2007). Both China and India have rejected any attempt to limit their emission of greenhouse gases. Singer (2007) has suggested three reasons why both countries are adamant to any mandatory limits. First, these emissions of greenhouse gases were caused by the industrialised nations in the first place during the industrial revolution and hence it is their responsibility to sort it out. Secondly even if the pas t history is discounted, at the present rate of greenhouse gas emissions, the industrialised nations still produce these gases per citizen than the rest of the world. For example, the average US resident produces six times more greenhouse gas than the average Chinese resident and about 18 times than the average India resident. Thirdly, the industrialised nations are much richer and hence better placed to bear the cost of adjusting their lifestyle to climate change without serious impact on their citizens. Perhaps in addition to these reasons there is the underlying perceptions in developing countries that limiting their CO2 emissions will slow down their rate of economic development which can impact on their other social and political policies especially with respect to poverty reduction and employment. The industrialised countries are equally apprehensive of the impact of mitigation policy of climate change on their economic growth. The three main areas of human activities identified by IPCC as responsible for greenhouse gas emissions are energy use in industrial production and transportation where fossils fuels are burnt, agriculture and deforestation. As Stern (2006) argued any mitigation policy will require some forms of action on all these three areas. For example, energy reduction programmes will require the design of a package of mixed economic activities geared towards energy efficiency. He argued that better technology will be required such as energy saving technology and fossil fuel alternatives for cars and vehicles to reduce their carbon input. Innovations will be imperative from the governments and private sectors in the development and deployment of relevant technologies to move economic activities towards low carbon economies. For developing countries to be involved in mitigation policies, they will need external financial assistance for the development of new technologies (Stern 2006). Closely aligned with IPCC strategy on mitigation of climate change is the strategy of adaptation to climate change. This is within the remit of IPCC Working Group 11 (climate change impacts, adaptation and vulnerability). IPCC is of the view that although the bulk of greenhouse gases are produced in the industrialised countries, the impact of climate change is and will in the future be felt more in the developing countries (IPCC 2007). Due to their greater vulnerability, developing countries will need to adapt their technology and production processes towards better and cleaner environment. Adaptation policies will also involve diversification of opportunities especially in the areas of agriculture and deforestation. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) at its meeting in Cancun (UNFCCC 2010) agreed to provide developing countries financial assistance to enable them address the problems of adapting their technology and increasing capacities and opportunities so that they can cope with the impact of climate change. The Convention agreed to strengthen the Kyoto’s protocol on clean Development mechanisms to drive major investments and technology into environmentally sound and sustainable emissions reduction projects in developing countries. Towards this end, the Convention agreed to provide $30 billion from industrialised countries developing countries to support climate change actions up to 2012 and the objective to increase this to $100 billion by 2020 (UNFCCC 2010). IPCC has continued to be at the forefront in defining the scientific basis of climate change that informs climate change policies all over the world. In AR 4, IPCC stated that ‘warming of the climate system is unequivocal, as is now evident from observations of increases in global average air and ocean temperatures, widespread melting of snow and ice and rising global average sea level (IPCC –SPM 2007 : 2). It went further to declare that ‘ most of the observed increase in global average temperature since the mid – 20th century is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic GHG concentrations’(IPCC SPM 2007 : 5). This would suggest that it has resolved the dilemma over the cause of global warming because its earlier assessment report in 1990 had expressed that the cause could be anthropogenic (human activity) or due to natural variability of the earth’s temperature. This shift from human activity as the cause of global warming rather than natural variability has dominated the discourse on climate change in the last decade. It seems to be the mainstream view and the scientific basis of much of the strategies it has proposed to tackle the impact of climate change. Stern (2006) has alluded to this mainstream view when he stated that ‘ there is now an overwhelming body of scientific evidence that human activity is causing global warming, with the main sources of greenhouse gases, in order of importance being electricity generation, land use changes (particularly deforestation), agriculture and transportation; the fastest growing sources are transport and electricity’ Stern 2006:1). Another influential source that has supported this mainstream view is the UK based Royal Society. The society has more than 1400 outstanding members from all areas of science, mathematics, engineering and medicine organised in a global scientific network of the highest calibre (The Royal Society 2010). The society’s position seems to endorse the IPCC’s position when it stated that ‘there is strong evidence that changes in greenhouse gas concentrations due to human activity are the dominant cause of the global warming that has taken place over the last half century’( RS 2010 :13). Despite these endorsements of IPCC views on global warming and climate change, there are some criticisms about the organization. The latest assessment report, AR 4 in 2007 was alleged to contain some errors. One of such errors was highlighted by Foley (2010) writing in The Independent newspaper where it was reported that IPCC latest report stated that the Himalayan glaciers would be melted by global warming by 2035 instead of the correct figure 2350. That is a large difference of about 300 years. The IPCC relies on the reports it gets from affiliated research centres such as the Climate Research Unit (CRU) based in East Anglia. The anonymous hacking into the dataset and email of CRU in 2009 in what has been described in the mass media as ‘climategate’ has highlighted some form of manipulation of data by the unit in order to support a particular viewpoint. For example, the raw data used by the CRU in projecting Russian temperature was found to have omitted some data sent to it by some Russian Meteorological stations. Page ( 2009) pointed out that there is an argument by some Russian climate sceptics that if those missing data were included it would have significantly reduce the estimate of Russian temperature. This is a serious error especially when Russia accounts for 12. 5 % of the world’s total landmass and against the backdrop that CRU has always resisted demand for the raw data it uses for its climate change computer modelling (Page 2009). It is doubtful if they had not done the same to other countries in order to strengthen their arguments and position on climate change. There were some other damaging revelations that surfaced in the hacked email released. These have been summarised by Watts ((2009). Firstly, there was the revelation that scientists at the CRU consistently colluded to thwart any Freedom of information requests that would have obliged them to release their raw data and hiding source codes from requests. Secondly, they admitted privately not to use journals that published opposing views and refused to publish such articles in journals that they controlled. Thirdly, it was apparent from their email exchanges that they were privately concerned that there had been no increase in global average temperatures in the last decade and yet they could not explain it because it is contrary to their projections. Data that suggested decrease in temperature were manipulated to hide the decline. Ways were devised to discount warming trends that did not occur in the past when greenhouse gases were increasing. What these revelations suggest is that some of the collaborative institutions that IPCC relies on for scientific evidence for its decisions may actually be feeding it with selective and manipulated data in order to pursue a pre-determined agenda without any regard for opposing views no matter how compelling the arguments. As observed by Calder (2007), there is a tendency for events such as heat waves that supported global warming to make headlines while opposing events like prolonged snow and frost during winter not given the same coverage because it is contrary to the mindset of mainstream views on climate change. Calder (2007) also noted that global air temperatures from America satellites suggest a wobbling or fluctuations between hot and cold with no overall change in temperature since 1999. This levelling pattern he argued is the exact pattern that the rival hypothesis – natural variation of atmospheric temperature by the sun would predict. This antithesis to the greenhouse thesis suggests that the sun is a major driver of climate change than greenhouse gases and that when active it can drive atmospheric temperature up and when lazy down. Hence the earth passes through cycles of hot and cold periods. It would appear that proponents of the climate change due to greenhouse gases produced by human activity are not very enthusiastic about this because the mechanism of how the sun changes the earth’s temperature is not well understood and have categorised sceptics as climate change deniers. Svensmark and Calder (2007) both sceptics have demonstrated experimentally how this can happen. The main postulate of natural variation of weather by the sun is that the degree of cloudiness in the air depends on the number of atomic particles arriving at the solar system from exploding stars. The more they are, the more cloudiness. If the sun’s magnetic field is able to deflect much of the cosmic rays, there will be less cloud in the atmosphere and this will result in global warming. The converse holds. Many journals refused to publish his findings presumably because they were not politically orrect. The Royal Society (2010) while agreeing in broad terms with the position of IPCC, however argued that there are not enough data to understand the mechanisms of cloud formation and its impact on climate change. To complicate this, projections of climate change are sensitive to the way the impact of clouds is represented in computer models of climate change. The society noted that currently ‘individual clouds are represented by more approximate methods. Since there are various ways to make these approximations, the representations can vary in climate models developed at different institutes. The use of these different approximations leads to a range of estimates of climate sensitivity, especially because of differences between models in the response of clouds to climate change’ (Royal Society 2010:14). This would suggest the need for more extensive research on the contributions of natural variations to climate change than is hitherto the case (Coren 2006). Blackman (2009) has noted that in his interview with Hulme, an eminent climatologist and a sceptic of IPCC, did question the almost infallible status given to IPCC in the face of other compelling evidence in favour of alternative theories of the causes of global warming. In the interview, Hulme advocated for a more robust debate on all the possible causes of climate change. It is difficult to understand why a scientific body like IPCC could have made itself so vulnerable to criticisms. Perhaps the clue to the controversies surrounding IPCC may be due to the structural problems within the organization. For a start, IPCC has only a core staff of 10 people. It has thousands of volunteer scientists who contribute to the work of IPCC. They are not paid by IPCC (IPCC 2011). Authors, contributors, reviewers and other experts are selected by IPCC from a list of nominations received from governments and participating organizations. The three Working Groups of IPCC are hosted and financially supported by the Government of the developed country co – chair of the working Group. The plenary session that approves reports and budgets is made up of government representatives from all member countries, agencies and research institutions that probably have some links with governments. This sort of structure makes IPCC to be heavily politicised at the expense of good science. Governments’ vested interest in climate change debate can be interpreted as self serving because IPCC findings give them the perfect excuse to tax individuals for their carbon footprint. Motorists may find themselves targeted by all manner of taxes on the excuse of climate change. So it is in the best interest of the politicians to exert pressure on IPCC even when such pressure has the potential to lead to bad science. There are indications that some of the scientific evidence they rely on are published in carefully selected journals and commissioned reports by some pressure groups without any form of peer review. It is not surprising therefore that they have been criticised for being economical with the truth by making vague and imprecise statements they know will be difficult to refute but nonetheless accord them with ‘high confidence’ status That was the allegation made by the Inter-Academy Council that was set up to investigate errors in the IPCC assessment report 4 (Foley 2010). IPCC as a scientific organization has no laboratory of its own but has to rely on specially designated centres such as the CRU involved in ‘climategate’. In conclusion, the role of IPCC in setting policy on climate change is commendable. It has advocated policies of mitigation and adaptation as strategies to avert the anticipated effects of global warming. It was highlighted that it structure is too tied to national governments and agencies and this is politicising its scientific evidence base. There is the need to have on board sceptics and promote robust debate instead of labelling them as deniers. References Blackman S (2009) Top British Boffin : Time to ditch the climate consensus. Online : www. theregister. co. uk. Accessed on 5/4/2011. Calder N (2007) An experiment that hints we were wrong on climate change. Online : www. timesonline. co. uk. Accessed on 5/4/2011. Foley S (2010) IPCC feels the heat as it is told to get its facts right. Online : www. independent. co. uk/environment/climatechange. Accessed on 3/3/2011. Coren M (2006) The science debate behind climate change. Online: www. articles. cnn. com. Accessed on 10/4/2011. Watts A (2009) Climate ‘Men behaving badly – a short summary for laymen. Online: www. wattsup. com. Accessed on 10/4/2011. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC (2007) Climate Change 2007. Synthesis for Policymakers. Summary for policymakers. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC (2008) Climate Change 2007. Synthesis Report. Geneva : IPCC. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC (2011) structure: how does the IPCC works? Geneva : iPCC. Page L (2009) CRU cherry picked Russian climate data. Online: www. theregister. co. uk. Accessed on 9/4/2011. Singer P (2007) A fair deal on climate change. Online: www. policyinnovations. org/ideas. Accessed on 10/4/2011. Smith L and Stern L (2010). Uncertainty, ambiguity and the risk in forming climate policy. In : Discussion Meeting on Handling uncertainty in science. London: The Royal Society. Stern N (2006) What is the economics of climate change? World Economics. 7 (2): 1-10. Svensmark H and Calder N (2007) The chilling Stars. A new theory of climate change. Cambrdge: Icons Books Ltd. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (2010) United Nations climate change conference in Cancun. Bonn: UNFCCC. The Royal Society (2010) Climate Change: A Summary of the Science. London: TRS. Watts A (2009) Climategate ‘Mem behaving badly’ – a short summary for laymen. Online: www. wattsup. com Accessed on 11/4/2011.

Third Place

Third Place Analysts and education experts are of the view that an instructor should understand the culture and the native language of a student learning a foreign language. Furthermore, it is important to understand the culture of the speakers of the target language. In this regard, it is essential to understand both L1 and L2 aspects of a culture. The new culture should not contradict the culture of the learner.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Third Place The New Culture specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More LoBianco (1999) refers to this phenomenon as the ‘Third Place’. The third place is crucial in teaching a foreign language. LoBianco (1999) argues that when teaching a foreign language, one should identify the middle ground between L1 and L2. The middle ground is then used to benefit the learners. However, it is important to note at this juncture that the middle ground does not imply adopting the target culture. To the student, the middle ground may translate to appreciating the different cultures of fellow students (Liddicoat, Crozet LoBianco, 1999). Moreover, foreign language students should comprehend the culture of the native speakers, regardless of whether or not they wish to adopt the new lifestyle and behaviour patterns (Liddicoat, 2000). Various scholars, such as Schmidt (1993) and Cook (1999), encourage learners to pay attention to the various aspects of the language they are learning. The learner should pay attention to such aspects as styles of speech, relevant contexts, and functional meanings. Kasper (2001) and Trosborg (1994) add that students should be aware of the sociopragmatic and pragmalinguistic behaviour appropriate for particular settings. Learning the various pragmalinguistic features, such as politeness markers, poses a challenge to learners. It is challenging given that one has to use the features correctly and within the right context (Schmidt, 1993; Lazenby, 1997). According to Lazenby (1997), sociopragmatic features are the social aspects of speech. Sociopragmatic features involve day to day activities, such as asking for help or apologising. The arguments made by Bardovi in 1999 (and cited in Kasper, 2001) reveal that grammatical awareness and pragmatic competence should remain independent of each other.Advertising Looking for essay on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The scholar notes that achieving considerable levels of grammatical competence does not necessarily mean that the learner is pragmatically competent. The two phenomena are quite different from each other. I am an English instructor at the College of Technology in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Most of my students are aged between 19 and 25 years, and they learn the English language within a period of two years. The students have already learnt English for a period of six years before joining college. However, the English instructions they have received prior to joining the college place little emphasis on culture. As a college instructor at the college level, my major aim is to assist the students in learning both the language and its corresponding spoken culture. There are several personal and professional beliefs that inform my envisaged objectives. For example, I believe that teaching my students the culture of the speakers of the target language will help them appreciate the uniqueness of the two cultures. As an English teacher working with learners of Arabic descent, I have faced various challenges, both within and without the classroom. For example, I have to contend with various groups of students who feel embarrassed or shy to pronounce English words like a native English speaker. I have come to realise that the shyness and embarrassment is as a result of the attitudes held by the students. The attitudes come from the fear of attracting criticism from other students, who are of t he opinion that Saudi students should not be expected to pronounce English words like native English speakers. In addition to this, I have come to realise that most Saudi students feel that memorising words, as well as learning grammar and sentence structure, is enough. They disregard the need to pronounce such words correctly, as well as the need to learn about the various aspects of the English language culture. The other cultural impediment I have come across in my efforts to teach the students the English language has to do with the various language textbooks. The various textbooks contain phrases, words, and pictures that are considered immoral or illegal in Saudi Arabia, a predominantly Muslim nation.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Third Place The New Culture specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Some of the issues considered as either immoral or illegal in foreign language books relate to alcohol, sexuality, and diet. Textbooks written in foreign language, and targeting learners of the foreign language, should take into consideration the Muslim culture with regard to the issues highlighted above. At the same time, the books should be designed in a manner that clearly portrays the English culture, while avoiding conflicts with the religion and culture of the local people. For example, it is permissible to portray what happens in the West during summer holidays. However, to us here, it is repulsive to show pictures of scantly-dressed men and women frolicking on the coastal beaches. Similarly, the textbooks should not depict the celebrations of English speaking people that include imbibing alcoholic drinks. A critical analysis of the Saudi classroom will reveal that it is a third place, a place where students are prepared for higher learning. Teachers should use this opportunity to inform students about the differences between the Arabic and Western cultures. Creating such awareness is critic al given that some of the students may get the opportunity to study in English speaking nations, such as the United States of America and United Kingdom. To this end, the teachers should prepare the students to deal with the cultural shock. Some of the preparations include informing the students that they should expect to sit in the same classroom with students of the opposite gender. In addition, the students should be made aware of the fact that they will be taught by both male and female instructors. The students should also know that the power distance in most Western countries is low. As a result, they should be ready to relate with their teachers less formally compared to how they relate with teachers in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, it is appropriate to inform students that in the English speaking nations, they do not have to refer to their instructors by their titles. Nonetheless, most of the students in Saudi Arabia will never get the opportunity to travel to the West. As such, the teacher should use the classroom setting to help them understand the English language and the way of life of native English speakers. According to LoBianco (1999), the class becomes the ideal third place to learn foreign languages.Advertising Looking for essay on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The learning can take place through watching videos, reading novels, telling stories, and listening to conversations between native English speakers. Moreover, the classroom setting in Saudi Arabia is regarded as a private space within a public space. Learning foreign languages and cultures takes place within such private spaces. According to LoBianco (1999), the college becomes the public space, while the classroom becomes the private space. The latter is the space within which students learn the English language and the English culture. In this third place, students are briefly separated from their culture, granting them the opportunity to engage in another culture foreign to them. The scholars who crafted the third place theory had several objectives in mind. The major aim of this theory is to generate self-reflection, critical engagement, and sensitivity among the learners of the language and speakers of the target language (Papademetre, 2003). Furthermore, one should understand that the language and culture of other people impacts on their actions, feelings, thoughts, and values. For example, a Saudi student should comprehend the lifestyles of people in English speaking nations. Linguists point out that for such an understanding to be created among students, the instructor should be aware of their own culture and the foreign culture they are teaching. The understanding of these two cultures is a perplexing and challenging responsibility. Culture and language have deep and far reaching impacts on the way we act and react, as well as on the beliefs and values we hold dear. For example, young people may have difficulties comprehending what their elders are saying. Both the instructor and the learner should aim to move to the third place’s middle ground, where they can observe cultural disparities and exchange significant and corresponding reconstructive ideas. Nevertheless, cross-cultural education is seen as one of the immediate results of combining different cultures. In attempts to ensure that the leaner comprehends the foreign culture, the instructor should endeavour to seamlessly combine the culture of the student with the one that he or she wants to introduce in their life. Furthermore, the instructor should avert any form of clash between the two cultures. Educating a person on the ways of another culture requires more than having knowledge and information about the two cultures. Such education requires the instructor to reflect and focus on both the target and native cultures. The reflection and focus is important given that the culture of the people is expressed through their language. As such, the student should understand that when learning a foreign language, they should familiarise themselves with the various aspects of the dialect. They should learn about the various aspects of the lives of the people in focus (Tang, 1999). For example, people from different cultures and from different geographical locations have d ifferent speech expressions. It is common to hear such phrases as â€Å"gday mate† in Australia, but the phrases are not used in America or in England. In efforts to understand the culture of a target language, the students are encouraged to learn about the various aspects of the lives of the native speakers. To facilitate this, the teacher is charged with the responsibility of capturing the interest and attention of the learners as far as learning the language is concerned (Byram, Esarte-Sarries, Taylor Allat, 1991). The focus of learning the foreign language should not only be on the differences between the two cultures, but also on discovering abstract similarities between them. For example, the ‘language behaviour’ exhibited by different cultures may be similar, depending on the level of abstraction. At high abstraction levels, cultural similarities are more discernible compared to cultural differences. However, at low abstraction levels, it is differences, and not similarities, which are discernible. The challenge facing instructors like me is the need to teach a language from different degrees of abstraction. The instructor should broach the subject by introducing obvious comparisons between the two cultures. As the learning progresses, the instructor will then shift to other comparisons at higher abstraction levels (Bex, 1994). According to Liddicoat Crozet (2001), interculturality is what validates the other and the self. In order to attain a hybrid position suitable for the learner, which is the third place, there should be a compromise between the two phenomena (Crozet, Liddicoat LoBianco, 1999). The compromise is reached through negotiations between the other and the self. In this case, the students make the decision to retain some aspects of the native culture. The students accept the idea of relinquishing some aspects of their culture, while selectively assimilating some aspects of the target culture (Crozet Liddicoat, 1999 ). In the early days, teaching and learning cultures foreign to the country required Saudi students to abandon their traditional cultures and embrace the foreign culture they were learning (Triandis, Kashima, Shimada Villareal, 1986). The replacement of one culture with another was largely regarded as unfavourable to them, given that it meant abandoning one form of mono-cultural existence and embracing another. However, and according to Kramsch (1993), the third place is the most suitable approach compared to the others. The third place gives the student the opportunity and freedom to identify a ground between L1 and L2 cultures. The third place theory is strongly linked to the third domain theory, which is outlined by Bhabha (1994). It is also related to dialogism theory, which is proposed by Bakhtin (1986). What this means is that it is not enough to analyse the third place theory as a stand-alone phenomenon. The scholar should take into consideration the links between the third place theory and the other theories (Kramsch, 1993). In conclusion, it is necessary for Saudi instructors teaching foreign language to understand the nature of the relationship between the two cultures. The instructor should be aware of the various aspects of the Saudi and target culture. The awareness will help them to effectively communicate with the learners. Furthermore, the understanding helps the instructors to transfer knowledge to the learners in a seamless manner. In addition, teachers should communicate to the learners the differences between the target culture and the native culture. At the same time, the instructor should highlight the various aspects of the new culture that are in agreement with the local culture. Just like other Muslim nations, Saudi Arabia is a very conservative society. The residents are very sensitive to foreign elements. In addition to â€Å"playing by the rules†, the teachers should equip their students with skills necessary to cope with li fe in English speaking nations. The skills will protect the students from cultural shock in their new learning environment. Equipping the learners with these skills helps in creating a third place, where the students are allowed and able to retain most aspects of their culture. At the same time, the students learn a new language and assimilate new ways of life. As already indicated, some of the students will remain behind in Saudi Arabia as their colleagues travel abroad for further studies. The third place will help most of the students who will remain behind to learn and appreciate the new language. They will continue to respect and appreciate their culture as they learn the new language. References Bakhtin, M. (1986). Speech genres and other late essays. Austin: University of Texas Press. Bex, A. R. (1994). The problem of culture and English language teaching in Europe. International Review of Applied Linguistics, 32(1), 57-67. Bhabha, H. (1994). The location of culture. New York : Routledge. Byram, M., Esarte-Sarries, V., Taylor, E., Allat, P. (1991). Young people’s perception of the other culture. In D. Buttjes M. Byram (Eds.), Mediating languages and cultures (pp. 103-119). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. Cook, H. M. (1999). Why cant learners of Japanese as a foreign language distinguish polite from impolite speech styles?. New York: US Department of Education, Educational Resources Information Centre. Crozet, C., Liddicoat, A. J. (1999). The challenge of intercultural language teaching: Engaging with culture in the classroom. In J. LoBianco, A. J. Liddicoat C. Crozet (Eds.), Striving for the third place: Intercultural competence through language education (pp. 113-126). Canberra: Language Australia. Crozet, C., Liddicoat, A. J., LoBianco, J. (1999). Intercultural competence: From language policy to language education. In J. LoBianco, A. J. Liddicoat C. Crozet (Eds.), Striving for the third place: Intercultural competence through language edu cation (pp. 1-20). Canberra: Language Australia. Kasper, G. (2001). Four perspectives on L2 pragmatic development. Applied Linguistics, 22(4), 502-530. Kramsch, C. (1993). Context and culture in language teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Lazenby, S. B. (1997). A study of pragmatic perception and strategic behaviour of adult second language learners. Language Awareness, 6(4), 233–237. Liddicoat, A. J. (2000). Everyday speech as culture: Implications for language teaching. In A. Liddicoat C. Crozet (Eds.), Teaching languages, teaching cultures (pp. 51-63). Melbourne: Applied Linguistics Association of Australia. Liddicoat, A. J., Crozet, C. (2001). Acquiring French interactional norms through instruction. In K. Rose G. Kasper (Eds.), Pragmatic development in instructional contexts. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Liddicoat, A. J., Crozet, C., LoBianco, J. (1999). Striving for the third place: Consequences and implications. In J. LoBianco, A. J. Liddicoat C. Crozet (Eds.), Striving for the third place: Intercultural competence through language education (pp. 1-20). Canberra: Language Australia. LoBianco, J. (1999). A ‘syntax of peace’? In J. LoBianco, A. J. Liddicoat C. Crozet (Eds.), Striving for the third place: Intercultural competence through language education (pp. 10-19). Melbourne: Language Australia. Papademetre, L. (2003). Learning languages. New York: Division of Education, Arts and Social Sciences. Schmidt, R. (1993). Consciousness, learning, and interlanguage pragmatics. In G. Kasper S. Blum-Kulka (Eds.), Interlanguage pragmatics (pp. 21-42). New York: Oxford University Press. Tang, R. (1999). The place of ‘culture’ in the foreign language classroom: A reflection. The Internet TESL Journal, 5(8), 37-57. Triandis, H. C., Kashima, Y., Shimada, E., Villareal, M. (1986). Acculturation indices as a means of confirming cultural differences. International Journal of Psychology, 21, 43-70. Trosborg, A. (1994). Interlanguage pragmatics: Requests, complaints, and apologies. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter Co.

How to Make Pure Sand

How to Make Pure Sand Sand that you find on a beach or a playground is a mixture of minerals and organic matter. Pure sand, which is silicon dioxide or silica, is a chemical you may not encounter. However, you can make pure sand yourself quite easily: Ingredients for Sand sodium silicate (make it yourself)sodium bisulfatewater Make Sand Mix together 5 ml sodium silicate solution and 5 ml water.In a separate container, stir 3.5 grams sodium bisulfate into 10 mL of water. Keep stirring until the sodium bisulfate dissolves.Mix the two solutions together. The resulting gel that forms at the bottom of the liquid is orthosilicic acid.Place the orthosilicic acid into a heat-safe glass or porcelain dish and heat it over a burner flame for about 5 minutes. The orthosilicic acid dries to form silicon dioxide, SiO2, which is your sand. Sand is non-toxic, but it presents an inhalation hazard since the small particles could become trapped in your lungs if inhaled. Therefore, enjoy your sand, but dont play with it like you might with natural sand. White Sand Beach

Leadership Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Leadership - Assignment Example Dell envisioned a great opportunity in the computing technology and decided to provide customers with computers at affordable prices and efficiently. He started off with a thousand dollars and saw technology as a means of increasing people’s potential. Dell’s vision was to design, manufacture and sell great computers that were affordable to every individual. He wanted to enhance the process of purchasing computers and through his vision he was able to redefine the manner in which personal computers were sold. In 1994, Dell became the youngest Chief Executive Officer of a Fortune 500 company by keeping to his vision and leading his company to great heights (Krivda 22). Alan Sugar was able to build Amstrad, a company that dealt with consumer electronics by establishing authority and giving clear goals and objectives to his employees. Sugar is a commanding leader who indicates the direction that the company should take and does not consult his subordinates on any issue concerning the company’s dealings. While at the age of twenty one, Alan Sugar saw various opportunities in the electronics’ business (Sugar 3). He grew up in an impoverished part of Britain and envisioned being rich, thus focusing on a successful path by taking the lead role and focusing the company in the direction that he wanted. His vision also encompasses the value of customers as he notes that the customers are always right and therefore, seeks to provide quality products and services. He directs his employees in a way that will ensure profitability for his business as he seeks to reward the employees that meet their goals and punishes those that do not. He steers t he business to success by asserting authority on the employees and setting goals that the employee must meet. Sugar’s vision is not limited to a certain business field as he also likes to diversify by starting

Why is the subject of water so prevalant in T.S. Eliot's The Wasteland Essay

Why is the subject of water so prevalant in T.S. Eliot's The Wasteland - Essay Example Is Eliot speaking of the human soul as a wasteland In this paper I will try to address this question, and thereby also explain why the concept of water is so prevalent in the poem; if one interpretation of the poem is that he is trying to show humanity and its spiritual beliefs have become a wasteland, that it has lost its spirituality, its connection to the divine, then we can look at water as a metaphor for that spirituality and thus the lack of water throughout the poem assumes a greater significance. In terms of religion and spirituality, water has been given an extremely important status, and has been used to denote many things. Broadly speaking, water has been used to represent four major concepts - life, purity, power and death or punishment (Broome, The Bible). Eliot appears to have interwoven all these meanings into his use of water, which seems to imply that he is speaking of humankind's loss of its humanity and its connection to God. To examine the question of how and why water is used so liberally in the poem, I will take each concept and examine it with respect to the poem. Scientifically too, water has been predicted to be the bearer of life; theories on the evolution of life generally agree that life arose from the thick soupy oceans in which the world was covered. Water itself is necessary for the propagation of life. Eliot would also have been aware of these theories as the period in which he lived was one ripe for science. His deep study of religion (Bush) is reflected in the references to the Bible and Hindu texts scattered throughout the poem. Within the very first part of the poem itself, the reference to water as a life-giver becomes evident: ".stirring dull roots with spring rain" and again from the lines of verse beginning at line 19 the landscape is described as dry, and therefore, dead and forbidding : A heap of broken images, where the sun beats, And the dead tree gives no shelter, the cricket no relief, And the dry stone no sound of water. Only There is shadow under this red rock, The lack of water is striking. There appears to be no water, no relief from the burning heat. Perhaps this is a reference to the lack of spiritual strength, the fact that there is no spiritual life as opposed to physical life. If we look at the Wasteland as a metaphor for the soul, then this interpretation is valid. This appears to be borne out later too, as Madame Sostrosis predicts the future from a pack of Tarot cards - "Fear death by water." She says. This could be a punishment for lack of belief, as water has often been used to bring punishment and the wrath of God. For example, the Great Flood in which Noah escaped in his

Why is the subject of water so prevalant in T.S. Eliot's The Wasteland Essay

Why is the subject of water so prevalant in T.S. Eliot's The Wasteland - Essay Example Is Eliot speaking of the human soul as a wasteland In this paper I will try to address this question, and thereby also explain why the concept of water is so prevalent in the poem; if one interpretation of the poem is that he is trying to show humanity and its spiritual beliefs have become a wasteland, that it has lost its spirituality, its connection to the divine, then we can look at water as a metaphor for that spirituality and thus the lack of water throughout the poem assumes a greater significance. In terms of religion and spirituality, water has been given an extremely important status, and has been used to denote many things. Broadly speaking, water has been used to represent four major concepts - life, purity, power and death or punishment (Broome, The Bible). Eliot appears to have interwoven all these meanings into his use of water, which seems to imply that he is speaking of humankind's loss of its humanity and its connection to God. To examine the question of how and why water is used so liberally in the poem, I will take each concept and examine it with respect to the poem. Scientifically too, water has been predicted to be the bearer of life; theories on the evolution of life generally agree that life arose from the thick soupy oceans in which the world was covered. Water itself is necessary for the propagation of life. Eliot would also have been aware of these theories as the period in which he lived was one ripe for science. His deep study of religion (Bush) is reflected in the references to the Bible and Hindu texts scattered throughout the poem. Within the very first part of the poem itself, the reference to water as a life-giver becomes evident: ".stirring dull roots with spring rain" and again from the lines of verse beginning at line 19 the landscape is described as dry, and therefore, dead and forbidding : A heap of broken images, where the sun beats, And the dead tree gives no shelter, the cricket no relief, And the dry stone no sound of water. Only There is shadow under this red rock, The lack of water is striking. There appears to be no water, no relief from the burning heat. Perhaps this is a reference to the lack of spiritual strength, the fact that there is no spiritual life as opposed to physical life. If we look at the Wasteland as a metaphor for the soul, then this interpretation is valid. This appears to be borne out later too, as Madame Sostrosis predicts the future from a pack of Tarot cards - "Fear death by water." She says. This could be a punishment for lack of belief, as water has often been used to bring punishment and the wrath of God. For example, the Great Flood in which Noah escaped in his

Discuss problems arising from IAS 17 Leases Essay

Discuss problems arising from IAS 17 Leases - Essay Example In a globalized economy leasing activities are increasing in magnitude as businesses strive to improve competitiveness through cost reduction and improved quality of products and services (IFRS Foundation, 2013a). Therefore, changes in accounting standards for leasing will influence the overall preparation of financial statements. Leasing is of great significance to the business entities. â€Å"It is a means of gaining access to assets, obtaining finance, and of reducing an entity’s exposure to the risk of asset ownership† (IFRS Foundation, 2013a, p.5). Initially, the prevailing accounting model for leases required the lessors and lessees to recognize and categorize leases either as finance leases or operating lease. Also, it required them to maintain a separate account for leases. The financing lease used to finance equipment for the most of its useful life and lessee would take the ownership of the equipment after the lease period. On the other hand, operating lease financed equipment for a period less that its useful life and lessee returned the leased equipment to the lessor without any obligation of transfer of ownership. However, the model failed to fulfill the needs of users because it did not recognize assets and liabilities relating to operating leases. This led to the adoption of IAS 1 17 Leases (IFRS Foundation, 2013a). The application of IAS 17, Leases requires the lessee to establish items and maintain track of all right-to-use assets. It requires comprehensive sub-ledgers and creates the need for the establishment of discrete â€Å"property, plant and equipment sub-ledgers for the right-to-use assets† (IFRS Foundation, 2013a, p. 5). In addition, the lessee has to establish a scheme to ascertain each lease as a component of right-to-use asset category. However, the International Accounting Standards 17 (IAS 17),

Personal computer Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Personal computer - Research Paper Example The new product is also very different from all those that made a mark over humanity’s technological life. The Google Glass is different because it is no doubt an attempt to bridge the gap between human and machine. The Google Glass is not a new product as it does not advances the existing computational capacity but it rather decreases the size and adjusts the processing speed in order to design the glasses which can house a computer (Hodson, 2013). The idea is so innovative that it overwhelmed everyone despite the presentation of medical professionals who argued that the new device may hurt the human eyes (Anne, 2013). The technological intervention caused other relevant parties to adjust their offerings in order to cope with the change, the new product is supposed to bring in the international arena of technology. The software developers are already busy in conceptualizing and developing new products that can be used on the new platform. The Google Glass is defined as a wearable computer device with optical head-mounted display. The device was announced in the terminal months of 2012 and ever since, it is the most celebrated and waited for device throughout the world. The company has decided to consider India as the testing grounds for the new product and its prototypes and prescription lenses are already retailing in US against the handsome opening price of $1500 (Gaul, 2014). The price is only expected to rise when the device will be launched in the full-fledge manner. The vast scale offering of the product is consistently been delayed as company wants to take no unnecessary risks with operationality of the device which can turn the industry upside down upon meeting the expected success. Nothing definitive can be said or established about the geographical location in which the Google Glass will be finally offered. The marketing gurus are of the view that

The Ethics of Research Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Ethics of Research - Article Example The research in the article followed an ethical context because the two authors gave credit to all the authors of the data that he relied on to construct the graphical analysis presented in the paper (Dolnicar & Leisch, 2014). Moreover, the authors maintained confidentiality by not revealing the names of the managers used to offer their opinion in the paper (Miller, 2012). Maintaining confidentiality is a central aspect in the ethics that govern research in any field. Notably, prior to conducting the research, the participants offered their consent, and the authors obtained permission from the relevant offices (Elliott, Stern, & Institute for the Study of Applied and Professional Ethics 2007). In my opinion, the authors did their best in observing all the ethical guidelines that have been defined to guide any form of research. It is evident that the authors have given credit to all the authors whose data has been used in the paper (Gregory, 2003). This only indicates that they observed the rigorous research process of research, while abiding by the defined ethical rules. Therefore, they succeeded in this sector (Miller, 2012). Elliott, D., Stern, J. E., & Institute for the Study of Applied and Professional Ethics. (1997).Research ethics: A reader. Hanover, NH: Published by University Press of New England for the Institute for the Study of Applied and Professional Ethics at Dartmouth

Pheromones Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Pheromones - Essay Example Pheromonal communication elicits physiologic and behavioural changes in the subject affected. Pheromones were initially studied in insects, where they have an established role as proven by scientific research. Limited sensory development in insects as compared to mammals necessitates the presence of some communication mechanism by which they can exchange information. Pheromones are the substances which perform this function. The complex manner in which ants, termites, honey bees, bugs and other insects organise their daily life without any verbal communication is a definite clue to the presence of pheromones. All insects have a highly organised pattern of social interaction as well as a well defined reproductive pattern which are guided by pheromones. According to an online article by Pines Maya of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the first pheromone ever to be identified (in 1956) was a powerful sex attractant for silkworm moths. It was isolated over a span of twenty years by a team of German researchers. After removing certain glands at the tip of the abdomen of 500,000 female moths, they extracted the compound. Miniscule amounts of this compound elicited excitement in the male moths exhibited by fluttering of their wings. This clear sign that the males had sensed the attractant enabled the scientists to purify the pheromone. The compound was purified subsequently and was named "bombykol" for the silkworm moth, Bombyx mori from which it was extracted. There are enough visibly apparent instances of evidence of the existence of pheromones in our daily life when we observe insect behaviour. Bees and wasps home in to the precise location of their hives; ants leave a trail for others to follow, and the butterflies locate members of the opposite sex during flight. Pheromones are predominantly volatile compounds detected by the sense of smell but sometimes can be liquid contact chemicals (Gullan P.J. et al). They are secreted from the exocrine glands derived from the epidermal cells. Classification of pheromones in insects is based upon five categories of behaviour associated with sex, aggregation, spacing, trail forming and alarm. Sex pheromones are usually secreted during the breeding season by the female which attracts the males. Aggregation pheromones cause insects of both sexes to crowd around the source of the pheromone. Spacing pheromones are anti aggregation and are secreted to repel further arrivals of the species when a particular spot is saturated with the species or the food source is exhausted. Trail marking pheromones are volatile and short lived chemicals that evaporate within days unless reinforced. They are used by social insects like ants to mark the trail to the nest or food source. Alarm pheromones are volatile, non persiste nt compounds that are secreted by insects during aggression by a predator or any other calamity which may affect the nest. They induce protection behaviour by collection or aggregation of the affected species such as bees. The presence and significance of pheromones in higher species in the ecological order has been well documented but the role played by them in human beings has been full of claims, counterclaims and controversies. Social as well as sexual behaviour in the quadruped mammals is strongly influenced by the sense of smell. Territory marking is a prominent feature in animals like lions, tigers and dogs. Such animals can detect the presence of another male by the

The Ethics of Research Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Ethics of Research - Article Example The research in the article followed an ethical context because the two authors gave credit to all the authors of the data that he relied on to construct the graphical analysis presented in the paper (Dolnicar & Leisch, 2014). Moreover, the authors maintained confidentiality by not revealing the names of the managers used to offer their opinion in the paper (Miller, 2012). Maintaining confidentiality is a central aspect in the ethics that govern research in any field. Notably, prior to conducting the research, the participants offered their consent, and the authors obtained permission from the relevant offices (Elliott, Stern, & Institute for the Study of Applied and Professional Ethics 2007). In my opinion, the authors did their best in observing all the ethical guidelines that have been defined to guide any form of research. It is evident that the authors have given credit to all the authors whose data has been used in the paper (Gregory, 2003). This only indicates that they observed the rigorous research process of research, while abiding by the defined ethical rules. Therefore, they succeeded in this sector (Miller, 2012). Elliott, D., Stern, J. E., & Institute for the Study of Applied and Professional Ethics. (1997).Research ethics: A reader. Hanover, NH: Published by University Press of New England for the Institute for the Study of Applied and Professional Ethics at Dartmouth

I can read letters on topics within my areas of academic or Essay

I can read letters on topics within my areas of academic or professional speciality or interest and grasp the most important points - Essay Example Their heirs to obstruction continue in the attempt today. Their burden is greater because of progress that was achieved by Presidents Kennedy, Johnson, and Obama. Obama, especially, is responsible for heaping coals of fire on the heads of his political opponents who will not accept the fact that he was, twice, elected president and was able to provide health care to millions, both against great odds. I continue to be amazed by President Obama’s ability to continue his work with grace and dignity in the face of an onslaught of lies, contempt, obstruction, and insults. It is a lesson to any who will observe him with an open mind that we must not repay his offenders in kind, even when we are witness to abusive and retaliatory actions by them when they gain power. The letter on political tolerance focuses on the opposition faced by presidents in the United States. The writer sends the letter in a bid to advocate for tolerance, patience and dignity in political dealings. One section focuses on the hatred geared towards Mr. Hoover during his tenure. The writer recalls the mother’s advice that political intolerance causes hate and serves little in problem solving. The letter mentions that President Roosevelt encountered several challenges form his opposition. His view of progress was often received as controversial and wrong for the American people. In the same manner, presidents like Kennedy, Johnson and Barrack Obama often faced similar opposition. The letter then focuses on Obama and praises the president for his response towards his opposition. Specifically, the writer acknowledges the president’s re-election to office and his resilience despite bitter politics. The letter concludes that a great leader responds to opposition wi th kindness and tolerance. The letter sparks interest as it addresses an issue of key concern in America politics. Political divide along ideology is expected in every

The US border Security Essay Example for Free

The US border Security Essay Discussed in this essay is an outline of US borders and security related to them. The geographic and strategic value of the borders has been described in the beginning. Then the origin and purpose of United States Border Patrol has been discussed. Mentioned in the middle body are the steps or actions that USBP had taken so far in for safeguarding the borders along with the trouble they have endured in curbing issues such as illegal immigration, drug and human trafficking and screen immigrants for the signs of terrorism. Also discussed in length are human and drug trafficking that takes place across US border and how these things make their way into United States. The United States policy regarding border security is briefly discussed and the essay is closed with an analytical conclusion. US Border Security Since the beginning of civilization, borders have perhaps been the most valued asset nations consider themselves to have. Wars have been waged for the sake of their protection or expansion but they have been regarded sacredly none the less. As humanity progressed into the latter centuries, the concepts and its rigidity regarding the borders of a state kept on changing as the ancient world had open and unmanned borders. United States of America, since its creation has been guarding her borders with absolute zeal and dedication. Acquiring the half of the north American continent, United States is flanked by ocean on both its east and west side, whilst it shares its borders with Canada in the north and from Mexico in the south. Being one of the richest, most advanced and highly organized countries of the world, United States borders have been the object of fascination for its neighboring countries, specially Mexico being a third world country living right at the door step of US. Adhering to a strict and stern immigration and interior policy, people from all across the globe find it difficult to get entrance into the US without severe securitization. Offering the glorious prospects of freedom, financial security, safeguarding of rights and its ability to assimilate the diverse cultures of the world into its own, almost every person in the world has been enchanted by the prospect of living a life in the US, the Land of the Free. That is the reason its 8,000 miles long border have been violated enough times, specially from the south as immigrants from all across South American wishes to live a life of peace in the US. Along with the sea of illegal immigrants, US borders also face smugglers of both drugs and contraband items because of being one of the most lucrative markets in the world. Coupled with these troubles, US borders have been guarded highly as means of not permitting terrorist from making their way into US. The taste of 9/11 is something that US hasn’t quite forgotten yet. Thus, the border security of United States is not only one of the highest efficient and vigilant in the world, it is also one of the most sensitive one due to its immense size. Its importance can be summed up in the words of Ronald Regan as he said: The simple truth is that weve lost control of our own borders, and no Nation can do that and survive. We ignore Americas lost sovereignty at our own peril† (cited in www. usborderwatch. com) Overview The land border of US along with Canada spans 5,525 miles and is the longest non-militarized border in the world. There are 84 land POEs (Point Of Entry) along the northern border, which include but are not limited to three in Idaho,13 in Maine, three in Michigan, five in Minnesota, 10 in Montana, 12 in New York, 18 in North Dakota, seven in Vermont, and 12 in Washington. Around 250,000 people enter the United States from Canada. Canada is the single largest trading partner of the United States, with the total trade exceeding almost $372 billion in 2003. In fact, the largest trade link in the world is the Ambassador Bridge (connecting Detroit, Michigan and Windsor, Ontario) that has more than 7,000 trucks crossing daily transporting goods worth more than $120 billion per year. The southern land border with Mexico is 1,933 miles across and has 25 land POEs, six of which are in California, six in Arizona, two in New Mexico, and 11 in Texas. Over 800,000 people arrive from Mexico daily. Mexico is United States second largest trading partner, with the trade of $220. 3 billion in 2003, down from $247. 2 billion in 2000. The coast line of the United States is 12,479 miles long and there are 143 sea POEs. Some sea and river POEs are principally commercial ports while others receive passengers (Border Security: Inspections Practices, Policies, and Issues, 2004). In order to be able to cope with such a vast border from which not trade merchandise has been able to pass but also torrent of immigrants, either legal or illegal along with the high possibility of drugs, liquor, contraband items and smuggled good, US Border Patrol was founded in 1924 which after 85 five years is among one of the finest law enforcement organizations in the world. United States Border Patrol (USBP) Founded in 1924, the U. S. Border Patrol was established in El Paso, Texas, and Detroit, Michigan. Its primary purpose was to curb the illegal entry of aliens, contraband, and the flow of forbidden liquor from Mexico and Canada into the United States. Under the authority of the Immigration Act, approved by Congress on May 28, 1924, the Border Patrol was created as a uniformed law enforcement branch of the Immigration Bureau (â€Å"85 Years Of Protected By†, 2009). Back in those days, smuggling of liquor from Canada and Mexico was an immensely lucrative business and invited illegal immigrants to have a go at their lucks in United States. Today, the USBP’s primary mission is to detect and prevent the entry of terrorists, weapons of mass destruction, and illegal aliens into the country, and to interdict drug smugglers and other criminals along the border. The Homeland Security Act of 2002 dissolved the Immigration and Naturalization Service and placed the USBP within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) (Border security, the role of US border patrol, 2008). In the wake of 9/11, USBP’s funding and man power has been increased exponentially by the consent of Congress. Now having almost 18,000 agents in 20 sectors, and 164 stations all across the United States, its objectives and strategies also include the prevention of terrorists from entering the United States soil along with the detection and neutralization of weapons of mass destruction. Perhaps the toughest task USBP has to do is to curb the flow of illegal immigrants the swarms the borders of United States, especially the southern border. Due to the fact that over 97% of unauthorized migrant apprehensions occur along the southwest border, the USBP deploys over 90% of its agents there to deter illegal immigration. In 1993, a study commissioned by the Office of National Drug Control Policy pointed out to the fact that the southwest border was becoming the den of illegal immigrants noting as an example that 6,000 illegal immigrants attempted to enter the United States every night along a 7. 5 mile stretch of the San Diego border. The study also concluded that drug smuggling was a serious threat all along the southwest border, and recommended that the entries of the illegal immigrants should e prevented at the border rather than arresting them after entrance. This consequently led to USBP’s implementation of its first National Strategic Plan (NSP) in 1994. National Strategic Plan An endeavor to gain control over the overrun borders, NSP started out as a multiphase programs so as to maximize the USBP’s resources and their implementation on the areas of greatest entry of illegal immigrants and goods. The focus of the NSP was an operational strategy known as â€Å"Prevention Through Deterrence. † The strategy’s goal was to place USBP agents and resources directly on the border in order to prevent the entry of illegal aliens, rather than attempting to arrest aliens after they have already entered the country. Strategy’s phase I was called program â€Å"Hold the Line† at El Paso sector, which focused on the deployment of the agents deep into the borders in order to detect any alleged or attempted entries of border crossing rather than apprehending the culprits in the city streets and wasting precious time as it was relatively easy to catch border crossers in the wide open desert. The program wasn’t a complete success as it merely shifted the border crossing point from El Paso to somewhere else. San Diego’s Operation Gatekeeper followed after the El Paso program and many agents were deployed along the San Diego border. Aiding them was the state of the art ground sensors, infra-red cameras and stadium lights along with landing mats used as a border fence. Phase II of the program included the expansion of Operation Safeguard (1999) in Tucson, Arizona, operation Rio Grande (1997) in the McAllen and Laredo sectors of Texas, and an increased emphasis on securing the northern border. Phase III was set to involve the remaining areas of the southwest border as well as the coastal waters around Florida and Puerto Rico (Border security, the role of US border patrol, 2008). After the fateful events of 9/11, the USBP has modified its directives and prioritizing the prevention of terrorist penetration through the borders. As the investigations relating to 9/11 revealed that the terrorists had roamed freely across US with the status of illegal immigrant and prepared for the attacks from with in the US soil, USBP in collaboration with Immigration and Custom’s Enforcements, Anti Smuggling Units and CBP’s intelligence has directed all its attention towards the alien penetration across the US border. USBP revealed their new strategy to cope with the terror threats from entering US via illegal border crossing in March 2005. The five major points of that strategy are as follows. Establishing the substantial probability of apprehending terrorists and their weapons as they attempt to enter illegally between the ports of entry; Deterring illegal entries through improved enforcement; Detecting, apprehending, and deterring smugglers of humans, drugs, and other contraband; Leveraging â€Å"Smart Border† technology to multiply the deterrent and enforcement effect of Agents; Reducing crime in border communities, thereby improving the quality of life and economic vitality of those areas (Border security, the role of US border patrol, 2008). Striving hard to get the task done, the Homeland Security Department last year awarded one of the most ambitious technology contracts in the war on terror, a 10-year deal estimated at up to $10 billion to the global consulting firm Accenture. In return, the company would provide services to create a â€Å"virtual border that would electronically screen millions of foreign travelers. Termed as US-VISIT program, which stands for the United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology, started in July 2003. The US-VISIT system must eventually cover nearly 7,000 miles of borders along Mexico and Canada, including more than 300 land, air and sea ports that witness 450 million crossings a year (Higam OHarrow Jr. , 2005, p. A01). Human and Drug Trafficking across US borders Aside from the newly instilled fear of terrorism, United States faces the troublesome elements of smuggling of drugs and human trafficking and most of these gruesome things wade their way into America by means of illegal border crossing. Addressing the human trafficking element first, â€Å"The U. S. State Department’s 2005 Report on Human Trafficking estimates that between 600,000 to 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders every year and almost 20,000 are trafficked across U. S. borders alone† (â€Å"Combat Trafficking in Persons†, 2005). The horrible side of this gruesome business is that most of the trafficked persons are children. Extremely lucrative and seemingly unobtrusive, â€Å"human trafficking is considered to be the third-largest source of criminal income worldwide, generating an estimated $9. 5 billion per year. It is also closely linked with money laundering, document forgery, drug trafficking and international terrorism. † (Keefer, 2006, p. 5). According to John P. Torres, deputy assistant director for smuggling and public safety at the United States Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) cross border human trafficking is a â€Å"significant risk to national security and public safety† (Seper, 2004). Drug trafficking is the problem that has plagued US since its very beginning. The very purpose of the establishment of USBP was to prohibit smuggled drugs from entering American territory but even after 85 years, the problem has not been fully curbed yet. It is the most lucrative organized crime operation in United States with its annual income estimated to be â€Å"as high as $110 billion† (â€Å"America’s Habit†, 1986). Cocaine being the most sought after drug, as its roots of origin are literally buried in South American countries, other popular drugs such as marijuana and heroin make its way into United States by means of either maritime vessels or through southern border. The numerous drug cartels active in United States gets their drugs en route Mexico regardless of the joint ventures both countries engaged in so as to hamper the drug trafficking. Mexico itself cultivates heroin and due to its lightly guarded 2,000 miles border with United States is the chief trafficker of heroin in USA. Drugs also are brought in underground through tunnels; some 100 have been discovered since 1990 along the 1,950-mile U. S. -Mexico border. The most sophisticated tunnels have lights, air systems and hydraulics (Feyerick et al, 2009). Regardless of extra tight security since 9/11 drug somehow is making its way into United States and hasn’t completely been stopped yet. Aside from human and drug trafficking, the USBP also has to look out for items of contraband nature such as weapons and pirated merchandise. With such a huge number of people passing through both north and south borders of United States, hunting down illegal immigrants, terrorists, drugs and pirated merchandise has become a daunting task for USBP. United States Border Security Policy Aware of its much sought after status, United States border security has always been very clear and its primary motive is to make sure the safety and its borders from the swarms of illegal immigrants and smuggled goods. The primary emphasis of the policy is about the status of immigrants who crosses both the borders of north and south to gain access into United States. Being in excellent terms with the government of Canada, the northern border of United States is subjected to less scrutinizing as compared to the southern one that’s in contact with Mexico. The residents of Mexico are issued a special Mexican Laser Visa that grants them access into US for as long as 6 months. Southern border, being constantly breached by illegal immigrants and smugglers is a highly watched territory where thousands of people pass every day thus making it extremely difficult for CBP and USBP to keep an eye out for anomalies. Keeping that in mind, granting Visa is not the only procedure to gain access into United States. Interviews are conducted, data is cross referenced and surveillance is mounted so that only the right person could be able to go through the gates of US. In the post 9/11 times, the security checks has been doubled and it has become the â€Å"primary mission of CBP is to prevent terrorists and terrorist weapons from entering the country. However, other components of CBP’s mission include interdicting other prohibited items such as illegal drugs, ammunition, firearms, and counterfeit goods; and monitoring trade compliance† (Border Security: Inspections Practices, Policies, and Issues, 2004). Conclusion The border patrol strategy was aimed at strengthening of United States immigration laws and strove for decreasing the number of illegal immigrants coming into the United States by increasing controls at the its borders. Previously the resources were primarily directed at strengthening the border patrol along the southwest border, to curb the entrance of illegal immigrants and smuggled goods but the terrorist attacks, however, brought attention to the northern border, which has been understaffed and lacked the necessary technology to adequately screen individuals seeking entry into the United States. Several pieces of legislation passed in the 107th Congress authorized and appropriated funding for additional staffing and resources along the northern border. Regardless of its outstanding services and capabilities, USBP has not been able to completely tackle the problem of illegal immigrants and smuggled merchandise. Many reasons, such the sheer size of the borders, the number of immigrants passing through it every and the dogged determinacy of people willing to enter the Land of the Free etc may contribute to its incomplete success. But that still doesn’t change the fact that US borders are much more safe and vigilant in the presence of United Stated Border Patrol. Reference â€Å"85 years of protected by† retrieved May 24, 2009 from http://www. cbp. gov/xp/cgov/border_security/border_patrol/85th_anniversary. xml/. â€Å"Americas Habit†, Drug Abuse, Drug Trafficking, Organized Crime Presidents Commission on Organized Crime, 1986, retrieved May 24, 2009 from http://www. druglibrary. org/SCHAFFER/GOVPUBS/amhab/amhabc3. htm/. â€Å"Border Security: Inspections Practices, Policies, and Issues†. CRS Report for Congress, 2004. Order Code RL32399, Congressional Research Service, The Library of Congress. â€Å"Border Security: The Role of the U. S. Border Patrol†. CRS Report for Congress, 2008. Order Code RL32562, Congressional Research Service, The Library of Congress. Feyerick, Deborah; Cary, Michael Steffen, Sheila. â€Å"Drug smugglers becoming more creative, U. S. agents say† April 16, 2009, retrieved May 24, 2009 from http://edition. cnn. com/2009/CRIME/04/16/creative. drug. smugglers/index. html/. Keefer, Sandra L. , â€Å"Human Trafficking And The Impact On National Security For The United States† March 2006, U. S. Army War College Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania 17013, p. 5-8. OHarrow Jr. Robert Higham, Scott. â€Å"US Border Security At Cross Roads† Washington Post, Monday, May 23, 2005, p. A01. Regan, Ronald. Quotation. Retrieved May 24, 2009 from http://usborderwatch. com/. Seper, Jerry. â€Å"Human Smuggling a Security Risk. † Washington Times. 19 May 2004, retrieved May 24 2009 from http://www. washingtontimes. com/functions/print. php? StoryID=20040518-103934-8980/. Trafficking in Persons Report, U. S. Department of State, 2005, retrieved May 24, 2009, http://state. gov/g/tip/tiprpt/2005/46606. htm/.